urban

Digital City 142: Windows 8 hands-on demo, and the end of the Digital City

A hands-on demo with Windows 8 running on a touch-screen computer is a fitting way to close out the Digital City's nearly three-year run.

But don't worry, Dan, Joseph, Julie, and Scott will be back next week in the brand-new CNET Labscast. That suspiciously similar show airs live every Monday at 2 p.m. ET (an hour earlier than Digital City), and we'll be working in a lot more hands-on time with the gadgets we test in the CNET Labs, from benchmark scores to tips and tweaks.

Bonus: Save a piece of Digital City history and download the show's jaunty theme song as a free MP3 here.

Feeding the meter for public space (audio slideshow)

As part of an urban-design movement that began in San Francisco in 2005, parking spaces around the world were reclaimed as public spaces yesterday, with artists and activists feeding meters to build temporary community spaces and small parks for Park(ing) Day. Across San Francisco, pop-up communities of restaurants, hair dressers, yoga classes, and gardens created new forms of temporary public space, re-envisioning the metered parking space as a public gathering space--a place for meeting people, cultural expression, teaching, playing, or just hanging out.

Digital City 141: Glasses-free 3D laptops, NFL streaming on PS3

This week, we offer a hands-on demo of the new glasses-free 3D laptop from Toshiba; figure out why NFL streaming on the PS3 doesn't work; and take a poll of who is buying the new Star Wars Blu-ray box set.

Bonus: Download the show's jaunty theme song as a free MP3 here.

Digital City 140: The future of HP laptops and desktops, your TouchPad questions answered (podcast)

This week: With HP's sudden shift away from the PC business, we look at what the future of that company's laptop and desktop products might be; a handy FAQ answers your pressing TouchPad questions, and Joe and Julie try some tech trivia.

Bonus: Download the show's jaunty theme song as a free MP3 here.

Digital City 138: Uphill for Ultrabooks? Plus, one of the craziest gaming laptops ever

This episode, the Google/Motorola deal is the big news of the day, but we also delve into the murky world of Intel's Ultrabook concept, as well as some MIA Samsung laptops. Also--a quick rundown of the biggest, baddest 18-inch gaming laptop ever, and a chance to pick up a sweet Call of Duty T-shirt, just by commenting on our Facebook page.

Bonus: Download the show's jaunty theme song as a free MP3 here.

Digital City 137: Glasses-free 3D laptops, 20 years of the Web, and back-to-school PC buying advice

This week: Toshiba's glasses-free 3D laptop has gone from prototype to release in record time; we pick our favorite back-to-school systems; and the World Wide Web hits 20 years old. The gang ponders the recent success of Xbox Live games such as Fruit Ninja Kinect and Bastion, and we take an informal poll on Google Plus and Spotify use.

Special guests this week are TJ Allard and Josh Goldman. You may remember TJ as one of Dan's co-panelists on the cult favorite video game shows Play Value and Best Game Ever. Check out some old Play Value episodes on YouTube, and we've embedded one below for kicks.

Bonus: Download the show's jaunty theme song as a free MP3 here.

Digital City 136: Mac App Store shopping tips and the latest gadget price cuts

This week we go comparison shopping, comparing game prices on Apple's Mac App Store against other retailers. Then we discuss the new price cuts for the Logitech Revue and the Nintendo 3DS, and play tech trivia with MTV's games blogger Russ Frushtick.

Bonus: Download the show's jaunty theme song as a free MP3 here.

Digital City 135: Diving into the new MacBooks

This week: there's plenty to see as we talk about getting hands-on with the latest MacBook Air laptops and Mac Mini desktop. Following a quick tutorial on fixing some of the gestural quirks in OS X Lion, the gang gets quizzed on the most popular Web sites of 1996 and wins a few prizes for the chatroom audience (reminder: hop into the live chatroom every week for a chance to win rare video game promo items and other cool stuff).

Bonus: Download the show's jaunty theme song as a free MP3 here.

Digital City 134: Streaming video services snub NYC; doing the new Netflix math

This week, we poll everyone on their favorite online music service, and find out why New Yorkers can't get the latest and greatest in streaming TV services. Plus, we've got some Spotify invite codes to give away!

Bonus: Download the show's jaunty theme song as a free MP3 here.

Digital City 133: MacBook Air updates, Facebook games grow up, and explaining Google+

This week: The new MacBook Air, Mac Pro, and Mac Mini are coming soon, allegedly right alongside OSX Lion. We handicap the chances of seeing those this week or next.

Then it's time to show off some social media games. Scott demos Tiny Tower for iPad and Dan plays Civ World on Facebook. Finally, turntable.fm is the hottest invite-only ticket on the Web right now, so we throw it up on the screen to check it out live.

Bonus: Download the show's jaunty theme song as a free MP3 here.