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HOUR 1:
Tech News & Commentary
Danny in Kennett, Missouri asked: “Is there any kind of security system for your vehicle that will not only start your vehicle, but move your seats and mirrors as well as turning on your air conditioning or heat?”
Judging by the information we managed to find, retrofitting a vehicle with memory seats and mirrors is not at all trivial, even if it comes with power seats and power mirrors. Apparently, it can cost you thousands and it can take an awful lot of work, so we don’t think you’re going to find a third party system that will include those features.
As for remote starters, we’ve tested several Viper remote starters, some of which can be used from miles away and even via smartphone apps. You can find some Viper models for under $40, the more options you choose, the higher the price gets. Some units will offer GPS tracking, or 2-way communication so you know when your car turns on or when the alarm goes off, the ability to use the smartphone apps to start the car.
Bulldog offers remote start systems that can start a car from half a mile away and can cost you as little as $85. If you want to go very, very cheap, you can buy the DEI Ready Remote 24921 system for as little as $15, supposedly you can install it yourself and it comes with a one button remote that will only start the car. However, keep in mind none of these systems will move your seats or mirrors.
For more information tune in to Hour 1 of our podcast.
Consumer Reports
with Jim Willcox
The new lineup of Samsung LCD & Plasma TV sets just recently hit showrooms, boasting of features like full Internet browsers, new LED backlights, and better sound quality. Consumer Reports recently tested Samsung’s new flagship 55-inch LCD model. Senior Editor Jim Willcox is here to tell us how it fared in their ratings.
The “Into Tomorrow” team discussed the latest apps that they
have been playing with recently.
For Android:
• Listener Mario, El Dorado, Arkansas listening on KELD 1400 AM recommends: MyPiano, FREE
“Hello Into Tomorrow! There is an app that I use that is called MyPiano and it is for Android phones. I am currently studying to receive my bachelors degree in Music Education with a minor in Voice and I realized that this app is very essential to me since I can have a piano on the go instead of buying one. Of course, it does not replace a grand piano, but it does a good job on helping me find what note I am supposed to start singing on. I also use it to play the notes of a song I am learning. The app is free and a lot of my friends have it as we compete regionally in choir contests around the state of Arkansas. I would recommend it to any musician or person interested in learning music.”
• Mark recommends: History Eraser, Free
“My app this week is ‘History Eraser.’ This app lets you clean up absolutely everything on your Android device: browser history, browser cache, even the clipboard can be erased. Any personal information tracked by an app, your call history, your SMS/MMS history…all of that can be cleared. I came across this app when I needed to erase my clipboard, so I could stop random1ly pasting the same silly thing in over and over when I didn’t mean to. Oddly enough, Android gives you no way to do that without an app. So, when you want to cover your tracks or clean your clipboard, History Eraser is the app for you! It’s free, in the Google Play Store.” — Mark
For iOS:
• Rob recommends: Camera!!, Free
“With the Camera!! app, you can transform your pictures into works of art. It works very similar to Instagram, but it’s not a social network. You get to choose from 20 filters. If you want five more filters, you can pay 99 cents as an in-app purchase. It can be a little slow, but when an app is free, I can’t complain too much. You can take pictures within the app or import from your camera roll. You can also share it across your social networks and email.” — Rob
Before:
After:
• Chris recommends: Hide the Fart, FREE
“My app this week is called Hide the Fart. It’s true to the term “time waster.” On the screen, you are standing at a bus stop with two other people. the object is to hold your flatulence until cars pass and make noise. When they do, it’s safe to fart. You do that by tapping the screen. If you fart when there are no cars passing by, you get dirty looks from the other two people and you lose. If you hold your farts too long, the pressure builds up and the stench reaches the other people, and you also lose. The app is free in the iTunes App Store.” — Chris
Tune in to Hour 1 of our podcast for more details.
Guest in this hour:
John Walsh, Child Safety Advocate
The average family has 5 Internet devices in their home. Children’s advocate John Walsh joins us next with new survey results of tweens that show why parents need to monitor more than just the home computer.
Kyle in State College, Pennsylvania listening on 103.1 WRSC asked: “Windows 8: My biggest concern is not everyone now is going to the touch devices. You have to almost “go around” to get to the standard UI. Do you think it will be still the worthy upgrade for people who don’t have touchscreen devices?”
Touchscreen features aside, Windows 8 is supposed to be a major re-work of Windows, and it’s supposed to come with many new features like the Windows store and that start screen that makes it look “touch only”.
Microsoft knows that tablets won’t make up the majority of their devices by mid-2012 when Windows 8 is expected to come out, even if this version of the operating system will run on tablets, the bigger source of income for Microsoft will still likely be Windows on computers. It’s likely that you’ll see some computer with touchscreen to take advantage of the touch functionality, but Windows 8 should be an upgrade for everyone, regardless of whether their computer has touch capabilities or not.
Your concern over whether it’s a “worthy upgrade” is well- founded, however. Now that the release version is available in a Preview form, we’ve had more of a chance to see how Windows 8 works. The good news is, performance seems to be improved. It boots faster and loads apps faster. The bad news is, the user interface is really quite a
bit different from Windows 7. For the first time in a long while, people who upgrade to the new version of Windows, even experienced computer users, will need to re-train themselves on how to get around. For someone who is not using a touchscreen device, and is generally happy with how their current Windows 7 machine is performing, there is no compelling reason to move to Windows 8–and more than a few reasons to hold off!
For more information, tune in to Hour 1 of our podcast.
Saroj inDurham, North Carolina asked: “I have a Toshiba laptop with Windows Vista Time Warner Internet. I bought a refurbished Netgear wireless router from CompUSA a few months ago. It was working fine, but since yesterday, I am not able to connect to internet through the Netgear. I called Time Warner,
but they don’t support third party devices. Then, I called Netgear, but there is no free tech support, since it is a refurbished router. How can I make this netgear router work?”
Our intern Andrew, had a similar problem when he was running his home wireless network from a Netgear WGR610 wireless router. He was able to correct the problem simply by resetting the router.
On the back of the device, there should be a “tiny” grey button that can be pressed with a paper clip or a safety pin. Press and hold the button for 3 seconds (no longer) and the router should hard reset. On Netgear’s support page they suggest that you might need to download the latest firmware, which is basically an update for the router, in order to correct the problem.
Also, Netgear has a troubleshooting page that will take you through ten steps (based on the model of the device) that will help you correct the issue if it still persist. They even have a little video on the page that will walk you through the necessary steps listed on the page.
It would also be a good Idea to check if the item is covered under any type of warranty by CompUSA. Not likely, but if they really want to help you, they might be able to replace a defective unit for you at no cost, or at the very least help you further or better troubleshoot the problem.
Remember that if you do reset your router, it will return to its factory settings. Any settings you have entered will need to be entered again. You say you have Time Warner (Cable, we assume), so usually a router will just work when you plug it in to the cable modem. But if you’ve changed anything about the IP addressing scheme, or some other internal setting, the router will revert to the default numbering scheme.
For more information, tune in to Hour 1 of our podcast.
“Wireless Update” Weekly Feature with Chuck Hamby
from Verizon Wireless
4G LTE is the buzz of the wireless world. But Chuck Hamby is here to make sure you don’t get stung by over-enthusiastic marketers.
This Week’s Prizes for Our Listeners
Kingston: 16GB SD memory cards and a MobileLite G3 (USB 3.0 Card Reader)
Radio Shack: Auvio Element Earbuds with Microphone
ZoneAlarm (Check Point Software): Download keys for ZoneAlarm Extreme Security