Google Maps adds live traffic for US cities

Sweetness….

Google Maps Mania:

Google Maps (and mobile) has today rolled out a new feature:

Live Traffic Conditions.

The data is available by clicking the new “Traffic” toggle button to the left of “Map - Satellite - Hybrid”:

..When
you select this option traffic signals appear for cities which have
live traffic available. Click the icons and a zoom option appears:

Color coded routes indicate traffic levels for that city.. Give it a try!

This feature is also available on Google Maps for Mobile!

Linux, The Official OS of the “Axis of Evil”

Can I just say, WTF?

Digg: “Neocon blogger “Shelley The Republican” wants us all to stop using
Linux because allegedly it has been endorsed by the King of Evil, Fidel
Castro.”

LINK

Download of the Day: xCuts (Mac)

Lifehacker:

Mac OS X only: Freeware Dashboard widget xCuts provides a simple way to look up keyboard shortcuts on your Mac.

xCuts lets you narrow down what shortcut you’re looking for in a
number of ways, but one of the coolest features of xCuts for me and the
rest of the Windows-to-Mac switching bunch is a section specifically
covering Windows shortcuts and their Mac equivalents. Aside from that,
xCuts covers other system-wide and application-specific shortcuts
(including a handy Quicksilver cheatsheet). I’m not huge on Dashboard
widgets, but this is one I actually plan on using. xCuts is freeware,
Mac OS X only. — Adam Pash

xCuts [via The Entourage Help Page]

Remote Wrangler straps remotes, gizmos to your noggin

Blogged because its frakkin crazy…

Engadget:

Let’s face it, not everyone can afford to go out and blow hundreds of dollars on a swank universal touchscreen remote or home automation system in order to simplify their life, and for those who are forced to juggle the half-dozen or so remotes required to bring their AV system to life, this here invention is for you. The clever, albeit ungainly Remote Wrangler is a unique (and admittedly unsightly) piece of headgear that turns your average couch potato into a professional wrestler wannabe, and also creates a remote control magnet all around one’s face. By utilizing the oh-so-versatile Velcro, this device enables remotes, iPods, junk food, Wiimotes, caffeine pills, and an essentially limitless amount of other objects to flank your dome, theoretically saving you hours on end hunting under murky couch cushions for long lost controllers. As if this weren’t enough to warrant an immediate purchase, it also doubles as a battery-powered temporal massager, and while we can’t confirm, it looks to come in several editions including one with a built-in afro for the disco set. So if you’re single (or would like to be), have no friends whatsoever, and don’t even mind personal humiliation, keep an eye out for the Remote Wrangler to hit electronics prank departments sometime in the distant future.

Final version of Parallels Desktop released as free update

Digg: “The beta tag has been lifted from Parallels Desktop and is a free update for existing users, or $79.99 for everyone else.”

LINK TO PARALLELS

Half-Life 2 Dance Mix Video - Apple style!

If Apple made a Half-Life 2 remix commercial…pretty brilliant…

Neatorama:

Presenting The Ballad of Black Mesa, a thumping well-sampled tour-de-force created by Mighty Crane Films:

Push Play or transport your H.E.V.-suited self over to YouTube to watch.)

Link found at Kotaku via Blues News. Thanks for the Valve-y goodness, guys!

Lightsaber Umbrella

My geek wish-list is getting longer and longer…

Neatorama:

Korean company Funshop has these light saber umbrellas for Jedis who are afraid of the rain: Link - via The Red Ferret Journal

Download of the Day: Clipmarks 2.0 (Firefox)

Lifehacker:

Firefox only (for now): Clip, save, share and organize just about anything on a web page, including video, with Clipmarks 2.0.

The new version of this insanely useful browser plug-in
adds several features, most notably the option to clip videos from
Google, Metacafe, YouTube and other sites. You can post clips directly
to your blog or send clips via e-mail, all without saving them first.
Version 2.0 also lets you clip words or sentences in addition to
paragraphs and pages, and it has consolidated its four-button toolbar
into a single button.

If you’ve never tried Clipmarks, give it a look. It’s far more versatile than Google Notebook,
and the new features are just icing on the cake. Clipmarks 2.0 requires
Firefox, though an IE version is coming soon. It’s a freebie. — Rick Broida

Clipmarks 2.0

R2D2 Trashcan

How awesome is this?

Neatorama:

From ThinkGeek, here’s the R2D2 Trashcan: Link - via BornRich

Exclusive Video Leaked: iPod Firmware Coming, Enables Cover Flow?

Fake??  If not, this will be badarse….

Gizmodo:

A little birdie told us that a firmware update for iPods is coming
soon, giving you that same Cover Flow view that you’ve grown to love in
iTunes now. See it in action, right here.

The tipster also tells us that we won’t see any new-generation iPods
before the iPhone debuts, either. But to us, with the scrubbing of the
scrollwheel and the coverflow not quite lining up, it seems that this whole thing could be a fake. We’re keeping our eyes out in any case. – Charlie White