Whether Apple's announcement of the tablet dubbed iPad made you long for one, scoff at how unnecessary they are, or crack jokes about the choice of name, you have to admit it was a huge announcement.

Yesterday, Apple unveiled its new iPad, (stay tuned, Virginia will fill you in on that soon), and discussed the future of portability. It was suggested that the event would also lay to rest--one way or another--the rumors that Apple is ending its exclusive deal with AT&T. Unfortunately, those rumors were neither confirmed nor denied and no one knows for sure just what's going to happen.

I did it. After months of bitching out loud to my friends and colleagues, tweeting about it and blogging it, I dropped AT&T (and thus the iPhone) and got back on Verizon with the Motorola Droid. I thought it would be a rough transition, but it turned out to be not so bad. In fact, the Droid is a pretty slick device. But, like any "smart" tech these days, it's not truly yours until you've customized it, put your mark on it. And on the Droid, like the iPhone, that starts with the apps.

I don't know about you, but I've been wondering when we started needing to take 10 pounds of electronic gear with us every time we leave the house. A recent email thread in BlogHer back channels led me to wonder if I'd shared, what exactly it is that I'm dragging around with me everywhere I go. It's true, I take all this stuff and have a decent pack to carry it in. Here's what's in my bag, and please don't mug me should you run across me out there in the world. I need this stuff to do what I do. Oh, in the interest of disclosure, NONE of this gear was provided by sponsors, we paid for all of it, except for a pocket camera and an iPod that I won on a blog giveaways and the USB mouse that I got from my day job.

CES, the International Consumer Electronics Show, is a huge geek shindig held yearly in Las Vegas. There are 2500 exibitors talking about over 20,000 new products. There were keynotes from the likes of Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, Ford President Alan Mulally, and Nokia President Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo. There were celebrities like Lady Gaga, Drew Carey, author James Patterson and techie Guy Kawasaki.

Have you started talking to the hand yet? The hand with the phone in it, but no one on the other end? I have and I confess I was enamored after one use and will never look back.

Go to most tech or social media conferences, and you'll see what makes BlogHer's events so different. I think that even those most critical of BlogHer conferences (and I have made my own share of complaints) would agree that these events give deserving women a platform and a voice in a sector and profession that still tends to be notoriously male-dominated.

Decided to upgrade to a new greener phone for the new year -- only to get confused by all the conflicting green tech advice out there? You're not alone. Research eco-friendly cell phones, and you'll start getting bombarded with marketing speak about bioplastics and, I kid you not, seed-embedded paper outlining green features.

Money is tight. Maybe you can't afford to give that new iMac your techie is longing for. But there are still many gadgets and services that the tech loving geek in your life will love.

It’s that time of year again--any chance you're in dire need of ideas for holiday gifts? Something healthy might be nice, especially if the recipients are your loved ones and you’d prefer them all fit, energetic and happy instead of weak, slothful and depressed. But even with helpful suggestions and the best intentions, it's still possible to screw up and end up giving a crappy gift. So before sharing some recommendations for healthy gift ideas, here are a few thoughts about what not to do.

It began with a question from Texas Mama. She needs to move up to a digital camcorder but doesn’t know what to buy. I understand, it can be a challenge. What most people want is to create a video that will share a memory, a concept or a situation.

It can. Are you looking for a way for Twitter to locate mutual friends or people who know people you know? I love this feature on Facebook and often find BlogHers or long-lost classmates based on the application's suggestions as to people I may know because they know people I know. People who know people. Or some such. Now there is a Firefox add-on that will help you locate mutual friends you may share with the people you follow on Twitter. (Yeah, sorry, it only works in Firefox right now.) It's not exactly like what happens on Facebook, but it can be helpful.