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Welcome to The Red Ferret Journal - tantalisingly tasteful, tacky and taut tech trivia.
Tue May 13, 2008
Sky Factory - virtual ceilings and windows for a splash of exotic living
The Sky Factory creates virtual ceilings and windows to help you make believe that outside is nicer than it really is. The trick is in backlighting the panels with daylight balanced lighting units to fool the eye into believing the illusion. Each installation is custom made with a four to six week lead time, and please don’t be so crass as to ask the price.
The Sky Factory makes SkyCeilings and Luminous Virtual Windows that transform the interior design of any interior space in a manner similar to a wall mural, ceiling mural, sky mural, skylight or sky light, or ceiling art for a custom ceiling, or a ceiling of standard ceiling tiles or drop ceiling panels. The Sky Factory’s products are widely used in patient centered healthcare facilities where modes of art therapy are incorporated. Sky Ceilings display beautiful photographic images of skies, clouds, stars, trees, blossoms, and natural landscapes to create magical illusions of cloud ceilings, star ceilings, etc.
Puzzle Alarm Clock - mind work makes your body angry early
The Puzzle Alarm Clock is the latest in a long line of products designed to really get you angry as the day begins. Because that’s guaranteed to make your day go with a whistle and a smile, eh? Anyhoo, you’ll need to slot the right blocks into the right holes to make this alarm shut down. No snooze button here, mate. $38.35/£19.98.
This “eye opener” of a gadget is an alarm clock come 3-piece jigsaw puzzle in one. When it’s time to leave your incredibly cosy bed each morning, not only will your ears be treated to a fantastic ringing melody, a 3-piece jigsaw puzzle randomly shoots out. So what you ask? Well, in order to turn off a ringing alarm, you must solve the jigsaw puzzle, assembling it back on to the clock. Seems easy…not! It’s a great way to get up though, as by the time you’ve found all 3 pieces of the jigsaw puzzle and solved it, you’ll be bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, ready for the day ahead.
USB Memory Card Unlocker - forgotten your password? No problemo…
USB Memory Card Unlocker. So you’ve been all responsible and secured your memory card data with a password, but alas and alack you’ve forgotten what it is? Well there’s good and bad news. The bad news is your data is toast. The good news is that this gadget will let you unlock the memory card so you can use it again for some more data. Hopefully without another password incident! $15.99.
If your memory card for your mobile is password protected and … bit you have forgotton the password, what you can do? It is a little bit pity that you don’t lost the phone, you don’t lost the memory card but the you’ve forgot your memory card. What you can do? This SD/MMC cannot help you to get back the data (otherwise, your data will be quite danger), but it can help you to unlock your SD / MMC card so that you don’t need to buy another one.
Coolector - free movie software comes with a massive library and unfortunate interface
Coolector is a free movie encyclopaedia program that ships with a database of 41,000 movies and 86,000 people. Think of it as a downloadable mini imdb.com and you’ll be somewhere close. Except that the interface and search on this product is severely crippled. At first glance having all that movie data at your fingertips creates a sort of head rush of excitement.
But then you find that actually searching for something is a little more arcane than it should be. For some weird reason, things like your movie ratings and whether you own it already are more important search criteria than categories, date of production and stuff like that. Or it seems that way. In fact the best thing about the interface is the integration with PicLens which makes the image handling really nice for things like DVD covers.
Hey it’s unfair to pick on freeware OK, so I’ll stop now, but the shame is this could be a really nice product if they threw away the broken interface and went for something clearer, faster and more useful. As it is, I can’t give it more than a tepid verdict I’m afraid, even though it could be a great way of tracking movie wishlists and your library. Shame.
Coollector was designed to be at the same time powerful and easy to use. Even the non-geeky users will immediately harness the power of the program. Coollector is both an encyclopedia of movies and a database of existing videos. You track not only the videos you own, but also all the movies you’ve seen, good or bad. Contrary to other movie collection managers, you don’t start with some dull empty database. The whole encyclopedia is included with the program… you download… you have it all ! You can rate the movies and persons. You easily maintain a wish list. You keep track of the videos you own, as well as those you’ve loaned. There’s price information, and tools to help you find the best bargains.
Frevvo Live Forms - a super easy way to create sophisticated online forms
Frevvo Live Forms. The Frevvo folk sent me through a note about their new online form creation product and having taken a look I’m impressed. The hosted and downloadable software service goes way beyond Wufoo in terms of power and flexibility and the overall feel of the application is very slick and polished. The interface is clean and the functionality it very cool. You can create all sorts of different levels of forms, with image, video or text fields, radio check boxes, drop downs, even repeating elements for multiple items in a list. It’s all fully Ajaxified and can be styled with CSS to your heart’s content.
The video demonstration goes through the set up of a basic form and gives some of the features a run through, and it’s clear that a lot of thought has gone into the flexibility of the editor. You get full control over the style of your forms, down to the smallest level, which means that you should be able to create just about any type you need in your organisation. It’s one of the most impressive examples of this type of application I’ve seen for a while. Check it out if you’re in the market for an online form generator. There is the usual free version, and then a range of both hosted and download ‘in-house’ pricing, which is unusual but pretty cool.
frevvo Live Forms is an innovative Internet application for creating rich, Ajax forms with full business capabilities using just a web browser. Live Forms provides a complete Web-based design experience that can be quickly embedded into any application and is ideal for Enterprise 2.0 companies, BPM/SOA vendors, Web hosting providers and solution providers.
Mon May 12, 2008
Multifunction GPS Bluetooth Rearview System - more tech in your mirror than the moon lander
The Multifunction GPS Bluetooth Rearview Mirror System comes with more technology smarts than is feasibly feasible on a car mirror. The rechargeable battery powered 3.5 inch touchscreen LCD offers full 12 satellite GPS navigation with voice prompts, plays MP3/MP4, comes with an SD card slot, 5 games on-board, built in speakers and a stylus. Oh and it can take a reversing sensor too, to make sure you don’t hit anything while travelling backwards, watching Indiana Jones and looking for the next exit off the 101. Crazy stuff! €145.00.
Play video MP4, AVI, ASF, WMV format Play audio MP3, WMA, WAV format Support JPEG image format Support PDF document format Audio frequency: 20Hz-20KHz. 5dB Audio S/N ratio: =85dB 1300mAh lithium rechargeable battery Operation temperature: 0 to 40deg. C Storage temperature: -20 to 50deg. C Power consumption: =8W Operated by DC 9V-13V
VizionWare Hi-Wirez Powered HDMI Cable - super cable promises ultra quality resolution over long distances
The Vizionware Hi-Wirez HDMI Cable is a powered uber cable that incorporates a bunch of smart technology bits to optimise your video signal over long distances. Reduced noise, optimised signals and lossless data transfer are just some of the terms that make us shudder with excitement. The price of $369.00 for 5 meters is, however, very scary.
It has a proprietary silicone core technology enhancing fidelity between source and display. Each connector has a patent pending embedded data chip that ensures lossless video and audio data transfer (video from 480i to1080p and higher) limiting distortion and pixilation. An ultra-slim industrial design for applications that need to fit connectors very close together and a CE rating for in-wall installations and applications. Most importantly, the cable is powered (from either end), allowing for a much thinner and lightweight design that can run over much longer distances than other analog HDMI cables.
The Filminator - a machine to make your own photographic film
The Filminator is a DIY project from a photography buff which will produce rolls of photographic film from sheets of plastic and some chemicals. Just to be clear, this involves layering chemicals on plastic, getting them to bond, and a whole bunch of stuff that nobody except a rampant loony would even think about. Incredible project and judging by the finished project sample below, it’s a working machine. Wow! [Via Metafilter]
The film base is off-the shelf, but the emulsion is made in the dark-room/lab to the right of this shot. The builder has made and coated some basic emulsion, exposed it and developed it - and it looks good. The neat trick was placing a base layer of titanium dioxide on the film, so the developed film is the finished product - it’s black and white, just like a print.
Bruce’s Unusual Typing Wizard - freeware typing tutor welcomes your fingers
Bruce’s Unusual Typing Wizard. Freeware typing tutor comes in English or Dutch and offers a game as well as traditional tuition. It’s a pretty nice program and should be very useful if you’re looking to improve your typing skills or learn the art. Not sure I’ve worked out what’s unusual yet though.
There are several aspects a typing program can focus on, and I think I’ve made it my business to focus on all of them. If you have no previous experience in full hand typing, you will start off with the lessons, which should, hopefully, quickly bring you into the main section, where you can type freely. The purpose of the lessons is mainly to familiarize you with the layout of the keyboard, so that you do not have to look down while you type. This will enable you to gain much higher speeds later on.
ProCon - unbiased information on controversial topics
ProCon.org is a non-profit service which aims to present the facts on controversial subjects in a pro/con way. The idea is to strip away the mess of opinion, uninformed rhetoric and other biases which cloud the core issues of a subject and allow the reader to make up their own mind based on fact.
It’s a laudable project, especially in view of the decreasing veracity of the mainstream media and the unproven diligence of web commentators, so go, pro, go. Shame it’s so US centric though, it would be nice to move this out to a more global agenda along the lines of wikipedia. The Global Warming post should be interesting when it arrives in June.
Our purpose is educational. We do not express opinions on our research projects, but believe that most people care about their community, their state and their country, have common sense and good judgment and can better exercise their actions if the large volume of data and rhetoric on an issue is reduced to a fairly crafted presentation. Our goal is to research issues that we feel are complicated and important and work to present them in a balanced, comprehensive, straightforward, and primarily pro-con format.
Cute Kittens
Cute Kittens. Our friend’s cat recently had five little kittens and since I’ve got a camera and you peeps on the Interwebs apparently love cute likkle kittens, I thought I’d share. Enjoy!
Sun May 11, 2008
Ferret posts this week
Here’s a quick round-up of Ferrety posts from the past week for anyone who missed them. Enjoy.
- 104 driving techniques to help you conserve fuel - easy with that right foot, partner - 104 Driving Techniques to Help…
- LaptopLock - freeware security program protects your laptop if it is stolen - LaptopLock. Windows freeware (at…
- PicLens - 3D browser plugin delivers cool image viewing interface - PicLens is a web browser plugin…
- Turntable Ring - real vinyl and a moving needle shows some real retro cred - Turntable Ring. Let’s face…
- Tanita IronMan Body Composition Monitor - more details about your body than you probably want to know - The Tanita IronMan Body…
- Universal SIM Unlock Card - unlock your phone at home alone - Universal SIM Unlock…
- Twistori - the first step in an ongoing social experiment… - Twistori. We’re posting this…
- PC Decrapifier - freeware automatically removes all that annoying pre-loaded software from your new PC - The PC Decrapifier is a new…
- R2 Fish School Kit - teach your fish to slalom, limbo and play soccer - The R2 Fish School Kit is a…
- 7 inch Central Armrest DVD - more roam than home theater - This 7 inch Central Armrest DVD is…
- SuggestionBox - new online service takes customer feedback to a new level - SuggestionBox is a new online…
- Rota - freeware lets you rotate your photographs with no loss of image quality - Rota is a freeware program that…
Sat May 10, 2008
Roberts Stream 202 - world’s first portable DAB, FM and WiFi Internet radio
The Roberts Stream 202 is the world’s first portable DAB (digital), FM and WiFi Internet radio in one unit. It’s not the prettiest thing we’ve ever seen, but it’s certainly crammed full of tech-ness. As well as featuring just about every radio flavour available, it has twin alarms, features a ‘listen again’ function for you to savour previously broadcast BBC progs, can play MP3, WMA and Real content, stream music from your PC or an external music player and runs off 6 massive D sized battery cells. We’re talking radio haze here, baby. £149.99.
The STREAM 202 is the World’s first truly portable DAB, FM and internet radio. Connect to radio stations around the world as well as access a ‘listen again’ feature that allows you to listen to previously broadcast BBC programmes at your leisure. Browsing stations is really simple thanks to on-screen information that is automatically updated and conveniently sorted into country or genre. All you need to get started is a broadband internet connection with either a wireless router or wired Ethernet connection. You can navigate through the intuitive menu system to find what you want to listen to.
Fri May 9, 2008
Google Recycled Mini Wireless Mouse - not just blue and red, but green too…
Google Recycled Mini Wireless Mouse. You’ve got to hand it to the big G., they certainly seem to walk the walk as well as talk it. These cute little wireless mini meeces have a WiFi dongle safely stored on-board, feature an 800dpi resolution and are made of recycled plastic, so you can think green while using the blue. Or red. Hey, even the packaging is recycled. Move along, folks, there’s no evil being done here. $19.20.
The lightweight wireless optical mouse is portable enough to go anywhere and has a WIFI dongle stored inside for easy USB connectivity to your notebook computer. Built out of recycled plastic, this earth-friendly Google mouse comes in two familiar colors (blue & red) and uses a scroll wheel with 800 Dpi resolution for optimal speed. The packaging is also made from recycled materials. Accessories include two AAA batteries and instruction manual.
Ion VCR2PC - transfer those musty old VHS tapes to digital loveliness via USB and your PC
The Ion VCR2PC combines a standard VHS video cassette player with a USB port to let you transfer your old VHS video tapes to shiny new computer ready digital format. Just plug the device into your computer, shove in a tape and hit play. It comes with the very useful Muvee AutoProducer software for converting and burning your footage to iPod, DVD or all points North By North West. It’ll even let you import and transfer your crusty old camcorder footage via the front socket so you can play it on your iPhone. How totally naff is that? By the way it’s not a VCR – i.e. video cassette recorder – it’s a VCP (for player), but let’s not quibble eh? $249.95.
The Ion Audio VCR2PC breathes new life into your old VHS tapes by making it easy for you to capture them on your home computer. The Ion VCR 2 PC is an innovative new VCR with single-cable USB output. Save all of your VHS movies, family video, and personal video tapes directly to your PC. You’ll never have to dig for tapes again or worry if they will work. Your videotapes will be saved forever in pristine digital format. The included Muvee AutoProducer software lets you burn your videos to DVD, watch on your iPod, PSP, or laptop computer. VCR2PC exports video compatible with certain mobile phones and portable multimedia devices!
