Offbeat posts

What could have been a simple copyright infringement has become a full-blown circus after the internet got a hold of the tale of Monica ‘illadore’ Gaudio, who had an article published in Cooks Source magazine – without her knowledge any such magazine even existed. Upon contacting the publication, she was told she should be considered ‘lucky’, and that she should pay the magazine for running her story. Dear Cooks Source: What kind of learning disability do you have? This is the internet. We’re gonna find out. “I first phoned the magazine then sent a quick note to the ‘Contact Us’ information page,…

I’ve been using PCs for the better part of two decades, and in all that time, I’ve used Windows’ calculator maybe four times. As such, that the following has never been noticed by me isn’t exactly surprising, and if the breadth of your experience with the program is anywhere as vast as mine, it’s not surprising that you haven’t noticed, either. But apparently, Windows’ calculator is lying to you. According to Windows calculator, two minus two doesn’t equal zero. That’s not exactly true, but kinda. Be a peach and open up Windows’ calc for a second, would you? Thanks, you’re the best. Alright, find…

If there was one object today that, above all others, I was made to select and define as ‘the pimpinest shit’, I think I’ve found it. Behold, for you look upon the Rubik’s Cube Bank. At first, I didn’t get why this was cool. Then I realized that this is a piggy bank, and at some point, you’re gonna need to get your change back out of it, too. To put change into the bank, the yellow side must be solved. But to get change out, the green side must be solved, leading to all manner of adventures in frustration and self-control. Well, maybe you’ll be frustrated. I can solve one of these things, can’t you? If you want…

Oh, hey, I just realized I’m an inconsiderate jerk, and never asked you how your Halloween was. How’d it go? Good haul? See more Batmans this year? You didn’t go as Heath Ledger’s Joker again, did you? Good, that would’ve just been stupid. Stupid though your costume may or mayn’t have been, though, it can’t have been more stupid than this guy’s. YouTube user DrWormsie decided to go all-out this year and spend 250 hours and over a thousand dollars constructing what isn’t so much a Halloween costume as a motor vehicle. As you’ve already seen the video, you know damn right that this is one serious chunk…

Google has so much crap going on at once, I don’t blame you if you’ve never heard of Demo Slam, a Google site allowing users to upload videos demonstrating how they use Google products to… do… stuff, and put them head to head against videos of other users, doing other stuff. It’s totally cooler than I’m making it sound. Now, the interesting thing about Demo Slam is that all the videos… well, they kind of resemble ads. All of them are suspiciously HD, and involve, for the most part, questionable antics you wouldn’t expect from the everyday end user. Consider the following – which is far and away…

“You are only allowed to use your OWN knowledge, your OWN class notes, class handouts, your OWN class homework, or The Earth and Its Peoples textbook to complete assignments and assessments UNLESS specifically informed otherwise by your instructor.” Is this a cult? No. It’s actually the “Expectations of Integrity” for Westfield High’s AP World History class. Students are not allowed to use outside references for their class: You may not discuss/mention/chat/hand signal/smoke signal/Facebook/IM/text/email to a complete stranger ANY answers/ideas/questions/thoughts/opinions/hints/instructions….

It is ironic that this piece of video and creativity takes place within the confines of a library — especially when considering how the Internet has replaced visits to libraries for many — but this one happens to be awesome. Seriously, who wouldn’t want to have a few million books at their disposal to do something crazy? Wait… was there really a person playing a guitar, too? Aw snap!…

Soon, you may have an entirely new scapegoat for not attending all manner of functions: a printer jam. 3D printing gurus Stratasys took engineering company Kor Ecologic out to a couple fancy dinners, one thing led to another, and now we have the Urbee, the world’s first 3D-printed car. I guess I missed the memo; I had no idea 3D printing was coming along as blindingly fast as it is. For serious, the Urbee is a fully-functioning automobile, the parts of which are entirely fabricated via 3D printer, windows and everything. It’s only a two-seater, but it’s not the size of the 3D-printed car – it’s that…

I remember back in, like, grade 3, sitting on the old black and white Mac, playing text adventures at recess when I should have been outside making friends… ironically, I never really understood them (the adventures, not the friends), and mostly tried to input obscene commands. As far as I recall, many of them actually worked. I dunno what that says about the writers of these games as people. Anyway, point is, interactive fiction is the tits, and fellow Torontonian Jonathan Guberman has decided to take it to the next (previous?) level with The Automatypewriter. Cleverly-named until you realize…

With Halloween a mere 36 hours away, sightings of unsavoury creatures of all manner will be on the rise, and it’s integral that the ballyhoo caused by their appearance is kept under control. Perhaps the greatest threat of all, though, is zombies. No, really. What, you thought it was vampires or something? Have you seen a zombie movie lately? They can run now, guys. If that isn’t terrifying, you do not exist. If you’re one of those zombie purists who don’t believe zombies can run, you’re going to be among the first to be eaten, and frankly, you just have fun with that. You’re on your own, hero. Luckily…