The magic of Photoshop

The quintessential photo editing software is obviously Photoshop. It's so widely used that the name has morphed into a verb. Now one wonders whether a picture has been "photoshopped," or "'shopped.

Watch the time-lapse video below and see a demonstration of just how powerful this editing tool is when used with the proper skill.

Great Satan computer case mod

Guys have been modding their PC cases for years, turning them into exhibits of scenes from games or themes which bring to mind a certain related scenario. The MacQuarium is probably the first Macintosh mod ever done.

Check out this interesting step-by-step pictorial of one guy's idea of turning his PC case into a satanic cyber-chassis.

Step 1 - get a fake spinal column.

Wal-Mart dumps Linux

Wal-Mart will no longer offer Linux PCs at their stores. The open source (free) Linux operating sytem has been striving for a number of years to get onto the desktops. The OS is stable, versatile and free. Did I already say free? The Ubuntu distribution of the Linux OS is by far the most popular from what I can tell.

Why am I telling you all this? I was checkin' out MacDailyNews.com this morning and they did a little blurb on this. What made me decide to share it with you are the editor's comments to the article. Had to laugh out loud.

Wal-Mart pulls Linux PCs due to poor sales

"Computers that run the Linux operating system instead of Microsoft Corp.'s Windows didn't attract enough attention from Wal-Mart customers, and the chain has stopped selling them in stores, a spokeswoman said Monday," The Associated Press reports. "'This really wasn't what our customers were looking for,' said Wal-Mart Stores Inc. spokeswoman Melissa O'Brien."

MacDailyNews Take: Yeah. They were looking for Slim Jims, pro wrestling posters, 56x29 Faded Glory jeans, and beer helmets.

AP continues, "To test demand for systems with the open-source operating system, Wal-Mart stocked the $199 'Green gPC,' made by Everex of Taiwan, in about 600 stores starting late in October. Walmart.com, the chain's e-commerce site, had sold Linux-based computers before and will continue selling the gPC."

Double PWNage! Wal-Mart dumps Linux; MDN dumps on Wal-Mart. (The official store of Nascar.)

Computing - a look back at 1985

If you're as geeky as I am, then you'll enjoy these photos from Personal Computing magazine, July, 1985.

I remember those days; back when you bought ten, double-sided, double-density, 5.25-inch floppy disks for $16.

Look through the pictures and read some of the specs in the ads. It's a wonder how far we've come since then.

Check out the photos here.

(Funtasticus)

Computer sex

A he and a she iMac flat panel computers get it on.

It's a funny little stop-motion video with an old fashioned soundtrack and quite safe for work.

All the naughty bits are in your imagination.

(MissCellania)

Rare find of mint Apple //c computer

Dan Budiac fell into a sweet deal. A brand new Apple //c computer still in its original box, unopened after 24 years!

He landed this lovely luggable on eBay and won it with a bid of a little over $2500.

For anyone interested in the unboxing photos, check out his Flickr set right here.

Lotsa great photos.

(Gizmodo)

Steampunk laptop

Awesomely cool on so many levels, is this handcrafted steampunk laptop.

The machine is a fully functional unit that runs Windows and Ubuntu Linux.

It must have taken months for the artisan to create this wonder.

Very nice. Guaranteed to stimulate the imagination and wow onlookers.

Check out more pictures at the owner's site, right here.

SixPackMac - computer recommendations

Recently, a handsome and strapping (or voluptuous and bewitching) SixPackTech reader named Anonymous asked for my recommendation on the purchase of a new computer, even though it's known to all but the cranially deficient that SixPackTech is a "pro-Macintosh" site.

Well, Anon, (may I call you Anon?) I've read some of your poetry and other literary works and I must say that I'm honored that you asked me. I must say that you came to the right place. Here's where you will get the best advice based on the fact that I'm just like all of the other schlubs out there who can barely afford a case of beer before payday. Blue collar all the way.

First a little background on FCGrabo and his (I hate writing in the third person) my computer background and experience.

'82 to '92 - Apple IIe. President of the LaSalle Apple Users Group and SysOp of Atom's Apple BBS. (All now defunct due to a new term in the work force vernacular called "downsizing".)
'92 to '97 - The Dark Times - Windows 3.1, 3.11, Windows 95. I finally got so frustrated that I gutted my machine and set the bare chassis carcass out for the garbageman. I had enough dough saved up and I bought my first Mac in 1997.
'97 to this instant - All Mac. Lived and enjoyed life through a PowerMac 6500/250 (System 7.6), iMac G3, iMac G5, iBook, and now a Mac mini.

Recommendations start here:

If you absolutely HAVE to get a Windows box because your brother-in-law is pretty good at computers (he'll never have enough time for your impending problems) or because that's what you have at work then consider yourself the fool that Mr. T always pitied. If you buy a Windows box then, for the love of God, stick with XP. Forget Vista. On top of all the crapware that comes with a new machine may later come viruses, keylogger programs, malware and so on. You will have to buy anti-software to protect your investment. Right now, as I pound this out, there are no Mac viruses. Honest to Pete, since 1997, I have had no virus attacks and no need for anti-virus software protection. I will not argue with those who report phishing scams and other ploys that trick the Mac user into opening some malicious attachment via email. We should all know better. Never accept a hand-me-down Windows machine for free. There's a reason why the donor doesn't want it. If you wish for a truly enjoyable computing experience free from worry, then get a Mac.

Macs for under a grand:

I do my daily posting from the Mac mini and I love the machine. Nice and quick. Its small footprint fits in perfectly on my cramped desktop. Buy this if you're strapped for cash. You'll need to use your old monitor, keyboard (USB) and mouse (also USB) as the mini doesn't come with those. Apple has two models available. You can't go wrong with either of these Macs. This is the best bang for the buck. The entire Macintosh experience in a little tiny box.









Macs for over a grand:

The iMac is a desktop computer with a magnificent widescreen monitor. The graphics are awesome. If you want a computer for your desk then this is the one. Check out the photo for pricing and specs.










The Macbook is Apple's consumer version laptop. Once again, nice graphics, great keyboard and it will fit in nicely to any lifestyle. Add a coupla hundred for a black paint job. If you think you'd need a laptop, this is your pick. There will definitely be one in my immediate future.








Other recommendations:

Don't buy Apple memory. Stick with the smallest amount they offer when you configure your machine for purchase. Then buy your RAM upgrades from OWC or Crucial. You'll save tons o' cash. Memory is pretty cheap these days.

Hard drives... Apple supplies some pretty hefty drives but replace any standard drive of 80GB with a newer larger one. Then use the original drive as an external drive. Changing memory or hard drives is very easy in each of the models I've mentioned above. Certainly nothing for the average Joe to fear here. There are also some websites which have instructional photos or video to help allay any fears you may have.

Get a Mac with a Superdrive optical drive. The Super drive can burn DVDs. You'll be glad you did once you learn what the Mac can do with pictures and video using the included suite of "iApplications" that come with every Mac.

Buy a 3-button mouse (2 buttons and a scroll wheel). Place Apple's Mighty Mouse in a zip-lock bag and store it away for emergencies. A 3-button mouse makes it so much easier to get around and open and close apps and windows.

In conclusion:

You WILL enjoy your Mac. No tech-savviness involved. Whichever model best fits your lifestyle, there's a Mac for you. There are millions of Apple Faithful, as they're called, out in the world and any one of them would be glad to help a fellow Mac user in a time of need. Give yourself a half-hour to learn to negotiate around Mac OS X, and a week or sooner to get it all customized to your liking. Whether you are a new computer user or a Windows switcher, you will absolutely, positively love your Mac once you own one. And you will laugh to yourself when you overhear Windows user discussing their problems. (Cretins!)

Then gut your PC and set the chassis out for the hyenas.

Pimp my pointing device

Here's a great little time waster combining tech, graphics and automotive.

You're given a generic old 2-button mouse which you then select different accessories for. Add a blower or tank treads, dubs or monster wheels and select your graphics.

See ya back here soon. (Keep it short, ok?)

(Presurfer)

Turn your PC into a Mac

Windows users are stubborn die-hards that, for whatever reason, just don't seem to know when they've had enough.

There will probably be Windows users for quite some time to come but for those who don't want to or can't take the Mac plunge there are ways to make your PC look and feel pretty much like a Mac.

A couple of bucks and a few addons will do the trick quite nicely.

So when you finally DO buy a Mac, it'll be like visiting your old neighborhood again. But without the gangs and bullies.

Check out this pictorial on some great Windows to Mac alterations.

Apple iMac docking patent

Apple has recently patented a unique idea probably for docking a laptop (or ultra-thin?) notebook with a large iMac station.

Man, who thinks this stuff up. This would be so sweet.

Exact details are sparse and the ultimate end use of this product can only be imagined.




Check out this great rendering.

Click here for more info and drawings and pictures.

(Thanks to Gizmodo)

Is this the rumored Ultrathin MacBook?

This image (click for larger) was floated around numerous Mac-related sites yesterday. Looking at the general construction of the picture, it doesn't readily look like a Photoshop job.

Look at the laptop pictured on the right. Check out the size of the trackpad. Speculations have it that this has something to do with the "goodness of the touchscreen".

Look at the difference in thickness compared to the machine on the left. Much, much thinner.

What the specs of this machine could be, one can only speculate. The picture, fake or not, does, however, put my butt much closer to the edge of the seat in anticipation of MacWorld coming up during the week of Jan. 14.

Computer mod with an auto theme

How about this for creativity?

A computer housed in an 18" Porsche rim.

This project was commisioned by Nvidia and really hits the mark for most unusual PC design.

Check out more pics here.

(Autoblog)

The world's most beautiful super computer

The MareNostrum in Barcelona, Spain is the ninth largest in the world, but is the most beautiful.

It was installed in a former chapel and the juxtaposition of the old architecture with modern teraflops makes this machine a veritable beauty.

Check out this interesting pictorial.

Remembering the Commodore 64

Some of the Silicon Valley guys got together to reminisce about the early days of home computing and the C64. Those were the days when the Apple II and the C64 were prime competitors.

I recall those days as well, running a Bulletin Board Service called Atom's Apple BBS from my bedroom on an Apple II. I had to mod the speaker so the modem ring wouldn't wake me up in the middle of the night.

Back in Silicon Valley, Steve Wozniak and friends talked about those good ol' days written up in a short article here.

(MacUser)

Morph your old computer

Got an old PC and/or miscellaneous junk peripherals lying around? Turn them into art.

Step one: find a lot of time.

Step two: look at a few suggestions and pictures here to give you some ideas.

Step three: get crackin'.

Dawn of the computer age

Ah, yes... when digital was the new analog.

Back before the Apple II and the PC Jr., computers came into being obscurely from less than known sources. In the early 70s when data was stored on puched cards, it took huge machines to sort, collate and trend information.

Return to those thrilling days of yesteryear when the computer age reared its head wearing a very strange hairstlyle.

Clicketh hereth.

(Funtasticus)

Steven, the Dell Dude - where is he now?

You remember the "Dude, yer gettin' a Dell" guy from years ago. Well, today, just like Dell, Ben Curtis is just hanging in there slingin' tequilas at a bar.

Back in '03, Curtis got busted on a marijuana charge and it effectively ended his career as a character actor. Dell then stopped the "Dude" advertising campaign and went about more traditional ways of pushing their product.

Click here to get a little more info and also gander at Bens' latest photo taken at his place of employment.

(Engadget)

Mac or PC Rap video

Although I'm not a big fan of rap music or hip-hop, I am a tech weenie of the Macintosh genre. But, for all you young guys out there who dip into this "music" style from time to time, I'm presenting this Mac or PC rap video to satisfy all who think different.

In my opinion, the PC guy is especially cheesey. Slicked-down hair, ill fitting pants, you know the type. Probably a guy like that at your place of work.

Ten most evil computers

Crave has put together a list of top ten evilest computers on screen and elsewhere.

This is a nice compilation which includes pics, videos and text explanations. It's quite good, so don't get lost and wander off.

(Neatorama)