Friday, November 30, 2007

Show #58



[Download Show #58 as MP3]

News
  • Firefox 3.0 Beta Available for Download
    • Fast AJAX
      • GMail
      • Meebo
  • Eye-Fi? Its Here and its, umm Different?
    • 2GB SD Card with a WiFi chip built in
    • Software on the card allows you to upload photos to 17 different websites including Flickr, Facebook, and Snapfish
  • iPhone User Takes on Flight Crew Over Weather Conditions
    • Have you seen that iPhone commercial with the pilot who checked the weather to speed up the take off of a delayed flight? (If not here's a link)
    • So here's the basics of the story
      • A flight pushed back from the gate but is stopped and told to wait because there are storms at the destination, so the plane pulls back in
      • A flight passenger on a flight has an iPhone and looks up the weather at the destination, it comes back all good
      • Passenger informs flight crew of this discovery
      • Captain of the flight asks passenger with iPhone to "be kind enough to use it to check the weather at our alternate, calculate our fuel burn due to being rerouted around the storms, call the dispatcher to arrange our release, and then make a phone call to the nearest Air Traffic Control center to arrange our timely departure amongst the other aircraft carrying passengers with IPhones"
    • This is interesting because with so much technology in the palm of our hands, some people are going to do things like this. I'd rather trust the airports on the weather conditions over my cell phone anyday
  • Save the Planet with the TreeHugger's Gift Guide
  • "Trolling" Has a Psychological Explaination
    • We've all been there, surfing the internet and then we see it, that piece of writing that just sets our tempers flaring. We want to respond, we NEED to respond, and we have this urge to not be nice about it
    • Well, according to some scientists, this is psychological.
    • Due to a reduced sense of individuality, deindividuation that comes from online communications
    • We can have tendencies to be more aggressive when doing online correspondence and our words are often taken as such due to the abiguity of text message based communications

Software / Hardware / Power Web Picks
  • Windows Vista. The Love, the Hate, the Problem?
    • Windows Vista has been available for almost a solid year now and adoption is still a problem. Why is this still a problem for Microsoft? Could it be the speed/RAM issues? The lack of updates? Or are people just happy with their XP installations that they have had for almost 7 years now?
    • Vista SP1 no Faster Than Stock OS, Testers Say
      • One testing company is reporting that the beta version of the first Vista service pack does not help the OS in the speed department
      • Many people have complained about the overall speed of Vista, this issue is usually helped by adding more RAM and good graphics card
      • With a service pack that is currently not helping the speed issue, one must wonder where Microsoft's priority is when it comes to Vista. Is it on finishing features that were not ready in time for release or is it on improving the platform and making it better before adding new things

    • Windows XP SP3 Boasts Speed Boost, Testers Claim
      • While still only in the testing phase, several companies are reporting that XP's latest service pack will give the OS a speed boost
      • While great from a customer standpoint, from Microsoft's standpoint this will only help ensure XP's dominance over Vista for the next couple of years
    • Vista's Biggest Problem Remains XP
      • Several people still prefer their XP installations over Vista because of the software/hardware incompatibilities with Vista, for Apples take on this, see the Podeum Switch Ad
      • ((Possibly play audio from the ad?))
      • Dell and HP began re-offering XP based computers when customers complained about being forced to purchase only Vista based computers.
      • People and Companies are in a "wait and see" mode with Vista, much like they were with Windows XP when it first came out
    • Perfecting Perfection: Mac OSX Leopard Part 1
      • So where does OSX fit into this whole picture?
      • Well, people are switching from the PC to the Mac at rates higher than ever, but is it because of Vista?
      • Most people are drawn to the Macs these days to the "iPod Halo Effect" people like their iPods and it makes them want to try a Mac
      • Though one of the main complaints about Microsoft is Apple's biggest selling point. Apple runs a very closed shop, so to speak. The platform is hard to develop for and if the iPhone was any indication, the company has zero plans of opening their platforms to the average developer.
  • Our Thoughts on Vista vs. XP

Friday, November 23, 2007

Show #57



[Download Show #57 as MP3]

News
What's smaller than some candy bars, costs more than 100 times as much, and many of our lives depend on it: Our cell phones! We discuss protecting your investment...in data, how to back up, upgrade, and further your cell phone livelyhood
  • So you need to get a cell phone?
    • Choices
      • PhoneScoop.com
      • Regular Phones (non-smartphone)
        • Simple Phone
        • Music Phone
      • Smart Phones
        • Windows Mobile (around 15-20% market share)
        • Palm OS
          • Not really popular any more Palm started putting Windows Mobile on their Treo devices
        • BlackBerry (around 6-10% market share)
        • Symbian OS - as of July 2006 has over 60% of the mobile OS market
          • Largely Nokia
          • Samsung
          • Motorola
          • Sony Ericcson
          • Extremely popular for smartphones outside the US
  • You have a bunch of Data, How do you protect it?
    • Backups, Backups, Backups
        • Also, if you store your contacts and calendar in Outlook, that is one place that data is backed up
      • Regular Phones
        • Software
          • Motorola Phone Tools for Motorola Phones
          • Derek add other software here
  • You have your nifty new device so how do you protect it?
GSM phones. There are two, incompatible cell phone network types in the U.S. First, there’s CDMA. That’s the older type, used by Verizon and Sprint. For Verizon, in particular, it means very good coverage. Unfortunately, these phones don’t work overseas.

Then there’s GSM, used by T-Mobile and AT&T (which gobbled up Cingular). GSM is also the network used by most other countries, so if you have a T-Mobile or AT&T phone, you can make calls when you’re overseas. For an extra fee, of course.

Restarting your 2-year contract. It’s true that most carriers make you start your 2-year commitment over again if you make a substantial change to your plan. There are some kindnesses, however. Cingular, in particular, was fairly forgiving on this point—there were certain changes that didn’t reset the clock. (I don’t know which policy it has now that it’s AT&T.)

Secret “get to the beep” keystrokes. You don’t have to listen to the endless outgoing greeting when you just want to leave someone a voicemail message. You can cut directly to the beep by pressing a certain key:

Verizon: press *

Sprint: press 1

T-Mobile or Cingular/AT&T: press #


Of course, you have to know which carrier the person you’re calling uses, so you know which keystroke to use!

When you record your voicemail greeting, say, “Push star at any time to skip Verizon’s gibberish,” or whatever. That way, your callers hear your voice but not the recorded lady’s, and they don’t have to remember what the keystroke is.

How many minutes you’ve used up. Press these secret keystrokes on your phone:

Verizon/T-Mobile: #646# (that’s MIN, if you think about it)

Cingular/AT&T: *646#

Sprint: #4

Free directory assistance. Call 800-FREE-411. You have to listen to a 20-second ad, but it’s better than paying $2 to your carrier for directory assistance!

Or send a text message to GOOGL (46645) that says “Robert Gonzales 10024” (or whatever person or business you’re looking for). Google will send back the full name, address, and phone number, within just a few seconds.

BONUS TIP:


You can get FREE directory assistance, WITHOUT having to send a text message! Unfortunately, it’s only a Yellow Pages at the moment (business numbers only — not residential).

The hero again is Google. Just call 800-GOOG-411.

Popularity Dialer. You can program http://www.popularitydialer.com to call your cell phone at a specified time, to get you out of a boring meeting or a bad date. It’s free — and it’s awesome!

Friday, November 16, 2007

Show #56


[Download Show #56 as MP3]

News
  • Number Portability Comes to VoIP [PCmag, AppScout]
    • LNP allows you to take your land-line phone number with you from one carrier to the next.
    • If you move from, for instance, Verizon to another provider--even a digital/Internet phone like that offered by TimeWarner along with RoadRunner broadband--you can keep that number that's been in your house for 38 years.
    • There wasn't a guarantee that TimeWarner's phone services had to give up the number if you switched back--or switched to a different VoIP company, like Vonage. Until today.
    • The best part: The FCC says VoIP providers are not allowed to hold up your switch to a new provider. Its got to happen within 48 hours of the request.
  • MC Hammer + Internet = MC-Dance-A-Lot
    • DanceJam
    • "MySpace with guardrails"
    • A social networking site with dancing as the center focus
    • Dancing is something that is happening in the here and now and no one has been able to come up with a way to bring it to the online world but this could change that
    • The website is currently in invite-only beta so i wasn't able to get a real good look at the site
    • But we were told you can find dance videos and instructional content along with other social networking tools
  • NBC Launches TV Download Service [Wired, Mashable, Engadget]
    • Currently in beta, and originally scheduled to launch in October, the new video viewing service allows you to download the latest episodes of NBC shows directly to your computer for viewing in a special player.
    • Internet Explorer ONLY or IETab for Firefox
    • No Mac Support at ALL
    • Requires .NET Framework
    • Unskippable Ads
    • 48 hours to view
    • 7 days after air date
    • NBC already allows you to view online, so what's the point? If they let you download to devices, now that'd be cool!
  • Microsoft officially releases the Zune 2
    • 80GB Hard Drive based Zune
    • 4GB & 8GB Flash based Zunes
    • Podcast Support
    • Video Out Support
    • FM Radio
    • DRM and DRM Free Music from Zune Store mn

Software / Hardware / Power Web Picks
  • Music, movies, and pictures oh my!: Setting up your very own media library otherwise known as a media library (TVersity, WMP11, Lacie, Etc)
    • Common File Sizes to Consider
      • Mp3 Files (Average 4 minute song len gth)
        • 128kbps = ~4MB
        • 192kbps = ~6MB
        • 256kbps = ~7.5-8MB
      • DVD Quality Video (Full Length Movie) at Full 480pixel Resolution
    • Storage
      • Windows Folder Sharing
      • Network Attached Storage
        • Lacie
        • Netgear
          • ReadyNAS
            • Higher End "Prosumer" solution
            • Comes with Hard Disks in various sizes and overall capacities
          • Storage Central
            • Simple, easy to set up solution.
            • No hard drives included, can pick your size/capacity
        • Buffalo Technology Terastation
          • USB, 10/100/1000 Network Connection
          • Up to 4TB of storage
      • Game Systems
        • XBox 360
        • Playstation 3
      • CD-R / DVD-R
      • iPod / iTouch
    • Sharing
    • Television
    • Stereo

Friday, November 9, 2007

Show #55



[Download Show #55 as MP3]

News
  • PS3 Enables Folding@Home to be named by the Guiness Book of World Records as "the most powerful distributed computing network in the world" -- The record is a testament to the widespread participation of PS3 users from around the world—currently more than 670,000 unique PS3 users have registered to the Folding@home network, bringing the overall computing power of the program to more than a petaflop. The Folding@home program up until recently leveraged only the distributed computing power of personal computers (PC) from around the world. The PCs that made up the Folding@home network numbered roughly 200,000 giving the program the equivalent of about one-quarter of a petaflop. On March 15, 2007, PS3 joined the program and since then more than 670,000 unique PS3 users have registered to the Folding@home network, bringing the overall computing power of the program to more than a petaflop.
    Starting with Folding@home, SCE will continue to support distributed computing projects in a wide variety of academic fields such as medical and social sciences and environmental studies through the use of PS3 and hopes to contribute to the advancement of science.
  • MySpace and Facebook are getting serious about advertising
    • MySpace is releasing a new advertising product called SelfService that will allow businesses to purchase, create, and monitor ads throughout the MySpace network, similar to Google's AdWords program, Facebook announced a similar service this past Tuesday
    • MySpace is trying to give the 10 million business that already use the MySpace service a way to utilize MySpace in a way that can help help them grow their business
    • Also coming from MySpace is a service called HyperTargeting which will allow advertisers to purchase and target interest based segments on MySpace, a nice way to target a smaller audience in a large network.
  • Yahoo FireEagle - An interesting growth out of a service called ZoneTag, tell it (directly or via a third party application) where you are (such as a specific lat/long, city name, or a zip code) and it will note your location. Alternatively, users with GPS phones, or other GPS devices, could set it to periodically update FireEagle with geo information.
  • Google Announces Phone OS
    • In a move to help them enter the mobile market, Google has announced a mobile phone operating system based on Linux
    • This is Google's move instead of an actual phone
    • Some companies are rumored to have already signed on to use the new Google package including HTC (makers of the T-Mobile Wing and AT&T Tilt)
    • The system will have a full development kit so people will be allow to develop applications for devices running the software
    • One has to wonder what Google applications (like Gmail, Maps, and even Docs) will make it into the software by default.
  • Ever wanted to be in/on Television - This is your chance! The Writers Guild of America has gone on strike.
Software / Hardware / Power Web Picks
Gamer's Corner
  • Playstation 3 Losses over 1 Billion Dollars
    • Recent losses in Sony's gaming division were over 848 million dollars
    • Total losses now over 1 billion
    • Sales of the PS3 are at around 5.5 million units to date and just over 1.3 million games [Stats]
    • Sony has been selling the PS3 at a loss and has had to readjust in order to move older consoles they had already made (20GB & 60GB were both replaces with 40GB & 80GB versions)
  • Full List of Rock Band's Licensed Songs
    • A website has posted the full list of songs available in the new Rock Band game
    • The songs span 4 decades starting from the 60's with some Rolling Stones and working it's way to the more recent Chili Peppers, "Dani California"
    • There are going to be even more unlockable songs not yet listed
    • And you will be able to purchase new content online so you will be able to enjoy this game for a long time

Sunday, November 4, 2007

Show #54



[Download Show #54 as MP3]

News
  • Walgreens Readies Movie DVD-Burning Kiosk System
    • Imagine a the photo printing kisok systems but for burning movies
    • Recent changes in the copyright laws have freed retailers to look at new methods of movie distribution
    • Such a method would ease the need for in-store inventory of DVD discs
    • The major reason for the change is the DVD Copy Control Association allowed the copy protection scheme to be licensed more broadly
  • Gmail Gets IMAP
    • In a move that could change how webmail works forever, Google has announced IMAP for Gmail
    • IMAP access is similar to POP access but it does not have to download the messaged onto your local computer, instead it can keep the messages on the server
    • Allowing free IMAP access to Gmail is a very smart move by Google for a few reasons
      • No other FREE webmail service offers this kind of access
      • This has been a largely requested feature
      • This allows people to access their email without having to maintain it in two places, unlike POP
    • Google is making serious moves at ensuring they stay on the forefront for webmail.
  • Top Gear Test Track to Appear in Grand Traismo 5 on the PS3
  • Facebook takes $250 Million from Microsoft, Snubs Google
    • This deal makes Microsoft, Facebook's exclusive advertising partner in the U.S. and abroad until 2011
    • Rumors as to why Google was snub seem to relate to it being too expensive to buy out the remainder of Microsoft's previous 2 year advertising contract
    • One wonders what this means for Facebook as Microsoft is now a major investor
    • In other Facebook news, Facebook has announced a Blackberry application so that users do not need to use their phone's browser to keep up with their Facebook friends.

Software / Hardware / Power Web Picks
  • The magic of home stereos, setting up surround sound properly.
    • 5.1, 7.1, or ?.1?
      • What is is all this something point one stuff anyway?
      • Why would you go with 7.1 over 5.1?
    • Amplifiers
      • What to look for
      • What to avoid
    • Speakers
      • Hey, those Bose systems sound great in the store, and they aren't too expensive
        • Why you want to avoid tiny speakers
        • What are some of the advantages to going with those kinds of systems?
      • What should you look for in speakers
        • Front, Rear, Center
      • Some brands to consider (not affiliated with any of the following)
        • KLH (Redesigning website)
    • Setting it all up
      • Speaker placement
      • Getting optimal sounds/range
      • Finding the sweet spot
      • Hiding the wires

Penny Pinchers
  • Where and how to get the most "BANG" for your buck when building your home surround sound system.