Buy a Nixie Clock for the person who has everything. I know they don't have this!

We all know the person: ho-hum about anything they receive for a gift or simply someone who posesses the ability to go ahead and purchase anything and everything they could ever possibly want so when the holidays or their birthday comes around, you're stumped and can't think of a unique gift for that person that would catch their attention or be something they don't already have.

Well, my friends, have no fear for I have the solution to your problem. I can pretty much gaurantee your friend will not have this object and it's something that is so cool, your friend will be impressed and remeber your gift for some time.

Behold, the Nixie Clock.

Behold.
(source: Amazon)

The what? Yup, the Nixie clock is indeed something that you don't see everyday. Each numeral is displayed on 1960's technology tubes that manufactuers import from Russia where these tubes are still made and used in "state of the art" equipment. You may have seen these tubes used in countdown clocks for the US space program in the early 60's. You can find out how a nixie tube actually works at the wikipedia article here.

Today, most of us use LEDs to display the time, but there is no denying these unique clocks and their appeal. Why I can't see something like this on the bedroom nightstand, I think it would be ideal in an office, den or even a living room.

Amazon has a nixie clock for sale for the somewhat rareified price of $209.95. Don't despair, though- there are many other makers that offer nixie clocks for far less and kits can be had for even lower prices. Just go to your favorite search engine and enter the term "nixie clock".

Now, your jaded "got it all" friend doesn't have to get another tie this year. Instead, give them a nixie clock and give them a real surprise they'll remember.

Google Goggles- Hard to say 5 times fast, but easy to use in surprising ways

Mobile (phone) apps are all the rage with kids these days. There are apps that play games, apps that change the look of photos and apps that find great restaurants anywhere you happen to be standing.

And now, there's Google Goggles. A new phone app for the Android, iPhone and Blackberry and others.

Not very descriptive name, I'll admit. But when you hear what the app can do, you'll be running to the computer to download it.
Think of Google Goggles as a visual search engine. One that uses your phone's camera to search the internet for answers.

Remember when your Mom said to look it up? Now, you can.
(source: gigjets.com)

For example, if you're in a French restaurant and the menu is in French, but you don't speak a word of the language, what can you do? Simply start the GG app and take a photo of the paragraph of your interest. Google looks up the translation and converts the French into English (or the reverse!). The translation may not be perfect, but the result if close enough to make sense of what was nonsensical just moments before. It handles dozens of languages beyond those of the Francophile.

Or...

Let's say you're in Cincinnati Ohio and you see the famous statue in Fountain Square. "What statue?" I hear you say. Exactly- simply activate the GG App, take a photo of the statue and Google Goggles will search the web (based on your photo) to tell you the statue was installed in 1871 by Tyler Davidson. Didn't know that, did you?

The Fountain Square Statue, Cincinnati, Ohio.

(source: waymarking.com)

Or...

You get a business card from a new sales contact but you know little about her. Once again, simply open the GG app, take a photo of the card's petinent information (phone number, person's name, etc.) and lo and behold, Goggles will look up the person and present all of the information available on the web to you in an attempt to aid your business efforts.

There are many more things Google Goggles can do: Look up books, wine labels, artwork, pretty much anything that presents a visual that can be captured by a camera is something GG can help you look up on the internet.

Pretty cool, no? Google doesn't say if people are on the list of available "look ups", but don't be surprised to see facial recognition somewhere down the road.

So, just in case- look in your webcam and smile!

Go here to see an explanation of Google Goggles.

Onstar FMV- get help, directions or make calls from nearly any car.

We own two GM cars and both have Onstar. As a husband and father, I feel much better that our cars are equipped with this gear. For those of you not familiar with the service, Onstar is mounted in all GM vehicles and has the ability to make hands-free cell phone calls, provide turn-by-turn directions and, best of all, will automatically call emergency services with the vehicles exact location in the event of an accident via the GPS mounted in all Onstar equippped products.

Until recently, if you didn't own a GM vehicle, you were out of luck and unable to use this service in your non-GM vehicle.

Not any more. Now, hundreds of non-GM cars and truck models can mount Onstar inside their vehicle. Called Onstar FMV ("For My Vehicle"), this is the entire Onstar system built into a rear view mirror module (many GM products have this exact setup too) for replacing your normal, boring, non-button rear-view mirror.

See? Lots of buttons that do lots of things.
(source: GM)

Other available services include bluetooth connectivity for cell phones, calling for roadside assistance and even stolen vehicle recovery (using the Onstar's built-in GPS, they can track the thief and guide the police).

Is Onstar for you? The quick and easy answer is maybe. While Onstar FMV can fit a huge number of non-GM vehicles, it can't fit all of them. the Onstar FMV website has provided a handy guide for you to enter your vehicles make, model, year, etc. to determine if your Ford, Toyota or Jeep (or any make) is compatible with the Onstar FMV system.

Now, Onstar is not free. Two plans are available for $199 and $299 per year (pro rated monthly) with a basic and premium level of services, respectively. For me, I gladly pay the rate and have done so for years. When I know my wife and three kids always have help just a phone call away and they can have the police or fire department respond to their exact location when I can't I feel better. Professional installation is required but can be done for under $100.

And that's worth every penny.

Go to the Onstar FMV site here for ordering info and go to PCMag.com to see a review with the pros and cons of this unique system.

Saving a wet cell phone- 10 ways to dry out your mobile investment.

A while back, I wrote about using a bowl of white rice to dry out a cell phone. This method is not guaranteed to work all of the time, but it's really better than doing nothing. It turned out to be a popular post and it got me to thinking: This is apparently a real problem and there must be more methods than only immersion in a bowl of white rice.

Turns out, there are many more ways than just a dry rice bath.

Mmm...the smell of a feshly baked cell phone...

(source: 6cachet.com)

The people who should know at advancedtele.com have a list of ten ways to possibly save your $300 (or more) investment. Believe it or not, household appliances like your freezer or TV may be able to help you out- even some alcohol may also be of significant use in saving you hundreds of dollars (or pounds or Euros) when your phone goes plop or your teenager didn't remove his iPhone from his jeans before stuffing them in the washer.

Remember, all of these suggestions are last-ditch desperate attempts and should only be used when you have no other option. Do all of these at your own risk. But when you're trying to avoid spending part of the mortgage payment on a replacement nearly anything you can try is better than doing nothing at all.

My first, best piece of advice is not to get the phone wet in the first place. But accidents do happen and it's reassuring to know that there may be methods, albeit desperate ones, to ressurrect your mobile buddy and get it back into service.

Go to the advancedtele.com website here.

Good luck!

Google Plus Explained- it's a New Way to Explore Social Media.

Facebook is a great service, but everyone in your group of friends (in my case 300+ people) see everything you write- whether you really want all of them to read it or not. You really have no option but to publish your thoughts for all to read, even if it's none of their business.

Twitter is OK, too. But suffers from the same idea. In fact, you don't even get to choose or accept your followers. They just pick you and you have no choice in the matter. Everything you post is open to the eyes off all who have chosen to make you a part of their lives.

Google Plus aims to change all that. G+ provides you with what are called "circles". Private groups you choose and approve that are allowed strict access to certain messages. No one else allowed.

Say you have 100 members in your entire GP member list. 25 are family, 50 are business and 25 more are part of your church. You have the option of sending messages to everyone, one person at a time or just for those people in certain circles. If you have a time change in your weekly church meeting, send a message to people in your church circle and no one else will see it.

Hanging out never looked more fun.
(source: Google)

Additionally, you have access to "Hangouts". Think of these as video chatrooms where up to 10 people can talk about whatever. The software can determine who is speaking and automatically makes that person the largest video image on everyone else's screen. You can invite others and have a pre-arranged meeting or you can just, well.. hangout and wait to see who wants to talk to you.

The catch? Google Plus is still in a trial stage with "only" a few million invited members right now, but is set to be released to the entire public sometime in the near future. If you'd like to know more and sign up for an invitation to try GP when the trial expands during the next few weeks and months, simply click here and you'll be on the cutting edge of social media.

Flying car approved for road use. Could this kind of vehicle take off for consumers?



It may drive like a car, but
it doesn't look like one.
(source: Terrifugia.com)



I grew up reading my dad's Popular Mechanics magazines. It seemed that every third issue had an article in it about the next big thing- flying cars. The author would wax poetically about driving to the airport, deploying the wings and taking off  for a vacation in paradise. All at the touch of the proverbial button.

Well, it's fiction no longer. The Huffington Post is reporting that the National Highway Safety Administration has just given the green light for the Terrafugia Transition aircraft/car to legally roam across the highways and byways of the United States with all of the minivans, cars and trucks- just like the rest of us.



The Transition in flight. Is this
the next big thing?
(source: Terrafugia)



The Tansition keeps the wings folded up, origami style, against the side of the vehicle while driving on the road surface. Once at a location that's suitable for takeoff, the driver/pilot pushes a button and the wings slowly deploy until they lock into position for flight.

The dash looks pretty much like any car with the exception of a few additional gauges needed for flight. Along with the steering wheel is a typical pilot's control stick planted in the floor. The aircraft seats two and can fly 425 miles at 115mph in the air and still gets 35 MPG as a car.

Interested? The Transition will set you back a cool $250,000. Still interested? Then, you'll find more information at the Terrafugia site located here.

Cool Tools- The best of anything that makes life easier.

I inherited a bunch of tools from my grandfather after he passed on. Among the assortment of hammers, pliers and other stuff I hauled home, I found a strange little shovel. Almost a toy, the shovel was ruggedly built with an oak handle and had a very curved blade- too much for generic use. I had never seen anything like it before until a few years later when I was watching some landscapers plant a tree and they were using an indentical shovel. Turns out, the shovel is meant solely for digging round holes for trees and bushes...and nothing else.

I would call that a pretty cool tool.

Others like me seek out these specialized gadgets for all manner of uses. The common thread that binds them together is the specificity of their design. And finding a quality choice from among the many choices that might be out there can be a challenge too. Luckily, there's a website that relies on the submission of the general public to help them find tools that are well-built and, most of all, useful for the required task.



What is this tool and why is it cool?
Click the link to find out!
(source: Cool Tools)

Cool Tools is a website that seeks out the input of users, professionals and hobbyists to submit their choices for the finest tools available for the job. Many of the users make their living using the posted tool and have gone through a long experience with lesser choices. Experience is the best teacher and you benefit from their encounters with the best.

Sometimes the tools really are tools or they could be books or websites or DVDs or just objects that make life a little easier all around. If any web visitor disagrees, they're welcome to submit their choice and to justify why it's best for the job.

The site is breezy, informative and cheery. Topics and tools can be as obscure as a great BBQ grill, an exciting electric scooter or the best guide to renting property in Bulgaria (!). If it's useful and well thought out, you'll find it here. Also, there's a link at the bottom of every article for you purchase, visit or otherwise experience the specific toll yourself.

To go to the Cool Tool site, click here.

And if you have any trees to plant, I have the shovel to do it right. Pretty cool.

Switch Modular Pocket Knife- the multitool with multi personalities.

I like multitools. I've owned at least five or six. As a television news photojournalist, I am forever fixing or tweaking tripods, live trucks, microphones, cameras, wireless transmitters and all of the ephemera I use for my day job. It seems that everything I use has itty-bitty screws or AA batteries stuck waaay in the bottom of some deep hole that requires my multitool to dig them out.

But, there's a problem with most multitools. I'm often assigned to news locations that don't allow knife blades- courtrooms, police stations, schools and the like- so I have to remember to leave the multitool in the car. If I don't, it becomes the property of the state for good (somewhere, there's a security guard making a fortune selling confiscated multitools on Ebay) .


I did find the solution eventually. The Switch Modular Pocket Knife doesn't have the most imaginative name, but it does have imaginative design. Think of a Swiss army knife- all in separate pieces. Look in the very organized box the SMPK comes in and you"ll see what I mean. 

See what I mean?
(source: ThinkGeek)

Now, pick the tweezers, magnifying glass, screwdriver, nail file, etc out of the box and attach them to the pocket holder. If you leave out the knife blade, then you now have something that can be carried into a courtroom or pass muster with the TSA at the airport (check the TSA site here to see what's allowed). The point is, you can install- or not- any of the tools that come with the kit. Once installed, they are secure as a bank vault until you decide to change them again. And again.



...or stuff it full.
(source: ThinkGeek)



Add just a few tools...
(source: ThinkGeek)





The good folks at ThinkGeek (yes, that's a store) have this gadget for you to purchase for the low, low price of $59.99- that's the same price of a quality multitool from the well known brands. ThinkGeek has other, hard-to-find stuff too, so look around while you're there for other gee-wizardry that will keep your inner geek happy. Click here to go to the ThinkGeek site.

Hey, I think I just double posted and you guys got two times the blogging goodness for the price of one.

You're welcome.

The Nissan Leaf reviewed. It drives like a car...and that's a very good thing.

Gas cars have been around almost 120 years. Others have tried steam engines, jet power and even a few abortive tries at electrical locomotion, but it seems that the good old standard combustion engine keeps chuggin' along, merrily carrying us all from point A to point B in relative comfort, safety and efficiency.

That's beginning to change. Slowly, the major car manufacturers are starting to introduce hybrids across their entire product line. The Toyota Prius and the Chevrolet Volt are two examples of the hybrid approach where electrical batteries are used in conjunction with small engine to extend the reach of the vehicle and achieve unheard of MPG of 50, 60 or even 70 MPG.


Would you even look twice at this car on your commute?
(source: Nissan)



Now, Nissan has leapfrogged the industry with the introduction of the Nissan Leaf all electric vehicle. That's right- no gas engine at all! No gas tank and no stopping at the pump for $4/gal. gas again.

Instead, the Leaf charges its batteries overnight or while you work and is good for about 85 miles on a full charge (IMO, I'd cut that by a third to account for real world driving conditions). But if you think about it, how much do you and I really drive most days? I'd say most of us go less than 50 miles a day and the Leaf seems an ideal vehicle for those folks.

 The Leaf still has full air conditioning, heating, power everything and a comfortable interior that gives up nothing to the gas guzzler next door. Nissan's official Leaf site can be found here and you'll be able to see what makes it so special. Technology is nice, but unless the public sees it as a legitimate replacement for fossil fuels, it may all be for naught.

This super high-tech interior looks pretty normal, doesn't it?
(source: Nissan)

Want to know what it's like to live with the Nissan Leaf? Our friends at Ubergizmo acutally ordered one and they can tell you what real life is like with the Leaf- the good, the bad and the shocking. Click here to go there now. Turns out, the Leaf drives pretty much like, well....a car.

And that's high praise. Cars like the Leaf will only find acceptance with US consumers when they don't have to give up the usual luxuries in order to get the efficiency. Nissan seems to be on to something here, but the ultimate test will be in the marketplace.

Check back with my grandson in 120 years and he'll be able to tell you if the Leaf and it's progeny made a go of it or not.

Five e-readers for under $175 reviewed.

My daughter recently graduated from high school. Her aunt gave her an Amazon Kindle as a present for all of her hard work. She loves it and reads it as much as possible. This points out just how popular e-readers like the Kindle have gotten over the past few years. With the ability to hold hundreds of books, newspapers and other publications as well as a battery life that can stretch for weeks, it's no wonder e-readers have become so popular.



Once you buy one, you may never get a paper book again.
(source: NPR.org)

 Now, there are many competitors to the Kindle that just might provide a strong experience for you and still keep you on your budget. The National Public Radio website has a review posted of five readers you can buy for less than $175. A couple of them you've probably heard of- the aforementioned Kindle and the Nook. The others have names that are probably strange to most of us (ever heard of Kobo? Me neither).

But the real surprise is the opinion of the author that the quality of these optional e-readers may not be all that bad. The technology has matured and the engineering required to produce a reader that provides a good reading experience.

Go the review here to see for yourself that the world of e-readers doesn't mean you have to buy only a Kindle or a Nook. Other competitors are out there to help you (and my daughter) enjoy reading just about anywhere, anytime.

And remember, you read it here first.

Starting a web Business? There's thousands of products at Alibaba.

Your path to wealth could start here (maybe).
(source: Alibaba)

Turn over just about any product and you're likely to see a "Made in China" label somewhere. Even the keyboard I'm typing this posting with was created in the Far East. However, most of these products are sold by Americans to Americans- but did you ever wonder just how did those Chinese made products make it to our shores?

One way is the website Alibaba.com. It claims to have more than 100,000 suppliers of nearly any kind of product from electronics to patio furniture, toys, clothing, motorcycles, leather products, lamps and nearly everything else you might possibly wish to buy and sell.



See? Anything!
(source: Alibaba)

 I can't vouch for the quality, but in most cases, it seems to be at least acceptable. Be warned, this is not a site for buying one of this or three of that. Minimum orders are required (remember, these folks are both the manufacturer and the wholesaler- they need to stay in business).  The coffee maker you see pictured here has a minimum order of 1088 pieces.

As a business person, it's up to you to make contact with the companies and arrange transport, payment and all of the other details required for transactions like this. Luckily, Aliabab also has an advice section and a member's forum (you don't have to join anything at all to read the forum) that discusses the ins and outs of the import/export business.

But, if you're willing to make some effort, invest some money and work with companies 10,000 miles away, you could be the nest Amazon.com or maybe you just might find a way to make a few extra bucks.

Alibaba will connect you with the manufacturer who is providing you with the widget you seek. Everything else that happens is between you and the factory. Remember, it's in the factory's best interest to provide you with a product you can sell in good conscience so you'll be a repeat customer.

To find Alibaba, click here and remember, you're ol' buddy the Tech Monkey gets 10% off!

I'm writing a new column!

As some of you may or may not know, I work in television news. I've been a news videographer for more than 20 years. Doing this job involves a lot of electronics and gadgets and that is probably where my love of gizmos comes from.

For much of that time, I was a chief photographer- a leader of a staff of video journmalists and expected to be the expert in all things video.

Well, there's a new website in town called the 247 newsroom. It's a website by and for video news professionals and the point is to share and help each other to be better at what we do. Anyone can visit, its free and you might get a bit insight into what goes on in the world of local TV news.

Go here to see it now.