maker

PSP does not pass Go

Links from Wednesday's episode of Loaded:

Sony has made its last PSP Go and shall make no more

T-Mobile launches an app that lets you make voice calls through Facebook

Facebook is expanding its social reporting system for users to report harassment

Microsoft offers up Office 365 as a public beta

Google opens Map Maker to Americans

AT&T closes shop on its local listing site, Buzz.com

A robot will throw the opening pitch at the Phillies game today

Goofy GIFs

It's hard not to prejudge a program called Glitter Frame GIF Maker. We had visions of a program that would likely only be appealing to a 10-year-old girl, and indeed, our prediction wasn't far off. That doesn't make it a bad choice, though--just a program with a limited audience.

The application's interface is plain and fairly easy to navigate. It comes loaded with 10 animated GIF frames, most of which include some combination of flowers, stars, hearts, and bubbles. To apply a frame to an image, simply load the photo you want to use, crop it … Read more

Bread maker leaves no holes

It is no mistake that bread comes in all shapes and sizes; it is meant to be enjoyed in so many different ways. And of course, there are the varieties: from sweet to sour, bread enjoys a diversity that can rival any other food. However, just because choices exist, it doesn't necessarily mean we take the time to explore these options. And when we do, sometimes the results weren't quite what we expected. One way to keep control over the ingredients from start to finish is to bake the desired loaf yourself.

The Breadman BK2000B Bakery Pro Bread Maker … Read more

Route 66: Build your own giant Blue Whale

CATOOSA, Okla.--There's a big Blue Whale in a small lake in Catoosa, Okla., on Route 66. It's an unexpected sight as you come over a rising bend in the road. I had heard there was a whale here, but the scale of the beast is enough to make Captain Ahab think twice about his life's mission. It's 80 feet long and 15 feet high.

Clearly, the Blue Whale didn't just wander inland from the ocean. Someone put it here. It's a maker project on a scale maker projects don't usually achieve. If Make Magazine had existed back in the '70s, the Blue Whale would have been a centerfold model.

In the spirit of DIY, I'm going to help makers prep their own whales. Here is your materials list:

2,650 feet of sucker rod 1,179 feet of 2-inch steel pipe 100 feet of 1-inch pipe 2,520 square feet of plaster lath 126 bags of concrete mix 19.5 square yards of Redi-Mix concrete 19,400 pounds of crushed stone 15 tons of sand 2,454 linear feet of wood 20 pounds of nails Assorted tubing and valves

If you can find a hardware store that hasn't changed prices since the '70s, the material costs should work out to less than $3,000. You will also need to find a friend willing to donate 100 hours of welding time. Assuming you want to follow the original build timeline, it will only take you two years of work to assemble your own Blue Whale. … Read more

Get Serif PagePlus X4 desktop-publishing suite for $9.99

This is an update of a post from a couple years back. Yes, years.

Whatever happened to desktop publishing software? A decade ago you had your pick of a dozen or more programs, but now the field is practically empty.

Granted, you can still buy Adobe PageMaker or QuarkXPress for a small fortune (they still run $499 and $799, respectively), but what if you just want a simple program for creating newsletters, brochures, flyers, and the like?

Enter Serif PagePlus X4, a terrific desktop-publishing application that's ideal for designing print and Web-based documents alike.

Today only, PricePlunge.com has … Read more

Entrepreneurs get hands-on with ideas at TechShop

Apple, Google, and HP are just a few of the companies hatched in small garages--innovators surrounded by tools and machines, bringing ideas to life. San Francisco's TechShop, which had its grand opening Saturday, is a community that wants to offer anyone the chance to be a big thinker, by providing a start-up environment equipped with just about any tool you can think of, along with training, expertise, and other resources. The massive DIY workshop occupies a 15,000-square-foot space in San Francisco's South of Market neighboorhood, and it's already a thriving community oozing with ideas. With staff … Read more

Hands-on with 10 3DS games and features

If you were following along with our live blog this morning, you know the big news: the Nintendo 3DS is coming March 27 for $250. But what about the games? A dozen or so titles were ready for some hands-on action this afternoon, and we got a chance to play the majority of them. Nintendo also showed us some of the built-in software that'll be on every 3DS, including the Mii Maker and AR Games.

The following titles will see launch-day or launch-window releases, between March 27 and E3 2011, according to Nintendo President Reggie Fils-Aime.

Mii Maker Miis are coming to the 3DS, and the Mii Maker app is preinstalled to allow for their creation. Better yet, the front-facing camera can be used in tandem to help make the process a bit more accurate. When we tried it out, the resulting Mii was a bit insulting, but after a few minor tweaks it actually did resemble our photo. Creating Miis from scratch is just like the Wii experience we're all used to.

AR Games AR Games (augmented reality games) will use a Nintendo playing card to manipulate the world through the 3DS' cameras. We had some time with a simple target-shooting game, and the effect is pretty impressive. Even better, the game requires the player to move around the virtual play space as well, adding a whole new dimension to the experience.

Steel Diver Once a tech demo, Steel Diver is getting the full game treatment at launch on the 3DS. Players control a submarine by using touch sliders that control height and acceleration. Torpedos can also be fired at oncoming obstacles, but the section of the game we played focused more on avoiding colliding with the ocean floor.

Kid Icarus Uprising After about 10 minutes with Kid Icarus Uprising--the very game Nintendo debuted the 3DS with at E3 2010--we're anticipating that the control scheme might be this title's biggest hurdle. We played two parts, one that felt like an on-rails shooter, the other a sort of modified third-person action segment.… Read more

The 404 705: Where Caroline McCarthy is starting The 406 Podcast (podcast)

Congratulations to Caroline McCarthy for completing last weekend's New York Marathon in four hours and six minutes! It's not only an impressive athletic feat for a first-time marathon runner, but a philanthropic one as well.

Caroline raced to benefit Camp Interactive, a program that introduces inner-city youth to technology through outdoor activities. Thanks to contributions from friends, family, and even some 404 listeners, Caroline was able to raise $5,431 for the cause.

Uncle Henry, aka Tapchus in the chat room, also joins us on today's episode with insights on how marathons have changed in the past 20 years. Henry's completed several of them himself, and even tells us about a bizarre race within the staircase at the Empire State building.

Henry ran back when Apple iPods, GPS tracking, automatic FourSquare check-ins, and wristwatch pedometers weren't around, so it's interesting to hear from Caroline and Henry on how running has changed with those inventions.

This year there was no shortage of runners wearing strange outfits for the marathon, and Caroline tells us that superheroes and animal costumes dominated the race this year.

Apparently there was even a guy who ran all five boroughs while juggling three balls--an achievement appropriately called "joggling."

There are also video voice mails today from two listeners: Lila recommends a pair of durable Sennheiser headphones, and Nate recalls a voice mail from two years ago that was featured on last weekend's 404 Throwback episode. Thanks for staying with us, Nate!

If you want to get in touch with the show, upload your video to YouTube and send a link to the404(at)cnet(dot)com. If you're camera shy, you can also leave a message on our voice mail box by calling 1-866-404-CNET as well.

Episode 705 Subscribe in iTunes audio | Suscribe to iTunes (video) | Subscribe in RSS Audio | Subscribe in RSS Video… Read more

Little fridge, big (and cold) feature

When it comes to kitchen appliances, bigger is not always better. What is always better--or best--is having the right appliance for not only the job, but for the space provided. While a refrigerator that features a cavernous capacity, complete with double doors and a rich feature set is surely nice for some, others may just want something that gets the job done in a small as space as possible. But back to those features: chances are some compromises will have to be made for those who consider smaller to be better. Unless an ice maker is on top of the … Read more