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Digital activists release more banker data

Online activists are at it again. Supporters of the Occupy Wall Street protests today released more personal information on bankers, including the man at the helm of the financial institution whose downfall ranks as the largest bank failure in the U.S.

Information was posted to the Web about Kerry Killinger who was removed as CEO of Washington Mutual shortly before it collapsed in 2008. He was reportedly awarded more than $25 million in compensation that year, including a $15 million severance payment. A lawsuit filed by the U.S. Federal Deposit Insurance Company this year accuses Killinger of leading … Read more

Fixing AirPort problems in OS X

One of the prominent problems that people have after upgrading their systems or otherwise modifying their systems is when their Wi-Fi connections will not work properly. The Wi-Fi connection may turn off after a brief period of connectivity, or it may just immediately shut down. At other times it may stay on but not receive a proper configuration from the router and be given a self-assigned IP address.

When these problems occur, generally people try various fixes like running general maintenance routines, but while doing this cannot hurt (and may have some secondary benefits), clearing system caches and resetting the … Read more

This iPhone-controlled RC car climbs walls

Recently, we did a short post on Dexim's mini iOS-controlled Monster Truck. Well, we've now come across a gravity-defying iOS-controlled car aptly called the iPhone Controlled Wall Climbing Car iW500.

What's the trick? Or should we say, what makes it stick?

Apparently, this RC car actually has an integrated vacuum that lets it hug walls and even drive upside-down on ceilings.

Like Dexim's App Speed Monster Truck, the car comes bundled with a transmitter that you plug into the bottom of your iPhone or iPod Touch (it should work with an iPad as well) and you download a free app to control the car. … Read more

Samsung unveils first Mango Windows Phone Omnia W

Samsung Electronics today unveiled the Omnia W, its first smartphone running on the updated Mango version of Windows Phone.

Samsung plans to launch the Omnia W in Italy starting late next month, and eventually through Europe, Latin America, Southeast, and Southwest Asia. The company didn't provide any date for a U.S. arrival.

Samsung was among the early supporters of Microsoft's Windows Phone platform, which has only seen moderate success during the first go-around. The Mango update of the software, however, has won critical praise, although it's unclear if that will translate to commercial success.

Based on its specifications and hardware, the phone is more of a mass-market device.

The Omnia W has a 1.4GHz processor, 512MB of memory, 8GB of storage, and a 3.7-inch Super AMOLED display.

It has a 5-megapixel auto-focus camera with LED flash in the rear, and a front-facing VGA camera for video calls. It also allows for 720p video recording and playback. Other features that are standard in smartphones now are Wi-Fi, Bluetooth capabilities, an accelerometer, and light, proximity, magnetometer, and gyroscope sensors.

While the specs are solid, they still fall short of the Galaxy S II, Samsung's flagship smartphone that runs on Google's Android platform. … Read more

The 404 908: Where we level up with Fitocracy (podcast)

Our guest on today's podcast episode is Dick Talens from Fitocracy.com, a social network that whips nerds into shape using role-playing mechanics and social-gaming achievements.

A self-described "ex-fat kid," Dick tells us about his high-school RPG career that developed an unhealthy lifestyle and dietary habits, and the light bulb moment when he realized he could combine his love for video games with the success of online social networks to get into shape.

Instead of typical workout routines you get from personal trainers and fitness magazines, Fitocracy takes cues from games like World of Warcraft and Chrono Trigger to present "quests" that must be completed to earn achievement points and "boosts."

After each workout, Fitocracy makes it easy to check in online, update your progress, and even send "props" to your fellow Fitocrats--the whole process is really motivating and takes the chest puffing out of your daily gym experience.

Check out today's episode to see Dick's incredible before and after photos, which should be enough to get you out of your computer chair for at least a few sit-ups. Also, the site is in private beta right now, but Dick is extending a generous invite to 404 listeners--just head to Fitocracy.com and enter in "The404" as a promo code and you'll be able to sign up ahead of everyone else.

Enjoy the service, and let us know what you think, and don't forget to send us your before and after photos!

The 404 Digest for Episode 908

Head over to Fitocracy and enter "The 404" into the promo code section to try it out! Fitocracy brings games and social to your workouts. Follow Fitocracy on Twitter. My workout partner is a role-playing game. Xkcd comic about Fitocracy. Most popular fitness tracking Web site: Fitocracy. Twitter break video of the day: HEYYEYAAEYAAAEYAEYAA (AND HE PRAYS)

Episode 908 Subscribe in iTunes (audio) | Subscribe in iTunes (video) | Subscribe in RSS Audio | Subscribe in RSS Video… Read more

Gears of War 3: Gears of more

Next to Halo, the Gears of War series is the most popular Xbox 360 exclusive title. Following in the footsteps of the 2006 original and its 2008 sequel, the inevitable Gears of War 3 is finally here. The third-person "duck and cover" shooter doles another healthy heaping of single and multiplayer chainsaw and machine gun ultraviolent action, as supersolider Marcus Fenix and his COG army are once again fighting to rid planet Sera of the murderous Locust Horde.

How does the third installment of the trilogy compare to its predecessors? And is this one worth your $60 (or even more, if you're opting for the Epic or Limited Editions)?

Jeff:I'll admit I wasn't initially excited to get back into Marcus Fenix's boots for a third (and possibly last) time. The Gears of War franchise was beginning to smell like Halo to me; a handful of games that, for the most part, all play and look the same.

But Gears of War 3 makes some significant evolutionary steps, well beyond the game's face-lift that reassures it as one of, if not the, best-looking game on Xbox 360. Rest assured, Gears fans: Gears of War 3 is the most brutal game of them all, with a long campaign littered with plenty of jaw-dropping moments and a multiplayer component that has the polish and accessibility to stand on its own.

While Gears' basic gameplay remains untouched, there are few changes worth mentioning. In addition to a general fine-tuning that makes aiming, shooting, and reloading smoother than ever, there are a few new melee animations and abilities as well as new weapons.

But where I was really floored came in the form of Gears of War 3's fantastic multiplayer effort. Matchmaking implementation is tremendous, and players easily slide in and out of co-op in real time. It's also much simpler to set parties up, something past Gears games struggled with. Of course I've been playing without hiccups the entire week before public launch, so I'll be interested to see if the silky smooth performance continues on Tuesday.… Read more

New HP IPS monitors offer much for less

The last few months in monitor reviews have been dominated by rail-thin monitors with twisted nematic (TN) displays. Many have been impressive specimens. But as far as monitors go, there are other panel technologies out there, people.

Today, Hewlett-Packard announced five new computer monitors: one TN and four that use in-plane switching (IPS) technology.

IPS monitors generally provide wider viewing angles and usually cover a higher percentage of the sRGB color space than TNs, so they appeal to more professional users, who may require more accurate visuals.

Below we'll dive into the details of four new IPS monitors, one … Read more

A sure bet: Shure's new flagship SRH940 headphones

Closed-back, over-the-ear (circumaural) headphones were the original noise-isolating headphones. Closed-back headphones seal your ears off from external sound, but the isolation is purely acoustic; noise-canceling headphones use electronics and do a slightly better job of blocking noise.

But there are a few downsides to that approach; noise-canceling headphones always use batteries, and on some models when the batteries run out of juice, the party's over. No more music. The noise-canceling signal puts a small amount of pressure on your eardrums, which some people find uncomfortable.

The other, bigger downside to noise-canceling headphones are their electronics, which can degrade the music's sound quality. Dollar for dollar, closed-back models block almost as much noise, and always sound better.

The closed-back Shure SRH940 is fairly light (11 ounces), and the thickly padded headband and plush velvet earpads make for headphones that are extremely comfortable to wear over long periods of time. The earcups' decorative covers appear to be metal, but there's lots of gray plastic in the design, which is why it feels so light and comfy.

Despite all the plastic, the SRH940's durability seems first-rate. It's a collapsible design with 90-degree swivel earcups for convenient storage and portability in the supplied semihard storage case.

The 42-ohm SRH940 headphones come with two detachable cables--a coiled 9.84-foot cable and a straight 8.2-foot one--and thanks to the bayonet clip mount, you never accidentally yank the cable out. The cables are terminated with 3.5mm plugs at each end, and there's a screw-on 6.3mm adapter for home use. … Read more

Motorola shareholder sues, says $12.5B not enough

When is $12.5 billion dollars just not enough? When you're selling out to a monster like Google, according to Motorola investor John Keating. He's suing Moto and its CEO Sanjay Jha for failing to get the best price possible from Google for Motorola Mobility, according to a Bloomberg report.

On its face, Keating's argument seems like a harder sale than the deal itself, considering that the agreement has Google paying $40 per share for the company, or a 63 percent premium over the stock price at the time of the deal.

But such legal actions have … Read more