Daniel Hunt, Keith Shaw, Network World

While summer technically doesn't start until June, the unofficial start of the summer movie seasonis already in full swing. Amidst all of the potential summer blockbuster movies are always movies that should appeal to the techie/geeky/comic-book-loving kid inside all of us. With that in mind, here are our choices for 12 movies you shouldn't miss this summer.

You gotta love the games that the Japanese come up with - here's a look from our friends at DigInfo News at the new "Fishing Spirits" game that features force-feedback on the game controller / fishing rod:

As we approach the Black Friday "holiday", where retailers hope we turn into blathering idiots who are willing to trample over our fellow human beings just to get a $20 TV, we're now seeing more hype in terms of Internet videos (as well as TV commercials) that are aiming to go viral. We used to see this kind of effort only during the Super Bowl, but I guess Black Friday is now the Super Bowl of Shopping.

Witness the "king" of viral videos, Justin Bieber, in this ad for Macy's:

Verizon's 4G LTE network has been available in several major cities for awhile now, and it continues to expand to more regions across the U.S. We've done some early network testing, but now have tried two devices (a tablet and netbook) that integrate the 4G LTE network connectivity into the device:

The scoop: Galaxy Tab 10.1 with 4G LTE, by Samsung, starts at $530 (plus storage capacity options, network data plans).

The scoop: Amplifi PowerLine AV 500 4-Port Gigabit Switch, by D-Link, about $200.

What is it? Like other powerline networking equipment, this device will turn your existing power outlets into an Ethernet port, using your electrical wiring to create a data network. Unlike other powerline adapters, this model (DHP-500) includes four Gigabit Ethernet ports that can then attach to the powerline network (other adapters basically include one Ethernet port). The system includes QoS Traffic Optimization and advanced software for prioritizing high-bandwidth traffic for those who require it.

The scoop: TouchPad, by HP, about $500 (for 16GB; 32GB costs $600).

What it is: HP's entry into the consumer-oriented tablet game, the webOS-enabled TouchPad features a 9.7-inch, LED backlit display, Wi-Fi connectivity, choice of 16GB or 32GB of storage space.

Apple, AT&T, Microsoft, Google and others are givens for being among the top newsmakers of 2011. Others will no doubt surprise us as we go along.

While it's so much easier to look back at the end of the year and reflect on the newsworthiness of a technology industry event than to do so as the event is happening, Network World this year is daring to make our picks for the top technology stories of the year as we go along. We'll update this article regularly -- as news dictates.

I'm pretty sure that when Asus decided to launch its new Padfone (a combination smartphone/tablet device) at Computex, that it would create a new Internet superstar. But with this video (uploaded by our friends at the IDG News Service), there is some unintentional comedy from Jonney Shih, the chairman of Asustek Computer. Part nervousness, part foreign accent, part showmanship, part camp - it all creates a very funny video that I can't stop watching.

The scoop: Sony Network Media Player (SMP-N100), by Sony, about $80.

Overall, the upcoming Royal Wedding between Prince William and Catherine Middleton doesn't seem to be igniting the same degree of creative frenzy among Android developers as with their Apple iOS brethren.

The Android Market seems laden with gussied-up countdown apps (The Wedding equivalent of a flashlight app) and apps that just link up with media websites filled with videos and news about Prince William's receding hairline, his "former flings" and the couple's portrait-in-a-pizza (by the Papa John's Pizza chain).