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'Tis the season to Crave: Leslie Katz's picks

Editor's note: From now through the end of December, various Crave contributors will be sharing their top five (mostly) tech-related wishes for the holiday season. See what we crave, and maybe you'll get some ideas!

1. Implementation of cancer-killing light saber. Reports that scientists in Scotland were working on a promising light saber-like device to treat cancer couldn't have come at a more relevant time. My dear friend's husband has just been diagnosed with a hard-to-treat form of the disease, and everyone close to him is reeling from the news.

The technology would involve firing a laser beam accurate enough to pump chemotherapy drugs directly into cancer cells. The researchers believe hard-to-reach cancers, such as that of the pancreas--and hopefully, in my friend's case, the liver--would especially benefit. This holiday season, I wish this treatment were already widely in use, so that it could zap the life out of every last cancer cell in this amazing man's body.

2. Motherboard menorah. I love the idea of gathering around the table to sing Hanukkah songs and light the recycled motherboard. This innovative take on the traditional candelabrum also features nine LED lights, which would help me cut down on those 15 grams of carbon dioxide allegedly produced by every lit candle that burns completely. Plus, this menorah uniquely combines two aspects of my identity: my Jewish heritage and my job in technology.

3. Pininfarina BO electric car. One day, my trusty 1994 Integra hand-me-down will go to Acura heaven--and given the odd screeching sounds it's been emitting lately, that day is likely coming soon. When the old car does retire, I'd like to replace it with a sleeker, greener model.

The graceful little B0, a collaboration between Italian designer Pininfarina and Bollore, uses a lithium metal polymer battery pack on the undercarriage, with an electric motor driving the front wheels. Solar panels on the roof and hood help recharge the electrical power reserves. Yes, it takes 6.3 seconds to accelerate from zero to 37 mph (Bollore, a consortium of companies with expertise in batteries and capacitors, hasn't released a zero-to-60 time yet). But hopefully when and if this great-looking little auto goes into production in late 2009, it will pick up speed. And can I just say that I'm really ready for a built-in MP3 player to replace my current cassette/CD combo? … Read more

'Tis the season to Crave: Matt Hickey's picks

Editor's note: From now through the end of December, various Crave contributors will be sharing their top five (mostly) tech-related wishes for the holiday season. Here's the latest in the series.

Even though I'm a "Bah, Humbug" kind of guy, I like the idea of coming up with five things I want as holiday presents from the technology world.

I could have picked five gadgets. Instead--in the interest of goodwill to all mankind--I've decided to pick personal-technology intangibles that I believe should be changed. I've selected things that would be simple to do, and hopefully the various powers that be will see this list and work with Santa to consider my ideas. I am, after all, a professional.

1. Zune client for OS X. There's nothing Apple's doing to prevent this; it's all Redmond. The Zune is a fantastic media player and is in many ways superior to the iPod. But, as a Mac user (sorry, I cannot with a straight face run Windows at home) I'm out in the cold.

Microsoft has made some great software for OS X (Office for Mac is still better than Office for Windows), so it's not a lack of talent. I'm really not sure what it is. You'd think this would be something Microsoft would do out of spite. Mac users using Zunes would give MS' consumer arm a boost out of irony and spite.

2. Adobe Flash and MMS capability for iPhone. Maybe it's some deal with YouTube. Maybe it's closed-mindedness on Apple's side. I don't care, I want Flash support integrated within the iPhone's version of Safari. There are too many online tools, games, and apps that use Flash to leave it out. To make the iPhone really capable of replacing a laptop for daily use it needs to have all the same capabilities, and that means being able to use these tools via Flash.

And really, why don't we have MMS yet? Apple? AT&T? Phones that are free have it. Windows Mobile phones have it. It's one of the things keeping the iPhone from being a perfect device. Work on it. … Read more

'Tis the season to Crave: Dan Ackerman's picks

Editor's note: From now through the end of December, various Crave contributors will be sharing their top five (mostly) tech-related wishes for the holiday season.

1. Either a BlackBerry Storm, Samsung Omnia, or Apple iPhone: After getting laughed at one time too many when whipping out my chunky Treo 700P, it's finally time to give in and get a new smartphone. Initially, as a long-time Verizon customer, I was torn between the BlackBerry Storm and the Samsung Omnia. After playing around with both, I wasn't convinced--the Storm's click screen seems like it would get annoying real quick, and the Omnia, despite the rave reviews, just felt sluggish to use, and the low screen resolution made it hard to read text in the Web browser.

Now, I'm also considering making the switch to AT&T and joining the iPhone masses, just on the strength of the interface and general ease-of-use. I use my phone primarily for Web surfing and AIM, not so much for calls, but even so, Verizon's good reputation for service in NYC (and AT&T's less-than-stellar rep) gives me pause. I'm still undecided, so let me know what you think...

2. Flip Video MinoHD: As a one-time film student, I still have the folding chair and tilted beret of a big-screen director in the back of my mind. To help kick off my alternate career as a documentarian in the mold of the Maysles Brothers or Werner Herzog, I'll start with this handheld HD mini-cam.

3. M-Audio Keystation 88: If you're a part-time musician like myself, figuring out how to squeeze the most music-making power out of your gear is always an important topic. There are as many combos of hardware and software, digital and analog equipment out there as there are music styles, but my personal preference is a PC-based ProTools setup. I currently use a Digidesign Mbox and ProTools LE 7.4, with Propellerhead's Reason software ReWired into it for keyboards and sequencing.

If that's all Greek to you, the point is, I've used a variety of different 49-, 61-, and 32-key USB controllers (essentially dummy devices that look like piano keyboards but have no onboard sounds and are used to control music software) over the years, but have never had a full-size 88-key controller. Since they're basically just plastic keys wired to a USB port, they're usually moderately priced, such as this $249 model from M-Audio. … Read more

'Tis the season to Crave: Erica Ogg's picks

Editor's note: From now through the end of December, various Crave experts will be sharing their top five (mostly) tech-related wishes for the holiday season. See what we crave, and maybe you'll get some ideas!

1. Get Mom off of AOL. My mother is the best woman I know. She's hilarious, an amazing cook, and would go to the ends of the earth for her children. She's even fairly comfortable with technology, as evidenced by the complicated emoticons she tags onto her e-mails and text messages. But she has one major flaw: she can't seem to give up her AOL account. She's been a loyal customer since we first paid for usage by the minute.

Mom doesn't actually like AOL at all, but she looks past the annoying "You've got mail" greeting and circa-1999 design all because she doesn't want to lose her bookmarks. Mom, you deserve threaded e-mail conversations and easy filters. This Christmas, sign up for Gmail. Or Yahoo Mail, Live Mail, whatever: they're all free. There's no reason not to switch. Seriously, do it for me, Mom.

2. Kill voice mail. Can we please just get rid of voice mail? It's time consuming, eats up service plan minutes, and isn't the best solution for the problem of a missed call.

I'm a reporter, so a LOT of people call me. But if I'm not at my desk, and you leave a message, chances are I won't dial in to the phone system to listen to it. No offense, but I'm probably on deadline. Instead, I'll see a missed call and go directly to my e-mail. The really pro PR folks send e-mails to say they called, and consequently, this is how I now operate in life. If I miss a call on my mobile, I don't check messages. I look at the number and, if it's someone I know, return the call.

Voice mail is overrated and unnecessary. It's called e-mail, people. Or visual voice mail. I can compromise.

3. More content on Netflix Watch Instantly. Netflix Watch Instantly is awesome. So much so that I nominated it as my Gadget I'm Thankful For. But after catching up on 30 Rock, old episodes of childhood favorite MacGyver, and random '80s flicks, I'm left wanting more. And if I can be picky here, more current TV series, please. … Read more

'Tis the season to Crave: Anne Dujmovic's picks

1. Canon EOS Rebel XSi. For the past five years, my Canon PowerShot A80 has been with me for some memorable moments--from the old Olympic stadium in Athens where I sat across the aisle from the former king of Greece in 2004, to the secluded beach on the north shore of Kauai where I got engaged earlier this year. Two months ago, the ol' point-and-shoot decided it had had enough excitement. But even before then, I had been thinking about trading up to an entry-level digital SLR.

I've got my eye on the Canon EOS Rebel XSi. It gets high marks from Consumer Reports and CNET, it's in my price range (around $700), and it's a Canon. CNET's own Lori Grunin describes it as the best Canon dSLR for "most hobbyists" and "vacation shooters." Sounds like the perfect camera to tote around Australia and New Zealand in 2009.

2. Digital audio recorder. The other night my dad told me that as a young boy growing up in Yugoslavia he sought out English-language news magazines like Time to find out what was really going on in the world. It was just after World War II and his source was the reading room at the U.S. Consulate. This is just one of many stories I want to know and record so the next generation of Dujmovics will hear them.

I'm considering the Griffin iTalk Pro and the XtremeMac Micro Memo because I could use either one with my iPod. But then there's this application for the iPhone called Recorder. Problem is I don't have an iPhone and I'm just not ready to succumb. I don't like having all the answers in front of me. I like to ponder things. Besides, when I do wonder aloud about something, my fiance is often there with his iPhone, ready to Google whatever it is for me.

3. Guitar Toolkit. I've been playing guitar for three years now, and my Korg GT-3 has always seemed a little, well, imprecise. Part of it is probably user inexperience--you adjust the guitar's tuning pegs this way and that while watching the little red light bounce around on the tuner until it reaches the middle and turns green. I found a guitar tuner I like, only it's an iPhone app. (Sigh. See above item.) It's called Guitar Toolkit ($9.99). Not only does it have a chromatic tuner, but a chord finder (you can even "strum" the screen to hear what a particular chord sounds like), and a metronome. Now if only it included a recording of my former guitar teacher imploring me to "play, and play mistakes loudly." … Read more

'Tis the season to Crave: Sharon Vaknin's picks

Editor's note: Welcome to the first installment of the 2008 Crave holiday wish lists. From now through the end of December, various Crave experts will be sharing their top five tech-related wishes for the season. See what we crave, and maybe you'll get some ideas!

1. Nintendo DSi. Even though America will probably be one of the last countries to get this (what else is new?), I'm counting on a true friend to ship this overseas, wrap it up in a pink gift box, and put it under my tree menorah. Besides the fact that I didn'… Read more

Create a collapsible list in Microsoft Word

Years ago, I promised my cousin Bill (who doesn't have a TV show, by the way) that I would convert the family tree he had created into a Web page. It was pretty easy to find various JavaScripts that let you open menus and submenus, either by clicking or simply by hovering over them.

The only problem was the unwieldy HTML coding required to ensure that the lists opened and closed, as expected. What ended up working better for me was Microsoft Word's Outline view, which lets you use headings to show and hide information in a tree … Read more

i.TV's iPhone app gets deep Netflix integration

On Monday i.TV, the movie and TV show listing service for the iPhone, pushed out a really neat update that marries the idea of its live content guide with services that can take advantage of it as a platform.

The first service to be introduced into the mix is Netflix. I.TV users who are also Netflix subscribers can manage their queue right from the application, as well as start Netflix searches from i.TV's own listings.

An example of how this might work is if you're perusing the latest movie listings. If you see a film … Read more

10 election tweets worth remembering

It was a marathon evening for media buffs as Barack Obama beat rival John McCain to become the United States' first African-American president-elect. You couldn't miss it on Twitter, as the microblogging service exploded with election updates, commentary, and speculation.

Miraculously, Twitter's servers lasted the night, and had quite a lot of terrific, 140-characters-long election commentary (in messages known as "tweets") to serve up for hungry news hounds. Here are 10 of CNET News' favorites.

10. One of Barack Obama's most-buzzed campaign innovations was announcing his running mate choice via text message. It not only … Read more

Read It Later gets deep Google Reader integration

Firefox Extension Read It Later pushed out a big update on Thursday which adds deep integration with Google's Reader product. With the new version installed, a little check box shows up on the left of every single feed item, which you can simply click on to mark for later reading. Previously the only way to do this would be to open up the actual site from Google Reader, then click the Read It Later button.

To make going through that list of saved stories more manageable, you can now sort it by PostRank--a service we checked out back in July. … Read more