ORIGINALLY AIRED: 9/7/2004

Stan Lee, CPU Heatsinks, Game Boy Mods

Episode #2384

In the News

To kick off the new season of The Screen Savers, co-hosts Kevin Rose and Alex Albrecht presented a handy list of…

The Top 10 Things You Might’ve Missed While We Were Gone

10. The Olympics in High-Def
  9. Microsoft De-Horns Longhorn
  8. Hewlett-Packard Sells HP-Branded iPods
  7. Windows Music Store /Media Player 10
  6. Apple Unveils a New iMac
  5. The Olsen Twins’ 18th Birthday
  4. Microsoft Service Pack 2
  3. Google.com’s IPO
  2. Doom 3
  1. Alex Joins The Screen Savers

TSS Live Call

Tim from Albany, New York wants to speed up his computer, though he’s currently lacking in funds. He’d like to buy one new part at a time until he has a blazing, new computer. So what part should he upgrade first?

Kevin and Alex recommend starting with either the video card or the hard drive – prices take a plunge every time a new generation of cards or drives come out, so you might wait until then. The next obvious candidate is the CPU, though that might set you back more money. Under further questioning by The Screen Savers, it turns out that Tim’s PC really isn’t that shabby to begin with. But based on the quality of his image transmission, Kevin suggested that Tim really ought to consider a new webcam. “Or some lights that aren’t red,” Alex helpfully added.
 

Kevin’s Tips on Transforming Your Game Boy Advance
 
With a little help from some nifty peripherals, you can do all sorts of things with your Game Boy Advance – including playing classic Sega Genesis games like “Sonic the Hedgehog.” 

By using a linker to connect your Game Boy to a flash memory card, and using software like Dr. SMS, you can drag ROM images of old games into your Game Boy. You’ll be hearing the “Sonic” theme in no time. (“That sound is like heroin,” as Alex raptly said.)

In future episodes of TSS, Kevin will be showing you how to use your Game Boy Advance to watch movies. In the meantime, hit these sites for more info on how to get some old-school gaming on your Game Boy:

http://www.nintendo.com/home

http://www.gameboy-advance.net/

http://www.merconnet.com/

Stan “The Man” Lee
Legendary Marvel Comics creator Stan Lee dropped by for a chat with Kevin about all things super-hero. The brain behind such billion-dollar industries as Spider-Man, The Fantastic Four, and The Incredible Hulk confessed that when he was creating them, “nobody had sense enough to save those things” like first issues or original artwork. In fact, a lot of those illustrious illustrations went straight to the scrapheap because there wasn’t enough room to store them. But Lee also chided all those fanatic collectors of today who buy comics not because they’re rare, but because they’re encapsulated in plastic and say “limited edition.” This has created a whole industry of people who just grade comics, and others who cosmetically “repair” comics to increase their value. Is this sane? “It is not for me to say,” Lee politely offered.

Lee has a lot of new projects in the works at his new company, Purveyors of Wonder (POW!). In addition to developing video games and movies, Lee is creating a new series called Superbunnies, staring Playboy magnate Hugh Hefner. “We think he’s a guy who loves parties and girls, but that’s a front,” Lee revealed. “He’s really a secret agent. He hates it when he has to go to a party when he could be saving the world. It’s time to let the truth be known!” Did this require Lee to interact with the famed Playboy Bunnies? “Oh, I have trouble keeping them away already,” Lee confessed.

For more on Stan Lee’s fantastic comics career, check out this overview by our own Sean O’Rourke.
 
 
Iron Geek Yoshi Fries an Egg the Hard Way
 
Modding mastermind Yoshi took up the challenge of using his CPU to cook an egg. First, he cranked up the heat to a fiery 197 degrees -- not something you’d really want to do with your own PC. “About 140, you’re in the danger zone,” said Yoshi. “Remember: If your computer is hot enough to fry an egg, you’re screwed,” added Alex. (Yoshi also made a blender out of a hard drive -- which mixed the egg to splattery effect.)
 
Here's an article by Robert Heron on how Yoshi did it.
 
 
Sarah’s Download of the Day
If you’re running iTunes, you’re already cool, but with Sarah’s favorite plug-ins, you’ll be hot. Check ‘em out here.

Want In on the Gmail Beta?
Get your invitation to a free google.com Gmail account by logging into Kevin’s secret URL kevinrose.com. He’s giving away 4,000 invitations -- first come, first served!