Apple possibly giving away stuff for free! A Windows 10 update that ate people's files! Crackdowns on cyberbullying and political spam on social media! Some surprises are better than others, but then there were things that were NO surprise, like Facebook trying to hoover out even more personal data from users. El Kaiser and J.D. discuss it all, as well as a recent guide to deleting some of your social media accounts for good. Come on in from the cold and have a listen to PTJ 289!

It's not just the leaves starting to waft through the air here in North America — plenty of lawsuits are swirling as well. El Kaiser and J.D. discuss some of the bigger ones, including legal action aimed at California's new net neutrality rules and Facebook's latest woes. And for those who aren't fans of the new Gmail web design, J.D. has some tips for making the interface feel more familiar. Click on through to PTJ 288!

If it's September, Apple has a new iPhone to sell you. El Kaiser and J.D. discuss this year's crop of gear, along with news from FitBit, Amazon and GoPro. And, as election season looms closer, J.D. has some advice and links for those who see misinformation on social-media sites and want to stop it from spreading. Buckle up for Episode 287, y'all!

Hot times were had on Capitol Hill at the Senate and House hearings with leaders of Facebook and Twitter — but not with Google, which declined the invitation to come testify about such things as election influencing and political bias on its platform. El Kaiser and J.D. also discuss Apple's new global portal for law enforcement pros, Amazon's new tablet and a new study from the Pew Internet Research Center about how people's feelings have changed about a certain Social Network over the past year. This week's show also includes a highlight tour of some of the more popular features in Google's Android 9.0 (Pie) system and Apple's iOS 12. Jump into Episode 286 now!

While the tussles between politicians and Big Tech heat up as August sizzles to a close, El Kaiser and J.D. sip fizzy water in the shade and explore the accusations and rebuttals coming from both sides of America's political divide. Apple's latest acquisition, Twitter's recent experiment and a blockchain that few people realized was hiding in plain sight are also in the news mix this week, and J.D. has a (Hopefully) Helpful Hint about hopefully helping friends and family with their computer problems, even when you're miles away. Crank up the air conditioner and PTJ 285!

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Election security — or lack thereof — dominated the headlines this week as social-media platforms moved to boot trolls and industry leaders met to discuss what to do with the U.S.midterms looming. Meanwhile, Walmart and Kobo teamed up on ebooks, rumors about Apple's fall event popped up right on time, Samsung released its Galaxy Note9 and Google is trying to find regular doses of good news out there. All this and more on Episode 284!

Celebratory adult beverages were likely consumed around the technosphere these past few days as Apple became the first trillion-dollar company, Motorola announced 5G phone hardware was on the way and fans of white wine pushed for their very own emoji. El Kaiser (fresh off an appearance on the Wide Range Media podcast) and J.D. explore those stories and more, and a soon-to-be-vacationing Kaiser shares packing tips for his traveling gear bag. Grab a cold one and chill out to Episode 283!

Note: Pop Tech Jam is on vacation next week.

On this week's episode, El Kaiser and J.D. discuss the things that are making the tech world shake, rattle and roll — including Amazon's facial recognition software not passing muster with the American Civil Liberties Union, Facebook's stock price plummeting and the possibility of the Broadway musical Hamilton coming to Netflix. In the (Hopefully) Helpful Hint, J.D. also describes a new scam going around that shows off an old password you've actually used in the past. Ride along with Episode 282!

In this week's show, J.D. and an overworked El Kaiser discuss the week's news, including Google's big fine and Amazon Prime Day's big fail. There's also an exciting turn of events for those wishing rocket jet-packs were real. J.D. also has a (Hopefully) Helpful Hint about making your Windows PC or Mac clean up after itself. Hear it all now on Episode 281!