I am a proud user of Xiaomi Mi A1 since October 2017. Mi A1 was one of the first mobile phone to have a dual camera setup at the back. The Bokeh effect produced by this device was astonishing. And it came packed with Pure Andriod Nougat that delivered exceptional performance. These all made Xiaomi A1, a youth icon at that time.

Xiaomi was very prompt on updates and upgrades. Monthly security updates ensured the device to be continued as robust and secure. Xiaomi also offered upgrades to Oreo and Pie on time.

Things changed gradually as newer versions of Android One phones get released form Xiaomi. Even through the security updates was on time till this month, there is no clarity on Android 10 upgrade for Xiaomi Mi A1. As the security updates continues in full swing and the OS Upgrade Promise was for 2 years, Mi A1 users can’t expect an Android 10 Upgrade.

But how can we make it happen? As the hardware is rock solid, there is no need to think of another new mobile phone because of slowed down OS upgrades, you can think of installing a Custom ROM. Even though a number of ROM’s are available in the market for M1 A1, the one that offers Android 10 based ROM’s are few. PixelExperience ROM is one among them.

Pixel Experience Rom

I have been using PixelExperience ROM for some time and I would confidently say that it’s one of the best ROM’s available for Xiomi Mi A1. It excels on both stability and features.

PixelExperience is an AOSP based ROM, with Google apps included and all Pixel goodies. It’s available in two flavours. PixelExperience and PixelExperience Plus. The former contains all stock features and the later contain all goodies from best of breed ROM’s. Rom is available for Download from PixelExperience ROM Website. This ROM is maintained by Abhinav Guptha.

Click Here To Download PixelExperience Rom
From Official Website

Declaration: Please note that using a custom ROM will tamper your device warranty. Guides to root device and install a custom ROM are available in different forums. This article is just a pointer and the author will not undertake any responsibility for the harm of your device. Install the ROM at your own risk.

Technology

Ultimate list of Drupal Distributions

by Harikrishnan V

December 12, 2019

Drupal is one of the best Content Management Systems available now. Drupal’s adoption rate is on a record high now. It is the stability, security and scalability that invited likes of business enterprises and Governments.

Drupal has a list of distributions that are available in its ecosystem. This article covers a list of Drupal distributions available.

[Note: I have only included the distributions that are actively maintained]

Acquia Lighting
A distribution form a house of Acquia which is equipped with enterprise grade editorial capabilities.
Link: https://lightning.acquia.com/
Drupal Version: Drupal 8 Ready
Thunder
A media distribution based on Drupal for professional publishing. Thunder is well suited for large and small media organisations. Thunder comes prepacked with Content Scheduler, Live Blog, Instant Articles, Google AMP version etc.
Link: https://thunder.org/
Drupal Version: Drupal 8 Ready
OpenSocial
An online community solution based on Drupal. OpenSocial comes prebuilt with all the features required for a community software. It also offers in-depth integration with various communication systems.
Link: https://www.getopensocial.com/
Drupal Version: Drupal 8 Ready
FarmOS
An ideal solution for farm management, planning and record keeping. FarmOS helps to revolutionise farm management using technology. It also have capabilities to integrate with IOT systems.
Link: https://farmos.org/
Drupal Version: Drupal 7 Ready. Drupal 8 Development in Progress
Commerce Kickstart
Drupal commerce based distribution that enables organisations to kickstart digital commerce enablement. It’s packed with all the basic features that are required for an ecommerce portal.
Link: https://commerceguys.com/product/commerce-kickstart
Drupal Version: Drupal 7 Ready
deGov
A public administration distribution build on top of Drupal for German Government organisations.
Link: https://www.degov.org/
Drupal Version: Drupal 8 Ready
Opingo
A leraning management system built on top of Drupal. Opingo is an ideal solution for Companies, Corporations, Universities etc. Opingo can be considered as an alternative for Moodle.
Link: https://www.opigno.org/
Drupal Version: Drupal 8 Ready
OpenChurch
A distribution for churches and ministries. It’s equipped with all the features that are required for a church website.
Link: http://openchurchsite.com/
Drupal Version: Drupal 8 Ready
Guadr
A distribution focused on security. The team behind Guadr has experience in working in security departments of US National Banks and Corporations.
Link: https://www.drupal.org/project/guardr
Drupal Version: Drupal 7 Ready.
Varbase
An enhanced Drupal distribution packed with adaptive functionalities and essential modules that speedup development.
Link: https://www.drupal.org/project/varbase
Drupal Version: Drupal 8 Ready

Love to know more about Drupal and Drupal Distributions, write to mail@hari.live.

Technology

Drupal 8.8 Feature List

by Harikrishnan V

December 7, 2019

The much awaited Drupal update is here. Launch of Drupal 8.8, the stepping stone to Drupal 9. It’s on 4-December-2019, Drupal launched this minor version update. Drupal 8.8 brings a handfull of improvements and feature updates.

Release Notes and Download Links are available here

So, it’s time to explore the new features in Drupal 8.8.

More Stabilized Media Library : This update brings the easiness in reusing media files. It is also integrated with content forms to capture media content and CKEditor to include media in content. DEMO Video Available Here
Claro Administration Theme : Drupal is coming out of it’s long standing Admin Theme. New theme is clean and super intuitive. To add, it has some great accessibility features and it’s touch friendly too. DEMO Video Here
Heirarchial Workspaces: it’s now possible to define heirarchial workspaces in Drupal. Eg : Having different issues for a magazine. To ensure quality of published content, editorial and publishing workflows have been integrated to it.
Composer as a Native Component: This will eliminate the dependencies on third party projects to setup Drupal.
Help Topics: A new task based help topics has been added. This is a bit different from earlier version.

If you are a Non-Drupal User, it’s the right time to try Drupal. Other than the things mentioned above, Drupal brings in a a suite of features to the table by default.

Default features of Drupal includes

Mobile First Interfaces
API First Approach that favours integrations
Structured Data Entry Interfaces
SEO Optimized Architecture
Layout Builder
Form Builder
Ability to Decouple etc.

So, why wait. Try Drupal.

If you are a Drupal Site Owner Try updrading to Drupal 8.8. Feel free to reach me at mail@hari.live, if you need any support in Drupal Upgrade.

Technology, Tips

5 questions you should as yourself before building a website

by Harikrishnan V

October 27, 2019

If you are a person who is planning to build a website, you should ask these 5 questions yourself before starting the agency hunt. This will not only save your cost but also your capital expenditure for building the website.

1. What is the core objective of building the website? Is it branding or lead capturing or content dissemination or digital commerce?
The requirements for these 4 cases are distinct. So your first answer is crucial.

2. Who are you planning to target through your website? What is their persona and what will be their expectations?
Understanding your target audience will help you to decide the kind of online experience they should prefer.

3. Who are your competitors on digital media? Are they of your same scale or higher one? What is their digital strategy?
If your competitors are too aggressive on digital media, you will have to devise a unique strategy that will help you to differentiate in the crowd.

4. What is your brand character? Is it defined? Do you have a brand guideline in place?Websites act as your digital identity.
If you have a perfect brand definition and guideline in place, you can demand a good output from the design agency. Or else, you have to keep on improvising their deliverable, which will be a time-consuming process for you and them

5. At last, will you have to spend money on marketing the website? If so, what is your planned marketing budget?
It’s quite usual that business owners will only factor in the cost for developing the website. But the sad fact is that merely building website will not yield results. You will have to invest in marketing. Or else it will be like owning a luxury car and without gas. The core objective will not be met.

If you need a support to gain clarity on your requirement, drop an email to mail@hari.live for a consulting engagement. I can help you to clear the dark clouds during the initial phase.

Reviews, Technology

Zoho Notebook – The Evernote Alternative

by Harikrishnan V

October 23, 2019

When we have a handful of tasks and have to put heads into multiple conversations, it’s a mandate that we have to keep notes in an efficient manner. Earlier I used my dairy to record notes. But as the number of meetings increased, I found it difficult to manage it in a dairy. Also, I have to enter those details into the system to make it useful. It was at that time, I started thinking about a note-taking tool. I tried several tools both cloud and desktop versions. Being an avid fan of Linux, the tool’s compatibility with Linux was mandatory. This search took almost 6 months. to figure out the issues with multiple tools and the practical difficulties I will have to face when I use it. At last, I found the one which I was looking for.

Here comes Zoho Notebook

Completely Free- Unlimited Customizable Notebooks
Desktop Apps for Linux, Windows, Mac- Image and File attachments
Mobile Apps for Android, iOS
Lightweight and intuitive
Hierarchical content structure
Intuitive User Interfaces
Feature Rich Text editor( Plain Text, Bullet Point, Checklist, etc)
Reminder Options
Secure Notes using passwords
Version tracking
Powerful search
Content synchronization

Zoho has confirmed that this tool will be free forever. So why wait to start using Zoho Notebook. All it promises is a premium experience at a Nil Cost.

[Image Courtesy : https://www.zoho.com/notebook/]

Technology

Choosing the right WebCMS for your business

by Harikrishnan V

October 16, 2019

My experience in WebCMS consulting is nearing a decade in this year. Over these years, I was fortunate to work with small businesses as well as MNC’s. Being into consulting, it’s my duty to clear the concerns of my clients. Of all the questions I had, there was one question that triggered the discussion and it is ‘Which CMS should we use for this project’. The multiplicity of options available in the market is creating confusion for business owners. Through this article, I am trying to address this question.

[Declaration: The ones mentioned below are just pointers. Based on the complexities in the requirement, the CMS suggestions can change.]

Even though there are many distinct factors that affect the decision to choose a CMS, I am trying to drill it down to simple terms using the user persona.

If you are a professional, who needs a website to just showcase your works, you can go with services like WiX or Square Space

If you are an aspiring entrepreneur, who plans to start a digital commerce business that involves sales of products, start with a SaaS platform like Shopify, Big Commerce Weebly, Ship Rocket, etc. On having great profits, think about moving to a platform powered by Magento or Opencart.

If you are an entrepreneur who wishes to have a corporate website and generate leads from that website, go with WordPress.

If you are an entrepreneur, who wishes to start a digitally native business that has highly custom requirements, go with Laravel, Typo3 or similar frameworks.

If you are an entrepreneur planning to start a media portal go with WordPress. If you are planning to scale it up rapidly using a mobile app, start with Drupal.

If you are a corporate who has a plan to modernize the entire digital ecosystem, go with Drupal, Joomla, TYPO3 or .Net based CMS solutions.

If you are a corporate, who has a solid budget to enhance the entire customer experience, go with Adobe Experience Manager

I may have missed many user persona and CMS names. But this list will be helpful for someone who is just starting to think about establishing a digital identity.

Article, Technology

State of Content Based Digital Marketing 2019-July

by Harikrishnan V

July 22, 2019

Digital marketing has diverged to content marketing now. Anywhere and everywhere we can see only content marketers. Content created by Brands and Individuals are now being consumed by Brands and Individuals who learns how to create marketing content. In short, most of the content marketing campaigns are not hitting targets. What may be the reason? Let’s check this out.

Multiple Contents – Single Source
Content authors rely on popular sources for fresh ideas. Once they have it, authors transform the ideas to their language. But the essence remains the same. When authors representing multiple organizations, does the same, It creates a pool of same content with different variations. A wise content consumer who is interested in genuine content can easily identify this. It ruins the reputation of brand, thus results in campaign failure.
Q: What is the way out ?
A: Create afresh content and relate it to real life cases.

Bad Idea of making influencer the center piece
Influencer marketing is on a hype now. Before going behind the hype, just think whether Influecer marketing works for you. If Yes, Identify the right kind of influencer. Not all influences are the same. Their exposure depends on the exposure. Influencer marketing can quickly boost brand awareness. At the same time, if not handled well, it will tarnish the reputation.

[Update in progress.. Please be patient]

Technology

Looking for free CRM.? Try Hubspot

by Harikrishnan V

May 22, 2019

Hubspot is well known for its marketing automation capabilities. Hubspot also provides a CRM service that helps organizations to manage their customer information. Being free, you may expect some limitations. But in true sense it’s completely free. That too hosted in cloud.

Here are the features it provide

Store and manage upto 10 lakh contacts
Record the whole customer journey.
Integrate Gmail and other major email clients
Log every activity of a contact
Initiate chat with prospects and customers.

Leverage these kind of tools to empower your sales team. Let this be a start of digital transformation.

Click here to know more about HUBSPOT CRM

Technology

How to execute .sh files in Linux(Ubuntu)

by Harikrishnan V

May 2, 2019

You may encounter with a .sh file several times when you try to download an application/software for linux. .sh files are shell script files for Unix-based operating systems.There are 2 ways in which it can be executed. One is by using the terminal and another is by using the GUI of the operating system.

1. Using Terminal

Step 1: Open Terminal
Step 2: For giving permission to execute your script, Type this in the terminal. Remember to give your file path.
chmod +x /path/to/yourscript.sh
Step 3: Execute the script. Just point your file location.
Eg: /path/to/yourscript.sh

2. Using GUI

Step 1 : Locate the file in your system.Step 2 : For giving permission to execute your script,
Right-click on the fileSelect Properties
Select Permissions
Select Allow executing file as a program Once its done, close the Properties window Step 3: Double-click the file. A dialog will pop up giving you the option to run the script in a terminal. Go with it.It’s all done.Note: Not all files are safe to install. Verify the original source before executing these type of files.

Technology

Meet Mautic: The Open Source Marketing Automation Tool

by Harikrishnan V

January 4, 2019

Looking for an alternative for Hubspot.? Try Mautic. It’s a free and open source marketing automation tool. Mautic will help you in personalizing customer experiences, that will result in driving more leads from your customers.

Type: Marketing Automation Tool
Platform: PHP
Licensing fee: 100% free. No strings attached.
Deployment: Self Hosted/Cloud
Website: www.mautic.org

Contact Tracking & Nurturing
Managing Marketing Campaign
Building Dripflow Programs
Integrating Social Media Channels
Managing Landing Pages and Digital Assets

Why wait, try one of the most powerful marketing tools available now. Click Here to visit Mautic website

Android 10 for Xiaomi Mi A1 using PixelExperience ROM

Ultimate list of Drupal Distributions

Drupal 8.8 Feature List

5 questions you should as yourself before building a website

Zoho Notebook – The Evernote Alternative

Choosing the right WebCMS for your business

State of Content Based Digital Marketing 2019-July

Looking for free CRM.? Try Hubspot

How to execute .sh files in Linux(Ubuntu)

1. Using Terminal

2. Using GUI

Meet Mautic: The Open Source Marketing Automation Tool

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