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Google revamps Maps with 3D, cards, social search

Google says it has rebuilt Google Maps for the Web with a new version that's more immersive and social.

The new version takes a page from Google's mobile efforts by putting the search box inside the map and making use of cards -- Google's take on interactive information widgets.

"It's simple and powerful. The map is the user interface," Google's Bernhard Seefeld told attendees at the company's annual developers conference, where the new Web service was unveiled.

When users click on locations, information about those areas appears on cards. Information can include … Read more

The 404 1269: Where rad goes viral (podcast)

Leaked from today's 404 episode:

- Follow Spotify's Shanon Cook!

- More on the Deadpool videogame.

- The story goes deeper on The Bureau: XCOM Declassified.

- Nvidia's Project Shield comes closer to reality.

This week's Viral Top 10 list from Spotify:

1. "Royals" by Lorde 2. "#Beautiful" by Mariah Carey 3. "Alone" by Falling In Reverse 4. "The One" by Tamar Braxton 5. "Rattle (Sexy Lady)" by Bingo Players 6. "Blurred Lines" by Robin Thicke 7. "Young And Beautiful" by Lana Del Rey 8. "Spring Break Anthem" by The Lonely Island 9. "Get Lucky - Radio Edit" by Daft Punk 10. "Dear Mama" by 2Pac… Read more

Hooked Up: Hang out with Nelly and his must-have gadgets

In this week's episode of Hooked Up, Kevin Frazier hangs out with Grammy Award winner and multi-Platinum recording artist Nelly. He talks about all the tech he can't live without, and how he co-founded Vatterott College in St. Louis and the Extreme Institute to teach students skills for making music.

Nelly also talks about his MacBook Pro, Canon EOS 7D that he uses for shooting videos, and the Monster Diamond Tears headphones that surprised him with their sound.

I'll break down the best dSLR cameras for shooting video with Kevin that broadcast professionals are using today. And … Read more

Hooked Up: Check out the set of NCIS with Pauley Perrette and her tech toys

In this week's episode of Hooked Up, Kevin Frazier hangs out on the set of "NCIS" with actress Pauley Perrette, who plays Abby Sciuto, the show's fan-favorite quirky forensic scientist. She talks about her role as the social media ambassador for CBS during "Tweet Week" and how she used Twitter to help keep the Hope Gardens shelter for families open.

Pauley bring hers own tech on set, including the dirtiest Macbook you've probably ever seen, and she shows us some of the fun set pieces in Abby's lab. She also talks about … Read more

Apple earnings could bring profit setback, despite record sales

Apple could make history tomorrow with its biggest second-quarter sales yet, though it's also expected to log its first decline in profit in 10 years.

That's what analysts anticipate in Tuesday's second-quarter earnings report, which will spell out the company's performance through the end of March.

Wall Street is expecting Apple to post earnings of $10.12 per share on sales of $42.6 billion, based on a poll of 48 analysts from Thomson First Call. That's down from earnings of $12.30 per share, and up from the $39.2 billion in sales from … Read more

Hooked Up: It's the best of celebrity tech. Exposed.

I'm pretty juiced to announce an all-new show that you'll be able to find right here on CNET called "Hooked Up." It's a partnership between CNET and CBS Television Distribution, and it will be a new weekly Web series that brings you today's hottest stars and the technology that surrounds them.

CBS entertainment correspondent and host Kevin Frazier goes inside the homes of celebrities like Cee Lo Green and others as they share the gadgets they love. Each 15-minute show will feature a new celebrity and the shows will air on Wednesdays from April … Read more

Preview BlackBerry 10 on your iPhone, Android device

There's been a lot of talk and attention regarding BlackBerry and its launch of BlackBerry 10. If all the hype has piqued your interest -- even the slightest bit -- you can catch a glimpse of the new operating system directly from your iPhone or Android browser.

To walk through some of BlackBerry 10's main features, point your mobile browser to BlackBerry.com/glimpse.

Once the page loads you'll be walked through basic gestures for navigating the OS, how to use the Hub, the predictive keyboard, BBM Video and Screen Share, and the camera's Time Shift … Read more

Tip: Generate preview images for a collection of documents

Apple's QuickLook technology in OS X is a quick way to preview a document's contents before opening the document's handling program. QuickLook works by using a small plug-in that reads the document's format and generates a small PDF, HTML, or thumbnail preview of the document that is presented to you as a representation of its layout.

The ability for OS X to generate a preview of a document is convenient for QuickLook, but also may be handy for other uses as well. For example, MacFixIt reader Paul recently wrote in wondering how one might use this … Read more

How to manage transparencies in Preview

Transparency in images files can be quite convenient, especially if you need to place the same image over different backgrounds and want it to properly blend in. While having a white or other solid color background may help you view the image on the screen, with this setup if you embed it in a document with a different-color background then the white will stand out as an obtrusive rectangle.

To help reduce this, you can both manually remove backgrounds from images using Apple's Preview application or use a transparent canvas to compile images that already contain transparency.

To create … Read more

Get sandboxed applications working again after OS X update

Apple recently released OS X 10.8.3 along with security updates for past versions of OS X, and while the updates have worked properly for the vast majority of users, a few have reported having the problem that certain programs like Preview and TextEdit now will not run. When the program is opened, in some cases the system prompts users to authenticate and repair the user Library, but after this is done the program simply quits after bouncing in the OS X Dock for a few seconds. In other cases the program may simply crash and generate an error … Read more