In the current wave of patent wars, Google has become an arms supplier, buying technology from other firms to increase Android’s ability to fight back against Apple. In its latest purchase in the Silicon Valley’s version of an arms bazaar, the Internet giant snapped up 1,023 IBM patents.

I love the Internet Archive, it’s one of the best online projects there’s ever been.

I knew it archived a lot of stuff, but until this week I had no idea that the collection included scanned magazines of old. Jason Scott, of textfiles.com fame, now works for the Archive and wrote a blog post about some of the latest additions – dozens of tech magazines from the dawn of personal computing.

At first glance, you won’t see anything Mac-specific on the list. But you need to delve a little deeper. Remember, in those days Apple was just one of dozens of new arrivals, all of them jostling for position in a brand new consumer market.

Iomega’s new Helium Portable Hard Drive is a compact little brick of data storage. Encased in a hard aluminum shell, the Helium Drive is perfect for Time Machine backups or supplementing the memory of a MacBook Air.

Whatever it’s used for, the data will always be safe, even if the drive is lost or stolen. The Helium has built-in hardware encryption, which means no one can ever peek at your files. That also makes it a good place to stash files you don’t want anyone to see…

There have been a some reports that followed the release of Mac OS X Lion from iMac users complaining about graphic or video problems.

One user reports that he’s been experiencing video artifacts on his 2011 27-inch iMac configured with a 3.4GHz quad-core Intel Core i7 and AMD Radeon HD 6970M graphics processor with 1GB of GDDR5 memory. It’s been fairly intermittent and it always disappears for a while after a restart.

Today the problem was so different and a lot worse than usual that they finally decided to call AppleCare.

Apple has included a nice app in Mac OS X Lion that you can use to gather all kinds of diagnostic information from your wireless network. The app provides really technical information about the network that most users might find puzzling perhaps that is why Apple decided to hide it. Today’s tip will show you how to uncover this handy wireless network utility.

This screen protector, supposedly built for Apple’s much-anticipated iPhone 5, indicates the new device will indeed boast that fancy redesign we’ve all been longing for — with a larger screen and an all-new home button.

I’m sure you’ve already heard a lot about Facebook’s latest iPhone application, Facebook Messenger. However, unless you live in the U.S. or Canada, you’ve been unable to download it… until now! Facebook Messenger has gone global, and is now available to download from App Stores worldwide.

Following the release of an EFI firmware update for its latest MacBook Air earlier this week, Apple has also prepared its Thunderbolt-equipped MacBook Pro and Mac mini with an EFI firmware update of their own. Now available through Software Update, the updates resolves issues with the upcoming Thunderbolt Display, and signals its release isn’t far away.

MacBook users are reporting that they are experiencing an issue after installing full disk encryption using File Vault. The problem manifests itself by automatically restarting the MacBook after it is turned on and restarted once already forcing the user to login twice before actually reaching their desk top.

There’re few materials that can match leather for wear resistance and luxuriousness; and if you’re using an iPad in a professional or fashion-forward setting, leather makes a great choice.

Problem is, leather cases tend not to be the most practical solutions: They’re generally portlier than their proletariat plastic counterparts, and they’re also generally don’t allow for mucking about with positioning much.

Ah, but the updated Sena Folio for iPad ($100) is different.

Apple unveiled the @AppStore Twitter account back in January. The account tweets prominent apps in the App Store to its 460,000+ followers.

Today, Apple has created another account for the iBookstore. Following @iBookstore on Twitter will give you updates from the US iBookstore, including exclusive offers and featured titles.

A young gentleman from Buffalo, New York who goes by the name of Supreme General @HustleGameBoss on Twitter just released a rap song titled “Steve Jobs.”

A pair of new goodies from Logitech were revealed today; we actually snagged a little time to check out both when Logitech lifted the curtain for us at a sneak preview a couple of months ago.

You can fly a plane with an iPad but airlines still won’t loan you one to watch “Friends with Benefits” on it while sitting in coach.

Australian airlines Qantas is once again touting its iPad-inflight entertainment scheme– it has been talking about getting it on board since June 2010 – but the concept has still failed to launch in any meaningful way.

Back in 2008, the Malibu Beach Inn billed itself as the world’s first iPhone hotel.

Now apps like that one are helping people get more comfortable (or complain more quickly) in hotels around the world.

The California hotel offered guests loaner iPhones or iPod Touch devices to order room service, set wake up calls, request dry cleaning, extra blankets or replace forgotten toothbrushes, check messages or set “Do Not Disturb” notices plus shopping, eating and cavorting info.

The whole shebang runs on an app called “Hotel Evolution” from Los Angeles software firm Runtriz.

We’re starting a new reader submitted series called “Me and My Mac.” Instead of just showing your Mac setup, we want to see you with your Apple hardware.

We told you to get creative and send in submissions for the first round. And like usual, the Cult of Mac audience did not disappoint. To start off, lets meet the world’s youngest Apple programmer.

Given the hilarious nature of HTC President Martin Fichter’s recent comment on the iPhone’s cool factor, it’s only fitting that a web comic be put together to summarize the event.

Apple hit a home run with its wireless Bluetooth keyboard. The keyboard is compact, good-looking and functional. It even works great in conjunction with devices like the iPad, thanks to its easy setup over Bluetooth.

Being only 12.5mm thick, the Levitatr Bluetooth keyboard features a design that Apple would be proud of. With a LED backlit set of keys that magically lifts off of a flat slab when you’re ready to type, this Kickstarter project has us already wanting to buy.

Epson’s latest line of projectors seems like overkill for most of us. Called the Megaplex line, these light weight, portable projectors are specially designed for iOS devices. Yet if you’ve already got a projector you like, hooking it up to an Apple TV and using AirPlay seems like a better bet.

There might be a relative dearth of Thunderbolt peripherals and accessories right now, but just wait until 2012. That’s when Thunderbolt will explode on Windows machines, which should open the floodgates on every sort of Thunderbolt accessory you can think of.

iMessage looks like a fantastic and free way for owners of iOS devices to keep in touch with each other, but what if you don’t have an iPhone, an iPod Touch or an iPad?

Never fear… the latest code snips peeking out of the corners of the current version of iChat for OS X Lion pretty strongly suggests that iMessage for OS X will be integrated into Lion’s existing IM client.

Sphero was unveiled months ago at CES, and remote-controlled spherical object fans everywhere have been eagerly awaiting its official release ever since. Today, the company announced that final production models have just arrived.

Samsung’s bragged for awhile that the Samsung Galaxy II is the thinnest smartphone around, but as the Korean gadget maker so often is, they’re full of it… and now the UK’s Advertising Standards Authority is talking smack, saying that the world’s thinnest smartphone isn’t an Android device… it’s the iPhone 4.

Apple and carrier Sprint have finished preparations for offering the iPad ‘before the holidays,’ according to a report citing unnamed sources. The iPad will follow an Oct. 7 launch of the iPhone 5, according to the Wednesday report.

For the last thirty five years, time after time, Apple has revolutionized the way we look at technology and dragged the rest of the industry kicking and screaming into the future. If we listed all the ways in which Apple has changed the way we interact with technology, we could fill a book, so here are some of our favorite examples of how Apple has led the tech industry every step of the way.