Tech news, analysis, culture, business, security, and more
No… not that kind of floppy…a disk-type one. Why is this useful? Apparently some BIOS updates still need you to jam in a floppy disk, despite the fact that many a PC nowadays ships without a drive for you to jam the disk into. So HP’s floppy-emulating USB flash drive gizmo is more a sysadmin’s…
It’s been a decade since NASA’s Lunar Prospector satellite gave tantalizing hints—in the form of unexpectedly sparkly reflections—that the Moon’s poles may have frozen water at or near the surface, but new data from a Japanese satellite looks like it’s quashed the rumor. Kaguya’s been in space since late last year, but it’s now trained…
Nowadays, any self-respecting hardware manufacturer is locked in an interminable battle to lock down their platforms for unclear reasons, because that’s how things are, OK? Accordingly, Nintendo has just released a patch to prevent would-be homebrewers from enjoying their Wiis too much. Not that this is unexpected — there have been a few major developments…
Click to viewSaturday Night Live’s Weekend Update analyzes the latest election poll projections, throwing new light over who will be the next President of the United States with their new Megapixel Giant Touchmap. Thanks to the use of the new technology they have shown that Cuyahoga County in Ohio will play a decisive role in…
Remember last Wednesday, when Intel’s director of ecosystems, stamp collector, and amateur clown Pankaj Kedia pooped all over ARM and the iPhone at the Intel Developer Forum in Taipei? You know the guy, the Intel zealot who—in an brilliant display of knowledge and strategical thinking said some stupidly dumb things like “the smartphone of today…
Have problems with the iPhone? Who doesn’t? Sure, it’s an amazing piece of gadgetry, but countless bugs and glitches have plagued the Apple product from the beginning. Now networking company Fullsix has launched a site dedicated to gripers called “Please Fix the iPhone.” The site gets owners to vote on the most pressing issues plaguing…
This should come as no surprise to anyone using a phone these days, but text messaging someone gets a far quicker response than voice mail. In a study by Sprint, those under the age of 30 are four times more likely to respond within minutes to an SMS than a voicemail, with roughly 91 percent…
If bath time’s gotten boring for you recently, why not try reenacting the Cold War in your tub? Here’s a submersible radio-controlled replica of the USS Seawolf SSN-21 submarine, with a funny little periscope themed remote thrown in for good measure. The real Seawolf was commissioned in 1989 as a response to the Soviet Akula…
Usually, the only reason we use the keyboards on internet tablets is because we can’t get to a more comfortable input device. Still, if you want to turn that on your head, here’s a beta application for Nokia Internet Tablets (the N800 and N810 specifically) that let you use them as a keypad and mouse…
If you’re looking into getting a new laptop, you should probably hold off until after the holidays for an extra boost in processing power. According to sources at AppleInsider, Intel’s planning a refresh of its Montevina Core 2 Duo processors for Spring 2009. The update will give notebooks two new variants of chips, a P88000…
As if her expanding belly—among two other bigger, more fantastic body parts—isn’t proof enough to show you how pregnant your baby mama is, the Bun-In-The-Oven Scale will remind your woman of her pregnancy journey, via expanding waistline images, every time she has gained another 20 pounds—that’s one ginormous baby! Oh, and did we mention that…
It’s no secret that UIQ effectively died when it merged into the Symbian Foundation earlier this year. But at a Symbian event this week in London, Sony Ericsson reiterated that the platform is destined for certain death and mentioning that it “didn’t attract the operator, manufacturer or consumer interest needed to stop it from failing.”…
The Pentagon and the Department of Defense has recently put in a request to contractors for a multi-robot pursuit system to search and track down “non-cooperative humans.” The military is worried that controlling robots will take time away from defense officials so creating a pack-hunting AI that will do it automatically will be useful. Once…
Click to view London’s Heart Hospital didn’t like the fact that they couldn’t see inside the hearts of patients—not while the patients were still alive and well, that is. So they hired Glassworks, an animation firm that specialized in music videos and TV shows, and asked them to build HeartWorks, the most realistic working 3D…
Access, the company that licensed the Palm OS 5 source code, has just finally gotten around to releasing a next-gen version of the OS. Called ALP 3.0, the Linux-based OS looks a whole lot like a next-generation Palm OS should, with smooth transitions, animations and apparently accelerometer support. An ALP mini version is available now,…
Official shots of RIM’s BlackBerry 8320 Curve—set for initial launch at AT&T—have leaked out at Boy Genius Report, which could mean the actual phone may be making an appearance soon. If you recall, it was announced that the BlackBerry 8320 would be available at AT&T on September 23, but an entire month has passed, and…
Shoe-maker ASICS commissioned a gigantic Lite Brite in NYC in celebration of something or other (probably a shoe launch) this month that takes the Guinness World Record for largest Lite Brite painting. You know, those things you played with when you were six? At 300,000+ pieces and 11×15 feet, it demolishes the previous record of…
Lonely Japanese fatties now have a new way to make themselves lose weight: a virtual nagging wife. Metaboinfo.com allows you to set up a weight loss plan, then assign one of four “wives” (aid, businesswoman, nurse or salon worker) to email you on a daily basis. Depending on whether you’re ahead or behind the curve,…
Click to viewSometimes we forget that diggers are more than just utilitarian machines. Inside their steel body beats a heart filled with passion…and lust. Behold the grace and beauty of the ‘Transports Exceptionnels’ performed by one 5-ton digging machine and a crazy guy from a French dance group. It just goes to show you—when it…
Intel has developed a system to cool laptops that’s not so different from that used on the surface of jet engines. The technology utilizes a laminar (non-turbulent) airflow to push heat away from the bottom of the case, making your laptop suitable for your lap again. Intel finds this technology particularly important as their new…
