We've been collaborating on the @PCWPluggedIn Twitter feed since September 27 of last year. Our mission: to find the humor in such fundamentally humorless tech-related phenomena as work, robots, vanishing privacy, online scams, patent infringement lawsuits, Steve Ballmer, and Steve Jobs.
Over the past year, we've posted some 1375 tweets on these and other tech subjects, tying each one to a story newly posted on PCWorld.com. Going through all of the entries is like reading a demented tech diary written by someone who has no attention span whatsoever. Still, certain recurring themes of 2010-2011 emerge: Facebook's privacy issues, the media's fascination with the white iPhone, the contested triumph of the tablet, the depredations of Anonymous, and endless tech industry litigation.
In this collection, we revisit some of our favorite tweets from @PCWPluggedIn, covering the months from October 2010 through March 2011. Next week we'll take you the rest of the way through the year.
10/1/10
“Smart” traffic signals coming http://ow.ly/2N8FG. I’d prefer a chip in drivers’ brains so they’d use the $&#%* turn signal.
10/6/10
7 ways to stay fit w/o leaving your cubicle? http://ow.ly/2PtJU. No mention of the most effective: a sturdy chain & no food.
10/9/10
North Korea launches 1st official site http://ow.ly/2Rc4Z. "Glorious DPRK demands access to Star Wars Kid training video," says Kim Jong-un.
10/13/10
Huge, body-controlled Tetris game in Madrid http://ow.ly/2T6k1. Event was preceded by traditional Running of the Blocks.
10/14/10
New technology lets body organs send updates to your phone. http://ow.ly/2TX6n. Be still my tweeting heart!
10/18/10
Human-punching robots test our pain threshold http://ow.ly/2VvN3. "Science schmience. I’d do this for free," says unit X6G97.
10/25/10
Google apologizes for collecting personal data http://bit.ly/bRqVsW. "Ned Zils of 9 Mason St, Flint, MI looks especially upset. Sorry, Ned!"
10/26/10
Japanese robot can investigate crawlspaces http://bit.ly/9ZQBzQ. Firmware update lets it negotiate with raccoons, skunks.