?Watches, Stories, and Gear? is a roundup of our favorite content, watch or otherwise, from around the internet. Here, we support other creators, explore interesting content that inspires us, and put a spotlight on causes we believe in. Oh, and any gear we happen to be digging on this week. We love gear.
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Hacking McDonald?s Ice Cream Machines

Photo: Gabriela Hasbun for WIRED

You?re not imagining things: the ice cream machine at your local McDonald?s is, actually, always broken. It seems like everyone has had the experience in the midst of a Shamrock Shake or Oreo McFlurry craving of getting to that drive-through speaker and being told, in a way that indicates this dreadful information has been communicated to dozens if not hundreds in line before you, that the machine is malfunctioning, and they?re not serving any ice cream products at the moment. A bummer, for sure, but what?s the story behind the finicky McDonald?s ice cream machine" Wired has an incredible story about some industrious folks (or maybe they?re just ice cream fanatics) who hacked the machine, got deep into its code, and spill the secrets of the nearly $20,000 custom built tool that nearly every McDonald?s uses to make your favorite frozen treats. This one reads like a fast-food spy thriller...