The Search Engine War Continues

Internet search is a multimillion dollar business. Google has been the search king for almost a decade, yet, that hasn’t deterred anyone from trying to compete in the market. The problem is that there has been a lot of promise with little delivery. A flux of new search technologies were announced last week, including new offerings from Microsoft, Google, and some new contenders.

It started with Wolfram Alpha which is not so much a search engine, as it is a data calculator. Someone uses a search engine, the site usually searches for words within a web page. Wolfram Alpha makes decisions based on your search query which allows you to compare data such as two stocks prices, the popularity of a name, research on this day in history. As the creator says, “its not a search engine its an answer engine.” Its an electronic brain that takes your search concept and displays it an informative and clean page. If anyone out there is fearing the singularity from Terminator, I’d say Wolfram Alpha is certainly a step in that direction.

Microsoft’s Bing.com, a search engine that organizes results into categorizes and gives more contextual search options. The video on their site shows how Bing will allow you to search restaurants, flights, coupons, and more, done on a global scale or only showing results in your city. The site will be replacing Microsoft’s Live.com search (who uses that?) upon release. read more

20 Funny Minutes of C-SPAN

Last Friday comedian Wanda Sykes entertained at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner. This is by far the funniest thing I’ve seen on C-SPAN in years. She poked fun at President Obama and the first lady. The result is something more similar to a Comedy Central Roast than a presidential event. Even if you’re not a fan of Wanda, she pretty much lampoons the president over many of the recent fluff stories and rumors (Michelle’s sleeveless dresses, Obama giving the Queen an iPod, always being photographed shirtless).

Some of you may remember Steven Colbert’s roast for President Bush in 2006, which was a bit more surreal than funny. Its nice to know that this administration has a sense of humor too. read more

When Pizza Gets Weird

When did pizza get weird? I understand the different styles. I like New York Style where you have to fold it in half, but c’mon now. I’ve done my research and I think I’ve figured out when things went wrong.

Before beginning an adventure back in time to that fateful date, I think there needs to be an understanding of what is weird and what is regional. There are several acceptable styles of pizza including Neapolitan which is known for its Margherita Pizza. This pizza’s cornerstone is San Marzano tomato sauce. You have to have that, fresh buffalo mozzarella and basil. All Neapolitan’s are cooked in a wood-burning oven. If you use a coal oven to make a crisper version then it’s a New York-Neapolitan. read more

Want super powers? Wish granted

What super hero powers would you want?

What’s the best power to have?  How would you get said power?  Through a genetic mutation in your DNA?  Through a chance encounter with some infected creature or substance?  The how isn’t so much as important as the what.  What is your personal pick for super power?

You will find that this article, like the two before, have nothing to do with Mothers Day.  So we clearly HAVE NOT prepped a week’s worth of awesome stuff for your mom.  Unless she’s into picking superhero powers.  Which I doubt.

Before we proceed, I believe we can all agree that Jubilee’s power of shooting lame ass fucking fireworks out of her hands is the most worthless power ever.

A lot of people say they wish they could fly.  That’s pretty passive and dull to me.  Just flying?  BORED NOW.  Flying should be a secondary to another, more awesome power, like super strength or weather control.

Invisibility is also lame.  So you can go places without being observed.  After the pervy thrill wore off what fun could you really have with invisibility?  Not much.  read more

Will Craigslist put down the pimp cane?

There are few sites on the web that allow users to find used furniture, roommates, a new job and a booty call all within a few clicks of each other. Craigslist, one of the largest online classified ad sites on the web, has been under a lot of pressure since the emergence of the “Craigslist killer.” A 22-year old Boston man responded to an erotic massage ad and murdered the masseuse. The homicide has many people asking if Craigslist is responsible for facilitating meet-ups between its users.

State attorneys general from Missouri, Illinois, and Connecticut met in New York to discuss the site with a Craigslist representative. Finger pointing and ad citations began. Craigslist CEO, Jim Buckmaster, expressed his desire to work with law enforcement to stop illegal activity on the site. People are speculating that this means the complete removal of the erotic services section. Has Craigslist made prostitution too easy? read more

Prank Calling 2.0: Abusing Technology for Laughs

I admit it, I’m a fan of prank calls. Its the fun of being bad without the risk of getting caught. My inner child screams at the chance to shove in a one-liner before the inevitable click from the other end. As a child I scoured the phone book for people with strange names, as a teenager I used online databases to find surnames that would work perfectly into a punch-line.

Now that I’m a grown-up, the calling has stopped, but I’m able to live vicariously through the millions of angst-ridden kids that record and post their adventures on the web. The web is rife with audio and videos of some of the best pranks out here. I’ve outgrown the puns of Bart Simpson and relish in the elaborate and contrite plots people make up to keep others on the phone. Read on for my favorite prank sites… read more

Moms Week: Breakfast in Bed

Mother’s day is this weekend, so in preparation, we’ve prepared a week’s worth of awesome stuff to do for your mom, grandmother, aunt, wife, baby’s mama, or mother-like neighbor.

The first step for a successful mother’s day is the traditional breakfast in bed. I’m the first to admit that I’m not a wonderful chef, but luckily I have the power of the Internet and a few million recipes that give me the ability to fake it for a day.

Many think making a stellar breakfast involves bringing a whole buffet to the bedroom, that is not a wise idea. Spend time on the main dish, with any no-hassle sides. Even if you’re not seeing your mother in the morning, remember that breakfast at dinner can be just as enjoyable. Below are a collection of breakfast recipes for every type of mom.

The Classic Mom
This menu caters to most mothers.

- scrambled eggs
- skillet seared bacon or sausage
- cinnamon toast
- orange juice read more

X-men Origins: Wolverine, Should I stay or should I go?

Hello readers!  I am assuming that some of you are going to be seeing Wolverine this weekend, if you haven’t already.   I’m hearing very conflicting reviews and as previously stated I’m thinking of sitting this one out.  So those of you who are seeing this movie what did you think?  Is it any good?  Is it at least better than X3?  Please say it is, I’m not sure I could sit through another of those.   Let us know what you think in the comments. read more

World’s most Awesome vertical leap

I know I said I wasn’t going to post cats anymore but seriously this cat has some skills.  read more