I am planning a tour-de-pakistan in March 09. It will be a carvan of bikes that will roam around Pakistan for 3-4 weeks. We’ll feel the air and touch the land of real Pakistan. Details will be coming here soon. Read more about how the dream started.

And CONTACT me if you are interested!

Ideas Hut is committed to provice excellent live coverage of such events. And so we are live blogging the event. Inshallah, Fariha will be attending the event and will live blog on Ideas Hut.

http://ideashut.com/idea/live-coverage-of-pasha-ict-awards-08/

And I hope to turn this dream into reality any time now. These days I am planning for it. Getting things done, finishing client projects, and buying necessary stuff. It will be quite an experience. I have got a special domain ready to post pictures, videos, and text about the places where I will stay/pass through out this tour.

I gave not decided by what mean I will be traveling. What about a motorcycle?

I dont think any of my friends will be ready to go with me. So most probably I will be alone. Lets see. I will keep you updated!

Once upon a time, I had a 5 word faecbook status “make developers network of pakistan”. I would have changed that status and ahead the next day. But Fariha saw it and started bugging me We discussed and groomed the idea with each wall-post. Better put, it was she who groomed the idea, I was simple replying to what she was throwing at me . And I felt what we are discussing is important and should be shared with the world. And more people should participate in the process. So I setup a rough version of Ideas Hut and sent her the link.

That started yet another brainstorming session over IM. We made a road map for Ideas Hut, how it can benefit everyone, what features it should have to be really useful and all that. I was impressed by her planning abilities and vision. The first idea we have at Ideas Hut (IT-Professionals-Network) is in fact a result of her brainstorming. To be faithful, she has bigger part in start and growth of Ideas Hut than I. And that makes her our CEO.

Ideas Hut is very dear to us. We have big dreams about its future. its not really launched and is still in beta. Many things from our first board meeting’s minutes still need to be addressed. Stay with us, you will see something very interesting from the two mad Pakistanis. May be you see us on Wired’s cover some day for the startup we launch taking an idea from Ideas Hut

Lets see why would someone want to share business ideas after all: Because we are already doing it anyway! Do you remember last time you tried to find an online service but could not find it? Did you read the other day a fellow blogger asking for localized services for Pakistan? Do you want to see an idea implemented but you know you are too busy to do that? These are the situations when you do want to share ideas.

And that’s why we created Ideas Hut. Now, we have a place where we can roll-out & discuss ideas we care about and want to see alive. The mantra is simple: we share and discuss an idea and we get the service. Isn’t it great? Go check for yourself: http://ideashut.com

Oh, by the way, the mad Pakistanis are Fariha and Me.

The three UMPCs (Ultra Mobile PCs) are

1. Asus Eee PC (Rs. 18,400) – 7 inch screen, 512 MB, 900 MHz, 4GB SSD
2. Intel Classmate PC (Rs. 17,000) – 7 inch screen, 512 MB, 900 MHz, 2GB SSD
3. Intel Classmate PC (Rs. 20,000) – 9 inch screen, 512 MB, 900 MHz, 20GB HDD

All three UMPCs have Ethernet port, Wireless LAN, Built-in speaker and microphone, 2 USB ports. Intel Classmates also have built-in web cam.

On left, you see ASUS Eee PC, Center 9-inch Classmate PC, and right is 7-inch Classmate PC.

If you are a student of AIOU, you can get these computers without any markup and on easy installments by filling the form on intel-aiou joint website, pcforall.net

I’ve just got an email from my ISP telling me that authorities have ordered them to block access to YouTube.com! When will “the authorities” understand blocking a thing isn’t a solution of anything. Here is the text of email:

Dear Valued Customer:

Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (www.pta.gov.pk) has directed all ISPs of the country to block access to www.youtube.com web site for containing blasphemous web content/movies.

The site would remain blocked till further orders from PTA. Meanwhile, Internet users can write to youtube.com to remove the objectionable web content/movies because this removal would enable the authorities to order un-blocking of this web site.

We’re sorry for any inconvenience.

Best Regards

Manager
Technical Assistance Center
Micronet Broadband Pvt. Ltd.
Islamabad

I am just back from their display exhibition. Eee PC [900 Mhz, 512MB, 4GB] is for Rs. 20,400 ($334) and Classmate PC [900MHz, 512MB, 40GB] is for Rs. 22,000 ($360). The final price is expected to be lower than this when they are actually given to students. An installment period of 2, 3 and 5 years is also promised. Open University is also letting the students choose HP Compaq 6720s or Acer Aspire along with the two tablet-PC’s. View details here.

Lok Virsa had a museum in shakarparian that had a collection of “all things cultural” from all over pakistan. Many have already visited it. It was good. But Just like any other museum.

But what I saw yesterday was just “WOW!!” They have improved everything. From the main gate to the administration offices. Its “only culture” now. And the best thing I saw was the “new heritage museum”. Its not a mere collection of cultural goods now. THEY HAVE RECREATED CULTURE OF EVERY PART OF PAKISTAN. yes, recreated. The museum is not a rectangular room now. Its a safari into different parts of pakistan. you see a white travel line where you walk and you are shown how vilages/people/things are at different cultural division. You see people{artificial} wearing cultural dresses. You see bazars. you see Traditional Love Stories of pakistan recreated. You see the dresses. you see the doors/ how the front of homes look. In fact, you are having a virtual tour of pakistan. And an important thing is cultural-relations with other countries over the past. How and what came into pakistan from Middle East. you “see” that with your eyes. everything re-created again. While you roam around in the museum, the construction/format of walls change as per the region you are in.

SO, ALL OF YOU, DO VISIT LOK VISRA NEW HERITAGE MUSEUM. IT IS WORTH VISITING. AND BESIDE MUSEUM THEY HAVE MANY MANY THINGS IN THEIR TERRITORY. UXI MUFTI WILL MAKE YOU RE-THINK!