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There are 7 new posts in "WATBlog.com - Web, Advertising and Technology Blog in India" Epson Goes Social: Launches Full Fledged Photogrpahy Portal FotoFlock.comNot just following on the footsteps of HP Printers’ snapfish intative to get into photo sharing and printing market, but taking it a step ahead, Epson has launched a complete photography portal - Foto Flock. The website will have articles, news, interviews, forums, tips & tricks, contests, event listings, photographer profiles and other resources related to photography in India. To add to this they have even introduced a social networking like feature within the members section and gallery region. It basically encourages members to upload photographs and share thoughts on each other's work through comments and enables interaction. According to Epson’s release, apart from the latest advancements and news, the site will also showcase exclusive interviews with some of the luminaries of the global photographic community and also be bringing in contributions from reputed specialists around the world. Amongst others, there’s the much sought-after celebrity photographer Jay Silverman and reputed landscape photographer David Zimmerman, along with a selection of India’s finest and most exciting professionals. Checking the site out I found it to have articles and interviews of Vikram Bawa and Gautam Rajadhyaksha, both eminent and experienced names in the industry. Again, given Epson’s brand name interviews of this kind wouldn’t be surprising. The website also has a marketplace for photography gears and perhaps photographs as well ( the marketplace is pretty inactive hence, can’t be sure). Fitting the commercial angle should fit perfectly into the overall business proposition of this effort from Epson according to me. Once you get people to use and trust the system, which they very well might consider it is an E-bay model of users buying and selling their gears and stuff (not sure if it will be auction based though), Epson can drive them to buy photo prints of other members and proactively sell their photo prints as well. Building the photo-prints service as well as push the printer/display division obviously is the end priority of this initiative. What I like the most about the site is its social features, right from its platform which is based on Joomla, to the various interactivity and resources that it has added. Even the contests and the above mentioned marketplace are driving home the point of engagement. And that’s where the crux lays - user involvement and engagement as the basis of commerce. They even have sections like Photo of the day and event updates to further engage the members. Even if this might not be the first socially driven online venture, I haven’t seen a better packaged example before. I haven’t tested the entire system yet, not much of a photographer in terms of talent anyway to make the most of it. However, photography is one of the most followed hobbies in India, and the Epson’s Foto Flock certainly is giving the community a lot more than most other photography related platforms in India are. Though I must admit, despite its inherent socialness the site is not well optimized to make the most of it. It doesn’t have easy bookmarking features or easy share menus. I don’t even see any email feature. Even contributing articles to the portal is email driven in the age of online forms. The unoptimzation of social features is certainly a letdown and I hope to see them included soon. My favourite section in the site of course is the tutorial and how to, for a month old site, it already has a lot of interesting pieces to read through. Passionate photographers might like the product news and features section more. It will however be interesting to see how the website promotes and reaches out to people and more importantly make them stay. Most Commented Posts Also check out Our Jobsite: WATJob Our Video Show: WATShow Our Gaming Blog: WATGame Our Consulting: WATConsult The Google Phone - Will It Truimph Over iPhone ?T-Mobile has launched the first phone based on Google-backed Android operating system. Yes, the first 'Google Phone’ is out. The handset itself has been manufactured by HTC. Comparisons to iPhone are inevitable. Blogosphere is loaded with reports of the first G-phone finally hitting the market. The reviews (opinions, actually) are mixed all over. From the time it was first announced, the G-Phone, as it was known initially, had created a lot of hype. Though later, when it became known that Google won’t be developing a hardware device, but will be designing an operating system for the existing smart phones, the hype died. The reactions on the new Android based phone (yes, that’s the correct definition) are mixed. Some people have found it outright ugly (When compared to the iPhone. I wonder, comparing to the iPhone, what can come across as non-ugly?) So, what do we think of the Google Phone? The hardware device is by HTC. It’s the software that’s powered by Android. It’s called G1, and the carrier is T-Mobile. The interface of the first-generation Android phone is not as breathtaking as the iPhone, but it sure looks good. It’s a smartphone, build on the promise of customization. So, rather than what it has, it’s the potential of what it can be, that’s of more importance here. From the start, Google has promoted Android as an open source platform for the developers. If that true, we can have thousands of developers trying out applications for Android. In that respect, the first version adheres to the work policy of Google of getting the version 1 out in the market as soon as possible. The improvements are done in an iterative manner, after the feedback. Looking in this light, the G1 has a long way to go. How much of oomph factor it can possess will depend largely on the (a.)hardware manufacture and (b.)the applications installed on it. Now, clearly, both these things are not totally in Google’s hands. Apple, on its hand is clearly ahead as of now. Its product is a commercial blockbuster, and it has opened up the development to a number of developers. Although it still has a say on what app goes into the iPhone store, but not many are complaining. If Apple can maintain the quality of the apps that go in the iPhone, by this partial regulation, then it’s good for Apple. Android, as far as I can guess, will do away with any kind of restriction. Anyone will be free to develop anything for the platform. Now the problem with this approach is the user being bombarded with a a lot of useless applications. Something that can be described as app-spamming (never heard the term before.) A lot to sift through, to find something really useful. Yes, this will ensure that on the whole, the number of useful applications on the Android platform will exceed those on the iPhone, but again, to get through these useful ones, a user will have to wade through a lot of useless ones. Might be a frustrating experience. Overall, the situation is close to what was when Linux debuted. A lot of happiness in the developer community for an open platform to chose on. However, an end non-geeky user, prefers ease of use. And Linux never really took off. Every year there were Open Source Conferences , where presentations by the self-proclaimed experts will claim that Microsoft will become in extinct in two years. Four 2-years have passed since I saw the first since claim and Linux is yet to make a difference. The point here is that to the end user, functionality comes before potential. So, the end user might still prefer an iPhone. Unless, the Google Phone becomes as cool as Google itself is in the online world. Related PostsAlso check out Our Jobsite: WATJob Our Video Show: WATShow Our Gaming Blog: WATGame Our Consulting: WATConsult [How To] Convert RSS Feeds Into Emails
How many RSS Feeds have you subscribed to, till date? Do you even know what a RSS Feed is? Have you ever used a feed reader? There are a lot many of us who either hate or do not even know how to set up RSS feeds. A lot many people prefer content updates to be delivered right to their email addresses. A friend of mine satisfies most of his internet needs at the expense of his working hours but since he cannot access most of the news and blog pages in office, he fails to remain updated on our college community blog. Although he has subscribed to a few blogs (WATBlog is one of them) via email newsletters and routed them to his official email id, not every site offers the option of email subscriptions.
How did I do it? Well, that is what this post is all about, my friend!:-)
Hope this little tutorial helped make your life a little easier. Do let us know is there is anything else on the web-o-sphere that you might need help with. We shall try to return with a solution very soon.
Related PostsAlso check out Our Jobsite: WATJob Our Video Show: WATShow Our Gaming Blog: WATGame Our Consulting: WATConsult Startup Review - IndiBlogger.in - A Bloggers’ Guild
It hasn’t been too long since blogging took off, in a big way, in India. Although a lot of interesting debate can spark off on which one the oldest Indian Blog might be, we ask, does it really matter? What matters is the evolution, the way the blogging scenario shaped in this country. From regular banter of a frustrated comp geek to physics lessons by self proclaimed Einsteins to marketing lessons by today’s leechers and spam bloggers to the genuine ones like us (hoping you echo our voices too), the blogging culture has evolved a lot. It is no more an alien phenomenon. What the heck! A few days ago, I even discovered a 4 year old kid blogging away to glory! It was InstaBlogs who first realized the importance of forming a guild (of sorts) for the Indian bloggers. It was sad to find no other volunteer for the cause, until it was August 2007 and IndiBlogger was formed. The idea behind 5 men (Renie, Anoop, Balaganesh, Anwin & Navin) to get together and form the “association” (if I can call it so) was to enable bloggers to network between themselves, to get themselves known and also learn about the habitat outside their realm of suitability. IndiBlogger had been trying hard, for the past 1 year, to get themselves noticed among the bloggers, form a sense of brotherhood between themselves and also organize Bloggers’ Meets in various prime cities like Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Hyderabad and Delhi - to help the bloggers create the online-offline synergy that has become so very much essential in today’s survival strategy in the online world.
What is IndiBlogger all about?As per what it seemed to me, IndiBlogger aims to be the hub of all Indian Bloggers who would like to network between themselves and, obviously, gain out of it. All a blogger needs to do is apply for his/her blogs and Renie, in his own words, checks every single blog manually before giving them the green ticket. Of course, their methods do sound pretty primitive but the fact that they have decided to go offline too, with their initiative, gives them a renewed piece of respect. IndiBlogger seems to expect every blogger to dig into their archives and check out each and every blog. Well, it should have hit their heads that today’s smart asses rely more on micro-blogging tools like Twitter and Plurk to figure out their allies and unless it is an employer looking out for potential bloggers, no one would hardly ever care to get their hands dirty within the huge pile. As of now, I am sure the IndiBlogger guys are happy that they at least have a “huge pile” created. Of course, the tough part is to reach out to people. The tougher part of retaining them can be thought of later, but fast! Good Things About IndiBlogger -
A few not-so-kind words for IndiBlogger -
On the whole, the Kolkata Meet was a very good experience for me, personally, and shall be looking forward to more of the same. If you wish, you can also check out their official Flickr stream. Lastly, I totally dig for IndiBlogger’s slogan, “We Blog, Therefore We Are!” Related PostsAlso check out Our Jobsite: WATJob Our Video Show: WATShow Our Gaming Blog: WATGame Our Consulting: WATConsult Adlabs Cinemas Inks Deal With SureWaves For Content Delivery To LCD ScreensAdlabs Cinemas, the film exhibition arm of Reliance ADAG group has tied up with SureWaves for content delivery to the digital LCD screens present in Box Office, lobby etc, reports Afaqs. Not to be confused with Digital Cinema, in which the film itself is distributed to the cinema theater screen. Here, it’s the screens, outside the actual theaters, that will be powered by SureWaves; technology. These screens will be used for promotions, advertising and ticket availability information. Through the use of this technology, content delivery can be monitored through a centralized location to geographically diverse screens. The technology will be implemented in more than 150 screens across 12 Adlabs Cinemas. “We provide solutions on the SaaS (Software-as-a-Service) model and we also provide additional upgrades as part of the long term relationship and customisation as per client requirements. Adlabs was looking for a solution to manage its digital displays, which allow customised look and feel, and complete control. We also provided integration with the ticket booking system and tools to manage content from a central location, where each of the screens is addressable from the central location.” LCD screens have been present in Adlabs theatres. However, these were not centrally addressable from a single point. Related PostsAlso check out Our Jobsite: WATJob Our Video Show: WATShow Our Gaming Blog: WATGame Our Consulting: WATConsult More Money in DoT’s Kitty? Courtesy, Spectrum Allocation Blues!
One can always trust the Department of Telecom to come up with the most radical of ideas and storm up controversies. Of course, it must be said that almost all the ideas, DoT has ever implemented, have benefited the end user till sun dawn. And of course, they have done it again, their favorite theft of time, the 3G policy. Amidst all the recent hype about the 3G spectrum allocation and auctioning off the same, the Department of Telecom has expressed its interest to charge the 3G spectrum owners additionally for using cellular services on the spectrum above 6.2 MHz (allocated for 2G).
DoT just might be sympathetic towards operators since it’s a herculean task to pay up such huge amounts at once and might even topple India from the crown of providing the cheapest call rates in the world. A better idea would be to charge for the additional spectrums as a percentage of the operators’ annual revenue, loosening the noose around their necks a little. What really baffles me is how could every operator be charged extra for the extra spectrum, out of the blue? If Bharti Airtel has already been allocated 12MHz, I’m sure they had duly paid for the same. Doesn’t this mean you got to pay for your already bought goods once again? Moreover, if players like Airtel do not end up winning a 3G spectrum (although such a scenario looks extremely unlikely), will they still have to pay up for the extra spectrum? How much shall this affect the current call rates and data plans already applicable in the market? Any guesses? Related PostsAlso check out Our Jobsite: WATJob Our Video Show: WATShow Our Gaming Blog: WATGame Our Consulting: WATConsult Obopay Tagit Tieup While RBI Announces M-Banking GuidelinesObopay a mobile payment services company which entered India earlier this year has tied up with Tagit a provider of mobile interactive platform inorder to create a common mobile banking infrastructure for banks, telecom companies and other financial institutions in India. Under this alliance Tagit will integrate its MoBEIX Transaction Platform with Obopay's P2P payment platform. While the m-payment guys are doing tie ups RBI on the other end is tying up a document together that puts a cap on the total number of payment possible via a mobile phone. RBI has released operative guidelines for Banks for Mobile transactions in India. Key Highlights of these guidelines are given below:
Well the guidelines seem tough on the existing m-payment players like Mchek, Paymate and also Obopay and these are just the initial guidelines the final policy is yet to be announced. On the brighter side atleast its a start and hopefully with time these guidelines would be reviewed will become more user friendly. Related PostsAlso check out Our Jobsite: WATJob Our Video Show: WATShow Our Gaming Blog: WATGame Our Consulting: WATConsult More Recent Articles
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. Although, I wouldn’t mind 
There have been a lot of speculations making the rounds of the rumor grapevine that the operators might have to pay anywhere between Rs 40 crores to Rs 266 crores per unit of spectrum, 6.2 MHz onwards. Although the DoT maintains that no decision has yet been taken and more confirmed news can be gathered by October, if such a plan gets passed, telecom operators like Bharti Airtel might end up paying to the degree of Rs 10,000 crores extra (since Bharti Airtel has already been allocated almost 12MHz, based on subscriber numbers)
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