Wednesday, August 20, 2008

Top 10 Free iPhone Applications: Vish Dhamija

In no particular order of preference/rating, here are the top 10 iPhone Applications I have downloaded [and tried]:

Ø Remote: Does exactly what it says – controls your iTunes library from iPhone using the wifi connection at home. It can also play Apple TV, but I haven’t tried it

Ø Fecebook: The mobile facebook – you can upload pictures, change status, check & compose messages and chat with friends

Ø Google search – I know there is Safari to surf the web, but search is much faster using Google

Ø New York Times – News on the go. Covers much more than just New York or America

Ø Top 40 – This cool application gives the weeks Top 40 music tracks [UK or US] – you can also hear a clip through iTunes and buy or watch it on Youtube

Ø Last.fm – the best internet music portal is available to download as an application – works brilliantly with wifi or GPRS

Ø Shazam – Heard a new song or tune? Next time it plays, switch Shazam on and it will recognize the track and album. You can also hear a clip through iTunes and buy or watch it on Youtube

Ø Showtimes – Using the Google maps to identify your location, this wonderful application shows the nearby cinemas and what's playing

Ø Localpicks – Again, based on your location, it tells you the nearby restaurants and their ratings

Ø Simplify – This application lets you access your entire iTunes library using wifi or GPRS anywhere. Unlike the remote, the music plays on the iPhone, not the computer. [I couldn't try this one fully before the burglar stole my Mac]

Monday, August 18, 2008

The Counterfeiters [2007]

1936: From a concentration camp of the Nazis, came the biggest counterfeiting operation in history. They made British Pound notes that even fooled the Bank of England.

Salomon Sorowitsch – a master forger arrested before the war cooperated with the evil for survival while his camp-mate Adolf Burger sabotaged numerous attempts to forge the American dollar, delaying it by six weeks, which was crucial for the Nazis to fund the war…

A true story of a counterfeiting operation that was planned such that no one would ever know because the Jews who worked on it were to be killed later…

Adolf returned to Warsaw after the war and wrote a diary. He published his story and the movie received the Academy Award for best foreign film in 2008, which it deserves. The DVD is available with English subtitles and an interview with the real Adolf Burger.

Highly recommended. *****

Click here for a teaser