IT.Wox, always

This blog is built on BlogEngine.NET 1.3

For those of you who live under a rock & don't know about BlogEngine.NET, it is "an innovative open source blogging platform developed with ASP.NET 2.0"

I must say I am more than impressed by the work put in by the folks developing this application. From a host of features, to cool themes, the ability to add new extensions or custom pages, and the simplicity of the installation, this engine has it all.

For IT.Wox, I was on a look out for a suitable blog engine which would have all these features. But what clinched the deal for me was that BlogEngine.NET saved the blog posts & other information in XML files with an alternative to save to SQL Server database.

Personally, I preferred the XML file approach since I did not want to invest into a SQL Server license as yet, not to mention the additional hosting costs involved. XML fits the bill perfectly since I can use my existing hosting package.

If you are looking for a blog engine, look no further than BlogEngine.NET - just get started!

A big thank you to the people involved in this project.

PS: I have not been put in any kind of pressure to make this post as an advertisement for BlogEngine.NET; I really am that impressed!

Last night, I was preparing a presentation & while proof reading it, I realized that I was using the term "customer" & "client" quite interchangeably. A quick Google search confirmed that the same question occurred to a lot of people.

While some did not find any difference, according to WiseGeek’s quote of the American Heritage Dictionary: the main difference between a customer and a client is that a protective, ongoing relationship is formed with a client, but not necessarily with a customer.

In short, as PathFinder said on Yahoo! Answers: "[it’s] Nomenclature only, but in meaning NONE. When you buy from a store, you are a customer, when you hire a lawyer, you are his client".

Going back to my presentation, I stuck to customer since the presentation spoke about "customer friendly", "customer oriented" & "customizable" even though the audience would be clients as per the definition by American Heritage Dictionary. The only place I used client was to describe "client care" since "customer care", "customer support" or "support" do not throw up positive images any more.

I hope the clients are not that discerning during the presentation; else I would need to refer them back to this post & point out that I am still using the words interchangeably.

Today, the 26th of January, is the Indian Republic Day. This day marks the adoption of the Indian Constitution and a day when India was finally ruled by Indians, for Indians.

I remember my school days, when I got up early this day to view the Republic Day Parade telecast live on the National TV (Doordarshan), the patriotic songs being played on AIR & street vendors selling flags. I remember getting dress in spotless whites to school & the flag hosting ceremony. But, what I remember (& miss) the most is my grandfather & his many stirring accounts of the Indian Freedom Struggle.

The day is celebrated in grand style, especially in the capital Delhi, where an annual military & cultural parade is held. The parade starts with a visit to the Amar Jawan Jyoti at India Gate & ends three days later on the 29th of January with a ceremony called “Beating The Retreat”.

Happy Republic Day, India!

Welcome to IT.Wox!

This website has evolved from a static HTML site (1999-2000) to an ASP site (using generous MARQUEE & TABLE tags, ugh!!!) (2000-2001).

Then, I saw the light at A List Apart & moved to an ASP site using CSS-based layout focusing on usability & design standards (2001-2004) before the .NET bug got to me. The site evolved to ASP.NET using Framework 1.1 (2004-2007) and finally into an ASP.Net Framework 2.0 site using BlogEngine.Net (2008).

It has been a lot of fun designing & developing this site & hopefully this spanking new release would attract you visitors to keep coming back more often.

The year 2008 promises to be very exciting as I am moving this site from a "personal blog / hobby-horse / where-I-did-what-I-want"  site to a formal company which will be providing IT Consulting & Software Development services, primarily on the .NET platform.

Yep, we are expanding! 

Keep posted for more news & articles on this front very soon. Besides this, I will be posting quite a few items of intrest I get from my daily browsing & keep this site more active.

Wishing you a very happy new year 2008 & please do keep coming back.