Friday, August 31, 2007

How-to articles every weekend

A quick little reminder. From this weekend on I am beginning a weekend how-to series on this blog, so check back soon, where I will be posting my first weekend how to article.

 

 

My main purpose of the page is to kick start you people (the visitors of the blog) on things that we as aero engineer need or do. I will be delving into my NAL experience and will come up with how to lessons that are relevant, helpful and informative!

 

Make sure you check back and if you have any suggestion or any how-to idea, do write in your comments.

 

I am basically propulsion guy, but I will try to include aesi aerodynamics as well as avionics stuff from time to time.

 

Three things you must give a thought before you embark on your training mission!!

I have already written about this topic earlier post but I am rewriting it again to emphasize on all the 3 points!!

 

 

Time:

Time is the most important parameter! Training in a organization, be it NAL, GTRE, or any other is not a part time work. It’s a commitment of your time. Its a two way process, you learn there and they get some work done. So first thing one should consider while thinking of training is how much time you have? Will my studies suffer? If you have subjects to study, i don't recommend training, because whatever you may think at first, it always hinders latter. So give it a serious thought while embarking on these lines. 

 

Motivation:

Motivation comes second, if software is all you want to learn during training then you better go to so many institutes that are cropping up. They will take some money but you will have the flexibility of time and you will learn more professionally. In my experience in NAL and GTRE, you have to do all the learning by yourself. Coming for work experience as motivation, then its OK! But be prepared to do mundane works, and do some work that you thought are not for you to do. It’s not always that you are going to sit under AC with computer, sometimes pushing a cart of junk, sometime, just sitting in the library, re-reading something for your boss, or searching Google for an obscure dealers name are some of the work that you will regularly come across.

 

Boss:

Yes your boss, the one under whom you will be working, the person who will be assigning you work is the third important factor that you need to look into. It’s an external factor but if your boss is a workaholic, you will benefit. If he is lazy you will dwindle. Training always happens when you are new in your career and getting a good mentor at this stage is great way to leap frog in your chosen field. So before you embark on the training, just like your friends choose your boss carefully! It really makes a difference.

 

Well these three things should come before you enter the training program!!!! More next time.... please leave in your comments!!!

 

Previous post link: http://my-aesi.blogspot.com/2006/01/3-things-that-you-must-have-before-you.html

 

Thursday, August 30, 2007

Three things I've learned in NAL - revisited

For those you, who might not know, after AeSI, I did training in NAL under Dr. Ramamurthy and during that time I wrote many blog entries though my reliance mobile phone. This is one of those….

 

This might be my first entry or a rarest entry on my experience in NAL. Well the three things are work hard; no work is small and be a delivery boy. That is, deliver what is expected of you. Come to an organization like this and you will realize the importance of aesi. You'll realize how it has lifted you without your knowing.

 

...You'll realize the truth when someone says "Gadhe ko ghora banati hai aesi" Don't want to say that AeSI's way is right but after coming and hearing by your own ears, you see the truth in word that Mr. Bishnujee uses for aesi graduates. Specialist! Yes it’s true. Maybe seeing the results and facing uncertain exams don't inspire this feeling, but trust me; once you are in this side of the river you will definitely see my point. Anyway hope here's wishing that the reforms aesi is doing now do bear fruits and do make one feel proud of your degree while doing it.

 

Well this was my post in the http://my-aesi.blogspot.com in January 2006. As you will notice the post is not complete. Since at that time I had reliance phone and I used it to send my posts via its mobile internet and it never allowed more than 160 character, so while sending posts with breaks, the flow broke and I missed out the points. So i thought of revisiting the topic.

 

As mentioned earlier, working hard, do all work required of you and being a delivery boy was what I learnt from NAL. I have touched about the realization of the knowledge that i gathered during AeSI only after coming to NAL. But I missed out the delivery boy stuff.

 

Well by that I meant. When you are given a task, deliver the result not an excuse. As my previous mentor in NAL used to say, "Give me results not excuses!"  Push yourself here in your training days and you will reap rich rewards!  Whenever we mentioned that we don't this software, he always chided us “You are young, learn it and deliver!!" So NAL made cemented the delivery in me. 

 

So folks if you are doing training at any of the institution, be diligent and make the most of the time you are there. Sometimes the tasks assigned to you might look un-engineer type, mundane and plain simple, but remember AeSI might have given you the aero skills and knowledge but the social, writing and other skills you will develop here in your training working among real people, real work and in real world!!

 

Please share your experience in comments!!!

 

To read the original post click these links

 

http://my-aesi.blogspot.com\2006\01\three-things-ive-learned-in-nal-part.html

http://my-aesi.blogspot.com\2006\01\three-things-ive-learned-in-nal-part_17.html

http://my-aesi.blogspot.com\2006\01\three-things-ive-learned-in-nal.html

 

 

Wednesday, August 29, 2007

What do I do about the gaps in my resume ?

Question: What do I do about the gaps in my resume when I traveled or couldn’t find a job etc?

 

Answer: Talk about them well. A gap is really bad if you spent your days on your sofa watching cartoons. But if you watched cartoons to prepare for your next career move into children’s programming, then you sound focused and driven. Same TV, same sofa, two different stories.

 

People don’t want to hear your life story. This is good news for people with sofa stints. In almost all cases, you learn something during a gap. Tell a great story about what you’ve learned and where you’re going, and your gap won’t get center stage. Leaving out details is not about lying; it’s about telling good stories.

 

 

This is what got my attention today. It sounds interesting. Well in AeSI some of us have to answer a question of this kind during the interview. So thought of sharing this suggestion with you all.

 

I think that is a good suggestion, so for those who are studying, apart from the study you should also begin doing something. Maybe you can learn some CAD or FEA software. But always do something that will help you in future. But be cautious, AeSI is a full time study job, so don't neglect your studies.

 

Other things that you can do while studying is look for competitions arranged by various education institutes and AeSI and participate in them, also if you have access to computer learn the software’s. You don't need high end catia to begin; you can always begin with excel and ms office. They will come handy when you enter the work arena. They are as useful as any other.

 

Improve your communication skills, written and spoken. One can do away with less technical knowledge but communication skills are the ones which you must have to succeed in today’s world, so hone them, cultivate them early....

 

 

Tuesday, August 28, 2007

Aeroengineer's

"Thanks to geocities for keeping them so long...."

 

This is what I wrote in my last post when I was discussing the websites that I have build while I was studying for my aero engineering degree. But as I checked the websites and was trying to resurrect them I was shocked to see that the sites pages have been removed. Geocities has silently without warning removed all the pages that constituted my sites. This was real shock as somewhere in last year I checked the sites and they were there but now geocities have reclaimed the space.

 

:( I am feeling sorry as I really liked the stuff I made but hey nothing can put down an AeSI           guy, so I will reinvent the whole stuff and bring everything back again and now with a better avatar.

 

My knowledge of web design has increased many folds, my writing skills have improved so I will surely resurrect the site and just now i have this idea that the site will be build with the technology christened as "Ruby on Rails!"

 

Its yesterday only that I have brought a book on begging ruby on rails and I guess this non-profit site that I am going to develop for aero engineers around the world will be the skill tester for the new skills that I am going to learn!!

 

I hope to rope in my good friend kis in this so that the site doesn't die a silent death that my aeroengineer.cjb.net did!!

 

I know I have promised to begin a series of sorts with this blog and I am surely on my way towards that.. Just have patience. I have lots of work in my hand and I will deal with each one by one...

 

But rest assured something useful is coming to this blog.

 

Update on the aesi-hiding-facts thing

Well a quick update on the aesi-hiding-facts thing! I have emailed them and had got this response

 

“We appreciate your views however now the decision is so. Thanks, Secy(adm)”

 

Well if this is the new decision then I have to say its bad decision and this will be a step backwards for Aeronautical Society of India!

 

Since the introduction of the new syllabus, sign were indicating that Aeronautical society of India is moving in right direction, but this step of withholding the information of passed vs. appeared candidates is definitely a step towards non-transparency.

 

Every one wants a transparent organization and steps should be towards that goal and not backward. What do you feel? What should we do?

 

 

For those who came late and don’t know what this is all about click this link

http://my-aesi.blogspot.com/2007/08/aesi-hidding-information.html

 

 

Friday, August 24, 2007

What's your AeSI IQ?

Most of my post you might have noticed begin with this word well. I don't know why but I kind of like the word i guess... hey this is not the thing that you open this blog for.

 

 

So let’s start. Let me ask you a question, have you participated any of the events organized by aesi? Or better still answer me are you aware of any events that aesi organizes?

 

Well during my time in AeSI, I wasn't very aware, though I had net access and I was regular visitor of the aesi website but somehow I always came to know of aesi's program in my city just a week after it was over.

 

So what is your Information quotient (IQ) for aesi events? Do let me know.

 

Why this is required because if you aren't involved in your degree you have no chance of loving it and enjoying it. You should seek and then will you find and enjoy the process of being an engineer.

 

Did you know? During my aesi times I floated two websites apart from the OURAeSI club!! Both these sites are still there but my neglect has brought the best out them. I think if they would have been living things and not cyber bits and bytes, them must have rotted and smelled foul!!! But thank god they are websites. You can even see and look at them. I will give the urls in my next post....... well both the sites were of two different region, one dealt and told about the careers in aviation and the other about the aero engineer stuff...

 

I hope to reviews these sites. I hope that by the year end i will have a definite something for this websites.

 

Once I give out the link, I would like to know your suggestions on what can be done to make them functional again.

 

Thanks to geocities for keeping them so long....

 

 

Okay then wait for tomorrow will I will send you the link

 

Thursday, August 23, 2007

AeSI hidding information !!!

I will tell you something unique about the results this time. But before I will tell you about it I would like to share what happened in the AeSI AGM in cochin!! As most of you, who follow OURAeSI, may know that Air Cmde Raghubir Singh gave a presentation on "Making AMAeSI a Viable option” in the AGM held at Kochi on 18 Feb 07, where he sited the passing percentage of the students in each subject.

 

The presentation had engaged the attention of all the members including G Madhavan Nair. The paper cited POF and other subjects passing percentages and brought the attention of aesi members on the exam passing figures. Even I am documenting those figures for 3 years and have the lists on the passing percentage but now if you have looked at the results published for June 2007, aesi has conspicuously removed that appeared and passed section from its result.

 

Only thing they now display is the passing students roll number and their corresponding marks?

 

So what do you all make of this? Why is aesi hiding those numbers? Is this the effect of embarrassment that they felt when this figures were pointed out in the AGM? Is this information hiding correct? Aren't we entitled to know those numbers?

 

Please have you say.... I will be emailing aesi to publish those figures. I think being transparent and accountable is the way to go for any body, this way of hiding information doesn't increase my confidence in aesi!

 

Wednesday, August 22, 2007

A new look

It’s been long since I have been using the dots template for this blog, in fact this was the first and the last template I chose when I began the blog. So many things have changed since; I was a student then, now I am a aeronautical engineer working in a good company, single then married now. So many changes in my life so why not some changes in the blog.

 

Well so here I go? And changed it?

 

Like the previous template I wanted this one to be light and simple. Just like the dots template this harbor template is simple and the focus always remains on the content!!!

 

Hope you like the change. And for all those who are reading this, this is not the only changes  that you will see in the blog, some more features and text are going to be added in it and I am planning to make it more useful and informative to you all.

 

So make sure you check it within a week’s time!!

 

Polls and delays..

Sorry for no post and for the big break I had to take. I was busy with the poll matter and then had to go to my native for a visit. So there is lot of things to share.

 

Since I have mentioned it, let’s talk about the polls. As I mentioned, I totally forget to write a post regarding that here. So for all those who don’t know what I am talking about, here’s a quick update that now OURAESI club hosts fortnightly polls for its members.

 

Why the polls? Well polls are good mechanism to know what people are thinking.  And basically every channel and media of communication is doing it so why we AeSI’ans be left behind. So the polls were back.

 

 

Back because they were part of OURAeSI before, I remember back in 2002 when I began the club and have persuaded few of my friends to join the club, I used to run polls…….. So those days are back now but now I plan to use the poll to do more than simple fun and give the people of aesi the voice.

 

 

Till now we have run two polls……   read about them there in the OURAeSI. And each one has brought heated discussion. I liked the response it generated and it served the purpose and brought out the aesi community, which somehow loves sleeping.

 

 

More of the poll are scheduled to come, I am inviting members to submit there polls too, so that we can keep the spirit alive.

 

 

Before I began this post I thought I will tell you one curious fact about aesi results this time which are out, but since I know you folks don’t like big post so I will leave the info for the next post. So be sure to check that. It deals with something that had happened in AeSI AGM and its effect on the results!!!

 

Hope I have piqued your interest…

 

 

So folks keep reading, I know, I have promised many times but now I am really planning to upgrade this forum of my communication to you so that it is more help full, informative and entraining to you.

 

 

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