archive for 2008

technabob’s most popular posts of 2008

2008_best_of_technabob

2008: What a year it was. Every year there are a handful of posts that really make readers go wild. But at the same time, not everyone can be expected to read every post on the site (as much as I’d love for you guys to). So while I’m not a big fan of “top whatever”…

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December 31st, 2008 comments (2) stumble it! digg it! author: technabob

filed under: cool toys gadgets geek art + craft just plain fun strange + wonderful technology

ea’s hachi koi: it’s about touching girls

tb-hach1

The ol’ “hero/heroine is about to die, so must seize life” theme is an oft-used one in all forms of literature, and Electronic Arts’ Hachi Koi is adding its own spin to the old saw, except in this Nintendo DS game, instead of seizing life, you’re tasked with seizing girl flesh. Literally.

In Hachi Koi, the…

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December 31st, 2008 comments stumble it! digg it! author: alisha k.

filed under: technology video games

elekit tornader robot is really a ball

tornader robot spin elekit japan sphere

This robot kit from Japan lets you build your own ball shaped robot that can pull off all sorts of wild and crazy moves as it gyrates around your floor.

While the Tornader robot from Elekit can drive slowly around the floor like most remote-controlled vehicles, the real fun starts when you set the Tornader…

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December 31st, 2008 comments stumble it! digg it! author: technabob

filed under: cool toys robots

geek graffiti hits the streets

graffiti street art tech geek

It’s not only Internet/text shorthand, with its LOLs and OMGs, that’s everywhere; it seems lots of tech-based and inspired memes are creeping out into the world at large, including in graffiti and other urban art forms. Forget the old tags — meet the new tags, the tags rooted in HTML and lolcats.

Not all of…

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December 31st, 2008 comments (2) stumble it! digg it! author: alisha k.

filed under: geek art + craft strange + wonderful technology

verbatim speaker keyboard: more sounds than key clicks

verbatim_speaker_keyboard

This keyboard is perfect for people who don’t have a lot of space on their desk. Verbatim’s speaker keyboard integrates a pair of speakers into the keyboard’s top edge. The keyboard also has dedicated audio controls and a backlight.

I don’t think that the built-in speakers can match the quality of stand alone speakers. First…

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December 31st, 2008 comments stumble it! digg it! author: lambert v.

filed under: audio computing

bioshock bento box: come to (big) daddy

bioshock_bento_box

For those of you who have put in your fill of time playing Bioshock, you know that Big Daddy can be one mean dive suit wearin’ mutha-flippa’. But now that he’s been transformed into a tasty lunchtime treat, he doesn’t look so imposing anymore.

This delicious Bento box was created by flickr contributor AnnaTheRed, and…

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December 30th, 2008 comments stumble it! digg it! author: technabob

filed under: geek art + craft strange + wonderful video games

5.25-inch floppy disk coasters save tabletops, not data

floppy_disk_coasters

For some strange reason, I never thought I’d write a story about floppy disk coasters twice. But these really floppy, floppy disk coasters I found over on Etsy today were just too good to be ignored.

Modeled after the truly retro 5-1/4″ floppy disk, these soft coasters are handmade from colorful felt, and just like…

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December 30th, 2008 comments (1) stumble it! digg it! author: technabob

filed under: computing geek art + craft just plain fun retro

handheld n64 is awesome, non-ergonomic

diy custom portable handheld n64 nintendo sixtyfree lite-r

The Nintendo Sixtyfree Lite-R: the past of gaming, futurized in handheld form. While playing this shrunken, portable N64 might be a challenge, particularly when it comes to, say, some of the console’s excellent first-person shooters, it certainly looks good.

BenHeck.com forumite SifuF cut away half the size of the original N64 and added a headphone jack…

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December 30th, 2008 comments (3) stumble it! digg it! author: alisha k.

filed under: hacks + mods technology video games

bang bang, my zapper shot you down [wii]

nintendo wii zapper gun mod controller

Some people want games to be as sweet as sugar, with showers of fresh blossoms and lollipops instead of blood, and frolicking in place of combat. Those aren’t the people who made this custom Wii Zapper. No, these are the people who crave more realism in gaming… or at least comfortable shooting controls.

Creator THeOReos…

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December 30th, 2008 comments stumble it! digg it! author: alisha k.

filed under: cool toys hacks + mods technology video games

hacked usb cable flash disk

nothingwronghere

USB flash disks are very popular not only because they carry a lot of data in such a small size. They’ve also become a hit because they come in all sorts of weird designs. It’s reached a point where if I see something small and weird I assume that it’s a flash disk. Sometimes I…

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December 30th, 2008 comments (3) stumble it! digg it! author: lambert v.

filed under: gadgets just plain fun mobile tech

domo-kun mod makes a toothy 360

domo-kun domo xbox 360 mod paint custom

I’m happy to report that Domo-kun is adorable anywhere… even on the hulking side of an Xbox 360. In fact, the strange creature himself brings a beautiful color scheme to the console, and the result is a chocolaty confection of cuteness that suits the 360 very well.

DeviantARTist Ricepuppet slicked up this Xbox 360, he…

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December 29th, 2008 comments (1) stumble it! digg it! author: alisha k.

filed under: geek art + craft hacks + mods technology video games

microsoft hd view offers gigapixel zoom, hdr images, more

hd_view_gigapixel_image

I was working on a story about something completely different today when I came across this intriguing digital image technology they’ve been working on for a while over at Microsoft Research. The team sums up their not-too-lofty goal for their HD View technology as follows: “…to create the best picture given (a) a source with…

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December 29th, 2008 comments stumble it! digg it! author: technabob

filed under: digital imaging future tech technology