Do you find that your “new” menu when you right-click is rather overcrowded with all of the different extensions of files you have available?

I do and it tends to make things slower even on the fastest of computers.

Nir Sofer (NirSoft) has created the freeware utility ShellMenuNew that allows you to disable any unwanted entries in the “new” menu.

It’s a standalone program, so it runs directly from the exe file without needing to install. It’s small weighing in at a mere 40KB. It’s also been translated into seven languages.

At CES 2010, Oregon Scientific unveiled the Wireless Appliance Manager. It is a savvy and rather sexy geekery that monitors and shows you–in real time–how much power you’re sucking from the line and how much money the line is sucking from you. Not to mention the amount of CO² you emit. Again, in real time.

The Manager comes in two versions: basic and advanced. The basic version–retailing at $60–can only receive a signal from one appliance. The advanced version–retailing at $80 plus extra transmitters–can receive signals from up to eight appliances at once. With either version, a programmable timer allows you to control sockets which turns the Manager into a control panel for your lights and appliances.

I can’t wait for the product to be available to consumers. I wasn’t able to find out a release date on the Manager, but I hope it’s sometime soon. These would make great gifts for anyone: the budget conscious, the greenie, or the curious.

[Parts of this post via Popular Mechanics]

Oh how I loved gummy bears growing up. The taste was rather gross and the texture was either extremely sticky or powdery (the more expensive gummies had a powder coating presumably so they wouldn’t stick together so much)… But I still adored the rare moments I had with gummy bears. I don’t remember the name of the brand I used to love so much, but I’m sure it can be found at a Cracker Barrel store or in one of those decade candy boxes (I was born at the beginning of the 90s, so we can count me as an 80s-90s cusp kid, I suppose).

Cindy at Skip To My Lou offers a fast and easy recipe for homemade gummies. Read on. »

The London metropolitan police collected nearly 3,600 tons of recyclable metals last year–guns, keys, and knives–and will be melting down a good chunk of that–58 tons, to be exact–for use in the construction of the 2012 Olympic stadium in Stratford.  In addition to the guns, keys, and knives, the police force collected and melted down 31 additional tons of bullets, casings, jewelry, and photo frames. I wonder if they’ll recycle it when they’re done…

I enjoy reading paperback books, but I hate having to hold them. Most of them are too small to hold with two hands. While holding them with only one hand–in that odd position using your pinky, index finger, and thumb to hold the book open–gives my hand cramps like you wouldn’t believe. That’s where the ThumbThing comes in handy.

From the site: “put the Thumbthing onto your thumb and place into the spine of the book. The two wings will hold the pages open more easily, making reading more comfortable.”

You can purchase ThumbThing from a brick-and-mortar retailers around the world or a few online stores at $4 USD. It comes in 4 sizes and several nifty bright colors.

I’m considering buying a few for myself to keep around the house, my car, and my backpack for easy paperback reading anytime, anywhere.