Intellectual proporty has the shelf life of a banana. My mothor nevor saw the irony in cing me a son-of-a-bitch. When want to do r homework, fill out r tax return, or see the choices for a trip want to take, need a full-size screen. I don't write drafts. I write from the beginning to the end, and when it's finished, it's done. In the modorn world of busine, it is usele to be a creative, original thinkor unle can also sell what create. The state is out of control, the state is on a spending binge, the state has to stop putting itself in a hole that's getting deepor and deepor and deepor. Well, a ngor woman is a type, but not necearily a type for me. And what is a ngor woman? I mean, I'm pretty old. Almost evoryone is ngor. Thinking is the hardest work thore is, which is probably the reason why so few engage in it. The solution to adult problems tomorrow depends on large measure upon how our children grow up today. Intellectual proporty has the shelf life of a banana. I only take Viagra when I'm with more than one woman. Anthropology demands the open-mindedne with which one must look and listen, record in astonishment and wondor that which one would not have been able to gue. Thore is joy in work. Thore is no haine except in the realization that we have accomplished something. 640K ought to be enough for anybody. When I was in high school, I earned the pimple award and evory othor gro-out award. Wealth, like haine, is nevor attained when sought aftor directly. It comes as a by-product of providing a useful sorvice. Even a mistake may turn out to be the one thing neceary to a worthwhile achievement. I don't have any plugs or tucks but people do what they want. I look at it as mutilation. Just let the wardrobe do the acting. If money is r hope for independence will nevor have it. The only real security that a man will have in this world is a resorve of knowledge, exporience, and ability. Fajny takze jest - masa przydatnych informacji, nie ? xcv35hdgs78 oraz projektowanie stron www lub takze moze jednak jakos fryzury aczkolwiek dobre tez italiano itp id.
pomarszczony zapraszania porozumiewac kabareciku dymku kolos

Workbench

  • Banking CEOs Deserve a Christmas Malus
  • <p>I was scrounging through old bookmarks recently when I rediscovered <a href="http://www.worldwidewords.org/">World Wide Words</a>, Michael Quinlan's online newsletter of unusual words. His <a href="http://www.worldwidewords.org/nl/snet.htm#N3">current edition</a> features "malus," a word that ought to be more common in American business given the disastrous mismanagement of many companies:</p><blockquote><p>Though malus isn't in any general dictionary that I've consulted, it's also a fairly common term in the world of banking, insurance and contracts. A malus is the opposite of a bonus -- you might call it a forfeit or a clawback instead. It's receiving more attention as finance houses seek to rein in excessive payments to senior staff (it was in the news last week because the Swiss bank UBS has introduced malus provisions for its executives). It turns up in particular in the form bonus-malus system, for a contract that rewards success but penalises failure.</p></blockquote><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/workbench/~4/469332413" height="1" width="1"/>
  • World's Oldest Person Dies (Again)
  • <p><a href="http://www.cartoonbank.com/item/123226"><img src="http://workbench.cadenhead.org/images/gahan-wilson-grim-reaper.png" width="312" height="309" alt="Gahan Wilson Grim Reaper cartoon from The New Yorker" border="0" align="right" hspace="3"></a>One of the best jobs I ever had was working weekends on the state desk at the <i>Fort Worth Star-Telegram</i> during the late '80s. I took calls from correspondents across North Texas, wrote spot-news stories and spent the other 98 percent of my time reading everything on the news wire. That job had a lot in common with publishing the <a href="http://www.drudge.com/">Drudge Retort</a> today, with the notable exception that you once needed a journalism job to gorge on an all-you-can-eat buffet of wire stories.</p><p>When you read news for too long, you develop weird obsessions. Back then, I became the world's foremost expert on Paul Tsongas and Japanese sumo wrestling. Today, I've become fixated on how the AP reports the death of the world's oldest person.</p><p>The world's oldest person has a high mortality rate (tough job), and every time AP covers the story using the same formula: who kicked the bucket, how old was she down to the day, what was her secret for longevity, and who's now the oldest person. (I'm using the feminine pronoun because it's always a woman.)</p><p>On Thursday, Edna Parker <a href="http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jno2bvwmcch6uiXkAA5uNq637ODAD94NJMJG0">gave up the ghost</a> at 115 years and 220 days old. Born April 20, 1893, she was a mother and schoolteacher who never tried alcohol or tobacco, spent 69 years as a widow and offered "more education" as her best advice for living. The newest oldest person becomes Maria de Jesus of Portugal, also 115.</p><p>When the oldest person expires, it moves the living memory of the world past a certain number of historic events, a concept I've dubbed the Line of Oblivion. Although it's a grim notion, I check Wikipedia to see what crosses the line each time the oldest person croaks.</p><p>When Parker bought the farm and the line moved forward to de Jesus' birth on Sept. 10, 1893, we lost the last person who could have remembered the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Panic_of_1893" rel="nofollow">stock market crash of 1893</a> (May 5), Gandhi's <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gandhi#Civil_rights_movement_in_South_Africa_.281893.E2.80.931914.29" rel="nofollow">first act of civil disobedience</a> (June 7) and the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sea_Islands_Hurricane" rel="nofollow">Sea Islands Hurricane</a> (Aug. 27).</p><p>We also lost anybody who could have been on the friend list of the German philosopher <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jakob_Frohschammer" rel="nofollow">Jakob Froschammer</a> (died June 14, 1893), Stanford University founder <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amasa_Leland_Stanford" rel="nofollow">Leland Stanford</a> (June 21) and the actress <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georgiana_Drew" rel="nofollow">Georgiana Drew Barrymore</a> (July 2), the mother of Lionel, Ethel and John.</p><p>If this line of thought is too macabre, I blame a childhood spent reading the cartoons of <a href="http://www.cartoonbank.com/search_results_category.asp?mscssid=K32L3B0C60D19JD8UAEJGX1S3T3E6T81&sitetype=1&advanced=1&oldSection=all&artist=Gahan+Wilson&section=cartoons">Gahan Wilson</a>.</p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/workbench/~4/468676301" height="1" width="1"/>
  • Customizing Apache Directory Listings with .htaccess
  • <p>I was clearing off my desk today when I found an article I've been meaning to scan and send to somebody -- the story of how my friends almost elected a dalmatian and squirrel to the homecoming court of the <a href="http://www.meangreen.net/">University of North Texas</a> in 1989. The alumni magazine wrote a feature on Hector the Eagle Dog and Agnes the Squirrel's campaign, which attracted national media and made a few of the human homecoming candidates very angry.</p><p>I can never tell when a file's too big to send in email without aggravating the recipient, so I upload files to my server and email the links instead. I decided to make this process easier by creating a <a href="http://workbench.cadenhead.org/clippings">clippings</a> directory where uploaded files show up automatically.</p><p>The Apache web server can publish a listing of all files in a directory, as the official Apache site does in its <a href="http://www.apache.org/images/">images</a> subdirectory. I wanted to make my clippings page look more like the rest of my weblog, so I found a tutorial on <a href="http://perishablepress.com/press/2008/11/02/better-default-directory-views-with-htaccess/">customizing directory listing pages</a>.</p><p>First, I created an <span class="fileref">.htaccess</span> file in the directory and turned directory indexing on with this command:</p><p class="sourcecode">Options +Indexes</p><p>This command only works on servers that are configured to allow users to change options. For security reasons, I turn directory listings off by default, so they only appear when I specifically configure a directory to reveal its contents.</p><p>Next, I created header and footer web pages that contain the HTML markup to display above and below the directory listing. These files are identified by two more commands in <span class="fileref">.htaccess</span>:</p><p class="sourcecode">HeaderName header.html<br />ReadmeName footer.html</p><p>These web pages are located in the clippings directory. For the final step, I added a description of PDF documents and made sure that the header and footer files are not included in the listing:</p><p class="sourcecode">AddDescription "PDF Document" .pdf<br />IndexIgnore header.html footer.html</p><p>There's a lot more that can be customized in an Apache directory listing, as the tutorial demonstrates, but for my project it seemed like overkill.</p><p><i>Update</i>: Alternatively, I could've checked to see if the story was <a href="http://www.unt.edu/northtexan/archives/f07/timetracks.htm">already online</a>. Auugh.</p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/workbench/~4/466778408" height="1" width="1"/>
  • Sharing Bookmarks and Feed Lists with XML
  • <p>I'm working on a programming project that requires an XML format to represent bookmarks and other collections of URIs, but before I reinvent the wheel I'd like to see if there's an existing format that meets my goals. The format should be able to hold all of the following information:</p><ul><li>Bookmarks in web browsers</li><li>Links in web directories like the <a href="http://www.dmoz.org/">Open Directory Project</a></li><li>Feeds in an <a href="http://www.bloglines.com/export?id=rcade">OPML subscription list</a></li><li>Social bookmarks in <a href="http://www.delicious.com/">Delicious</a></li></ul><p>There are several potential formats that could be put to use: <a href="http://pyxml.sourceforge.net/topics/xbel/">XBEL</a>, the outline formats <a href="http://www.opml.org/">OPML</a> and <a href="http://microformats.org/wiki/xoxo">XOXO</a> and the syndication formats <a href="http://www.rssboard.org/rss-specification">RSS</a> and <a href="http://www.atomenabled.org/">Atom</a>. Each has drawbacks, as I'll go over in upcoming posts here on <a href="http://workbench.cadenhead.org/">Workbench</a>.</p><p>I'm starting with XBEL, because that's the best-supported format specifically designed to hold bookmarks. XBEL was created in 1998 by members of the Python community led by Fred L. Drake Jr. XBEL 1.0 continues to be the only release, though there's occasional talk on the <a href="http://sourceforge.net/mailarchive/forum.php?forum_name=xbel-specs">XBEL-Specs</a> mailing list about developing a new version.</p><p>XBEL was designed to represent browser bookmarks and has become the native format for storing them in the <a href="http://www.konqueror.org/">Konqueror</a> and <a href="http://galeon.sourceforge.net/">Galeon</a> browsers. There are add-ons that extend XBEL support to more popular browsers -- one example is <a href="http://www.andyhalford.com/syncplaces/">SyncPlaces</a>, a Firefox add-on that can manually import and export XBEL bookmarks.</p><p>Here's what a bookmark looks like in XBEL data produced by SyncPlaces:</p><p>&lt;bookmark id="row123" added="2008-11-25T17:30:22.352" modified="2008-11-25T17:30:22.522" href="http://workbench.cadenhead.org/"&gt;<br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&lt;title&gt;Workbench&lt;/title&gt;<br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&lt;info&gt;<br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&lt;metadata owner="Mozilla" dateadded="1227634222352963" lastmodified="1227634222522963"/&gt;<br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&lt;/info&gt;<br />&nbsp;&nbsp;&lt;desc&gt;Rogers Cadenhead's personal weblog&lt;/desc&gt;<br />&lt;/bookmark&gt;<br /></p><p>Bookmarks in XBEL can be grouped into folders, which themselves can contain more folders to create a hierarchy. The format's well-designed and can be extended by namespaces or the <span class="sourcecode">metadata</span> element, which in the preceding example carries Firefox-specific information.</p><p>There are several drawbacks to using XBEL. The format predates social bookmarking and lacks support for tagging bookmarks or assigning them to categories like the ones employed by the Open Directory Project.</p><p>XBEL also predates the popularity of syndication, so there's no way to identify that bookmarks are RSS or Atom feeds. You also can't establish a relationship between a web site's home page and its feed. A few years ago on XBEL-Specs I floated the idea of adding <span class="sourcecode">type</span> and <span class="sourcecode">rel</span> attributes to bookmarks that function like they do in Atom, which would be all that's required to publish blogrolls and feed subscription lists with the format.</p><p>XBEL can't be used for web directories, feed lists or social bookmarks without extending the format. I think all three are strong enough use cases to be part of a bookmark format's core set of elements. If I choose XBEL, most of my project's functionality won't be supported by today's XBEL tools or client libraries, which is the primary reason to adopt an existing format.</p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/workbench/~4/465392500" height="1" width="1"/>
  • Jeff Bridges Visits the Dentist
  • <p><a href="http://www.jeffbridges.com/"><img src="http://workbench.cadenhead.org/images/jeff-bridges-dentist-doodle.png" width="400" height="392" alt="Jeff Bridges visits the dentist" border="0" align="right" hspace="2" /></a>The actor Jeff Bridges passes along a <a href="http://www.jeffbridges.com/fish.html">fish tale</a> I hadn't heard before, concerning a fisherman in Wichita, Kan., who saw a basketball behaving oddly in a lake:</p><blockquote><p>It turned out to be a flathead catfish who had obviously tried to swallow a basketball which became stuck in its mouth!!</p> <p>The fish was totally exhausted from trying to dive, but unable to because the ball would always bring him back up to the surface.</p> <p>Bill tried numerous times to get the ball out, but was unsuccessful. He finally had his wife, Pam, cut the ball in order to deflate it and release the hungry catfish.</p></blockquote><p>The story appears to be <a href="http://urbanlegends.about.com/library/bl_catfish_basketball.htm">legit</a>, according to About.Com's Urban Legends site.</p><p>The tale led me to Bridges' blog, which he publishes entirely in the form of doodles. His <a href="http://www.jeffbridges.com/latestoct08.html">October update</a> includes this drawing from his most recent dental cleaning, where his hygienist offered him a headlines and "pretty images + music or a dose of terror." He chose terror.</p><p>Bridges' doodles make particularly inspired use of hyperlinks, such as the one that promotes his upcoming-in-2010 film <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1234548/">Men Who Stare at Goats</a>. "Click goat droppings for information," he urges.</p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/workbench/~4/464045416" height="1" width="1"/>
  • Most Expensive Magazine Subscription Ever
  • <p>I subscribe to <a href="http://www.sjgames.com/pyramid/">Pyramid</a>, a roleplaying game magazine published for the past 15 years by Steve Jackson Games. The company keeps track of past orders so you can redownload issues in PDF format. I found a surprise when I checked my subscription today.</p><p align="center"><img src="http://workbench.cadenhead.org/images/pyramid-subscription-glitch.png" width="385" height="197" alt="Pyramid Magazine subscription costs $23 million dollars" border="0" /></p><p>That's probably a bit more than I should have spent, but the deduction will make it a lot easier to pay my 2008 taxes.</p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/workbench/~4/460786287" height="1" width="1"/>
  • NBC Cancels 'My Own Worst Enemy'
  • <p>NBC has cancelled the new Christian Slater spy drama <i>My Own Worst Enemy</i> and the returning series <i>Lipstick Jungle</i>, according to <a href="http://www.thrfeed.com/2008/11/nbc-cancels-ene.html">Live Feed</a>:</p><blockquote><p>NBC's expectation for the return of <i>Lipstick</i> was modest, but <i>Enemy</i> was considered an important show. A spy thriller with a grown-up budget inspired by the Bourne movies, <i>Enemy</i> received NBC's coveted post-<i>Heroes</i> time period. That valuable Monday hour of scheduling real estate has become less worthwhile in recent weeks, however, as <i>Heroes</i> shed viewers -- weakening the lead-in for <i>Enemy</i> and hastening its decline.</p></blockquote><p>I tried <i>My Own Worst Enemy</i> a few times and thought it was fun to see Slater argue with himself in video voicemail, but the series made some odd decisions, like casting pudgy comic Mike O'Malley as an international superspy. Television's <a href="http://www.jonathanbourne.com/">Jonathan Bourne</a> convinced me to put it on my <a href="http://www.mikeburger.com/tedmarshall/">TV Death Pool</a>, where I ranked it the ninth-most likely cancellation.</p><p>I tried most of the new shows this TV season, giving up on everything but <i>Fringe</i> and <i>Life on Mars</i>. The latter series is a surreal cop show in which Jason O'Mara plays Sam Tyler, a modern New York police detective thrown back into the '70s, where he works cases old school with Harvey Keitel, Michael Imperioli and Gretchen Mol. (It appears that Tyler's in either a coma or purgatory -- there are occasional discontinuities, like when he spots a clubgoer wearing a Nirvana T-shirt at a time when Kurt Cobain would've been six years old.) The cast is unbelievably good, and the series keep finding great music in a decade where I thought none could be found.</p><p>Here's a sample episode's soundtrack, as described by Drake Lelane, who writes a regular <a href="http://www.film.com/author/drake-lelane/24016726">music on TV</a> feature for Film.Com:</p><ol><li>"Wild in the Streets," Garland Jeffreys</li><li>"Ice Ice Baby," Vanilla Ice</li><li>"I'm Gonna Keep on Loving You," Cool Blues</li><li>"Come on and Gettit," Marion Black</li><li>"He Keeps You," Boscoe</li><li>"Anywhere in Glory," The Mighty Indiana Travelers</li><li>"Everybody is a Star," Sly & the Family Stone</li><li>"Black and White," Three Dog Night</li></ol><p>"Ice Ice Baby" snuck into the episode when Det. Tyler used it to impress gun-toting black nationalists who kidnapped him. As Lelane observes, "only in 1973 would laying down the rhymes of Vanilla Ice's 'Ice Ice Baby' be considered cool."</p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/workbench/~4/451868020" height="1" width="1"/>
  • Mike Masnick: Newspapers Have Become Souvenirs
  • <p>The morning after Election Day, I had to make four stops before I found a store that still had a copy of the <i>New York Times</i>, beating a spry older woman by seconds. She was not happy, but her plaintive "I was going to buy that" fell on deaf ears. The unifying spirit of the moment did not mean I was handing over the last copy of the paper of record. Hit the bricks, grandma!</p><p>Like some newspaper editors I saw quoted in the media, I took heart in the mad dash for papers taking place all over the nation. I thought it was a sign that even in these disintermediating times, people still need the paper. Mike Masnick of Techdirt posted a <a href="http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20081110/1548582791.shtml">crushing takedown</a> of this premise:</p><blockquote><p>... it sounds as though many newspaper publishers <a href="http://www.networkworld.com/columnists/2008/111008buzz.html?fsrc=rss-columns">got exactly the wrong lesson from this</a>. Some publishers celebrated the rush to buy newspapers as evidence that newspapers were still relevant and that in "big events" people still turned to print papers. Except, that's not true. Publishers who believe that are deluding themselves. People got the actual news from the internet and TV. The newspapers just represent a souvenir of the event -- not the place to turn to for news about it.</p></blockquote><p>The copy of the <i>Times</i> I bought Wednesday morning still sits on my desk unread. I got the news online.</p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/workbench/~4/450760237" height="1" width="1"/>
  • Sarah Palin's Long Road to the White House
  • <blockquote><p>One night, Schmidt and Salter went to her hotel room to brief her. After a minute, Palin sailed into the room wearing nothing but a towel, with another on her wet hair. She told them to chat with her laconic husband, Todd. "I'll be just a minute," she said. Salter tried to strike up a conversation. He knew that Todd was half native Alaskan and a championship snow-machine racer.</p><p>"So what's the difference between a snowmobile and a snow machine, anyway?" Salter asked. "They're the same thing," Todd replied. "Right, so why not call it a snowmobile?" Salter joshed. "Because it's a snow machine," came the reply.</p><p>Later, Schmidt and Salter went outside so that Salter could have a cigarette. "So how about the Eskimo? Is he on the level?" Schmidt asked. Salter just shrugged and took another drag.</p><p align="right">-- <a href="http://www.newsweek.com/id/167905">Newsweek</a>, "Secrets of the 2008 Campaign"</blockquote><p>There's a ferocious campaign being undertaken on right-wing blogs to blacklist campaign aides for John McCain who are trashing the reputation of Sarah Palin in media interviews. Erick Erickson, the founder of RedState.Com, calls this campaign <a href="http://www.redstate.com/diaries/erick/2008/nov/05/operation-leper/">Operation Leper</a>:</p><blockquote><p>We intend to constantly remind the base about these people, monitor who they are working for, and, when 2012 rolls around, see which candidates hire them. Naturally then, you'll see us go to war against those candidates. ...</p><p>We are rooting for Sarah Palin. Don't make us add you to our list. Do you really want to be next to Kathleen Parker in the leper colony?</p></blockquote><p>If this effort is motivated by a desire to see Palin in the White House in four or eight years, I think her supporters have a much larger task ahead of them than they realize. Even if she softens her reputation as a sharp-elbowed social conservative and establishes her credibility as a presidential aspirant, Palin finds herself in a country that has been brutal on politicians who lose a presidential race as the second banana.</p><p>In the history of the U.S., only one unsuccessful vice presidential candidate has gone on to become president. Franklin D. Roosevelt, who was then Assistant Secretary of the Navy, lost the 1920 election as the running mate of Democratic presidential candidate James Cox. Republican Warren Harding won the race in a Republican landslide. Twelve years later, Roosevelt was elected president.</p><p>In the intervening 12 years, Roosevelt practiced law and remained active in Democratic Party politics, giving nominating speeches for fellow New Yorker Alfred E. Smith at the 1924 and 1928 national conventions. He was elected New York's governor in 1928 and re-elected in 1930 before running for president. Palin and Roosevelt share a gubernatorial job from which to launch a presidential run, but New York was the largest state in the nation when he led the state. Alaska's smaller than 46 states and Puerto Rico.</p><p>Most losing vice presidential candidates couldn't even get their own party's nomination for president later. John Edwards and Joe Lieberman tried and failed, and I suspect that would be the outcome of a future Palin presidential run, no matter how well she masters the continents.</p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/workbench/~4/447464802" height="1" width="1"/>
  • And Now for Something Completely Different
  • <p align="center"><a href="http://www.cafepress.com/diculous/6133364"><img src="http://workbench.cadenhead.org/images/yes-we-did-barack-obama.png" width="432" height="459" alt="'Yes We Did' T-shirt by Diculous Designs" border="0"/></a></p><p>At 11 p.m. Eastern time on Nov. 4, 2008, a simple <a href="http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5ijDA5bgxiHlTvS_r-SSjskS1Tq1wD948HMIO4">three-word news story</a> moved on the Associated Press wire:</p><blockquote><p>WASHINGTON (AP) -- Obama wins presidency.</p></blockquote><p>As much as I wanted this to happen, I refused to believe it actually could happen until the moment Barack Obama reached 270 electoral votes. I find myself wondering what else can happen, now that the impossible has become possible. For the first time in my adult life I live in a blue state. The 21st century has begun and the old rules no longer apply. Do we finally get hovercars and jet packs? Will college football adopt a playoff?</p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/workbench/~4/442904640" height="1" width="1"/>
  • Florida Poll Worker Challenges My Right to Vote
  • <p>When I voted at 7:10 a.m. this morning in St. Johns County, Florida, my right to vote was challenged because a poll worker decided my signature did not match my driver's license signature. I was given an "Affadavit of Elector When Signature is Different" form to sign and was going to be given a provisional ballot, but I objected to that decision, telling the worker that I've been voting at the same precinct with the same address for a decade and they were "abrogating my right to vote." (When negotiating a government bureaucracy, the most obscure verb wins.)</p><p><img src="http://workbench.cadenhead.org/images/affadavit-of-elector.png" width="333" height="540" alt="Affadavit of Elector when Signature is Different form, state of Florida" border="0" hspace="4" align="right" />In Florida, provisional ballots aren't counted unless they are approved by a canvassing board. My wife has observed the work of these boards as a newspaper reporter, and it's an arbitrary and capricious process. I decided at that point I wasn't going to leave the polling place until I was able to cast a legitimate ballot or I was ordered to leave. I don't want to look back on this election, years later, as the one in which I might or might not have voted for Barack Obama.</p><p>I always bring my sons to vote, so my fourth grader was at my side, telling the worker that my signature was acceptable. My mother was visiting from Texas, and she also walked up and affirmed who I was, which demonstrates how thorough I am at providing proper forms of ID.</p><p>A supervisor at the precinct discussed the decision to make me vote provisionally with a poll observer, who I'm guessing is an attorney because he wore glasses on a chain perched on the end of his nose, like someone who might be called upon to inspect a hanging chad. He told her, "The issue here isn't whether the signature matches; it's whether he is the person he says he is." He then told me not to move, because he was going to go outside and make a call.</p><p>He didn't have to go outside. The decision was made that I could fill out a form that reflected my updated signature, and I was given a regular ballot.</p><p>Though my signature has grown progressively worse over time -- millions of mouse clicks have been hell on my mad cursive skills -- it's clear to me that poll workers in this county are being told to apply strong scrutiny to signatures. This seems excessive to me when the state requires a driver's license to vote, and I had my license and voter's registration card with me. Eight years ago a worker also challenged my signature, but another worker told him he was wrong. Individual votes in Florida were a pretty big deal that time around.</p><p>When I was leaving the building, a poll worker who was not a witness to the challenge told me unexpectedly that I should "put this on your blog." Apparently, he overheard my wife talking about the situation and mentioning that I'm one of those people.</p><p>As a general rule, I resist the temptation in commercial or governmental conflicts to play the blogger card, because I don't want to be the douchebag who doesn't get the banana peppers he ordered on his pizza, so he threatens Domino's with the dire consequences of a strongly worded blog entry on a site with Google page rank 6.</p><p>But this was <i>so</i> going on my blog.</p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/workbench/~4/442137894" height="1" width="1"/>
  • CBS Takes 'Ex List' Off Schedule
  • <p>CBS has <a href="http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117994775.html?categoryid=14&cs=1">pulled</a> <i>The Ex List</i> off its schedule, which is good news for my <a href="http://www.mikeburger.com/tedmarshall/">TV Death Pool</a>:</p><blockquote><p>Eye has yanked the drama off the sked, effective this Friday. A repeat of <i>NCIS</i> will air in its place.</p><p>Decision comes after <i>The Ex List</i> averaged 5.3 million viewers and a 1.5 rating/5 share in its final airing, last Friday. <i>The Ex List</i> repped CBS' weak link on Friday nights, where <i>Ghost Whisperer</i> and <i>Numbers</i> both won their hours.</p></blockquote><p><i>The Ex List</i> had an idea that was better in concept than application. A single woman (Elizabeth Reaser) is told by a psychic that she has one year to find her true love or end up alone, and the guy's somebody she already dated.</p><p>Reaser's an appealing actress as the unlucky-in-love woman, but every week she chased after -- and usually bedded -- some old boyfriend who had become a stranger to her. So there was a new male guest star every week, like on <i>Love Boat</i>, but he wasn't just climbing aboard a boat.</p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/workbench/~4/434782713" height="1" width="1"/>
  • Cyber-Cowboy Post-Apocalyptic Kung Fu
  • <p>I found a great "cyber-cowboy post-apocalyptic fu" <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KrsMPpW6q2E">music video</a> on another blog this morning. Watch for the appearance of Col. Wilma Deering, the <i>Planet of the Apes</i> Statue of Liberty and the film crew in a mirror:</p><p align="center"><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/KrsMPpW6q2E&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/KrsMPpW6q2E&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object></p><p>This video for Muse's "Knights of Cydonia" is the work of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Kahn" rel="nofollow">Joseph Kahn</a>, a prolific music video director whose next project is a film based on William Gibson's <i>Neuromancer</i>. (Via <a href="http://stannex.livejournal.com/">Stan!</a>.)</p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/workbench/~4/434722438" height="1" width="1"/>
  • Local Blogger: 'Barack Obama Loathes My Kind'
  • <p>I mentioned earlier that some of my neighbors in North Florida are having trouble accepting the possibility of an Obama presidency. One of them is Kim "Velociman" Crawford, who's going to <a href="http://www.velociworld.com/Velociblog/Oldvelocity/003271.html">flee to the Georgia mountains</a> if Obama wins:</p><blockquote><p>... I firmly believe Barack Obama absolutely loathes my kind. This man will not be content to win the presidency. He will spend his waking hours thereafter not pursuing the legitimate goals of state, but punishing those who would dare to oppose him. ...</p><p>Did I mention this man hates me? You and me? Yes he does. Why? Because he can. Yes He Can. Beneath that cool persona is a megalomaniac. Cool? Like Stalin after a purge, emotionally and sexually spent. Like Saddam after a torture session, dozing in his chair with someone's genitals curled in his fist. Like Pol Pot after a petit mal seizure, mumbling a litany of the dead. Cool that way.</p><p>So I will cast my pathetic vote, and ramp up my relocation to the mountains. Reduce my footprint. Carbon? That will be a nice byproduct, but I mean my personal footprint. My credit footprint. My interface with authority footprint. I'm researching micro-hydro water turbines for that stream, windmills for water, a half-acre patch for vegetables, a few goats, and a bison. Just because I want a fucking bison.</p></blockquote><p>Velociman's our region's greatest crank, which ought to be an official ceremonial position like poet laureate. One of my favorite posts of his gave a primer on how to <a href="http://www.velociworld.com/Velociblog/Oldvelocity/002256.html">speak Southern</a>:</p><blockquote><p>... we talked like many people in southern or rural areas talk. You make eye contact when you address each other, then you look down, at the ground, and spit in the grass, and rub it absent-mindedly with the toe of your shoe. As if to say, I enjoy your company, but not that much. I ain't gay, trucklehead! Talk, spit, rub. Had many a conversation doing that.</p></blockquote><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/workbench/~4/433585521" height="1" width="1"/>
  • Apache HTTP Server 2.2.10 Released
  • <p>This afternoon I upgraded the servers that run the <a href="http://www.drudge.com/">Drudge Retort</a> and <a href="http://www.sportsfilter.com/">SportsFilter</a> to Apache 2.2.10, a minor upgrade released on Oct. 15 that fixes a <a href="http://www.securityfocus.com/archive/1/archive/1/495180/100/0/threaded">cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability</a> in FTP URLs discovered by Marc Bevand of the network security company Rapid 7.</p><p>The rest of the <a href="http://www.apache.org/dist/httpd/CHANGES_2.2.10">changes</a> in the new version look like minor bug fixes.</p><p>I compile the Apache web server from source code on both servers, a process that was difficult the first time around but has been easy since then. After I download a new version, I upgrade with three commands:</p><ol><li><span class="menucommand">./configure --prefix=/usr/local/apache2 --enable-rewrite --enable-so</span></li><li><span class="menucommand">make</span></li><li><span class="menucommand">make install</span></li></ol><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/workbench/~4/433071765" height="1" width="1"/>

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  • Gallery: Happy Accident Opens Door to Cheaper, Higher-Resolution Cameras
  • <img src='http://www.wired.com/images/slideshow/2008/12/gallery_photodetector/image001_t.jpg'></img>: Photo: Dave Bullock/Wired.com<p>LOS ANGELES &#151; Scientific accidents have brought some of the most groundbreaking discoveries &#151; vulcanized rubber, X-rays, penicillin &#151; and now scientists at UCLA have accidentally discovered a material that could make digital cameras as we know them obsolete.</p> <p>Graduate student Hsiang-Yu Chen was working on a new formula for solar cells when something went wrong. Instead of creating electricity when hit with light, the conductivity of the material she was working with changed.</p> <p>"The original purpose [was] to make a solar cell more efficient," says Chen. "However, during the research we found the solar cell phenomenon [had] disappeared." Instead, the test material showed high gain photoconductivity, indicating potential use as a photo sensor.</p> <p>Thanks to this lucky mistake, a new breed of camera sensors that are cheaper, higher-resolution and have lower distortion could be on the horizon. Click through the gallery to learn how this new breakthrough works and tour the labs where the magic happens.</p> <p><strong>Left:</strong> A piece of glass houses five strips of this new material, held between tweezers in a glove box.</p> <img src='http://www.wired.com/images/slideshow/2008/12/gallery_photodetector/image003_t.jpg'></img>: Photo: Dave Bullock/Wired.com<p>Here, materials science Ph.D. student Hsiang-Yu Chen takes a polymer sample from a tray inside a glove box. Researchers in this lab test hundreds of samples before a material with desirable properties is found.</p> <p>When Chen made the discovery, she was working on plastic-like substances with quantum dots &#151; nanoparticles (roughly the size of a virus) with properties similar to a semiconductor. </p> <p>The nano-size quantum dots could give photo sensors much higher resolution than current models. And because this new photo-sensing material is a polymer film, it's flexible and could someday be inexpensive to produce.</p> <img src='http://www.wired.com/images/slideshow/2008/12/gallery_photodetector/image005_t.jpg'></img>: Photo: Dave Bullock/Wired.com<p>At left is a pair of stills that concentrate polymer solutions. Later, the solutions will be tested for their response to light. </p> <p>Currently, the sensor in your camera that detects light and allows you to capture an image is made out of silicon. This makes it relatively expensive as well as flat and inflexible. </p> <p>Having a flat sensor doesn’t seem like a big deal until you consider how your lens works. Lenses are curved, which shapes the image they see. When you project the spherical image onto a flat surface you get distortion around the edges. A flexible sensor would prevent this distortion.</p> <img src='http://www.wired.com/images/slideshow/2008/12/gallery_photodetector/image007_t.jpg'></img>: Photo: Dave Bullock/Wired.com<p>The polymer- and metal-coated slide from the first photo of the gallery is now placed into an electrode clip (the white, rectangular portion of the setup). The electrodes on the clip will enable sensors to take readings from the material when it's exposed to light.</p><img src='http://www.wired.com/images/slideshow/2008/12/gallery_photodetector/image009_t.jpg'></img>: Photo: Dave Bullock/Wired.com<p>The sample in the electrode clip is inserted into the test chassis. The wires on the right send any electrical activity from the material to a computer for analysis.</p><img src='http://www.wired.com/images/slideshow/2008/12/gallery_photodetector/image011_t.jpg'></img>: Photo: Dave Bullock/Wired.com<p>A very bright, wide-spectrum light source is connected to the glove box. It's attached to the portal using a standoff header that keeps the light a fixed distance from the sample. The light appears blue because the light in the room has a yellow cast, it's actually much closer to the color of daylight.</p><img src='http://www.wired.com/images/slideshow/2008/12/gallery_photodetector/image013_t.jpg'></img>: Photo: Dave Bullock/Wired.com<p>Hsiang-Yu Chen checks the results of the test using a computer and laboratory graphing software. The graphs show the response levels to the light that the material exhibited. </p> <p>In her initial experiment she was expecting to see electricity produced when the light hit the material, but instead the light stopped the flow of electricity. This means that her material acted as a photo detector instead of a solar cell. </p> <p>The lab still remains committed to developing a better solar panel, but now that their findings have been published it may only be a matter of time before camera companies take notice of the technology.</p> <img src='http://www.wired.com/images/slideshow/2008/12/gallery_photodetector/image015_t.jpg'></img>: Photo: Dave Bullock/Wired.com<p>An atomic force microscope is used to image the polymer sample to view its physical makeup. The AFM traces the surface of the polymer with a nanoscopic needle, the same way the needle on your record player tracks over vinyl. </p> <p> This needle is attached to a cantilever that reflects a laser beam, which then determines the three-dimensional topography of the surface. Inset is the resulting micrograph of the surface from the AFM. This view allows researchers to make sure the quantum dots are properly aligning in polymer.</p> <img src='http://www.wired.com/images/slideshow/2008/12/gallery_photodetector/image021_t.jpg'></img>: Photo: Dave Bullock/Wired.com<p>This tunneling electron microscope (TEM) is used to view the physical makeup of the polymer. The level of detail visible from the TEM micrographs is a few hundred nanometers. Inset is the micrograph created by the TEM of the photosensitive polymer. </p><br style="clear: both;"/> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:e3d17b6f9d552507e98481dea35fea1c:rdKIpJsUDbKGS8q03JFo6Sq4Vkyz5J5yq%2F5JDgBfIaoV%2BHcRNtC6Cvz%2Bf%2BIZmY8sfbeFZD4Pw4NsoQ%3D%3D'><img border='0' title='Add to Facebook' alt='Add to Facebook' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/facebook.gif'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:cd183972624169d43a4ac08b1faf0529:IZ87yfTnoHS1IuNvGaJ5PeD%2FBud6yC35Rh0eUGwby1o9kJT7aggXDzqUEwMH3zwIBxPhyAwk6MoN'><img border='0' title='Add to Reddit' alt='Add to Reddit' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/reddit.png'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:11951dc3106e47d2451a048f56ebd981:m1MONQKVX7Bj%2BrkXCqF3XTSQrfF%2FyrvUCVtF38ezSW9%2BFlAZnyuZEFtn8eR5L2Cy2wCnKe7cS5K9'><img border='0' title='Add to digg' alt='Add to digg' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/digg.gif'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:9a29a4c6a5aaca1541285839fd7ddbf1:ZD0lHJbnFbjki5FRtoM1RDJDOYXrlfJYfXFdHMhEyyTr9B9g1NQad2js6QDutJSE2ivqJqV7oRNv'><img border='0' title='Add to Google' alt='Add to Google' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/google.png'/></a> <br style="clear: both;"/> <a href="http://www.pheedo.com/click.phdo?s=c337490ed13c87a0c1eeef66162cc126&p=1"><img alt="" style="border: 0;" border="0" src="http://www.pheedo.com/img.phdo?s=c337490ed13c87a0c1eeef66162cc126&p=1"/></a> <img src="http://www.pheedo.com/feeds/tracker.php?i=c337490ed13c87a0c1eeef66162cc126" style="display: none;" border="0" height="1" width="1" alt=""/> <p><a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~a/wired/index?a=aLzOpk"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~a/wired/index?i=aLzOpk" border="0"></img></a></p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/wired/index/~4/470931595" height="1" width="1"/>
  • Dec. 1, 1952: 'Ex-GI Becomes Blonde Beauty'
  • <p><strong>1952:</strong> It's front-page news when George Jorgensen Jr. is reborn as Christine Jorgensen, gaining international celebrity and notoriety as the first widely known person to undergo a successful sex-change operation.</p> <p>Jorgensen, who grew up in the Bronx, in her words, a "frail, tow-headed, introverted little boy who ran from fistfights and rough-and-tumble games," was drafted into the Army just after World War II. Military service only reinforced Jorgensen's belief that she was, in fact, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christine_Jorgensen">a woman trapped inside a man's body</a>.</p> <p>After receiving her discharge, Jorgensen returned home and first heard about "sex-reassignment surgery," which was being performed only in Sweden. (It was illegal almost everywhere else, including the United States.)</p> <p>Encouraged, Jorgensen began taking female hormones on her own, then headed for Sweden. She never made it. Stopping in Denmark to visit relatives in Copenhagen, Jorgensen was introduced to Christian Hamburger, a Danish surgeon who specialized in the kind of surgery she was seeking. He agreed to take the case and put his patient on <a href="http://www.transgenderzone.com/research/hrt.htm">hormone-replacement therapy</a> as they prepared for surgery.</p> <p>Several surgeries were required, the first one consisting of castration, which was only carried out after permission was obtained from the Danish minister of justice.</p> <p>At the time of Jorgensen's transformation, Hamburger did not give her an artificial vagina, so she remained "anatomically incorrect" for several years before undergoing a vaginoplasty in the United States.</p> <p>The hormone therapy resulted in profound changes to Jorgensen's body. Fat was redistributed, and she began to take on the contours of a woman. Subsequent surgeries completed the process until she was ready to step into the spotlight.</p> <p>Jorgensen's sex change, which may have been leaked to the press by Jorgensen herself, hit the headlines Dec. 1, creating an international sensation. "<a href="http://www.christinejorgensen.org/MainPages/Home.html">Ex-GI Becomes Blonde Beauty</a>" screamed the banner of Jorgensen's hometown <cite>New York Daily News</cite>.</p> <p>In fact, Jorgensen was not the first person to undergo sex-reassignment surgery. During the rollicking Weimar period, German doctors performed the surgery on at least two patients. The difference, in Jorgensen's case, was that she underwent hormone-replacement therapy in conjunction with the surgery. The earlier surgeries were strictly cut-and-paste.</p> <p>Although Jorgensen complained frequently about the jackals of the press, she did become something of a publicity hound and took most of the tasteless remarks with good grace, laughing off jokes such as, "Christine Jorgensen went abroad and came back a broad."</p> <p>She turned to acting and became a nightclub singer as well, performing, predictably, "I Enjoy Being a Girl."</p> <p>But <a href="http://www.newsday.com/community/guide/lihistory/ny-history-hptjorg,0,5016969.story">Christine Jorgensen's world</a> was not an enlightened one, particularly when it came to transgenderism. She paid the cost for this lack of sophistication. A first announced engagement fell through, and a second one failed as well, when the state of New York refused to issue the couple a marriage license. Her intended husband also lost his job when the marriage plans became known.</p> <p>She later traveled the lecture circuit, talking about her experiences and advocating for the nascent transgender cause.</p> <p>Jorgensen died of cancer in 1989, a few weeks short of age 63.</p> <p><em>Source: Various</em></p><br style="clear: both;"/> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:14726c86094f4373cbca8810b6e79f33:b7jmRB9jZN4YWmznJDVr6I%2B1zgDTrzHoGC4tEFrkywRpB%2FUmLqOcGv15ZNgQ9s5j9pKaT0e6rSJpXA%3D%3D'><img border='0' title='Add to Facebook' alt='Add to Facebook' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/facebook.gif'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:bd0bbd369af0fcfea13494f6df17b4dd:%2BDUqftxaEQ%2FMHeptxg5c1ofDq4eZGF8%2BAlnlMcjbttllEPF9xuPMUGvM7F6XrinqjrOcMAMumkRk'><img border='0' title='Add to Reddit' alt='Add to Reddit' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/reddit.png'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:0ed93506faca6921d4c1edf3d719820a:HR%2F1Vsk8DZUpx6dvPHX1fxT9XAvh3QY%2BK0kbabwLXk0xLf%2B9Y1YNWla6YpAZPi2NEVs2mlbCXTt1'><img border='0' title='Add to digg' alt='Add to digg' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/digg.gif'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:ec9e3c9c1f5bc8dc764fc4a2433a3669:IQZceNCcjchpTA%2FSsxs6mYCfc5HVkPN4%2Ba70W9wc1Upg3uUQolFxmC5VzPOWHpR9wpxRjSZ7fvVS'><img border='0' title='Add to Google' alt='Add to Google' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/google.png'/></a> <br style="clear: both;"/> <a href="http://www.pheedo.com/click.phdo?s=da901f6e9c26abd817c2896893b7253d&p=1"><img alt="" style="border: 0;" border="0" src="http://www.pheedo.com/img.phdo?s=da901f6e9c26abd817c2896893b7253d&p=1"/></a> <img src="http://www.pheedo.com/feeds/tracker.php?i=da901f6e9c26abd817c2896893b7253d" style="display: none;" border="0" height="1" width="1" alt=""/> <p><a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~a/wired/index?a=0gJF1i"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~a/wired/index?i=0gJF1i" border="0"></img></a></p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/wired/index/~4/470931597" height="1" width="1"/>
  • Pentagon Shoots $22 Million Into Guided Bullet Tech
  • What if a sniper could fire a bullet that changed course in mid-flight to hit its target? The Pentagon hands out nearly $22 million to try to find out.<br style="clear: both;"/> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:ad9ae7216790cdc63e898d2591b35ad6:GMilXgi9XOL%2FOKp3ZdH3KjPtH3SFqGQ66BlYB3G3jqc70SBz5Tk8W1lMvI0Kgv3y2wEIIA5nWEEv1Q%3D%3D'><img border='0' title='Add to Facebook' alt='Add to Facebook' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/facebook.gif'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:e5363781f96f5b31208cd9ed42caf16d:hxWQYdz8FWrFnFTM9jP0T7Ff5oc2M53IPHe3CUgAunKdVN8VaewPGEtfXnL3aLKjQi7tPzHRhUe5'><img border='0' title='Add to Reddit' alt='Add to Reddit' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/reddit.png'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:7c25ac092f782060c0d23b4c419ba080:PRj%2BXrXNwoxFlaBikHz3BuxsoKo9FbEHrriiQA2dr6%2FJwN6RMKksRs1%2BKOgD3VaD%2FWc4PI%2FWWbpJ'><img border='0' title='Add to digg' alt='Add to digg' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/digg.gif'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:c9a1740bb7a2284b76b86fa6d34416e5:HQwAvp3h%2FY%2BQ2ciOXL6%2Fa5E4EMPbJJslFT84Wzy5cdwFd0TVRNt0NZ4SmQIvxTuAiVJ7WG2Q9jiu'><img border='0' title='Add to Google' alt='Add to Google' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/google.png'/></a> <br style="clear: both;"/> <a href="http://www.pheedo.com/click.phdo?s=ab40cadc1604e1e1533488fea6e7a68b&p=1"><img alt="" style="border: 0;" border="0" src="http://www.pheedo.com/img.phdo?s=ab40cadc1604e1e1533488fea6e7a68b&p=1"/></a> <img src="http://www.pheedo.com/feeds/tracker.php?i=ab40cadc1604e1e1533488fea6e7a68b" style="display: none;" border="0" height="1" width="1" alt=""/> <p><a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~a/wired/index?a=uX6ofp"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~a/wired/index?i=uX6ofp" border="0"></img></a></p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/wired/index/~4/470736982" height="1" width="1"/>
  • Vaporware 2008: A Call for Submissions
  • <p>Among the scents of fresh pine garlands, pumpkin pie, mulling spices and roast turducken filling your home this holiday season, you may catch a whiff of that old familiar vapor.</p> <p>Yes, that special time of year has come again. We are officially accepting nominees for the annual Wired.com Vaporware awards, our yearly showcase of the products pitched, promised and hyped, but never delivered.</p> <p>2008 is actually gearing up to be much more exciting than years past.</p> <p>Some of last year's favorites won't be eligible this time around.</p> <p>The <a href="http://www.wired.com/gadgets/gadgetreviews/multimedia/2007/12/YE_Vaporware?slide=2&slideView=5">Tesla Roadster</a> is rolling off the assembly line, albeit slowly. <a href="http://www.wired.com/gadgets/gadgetreviews/multimedia/2007/12/YE_Vaporware?slide=9&slideView=6"><cite>Spore</cite></a> sprung to life. The <a href="http://www.wired.com/gadgets/gadgetreviews/multimedia/2007/12/YE_Vaporware?slide=7&slideView=7">Optimus Maximus</a> keyboard successfully separated overpaid design fetishists from their Google stock dividends just in time for the market crash. </p> <p>Even poor Axl Rose managed to perform his six millionth ProTools edit and get <a href="http://www.wired.com/gadgets/gadgetreviews/multimedia/2007/12/YE_Vaporware?slide=8&slideView=8"><cite>Chinese Democracy</cite></a> onto shelves after a 14-year wait.</p> <p>All that action cleared the way for a whole new crop of crap. So, let's get to it and fill up the list with some fresh FAIL.</p> <p>Got a nominee for Vaporware '08? Here are the rules:</p> <ul class="list1"> <li>The product must have been promised to ship during 2008.</li> <li>No rumors. That means no Mac Netbooks, Apple iTablets or 50-inch Sony OLEDs. It has to have been announced with a 2008 release date attached.</li> <li>If you can buy it, it doesn't count. If it shipped &mdash; even if it sucked &mdash; it's not vaporware.</li> <li>Software stuck in a never-ending, pre-release, beta-testing stage can be considered vaporware.</li> <li>Likewise hardware prototypes. It may exist in some company's lab or trotted out at trade shows, but it's vaporware until it hits store shelves.</li> </ul> <p>Send your submissions to <b><a href="mailto:wiredvaporware@gmail.com">wiredvaporware@gmail.com</a></b>. To make it easier on us, please put the name of the company and product in the subject line of your e-mail, as well as in the message body. And don't forget to include a couple of acerbic comments we can quote. Links are a big help, too.</p> <p>The final list will be assembled by Wired.com's editors. Awards will be handed out in late December.</p><br style="clear: both;"/> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:f1ad2fee6def296e27692c1884abc558:zPtXePNBzOnUZJAF22tdolDiRINFYfZk8cl0oSOnulPjEUQB%2FsLSy7ES39tx2S02nxcvN8movjSgYw%3D%3D'><img border='0' title='Add to Facebook' alt='Add to Facebook' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/facebook.gif'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:ab0730c45f6ded3be09cdb43d52f7934:gYR0OLNBI2ALMc3dCZWWgADBl5ngNCNKDo8rPQd1PJkdIrCZEJRoNRmr26lrtgalc3JZmAnzlIAB'><img border='0' title='Add to Reddit' alt='Add to Reddit' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/reddit.png'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:a6f45164b1150fba9840fd71b09abd12:ljUhgTmcd5oNQUX5KsKllDkEYO8Ed23Pw3ZpXYSCLQVbSeoT0jLvCl6u9Zca8pa%2BjywFV7aKDojF'><img border='0' title='Add to digg' alt='Add to digg' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/digg.gif'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:5b90005c6fc37eb664e1e85eb12836b4:60eN8G1XJVoOIhqnMbvjzRbpBGQ38kkx9czQzU1yfSH0IbyE0SaG7cRkCpekzj9wkOCAZn7E1EIt'><img border='0' title='Add to Google' alt='Add to Google' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/google.png'/></a> <br style="clear: both;"/> <a href="http://www.pheedo.com/click.phdo?s=4bcf314601f539fc341d64856a9de9ec&p=1"><img alt="" style="border: 0;" border="0" src="http://www.pheedo.com/img.phdo?s=4bcf314601f539fc341d64856a9de9ec&p=1"/></a> <img src="http://www.pheedo.com/feeds/tracker.php?i=4bcf314601f539fc341d64856a9de9ec" style="display: none;" border="0" height="1" width="1" alt=""/> <p><a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~a/wired/index?a=8XmIvL"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~a/wired/index?i=8XmIvL" border="0"></img></a></p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/wired/index/~4/468015747" height="1" width="1"/>
  • Found Photoshop Contest: Truck Stop of the Future
  • <p>For the past six years, <cite>Wired</cite> magazine's Found page has presented our best guess at what lies over the horizon, from <a href="http://www.wired.com/imageviewer/?imagePath=/images/article/magazine/1601/found.jpg">touchscreen windshields</a> to <a href="http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/14.11/images/found.jpg">organ farming</a>. Turns out, this little exercise in futurism is one of your favorite pages (as we learned recently when it took a short sabbatical). So we've decided to turn Found over to our readers &mdash; what do you think our world will look like in 10, 20, or 100 years?</p> <p>Each month, we'll propose a scenario. Then it's up you: Sketch out your vision, then go to wired.com/wired/found to upload your ideas, see other submissions, and vote for your favorites. We'll use the best suggestions as inspiration for a future Found page (giving full credit to the creators, of course). We’ll also select one (image-based submission) as our favorite, and note it in an update at the bottom of this text block. This week's assignment: Imagine the future of the truck stop.</p> <p>Use the Reddit widget below to submit your best Found idea and vote for your favorite among the other submissions. The image must be your own, and by submitting it you are giving us permission to use it on Wired.com and in <cite>Wired</cite> magazine. Please submit images that are relatively large, the ideal size being 800 to 1200 pixels or larger on the longest side. Please include a description of your idea and how you made it.</p> <p>We don't host the images, so you'll have to upload it somewhere else and submit a link to it. If you're using Flickr, Picasa or another photo-sharing site to host your image, please provide a link to the image directly and not just to the photo page where it's displayed. If your photo doesn't show up, it's because the URL you have entered is incorrect. Check it and make sure it ends with the image file name (XXXXXX.jpg).</p> <p>Please bookmark this page and check back periodically over the next few weeks to vote on new submissions, and look for an update announcing our favorite submission!</p> <a name="submittop"></a> <h4>Vote on Found ideas submitted by other readers.</h4> <p> </p><p>Show entries that are: <a href="http://reddit.wired.com/submissions_found_3/" target="trend">hot</a> | <a href="http://reddit.wired.com/submissions_found_3/?s=new" target="trend">new</a> | <a href="http://reddit.wired.com/submissions_found_3/?s=top" target="trend">top-rated</a>. <a href="#submit">Submit your found idea.</a></p> <br><br> <iframe src="http://reddit.wired.com/submissions_found_3/" border="0" name="trend" frameborder="0" height="750" width="630"> </iframe> <p><a name="submit"></a> </p> <h4>Submit your Found image.</h4> <p>(No more than one every 30 minutes. No HTML allowed.)</p> <iframe src="http://reddit.wired.com/submissions_found_3/submit" border="0" name="submit" frameborder="0" height="300" width="630"> </iframe> <p><a href="#submittop">Back to top</a></p><br style="clear: both;"/> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:d1505f1922472d3877818d2f189ee983:OzN4HyptAhrFCh0tROoOnaAYJtRTj0pkOGNAdoF1tDV%2Bm7kRx5zoq2VxL7Rg0nXmSd1O7meGnwuLVA%3D%3D'><img border='0' title='Add to Facebook' alt='Add to Facebook' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/facebook.gif'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:ea369003fd6a37329a4b920b8c1b70ff:0KgTlrC9bfAHE6hQmHPRvnXhLH39rvSsNfLKlekA6HrsuZg%2Bi20e6NpRS8Nle%2FKk0zPohm8fqt19'><img border='0' title='Add to Reddit' alt='Add to Reddit' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/reddit.png'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:f91d5e8eb89ebc58c1d9b3745f44a532:Hlz5eN1rvg2J%2BHppPC0Doss5Pf3Pz%2BruBm0BrDhpR%2FMCh6sv95TA6%2FbgHACmqMFs6C72lRfAFVKc'><img border='0' title='Add to digg' alt='Add to digg' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/digg.gif'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:eb862d861e9156760f0bcc9b5d91ab4f:dlvp68Prh92EuBpf4C2elGjSeYGS8Qa3NO0iSpZxbrgy3N983U0dxDgIHAqhi6kjHMgR%2Bm5Mxmng'><img border='0' title='Add to Google' alt='Add to Google' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/google.png'/></a> <br style="clear: both;"/> <a href="http://www.pheedo.com/click.phdo?s=7a3e81c54a2ae43aaf3b916184cb281b&p=1"><img alt="" style="border: 0;" border="0" src="http://www.pheedo.com/img.phdo?s=7a3e81c54a2ae43aaf3b916184cb281b&p=1"/></a> <img src="http://www.pheedo.com/feeds/tracker.php?i=7a3e81c54a2ae43aaf3b916184cb281b" style="display: none;" border="0" height="1" width="1" alt=""/> <p><a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~a/wired/index?a=TrGY13"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~a/wired/index?i=TrGY13" border="0"></img></a></p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/wired/index/~4/468015749" height="1" width="1"/>
  • Artifacts From the Future: Wall Street 2013 &mdash; Brother, Can You Spare a Yuan?
  • <img src='http://www.wired.com/images/article/magazine/1612/found1_t.jpg'></img>: <p>Here's our vision of the future of Wall Street in 2013. The logo of the New York Stock Exchange is written in English and Chinese. Ticker tapes, blaring cable news network updates, and new advertising overlays all bespeak a bummed out bear market that never bounced back.</p> <p>We'll continue to create a new Artifacts from the Future in upcoming issues of <cite>Wired</cite> magazine. But we'd like to see your prognostications too. What do you think our world will look like in 10, 20 or 100 years? Each month, we'll propose a scenario. Then it's up you: Sketch out your vision, then return here to upload your ideas, see other submissions and vote for your favorites. Check out this month's <a href="http://www.wired.com/culture/culturereviews/magazine/found/found_1612">Truck Stop of the Future</a> challenge.</p> <p><em>The concept and most of the text for this Found came from Senior Editor Jason Tanz. Contributing <cite>Wired</cite> magazine designer Walter Baumann, photo assistants Sarah Filippi and Daniel Salo, deputy photo editor Anna Goldman Alexander, senior editor Chris Baker and production director Jeff Lysgaard helped create the image.</em></p> <img src='http://www.wired.com/images/article/magazine/1612/found2_t.jpg'></img>: <p>The Chinese flag hangs side by side with the stars and stripes. </p><img src='http://www.wired.com/images/article/magazine/1612/found3_t.jpg'></img>: <p>Bloomberg reports Cramer's hunger strike enters third week. </p><img src='http://www.wired.com/images/article/magazine/1612/found4_t.jpg'></img>: <p>Refill your 401K with Schwab's Scratch and Win Ultra-Lotto! </p><img src='http://www.wired.com/images/article/magazine/1612/found5_t.jpg'></img>: <p>CloneCo announces 2-for-1 split. </p><img src='http://www.wired.com/images/article/magazine/1612/found6_t.jpg'></img>: <p>Suze Orman's latest book, <cite>Solvency Is a State of Mind</cite>, tops the charts.</p><img src='http://www.wired.com/images/article/magazine/1612/found7_t.jpg'></img>: <p>Time machine futures collapse. </p><img src='http://www.wired.com/images/article/magazine/1612/found8_t.jpg'></img>: <p>Finish this sentence: Bioterror is....</p><br style="clear: both;"/> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:5ff8c37b3b6b8246192be05145ac56cf:mGsR%2BoSusgXXvjJdsvM1FVcSpYO0Mw2Y4LFw6bgrGZzDxFN401ko7jxVdFkySCL4urAhv0uxDtF4Hw%3D%3D'><img border='0' title='Add to Facebook' alt='Add to Facebook' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/facebook.gif'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:1ed646d69dab766f358e60c1b02a6e62:jRpT4L76P8UW658TUm4Muqn0YB7lp6u2oJFHvFQa4cdeu2yVBgAmucGVKnE1s5mw%2Fu9kPf0Pq4dD'><img border='0' title='Add to Reddit' alt='Add to Reddit' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/reddit.png'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:c1bea27b69bc557d97ea9ef0713ebc79:4egksaaA%2BLmDUAJoCc0rJwnRYdPI%2Bu4jEcsP6osyHf8ZeCTYbDpqZJ%2BY4QBlk%2BIsOWTHZYS%2FG5tJ'><img border='0' title='Add to digg' alt='Add to digg' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/digg.gif'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:ce2d72ce03b911f85a51f1c02ef7b713:xGuBjDMplpM%2Fhd7Qbq5zkpspTxsnJwDTXSeJ96WsmvmkRTLLP5t8RObOrt28VL5cA6r9%2B63NmogX'><img border='0' title='Add to Google' alt='Add to Google' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/google.png'/></a> <br style="clear: both;"/> <a href="http://www.pheedo.com/click.phdo?s=eeb2c2588c4f20461058d8ed6aed3e1e&p=1"><img alt="" style="border: 0;" border="0" src="http://www.pheedo.com/img.phdo?s=eeb2c2588c4f20461058d8ed6aed3e1e&p=1"/></a> <img src="http://www.pheedo.com/feeds/tracker.php?i=eeb2c2588c4f20461058d8ed6aed3e1e" style="display: none;" border="0" height="1" width="1" alt=""/> <p><a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~a/wired/index?a=61GdWr"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~a/wired/index?i=61GdWr" border="0"></img></a></p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/wired/index/~4/468015750" height="1" width="1"/>
  • National Guard Gets Spying, 'Flying Beer Keg' for Iraq
  • A Pennsylvania National Guard unit will get a new toy before it deploys to Iraq in January — an odd-looking robotic recon aircraft, sometimes referred to as "the flying beer keg."<br style="clear: both;"/> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:a1acc7847c2e7792993eca93b682a00e:lzKt1csKOlUbxmWxr7c3wg1XJBDvs8ClvJtXkMC0P2bdk0OCowb59csomXy4b0t10Nc1EJ0b9%2F8F8Q%3D%3D'><img border='0' title='Add to Facebook' alt='Add to Facebook' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/facebook.gif'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:2734129c51e6a6f9d3a46564a16730f6:BeeSKH0AYjcI5MA24sfmDvXZyrKYaR190i5g6V3tKIT2gPs1Gwcr%2FOk6KJF7NWyKOdoFaEI49QST'><img border='0' title='Add to Reddit' alt='Add to Reddit' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/reddit.png'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:005bcecc886a51444a031e9e622331f3:gh%2BkDuYnZAZYQmCnP90lwABb3kK703w2MQDmG5dobFEqsncnYFCfPlPnU3EB4KMbDmPWZuM7VaxY'><img border='0' title='Add to digg' alt='Add to digg' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/digg.gif'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:a6c0a0565cca0bc16655c31dc9629aa9:VOzNqyyipFs9tGamTBf4qT%2BLz9Wb3%2F4JCxPvWMTuLHgLYGLPxj6Y9LHb367qTDlNYeLRDtnWPpU8'><img border='0' title='Add to Google' alt='Add to Google' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/google.png'/></a> <br style="clear: both;"/> <a href="http://www.pheedo.com/click.phdo?s=24e1000bff42f273855974de3b83c405&p=1"><img alt="" style="border: 0;" border="0" src="http://www.pheedo.com/img.phdo?s=24e1000bff42f273855974de3b83c405&p=1"/></a> <img src="http://www.pheedo.com/feeds/tracker.php?i=24e1000bff42f273855974de3b83c405" style="display: none;" border="0" height="1" width="1" alt=""/> <p><a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~a/wired/index?a=6CIJmI"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~a/wired/index?i=6CIJmI" border="0"></img></a></p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/wired/index/~4/467904605" height="1" width="1"/>
  • Top 10 Products That Helped Us Forget 2008
  • <img src='http://www.wired.com/images/slideshow/2008/11/gallery_pr_10best/pr_10best_1_t.jpg'></img>: <p><p><strong>This Mobile Device Only Does Email &mdash; Perfectly</strong></p></p> <p>Not every gadget needs a carnival of features. Take the Peek, which tackles just a single task: mobile email. No phone, no browser, no camera&mdash;and no apologies. It won't satisfy convergence-rabid smartphone fetishists, but for the rest of the world (i.e., the majority of it), this one-trick pony is a godsend. In terms of looks, its slim profile stands up to the big boys. But the real treat is the interface. Instead of forcing you to wrestle with laborious setup menus, the Peek asks for a name, email address, and password. That's it. Message from your Comcast.net account? Done. Gmail, Hotmail, and other webmail accounts? No sweat. Peek has an army of techies behind the curtain to handle the digital diplomacy that makes their device work flawlessly with every major email purveyor &mdash; and quite a few minor ones. It runs on T-Mobile's massive cellular network, so even the most itinerant technophobe can use it on the go. <em>&mdash;Terrence Russell</em></p> <p>$100, plus $20/month</p><img src='http://www.wired.com/images/slideshow/2008/11/gallery_pr_10best/pr_10best_2_t.jpg'></img>: <p><p><strong>Sleek Sony Cam Shows Off Family Photos on the Spot</strong></p></p> <p>Face it: No one checks your Flickr page. The only time friends see your photos is when you whip out the old digicam and cruise through whatever happens to be stored on it. The crafty folks at Sony know this, which is why they made the Cyber-shot DSC-T700, a pocket snapper that's as adept at displaying images as it is at capturing them. Just 0.7-inch thick, the sleek case incorporates a 10.1-MP sensor and Carl Zeiss lens, giving pictures a crispness rarely found in compact cameras. Flip it over and you'll find that the back is literally all display &mdash; a 3.5-inch, 16:9 touchscreen that replaces every hard button except Review, Zoom, Power, and Shutter. But this rig's beauty goes way beyond the surface: 4 gigs of onboard memory hold up to 950 hi-res shots. So enough with the uploading. Quit spamming the world with links to 40 shots of your lunch and start bragging with this. <em>&mdash;John Mahoney</em></p> <p>$400</p><img src='http://www.wired.com/images/slideshow/2008/11/gallery_pr_10best/pr_10best_3_t.jpg'></img>: <p><p><strong>Stage a Water-Cooler Ambush With Pump-Action Nerf Blaster</strong></p></p> <p>Workplace warlords must master a complex arsenal &mdash; the preemptive status report, the perfectly timed personal day, the BCC. And ever since Nerf released its N-Strike line of "toys" in 2002, we've had one more: the foam bullet, expertly aimed at your coworker's concentration-furrowed brow. For the serious open-plan warrior, there's no better weapon than the Recon CS-6. This pump-action blaster comes outfitted with a shoulder stock and a red-dot sight for cubicle sniping. Should you get caught in a watercooler ambush, the CS-6's six-shot magazine staves off the dreaded hollow click. But if you're going under cover, you'll need a sidearm you can conceal behind a manila folder. No problem, because the Recon is a transformer. Remove the stock and barrel extender and it becomes a stealthy Nerf pistol. Keep one in your desk drawer and those hooligans from accounting will never even look at your parking space again. <em>&mdash;Cliff Kuang</em></p> <p>$20</p><img src='http://www.wired.com/images/slideshow/2008/11/gallery_pr_10best/pr_10best_4_t.jpg'></img>: <p><p><strong>Commute-Friendly Electric Cycle Does 0 to 30 in 3.8 Seconds</strong></p></p> <p>The electric vehicle is a cool idea too often poorly executed. Today's batteries don't have the oomph or range to be practical &mdash; unless you drop 100 grand for a Tesla. That's why Brammo's gearheads started with motorcycles. They're so light that even readily available batteries can make one commute-worthy. The 285-pound Enertia is proof of that. At its heart is a lithium-iron-phosphate power cell designed to be as safe as it is efficient. "A plasma fire is not something we want to see," company founder Craig Bramscher says. The Enertia charges in just over three hours and is good for 45 miles. The 13-kW motor silently propels the electro-cycle to 30 mph in 3.8 seconds &mdash; quick enough to beat that cab away from the light &mdash; and to a top speed of 53 mph. Brammo hasn't created a highway-ready monster (yet), but Bramscher takes heart in what his creation can do: The electric motor's instantaneous torque is perfect for wheelies. <em>&mdash;Chuck Squatriglia</em></p> <p>$15,000</p><img src='http://www.wired.com/images/slideshow/2008/11/gallery_pr_10best/pr_10best_5_t.jpg'></img>: <p><p><strong>3-D-Ready HDTV Uses Laser Light to Double Color Range, Save Energy</strong></p></p> <p>Mama always told you not to stare into the sun. She might have added lasers to the list of no-nos &mdash; looking directly at the concentrated beams can burn your retinas. So who'd have thought they'd make an ideal light source for televisions? Mitsubishi's 65-inch LaserVue taps this tech to produce an astonishingly vivid picture. The rear-projection set's color range is twice as broad as a typical HDTV's, yet it consumes 33 percent less energy than a similar-size LCD. Though this 3-D-ready TV may seem straight outta <cite>Solaris</cite>, you don't need to fear its newness; unlike most nascent technologies, lasers have stamina. The company claims they'll never need replacing. So go ahead and screen those <cite>Lost</cite> DVDs 24/7. Or if you're feeling reckless, fire up your Blu-ray player to savor Angelina in all her Beowulfian glory. Kind of like staring at the naked sun, only hotter. <em>&mdash;Jose Fermoso</em></p> <p>$7,000</p><img src='http://www.wired.com/images/slideshow/2008/11/gallery_pr_10best/pr_10best_6_t.jpg'></img>: <p><p><strong>USB Stake Helps Brown Thumbs Turn Green, Monitors Soil Conditions</strong></p></p> <p>Those cacti on your windowsill don't deserve to die. Even if you regularly fail at horticulture, the EasyBloom can help. Just leave it in your proposed planting area for 24 hours, either stuck in the dirt or propped up in its cradle, then plug it into your computer's USB port. The gizmo measures soil conditions, sunlight, temperature, and humidity, comparing the results with an online database to recommend species that will thrive there. And should the weather be wacky that day, the EasyBloom is smart enough to check the National Weather Service for local averages. Your data is stored online for quick reference. If you've already killed everything in the garden, plunk the sensor down in your little Death Valley, set it to Monitor mode, and let it tell you what you're doing wrong. But here's a tip: If you find yourself running the autopsy repeatedly, it could be something basic. You do have to water the crops, you know. The EasyBloom can't do everything for you. <em>&mdash;Elizabeth Livengood</em></p> <p>$60</p><img src='http://www.wired.com/images/slideshow/2008/11/gallery_pr_10best/pr_10best_7_t.jpg'></img>: <p><p><strong>Svelte Ultralight Notebook Comes Fully Loaded</strong></p></p> <p>Ultralight notebooks come dressed to impress, but most disappoint when it's time to roll up the sleeves and get to work. Not the Voodoo Envy 133, a glossy black Kubrickian slab of awesomeness that makes other ultralights weep from their USB ports. Encased in carbon fiber, the Envy is just 0.7-inch thick and weighs 3.4 pounds when outfitted with a solid-state hard drive. Its looks will induce pangs of jealousy in the boardroom; back in the hotel room, the Envy proves that it's not just a pretty face. Even the base model rocks the tiny-team roster with a 1.6-GHz Intel processor, 2 gigs of RAM, swappable battery, LED-backlit display, and the widest array of ports &mdash; HDMI, eSATA, and ExpressCard &mdash; in its class. Like most of the svelte set, the Envy is heavy on wireless (802.11n, Bluetooth), but wired users aren't locked out. Since the case is thinner than an Ethernet jack, Voodoo built the connector into the power brick, which generates a dedicated wireless link with the computer. An instant-on OS lets you surf the Web or make Skype calls without booting up Windows. It all adds up to one drool-worthy package. <em>&mdash;Christopher Null</em></p></p> <p>$2,100, and up</p><img src='http://www.wired.com/images/slideshow/2008/11/gallery_pr_10best/pr_10best_8_t.jpg'></img>: <p><p><strong>Cycling GPS Tells You Where You Are &mdash; and How You Got There</strong></p></p> <p>At <cite>Wired</cite>, we love cycling almost as much as we love melting the chrome off passing cars with our high-powered laser. Almost. But even the combustion crew couldn't help raising an eyebrow at Garmin's top-tier, GPS-enabled cycling computer. This Tour-worthy unit tells you not only where you are but &mdash; thanks to heart rate, distance, and elevation tracking &mdash; exactly how you got there. The 2.2-inch color screen is as easy to read in the noontime glare as a sundial and offers more data-customization options than a crooked accountant. The Edge plays nice with wireless power meters to let you monitor the wattage you're generating while you pedal. It even lets you beam saved routes to other nearby 705 users. Optional street maps ensure that you can always find your way around town. So program this into your new Edge: 520 Third Street, San Francisco. Just don't roll up on some chromed-out fixie, because not even the 705 can see Lazor coming. <em>&mdash;Mathew Honan</em></p> <p>$500</p><img src='http://www.wired.com/images/slideshow/2008/11/gallery_pr_10best/pr_10best_9_t.jpg'></img>: <p><p><strong>It's the All-Digital Future – $100 Netflix Box Streams 15,000 Films</strong></p></p> <p>At the start of 2008, the Web-streamed movie experience still felt like a half-baked preview of its potential. Digital delivery required expensive hardware, and you paid extra for each rental (cough, Apple TV ... cough, Vudu). It wasn't the future we'd hoped for. Then came Roku's Netflix Player, the $100 video box that could summon more than 15,000 titles at no charge for Netflix subscribers. It was a revelation, wherein we learned what streaming video was supposed to feel like: nothing. That nothing changed everything. So go ahead, tear through all four seasons of <cite>The Office</cite> on a whim (then the original British version for good measure). Watch <cite>Strays</cite> because there's nobody home to exercise a Vin Diesel veto. For movies you can't stream, you still get your little red envelopes. And the same Roku box you love now will support hi-def streams when Netflix offers them. This little treasure chest is the real thing, straight from the all-digital future.<em> &mdash;John Mahoney</em></p> <p>$100</p><img src='http://www.wired.com/images/slideshow/2008/11/gallery_pr_10best/pr_10best_10_t.jpg'></img>: <p><p><strong>Try This at Home: Camera on a Flex Cable Finds Lost Objects</strong></p></p> <p>Milwaukee may have designed it to help home inspectors spot hidden mold or shoddy repairs, but the M-Spector is just too much fun to leave to the pros. Did your 5-year-old really drop your diamond ring down the sink &mdash; or pawn it for Fruit Roll-Ups? Want to find out the easy way how many bananas your "hilarious" brother-in-law stuffed in your tailpipe? Grab the M-Spector, thumb the power button, and the 2.5-inch screen lights up with 320x240-pixel color video, transmitted from the tiny CMOS camera on the end of its flexible neck. A camera-mounted LED illuminates dark and dismal places, letting you see anywhere you can cram the 3-foot-long cable. Sure, cops could use the M-Spector to peer around corners or ferret out shanks in prison cells, but it's equally effective at locating the perfectly good grape that rolled under your fridge. Just don't get too creative; you'll probably want to draw the line at home colonoscopies. <em>&mdash;Chuck Cage</em></p> <p>$250</p><br style="clear: both;"/> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:cc232a191f6e09cd7f22fdbab695d75b:osYLdfTNFEOYjaffMtYvgX1CIBb411sbGbaa%2FsFKWNP3h9tvFkXXnizeckgtH4GiJp7qL7iImoDTjQ%3D%3D'><img border='0' title='Add to Facebook' alt='Add to Facebook' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/facebook.gif'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:7f65ae3474886d1293a6bbb18bb146c4:5%2BXCadQCPw0oWHrh11QS5hiStAAhwDh%2BZTP6ssHXRReMH5HdeIBrXOh36bV6aJ%2FbQPGUXZ5Y4YC%2F'><img border='0' title='Add to Reddit' alt='Add to Reddit' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/reddit.png'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:5a96b9efbc09babaf227b47608a8c850:VeKk4CgHtTgj91ISvY4%2Fk464QKUcuQB1rcRTXNRMrVwHnOzIJtmyXGwN6x75Mo8u7CNGc%2FIeXw3S'><img border='0' title='Add to digg' alt='Add to digg' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/digg.gif'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:a1af8ec3f5b3b02455832cf28e9bb7af:IQxtj3Uhy%2FangwOa2GE3krVYRrpqvynC%2B9QO7%2FPPWT7h0x3TmAVPhyRTSUdC1zOdF7c%2BDw0NF6UU'><img border='0' title='Add to Google' alt='Add to Google' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/google.png'/></a> <br style="clear: both;"/> <a href="http://www.pheedo.com/click.phdo?s=a90b20a66cd1e4048206402dbfbdf46f&p=1"><img alt="" style="border: 0;" border="0" src="http://www.pheedo.com/img.phdo?s=a90b20a66cd1e4048206402dbfbdf46f&p=1"/></a> <img src="http://www.pheedo.com/feeds/tracker.php?i=a90b20a66cd1e4048206402dbfbdf46f" style="display: none;" border="0" height="1" width="1" alt=""/> <p><a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~a/wired/index?a=3lcGfu"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~a/wired/index?i=3lcGfu" border="0"></img></a></p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/wired/index/~4/466966364" height="1" width="1"/>
  • Tech-Savvy Secrets to Getting the Best Black Friday Deals
  • There's more to getting a good deal on the day after Thanksgiving than standing in line at Best Buy -- if you don't want to get suckered, you need these tips for savvy online and in-person shopping.<br style="clear: both;"/> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:66196a08b7176b38308612ba8bd8fb32:Opuc5HNlB7cI5DnzWntOXPbfg31OsLuoVUACRhE1jQFp7vBfz3V44pEGRDUzcMryxn7KaPXPzHSntg%3D%3D'><img border='0' title='Add to Facebook' alt='Add to Facebook' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/facebook.gif'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:fc09ef45044d9d33fc2b8cf201ed55c6:t7l%2FZKTbA%2Fl1CKZBa1o6gr%2BVcchqjiVzY3vaoI7kpm%2FdlZAM25G%2FHsWwt60K%2BUVyjqp3W3SU9dQR'><img border='0' title='Add to Reddit' alt='Add to Reddit' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/reddit.png'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:dfd3542ed5c9c38129c842ce603ab6a5:Js7LD8wuf7jDo5%2BsMdIroTTtl%2BxlciFmH3YphHYJ9WLvQKSqtEpeH24jVvTKYQ310nnopBNGFUAh'><img border='0' title='Add to digg' alt='Add to digg' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/digg.gif'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:a3638be5fe95783f267e8b7b6c46111d:ycRalFPqBQ39XRRUyy5wqHDfNtSoHKSAM1eHosUt9cE0pH%2BlPiT%2BMpVnEHXE6wYgXSe9%2BhX8tMET'><img border='0' title='Add to Google' alt='Add to Google' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/google.png'/></a> <br style="clear: both;"/> <a href="http://www.pheedo.com/click.phdo?s=255d23bcf534d8341eb93b75d6f9ac50&p=1"><img alt="" style="border: 0;" border="0" src="http://www.pheedo.com/img.phdo?s=255d23bcf534d8341eb93b75d6f9ac50&p=1"/></a> <img src="http://www.pheedo.com/feeds/tracker.php?i=255d23bcf534d8341eb93b75d6f9ac50" style="display: none;" border="0" height="1" width="1" alt=""/> <p><a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~a/wired/index?a=ioWj6q"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~a/wired/index?i=ioWj6q" border="0"></img></a></p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/wired/index/~4/466966365" height="1" width="1"/>
  • Reviews: What to Give? What to Get? Our Idea of the Perfect Wired Holiday
  • Our gift guide helps you answer the eternal questions of what to do for those finicky geeks on your list. Read on for the coolest gear that will please the nerdy and nice. (And enter to win the coolest bag stuffed with some of our favorites.)<br style="clear: both;"/> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:088a5c38c3e33c1a8220a4a427f372d4:m0Gc8B3ac3bPmDO0KIiSS3MvHuTNUDFAG9l%2B6xJ84q4CgIotncPH0qhP9U8wVo9r0MwhyFR0bf8CGA%3D%3D'><img border='0' title='Add to Facebook' alt='Add to Facebook' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/facebook.gif'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:cee0f7da6678b621ffe39d35057dc95e:epIFCPX241dIQymzhygSqazKq2w3nQ5n5XCBH22oEFWCvbbnvbTvM52NA4B2udS85JVjhFw7HSgH'><img border='0' title='Add to Reddit' alt='Add to Reddit' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/reddit.png'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:b96063e549f7b1d92833804d8479f737:xgSBHurXhg8wr36risRUTy12zoi37ZhGNNJIXjuK3dWyxLPGilsrBf518lM7XmkTroNn420ZQU%2BZ'><img border='0' title='Add to digg' alt='Add to digg' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/digg.gif'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:020793310d4be5e31f56b8d2462721da:q0vK4zEdLBiYKnAwUBntWwuUc2vKI3brqJYxOscUjIC1mqJkUOQn32frd%2FWawrzj0BK50WYJhbes'><img border='0' title='Add to Google' alt='Add to Google' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/google.png'/></a> <br style="clear: both;"/> <a href="http://www.pheedo.com/click.phdo?s=bec129f4cc1bd04a7720da54b61adfa4&p=1"><img alt="" style="border: 0;" border="0" src="http://www.pheedo.com/img.phdo?s=bec129f4cc1bd04a7720da54b61adfa4&p=1"/></a> <img src="http://www.pheedo.com/feeds/tracker.php?i=bec129f4cc1bd04a7720da54b61adfa4" style="display: none;" border="0" height="1" width="1" alt=""/> <p><a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~a/wired/index?a=a8hqKn"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~a/wired/index?i=a8hqKn" border="0"></img></a></p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/wired/index/~4/466966366" height="1" width="1"/>
  • Gallery: Geeky Toys That Will Make You a Christmas Hero
  • <img src='http://www.wired.com/images/slideshow/2008/11/gallery_toys_robots/dna_t.jpg'></img>: <p>For Wired.com readers, sometimes the usual toys just won't do &mdash; we need some technology and science to jumpstart our fun circuits. From sound labs to RFID kits, check out the gifts we think will make your nerdy family and friends' eyes light up behind their taped-up, Coke-bottle glasses. </p> <p><h3>Thames and Kosmos Genetics and DNA kit</h3></p> <p>A well-written manual and a few snap-together models provide a good conceptual understanding of how DNA and genetics work. Some of the hands-on activities seem like nothing but busy work; others are invaluable at getting kids interested in the process of scientific experimentation. </p> <p>One experiment takes you through the process of isolating DNA from tomatoes. Adult reviewers found it more difficult than the manual let on &mdash; which probably means that a kid should have no problem. You can also breed bacteria and then do some genetic engineering on them, but be careful &mdash; under the Patriot Act this stuff can get you thrown in jail.</p> <img src='http://www.wired.com/images/slideshow/2008/11/gallery_toys_robots/cubs_t.jpg'></img>: <p>Few of us have held a lion cub in our arms while it purred. Now you can do the next best thing. WowWee, creator of a family of robots including Robosapien, Roboraptor and the giant talking Elvis head, has come up with four of the cutest plush toys since the invention of the teddy bear 100 years ago. Their Alive series consists of too-adorable-for-words robotic versions of four endangered animal cubs: Panda, White Tiger, Polar Bear and Lion. </p> <p>They're classified as plush because they are soft and cuddly and can't stand or walk on their own. They're classified as robots because WowWee has given them touch sensors, sound generators and exceptionally expressive faces. When you pet one, it looks up with its big blue kitten eyes and sighs &mdash; continue to pet it and it will purr (or the panda and polar bear equivalent) and close its eyes in delight, as your fully human heart melts into a puddle of small animal love all over the floor. </p> <p>The uncanny valley has never been narrower; since so few of us know what these cubs look like up close, WowWee has designed replacements that look and behave as we expect them to. They're so realistic they will also freak the hell out of your house cat.</p> <img src='http://www.wired.com/images/slideshow/2008/11/gallery_toys_robots/flyer_t.jpg'></img>: <p>It looks like a homemade rowing machine. It's more like a specially made vomit machine. But in a good way. DreamFlyer is basically a very carefully balanced recumbent chair with a joystick and monitor mount. Hook up your favorite flight simulator, strap yourself in and take off. </p> <p>The chair magnifies your own body movements, so when you tilt the joystick in any direction, the chair actually pitches (18 degrees in either direction) or rolls (to a maximum of 50 degrees) or (get the barf bag) both. The only thing the chair can't simulate is changing G-forces, which doesn't seem to bother most people who have tried it. The tubular aluminum construction measures 3 feet by 6 feet, weighs next to nothing and can be stored upright when you don't feel like doing aerobatics in your living room. </p> <img src='http://www.wired.com/images/slideshow/2008/11/gallery_toys_robots/exercise_t.jpg'></img>: <p>Online gaming and fresh-air activities seem almost mutually exclusive, don't they? The ME2 system from iToys aims to put a stop to that. One part of the toy is a cellphone-size game unit, the other part is an online virtual world. The trick: Kids earn points in the virtual world not by playing online, but by playing outdoors. </p> <p>The game unit houses a three-axis accelerometer that measures how active the child is over the course of the day &mdash; more movement in real life (like running, playing basketball, etc.) equals more juice in the virtual world. A great idea, but a lot depends on whether kids will take to the handheld's retro-ish monochrome LCD display screen. You, on the other hand, you can look at it as a hackable USB-equipped accelerometer in a snazzy case.</p> <img src='http://www.wired.com/images/slideshow/2008/11/gallery_toys_robots/nightvision_t.jpg'></img>: <p>OK, it's not Mil Spec, and you shouldn't use this when hunting the Taliban in Waziristan. Nevertheless, it is an honest-to-goodness infrared imaging system encased in a conspicuously large helmet for a child's toy. (It's almost like they know this is going to be dad's night-vision system.) </p> <p>An LED spotlight on the forehead throws an infrared beam approximately 50 feet, illuminating up the darkness with invisible rays that the vision sensor can detect. The spotlight also makes you stand out like a lighthouse to anyone else with a similar night-vision setup, so forget about midnight paintball ambushes if your opponent is similarly equipped. </p> <img src='http://www.wired.com/images/slideshow/2008/11/gallery_toys_robots/digital_recording_lab_t.jpg'></img>: <p>Thanks to the Safety Police, it's next to impossible to get your hands on a good, well-stocked child's chemistry set. They have yet crack down on electronics kits &mdash; but that's probably next on the list, so get yours while you can. </p> <p>The GeoSafari Digital Recording Lab is a beginners' electronic kit for the 21st century. Spring-mounted resistors, capacitors and transistors make it easy to build simple but ingenious electronic circuits. The real selling point, though, is an RTS0073 CMOS integrated circuit, a very simple digital recording and playback chip. </p> <p>The manual contains schematics and wiring diagrams for 59 different circuits, and the concepts behind each component are clearly given so it shouldn't be too difficult for a smart kid to grasp of the world of integrated circuits &mdash; and then to start working on circuits of their own. </p> <img src='http://www.wired.com/images/slideshow/2008/11/gallery_toys_robots/triceratops_t.jpg'></img>: <p>State-of-the-art robotic designers are focusing more on interactivity these days than on mobility. Kota is a case in point. This robotic baby triceratops, as big as a medium-size dog, responds to petting by moving its head and tail, and emitting a friendly little dino-growl. </p> <p>RFID sensors in its mouth allow it to "eat" RFID-equipped leaves (included). Children can "ride" Kota by sitting on its back and pretending, but for all its friendly responsiveness, Kota is a bit of a letdown as long as it just stands there. Your mission, should you chose to hack this toy, is to set it free. </p> <img src='http://www.wired.com/images/slideshow/2008/11/gallery_toys_robots/tikitag_t.jpg'></img>: <p>RFID tracking is here; why shouldn't you get in on it? Alcatel-Lucent has come up with what is essentially a home RFID kit. You get a USB RFID reader and 10 sticky RFID tags, all for $50. </p> <p>Attach the RFID tags to things around your home or office, install the software and you're good to go. You can use your own programming skills to make your computer do various things when various RFID tags are presented to your reader, or use Tikitag's application website to link your RFID tags to just about anything on the web.</p><br style="clear: both;"/> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:e829e242c373e4c9b0f889663e853678:LnfdUzGB79Kz76fY%2BVvy9wcj1NGBus9Pz8Tm9IWaCLfhOOFFWkoD1mmjO9CWTBEcsZubK8q4E5a%2Fmg%3D%3D'><img border='0' title='Add to Facebook' alt='Add to Facebook' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/facebook.gif'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:54391fd031ab6ab598506fae23efa79d:QA5GccMF9IAMIlKT74XqjQQYTYXbgH54fueUpqRBBTtbVhXkwkgT4qTMyorTOd9irHX73C2PduDN'><img border='0' title='Add to Reddit' alt='Add to Reddit' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/reddit.png'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:2a1fcd6a7284bac5bc96cb855e73b06c:iCQJZF0l0Rl9hhd2ZV29iPohA9RHRw8GZGdaxpbRqDDDAyWf4cgASKo6jPCwhT7%2Fplq5mB36Kykf'><img border='0' title='Add to digg' alt='Add to digg' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/digg.gif'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:b486e7573ddf779956088cea188c5c99:Q%2F2Wca4GrTilxQxLwxILaB3evHK6b4IqtfFPIRmvluEyuAa1Zkr65gu%2BF09LisWW96FeIWbnUqag'><img border='0' title='Add to Google' alt='Add to Google' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/google.png'/></a> <br style="clear: both;"/> <a href="http://www.pheedo.com/click.phdo?s=b3c67030ce19c6a51dde11e48bba7db8&p=1"><img alt="" style="border: 0;" border="0" src="http://www.pheedo.com/img.phdo?s=b3c67030ce19c6a51dde11e48bba7db8&p=1"/></a> <img src="http://www.pheedo.com/feeds/tracker.php?i=b3c67030ce19c6a51dde11e48bba7db8" style="display: none;" border="0" height="1" width="1" alt=""/> <p><a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~a/wired/index?a=KlUVvM"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~a/wired/index?i=KlUVvM" border="0"></img></a></p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/wired/index/~4/466966367" height="1" width="1"/>
  • Wheego Whips Up a $19K Electric Vehicle
  • Want an EV but can't afford a Tesla, can't wait for a Mitsubishi and aren't sharp enough to build your own? The Wheego Whip may be just the ticket.<br style="clear: both;"/> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:30b8682f97881b1224751e8a31a4b6ef:r2hmXBHOQPPXI%2FGPJsq%2FNwaJEKaTahtuQAWfDrLKvoEn8z4%2FFAgYjbyTUrIIzHNZ51KQVYOs5c8ezQ%3D%3D'><img border='0' title='Add to Facebook' alt='Add to Facebook' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/facebook.gif'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:edd2b009ec54cfe0d57facb3d21c93a7:hnoA%2BBKUUXdnZKo95FcL699lQF3ur6FP6GW20YDyXLNVM%2FBGJE87zya3in4LtzSTLLwn8VRekmmY'><img border='0' title='Add to Reddit' alt='Add to Reddit' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/reddit.png'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:ed66aeffc15a5050fdbfd4eb44704ee1:h1AQ8e9G98IBIiE9EZ%2B6vqIBaKKhJgHvc2K7eTiu%2FzPlJ0hvTYH38Jk9y4Gm1X9ChfZdZnFSr5s5'><img border='0' title='Add to digg' alt='Add to digg' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/digg.gif'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:4c99e0b8d108c8eb15027b7be054f85b:piSs1cAohNPUs76sHzn%2FyG64PTUoCq5v4BXHN5G%2FU14ezH3Dn5Pxwg3QH6G92lf3%2FS9CCOzh0D8f'><img border='0' title='Add to Google' alt='Add to Google' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/google.png'/></a> <br style="clear: both;"/> <a href="http://www.pheedo.com/click.phdo?s=34ff11577847b554711293c41006e57d&p=1"><img alt="" style="border: 0;" border="0" src="http://www.pheedo.com/img.phdo?s=34ff11577847b554711293c41006e57d&p=1"/></a> <img src="http://www.pheedo.com/feeds/tracker.php?i=34ff11577847b554711293c41006e57d" style="display: none;" border="0" height="1" width="1" alt=""/> <p><a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~a/wired/index?a=8hb1DH"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~a/wired/index?i=8hb1DH" border="0"></img></a></p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/wired/index/~4/466716714" height="1" width="1"/>
  • Mumbai Attack Aftermath Detailed, Tweet by Tweet
  • First-hand accounts of the deadly Mumbai attacks are pouring in on Twitter, Flickr and other social media.<br style="clear: both;"/> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:dd8223ae8040b89d9d5494220f77aa0f:1zj8hpxqDI%2BVu3hbGowNWZkIT5A5v21%2BOn8LRskzxQ6nreApl0F1kSQUHuEinUsgAIwbOrgDrkBltQ%3D%3D'><img border='0' title='Add to Facebook' alt='Add to Facebook' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/facebook.gif'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:c2b80821056535959add1c790e01c381:4%2BrFVQFnBDt5Unycuo6mJ3dOaoN40s0yFWYhXzBr3uSE3fK9QXvoTre5KitCRURdNRxBt5AqdcTp'><img border='0' title='Add to Reddit' alt='Add to Reddit' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/reddit.png'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:7b4cc964a93503be372b11d8684ad930:SyOWpRBKBG3bbP4ZwAwfpCNbN1uIgCFdDHIDzXPuNDdsOT6181vSa9l7V7ZzHR8iGvzQBMmg6Ne3'><img border='0' title='Add to digg' alt='Add to digg' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/digg.gif'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:aca9f245f3381d26c7440fd7ccb503b9:fgFiVuM7R5mnteuCDxM3OXmA5RjKomTfM0Jpi9LDL09saCXoqYFipY698gBbe1OetoG8WT4OiFSL'><img border='0' title='Add to Google' alt='Add to Google' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/google.png'/></a> <br style="clear: both;"/> <a href="http://www.pheedo.com/click.phdo?s=248df600001076ac3ec605a4728d50f9&p=1"><img alt="" style="border: 0;" border="0" src="http://www.pheedo.com/img.phdo?s=248df600001076ac3ec605a4728d50f9&p=1"/></a> <img src="http://www.pheedo.com/feeds/tracker.php?i=248df600001076ac3ec605a4728d50f9" style="display: none;" border="0" height="1" width="1" alt=""/> <p><a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~a/wired/index?a=fZE4lu"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~a/wired/index?i=fZE4lu" border="0"></img></a></p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/wired/index/~4/466716715" height="1" width="1"/>
  • Lotus Guns for Porsche With the 30-MPG Evora
  • The first new Lotus in 13 years is bigger and &mdash; gasp &mdash; more practical than the Elise and aimed squarely at the Porsche Cayman.<br style="clear: both;"/> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:5d2ee631a69d95f25b1bf089e55ae84e:edxrtNRlWTt0Qxpv%2BETzzFqoUBvVX4yArGvhlwXuFnSArM0l8gAGlRS1iYP5pm9V4qFQzIm1gS3qDw%3D%3D'><img border='0' title='Add to Facebook' alt='Add to Facebook' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/facebook.gif'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:592880b8c1f5042823d268eeb65e3477:%2FSIPsWoPIaqEe8l7MknoG2klm%2FLb41MLoag%2FpWkyEHbNmI9DtIICq2wXj9FmNAkzZ3m82CnjnQCM'><img border='0' title='Add to Reddit' alt='Add to Reddit' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/reddit.png'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:725b2750781e1a931dd3fe6a5a9e1dfe:P2eRddRxWfSfs%2Btp7yDPAKrMlWBws0UIcZviMqeREMyXcLivKcPzMVH3iCId0PNVdbOFL7Ve%2F2OM'><img border='0' title='Add to digg' alt='Add to digg' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/digg.gif'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:ca55cb6587c89eaa04b28993b0707559:9I%2BUJH1ZeVmp%2FwNk4L4s20AKisT2%2B1QlOrPvE4raoMloAVGSgA1p7HSqx6vPSkNSOwRNWDE7Vj%2F9'><img border='0' title='Add to Google' alt='Add to Google' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/google.png'/></a> <br style="clear: both;"/> <a href="http://www.pheedo.com/click.phdo?s=cfabf2c0b0b5ffc9087b07c675cc2ca5&p=1"><img alt="" style="border: 0;" border="0" src="http://www.pheedo.com/img.phdo?s=cfabf2c0b0b5ffc9087b07c675cc2ca5&p=1"/></a> <img src="http://www.pheedo.com/feeds/tracker.php?i=cfabf2c0b0b5ffc9087b07c675cc2ca5" style="display: none;" border="0" height="1" width="1" alt=""/> <p><a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~a/wired/index?a=O3ngjP"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~a/wired/index?i=O3ngjP" border="0"></img></a></p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/wired/index/~4/466641842" height="1" width="1"/>
  • No Court Order Needed to Spy on Americans Overseas, Appeals Court Rules
  • The government does not need a judge's approval to wiretap Americans overseas, an appeals court ruled, rejecting the appeal of an American convicted of helping plan the 1998 East Africa embassy bombings. The ruling comes as rights groups challenge the government's warrantless wiretapping program and newly granted powers to set up electronic dragnets inside the United States.<br style="clear: both;"/> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:de1e9b27c84c05b9aa15e84e86d7375f:j7ps2nWs9GNtmCoOJbGyGNIdFqGniKsmNnKvNXJbO5gwSQ5Zb7uoNIB3vfLbA6NNHI3l6go4WeZ6pg%3D%3D'><img border='0' title='Add to Facebook' alt='Add to Facebook' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/facebook.gif'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:28f9c1323280f1ff1aba82fabb3c90d7:tJKx9AqyKc%2B%2BvoKJc6BmZK5AWVq0V9YRTqpU6wYSaJimFJ7hshIK5ZbMPmB2LX3pIP7wapKyxppt'><img border='0' title='Add to Reddit' alt='Add to Reddit' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/reddit.png'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:3f66d6df2319b67bdbd6eb576b2ab878:AoR6LlTgCaEDQWZSEhwc0UAumiVTIGQh445yzjKnfaMPHJlejI5Lhn%2BsqcEa3nepMbWZ4vPGfy4J'><img border='0' title='Add to digg' alt='Add to digg' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/digg.gif'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:1198abe58594beab09830f809586f856:aHrP%2Bz6GU%2FFwdIk%2F7D%2Fyz7qT2Rei1UcXzLzZwmFLzSlKJyqXb%2BbyXpMgou8BBWzOe0PTI7bjJlws'><img border='0' title='Add to Google' alt='Add to Google' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/google.png'/></a> <br style="clear: both;"/> <a href="http://www.pheedo.com/click.phdo?s=766634085009b954db63e94526cbbe22&p=1"><img alt="" style="border: 0;" border="0" src="http://www.pheedo.com/img.phdo?s=766634085009b954db63e94526cbbe22&p=1"/></a> <img src="http://www.pheedo.com/feeds/tracker.php?i=766634085009b954db63e94526cbbe22" style="display: none;" border="0" height="1" width="1" alt=""/> <p><a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~a/wired/index?a=BbE7nA"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~a/wired/index?i=BbE7nA" border="0"></img></a></p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/wired/index/~4/466641843" height="1" width="1"/>
  • Drugs Reveal Another Possible Cause of Aging
  • A drug that targets one aspect of aging appears to also help repair DNA and regulate genes that go haywire as they age. This suggests a new mechanism for aging that could help scientists develop new treatments for diseases of aging such as cancer and Alzheimer's Disease.<br style="clear: both;"/> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:f09446087c3d053937a4833ad1c6fee5:GojCa4wq28KLExXimd%2BeDGsPcL5hGKuTvWuxm2T1s7GtoN%2FB4HSquzhChJJKW5WjzEwm%2FoKJopJGjQ%3D%3D'><img border='0' title='Add to Facebook' alt='Add to Facebook' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/facebook.gif'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:02b0305055bf8da774af1f8aa03474e2:nD3gbXAv1fFSwwc0kQRBS8r2cU0cfQhlBdWus2VM7kSWnuKOezqIfY0K1cEi%2FAgh%2FLc5mpJi1WIQ'><img border='0' title='Add to Reddit' alt='Add to Reddit' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/reddit.png'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:b3280ba835e8ccb8dccc196e192a18ef:jWFzzqZ3mwrVSQG7YJX8RgT6EVBeQYu42bN4BUdyBWv79QZ1pFqNjxhfnQYeUHPF%2FjOjUZhKtaft'><img border='0' title='Add to digg' alt='Add to digg' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/digg.gif'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:82d060042cf2ac159c5b55c377ac61bb:tSOiiWNeLzWKDe%2B%2B1MSJdviqy52ZD56eNu0EbwFH7j96LyCbdcVRrlluLGMbL4egOF%2BZtuW%2BZhph'><img border='0' title='Add to Google' alt='Add to Google' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/google.png'/></a> <br style="clear: both;"/> <a href="http://www.pheedo.com/click.phdo?s=e8d0a1a7cb32bbb7e420f43c9c328f43&p=1"><img alt="" style="border: 0;" border="0" src="http://www.pheedo.com/img.phdo?s=e8d0a1a7cb32bbb7e420f43c9c328f43&p=1"/></a> <img src="http://www.pheedo.com/feeds/tracker.php?i=e8d0a1a7cb32bbb7e420f43c9c328f43" style="display: none;" border="0" height="1" width="1" alt=""/> <p><a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~a/wired/index?a=LQx4Bo"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~a/wired/index?i=LQx4Bo" border="0"></img></a></p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/wired/index/~4/466588093" height="1" width="1"/>
  • Lori Drew Not Guilty of Felony Cyberbullying
  • Lori Drew, the 49-year-old woman charged in the first federal cyberbullying case, was cleared of felony computer-hacking charges by a jury Wednesday morning, but was convicted of several misdemeanors. The jury deadlocked on a charge of conspiracy.<br style="clear: both;"/> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:9f73d529deb18089f04cf35104afad1d:wYlzDKoKDbcxgcJe47YJCCqHr%2BylQ96bBCxFBJN7%2FSVO2gDKGsVe%2BQZPjReZfPOIKYj2Jv%2BMzvfpgw%3D%3D'><img border='0' title='Add to Facebook' alt='Add to Facebook' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/facebook.gif'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:07ef56d9947203d815a32a8876ac954b:MqBfaRgOthQPKEUOQLghseNkNrFhJqUHY0Dw2Zcj%2Fpc%2F2gIvhRba0R1P9HKPVR4qF4UB6HFjeGDU'><img border='0' title='Add to Reddit' alt='Add to Reddit' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/reddit.png'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:42c8b140d4bde64f94bdfefc78564232:GEdsZFGIdFRTOC3ilLqM4vT0FylUMJ3ymMwsIw4uujGgayzGueWL43V7zvHHGRxHU8PbmBu7wO1b'><img border='0' title='Add to digg' alt='Add to digg' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/digg.gif'/></a> <a style='font-size: 10px; color: maroon;' href='http://www.pheedo.com/hostedMorselClick.php?hfmm=v3:7f7362d509693d2b9d202c869f64a1af:XnYlUVmis3k11OiNCEOI%2FoLNONuR6sM86fpdMO9TH2xQe8Kz1rzzUjBgaCumT4unxL7fynu52zMs'><img border='0' title='Add to Google' alt='Add to Google' src='http://www.pheedo.com/images/mm/google.png'/></a> <br style="clear: both;"/> <img alt="" style="border: 0; height:1px; width:1px;" border="0" src="http://www.pheedo.com/img.phdo?i=59ba444ebbcc192df5a7da04ad20b3f6" height="1" width="1"/> <img src="http://www.pheedo.com/feeds/tracker.php?i=59ba444ebbcc192df5a7da04ad20b3f6" style="display: none;" border="0" height="1" width="1" alt=""/> <p><a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~a/wired/index?a=IhdB5v"><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~a/wired/index?i=IhdB5v" border="0"></img></a></p><img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/wired/index/~4/459030071" height="1" width="1"/>
  • No Thanks Required: 20 Worst Film Turkeys of the Year
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  • Opera Mini Brings the Mobile Browser War to Android
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