Source: http://www.beyondnapavalley.com/blog/the-top-10-wines-of-2010/
Thursday, May 31, 2012
The Top 10 Wines of 2010
I’m officially declaring 2010 the year of the rosé. Yes, I know that many wineries have been producing stellar rosés for years, but I felt that this year was the tipping point where the public started to get behind the … Continue reading
App Icon Sticky Notes Turn Your Whole World Into iOS [Office]
Skype 5.3 for Windows released, improves mobile video call quality
Beyond improved call quality, not much has changed. You can now see your friends' presence icons when contact cards are collapsed, and the topic editing button is now always visible on the conversation header. For a complete list of changes, hit up the Skype Garage blog.
Download Skype 5.3 for Windows
Skype 5.3 for Windows released, improves mobile video call quality originally appeared on Download Squad on Thu, 07 Apr 2011 12:17:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Julie’s Gadget Diary 05-28-12
I hope everyone is having a very relaxing and reflective Memorial Day. I am because I’m currently on vacation in Fennville, Michigan. We’re staying right on the lake in a log cabin. It’s gorgeous here, with perfect weather so far. I was very excited to go on this vacation because I haven’t been very far [...]
Source: http://the-gadgeteer.com/2012/05/28/julies-gadget-diary-05-28-12/
Cueboy Quest is an adorable 8-bit style physics game
You play an 8-bit cowboy whose goal on each level is to get to the door (and thus to the next level), but the door is often locked. To get it to open, you must shoot at one or more targets, and those targets aren't always in your line of sight. For example, on one level the the target is a balloon which is stuck all the way at the other end of the screen. You must first nudge it free, and then watch it float up and try to shoot it before it floats clear off the screen. Your bullets are chunky pixels that have some weight - the have arcing trajectories, so you don't always hit exactly where you aim.
There's another level where you must jump on the balloon as it floats up, use it as a platform to get to the other end of the screen, and then turn to shoot it very quickly before it flies away. Each level is very short, and most of them are quite easy. And not only are the graphics 8-bit blocky, but they're large too. Simply beautiful!
Cueboy Quest is an adorable 8-bit style physics game originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 22 Feb 2011 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Source: http://downloadsquad.switched.com/2011/02/22/cueboy-quest-is-an-adorable-8-bit-style-physics-game/
Most Ridiculous Foursquare Thing: Jewelry Made by Mapping Out Your Check-Ins [Foursquare]
Google Chrome and Chromium add protection against malicious downloads
Built upon the Safe Browsing API, the new feature introduces protection against malicious downloads. If a download link appears in the Safe Browsing blacklist, Chrome and Chromium will warn users against downloading -- a save button is still presented, of course, in case you're convinced a file is perfectly safe to download.
We'd like to see something a bit more eye-catching than the red warning icon -- like perhaps painting the entire bar red. Many of the people a feature like this aims to protect probably won't notice the icon or change in wording as they'll be focused on clicking the save button.
Google is initially making download protection available to Chrome dev channel users, and you'll likely see it in Canary and Chromium snapshot builds as well. After thorough testing, beta and stable users will be next in line.
Google Chrome and Chromium add protection against malicious downloads originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 05 Apr 2011 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
London Bridge Dons an LED Gown for Queen's Diamond Jubilee [Lighting]
Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/Rg9zto__pDs/
O'Reilly helps Japan, offers entire e-book catalog for 50% off, today only
O'reilly make some of the best computer books in the world. They also sell them as DRM-free e-books in a bunch of formats, including PDFs and Mobi for Kindle.
They usually offer one "Deal of the Day", which is a 50% discount code for a book chosen for that one day. But just for for today, they've created a discount code -- DDJPN -- that gives you a 50% discount on their entire catalog, and they give a part of the proceeds to aid Japan relief efforts.
So far they've raised over $60,000, and the day is still young. So if you've been recently hankering after some nerdy book (or three), now would be a great time to grab one.
They usually offer one "Deal of the Day", which is a 50% discount code for a book chosen for that one day. But just for for today, they've created a discount code -- DDJPN -- that gives you a 50% discount on their entire catalog, and they give a part of the proceeds to aid Japan relief efforts.
So far they've raised over $60,000, and the day is still young. So if you've been recently hankering after some nerdy book (or three), now would be a great time to grab one.
O'Reilly helps Japan, offers entire e-book catalog for 50% off, today only originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 22 Mar 2011 14:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Second-gen IOIO in the works: embraces the wireless revolution, cuts cost
Ytai Ben-Tsvi's IOIO board is quite the hit with the Android-hacking DIY crowd. But, that doesn't mean there isn't room for improvement on the $50 dev board. A second-gen version is in the works that adds the ability to connect to a computer as a USB device (not just as a host) or via Bluetooth, without the need for a intermediary controller like an Arduino. Perhaps most exciting for those interested in tinkering with DIY Android phone accessories, is the plan to cut the price of the new IOIO. How much less the next version will cost isn't clear yet, but even just $5 could make a major difference. For more details check out Ytai's blog post at the source link.
Second-gen IOIO in the works: embraces the wireless revolution, cuts cost originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 30 May 2012 17:55:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Ytai Ben-Tsvi | Email this | CommentsSource: http://www.engadget.com/2012/05/30/second-gen-ioio-in-the-works/
Windows 8 Explorer to feature Ribbon UI, SkyDrive and Mesh integration?
The Ribbon, like in Microsoft Word and Excel, is context-aware, adding tabs for specific tasks which apply to the folder you're viewing -- such as library or picture management. You can also make out two new buttons in the status bar, which allow you to change the current folder's view style.
It's clear from all the placeholder images and repeated elements that this is very much a work in progress, but featuring the Ribbon more prominently in Windows 8 would certainly be a logical progression for Microsoft. It's slowly become more ubiquitous, moving beyond Office and into Wordpad, Paint, and several of the Windows Live Essentials applications.
There's more to the screenshots than the Ribbon UI, however. Our friend Long Zheng has noted two interesting elements in the images: Web sharing and sync (image after the break). That would likely mean users will be able to quickly upload files to SkyDrive and synchronize using Live Mesh right from Explorer in Windows 8. That's not a total surprise considering many of the earliest leaked images of Windows 8 showed Windows Live integration on the desktop.
Continue reading Windows 8 Explorer to feature Ribbon UI, SkyDrive and Mesh integration?
Windows 8 Explorer to feature Ribbon UI, SkyDrive and Mesh integration? originally appeared on Download Squad on Sun, 03 Apr 2011 08:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Go for a swim, take along your water-resistant Xperia go
Sony's just announced one of their newest phones, the Xperia go, for the active and rugged Android user who still wants a sleek, top-notch device. You can expect all of the good stuff we've grown used to from Sony's products, like their Reality Displays that use the mobile BRAVIA engine to keep things looking great and a "fast capture camera" that can go from sleep to snap in just over a second.
It looks like an exciting phone, to be sure, and for all the deets, the full presser is after the break.
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Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/androidcentral/~3/3Vexa90dOeU/story01.htm
Wednesday, May 30, 2012
On Being an Enthusiast and Sharing Useful Information
An excellent blog post popped up in my Flipboard Google Reader feed this morning. It has nothing to do with wine but it was useful, interesting and made me think a lot about the things I write about here on this blog.
The post is about procuring new wheels and tires for a BMW by Chris Parente. The steps Chris went though researching, ordering, tracking, negotiating, receiving and assembling the order were very familiar to me. They're eerily similar to what we go through as wine deal hounds.
With the exception of installation, I do all of these things when I'm buying wine. Sure, there's the occasional impulse buy at a local wine shop or grocery store, but the bulk of my buying these days is online, in response to email offers, or winery direct. Like Chris with his interest in specific wheels and tires, once you've gone Wine Berserkers you want very specific wines.
What I liked about the post is that he gave specific examples of resources he used and how he went about the process. I can see my way to leveraging his techniques and having a more enjoyable experience by getting better products and service at the best possible prices. Coincidentally, if I had once sentence to describe the mission of this blog that would be it.
What got me thinking the most about his post, though, is the question of whether it's worth it. Or rather, whether I'm interested in getting into another high involvement hobby. You can tell how much time and research went into tires and wheels for one of his cars - imagine extending that across the entire enthusiast experience. You've got to want it and it's got to be a priority to do it well.
I spend hours each week thinking about wine. Reading articles, blogs, consulting and contributing to CellarTracker, looking for deals on wine-searcher.com. Buying it, drinking it, visiting wineries, attending events - writing about it.
When I need new tires or wheels I just got down to DirectTire and they take care of it. Similarly when I needed a new bike for our 7 year old recently. We just went to a couple shops nearby and bought what seemed to be a good fit for our needs. And maybe that's fine for the occasional purchase. Spend the time saved burning up the web for the best deal on healthier pursuits. Life in balance, right?
But I wouldn't mind being more savvy in more domains. And that's why I enjoy acquiring and sharing knowledge via blogs and social networks. Mainstream publications just don't cover this stuff in a way that's as focused on the consumer experience.
You can't go too deep into too many hobbies. But you can learn a little from someone who's deep in a topic and can share useful information. Chris does that and reading his post reminded me to try to do a little more of that here on this blog.
Check it his blog here: Work, Wine and Wheels
You can follow Chris on Twitter: @cparente
I'd love it if you SUBSCRIBED to The Wellesley Wine Press
PS This post was written on an iPad with Blogsy.
The post is about procuring new wheels and tires for a BMW by Chris Parente. The steps Chris went though researching, ordering, tracking, negotiating, receiving and assembling the order were very familiar to me. They're eerily similar to what we go through as wine deal hounds.
With the exception of installation, I do all of these things when I'm buying wine. Sure, there's the occasional impulse buy at a local wine shop or grocery store, but the bulk of my buying these days is online, in response to email offers, or winery direct. Like Chris with his interest in specific wheels and tires, once you've gone Wine Berserkers you want very specific wines.
What I liked about the post is that he gave specific examples of resources he used and how he went about the process. I can see my way to leveraging his techniques and having a more enjoyable experience by getting better products and service at the best possible prices. Coincidentally, if I had once sentence to describe the mission of this blog that would be it.
What got me thinking the most about his post, though, is the question of whether it's worth it. Or rather, whether I'm interested in getting into another high involvement hobby. You can tell how much time and research went into tires and wheels for one of his cars - imagine extending that across the entire enthusiast experience. You've got to want it and it's got to be a priority to do it well.
I spend hours each week thinking about wine. Reading articles, blogs, consulting and contributing to CellarTracker, looking for deals on wine-searcher.com. Buying it, drinking it, visiting wineries, attending events - writing about it.
When I need new tires or wheels I just got down to DirectTire and they take care of it. Similarly when I needed a new bike for our 7 year old recently. We just went to a couple shops nearby and bought what seemed to be a good fit for our needs. And maybe that's fine for the occasional purchase. Spend the time saved burning up the web for the best deal on healthier pursuits. Life in balance, right?
But I wouldn't mind being more savvy in more domains. And that's why I enjoy acquiring and sharing knowledge via blogs and social networks. Mainstream publications just don't cover this stuff in a way that's as focused on the consumer experience.
You can't go too deep into too many hobbies. But you can learn a little from someone who's deep in a topic and can share useful information. Chris does that and reading his post reminded me to try to do a little more of that here on this blog.
Check it his blog here: Work, Wine and Wheels
You can follow Chris on Twitter: @cparente
I'd love it if you SUBSCRIBED to The Wellesley Wine Press
PS This post was written on an iPad with Blogsy.
How to Turn Any Wheelchair Into an Electric Scooter [Wish You Were Here]
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