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Internet cat star Maru to grace the printed page

Some people like reading fiction. Some people like reading biographies of historical figures. The new biography book, "I am Maru," should cover both bases.

The book, which originally came out in Japan in 2009, is finally arriving in the U.S. this month. As with most cool Japanese things, it took awhile.

In case you've actually been working and don't know about Maru, I'll give you a primer. Maru is a pudgy Japanese cat who likes to jump into boxes. I know that doesn't sound like much, but you have to see him in YouTube action to understand the appeal. Maru regularly racks up 500,000 to 2 million hits per video.… Read more

Adobe shows off Edge HTML5 tool

Vimeo launches a new Pro service for $199 a year that offers a large amount of video storage and streams, Logitech drops the price of its Google TV-powered Revue to $99, and Adobe releases a preview of a new HTML5 design tool called Edge.

Links from Monday's episode of Loaded:

Facebook, AmEx team up to offer cardmember deals

American Express is promising cardmembers who use Facebook special deals and discounts. The only catch? AmEx needs access to your Facebook interests, likes, and friends.

In a new program dubbed "Link, Like, Love" and unveiled today on AmEx's Facebook page, cardmembers will be able to choose from a variety of special deals. By using the new app on the Facebook page, members can access a personalized dashboard through which they'll find deals and discounts based on their Facebook likes and interests, and the likes and interests of their friends. Cardmembers can then pick the deals they … Read more

The 404 858: Where dreams really do come true (podcast)

News of the Black Eyed Peas' hiatus proves that if you wish for something long enough, dreams really do come true. On today's episode, Jeff tells us about the long-awaited intersection of tech geekdom and hockey, we analyze WebMD's involvement in the spread of "cyberchondria," and we dispute a Dutch study that claims smoking marijuana makes you a better gamer.

The 404 Digest for Episode 858

Geekdom and hockey collide: The campaign for NHL player Mike Commodore to wear No. 64. The Black Eyed Peas go on hiatus; Jeff celebrates. WebMD reports: Internet makes hypochondria worse. Does marijuana make you a better gamer? Jeff's Cute Animal Video of the Week, starring a street-crossing sloth. Mitch B's custom 404 iPhone case and BodyGuardz iPad case!

Episode 858 Subscribe in iTunes (audio) | Subscribe in iTunes (video) | Subscribe in RSS Audio | Subscribe in RSS Video… Read more

Foursquare, AmEx team up for deals

Foursquare users with American Express accounts can now receive discounts due to a partnership between the two companies.

Following a small test conducted in March, Foursquare is unveiling a program across the country that lets people get money back on their AmEx cards when checking in at stores and paying for promoted deals with their cards.

To tap into the deals, people must first sync up their AmEx cards with their Foursquare accounts at a designated Web page. They can then check in at participating merchants to unlock deals and load them directly to their credit cards. After paying for … Read more

Will.i.am forgets lyrics, reads them from cell phone?

Cell phones were created so that we, the human race, could do many things at once. Thinking, writing, and eating, for example.

Your challenge today is to decide precisely what Will.i.am was using his cell phone for in this video.

What is clear is that he was singing on stage with the Belgian hip-hopperish singer Stromae. What is also clear is that the Black Eyed Peas singer looks at his cell phone while he is singing his own portion of their little mashup, a sweet lullaby called "Don't Stop the Party."

However, can we be … Read more

The 404 837: Where what have trees ever done for me? (podcast)

We're thinking about replacing Jeff with Joey Kaminski on a permanent basis. This is the third and final show with our guest host, and we're wrapping up the week with the final word on Weinergate, Facebook's new facial recognition and Happening Now tools, a drug that erases bad memories, and Will.I.Am.Forgetting.Lyrics.

The 404 Digest for Episode 837

Facebook quietly rolls out new facial recognition tool. Facebook testing real-time "happening now" feed. New drug can erase bad memories. Tennessee bans posting "offensive" images online. Will.I.Am forgets his lyrics, reads them off cell phone.

Episode 837 Subscribe in iTunes (audio) | Subscribe in iTunes (video) | Subscribe in RSS Audio | Subscribe in RSS Video… Read more

Insignia NS-HD01: HD Radio to go

HD Radio sounds better than satellite, Internet, or analog AM and FM radio. Have you heard it yet? Chances are a few of your local AM or FM stations broadcast HD Radio signals, but they probably don't mention that fact on the air. To find out if your local stations are HD, check with iBiquity Digital, the company that licenses the technology. HD Radio--unlike digital satellite radio--has no subscription fee.

The Insignia NS-HD01 ($50) portable HD Radio's sound quality is a big step up from most mini radios, and it's the least expensive way to listen to … Read more

Existing Verizon customers get iPhone preorders at 3 a.m. February 3

Verizon has updated its iPhone landing page to include a countdown and a message for existing customers to come back to the site, presumably to preorder the iPhone.

In true Apple fashion (adding a countdown), when the numbers reach zero, a day that's been in the making for more than four years will finally commence. Almost immediately after Apple's announcement of its exclusivity deal with AT&T, rumors of Verizon's entrance as an iPhone vendor surfaced.

Now, on February 3, those loyal customers who have been holding out, ignoring the iPhone's siren song (something that … Read more

The 404 746: Where would it matter if they did? (podcast)

In the 3-plus years we've been recording The 404 Podcast, we've gotten really good at pissing people off, and today I messed with the wrong group: New York pizza snobs. It was probably my fault for admitting my excitement over a new Papa John's opening up in my neighborhood, but the secret's out and I can't hide my love for generic pizza anymore. What can I say--I'm a free-agent pizza guy, and what's wrong with Sbarro, anyway?

Getting into some of today's tech headlines, Sony released some kind of handheld gaming device that nobody cares about. Just kidding. Jeff cares so much he took the day off work yesterday to focus entirely on the Sony Next Generation Portable that Brooke Crothers accurately describes as the Apple iPad on steroids.

Jeff breaks down the impressive updates on the NGP including its ARM processor design with four cores that give it about four times the CPU and GPU performance of the iPhone 4, according to Lineley Group senior analyst Joe Byrne.

Another great feature on the NGP is the dual capacitive touch areas on the front and rear that let gamers interact with the device without their fingers blocking the viewing area on the front screen.

It'll certainly require a semisteep learning curve for first-time users, but at least we finally get a portable device that combines the iPhone's capacitive screen with physical gaming buttons.

Caroline McCarthy writes an insanely popular blog on CNET that's now reserved her a spot on a search marketing firm's infographic that asks "Which Female Tech Influencer Are You?"

We have no idea whether or not she approves of this flowchart that kind of looks like something out of YM Magazine in the '90s, but we're proud nevertheless of Caroline for being included alongside other tech pundits like Google VP Marissa Mayer and Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg. Take the test and hope for the best!

We also have a few decent voice mails to play today, but the well is running dry, so keep them coming! Give us a call at 1-866-404-CNET or record a video voice mail on YouTube and send the link to the404(at)cnet(dot)com and we'll play it on a future episode! And yes, Wilson looks ridiculous in his skully--LEAVE HIM ALONE!! (haha)

Episode 746 Subscribe in iTunes audio | Suscribe to iTunes (video) | Subscribe in RSS Audio | Subscribe in RSS Video… Read more