DaveMason.com
ComputerTalk with Dave Mason
The official archive of all available ComputerTalk with Dave Mason radio shows. Spend some time with Dave. Listen to a full show or explore clips by topic.
3,475 unique clips. Each clip appears in one section. Historical conversations, not current advice. Full episodes remain available separately by date.
1414 clips, strongest first.
Dr. Dave says people often swing between doing far too much and believing they need no protection at all. He proposes a practical middle ground that distinguishes tools by purpose, covers real risks and avoids counterproductive stacks of unnecessary software.
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Dr. Dave states the purpose of Computer Talk in a compact passage: cut through hype and explain in nontechnical language what technology means to people where the rubber meets the road. It is a direct expression of the service philosophy behind the program.
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After explaining that every storage method can fail, Dr. Dave reduces the remedy to two independent protections and a memorable deadline: the time to create the fallback is when the data is still safe and nobody urgently needs it.
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In a discussion with Corel's product manager, Dr. Dave says even a professional artist does not need to become a software-usage expert. His 80-20 question is what helps a person become productive at the work they actually came to do; Evil Steve supports the point with his own history of starting quickly and producing professional results.
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Dr. Dave distinguishes the cost of a computer from the value of the information it manages and argues that a person does not need to be an expert but does need enough awareness to know what is being protected and whether the protection still works.
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A stolen data report and a heavily infected company machine lead Dr. Dave to distinguish a bank’s protected website from the vulnerable computer used to reach it. He says serious technology advisers should keep reassessing risk because technically skilled people can still underestimate how personal systems create the weakest link.
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Discussing scanners for old negatives and slides, Dr. Dave and Evil Steve argue that maximum resolution is only one part of quality. For someone preserving a thousand images, color, format support and the number that can be handled in one pass may matter more than the most impressive number on the box.
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WiMAX forecasts prompt a broader warning about identifying with a technology and making decisions before it is ready.
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After another major website compromise, Dr. Dave refuses to promise perfect protection. Tools and careful behavior can reduce risk, he says, but even organizations with sophisticated security teams are attacked and no one can guarantee that every problem will be prevented.
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A client seeking one new feature follows support's uninstall-and-update instructions and loses functions the business had relied on for years. Dr. Dave does not advise fighting every recommendation, but he insists that critical hardware and software deserve deliberate judgment because a casual experiment at home and a change that can cripple a business are not the same risk.
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A retailer’s effort to stay unnamed after a major breach leads Dr. Dave to argue that hiding an incident backfires and that customers can trust an organization with problems only when it tells them what happened.
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A broad Internet email slowdown leaves Dr. Dave unable to find immediate outside confirmation. He says years of experience have taught him to trust a carefully checked observation, but never to go off half cock or announce a conclusion without still trying to confirm it.
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Ahead of a Wi-Fi Alliance interview, Dr. Dave says high technology is routinely hyped, overblown and oversold and calls the show the anti-oversold factor. He promises to remain professional and courteous while telling the truth, then places clarity and honesty above advertising revenue.
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At the opening, Dr. Dave says Computer Talk exists to cut through hype rather than repeat technology press releases. He promises discernment and the truth, whether good, bad or otherwise, while joking that avoiding advertising influence may cost the show money.
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Using Palm and the then-new Samsung Galaxy S3 as examples, Dr. Dave argues that specifications and version numbers often overshadow how efficiently a device helps someone work and live. Small functional choices shape the whole user experience and even affect how customers judge the carrier that sold the phone.
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Dr. Dave explains that press releases can inform a reviewer but cannot replace depending upon a product in real work. Short tests often miss weaknesses that appear only after a buyer commits, so he installs Windows 8.1 on a laptop and runs his business from it exclusively before judging the experience.
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Using Google Sync, Gmail, Microsoft and Skype as 2012 examples, Dr. Dave distinguishes making use of a service from becoming dependent on it. He wants alternatives already in use or ready, then describes the freedom to question habits created by billions of dollars in marketing and jump off the treadmill when a tool no longer serves the person.
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Evil Steve asks whether free or inexpensive software automatically counts as good. Dr. Dave says usefulness comes first, but price still determines whether a great tool is a realistic option for most people.
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Dr. Dave and his son see convenience and speed in installing a game to the next Xbox's hard drive, but Dr. Dave objects to making that the only path. His broader design rule is simple: a consumer-centered product explains the tradeoffs and lets the person using it choose.
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While discussing Internet Explorer and web standards, Dr. Dave says companies may choose their technology but users remain free to reject a site that forces them to use one browser. The passage makes consumer choice part of his larger standard that technology should serve people rather than trap them.
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Dr. Dave accepts Microsoft's point that a billion-user ecosystem and countless third-party drivers create problems the operating-system maker cannot fully control. But when the company begins blaming users, he pushes back: people have responsibilities, yet the same people experienced fewer problems with XP, so Vista itself must share the burden.
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The distinction between price and value leads Dr. Dave and Evil Steve to their own radio experience: a business that repeatedly cuts price without protecting what it offers can follow the curve all the way out of business.
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Dr. Dave says suspicious claims should be investigated rather than automatically believed or dismissed. Even after checking a respected hoax reference and applying his own experience, he contacts Dell directly because getting the answer from the original source adds the credibility he needs.
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Dr. Dave separates attractive Windows Vista previews from practical value, focusing on search, organization and easier connections rather than visual polish. Even so, he promises to judge stability, integrity and security after release and cautions against becoming an early adopter before real world evidence exists.
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Browse by year, then month, to find the episodes from that month.
442 proposed broadcast dates, plus 2 undated entries. Dates are based on archive filenames and may be approximate. Some broadcasts survive as separate parts or incomplete recordings.
