Cool tools really work. A cool tool can be any book, gadget, software, video, map, hardware, material, or website that is tried and true. All reviews on this site are written by readers who have actually used the tool and others like it. Items can be either old or new as long as they are wonderful. We only post things we like and ignore the rest. Suggestions for tools much better than what is recommended here are always wanted. Tell me what you love.
Cool Tools Untried look cool, but -- buyer beware -- may seem cooler than they actually are. Neither I nor any of our reviewers has actually used the items below, so we can't endorse them or speak from experience. If you have used any of these and can report (positively or negatively) -- or if you have a similar item you love -- please let us know. Until then, here's some intriguing stuff.
-- Steven Leckart
Optx 20/20 Soft Reading Lenses
Reusable stick-on bi-focals
Available from Optx 20/20 and Amazon
(thanks Dean!)
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Digital Nutrition Scale
Precision dieting
Available from EatSmart and Amazon
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Glo Glov
Safety reflective gloves
Available from Glo Glov
(via Bike Hugger)
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Dexpan
Controlled, non-explosive demolition agent
Available from Archer Company and Amazon
(thanks David!)
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The Solar Food Dryer
DIY sun-powered grub dehydration
Available from Amazon
(via Mother Earth News)
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Cost Controller Power Strip
Digitally displays power consumption in kilowatt hours
Available from Computer Gear
(via EcoGeek)
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Knot Tying Cards
Key-ring size knot instructions
Available from Brigade Quartermasters
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World Pro Instant Air
Portable pneumatic system
Available from World Tools and Amazon
See here for a video demo
(thanks Drew!)
Related items previously reviewed on Cool Tools:
COOL TOOLS UNTRIED - 2003
COOL TOOLS UNTRIED - 2004
FuBar Demolition Tool
Smart Power Strip
Error avoidance tips
Mistakes are NOT inevitable, but the logical consequences of remediable design. As such, it's so much easier to avoid them than to correct them, especially if each one becomes a link in a chain of events that go off the rails as a result. If I'd continued in academia, perhaps eventually chairing a department, I'd buy as many copies of this book as there were members of my department -- faculty, residents, nurse anesthetists, medical students. It's slim (72 pages) and easy to understand -- no formal process(es) to follow. Instead, the book provides several seemingly simplistic but very useful rules of thumb anyone can adopt. As Chase & Stewart write: "You don't need a Ph.D. in statistics to apply it. In reality, mistake-proofing is more like a structured form of common sense." For example: "The key to creating mistake-proofing devices and procedures is not to do too much at once. Instead, concentrate on clever, inexpensive methods to check for only one mistake at a time. If you have two possible mistakes, develop two separate devices or procedures to catch them." Right on!
-- Joseph Stirt
Mistake-Proofing: Designing Errors Out
Richard B. Chase & Douglas M. Stewart
2007, 72 pages
$16 - print
$10 - download
Available from Lulu
Sample Excerpts
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The best way to ensure the detection of a mistake is to make sure that something in the environment makes it very obvious that one has been made. A good example of an environmental cue is the inevitable "extra" parts that remain after a do-it-yourself repair project. These parts make it very clear that you have not reassembled the item correctly.
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Machine mistakes, being generally mechanical in nature, are better understand than human mistakes. They are, therefore, more predictable and easier to control. If we look closely at the different types of machine mistakes, we see that they fall into two categories: those mistakes we can see coming and those that catch us unaware.
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Employees experience a continuous stream of encounters - one defect is a low failure rate. Customers experience a single defect as a 100% failure rate.
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Toyota, which is very experienced at mistake-proofing, averages about twelve devices for each machine.
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Go/No-Go gauges are not limited to the shop floor. Customers often use such gauges to detect and prevent mistakes. Some amusement park rides require riders to be above a certain height (so they do not slip through the safety restraints) or below a certain height (to keep larger people off of rides meant only for small children). Parks do not want customers to discover they are too small or large after waiting in a potentially very long line. By placing a gauge at he front of the line, customers can tell if they are tall enough (or short enough) to go on the ride without waiting in line.
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Mistakes are random events and therefore we must continuously watch for them. Sampling is not good enough. It looks at only a small proportion of the outputs in a process.
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Most importantly, mistake-proofing is the only method we know that includes customers' actions in the quality control system. The importance of this is emphasized by one study that estimates that customers of services are responsible for one-third of the problems they complain about.
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Remember that the goal is to develop clever, simple and inexpensive devices. Don't immediately opt for the high-tech solution.
Related items previously reviewed on Cool Tools:
Serious Play
Peopleware
Slack
Dual-sided carabiner
S-Biners are much lighter than conventional carabiners and have two attachment points, which really comes in handy when you need to quickly attach and detach things. When I stumbled on these at Frys recently, I picked them up right away. I'm a product design engineer so whenever I see a simple elegant design, I just have to get it. I now use a #2 for my backpack and a #1 for my keychain; I like to clip just my motorcycle key to my jacket, so I don't have to root through my pockets, and I also like to separate my car key when I take it in for service. The two attachment points really makes this easier. On a recent bike camping trip, we also used them in a pinch to hold my friends panniers in place. In addition to various sizes, S-Biners even come in a variety of colors. Just don't use 'em for climbing.
-- Cormac Eubanks
Nite Ize S-Biner
$5
(size 2, black)
Available from Amazon
Other sizes/colors also available from Amazon
Manufactured by Nite Ize
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Grocery Bag Panniers
Sigg Aluminum Water Bottles
Black Stallion Cowhide Welding Jacket
Relocation advice
Since I seem to move house every six months or so, I have ample opportunities to test new strategies. This time around I experimented by putting plastic storage totes through FedEx Ground, and for the items I moved myself I used cardboard boxes with the addition of nonadhesive strapping tape and tubular handles. Much quicker and easier, less effort, no breakages, big success.
-- Charles Platt
Plastic Totes via FedEx
Wal-Mart sells them for storing items such as bedding and clothes in the home, but their semi-rigid construction makes them ideal for moving fragile possessions such as dishes and stereo components. They are stackable, waterproof, easy to pick up (recessed handle at each end), reusable (can be nested during storage), and will pass unscathed through FedEx ground. Best of all they barely cost more than cardboard boxes! My local FedEx-Kinko's was skeptical about accepting them for fear that the lids would pop off during transport. I allayed their fears by putting 2-inch tape around the perimeter of the lid and folding it under the rim. I had to make little notches in the tape so that it would seal properly either side of plastic strengthening ribs under the rim, but this was still much easier, quicker, and safer than using cardboard. Wal-Mart sells gray Sterilite brand totes (the type I prefer) through its stores, but not online. Models 1830 and 1835 are the ones I have tested through FedEx without any problems. You can pay a little more and get "latch totes" (models 1940 and 1945 with a flip-up latch at each end) but since you'll still need to add tape, I feel the latches are unnecessary. (NOTE: One reader pointed out that plastic totes may buckle if they are stored in a very hot place with heavy objects on top of them. I haven't encountered this problem myself, but I do follow the standard practice of filling each container to minimize empty space inside it)
Strapping Tape
If you still want to use cardboard boxes for items you move yourself, or if you are moving stacks of books secured with cling wrap (as I have suggested previously), consider adding half-inch nonadhesive plastic strapping tape. This is the stuff you sometimes see wrapped around boxes containing big items such as refrigerators being transported as freight. Often it's yellow in color. Shipping departments have a tensioner that they use to pull the tape tight, but you don't need that. You can get 3000 feet of half-inch strapping and a lot of little buckles, with a manual tensioner, for $36. You thread the tape through the buckle, pull up on it while bearing down on the box, and you have it as tight as you need it. You trim the tape near the buckle. The advantages are that it greatly strengthens the box while giving you something to grab it by, especially if you augment it with a handle (described below). Also you can link two or three boxes together so that you can carry them easily with one hand, especially up and down stairs. Much more efficient and secure than cradling boxes in your arms, less hazardous (you can see your feet and obstacles in your path), and less risk of back injury, since you don't have to stoop to pick them up. Note that FedEx and UPS don't like string or strapping that can snag their package processing machinery, so strapping is for transporting packages yourself or with assistance from movers.
DIY Box Handles
Make handles from half-inch plastic water pipe sawn into 5" lengths. My local Lowe's sold me six feet of pipe for around $3 and you can use any wood saw to cut it. You may feel this is a luxury, but if you want to protect your hands from the edges of the plastic tape, handles are nice to have.
Thread tape through handle.
Turn box upside-down and cross the tape ends.
Turn box right-side-up and thread one of the returning tape ends through the handle.
Add the buckle.
After pulling the tape tight, your box is now very easy to carry.
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Lay-It-Out
Moving Heavy Things
Furniture Sliders
For the last year, I've loved commuting to work on this electric scooter because it's powerful enough to ride in traffic, but doesn't feel like a motorcycle. Before settling on the eGO Cycle 2 SE, I test drove a bigger bike and smaller one from a different manufacturer, but I liked the eGO best, which has turn signals in front and back, a headlight, and a horn. There are two settings: "Go Far" and "Go Fast." I find I can get up to 23 mph or so with Go Fast, though I usually use Go Far, which has a max speed of about 18 mph. The guy who sold it to us said it has a range of about 20 miles and takes about an hour to recharge. I keep it plugged in regularly and have not let it run down much since I got it. I am fortunate to have locked, indoor parking with an outlet at my work, so this is easy. My commute to work is 1.6 miles, but I have ridden the bike up to 10 miles with plenty of charge left. In Oregon, this qualifies as a bike, even though it's motorized, so it does not require a motorcycle license. I had not ridden a motorcycle before, so I had to train myself that "go" was controlled by my right hand and that the handle motion was toward me, not away from me (away was more intuitive to me for some reason). I wear a motorcycle helmet with a face screen. I prefer the protection while riding in traffic and like the face protection from wind, rain and bugs. I have ridden in light to medium rain but not downpours. In those conditions, I've found the traction fine and just slow down a bit. I have ridden only on surface streets -- in bike lanes or with traffic (the bike does not do well in gravel). Since I put a milk crate on the back, it's easy to haul stuff. I've noticed I get lots of thumbs up and smiles when I ride, too -- pretty certain they're directed at the bike. I remind my husband regularly that in addition to being a fun ride, it seems to be a guy magnet.
-- Mary Gear
eGO
$1550+
(depends on model)
Available via US & Overseas Dealers
Previously available from Amazon
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Go-Ped
Golden Eagle Bike Engine
Ultimate MX Hauler Motorcycle Carrier
Illuminated writing device
I'm an aircraft owner and use this very powerful LED-powered pen during night flying, but also while traveling on commercial flights and mostly at odd times: crosswords, fishing for something in the car at night, etc. The lighting and ink are independently controlled, so in addition to being effective, it's easy to use: the button on top is on/off for the light and the pen rotates to retract the ink. I've had some promotional-type LED pens in the past, but the button cells burn out and then it's difficult to replace them. This pen runs on a single AAA cell, which is easy to find and replace. The pen also comes with an extra battery and ink cartridge for $20 (with shipping) -- not too bad.
-- Robert Cullinan
Pilot's Pen
$20
Available from Amazon
Manufactured by Britta Products
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Pentel Pocket Brush Pen
Boeing/Pratt & Whitney Surplus Sales
Hobby-Lobby
Comfortable, durable nylon band for timepieces
I never take my watch off, and this watch band has held up through two years of hiking, yard work, showers, swimming, etc. The original british grey nylon has weathered a bit, but the stainless steel hardware still looks great, and there is no fraying or visible wear on the tough nylon strap. I have the two-buckle version, but there is a a four-buckle version for extra security. The long tail of the strap doubles back through the keepers and stays out of the way. I never liked the way rubber straps feel on my skin, but the nylon in this band has never irritated or chafed.
-- Brad Reese
They take a licking and keep on ticking. Much more comfortable and uncluttered than traditional watchbands, especially for those that work on keyboards all day. Sun, snow, salt: they handle it all. And when they finally wear out, a new one costs $17.
-- PJL
Zulu Watch Bands
$17
(various colors/sizes/buckles)
Available from County Comm
Manufactured by Maratac Extreme
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Casio Protrek Solar Watch
Cinch Belts
Swatch Original
Wireless memory card
I am a dermatologist and often take clinical photos of my patients with a digicam to add to their electronic medial records. With the Eye-Fi, a wireless 2GB SD memory card, I can take a photo and by the time I return to my computer the photo is waiting for me. Set up is very easy. You just plug the card in like you would any other memory card, do some basic configuration (the software works with Mac/PC) and you can send photos to the computer via the wi-fi you configure, or send direct to an online site like Flickr. You can also set the card up so several wi-fi are recognized (home or office, for instance), although you must program each individually. If you are using remote wi-fi access (that you have set up), needless to say, you will only be able to put photos online. In the office, we use the Eye-Fi to send to a local computer only. For someone with a built-in or USB SD card reader or Bluetooth, the Eye-Fi may have less benefits. For my purposes, it's spectacular. Previously, all patient photos would be downloaded as a batch and then each would be tediously attached at the end of the day. With the Eye-Fi, the photos are made available right away and they can be attached right when we write each patient's note. The flow is much better. Surprisingly, I haven't noticed any issues with the card draining the battery either. A few caveats: at any one time, one card can communicate with only one computer and one online site. You can, however, set up your account so your card can communicate with multiple computers. In order to switch computers, you go into the Eye-Fi manager on your computer and change the settings (i.e. if you're switching from work and home). While my use and situation may be unique, I also started my somewhat technophobic father-in-law on an Eye-Fi several months ago and it's been working well for him. Previously, he used to just fill up cards and then buy a new one (luckily, with the price of SD cards, that was still cheaper than film, but this is much better!). All he has to do is remember to keep both the camera and computer on, and the Eye-Fi enables him to share his photos online with us with virtually no trouble. At first, he had a few issues and concluded the card was broken. However, I showed him all he needed to do was make sure the computer was on with the Eye-Fi manager running (it can be set up to automatically run when you boot your computer). Undoubtedly, this technology has major potential to revolutionize digital photography as we know it. I look forward to future drivers that could support instant upload via any unlocked wi-fi your camera wanders near.
-- Jeff Ellis
$100
Available from Amazon
Manufactured by Eye-Fi
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Lumix TZ1
Picnik Photo Editor
Bonzai Expandable Flash Drive
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