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Actor, gadget fan Danny DeVito to talk tech at CES 2013

It's always sunny at CES.

Well, not really, but Danny DeVito, the film star and one of the actors who have helped make "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" a hit for FX, is scheduled to make an appearance in Las Vegas next week to talk technology and entertainment during CES 2013.

Besides being a film producer, director, and actor (his credits include "Hoffa," "LA Confidential," and "War of the Roses"), DeVito is also a big gadget fan. As part of the event, Hanno Basse and Eisuke Tsuyuzaki, the respective chief … Read more

Play cricket with T20 ICC World Cup 2012

Looking to bat your way through a sticky wicket? Then you might have found the right app. Though you'd expect a top-notch experience since it's officially tied to the ICC World Cup, this game delivers mediocre graphics. However, for a simple game, T20 ICC World Cup 2012 is enough to fill your cricket fix on the cheap.

This paid version of T20 ICC World Cup 2012 includes all 12 teams involved in the 2012 tournament. The names have changed, but your favorite club will still play like you expect it to. If you're expecting premier graphics, you … Read more

Step into NASA's next-generation spacesuit

Around 2015, NASA plans to incorporate a spacesuit that amusingly looks like the one worn by Buzz Lightyear in "Toy Story" -- sans the shiny laser beam.

Before you laugh, know that these new digs aren't toy dressings; the Z-1 NASA spacesuit offers a plethora of advantages compared with the space agency's previous designs. Think of it as the baseline architecture for future NASA spacesuits. … Read more

Don't expect crystal clear calls with Talkatone

With so many people ditching their landline phones in favor of their smartphone, the minutes can rack up fast, costing you a hefty bill at the end of the billing cycle. Talkatone aims to alleviate sticker shock by offering unlimited free calls and texts without taking up any of your minutes. The app worked as promised for phone calls, but the calls weren't exactly crystal clear, and the recipient may not know who is calling based on the caller ID info provided. Text messages are another story.

Once Talkatone is installed, it will ask for access to your contacts. … Read more

Talking cat tries hard to make you laugh in Talking Tom Cat for iPad

Talking Tom Cat for iPad is a variation on the popular Talking Tom Cat app for iPhone. The basic app is available for free from iTunes, there are a number of add-ons and upgrades that cost between $0.99 and $24.99 each. Talking Tom Cat for iPad installs easily on the iPad.

Talking Tom Cat for iPad uses the same model as the other apps in the series. An animated tomcat appears on the screen. You say something and Tom repeats it with changes in voice and expressions. You can interact with the cat, such as patting his belly … Read more

News Corp. cans The Daily

News Corp. axes The Daily.

The Daily, which was an ambitious tablet-only news publication backed by News Corp., is shutting its doors December 15. Launched back in February 2011, The Daily was an interactive newspaper stylized for consumption on the iPad. Best of all, a year's subscription went for only $40 and offered a wide variety of sections. While there will be no more issues of The Daily, its brand will live on other channels within News Corp.

This week marks the 20th anniversary of the first text message. On December 3, 1992, SMS pioneer Matti Makkonen successfully sent … Read more

Create complex tiled images to be shared with others

Body Symbol Free: The Romantic Heart Photo Booth is an app that guides you in creating romantic photos. It does this by helping you shape your body into different positions that then are mosaicked into a larger photo of a heart, for example. Body Symbol Free: The Romantic Heart Photo Booth is a free app available from the App Store; it installs quickly.

The intent of Body Symbol Free: The Romantic Heart Photo Booth is to help you position your body by matching an onscreen outline. These images are then combined into a larger tiled image to match a shape … Read more

Ancient d20 die emerges from the ashes of time

Let's go back in time. Way back. Keep going. OK, stop. You're in the Ptolemaic Period. It's somewhere around 304 to 30 B.C. You're in Egypt. You're playing Dungeons & Dragons. Except back then, it's more like Pyramids & Petsuchos.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art owns what may be the world's oldest d20 die. It's made out of serpentine and looks to be in remarkably good shape for its age. … Read more

Recover files from disk reformat or partition changes

MiniTool Mac Data Recovery is an app designed to allow you to recover data from disk drives that have had a crash or sustained damage, either physical or logical. Whether you've accidentally deleted files or partitions, or had the disk go flaky on you, tools like MiniTool Mac Data Recovery become critical to recover information. MiniTool Mac Data Recovery installs easily.

MiniTool Mac Data Recovery presents you with a number of capabilities. The primary goal of the software is to try to recover data from a drive that has been erased, tagged as reformatted, or undergone partition changes. If … Read more

Notes made much, much better with NotesTab

NotesTab is an app that lets you write notes, just like Notes, but extends the functionality to allow sharing and some other cool features. NotesTab installs easily and sits in your menu bar. Whenever you need to scribble a note you just click on the icon and a notebook opens. As you type a note, it is saved immediately, removing the need to hit a Save button.

NotesTab has quite a few configurable options, such as the ability to customize hot keys and always be visible and on top of other apps. This lets you use it as a big … Read more