Total Depravity » Technology

iParent: Readymech

Jared — Fri, 30 Mar 2007 13:28:42 +0000

Any kid knows that defending a fort without reinforcements is just asking for an ambush. Be prepared (and foster your child’s love for double-sided tape) with a Readymech—paradoxically adorable—monster army!

‘Readymechs are free, flatpack toys for you to print and build. They are designed to fit on an 8.5″x11″ page and printed with any printer. You’ll need double-sided tape, thick matte paper, and 10-15 minutes for build time.’

Readymech

And if these troops should succumb to a family cat or large glass of water, Paper Robots are there to pick up the slack. Nothing beats Optimus Prime^*. Nothing.

(Thanks, Life hacker!)

^* Yes, this paper Optimus Prime actually turns into a truck!

Color Wonder on Canvas

Jared — Mon, 26 Mar 2007 13:05:17 +0000

The St. Louis Art Museum reserves one wall in its Modern Art gallery for local artists. I’m no Annie Leibovitz, but I’m certainly flattered by the honor.

(Thanks, Photojojo!)

iParent: Return if Found

Jared — Fri, 23 Mar 2007 16:18:15 +0000

Last fall, Daily Cup of Tech unveiled a small application for a USB drive to help recover the drive if it’s ever lost. When the drive is plugged in, the ‘Help! I’m Lost!’ application appears with the contact information of the owner, and a plea for the drive to be returned.

DCoT reader (and parent) Erik wondered if Lost Drive could work for a USB drive, why not something larger…like his children?

‘…My family, which includes two VERY energetic boys, five and three, went to Disneyland for a little get-a-way. Before we went I told my wife about the ‘I’m Lost’ program that one can install on a jump drive.

We decided to buy three 32Mb drives, which are a dime a dozen nowadays, one for each boy and one for us with the same program and ‘secret phrase’ on it. We also included our cellphone numbers. Two lanyards with dangling USB drives that had a ‘I’m Lost’ label adhered to them and tucked into their shirts later, we had two boys that if got lost would be found and be reunited with us quickly.

We told the boys to cry for mom or dad if they wander off or got lost and then give the USB drive to the person that found them.’

Read more →
Daily Cup of Tech

Guess what? One boy became lost. Know what else? Disneyland security plugged the drive into their computer, and called his parents. He was lost for 13 minutes.

Good. Idea. Right now, Office Depot has a 512MB drive for $8.

(Thanks, Lifehacker!)

iParent: Learn CPR

Jared — Mon, 05 Feb 2007 18:15:27 +0000

If you need a refresher course for CPR, the University of Washington School of Medicine has a site with information guides and video demonstrations for CPR and choking first aid. All ages are covered, from infants to adults. There’s also an FAQ about choking and CPR.

The first (and last) adult CPR class I took was in high school, and since then the American Heart Association now teaches thirty chest compressions, instead of five. The same goes for children.

There’s a lot of good information here, but it’s obviously no substitution for licensed instruction. Visit the AHA to find a CPR class in your area.

(Thanks, Lifehacker!)