Category Archive

computers

trendy laptop bags

Yep, there actually are cute laptop bags out there to carry all your crap

If you’ve found yourself on your first day at your big new job (or preparing for school in the fall!) with a hideous briefcase a la Andie in The Devil Wears Prada, worry not. There are tons of cute laptop bags from which to choose so that you can look chic and fully prepared at the same time.

Let’s find a new home for your goodies, lappies, and electronics…

7 tools & apps that make life way more organized and chill

7 tools & apps that make life way more organized and chill

My cat never does seem to start acting as my personal assistant, despite my pleas. Even with all my emails, projects, and stress piling up around me. Rude. I guess we’re stuck having to keep ourselves organized, Bear, jeez. If you’re in this pickle, know you’re not alone. But here’s where technology can actually help instead of hinder: seven life organization apps that we use to keep shit organized.

What do you do with emails that are not intended for you?

I have a name that’s not common in my generation, but is common in older generations. When I signed up for email, I chose the simplest form of my name. Now that the other 50 or so people in the US who have my name are also using email, I am having problems with receiving their personal emails. How do you handle emails not intended for you?

Where to store your always-in-use items in the rare moments they’re not in use

I have a few things that always seem to be in use, like my laptop, mobile phone, and a jug I use all the time. The sensible-to-me place for these things is wherever I am right now. Which is fine, except when people come over I don’t have anywhere to put them. What solutions do my Homies use to store these things that are “always” in use, without giving up valuable space for the odd times these things need put away?

High Tech Homeschool: how we use Google Drive to schedule assignments at home

Tonight I began a grade book for each child and shared it with only that individual. All of the assignments come to my email, which comes to my phone (which has a Google Drive app) so I can grade anywhere: in the car, in bed, in line at the grocery store or during my husband’s boring Alien conspiracy shows.

3 little kid-friendly apps that won’t make you feel like your phone is babysitting your child

My kid is almost four, and like a lot of little kids who are growing up surrounded by computers and smartphones, he’s way into playing games on my phone. I’m very picky about what I let him play, but I have found a few targeted at kiddos between two and five that I like:

How to make a baby: sperm donors, IVF, and mad science experiments

Choosing a sperm donor is a little bit like setting up an Xbox avatar. You begin by deciding on the ethnicity, hair color, and eye color of the fellow whose sperm you’d like to combine with your egg to make your baby. Then you enter that criteria into a sperm-bank search engine, which returns a list of matching anonymous males who passed rigorous genetic tests and filled out detailed questionnaires. Finally, you pore through each donor profile, considering things like his height, weight, build, SAT scores, family medical history, sexual orientation, whether or not he has moles, the shape of his nose and mouth, and in some cases, his baby photo or voice sample.

How To Train Your Robot: how I teach kids to program without computers

Last April, I taught six kids of ages 5 to 7 how to program. “In what programming language?” you may ask. Well… I didn’t use a programming language, at least none that you know of. In fact, I didn’t even use a computer. Instead, I devised a game called “How To Train Your Robot.” Before I explain how the game works, let me tell my motivation.