CNET Live: November 20, 2008

[ music ] ^M00:00:05 >> Coming up on CNET Live, the first touch screen Crackberry, Blackberry. Plus, I'll take you to Los Angeles, the International Auto Show, and show you the two hottest cars there. >> And, we'll help you understand why your Mac might be st-stu-stuttering. CNET Live starts now. ^M00:00:22 [ music ] ^M00:00:29 >> I like the way he stuttered, it's like he has multiple maladies, not just the stutter. You know, like a drinker's curse plus the stutter. Anyway. >> You mock my pain. >> I'm Brian Cooley and that is T-t-tom Merritt >> As I just mocked [inaudible]. >> And that's the last stuttering joke we're gonna make. >> Now we're gonna make emails from the stutterers. >> Now we're done, so we're done. I'm telling you right now, we're done. Okay? >> We apologize. Welcome to CNET Live, 888-900-2638 is the number. All the lines are full right now. >> Yes, so wait until the next person is off the line, and then dive right on in there. >> Yeah, your questions about whatever you'd like to ask from me, Tom, and, of course, Brian Tong in - >> What's up, boys? No stuttering here. Look, you got a new TV. >> I know, look at my new pad. >> Oh, you're tricking out the place. >> I'm decked out for the holidays. >> Yeah, where'd you steal that? >> CNET takes care of me. >> He's moving in, making it his own. >> Before we get to your calls, at triple eight-nine hundred-C, N, E, T, we always kick it off with a couple of things we crave. ^M00:01:15 [ music ] ^M00:01:19 >> These are some of our favorite things in the CRAVE blog at CRAVE.CNET.com. I am all excited about the X-Box 360 dashboard because it looks like the Wii. It's dubbed the new X-Box experience. >> Really? Ground up overhaul. They just did the whole thing, like, from the, from soup to nuts. Got a whole, hey, that's my email. >> And we can check out your Google box, too. That's always nice. >> There's some Google box for you. Oh, there we go. So this is the screen shot from it. Much more Avatar. You've got Avatars you can build. >> The interface has a cover flow look to it. >> Got a cover flow look lately, as you can see. X-Box live now has Netflix movies. People are very excited about that. You can stream your Netflix cue, if you are a Netflix subscriber. >> But you have to be the gold member. You can't be a silver member and use the Netflix. >> Is that so? >> Yeah, we could. >> Looks really good. Here's what I've got for you. Check this out. This is auto related and I just got back from the LA International Auto Show late last night. Something new from Lexus, you know, iDrive is BMW's controller. This is gonna be Lexus' answer to it. That's a square kind of a iDrive controller in the middle, but instead of rotating and clicking, you move it like a joy stick and it has haptic feedback so it'll have detents when you're going across selections or it'll smooth out if you're moving across a map so it's got all that, kind of, game controller technology. And if you see where your right thumb would go, that's an enter button so it's very ergonomic. I tried it out very briefly on a mock up of an in-car. >> Just looks like an ashtray. >> It does look like an ashtray but that square thing with the chrome around it is this moving, sort of, a controller. It's very - >> Like a track ball? >> Kind of, but it's on a stalk. It's not a ball >> Yeah, yeah. Uh-huh. >> They expect your palm to fit there. For me, my fingers wanted to go there. >> So it's more like a joy stick, then. >> It's a joy stick with a flat top. >> With a flat top. >> Yeah, and a very nice enter button under the right thumb. Anyway, we'll make this video of that coming up at CNETTV.com [inaudible]. >> The marine joy stick, flat top. >> That's right, it's a flat top. Let's get to your calls. >> All right, time for your questions. Don't forget, you can have your face on this very show. >> Uh-huh. >> It's much better looking than ours, we guarantee that. Send a link to your video, wherever you recorded it. You can record it on You Stream, and actually, from You Stream, you can publish it directly to YouTube, and then, just send us the YouTube. >> Oh, tasty. >> That's just one way. We'll take any way. Send the link to CNET Live at CNET.com just like Iyaz did. >> Hi, my name's Iyaz from New York and I have a question about audio stuttering. I run OS ten point five point five and my problem is, occasionally, my audio will start echoing, stuttering, and doing this very strange, crazy kind of looping thing. It's any kind of audio so it includes YouTube, iTunes, Wholou, whatever you can think of, any kind of audio. Even the Final Cut Pro, it'll start doing this. And it looks like this problem was talked about before. It was fixed in OS ten point four point something, but in my version of OS ten point five, it's not working. So, do you have any answers? Thanks a lot. >> All right, we'll give it a shot here. That, by the way, was not just a clever mix in the middle, that was an example of what it does. It sounds almost like there's an echo. >> Yeah, there's a little bit of looping there as well as stutter. It sounds really ugly. >> BT, you got thoughts on this, right? >> Yeah, he's probably done IS, probably done some looking himself and, unfortunately, there really is no absolute cure. And so far, we did read some of the forums and one of the solutions was either going back to your previous OS which is ten point four which would be Tiger to help that, but another thing that one of the users tried was switching their audio output from the built in output to the digital output, and then back to the built in output and that seemed to remedy the situation. If any of you users out there have a solution that you might know of, it's still not fixed so we're just gonna hope that maybe Apple will take care of it sooner rather than later. But it's been affecting a lot of people. >> They'll throw some links to forums where they talk about un-grading both to ten point five on your disk. >> Yeah, or even ten point four. >> From ten point five all the way down to ten point four. >> Mm-hmm. >> Some people are going that far if they started with Tiger. Some people are just, like, forget it. I'm just gonna go all the way back to Tiger. >> And they have to retreat on that one. Okay, thanks for that video question. Let's get onto the phone calls now. Acsha [assumed spelling] is in Ohio calling in with an X-Box versus PlayStation question. These are among the classics. Acsha, welcome to CNET Live. >> I love the show. >> Thank you. >> This is a Brian Tong question. >> What's up Acsha? How you doing? >> I'm good. >> Okay. >> I already have a PS3. >> Okay. >> I really want an X-Box 360 '08 but a lot of people say that you get the Red Rings of Death very easily on the 360 and there's some bad news about that. >> Yeah, were you just, kind of, curious about, overall, basically, the hardware on the PS3 has shown to be more durable? The Red Rings of Death, you know, with newer versions of the X-Box, specifically the Elite, now that's it's kind of gone to that cycle where it was the earlier versions of the X-Box 360 that had that problem, I haven't heard of the Red Rings affecting the Elite model as much. So, if you're really on the verge and that's really what's holding you back, I would kind of push and say, I would feel comfortable, at least recommending the Elite from the Red Ring of Death problem because they change. I believe it was essentially the heat sink in there, one of the processors that was causing it to get too hot. But the Elite has been, you know, create, built after those issues were found. >> Also, multi media, I mean, there's a lot more options if you're into the television shows and the movies, that sort of thing, don't you think, than there is on the PS3? >> Yeah, yeah. If he's really worried about the Ring of Death, that's what I want to address, but also, the cool thing about the X-Box Elite, it does come with an HDMI cable already in the box which is normally, like, around ninety bucks. There are cheaper ones out there, and also, you get a hundred and twenty gig drive. So, like Tom has mentioned about the multi media, you could pack and fill, especially with Netflix now coming to X-Box experience, that's kind of another attractive feature. So, I would do it. >> Okay, there you go. Acsha, thanks for calling in. Let's go to Ollie who's right here in our own back yard in San Francisco, question about photography, digital, kind of. Ollie, welcome to CNET Live. >> Hey, guys. How you doing? >> Good. >> So, I've got a fun project where I happen to have access to about forty thousand thirty-five millimeter slides. >> Yikes. >> And I'd like to digitize them in a smart way and, you know, I'm swinging between, do I do it? Do I outsource it? What [inaudible] approach, scan resolution, like, the whole nine yards? >> Forty thousand, you outsource. >> All right, I did a little math. It's gonna cost you over nine thousand dollars to send this to a service which is what most people recommend. >> Yeah. >> We were talking about high levels of slides but you've got so many. >> Yeah. >> That you kind of, it's like a bell curve. Have a few slides, do it yourself. You got a bunch of slides, send it to a service. You have that many slides, you're back to doing it yourself cause that's a, it's still gonna be a lot of time, though. >> Yeah, but that's a big piece of your life scanning those. I mean, seriously, write off 2009, all your spare time. I mean, literally, that's an enormous amount of time. We've got services we've recommended before that do digitizing of prints, digitizing of slides, or negatives. >> That's like twenty-four cents a slide is the cheapest I could find. >> I know. >> So, if you want to do it yourself, if you have a flat bed scanner, you can buy these filters that allow you to just pop the slides in, put in the flat bed scanner. >> Yeah. >> And do it yourself that way. Again, you know, you're talking maybe twelve dozen slides at a time there so it's gonna take forever. Then, if you want to spend a few hundred dollars, two or three hundred dollars, there are auto slide scanners. >> Yeah. >> Where they'll move it through for you. A little faster than the flat bed way, but, you know, it's gonna do a little better. >> The best thing you can do, I mean, unless you really know. >> I have one so crazy it just might work. >> Okay, crazy boy, what have you got? >> I found this on WikiHow.com. They have eight different ways to scan in thirty-five millimeter slides and one of the ways was actually to take a digital still or video camera, put your slides up on a screen. >> Oh, God. >> And then, just capture them that way. You're gonna lose resolution. >> Yeah. >> No doubt about it. It's not as good as directly scanning the slide but it's gonna save you a lot of time. >> Here's your hierarchy of quality. Best quality is gonna be a slide scanner or a transparency scanner, with or without an auto feeder, that's the choice of model, check our reviews. Second choice will be a flatbed scanner with a transparency adapter. They're never quite as good as a true film scanner. I've got them both, and believe me, there's a big difference. Third choice is, literally, what Tom is saying, with a good HD home camera these days, a roll of tape, or hard drive. >> Or like a ten mega pixel, you know, stills. >> Yeah. And then, just go through the slides. But even I, I wouldn't even consider using a high depth, renting even a high depth Prosumer video camera, set up a really good projection situation, unless you need really great fidelity, and then, just roll through them fast, baby, cause all you need is one good clear frame and the camera's moving it about thirty frames a second so just go bang, bang, bang, bang. And then, cut them up in [inaudible]. >> And then, your time is gonna be spent video editing. >> Yeah, there's no easy way. Forty thousand of anything is a tough road to hoe so good luck with that one. ^M00:10:06 >> As usual, we'll give you just enough information to make it really complicated. >> Yeah. >> The Blackberry Storm is finally here. It has got a touch screen [inaudible] and an iPhone killer. Is it? Bonnie Cha answers that in the first look at the much anticipated Blackberry Storm. ^M00:10:22 [ music ] ^M00:10:27 >> Hi, this is Bonnie Cha, senior editor at CNET.com and today, I've got your first look at the RIM Blackberry Storm from Verizon Wireless. Now, I know a lot of you have been waiting for this smart phone and it's finally here so let's get right into it. The Blackberry Storm is big news because it's the first touch screen Blackberry and it's not like any other touch screen phone out there. Research in Motion developed a technology called SurePress which uses a suspension system that lights beneath the display so that when you go to select an application or enter text, you actually push the screen down like you would on any other techno button. In terms of text entry, the Blackberry Storm features a sure type keyboard when the smart phone is in portrait mode, and then, switches to a full [inaudible] keyboard in landscape mode. When using the keyboard or selecting applications, you can do a simple finger touch over the items so it's highlighted, and then, you press down on the screen to register the action. For example, you can tap on the screen twice to zoom in on a webpage or a map or you can do quick finger swipes to scroll through web pages, up and down like that. While the SurePress technology is cool, it takes some acclimation. It's not a natural feeling to physically push down on a screen and I often found myself forgetting to actually press down on the screen, and instead, I was just tapping or double tapping on the letter button or the link. You do get used to it after a while, but, as far as email creation and text messages, I did miss having a tactile keyboard. I couldn't comfortably type long messages as fast as I wanted and, when I did, I ended up with a lot of errors. So, if you're a heavy emailer, Storm may not be for you. Otherwise, the screen is really beautiful and sharp and there's a built in [inaudible] so the screen will automatically switch from portrait or a landscape mode when you rotate the phone. There are some navigations below the screen. You get, talking end keys, a menu button, and a clear button but there's no tech navigator and I actually really missed it. Think it would have been nice a nice addition to have just for easier one handed navigation and for selecting certain items like Hyperlinks on a web page. As far as features, the Storm runs the latest version of the Blackberry operating system which four point seven, includes an updated interface and documents to go standard edition for viewing and editing Word, Excel, and PowerPoint applications. Storm also has a link to the Blackberry application center, which is nw. It hasn't officially launched but it will let you download more programs for your device. Currently, there are just some basic applications like Yahoo Messenger and Flicker and Facebook. Of course, you get full email support including Microsoft Exchange, Nobel Group Wide, and IMAP email access. The blackberry Storm also offers dual mode functionality which means you'll be able to use the phone overseas. When you're making calls here in the States, it will use Verizon CD main. But when you travel internationally where they use the GMS but, automatically switch over and there's actually a SIM card included in the package so that's really nice. Blackberry Storm also has full three G, including a EV-DO Rev. A and HSPA so you get faster downloads and upload speeds. Unfortunately, there's no Wi-fi and I know people think it's not necessary since there's VG but I still like having the options, especially when you're not in a coverage area. Their goodies include GPS, three point two megapixel camera, and a pretty robust multi media player with a three point five millimeter headphone jack which we're always happy to see. Obviously, the storm has a lot and it's a great value at one ninety-nine, ninety-nine with a two year contract. Definitely gives iPhone a bit of a run for its money in terms of features but, I think as far as ease of use and web browsing, the iPhone still wins. Still, the Storm is very cool and offers pretty good performance and I will check both consumers and mobile professionals. I think long term Blackberry users will need a little bit of time to get used to the touch screen keyboard. And as I've said before, this isn't going to be the best device for people who email a lot for work and will probably be better suited with a Blackberry Bold or another [inaudible] phone. I'm Bonnie Cha and this has been your first look at the RIM Blackberry Storm. >> Wow. >> Wow. Hateful. >> [Inaudible] >> Lot of conditions. >> She was not, she was not waxing eloquent over it like everybody else. >> Yeah, a lot of conditions. >> Actually, the reviews today have been rather tepid. >> Yeah. >> So a lot of people are using the word disappointing. Yeah, that's a problem there on that one. So, if you're making, a lot of people are waiting, you know, is it Storm, Bold, or iPhone, those are kind of the three hottest right now. Well, the third shoe has just dropped which is kind of weird to have three legs. Okay, so let's talk about the LA Auto Show. So I just got back from that last night. We have a lot of great videos of it going up at CNETTV.com as we speak and in the hours ahead. Two highlights, one, of course, everyone was asking me about, what's the new Ford Mustang look like? It's the 2010 Mustang, not a whole new car but it's rather heavily revised. In fact, every piece of sheet metal you're looking at on that car is different from the current Mustang, and yet, not so much so that you don't know what you're looking at. Now, you can see, it's got a more aerodynamic front, a more stylized set of rear taillights so they kind of scoop up on the sides there, and the interior also took a nice step toward better quality. But overall, you're gonna recognize it as a Mustang. Great new stock wheels on the GT you see there. >> That interior always looks Mustang though. >> Oh, yeah, they know how to get that signature ride. But look inside there, if you can tell, it looks a little more refined. The previous Mustang looked, I don't know, almost kit car. It was a little too low budget. >> Add a little chrome to it. >> Yeah. >> Not as bad as the '84 Mustang. >> Well, nothing's that bad. >> Wow. The Edsel of Mustangs. >> Lot of buzz there. The other hot car, of course, is the new Z. We saw the new Three Seventy Z. This is the new one that is gonna replace the current three fifty. Notice how the lines are much more like the original Z. It's got that kind of long nose, short deck, sinuous sides, real scoopy kind of bulgy looking thing as opposed to that, you know, beetle that ate too many Oreos look of the current three fifty. Never liked that car. Liked driving it, don't like looking at it. This is a whole different story and, of course, the interior is evolved from where it was but it's definitely still got that three pod Nissan thing but lots of other arrays of gauges around the interior and paddle shifters, as you saw, and three point seven liter V-6 is more powerful. >> Now, I heard GM was virtually absent. The cars were there but no people. >> This was weird. We went over to the GM, GM's a huge area at any major car show, and it's like, yeah, lots of cars. The executives didn't have any press conferences. They bailed on a lot of what were gonna be there, big events there, and you went over to the Hummer area, and you could have fired a cannon and not hit anybody. >> You would have hit a Hummer though. >> You would have hit a Hummer. >> And the Hummer would have survived. >> That's like hitting the side of a barn, it's like [inaudible]. >> But you wouldn't have had to be there. >> Right. Let's get a call in real quick before we go to break here. Let's go to, I don't think I want to hear about backing up Macintosh. This is gonna be Mike in Chicago. Hello, Mike, welcome to CNET Live. >> Hey, guys. Hey, this is kind of a two part question. I've been a Mac user for the last year and, however, coming from the Windows world, I was used to refreshing the Windows [inaudible] every six to eight months from keeping it stale. >> Yep. >> However, I'm using my Western digital MyBook that I used in my Windows and I still have a few Windows files of mine, however, my Mac won't read, won't write to it, only read to it. >> This is the complicated matrix of the Windows and Mac file systems and drive formats. What writes to what? >> Well, it sounds like what the Western digital drive is formatted NTFS because Mac won't natively write to NTFS. It can read NTFS. It won't write to it. But you can get something called MacFUSE. Just look it us, M, A, C, F, U, S, E, and install it on OS ten and it will allow you to write to NTFS. That's what I did when I Boot Camp on so I was able to write to the files on the Windows partition from OS ten. Now, as far as the best way of backing up, you know, in OS ten, BT, you got some help there, right? >> Yeah. You mentioned you had a question about Time Machine versus third party software. As a Mac user, I would say, Carbon Copy Cloner, it's a free application, is the easiest way to back up your drive. It's a quick little simple software app. You just choose your destination and your target and you click go and it copies every file like a carbon copy so. All right, do that. >> I'll put a link to MacFUSE in the show notes for you at Log.CNETTV.com so don't get confused by that, but you might just want to format that Western digital drive HFS, plus, for the Mac, just format it for a Mac and that'll make things work on the OS ten all the time, unless you wanted to share it between Windows. All right, time to take a quick break but we will be back with some mobile apps that let you search better on the iPhone. It's Best of the Web, right after this. ^M00:18:58 [ music ] ^M00:19:19 Hey, everyone. I'm Molly Wood, host of CNET TV's Mailbag. Here at the Mailbag, we love to read your letters and emails. The lover mail, even the hater mail. And apparently, you like it, too cause when we tried to make the show bi-weekly, boy, did you raise a stink. So, we're back to every week and you can all just calm down. But don't stop writing in cause I need you, bad. Look for the new edition of Mailbag every Wednesday at CNETTV.com. ^M00:19:44 [ music ] ^M00:19:48 >> Welcome back to CNET Live. Keep those calls coming 888-900-2638, eight, eight, eight, nine hundred, C, N, E, T. Keep doing it. We are here to help. No, we always are. I know that's true. Hey, but first, let's get to our Best of the Web. ^M00:20:02 [ music ] ^M00:20:07 >> The Best of the Web, I just like that song so much. That little bouncy bass line. >> I mean, you were lost. >> Is that what they call [inaudible] base line? >> You were miles away. >> I don't know where the hell I am. Anyway, so, Best of the Web, check it out, we got two, not just one, but two great Best of the Web picks. Mine is iPhone, so is Tom's, but mine is called Search Me. >> Wait, wait, wait. The CNET Live audience may not realize why you would have an iPhone Best of the Web. >> Oh, well, let me just say, because I have crossed over to the, you shall do as we say and not think for yourself, side. I got an iPhone. >> All right, so this is your new app. >> All righty, so, here we are with Search Me. It's a search app that you get and it allows you to do, basically, a cover flow style browsing of your results by pulling up the front door of every page that comes up in the results. What I like about it is, first of all, it's visual. It's really easy to [inaudible] what you just got in your results. Number two, you can snap into that page and, in many cases, that's what you have to do, not even navigate to the site. You want to go somewhere and get the phone number off the front door of someone's website, a merchant or something? Why go to it when you can just do this, that's kind of nice. And also, you've got the ability here to, you know, really get through stuff quickly and kind of digest it without looking at all that multiple link nonsense you still get from Google with sub links and indented links and sub directory links and all that crap they give you. It's very nice. >> Now, that's got a nice interface. >> Yep. >> There's another new search app from Google out that Rafe Needleman calls awesome. It is the voice search, Google voice search. >> He raved. >> I mean, let me demonstrate. >> All right. >> We got Brian Cooley. So there it goes; it's working. You just speak whatever it is you want to search. >> Okay, finished, here come results. >> And here come the results. >> Oh, my God. >> They're coming in. Look at that. >> There's Ryan Cooley, just like I said. And we tried this a few times. >> One out of four works. >> We got Brian Churley. >> Yeah. >> We got Meg Ryan Cooley. >> Uh-huh. >> And we got an actual Brian Cooley. >> And then we just got Ryan Cooley. So it's 25% accurate but we think it's really cool. So there. Let's get back to your calls at triple eight, nine hundred, CNET, triple eight, nine hundred, two six three eight. Gonna go to Gary right now. He is not in Gary. He's in New York. Hello, Gary, welcome to CNET Live. >> Hi, Tom. Hi, Brian. Since the MacBook came out, there's been a lot of problems with it like the no fire wire port and the two glossy screen. I was just wondering, are there any alternatives in the new MacBook? >> Now, do you mean the alternatives that are also Mac OS or PCs? >> Uh, PCs, I guess. >> Yeah, cause there's only really one and this is there's an announcement by Size Star which is that real tenuous Mac clone maker, I just saw this a few days ago. They're planning a MacBook clone. I don't know if it's gonna be MacBook level or Pro level but they're planning a Notebook based on the Mac OS but who knows with that deal cause that's in the courts right now. Of course, if you want to go look at our laptops, we've got them in various categories, our best fives over at CNET.com. Are you looking for a basic machine, a high end machine, a thin and light machine? Give me a nutshell what you want. >> I guess a high end, thin and light. >> So you want the best of the best. Okay, then I think we're gonna look at best thin and light laptops is kind of talking what you're looking for, although these are not necessarily the most high horsepower because we're looking for thin and light. So, we're gonna recommend, for example, the Dell XPS M1330, we like that one a lot. We're also big on the, let's see, the Lenovo ThinkPad X300. Those are in the thin and lights. >> Yeah, and that's what, he was talking about an alternative to the MacBook and that's what the MacBook is categorized. >> Yeah. And by the way, yeah, the MacBook is in that same list so these are the direct competitors to it. So those are a couple to look at but just go over to CNET, go to Notebooks, go to top Notebooks, and then, we have them in five flavors, including what I just talked about was best thin and light. There's also best ultra portable which is even thinner and lighter. So, check that out but we keep that refreshed all the time with the latest models. Thanks a lot for that one. >> I'll throw a link directly to that list that he's looking for in the startup. >> A little easier to get to. Let's get one more call in here. This one, I think. >> Yeah, let's go to Ontario. >> Yeah, this is good. This is going to be a question about files off an iPod that ain't working any more. Welcome to Eric. What can we do for you, Eric? >> Hi. I've got an eighty gigabyte block iPod and it's just a brick. It doesn't do anything and I need to be able to get the files and songs off of it. >> Okay. Do you have any idea whether the hard drive is still any good or not? Do you know why it's a brick? >> I know the battery life was getting really low, and when the battery finally died, I cannot turn it on and can't even [inaudible]. >> Excellent. All right, well, now, you should know there are ways to replace that battery out there if you poke around the web, there's lots of ways you can actually open that thing up and replace the battery. And you're gonna have to open it up anyway if you're want to recover the files that are on there because what I'm gonna recommend to recover the files is, popping that thing open. You want to use like a thin piece of plastic to get that thing open, and pull out that hard drive. Your hard drive is probably okay. If the hard drive is toast, this is gonna be a lot more difficult cause then you'd have to be opening up the hard drive and try to figure out if it's the circuitry or whatever. But if that hard drive will still mount in another enclosure, you can pick up a cheap enclose at your local computer store or online for ten, twenty bucks. >> Yeah. >> And then, put that hard drive in the enclosure and use something like PhotoRec is the one I like. At CGsecurity.org or PC Inspector is another one that a lot of people like. Leo likes that one. And use that to access the hard drive, you'll be able to recover the files that are on there. >> Well, I just, I don't know what kind of enclosure. I don't know what kind of connections the iPod uses. >> Is that a standard laptop hard drive? >> Yeah, it's, I think it's a SATA drive. You know, so you could just get a SATA enclosure. Let me double check that and I'll put that, I'll confirm that in the show notes. BT, do you know? >> There's some weird ribbon cable in there. I've already been in to that. >> Yeah, don't worry about that. You can just unplug that. >> Okay. Right. >> But that, otherwise, that should work. >> Okay. [Inaudible] that actually would solve the problem. >> All right. Or, like you said, you could try replacing the battery. You can buy batteries and do, since you're gonna be in there anyway. >> Yeah. >> Either way, it's up to you. >> Bring it back up. >> [Inaudible] iPod Nano so that's not a big issue. >> You know, actually, another way I just thought of. You could go onto eBay, find somebody who's selling a iPod that works fine but the hard drive is toast. Maybe you could pick it up for ten bucks or something cause it's getting power. >> Do a transplant. >> And then, you can just transplant your hard drive into that new one. >> Yeah. >> That would be another way. >> But he's got his new Nano. He's so over this old iPod. >> Yeah, exactly. He just wants to get the files off. That might be cheaper than the enclosure, depending on what's been selling [inaudible]. All right, the next thing we've got here isn't exactly a single question but a lot of you email us, CNETlive@CNET.com asking about strange instant messages you get from people not in your contact lists. Hard to believe, but, there's spam. It's even on instant messenger. There is a way to combat IM spam, though, and we're gonna show it to you in today's Quick Tip. >> It's happened to the best of us. You're chatting away with your buddy online and, all of a sudden, barelylegal143 sends you a link to a totally NSFW site by instant messenger. Learn how to block unwanted MSN messenger spam on today's Quick Tip. ^M00:27:13 [ music ] ^M00:27:19 >> Messenger spam, or spin, can be shut down very simply. On a PC, open the main messenger Window. Go to tools, then options, then go to the privacy tab and make sure block unwanted messages is selected. On a Mac, most people use either Adium or Microsoft Messenger. In Microsoft Messenger, go to preferences, then privacy. Then select only users on my allow list can see my status and send me messages, block all other users. In Adium, go to privacy options, then select your Windows live account. Then, in privacy levels, select allow only contacts on my contact list. This will prevent strangers from IMing you but it'll also prevent new friends from IMing you, too. Just be sure to add each other from now on. It's not ideal but you have the spammers to thank for that. Additionally, there are a few freeware programs like Messenger Spam Block out there that will help protect you from strange messages. But every time Microsoft decides to update Messenger, you stand a strong chance of breaking credibility. I'm Wilson Tang with CNET TV and this has been another Quick Tip. ^M00:28:18 [ music ] ^M00:28:21 >> Okay. Whoo, I'm living back in time today. >> We're gonna get a couple of last calls in here. We call these the last calls. Let's go to line two for Tom. Not this one, the one in New Jersey. Hey, Tom, welcome to CNET Live. You got a TV question. >> You're not in Tom's [inaudible]. >> Tom? >> Hey, guys. Pretty much, my TV, it's a kind of old Audiovox twenty-seven inch LCD. >> Yep. >> It pretty much won't turn on. It has this indicator light where it's red on standby, blue when it's on, and when there's no light, it means no power. >> Yep. >> When it's on standby, it's fine. It has a red light. But when I turn the TV on, I get nothing. >> So it just stays red and you don't get a picture. >> Yeah. >> Do you - >> It does stay red, though, right? >> Yeah. >> Does the screen go from being dead to being very dark gray or nothing happens on the screen? >> Nothing happens. >> And do you hear a clicking when you turn it on? >> Well, usually when I turn it on, there's like this little. >> Slight click. >> Well, it's not really click. It's just a noise that always happens when it switches or something switches. >> Right. >> Kind of a little ding. >> All right, so I think you've got a dead power supply or you may have, pardon me, a dead back light cause LCD televisions have, basically, a big flat fluorescent tube behind the screen. That's where the light comes from. My hunch is, you've got a bad power supply and like on a computer - >> I don't know though, he's got standby light so you think it's a power supply or maybe a circuit breaker? >> One of the switching stages is bad. >> It could be a fuse or a circuit breaker. >> Possibly a fuse. You know, you might dig around in there. I'm not sure there's even a fuse in that television. But if you've already called the manufacturer and they were like, uh-uh-uh. >> Audiovox told you to go take a flying leap, right? >> How old is this TV? >> It's about three and a half years old. >> Yeah, it's not worth repairing. I mean, there's no fix for this. It's a power supply, I think, and it's time to wing it. >> I would agree if I hadn't found a fixya.com article on an Audiovox TV that wouldn't turn on. >> Yes. >> The standby light works. >> Yeah. Tom's all ready to put a Popsicle stick in the side and make it work. What have you got? >> All I have is there are fuses and circuit breakers just like we were talking about. It tells how to take the panel off. >> Yeah. >> Take a look around, see if you can find some blown fuses or anything. Those things are cheap. You can get them at mouser and replace them. So I'll put this link in the show notes at blog.cnettv.com. Take a look at it. If you feel comfortable popping that panel off and poking around, make sure you ground yourself, make sure the TV has been for a while before you do it. >> And then, go buy a new TV. >> But then, you might want to replace some of these fuses, could save it you. >> Sure. And send us a picture of your newly curled hair cause I'm dying to see that. >> Nay. >> Hey, this is the true last call. Parker's in Florida. Parker, you have the honor of the last call today on CNET Live. What can we do for you? >> I'm wondering, I want to get a forty-two inch TV and I'm wondering, when would be the best time? Like, the day after Thanksgiving or, you know, after Christmas? >> What do you say, the day after Christmas? The twenty-sixth is gonna be better or right before Christmas when they're getting desperate and they're just slashing the prices [inaudible]? >> The other strategy problem to that is the big list they get right after that is Super Bowl. >> Yeah, exactly. >> You don't get a relaxation until the day after the Super Bowl so that's when you buy a new TV. >> That's really, the key time will be the day after Super Bowl, you're right. >> Yep. >> But if you have to get it before then, because, first of all, for the Super Bowl. >> Holidays. Yeah, right. >> I think right before Christmas Day, they're gonna start getting desperate. That's just a guess. >> I think any time during the current recession, you're gonna be doing better than you'll ever do again. So, feel good no matter what day you shop, you're getting prices that make their eyes water back in accounting. I mean, seriously, the prices are amazing right now. And ask if you can get it cheaper. >> Yes, yes. >> Right now, I mean, I hear stories of retailers kind of going, well, let me check. It's like a car dealer. >> Good point. >> Let me check with my manager. You know, we can throw in a Blu-Ray or 10% coupon. >> Yep, yep. So these are the kind of questions we're gonna be taking ad naseum next Friday on Holiday Help Desk. You know the show. We're here every day, the Friday after Thanksgiving so there's no CNET Live next Thursday. >> That's right. We're taking the day off. It's Thanksgiving here in the United States so we'll be stuffing our faces with turkey. But on Friday, black Friday when you all are out shopping, we're gonna be here working, taking your calls, answering your questions for ten hours. >> Ten long hours by the way. So if you call in, starting at eight AM Pacific, and people who call in and get on the show, are eligible to win, BT, you got it? [ background music ] >> I got it right in my hand, baby. Look at that. >> [Inaudible]. We have eight iPod Touches to give away in the eight core hours of the show, one per hour. Again, you qualify by calling in and being on the show. So, jump the phone line. You know the number. It's gonna be triple eight, nine hundred, CNET. >> Yep. Starts, like you said, at eleven AM Eastern, eight AM Pacific. You can call in to this number and we'll be taking webcams? Yeah. >> Yeah. >> Oh, and not just links but live webcam call ins. So get your webcam fired up and get ready to call in. So, no CNET Live on Thursday. Special show, Holiday Help Desk with your questions about what to buy and where to buy it, next Friday, starting at eight AM Pacific, right here at CNETTV.com. We'll see you next week, folks. >> See you bright and early Friday. ^M00:33:27 [ music ]