I ran into Joey while visiting his blog, cleartechinfo.com, which is a blog dedicated to the technology and computer beginner.  He makes some very good tutorials showing how to get things done on the computer.  Check out his blog, you may find it useful!  Here’s the interview he was mkind enough to give:

Bio:

My name is Joey Camarena. I was born and currently live in Southern California. I have an A+ certification. I have worked a couple of years at a large retail store named “Fry’s” and about 7 years at Creative Labs Inc. I currently work for a local school district as a Computer Tech.

Do you mind being called a “techie” friend?

I do not mind being called a techie friend. I don’t get insulted that easily, I have been called much worse, lol.

How long have you been interested in technology or computers?

I have been interested in computers since the 4th or 5th grade. A neighborhood friend had this computer from Radio Shack which we played video games on. I begged my father to buy me one, which he did. Then years later he bought me my 1st real computer, a 386. I then discovered “Wolfenstein” and eventually, “Doom 2″. 1st person shooters became my heroine. So I had to learn how to build and maintain them to keep up with the latest hardware that was compatible with the newest FPS games.

Do people in your life (friends or relatives) seem to turn to you for computer related problems?

Yes. Most people I know, family, friends and coworkers turn to me for help on computer related issues.

If so, does this bother you?

This doesn’t bother me. I don’t mind helping out at all as long as I have the time. The only times I do not help them out the same day or weekend is when I want to get out, away from the computer and have a social life. If they call me up on my cell and leave a message I just call them back the next day. If they want me to fix their computer I just tell them I will not be available that weekend since I am busy.

If someone would contact you for assistance, what kind of steps should they take before asking for help?

The first thing I would tell them is to “RTM” (read the manual *edited*), lol. Next thing I would tell them is to make sure that all the cabling is plugged in correctly and restart the computer. Last thing I would instruct them to do is type their question into Google.

Where do you see the internet in 10 years?

In 10 years I see the print versions of newspapers going out of business and the industry transitioning 100% online or near that figure. I see the Internet integrated into more appliances and vehicles. People will have a very tough time living without it, even more than now.

Related to the last question, where do you see computers in 10 years?

In 10 years from now computer will be smaller, a LOT more powerful, use less energy and therefore produce less heat. Computers will be a lot smarter, artificial intelligence will be much improved but still not perfect. Media Center/Entertainment PCs that are made to be plugged into your living room TV and stereo will be more mainstream and a lot easier to plug in and use.

Your opinion on:

Best OS?

I have used Linux (Ubuntu and Fedora), XP and Vista (32 and 64-bit versions). The best operating system for most people is the 32-bit version of Windows XP Pro. It is the friendliest and most compatible OS that runs smoothly as long as you have a half-way decent PC. If you are very good with computers and don’t mind initially jumping through a few hoops I’d recommend Ubuntu.

Best Web browser?

The best browser is Mozilla Firefox. It runs smooth, fast and has a ton of free add-ons. I love it so much it was the main subject of at least a dozen video tutorials I have made.

Best free/paid antivirus program?

The best Anti-Virus program I have used is Kaspersky Anti-Virus. The computers at work are all using a different brand since I assume it was a lot cheaper to purchase but not nearly as good as Kaspersky. I had my boss buy me Kaspersky Anti-Virus since I noticed there were a lot of virus problems these past 9 months. I combine Kaspersky with the free version of Malwarebytes’ Anti-Malware to scan and disinfect any computer at work that is infected with viruses/malware, etc. That combo works great. I do not have much experience with free anti-virus programs so I do not know enough to comment on them.

Best search engine?

I don’t think there is any doubt that Google is the best search engine. I can’t live without it.

What are the top 3-5 websites you visit regularly?

• Twitter.com
• Anandtech.com
• TomsHardware.com
• ProBlogger.net
• NickyCakes.com

Thanks for giving us some of your time, Joey!

-Anyone else, feel free to add to or comment on anything discussed above!

Continuing the “Techie” series, an old friend of mine from college agreed to the infamous interview.  I met Abelardo Gonzalez during my days attending Pensacola Christian College and he has turned out to be one of those “techie friends” in my own life.  Abbie has some strong opinions on tech and life so I think you’ll enjoy his answers!

Bio:

I am an A+ Certified Computer technician. I also do web design and programming on the side, and can frequently be found trying to push some envelope somewhere. I own 4 computers, a mac, a small notebook, a pc built out of spare parts and built into an LCD, and an iPhone (it runs UNIX, it is a computer). You can sometimes find me walking around holding my laptop sideways, reading books, or taking pictures/video of events in town.

I also recently started participating in the liberty movement in New Hampshire, where we are trying to decrease government regulation and interference with daily life. Since I was working as a truck driver in Pensacola before the move, this also means I am actively looking for a new job in NH.

I am a christian of the “non-modern” variety. My political and religious views tend to not fit any labels I know of.

Do you mind being called a “techie” friend?

Whatever floats your boat, although I’d prefer “friend” with no adjectives .

How long have you been interested in technology or computers?

My dad bought a TRS-80 and I was awed by his ablities to control what was on the TV with it (Like a picture of a house blowing smoke). That was in Kindergarten. Watching Star Trek every week did not help diminish my interest in technology. When my dad bought our first computer with QBasic in third grade, I tried to write a GUI, and continued studying user interfaces since then. When I got my first computer, a Performa, I learned Hypercard and wrote the word processor I used to type all my homework in high school with it.

Do people in your life (friends or relatives) seem to turn to you for computer related problems?

Yes. Sometimes too much, and sometimes too little. I hate seeing them take their computer to BestBuy to fix, and will attempt to intervene at that point .

If so, does this bother you?

Sometimes they ask for help, and then start telling me how to fix the problem. I stop fixing at that point. Unless they threaten to take it to BestBuy to fix, in which case I’ll probably just charge them.

If someone would contact you for assistance, what kind of steps should they take before asking for help?

Reboot. Google. Or at least write down the error message and tell me if your hard drive sounds like a chainsaw before I start making recommendations over email or phone.

Where do you see the internet in 10 years?

Unfortunately, with government regulations creeping up, I don’t see the internet as we now know it in 10 years. I do see something similar to Cable TV as the internet: high entry cost, regulation, lack of anything other than studio produced content. It may be faster, but I probably won’t be able to have a website after that. Internet may be freely available to all much like TV is, and may even be divided between local content and subscription based outside content.

Personal pages will be reduced to subdomains of corporate websites, and all content will be under scrutiny, even your emails, for supposed security reasons. All actions on the internet will be monitored, and I doubt there will be any dissent expressed on it.
Content will be, in general, more polished. Controls will be in place allowing you to filter all content for your family. All advertisements will be custom tailors to your specific profile.

I could see most moving willingly to this new internet, especially if a “crisis” was played up enough to convince everyone the move is necessary. Such a move will also likely be mandated by governments.

Now, this is only if government interference continues… hopefully it will stop, and none of this will happen.

Related to the last question, where do you see computers in 10 years?

Depends greatly on what happens over the next 2 years. What should happen is that computers should become smaller, more pervasive, and cheaper.

As far as US based computer manufacturing and design goes, if the country continues its economic collapse, the most cutting edge equipment will continue to be designed and sold outside the US. The US will probably fall backward technologically, and whichever country is more economically free will be the new technology leader, releasing smaller, more powerful and cheaper computers and equipment. Such technology will probably remain more expensive in the US because of import costs, etc. We are currently seeing this on a small scale.

Your opinion on:

Best OS?

BeOS/Haiku OS

Best Web browser?

Opera (for readability reasons, it used to be Safari, but then I found gdi++.

Best free/paid antivirus program?

AVG (but don’t use their spyware program)

Best search engine?

I want to use something other than Google so bad, but everything else stinks!

What are the top 3-5 websites you visit regularly?

• Freekeene.com – a blog and forum chronicling the movement for more freedome in Keene, NH, which is where I know live (ok, very close to it).
• Mint.com – when a service this good is offered, sometimes it offsets the cost of a slight loss in privacy, as long as mint continues to keep my information secret anyway.
• Apathyonline.net – my blog, with my thoughts on society, christianity and government. It is also my web-sandbox where I practice webprogramming and design.
• Google.com – Best search engine.
• And, well, I visit your website regularly.

Nice to hear from you Abbie!

-Anyone else, feel free to add to or comment on anything discussed above!

Image via Wikipedia

I’ve found another victim, um, er, I mean, very nice person to do yet another “techie” interview!  I like to ask people who are in the tech field (or that I know have technical aptitude with computers) some simple yet curious questions about what they think and who they are.  Here’s an interview with Paul Eckstrom, PC technician and tech blogger over at Tech–for Everyone.  Enjoy!

Bio:

I am a CompTIA Certified computer technician, and the owner of Aplus Computer Aid. I write a daily Tech Tips & Tricks, and How-To blog, Tech–for Everyone with an emphasis on the “for everyone”.

Do you mind being called a “techie” friend?

Um.. do I mind being called a “techie”? I prefer “Über Geek”.. but since I have been using, building, and repairing computers since Win 95, I definitely qualify as a “techie”.

How long have you been interested in technology or computers?

As I just mentioned, I have been involved with computers since just before the “dot com bubble“, but I actually didn’t develop a special interest in computers until rather late in life (I was kind of afraid of them there for a while, actually). But, with the advent of 56K modems, the “opening up” of the Internet to the public, and video games like Duke Nukem 3D, I was hooked.

Do people in your life (friends or relatives) seem to turn to you for computer related problems?

Well, a vigorous campaign of insulting them as morons, and charging them twice my going rate, has pretty well put an end to that annoyance.. I kid!

If so, does this bother you?

No. Not generally. Despite the advances in technology (I mean, the days of DOS are long gone — replaced by the GUI and icons), computers still aren’t the easiest things to figure out — they are NOT appliances like a TV set or microwave oven, though people often seem to see them as such.. But there are limits.

If someone would contact you for assistance, what kind of steps should they take before asking for help?

1) reboot 2) Google it.

Where do you see the internet in 10 years?

It either won’t exist because the hackers and cybercriminals will have totally corrupted it, or it will be the most ubiquitous part of our lives. (It’s already the largest man-made object on earth.) If it somehow survives, it will be the repository of all knowledge, the method of commerce, and a “Big Brother” watchdog unimagined by George Orwell.

Related to the last question, where do you see computers in 10 years?

They will be everywhere.. including sewn into your clothes. Wireless technology will keep them in constant contact.

Your opinion on:

Best OS?

Windows 7

Best Web browser?

Firefox

Best free/paid antivirus program?

Avast! Home Edition

Best search engine?

The 300lb gorilla (starts with a “G”)

What are the top 3-5 websites you visit regularly?

• Bill Mullins Weblog-Tech Thoughts
• What’s On My PC…
• TWiT.TV
• Security Fix (blog)
• Paul Thurrott’s SuperSite for Windows

Thank you Paul for taking the time to share!

-Anyone else, feel free to add to or comment on anything discussed above!

I have not known Matt Rodela for too long.  I starting following his blog, yfncg.com, some time ago and have been enjoying learning about his business endeavors.  As you will learn in this my second “techie” interview, Matt is an Enterprise Systems Analyst and is in the process of starting his own consulting business.

Bio:

I have 7 years experience in the information technology industry, including 4 years in the US army as a trumpet player and computer technician. I have a degree in Information Systems and several technology certifications including Network+ and MCP.

Along with starting and running my part time computer consulting business, I also keep busy with my “day job” as an Enterprise Systems Analyst for a pharmaceutical company and moonlight as a singer/songwriter at http://www.mattrodela.com. I try to apply the lessons I’ve learned from my military, musical, and corporate experiences to find out-of-the-box and productive ways to achieve
success while juggling multiple creative and business opportunities.

I write about my experiences running a part-time computer consulting business on my blog http://www.yfncg.com.

I grew up in Southern California, but currently live in Maryland with my goldfish Rufus.

Do you mind being called a “techie” friend?

Not at all. I embrace my “techiness” and have earned good money from it to date!

How long have you been interested in technology or computers?

Ever since my parents bought our first family computer back in the
late 80′s! I was so fascinated by how it worked and what it could do.

Do people in your life (friends or relatives) seem to turn to you for computer related problems?

My family mostly. Most of my friends are fairly tech savvy so they
can handle things themselves!

If so, does this bother you?

Not at all. I like feeling useful and its been great practice for my business.

If someone would contact you for assistance, what kind of steps should they take before asking for help?

At least try rebooting the computer. An amazing amount of issues can be fixed by a simple reboot. Also, it doesn’t hurt to put your issue into google and see what comes up, that’s how I do half of MY OWN research anyway! Shhhh, don’t tell anyone!

Where do you see the internet in 10 years?

I see it being very transparent and ubiquitous. It will be everywhere we need it to be and it will be the place where we store all of our applications, data, and information.

Related to the last question, where do you see computers in 10 years?

I think personal computing will have nearly evaporated into the “cloud”. Instead of having a PC at home, you’ll have multiple ways to access your chunk of the cloud like cell phones, netbooks, tv’s, and even appliances.

Your opinion on:

Best OS?

They all have their own benefits. For corporations, it’s Windows. For personal use, I think OS X offers the best usability. For techies, Linux is fun to play with and offers the most flexibility.

Best Web browser?

Firefox for sure. It’s open-source nature allows it to have great plug-ins written for it. I haven’t tried Google’s Chrome browser yet, but plan on checking it out soon. IT seems to have great promise.

Best free/paid antivirus program (can include other areas such as anit-spyware and cleaning programs if you like)?

This changes so frequently it’s hard to keep up. But right now my favorite free antivirus program is AVG and my favorite paid one is Kaspersky. They both seem to strike the best balance between being safe yet un-obtrusive.

Best search engine?

There’s no question it’s google. Others have tried to offer more, but the simplicity and straightforwardness of google keeps me coming back.

What are the top 3-5 websites you visit regularly?

• www.cnet.com – To keep up-to-date with the latest trends in consumer electronics.
• www.technibble.com – To keep up-to-date with the latest trends in computer repair and consulting.
• www.pandora.com – Better than any radio station! Where I find new music based on musicians I already like. I’t always on in the background when I work on the computer at home.
• www.igoogle.com – Since I’m a google nut, I like using igoogle as a way to consolidate all of my various google applications in one place at a glance.

Thank you, Matt, for taking the time out to thoughtfully answer these questions!

Recently I did a post about where I go to find answers online.  One of the sources I cited was my “techie” friends.  Today I want to start a series of interviews around these wonderful people with an interview of a friend of mine from school, Mark Bouchard.  For the interview I asked Mark to give us a quick bio to catch us up with what he’s up to, and then I asked him a series of questions.  I hope you enjoy!

Bio:

My name is Mark David Bouchard, Jr. I currently live in Waterford, NY (which is about 10 miles north of Albany, NY).

Since June 2006, I have been working with a small company in Saratoga Springs, NY called CORESense. At CORESense, I work on the implementation team and I work with a web programming language called PHP and database software called MySQL. CORESense provides retail Software as a Service (SAAS) which helps our clients maintain orders, customers, products, inventory, reporting, etc.

I went to college at Pensacola Christian College in 2001-2005 where I earned my BS degree in Computer Science.

Do you mind being called a “techie” friend?

No, I actually don’t mind. Sometimes I refer to myself as a “techie”. I will also accept “geek” but I DO NOT accept “nerd” because it implies poor hygiene.

How long have you been interested in technology or computers?

My initial interest in computers started back in 1997 when my Grand Mother bought a computer for me to work on. I destroyed the thing several times by rerunning the restore disks every time I killed Windows . I eventually got tired of that (and my Grand Mother didn’t appreciate losing work) and I started figuring out how to fix problems in Windows without using the restore disk. My first experience with programming was in 8th grade when I learned QBASIC. After experiencing that, I was determined to study programming at Pensacola Christian College where I took on a Computer Science degree.

Do people in your life (friends or relatives) seem to turn to you for computer related problems?

Yes, all the time. My Mom, Dad, sisters, and a few friends have turned to me for help.

If so, does this bother you?

Sometimes. Generally I don’t mind helping people fix their computers. I get really annoyed if the problem could have been prevented with something like decent virus protection software. Despite that though, I do enjoy the “detective” work of analyzing the situation and figuring out where the virus is hiding.

If someone would contact you for assistence, what kind of steps should they take before asking for help?

Generally it’s a good idea to provide reproduction steps so I can reproduce the problem you are experiencing. Sometimes people will ask me for help and say something like “The computer gave me this strange error message that said something about some disk problem.” As you can see, this question is very vague. This could be something as simple as a corrupt file to symptoms of hard disk failure. My suggestion is to write down these kinds of messages and any steps to reproduce the problem, then your “techie” friend can help you out more effectively. Also, it is a good idea to write down things you tried to do on your own to rectify the problem.

Where do you see the internet and computers in 10 years?

Being in web development and working with websites like Facebook, Google and their products, Youtube, etc. it is obvious that the web is becoming multimedia centric. This is commonly referred to as Web 2.0 and we are starting to see a lot of these new features. There is another cool technology idea called “cloud computing”. It’s the idea where people do there work over the web. A good example of this would be Google’s Docs web applications. You can compose basic documents which work with Microsoft Office using only the Internet and your web browser. I read a headline recently on slashdot.org (a geek’s technology news site) which mentioned “cloud computing” graphics processors. That is, having a centralized network on the Internet which does graphics processing outside of your computer. “Cloud computing” and Web 2.0 seem to be the wave of the future.

Your opinion on:

Best OS?

The best PC OS, in my opinion, is Ubuntu Linux. The best OS for Mac has to be whatever the latest MacOS X .

Best Web browser?

Definitely Firefox! It’s based on Mozilla and some components of Gecko (the rendering engine) which are both Open Source software that have been around for years. It also standardized tabbed browsing (though Opera has this too) and it has awesome plugins. What more can you askfor?

Best free/paid antivirus program (can include other areas such as anit-spyware and cleaning programs if you like)?

My favorite free (for home use only) anti-virus software is Avast (www.avast.com). They require you to register, but the download is free and after registration you get 14 months of free virus database upgrades. The software works quite well and I’ve seen it remove several viruses successfully recently.

I absolutely hate any Norton products. I used to like Norton, but, just like Windows Vista, modern versions of Norton are “pretty” looking bloated tools. Besides, they rip you off by charging you $50+ for the toolset.

Best search engine?

Google… period. Why? Google’s search page loads instantly and I almost find exactly what I’m looking for within the first 3 search results pages. Most often the first page has the site I’m looking for. Additionally, Google’s advertising is specifically related to what I’m looking for and it IS NOT ANNOYING!

What are the top 3-5 websites you visit regularly?

In no particular order:
- www.google.com (and gmail)
- www.facebook.com
- www.ubuntu.com
- www.slashdot.org
- www.kernelnewbies.org
- www.php.net (reference tool for work )
- www.mysql.com

Thank you, Mark, for taking the time out to thoughtfully answer these questions!