Cranky Geeks Fun!
John Dvorak was kind enough to have me on his Cranky Geeks show this week. Go here to watch the fun and frivolity.
Also this week, I installed Windows 7, and so far am really enjoying it. I went with Windows 7 Professional. Have you upgraded yet? What are your plans? I'd love to hear from you.
I'd also like to invite you to follow me on Twitter. What's that, you say? Twitter's for the birds? You don't have time to hear what people had for lunch? I say give Twitter a try. First, sign up for a free account. Then, (since you like tech content) follow a couple dozen of these people. If you have other interests, follow more people here. The trick with Twitter is to use it as a source of great content, and unfollow everyone who's boring. Give it a try! I'll see you on Twitter.
And now, on with the show!
7 Reasons Why Microsoft Should Make PCs
Microsoft stole Apple's retail store idea, as well as the Apple store look and feel, for its first outlet in first store in Scottsdale, Arizona. (A second one is planned for Mission Viejo, California). Trouble is, unlike Apple, Microsoft doesn't make PCs. Here are my 7 reasons why they should.
Is Windows 7 cursed?
 Almost everyone likes Windows 7. It's faster, cleaner and easier to use. But is paranormal activity wrecking the rollout? Just in time for Halloween, the Windows 7 launch is being undermined by some unexplained phenomena.
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 AD: Have you installed Windows 7 yet, or do you intend to do so in the near future? Buy and download Chris Pirillo's Windows 7 Tips eBook!
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Three things I hate about iPhone
 I love my iPhone. App store magic has transformed the device from a mediocre phone with a vaguely interesting user interface into what I think is the single most important consumer electronics product ever. Unfortunately, three admittedly minor but deliberate limitations nearly wreck the iPhone party.
Simply your life the Bruce Sterling way!
 Science fiction genius Bruce Sterling gave a truly fascinating talk at the Reboot conference June 1 in Copenhagen. I would characterize it as the unveiling of a post-environmental, post-materialist view of the world. But embedded in the vision was shockingly practical advice for improving your life through simplification and optimization of your "stuff."
Screen Glare Sucks. But a 'Laptop Burka'?
 Digital nomads tend to find ourselves using laptops in places where there is too much light, and too many nosy people -- like at sidewalk cafes. In parks. In bed. Etc. The problem is made especially bad by the popularity of those shiny laptop screens. One solution is the Laptop Burka. But is it a solution only the Taliban could love?
USB Gadget Hall of Shame
 Brando is selling a wide range of absurd and overly decorated game pads. The worst of the lot is the $29 USB Ninja Gamepad, which is decorated to look like a "Ninja Monster." What in the hell is a "Ninja Monster"?
The Art Gallery
Some Sir Mix-a-lot fan (apparently) designed this sound system called the "Asspeaker." Yeah, it's just what it sounds like. You "tap" the right "cheek" to turn it on. Rub the left for volume. It's just a concept that will (hopefully) never see the light of day.
News You Can Lose
 A blog called Le Journal du Geek -- no, I didn't make that up -- has posted a large number of photos showing Microsoft's new Windows Cafe, which opened in Paris, France, today. The cafe enables Parisians to see demos of Windows 7 and Xbox while sipping coffee in a fashionable district of Paris (near the Forum des Halles over the Châtelet-Les Halles metro station).
Don't look now, but if you live in the US, you're getting a slow mobile broadband connection and paying too much for it. This chart of mobile broadband speeds around the world, and the cost of those connections, will make you want to move to Japan.
Now That's an iPhone Halloween Costume!
Wow!
Bad Robots
Japan has led the world in humanoid robots that can walk. But one Pentagon-funded project has resulted in robot locomotion that's exactly like human walking.
Don't Try This At Home
 Nerds at Iwata-Yano Laboratory at Tsukuba University in Japan have created what they call the Media Vehicle. The contraption is a virtual reality "cocoon" where you can immerse yourself in a spherical display, surround sound and gentle G-forces courtesy of the computer-controlled wheels, which drag the whole thing this way and that to make you feel the motion. I want one.
Lying with Photoshop
What's wrong with this guy's right hand?
4 ways to improve USB
I love the Universal Serial Bus. It lets me connect, power and charge my gadgets. But laptop makers, peripheral makers and even car companies could make it much better by doing four simple things.
Gotta-Get-It Gadgets
 That BlackBerry wristwatch I told you about a week ago is now publicly confirmed, and available for pre-order. Called the inPulse, the wristwatch will ship by February 2010 in the United States and Canada only, and cost $149.
 The SkyShutter Helicam is a $9000 electric remote-controlled helicopter designed for aerial photography and video. The chopper itself weighs 30 pounds, and carries a camera or camcorder as heavy as 6 pounds. It beams down a live video feed, and requires two people to operate: A pilot and and a camera-person. Here comes the high-def video!
Mystery Pic o' the Week
What is it? Post your guess in the comments section of this Posterous page. If you're first with the right answer, you'll earn the dubious honor of getting your name in the next issue of Mike's List!
 LAST WEEK'S MYSTERY PIC: No, it's not a BlackBerry Razor, a BlackBerry Taser, or even a Captain Kirk Communicator, as suggested by some readers. In fact, it's a picture of Mobiado's Grand 350 Pioneer phone, which honors NASA's Pioneer 10 spacecraft, which was hurled into space to explore the solar system in 1973. The battery cover is made from a four billion-year old Gibeon meteorite that originates from the asteroid belt that lies between Mars and Jupiter. The phone's outer shell is made with spacecraft-aluminium, which is engraved with an artistic rendition of the Pioneer Plaque on the spacecraft to communicate with aliens. The frame is inlaid with sapphire crystal and the infrared window is made from a solid piece of ruby crystal. The screws are gold-plated stainless steel. The buttons of the 350 Pioneer are a dramatic combination of sapphire crystal and stainless steel." As you might have guessed, this phone ain't cheap. The company is making only 37 of them, and they'll charge a whopping $5,600 each for them. Congratulations to Liam for being first with the right answer!
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If you don't have anything nice to say, say it to me! Send rumors, gossip and inside information to mike@mikeslist.com. STEAL THIS NEWSLETTER!: You have permission to post, e-mail, copy, print or reproduce this newsletter as many times as you like, but please do not modify it. Mike's List is written and published from deep inside the black heart of Silicon Valley by Mike Elgan. The Mike's List newsletter is totally independent, and does not accept advertising, sponsorships or depraved junkets to sunny resorts. Mike writes and speaks about technology culture, smart phones, smart people, random gadgets, bad ideas, weird computers, painful implants, malicious robots and the Internet. |
 The Raw Feed - Mike's main blog.
Computerworld - Mike's column about mobile computing.
Datamation - Mike's column about technology and the computer industry.
Brains Without Borders - Mike's blog about digital nomad, location-independent living.
Computer America - The nationwide radio show and podcast that runs daily from 7pm to 9pm Silly Con Valley Time (Mike appears in the last half-hour each Thursday nights).
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