Oculas

You know you want one...

Technical support for the neighbours

BBC News article on the lack of true computer support for home users.

"I had a hunch that most people just didn't know how to set up their computers - let alone fix them. So as an experiment I put up a note in my local newsagent's window offering, for a sum, a helping hand. Surprise surprise, my phone has hardly stopped ringing."

Low-cost hotels in London

Really cheap, no TV, no windows: easyHotel.com - from £5 a night (up to £60), starts booking in April 05. Yes - the rooms are bright orange.
Not as cheap, but plasma TV and luxury: Yotel - £70 a night in central London with lots of mod-cons. Inspired by Japanese capsule hotels. Clever use of artificial light. Hopes to open 2006. Not yet announced location.

If you've got a laptop...

...you've got to try this - an optical illusion that makes it appear as though your laptop's screen is transparent. Seeing is believing.

3 steps to ruining a great TV show

Step 1: Take a popular award-winning and very funny British show (e.g. The Office)
Step 2: Change everything good about the show (different cast, Wernham Hogg becomes Dunder Mifflin, David Brent becomes Michael Scott, Slough becomes New Jersey etc)
Step 3: Tone it down for a pre-watershed primetime slot on NBC - the largest network in America

Congratulations. You have successfully ruined "The Office". Sit back, get ready to be critically panned and do very badly in the ratings, causing your show to be axed after 3 episodes*. Series begins on Thursday.

* prediction

LEGO Digital Designer

Here's a great way to waste away a few hours - a virtual LEGO set! It has quite a few benefits over the real thing. Firstly, it's free. You get all the pieces. And you don't need to tidy up after yourself. Brilliant. Annoyingly though, it's PC only.

iPod shuffle takes over Leicester Square tube

Now that is what I call blanket advertising...

Pimp My Ride - Mac mini in a VW Golf

In the true spirit of MTV's 'Pimp My Ride', Matt Turner has installed a 1.42GHz Mac mini into his Volkswagen Golf. He's put a sweet little touchscreen display in the dash, can play songs directly from iTunes, and watch DVDs. If anyone out there wants to do something similar to their vehicle, let me know as I'd be interested in helping out.

Library uses iPod shuffles

What a clever idea! South Huntington Library in New York is lending people iPod shuffles loaded with the latest audiobooks. It actually works out cheaper for them than lending the CD versions. Would be interesting to see UK libraries doing the same.

Mac mini has a fan club

BYODKM (an acronym that Steve Job's used at the launch of the Mac mini):
Bring Your Own Display, Keyboard and Mouse.
This fan site for the Mac mini features everything you wanted to know about the diminutive product. My favourite area has user-submitted pictures of conversions and conceptual uses for the Mac mini.

Template changes to marvbloke.com

From now on if an entry has an associated link, you can get to it by clicking on the title of the entry. Go ahead - try it now! Let me know what you think.

Create your own eBooks for the iPod

This is a free tool for converting plain text files into iPod-friendly eBooks (using the 'Notes' feature). A good way to convert free literary classics from Project Gutenberg to read on the train etc.
iPod eBook creator

Remember Batfink???

Well nostalgia fans, he's back on Saturday mornings thanks to Dick and Dom, and even has a DVD boxset in the shops containing all 100(!) episodes. But remember: Your bullets cannot harm me - my wings are like a shield of steel!
Click below for his official UK website:
Batfink - UK official website

Atlanta commuters getting TV on subway

Long-suffering friends will remember that one of my many 'business ideas' was to project TV images onto the Tube tunnel wall to relieve boredom. Once again, a similar concept has beaten me to it. This particular implementation uses flat screens and transmits the audio via low-power FM. This wouldn't happen in the UK because a) the flat panels would be ripped off the wall in minutes and b) low-power FM transmission is currently illegal in the UK (sorry iTrip users, but it's true!)
Still, it's an interesting idea.
CNN.com - Atlanta commuters getting TV on subway

TV Games Consoles

I'm really quite impressed by the Plug 'n' Play TV Games range. You've probably seen these things - they're battery-powered and are self-contained games consoles and controllers that plug straight into your TV. No messin'. Jakks Pacific are the industry leader and their website lists their current range (including the Atari and Namco joysticks) and their upcoming titles (a Darth Vader-style Star Wars game)
Welcome to JAKKS TV Games

Speedy Relief - a great addictive league game

Set up your own personal league with your mates on this addictive Comic Relief themed game. WARNING: Once you click on the link below, prepare to lose at least 10 minutes of your life that you're never getting back.
Speedy Relief - Comic Relief and Inbox Digital

Online DVD Rental sites compared and reviewed

I've been using the Blockbuster on-line unlimited DVD service for a few months now and can highly recommend it. However, because these services don't lock you into a 12-month contract, you can swap and change at any time (taking advantage of free trials etc). The site below compares most of the UK online DVD services, and is a useful resource if you're new to this type of service.
DVDrr.com

Nokia 6230i announced

Nokia have announced an updated version of my phone - the 6230 now becomes the 6230i. So what do you get for your 'i'? There's a comparison here, but basically the camera has been upgraded to a 1.3 megapixel one, and there's a higher resolution display. They've also added Push-To-Talk and Visual Radio.
Nokia: Nokia 6230i Main Page
Engadget: Nokia's new ones: The 6230i, the 6021, and the 6030

Video on demand from the BBC - coming soon...

The BBC have recently completed a technical trial of their iMP (Interactive Media Player) technology. The idea is that UK-based broadband users can download and watch BBC TV and radio programmes for up to 7 days after they are broadcast. Great if you miss an episode of your favourite soap or drama. It even allows you to subscribe to a whole series (like the Sky+ 'Series Link' feature). It uses software from Kontiki which works a bit like BitTorrent and other peer-to-peer systems thereby reducing the load on the BBC's servers. Very clever idea...

The technical trial allowed the participants to view an online menu with a calendar of past, current and upcoming BBC television programs. The user simply selected the programs he or she wanted to view from the available programs and the shows were automatically delivered via the Internet to the user’s personal computer, using Kontiki’s technology. The programs were then available for online or offline viewing for seven days, giving the viewer flexibility of viewing times.

Kontiki’s Delivery Management System (DMS) software allowed the BBC to legitimately distribute their copyrighted programs over the public Internet with full digital rights management, security, and full-screen DVD quality.

Downloads are secure, correctly licenced and only available to viewers in the UK. Sounds excellent, but the use of Windows Media 9 technology may mean a Mac version is not on the cards.

More info here:
BBC: Askbruce - What is BBC iMP? (some screenshots here)
BBC iMP Homepage (not much here - was used during the trial)
Kontiki Press Release

iPod shuffle Tips and Tricks

Scott Knaster has compiled a list of hints and tips for owners of the iPod shuffle. If you don't fall into this category yet, you can rectify that by clicking here.
MacDevCenter.com: iPod shuffle Tips and Tricks

Mac creator Jef Raskin dies

Jef Raskin has died aged 61. He left Apple in 1982 - a good two years before the first Macintosh was released, but he had a lot of the original ideas. His departure was controversial - disagreements with Steve Jobs caused him to leave and pursue other projects (the weirdest being the Canon Cat).
Download a PodCast of a panel discussion at last July's MacWorld Expo where Jef Raskin declared that the Mac had “gone from insanely great to insanely gross.”
Macworld: Raskin's Moment (MP3, 78 mins, 18Mb)