Comments from liquidsoapdispenser

liquidsoapdispenser commented on Dealzmodo: 91% Off Microsoft Office Ultimate

Fri, 09 May 2008 16:47:34 EDT

Am I paranoid? You have to give them a valid email address just to even see the details? How much spam will I get after entering? Does anyone know that this is really a Microsoft site?

Actually, I just looked and Microsoft does own the domain... So does this prove I'm paranoid?

BTW, even on a Mac, Office may be a tool you need to communicate accurately with the corporate world. My assumption is that no non-Microsoft program will display complex Word and Powerpoint documents 100% accurately... I've learned that if you're in a business where you deal with big companies, it's beneficial to communicate at full 100% when dealing with "the suits."

liquidsoapdispenser commented on Question of the Day: How Much Was Your Electricity Bill Last Month?

Thu, 08 May 2008 22:43:16 EDT

@playaj: I haven't yet seen how the LA DWP will handle the net production in electricity. In the winter months the system produced slightly less than we consumed, so I've only seen that end so far. But for the past few weeks the system has been generating about 10 kWh more than we consume each day. Our house is 1900 sq ft, but it's 3 stories, so our roof is pretty small. So the 24 panels cover most of it. The system cost me $24K (not including my $2K federal tax credit). The total system was about $48K, but local rebates covered the other half.

liquidsoapdispenser commented on Question of the Day: How Much Was Your Electricity Bill Last Month?

Thu, 08 May 2008 20:21:39 EDT

I've had solar panels for just over 6 months, and on a year-over-year basis, they are producing more electricity than my household and business are consuming. Helps me feel less guilty about leaving my computers on all the time.

liquidsoapdispenser commented on Terminator Ad Looks Like a Rip-Off, Makes Sarah Connor Chronicles Even Worse (NSFW)

Sat, 03 May 2008 20:31:09 EDT

I publish concert programs, and we ran an ad for the Terminator show. I can't see how they would have been able to "steal" the high res art on the arm, my guess is they must have had permission. The only way they could have copied it is if they had access to the high res original.

liquidsoapdispenser commented on Hollywood "Stars" Punk'd Into Going to Scarlet TV Premiere

Wed, 30 Apr 2008 23:39:29 EDT

Did my mildly flirty comment directed at carmen89 just get deleted? Or is Gizmodo just buggy?

Wait a second... Jason Chen, are you secretly in love with Carmen89?!?

liquidsoapdispenser commented on Next Generation Prius Hybrid Is Bigger, More Powerful, With More MPG

Wed, 30 Apr 2008 23:34:17 EDT

@robinandtami: Some theorize Peak Oil will not be a smooth, gradual change, but rather swift and tumultuous. BTW, anyone notice articles in the past couple of weeks talking about dramatic slowdowns in production of oil in Russia and the Middle East? With the track the world is currently on, I put my money on peak oil coming sooner than later.

liquidsoapdispenser commented on Hollywood "Stars" Punk'd Into Going to Scarlet TV Premiere

Wed, 30 Apr 2008 23:17:07 EDT

@carmen89: I agree!

liquidsoapdispenser commented on Hollywood "Stars" Punk'd Into Going to Scarlet TV Premiere

Wed, 30 Apr 2008 19:41:46 EDT

That's hot.

BTW, my aunt played the sheriff on Smallville... Until she got shot... On
the show.

liquidsoapdispenser commented on Ultimate Wall-E Robot Being Brought to Life by Disney, Thinkway Toys

Wed, 30 Apr 2008 13:48:01 EDT

Screw Wall-E, where the F is my Spykee?

liquidsoapdispenser commented on Next Generation Prius Hybrid Is Bigger, More Powerful, With More MPG

Mon, 28 Apr 2008 23:36:17 EDT

@macserv: Is hydrogen right around the bend? I'm not seeing it being online for decades, and only in conjunction with more nuclear power (or ?) as the true energy source, since hydrogen is just a method for cars to store and use energy (basically a super-clean battery). In my opinion, the more ways we can find to increase efficiency while we're waiting for other technologies to mature, the better. Of course, pushing for conservation and having the government come up with a decent energy policy would make sense.

liquidsoapdispenser commented on Putting Video Cameras in the WRONG Places (VERY NSFW)

Mon, 28 Apr 2008 21:30:25 EDT

fuck!

liquidsoapdispenser commented on Next Generation Prius Hybrid Is Bigger, More Powerful, With More MPG

Mon, 28 Apr 2008 19:44:34 EDT

@ideaman2020: There is an ideal area between 70mph and constant stop-n-go traffic that would give the best gas mileage. The regenerative breaking system is far from 100% efficient. Also, it's been shown that trips under 5 miles yield lower gas mileage, and my wife drives 5 miles of stop-n-go traffic to work each day (it takes her 30 minutes, when it would take under 10 during off hours).

liquidsoapdispenser commented on The 10 Worst HDTV Ripoffs Explained

Mon, 28 Apr 2008 17:38:23 EDT

@SeattleTed & Dave_T: I thought I read that 120mhz was nice because 24p goes evenly into 120mhz (as does 30p and 60i). So if you're watching a 30p or 60i source, as you may have been when you did your side-by-side comparison, you won't see the 24p benefit of 120mhz. Anyone want to weigh in if this is accurate?

liquidsoapdispenser commented on Next Generation Prius Hybrid Is Bigger, More Powerful, With More MPG

Mon, 28 Apr 2008 17:26:34 EDT

@liveinvt: My next door neighbor gets 51 MPG (based on his own calculations, not the in-car numbers). My wife gets about 45 MPG, but her driving is typically during rush hour in LA, so there's just too much stopping in traffic to get optimal mileage.

I want to know when someone will offer a hybrid station wagon!
[liquidsoapdispenser.com]

liquidsoapdispenser commented on NASA Releases Dirty Photos of Spirit Rover Solar Panels

Mon, 28 Apr 2008 01:38:37 EDT

Crap, that reminds me, I gotta clean my solar panels, it's been a few months.

liquidsoapdispenser commented on Wrist-Mounted Camera: GoPro Digital Hero

Wed, 23 Apr 2008 09:51:14 EDT

Hate to say it, but even their version 2 of this product doesn't take very good pics, has a poor battery life, and there's no LCD to make sure you're getting the pics you think you are.

liquidsoapdispenser commented on Problem: Waterproof Rugged Cameras Are Too Easy to Lose!

Wed, 23 Apr 2008 09:49:15 EDT

@johnnyabnormal: To make underwater pics look better, go in Photoshop and remove the color cast ([www.wikivideo.it]), and you'll be amazed at how much better those underwater pics will look.

liquidsoapdispenser commented on Problem: Waterproof Rugged Cameras Are Too Easy to Lose!

Wed, 23 Apr 2008 09:43:32 EDT

@DeadWriter: Sad to say the GoPro wristcam just doesn't work that well. Image quality is marginal, nothing compared to even a low-quality compact. And the battery life is really poor (try changing batteries while under water!). Plus the lack of an LCD to verify photos is a drawback. So when I'm taking surf photos I still stick to my old 4MP Canon Elph with a waterproof housing -- the photos and movies are amazingly better than the GoPro. Lately I've used shoelaces to construct my own safety strap, just in case. Doesn't seem that hard to rig up something if you're worried about losing your camera.

liquidsoapdispenser commented on Dealzmodo: Noise-Isolating Earphones for $7

Tue, 22 Apr 2008 22:47:58 EDT

My gut instinct was to rush and buy the earphones... Then I realized just an hour ago I was fishing through a bag of random old (but working) headphones and earphones I've collected over the past decade or so...

liquidsoapdispenser commented on Ricoh G600 Is Both Rugged and Fugged

Tue, 22 Apr 2008 09:07:53 EDT

Gizmodo, why do you call it "water proof" when even Ricoh's own press release only calls it "water resistant"? Why, Gizmodo, why?!?

liquidsoapdispenser commented on Sungevity Web App Makes Installing Solar Panels a Piece of Cake

Sat, 19 Apr 2008 22:59:59 EDT

I think Gizmodo is focusing too much on the satellite feature (I guess it sounds cool), but that seems like a small part of what this company is trying to do with their business model. BTW, I've had panels up for 6 months and they are kicking ass, producing more power than my household consumes! I'm in Los Angeles.

liquidsoapdispenser commented on OWC's Triple-Interface Mercury-on-the-Go 500GB HDD

Sat, 19 Apr 2008 09:58:01 EDT

I like the idea of a clear case because it's easy to see the drive inside! I have so many external enclosures that I have to tape notes on the outside saying what size drive it is, if it ATA vs. SATA, etc.

liquidsoapdispenser commented on Sanyo Xacti DMX-CA8 Waterproof Camcorder has 8 Megapixels

Fri, 18 Apr 2008 09:48:44 EDT

I remember back in the days when watches were either water resistant or waterproof. By those standards, this camera would not earn the "waterproof" label. I yearn for those days.

liquidsoapdispenser commented on WeRobot Shirt Pays Homage To Our Robotic Overlord Celebrities

Fri, 18 Apr 2008 09:43:55 EDT

I need this shirt. Every robot I ever loved... I see a cylons (Battlestar), Twiki (Buck Rogers), a robot from Silent Running... They even included Maximilian from The Black Hole! Not sure why a Sleestack is on there...

liquidsoapdispenser commented on Walgreens Offering Free Photo Prints

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 12:59:04 EDT

Last time I tried to use Walgreens to upload photos, I was shut out because they required use of a Windows application, and I'm on a Mac. I'm too lazy to check if that's still the case.

liquidsoapdispenser commented on Gas Pump Entertainment Center, Product of Bygone Era

Fri, 11 Apr 2008 09:33:43 EDT

I think I saw one of these last time I was filling up at a gas station.

liquidsoapdispenser commented on Canon Quietly Releases XL H1S and XL H1A, Lowers H1 Series Price

Thu, 10 Apr 2008 11:07:10 EDT

@xtol7: Yes, there are still enough people who still want tape. I think things are transitioning, but there are still plenty of people who have loved tape for many reasons for many years, and don't think it's yet time to change. Once you show these people a way for cheap and easy archiving of footage shot to solid-state cards (perhaps hundreds of hours per month or year), you won't see people hanging onto tape. If you think you know that cheap way to archive so much footage, please answer here and maybe you'll help move the industry away from tape.

liquidsoapdispenser commented on 3G iPhone's Upcoming Chip Found?

Wed, 09 Apr 2008 10:14:19 EDT

@nitefire77: Amen... but I think it's more important about the quality (not resolution) of the chip capturing the photo than the chip processing the photo.

liquidsoapdispenser commented on Beamz Infomercial Is Most Stupid Promo Video in History

Mon, 07 Apr 2008 12:09:36 EDT

Crap, they won't allow unapproved comments on the YouTube page. I guess you can only vent about how lame the BEAMZ is here. It's like they took a $150 programmable Casio keyboard, but decided to make it with a gimmicky interface that doesn't give 5% of the musical control you have with a standard touch-sensitive keyboard. Give me a Casio and a Theremin and $500 change, don't give me this piece of crap!

liquidsoapdispenser commented on Motion-Sensing Camera Catches Netflix Thief Red-Handed, Shirtless

Mon, 07 Apr 2008 11:54:21 EDT

I did the exact same thing when I wasn't getting my newspaper... Well, I went slightly lower tech. I tied a thread to my newspaper, which was tied to a jar with pennies in it (which was perched atop my porch), that would get knocked over and cause a racket when the thief struck... If only the gas meter reader hadn't picked up the paper to bring to my door as a favor.

liquidsoapdispenser commented on First Entirely Green Screen Show Coming to TV

Thu, 03 Apr 2008 17:07:18 EDT

What about this "Entirely Green Screen" entry for an old Gizmodo Contest?

I'm still crying that it wasn't selected as a finalist.

(Wow, look how Gizmodo automatically embeds the image into the post!!!)

liquidsoapdispenser commented on Sony HDR-TG1 Handycam Is World's Smallest "Full HD" Camcorder

Thu, 03 Apr 2008 00:41:53 EDT

I can't help but wonder if these tiny HD cameras are similar to the 14 megapixel compacts... The specs entice consumers, yet the actual image quality fails miserably when compared to lower-res cameras. I can't say that's the case with this camera, but that's my guess.

liquidsoapdispenser commented on Beamz Synthesizer Uses Lasers as Strings, Has Plenty of Cowbell (Literally)

Sun, 30 Mar 2008 23:33:48 EDT

@lafond66: Yeah, and product like this are why... Stupid $600 thing even needs a PC as a host. Who the hell would buy this? And this comes from a theremin owner.

liquidsoapdispenser commented on Notes: Gizmodo Story in Wired

Thu, 27 Mar 2008 09:01:14 EDT

Is that what it really looks like when you guys are working? You can tell who the BMOC is (sitting in the only chair in the apartment).

liquidsoapdispenser commented on Spy Drones Coming Soon to the US, AT-ST Walkers to Follow Next

Wed, 26 Mar 2008 10:40:20 EDT

@jetexas: That's the point. It's really a way to bait people to shoot at the drones, then the police lock the shooters up.

liquidsoapdispenser commented on Factron Quattro iPod nano Case is the Real Full Metal Jacket

Tue, 25 Mar 2008 09:56:13 EDT

Why do I have four pronounced red marks on my leg?

liquidsoapdispenser commented on USB Suction Cup Webcam Sucks, Bends, Takes Pics

Tue, 25 Mar 2008 09:55:21 EDT

I would think a suction cup was fine on an LCD if my colorimeter didn't warn me not to use the suction cup attachment on an LCD.

liquidsoapdispenser commented on First Military Pilot Review of the F-35 Strike Fighter (Verdict: Kicks Ass)

Tue, 25 Mar 2008 09:49:46 EDT

$40 Billion? Wow...

I would be very sad if the plane didn't fly well.

liquidsoapdispenser commented on XM/Sirius Merger a Go: What It Means To You

Mon, 24 Mar 2008 16:42:37 EDT

@Monty: Good question. I can see that the merged company will have lower long-term advertising, employment, and overhead costs, giving the company a better chance of surviving. But I'm not sure I see what the new motivation will be for the merged company to charge less.

liquidsoapdispenser commented on First Supersonic Flight with Synthetic Fuel Shows Air Force's True Treehugging Hippy Nature

Sat, 22 Mar 2008 10:24:45 EDT

@SchruteBuck: Prius? Ha, as if Ed Begley Jr. would drive anything other than a bicycle or a car powered by electricity or natural gas!