Hippie Chippie - Signature Chicken Burger

• Signature Chicken Burger - Rs.390

             Ingredients - Homemade Chicken Burger on a Healthy and Tasty Multi Grain Bun, Filled With Lettuce, Tomato, Onion, Cucumber, Dressed With Chef’s Signature Sauce

Now, ive eaten many burgers from many places but, this " home made " chicken burger took me by surprise. It was extremely delicious and one can definitely tell by the taste alone, that  its " unique " to any other burger out there [ who wants to eat awful KFC/McDonalds burgers, when this decimates the competition right off its hinges ]. This has to be one of the " must have's " off the Hippiechippie menu, that id encourage my friends to   " try out " whether it be a Dine-in or take out order.

Hippie Chippie [ open 11 AM - 11 PM Daily ]

GPS -   6°53'11.82"N  79°51'54.63"E

149 Havelock Road, Colombo 05,

Tel - 0112002222

web -  http://hippiechippie.com/

What movies/ tv shows am i watching right now?

1) Farscape Season 1
2) Jobs 2013
3) Castle Season 1
4) Castle Season 2
5) Castle Season 3
6) Fast & Furious 5
7) Holly's world Season 1
8) Librarian Trilogy
9) He-man  TV series
10) She-ra TV series
11) Avengers 2013
12) The Iceman
13) Weird Science
14) Pacific Rim
15) Now You See Me
16) Kickass 1
17) Kickass 2

18) Caprica
19) Angel Season 1-5
20) Dr Who Season 1-7
21) Riddick 2013
22) Two and Half Men Season 1-11
23) Avengers 2013
24) Elysium 2013
25) World War Z
26) Superman Man of Steel 2013
27) Fantastic Four Rise of Silver Surfer
28) Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D
29) The Wolverine 2013
30) The Internship 2013
31) After Earth 2013
32) White House Down
33) Oblivion
34) Red 2
35) Iron Man 1-3
36) Fast & Furious 6
37) Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter
38) Percy Jackson Sea of Monsters
39) Archies Weird Mysteries
40) Torchwood Season 1-4
41) Dr Who 50th Anniversary Edition - Day Of The Doctor
42) Thor 2 - Dark World
43) 2 Broke Girls - Season 1-3
44) Lost Girl - Season 1-4
45) Mortal Instruments - City of Bones
46) G.I Joe Retaliation
47) Witches Of East End - Season 1
48) Race To Witch Mountain
49) Hanna Montana
50) R.I.P.D
51) Enemies Closer
52) Egypt 2013
53) We Are The Millers
54) Carrie 2013
55) Escape Plan 2013

56) Welcome To The Jungle
57) Ender's Game

58) Spy Kids 1-4

Latest Satellite Weather Updates - Sri Lanka

Latest UW-MSSE Satellite Sea Surface Temperature

Kalpana-1 - Indian Satellite Infra-red map

Meteosat-7 - Upper Level Wind Speed

Meteosat-7 - Lower Level Wind Speed

Wind Sheer Magnitude

Wind Sheer

150-300mb layer mean minus

700-925mb layer mean

Wind Sheer Color

150-300mb layer mean minus

700-925mb layer mean

Meteosat-7 - Satellite Color Water Vapor

Meteosat-7 - Black & White Satellite Water Vapor

Lower Level Convergence

850-925mb layer mean

Upper Level Divergence

150-300mb layer mean

Kalpana-1 - Global Infra-red

Kalpana-1 - Global Color Infra- red

Aviation Weather Centre International Satellite Imagery

Naval Research Laboratory - Tropical Cyclones

http://www.nrlmry.navy.mil/TC.html

Naval Research Laboratory - Global Infra-red

Android Demon RSS Feed & Podcast Overload

RSS Feeds

Yup, It was inevitable, RSS feed information overload was bound to happen sooner to later for us uber geeks & gals. With the recent Google Reader shutdown, we had to find alternate rss feed readers. With ever increasing growing number of android rss feed readers, which one do you pick ? After experimenting with alot of readers, i settled for RSS Demon News & Podcast Reader V 3.1.19. Having used Feedly & Google Currents, both of them [ very high cpu/memory/bandwidth usage ] require a steep learning curve. To make matters more interesting is, if a user already has a list of rss feeds, he/she cant import them in, without doing a google search on  " how to import to ". For a short list of say 40 feeds, its a painstakingly slow process. But what if, you had to " factory reset " your phone, then, how do you restore your favourite feeds ?.  This app is a " minimalist " [ straight in your face ] rss feeds, on launch. For those who are migrating to this, rss import can be a bit numbing, as, conversion from other rss reader formats to opml format, which is used for the import process can fail sometimes. Solution that worked for me was by taking the source rss feeds xml file  [ having opened in a text editor ]  and copy/paste each rss feed to this app, thereby eliminating any problems during automated opml importation. Then, all one has to do is, update the feeds and backup the data  [ for just in case you have to do a full restore of your feeds ]. In order to minimize potential problems one can face in initial rss feed import, I keep all my feeds in a text file " not " xml or opml.  The minimalist feel & look of this app will put off some people but, for me, I couldnt be more happier with it. Demon RSS Reader has another cool trick up its sleeve, where it is, not only, a rss reader, but also a podcast reader. Sadly, the developer has stopped updating this app as of February 2012. 

Product features - 

Support all kind of news and blog formats (including not limited to RSS, ATOM, Podcast)

Offers advanced, cutting-edge capabilities, including the most comprehensive podcasting support available today. 

Support downloads Podcast for offline playback

Support download full article (mobilize) for offline reading

Add your own news source and choose from predefined feeds and podcasts

Easy Search: You can search for a news source by simple keywords

Integration with Google Reader: Import all your RSS feeds from Google Reader into RssDemon is easy

Import/Export from and to OPML: You can easily import feed from OPML and Export through backup

View article comments/image

Full application Backup / Restore (all settings, feeds and articles)

Highly customizable UI and support multiple theme colors with both dark and light background (

Smart notification to alert user when new article become available

Easy share: Share feed article and news on many sources. Sharing it via Facebook, Twitter and Email is easy (Requires Facebook and Twitter Android app installed)

Easy sorting: User can define Sort Article by Unread/Read First, Date ASC/DESC and Title

User can create news shortcut on desktop

User can choose to use SDCard for cache storage and even move application to sdcard (app2sdcard)

Feed grouping: With feed grouping, user cans easily categorize and locate feed; user can switch between Group View and Flat View

Hide unread: Don't like to see unread feed or article, this option make it easy to navigate

Offline reading: RssDemon download and cache article and image locally for easy offline reading. 

Automatic download for new article: User can also choose to download mobilize article and podcast automatically by application for any new article/podcast

HTTP-Auth/Password: for protected feed, user now can enter a http auth and password

manual RSS feed import
[ need only be done just once ]

RSS feed sync

RSS feeds just the way i like it 

Valdivieso Chardonnay White Wine - 2012

Chardonnay Smell and/or Flavor Elements

Varietal Aromas/Flavors Processing Bouquets/ Flavors

Stone Fruits: apple, pear, peach, apricot Malolactic: butter, cream, hazelnut

Citric Fruits: lemon, lime, orange, tangerine Oak (light): vanilla, sweet wood, coconut

Tropical Fruits: pineapple, banana, Oak (heavy): oak, smoke, toast, lees, yeast

Floral: acacia, hawthorn

Terroir: flint, mineral, mint

Chile Valdivieso Chardonnay 2012 750ml Made from 100% Chardonnay grapes. Nice crystal and shining yellow color with green reflections. Fresh and clean aroma.

Hold your glass up to the light. Color can vary substantially, even within the same varietal.

This White wine appear golden, sometimes with elegant green tints.

Swirl the wine in your glass; it will release a range of delightful aromas. Then take a quick whiff for an initial impression. Finally, smell more deeply and slowly. You might notice flowers or fruit, an earthy scent or an oaky aroma.

Take another sip of wine. Before swallowing, take in a little air. This will activate your senses further. Notice how the wine feels in your mouth. How does the touch affect your tongue and throat as you swallow ?

Chardonnay will pair well with poultry dishes, pork, seafood or recipes that have a heavy cream or butter base. Also consider pairing the fresh flavor profile of an unoaked Chardonnay with guacamole, garlic, salads, grilled shrimp or even curry dishes.

With a long and distinguished following, Chardonnay enjoys a very versatile image, with vintners offering a broad range of styles and structures. From rich, buttery Chardonnays that boast power and presence to the unoaked fruit-forward Chardonnays that allow the varietal character and expression to be in the spotlight, this white wine is capable of accomodating most palates and just as many food pairing combinations.

If you prefer a big buttery Chardonnay then look for ones that have been through malolactic fermentation, as they will yield the compound diacetyl, which makes up the dominant scent of fake butter used in microwave popcorn and imitation butter flavorings used in baked goods.

Chardonnay is an international grape variety that grows well in a number of regions. Keep an eye out for Chardonnay from California, Chile, Australia, Burgundy, and South Africa to get a glimpse of the range of styles and flavors across a wide array of price points.

Parker Urban Ballpoint Pen - A Pen Like No Other

Rewriting the Rules

Urban's dynamic curved design offers a bold modern look that dares to be noticed.

With a stainless steel nib, designed for both left and right hand writers, and Rollerball Free Ink Technology for an effortlessly smooth and confident writing experience, your inspiration is never cut short with Urban.

The ergonomic shape of each Parker Urban underscores a modern and dynamic style. Every pen in the range has a stunning finish, which complements its heavy, bullet-shaped barrel.

From the metal ballpoint pen with luxurious lacquer finish and chrome trim to the ballpoint with a bright metallic lacquer upper barrel and electroplated lower barrel, Parker Urban has a contemporary range featuring several different types of models to surprise and delight.

Ceylon Business Appliances (Pvt) Ltd.
GPS -  6.897531° 79.859539°
112, Reid Avenue Colombo 4 Sri Lanka.
Tel : 94112589908, 94112503031. Fax : 94112503121

Android Devices & Battery Life - Duel to the Death

WIFI Home Network

WIFI Networks - 

Wireless networks operate using radio frequency (RF) technology, a frequency within the electromagnetic spectrum associated with radio wave propagation. When an RF current is supplied to an antenna, an electromagnetic field is created that then is able to propagate through space.

The cornerstone of a wireless network is a device known as an access point (AP). The primary job of an access point is to broadcast a wireless signal that computers can detect and "tune" into. Since wireless networks are usually connected to wired ones, an access point also often serves as a link to the resources available on the a wired network, such as an Internet connection.

In order to connect to an access point and join a wireless network, computers, smart phones etc, must be equipped with wireless network adapters. These are often built right into the device whether it be a computer, mobile phone or a  tablet. 

DHCP - 

Short for Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol, a protocol for assigning dynamic IP addresses to devices on a network. With dynamic addressing, a device can have a different IP address every time it connects to the network. In some systems, the device's IP address can even change while it is still connected. DHCP also supports a mix of static and dynamic IP addresses.

Dynamic addressing simplifies network administration because the software keeps track of IP addresses rather than requiring an administrator to manage the task. This means that a new computer can be added to a network without the hassle of manually assigning it a unique IP address. Many ISPs use dynamic IP addressing for dial-up users.

TCP - 

Short for Transmission Control Protocol. where Connections must be properly established in a multi-step handshake process (connection establishment) before entering the data transfer phase. After data transmission is completed, the connection termination closes established virtual circuits and releases all allocated resources.

Unification of these principles - 

• If one were to bridge these three technologies together with a screen & dial pad, it would become a   " wireless access device " or smart phone/tablet.
• Therefore, a smart phone/tablet, would have to go through the following steps each & every time it needs to make a " wireless connection " to the Internet.                         Turn on wifi antenna > scan for an access point > authentication between  access point/ wifi access device >  request an IP > bind to that IP >  establish a IP connection between AP & host > data transmission > termination of TCP connection > Turn off wifi antenna > return to stand by mode. 
• Power is required for all of the above steps, which drains smart phone battery, each & every time a wifi connection is made. 
• If a device is in " sleep mode " with no wifi data transmission , wifi antenna should not be drawing in power. 

 Before 

23:41 - 02:05 17- 18 Nov 2013

Galaxy Note 1 -  2 days max use

• Notice at 23:41 battery level reading = 93 %. At 02:05 battery level reading = 77 %. Therefore battery dropped by 16 % in 2.5 hours. In both cases, phone was in " airplane mode " & wifi turned off. Yet colossal battery drain in stand by. [  If WIFI is enabled & the user selects " airplane mode " via desktop widget or by going to " Settings/ More settings / ", WIFI is disabled, but, can be enabled by  pulling down the menu [ i forget the name for it at the moment ] in home screen. Then, even though you are in " airplane mode ", you can use WIFI in offline mode ]. 

After 

01:31 - 09:16 20 Nov 2013

09:16 - 13:27 20 Nov 2013

Galaxy Note 1 - 13 days max use

• Notice at 01:31 battery level reading = 58 %. At 13:27 battery level reading = 43 %. Therefore battery dropped by 15 % in 12 hours. In both cases, phone was in " airplane mode" & wifi turned off. Whoa !!! hold it right there you ask, How can this be ? before i answer that, i like to point out, above are some of the actual screen shots of battery statistics collected in real time. 

These tweaks can be done on either rooted/ non rooted android phone/ tablets

Automatic display brightness adjustment

Settings/ WIFI/ Advanced

1. Go to Settings/ WIFI/ Advanced/ - Disable ( uncheck ) " Network Notifications " [ Network Notification = as most know, WIFI scans for Access Points/ Routers at pre determined times. Which uses up battery power nevertheless. So if you have pre configured WIFI access points, eg { home/office } WIFI networks, there is no need for it be pulsing so many seconds to see if there is a WIFI AP by that name. " Network Notifications has nothing to do with incoming sms/ email/ chat alerts,  all it does is, let the user know if a WIFI AP/ hotspot is nearby ]. " Keep WIFI on during sleep " = NEVER [ Increases data usage ]. Default settings for " Keep WIFI on during sleep " = ALWAYS = Faster battery drain.
2. I need to explain what the above sentence means because, it was staring right in my face but i overlooked it. " Keep WIFI on during sleep = Always " means, in simple english, DONT turn off WIFI even when in stand by mode. WIFI is just like any antenna, draining power whether you use it or not. So, " why is a WIFI antenna continue to supply with power " when its not being used ? doesnt make any sense to keep it at default = faster battery drain. Now this is the funny part, okay, you might ask yourself, it has to be a firmware bug. But, in truth, this " default " setting has been " in effect " from the very first android device made. Now, comes the more interesting quirk to it, this tweak varies from phone/ tablet to phone/ tablet. These settings even though you change it to " Never " defaults back to  " Always " for some devices, even with latest android firmware. I was lucky with 3 android devices, where this tweak didnt default back to " Always ". Therefore, id say, try it and see, you might need to re check the " Advanced "settings to verify that fact. Do this test on a full battery charge. So why does it say " Never = Increases data usage " ? that i suspect, was added there, to fool the user into selecting  " Always " option. I did note down, data usage counters for both WIFI/ 3.75G at 01:31 and at 13:27, to my utter shock, there was zero data usage during that time period. Screenshots of battery usage during that 12 hour period speaks volumes in itself. 
3. [ Location Services ] - " Disable " ( uncheck ) Use wireless networks/ Use GPS satellites/ Location & google search.  [ enable/ disable them when & you require their functionality. ] 
4. Shutdown/ Restart the smartphone/ tablet once every 3 days is another good practice.
5. Similar tweak can be done to 3.5G/ 3.75G/ 4G [ Settings/ More settings/ Mobile Networks/ Network Mode = GSM/WCDMA/ GSM ONLY/ WCDMA ONLY ]. Voice calls always use 2G bandwidth even though 3.75G/ 4G is enabled on the smartphone/ tablet. Therefore, that " extra  " 1.75G is just draining the battery faster. I would recommend, disabling 3.75G/ 4G during a voice calls and enabling 3.75G/4G only when its necessary. This rule doesnt apply if one were to initiate a video call where 3.75G/4G " has " to be used for that task. If service provider permits, enable 2.5G or Edge for normal day to day use together with voice as that function is not very taxing on the battery.
6. Additional  [ Developer Options ] tweaks can be done, they may or may not extend battery life. 

Developer Options performance tweaks

[ Developer Options need be enabled before following tweaks ]

1.  Window animation scale/ Transition animation scale/ Animator duration scale/ = OFF. What these 3 options do is, free up CPU/GPU resources which use considerable battery power. If one can do without these        " fancy gimmicks ", you will notice a much faster & responsive phone/ tablet. [ personally, I keep Transition animation scale = 0.5 and disable the other two. ] 
2. " Enable ( check ) [ Do not keep activities ] " is an optional tweak, which basically wipes user data upon the user exiting that app, thus freeing up memory/cpu/gpu cycles. [ see, what usually happens is when an user exits a running app by pressing Back button, you minimize the app, but app continues to run in the background consuming battery/cpu/memory resources. That is why, after i exit an app, I manually clear background running app either via a dedicated app such as Clean Master or, android OS specific native Task Manager/ RAM Manager/ Clear memory " Synology NAS & DS File android app ", may have problems in file transfers to & from NAS. 

01:40 20 Nov 2013 57 % battery level,
30.79 MB 3.5G Data usage

08:38 20 Nov 2013 54 % battery level,
30.79 MB 3.5G Data usage 

Apps used in this article to monitor android smartphone/ tablet - Google Play Store

• Clean Master [ comes with a inbuilt desktop widget called " 1 Tab Boost " ]
• Battery Monitor Widget 
• 3G Watchdog
• Airplane Mode Widget by Jason Hull

Hippie Chippie - Ocean Club Sandwich

Ocean club sandwich

• Ocean Club Sandwich - Rs.590

              Ingredients - Premium Fish Fillet, Egg,  Lettuce, Tomato, Cucumber & Slice of Premium Tasty Cheese on Toasted White or Brown Bread

This sandwich was simply delicious. One can safely conclude, this is a " full meal " given the platter variety with each potion.  But, it could have been a tad larger, for those of us who can eat a large pizza and still feel hungry. 

Hippie Chippie [ open 11 AM - 11 PM Daily ]

GPS -   6°53'11.82"N  79°51'54.63"E

149 Havelock Road, Colombo 05,

Tel - 0112002222

web -  http://hippiechippie.com/

Hippie Chippie - Seafood Kottu

Seafood Kottu

• Authentic Signature Seafood Kottu - Rs.350

                       

             Ingredients - Godhamba rotti, carrots, mushrooms, leeks, eggs, ginger, garlic, chillie powder, curry powder, salt & pepper, green chillies, prawns, cuttlefish, fish, virgin oil

Surprisingly this tasted pretty darn good with little or no taste of oil. Potion could have been a tad larger. Definitely worth the 350 bucks. When the opportunity arose, I inquired about whether any of the menu items have the " dreaded " MSG and was told nope and was given the reason to it aswell.

Hippie Chippie [ open 11 AM - 11 PM Daily ]
GPS -   6°53'11.82"N  79°51'54.63"E
149 Havelock Road, Colombo 05,
Tel - 0112002222
web -  http://hippiechippie.com/

Hippie Chippie - Fish n Chips

fish n chips

This restaurant is located almost right opposite Laughs Supermarket on Havelock Rd between Isipathana Mawatha & Park Road. I decided to go there in the spirit of venturing to new restaurants/ take away places which i havnt visited before. On walking in to this place, you smell fish n chips in the air, which makes you even more hungry. Dining in arrangement is lovely. Placed an order for -

Authentic Battered Fish & Chips - Rs.690.00

      Ingredients - Premium Fish Fillets, Sourced Directly From Fish Mongers in Kalpitiya, Seasoned in Our Signature Herbs & Spices Infusion and Cooked to Perfection in Light & Crispy Homemade Batter. Simply The Best Fish & Chips You Can Find in the Country, Served With Our Signature Tartare Sauce

It took almost 45 mins for it to be ready, came nicely packed in a rather small box, which took me by surprise given the cost. It definitely smelled nice. Bought it back home, served it on to a plate. Ok, now this is way different to other " fish n chips " i had before, on the plate were 2 big fish fillets and " huge " french fries, piece of lime, some sauce which on reading the menu is - signature tartar sauce [ potion was rather small ]. On tasting this with the " tartar sauce ", well it wasnt crunchy fish fillets as i imagined it would be but yeah it was okay, nothing special to write home about. Did the food contain MSG, i couldnt really tell, it was rather bland. Was it worth the Rs.690, im not sure really. 

  Hippie Chippie [ open 11 AM - 11 PM Daily ] 
  GPS -   6°53'11.82"N  79°51'54.63"E
  149 Havelock Road, Colombo 05, 
  Tel - 0112002222
  web -  http://hippiechippie.com/