Sorg and Podnar open with one of the week’s best feel-good tech stories: Artemis 2 made it home successfully, and Dave shares the unexpectedly charming story of the mission mascot RISE. In a week that needed some good news, the conversation lands on something larger than space hardware alone. This was about optimism, engineering, and a rare moment of collective excitement. 

Then the show pivots back to Earth with the kind of story that feels custom-made for AwesomeCast: yes, someone got early Mac OS X running on a Nintendo Wii. It is not practical. It is not necessary. It is absolutely wonderful. That same spirit carries into Sorg’s hands-on experiment with Mythic, a tool aimed at helping M-series Mac users access Windows games through the Epic ecosystem. The conversation explores how much better Apple Silicon has become for compatibility, even if some rough edges still show up in real-world testing. 

A big chunk of the episode also digs into Amazon Luna’s latest changes. Sorg reacts to the platform ending game purchases and outside store access, and the discussion quickly becomes about more than Luna itself. It becomes a conversation about trust in digital platforms, cloud gaming ownership, and what happens when convenience gets taken away after users have already bought in. It is one of the sharpest segments in the episode because it blends personal use with a bigger industry trend. 

There is also a lighter side this week. Dave shares The Weather Channel’s retro weather experience, which sends both hosts into a funny and surprisingly thoughtful conversation about the old cable era, nostalgic interfaces, and how channels drift from their original purpose. On the more practical side, they also touch on Overcast’s new transcript support and Waymo’s plan to help cities identify potholes using vehicle data. That latter topic turns into a very Pittsburgh-flavored discussion about 311 systems, local government tech, and whether cities are really taking advantage of the tools they have.

Finally, Dave closes with his Arab American History Month spotlight on Tony Fadell, best known for his work on the iPod and Nest. It is a fitting end to an episode that is really about the many layers of tech: breakthrough engineering, strange experimentation, product design, infrastructure, nostalgia, and how all of it shapes everyday life.  Links from this episode:

Artemis / RISE: https://www.space.com/space-exploration/artemis/how-artemis-2-commander-reid-wiseman-saved-the-missions-moon-mascot-its-hard-not-to-love-this-little-guy-i-cant-let-rise-out-of-my-sight

macOS on Wii: https://apple.news/AJdU3eghQT2-jfhrGvzI2_g

Mythic: https://getmythic.app/

Amazon Luna: https://www.ign.com/articles/amazon-luna-will-no-longer-allow-owners-to-buy-games-access-game-stores-or-third-party-subscriptions-starting-today?utm_campaign=trueAnthem%3A+Manual&utm_medium=trueAnthem&utm_source=facebook

Amazon Luna alt link: https://apple.news/A2cb25SwgQX-AuvSPHdRsHw

Waymo potholes: https://apple.news/AnxW6o9QWQJOcCGLqCsW6XQ

Overcast transcripts: https://9to5mac.com/2026/04/08/overcast-launches-podcast-transcripts-in-new-app-update-for-iphone/

Retro Weather Channel: https://weather.com/retro/

Tony Fadell: https://design.mit.edu/community/people/tony-fadell

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Sorg, Katie, and Dave Podnar kick things off with their Awesome Things of the Week, and the lineup is wonderfully varied. Dave looks ahead to Artemis II, the upcoming crewed moon mission that will send astronauts beyond low Earth orbit for the first time in decades. The conversation covers how the mission works, why the far side of the moon still creates communication challenges, and why “just rebuilding Apollo” is not nearly as simple as some people assume.

Katie’s pick is much closer to home, at least for Pittsburghers: Heinz Verified. The new site helps users find restaurants that serve Heinz ketchup, making it both practical and hilarious for anyone who has ever been personally offended by mystery catsup in a diner bottle. The crew immediately starts checking cities they’ll be traveling to and appreciates that users can nominate restaurants for inclusion.

Sorg’s pick highlights Chachi’s 3D-printing Etsy shop, Plastic Fun Time. From the now-famous bag of Fs to the Rock Lobster and other fun prints, it’s a cool look at somebody taking a maker hobby and turning it into a real side business. It also turns into a broader appreciation for creative small-scale production and clever product design.

The middle of the episode gets more serious with a discussion around a Stanford study on AI chatbot advice. Katie explains how researchers tested large language models against stories from the “Am I the Asshole?” subreddit and found that chatbots often validated problematic behavior more than humans did. That opens the door to a bigger conversation about AI agreeability, emotional dependency, digital literacy, and what it means when people begin treating chatbots like close confidants instead of tools.

The AI thread continues with What’s Up With That, a browser extension built to help readers analyze articles, pull out new signals, simplify jargon, and better connect ideas across sources. For anyone doing research-heavy work, the crew sees real promise in the concept.

On the creative side, Dave shares Adobe Illustrator’s Project Turntable, which can rotate 2D vector art in 3D space. That sparks a discussion about animation workflows, creative accessibility, and the kinds of production bottlenecks tools like this might reduce.

The episode also finds time for ChannelSurfer.tv, a retro-TV style interface for YouTube, plus a look at Apple’s TikTok presence, where the company seems to be leaning into a Finder-inspired mascot to help explain macOS features in a more playful way.

Dave also wraps up Women’s History Month by spotlighting several women who shaped space science, leading to a thoughtful discussion about visibility, representation, and why stories like these matter.

And then, in true AwesomeCast fashion, the crew ends up hyped about LEGO Zelda sets, including Ocarina of Time: The Final Battle and the Great Deku Tree, prompting nostalgia, sticker shock, and renewed debate over whether Sorg finally needs to properly play Ocarina of Time.

If you like your tech podcasts with equal parts curiosity, commentary, and chaos, this is a great episode.

Links from this episode
Chachi’s Etsy shop / Plastic Fun Time
https://www.etsy.com/shop/plasticfuntime/?etsrc=sdt
Heinz Verified
https://www.heinz.com/heinzverified
Artemis II launch article
https://www.wired.com/story/artemis-ii-countdown-how-and-when-to-watch-the-launch-of-the-manned-mission-to-the-moon/
Women who shaped our understanding of space
https://womenshistory.si.edu/blog/five-women-who-shaped-our-understanding-space
Channel Surfer
https://channelsurfer.tv/?ch=14
What’s Up With That
https://whatsupwiththat.app/practice/
Adobe Illustrator Project Turntable article
https://9to5mac.com/2026/03/30/adobe-illustrator-now-lets-you-rotate-2d-vectors-in-3d-space/
Apple on TikTok
https://www.tiktok.com/@apple?_r=1&_t=ZP-959iBFWcaSN
LEGO Ocarina of Time: The Final Battle
https://www.lego.com/en-us/product/ocarina-of-time-the-final-battle-77093?cmp=PSO-FBIG-AMS-EN-RE-PO-LPV-LR_EXCLUSIVE_PRODUCT_LAUNCH-SHOP-HA-LkAd-PRS-Always_On-GAMINGZ_P&utm_campaign=120242713322920054&utm_content=120245958217060054&utm_id=120242713322920054&utm_medium=paid&utm_source=fb&utm_term=120242713322930054
LEGO Great Deku Tree 2-in-1
https://www.lego.com/en-us/product/great-deku-tree-2-in-1-77092

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kidmental got a Circuit Mess electronics kit for his son to build gadgets like the "Bite Boy" handheld game console. The devices can communicate over long distances using a wireless protocol.https://circuitmess.com/

Chilla set up a new streaming desk setup with a USB hub, pegboard for organization, and a pan/tilt/zoom camera on a shelf to provide multiple camera angles. He's planning to start live streaming more in 2023.https://amzn.to/47m2heF https://amzn.to/47onCnw

Podnar got a new Apple Watch Series 9 to replace his older Series 4. The new watch has better battery life, always-on display, and more sensors to provide running metrics.

Sorg is using the newer workout plans in Apple Fitness to plan his workouts.

NASA beamed a test video of a cat ("Taters") into deep space and back using a new laser communication system, achieving a data rate of 267 megabits per second. This was a test of their ability to transmit high bandwidth data over long distances.https://www.engadget.com/nasa-beamed-a-video-of-a-cat-named-taters-from-deep-space-to-earth-175814869.html

The group discussed the new social media platform Blue Sky and how difficult it is to keep up with new platforms. Many platforms don't have APIs available yet to easily cross-post content.

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Join our live show Tuesdays around 7:00 PM EST on AwesomeCast Facebook, Youtube and Sorgatron Media Twitch!

Support AwesomeCast: Tech and Gadget Talk

Katie got the new iPhone 15 Pro Max and is comparing image quality to her previous iPhone 13 Pro. The 15 seems to have better quality and more realistic looking photos.

They discuss upcoming movies based on video games including a live action Legend of Zelda movie produced by Avi Arad and a live action Five Nights at Freddy's movie. Mike recommends checking out the Five Nights at Freddy's video games on mobile for only $2.99.https://techcrunch.com/2023/11/07/zelda-movie/https://apps.apple.com/us/app/five-nights-at-freddys/id912536422

Mike is interested in the new Meta Ray-Ban Stories smart glasses and sees them as an improved version of Google Glass. They have a better form factor and improved features like voice AI. And we look back at when Sorg got Google Glass in 2014! https://www.ray-ban.com/usa/ray-ban-meta-smart-glasses https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QEq8DoCOcq4

Google is bringing AI generated ads to their platforms. This can help advertisers by generating unique ad images and copy.https://www.theverge.com/2023/11/7/23951220/google-performance-max-ai-generated-ads-campaign

YouTube is testing an AI chatbot that can answer questions about videos based on automatically generated captions or user submitted transcripts.https://variety.com/2023/digital/news/youtube-ai-chatbot-test-videos-1235781766/

Amazon customer reviews now have an "AI Summary" section that summarizes key points from multiple reviews.

Waze will start providing crash history alerts for accident prone roads using AI and user reports.https://www.theverge.com/2023/11/7/23950441/google-waze-crash-history-alerts

Instagram is rolling out an option to turn off read receipts in DMs.https://www.theverge.com/2023/11/7/23950995/instagram-dm-read-receipt-disable

NASA is launching a free streaming channel called NASA Plus on November 8th with space documentaries and other content.https://www.theverge.com/2023/11/7/23951028/nasa-plus-starts-streaming-tomorrow

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Sorgatron Media Podcast Network Feed: sorgatronmedia.fireside.fm

Join our AwesomeCast Facebook Group to see what we’re sharing and to join the discussion!

You can support the show at Patreon.com/awesomecast!

Special Thanks to kidmental for the new AwesomeCast Sounds! Visit him at www.kidmental.com

Join our live show Tuesdays around 7:00 PM EST on AwesomeCast Facebook, Youtube and Sorgatron Media Twitch!

Support AwesomeCast: Tech and Gadget Talk

One issue with supersonic air travel is the sonic boom. This X plane is trying to minimize that We talked with one of the guys working on it at Aero Design! https://www.tiktok.com/@sae_universityprograms/video/7226713920218746154 NASA's sci-fi-looking X-59 'quiet' supersonic jet roll out of the hangar https://www.space.com/nasa-x-59-quiet-supersonic-jet-hangar-video

iOS 17 Updates to CarPlay sharing and Visual Voicemail Previewhttps://9to5mac.com/2023/06/30/ios-17-carplay-apple-music-shareplay/#:~:text=The%20process%20of%20initiating%20a,that%20other%20people%20can%20scan

https://9to5mac.com/2023/07/15/iphone-live-voicemail-how-to-use-turn-off-on/

Open sourcing AudioCraft: Generative AI for audio made simple and available to allhttps://ai.meta.com/blog/audiocraft-musicgen-audiogen-encodec-generative-ai-audio/

Sorg has access to Beeper: an all in one messaging service (like Trillian! https://www.beeper.com/

Sorg is on Blue Sky and it feels like twitter! When no one was on yet . https://bsky.app/profile/sorgatron.bsky.social

GM’s Ultium-based EVs will be able to power your home by 2026 https://techcrunch.com/2023/08/08/gms-ultium-evs-v2h-bidirectional-charging/

Premiere Pro has a transcript optionhttps://helpx.adobe.com/premiere-pro/using/speech-to-text.html

What is keeping some industries like banking and health to dig into AI?

Sorg just got an offer for the Whistle pet tracker. https://www.whistle.com/

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Support AwesomeCast: Tech and Gadget Talk

Sorg is away - so Katie, Chilla, and Producer Missy are going to play!  This week, Katie takes control of the helm as we talk this week in tech news, including:

• Chilla's Awesome Thing of the Week is from the Apple announcement with WWDC 19 with Side Car to bring a second monitor experience to Mac OS.
• Katie is sharing unsafe headphone volume through Apple Health as her Awesome Thing of the Week.
• Missy is sharing Excel for iPhone as her Awesome Thing of the Week.
• Amanda shared Shhhhh with us this week to excrete on the discreet.
• WWE superstar R-Truth uses Apple Clips to create some fun video promos.
• Kennywood is getting high tech with 360 camera views.
• Cuphead is coming to Tesla.
• Apple is planning to end iTunes as we know it?
• NASA made their entire media library public and copyright free.
• There is nothing as entertaining as forced perspective with tiny superhero toys.
• You can quickly switch Bluetooth and Wi-Fi in the new control center!
• There's a new Mac Pro coming to town, and we may be a little too excited about it.
• With Apple making their recent changes, how many apps do you think will hit the Mac OS App Store later this year?
• Katie is saving the best story for last this week - Pornhub has released a Top 20 list of cities checking them out.

After the show remember to:

Want to support our friends at Postindustrial? Check out their Kickstarter.

Eat at Slice on Broadway (@Pgh_Slice) if you are in the Pittsburgh area! It is Awesome! (sliceonbroadway.com)

Want to be part of our studio audience?  Hit us up at awesomecast@sorgatronmedia.com and we’ll save you a seat!

Join our AwesomeCast Facebook Group to see what we’re sharing and to join the discussion!

Follow these awesome people on Twitter:  Katie (@Kdudders), Chilla (@chilla) and Producer Missy (@rebelliousflaw)

Have you seen our AwesomeTips videos?

You can support the show at Patreon.com/awesomecast!

Remember to check out our friends at the River’s Edge (@RiversEdgePGH) and The 405 Media (@The405Radio) who replay the show on their stream throughout the week!

Also, check out sorgatronmedia.com and awesomecast.com for more entertainment; and view us livestreaming Tuesdays around 7:00 PM EST

Support AwesomeCast: Tech and Gadget Talk

We're winding down to our year-end episode, but before we get to the year in review, Sorg and Chilla are sharing some of the week's tech news, including:

• Chilla is sharing his pleas for NASA to save Tony Stark as his Awesome Thing of the Week.
• Sorg's Awesome Thing of the Week is how Doug Engelbart predicted the future - 50 years ago.
• The Huawei finance chief was arrested in Canada.
• Our friend Brian likes experimenting with tech in his bathroom, and he found a solution for his Echo Dot.
• It seems like it's been forever, but Apple Watch has an ECG app for heart rhythm notifications.
• The recent Giphy update integrates TrueDepth camera and a universal keyboard.
• There's a live action MarioKart race in Florida?!?!
• There's a hipster nativity, and Sorg approves.
• How about a VR experience of Van Gogh's Starry Night?
• Marvel Alliance has a Nintendo Switch exclusive.
• Street Fighter will display in-game advertising.
• Sorg saw some advertising that worked to get his attention for the RETRO Color 8-bit iPhone case.
• The Fire/Echo device is having a fire sale. *badum tss*
• John Romero gifts Doom 18 new levels for its 25th birthday.

After the show remember to:

Eat at Slice on Broadway (@Pgh_Slice) if you are in the Pittsburgh area! It is Awesome! (sliceonbroadway.com)

Check out our sponsors as a part of YaJagoff’s HOLLA-day Gift Guide:

• Pittsburgh Things Pittsburgh themed apparel n’at.
• Core Life Eatery at the Block at Northway on McKnight Rd
• Sprezzatura creates and serves heritage-inspired cooking for events and the public.

Want to be part of our studio audience? Hit us up at awesomecast@sorgatronmedia.com and we’ll save you a seat!

Join our AwesomeCast Facebook Group to see what we’re sharing and to join the discussion!

Follow these awesome people on Twitter: John Chichilla (@chilla) and Sorg (@Sorgatron)

Have you seen our AwesomeTips videos?

You can support the show at Patreon.com/awesomecast!

Remember to check out our friends at the River’s Edge (@RiversEdgePGH) and The 405 Media (@The405Radio) who replay the show on their stream throughout the week!

Also, check out sorgatronmedia.com and awesomecast.com for more entertainment; and view us livestreaming Tuesdays around 7:00 PM EST

Support AwesomeCast: Tech and Gadget Talk