Across the United States, people are experiencing some of the hottest weather of the year. Many cities are topping out in the hundreds, and some are even getting close to 110. Even a quick glance at the current weather map tells the story: It is hot just about everywhere and if you don't have air conditioning or a body of water nearby, you're probably not feeling too happy about the sunny weather.

This week's collection of apps are all about checking the weather to see when you can get some relief. The first gives the most weather information on one screen so you can know everything at a glance. The second is a fairly simple weather app, but offers one very useful feature. The third is the most complex, with both viewable weather data and national radio updates for weather in your area. Hopefully, with these apps in hand, you'll be able to see some light at the end of a very hot tunnel.

Weather+ (99 cents) brings a wealth of weather information on one screen to your iPhone. On one screen, the app uses your GPS location to bring you local weather; a five-day forecast with highs, lows, and easy to read weather icons; and it even gives you a breakdown of weather changes over the course of a day. At the bottom of the screen you can check humidity, precipitation, barometric pressure, and visibility distance for your area. It also has animated backdrops like clouds moving through the sky, or in one case, petals falling from a tree.

Weather+ is great for getting all the weather information you need in one place, but you also have options for showing as much or as little information as you want by toggling the various panels in the settings. If you also want to track weather in other locations, just touch the information button and perform a search for city, then add it to your locations. Now, with a swipe of your finger, you can check other citys--perfect to see what the weather is like where other family members live, for example.

Overall, Weather+ is great for a quick glance at the weather forecast with a nicely laid-out interface.

Weather and Temperature on your Home Screen (99 cents) is a simple app that offers a basic forecast for your area, but has one excellent bonus feature. To get basic local weather information in your area, simply launch the app, touch My Location, and it will quickly grab the current temperature, wind direction and speed, and amount of humidity. Swipe to the left to see weather information for tomorrow or you can continue to swipe to see the forecast for the next three days. If you want to check the weather elsewhere, touch My Location, search for a city name, and the app will immediately show you the weather for that city.

Having a basic weather app with a colorful interface is great for checking weather on the go, but where this app really shines is with one small added feature. Weather and Temperature on your Home Screen shows the temperature on the icon so you don't even need to open the app. We've often wondered why Apple didn't make this standard on the iPhone weather app, but until it does, this app has this very convenient functionality.

Overall, there is really not much to Weather and Temperature on your Home Screen, but the name of the app says it all: if you want the quickest way to check the temperature, this app puts it right on your home screen.

NOAA Weather Radio ($3.99) brings you the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration weather information to your iPhone, letting you listen to and look at weather info based on your location. Start by picking your state in the U.S., then pick a city to start listening to the local weather info. Onscreen, you get radio volume controls at the top, then a tabbed interface at the bottom where you can view maps, current weather in your area, a 4-day forecast, and Doppler radar information for your area.

NOAA Weather Radio offers a few options for viewing and listening to weather from any location in the United States. A favorites tab lets you add as many cities as you want so you can quickly check them later. A severe weather tab gives you a preview for the latest national updates for tornados, hurricanes, and thunderstorms, and you can touch to read the full severe weather warnings for your area. The app also lets you add custom weather radio streams: Simply enter the URL and feed location and you can listen to the forecast you like the best.

Overall, NOAA Weather Radio is a great way to check out the weather in your area, offering a little bit more than just the forecast. Anyone who wants an in-depth forecast of current local or national weather should pick up this app.

Got a better weather app you'd like to share with us? Let us know in the comments!

Google has canceled its toolbar for the current and future versions of Firefox, and Mozilla is scrambling to help users who might be left in the lurch and postponing their browser upgrades.

The toolbar offers a variety of services, including a search box, a way to use bookmarks stored on a server, and a measurement of a Web site's PageRank--a score Google gives that measures its influence in Google search results. But Google has chosen to do in the Firefox version.

"As we all know, over the past few years, there has been a tremendous amount of innovation in the browser space. For Firefox users, many features that were once offered by Google Toolbar for Firefox are now already built right into the browser. Therefore, while Google Toolbar for Firefox works on versions up to and including Firefox 4 only, it will not be supported on Firefox 5 and future versions," Google said this week on a help page.

Mozilla is looking into options for what to do next, setting up a meeting to address the matter.

"We know that a large amount of users are not taking update offers to 5+ due to Google Toolbar incompatibility," said Firefox release manager Christian Legnitto in meeting notes. "Many users likely expect a new version of Google toolbar to be released and marked compatible."

He said Mozilla has two problems: telling people the toolbar won't arrive and helping them extract whatever data they have stored with it. But there's not much time to respond if Mozilla wants to act fast.

"Firefox 3.6.20 (code freeze is 2011-08-01) would be the earliest vehicle we can use to change the product," he said, a move that "will allow us to push product changes before users get update offers to [Firefox] 5+."

Firefox updates have always posed a problem for those who offer add-ons to the browser, but the problem has changed in nature with Firefox's rapid-release cycle, in which new versions arrive as soon as every six weeks. To minimize the likelihood that users are presented with incompatibility messages when add-ons encounter a version of Firefox newer than what they're certified to work with, Mozilla has begun automatically "bumping" the add-on's compatibility version number for add-ons that don't cause problems.

That only applies to those add-ons distributed by Mozilla itself, though, and the Google Toolbar for Firefox comes directly from Google.

Google wouldn't say if other factors besides browser advancement were part of its decision to cancel the toolbar.

Spokeswoman Lily Lin did, though, detail some of the toolbar features it now sees in the browser:

• Suggest is in the Firefox Awesome Bar

• Autofilll is in the browser

• Custom searches from the Awesome Bar

• Spell-checker

• Bookmark sync

• Search box

Those desperate for the toolbar--search-engine optimization experts are one group that particularly values the PageRank score--can use a version for Microsoft's Internet Explorer. Google wouldn't comment about whether it plans to discontinue the IE version.

Originally posted at Deep Tech

Mint, which makes a personal-finance app, is taking full advantage of the iPhone's geolocation features in an update to the application.

As soon as users spend some cash, they can open up their Mint app and input the amount spent. The app's geolocation feature finds all the merchants nearby to help users assign the expense to the respective establishment. As soon as the expenditure is logged, Mint automatically updates users' bank balances.

Though the addition is somewhat minor, Mint says it has been one of its users' top requests. That makes some sense. After a payment is made, pending transactions don't always pop up immediately on online statements. And in some cases, until the transactions clear, the balance a bank shows for an account is not entirely accurate.

"By cleanly and immediately categorizing cash spending, no purchases remain unaccounted for in people's budgets," Mint said in a statement today about its iPhone app.

Mint has had a busy week. The company yesterday unveiled a new Sneak Preview program, called Bill Reminders. That feature, available to 300 CNET readers and a total of 11,000 people across the company's user base, reminds users when they have bills due.

Mint's updated iPhone app is available now as a free download.

Originally posted at The Digital Home

Editors' note: Over the past two weeks, 10 CNET personalities have showcased their 10 personal favorite Android apps as part of the CNET 100. With each post, you can read why they hold the apps so dear and you have the opportunity to vote for your own favorite title. Next week, we'll collect the full list of 100 apps and announce the 10 that you, our readers, love the most.

Of course, Molly Wood doesn't need an introduction. As an executive editor for CNET TV, Molly hosts Buzz Out Loud and appears as the face of CNET on media across the country and around he world. She's a geek at heart, of course, and an expert ranter who channels everything that frustrates us about technology.

Molly enthusiastically volunteered for the CNET 100, and I welcomed her insights given her experience with Android. Her apps reflect all the tools she needs to navigate an urban life. She has picks for getting around town, listening to music, working out, and shopping. She also knows how to customize her phone, plan her travels, and she has what might be the nerdiest app of the entire CNET 100 series.

Be sure to check back next Wednesday Android Atlas to see the top app choices from CNET readers. For yesterday's list, check out the picks from Nicole Lee.

Originally posted at Android Atlas

After focusing on iOS in 2010, this year the CNET 100 series tackled the top apps in the Android Market. For the 10 business days from July 11 to July 22, a different personality offered his or her 10 favorite Android apps. With each post, you have the opportunity to see what makes that title so special and you can vote for your own favorite title. And next week, we'll announce the 10 titles our readers love the most.

We do have to warn you, though. While many of the apps (like Wikipedia) will no doubt be familiar, a few will be a bit more obscure. So if you've ever wondered how you can listen to air traffic control on your phone or get surf reports from the North Shore of Oahu, Hawaii, please read on.

Kent German
Section editor, mobile device reviews

When I'm not writing about cell phones, I'm writing about commercial aviation. So it's only natural that aviation-related apps found their way onto my list. I'm not much of a gamer, as you'll see, but I am a fan of apps that help me plan my next vacation and titles that deliver both useful and occasionally useless facts.

Bonnie Cha
Senior editor, smartphone reviews

You probably know that Bonnie's a huge sports fan and an avid surfer, but she's also a bit of a shutterbug and she knows her music players and mobile browsers. She's not much of a gamer either, though she enjoys the occasional memory trainer and she prefers that her ninjas spend their time slicing fruit.

Stephen Shankland
Senior writer, CNET News

Stephen offers a full tour through all the best Android apps that Google itself delivers. Whether you're checking your e-mail, listening to podcasts, or getting into Google+, he has the titles to guide you on your way. Reading and photography also populate his list and he has just the app for hiking through the backwoods or the back streets of Milan.

Seth Rosenblatt
Senior associate editor, CNET Downloads

Seth treats his phone like the well-worn tool that it is, and that means rooting and custom ROMing it. So he's collected some of the best apps for a rooted phone. You don't have to install a custom ROM to use these titles, but you absolutely must get root access. Also, note that for most of these, you'll want the Superuser app so that your rooted apps can dig deep into your Android phone.

Scott Webster
CNET network blogger, Android Atlas

Though Scott can get pretty technical when writing about technology, his interests in the real world should appeal to just about everyone. Where he's exercising, catching a movie, or reading, he's got an app for each activity and for organizing his life. Titles for checking the weather and checking in to locations also populate his list along with options for sprucing up his phone's widgets and protecting it from viruses and malware.

Jessica Dolcourt
Senior associate editor, cell phone reviews

When she's in the office, Jessica works hard. And when she's out, she works hard at having fun, staying organized, and keeping up with her friends and family. Google Voice and Skype populate her list, along with apps for shopping, eating out, and cooking at home. She's also a fan of music and, believe it or not, is an aspiring wilderness explorer.

Antuan Goodwin
Associate editor, CNET Car Tech

Antuan's two great loves--cars and zombies--fill his list of top apps. Indeed, when he's not finding his way on the road, he's listening to podcasts, managing his gadgets, and keeping in touch with both hands on the wheel. Outside of the car, he spends his time battling a range of zombies and playing (surprise!) the occasional auto racing game.

Jaymar Cabebe
Associate editor, CNET Downloads

Jaymar is all about using Andorid to its full potential, and his app picks reflect that. Without ever leaving his phone, he can read the latest news, locate the hottest new restaurant, get daily deals, and even find a perfect stranger to pick up his dry cleaning. He also searches for the latest apps that he can review, and he revives a classic Nintendo video game by plucking off a few low-flying ducks.

Nicole Lee
Senior associate editor, cell phone reviews

Nicole's favorite Android apps allow her to indulge her other interests outside of technology. This includes keeping up with the World Champion San Francisco Giants, checking out reviews for the latest movies, and catching up on the latest issue of The Economist. Always one to try out new tech, she's quite smitten with the new Google+ and Rdio music service. Nicole also enjoys a mean game of Words with Friends, even though it refuses to accept LOL as a legit word.

Molly Wood
Executive editor, CNET TV

Molly enthusiastically volunteered for the CNET 100, and I welcomed her insights given her experience with Android. Her apps reflect all the tools she needs to navigate an urban life. She has picks for getting around town, listening to music, working out, and shopping. She also knows how to customize her phone, plan her travels, and she has what might be the nerdiest app of the entire CNET 100 series.

Originally posted at Android Atlas