Holiday Gift Guides: 2009

It’s the holiday season again, so that means it’s time for the most sacred of rituals: Tech holiday gift guides. So far, I’ve offered up some ideas on two episodes of the MacJury podcast, and part 1 of The Mac Observer’s holiday gift guide is ready for your reading pleasure, too.

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The MacJury podcast episodes (Part 1 and Part 2) were loads of fun thanks Chuck Joiner’s ability to throw together just the right mix of people to ensure an, um, eclectic mix of gift ideas. I was lucky enough to get to rub virtual elbows with author Joe Kissell, Jean MacDonald from SmileOnMyMac, TUAW’s Steve Sande, Pat Fauquet from MacMouseCalls, Julio Ojeda-Zapata from the Pioneer Press, and TMO’s own Nancy Gravley.

The holiday gift guide over at TMO includes staff picks for the Mac, iPod and iPhone lover in your life — and it’s only part 1, so there’s more to come.

Even if you don’t celebrate any gift giving holidays, the lists still include some fun ideas for tech stuff you can pick up for yourself. And if anyone is keeping track, I don’t have a TARDIS USB hub of my own yet. *Cough*

Tech Pillows: For Your Sleepy Inner Nerd

OK, I just want to make sure everyone understands right up front that I don’t have some kind of pillow fetish just because I happen to come across cool stuff that so happens to be, well, pillow shaped. That said, how can you possibly resist something as cool as your own RSS pillow, or maybe your own Mac app pillow set?

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The brilliantly talented crew at Throwboy turned Mac application icons — along with the standard RSS badge — into sweet pillowy goodness. They recreated the Finder, iTunes, iChat, iPhoto, Photo Booth and Dashboard all in fleece so you can snuggle up with your favorite app even when your Mac isn’t on the couch with you.

But wait! There’s more! Along with the RSS pillow, they also have a series of chat bubble pillows with classic sayings like “OMG,” FML,” and my favorite, “wtf.”

Each pillow will set you back $29, or you can choose any six for $149. I’m already eyeing the RSS pillow. And maybe the Finder. OK, and “wtf,” too. Oh, man… FML.

Adobe, Now in Sweet Pillowy Goodness

After spending a long day with your face buried deep in Photoshop, Illustrator and InDesign, what do you want to rest your talented little head on? How about Adobe application icon pillows. Yeah, me too.

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The clever gang at mysuitestuff whipped up a collection of hand-made pillows that let you bring Adobe’s app icons off your Desktop and onto your couch so you never have to worry about letting the Creative Suite get too far away. They have pillows for Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, Flash, Dreamweaver and After Effects. Each costs $15, and you can get the whole set for $80.

I’m thinking Photoshop will feel nice and comfy behind my head, but Dreamweaver will definitely go under my butt.

I Am Your Plaything. Really.

Not everyone can brag that there is a paper cut out doll version of themselves, and technically there isn’t one of me. But there really kind of is. Through some weird twist in the parallel universe cross-over nexus point thingy, Geek Culture’s Nitrozac created a paper doll me. OK, it’s actually one of the After Y2K characters, but it sure looks like me.

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There are a couple different versions of this little digital wonder: A Shockwave-based version and an HTML version suitable for for printing, cutting out, and dressing up on your desk. The printable version had the unexpected side effect of making my nieces think it is totally normal for paper doll versions of their uncle to exist.

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The end result, dear reader, is that you can have a little piece of me with you any time you like, all thanks to the deliciously talented Nitrozac.

Dress me up, or make me run around your office in my underpants. Bend me to your will. I am your plaything.