Media Watch

Rob Cook writes: "Before assuming that it wasn't installed correctly you need to consider two things. 1) Is there a surge protector and if so is the phone line plugged into it? If yes bypass the surge protector (SP) and see if the modem works when plugged in directly to the wall. If it does replace the SP as it is broke; and 2) If after bypassing the SP the modem still dosent work plugged in directly to the wall then the phone line itself needs to be checked by the phone company. If there is no dial tone the modem will never work. Software will not matter one bit. I spent over a year working for an ISP in tech support, this was a very common problem espicaly after a T-storm." Danny writes: "Excellent point, Rob! Thanks for the input"

Lynda Clayton ( Email , call 515-727-4978, or visit ClayonComputers.com ) talks about the upgrade special we've been advertising -- and sticks around for the help line. Have a computer question or problem you can't handle? Give Lynda a call; there's no charge.

WHO Radio events guru Molly Pins (call 515-242-3669 or email MollyPins@ClearChannel.com ) checks in and gives last-minute rundown and details on Mark & Gary's Great Iowa Tractor Ride; also previews this year's Taste fo Des Moines for us, the music, the food & the fun, July 18 & 19.

A "panel of experts" would best describe our show.  Not so much us, but the guests we invite to be on the show.  The hosts are actually several people, although you most often hear from the three of us: web guy Danny Bishop, FM radio disk jockey and home entertainment guru Corey Allen and Mac network administrator Dan Adams (in order of studio seating).  Other wise guys you hear on the show from time to time are WHO Historian, Attorney and Sunday news anchor George Davison and staff IT manager Jeff Hansen. Call us at 284-1040 or 800-469-4295. Or email us !

Geocaching to the Buddy Holly Shrine Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valenz and "The Big Bopper" performed their last show at the Surf Ballroom in Clear Lake on February 2, 1959. Following the show, the three rock & rollers boarded a four-seat airplane in a light snow at the Mason City airport -- the plane being piloted by 22-year-old Roger Peterson. Five minutes into their fateful flight, the plane was observed (from the airport) drifting downward when the tail light went dark. In the early morning light, a search revealed that indeed the plane had crashed and all aboard killed. I've placed a virtual cache in memory of the four young men -- and to all who follow to pay their respects and remember them fondly through the monuments built. To find the shrine, plug the coordinated below into your GPS.   N 43° 13.2223 W 093° 22.8853 (WGS-84)  MapQwest

Hoaxes and Urban Legends? Will Bill Gates really pay you $500 for every email you forward to your friends?  Does little Michelle in Kenya really need a new liver?  Should you really delete that file on your computer if someone emails you & says it's a virus?  You probaby get all these claims in your inbox and wonder if you should alert your friends and collegues about it.  Fact is, it's probably just a hoax.  You can check to make sure by visiting Snope2.com or the Symantec web site.  www.snopes2.com

Real Estate Expert Robin Polder is a walking FAQ on Real Estate.  From learning how to avoid PMI (primary Mortgage Insurance) to deciding how much to ask for your home, she'll have some tried & true advise for you.  Feel free to contact her direct at robinpolder@dsmhomes.com or see her web site: http://www.robinpolder.com .

Online Dating Expert Ever wonder what kinds of people really get into online dating? Does it work? Are there horror stories? Ask Brenda Ross, our online dating expert from www.About.com and www.GeekCheck.com .

Recipe Lady Diane Roupe For info about the Blue Ribbon Country Cookbook, contact Diane by mail: The Blue Ribbon Country Cookbook, 904 12th St., West Des Moines, IA 50265.  Call (515) 267-1188.  One of the recipes we talked about was the Maid Rite.  While there isn't an exact Maid Rite recipe in the cookbook, we found several recipes on the web:  Recipe One | Recipe Two .

Who's Spying on You? In past episodes, we've spoken of unwittingly downloading and installing freeware/shareware containing spyware, which sends various information to an organization that in turn sells the information for money. This web site discusses that concept and what to do about it. http://www.cexx.org/ Ad-Aware is a program that will locate and delete known spyware, and will report to you when a program on your computer is unwittingly uploading info. Here's where you can download Ad-Aware: http://www.lavasoftusa.com/

Who's who at WHO, 29 WHO Radio personalities We've been spending a lot of time compiling raw information collected over the years, from picture books to one-sheet history pages written by station managers. Here's a page of people who we think have made significant historical contributions to this radio station from the beginning to present. CLICK HERE

Heating and Cooling Expert From Geothermal energy to hi-tech thermostats, Brian Leech of Alger-Leechman Heating and Cooling talked to us a while back with some helpful and interesting consumer tips.  Call Brian in Des Moines at 957-WARM (957-9276).

Iowa Sex Offender Database Across the state of Iowa, there are more than 5,000 individuals registered with the Iowa Sex Offender Registry.  There are 770 out of state registrants.  Look at the stats .  Our guest was Iowa Department of Criminal Investigation Special Agent-in-chage Steve Bogle.

Spy on the satellites Where are the satellites in the sky? J-Track 3D will tell you exactly where hundreds of satellites are located in realtime.  There are options to show tracks (both sky and earth tracks), show only selected satellites, and even give you details about individual satellites.

Poll Shift Preparation Did you know the planet is going to shift on its axis in May?  That's the claim of a web site called www.PoleShiftPrepare.com apparently put up by some guy named Jeremy.  "Jeremy explains why he believes a large planet - up until now considered hypothetical by astronomers - will pass between the Earth and the Sun causing a pole shift in 2003. The pole shift will set off worldwide cataclysms - massive earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and hurricane force winds", according to the web site.  There are preparedness tips, news items and more details about what's supposed to happen.

UN Security Council Resolutions You hear about 'em.  Everyone's talking about 'em.  But do you know what they say?  For instance, when the President refers to UN Resolution 1441 for authority to use military force against Iraq.  In order to have an educated opinion, one should read the resolution.  In fact, you can read ALL UN resolutions right here !

A few good thoughts for any day... Do not walk behind me, for I may not lead. Do not walk ahead of me, for may not follow.  Do not walk beside me either.  Just pretty much leave me the hell alone. The journey of a thousand miles begins with a broken fan belt and a leaky tire. It's always darkest before dawn. So if you're going to steal your neighbor's newspaper, that's the time to do it. Sex is like air. It's not important unless you aren't getting any. Don't be irreplaceable. If you can't be replaced, you can't be promoted. No one is listening until you fart. Always remember you're unique. Just like everyone else. Never test the depth of the water with both feet. If you think nobody cares if you're alive, try missing a couple of car payments. Before you criticize someone, you should walk a mile in their shoes.  That way, when you criticize them you're a mile away and yo

Urban Legends... ...are those stories you get in your email, usually forwarded to you by a friend, family member or co-worker, that are supposed to sound true and unbelievable, heart-wrenching or touching in some way.  You're frequently encouraged to pass them on to several other people ("send this to all your friends and you will have good luck and fortune all day").  You get the idea.  Now see some of the sites that debunk these myths.  There's even a site that will assist in writing them. Urban Legends Reference Pages http://www.snopes.com/ Urban Legend Zeitgeist http://www.urbanlegends.com/ulz/ Urban Legends and Folklore from About.com http://urbanlegends.about.com/ Urban Legends Research Center http://www.ulrc.com.au/ Urban Legends from ScamBuster.org http://www.scambusters.org/legends.html The Urban Legend Combat Kit http://netsquirrel.com/combatkit/ How Urban Legends Work from HowStuffWor

Testing your actual bandwidth So how fast is your Internet connection?  To find out, read on.  There's a myth that using the Ping command will give you tell you how fast your connection is.  The truth about ping is that is measures latency, the round-trip time it takes for a server to respond to a request.  Latency is critical for real-time gaming, but not nearly as important for typical surfing or large file downloading.  True bandwidth measuring is done by download/uploading a file from/to a server.  There are many factors that can affect this test, such as Internet traffic, server performance, connection speed and the performance of your on computer.  Here are some sites that discuss bandwidth in much more detail.  DSL Reports " (aka "Broadband Reports") is one of the most popular broadband sites, providing industry news, tweaks and tests.  Here's one of their bandwidth tests .  The Bandwidth Place has some quick speed tests. 

Rod & Rochelle, Web gurus! Rod Anderson and Rochelle Bunett began as competitors, both with their own unique strengths.  They eventually found that they could do better if they put their different skills together under one company.  This is the beginning of " netIMAGE group ".

Author Brian Nichelson 'TAMING TECHNOLOGY; YOU CAN CONTROL THE BEAST", Cameo Publications, Inc.  Brian simplifies the hi-tech pieces of your world (cars, VCRs, computers, etc.) so anyone can face it without stress.  We'll talk to him at 11am this Saturday.  Visit the TechMatters Institute web site for more information about Brian and his book

Vinyl2MP3 There are a ton of downloads at Lockergnome that will help in the project. Get a turntable with line level outputs. If you have a magnetic cartridge, then you'll need a phono pre-amp to turn that low audio level into a true line level. These are available on older-style consumer amps, receivers pre-amps and deejay mixers. Get a cable that connects your turntable (usually two RCA connectors) to your computer's sound card (usually an 1/8th inch stereo mini plug) --- or use adaptors that match the cables/connectors you have. Get recording software (use Cool edit 2000 or one of the downloads from the link above). Power everything up, start recording and start the record. Have fun!

Listener email: Carol in Des Moines writes: I hope I can remember to listen to your program! I usually catch it when I'm in the car. I am dreaming of buying a new computer. I noticed that the top few of the top 15 are powered by Athalon instead of Pentium. Is that better and faster than Pentium? I've been looking at Gateway and Dell and neither offer them. I'll try to remember to listen!  Thanks! Hi Carol, AMD processors are very comparable to and competitive with Intel's offerings. My next computer will not be a name brand, factory built machine. But it will have name brand parts and software, such asRedhat, AMD, nVidia, Western Digital and Teac. I'll have it built by a local shop, get a faster, more stable computer for the same money, about $1,200 with extra RAM and better video. --Danny