Frustrated by the way the Desktop doesn't work with Spaces for organizing files and folders used in different projects, Jeff Porten takes the desktop replacement Bumptop for a spin. Alas, its representation of the physical world ends up being more trouble than it's worth.

ShowStoppers isn't exactly related to CES, but many of the CES exhibitors showed up at this media event, showing off neat products ranging from a GSM-to-VoIP call router to a 3D printer, along with a service that will ensure Jeff Porten never again gets a second date.

Covering the cutting edge at CES inevitably leads to a bumpy ride back to Earth. Jeff Porten reflects on how he has glimpsed visions of the future, all while struggling to get a decent Internet connection in the here and now.

During the press days at CES, before the exhibition floor opens, some of the most interesting bits of technology are shown to members of the media, like our own Jeff Porten. Read on to learn about laser projectors, minuscule computers, iPhone-controlled hovercrafts, and yes, a blender.

Jeff Porten returns to Las Vegas to cover (such as is possible) CES for TidBITS, and while trying to figure out what to focus on, he ran across a proposal to make DRM-protected video semi-portable. Whee!

Ironically, after being detained due to anti-terrorist regulations, Jeff Porten reports from the Computers, Freedom, and Privacy 2009 conference.

Interested in issues surrounding online privacy, security, and civil liberties? Stay tuned as Jeff Porten reports back from the annual Computers, Freedom, and Privacy conference.

While attending CES last January, roving correspondent Jeff Porten realizes just how broken technology has become in the name of protecting intellectual property, causing him to ponder the societal costs of such a dependence on technology that is designed to fail.

CES is now over, but read on for Jeff Porten's final collection of products, booths, services, and more, along with an explanation of exactly how he ended up asking a Playboy Playmate for information on Tasers.

Jeff Porten continues to wander the cavernous halls of CES in search of cool stuff... and this time he finds something that could help him get around: the 13 MPH iShoes! (Really. We're not kidding.)

CES is all about gadgets, and Jeff Porten has hunted down some of the most interesting ones, including a keyboard that can change the picture on each keycap, a USB flash drive that backs up files online, a head-mounted display for your iPod, and more.

You may have thought that Macworld Expo is a big trade show, and it's not small. But compared to CES, as our intrepid correspondent Jeff Porten found out, Macworld is small and (luckily) highly focused.

FileMaker Inc. has released Bento, claiming it's "the personal database that's as easy to use as the Mac." Database consultant Jeff Porten takes the preview release for a spin and finds Bento conceptually interesting but unwilling to stray far enough from the FileMaker fold.

A couple of weeks ago I began sporting a new laptop: 3 GB of RAM, 200 GB hard drive, dual optical burners, 4 USB and 3 FireWire ports. But the best thing about it is the 23-inch monitor. Yes, it's a Mac

In part 1 of this article, I introduced David Allen's Getting Things Done system, and looked at several programs that could help you implement that system

Longtime readers of TidBITS and listeners of MacNotables probably recall Adam mentioning that he and Tonya have been users of David Allen's "Getting Things Done" method of personal organization

Does it bother you that someone at the National Security Agency might be listening in on your phone call to your great aunt in Manchester? Does it matter if that's Manchester, New Hampshire as well as Manchester, England? Ever wonder about what U.S

Like many people, I have been in search of the Holy Grail of personal organizers for years. All of us on this quest are motivated by an almost religious belief that somewhere out there is the magical device that will turn us into Highly Effective People, filling every unforgiving minute with sixty seconds worth of distance run, as Rudyard Kipling put it in "If." The trail on this quest is littered knee-deep with dead hardware, abandoned software, and heartbreak

While there's been a bit of hoopla recently over the release of TiVo Series2 and the new Mac-integration features of its $100 Home Media Option (see "TiVo Series2 Improves on Original" in TidBITS-698), it bothered me that the TiVo wasn't a Mac-friendly device for its core function: recording and playing TV. It's possible, so I'm told, to pry open a TiVo and plug in various hardware adapters that enable you to grab the video off the hard drive and send it zipping around your home network