Cool Or What

4973.aspx

2009-10-23T19:09:00.000-07:00

Want to "go" to Mars?

The European Space Agency is looking for people to go on a simulated 520 day trip to Mars.

I'm too tall to participate as volunteers have to be less than 6 feet tall. They must also be in good health and speak English or Russian. The deadline for applying is the 5th of November 2009. More info at the ESA site

via [Wired]

4870.aspx

2009-03-25T15:33:00.000-07:00

MV Agusta Brutale on tour in Europe

The MV Agusta Brutale is a great looking bike and I'm sure it's even more fun to ride:

And thanks to Brutale on Tour you now get the chance to take one for a test ride with a professional rider:

Register immediately for the "Brutale on Tour", an exceptional opportunity to test ride the bike of your dreams! You will have the choice of a Brutale 989R or a Brutale 1078RR for a fun day out with fellow enthusiasts, comparing performance and opinions on the most prestigious and fascinating motorcycle in the world.

4745.aspx

2008-09-15T21:21:00.000-07:00

Air Sharing for iPhone

One word: wow

I have used my iPhone 3G for less than a week but I started missing my Pocket PC when I discovered that iPhone/iTunes has no way to copy files to the device. I'm pretty “green“ so I print to PDF instead of bringing paper copies of reservations, directions etc. That worked great on my last Pocket PCs but not on the iPhone :-( Until I tried the free Air Sharing app.

Air Sharing is a very simple application but it fills a big void on the iPhone. It lets you copy any file you want to the iPhone and back. It doesn't matter if the iPhone “supports“ the file format or not. You can view supported formats like html, PDF, jpeg etc directly on the device, otherwise it is a very handy locker for bringing along files. Who needs a USB key when you can bring files on your iPhone?

Air Sharing is a WebDav server so you can interact with it from Linux, Mac, Windows or any compliant web browser. Let me repeat this; there is no software to install on your desktop/laptop. It just works. Start Air Sharing on your iPhone and you can access the files from any client.

The app is free for a limited time only so get your copy now.

Let me say that one word again; wow

4726.aspx

2008-08-20T19:05:00.000-07:00

Free MP3 download of Death Will Never Conquer by Coldplay

Coldplay has released yet another song for free on their site, Death Will Never Conquer. The band have played the song throughout the first leg of the Viva La Vida tour and it is not available anywhere else.

4722.aspx

2008-08-18T20:55:00.000-07:00

Goosh: Google command line

In the Beginning was the Command Line. Well it looks like it is back. goosh.org - the unofficial google shell is gives you a gives you a command line interface to most Google products like search, translate, news, images, video etc.

What's next? Lynx as the default browser on Windows?

4634.aspx

2008-05-05T18:42:00.000-07:00

Free MP3 download of Violet Hill by Coldplay

You can download the latest single of Coldplay, Violet Hill, from their web site while the promotion lasts.

4632.aspx

2008-05-03T08:53:00.000-07:00

Driving directions with Google Maps Street View

This is an amazing feature. Street View is now integrated with driving directions so you can see pictures of critical turns on you trip:

Just follow the arrows to preview the entire trip as the following video shows:

I cannot wait for it to arrive in Milano and other European cities.

4600.aspx

2008-03-27T18:47:00.000-07:00

Google Black?

The home page of Google just went black in some countries, not to save energy, but in support of WWF's "Earth Hour Effort". Google Israel is one of the first but I guess others will follow:

4594.aspx

2008-03-26T14:23:00.000-07:00

Dinner in the sky

Not for the faint of heart, but the view at Dinner In the Sky must be spectacular:

This is a unique event meant for anyone who wishes to transform an ordinary meal or meeting into a magical moment that will leave a lasting impression on their guests!
Dinner in the Sky is hosted at a table suspended at a height of 50 metres, by a team of professionals. Benji Fun, our partner in this event, is the worldwide leader for this type of activity.

4597.aspx

2008-03-25T20:42:00.000-07:00

Best Of YouTube 2007

Like it, or hate it, there are loads of great contents on YouTube.

Check out the 2007 YouTube Video Awards!

Update: added the link...

4593.aspx

2008-03-25T14:35:00.000-07:00

Internet Explorer 8 beta & FireFox 3.0 beta 4

Both Microsoft IE 8.0 and FireFox 3 are out in beta these days. FireFox 3 promises to have a lot faster JavaScript engine which is great news as web sites use AJAX more and more use deliver interactive content. Microsoft, on the other hand, has focused on standards compliance and adding support for ~~gadgets~~ WebSlices.

I still prefer Internet Explorer. It launches a many times faster than FireFox. That may of course be because Internet Explorer only has the Google Toolbar but FireFox has ~10 plugins loaded that I use every day...

What I am waiting for is a real mobile web browser. The iPhone web browser is light-years ahead of everyone else so it is no wonder that the competitors are all scrambling to implement something "similar". It looks like most companies are going the Apple way and basing their new mobile browser on Web Kit, apart from Microsoft which I assume will use the Internet Explorer code base. I don't really care if the code base is FireFox, Web Kit., Opera or IE as long as it is can be used for really browsing the web on a mobile device.

4592.aspx

2008-03-24T15:03:00.000-07:00

tversity: a free media server for xbox 360, PS3 (and many more)

I have used EzLink NG with my Kiss player for many years and I have been very happy with it. But it is getting old and neither the EzLink NG nor the Kiss Player have had any updates in more than a year. My living room is also filling up with gadgets so I was hoping to replace the Kiss player with my xbox 360. The xbox 360 has a lot more processing power than the Kiss player but Microsoft has locked it down pretty well and limited the supported formats to Microsoft codecs.

The tversity is just what the doctored ordered. It supports universal plug and play so it is discovered automatically by the xbox 360. Provided you have decent computer it also does on-the-fly encoding of divx, mp3 etc to formats that are supported by the xbox 360.

It installs as a Windows Service on the host computer so you can just install it and forget about it :-)

4588.aspx

2008-03-22T14:28:00.000-07:00

Synchronize Google Calendar with Microsoft Outlook

Google recently released the free Google Calendar Sync application:

It supports three ways of synchronization with Microsoft Outlook:

2-way: All events in your primary Google Calendar and your default Microsoft Outlook calendar will be synced together. Any changes you make to events in either Google Calendar or Microsoft Outlook Calendar will be reflected in both applications.

1-way: Google Calendar to Microsoft Outlook calendar. All events in your primary Google Calendar will be added to your default Microsoft Outlook calendar. During subsequent sync cycles, any updates made to events in Google Calendar will be reflected in Microsoft Outlook Calendar as well.

1-way: Microsoft Outlook calendar to Google Calendar. All events in your default Microsoft Outlook calendar will be added to your primary Google Calendar. During subsequent sync cycles, any updates made to events in Microsoft Outlook Calendar will be reflected in Google Calendar.

This release does not seem to copy the “private” flag but I am sure they will fix that in a future release.

I have tried Google Calendar Sync and several other applications. In the end I chose for SyncMyCal. It is not free, but it lets me synchronize both my office calendar and private calendar (both Google Apps based) to Outlook. Each appointment gets a different category/label in Outlook depending on the calendar so I can clearly distinguish between the two. It has a lot options that let you tune the synchronization and it even has a Pocket PC client so you can synch directly from you Windows Mobile device over the air. At the moment I use the PC version but I expect to migrate to the Windows Mobile version as soon as Google lets me synchronize my contacts with Google Apps as well.

4587.aspx

2008-03-18T23:31:00.000-07:00

Free VoIP phone from Eutelia

I moved to Eutelia VoIP (ex Skypho) a long time ago and I couldn't be happier about my choice. An excellent service with free phone and fax numbers, what more can you ask for?

A free phone?

Well, you get this VoIP phone for free if you put 19 euros in your account :-)

Cool Or What?

Thanks for the tip Michele

4574.aspx

2008-02-28T21:21:00.000-08:00

Dilbert Widget

The Dilbert Widget is here. Free and Cool, what more can you ask for? A widget is a little program you stick on your personal web page (MySpace, Facebook, iGoogle, blog, and more) to do a variety of different things.

It is available in different formats. Here is an example of a large format:

4569.aspx

2008-02-20T22:20:00.000-08:00

Firefox 3, beta 3

Beta 3 of Firefox 3 is only intended for developers and tester but it gives you a pretty good idea of the new features that will be released later this year:

Improved security features such as: better presentation of website identity and security, malware protection, anti-virus integration in the download manager.

Improved ease of use through: easier add-on discovery and installation, improved download manager search and progress indication in the status bar, resumable downloading, and full page zoom.

Richer personalization through: one-click bookmarking, smart bookmark folders, and better customization of download actions for file types.

Improved platform features such as: offline application support

Performance improvements.

More information at The Mozilla Blog

4561.aspx

2008-02-18T08:25:00.000-08:00

Glofiish V900

The Glofiish V900 supports DVB-Terrestrial which means that you can get free TV channels on your device in Europe where most nations are moving to DVB-T. No need to pay a lot of money for DVB-H.

The Glofiish V900 is E-TEN's first Pocket PC Phone to feature mobile TV with support for DVB-H, DVB-T, TDMB and DAB broadcasting standards. V900 should be launched to market in the second half of the year. The Glofiish M810 is a sleekly portable, HSDPA, Wi-Fi b/g and GPS ready handset, designed to help the new breed of bloggers, podcasters, video makers, and chatters, stay online and updated wherever they are. A full QWERTY keyboard makes blogging, text messaging and chatting quick and convenient. Additionally, built-in JAVA support allows fun mobile games to be downloaded and played anywhere.

You can get a look at the V900 at CeBIT 4-9 March.

4510.aspx

2007-11-30T21:38:00.000-08:00

Gizmo 4.0 beta

Gizmo 4.0 beta has just been released with a lot of interesting features:

Video Calling - Make free video calls, even if only one person has a webcam.

Completely Redesigned Interface - Even easier to use, with an enhanced contact list.

Meta-IM - Chat with AIM, Yahoo, Windows Live, GTalk, iChat and more.

Group Chat - Communicate as a group in real-time.

File Sharing - Instantly share files on your computer with family and friends.

Custom Avatars - Customize your Gizmo profile with a personal photo.

Tabbed Chat Interface - Organize all your live chats within one window.

Chat Logging - Record and save chat sessions you can read again later.

4509.aspx

2007-11-29T22:00:00.000-08:00

Wiidoms

The Wii is great fun, but it can be dangerous at times...
I guess that is why Nintendo is shipping free Wiidoms, aka Wii Jacket Accessories.

I received my free Wiidoms earlier this week and I fell a lot safer already...
The picture below shows the Wiidom, unprotected wiimote and the protected wiimote:

4507.aspx

2007-11-29T20:16:00.000-08:00

Santa/Babbo Natale: letters and chat

For once, a great service by the Italian postal system (I have a lot of bad things to say about them but I will save that for another time).

Last year the kids sent a letter to the “Italian“ Santa around this time, addressed to:
Babbo Natale
Polo Nord

A few weeks later we got a reply from Santa himself containing a personalized letter and a small gift. Needless to say; the kids loved it.

Note that you can chat with the “English“ Santa via Messenger by adding Northpole@live.com to your contacts. More info here.

4504.aspx

2007-11-29T19:51:00.000-08:00

Free ski pass in Livigno this winter!

You get a free ski pass in Livigno if you stay at least four nights at the start or end of the season:

This is an ideal opportunity to enjoy skiing in the Little Tibet of Italy, at 1816 m above sea level, with 115 km of perfectly prepared slopes,
modern mountain railways, one of the biggest snow park in Europe and, last but not least: the snow is always guaranteed!

Livigno has a lot to offer, for a wonderful winter holiday with your partner, your friends or your family: good snow, traditional Italian food and
a genuine atmosphere, surrounded by a breathtaking alpine landscape.

Skipass Free Family Special for kids age 3 to 12: 50% discount on the accommodation costs, booking a hotel which offers the programme

This is fantastic news. Especially considering that I am taking December off as I am changing jobs (which explains the sporadic posting the last few months). Livigno is too far away for day trips from Milano so this is the perfect excuse to go :-)

See you in the slopes!

4483.aspx

2007-11-23T08:26:00.000-08:00

Monza Rally show this weekend

The Monza Rally Show will take place this weekend. Valentino Rossi won last year. Let's see if he can repeat the success again this year on wet conditions.

The classic closing event of the agonistic season at Autodromo Nazionale Monza, where rally and track race aces challenge themselves along with show business and sport celebrities.

The event, as in the previous editions, will host rally and track race aces both with cars and bikes and show business and sport celebrities.

The program of “Monza Rally Show” includes, on Friday, the sport and technical analysis of the special tests, where the track is completely made by asphalt.

The first special tests of “Monza Rally Show” take place between Saturday and Sunday, when the last tests in program take place. At the end of the event, ion Sunday afternoon, there is the “Master Show”, the classic spectacular show which is divided into various heats with direct eliminations of the participants which takes place on a 1,500 long track on the central straight of the Autodromo Nazionale di Monza to which take part the best teams of “Monza Rally Show”.

4477.aspx

2007-11-22T13:05:00.000-08:00

Valentino Rossi's heart helmet from Mugello 2007 could be yours

Dainese will be auctioning off on eBay the Agv helmet worn by Valentino Rossi to the benefit of the non-profit “Un sogno per il Gaslini Onlus” association (“A dream for Gaslini Children’s Hospital”), and the Doctor himself will present the autographed helmet to the generous bidder in person in early December.

The auction is scheduled to start at 12.00 PM on Thursday, November 22 and will end at the same time on Tuesday, November 27:

Proceeds from the on-line auction will be entirely devolved to the non-profit “Un sogno per il Gaslini Onlus” association for the completion of an accommodation structure to serve the over 50,000 children admitted to Genoa’s Giannina Gaslini Hospital, Italy’s largest children’s hospital.

In particular, a center with areas dedicated to play, distance learning, physical rehabilitation, and meetings with family members will be created inside San Gerolamo Abbey next door to the hospital.

...

The over 70 thousand Euros raised from the auction of the Doctor’s racing suit, boots, and gloves in 2006 were also dedicated to the “Un sogno per il Gaslini” Project.

4425.aspx

2007-10-26T08:14:00.000-07:00

Mouse with built in numeric keypad

My laptop does not have a numeric keypad which makes it difficult to enter data in Excel so this combined mouse/numeric keypad by EzKey should be very useful:

Via [The Raw Feed]

4427.aspx

2007-10-25T14:49:00.000-07:00

Microsoft Live Labs Listas

Microsoft does a different kind of Google Base with Listas. From the technology preview, i.e. beta, release notes:

Listas is a tool for the creation, management and sharing of lists, notes, favorites, and more. It allows you to quickly and easily edit lists, share them with others for reading or wiki-style editing, and discover the public lists of other users. We encourage you to try using it for meeting notes, bookmarks, shopping lists, to plan a night out, or whatever other creative ways you can think of.

In the Listas Community Section, you will find a number of highlights of the most popular and random items from around the community of public lists such as the most used tags, the hottest lists, and prolific contributors. You can even add others’ lists (or any RSS feed) to your own Listas so you are always up to date.

The Listas Toolbar lets you grab contents from pages as you are browsing.