Monday, January 28, 2008

Flashlight That Can Set Fire or Melt Plastics

This is wicked cool!

The Torch (click here for Engadget article) flashlight is now the world's brightest and most powerful flashlight. The Flashlight is capable of melting plastic, lighting paper on fire within seconds, and if you like, fry an egg or a marshmallow on a stick. At 4100 lumens, The Torch is 100 lumens more powerful than The Polarion Helios, the former most powerful flashlight, and retails for around $300. The Torch is apparently also undergoing review at the Guinness Book of World Records. It's wicked cool but the battery life is down to 15 minutes of use. Hello techno-geeks, time to design a better battery.
 
Click here for The Torch video on YouTube.

Thursday, January 24, 2008

Update on Heath Ledger Death

Ledger masseuse, Diana Wolozin, made four calls to Mary Kate Olsen, a "Full House" actress, three calls before she dialled 911 and another one after the paramedics arrived. Click the link below for Yahoo! News article:
 

Tuesday, January 22, 2008

Actor Heath Ledger dies at 28

Heathcliff Andrew Ledger (April 4, 1979 - January 22, 2008) was an Academy Award-nominated Australian actor. After appearing in television roles during the 1990s, Ledger developed a Hollywood career. He starred in both critical and financial successes, including The Patriot, Monster's Ball and Brokeback Mountain, and completed the role of The Joker in the forthcoming The Dark Knight. Ledger was found dead in a New York City apartment on January 22, 2008.

Click here for CNN News Article.

Rest in peace, Heath.

Monday, January 21, 2008

Browse Securely on Public Hotspots

Check out XeroBank Browser, a free anonymous web browser.

From the ZeroBank website:

"xB Browser is the free anonymous web browser. You're just a click away from anonymous surfing right now! The benefits of xB Browser is that it allows you to securely and anonymously surf the internet, bypass firewalls and website censorship. For enhanced privacy, xB Browser clears history of browing and deletes cookies when you close the browser.

The main advantages compared to other anonymous web browsers is that xB Browser requires no configuration, technical knowledge, or installation in order to achieve anonymity. xB Browser is open source so you can feel safe knowing what goes into xB Browser. Additionally, it is even portable on a USB stick so you can take it to work, school, or on vacation
."
This is very useful for those who use public hotspots where the connections are not encrypted. I just got this link today when I was searching for public hotspots where I can connect my laptop. I am definitely going to try this one. And I hope you find this information useful. (hey! don't forget to leave a comment if you do, or if you find some better alternative)

Monday, January 14, 2008

New Advertising Lure: Let the Audience Be a Part of It (interactively)

A new advertising lure: Software developer Reactrix Systems have unveiled a gaming system made for LCD TVs that mimics the Wii game console in that people punch in the air to hit a boxing opponent or swing their arms to return the ball in a game of volleyball.
 
The design was actually to draw people to become part of the advertising by playing an interactive game. The technology is called WaveScape. Click here to read more on the article on Yahoo! News.
 
 

Thursday, January 10, 2008

One of the Persons "who knocked the bastard off" dies

According to the news, Sir Edmund Hillary, one of the first persons who reached the summit of Mt. Everest, died today at age 88. Sir Edmund Percival Hillary,  was born on July 20, 1919. He was a New Zealand Mountaineer and explorer. He and a Sherpa named Tenzing Norgay became the first persons to ever reach the summit of Mt. Everest on May 29, 1953, telling companions after the climb: "We knocked the bastard off.". They were part of the ninth British expedition to Everest, led by John Hunt. 
 
The cause of Hillary's death was not announced, but he had been ill for some time and local media reported he had been suffering pneumonia.
 
News links below:
 
Rest in peace, Sir Edmund. There aren't many "first person to ...." left these days.

Monday, January 07, 2008

New Word Definitions

  • Divorce : Future tense of marriage.
  • Cigarette : A pinch of tobacco rolled in paper with fire at one end & a fool on the other.
  • Lecture : An art of transferring information from the notes of the lecturer to the notes of the students without passing through "the minds of either"
  • Conference : The confusion of one man multiplied by the number present.
  • Compromise : The art of dividing a cake in such a way that everybody believes he got the biggest Piece.
  • Tears : The hydraulic force by which masculine will-power is defeated by feminine water power.
  • Dictionary : A the only place where success comes before work.    
  • Conference Room : A place where everybody talks, nobody listens and everybody disagrees later on.
  • Classic : A book which people praise, but do not read.
  • Smile : A curve that can set a lot of things straight.
  • Office : A place where you can relax after your strenuous home life.
  • Yawn : The only time some married men ever get to open their mouth.
  • Etc. : A sign to make others believe that you know more than you actually do.
  • Committee : Individuals who can do nothing individually and sit to decide that nothing can be done together.
  • Experience : The name men give to their mistakes.     
  • Atom Bomb : An invention to end all inventions.
  • Philosopher : A fool who torments himself during life, to be spoken of when dead.
  • Diplomat : A person who tells you to go to hell in such a way that you actually look forward to the trip.
  • Opportunist : A person who starts taking bath if he accidentally falls into a river.
  • Optimist : A person who while falling from Eiffel tower says in midway,"See I am not injured yet."
  • Miser : A person who lives poor so that he can die rich.
  • Father : A banker provided by nature.
  • Criminal : A guy no different from the rest... except that he got caught.
  • Boss : Someone who is early when you are late and late when you are early.
  • Politician : One who shakes your hand before elections and your confidence after.
  • Doctor : A person who kills your ills by pills, and kills you with his bills.

20 Years of Headache

The doctor said, "John, the good news is I can cure your headaches, the bad news is that it will require castration. You have a very rare condition, which causes your testicles to press on your spine, and the pressure creates one hell of a headache. The only way to relieve the pressure is to remove the testicles." John was shocked and depressed. He wondered if he had anything to live for. He had no choice but to go under the knife. When he left the hospital he was without a headache for the first time in 20 years, but he felt like he was missing an important part of himself. As he walked down the street, he realized that he felt like a different person. He could make a new beginning and live a new life. He saw a men's clothing store and thought, That's what I need - a new suit."
 
He entered the shop and told the salesman, "I'd like anew suit."
The elderly tailor eyed him briefly and said, "Let's see...size 44 long." 
John laughed, "That's right, how did you know?"
"Been in the business 60 years!" 
John tried on the suit. It fit perfectly.
 
As John admired himself in the mirror, the salesman asked, "How about a new shirt?"
John thought for a moment and then said, "Sure."
The salesman eyed John and said, "Let's see, 34 sleeve and 16-1/2 neck."
John was surprised, "That's right, how did you know?"
"Been in the business 60 years!" 
John tried on the shirt, and it fit perfectly.
 
As John adjusted the collar in the mirror, the salesman asked, "How about newshoes?"
John was on a roll and said, "Sure."
The salesman eyed John's feet and said, "Let's see...9-1/2 E."
John was astonished, "That's right, how did you know?" "
Been in the business 60 years!"
John tried on the shoes and they fit perfectly.
John walked comfortably around the shop and the salesman asked,"How about some new underwear? "
John thought for a second and said, "Sure."
The salesman stepped back, eyed John's waist and said, "Let's see...size 36."
John laughed, "Ah ha! I got you! I've worn size 34 since I was 18 years old."
The salesman shook his head, "You can't wear a size 34. A 34 underwear wouldpress your testicles up against the base of your spine and give you one hell of a headache."

Wednesday, January 02, 2008

Chemical Analysis of an Element called "Woman"

Element : Woman
Symbol : WO
Discoverer: Adam

Quantitative Analysis:
Accepted at 36-28-36, though isotopes ranging from 25-10-20 to 60-55-60 have been identified.

Occurance:

  • Found wherever man is, but seldom in the highly reactive, energetic singlet state.
  • Surplus quantities found in all urban areas.

Physical Properties:

  • Undergoes spontaneous dehydrolysis (weeps) at absolutely nothing, and freezes at a moments notice.
  • Totally unpredictable.
  • Melts when properly treated, very bitter if not well used.
  • Found in various states, ranging from virgin metal to common ore.
  • Non-magnetic, but can be attracted by coins and sport cars.
  • In its natural shape the specimen varies considerably, but it is often changed artificially so well that the change is indiscernible except to the experienced eye.


Chemical Properties:

  • Has a great affinity for AU, AG, and C (in the crystalline form.)
  • May give violent reaction if left alone.
  • Will absorb great amounts of food matter.
  • Highly desired reaction is initiated with various reagents (such as C(2)-H(5)-OH and sexy aftershave lotions.)
  • An essential catalyst is often required (must say you love her at least five times daily).
  • Reaction accelerates out of control when in the dark and all reaction conditions are suitable.
  • Extremely difficult to react if in the highly stable pure form. Yields to pressure applied to correct points. The reaction is highly exothermic.

Storage/Shelf Life:

  • Best results are obtained between the ages of 18 and 28 years.
  • A short time after this, specimens begin to deteriorate, sometimes rapidly.

Uses:

  • Highly ornamental.
  • Used as a tonic for low spirits.
  • Used on lonely nights as a heating agent (if properly prepared).
  • May be trained to cook food, although great care must be exercised.

Tests

  • Pure specimens turn rosy tint if discovered in raw, natural state.
  • Turns green if placed besides a better specimen.
  • Turns blue if proper reaction conditions are not met. Often shows signs of illogical behavior patterns.


Caution:

  • Most powerful reducing agent known to man (income and ego).
  • Highly explosive in inexperienced hands.
  • Specimen must be used with great care if experiments are to succeed.
  • Some of this species have been known to cause confused thinking and varying levels of insanity.

Note: It is illegal to possess more than one permanent specimen, however, a certain amount of exchange is permitted.


Original text came from a page in textfiles.com.

Hacking Network Printers

I happen to stumble on an old article at IronGeek regarding network printer hacking. I found it kinda cool so I thought I'd share the link here on my blog. The problem is that many IT guys don't really think about printers having telnet/web interfaces and don't secure them.

To read the article, click here.