Bonsai is happy btw,,

 At last i joined as an intern in DeEarth Incorporated, Calicut. Thanks to all who helped me all through the way. I was actually not so confident about getting into any firm. I knew i will have to try a lot everywhere, and so when my request was rejected in one of the firm, i was not so sad. Because aware of my limitations as a second year student in architecture i should not expect anybody to accept my request to serve as their intern. I kept telling myself that this is going to happen and i should not be sad about it. I was thinking about the humpty number of people looking for jobs. I just have to go with my portfolio and meet the architect. There wasnt any competition. I neednt have to go through any interview or GD.But now i have an experience on how to hunt for a job. I actually had to make a resume and a job application letter. I had to Google into " How to prepare a perfect resume". All the firms ask for a resume and our portfolio. So better start making a portfolio now. Keep a soft copy of all the works you do.

The way various firms develop their works is different. Softwares like Revit, CAAD, 3dsMax, SketchUp are the common ones seen in an office. Some offices make the draft design by hand and make 3d model in Revit, so that they can take a view of it and render it for the client to see how it looks. After approval, the Draftsmen import this Revit file into CAAD and make detail working drawing. SketchUp is used to make concept designs. You neednt be an expert in CAAD or revit, but you need to know all these softwares. I dont think its a good idea to learn softwares from professional training institutes, because when you become an architect u will not be working on these softwares, but you will be mostly drawing sketches and giving it to draftsmen to do their job. What you need to learn is the selection of different materials used, the appropriate use of the correct texture and material to be used. Learn the basics of CAAD, Revit, SketchUp, 3dsMax. What architects need to learn is to create spaces and places that are appealing and suiting to the needs of he clients. He/she should take in consideration the told and untold factors that can help this creation. Observe a lot and try to think architecture all the time. For example, You have a square plot. You are designing a landscape and the client tells that it should look good, and should be suitable for an evening tea or something like that. But as architects we need to critically design every aspect of it. This same landscape has an entrance. So when you place a stone laid path, the path stands distinct from the rest of the space. The difference in the texture of the base creates a boundary, no the physical meaning of boundary i mean. When we walk on the path, we tend to move along the path unless there isnt any specific need to move out of the path. A sense of movement is created. Imagine you keep a chest high big rock on the path and you end the path there. If any person start walking in the path, he keeps walking until there is a visual contact with this rock. But chances are that he may go near it. But if it was as a 7 feet high rock, the tendency of the person to go near is less. This is because the human brain perceives all the objects around us in relation with our eye level. The design is considering the psychological way the mind works, and not just for the aesthetic appeal. This is the reason why all seniors tell their juniors to read Form,Space and Order by D.K Ching. And all we do is to go through the sketches in it and close it. Even i did at first. =)..... This book has detailed illustration of all the aspects that you have to know to be a good architect.


This post is turning out to be like a "10 better ways to be a good architect" article.. hmm.. 


DeEarth is a pretty well organised firm. The website itself gives a good impression about them. Go check it out, click  here.  Its not like NIT where its just the name that stands. The office is well maintained and the interior planing and decoration is done pretty well.  One thing i liked about the office was that it has a white board in one of the rooms in which the objectives for the week are put up. Under each persons name the works that one has to complete is written and the deadlines are listed. And another thing i liked about the office was that it had a coffee vending machine and i love Nescafe...=)

Welcomes Police officers...

        So here i go with my first dream note....

             People have gathered around to see an elephant standing in the centre of the road. The place was actually the junction in front of the medical centre in sainik school. The elephant is standing calm, shaking her head. So after sometime police comes by the way, and stops to see this. A police officer is analyzing the situation and tells the people to stay calm. The police says " The elephant is good, i can see him holding a board which says -"WELCOME POLICE OFFICERS".  Then a person from the crowd shouts out. Its not because hes so pleased to see the police. He just broke the board from the toddy shop nearby. Weird that i dreamed of a toddy shop with a welcome board for the police officers.
          Hmm,, then scene changes. I am sitting in a restaurant with three others. They have called me there and i dont actually know them in person.. These people arent talking to me and i can sense some kinda danger. So i am looking around to find a way to escape. There was a tv playing some movie. I am coughing deliberately and looking around. Then scene changes again.
        I am in some hotel room, sitting alone in a bed.Am so much tensed about something. And am sweating, possibly there after a sprint. Then my phone rings, not in my dream, in real.
Y did neethu have to call this time?? ggrrhh...

So there ends my dream.


        

Good quotes at the right time....

Shakespeare said....
             "In The Times of Crisis I Was Not Hurt by the Harsh Words of My Enemies, But by the Silence of My Friends".


Hitler said......
             "When You Are In The Light, Everything Follows You,
But When You Enter Into The Dark ,Even Your Own Shadow Doesn't Follow You."

Torrents- ((Mallik, ths is for u,,))

Last day, Radhmallik asked me how do i download this much from torrent sites. So i thought i will post something that will tell what a torrent is and how do you download files in torrent. The actual reason is i was looking for a topic to post something. =)

So. Torrent. Torrent is an easy and faster way to download files,movies,softwares. Torrent is a small file which has information regarding where the exact location of the file is. The torrent works like this. When you download using a torrent, the file that you download will be a shared file some other persons computer somewhere in the world. These  computer users are called seeds. So when we download, smaller fragments of the file are taken from these seeds simultaneously thereby reducing the time required for the download. Instead of taking a file from a person, we take each paper from different persons simultaneously. Simple thought. Torrent is the  the best way where you can get pirated softwares ,films, e-books. Thats what i am interested in. So how do u download?

You need:
                 -A torrent software eg. Limewire, utorrent,
                             These are tiny softwares which can manage your downloads, and store the torrents when the download is being done. These extract file fragments from the sources a arrange the jigsaw perfectly.

                 -Internet connection( preferebly a unlimted usage broadband)
                            Obviously. The torrent software has scheduler facility wherein you can set the time when the download should happen. If your free usage time is in the night, keep your system on and switch on the scheduler, and go sleep. This is what i usually do.

                -Enough memory storage space 
                            
                -Anti-virus or Internet Secuirity Software
                             Most of the Torrent sites come with "explicit contents", guhaha....  Don't try it if u don't have an active anti-virus. You have better sites for that. Even if u have an anti-virus, it wont let you access these links. Not because anti-virus is acting decent, its because most of these links have virus, malware, spyware, bacteria, and what not. Cracks and keygen are actually viruses that have been tamed for specific purposes. So don't let your anti-virus do automatic actions. Put it in "Ask me before taking any action" mode.
                So keep your Windows Firewall and Anti-virus active when you browse these sites and download torrents.

Bonsai people

“What are you doing??”

“Am doing my Architecture degree.”

“Oh, so you are going to be a future architect… hmm great. .”

                Feels so good to hear that.  Isn’t it. Yes, it is.  Every student of architecture gets some relief and gains some pleasure out of it. We think " Oh, we are going to do great things here. These people are looking forward to us."  

Architecture is a field of immense scope for expressing our way, our style, our perception of what we intend to see the world around. This is a profession where we have the full freedom to do what our mind speaks, until the client says no. Don’t worry, this isn’t an article to support the colleges to increase their seats in Architecture degree. I just want to give some explanation as to why i call the architects as Bonsai People.

Bonsai People.

Good name, right.. i like it..

We, the Bonsai people, learn subjects that are related to art, engineering, construction technique, 3d software skills, estimation, and apart from all these we develop a good hand in drawing, and drafting. Even the psychology of the people are to be considered when we design something. You might have started comparing with the subjects others study. Others i mean the other courses like Electrical, Mechanical, and many more. So we have a better knowledge in various subjects. Now compare. A mechanical engineer studies about the working of machines, and actually i don't know what more he studies.But still, i have to continue with this, right. I can recollect instances where my friends studying for engineering degrees, they sympathize on us  on their way to the bathroom for a loo between their sleep, when they see us working through the night.   The bonsai people have to know to manage the budget, estimate, design, and apart from all these, he/she has to impress the client. The bonsai people, they aren't young, they are infact suppressed under these constraints. They just have to be let free and given a chance to develop. Compare. Bonsai. You get my point??

During the study, the junior bonsaies have to sit through the nights preparing sheets, presentations and design. When other students of other courses don't even work half of what we do, when it comes to the professional level, they are the ones who succeed and we are the under-dogs. Am referring to the situation in India. As far as i know this is not the case in other countries. In Kuwait, a fresh civil engineer or an architect gets a monthly peanut of around 40k Indian moneys. I was shocked to know that for an architect in Kerala, the average monthly peanuts is around 10k. That means around 300 moneys per day, almost same as the salary a daily wage worker gets here in Kerala. But remember, this is all after the rigorous days of sleepless nights and countless sheets. Just for a moment, i thought," Why am i still studying here??". May be because, i like the pleasure i get when i design something, may be because am not bothered about my future.

Its true. Am not bothering about what will happen in my future days. I wonder where these architects disappear. All architects aren't moving to teaching profession after they complete their course. May be  majority of them do their masters and narrow down their interest and may be their chance for sustenance.