podcast-files/topics/ideas.md

# Linux Podcast Topic Ideas

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New items:

Structured/Educational:
Git Commits - things the hosts are committing to do next week
This Week I Learned - educational discoveries
Stack Overflow - tools/tips that solved problems for the hosts
The Weekly Diff - what's changed or improved in their setups

Community Focus:
Listener Labs - showcase setups, configurations, or projects submitted by the audience
Open Source Heroes - briefly feature developers or contributors doing interesting work
Forum Finds - interesting discussions or solutions found on Reddit, forums, etc.

Fun/Random:
Random Access Memories - quick random thoughts or memories triggered by the episode
Infinite Loop - random tangents or stream-of-consciousness thoughts
Memory Leak - things that randomly popped into their heads during the show
Buffer Overflow - quick rapid-fire thoughts they couldn't fit elsewhere
Core Dump - brain dumps of random tech musings
/dev/random - completely random thoughts or observations
Trash Bin Tales - funny mistakes or failures from their week
Hidden Files - secrets or lesser-known facts they want to share
Symlink Stories - connecting random dots between topics
Ping Pong - quick back-and-forth random comments between hosts (could be a game - quick question followed by one-word responses)

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## Mini-Topic Show Opener Ideas

- CD-ROM Games That Came in 12 Discs—Why Did We Accept This?
- The Satisfying Click of Mechanical Keyboards vs. Laptop Keys
- Remember When USB Cables Had Different Ends for Everything?
- AOL Trial CDs: The Original Spam
- Why Does Every App Want to Send Push Notifications?
- Auto-Updates: Blessing or Digital Dictatorship?
- The Curse of Having 47 Streaming Service Logins
- Why Do Printers Still Hate Us in 2025?
- The Mystery of Why Video Calls Still Feel Awkward
- Two-Factor Authentication: Security or Daily Annoyance?
- Is browser tab hoarding real? Do you have a limit and how to manage?
- Light Mode vs. Dark Mode: The Eternal Struggle
- The Right Number of Monitors (Spoiler: It's Always One More)
- Do you have a smart home device and what is your favorite?
- Dumbest Linux Mistakes We've Made
- Hardware We'd Like to Try
- Software We Wish Was FOSS
- Our Best Support Experience
- Tech We'd Miss If It Were Gone
- Why Do HDMI Cables Feel Like They’re Designed to Fail?
- Floppy Disks, LimeWire, and That Weird Noise Modems Made—Do We Miss It?
- If You Need a Manual to Use the Manual, Is It Still a Manual? (Thoughts on My New TV Setup Guide)
- Is It Weird That I Don't Trust the Roomba? Is It Mapping the House for Nefarious Purposes?
- If My Smart Speaker Is Always Listening, What Has It Heard? And Is It Judging My Tidal Playlists?
- Is Leaving Voicemail in Today's World Aggressive Behavior?
- Answering the Phone Without Knowing Who It Was—Just Life in the Past
- The Best Linux Logo (and Why)
- Linux Commands We Can't Memorize
- Most Annoying Thing About Windows or macOS for Linux Users
- Do You Use a Tablet? And why/not?
- What File Manager Do You Use?
- Mouse or Trackball?
- Android or iOS?
- How Do You Listen to Music? Local or Streaming?
- Multi-Monitor Systems: Benefits and Downsides

New adds:

- The Strangest Place We've Seen Linux Running
- Is “Escape from Email” Possible in a World Dominated by Email?
- What’s the Most Useless Command/Tool That You Secretly Love?
- Best or Worst Linux Easter Eggs
- If You Had to Use Only One Linux Distro Forever, Which Would It Be?
- Desktop Environments vs. Window Managers: Does It Matter?

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## Main Topic Ideas

### Matt

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- Biggest and Smallest FOSS Wins
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- Is Ricing a Waste of Time or a Goo
- Why Do Linux Projects Fail?
- Our Favorite FOSS Projects Outside of Linux
- Plex vs Jellyfin
- Memos Review

### Drew

- The Perfect Linux Setup
- Underrated Tools: Hidden Gems in the Linux World
- Linux and Social Media
- Security Practices Every Linux User Should Follow
- Best Open-Source Alternatives to Popular Paid Software

### Nate

- Best Hardware Tools for PCs
- Apps You Can't Live Without
- Importance of an Office Setup
- Linux Gaming: Hype or Reality?
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## Completed Mini Topic

- Worst Tech Purchase Ever
- Our Favorite Window Manager
- The Most Essential Part of Hurts Our Hardware Setup (Outside of Our PC)
- Is Owning Too Many USB Sticks a Cry for Help? And What Do You Have on Them?
- The Real Dark Web: Trying to Cancel a Subscription or Newsletter Online
- People Who Shouldn't Use Linux
- eBook or Physical Book?
- Desktop or Laptop computer?
- Linux Apps We Gave Up On (and Why)

## Completed Topics

- I Can't Live Without...
- My Top 3 or 5 Favorite Tools of All Time
- Unpopular Opinions
- "My First Distro" Stories and Why I Don’t Use It Anymore
- Distro Showdown: Why I'm Right and You're Wrong
- Mythbusters: Debunking Linux Myths
- Linux Hacks: Little Tricks That Make a Big Difference
- Guilty Pleasure: I Like This, Don't Judge Me
- Can Firefox Ever Be Good Again?
- Notes: Journey to the Perfect Note System
- Hardest Things to Do on Linux
- Linux YouTuber Tier List
- What Makes a Perfect Distro?
- Is Email Broken? (Used for LUG)
- Can FOSS Be Trusted?
- Is AI Making Us Smarter or Lazier?
- Is There a Linux Regret You'd Like to Share?
- Is Choice Really the Best Thing About Linux?
- Wezterm Review
- Best PC Peripherals
- Is Linux Actually More Secure?
- What's the Best Linux Hardware?
- Is suckless software the best or just elitist?
- Linux on the Desktop for Content Creation (Video Editing, Photo Editing, Graphic Design)
- Favorite Parts of Your Workflow
- What Distros Should a New User Consider First?
- What Features Are Missing in Linux?
- Linux Tribalism: Good or Bad?