One of the boring things you are always told is to make a backup of your work. You read it in computer magazines, you hear techies tell you about the horror stories of people who asked for their help in recovering lost data, and yet you never do anything about it!

I learnt to usecomputers and was immediately told about the need to back up, and not just once. It is probably because of this training in the past that even before I start a document, I give it a file name and save it. Now, I know that Word, that magnificent word processing programme, automatically saves your documents in case your computer shuts down suddenly, but believe me, I am not going to trust myself to the mercy of a software safeguard, when a small task will allow me greater peace of mind.

Recently, I had reason to bless this habit. I changed my computer, and as a result, I found that somehow while transferring data, a manuscript I had been working on, off and on for four years, could not be located. I had used standard software that came packaged with the portable hard disk drive (HDD) that I recently bought to back up the programme, but it was not in the drive.

I would not say that I panicked, because I did not, but I was tense-this was a lot of work that had almost disappeared. In a moment of epiphany, I understood why my father always said that he wanted to see his documents in his hands, “not inside the computer”.

With a bit of effort, I remembered that I had “cut” the file and transferred it to a pen drive I was using, instead of merely copying it. I inserted the drive and found that the computer refused to “recognise” it. I plugged it in and unplugged it, but it did not register in the computer.

A quick search on the Internet followed. I wanted to find some software that would help in recovering data. I downloaded the “trial” versions of a few of these software programmes but nothing worked. Eventually, in desperation, I called for technical help and the person who came told me that my pen drive had been damaged. As a result, there was nothing that I could do to recover my data.

If ever there was a time to panic, it was now. When I started learning how to use the computer, the commandment was not only “Thou shalt back up your data”, you were also made to back up your data at more than one location, “in case of fire or some other disaster”.

Commandments are hard to follow, but those who do so often realise their wisdom. I had backed up my HDD earlier, on a separate portable hard drive that I keep for important files. The file was there, along with the other data. Admittedly, it did not have the latest changes that I had made, but it did have the basic, all 100 pages, which was a good starting point. Much better than ending up with nothing!

Of late, with cloud computing options popping up, it is also a good idea to use online storage for important files. That way, you can access it from wherever you are.

Eleven years ago, Yahoo had introduced its Briefcase service that offered 30MB of online storage. However, it shut it down last year because of declining usage.

I was an early user of Hotmail, but now Gmail has all but eclipsed it. However, Hotmail, in its as Microsoft-owned avatar, Windows Live Hotmail, has the consumer-focused SkyDrive Web file-storage system, which gives a user 25 GB of free storage space. I have used it both to store files, as well as to share some files with some specific people. This is a nifty feature that was useful in sharing the data with specific e-mail identities. Gmail does not have anything like it, but with it you can attach files (up to 25 MB) and either keep them in the draft folder, or mail them to yourself. Yahoo, too, has the 25MB limit for its attachments, as does Hotmail.

From time to time, I have read about software programmes that allow users to treat Gmail as a drive. I have also read that Google frowns on such usage, and blocks the mail. I would rather have my Gmail account, which is a repository of a vast amount of email “conversations” since many years, and thus have not taken any risk about using it. However, I found “Google documents” an easy way to collaborate with others and while it is not in any way a replacement for Word, it is still a very good tool, which also backs up documents.

Because Google Docs now supports files up to 250 MB in size, which is larger than the attachment limit on most email applications, you’ll be able to back up large graphics files, RAW photos, ZIP archives and much more to the cloud. Google Docs allows users to upload a total of 1GB of such files.

Given the bandwidth problems in India, I, however, find that backing up heavy files like pictures and videos is not practical. Thus, I go in for offline storage in backing up data.

Digital cameras have replaced film for most users, and all your photographs are electronic. The flip side of this is that hardly anyone makes hard copies of digital photos; they are stored electronically, and just transferred from the device to a computer.

You just need to make sure that they remain safe, and for this you just have to back them up, not just on one location, but if possible, two. HDD drives are becoming cheaper by the day, and I find that portable HDDs the most convenient way of backing up data.

With the price of storage falling, it is worth to buy two drives and back up data on both. I do use two, one that I always keep at home, and a smaller 160GB drive that travels with me. I do back up my data regularly. I know that it’s a boring task that ties up your computer for a certain amount of time. However, can you imagine the void that you would have in our life if one day all your electronic data vanished? I would not like to be in that situation, and having nearly been there a few times, I think it’s worth it to have your data secure with a backup that gives you a tremendous peace of mind.

This column by Roopinder Singh was published in the Lifestyle section of The Tribune on October 26, 2010

Surjit Singh Barnala, the Governor of Tamil Nadu,

Surjit Singh Barnala, a caricature by Sandeep Joshi

celebrated his 86th birthday at the Raj Bhavan. He has graciously extended his hospitality to me and I was one of the first people to meet him and greet him on his birthday!

A gentleman with a keen mind, Surjit Singh Barnala was born on October 21 in 1925. He was been a Union Minister, Chief Minister of Punjab, and is also a painter and an author.

The Governor smiled when he saw a caricature him holding a pallet, made by Sandeep Joshi. He took great interest in my book on Guru Nanak Dev ji, taking his time over the pages, and asking questions about the content and the pictures.

He also went through the set of book of my father, and the commemorative volume, Giani Gurdit Singh 1923-2007, for which he had written a touching note on my father.

He invited me to attend the various ceremonies he was performing at the Raj Bhavan, including inaugurating a garden and unveiling a statue, but duty called, and I toddled off to attend a workshop that has brought me to Chennai.

Meeting and greeting Tamil Nadu Governor Surjit Singh Barnala on his birthday was the high point of the recent visit to Chennai.

But then came a wonderful evening, I went to Capt S Seshadri’s house and was with his family, in their appartment by the beach. A many of many parts Seshadri is a businessman, co-author of the best-selling biography of Sunita Williams, and also involved in philanthropic activities.

Should Facebook be banned? Many school administrators say so; some teachers agree; some parents nod their heads approvingly at the suggestions, and most students are totally riled at the very idea of denial of what they practically regard as their fundamental right.

Which students? No, not those in government schools in various small towns and villages of India who form a majority, but the privileged ones, born in middle-class homes.

A middle-class child who is not studying in a school that is not “English medium”, or a “convent”, would be considered deprived. So are children who do not have access to the Internet.

Students use the Internet for various reasons, primary among them being browsing, communication, downloading and sharing music or videos, and gaming. They take a tremendous interest in social networking sites like Facebook, MySpace and Orkut.

Face the facts, you just can’t ban an activity because it has been misused by some. Social networking sites have taken off in India and while the Google-owned Orkut was the clear market leader, now, with 1.5 crore users, Facebook has taken the Number 1 spot.

Social networks are a technological bridge for people scattered by geography and economic compulsions. They allow them to interact and share each other’s lives. Talk to users and you will find them saying that their bonds have strengthened through social networking sites.

Any new social environment poses new challenges. You have the capability to instantaneously communicate with hundreds of your friends (an average user has 130). You could post something, or merely react to what is posted by your friends. The young demographics and the newness of the media give users a feeling of informality, and thus users tend to write as they speak. Here lies the catch-in the real world, often what we say is transient because it is confined to a small number of people, and also not meant for posterity. However, even if it seems similar on social networking sites, there is a vital difference.

You talk differently if you are chatting with few friends, rather than say 130 of them. On social networking sites, what you input goes to a large number of friends, what you write is more permanent, and sometimes can come back and haunt you.

Recent headlines in Chandigarh have reflected an incident in which some school students were suspended because of their social media infraction. One student had posted something negative about a teacher, and others had commented on it. When the comments were discovered by another teacher, action was taken against the students.

While no one condones the actions of the students who have used harsh, some even say abusive language against the teacher, there has been some controversy regarding the quantum of punishment. Some parents assert that the administrators react with excessive gravity. Criticising a teacher is nothing new, however, nowadays technology enables people to sometimes do it anonymously and what they say is long lasting and public, and thus attracts more attention than it would have if the incident took otherwise.

Worldwide, there are no clear precedents to guide us when such situations arise. In one instance, Syracuse University, USA, held students accountable for what they put on the Internet, and punished them for trashing their teacher on Facebook. A statement by the school said: “Criticism can be considered a matter of free speech. In this particular situation it was the content, and the content was considered as being reviewable as a possible violation of the university code of student conduct. The language and the phrasing of these Facebook postings were extreme.”

However, in another instance, a Pembroke Pines Charter High School, Florida, student posted about “the worst teacher I’ve ever met” after apparently clashing with her English teacher over assignments. She took down her post a few days later; meanwhile, a number of those who viewed it responded with remarks defending the teacher. She was disciplined two months later.

Her case went to court, and a few years later, a judge ruled: “It was an opinion of a student about a teacher, that was published off-campus, did not cause any disruption on-campus, and was not lewd, vulgar, threatening, or advocating illegal or dangerous behaviour.” Thus she won the case.

However, there have been many incidents of students who have been suspended over blog entries that mentioned drinking alcohol, or pictures showing them drinking alcohol, or indulging in other acts that had been specifically proscribed by the school administrators.

There is a lot of difference in the way the young people and adults view social networking sites. For the young, they are just a mode of expression. They expect their peers to participate in it and use it extensively for all kinds of social interaction, including communication.

What they don’t realise is that their privacy is nebulous at best, that what is posted has a nasty way of coming to life at a time when it is most embarrassing, and even though they may not like it, the best advice that can be given to them is “If you don’t have something nice to say, don’t say it all, certainly not on Facebook or Orkut.”

Parents and school administrators too need to loosen up a bit. No one should overlook the use of abusive language, or any other inappropriate content. However, many a time, youngsters are just venting off steam. The context should be looked into and only serious violations punished. There is a strong case for providing counselling and teaching children dos and don’ts about using social networking sites. Children face various threats from people who abuse social networking sites, and thus they need to be sensitised to these dangers. As for abusive language and other issues, many Indian parents have found a solution by making their children accept them as ‘friends’ and thus keeping an eye on their cyber adventures.

Banning Facebook for schoolchildren is simply not possible. It is worth considering that an exponential growth is expected for such sites, with the increasing number of people accessing social networking via their mobile phones. By 2014, the number of mobile social network users in India is expected to be 7.2 crore. This does not include the people who use the Internet through their computers.

Social networking sites are a reality. What we need is greater understanding from both the users and the administrators. We need to have fun, and at the same time, we must remember that we are responsible for our actions, whether we are online or off line.

A shorter version of this article by Roopinder Singh was  published in the Lifestyle section of The Tribune on 12 October 2010,

HOW terribly uncharitable of the British media to highlight the seat-wallah incident at the SP Swimming pool complex in Delhi during the recent visit of the heir apparent to the British throne, Prince Charles.

A photo by Arthur Edwards which was published in The Telegraph

Now, if you are ignorant about the incident which is being referred to here, you are easily forgiven. While the Indian media was busy documenting various official visits of the Prince and his wife, Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, The Telegraph, London, got a picture that showed an official “who is believed to work for the British High Commission” flipping down a seat, like the one we see in movie theatres, while the Prince waited and hitched up his trouser legs before being seated. He was later being joined by The Earl of Wessex, who is the Vice-Patron of the Commonwealth Games Federation.

Why, The Telegraph has even made a list of everyday chores that The Prince of Wales does not perform, like picking up his clothes after changing, squeezing tooth paste onto his brush and some other acts of a somewhat delicate nature, all based on hearsay.

At the heart of the matter is a fundamental shift in social mores. The very society that exported the tradition of titles and honours to its colonies has now spawned a culture that is antithetical to them.

We on the other hand, have not only adopted the colonial practices as our own, we have embellished them and shown the world how well democratic practices can work with traditional, read Imperial and feudal, ones.

No one in India even noticed the incident. After Delhi, where we dazzled the world with our spectacular success at the opening ceremony of the Commonwealth Games, the Prince and the Duchess were feted by the Houses of Patiala and Jodhpur, both of whom have a tradition of performing this role for generations. Surely, they know how to take care of such needs, without any intrusive reporters spoiling the fun.

All, however, is not lost for the royalists. The same report mentioned how the royal couple stayed with “the Maharaja and Maharani of Patiala in the Moti Bagh Palace after joining them for a gala dinner. The Duchess wore an ice blue Bruce Oldfield silk dress with a lace overdress, set off by a diamond and aquamarine necklace.” The item does not mention what the Prince and his hosts wore.

The Maharajas had a host of titles given to them by the ancestors of the Prince of Wales, but India abolished the titles in 1971. However, perks and posh quarters are taken for granted by our bureaucracy and the armed forces, as are hierarchies and squadrons of servants. The news that a seat wallah has been engaged for this purpose is surely of their interest, since it sets a wonderful precedent! In fact, there is no doubt that there will be much hand wringing about not having thought of it first.

One of the titles of former Maharajas that I have always found interesting is Farzand-i-Khas-i-Daulat-i-Inglishia or “the chosen son and wealth of the English”. It’s a pity that we can’t hand out titles these days. However, almost four decades of abolishing monarchy we still know what it means. In the interest of improving international relations, in our land of erstwhile monarchies and what were five rivers, we should have a permanent position for a seat wallah for to the real Farzand-i-Khas-i-Daulat-i-Inglishia.

Surely, if the Punjab Public Service Commission were to get cracking, we would have it in place before the next royal visit.

The middle by Roopinder Singh was published on the Editorial page of The Tribune on October 11, 2010.

You may also like to read my piece on the Lady Diana, the Princess of Wales, after her death.

Haven of Bliss Anandpur Sahib: A Miracle of the Human Spirit

By Vijay N. Shankar and Harminder Kaur.
Corporate Vision.
Pages 156. Rs 2,500.

Reviewed by Roopinder Singh

Haven of Bliss Anandpur Sahib: A Miracle of the Human Spirit

DEVELOPED on land bought from the Rani of Kahlur for Rs 500, by Guru Teg Bahadur Sahib, Anandpur Sahib holds a particular reverence in Sikh ethos because of its close association with the last two Sikh Gurus. The ninth Guru spent many years there, both before and after he became Guru, this is from where he set out on his final journey to martyrdom in Delhi, where his head was cremated, and his young son anointed Guru. In these hills, the young Gobind Rai grew up, created the Khalsa, held court that patronised many poets and writers of renown, and also where many historic battles were fought.

The authors have given a succinct overview of the history of the place, and devoted a chapter to the martyrdom of Guru Tegh Bahadur. Various events have been recreated and connected with the relevant gurdwaras built at the sites where these happenings took place.

We have the magnificent Takht Sri Keshgarh Sahib, where the Guru created Khalsa, and a personal space, Gurdwara Anand Karaj Sahib, where Guru Gobind Rai’s marriage with Mata Jito took place. It was at Anandpur Sahib that Bhai Kanahiya, a devout Sikh, was put up in front of Guru Gobind Singh by other Sikhs who accused him of providing medical help to enemy soldiers after a battle. When asked to explain his conduct, Bhai Kanahiya said he was merely following the Guru’s injunction to help those who needed it and that he saw divinity in every face when he was tending to the wounded. The Guru blessed him and told him to continue with his work.

The betrayal of trust by hill Rajas after Guru Gobind Singh had been promised a safe passage from Anandpur Sahib resulted in the death of his two sons in the battlefield, and the separation of the other two sons and their grandmother, Mata Gujri, from the Guru. They were betrayed by a family retainer and subsequently arrested by the Governor of Sirhind, who offered them a choice of renouncing their religion or converting. They remained steadfast in their belief and were bricked alive.

Hola Mohalla is where festivity, colour and marital spirit come together. It was first celebrated in 1701 by Guru Gobind Singh and we have lovely pictures by Sharad Saxena that show the event as it unfolds, including some of really cute children dressed up in traditional finery. The captions are informative, though one searches in vain for the names of the painters whose works feature in the book.

Takht Sri Keshgarh Sahib is a repository of much of Sikh heritage, including weapons of the Gurus and the Hukamnamas, epistles, issued by them. This is where we have the original khanda with which amritwas prepared for the Khalsa and the Nagina which is shaped like a corkscrew, used to pierce the armour of an armoured attack elephant, a gun from Lahore that was presented to Guru Gobind Singh and of special significance is the saif, or the sword of Hazrat Ali, the son-in-law of Prophet Mohammad. The saifwas presented by Emperor Bahadur Shah to Guru Gobind Singh. The authors have provided a glossary, though a bibliography would have added to the value of the volume.

The Sodhi families of Anandpur Sahib are a living legacy of the city. Some trace their lineage to the families of the Gurus, and Sodhi families were among the prominent landlords of the area. It is not widely known that the town of Anandpur Sahib is also one of the oldest municipalities of the region. For many years, the president of the Municipal Committee was Sodhi Haravtar Singh, who passed away in July this year at the age of 94. The book has his picture as well as some information on the person, who had been intimately connected with the city of his birth. He was the father of Justice R.S. Sodhi, former Judge of the Delhi High Court, and Vikram Sodhi, a businessman and polo player.

Many memories are jogged, as one flips the pages of the book and explores the past of Anandpur Sahib, which is a two-hour drive from Chandigarh. This volume gives us a colourful window to one of the more important towns of the Sikhs, even as it whets our appetite for more.

The review was published in The Tribune on October 3, 2010