POP | TECH | JAM show

POP | TECH | JAM

Summary: The independent audio magazine devoted to mashing up pop culture, technology and more. New York based geek-culture journalists J.D. Biersdorfer and Pedro Rafael Rosado are your hosts.

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  • Artist: J.D. Biersdorfer and Pedro Rafael Rosado
  • Copyright: HeadStepper Media

Podcasts:

 PTJ 164: El Kaiser Awakens | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 35:14

The countdown to the opening of the newest “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” has officially begun! This week saw the release of a new trailer, an official movie poster, and pre-sale tickets. One thing noticeably absent from all the hoopla: Luke Skywalker. Also on the show, El Kaiser delivers his annual “State of the Podcast” rant and J.D. takes a look at note taking apps for mobile devices. Oh yeah, and we lots and lots of tech news.

 PTJ 163: Oh, Oh, Oh, It’s Magic! | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 32:41

El Kaiser is back from the House of Mouse with a Tech Term focusing on the magic of technology at Disney parks and J.D. fills us in on the many commands available to use with Siri, Cortana, and Google Now. Don’t fret, we have the week’s tech news sprinkled with our usual generous helping of snark.

 PTJ 162: Microsoft Doubles Down on Hardware | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 26:10

Back in the day, Microsoft was the elephant in the room. Apple was a cult favorite and Google was just a search engine. These days, Bill Gates’ pride and joy is the scrappy underdog and is doing all it can to stay relevant. To that end, the boys from Redmond unveiled a slew of products this week and that took aim squarely at behemoths Apple and Google. In a Hopefully Helpful Hint segment, J.D. explains how we can tweak privacy setting on Windows 10.

 PTJ 161: Apple Watchers | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 48:26

Technologist Don Donofrio stops by this week with a review of the new iPhone 6s Plus and some insights on life with an Apple Watch. (And check out the articles he mentions on both the iPhone’s evolving camera and Sherry Turkle’s recent essay about face-to-face conversation in a smartphone world.) Apple put out a press release this week saying it sold 13 million new iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus phones in the first three days of sales, so hopefully some people were having meaningful conversations while waiting in line at the Apple Store. And here’s one tip, even if you still have an older phone — but upgraded to iOS 9. Many tech sites around the web suggest that you turn off the Wi-Fi Assist option in your iPhone’s settings unless you have the cherished old unlimited data plan. The setting, which is on by default and lets the phone automatically jump to a cellular network if your Wi-Fi signal is lousy, was driving up mobile data bills for many unsuspecting people with capped data plans. The Wi-Fi Assist toggle is down at the very bottom of the Cellular settings on your iPhone, and owners of cellular iPads with monthly data plans may want to flip off Wi-Fi Assist as well. If you do have the unlimited data plan — burn, baby, burn!

 PTJ 160: Takedowns and New News | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 30:14

This week on the galaxy’s best independent tech-themed podcast, El Kaiser breaks down the Digital Millennium Copyright Act and J.D. digs up some news apps that may may actually help you forget the long lamented Google Reader. And, of course, we have a whole mess of pumpkin-spiced tech news for your listening pleasure.

 PTJ 159: Put Your Credit On Ice…Online | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 29:13

The Internet is a wonderful thing, but where there is good, there is also bad — namely the major spike in identity theft and credit-card fraud. Within the past couple years, hacks of huge customer-info databases like Target, Anthem, Sony, eBay, Home Depot, the IRS, Ashley Madison, JPMorgan, CVS Photo and U.S. government computer systems have put the personal information of millions of people into the hands of evildoers. Getting a fraud alert call from your credit-card company — or seeing and stopping unauthorized charges on your monthly bill — is annoying enough to deal with, but things get kicked up several notches in the PITA department if your whole identity is stolen. If someone gets your Social Security number, address and other personal information, you can find your credit wrecked by that person signing up for new credit cards in your name and running up unpaid bills.One thing you can do to protect yourself, however, is to put a Security Freeze on your credit file with the big three agencies – Experian, TransUnion and Equifax. The freeze locks up access to your credit report — which people issuing new credit cards want to see before they approve a new account. If it’s you wanting that new account, you just have to provide a pre-approved PIN to unlock your reports for creditors, but an identity thief won’t have access to that. So most likely someone else’s application for a new credit card in your name will be turned down, thus saving your credit integrity. You can put the freeze on your credit file in about 20 minutes by going online to the sites of Experian, TransUnion and Equifax and filling out a webform. You do have to type in your Social Security Number for this, so make sure you are on a secure Internet connection. You also need to remember the PIN you pick to unfreeze your accounts. If you are nervous about doing this online, you can also call each agency: * Equifax — 1-800-349-9960 * Experian — 1‑888‑397‑3742 * TransUnion — 1-888-909-8872 Depending on the state you live in, there may be a small fee to freeze or unfreeze your credit files. Activating a security freeze does not affect your credit score, stop fraud on existing credit cards or prevent you from getting a free annual credit report. It also does not stop your mailbox from filling up with “prescreened” credit-card offers and pamphlets, but you can call or go online to opt out of those at 1-888-5-OPT-OUT (1-888-567-8688) or at www.optoutprescreen.com. Intrigued, but want to know more about the credit deep freeze?

 PTJ 158: No, the “Apple Pencil” is Not a Joke | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 56:41

In this special double-sized episode, we look at this week’s Apple product announcement and feature a bountiful late summer harvest of tech news. Also on the show, are technobabble, jargon and buzzwords ruining our ability to write clearly — and get the point across with our colleagues? Author Phil Simon joins us to discuss the general state of professional  correspondence in this high-tech world of ours. Phil’s latest book, Message Not Received: Why Business Communication Is Broken and How to Fix It, is out now and here’s its trailer: Message Not Received – Book Trailer from Phil Simon on Vimeo.

 Have You Been Ghosted? You Know Who to Call | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 32:15

You date someone and suddenly they cut off  all contact. Texts are ignored, calls are unanswered. No explanation for the disappearing act. That poor confused, and propably angry soul, has just been “ghosted” and in this world, there are two types of people: ghosters and ghostees. El Kaiser explains how it is actually harder than ever to completely shut someone out of your life these days. The iOS and Android have more in common than most people think. On this weeks episode, J.D. looks at the similarities between the two dominant mobile operating systems. We also offer up a late summer hunk of tech news and shenanigans. POP | TECH | JAM: Same as it ever was…

 PTJ 156: Creation Sensation | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 35:05

The Ashley Madison Hackpocalypse shows no signs of fading away, Google has brought back its Map Maker tool (now with adult supervision) and the Japanese have sent whiskey into space. J.D. and El Kaiser march through these stories and more in the weekly roundup of geek news. Technology has changed many aspects of daily life — including how we express ourselves through music, art, photography and more. Laura M. Holson drops by to discuss how people are finding outlets for their creativity with mobile apps. If you want to play along at home, check these out: • DubSmash lets you lip-sync the hits in Vine-like clips. (Check out how much fun the the stars of Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D and Agent Carter had with the app this summer — and now there’s even a contest for charity brewing.) Oh, and it’s free for Android and iOS. • GarageBand is music-making software for OS X and iOS and even if you don’t know the first thing about multitrack recording or writing your own songs, you’ll learn fast with this gem of a program. It’s $5 if it didn’t already come on your device and the help guide can be, well, helpful. • Paper By FiftyThree  is a free drawing, sketching and brainstorming app for the iPad. • Frontback uses your smartphone’s front and rear cameras to take two images that are then shared as a single photo or video. It’s free for Android and iOS. • Disney Frozen: Story Theater lets you create your own stories using characters and props from Disney’s unstoppable 2013 animated ice-princes film. (Yeah, good luck getting THAT SONG out of your head now.) The app is $5 for the iOS device of your choice, but that doesn’t mean it’s ad-free, as a disclaimer on the site warns: Before you download this experience, please consider that this app contains advertising for the Walt Disney Family of Companies. • Buddha Board goes beyond the mobile app and lets you get the Zen with a $35 piece of hardware designed to let you live in the moment.

 Episode 28: Revirtualized! | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 22:14

This week J.D. is the one on vacation but through the magic of prerecording we present a brand-spanking new edition of everyone's favorite pop-culture and technology audio magazine. Haven't finished shopping for this non-denominational winter holiday gift-giving season? Not to worry! In this episode J.D. introduces us to some low-tech products the high-tech geek in your life will love. Also on the show El Kaiser, concerned that he may be carrying too many gadgets with him when he travels, considers a radical change.

 Episode 27: That New Tablet Smell… | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 31:40

El Kaiser unboxes a new addition to his tablet arsenal, Google (and Samsung's) Nexus 10, and J.D. gives us her first impressions of Apple's redesign of their iTunes media player and media library application. In the news, tech companies concerned over International Telecommunications Union's reworking of a telecom treaty that may negatively impact Internet freedom, thousands of Tumblr accounts are hacked, and the text message is finally out of its awkward teen years.

 Episode 26: The Virtual Episode | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 19:38

El Kaiser takes a much needed vacation but that doesn't stop the Pop Tech Jammers from bringing you some geeky goodness! This week J.D. reviews the book "Mad Science" from the writers and editors at Wired Magazine and Pedro tackles live blogging in another of his Tech Term segments. He also makes a startling announcement that might just rock the very foundations of the universe this little blue marble we call Earth floats in! Okay, that may be overstating a bit. Pedro just gives us the lowdown on his new smartphone.

 Episode 25: Planes, Trains and Cyber Monday Mania | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 32:30

Cyber Security expert David Perry of AhnLab phones in with tips on how to protect yourself online during the Holiday shopping season plus J.D. and Pedro discuss apps that might make holiday travel a little bit easier. In the news, Microsoft and Apple have up and down weeks; Google decides it doesn't need the last month of the year and is rumored to be working on an Airplay alternative; and Nintendo debuts its new gaming console.

 Episode 24: Ducky Doughnut (It’ll Make Sense When You Listen) | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 30:07

This week J.D. lists some useful apps that will get you through the Thanksgiving Holiday and Pedro laments the lack of decent gaming controllers for his tablets. In the news, a political scandal with a tech twist; high-level changes in the executive ranks at Apple and Google; RIM is finally ready to unveil the Blackberry 10 OS; and Youtube distributes cancellation slips.

 Episode 23: You’re Never Gonna Keep Us Down | File Type: audio/mpeg | Duration: 28:03

J.D. gives us her thoughts on the new iPad Mini and Pedro mourns the loss of his beloved Star Wars. In the news, new tech products designed specifically for women; Microsoft set to debut a gaming tablet, Amazon Lockers to be available at an office supply giant; and Instagram heads to the web.

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