The free Wi-Fi campaign to promote Google+

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On my recent visit to Delhi last week, I got a chance to see the below advertisement at different outlets of McDonald’s, the world’s largest chain of hamburger fast food restaurants which serves around 68 million customers daily in 119 countries. This was to promote Google+ – the social networking site of Google. The moment I saw this, I felt something was wrong!

Free Wi-Fi ad

Free Wi-Fi ad

Then I took a closer look.. (Check out red outlines)

Free Wi-Fi ad - closer look

Free Wi-Fi ad - closer look

Yep.. Its a screen-shot of a desktop browser that shows Facebook login page; remember the promotion was for Google+  :-P

It’s an iPhone which evidently opened up a desktop browser (notice Windows system tray icons, bottom right) :D

And people who have used an iPhone, would definitely NEVER be able to find the Google Map tap bar (footer) even below the mobile browsers. :-/

Although the concept was good, advertising was really sloppy and the way free internet was provided was just a simple “proxy” implementation that opened only Google+. This did raise a security concern and I choose not to login!

If you haven’t tried this, don’t bother but you should definitely try the free Wi-Fi that is provided for an hour at the Indira Gandhi Domestic Airport, Terminal 1D, Delhi. Its an experience you will definitely like!

Do share your #Fail types of experiences in the comments below. :)

A Tribute to the Ghazal Maestro – Jagjit Singh

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I feel privileged to grow up with your beautiful ghazals & music and have followed your life, you will forever live in my heart.

This is my small effort to make a tribute to the Ghazal Maestro – Jagjit Singh who has touched over a million lives and given a song to hymn to countless (Yup including bathroom singers like me! ;) )

Jagjit Singh

The Ghazal Maestro - Jagjit Singh

I was, I  guess thirteen or fourteen, when I was introduced to Jagjit Singh’s ghazals. My elder brother was playing a ghazal and obviously me being a teenager didn’t quite like it. Little did I know then that Jagjit Singh and His (yes, mind the caps!) ghazals would become such an integral part of my life.

It feels a little weird now to recall the “Jagjit Singh is no more!” prank that my friends and I used to do to “shock” people who joined our parties for the first time (Needless to say, by then Jagjit Singh ghazals were played regularly!)

So here is a reminiscence  of circumstances when Jagjit Singh’s ghazals were the most sought-after-song or a short description / one-liner of what a ghazal (from the so many) means to me (This is in NO order of preference just in a ‘trend’ of life!):

  • Appreciating beautiful girls
    • “Aisi Aankhen Nahin Dekhi” (OST: Aapko Pehle Bhi Kahin Dekha Hai, 2003)
  • At tell-me-if-that’s-not-love times :P
    • “Jhuki Jhuki Si Nazar” (OST: Arth, 1982)
  • Being dumbstruck on “seeing your crush”
    • “Jab Samne Tum Aa Jaate Ho” (Album: Dil Kahin Hosh Kahin)
  • Of one-sided love stories
    • “Tum Hamare Nahin To Kya Gham Hai” (Album)
  • For all the girlfriends you thought were above your ‘Status Quo’ ;)
    • “Pyar Mujh Se Jo Kiya Tumne” (OST: Saath Saath, 1982)
  • Longing for Her…
    • “Kabhi Yun Bhi To Ho” (Album: Silsilay)
    • “Tamanna Phir Machal Jaaye” (Album: Soz)
  • Afraid to travel the journey of love
    • “Badi Naazuk Hai Yeh Manzil” (OST: Jogger’s Park, 2003)
  • Justifying your delay in saying ‘I Love You’
    • “Pyaar Ka Pehla Khat Likhne Mein” (Album)
  • Kind of when in a proposal mood
    • “Hoothon Se Chhoo Lo Tum” (OST: Prem Geet, 1981)
  • To answer how does being in love feel?
    • “Hosh Walon Ko Khabar Kya” (OST: Sarfarosh, 1999)
    • “Raat Khamosh Hai” (Album: Muntazir)
  • A duet for every couple
    • “Kiska Chehra Ab Main Dekhoon, Tera Chehra Dekhkar” (OST: Tarkeib, 2000)
  • Finding comfort in your loved one
    • “Tum Ko Dekha To Yeh Khayal Aaya” (OST: Saath Saath, 1982)
  • When you think (or feel) you can listen through the other person’s feelings
    • “Koi Fariyaad” (OST: Tum Bin, 2001)
  • When you are so much into her!
    • “Uski Batein To Phoolon Jaise” (Album: Aaeena)
    • “Tera Chehra Hai Aaeene Jaisa” (Album: Aaeena)
    • “Kal Chaudhvin Ki Raat Thi” (OST: Khamoshi)
  • When you feel unknown with a known one
    • “Humsafar Banke Hum Saath Hain Aaj Bhi” – (OST: Aashiana, 1986)
  • Of Betrayal & Justice
    • “Aadmi Aadmi Ko Kya Dega” (Album: Someone Somewhere)
    • “Dil Hi Toh Hai” (OST: Aadhi Raat)
  • In the Heart-break Season
    • “Yaad Nahin Kya Kya Dekha” (Album: Parwaaz)
    • “Tere Baare Mein” (Album: Saher)
    • “Teri Berukhi Teri Meherbaniyan ” (Album)
    • “Ek Purana Mausam Lauta” (Album: Marasim)
    • “Woh Khat Kay Purze Udaa Raha Tha” (Album: Marasim)
    • “Shaam Se Aankh Mein Nami Si Hai” (Album: Marasim)
    • “Kahin Kahin Se Har Chehra” (Album: Dil Kahin Hosh Kahin)
    • “Gham Ka Khazana” (Album: Sajda)
  • For a loved one that you might have lost
    • “Chhitti Na Koi Sandesh” (OST: Dushman, 1998)
  • Hiding your pain
    • “Tum Itna Jo Muskura Rahe Ho” (OST: Arth, 1982)
    • “Baat Niklegi To Phir Door Talak Jaayegi” (Album)
  • After getting drunk
    • “Jhoom Ke Jab Rindon Ne Pila Di” (Album)
  • Whats life, that’s life?!
    • “Jeevan Kya Hai” (Album)
  • Philosophizing on Right / Wrong
    • “Kya Bhala Hai Kya Bura Hai” (Album: Aaenaa)
  • At times of Introspection!
    • “Hazaron Khwahishen Aisi” (OST: Mirza Ghalib, TV Serial, 1988)
  • Seeking spirituality or getting religious
    • “Hey Ram” (Album: Shree Ram Dhun, 1984)
    • “Aisi Laagi Lagan” (Album)
    • “Hare Rama Hare Krishna” (Album: Krishna Bhajans)
  • When you don’t wanna grow up or look back to the old days
    • “Woh Kagaz Ki Kashti” (Album: Chausar)
  • One of the best descriptions of war
    • “Har Ore Tabahi Ka Manzar” (OST: Gandhi to Hitler, 2011)
  • To Mothers for what and who they are!
    • “O Maa Tujhe Salaam” (OST: Khalnayak, 1993)

In event of recent times – Looks like Steve Jobs couldn’t repair God’s iPod. Got Jagjit Singh there for live performance. Heavens would be melodious now. RIP Jagjit Singh! :(

Do share your experiences of Jagjit Singh or His ghazals in the comments!

Playing safe with Compatibility Issues for a Mobile Site

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This post targets Business Analysts and enthusiasts who are new to the design & development of mobile web arena. The compatibility issues for a Mobile Web is similar to compatibility issues with a Website.

When a Business decides to go for a Mobile Web (also called as Mobile Site, m-dot), they do have a few concerns with respect to Device & Browser Compatibility for their mobile sites. Typically, it might be:

  • Will my Mobile Site be accessible on all smart phones?
  • What all devices will my Mobile Site Support?
  • Will the Mobile Site be accessible on iPhone, Android, BlackBerry or Symbian?
  • Ensure we don’t lose Customers due to Mobile Browser Issues.
  • How will the Mobile Site behave if users have a touch or non-touch devices?, etc. etc.

As a Business Analyst, your primary goal should be to capture the following Non-functional requirements as a general expectation from the Mobile Site:

OR

  • List of Mobile Browsers (Android Browser, BlackBerry Browser, Firefox for Mobile, Opera Mobile, Safari, etc) to be support

AND

From the list of Mobile OS, you will eventually need to determine a list of default or supported browsers used on those platforms. However, you might also want to check with the business / client if they have any specific mobile browser expectation.

See the Mobile market overview by Peter-Paul Koch who is one of my all-time-favorite expert on browser compatibility & related research.

Now comes the fun part, for any mobile site, the major factors that lead to compatibility issues are:

  1. The Mobile Browser – i.e. How the website is content rendered in terms of HTML/CSS/JS and Image format support.
  2. Viewport Dimensions & Orientation – i.e. The screen resolution (Width, Height, Density) and Orientation (Landscape or Portrait) of the Mobile Device.

Ohk.. So there are so many browsers where do I start?
If you take a closer look on the list of browsers, you will see WebKit is the most widely used layout engine in the mobile browser arena (Yes, its like Internet Explorer for Websites!). Hence, if your mobile site is compliant with WebKit standards, most of your problems could be solved!

Wait.. Why most and not all of the mobile browser problems?
To understand this, you need to check-out The Great WebKit Comparison Table and find out what items/elements are supported and what not on different versions. (Typically these would be logged as Bugs / Defects in your Mobile Site project).

Also, as a note to advanced feature or functionality in your Mobile Site, you need to understand that Touchevents are also dependent on the Browser so it would be a good idea to check-out the Touch table and learn what functionality would work and what not on a particular mobile browser.

Then there are Mobile Browser Usage Statistics to help you narrow down in your pursuit to reaching out to maximum audience. e.g.

Mobile Browser Worldwide Statistics

Mobile Browser Worldwide Statistics - Aug '10 to Aug '11

“There are three kinds of lies: lies, damn lies, and statistics.”
Benjamin Disraeli

I believe in the above quote. My approach is to – “Know thy User!” (More on this will come up in my future posts.)

The Screen Resolution and Orientation of the Mobile Device affects the presentation layer elements. The presentation layer can be considered independent of the Height because it can be taken care of by “scroll” option. So the need here is to align your Mobile Stylesheets according to the Mobile Device resolution and orientation.

From a design & development point of view, it is necessary to understand:

To conclude, as a Business Analyst you need to list out Mobile Browsers & Mobile Devices as per the Scope of Work as a primary Non-Functional Requirement to avoid a lot of issues later during execution or completion of the mobile web project. For testing purposes, you can always compare and list out unique mobile devices (with mobile browsers) based on specifications in terms of Viewport, Orientation & firmware or downloadable Mobile Browser. This will be helpful if there is a device availability crisis at your organization and also help the team burn useful man-hours in non-redundant testing.