Leo Laporte
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For more Leo and friends all week long, listen to the
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Saturday September 5, 2009
Show Audio
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Edited Audio | |
Tech News
Technology in the classroom
Computers are making their way into the classroom and are now aa regular every day part of education. But how far should we let it burrow? Should we allow social networking? Twittering?
Snow Leopard fall out …
Snow Leopard is faster, yes, and smaller. But Leo says it’s more of an internal service pack style update and you really don’t need to rush out and get it just yet unless your buying a new computer. Save your $29.
Apple’s new media event on Beatles Day - 9/9/09
Will there be new iPods? Will Apple finally announce sales of Beatles music on iTunes? That’s seems to be the prevailing wisdom.
Is Wireless Electricity the next biggest thing?
Since the days of Tesla, the notion of broadcasting electricity through the air has been something pursued to provide electricity to remote areas. Now, companies like WiPower and saying wireless electricity will soon be a reality. Leo says don’t hold your breath.
Microsoft gets a reprieve on selling Word
An Appeals Court has partially overturned a lower court ruling and will allow Redmond to continue to sell copies of Word while the court decision saying Word violates copyright winds it’s way through the appeals process.
Microsoft is having a party for Windows 7 and you can to
Houseparty.com is a new concept with which you can have a launch party for Windows 7 in your own home. Leo thinks it’s laughable, but Microsoft is offering numerous enticements including a Windows 7 party pack, a special signature edition of Windows 7, and perhaps even a new computer.
Guests
Scott Wilkinson, Ultimate AV Magazine
The recent show Scott will be attending is called CEDIA and is more of a “projector” show. Home Theaters which use projection TVs which are illuminated with LEDs cycling on/off. This has the added benefit of replacing the color wheel and removes rainbow artifacting. Downside, they aren’t very bright at the moment. Leo says that LEDs are rapidly taking over, revolutionizing the industry. Scott agrees.
Blu-ray players. Some expensive blu-ray players have unbalanced signals which cause audio issues. Price does not always mean quality.
Scott will be blogging from the show, you can check out his updates at Ultimate AV Magazine. He promises some “crazy stuff” coming out.
Hour 1
Q G.J., Ventura, CA - Short URL concerns
GJ has a great point. Often, people on social networking sites use “short urls” to cut down on space (twitter only gives you 140 characters, remember). You have no idea where you’re going when you click on it. Leo agrees. This represents a serious security concern.
Q Barney - 3D content on his plasma TV
Barney has a nice Samsung plasma and matching Blu-ray player. He got a DVD from Netflicks which gave him the option of watching in 2D or 3D? What’s that all about. Scott says that any Blu-ray DVD in 3D should come with analglyph glasses. Leo adds that Netflicks probably stripped the glasses out. Additionally, the 3D experience just isn’t as good or cool as the 2D experience. At least at this point. Leo also says that this kind of 3D content is just like the old 3D of the 50s. Scott agrees but also says that 3D TV is coming that we’ll be able to enjoy without glasses!
Hour 2
Q Adam, Bethlehem, PA - Digital Camera recommendation
Adam wants an advanced digital camera. Is the Canon SX20 good? Leo says one of the things he looks for is HD video in his still camera. He really believes that people will eventually stop buying camcorders in favor of HD video capable digital still cameras. For a budget of $500, you have many great choices with Canon. Another good option is the Panasonic Lumix LX3. A good source is digitalcamerainfo.com. Leo recommends that for traveling, a AA capable camera is the best deal. Next is the lithium ion’s where you have a backup that you can swap out when you’re charging the other. The last thing you want is a camera where the battery is built in and you have to plug in the camera to charge the battery.
Sobo310 in our chatroom recommends Panasonic ZS3. Just announced is the Panasonic GF1 4/3s camera.
What about a good Mac? He’s looking at the Mac Mini for a media center. Leo says it’s ideal for that. It does have DVI out though, so you’ll need a DVI to HDMI converter to connect to your HDTV, although many still have DVI in. You can also use “PLEX” which is a mac translation of the XBox Media Center. But Leo says the best option is Windows Media Center. Less expensive, have HDMI out. More flexible. Better for home theater/media center applications than the Mac Mini.
Another option is the Sony PS3. It has media center options as well. But Leo isn’t sure you can record to it. And then there’s the Roku player, which Leo just loves. Takes Netflix and downloads them directly from your que, Amazon’s video on demand, and Major League Baseball - where you want watch the playbyplay from either side. Now THAT’s cool.
Q Christy, Mojave, CA - Followup on her EVDO woes
Christy went to EVDO-tips.com and has finally fixed her reception issue by getting a special parabolic antenna which can pick up a distant EVDO signal tower.
Q Alex, Whelps, Toronto, ON CAN - Webshosting
Young Alex has a domain, but no hosting for it. What is a good free or inexpensive solution for him? There’s inexpensive options out there, and most ISPs offer some web hosting for no additional charge. So, check with your ISP. In our chatroom, Zephyr says 000webhost.com, free w/ 100GB transfer a month.
How to transfer domain? You fill out a form online your registrar and give them the DNS server names your web host will provide. Replace them and it’s done. Nice and Easy 104.
Q Kenny - Still frames for video
How do you take a still frame of video. Leo says the easiest way on a Mac is to open Quicktime and click scrub to the frame you want and hit copy.
DSL provider options. What kind of speed and bandwidth should he use? Leo says that anything over 8mbps is overkill and often, over 5 is faster than the guy who is giving you the data. For just surfin’ the net, 1.5 mbps is fine. If you’re a power video user, then 4–5 mbps is real nice. But you also want to pay attention to the upload speed if you’re a creator. Upload speeds are usually much smaller and as such, slower. 256–384kbps upstream is what you want. For a good place to check what your actual speed is, try http://speedtest.net/
Hour 3
Q Rich, Long Beach, CA - Tracking his teen’s movements
Rich has a teen driver in the home and wants to track where he goes. Leo says most cell phone companies can track them via GPS. But there are also “black boxes” you can install in your car which not only tracks movements, but how fast they go. Check out The Informer Lite. You can also great a “geo fence” which will send you a text message when they go outside the fence.
Also, check out Loopt, which provides this kind of service.
Q Diane, Riverside, CA - A haunted computer
Diane has a friend which has a computer that freezes up when he’s online and doesn’t work at home, but works just fine “in the shop.” Leo says that intermittent problems like this can be maddening. Leo has a hunch that his Internet setup is corrupted. This can be caused if he’s using a “dsl dialer,” which the ISP will give you when you set up. Leo always recommends to not use that software but rely on Windows Networking settings. Backup the data and reinstall the OS through the recovery discs. Then do the Windows updates.
But if he’s using his cellphone as a tether, that can be the issue as well. And Leo suspects that his WiFi card is picking up a stray signal from an open wireless port in the neighborhood. So sometimes it won’t pick it up. Leo doesn’t have a problem with “borrowing a cup of WiFi” every once in awhile, but you should really buy access.
Q Alan, Houston, TX - HDTV question
He has a Samsung 120Hz TV but his show is only showing 60Hz. Samsung says the incoming signal is only coming in at 60 Hz. Leo says that’s true - no company provides anything over 60Hz due to TV compatibility, but the TV should “fill in the gaps” through interpolation. Leo has a hunch that the 60Hz figure is the signal your getting, not what you’re seeing.
Q Sam, Costa Mesa, CA - Cutting back, alternatives
Sam says things are adding up when you look at Internet, VOIP Phone, Cable. He’s paying over $200 a month! Leo says that it adds up real fast and it seems we pay more now than ever for our internet and entertainment needs. Leo says you can get a MagicJack or Skype to cut down on your Voip phone charges. DSL Extreme is the most affordable internet option around. Avoid bundling. It’s rarely cheaper. Convenient, sure. Cheaper no.
Q Steve, Durango, CO - iMac, Airport Express and music
Steve uses his iMac with the Airport Express which allows him to stream music all over the house. How can he expand it beyond iTunes to radio stations, and more? Leo says that there is software which allows you to expands the Airport Express. It’s called AirFoil. It’ll send any audio to the Airport Express.
Q Logan, Brentwood, CA - NAS storage
Logan is 13 and wants to backup data from one computer to another. Should he get a NAS? Leo says yes, Network attached storage is a great idea. And since Logan wants a career in IT, building your own NAS would make for a great project! You’ll need an old PC, a RAID5 controller card, linux distribution, 1GB ethernet card, wifi.
See you tomorrow!
