xmas

When there was no choice about shopping, stores did as they pleased.

If they decided that the holiday season began when the clocks went back, then shoppers had to endure it.

Now, however, shoppers don't have to populate malls where the restrooms are clean, but the fountains are dirty.

Now, they have the Web.

It seems, indeed, that this year might represent an even greater rebellion against holiday decorations adorning stores before Thanksgiving.

I am speaking with the assurance of a drunken pollster, because I have before my eyes a survey performed on behalf of a cloud and mobile … Read more

For those who were amused by tonight's presidential debate, there will have been either the audacity of hope or the fright of despair.

But I cannot sit and wait to hear what the pundits think. For I have real data about what real people are really thinking.

It comes from a survey conducted on behalf of SOASTA, a cloud and mobile testing company that helped NASA prepare for its curious Mars landing.

SOASTA wanted to look ahead to see how real people see the holiday shopping season, given the economic uncertainty that is lashing at our fleshy parts.

And … Read more

Running out of creativity when trying to find gifts for friends and family? Here's a suggestion that almost guarantees some good fun, regardless of the gift: dummy gift boxes from prankpack.com.

These are regular rectangular cardboard boxes, about the size of a giant phone book, with professionally printed art and photos that suggest out-of-this-world, crazy products they have inside. The thing is, none of these products exists, and instead you just use the boxes to pack anything else that you want to give.

Just imagine the excitement, mixed with some bewilderment, your nerdy friend will have upon receiving … Read more

Children need toys. Parents need quiet children. So they buy those children toys.

Yet toys are expensive. And children are fickle. So a site called Toygaroo has decided to offer parents the choice of renting toys.

The site offers various plans, just like Netflix. For example, for $24.99 you get four toys every other month. For $34.99, you get 4 toys every month. And for $52.99 you get eight toys that will delight your children beyond all measure.

WBZ-TV Boston decided to chat with parents who seemed rather delighted with the whole thing.

What seems splendid is … Read more

Cut the Rope, one of the hottest smartphone games, just got an update to the free standalone holiday version for both the iPhone and iPad (universal) featuring new challenges and holiday-themed levels.

Certain apps have staying power on the top-10 list at the iTunes App Store and Cut The Rope offers just the right mix of challenging physics-based gameplay, family-friendly graphics, and tons of levels to explore to keep it near the top.… Read more

This is the time of year when you try to calculate how little time you can spend buying things for people who are trying to spend as little time as possible buying things for you.

Online shopping has helped hugely in this regard. You can show your closest friends and family how much you love them without leaving your bed.

However, there are so many choices that one can become addled.

So let me lift your burden and toss it into space. For the perfect Xmas gift is here. Yes, Computer Engineer Barbie.

Perhaps you had assumed Barbie was, at … Read more

Rudolph's Kick n Fly is the iPhone and iPod Touch adaptation--and expansion--of another 2D Flash game from developer Donut Games, a classic catapult game in which you launch a wee Santa into the air to see how many Christmas decorations (candy canes, gingerbread men, snowflakes, etc.) he can grab.

The interface (and gameplay) of this app is pretty limited: you touch and drag to determine Santa's trajectory (timing your release with a fluctuating power meter), and then once your elf is airborne you can tap the screen to get two separate, flatulent "bursts" for more altitude. … Read more

It's less than 12 hours before I will be leaving on a jet plane for a holiday in Ohio with my family, so I'm gonna keep this short: I figured for the Xmas Eve edition of this video blog, I'd present something fun and festive, and I thought this little video from 2000 would suit the bill. Basically what we got here is a 12 Hours of Sebring race car float was morphed into a bright and cute "Santa's Sleigh" for a Xmas parade in Sarasota, Florida. The beginning of the vid shows some … Read more

For gamers, Christmas can, indeed, come early.

Because here is every gamer's dream wrapped up in a Christmas paper so beautiful that you might never play Guitar Hero in a living room ever again.

Please hail Ric Turner, who realized the holiday season was upon him and it was time not to keep up with the Joneses, but with the Brian Jones Massacre's. So, according to Make, he created this astonishing Guitar Hero Christmas lights extravaganza, which he calls Christmas Light Hero.

If you are not utterly entranced by the skill and wonderment of this technological exercise, then … Read more