In the following video, ‘E-Mom’ Gloria Bianco shows Today Now’s hosts Jim and Tracy how geographical distance is no longer a roadblock to shamelessly interfering with the lives of your children, thanks to online services such as Twitter and Facebook.
Superhero Wannabe Designs Hand-Mounted Flamethrowers
However cool these may look, do not try to build a hand-mountable flamethrower at home. Despite what the Black Sabbath lyrics say, you are not Iron Man.
At the very least, this guy seems to know what he’s doing because he’s been working on other flamethrowing setups for a while now, including his his “Prometheus” flamethrower, which he plans to unveil this Holloween.
[Via Geekologie]
Coming soon: Grand Theft iPhone
Yesterday we brought you news of how the iPhone can be used to fight crime (albeit crime that was provoked by the phone itself.) Today crime comes to the iPhone.
Rockstar has announced it will be bringing its DS game Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars to the device via the iPhone app store.
The company says the content of the game will be identical, though some textures in the graphics will “look low-res” in comparison to the console versions. It also said the control system will be slightly different (and closer to full-size consoles) in that there will be an on-screen representation of a control stick which will be controlled by the player’s thumb.
Rockstar staff haven’t spoken out yet about the technical work involved in translating the game from the DS (and the PSP) to the iPhone. If the process isn’t too onerous, and if the game gets good sales and reviews, there could be a serious market for similar conversions.
The pricing of the game will also be interesting. The DS edition had a list price of $34.99, which would seem far too high for even a desirable iPhone app. In theory an app version should be much cheaper because there’s no need for packaging or physical media, but as legal music download sites have shown, that doesn’t always lead to as much of a discount as you might expect.
Patrick Klepek at G4TV makes a good point on the subject: unlike with console games, the iPhone distribution set-up means a developer can instantly change the price. That could mean it’s worth Rockstar trying a high price and then lowering it if sales start poorly.
As always with iPhone apps, there’s the question of the approval process. As overblown as many criticisms of GTA’s content are, it’s clearly an adult game and, while that should now be workable thanks to adult content filters on the device, you can never be sure what will raise red flags with the vetters.
CNET reports that Rockstar “had no trouble with Apple’s App Store policies and that the game will be made available as is.” However, it’s not clear if that means Apple has approved it, or if Rockstar simply believes the game should meet the rules.
A Hidden Gem in HTML
I don’t know how one goes about finding these things, but someone noticed a weird source code for this page. It’s a very basic, unspectacular catalog page for Fujinon Binoculars. But take a look at the source code.
This screenshot is but a tiny part of the madness. Keep scrolling down the code for the full effect. I’ll wait. Apparently, the designer cares very deeply about the 8 point font. It was funny enough to get posted to b3ta and even made the weekly newsletter. Lots of folks laughed at it because it seemed so pointless. But that’s just the beginning of the story.
Process Hacker – A Powerful Windows Task Manager Alternative
For those of you who find the Windows task manager a little too light on features, we’ve got an awesome little application for you. Process Hacker does the same basic functions as task manager, but with lots of invaluable extras.
Task manager only lists running processes, but Process Hacker allows you to investigate where these processes are coming from (even if they are hidden) and displays helpful graphs and statistics about them. Its kernel-mode driver gives the application the power to terminate, suspend and resume all processes and threads, including those that are usually untouchable by Window’s task manager. And while yes, it may look a bit like Sysinternal’s Process Explorer, we think Process Hacker is a little easier to use. Best of all, it’s an open-source free utility.
Should using a computer require a geek license?
By Sterling “Chip” Camden
Contributing Writer, [GAS]
A criminologist in Australia thinks maybe so. According to Russel Smith of the Australian Institute of Criminology, the simultaneous rise of cyber-crime and suckers born per minute has led to a crisis that requires government intervention. Quoting Mr. Smith:
There’s been some discussion in Europe about the use of what’s called a computer drivers licence – where you have a standard set of skills people should learn before they start using computers.
At the moment we have drivers licences for cars, and cars are very dangerous machines. Computers are also quite dangerous in the way that they can make people vulnerable to fraud.
In the future we might want to think about whether it’s necessary there be some sort of compulsory education of people before they start using computers.
People who fall for the various online frauds often do not bear the cost of their mistakes. When a credit card is involved, banks usually eat the cost if they can’t prove that the customer colluded with the perpetrator. Those costs get passed on to consumers.
But I for one do not see licensing as a good solution to the problem. I don’t know how it works in Australia, but here in the US whenever the government lends a “helping hand” it usually means putting their hands into our pockets and helping themselves. What, are police going to be peeking into bedroom windows to see if anyone is computing illegally?
Would licensing really help? Judging from how well licensed drivers do on the road, I’m skeptical.
How about if banks change their policy so you have to pay the cost of the fraud if you could have prevented it by having the brains that evolution gave to a chipmunk? Negligent stupidity. That might make computer users get a little more savvy before they enter that credit card number on amazon.com.thievesrus.ru.
Muggers foiled by iPhone technology
If you’re looking to rob somebody, an iPhone presumably makes a great target: a breeze to carry away relatively inconspicuously and with a pretty decent resale value for your ‘work’. Unfortunately for three alleged muggers, the device’s much desirable gadgetry has a sting in the tail.
iPhone owner Can Duruk was carrying his phone this weekend in Pittsburgh’s Shadyside district. The area apparently living up to its name, he was robbed by two men who appeared to have a gun. As well as taking his credit card and forcing him to hand over his PIN code, they also made off with his phone.
Unfortunately for the bandits, Duruk was a subscriber to Apple’s MobileMe service. Among its benefits is a “Find my iPhone” feature, intended for people who’ve misplaced the handset. He simply logged into his account on his home computer and, using the phone’s GPS capability, the service gave its approximate location.
Normally the service can only identify the location to the nearest block or so, rather than the specific address. However, in this case Duruk was in luck: the block in question was dominated by a Wal-Mart store (where the muggers were busy spending on his card). He then tracked the robbers as they moved on to a restaurant.
That was enough detail to help police track down the men, who’ve now been charged, alongside an alleged accomplice, with a variety of offences related to the mugging and the use of the stolen credit card.
Buckyballs – The Ultimate Geek Toy
Even as an adult, I still enjoy playing with puzzle games, and buckyballs are no exception to that:
Named after R. Buckminster Fuller, inventor of the geodesic dome. “BuckyBall” is the nickname for a Carbon 60 molecule. Each set contains 216 neodymium magnets that can be shaped, molded, torn apart and snapped together in unlimited ways. Make sculptures, puzzles, patterns, shapes, stick stuff to the fridge. Imagine a Rubik’s Cube that actually makes you smarter; an Erector Set that never stops erecting; a Hula Hoop you don’t look ridiculous playing with; Silly Putty that isn’t silly; cram it all in a jar, turn the fun up to 11, and you’ve got BuckyBalls!
Warning: Oh, and just in case, this is a toy for adults only. Amazon says that Buckyballs should not be given to kids under 14 years of age.
Edit: Just stumbled on a much cheaper product that does exactly the same thing: [Neocube – $16.95 on Amazon.com]
[BuckyBalls – $33.47 on Amazon.com]
iPhone “Stalker” Ad Spoof
With over 50,000 apps in the Apple app store, there’s probably something to help you do whatever you want to do in there, including stalking your your ex boy/girlfriend.
[Via Divine Caroline | Adam Thinks]
Surrogates Movie Trailer
Based on the 2005–2006 graphic novel series of the same name, Surrogates is set in a futuristic world where people live in isolation and interact vicariously through surrogate robots. The movie is set to be released on September 25, 2009.
[Via TechEblog]