Webcam Giveaway!

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http://live.pirillo.com/ - This weeks winner is ... gnomishtank!

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<object width="425" height="350"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/hoxIQPlPH2g"></aram><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/hoxIQPlPH2g" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"></embed></object><br /><a href="http://chris.pirillo.com/">Chris</a> | <a href="http://live.pirillo.com/">Live Tech Support</a> | <a href="http://media.pirillo.com/">Video Help</a> | <a href="http://feeds.pirillo.com/ChrisPirilloShow">Add to iTunes</a>

iTunes Sucks

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http://live.pirillo.com/ - HChris has never really liked iTunes. While it has gotten marginally better over time, it just really isn't as structured as it could be.

On Windows, iTunes is more of a hack or a shim than anything else: it looks and feels out of place, and doesn't always play well with the operating system. Another problem is that iTunes is getting very bloated: it adds more window services now than it ever did in the past.

Matthew said someone in the chat room claimed that AAC was the iTunes format. It's true that iTunes plays AAC and sells music with DRM in the AAC format, but AAC isn't an iTunes-exclusive format.

QuickTime, iTunes, and RealPlayer all play AAC, an industry standard format. Windows Media Player, on the other hand, doesn't play AAC, as Microsoft is trying to push their DRM format - WMA - on the industry.

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What is Social Networking?

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http://live.pirillo.com/ - How many of you are part of a social network? How many of you have no idea what a social network is?

The big buzzword these days is "social network" - but what is a social network?

Typically a social network is a service that allows you to keep track of your friends, family, and business relationship. Why would anyone want to join a social network? What's the big attraction?

The big reason social networks are so popular is that they allow people to keep track of their friends easily. The idea is that you can have one place to visit to keep up with everyone in your network.

Of course, the problem is that there are so many social networks that it's almost impossible to keep track of your friends. These networks - Facebook, YouTube, MySpace - don't interact with each other cleanly.

If you can't figure out why you would want to join a social network, then we recommend you don't join one.

What do you think about social networks?

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What is a Tasting Menu?

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http://live.pirillo.com/ - Typically when you go to a restaurant you get a menu and select what plat you want. But, some restaurants have a tasting menu where you can taste just about every dish they offer. They're small plates, but there are a lot of them.

Since Chris and Ponzi's birthdays are about a week apart, they go to a restaurant with a tasting menu as a yearly treat.

Do you try the tasting menus at those restaurants?

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What is DEP?

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http://live.pirillo.com/ - One of our Romanian viewers wanted to know how to turn off Data Execution Prevention. Every time he thumbnails a video from his camera, he gets an error.

What is DEP? Data Execution Prevention is a security technology - based in software or hardware - that keeps programs from accessing or overwriting parts of memory that it doesn't already have access to.

Keeping DEP turned on is a good idea, but if it's giving you a problem, you can turn it off:

• Right click on "My Computer" and select Settings.
• Click on the Advanced Tab
• Click the settings button, under performance.
• Select the third tab.
• Within this tab you can turn it on for all programs, only windows services, or for all programs except programs you select.

Do you have any experience with DEP?

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Software Development

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http://live.pirillo.com/ - A couple of guys from the AlphaGeek crew interviewed Chris about Software Development - what he thinks is wrong with it and how to correct its problems.

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Stranded Island Gadgets

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http://live.pirillo.com/ - Mark wants to know what gadget you would have if you were stranded on a deserted island.

So, it would need to be hand-cranked or solar-powered.

We think the ultimate gadget would be a hand cranked or solar powered laptop with the ability to connect to the Internet via a satellite linkup as well as GPS capabilities.

What do you think the ultimate gadget would be if you were stranded on a deserted island?

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Fingerprint Scanners

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http://live.pirillo.com/ - QuadForLife asks: would you recommend having a fingerprint scanner for a laptop?

Yes and no.

For ease of use, it's pretty convenient: swipe your thumb and you're in without having to enter a username or password.

Ss for security we don't recommend using it. Grabbing fingerprints to use for nefarious reasons is pretty simplistic (your thumbprint is available on everything you touch), plus fooling some of these scanners is pretty easy.

For now, fingerprint scanners are a nice toy or a convenient way to log into your computer, beyond that they're not ready for end-user security.

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iPhone Activation

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http://live.pirillo.com/ - As many of you watched the other day, Ponzi bought Chris an iPhone for his birthday. Opening and playing with the iPhone was not a difficult experience. Activating the iPhone, on the other hand wasn't fun.

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<object width="425" height="350"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/l74Uz8DJRks"></aram><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/l74Uz8DJRks" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"></embed></object><br /><a href="http://chris.pirillo.com/">Chris</a> | <a href="http://live.pirillo.com/">Live Tech Support</a> | <a href="http://media.pirillo.com/">Video Help</a> | <a href="http://feeds.pirillo.com/ChrisPirilloShow">Add to iTunes</a>

Happy Birthday!

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http://live.pirillo.com/ - Go me, it's my birthday! Go me!

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Mac Learning Curve

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http://live.pirillo.com/ - Does OS X have a learning curve? Can you really get used to OS X after being a diehard Windows user for so many years?

Chris thinks it's very possible. In fact, he's thinking of converting to OS X for his daily computer use, for several reasons:

Apple has paid attention to the overall user experience: it's much more user friendly than Windows has ever been.

A lot of the programs on OS X just work better than similar ones on Windows.

Windows and OS X really are not as different as you may think. While the user experience might be very different, getting work done is basically the same on both platforms.

The little things - like getting used to used to the menu system - can be overcome by just using the operating system more often.

What do you think? Can you make the switch?

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<object width="425" height="350"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/CDXOhkeDm1g"></aram><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/CDXOhkeDm1g" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"></embed></object><br /><a href="http://chris.pirillo.com/">Chris</a> | <a href="http://live.pirillo.com/">Live Tech Support</a> | <a href="http://media.pirillo.com/">Video Help</a> | <a href="http://feeds.pirillo.com/ChrisPirilloShow">Add to iTunes</a>

External Video Cards

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http://live.pirillo.com/ - There have been rumors of external graphics cards floating around the Internet for years. Recently, though, some of these rumors may have credibility.

With so much heat and power consumption - as well as the growing demands of dedicated PC gamers - it's a real possibility to see external graphics cards hit the market.

CES 2007 introduced an external graphics card for laptops by Asus. One of Chris's friends has it and loves it, since he can now upgrade his graphics card on his laptop.

Is going with an external graphics card a good idea? Yes and no.

Having an external solution offers a lot of possibilities for upgrading and increased power within the GPU. Of course, the average user doesn't want to bother with an external component to output video.

What do you think?

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<object width="425" height="350"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/4FnHg-k8N3Y"></aram><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/4FnHg-k8N3Y" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"></embed></object><br /><a href="http://chris.pirillo.com/">Chris</a> | <a href="http://live.pirillo.com/">Live Tech Support</a> | <a href="http://media.pirillo.com/">Video Help</a> | <a href="http://feeds.pirillo.com/ChrisPirilloShow">Add to iTunes</a>

Hard Drive Failure

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http://live.pirillo.com/ - Hard drives are generally a very reliable part of your computer setup. Given the fact that the hard drive is one of the few components that has moving parts and it's active all of the time, it's actually kind of surprising that the hard drive doesn't fail more than they do.

Still, hard drives fail, and there are several sounds you can listen for to determine if your hard drive is about to fail. When you hear one of these sounds it's time to back up your data and consider buying another drive.

Do you have any tips for monitoring the health of your hard drive?

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<object width="425" height="350"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/SqcnKeJ13nY"></aram><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/SqcnKeJ13nY" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"></embed></object><br /><a href="http://chris.pirillo.com/">Chris</a> | <a href="http://live.pirillo.com/">Live Tech Support</a> | <a href="http://media.pirillo.com/">Video Help</a> | <a href="http://feeds.pirillo.com/ChrisPirilloShow">Add to iTunes</a>

Windows Media Player

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http://live.pirillo.com/ - Back in the day Windows Media Player burst onto the scene and kicked ass. It was slick, played a lot of formats, and was the media player.

As time went on, however, WMP has become bloated and user unfriendly.

ADHD from the chat room heard that Windows Media Player 11 sucks: is that true?

Chris believes that the Windows Media Player development team doesn't have their priorities straight with WMP. When WMP 11 was still in beta testing stages he filed several bugs as well as tried to convince them to support RSS.

The bugs were never fixed, and RSS has never been supported in Windows Media Player.

Should you upgrade from Windows Media Player 10 to 11? If you don't want to then you really don't have to. Everything is pretty much the same, but if you wanted to have an Urge subscription you'll need to upgrade to version 11.

Stick with 10, or try an alternative media player.

Do you have any suggestions for an alternative media player?

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<object width="425" height="350"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/P10nIjUPI1g"></aram><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/P10nIjUPI1g" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"></embed></object><br /><a href="http://chris.pirillo.com/">Chris</a> | <a href="http://live.pirillo.com/">Live Tech Support</a> | <a href="http://media.pirillo.com/">Video Help</a> | <a href="http://feeds.pirillo.com/ChrisPirilloShow">Add to iTunes</a>

Keyboard Shortcuts

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http://live.pirillo.com/ - Keyboard shortcuts are really useful - being able to use common functions without having to use the mouse saves a ton of time.

By hold on the alt key and then double-clicking a word in Outlook 2007, you can open the research pane. This gives you the definition of a word as well as references, and research. This same short cut also works on Word 2007.

There are a ton of other useful keyboard shortcuts. We personally love ctrl-v, ctrl-c, and ctrl-x.

What keyboard shortcuts do you need to survive?

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<object width="425" height="350"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/5ftBKdBCSd8"></aram><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/5ftBKdBCSd8" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"></embed></object><br /><a href="http://chris.pirillo.com/">Chris</a> | <a href="http://live.pirillo.com/">Live Tech Support</a> | <a href="http://media.pirillo.com/">Video Help</a> | <a href="http://feeds.pirillo.com/ChrisPirilloShow">Add to iTunes</a>

iPhone Unboxing

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http://live.pirillo.com/ - Watch me cringe as I unbox my very own iPhone ...

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My Very Own iPhone

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http://live.pirillo.com/ - Ponzi bought me an early birthday gift. Oh boy ...

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Inkjet vs Laser Printers

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http://live.pirillo.com/ - Everyone probably has various devices attached to their computers, but we can guarantee that most everyone has a printer. But, which one is better: inkjets or laser printers?

The last time Chris used an inkjet printer was about 7 years ago. Since then he has switched to laser and never went back. The problem with inkjets is that even though they're cheap, the ink costs a ton of money: inkjet manufacturers generally sell their printers at a loss with the hopes of making up the money in ink sales.

Which one is better? It really depends on what you need to do. If you just do some printing every once in a while, and those prints don't need to stay around for a longtime, you can probably stick with an inkjet.

On the other hand, if you do a lot of printing then laser is the way to go: the cost per page with a laser printer is drastically reduced compared to the current inkjet industry. You'll pay more up front for the hardware, but you'll pay less for toner over time (they're more expensive, but you don't need to replacement nearly as often).

So, to recap: for quick jobs, or college students, you may just want to pick up an inkjet printer (in the case of a college student, use your universities computer lab). If you're in a professional setting or do a lot of printing, you'll probably want to stick with laser printers.

What do you recommend?

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<object width="425" height="350"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/P_rHilYfdOs"></aram><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/P_rHilYfdOs" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"></embed></object><br /><a href="http://chris.pirillo.com/">Chris</a> | <a href="http://live.pirillo.com/">Live Tech Support</a> | <a href="http://media.pirillo.com/">Video Help</a> | <a href="http://feeds.pirillo.com/ChrisPirilloShow">Add to iTunes</a>

What are eBooks?

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http://live.pirillo.com/ - An eBook is a book, or text put into a book format, that is in an electronic format which you can read on a mobile device or on your computer. Most eBooks nowadays are in the Portable Document Format (PDF), although some of them are still distributed as executable files.

If you're looking for free eBooks, you'll want to check out the Gutenberg project.

Why would you want to use an eBook as opposed to a physical book? Generally, it's much easier to search for information in an eBook format than searching through a bunch of index pages.

Is the eBook going to overtake the old physical book? Well, that remains to be seen: current eReaders are flawed in many ways and that will only help slow the adoption of eBooks.

What do you think? Will eBooks take over the world?

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<object width="425" height="350"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/-jW6mdzTcrI"></aram><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/-jW6mdzTcrI" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"></embed></object><br /><a href="http://chris.pirillo.com/">Chris</a> | <a href="http://live.pirillo.com/">Live Tech Support</a> | <a href="http://media.pirillo.com/">Video Help</a> | <a href="http://feeds.pirillo.com/ChrisPirilloShow">Add to iTunes</a>

What is a Defrag?

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http://live.pirillo.com/ - Everything you have on your computer more than likely sits on a hard drive - your operating system, music, pictures, programs, and everything else. When you put new data on your hard drive, the data isn't generally optimized - the files are fragmented across the space of the hard drive.

By defragging your hard drive you can more optimize your hard drive, which will let programs load and access data faster.

Nick on YouTube wants to know if defragging will cause problems for programs and if there's a way to defragment your hard drive too much.

There really is no such thing as "too much" defragging: once the files are no longer fragmented, you just simply can't defrag anymore. Of course, problems can arise if something happens during a defrag: if power is interrupted during a defrag it's possible that you'll lose the data the program was working with.

Simon from YouTube wants to know what the best defrag utility is. We recommend DiskKeeper, but what do you use and recommend?

Want to embed our What is a Defrag? video in your blog? Use this code:

<object width="425" height="350"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/2105clMRPuc"></aram><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/2105clMRPuc" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"></embed></object><br /><a href="http://chris.pirillo.com/">Chris</a> | <a href="http://live.pirillo.com/">Live Tech Support</a> | <a href="http://media.pirillo.com/">Video Help</a> | <a href="http://feeds.pirillo.com/ChrisPirilloShow">Add to iTunes</a>

LCD Screen Protection

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http://live.pirillo.com/ - MNot having screen protection for your mobile devices is just nuts. While extended warranties are nice, the one thing we recommend for anything that has a screen - especially on a device that can be dropped - is to get some kind of screen protection.

There is protective film out there you can purchase that will cover the scratch-prone areas of your LCD screens.

You would be amazed at how much a screen can get scuffed, scratched, and damaged just from being in your pocket. From the PSP and Nintendo DS to a Blackjack, iPhone or Blackberry you need to have screen protection.

Do you use protective covers or casing? If so, which ones? If not, why not?

Want to embed our LCD Screen Protection video in your blog? Use this code:

<object width="425" height="350"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/NFTJF2J3vSw"></aram><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/NFTJF2J3vSw" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"></embed></object><br /><a href="http://chris.pirillo.com/">Chris</a> | <a href="http://live.pirillo.com/">Live Tech Support</a> | <a href="http://media.pirillo.com/">Video Help</a> | <a href="http://feeds.pirillo.com/ChrisPirilloShow">Add to iTunes</a>

my birthday present

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Windows Movie Maker Video Encoding

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http://live.pirillo.com/ - More and more people are uploading their videos to the Internet, but some of them just are not happy with how Windows handles video editing by default. Sandman has been using Windows Movie maker and he's not happy with it: horrible output and it only outputs in the windows video format.

Windows Movie Maker may not actually be the problem here; it may be the level of compression you're outputting the video as. WMM has a wizard that you click though and asks if you want to optimize for file size - you need to click no and set the video output in a format that is similar to the output of your video recording device. In other words, you want to optimize for quality.

Outside of Windows Movie Maker we don't really have many recommendations for free movie editing software: we've yet to find any free video editing software on Windows worth recommendation (and no, Zwei-Stein is not a good recommendation for end users).

Do you have any recommendations?

Want to embed our Windows Movie Makrer Video Encoding video in your blog? Use this code:

<object width="425" height="350"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/vFJiE0MlxDo"></aram><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/vFJiE0MlxDo" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"></embed></object><br /><a href="http://chris.pirillo.com/">Chris</a> | <a href="http://live.pirillo.com/">Live Tech Support</a> | <a href="http://media.pirillo.com/">Video Help</a> | <a href="http://feeds.pirillo.com/ChrisPirilloShow">Add to iTunes</a>

What is ASCII Art?

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http://live.pirillo.com/ - I remember my first experience with ASCII art: it was a simple smiley face ":)" and I had no idea what it is: after asking what it was someone told me to turn my head to the side. Lo and behold, it was a small smiley face.

The smiley face is a really small form of ASCII art, and years ago it was a skill practiced by many people: the skill of taking fixed-width characers and making an image from it.

Nowadays ASCII art is almost a lost art. Not nearly as many people practice it today as they used to, but Chris (no, not Chris Pirillo) still practices. He was one of the first people involved with the ASCII art "movement" - he still provides ASCII art and continues to create more ASCII artwork.

If you're not particularly artistic you can download Jave, which will create ASCII art that you can create in a text file.

The key to ASCII art is to use a fixed-width font: every character takes up as much space as every other character - a period takes up as much space as Q, and so on.

Fhoto2Text allows you to upload an image which will convert it to ASCII art.

Do you like ASCII art? Do you have any ASCII art you want to share?

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OS X vs Windows

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http://live.pirillo.com/ - One of our YouTube subscribers wants to know what's better for photography: OS X or Windows.

In terms of what looks better: this may be a case of hardware comparison rather than comparing operating systems. If the PC has a better monitor than the Mac then you'll probably see the windows machine as having better graphics. Unless you're comparing similar hardware you're going to get different results - results you shouldn't blame on the operating system.

The good thing about hardware is that it's generally operating system neutral (assuming drivers are written for the system in question).

Does Windows really have more/better software than OS X? These days anything you can do on Windows you can do on a Mac. The old argument "Macs have no software" is really not a valid complaint today.

What do you guys think? Is photography better on a Mac than on a PC?

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Power Management Problems

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http://live.pirillo.com/ - Community members Thomas has a problem every time his computer goes into its power saving mode: the machine is slow, unresponsive, and just plain useless.

What is .Net?

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http://live.pirillo.com/ - .Net (dot net) is a programming framework that Microsoft provides to developers. And it's pretty neat: it allows developers to more readily create applications, and developers have mostly moved to the .Net framework.

.Net allows developers to jump in and create programs quickly - rapid application development - and integrates multiple capabilities that developers want at their fingertips.

The nice thing about .Net is that it's starting to become cross-platform compatible: Mono, available for OS X and Linux, will emulate some .Net features.

Are you a developer? Do you use .Net?

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Windows Vista MAgic Trick

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http://live.pirillo.com/ - Don't try this at home!

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How to Get Rid of Bugs

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http://live.pirillo.com/ - Bugs - those little creepy-crawlies that might be hanging around your computer - can be very annoying. They're especially bothersome when you're outside on your laptop in the middle of summer: spiders, bugs, flies, ants, and other insects can really bother you during your computer time.

Ultrafobos is a program you can run on your computer that can help you keep those bugs - real insects - at bay by emitting a high-frequency sound that should scare them off.

We have not used this software yet, so we're interested if you have any experience with this software - and software like it. Let us know! Leave a comment!

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Office 2007 Ribbon vs Menu

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http://live.pirillo.com/ - There have been a ton of versions of Microsoft Office, and over the years the menu system has become cluttered and convoluted. For that reason, Microsoft introduced the Ribbon Bar which replaced the old menu system.

Most of the applications in Microsoft Office have had their menus replaced with the Ribbon Bar. The idea behind the ribbon bar is that you don't have to worry about trying to find the features you're looking for: you only open up a tab and your available options are shown to you.

At first, the Ribbon Bar is really frustrating to people used to the old menu system, but once you get used to it, it's actually a good user experience: instead of getting features buried in a traditional menu system they're shown to you when you want to, and can, use them.

IMDuffy15 wants to know if there's a free program to turn the ribbon bar off in Office 2007. We know of a shareware program (just search Google, you'll find it), but no free program. But, keep in mind that the ribbon bar is the way Microsoft is going to go forward with the ribbon system.

We say give the ribbon bar a shot. What do you think?

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iPod Battery

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http://live.pirillo.com/ - If you didn't already know, you can't easily change the battery on your iPod or iPhone. Why did Apple do this? Because, they want to control the entire user experience.

There are a lot of ways you can do it yourself, but you can also send your iPod/iPhone in to Apple and, for a fee, they'll change the battery for you.

You know the battery needs to be replaced when it doesn't hold a charge or discharges pretty quickly.

We would recommend iLounge - it's the definitive resource for anything i-related: iPod, iPhone, and everything Apple.

Do you have any recommendations?

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Podsafe Podcast Music

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http://live.pirillo.com/ - Where can you find music to use on your podcast without having to pay royalties?

The term you're looking for is "podsafe music." This music generally allows you to play the music back without having to pay a royalty every time the song is played; all they ask is for attribution.

We'd recommend using Adam Curry's Podsafe Music Network, but you can also try asking the artist directly6 and see if they'll let you use their music (hey, it can't hurt).

What do you recommend?

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What are Hackers?

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http://live.pirillo.com/ - What exactly are hackers? There are a lot of different types of hat: white, gray, and black.

White hates can be considered someone legal: they help find, fix, and generally help make the public more secure than they would otherwise be.

Black hats are people who you would normally consider a hacker: unscrupulous, unethical, and generally the wrong kind of person to piss off. They hack either because they can, for political reasons, or for monetary gain.

Gray hats lay somewhere between white and black: they may not be entirely `without ethics, but they also don't work within the letter of the law.

That's our description, but what's your definition?

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Thai Food

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http://live.pirillo.com/ - Ponzi shows us how to make a Thai appetizer - something I don't know how in the world to pronounce or spell; but, it's essentially a Thai Taco.

• Betel Leaf
• Roasted Coconut
• Pieces of Lime
• Two Chilies
• Fresh Ginger
• Dried Shrimp
• Some Shallot
• Peanut
• Special Thai Sauce

Essentially, this is a taco: you use the betel leaf as a vessel for holding your ingredients together. Very yummy!

What's your favorite appetizer?

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The Magic Trick

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http://live.pirillo.com/ - We control the vertical! We control the horizontal!

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Windows DreamScene

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http://live.pirillo.com/ - Chris is currently running Windows Vista Ultimate Edition, which means Chris has access to some extras. Sadly, there are little to no good extras (and the term "sucks" doesn't do the level of suck justice).

One of those extras, Windows Vista DreamScene, seems pretty cool: it's software that integrates with Windows Vista Ultimate that allows you to play video as your background "image" as opposed to using a static image.

Each time Chris used is on another machine he had to turn it off. DreamScene did little to enhance the user experience and more to distract users.

If you really want movies in the background, ok. But, really, you should avoid this like the plague. It's really horrible.

So horrible, in fact, that it doesn't work at the screen resolution that Chris uses on his main computer.

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Download TV Shows

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http://live.pirillo.com/ - We used to have VCRs which allowed users to record videos from television. You would put tapes in them, record a show, and then watch them at a later time. The movie industry hated this, and even declared that the VCR would be the end of the movie industry - yes, they actually lobbied Congress to ban video tapes.

Of course, today they are lobbying to ban video downloads and PVRs, because those methods of distribution will be the end of their industry.

They do have a point, though: downloading videos without prior consent from the content providers is illegal. But, there is a grey area here: if you've already paid for access to their content, shouldn't you be allowed to access that content in a way you want to, despite the medium it is delivered on?

Case in point: Chris pays a lot of money to Comcast every month - a lot of money - to have access to video content. Why then, is it not OK for Chris to access the same content online?

Media companies place value on the method of delivery - their relationships with distributors like Comcast - rather than their actual content (which is probably why their industry is always in danger when a new method of distribution comes along).

What do you think? Should it be legal to download television shows that you've always paid to access?

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What is Wikipedia?

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http://live.pirillo.com/ - Back in ancient times there was a thing called an "encyclopedia" - it was a disgusting piece of technology that used tree pulp and ink to store information. The so-called "paper" was bound in volumes - about 26 or 27 of them - which contained information on every word, noun, and proper noun known to exist at that time.

Using this technology was slow, painful, and often outdated - the volumes needed to be updated in bulk since they did not have the ability to be updated dynamically. You also needed to buy this information! Costing upwards of $2000 for the entire set, salesmen would actually encourage people to purchase an encyclopedia set once a year!

Thankfully, we live in modern times where we have Wikipedia. Wikipedia is, essentially, the anti-encyclopedia. It contains most of the same information of encyclopedias plus information you generally would not be able to find. Plus, it's updated on-demand.

Some professors don't approve of Wikipedia - they claim it's not a reliable resource. To that point, they may be right: anyone can edit Wikipedia, which can lead to inaccuracies; however, Wikipedia can be a great resource for starting any research project and pointing you in a good direction.

Should you use Wikipedia as your only resource? No, you need multiple resources to try and come close to understanding what the truth is behind a situation.

Should you ignore Wikipedia? Absolutely not! It's a great resource that provides a ton of value - free of charge - for anyone who is researching any topic.

What do you think?

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What is a Tracking Cookie?

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http://live.pirillo.com/ - Bayliss in the chat room wants to know what a tracking cookie is and what it does.

A cookie is a plain txt file that sits on your computer in a temporary folder that stores data about a browsing session. If you log into a website it generally sets a cookie to temporarily store your information so you don't have to log in every time you change a page.

A tracking cookie is a cookie that tracks your browsing behaviors. Marketers use this data to understand how users use their partner websites and optimize their networks for the average user that visits their networks.

Some people hate cookies, claim they're spyware, and always delete them. Personally, we're not exactly worried about them: unless you've shared your personal information, the tracking cookies are only going to report browsing habits which helps generate a bunch of marketing statistic.

Really, we think the only time you need to worry about cookies is when you're on a public computer - like at school or an Internet café. In this instance, you should clear the cookies after you're done so any stored information - such as login information - will not be stored on that computer.

What do you think? Are cookies really dangerous?

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Widescreen vs Standard Monitors

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http://live.pirillo.com/ - DavidH wanted to know which one is better: widescreen or standard. Widescreen seems to be better for some applications, like email, but standard monitors look like they're better for other applications.

HD viewers will scream "blasphemy" at this, but standard monitors tend to be better for productivity. Since most applications scroll vertically rather than horizontally, there's no real advantage over using a widescreen monitor. In the world of high definition video and gaming, however, widescreen is the way to go.

Unless you watch a lot of high definition video or do a lot of gaming, paying extra for a widescreen monitor may not be the best way to go for you.

What do you think?

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<object width="425" height="350"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/v7xw_f6ek5Y"></aram><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/v7xw_f6ek5Y" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"></embed></object><br /><a href="http://chris.pirillo.com/">Chris</a> | <a href="http://live.pirillo.com/">Live Tech Support</a> | <a href="http://media.pirillo.com/">Video Help</a> | <a href="http://feeds.pirillo.com/ChrisPirilloShow">Add to iTunes</a>

Free Webcam Giveaway!

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http://live.pirillo.com - Every week, for the foreseeable future, Chris is going to give away one free webcam, in conjunction with Ustream.tv.

This weeks winner is: JosephTeeeeeee13!

Do you want a chance to win a free webcam? You need to be a member of our community! How do you do that?

• Subscribe to our YouTube channel, or
• Subscribe to our iTunes channel, or
• Stick around in the chat room on live.pirillo.com!

Stick around, subscribe to our show, and have fun!

Good luck!