cnet 100

Leaked from today's 404 episode:

- Instagram photos disappear from Twitter feeds.

- You can use IFTTT to post Instagram photos to Twitter cards.

- Twitter vs. Instagram in a knock-down, drag-out filters fight.

- Head-to-head: Twitter vs. Instagram filters.

- Sony putting an end to production of handheld cassette recorders.

- "Modern Seinfeld" Twitter account imagines Jerry and Co. in the Digital Age.

- Check out the CNET 100 of 2012.… Read more

The United States flew its last official space shuttle mission in 2011, but this year Americans got to say goodbye to the spacecraft in the venerable program's fleet. Throughout the year, NASA delivered the remaining shuttles to final resting places around the country. People turned out in droves to catch a glimpse of the shuttles as they did flyovers en route to their final destinations.

But as the federal manned space program came to an end, the private sector stepped in to take over. In May, Space Exploration Technologies -- or SpaceX -- made a successful demonstration flight to … Read more

Offering convenient, and cheaper, ways to access tailored services like ordering a private car, renting out a vacation home, or running personal errands, the "concierge economy" rose to a new level in 2012. Services -- like Airbnb, Uber, and TaskRabbit, just to name a few -- were sprinkled among news headlines, becoming more than just fringe services. Airbnb helped 4,000 Hurricane Sandy victims find shelter from generous home and bed owners, Uber came up against major friction in Washington D.C. over its taxi services, and TaskRabbit popped up in the iPhone 5 lines.

In addition to … Read more

Groupon, the company that made daily deals popular for consumers, has had a tough tumble. After finally going public late last year, the company faced massive competition, slowed growth in revenue and a decimated stock in 2012. In its early days, Groupon was a tech superstar, charging along on a mission to become the fastest-growing company in history. But as the months passed, the company was plagued by slumping stock, a shareholder lawsuit and the rumored unrest from employees trying to leave the company.

Much of the blame has fallen on the shoulders of CEO Andrew Mason, who once had … Read more

Devil or martyr? For Julian Assange, it appears there's no easy answer. The WikiLeaks founder has spent six months holed up in the Ecuadorian embassy in London, fearing the moment he steps outside he'll be arrested and deported to Sweden, where he faces charges of rape and sexual assault. Assange says he'd return to Sweden if the government would guarantee that he won't be extradited to the United States, where he fears he could face espionage charges related to a massive leak of classified military and diplomatic documents.

The man accused of providing those documents, of … Read more

Call this the year when small cracks shot through the glass ceiling for women in tech. While pioneers including Meg Whitman and Carly Fiorina have made their marks in years past, 2012 saw critical mass with women advancing in technology management and in technology media.

Of course, Marissa Mayer famously became the first pregnant CEO this year, but she wasn't alone. Two of Microsoft's new leaders for Windows are women, Sheryl Sandberg joined the Facebook board (finally), and Internet-wide celebrations of Ada Lovelace Day continued to highlight the success women are enjoying in science and technology fields while … Read more

This year forced the gaming industry to take a long look at itself in the mirror. The ever-changing landscape of casual, mobile, and hard-core games has fragmented a marketplace once ruled by home and portable consoles from "the big three" (Sony, Microsoft, Nintendo). In 2012, app-based gaming on phones and tablets has severely cut into the demand for separate portable gaming systems, platforms that Nintendo and Sony once thrived on. While Sony's new Vita portable impressed, its lack of consistent must-have game exclusives has proven to be its Achilles' heel.

In addition to other console manufacturers, Nintendo … Read more

A funny thing happened alongside the release of Microsoft's Windows 8 operating system this fall. Traditional clamshell laptops started shipping with built-in touch screens. That's to be expected from Windows 8 hybrids and convertibles, and maybe a few high-end proof-of-concept systems, to be sure. But instead we found everyday mainstream and even budget laptops adding touch screens, some for under $550.

That's partly because Windows 8 is so tightly tied in to touch navigation that it hardly makes sense to use it without a touch screen, which is why it works (surprisingly well, really) in traditional laptops … Read more

Last year, Audi included a dedicated data connection into some of its models to power services, such as Google Earth integration with its navigation system. This year other automakers piled on the connected car effort, with varying strategies to enable the types of services we have become used to on our smartphones in dashboards. Witness the Ford Sync AppLink, Toyota Entune, and Chevrolet MyLink as three top examples.

Most automakers leverage our own smartphones' data connection to deliver services such as Pandora music streaming, destination search, and even social media. At the same time, each automaker customizes the experience in … Read more