winter

VANCOUVER, British Columbia--It's been 62 years since the United States claimed a gold medal in bobsled.

And this year, our best hope is piloted by a computer geek who trains by playing video games.

So our chances are pretty good. That's because, in addition to being a Microsoft Certified Professional and admitted PC nerd, Stephen Holcomb is also the reigning world champion in the four-man bobsled.

Plus, he's got this crazy "Holcy dance" that one just has to see to believe.

Holcomb hopes to dance his way on to the medal podium by the time … Read more

It's official: we can't take anymore winter. We need a pick-me-up. Actually, we just discovered that the only thing worse than winter is a glowing blue beam of death designed to act like the sun. Also, shocking news about Rafe Needleman!

Philips GoLite: cure for winter blues? http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-10456661-1.html

Celestial fashion: weather-dependent dresses http://dvice.com/archives/2010/02/celestial-fashi.php

ThinkGeek :: WoodStation Weather Display http://www.thinkgeek.com/homeoffice/lights/c317/?ref=c/&cpg=cj… Read more

VANCOUVER, B.C.--There's been a lot of attention in Vancouver about a certain Snow Leopard, but this one comes from a lot farther away than Cupertino, Calif.

Ghanan skier Kwame Nkrumah-Acheampong, who happens to have the same nickname as Mac OS X 10.6, has won attention as the only representative from the African nation at these Winter Games. The Snow Leopard is slated to race on Saturday in the men's slalom race at Whistler.

Part of his nickname comes from the fact that he supports the Snow Leopard Trust, an organization devoted to protecting the endangered … Read more

I figured since I'm acting like your grumpy old driver's ed instructor this week regarding how to pioneer your vehicle safely in rough winter weather, today I will present the second installment of the Michelin Tires' series on this subject. Whereas yesterday's video concerned braking techniques when driving in winter weather, today's clip is all about accelerating safely and efficiently on snowy and icy roadways.

Yes, I know a lot of what's covered here may seem like common knowledge to most viewers, the main reason I wanted to post this video is because of its … Read more

VANCOUVER, British Columbia--The good news for Microsoft is that all the PCs powering the Olympics are running Windows. The bad news: it's the older Windows XP operating system.

Windows 7, it seems, was a bit too new to be used, while Windows Vista was, well, Windows Vista. So, instead, all the PCs are running an operating system that was first released before the 2002 Games in Salt Lake City.

Representatives for Acer confirmed that the more than 6,000 notebooks and desktops that they delivered to Olympic organizers were all running Windows XP.

"It was the operating system … Read more

VANCOUVER, B.C.--A child's first hockey game is a right of passage in Canada.

And Thomas Challis, 5, of Coquitlam, got an exceptionally good introduction to big-time hockey, landing the chance to go with his dad to Tuesday's match-up between Switzerland and Belarus.

Thomas' dad, Roger, patiently explained some of the game's finer points, such as the difference between linemen and referees (referees call penalties, while linesmen generally do not) and why regular players have hard shin pads and goalies have big soft pads (goalies don't want to give up big rebounds that can lead … Read more

In yesterday's video blog, we all got a brief glimpse into the impact good winter-specific tires can make when driving on snow and ice. Today's video from Michelin goes into deeper detail on how good winter tires and proper braking techniques can keep you safer when driving on winter weathered roads.

This demonstration video covers comparisons of braking distance between different tire types, emergency or threshold braking techniques, the difference in braking with ABS, cornering, and everything in between. Once again, even if you think you know everything about how to drive your car in the snow, there … Read more

Yesterday's video blog touched upon many available features for automobiles that can aid driving in hazardous winter weather conditions, so since we were on the subject, I thought I'd present this video that demonstrates the difference in performance between a car with a complete set of winter tires and another one that has a mix of tires installed. As you probably guessed, there is, indeed, a noticeable difference.

Tire retailer TireRack.com pits a red car with mixed tires (two regular all-season, two winter weather tires) against a blue car that has four winter tires, and evaluates the … Read more

On today's episode of CNET's The 404 Podcast, the guys share the mics with longtime friend Clayton Morris of "Fox and Friends" and co-host of the Grizzly Bear Egg Cafe.

Anyone who listens to our show on a regular basis knows that very little preparation goes into each episode, but we always have a great time with Clayton, and today we spend the first half of the show talking about Jeff's appearance on NPR's All Things Considered, where he spent some time speaking with host Robert Siegel about his concerns over racism in multiplayer video games. After Wilson spends some time drooling over Siegel's baritone radio voice, Clayton tell us about his humble beginnings in the broadcasting industry and even does a few spot-on impersonations of New York's local television anchors.

After the break, Clayton tells us about his brief but educational sojourn into the armpit of the Internet that is Chat Roulette. Acting as the illegitimate child of Omegle and Skype, the site uses your Webcam to pair you up in a video chat room with a stranger on the Internet.

Clayton and the three of us attempt to describe the most common shared experience on CR: what might seem like a completely innocent Web site used to create new friendships across the world quickly falls flat on its face as you're faced with the worst the Web has to offer. Racism, misogyny, nudity, and pornography are just a few of the scenes you'll witness, so enter at your own peril, and don't forget to breathe...it's just a Web site.