Using BSNL broadband (Dataone) for downloads - An easy way!

Am writing this one for BSNL broadband users who have night unlimited downloads from 2 a.m to 8 a.m.

For regular users and mad downloaders like me you do know the pain of staying awake and switching on the modem at night 2 o’ clock and again disconnecting it before eight in the morning. Else you would have a few of your bytes transferred in your monthly account in the name of mixed usage, even if you have scheduled your downloader and torrent to download and stop at the right time. Okay, these are the steps you need to follow to schedule downloads automatically and believe me you are going to like what you are going to hear. Downloads will be done from night 2 to 8 without you even touching the modem or for that matter your PC after you have scheduled your downloads.

Proceed these steps at your own risk.

The method mentioned below has worked fine for me and I’ve been using it for more than a year now and am able to download somewhere around 3 GB per night using torrents! (Let your brains do the calculations for the amount downloaded in a month)

I am using SMART AX modem. But this does work in the newer model which BSNL offers now.

1. Important Note: Read this carefully first before proceeding. Understand what you are reading and then proceed. Read this fully before carrying out the mentioned steps.

2. First you need to know your user name and password. It’s written on the modem box which you get or try to call your customer care to get it.

3. Mostly your modem is set in such a way that the internet connection is established when the modem is switched ON. If yours is not this way and you are dialing a connection then directly go to STEP 5. For the others whose connection is established on switching the modem ON, you need to reset your modem so that the setting in the modem gets erased (i.e your user name and password stored in your modem).

4. Then you need to set up a dial up connection using windows. Though it is easy doing this, am going to tell you for this may help the beginners. Advanced users proceed to Step 5 ignoring the steps below.

• Go the path said below:

Start-->All programs-->Accessories-->Communications-->New connection wizard

• Click Next.
• By default first option is set. Click Next.
• Then choose Setup my connection manually. Click Next.
• Select, Connect using a broadband connection that requires a username and password. Click next.
• Give any name here for the ISP name. Click Next.
• Type your Username and Password in the text boxes provided. Click Next.
• Check the Add a shortcut to this connection to my desktop. Click Finish.

Now you are done with setting up the dial-up connection.

5. Here comes the trick, rather a simple one if you had already known.
Download Free Download manager software from the site : Click here
It is a freeware :)

6. Click on the Scheduler tab.

7. Click on the Add task button which is the first button present in the toolbar which appears like a plus sign.

8. There in the dropdown list box select the option you want. For example I set the following options.

• Hang up connection by say 1:55 a.m
• Establish dial-up connection by 2:10 ( just to be safe so that no bytes are transferred to the mixed usage section)
• Then choose Launch program and give the path to your utorrent (Torrent client, a really good one, which I use for my torrent downloads) or any other download accelerators you use for your direct downloads and ftp downloads.(I prefer IDA-Internet Download Accelerator) Let the time be set to 2:11 a.m for this event to happen.
• This is very important. Set the scheduler to disconnect your dial-up connection well before 8 o’ clock. Say by 7:50 a.m. Choose Hang up connection and set this time.
• Finally, choose Shutdown computer, let the time be 8:00 a.m

9. Here are a few points to remember while using the scheduler in FDM

• Set the above said schedules to happen daily by choosing the Start time tab and choose On certain days and check all the days! Isn’t that simple.
• The time is in 24 hour format so remember to specify the correct times.

So do remember to turn on FDM in your computer before you go to bed. It resides in the system tray unless asked to exit. Just turn off your monitor and go to sleep. Remember to set the required downloads in your download accelerators and add your favorite torrents in your torrent client :) :) the rest will be taken care by FDM. Happy downloading guys!!!

Do feel free to express your thoughts and ask your doubts. I’ll try to answer to my best knowledge.

Another blog of mine regarding using torrents for downloads, good torrent sites, search engines and torrent uploaders is coming soon …

Dasavatharam - Movie Review

For those die-hard Kamal Hasan fans this is going to be one movie which they would relish, for you can see him in almost every frame of the movie! For others it’s going to be yet another over-hyped movie which is just good, though not bad and nothing makes it stand out from the rest. But don’t get me wrong, you won’t regret going for this movie.

Kamal’s performance in few of the characters will only increase the respect one has for him as an actor. Especially the character of Fletcher and Balram Naidu deserve a mention here. Though some characters were totally unnecessary, Kamal has carried them off effortlessly. The music is not that great to talk about.

Tamil cinema has always wasted hot imports from Bollywood and this movie is no exception, with Mallika Sherawat just playing a small cameo. And about the heroine - Asin, as usual she is pretty and in this movie she plays the part of a cute iyengar girl. But one does feel that she’s too talkative and in a few scenes you do wish that she was dead instead of the sexy Mallika.

For those who were critical about the length of the movie which is over 3 hours, believe me it’s not a pain watching it all along. There are a good number of light sequences which make you feel not bored.

It’s Kamal! Kamal! Kamal! all the way. Though it’s not a must watch movie, it certainly is one movie you can watch on a cool Saturday evening with your girl friend, to chill out and enjoy after a long tiring week ;-)

Is life that simple ???

Here I am to say something, but still I am searching for a perfect opening line. Strangely my creativity seems to be at the peak when I am in my bathroom rather than when I am in front of my computer. Ha kidding ! I’ll try to be as simple as possible. So here goes my philosophy.

Life for instance has many ups and downs. We do know this, yet we grieve over the lost and misplaced occasions to the extent that we fail to make the most out of our present. And again, we mourn in the future for our departed present. So can we think of a better solution? Is that as complex as rocket science? The straight forward answer is: It isn’t !!!

What would you do if you had only a day more to live in this beautiful world? Go out and enjoy as you’ve done never before. So why don’t we do the same everyday. I know, it isn’t that simple. Even though our life isn’t as simple as a girl’s petty complaints it is certainly simpler than ‘Einstein's theory of relativity’. In spite of so many pitfalls we somehow manage to live life. So what’s the point in crying for those things we cannot change? Let’s ask God to give us the courage to face those, which are beyond our control.

Being cheerful not only keeps us happy but also our fellow beings. After all, is there any greater pleasure than having a chance to spread our joy to everyone around us? Truly smile is infectious. It travels from our lips to everyone around us. Our time is short here and we are on a mission. So let’s make it meaningful. We should make this stay to be remembered by one and all as a significant one. After all we know that there’s no second innings as in cricket ! Let us enjoy life as it comes by.

So what exactly is the purpose of life? Deep should our thoughts go in order to understand its true essence! Being happy and making others happy would definitely be a distantly closer answer. Let us forget our worries and try being a clown rather than being a philosophical person who has wasted all his life in searching for its true meaning. Because we cannot define its purpose; for that matter no human could !!!

Firefox 3

Mozilla Corporation’s latest browser Firefox 3 is by far the most impressive browser I have seen in the recent past. It has a stylish interface and it is quite simple too. And it claims to have superior security features as compared to the other counterparts like the Internet Explorer 7 and Opera. It does have a new bookmarking feature which is very easy and effective. One click is all that one needs to bookmark one’s favorite webpage. There are hundreds and hundreds of add-ons that can be downloaded to extend the capability of the browser. There are plenty of themes readily available on the web that can be downloaded to make your browser look the way want it to be. The download manager provides better functionality by giving you the option to pause or resume downloads. The Firefox 3 is readily available in the net and it is one software that everyone must have.

The 3 mistakes of my life

Well to begin with this doesn’t have anything to deal with my life. It’s just a small peek into Chetan Bhagat’s latest and the third book “The 3 mistakes of my life.” For those who have read the first two of his novels, this one would definitely come as a little bit of disappointment. But having said that this book is different in the sense that it is not a trendy urban story, but it reflects the rural life style and passions. The story line is quiet simple. Although the story moves at a slow pace in the beginning it picks up pace towards the end. The romance part in this novel is good with a few sarcastic comments which would definitely make you to have a smile. The central theme is about business, cricket and religion and the way they shape the lives of everyone in India. With a nice little happy ending the author is sure to win the hearts of his young readers yet again!

God of War - Game

These are my views about one the finest games I’ve ever played-The God Of War. .Unlike a few games that move on a thin plot, this game’s storyline can keep you engrossed for days. The visuals are one of the best in its class. The full motion videos complement the storyline to a great extent. Coming on to the game play, God of War features one of the most fluid and brutal combat systems of all time. The plat-forming part of the game has become a precursor to many games developed later. Just a few minutes into this game and you will know what this game has in store for you. One of the most prominent gameplay features is the finishing move for the enemies, which has been scripted to perfection. Another great aspect that keeps us glued to this game is the characterization of the protagonist-Kratos, the brutal yet sympathetic anti-hero. In all, the mind-boggling visuals, the engrossing storyline, the impeccable game play and a brilliant background score make this game a must-play for any gamer.

The Pleasure of being an underdog !!!

Now that I’ve been in the lime light for years during my school life but rather maintaining a low profile spending most of my time in college as an underdog; I know how it is to be an underdog. Believe me it is a real pleasure. No more worries and tension and more importantly no more pressure – “ The pressure to perform. “

The thing is that the expectation on you mounts up to such an extent that you get bogged down by the so called “ Fear of failure “ which otherwise wouldn’t have come across your mind. It certainly adds up to your woes.

There are so many of them – parents, friends, relatives, well wishers , teachers, etc etc the list goes on, all wanting you to perform and perform to an extent that’s definitely going to drain you. But now I am no more burdened by these expectations. Ah !!! This life’s just rocking man. No more questioning and no more am I responsible for my shortcomings.

When I muse over this, I do feel that after all, even this life is also not that bad. Man !!! you really don’t want that many eyes glaring at you and so many envious stares watching at each of foot steps! May be this time when I fall I don’t fall too hard - because am an underdog. Immense would have be the pain otherwise.

What’s more important is the ability to take risks generally gets increased. Even if one fails, rarely does he get noticed. But what are missing ??? It’s the attention one attracts and the pride factor. After all, is pride that important in life when compared to happiness ??? Isn’t happiness is what all we need in life! May be, opinions differ…