Crave

Nik Ramage's "Fingers," shown in Putty White, are now on preorder for $740.

(Credit: Laikingland)

As an obsessive-compulsive gum chewer, I never thought to make art of my annoying habit like mechanical sculptor Nik Ramage has done. He built a mechanical copy of his hand, which drums its fingers without cessation. Anyone imagining a use for this thing?

Based on Dezeen's description, this little motorized, battery-operated gadget is either a pure annoyance or maybe, depending on your imagination, something more useful:

Fingers by Nik Ramage are an eternally tapping mechanical copy of the artist's own hand. At the flick of a switch the resin cast fingers drum rhythmically, until switched off.

Ramage's piece is currently on display at 100% Design London, and is being batch-produced by U.K. kinetic manufacturer Laikingland in three colors--Putty White, Masking Tape, and Light Blue--for shipping in November. What's next? A foot-tapping gadget? Something to say, "Ummm, like...you know..." every few moments?

This story originally appeared on Gizmodo.

(Credit: Jerry Jalava)

This is a story about Jerry Jalava, a Finnish software developer who lost part of his finger in a motorcycle accident last July. According to his friend, Henri Bergius, when the surgeon assigned to work on Jalava's prosthetic finger discovered his hacking history, he made a clever suggestion: incorporate a USB key into the new digit.

The prosthetic finger contains a 2GB USB key, and Jalava also loaded it with Billix distribution, CouchDBX, and Ajatus to run off the drive, throwing even more geek cred into the mix.

When Jalava needs the drive, he simply pulls it off his left hand, plugs it in, and comes back to pick it up after the transfers are finished. That dispels any parallels to that scene in "Robocop" when he uses the giant spike that comes out of his hand to transfer data from the OCP criminal database to the computer in his head.

Check out more pictures of Jalava's cybernetic finger in the slideshow below, and be sure to listen to Thursday's episode of The 404 Podcast to hear 30 jokes in a row about what would happen if this were to go on another part of the body.

Jerry Jalava's USB key prosthetic finger

I remember learning how to type a long time ago with a fake keyboard sketched on a piece of paper. It was fun trying to imagine and remember all the keys' position, though I would never want to have to repeat that exercise. Good news is you don't have to, at least not the imagining part.

The color-blind need not apply, but KeyRight just recently introduced what is arguably the most colorful keyboard in the world. It's a part of the company's Look & Learn typing solution for those who want to quickly and accurately use a keyboard.

The KeyRight keyboard looks and works just like any other QWERTY USB keyboards with the exception that it comes with keys color-coded into different finger zones. These zones help you memorize which keys are used with the proper fingers, which will help to create muscle memory. For example, the left-hand pinkie finger uses all the red keys, and the right-hand pinkie uses pink keys.

The solutions also comes with a Typing Tutor, a software program that teaches you how to type step by step. KeyRight says that its solution can help a person become a typist within six hours.

Personally, I think the keyboard is pretty cool for kids and helpful for beginners. Ultimately, you don't want to look at the keyboard, but the screen, when typing.

If you feel you need to color up your fingertips, the KeyRight Look & Learn Typing Solution is available for $39.95, about the price of an expensive multimedia keyboard.

Are you ready for a pep-rally, the likes of which you've never experienced before? Today's show is all about power. We also attempt to define the act of desserting someone. Urban dictionary, here we come!

EPISODE 108

Get energy efficient with the Advent Eco PC

iYo Yo Yo charger makes for some seriously useful gaming

Brick-like USB multicellular phone charger

Furutech Powerflux $1,800 power cord

BMW builds luxury hybrid sedan

BoomCooler is good for booming, not so much for cooling

Tool Time--Band Edition
Thinkgeek drum kit shirt
I love the finger keyboard, it's so "bad!"
Memorex SingStand--Talent not included

Pink Watch: What the hell edition
High heels and phones should not be rolled into one
The USB MIA vibrator: So you can let your colleagues know just what you did last night

Kill Me
Sony Ericsson to launch phone for girls who like to rock (don’t boys like to rock too?)

It’s about time
Trouble getting up? Try a Tantrum

VOICE MAIL
Heidi: I took the test! A lot!

(Credit: SourcingMap)

We first saw a finger-mounted mouse more than a year ago, but our opinion of the idea hasn't changed much since then.

Granted, there's a new version that's wireless, which addresses one of our biggest complaints about its predecessor. But the new 3D Optical Computer Wireless Finger Mouse still looks too cumbersome to use comfortably for those of us who type about as much as we breathe on any given day.

And even though it's supposedly more ergonomic than a traditional mouse, according to PClaunches, we still think a bit of contortionism is needed to work the scroll wheel and other controls. Besides, just the thought of it freaks us out because it looks like some kind of robo-leech stuck to the hand.

(Credit: Epoch)

Those uninitiated in the world of anime might not be familiar with Doraemon, a robotic manga cat from the future that's known for its infinite Inspector Gadget-like supply of gizmos. One of the Japanese character's many tools, Tokyomango says, is an air gun that could fire a fake bullet simply by the voice command of "Bang!"

Epoch has taken that concept and turned it into a real-life device, a voice-activated control that can take over the functions of regular remotes with built-in IR signals already programmed into it. The result, if all works correctly, is a Doraemon "pistol" that can be worn on your finger and can control the functions of up to four devices with just a "bang" or two.

It even comes with its very own Doraemon, which will take care of it when you're done. All of which sounds infinitely more fun than those tired old Phasers and Lightsabers.

Once you choose a laptop as your primary computer, you're likely to invest a fair amount of time figuring out your ideal setup for working at your desk. So after I published a roundup of our favorite laptop stands, I wasn't surprised that a number of readers wrote in with their own preferred methods for lifting their laptops.

(Credit: Rain Design)

First, Ryan wrote in to endorse the iLap from Rain Design (shown at left). "It has worked great with all my laptops for years," he said. He went on to explain that he liked the product's versatility: a removable padded front cushion lets you use the stand on your lap as well as on a desk.

Reader W.T. offered a low-tech (and cheap) solution: cutting boards, especially those with nonskid silicone accents. He attributes the cutting board with keeping his laptop vents clear and away from debris, and likes that they work on tabletops, pillows, or his lap. Because heat is an issue, W.T. urges you to use only cutting boards that are rated dishwasher-safe by the NSF. "I haven't figured out the IT uses for rolling pins as of yet," he adds.

(Credit: Oof Design)

And finally, reader Todd sent me a link to a post on the Sci Fi Tech blog that describes the Fingers laptop stand, a clear acrylic riser with teeth--or, um, fingers--along the back to hold your cables and cords in place when you go roaming with your laptop. The product is available from Oof Design for about $30 plus shipping.

Thanks to everyone who wrote in, and if you know of an uplifting laptop accessory, let me know in the comments.

(Credit: Drinkstuff)

Even though our resident "DDR" expert has the day off, Crave remains dedicated to giving you all the news about Dance Dance Revolution whenever we can. (Especially if we don't have to exert ourselves physically to try it out.)

That's why the "USB Finger Dance Mat" is our kind of DDR product, as it doesn't require us to leave the chair to participate. In fact, we must stay in the chair, or at least close enough to a USB port, because "instead of using your feet to follow the lights you use your fingers to groove," according to Everything USB.

In other words, it's the height of laziness. We're exhausted just thinking about it.

(Credit: Logisys Computer)

It may sound like a good idea--a mouse that's mounted on your finger and can point wherever you do. But Crave is picky, and we have some issues with this otherwise sound concept.

First, the size: Do you really want something this big strapped to your finger? Second, it's not wireless. And third, how can you type with this stuck to your hand?

Finally, as Chip Chick points out, Logisys has managed to make it sound a lot trickier to work than it probably is: "Provide support by using your middle finger to hold the finger mouse against your index finger when you are clicking. Point the cursor with your index finger while your thumb controls the left button (lower button), right button (upper button) and scroll wheel."

The directions alone are enough reason for us to pass. We're in a bad mood.