POWER

Will windows work as solar panels?

The next solar panel could be a window.

Konarka Technologies and Air Products have received a grant from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to develop a transparent, flexible solar panel that could be placed on a piece of glass or integrated into a window.

Konarka specializes in organic photovoltaics. These are complex molecules that can harvest portions of the infrared and visible light spectrum and turn the energy into sunlight. Organic photovoltaic panels don't last as long as silicon panels and 't aren't as efficient as silicon or other types of panels. But they can … Read more

Rube Goldberg meets Aquaman

"What the #*%^?" is a common question heard every year from hundreds of bobbing heads attempting the famous Alcatraz swim across San Francisco Bay; arms and legs flail furiously, but it seems they're no closer to the beach.

The government has an explanation for this swimming phenomenon: You suck!

It's spelled out in this month's Popular Mechanics. "Humans are terrible swimmers, converting roughly 3 percent of their kicks, strokes and general underwater exertions into forward motion. We can boost our efficiency to 10 percent by adding fins, but dolphins, by comparison, can turn 80 percent … Read more

Radiohead: music for nothing

Now here's an innovation: "music on demand," in the truest sense of the meaning. Radiohead, the juggernauts of intelligentsia rock, announced that they will give away their new album "In Rainbows" as a download for whatever price consumers are willing to pay. The band is free to sell the new album directly from the official website because it is no longer tied to a record label. So far, the album is only available to pre-order, but it can be downloaded when released on October 10.

It's not the first time that an artist or … Read more

Beyond Microsoft Office: We compare 9 productivity suites

Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint and their Office allies can be great applications, but not everybody needs everything they offer. How do you know where to start when shopping for alternative software? You'll save money with a different brand, but will it do the trick? Should you buy boxed software, download freebies for your hard drive, access browser-based apps, or juggle all of the above?

We've reviewed nine productivity suites--including downloads and online services--and cooked up a jumbo chart mixing up their gumbo of features and file formats. IBM's release of Lotus Symphony beta added more spice to … Read more

Fuel cell boost for mobiles

It's finally here. Fuel cell technology in mobile devices, which has been talked about for the longest time, is finally coming to mobile devices.

The first-generation 24/7 Power Pack charger from Medis Technologies promises to extend the talktime on handsets by up to 30 hours, 20 hours for smart phones or as much as 80 hours of playback for MP3 players such as the iPod. While we have yet to get our hands on one of these Power Packs for testing, we can already foresee how this will be useful for those who travel frequently or who just … Read more

CNET Live - Episode 24 - Show Notes

Had a great time co-hosting with Molly today, chatting with Matt Mullenweg from WordPress and taking your calls. Good stuff today!

Watch the show on CNET TV.

Things we Crave

Battle of the non-violent robots

Gold and diamond-plated MacBook

First Look

RIM BlackBerry 8820

Guest Matt Mullenweg from WordPress. Download of the Week

WordPress.

Insider Secrets

Upgrade a Sony PS3 hard drive.

Your calls

Alex Osborne's Linux on Palm LifeDrive project.

Transfer files to Motorola Razr V3c from MacBook by Bluetooth from About.com.

More steps for using the iPhone … Read more

Intel hopes open-source effort will lower Linux power

Intel plans to launch an effort called LessWatts.org on Thursday, a combination of open-source software and helpful hints to reduce power consumption of Linux servers, PCs and gadgets.

LessWatts, to be detailed during a Intel Developer Forum speech by Renee James, vice president and general manager of Intel's Software and Solutions Group, is geared toward technically sophisticated folks from programmers to system administrators. It gathers together a number of Intel projects, such as the PowerTop utility for finding which software is pestering the processor and preventing it from dozing in low-power states.

Taking Intel's advice and fixes … Read more

IDF Fall 2007, part 6-- Mobility keynote

I'm not going to try liveblogging the keynotes today as I did yesterday. There's just never enough content in IDF keynotes to justify the effort.

The first keynote for Day 2 here at IDF was from Dadi Perlmutter, senior VP and general manager of Intel's Mobility Group. His theme was "Breaking the Barriers of Mobility."

He presented the results of a survey that showed the top needs of mobile computer users:… Read more

Google Presentations gets the green light

Google announced the launch on Monday night of its long-awaited, Web-based competitor to PowerPoint.

Google Presentations, which is free, is part of the company's online office suite, Google Docs.

Right off the bat, you will notice that Presentations has some of the same basic functionality as Microsoft's PowerPoint. It does enable you to create some really basic presentations, with themes, but the lack of features and slide show polish are real turn-offs for me.

Yes, there are nice collaboration features, just like the other Google Docs applications, but if the final product isn't on par with what … Read more

How green was Burning Man?

The majority of the nearly 50,000 celebrants at the Burning Man counter-culture event have been re-adjusting for two weeks to the real world of running water, cubicles and commutes. With the week-long party in the Nevada desert in the rearview mirror, how green was the burn?

Supporters and critics of the festival of radical self-expression anticipated that this year's Green Man theme would set the ephemeral city apart from those of the past. Many hoped that Burning Man would clean up its act, show off promising clean technologies and set a fresh example for eco-friendly events. Others accused … Read more