Abhik's Arena

Microsoft Student partners Kolkata

2010-03-11T21:07:00.000-08:00

Finally the Microsoft Student partners Kolkata has their own site www.kolkatamsp.in .So all students of kolkata please bookmark this website as it will have the details of all the latest events from Microsoft and also a chance for you to get various goodies.

In case you have any questions reagrding .net ,c# or any microsoft technology feel free to write in the "feedback" section and we will get back to you.

Microsoft brings out new Decison engine ..BING!!!....BING vs GOOGLE!!

2009-06-27T01:38:00.000-07:00

I will be telling you about the various features of BING and a side by side comparison of Google and BING...

Bing ! as we know it is the new search engine. Microsoft claims its much more than a search engine and it is a decision engine…

It was first designed as KUMO .KUMO was alpha tested by Microsoft guys and it was never opened to the public.I had seen KUMO in action at the Microsoft IDC.

Contrary to popular beliefs That windows life has been redesigned and renamed to BING!!…. actually KUMO has been renamed to BING

Bing is in beta stage ..so I am going to talk about the features currently present and the features which are going to come…

First let me talk about the current features…

The UI is clean ,fast and beautiful to look at…

Rest of the Fully Illustrated post and Side by Side comparison is available at

my new blog

www.princeoftech.spaces.live.com

Windows 7 Rc...a Guide...

2009-06-27T00:29:00.001-07:00

Well I had already reviewed windows 7 Beta…… but there are quite a few differences and more over some students wanted a guide for installing windows 7 and using it to the full potential….

So here is a detailed intro…

The UI of Windows 7 is lot like vista with some minor differences

for the full post please visit my new blog

www.princeoftech.spaces.live.com

In built virtualization in windows 7

2009-06-27T00:23:00.000-07:00

This post will also tell you how to convert specific folders to FAT 32 from NTFS for testing purposes.All methods shown in this post are totally RISK free as it has been done by Virtualization......

Well,I have tried not to make my blog into a tips and tricks one….But this post is essential because it firstly demonstrates the potential of Virtualization.The latest virtualization feature of Win 7 and also a method to convert NTFS to FAT32 without making a separate drive and the overheads associated with it.The last point is included because I have seen many blogs misguiding people about the process of changing particular folder to FAT..which is very risky.

Firstly let me make it clear conversion to FAT 32 is not recommended unless you want for testing purposes which can be done using VHD without disturbing other files....

For the full ILLUSTRATED POST VISIT.... my new blog...

www.princeoftech.spaces.live.com

Abhik Mitra

Microsoft Student Partner

Virtualization Using Microsoft Virtual PC..solve application incompatibilities...

2009-06-26T23:37:00.000-07:00

In my previous post I had promised to show how you can implement Desktop Virtualization….In this post I will also show you how to perform virtualization in Windows 7…..This method can be implemented in any OS...be it XP or Vista...
The post allows you to perform desktop virtualization in your own PC....

One of the most common is to deal with incompatibility between applications and desktop operating systems. For example, suppose a user running Windows Vista needs to use an application that runs only on Windows XP with Service Pack 2. By creating a VM that runs this older operating system, then installing the application in that VM, this problem can be solved.
I will also show you how Windows 3.1.1 (prehistoric windows ) :P used to look like....by "virtually" running it inside win 7....

For the full post and Illustrated method about how to go about virtualization refer to my new blog

http://princeoftech.spaces.live.com/default.aspx

Virtualization

2009-06-26T14:03:00.000-07:00

Virtualization is one of the hottest trends in information technology today. So first let us understand what is virtualization and then I will demonstrate the implementation of virtualization and also tell you how you can do it in your own home pc

First of all, what is virtualization? I guess that it can be explained from a very techy point of view or from a more basic aspect. I’m gonna go with the latter; Virtualization allows you to run several different virtual machines on one single physical system. This means that you for example can have your file server, DNS and print server all operating at the same time.

For the full article please move to my new blog location under the LIVE network....

http://princeoftech.spaces.live.com/default.aspx

2009-06-17T21:50:00.000-07:00

The blog has been permanently moved to

www.princeoftech.spaces.live.com

Please update your RSS....

I am Back…..

2009-06-16T20:55:00.001-07:00

Sorry..guyz…was stuck with my exams….didn’t study at all ..so got held up…..new3ay… I am back and I promise there will be many interesting posts…..

Microsoft Boot Camp at Microsoft India Development center at Hyderabad

2009-03-15T23:27:00.000-07:00

Microsoft invited all its MSPs to its India Development Center, Hyderabad .We were waiting for the boot camp for 4 months after becoming a MSP.

A total of 165 MSPs from whole of India assembled to make this the largest boot camp in the world

5^th March 2009

At last the anticipated day came and we boarded the FALAKNAMA express on 5^thMarch, 2009.I was very excited because it s my first trip without my parents. We were 6 MSPs from Kolkata, and we boarded the train together. We had to spend around 26 hours in the train, so we spent that by gossiping, playing cards and eating J .Everybody had something from their home so we were always munching chips or eating aloo ke paratha s .We reached Hyderabad around 10:am,the train was right on time.

6^th March 2009

After reaching Hyderabad we freshened up in a local near Hyderabad station. Had HYDERABADI BIRIYANI at the famous PARADISE .The Biriyani tasted great a lot different from the one's in Kolkata. I was particularly surprised by the HOTEL's system of taking Orders.

The MANAGER has a WI-FI enabled PDA, he types in the order in the PDA and the order gets printed from a computer in the Kitchen (which was visible from outside), so there is less of chaos and noise .That is called Tech-Savvy city, no wonder Hyderabad is also called as Cyberabad. We reached Ella Suites (The 4 star Hotel in Hi-Tech city in which Microsoft arranged our stay) in an auto at around 2:30.We checked in the hotel. My room was a deluxe suite on the third floor. I was simply awed by the hotel and the room. The room had Microwave, Fridge and a Bath Tub too J .

Finally we reached the Microsoft Office on 5pm. (It was very close to Ella Suites)

We had some introductory notes by the Campus Recruitment team. Then a Internship Test was held for the pre final year MSPs.

Those not in pre final year (like me) were told to assemble in an amphitheatre where the MSPs were divide into 4 groups. We were told that each group must do a creative Skit which must be related to technology. We performed a creative Skit on CLOUDSPACE (a wacky futuristic technology….)

After that we had dinner… (The food was excellent….)

We returned to the Hotel…Even though we had a hectic journey we were not tired…we stayed up till late in the night...busy gossiping and making new friends.

7^th March 2009

We reported at the MS office at 7:00 am. Had breakfast and coffee and got ready for a long day of technical sessions.

The sessions started with the Keynote by Pratima Amonkar.

The first session was on "SQL Server 2008" by the Business Intelligence Team. They explained about its advantages and its new features and showed us some codes (Personally ..I have no idea about RDBMS so.. cudnt understand anything apart from the large SQL Burger they showed during the presentation.)

This session was followed by Windows Mobile App Dev. by Abhinav Gujjar (MGSI).This was a very informative session and he showed us how we can code and make programs for the Windows mobile platform very easily using the Win Mobile SDK. He made a Twitter application in minutes. After the session we had a photo shoot of the 165 MSPs in the amphitheatre. This was followed by a lunch (do I need to say again that the food was great!!! J ) This was followed by lunch which included the networking session where we got to interact with employees from various sections of Microsoft. They gave an insight into the life@ Microsoft.

The Lunch was followed by Application Security by Varun Sharma (ACE team).He showed us security bugs including cross scripting and everything else…The session was very informative one. The next session was on "Cloud computing" by Archis Gore (Windows Live Core Team).he showed us the windows azure development and how we can write about Cloud applications. He also showed us live mesh and its features.

The heavy tech sessions followed by some lighter sessions on Windows 7 by Siddarth Prakash , IE 8 by Mohammed Reza and a WPF presentation by Mark D Souza.

After that we received our goodies. We got Tshirts,Visiting cards,pens..etc. There were special goodies for those who deployed Live @ Edu.

We know that all work and no play make Jack a dull boy and MS does not want us to be dull.So they arranged a DJ night at the Disco jasmine and a poolside dinner at our Hotel. The night rocked and we danced as if there was no tomorrow. We enjoyed and stayed up till 2: am.

8th March 2009

We checked out of the Hotel and went to the MS office.MSP s presented us with cool demos on MSRS and POPFLY.At 3 pm it was parting time..we bade goodbye to and finally we left the boot camp.

Thus the boot camp ends…I learnt a new way of representing our experience in the boot camp….. ITS AWE…AWE…AWE…AWESOME…….

For the boot camp picture you can visit my orkut album

http://www.orkut.co.in/Main#Album.aspx?uid=15032008301012431065&aid=1236721187

or else you can also visit my face book public album

http://www.new.facebook.com/album.php?aid=95867&id=712226583&l=1fab3

2009-03-03T05:26:00.001-08:00

Installed windows 7...liked it ..and looks pretty cool with quite impressive performance....

Very stable OS...well wit

h my configuration..i really expect it to be stable...

Well I did not use VISTA so cannot compare the two :(

But what I feel it’s a lot faster than Windows Xp.

Windows Seven has the same architecture of windows Vista, though they have changed the kernel a bit.

Windows 7 has virtualization capabilities so it is equipped to run Virtual PC with ease.

Then it has sensor capabilities and applications can use sensor information to offer customized and enhanced services.

User accounts control systems have been overhauled

It has a streamlined Setup routine and a thoroughly overhauled user interface.

Those who have not used VISTA (people like me) will be simply awed by the look and style. The AERO interface is still there and is more customizable.

The desktop sidebar is gone..But the gadgets of VISTA still remain...

Though they can only be seen in the desktop.

A new feature is called Library. It is not a folder or file but is a way to group related files and folders. If you have documents and text files in several locations like different folders on the hard drive, removable flash drive, network folder, etc. You can use a library to see all the files in those locations collectively in one Library. The files will remain in their respective location; the library contains an index to the file or folder.

The User Account Control (UAC) defaults to a moderate level so it does not constantly pop up asking about everything....I know that means decreased security but its up to you whether you want your screen space to be filled up by warning messages.

I did like the enhanced UI of Paint, WordPad and the calculator though. These programs have changed little since the Windows 3.1 days - now they are more in line with Office 2007 appearance, sharing the 'ribbon' design toolbar.

Leaving you with some of the pictures.....

The genuine tag... :)

The aero Interface :)

the enhanced calculator...

finally the newly painted

MS-paint... :P

okk goodbye.....and remember to imagine "a world without walls"

Gearing up for visit to Microsoft India Development Center,Hyderabad

2009-03-03T04:26:00.000-08:00

After months of waiting, finally Microsoft announced on the MSP boot camp would be held from 6^th to 8^th March at MS Hyderabad campus.

Was very excited all these days...but couldn’t post anything because of our silly class tests. Finally the tests ended and again I am free....

I am going in a group of 6 MSPs from Kolkata .We are boarding the FALAKNAMA EXPRESS at around 7:30 in the morning...still not finished packing my bags....Mom is worried coz I have never gone alone on such a long trip. On my part ....I know Hyderabad better than the other members of the groups..Have been to that place in class 9....

MS has arranged for a nice place to stay at Ella Suites (http://www.ellaasuites.com/)a 4 star hotel....Really looking forward to the tour..

If things go well then I should return on 10^th of March.....

till then take care..bbye..

LOGIC BOMB...The IT bomb.....

2009-02-14T01:48:00.000-08:00

Logic Bomb

Few days ago, I came across this term, seemed interesting so did a bit research on it(Nothing much 2 do in V day so spent my time doing this… :P )…Just hope U like it..

The name implies that it is definitely something destructive and so it is…

.It is basically a code or Logic with the following characteristics

The logic bomb has mainly the following characteristics:

1. It is triggered by a change in the environment.

2. It does something destructive like deleting files.

3. It deletes itself.

4. It does not replicate itself.

I would explain logic bombs based on these points.

IT IS TRIGGERED BY A CHANGE IN THE ENVIRONMENT

When I say a Change in the environment, I mean an event which triggers the Logic Bomb .It can be a simple mouse click to more complex events.

The event can be viewed as a change in the value of a “Parameter” or in a more logical context the presence or absence of a trigger.

Example:

You are walking down the road and suddenly a BIKE come s speeding towards you….You will try to move out of its way instantly ..(Personal choices vary….but If I were you ...I would have done that….).So the bike was initially not there but suddenly it appeared and that made you move away. This is called POSITIVE TRIGGER.

Take another example:

You are walking in the rain….and the rain stops, so you close the Umbrella.

So the event was occurring and the stopping of the event was the Trigger. This is called NEGATIVE TRIGGER.

It's secretly inserted into the code of a computer's existing software, where it lies dormant until that event occurs.

It does something destructive like deleting files.

Its main task is to destroy files or important data. When the logic bomb is triggered by an event, it deletes files or data in the system. Other functions maybe secret information being sent to the wrong people, the network may be crippled for days, or denial of service attacks.

It deletes itself

One of the key features of LOGIC BOMB is that it destroys itself. Logic Bombs is also called SLAG CODE since “slag” is left after it detonates.

It does not replicate itself.

This one of the key points of difference between a VIRUS and a LOGIC BOMB is that it cannot form identical or modified copies of itself. So Logic bombs are generally not programmed to spread, it is specific in its activity and generally the victim is specific. A logic bomb stays put within the network in which it was inserted. This makes it much easier to create than a virus. All it needs to do is execute a task; it doesn't need to reproduce, which is a more complicated function.

But the VIRUS can contain a LOGIC BOMB embedded in it, so the Virus could plant a Logic Bomb in the affected computer. There are some virus types that are considered logic bombs because they have a time-and-date trigger.

An example of this type of Virus is “FRIDAY THE 13^th” Virus.

Here the logic bomb is triggered when Friday has the date 13^th.

Logic bomb was first used by disgruntled employees; the payload of a logic bomb is usually pretty devastating to the company under attack. It's often a tool used by angry employees…..

If an employee did not login for more than a month (which means he was sacked) the logic bomb would detonate and destroy all the data of the firm. So this is quite common in the IT field where employees frequently resort to this type of crime.

Well, like all things this also has a positive side, It makes restricted Software Access possible, for e.g. Imagine a demo software which uninstalls itself automatically after the TRIAL PERIOD expires.

Another application may be in DATA security. If someone tries to log in to someone else’s account using a Brute Force attack, then a logic bomb may be set to delete all the data after specified number of tries.

Cloud computing:A basic Idea

2009-02-05T08:25:00.000-08:00

Cloud Computing

Wikipedia defines it as “internet based development of computer technology”

Until now we have been mainly using Internet for our needs for “information”. Now we are going to use the internet as a “Platform” on which we can run software.

Still now, we have seen software as a “product” which can be bought permanently. This article will change your perception towards “software”.

Imagine the business model of BSNL. You cannot buy the “telephone” one time and say that you have “bought” the whole Telephone Network (… I am not talking about Billionaires…!). You have to pay for the “service”. So, you basically use telephone as a “service” rather than an “object” which can be bought from a shop.

Look around you, and you will find a number of services you use daily like the Electricity, Water supply…etc

So this theory can also be applied to the “Software” world. Think about Microsoft word, suppose instead of buying the costly Office suite as a product, you only pay for the “amount of time” you use MS word and the “amount of Data” you process, through it.

This model is termed as SOFTWARE as a SERVICE (SaaS).

Well this is exactly what next generation software is going to be….

Sounds bad????

Think again!!!.The software does not need to be installed “in your local Hardware”. The software does not use your computer as the “platform”; instead it uses the INTERNET as the platform. Technically, the application is said to run on the “Cloud” (Think about it as dozens of web server is running a single Microsoft word..though this is not the exact representation).So irrespective of the power of your computer, it can run application smoothly. So actually, your data and your application are sitting on servers that you control. There are no restrictions on moving data into or off your Cloud Infrastructure. These servers are for all practical purposes indistinguishable from servers in your physical data center.

The internet ensures platform independence but the full feature set can be utilised only when coupled with certain other software,APIs,etc example: Flash in Youtube...

Examples:

Microsoft Live Workspace:

It is similar to the example I shared with you’ll. You can access the entire Microsoft Office suite along with its latest features through the Internet, irrespective of the configuration your computer. Your work is stored in online folders called SKYDRIVE so you don’t even need Pen drives to carry your work. You don’t need to have MS Office installed. All it requires is web browser (like Internet Explorer) and a decent internet bandwidth.

This is particularly useful for project works when different parts of a single document is being edited by a number of individuals simultaneously, so you have one final copy instead of ,merging individual copies.

All Microsoft Live services are based on the cloud computing Model.

The best part is that this service is absolutely free!!!

Orkut : It is also based on SaaS model. Social networking sites provide you a service in exchange of ads.

YouTube: This also is a classic example of SaaS. The video runs on your computer irrespective of whether you have any “media player”. But you still need flash player to run the video.

Cloud computing has also given rise to HaaS (Hardware as a Service)

Suppose instead of buying the entire processor, you only pay for the amount of processing power you need for processing your data, data storage and data transfer.

So this actually refers to the “purchasing of Processing Capacity” over the web. (Google has launched a similar service called the App Engine permitting developers to run web applications on Google’s Infrastructure)

Advantages of HaaS

It allows users to change their online hardware at any point of time.
Users can choose their own specifications.
Cheaper than actual hardware.

So now we can see, individuals as well as organizations can connect to “Cloud” computing resources to fuel their information activities rather than having to having to install “software” on their hardware.

So these are the some aspects of Cloud computing….Hope the article was informative…

Abhik Mitra

MICROSOFT STUDENT PARTNER

IT 2^ND YEAR

HERITAGE INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY, KOLKATA

2009-02-04T09:11:00.000-08:00

Some of my Pictures

Link to my Orkut profile:

http://www.orkut.co.in/Main#Profile.aspx?uid=15032008301012431065

My first Seminar

2009-01-28T21:00:00.000-08:00

Today,I presented my first seminar at NSHM Business School.My topic was MICROSOFT ACADEMIC INITITAIVES.I went to avishek's (MSP from BESU) house at 9 in the morning,then we worked on the presentation.I focussed on Microsoft Student Program,Student 2 Business and various programs under MSDN(Microsoft Developer Network) while he focussed on live@Edu and DreamSpark.

We practiced

a little,but gave it up since it was difficult to plan since we did not have any idea of how the conditions would be....

Atlast the time came....and 42 students were sitting waiting for us to start.My legs generally shake when I get up for public speaking,but this time thankfully it did not happen,the seminar went off well,though I admit that we were too fast in our speech.Well,Its the first time and we are bound to make mistakes....It seemed the audience liked it

Some of the snaps of the session.....

Microsoft Chief Mentor unveils DREAMSPARK. Spark up your dreams

2009-01-01T08:46:00.000-08:00

On 5th November 2008, Microsoft unveiled DreamSpark - a software giveaway for an estimated 10 million eligible students in India. DreamSpark will provide students access to the latest Microsoft developer and designer tools at no charge.

Microsoft DreamSpark will be available to all students whose studies touch on technology, design, math, science and engineering. The software available to students will include:

Microsoft developer tools
Visual Studio 2005 Express
Visual Studio 2005 Professional
Visual Studio 2008 Professional
Visual Basic 2008 Express
Visual C++ 2008 Express
Visual C# 2008 Express
Visual Web Developer 2008 Express
XNA Game Studio 2.0
12-month free Academic membership in the XNA Creators Club
Microsoft designer tools
Expression Studio 2, including
o Expression Web
o Expression Blend
o Expression Design
o Expression Media

Microsoft platform resources
SQL Server 2008 Developer
SQL Server 2008 Express
Windows Server 2008 Standard Edition
Virtual PC 2007

Training Resources
IT Academy Student Pass

This broad range of professional-level software will be available both online via http://www.dreamsparkindia.com/; and in offline format via DVDs distributed by program partners NIIT, Aptech and Hughes Net Fusion Centers. A student merely needs to offer a proof of identity at a branch of these institutes to avail of a DreamSpark DVD. There are 125 NIIT, 175 Aptech, and 200 Hughes Net Fusion Centers participating across the country.

DreamSpark will also facilitate student participation in Microsoft’s annual marquee contest, Imagine Cup, through various contest categories such as software design, short films, photography etc. Students from India that qualify for the Imagine Cup 2009 World Finals will get to travel to Egypt. Selected teams will also get the opportunity to get mentored by the Centre for Innovation, Incubation & Entrepreneurship (CIIE) at IIM, Ahmedabad.

Addressing students and academicians at IIT Delhi – where the DreamSpark program was unveiled - Bill Gates, Chairman, Microsoft Corp, said, “We want to do everything we can to equip a new generation of technology leaders with the knowledge and tools they need to harness the magic of software to improve lives, solve problems and catalyze economic growth. Microsoft DreamSpark provides professional-level tools that we hope will inspire students like you to explore the power of software and encourage you to forge the next wave of software-driven breakthroughs.