Small “tackle boxes” are well known to all, used far beyond fishing purposes. Also well known is how short their lifespans are, their plastic cracking or even shattering far sooner than we ever hope. Winter is death to these things.

It’s the material, right? Over 20 years ago, I got a small Mighty Tuff box to carry fuses (for telecom work). I’ve still got it, and it’s intact. A little yellower than it was new, but still clear and undamaged. I’ve got a lot more of them now, all kicking along nicely. They’re simple, reliable and do their jobs as expected.

Can’t expect more from a Cool Tool than that.

This is the most helpful guide to user-interface design I’ve seen. It conveys what science knows about human behavior and how that should influence your design of a website or app. Why fight instincts? Here are 100 useable tips, explained, on taking advantage of the natural tendencies in the way our eyes, brains, and emotions work. Some of the 100 tips are common sense, and some are revelatory. Each is revealed with a principle, some examples, and a takeaway. I use this set as a kind of informal check-list of possibilities. As more of our life migrates to the web, it is ever more important to remember that design is about function, and not just good looks. This overlooked gem of a book encapsulates a lot of wisdom on how to make the functional work for people.

Printing in 3D is now no more complicated than printing photos in Picasa. First you design something in Autodesk 123D (in my case, my first project was a device housing prototype). Then pick “Make” from the menu. You can print your object on your desktop printer, like a Makerbot (moderate quality, now), or you press another button to have it printed (high quality, later) on a commercial printer. Enter your credit card (my prototype, shown here, cost $24) and a week later it’s delivered to your house. Wow.

Best of all, 123D is free. This is the future of fabrication.

I love scissors. I use them in my kitchen, in the laundry room, at my desk, and throughout my apartment. Yet, I rarely have a pair with me while on the go. Or, at least I rarely had a pair with me until I found the KUM Pencut.

Traditional scissors are potentially hazardous items to throw in a bag (which is why I never used to carry a pair with me). They rarely come with a sheath, and without protection the likelihood of dulling the blades, or accidentally tearing a hole in your bag (or hand) is significant.

The KUM Pencut is an ingeniously designed pair of scissors that masquerades as a pen. When folded the blades are kept hidden beneath a sturdily affixed pen cap. The pen-like form gives the impression that there is nowhere for your fingers to go, but pull the plastic sliders down and two pieces of nylon fold out creating comfortable finger holds.

Outside of being cleverly designed, the scissors are very sharp, while also having full tang blades (which gives the scissors a surprising sturdiness). With the cap on, it’s very easy to mistake the scissors for just another pen that I’ve slipped into a pen-holder in my bag; it also means that it stays in place, and is there when I need it.

The biggest downside to these scissors is the price, but given they’re sturdy build and how many conversations they’ve started I’m confident it’s worth it.

Long live kits! Here is a fantastic collection of 175 of the best kits available today. Each one selected, tested, and reviewed by the folks at Make magazine. Each kit is rated on five criteria.

Kits offer many of the benefits (fun, thriftiness, satisfaction, personalization) of making something yourself while removing many of the hurdles. A kit relieves you of sourcing all the parts (only a mildly creative task), insures compatibility of ingredients, and increases the likelihood you’ll finish it and that the project will work. These are no small advantages, and worth the small extra expense of a kit — which may still be less than buying a similar product. This kind of directed assistance is perfect for kids, giving them confidence they can eventually build things without kits.

Kits are also perfect and cheap way for adults to try out new areas of interest. In recent years I’ve completed a number of kits to get a feel for a brand new craft. My greatest achievement was in making a dulcimer from a kit.  I’ve also made some things from kits that did not work as advertised, which is why the recommendations from Make are worth getting.

Kits have been around a long time but are undergoing a renaissance due to innovations in fabrication which permit small economical runs for niche products. There’s an intoxicating variety to choose from. About half of the kits reviewed in Make’s Guide involve electronics, but the other half are refreshingly diverse. There’s a kit to make a working replica of the original Apple I computer, or to make airplanes (both model and actual), an egg decorating machine, RC vehicles of all sorts, real boats, complex scientific tools, cool toys and rockets, food and wine-making, and various musical instruments.

Of course, kits make great gifts, too. I recommend this Guide as a first step, or even as a gift itself.

[Note: Two of the kits featured in the Make Guide were first reviewed here at Cool Tools: Dean Knudson's review of Eskimold and Mark Fowalter's review of Pygmy Coho Kayak Kit.--OH]