January 31, 2009
The January 31 show is unusually rich in Dr. Dave's philosophy. He says companies exist to serve people, not the reverse, and argues that even intelligent people can abandon evidence when excitement takes over. He praises Windows 7 only after trying it on a deliberately limited old laptop, while repeatedly warning that a promising beta is still unfinished. His consumer advice favors reversibility and honest tradeoffs: quarantine a suspicious file when uncertain, recognize that every good choice has a cost and do not confuse glitz with usefulness. Callers broaden the program into a discussion of internet media, shortwave radio and foreign newspapers, which lets Dr. Dave describe his interest in African history and the internet's ability to make a person a citizen of the world. Personal studio comedy comes from the failing laptop fan, the overproduced Super Bowl opening and Josh's deliberately obvious game prediction.
Proposed air date. The available recordings may not contain the entire broadcast.
Listen to the preserved parts
8 parts, 95:10 total. All preserved transcript parts in this selection have been reviewed for content and sequence. The archive includes show breaks; this is not a verified uninterrupted recording. The air date remains proposed.
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Recordings preserved for this date
Regular show: segments
8 recordings · 95:10 total within this version.
Numbered positions are present in sequence. This alone does not prove the show is complete.