Speaking of the eclipse, an inventor named David Kent Jones wants to use robots to turn the Earth's only natural satellite into a giant ad.
Jones' scheme is to use lunar robots to plow moon dust into "logos, domains [sic] names, memorials or even portraits...You can even carve your initials in a heart to impress your sweetheart."
Imagine looking up and seeing a Nike swoosh among the stars.
A Salt Lake City company called Moon Publicity says its Shadow Shaping Technology would involve robots pushing the dust into furrows to create shadows that form images when viewed from far away.
The firm may be having a lark, but it says it's accepting bids for ad space on 44 lunar regions starting at $46,000.
Jones isn't the first to dream of selling lunar ad space, as CNET reported in 2006. Others have tried selling real estate on the moon, or laid claim to Martian properties.
But at least Jones has a conceptual video.
Nonetheless, the engineering challenge of getting robots to the moon, deploying them properly, and then getting them to successfully comb over 500 miles of dust (akin to the size of Mare Imbrium) into something recognizable from Earth is, to say the least, staggering.
And it will remain staggering for some time.
This ignores the question of whether it's right to make a mere shill out of what Percy Bysshe Shelley once described as an "orbèd maiden."
Moon Publicity's justification for the branding? The campaign would spur space travel, which is needed due to "the inevitable extinction of the human species."
The company admits people won't like it.
As one You Tube commentator said, "You are not writing on the freaking moon and that's final."
(Credit:
Coldwell Banker)
It sure is hard to keep your home these days, and it's not a good time to sell it, either. But if you just want to look around, checking the market, it has never been more convenient.
Recently, I blogged about how you can search for a new home on your iPhone, but now, if you own a BlackBerry or any other smartphone, you can do that, too.
Coldwell Banker, the company that released the iPhone-optimized home-hunting Web site, announced recently its new Web sites designed specifically for BlackBerry and other smartphone users.
BlackBerry owners can just go to coldwellbanker.com on their phone, while those who have other type of smartphone, such as the AT&T Tilt, will need to log on to m.coldwellbanker.com to access the new sites.
Thought not as intuitive as the site made for the iPhone, the new sites for BlackBerry and smartphones are easy enough to navigate through the same features, including home search and home value calculator. You can also contact an agent directly once you've found a property that you are interested in as well as view the photos of the property.
Now if only there were a Web site that tells you what to do to solve this home mortgage crisis. For this, you will need to go out and vote responsibly.
(Credit:
Dong Ngo/CNET Networks)
Coldwell Banker Real Estate is out with a new version of its Web site customized for iPhone users.
The new version shares the same domain as the company's traditional site but automatically recognizes iPhone end users to serve up the iPhone interface. iPhone users just need to go to www.coldwellbanker.com from their iPhone, without having to download or install any special software. The new site offers a very well-laid-out look and feel, along with convenient navigation on the iPhone's screen, especially the property listings search and home value estimator.
You can now search for homes on the iPhone just like you would do on a regular computer, if not more conveniently. Once you find a property, you can also contact the agent directly from the phone. And you can use the site to check the estimated current value of a specific property.
I tried the new site on my iPhone 3G and it worked well, both the home search and the home value calculator. I could also map the address of the property of interest on Google Maps and get directions to and from it that way. The new site, however, doesn't retain the input information, forcing you to retype everything for each property search, which is annoying.
While this new version of the site is convenient and cool, it won't help keep you from feeling depressed about the decrease in value of the real estate market.
UPDATE: The Craigslist post in question has been flagged for removal.
A Craigslist ad for an available room in a two-bedroom apartment in Manhattan's pricey West Village claimed that the asking price was $1 per month--and a fresh batch of cookies every day. (As of Wednesday morning, the ad was flagged for removal and is no longer available on Craigslist.)
Funny, I didn't know he lived in the Village.
(Credit: Public Broadcasting Service)Yeah, it's tongue-in-cheek. As Gotham gossip blog Jossip put it, "There's no way someone would really rent out a room in the West Village for $1 a month and daily fresh baked cookies. In the West Village, you could get at least $50 a month and daily fresh baked cookies."
But considering New York's wacky real-estate climate, where $1,000 per month for a room's rent is considered cheap, plenty of cash-strapped urbanites would probably take up either offer in a heartbeat.
"You would be sharing the (two-bedroom apartment) with me, and you must bake me cookies every day," the ad explained. "I will tell you what kind of cookies the night before, and you have until 6 PM the next day to have 50 of them baked and delicious for me."
OK, sounds doable.
"You may not use nutmeg unless I EXPLICITLY give you permission," the ad continued. "Violation of this rule will result in immediate eviction and denunciation unto God."
That's easy to remember. Just leave nutmeg off the shopping list.
But the picky eater goes on: "I do like cinnamon, however. Anise is banned, as are caraway, cardamom, and allspice. You may use vanilla extract, but not the bean. Walnuts, almonds, and filberts are approved, whereas peanuts, macadamias, and cashews are not. Raisins are encouraged."
OK, as long as chocolate's allowed.
After delineating even more requirements for the construction and presentation of the cookies, the advertiser gives instructions for interested tenants: "If interested, please send me your favorite recipe for cookies, a short poem about cookies, and a picture of nice-looking cookies."
Hold on, let me go grab my camera.
(Credit:
Hewlett-Packard)
The information age just got a little older, as the "birthplace of Silicon Valley" has been formally listed on the National Register of Historic Places. More specifically, this is 367 Addison Ave. in Palo Alto, California: the garage where, in 1938, two guys named Bill Hewlett and Dave Packard started a company that became known as Hewlett-Packard the next year.
The new historic status is official as of Thursday. (You think it's been Zillowed?)
The house had been built circa 1905 and apparently once housed Palo Alto's first mayor; the garage, however, wasn't built until around 1924--coinciding with the paving of the city's streets to deal with those newfangled contraptions known as "cars." The "HP Garage" was already listed as an historical landmark in the state of California (number 976, if you like numbers). It achieved that status in 1987.
HP bought back the garage, along with the house, in 2000 for a reported $1.7 million (last year, Google did the same thing with the garage that had been home to Larry and Sergey's early start-up days), and in 2005 the HP Garage underwent an extensive renovation.
(Credit:
RealPIX Camera)
Only a few years ago, Crave spent more than $1,000 for a 1-megapixel camera that weighed more than a brick. Today, we'd probably be lucky to get $25 for it on Craigslist.
With the price of digital cameras dropping like broadcast celebrities, it makes sense that manufacturers try whatever they can to separate themselves from the pack, catering to specific types of consumers. But real-estate agents?
"RealPIX" is a camera designed specifically for agents and homeowners in need of a quick snapshot that captures as much house as possible in a single frame. It accomplishes this with a lens that's wider than that of most other cameras, according to Electronista. But with no zoom and a resolution of only 0.3 megapixels, the $299 price seems awfully high. Unless, of course, the subject is a house that should not be seen that closely.
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