Real-World Speeds, Choosing Storage, and Quick Tips – Mac Geek Gab 738

Ever have a disk drive or Wi-Fi device that doesn’t get quite the advertised speeds? Yeah, so have we. In fact, it happens all the time. Listen this week as John and Dave discuss the differences between advertised maximums and real-world expectations… and how to translate between the two. Of course, that’s not all! More questions and Quick Tips than you can shake a stick at. Press play, download, and enjoy!

TMO Background Mode Interview with Smile Software Evangelist Jeff Gamet

Jeff Gamet is the former Managing Editor of The Mac Observer (TMO), a position he held for 13 years. He’s also a book author and noted podcaster. Recently, he left TMO to become the Smile Software TextExpander Evangelist.

I asked Jeff to tell the TextExpander story, what it does, why it’s essential, and how to get it. Then we chatted at length about his job transition process. That meant new tools, new logins, a new daily routine, a new team and new boss. I asked Jeff about the biggest challenge he faced as well as how what he learned at TMO carried over to his new job. I also asked Jeff how he felt about the change in his “voice” and change in public profile. We closed with some things Jeff will be doing in his new position at Smile.

Using iPad, Apple Original TV Shows, and Macs with Jim Dalrymple: ACM 490

Bryan Chaffin and guest-host Jim Dalrymple talk about how they use their iPads, and it turns out they’re pretty different use cases. They try to talk about where Apple TV might go but venture into a much deeper conversation about Apple’s original TV shows and videos. Spoiler: one of them is a pessimist. They close the show by examining the state of the Mac. Another spoiler: one of them is a pessimist!

Geeky Gift Guide and Your Questions Answered – Mac Geek Gab 737

The best part about geeky gifts is that sometimes the best person to get them for is yourself. Listen to John and Dave – your two favorite geeks – discuss some of their favorites at this point in the holiday buying season, and decide whether you buy one of these now for someone else… or wait until the gifting season wraps up to get one for you!

TMO Background Mode Interview with Science Fiction Author Darren Beyer

Darren Beyer is a former NASA Space Shuttle engineer at Kennedy Space Center who worked on launching and recovering more than a dozen missions, including the Hubble Space Telescope. He also conducted astronaut training and had the honor of working onboard every Space Shuttle orbiter except Challenger. In late 1998, he left NASA to become an entrepreneur, and, lately, an author.

The first result was the Anghazi series of novels, Casimir Bridge, released in 2016 to rave reviews thanks largely to his commitment to putting the science back in science fiction. The second installment, Pathogen Protocol was released in October, 2018. We chatted about Darren’s early life inspirations, his NASA career, an interesting experience with an astronaut, his scientific approach to SciFi writing, and how private industry may well send manned missions to Mars before NASA.

TMO Background Mode Interview with Climate Scientist Dr. Katharine Hayhoe

Dr. Hayhoe is an atmospheric scientist and professor of political science at Texas Tech University, where she is the director of the Climate Science Center. She is also the CEO of the consulting firm ATMOS Research and Consulting. She received her undergraduate degree in physics and astronomy from the University of Toronto and a masters and Ph.D. in atmospheric science from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. We started from basics in this chat and defined how science works via observation. Then we delved into the process of climate change research, successful computer models, the significant findings of climate science and whether some changes are exponential rather than linear. Finally, Dr. Hayhoe filled us in on some great resources for further reading.