These KM Firelighters are essentially gigantic matches—so big, in fact, that the kindling is built right in. I can't imagine the fireball and plume of smoke these things emit when scraped against your rough, expendable surface of choice—seriously, each match is so large that you can count the tree rings—but I can appreciate the four, Crayola-like colors sure to tempt children into horrible coloring disasters.

Boxes of 20 go for about $3 apiece. [KM Match & Lighters via Red Ferret]

That man is filmmaker Ed Wardle. He's been followed by National Geographic for about three months and all that equipment in the image is what's been documenting the whole thing. The documentary is called Alone in the Wild, and it's kind of like Man Vs. Wild except, you know, without the script.

There's also a Twitter feed, which produced gems like this one: "PORCUPINE LIKE A FATTY FOREST RAT. IF I HAD A CHOICE WHATS BETR 4 ME HERE, FAT OR MEAT?" Apparently being in the wild requires caps lock to be on at all times, lest the bears no longer fear you and attack. [National Geographic via Dark Roasted Blend]

The image associated with this post is best viewed using a browser.

A bit of steel wool held to a battery's contacts will create a short and start to spark, and if you're careful, you can direct that spark onto some pre-arranged tinder, starting a fire. Of course, this also works with a 9-volt battery, which I'm almost positive Les Stroud has used on Survivorman, but it's a nice idea to show it can be done with something we've all got in our pockets. [via MAKE]

CNET decided that HP, the world's leading manufacturer, will best be able to survive. A full third of its revenue comes from software, services, and enterprise storage, which won't take as big of a hit as consumer hardware. Their hardware is well balanced from consumer up to large businesses, including servers, storage, and printers as well as laptops and desktops. CNET does predict that VoodooPC isn't going to cut it, but that's a minor problem compared to HP's strengths.

Dell's move to services, software, and storage is helping it as well, and the company's move to China and India is a smart one. But Dell has recently undergone a change of direction with its smaller notebooks, and may have to scramble to figure out what sells in a depressed economy.

Acer has been sacrificing money for marketshare by aggressively pricing its netbook line, and may have to cut staff to make up for its losses.

According to CNET, Lenovo is totally screwed. They reported a quarterly loss of 78%, and is more focused on business than consumer lines. They're still doing fine in China but not so hot here in the States.

This is all guesswork, since nobody knows what the economy will look like next week, let alone two years in the future. And nobody's sure what's going to happen to the buying habits of computer users, or the market for business PCs. But I think the analysis on HP and Acer is dead-on: HP has the money and the depth to adapt to a changing market, but Acer will have to make all the right moves to stay competitive. [CNET]

[Subivor, Thanks Dave!]

After showing the bottle off at a defense conference in the UK, Pritchard sold all 1,000 of his $385 bottles in under four hours. Defense experts were impressed with the fact that it could filter 4,000 or 6,000 liters before the filter had to be replaced. An innovation such as this could have a significant impact if it ever reached the consumer market, not only being used as emergency gear, but for camping and travel as well. [The Register]

Product Page [Via Bookofjoe]

Hand crank for cell phones lets you call when you're powerless [SCI FI]

First, be prepared, giving yourself a fighting chance before any mishap occurs:

GPS In Your Car: Any time you're traveling through unfamiliar areas, a GPS navigation system will tell you where you are and where you're going. This is a great way to avoid disaster before it happens. You can get a really good one for as little as $275.

Map and Compass: It's easy to keep a map in your glove box, and it's a great backup in case your GPS system lets you down. Have a map for everywhere you're planning to go.

Clothing: Dress as if you're going to be required to walk dozens of miles in whatever climate is along your route. In winter, have a good pair of hiking boots in the car. In summer, never drive barefoot, because you never know how far you'll be required to walk.

Food and Water: If you're going on a long car trip, always have a cooler with plenty of drinks packed inside, including bottled water, and take yourself a shopping bag full of food, too. It's always nice to have plenty of food and drinks around, anyway.

Notify: Tell friends and family where you're going and when you plan to return. If you won't be back at that time, call them and tell them. Communicate.

Gas: Refuel before your gauge registers a quarter full.

Extra Car Key: Something as innocuous as getting out of your car to pee and then dropping your keys in the snow where you can't find them could be fatal.

If you get lost or stuck, stay with the vehicle. Studies show that you're more likely to survive if you don't venture out looking for help. Wait for the help to find you. Plus, put together a survival kit with the following items:

Candle Can: This might seem quaint, but we seasoned mountain travelers always carry an empty soup can and a supply of at least a dozen long-burning votive candles. Put the candle into the can, light it, and it will supply just enough heat to keep you from freezing to death in a closed vehicle after you've run out of gas.

Lighter: You'll certainly need a lighter to ignite that candle.

Reusable flare: Check out this CommuteMate Reusable Roadside Emergency Flare, visible from 1000 feet.

Whistle: While you're waiting to be rescued, make lots of noise. That's easy with this Coleman 5-in-1 Survival Whistle which also functions as a waterproof matchbox, a liquid-filled luminous dial compass, firestarter flint and a signal mirror.

Florescent spray paint: Keep a can of this in your survival kit, and then you can paint a huge message on the road or in the snow: Help!

Extra cellphone batteries: Your cellphone is continually checking to see if any calls have come in even if it's out of range of cellphone towers, and it can function as a beacon that will help rescuers find you. Keep it on at all times, especially if you're lost. We always travel with three cell phone batteries, all fully charged. On most cellphones, that will hold you for at least a week.

First Aid Kit: Your choices of medically-related items to include vary according to where you live and what you're doing, but a small, rudimentary first aid kit won't take up too much space.

LED flashlight: Take along this $12 LED flashlight that doesn't need batteries at all, it's hand-cranked.

Personal Locator Beacon: If you really want to go all-out, equip yourself with a $650 PLB. Just be careful not to set off a false alarm.

Commenters, please add your ideas! – Charlie White

The "Pocket kit" includes fire-starting gear, an LED flashlight, a compass, water bag, iodine tablets, fishing gear - and oh so much more, all stuffed into your tiny little Altoids tin.

What the heck, they forgot to leave room for Altoids in there. – Jason Chen

Make a Survival Kit out of an Altoids Tin (and Two More Life-Saving DIY Projects) [Field and Stream via Lifehacker]