Rajan's View

We have seen the world of services evolve taking many shapes and forms like SOA, REST and API's. REST seems to be on the way to becoming the de-facto language of the internet. Most often, we create application and business layer in Services and API's. However, the data layer continues to be tightly bolted with the database. There are now some alternatives emerging. There is an open source (MIT License) data access layer called restSQL . restSQL Architecture (source: www.restsql.org) Once set-up, it will provide a REST based access to the database. This means that all the SQL statements like insert, select, update, delete etc can be executed using HTTP GET's  and POST's. Like any other REST service, it provides a platform agnostic method of accessing the database. Since it is hosted as a web application, it can be scaled and managed like any other web application. Lastly, one needs to update the database drivers and configuration only in this layer a...

Chicken Kebabs Recently, I saw a cooking programme on TV showing street food. I thought, I will try own version of a middle eastern classic - chicken kebabs. It's perfect for a dinner with friends. Contributed by Rajan Manickavasagam . Published 06. Feb 2012 Ingredients 4-6   tablespoons  olive oil 1   tablespoon   garlic olive oil 1   tablespoon  chilli infused olive oil 4 chicken legs 1 teaspoon turmeric powder 1 teaspoon red chilli powder 1 teaspoon mixed peppercorns 1 teaspoon cumin powder 1 teaspoon of garam masala powder 1 teaspoon of coriander powder 1 teaspoon of nutmeg powder 1 teaspoon of coarse black pepper 1 teaspoon of dried mixed herbs (basil, thyme, rosemary) 1-2 teaspoon of rock salt (or to taste) 1 chopped onion 2 chopped garlic cloves 1 sliced ginger Instructions In a bowl, add the olive oil, garlic olive oil and chilli infused oil. Roll the chicken legs in the...

Google has recently been in the news for their latest update to search, called 'Search plus your world'. It is about showing google plus results in the search results. After the launch of google plus, it was inevitably going to be linked in with search.  However, on the personal search space, there has been another startup making news. It's called - greplin - www.greplin.com . 'Grep' is from the old unix command. It is a 'freemium' service and the free features are quite enough for most users. You can link all your online accounts and all the information - mails, contacts, documents, tweets, facebook posts, dropbox and so on. Overview: The centre of the page holds a search box along with a filter option. On the left, all your linked accounts and status show up. Above the search box, is the size of your personal index. There is an iphone app also available. With each of us using many online services (facebook, linkedin, twitte...

Okra Fry Here is the first recipe of this year. It's quite simple and spicy. Normally, I don't use much oil for any of my cooking. For this dish however, oil is the main ingredient. So, be prepared to use plenty. Contributed by Rajan Manickavasagam . Published 02. Jan 2012 Ingredients 8-10   tablespoons  vegetable oil 25 sliced okra 1 teaspoon mustard seeds 1 pinch of asafoetida powder 1 teaspoon of turmeric powder 1/2 teaspoon of garam masala powder 1 teaspoon of coriander powder 1 teaspoon of red chilli powder 1-2 teaspoon of salt (or to taste) Instructions Heat the 4 tablespoon of oil in a pan. Add the mustard seeds and pinch of  asafoetida powder. Add the sliced okra to the pan and start frying them. Add the turmeric, garam masala, coriander and red chilli powder to the okra. Saute the okra and keep adding the remaining oil. Finally, add the salt. Cook the okra in medium heat for a few minutes un...

Posted by Rajan Manickavasagam December 26th, 2011 News 360 Rating: 4 out of 5 I think, one of the habits we all have is reading news or other articles on the net. Generally people use their browser to read the news. This year has seen a lot of mobile and tablet apps launched in the market. One of the leading apps is of course, Flipboard. But it's available only in the iOS platform for now. In the other mobile platforms, we have apps like Pulse, Feedly and the latest entrant - Google Currents. For me, the one app that stands out is News360. Depending on your platform, download the app from your respective app store. When it starts, it shows all the latest news across various categories like World, Politics, Technology etc. But here comes the interesting part, you can personalize it by connecting your online profiles like Facebook, Google Reader, Evernote and Twitter. The app analyses all your activity and other information and then personalizes the news for ...

Image: Salvatore Vuono / FreeDigitalPhotos.net Ever since the launch of Siri on the new iPhone 4S, there has been a lot of talk about it being a competition for search engines and therefore Google. However, I hope and wish Google and Apple treat the two differently. And, here is why. I see Google largely as an 'information broker'. The search is brilliant and gets you to what you are looking for. And, if you are signed in, Google then makes the search experience more personalized and contextual. As a natural extension of the search capability, voice is already there but obviously not at the same level as Siri. With more information being created each day as well as the variety of devices being used to access the information, Google should continue to improve the core search. I think there is still a lot more to be done in the search algorithm, incorporating social signals and the different user experiences. For example, if I search for 'data visualization', ...

Here is a simple sample program for accessing a MongoDB database. In order to run the sample, you will need the following - PHP server 5.x running on IIS/Apache  MongoDB database  MongoDB driver for PHP  You could easily write the same program using .NET program and driver too. Hopefully, the comments in the program are self-explanatory. Happy coding and exploring!

Simply prawns It's been a while since I made any sea food. I thought a I will try a quick prawn curry. The ingredients are quite basic and somehow they just seem to be good enough for the prawns. Contributed by Rajan Manickavasagam . Published 01. Dec 2011 Ingredients 4   tablespoons  vegetable oil 3 sliced green chillies 1 teaspoon of ginger and garlic paste 1 sliced onion 2 chopped tomatoes 1/2 teaspoon of turmeric powder 1 teaspoon of chilli powder 300 gm prawns 1-2 teaspoon of salt (or to taste) Instructions Heat the oil in pan. Add green chillies, onions and saute them. Once the onions are golden brown, add the ginger garlic paste. Add the tomatoes to the pan. Add the turmeric and chilli powder to the pan. Keep frying the ingredients until they become like a paste. Add more oil if required. Add the prawns and reduce the heat. Cook the prawn in medium heat for a few minutes. Serve with naan/c...

A simple curry Here is a simple curry recipe for the busy week days. There are no particular vegetables or ingredients that you need for this recipe, just put together any set of vegetables or spices that you may have. Contributed by Rajan Manickavasagam . Published 27. Nov 2011 Ingredients 2 diced potatoes 2   diced  carrots 1 cup of green peas 1 sliced green beans 2 sliced green chillies 1 teaspoon of ginger garlic paste 1 sliced onion 4 tablespoon vegetable oil 1 handful of coriander leaves 1 clove 1 cardamom 1  teaspoon of cumin seeds 1/2 teaspoon of turmeric powder 1/2 teaspoon of chilli powder 1 cup of fresh single cream 1-2 teaspoon of salt (or to taste) Instructions Heat the oil in pan. Add cumin seeds, green chillies and onions and saute them. Once the onions are golden brown, add the ginger garlic paste and the remaining spices. Add the turmeric and chilli powder to the pan. Add...

Surprise, I am writing this post on a Friday. It all started post lunch in the office with someone singing as they were working. Suddenly, the question of someone's age came up. And, then someone else was nominated the 'Daddy' of the group, by virtue of being the oldest! A few quips and laughs and people were quickly back to work. It's just once of those 'Friday' moments in work places all over the world. It's certainly something you don't see on a Monday. While I prefer a quiet work atmosphere, office banter keeps the spirits going and helps people bond. And, probably it will be good if every day were a 'Friday'. Nevertheless, happy weekend.