HOUR 3:
Tech News & Commentary
Dale in Santamaria, California asked: “Trying to setup a VPN network at home and I’m having problems looking for the right software and router. I have a Cisco WTN610n router and am looking for the easiest way to setup a VPN with encryption.”
A VPN is a Virtual Private Network. In short, it creates a secure, encrypted connection between a remote computer and a corporate network (typically). The difference between a VPN and a secure browser connection is that with a VPN you aren’t connecting to a specific machine or program on the other end. You’re connecting with the remote NETWORK, just as if you plugged in a network cable back at the office. You can then log in to servers or printers on that network, or use any other resource of the network. So basically it’s a virtual network cable strung through cyberspace, protected from everything else around it.
Dale, you didn’t say whether you wanted to set up a VPN client at home, to connect with an office network remotely, or whether you wanted to create a VPN for your home network so that you could connect back home when you were traveling. There are many different VPN server solutions AND client solutions, and you can choose them independently because they are designed for standard protocols. But we’re going to give you a suggestion: YouTube! If you browse to YouTube.com and search for “VPN” you will see hundreds of videos demonstrating how to set up various VPN clients. You can watch some of them and see which one strikes you as easy to set up.
Cisco makes one of the most popular VPN solutions, but you don’t have to use it just because you have a Linksys by Cisco brand router. As long as the router offers VPN pass-through, any VPN software should work.
“Into
Gaming Update” Weekly Feature with Mark Lautenschlager
GROUP DISCUSSION: Google TV with Logitech Revue — Our initial thoughts
– Forget about sleeping if you have this in your bedroom!
– Installation was fairly easy. We have our Logitech Revue connected to a Dish Network VIP722 receiver.
– YouTube Leanback is among our favorite features! Our HD ITTV Videos look amazing 🙂
– Retails at $299 directly from Logitech
If you have any questions or would like us to look into a specific feature further, let us know right now! Call 1-800-899-4686.
For more information, click tune in to Hour 3 of our podcast.
William in Escanaba, Michigan listening on WPIQ 92.7 asked: “I just bought a distributorship of a nationwide product and am looking for invoicing computers. Something handheld and with a printer. Curious which ones had the best features and if you guys knew anything about that.”
It’s pretty difficult to recommend something as particular as business software without knowing an awful lot about the business. That’s why consultants can earn a living 🙂 For example, you mention invoicing. There are invoices for sales from inventory, invoices for time billing of professional services, invoices from a work order system, just to name a few. Finding which software meets your specific needs would require getting to know what those needs are and that’s not practical in this situation. That being said, however, we can make a recommendation.
Quickbooks Online from Intuit is an web-based accounting program that offers invoicing and accounts receivable. They have recently added an app for iPhone, Android, and BlackBerry to let you access your Quickbooks Online account using a mobile device, which is about as handheld as you get. You can sign up for a 30 day free trial and see if it meets your needs. The mobile app is available through the various app stores, depending on your mobile platform.
Guest in this hour:
Bob Cramer, CEO – Nimbit
Nimbit makes it easy for musicians to connect with their fans, and for fans to support their favorite artists in a variety of ways.
Brian in Raleigh, North Carolina listening on WPTF 680 AM asked: “Security for online banking: On a home PC, I know it’s safe. If I was to go to a Wi-Fi Internet connection in the house, I know that’s a little risky. Second question: to do banking on a cell phone, like a Blackberry, what are the negatives about doing that?”
The entire “Into Tomorrow” team has been doing banking online for many, many years and — so far — have had no problems. There has been quite a stir lately about the Firefox extension “Firesheep,” that works by “side-jacking” your online accounts, and that has prompted a lot of concern over computer security. Any time we pay attention to security, that’s a good thing. Firesheep only works under two conditions. You must be using an unsecured Wi-Fi connection and you must be connecting to a website that does not establish a secure connection through the browser. Hopefully, your home Wi-Fi network uses WEP or WPA security to encrypt the connection generally. And, of course, any bank or financial institution that does not encrypt the browser connection would be in violation of numerous federal laws and standards. So while Firesheep may make it possible for the guy sitting next to you at Starbucks to post on your Facebook page as you, your online banking is likely to be just fine.
Chet sent the following Facebook Message: “Dear Mr. Graveline, I’m at my parents house visiting with them. They have decided to get a new television. The space they have built in to the wall will only fit a 32-inch because the space is 35 1/4-inches. They found a Vizio 1080 resolution at Costco that they like. You being America’s authority on the issues, WHAT TV SHOULD I PURCHASE?”
We have to tell ya that we love the Vizio televisions. We have a few of them in our studios here and have not noticed any lesser quality than some of the more expensive sets we’ve reviewed or watched. In fact, in some cases, the lower priced Vizios had a BETTER picture quality than a “premium” brand TV. But, like everything else, it comes down to personal preference. That’s why we usually tell people to go to a local electronics retailer and check out the picture quality for yourself. And when we say a local electronics retailer, we don’t mean the electronics department at Walmart or Target. It’s fine to purchase the sets there — if that’s where you find the best price, but they may not necessarily have the sets that are on display, setup properly. Plus, they are in these wide open spaces with bright fluorescent lighting. And I can almost guarantee that that’s not how the lighting will be in the room you’ll have the TV in.
Go to a Best Buy, or some other store that sells only electronics. At least compare the quality there. Then, if you find the same set somewhere like Walmart or Costo for less money, you can go there to buy it. But you always want to be able to see the TVs in an environment that is at least somewhat similar to the environment it will be in at home.
If you have any questions about any of this week’s show info, please email us here.
This Week’s Prizes for Our Listeners
AT&T: A Pantech Ease Phone – Interactive touch screen with a convenient slide-out full QWERTY keypad and built-in pedometer.
Honestech: Copies of Claymation Studio 3.0 Deluxe with PC Camera included – stop motion video creation software
Serif: Copies of PhotoPlus X3 Digital Studio – Professional digital image editing software
TrendMicro: Copies of Titanium 2011 — Maximum Internet Security including 10 gigs of online backup.
TuneUp: Copies of TuneUp Utilities – Optimization software for PCs.