Proud to be a Pakistani !

[Pracs]

<b>Jaadu’s magic First iPhone app by a Pakistani on Apple’s store
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<i>By Juhi Jaferii</i>

http//www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2008\10\12\story_12-10-2008_pg12_13

KARACHI Ever wanted to sit on your pc and the toilet at the same time without dragging your pc into the restroom with you? Well its possible now. All you need is an iPhone and Jaadu.

Jaadu is an apt name for an iPhone application that lets you use and control your pc with your iPhone through a wireless Internet connection. Not just control it, but control it from the other corner of the world. Hypothetically, you could easily be sitting in a restroom in Rotterdam and be using your pc in Karachi.

What makes the application even more fascinating is the fact that it is the first ever iPhone application created by a Pakistani that has graced Apple’s very own online App Store. Jahanzeb Sherwani, who did his undergraduate from LUMS, created Jaadu by developing a thought he had into a tangible reality. In a seminar at The Second Floor on Saturday, Jahanzeb revealed the path he took when creating Jaadu, the mistakes he learned from and the future he looks forward to.

Jahanzeb’s story can be that of any budding Pakistani who wants to do something, innovate and create. Only his goes a little farther. He actually did something, he innovated, he created. “Put your best forward in the beginning,” he said in the seminar, “if you think you can do it, then jump.”

Sound advice for any Pakistani, whether a tech-savvy youth out to develop a new Google or an artist who wants to make graphic novels, it does not matter. Jahanzeb emphasized the fact that he did take risks when developing Jaadu, such risks that could have made him lose what he created. “Initially, when Jaadu was just a raw application with many glitches, I uploaded the application onto the Internet, free for people to download, and that meant that anyone could take the application, enhance it and sell it online.”

It isn’t often you find someone from Pakistan making a mark on today’s high-tech gadget dependant world. Its not like Pakistan doesn’t have the talent or the potential, after all the first ever computer virus was developed by two Lahori brothers way back in 1986. We can achieve things, then what’s the issue? According to Jahanzeb, its the lack of exposure and awareness. When things around you aren’t showing you what you can do, then you think you can’t really do them. Since he was doing his Ph.D. from the States, he was exposed to all the possibilities of creating something like a successful iPhone application, his environment encouraged him to consider it as an option. “You can impact the world sitting in Karachi,” he said, but added that you need to be aware of all your opportunities. People in Pakistan believe if you major in economics you can only become and economist, they think that a person can only achieve something if you have a weighted degree and are on your way to become a banker, doctor or lawyer. These common occupations are widely accepted and encouraged here, but if you want to become a web designer or a graphic novelist, there isn’t much around you that’s encouraging or influential. Encouragement is essential and objection is lethal when someone has a unique dream.

Jahanzeb, by conducting the seminar, is encouraging people to do what he did; put the best forward. He answered questions for a few budding tech-savvy boys sitting right in the front, brimming with curiosity and excitement.

Imad Qamar, one of the boys, stated that he was very proud of Jahanzeb and was happy that Jahanzeb answered his questions regarding the procedure to create an iPhone application. “I didn’t know where to start and who to ask, but now I can do something,” he said and added that Jahanzeb’s success has given him hope that even he can even create something that will be recognized the world over.