TechByter Worldwide (formerly Technology Corner) with Bill Blinn

From Kodak and Microsoft to D-Link and Turtle Beach, we'll take a look at this week's Consumer Electronics. It's beginning to sound like Microsoft will make the Windows 10 update free for Windows 8 users. A TechByter guest writer explains encryption in more or less plain English on the website. In Short Circuits, an IBM report says on-line thieves are becoming more efficient, Apple prepares to lau...

I've been yammering about the new look and feel for months. Now, finally, you get a chance to see them. Alien Skin has released a new version of Exposure and photographers are going to want it. Kodak plans to introduce a new camera in a smart phone at the Consumer Electronics Show. In Short Circuits, China blocks access to G-Mail, Pew Research says most of us think the Internet makes us more produ...

The 2014 version of Muse makes it a worthwhile choice for many. NASA engineers are working on a program that will improve airport efficiency and might reduce noise. Facebook's new privacy policy rings an alarm in Europe. In Short Circuits: Vending machines will change and might talk to you, NBC offers live streaming (with a catch), Alien Skin released Exposure 7, T-Mobile says that if you don't us...

If you've delayed buying a solid-state drive thinking that it won't last long enough, I have good news; a new nationwide repair chain (more than 90 stores) says it can repair the gadgets you break; In Short Circuits: Chromebooks threaten Ipads in the eduction market, ESET offers free scanning (and maybe confusion) via Facebook, efforts to reduce cyber-bullying with software, the dangers of bringin...

Microsoft has just released a new full build for Windows 10; you may be thinking warm-fuzzy thoughts, but crooks are not; In Short Circuits: I was surprised recently when I found out how much space system restore files were consuming on the computer's C drive; when something went wrong with the Nexus 7 tablet, Google support did what it's supposed to do; and if you have a smart phone, Weplan will...

If you're a creative, Adobe wants to chase you out of the office and you'll go willingly; it seems that thieves are making off with supposedly secure data by the gigabyte; in Short Circuits, Home Depot faces lots of suits, but won't be hurt by its data breaches, Symantec says US the British spy agencies have planted malware worldwide, and Amazon tries yet another discount trick to sell the Fire Ph...

Happy Thanksgiving from TechByter Worldwide. The greeting is two and a half minutes long.

Malwarebytes offers free and paid versions of protective applications that work with your standard antivirus program and I've been trying them; an interesting combination of events this week caused me to think about Net Neutrality, rural electrification, and the future of US competitiveness; In Short Circuits: How to make Pandora stop asking if you're listening -- at least for a while; Yahoo start...

Adobe's Premiere Elements 13 looks like a winner for amateurs who want to improve their videos but not spend a lot of money to do it; if you've tried OpenOffice but found it missing features you wanted, perhaps it's time to look at some of the extensions; in Short Circuits: Perhaps thinking it's Santa Claus, Verizon is keeping an eye on you all the time; Microsoft offers the Office suite for free...

Google is making Android apps available on Chromebooks so is somebody thinking about merging the 2 Linux-based operating systems? The next version of Windows has been renumbered and delayed, so what will you pay for it? I'd like to think it'll be free. In Short Circuits: Users of Apple devices get an improved version of Microsoft's One Note, the FTC files suit against AT and T, Facebook's profits...

Even if you don't click anything, just visiting a site (sometimes a trusted site) can load your computer up with malware; Adobe and Nielsen Ratings have formed a partnership and I can't imagine a better combination; and in Short Circuits: Zoho aims for the back office, Yahoo sees something unusual -- profits, bullying seems to be everywhere, and CBS decides that streaming video is the future.

Drowning in a sea of new Adobe products, I grabbed the latest version of Photoshop Elements for closer examination; my favorite Mac FTP program comes to Windows; and in Short Circuits: the Double Irish may come to an end, tablet sales are poised to rise more slowly, the New York Times reports that Russian hackers are taking advantage of a Windows flaw, and I'll share a few whispers about TechByter...

Because phishing attacks depend on social engineering, they're harder to defend against that normal malware; if there's a designer, photographer, publisher, or videographer that isn't excited about the latest from Adobe, you should check to see if they're breathing; and in Short Circuits: AMD gets another CEO, talking to your car is unsafe, the PC market that's been sluggish for several years may...

Microsoft caught just about everyone off guard by announcing that there will be no Windows 9 in the near future and that Windows 10 won't be released until late next year. We'll try to catch up. And in Short Circuits: Mark Twain was right when he said that lies travel faster than truth and this is even more true in the age of the Internet, considering where the FCC will go with Net Neutrality, Eba...

Those who have wondered who receives information about their browsing habits may find a new Firefox plug-in useful, Adobe has just released Elements 13 and I'll have a quick first look. In Short Circuits: Apple says NO to police who want data from Iphones and Ipads; Resetting the terror meter on the Bash Bug; A new idea for voice communication by phone; and Apple bought Beats several months ago, b...

The Chromebook I bought about two months ago is even more useful now that I've read a book by Michael Miller and I'll talk with Miller on this week's podcast, Firefox continues to delight and annoy, and in Short Circuits: Sony's profits sink even faster than expected, the final contenders for returning the US to space are SpaceX and Boeing, and a comapny in Norway wants to be Instagram for childre...

If you remember using PaintShop Pro, now's the time to consider what the latest version can offer. Passwords may be the best first line of defense, but multi-factor passwords are better. In Short Circuits ... Apple's new phone and watch are cool, but this week Apple unveiled something even better, Amazon drops the price of it's Fire phones to 99 cents and some think that's overpriced, and Internet...

Quattro was derided as a knock-off by Lotus in the 1980s, but after all these years, it's Quattro Pro that survives. After shrinking for decades, cell phones are now becoming larger. In Short Circuits: It appears that Home Depot is the latest retail operation to be hacked, a quick follow-up on a couple of free applications, another quick update on my troubles connecting a Seagate hard drive to a N...

Productivity features added to the 2014 CC edition of Dreamweaver can make a real difference, Tablets are outstanding devices for reading books if you can find a way to add the books you want to read to the tablet, In Short Circuits: Steve Ballmer retires from Microsoft's board of directors, HP releases a $200 Windows PC to counter Chromebooks, and the upcoming Windows 9 preview will be available...

Productivity features added to the 2014 CC edition of Dreamweaver can make a real difference, Tablets are outstanding devices for reading books if you can find a way to add the books you want to read to the tablet, In Short Circuits: Steve Ballmer retires from Microsoft's board of directors, HP releases a $200 Windows PC to counter Chromebooks, and the upcoming Windows 9 preview will be available...

Identity theft is probably more common and more expensive than you think. Protection is better than recovery, the number of fraudulent e-mail messages seems to be increasing daily, Adobe's InDesign updates are pushing the application into the future, and in Short Circuits: employees may take proprietary data with them when they leave and a happy little hotel robot might do a dance for you someday.

Nasty Russian hackers have your password! Or is this all just a ploy to sell a monitoring service? Xara's latest Web Designer program looks like a hit. Lightroom works with modern pictures, but also with antiques. In Short Circuits: Thumb drive turn out to be more rugged than I thought, Microsoft sues Samsung, and it appears that Android is about to own the smart phone market.

Are Chromebooks viable alternatives these days? Three years after Google released these Internet-based computers, they're beginning to look like they might work for lots of people. In Short Circuits ... Android phone and tablet users are facing a scary-looking threat that may not be so scary after all, Congress says that it's now OK to jailbreak your phone, and Facebook has released its new Messen...

The Nigerian e-mail scam now targets businesses; sometimes, with tech support, you have to be persistent; Apple may be spying on you; Chromebooks are starting to push Apple out of schools; rent that e-book you want to read; and Netflix hits another growth spurt.

With the second iteration of Creative Cloud, Adobe is working hard to convince users of its value and it appears that they're succeeding. Google Maps added some new features and redesigned the interface recently; it looks like an improvement to me. In Short Circuits: The FCC had to extend the comment period on net neutrality because their website blew up again, Intel's profits are up as the compan...