Remember the Googasm

Google is celebrating Chrome's second birthday by releasing a new stable version of its rapidly evolving browser, offering a slightly simpler user interface, an automatic form filler, and the ability to synchronize extensions and form data across machines.…

When we interviewed Tweetie developer Loren Brichter in June, he made two things clear: 1) Tweetie (now branded simply as "Twitter" after the company was acquired by the microblogging service) would definitely be coming to the iPad, and 2) Loren was really looking forward to exploring the larger screen touch interface.

Now, the official Twitter client for iPad is finally out in the form of a universal app. The team has clearly put some effort into utilizing parts of the multitouch experience in ways that third-party Twitter apps have not, and the app is certainly feature-rich. However, the interface can be confusing at times, and many of the features are not easily discoverable without some help.

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Consumer Watchdog produced two cartoony ads slamming Google CEO Eric Schmidt as part of an effort to build support for a "do not track" list.

"White spaces" broadband has been in hibernation—the rules governing unlicensed use in empty TV channels have never been finalized, and therefore no devices have yet appeared. This despite the fact that the idea was approved under previous FCC Chairman Kevin Martin in 2008.

That's about to change at last. At its next open meeting on September 23, the FCC will vote on the "TV White Spaces Second Memorandum Opinion and Order" that will "create opportunities for investment and innovation in advanced WiFi technologies and a variety of broadband services by finalizing provisions for unlicensed wireless devices to operate in unused parts of TV spectrum."

The tech is ready to go; trial deployments have already been rolled out successfully. But lingering issues, including the question of who would administer an Internet-connected geolocation database that would help prevent interference, have kept the rules from becoming final.

We're looking forward to see what designers and engineers come up with once the tech is open to widespread deployment.

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Mobile chips warming up as PC chips chill

While chip makers are not white-knuckled with fear as they were during the economic meltdown of late 2008 and early 2009, they were hoping that the recent boom in chip sales would hold for a couple of quarters — and it probably won't.…

Teaching old apps new tricks

Microsoft has released a new version of a software tool that developers and administrators can use to harden older applications against common vulnerabilities.…

You rent from his cloud

Analysis With its Apple TV revamp announced Wednesday, Apple dipped its toes into the entertainment cloud — if you'll forgive a muddled metaphor. It's a tentative baby step, but expect more cloudy offerings from Cupertino if the experiment is a success.…

Free On-Demand Webcast - Virtualizing the Hard Stuff

The Consumer Product Safety Commission issued a recall after reports of some overheating and even melting.

However, the utility's customer service is faulty, according to an independent review of the controversial yet pioneering smart-meter program.

Facebook users who log in from multiple devices will soon have a way to make sure they are only logged in on the computer they are currently using.

Fastest-growing PC company of the last few years stumbles during the second quarter. Observers say it has to do with Acer's reliance on notebook sales as desktops gain.

New research out of the University of Haifa shows a clear link between light at night and cancer in mice, with the suppression of melatonin playing a key role.

A new batch of sharp Martian close-ups from NASA's HiRISE camera were released, and we've gathered some of the best in the gallery.

'We're more consistent. And we're here'

Microsoft has tried to justify its Silverlight media player in the age of HTML5.…

The Consumer Product Safety Commission says 129 cases of Toshiba Satellite laptops melting from overheating have been reported, but no major injuries.

A scanty selection of artists to follow and missed opportunities to encourage user interaction are among the early problems.

At the huge IFA consumer electronics show, the big names in tech show off their newest wares, including an Android-based tablet from Samsung and a cloud-based music service from Sony.

Magnetic minerals in 15-million-year-old rocks appear to preserve a moment when the magnetic north pole was rapidly on its way to becoming the south pole, and vice versa.

Apple TV has been a persistent loser from a company that usually only tolerates winners. It's clear that Apple wants to do something "in the living room," but damned if it can figure out exactly what that is. Yesterday, Apple took another run at this thing, announcing an "all-new" Apple TV.

As with any new electronic gadget, I must be of two minds about the new Apple TV. The first, most difficult question is, will the new Apple TV be a successful product for Apple? The second question is easier: is this a product I want to buy for myself?

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Microbloggy thing tracks all links clicked

Twitter is on a mission to regain control of its own firehose.…