Episode 0140
Summary
A customer asks a technician if his computer can be fixed. The technician explains that the computer is simply too old and technology evolves too quickly. The customer, expressing mild frustration, then asks about purchasing a new computer. The technician describes a high-end model, but the customer, uninterested in technical specifications, only wants to ensure it can play Solitaire without crashing. The technician guarantees the new PC will never freeze and offers a money-back policy.
Transcript (Click timestamp to jump)
So, can you fix it?
I'm sorry, sir. This computer is not broken or damaged. It's simply just too old.
That's why your programs and applications are running slow. There really isn't much I can do.
What do you mean? I bought this computer just three years ago.
Yes, but technology is ever changing and technology is becoming obsolete faster and faster.
Okay, I know where this is going. How much will it cost me to get a new computer?
Well, this desktop over here is our latest model.
It has a 4 GHz processor with 16 GB in RAM and a hard disk with 1 terabyte.
Of course, it includes a mouse, keyboard, and desk speakers.
I have no idea what you are talking about.
I just want to know if it's good, and if I'll be able to play Solitaire without the computer crashing or freezing all the time.
This PC is top of the line and I guarantee it will never freeze.
If it does, we'll give you your money back.
Summary
The audio features Marco and Catherine discussing computer technology. It starts with a dialogue where a customer's three-year-old computer is deemed "too old" and "obsolete" by a technician, leading to a sales pitch for a new, "top-of-the-line" model. The hosts then explain technical terms like gigabyte, terabyte, and processor, along with common English phrases such as "ever-changing," "I know where this is going," and "top of the line." The episode concludes with a discussion about the advantages and disadvantages of Mac versus PC computers, with Catherine expressing her preference for Macs and Marco admitting his difficulty adapting to them.
Transcript (Click timestamp to jump)
Hello English learners, welcome back to English Pod.
My name is Marco.
And my name is Catherine.
So, what are we talking about today, Marco?
Well, we're talking about one of my favorite topics, which are computers.
Yes, you're a little bit of a nerd.
Uh, a little bit. I love computers and technology and everything that's related to it. So, uh, that's what we're going to be looking at today. Maybe we're buying a new computer.
Well, I anticipate learning something from this because there are a lot of those fancy big words that I don't know that have to do with processors and giga, giga, giga things.
So, uh, that's going to be coming up in a minute here, but uh, first, let's just jump right in and take a listen to today's dialogue.
So, can you fix it?
I'm sorry, sir. This computer is not broken or damaged. It's simply just too old.
That's why your programs and applications are running slow. There really isn't much I can do.
What do you mean? I bought this computer just three years ago.
Yes, but technology is ever-changing and technology is becoming obsolete faster and faster.
Okay, I know where this is going. How much will it cost me to get a new computer?
Well, this desktop over here is our latest model. It has a 4 GHz processor with 16 GBs in RAM and a hard disk with 1 terabyte.
Of course, it includes a mouse, keyboard, and desk speakers.
I have no idea what you're talking about.
I just want to know if it's good and if I'll be able to play solitaire without the computer crashing or freezing all the time.
This PC is top of the line and I guarantee it will never freeze. If it does, we'll give you your money back.
All right, we're back. I think it's a very typical case, you go in to get something fixed and they say, we can't fix it, you need a new one.
Yes, and not only a new one, but a bigger and better and faster one.
And more expensive, obviously.
Obviously. Called the upsell.
The upsell, yeah.
All right, so there were some very difficult words, I think, because they're very specific related to technology and computers. So, uh, why don't we look at those now in language takeaway.
Language takeaway.
All right, so the first word we have today is when something is no longer in use.
Okay, so this word is obsolete.
It's obsolete.
Obsolete. And we're not just talking about like, oh, I haven't touched that pen in like ten years. We're talking about a piece of technology that is no longer useful because there's something else that can do a better job.
Right.
And actually not only with, uh, technology, we also have words that are obsolete, right?
Mhm, exactly. Like, thy, or thine.
You or yours.
Classical English. We don't use thy anymore.
No.
But thou art very summery today, Marco.
We don't use that anymore. That's obsolete English, right? Or obsolete words.
Exactly. So obsolete means it's no longer of use. We have better and newer things in in its place.
All right.
And now moving on when the salesman was describing the characteristics of the computer, uh, he had, he used some prefixes that were a little bit strange, right? Like for example, giga.
Giga what?
Giga.
All right, so these are actually prefixes that have to do with numbers. And so this is not just a computer thing, this is a math thing or a science thing. So, okay, so we've got three different prefixes. A prefix is something we tack on to the beginning of a word. So we've had, we have, uh, Hertz, uh, or bite, right? These are little bits of a computer, bite.
Right. So you have like megabytes.
Megabytes. We've all heard before. That's the smallest here. Uh, we've got megabytes, but bigger than mega, we've got gigabytes.
A giga. Yeah, so now for example, the, the hard drives are 250 gigabytes.
You might even hear someone say gigs. You've got a.
Gigs, yeah.
250 gig hard drive. But, uh, what's bigger than giga?
Now it's the terabyte.
Ooh, Terra, it sounds like huge.
Yeah, I actually wondered what would happen after, uh, gigabyte cuz it's so much information already and now it's the terabyte. So it's like 1000 gigabytes.
So that's like 200 movies.
That's probably more than that. It's amazing the amount of storage you can have and how small it actually is.
So mega, giga, tera, going from littlest to biggest.
All right.
And uh, well, he described a 4 GHz processor.
Mm, okay. So the processor is our next word and this is actually something that, um, that determines how fast your computer is going to run.
So it comes from the word to process, right?
Right.
To like calculate or to think.
Do even.
To do. So you have different examples like a word processor.
Right, so that's like Microsoft Word. It's, it allows you to make word documents. You can also say to process, uh, data, you're trying to calculate it.
Mhm. But in this case, a processor is like a little brain that's the center of the computer and that's where all the information gets processed.
Yeah. So it's the brain of the computer essentially. And the bigger it is, the faster it can go.
Exactly.
And, well, if you don't have a very good processor, your computer is bound to freeze.
Ooh, okay. So freezing is another keyword, especially when we're talking about computers. This one drives me nuts. Uh, to freeze, uh, it means to stop moving.
Right.
Right? So, uh, well, it has a couple different meanings. You might have heard it about ice before, but to freeze here, we're talking about stopping moving. So we have a a game called freeze tag, where if I touch you, you have to stop running. But here we're talking about a computer freezing. I'm moving my mouse and I'm typing and all of a sudden, my my mouse doesn't move. I can't close or open or do anything and it's really frustrating.
It's very, especially if you're doing something and you didn't save your work, it's gone.
Uh-uh.
Right? So, if your computer freezes, then usually you have to restart it or turn it off or on.
So that is, uh, about it for those words, but let's take another listen and slow the dialogue down this time so we can catch some of those big words.
So, can you fix it?
I'm sorry, sir. This computer is not broken or damaged. It's simply just too old.
That's why your programs and applications are running slow. There really isn't much I can do.
What do you mean? I bought this computer just three years ago.
Yes, but technology is ever-changing and technology is becoming obsolete faster and faster.
Okay, I know where this is going. How much will it cost me to get a new computer?
Well, this desktop over here is our latest model. It has a 4 GHz processor with 16 GBs in RAM and a hard disk with 1 terabyte.
Of course, it includes a mouse, keyboard, and desk speakers.
I have no idea what you're talking about.
I just want to know if it's good and if I'll be able to play solitaire without the computer crashing or freezing all the time.
This PC is top of the line and I guarantee it will never freeze. If it does, we'll give you your money back.
Great, so we are back. So now let's jump into today's fluency builder.
Fluency builder.
All right, so on fluency builder, we're going to take a look at three different phrases. For example, the salesman was describing technology and said that it's ever-changing.
Mm, okay. So this is a, a little poetic line here. So, uh, ever-changing means always changing.
Always.
Always changing. And so we can say that the ocean is ever-changing.
Yeah.
You know, the waves are always changing. Um, but in this case, he's saying that technology's always changing. It's always progressing into something new.
Exactly.
Uh that is a key selling point for this guy.
Right. So, uh, this is actually a very interesting word. We can use it like in your example, beyond technology, like the way, like the sea is ever-changing. So, why don't we listen to a couple of other examples?
Example one.
There's always something new in this ever-changing world.
Example two.
Times are ever-changing and we must prepare ourselves better every day.
Example three.
The flu is an ever-changing virus that continues to claim many lives.
All right, we're back. So now we understand that ever-changing.
So the man who's trying to buy this computer, or at least get his computer fixed, really starts to get frustrated with the salesman and he says, okay, I know where this is going.
Mhm.
So he hears the sales pitch. He's here, he hears this guy trying to loosen him up a little bit. He says, I know where this is going. So, what does this mean? This where something is going?
So basically, what direction a conversation or a topic or a situation is taking.
Okay. So he's saying, I know why you're telling me these things. I know your motive.
Or I know what's happening. I know what you're going to say.
Okay. So he's essentially saying, I know you're going to try and sell me a computer.
Right.
So, um, you can use it in other circumstances, right? For example, there a relationship.
I don't know where this is going.
Right, what what is going?
Classic breakup line.
I just don't think I know where this is going anymore.
So in reference to the relationship, right? We don't know what's happening. Are we serious? Are we maybe going to get married? I don't know anymore.
I can't tell where this movie is going. It's so like, ooh, here and there and boring.
Yeah, you don't know the plot.
Yeah.
All right. So it's a very common phrase and it sounds very natural when you say it, right?
It does. And that's why this fluency builder really helps you sound like a more native English speaker when you use these kind of phrases.
And the next one is also very, very good when he describes the, the condition of the computer. He says it's top of the line.
Top of the line. Now, what line we're talking about, I do not know.
But this is like above average line.
Right. So this is the best of the best. This is the top model or the top computer. And, uh, you can definitely imagine a car salesman using this.
Yeah.
Yes, this BMW is top of the line.
It's the best money can buy.
Yeah, that's another good one. So basically top of the line is the best of the best, the above average, right?
More than above average. It's really, it's the best you can do. And so the guy's saying, listen, this is our best computer. Really, you should buy it.
And obviously, top of the line, just like costs a lot of money.
Yeah. It's usually for, for something that costs money, right? For things. You wouldn't really use it for a person, right? He's top of the line.
No, no, no, no. Uh, top of the line, I think, generally refers to electronics and cars or like motorcycles. And so you often hear top-of-the-line stereo, top-of-the-line TV, um, top-of-the-line car, but you wouldn't say this about food or people or art.
Yeah, you wouldn't say this, this painting is top of the line.
Nah, nah, not about like very unique things. You'd say this about kind of manufactured things.
Very good. So, we've taken a look at a lot of great phrases. Why don't we listen to our dialogue for the last time and then we'll come back.
Bye.
Bye everyone.
So, can you fix it?
I'm sorry, sir. This computer is not broken or damaged. It's simply just too old.
That's why your programs and applications are running slow. There really isn't much I can do.
What do you mean? I bought this computer just three years ago.
Yes, but technology is ever-changing and technology is becoming obsolete faster and faster.
Okay, I know where this is going. How much will it cost me to get a new computer?
Well, this desktop over here is our latest model. It has a 4 GHz processor with 16 GBs in RAM and a hard disk with 1 terabyte.
Of course, it includes a mouse, keyboard, and desk speakers.
I have no idea what you're talking about.
I just want to know if it's good and if I'll be able to play solitaire without the computer crashing or freezing all the time.
This PC is top of the line and I guarantee it will never freeze. If it does, we'll give you your money back.
All right, we're back. So, uh, computers. Catherine, I know you recently got a nice, uh, Macintosh.
Yeah, I did.
It's one of those big screen ones, right?
Yeah, it is. It's a desktop, right? So it's not a laptop. And, uh, it's got a very fast processor because Macs started using Intel processors a couple of years ago and that made them much faster.
Wow. And it has, this processor actually has two cores, right? So basically it can, it has two different brains almost within one processor.
Which gives it really bad headaches. She complains to me often.
Are you a big, uh, Mac fan or PC fan?
I'm a Mac fan.
Really?
I've been converted. My roommate in college, my sophomore year, had a Mac and ever since then, I've really gotten into them. So.
Really?
Yeah, I went Mac and didn't turn back.
I I still honestly cannot really use a Mac. I get confused. I'm looking for this for the start button and I'm looking for where my documents are.
It's really hard to change over, right? But once you do, is you don't want to change back because everything is so much easier on a Mac.
Really?
But if you're really into PC gaming, uh, then you should probably stick with it, stick with the PCs because the games just don't really compare on Macs.
But I've heard that also Macs don't really suffer from viruses, right?
No, they don't, which is great because I always used to get these viruses that would slow down my computer because, you know, you open some email and all of a sudden, there's nastiness on your desktop. Well, now I don't really have that problem. And, um, and also there's really wonderful photo editing software and video editing software. So everything's just really easy to find and easy to use.
What about you listeners, do you prefer the Mac, do you prefer the PC or maybe some of our listeners don't really even like computers?
Well, let us know either way, we're very curious to hear what you have to say and of course, writing on our comments section is great practice for your English.
Right. So we'll see you guys there and until next time.
Bye.
Summary
This audio is an English vocabulary review that defines and pronounces various computer-related terms and common phrases, then provides example sentences for each word. The vocabulary includes terms like 'ever-changing', 'obsolete', 'warranty', 'laptop', 'evolve', 'I have no idea', 'wireless modem', 'freeze', 'network', 'program', 'gigabyte', 'random access memory', 'hard disk', 'gigahertz', 'processor', and 'crash'.
Transcript (Click timestamp to jump)
The English Pod audio review.
Listen to the meaning, then say the vocabulary word.
Always becoming different.
Ever changing.
A written promise that a seller will repair a product if a problem arises.
Warranty.
No longer useful.
Obsolete.
A portable computer.
Laptop.
The direction of an event.
Where something is going.
To change into a more advanced state.
Evolve.
To be completely unaware of something.
I have no idea.
A device that allows computers to communicate without wires.
Wireless modem.
To suddenly stop functioning.
Freeze.
A system for communicating between computers.
Network.
A computer application.
Program.
Unit to measure a computer's storage capacity.
Gigabyte.
Part of computer that temporarily stores information.
Random access memory.
Part of computer that stores data.
Hard disk.
Measurement of computer processor speed.
Gigahertz.
Device in a computer that manages operations.
Processor.
To suddenly stop functioning.
Crash.
To make a written promise.
Guarantee.
Let's try that faster.
A computer application.
Program.
Measurement of computer processor speed.
Gigahertz.
The direction of an event.
Where something is going.
Unit to measure a computer's storage capacity.
Gigabyte.
No longer useful.
Obsolete.
Device in a computer that manages operations.
Processor.
Always becoming different.
Ever changing.
A device that allows computers to communicate without wires.
Wireless modem.
A written promise that a seller will repair a product if a problem arises.
Warranty.
Part of computer that stores data.
Hard disk.
To suddenly stop functioning.
Crash.
To make a written promise.
Guarantee.
Part of computer that temporarily stores information.
Random access memory.
To suddenly stop functioning.
Freeze.
A portable computer.
Laptop.
To change into a more advanced state.
Evolve.
A system for communicating between computers.
Network.
To be completely unaware of something.
I have no idea.
Now say the word and hear it in a sentence.
Ever changing.
There is always something new in this ever-changing world.
Ever changing.
Times are ever-changing and we must prepare ourselves better every day.
Ever changing.
The flu is an ever-changing virus that continues to claim many lives.
Obsolete.
This fleet of battleships from World War II is completely obsolete.
Obsolete.
Broom is an obsolete word that means mist or fog.
Obsolete.
A VHS is a device that is practically obsolete nowadays. Who buys tapes anymore?
Where something is going.
We fight every day. I don't know where this relationship is going.
Where something is going.
Where is this movie going? I don't understand what's happening.
Where something is going.
You want to do what? Where are you going with this conversation?
I have no idea.
I can't find my keys. I have no idea where I put them.
I have no idea.
I have no idea where Tom went. Maybe he's in the bathroom?
I have no idea.
You have no idea how embarrassed I was. I mean, I accidentally burped while presenting my project to the board of directors.
Freeze.
If your computer freezes, you'll have to shut it down.
Freeze.
Something is wrong with my mobile phone. It keeps freezing.
Freeze.
The files are not ready yet because my computer froze last night.