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Photosynth updates its NASA pics with shuttle belly

If you enjoyed the first round of Photosynth'd pictures of NASA shuttle Endeavor, you'll probably enjoy these. Taken in space by the crew of the International Space Station, the newly uploaded shots show off the underside of the space shuttle, which the Microsoft Labs team is touting as a "first-hand look at what you might see on a space-walk." Of course, when it comes to the underside of space shuttles, astronauts are usually inspecting these things for damage while hurtling hundreds of miles an hour above the Earth. You can do this from the comfort of … Read more

Use Windows Live Messenger as a telephone

You may have heard about Skype, but did you know that little old Windows Live Messenger can make phone calls? Molly Wood shows you how to make voice and webcam calls using the popular IM software.

Hotmail users get a storage bump

Microsoft on Monday made a series of updates to its Windows Live Hotmail service, chief among those being an increase in the size of its inboxes. Standard users now get 5GB of storage, while paid MSN Premium and Hotmail Plus accounts now get 10GB of storage.

The move follows Yahoo's decision to offer its mail customers unlimited storage. Google's Gmail currently touts 2.89GB worth of free storage for its accounts. Apple also recently upped its .Mac storage limit to 10GB, split between mail and file storage.

In addition, Microsoft said Windows Live Hotmail is also adding the … Read more

Bioshocked: Demo pops up on Xbox Live marketplace without warning

A demo for one of the most hyped games of the year showed up on the Xbox Live marketplace Sunday night to the surprise of many.

The demo features a tweaked version of the first 45 minutes of the game, allowing players to experience more weapons than what you'd normally start out with.

Xbox Live immediately suffered massive slowdowns as word quickly spread about the chance to take a sneak peak at what is sure to be one of the best games of 2007. There has been no word on whether or not PC fans can get a taste … Read more

Cloud Storage: Windows Live SkyDrive gets named and updated

Microsoft announced today that they would be renaming their online storage solution, Windows Live Folders, to Windows Live SkyDrive. I wrote about Windows Live Folders back at the end of June when the product was first released into a limited beta if you want a little perspective on this release.

In addition to the announcement today that the final name is Windows Live Folders, Microsoft also pushed out some upgrades to the service. Those include an updated user interface, drag and drop file upload, a "recently viewed users" section, the ability to embed files in web pages or … Read more

LiveJournal responds to 'Harry Potter' deletions

Earlier this week, we reported that LiveJournal set off a new round of criticism from its tightly knit user base after it permanently suspended two accounts housing fan art of Harry Potter and friends in sexual situations.

After days of silence, the site's staffers on Tuesday evening published an entry on their business journal in an attempt to clarify the online-journaling server's policy on "illegal and harmful content."

In short, the staffers said they don't review content unless it is reported to them, and when policy violations aren't "clear," they congregate members … Read more

Photosynth gets spacey with NASA

Enthusiasts of Microsoft 's Live Labs project Photosynth get a new environment to explore this morning. In addition to art galleries, town squares, and various buildings in Britain, users can now explore shuttle Endeavour before its launch on Wednesday. For those unfamiliar with Photosynth, it's a new technology that groups together a collection of photos taken in the same location into a 3D environment. Users can zoom in and out of various parts to take advantage of higher resolution shots that show more detail, while getting an idea of where they are spatially. In the case of the space … Read more

$20,000 in HD gear? What's the catch?

It's time to say it: Enough. If Gene Simmons Family Jewels can find air time, then it's possible for anyone to find an audience on cable. So why not give it a shot yourself?

As part of a research initiative (and marketing ploy) called "Living in HD," Panasonic is recruiting 30 families to "explore how the latest HD technology affects the American lifestyle," according to Electronic House. It's not destined for TV yet, but the judges who will choose the families include Hollywood directors Kevin Smith and Brett Ratner, so who knows? And … Read more

The past, present, and future of tech design

This month's Living with Technology package on CNET.com is a must-see for anyone who values form over function, or function over form, or form that enhances function.

As you may have already gathered, the key word here is form. This month, Living with Technology is all about design: the good, the bad, the future, and the new philosophies that are budding in today's designers.

There's tons of good stuff to see: videos, slide shows, and good old text-based articles. Visit Living with Technology: Eye on design to get the full menu of goods, or just click … Read more

Microsoft to offer single download for Windows Live suite

Microsoft will offer a Windows Live "installer" that will download and install software to access multiple online services, said Kevin Johnson, the president of Microsoft's Platform and Services Division.

During his presentation at Microsoft's Financial Analysts Day on Thursday, Johnson mentioned the Windows Live installer, saying that the company would begin beta testing it this summer.

He described it as a single download that will let consumers connect to multiple Live-branded hosted services, such as e-mail and messaging. People will be able to access these services from different devices, including PCs and phones, he said.

"… Read more