Google Chrome is an actively developed browser. At the time of this post, the current development version is 2.0.162.0. Google publishes release updates to different release channels as follows:

• Stable channel. A fresh installation of Google Chrome puts you in this channel. The Stable channel is updated with features and fixes once they have been thoroughly tested in the Beta channel.
• Beta channel. This contains monthly releases of relatively stable features of Google Chrome. The Beta channel is more stable than Dev, but may lack the polish one expects from a finished product.
• Developer preview channel. The Dev channel is where ideas get tested which means that the Dev channel can be very unstable at times. Using Dev channel releases is an easy way for anyone to help test and improve Google Chrome.

Normally, you would be on the Stable channel normally, however if you are keen to check out the new features that Google Chrome has to offer then you can switch to the Beta or Development channel using a little program [100 KB]: Google Channel Changer.

1. Download and install Google Chrome.
2. Run the Chrome Channel Changer. Make sure Google Chrome is closed.
3. Select which of the three channels you wish to download updates from and hit Update.
4. Open Google Chrome and hit the Wrench menu in the top right and select About Google Chrome.
5. Chrome will then check for updates and download the latest development option.
6. Close and restart Chrome. You are now on the new version.

Note: You will not be able to switch back to a previous version of Google Chrome without uninstalling it first. Alternatively, you can switch back to the Stable Channel and wait till a higher version is released.

On Wednesday, Google released Latitude – an application that let’s you track someone’s location using their mobile phone. Are you ready for friends, family, coworkers, or your boss to track you?

Geographic tracking via cell phone isn’t a new practice. For years, 911 systems have able to locate mobile phones through cell tower triangulation. GPS-enabled smartphones make the task even easier. And, Google’s not the first to provide the public with a tracking service.

Several companies (TeleNav, Guarding Angel Technology, World-Tracker, AccuTracking, among others) provide cell phone tracking solutions to individuals and businesses. Some mobile carriers even provide location services–Verizon’s Chaperone and Sprint’s Family Locator. Yet, the mobile masses have yet to widely adopt these cellular tracking services. Google hopes to change that with its free Latitude application.

For many users Pandora is Internet radio. The service, which was spawned from the Music Genome Project, is one of the pioneers of the genre. In addition to being a great source of free music, Pandora was long free of audio ads, but its business model finally fell afoul of the recording industry, resulting in a protracted legal battle over licensing fees. As a result, Pandora has finally introduced audio ads into the stream. They're less intrusive than the ones on Slacker, its main competitor. Slacker plays about one song's worth of ads per hour (that's the official word from a Slacker spokesperson, though he said it's often less than that); Pandora plays just one ad for 15 seconds every two hours. It's a small price to pay for what remains a killer Internet radio service, even if it still lags behind Slacker in a few key areas.

For people who love to carry software on a USB drive or if you are behind a corporate firewall and can’t install new software, here’s something you have been waiting for - Google Chrome 2.0 in a portable avatar. Like other portable apps, Google Chrome 2 portable too has all the features available in the main Chrome browser but requires no installation - just unzip the files in a folder and start Chroming. To download your copy of portable Google Browser, head over to this site and click the download link - the site in German but the software language is English.

There are a lot of music jukeboxes out there that aren't iTunes but still work with iPods. Freeware standalone version Floola (RAR) (22,5 MB) for Windows, Mac, and Linux is one of the few, if only, portable music players that not only works with your iPod, it will work from your iPod, too. The program's fully compatible with your desktop iTunes installation, but can be run from the iPod itself.

The features it offers are comprehensive and robust, including music, video, note-taking, and photo support. The latest version, released today, includes bi-directional Google Calendar synchronization. Don't let the simple interface fool you, there's an incredible amount that you can do with Floola, which the publisher states is compatible with Windows 98 and newer, Mac OS X 10.3.9 and newer, and any GTK2 Linux distro.

Floola doesn't play very well with non-Apple jukeboxes and might require you to reformat or ''repair'' your iPod, but once you've got it going it's worth exploring. Album art, lyrics, playlists, podcasts, and Last.fm scrobbling are all supported from Floola. The context menu available from any given track will tell you which playlists the track is in, as well as giving you the option to add it to another one. Note that although album art is supported, there is no baked-in art discovery feature.

The Edit Song feature not only lets you change the track information, but adjust the track's specific volume, discover the real location of the track in Apple's labyrinthine iPod architecture, and instantly change a track from Song to Audiobook. The Song menu in the menubar contains options for drag-and-dropping folders, copying songs from your iPod to your desktop, and downloading tracks from the Web. This feature is quite cool: it lets you download a video, and then rip out the audio track to save as a new song or just load the video onto your iPod. Keyboard jockeys have hot key commands for all these features.

One of the essential things that Floola does, of course, is preclude the need for a desktop synchronization program. Since it runs from a self-contained EXE file that can live on your iPod, and it weighs in at a paltry 23 MB for the Windows version, one of the key concerns with jukeboxes has been effectively eliminated. Other support features include Snarl for Windows and Growl for Mac, built-in format conversion, and duplicated and lost song finder.

Do you watch TV? Of course you do. You just might not watch it on a television anymore like me. Time is something that is hard to come by nowadays so I take what I can get. If that is a Simpsons episode on my train ride home or an episode of “Grey's Anatomy″ I have missed.

So let’s say I visit this FeedMyTorrents website. They have RSS feeds all set up already for most of the popular shows that are currently syndicated. You can click here without signing up to check out and grab their feeds. Here you can find all kind of TV shows like: The Mentalist, The Simpsons, Knight Rider (2008), Law & Order, The Universe, Top Chef, The Shield, Life, The IT Crowd, Leverage, etc.

Each show has its own feed. This feed can be checked via most popular Torrent applications. The files are the same files you would find by searching your favorite Torrent site like The Pirate Bay or Bitsoup. The blue “Normal” icon means a standard broadcast resolution. Some of the feeds have also "HD" listed (720p). So without signing up you can utilize the already created feeds. But If you create an account, you can combine all your favorite TV-shows to a single torrent feed. Now that you get the idea let’s check out how to make it work. This gem is cross platform and works on the following clients/OS:

• uTorrent (Windows/Mac OS)
• Azureus/Vuze (Windows)
• Deluge (Windows/Mac OS/Linux)
• BitComet (Windows)
• BitRocket (Mac OS)

Luxembourg (Business Wire) - Skype today announced the launch of Skype 4.0 for Windows, the most distinctive new release in the company’s five-year history. Thanks to the feedback of tens of thousands of people, the new version offers full-screen video calling, crystal clear call quality and is easier to use than ever before. In addition, Skype users will find all of the features they have come to expect – free voice and video calls to other Skype users, instant messaging, SMS, as well as calls to landlines and mobile devices around the world at very low rates.

Face-to-Face Video Calling
With the all-new Skype, people can experience the benefits of free face-to-face video calling. It’s now easier to start a video call and experience full-screen video, which makes conversations more intimate and engaging. Additionally, a new built-in bandwidth manager ensures that consumers have the very best Skype video calling experience possible even on a low-bandwidth connection. If you have a fast enough connection (recommended 400 Kb/s or higher), a dual-core processor PC and a Skype Certified High Quality Video webcam, Skype delivers up to 30-frames-per-second High Quality Video.

Improved Call Quality
Call quality is substantially improved in the new version of Skype. The new audio codec achieves wideband audio quality using 50% less bandwidth than previously required. Moreover, it introduces super wideband audio that delivers crystal clear, richer and warmer sound to those using a compatible headset and a high quality broadband connection. The bandwidth manager interacts with the codec to adjust quickly to fluctuating bandwidth conditions to produce the most reliable sound.

There are many ways to legally download music from the Internet. The various methods depend on the legal situation in individual countries. It can be said however that it is completely legal to record music from Internet Radio stations. Another definitely legal way is to download music that has been uploaded by the artist or the record company for public download.

An unique software program that combines both concepts (and more) in one package:

1. ESP is an Internet radio player which gives the listener access to the Shoutcast directory of Internet Radios (delivering outstanding sound quality)
2. Download legal mp3's (no P2P network) from playing artists. ESP will automatically search for songs uploaded to their official social networking sites and makes them available for direct download
3. In addition, the currently playing stream, can be ripped and recorded, saving each track broadcast as a seperate mp3, with the artist and song title making up the filename of the mp3
4. ESP is very light and can even be run from a Flash/USB drive.