One of the things that I’ve missed in moving from the UNIX world to the Mac/PC world is the difficulty in manipulating some of the “under the hood” aspects of the operating systems.  I’m a nerd; when I want to kill a process, or delete a systems file, or some such, geez, I don’t want a whole bunch of rigamarole to go through–I just want to find the friggin’ process and kill the sucker! Now, in Windows you can do that if you know how to translate the name of the process in the process table to what the actual program is, but in iOS, that’s not doable.  At least, it wasn’t until now.  Clearly… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Yesterday Chip Chick posted about what has to be the most expensive iPad case on the market to date.  This morning I awoke to another contender.  The house of Dior Homme, the menswear division of Christian Dior SA, the French clothing retailer has released details on their iPad case.  Scheduled for a mid-January 2011 release the leather flip style case is slated for a January 2011 release. The flip open book style case will be available for purchase at the designer’s Japan boutiques and made in two variations.  Tuxedo black and classic coated canvas. The Dior Homme iPad case carries a retail price tag of ¥72,450 (US $895). Learn more here. Continue reading on Gear Diary …

I’ve been extremely impressed with the every-growing line of products from Joby. The very first Gorillamobile tri-pod I reviewed here on the site still finds use on a regular basis. Now Joby has released a new Gorillamobile designed specifically for the iPhone 4. The new Gorillamobile… combines the protection of a durable, always-on bumper case with the hands-free positioning capabilities of a JOBY tripod. The bumper case design celebrates the sleek form of the iPhone and is equipped with a rail system that easily slides on and off the tripod stand in portrait or landscape orientation. No matter what position the iPhone and tripod achieve, the bumper case design ensures that both cameras and Continue reading on Gear Diary …

I love rounding up all of the deals for digital download games on a weekly basis. And when I say ‘I love’ it, what I mean of course is that I HATE it, but I love saving money, and I love sharing the opportunity to save money with everyone else! So imagine how thrilled I was to get an email today from a site called Deals4Downloads, which aggregates deals from a bunch of online sites including Steam, GamersGate, Direct2Drive, Good Old Games, Amazon and Impulse! Every day they have updated links to all of the best sale prices on games offered at those sites, and then they round up the best offers… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

What with two kids and an absent-minded wife, it’s a miracle that we don’t misplace our cell phones more often.  In our case, they usually turn up to be under the couch cushions, much like spare change and missing pens, but Zomm doesn’t want you to have to rely on Doug Moran’s Knack for Finding Stuff ™; they have a technical solution. The Zomm wireless leash gives you a way to locate that sucker with a bit more confidence than yelling, “Papa!  I can’t find my cell phone!”  And with their latest firmware upgrade, you can now perform tasks like choosing different distances at which an alarm will sound, and customizing the emergency number it… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

It’s not like you could possibly miss it, but if you were watching  last night’s Hawaii Five-0 episode, then you likely saw the scene where … oh heck, just watch! Chin Ho Kelly challenges Kono Kalakaua to perform the search while they are looking at a sculpture, when she reaches into her bag and pulls out the LG Optimus 7 — the first time I have seen one in the wild, even if only on TV. Larry has pointed out Apple’s movie and television product placements, and it looks like Microsoft is taking a page from their book; the one which says… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Today’s Gear Deal brings us the newly reintroduced 17.3″ HP Pavilion dv7 Laptop. The Pavilion dv7 laptop is similar to higher end HP Pavilion dv7 Select Edition and is available in Black Cherry or Champagne. The laptop sports integrated Intel HD graphics although there is an option for discrete 512MB ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5470 / 1GB ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5650 switchable graphics that is also available. The system also features Dolby audio + Altec Lansing speakers, an HDMI port, an eSATA port, a 5-in-1 card reader and TruVision HD Webcam. Optional upgrades include a Core i5 or Quad Core i7 CPU, up to 2TB 5200RPM Hard Drive or a 160GB SSD… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Publishers have struggled mightily with where ebooks fall in their lineups. There’s no clear progression like hardcover to paperback to mass market. eBooks sort of sneak in and gum up the works, causing some publishers to think the answer is to hold back on ebook releases to give the hardcover a chance to thrive. The result has been nasty letters from customers, one-star reviews on Amazon for books that aren’t in ebook form on release day, and general bitterness from consumers. Not the environment to foster bestsellers. Of course, more publishers should be looking to emulate Random House. They’ve opted to do a same-day ebook and hardcover release on John Grisham’s newest book, “The Confession”, and… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

As a runner I know what it’s like to be out early in the morning on a cold winter day.  You do your best to keep each part of your body warm and protected from the elements.  Gloves, hat, wool socks, these are but some of the tools I use to keep myself warm when out and about.  The ThermaJock though hasn’t yet found a place in my running wardrobe – and I’m not sure it will. The Thermajock is specifically designed to protect you male private parts from cold and chafing during cold weather activities because, well you know, you don’t want anything freezing… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

I work with some awesome people day in and day out. They are smart, creative, dedicated to their community and a great team with whom to work. They are also, for the most part, tech-phobic or, to be gentler, not the most technically savvy crew around. For example, when I moved my entire staff over to Gmail from Outlook a few years ago, you would have thought I was repeatedly poking them in the eye with a sharp object. The kicking and screaming that went on was painful. Then, one day … bam! … I heard the words “I actually kinda like it.” over and over. (Okay, I am exaggerating but not by much!) And those… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Judie knows gadgets. She’s been blogging for years and has tried out hundred and hundreds of different items and accessories. Many of them get “ooos and ahhs” from her, but rarely have I seen a product draw such immediate enthusiasm as this one. No, this product received an “OMG Great Idea!!! I need some to keep on hand!!” What product caught her eye in such a big way? Is it a phone? Nope. Is it a tablet? Nope. Is it a new computer? Nope. So what is it? It is a bag. And no, it is not one of her fancy designer bags. This is the Gadget Genie, a simple looking bag that… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

I HATE Elana’s transistor radio. It has the most annoying crackle when AM radio is on and even FM radio sounds terrible. I’ve tried to throw it out and replace it with a WiFi radio or an iPod touch numerous times. But like a bad penny it keeps coming back. Yup, none of the solutions I offered to Elana as replacements for her radio were good enough for her. She kept going back to that THING. Until now! Grace Audio was kind enough to send me a review unit of their Allegro Wi-Fi Radio Portable Wireless Radio & Streamer. I like… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

These days everything is “social.” CNN wants me to know how many people have “liked” an article, the New York Times has embraced Twitter, and you don’t even need to go on TV to get your 15 minutes of fame … now all you need to do is cause a controversy on the internet! Strike a metaphorical match, and voilà, before you know it the smoldering fire you lit has everyone buzzing. Until the next #topic comes along that is. Yes, the social internet has taken our Attention Deficit Society to all time highs … or is it lows? Truth be told, in some cases this “hot news” ADD is a good thing, because it brings… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Image provided by Heartmath Life is stressful that’s for sure.  I am constantly looking for ways to safely relieve stress.  Sometimes it’s reading, sometimes it’s plugging the buds in while I listen to some soothing music.  I’ve often wondered is there was something a little more scientific that doesn’t require you to pop a pill.  That is where the emWave Personal Stress Reliever comes in. The emWave PSR works by measuring the variations between heart beats (heart coherence), which is reflective of real-time changes that occur in our mental and emotional state. Using real-time feedback with colored lights and sounds, the emWave allows the user to practice a research validated technique (included) combined with the technology – to realize when Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Like any good admitted fanboy, I often find myself looking for Apple products on TV. Lately I’ve been spotting more and more iDevices popping up on many of the shows I watch. So I’ve decided to start a new weekly segment entitled “Apple On TV.” The premise is simple. Whenever I spot an Apple product in one of the shows I watch (and I watch a lot of TV), I’ll take a screen shot of it and post it here, in a weekly recap, with a short description. But I need your help too! Although I watch a lot of TV I don’t watch everything. So if you come across an Apple product in one of… Continue reading on Gear Diary …