reality check

(Nathan Callahan)

Wisconsin Officials: Letter Warning Residents That Lawn Ornaments May Be Included In State Deer Tally Is Fake

In yet another instance proving you should not believe everything you read on Facebook, Wisconsin wildlife officials are trying to put the kibosh on a recent hoax letter making the rounds online, instructing people to make sure they remove deer lawn ornaments so they won’t be accidentally included in the state’s tally. [More]

Photo from Renee's visit to the deep-fried coffee booth.

Turns Out Deep-Fried Coffee Tastes Exactly How It Sounds

Last week the Internet was temporarily afire with the news that someone had decided to deep-fry Starbucks coffee and serve it up at the San Diego County Fair, and we wondered what fried balls of coffee grounds might taste like. As it turns out, it tastes exactly as awful as one might expect a mouthful of coffee grounds tastes like. [More]

(Alan Rappa)

Don’t Believe Comcast… Mobile Broadband Is Not Competition For Cable Internet

Merger-mad Comcast and Time Warner Cable would have you believe that they are in direct competition with mobile broadband. And Verizon has successfully misled the state of New Jersey into thinking that accessing the web on your phone is the same as having a high-speed data connection to your home. Both of these conceits may someday be accurate, but the reality of the here-and-now is quite different. [More]

BitTorrent To Saturday Night Live: “We’re Not A Website & We Don’t Pirate Movies”

BitTorrent To Saturday Night Live: “We’re Not A Website & We Don’t Pirate Movies”

While people are always saying “I BitTorrented that movie” or “I used BitTorrent to get my hands on some sweet porn,” they’re not talking about a website or a service. Instead, they’re talking about the method through which the shared file was obtained. This distinction was apparently lost on the writing staff at Saturday Night Live this weekend. [More]

This Video Comparison Of Broadband Vs. Google Fiber Isn’t Quite Accurate, But It Is Funny

This Video Comparison Of Broadband Vs. Google Fiber Isn’t Quite Accurate, But It Is Funny

Residents of Provo, UT, will soon be getting access to Google Fiber Internet service, so to illustrate the difference between Gigabit fiberoptic service and typical broadband, the mayor’s office cooked up a funny — if not entirely accurate — video. [More]

EPA Revises Fuel Mileage Numbers For Ford C-Max In Wake Of Consumer Reports Test

EPA Revises Fuel Mileage Numbers For Ford C-Max In Wake Of Consumer Reports Test

Back in December, our pals at the not-so-secret above-ground Consumer Reports auto-testing facility called into question the 47 miles per gallon (highway and city combined) number touted by Ford for its C-Max Hybrid, saying their tests showed a still-respectable but lower-than-advertised 37 mpg. Now, only a mere eight months later, the EPA is also saying that number should be lower. [More]

Dear Best Buy: This Is Why You Are Failing Online

Dear Best Buy: This Is Why You Are Failing Online

The folks at Best Buy HQ may not be quite sure who should be running the company, but they all seem to agree that Amazon and other online retailers are the reason behind the company’s dwindling market share. Yes, that’s partly true, but there is no reason the nation’s largest electronics retailer shouldn’t also have a successful website. Unfortunately, Best Buy seems to be making even more mistakes — and providing worse service — to its online customers. [More]

Abercrombie & Fitch Is NOT Using The N-Word To Sell Pants

Abercrombie & Fitch Is NOT Using The N-Word To Sell Pants

The Internet is abuzz right now with screen grabs and links to a site that claims to be an outlet for Abercrombie & Fitch and which also describes a pair of pants as being “Ni**er Brown.” Of course, some people are already getting angry at A&F, which is no stranger to controversy, but they might have missed that this is obviously not a legitimate Abercrombie website. [More]

Kinect For Windows Doesn't Mean You'll Be Playing Dance Central 2 On Your PC

Kinect For Windows Doesn't Mean You'll Be Playing Dance Central 2 On Your PC

When Microsoft announced earlier this week that it would be selling Kinect for Windows starting in February, a number of people envisioned a near future where they would be moving the cells around on their Excel spreadsheet by waving their hands, or finally getting quality motion controls for PC games that have never been ported to the Xbox 360. But neither of these situations is really what Kinect for Windows is about. [More]

Free Checking Accounts Heading The Way Of The Dodo

Free Checking Accounts Heading The Way Of The Dodo

For much of the last decade, more and more banks had been offering checking accounts with no monthly fees or minimum balance requirements. But a new study from BankRate.com shows that this trend appears to have ended. [More]

If The Bank Accidentally Gives You $11,000 And You Won't Give It Back, You're Gonna Get Arrested

If The Bank Accidentally Gives You $11,000 And You Won't Give It Back, You're Gonna Get Arrested

Bank error in your favor” may help you out in Monopoly, but in real life — you gotta give the money back. One New York man didn’t agree, and now he’s been arrested and has been charged with grand larceny.