Filed under: Computers, MySpaceIf you want to hear the latest track from superband U2, you have one place to go. No, it's not your local CD shop or iTunes installation. Instead, head on over to Facebook, which, together with its hugely popular iLike application, has scored the exclusive rights to broadcast the song ahead of its release next week. The song will be included on a re-release of the band's iconic 'Joshua Tree' album. Facebook includes the ability for users to install applications, little widgets that show up on your profile and let you share information with friends. iLike is one of the most popular of those widgets. It lets you indicate which artists you like and tell your friends which concerts you're going to. It's through this Facebook application that fans can access this new U2 track. Why is this news big? The band shunned the also hugely popular MySpace Music. Why? Well, Facebook does seem to jive a little more with the style of the band as opposed to MySpace's largely angst-ridden music samples. It also just so happens that one of Bono's business partners at Elevation sits on the board of iLike, but we're sure that has nothing to do with it. From CNETRelated Links: Best Facebook Apps for the Office Lying Male Intern Busted in a Dress on Facebook Facebook Ads Raise Privacy Concerns  Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

  Filed under: Computers, GoogleWe live in a time of amazing discoveries, yet there are still some mysteries that astound us. Questions like: Is there intelligent life on other plants? Does the Loch Ness Monster exist? Most recently, it's been: Dude, what the heck happened to my e-mail? A number of users of Google's popular Gmail service have reported logging into their accounts only to find that all (or at least a large portion of) their e-mails had been deleted.Gone, without a trace.That would be quite a shock as you can imagine, but more troubling is that Google isn't providing any real explanation. If anything, the company is trying to blame the users, implying that they were sloppy with their passwords and that other users logged into their accounts and deleted their e-mail. But, for Jessica Squazzo, who found all her e-mail from 2007 deleted, that doesn't make much sense. "If someone had hacked into my account, why would they have just erased some of my e-mail and not all?" Others wonder, if people were stealing accounts, why wouldn't they just monitor them in the hopes of learning some sort of valuable information? Or just change the password and steal the account? Google's explanation leaves a bit to be desired and we're hoping they come up with a better one in short order. Until then, if you use Gmail, you can protect yourself by configuring your mail to forward elsewhere. Just click "Settings" and "Forwarding and POP/IMAP" to have it directed to another, hopefully somewhat more secure, account. That way you won't have to worry about those digital pictures of Nessie from your uncle getting lost. From Network WorldRelated Links: Google Maps Coming to Gas Pumps, But Is It Complete? Google Announces gPhone? Not Quite. Even Search Engines Dress Up for Halloween  Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

  Filed under: Celebrities, Top Lists The advent of e-mail, blogs, texting and cell-phone cameras has launched a frightening new world of chances for celebrities to show just how loopy they can be, away from often-necessary publicists' oversight. Forget the paper trail -- it's the electronic trail of drug-addled ramblings, online confessionals, and dirty cell-phone photos we should all be concerned about. For every relatively sane-seeming move like The Office's Jenna Fischer announcing her separation from her husband on MySpace in a thoughtful blog post, there are dozens of less stable online meanderings and wanderings by famous people. Here are the top 12.Even if you're sincere, it's still TMI (Too Much Information):What Happened: 'Girl Fight,' 'Fast and the Furious,' and 'Lost' star Michelle Rodriguez has had her share of run-ins with the law, mostly having to do with alcohol-related incidents. The last big bust-up, which happened in Hawaii while still appearing in Lost, led to her being written off the show, jailed for 170 days, and essentially blacklisted from more work (at least that's what her fans say). So things were looking up when she unfortunately violated her parole this past September, and, it turns out, did not attend her court-mandated alcohol-rehabilitation program. She's now facing 180 days in jail, which has prompted Rodriguez to come clean for what seems like the umpteenth time, in a long, rambling apologia that reveals she's either hitting bottom or just emotionally-unhinged in a TMI kind of way. In the meantime, fans get to hear just how messy her life has become when she catalogs her losses (house, car, bank account, career), 'punctuality issues,' and 'slow growth issues.' Man, she is hard on herself. But there's good news, too: "It has taken me two years to slow down and pay attention," she writes on her blog. "My peers have begun to take notice of this changed and have called me back to a position in society as a working class citizen." Does that mean she's going back to work, or just getting back to her roots?Career Impact: Who knows? Everybody loves a comeback, particularly from such notorious places, but it's really up to Rodriguez, whose actions will need to speak louder than blog posts. Next >> Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

  Filed under: Top ListsWhile we suspect quick-fix cosmetic treatments like microdermabrasion and Botox are popular largely because people enjoy saying the words microdermabrasion and Botox, we know it's also true that such treatments do in fact make people look different (though not always younger) and that they are more widespread today than they have ever been. Though there are still many folks who shy away from such procedures, likely because sticking needles in one's face and having chemicals peeling away one's flesh just isn't natural or fun. But it looks like there's an exciting new option for those not ready for invasive (or painful) treatments, and are looking for something beyond Oil of Olay. It's called Isolaz, which is a photopneumatic device that uses a combination of lasers and suction to treat acne, reduce red or brown spots as well as remove unwanted hair. The company claims that the Isolaz is painless and perfectly safe with no post-procedure recovery time needed. If we can painlessly replace bikini waxing and Clearasil in one fell swoop, with a laser/vacuum combo no less, then mankind has indeed reached a new golden age.From PopgadgetRelated Links:Google Plans to Digitze Your Medical RecordsFreakin' Laser Pizza Cutter  Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

  Filed under: Audio/Video, Switched VideoSo many of you loved our shout-out to Japanese anti-mugging inventions a few weeks back that we had to post this video from Reuters to show you the bizarre piece of clothing in action (though the commentary may be the best part). It's convenient that this was filmed during the day -- who else thinks that muggers at night might notice the unlit machine that's flapping in the breeze? From Reuters Related Links:Anti-Mugging "Skirt" Transforms Would-Be Victim Into Soda MachineThe Coolest New Gadgets from JapanWearable Antenna Uses Your Body to Get Better Reception Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

  Filed under: ComputersIf Switched was around in the 1940's, and if we all had access to highly classified information, we would have been raving about Colossus as the hottest piece of tech in the world. Created in 1943, the vintage computer was about the size of a school bus and relied on wheels and paper tapes for input rather than multi-touch screens and voice recognition. So today it's a bit obsolete, a fact that was sadly proven as it suffered a crushing defeat when faced off against a modern decryption computer.Colossus was used extensively during World War II by Allied forces to intercept and decrypt German commands and status updates, giving them the information they needed to win the war. It was destroyed at the end of the war to keep its secrets, well, secret. But, in 1994 a U.K. team started a project to rebuild the thing -- a daunting prospect considering they had nothing but photos to go on. Thankfully, the design of the thing left much of its innards open and visible, and the team was able to get Colossus working. The challenge began yesterday with three encoded messages broadcast by radio from Paderborn, Germany, in an interesting throw-back to the days of WWII. Anyone was free to listen in and try to decrypt the message, and within a few hours a Bonn-based amateur radio operator announced he had decrypted one of the messages using modern decryption software. Meanwhile, unfortunately, the Colossus team was struggling just to get good radio reception so they could start the decryption process. In fact, the machine is still spinning away trying to decipher the messages, and should finish sometime today.It's no surprise that the pinnacle of 1940's computer technology doesn't stack up to modern stuff. But, you have to admit that Colossus in its exposed form looks a lot more impressive than your typical disposable gadget, even if its functionality is a bit more limited.From BBC NewsRelated Links: Five Steps to a Safer Password Text Message Your Drink Orders at British Pubs British Army Testing Tech That Makes Tanks and Troops Invisible  Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

  Filed under: Audio/Video, Computers, YouTubeYouTube, an online video sharing service that you may have heard of at one point or another, is upping its resolution. At the NewTeeVee Live conference yesterday, co-founder (and now super-mega-rich) Steve Chen confirmed that high-quality video streams are on the way. But it won't be exclusionary: he said their aim is to make YouTube content available to everyone, so they're now testing a player that actually detects the speed of the viewer's Internet connection, and on slower lines, serves up higher-quality video only if the viewer wants it.Also interesting is that in YouTube's internal archives, all video is stored at the native resolution in which it was sent -- meaning even much of the old stuff will now be in high(er) resolution than it is now. Expect high-quality videos of kittens kneading their paws into fluffy pillows within three months. We're already counting the days. From CNETRelated links:M.C. Hammer launches video sharing site Oprah launches YouTube channel  Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

  Filed under: Audio/Video, Computers, Video Games, TVWith Microsoft's Xbox Live service turning 5 years-old this week, the folks in Washington are celebrating with original Xbox games like 'Halo', 'Fable', 'Crimson Skies' and the underrated 'Psychonauts'. Taking a cue from Nintendo, Microsoft is making these old gems downloadable. Xbox classics will run you 1,200 Microsoft points ($15) and will be available beginning December 4th. Microsoft has stated that this is only the tip of the iceberg and that we can expect many more "Xbox Originals", as they are calling them, very soon. Not only will offer those golden oldies but they are giving away the popular Xbox Live Arcade game, Carcassone, free for 48 hours beginning at midnight Wednesday (last night) until 11:59pm on 11/16.From Ars Technica Related LinksSuper Mario Galaxy is Heavenly, According to ReviewsPlayer-Created Xbox Live Games Look Like AdsESPN Games and Shows Now Available on Xbox Live Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

  Filed under: ComputersJon Hart, a Californian who has filed a suit against Comcast, is claiming that not only is the company violating its own "Crazy Fast Speeds" advertising, but is breaking federal computer fraud laws.When it was speculated that Comcast was doing shady things to limit and even block its subscribers' use of bandwidth-hungry applications, the company responded that the accusations were largely untrue. It then admitted to taking steps that were "temporary and intended to improve surfing for other users." Hart's accusations stem from claims that Comcast is actively blocking peer-to-peer network traffic. Peer-to-peer traffic is most often used by file sharing applications like Kazaa or BitTorent for sharing music or videos. Comcast is allegedly sending fake signals to these applications that make them stop transmission of data, effectively shutting them down. It could be argued that such fake signals are not altogether different from a hacker taking control of your computer.Beyond that, the suit mentions that nothing in Comcast's user agreement bars file sharing, and that their advertising claiming "unfettered access" to all of the Internet is misleading. For its part, Comcast has denied blocking peer-to-peer applications, yet also says:We have a responsibility to provide all of our customers with a good Internet experience and we use the latest technologies to manage our network so that they can continue to enjoy these applications.We'll be watching this story very closely going forward. From WiredRelated Links: Comcast Blocking Certain Types of Internet Traffic Comcast Admits It Crippled Internet Traffic AT&T Admits Error In Censoring Pearl Jam Song  Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

  Filed under: Video Games, Celebrities, Top ListsNew York Magazine has put together a list of games that it thinks deserve the cinematic treatment... with several grains of salt. The writers of the piece have Wes Anderson directing an adaptation of Duck Hunt (pictured, above), where Bill Murray seeks to reconnect with his adult sons on a duck-hunting expedition through Europe. Or Michel Gondry doing a Tetris remake, directing a Z-shaped Elijah Wood with dreams of becoming a painter, "even though his awkward posture makes it really hard to set up an easel" -- until meeting a beautiful L-shaped piece named Virginie. Unfortunately, their love can never be because she's engaged to a square who seems her perfect fit. All in all, a pretty entertaining read. Best idea?"World of WarcraftDirector: Lars von TrierThe pitch: Near the three-hour mark, an elf is briefly glimpsed in the background of this Danish morality play about a factory worker who loses his legs in an industrial accident on the way home from the hospital, where he's just learned that he is blind."From NYMagRelated Links:Super Mario Galaxy is heavenly, according to reviews30 years of video games up for sale Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

  Filed under: Audio/Video, iPodA recent survey of 3,000 undergraduate students at New York University shows that most kids are willing to sacrifice their right to vote for an iPod, among other things.Sixty-six percent said they would be willing to give up their right to vote in the next presidential election for a year's tuition. But don't start shaking your head just yet -- it gets worse: Twenty percent said their right to vote next year could be bought for an iPod Touch. That's right, 600 of those surveyed said they would sit out the historic 2008 election for a $300 media player. For $1 Million, says the poll, half would give up their votes... forever.The most bizarre part of the survey? 70.5 percent said that they believed that one vote could make a difference, including 70 percent of those who said they would sacrifice their right to vote. How these contradictory ideas could be held in one privileged child's head, we're not sure.We understand that technology can drive people to do ridiculous things, but giving up the right to vote for an iPod is a new low. Check out this list of other insane things people have done for or because of technology:Sex Less Important Than the Web for Many Americans Gamers Still Lining up for the Wii iPhone Camper Interviewed by Switched Weirdos Begin to Queue Up for Halo 3 PS3 Crime Spree From Politico (via Washington Square News)Related Links:One Third of Women Who Meet People Online Have Sex on the First Date Toilet Surfing Office Workers Electronics Causing Teenagers to Get "Junk Sleep"  Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

  Filed under: Video Games, Celebrities, eBayWe're hoping that Gary Coleman isn't in serious financial trouble, but this can't be a good sign for the former 'Different Strokes' star. Gary Coleman auctioned off his Nintendo GameCube and all six of the games he purchased for it -- we guess he's not a big gamer.The GameCube and all six games are signed by the diminutive actor and reality TV star. We somehow managed to miss this when the auction began, and sadly it's too late now to get in on the action. The auction ended on Saturday, November 10, and the pile of signed, celebrity-owned gaming gear went for an absurd $510.Check out the gallery to see Coleman signing the goods, just in case you doubted its authenticity.%Gallery-10356%Related links:Former Dell Dude Now Works in a Mexican Restaurant90's Rap Star M.C. Hammer Launches DanceJam Video Sharing SiteTop 11 Celebrity Messes Online Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

  Filed under: Computers, Advice, Editor's Picks, Top ListsWhen you think about Facebook applications, the first thing that comes to mind might be those obnoxious Vampire and Zombie applications where friends keep "biting you." Or maybe it's the Movie Compatibility Quiz, which asks you about an awful lot of Adam Sandler films and nothing about the films you might actually like.Now, those sorts of apps could waste a lot of time when you're at work, and could even get you fired.What you may not know is that some Facebook widgets are actually useful and might even make you more productive at the office (or while on a business trip). In fact, an increasing number of business users are taking advantage of these productivity programs to stay in contact with coworkers and associates, as well as share information, and collaborate. CIO Magazine has trolled through the unorganized mess that is the Facebook application directory and found its Five Favorite Facebook Widgets for Business Users (widgets is the term people use for these applications you can add to your Facebook page).CIO magazine's favorites include the Sticky Notes application, which mimics pinning a Post-It to your page. That rather obious app may seem short on usefulness -- and long on desktop clutteriness -- but others seem like real productivity-machines. Wikimono, for example, allows you to collaborate with other Facebook users on a Wiki (a user-generated online encyclopedia) that can even contain embedded video or images. Our favorite app on the list is the My LinkedIn Profile widget, which is simply a badge that takes you from Facebook, to the eponymous professional networking site. CIO mag thinks Facebook apps can be useful... but not useful enough to keep it from leading you away from the site loaded with drunken college girls as quickly as possible.From CIORelated Links:Lying Male Intern Busted in a Dress on Facebook Facebook Ads Raise Privacy Concerns Your Facebook or MySpace Profile Could Cost You Your Job  Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

  Filed under: ComputersIf you've never heard of Habbo Hotel, consider yourself non-European. 'Habbo' is a simplistic, 2-D Second Life that is incredibly popular over across the pond. The teen-focused social-networking site has about 7.5 million unique visitors worldwide, but hasn't quite caught on in the Americas to the same extent. In 'Habbo,' users create their own customized Habbo avatars that wander around a cartoonish virtual world. Members can buy virtual items and use them to decorate and personalize their Habbo pads and Habbo personas. Some users, though, have turned to stealing, such as the 17-year-old Dutch Habbo user who was recently arrested for the theft of $5,800 worth of furniture and other miscellany.The teen didn't digitally sneak into other users' pads dressed in black pixels and walk off with their stuff. Instead, he stole usernames and passwords, logged into accounts, then moved the furniture to his real account. Those passwords were often stolen through phishing and imposter Web sites, which were used to trick those unsuspecting Habboites into logging in. As virtual communities such as Habbo become more popular, and thus more valuable, the virtual property created and bought on these commmunities also becomes more valuable -- and more frequently stolen. In August, for example, we wrote about a lawsuit against people accused of duplicating copyrighted genitalia in Second Life. This case, though, is just another reminder to watch where you enter your password, and, of course, to make sure that password is secure in the first place. If you're confused by what we mean when we say "virtual furniture," check out the gallery to see the cool digs you can pick up in Habbo Hotel.%Gallery-10354%From Read/WriteWebRelated Links: 'Second Life' Sexual Genitalia Spawns Lawsuit CNN Creates Second Life News Bureau Five Steps to a Safer Password  Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments