Yawn … happy Monday morning everyone. My weekend was full of ‘Art,’ delicious food and gardening. But, my arms now feel like rubber hoses reminiscent of Harry Potter’s Prof. Lockhart debacle, so typing is about all I can manage at the moment.

Let’s take a look at the day’s headlines before my fingers wear out, too.

PS – I totally crit all the useless, ugly plants from in front of my house, so at least it was a ‘mission accomplished’ kind of effort.

--I’m absolutely bouncing off the jigsaw-puzzle walls of my cubicle this week in preparation for PAX EAST! Please keep those questions coming for G4’s Adam Sessler and Morgan Webb, and I’ll try to ask as many as possible. ByteSized@Captivate.com

--Looking to enjoy March Madness on something more massive than your silly little 42” wall-mounted LCD? Try these TVs on for size.

--Speaking of which, Captivate has a gallery of the best March Madness photos up live now!

--Apple has had it’s issues over the years – here’s a nostalgic look back. Why? I don’t know, blame CNet.

--Let’s get ready to rumble: In one corner, Kindle! In the other, Nook! Ding ding ding!

--OK, I know I’m totally supposed to fill out my Census form. I get that. But I also don’t see why they need more information than the ages of number of the people living in my house. Everything seems completely unnecessary, and I’m glad some people agree.

K, now my fingers are getting tired, too, so I’m going to go massage them and rest up so I’m in top form this Friday! Talk to you all laters!

Labels: Amazon.com's Kindle, eBook; Barnes and Noble; nook;, March Madness, PAX East 2010

Happy 2010, everyone! Let's start the year off right by catching up on the cool stuff that happened while we were all on break ...

-As we did last year, Byte-Sized is putting a reporter on the floor of this year's CES! As a preview, here is a list of the hot gadgets already making some waves.

-Big surprise: Amazon touts the Kindle as the most-gifted item ever! Too bad they won't give real numbers to back it up, though.

--For those of you who can't get enough Star Wars ... and who also love shoes (?), here are some kicks you're sure to get a kick out of.

--There were some great games released in 2009 -- CNet has compiled a list of the year's best! My pick is Assassin's Creed II ... if only because Ezio is such a cutie!

--Oh, good lord. This is what happens when social media meets a-holes with too much time on their snobby little hands.

--Here is a cool article on what the Internet might look like in 2020 ... and why we won't recognize it.

See you back here Wednesday!

Labels: Amazon.com's Kindle, Assassin's Creed, CES, Internet, social networking

Over the weekend, I went out and got bright fuchsia highlights in my hair, something I've wanted to do forever and finally plucked up the courage to actually do. And, I know people notice it (by people, I mean work). But maybe 2 of them have said anything. Weird, and an oddly significant testament of the professional mentality surrounding proper work attire. I'm not sure what to make of that, really.

Anyways, enough about the inner workings of office politics, of which I am the last person who should ever make commentary -- let's hit up some cool stories!

File this one under 'iPhone apps everyone should have on their cell phone': The Bad Decision Blocker erases numbers from your calling list for up to a week to prevent you from calling someone you maybe shouldn't -- like a boss or feuding boyfriend -- but returns them to your list after a week. By blocking the number, it stops you from making a bad drunk phone call to someone you're going to regret in the morning.

Yesterday, I tripped and fell into geek heaven: ThinkGeek.com is my new favorite online store. They have *everything* you could possible want in addition to things you never knew you wanted but all of a sudden need! Case in point: Ninja Star push pins -- because who doesn't want their desk to look like it was targeted for a super spy attack in the middle of the night? !!!! Stay tuned for some awesome reviews of must-haves...

Twitter is dismissing rumors that it may be bought by Google.

Kindle owners are up in arms over the price of some e-books. When shopping on Amazon.com, look out for any e-book over $9.99 -- it'll be tagged with a protest badge from the group asking for you to boycott until the price drops. It's hard to disagree with them -- why in the name of Merlin's baggy pants would you buy the ebook of a title for $14 when the paperback version costs $10?? Come on publishers, embrace the future!

Hmmm ... light week so far. I'll keep my eyes pealed for interesting stories to tell you about on Friday. In the meantime, do some awesome geek shopping at ThinkGeek.com -- at least get a few laughs! :)

Labels: Amazon.com's Kindle, Bad Decision Blocker, ebook, iPhone, ThinkGeek.com

Good afternoon, all! Tonight is LOST night -- can I be more excited?! Although recent events have left my theories and arguments of the nature of time travel hanging in the precarious balance -- can't wait to see what the show will come up with next!

Now, as I get my feet wet in the wild world of the web over here in Captivate land, take a peek at these top headlines:

It's embarrassing but true: I, who blasts everyone for not being literate of computer security measures, caught a virus last week. Thank goodness it wasn't Conficker, which is still terrorizing computers everywhere. Watch out. Constant vigilance. And no online computer games. Sigh.

A new CT scan has revealed a different face lives under the ancient bust of Nefertiti -- a prized piece of ancient artwork. Apparently, underneath the stucco exterior is a highly detailed stone carving of the queen. How cool! And how weird that scientists though to look!

The Supreme Court has freed a spammer by not re-instating a Virginia antispam law, saying in its decision that the law was too broad and denied spammers their First Amendment right to free speech. Yeah, right. Thanks, Supreme Court. I mean, the guy didn't deserve to be jailed, but that really sends the wrong message to other spammers, doesn't it?

Fictionwise, bought by Barnes and Nobles late last year, has announced an eReader application for the BlackBerry! I can smell some competition for my darling Kindle... and you know what competition brings? Cheaper prices and better devices! Yay!

Is Facebook going public? After the social networking site's CFO left, rumors are running rampant the company will take over Wall Street.

Remember the Microsoft/TomTom suit we mentioned a while back? It's over, and Microsoft won pretty decisively.

Finally -- my wonderful wizard of Woz has been put to sleep. And, he took a Playmate with him. Hehe ... It'll be a long season in the Chemerkovski/Smirnoff household, though.

Our friends at CNet have a cute list of 4 cheap ways to entertain yourself (no), and one if them is my favorite as well! (No.)

PlayStation2 is getting a price cut -- sorry for all those who thought it was PS3. That's still the most expensive Blu-Ray player you'll find -- oh, and it apparently plays games too. Who knew.

Want to embrace Twitter? USAToday's story can tell you how to use the service (cough) to promote yourself and your business.

OK, that's all for me today -- check back here Friday for a recap of the week's top stories and maybe even some LOST theories!

Labels: Amazon.com's Kindle, antispam laws, BlackBerry, Conficker, ereader, facebook, Fictionwise, Nefertiti

Lots going on today, so let's not waste any time! To the headlines...

Macworld begins today in San Francisco. Woo. OK, I know I don't preach from the gospel of Mac, but even as a tech reporter it's hard to get excited about a conference that isn't even supported by its namesake. Though, I am human, so Steve Jobs' health is a greater concern than the new products leech-companies are pumping out.

Uh oh... are there cuts ahead for Microsoft? All good companies need to slice away the excess fat once in a while, especially in a bad economy, but the possibility of Microsoft announcing global layoffs has my blood frozen in my veins. It's a scary thing when the 800-lb. gorilla (does anyone even like that saying?) has to lose some weight.

Yay! More Kindle news ... OK, i know you're getting tired of it by now, but this is actually pretty big on the Kindle front: Amazon.com has *finally* released sales figures on the unbelievably popular e-reader, showing that it was the site's top-selling electronic in 2008 and showed up on more 'wish lists' than any other item. Pretty cool -- it got a big boost from Oprah, and I can promise that if I get nothing else in '09, it will be a second-gen Kindle!

Chock this up to a unsubstantiated rumor, but media outlets in Japan are reporting that Toyota is planning to unveil a solar-powered Prius. Since this is the first I've heard of this, I'm flabbergasted, intrigued and delighted! I can't believe no one has thought of this before. Of, course, it will need plenty of energy storage, esp. in places like Forks, Wash., where the sun doesn't freely shine 360-ish days of the year. Although, that is the anomaly. Great thinking, Japan -- can we import some of your scientists with you cars?

OK, so I admit it, I updated my Facebook status Christmas Eve to wish all 25 of my friends a happy holiday. Well, it turns out I was not alone in my cheesy, ultimately faceless effort to rain down some necessary winter cheer: Facebook recorded a record spike in traffic on Christmas Eve as people chose a solid status update over an in-person visit, according to our friends at CNet, who attribute it to the awful weather seen across the US in the days leading up to Christmas Eve.

And, finally, I'd like to give a shout out to the folks at RedOrbit.com, who recently named Byte-Sized its *Hot Blog of the Day*! Thanks so much for the recognition, and a big thanks to all my readers!

** I have decided that I feel it necessary to try to add in at least one pop-culture reference in every post -- did you spot the inaugural entry? Think of it like a puzzle waiting to be solved :) Some will be harder to spot than others...

See you all Wednesday, where we take a look at the Consumer Electronics Show in Vegas this weekend!

Labels: Amazon.com's Kindle, CES preview, facebook, Macworld, Microsoft layoffs, RedOrbit.com, Toyota Prius