Introduction

The BbyB Beacon is an electronic publication to keep the members of Bit by Bit informed about the current affairs of the company. It contains announcements of important events like training programmes, Management Review Meetings, etc.

Contact Information
 Any contributions to the newsletter in the form of technical articles, or items of general interest, are welcome. Please send them to padmabaliga@bbyb.sdc.int or padmabaliga@bbyb.com

Editorial                                                                                                                    (top)

Notes for the new year

Around this time last year, we BbyBers started making our New Year resolutions along with plans to party hard on New Year’s Eve. This year, at the Beacon, we decided to take a quick reality check to see how many of us have succeeded with our resolutions.

Last year Nisha had resolved to have a ‘healthy year’ and obviously she has succeeded, for this year, her priorities have changed. She now resolves to get into an exercise routine that she can stick to and lose weight. Like Nisha, Usha and Chaitanya have also resolved to lose weight with the help of a daily swim in our very own pool. While Usha regrets that she had failed to keep up her resolution of last year, she is very confident of being able to stick to it this year.

Sharada has decided that she will try her best to enjoy good health in 2007 with the twin benefits of improved health and improved bank balance for she is sure to save a lot of money that will otherwise be spent on doctors’ bills and medicines.

Jayashree says while she had planned last year to avoid procrastinating this year, she finds that she is still procrastinating on implementing her resolution. So this year, she has decided to avoid making resolutions as that would be a lot easier.

Sreedhar had vowed to eat a pizza a week in order lose weight. He has succeeded, he feels, for he ate 40 pizzas this year and lost weight as well!!!! He hopes that maybe in 2007, if he eats more pizzas he will lose more weight. When asked for the unique reasoning behind his premise and experiment, he retorted, “Do you know how much you exercise your body when you chew through an entire pizza? and then there is the entire process of digesting it... very hard work, so you burn a lot of calories”. That’s called thinking out of the box - the pizza box!

Rajkumar, who is known for being brief and to the point, says that in 2007 he resolves to do things differently from last year. Devaki’s resolution is certainly different. She plans to sponsor a girl child through an organization such as World Vision. Three cheers, Devaki!

Jillee’s resolutions will gladden the hearts of people like Vatal Nagraj or Prof. Ananthamurthy for he resolves to learn to speak Kannada. He also plans to concentrate on his fitness and health – maybe develop a Salman Khan / Hrithik Roshan type of musculature. Volle Yojanegalu, Jillee!

Sukanya’s resolution is deceptively simple – to keep her mobile with her and not misplace it. We do hope that the simplest resolutions are not the most difficult to achieve.

To end on a positive note, Raju of the Mesals team says that he resolves that next year he will love his wife more and work more. May his tribe increase!!!!

Wishing you all a very Happy New Year.

Until next time
Padma

From The Management                                                                                       (top)
Dear All,  

Another year has nearly gone by and it is time for the annual reviews to start again. My request to all of you is to be frank and honest during the review meetings. The main purpose of these meeting is to have a exchange of ideas between the management and the staff and unless there is active participation from both side the review meetings will not serve its purpose.

I guess the staff (and also the management) should be willing to get both criticism and praise. I will assure you that the management will use both of them constructively – learn from the criticism and humbly accept any praise. I sincerely hope all staff will take the same attitude towards any criticism or praise that may come their way during the review process.

Regards,
Raghu

Projects News

StaffBank                                                                                                            (top)

The first week of December was extremely hectic for the StaffRoster team as they were to roll out the new StaffRoster on Web version to one of our pilot trusts Guys and Thomas. The version was slated for 8th Dec, but the release was postponed to a later date at the last minute. This postponing has allowed the team, Chaitanya, Sreedhar and Raghu to spend more time on improving the product. The release has now been rescheduled for 22nd Jan 2007.

Later on, it was StaffBank's turn to get busy with NHSP and non-NHSP change controls. I would say that it has been a month where the main highlight has been the team effort. Arun and I were making the design documents. The programming team of Prathibha, Deepak and Yogita have done a commendable job by taking on these design documents and coding them successfully. The testing team of Jayashree, Poornima and Vasu Dev have written some great test cases, and Padma has documented these changes beautifully. January is likely to be the same as there are a couple of important change controls that are waiting to be finalized.

I would like to welcome Dilna Antony and Jomon Thomas, the 2 new trainees to StaffBank. I wish them all the best and hope that they will be promoted into the team as Domain Members soon.

As we have started inching towards the end of the year, I personally want to thank all team members for the support that you have shown during the past year. I am confident that the New Year will see the StaffBank / StaffRoster team scaling greater heights.

Come the New year, Raghu, Arun and I will be starting a new fully web-based version of StaffBank which will be on ASP.NET and totally Object Oriented.

On behalf of StaffBank and Staff Roster team, I would want to wish all of you a very Happy New year!

Usha on behalf of StaffBank / StaffRoster team.

Mesals                                                                                                                  (top)

It is unbelievable that it’s the end of year 2006. It still feels like yesterday that we started the year 2006!

It has been a quiet month as far as MESaLS development is concerned. Currently we are concentrating on complete testing of the system and making the system virtually bug free. It is due for release in late Jan' 07. The Testing team has been very busy identifying the core functional areas and preparing the test cases for them. The Programming team is also pitching in, in the form of testing the system developed by others so as to reduce the load on the testing team as well as getting themselves familiar with the areas developed by other programmers. We intend to complete this exercise of testing sometime in Jan'07.

The other news of the month was obviously the celebration ofthe 15th anniversary of BbyB.All the partners from BHP were here to celebrate the event.Though we did not get much time to spend with Chris Reed, we did manage to squeeze in about half a day's session with him to iron out some of the doubts the team had. He is scheduled to visit us again in mid Jan '07. More on that next month.

Wishing you all a Very Happy and Prosperous New Year in 2007.

Shashi for Team MESaLS

PFACT                                                                                                                   (top)

This month We released a patch for version 1.10.i.9 in SQL. The entire team was busy working on the next patch release for both sql and oracle. Manu was writing scripts for automation while Srikanth and Rejith were busy with testing and writing test cases. Manu Gupta and Lakshmanan were working on classes.

Finally,on behalf of pFACT team I wish you all a very 'Happy New Year'.

Pravitha for pFACT

Sepia                                                                                                                   (top)

It has been a busy month for Sepia, which saw the release of Version 3.08.00.g in early December. Devaki and the team have started the modifications and enhancements based on the list sent by Eirian for version 3.09.00.

Both John and Eirian visited Bengalooru to celebrate the 15th anniversary of BbyB. Unfortunately, they could not spare any time to discuss any work related issues as the visit was very brief and they were on a holiday.

The team is looking forward to their next visit in 2007.

Wishing one and all a Very Happy and Prosperous New Year in 2007.

Shashi for Team Sepia

Other News                                                                                                        (top)

Farewell to Saraswathi and Sachin

Sachin and Saraswathi left BbyB in November. Sachin who was Domain Member of StaffBank has joined Accenture as Senior Software Engineer. Before leaving, Sachin said that he wished to thank all in the BbyB family for supporting him and involving him in a wonderful team.

Saraswathi has joined First Indian Corporation as Testing Engineer.

Making a splash in the pool

The swimming pool at BbyB which is at its very best now has finally been inaugurated. Chaitanya and Sreedhar now start their day with a refreshing morning swim – a few laps of the pool and they are ready for the day!! Chaitanya says that he started swimming mainly for the exercise but finds that it is absolutely great to start the day like this.

Under the night sky on December 9

The stars were out that night but were dimmed by the splendour of our office at the BbyB Software Development Centre. The place was specially illuminated and a shamiana was set up to house the food stalls. Looks like everyone had a blast! The pictures below say it all.

Naveen and Aruna’s house warming

Naveen and Aruna performed the gruhapravesham of their newly built house at Sri Vignesh Apartments, Devarachikkanahalli on December 15th. While the day was marred by the road accident they had that morning, the happiness arising from the occasion was not dimmed in the slightest. We wish them much happiness in their new home.

Arun’s son’s photo

Here’s a glimpse of an absolutely cute baby with a heart warming smile – Arun’s and Vidya’s son born on November 28th.

Ooty Baba!

(And, finally, it’s here – Malovika’s reportage of the stressbuster at Ooty. Sit down with a cup of your favourite brew and relive the memories!! – Ed.)

Drumming up a song on our lips the BbyB team drove away from city’s din and into the folds of Nilgiri Hills. The journey seemed never ending for the passengers of the mini bus as a normal 7 hour journey took unusually 10 hours from Bangalore to destination Ooty.

The fact that guys at the back of the van were refueling themselves with beer and all didn’t do much to help us speed our journey. Understandably they were beckoned by nature’s call… a dozen times before we even reached Ooty!

But nature was in its full glory and aplomb. The pine needle trees were standing out on the top of the mountains as porcupine’s hair on its ends. We were soon engulfed in a thick green forest snaking up the hill. There were patches of greenery amidst the brown woody forest. Trees so tall that everything else seemed dwarfed and sun was all but eclipsed by them. Spurts of water fountain occasionally greeted us on the corners of the serpentine road. The beauty was indeed captivating as people went trigger happy clicking away their cameras.

Oh, so cool was the air that we were breathing and so crisp was the mountain breeze as we neared the tea plantation. It was spread as far as the eyes could run. The plantation workers were hard at work on a tea break! (pun intended!) However this reminded us of our growling tummies as it was well past our lunch time and in fact close to a tea-break!

Never ending journey

The driver was painstakingly patient with changing the gear, perhaps it was more than what we could handle as all of us wanted to try a hand at the wheel ourselves, of course we would have had to displace the driver from the seat. Anyhow the journey ended after 10 hours as we finally parked in Taj Savoy, our abode for the next 48 hours.

The lucky ones like Raghu, Usha, Shashi and Kavitha managed to beat us by a good 4 hours and were enjoying their siesta while we charged in to have the much delayed lunch. The lunch rejuvenated us and we settled in our respective rooms.

Games that people play

The evenings were great as usual. As the bonfire crackled, the jovial team of BbyB got into full form. The agenda of the first evening was welcoming the new joinees and not just any welcome, a SANDWICH welcome! Deepak, Lakshmanan, Manu, Yogita, Sanuj, Sunita were all very sportive as they sang and entertained the crowd. They were followed by duets by Manu and his wife, Chaitanya and Yogita and Sreedhar and I. While Deepak was still nursing his behind, others were nursing their ears.

The second evening was even better as Savoy had arranged for games. Chaitanya was egged on by the game master to win a toy for his baby, and he promptly won a teddy for Yogita! Now we are waiting for the baby!

Picture this – a crowd of 30-odd BbyB people sitting quietly, armed with a toothpick, occasionally screaming excitedly followed by long pauses of silence. Give up?? We were playing HOUSIE! And the toothpicks were in place of pencils. Mostly the cash prizes were being shared between 3-4 people except for Shashi who bagged the highest cash prize and didn’t share with anyone!

A spirited game of “Passing the Ball” followed next, where each person who ended up with the ball had to do something their neighbor told them to do. Vamsy was the first one out, but entertained all with his amazing Telugu song and dance. As the game progressed and people started getting out, the fun quota went up and up, with Usha passing off Amitabh’s “Don ko pakadna mushkil hi nahin, namumkin hai” as a Shah Rukh Khan dialogue and Sreedhar telling the person he hated the most in the crowd, Chaitanya, that his cooking was great!! Saraswathi’s exercising and other songs kept the fun meter ticking all the way. But at the end, the unanimous decision was that Vamsy walked away with the prize.

Next, Antakshari was on everyone’s mind. Teams were made and everyone was in high spirits with or without a glass in their hand! Deepak and Sachin took the lead in singing and kept the other teams on their toes.

Crazy Kiya Re!

In the morning all got a chance to explore the sleepy town. It must be admitted that the infrastructure reminded us of Bangalore though. We had hoped for a cleaner Ooty but it wasn’t so. The Ooty Lake was a disappointing dirtier version of our beloved Ulsoor Lake back home. Sad was it to see the callous attitude of the administration, with no regard for tourism at all.

Meanwhile the BbyB gang enjoyed their trip to Botanical Garden and Ooty Lake. While some went for a cozy boat ride, others were more sporty and enjoyed crashing their cars. Leading the pack were two rash women drivers – Usha and I. Our respective husbands were watching us from a safe distance as we roared our engines and chased each other all over the arena, crashing. Usha gave plenty of reasons to Raghu to reconsider if he wants her to drive at all!

The fun continued for two rounds as we set the arena on fire with our striking cars. Who says women drivers are reckless?? That person is a real genius! Others from the BbyB gang followed and had a whale of a time crashing.

The food at Savoy was very appetizing and the place was very English. Each cottage had a fireplace that would be lit on request. That was enough to keep the nights warm and delightful. The glow of a fireplace is really something else… with the sound of wood crackling, all our tiredness melted away. The silence of the fire is another language on its own; if you listen carefully one can hear poetry oozing out from the burning logs.

The time finally came when we had to leave. Although we were all well rested at Taj Savoy we dreaded the thought of having to travel back to Bangalore for the next 10 hours! Raghu, it may be a good idea to have a personal jet for the gang next time, what say you? Still, the way back gave us another chance to see the majestic beauty of the hills and the valleys. As we clicked away with our cameras, the real photographs and memories were etched in our hearts as we ticked off another successful BbyB trip.

Malovika Rao

Holidays                                                                                                                 (top)

We begin the holiday season for the next year with, what else, but a holiday. January 1, New Year’s Day will be a holiday and so will January 26 as it is Republic Day. That’s two long weekends to look forward to and relish.


Training and Education                                                                                        (top)

The annual Performance Review meetings have begun. This year, we have also filled in a Self Appraisal form as a part of the review process.


Colleagues Cognizant                                                                                         (top)

The focus this month is on two very pleasant chaps Rajendra and Omprakash. Rajendra who is with MESaLS, is famed for his quick repartee and his tongue-in-cheek remarks and can keep you entertained for hours. Om who is a data prepper and works with both MESaLS and StaffBank projects has a huge circle of friends and is always ready to help. Read on and get to know them better.

Rajendra

When did you join BbyB?
I joined BbyB on 13th June 2005.

Tell us about your experiences in BbyB.
At BbyB, I found a very friendly working environment with co-operative colleagues around; in fact I feel I am part of a family.

You are known to be a great mimic. You have a spontaneous sense of humour and you love to play jokes. What or who is your inspiration?
I always like to laugh and make others laugh. You can say it's God's gift.

Can you describe your home town? What difference do you find between Bangalore and your place?
My hometown, Kolhapur, is a cool and calm place; it has a strong historical background. It is famous for various things.Bangalore is different in many ways. We find a modern touch to our day to day life; everyday we get a chance to meet different people from various parts of the country.

We always see you with your headphones on - do you like music very much - and what kind?
Yes, I am crazy about music. I don’t have any special preferences, it depends mostly on my mood. I listen to any music that makes me happy and helps me relax.

We noticed during the stressbuster that you are a good singer. Who is your favourite singer?
Thanks for the compliment. Basically I am a bathroom singer. My favourite singers are Shaan, Kishorda, Ashatai and Rajendra...

What are your other hobbies?
Watching Hindi movies, biking and reading.

What would you look for in a life partner?
She should be understanding, caring and loving. I dream about a girl who will love to watch a game of cricket with me, who will not shoot uncomfortable questions at me if I come home late in the night..... for further qualities please refer to Tulsi in Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi.

You are very silent in the office but quite the opposite in the cab. Why this change of personality?
I think it will be better if you ask this question to the OTHER passengers of the cab.

Name the woman you admire the most and tell us why?
I admire my mother because she has always given priority to the family. She has a lot of patience and you will find always a smile on her face.

How do you fill in your week ends?
Weekend? What does that mean? I only remember Friday night before getting up on Monday morning.

Om Prakash

When did you join BbyB?
On March 8, 2006. It was a Wednesday.

Tell us about your experiences in BbyB.
In BbyB everyone is very supportive and friendly. I have received a lot of help in learning things better and faster.

The stressbusters that I have attended have been a wonderful experience and absolutely enjoyable. Another great experience is travelling to the office by cab – I get to spend a lot of time spent together with colleagues, make new friends, learn something new everyday, etc.

You come across as a well-informed person; you seem to know at least something about almost everything. What made you so?
It’s just that I watch T.V a lot, scan through most of the channels and get to know some of the things which are new and interesting.

You like Carnatic music. Have you studied it? Who are your favourite musicians?
Yeah, I love Carnatic music, but no I haven't studied it. Some of my favourites are MS Subbalakshmi, Balamurali Krishna, Unnikrishnan, Mandolin Srinivas, Kunnikudi Vaidyanathan ...I also love Fusion Music and Jugal bandi.

What are your hobbies?
Well, other than listening to music and watching Television, I also collect and exchange stamps and coins. (He has a few old Indian coins and stamps, that are not easily available now.)

You have changed from being very quiet to being quite talkative. Why?
I don't think I’ve changed. I'm the same Om as I was before. Maybe I seem different because earlier we were split up into 2 different offices, whereas now we are all together. That is why you see me more often and you see me talking a lot more.

We have heard and seen that you don’t lose your temper easily. What is it that can make you angry?
If anyone irritates me I’ll definitely lose my temper.

Name the woman you admire the most and tell us why?
The woman I admire the most is my Mom. She has taught to be simple and kind and to help others when they are in need.

How do you fill in your week ends?
During the weekends, you will find me with my friends or travelling with my cousins but definitely not at home.

Where do you see yourself five years from now?
I see myself as a DBA and a good programmer.

Weekend Jaunts                                                                                                  (top)
   

Have you always thought you know Bangalore? Have you often dismissed Bangalore as a city with 2 big gardens, a few brash and loud malls, lots of traffic and nothing else? Well, think again. This time, on Weekend Jaunts, we offer you Bangalore along with its lesser known but definitely more charming spots, its side streets, its street food and its culture corners. Put on your walking shoes (there’s no need to fill up the petrol tank) make sure you have small change for the bus / auto ride and get set to discover.

Start your morning at Lalbagh. Apart from having probably the finest collection of trees and plants in the world, the story of LalBagh over the last two and half centuries (yes! it is 245 years old) is deeply entwined with the history of Bangalore. Check out the 16th-century mandapam erected by the Yelahanka chieftain Kempe Gowda and discover the secret lives of bamboos and peepals, the Talipot Palm and the Paperbark tree. Whether you are a trained botanist, or someone who cannot tell a tree from a lamppost, there is something new to discover and marvel at in LalBagh.

If you have a taste for music, you could try out Bugle Rock Garden, a stunning mix of tall trees growing on a slope and landscaped gardens. Here you can take a morning walk to the accompaniment of strains of music.

Hop over to MTR for a scrumptious South Indian breakfast and then make your way to Chitra Kala Parishat on Kumar Krupa Road for an art treat. CKP has a unique collection of traditional paintings, leather puppets and artifacts of Karnataka. It has a graphic studio, sculpture studio and an open-air theatre. The Chitrakala Parishat is open to the public on all days between 10 am and 5 pm. However, the Parishat's personal collections, including the Roerich and Kejriwal Galleries are closed daily between 2 to 3 pm. By the way, those who are interested in art shouldn’t miss CKP’s Chitra Santhe, an absolutely mind-boggling art fair on December 31st at their premises.

For lunch restaurants in Bangalore offer you a wide variety of cuisines ranging from Ragi Mudde to Sushi. While the afternoon away with a stroll down Brigade Road or Commercial Street and do try to explore the side roads that branch off. Interesting shops line these little streets and their owners do not object to either browsing or bargaining. Else, travel down Airport Road to catch a glimpse of a towering Shiva statue, remarkable for its serene look.

In the evening, you will find that you are absolutely spoilt for choice. You can catch a play at Rangashankara in J.P. Nagar and the tickets are a mere Rs. 49/100. Alternatively, you can feast your eyes on the musical fountain located near Nehru Planetarium for a nominal fee. If you’d like to enrich your knowledge of local culture, spend an evening on the rocky slope near the Kempegowda Tower at Lalbagh and watch the colourful Jaanapada Jaatre under a starlit sky. (No entry fee) If you prefer to tickle your taste buds rather than stimulate your aesthetic sense, make your way to Dosa Galli at V.V. Puram famed for its street food. You can take your pick of sizzling dosas, chilled sweet rabdi, or tangy Pepsi soda, among a host of other delicacies. Don’t forget that V.V. Puram also plays host to an avrebele feast at this time of the year.

I am aware that I have left out a great many places, including some very interesting temples and churches. However, Bangalore is too vast and varied to sum up in one article or cover in a single day. I hope this inspires all of us to explore this city at our own pace and in our own fashion. If you are longing to learn more about Bangalore, read Peter Colaco's "Bangalore - a Century of Tales from City and Cantonment" or sign up for a Bangalore Walk. Visit www.bangalorewalks.com and choose from early morning walks, all day walks or Bangalore by night walks.

Birthdays                                                                                                             (top)

Naveen and Sanuj will be celebrating their birthdays this month and we wish them a smooth journey through life and not too many birthday bumps.

Dilna's Birthday Snaps