Tech Break (Video)

Game streaming service Twitch will let viewers buy games straight from the stream of their favorite players. Streamers will get 5% of the profits of the sale of the game starting in the Spring of 2017. Scott Johnson from Frogpants says this is great for creators, but will Steam lose sales?

For the full episode, visit twit.tv/tnt/1713.

Host: Megan Morrone

Guest: Scott Johnson

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Sequel Pro is a Mac database management application for working with MySQL databases.

Full episode can be seen at twit.tv/floss/423

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Megan Morrone talks to Ashley Esqueda, Senior Editor at CNET and Scott Johnson, creator of Frogpants.com about the future of virtual reality. One of the biggest barriers to entry for Virtual Reality is the cost of getting your own in-home set up. But what if mainstream VR didn't happen in our home? Many people have enjoyed their VR experiences, but are unlikely to run out and get an Rift or a Vive or even a Playstation VR. Partially because of the cost, but also because they don't have a room to dedicate to it. Will we all have our own in-house set ups with the HTC Vive, Oculus Rift, or Playstation VR. Or will we go to a place like an IMAX Theater or The Void and experience virtual reality in a more social setting. And what is the future of augmented reality?

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Why video chat with just one person when you can video chat with 50 people? Leo Laporte and Megan Morrone talk about Fam and Facebook Messenger.

Full episode can be seen at twit.tv/ios/334

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Journalist and author John Markoff talks his first big scoop at the New York Times - the Morris Worm, the first documented computer virus.

Full episode can be seen at twit.tv/tri/287

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Build an Arduino driven dog deterrent.​

-- Joseph LaBonde
"Does anyone have a suggestion for an Arduino driven speaker that can produce 23Khz-40Khz?
I am setting up a motion sensor dog deterrent."

What you need is NOT a speaker, but a Piezoelectric Transducer!
* 40Khz (35 Watt)

NB: The "Piezoelectric Effect" is the phenomenon that occurs when a mechanical stress is applied to certain materials, resulting in an electric charge.
* Timing crystals (components) utilize this effect: They are "Crystal Oscillators" -- When a crystal (like quartz) is packaged in such a way as to compress the crystal, it will provide a stable "clock signal" for our digital IC projects.
* The effect can be REVERSED: If I run an electrical charge through a piezoelectric material, it will create a mechanical stress.
* In transducers, this mechanical stress become vibrations that in turn create sound waves.

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Predictions for the upcoming Snapchat IPO and why is it so hard to use?

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Jason Howell and Megan Morrone discuss Google's announcements about changes to messaging. Google made several announcements about RCS, its Rich Communications Service. The default messaging app will now be called Android Messages instead of Messenger. RCS will also roll out to more carriers, making it available to more than a billion subscribers. And Google has also managed to convince many Android manufacturers to use Android Messages instead of the homemade app that came with the device.

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Leo Laporte takes a call about the future of hearing aid technology.

For the full episode, visit twit.tv/ttg/1367

Host: Leo Laporte

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Leo Laporte and Iain Thomson discuss the discovery of 7 Earth-like planets with Vladimir Airapetian, an Astrophysicist from NASA Goddard. He explains the implications of this discovery including the potential for life on a few of the planets which are in the "Goldilocks Zone."

For the full episode, go to Leo Laporte and Iain Thomson

Guest: Vladimir Airapetian

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