SEEN the video of the office worker who decides to plonk a coffee on his PC's CD tray? You can catch it on YouTube.com by tapping in the following phrase in the search window... Distracted Man Gets Surprised.. hey it can happen to you!

We don't want to spoil the fun, but the result of our hero's innovative use of his office equipment is not the unqualified success he was expecting.

However, help is at hand for him and anyone else who is trapped at a keyboard and in desperate need of a gadget to brighten up their desktop.

The age-old dilemma of where to put your coffee mug - and more importantly how to keep its contents warm - is finally solved.

What you need, sir or madam, is a USB Cup Warmer (£7.95).

Simply (notice how the sales spiel for these things always begins with that word) plug it into your USB port and you have a coaster and coffee warmer in one.

With Christmas hurtling towards us, any number of geeky goodies could end up in your stocking, and there are plenty of - ahem 'useful' items with which to surprise your loved one.

It's interesting that so many of the items available now have an office slant. Is it that we're all now so dependent on our PCs that even at home we spend hours in front of them and need some odd little gadget to distract us for a few valuable seconds?

Whatever the reason, let's not stop at the USB Coffee Warmer.

Let's invest in something a little more exciting and entertaining, shall we? Something a little less practical and infinitely more irritating to our colleagues.

May we present the Finger Drumkit?

No more tapping on your desk when you're bored! The Finger Drumkit is a set of touch sensitive receptors, so that when you hit one of the drums or cymbals you get the right sound coming out of the the speaker box.

Volume and tempo can be adjusted and there's a very useful (or irritating, depending on your point of view) record and playback feature which allows the budding Roger Taylor to record a series of beats and play them back when the boss leaves for an important meeting.

It can even be used it as a mousemat (£19.95).

But our excitement is not confined to the office. Everyone needs a lavatory break, don't they, and what better place for your golf-mad lover or mate to catch up on a bit of putting practice.

Yes, that's right, putting practice. The Potty Putter is an ingenious accessory that allows the golfer in your life to sit on the lavatory and iron out the kinks in their short game while waiting for nature to take its course.

The Potty Putter includes a small putting green, two golf balls, a putter, a flag stick and - crucially - a Do Not Disturb sign (£9.95).

Other suggestions for the gadget geek who must have something special from Santa include:

●Special effect contact lenses. Choose between cats' eyes, black and white spiral, sexy blue eyes. Brilliant for making a big impact at any party, everyone will be doing a double take.

They come with easy-to-follow instructions detailing exactly how to apply the lenses and where special care should be taken. Many designs available (£24.95).

●The Snore Stopper. A little gadget worn on the wrist, it delivers weak electrical impulses to the person wearing it, whenever it detects a sound. The electrical impulses aren't enough to wake the user, simply enough to make them shift their position slightly and stop snoring (£14.95).

●Karasoaky Shower Radio is the great singalongashower option first thing in the morning - the gift for all potential pop idols. It's an FM splash-proof radio, shaped just like a microphone (£5.95).

●Snackshotz Treat Launcher - fires dog biscuits for your pal's pooch to pluck from the air. Much easier than having to reach into their pocket and bend over to feed Fido - and much more fun for the dog walker and onlookers. It looks a bit like a sci-fi laser gun thingy (£12.95).

●Acrobots - your mate can create their own quirky piece of art in seconds. Articulated, stackable and very artistic, Acrobots feature crystal clear round heads, magnets in their hands and feet, they have flexible joints and the ability to contort into hundreds of shapes. Great fun for any fidgety friend. (£9.95).

But the fun doesn't have to stop there, and there's even some practical stuff available too, such as emergency office survival kits for him and her, USB keyboard vacuum cleaners and USB body massagers.

With most shopping centres now having a gadget shop tucked away in the corner you should be able to find something suitable, and you can always take a look on the web.

Try gadgetshop.com, firebox.com, boysstuff.com or crazyaboutgadgets.co.uk where you can find a wacky mix of retro and futuristic gadgets for anything from a couple of quid to a couple of hundred pounds.