Classics, Crushes and Google-gifted girlfriends

 I am tempted to talk of my social life, of my friends, of people who claim to be my friends, of friends who claim to be just people and of nobody who claims to be anybody. But this blog is my way of giving something back to ‘literature’ to which I owe a part of my life and the whole of my heart till eternity. So, would it be digression on my part if I throw in a gadget which you may yell should be discussed (and debated) over the tables at some tech-heavy blog like Windows2008IsASexyThing.com or AllAboutTechStuff.com or something other blah-blah.com (who cares)!

But actually, technology is as much a part of ‘literature’ today as a river is a part of sea. E-book has changed the course of history (rather literature).

I can stand from the top of my roof and confess to the world at large, “Hey, I hate e-books. I love my tangible, touchable, smellable, feelable, readable, holdable, sleepable and everything else-able ‘real’ book.”

But I cannot deny the significance of an e-book. Today, I have enough money to fund my books. But I remember when I was pursuing my graduation in 2005, I didn’t have money and it was on internet where I devoured Jerome K. Jerome’s “Three Men on a Boat”. Of course, things were not as easy (and fast) as we have today. I would still use an alarm clock to wake up at 5, most girls still wore inners and internet was available either at a cyber café or at a rich man’s house.

Goes without saying that I had to sit for hours in my college cyber to satisfy my reading urges. I couldn’t read while on the move or else I would have used my traveling time of 1-hour for digging into Dickens and D.H.

Wish we had some gadget back then which was portable and also affordable! Sigh!

Now, of course, the story is altogether different. I don’t use an alarm clock anymore. It has been chucked in the deepest recesses of my shelf, its place now being taken by the ‘talking alarm clock’. Girls still wear inners, though not with the same enthusiasm (or frequency). And internet is freely available at every place (sometimes even at toilets). It needs no saying that thousands of readers now prefer to tap at the screen instead of turning the pages. E-reading has taken over in a big way and even though my loathing for it is incorrigible, I cannot deny its universal impact.

With something like ASUS Transformer BookT100 (the new gadget on the block), reading on the go is as easy as Trigonometry (at least I was good in Maths you know). While the existing set of laptops, tablets and phones has already been ruling the e-reading circuit, the special and standout quality about T100 is that it is a two-in-one gadget. It is a laptop prima facie. But you can yank the monitor out and bingo you get a 10-inch phone/tablet at your hand.     

The way I put it, you may have got reminded of a lizard and its detachable tail. But allow this video to do the explanation to you

ASUSTransformer Book T100 is light in weight (almost as light as light). It is user-friendly (almost as user-friendly as a girl who believes in live-in relationships). It is full of surprises, full of features but I repeat what makes it stand out is its capacity to satisfy your dual needs for a tablet and a laptop.

So when I eyed the society ‘1984’ style (hope you have heard of George Orwell), I realized that the youths today are suffering from three serious problems.

Problem 1: They want to carry less

No matter whether they are carrying books, gadgets, bags or even food, they like to keep their hands free. T100 is, I dare say, the child born out of a happy marriage between laptop and phone. So, you can carry less and still have more.

Problem 2: They are restless while traveling

Gone are the days when a man would happily while away an entire train journey by only gazing shyly at the equally shy girl sitting on the opposite seat. Now, people don’t have the patience (or the shyness) to merely gaze. They want to talk and the best way to break the initial cold ice is to chat online. So, if you can equip yourself with a user-friendly portable gadget, a girl will be just a mouse click away. Likewise, if you are a girl, a boy (and a hot one at that) will be just a tap away (As one Priyanka says, ‘why should boys have all the fun’).

Problem 3: Men no longer play ‘dress me up’

Those kinky days of fun and flirt when men would try to salvage a drab office day by playing ‘dress me up’ upon an animated girlie character are gone. Candy Crush is their new crush. And as far as Temple Run goes, I swear I will kill that guy who sends me a FB request over it 10 times a day.

*shrugs* I really am not much into these games. I had my full quota of Super Marios and Battle Citys when I was a kid.

But as far as I see, the world is divided into two kinds of people. One kind is that kind which is obsessed with games, and the other kind is me. So, if you are not me (which of course you are not unless you have written this post and know my favorite brand of butter), you are someone else and if you are someone else, you are bound to be a geeky gamer in which case you should seriously start thinking of getting ASUS’s T100.

You may call me old-fashioned if you want but I am a sucker for classics (both books and films). So, when I do get my ASUS Transformer Book T100, if I do get it ever, you are likely to find me reading a Jane Austen or watching Lady Chatterley’s Lover when I am traveling (and these days, I do travel a lot).

The rest of you can run your Temple Runs and do your cooing with Google-made girlfriends. But for me, a book is still a sexier thing.

[This post, despite having been written on behalf of ASUS for an IndiBlogger-run contest, is a true reflection of my feelings and views. So you dare not think that I am trying to force you to buy this product, though if I were you I would have bought it alreadyJ]

-Ritesh Agarwal

Email: ritzy182000@gmail.com