http://www.bran.com.au

Dumb lawsuits, new mobiles, laser TV, dodgy surveys, Jenna returns, Spam (the ham), the death of cursive writing, RIP Ray Noorda.

Detailed show notes coming soon...

http://www.bran.com.au

In this week’s podcast, Roulla, Angus and Nathan discuss:

* Whether Telstra’s “new” 3G network will be enough to satisfy disgruntled consumers
* The latest mobile phone features: GPS is good, screaming handsets are bad, but what about WiBree
* How Roulla became the power tool queen of Sydney by building a shoe rack
* YouTube and Google: marriage made in heaven, or desperate scrabble by the search giant to get some market share?
* Internet sex scandals galore: McDermott, Foley and Nathan (OK, one of these is a lie)
* Censors go feral: what the US could learn from China, and why DRM rallies and kitten licensing are both dumb ideas
* How to waste time with the Church of Google, Pacelman and shoes for hookers
* Stupid behaviour updates for Microsoft, Apple, Sony (hunka hunka burning tech!) and (naturally) HP
* Plus random gossip and general bitching about Mio, Airbus and Blackberry addiction

Hosted by: Roulla Yiacoumi, Angus Kidman and Nathan Taylor

Edited and produced by: John the Tech Guy

http://www.bran.com.au

In this week’s frankly out-there podcast, Roulla, Angus and Nathan discuss:

* Why too many gadgets are barely enough, with news on RedBerry, ChickBuds, multi-angle screens, Zune, Sony’s non-appearing Reader and a wooden camera
* Patch madness as iTunes gets an update and Microsoft gives in to the pressure
* Will your kids prefer the Wii or a super-tough digital camera for Christmas?
* Is playing Grand Theft Auto more damaging than cutting the dodgy bits out of Croatian porn?
* New risks for topless sunbathers: a starring role on Google Earth
* Wikipedia and Citizendium: the way of the future or a huge heap of junk?
* Assault and battery: nowhere left for Sony to go

Plus random gossip on what’s new in Vista, DoorOne, PS3, Intel, Tokyo Drift and Wal-Mart

Hosted by: Roulla Yiacoumi, Angus Kidman and Nathan Taylor

Edited and produced by: John the Tech Guy

http://www.bran.com.au

In this week’s coming-of-age podcast, Roulla, Angus and Nathan discuss:

* IT job prospects in Australia: not too bad, provided you’re not a chick
* Flying and burning: the latest on airline security rules, burning Lenovos and Toshiba PR crises
* How BRAN’s influence has solved Australia’s broadband crisis in one fell swoop
* Bitching ahoy as Apple and Wal-Mart draw swords
* Just how much music are iPod owners stealing, and is there any point to Zune or Rhapsody?
* Microsoft’s disgraceful approach to security, and a useful source of alternative patches
* Build the ultimate geek lifestyle with our guide to gadgets for toilet hygiene, phone vending machines, PS3 protein folding, Tolkien and Cocaine — the drink!
* How Jenna Jameson has redefined porn DVDs by releasing six different versions of a movie she’s not even in
* Should you use PayPal to fund a deep-freeze factory, or help Zimbabwe with its phone bill?
* Plus random gossip on Nintendo’s Wii, Sony’s PS3, Torpark, Nokia, YouTube, the Hewlett-Packard witch squad, cannibals, the Indian Ocean and (sorry) Paris Hilton.
* Despite rumours, this episode of BRAN was not recorded with any naked or drunk participants.

Hosted by: Roulla Yiacoumi, Angus Kidman and Nathan Taylor

Edited and produced by: John the Tech Guy

Website: http://www.bran.com.au
RSS Feed: http://www.bran.com.au/podcast/?feed=rss2

In this week’s podcast, Roulla, Angus and Nathan discuss:

* Australia’s sneaky new copyright laws that could make uninstalling a rootkit illegal
* Apple’s new iPods, does iTunes 7 suck the big one, and whether being brown and having a big screen will make Zune compelling
* Is Australia a broadband basket case, and why do we keep getting consoles after everyone else?
* Why Seven’s investment in Engin makes about as much sense as Angus talking at high speed
* Incomprehensible mumbling from Arnold Schwarzenegger that proves the importance of online security
* The way mobile content and YouTube are taking over the world, except when existing copyright holders are suing the pants off everybody involved
* How hard is it to be Jenna Jameson’s friend on MySpace?
* Plus random gossip on HP’s lack of ethics, flaming copiers, Live.com, Beyonwiz, Flowbee, Viagra spam and more…

Hosted by: Roulla Yiacoumi, Angus Kidman and Nathan Taylor

Edited and produced by: John the Tech Guy

Website: http://www.bran.com.au
RSS Feed: http://www.bran.com.au/podcast/?feed=rss2

In this week’s podcast, Roulla, Angus and Nathan discuss:

* The delayed release of the PS3, and why Blu-Ray support was just always a dumb idea
* The Web becomes a central grieving medium following the unexpected deaths of Steve Irwin and Peter Brock
* Should ‘pretexting’ to steal telephone records be illegal in Australia, and will HP have a whole new management team this time next week?
* Why faster data networks still can’t get our team of travellers excited
* The future of digital music: is it a spinning frog, a newly-rumoured Apple product, constant product updates to break DRM, or independent bands selling no music online?
* The new sci-fi Webisode culture and how our DVD purchases will pay for it
* Can gadget hounds live without the BlackBerry Pearl, the Miuro iPod robot, or a gigantic warning about not going deaf?
* How Microsoft can’t work out what Vista will cost in Australia
* Plus random gossip on Intel, Pan(a)sonic, castration in China, the Commodore 64, and the great search engines of history

Also, Jesse the Pug has turned two, and we want to hear from any listeners in Mount Gambier.

Hosted by: Roulla Yiacoumi, Angus Kidman and Nathan Taylor

Edited and produced by: John the Tech Guy

Website: http://www.bran.com.au
RSS Feed: http://www.bran.com.au/podcast/?feed=rss2

In this week’s high-speed podcast, Roulla, Nathan and Angus discuss:

* The scalper kerfuffle as Cricket Australia cancels hundreds of tickets sold on eBay
* Whether you can put your entire life online and then complain when your privacy gets invaded and/or you receive castration threats
* What’s the etiquette involved in sacking people via email or text message?
* Muck piles up around Apple as its manufacturers sue journalists, Greenpeace savages its environmental record and someone cracks its DRM, again
* Does the free music service SpiralFrog have a hope?
* Google Books: forget it, Project Gutenberg is much better
* How much is Windows Vista really worth, and does it need a compulsory startup sound?
* The pointless preaching to the lifeless: Why PR agencies are opening in virtual worlds
* How Qantas passengers won’t be able to escape the annoying sounds of mobiles (or Angus’ voice, for that matter)
* Did Ikea create the dog-pen1s-mutation scandal?
* Ricky Gervais and The (Microsoft) Office training videos on Google Video, but not YouTube

Plus random gossip on Zune, Toshiba, Intel and Paris Hilton (inevitably). But, unbelievably, no porn.

Hosted by: Roulla Yiacoumi, Angus Kidman and Nathan Taylor

Edited and produced by: John the Tech Guy

Website: http://www.bran.com.au
RSS Feed: http://www.bran.com.au/podcast/?feed=rss2

In this week’s podcast, Roulla, Angus and Nathan are joined by special guest Dan Warne (news editor for APC) to discuss:

* Hi-jinks galore at Tech Ed Australia as Dan exposes Microsoft’s hazy plans for hi-definition content in Vista, while Angus tells Office developers where to stick their ribbon
* What’s the BRAN team’s verdict on Snakes on a Plane?
* An unexpected explosion of blonde bimbos as Paris Hilton touts YouTube and learns to hack, while Jessica Simpson gives HP the poorest-value product placement ever
* The airline crackdown on Dell notebooks, while Apple joins the ‘it’s a Sony’ exploding battery brigade
* Can SanDisk develop an iPod killer, and does it matter now that Windows Media DRM has been cracked?
* Why you shouldn’t confuse a grenade with a pen1s pump, or a news room with a pr0n cinema
* Is there more to Hungary than bridge naming polls and tourism campaigns promoting extra-marital sex in a rowboat?
* Plus random gossip on Optus’ rubbish guarantees, Pluto, Tom Cruise, Durex, Wikimapia, 3G pr0n, Writely, renting a PS3, battery housefires, and surviving unexpected Audacity crashes

Plus! Jesse the Pug sleeps through yet another podcast…

Hosted by: Roulla Yiacoumi, Angus Kidman and Nathan Taylor

Guest host: Dan Warne, APC news editor

Website: http://www.bran.com.au
RSS Feed: http://www.bran.com.au/podcast/?feed=rss2

In this week’s super-packed podcast, Roulla, Angus and Nathan discuss:

* Hijinks in the air as Boeing ditches its Connexion in-flight internet service and Qantas plans Internet check-in, plus advice on how to travel with sex toys
* When BRAN attacks: we handle complaints from the so-called ‘Goddess’ calendar and auDA
* How Google and Apple are cracking down on people using their brands
* MacOS Leopard: Roulla loves it, Angus thinks it’s pointless, and Nathan can’t bring himself to care
* Gadgets galore with Phillips’ hyper-restricted VOIP phone, Mirror Image and the first Australian release for Blu-Ray by Samsung
* Dell’s burning embarrassment as batteries and cash go up in flames
* Did these 15 Web sites really change the world?
* Which BRAN team member rates highest on the 5lut-o-meter?

Plus random gossip on the census, the demise of Sony’s innovative nature, Zune, terabyte hard disks, Nintendo Wii, orangutang dating, Pluto, Chuck Norris, Snakes on a Plane (the movie), online lynching, and Pringle-like chocolates

Hosted by: Roulla Yiacoumi, Angus Kidman and Nathan Taylor

Website: http://www.bran.com.au
RSS Feed: http://www.bran.com.au/podcast/?feed=rss2

Between coughs in this week’s podcast, Roulla, Angus and Nathan discuss:

* Do women really want a plasma screen more than a diamond, and could both be trumped by the OhMiBod, the first iPod vibr@tor?
* BRAN’s fans in high places - how we’re increasingly getting noticed by Microsoft and Apple, but the rest of Australia is listening to podcasts of Parliamentary Question Time
* Would your notebook PC survive in the hold of a plane, and would you survive without it?
* Watch Helen Coonan back-pedal! Why Telstra’s fibre-to-the-node pause might only be temporary (and why Roulla still hates iiNet)
* Can CEA step in and re-create E3 complete with booth b@bes (and will we manage to get to CES first)?
* The pros and cons of doing the 2006 Australian Census online
* The unlikely proposition that listening to s3xy music will get you laid earlier
* Stupid things to do with free domains from AOL and spare domain names from Cameroon
* Speculation on why Sony’s Mylo won’t be introduced to Australia, and why it’s orange
* Plus random gossip on the IT ch1cks calendar out now, Limewire, Vista vouchers, searching international and Australian libraries, P@ris Hilton, iPods in cars, Duran Duran’s virtual performance, Bully, Big Rack Attack, Chuck Norris Facts and Michael Dell

Remarkably, there is no discussion of either Google or Jenn@ J@meson this week.

Hosted by: Roulla Yiacoumi, Angus Kidman and Nathan Taylor

Website: http://www.bran.com.au
RSS Feed: http://www.bran.com.au/podcast/?feed=rss2

In this week’s not-to-be-missed podcast, Roulla, Angus and Nathan discuss:

* Why Australia won’t be getting its own digital porn channel (or any new upskirting tribute sites)
* What went on at the BRAN 10th episode party
* How Google became a hot brand in record time
* Aussie bank Web sites: just how much do they suck?
* The true meaning of Pacman’s 64% violence rating
* Can you trust online diagnosis sites?
* How Jenna Jameson may become a Scientologist before Paris Hilton, but not before both try out the new UV-detecting bikini
* The migration of digital music into the grandpa-bands era, with help from The Who, The Rolling Stones, Metallica and Kazaa
* Why we don’t agree with eWeek’s 25 best products of the last 25 years
* What’s new with AMD and Intel, and why one of our party guests dressed as Core 2 Duo Man
* How Telstra could learn from Westnet and save itself $50 a day
* Why Nathan couldn’t get any cheap tickets at jetstar.com
* How the humble lamington drive was saved, despite Angus’ indifference to Roulla’s horror
* Microsoft’s new cost-saving strategies: charging for Office betas while forcing IE7 down everyone’s throats
* Plus random gossip on BRAN’s continuing CES lobbying efforts, Monopoly, RyanAir, Amazon.com, Mickey Rourke, a nude Paris Hilton lookalike and how to do the Spiderman

We’re taking next week off. The next episode of BRAN is scheduled for August 13, 2006.

Hosted by: Roulla Yiacoumi, Angus Kidman and Nathan Taylor

Website: http://www.bran.com.au
RSS Feed: http://www.bran.com.au/podcast/?feed=rss2

In this week’s thrilling 10th BRAN podcast, Roulla, Angus and Nathan discuss:

* Why we’re desperate to get BRAN to CES in 2007 and how you can help
* How technology could save your van but still see you held up at gunpoint
* Microsoft’s Zune music player: definite winner or gigantic money sink?
* IT calendar girls site gets hacked, but host manages to keep it up
* An anti-piracy movie strategy that even works in China
* Jessica Simpson’s MP3 personalisation program with Yahoo! and what it means for sad obsessive collectors (like Angus)
* Apple continues to sell iPods by the truckload
* Why you can’t trust a survey featuring 49 people or any number of national parks
* FIFA World Cup and big-screen TVs: match made in heaven or total disaster?
* Whether Paris Hilton is capable of hacking Lindsay Lohan’s BlackBerry
* A bunch of stuff on new processors
* How many Snow Patrol songs can you fit on a Nokia phone?
* Batteries (yes, really, we’re guilty as charged… or should that be recharged?)
* How we’re off to celebrate our 10th episode milestone!

Plus random gossip on Intel, AMD, Symantec, police officers working as prostitutes, Judith Lucy, Guy Sebastian and Darren Hayes (though not simultaneously, obviously)

Hosted by: Roulla Yiacoumi, Angus Kidman and Nathan Taylor

Website: http://www.bran.com.au
RSS Feed: http://www.bran.com.au/podcast/?feed=rss2

In this week’s action-packed podcast, Roulla, Angus and Nathan discuss:

* Whether female IT workers have any business posing for a Goddess calendar
* New media laws: more channels are good, unless you use them for Godcasts
* Setbacks in wacky Christian central as CleanFlicks get the flick, plus our favourite reviews from Capalert (check out South Park and Wedding Crashers for starters)
* Is Prince leaving the digital music industry just because Paris Hilton is on the charts?
* How Australia is slipping down world spam sending rankings, despite a sterling effort
* Hijinks on the Google party jet, plus BRAN’s own plans for corporate high-flying and as Sydney walking tour
* Ridiculous behaviour from the Therapeutic Goods Administration and Jetstar
* Great stupid headlines from Dell’s new corporate blog
* Microsoft: so rich it can give products away and pay a 280 million Euro fine without blinking

Plus random gossip on Apple, BlackBerry, Telstra, Ricoh, MySpace, Internet tubes, Jenna Jameson (again) and a surprising number of interjections from Jesse The Pug.

Hosted by: Roulla Yiacoumi, Angus Kidman and Nathan Taylor

Website: http://www.bran.com.au
RSS Feed: http://www.bran.com.au/podcast/?feed=rss2

In this week’s podcast, Roulla, Angus and Nathan discuss:

* How turkey slapping became yet another excuse for idiotic Internet moralising
* Matching moron status from the US government, as net neutrality and military intelligence take centre stage
* Can the iPod support its own magazine amidst competition from Microsoft, ‘rebooted’ CDs and open source movies?
* Email addiction: an Australian love story
* Why it’s easier to sell porn than pharmaceuticals using spam
* The suckfest that is Windows Genuine Advantage
* Britney Spears versus Jenna Jameson: the Internet popularity debate continues
* Engadget’s somewhat blurry picture of Microsoft’s planned WiFi portable media player
* How to waste $69 on a ‘Get to Know Your iPod‘ course

Plus random gossip and life rules on eBay, hurricanes, Crikey!, HP’s fashion notebooks, Super Mario Bros, Viagra rings, and Gus’s tragic ABBA addiction.

Hosted by: Roulla Yiacoumi, Angus Kidman and Nathan Taylor

Website: http://www.bran.com.au
RSS Feed: http://www.bran.com.au/podcast/?feed=rss2

In this week’s podcast, Roulla, Angus and Nathan discuss:

* Why the Reservoir Dogs game shouldn’t have been banned
* What Australians don’t do when they go online (hint: download TV)
* What the hell were Angus and Nathan doing in the kitchen this week and what is this obsession Roulla has with making gnocchi?
* Is Jenn@ J@meson really a more popular search term than Britney Spears?
* Why we like our gadgets more than our clothes, but object when either get stained (especially the Apple MacBook)
* Could a lawsuit have had anything to do with Veoh pulling pr0n from its site?
* NBC holds hands with YouTube but no pr0n on the horizon
* How PC recycling is getting easier (or in the case of Dell, quicker)
* The downside of trying to sign up for Google Checkout, setting up a g@y AFL site or attempting to rip off Madonna
* BRAN ranks in the top 2%…but of what?
* Why Nathan shouldn’t breathe, why Roulla needs Brain Training to remember what year it is, and why Gus loves reading legal transcripts (is that a pen1s or a duck?)
* Plus random gossip and life rules on MySpace, dontdatehimgirl.com, Sony Vaio, Office 2007, new 3G rollouts, Crikey, Channel Nine’s woes and Channel Ten’s Jericho, Telstra, Nokia metal detectors, Larry Ellison’s disappearing cheque book, and more hysterical out-takes

Hosted by: Roulla Yiacoumi, Angus Kidman and Nathan Taylor

Website: http://www.bran.com.au
RSS Feed: http://www.bran.com.au/podcast/?feed=rss2

In this week’s podcast, Roulla, Angus and Nathan discuss:

* Essential life rules to avoid problems with fetish phishing, MySpace liars, lightning, marketing campaigns, burning laptops and excessively high phone bills
* The latest mobile phones from Nokia, Motorola, Samsung and LG avec chocolate
* What’s wrong with Office 2007, and the challenge of working for Steve Ballmer without using Google
* The emergence of even more VoIP clients from Microsoft, Yahoo and numerous others to provide that bottom-of-a-tin-bucket phone experience, and how Telstra, Rebtel and engin are responding
* How many Internet filters can you buy for $93 million, and would Club Jenna be a better investment?
* Streaming video: apparently it’s even bigger than Chinese movie piracy and HD-DVD combined
* Plus random gossip on Tony Blair’s podcast, the Pirate Party, MacGyver, Nintendo’s brain damage and (of course) nudity at the World Cup

Hosted by: Roulla Yiacoumi, Angus Kidman and Nathan Taylor

Website: http://www.bran.com.au
RSS Feed: http://www.bran.com.au/podcast/?feed=rss2

In this week’s podcast, Roulla, Angus and Nathan discuss:

* Australia’s new Internet rules: less mobile porn, less money for Telstra
* Why everyone is leaving Microsoft, including Bill Gates, Robert Scoble and the Windows 98 support team
* Today’s tech consumer: a cheapskate woman who doesn’t care where her iPod is made and buys bulk amounts of cheap macaroni online before selling her bikini on eBay
* How Sydneysiders aren’t any closer to getting transport smartcards
* Weird online videos, including Google Idol and Coke/Mentos fountains, and how ACNielsen has added them to TV ratings
* The mobile ringtone that only teenagers can hear
* Why you shouldn’t steal someone else’s Sidekick
* Plus random gossip on Skype, Dragon’s Lair, the Webby Awards, and (naturally) Amir and Paris Hilton

Hosted by: Roulla Yiacoumi, Angus Kidman and Nathan Taylor

Website: http://www.bran.com.au
RSS Feed: http://www.bran.com.au/podcast/?feed=rss2

In this week’s podcast, Roulla, Nathan and Angus discuss:

* Australia’s ranking in world broadband rankings and why fibre-to-the-node won’t help
* Amir Tofangsazan, the world’s most famous eBay scammer, now in Wikipedia
* Why the download version of Vista is a bloated nightmare
* 3G in Australia: about to take off, or still a damp squib?
* Bloggers getting sued over Brangelina (Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie combo)
* Nathan refuses to test online porn games Red Light Center, Naughty America and Virtually Jenna
* Are online AFL rights worth $60 million to Telstra, or perhaps 20 cents?
* Google Spreadsheet: frankly, it’s lame next to Excel
* Aussie invention ShoeScanner makes airport travel marginally less unpleasant
* How Paris Hilton and Sandi Thom used the Internet to hype their dubious talents
* Plus random gossip on Computex, the PC World Top 100, Motorola’s Moto Q, Cadbury’s IT-driven chocolate oversupply, ugly passport photos and Roulla’s disintegrating brain

Other useful links you’ll need this week: the geek paradise that is AnandTech.com, Dr Kawashima’s Brain Training and scary pictures of Gus.

Hosted by: Roulla Yiacoumi, Angus Kidman and Nathan Taylor

Website: http://www.bran.com.au
RSS Feed: http://www.bran.com.au/podcast/?feed=rss2

In this week’s episode, rampant consumer ignorance is exposed as Roulla, Angus and Nathan discuss 3G, porn, dodgy cyber-cheating, and more. Here’s the full rundown:

* New surveys show consumers know nothing about 3G, even less about HDTV, and are having fewer cyber-affairs than you’d think
* The mainstream discovers Sony PSP porn (shock! horror!)
* What’s wrong with the ACMA’s spam reporting system (not to mention YapBrowser)
* Will a Wi-Fi patent battle help us fund the CSIRO?
* How The Pirate Bay had the last laugh on the Swedish police
* Just how did Vodafone lose $54 billion?
* Do we OneCare for Microsoft’s new security service?
* Plus random gossip on Virgin Blue’s lounges, fake NEC goods, Google browsers, non-brown LG chocolate phones, McDonald’s gratuitous Happy Meal advertisement mention, Adobe/Macromedia Flash, Samsung Blu-ray, Yahoo’s new mobile service, the Jolie-Pitt bairn and more.

Download the episode and let us know what you think. Also, for those of you who didn’t get to see them, here’s an archive of the amazing list of dodgy Microsoft.com domains we discussed last week.

Hosted by: Roulla Yiacoumi, Angus Kidman and Nathan Taylor

Website: http://www.bran.com.au
RSS Feed: http://www.bran.com.au/podcast/?feed=rss2

This week, these are the big issues Roulla, Angus and Nathan discuss:

* What Whirlpool’s broadband survey reveals about how Australian ISPs suck
* Telstra: just what would $700 million get you anyway?
* How Zimbabwe outranks Australia for software piracy
* Can the Do Not Call register save you from catalogue-delivering pensioners armed with GPS units?
* Saucy courtroom action with PIMP and the .xxx domain
* SanDisk slags off Apple - a case of sour grapes?
* The latest product news from Google, Microsoft, Intel and AMD
* How the mobile porn business is exploding, except in Cambodia
* Random gossip about IceTV, Sony, LG, Nintendo Wii pricing, SmartyHost,
and (lack of) coffee in the Qantas business club lounge

Plus! discover the secret stash of unlikely Microsoft domains (see Bran #3 notes for more details).

Download, enjoy and let us know what you think! (For the tech-minded, this is our first experiment with recording with Skype.)

Hosted by: Roulla Yiacoumi, Angus Kidman and Nathan Taylor

Website: http://www.bran.com.au
RSS Feed: http://www.bran.com.au/podcast/?feed=rss2

In the first instalment of our weekly podcast on all things tech in Australia, Roulla, Angus and Nathan discuss:

* proposed new copyright laws that make your iPod legal at last
* just how do you leave a confidential military report in an airport lounge?
* Vista’s not-so-minimal minimum requirements and the PS3’s not-so-minimal price
* adding Aussie lingo to Microsoft Office
* paranoia at Lenovo, the Victorian Police, RMIT and the anti-porn lobby
* SmartyHost gets the blues, and so do a bunch of its customers
* and a whole bunch of other stuff you’ll have to listen in to discover (OK, here are some hints: Nathan’s shameful wardrobe secret, Telstra’s spelling error and Google’s Aussie opening).

We’d love to know what you think; leave a comment or shoot us an email. The next episode will appear sometime on Monday, May 29.

Hosted by: Roulla Yiacoumi, Angus Kidman and Nathan Taylor