The Computer Exorcist Podcast

Whenever I watch two big, bad companies slug it out like Godzilla and Mothra, all I can think of is, "They're both bad. I want both of them to lose." Such is the case on today's episode where we watch the industry's biggest and baddest duke it out. Roku's desire to wet its beak caused a feud with Spectrum, and Facebook's desire to monitor EVERY THING YOU EVER DO EVER ca...

Today we introduce another new special guest, Cara Jean from Taking Cara Business (clever, right?). In contrast to the world of coaches who pile tons of homework on your already chaotic life, she is a leadership coach who has removed the scrambling from my workday and helped me stay focused on my mission. We discuss SolarWinds, which is yet another monopoly in the IT field. I explain the fact that...

Tonight we have a new friend of the show: Cousin Joey. He's basically the cast of GoodFellas all rolled into one guy. He's an experienced mechanic who's here to teach us about the auto industry. We discuss saving thousands on repairs by using junkyard and aftermarket parts. We then explain drive-by-wire and brake-by-wire, and finish it all off by discussing EVs made by mom-and-pop firm...

It's another Torment a Scammer episode!! Tonight, a "Law Enforcement Officer" by the name of "David James" calls me to inform me that my bank accounts were hacked and used to promote drug trafficking. He then hangs up on me and has his colleague "David Miller" call me, and I get him really fired up. It was a joy to perform and will hopefully be a joy to behold. Next a &...

Today Marc calls out and shames legal companies that in reality are diabolical scams. In one of them, a company mails you a letter asking for $125 to fill out a simple $9 government form. In another, a company asks $289 for domain hosting, which is normally $14 ... oh yeah, and they also end up controlling your website name as an added bonus. Not illegal, but still evil. It's like driving arou...

Tonight we continue our very special episode recorded in conjunction with Tone from RocToneDef Podcast! We explain: How regulation results in complexity, hassle, and barriers to entry for new contenders. A 2016 article where Microsoft's "Tay" AI chatbot is convinced to be a Nazi within 16 hours. MS apologized and said they'd learn from it and it'd never happen again. The outrag...

We've got something very special for y'all tonight: A joint episode between Marc from The Computer Exorcist Podcast and brilliant Tone from the RocToneDef Podcast! We discuss: How any kind of intelligence, natural or artificial, requires reason and judgement, otherwise it's pointless. Cultural lag, which describes the disparity between the few developing cutting edge technology and the...

Today we discuss the continued decline of automotive design. First up is a Porsche that uses microphones to detect if you're driving on slick roads (okay fine) but then nags and chastises you the entire time. What dawned on me is that it's not the tech necessarily - it's the designers who are yelling at you! This is why old cars are worth more - they're simple, reliable, and don&#3...

Today we read a satirical article about new car anti-features that are dangerously close to reality (like a car that gets impatient with you and drives itself to the dealer for maintenance). We then discuss Apple's new CarKey anti-feature that allows you to use your iPhone as a car key. You know, that iPhone that's always low on battery? Controlled by that iCloud whose password you can nev...

In today's episode, I receive an email from a scammer claiming to be PayPal. They claim I've purchased a phone and of course want me to let them into my computer or give them my banking information. I have fun with them, acting like a confused consumer who doesn't know the difference between "blue E", "the beachball", and "this fox one". They then tell me that h...

Hilarity ensues as my occasional co-host Dr. Mike joins me for his first auto industry episode. We find it impossible to keep a straight face while reading about GM choosing Microsoft as its autonomous tech partner, which is just like teaming up with Bernie Madoff to finance your next project, or Enron for your fuel needs. We then discuss AAA's findings that all autonomous cars are horrificall...

Today we finish up the article on Digital Veganism. We ask how did we get here in the first place? How did we allow all information on Earth to be controlled and monitored by a handful of people? What could we have done - and what can we do now? For starters, we can abandon the freebies they dangle in front of us in favor of paid services that actually respect us. Hint: Those $7/month email servic...

Continuing our article on Digital Veganism, the author talks to a guy who is both a digital and a regular vegan. He says sometimes you have to make exceptions and use Big Tech - only if it means furthering the cause of freedom. For example, using a Big Tech-owned site that promotes Open Source. The same thing goes for Smart TVs - now that nearly all TVs are smart, we are forced to buy them, but we...

Today we talk about one journalist's realization that Big Tech has a death grip on our lives - and more so on society as a whole. (People are now just starting to realize the stuff I have been warning about for over a decade as The Computer Exorcist.) She describes what happened when she tried to stop interacting with Big Tech, but also stop interacting with any firm that's powered by Big...

Today we talk about industry scandals! Bloatware: Factory-installed software designed to slow the machine down. The Forced Obsolescence Rat Race, aka Support Cash Grab Schemes: Making you think you need a new computer because yours is "out of support". Combo Boxes & Fake WiFi: Internet providers usually bring a powerful connection to your house, but then cut it by 99% with Fake Wifi. S...

Today we discuss Opportunistic Waste Management - in other words, taking a waste byproduct and finding a good use for it. Of course, my mind goes directly to the zillions of 1-year-old PCs wasting away in people's closets. These PCs could be faster than new, by simply ripping out any fake security software. Then, we spend the rest of the episode tormenting a scammer who can't figure out if...

Anti-virus scanners are completely and utterly useless. Why? Because viruses have not happened since 2013. So the only thing they're good at is giving you the side effects of wasting your money and slowing your PC down by 90-99%. Aren't there still threats, though? Yes. Bad guys have learned how to evade detection in new ways - what I call The Four New Threats. Unfortunately, most computer...

In today's episode, we take a peek into Ghana's hopeful adoption of information technology in 2002, and their appetite for it today in 2023. Thanks to voice talent actress Becca Thorpe for our slick new intro!

It's the first episode! Today we read an article from twenty years ago, about how horribly unreliable software is and how dependent society has become on it. Ha! Little did they know, it wouldn't get much better! Thanks to The Funeral Portrait for permission to use their song, Holy Water. Quite appropriate for my show, don't you think?

Find out by listening to this little intro!

What is The Computer Exorcist Podcast about?