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U.S. retakes Top500 supercomputer crown

Sequoia, an IBM Blue Gene/Q supercomputer at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, reached 16.32 petaflops, while previous leader K Computer trailed with 10.5 petaflops, according to the Top500 list. The list was published today at the International Supercomputing Conference in Hamburg.

The latest edition of the list, which is published twice a year, shows that Intel is slipping and IBM is recapturing lost ground, while the U.S. is back on top after losing its lead three years ago. New technologies reign, from updated IBM chips to a build of Fujitsu's novel interconnect product.

Intel processors more

The top 10 reasons why music is compressed

First things first, I'm referring to soft-to-loud dynamic range compression, not MP3 or other types of lossy data compression. Dynamic range compression has been around for almost as long as recorded music has existed, but over the last decade or so the public has demanded ever higher levels of dynamic range compression. The so-called lowest common denominator approach to mixing and mastering music boosts all of the softer/quieter passages to be loud all the time. That process obliterates all of the original details, subtleties, and nuances of the instruments and vocalists. Once the mix has been compressed, it more

Top 5 game controllers

Console game controllers get no respect. These days especially, with all the attention paid to mobile games, touch-screen control, and Microsoft Kinect, everyone has lost sight of the irreducible awesomeness of a sweaty gamepad.

With this thought in mind and the hype of E3 2012 fading in the distance, I offer you my best attempt to round up the Top 5 game controllers of all time.

The strangest new top-level domain applications

Earlier today in London, ICANN released a list of thousands of applications for new generic top-level domains. The applications include plenty of brand protection moves like .google and .bentley, as well as some more generic speculation plays like .beer or the very popular .app, which received several applications.

There was also plenty of weirdness buried in the list of suffixes, applicants, and primary contacts.

For example, it looks as though Google might be interested in giving the Cheezburger network a run for its money with oddball applications for domains .lol, .wow, and .fun.

Guess who wants new military top-level domains? Not the military...

Among the thousands of applications for new generic top-level domains that ICANN released today are three to run new .army, .navy and .airforce domains. The applicant isn't the U.S. Department of Defense -- or any other government entity for that matter -- it's those masters of cheap, spammy content, Demand Media.

The military suffixes are three of 26 applications that list United TLD Holdco Ltd. as the applicant -- United TLD is a Cayman Islands-based subsidiary of Demand Media, which runs eHow.com and other sites. The company was part of the inspiration behind tweaks to Google's search algorithm last year that resulted in giving less weight to so-called "content farms" -- like Demand Media.

Best Kindle Fire cases and covers

Like the e-ink Kindles and iPads before it, Amazon's Kindle Fire tablet has launched a cottage industry of cases and covers.

In trying to boil down the best of what's currently out there, I decided to take a stand -- so to speak -- and select mostly cases and covers that convert into a stand.more

Unlikely Panasonic duo rules this week's top gadgets

What a week for Panasonic. Of all the products CNET reviewed this week, the company scored the best ratings for both the most expensive gadget and the cheapest. There must be some sort of award for that. (Actually, there isn't, but there should be.)

The Panasonic TC-P65VT50 (affectionately known around these parts as the "VT50") is a 65-inch plasma TV that nabbed the hardest-won praise of all: A glowing review from our own David Katzmaier. Katzmaier gets right to the point in his review, explaining that the whole line of TVs in the VT50's series have "some of more

Best headphones for under $50

Headphones are among the most popular products on CNET, and, not surprisingly, many of you are looking for a pair that delivers a lot of bang for the buck -- and so are we.

Earlier I put together a list of headphones that cost less than $100. While that list included some models that you could pick up for less than $50, the ones I've rounded up here all come in under $50. Like the previous list, it's a hodgepodge of products, with a mix of in-ear, on-ear, and over-the-ear headphones, and even a few Bluetooth models.

What's the best game controller?

Update: Voting is now closed. Thanks for helping us choose a winner. Stay tuned for an upcoming CNET Top 5 on console controllers.

All this E3 coverage recently has me thinking it's time for a Top 5 on console game controllers.

I have my thoughts, and I'll be sure to poll our CNET editors for their opinions too. In fact, I'll probably have the final Top 5 span the best game controllers of all-time, just to keep things interesting.

But I also want to know what you think. To keep it manageable, I'm restricting this reader'more

What the Wii U needs to succeed

It's trendy at this year's E3 to trash the Wii U. Nintendo's next-gen console has its work cut out for it: strange tablet-like GamePad controller, the challenge of making games for its dual-screen potential, the unknown price, and the looming question of whether Nintendo's core casual-gaming crowd has moved on to Apple's iPastures.

What if the Wii U were to succeed?

Nintendo has had a way of pulling rabbits out hats with strange hardware. I remember hating the Nintendo DS when it first was released; it became my favorite handheld. The original Wii was mocked for its name, its lack of HD, and its games-for-everyone mantra. It only became a household name.

If these things come to pass, I think the Wii U could succeed, too.

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