[In my previous posting, I discussed the shortcomings of the digital alarm clock and what my goals were for the ideal clock. A link to that posting is at the bottom of this one.] How the Clock Works — from the Outside. Our clock has only three interface elements; a big blue display (the...

With everyone at the Consumer Electronics Show drooling over giant flat screen TVs and miniature tablet-shaped supercomputers, I thought it would be interesting to take a look at a common consumer device that we STILL haven’t gotten right after a hundred years or so: the alarm clock. You...