Downloading, streaming, or encoding music and movies.
Media
What is the Best Format for Playing Videos with Plex?
Episode 1648
Jason fromJason is ripping DVDs and he wants to know how to convert them to use PLEX on the Roku. Leo says to convert using HEVC H.265. While it won't give quality better than the original, it will look as good as it can get. To encode, Leo recommends Handbrake.FR and VLCMedia Client. Regardless of what encoder Jason uses, though, he should make sure to use HEVC H.265
Is there a chatroom for tech questions?
Episode 1647
Paul fromPaul would like to know if there are chatrooms for tech questions? Leo says that the TWiT IRC Client runs 24/7. It's a general chat focused around Leo's radio show and podcast. But you can ask questions there, too. And there are IRC chat threads for just about any topic in the world. Just do a google search for "IRC (topic here)." Or (topic) Chat Channels. Another option is a Dischord chat.
How can I stream music?
Episode 1645
Jim fromJim says he's a bit of a luddite, but he's discovered the Sonos Amp with Klipsh speakers, and it's just plain nice. Leo says the nice thing about the Sonos is that you can control it with your phone and stream from any music service. So you can listen to just about anything ever recorded.
How Do I Get a Podcast Sponsor?
Episode 1628
DW fromDW wants to get a sponsor for his podcast, Headline Minute with DW. He's hit a plateau on downloads and wants to expand his reach, and he thinks a good sponsor can do that. Leo says that podcast advertising is a very hard thing to do. Leo didn't even try for over a year. Leo then charged about $70 per thousand listeners, and he really needs an agency to do it for him.
Is my camera media card defective?
Episode 1627
Hector fromHector has a Sandisk 64GB SD card from Best Buy, and now he's getting error messages due to "insufficient write speed." Is there something wrong with his camera? Leo says that most SD cards today can keep up with the cameras they are used in. You need a class 4 card for the Vixia Camcorder, and Hector's is a class 10. So it's plenty fast. But it could be that the card is wearing out after steady use and it's starting to fail. When you start getting errors like that, you're living on borrowed time. So it's time to get a new card.
Why won't my DVD play?
Episode 1625
Richard fromRichard bought a new DVD. And he can't play it. It's "dead." Leo says that it may not be dead, it may be region encoded. If there's a different region encoding for a different market, it won't play in your DVD player. Even if it played once before, it could have become region locked after that. The next thing to check is if it's PAL instead of NTSB. If that's the case, it won't play either.
How can I rip an album with a Mac?
Episode 1620
Art fromArt is trying to rip a vinyl album to his computer. He uses a USB turntable and it's not capturing. Leo says that using a USB turntable is the best way to do it, but since Art is using a Mac, it's likely that the software he's using doesn't support Mac. But it also means he may not need that software. Leo advises opening the sound preference pane in the Mac, and see if you can see the turntable. If you do, then you can probably use Garage Band or Amadeus to capture with it.
How Can I Crack an Old Floppy Password?
Episode 1614
Mike fromMike resurrected an old computer to look through some old floppies, but they're password protected and he can't remember the password. Leo says that if Mike can figure out how he password protected it, that could give him a clue. But floppy disks weren't normally password protected. So it's an odd thing for a password pop up to happen. It may be possible to examine the disk using a Linux computer. That could lead to being able to read it. But not for very much longer, as Linux will not support floppies moving forward.
Why is My Car Playing U2 When I Get Inside?
Episode 1614
Jon fromJon complains that U2 will start playing when he puts down his phone and gets into the car. It's very annoying. Leo suspects that it's the free U2 album that Apple gave to everyone a few years ago. It's called Songs of Innocence and it's probably in iCloud. Apple created a special tool to delete it, he can get it here. But the larger issue is that when he gets rid of it, his Bluetooth audio in his car will just play something else.
Can I play Pandora in my business?
Episode 1609
Ted fromTed has a business and plays a pandora in the background. Is he breaking the law? Leo says that technically, you need a license fee to play music in your business. ASCAP/BMI has secret shoppers that go around looking for this kind of thing and then sends businesses letters letting them know you're in violation and have to buy a license. Google ASCAP BMI, you'll find a page on what to do in order to play music. The fee is about $250 a year. There is a service called MUZAK that does just that. They handle all that, but you pay for the service. Also, check out SoundTrackYourBrand.com.
