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sappha58

Gadgets

Valentine’s Gift Guide for Your Geek Chic Girlfriend

By Amy Geppert Posted on 7.29.2009 2 Comments
If you plan on insulting your romantic partner’s style sensibilities, then by all means, buy her a pepto-pink gizmo. After all, nothing says those three magic words (by which I mean, “Let’s break up!,”) with quite the same punch as does a blushing gadget. If, however, you want to say those other three words that are the entire reason for February 14th, read on for some gift ideas that are sure to make her squeal with joy. Set the mood with a few LED candles, spruce up the apartment with some love-centric aromas, make sure your breath is kissably fresh, put some romantic tunes on (bonus: give her the flash drive to keep!) and wow your geeky gal with one of the following Valentine’s Day gifts.

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2.25.2009 at 01:06am - Comment by sappha58

Oh, look: a pink laptop! Must. Buy. Now. Not. Pink laptops, pink tool kits, pink this or that. Real women don't need or want it pink, we want it to WORK! When are you marketers going to get it through your thick heads that we don't want to be pandered or condescended to? Sheesh.
DIY

DIY Grow Lights

By Dave Prochnow Posted on 1.15.2009 35 Comments
As you huddle inside your home this winter cursing the gloomy darkness, remember that you’re not alone: The season has an even worse effect on your plants. Many common houseplants need far more hours of light than they get naturally in the middle of February, especially if they don’t have direct exposure to a sunlit window. Although the incandescent and fluorescent bulbs most people have in their homes will keep plants alive, they don’t emit light that’s within the temperature range necessary for optimal, or even adequate, foliage growth in light-hungry plants.

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1.26.2009 at 11:13pm - Comment by sappha58

You can go to http://www.optekinc.com/viewparts.aspx?categoryID=73 to learn more about the Optek designer light kit.
The Environment

Nature's Grossest Creatures

By Jeremy Hsu Posted on 12.12.2008 10 Comments
A good dose of nature can still soothe the psyche of the modern human, but sometimes nature, red in tooth and claw, can also just gross you out. Wasps turn helpless caterpillars into a 24x7 buffet for young ones, mama mantis snacks on the head of its former lover, and a frog gives new meaning to oral fixation when nurturing the kiddies.

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12.14.2008 at 03:20am - Comment by sappha58

Okay, I'm a trekkie geek. That blobfish reminds me of the Videans from Star Trek: Voyager!
Entertainment & Gaming

Desktop Linux – Will It Ever Stick?

By Tom Conlon Posted on 4.2.2009 33 Comments
About seven years ago, I tried to free myself from the oppression and misery of running Windows ME by installing Linux on my PC. Ever installed the Linux operating system? It’s not for the faint of heart. So, when it was recently reported that Linux-based netbooks are being returned at a rate four-times higher than their Windows-based brethren, I can’t say I was surprised.

11.16.2008 at 08:53pm - Comment by sappha58

Funny; I don't find Linux difficult to use or applications hard to install. Others have commented on this above, so I need not revisit that. I will say that I've been using Linux (Fedora) exclusively on my PC since August of 2003, and I will NOT be going back to Microsoft. I am part of a forum - http://forums.delphiforums.com/crossborn/start - that welcomes newbies and expects zero understanding to get started. All we ask that the newbie provide is patience and a willingness to learn.
Entertainment & Gaming

Fear and Loathing in the Online Office Suite

By Tom Conlon Posted on 4.2.2009 11 Comments
As part of my ongoing, personal economic bailout plan, this week I began tinkering around with a couple of the free, online office suites that are available. After all, why shell out a few hundred clams for Microsoft Office when others are giving it away for free? Unfortunately, after a week of getting to know Google Docs and Zoho Writer, here I am typing this week’s column from the comfort and safety of a bought-and-paid-for copy of Microsoft Word. Why? Because I came to realize something about myself over the course of this week: At 30 years old, I’m already an old fart. More on that later.

11.16.2008 at 08:02pm - Comment by sappha58

I'm going to add my voice to the chorus: you forgot about or ignored OpenOffice! One of my problems with using online software like that is it can and will be updated/upgraded without your knowledge - and that could lead to compatibility issues with documents that you don't touch for long periods of time. Another is security. If I'm working on a document and store it out in the web, even with 1024-bit crypto and passwords out the wazoo, I still can't be guaranteed of the document's security or privacy. I simply live with the concept that if I put it on the web, it's not private. Paranoid, maybe. Better safe than sorry, and in a world where black-hats are looking for anything and everything that they can sharpen their skills on, paranoid is not a bad thing. So, OpenOffice. On my hard drive. Documents also on my hard drive, behind a NAT firewall in a private folder on a non-Microsoft run box.
DIY

Do I Need to Buy Microsoft Office?

By Posted on 6.12.2008 6 Comments
Not necessarily. It’s hard to ignore MS Office, but you don’t need to blow 400 bucks to get your work done. In fact, you don’t need to install any programs at all. Sign up for the free Google Docs (documents.google.com) or Zoho (zoho.com), and you can do everything in a Web browser. The programs look similar to Word, Excel and PowerPoint and offer all the same features (save for a few lesser-used ones like certain spreadsheet formulas). Zoho even kicks in a few extra applets like a Wiki-building tool. Best of all, these applications let you access your files from any computer that’s online. If you don’t have reliable Internet access or are more comfortable installing programs on your computer, there’s no shortage of competition, either.

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6.17.2008 at 04:42am - Comment by sappha58

It's free, it can read and write MS Office formats to a large extent. Unless you're a power MSO user, OO has everything you need. Open Office FTW
The Environment

The Grouse: Assault on Batteries

By Posted on 2.19.2008 21 Comments
Perusing the deluge of overheated press releases from the CES conference a few weeks ago, one in particular, for Panasonics new line of EVOLTA batteries, got me thinking. And when I say thinking, I mean muttering curse words and shaking my fist. The release made a big deal about the fact that these new batteries last from 1.3 to 2 times as long as other alkaline batteries—which is to say, slightly less poisonous and wasteful, but not much. Whoopdee-flipping-doo.

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2.14.2008 at 04:08am - Comment by sappha58

Australia took a lead in banning edison-style light bulbs. If everyone on planet replaced their edison bulbs with CFL (Compact Flourescent Light) bulbs, we would have a massive reduction in electricity needs. Using the same idea to move from "disposable" batteries to rechargables is also the right idea. Remember that when we throw things away, there is no "away." We have to learn to recycle and reuse *everything.*
Gadgets

Girly Gadget Gallery

By Posted on 1.21.2008 2 Comments

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2.13.2008 at 11:32pm - Comment by sappha58

Why do people assume that girl + geek = frilly pink fluffy crap? I'm a woman, not a girl, thankyouverymuch, and I'm a Geek. I love awesome tools just as much as any guy does. A couple of the things in this article are marginally okay, but don't dare assume I want something in pink - unless you want to wear it for a week! The rest of the stuff in this list are just... bleah. Would you guys want stuff like this? No? Why on Earth would you think we women do??