Breaking New Ground

Although they have been around for a very, very long time, the Olympics continue to enthrall audiences world over. Perhaps what adds to the fervour is the fact that this event is held only once every four years, and hence, a great hoopla surrounding everything related to it, right down from the selection of venue, to the extensive preparations, and finally the coverage of the games itself. This coverage extends well beyond the closing ceremonies with every minute being analysed in detail.

Almost all the media is utilised when it comes to digging information on the Olympics Games. And it goes without saying that cyberspace is definitely not left behind in the coverage of an event which itself is a multi-media blitz. Rest assured, there is a huge collection of websites which have emerged in the wake of Olympics 2008.

Interestingly, if you search for websites related to the Olympics, you will discover that there are basically two broad categories. The first comprises those especially designed for the Olympics 2008, for example, the official website. You can include numerous blogs here as well.

The other category of sites include all those renowned news or sports websites on the block which have dedicated an entire section of their regular website to the Olympics 2008 coverage. These sections are quite elaborate and useful if you are looking for the latest happenings in Beijing. So, whether it is an exclusive website you wish to visit, or sections dedicated to Olympics, the cyberdom is at your fingertips. Here are some of the most interesting picks.

The official website for the Olympics (http://en.beijing2008.cn/) is probably the most comprehensive and authentic place, especially when it comes to looking up the results. The website offers its visitors four different languages and carries details of the schedule as well as separate sections for each sport. If you are interested in football, for instance, then you can easily access information like competition rules, format, history of the game, the participating teams, the events and the time/venue of different matches.

The site also features a hall of fame dedicated to players who have earned laurels for their teams. Similar information is available for all other sports, ensuring that you can easily spend hours on this website catching up with your favourite sport.

If, however, you would rather catch the Olympics coverage on your favourite sports or news website, then the good news is that almost every major news website has a section on Olympics. Be it BBC (http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/olympics/default.stm) or Reuters (http://www.reuters.com/news/sports/2008olympics) or New York Times (http://www.nytimes.com/pages/olympics2008/index.html) , everywhere the Olympics are being extensively covered.

Moreover, other websites like ESPN (http://sports.espn.go.com/oly/index) and Sports Illustrated (http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/olympics/ ) have also gone out of their way to become a part of the Olympics 2008.

Most of these websites have more or less the same information; they mainly cover history of the games, views and analysis pertaining to the games, display the schedule and venues, give information on the teams and, of course, there is a multimedia gallery of photos and videos as well.

Apart from this, quite interestingly, some websites designed for children have also dedicated a section to Olympics. This includes Kids Turn Central (http:// www.kidsturncentral.com/links/2008olympics.htm) and Surf Net Kids (http:// www.surfnetkids.com/summer_olympics_2008.htm) .

Various sections in these websites direct children to several different sources of information about Olympics along with numerous interesting Olympics-related activities, which include cyber hunts, puzzles, crafts, trivia and more.

In an age of blogs, it is virtually impossible for bloggers to remain silent. And so, some avid bloggers have actually created special blogs which are dedicated to Olympics while others are routinely making Olympic-related entries on their regular blogs.

Summer Olympic News (http://summerolympicsnews.com/) is one of the more interesting blogs to read. The entries on this blog mainly contain links to news chunks pertaining to Olympics that the blogger has read on the internet. The fun part is that the blogger has further written her own comments on these news, which makes an interesting read. Of course, you can easily comment on the news stories yourself.

Beijing Olympics Blog (http://beijingolympicsblog.wordpress.com/) goes quite a few steps further. The entries on this blog are more detailed and analytical, taking information from various websites, combining it and then analysing it. If you have some extra time and inclination, you can definitely keep yourself updated on the many issues related to the games. This blog is highly interactive with entries dotted with photographs for quite an appealing layout.

At the end of the day, it is all about what you as an internet surfer want for your Olympics experience in cyberspace. Of course, most of you will go for the official website, but some may also be interested in the blogs. But whether you specifically want hard news, or opinion-based analysis, or something light and entertaining for your kids, internet has a wide variety of fare to offer. You just have to know where to look for it.

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Olympics Under Fire

The cyberspace features many ‘pro-game’ websites. These are the websites which are genuinely embracing the spirit of the game, and trying to inform the world at large about the happenings in Beijing 2008. But there are quite a few websites which apparently are not feeling very kind towards China. This antagonism mainly stems from the political differences and conflicts other countries have.

While on the one hand, it is said that the spirit of the game should not be spoilt by politics, on the other hand, there are people who are genuinely concerned about what they see as human rights issues in China. There is also a lobby which has been calling for a boycott of the games as well. The cyberspace has also been the lobbying ground for people belonging to this school of thought.

Hence, there are some websites which define human rights issues in China to call for more awareness like Olympic Watch (http://www.olympicwatch.org/) , and Reporters Sans Frontiers (http://www.rsf.org/rubrique.php3?id_rubrique=174. )

A few websites take a much stronger stance, like this blog (http://boycott2008games.blogspot.com/) which calls for an open boycott of the games. You can read up on all of these diverse opinions and come up with your own, keeping in mind that your views do not become prejudiced.

When the lights go out

A power failure at midnight on the eve of July 29 didn't really cause a furor. After all, it had just started to drizzle. "I thought it to be typical KESC behaviour," said Haris Ashraf, an IT consultant, with a shrug. "I was attending a wedding at the time and the minute it started to rain, the lights in the hall went out. Thankfully, there was a standby generator," he added.

Little did he or anyone else for that matter know that they were in for a long night. It wasn't a routine power shutdown which all Karachiites are used to during the monsoons. News reports revealed that there was a massive breakdown in the transmission system of the KESC, which led to almost 75 per cent of the city reeling without electricity for a long stretch. Almost all areas around Karachi were heavily affected.

At this point, it is important to note that when anyone mentions a power breakdown, especially in the more up-scale areas, the first response is: "So what? They probably had a generator or UPS!"

But a generator needs petrol or gas to work and a UPS is actually is as limited as it can get. A UPS needs a certain amount of time to recharge its battery and when the battery runs out, well, its back to the dark ages in the truest sense of the word. "I live in Askari IV and we were without electricity for about 10 hours," complained Sana Siddiqui, a business student. "We tried calling the KESC but nobody answered the phone. Our UPS ran out after two hours," she added.

"Our electricity went out around four in the morning and the UPS went dead after two hours. The power was restored at 7.30," said Meena Ahmed, a resident of F.B. Area.

Mahwash Ajaz, a psychology teacher at a private university, also expressed her disgust at the state of affairs. "We (in Defence Phase 2) were out of power for a cumulative 24/48 hours. The UPS kept tripping since it never got the chance to charge. And on the night of July 28, it was gone for eight hours. I called all complaint numbers but three of those numbers were busy and no one picked up on the other four," she said.

"I live in Gulshan-e-Iqbal and we were without electricity from one in the night to 8:30 a.m. in the morning. And during this time, both our generator/UPS stopped did not work for five hours," said Hira Jawed, a professional.

The downpour on Tuesday evening last week only made matters worse. While rain was a welcome relief in the suffocating weather which has been plaguing the city for the past week, it also gave the KESC a good reason to shut off electricity for an even longer time.

"We had a five-hour power failure during the rain," said Sana. "It had just started drizzling around 7.30 p.m. when the KESC disconnected the power supply," she added.

"In Gulshan-e-Iqbal we had a power failure of about four to five hours during the rains. We had generator which we had to keep on starting again and again," complained Fizza Hassan, a student

Since power breakdowns are so common in the city, what can one do to deal with everyday crisis?

"Whether this is a result of a rift between KESC's top people and the government's stand to privatise it or a genuine shortage of power, the government needs to realize that we need an effective measure to this solution," said Mahwish Ajaz. "People are suffering as much as they possibly can. Life for an average Pakistani is tougher now than it ever was. With inflation and the bleak economic scenario, we add power shortage to the mix, how in the world can we not expect Pakistanis to shoot each other on-spot, with all the frustration? The heads of the government, power management committee and now the Thar coal reserves committee needs to find effective measures to use the reserves to make life easier for the people," she elaborated.

"I don't think there is any short-term solution," said Hira. "The authorities should focus on reducing transmission losses in the distribution network. This will involve investment but the return should be worth it. Also, I feel that Independent Power Producers (IPP) should be encouraged."

Other solutions include power generation from alternative sources. It is interesting to note that very few people actually consider kunda connections as something which puts a load on the power supply and causes the system to trip routinely.

And that is where the role of the average Karachiite comes in. Yes, the KESC may be inefficient and no one enjoys prolonged breakdowns of electricity but at the end of the day, one must think about who is putting extra load on the distribution systems. It is only when average citizens are conscious of the electricity connections in their own house that they can actually demand quality service.

Crash Course for a New Start

Unless you have been living on the erstwhile far flung planet, Pluto, you must have at least come across John Gray’s book, Men are from Mars and Women are from Venus. There are some who actually find themselves rolling their eyes and muttering, “How true!” every time they read it. Others, however, are not amused. For them, this book simply reinforces the very gender stereotypes that women have been fighting against for years.

But for good or for bad, this literary work has managed to generate a lot of interest. And as with most books these days, this one also comes with an accompanying website. This is the world where everything will be discussed in terms of Mars and Venus, so if you are into exploring more, MarsVenus is the place to be.

MarsVenus basically explores the differences between men and women especially when it comes to marriage: what is the inherent difference between the way men and women perceive marriage, what each spouse wants out from another and most importantly, how easily misunderstandings occur due to lack of awareness of these differences.

Whether you are here because you are tired of perpetual misunderstandings in your own relationship, or simply to increase your knowledge before you tie the knot, this site offers something to everyone. For starters, you can try some of the relationship quizzes available here. They would give you a relatively accurate insight into your perceptions about certain matters and what mistaken notions you hold about the opposite sex. The results will not just reveal the bare facts, but will also impart some useful advice if you are facing problems.

Another very useful section on this website is a collection of articles on various aspects of a relationship. There are descriptive articles which delve deep into a phenomenon along with how-to articles, which give a step-by-step guideline on dealing with crucial matters. For instance, one article gives useful advice to those wives whose list of ‘to-do things’ is never-ending.

And if the site seems too serious to handle, you can take a break by surfing the section of ‘Gender humour.’ This section features a cartoon and a joke on, what else… relationships theme. And trust me, it is guaranteed to make you laugh. You can also subscribe to the newsletter to keep yourself updated with the activities on the website.

However, not everything on this website is absolutely free. To access the full features of this website, one has to acquire a paid membership. Some of the articles, too, are in the premium section, which is quite a disappointment. But this is no reason why you cannot avail the free services, and read up on whatever you find relevant and useful.

If you have read the book, then some things might feel repetitive. But overall, this website is worth exploring in detail. And if you are into looking at some questions that the coaches here are asked, you can log onto http://www.askmarsvenus.com/ and browse through those which are for general viewing.

To find out more, log onto http://www.marsvenus.com

It's Only Words

Scrabble is a one word educational game which interests people belonging to diverse age groups all over the world. A source of both fun and information, the game has also inspired many clubs and competitions. With such high popularity, it was just a matter of time before Scrabble evolved from the traditional board and letters into its present electronic version. So, for those of you who would like to play Scrabble online for free, Scrabulous is the website to visit. Of course, there is quite a controversy surrounding Scrabulous; it is alleged that the developers of Scrabulous have copied almost everything from the original Scrabble. Nevertheless the website, and its equivalent Scrabulous application on Facebook (http://apps.facebook.com/scrabulous/) is an absolute treat.

For starters, there is absolutely no compulsion to sign up or get into the hassle of creating an account. You can simply log onto the website and start playing. However, creating an account has an advantage that you can save your games and hence, if you have to get up from your PC for any reason or your internet gets disconnected, you can pause and then resume your game. This feature is not available for guest users.

There are basically three options for anyone who wishes to play Scrabble here. You can either play with yourself — which of course is a tedious option, since the game can go on for ages. You can make your game challenging by playing with the artificially intelligent robot. Or you can join any of the Scrabble rooms and play with any other online user — and this is definitely the most interesting option.

Scrabble rooms are of three levels. These levels are categorised on the basis of difficulty. So there are rooms for beginners, intermediate and advanced. Depending on the level of your vocabulary and how skilled you are at the game, you can join any of the room and either join one of the Scrabble boards which are already active, or start a new game with any of the users in that room.

There are some very handy features on this website as well. For instance, if you cannot figure out which word to play where during one of your turns, you can use the hint feature to give you a prod in the right direction. Moreover, if you want to play a word and are not sure if it is in the Scrabble dictionary, then you can use the feature which lets you look up the word in whichever dictionary you are using. This feature does not tell you the meaning of the word, though. You can simply enter a word, and the search result will tell you if this word is valid.

All in all, this website can keep you glued to your computer for hours — whether you are at work or at home. It is also a great way to unwind when you are stressed out.

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To play Scrabble online for free, log onto http://www.scrabulous.com

How Dumb Can it Get?

If you have ever managed to come across a few books by Bill Bryson, the renowned travel writer, you will be quite familiar with the jibes he takes on product warnings which are commonsense and should be widely known. Alas, common sense is not quite so common, or so the companies of certain products believe. And since, they love to undermine the intelligence of their average consumer, they put up warnings and cautions which are plain dumb.

Hopefully, the Dumb Warnings website should enlighten them a little. This website is part of the Dumb Network which generally collects and categorises all things dumb which can be quite easily spotted in the world, offline and online. Dumb Warnings is one of their websites, and can be the pick of the day especially when you are feeling a little blue.

The best place to start would be the top 25 warnings. This section lists down the most hilarious, and obviously, the top dumbest cautions that come printed in black and white with various products. Some of these highly useful instructions tell one to avoid dropping air conditioners out of windows; not use blow dryers while sleeping, refrain from ironing clothes while wearing them and the most enlightening one – remember that the content of a coffee may be hot.

In case you have forgotten already, “Contents (of 7-up are) under pressure. Cap may blow off causing eye or other serious injury. Point away from face and people, especially when opening.” As one can imagine, these warnings are quite pointless, and a very big laugh. On the website, you cannot only just read them, but you can rate them as well.

Of course, if you have some time on your hands and you are in the mood to delve more deeply into this website, then you can access dumb warnings by category. These are mainly categories of products and include warnings on appliances, drinks, clothes, electronics, medicine, toys and lots, lots more. Within each category, you will find loads of warnings on various products. Again, you can pore through them, laugh at them, and rate them.

For instance, the Food category will inform you that Mark and Spencer’s Bread Pudding will be hot after you heat it; Sainsbury Peanuts contains nuts; and in order to enjoy American Airlines Peanuts, you have to open the packet and eat the nuts.

At the end of it, if you are in the mood for some more ‘dumb’ stuff, you can check out other websites in the Dumb Network. There are dumb quotes where you can read some pretty mind-boggling and funny statements uttered by various people. There are dumb facts where you can find totally pointless and irrelevant information on almost anything from sciences and travelling to government and history. The website on dumb bumper stickers has a collection featuring the same from all over cyberspace.

In short, whether you are having a tough day at work, or are bored at home, this is one website which will definitely enable you to while away your time, while having fun simultaneously.

To discover how uncommon is commonsense log on to: http://www.dumbwarnings.com/

Soulful Experiences

The expansion of print media in the past few years paved way for aspiring writers and journalists to translate their ideas into words. Publications like magazine or newspapers are a very good avenue for developing one’s writing skills. However, there is still a dearth of literary journals – and with it, a lack of avenues for those who write poems and short stories. Literary work has very little place in newspapers and magazines, and not everyone has the resources or contacts to get a book published. So where do these writers go?

It is interesting to note that there are now a number of websites in cyberspace which invite entries of short stories and poems from aspiring and amateur writers. But of course, one has to be highly vigilant, lest their work ends up getting plagiarised and someone else gets the credit for it. One of the more credible websites in this regard is Chicken Soup.

Chicken Soup series are definitely popular with some people. Some, of course, find them highly clichéd. But if you are an aspiring writer, then it does not really matters which category you belong to. If you like the series, you can seriously think about contributing to it with your own story. And in case you are one of those who think they can write much better and inspiring stories than the ones which are published, then why not give it a try?

The website of Chicken Soup has an entire list of their upcoming titles from which you can pick and choose what you prefer. Once you have decided on the title, you can go through the submission guidelines to get the essential knowledge to ensure your story fits the specified criteria and hence, has a higher chance of getting it published. Each title has a specified deadline, so you can work accordingly. And once you pen down your stories, you can use the form given on the website to submit it.

One noteworthy aspect of this website is that it does not restrict you to submit a story only for the titles which have been specified. If you have a great idea for a title of the book itself and a story which fits it, you can again use the form on the website and submit it. If the idea clicks with the publishers, they might just decide to make a book out of the title idea you submitted.

Apart from that, there are quite a few other activities on the website which will interest you. If you are a die-hard fan of the Chicken Soup series in general, you can sign up for their email service. This will deliver an inspirational story into your inbox to ensure your daily serving of Chicken Soup. Moreover, you can also browse the different and latest Chicken Soup books which have been released.

Overall, this website can be considered as a very useful resource. It is true that no one can guarantee whatever you submit will be published. But you can at least give it a try and in the process, learn to develop your literary skills. At the end of the day, it is a win-win situation.

To stimulate and test your creative juices, check out http://www.chickensoup.com.

Old is gold

When it comes to software updates, the general opinion is dichotomous. For some people, these updates, irrespective of how minor they are, are an absolute necessity. They just cannot do without updating their software frequently. For them, such updates are imperative in order to make full use of the new features of current software. Others could not be bothered less with the updates. As long as the software is working and giving them what they want, they hardly even check for updates.

It is quite true that not all updates work for the betterment of the software itself. There are certain updates which make the PC intolerably slow. Others take ages to install, and then eat up precious space on the hard disk. At times, you feel the previous version of the software was indeed a better option. For times such as these, Old Version is the website which caters to you most effectively.

As the name suggests, Old Version is a massive and comprehensive collection of software with their previous versions. Yes, you can get all the previous versions of the most popular software here – all for free.

All software on this website are categorised into the broad sections of communication (including all instant messengers), graphics, multimedia, internet, file sharing and utilities. Within each section is a list of software. Once you make your selection, you will be directed to all the previous versions of that particular software, so you can choose whichever you like.

The website has some additional features as well. It will inform you of the 10 popular and the 10 recently added software.

Therefore, if you keep on visiting the website regularly, you can keep abreast of the latest additions to the software database. Not surprisingly, the software downloaded most frequently from this website includes

MSN Messenger, Internet Explorer and AOL Instant Messenger.

However, it would be best to bear in mind that there are certain versions of software which just do not run. For instance, some software might ask you to perform the necessary upgrade before it runs. This is a general nuisance which happens with certain software. But all in all, most of them do work. And if you have not gotten too used to some of the advanced features of your favourite software, you can actually make do with these old versions.

You can also help contribute to this website. If you have an old version of any software which works without any glitches, and you are in possession of its installation files, then you can add them to this website for the benefit of other visitors.

At the end of the day, it is all about whatever suits you and your PC. Software updates are indeed imperative in some areas, for instance, in the case of an anti-virus, you need to keep the virus definitions updated. However, if the updates are simply new emoticons or backgrounds, then you might consider sticking to the version which is most efficient for your PC.

To access previous versions of popular software, log onto http://www.oldversion.com