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With the initial fuss about Google+ dying down, the real potential for the social system to challenge popular net apps is breaking through. Foursquare-challenging check-ins If you run the mobile app version of Google+ you can't help but spot the Check-ins feature --it's right there on the front page.

Jason Ross has always been the person his friends would turn to for the latest on cool things. And thanks to his Mom, Ross was always a discount shopper. His business, JackThreads.com , "is about everything I'm about, which is cool, cutting edge brands, and products at 40 to 80 percent off retail," says Ross

Steel's a done deal, right? A material we know all about, just as we move on to cooler composites? Nope.

Apple bought more semiconductors in 2010 than any of its peers, and the spread will be even larger in 2011. Semiconductors power chips. Chips power tech.

Monday's when we finally hear all about Apple's cloud services offering iCloud. We don't know much, but thanks to enterprising photographers at the Moscone West center where Apple's event will be held, we now know what the logo looks like

Though the iPhone 5's arrival is still far away, leaks are getting out about a possible November 21 launch date, a hardware change that'll render your current case unusable, the screen size, and NFC. We've heard a few rumors before about the iPhone 5, most notably that its launch has been delayed well beyond a typical June/July release timeframe

1. Microsoft is poised to announce , maybe later this morning, that the rumored acquisition of Skype is actually true. New hints suggest the price may have pushed as high as $8.5 billion, and Microsoft is obviously imagining how Skype will plug into its enterprise offerings

The Fast Company reader's essential source for breaking news and innovation from around the web--updated all day. Verizon Can Hear You...24 Hours Later Verizon's 4G LTE data network has just come back online after a 24-hour blackout

Scientists recognize how important a role electrical fields play in nature and technical areas. By adjusting these fields, the transmission of nerve impulses becomes possible and the operation of modern data storage is fulfilled by saving electrical charges (so-called Flash Memories)

Intel's investing in the student tablet company, and will be taking over hardware operations. What's next?

1. Late yesterday Amazon proved last-minute rumors true and released the Amazon Cloud Player--a cloud-based music "locker" and streaming system that beats Apple to the punch

Barnes & Noble's Nook e-reader is in the headlines for a number of reasons at the moment, and it's prompting a big question: With no competing device from Amazon , can the Nook steal the Kindle's throne? The original Nook was the first e-reader to challenge the Amazon Kindle with a cleverer Android-powered device that one-upped the Kindle with a second color screen.

In what may be a perfect "if you can't beat 'em, join 'em" maneuver, Samsung has just revealed its answer to the iPad 2--a new set of Galaxy Tab tablets. In terms of specs, they're pretty much clones of Apple's offering.

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By now you've probably heard of HTML5, the platform that every browser maker from Microsoft to Mozilla to Google can't stop heralding as the savior of the Internet. Buzzwords aside, developers are excited about HTML5 because it creates a more elegant online experience, enabling users to enjoy the the best aspects of the web--audio, video, multimedia--without having to install external applications like Adobe Flash. In other words, HTML5 allows us to experience the Internet natively, and escape what Mozilla VP of products Jay Sullivan calls "plug-in prison." Sullivan is gung-ho about HTML5, which has become a major selling point of Firefox 4, the browser's latest iteration set launch in the coming weeks