The Office, "Costume Contest": Best Lines of the Night

The Office, "Costume Contest": Best Lines of the Night: "

I always love it when the Dunder Mifflin crew gets into the Halloween spirit on The Office. They're kooky enough as is, but whenever the holiday rolls around, they really let their freak flags fly (for proof of that, just click here). This year, everyone dresses up to enter the employee costume contest, even costume-averse Jim (though it takes some convincing on Pam's part). The competition's sought-after prize? A Scranton coupon book worth $15,000.

Most of the staff is wrapped up in the fun Halloween hijinks with the exception of MacGruber Michael. Once he discovers that Darryl went over his head to pitch an idea to corporate, his ego causes drama in the midst of the festivities. But perhaps Michael's concerns about being bested by Darryl are warranted; after all, someone has to take over when Michael inevitably leaves, right? Meanwhile, Pam and Jim confront Danny Cordray about why he never called Pam back after their date. Let's review some of the night's best lines when you read more.

• 'Very funny. It looks like someone decided to dress up as old Dwight Schrute's mom. You're only one third as beautiful and about half her height. She was one of the last real giants.' - Dwight, who is obviously confused by Pam's Olive Oyl costume


• 'Darryl Philbin is the greatest guy in the world. And you know what I'd like? I'd like to have all the racists brought together and take Darryl Philbin out to lunch just to see what they're missing.' - Michael, singing Darryl's praises in his usual inappropriate manner


• Michael: 'What are they talking about?'
  
  Dwight: 'Kevin and Gabe? Probably the extremes of the human physique.'


• 'How many freaking vampires am I supposed to care about these days?' - Stanley, who doesn't share in the True Blood craze


• 'I got two! I ate two whole apples!' - Erin, while bobbing for apples . . . and nearly drowning


• 'Best Edward James Olmos costume I've ever seen. Like freaky good.' - Creed, showing his admiration for Oscar's 'rational consumer' costume

Did you like the episode? Which costume was your favorite? And please, tell me you melted as much as I did when Jim came in as Popeye with Cece. I could talk about my favorite moments at length (particularly loved the cold open!), but let's get the discussion going in the comments. Or sound off with your thoughts in The Office community group.

Photo courtesy of NBC

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Zip Bed by Florida Furniture

Zip Bed by Florida Furniture: "

Forget everything your mother taught you about making your bed. This cool, contemporary Zip Bed by Italian company Florida Furniture is all about the zipper. The bed’s soft, gently rounded frame is padded and upholstered, and finished with a zipper running its perimeter. Simply zipper down at bedtime to reveal a cozy comforter, sheets and pillows. Talk about cocooning! Nothing is more inviting on a chilly night. And in the morning, this unique yet usable bed design offers instant neat – just wake up and zip up for a clean, clutter-free look. The Zip Bed is available in a dreamy palette of white, gray or blue. For more information visit Florida Furniture.

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The PlayStation Phone

The PlayStation Phone: "

It's hard to believe that what we're looking at is real -- but we assure you, the picture above is in fact the PlayStation Phone you've long been waiting for. As we reported back in August, the device you see is headed into the market soon, likely boasting Android 3.0 (aka Gingerbread), along with a custom Sony Marketplace which will allow you to purchase and download games designed for the new platform. The device snapped up top (and in our gallery below) is sporting a 1GHz Qualcomm MSM8655 (a chip similar to the one found in the G2, but 200MHz faster), 512MB of RAM, 1GB of ROM, and the screen is in the range of 3.7 to 4.1 inches. Looking almost identical to the mockup we hit you with this summer, the handset does indeed have a long touchpad in the center which is apparently multitouch, and you can see in the photos that it's still bearing those familiar PlayStation shoulder buttons. For Sony buffs, you'll be interested to know that there's no Memory Stick slot here, but there is support for microSD cards.



The particular model in these shots is still in prototyping mode. As such, the unit doesn't have a custom skin (not even SE's Timescape design seen on the Xperia devices), and is said to be rather buggy. We're digging into more facts as we speak, but it's likely that much of what we reported earlier is still accurate, and though the device could still be headed for a 2010 release, 2011 is looking much more realistic. Still, there's a lot of time between now and the holidays... so keep your fingers crossed!

Gallery: The PlayStation Phone

Gallery: PlayStation Phone details

The PlayStation Phone originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 26 Oct 2010 21:09:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Tesla to Open Model S Factory

Tesla to Open Model S Factory: "

The newly-tuned PR machine for electric car company Tesla has been firing on all four cylinders ever since the company hit the public market in June, and Wednesday morning is going to be one of the biggest days post-IPO for the Silicon Valley-backed firm: Tesla plans to open up its NUMMI plant in Fremont, Calif., where it will build its second-generation electric car, the Model S.

As we’ve reported before, the company is betting the farm on the Model S in terms of reaching profitability, and also for its chances to become more of a mainstream automaker. Tesla plans to phase out the current generation Tesla Roadster in 2011, and does not plan to begin selling its next generation Tesla Roadster until at least one year after the launch of the Model S, a sedan that will have 3 ranges and will cost around $50,000.

Until the launch of the Model S in late 2012 (it wont be widely sold until 2013) Tesla will have to keep churning out the press releases and media events in order to keep its stock up and consumers interested in its brand. A couple of weeks ago, Tesla gave factory tours of its Palo Alto, Calif. headquarters, complete with factory and lab space.

Tesla paid $42 million for the NUMMI plant — previously the production site for Toyota’s joint venture with General Motors — and closed that financing just weeks ago. Tesla has also purchased manufacturing equipment and spare parts for approximately $17 million, as well as operating permits, which will add another $7 million to the final tab. Over the next year, the company will pump a good portion of its IPO proceeds into retooling the plant that will start churning out the Model S by 2012.

In terms of the NUMMI factory itself, a Wired reporter described the factory’s stats as “5.5 million square feet,” containing “a plastics molding factory, two paint facilities, 1.5 miles of assembly lines, and a 50-megawatt power plant.”

For more on vehicles and IT check out GigaOM Pro (subscription required):

• Report: IT Opportunities in Electric Vehicle Management


• Mobility on Demand Takes Aim at Transport Networks’ “Last Mile”


• Electric Vehicles Give “Mobility as a Service” a Jumpstart

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Skype Boots Nimbuzz, Tightens Grip On Ecosystem

Skype Boots Nimbuzz, Tightens Grip On Ecosystem: "

Success, they say, comes at a price. Nimbuzz, the Rotterdam, Netherlands-based mobile VoIP startup which only recently crossed 150 million downloads and 30 million registered users, is breaking up with the big daddy of Internet telephony, Skype.

Until recently, Nimbuzz made it possible for Skype subscribers to exchange instant messages and make Skye-to-Skype calls via its mobile clients. But as the size of the company has grown, it has become more of a threat to Skype by the day. The Nimbuzz client is a meta-communication that allows you to use VoIP and IM services with pretty much all major networks including Facebook, Yahoo, AIM, Windows Live, Twitter, Google Talk and MySpace.

The shut down of Skype services will come on October 31, 2010. “Skype’s decision is unfair to its own and our users,” Nimbuzz CEO Evert Jaap Lugt said in a written statement. Nimbuzz claims that this shutdown is part of Skype cutting off access to all third-party VoIP services ahead of its IPO, but that is not the case, a Skype spokeswoman told us:

We believed that Nimbuzz’s application was in violation of Skype’s API Terms of Use and End User License Agreement (EULA). Skype offered to meet with Nimbuzz and discuss the issue; however, we have not heard back from them since our last correspondence with them in early August. Like any company that has APIs or an SDK, Skype has certain rules that guide the development of apps using those tools. Such rules help protect the Skype brand and our end user experience.

While it is clear that Nimbuzz and Skype have their own set of issues, a statement from Skype indicates that the company is cracking down on the use of Skype API/SDK on mobile handsets. When asked if Skype was preventing access by makers of mobile apps, a Skype spokeswoman sent the following response:

Currently, our APIs and SDK are designed for third-party hardware and desktop software application development. Distribution of a third-party Skype developer application through a mobile phone network operator or mobile handset manufacturer is only permitted with the prior written consent of Skype. Because of the way our software works and the differences between the mobile and PC ecosystems, we have these rules in place to protect the Skype brand and Skype user experience. To ensure this, we only work with mobile developers, operators, and handset manufacturers committed to delivering the best Skype user experience, as we’ve shown with 3, Nokia, Verizon and most recently KDDI.

Lucrative deals with phone companies like 3, Verizon Wireless and KDDI are making it clear where Skype sees its future revenues. Similarly, Skype has found major success with its apps on the iPhone, making it a good source of revenues in the future. And the company is clearly willing to do what it takes to protect both of those markets.

Related research from GigaOM PRO (subscription required):

• Report: The Consumer Video Chat Market, 2010-2015


• SkypeKit Analysis: SkypeKit: Skype’s Platform for CE-Based Communication


• Report: The Enterprise Videoconference Landscape, 2010 – 2015

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