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Website of the Day: This Day in Tech

GeekSugar — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 14:30:07 -0700

If you ever want to brush up on your tech-history knowledge, I suggest adding Wired's This Day in Tech website to your RSS reader. Each day, This Day in Tech posts technological advancements that happened from the 18th century until today. From subject areas, including transportation, physics, inventions, computers and IT, engineering, communication, business, and medicine, the site is guaranteed to enlighten you on all the movers and shakers that helped shape and develop tech as we know it today.

Have an interesting website you want to share? To learn how to post your favorite websites to our Website of the Day group, read more.

First of all, join the Website of the Day group.
Click "New Post" under the website of the day tab at the top of the page.
Give your story a "Title."
Fill in the "Body" with a link to your favorite website and the reasons why you love it.
Type "Technology and Gadgets" in the Categories box
Add keyword(s) in the tag field with relevant tags (for example mine for this story was "Website of the Day").
Choose whether you want the post to be private or public.
Click "Create Post" to submit content.

So join the Website of the Day group and share information about all your favorite sites! Yours just might end up on the GeekSugar homepage!

Brad Pitt Gets Wired, Says No Phones in the Bathroom

PopSugar — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 10:14:50 -0700

Brad Pitt is no stranger to the cover of a magazine, but next month he's popping up unexpectedly on the cover of Wired. We're sure to see and hear lots from Brad in the run up to Inglourious Basterds's release on August 21, and he's kicking things off with this tech-themed interview. He said:

On Twittering photos of your wife's butt, like Ashton: "Don't take a picture of your wife's butt. That's silly. Take pictures of other people's wives' butts."
On dating online: "Everyone lies online. In fact, readers expect you to lie. If you don't, they'll think you make less than you actually do. So the only way to tell the truth is to lie."
On using the phone in the bathroom: "No, you can't talk on the phone! Do you want the guy next to you to hear your entire conversation? That's why you should only text in the bathroom. Just be sure you don't hit the wrong button and end up putting a photo of your junk on Twitter. Trust me, you don't want those followers."

Brad did once say he wasn't able to operate a computer, but it seems like he now knows a thing or two about going online.

J.J. Abrams Brings Possibly the Coolest Issue of Wired Yet

GeekSugar — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 04:00:34 -0700

This newest issue of Wired Magazine (which I read faithfully), brings together some of my favorite things inside its pages: puzzles, magic, and J.J. Abrams.

Not only is J.J. Abrams responsible for some of the most geek-worthy shows on TV like Lost, Fringe, and Alias, but he produced soon-to-be Spring blockbuster Star Trek (which I have my IMAX tickets for already). So when I heard that he would be helping to whip up the May issue of Wired into something totally fitting of his work, I couldn't wait to get my copy.

Packed with puzzles, mysteries, and science, this issue of Wired should take longer than the average issue to get through - there is something on every page to solve, decode, decipher, and discover. Nothing is an accident.

Check out some behind the scenes footage of J.J. working with the Wired staff, and what you can expect in the next issue when you read more.

Which Gadgets Have Been Replaced by Your Smartphone?

GeekSugar — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 15:45:27 -0800

On Monday, Wired posted a comical story about five gadgets that have been killed by the cell phone, then yesterday amended the post to include even more gadgets that have been tossed aside for the convenience of all-in-one cell features.

This got me wondering if your cell phone has taken the place of your other gadgets? I know that my iPhone has inadvertently replaced several on this list, but there are a few I can't live without (hello, proper digital camera!). Has your smartphone replaced any of your other beloved gadgets?

Robyn: The Anti-Britney Spears?

BuzzSugar — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 14:30:38 -0700

In the May issue of Wired magazine, the Swedish pop star Robyn is hailed as the anti-Britney Spears: She's a good-looking blonde who happens to be a talented songwriter, she's uncompromising when it comes to producing chart-topping hits for a demanding label, and instead of making out with Madonna and divorcing K-Fed, she started her own label and carved out a long and respectable music career.

It is striking to see how two charismatic, talented youngsters could start out along a similar path in the music business and end up in such dramatically different places. As Wired somewhat dramatically put it, their different choices "would lead one to hipster stardom and the other to madness."

While Robyn scored a mainstream hit with "Show Me Love" in the '90s, her artistic integrity led her down a different path from the mega-stardom Britney achieved, as she declined to tour with the Backstreet Boys and struck out on her own instead. I, for one, am glad - not just because we don't need another tragic Britney story but also because Robyn's music is different but still catchy. Her new video for a song called "Who's That Girl" seems appropriately timed for the Wired article, as the lyrics make clear she is interested in how we view certain girls in comparison to who they really are inside. Seems like Britney, and a whole host of other starlets, could have benefited from the same self-awareness, no?

What do you think? Is Robyn a welcome antidote to the pop-wreck that is Britney? To check out the totally fun video for "Who's That Girl" - and the wonderment that is Robyn's "Konichiwa B*tches" - read more

Source

Get the March 2008 of Wired for Free!

GeekSugar — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 17:31:44 -0800

Hurry, get over to Wired and fill out a form to get the March 2008 issue of Wired for free. They only have 10,000 to giveaway so act fast!

Thanks TeamSugar user GirlC for this awesome tid-bit! Geeks everywhere are going crazy right now!

Geekipedia: Wired's Encyclopedia For Geeks

GeekSugar — Wed, 03 Oct 2007 09:00:19 -0700

When this month's issue of Wired Magazine arrived at my doorstep, I was delightfully surprised to find another magazine enclosed-a lovely Geekipedia. This little blue book contains all of the people, places, ideas and trends you need to know now; bringing you up to speed on the latest top tech topics. It's a must have manual for all things geek and something most of you readers should check out. Here's one of the fun definitions you can find in the Geekipedia:

Mashup- In case you somehow missed it - maybe you were watching the trailer for Brokeback to the Future - the mashup isn't just about mixing the Black and White albums to make Grey. Digital media lends itself to cutting, pasting, sampling, and compositing, and the urge to hybridize has rubbed off on everything from fashion to hardware design.

To access the online Geekipedia, click here.

How To Rock Out With Guitar Hero

GeekSugar — Fri, 10 Aug 2007 11:00:10 -0700

In case you missed it, Wired Magazine has created a great How To Wiki, which is a collaborative site dedicated to Do It Yourself projects and tips. My favorite entry so far is the How to Rock At Guitar Hero guide. So how can you shock your audience if you don't have the LEGO Gibson guitar?

Challenge yourself - No pain, no fame. Skip the easy level (which requires just three fingers) and opt for medium - it's important to get your pinkie playing as soon as you can.
Perfect the hold - There are more buttons than you have available fingers. Use your pointer, which is your most coordinated digit, to operate both the red and green buttons up top.
Learn patterns - It's like playing Scrabble after memorizing the Scrabble dictionary - learn the tricks and you'll be able to give Santana a run for his money. If you're struggling to get through certain solos, check out the training mode.
Maximize star power - You'll score more points if you're smart about your star power. Though it seems practical to wait until your meter is full to start using it to get double points, start at the halfway mark. Pretend your on American Idol, only with a guitar.

Source: Wired

Wired Magazine Decodes Self-Tanner

BellaSugar — Tue, 31 Jul 2007 08:00:00 -0700

I never would have expected this from the tech gurus over at Wired, but the magazine has deciphered the ingredient list of L'Oréal Sublime Bronze self-tanner ($7.81). It's interesting stuff, if only to see what all of those tongue-twisting chemical names really do. For instance:

Dihydroxy Acetone: The star of the show. This carbohydrate reacts with the skin's amino acids, like arginine, in what chefs call the Maillard reaction (it's what makes cooked foods turn brown). Heat this stuff to body temperature and it produces brown polymers known as melanoidins that bind to the outer layer of the skin (and no deeper).

So that's how it works. And did you know that the same silicone compound that goes into Silly Putty goes into this lotion? I'm oddly fascinated by this parsing of the label. Are you?

Martha Stewart Does Edible Geek On Wired

GeekSugar — Tue, 24 Jul 2007 11:15:14 -0700

Homemaking expert Martha Stewart may not have stripped down like Jenna Fischer for her cover of Wired, but she does get her geek on with a baked-to-perfection Wii cake and by revealing her inner techieness.

Gadget obsessed Martha stays connected with her BlackBerry and Razr (pink perhaps?) and it's no surprise that the super organized Stewart has a "servery," a room with two long white marble counters on either side with lots of plugs, where she keeps her gadgets, charges her cameras and stores batteries. She also attempts to keep wires and "crap" (no lie) to a minimum, opting for iPods in every room with wireless speakers. Here are some more highlights from the interview:

On the new marthastewart.com re-design: "I'm working on Marthapedia right now, which is my version of Wikipedia. If you know how to take red wine out of a white cloth napkin better than I do, that's good to know. We'll be editing user content, and it won't be as freewheeling as Wikipedia. Because a lot of this - you have to really monitor it."
What geeks can learn from her: "First of all, they can learn to prioritize, and they can learn how to make things beautiful. It's about using your hands and your mind to make things work better. Whether you're a programmer or a seamstress, it's all about new techniques, simplifying old techniques, and consolidating steps. Making things go faster - but not worse. Better."

Check out Martha's Wii Cake recipe. Want to check out some more yummy and geeky treats? Check out my past edible geek stories.