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The Miffy Netbook: Cuter by a Hare
Shocking as it may seem Miffy isn’t Japanese, but in fact is the creation of Dutch artist Dick Bruna who drew the cute little bunny back in 1955. However the graphic cuteness of our bunny friend has always done well in the land of Hello Kitty — and the recent evidence of this is the Miffy Netbook by Onkyo show above. The coolest thing about this netbook is that it features its own Miffy user interface: Read more… Demo of a Digital Computer from 1942
Posted by Michael Pinto on Jul 15, 2010 in Tech
It wasn’t programmable but the Atanasoff–Berry Computer (ABC) was one of the first digital computers ever created. Sadly the research surrounding it ended with World War II (the machine dates to 1942), but the computer designed by John Vincent Atanasoff and Clifford Berry got its due in 1973 when they awarded patents for their work which pre-dated the ENIAC. This video from 1999 shows a demo of a reconstruction project which cost over $360,000 to create. Read more… I Can Haz Human Progress?
Posted by Michael Pinto on Jul 4, 2010 in Tech
In this video techie pundit Clay Shirky shares his notion that Lolcats aren’t just a fun waste of time but in fact a sign of progress. His theory is that while in the past humans have had spare time that with the net this potential can be captured to produce things — even if its adding captions to cute kitty photos. Is the Internet Making Us Stupid?
Posted by Michael Pinto on Jul 2, 2010 in Tech
In this clip author Nicholas Carr addresses the topic Does the Internet Discourage Deep Thinking? And I’ve got to say that he’s dead on — I tend to find that in it’s current form the web is a mile wide but an inch deep. For example at your fingertips you can google the name of any historical figure who has ever lived and find at least a wikipedia entry, however if you want to go that extra step and read book on the topic you hit a real dead end. Although I think blaming the net is a bit of an excuse because in reality the signal-to-noise ratio has been been weakened since the advent of television over fifty years ago. Will 3D Printing Change Our World?
Posted by Michael Pinto on Jun 30, 2010 in Tech
In this video Makerbot founder Bre Pettis demonstrates a 3D printer that he designed. What’s amazing to me about this technology is that while it’s being used as a novelty today I can see it changing the world in two ways: First we’ve lived in an age of mass manufacturing since the Victorian era — this sort of technology could lead to micro manufacturing where short runs of unique objects are the norm. Imagine if you would if no cars were alike in the world? The second thing is that if you combined this technology with robotic assembly lines it could bring back local manufacturing so products wouldn’t need to be shipped around the world and thus saving a ton of energy. Why John Sculley Has This Apple Fanboy’s Thanks
Posted by Michael Pinto on Jun 25, 2010 in Tech
Boom! Studios Explodes On to the App Store
Posted by Tim Sheehy on Jun 18, 2010 in Comic Books, Tech
Sure it’s not Marvel, DC, Dark Horse, or even IDW, but if you haven’t read any of Boom! Studios’ comics since its inception back in 2005, you’ve really missed out on some amazing work. With licensed works based on films like Die Hard and 28 Days Later you really can’t go wrong — not to mention their outstanding line-up of original content that spans a variety of different genres. However, missing out can be easily remedied thanks to their recently released iPad app which promises to deliver roughly 50 titles straight to your iPad for a reasonable price. The app itself is built on the comiXology engine, the same engine used by other publishers such as Marvel and IDW. To download the app, or to learn more, check out the app store website. Read more… Apps for Your Appliances: The Continuing Vision of Home Automation
Posted by Michael Pinto on Jun 17, 2010 in Tech
This interesting panel discussion talks about the idea of consumer electronic appliances being able to connect to the cloud. What I found interesting about this discussion is that this idea isn’t 100% new, but in fact is the latest chapter in the ongoing evolution of an idea of a “smart house” which has been an old dream of the computer industry. A good example of this was the AT&T commercials from 1993 which had the theme “You Will” — take a look at the commercial at the one minute mark where your voice opens up doors: Read more… Google Gags Goth Lolita Video
La Carmina is one of my favorite subculture bloggers, so I was a bit upset to see that YouTube had censored one of her videos by claiming that it violated their community guidelines. But I’ll let you be the judge — shown below is her video. Now before you watch this clip I will warn you that there is some fetish footage at the end. However some of you may be a bit disappointed as the model in question is clothed (she’s wearing underwear), and that may be hard to see as the scene is shot in a low light situation: Read more… A Rice Cooker to Warm Up Your Tunes
Posted by Michael Pinto on Jun 9, 2010 in Hobbies and Collections, Tech
This has to be the ultimate Japanese in-joke peripheral: A mini-speaker for your computer or iPod that looks exactly like a miniature version of a Thanko Rice Cooker! Of your course your non-Japanophile friends will be left wondering what’s hooked up to your computer, but then again that’s what makes clever conversation piece. Read more… This Kawaii Panda Marches to a Different Drummer
Posted by Michael Pinto on Jun 7, 2010 in Hobbies and Collections, Tech
It took me a bit of hunting to find the mysterious origins of this Animal Town Panda Speaker and it seems that he’s a character from a series of ultra cute stationery goodies from a company called Q-LiA. Although the flat graphic representations I’ve seen of him don’t quite have the same surrealistic magic of this speaker which has a sort of air balloon quality to him. And making him stranger yet when you plug your device (either an iPod, iPhone or CD/MP3 player) his red nose actually shines just like Rudolf the Red Nosed Reindeer. Read more… Are the Trolls Destroying the Internet?
Posted by Michael Pinto on Jun 6, 2010 in Tech
This nice clip shows a few minutes of an interesting panel discussion on Is Civil Discussion Possible on the Anonymous Internet? The panel featured Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales, although I found the commentary by Andrew Keen, author of The Cult of the Amateur to be the most insightful. Keen feels that there’s a feeling of entitlement with the net and no sense of responsibility and what’s needed is a social contract of sorts. A Working Lego Printer That Would Make Even McGuyver Proud
Posted by Tim Sheehy on Jun 3, 2010 in Hobbies and Collections, Tech
Every once in awhile someone does something awesome with legos that makes me wish I still had my box of spare parts. I always end up regretting the fact that I sold the majority on eBay so many years ago, with the exception of a few sets that I’ve managed to keep sealed away in their original box. Still, it really amazes me when someone creates something that’s actually somewhat useful. Sure, it’s neat to see someone construct a robot or a Valkyrie, but creating something a bit more original always manages to impress, and that’s exactly what B3ta user, Squirrelfantasy, did with his felt-tip lego printer. It might be a bit crude, but it looks pretty neat and gets the job done. Read more… Hulu Heading to Xbox 360? Now a Subscription Doesn’t Sound So Bad
Posted by Tim Sheehy on Jun 2, 2010 in Tech
I suppose this should still be labeled a rumor, but at least it’s a plausible one that I feel I can weigh in on. Gear Live is currently reporting that a reputable source has informed them that Microsoft is set to announce the lauch of Hulu’s subscription-based service via Xbox Live at E3 later this month. The plan for a subscription based service has actually been common knowledge, though most people expected it to launch with the upcoming iPad app that has been in development for months already. Read more… A Japanese Magician Shows us Some iPad Street Magic
Posted by Tim Sheehy on Jun 1, 2010 in Tech
David Blaine, eat your heart out. Today I stumbled across this awesome video, complete with subtitles, of a Japanese street magician playing with Apple’s iPad. Sure, he’s no Lance Burton, and it’s a pretty neat little presentation in terms of viral marketing. I also hate to say it, but aside from using it as a glorified ebook reader, this video has probably demonstrated the most practical use of an iPad I’ve seen to date. Kind of sad, huh? Read more… Yo Dawg, We Made Your BlackBerry Smell Like Blackberries…
Posted by Michael Pinto on May 30, 2010 in Hobbies and Collections, Tech
I’ve seen a great deal of geek shaped soap in my day, but the added touch of making this faux BlackBerry scented with blackberries is genius! Produced by the Two Eggplants Company this BlackBerry PDA Phone Soap shows some nice detail on the keyboard and even includes a screen full of mock icons: Read more… How Netflix Became a Cool Cartoon Haven
But recently Netflix added a batch of titles to its library that transformed Watch Instantly into THE place for kids who watched a lot of cartoons in the ’90s (not including anime, which makes up the vast majority of Netflix’s “Anime & Animation” section). Read more… Softbank’s Gundam Cellphone Has All the Newtypes Drooling
Why is it that Japan gets all the cool phones? I’m serious. Sure we all have our Blackberries and our iPhones, but none of those come with model Gundams, or high resolution cameras. Well, Softbank’s upcoming Gundam Cellphone 945SH G certainly does. In addition to being a Sharp 945SH with a built in OLED display, and 12.1 mega pixel anti-shake autofocus camera — yes, their phones have better cameras than ours — the limited edition phone will be packaged along with a model RX-78-2 Gundam and charger stand. Read more… A Sneak Preview of a Revolution
Posted by Michael Pinto on May 19, 2010 in Tech
This is teaser video for the Revolution: The First 2000 Years of Computing exhibition which will be staged at the Computer Museum in Mountain View, California in January, 2011. For me it’s a special treat to see the likes of Steve Wozniak, Bill Gates and Eric Schmidt in the same video — but it shows you the geek love for those who came before. From what I can see the exhibition will offer a chance to see many gems in one location. Read more… Sony’s Latest Memory Stick Faster Than a Speeding Bullet?
Posted by Tim Sheehy on May 13, 2010 in Tech
Okay, well maybe its not faster than a bullet, but it certainly seems that way. Sony’s recently launched its latest memory stick line, the PRO-HG Duo HX — I know, the names are getting ridiculous — supposedly can transfer data at rates as fast as 30MBs per second. So why is that so great? Well, to put it into perspective, we’re talking about the ability to snap 260 digital images in one minute at roughly 14MBs a piece — that’s 160 percent more than their previous Pro Duo sticks were capable of. Currently the memory sicks only range in size from 8GBs to 32GBs with varying sizes between, and retail for $60 and up. Read more… Microsoft Office 2010: How To Blow a Product Launch
Posted by Michael Pinto on May 12, 2010 in Tech
My belief at this point in time is that Google is what Microsoft use to — an out of control monopoly that must be stopped. So despite the fact that I’m an Apple fanboy at heart I’ve been rooting for Microsoft to get serious about the cloud for a few years now. And frankly I’m also still using Microsoft Outlook as my main email client — so when I heard that Microsoft was rolling out Office 2010 I had to check it out right away. And if you look at the above screen, what I came across was a total failure. Read more… Babbage and Lovelace: A Space:1999 Tribute to the Pioneers of ComputingAs both a tech geek and a Space:1999 fanboy I loved this fan made video tribute to Charles Babbage and Ada Lovelace. I also found the entire steampunk look of the video quite pleasing: Read more… Do Not Underestimate the Power of the TomTom GPSHave you ever wanted your GPS to sound like a Sith Lord, or James Earl Jones? Perhaps you’ve just imagined yourself as a hapless Admiral, in charge of piloting your own Star Destroyer, while fearing for your very life. Well, now you’re one step closer, thanks in part to TomTom’s custom Star Wars brand voice samples for their GPS devices. For around $13 you can have Darth Vader mock your failure to turn at the last light. Over the course of the next three months, additional Star Wars voice packs will go on sale for C-3PO, Yoda, and Han Solo respectively. Pretty awesome, right? Check out the official site for more information. Read more… These Samurai Warriors Protect Your Bits and Bytes
Posted by Michael Pinto on Apr 27, 2010 in Hobbies and Collections, Tech
Sengoku Bushô translates to The Lords of War — and this memory stick collection features ten different samurai who honor their master by carrying up to two gigs of memories. By the way it’s important to note that these aren’t just cartoon samurai, in fact they’re based on historical figures. Included in the set are the likes of Hanzou Hattori, Hideyoshi Toyotomi, Kenshin Uesugi, Masamune Date, Nobunaga Oda, Shingen Takeda and Yukimura Sanada. Although a hazard of being a digital samurai is that often you’ll be decapitated, only to have to be put back together again: Read more… |
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A while ago former Apple CEO John Sculley 
