Live from Inside a Hard Drive
Video after the jump.
Continue Reading Add comment October 7th, 2006 Posted by Ash
YouTube Highly Trained Monkeys
Upon replying to a YouTube message today, here’s what I was greeted with:
500 Internal Server Error
Sorry, something went wrong.A team of highly trained monkeys has been dispatched to deal with this situation. In any case, please report this incident to customer service.
At least the folks at YouTube have a sense of humour!
Screenshot after the jump!
Continue Reading 5 comments September 24th, 2006 Posted by Ash
Outstanding bandwidth tests with Speedtest.net
While there are many companies out there offering to test your internet’s connection speed, some will even charge you a subscription fee for a simple Download and Upload rate.
This is where Speedtest.net really stands out. It’s FREE and it has an outstanding graphical user interface that overlays your location and that of its servers on a map.
More after the jump.
Continue Reading Add comment August 20th, 2006 Posted by Ash
iPod Full Body Invisible Shield
After removing the invisible shield screen protector on my iPod, I applied the full body shield which covers just under 100% of the iPod’s surface. Once again, I’ve been very impressed with the results!
More after the jump!
Continue Reading 18 comments August 10th, 2006 Posted by Ash
Modular PC: Dell XCS Concept PC
In an age where the Hi-Fi is becoming obsolete, designer Matthew Ritter has come up with this Hi-Fi looking concept PC! The idea is to design all internal components as cartridges which the user can very easily take in or out.
“Each component is a modular and shaped so that it cannot be inserted into the wrong place. A number system was also developed to replace confusing specifications that are present on today’s software.”
It would be great, if this design made it to the market. No more digging into the messy internals of current PCs to simply add a second hard drive or more memory!
We’ll have to wait and see whether Dell will bring out the XCS anytime soon. Or maybe Apple will beat them to it by introducing this modular concept in the yet to be announced Intel Power Mac replacement.
[Via Yanko Design]
Add comment July 31st, 2006 Posted by Ash
Removing invisible shield from iPod: Easy?
A few weeks back, I got an invisible shield for my iPod’s screen. I was so satisfied with it that I decided to go for a full body shield for my iPod.
Now that my all new full body shield is here, just how easy will it be to remove the old screen shield so that I can put on the new one? According to the FAQ on ShieldZone’s website,
Q: How do I remove the invisibleSHIELD if I need to?
A: Removing the invisibleSHIELD from your electronic device is easier than it may seem. It is much like peeling off a sticker. You will want to start at one corner and slowly peel back small pieces at a time until the invisibleSHIELD has completely been removed from off of your device.
Is a material as tough as the invisible shield (which was originally designed to protect the edges of military helicopter blades) as easy to remove as ShieldZone claims? Let’s find out!
Video of the removal after the jump!
Continue Reading 3 comments July 25th, 2006 Posted by Ash
USB “Air Conditioned” Shirt
Ex Sony technician, Kouzi Ichigaya has come up with a simple idea to keep cool this summer: The USB Air Conditioned Shirt. It’s powered either by USB or AA batteries or through your car’s cigarette lighter.
Somewhat to my disappointment however, it’s not exactly air-conditioned. The shirt simply features two fans on each side of the waist which blow air inside the shirt. This leads to evaporative cooling by vapourising sweat without the use of any heat pumps as is the case in air conditioners. It’s nevertheless a cool idea, but to be fair, I think it ought to be called the air-cooled shirt.
Via [EverythingUSB]
Add comment July 20th, 2006 Posted by Ash
Hard Drive Tech explained by Hitachi
During my cyber-travels today I came across this animation from hitachi that attempts to explain perpendicular technology in hard drives in a very interesting and lively way. Thought I’d share the video.
Simply click on the above picture and let the flash animation load. Don’t forget to turn up the volume!
On the other hand, if you want a more scientific explanation of perpendicular recording technology or if you just want to know how hard drives work, here are some links:
If you enjoyed the “Go Perpendicular” animation, then, read on, another educational video from Hitachi after the jump.
Continue Reading Add comment July 16th, 2006 Posted by Ash
Eating while using your computer is now even easier
Designer Duck Young Kong has come up with the Keyboard Food Tray. What is it? A tray that will hold your food just above your keyboard, letting you eat while typing away without having to relocate your keyboard or other documents on your desk. It features a rectangular spot big enough to hold a sandwich or a burger as well as a circular spot to keep your coffee cup.
More after the jump.
Continue Reading 1 comment July 10th, 2006 Posted by Ash
10x bigger hard drives with nanotubes
Following some research funded by NIST (National Institute of Standards and Technology) at Seagate, it was found that nanotubes that leak a lubricant vapour could lead to 10x bigger capacity hard drives!
The technology is based on the concept that more information can be stored on a magnetic hard drive by heating it. However, until the nanotubes came into play, it was impossible to operate hard drives at such temperatures because they cause all the lubricant to evaporate.
More after the jump.
Continue Reading Add comment July 7th, 2006 Posted by Ash