Here’s a device with an LED light that makes real sense!

Monday, March 1^st, 2010, Netcast 1036  

From the school of “What can we stick an LED light into next?” Comes Tweeza-Lite! Getting a splinter out is often difficult because they’re very hard to see. You always have to do it under a bright light (unless you have 20/20 vision). But this tweezer has it own built-in bright LED light. And the light is focused exactly where you need it. Other features include stainless steel angled blade tips. This is perfect for hair and splinter removal, or for craft or electronic projects where you have to deal with tiny parts. The one I have is from Hot Concepts and it sells for under $10. (Actually mine was on a Deal-of-the-day sale, so I got two for under $10.) 

http://www.amazon.com/Tweeza-lite-Illuminated-Light-up-Stainless-Built/dp/B002ODFWH2    $9.79 

This version looks like mine, but is marker as “sharper image” It’s more expensive ($13.00), and it has a very strange product description. Unless they’ve changed it, check it out:  

http://www.amazon.com/Sharper-Image-KT3933NI-Solutions-Light-Up/dp/B000ZKT6Q4 

If you’re not at your computer, here’s you'll find at the link above: Product Description: Enjoy your favorite sport like never before. A push-button jet of water controls the game action, propelling the balls to their targets. Complete with great player moves . And engineered in high-quality plastic beautifully crafted with intricate, sculpted detail and rich, hand-painted colors. Just fill with tap water, seal with the leak-proof plug and start playing. Perfect for home or office. (Huh??)

Hear this Netcast: www.twit.tv/dgw1036

A 30-year-old computer is taught how to send Tweets!

Friday, February 26^th, 2010, Netcast 1035

When I heard someone had written a brand new 2010 program that would let a person send TWEETS from a 1981 Commodore VIC-20, I figured we should make that computer the choice for this week’s Gadget Warehouse Friday. First a bit about the VIC-20. It went on sale early in 1981 for just: $299 (US). Here are some specs on the computer thanks to PC Museum: CPU: MOS 6502, 1MHz RAM: 5K (3.5K for the user) Display: 22 X 23/ text 176 X 184 / 16 colors max. It had a composite video port, which meant you didn’t need a monitor. You could just use your color TV set. For gamers there was a joystick and cartridge port. Now if you still happen to have a working VIC-20, you can use it to send Tweets. Here’s the scoop from the creator of the program: Syd Bolton. He’s curator at The Personal Computer Museum. Syd said: “Many have asked ‘Why are you doing this? There’s not much demand for new VIC-20 software.’ It was the challenge of creating a bridge between the past and present. It’s amazing how far technology has progressed in the past 30 years. The software runs from a cassette tape on an unexpanded VIC-20 with only 5 KB of RAM and a processor that runs at 1 MHz. To put this in perspective, an average PC today runs at 3000 MHz and contains 2,097,152 KB. That means the average computer today has 419,430 times the memory power and 3000 times the speed of a personal computer from the 80’s The museum created a software platform for many vintage computers to be able to "tweet" (called "TweetVER" which is short for Tweeting from a Vintage ComputER). For those who would like a copy of the software program, visit the museum’s website http://www.pcmuseum.ca for information. If you’re tweeting from a vintage computer, add me, let me know, and I’ll follow you back: www.twitter.com/thegizwiz

Hear this Netcast: www.twit.tv/dgw1035

Slide over Rubik’s Cube, there’s a new puzzle coming to town!

Thursday, February 25^th, 2010, Netcast 1034

The new game is the Rubik's Slide, with over 10,000 brain-busting puzzles for all ages. And it has lights! Moving red and blue lights! The object of each puzzle is to rearrange the pattern of lights by shifting and twisting until they match the solution for that puzzle. There are two ways to play and multiple challenging levels that train your brain, it's the game that's easy to learn and impossible to put down! I thought that “impossible to put down” stuff was a bit corny, but I found myself picking up the game time and time again. They had some product samples for the press to take home and I was more than happy to have one of my own. You can choose to see how many puzzles you can beat in Free Play or race against the clock in Lightning Round! I picked Free Play because I’m not that fast at solving the puzzles yet, so the clock was making me nervous! An internal memory saves your game and high scores so you can pick up and play anytime. Rubik’s Slide features voice, lights, and sound effects with adjustable volume control! The LED’s also tell you which level of difficulty you’re in. There’s  a high score memory which is read out loud to you. You can lower the volume if you’re doing badly, or boost the volume if you’re really doing great and you want others to hear! It runs on AA batteries, which are included. The company says it’s appropriate for players ages 8 and up. I think the most amazing thing about Rubik’s Slide is its price. Lights, voice, sound effects and it will retail for $17.99! That’s quite a reasonable price. The only slight downside is that it won’t be available until the fall. The manufacturer Technosource, has a website to help keep up with the latest news about their new slide! 

www.rubiksslide.com  

Hear this Netcast: www.twit.tv/dgw1034

Puppy treats move over - here comes Puppy Tweets!

Wednesday, February 24^th, 2010, Netcast 1033

Most likely you send Tweets, but now your dog can send Tweets too. How? Mattel's Puppy Tweets is a new gadget that allows your pet to send you a cutesy tweet via Twitter every time they move, bark or sleep. No, they don’t have to know to type. The device is pre-loaded with over 500 phrases that are designed to put an amusing spin on a mundane activity. Your pet barks - you get a message saying - “I bark because I miss you. There I said it. Now hurry home.” Your pet wears a tag that sends a signal to your computer via a special USB receiver (included), every time your pet moves. This in turn sends you a text via Twitter. You simply set up a Twitter page for your pet and once the tag is fitted, it starts generating tweets. The pre-loaded tweet phrases are designed to inform or amuse you about what your pet is up to while you are out. A movement might generate a tweet like: “It’s hard to tweet when you’re all paws” or 'I finally caught that tail I've been chasing, and . . . OOUUUCHH!' The amount of movement helps the device pick the Tweet it sends. So you don’t get Tweets constantly from a very active dog, the device can be set at timed intervals. Your pet can “follow” fellow animal Tweeters. Pet owners can also see how popular their pet’s tweets are by the number of followers they collect. Extra tweets will be available for downloading at a later date. The device is 7.5 x 1.5 x 7.5 inches and weighs 6.4 ounces. It is available in pink or blue and sells for US$29.99. It’s not available just yet, but it can be pre-ordered from Amazon.

http://www.amazon.com/Mattel-T7005-Puppy-Tweets-Blue/dp/B0037W6TX0/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=toys-and-games&qid=1266643958&sr=8-1

Hear this Netcast: www.twit.tv/dgw1033

Up-Chuck Tuesday!

TTTT, Tuesday, February 23^rd, 2010, Netcast 1032

For this week’s Turn The Table Tuesday Leo had planned on talking about the Microsoft Arc Mouse he discovered in his MAC World Swag Bag. But he thought I might have already talked about the Arc Mouse, and he was right. (Fortunately Leo resisted doing the Logitech Nano mouse for the third time!) But Leo always has a back-up plan! It seems just a short time ago he had a visitor to TWiT cottage who presented him with a couple of handmade gifts. So Leo shifted gears from a factory made mouse to two ceramics handmade by Edna Meisner of Edna’s Ceramic Treasures. The first one is called the Up-Chuck Egg Separator. This is an easy way to separate an egg. After you crack the egg and drop the contents in to the Up-Chuck face, you pour the egg white out through the mouth leaving the yolk inside. Edna makes each one to look just a little different, but they all work the same. They are all 2-3 inches tall and are food and dishwasher safe. Each one comes with a small instruction card. They are $9.95 each and the buyer pays actual shipping. Leo also showed the Lobster shaped brown sugar softener. They are made of fired clay and Edna can be made them in any shape. Leo has the lobster, but Edna has also made a mouse, pumpkin, apple, fish and boat. Edna says, “If I can draw it, I can make it.” The lobster is 3 1/2 -4 inches long. All shapes come packaged with an instruction card. If I recall correctly, you soak the lobster and then put him inside a package of brown sugar and close it tight. It will then keep the brown sugar soft for months at a time. They are $5.00 each and the buyer pays actual shipping. Edna hadn’t quite expected Leo to show these two gifts on the show, so she doesn’t have a website ready to go. No! I'll change that! Over the weekend she had a friend help her and she's online!

http://ednasceramictreasures.webs.com  

Hear this Netcast: www.twit.tv/dgw1032

NEW! Video version of this eqisode: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y0LRU0anEEI