July 2007
Mr. BabyMan: Wow. New GTA IV trailer looks awesome. I can’t wait to be immersed in that world. (via Twitter / Mr. BabyMan)
Mr. BabyMan: Is this the beginning of the end of the WOW/Second Life economy?
http://tinyurl.com/yup35a (via Twitter / Mr. BabyMan)
Mr. BabyMan: Mmmm Leftover Chinese food! (via Twitter / Mr. BabyMan)
Can you answer these six basic scientific... →
We asked three writers, three scientists and two broadcasters to answer six basic scientific questions, and their answers appear to confirm that the old divide between arts and sciences is deeper than ever.
Destroy the Computer (PIC) →
Yup, that’s all the reason I need. I’m unplugging mine right now. /sarcasm
Guess which of these 5 girls has had 180 lovers →
Hint: It’s the one whose mother put her on the pill (and gave her condoms) at age 13.
June 2007
UK PM Gordon Brown: London bomb scare "feeble" and... →
PRIME Minister Gordon Brown has dismissed the latest London bomb scare as “feeble” and “unlikely to frighten the public”. Mr Brown is understood to be disappointed with MI5’s effort, describing it as “half-arsed and transparent”.
Mr. BabyMan: chillin’ at home with the fam. (via Twitter / Mr. BabyMan)
South Korea To Tax Virtual Worlds →
The Korean National Tax Service has announced they will be tacking on value added tax (VAT) to real-money transactions (RMT) in virtual worlds beginning 1 July. WOW & Second Lifers look out: Is this a preview of things to come in the US?
Mr. BabyMan: Watching “The Science of Sleep” (via Twitter / Mr. BabyMan)
Mr. BabyMan: It’s official. Outside of the support of my loyal friends (thank you all), I seem to be dead on Digg. It was a matter of time, I suppose. (via Twitter / Mr. BabyMan)
How To Build Your Own Interactive Multitouch... →
Between the Apple iPhone and Microsoft’s interactive table, multi-touch displays are all the rage. This instructable will show you how to turn your lcd projector into an interactive multi-touch display table using a few cheap components readily available from the hardware store.
Plenty of iPhones Still Available →
Customers lined up in droves, some for days, but plenty of the phones are still available for the taking
Google Maps Now Does Interactive Re-Routing →
This is an awesome feature enhancement! The only way to see how cool (and useful) this can be, is to try it out on Google Maps for yourself! Enter two points in the “get directions” field and grab on the route with your mouse to see it work!
230+ Keyboard Shortcuts for Top Web Services →
Prepare your fingers, and throw your mouse away: you’re not going to need it. For your weekend reading, we’ve prepared a list of the most useful keyboard shortcuts for our favorite web services. So, if you need a quick reference as to which key does what on what site, this is where you find it. Enjoy!
Mr. BabyMan: A Funny iPhone parody commercial: http://tinyurl.com/yo7uwc (via Twitter / Mr. BabyMan)
Best Dog Costume Ever: Croc-eats-Dog →
As the promotion team walked the dog, the passers-by came up to the team all by themselves wondering what was going on. It resulted in an increase in Zoo attendance of about 15% compared to an average month.
Mr. BabyMan: iPhone Day! Jobs talks about iPhone’s laggy network, Woz waits in line with the plebes! + Handwriting as password http://urltea.com/kt3 (via Twitter / Mr. BabyMan)
"No Thanks, Steve"-- Woz Waits in line Like... →
Woz politely declines Steve Jobs’ offer for an iPhone and is instead waiting amongst the masses.
WSJ Interview With Steve Jobs On AT&T's Slow... →
In an interview on the eve of the iPhone launch, Apple Inc. CEO Steve Jobs and AT&T Inc. CEO and Chairman Randall Stephenson addressed concerns that the device will have slow Internet access on AT&T’s cellular network.
Mr. BabyMan: My #1 Digg of the day: Changing one species into another http://tinyurl.com/23vx5y (via Twitter / Mr. BabyMan)
Recognizing Your Own Handwriting As A Password →
A new online authentication system called Dynahand could make logging in to websites a little easier. With Dynahand, users simply identify their own handwriting, instead of entering a cryptic password or buying a biometric device to scan their fingerprints.
Mr. BabyMan: Late Night Diggs: Scientists leap towards synthetic life, Hacks on the iPhone, and Patton Oswalt on Geeks Vs. Nerds http://urltea.com/kt3 (via Twitter / Mr. BabyMan)
Scientists Transplant Genome of Bacteria →
Scientists at the institute directed by J. Craig Venter, a pioneer in sequencing the human genome, are reporting that they have successfully transplanted the genome of one species of bacteria into another, an achievement they see as a major step toward creating synthetic forms of life.
Why Apple Chose EDGE over HSDPA for the iPhone →
Mr. Jobs said the decision to hold off on using AT&T’s faster HSDPA network was a trade-off. “Edge is good, but you’d like it to be faster,” he said, “We felt it wasn’t the right trade-off now, I’m sure that will all change in the future.”
What Hacks Would You Like To See On The iPhone? →
Our interest in the device is primarily to see what people can do with it by using it in ways Apple never intended. Cupertino is famous (or notorious depending on your perspective) for leaving a back door if not open, at least unlocked. Tell us what you think will end up being hacked on the iPhone by submitting your ideas.
Maya Makes 'Drinky Crow' Show's Boozy, 2-D World... →
“Maakie-Mation is a new kind of animation that I invented to convey Tony’s vision,” said director and co-writer Eric Kaplan, who is also a writer for Futurama and honcho of CG animation production studio Mirari Films. “It uses the flexibility and power of CGI, but renders everything in 2-D so it looks like Tony’s strip. No one has done it before.”
Patton Oswalt on Geeks vs. Nerds →
This summer, Oswalt plays to both the mainstream audience and his geek niche with the release of Brad Bird’s latest Pixar opus, Ratatouille (as the lead rodent, Remy), and his own comedy album, Werewolves and Lollipops. Oswalt spoke to Wired about why geeks are happier than nerds and how he plans to phantom-menace George Lucas — with a shovel.
Mr. BabyMan: Two Diggs today, both cool & informative:.Graffiti with light, The cost of cocaine around the world. My submitted: http://urltea.com/kt3 (via Twitter / Mr. BabyMan)
3-D Graffiti with Light! →
Using LED glowsticks, flashlights, even fireworks, combined with time-lapse photography, Light graffiti artists create a unique tagging that wraps around objects dimensionally, allowing them to tag in a way they’d never be able to with spraypaint. Very cool!
How Much a Gram of Cocaine Costs Globally →
THE street price of cocaine varies hugely across the world. No surprise that it is cheapest in Colombia, the world’s biggest producer of coca: at $2, a gram costs less than a Big Mac. In far-flung New Zealand, a gram costs a wallet-busting $714.30.
Mr. BabyMan: laying low for a while… (via Twitter / Mr. BabyMan)
Private Facebook Pages Are Not So Private →
Like many social networks, the increasingly popular Facebook allows its users to mark their profile page as private, semiprivate or open. However, even if you mark your profile to be visible only by friends, that doesn’t change how you turn up in Facebook searches or whether your profile is open to indexing by search engines.
Strong Laws, Smart Tech Can Stop Abusive 'Data... →
How accurate would you be in filling out your census forms if you knew the FBI would be mining the data, looking for terrorists? How would it affect your supermarket purchases if you knew people were examining them and making judgments about your lifestyle?
If an iPod costs $299, who gets that money? →
Who makes the Apple iPod? Here’s a hint: It is not Apple. The company outsources the entire manufacture of the device to a number of Asian enterprises, among them Asustek, Inventec Appliances and Foxconn. But they only do final assembly. What about the 451 parts that go into the iPod? Where are they made and by whom?
YouTube wins "supermodel sex on the beach" case →
YouTube gains two in the win column as they prevail in court against Brazilian model Daniella Cicarelli over her public sex performance, and word comes that Thailand will lift the country’s ban on the site.
The Imperial Vice Presidency →
New details about his secret mission to expand the power of the president show that Cheney, at the end of his career, refuses to loosen his grip.
Cool Online Drum Machine! →
Enter random numbers or click on the squares to alter the patterns. Change the BPM with the slider. Oddly hypnotic and soothing.
Steve Jobs to make a rare company-wide speech... →
No one really knows where Steve’s going to appear on iDay, but we’ve confirmed with multiple sources at Apple that tomorrow morning at 11:00AM he’ll be giving an all-hands “Town Hall” iPhone mini-Stevenote for employees only — so obviously we’re not invited.
Mr. BabyMan: Nope. I guess not (via Twitter / Mr. BabyMan)
Mr. BabyMan: …wondering if Digg is down to update some sort of integration with Pownce. (via Twitter / Mr. BabyMan)
Lottery Thief Sets Himself on Fire (+ VIDEO) →
Firefighters said it can’t get more ironic than this — an arsonist breaks into a convenience store, steals scratch-off lottery tickets, tries to cover his tracks by setting a fire, and in the process, sets himself on fire.
Mr. BabyMan: Hello Twitters! Busy remainder of the week ahead… (via Twitter / Mr. BabyMan)
Mr. BabyMan: http://urltea.com/kt3 :Blockbuster & Netflix settle, Using movie plots to combat terrorism, AT&T’s iPhone FAQ, & a very smart parking meter (via Twitter / Mr. BabyMan)
Mr. BabyMan: @mklopez like the police ‘police’ or corporate IT? (via Twitter / Mr. BabyMan)
Blockbuster and Netflix settle patent battle →
Blockbuster and Netflix have officially settled their patent disputes against each other, and Blockbuster notes that it won’t affect future financial performance. One would hope so, since Blockbuster isn’t doing so well.
MPAA sues "guerilla video" nets, aka "indexing... →
The Motion Picture Association of America filed lawsuits in LA federal court Tuesday against “guerilla video” indexer sites YouTVpc.com and Peekvid.com. Both “internet video on demand” sites are advertising and/or PayPal supported, and consist of links to video streams, files, and torrents.
Using movie plots to combat terrorism →
“Invent a terrorist plot to hijack or blow up an airplane with a commonly carried item as a key component. The component should be so critical to the plot that the TSA will have no choice but to ban the item once the plot is uncovered. I want to see a plot horrific and ridiculous, but just plausible enough to take seriously.”
Meet Drobo: A Data-Saving Robot →
Drobo is a storage box for up to four hard drives; you connect the device via USB 2.0. A main plus is how Drobo enables users to insert as many additional drives as they wish to safely upgrade capacity. Drobo is a storage device that needs almost no user intervention. It is also technologically groundbreaking.
Dragon's Lair...on the DS?! →
Not sure how the controls are gonna work on this one, but you can choose to play the game on one screen, or stretched across both.