Author Archives: Stephen Hackett

The Ghost Blogging Platform

In a world where most smaller seem to run on WordPress, Squarespace or Tumblr, John O’Nolan is trying to launch a new blog platform and engine named Ghost. O’Nolan pitches Ghost as “just a blog platform” — not a full-blown CMS. It comes with a beautiful backend, responsive themes, Markdown support and loads of other goodies. You can support Ghost on Kickstarter, but…

Amazon Cloud Drive

Amazon Cloud Drive is a service from the Internet giant for storing photos in the cloud. With 5 GB of free storage (enough space to store up to 2,000 photos), Amazon makes it easy to upload and access your photos. You can get Amazon Cloud Drive Photos apps for iOS, Android and the desktop.

Xbox One

At at event today in Redmond, Microsoft unveiled the Xbox One, the company’s next-gen gaming console. The new system includes all-new innards, with deep integration with live TV, a more powerful LIVE system and a new Kinect sensor that includes very powerful voice controls. The controller is all new, too. The new console doesn’t have a release date or price yet, but…

The Mythical Man-Month

The Mythical Man-Month is the book when it comes to software project management. In its nearly 20 years in print, it has defined how good managers approach not only software development, but all sorts of projects. In fact, over 250,000 copies are in print. The 2nd Edition new material, including a retrospective, additional papers and more. You can pick up the paperback…

DODOnotes for iPhone

I keep a Field Notes notebook in my back right pocket at all times, with my iPhone 5 riding solo in my front left pocket. But what if I could combine these items? Enter DODOnotes. With 30 tear-off sheets of Mohawk Superfine paper nestled in US-made bookcloth fabric, the DODOnotes’ trick is right up front — where an iPhone-shaped tray and elastic…

Square Stand

Square is a great service that turns any iOS device into a cash register. Now, with the Square Stand, it makes using Square’s service in a store or shop look a lot more official. The stand secures the iPad in a sleek, white stand with an integrated card reader. The Stand can connect to a receipt printer, kitchen printer, cash drawer, and…

Mirrorless Mover 10 Camera Bag

The Mirrorless Mover 10 Camera Bag looks like a great bag if you’ve made the jump to Micro 4/3. This bag is built for the more compact systems, but includes space for an additional lens, cables and more. Best part? It’s just $45.

xMac mini Server

I’m a huge fan of the Mac mini as a server, and while there are some nice options for sticking the things in a server rack, the xMac mini Server by Sonnet is the most capable one I’ve seen. The $1300 1U enclosure has a built-in power supply and fan because it’s far more than a rack — it’s a complete system. It…

Olympus PEN E-P5

As soon as Shawn and I buy new cameras, Olympus goes and drops a beautiful rig for sale. The Olympus PEN E-P5 is the company’s new 16-megapixel Micro Four Thirds, stuffed in a case right out of 1963. It sports a five-axis stabilization system, with a Olmpus-first 1/8000th of a second shutter speed. The body will run you $999 and can be…

The ZenDock

While I’m a notebook user, at my desk, I use my MacBook Air with an external display, keyboard and mouse, speakers and more. The cable management is a mess. The ZenDock is a range of products designed for notebook users like me. The ZenDock Pro is designed for the MacBook Pro, while the ZenDock Retina supports the MacBook Pro with Retina display.…

Fujitsu ScanSnap S1300i

If you’re still looking for a scanner to go paperless with, be sure to add the Fujitsu ScanSnap S1300i Instant PDF Sheet-Fed Mobile Document Scanner to your list. The $260 desktop scanner boasts fairly impressive speeds — the company promises grayscale and monochrome scan speeds of up to 12 double-sided pages per minute. As opposed to my go-to scanner, the Doxie Go,…

Nerdy Tie Clips

Many nerds don’t have the freedom to wear their favorite Superhero t-shirt most days to work, but there are subtle ways to rebel. “TheLittleSaint” on Etsy has a collection of tie clips that really make me smile. There’s everything from Game of Thrones to Legend of Zelda available. via David Chartier

Feed Wrangler

With Google Reader being shuttered on July 1, many, many people are scrambling to find an alternative. Feed Wrangler is the most recent service to surface, and so far, its my favorite. The service is very basic at this point, but it imports from Google Reader easily and integrates with Pocket and Instapaper out of the box. My one complaint is that…

Instacast for Mac Beta

I listen to a lot of podcasts, but as my commute to work isn’t very long, I often find myself listening to shows at my desk. As I use Instacast 3 on my iPhone, listening at my desk involves headphones or hooking up my phone to my speakers. With the new beta of Instacast for Mac, I can pause my iPhone, and…

NES Console Apple TV Skin

The Apple TV is a staff favorite around here. The $99 box brings iTunes, Hulu, Netflix and more to your HD TV with ease and grace. But what if Apple’s little black box is too boring for you, this Etsy project is for you. The $10 skin slips on over the Apple TV, giving it a more retro look.

Acorn 4 for Mac

Today, app shop Flying Meat released Acorn 4, a Mountain Lion-only Mac image editing program that actually makes sense. Unlike Photoshop, which is so packed with features it can be hard to use, Acorn comes with the features real humans need. Version 4 includes non-destructive filters, curve control, Boolean shape operations and more, all in a UI that’s faster and cleaner than…

KeyBit: The MagSafe Adapter Key Ring

As someone who just switched to a new MacBook Air, I now own several of Apple’s MagSafe to MagSafe 2 Converters so all of my old power adaptors are still usable. While the converters are cheap to replace at $10, they are tiny and thus, easy to lose. The KeyBit Kickstarter project aims to make it harder to lose the little converter.…

Olympus E-PL5

The Olympus E-PL5 is perhaps the Micro Four Thirds camera to purchase. This particular example comes bundled with the M.Zuiko Digital 14-42mm f3.5-5.6 II R Lens, but the Panasonic LUMIX G 20mm f/1.7 aspherical pancake lens is a popular choice for many, as weird as prime lenses are. The 16 megapixel system records video in 1080i. The battery lasts ages and ages,…

Glowire for Tom Bihn’s Smart Alec

While my Smart Alec is a great backpack, its solid-black construction isn’t great for visibility when I’m on my bike. This problem is easily solved, however. Tom Bihn has a Glowire kit for sale for the bag now. It’s $18, and is available in green, yellow and aqua. The kit comes with a power pack (and two AA batteries!), and a 1.5…

Pick Punch

If music is supposed to make a statement, shouldn’t instruments have a voice, too? The $30 Pick Punch helps even your guitar picks pack a message. It can be used to create Standard 351 Shape guitar picks out of just about anything, including credit cards, IDs and even photos of past lovers.

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