People who get overwhelmed by spam or want more features set up new e-mail addresses. Some changes come with a new job or enrolling in a college. A JupiterResearch study found that 17 percent of those online in the U.S. create a new e-mail address every six months. Full story »

Apple Inc. said Monday its online stores in the U.S. and U.K. are sold out of the iPhone, a sign supplies are being winnowed ahead of the launch of the device's next generation featuring faster Internet surfing speeds. Full story »

It may not be the end of the world. But it can feel like it. You open your Web browser, only to be greeted by an obscure error message suggesting something is wrong with your Internet connection. Hit the refresh key. Nothing. Reboot. Check the modem. Still nothing. Full story »

Whether you're investigating urban legends or want a credible review of the latest gadgets, we've got some Web sites to help in this week's Ask Allison. Full story »

The glowing amber dot on a light switch in the entryway of George Tsapoitis' house offers a clue about the future of electricity. A few times this summer, when millions of air conditioners strain the Toronto region's power grid, that pencil-tip-sized amber dot will blink. It will be asking Tsapoitis to turn the switch off, unless he's already programmed his house to make that move for him. Full story »

Confession: I've never balanced a checkbook or devised a realistic budget. I'm too impatient to follow through with manual record-keeping when all the transactions are digital. So while I always had a general sense of my bank balance, I didn't actually know if I was spending more than I made in a month. And that made me nervous. Full story »

Q: I write to ask for your advice on a universal remote. Although I consider myself technically curious and patiently persistent, I am now confounded by the variety of controls for the TV (Olevia), DVD/VCR combo (Sony) and set-top box (Motorola/Verizon FIOS) and annoyed by the apparent redundancy but actual adversity of the various remotes. Full story »

Goodbye, broadband over power lines. We hardly knew you. Once touted as a possible third option for home broadband that could compete with phone and cable companies, the idea of providing Internet service over power lines now looks like it has died in infancy. Full story »

When 20-year-old Jonathan Priester was younger, his parents would talk to him about the lack of diversity in video games. They would examine the games he wanted to play. If one contained questionable content, they didn't refuse to buy it. Instead, they asked him to justify the purchase. Full story »

I've arranged a special vacation offer just for my readers. You'll stay at no nightly cost, have food prepared to your taste and never bother with packing and unpacking. It's exactly what I plan for myself: a stay-at-home vacation with activities for the whole family. You'll have plenty of time to read and take naps — important parts of any vacation. Full story »

They're not quite the automatons and androids of popular culture, but the small sporting robots on the field in Germany last month were no less entertaining. Some move about on three wheels; others plod slowly and deliberately on two or four legs. They range from thumb-sized midgets to 2- or 3-foot-tall giants. Full story »

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Trying to boost the output of its research labs, Hewlett-Packard Co. wants to get more help from scientists in universities. HP and other technology companies already collaborate with academics all the time. But HP's new research director, Prith Banerjee, believes his company's school partnerships would produce better results if they were more organized. Full story »

When I think of an antenna, the first thing that pops into my mind is an image of the old rabbit ears that used to sit on top of my TV set back when I was a kid. Perhaps I'm dating myself once again as I reveal such imagery to you, but there it is. Now ask any kid today what an antenna looks like and they're more than likely going to describe something that looks like a dish. And why not, since the satellite dish has become the antenna icon of the 21st century? Full story »

A Sony TV with novel display technology that has drawn rave reviews for image quality may actually last little more than half as long as the company claims, according to a test by a private research firm. Full story »