Combing through hundreds of blog posts and news articles daily, Dirk Klingner, our technology-trend watcher, sifts through the noise to bring you the tech news most important to consumers. If you have a tip on a story you want to share, leave a comment below.

Starring stories in Google News (Google News)

…Today, we are giving users even more options for following stories. Users can mark a story cluster by clicking on the star next to it, like they can with messages in Gmail and items in Google Reader. When you star a story in Google News, it's one way to let us know that you're interested in that subject. When there are significant updates, we will alert you by putting the headline in bold so you can get more information. You can also follow your 20 most recent starred stories in the "Starred" section of Google News.

Inc. magazine to become virtual office for the month (Talking Biz News)

Inc. magazine announced an experiment it’s doing: For a month it’s going to be a virtual business magazine. It’s closing the offices and it’s staff will be working remotely, which is no easy feat considering a lot of what the staff does, such as passing printed pages back and forth.

A First Taste Of What The Google Tablet’s Interface Will Look Like (TechCrunch)

Last week, the world saw Apple’s long anticipated tablet device, the iPad, for the first time. In the aftermath since that announcement, a few things have become clear: it will be great for some people, but its apparent lack of flexibility (at least in its first iteration) may leave something to be desired. It’s increasingly looking like the best alternative will be Google’s Chrome OS, which is clearly on a collision course with the iPad. And tonight, we’ve come across some very impressive mockups of what Chrome OS may look like on a tablet form factor.

Citrix Will Enable Windows 7 Remote Access for iPad (iPhone Blog)

Remote access wizards Citrix have announced that they’re getting ready to make Apple’s just-announced iPad a fairly awesome thin client for IT types eager to connect to their bigger Windows 7 boxes (and hopefully Linux and others as well.)

Toyota moves to reassure customers through YouTube (NewMediaAge)

…Toyota is using YouTube to deliver a message by Jim Lentz, president of US marketing, to reassure customers over concerns surrounding the safety of its cars.

Lighter Side: A Timeline of the ‘Lost’ Universe (New York Times)

…we've arranged some major events of the show's first five seasons in chronological order.

In our prevous post, we took a look at some of the Super Bowl TV specials being offered by some major consumer electronics retailers. Here's a quick rundown of what's available in Walmart and Target:

Walmart
As it did on Black Friday, Walmart
is enticing shoppers with a $499 42-inch plasma, in this instance a
720p set from Emerson. It's also advertising a $448 37-inch Sanyo 1080p
LCD. Other deals include a 40-inch 1080p ProScan LCD TV (40LD45Q) for
$498, or a 40-inch Sony Bravia 1080 set (KDL-40S5100) for $668. A
32-inch Vizio 720p LCD is just $368, and a 37-inch 1080p Sanyo LCD is
$448.

Among bigger sets, Walmart has a 50-inch 720p Panasonic (TC-P50C1)
for just $798, and Sanyo’s 50-inch 720p plasma (DP50749) for $698. If
you’re looking to go even bigger, Walmart has a 55-inch Vizio 1080p LCD
with 120Hz technology (VF550M) for $1,298. A 47-inch Vizio 1080p LCD
(SV4710M) is $898. The retailer has a limited-time free shipping offer
on TVs.

Walmart is also promoting a new installation service, which starts
at $99 for a basic TV hookup. And like it did during Thanksgiving and
Christmas, Walmart has a special deal on a complete meal, in this
instance a $44 “Gametime feast for eight" that includes hot dogs,
appetizers and snacks. Those who need a little help planning their
Super Bowl event can use Walmart's  "Big Game" planner on its website.

Target: It appears that $500 is a key Super Bowl TV price for
Target as well, since that’s the advertised price for a 42-inch
Magnavox 720p LCD. Other promoted specials include a 55-inch 1080p
Vizio LCD with 120Hz technology (VF550M) for $1,300, a 47-inch Philips
1080p LCD with 120Hz (47PFL5704D) for $848, and a 37-inch 1080p, 120Hz
Vizio LCD (SV370XVT) for $629. You can also get a 32-inch 720p Sylvania 32-inch
(LC320SLX) for just $300, and a 40-inch 720p Element LCD (ELDTW401) is $450. Quantities could be limited. Like Walmart,
Target now offers delivery and installation starting at $99.

If you're seeing any especially good HDTV deals for the Super Bowl, share your findings by posting in the Comments section at the bottom of the blog.

—James K. Willcox