6 posts tagged “credit card”

Back in Episode 450, Dick talked about the Compaq Smart Credit Card Internet Keyboard, which came with a smart card reader for online shopping with smart cards.  The new SmartSwipe, made by a Canadian company called NetSecure Technologies, is a USB credit card reader.  When you do any online shopping, swipe your credit card across Smart Swipe, and it protects and then enters the credit card information into the relevant fields on the website.

According to NetSecure, although traditional SSL encrypts the data in transit from the web browser on your computer to the secure server of the e-commerce site, hackers may still be able to access the information while it's on your computer or its memory before the data is encrypted.  SmartSwipe uses a technology called Dynamic SSL, which interacts with traditional SSL.  It encrypts the data at the SmartSwipe hardware itself and initiates the SSL key negotiation from SmartSwipe (and not from the personal computer), so that the encryption is extended further back to the earlier point in time where the information is read from the credit card.  SmartSwipe works with Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Discover and JBC, but only on Windows XP and Vista and on Internet Explorer.  Those who are interested in the security side of the technology may want to read up on NetSecure's documentation on Dynamic SSL to see if their claims are made out.  Dell is now selling SmartSwipe as an accessory.

Squirrel iPhone Credit Card Swiper
Rumour has it that Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey is going to make an iPhone hardware and software solution, codename Squirrel, for accepting credit card payment on a card swiper connected to the iPhone.  Here's the TechCrunch article.

The March of Technology
Dick is much amused by a frankfurter stand in New York with a red Neon sign flashing "Open".  Wouldn't people know, muses Dick.

Waterproof Housing for the Nokia
Alessandro Abate is taking his Canon EOS 50D and a 300mm lens on an Alaska cruise to celebrate with his wife their 25th wedding anniversary.  He wonders if Leo can recommend a waterproof housing for his cherished camera while kayaking.  If he doesn't need to take photo while kayaking, Leo suggests a waterproof cinch bag, but if he wants to shoot through the protective cover, it's going to cost him.

Warnings from Sandrino
If Leo is going to name his autobiography "Just One More Podcast" (see Episode 812), Sandrino's wife, who is an attorney, is ready to collect their share of the royalties.  Also, his daughter has just been accepted into the San Francisco Institute of Art and they may pay a visit to the TWiT Cottage while in the neighbourhood.  Leo will be ready with his TWiT Mat.


Listen to Episode 858
Go to TWiT
The Giz Wiz Home Page
Find DGW Info on GizWizSearch

With a little help from his friend Dick, Leo got this keyboard from Andy Marken.  LED-backlit, the Verbatim Tune Board or Speaker Keyboard has built in stereo speakers, with bass boost, complete with sound controls and music playback controls, and can save you some wiring as all it takes is a USB connection.  Leo has the Mac version, but a Windows version is also available.

Back from France
Leo is back with Henry from Rennes after their visit to Abby, but Jennifer is stuck in Paris as she has lost her passport.  While Leo was in France, Dick went on Stickam on both Tuesdays.

Check out Leo's blog post "France Montage" and the links there to his photos from France.

An Ozzy Jingle?
East Coast Girl on the Chatroom suggests there should be a jingle for whenever Ozzy comes on TWiTLive.

Ten Questions from Dr Mark
Dr Mark Sukoenig put in 10 questions for Leo.  What does an A battery look like?  Why do Dick and Leo sound as energetic on the Friday show as they do on the Monday show?  What is a Luma and how safe is it to pet one?

Themed to the Gills
Paul Minshall, apart from doing the 12 Days of GizWiz, has done a country-style jingle for the Daily Giz Wiz.  Visit http://paulminshall.com/themes to play the Country Giz Wiz jingle.


Listen to Episode 732
Go to TWiT
The Giz Wiz Homepage

This time, it's Leo's turn to do a "What's In the Box?" routine, and Dick's turn to guess what it is.  It's Ziszor, a portable, hand-held shredder.  It runs on 4 AA batteries, comes with 4 Ziszor catcher bags, and you shred your paper trail right into the bag.  Ziszor's slogan is, Don't let your mail be your trail.  But as Leo demonstrates, it can't shred Colleen's credit card, though it will shred your English spelling into oblivion.



A Wireless Toaster
Karen Toast Conger, of ToastFloats, used to work for WatchGuard, a network security devices company.  As a parting gift, she was given a very special toaster.  Her colleagues bought her a Cuisinart toaster, took it apart, and put a WatchGuard Firebox X Edge wireless router into it.  A wireless router, security device, and a toaster.

Listen to Episode 557
Go to TWiT
The Giz Wiz Home Page

Larry DeBartolo
On one TV show, Leo introduced Dick as Larry.  A bad day for Leo.

Multiple Layers of Protection
Visa - the diaper of credit cards - that's according to Visa.  There goes the sponsorship.

Dutch Hacker At Work
Zeldon from Holland "hacked" into DGW and got the August '06 WTHII answer from the pre-recorded shows.  But at least he fessed up.

Mad Minute ringing in your ears
Leo apologises for the sound level of the Mad Minutes.  The sound level is actually lower than the rest of the podcast, but it's heavily compressed so that one perceives the sound to be much louder.  Today's Mad Minute is from Turbulent Air again, which never treats you like a child.  No seat belts required.

Listen to Episode 145
Go to TWiT
Read Dick's Write-Up

The MD100 Media Destroyer from Royal Supplies shreds up paper, CDs, floppies, credit cards and more, confetti-cut.  To smoothen up the operation of your shredder, use the Staples shredder lubricant sheets from time to time.

Listening Habits
Listeners have written in about how they listen to DGW.  Some in the morning to start the day.  Some reserve it for their lunch time, something to look forward to.

Foolproof against Identity Theft
Dick has a great way of preventing identity theft by stopping people from snooping into his bank statements and other personal documents, in addition to shredding them.  He calls in aid of his dog.

Listen to Episode 32