Memex 1.1

You can, apparently, play videos on your iPod, provided (a) you have already installed Linux on it and (b) have a PhD in comp sci. Having lots of free time would also help. I don’t qualify, alas.

A keyboard with blank keys. According to the Blurb,

Since there is no key to look at when typing, your brain will quickly adapt and memorize the key positions and you will find yourself typing a lot faster with more accuracy in no time. It is amazing how slow typers almost double their speed and quick typers become blazing fast!

Hmmm… Jolly useful for writing blank verse though (sorry). A snip at $79.95.

I’ve been using my new Blackberry for over a week. So far, no sign of the addictive behaviour which led people to rename it the ‘Crackberry’. The key to controlling it is to be VERY selective about which correspondents’ messages are forwarded to the device. I can imagine a forthcoming New Yorker cartoon showing a couple having a tiff and one shouts “Right! That’s it! I’m not letting you through my Blackberry filter any more!” as s/he flounces out. The pseudo-QWERTY keyboard takes a bit of getting used to after years of texting on ordinary mobiles. But the predictive software is actually very good. And it’s really nice having email and text messages presented in the same list and letting the phone sort out what to do after one clicks on ‘reply’.

According to the blurb. “the makers of this ingenious coffee mug decided to glaze it with a chalk board surface allowing for easy-wipe messaging. It comes with its own stick of chalk, so no need to ask your little niece to rip one off from school.”

Where have these people been? Schools don’t have chalk any more — it creates hazardous dust particles and besides is so yesterday.

Condensed Plato Aristotle Augustine Descartes Hume et al

Perfect for cash-rich but time-poor intellectuals!