InsideDGW - Everything you don't need to know about the Daily Giz Wiz podcast

Play Inc went on to create the Trinity Video System.  One of its CEOs, Paul Montgomery, had previously worked with Tim Jenison at NewTek, which produced the Video Toaster, and now makes the TriCaster, a video switching system which Leo has just bought for the TWiTLive.

Here's a clip, from 1990, from the TV programme Computer Chronicles (from www.archive.org), with Paul Montgomery and Tim Jenison showing a demonstration of the Video Toaster on an Amiga.


Two years later came the Video Toaster 2.0.  Here's the promotional video to show what it was capable of in 1992.

Gotcha
Jonas from Norway enjoyed Episode 556's Gotcha, as he loves pranks and jokes with his gifts.  However, he hasn't needed to use Gotcha yet, since all he needs to do is give his friend one of Leo's TTTT gadgets like the toothpick bird.  Cheaper too.

Law and Order
Woody Allen finally decided not to use Dick's boat for his next film after all, but Dick's boat will now appear in Law And Order.  Dick will tell us about it next week.  Meanwhile, you can read about it on Dick's website.

Listen to Episode 565
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The Socket Pocket by Perfect Curve is just a container to hold your mobile device while it is being charged, without having a great length of cable dangling down the wall and your device cluttering up the floor or your work surface.  Unscrew one of the screws on the socket plate and screw in the socket pocket through one of the openings at the back, while the cable can come through the opening at the bottom.

An idea similar to the Drinn, the WTHII gadget for November 2007.  See Episode 462.

Omentum
Learn about waist management and the omentum.

Saving Endangered Namesakes
Adam Merkley of the RSL Show (Real Salt Lake, a professional soccer club in Utah) and AYL Soccer was reminded by Leo's story of the Save The Tasmanian Devil Fund of his grandfather's experience at the old Jaguar factory in England.  Apparently Jaguar used to make donations to South America to save its namesake, and now still donates money to help preserve the rainforests in South America.  Adam suggests that Warner Brothers should help save the Tasmanian Devil because of Taz the cartoon character.  Dick says the Mad Crew first.  They're still trying to get Time Warner to give them folks at Mad a Christmas Party.

Listen to Episode 564
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The Cruzer Titanium Plus series from SanDisk is to replace the previous Cruzer Titanium line, at least in the US.  It comes with 6 months' free online backup service with BeInSync, and 2 years' free service with BoomerangIt.

You need to create an account with BeInSync which gives you 4GB of online storage.  The backup program automatically backs up the content of your Cruzer Titanium Plus.  Any files deleted from your flash drive are retained online for 30 days, unless the total of the backed up files and deleted files exceeds 4GB, in which case the oldest deleted files will be discarded first.  All backed up files can be accessed via any web browser, without the Titanium Plus itself.

Data transfer is done through an SSL secure connection with BeInSync, who stores the backed up files using 448-bit Blowfish encryption, and uses Amazon S3 Web Services to provide authentication.  And while we're on Security Now!, the backup program on the Titanium Plus is launched using the U3 smart drive program and is therefore supported on Windows only.

BoomerangIt is a lost and found service.  It requires registration, during which you submit the serial number of your Cruzer Titanium Plus.  Anyone who finds your flash drive in case of loss is encouraged to contact BoomerangIt who will establish contact between you and the finder.

The Cost of DGW
Truck driver Jeff Royal from New Braunfels, Texas invites that "guy from Poland" Ludwik Trammer (who last wrote to tell Dick and Leo that the total length of DGWs had passed the 5-day mark, in Episode 527) to add up how much money is required to purchase all of the gadgets ever covered in DGW.  Whatever it is, it's an arm and a leg.

Listen to Episode 563
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Cable-It is Monster Cable's new cable management kit.  It's a coiled tube (with a slit down the length of the tube) which houses your cables, for your computer, electrical appliances or AV equipment.  Just put the ends of a group of cables into the hollow of the handle (also called a "Zipper"), attach the tubing to the handle, and pull the handle down the length of coiled tubing.  The tubing will then enclose the cables like a zip.

Cables can come out of the tubing easily via the slit to make their connections at different places along the tubing.  Available in 3 diameters to accommodate different numbers of cables.  Different lengths available too.  Come in black, white and grey.

If you missed Leo's live demonstration of Cable-It during the recording of the show on TWiTLive, you can watch a demonstration of how it works by Jeff MacArthur, Amber's brother, on Episode 130 of the CommandN podcast.


First Looks
Thanks to the amazing technology at the TWiTLive Studio, Dick can finally put a face to the name Dean, or Dave, or Dufus, aka Dane Golden.  Colleen too, but that's another face.  Dick is now scheduled to appear live on TWiTLive on 20 June 2008.

Leo-Branded Stability Ball
Leo is thinking of selling his own brand of the Gopher fitness ball (Episode 322), complete with his visage and autograph so everyone can sit on his face.  It will be called Leo's Butt Ball.

Mechanical Calculators
Girl Geek, whom Dick also calls Geek Girl and other names, who becomes who she is because she has a mother who would buy any crap that passes in front of her, writes in again.  One of the vintage gadgets her mother bought is the Addiator.  The picture below is from John Wolff's Web Museum.


This reminds Leo about the Comptometer, given to him by his father-in-law.  Leo promises to bring it in.  Variations of the Slide Rule.  John Wolff's Web Museum has it too.


Dick can't remember any of these old gadgts.  All he can remember is the old Punch Board, which Leo calls legalised gambling.

Listen to Episode 561
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VCR Plus, started by Henry Yuen of Gemstar, was a system of codes for recording individual TV programmes on your VCR.  Each programme had its own code, so that you could just enter the code into the VCRPlus-supported VCR machine or remote control, and your VCR would start recording the appropriate channel at the right time.  Watch this TV commercial from 1987.

Audible Jingle
Geoff Smith has made an "Audible Pick of the Week" jingle for TWiT.  Check out his ringtones on thegeoffsmith.com/.

Keyboard Cleaning
Mike of Eagle River, Alaska took Leo's advice to heart and put his keyboard into the dishwasher, let it dry for a few days, and even put it in the oven.  The result upon reconnection?  Sparks flew.

Listen to Episode 560
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The Marsona Sound Machine, available from Magellan's, makes "white noise" to mask off other noises, such as traffic and noisy neighbours, which might otherwise disturb your sleep, especially when you're travelling and sleeping in an unfamiliar environment.  Choice of "rainfall", "waterfall" and "surf".

A Request for Retraction and Apology
Tom of goinglinux.com demands a retraction and apology from Dick.  In Episode 533, Dick referred to an article in Mad with monkeys in parodies of popular film titles, such as Primates of the Caribbean and Saving Primate Ryan.  But primates include lemurs, monkeys, apes, and humans too.  As a primate, Tom finds it highly objectionable.

Listen to Episode 559
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The gadget with the lowest tech and lowest price, according to Dick.  The TT Pack is a restroom kit which contains a toilet seat wipe, toilet seat cover, hand wipe, tissue, paper towel and disposable gloves.  Brought to you by Eye 2 Eye Ideas.

Are We Related?
Trevor from Sebastopol, Australia was glad to hear that both Dick and Leo are watch junkies.  So is he.  He's got loads of watches, most of which have flat batteries.

Vanity Fair
Vanity Fair has done a special on Mad.  See the article, with early Mad covers, online.

Spork Commercial
At Dick's request, Leo plays the Spork TV commercial.


Listen to Episode 558
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This time, it's Leo's turn to do a "What's In the Box?" routine, and Dick's turn to guess what it is.  It's Ziszor, a portable, hand-held shredder.  It runs on 4 AA batteries, comes with 4 Ziszor catcher bags, and you shred your paper trail right into the bag.  Ziszor's slogan is, Don't let your mail be your trail.  But as Leo demonstrates, it can't shred Colleen's credit card, though it will shred your English spelling into oblivion.



A Wireless Toaster
Karen Toast Conger, of ToastFloats, used to work for WatchGuard, a network security devices company.  As a parting gift, she was given a very special toaster.  Her colleagues bought her a Cuisinart toaster, took it apart, and put a WatchGuard Firebox X Edge wireless router into it.  A wireless router, security device, and a toaster.

Listen to Episode 557
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Designed by graphic designer Arik Nordby, these gift boxes are available for sale through The Onion.  The recipient is misled and disappointed by what is revealed by the gift box, only to find the real gem inside.

Audible is back on DGW
Leo has said elsewhere that Audible is not featured on all of TWiT except DGW because of the short length of the show, but apparently Audible does want to be on DGW.  Quite right too.  Leo suggests "An Evening With Dick Cavett".  Sign up at www.audible.com/gizwiz to get your free download.

A Place for Dick
Chaz Benedict, who lives near Petaluma, writes in to correct Leo who said in Episode 549 that there is no Sheraton in Petaluma.  Dick is going to Petaluma to visit the new TWiT studio.  He likes what he sees, the big desk, the Aphex Aural Exciter, and the Heil microphone.

TWiT Live
TWiTLive.tv is up and running.  Earlier Leo was streaming TWiT.  Follow Leo's Twitter updates on TWiTLive at Twitter.

Listen to Episode 556
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