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Top 10 Harry Potter Gifts for Christmas 2011

Sarthak K — Sat, 17 Dec 2011 23:47:21 +0000

Its the time for the year for Christmas gifts and lists, and here I am penning down the list for the best Harry Potter gifts you can give on December 25, 2011.

The top 10 Harry Potter Gifts for Christmas 2011:

1. Harry Potter Hogwarts Castle Replica

The Harry Potter Hogwarts Castle Replica is the most amazing Harry Potter gift manufactured in recent times. It includes a wooden base that measures 11 x 12 inches in width and 2.5 inches in height. The castle, which is made of cold cast porcelain, measures 12-inches in height from wooden base to top of castle. Weighs approximately 16 pounds.

2. Harry Potter: The Complete 1-8 Film Collection – Limited Numbered Edition

This limited edition numbered box set contains 19 discs–each film comes on both Blu-ray and DVD and there are three additional Blu-ray discs containing over 5 hours of extra content. Also, included is a collectible retrospective photo album. Available from Amazon UK but can be ordered worldwide!

Please note that only the Blu-ray discs in this box set are region free. The DVDs are encoded region 2. The box itself is a piece of art!

3. Harry Potter Page to Screen: The Complete Filmmaking Journey

Harry Potter: Page to Screen opens the doors to Hogwarts castle and the wizarding world of Harry Potter to reveal the complete behind-the-scenes secrets, techniques, and over-the-top artistry that brought J.K. Rowling’s acclaimed novels to cinematic life. Developed in collaboration with the creative team behind the celebrated movie series, this deluxe, 500-plus page compendium features exclusive stories from the cast and crew, hundreds of never-before-seen photographs and concept illustrations sourced from the closed film sets, and rare memorabilia. As the definitive look at the magic that made cinematic history, Page to Screen is the ultimate collectible, perfect for Muggles everywhere.

4. Deathly Hallows Part 2 Blu-ray combo pack with Exclusive 48 page Photo Album

A Warner Bros shop exclusive! This limited edition, numbered gift set includes the Blu-ray + DVD + Digital Download plus a commemorative 48-page photo book featuring images from all eight movies. Knowing Harry Potter did not have any pictures of his parents, Hagrid gave Harry a photo album that was full of pictures of James and Lily Potter, Ron and Hermione, and more.

5. Dumbledore’s Wand with Ollivanders Box

Noble Collection have manufactured some exquisite Harry Potter merchandise and Dumbledore’s Wand is no exception! A truly marvelous piece, remember this wand plays an important role in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.

Wand measures 15 inches in length.
Collector’s box included.

6. Exclusive Harry Potter Hogwarts Letter

A Warner Bros shop exclusive, this personalized Hogwarts acceptance letter panel is a fantastic gift for any Harry Potter fan. This letter is a replica of the one sent to all incoming Hogwarts students, printed with your very own name.

Featuring the official Hogwarts crest, it is available in 5″ x 7″ and 8″ x 10″ sizes, and with American or British wording. Both versions are signed by Minerva McGonagall, Deputy Headmistress at Hogwarts

7. LEGO Harry Potter Freeing Dobby

With the help of Harry Potter, free Dobby from his master Lucius Malfoy/Trick Lucius Malfoy into freeing Dobby, the house elf! Then use Dobby to protect Harry Potter and send Lucius flying down the hall with a magic blast as he tries to get revenge in this Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets scene.

Includes 3 minifigures Harry Potter, Lucius Malfoy and Dobby Blast Lucius Malfoy with magic using the push function!

8. The Marauders Map by Noble Collection

A detailed full size Marauder’s Map replica printed on parchment paper. Measures 15.5 x 72 inches open, folds to 15.5 x 8.25 inches. Not for children under 3 yrs.

Authentic Prop Replica from The Harry Potter movies by The Noble Collection. Folds out to over 6′

9. Deathly Hallows Symbol – Black Necklace

This black chain necklace from Hot Topic features a black Deathly Hallows symbol pendant, the kind ‘believers’ would wear!

16″ long; 1 1/2″ pendant
Metal
Imported

10. LEGO Harry Potter: Years 5-7 videogame

LEGO Harry Potter: Years 5-7 is an Action-Adventure game that combines fun, familiar and family-friendly LEGO video game play mechanics with the storyline and characters of the latter half of the Harry Potter universe.

The game is built on the events from the movie series ranging from Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix through Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2. Features include: 24 story events, and 16 lessons, new charms, spells and dueling skills, new characters and drop-in/drop-out co-op support.

Some of the ideas for items on this list have been taken from HarryPotterFan.Me/Gifts

Are restuarants in India ripping off customers?

Sarthak K — Sun, 06 Nov 2011 19:01:44 +0000

Have you noticed how expensive eating out has become all of a sudden? Are Indian restaurants ripping off customers, or is it the general price rise all around that has started to pinch us?

I am not quite sure if this eating out inflation has been felt in the rest of India, but in Delhi whoever I have talked to has felt the difference.

It seems to have happened during the past one or two years; not only have the prices on the menu of most restaurants skyrocketed but so have the amount of taxes you pay on the bill. Yes, taxes, and not tax; because while earlier you would only pay a VAT (value added tax) on your bill, you now pay VAT, service charge and a service tax. During a recent visit to a restaurant when I got a highly inflated bill, I realized that almost one-third of the amount component was made up of these taxes and charges. Let me post it here to put things in perspective:

1 MUSHROOM ON TOAST ………………… 140.00
1 HASHED BROWN POTATO………………. 70.00
1 SPICY CHEESE TOAST…………………… 155.00
1 FRESH FRUIT JUICE……………………… 90.00
1 GARLIC BREAD……………………………… 70.00
_________________________________________
Sub total ………………………………………. 525.00
SERVICE CHARGE 10%……………………… 52.50
10.3% SERVICE TAX + SC………………….. 59.48
12.5% VAT………………………………………. 65.63
_________________________________________
Net Total (rounded) …………………………. 702.60

That’s exactly the bill I got when I went for breakfast with a friend at The All American Diner restaurant in India Habitat Centre, New Delhi. On a more recent trip to a restro-bar in Connaught place, a bill for two came out to Rs 1700 – for two drinks and two starters! In any case, I lost that one so I have put up for analysis the one above. Let us rip into it:

Out of the total bill of Rs 702.60, about Rs 177 was taxes and charges. Now two questions arise:

Since when did restaurants start adding a service tax to the bill?
This seems to have been a recent phenomenon, because at least till a year back it used to be either just VAT or VAT + service charge. Probably it was a recent government directive to fleece more money from the common man. In any case, the service charge bit leads us to the second question…
Is forcing a service charge on customers legal?
This article in Economic Times makes it quite clear that service charge in restaurants is illegal. Its understandable that a restaurant has to pay taxes to the government…but why have a percentage based service charge on an already over-priced menu? This is what the ET article says in brief:

Please be clear that a service charge is not equal to or equivalent to service tax. The service tax is a government levied cess and you are obliged to pay the same if you are a citizen of India or an alien visiting this country.
But there is no such cess called the service charge. This is a fabrication of the hospitality industry. You are not supposed to pay for the service of carrying the food to your table. That cost is included in the cost of the food that is indicated on the menu.

If you think Indian restaurants are copying the west in levying a service charge, think again. Top restaurants in London have already scrapped the service charge, even as more are following suit. However, in India, the tribe of service charge levying restaurants is on the rise, and in a massive way. As the article in ET says: “If India and Indians are rising as a nation, we should also step up our awareness of consumer rights. Currently, eating lunch and gladly contributing to the fund for the proprietor’s new car is nothing sort of foolhardiness.”

We need to protest both the service charge and the service tax in restaurants, its like triple taxation. While the former has to be put up to the restaurants, the latter will be have to pushed to the Government of India. If you have any ideas how we can implement this, please share them in the comments section.

Google and JK Rowling join forces for Harry Potter ebooks

Sarthak K — Wed, 20 Jul 2011 21:37:33 +0000

Google has announced that it has joined hands with J.K. Rowling’s Pottermore to distribute Harry Potter ebooks through its array of literary products.

The Inside Google Books blog said:

Pottermore and Google are teaming up to integrate Pottermore with a number of Google products and APIs. So when the series of Harry Potter ebooks launches on Pottermore.com in early October, these bestsellers will be available in the U.S. via the open Google eBooks platform. When you buy a Harry Potter ebook from Pottermore, you will be able to choose to keep it in your Google Books library in-the-cloud, as well as on other e-reading platforms.

As part of the distribution deal, Google also secured exclusive rights to be the payment platform for all Pottermore.com purchases. That means you will be paying for your ebooks and audiobooks via Google Checkout rather than PayPal or Amazon Payments.

Pottermore will be the exclusive place to buy Harry Potter ebooks and digital audiobooks. You’ll be able to buy ebooks from the Pottermore Shop, push them to your Google Books library and store them alongside your other Google eBooks. Your other Google eBooks may be purchased from any of more than 250 independent booksellers or from Google directly.

Pottermore, which launches this fall, is designed to be an interactive online reading experience. It will also be the exclusive place to purchase the ebook versions of Harry Potter. The site is rumored to have gaming elements, awards and achievements, and virtual items.

The Pottermore team also plans to use YouTube for global video broadcasts in the future, as they did for JK Rowling’s announcement of Pottermore in June.

Why dalalmedia protest was cancelled

Sarthak K — Sat, 18 Dec 2010 19:07:08 +0000

I sent the following message to people who had confirmed their participation in the street protest against Dalalmedia on Facebook on Sunday 19th December , 2010. Pasting here so everyone knows:

“Hi all,

This message goes to everyone who confirmed their participation in this protest on Sunday 19th December.

I would like to express my gratitude to all of you for agreeing to take time off the wonderful cause of cleansing our media of sycophancy and corruption.

However, I think we need a larger number of people willing to attend and also better organization to have a successful protest. Presently, the time does not look right with DU exams going on among other things.

I also have an idea of spreading awareness of the whole barkhagate scandal while we postpone our street protest. We need to start an email campaign..an email with pictures and information about #barkhagate and #dalalmedia, including the recent case of #ibnlies.

The campaign shall be simple; Once the email is drafted all of us will forward it to our friends n family like we do with funny emails and sms jokes. I’m sure it will have a viral effect with one person on an average forwarding to 10 others.

What do you think? I would love to see the creative people come forward in helping draft the email, which should attract people to read it through and grasp the whole scandal involving #dalalmeda.

Waiting for your replies.

Warm Regards

Sarthak K

Commonwealth Games opening ceremony pictures leaked online (rehearsals)

Sarthak K — Sat, 02 Oct 2010 20:51:43 +0000

The Commonwealth Games 2010 are set to begin in Delhi with a spectacular opening ceremony tomorrow starting around 5pm local time. How do I know they will be spectacular? Well, from these exclusive pictures of the rehearsals that I have posted below. I believe no one has posted these before, especially with all the laser lights and effects…so its a good sneak preview that allows you to see what you can expect form the CWG opening ceremony in New Delhi’s Jawaharlal Nehru stadium.

I had earlier questioned – Will Delhi be able to host the Commonwealth Games? We have had an egg on our face a bit too often thanks to our corrupt politicians and bureacrats. But it seems things have finally fallen in line at the last minute. Lets hope it lasts..

Looking at the pictures, I believe now you can agree with me that the Games opening ceremony will be superb (as long as no untoward incident takes place of course). Can’t be too sure about the rest of the games just yet…

Disclaimer: These pictures have probably been shot by a volunteer who is part of the preparations. I have not clicked any of the above pictures myself.

Were you fooled this April 1?

Sarthak K — Fri, 02 Apr 2010 00:24:39 +0000

All fools’s day happened to be yesterday and cerain individuals and organisations made it their mission to befool as many of us as possible. Let’s see some of the follery that was done:

Search engine giant Google played its annual April Fools prank on its users.

Millions of search customers woke up to see that Google had changed its name to “TOPEKA.”

When I logged into Facebook I was shocked to see a close friend of mine had changed her relationship status to “in a relationship.” Usually I would have known before this coming on Facebook but then wisdom dawned before I could comment anything stupid on that status!

Some of the best pranks were played by the British media to their readers.

The Sun reported it has developed the world’s first flavoured newspaper page and invited readers to lick a square of newsprint “to reveal a hidden taste.” Just below the spot to be licked was the fine-print warning: “May contain nuts.”

The Daily Mail reported that the Automobile Association (AA), which deals with emergency callouts to car breakdowns, had equipped its staff with jet-packs to fly over gridlocked traffic to reach stranded motorists faster.

In an elaborate mock-up, The Guardian said the ruling Labour Party was to use Prime Minister Gordon Brown’s “reputation for anger and physical aggression” in a new poster campaign ahead of an election expected on May 6. Posters appeared alongside the article — one showed a photo of Brown scowling next to the phrase “Step outside posh boy,” while another pictured him grinning and saying “I took billions from pensions wanna make something of it?”

The Daily Mirror ran a picture of Queen Elizabeth apparently taking a a flight with the budget airline easyJet, while The Independent reported that nuclear scientists want to turn London’s Circle Line subway into a particle accelerator similar to the Large Hadron Collider in Switzerland. It said there were safety concerns about “a mini-black hole being created at Westminster (home to Britain’s Parliament) when the two proton beams collide.”

Not all were foolhardy….

Not every story that looks like an April Fool is an April Fool. A number of news items published yesterday might have given rise to suspicion of a hoax but were actually true. For example, coastguards in Falmouth, Cornwall, picked up a distress signal from the MV Titanic in the Caribbean. Three people were on the vessel, which was taking on water and suffering from electrical failure, and details were passed on to the US Coast Guard.

Elsewhere, a British van driver who hit two ducks while driving home through Belgium discovered one of them alive, wedged under the bonnet, when he stopped to inspect the damage at a motorway service station on the M1. He took the duck to a rescue centre, which said it had a broken wing but should make a good recovery. Unlikely it may have been – but it definitely happened.

Top 50 UK January Sale Deals

Sarthak K — Fri, 08 Jan 2010 18:10:10 +0000

January heralds some of the biggest discounts and sales each year, and for the beginning of a new decade I decided to post the 50 best shopping deals for January 2010 in the UK.

I have categorised the deals and linked directly to them in each case. Voucher codes and promo codes have also been provided wherever available.

A. CLOTHING AND APPAREL DEALS

1. DEBENHAMS: Juliana lined curtains with pencil heading for £35 £1

Yes, the above curtains for just one quid at Debenhams! Click here to go to deal.
NOTE: Upto 70% Sale on at Debenhams online and instore
Use Voucher Code SHD1 at checkout for FREE Delivery

2. PREZZYBOX: Official Borat Mankini for £4.95

Click here to go to deal

Use PROMO CODE SAVEFIVE at checkout to get £5 off a minimum of £20 shopping

3. SAVILE ROW: All Suits Reduced to £175 from RRP £500

Click here to go to deal

Use Voucher code KKY9 at checkout to get free silk tie & giftbox (minimum spend £20)

4. BURTON: Jeans from £10 (extra 10% discount with voucher)

Click here to go to deal

Note: Upto 60% SALE on at Burton instore and online

Use promo code nus10 at checkout to get a further 10% discount

5. JD SPORTS: Adidas Predator Absolado Football Boots for £44.99 £19.99

Click here to go to deal

No voucher codes available

6. BOOHOO: Frejja one shoulder top WAS £15 NOW £7.50

Click here to go to deal

Note: Upto 75% SALE on both instore and online at BooHoo

Use voucher code DEL241 at checkout for Free Delivery

7. MandMDirect: Kangaroo Poo Men’s Scarf £9.99 now £2.99

Click here to go to deal

Note: Massive warehouse clearance sale online, upo 80%off

Use voucher code NG9R at checkout for FREE Delivery on orders over £20

B. GROCERY AND HOMEWARE DEALS

8. WAITROSE: Save £10 PLUS Free Delivery with Waitrose this New Year (online exclusive)

Step 1—>Add items worth at least £50 to your shopping cart on Waitrose Deliver

Step 2—>Enter promo code newyear10 at checkout (offer expires January 16, 2010)

Step 3—>Get a 10 Pound discount and Free Delivery on your shop.

9. TESCO: £5 off your first grocery shop

Step1—>Add items worth £50 or more to your shopping cart on Tesco online

Step 2—>Use voucher code GRRX4F for FREE Delivery and XXPACK for a £5 discount

Step 3—>Pay and enjoy

10. MYSUPERMARKET: Compare and get the lowest prices on your grocery

MySuperMarket is a grocery price comparison and shopping site which actually enables you to buy your groceries from four major retailers – ASDA, Tesco, Sainsbury and Ocado. For example if you want to shop at Sainsbury just go to MySupermarket, select Sainsbury and start adding items to your cart. As you fill your cart you will notice that the tabs for tesco, asda and ocado are also filling up with the same or similar items along with prices. You can choose to buy the same itmes you added to your sainsbury cart (you may find ASDA the cheapest) from any of the other 3 retailers by just clicking once on their tabs.The final items that are actually delivered to your house are directly from the retailers and not mysupermarket.

USE voucher code M4UK75GG for Free Delivery on orders over £50 at ASDA

C. ELECTRONICS AND CAMERA DEALS

11. PLAY.COM: Sony BDP-S360 Blu-ray Disc Player for £94.99 RRP £149.99 | You save: £55.00 (36%)

Media Type: CD-R, CD-RW, DVD-R, DVD+RW, DVD-RW, DVD+R, DVD, CD, DVD+R DL, BD-R, BD-RE, BD-ROM, DVD-R DL

Click here to go to deal

No further discount codes available

12. COMET: Panasonic TX-P42G15B 42″ LCD TV with built in HD tuner £1199.99 £799.99 (Save 1/3)

- HD ready: Yes
- 1080HD: 1080p
- 100Hz & over: Yes
- Built in freesat HD tuner: Yes
- Reception: Digital Tuner with all Freeview channels

42 inch plasma TV featuring Full-HD NeoPDP with Freesat built-in, superb moving picture quality with 1080p technology and advanced networking capabilities with VIERA Link.

Click here to go to deal

No promo code for Comet currently available

13. JESSOPS: Nikon Coolpix S225 Digital Camera (10MP, 3xOpt) Plus FREE camera cleaning kit – £81.88 including delivery

Click here to go to deal. Standard delivery is free.

Use voucher code CAMERAS8 to get 10% discount

14. CURRYS: Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W190 Compact Digital Camera £99.99 WAS £199.99

This Sony Cyber-shot makes it easy to capture HD quality photos. This super slim, stylish camera can slip comfortably into a pocket or bag ready to shoot stunning photos in an instant

* 12 Million Pixels
* 3 x Optical Zoom
* 2.7″ LCD Screen
* Rechargable Battery
* MSPD Memory Type

Click here to go to deal

Use voucher code 5INTEGRATED for a 5% discount on shopping over £249 at Currys.

15. CREATIVE LABS: Creative Zen X-fi 16GB (great alternative to ipod) NOW £119.99 WAS £181.97

The ZEN X-Fi in its 16GB version delivers the pleasure of pure music listening, with wireless support for extra versatility. The glossy case gives the player a distinctive look, and inside there’s Xtreme Fidelity technology, which restores crystal clarity to MP3s and takes all your music to a higher level. The top-quality in-ear earphones give you the best music playback, and Wireless LAN support lets you stream music and video from your PC to the player around the home, download content and chat online. The large, full-colour screen is great for watching videos and photos, while the built-in speaker lets you share your music.

Click here to go to deal
No promo codes available

D. BLU-RAY, DVD AND MUSIC DEALS

16. THE HUT: Basic Instinct Blu-Ray Disc £4.95 WAS £19.79 (75% off)

The chemistry between Douglas and Stone set the screen alight as the body count mounts and the stakes grown higher. Boasting One Of The Most Talked About Scenes In Film History, Basic Instinct Is At Once A Study In Sexual Obsession And A Ground-Breaking Thriller.

Lughole.net - Webmaster Resources, Technology and Current Affairs blog » Featured

Top 10 Harry Potter Gifts for Christmas 2011

The top 10 Harry Potter Gifts for Christmas 2011:

Are restuarants in India ripping off customers?

Google and JK Rowling join forces for Harry Potter ebooks

Why dalalmedia protest was cancelled

Commonwealth Games opening ceremony pictures leaked online (rehearsals)

Were you fooled this April 1?

Top 50 UK January Sale Deals

A. CLOTHING AND APPAREL DEALS

B. GROCERY AND HOMEWARE DEALS

C. ELECTRONICS AND CAMERA DEALS

D. BLU-RAY, DVD AND MUSIC DEALS

E. GAMES AND CONSOLES DEALS

F. MOBILE CONTRACT AND PAYG PHONE DEALS

G. PC, LAPTOP AND ACCESSORY DEALS

H. TV PACKAGE AND BROADBAND DEALS

I. GROOMING AND FRAGRANCE DEALS

J. TRAVEL AND TOURISM DEALS

Top 7 recession busting UK deals

Mobile phones and connections

Movies and DVDs

Books

Computers and Laptops

Software

Groceries

Travel

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