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Today is the 50th anniversary of the aluminum beer can, released by Coors in 1959. And while I was prepared to make fun of cans for a few hundred words, they’re actually sort of interesting. Some IMPORTANT historical facts: • Coors spent two years developing the aluminum can. • Before aluminum cans, the tin can…
There are some apps we wish Apple would approve but won’t for some unknown reason. Then there are those apps they are obviously never going to allow in a million years. For this week’s Photoshop Contest, I want you to design some fake iPhone apps that would clearly never make it through Apple’s approval process.…
Did you catch what happened last week on Battlestar Galactica?? Holy! Whether you did or not, io9 has a good roundup of Battlestar goings-on so you can be prepared for the next episode tomorrow night. You should basically skip these posts if you haven’t watched last week’s episode, and come back later when you have.…
Chemical engineers working at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign have developed a hydrogen fuel cell that measures only 3 millimeters across. That could mean longer lasting, eco-friendly power for your gadgets. This new cell utilizes only four components—a water reservoir and a chamber containing metal hydride separated by a thin membrane with an assembly…
Looks like some assholes took advantage of Wired’s wide-open image viewer to publish false news about Steve Jobs having a heart attack. And the worst thing is that a gazillion people bought it on Twitter: For future reference, you can basically display anything you want in Wired’s image viewer, as you can see here. [Thanks…
If you’re browsing the web at work or just somewhere insecure, the prospect of key-logging may keep you from typing passwords and/or expletives. This Greasemonkey-compatible script brings up a virtual keyboard for mouseclick typing. The Virtual Keyboard Interface is a free script to download and adds one of 22 clickable keyboards for the typing of…
One revised feature in Windows 7 is the Backup utility. Previously with Vista, you could only designate types of files to back up. Now, you pick which folders to duplicate, plus export whole system images. The new Backup and Restore looks pretty similar to the Vista version, where there’s a welcome screen to choose backup…
I’m not sure that Jenga is one of those games that can be played tiny, monochrome display. But given enough willpower and enough plastic, as we all know, anything is possible. This latest Jenga handheld by Zizzle toys features two real (non-wood) blocks that you actually slide in and out of place. Use too much…
This may be a first for the Mac software world, and it’s not cool at all: ill-gotten copies of iWork ’09 circulating on Torrent sites contain OSX.Trojan.iServices.A, which is something you don’t want. https://gizmodo.com/iwork-09-includes-iwork-com-costs-79-subscription-5124555 The Trojan parks itself in your /System/Library/StartupItems folder with read-write-execute root privileges-from there it can phone home to a remote server…
Sometimes you don’t need to fill your 5-gallon Mega Xtreme Chill Polar Icecap Gulp with 238 ice cubs to get through the day. Sometimes you just want one or two. This Quicksnap tray concept won a recent Toyota design competition. A simple enough idea, each cube of ice can be released individually through its own…
To be honest, I’m not sure what I’m looking at here. But, the manufacturer assures us that it is a watch—a watch that can defy “all laws, including that of logic and most of all, of gravity.” Tourbillion watches, like this one, are able to tell time with extreme accuracy because its escapement and balance…
Demand for IT professionals has grown! Earning a certificate with Kaplan Continuing Education can help demonstrate to employers that you have the IT skills they’re looking for. KCE offers certificates in advanced fields like systems engineering, systems administration, and information security. See the full list below: Microsoft Certified Systems Administrator Certificate: Students will receive instruction…
Very cool idea here: these $29 X-Mini II speaker balls improve on the original X-Minis greatly: they can be daisy chained together for an infinitely expandable grouping of rock action. https://gizmodo.com/xmi-x-mini-tiny-subwoofer-speaker-287199 Each X-Mini II has a woofer and tweeter (pretty neat for such a small package) and is powered by an 11-hour rechargeable battery, which…
Another week brings yet another BlackBerry Storm OS leak. This time the version is 4.7.0.90 for the 9530 and 9500—a version CrackBerry claims is “a step in the right direction.” Unfortunately, that endorsement is not backed up with any feature improvements thus far (they do mention some camera bugs however) but, this is not an…
Are you unable to install programs on your Windows 7 beta? You’re probably a victim of this MSI installer bug, which you can actually fix by yourself, right now, without waiting for a Microsoft patch. Here’s what you do. 1. Open a Command Prompt as Administrator 2. Type reg delete HKLMSOFTWAREMicrosoftSQMClientWindowsDisabledSessions /va /f and press…
According to an article published on the KHQ station website out of Washington State, taxpayers support former Presidents to the tune of $2.9 million per year. The biggest spender? Good ol’ Bill Clinton. In 2006, we footed his outrageous $104,000 phone bill. We also paid for “the satellite TV in his office, complete with eight…
When the App Store launched, there were a handful of Twitter apps for the iPhone. Now there’s ten zillion. We’ve read thousands of tweets on every Twitter app, so here are the best, and worst. The Quicklist • Best Overall: Tweetie • Best Paid: Tweetie • Best Free: Twitterfon • Most Powerful: Twittelator Pro •…
Obama staffers, previously residents of a magical technological world filled with IM, Facebook, unicorns and Macs, found a barbaric Stone Age when they entered the White House: No IM, scarce laptops, and dear Christ, Windows XP. Other brutal conditions include dated computer software and rules banning outside e-mail accounts (don’t want another Sarah Palin mess,…
HTC is updating the nav-focused Touch Cruise, which now features a new active-geotagging app called Footprints, which can easily stamp your location on notes, audio clips and photos. Aside from footprints, also new over the original cruise is a redesigned case, Touch Flo, and forthcoming U.S. 3G on AT&T’s 850/1900 MHz bands (that version will…
Sometimes, when life’s getting you down, you just need to hole yourself up in a modified wardrobe, sitting on a chair with a hole cut in the seat for you to poop through. The wardrobe, designed by Australian artist Adam Norton, features everything you need to live, from the aforementioned toilet chair to a cooking…