#20: The MOP Is My…

Hammer? Your crew this week: Audra, Chuck, and Juan. That’s right, the Juanster is back. Hey — don’t forget to email or tweet us your topics for discussion. Cause, you know, we’re too effin lazy to come up with our own. Ok, sometimes we come of with them. But they’re lame. Well, lame-er. Whatever. I’ma [...]

#25: Games People Play

The introduction of Jack’s ex-wife Abby helps uncover a lot of backstory on Jack, Abby, and of course Zoe. We discuss Zoe and Carter’s incredible integration into the Eureka community and what might place Carter and her into a standoff, each waiting for the other to make the first move to say they want to [...]

Live Meetup Q&A This Tuesday, Feb. 7 at 8:00 p.m. CT

In the first week since we opened RSVPs and registration for the 2012 international meetup we’ve seen almost as many RSVPs as we had in all of last year. Clearly it’s gonna be a kick-ass time, as defined by the fact that some of the coolest people in the world (GWCers, natch) will be [...]

#28: Cloud-Based OS Access, Computer-on-a-Stick

Juan shares his junk pile adventures complete with the recovery of an original World of Warcraft manual. We note remote-game-purveyor OnLive’s foray into cloud-based OS access, discussing just how much cloud computing has modified the small business landscape. We drool a bit on a $35 computer-on-a-stick that’s a project just waiting to happen. And we [...]

#308: Fairy Tales 2, Ever After

We continue our delve into fairy tales with a discussion of the origins and history of the Cinderella story and a critical viewing of Ever After. We talk mousewashing and how it’s changed stories over the years, track Cinderella all the way back to 1 B.C., question the one-true-match theory, and get a big kick [...]

#19: Chuck Rant

This week, Chuck rants. And rants some more. And is a general butthead. Yeah, he’s often that way, but tonight’s special. Maybe Juan will be back next week to shut him the hell up. Your crew this week: Audra and Chuck. But sadly not Juan. (Please come back next week, Juan.)

Star Wars Uncut: Director’s Cut

A while back, I came across StarWarsUncut.com, a site that divided Star Wars (A New Hope) into 15-second segments and encouraged Star Wars fans to take one of the clips, shoot it however they deemed fit, and upload the sequence back to the site. The end result includes some pretty

#27: New AT&T Data Plans, SOPA Primer

We run down AT&T’s latest data plan modifications, offering slightly more data at a slightly higher cost. And as much as we hate to talk about it — especially since it’s already “shelved” for now — we run through the provisions of SOPA/PIPA, its predecessors, and the bills likely to follow in its wake.

#307: Fairy Tales 1, The Brothers Grimm

We kick off our fairy tales arc with a watch and discussion of The Brothers Grimm. And we run down the week in geek including some spoiler-free BBC Sherlock season-finale discussion, a bit on Jonathan Coulton as an “old man who knows how to use the internet,” and some thoughts on what makes a fairy [...]

#18: Closet Full of Toasters

Damn I love Eff This Week. I learn something every single week. Like what “closet full of toasters” means. And what most women think of Mr. Cumberbatch, owner of the most British name in all existence. Your crew this week: Audra, Juan, and Chuck.

#23: Unpredictable

We dive into yet another awesome B and C story episode in which we meet some new characters including Pilar and Jack’s first evil ex, Abby. We talk relationships and passive aggression in terms of Jack’s history. We enjoy the building tension over Henry’s unresolved issues. And we get a big kick out of Fargo’s [...]

#26: VHS Conversion Story, PS3 Analog Sticks

In this bonus episode we tell the tale of what’s probably the most Rube Goldberg VHS conversion you’ve ever heard — “Step 1: Recompile ffmpeg” — resulting in Chuck recovering a copy of an old Super8 film he shot 20 years ago. And we take a listener call from the UK resulting in a discussion [...]

#25: CES, XBox 720 DVR

We have some fun with a bit of off-site CES coverage followed by a nice long discussion of the XBox 720 DVR possibility and the business decisions that drive it. Also, we take some listener calls, including a Mac Pro SSD upgrade experience and a question about leaving iOS devices plugged in overnight.

#306: Bill and Ted’s Bogus Journey

We dive into the ’90s Bill and Ted sequel, addressing some serious points about the duo’s psyche and home life as well as the heart we find in rock ‘n roll. And we run down the week in geek, including Dark Knight tix already (no, really) on sale, the miserable Bane ‘Knight trailer, our take [...]

#17: Neville’s The Hot One

You know what we should do next week? We should take questions. That sounds like fun. The chat is always hoppin’ (Effin?), so why not? Think up your favorite questions to ask us and dump ‘em in the chat next week and we’ll answer our faves. (And yeah, that’s what you get for reading the [...]

#22: Try, Try Again

Season two rolls on with our first major Fargo episode of the show’s history. Also we get a look at Henry’s motivations and direction as well as a major arc plot event. We note Eureka’s ability to go from zero to nuking-you-in-the-bottom-of-a-pit in zero seconds flat. We discuss the introduction of Larry as a unique [...]

#24: Best Gym Music Player, Long Term Data Storage

We share our experiences in selecting a high quality, inexpensive music player for the gym — choosing one you might not expect. We answer a listener call asking about the best storage medium for long-term data archival. And Juan tells us a little about his recent Kinect interactions.

Happy 2012! Meetup News! It’s Thursday!

Happy new year, everyone! I’m pretty excited about where GWC’s headed this year and thought I’d share a few bits of news and happenings.

First, we’re making some SERIOUS progress on our plans for the 2012 International Meetup. We announced the date (March 16-18, 2012) on the forum back in November, but it’s taken [...]

#23: A320 Classic Game Emulator, News

We offer our first impressions of the cheap-assed Linux-based A320 classic game emulator. We discuss your new ability to add free voice calls to Google+ hangouts. And we talk Verizon convenience fee and what separates one carrier from another (read: not much).

#305: Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure

We tackle the 80s time travel classic in style, giving it the geek cred recognition it so richly deserves. We note some significant trek connections. We talk about Bill and Ted’s untainted honesty, focus, and ability to grow without change. We discuss standards of beauty and Bill’s uncanny resemblance to some famous art. We note [...]

#16: Don’t Remember. Here’s Some Cosplay Chicks

Yeah, I totally forgot what this podcast was even about. Oh wait. Eff This Week is about NOTHING. That’s right. We’re about NOTHING, Lebowski. NOTHING! Your crew this week: Audra, Juan, and Chuck. (I do remember that this was a fun podcast, though. Really.)

#21: Phoenix Rising

We’re into season two in our off-season rewatch, and it’s a busy time in Eureka. We talk classic tragedy formulas, Aristotle, and what makes great villains as Henry takes the show for a twist. We notice some unique Eureka locations as well.

#304: New Year’s News

It’s our last podcast of 2011, and we spend it running down the week in geek, including some detailed discussion of Forza Motorsports 4 and it’s awesome new get-insulted-by-Jeremy-Clarkson gameplay, a tease of a don’t-we-wish Helen Mirren as the next female Doctor, some spoiler-free opinions on Mission Impossible 4, lots of interest in the Precinct [...]

#15: Purdy Beak

It’s a party. You’re invited. Or you were. If you were there. If not, you’re invited next week. Ish. Yeah. Your crew this week: Audra, Juan, Chuck, Topgun, and Lady D. I’d tell you all about the great highlights and such, but, well, I didn’t write any of them down and I’m lazy. Anyway, as [...]

#22: Christmas Hauls, Listener Calls

We wonder when Firefox will stop the onslaught of business-use-killing version numbers. We talk about the latest Boxee PC update and how Boxee’s discontinuance of the PC version makes sense. Juan tells us about his new PS3 and his accessory purchase plans. And we take listener calls, including a great SIRI use case, discussion of [...]

#20: Once in a Lifetime

We dig into the season one finale with some serious discussion of the social effects of time travel: when one travels back to fix something, when is it fixed? What is fixed in this context? We compare this episodes events and outcomes to other time travel fiction, like Butterfly Effect, Primer, DS9, and (of course) [...]

#303: Christmas, Part II

We’re joined again by Christmas TV Companion author Joanna Wilson, this time to discuss sci-fi Christmas specials. We listen to Bwana’s response to our honor of naming a GWC news section after him, which inspires some gaming discussion, like what it means to be a gamer and our take on the new XBL dashboard. Donnie [...]

#14: The Whispering Eye of Sauron

It’s our penultimate pre-holiday hangout, and we’re predictably punchy at the beginning, finally trailing off toward our inevitable crash. The chat was quite engaged this evening, and as always we thank everyone for sharing a bit of the evening with us. Your crew this week: Audra, Chuck, and Juan.

#19: H.O.U.S.E. Rules

Yep, our re-watch finally hit what we believe is the turning point for the series (and maybe the show) with an episode that establishes the key characters as well as the future of the franchise. And it brings up some serious discussion about leadership, the arts and sciences, and so on. Enjoy.

#21: XBox Live Dashboard Update, iOS App

We talk through the latest Xbox Live dashboard update. We express our surprise at the usefulness of the XBL iOS app. And we give some serious thought (and talk, of course) to how incredibly apt we find the Win8 panels interface on both Windows phones and the 360. Where’s our Apple-quality functionality with a bad-ass [...]

#302: Christmas 2011

We offer up some holiday entertainment to hopefully help make that Christmas travel just a little bit easier this season. Rock legends Donnie Iris and the Cruisers join us with a special performance to set the holiday tone. Joanna Wilson, author of ‘Tis The Season TV and the Christmas TV Companion walks us through the [...]

#13: Bad Moo Rising

The semester’s over. Work is turned in. Work is graded. Audra has good news. Chuck has good news. Juan has news. We eff it all. This week’s crew: Audra, Chuck, and Juan. (That’s right: Audra’s back!) Seriously, though, we had a great time blowing off steam from a rough week. Hope you enjoy, too. Also: [...]

#18: Do You See What I See?

It’s holiday time, and you know what that means: a special holiday episode of Eureka! Come enjoy your favorite smarties with us as they take on all new character — which in this case means animation. It’s fun. It’s funny. And it even gives us some new insight into the characters. Also: we spend some [...]

#20: Twitter iOS Updates/Desktop Software Sales

This week Twitter deployed major changes to their iPhone app, and we run down the new changes and what they mean to your online social life. We discuss when it makes sense to pay (sometimes big bucks) for a mobile app and when to stick to the freebies. And we take a look at some [...]

#17: Purple Haze

We enjoy the humor (and all-round awesomeness) of Taggart and Allison showing some skin. We note some key moments in Eureka long-term-arc continuity exposed in this episode as well as some killer character development. We get a big kick out of the Fargo/Seth slap fight — and the quite realistic Allison/Bevery showdown. We discuss the [...]

#301: Top (n)

We round up some of the Best of 2011 in our new patent-pending Top (n) lists. And we run down the week in geek, including some analysis of the analysis of Trek 2/12, Baldwin’s now-infamous Words With Friends addiction, a cool new take on Snow White, and the latest trends in ePublishing.

#12: Audra’s Not Here, Man

That’s right. Audra’s week was so effed that she didn’t even have time to Eff it. In her absence, your hosts this week (Chuck and Juan) ramble about Corner Gas, which you can think of as Canada’s Seinfeld. We also talk Archer and Stargate. And GWC uber-producer Solai joins us for a quick ten minutes [...]

#19: Listener Calls, Podcast Rig Geeking

In this bonus episode of Modern Geek, we take listener calls, including a question about WiFi slowdowns on the iPhone, a successful Roku-based cutting of the cable TV cord, and an inquiry as to the best camera choice for taking pictures of active children. Also, we geek out a bit about the technical hurdles we [...]

#300: Live Callers, FSL Special, Dr. Wichelns

This week’s special 300th episode of Galactic Watercooler was recorded live in front of a (remote) studio audience. We take a number of live callers. We bring you a special version of Fantasy Sci-Fi League in which our audience-selected team of heroes saves the holiday. We bring back the Reverend Dr. Wichelns (one of GWC’s [...]

#18: YouTube’s New UI/Chiptune Magic

We talk about YouTube’s user interface makeover and what it might mean for the overall Google social strategy. We geek out over an Apple II-based drum sequencer for chiptune composers. We get distracted by an awesome eBay Apple II auction. And we run down the basics of recent YouTube Content ID profiteering.

#17: 360 Dashboard Update, Boxee, Retro Gaming

We talk about the huge change coming to the Xbox 360 dashboard in the next few weeks. We dissect the addition of live TV via antennae to the Boxee Box. We drool over ThinkGeek’s awesome sub-$100 portable retro gaming rig — and quietly add it to both our Christmas lists. And we discuss a reader’s [...]

#11: Shaved Ginger Biscuit

Effin’ the post-fake-Thanksgiving Thursday, is this week’s crew: Audra, Chuck, and Juan. Highlights: The chat room tells us about the fabled gingerbread donut. Chuck wonders why Siri doesn’t understand stardates. Non-Texans discover that it’s actually cold in texas. Audra tells a one-time-at-band-camp story. And we profess our continuing love for Scrubs.

#16: Primal

It’s Stark! No, it’s Starks! We check out the nano-bots -bits -thingies in Primal and hear Chuck’s argument for an army of Chucks to do his bidding (or, um, not). Also: We see some great Carter/Zoe interaction and a deepening of a number of Eureka’s core characters.

#299: Geeksgiving

This week we give thanks for some of the geeky things we loved this year. And we discover a ball-slappingly good time with Audra’s new holiday: Spanksgiving. Oh yeah, we also run down the week in geek including a ton of Trek movie news and Audra’s take on the neolithic iPad.

#16: Black Friday/Password Security

We offer some advice on how to avoid disappointing Black Friday purchases. We talk about password security and how you can easily and dramatically increase the security of your online accounts and identity. And we take a listener call about cellular data plans.

#298: Geek Gifts

We talk about some of our favorite geek gifts this holiday season. And we run down the week in geek, including lots more Skyrim love, a discussion of The Captains documentary, new Trek 2/12 news (filming and work on effects shots has begun), Sean’s take on Anita Blake audiobooks and sex in magic, some talk [...]

#10: Dr. Casilda

Kidding aside, congrats to Casilda who successfully defended her dissertation the day we Effed — and joined us to celebrate. Your Eff This Week hosts this week: Audra, Chuck, and Juan. Highlights: We talked diabeetus. And we blasted out top ten lists based on chat room suggestions, including our ten favorite SG-1 episodes, top ten [...]

#15: Right as Raynes

We enjoy the humanization of Dr. Stark as we watch Right as Raynes. We discuss Beverly’s odd position as therapist to an entire town (that knows each other very well) and her similarities to Counselor Troi on TNG. We notice Raynes’ Geth-like qualities. And we enjoy Henry’s mad firefighting skills.

#15: SIRI Explainer, Redundancy vs. Backup

We cover the iOS 5.0.1 release — the platform’s first OTA update. We explain the basics of how SIRI works and why outages occur. We discuss Adobe’s halt of movie/TV Flash player development and what it means to the industry. We delve into the differences between redundancy and backup when it comes to data protection, [...]

#297: TV/Movie Catch-Up

We catch you up on all the great shows and movies we’ve been watching for the past few months. And we run down the week in geek, including the new Elder Scrolls game release, a possible Bruce Willis casting in an upcoming Neuromancer big-screen debut, re-writes and shuffling in the Battleship/Asteroids camps, and lots, lots [...]