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Perler bead crafting evolves
This question mark block has extended its form into the fabled third dimension! This mysterious realm of depth is unexplored by either 8-bit explorers or Perler bead artists. This bold scientific discovery promises to usher a new age for Super Mario Bros. crafts!Shown above, an artifact from the third dimension, looking very much like one of our own question mark blocks, but somehow composed of many two-dimensional blocks working in tandem to form a strange array of squares. These squares exist simultaneously in the normal two dimensions and in the newly-discovered third! This is a hypersquare.[Via Wonderland]
UK effectively blocking stolen phones
What good is a stolen phone that's been blacklisted from networks, and the nefarious individuals formerly responsible for flashing them back into use have been scared off by the threat of five years' jail time? Not much good at all, we say, and a new study suggests that the UK's new laws fighting phone theft may be extraordinarily effective. On request from the government, the country's big five operators have started blocking stolen phones -- often within hours, and a full 80 percent within two days. Add in the fact that a new law taking effect this week makes handset reprogramming (to circumvent blacklisting) punishable by five years in the pokey and limitless fines, and we suspect a lot of these small-time criminals are going to be looking for new lines of work.
Carriers gang up on FreeConference
Mobile carriers blocking numbers -- or entire ranges of numbers, for that matter -- isn't entirely unheard of; 900 and 976 numbers are frequently locked down, for example. Blocking legitimate services running on standard toll numbers is another matter entirely, though, and that seems to be what's happening here. FreeConference, which offers, well... free teleconferencing services by dialing into standard long distance numbers (as its name suggests) has had several of its lines locked out by AT&T, Sprint, and Qwest starting this month. At issue is the reason behind the sudden could shoulder, a reason disputed by FreeConference and the carriers. While FreeConference claims that the carriers are simply forcing users into using their own (more expensive) conferencing services, a more plausible (and slightly less blatantly illegal) explanation is that carriers are getting billed through the nose for termination fees stemming from FreeConference's non-toll-free numbers. Either way, it's uncool, and we're thinking it might be a good enough reason for frequent users to ultimately end up switching carriers.[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Desktop Digital Photo Cube shows photos on diminutive LCD
Here's one from the same folks who brought you the USB Sound Flash Drive, and while eNECESSITIES' Desktop Digital Photo Cube may not adorn your wall as fashionably as a digiframe might, this piece is made for conversation. Ready to perch atop your living room table or office desk, the cube sports a squint-inducing 1- x 1-inch color LCD display, power / brightness / skip buttons, USB 2.0 connectivity, and the ability to internally store "up to 30 digital photos" for cycling through on the built-in screen. Additionally, the "mood light" should set the tone for the upcoming photo, and those looking for the ultimate party favor can toss their own logo on here for an additional charge. Unfortunately, we're not quite sure just how this snapshot showin' block gets its juice, but those looking to snag 25 or more (sorry, non-bulk customers) can find out for themselves at $51.34 a pop.[Via Everything USB]
German robotics group crafts LEGO factory to build... LEGO cars
It's one thing to craft something remarkable all by your lonesome, but constructing an entire factory to handle all the dirty work for you is really doing something. A robotics group assembled (ahem) at a German "grammar school" (VHG) in lower Bavaria has fabricated a feat that even Toys R Us would marvel over, as the group's expansive LEGO Mindstorm factory was built entirely out of LEGO blocks, and moreover, programmed to assemble LEGO-based vehicles. Taking a note from every other major assembly plant in the world, this automated construction site feeds blocks from one end to the other, carefully pushing, pulling, and connecting pieces as necessary to completely assemble a LEGO car. While we've no idea how you'd even begin concocting this same masterpiece at your own domicile, nor how tough it is to be admitted into this apparently incredulous university, you'll reportedly need at least 2,000 man hours and €3,000 ($3,937) just to get started, but feel free to click on through for a lengthy video demonstration.[Via MetaFilter]
London theatergoers: "Jam our phones"
Losing reception can be a downright nerve-wracking experience for some of us, but if there's one place no one wants to hear a ring -- much less take a call -- we have to believe it's in live theater. It really comes as no surprise then that a recent poll conducted among theatergoers in London suggests that a full 72 percent would like to see jamming equipment installed to prevent calls from interrupting performances (if anything, we're surprised it's not higher). For the record, said equipment is currently illegal in the UK, but support is growing to legalize it for these kinds of environments. If it can all go down without jeopardizing legit signals, we suspect they'd find support for similar measures virtually everywhere in the world.[Via Techdirt]
T-Mobile: no MinuteWatching for you
If you're a wireless customer, it goes without saying that being able to micromanage your usage is a great thing. It also goes without saying that if you're a wireless carrier, it's not. As many of us have found out the hard way, it doesn't take much overage to double your bill, and carriers rely on that exactly that kind of carelessness to make some extra coin month to month. We told you about MinuteWatcher not long ago, a nifty free service for keeping an eye on your calling and predict future usage based on trending, and apparently T-Mobile doesn't think much of it; in fact, besides blocking MinuteWatcher's servers, they've gone ahead and amended their terms of service to specifically prohibit such services. For a company typically known for showing its customers much love, T-Mobile's move doesn't show a lot of tact -- but then again, nothing speaks louder than the almighty overage minute.
Opera 9 goes Universal
Opera, the little browser that could (and did - go free, that is), has finished its beta and reached version 9, going Universal in the process. New features include: a built-in BitTorrent client adding your favorite search engines to Opera's search bar simply by right-clicking them site-specific preferences for cookies, pop-ups, etc. thumbnail previews of tabs when hovering over them widgets (hey, at least they didn't call 'em 'gadgets') customizable content blocker and more This version definitely seems snappier now that it's Universal, and (say what you have to) these new enhancements like a built-in BitTorrent client show that Opera is blazing a trail faster than its competition. Give this version a whirl if you haven't touched Opera in a while but are still curious about it. If you need help with a browser transition, why not check out some of the del.icio.us tools (like my personal favorite: Delibar) we've blogged that take the 'bookmarks bar' out of the browser and into Mac OS X's menubar, removing the need for worrying about which browser you're using.
