A collaboration between a bunch of rocket scientists and car engineers at AFS Trinity Power in California has resulted in a new technology called Fast Energy Storage which will apparently improve the performance and durability of conventional hybrid cars at a relatively low cost. The idea is to install an Extreme Hybrid drivetrain consisting of a set of ultra-capacitors hooked up to a sophisticated computer control system which will make better use of the batteries in a traditional hybrid set…
Read MoreYearly Archives: 2008
GMER – freeware roots out the nasty rootkits
GMER. Tiny freeware program which detects and removes rootkits. Which makes it a handy little thing to keep around. You know, just in case. GMER is an application that detects and removes rootkits . It scans for: # hidden processes # hidden threads # hidden modules # hidden services # hidden files # hidden Alternate Data Streams # hidden registry keys # drivers hooking SSDT # drivers hooking IDT # drivers hooking IRP calls # inline hooks Tags: gmer, anti+rootkit, malware, freeware
Read MoreWorld’s Smallest USB Charger – keep your iPod topped up with a teeny companion
The World’s Smallest USB Charger is perfect for charging up your iPod Nano. OK, so we’re not sure that’s right, it just sounded good. You know, small and nano? Hey, you try writing this drivel day after day while still managing to sound fresh, young and exciting. Yeah, scared now aren’t ya? $14.99. World’s smallest (5.5cm, when with the plug, it is7cm for US type) – Sleek surface – energy-saving, when your device is fully charged, it will turn off the…
Read MoreCellKlear – camera phone lens cleaner proves that things are changing in the photo world
Cellklear. This simple lens cleaner for mobile phone cameras is just one more piece of evidence, if more were needed, that the world of photography is changing inexorably around our heads. I, for one, salute our new mobile imaging overlords and wish them long life, happiness and an endless supply of badly lit party snapshots. $8.95. Designed specifically for camera lenses found on cellular camera phones. # The remarkable cleaning compound removes fingerprints, smudges, and grease marks with ease. # Safe for all…
Read MoreThe Red Ferret Journal Product of the Year 2007: Web – CoveritLive
The Red Ferret Journal Product of the Year 2007: Web – CoveritLive. This was one heck of a hard decision because the field was crammed with potential winners. This was, after all, the year in which Web 2.0 found its wings at last and started to soar. Joost for its potential to massively disrupt the television status quo, the BBC iPlayer for moving so graciously and quickly to the more open Flash format, FotoFlexer for an absolutely superb free feature…
Read More27 electric car companies ready to take over the road – swish, zoom, stutter
VentureBeat has compiled a list of 27 electric car companies who are poised to change the way we travel sometime very soon. Well, as soon as they can get a few things worked out, like price, range, battery disposal, carrying capacity, speed…you get the picture. We’ve featured most of them already over the years, but it’s useful to get an overview for comparison. One of the funniest examples is the VentureOne e50, which has a rabid bunch of supporters who make Apple…
Read MoreBeam it Up Scotty – convert and upload files to your cell phone quickly and easily
Beam It Up Scotty. Funski name for a clever little application which lets you convert, compress and upload files to any mobile phone. Why you ask? Well, for one thing it’s a great way to transfer files from your computer to a remote friend’s cell phone. Physically remote of course, not emotionally…oh never mind. We uploaded a 24 MB .avi file, and it was a fast and painless process. Once the file is uploaded, if it’s video you can optimise (i.e….
Read MoreCollablog – start your own blogging community for free
Collablog. Got some spare web server space lying around? Fancy yourself as a bit of a blog network mogul? Or a mega-blog community owner? Then download either version of this freeware package and give it a go. From the sparcity of the site it looks like early days, but the two packages seem fully equipped with everything you need to set up a new Metafilter or TypePad type service. Free for non-commercial use, but there are no terms for commercial use…
Read MoreFelston Audio Synchronizer – sync the lips back to the audio on your home theater set up
Felston Audio Synchronizer. Fed up with the audio sync on your home theater being off? You know, where the lips move a fraction later than you hear the audio, like some cheap martial arts B movie? Well fret no more, dear siblings, for we have the solution. This little doobry gives you an adjustable delay of up to 680ms, so you can tune those lips into perfect harmony, no matter how strange the language or dress code. Frankly we think the manufacturers…
Read MoreThe Red Ferret Journal Product of the Year 2007: Green/Ethical – Kiva
The Red Ferret Journal Product of the Year 2007: Green/Ethical – Kiva. Yep, it’s our award time again, and this year we’ve split them up into segments to make it easier to award to different types of products and services. These are obviously personal choices, so if you have any of your own recommendations to offer for a kind of Reader’s Choice in each category, please feel free to do so in the comments below each. I’ll be posting one…
Read MoreWaterproof Mouse – glug, scribble, point, click
Waterproof Mouse. Well, maybe you need to douse your mouse in liquids of all sorts. Maybe you’re just clumsy. Whatever, with this puppy you can wash, rinse and click on to your heart’s content. Weird product of the day, huh? $36.99. There are thousands of mouse in the world, what makes this mouse so unique? It is a waterproof, you can out it into water to wash, you can disinfect it, you can put it in humid environment… Features: – Water…
Read MoreHalo Covenant Plasma Rifle – laser tag replica lets you video game your living room
Halo 3 Covenant Plasma Rifle. In some weird recursive dream universe of toy marketing, the hit video game Halo 3 has morphed its way off the console screen and into the living room with this laser tag toy. Run around zapping your brother and sister with reckless abandon. But let the kids have a go too, eh? £79.95. Functioning just like its console-based counterpart (minus the real plasma, of course), the Halo 3 Covenant Plasma Rifle fires an infrared beam…
Read MoreGizmodo tells it straight – CES sucks, so there…
Adam Frucci’s excellent Gizmodo commentary on the recent CES show is spot on for a good number of reasons. It is, perhaps, faux gonzo journalism writ modern, but it also pinpoints a big thing that blog readers should remember – blogs are not mainstream media! It may seem obvious, despite the increasingly ‘establishment’ voice of sites like Engadget, but we are not and should not try to play by the old rules. Our voice has to be significantly different otherwise…
Read MoreGlobalPandora – Pandora hacked to give world access again?
GlobalPandora. Er…it looks as though some enterprising folk have opened the wonderful Pandora up to the world again. This comes hot on the heels of the announcement that the UK is to lose access to Pandora this week due to…gasp, guess what…a breakdown of talks with the ever stupid record industry. Of course I can’t test it until the cut-off comes tomorrow, but if it works as seems…well fabulous. the box is open Tags: globalpandora, online+music, pandora
Read MoreCoveritLive – superb service lets you blog live from anywhere with a net connection and browser
CoveritLive. Ever wanted to do a live blog of an event but didn’t know how? Well now you can with this brilliant new service from Canada. Just sign up for a free account and you will instantly have the power to blog about any event anywhere, anytime as long as you have a net connection and a web browser to hand. You’ll need to cart a laptop around with you of course. I did try it out on a Nokia…
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