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10 Popular Affiliate Programs for Small and Medium-sized Blogs

As we’ve already seen today, affiliate marketing is a relatively trouble-free way for bloggers and other website owners to earn money. In fact, these days, even social media sites can become lucrative platforms for affiliate marketing campaigns.
Because affiliate marketing doesn’t require affiliates to offer their own products or services for purchase, but only to place promotions on their sites for other merchants’ products, it frees affiliates from many of the responsibilities and complications of traditional sales models.
Affiliate marketing programs typically work by having the merchant handle all the logistics involved in selling products or services, processing customer orders and payments, and shipping merchandise—all while the affiliate sits back and collects a commission for each agreed-upon action completed by the visitors the affiliate sends to the merchant’s website via an affiliate link. As long as the affiliate has done her homework and chosen a trustworthy affiliate program, she needn’t worry about non-payment.
Affiliate networks administer programs for individual merchants, handling all the work involved, while generally providing tracking and reporting capabilities to their affiliates to help them keep tabs on their revenues and determine which products or services are producing the best returns. These tools can be helpful to an affiliate in fine-tuning the line of products she decides to promote on her site and, ideally, increasing revenues as a result.
However, all affiliate programs are not created equal. Which are the most popular programs available today?

1. LinkShare

Reportedly the largest affiliate network, with over 10 million affiliate partnerships, LinkShare took the number-one spot in the 2012 Blue Book of Top 20 Affiliate Networks for platform strength, support quality, and international capabilities.
LinkShare offers over 2,500 affiliate programs and lets you choose whether to have every aspect of your affiliate channel managed for you or whether you would rather manage your own program using the company’s various service and support options.

2. Commission Junction

Said to be the largest affiliate marketing network in North America (though it operates globally) and claiming the number-two spot in the 2012 Blue Book of Top 20 Affiliate Networks for being “the best at balancing the relationship between the merchants, the network, and the affiliates,” California-based Commission Junction, owned by ValueClick, Inc., offers affiliate, media, and tracking services and provides either a self-management or company-managed option for your affiliate relationships.
In addition to its regular pay-per-action affiliate program, the company also offers a convenient PayPerCall program to help affiliates “ensure they get paid commission for the leads they generate, thus further monetizing existing ad placements and having the opportunity to expand their promotional…online and offline campaigns.”

3. ShareASale

Claiming the number-three spot in the 2012 Blue Book of Top 20 Affiliate Networks for being the “overall best performance marketing network in the world today,” Chicago-based ShareASale has over 2,500 merchant programs and features brands such as HootSuite and PS Print.
ShareASale has received excellent ratings, with the company’s reputation/security, ethics, customer service, and ease of commission payment receiving glowing reviews.

4. Amazon Associates

Placing fourth in the 2012 Blue Book of Top 20 Affiliate Networks, for a reporting system that “far surpasses other big networks,” this is one of the largest and most diverse affiliate programs available.
As most people know, Amazon.com offers such a wide array of products that there’s bound to be something to fit your niche. In fact, they offer over a million products from which you can choose to monetize your website or blog. Amazon Associates is a pay-per-sale affiliate program.

5. Google Affiliate Network

According to the network’s Overview page, “Google Affiliate Network helps advertisers increase online conversions on a performance basis and enables publishers to monetize traffic with affiliate ads.”
Google Affiliate Network is a pay-per-action network that pays commissions to its affiliates for driving conversions (sales or leads). The network requires a Google AdSense account for posting ads to the affiliate’s website or blog and facilitating affiliate payments.

6. ClixGalore

ClixGalore is an Australian PPA (pay-per-action) affiliate network that also has offices in the US, UK, and Japan. The company offers various types of programs, including PPM (pay-per-impression), PPL (pay per lead), PPS (pay-per-sale), and PPC (pay-per-click). Many programs pay in US dollars.
Some well-known brands that use ClixGalore for their affiliate offerings are Bluehost, Time Life, Trend Micro, Citibank, and Fox Sports Shop. While not as widely known as some of the other affiliate networks, ClixGalore is a solid network that offers thousands of potential merchant programs. The network also offers a two-tier network. By referring other affiliates to the network, current affiliates can receive a portion of their earnings.

7. PeerFly.com

PeerFly is a PPA network with its own proprietary software system. The network made the 2012 Blue Book of Top 20 Affiliate Networks, which stated regarding them, “They are courteous, helpful, and point you in the right direction.”
The network also took the number-four spot in the 2012 Blue Book of Top 20 CPA Networks, for its high popularity, great staff, and excellent platform. PeerFly accepts publishers from all over the world and offers thousands of merchant programs.

8. ClickBank

A well-known affiliate network, ClickBank features digital products, such as e-books, software, and membership sites. The program reportedly offers up to 75% commissions on its tens of thousands of products. Commissions are paid weekly, and direct deposit is available to its affiliates.
Over the years, this network has remained popular, though some have questioned a few of its practices. Despite this, the company enjoys an A- rating with the Better Business Bureau.

9. MaxBounty

MaxBounty came in sixth in the 2012 Blue Book of Top 20 CPA Networks, though it didn’t make a showing in the Blue Book’s top 20 affiliate networks. In business since 2004, the network was founded on the philosophy of paying its affiliates more.
MaxBounty pays affiliate commissions weekly, and the company appears to have a good reputation among its affiliates. In fact, the network is popular among many top affiliate marketers and has received numerous positive reviews and writeups and critiques over the past several years.

10. Neverblue.com

Neverblue is a pay-per-action affiliate program that pays its affiliates for lead, download, and sale generation, as well as for new affiliate referrals. While Neverblue didn’t make the 2012 Blue Book of Top 20 Affiliate Networks, it did take the number-one spot in the 2012 Blue Book of Top 20 CPA Networks.
Note: Neverblue’s parent company, Velo Holdings, Inc, filed for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy earlier this year and now plans to sell the network at auction to pay its debts.
Despite this, the affiliate program has stated the following: “This filing will not impact Neverblue’s ability to meet client needs in any way—we intend to continue to operate business as usual without interruption. Neverblue’s business is fundamentally strong and we intend to make all affiliate payments on schedule, in a timely and reliable manner.”
Its management is just as confident that the sale will not affect Neverblue’s ability to meet its affiliates’ needs in any way. While this company tends to inspire high confidence among affiliates, you’ll have to decide whether to jump in now or wait a while to see how things go after the sale.

What’s your favorite network?

If you’ve been thinking of trying affiliate marketing to monetize your blog, consider testing these ten programs to see whether they fit your niche and audience. If you’ve used any of these programs, we’d love to hear your thoughts on them in the comments.

Guest post contributed by Charles Dearing, for WhoIsHostingThis.com – A review site and webmaster tool that enables you to discover which web hosting company any site is hosted with. They also provide information about all the popular webhosts like Blue-Host.

Android 'Jelly Bean' passes 40 percent mark; leapfrogs 'Gingerbread' 4.1

Latest figures from Google show the majority of Android users are now on the latest "Jelly Bean" 4.1 platform, overtaking the long-held favorite Android 2.3 "Gingerbread."

In all, 40.5 percent are running "Jelly Bean" on their mobile device, compared to 33 percent running "Gingerbread." However, just 6.5 percent are running the latest 4.2 build, up from 5.6 percent in June.

The figures, released by Google monthly, detail the state of the Android platform market by fragmentation, offering a unique look at how many devices are running which version of the platform. Data is collected from devices when the user visits the Google Play application store.

Google has come under fire as of recent years as a result of its fragmentation "problem," which developers argue makes it difficult to maintain applications over time.

But now that the latest major Android version has the majority share, Google's fragmentation battle continues to be with "Gingerbread," and not just its trailing second-latest version iteration.

And there will, of course, be the legacy stragglers pulling the figures down at the very back — at the end of every marathon, there are always the rare few dressed in deep-sea diving suits that take weeks to finish the race. But on the whole the market is looking healthier than it was a year ago, about the time "Jelly Bean" was launching on the market.Both extremely popular albeit much older platforms, most are unable to upgrade because their hardware doesn't support the latest built. ZDNet's Adrian Kingsley-Hughes has long postulated that carriers do not care, or particularly want users to upgrade, because it puts a greater burden of pressure on them.

The transition between "Ice Cream Sandwich" and "Jelly Bean" continues. Combined, nearly two-thirds are on the latest two platforms. It's a start for Google. But the sooner it can close the "Gingerbread" gap, the happier developers will be.

Aakash 4 to be available by January 2014: Kapil Sibal

NEW DELHI: Government has finalised specifications of next version of low-cost tablet Aakash which would be ready by January 2014, Telecom and IT Minister Kapil Sibal said today. 

"Yesterday we had meeting on the Aakash. The generation 4 Aakash is ready, all the specifications are frozen," Sibal said while addressing at the Telecom Summit here. 

The minister also said that around 12 manufacturers from around the world are ready to make the tablet in India. 

"There is no problem in terms of manufacture. In fact lines are ready for manufacture, what they need is orders. Now that specifications are frozen, we hope that the Aakash will be available to the people of India by January 2014," he said. 

The Directorate General of Supplies and Disposals (DGS&D) will start the process for orders, he added. 

Final specifications of the new Aakash tablet, however, could not be ascertained. As per proposed specifications, the latest version of Aakash should be capable of supporting 4G services, phone calling features, 4 GB in built storage and bluetooth connectivity. 

Government had sourced previous version of Aakash tablet for USD 49.98 which translated in to Rs 2,276.

HTC One Dual SIM Coming Soon to India, Spotted on Company’s Official Site Read more at: http://www.gizbot.com/mobile/htc-one-dual-sim-coming-soon-india-news-013201.html

HTC One is the hottest looking Android smartphone available in India. It can easily beat Samsung Galaxy S4 or even iPhone 5 for that matter. Now the Taiwanese giant is prepping to announce a Dual SIM variant of HTC One in India. This can be said as the HTC One Dual SIM handset has now got listed on the company's official site. Currently the device tagged as "Coming Soon." We are in touch with HTC India to get exact release details about Dual SIM version of HTC One. Originally, HTC One Dual SIM was launched in the Chinese market earlier this year. Since then, it was speculated that HTC might announce the dual SIM version of famed HTC One in the Indian market. The HTC One Dual SIM is slightly modified in comparison to single SIM version. The latter version comes with fixed internal storage - 32GB/64GB. With HTC One Dual SIM users can expand the internal storage via microSD card up to 64GB. Rest features are pretty much same.

In the recent days, the makers behind Desire 600 have realized the potential of Indian market. It is now believed that HTC is also planning to bring" Glamour RED" version of HTC ONE in India soon. Back in June, HTC launched Desire XDS, a dual SIM variant of Desire X in India, followed by Desire 600 Dual SIM in the last week of July 2013. With HTC plans to introduce Dual SIM version of HTC One in India, it clearly shows that multi-SIM connectivity option is not restricted to lower-end of the market. Surely there are consumers who would like to have Dual SIM connectivity, when it comes to high-end smartphones. HTC has a chance to increase its market share in the high segment, if HTC One Dual SIM lands in India at a right time. Currently, the high-end Indian smartphone market is dominated by likes of Apple and Samsung. The South Korean giant Samsung is yet to announce its plans to offer Dual SIM version of Galaxy S4 in India. The company is already offering Galaxy S4 Dual GT-I9500 in China, while Apple is completely absent from Dual SIM smartphone market. It is to be seen at what price HTC brings Dual SIM version of the One in India. If the price is right, then consumers can look forward to HTC One Dual SIM in the coming days. HTC One Dual SIM - Highlighted specifications HTC One packs a 4.7-inch Full HD display at 468ppi. The device is made of brushed aluminum, and looks classy. Inside, a 1.7-GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 600 quad-core processor guarantees excellent performance. The RAM stands at 2GB, while the internal memory can be expanded up to 64GB via microSD card. The phone measures 9.3mm in terms of thickness and weighs 143grams. The HTC One features high-rated UltraPixel camera powered by HTC Zoe. There's a 2-mega pixel front facing camera with wide angle lens. Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean comes out of the box, while on the top HTC Sense 5 UI with BlinkFeed comes standard. The dual speakers have been placed on the front panel, also known by the name of BoomSound. Other features include: NFC, 3G, 2G, Dual SIM, Wi-Fi, DLNA, and Infrared port. The makers have added a 2,300mAh Li Ion battery. Many Indian shopping sites are offering original SIM at Rs. 40,662. Stay tuned to GizBot for more updates.

Tata Motors launches Safari Storme in Nepal

Tata Motors today launched the new Tata Safari Storme in Nepal. The Tata Safari Storme is a combination of luxury and comfort with raw power and supreme off-roading performance, which this ‘Real SUV’ has been known for.

Commenting on the launch of the New Safari Storme,Mr. Gurinder Singh, Country Manager, Nepal and Bhutan, Passenger Vehicles Business Unit, Tata Motors, said, “In addition to our current dynamic offerings, we now introduce the Tata Safari Storme to our customers in Nepal. We are sure that customers will be delighted with the look and off road capability of the Real SUV, the Safari Storme”.

The Tata Safari Storme is powered by a 2.2 L VariCOR engine, turbocharged with VTT (Variable Turbine Technology), which delivers a max power of 140 PS & peak torque of 320 NM. The 4×4 variants features ESOF (electronic shift-on-fly) technology, enabling engagement of the 4×4 or 4X2 mode, on the move. The Safari Storme has a claimed fuel efficiency of 14kmpl (4×2 variant) and 13.2kmpl (4×4 variant).

 The Safari Storme’s ladder frame chassis is constructed with advanced hydroformed members, for high load capabilities and robustness. Hydroforming enhances rigidity while reducing weight.

The vehicle also has a double wishbone suspension set-up which provides excellent ride comfort. The Safari Storme boasts of a best-in-class turning circle radius of 5.4 metres, making driving and manuevoring in tight confines absolutely easy. The ground clearance is 200 mm, with 26 degree gradeability. The new rack & pinion steering system offers perfect feel and accuracy, for a confident driving experience, especially at high speeds. Reverse parking system with audible and graphical representation on the antiglare IRVM (Inside Rear-View Mirror), electrically operated power fold ORVM (Outside Rear-View Mirror) with turn signals, enhance the driving experience.

The Safari Storme prices start at NRS 37.85 lakhs in Nepal. The range is available in three variants, LX, VX (4×2 and 4×4), in six vibrant colours – Urban Bronze, Sardinia Red, Pearl White, Pearl Champagne, Astern Black, Arctic Silver.

The Safari Storme will be available throughout the large Tata Motors network in Nepal which consists of Sipradi Trading Pvt Ltd., the official distributor and its 12 dealerships. The Tata Safari Storme comes with a warranty of 2 years or 75,000kms, whichever is earlier.

Tags: tata safari storme, tata safari storme nepal, tata safari storme price in nepal

Category: News, Tata Motors, Tata Safari Storme

Apple Buying Low-Power Chip Company Passif Semiconductor

Apple Inc. (AAPL) is acquiring Passif Semiconductor Corp., a developer of communications chips that require less power for devices to exchange information with each other.

Apple confirmed the deal. “Apple buys smaller technology companies from time to time, and we generally do not discuss our purpose or plans,” said Amy Bessette, a spokeswoman for the Cupertino, California-based company.

Passif joins a group of small chip companies that have been snapped up by Apple in recent years, including the 2008 acquisition of P.A. Semi Inc., a designer of low-power processors that deliver more computing power per watt of electricity. More efficient energy usage is critical for mobile products such as the iPhone and iPad, as well as an anticipated product category of wearable computers. Apple has a team of more than 100 working on a wristwatch-like device, people familiar with the company’s plans said in February.

Apple also bought another chip designer, Intrinsity, in 2010, gaining technology to speed up computing tasks. Apple is also exploring ways to replace Intel Corp. (INTC) processors in its Mac personal computers with a version of the chip technology it uses in the iPhone and iPad, people familiar with the company’s research have said.

Semiconductor development was part of Apple’s management overhaul announced in October. In the statement announcing leadership changes, Apple said its semiconductor teams have “ambitious plans for the future.”

Apple’s acquisition was earlier reported by Jessica Lessin, a former Wall Street Journal reporter.

Vodafone introduces K3800 3G USB dongle at Rs 1,750

Price details for the Vodafone K3800 3G USB dongle, which is capable of achieving speeds of up to 14.4Mbps, has been disclosed in India. Speaking at the launch event, Vivek Mathur who is the chief commercial officer at Vodafone implied that the device could prove to be quite useful in this time and age filled with people hungry for high data speeds.

While listing out all the platforms that the peripheral is compatible with, the company included Windows 8, Linux, Fedora, Mac and Ubuntu. In addition to this, the Vodafone K3800 3G USB dongle also features microSDcard support which permits expansion of up to 32GB.

One of the device’s key highlights is that it comes with an interactive and personalized landing page. Users will not only find a number of services including email and SNS updates out here, but also be able to adjust widgets and settings as per their convenience.

What sets the dongle apart from other such devices in the market is the Live Web Chat support that it proffers through the page. Other attributes to keep an eye out for cover phonebookfunctionality, the option to trade texts via a PC and alerts when nearing the set data limit.

The K3800 3G USB dongle price has been set at Rs 1,750 and is available drenched in three hues, namely black, red and a combination of white as well as red.

Features:

- Up to 14.4Mbps data transfer speed
- Black, red and dual tone white & red color options
- Expandable memory up to 32GB
- Direct access to Live Web Chat support through landing page
- Ability to receive and send text messages via computers
- Phonebook functionality
- Data usage limit alert

A VIEW FROM THE RAISINA HILL - EXTREMELY WELL - WRITTEN BOOK

On July 6, the country observed Dr. Syama Prasad Mookerji’s Birth Anniversary.

That evening I released a book at the National Museum Auditorium titled “Jammu-Kashmir ki Ankahi Kahani.” The author of the book is Dr. Kuldeep Chand Agnihotri.

Tens of thousands of party activists like me justifiably feel proud that we belong to a party whose first national movement was for the cause of national unity, and that the founder-president of our Party laid down his life at the altar of National Integration. But not many may be aware that the struggle we waged all over India had been initiated in Jammu-Kashmir itself even before the Jana Sangh was born in 1951. It was a regional party, the Praja Parishad, which under the leadership of Pandit Premnath Dogra had commenced it. I commend the author’s decision to bring to the notice of the country this untold story of the Praja Parishad’s struggle and sacrifices.

It is noteworthy that shortly after the martyrdom of Dr. Mookerji, the Praja Parishad decided to merge into the Jana Sangh. A little later, Pandit Dogra was elected President of the Jana Sangh.

On July 7, at an impressive function organised in Keshavpuram, Delhi, to mark the Sixth Death Anniversary of Dr. Saheb Singh Verma, former Chief Minister of Delhi, I unveiled a statue of the departed leader, and also released a book on his life and achievements, written by his daughter Rachna Sindhu.

Delhi was the first place in the country which gave Jana Sangh its initial boost. But it also gave the party a lopsided image – that it was essentially an urban party. To Saheb Singh ji goes the credit of not only correcting this image, but during his tenure as Chief Minister, consciously contributing to the development and welfare of rural Delhi. At this well attended function organised by his son Pravesh Verma, rich encomiums were lavished on Saheb Singh, whom several speakers described as “not just an individual, but an institution.”

Two days back, on July 12, I released a book written by a veteran journalist, P.P. Balachandran, titled “A view from the Raisina Hill.”  This is the third book I have released in this first fortnight of the month. 

At Book-Release functions I generally recall my 19-month incarceration at the Bangalore Central Jail during the 1975-77 Emergency. In prison those days, a word that spontaneously brought relief and joy to all colleagues used to be the word ‘release’. Since then, whenever anyone comes to me with a request that I ‘release’ some book, I rarely say No to him.

Bala, as the author is popularly known, describes himself in the Introduction as “a reluctant writer”, which only reminds me of a recently produced film by our well known U.S. based film-maker Mira Nair. The film is based on a book written by Pakistan’s Mohsin Hamid, The Reluctant Fundamentalist. Mira Nair’s film also bears the same title, and has earned many complimentary reviews. A review I saw in the National Post, a Canadian newspaper, opens with the comment “It’s rare for a movie to improve the book on which it is based, but Mira Nair’s The Reluctant Fundamentalist does just that.”

The synopsis of the film as given in this review reads: a Pakistani man named Changez comes to America to make his fortune on Wall Street – but after 9/11, he begins to feel that he doesn’t really fit in.

Bala has been a journalist for over 40 years. As he rightly says in his introduction: “I am perhaps the only one or among the very few journalists who worked across the whole media rainbow – newspaper, magazine, wire service, radio and television, and the web, both as a dependable staffer and as an undependable freelancer. Add to this the two magazines I started up and edited. One was a trade magazine in the early seventies (it could have been India’s first trade and trade fair journal if allowed to last) and the other a fortnightly magazine for NRIs, also a first in its genre. Both died infantile deaths for want of financial nourishment.”

Bala’s first stint as a foreign correspondent was with Asiaweek, the Hong Kong based news weekly. He became this important journal’s first staff correspondent in India. Bala says that this assignment lasted almost three years. He adds: “This was followed by several other international biggies. Among them were Radio Australia, Washington Post, Gulf News and Reuters. Besides British tabloids like Daily Mail, Today, as also USA Today.”

The author’s own comment on the book wrapper seems very correct. He says that he only writes when he is ‘unsettlingly stirred’. He goes on to observe “when people half my experience occupy acres of shelf space I have only been able to manage a measly collection of what could at best be described as editorial writings or essays.”

But I entirely agree with the publishers of the book when they say that a writer is to be judged not by the bulk of his output, but by the quality of his writing. I have read only this short 163-page book of his. I may not agree with all the views he has expressed, but so far as the quality of his writings goes, I must say it is brilliant. Sample these few paragraphs he writes about himself at the very commencement of his INTRODUCTION. He says:

Every attempt to write is a raid on the mind; and every writer a plunderer of his own inner thoughts; thoughts he brings out from the depths of his mind and sets into words and images before he can offer them to the world.

It’s an act of extreme torment, no doubt, where all the pain is of the writer only.

Some do it with the panache of a serial killer; others serve it as a sentence they failed to escape. In either case, it’s an act of sacrifice, a cleansing of the soul and, therefore, a cathartic experience.

I came to the world of letters through journalism which only shares a coarse kinship with the ornate domain of writing. I must admit, though, that my entry into journalism was not without a secret desire to become a writer in some distant future.  I thought, somehow, that journalism was the road paved with promises for an aspiring author.

Fortunately or otherwise, not every journalist becomes a writer. But then not every courtesan becomes a consort. All journalists are courtesans aspiring to be queens; but the threshold is so wide that the chances of the former progressing to the latter have always been blissfully low.”

***

Today’s blog is about a book I have released two days back and which in the caption I have described as ‘extremely well – written’. But the blog till now speaks only about the author. Let me give my readers a glimpse of the contents of the book also. I propose to include in this part of the blog a couple of excerpts from the book which tell us how Bala views from his vantage position at Raisina Hill three of India’s prime Ministers ― Pandit Nehru, Smt. Indira Gandhi and Shri A.B. Vajpayee ― and a couple of issues like Corruption and Nuclear Power.

The first excerpt is from a Chapter titled “OUR TRYST WITH NEHRU’S LAMP POSTS”. It says:

Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru has been many things to many people. He was a brilliant barrister, who could have been a prized lawyer if only he had not got his first brief from Gandhi.

He would have been defending corrupt judges in Parliament or assassins of prime ministers, or even those who bribe the prime minister with trunk loads of currency notes.

He was a dreamer who fell into a slumber till his best friend Chou En Lai woke him up, rather rudely.

And, of course, he was a superb actor who played Hamlet all his life and yet pretended he was playing Julius Caesar.

But most of all, and this is what is not recognized in any measure, he has been our greatest and most successful fixer, who got us the much sought after appointment with our own destiny.

However, while fixing up the tryst with our destiny, Nehru, the builder of this country, had also offered to erect a few lamp posts across the countryside – not to get us electricity but to hang the corrupt, the blackmarketeer and the hawala trader on.

Hang them, that is, if we could find any. Because, Nehru thought it would be a needle in the haystack kind of job, so difficult and so unlikely. Because, he thought that a freedom so hard fought for and so harder won, is not likely to be destroyed or defiled by the same people who made it happen.

And yet, in 50 years, the haystack has undergone a metamorphosis to become a porcupine growing in terms of both its size and viciousness, attacking a nation’s sense and sensibilities. In 50 years, the lamp posts seem to have been short – changed by the same politicians who were supposed to hang on them.

Fifty years later, now, when we are celebrating that first great midnight meeting with our future, I am tempted to quote none other than Nehru himself, but in another context and in reference to somebody else – the Englishman from whom we got what Nehru himself called in his eloquent style the fine flower of freedom.

“I know why the sun never set over the British empire,” Nehru said in one of his lethal moments “because God never trusted an Englishman in the dark.”

It is just a harmless thought : Did not we trust somebody too much when we went for that midnight meeting? Perhaps, we should have had the meeting under a lamp post with the lights switched on.

***

Equally important are Bala’s comments on India as a nuclear power. The sub-heading for this piece is: “When a Giant Wakes up: India as a Nuclear Power”. In this, the author says :

Why should India’s five nuclear explosions cause more global tremors and diplomatic radioactivity than America’s 1500 or Russia’s 700 or even China’s 45 explosions? The answer, perhaps, lies not so much in the prejudices and discriminatory mind-set of the so-called super powers as in our own civilizational DNA and in the racial timidity of our people and their leaders – the political, the social and even the religious ones.

This misinterpretation of Hinduism as a defeatist or a pacifist way of living has done more damage to our nation state than to Hinduism itself.

That explains why there are tectonic tremors across the globe when this nation, perceived for centuries to be slow in body and weak in spirit, decides to stand up and be counted as a worthy defender of its life and property – like it happened during India’s first nuclear explosion in 1974.

What Mrs. Indira Gandhi did was not just standing up to those few of nations who appropriated, as it were, the wholesale right to nuclear weapons and world dominance. Her’s was an attempt, a valiant one indeed, to bring about an attitudinal change in the country’s pacifist tradition. Unfortunately, though, her Pokhran blast 24 years ago could not bring about that attitudinal change in any substantive measure, primarily because she herself was not convinced about the nation’s inherent strength to stand up to its challengers.

The fact that Mrs. Gandhi’s insistence that the 1974 experiment was a peaceful explosion and not a bomb only showed that it was a mere marketing posture, devoid of substance.

In the 24 years that followed, the first Pokhran blast was reduced to an archival inventory; and like ‘good’ forgiving Hindus, we went back to our national pastime of self-pity and flagellation.

What Atal Bihari Vajpayee did in May 1998 was to shake us up from this defeatist slumber and re-assert our national pride. Naturally, the guards of the nuclear garrison were not amused.

No doubt, everybody likes a nice guy; but everybody respects a tough guy. Still better, everybody loves and respects a nice, tough guy. A gentle giant is not just a child’s romantic idea of a hero, but of the adult world’s as well.

Twenty-four years later, Atal Bihari Vajpayee has now transformed that into a talismanic weapon that should protect the nation against all its enemies, real and perceived. Too bad, Bill Clinton and Nawaz Sharif do not like it.

Vajpayee could have pleased these gentlemen by being a ‘nice’ guy. But the fact is that a nice guy often gets burnt out in the scorching reality of geo-politics. And Vajpayee knows it just as any body else in his position. If Israel still survives, it is because the Jewish state, right from the begining, decided not to be a nice guy.

  

TAILPIECE

The last chapter in this book is one on “Art, Culture and Media”. The author devotes three full pages to a cartoonist who is no more in this world but whom I had known very closely when I also was a journalist.

These three pages have the sub-heading “Why We Miss Ranga Today”. Bala writes: “If Ranga earned a niche in Indian journalism’s ‘Hall of Fame’, it’s neither due to his genius as a caricaturist nor in spite of his modest talent as a political cartoonist. He passed muster mainly thanks to the qualities of his heart rather than the qualifications of his head”.

Two months back some prominent cricketers earned front page headlines because of the wealth they were amassing by match-fixing or spot fixing. It had made cricket lovers like me feel very sad. I had written a blog with the caption “One’s last shirt has no pocket.” It would be quite in place to quote what Bala has written about Ranganath, better known as Ranga. He writes: “Ranga’s true legacy to Indian journalism is his priceless collection of over 2000 caricatures of global celebrities that range from Mahatma Gandhi and Nelson Mandela to Yasser Arafat and Mohammed Ali; from Mother Teresa and Margaret Thatcher to Mikhail Gorbachev and Bill Clinton. I called the collection priceless not for nothing. If Ranga had ever thought of selling them to the highest bidder, he would have died a millionaire in dollar terms. Evidently, he never sold a single piece, despite the most tantalizing of offers.”

In India today, not only in the field of journalism and politics, but in any field, a person like Ranga, unconcerned about amassing wealth has become a rarity. Ranga fully deserves the rich praise showered on him in the book.

Sun Sajjna | Balwinder Singh Laddi | Teaser | Coming Soon

Top 10 Windows 7 tips

Windows 7 keyboard shortcuts

Use the below Windows 7 keyboard shortcuts to make the most of your Windows 7 experience.

Windows key and the arrow keys

Pressing the Windows key and Left or Right arrow keys will dock the window your viewing to the left or right-hand side of the screen. Pressing the Windows key and the Up arrow will maximize a window and pressing the Windows key and the Down arrow will resize and then minimize the window.

Use Shift: To stretch a window vertically, press the Windows key + Shift + the Up arrow. If you have multiple monitors use the Windows key + Shift + the Left or Right arrow keys to move the window to another monitor.

Windows key and plus and minus keys

If you ever need to zoom in or out of what is being displayed on your screen press the Windows key and the + (plus) or - (minus) keys. Pressing the plus zooms in and once zoomed in the minus will zoom out.

Clear all background programs

If you are not viewing a window in full screen and have other windows open in the background clear all background open windows by pressing the Windows key + the Home key.

Use the Windows 7 search

Find and run anything in Windows by using the Windows 7 search box. Click the Start orb or press then Windows key and type the name of the program you wish to run or file you wish to edit. Windows 7 will usually do a good job at finding an exact match and simply pressing enter will execute that program or open that file. If more than one match is found, use the up and down arrow keys to select the file you wish to open and then press Enter.

Running as administrator: Some programs may require administrator mode in order to function properly. You can run any program as administrator from the search box by typing the name of the program you want to run and then instead of pressing Enter to run the program press Ctrl+Shift+Enter to run as administrator. If you want to click and run a program as administrator hold down the Ctrl+Shift and then click the icon.

Take full advantage of the Taskbar

Pin programs to the Taskbar

All programs can be pinned to the Taskbar and allow easy access to your favorite programs without having to use the Start Menu. To Pin a program to the Taskbar right-click on the program or shortcut to the program and in the menu choose the Pin to Taskbar option. Alternatively you can also drag the icon to the Taskbar.

If you want to remove a pinned program, right-click on the Taskbar icon and click Unpin this program from the Taskbar. Alternatively you can also drag the icon off of the task bar and then click Unpin this program from the Taskbar.

Move the icons and pinned programs

Any pinned or opened program on the Taskbar can be moved and arranged. Left-click on any icon on the Taskbar and drag it to the location you want it to remain.

Windows key and a number

Pressing the Windows key and a number on the top row of your keyboard will open the Window corresponding to the open program on your Taskbar. For example, in the below picture of the Windows 7 Taskbar, Firefox i the first icon, Control panel is the second icon, and Adobe Photoshop is the third icon. If the Windows key + 3 was pressed, Adobe Photoshop would become the active window. To make it even easier arrange your icons (as mentioned above) from left to right by most frequently opened.

Pin your favorite folder

If you frequently access the same folder (e.g. your favorites, my documents, Dropbox, etc.) pin the folder to the Windows Explorericon on the Taskbar. To do this drag your favorite folder to the Taskbar until you see Pin to Windows Explorer. Once pinned, right-click the Explorer icon to access that folder under the Pinned section.

Open a second instance

If you want to open a second instance or window of a program that is already open, press and hold the Shift key and then click the program icon on the Taskbar.

Get to the Desktop

Click the Desktop button on the far right edge of the Taskbar to get to the Desktop.

Customize the Notification area

Windows Vista and Windows 7 allow the Windows Notification area (aka Systray) to be modified. By default, many of the icons shown in the past are now hidden and give Windows a much cleaner look. Customize this area to make icons show or not show by clicking on the up arrow next to the icons and selecting Customize, as shown in the picture to the right. Once in Customize you can choose what programs show, don't show, or only show notifications.

Improve the quality of your text

Use the Windows ClearType Text Tuner to improve the overall quality of all text you read on your screen. To start the ClearType Text Tuner click the Start Orb and type cttune.exe and press Enter.

Enable and disable Windows 7 features

Turn on and off Windows features by clicking Start, typingfeatures and press enter. In the Programs and Features window on the left-hand column click Turn Windows features on or offand in the Windows Features box check or uncheck the features you want enabled or disabled.

Use the Reliability and Performance Monitor

View the reliability history of your computer by using theReliability Monitor. Click the Start orb and type reliability and press enter for View Reliability History. In the Reliability Monitor, you'll be able to view the overall reliability of your computer and be able to identify any past problems your computer has had.

If you want to view the performance of your computer in real time use the Performance Monitor. Click the Start orb and type performance and press enter for the Performance Monitor. In the Performance Monitor, you can view your computers performance in real time or view a log of your systems performance.

Re-enable underlined keyboard shortcuts

By default, Windows 7 has the underlines for keyboard shortcuts like those shown in the picture to the right disabled. To re-enable these underlines in all Windows programs follow the below steps.

1. Open the Control Panel
2. In the Control Panel click Ease of Access
3. In Ease of Access click Change how your keyboard works
4. Finally, check the Underline keyboard shortcuts and access keys and then click Ok.

Rename multiple files at once

To change the name of multiple files at once highlight all the files you wish to rename in Windows Explorer and press the F2 key. Type in the new name you wish to use for all files and press enter. Once done all files will be renamed to the name entered followed by a unique number.

Install Windows Essentials

Install missing Windows software by installing the free Windows Essentials software package that includes: Windows Live Family Safety, Windows Live Mail, Windows Live Messenger, SkyDrive for Windows, Windows Movie Maker, Windows Photo Gallery, Windows Live Writer, and Microsoft Outlook Hotmail Connector.