CurbTXT is a sweet idea. It could turn San Francisco into a wonderland of parking good deeds, helping people avoid fines and giving them the opportunity to move their vehicles before they get towed.
Or, you know, allow you to tell the person who parks so close to your car in the parking lot that you can’t actually open the door to get in (on a 7 degree morning, no less) that they’ve kinda been a dick. One way or the other, I suppose!
(CNet)
io9 invites us to “bask in the metallic magnificence” of this VW Beetle turned dinosaur sculpture. But, to combine another article from the same site, can we call it that? While doing just what was suggested and planning a quick post over here, I encountered a story about New York City schools’ planned ban on certain words for standardized tests. These are words that might make some students feel “uncomfortable.” Like “dinosaur.”
This all leaves me feeling distinctly…something. Not sure if “uncomfortable” is quite the word for it. Perhaps “flabbergasted” more aptly covers the emotion?
Not only is Audi not bringing us the newest A3 until model year 2013, they are now on the fence about whether to bring the Q3 (a 2012 in Europe) to the US until even later. This dithering has already swayed me to the Volvo camp for the next lease (test driving this Thursday to be sure) but now they are letting US auto journalists like Autoblog drive the forbidden Q3?!
Audi, you are a cruel temptress. (And I think you know that.)
[…] a modern economy requires “collective action”—it needs government to invest in infrastructure, education, and technology. The United States and the world have benefited greatly from government-sponsored research that led to the Internet, to advances in public health, and so on. But America has long suffered from an under-investment in infrastructure (look at the condition of our highways and bridges, our railroads and airports), in basic research, and in education at all levels.
In light of Pennsylvania’s genius decision to potentially slash funding for public higher education, the recent Vanity Fair article “Of the 1%, by the 1%, for the 1%” was most apropos.
Well, isn’t this a lovely little car? “What is it?” I hear you asking. Well, friends, this is Audi’s preview of the next A3. As a sedan.
This would be about when the sound of a record scratch would be queued.
As many of you know, I really am a fan of the hatchback/small station wagon body style. Thus is why I own the current A3. So seeing this wickedly sharp-looking small sedan is causing me some concerns. I like it just fine, don’t get me wrong, it’s just not really what I thought the next A3 was going to be about.
Judging by the comments on several North American auto sites, though, it definitely is what Audi needs the A3 to be if it wants to sell them like hotcakes here. The US readers, especially, are falling over themselves to claim that they’ll be the first one to line up, cash in hand, when the car launches. And that’s great!
But not without my hatch. You can call this a “notchback” or a “four dour coupé” if you must, Audi, but it’s really a sedan and you know that. “It harkens back to the B5 series A4!” you have stated, too. Which really only means the B8 series (current) A4 has gotten too big for its britches.
I get it. I just don’t want it for myself. Give me an A3 Avant, A3 Sportback, etc – just don’t leave us hanging. It would be a shame to see Ford bringing a truly remarkable European hatchback to the States just as Audi takes theirs away.
On the positive side of things, I’m really digging the new interior:
We need more high-end hot hatches to change our perceptional relationship between size and value, or someday we’ll all be driving performance-chipped diesel pickups…
Over at Jalopnik, Mike Spinelli takes the Audi RS3 on a forbidden North American test drive and comes away with Ten Reasons America Needs the Audi RS3 Sportback. I could add a dozen other hot hatch models to that list, half of which don’t even stray out of the VW empire!
I have been rather despondent over the transformation of the SciFi Channel into this abomination that is Syfy. It wasn’t so bad at first but then the cancelations began. Namely, the axing of Caprica which I moaned about earlier. Then SGU – a canceled Stargate series at that! Most recently it was the inclusion of increasingly ridiculous shows more akin to TLC (also a disappointment as a network lately). Take WCG Ultimate Gamer, the plethora of Ghost Hunters or WWE wrestling as examples.
My excitement, then, over the promo for Face Off is ludicrously boundless. A show that, while not strictly science fiction, at least features the world of making science fiction as it searches for the next great makeup artist. PLEASE DON’T SCREW THIS ONE UP, SYFY!
From the designer’s mind to the web, Autoblog gives us a run down on this traffic light concept from Thanva Tivawong. With at least twelve of the bastards between me and my parking lot – just 2.6 miles away – I’m now on constant lookout for ways to maximize green-time and win at the white line.
What was it about the casting of Ghostbusters? It seems all of the most eccentric people somehow made their way into the 1984 film. We have Dan Akroyd serving up diamond filtered vodka in crystal skulls and ranting about UFOs and now Bill Murray giving a 1982 speech that sounds like something from the Unabomber:
I guess we know that the right actors were chosen, at the very least. And that Bill Murray’s apparent befuddlement over the high tech world of Lost in Translation was authentic.
Now this is customer service the way it was meant to be:
Dear Nicholas,
We’re so sorry but due to an inventory error we were unable to fulfill your order for a Diesel Footwear Leather Color Block Low Top Sneakers. Please note we have not charged your credit card for this item.
We apologize for this inconvenience and aim to serve you better next time you shop. We will credit your account with an additional $25.00 to use towards your next purchase on our site.
Please feel free to contact our customer care team at support@gilt.com.
Thank you,
Gilt Groupe
No, thank you, Gilt. I will absolutely be coming back to use that $25 because no one could ever accuse you of being a hassle to deal with.