puppies

The 404 Podcast 501: Where we play with each other's tools

The 404 Podcast Tip of the Day: it's an unspoken rule that every nerd has to include a multitool of some kind in his or her EDC arsenal. My most recent addition is the Leatherman Skeletool CX, a 7-in-1 with carbon inserts to lower the weight. I also own the comprehensive Leatherman Wave for heavier jobs, and Wilson's choice is the blade-less version because he likes to travel with it on his person. It doesn't matter which one you choose, but it's always good to be prepared!

The first story of the day is one that Jeff holds very close to his heart: ESPN might finally come to Xbox 360. According to the latest rumor in The New York Times, ESPN could partner with high-speed ISPs to offer streaming sporting events right on the gaming console. You can already stream Netflix movies and purchase videos within the interface, but sports content might make the perfect complement to their 3D sports channel supposedly happening within the next year.

After a very short run in theaters, China has stopped screening "Avatar" due to concerns over its financial success and fear that the underlying themes of revolution might plant inappropriate thoughts in the minds of its citizens. Having already scored $73.2 million in China, Fox has already confirmed its cancellation-- the movie is already replaced with a Chinese movie about the life of Confucius.

Quick side note: we initially threw this story in the rundown hoping Wilson could provide valuable insight based on his six-month sojourn in China, but his post-dentistry medication keeps him from really opening up on the subject. Unfortunate timing or blessing in disguise? We'll let you decide.

In addition to a big Calls From the Public and a few hilarious reader e-mails, we check out the new "MacGruber" movie trailer and also discuss the the most successful "SNL" movies, like "Superstar" and "The Blues Brothers." Of course, no 404 episode would be complete without us ripping on something, so we also talk about the biggest "SNL"-adapted movie flops.

Just can't get enough of The 404? Have you heard all the back episodes? If not, be sure to check out The 404 Wikia for an extremely detailed episode guide with links to every show we've ever recorded, guest breakdowns, top content, editable entries, etc...enjoy and thanks to everyone who maintains our page!

EPISODE 501 Subscribe in iTunes audio | Suscribe to iTunes (video) | Subscribe in RSS Audio | Subscribe in RSS Video… Read more

Put a pet calendar on your iPhone

If you're the kind of person who melts at the sight of kittens, puppies, and other furry friends, check out iPhoneCalendars.com. The site is home to two dozen animal-themed calendars for iPhone and iPod Touch.

Specifically, these are like small-screen replacements for those month-at-a-glance calendars people traditionally hang on the wall.

Consequently, they're best suited to people who dock their devices at their desks, where the calendar can stay visible throughout the day.

The selections include cats, kittens, puppies, and over a dozen individual dog breeds (from Beagle to Yorkshire Terrier). Coming soon: nonanimal calendars like flowers, … Read more

Legendary high-end speaker gets major face-lift

Wilson Audio Specialties didn't invent high-end speakers, but its original WATT speaker, introduced in 1986, changed the rules of the game.

Up to that point, state-of-the-art speakers were all large beasts, but the WATT was a comparatively tiny stand-mounted speaker. Its distinctive pyramidal shape went on to spawn countless imitations.

The WATT was soon joined by the matching Puppy (woofer), and over the ensuing decades the two-piece WATT/Puppy system evolved, culminating in the WATT/Puppy 8 in 2006. Well over 15,000 WATT/Puppys have been sold since 1986, but rather than move to the W/P 9, founder David Wilson decided to start afresh, so now we have the Sasha W/P ($26,900/pair).

Wilson Audio Specialties' director of sales, Peter McGrath, came to New York City to present the Sasha W/P to the press at Wilson dealer Innovative Audio last week. The new speaker's sweeping curves and refined shape make for the best-looking Wilson speaker of all time. … Read more

The 404 330: Where Tuna Tuesday becomes Bacon Tuesday

Ace reporter Caroline McCarthy from CNET News joins the show today to bring us bacon chocolate from Foodzie. It's kind of like, Etsy but for food. Wilson doesn't partake in the bacon, but he munches down on the bourbon chocolate. Jeff's not a fan of swine cocoa, but Justin can't get enough of it.

However, Justin's not a fan of Apple's iPhone warranty policies. Apparently, he dropped his iPhone into a puddle of something. We're not exactly sure what, but we're pretty sure you can't drink it. Anyway, because of this whole ordeal, he's decided to become Justine.

Additionally, ESPN.com tries to be cool when it briefly enables the "Contra code" for its Web site. The hack lasted for about 45 minutes before it got shut down, but we give the site props for making unicorns and rainbows cool again.

It's Tuna Tuesday again, and we get a phone call from Tina. Finally, Twitter has become popular enough to ban at work. We get around it with this new Web app that fakes an Excel document with all your Twitters.

Be sure to check out Jeff Bakalar's appearance on Dan Levy's podcast "On the DL." He talks about tech and hockey. Lastly, a show about supercute kittens and puppies uses The 404 music loop. Didn't know the music could go both ways.

EPISODE 330 Download today's podcast | Subscribe in iTunes | Subscribe in RSS… Read more

iPhone succumbs to puppy madness

You love your puppies, but maybe hanging out with them at home just isn't enough for you and you want to peek at others' puppies, too. Now you can indulge this puppy love whenever you want, wherever you want, with the potential of seeing an unlimited number of puppies, as long as you have an iPhone.

TheDailyPuppy.com, a Web site that dog enthusiasts have no doubt been using as their home page, announced Wednesday the availability of its application for the iPhone. Now you can get puppies delivered to you via just a few touches of the finger--and … Read more

Buzz Out Loud 871: Pirates on the paradigm ship

In today's show, horrible ship-related pun-crimes are perpetrated and we learn that in Russia, emoticons wink at you and try to charge you for them. Also, we bash a ton of gadgets, like the still-overpriced Sony PlayStation 3, the $99-with-contract Acer Aspire, and the Android phones running apps that turn on roaming and data use without your knowledge. Then we bring it on home with puppies. Listen now: Download today's podcast Episode 871

Chrome breaks outta beta http://news.cnet.com/8301-17939_109-10120965-2.html

Nintendo Wii outsells Xbox 360 more than two-to-one http://www.informationweek.com/news/personal_tech/peripherals/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=212500018&subSection=All+Stories… Read more

Puppy porn and otter obsession

I've been wanting to write about the phenomenon of animal Web cams for several years when I first learned that my good friend Susan was addicted to the sea otter cam at the Monterey Bay Aquarium.

Every time I would see Susan she would regale me with information about her favorite sea otter, Toola. Toola, who often serves as a surrogate mother to stranded otter pups, doesn't like to be weighed on the scale, she only leans on her right side and grooms her fur with both paws and feet, and she is very shy despite assuming center … Read more

Crazy for a dog? Call FLEXPETZ

I'm not sure what to make of it, but FLEXPETZ.com claims to offer pet dogs for rent on a daily basis-- at prices so high you'd have to be crazy to do it.

I heard about the site through a mention on a local TV news broadcast. It seemed like such a crazy idea I just had to go look.

Now that I've seen it, I'm tempted to assume it's just another hoax website, like PuppyBeef.com. In fact, it could very well be from the same people, because it's just as exploitative.… Read more

Profigold package does not contain puppy

This week a package arrived here at Crave UK that weighed as much as a fairly hefty puppy, which was slightly confusing. Who had sent us a puppy, and why wasn't it barking? It transpired that it was in fact an HDMI cable. But not just any HDMI cable, a 49.2-foot-long Profigold PROV1015, which went some way toward explaining the prodigious weight.

The PROV1015 is very well-constructed, which is one of the reasons it has some girth to it. Plugging the connector into an HDMI socket resulted in a firm contact and no fear that the cable would … Read more