planets

In uncertain times like these, we are desperate to turn myth into reality.

Sex with Madonna really isn't all it's cracked up to be, according to those gossiping over her divorce. And there really are supranatural creatures out there that have evaded captivity, according to many explorers, scientists, and teenagers.

So if you're not persuaded that a Creepy Gnome really is terrorizing Northern Argentina, or that Bigfoot will ever be found (and certainly not by a couple of mendacious hicks) then perhaps you will believe Yoshiteru Takahashi.

Takahashi has caused a great stir over the last couple … Read more

There's a new smartphone from LG called the Cookie. It has a little more juice than the Palm Centro. But Natali doesn't like juice in her cookies. But that doesn't mean she doesn't like this smart phone. We also cover the new mobile browsers and Apple's attack ads against Microsoft.

Listen now: Download today's podcast

Mozilla launches mobile browser http://virgintech.blogspot.com/2008/10/mozilla-for-mobile-fennec.html http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20081020-hands-on-fennec-alpha-1-puts-firefox-on-your-handheld.html

Opera launches mobile version 9.5 for Symbian http://www.intomobile.com/2008/10/20/opera-mobile-95-beta-now-available-for-symbian-uiq3-too.html… Read more

Since Wilson can't be here today (or tomorrow), we invite Dan Ackerman into the studios to give us his expert opinion on the new Apple laptops and the latest video games. Unfortunately, he ignores all of our pressing questions in lieu of his own shameless promotions. Dan is a man of many talents, and his many creative projects give us a glimpse into his kooky world. Listen in for hilarious banter from Mr. Ackerman and even a brief look into the sad state of existence that is affectionately dubbed the Ackergoad household!

What more can be said about a man who literally has his hand in everyone else's cookie jar? Dan Ackerman, Senior Editor for Laptops at CNET, simply can't be pinned down or pigeonholed into one creative arena. No way! Mixed media is his art of choice, and on today's episode he invades the waves with several of his own personal projects including a unique take on the classic podcast and even his DIY amalgam music group! We play a clip on second half of the show after a bit of technical troubles (typical) and I have to admit that although Jeff and I were poised and ready to give Dan hell, the music is great and we actually find ourselves grooving uncontrollably to the penny licks and rolling bass lines. Buy a copy here and prepare yourself for a night of aural love making. And if you can't get enough of Dan's awesome radio voice, be sure to catch his new CNET podcast Digital City, available every Monday on CNET.com.

Updated at 1 p.m. PDT Monday, October 20, with name of song and artist and link to YouTube video of the track.

Sony is delaying the much-anticipated PlayStation 3 title Little Big Planet due to a late discovery that background music tracks contained two expressions found in the Koran, an inclusion some might deem offensive.

"We have taken immediate action to rectify this and we sincerely apologize for any offense that this may have caused," Sony said on its official PlayStation blog Friday. "Sorry for the delay, and rest assured, we are doing everything we can … Read more

We welcome Russ Frushtick back on the show for his third appearance, and to make up for our humiliating fumble on his last appearance, we make this an extra video gamey show. We go over some of the holiday's most anticipated titles, speculate on the livelihood of the industry, and even get to a few kooky stories from the Internet. Don't worry about the threepeating, Russ, a little creme will clear that up in a few weeks.

Although it's true that I don't get the same fuzzy feeling in my loins that Jeff does for video games, I'm glad that Russ is here today to help lay it all out for me. "Little Big Planet," "Dead Space," "Rhythm Heaven," and my personal favorite, "Call of Doodie." Wait, that doesn't sound right. Anyway, to update you on the PS Yu foundation, I'm still working on God of War for the original PlayStation console, and, man, that game is hard! I might have to use UGO's newest site Game Cheats to help me get through the last few levels, and look! They have it! "God Mode?" This game is about to get a lot less frustrating. Next, I'd like to try my hand at some more skateboarding games. So who was it that offered me Tony Hawk a few months ago? Back to the basics!

It's all the goods from Crave. Crave's Brian Tong and Bonnie Cha talk about the new BlackBerry Storm, a reversible jacket for all conditions, and a Little Big Planet to play in.

Related stories:

Verizon officially debuts RIM BlackBerry Storm

Update October 8 at 9:47 a.m. PDT: Due to technical problems, only part of this podcast was available when it published. It's working now. We apologize for the inconvenience.

Public-transit riders around the world may have new concerns when boarding trains. A new joint report from European universities indicates that a certain kind of subway card used the world over is extremely susceptible to being hacked. CNET News senior writer Elinor Mills explains the process and what you can do to keep your personal information safe.

Too often feel that wave of regret the next morning after … Read more

I took a premature look at PlanetEye in June. I found a conceptually interesting product that wasn't ready for real-world use. Since then, the site has opened to the public and gone through a redesign. It's now worth checking out for planning vacation travel.

The organizing principle of PlanetEye is the "Travel Pack," which is a way of categorizing your destinations. You can create a Travel Pack for anywhere you're going and then drop restaurants, hotels, and activities into it. Photos of your destination or activity (from other users) show up on a Pack page, … Read more

Tired of lugging a big travel book on vacation? Some Nokia phone users won't have to. They'll be able to download Lonely Planet travel guides directly onto their mobile handsets.

On Tuesday Nokia announced a deal with the travel book publisher Lonely Planet to sell maps and city guides to Nokia Maps 2.0 users. The service will initially allow users to download information for more than 100 cities, with more destinations to be added.

Each download, which costs 7.99 euros, or about $11.75, provides maps with directions and some background on important sites.

Nokia first … Read more