The WSJ has a discussion today of the phenomenon of the iPhone-using Microsoft employee. Apparently that time Ballmer fake-stomped an iPhone is emblematic of some (barely) real anti-iPhone sentiment in Redmond. More »

This iPhone typist/possible woodpecker earns today's Holy Shit YouTube Moment of the Day Award. I'm positive I couldn't beat him on my Droid—hell, he'd put up a good fight against me on my laptop. More »

Want to know where you can get a glimpse of the ultra-rare total solar eclipse? This map shows exactly when and where every eclipse in the next fifteen years will be visible—and why you should move to Memphis. More »

Today's March 14th, which everyone knows is the day high school math club members further cement their alienation by celebrating their love of math, or circles, or whatever. But today's Sunday, so let's everyone celebrate nerddom in the comments! [Wiki] More »

So, the iPad is finally available for pre-order, and it turns out the half of the Giz staff that bought one aren't alone: CNN estimates Apple received about 120,000 iPad pre-orders on that first day alone. More »

Tonight at 2am, remember to set your clock an hour forward. Look forward to both more sunlight at the end of the day and unfortunately, an earlier rise to work. Wikipedia explains why: More »

Social media researcher and general internet guru Danah Boyd gave the keynote address at SXSWi earlier today, focusing on matters of privacy. On paper, Google Buzz was a perfect social network. So why did it freak everyone out so much? More »

Last month, I risked life and limb to tell you about Celsius X-VI-II, a shadowy French company who was building a $300,000 mechanical cellphone. The first pictures of the phone have surfaced, though they don't exactly answer our questions. More »

At least in the parts of the internet I frequent, pet pictures have been enjoying an unusual popularity as of late. FujiFilm's Finepix Z700 has technology that snaps a photo when your furry friend smiles. Talk about capturing the zeitgeist. More »

Today's New York Times has a long, juicy look at what's been going on behind the scenes with the ever-escalating conflict between Google and Apple. The cause for all the enmity, according to insiders? Ego. More »

The Battery Replacement Service FAQ on Apple's site outlines their policy for handling iPads with diminished battery capacity, and its surprisingly generous: for a $99 service fee, they'll send you a brand new iPad. More »

When you use a site like Gmail, you have to decide: Do I want to use the service's website, or do I want to use it through an app, like Outlook? Here's how to get the best of both worlds. More »

Yesterday, Netflix announced that they're pulling the plug on the sequel to their supercool Netflix Prize in which teams competed to improve the company's recommendation algorithm for a million dollar reward. Privacy: can't live with it, can't live without it. More »

We're no strangers to the work of Lego master Nathan Sawaya, but his latest creation achieved the impossible: making a Blackberry exciting. It incorporates a working flat screen TV for comfortably displaying video. Clearly he took some artistic liberties. More »

In addition to the orientation-lock button, yesterday's pre-order commencement delivered another surprise nugget: the iPad will read all EPUB books out loud. If you remember the shitstorm that surrounded Kindle's text-to-voice feature, you'll know that this is a bold move. More »

Though the last we heard, Google was nearing a compromise that would allow them to stop censoring their Google.cn results, the Financial Times is reporting that they are almost certainly going to close their Chinese search engine. Since their initial ultimatum in January, Google and China have traded vague statements about reaching a compromise, but, unsurprisingly, talks haven't produced a mutually agreeable solution. [Financial Times] More »

The Magic Mouse, for all of its sleek lines and multitouch, uh, magic, can feel a little awkward in the hand. MMFixed has the solution: a stick-on hump that gives your fingers some leverage and your palm some lovin'. More »

As the intertubes overtake boob tubes and telephone tubes as our primary mode of communication, it becomes increasingly important to ensure that access is available and affordable for all Americans. The FCC's ambitious new plan looks to do just that. More »

There's no shortage of cutesy portable speakers for listening to music when you're out and about. But if you want something that doesn't feel like it's going to snap in two, the Audio-Technica BoogieBox will do you a solid. More »

When we discussed the iPad and whether it was worth giving in to the peer pressure and pre-ordering it, a commenter decided to remind us of his reason for resisting: No flash. And yes, it can make things look sad. More »

As part of a graduate show at the Kyoto University of Art and Design, students built miniature cities out of common household objects—including this power strip. They're just missing mini-people. [Spoon Tamago via Crib Candy via Boing Boing] More »

Several star commenter have noted recently that the troll factor is rising again. This post is reminder that all comments wasting words and the comment moderator's time wondering about such issues as "why does gizmodo love/hate/get paid by company XYZ?" may result in zero warnings and then a ban. And whatever happens to your comment account, remember: it's not my fault if you lose your account because you said something stupid. Black Ninja Monday is when the action goes down, so you've got two days to turn things around. The obvious choices: You can have fun in troll hell, or join the ranks of the thoughtful, starred, proud and clever commenters everyone appreciates. Again, Monday: that's when there'll be internet blood everywhere. But it won't be mine. More »

What if computers could be turned into a worldwide earthquake detecting network? With the Quake Catcher software and your laptop's built-in accelerometer, that might just be possible. More »

It's been a long week and we could use a laugh. We've already started worrying about taxes and pre-ordering iPads, among other stresses. To sum it all up, here are some illustrations from a cartoon maestro called Lunchbreath. More »

Instead of harpooning a whale for samples, wouldn't it be easier to just collect their snot using an R/C helicopter? More »

We've all heard about the PlayStation Move by now, but a lot of other neat stuff happened this week in video games, including God of War III's release, Civ 5 details and...a Battlestar Galactica MMO?? More »

New research shows that the advantages of HDTV aren't lost on octopuses. A recent study on octopus behavior made the upgrade from CRT sets to HDTVs for the playback of octopus-related videos, like one of a tasty crab. More »

In this week's bipolar app roundup: Foursquare, squared! Slow ISPs, tattled on! Videos, easily streamed! Street Fighter fans' high standards, met! Twitter apps, set free! Your entire life, documented! Your every plan, shared! And more... More »

Maybe the whole cosmos isn't in this pillow, but the LEDs hidden in a zippered compartment and causing these glowing, swirling patterns sure do give the illusion that it is. More »

First Apple COO Tim Cook received $12.3 million in stock for watching the company while Steve Jobs was on sick leave and now he's receiving an additional cash-and-stock bonus worth $22 million. More »