So you need your kitchen cleaned

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and your kids are balking? Tell them to learn robotics and devise one better than 11th grade robot wiz Erin Kennedy! To wit:

….If you are like me, you hate to sweep and are too poor to buy a “Roomba”. This BristleBot project by 11th grade programming wiz, Erin Kennedy, is a pretty simple way of getting some basic cleaning done and watching the bot scuttle around on the kitchen floor is pretty fun too….MORE….

Her original posting about her accomplishment is Bristlebot @ RobotGrrl. Quite an excellent site, an inspiration for all kids! Click below for the cute little clip:

BristleBot!!

And if you’re desirous of your kids learning robotics, point ‘em to:

• Lego Mindstorms Education
• My MindStorms Page
• The NXT STEP – LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT Blog
• RobotGrrl
• Norm’s Robotics

Hope the above is useful!

ThankYouVeryMuch!

Owlbert
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Morning,

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If there’s one thing beneficial about being an online marketing entrepreneur, it’s being able to teach my kids how to ‘spot the pitch!’ in everyday teen marketing.

The article Brand hungry teens benefit from value lessons caught my attention today. To wit:

…You don’t need to buy a copy of Teen Vogue or turn on an episode of The Hills to see young people wearing expensive designer labels anymore — just take a tour of a local high school.

Trends from the hot magazine and reality show have jumped from the pages and small screen onto the streets of Calgary where teens are being given the star treatment with high-end brand-name clothing and gadgets.

Most working-class parents wouldn’t dream of spending $250 on a pair of jeans for themselves but it’s become a reality for their teenage kids who want to dress to impress….MORE….

Utterly astonishing this is to me. I’ve raised my kids to realize true style is found on the inside; there’s no need to waste money on designer clothing just so other teens can exude their shallow “ooooo you’re soooooo trendy! I wanna be your friend!” declarations.

Consider the disgusting popularity of Miss Bimbo (no I am NOT joking) in which:

…Welcome to Miss Bimbo. Enter the exciting world of the first ever, virtual fashion game ! Become the most famous, beautiful, sought after bimbo across the globe!

• Find your own cool place to live.
• Find a fun job to pay for your needs and all the clothes a Bimbo could possibly want.
• Shop for the latest fashions and become the trendsetting bimbo in town !
• Become a socialite and skyrocket to the top of fame and popularity.
• Date that famous hottie you’ve had your eye on and show the Bimbo world the social starlet you are !
• Even resort to meds or plastic surgery. Stop at nothing to become the reigning bimbo !
• Tackle your 104 tasks as quick as possible to become the rising star bimbo !!

If that doesn’t turn your stomach, you’ve got some MAJOR parenting issues.

If you’re looking for responsible teenager money management resources, check out:

• Money Management for Teens
• Teen Money Central
• Teenagers Guide to the Real World

Listen folks. You don’t HAVE to play the game with your kids that MORE equates Better Social Standing. Stand your ground and refuse to spend 100s of dollars just to compete in the Teen Style Money Wasting Awards – a., it will give your kids valuable life lessons, and b., tell them…when they decide to earn money on their own….you’ll be happy to let them waste it as they see fit. Hopefully your kids will see the light before their pocket book empties.

ThankYouVeryMuch!

Owlbert

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ps – and speaking about Money Management:

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If your kids are

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worshipping at the iPhone altar, be sure to name drop the following casually:

“Hey! Did you know that Apple is looking to hire a Handwriting Recognition engineer that:

The Handwriting Recognition team is seeking an engineer who will be responsible for advancing Apple’s handwriting recognition technology for Mac OS X. The ideal candidate will be an expert in the area of pattern recognition, with an excellent understanding of handwriting recognition issues. The person will also assume primary responsibility for maintaining and enhancing existing code and tools. The recognition technology you create may extend beyond Mac OS X to other applications and the iPhone. ….MORE…..

Dare I say it? I can’t resist, I can’t resist….is this an example of the handwriting on the wall? (Thanks to Engadget for the headsup).

And if you’d like to learn more about handwriting recognition and pummel your kids with your knowledge, check out:

• How to install and configure handwriting recognition in Windows XP
• Using Tablet PC: Handwriting Recognition 101
• Apple-Newton Handwriting Recognition
• Livescribe Pulse Smartpen

Enjoy.

ThankYouVeryMuch!

Owlbert

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Morning!

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So you’ve finally decided to get a Plasma HDTV so your kids can DDR to their heart’s content! Fair enough, but tell me…how can you know you bought the best one available for your needs?

Superb question! Here are some resources I’ve found for you to help you in your parental quest.

First off, swing by PC Magazine’s How to buy a Plasma HDTV. Many aspects are covered including the myth:

…. There are several misconceptions about plasmas, and a couple of the more ridiculous claims are that they can leak gas over time or require periodic “recharging.” Nope and nope, nor do plasmas require any special service or maintenance—they are factory-sealed and only require adequate ventilation and some occasional light dusting. A plasma TV owner once told me about a nefarious (or possible poorly informed) service tech that suggested the set be brought back to the shop every six months so the screen surface could be removed for internal “cleaning.” Hmmm.….MORE….

Remember, it’s the educated consumer who is the best customer.

Next, check out these useful guides:

• Hi Defster’s Buyer’s Guide
• Before you buy a Plasma HDTV
• Should you buy a Plasma or LCD HDTV?

The above will certainly help you. And if you’d like to uncover some forums for further analysis, consider:

• High Def HDTV Forum
• HDTV Magazine Forum
• HDTV AVS Forum

Here’s some of the best deals you can find regarding HDTV:
Please click here to continue your search.

Hope the above is useful.

ThankYouVeryMuch!

Owlbert
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Sometimes I simply

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have to wonder to where all the simplicity went.

Yes indeed, I remember those halcyon days…days when I accessed the Internet via Telnet and a command line prompt, the way the Gods had meant the Internet to be used! None of this What You See is What You wimpy interface stuff like Star Wars Galaxies!

No indeed, back when women were women and java was coffee, we enjoyed ascii characters and ascii jokes and ascii magnificence like the complete guide to Classic Cows!

I was reminded of this by Life Hacker’s post of Watch Star Wars in Text. To wit:

…While it’s not technically an Easter egg, one of the most eye-popping tips in last Sunday’s Top 10 Easter eggs post comments was a pointer to a telnet server that broadcasts Star Wars Episode IV to your command line as animated text. You didn’t read that wrong. Give it a try: from any command line, type telnet towel.blinkenlights.nl and sit back to watch the show. This is the least productive thing you’ll do all day, but you know what they say about all work and no play. After the jump, see a handful of screenshots—just 4 of the 13,935 frames that make up the entire movie…..MORE…

I have to give credit to whomever had the time to design this!

Be sure to tell your kids, you now have the ultimate of Star Wars collectibles online. They won’t believe their eyes.

ThankYouVeryMuch!

Owlbert

ps – speaking of Star Wars:

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Nothing is more frustrating

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than Junior telling you, Mom, I just can’t find a job!

Well now, you can give Junior that killer edge he’s obviously been missing.

Introducing…The Resume T-Shirt! I first heard about it from PopGadget. To wit:

… With all the job-hunting tools available on the Web, you may still find that your resume goes unnoticed after you click that send button on your computer. Maybe it makes more sense to wear your resume so that anyone who sees you on the street has the opportunity to make you an offer.

That’s the idea behind Blackbird Tees’ custom Resume Tees. When ordering, you choose an intro or teaser line for the front of your t-shirt (for instance, “My resume is on the back of my shirt,” a simple “Hire me,” or “I heart job offers”) and then upload your resume for printing on the back (as a Word doc, only Times Roman font) ….MORE…

The official store is over at BlackBird. Once Junior has this shirt, he can be the life of the party at all bar hopping, golf-coursing, window shopping events. Why, a new job just HAS to be in the horizon, right?

But seriously, if your kids are freshly out of school and looking for employment, consider:

• College Recruiter
• After College
• Employment Digest
• Job-Hunt.org

He’ll find tons of great resources he can use to finally make a decent living on his own.

ThankYouVeryMuch!

Owlbert

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ps – and speaking about resumes:

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Ever experience

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the exasperation of supercilious children who think THEY know the coolest video games ever?

HAH! I say, HAH! Just tell them about the 30 dumbest video game titles ever! To wit:

…. Without videogames, many of us would have lives, children and permanent jobs. They’re terrific ways to forget that in real-life, like gardens, commitments require regular attention. They can’t all be glorious, action-packed tours de force, however — many videogames are nothing more than half-baked rejects, the ‘D’ students of the electronic world.

But these particular 30 dunces weren’t merely bad — they were never given a chance at success because they suffered epic fails from the moment their titles were conceived. A truly abysmal name might strangle a game’s chances, but it’s prime chuckle material and we’ve lassoed two-and-a-half dozen for your rib-tickling pleasure.

We begin our journey with game names that are…

Just Plain Wrong ….MORE….

Name drop titles like the following in your conversation with your kids:

• Tongue of the Fatman
• Spanky’s Quest
• Touch Dic
• If It Moves, Shoot It!
• Leisure Suit Larry 3: Passionate Patti in Pursuit of the Pulsating Pectorals
• Attack of the Mutant Camels
• Extreme Sports with the Berenstain Bears
• Ninja Hamster
• Ninja Baseball Bat Man
• Billy the Wizard: Rocket Broomstick Racing
• Bus Driver
• Big Mutha Truckers 2: Truck Me Harder
• Tech Romancer
• Chemist Tycoon
• How To Be A Complete Bastard
• Rex Nebular and the Cosmic Gender Bender
• Zombies Ate My Neighbors
• Ninjabread Man

and they’ll know just WHO is the coolest member of the family.

Want more unique video game names plus even video game history? Check out:

• The 50 Worst Game Names EVER
• Video Name Game Generator Competition
• Video Game History 101
• Cosmic Guerilla (I mastered this game ‘way back when!)

Why not bring this topic up at dinnertime? It will certainly start the conversation flowing (or the eyes rolling…. )

ThankYouVeryMuch!

Owlbert

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ps – speaking about video games:

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Do your kids

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use DeviantArt or Flickr or Picasa or …? Do they know how to use Photoshop to spiffy up their artwork?

Well, if they use Picasa, they can now add a ‘Send of Photoshop’ button as well! To wit:

… The Digital Inspiration blog points us to Google’s opening up of the API for buttons in Picasa, and includes a link that installs a button to send pictures directly from Picasa to Adobe Photoshop for editing. Expect to see a lot more of these buttons, now that both desktop and web applications can create their own links. To install the Photoshop button, head to the Digital Inspiration link below and click the “Install Photoshop CS3 Button,” which should launch Picasa (if it’s not already running) and ask you to place the button yourself. Those with a head for hacking can check out the APIs for themselves….MORE….

The original article can be found at Send Pictures from Google Picasa…. Now, I know that several teenagers at my karate dojo are teaching themselves Photoshop…and I’ll bet that having this convenience should be really helpful to them.

Want to learn more about Photoshop and Picasa? Here are some nifty resources:

• Picasa User Resources
• Google Tips for Picasa
• Photoshop Tutorials
• Awesome Photoshop Tutorials

Hope the above helps you stay one step ahead of your kids.

ThankYouVeryMuch!

Owlbert

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ps – Speaking of Photoshop:

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Now, true…

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normally I have great empathy for my kids when they fail. Except of course…when they chose NOT to listen to Mom!

One of my kids has a time management issue soooooooo huge, it could dwarf the Golden Gate Bridge. Said kid had it under control when Mom was helping oversee time management opportunities, mind you….but a few weeks ago, kid decreed, I can manage my own time MOM!

Ho ho ho, thought yours truly, but hey. Let’s let reality have a moment to blazingly insert itself into my kids’ face. So! These past weeks I’ve watched my kid get more and more and more and more and more frantic in the morning, as kid realizes, gee, the work piled up…and I didn’t complete it.

Oh, I am LOVING this, I tell you, evil mom that I am!!

I’m in hopes kid will internalize that gosh, perhaps Mom WAS right about checking off what’s due when…and scheduling the time to do it.

We’ll see.

Do your kids have time management issues? Here are some resources for that:

• Time management – you vs. the school
• Organization and time management strategies
• Time management for kids
• Time management for gifted kids

Hope the above resources help.

ThankYouVeryMuch!

Owlbert

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