Apple Industry Analyst Rene Ritchie - TMO BGM Interview

Rene Ritchie has been covering personal technology for over a decade. He currently hosts his own YouTube channel where he provides news analysis and insight on Apple and related technologies and culture. He also co-hosts MacBreak Weekly on the TWiT network and writes a column every Monday for iMore. He is the former Editor-in-Chief of iMore.

Rene and I discussed an incredible range of Apple topics: the MBP’s awful 720p FaceTime camera, the aging iMac design, the future of iMac Pro, the Butterfly keyboard, Rene’s enthusiasm for Apple and the trustworthiness of the company. I also got to know Rene better as we chatted about growing up with Macs, his love of Apple Watch bands, Pokémon and years of studying martial arts. Rene finished with several tips for video podcasters.

The Great Backup Debate — Mac Geek Gab 818

Do you backup or clone? Which is more important? What do you do first? Ok, let’s battle. Well, not really.

Lots of Cool Stuff Found in this episode, including a way to turn your iPhone into a webcam for your Mac. Internet upgrade options are popular among the questions that came in this week, so your two favorite geeks have answers.

Listen along with John and Dave as they share, answer, postulate, and everyone learns (at least!) five new things.

Writer and Podcaster Antony Johnston - TMO BGM Interview

Antony Johnston is a New York Times bestselling writer and podcaster. The Charlize Theron movie Atomic Blonde is based on his graphic novel; his Brigitte Sharp thrillers are critically acclaimed; and Dead Space, his first videogame, redefined its genre. He also hosts a writer’s podcast.

Antony told me about how he transformed his career as graphics artist into successful graphic novels and video game scripting. Later, on his Mac, he delved into novel writing (with Scrivener), most notably the Brigitte Sharp thrillers. Antony recounted how his graphic novel The Coldest City came to be made into a theatrical movie, Atomic Blonde. And to top it all off, Antony told me about his podcast “Writing and Breathing,” a show about “why, how, and what we write,” in which he chats with fellow authors of all kinds.

Backtick is Zoomalicious (in Preview) – Mac Geek Gab 817

Who knew one key could do THAT? Plus, you can take iPhone pics right from your Mac desktop. Lots of quick tips.

And then a quick discussion about tech support in the time of social distancing. We’ve heard from a few consultants who help John and Dave suss that out.

Wi-Fi is always popular, and this week marks a return to some in-depth discussions about various configurations, including expanding your Wi-Fi… and that of your friends and family members. Plus we’ve got Cool Stuff Found and more. Press play and enjoy learning at least five new things with your two favorite geeks!

Parallels Dir. of Sales Engineers Victor Fiss - TMO BGM Interview

Victor Fiss has had a distinguished career leading teams to implement, integrate, and manage enterprise wide systems. As Director of Sales Engineers, he oversees coordination of pre-sales and post-sales delivery for Parallels solutions. He is responsible for the team’s goals and initiatives with sales, product management, development, and worldwide customer support.

Victor and I explored everything about Parallels Desktop on the Mac. What it is, how it works, supported OSes, support for Metal, external GPUs, games, working at home issues and support, macOS VM clients, adjustments at Parallels amidst COVID-19, embracing OS agnosticism, the Parallels Toolbox, the Remote Application Server, and a brief discussion of Parallels Desktop on ARM-based Macs. It’s all right here.

Drawing, Backing Up, and Being a Screenshot Ninja – Mac Geek Gab 816

Did you know you could move your screenshot selection window around after you create it? How about rearranging columns in the Finder and having it remember? What about Profiles on your Mac, and how they can be used to hijack your browser?

If you listen to this week’s Mac Geek Gab with Dave Hamilton and John F. Braun, not only will you know how to do these three things, we guarantee you’ll learn at least two more (and probably a lot more than that!). Press play and enjoy learning all these things with your two favorite geeks.

TMO Contributor Kelly Guimont (#11) - TMO BGM Interview

Kelly Guimont is a long-time podcaster, Contributing Editor for The Mac Observer, the host of the Mac Observer’s Daily Observations podcast, and a tech support guru.

In her 11th appearance, Kelly and I chat about our favorite TV shows of the 1980s as well as some of our favorite, recent movies. I open segment #1 with a fond recollection by both us us for Miami Vice (Starz), then similar feelings about Hill Street Blues (Hulu). A Kelly favorite along with me was: Magnum P.I. (Amazon). In segment #2 we critiqued Knives Out (iTunes), Onward (Disney+), Saving Mr. Banks (Netflix) and superb scifi The Lost Room (Amazon). Join us as we explore together what’s great about these shows.