Podcast: Play in new window | Embed
Tech News & Commentary
Gary in Santamaria, California calling in via the App asked us: “I have two questions for you… I’m hearing popping and cracking sounds coming from a new monitor I just bought. And also, I have a question on Windows 8. When I’m online and I have things that are up in front of me, I come out of the room and noticed that they minimize down to the corner. Is that supposed to do that?”
Gary, The popping and crackling noise you might be experiencing is probably due to a static charge inside the monitor. First, check if the plug is plugged properly and isn’t loose. Another possibility of the noises can be the power cord itself that is plugged. We suggest you to be cautious when using your computer, the noises could also be due to a high voltage monitor that wasn’t manufactured properly. The best advice we be to contact your monitor’s manufacturer and if you have warrenty, they can probably exchange the monitor at no cost.
Normally, your computer shouldn’t be minimizing your windows when you leave. A software or program you might have installed might be 
causing this problem. Some softwares might have a certain conflicts with Windows 8 since Windows 8 is still kind of new.
Gary, definitely make sure you have someone look at that monitor, CRTs used to get charged to over 20,000 volts internally, newer monitors don’t reach those levels but, depending on how it’s being backlit, yours may be getting a charge of 2,000 or 3,000 volts.
It won’t do anyone any good to have that constantly discharging. Sooner or later it will fry something inside your screen, or it may even start a fire… have it looked at.
For more information, tune in to Hour 3 of our podcast.
“Into Gaming Update” Weekly Feature with Mark Lautenschlager
Tony in Cookeville, Tennessee listening via SuperTalk 99.7FM WTN asked us: “I got a dell computer with a western digital HDD in it. Now according to WD its only 3% corrupted and its not enough to warrant it being replaced. Now the HDD won’t load. I’m wondering how in the world can I if it’s corrupted enough to have it replaced or just have it wiped and reinstall.”
Tony, If the hard drive came installed in your computer already, then you’re probably gonna have to deal with Dell to get it replaced under warranty, which probably won’t be very easy unless the computer is brand new, and it may require shipping your entire machine to them.
Even if you bought the hard drive yourself, it probably won’t be super easy to have it replaced, hard drives tend to be covered for faults that they come with, but after it’s been working for a while, many companies will tell you that if it was working, then you may have dropped your computer, or ran it over a magnet, so it’s not their problem.
Still, the first step would be to talk to them, if they can salvage some of your data and give it back to you on a working hard drive, then that would be your best option.
Failing that, you could always try to use a data recovery service to try to get some of what you lost back, or if you have a backup and don’t really care about what was on that drive, just get a replacement and call it a day, but still… find out what the warranty situation is, it’s no longer “not corrupted enough to replace,” now it won’t run at all, and that should be corrupted enough to warrant a new one, if you’re entitled to that.
It really all comes down to how old the computer is. You didn’t share that with us. If this is a brand new Dell computer, then deal with Dell and not Western Digital. They should replace the drive without argument, if it’s under warranty.
We realize that drive warranties often extend longer than computer warranties, but hard drives are so inexpensive now that they’ve become commodity items. The manufacturers try hard not to provide warranty replacements because the margins are so thin that giving you a second hard drive for free pretty much wipes any profit they made selling the first one to Dell.
If this machine is a few years old, you might be better off buying a new hard drive. You’ll likely be able to get one with a larger capacity, since prices have dropped on the 1TeraByte and 2TeraByte drives.
For more information, tune in to Hour 3 of our podcast.
Guest Segment:
Yoav Schwartz, Founder and CEO – WhoDoYou
Rely on advice collected from real conversations, skip the biased reviews and manipulated listings.
“IFA History Feature” brought to you by Messe-Berlin
In 1933 at the 10th Funkausstellung, today known as IFA, several companies had already presented TV sets with bigger screens ready for the market, now about the size of a postcard instead of a postage stamp, with 180 lines and 25 frames per second. These receivers were expensive, but the engineer Dr.Walter Bruch from Telefunken developed a small and cheaper unit for the masses, named “Volksempfänger” which is German for “people’s receiver. Two years later in 1935 the first regular TV broadcast in the world started in Berlin, with 90 minutes three times a week.
Becky in Columbia, Tennessee listens on SuperTalk WTN 99.7 asked us: ” I heard you talking about the tablet that you can get $37, and my laptop which is Windows XP died a month ago, I’m on disability and I’ve been saving up for an iPad or mini iPad or something like that and I was interested what the $37 one was and if would be worth getting.”
Becky, Ubislate $38 tablets don’t really compare favorably to an iPad or an iPad Mini, don’t think you’d be getting the same kind of tablet.
They’re lower end in specs, they’re running an older Operating System, and generally speaking they’re pretty much worse in every respect… but they’re also less than $40…
So, are they worth getting? well… an iPad would be a better tablet, having said that, it would also be many, many times more expensive. Here’s what we suggest, would you consider buying a $40 Ubislate while still saving up for an iPad? Best case you decide that you don’t need an iPad after all, worst case you have a temporary intermediate tablet while you continue to save for a better one.
We just recommend that if you do that, you do it thinking of it as a temporary tablet, not as an iPad replacement, if it’s good enough to be your permanent one, then great! you lucked out and saved a ton of money, but keep in mind that that it likely won’t be.
The thing we like about the Ubislate tablets is that they’re actually USABLE at that under-$40 price point. As we said, no $40 tablet is going to be better, or even as good as, a $400 tablet. But so many of the really inexpensive “value priced” tablets have been complete junk that we’re pleased to say that the Ubislates actually DO work.
They are ideal as a second tablet, one that you might take to an environment that you’d never risk a $400 tablet in (such as poolside, or the beach, or to any kind of outdoor event in who knows what kind of weather). They are also excellent tablets to give to young children, because they’ll run the apps the kids want to run (for the most part), and when Junior drops it on the tile floor, you’re not out an iPad.
For more information, tune in to Hour 3 of our podcast.
Paul asked us: “I have a Droid razr M running 4.1.2, My question is, will I be able at some point to receive KitKat 4.4. I have been told that Verizon has blocked some phones from receiving updates…I am assuming so that they push the more expensive models.Is this the case or will it be available?”
Paul, The Razr M started receiving the 4.4.2 update in late May, and you should’ve been notified of it being available automatically.
Since it’s been a while already, if you haven’t been notified yet, you can force the phone to check for an update by opening your Settings, going to About Phone and then tapping System Updates, if the update is available for your phone (which it should be), you’ll be given the option to update immediately, if for some reason an update doesn’t show up, make sure you’re not on Android 4.4.2 already, and if you’re not, you may want to call Verizon, just to check… it should be available to you by now, and you should’ve been notified automatically.
For more information, tune in to Hour 3 of our podcast.
Frank in Raleigh, North Carolina listening on WPTF 680 asked us: “I have a Lenovo laptop and for some reason, the only video I can get normally is with an external monitor. The Lenovo has not lost its backlight because I can, at times, get both screens to appear. Some setting is causing that screen on the laptop to be dark. I can shine a flashlight on it to see the image, but I can’t see it properly so I have to have it connected to an external monitor.”
Frank, It might be the brightness level of the laptop, If you can’t manage to go into the setting and raise the brightness because of the darkness you can also press the “Fn” key and “Home” key simultaneously. If the darkness still continues, it could the be that the mini fluorescent lamp went out and it needs to be replaced.
Laptops use a mini fluorescent lamp to light up the monitor. To find which mini fluorescent lamp you need, please refer to your manual because each laptop is different.
It’s actually a fairly common thing for laptop screens to need replacing. In fact, both screens and keyboards are often replaced. I’m not surprised at all that you’re having trouble. A new screen installed should cost you around $150. If your laptop is older and you’ve been chomping at the bit to buy a new one anyway, then… you’re welcome.
For more information, tune in to Hour 3 of our podcast.
If you have any questions about any of this week’s show info, please email us here.
This Week’s Prizes for Our Listeners
Other World Computing (OWC): NUGUARD KX – Kinectic Energy X-Orbing Case for iPad Air
Phone Halo: StickR TrackR — Find any object you attach it to with your smartphone
Bits Limited: Mini Squids — Travel-Sized surge protected power strips
Tylt: ENERGI Sliding Power Cases for iPhone 5 and Samsung Galaxy S4.
“Into Tomorrow”: Microfiber Screen Cleaning Cloths with Dave’s cartoon on them, for all your smartphones, tablets, TVs, camera lenses and computer screens!