Home Tech

Onion Goggles Keep You from Crying in the Kitchen

I tear up when I am chopping onions, and even though sometimes it’s just a sniffle, there have been times — like when I am on a marathon chopping streak while making multiple freezer lasagnas — when the tears just started to flow. What in the world is happening? According to Mental Floss (a fantastic magazine and blog): 1. When you cut into an onion, its ruptured cells release all sorts of goodies, like allinase enzymes and amino acid sulfoxides. The former breaks the latter down into sulfenic acids. 2. The sulfenic acids, unstable bunch that they are, spontaneously rearrange…

Reviews

Review: Applecore Cable Management in Action!

The other day I e-mailed Judie and asked, “How do you keep all your various charging and syncing cables organized?” Her answer was short, to the point, and said everything that needed to be said. “What makes you think that my cords and cables are organized in any way shape or form?” Yes, if you have multiple devices, cable overwhelm can be a bit of an issue. So how does one deal with it? I have tried a host of different solutions which include everything from having specific cables taped underneath my desk and available if I simply reach for…

News & Features

Craig Turner Solves the Cat Pee Problem (and Yes, There IS a Problem)

I love my two (fixed) female cats, but for a while we had a third — a stray we named Bobby because when he showed up more than 3/4 of his tail was missing. That’s him in the picture above. Cute little guy, right? Unfortunately, something else wasn’t missing; he was still a fully intact male. We never leave our windows down, so we didn’t discover his disgusting habit of peeing in people’s cars until he had done it to my friend Lisa’s jeep and my cousin Dusty’s work truck. Bad kitteh. I don’t know about you, but there are…

News & Features

Blue Canary Night-Lite Makes a Little Birdhouse in Your Soul

Blue canary in the outlet by the light switch Who watches over you Make a little birdhouse in your soul Not to put too fine a point on it Say I’m the only bee in your bonnet Make a little birdhouse in your soul Who didn’t sing along with this song in 1990? Thanks to Think Geek, now you can have the night-lite that They Might Be Giants were referring to. $12.99 gets you this 4″tall night light with its light-sensing white LED. I’m ordering one now. Think Geek’s Blue Canary in the Outlet by the Light Switch (who watches…

Gear Bits, News & Features

Unruly Cables and Cords? Take Two Apple(cores) and Call Me In the Morning

Cords are a pain. Seriously. They are a royal pain. You got your headphone cords. You got your sync cords. You got your power cords. You got your… Never mind, you get the idea. The list goes on and on. Well here is one solution that is inexpensive, effective and a lot of fun too. The Applecore is a simple system for getting your cords in line. They come in small, medium and large so that headphones, sync and computer cables and power cords can all be effectively tamed. Better still they comes in a variety of colors. AND, and…

Reviews

The Swingline Stack-and-Shred Cross Cut Shredder Review

This is my husband’s and my pile of things that needed to be shredded; it started in a drawer, was moved to a shelf, and eventually ended up in a bag under our bed. What’s in it? Everything from those “convenience” checks that credit card companies seem to think we can’t live without, to credit card applications that simply need a signature and mail-back to be approved, to health insurance settlement statements, to all those bit of paper that have numbers, names, addresses and other information that get scribbled down when we are trying to be efficient. Why were we…

News & Features

Orb’s Mod1 PLUS Home Theater Speaker System: Big on Style and Sound

Here’s some exciting audio news: Speakers Do Not Have to be Square! Shocked? I’m sure you are but after years of being limited to boring square speakers it is now possible to get big sound from your home audio system without having to sacrifice style. Orb’s Mod1 PLUS Home Theater Speaker System is leading the charge by bringing aesthetic interest AND great sound to your den or theater room. Sure, Orb’s system doesn’t come cheap, but as the company explains, We know some of you are trying like crazy to keep your system under $1,000. The problem with that plan…

Reviews

Review: DYMO LabelManager PnP

Labels. We get them when we are young. Sometimes we earn them. Sometimes we don’t. Sometimes they are flattering. Often they are not. Labels. Once they are there, they are difficult to shake. Oh, wait, this isn’t about that kind of label is it? No, this is about those labels that you print up and then attach to items you want easily identified. For example if you are sorting the various cables that go with the various gadgets you have collected over the years labels help you know what is inside each box without even opening it. Or if you have…

News & Features

Going Bananas for Banana TV

Apple’s AirPlay is getting a lot of use in our home these days. I have a number of Airport Express units around the house and each is attached to a set of speakers. With them I can now start music playing anywhere I want from any iOS device by simply starting the music and selecting that room’s AirPort Express from the AirPlay menu. It is simple, it is quick and it makes great use of our WiFi network. That’s why I jumped at the chance to buy the new program, Banana TV. What is Banana TV, and why am I…

Gear Bits

Building the Perfect Drink Just Got Easier with Palette Coasters

When we are up in the country we all have our “roles”. Elana is the “food maven”. Her dad, when he is up, is the “grill master”. As for me… well I tend bar. 🙂 Over the years I’ve collected a nice selection of different barware. Margaritas have their glasses, martinis have theirs and the list goes on. Having the right glass for the right drink just makes everything a bit more festive. Same goes for the coaster the glass sits on. And these “palette coasters”… They look kinda fun. Yes, these simple but amusing coasters do their job but…

Gear Bits

Proven True! Lightning Doesn’t Strike the Same Place Twice

photo credit: Kuzeytac You know the old saying that lightning doesn’t strike the same place twice? Well, now I have definitive proof that this is absolutely true. Yup, Lightning Does Not Strike The Same Place Twice! Years ago our house in the mountains suffered a direct lightning strike. How do I know that is the case? I know because it was the middle of the afternoon on Saturday and a huge storm front was coming through. Our golden retriever (she was still with us) and I were taking an afternoon siesta in the den; I LOVE afternoon naps when a…

Reviews

Review- NIX 8″ Hu-Motion Digital Picture Frame with Motion Detection Sensor and Rechargeable Battery

I have a tremendous number of photographs sitting on my MacBook air. They range back more than 15 years and have various members of my community involved in many different activities. The problem is they sit there and they don’t get enjoyed by the community at large. Yes, I’ve taken to putting series of slide shows up on the synagogue website but people still need to go to the website in order to see them. As a result I’ve been looking around to try to find the right digital frame solution so that I could put the frame in my…

Editorials

In the Sea of Sameness- Sony Seeks to Swim to the Top

The consumer electronics world is a “sea of sameness”, and that’s not a good thing if you are an electronics company. “Sea of sameness” is the term that was used numerous times during a private briefing with the number of Sony’s executives. The issue is this: You walk into a box store such as Best Buy, and you go to the back of the store. There on the wall you find high-definition television, after high-definition television, after high-definition television. They all look pretty much the same, and they all pretty much have the same price points. Some are a little…

Gear Bits

The Swingline Stack-and-Shred Has Arrived!

Not that you needed any further proof that I was a dork, I mean geek, but I found myself unnaturally excited when FedEx dropped off this package earlier today. Inside is the SwingLine Stack & Shred, a crosscut shredder that allows you to feed up to 100 sheets of paper at a time by lifting the lid on the front and laying the items to shred inside the tray. Stack, Shut and Go. The Swingline Stack-and-Shred technology is built for busy executives, small and home office users and anyone who wants an easy and efficient way to personally shred. It…

Reviews

The Keurig Mini Plus Personal Brewer Review

Given the long hours I spend editing and writing, there are a few things that I need to have available at all times: a good desktop or laptop computer, a decent camera for taking pictures, a comfortable chair, and an ever flowing source of caffeine. The refrigerator behind me takes care of my Diet Cokes, I have a canister of dark-chocolate covered coffee beans on the counter, and lately I’ve been using the Keurig Mini Plus Personal Brewer system to handle my coffee and tea requirements. As the company explains: · The Keurig brewing system offers a coffee house quality…

Gear Bits

GD Quickie: Gear Tie 18″ Tie Your Gear

Seriously, how could I NOT post on this??? After all, the product name is Gear Tie. (And we’re Gear Diary… Get the tie-in??) So what’s the deal with these Gear Ties? Simple- The 18″ Nite Ize Gear Tie is the perfect size to wrap and organize medium-to-large appliance cords and wires. Keep your jumper cables, extension cords, dog leashes, and larger electric cords neat and untangled with a quick simple twist. The 18″ Gear Tie is also great for looping and hanging lightweight tools and lanterns—and reusable nature makes it easy to reposition and adjust conveniently. Available in packs of…

News & Features

Sonance Wants to Provide Your Sound Garden

So you didn’t get picked for the latest episode of Yard Crashers. No worries, just record a bunch of episodes and copy what projects and techniques you fancy. And when it comes time for an outdoor sound system that blends into your suburban jungle, Sonance has you covered. Sonance, the technology leader that introduced the world’s first in-wall loudspeaker is now shipping the acclaimed Sonance Landscape Series that debuted recently. The new 70V Sonance Landscape Series system of two-way satellite speakers and in-ground subwoofer has been designed with a long life UV stable material to withstand extreme weather. The new…

News & Features

Drink Clean Water, Become a Solid Citizen with the Revolve Tap Water Filter Bottle

For the longest time I was a bad resident of Planet Earth. Yes, on any given day I might go through three, four, five or even six plastic water bottles. What a waste. What a complete and total waste. Some time ago I finally went out and I got an insulated, reusable water bottle. Now I don’t add to the growing number of bottles in landfills AND, because it is insulated, my water stays cold all day. Well it looks like my insulated water bottle is about to see a lot less use thanks to the Revolve Tap Water Filter…

Reviews

Review: Boogie Board LCD Writing Tablet: Go Paperless

When I saw the Boogie Board at CES 2011 I was intrigued. The device is small, thin and amazingly light. It is a touch-sensitive LCD screen that truly makes it possible for you to never use notepaper again. Since it is always on you simply pick it up, jot your note and go. When I saw one at Brookstone yesterday I knew I just had to have one so… I bought it. It is a neat device that does exactly what it saws. And yet it is going back. Why? Read on to find out. From Boogie Board- The next…

News & Features

Swingline Introduces the Stack-and-Shred, So You Can Keep Your Secrets Hidden

Are you one of those people who sticks your insurance finalization forms in the trash? The kind who tosses bank receipts, deposit slips, paid utility and credit card bills in the bin? Do you make jokes about filing important documents away in “drawer #13”, but you really mean the overflowing bucket under your desk? If so, then you are also the type of person who is simply begging for their identity to be stolen. Yes, really. The solution is to shred those documents as they leave your hand, before they make their way into the garbage. Don’t even let them…

Reviews

Review: Epson Artisan 725 All-In-One Printer

I’m a huge fan of Epson’s printers. I find they work well, offer a huge range of excellent features and are priced competitively. A while back I had the chance to review their Epson Workforce 600 all-in-one printer/fax/copier. I was impressed and continued to use it until my father needed a printer. I gave it to him and he used it until a friend broke it while trying to replace the printer cartridge. (Don’t ask!) When I asked my father what he wanted to replace it he replied, “The exact same one.” That says it all. Over the past few…

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