I have been working as a database admin for the last couple of years now, and every gig I came across had a learning curve with it which I was able to add those learning experiences into my resume.
During my first project at IHG, I learnt about Availability Groups and Vmware because of very supportive windows team which was maintaining the SQL environment back then before I was brought in.
In Ciox health, which was my second gig, I showed great enthusiasm to learn AWS concepts on EC2 and RDS as the company was planning to move their db's to both these environments. It was an exciting time as I never got exposed to cloud environment before, and it was mostly me and my manager working with the cloud team on this project when it was in its POC stages
My current contracting gig at UPS began almost 3 years ago, and since then I have learnt concepts on which I never worked before like partitioning, readscale AG's,Distributed AG's and also got to work on POC projects like Docker and Kubernetes. All of these jobs have brought some level of fulfillment in myself that I have something new to learn every time. I want to expand my horizon a little bit more into data engineering side of things and get into Azure, Azure/Synapse/ADF and all the other goodness which can be learnt from across the fence. I also want to expand my network in the SQL community through volunteering and speaking engagements as i am quiet a shy person. A mentor could potentially help me show pointers towards right way to learn data engineering side of things and also on getting more active within the SQL community.
After years of hiatus, I had to come back and blog about this wonderful experience I had over the weekend in the North Georgia mountains. For eons, since I was on Instagram, the one thing which I always wanted to do was to capture the stars and eventually, the milky way itself. There were many posts that would come across my Instagram feed for a while, but I never really got serious about taking the path of star chasing until last year when I happened to travel to Utah in May and then to Yellow stone in September.
But even before my adventures around the American southwest, there was one blog that I came across as I was still researching about designated dark spots in and around the Atlanta area, and that's when I came across Prashanth Naik's Naikon Pixels He is known by the same name on the Insta as well.
So back to the weekend adventure.. The best time to capture the stars is always around Newmoon days, and for me last year was perfect timing during my travels to Monument valley and yellow stone. I also happen to reach out to Prashanth to tag along if he was ever back again in Georgia. He buzzed me over IG and I also wanted to make sure my hiking buddies Yasin and Angel could come along.
We start around 10.30 PM from North Atlanta, the drive to Brasstown bald felt like forever although it was probably 70 miles away (Courtesy of Country Roads which were serpentine). On the way to the mountain, I almost hit a black bear which was galloping across the road!
Around 12.30 AM, we reach the parking lot on the mountain, only to be welcomed by dark skies and the twinkling stars. It was a dark night but the stars were conspicuous with their presence everywhere. It felt as though a big black carpet was covering the sky with led lights twinkling here and there. The hike to the observation tower on the summit was not that long - only 0.5 miles, but I dreaded heading up the hiking trail considering the bear encounter which we had earlier on the way. We were 4 folks in total, so with our headlights switched on, and all the gear, we started to hike. It was a tough one considering the cold, the wind, and then the eerie silence of the night - engulfing us along the way to the summit.
We settled down around the observatory and wanted to take a few sample shots, but soon, the cold weather had overpowered us and it was becoming impossible to handle the camera and stay comfortable. But my zeal to get through the night increased when I was told that 5 AM would be the ideal time to capture the milky way while it would come up above the horizon onto the mountain. This thought kept me going, in the meanwhile, I tried capturing star trails or the stars in general via the time-lapse option on my camera. Apparently, I never used this option before so it was a perfect time to test out that feature. A continuous recording of 1.45 hours boiled down to 10 seconds of timelapse. I liked the end result!
Although we spent 8 hours in the cold under the stars, it felt like an eternity, because we also had another plan to capture the sunrise before heading back. Once I had the timelapse in place, I realized my camera's battery was almost running out, it was a now or never situation. It was 5.13 AM already, I quickly ran across the observation deck with my tripod and camera, made sure I had what I wanted in the visor, and took some shots. I was not disappointed! The stars aligned for me on this night for sure!
With the milky way shots on my SD card, it was another long wait for the sunrise to happen which wouldn't until around 7.30 am. This second wait was painstakingly difficult and we literally were counting time and cursed ourselves for what we had gotten ourselves into. The below photo explains it all. We are wrapped up in our sleeping bags all night
I've seen sunrises before in Florida almost every day, but watching a sunrise from Georgia's highest point was something else. The transition from night to day happened even before we could fathom the crazy night we have been through for the last 8 hours. We were all glued towards the east, and by this time, other people started coming up to do the same thing. And then it happened... another to-do item cross-checked out of my bucket list.
Its been a long time since I came back to post something here but here goes...
2 years ago, I never would have imagined. to be pulled into the Apple ecosystem. I was a hardcore Android fan since my first ever phone which I purchased in 2011. I would spend hours and hours on rooting and unlocking the boot loaders of my Sony Phones.
Circa 2017 - It was just another weekend when I was headed to T-Mobile store to get the Samsung Galaxy Edge which had a BOGO offer going on. While at the store, one of my co-workers nudged me into getting the iPhone 7 Plus. Eventually, I so fell in awe and love with the fluid UI experience the iPhone that it was only a matter of time before another apple product would make its way into my day to day use.
In early 2018, I started having severe joint pains due to psoriasis. It came to a certain extent where I needed some motivation to walk every day and keep me engaged. My eyes fell on the Apple watch series 2. Having an iPhone made the apple watch a natural fit to share my health data between both the phone and the watch. This was at the beginning of 2018. I would also end up walking 4 miles every day in the trail behind my home.
Come Thanksgiving, I was already looking for a portable computer to consume Netflix and other services. I am a movie buff, so it only made sense for me to go for a tablet. My initial thoughts were not to spend a lot of a Tab, and rather go the safer way of getting a cheaper Amazon Kindle which ran on a forked version of Android. The 9.7-inch 6th generation iPad which would usually sell for 320$ was being sold for 60$ less... around 240$. I could not resist the urge so yes I got an iPad for thanksgiving. Not to mention, I even upgraded to an iPhone XS Max in late 2018.
One last craving which I always had in my mind was to get a high-end Macbook Pro with lots of RAM. Being a SQL Database admin and an ardent follower of technology meant that, I needed my own sandbox space to learn and test the bleeding edge of whatever technology I was working on. Initially, I used to go around apple stores looking for the 32 GB custom Macbook pro. But I wanted more memory power. My mind was leaning towards the Lenovo P series laptops which seemed to have an insane amount of processing and memory power for a portable workstation. But I held on to my guns.
Apple had quietly released the 16'inch version of Macbook pro in late 2019. I started checking the configuration and when I found that a 64 gig machine could be requested, I immediately started plans to get one these babies. In the last week of December, Apple had an offer for 6% cashback on all the hardware it was selling on the store and online(Provided you had an apple credit card). Another surprise was when the store employees mentioned the corporate discount I could get. This brought the entire discount of the laptop by 506$. My pockets were still cut deep post these discount. The price was still almost a month's worth of paycheck on the laptop but I have no regrets about it. This is a dream machine which I wanted for a long time and have it for now and will keep it for as long as I can
Time flies so fast that, it's hard to imagine me appreciating and savouring the Apple ecosystem. It only seemed like yesterday when I was all over the social media - especially on Facebook cursing Itunes as the crappiest piece of software I ever came across. Time changes some aspects of our lives and surely, the influence and appeal of Apple products is something which will always keep me in awe.
The Angel of my Life, my mother passed away on July 3rd. This was a day which I never expected would happen. She was a very strong woman and was battling cancer since last year. Things seemed to be encouraging as she was able to cope up with the Chemo and the Radio sessions since September 2016.
She actually felt a tumour and figured out it must be something serious. The biopsy confirmed it as breast cancer. She was operated within a week, and the tumour removed. It had already spread to the lymph nodes by then. Initially, she had the same apprehension and a bit of depression about what had come upon her at her age of 68 - but her determination allowed her to go through all of the treatments. I did not get a chance to visit her since my last visit to India in 2015.
But with the level of self-confidence she had, I had her assurance that she was doing well. Meanwhile, I think God had other plans for her. A sudden brain haemorrhage at multiple locations did not give her a chance to revive - With only the heart functioning, the only option for her was to be put on ventilator support.
When I visited her in the ICU, I could not see her in that state with all the pipes going down her throat. She must have been suffering even then at that point internally due to the setup. I did not want to see her in that state and was the first to take a decision about removing her life support system. My siblings agreed to the same on the next day after taking second opinions. The doctors also could not notice any response to the medication.
The last 40 days have been a blur, I still cannot believe what has happened. May be, I'll miss her presence once I go back to the US
I switched to an iPhone. T- mobile made this happen. And no, I am not blaming them, but in some way thanking them for acting as a catalyst to take this decision. This was not a conscious decision either . Months ago, I wanted to upgrade to the S7 edge. The reason behind this was that I needed a decent point and shoot camera - and was not looking to buy a DSLR yet.
The only time I got to know about the Dual camera setup for the iPhone was during a random read on one of the phone review websites. Until then, I was either routing for a Pixel XL or the S7 Edge. People who know me well would vouch that I am an Android guy all along and was never really into anything "applish" .
The one experience which I had constantly faced with Android was its sluggish performance as time went by. Those were the periods when applish friends would abhor that - " Your Android phone looks like a cheap Chinese model" . They would boast how fast their Apple phone was, and that how the experience was always "optimized" - snappy irrespective of apps running on the phone. I always liked my Galaxy Note 3, not only because it was a 3 year old phone already by the time I brought it in 2015, but because it was my mother's gift. I know Samsung's cameras were always good and the Note 3 was no different.
So, coming back to present time - T-mobile had an offer where they would provide 0$ down payment for customers who would pay their bills on time. Neither the S7 nor the iPhone were included in this offer. But with a one time price tag of 380$, it was a sweet deal to get the S7 Edge. My sister who uses AT&T brought the same model for 760$. I go to the store, deciding to get the S7, and then I hear all the voices where my apple friends were boasting in my back head. And bam! without even trying out, I ordered a JetBlack iPhone 7plus. Why Jet black? Because I kept reading articles which mentioned that this model had a waiting time - so there must be something good about it right?
One week on, I have not regretted the switch to this platform which I have alienated for so long. The phone is blazingly fast and I can actually experience what my friends were mentioning all along. I should also mention that occasionally when I use my Note 3 (For reading Quora in the loo), I cannot emphasize how much I am loving this experience and don't regret the switch from the platform I was so loyal to and to something which I am looking forward to explore.
Yes I got addicted to game of thrones this year(briefly) . Very late to the party - but better late then never right? For me, my all time favorite serials still remain to be Alias and the X files. No question about that and no second thoughts. No one can replace my love for agent Scully or Bristow. But why the deviation like never before? Turns out its a one time addiction.
Before I even started watching it, friends of mine who were die hard fans would say " oh you still didn't watch it? You have to watch it - its so awesome! " Like I had committed a crime for not watching it till now duh!
So I wanted to put their misery to rest - and would forcefully watch it until the first season was finished. To what I understood - GOT in a gist can be explained as a 45 minute drama filled with Sex, Nudity, Prostitution, lot of beheading and romance between brother-sister, father-daughter??, more war scenes and to round up - conspiracy theories. For me, the intimacy between family members seemed more unnatural than romance between same sex folks.
I don't know what it was - but as time progressed I became really additive to this. Was watching it even before the day I had an interview!! Such a precedence is dangerous but well, it happened. While some characters simple seemed necessary for me, I got into the habit for forwarding the story until my favorite characters were in action . One thing which spices up the show is the ruthless way in which the characters are eliminated. At the end of every season - people would be murdered or would commit suicide . May be this is one of the reason I never wanted to have an attachment with the story as I had with the X files and Alias because no one was dying there! Also, I silenced my friends who were hell bent that I watch the entire series and not miss even "a single episode". There - I did it and now I am free. I also believe there are others who have been in my shoes. It really sucks when people give so much importance to fiction and talk as if it is the end of the world for not watching it. Give me a break fellas
Oh khalisi! I hope you will get the iron throne pretty soon because winter is coming...
So I was sent a Yoga 900 as a Christmas gift last year and
also to take some time to use and review it. Before that in spring 2015 I was
given an opportunity to work with its older sibling, the Yoga3pro – part of the
multimedia centric – Ultrabook laptops. I used both laptops – The Yoga3pro
through spring 2016 and the Yoga 900 post-Christmas.
I do not want to compare both of these models right now
because the Yoga3pro is no longer available at the Lenovo shop. What I do want
to share is how worthwhile the newer Yoga900 is .
When it comes to aesthetics, it is almost similar in size to
its predecessor, save the thickness because of the CPU which is more powerful
when compared to the previous core m on the Yoga3pro
The System which I obtained had the following specs
Intel i7 6500U with 2.50 Ghz, can be clocked to 3.01 Ghz
with Turbo boost
16 GB RAM
256 GB SSD
Windows 10 Home
The best part about the Yoga 900 is the watch band based
hinge, similar to the Yoga3pro. It provides a sturdy and a nice feel to the
laptop when it is being swirled between the tablet and the tent mode.
I would
say it is on the unique selling points of the system. To start with there is a
brand new logo on the top. As with the previous yoga models, it can be changed into
various “modes” namely Stand, Tent, Tablet and Laptop. More information about
this can be found in my earlier article.
The screen has a nice 13.3 inches QHD IPS screen. A great resource to use Netflix and YouTube
in High Definition. The color
reproduction looks great most of the time and the only problem I see is that
application scaling, where the menus seemed to be garbled or overlapped – this is
not a problem with the laptop per se, but the software vendor who still don’t provide
Hdpi support to their apps.
I have not ran all the synthetic benchmarks like others, but
what I did was, pushing the laptop to
the limits – by incrementally increasing the workload on the CPU,GPU and memory
and see how the system handles it.
So to run the test I installed Intel’s GPU Analyzer to check out average CPU, GPU load
. The test run was for 2152 seconds and this is what I got in the end
The memory benchmark also resulted in strong performance.
The test was run to check the average memory throughput. The i7 combined with
the generous 16 gigs of ram is obviously doing a very good job. To give an idea about much this machine could
handle, the test environment I used included 4 YouTube videos running in IE 10
in full HD, One HD video on the windows media player, transferring 72gigs of
data from an external hard disk to the system and also on top of that, running
an instance of SQL Server 2016 which was executing a set of lengthy stored
procedures. I won’t say that this is a generic environment which will apply to
everyone, but in my case this is what I do while I use the Yoga 900.
The end results
1)GPU was busy at 59% on average
2)Overall Usage of GPU in Average 18%
3)Aggregated CPU load was 41.85%
4)Average GPU Frequency was 356 Mhz
To check whether my conclusion about the CPU and GPU were
correct, I wanted to take a second opinion, so ran a couple of more tests on
the user benchmark tool. The results were not surprising. It compliments my own
tests with positive results
Lenovo has created a formidable Multimedia Ultra book which performance very formidably! . This has been one the of the best machines from Lenovo I have used till date, and explore ways in which I can use to the fullest of its potential
