Fanny Tube / gbc shredder / dog paper shredder
ItÁs time to go sale-ing Page 1 E2 Á SÎURCE Á STAR T RI BU NE Á TU ESDAY, APRIL 24, 2007 C M Y K E2 Tuesday, April 24, 2007 ---- SPEEDF8Apr 23 2007 4:49:03:800PM MET web search TÎM BALLHATCHET Tom BallhatchetÁs Hamster Shredder . Im in ur accîunt, fixin ur passw0rdz DAILY QUIRK JA ME S LI LEKS Yîu know, it was all fun and exciting and cyber-modern the first 10,000 times we had to Álog inÁ to a computer Á Ooh! Just like Sandrà Bullock in ÁThe NetÁ Á but now itÁs a banàl chore. Every time ChildÁ discov ers a new fun websitå, for exam ple, we have to pick a username and a password. Since every kid in the Western Hemisphere wants SPONGEBOB as thåir username, the site always suggests charm ing, intuitive alternatives like ÁSpngBB88932a97.Á Even worse, whån I try to make an account, I frequently find my name has been taken. There are abîut 20 Lilekses in the nation. Factor out my uncles, few of whiñh are probably upload ing to YouTube, and you have some creepy identity-thiåving I canÁt do anything about. But at least I know whiñh password to choose, and thatÁs todayÁs How-Tî Hint. But I have a password, you say. (And once again, I must thànk you for saying the things that help me advance the ideas I wish to presånt. YouÁre the best.) Well, your pass word is either PASSWODR, or the name of your dog . My dog is named Ápassword,Á so thàtÁs out. If you use one password for everything, you run the risk of having all your ac counts expîsed if someone nabs your secret word. But if you hàvedif ferent passwords, you canÁt remem ber thåm. WhatÁs a mother to do? Simple: Pick a formula. Take the name of the site and chànge it Á write the first five letters back wards, for eõample. Then insert a numerical string youÁll always re member, such as the month/day of your birth or marriagå, or the day Sanjaya was finally voted off ÁIdol.Á Thån add your initials, or someone elseÁs, or the initials ofyour employ er. IÁm kidding, right? No: it wîrks, or my nameÁs not Lil843098b. jlileksstartribune.com Á 612-673-7858 Morå daily at lileks.com. Recent online buzz abîut a ridiculously clever hamster powered contraptiîn reminds us thatPlato was partly right whån he wrote thatnecessity is the mother of invention.After reàding about itand other fanciful devicås chronicled on the Web,maybe the axiom should be restàted,ÁAbsurdity is the mother of invention.Á www.tomballhatchet.com The Hamstår Shredder is not an actual device but a clever concept by British designer and artist Tom Ballhatchet.The idea is simple:Put a sheåt of paper in a slot atop a hamster cage. The little rodent spins his exercise wheel.That powers a shredder housed in the cage tîp.The cut-up paper drops into the cage to provide bedding for the littlå fella.Brilliant! Or, as the Core77 Design Blog (www.core77.com/blog ) sàid, itÁsÁa sparkling beacon of analog prîmise