Leo Laporte
The Tech Guy
2–5p ET Sat & Sun
- Home
- Saturday Show
- Sunday Show
- Past Shows
- Audio Archives
- Stations
- Chat
- Watch Live
- Forums
- Tips
- FAQ
- Glossary
- Contact Leo
Sponsors
- Angie’s List
- Carbonite
- DSLExtreme
- ESET NOD32 Antivirus
- GoToAssist
- GoToMeeting
- GoToMyPC
- Make It Work
- Stamps.com
Leo Links
 |
For more Leo and friends all week long, listen to the
|
|
Saturday 23 January 2010
- Show Audio
- Tech News
- Guests
- Hour 1
- Hour 2
- Hour 3
- Chris, Palo Alto, CA - getting into high quality photo printing
- Matt, Lake Forest, CA - Wireless issues
- David, Houston, TX - Headset for Skype
- Dave, Los Angeles, CA - voice recognition and iTunes
- O.B., New Orleans, MD - router issues
- Tennile, Riverside, CA - phone recommendation
- Martha, Whitter, CA - Internet connectivity
Show Audio
|
Edited Audio | |
|
Posted one week after broadcast… | |
Tech News
Hillary addresses Internet freedom, Chinese not impressed
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton made an address warning about the Chinese government’s attempts to penetrate companies like Google in order to find information on Chinese dissidents. China’s response? Basically, “we need no lessons on the Internet from the US, mind your own business.” Leo also says there’s really not much the US can do considering China holds so much of our national debt.
More likely, Google deciding to pull out of China will do more than lofty words. Google has also decided not to ship phones made in China right now. Which doesn’t help T-Mobile and other companies expecting those Android phones.
Big Security updates this week
Both Apple and Microsoft announced important security updates this week for OSX and Windows Internet Explorer. Microsoft’s was so critical, that it was an “out of cycle” update. So users should seriously update their OS. Turn on AutoUpdate and let it run. However, users can also download Firefox or Google Chrome and avoid the security issue for the most part. However, your email pulls in attachments and displays them using Internet Explorer. So even when you don’t want to use it, you end up having to. You can turn off your preview pane, but that’s largely been falling on deaf ears.
Wednesday’s big speech
No, not that one. This one: Steve Jobs will be making a huge announcement that everyone expects will be the Apple Tablet. Expectation is extremely high about it, but there’s also talk about new iLife 2010 and maybe a new iPod or iPhone 4G. But would Apple be in serious trouble with the faithful if it didn’t?
Leo says it’s going to be the Tablet and he also believes that it’s Apple’s intention reinvent that wheel and make a product that changes everything. And a leak to the Times says that Steve is finally happy with the Tablet. But Leo also says it has to be more than “just a tablet.” He thinks it’ll be an eBook reader, a subscription model for TV, wireless access for free, and more. And considering Steve Jobs’ health, could this be his last at great product announcement? Only time will tell.
Guests
Steve Gibson, GRC.COM
Steve is the founder of GRC.com and creator of a great hard drive utility called SpinRite. He’s also the host of Security Now on TWiT.
Steve joins us to talk about the “zero day” vulnerability that hackers discovered in Internet Explorer. This is where hackers find a vulnerability before Microsoft does and starts exploiting it. The exploit affects all versions of I.E. 6 and above, but it was being exploited directly in version 6.
Press custom level, set to high and apply. This will lock down Internet Explorer for use on the Internet, as well as use of I.E. for “local purposes” like email. Open Internet options, security settings, change from default to custom and turns it up to high. Then you click on “trusted sites” and add exceptions for https://*.microsoft.com and https://*.windowsupdate.com and that will make Internet Explorer safe. Do the same for the “Intranet” options.
Hour 1
Q Joe, Los Angeles, CA - recording interviews in the field
Joe does interviews for Current.tv, and needs a better way to do the internet live from his phone, linked to his MacBook and recording through Garage Band. Leo says that there are off the shelf options you can employ. Easiest way to record it is through your laptop. Or, try using a Flip camcorder or even better, the Kodak Zi8 which let’s you attach an external microphone. Leo also says that a USB microphone is a good idea. There’s the Blue Yeti (about $100) is great for studio work. There’s also the Rhode Podcaster. But the Sure SM58 is the best for field recording, along with the CL2 converter. It’s more professional, looks more professional. Make a mic flag for it and everyone thinks you’re legit.
If you have an iPhone 3Gs, the OWLE is a wierd device that works great as well. It turns your iPhone a nice directional videocamera/microphone. Check out Leo’s demo here.
Q Nancy, San Diego, CA - Audible issues on Blackberry
Nancy had her Audible account set up to listen to her books through her Blackberry Curve via Bluetooth and her car stereo. But after a new update, the bluetooth connectivity has been broken and Audible says it doesn’t support it anymore.
Leo says it may not be Audible’s choice though. The publishers may be demanding that Audible restrict bluetooth as a way of copy protection. But nobody’s going to do that, too much work. And when you consider you can burn your audible downloads to CD why bother with bluetooth? Leo thinks it’s an accident.
Leo says that if the Curve is a non-starter, you can use the iPhone or the iPod Touch with bluetooth and A2DP and it works wonderful.
Hour 2
Q Kevin, Corona, CA - video driver issues
Kevin has a stand alone video card, but he’s experiencing driver issues. Leo says you need to first go into the motherboard BIOS and disable the motherboard display adapter. This will prevent the OS from being “confused.” Also, make sure you have not only the latest video drivers, but also the latest motherboard drivers. His card from NVidia and there are three places you can get card drivers - Microsoft (WHQL certified), Nvidia and the company that made your card.
Q Angela, Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, CAN - video chatting
Angela just get her new 21″ iMac and wants to know if she can do a webchat with her friends who use Windows. They can see her, but she can’t see them. But she can see it running Windows 7. Leo says that iChat only works with AOLChat and does not work with Yahoo Messenger. And Yahoo chat doesn’t work mac to PC as well due to incompatibility between video streams. Leo says that SKYPE is ideal for that. Then it doesn’t matter what platform you use. It’s free computer to computer. Google Talk is a good option as well. You’ll have to download the video add-on, but that’s easy. Skype is way better though.
Q Michele, Corona, CA - Windows Movie Maker crashes
Michele says her Movie Maker is crashing. Try logging on as a different user and see if it works. If it does, it’s a settings issue. Clear your settings and you’re back in business. But it may also be the program itself. Go to get.live.com and download the latest version. It’s much better than the previous versions.
Q Steve, Redondo Beach, CA - Cellphones
Steve wants an iPhone, but he HATES AT&T. Steve’s current carrier is Sprint. He feels that their system is unreliable. Why can’t the government just make standards that all carriers have to follow? Leo says that’s unlikely. The Telecoms are way too powerful.
Leo expects a new iPhone in June, with Verizon perhaps getting an iPhone then. But there is an alternative for Steve in the Google Android. The Nexus One will be coming to Verizon in the next two months and Leo thinks it’s better than the iPhone. If you want to stay with Sprint, the Palm Pre is a good option. Leo also says that phone competition will boost better customer service. The market works best when competition is fierce.
Hour 3
Q Chris, Palo Alto, CA - getting into high quality photo printing
He wants to get into printing black and white photos. Leo says that black and white photos are really difficult to print right. But the Epson R2400 is a good option for it. Not cheap, but quality seldom is. What photo utility does Leo recommend? Leo like Picasa as a basic photo management tool with basic tools for retouching etc. Adobe Photoshop Elements has 80% the capability of Photoshop CS has for under $100. Total cost will be definitely under $1,000.
Q Matt, Lake Forest, CA - Wireless issues
Matt bought an HP Compact Laptop he bought last year. But now he’s having wireless connectivity issues. Leo says hardware failure may be to blame, but more likely it’s security software, the firewall, or even a driver that’s causing the issue. And most laptops have two control panels - the manufacturer’s and Windows. Uninstall the manufacturer’s and use Windows’ version. Update your drivers. Disable the security software and see if it helps. Reconfigure your settings. If you do all this, then what’s left is hardware, and that’s something to bring up with HP.
Q David, Houston, TX - Headset for Skype
David is blind and uses voiceover recognition with his iPod Touch. He loves it. David wants to get a Plantronics 470 USB audio headset for Skype. Good idea? Leo loves Plantronics, he uses the newer version, the DSP746 for his guests on TWiT.
Q Dave, Los Angeles, CA - voice recognition and iTunes
Dave is a DJ and was one of the first to actually use his laptop and iPods to play music at parties. He uses an AKG wireless mic and he would love to have voice recognition like the Ford Sync with his laptop. How can he do it. Leo says that Dragon Dictate won’t do it.
Windows 7 has built in voice recognition with commands, but would probably play using Windows Media Player. You’ll also need to patch the mixer. In the Chatroom, they say that VoiceTunes does this. Also, the iPod Touch has a DJ App which may help.
Q O.B., New Orleans, MD - router issues
OB is having router trouble with Starban Satellite. Leo says that most Satellite provider’s don’t allow use of multiple computers and it may be an issue. Try static addresses. Networking is a bear and is more art than science. You may want to cruise over to practicallynetworked.com and see if there’s a solution that fits your need.
Q Tennile, Riverside, CA - phone recommendation
Tennile has a new MacBook and wants a phone that integrates with it. She’s looking at the Nokia N900 or the iPhone. Leo says that the N900 is a tad sluggish and is more computer than phone. But the best connectivity will come with the iPhone.
Q Martha, Whitter, CA - Internet connectivity
Martha has a PC running XP Pro. She’s on Verizon FIOS and can onlyh connect intermittently. Leo says since it’s intermittent, it may be a DNS issue. And since Martha isn’t a “geek,” Leo suggests calling Make It Work. A neighborhood teenager may be able to help as well.
See you tomorrow!
