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Merry Miller is the Senior Programming Director for The Learning Annex in New York, USA. She was named as one of the 40 "rising stars" in 2007 by Crain's magazine and is a former Miss Dallas. But that's where this "rising star" starts to fade.

In late July of 2007, Merry conducted a poorly done interview with Holly Hunter on ABC News Now's segment "What's The Buzz." Since its broadcast, the disastrous interview has been heavily viewed on YouTube [link] and other online video sites.

Not only were the interview questions awful, but for some reason Merry decides to phonetically read off the teleprompter - like a child. She also gives the wrong month for Holly Hunter's show premiere (June instead of July) and accidentally encourages viewers to go to nbcnews.com not ABC News.com.



Merry Miller, welcome to the TV Disaster Hall of Fame! I'm sure NBC loved the plug.

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Labels: video

Have you heard about the YouTube clip called "Daft Hands" yet? It's single-shot music video set to the the Daft Punk song "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger." One camera. One shot. Two hands. Doesn't really sound that exciting does it? Trust me, it's worth watching. The beginning is dull. Just hang in there until the lyrics start. "Daft Hands" was featured in the Best of YouTube Video Podcast yesterday and, as of this morning, had over a million views on YouTube.




Check out this tutorial if you want to learn how to save this YouTube clip onto your hard drive: How To Copy Videos Off YouTube

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Labels: video

Have you heard about the YouTube clip called "Daft Hands" yet? It's single-shot music video set to the the Daft Punk song "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger." One camera. One shot. Two hands. Doesn't really sound that exciting does it? Trust me, it's worth watching. The beginning is dull. Just hang in there until the lyrics start. "Daft Hands" was featured in the Best of YouTube Video Podcast yesterday and, as of this morning, had over a million views on YouTube.




Check out this tutorial if you want to learn how to save this YouTube clip onto your hard drive: How To Copy Videos Off YouTube

methodshop.com

Labels: video

Did Microsoft steal Apple's Universal logo? Now, granted it's just a yin yang symbol, but M$ just flipped the image horizontally. They even used the exact same colors. WTF?!



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Labels: apple

Can you stomach Ugly Betty in high-def? I'm not sure seeing individual drops of saliva dribbling off Ugly Betty's braces justifies the cost of an HDTV. But if your computer has a decent video card , then you can watch HD quality shows at ABC.com. The network is experimenting with HD streaming video using the new Move Networks video player.


Right now the HD streaming video is still in beta, but at least ABC is paving the way for HD video online. In the meantime, I'm still waiting for the major networks to upgrade their podcasts from 320x240 to HD for my Apple TV. The small iPod quality video doesn't really hold up on a giant LCD flat screen. Once you blow up a tiny iPod podcast to a HD flat screen, people's pixelated faces look like a cheesy Max Headroom special effect.

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Labels: TV

Linux users are so creative... and cheap. Sometimes their love for free open source software takes hold in other ways. For example, check out this picture of a custom Linux box I found on afrotechmods.com.



Ubuntu Feisty OS: $0.00. Cardboard box: $0.00. Duct tape: $1.00.

Having the bitchin'est case mod this side of the trailer park: priceless.


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Labels: geek

Linux users are so creative... and cheap. Sometimes their love for free open source software takes hold in other ways. For example, check out this picture of a custom Linux box I found on afrotechmods.com.



Ubuntu Feisty OS: $0.00. Cardboard box: $0.00. Duct tape: $1.00.

Having the bitchin'est case mod this side of the trailer park: priceless.


BeSocial: digg it | flickr | methodshop

Labels: geek

Like to see how websites rate against each other while you browse the Internet?

Alexa, a subsidiary of Amazon.com, has been providing information on web traffic since 1996. Once you install the Alexa Toolbar, you can then view traffic trends, reach and rank, of any site you visit on the Internet. The toolbar then feeds traffic data of the sites you visit back to Alexa. There are billions of people on the Internet and only a minor portion of them have the Alexa Toolbar. This population provides a "sample" of users that Alexa uses to measure web activity and page popularity.

But their toolbar has only been available for PC users with Internet Explorer. For example, here's the MethodShop.com Alexa Internet Explorer PC only toolbar. Macintosh and PC users with Firefox have been left out of the Alexa sample... until now. An Alexa toolbar called “Sparky” for Firefox was finally released last week.



Why should you care about the Alexa Toolbar? Most people don't. But if you want to support your favorite websites, then you might want Alexa to track what sites you visit. Many webmasters use Alexa ranking to set advertising rates.

If you are interested, you can get the Alexa Sparky Toolbar for Firefox here.

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Labels: tech news

Like to see how websites rate against each other while you browse the Internet?

Alexa, a subsidiary of Amazon.com, has been providing information on web traffic since 1996. Once you install the Alexa Toolbar, you can then view traffic trends, reach and rank, of any site you visit on the Internet. The toolbar then feeds traffic data of the sites you visit back to Alexa. There are billions of people on the Internet and only a minor portion of them have the Alexa Toolbar. This population provides a "sample" of users that Alexa uses to measure web activity and page popularity.

But their toolbar has only been available for PC users with Internet Explorer. Macintosh and PC users with Firefox have been left out of the Alexa sample... until now. An Alexa toolbar called “Sparky” for Firefox was finally released last week. For example, here's the MethodShop.com Alexa toolbar.



Why should you care about the Alexa Toolbar? Most people don't. But if you want to support your favorite websites, then you might want Alexa to track what sites you visit. Many webmasters use Alexa ranking to set advertising rates. But on the other hand some people consider it to be spyware.

If you are interested, you can get the Alexa Sparky Toolbar for Firefox here.

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Labels: internet

The iPhone may be Apple's first "official" phone, but apparently they toyed with the idea 25 years ago. Way back in 1983, designer Hartmut Esslinger, the same guy who made the Apple IIc computer, came up with this phone/tablet prototype.


Writing an electronic check with the 1983 iPhone.

The 1983 version of the iPhone obviously never made it into production, but it's still a cool concept. Although writing a physical electronic check seems a little silly now that we have online banking. The image is from fudder.de.

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Labels: apple

The iPhone may be Apple's first "official" phone, but apparently they toyed with the idea 25 years ago. Way back in 1983, designer Hartmut Esslinger, the same guy who made the Apple IIc computer, came up with this phone/tablet prototype.


Writing an electronic check with the 1983 iPhone.

The 1983 version of the iPhone obviously never made it into production, but it's still a cool concept. Although writing a physical electronic check seems a little silly now that we have online banking. The image is from fudder.de.

BeSocial: digg story | methodshop

Labels: iphone

Unfortunately Silverchair has postponed 4 California shows on their current U.S. Tour to allow singer, Daniel Johns to recover fully from a case of laryngitis. Daniel caught the viral throat infection earlier this week after flying from Sydney/Los Angeles/Toronto/New York/Los Angeles in just four days. As you might have heard, the laryngitis severely impeded Daniel's vocal performance on the "Tonight Show With Jay Leno" last Tuesday. If you haven't seen the video yet, here's a clip of the Leno performance I found on YouTube. It's tough to watch, especially if you've ever had laryngitis before. Daniel basically had to scream through the most of the song. When the camera zooms in on Daniel's face you can clearly see he looks like he's in pain.



While his Doctor had initially been hopeful that Daniel's laryngitis would clear up "in a day or two", he has since advised that the Silverchair frontman should "avoid singing for 4 to 6 days" in order to be guaranteed of making a full recovery. The Doctor also advised that singing during this time could risk permanent damage to Daniel's voice so the band has no choice but to reschedule the 4 California shows and to apologize to the fans who will be inconvenienced by this change.

Dates for the rest of Silverchair's Young Modern World Tour are not expected to be affected in any way by this temporary throat infection.

MethodShop.com recently did an interview with Silverchair. They were very excited about this new album and really looking forward to touring the U.S. again. I hope Daniel's laryngitis doesn't derail the tour too badly. They've had everything from an eating disorder to reactive arthritis screw up their previous tours.

Silverchair's new album, Young Modern, comes out July 24th.

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Labels: music

Unfortunately Silverchair has postponed 4 California shows on their current U.S. Tour to allow singer, Daniel Johns to recover fully from a case of laryngitis. Daniel caught the viral throat infection earlier this week after flying from Sydney/Los Angeles/Toronto/New York/Los Angeles in just four days. As you might have heard, the laryngitis severely impeded Daniel's vocal performance on the "Tonight Show With Jay Leno" last Tuesday. If you haven't seen the video yet, here's a clip of the Leno performance I found on YouTube. It's tough to watch, especially if you've ever had laryngitis before. Daniel basically had to scream through the most of the song. When the camera zooms in on Daniel's face you can clearly see he looks like he's in pain.



While his Doctor had initially been hopeful that Daniel's laryngitis would clear up "in a day or two", he has since advised that the Silverchair frontman should "avoid singing for 4 to 6 days" in order to be guaranteed of making a full recovery. The Doctor also advised that singing during this time could risk permanent damage to Daniel's voice so the band has no choice but to reschedule the 4 California shows and to apologize to the fans who will be inconvenienced by this change.

Dates for the rest of Silverchair's Young Modern World Tour are not expected to be affected in any way by this temporary throat infection.

MethodShop.com recently did an interview with Silverchair. They were very excited about this new album and really looking forward to touring the U.S. again. I hope Daniel's laryngitis doesn't derail the tour too badly. They've had everything from an eating disorder to reactive arthritis screw up their previous tours.

Silverchair's new album, Young Modern, comes out July 24th.

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Labels: music

Not only did Nirvana's 1991 album Nevermind knock Michael Jackson off the charts and end the reign of hair metal, but it also made an image of a little naked baby swimming after a dollar bill famous.

Who was that naked baby? His name is Spencer Eden and he just turned 17 this year. Feeling old yet? I am. The majority of Nirvana fans are now officially 30+.


I wonder if Spencer realizes that more people have seen his penis than Ron Jeremy's?

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Labels: music

Not only did Nirvana's 1991 album Nevermind knock Michael Jackson off the charts and end the reign of hair metal, but it also made an image of a little naked baby swimming after a dollar bill famous.

Who was that naked baby? His name is Spencer Eden and he just turned 17 this year. Feeling old yet? I am. The majority of Nirvana fans are now officially 30+.


I wonder if Spencer realizes that more people have seen his penis than Ron Jeremy's?

BeSocial: digg story | flickr | methodshop

Labels: music

A new episode of the famous "Human Tetris" Japanese game show, in which contestants try to squeeze their bodies through oddly-shaped holes in an oncoming wall, or fall into a pit of water.



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Labels: video

Apparently JK Rowling and Warner Brothers have a Money Printing Spell. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" whisked its way to No. 1 at movie box offices with weekend ticket sales of $77.4 million and a five-day total of just over $140 million, according to studio estimates on Sunday.



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Labels: movies

When someone mentions the band Silverchair, your first thought or memory will vary depending on where you're from. People in the U.S. and Europe may only remember Silverchair as a few kids who skyrocketed to stardom in 1994 after their first album, Frogstomp. Thanks to such hit songs as "Tomorrow" and "Israel's Son," the Australian trio, consisting of singer/guitarist/songwriter Daniel Johns, drummer Ben Gillies and bass player Chris Joannou, became international superstars when they were only fifteen years old.

Since 1994, the last decade has been a mix of trying tests and triumphs for Silverchair. Battles with extreme fame at an early age, an eating disorder, and a case of reactive arthritis kept the band mostly grounded in their home continent Australia. But despite these setbacks, Silverchair managed to pass the time by repeatedly making hit records and racking up more #1 albums than any other Aussie band including AC/DC, Midnight Oil and INXS.


Silverchair's latest album, Young Modern, is their first new record in 6 years, and the tour supporting it will be their first U.S. tour in over a decade. Even though Silverchair was in the middle of launching their U.S. tour, Daniel Johns and Chris Joannou found a little time to do a quick interview with MethodShop.com. They were humble, candid and even funny. Enjoy...

Interview: Silverchair (Young Modern)




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Labels: music

When someone mentions the band Silverchair, your first thought or memory will vary depending on where you're from. People in the U.S. and Europe may only remember Silverchair as a few kids who skyrocketed to stardom in 1994 after their first album, Frogstomp. Thanks to such hit songs as "Tomorrow" and "Israel's Son," the Australian trio, consisting of singer/guitarist/songwriter Daniel Johns, drummer Ben Gillies and bass player Chris Joannou, became international superstars when they were only fifteen years old.

Since 1994, the last decade has been a mix of trying tests and triumphs for Silverchair. Battles with extreme fame at an early age, an eating disorder, and a case of reactive arthritis kept the band mostly grounded in their home continent Australia. But despite these setbacks, Silverchair managed to pass the time by repeatedly making hit records and racking up more #1 albums than any other Aussie band including AC/DC, Midnight Oil and INXS.


Silverchair's latest album, Young Modern, is their first new record in 6 years, and the tour supporting it will be their first U.S. tour in over a decade. Even though Silverchair was in the middle of launching their U.S. tour, Daniel Johns and Chris Joannou found a little time to do a quick interview with MethodShop.com. They were humble, candid and even funny. Enjoy...

Interview: Silverchair (Young Modern)




BeSocial: digg story | methodshop

Labels: music

Apple's iPhone has enjoyed favorable reviews since its recent debut, but it got some criticism on Capitol Hill in Washington this week.

The phones, which cost between $500 and $600—are usable only on AT&T Inc.'s wireless network and will remain that way until 2012. Even though the phones become expensive paperweights if customers quit AT&T's wireless plan, the company will still charge a $175 early termination fee, said Rep. Edward J. Markey, D-Mass., chairman of a House subcommittee on telecommunications and the Internet.

Markey described the phone as a "Hotel California service. You can check out any time you like, but you can never leave—you're stuck with your iPhone and you can't take it anywhere."


Timothy Wu, a law professor at Columbia University and commentator on technology issues, described the cell phone industry as "spectrum- based oligopoly" where customers have given up their property rights.

"Imagine buying a television that stopped working if you decided to switch to satellite," Wu said. "Or a toaster that died if you switched from Potomac Power to ConEd."

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Labels: apple

Apple's iPhone has enjoyed favorable reviews since its recent debut, but it got some criticism on Capitol Hill in Washington this week.

The phones, which cost between $500 and $600—are usable only on AT&T Inc.'s wireless network and will remain that way until 2012. Even though the phones become expensive paperweights if customers quit AT&T's wireless plan, the company will still charge a $175 early termination fee, said Rep. Edward J. Markey, D-Mass., chairman of a House subcommittee on telecommunications and the Internet.

Markey described the phone as a "Hotel California service. You can check out any time you like, but you can never leave—you're stuck with your iPhone and you can't take it anywhere."


Timothy Wu, a law professor at Columbia University and commentator on technology issues, described the cell phone industry as "spectrum- based oligopoly" where customers have given up their property rights.

"Imagine buying a television that stopped working if you decided to switch to satellite," Wu said. "Or a toaster that died if you switched from Potomac Power to ConEd."

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Labels: iphone

Police in South Carolina said the deaths of two people whose naked bodies were found on a Columbia street were accidental. Authorities said it appeared that the man and the woman, who were both 21, may have been having sex when they fell from the sloped roof of a downtown office building.


Photo Slideshow


methodshop

Labels: offbeat

A lighter and paper shredder helped make Mika Brzezinski the "symbol of television journalism's guilt trip" about Paris Hilton. Brzezinski used both to destroy a script calling for her to read about Hilton's release from jail on MSNBC's "Morning Joe" program recently. Part serious, part an act, it has become an Internet sensation. More than 2 million people have watched a clip of the incident on YouTube, around 10 times the number who watched it live on TV. Apparently, she's not the only one sick of the socialite.

"Among journalists it touched a nerve because I think we're tired of pretending this is important," she said. "We also know that, deep down inside, our viewers know that we don't believe this is news. They can't. They can't think we're that dumb."

Brzezinski, who left CBS News last year, has been working as a news- reader and on-air foil for Joe Scarborough on the show MSNBC is trying out to replace Don Imus in the morning.

Hours after Hilton's June 26 catwalk to freedom, Joe Scarborough (widget) and Brzezinski discussed one of the day's other big stories at their show's opening: influential Republican Sen. Richard Lugar's declaration that President Bush's Iraq strategy wasn't working.

It was then Brzezinski's turn to sum up the day's news. She looked down at her script and Hilton was the top story. She froze.

"I could not get through the first three words without crumbling," she said. "My skin was crawling. This was our lead? On a day like this? To me, it was just the ultimate Paris Hilton out-of-control moment. We've gone too far and we've got to stop. That was all real. There was nothing planned about that, and I believe we got a little snappy."

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Labels: TV

Last week, a teenage girl's legs were severed above the ankle while on the Superman Tower of Power ride at Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom.

A Swiss company called Intamin made the ride 14 years ago. Intamin has installed a total of 70 rides around the globe since 1979. According to Intamin, a steel cord snapped loose just as the ride reached its highest point. Eyewitnesses said the cord snapped again and moved in front of the ride as it descended. It's still unknown why the cord broke loose in the first place. I feel terrible for that little girl.



Unlike traditional roller coasters, the Superman Tower of Power is a "free fall" type ride. According to the park's web site, the ride lifts passengers 177 feet (54 meters) straight up, then drops them 154 feet (47 meters), reaching a speed of 54 mph (87 kph). Luckily the "Superman Tower of Terror" has been shut down indefinitely while park officials investigate what caused the accident.

The girl is reported to be in stable condition. Her friends describe her as "pretty" and "popular." Hopefully the first responders knew what they were doing and put the feet on ice and sent them along with her to the hospital. Unfortunately, she probably has a lifetime of surgeries and rehab ahead of her. I hope she gets a giant multi-million dollar settlement from Six Flags. Poor kid. That totally, totally sucks.

Here's a video of the Superman ride. The video was taken before the severed leg incident. The ride used to be called "Elevator" before being renamed "Superman Tower of Power."




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Labels: medical

Authorities tracked down a 4-year-old girl who called 911 nearly 300 times last month by offering to deliver McDonald's to her suburban Chicago apartment.

Unbeknownst to her mother, the girl used a deactivated cell phone to call dispatchers 287 times in June — sometimes as often as 20 times a shift. Apparently the toddler was given the old cell phone to use as a toy.

Dispatchers heard the child's voice but could only track the phone's signal to the apartment complex. So authorities used a ruse to pinpoint her.



"We asked (the caller) what she wanted. She said she wanted McDonald's," said Steve Cordes, executive director of QuadCom's emergency center, which covers Carpentersville.

"We talked with her and we convinced her if she told us where she lives, we would bring her McDonald's," he said. "She finally gave us her address. So we sent the police over — with no McDonald's."

After police arrived, the girl's mother took away the phone, Cordes said. Maybe mom should invest in a book called "It's Time to Call 911" which teaches children when it's appropriate to call 911.

Under federal law, deactivated cell phones still must be able to access 911. Many deactivated phones will contact an emergency call center if the user holds down the nine key.

[Source: Yahoo]

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Labels: tech news

A lighter and paper shredder helped make Mika Brzezinski the "symbol of television journalism's guilt trip" about Paris Hilton. Brzezinski used both to destroy a script calling for her to read about Hilton's release from jail on MSNBC's "Morning Joe" program recently. Part serious, part an act, it has become an Internet sensation. More than 2 million people have watched a clip of the incident on YouTube, around 10 times the number who watched it live on TV. Apparently, she's not the only one sick of the socialite.

"Among journalists it touched a nerve because I think we're tired of pretending this is important," she said. "We also know that, deep down inside, our viewers know that we don't believe this is news. They can't. They can't think we're that dumb."

Brzezinski, who left CBS News last year, has been working as a news- reader and on-air foil for Joe Scarborough on the show MSNBC is trying out to replace Don Imus in the morning.

Hours after Hilton's June 26 catwalk to freedom, Joe Scarborough (widget) and Brzezinski discussed one of the day's other big stories at their show's opening: influential Republican Sen. Richard Lugar's declaration that President Bush's Iraq strategy wasn't working.

It was then Brzezinski's turn to sum up the day's news. She looked down at her script and Hilton was the top story. She froze.

"I could not get through the first three words without crumbling," she said. "My skin was crawling. This was our lead? On a day like this? To me, it was just the ultimate Paris Hilton out-of-control moment. We've gone too far and we've got to stop. That was all real. There was nothing planned about that, and I believe we got a little snappy."

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Labels: internet, TV

Thinking about making applications for the iPhone? Apple released an iPhone developer guide to offer guidelines for creating widgets and applications that will integrate with the device's Safari browser, mail and mapping applications.


IM chat service Meebo, mini-blogging service Jaiku and gaming site WeeWar have already developed iPhone versions of their software.

The following guidelines will help developers prepare web content and design a website or web-based application for iPhone.

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Labels: apple

Authorities tracked down a 4-year-old girl who called 911 nearly 300 times last month by offering to deliver McDonald's to her suburban Chicago apartment.

Unbeknownst to her mother, the girl used a deactivated cell phone to call dispatchers 287 times in June — sometimes as often as 20 times a shift. Apparently the toddler was given the old cell phone to use as a toy.

Dispatchers heard the child's voice but could only track the phone's signal to the apartment complex. So authorities used a ruse to pinpoint her.



"We asked (the caller) what she wanted. She said she wanted McDonald's," said Steve Cordes, executive director of QuadCom's emergency center, which covers Carpentersville.

"We talked with her and we convinced her if she told us where she lives, we would bring her McDonald's," he said. "She finally gave us her address. So we sent the police over — with no McDonald's."

After police arrived, the girl's mother took away the phone, Cordes said. Maybe mom should invest in a book called "It's Time to Call 911" which teaches children when it's appropriate to call 911.

Under federal law, deactivated cell phones still must be able to access 911. Many deactivated phones will contact an emergency call center if the user holds down the nine key.

[Source: Yahoo]

BeSocial: digg story | methodshop

Labels: geek

Thinking about making applications for the iPhone? Apple released an iPhone developer guide to offer guidelines for creating widgets and applications that will integrate with the device's Safari browser, mail and mapping applications.


IM chat service Meebo, mini-blogging service Jaiku and gaming site WeeWar have already developed iPhone versions of their software.

The following guidelines will help developers prepare web content and design a website or web-based application for iPhone.

BeSocial: iphone developer guide | digg story | methodshop

Labels: iphone