Techno Page

DVD Revolution

The next generation in optical disc technology is set to take the world by storm. Offering huge improvements on the established forms of storage media- movies, software...you name it, it's all coming in on Digital Versatile Disc, better known as DVD.

Externally DVDs are almost identical to regular Compact Discs. It's inside, that the techno wizards have weaved their magic and made possible the storage of 7 to 25 CDs of data on a single DVD.

DVDs essentially function in the same way as a CD. The digital data etched into the disc as 'pits', is read by a beam of laser light. The difference in a DVD is that the 'pits' are almost half the size of those on a CD. The spacing between the 'pits' is also approximately half , resulting in almost four times the number of 'pits' packed into a single disc.

When the laser reads the data on an optical disc, it passes through a relatively thick plastic coating called a substrate, before reaching the 'pits'. DVD technology incorporates a thinner substrate than on a CD. This thin substrate layer alone is not durable enough to withstand handling or strong enough to keep the disc flat. Therefore another substrate layer is applied over the first layer using a bonding technology developed by Panasonic. This second layer also contains 'pits', resulting in two layers containing data. In effect doubling the disc's capacity.

The laser beam can be focused to read the two layers independently.

The latest data compression technology is also incorporated to further increase the storage capacity.

This massive data storage capability means ultra high sound and picture quality for movies. A dual layered DVD can contain upto 4 hours of play time. In the software industry, DVDs offer developers the space to ship bigger and more sophisticated applications on a single package.

Since DVDs just like CD's are read using laser, there is absolutely no physical wear and tear on the discs. As a result the data can be accessed any number of times without any loss in quality. Which means you can watch your favourite movies over and over again without having to worry about the picture becoming grainy or the sound becomming fuzzy.

Join the MP3 network

One of the coolest web based concepts I've come across in a long time, Napster forms a network of music enthusiasts who share MP3s via the Internet.

All you have to do to hookup, is log on to www.napster.com and download the free Napster software. Once installed, the software integrates you with this global music network.

Once you have logged on, you gain free access to a huge database of music while becoming part of the database yourself.

The Napster software is divided into sections making it extremely easy to utilize all the facilities of the program.

The 'search' option lets you search for music by artiste, title, genre or even by keyword. When you type in your query the software searches through the music collections of the other members who have logged on, and gives you a search hit list. You can then select anyone of the hits, and with the click of a mouse instantly download it onto your hard disk.

Similarly if you choose to make you collection of music available to other Napster users the software will automatically upload your files for anyone who requests them.

You can also 'chat' with other Napster members in anyone of the many chat rooms. You can even create your own chat room with your own topic of conversation. The 'library' allows you to manage and play your music. The 'discover' section introduces you to new and unknown artistes and music. The 'transfer' tab lets you monitor all your downloading and uploading activity. Napster is full of many more functions and goodies for you MP3 fans out there. No more trudging through hundreds of free MP3 sites hunting for that great new song, you're bound to find it on the Napster network.

More on this phenomenon next week.

Monster downloads

"The most multi-talented Internet download utility to come down the wires" is how PC World magazine describes Go!zilla. This amazing piece of software is guaranteed to take you downloading capabilities to new heights.

Go!zilla automatically takes over any download operation you select from your web browser. It will list in detail the possible sites from which that particular file can be downloaded and the data transfer performance of each site. A detailed listing of file sizes and download times are also displayed so that you can download from any site you prefer.

When downloading files, the user has the option of instructing Go!zilla to intelligently switch between the sites which would give the best and quickest data transfer. Failed or interrupted downloads can be restarted without compromising on file integrity, downloads can be scheduled and Go!zilla can even be instructed to commence file transfers when network traffic is low.

When you want to browse the net while downloading, and you don't want the data flowing to the browser to be too slow, the graphical 'throttle' gives you hands on control to regulate the amount of bandwidth used up by downloading. These are but a few features of this extremely versatile utility.

All in all, a 'must have' for any Internet user.

Best of all, the fully functional software is available FREE, at www.gozilla.com.

Designing teen

Uthpala Gunethilake meets Shanith Fernando

Usually many of the fashion designs displayed by svelte models gliding across the catwalk do not make much sense to me. Being rather conservative when it comes to fashion, I can only stare incredulously at many of the fanciful creations that fill the fashion pages. Give me the graceful princess-line and the full skirt any day and never mind what's 'in' or 'out' !

The designs Shanith Fernando showed me however, made perfect sense. Eye-catching, in pleasing colours, feminine in feeling and tasteful in their simplicity they deserved much more than just a passing glance. And Shanith assured me that they are pretty up-to-date where fashion is concerned. But more than the creations it is the creator who deserves attention.

This aspiring designer, just 18, has been designing for nearly three years now. What began as a hobby soon blossomed. His breakthrough came at his sister's wedding last year. She entrusted him with her bridal dress, the bridesmaids' and the flower-girls' outfits as well, and he did her proud. It was also his chance to get noticed for his flair for designing.

However to Shanith, designing is fast becoming something much more than a hobby. The satisfaction it gives him is so much that he now wants to make it his vocation. He hopes to earn a professional degree abroad in fashion designing once he finishes his A'Levels next year.

So what's the feeling? "It's just wonderful to see someone wearing my designs and just as wonderful when they say they like it. And of course I get my pocket filled !" he says with a grin.

Cheers!

By Aditha Dissanayake

It is ten thirty in the morning. I am alone at home. I ransack the kitchen cupboards looking for something to eat. All the biscuit tins are empty. There is nothing interesting in the fridge either. Except for a solitary bottle of beer. An idea comes to my mind. I decide to find out what it is like to get drunk. It is still ten thirty in the morning. There is plenty of time for me to finish the bottle and be sober before everybody returns home in the evening. I would like to see what kind of drastic influence the golden liquid, much coveted by the young and the old, all over the world, could have on me.

I open the bottle and make myself comfortable in front of the TV. But without switching it on, I decide to read Arundhati Roy's "God of Small Things" instead. I had started reading the book two years ago, but had not yet reached even the half way mark. When it comes to the winners of the Booker Prize I seem to be missing the bus completely. The world had acclaimed the book to be a masterpiece. Yet I find it difficult to read. I find it difficult to get past the passages where the less savory bodily functions are described in great detail. "Baby Kochamma waited for half of half a moment. Head thrust forward. When the gurgling, bubbling sound came, she listened with her eyes. A yellow brook burbled through a mountain pass". The bottle of beer would give me the courage to get through the rest of the three hundred pages, I decide. I take my first swig. Not bad. Not bad at all. I take two or three more. It is bitter, but still not bad.

I give it a rest and pay attention to the book. Even though the beer would not have had its effect yet, I fail to make sense of most of the paragraphs. "Slow Kutty. Fast Verghese. And Kuriakose. Three brothers with dandruff". Why can't I alone, see the greatness of these sentences? I turn to the bottle in frustration. I take two more swigs. I had expected my stomach and my throat to burn. The liquid is bitter but not as harsh as I had expected it to be.

I have now consumed almost three fourth of the bottle. My stomach is full. But I must finish the rest too. In the name of science I gulp down the remaining contents and realize that I have now got 4.5 percent of alcohol inside my body. From now on what I record will show if it has any effect on my soul or not. Here goes. I have switched on the TV. They are showing a rerun of a do-you-know contest. "Who drew the first world map?" asks the quizmaster. I know the answer. "Ptolemy". On to the next participant.

"Look at the photo and answer the question. What is the average weight of a fully-grown hippopotamus? Repeat. What is the average weight of an average hippopotamus?" He looks triumphant when no one comes forward with the answer.

I switch channels. A girl sits on a stool listening to a woman on the phone, telling the whole world about her husband's bad temper. I change the channel as fast as I can. A young man dressed in a checked sarong and shirt has come on the screen. He is singing a song about a lost love. Behind him a group of girls dressed like the Sigiri frescoes, twist their bodies to the music with alluring smiles on their lips.

The scene shifts to a railway track. The young singer, now dressed in an expensive- looking silk shirt and trousers is reclining on the tracks as he sings his love lyric. I shudder when I think of what might be on the tracks. I have now watched a large number of advertisements. Looking at them one would think Sri Lankans are always brushing their teeth, arguing over the quality of cement, or lighting mosquito coils. "Don't get caught to false papadum" (viyaja papadum valata norawatenna) booms a male voice.

Next a young man appears on the screen trying to imitate Maestro Amaradeva's "Me guru pare". "Dan thara dama atha" ( the gravel road is now carpeted) I mutter to myself and switch off the TV. The last thing I want to do is get melancholy.

I am now lying on the couch staring at the ceiling. I feel sleepy. But I dare not sleep. I must stay awake in the name of science and see what effect alcohol makes on the human brain. "I must not sleep, must not." I do fall asleep. The time now is four in the evening. In another half an hour my mother will be home. I do not know what to make of the notes I had made whilst under the influence of the alcohol. If I were to show them to my brother he would say it is hard to decide, because I am a nut anyway, drunk or sober. The Oxford English Dictionary is no help either. It defines the verb drunk as a state in which one is "deprived of proper control of oneself by alcoholic liquor." I did not lose "proper control" of myself. Or did I? I am sure I saw an advertisement warning against false papadum.

And a young man really did lie, all dressed up on a railway track singing a song. And someone did talk about a hippopotamus. Or did I dream them up? Hick. I have no time to look for the answers. Hick. I must try to cure myself of these massive hick-ups before my mother comes home. Hick. As for drinking beer, would I have another bottle down my throat, ever again? Hick. Never. Hick. Hick.Hick. Never ever.

Inter-Uni drama fest

Theatre lovers will be treated to a refreshing evening of original plays as the Annual Inter-University English Drama Festival comes alive once again. The evening will feature the talents of both undergraduate playwrights and new faces to the world of drama, as a host of students including those from the Sabaragamuwa, Eastern, Kelaniya and Colombo Universities take the stage.

Following the success of last year's event organized by the Kelaniya University, the Drama Festival 2000 which is being produced by the DramSoc, University of Colombo promises to be an exciting event. The DramSoc, a society dedicated to the promotion of English Theatre amongst the undergraduate and graduate community, has in its more recent efforts, provided theatre-goers with productions such as Anton Chekov's "Cherry Orchard", "An Evening with Pinter", Arthur Miller's "All My Sons", "Antigone" by Jean Anouilh and Caryl Churchill's "Blue Heart".

The Festival will be preceded by an inter-university drama workshop, the second such workshop since the idea was initiated by the Colombo University DramSoc in 1999. The purpose of such a workshop is to promote theatrical talent and foster unity among university students through the performing arts.

The Inter-University English Drama Festival 2000 will be held on Saturday, August 19 at 7.00 p.m. at Bishop's College Auditorium. Tickets will be available at the auditorium from August 16, onwards.

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