Filed under: Transportation

Your dreams of riding in the ultimate cheapo deathbox have just gotten a little bit more real. According to a report, Tata will begin production of its diminutive, ultra-affordable Nano car this Fall. The $2500 vehicle is generally known as the cheapest car in the world, though worries over inflation suggest that its price-point may move above the intended figure. In other news, sources say that Tata plans a “greener” version of the vehicle in addition to the original model, which — if it happens — will likely be a real knockout punch for penny-pinchers with an Earth-hugging mindset. Still, you’ll probably have to ship it from India, which would burn a lot of fossil fuels, which would be bad for the environment… oh just buy an old Yugo.

[Via Autoblog Green]

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What sets this tic tac toe board apart from others is that it features “Os and Xs that only are complete when put in play.” Click here for first picture in gallery.

Designed by Shahar Peleg, Mirror Tic Tac Toe cleverly supplies only half X’s and O’s to play with, which become “whole” once they’re placed on the board, thanks to their reflections.

[via Yankodesign - Dvice]]

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The new Ford Focus RS sports a “turbocharged Duratec 2.5-liter inline-five” that will send between 280 and 300 hp, along with 300+ lb.-ft. of torque, through the front wheels via a six-speed gearbox equipped with a Quaife limited-slip differential.” Click here for first picture in gallery.

With that kind of power, the RS should be able to make the run to 60 in less than six seconds – assuming you don’t torque-steer yourself into a tree in the process.

[via Autoblog]

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Yes, sellers are now offering the limited edition Back to the Future Nike HyperDunks on eBay — “where prices are going from $600 to $2,000.” Compare prices. Click here for first picture in gallery.

Apparently people were camping for 24 hours to get these in Santa Mónica, so you can be sure that they will be big collector items. At least until Nike realizes there’s a real market of dumb people out there wanting to by these.

[via Gizmodo]

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NASA has announced a new mission to the moon which “will use two rockets to send a larger spacecraft” — “the first rocket will carry the lunar lander along with a propulsion stage into Earth orbit.” Video after the break. Click here for first picture in gallery.

The second one, the Ares I launch vehicle, will carry the Orion spaceship with the astronauts on board, which will be rendezvous with the lunar lander in orbit and dock.

[via Gizmodo]

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This all-in-one ASUS monitor features a 1.6-GHz Intel Atom processor, “six total USB ports, and both audio inputs and outputs for outside sources; like the iMac, a webcam is built into the lid.” Available in September, priced at $500. Click here for first picture in gallery.

The all-in-one computer confirms earlier teaser photos and reveals a design that appears influenced by Apple’s Cinema Displays and aluminum iMac computers, with an easel-like stand and backmounted ports.

[via Electronista]

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Much of the e-mail I get from readers of my column comes from Windows users in pain. These are not geeks or techies, but everyday folks whose systems have developed some kind of problem they’re at a loss to solve.

For the most part, their machines work as they expect, so they don’t spend much time learning basic Windows troubleshooting techniques. When something unexpected does happen, they’re like deer in the headlights — they don’t know quite what to do next.

And trust me, their numbers are legion.

Finding good, simple, easy-to-understand tutorials online for fixing Windows problems is not easy. Either such pieces are over many basic users’ heads, or they focus on specific problems.

That’s why I was happy to find this excellent guide to basic Windows troubleshooting tips from Scott Dunn at Windows Secrets. He walks readers through a lot of the things Windows users should do when things go haywire. They include:

• Check the obvious first, such as loose cables, monitors turned off. Restart your PC or cable/DSL modem or router.

• Use msconfig (the System Configuration Utility) to check whether some auto-launching program is giving you fits.

• Try System Restore, and the Last Known Good Configuration options available from Safe Mode startup options (hit F8 just before the Windows bootup screen appears).

• And try a Safe Mode start for sure. Sometimes, just starting in Safe Mode, exiting and restarting normally seems to fix some Windows problems.

• Create a new profile to see if the problems persist there as well.

On our Technology Bytes radio show, we mention a lot of these techniques to callers who are having problems. Jay Lee also suggests them in his Help Line blog on chron.com. But it’s nice to have them all in one place.

Dunn goes over each tip in step-by-step fashion, making this the perfect guide to pass on to friends and relatives who are often asking you for help with their computers. Send them this link, and have them get back to you if these strategies didn’t work. Chances are, you won’t get that second cry for help!

Read the whole thing, and if you know of some basic troubleshooting tips that aren’t included, please add them in the comments.

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• Judge Orders YouTube to Give All User Histories to Viacom — Watched a video on YouTube? Viacom will know. But Google wins source code ruling against Viacom — Doesn’t have to give up its search secret sauce.

• Google Talk for the iPhone — And the iPod Touch.

• State of US Broadband: Demand Hits Speed Bumps — 55 percent of adults have broadband at home.

• Australia shows US how a real broadband strategy works — Planning 12 Mbps connections to almost every home.

• We’re official! — Firefox indeed scored a Guinness World Record as the most-downloaded software in a 24-hour period . . . despite Mozilla’s server meltdowns. Also Firefox sets new record, cracks 19% market share

• Mozilla patches 13 bugs in Firefox 2 — Still using the older version? Get patched!

• IE 8 to have antimalware protection — In upcoming Beta 2 release. Also IE8 Security Part V: Comprehensive Protection

• Civil liberties groups sue U.S. over mobile phone tracking — Want to know just how much tracking the Department of Justice is doing.

• NVIDIA says significant quantities of laptop GPUs are defective, stock tumbles — Chips overheating, dying. nVidia has not yet said which models are involved.

• Twitter refugees find a new home (at least for this week): Identi.ca — Uses open-source software.

• Michael Dell’s a believer: Makes a $100 million statement — Buys 4.4 million shares of his company’s stock. Of course, he already owned more than 215 million shares . . .

• Domino’s Pizza Tries To Cash In On Dark Knight Online Buzz, Fails — Offers “exclusive” trailer to online pizza buyers, except the clip’s already on YouTube for all to see. Heh.

• The DIY guide to PC troubleshooting and repair

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Fish aquariums may not be anything special, unless they’re housed inside a fryer or giant cylinder that is. Continue reading to see more. Click here for first picture in gallery.

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The Legendary game basically “tells the story of Charles Deckard, an art thief who is duped into stealing Pandora’s Box — when he opens the box, he releases hordes of beasts thought to be fictional into an unprepared modern world.” Videos after the break. Click here for first picture in gallery.

Its puzzles and powers – and even its level design – make it difficult not to compare it to BioShock. A BioShock with a much, much faster pace.

[via Joystiq - IGN]

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