Episode 863

A Gadget Double/Triple
Dick remarks that on the day this show was recorded, 9 June 2009, the featured TTTT gadget in the podcast (Episode 847) was the Logitech VX Nano, which had been covered previously not only by Dick, but also by Leo himself, in Episodes 523 and 522.

Train on a Hat
Dick has become quite a ladies' man, as he is getting more and more fan mail from lady listeners, including Jennifer, who shares Dick's love of model trains. However, she wants to correct a slip made by Dick in Episode 841, who mixed up the N- and Z-gauges. The Z-scale is the size of model trains which can fit on to the brim of a hat. For a photo of an example of that, taken at an Easter Parade in NYC, click here.

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Episode 862

Palm Pre Unboxing
After the Palm Pre review unit arrived, Leo did an unboxing session on TWiTlive, during which Leo tried out the Palm Pre and gave his first impressions. The video is available at odtv, which is quite a long session. I've taken extracts from the video, edited into 2 parts, which you can watch here.

Leo's First Impressions of the Palm Pre Part 1



Leo's First Impressions of the Palm Pre Part 2


Getting Around in China
Leo is leaving for his China tour in a couple of days, and has some travel tips for foreign tourists. The Chinese apparently don't speak Chinese at all. Just say everything in English and put an "a" at the end. If they appear not to understand it, just turn up the volume. "I WANT-A SOME FOOD-A. NO NOODLE-A. GIVE ME A BIG-A MAC-A," Leo demonstrates.

Solar Eclipse
Dave Kodama, a Caltech alumnus, is a DGW fan. He and his wife have been subscribing to MAD since 1980 and he even had a shot of himself reading MAD with a friend, in a 1969 issue. Dave notes that Leo is coming back home from China a few days too early, and will miss the longest solar eclipse in this century. Dave himself will be near Shanghai for the event. He and his wife have been early testers of electric cars, since 1996, including the GM EV1; and they will be trying out the Mini-E in (Episode 811) soon. You can see Dave's astrophotography and his EV1 experience on his personal website.

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Episode 861

Coinstar
Dick is outraged by the practice adopted by some banks in New York City of charging 9% for counting coins, and suggests going to supermarkets which will count up coins for free and give you a store credit. There are also the Coinstar Machines, which count up your coins for free, and you have a choice of donating the money to charity or buying cash cards or e-certificates (for companies like Amazon, iTunes, Starbucks and Lowes). Check out other uses of Coinstar.



A Severe Reprimand from a Listener
In Episode 845, while Dick talked about the cutlery sharpening truck, Leo chipped in to say how stainless steel knives could not be sharpened and chefs generally avoided them. Bruce Moore, a hobbyist knife-maker, appreciates Dick's desire to help Leo along in his career but suggests that Dick hold the reins more tightly on Leo. Bruce says that both of Leo's statements could not be further from the truth, and adds that the higher the carbon content, the harder the steel. He recommends Lansky Sharpeners to Leo, for whom Bruce, reprimand apart, has the utmost respect. Leo is truly humbled.

Bruce was not the only one to point out Leo's mistake. Another listener left a comment on Dick's post for Episode 845.

Euro TV
In addition to the Dutch Klompen Leo mentioned in Episode 841, Leo was given by the visiting Dutch fan a pair of Dutch foam slippers too, which Leo shows off on TWiTLive. The European theme continues when Leo has to fix a problem with the Stickam feed - in an obscure European accent.

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Episode 860

The Missing "Missing Button"

The Missing Button is missing from the web, but you can see a photo of it in Dick's post today.  On eBay, you can find a company called Softlife Products Company selling the "Panic Button", which is a similar idea.

The "Panic Button" Tie Tack
Ronco's Buttoneer
Another button kit, says Mark Sukoenig in the chatroom, was Ronco's Buttoneer, another old solution. See stuffwelove.co.uk.

Ronco's Buttoneer
Winning Lottery Numbers
In Episode 844 (again), in the Letters section, Dick told listeners never to delete a Daily Giz Wiz show, as they may miss a lot - money and even lottery numbers: 21, 6, 3, 4, 1. Chad Forsmaier can confirm this to be true. These were the winning numbers for an Indiana lottery on June 23, 2007. It was the Midday Lucky 5 lottery. Try LottoStrategies.com's Match Finder.

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Episode 859

First Alert
The company which makes today's gadget Aqua Alert is called First Alert, which also made the Tundra fire extinguisher (Episode 321).

And On The 8th Day, Verizon Said ...
... "Let there be a dial tone." Dick's telephone hell (see Episode 853) finally ended. With the help of Lil from the TWiT Army (DrMom), Dick managed to get the contact number of the CEO of Verizon. While talking with a Verizon executive, Dick received an email from Ooma (see Episode 779) informing him that XO Communications would be releasing Dick's telephone number in 24 hours. It turned out that when trying out Ooma, Dick transferred his telephone number to Ooma which used XO as a provider. When Dick terminated his service with Ooma, his number became an unused number, and got lost along the way. Dick was not slammed after all, and it was just a bad mix-up. The sacrifice Dick has to make in the name of gadget review!

The Question to the Answer "Sis Boom Bah"
John Struse from Wayne, New Jersey solves the answer "Sis Boom Bah" from the Carnac the Magnificent segment in Episode 844. The question was, "Describe the sound made when a sheep explodes." Leo wasn't far off. You can watch the clip at johnnycarson.com.

johnnycarson.com - Sis Boom Bah

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