Blog

Notes from the lab

Practical writing on the tech we build — Android, automation, electronics, and productivity.

Money & businessProductivityAudioShoppingLifestyleHome AutomationAndroidESP32IoT

How to Calculate Statutory Bonus in 2026 (Code on Wages)

How to calculate statutory bonus under the Code on Wages: who is eligible, the ₹7,000 or minimum-wage ceiling, 8.33% to 20%, a worked example and the deadline.

Money & business 7 min

How to Make a Monthly Household Budget in Excel (India)

Make a monthly household budget in Excel: set categories, track UPI, card and cash spends, compare budget vs actual and see your savings rate, with an example.

Productivity 5 min

How to Plan Your Week in 30 Minutes: A Sunday Routine

How to plan your week in 30 minutes: a 6-step Sunday routine to review last week, pick 3 priorities, block time and leave buffer, with a worked example.

Audio 5 min

Wake Up to Radio on Android: 5 Ways to Set a Radio Alarm

Want to wake up to radio on Android? Here are 5 ways to set a radio alarm, from scheduled playback in a radio app to routines, clock radios and a spare phone.

Productivity 6 min

Pomodoro Technique for Studying: A Beginner's Guide for Students

Learn the Pomodoro technique for studying: 25-minute focus blocks, short breaks, timings for school and exam prep, and the mistakes that make it stop working.

Shopping 5 min

Karwa Chauth 2026 Samagri List: Puja, Sargi and Shopping Plan

Karwa Chauth 2026 is on 29 October. Use this samagri list for the puja thali, karwa, sargi and evening meal, and buy it in three easy trips over three weeks.

Audio 5 min

Fall Asleep to Radio Without It Playing All Night: 7 Fixes

Want to fall asleep to the radio without it playing until morning? Use a sleep timer, pick calm stations, keep the volume low and skip earbuds in bed.

Productivity 4 min

Diwali Cleaning Checklist 2026: A 5-Week Room-by-Room Plan

A Diwali cleaning checklist for 2026 that splits the deep clean into five easy weeks, room by room, so your home is ready for Lakshmi Puja on 8 November.

Shopping 6 min

Kirana vs Supermarket vs Quick Commerce: Where to Buy Groceries

Kirana vs supermarket vs quick commerce: which is cheaper for groceries in India? Compare prices, fees and convenience, then mix all three with a simple plan.

Audio 6 min

How to Record Live Radio on Android and Listen Later

Record live radio on Android with a radio app that saves streams, the built-in screen recorder or VLC on a laptop. Simple steps, storage tips and what's legal.

Productivity 5 min

Habit Streak Broken? How to Get Back on Track in 6 Steps

Broke your habit streak? One missed day doesn't undo a habit. Here's how to restart after a skipped day, a lost week or a festival break, and stay consistent.

Shopping 5 min

Diwali 2026 Shopping List: A Budget Checklist for Indian Homes

A complete Diwali 2026 shopping list: puja items, diyas and decor, sweets and kitchen staples, gifts, Dhanteras buys and cleaning supplies, with a budget plan.

Audio 6 min

How to Find the Stream URL of Any Online Radio Station

Find a radio station's stream URL in minutes: check its website, search a free directory, use browser developer tools or open the .m3u or .pls playlist file.

Productivity 5 min

CAT 2026 Study Plan: The Last 60 Days Before 29 November

CAT 2026 is on 29 November. A week-by-week plan for the last 60 days: baseline mock, fixing weak topics, mock analysis, daily timetables and the final week.

Lifestyle 5 min

Navratri 2026 Vrat Grocery List: A 9-Day Fasting Checklist

Navratri 2026 runs 11 to 19 October. A complete vrat grocery list for nine days of fasting: flours, sabudana, sendha namak, produce, dairy and what to skip.

Audio 4 min

Mahalaya 2026 on Radio: How to Hear Mahishasuramardini Live

Mahalaya 2026 falls on Saturday, 10 October. How to hear Mahishasuramardini live at 4 a.m. IST on radio, online or from abroad, and how to record it.

Productivity 7 min

Time Blocking to Beat Procrastination for Good

The most effective way to beat procrastination is time blocking — here is the exact method, template, and rules that survive a busy day.

Lifestyle 7 min

The Perfect Organized Day: Plan, Shop, and Unwind

A three-loop routine — plan, shop, and listen — that turns an ordinary day into a calm, organized one you actually finish.

Audio 7 min

Internet Radio vs FM: How Listening Is Changing in 2026

Internet radio's global reach, presets, and sleep timers are pulling listeners from FM — here's what's changing and how to listen free.

Lifestyle 7 min

Fight Grocery Inflation With a Seasonal Shopping List

Buy in season, track baseline prices, and stock staples only on real sales — a practical playbook for cutting your food bill as prices climb.

Productivity 7 min

Quarterly Planning for Q4: A 30-Minute Reset

Before the year-end crunch hits, do a 30-minute quarterly reset: three questions, one two-week sprint, and a digital detox to protect your focus.

Audio 7 min

Turn Your Commute Into a Learning Hour With Audio

Turn your commute into a daily learning hour with the right audio — a practical system for choosing what to listen to, plus the podcasts worth starting with.

Lifestyle 7 min

How to Build a Grocery List That Actually Saves Money

Plan meals first, check the pantry, sort by aisle, and compare unit prices — a categorised list cuts both overspend and food waste.

Home Automation 8 min

Building Radio Khushbu: A 24×7 Internet Radio on a Home PC

How we turned a folder of 773 songs on an ordinary desktop into a self-healing internet radio station streaming to the world at pblab.in/radio.

Android 8 min

Why Offline-First Matters for Android Apps

What building Smart Shopping List taught me about offline-first Android apps: local data first, sharing without a server, and designing for the shop with no signal.

ESP32 9 min

ESP32 for Beginners: From Blink to Connected

A practical path from your first blinking LED to a Wi-Fi ESP32 device with a local web dashboard, saved settings and safe relay control, based on projects I have built.

Home Automation 8 min

Planning a Smart Home That Actually Works

Plan the outcomes first, keep control local, wire safety into the design and choose fewer, better devices. A practical checklist for Indian homes.

Productivity 8 min

Automating the Boring Tasks in Your Business

How to spot the repetitive work worth automating, pick the simplest tool for it, and avoid automations nobody can maintain. Lessons from years of finance reporting.

IoT 7 min

IoT Security Basics You Shouldn't Skip

Default passwords, devices exposed to the internet and firmware that never updates. The simple habits that keep home IoT devices safe, from someone who builds them.

Android 5 min

Designing Calm Android UIs with Material 3

Dynamic color, motion, and spacing that make utility apps feel premium without heavy custom design.