burn

I got my annual Burning Man ticket invitation post card in the mail Monday, always an interesting experience given all the emotions that the card conjures, particularly this time.

At first, I gave the card a cursory reading. But a few hours later, I picked it back and examined it a little more closely. And there, tucked away about a third of the way down the page, are 13 words that could be the most significant in modern Burning Man history: "New for 2008: No tickets will be sold at our event site gate."

It's bolded, but … Read more

One of the greatest joys of getting together for the holidays is being able to share the antics afterwards. This is just what Nero 8 Ultra's extensive tool set was made for. CNET Editor Molly Wood shows you how to compile clips into a video DVD for mass distribution, at least within the family.

Edward Burns' latest film, Purple Violets, won't be coming to a theater near you, but you won't have to go far to see it. The movie is available to anyone with $13 and an account at iTunes. It is the first time a feature film has premiered at the Apple media store.

Burns first landed on the scene in Hollywood with his highly successful 1995 film The Brothers McMullen. He wrote, directed, produced and starred while managing to spend less than $30,000 putting together the vehicle that would pave the way for his role acting in Saving Private Ryan.

… Read more

SAN JOSE, Calif.--If you were to see this 1969 Volkswagen Beetle, missing a couple of tires, its engine compartment and hood open, and its interior feeling very much like a work in progress, you'd probably mistake it for one of the countless automotive projects currently under way in American garages and driveways.

You certainly wouldn't think any special was afoot.

But this is no normal '69 Bug.

No, this little machine, which on a Friday afternoon still looks a lot closer to a junkyard than a highway, is actually awaiting the finishing touches that will have it … Read more

AUSTIN, TEXAS--Joseph Pred is carefully eyeing the giant rolling ferris-wheel-like carnival ride as it begins to head down the first hill it has encountered since being built three years ago.

Known as the Star Wheel, the bicycle-technology-powered ride is glorious fun. But since it carries three pedaling people in its interior, Pred is very interested in making sure that the Star Wheel's creators are in control of it as it starts to head down the hill.

Pred is the safety officer for Maker Faire, the weekend-long celebration of do-it-yourself culture that's wrapping up here today. He's in … Read more

AUSTIN, Texas--With all the high-tech in evidence at Maker Faire here, it's hard to believe that one of the most amazing things I've seen was purely analog: drawings in dirt on the side of a car's window.

This is Scott Wade's Dirty Art Car.

Most people, when they see cars with dirty windows, just use their finger to write "wash me" on the glass.

But Wade is taking that basic idea and turning it high concept. He takes a drawing tool and etches wonderful, detailed drawings into dirt on the windows of his simple … Read more

AUSTIN, Texas--I'm high in the air, aboard a carnival ride cum Burning Man art piece cum bicycle-tech-powered people mover known as the Star Wheel.

It's hard to describe this: It's a giant wheel, maybe 20 feet high that has three seats built into the middle of it--independent of the outer frame--that are geared to spin around when their occupants pedal like crazy. As they pedal, the wheel moves slowly forward while those inside whoop and scream their way through rapid 360 degree rotations.

It's quite the experience. I had first seen this at Burning Man 2004, … Read more

If you're the kind of person for whom every year is centered around Burning Man, then there's a certain problem you have with the calendar: you can't go to other Labor Day weekend events.

Not that I would know anything about this, of course, because I only go to Burning Man some years, and it's only coincidence that it's happened 10 years in a row.

But anyway, I noticed today that there's going to be a great Lego fan festival in Washington, D.C., next year, called BrickFair. "Fantastic," I thought, as … Read more

In addition to the disc-ripping and -burning capabilities with which Nero first made its mark, the digital-media suite also offers a bevy of options for managing movies, music, and photos. Nero helps you create and edit videos and music files, share that content online, turn your PC into a media center, and back up and recover data in case of disaster. Nero 8 includes a revamped entry page in addition to new support for burning and creating HD and Blu-ray CDs and DVDs.

Nero 8 costs $79 to download, $99 for the box, and $49 to upgrade from Nero 7 Ultra Edition. In the past, Nero has not issued a new version of its software every year, unlike so many other brands. Instead, a new package would come onto the market every other year or so. Peppered between each release were significant updates that Nero's 50 million or so active users could download for free. Now, however, Nero will follow an annual version-update schedule.… Read more