white

If you're at work and your co-workers won't stop chatting, there are two options: either tell them to go talk elsewhere or get a good pair of earplugs and/or headphones. If you've gone for the latter and can't seem to get over the concentration hump of focusing with music blaring, there's SimplyNoise, a white noise generator that runs right in your browser.

I've had a white noise loop kicking around on my iPod for years, and it doubles as a great way to get in the zone for napping. In SimplyNoise's case, … Read more

In the spirit of Kelly Baby Watch, we explore the many reasons why now is a really good time to be a child. Us grown-ups can still have a little fun too. Listen now: Download today's podcast

Sega Dream Dog DX http://dvice.com/archives/2008/06/sega_dream_dog.php

Edible legos: Yay or nay? http://www.clevelandleader.com/node/5775

Ultimate Star Wars Lego Death Star http://www.core77.com/blog/object_culture/the_ultimate_star_wars_lego_death_star_10257.asp

Go ahead kids: Draw on the fridge http://blogs.cnet.com/8301-13553_1-9976657-32.html

Swim-Ring amphibious PC pool toy http://www.popgadget.net/2008/06/amphibious_pc_p.php … Read more

It's been a while since we'd heard from Gresso, the Russian phone maker that created a buzz back in 2006 with its unusual luxury handsets, followed by other interesting gadgets (and a clunker or two along the way).

Now it's back to doing what it does best--phones--with its new "White Diamonds Collection." There are two models in the line, with the superior of the pair--the "Royal White Diamonds" handset--regally bearing 23 keys of 18k gold topped with 2.53 carats of its eponymous stones, according to BornRich.

As with all Gresso phones, both … Read more

Google co-founder Larry Page was in Washington Thursday trying to strum up support to open unused broadcast TV spectrum to wireless devices.

Page came to D.C. to meet with Congressional leaders and the Federal Communications Commission to talk about allowing device manufacturers to design products that use spectrum known as "white space." This spectrum, which is in the 700MHz band of frequency, sits between analog TV channels and is not being used for anything more than a buffer between broadcast TV channels.

Google and other Silicon Valley companies have been lobbying the FCC and other lawmakers to … Read more

Last week on my Security Bites podcast I talked with Jeremiah Grossman, CTO of WhiteHat Security, about the recent spate of SQL injections affecting Microsoft SQL.

Grossman said that if users surf to an SQL-injected site, their browsers will attempt to download a variety of exploits, not all of which are Microsoft-based. One site from the Shadowserver Foundation lists exploits affecting Real and other vendors alongside various Microsoft Security bulletins. Grossman also said that just turning off Javascript won't necessarily protect end users from this latest round of attacks since the attackers can use traditional HTML as well.

Below … Read more

About a decade ago, wireless heart monitors hooked to patients at Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas went on the fritz, causing much scrambling among the building's engineering team.

The culprit, as it turned out, was interference from a nearby broadcast television station, which was testing its digital signal on the same channel where some of the medical devices operated, as detailed in the journal Biomedical Instrumentation & Technology a few years ago. The Federal Communications Commission ultimately cordoned off spectrum just for that purpose, although migrating there was largely voluntary.

Now, hospital administrators and medical device manufacturers fear … Read more

Did he or didn't he?

An aide to Mexico's president has lost his job after allegedly swiping BlackBerrys off a table outside of diplomatic talks taking place in New Orleans this week, according to several media reports.

Rafael Quintero Curiel, who coordinated Mexican journalists who follow the president, was confronted Tuesday by Secret Service agents at the New Orleans airport and then by Mexican officials once he returned home.

An initial story on Fox News on Thursday claimed he took six or seven BlackBerrys belonging to White House officials. Later reports say he took two of the wireless … Read more

Electric-car maker Tesla Motors has filed suit against a competitor, claiming the company stole trade secrets and copied design ideas.

The lawsuit was filed Monday in San Mateo County Superior Court in California. Tesla hired Henrik Fisker, CEO of car design firm Fisker Coachbuild, last year to design the body of its all-electric WhiteStar sedan. In the suit, Tesla alleges that Fisker and Fisker Coachbuild Chief Operating Officer Bernhard Koehler accepted the contract "to gain access to confidential design information and trade secrets, then announced a competing vehicle," according to a New York Times article.

Last year, Tesla … Read more

The CD may be on its way out, but music and concert DVDs are doing just fine, thank you very much! Late last year I wrote a feature for Home Entertainment magazine running down some of my favorite music DVDs of all time. They were all "live" recordings--there wasn't a single MTV style "music video" in the bunch. This is an abridged version of the article, check the Home Entertainment website to check out the complete article. Oh, and I've added a few DVDs that didn't make the article.

Led Zeppelin

With a … Read more