Google+ is fresh, and you might already be wondering how to point friends and family to your profile. But unlike Facebook and Twitter, Google doesn't offer vanity URLs, leaving you with a lengthy and hard-to-memorize profile link, like https://plus.google.com/111601729473858041964/.
Get on board with Gplus.to instead--it's a service that shortens your Google+ profile into a simple, memorable link. In this How To, CNET's Brian Tong shows you how.
You know you look good, but sometimes you just want to double-check. You could excuse yourself and go to the bathroom. You could find a reflective window and stare intently. Or you could subtly gaze at your watch.
The Vanity Mirror Watch is a chunky, shiny accessory that looks like it has been designed for a substantial man-size wrist. The marketing photos of a hairy arm sporting the watch are another tip-off that the target customer is a vain male. That probably won't dissuade a fashion-forward woman from picking one up.
It's hard to tell what the $69.… Read more
Vanity Fair magazine, with its crisp and alluring takes on everything from international affairs to celebrity culture, is the sort of publication known for being current, relevant, and in the know.
Yet in its February issue--yes, the one with Tiger Woods on the cover--it managed to publish one of the silliest, most superficial, and most wildly out of touch articles about Twitter that I've ever read. Called "America's Tweethearts," it discusses the phenomenon of individuals (primarily attractive women) who have amassed notable amounts of Twitter fame, or "twilebrity." (Twilebrity? Barf.)
Accompanying the article, … Read more
I was browsing through the latest issue of Vanity Fair, in which Mark Seal has a profile of Ruth Madoff titled "Ruth's World," and noticed that Madoff, wife of jailed Ponzi-schemer Bernie Madoff, is apparently an Apple user.
The article talks about how she had to give up many of her pricier belongings, including a fur coat (or probably several), when U.S. marshals took possession of her Park Avenue apartment on July 2.
Personally, I wasn't too concerned about the fur she wanted to keep, but sick tech blogger that I am, all I could … Read more
I'm a bachelor. As such, I always look a bit off (I don't own a full-length mirror) and my clothes are wrinkled (I don't own an ironing board). So when my editor forwarded me a link from Boing Boing Gadgets about this combo ironing board/full-length mirror I figured she was giving me a hint. Thankfully she just wanted to share it with all of you.
And look how cool it is. In an urban apartment like mine, every square inch is valuable. That's why items with dual (or more!) uses are so great. And this … Read more
We're proud to announce the debut of CNET LIVE, the new portal for all live shows, including The 404, on CNET. Don't worry, the transition won't be as difficult as DTV. We'll give you detailed instructions on how to tell all your friends about the show! Listen in for all the juicy details on our weekend staycation and why Wilson should never consume liquor again.
So now that the weekend is over, we can talk about our top secret trip...to Atlantic City! It's always good to get away for a little bit, even if it's just for a day, so we packed up our bags and took off to AC for a little gambling and good times. What was supposed to be a relaxing trip turned out to be 24 hours of "The Hangover"-esque partying. We all indulged in our own vices: Jeff hit the blackjack tables like a white bat out of hell, Justin explored the dark crevices of AC's back alleys, and Wilson Tang ate chicken. That's right, you read it correctly: Wilson Tang finally broke his "vegetarianism" and is now an official chicken chaser. Unfortunately, his bout with poultry at Friday's dinner left him with a mad stomach ache and he party pooped his way out of the trip. What a shrew!
Click here for a full set of pictures from The 404's trip to Atlantic City.
Lots of stories to talk about today, namely two big news items from over the weekend: the DTV official transition and the mad rush for Facebook Vanity URLs. Actually, the long-awaited DTV transition went off without a hitch, which makes sense, because it's been in the works forever now, although we're pretty sure someone in Florida tried to eat her converter box. Facebook Vanity also had little to no effect on real life, although there did seem to be a slight flux in traffic on Thursday night as people rushed to reserve their own Facebook URLs. In the spirit of American sportsmanship, some of the landgrabs were a little disingenuous; for example, check out the profile for our own Molly Wood. In fact, my own name got snaked by another Justin Yu, so feel free to add him and let him know how much you love The 404. In the meantime, check out the Facebook profiles for the Real Justin Yu, Wilson Tang, and Jeff Bakalar.
EPISODE 362 Download today's podcast Subscribe in iTunes audio | Suscribe to iTunes (video) | Subscribe in RSS Audio | Subscribe in RSS Video… Read moreThere is one thing worse than being Joe Schmo. And that is being Joe Schmo on Facebook.
So Joseph Kitchens, co-owner of Kitchen's Field Services in Hutto, Texas, decided he had to use his technological and deductive skills to become Facebook's one and only Amazing Technicolor Joseph.
Joseph was so happy (but surely not vain) to have achieved the vanity status of facebook.com/joseph that he decided, in a series of e-mails, to reveal the secrets of his success.
It all sounded terribly clever to me. But then it would, wouldn't it?
The first task was … Read more
The servers didn't crash, the system didn't go haywire, and no locusts started spewing out of anyone's monitors when Facebook let its 200-million-plus members reserve customized URLs on Saturday at 12:01 AM Eastern. 200,000 user names were reserved in a matter of three minutes, according to Twitter posts from Facebook employees.
"Well, that was anti-climactic. Worked, no bugs, and I got my name," someone told me in an instant message. "Was exciting for a hot second though!"
I did notice some Facebook pages loading more slowly than usual. After all, the … Read more
Facebook employees and tech journalists aren't the only ones whose names have been reserved ahead of the big Facebook vanity URL land grab that will open up at midnight Eastern time Saturday morning. The company already has "tens of thousands" of business names and terms on its restricted list, waiting to be assigned, Facebook spokesperson Larry Yu told me.
Also on the list: Generic terms and obscenities that will never be used.
Unlike the simple process to grab a user name as a vanity Facebook URL--go to www.facebook.com/username and hope for the best--the procedure … Read more
It really shouldn't be this much of a media sensation, but let's face it: Everybody's talking about how Facebook is finally letting members reserve vanity URLs, letting them customize the Web addresses that lead to their profiles. The feature goes live at 12:01 a.m. EDT on Saturday (9:01 p.m. PDT on Friday) and already, the pundits are going mad.
"This is more than 200 million users, already engaged, simultaneously scrambling in the greatest territory dash since the Oklahoma Territory's land run of 1889, albeit with fewer shotgun injuries," author Douglas … Read more
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