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Five unanswered questions about PlayStation 4

Update, Feb. 21, 2013: We've added several bonus questions, as the more we learn about the PS4, the more we realize we don't know.

NEW YORK--Now that Sony has officially unveiled its next-generation living room game console, it's time to start speculating about all the important details that were left out of the press conference.

We know, for example, that the name of the system is PlayStation 4, and that it will feature a mix of disc-based and cloud-based games, and also that the new controller -- a modified version of the classic Sony game pad -- is adding a small touch panel.

We also know that Sony plans to push a wide-ranging list of games at launch (whenever that is), including Killzone: Shadow Fall, Watch Dogs, and The Witness. That's a deep software bench, and shows a clear emphasis on games and content, but many important questions about the PlayStation 4 hardware and user experience have been left unanswered. … Read more

Create 'Jeopardy'-style quiz presentations with PowerPoint Jeopardy

I'll take "PowerPoint Templates" for $300, Alex. This free template lets PowerPoint users create their own version of the popular quiz show "Jeopardy" by entering their own answers and questions (and, yes, the order is correct, answers first). What is PowerPoint Jeopardy? Correct!

OK, so that was probably one of the easiest "Jeopardy" questions ever, but that's fitting because PowerPoint Jeopardy is easy to set up and use, once you've enabled macros in PowerPoint (instructions are included). You simply enter the categories, answers, and questions in the provided space and click … Read more

For the Pope on Twitter, many slings and arrows

When you come down from on high and mix with us, les miserables, it can be a touch depressing.

For though you try to take us seriously, we may not feel the same way. And, well, social media allows us to express our feelings without fear of permanent damnation.

Pope Benedict XVI, famously a recent convert to Twitter, is discovering that mixing with us isn't always pretty.

His Holiness -- and his almost equally holy advisers -- surely believes that one has to speak to the faithful through every available channel.

And yet this entails encountering the unfaithful too: … Read more

iPad Mini won't be the only Apple news

Monday's CNET Update dusts off the crystal ball:

Everyone is eager to learn about the rumored iPad Mini, but today's tech news roundup looks at what else Apple will be announcing. We're expecting to see at least one new computer, such as an iMac or Mac Mini. Apple CEO Tim Cook has said that the Mac Pro will get an update in 2013, so it may be too soon to announce that. As for laptops, there have been reports that Apple will give the 13-inch MacBook Pro a retina display.

When Apple does unveil the iPad Mini, … Read more

Facebook quietly phases out FB Questions

Facebook has quietly started phasing out its Questions product, but that doesn't mean it's completely giving up on search.

The social-networking giant is beginning to remove the product for users, a Facebook representative told CNET, but Questions will remain available for Pages and Groups.

Facebook is making the move, the representative said, "to focus on other things." The company didn't elaborate on what those things might be, but it's probably pretty safe to assume that includes search.

Facebook launched Questions a couple of years ago, seeking to allow its users to find answers to … Read more

Apple's iPhone 5: Everything you need to know (FAQ)

Apple's new iPhone is here, and even with a nearly two-hour keynote, a Web site full of specifications, and CNET's must-read review there are plenty of questions that need answering.

CNET has put together this FAQ to help get to the bottom of some of them. These range from what's new to where you can get the phone to the differences between what you get with each carrier.

This is a living document and is likely to be updated this week and beyond. If we missed any big questions, please drop them in the comments and we'… Read more

Al Jaffee: Snappy answers to (not) stupid questions

q&a Mad Magazine has been running its back-page satire Fold-In since 1964. What many don't realize is that one man has been the driving artistic force behind every Fold-In since then: Al Jaffee.

Now 91, Jaffee is still painting the Fold-In monthly, and says he has no plans to give it up. It started as a parody of a regular feature called the fold-out in much higher-brow (and higher-profile) publications of the time, and caught the public's attention instantly.

He now has numerous collections and books out, including "Tall Tales," a collection of his syndicated comic strip from the New York Herald-Tribune that had a unique vertical orientation; "The Mad Fold-In Collection: 1964-2010"; and a biography by Mary-Lou Weisman called "Al Jaffee's Mad Life: A Biography."

Jaffee hasn't missed an issue since he started, and his work is widely appreciated. In 2006, Stephen Colbert celebrated Jaffee's 85th birthday with the birthday cake equivalent of a Fold-In.

Since the Fold-In in this month's Mad answers the question, "What's the only thing unavailable on the Internet?" we figured we'd turn the tables on Jaffee and ask him some far less humorous questions of our own. … Read more

DIY Weekend: Shining a new light on an old video game classic

For Bryan Duxbury and Adam Ellsworth, a shared interest in DIY Arduino projects and a conversation at a Christmas party led to a pretty bright idea and an unexpected side business.

The two San Francisco residents are the creators of the Interactive 8bit Question Block lamp--a Super Mario Bros.-inspired piece of home decor. For fans of the game, the lamp should instantly look familiar, as it resembles the blocks that Mario hits to earn coins and other loot. The design alone already makes it pretty cool, but that's not where the fun ends.

To turn the light on or off, you must punch (actually, a gentle tap is enough and recommended) the bottom of the block, and every time you do so, it makes a coin sound just like in the video game. On every eighth tap, you're rewarded with the 1-Up sound. It's a piece of Super Mario Bros. come to life.

This project may never have seen the light of day, however, had it not been for a chance meeting at a company Christmas party. … Read more

The Cheapskate FAQ

After more than four years writing the Cheapskate blog, I've been asked the same questions more often than I can count.

Alas, time doesn't always permit me to answer each reader's inquiry, so I've put together this FAQ page (at the ingenious suggestion of CNET's George Latourette).

The primary goal of the Cheapskate is to spotlight one killer deal (and maybe a bonus deal or two) every day of the week. I love cheap stuff, and I love sharing deals even more.

Think of me as your buddy who walks into the office every morning … Read more

Thumb through user opinions

Thumb for Android gives you an easy way to pose questions to and get instant opinions from the public. If used correctly, this simple app can be a valuable tool for casual research or daily decision-making. It's also fun if you just want to have people chime in on random topics.

If the concept of Thumb seems familiar, that might be because the app was originally released under the name Opinionaided. Though its name is different now, the app has retained all of its core functionality and is more or less the same as before.

There are two ways … Read more