Bridget Carey, a reporter on The Herald's business staff, writes about technology and reviews a new gadget every Tuesday in her 60-second video reviews. She also authors the tech blog, Cache & Carey, and Poked, a blog about social networking etiquette for the working world. She asked this of Steve Greenberg, author of Gadget Nation: A Journey Through the Eccentric World of Invention (2008: Sterling Publishing, $19.95):

Question: A good portion of the inventors you profiled said they aren't making much money from their products. As a self-described inventor groupie, how did that impact you as you wrote the book?

Answer: When picking the products and the inventors to showcase in Gadget Nation, I first evaluated the gadget: Was it ''off beat,'' useful, solved a problem, was it fun, intrinsically interesting? Next I wanted a mix of inventors -- different ages, different parts of the country and both genders. (Third, I needed the inventor to be willing to sign the Sterling release form -- which was a huge obstacle for some inventors.) Each product's success or lack of success was never part of my decision process. In fact when I was interviewing the inventors, I usually asked the very loaded question, ''So, how are you doing?'' at the very end of the interview. The response was always a surprise. Very clever gadgets were losing hundreds of thousands of dollars -- some goofy gadgets were making big money. Predicting the winners from the ''non-winners'' was almost impossible. Success seems to have more to do with marketing than the actual nature of the gadget.

As for how the inventor's success impacted me, well, I was thrilled hearing about some of the big money winners in the book. Their stories of success -- beating the odds -- were all inspiring. These are men and women who not only invented a product but also re-invented their lives.

As for the other inventors -- I would never call them losers. It takes guts to attempt to bring an idea to the marketplace and these inventors are still on the ``journey.''

I had to admit some of these stories really tugged at my heart. Several of these inventors have cashed in their 401K, taken a second mortgage on the house, and used the kids college fund to make their product a success. It's hard to know when to give up. As an outsider listening to these stories, and being rather financially conservative myself (a k a cheap), I found these stories very painful. In just about every case, the inventors would send me a sample of their product (I have the clutter in my home to prove it); one inventor's story was so sad, she was in the hole so deep, that I insisted on paying for her product. Keep in mind, the inventor was not sad -- just my take on her story was sad -- she still believes she will make it -- it just hasn't happened . . . yet. You can't help but feel a connection with these people.

I should add that many people who have read Gadget Nation had contacted me -- some read the book and say they would never take the risk and go down the invention road -- others reading the same book, say the stories have inspired them to patent their product and bring it to market.

Whether the inventor is making millions or still looking for success, they approach this process with passion and unending optimism. After all, they are chasing the American Dream.

Question:What was your favorite category of products to write about and why? (On the Go, At Play, Electronics, What Goes In..., ...Must Come Out, You at Your Best, At Rest, or At Home.)

A: Picking a favorite product or a favorite category is like asking someone to pick their favorite child. I love them all. That said, I guess the category ''Must Come Out'' gave me the most laughs. That's the category that covers bathroom products -- and there are lots and lots of them. In fact, I had to cut that category down -- I've decided that there are so many bathroom gadget ideas because the bathroom is a quite place to sit and think.

From an Aquariass (that combines a toilet with a fish tank) to a Talking Toilet Paper Dispenser, the bathroom is fertile ground for inventors. . . and writers. I got to use silly puns such as ''on a roll,'' ''make pee-ce, not war,'' ''hoping to clean up.'' I know bathroom humor is easy -- and I went for it. And the products themselves were perfect for giving readers a giggle. Bird Diapers, Johnny-Light, Tilt-a-roll, Gas-B-Gon -- c'mon I couldn't make this stuff up.

And it's important to remind readers, that the inventors in this category are risking their hard earned savings hoping that their ''talking toilet paper dispenser'' makes it big. The sillier the product, the more guts it takes.

I also want to point out -- sure these products are goofy, and it may tell you something about the inventors behind these products -- but keep in mind, we the buying public purchase these gizmos, so its sort of a funhouse mirror look at ourselves as well. • Sunday, 11 a.m., Room 7113.

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