lost

There has always been a small but dedicated market for vintage computers, with classic systems such as the Altair 8800 or the original Apple I going for thousands of dollars. The Apple II might be one of the more influential machines ever built, but it was fairly common and remains easy to find on eBay, with systems going for around $200 or less (a far cry from its original $1,200-plus price).

That said, there's one particular Apple II that collectors may be interested in, and that's the Apple II that served as the Swan Station computer on … Read more

Regular system backups are a matter of emphasis for us, and we like them thorough and often. Windows' built-in system recovery and backup utilities do a pretty decent job, but like many built-in features, they have their limitations, and they can be confusing and even daunting for many users, especially those who need them the most. There are more third-party backup utilities than you can shake a Registry at, however, each offering a different combination of power, flexibility, and ease of use. MagiCure Professional 9 from AdvantEDGE Solutions is aimed at less-experienced users, since its goal is to simplify the … Read more

If you've been thinking about subscribing to Apple's MobileMe service just to get the peace of mind that comes with Find My iPhone, there's an alternative that's $84.02 cheaper.

It's called iHound, and it tracks lost and stolen iPhones.

This app's been around for some time, but like similar tracking tools, it suffered from one major shortcoming: it couldn't run in the background, and therefore couldn't transmit its location unless it was activated. (I don't know about you, but I rarely run my tracker app before I lose my iPhone.)

Now that iOS 4 has arrived, however, iHound can communicate automatically, at regular intervals, even when it's not running. And it does exactly that, sending location data to iHound's servers every few minutes. (Thankfully, there are other interval settings, including 10 minutes and 30 minutes.)

If your phone does go missing, you simply sign into the iHound site to see its last transmitted location on a map. You can also send a push notification with a custom message and even a spoken alert. (Example: "This...is...iHound!" That should get some attention.)

There's even an option to remotely activate a siren, which could help you find a misplaced phone--or startle a thief into ditching it. And the siren can be deactivated only from the site (though an iPhone-savvy thief could simply turn the volume down to zero).… Read more

This week, we consider Steve Jobs' WWDC keynote announcements, Joey makes the case for the Evo vs. the iPhone 4, and we take a look back at the last 10 years of the E3 video game trade show, while previewing what we'll see next week.

Next week, Dan will be in Los Angeles for the Electronic Entertainment Expo, but Julie, Joey, and Scott will hold the fort down here in the Big Apple, bringing you the latest from E3 and more.

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The end of an era in television is here and possibly the beginning of a, likely not-as-successful movie franchise? Well, I hope not. Dong and I have bonded over "24" for the last nine years. In this episode we lament its pseudo-passing.

Then, heads are butted, faces kicked, and throats punched as we I say goodbye to "Lost." Dong says, "Good riddance" instead. Hater!

WARNING! There are spoilers for both these shows' finales and lore. You've been warned.

Also, Dong gives his advice on protecting your credit card number. Or maybe he doesn'… Read more

Don't bother taking your iPad to Yankee Stadium--it's banned the device, along with other laptops. Also, Intel announces new ULV chips; Asus bundles Kindle software on laptops; and [Spoiler Alert] we skip out on the "Lost" island for the last time.

Also, for reasons too complex to go into here, we end up discussing, and digging up the opening sequence from, the '80s sci-fi TV cult classic "Automan" (it's basically Desi Arnaz Jr. meets "Tron").

Our current video game obsession is Red Dead Redemption, and not satisfied to merely play the … Read more

Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg issues a statement about privacy

AT&T increases early termination fees for smartphone users

Google now offers encrypted search

Watch out for the Lost virus if you're still looking for answers from ABC's series finale

When I first reported on French filmmaker Stephane Benini's "Vernal Equinox," I was under the impression that it was going to be feature-length and for the theater. But the 12-minute short flick was released on YouTube today.

As previously reported, the movie is about a student who faces a unexpected situation when he returns home. In actuality, the movie makes about as much sense as an episode of Lost. The soundtrack has kind of a eerie edge to it, giving a sense of suspense. And you can tell a lot of thought was put into setting up … Read more

You know the story by now. Some Apple guy leaves his iPhone prototype in a bar. Some guy finds it. A few weeks go by. He then leaks photos of the thing to both Engadget and Gizmodo. Then he sells Gizmodo access to it for $5,000.

It's a good story, with a lot of ins, outs, and what have-yous, as Jeff "The Dude" Lebowski would say. But while a lot of attention has been focused on whether it was, like, cool, for Gizmodo to have paid for information, man, the real question is what would you … Read more