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Some Gmail users may have noticed some problems with their accounts this weekend.  Google acknowledged that about 0.29% of its users were having difficulty with their accounts, including lost emails, tags, and contacts.  Google says the problems aren’t permanent and they’re working on a fix.

A few hours after the first reporting, Google said that most users are now restored with only a tiny fraction (0.08% by their reckoning) still having issues.

Gmail is one of the largest email providers in the world and the news of account problems spread very quickly.  From the Huffington Post to CNet, the tech press went abuzz.  Meanwhile, users, whether having trouble or not, hit the Google forums this weekend to talk about the issue and who it’s affecting.

Rumors, of course, flew despite Google’s announcements, with blame falling on the uprisings in the Middle East, in Wisconsin, and even on a cyber attack at the Pentagon.  None were on established, legitimate sites, of course.

When these issues happen, they often make a big splash.  Many are dependent on Gmail and services like it and when they go kaput, the nervousness and unhappiness run rampant.  Had the incident happened during the work week, things might have been a little more problematic.

Steve Jobs, CEO of Apple, visited with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev last week.  The CEO gave the President an iPhone during the meeting.  As it turns out, it’s a good thing Jobs isn’t any kind of diplomat because the iPhone he gave Medvedev was still locked to AT&T. Oops.  That could’ve been an international incident.

The Russian President’s assistant, Arkady Dvorkovich, broke the news on Twitter (translation here).

No word yet on whether the ill-fated iPhone 4 will be fixed or replaced.  Jobs is certainly keeping quiet about it.  It’s expected that Hillary or Obama or someone will make an official statement after the holiday and there’s probably a special courier flight taking a new iPhone 4 to Moscow as I type.

Apple, meanwhile, is rumored to be crafting a statement to the effect that the skeletal Jobs is not in any way incapable of doing his job as CEO despite his numerous leaves for medical reasons and this latest mishap.

Conspiracy theorists believe the locked phone is a coded message to the Russian President, perhaps with a Masonic undertone.  Since the screen on the phone illuminates (illuminates, Illuminati – it’s not much of a stretch) to show that it can’t find an AT&T network once Medvedev has left the U.S., this could have been a signal to begin preparations for the End Times of 2012.  Rumor says the phone came pre-loaded with a Mayan Calendar app.

However all this pans out, the good news for all of us is that we’re past the Cold War and its nuclear threat from the Kremlin.

“Ping a pal a prezzie” is the motto for ParcelGenie, an app that lets you send presents to your online friends, even if you don’t know their address.  If you know their mobile number, you can send them stuff through this app.

The app is for Windows Phone 7 and has a huge choice of gifts, most of which are under $10.  So if you have a friend you chat with on your mobile and would like to send them something as a surprise, a thank you, or whatever.. ParcelGenie can do it.

Using the app, you choose a gift, select a mobile number from your contacts list on your phone, add a personal message, then place the order.  Recipients get an SMS message that includes your message.  They can go to the Web or download the app (it’s free!) and enter their delivery address (home, work, whatever).  The gift shows up and they’re happy!

Based in the UK, the app is available to most worlwide Windows Phone 7 users.  It can be used with friends linked from LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter as well as normal on-phone contacts list numbers.

Just another way that the mobile Internet is becoming more and more useful and a bigger part of our lives everyday.  Using this app, people can send little gifts spontaneously and as a way to keep in physical contact via their mobiles.  It’s a great blending of real life and the Net.

The most recent Super Bowls have featured a lot of great advertising from tech-related companies.  This year was no different with no fewer than 18 ad spots during the game going to tech (21 if you include cellular).  Here’s a roundup of the commercials during the big game, in alphabetical order by company name.

BestBuy: How Many Bloody Gs Are There Anyways?

Careerbuilder: Parking Lot

Carmax.com:

Cars.com:

Chatter: Will.i.am #1 / #2

The Daily: America Meet the Daily

E*Trade:

GoDaddy: Joan Rivers

Groupon: Save the Money, Whales / Tibet / Rainforest

Homeaway.com:

LivingSocial: Changed My Life

Motorola Xoom Tablet: Empower the People

Teleflora.com: Faith Hill