10 last-minute gift ideas for geeks

You've gone and waited until the last minute to buy the gang at the office their annual holiday gifts. Trouble is, it's too late to order something online -- and who wants to fight with holiday crowds at the mall?

Wouldn't you rather just do some nice, relaxing shopping from the comfort of your cubicle? There's plenty of great stuff you can give digitally via email, Facebook, or even printed off on the fancy color printer at the office you've got at home.

We've tried to cover all the basics, from downloadable games, music, and video on demand -- to truly utilitarian gifts like backup services and Web hosting. Take the jump to see our list of "pay for it now, get it now" gifts -- and share your suggestions in the comments!

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10 last-minute gift ideas for geeks originally appeared on Download Squad on Sun, 19 Dec 2010 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Scientists Wield Wiimote To Measure Evaporation

Consumer technology is advancing at such a rate that it is becoming increasingly common for such technology to find its way into various scientific applications. One of the more obvious examples is seen in the benefits high-performance computing has received from consumer graphics cards. We have also seen laptops used to measure earthquakes, and accelerometers [...]

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Verify by Zurb lets you perform real-world usability testing for your website

For Web developers, designers and managers, each design change involves a ton of small and large decisions. What color scheme should we go with? Should this element be larger or smaller? What will people remember once they glance at my page?

More often then not, we sort of wing this part of the job. We may ask a couple of people we know, but most small-time developers and internal product teams tend to act on gut instinct. It's not because people don't care, but because it's often difficult to gather actual data. You can use Google Analytics for some things (A/B testing for conversion rates), but Analytics data won't tell you what people remember after looking at your page, or if a certain timestamp format is more or less friendly for your comment threads.

We've covered a couple of applications by Zurb before, and now they've released a new one, aimed at providing just this sort of data to product teams. It's called Verify, and it basically lets you create a set of tests based on your Web page, or mock-ups of possible versions of the page, and then send them out to customers or large groups of internal users.

The tests are fun: In one test, you get a few seconds to look at the page, and then you're asked what you remember (like previously-covered Clue). Other tests produce a heat-map of clicks: People are asked something like "Where would you click to learn more about us?" and then you see what they do.

Verify isn't free, but for what it does, it seems quite affordable (starting at $9/month). I've put up a short video showcasing it after the jump.

Continue reading Verify by Zurb lets you perform real-world usability testing for your website

Verify by Zurb lets you perform real-world usability testing for your website originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 28 Dec 2010 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Reserve Power: Paper 2010, The Inkgadget Review

Over the past two weeks we've been incorporating a lightweight flexible technology into our workflow. Usually, of course, just about everything we write is routed through a processor, operating system and application and immediately reflected on an LCD using some multitasking user interface. However, we have been seeking a way to organize to-do lists on a separate display so that they are not lost in the course of a day's work or taking up undue screen real estate. As it happens, we were invited to an exclusive press event extolling the latest version of paper.

Paper is a thin, foldable substance that can accommodate a wide array of styli to produce words and graphics. The catch is that, much like printer cartridges, these styli must be refilled with ink or replaced. But there is a wide ecosystem of these devices that are broadly available.

The developers of paper have really put a lot of forethought into a wide array of uses. The tool has almost no learning curve and data entry is so simple that young children will have no problems mastering its basics. Paper yields high contrast when used with the appropriate ink and consumes no power. And, simply put, there is no display on the market that can fold as flexibly as paper, allowing us to slip a small sheet imperceptibly into a shirt pocket or wallet.

Continue reading Reserve Power: Paper 2010, The Inkgadget Review

Reserve Power: Paper 2010, The Inkgadget Review originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 31 Dec 2010 18:31:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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WakeMate Warns Users Of Major Safety Issue With Product After One Bursts Into Flames

It was only days ago that we wrote that after nearly a year of delays, the first WakeMate units were finally shipping to customers. And now there's some more bad news ? really bad. Some of the initial units are apparently bursting into flames because of any issue with the USB charger included. Repeat: Do not use the USB charger included with the shipping WakeMate units. The company has just sent out the following notice to customers:

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Win A New iPad From the Staff At Klick.com

The creative staff at Klick.com is giving away a brand new Apple iPad absolutely free to one lucky winner this holiday season! For your chance to win a new iPad simply pay close attention to the video below, watch it a few times if you have to. While viewing try to spot as many Internet [...]

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Skyfire For iPad Arriving Soon

Many iPhone users have been enjoying the Skyfire web browser since November and a lot of people have been patiently waiting for an iPad compatible version. If all goes well Skyfire should be available for the iPad very soon, perhaps before Christmas which is a good possibility according to a Skyfire spokesman. The iPad version [...]

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