Offbeat posts

And here is a visual riddle to help ferry you into the weekend – Escher’s Waterfall, come to life. I’ve been sitting here for longer than I should trying to figure this one out. Any insights, Techi readers? Or did we really just kick science in the teeth? Before some humourless troll decides to remind us that science can’t be kicked in the teeth nor anywhere else, that was a joke. But in the impossible offchance this is real, we just basically solved all humanity’s problems. In the words of a great internet: “what is this I don’t even”…

Children of the 80s, beware. This video is bound to bring back the nostalgia that only an attachment to something that we spent way too much time on can do. Today, gaming is all about removing the variances and deviations from reality to make the gaming experience more than surreal – almost too real. We play games and want to be Duke, Soap, or Master Chief. Nobody wanted to be Frogger. There may be some who became Mario, but not necessarily by choice and without the suspenders. Tetris – what exactly was it (other than addicting) anyway? The pixels of the 80s were so much more simple than the games of today….

Drawing comparisons between Facebook and the United States is easy. Both are influential in their world. Both have leaders that are loved and hated simultaneously. Both have both the ability to generate tremendous amounts of money while skeptics still point to their eventual economic collapse. It’s not much of a stretch. This graphic by our friends at Soshable looks at several of the key comparisons between the two super-powers. Do they match up well? You be the judge. Compare the directions they’re heading. The US has its hands in several different pots right now around the world while Facebook…

Tech-savvy folk the world over, stand up and show your propers – for the first time in history, a video game theme song has won a Grammy. No, the recipient isn’t Nobuo Uematsu (of Final Fantasy fame), and not even Koji Kondo (quick, think of any videogame song – chances are it was written by or derived from Kondo), but relative newcomer Christopher Tin, for his composition Baba Yetu. Sound familiar? It’s the theme to Civilization IV. Why is Tin winning a Grammy for it six years later? Because only now has he released it properly, on his album Calling All Dawns. Congratulations Tin, and may your victory…

Infections of various types are normally the cause of computer problems. It could be malware, worms, viruses, or any number of security threats that spread from computer to computer through networks and the Internet. In this case, the problem was pretty easy to isolate. When over 32K objects are currently infected on your device, it’s likely that there is some sort of problem with your security. Did you install Norton or something?…

Gadgets and toys have been a staple of true “geekdom” since the dawn of the being-a-geek-is-cool era. We’ve chronicled many devices that geeks desire, but this one is special. It’s not a question of whether or not you want one. You do. It’s a question of whether or not you MUST have it. Skynet will be ordering them when they rise. RC masters already have it as a centerpiece of their arsenal. Watch the videos below and decide: are you a true geek? …

It’s human nature to be at our most vulnerable when dealing with issues of the heart. Scam-masters and con artists know this and they’re taking advantage of the online dating craze that has grown for a decade and that shows no signs of slowing. This graphic by our friends at Zone Alarm shows the bad side of eRomance. When you’re lonely and looking for fun or fulfillment online, remember that there are those in the same field but with completely different goals. Click to enlarge. …

Many of us still long for a simpler time, when programs came on disks, and no one ever played past the first episode of a shareware game, because no one wanted to order the full version by phone. This is for us….

Every now and then, an idea comes along that springs from a garage and turns into gold. Such will hopefully be the case for the Satarii Star Accessory, a truly innovative idea that makes one wonder, “Why didn’t Apple build this already?” The idea is simple: a base that rotates 360 degrees to follow someone or something, allowing a mounted camera or smartphone to capture video without an unsteady hand at the helm. By using a hand-held or mountable marker, the base follows the target to create a steady video. The applications are limitless. Parents can take videos of their children playing while actually…

You thought you were on the cutting edge of geek chic with that iPhone 4. You ain’t seen nothing yet. A Lifehacker reader known only as Kevin has taken an iPod Touch and, using a VOIP application and a pair of headphones, has rigged it all together using the device’s own packaging. A big of smoothing here and there (plastic edges are sharp, yo) and a rubber washer later, and voila – a DIY iPhone that’s sure to impress… er… somebody, surely. At the very least, it’s a conversation piece! …