I carry my iPad with me pretty much all the time. And, increasingly I find myself carrying ONLY my iPad and my smartphone during the day. I don’t carry my laptop. I don’t carry a pen or even my Livescribe Echo SmartPen. I don’t even carry an external keyboard for the iPad. And if I am going to go light I might as well carry a small, light bag. I’ve been on the hunt for something small and light that also had some style to it. So when I saw the Messenger Bag for Tablets on Sena’s website I took note. But I had some questions about it. Would it be TOO small? Would it be too heavy? Would the silver plate on the front be too big and “blingy”? Would it look too much like a murse?… Continue reading on Gear Diary ...

A while agoI reviewed the iPhone and iPad versions of Virtual City, noting that my only real complaint was the lack of a sandbox mode – and the high initial price of the iPad version (which has been lowered). The game already took advantage of the high resolution Retina display which made it shine on the iPad, so my assumption was that there would be a minimal difference in the move to the Kindle Fire. Turns out I was right … and wrong. Read on to find out what I mean.

The Hype:
Build a city of your dream – a residential paradise or an industrial center. Build dwelling… Continue reading on Gear Diary ...

Journey – Greatest Hits, Volume 2

When you look at some of the best ‘greatest hits’ collections, it is hard to think about augmenting them by going back to the same well a second time. The Beatles 62-66 and 67-70 are complete enough that a second set would feel superfluous, the same is true with the Rolling Stones Hot Rocks, The Eagle’s Greatest Hits and so on.

Journey’s Greatest Hits is one of the top-selling collections of all time, posting more than 25 million albums sold through the years. Now we get Volume 2 of the greatest hits, encompassing basically the same years – which raises the basic question of whether there is enough material to make a whole new collection. Let’s take a look.… Continue reading on Gear Diary ...

Mix together a crime-drama mystery, puzzles, hidden objects, and tons of twists and turns and intrigue … and you have the makings of one of the most compelling casual games made this year. The name of that game is “Special Enquiry Detail: The Hand that Feeds” from G5 Entertainment, and I reviewed the iPad release earlier this year. Now it is available for Android! Let’s take a look and see how the port stands up to the original release!… Continue reading on Gear Diary ...

Art Ensemble Of Chicago – Reese And The Smooth Ones

When I first thought about doing a ‘Vinyl Revisions’ series, there were three records that came to mind: Anthony Braxton’s Five Pieces 1975, Steve Lacy’s The Wire, and this record.

As mentioned in a comment on my Braxton review, that music was compiled in 2008 on the Complete Arista Recordings as a digital release. This record was briefly available in 2002 on Get Back Records as a CD release but has otherwise been out of print – even though Amazon claims a 2009 re-release on vinyl, it has been ‘out of stock’ every time I have checked. I missed out on grabbing the CD – I saw it, waited a bit and then … it was gone. So the versions in my collection are digitized from vinyl … but as I started writing this I discovered something … the album is available on iTunes for $9.99! Let’s take a look:… Continue reading on Gear Diary ...

If you use a Mac, then you probably use iPhoto for basic image editing and iMovie for basic video editing. But what if you use a PC? The tools included there are not nearly as capable, friendly or integrated. And what if you want to go further than the basic editing capabilities of the iTools? That is where Adobe Premiere Elements 10 & Photoshop Elements 10 come in – offering integrated photo and video editing and production tools for both OS X and Windows 7.

The folks at Adobe sent me a review copy, so let’s take a look!… Continue reading on Gear Diary ...

Images: Author

Quick, what’s the first thing that comes to your mind when I say “Godzilla?”

For most it is the star of childhood monster movies that feature horrible voice-dubbing. For the true auto enthusiast it means one thing – Nissan GT-R.

I took delivery of a 2012 GT-R for Super Bowl weekend and despite a few little things, this is one SUPER car.

GT-R is the North American version of the Skyline GT-R, Nissan’s answer to the likes of Porsche 911 and Chevrolet Corvette Z06 and ZR-1.

The 2012 model GT-R generates a modest 530 horsepower and… Continue reading on Gear Diary ...

I loved the PC version of SuperMarket Mania 2, and now that it is available for iPhone and iPad I wanted to take another look and see how it would work as a port! Read on and find out how they did!

The Hype:
Nikki and her friends are back in Supermarket Mania 2! Help her uncle Ross manage and run his chain of grocery stores on the other side of the country. Keep the supermarket shelves stocked up, floors clean and customers coming as you work on improving the stores and increasing profits. It’s not all peachy though, as the evil Assistant Torg and his robotic… Continue reading on Gear Diary ...

I had bought and enjoyed Mystery of the Crystal Portal for my iPad and also loved the PSP version in spite of some issues with having to pan around the scene, so I was excited to try out the Kindle Fire version. It had been a while since I played, so it felt fresh as I had forgotten most of the game. Let’s take a loot at hwo the experience translates to the Kindle Fire!… Continue reading on Gear Diary ...

Your teeth are precious. And as tough as they are, they actually need to a good bit of attention if you want them hanging around. Brushing and flossing are a must. Water picks are good too. And while it is easy to get into a healthy routine when you are home, it can be much tougher when you travel or are out and about for a 14 hour work day. That’s where Cenoire’s Eluo Sonic Toothbrush comes in. The Eluo is easy to carry, simple to use and, believe it or not, even looks kind of neat.

Here’s a look.… Continue reading on Gear Diary ...

Almost two years ago I did a review of the 2003 PC game called ‘XIII’, which took a French intrigue-filled graphic novel and brought it to life in a unique graphical style. Late last year the game made the jump to the iOS platform as a hidden object adventure. Let’s see how it did!

The Hype:
Imagine waking up to discover you’ve led several different lives.
Based on the comic book series by Jean Van Hamme and William Vance.

A man suffering from amnesia is found washed up on a beach by an elderly couple. He has to unravel who he is and where he has come from, the only clue to his identity being the numerals “XIII” tattooed on his neck.

You are XIII, a man with a host of enemies and who faces danger at every turn as he goes in search of his past.

Pursued by mysterious strangers and wanted for the assassination of the President of the United States of America, his life becomes a whirl of conspiracy and intrigue.

Pay close attention to everything around you, because it will no doubt be your only chance to piece together XIII’s enigmatic past.

Use your inventory to escape from the most hazardous of situations.

Are you ready for an adventure unfolding at breakneck speed?… Continue reading on Gear Diary ...

Well, it could be “grandmother of PC games” for all I know.  My biology background didn’t include methodology for determining software sex identity and their gender bits look the same to me.

XVision has released DONKEY.BAS for iOS 5.0+ mobile devices, based on one of the original IBM PC DOS games written by Bill Gates and Neil Konzen. Yes, that Bill Gates.

The concept is simple:  The player is driving down the road in what appears to be a late 1940s race car, destination unknown.  Suddenly, up ahead, a donkey appears in your lane.  What to do!? Change lanes before it’s too late!  Read on to see my review of the game plus a chance for a reader to win a copy of the game!… Continue reading on Gear Diary ...

I deal with the same battery scenario at least twice a week. When we have game nights, I go hours without a chance to charge my iPhone. There is no charging port in our buses and really never anywhere in a gym or field for me to charge during the games. Of course road games are extra tough since I listen to music or podcasts during the trip to and from our opponent. That is a lot of use with no power and usually a late night. Take this past Friday for example. We left the school at 1:45 in the afternoon and I walked into my house at 1:30am. All of that time… Continue reading on Gear Diary ...

Late last year G5 Games released a ‘Game Navigator’ for iPhone and iPad, and has since integrated part of it into all of their games. That familiar interface where you see a number of recommended games, the most recent release, and the game you are starting all at once, has become an integral part of every G5 game – which is a testament to how well this app works. Let’s take a look!… Continue reading on Gear Diary ...

I have said before that I have been reading much more since getting my Nook Touch last June, which has really been wonderful. The Nook Touch in my Oberon case is just a thing of beauty to hold and behold. It has allowed me to catch new books like Robopocalypse and recent releases like The Art of Racing in the Rain, re-read almost my entire Kurt Vonnegut collection, get ready for The Hunger Games, and grab books I always meant to read but had long forgotten – like The Accidental Tourist.

Whenever a movie is made from a book, the comparisons are made and are generally unflattering – sometimes the movie is better (Godfather) but most times the movie is significantly lacking (pretty much everything else). There are a few examples where both are excellent – the recent movie The Help is a great example of something you should both read AND see.

But recently I have fallen in love with another book/movie combo: The Accidental Tourist. Let’s take a quick look at both versions!… Continue reading on Gear Diary ...