Posts Tagged ‘usb’
Smart Fingers Turn Your Hands into Rulers
Author: Jenny Zhao
You know when your uncle Pete comes back from a fishing trip and tells you about the giant trout he caught? “It was this big,” he says, stretching his hands out in front of him. Well, with the Smart Finger, you’d know exactly how big “this” is, and you could put an end to uncle Pete’s stupid lies and exaggerations right away.
The Smart Finger actually uses two fingers. The pair of plastic tubes slip over your real fingers and measure the distance between themselves. This distance is shown on an OLED display in your choice of unit, in metric or good ol’ ‘merican, and a click of a switch will store it in memory for later transfer to a PC.
It’s a wonderful concept. Just like uncle Pete, we tend to use our hands and fingers to describe size, and measuring length is a natural extension. The gadget itself is also rather nicely designed. The two halves join together to make a single bullet-shaped capsule which slips into a USB charging-dock, and the interiors of each part have a silicon membrane with a hole in the centre to grip any size of finger. Thank God they made it in green, though, as it already looks a little too much like a Fleshlight.
Is it as useful as a tape-measure for a quick check to see if the new fridge will fit in the gap left by the old one? Probably not, but for an extended measuring session, this concept design would work great. And if it gives you chance to shut uncle Pete up once and for all, it’s got to be worth it.
My Fingers Are So Smart, They Measure [Yanko. Thanks, Radhika!]
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Smart Fingers Turn Your Hands into Rulers
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Tags: charlie-sorrel, distance, hands, Image, interiors, later-transfer, LED, metric-or-good, nicely-designed, OLED, smart-finger, SPL, usb | 
No Comments »Panasonic Finally Shows $10,000 Micro Four Thirds Camcorder
Author: William Miller
Panasonic has stopped teasing us with rendered mockups and whispered details for its forthcoming Micro Four Thirds camcorder, the AG-AF100, and has finally released details and photos. Let’s get the shocker out of the way first. It’ll be $10,000.
Why so much? Because it packs in a lot of pro features. Those thinking that this would be anything like the video-shooting Micro Four Thirds stills cameras will be disappointed: the only thing the cameras have in common is the large image-sensor and the lens-mount.
The range of shooting options is almost ridiculously large. You can record in anything up to 1080p (or 1080i) in AVCHD format, with options for the high-bitrate PH-mode. Frame-rates run from 12p up to 60p and sound is 2-channel Dolby Digital. The footage is captured into two SD-cards, and gives up to 48-hours of recording time depending on what quality and size you capture.
A video-camera isn’t a standalone unit. It needs to hook up to all sorts of other gear, and the Panasonic has all the right jacks. HD SDI-out and XLR-input join HDMI, USB, RCA audio-out and a detachable handle and grip for putting the camera into the center of a big rig, and the lenses can of course be changed just like on an SLR.
In fact, it’s these lenses that will likely be the most attractive feature of this camera. Because autofocus is almost never used in professional shooting, and because any number of amazing Leica, Nikon and other lenses can be put onto a Micro Four Thirds camera with cheap adapters, the lens options are almost endless. Fisheyes, super-zooms and fast primes can all be mounted and give filmic images at budget prices. Add to that the fact that by video-camera standards, $10,000 is pretty cheap, and Panasonic might be onto a winner.
Available December.
AG-AF100 product page [Panasonic]
AG-AF100 product page [Panasonic]
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Panasonic Finally Shows $10,000 Micro Four Thirds Camcorder
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Teaching Kids Computers, Part 1
Author: Melissa Shroeder
Image by Ivan Walsh, used under Creative Commons License
If geeks had ranks, I’d be a General or an Admiral, or maybe Grand Vizier. I know things that no mortal should know, arcane minutiae like how to set a proxy server in an .hgrc file or how to program in assembly language.
I don’t want my kids to know most of this stuff. Heck, I don’t think anyone should have to know most of this stuff. Usually, my wife and I encourage the kids to play outside, or play a board game, or read a book, or do something real instead of being in front of any kind of screen.
However, I also recognize that computers are useful sometimes, and I know that being proficient is a valuable skill. I wanted to show my kids a few tools that they could use for basic tasks, like taking pictures, ripping CDs, and creating drawings. I was surprised with the results.
When I teach anything, to any audience, I always try to get to the doing as fast as possible. In this case, there was one lesson’s worth of information that we simply had to cover before moving on to the fun stuff.
I started with a brief lesson on computer architecture and file system structure. Without going into too much detail, I explained the essential concepts that anyone needs to use a computer:
- Basic architecture, including the processor, memory, and disk, and a little bit about what an operating system does. This is mostly important to explain why saving is necessary.
- The structure of the file system, and how things like USB drives or cameras have their own file system
- Filenames and file extensions and how these map to applications
This lesson is not very exciting, but it’s crucial, because your kids will be saving and loading files. To make it a little more interesting, you can use a file browser to demonstrate the structure of the file system.
I gave this lesson to my kids some time last year when they were ages 9, 10, 11 and 13. They had been using a computer for years, mostly for playing games, but this was the first time I tried to give them a deeper understanding and some useful tools.
In Part 2 of this post, I’ll describe the applications I taught my kids (all free!) and some of the things my kids have done with their knowledge.
See the rest here:
Teaching Kids Computers, Part 1
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Tags: admiral, Applications, essential, File, kids, LED, science and education, Stuff, teaching, usb, wife |
No Comments »USB Typewriter Replaces the Keyboard in Your PC
Author: Trixi Anderson
The clickety-clack of manual typewriters have long been replaced by PC keyboards and even that is now disappearing with touchscreens. But for those nostalgic about old-school manual typewriters, a hack lets you update and make them compatible with PCs.
Jack Zylkin worked for nine months to create the design and schematics for a USB-based typewriter that can replace the keyboard on your PC.
“Typewriters are a lasting marvel of classic engineering and design, which are now a casualty of our disposable whiz-bang techno-culture,” says Zylkin who created this project at Hive 76, a hackerspace in Philadelphia. “I wanted to do something to make these beautiful machines relevant and useful again. I have seen machines that are 100 years old and still functional as the day they were made, why should I let them go to waste?”
Zylkin estimates it can take five to 10 hours to mod a manual typewriter, if users follow his instructions. But it seems pretty easy to do.
“Its a weekend project for when you are snowed in with no TV,” he says.
Zylkin posted the step-by-step guide to creating the USB typewriter on Instructables.com and his post is now featured as part of the site’s ongoing back to school contest.
Others have attempted the USB-typewriter hack before, says Zylkin, but those projects “involved endless jumbles of wires, a disemboweled keyboard circuit and a phalanx of momentary switches.”
The USB-typewriter hack isn’t an expensive project.
“On eBay, you can get a quality machine for anywhere between $30 and $60,” says Zylkin. “Sadly,the people who trade typewriters on ebay only want to saw the keys off and make jewelry out of them! What a waste! ”
So Zylkin suggests asking friends and family to get an old typewriter from the attic. He is offering $50 DIY conversion kits that include the printed circuit boards for the project.
But if all that’s too much work for you, Zylkin has some USB typewriters available on Etsy priced at $350 to $500.
See the short clip showing the USB typewriter at work:
Photo: Jack Zylkin
[via Hack a day]
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USB Typewriter Replaces the Keyboard in Your PC
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Tags: instructables, jack zylkin, lasting-marvel, People, Projects, showing-the-usb, Ski, usb |
No Comments »Upgrading a Boomer Dad: Gadgets
Author: Heather Brown
My dad is a member of the Baby Boomer generation, born between 1946 and 1964. He has worked at the same company for forty plus years, and is now retiring. Now that he will be free to explore other interests, he needs a bit of updating to the modern times. His employment provided him a computer and a cell phone, if you want to call them that. The computer was a monochrome Tandy, just to give you an idea of its age and the cell phone predated Cingular as a company.
photo by T. Sims
Next is one of the high points of any young geek’s life, my dad asked for my assistance purchasing a new computer, cell phone, and getting connected to the internet. While we are at it, he also wants to update his home theater (since he will be home more) and purchase any other gadgets that will add to his enjoyment of a life of leisure. What could be more fun than buying cool gadgets and electronics with someone else’s money?! The only rule that he has asked of me, is that it must be simple to use. I will update our GeekDad readers on this “journey,” because maybe you have someone in your life that could use a little upgrading too.
Let’s start off with a neat gadget. The Vizit Digital Frame
One thing that has definitely changed in the past few years has been digital picture frames. They are now relatively inexpensive, can store hundreds of photos and run slideshows 24 hours a day. I wanted to go with the most connected and easy frame I could find, so I picked up a Vizit frame from Isabella products.
Vizit uses the mobile network to offer a convenient wireless experience. Vizit has a SIM card embedded inside the device, just like a cell phone, allowing the frame to have its own identity. Each frame has an email address (ie. SimsFamily@VizitMe.com) which friends and family simply email a photo to, or they can send a picture text message from their cell phone. Photos then arrive within a minute or two on the frame without any action required from the recipient. The photo is also saved in the VizitMe.com personal photo account. From the frame itself, the cellular connection allows messages to be sent from the frame. Therefore, you can use the touchscreen to pick a response to send to the person that sent you the photo, like “Great Pic, Thanks!†which they receive by email. The frame itself also has a card reader and USB port.
Vizit is the first two-way communication device using the mobile network for photo sharing, resulting in a truly interactive experience. Benefits from a cellular connection include an “Out-of-the-box†experience unrivaled by WiFi, Bluetooth, or wired devices.
The Final Word
The Vizit frame is must-have for travelers, large families, and anyone who loves to take pictures and share them. Even if my dad did not have a computer (which he doesn’t right now) he could still share pictures and receive them without any technical help or even internet service. We have had a great time sending photos to his frame for him to enjoy, also other family members from all over can share photos with him anytime.
If you are interested in the Vizit for yourself, click here for VizitMe.com for more information or to purchase.
Disclaimer: No consideration was given for this post. This is just me telling readers about some items that I have found helpful to those who are not as technically inclined as some. Your mileage may vary. All photos we supplied by me.
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Upgrading a Boomer Dad: Gadgets
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Upgrading a Boomer Dad: Gadgets
Author: Troy Sorbo
My dad is a member of the Baby Boomer generation, born between 1946 and 1964. He has worked at the same company for forty plus years, and is now retiring. Now that he will be free to explore other interests, he needs a bit of updating to the modern times. His employment provided him a computer and a cell phone, if you want to call them that. The computer was a monochrome Tandy, just to give you an idea of its age and the cell phone predated Cingular as a company.
photo by T. Sims
Next is one of the high points of any young geek’s life, my dad asked for my assistance purchasing a new computer, cell phone, and getting connected to the internet. While we are at it, he also wants to update his home theater (since he will be home more) and purchase any other gadgets that will add to his enjoyment of a life of leisure. What could be more fun than buying cool gadgets and electronics with someone else’s money?! The only rule that he has asked of me, is that it must be simple to use. I will update our GeekDad readers on this “journey,” because maybe you have someone in your life that could use a little upgrading too.
Let’s start off with a neat gadget. The Vizit Digital Frame
One thing that has definitely changed in the past few years has been digital picture frames. They are now relatively inexpensive, can store hundreds of photos and run slideshows 24 hours a day. I wanted to go with the most connected and easy frame I could find, so I picked up a Vizit frame from Isabella products.
Vizit uses the mobile network to offer a convenient wireless experience. Vizit has a SIM card embedded inside the device, just like a cell phone, allowing the frame to have its own identity. Each frame has an email address (ie. SimsFamily@VizitMe.com) which friends and family simply email a photo to, or they can send a picture text message from their cell phone. Photos then arrive within a minute or two on the frame without any action required from the recipient. The photo is also saved in the VizitMe.com personal photo account. From the frame itself, the cellular connection allows messages to be sent from the frame. Therefore, you can use the touchscreen to pick a response to send to the person that sent you the photo, like “Great Pic, Thanks!†which they receive by email. The frame itself also has a card reader and USB port.
Vizit is the first two-way communication device using the mobile network for photo sharing, resulting in a truly interactive experience. Benefits from a cellular connection include an “Out-of-the-box†experience unrivaled by WiFi, Bluetooth, or wired devices.
The Final Word
The Vizit frame is must-have for travelers, large families, and anyone who loves to take pictures and share them. Even if my dad did not have a computer (which he doesn’t right now) he could still share pictures and receive them without any technical help or even internet service. We have had a great time sending photos to his frame for him to enjoy, also other family members from all over can share photos with him anytime.
If you are interested in the Vizit for yourself, click here for VizitMe.com for more information or to purchase.
Disclaimer: No consideration was given for this post. This is just me telling readers about some items that I have found helpful to those who are not as technically inclined as some. Your mileage may vary. All photos we supplied by me.
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Upgrading a Boomer Dad: Gadgets
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Tags: armchair geek, digital, frame, Gadgets, Life, Modern, photos, upgrade dad, usb, Vizit |
No Comments »Upgrading a Boomer Dad: Gadgets
Author: Rod Sutherland
My dad is a member of the Baby Boomer generation, born between 1946 and 1964. He has worked at the same company for forty plus years, and is now retiring. Now that he will be free to explore other interests, he needs a bit of updating to the modern times. His employment provided him a computer and a cell phone, if you want to call them that. The computer was a monochrome Tandy, just to give you an idea of its age and the cell phone predated Cingular as a company.
photo by T. Sims
Next is one of the high points of any young geek’s life, my dad asked for my assistance purchasing a new computer, cell phone, and getting connected to the internet. While we are at it, he also wants to update his home theater (since he will be home more) and purchase any other gadgets that will add to his enjoyment of a life of leisure. What could be more fun than buying cool gadgets and electronics with someone else’s money?! The only rule that he has asked of me, is that it must be simple to use. I will update our GeekDad readers on this “journey,” because maybe you have someone in your life that could use a little upgrading too.
Let’s start off with a neat gadget. The Vizit Digital Frame
One thing that has definitely changed in the past few years has been digital picture frames. They are now relatively inexpensive, can store hundreds of photos and run slideshows 24 hours a day. I wanted to go with the most connected and easy frame I could find, so I picked up a Vizit frame from Isabella products.
Vizit uses the mobile network to offer a convenient wireless experience. Vizit has a SIM card embedded inside the device, just like a cell phone, allowing the frame to have its own identity. Each frame has an email address (ie. SimsFamily@VizitMe.com) which friends and family simply email a photo to, or they can send a picture text message from their cell phone. Photos then arrive within a minute or two on the frame without any action required from the recipient. The photo is also saved in the VizitMe.com personal photo account. From the frame itself, the cellular connection allows messages to be sent from the frame. Therefore, you can use the touchscreen to pick a response to send to the person that sent you the photo, like “Great Pic, Thanks!†which they receive by email. The frame itself also has a card reader and USB port.
Vizit is the first two-way communication device using the mobile network for photo sharing, resulting in a truly interactive experience. Benefits from a cellular connection include an “Out-of-the-box†experience unrivaled by WiFi, Bluetooth, or wired devices.
The Final Word
The Vizit frame is must-have for travelers, large families, and anyone who loves to take pictures and share them. Even if my dad did not have a computer (which he doesn’t right now) he could still share pictures and receive them without any technical help or even internet service. We have had a great time sending photos to his frame for him to enjoy, also other family members from all over can share photos with him anytime.
If you are interested in the Vizit for yourself, click here for VizitMe.com for more information or to purchase.
Disclaimer: No consideration was given for this post. This is just me telling readers about some items that I have found helpful to those who are not as technically inclined as some. Your mileage may vary. All photos we supplied by me.
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Upgrading a Boomer Dad: Gadgets
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Wireless USB Box Streams Video from Laptop to TV
Author: Ian Simpson
Link, from Imation, is a dead-simple way to get movies off your computer and onto your TV. It consists of two parts: a USB-dongle for the computer and a receiver that hooks into your TV. The pair talk to each other wirelessly and stream whatever is on the computer’s screen over to the television.
The connection is via Wireless USB, or WUSB, and will stream video up to 720p resolution and still images up to 1080p. It also sends stereo sound, and the whole lot is piped into the TV via an included HDMI cable.
Unfortunately, the one thing Imation doesn’t want to share is the price. If this thing is under $100, it might be in with a chance. With the rumors hotly tipping a new, $99 Apple TV at next week’s Apple Event on September 1st, anything that costs more than that may as well just go home now.
Link product page [Imation. Thanks, Michelle!]
See Also:
- WUSB
- Imation Ships First Wireless USB Hard Drive
- Cheap, Home Made Wi-Fi Tether
- Iogear Announces Wireless Kit for Monitors and Projectors
Follow us for real-time tech news: Charlie Sorrel and Gadget Lab on Twitter.
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Wireless USB Box Streams Video from Laptop to TV
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Tags: 720p-resolution, Air, HDMI, home entertainment, hotly-tipping, imation, price, Television, usb, Video, wireless |
No Comments »Geeky Finds in a Cape Cod Candy Store
Author: Troy Barnes
During our recent family vacation to Cape Cod, Massachusetts, I found the most geeky object on the vacation in, of all places, a candy store.
Photo: Corrina Lawson
We had driven down the very touristy Route 28 in order to walk around downtown Hyannis. The main Hyannis strip featured a number of excellent stores, including a great used bookstore, but the kids were tired of walking, so I loaded them up in the minivan and headed back to our vacation rental.
They spotted the Candy Company in West Yarmouth on the way and insisted we stop. There was the promise of chocolate, so it wasn’t hard to convince me.
It was a candy wonderland in there.
The small store was stocked with seemingly every type of candy ever made, from pop rocks to all flavors of jelly beans to chocolate used for making candy to homemade fudge and other expensive chocolate confections. It also carried some of the more obscure candy bars, including Sky Bars.
And, of course, they had Pez dispensers, including the original Star Trek set. Our wedding anniversary was coming up, my eldest son insisted it would make a great gift, and he had a point, so I bought them for my husband.
Then there were the sugar wafers.
I hadn’t seen this candy since I was growing up in rural Vermont. A gift store near my home stocked them and I used to go there just to pick up a package or two.
For those who don’t know what I’m talking about, sugar wafers are circular solid wafers–thicker and less brittle than Necco wafers.
The ones I remember from my childhood were ridged on one side. The ones I bought at Candy Co. were not. The clerk explained that the ridged candies had been machine-made and these were hand-made but it was the same recipe nonetheless. He said they were a “pain in the neck” to make, which is why the companies that manufactured them went out of business.
Despite the difference, the wafers tasted just like I remembered, pure sugar with flavors ranging from orange to cinnamon to mint. I tried to eat them one at a time.
I was not terribly successful in this endeavor.
I resisted the urge to stop back at the store for more on our way home but I have their address in case I get the urge for them again.
Well, okay. I already want more. But I’m resisting. So far.
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Geeky Finds in a Cape Cod Candy Store
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Tags: difference, everything-else, expensive, family-vacation, kids, Maps, Massachusetts, package-or-two, pez, Places, star trek, urge, usb, vacation |
No Comments »IPADock, The Mother of All Desktop Docks
Author: Stefanie Jenkins
IPADock. Its name may sound more like a place to keep your iRacehorses, but the curiously-capitalized accessory is probably the most useful desktop gadget ever. Plug it into a computer and you can charge and sync a pair of iPads, four iPhones, and various combinations thereof. A universal dock-port can be fitted with the adapter from any iPod, from Nano to Touch, and then things start to get even handier.
Stacked up around the back are slots for SD-cards, MemorySticks, CompactFlash cards and a three-port USB-hub. In short, pretty much anything you might want to dock on your desktop will be served by this surprisingly good-looking and compact device.
The price? $70, although you’ll be ordering it from Japan if you want one.
iPADock product page [Photofast via Cult of Mac's John Brownlee. Thanks, Pedro!]
See Also:
- The $5 iPad Dock
- HDMI Dock for Sprint EVO 'Coming Soon'
- Warpia Wireless Notebook Dock Cuts Cable Clutter
Go here to read the rest:
IPADock, The Mother of All Desktop Docks
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Tags: adapter, coming-soon, curiously, Desktop, docks, iPad, iracehorses, notebook-dock, Phone, surprisingly, usb, warpia-wireless, wireless |
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