Audience Questions

Audience QuestionsHour 1

Hour 1 Hour 2 Hour 3

How can I encrypt my data?

Watch Dan from New York, NY Comments

Dan wants to encrypt all his data, so nobody can ever see it once he's gone. He already uses VeriCrypt and BitLocker. But he also has DVDs with image files and he wants to encrypt them. ISOs? Leo says that Dan can create ISOs of his DVD data. You import the data onto your hard drive and then destroy the DVD. Then you can encrypt the files using VeriCrypt or BitLocker the hard drive. 

Why can't I reformat my backup drives?

Watch Kyle from Oskaloosa, Iowa Comments

Kyle has a home theater PC loaded with media and backups on ten different hard drives that he swaps out. Leo calls that a JBOD (just a bunch of discs). But Kyle is having an issue with the drives getting errors while erasing and starting a new backup. Leo says that the flaw could also be in the backups themselves. It also changed to MBR (master boot record) and cut the drive storage in half. He also can't reformat it with GUID using Windows 10. Is there a special utility he can use? Leo says there is an MBR to GUID command in Windows. Check out this tech note - https://www.thewindowsclub.com/convert-mbr-to-gpt-disk. If you can't convert the drive, then that points to the drive being damaged, and it needs to be replaced.

Leo also recommends going to a RAID 5 array. If any drive dies, you can replace it, and the RAID will rebuild it. Leo also recommends going with a Network Attached Storage. Leo likes Synology for that; you can even get two and have one off-site. Then you can automatically sync them. 

Audience QuestionsHour 2

Hour 1 Hour 2 Hour 3

What do I need to do a live stream?

Watch Mark from Costa Mesa, CA Comments

Mark is a podcaster and scriptwriter.  He's been asked to create a live stream for a martial arts organization. What equipment does he need to create the stream and look good? Leo says that it depends on it's a one way or two-way stream. If one way, then the easiest way is to use YouTube Live or Facebook Live. YouTube Live is better because people don't need an account to watch it. With Facebook Live, you do. YouTube LIve can also be done from any computer or even your smartphone, and the stream is automatically saved for later on-demand viewing. Check out this tech note - https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/6273849?hl=en

Leo recommends using OBS Studio. It's free and open source. Very popular with gamers for live streaming. You can add effects, videos from another source, or even multiple cameras. 

There's also a commercial product called eCamm for the Mac There's also ReStream. Leo also likes the Blackmagic ATEM Mini Pro, which will stream up to four sources live to all your sources. And at $600, it's a bargain.

Mark's podcast is called PlotPoints Podcast. 

Why is TWiTCH so successful for live streaming?

Watch Mike from Denver, CO Comments

Mike is a gamer and likes TWiTCH. Leo says that what makes TWiTCH so good is that Amazon is hands-off, not messing with how they do it. Now Facebook wants to get into the live streaming gaming act. 

How can I fix my Windows screen, it's upside down!

Watch Diane from Roseburg, Oregon Comments

Diane's cat jumped on her keyboard and now her Windows screen is upside down! Leo says that's just plain bad luck that the cat hit the right key combination that can cause that. It's actually a feature in Windows. Hit CTRL + ALT + Up Arrow and your Windows desktop should return to landscape mode. You can rotate the screen to portrait or upside-down landscape, by hitting CTRL + ALT + Left Arrow, Right Arrow or Down arrow.

How can I make a virtual choir using zoom or youtube?

Watch Paul from Rancho Cuca Monga, CA Comments

Paul was in the recent Erick Whitaker's Virtual Choir on YouTube, and he'd like to do that on YouTube. How does he do that without latency? Leo says that You can do it by having people record their track, clapping at the very beginning, so there's a reference to sync them up. Whitaker sells a hard drive that shows how he does the virtual choir and while it sounds beautiful, it's expensive. 

Audience QuestionsHour 3

Hour 1 Hour 2 Hour 3

What's the best Linux distro to try?

Watch Dave from Los Angeles, CA Comments

Dave doesn't want to be beholding to Microsoft or Apple for his operating system. He'd like to use Linux. Leo says that currently, a Chromebook is ideal for those who aren't their own support. But if you like Linux, then Leo likes PopOS by System76. What about Ubuntu? Leo isn't really a fan of Ubuntu any longer because of changes made by the developers. But it's base Debian flavor is pretty good. If you like the latest version of anything, then the Rolling Releases of Linux is pretty exciting as you get the latest version automatically installed. Arch Linux has one of the best communities for support. Manjaro is one such release, but it also waits a week just in case a bug pops up.

Additionally, there's a flavor of Linux for just about any computer, no matter how old. And then you can use free open-source software for just about anything. Is it secure? Leo believes that Linux is actually more secure than any other OS. One, because it has such a small footprint. Not as many users as Windows or Mac. But it's also got an army of enthusiasts that work on it to keep it secure.

Why doesn't Hulu take my password?

Watch Char from Cambridge, Minnesota Comments

Char has been a Hulu subscriber for nine years. But he recently logged in to watch a movie and Hulu says he isn't a member. That's odd because he recently tried to reset his password and they set him a reset link. He reset it, but the password doesn't work anymore. But they still charge him. Leo says it could be an issue with Char's password manager in Chrome. Try entering it manually. But when Char tried that, it still didn't work. Leo doesn't think it's Char's password manager or the Chrome browser. It's a glitch with Hulu.

Why does Windows think my screen is larger than it is?

Watch Glen from Selmer, Tennessee Comments

Glen is fed up with Windows 10 updates breaking his system or forcing him to use the Edge browser when he'd rather use Chrome. Leo says that Microsoft is doing too much with bi-annual system updates. Lately, his windows are going outside the borders of his screen after he clicked a link in an email. Leo says that there is a default setting for Edge in system preferences that you can disable. So it won't force you to use Edge.

As for the screen size, WIndows thinks Glen's screen is bigger than it is. That's a problem with Windows. Verify that Windows Device manager has the right screen listed. 

Windows 10 is also getting slower. Leo says the answer is to stop using Windows. Absent that, Leo also recommends getting rid of third-party antivirus like MacAfee. That's likely slowing down the system. Windows comes with its own called Defender that works great. 

Sophia in the chatroom says that the Zoom feature in Windows may have gotten turned on by accident. Go into the Accessibility control panel and make sure that zoom is turned off.

Why isn't my iDrive backing up all my files?

Watch Micah from Maine Comments

Micah is getting an error message every night after backing up with iDrive (a sponsor of The Tech Guy radio show) that says that five files have failed. What gives? Leo says to look in the View Logs option by ctrl-clicking on the icon. It could be a permissions issue for that file, or a file you don't want to be backed up anyway. So look to see what files are failing in the View Logs. Odds are, it's a permissions issue.

How can YouTube know I'm using a VPN?

Watch Al from New Mexico Comments

Al says that YouTube TV won't let him use a VPN now. Leo says that's because they want to know your location. But how do they know he's using a VPN? Leo says that there's no perfect way to detect a VPN, but if it's being done by a known IP address, that tells the tale. So Google knows what IP address VPN servers are using and some VPNs aren't good at masking it. Try another server or service that rotates IP addresses. Leo uses ExpressVPN (a sponsor of the TWiT Network).

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