By Mark O’Neill
Contributing Writer, [GAS]
“The Adventures Of Andre and Wally B” was technically the first Pixar animated film, and I say ‘technically’ because this 1,48 minute clip was made in 1984, a time when Pixar didn’t officially exist. So to be accurate, it was made by the talented future Pixar crew who were still learning the ways of the Force at Lucas Studios.
That’s whats so amazing about this clip. It’s hard to believe that this was made 24 years ago.
[Via The Experience Project]
By JR Raphael
Contributing Writer, [GAS]
We may not be GQ, but we’ve tracked down some new fashion items that we think will be a bit more exciting than the latest trendy threads. See if you agree.
Scientists are close to creating a kind of clothing that’ll keep you smelling a little fresher. The fabric actually has perfume-filled microcapsules to mask any offensive odors with a pleasant lemony scent. They’re working on suits, socks, and even underwear with the technology. It’s the same concept at work in scratch-and-sniff stickers, believe it or not, but this is the first time a skin-safe solution has been found. So scratch away, dear readers — though we advise using caution with any direct sniffing.
You may already own the orange vest, but now you can get the official Marty McFly Back to the Future shoes, too. Inspired by the futuristic high-tops from the second installment of the series, Nike is releasing a new “Hyperdunk” line of sneakers this summer. The shoes have a similar look and even come with the year “2015” on the front. No auto-lace-up feature yet, though.
Worried someone might snap an incriminating photo of you? Make yourself a pair of “Anti-Paparazzi Sunglasses” and fear no more. The glasses come with a switch to turn on bright LED lights on the front, making your face virtually invisible to cameras.
If the glasses aren’t good enough, you can use the Hard-Wear Jacket to keep an eye on all sides of you. The jacket comes with a built-in microcamera in the back and a tiny display screen on the sleeve so you can watch who might be following you. Of course, with the popped-up collar and bright orange checker design, we imagine you’ll find mainly people pointing and laughing behind you — but hey, at least you’ll know they’re there.
If you’re an IT person, especially a system administrator, you’ll probably be rolling on the floor laughing before the end of this, and if not, you might want to skip this one. I’ll leave it up to you. The video is a bit boring for a minute or two, but when the fun starts, you’ll have trouble keeping yourself from peeing in your pants. Enjoy!
Ok, maybe this home has nothing to do with geekiness or recent technology, but there’s just something about it that could keep me staring at my screen for hours on end. The “11 Women” house has been designed as a vacation “chalet” to accommodate a family of 13, including 11 daughters, and even has additional space for guests.
The structure is composed of three floors and has been built out of concrete, glass and steel. It also boasts one of the most serene and breathtaking views over the Pacific ocean I’ve ever seen. The house is located 87 miles north of Santiago, Chile. Hit the “more” link for additional pictures.
By Mark O’Neill
Contributing Writer, [GAS]
Now that Firefox supports bookmarks with tagging, you can now import copies of your Delicious links back into your browser with the help of this importing tool. It’s very easy – in fact, once you’ve made backup copies of your Delicious and Firefox bookmarks, putting it all together is just a matter of a few mouseclicks.
The importing tool even brings over all your Delicious tags fully intact so you don’t have to re-tag everything which is good. I have almost 12,500 items in my Delicious account (after moving over all my Stumbleupon links), so the thought of having to re-tag everything would have been too much to even contemplate.
Featuring a built-in MP3 / Video player / photo album, the sleek and sexy Infinity concept watch from Swatch will make you the envy of your fellow geek friends. Unfortunately, the Infinity is just a concept and is not available for purchase right now, but if it would, I’m sure it would cost a pretty penny or two. In the meantime, get yourself a TokyoFlash watch. They’re at least equally geeky-looking and probably cheaper too!
By Mark O’Neill
Contributing Writer, [GAS]
I’m sure you’ve all been in this particular nightmarish situation. You get up in the morning, and as soon as your brain wakes up, a tune begins in your head. What is the name of that tune? Where does it come from? Why the HELL does it not go away and leave you alone?
The not knowing the name of the song is the worst part of it. I’ve had a tune in my head for several weeks going round and round in my brain in an endless loop driving me totally insane, but it wouldn’t be so bad if I knew the name of it and of the person who sang it (so I’d know where to send the hate mail)
Enter Midomi. One of the free services they offer is for you to put on your headphones and hum that irritating tune into your microphone. If you give them around 10 seconds of humming, they will search their database and see if they can identify the song for you.
But what is really cool is that you don’t have to just hum it. You can bark it, burp it, fart it, moo it, cough it, whatever. You can do it in a variety of noises and Midomi still manages to recognize the tune. Yesterday, to really test it, I put my dignity and self respect to one side and oinked “How Much Is that Doggy In The Window?” (yeah I know, I was off my medication!). Midomi recognized it right away (and probably also tagged me as a “nutcase” and alerted the authorities). But hey, it’s scientific research, so you have to make sacrifices sometimes. Is that men in white coats I see walking towards my front door? Oh hell…
Some people might dismiss this particular web service as a stupid time-waster, but I found it rather amusing. After all, you’ve got to chill out sometimes and relax don’t you?
Just go to the Midomi website, and in the top left hand corner, click on “Click for singing search”. When it indicates it is recording, start humming or whatever particular bodily noise you wish to make. When you have stopped, it will eventually upload your audio and start searching.
It may not find your tune though. It is dependent on users creating accounts, singing songs and uploading them to the database. So if you are an American Idol wannabe, you might want to consider shredding whatever pride you have and doing that.
Oh and the tune that was in my head? It turned out to be “Greensleeves” by Olivia Newton-John! Aaaaghh! Funnily enough, as soon as I found that out, the song disappeared from my head!
So there’s another reason to use Midomi! For the first time in weeks, I have peace in my head.
Yes folks, it’s official. After waiting years for the long expected title to be announced, Diablo fans now have a good reason to start frothing at the mouth. Enjoy!
By Mark O’Neill
Contributing Writer, [GAS]
Maybe I have seen too much of Star Trek and other sci-fi series on television but there is something about being able to lock and unlock something with your face or your voice. It kind of makes your text password pale in comparison when all you have to do is sit down in front of your monitor and your face is all that’s needed to unlock your screen.
That’s precisely what Lemonscreen does. It’s a small program for Windows XP only that scans your face with your webcam, saves the scan in its memory and then uses that face scan to lock and unlock your PC. When you go to set it up, you have to sit in front of your webcam, press the button and let it scan you, making sure that your face is inside the little red square.
By PatB
Contributing Writer, [GAS]
When I worked at the Department of Homeland Security, I remembered hearing discussions about creating security by denying access to electronics or control systems. The idea was that in a crowd of people, like in a protest group or political rally, cell phones could be dampened in a region to prevent hostile persons, such as terrorists, from coordinating attacks by using mobiles. This principle could also be used to prevent signals from reaching improvised explosive devices.
With airliners, no-fly zones could be set up around specific ground targets, such as stadiums, and airliners that strayed into the zone would automatically be piloted out. Such technology didn’t exist, but I’m sure there were contractors trying to peddle their ideas to the Department.
As it turns out, there is a protocol in existence, patented by Microsoft, which can dampen devices that are equipped to listen for such signals. Microsoft calls it DMP, or “Digital Manners Policy.” The idea is that people walk into a theater and their cell phones are automatically set on vibrate. Or a college professor can prevent students from texting each other in class or during exams. Or a museum can prohibit cameras from taking pictures of their displays. OnStar already has the ability to kill your engine in the event of vehicle theft.
And while those ideas sound like great applications for the Digital Manners Policy, Bruce Schneier, writing in his column Security Matters on Wired.Com, paints a much darker picture of how this technology can be abused. He suggests that the police can dampen video cameras to prevent anyone ever again recording a Rodney King beating. Or perhaps your Media Center computer can no longer record certain television programs. Or your iPod can no longer share music with systems other than your own. What if your car is automatically stopped or prevented from entering a highway that is being used for a politician’s motorcade?
The limits to free speech and free press could be deeply impacted by this tool. Schneier rightly concludes,
“Digital Manners Policies” is a marketing term. Let’s call this what it really is: Selective Device Jamming. It’s not polite, it’s dangerous. It won’t make anyone more secure — or more polite.