denton

Finally, a giant hexapod tank you can drive

We've decided: Cars are nonsense. Who needs cars? Matt Denton's Mantis hexapod robot clearly represents the transportation of the future.

Denton, an animatronics and special-effects designer whose portfolio includes "Prometheus" and "Lost in Space" with company Micromagic Systems, has an interest in hexapods that goes way back. Over the years, he has built a few miniature hexapods at Micromagic.

Mantis is his first giant-sized model, the result of four years of research, development, design, and building, and is, Denton claims, the biggest operational hexapod in the world. The thing comes in at 9.2 feet tall, weighing 2 tons. It's powered by a 2.2-liter turbo diesel engine and is designed to take on any terrain. … Read more

Court examines Gizmodo devices for iPhone info

Authorities have finally begun examining the computers, server, and other electronic gear seized from a Gizmodo editor as part of the investigation into a missing iPhone prototype.

Stephen Wagstaffe, chief deputy district attorney for San Mateo County, told CNET on Wednesday that a court there had appointed a "special master" to search the items seized from the home of Jason Chen in late April. The court has asked the special master to collect only information that pertains to Gizmodo's dealings with an iPhone prototype that the blog purchased for $5,000.

In March, an Apple employee lost … Read more

Gray Powell's father: 'He was devastated'

The father of Gray Powell, the Apple engineer who reportedly lost a prototype of the iPhone 4G, says his son was reeling following the incident.

"Of course he was devastated," Robert Powell told CNET in a phone interview Wednesday. "He loves the company."

Gray Powell, 27, finds himself in the middle of media frenzy after losing a handset that appears to be a next-generation iPhone, a device that has yet to be released or even acknowledged by Apple. We've been trying to reach the younger Powell directly and passed along an interview request through his … Read more

Did lost iPhone lead to blog bidding war?

There was no bidding war between Gizmodo and Engadget over the now-famous, misplaced iPhone 4G, Joshua Topolsky, Engadget's editor in chief, told CNET on Tuesday.

Engadget managers never tendered an offer for the leaked phone, never were sure of the legality of buying it, and, of course, never got their hands on the device, Topolsky said.

Instead, as is well-known by now, it was Gizmodo and its parent company, Gawker Media, that were willing to buy the phone from an unnamed source for $5,000 and detail the device's features in a story.

The handset appears to be … Read more

How Gizmodo got its iPhone scoop (Q&A)

The unnamed person who now famously found the lost prototype iPhone approached both Gizmodo and Engadget, rival technology blogs, with an offer. Gizmodo came away with the device.

How Gizmodo and parent company Gawker Media ended up in possession of what appears to be a prototype of an unreleased and as-yet-unannounced iPhone 4G is just one of the burning questions answered Tuesday by Gawker CEO Nick Denton in an interview with CNET.

On Monday, Gizmodo published photos and analysis of what Denton and editors there said is the next generation of Apple's era-defining iPhone. Apple has bolstered Gizmodo's … Read more

The 404 324: Where we run naked through the quad

Sean Tice and Adam Bedient, directors of the online Web series "Streak to Win," join the show today to talk about college kids competitively streaking and the crazy antics they get into.

You can find the series online at streaktowin.com. On the Web site, you'll also find a guide to the best techniques of streaking. Most importantly, you have to be sure to tape down all appendages. Their words, not ours.

We also discuss a bit about how the Web is really opening up distribution for films that might get overlooked on the traditional festival circuit. These guys obviously didn't get too much love at Sundance when they pitched their film. And they share some interesting stories about getting arrested during the production of their Web series. Plus, plans for a follow-up featuring Ivy League streaking?

Also on the show today, we talk about a kid who mashed up Twitter, Twitpic, and the public arrest records of the Denton, Texas, Police Department. Kind of scary, but also pretty cool that there are more practical uses for Twitter than finding out that Ashton Kutcher just ate a sandwich. Just don't ever get pulled over for possession in Denton. These mug shots aren't pretty. As for Ashton Kutcher, we think this might be cheating a bit. There are starving people in the world, and someone donates money for this?

Be sure to send in your adventure stories and callbacks to 1-866-404-CNET (2638). Catch you all on the flip side.

EPISODE 324 Download today's podcast | Subscribe in iTunes | Subscribe in RSS… Read more

The city where every arrest gets Twittered

For a short time, it seemed as if the Denton Police Department outside Dallas had been inspired by great communicators such as Ashton Kutcher and CNN.

A Twitter page, headlined "Denton Police," fed details of every arrest the department had performed, coupled with TwitPic mugshots.

This remarkable, real-time communication between the police and outside world surely was a futuristic forerunner to Texas' progression towards secession.

Until it was revealed to be the work of University of North Texas senior, Brian Baugh.… Read more

Gawker to absorb Defamer gossip blog

Updated at 4:35 p.m. PST with Denton e-mail.

Gawker Media has apparently had a change of heart regarding the sale of its Defamer gossip site and decided to fold it into the larger company.

Nick Denton, founder and president of Gawker Media, announced the move Sunday in a company blog:

It's Oscars day, a good a time as any to do this: Hollywood gossip site Defamer is being merged into Gawker, the company's flagship gossip title. The four-year-old title will continue as Gawker's entertainment column; the movie-industry stories will remain showcased on Defamer.com but … Read more

End of a snarky era: Gawker shuts down Valleywag

On the same day that he published a detailed missive about his dire predictions for the online ad market, Gawker Media overlord Nick Denton made public his decision to shut down Valleywag, the blog network's Silicon Valley gossip title. Valleywag was launched early in 2006.

Valleywag editor Owen Thomas will have his job folded into a column on the Gawker.com flagship title, a gossip blog focused primarily on the New York media industry. Denton explained in an e-mail to CNET News that Thomas will remain full-time and that the Valleywag brand (as well as Valleywag.com) will stay … Read more

Gawker Media slims its blog network

This post was updated at 8:46 a.m. PDT.

New York blog czar Nick Denton, founder and publisher of Gawker Media, is selling three of the new-media company's properties: Idolator, Gridskipper, and Wonkette.

In an internal e-mail obtained by CNET News.com, Denton explained the sale: "To be blunt: they each had their editorial successes; but someone else will have better luck selling the advertising than we did."

When asked via instant message to comment on prices, Denton replied with "Nope!"

Music blog Idolator will be sold to Buzznet, the pop culture social-media site … Read more