Your FeedBlitz Updates

Here is a sample subscription for you. Click here to start your FREE subscription

It has been such a long time since I blogged that if you have been following this blog(highly unlikely), you will know that something strange has happened in this writer's life. Let me assure you, friends(/strangers/enemies), that although something(ok a LOT) has changed, but it has been good.

Ok let me give context to the stranger.. (friends/enemies already know this otherwise they won't qualify into that bucket)
Context:
I have graduated out of college(apparent from title, I know) and have stepped into the real corporate world. I have joined Google - The Best Technical company to work in(could not stop myself from doing a publicity plug) as a Software Engineer in Test.

Change:
It has been over 3 months for me working on a host of cool things and learning a lot. But apart from that learning, I have been learning some other things too and there have been a lot of changes in my life. Some of them are:

1. The stuff that I only dreamt of working on is now within hand's reach but I never get the time to work on it.
2. I am earning and it feels good to have your own money and to be independent and to be able to do your own stuff, but sometimes you feel like you can go back to your old self where somebody(read parents) always does everything for you.
3. I always used to wonder why people consider weekends sacred, for me everyday used to be a holiday. Now I have changed, weekends are sacred and Fridays seem to be more fun than Mondays to me.
4. I have found how ignorant I am in respect of coding and technology. I am doing a new assessment regarding my own skill set and knowledge of technology and coding. I am always trying to learn new things, but there are so many to learn, I never know which one to choose.
5. I thought that I will lose my friends, but I never had to lose them. I can contact them through chat or phone. Though, I really really miss the fun and carelessness of college(does not mean I am careful now).
6. Lastly and most importantly, I have started caring. Sometimes, I think and wonder how did this happen. But one reader of this blog knows exactly what has happened.

There are many miscellaneous changes like I am working on a mac(another post on it later); acted as a guide in an outing with parents(my first); not practicing guitar at all; making new friends; stepping out of my comfort zone; learning pool etc. etc. etc. But these things will come later, once I am a regular blog writer again.

• Email to a friend • Related •

•

Rate 'Life After College'

I Am A Published Author Now

I went to the Technology For Education conference which was being hosted at Radha Regent Hotel in Electronic City in Bangalore. The preparation before the conference was "typical me". I was at my procrastinating best.

I had to present Foodforce paper at the conference. Till the night before, the ppt was about 50% complete. But that night, since I was not in a good mood and very tired(its an excuse, I know), I thought I will do it in the morning. My roommate woke me up at 5 AM, slept, and I started work. But, I again slept and woke up with him again at 7 AM.

So, now I started work at full speed now, all thoughts of creativity abandoned. But then the nature also conspired against me and at 8:00 AM or so, electricity gone. As I was working on my personal laptop (which has no battery and works only through electricity), I was in dire straits. Ppt still not completed, no hope for internet, and no hope of recovering ppt back. And I had to leave at 9 for the conference. I had not taken bath or had my breakfast yet(which was today my responsibility since I was not going to office). So, while I got down to these tasks, I asked Paras(my ever-helpful roommate) to ask the watchmen to switch on generators for me to recover my presentation. Our (ever so irritating) watchmen switched it on only for 2 minutes during which I barely recovered ppt. And then, fortunately, electricity came at 8:50, I completed rest of the slides, packed my bags, and was ready to go till 9:10. And I vowed "yet again", that I will never procrastinate my work ever again!

Foodforce2 Revolutionising Education

View more presentations from deepankgupta.

The hotel was wonderful, and the conference too, lots of great people present in it. The hi-fi atmosphere intimidated me and made me nervous. But, the talks were interesting and I forgot about preparing and started listening. Soon, it was my turn, they made me put on a mike, and I regained my nervousness. I skipped the title slide totally, was hesitant to start with, too fast to speak, infact I was blurting out things I guess. But people took interest, listened and I could feel the vibes of interested people. Then at the end, there were questions and questions, infact more questions than any of the previous talks. (Though you can argue, that it might be not because I was good but because people never understood what I said). People asked for the link to download the game, which obviously in my foolishness I had never put in the presentation. When I went back to my seat I was congratulated by people sitting next to me for giving a good talk. Chatted with some interested people during lunch. And it was a nice like any Hindi Film Happy Ending to a potentially disastrous start.

EDIT: Also I got hotel address from Paras after he went to office through SMS, since internet was also not working that day!

• Email to a friend • Related •

•

Rate 'I Am A Published Author Now'

I have been a really great time here so ...

I have been a really great time here so haven't been blogging a lot.

Here are some tid-bits in photos...

Another Guitar Strumming .. this time away from home in Music Room at Google

• Email to a friend • Related •

•

Rate 'I have been a really great time here so ...'

Bowling Visit@Ambience

We finally had a first real team outing in what seems to be like an year! Its not that we haven’t met before, but all those meetings were ridden with Foodforce discussions, so they don’t count. Anyways, if you know something about the team, you will shake your heads in disbelief. For the uninitiated, the reason why we never had a team outing in the first place is because of the strange assortment of people in the team. The team contains a reallllly lazy bum as manager(thats me), ultra-sincere all-work-no-play coders like Vijit and over-worked Manu. This meant that even Mohit who had a social life(yes Mohit used to have social life before Foodforce) could do nothing. But well, things changed and a queer set of circumstances meant that we had our first team outing (without Manu sir but still!).

Ok first the circumstances. We won at technical fests in DCE for some events, got some cash prizes which obviously I did not go to collect. To cut a long story short, Mohit went in my place to collect the prize, we decided on a treat and Mohit persevered in making me come to Gurgaon! We invited Vijit who was really reluctant to come! His reasoning being that he has never gone for a social outing with friends before too! So, eventually out came the senior weapon, I ordered him to come(I know I am evil!). But, since we had no weapon against Manu sir, we could not convince him!

The outing was sooo much fun. Also, I got to know that well we(especially me) are not really cut out for bowling… perhaps we should stick to Foodforce only. Also, I got my eyes open, and finally realized what an 8% growth rate can do to a country. The place was looking so foreignish, it was just not like India.