Ask A Geek

Q: I know the new verison of Web OS came out, 1.4.0, and they say that I can change my text message sound notifications but when I go into Sounds & Ringtones I don’t see any options to change it. How do I change it?

A: It is certainly nice that Web OS based phones (Palm Pre, Pixi, and more to come) can finally have different sounds/notifications for texts and emails and I too found it odd that it was not under Sounds & Ringtones. Read the rest of this entry »

Q: What is the difference between a SIM card and an SD card?

A: A SIM (Subscriber Identity Module) card stores information to identify a user on a cell phone network. While a SIM card can store limited amount of data it is not meant to be a storage device, it is just meant to identify a user on a network. An SD (Secure Digital) card is a type of memory card that has no moving parts and will retain the data without power. Read the rest of this entry »

Q: Will use of the mp3 feature on my Samsung Rugby overseas incur charges to my cell phone bill? I am an AT&T subscriber.. I just want to be able to use it as an mp3 not as a cell phone but am concerned that simply turning the phone on overseas will incur international connection charges?

Q: Recently I bought a Samsung Touch Of Color T260HD to use with my computer and PS3. In order to watch TV do I have to have an indoor antenna connected with the monitor?

A: The Samsung Touch Of Color T260HD is an actual HDTV not an HD monitor. This is important to know because it means that it has an HD tuner built into it. If it were an HD monitor then you would need to buy a separate HD tuner. So the simple answer to your question is yes, all you need to do is attach an indoor antenna to the HDTV but that is not the entire answer.

Read the rest of this entry »

Q: What NAT ports do I need to open to play Xbox Live unrestricted?

A: There are only a few symptoms that would require you change your firewall/router settings to use Xbox Live. You should remember that changing your firewall/router settings opens up your network to more security threats so you should only make this change if you have problems withe Xbox Live. The first sign that you might need to make changes to your firewall/router would be getting a yellow warning triangle when you run a test from the Xbox Live connection from inside the Network Settings screen. Read the rest of this entry »

Q: I have a Canon DC410 which uses mini discs. When I put the disc in my computer I don’t have anything that will open it. What can I do to get the video from the disc onto my computer?

A: You will first have to confirm that you are putting the disc in a DVD drive and not a CD drive. The mini disc is a small DVD. Read the rest of this entry »

Q: How does the Direct TV on demand service work?

A: Direct TV on demand services works over the Internet. This means that you need to have a high speed Internet connection that you can connect the Direct TV receiver to. This means you will have a better experience with the on demand service if you have a fast and reliable Internet connection. Read the rest of this entry »

Q: What is the difference, if there is any, between DVD-R and DVD+R?

A: There is a slight difference between the two that might make one better than the other for you. An interesting fact I found on wikipedia about this says that DVD+R was actually pushed by Sony. I find this interesting because they always seem to want to do things their own way, i.e. HD DVD vs Blu Ray. Read the rest of this entry »

Q: How do I know if my cell phone can connect to my computer with Bluetooth to do things like dial-up networking, transferring the phone book, or other tasks?

A: Not all devices that have Bluetooth in them are created equal. Bluetooth uses profiles to figure out exactly what the device can do. You can read more about what types of profiles exist over at Bluetooth.com or at Wikipedia.com. Read the rest of this entry »

Q: How would I know if a cell phone supports Netflix? What should I be looking for in the description of the phone?

A: There are no cell phones that currently support Netflix’s watch now feature. It should be noted that there are lots of rumors out there that there will be an app released soon for the iPhone that will let you download a video onto the iPhone from Netflix but that it wont be the watch now feature. It is rumored to work the same way iTunes, where you would download the entire video and then be able to watch it.

You can find a full list of devices that support Netflix on the Netflix Ready Devices List and we suggest you check it often as it will change often. Currently the only way to watch videos on a pocket sized portable device, like a cell phone, would be to load them onto the device. The iPod Touch and iPhone can easily download videos rented or purchased from iTunes but most other devices don’t have that luxary yet. Down the road I am sure this will change but that is how it is for now. Read the rest of this entry »