Archive for February 2010

Why It’s Better To Pirate A Movie Than Pay

Spoof Mattress Advert

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Backwards tower PC case

Although this is an old page, it’s still a clever idea, and a relatively rare example of a purely practical mod. Mike Harrison was tired of having to crawl around behind his to mess with all the connections, so he turned the case around by mounting all the lights, switches, and drives in what was the back of the case, and using it with that side forward.

Augmented Reality Tattoo Makes Your Skin Come Alive

How about Augmented Reality as a form of body art? A company called ThinkAnApp has made that possible with an augmented reality tattoo.

The ’s design is simply a square barcode marker on the skin, but when seen through a webcam an animated flying dragon appears to be hovering over the box. The Buenos Aires-based ThinkAnApp developed software that recognizes a barcode on a curved surface (like your body), making the flying dragon overlay possible.

The below video demonstrates the effect. It’s an initial test for how the augmented reality concept could be used to power even more creative tattoo art.

What do you think: Are AR tattoos too gimmicky? Is it too restrictive to require a webcam in order to get the full tat experience? Or should companies be working on other devices with which to view AR content so that one day we can achieve the futuristic cyberpunk dream of putting on sunglasses to see people’s skin spring to life?

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Outlet Regulator Saves Power by Ejecting Plugs When Gadgets Are Charged

Designed by Conor Klein, the Outlet Regulator is an innovative device that automatically ejects plugs when the gadgets they’re charging are at 100% power. This is made possible by “using a timer circuit along with electromechanics, it’s able to detach itself from the wall once fully charged.” Video after the break.

It’s really a very good idea; and like so many good ideas, it seems so obvious when you consider it. Why wouldn’t plugs implement this, perhaps in a less dramatic fashion, like a simple switch inside the adapter?

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