creation

If you don't have a bag, pocket, or anywhere to stow that iPhone, how about kicking it around on your heels?

The iPhone Mashup Shoe was created by Alan Nguyen of Freedom of Creation, a 3D-printing house in Amsterdam.

The shoe was designed around iPhone cases from 3D-printed accessories site FreshFiber. You can see the cases in the base of the heel. … Read more

Few science fiction creatures are as misunderstood as the Facehugger monster from the "Alien" movies. It really just wants to hug your head and impregnate you with its horrific offspring. What's so wrong about that?

You can show your sensitivity to the plight of the Facehugger with a custom corset from prop and costume maker Rage Custom Creations. The Facehugger corset misses the face mark a little bit, but makes up for it by lovingly grasping your midsection and chest.… Read more

Figure (99 cents) lets you create a song with three tracks -- drums, bass, and synth lead -- through a series of taps on a beautifully designed touch interface. The easiest way to get started familiarizing yourself with Figure is simply by touching record, then holding drum sounds to lay down your first beat.

Once you're satisfied with your beat, touch the red Bass tab at the top to add a bass track. You'll see three circles at the top with Rhythm on the left (number of bass notes per eight bars) and Range in the middle (this adjusts what part of the scale your notes will come from). On the right side of the interface you'll see a circle divided up into pie pieces illustrating the steps of the scale -- the actual notes you are playing. Figure automatically makes sure you're in tune, only using notes from the same key. Once you've filled out the loop, let go and listen to your drum and bass lines.… Read more

One of the fastest ways to share multiple documents with a lot of people is to convert the related files into a mini-Web site. Free site-creation services do all the heavy lifting.

Insta-site services range from the no-muss, no-fuss Page-o-rama to the business-focused features of Google Sites. If you can do without advanced features, Weebly's drag-and-drop approach to page design lets you create a fairly sophisticated mini-site in just minutes.

With Google Sites and Weebly, you paste text and images into prefab page templates. As you create new pages, site-navigation links are generated automatically. Page-o-rama is merely an online … Read more

Google Calendar has Web, smartphone, and even desktop applications to help make managing your schedule an easy process. But if you don't want to fuss with any applications and just want to add a quick reminder to your Calendar, sending an SMS is the best method. There's a little bit of setup involved, but it's quick and painless.

Step 1: Log in to Google Calendar on the Web and go to the Settings menu in the top right corner (click the cog and then go to Settings).

Step 2: Go to the Mobile Setup tab in the … Read more

Gmail is set up to create a new contact for each e-mail you send. However, there are times when this can be more of a hassle than a handy tool. For instance, if you are replying to a lot of Craigslist ads for different pieces of furniture to put in your new apartment, your contacts list will likely get cluttered with nonsense e-mail addresses. Luckily there is an easy option that you can readily toggle off and on to control this feature of Gmail. Here's how:

Step 1: Log in to Gmail.

Step 2: Open the "Mail settings&… Read more

AMSTERDAM, The Netherlands--Not long ago, I asked Scott Summit, a pioneer in using 3D printing in the design of custom prosthetics and an industrial design expert, who he would recommend I look into if I wanted to see the best in the world at using this young technology to make and sell consumer products. His answer, without hesitation? A small company run by Janne Kyttanen in the Dutch capital called Freedom of Creation.

In the late 1990s, Kyttanen had a vision. As a student in design school, he was turned off by traditional product manufacturing, storage, and distribution methods, and … Read more

Quick response codes, QR for short, can be used to store many different types of information. For instance, they can store a phone number, a Web address, and even a map location. If you'd like to add a QR code to your Web site or print one on another product (such as a business card or promotional T-shirt), there are free QR generator sites that will allow you to do this. Follow these quick steps to help you create QR codes for personal or business use.

1. Open http://zxing.appspot.com/generator/ … Read more

AOL is targeting its editorial divisions to teach them a new "way" of doing business.

BusinessInsider is reporting that it has acquired a leaked document from AOL that outlines the company's editorial strategy through 2011. Dubbed "The AOL Way," the 58-page document is reportedly designed to be a guide for editors, writers, and other content creators on what is expected of them in the coming months.

The document first discusses the company's traffic goals for the next few months. It claims about 31,000 pieces of content were produced by AOL editors and writers … Read more