Content and publishing

Google is unleashing a new design for its social network aimed at making the site simpler to use but also easier on the eyes.

One of the first changes to pop out is a new Navigation bar nestled on the left. Replacing the old static toolbar at the top, the Navigation bar includes the usual icons for Home, Profile, Photos, and more. But this bar is customizable.

You can change the order of the various icons to drag your favorite ones to the top. You can remove icons for features you don't use or add other icons from a &… Read more

Pinterest has now joined the ranks of Facebook, Twitter, and other hot social networks by appearing as a share button on popular Web sites.

Amazon and eBay buyers alike will now find a Pinterest button in fourth place next to e-mail, Facebook, and Twitter as one of their primary sharing options. Seeing the recent surge in power and popularity of Pinterest, retailers are naturally quick to jump on the bandwagon, encouraging users to repin their favorite products and pages.

The image sharing site recently jumped ahead of LinkedIn and Tumblr to become the third most popular social network, according to … Read more

A senior executive that Hollywood hired last year to be its chief technology policy officer has undergone a remarkable about-face: he now opposes the Stop Online Piracy Act.

Paul Brigner, who was until last month a senior vice president at the Motion Picture Association of America, has emerged as SOPA's latest critic. "I firmly believe that we should not be legislating technological mandates to protect copyright -- including SOPA and Protect IP," he says.

In a statement posted on CNET.com, Brigner says that his time at the MPAA -- which, more than any other advocacy group, … Read more

The Motion Picture Association of America believes there's still hope for the controversy-plagued Stop Online Piracy Act.

In an interview with the Hollywood Reporter that was published online today, MPAA chief Christopher Dodd said he was "confident" that President Obama was using his "good relationships in both communities" -- that is, Silicon Valley and Hollywood -- to advance SOPA.

When asked whether there are negotiations going on now, Dodd replied: "I'm confident that's the case, but I'm not going to go into more detail because obviously if I do, it becomes … Read more

Amazon has launched a new Kindle bookstore to cover Spanish-speaking customers in the U.S.

Opening its doors today, "eBooks Kindle en Espanol" will offer a slew of popular English titles translated into Spanish as well as Spanish-language bestsellers.

The store is currently home to around 30,000 books, according to Amazon, including those from Nobel Prize winning authors Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Camilo Jose Cela, and Mario Vargas Llosa. Readers will also find more than a thousand free classics and exclusive Kindle Singles in Spanish from such as authors Kurt Vonnegut and Susan Orlean.

Amazon is also offering … Read more

Those of you who use Google Contacts as an address book will now be able to see your contacts' address and phone numbers directly in Google+.

Many people, myself included, use Google Contacts as an online repository to store a personal address book for my family, friends, and colleagues. As of Monday, that address book information will be accessible on your Google+ page, according to Google.

So instead of having to bounce over to Google Contacts to find someone's address or phone number, you can simply grab it within Google+ by clicking on the About tab in the person'… Read more

It's the end of an era and it's the birth of an era.

If you're a CNET fan, you may have listened to a CNET podcast or a thousand since Molly Wood and Tom Merritt launched the trailblazing Buzz Out Loud podcast in 2005. Buzz Out Loud (all 1,588 episodes!) and the shows that followed in its footsteps, from Rumor Has It to Crave and Dialed In, number among the most creative, fun live shows on the Internet.

But here's the thing: we've closely observed over the past few months how our audiences watch … Read more

Have you ever followed someone on Twitter only to find that the person no longer appears in your follow status? Well, it's not you, it's Twitter.

The site has finally acknowledged a glitch that's causing people you follow to appear as if they've been unfollowed. Twitter is working on a fix but insists the bug only makes it seem like you're no longer following someone. Clicking on the user's actual profile page can confirm that you're still a follower:

Wizards and muggles alike can now buy and download digital versions of their favorite Harry Potter books.

Starting today, the Pottermore Web site shop is conjuring up all seven Harry Potter titles in digital format, beginning with "Harry Potter and the Sorceror's Stone" and ending with "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows." The first three titles in the series are $7.99 apiece, while the other four will run $9.99 each. Capturing the entire collection will cost you $57.54. Free samples of each book are also available so you can try before you … Read more