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In the wake of disappointment and confusion caused by Netflix's "streamaggedon" movie purge, the rental service has made changes to its API that will make it harder for third-party tools to determine when titles will expire.

The revelation late last month that hundreds of classic movies, including Woody Allen's "Stardust Memories" and the James Bond hits "Dr. No" and "Goldfinger," would soon vanish from movie fans' instant streaming queues caused a minor uproar that some in the media dubbed "streamaggedon." A Netflix spokesperson said that both the number … Read more

"Only natural pure-bred lambskin condoms."

This is but one of the requirements on Martha Stewart's "new" Match.com profile.

Perhaps you have been too busy wondering if the world will end this week to focus on its most important news: the fact that Martha Stewart has joined Match.com.

Many will be fascinated to see how the rather fetching 71-year-old doyenne of domesticity will fare when her writing skills are tossed to the hordes of dubious males who wander that site in search of, well, who knows.… Read more

We first got a taste of the XCOM shooter back in 2010 and even got to see it in action at E3 2011. Unfortunately, the game got delayed numerous times and eventually went dark. In fact, it got lapped by XCOM: Enemy Unknown -- its turn-based-strategy counterpart -- which turned out to be one of 2012's best titles of the year.

2K Games is ready to lift the curtain on XCOM once again, complete with a live-action trailer, a trio of screenshots, and best of all a release date. Newly titled and packaged, The Bureau: XCOM Declassified is set … Read more

Call them what you will -- task managers, organizers, or personal assistants -- but software designed to help busy people stay a step ahead of the competition (or disaster) is practically as old as computing, itself. It sometimes seems like we've tried them all, yet few have been "keepers." So we were intrigued by Dextronet's Swift To-Do List since other picky users seemed to like it. It's shareware, so it needs to offer a lot of features and performance to stand out from the freeware crowd -- and it does. But you can try it … Read more

Meeting someone in a club or a bar -- or even a church -- has its dangers.

You don't know who they really are. You don't know what they're like in a bad mood, as opposed to a bed mood. And you have no idea if they're really your cousin.

Such dilemmas have struck all those who are seeking love, or merely the comfort of warm, fragrant skin on a chilly Wednesday night.

Some extreme intellectuals in Iceland have decided to assist society's thrust toward safer human interaction.

They have created IslendingaApp, an app that gives you fair warning if the target of your pupillary expansion is, in fact, a close relative.… Read more

My boyfriend is a little different than most. His name is Taira-kun. He's big and strong, though his arms are tiny. He's actually a Tyrannosaurus rex, but I don't seem to hold that against him. I'm all caught up in Jurassic Heart, an online dating simulator that pairs you up with an extinct beast for a love interest.

The sim gives you difficult choices to make, like which hair clip to wear before meeting your big lug. Naturally, the meat-on-the-bone hair clip is the one to go with. Cute and yummy.

According to the sim, Taira and I have a lot in common. We both like meat. We both play the ukulele (at least I do in real life), though it doesn't get into the specifics of how the necktie-wearing dino manages to play the tiny instrument. The sim takes you through meeting up with your carniverous heartthrob, buying a ukulele, eating grilled chicken in the park, and taking a romantic evening walk.… Read more

Leaked from today's 404 episode:

- Beatles fan exhibits record store that only stocks The Beatles' "White Album," featuring more than 650 first pressings. Here's a preview.

- Stereotype.fm comes up with quirky statistics about music fans, like "MJ fans likely to join a cult."

- Nine new ways to sit, thanks to tech.

- Illegal music downloads took a nosedive in 2012.

- Check out Samsung/GameSpot's Unicorn Apocalypse contest for a chance to win $25k.

- Ghostbusters HQ Lego creation by Orion Pax.… Read more

February can make people excitable.

A new year is barely old. Hope springs eternal. And then there's Valentine's Day to add a little piquancy to their emotional state.

Sometimes, though, lovers suffer from a certain lack of self-control. This can manifest itself on society's everyday manifest: Facebook.

I was moved, therefore, that someone had taken the time to list the major faux pas that occur when social contact accelerates beyond decent norms.

I am lovingly grateful to Ranker, which has taken it upon itself to reduce the rancor that might be caused by Facebooked overenthusiasm -- the site has listed behavior to avoid. … Read more

Sony's February 20 event in New York City will likely mark the announcement of the PlayStation 4 and simultaneously usher in the next generation of console gaming. (Sorry, Wii U, but you're more last-gen than next-gen.)

Rumors mills are also churning out details confidently declaring that the Xbox 360 successor will also see the light of day before June's big E3 gaming show in Los Angeles.

Perhaps the biggest news? Both consoles could make their debuts -- gasp -- this year. That's a hyperspeed acceleration in … Read more