ORIGINALLY AIRED: 1/31/2005
Steve Pope, Soda Machine Hacks, KidRobot
Episode #5017
| Virtual People Power: Disgruntled World of Warcraft warrior-class players staged a protest -- online. Credit Card Penance: Kate Bingaman documents all her credit card purchases on her website, obsessiveconsumption.com. Now she’s documenting her slow crawl out of debt by drawing pictures of her credit card statements. iPod Hacking: Yes, somebody finally figured out how to stick Linux on Apple’s music player – and he cracked the boot order by using the little clicky sound! |
| How many times has Bill Gates touted the home of the future, when you’ll be able to control your entire household with your “digital hub?” Well the future is now and the hub is actually a Mac. ZiLOg senior design fellow Steve Pope has written a piece of software that interacts with a ZiLOG micro web server -- a small 4" by 3" board installed on the wireless home network, providing a network pipe to the home automation system.
Steve keeps a Mac Power Book G4 on a table right next to his throne in the family room. With this setup, he can use the Mac to control a number of devices in the home within a few seconds. With a UI he wrote called iNest, he has a full screen of buttons that can control lights, HVAC, the security system, DVD, TV, cable box, and, yes, sprinklers (among other items). “With iNest, you just pop up the iNest application on your Mac and using one button, the stereo is turned on, the right input is selected and the volume is set, from anywhere in your home,” Steve said. “Switch back to the iTunes application and you have sweet music for your shiny nest -- all from your warm bed. For the even lazier among us, you can also control your nest from any PC or handheld with a browser.” Steve chose the Mac for OSX’s “always on” feature and “quick application switch” function, though the html based iNest will work with Windows. “This is how I imagine the home will be controlled in the not too distant future,” concludes Pope. “It just does not get any better than this.” For more info, visit Steve’s site, www.geekfreaks.com, or ZiLOG at www.ZiLOG.com. |
| Unique, collectible, and often really expensive, artist-created vinyl dolls are the toy fetish du jour for hipster kids of all ages. Originally a Hong Kong trend, they've landed in America with a sizable splash -- but you won't find them at your local Toys R Us and not many children will ever get their hands on them. Often designed by artists of the "low-brow" school, these dolls are actually limited-edition works of art. We visited the grand opening of vinyl toy boutique Kid Robot in Los Angeles, where artist Gary Basemen was signing his 3D creatures.
While having a brick-and-mortar store devoted to art toys in your city is the best way to choose what you want, that's not always an option for many customers since there are still relatively few such specialty shops across our fair land. Therefore, you must hunt for them via the Internet. Beyond Kid Robot, here are are some other online stores: Critterbox: Buy these cartoonist- and artist-inspired dolls direct from the company that makes them. My Plastic Heart: A wide range of Asian urban vinyl dolls can be found here. Strangeco: Check out their links page for even more creators/producers of vinyl dolls. Sweatyfrog.com: This store vows to promote new and innovative concepts in toys, and they do indeed have some fresh items. Giant Robot Store: The commercial arm of the Asian pop culture magazine sets the trends by locating up-and-coming neato stuff. Ningyoushi: You can find lots of limited-edition designer toys from Hong Kong and Japan here. |
| Bet you didn’t know that those buttons on your favorite soda machine do much more than select which drink you want. They can actually reveal all sorts of info about the machine’s sales. Find out more about the amazing world of soda pop hacking here. |
| In tech topics…
Safeway Is Watching: The shopping records recorded by a man’s Safeway Club Card leads to his mistaken arrest. You Mean Other Countries Have Freedom of OS Choice? Brazil dumps Microsoft’s beloved Windows for Linux, saying it’s cheaper and safer. Crazy talk! Where There’s a Will… Researchers say they’ve cracked the radio frequency ID code used in all those high-tech car keys. That should make stealing cars so much easier! Thinking Different Works: It may lack a sizable market share, but Apple is nevertheless the most influential brand name, according to a survey of ad executives. |
| Kevin R. routinely scours the Web for the craziest deals. Here’s what he found this week:
Maxtor 120GB hard drive -- $46 A subscription to eWeek -- free! Verbatim 8x DVD+R 100-disc spindle -- $29.99 |
| Sarah uncovers the Web’s most odd oddities -- and suffers the ridicule of her co-workers -- just for your amusement! Here’s what she found this week:
1. Women in spacesuits! |
| Joseph of Meriden, Conn. asked Steve: Is iNest usable on Windows PCs?
Yes, the UI uses a standard html browser, so you could use MS Explorer. But, cautioned Steve, the interface won’t be as clean and it may not operate as smoothly. Vincent of Sprindal, Ark. asked Steve if iNest is okay to use with high-amperage devices like air conditioners. Steve said that the actual power line supports higher amperages, so there should be no problem switching higher loads. |
