special

The 404 303: Where even we know not to get a bacon tattoo

Jeff, Wilson, and Justin recover from their hangovers with ace reporter Caroline McCarthy. We chat about Wilson's drunken debauchery and Caroline's bacon tattoo.

Some days on The 404, there isn't much news to report, so we do something we like to call "milking," and boy are we good at it! It's not for lacking of trying. We spend as much as 10 minutes every day looking for stuff on the Interwebs to riff on, and while we could talk about hackers taking apart Safari in seconds, it's really not that funny. And it's not 404-esque material. See how much text I've written, and really I haven't said anything!

In actual stories today, Caroline McCarthy tells us that there are bacon tattoos at SXSW. We think someone spammed our poll. President Obama makes a terrible, terrible 404-style joke about bowling and the Special Olympics. (We wish he would come on our show.) Google gives you an "Undo Send" feature in Gmail. We think it would be more effective if it had a five-hour, post-hangover undo-send feature. And we're really, really tired of Jason Seigel & Co. movies like "I Love You, Man." But it does bring up fond memories of Jennifer Love Hewitt in that teen classic "Can't Hardly Wait."

EPISODE 303 Download today's podcast |  Subscribe in iTunes |  Subscribe in RSS… Read more

Inside a solar-technology disruptor

What will it take to make solar electricity cheaper than grid power?

The 20 employees at 1366 Technologies, a solar start-up in Lexington, Mass., say they have the answer, and it's within sight. Rather than pursue one technology breakthrough, the company is hammering away at the cost of solar with a series of incremental improvements. The target is to cut the cost of making silicon cells in half to get below $1 per watt by 2012.

1366 Technologies, a Massachusetts Institute of Technology spin-off, is the subject of a profile, "Making solar cheaper than coal." It's … Read more

A special report on green tech

Starting on Wednesday, CNET News is running a three-day special report on the green-tech industry in which we examine its progress to date and its prospects.

We focus particularly on the electricity grid and the growing role of IT in energy and environmental sustainability.

The central question at play is scale: will new technologies speed a huge industrial shift to a cleaner energy industry? Or will green tech remain a niche in the next decade?

The package is a culmination of many weeks of hard work by a handful of editors here. For me, personally, it's a bit of … Read more

Effects shop fulfills amputee's mermaid dream

Good: double amputee gets prosthetic legs so she can walk. Better: double amputee gets realistic-looking mermaid tail so she can swim. Awesome: it's developed and built by Weta, the special-effects company that did work for the "Lord of the Rings" movies, as well as "King Kong" and "The Chronicles of Narnia" series.

Nadya Vessey's legs were amputated below the knee when she was a child due to illness. At one point, reports Stuff, a child asked her what happened to her legs and she told him she was a mermaid. The idea … Read more

It's a deal, dude: PS3 for $339 on Dell site

In the wake of unsubstantiated rumors that the PlayStation 3 would drop to $300 by April, we've seen sporadic reports that the 80GB PS3 is already being discounted to $339 at Dell.com, of all places. Apparently, the deal was on last week. Then it was off. And now it's back on.

You have to add the PS3 to your cart to get the discounted price, then tack on another $16 for 3- to 5-day shipping. If your employer happens to be part of the Dell Member Purchase Program, you can get an additional 7 percent off (-$… Read more

A tool for experienced users

This isn't a tool for novice users, but anyone who needs to run an application with the credentials of another user will appreciate this freeware. That's assuming the user knows the other's password and doesn't mind solving some problems with the program. Runas Special's plain graphical interface is just a few text boxes and a smattering of radio buttons. The app also works using simple command line options.

Runas Special makes it a snap for experienced users to run applications as other system users. The program's simple Help file is a single local HTML … Read more

Nothing But Software has the Microsoft Office 2008 for Mac Special Media Edition for $374.49, after $125.46 savings.

Save $125.46 on the Microsoft Office 2008 for Mac Special Media Edition from Nothing But Software >> Regular price is $499.95 >> Sale price is $374.49 >> Savings $125.46 (25.09%) >> Click here for deal

New HP display and desktop have a thing for green

Hewlett-Packard is throwing its hat into the expanding ring of companies with a thing for green. If you're serious about doing your part to protect the environment or you just want a stylish-looking monitor and desktop, the company has some new options for you.

On Monday, HP announced two new desktops and one new display. According to the company, all three have been designed to have a reduced impact on the environment.

The HP Pavilion Verde Special Edition a6645f and HP Pavilion Phoenix Special Edition a6655f are the two new eco PCs, and the 25.5-inch HP w2558hc is the new eco-friendly display.

According to HP, both PCs are Energy Star qualified and meet the standards for "silver" registration in the Electronic Products Environmental Assessment Tool (EPEAT). Each PC features a power management tool that purportedly provides up to 45 percent energy savings compared with PCs without power management enabled. … Read more

Vivienne Tam and HP notebook collabo...that's hot

Hewlett-Packard and world-renowned Asian fashion designer Vivienne Tam have been working together to create the HP Vivienne Tam Special Edition notebook. However, anyone attending Tam's fashion show during New York's Fashion Week at Bryant Park Tuesday has probably already seen it.

The special-edition notebook--which looks to be an HP mini-note, except it's sporting a 10-inch screen--debuted with the usual fanfare a fashion show receives at Fashion Week, but with a high-tech twist.

Models sashayed onto the catwalk workin' the designer notebook as a clutch purse, while looking fierce in Tam's clothing.

The notebook is gleaming red and bursting with peony flowers--a signature staple of Tam's collection--on the lid. The peony design is then meticulously carried inside the notebook, under the keypad. The laptop also features a extra special enter key that bears the Chinese symbol for double happiness. The design was inspired by Tam's "China Chic" style, which is recognized from the runways in Milan to the Olympics in Beijing and represents her personal mantra to live well and be beautiful. The notebook also features a complimentary embroidered storage sleeve that helps keep the exterior protected while being carried as a clutch.

The "digital clutch" represents the first time a computer company has partnered with a fashion designer to create a notebook PC as well as have it debut at a fashion show. In addition to the design of the notebook, Tam worked with HP to design its accessories and packaging. … Read more