The Matrix: A different perspective

I happened to read the following from Don Veto's blogs

I groked matrix reloaded and now got it.

Forget all the philosophy in the movie and the double meanings of names. Think of the matrix and machines in terms of software and rule based algorithms.
I believe, like Morpheus is so fond of saying, that the matrix built by the machines is just a complex adventure game, or Multi User Dimension or MUD.

The first Matrix as told by agent Smith was a perfect world where everyone was happy, everything was right, everything was simple, basically a pointless MUD game, therefore a game you can finish very quickly and gets boring very quickly also. Imagine if that boring easy game was your life and you quickly mastered it? You would lose purpose, hope, and happiness. Everything would be boring and pointless; you probably would get depressed and go insane. That is exactly what happened in the 1st matrix version made by the machines.

The new matrix, or could I say matrices, where more developed and morsuitablele for struggling humans, you had the illusion of difficulty, the struggle to succeed, the struggle to merely survive, a regular hard life which is what everyone in the matrix is experiencing. Now the story of the first matrix was the story of hackers who began to realize that they where living in a MUD/ Matrix, got out of the matrix and mastered the game since they where able to analyze and comprehend the matrix at a very low level.
Neo, the one showed potential to understand the matrix at an extremely low level even bypassing the rules of the game / software / matrix and being able to for instance stop bullets, flying likSupermanan and destroying agents. The MUD/Matrix was not designed for that.

In the Matrix I we are shown the Matrix as the real world and then it is revealed that it is not a real world but a very good simulation. Morpheus and Trinity are still playing by the rules of the game but with great skill, Neo is told that he is the One, meaning the best game player around. Neo starts understanding or believing his skills and doing what was previously thought to be impossible.
In Matrix Reloaded, we see the different game stages, with characters of the Matrix telling them what to do next. As in any MUD, the simulation is good but not good enough to cover all events so you have to guide the players through clues.

Try to think like software and you will understand how the matrix behaves, causality is simply and if - then statement, or a case statement.

Neo is the only One who showed independent thought, blinded by his love for Trinity, to take the door sending him back to the matrix. With that result Neo became the controller of the matrix and managed to stop the probes while he was in the real world. Neo somehow mastered the game and ended up controlling it.

My current conclusion is that many different perspectives of the actual storyline are possible. I would have had to watch the series at least twice or thrice (which I haven't) to come up with my own perspective and I am not completely convinced by the one above. So for me, Matrix is still all about dodging bullets, superfast fighting, walking on walls, flying through space and all the similar lot.

Weekend in Taormina

Took a short break last weekend and went with friends to Taormina in Sicily, Italy. In the list of best places that I have been until now, this one figures on the top! We landed at Palermo on friday, rented a car and drove to Cefalu and then to Giardini-Naxos. Naxos is around 5 Kms from Taormina, one of the best places in Sicily. It is located on top of a hill overlooking the sea, with a cape at the foot of the hill. Lovely beaches, clear water, a very lively town, excellent weather and great food. I am definitely looking forward to going back again.

I couldn't make up my mind about which camera to buy in order to use one during this trip and I am now waiting for photographs from my friends' camera. The photograph above (courtesy University of Messina) is that of Isola Bella, which is located at the foot of Taormina and is a very beautiful nature reserve.

The Smiths are in town

I watched this movie on tuesday and wasn't impressed. Jolie is ofcourse superb and Pitt's acting is good. But the storyline is worth half an hour and has been stretched out into 2 hrs although you don't quite feel it that much. I came out of the theatre thinking "So what was the story?". Too much (unnecessary and unrealistic) violence, where bullets fly everywhere and bad guys get hit first time around but when Jolie and Pitt and firing at each other, even a million shells aren't enough. Oh well, its just a movie! I give it a generous 2.5/5. (2 because of Jolie and .5 because of Pitt's acting ;-))

Balanced Scorecard

A very interesting read from a management point of view.

Which one?

Sony Cybershot DSC L1...

or Canon IXUS50 ?

Back home, we have a Canon IXUS II. No doubt, Canon cameras are great. I saw Praveen's Sony L1 and liked it as well. Can't make up my mind...Sony is cheaper, 4 mpx while Ixus50 is 5 mpx. But I am not very keen on higher mpx as they increase image size. The things that impress me in Ixus50 are the large LCD, DIGIC II processor and various shooting modes.

Carnival De Cuba

We were in London last sunday to take part in the annual Carnival De Cuba on South Bank.

People were dancing salsa, tango, merengue, etc. on the streets...

This kid couldn't resist either...

And thats when my mobile's battery went flat. Well, this happens when I need to use it the most. I really need to charge my mobile phone often :-D. I am quite impressed with the quality of pictures my mobile phone produces although newer ones can do even better I suppose.


We really enjoyed the carnival. Food was cheap and good, different kinds of drinks - strawberry and rum mixed together, mint with some kind of spirit, etc. I would like to go there again.. :-)

Mac will marry Intel as well

Its official. Steve Jobs has spoken about transitions to Intel architecture beginning this year and completing by 2007. Xcode 2.1 will be released today which supports coding on both platforms. The dream is to have one binary which can work on both architectures!!! Interesting... Is this the beginning of 'The End' (for Micro$oft)?

Personally, I don't have any strong opinions for or against this. In fact I feel that this is a very good move by Apple. Apparently, all major releases of Mac OS X for last 5 years were compiled on an x86!

Strawberry fair

With some initial reluctance I finally decided to join my friend and we went to the annual Strawberry fair held in Midsummer Common. This is my second visit to this kinda fair. Last year when I went there, I didn't quite like it mainly because of cleanliness and hygiene issues. Although the name might suggest something related to fruits, its actually nothing to do with strawberries (I think). I browsed through the organizer's website to figure it out but with no luck. So, this overcrowded fair was lined with stalls serving food from various cuisines, clothes and accessories. We found a stall selling fruits and also tender coconuts. If I remember correctly, the last time I had one was when I was in India in december. We tried out these at the cost of £2 each. Although low on quantity, the water was quite sweet. We then got it split into two halves. He made a spoon out of the outer shell in order to have the inner skin ...just like back home :-). I did enjoy the fair this time (more than last year) although it was overcrowded and very dirty.