empire

The 404 705: Where Caroline McCarthy is starting The 406 Podcast (podcast)

Congratulations to Caroline McCarthy for completing last weekend's New York Marathon in four hours and six minutes! It's not only an impressive athletic feat for a first-time marathon runner, but a philanthropic one as well.

Caroline raced to benefit Camp Interactive, a program that introduces inner-city youth to technology through outdoor activities. Thanks to contributions from friends, family, and even some 404 listeners, Caroline was able to raise $5,431 for the cause.

Uncle Henry, aka Tapchus in the chat room, also joins us on today's episode with insights on how marathons have changed in the past 20 years. Henry's completed several of them himself, and even tells us about a bizarre race within the staircase at the Empire State building.

Henry ran back when Apple iPods, GPS tracking, automatic FourSquare check-ins, and wristwatch pedometers weren't around, so it's interesting to hear from Caroline and Henry on how running has changed with those inventions.

This year there was no shortage of runners wearing strange outfits for the marathon, and Caroline tells us that superheroes and animal costumes dominated the race this year.

Apparently there was even a guy who ran all five boroughs while juggling three balls--an achievement appropriately called "joggling."

There are also video voice mails today from two listeners: Lila recommends a pair of durable Sennheiser headphones, and Nate recalls a voice mail from two years ago that was featured on last weekend's 404 Throwback episode. Thanks for staying with us, Nate!

If you want to get in touch with the show, upload your video to YouTube and send a link to the404(at)cnet(dot)com. If you're camera shy, you can also leave a message on our voice mail box by calling 1-866-404-CNET as well.

Episode 705 Subscribe in iTunes audio | Suscribe to iTunes (video) | Subscribe in RSS Audio | Subscribe in RSS Video… Read more

Empire State Building refaced for savings

One of the tallest buildings in the world, New York's iconic Empire State Building, hopes to once again lead the world by example.

It was announced today that the window phase of the iconic skyscraper's sweeping energy retrofit has been completed.

Does this mean the beloved Art Deco landmark will now be sporting all new windows or a different look? No, not even close.

Instead, 96 percent of the Empire State Building's 6,514 windows, which includes the original frames, and 26,000 panes of glass were reused.

A workshop set up by Serious Materials, a tech … Read more

World's most amazing subwoofer has no woofer

We all know subwoofers make bass. Big subwoofers, like the $799 Epik Empire, can sport massive 15-inch woofers and a Class D 600-watt power amplifier, all packaged in a 22x18x24-cabinet. The Empire's 120-pound weight might be a not-so-subtle indication that it's solidly built.

But Eminent Technology's TRW-17 Rotary Woofer ($12,900) doesn't have a cone-type woofer or a box or cabinet. No, the TRW-17 looks like a high-tech fan. And when you turn it on, the fan's blade spins just like a fan, but it's a bona-fide subwoofer. It produces deeper and more powerful … Read more

Microsoft makes a return to Flight

One of the casualties of last year's layoffs at Microsoft was the Aces game studio responsible for the company's long-running Flight Simulator game.

At the time, Microsoft promised that the flight simulation franchise would continue in one form or another. This week, Redmond confirmed that it is indeed following through with a new title: Microsoft Flight.

The game is in its early development stages, with an alpha version nearly ready for internal testing, according to Kevin Unangst, a senior director in Microsoft's game unit.

The company is offering few details on Flight, but Unangst said that it … Read more

The 404 645: Where no one will buy this (podcast)

During this year's Celebration V fan convention, director George Lucas announced that all six of the original "Star Wars" films will be released on Blu-ray in 2011 as a box set. The films and the much-criticized prequels were previously released as DVD box sets, but this is the first time fans of the series can see them in HD.

The Blu-rays will also include new documentaries, special features, and behind-the-scenes moments that both Jedis and Imperialists can appreciate. Lucas also announced the inclusion of a lost scene from "Return of the Jedi" that shows Darth Vader calling out to Luke as he builds the green lightsaber you see in the film. Good news, though: if you can't wait a year for the box set to come out, the clip is also available on YouTube--with George's approval, of course!

Good news for Android users: Last week Google re-released the app formerly known as Voice Search for its mobile operating system. The app is called Voice Search, and it lets you dictate text message, write e-mails, map directions, play music, and make phone calls--all without ever touching the phone. It's free, so we can't pick it apart too much, but once the initial "cool factor" wears off, we're not sure we'd ever use voice commands outside of a car. More importantly, when the heck is Angry Birds finally coming out for Android?

In line with today's Star Wars theme, check out these custom 404 Podcast squadron helmets made exclusively for our show by Props Guy Jim! Dedicated fans of the show will remember Jim's work with the Yu-Be-Gone Bug Spray, The 404 temporary tattoos, and, of course, The 404/Mattel hoverboard from "Back to the Future"!

Click through for more pics of the X-Wing helmet after the jump! Thanks Jim!

With kids, the future of 'Star Wars' is rosy

ORLANDO, Fla.--You might think that 33 years after the original "Star Wars" film was released, George Lucas' science-fiction universe might be getting a little long in the tooth.

But if the countless beaming kids at Celebration V, the huge "Star Wars" fan fest being held here, are any indication, the future is very bright for the multibillion-dollar franchise. And it's not just because of the many "Star Wars" video games, books, comics, and toys that have come out in recent years, most of them clearly targeting a young audience.

In fact, when … Read more

The 501st Legion's real-world 'Star Wars' empire

ORLANDO, Fla.--If you were a member of the Rebel Alliance and were in the room I was in this afternoon, you might well have been a little nervous.

After all, standing guard throughout the room and in the hallway outside, were uniformed Imperial Stormtroopers brandishing serious-looking weapons. They were definitely there to keep order, and if you weren't loyal to Darth Vader or Emperor Palpatine, you were definitely on their bad side.

Reading this, you might think I'm a little crazy, but what I really am is attending Celebration V, the huge "Star Wars" fan … Read more

How the experts solve Road Trip Pic of the Day

MIDDLETOWN, R.I.--One of the best things about being on Road Trip 2010 for the last few weeks has been the almost universally positive reaction I've gotten to my Picture of the Day challenge.

What I never expected, though, was the tenacity of some readers in trying to identify each day's mystery photograph, nor the clever and often complex methods some employ in doing so.

If you haven't been following the Picture of the Day, I've been posting an image every day since June 7 and tasking readers with figuring out what it's a … Read more

Audiophile conundrum: Does more equal better?

Maybe it's an American thing; we love big stuff. We equate size with quality, and think that exquisitely designed, silly, expensive products are always better than more affordable alternatives. Is the new iPod always better than last year's model? Then again, how do you define "better"?

A lot of audiophiles believe more watts, more power, higher digital sampling rates, higher resolution, heavier turntable platters, speakers with more drivers, bigger drivers, or more channels of sound will always produce better sound. It ain't necessarily so.

Don't get me wrong, I love high-end audio. But I … Read more

Hello Kitty turns 35, claws at our collective soul

Thirty-five years ago, Hello Kitty dropped an atomic cute bomb on the world and the universe was forever changed.

Developed in 1974, the iconic kawaii cat debuted with Japanese character licensing firm Sanrio in 1975 on a small change purse that sold for 240 yen (around 80 cents at the time). Sanrio has since built a vast global empire on Kitty's popularity, and related licensing deals now account for a huge chunk (some say about half) of Sanrio's $5 billion in annual sales.

Over the past three and a half decades, Kitty's mouth-missing face has graced thousands … Read more