FEPY

Windows only: CCleaner optimizes your PC by removing various kinds of system detritus, such as temp files, old Registry entries, and invalid shortcuts. It also helps promote privacy by deleting your browser’s URL history, cookies, and so on.

In other words, it cleans out the crap (hey, I’m not the potty-mouth; that’s what the “C” in CCleaner stands for). I’m not usually a fan of utilities like this, as they sometimes do more harm than good, but CCleaner has a stellar reputation (as evidenced by its 4.5-star average on CNET’s Download.com). Even so, if you’re a Windows XP user, I highly recommend running the System Restore utility and setting a rollback point before running CCleaner–just in case.

CCleaner is freeware (the developer accepts donations). It works with all versions of Windows (even Vista Beta 2). — Rick Broida

Origin: from Lifehacker

Posted by Fepy on Oct 31, 2006, 3:00PM

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Windows only: Freeware application Soundflavor DJ is an iTunes companion designed primarily as a playlist generator.

We’ve been seeing a lot of playlist generators for iTunes lately, but so far Soundflavor has impressed me the most. Like the rest, Soundflavor fingerprints your music and builds playlists based on similarity of fingerprints (with the option to populate playlists with more or less similar music); by now this whole things become fairly old hat, but Soundflavor has still managed to impress me with innovative extras, like concert notifications when artists in your library are playing in your area (free registration with Soundflavor required) and the ability to integrate songs from other shared iTunes libraries on your network (!).

My only complaint with Soundflavor is that its interface is a bit stutter-y on my computer (it’s also got around a 40MB memory footprint, which ain’t terribly small). Then again, these are the kind of complaints I make when I’m particularly interested in a software, so I certainly think it’s worth a try. Soundflavor DJ is a free download, currently Windows only with the promise of a Mac version in the works. — Adam Pash

Origin: from Lifehacker

Posted by Fepy on Oct 31, 2006, 9:00PM

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This unique type of art is created by … dry dog food. Click on the images to view more.

Thanks to Ken for the submit.

Origin: from haha.nu

Posted by Fepy on Oct 31, 2006, 11:50AM

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Mark Frauenfelder:

My favorite animator, John Kricfalusi, directed an animated video for Jack Black’s band, Tenacious D. It’s for grown-ups only, and is definitely not safe for work.

Link | Pencil test and screen shots here

Origin: from Boing Boing

Posted by Fepy on Oct 31, 2006, 7:28PM

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Mark Frauenfelder:

It’s fun watching this time-lapse video of JW drawing a wasp. Link

Origin: from Boing Boing

Posted by Fepy on Oct 31, 2006, 6:45PM

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Mark Frauenfelder:

Here’s a seven-minute movie of Moscow filmed on a snowy, windy day in 1908. Brrr. Link

Origin: from Boing Boing

Posted by Fepy on Oct 31, 2006, 6:35PM

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By Andrew Liszewski

As a child of the 80’s I’ll always have a soft spot for robots thanks to years of watching Go-Bots, Transformers, Voltron, Tranzor-Z and even G.I. Joe since the B.A.T. characters were always my favorite. Sadly though it’s now the year 2006 and my childish dreams of having a robot sidekick have gone pretty much unfulfilled.

There is still hope that one day my dream will come true when I see robots like this being released. The KONDO KHR-2HV is actually an upgrade to the KHR-1 model and besides being lighter and faster it now has 17 adjustable joints which allow it to do things like back-flips and cartwheels. And for anyone involved in underground robot fighting the KHR-2HV also has a bigger chest for a muscular look which is sure to strike fear into the stickers used to represent their opponents eyes.

Like most robots that actually do something impressive the KONDO is not cheap and the kit will set you back $1,199.

[KONDO KHR-2HV Humanoid Robot Kit] VIA [I4U News]

Robots

Origin: from OhGizmo!

Posted by Fepy on Oct 25, 2006, 10:16PM

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By Andrew Liszewski

As LED and fluorescent lights continue to take-over it looks like the long and full life of the incandescent bulb is slowly coming to an end. It’s interesting though that at the same time we’re starting to see quite a few unique art pieces based around that original glowing icon.

While it has no real practical use except for maybe as a dim nightlight the Glow Brick is still pretty cool to look at. It’s basically a block of acrylic that appears to have the ghost of an incandescent lightbulb suspended inside. And at the center of the block there’s a green sphere that starts to eerily glow the darker the surroundings get. The coolest part is the lack of any batteries or power cords. Instead the Glow Brick is actually solar powered and charges up during the day when sunlight is available.

The Glow Brick is currently on sale for $38.99 at ‘Educational Toys and Gifts’ with free shipping.

[ Glow Bricks ] VIA [ EcoGeek ]

Unusual

Origin: from OhGizmo!

Posted by Fepy on Oct 27, 2006, 3:58PM

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As part of an ongoing battle against invading swarms of giant jellyfish in local waters, some residents of Fukui prefecture have developed a method for converting the jellyfish into powder, which is used to make souvenir cookies. The jellyfish treats, called “Ekura-chan saku-saku cookies,” are now on sale at JR Fukui station at a price of 580 yen for a box of 10.

Three years ago, students from Obama Fisheries High School in Fukui prefecture developed a method for turning the invading jellyfish into powder. A Fukui-area company followed up with a cookie recipe that includes the powdered jellyfish as an ingredient. The result is a cookie with a superbly textured sweetness nicely complemented by the bitter, salty flavor of jellyfish.

Echizen kurage (Nomura’s jellyfish) invade the Sea of Japan each autmun, seriously disrupting fishing operations. The giant jellyfish can grow up to 2 meters wide and weigh up to 200 kilograms (450 lbs) each.

[Source: Mainichi Shimbun]

Origin: from Pink Tentacle

Posted by Fepy on Oct 30, 2006, 7:19AM

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This rocking chair, built for two, is made by Thomas Oliphant: Link

Origin: from Neatorama

Posted by Fepy on Oct 30, 2006, 7:32AM

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