PCM15: Why to Dump Your Internet Browser Now! -

Chances are you use one of the “big five” browsers – Chrome, Firefox, Internet Explorer, Safari, or Opera, but know this: you don’t have to!

That’s because a growing number other browsers are available that steer the Internet toward its original intent – a tool for you to use and not use you.

One of the fastest growing of these so-called alternative browsers is Maxthon.

And for this week’s show we went straight to one of the industry’s top sources – Karl Mattson, vice president and general manager of Maxthon – to understand why the alternative browser market continues gaining steam and why just about any tech user should at least consider a browser like Maxthon. Among other things, Mike and Karl discuss:

– Why big-name browsers need to be so intrusive to survive and why those like Maxthon don’t

– The kind of companies and organizations that try to track user online behavior

– How data collected through big-name browsers is being used to profile you – and profit from your profile

– How browsers like Maxthon come with settings set up to the user’s benefit

– What devices alternative browsers work with

– How browsers like Maxthon partner with organizations like AdBlock to further protect users

Also in this episode of the PC Mike Techcast, we talk Sling TV, Microsoft at 40, how to turn your phone or tablet into a scanner, and lots more!

[spp-player]

Shownotes from episode 15 of the PC Mike Techcast

Listener Question: Can You Help Me Print Wirelessly?

A listener who lives in a rural setting asks Mike for help in setting up a printer. Mike offers some guidance to get her on the right track.

App Review: How to Turn Your Phone Into a Scanner

In many ways smartphones like the Apple iPhone 6 or Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge have come to replace cameras, TVs, and handheld video recorders and you can add one more to that list – the scanner. That’s because a growing number of robust apps can replace your bulky scanner and increase productivity and this week, I want to tell you about about three of the best – Scanner Pro, Mobile Doc Scanner 3 + OCR, and Genius Scan. Check out the full report from PC Mike for more details and links to the apps. (Read more)

Tech News and Trends: Sling TV Adds More Channels, HBO; Microsoft Celebrates 40 Years

Sling TV has had a busy week adding more core channels and confirming HBO will soon be available through the app (Read more)

Check out PC Mike Review of Sling TV (Read more)

And the PC Mike review of the Roku Streaming Stick, which can be used to watch Sling on a TV (Read more)

Microsoft turns 40 on April 4. We talk about the company over the years and take a look ahead. Mike talks about the time he almost went to work for Microsoft in the 1990s. For more information on Microsoft, The Economist does a good job of taking a look at the tech giant’s evolution. (Read more)

Interview: Karl Mattson, vice president of international, Maxthon

As vice president and general manager of Maxthon, Karl Mattson deals with security concerns every day at Maxthon, which has pioneered many areas of secure cloud-based web browsing. Karl talks with Mike this week about why so-called alternative browsers like Maxthon should at least be on your list of tech changes to consider.

Here’s a link to Maxthon: http://www.maxthon.com/

Online Learning – Free Trial for PC Mike Listeners

I get asked a lot about finding online courses for learning how to use photography software such as Adobe Photoshop and Lightroom CC, which are both on my recently updated list of tech gear. I talk about how I benefited from taking online courses as well as a special deal available only to PC Mike Techcast listeners at pcmike.com/lynda, where you can even try it free for 10 days and see if online learning works as well for you as it has for me. By the way, they have more than 3,300 courses to pick from – including more than 100,000 video tutorials – in subjects ranging from photography, video and audio to graphic design and web development. With Lynda, you can get:

– Unlimited access to all 3,314 courses – more than 100,000 video tutorials

– Learn new software and stay up to date

Listeners of the PC Mike podcast can get a free 10-day trial. Try any course. Start your trial now and see what you can learn. Just go to https://pcmike.com/lynda to get the free 10 day trial.

We Need Your Help!

As we begin a new podcast like this, it’s very important to get a bunch of reviews to be able to show well in the iTunes listings. So if you can, I’d sure appreciate it if you’d subscribe and leave me your rating and review.

Here’s how:

First, open up the iTunes app on your computer or mobile device. Click on Podcasts on top
> From the iTunes Podcasts page, use the “Search Store” field up at the top right corner of the page. Type in PC Mike Techcast under the Podcasts category.
> Click on the logo image of the PC Mike Techcast on the search return page
> From there, you can:

1) Subscribe

2) Choose and Click on a star (1-5) that reflects your rating. Five stars means you really like it, one star not so much.

3) Leave a written review.

Thanks to all for the kind reviews we’ve received so far. I read and appreciate every review! If you haven’t left a review please do so. I will be so grateful!

And remember, you can appear in future episodes. Ask a question or voice your comments by clicking the Leave Voicemail tab on the right side of this page here at pcmike.com. You can then use the microphone on your computer to record your question.

Thank you!