Get Your FREE* AMD CPU... no seriously... WAN Show Feb. 16 2018

The WAN Show episode dated February 16 2018 opens with the hosts joking about current events and a lighthearted intro that quickly establishes the casual tone of the show. They review rapid tech news from the prior week, starting with Twitter finally turning a profit after years of losses, and they dig into how a social platform can remain valuable even when user growth fluctuates. The hosts discuss the scale of Twitter’s revenue and profit, comparing it to giants like Google and Facebook, and explore the implications of modest profits in a sector where burn rates are common. They also reflect on stock market dynamics, blue chip investing, and the tension between profitability and growth, making clear that even profitable firms can still face serious risk. The conversation then shifts toward the dynamics of online advertising, with personal anecdotes about ad visibility, ad-blocking behavior, and seasonal advertising cycles that affect revenue for content creators and publishers. Throughout this segment, they connect ad strategy to real-world revenue challenges faced by independent media groups such as Linus Media Group, highlighting budgeting pressures and sponsor relationships. The hosts acknowledge the cyclical nature of ad spend in Q1 and describe how sponsor budgets can abruptly tighten, impacting their own business model and day-to-day operations. They also describe the practical realities of working with sponsors, including how ad inventory and testing cycles influence their ability to plan and pay staff. A personal aside about a sponsored jerky product adds humor and serves as a practical example of how sponsorships integrate into the show’s flow, with both hosts sharing their tastes and opinions. The discussion then pivots to AMD and motherboard BIOS flashing, detailing reports of a program promising free processors to help with firmware updates, and the practical implications for users upgrading to Zen based CPUs. They contrast theDeferred BIOS flash solution to past experiences with platform upgrades, and they debate why firmware flashing remains a stumbling block for some PC builders. The hosts analyze AMD’s boot kit concept, the return mechanics of the free processor, and the potential risks involved with user compliance and heat sink returns, all while weighing the business and consumer implications of such a program. The show finishes with broader tech coverage including image search copyright policy changes from Google in collaboration with Getty Images, and industry chatter about Nvidia potentially releasing dedicated cryptocurrency mining cards in the near term, plus positive Waymo regulatory news that expands driverless ride-hailing trials. They close the main segment by reflecting on how these developments fit into the larger tech landscape and hint at Floatplane as a topic to cover in a future slice of content. The episode maintains a light and conversational cadence, weaving in practical tech insights, promotional spots, and industry trends into a cohesive narrative about how the tech world moves today.

Topics · technology · business · media · advertising · ai · safety_and_policy · consumer_electronics · cars_and_transportation