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Links from Thursday's episode of Loaded:

Amazon.com launches a library lending program for its Kindle e-reader

Toshiba's tablet will come out in June in Japan and shortly thereafter abroad

eBay purchases geolocation service Where

Google launches Earth Builder for cloud storage of geographic and geospacial data

Gamefly wins its case against the U.S. Postal Service

Google launches Earth Builder for the cloud

Google's mapping-related announcements this week weren't limited to its expansion of MapMaker to the U.S.: On Wednesday, Google announced a new enterprise product called Google Earth Builder, which it says will help businesses process and handle geographic data so that they don't have to do it on their own servers.

"It lets you upload, process, and store your geospatial data in our cloud," a post on the Google Enterprise Blog explained. "Your employees can use familiar tools--Google Maps and Google Earth--to easily and securely share and publish mapping data. No technical expertise or … Read more

Build a Web site on your iPhone with Zapd

You can build a quick-and-dirty Web site using any number of services--but not many of them fit in your pocket. New app Zapd lets you create a simple, attractive site with just a few taps. It's easy to use, surprisingly fun, and totally free.

To get started, you choose one of 20 basic but visually pleasing themes for your site. Then you give it a title and start adding elements: text, photo, or link.

Photos can be snapped on the fly using your iPhone/iPod camera or imported from an existing album. As for links, you have to enter … Read more

Microsoft's Webmatrix site builder tool exits beta

After three rounds of betas, Microsoft tomorrow is releasing a finalized version of its Webmatrix Web development software. The software, which was first introduced in July, gives users tools to create and manage Web sites while staying compatible with Microsoft's Visual Studio and SQL Server products.

The company expects a fully-baked version of the software to make it more attractive to first-time users. "The majority of the users are going to be new to this. That's one of the explicit goals here," Brian Goldfarb, the director of developer platform marketing at Microsoft, told CNET in an … Read more

Mozilla's Add-on builder great if you have know-how

For Mozilla users who want to control their browser, Mozilla Add-on Builder is a free tool that lets users create their own add-ons. Using the relatively new Jetpack SDK and Bespin code editor, Mozilla has created this Web-based SDK for the masses. As fun as it sounds, however, it is not intuitive, and some may want to stick to using premade add-ons.

Mozilla requires registration to use this tool. This process is fast; all you need is basic information like your name and e-mail. Before creating your add-on check out the tutorial provided by Mozilla. It will give you a … Read more

Inventory your important stuff

Inventories aren't just for shopkeepers anymore. A little time spent inventorying your valuables--electronics, cameras, antiques, appliances, furniture, artwork, tools, etc.--in your home or office will be well spent, in the case of theft, disasters, or other misfortunes. But anyone with important documents and valuable possessions worth protecting can create and maintain accurate, complete, up-to-date home, personal, and even business inventories, thanks to software like Bmg's InventoryBuilder. It simplifies the hardest part of taking inventory, going through and recording all that stuff, by doing most of the work for you.

InventoryBuilder's Windows-style toolbar, navigation sidebar, and main … Read more

Plotting along

Plenty of people have aspirations of writing a novel or screenplay, and most of those people have a lot of ideas about the plot and characters of their masterpiece. Actually getting those ideas down on paper in a way that makes sense isn't always easy, though, and many potential writers get overwhelmed before they even begin. PlotBuilder is a simple program that breaks the writing process down into manageable steps, making it easier for writers to get started and keep going.

The program's interface is simple and intuitive, reminding us of more recent versions of Microsoft Office. The … Read more

PumpOne goes open source for the fitness fiends

OK New Years resolution types, if you're the kind of person who performs better when being watched, PumpOne's Fitness Builder app might help you hit a few goals in 2010. But first, heed the company's January 5 tweet: "TIP-Don't get caught up in the New Year's Resolution hype. Fitness should be part of your lifestyle, not a hobby for the next 3-4 weeks."

Touted as a top app from fitness publications and users alike, Fitness Builder's most recent version (2.4) was released in late December and includes a Share Workout feature by which users can not only e-mail specific workouts to specific contacts, but get into workout specs and create their own e-mailable versions. It's open-source for the fitness fiends.

If this sounds up your alley, shell out $9.99 (at the Apple store only) for the Fitness Builder app. Once you've got it on your iPhone, you can upgrade to Plus for an additional chunk of workouts and videos, or you can wait until March, when PumpOne co-founder and president Craig Schlossberg tells me his company plans to release Fitness Builder Pro (for personal trainers, for $19.99 a month) and Fitness Builder PT (for physical therapists, which comes with an extra 1,000 videos and images, for $49.99 a month).

"We're building what we think and know people will use and is going to be easy," Schlosser says. "Doctors are busy and won't spend hours of time reviewing videos. There is a lot of time spent in a session with a physical therapist explaining what is going on. That time can be spent working."

These professional versions build on the Share Workout feature, but include the ability for trainers and therapists to swap out the PumpOne logo with their own (this is perhaps Schlosser's favorite feature: "I mean, it really is crazy," he exclaims); to fully customize the workouts with their own images, videos, instructions, etc.; and to retrieve performance updates from patients once the workouts are done. If a workout is sent to someone without the app, that person simply clicks on a PDF with embedded images, printable instructions, etc.

The problem with physical therapy today, according to PumpOne:… Read more

Easy file lister

File List Builder is a simple program that allows users to create lists of files stored in a specific location. Neither the program nor its results are anything fancy, but it works well enough if you need a list of file names and you don't care what it looks like.

The program's interface is a bit cluttered at first glance, with all of its features contained on a single screen. For the most part, however, it's fairly intuitive, with helpful tooltips to describe icons that don't mean much on their own. Users simply select the directory … Read more