16 posts tagged “thinkgeek”
Bicolor LED Blow On-Off Candles
LED Candle Light
Link: Think Geek
For the previous candles introduced by Dick, see Candle Impressions (Episode 211).
DGW Vote
Vote for your favourite episodes of the Daily Giz Wiz at gizwizsearch.com/vote. Enhanced voting now available.
A Favour for Ludwik
Ludwik is planning to spend 12 months overseas for some experience and is looking for a full-time position enough to support himself. Ludwik is a brilliant programmer, as evidenced by GizWizSearch. So please if you're aware of any opportunities, contact Ludwik. For his resume, contact details, and Dane Golden's TWiT Q&A Form, see gizwizsearch.com/job
Listen to Episode 738
Go to TWiT
The Giz Wiz Homepage
Christmas Wishes
Christmas Day Special
Link: best holiday wishes from dick debartolo mad's maddest writer and the giz wiz
Blessed Interaction
Leo has everything he could ever wish for, and feels blessed that he is able to do the podcast with Dick, and Dick loves interacting with Leo on the Daily Giz Wiz, especially on Tuesdays.
Family Affairs
Dick and Leo aren't that keen on family meet-ups, and Dick for the first time on DGW reveals that he has a brother called Leo. Who can blame him?
Pride And Glory
Pride And Glory has finally been released. You can catch a glimpse of Dick's houseboat (now given away to a charity) in the film. Watch out for a fibre optic Christmas tree. For the full story, revisit Episodes 460 and 461.
And Finally, A Merry Christmas ...
... from me and all my imaginary staff at insidedgw.vox.com to Dick and Leo (who have given us a show for all seasons), to the TWiT staff (Dane, Colleen, Tony and Frederique who have kept the TWiT machine running), to Ludwik Trammer (who keeps doing wonders), to Paul Minshall, George Wood, Dan Lueders, all the jingle contributors and Daniel Rodrigues Parreira (who have made the show so much fun to listen to by performing all the themes and jingles and making them accessible to us all), and to all the fellow DGW listeners (who are mad enough to listen to the show).
Listen to Episode 729
Go to TWiT
The Giz Wiz Home Page
Multi-Colour LED Light Bulb with Remote Control
LED Light Bulb with Remote for Colour-Changing
Link: Think Geek
Back in Episode 43, Dick told us that he received emails from listeners all over the world, including people serving in Iraq. Here's one, if not from a soldier, then at least from a civilian in Iraq. In Episode 694, Dick and Leo wondered if celebrities still go and entertain the troops for the USO. Cory was in Baghdad, Iraq as a civilian from July 2006 to July 2007. The answer is yes, and performers include WWE stars, cheer leading groups, Toby Keith, Kid Rock, and Carlos Mencia.
Dick and Leo wonder if the troops would like to see them demonstrating the use of the CartStopper (Episode 701).
Past Old
Henry Laporte thinks Leo is 20 years past old, and Dick thinks in that case it is appropriate that Leo should give Henry a piece of crap for Christmas.
Listen to Episode 704
Go to TWiT
The Giz Wiz Home Page
Audio Bone
Over-the-Ears Stereo Headphones
Link: AudioBone
First Fan Mail
At the age of 69, Bill Quinlan writes his first piece of fan mail, and it's to Dick and Leo. Bill is completely hooked and listens to it on his 3-mile walk each night. It's dark and no one can see him laughing hysterically during his walk. His wife still uses the VCR Co-Pilot (Episode 665). He recently revisited Episode 182 (having received his order of the Titanium Spork from Think Geek to replace the Tony the Tiger Spoon), and Episode 590, the Palm Pilot (and he's using the latest Palm device the Palm TX).
The Psion 3a Series
Mention of Palm again excites wistful memories of the Palm Lifedrive and Psion 3a which Leo loved. If only it had calendar and address book synchronisation, which Palm did introduce.
Meanwhile, Leo is waiting for something which reminds him of the Psion andwhich he will review for us. Before Leo can tell us what it is, he's sidetracked and forgets about it. Probably the first Android phone, the T-Mobile G1, which Leo will get from Google and has ordered.
XXL Swiss Army Knife
Record-Breaking Utility Knife
Link: Wenger
A Bit of Client Schmoozing
Leo was off to Los Angeles last Tuesday for some "client schmoozing".
A Visa Jingle
Geoff Smith, who did the Audible Pick of the Week jingle (Episode 560) and the I'm A TWiT jingle, has done a jingle for the Visa commercial, which Leo has been playing in last week's podcasts.
Living for TWiT
Brady Redfean finds himself arranging his life around TWiT's podcasts. He stays up late to do his homework so he can listen to DGW when it comes out, especially during exam time, in order to stay sane. "We lose our sanity so you can gain yours," say Dick and Leo. He postpones dates (his wife doesn't know) if there's a podcast coming out. He doesn't take his vacation until the TWiTs take theirs. And Dick says no to Twitties Anonymous, unless it's a restaurant that serves Totino pizza rolls.
Look Humble
Whoever gave Leo the "Look Humble" needlepoint knows Leo well. She understands that for Leo, "Be Humble" is an unattainable goal, and "Look Humble" is a more practical compromise.
Listen to Episode 656
Go to TWiT
The Giz Wiz Home Page
SpokeLit
Bicycle Wheel Light
Link: Nite Ize
Dick explains that the reason so many gadgets are spelt in funny ways, such as SpokeLit and Nite Ize is so that they can be more easily copyrighted.
The Birth of DGW
Dick and Leo think it was the Hudson Hotel in New York where the idea for DGW was born, while Leo was in town to appear on Regis, after the Hardware Show Preview.
Another Trivia Question
"What is a pregnant goldfish called?" a listener asks Leo. "A mamafish," replies Leo. All right, it's a twit. Read The Straight Dope to learn more than you want to know about it.
Leo's Autobiography
Another listener suggests a name for Leo's autobiography, "TWiT'll Be Me", although Leo now prefers "I Never Stopped Talking".
600th Episode
Episode 600 is coming on in 2 weeks, and Dick and Leo may well be recording it on 20 June when Dick is at the TWiTLive Studio. They might get Wild Planet to give away some prizes, or get ThinkGeek to make some monogrammed Sporks, or SpearHats.
Listen to Episode 589
Go to TWiT
The Giz Wiz Home Page
EyeTV 250 Plus
TV Tuner for Mac
Link: Elgato
It also acts as a digitisation device for your VHS tapes and sends the MPEG-2 converted recordings to iTunes or burns them to DVDs (using Roxio's Toast 8 Basic). The iPod Assistant will also help you convert to the recommended format for the AppleTV, iPhone or iPod. The break-out cable includes S-Video, composite and stereo inputs.
The EyeTV supports video resolution up to 1080i (for digital) and 720 x 480 (for analogue).
The product also comes in an international version supporting DTT or Freeview in countries which use DVB-T system of digital television.
For once, it's for Mac only. Windows users can check out Pinnacle's PCTV HD Ultimate Stick in Episode 419.
Mad Tour
While Dick was on the Queen Mary 2, Alessandro Abate visited New York. Although he missed Dick, he was thrilled to be able to do a tour of the Mad Office which Dick had arranged for him. Sandrinoo also defended Leo for the Spork, but not the Toothpick Bird. He had bought his own set of Match Game Cards from Dick. The Match Game was his favourite game show, never knowing that Dick was the writer of the questions.
And for those who want a laser, Sandrino recommends Wicked Lasers.
Bill Gaines Anniversary
Today is the 16th anniversary of the death of Bill Gaines who died on 3 June 1992. Dick has found a transcript of Bill Gaines's memorial service, at Instant Classics, where you can read the eulogies delivered at the service, including those by Dick and Bill Sarnoff (who was then the head of the Time Warner division that included Mad). Dick has kept up a website in memory of Bill Gaines, at williammgaines.com.
Here are a couple of pictures taken from Dick's website. Please go to his homepage to read what Dick has to say about Bill Gaines.
For more stories on Bill Gaines, listen to DGW generally and in particular Episode 76: A Tribute to William M. Gaines. Better yet, buy Dick's autobiography "Good Days And Mad". Make a donation of $20 or more to Animal Haven online, send the electronic receipt to Dick by email, and he will send you an autographed copy of the book.
Or, you can buy the book at The Mad Store.
Mad Minute
Specialised phone numbers, such as BROKE, RAINY, and SCAM.
Listen to Episode 582
Go to TWiT
The Giz Wiz Home Page
USB Plasma Ball
Light Show
This Plasma Ball is powered by USB, 4'" in diameter, with an on/off swtich. Put your finger on the sphere and the "glow" will congregate around your finger, like all other plasma balls. Available at VAT19 and ThinkGeek.
Here is ThinkGeek's explanation of this magic. A combination of gasses (such as Argon) are trapped inside a plastic sphere at relatively low pressures. An alternating current, at relatively high voltages, is sent into the sphere via an electrode in the centre. This energy causes atoms (or electrons maybe) to be stripped from the gasses, leaving in its wake some positively charged ions and a gorgeous gaseous and electrically conductive environment (aka Plasma). That high voltage served up through the electrode will now arc up through the plasma to the plastic sphere where the voltage is lower (starting at the top where the temperature is greater). The arcs glow because they are hotter than the surrounding plasma. You can touch the plastic and the arcs will strongly congregate to your touch because you will be creating an even lower voltage jump from the electrode.
Or just let Dick explain it to you in his own words:
The Giz Wiz Green Room
Dick is negotiating for the TWiT Studio to be named after him. Leo suggests "The Dick DeBartolo Memorial Antechamber". Dick thinks it's too early to do that, and prefers "The Giz Wiz Green Room".
The Bird Logo
Leo explains to Dick how the name Twitter came about. Evan Williams was running Odeo whose logo was a bird. As a side project, an engineer of Odeo suggested this IM-like web service, so people could send messages called "tweets" to each other. Hence the name Twitter. For Dick and Leo's previous mention of Odeo, listen again to Episode 150, towards the end of that episode at about 14:00. And it was Leo who told Dick about Odeo.
No Begging, Again
Having finally overtaken Barack Obama on the number of followers on Twitter, Leo is now locked in a close race with Kevin Rose. As with the May 2006 Podcast Alley vote, Dick and Leo do not beg (Episode 67). So sign up at Twitter and follow Leo, follow Dick, and Alfred E Neuman.
Please alleviate Leo's mid-life crisis and follow him on Twitter. Otherwise send him a Jacob's Ladder for The Giz Wiz Green Room.
The Belly of a Dead Fish
Jack from New Hampshire (who may or may not be Jack Kelly from Episode 419) was listening to Episode 564 and was amused by Dick's reference to the beigey colour of the Socket Pocket. As a technician, he is all too familiar with the colour and has always called it the "dead fish belly yellow". It's very close to Dick's Tainted Tuna Taupe.
Listen to Episode 573
Go to TWiT
The Giz Wiz Home Page
USB Tape Dispenser Hub
USB Hub/Wacky Gadget
Link: ThinkGeek
Dick thinks they should make a DGW-branded Toothpick Bird USB Hub.
For a previous equally wacky USB hub, see Episode 161, the Self-Destruct Button USB Hub.
WTHII April '08
It's not a juicer. What a shocker! It's a Roller Drying Cup.
Dick's Radio Studio
As a child, Dick built his own radio studio which broadcast on to the front lawn, and played pranks among the hedges. That's the budding entertainer at work.
Seinfeld's Soup Nazi
No one at Mad dared go and buy soups at The Original Soup Man because his reputation preceded him.
Rowing with Audible
Leo gives more details about his podcasting plans with female rower Roz Savage who is going to try to be the first woman to row solo across the Pacific.
Video or Audio
Brian Taylor from Walnut, California is in a dilemma. He watched the streaming video of Dick and Leo recording the show. Now he has nothing to listen to for the next week. He suggests they do 2 sets of episodes, one on video, and one just with the audio.
Twitter Again
Leo wants to know if the SoupySales on Twitter, who is profane and very funny, is the Soupy Sales. Dick is now on Twitter as well. Follow him at thegizwiz on Twitter, or follow Alfred E Neuman on Twitter.
Listen to Episode 569
Go to TWiT
The Giz Wiz Home Page
StealthSwitch
Desktop Cloaking Device
Link: Stealth Switch Think Geek
The Lemonade Girl in Manhattan
While talking about Halloween in Manhattan, Leo remembers seeing a little girl selling lemonade at a street corner in Manhattan. He was so touched that he bought some from the girl. Before you conclude that it was very sweet of Leo to do that, listen to how Leo paid the poor girl, in Episode 121.
Mad Computers
At the Mad Office, the computers in the Art Department are all Macs, and the Editorial Department are all PCs.
Leo as Dev Null
"The Vegas Cabbie" wants to hear the full story from Leo of how Dev Null came about in the programme "The Site" on MSNBC. Leo has done it before (Episodes 149, 187), but this is the fullest account he has given yet on DGW. You can see a clip of Dev Null singing Happy Together, accompanied by Andy Cahan of the Turtles on the piano, in either of those old episode blog entries, at the very end of which, you can even hear Leo doing the famous NBC G-E-C chimes.
Of Mouse And Man
Dane Golden has found an old short film done by Aaron Lubarsky in 1996 about computers and technology. It has Leo talking about the future of portable devices and entertainment networks. His predictions were pretty good. Leo has posted it on his blog, or watch it here.
Listen to Episode 434
Go to TWiT
Read Dick's Write-Up