I am writing today to announce the closure of the New Mexico Independent. After three and a half years of operation in New Mexico, the board of the American Independent News Network, has decided to shift publication of its news…
While environmental activists played their part yesterday during demonstrations at the capitol building, going so far as to dress up as solar panels and to sing the tune of “You Are My Sunshine,” their counterparts, the anti-cap-and-trade contingency who has…
Roughly one quarter of University of New Mexico students are unimpressed with the state’s flagship public school, according to a survey that questioned college students about their higher education experiences.
The New York Times’ technology columnist came out with his list of the “best tech ideas of 2008.”
In his fourth annual Pogie Awards, David Pogue listed some cool tech ideas from this year — not necessarily the best products. “In fact,” Pogue writes, “sometimes they’re terrific ideas wasted on dumb products.” So what are these great tech ideas?
The first idea on the list of the awards is something timely for the Christmas season — “frustration-free packaging” from Amazon.
You know how so many products come in clear hard plastic packages, impossible to open without a flamethrower and the Jaws of Life? Everybody complains about them, but nobody does anything about it.
Until now. Amazon.com figured: “Hold on a sec — those are anti-shoplifting packages. But we don’t have a shoplifting problem — we’re mail order!”
The annual Christmas tradition of searching for a hacksaw to open up the plastic packaging may soon be a thing of the past. Unless you buy that iPod at Best Buy. Pogue does note, however, that the frustration-free packaging is only on a small number of products currently. But that could change by the time Santa Claus comes to your house in 2009.
Another one is timely for iPhone owners who live in cold climes. The Freehands gloves solve the problem of texting with gloves on — by a flip-back tip on the thumb and index finger that allows you to text or send that e-mail from your BlackBerry with ease.
Or as Pogue writes, “Tap away, get your text message out, then flip the tips back on before you get BlackBerry frostbite.”
And to charge those BlackBerries and iPhones, Pogue cites the mini-USB charging jacks that now can be used to charge your portable device from your computer. My BlackBerry is charging via one right now. “It’s the dawn of the universal, fully interchangeable power cord,” Pogue declares.
A pretty good year for technology ideas if Pogue’s list is any indication.
