Free Soft

To: Jason
From: Brian
Subject: Brando, King of Weird Gadgets
I can't believe I'm home, after being away for a month on that working trip. And yes, I am back in your hair. I've got some stories to tell, some gadgety, some not, but I only have one regret. On a side trip to HK to see my family, I tried to find the time to meet Brando, of weird gadgets fame, but we couldn't connect. I kept moving the time, and then he had to cancel and then he tried to undo the cancel, but it was too late. Maybe next time, but until then, I'm going to wonder what that guy is like in person. At least Elaine Chow and I got to finally meet and eat some noodles.

The site looks nice, and it's great to be around again during the day to cover you while you go get lunch, etc. But it is a lot harder to dig into the long term work while the news is buzzing about. Here are my favorite stories you and the gang found today:

•Sears Black Friday Ad Leaks, Full of HDTVs, Digital Cameras, and Other Gadgets
• Motorola's Aura Luxury Phone Given First Groping, General Thumbs-Up
• iPhone 3G Baseband Break-In, Unlock Closer

*with regards and thanks to Crecente and Ashcraft for letting me lift their night notes format.

Tagi: weird gadgets, iphe, sears, black friday ad, hdtvs, side trip, digital cameras, mth, jas, noodles, leaks, elaine, chow, hk, pers, fame, motorola, lunch

We just want to applaud Sears Holding for launching its "Heroes at Home" Wish Registry, a program that gives support to military service members, veterans and family members. Sears customers can use the Heroes at Home website to make donations and buy gift cards for the more than 20,000 registered servicemen and women, military family members and veterans. Donations can also be made at Sears Hometown Stores retail locations across the country. Donation methods include converting Citi Reward ...

Tagi: military family members, military service members, military families, sears, gift cards, wh, heroes, hometown

The days of waiting any amount of time to see what is new and hot from a trade show appear to be over. Today is the last day of the 2010 IBS show and already there are plenty of YouTube videos, twitter feeds (#ibs2010) and blog posts from the show. Of course there will be plenty more to come but this is a good start. We were going to attend but had to choose between this show and World of Concrete Feb. 2-5, which we will be attending in 12 days, stay tuned.

Wood Worker’s  Journal (YouTube) – One of our favorite woodworking personalities Chris Marshall, is currently on hand at the 2010 show and already has a dozen plus videos up on YouTube. Get more info and read recent blog posts from Chris Marshall.   

 Bob Villa, On The Level (Blog) – I’m sure Mr. Villa himself is held up in a Las Vegas hotel room tweeting and trying to knock these blog posts out each night after the show before making his way onto the strip for a little R&R… Ok maybe not but “On The Level” still offers a nice look at some of the new innovative consumer products from the show.

IBS2010 Video Booth (YouTube) – On the IBS2010 home page they have a link to YouTube (bottom of every page), apparently at the show they set up an almost live Video Booth where you can go in and talk about the show and be almost famous.

Sears Blue Crew (YouTube) – If you are interested in some of the new craftsman products these guys have several videos up already from the “Garage of Innovations” set up just outside the convention center. They also stopped by the Bosch Booth, Rockwell and a few others for a quick update on new products.  

These are just a few of the different online media sources for info from the 2010 International Builders Show and many more will be popping up over the next few days.  

    

Tagi: youtube videos, video booth, bob villa, almost famous, sears, media sources, vegas hotel, feb 2, chr, craftsman, rockwell, woodworking, amount of time, hotel room, bosch, ibs, few days, amp, nbsp, marshall

It's out in their shop and all boxed up, waiting to be sent out to one of you. To enter the contest, drop a comment on their post here - ToolSnob, telling what makes you so special and why you should be the one to win the tool. The winner will be decided by random drawing Friday, Feb 26th. Looks like a nice saw and at this point there are less than 50 comments. Since the reason why you should be selected has no outcome on if you are selected I would suggest being be creative; stories of dragons, wizards, aliens, Swedish bikini models, etc. would all be totally valid.

   

Tagi: bikini models, reas, craftsman, sears, aliens, drawing