Palabea is an online language learning service. Yes another one. No I have no idea why there are so many. Yes, it’s German. No I don’t know what the name means. Well, possibly it could be an excuse to find cute partners in exotic countries, or even get a Green Card, but I can’t tell from here. Yes, the site is very well designed, and has some heavyweight partners like the BBC and Deutsche Welle. OK, well since you asked…
Read MoreMonthly Archives: July 2008
Atmosphere Lite – surround yourself with the sounds of nature at your desk
Atmosphere Lite is an awesome little freeware program that lets you enjoy the sounds of nature while you’re working on your computer. The program comes with a set of 10 preset scenarios including rain forests, ocean nights and woodland campfire and if you don’t like those you can create and record your own version using the samples they provide. I’ve got to say it’s extremely agreeable to sit here blogging to the sound of Woodpeckers, Barn Owls and other assorted natural sounds – it sure beats the…
Read MoreGenetic confusion? – new report says that personal DNA testing is about as useful as learning what your star sign is
A new Which? consumer’s report out today, comes up with a rather scathing verdict on the new DNA testing services which offer to chart your genetic makeup. The report sent off identical DNA samples to four web based testing companies. The mag paid between £75.00 and £510 for the tests (one male, one female). Their conclusion? “…the results are so vague it’s almost the equivalent of telling someone what their star sign is.” Oops! Which? Computing sent the same two DNA…
Read MoreBracketron Nav-Mat GPS Dash Mount – perch your GPS unit in safety on your dashboard
The Bracketron Nav-Mat GPS Dash Mount is a small bean bag affair with a flat plate on top to accept your mobile phone or GPS mount, and a super non-slip base which moulds to your car’s dashboard curves to hold everything nice and snug during your travelocity. $29.95. [Via] The Nav-Mat is the most convenient mounting accessory for your portable GPS today. Using the physics of weight distribution along with high tech anti-skid materials, it creates a solid mounting base while…
Read MorePlantLock – secure your bike and pretty up the planet at the same time
PlantLock is a clever new idea for securing bicycles in urban areas. Basically a metal planter with secure rails for the locks. The planter weighs 75 kg when fully planted up, and the rails are made from case hardened Boron steel, which means you’re only going to scratch them with a set of bolt cutters. Obviously you don’t want to stick your £3000 Acme Carbon Fiber Racer out there over night (just in case, eh?) but it does look like a…
Read MoreWGR614L Open Source Router – open source starts to reach hardware, DELL quivers a little
Netgear has released the WGR614L Open Source Router which is a real shift in the hardware world, isn’t it? What does this mean? Well, it looks like open source is going to start changing the way that hardware is produced in the future, which is going to be interesting to say the least. What with the Nokia move to shift Symbian to open source and the new OpenMoko Neo Freerunner Linux based mobile phone, things are really hotting up in the…
Read MoreRedKaraoke – your singalonga, sharing, caring Karaoke community
RedKaraoke. Oooh look it’s a social network made up of warbling Karaoke wannabes. Cute. OK, that’s a bit unfair, because some of them are quite good, better than most of us anyway. There’s not a whole lot of new on the site – you know, rankings, blog, user profiles, chat rooms, voting on performances, blah… – but it’s nicely put together for those with a passion for the big K. The site features 14,000 songs in a variety of genres (you…
Read MoreCorlive Messaging Service – new web messaging service for those fed up with unreliable spammy
The Corlive Messaging Service is a free web based alternative to email which takes the shape of an online message form. Instead of giving people your email address, you give them the address of your message form (e.g. http://corlive.com/nigel ) from where they can send you a message directly by just typing the text in. Each account holder gets their own account page with a dashboard from which they can read and send messages as well as manage a rudimentary contact address…
Read More25 Tips to Improve Skype – add-ons and tweaks to get the most out of your voip friend
25 Tips to Improve Skype is a nice list of tweaks, add-ons and lesser known features you can use to add value and functionality to your Skype software. There’s a range of stuff here, from music sharing via the Last.fm plugin to real time language translation. My fave is the Home Watch ghetto home security tweak, which sets up a quick and dirty security cam in your vacant home. How versatile is your Skype? Ours can podcast, translate French, take conference calls from…
Read MoreGo Racers – the ultimate commuter vehicle?
Go Racers. Apparently New Zealand is going potty over these fun vehicles and we can see why. No really. Electric powered, elegant and priced at a nowhere near ridiculous $6,995.00 a pair. OK, so they’re supposed to be raced not commuted, but we can dream can’t we? At the heart of the GO-Racer GT is a custom-made rear transaxle, which incorporates an ingenious limited slip differential and gearbox. This unit is maintenance free, compact and fully sealed, with no drive…
Read MoreUnoCycle – innovative and dangerous looking electric bike…or is that ike?
The UnoCycle is a cleverly designed electric vehicle – can’t really call it a bike can we? – which works on the same kind of gyroscopic principles of the Segway. We didn’t feature it first time round because we weren’t sure whether it would ever get anywhere, but now it looks as though it might be gaining investment interest (who said oil at $140 a barrel had no silver lining eh?) Anyway, nice as it looks, you won’t mind if…
Read MoreFirewinder – wind powered outdoor decorative LED light
Firewinder is a 100% wind powered decorative LED light fixture, kind of like a light chime instead of a wind chime. OK, so the illumination it produces from the wind is not going to keep your yirt lit properly, but watching the twirling spiral effect may help you forget about the power bills sitting on the hall table. The faster it blows, the brighter it glows. Golly. £99.95. The performance of Firewinder’s efficient aerodynamics, contact-less generator and utilisation of the…
Read MoreFuel Saving Driving Calculator – work out how to save gas through optimising your speed
The Fuel Saving Driving Calculator is designed to help you work out the optimal speed for the maximum fuel economy in your car. The ultimate output is a neat ‘tax free income’ you get from driving at the right speed for your needs. It brings the whole Peak Oil/rampant speculation/economic meltdown muddle down to earth really. Good luck with selling the Hummer, by the way! The cool thing about this tool is that you now have more weapons in your…
Read MoreImgares – cool free image processor is fast, versatile and useful
Imgares is a small free image processor which comes with some very cool features. First up, it’s fast. Very fast. It zips through even large sized photo images, which is great when you’re just trying to do something quick and dirty. Also it has some fab tweaks, like instant rotate and resize, as well as colour, background and text editors which make it a snap to quickly adjust multiple photos on the fly for upload or email. There’s a fast batch…
Read MoreChartGizmo – free online chart maker
You need charts right? Then take a look at ChartGizmo. Pies, bars, lines, multiple data sources, import from Excel. And free of course. Take a look, why doncha? Create chart from static data or collect information from you page dynamically. With your free account from ChartGizmo you can start creating charts and place them on your website in minutes. Tags: chartgizmo, online+application, chart+creator
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