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TNT Newsletter for January 18, 2007
Frame your loved ones, save the dates, make a photo cube, websites for wordlovers, and one hot glue gun.
Dear very unuseless readers,
I don't know how many of you remember the book 101 Unuseless Japanese Inventions, which hit the stores as a novelty, back-of-the-toilet bestseller about 10 years ago. Most of the items created by failed Japanese inventors featured inside were truly ridiculous (umbrellas for your high heels, fans for your chopsticks to cool off hot food), but some were pretty cool, like mop slippers and a press for combining those last shreds of bar soap.
It's in that spirit that I present to you the following reviews. They're all a lot of fun, tweaking practicality just that little bit. Fine, you don't need a homemade digital photo frame, and Wordspy.com isn't going to help your Scrabble game much, but isn't it great knowing when "to Google" first became a verb? And wouldn't a cordless glue gun be that much more fun? And who doesn't want to know when that can of old beans or bottle of coke is about to go off? Really, these things, while perhaps not on the same level as paying the rent or stopping global warming, are kind of ... unuseless. And really great. (Don't let that distract you from stopping global warming, of course.)
Arwen O'Reilly
Staff Editor, MAKE Magazine
http://makezine.com
toolbox@makezine.com
The Ultimate Tool: The MAKE Warranty Voider
Small enough to fit on your keychain, the MAKE Warranty Voider is the perfect companion for mobile fixing, hacking, and MacGyvering. This is a limited offering with custom "MAKE: Warranty Voider" lovingly laser-etched with care using a 35W laser. It's like a toolbox in your pocket. Squirt P4 (plier version) also available.
Digital Photo Frame
Reviewed by Arwen O'Reilly
http://www.instructables.com/id/EUDAPM2RU7EP287IJP/
$100
Well, the frame may be analog, but here's yet another take on the classic photo-in-frame holiday gift, and this one also allows for more than one photo. In fact, you can have a rotating slideshow! The instructions are fairly straightforward, so if you get started now, you'll be set to give your honey a lovely gift for Valentine's Day--one that has nothing to do with Hallmark.
Reviewed by Arwen O'Reilly
http://www.instructables.com/id/EUDAPM2RU7EP287IJP/
$100
Well, the frame may be analog, but here's yet another take on the classic photo-in-frame holiday gift, and this one also allows for more than one photo. In fact, you can have a rotating slideshow! The instructions are fairly straightforward, so if you get started now, you'll be set to give your honey a lovely gift for Valentine's Day--one that has nothing to do with Hallmark.
Food Expiration Dates
Reviewed by Yishan Wong
http://www.algeri-wong.com/wiki/index.php?title=Expiration_Dates
A couple months ago, I finally got fed up with not knowing how long things last in the refrigerator, and spent several days compiling the web's largest (so far as I know) repository of Food Expiration Dates. Having previously found RealSimple's site, my resource is even bigger, as I integrated their site's items into it (there's a link to their site at the end of mine). Best of all, it's a publicly contributable wiki, so others can add to it. It currently has 134 items, each divided into different conditions (opened/unopened, refrigerated/frozen, etc).
Reviewed by Yishan Wong
http://www.algeri-wong.com/wiki/index.php?title=Expiration_Dates
A couple months ago, I finally got fed up with not knowing how long things last in the refrigerator, and spent several days compiling the web's largest (so far as I know) repository of Food Expiration Dates. Having previously found RealSimple's site, my resource is even bigger, as I integrated their site's items into it (there's a link to their site at the end of mine). Best of all, it's a publicly contributable wiki, so others can add to it. It currently has 134 items, each divided into different conditions (opened/unopened, refrigerated/frozen, etc).
Photo Cube
Reviewed by Arwen O'Reilly
http://www.instructables.com/id/EX9YRGQPCHEQHO8W4K/
$5
A nice twist on the classic gift of a beloved photo in a frame, this clever photo cube project on Instructables.com allows you to use more than one photo and create interesting juxtapositions. It can be made as a box to hold another gift inside, or around a block of wood or stone to use as a paperweight (and an end in itself).
Reviewed by Arwen O'Reilly
http://www.instructables.com/id/EX9YRGQPCHEQHO8W4K/
$5
A nice twist on the classic gift of a beloved photo in a frame, this clever photo cube project on Instructables.com allows you to use more than one photo and create interesting juxtapositions. It can be made as a box to hold another gift inside, or around a block of wood or stone to use as a paperweight (and an end in itself).
Worthy Wordie
Reviewed by Arwen O'Reilly
http://wordie.org
Another great site for word lovers, Wordie.org is sort of "like Flickr, but without the photos." Instead of uploading photos, you add in words. Your favorite words. Your least favorite words. Words that make you laugh.
It's actually more like del.icio.us in that they also post the most-used words, recent additions to lists, comments posted, and the most frequent users. "Mellifluous," "schedenfreude," and "sesquipedalian" are among the most frequently used words (at least today--check out the Wordie Hot 100 for the all-time greats), but recent lists include "Usually Forgotten," "Writer's Block," "One word, many meanings," and "Words that Crack Me Up."
If you have ever experienced the pleasure of rolling a new word around on your tongue, Wordie.org is for you.
Reviewed by Arwen O'Reilly
http://wordie.org
Another great site for word lovers, Wordie.org is sort of "like Flickr, but without the photos." Instead of uploading photos, you add in words. Your favorite words. Your least favorite words. Words that make you laugh.
It's actually more like del.icio.us in that they also post the most-used words, recent additions to lists, comments posted, and the most frequent users. "Mellifluous," "schedenfreude," and "sesquipedalian" are among the most frequently used words (at least today--check out the Wordie Hot 100 for the all-time greats), but recent lists include "Usually Forgotten," "Writer's Block," "One word, many meanings," and "Words that Crack Me Up."
If you have ever experienced the pleasure of rolling a new word around on your tongue, Wordie.org is for you.
The Names of Things
Reviewed by Arwen O'Reilly
http://wordspy.com
Ever feel like techno-creep has got you down? Don't even know what that means? Well, check out the Word Spy and you'll at least solve the second problem, if not the first. Word Spy is a great website tracking the emergence of new words and phrases, often dealing with some aspect of techno-creep (the gradual encroachment of technology in everyday life), but sometimes just naming some new cultural phenomenon (like voluntourism, the growing trend of combining vacations with volunteer opportunities). Definitely worth checking out periodically, if only to keep up with pop culture.
Reviewed by Arwen O'Reilly
http://wordspy.com
Ever feel like techno-creep has got you down? Don't even know what that means? Well, check out the Word Spy and you'll at least solve the second problem, if not the first. Word Spy is a great website tracking the emergence of new words and phrases, often dealing with some aspect of techno-creep (the gradual encroachment of technology in everyday life), but sometimes just naming some new cultural phenomenon (like voluntourism, the growing trend of combining vacations with volunteer opportunities). Definitely worth checking out periodically, if only to keep up with pop culture.
ColdHeat Cordless Glue Gun
Reviewed by Natalie Zee Drieu
http://www.coldheat.com/products.cfm?id=4
$30
I haven't used a glue gun in about 10 years. They were always messy and hot. I think I burned myself the last time I used one, so I've been forever scarred. I just got a new cordless ColdHeat Glue Gun to review, which I have been testing out for a new craft project for the blog. One of the main things I wanted to do was glue fabric. (Only non-washable fabric projects can be glued. Don't start fixing hems!)
Not only is this glue gun easy to use, but it really glues just about anything. It works perfectly with fabric, and now I'm seriously thinking up other projects that will require me to glue things. The handle fits nicely in your hand, and there's no overheating with this thing, so your fingers and hands will be burn-free. Just know that depending on what you are making, the harder you press on the "trigger," the more glue comes out of it. I found that by lightly pressing the trigger, I got to measure the right amount of glue I need. There's also a neat little spotlight so you can see things better if you need to. They even have a great resource blog with a bunch of tips and tricks on how to fix or make things (such as fixing a purse or sneaker), and how to make a corkboard. A great gadget for your craft or toolbox.
Reviewed by Natalie Zee Drieu
http://www.coldheat.com/products.cfm?id=4
$30
I haven't used a glue gun in about 10 years. They were always messy and hot. I think I burned myself the last time I used one, so I've been forever scarred. I just got a new cordless ColdHeat Glue Gun to review, which I have been testing out for a new craft project for the blog. One of the main things I wanted to do was glue fabric. (Only non-washable fabric projects can be glued. Don't start fixing hems!)
Not only is this glue gun easy to use, but it really glues just about anything. It works perfectly with fabric, and now I'm seriously thinking up other projects that will require me to glue things. The handle fits nicely in your hand, and there's no overheating with this thing, so your fingers and hands will be burn-free. Just know that depending on what you are making, the harder you press on the "trigger," the more glue comes out of it. I found that by lightly pressing the trigger, I got to measure the right amount of glue I need. There's also a neat little spotlight so you can see things better if you need to. They even have a great resource blog with a bunch of tips and tricks on how to fix or make things (such as fixing a purse or sneaker), and how to make a corkboard. A great gadget for your craft or toolbox.
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