New on the ski slopes this season...

From designer chalets and undiscovered resorts to speed dating and gondola saunas, Peter Hardy rounds-up the latest ski developments.

In the Lappish resort of Ylläs, you can ride the gondola naked without fear of being arrested: one cabin has been converted into a sauna.


A group of 20 people have celebrated a party in a huge jacuzzi at the top of Mont Blanc, the highest mountain in the Alps at 15,711 feet. More pictures here.

Ice Sauna Goes to 10 Below Zero. The Snow Room was developed by MNK—a company that has made a name for themselves developing saunas. While the idea does seem strange, it appears that hot/cold therapy is common in northern European countries.

Why Windows 7 Will Smash Vista

Windows 7 is what Windows Vista should have been, what we hoped it would be. The Batman Begins to Vista's Batman and Robin. While superficially both are kinda the same (Batman!), there's a completely different thought process at work.

its next release of Windows will run even faster than the previous one, an unprecedented feat for Microsoft.

• If an application or device runs on Vista, it should run on Win 7.
• If a system runs Windows Vista, should run Windows 7 even faster.
• Notebooks should get better battery life in Windows 7.
• Windows 7 will be more reliable than Vista SP1 from Day 1.

Windows 7 is also way more brainy when it comes to crashy apps and errors, in a couple different ways. The Problem Steps Recorder watches what you do to trip an error—if you can repeat it after turning on the recorder, that is—and it generates a useful, detailed error report in a language that actually resembles English!

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Free AT&T Wi-Fi for iPhones users in the USA

Yup this Includes Starbucks stores too!

Accessing AT&T's Wi-Fi hotspots is easy. You can use any Wi-Fi enabled laptop or other device to connect quickly and seamlessly.

Get started with LaptopConnect

Log in to the AT&T hotspot web page with LaptopConnect
Activate the wireless networking functionality on your laptop or Wi-Fi-enabled device and look for the SSID "ATTWIFI"
Once connected to "ATTWIFI" you will be presented with options to order AT&T's Basic or Premier service

iPhone users, get started with Wi-Fi

Activate Wi-Fi from the settings icon on your iPhone
Select "attwifi" from the list of available networks
Enter your 10-digit mobile number and check the box to agree to the Acceptable Use Policy. Tap 'continue'
You will receive a text message from AT&T with a secure link to the AT&T Wi-Fi hotspot. You will not be charged for the text message.
The SMS link will only be valid for 24 hours at the location it was requested. Another request must be submitted when using another hotspot location.
Open the text message and tap on the link for 24-hour access to the AT&T Wi-Fi hotspot

Road to Mac OS X Snow Leopard: 64-bit to the Kernel

Build notes leaked on the web of a prerelease version of Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard indicate that the software only supports enabling its new 64-bit kernel on certain machines, including the Xserve, Mac Pro, and MacBook Pro, but this does not mean Snow Leopard's kernel will be limited to 32-bit operation on consumer machines.

A 64-bit kernel requires all of its extensions to also be 64-bit. Kernel extensions or KEXTs include drivers for audio hardware, graphics adapters, networking, certain printing components, and other devices on the logic board or attached as peripherals. Until Apple delivers 64-bit versions of the nearly 300 extensions it ships with Mac OS X (not all of which will need to be supported on 64-bit Macs; many are legacy), it is limiting official 64-bit kernel support to a subset of Macs in prerelease builds of the new operating system.

Snow Leopard will deliver the first 64-bit kernel for Mac OS X. Earlier versions of the operating system, including today's Leopard, can run 64-bit software but do so using a 32-bit kernel. More accurately, whether running on 32 and 64-bit CPUs, Mac OS X loads the same kernel image and run it as a 32-bit process, although when run on 64-bit hardware, the 32-bit kernel switches into "long mode compatibility mode."

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Copper door handles kill 95% of superbugs in hospitials

Making door handles, taps and light switches from copper could help the country beat superbugs, scientists say. A study found that copper fittings rapidly killed bugs on hospital wards, succeeding where other infection control measures failed.

A study found that copper fittings rapidly killed bugs on hospital wards, succeeding where other infection control measures failed.

In the trial at Selly Oak hospital, in Birmingham, copper taps, toilet seats and push plates on doors all but eliminated common bugs.

It is thought the metal 'suffocates' germs, preventing them breathing. It may also stop them from feeding and destroy their DNA.

Lab tests show that the metal kills off the deadly MRSA and C difficile superbugs.

It also kills other dangerous germs, including the flu virus and the E coli food poisoning bug.

Although the number of cases of MRSA and C difficile is falling, the two bugs still claim thousands of lives a year.

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7 of the Smallest Hotels and Hotel Rooms in the World [PICS]

Think your last apartment or hotel room was small? Believe it or not, there are a lot of contenders for the dubious title of smallest hotel on the planet. Some claim it by number of rooms, others by size and all are quick to defend their position. However, you can judge for yourself after taking a look at this incredible collection of tiny hotels!

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California foreclosures spike 228%

A new law mandating delays in foreclosure actions may create a fleeting lull, but observers wonder whether it will lead to widespread mortgage workouts.

Reporting from Sacramento and Washington -- The number of people losing their homes in California hit a record high of nearly 80,000 in the last three months, but a new state law appears to be dramatically slowing the foreclosure process -- at least for now.

Loan default notices, the first step toward foreclosure, fell to 94,240 for the three months that ended Sept. 30. That's down sharply from the record 121,673 for the previous quarter, according to research firm MDA DataQuick.

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