Tidbits from TidBITS

TidBITS is a nifty, weekly web/e-mail newsletter that I always look forward to receiving. 90% of their coverage is of Mac-related news and reviews, which is fantastic (even though I'll never really get into half of the things they cover), and the other 10% is always equally as interesting. If you're a Mac person, I suggest checking it out.

Anyway, in this week's issue, they cover two interesting products:

Sleeptracker

This device supposedly tracks your five sleeping cycles throughout the night, and based on those cycles, figures out when to wake you up (within a certain personally pre-set window). The author of the above-linked article says that it works for him. I dunno - for $150, I'm not so sure I'd be willing to take the chance. Plus, I wake up better to the radio than I do to beeping, and I almost always sleep with my arms/hands underneath my pillow, thus lessening my chance of actually hearing it anyway. Now, if it delivered a small electric shock, then maybeI would buy it for Jess. Product info here.

Roomba!




I think I would seriously be tempted to buy a Roomba! (exclamation point mine - I think it just makes for a better product name, plus conjures images of someone like Zsa Zsa saying it aloud with a little hand/arm flourish) if I didn't already have a pretty good vacuum. I don't like the idea of having to clean it any more than I currently clean my vacuum, which is approximately never. But what I really like is the idea of it terrorizing my cats. Big Daddy Rinke, I believe you have some experience with Roomba! and a freaked-out dog, right?

What makes this specific article on Roomba! all the better, though, is a link to a video of (of course) Roomba! terrorizing a dog. And what makes that video even better is the fact that the soundtrack is (of course) the Benny Hill theme song.

More info on Roomba! here.