We missed out on Napoleon Dynamite when it first came out, but when our kids were a bit older we watched it together, and it remains one of their favorites. All of us pull quotes from the film on occasion. Apparently after enough years that it has properly faded into obscurity, cult classic Napoleon Dynamite is returning in cartoon form. Here is a bit of info from the press release (you can read the entire release below). NAPOLEON DYNAMITE (Heder) is a 16-year-old boy convinced – for no apparent reason – that he is destined for greatness and blessed with unlimited “sweet abilities.” He spends his days practicing ninja moves, drawing ligers, soul dancing and Continue reading on Gear Diary …

‘The Man with No Name Trilogy’ on Blu-Ray for 66% Off! If you asked my kids about my favorite movies, after Star Wars they would undoubtedly name ‘The Good, The Bad And The Ugly’. The so-called “spaghetti westerns” have always been my favorite films of the genre, and today only they are available for 66% off on Amazon.com! Here is the description: The Sergio Leone “spaghetti westerns” did not simply add a new chapter to the genre…they reinvented it. From his shockingly violent and stylized breakthrough, A Fistful of Dollars, to the film Quentin Tarantino calls “the best-directed movie of all time,” The Good, the Bad and the Continue reading on Gear Diary …

(image courtesy icanhazcheeseburger, or inside B&N headquarters today. Your choice.) It’s officially happened … eBooks are outselling paper books at Amazon.com, and it’s fair to say that this isn’t just a one-off fluke. This is a big change in publishing and reading! Even though it’s been brewing for a while, it seems like these milestones are falling faster and faster! Let’s start with the reasons any eBook fan should be super excited about this news: – This gives eBooks a whole new level of legitimacy. Publishers won’t have a leg to stand on  with respect to delaying ebook releases versus paper versions. Even if they try to pull that, all it will do… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Save $186 on the Vostro 330 Laptop The Vostro is the first family of Dell computers designed specifically for small business, although it will work great no matter what you do. The Vostro gives you the flexibility to choose exactly the PC you need—without the added costs you don’t. Because when it comes to finding the right small-business computer, “full-featured” and “affordable” should never be mutually exclusive. This NGD Deal will save you almost $200 and have the laptop on the way to you for under $520. Here’s what Dell has to say about it! Design that Commands Attention: As strong as it is sophisticated, the aluminum case on all new Vostro Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Every page of every issue of Playboy ever published all available for your iPad. Really. Playboy Enterprises just announced the introduction of its new web-based i.Playboy.com subscription service. Looking for one of those articles you missed reading? They say it is ALL there, more than 130,000 pages in total. That is a lot of articles over the years, all the way from December, 1953 to present. Marilyn Monroe’s spelling, grammar and sentence structure never looked so good. OK, duh, we know they will be including every pictorial and centerfold as well, but according to every married man who has subscribed over the years, you were just reading it for the articles… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Today’s Gear Deal brings us the 17.3″ Dell XPS 17 customizable laptop. It is now available for as little as $749.99. The laptops feature an anodized aluminum display back, brushed aluminum palmrest and a diamond cut trim around they keyboard and touchpad area. Built into are a Skype-certified 720p HD webcam, JBL designed and certified speakers with Waves MaxxAudi. Option include a backlit keyboard, a 9-cell battery, an integrated TV tuner, HDMI, Mini DisplayPorts, a 9-in-1 Card Reader, a USB 2.0/eSATA combo port with PowerShare, USB 3.0 and more.The base configuration includes a Core i5-2410M 2.3GHz, NVIDIA GeForce GT 550M 1GB Optimus graphics, 4GB DDR3, 500GB 7200RPM Hard Drive, 17.3″ HD+ 900p WLED LCD, and more… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

We all know Photoshop is a great product.  While I may be partial to the open source program called the Gimp, Photoshop is still the king of editing programs.  When you really know your stuff, you can do some pretty amazing things with Photoshop.   A co-worker and teacher of mine, Gene Strickland, has done something pretty amazing, and he’s posted it on YouTube for all to see. The above video is Gene painting Captain Jack Sparrow.  The results are fantastic!  The video has been greatly speeded up so you can see him paint the picture in what seems like mere minutes. Even though the video was only minutes long… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

For more than a quarter-century I have been serious about photography and videography. And for more than a quarter-century I have discovered that one cannot have too many gadgets/accessories when being serious about photography/videography. A press release arrived at the GearDiary.com inbox that caught my eye recently. It is touting a new customizable free-shooting stabilizing platform called Camtrol. It looks like something straight out of a Transformers movie. It is designed to work with handheld digital video cameras as well as the new breed of HDSLR cameras. Basically it is an action grip attached to a wide base platform with retractable feet. The connecting arm features multiple swivel joints allowing the user… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Image courtesy of WinXDVD Something for nothing is pretty hard to come by these days, but once in a while you can score some pretty cool free stuff. From May 18th to May 20th you can get WinX DVD Ripper and HD Video Converter absolutely free. Both programs are included in the .zip file, as well as a read me file with the license keys inside. The only thing that must be done on your part is that you activate the products by May 23. These products are only available for free for Windows OS, but from the looks of thing, they are quite robust with features and specs. The worst thing about this deal is… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

With Father’s Day right around the corner and fuel prices causing many to think perhaps of a “staycation” this summer, those looking for a different sort of gift should check out Swann and their new line of RC Indoor Helicopters. Many ask themselves, “Aren’t remote control helicopters difficult to fly?” Yes they are, or were. Swann, a company mostly dedicated to security devices, offers a break from the routine with this new line of rechargeable RC Indoor Helicopters. Within minutes of making my tester “flight ready” I was buzzing around the den and terrorizing the cat. Fun is had in 8-minute chunks — as that is the limit of the onboard… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

We here at Gear Diary thought we’d make you aware of a way to rid yourself of technology; automotive technology, that is. Old, unwanted automotive technology, of course. (You don’t really think a site called GEAR DIARY is going to encourage you to dump your technology and go all monk-like, do you?) If you have a car you are not using (or which is no longer usable), but aren’t sure of how best to dispose of it, Giveacar.co.uk (oh, yeah, and you need to be in the UK, did I mention that?) will help you dispose of your old or damaged car with the proceeds going to charity.  Aside from that whole doing-a-good-thing vibe… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

It was an entirely different era … sure there was war and our kids were dying in far off lands for questionable causes, but everything about the way it was handled and perceived was different. And into the mess of the post-Woodstock Zeitgeist Marvin Gaye launched an album that simultaneously soothed and questioned. This week marks forty years since “What’s Going On?” hit record stores and the airwaves. To mark the anniversary, Motown is putting together a 40th Anniversary edition 2-CD/LP ‘super set’(Amazon link). According to his Motown Website: On May 21, 1971, Motown Records released an album unique to its vast, already classic catalog: a suite Continue reading on Gear Diary …

If you are looking for a new desktop computer today’s Gear Deal may be just the thing! Today’s deal brings big savings and free upgrades to the HP Pavilion Elite h8xt Intel 2011 “Sandy Bridge” Core i7 Desktop PC. Thanks to our Gear Sponsor, with this computer you can get a free upgrade to a 1.5TB Hard Drive (a $100 savings), a free 15-month Norton Internet Security subscription, 35% off a 21.5-inch diagonal widescreen monitor (a $70 savings), and FREE shipping. Normally the HP h8xt without the upgrades would be $1,049.99. With this deal you GET the upgrades and save up to $200. That brings the total price down to just $849.99. &nbsp… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

I love a minimalist case for my iPad and iPhone. I appreciate being able to add some protection to the somewhat delicate devices without losing the slim, light look and feel Apple has been able to achieve. It is the reason I have been a fan of Case-Mate’s Barely There series  cases since they first appeared on the scene, and I have been lucky enough to review one for pretty much each of the devices I have owned since. The company has released the iPad 2 version of the Barely There and were kind enough to send a review… Continue reading on Gear Diary …

Image courtesy AllAboutJazz One thing I miss about living in the Boston area was the ready-made cultural exposure always available. It was there I first heard cornet player Taylor Ho Bynum playing live. I have tracked his playing since then and enjoyed his music. His latest newsletter has some great info that I recommend checking out – but the item of interest is how he is releasing some of his music archive for FREE! He announced that he is “starting a new series of free album-length downloads on my website”, including this live recording from the Vision Festival 2008. Here is the description: Taylor Ho Bynum – cornet; Matt Bauder Continue reading on Gear Diary …