Many folks are having to work remotely versus going to the office and being around people. Are you one of them? First time to this experience? Fear not, we’re talking about it! Working Remotely Useful links for you! https://www.wired.com/story/how-to-work-from-home-without-losing-your-mind/ https://www.forbes.com/sites/kerryhannon/2013/09/02/10-tips-for-working-from-home/#2a5480b787ad https://www.thespruce.com/how-to-set-up-a-workable-home-office-1977403 https://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/best-apps-for-a-second-phone-number/
Stuck at home? Don’t go CrAzY! (3/28/20 Part 2)
Quarantines. Is this your first one? Well, you might need some help trying to deal with the abundance of unstructured time you hadn’t planned on! No Need Stir Crazy! We’ll be talking about that this time! And as mentioned, now is a great time to try Audible too! You can get a free audiobook plus 30 days free trial at http://www.audibletrial.com/MauiOnline. https://arstechnica.com/science/2020/03/how-to-keep-your-sanity-when-you-feel-like-the-world-is-going-crazy/ https://www.q-a.net/maui-computer-learning/ https://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/2020/03/16/social-distancing-free-virtual-tours/5060244002/ https://www.radiotimes.com/news/radio/2020-03-20/audible-just-made-hundreds-of-titles-completely-free-to-help-during-coronavirus-crisis/ https://www.menshealth.com/fitness/g31668402/free-workouts-coronavirus/ https://www.health.com/fitness/coronavirus-at-home-workout https://www.romper.com/p/20-video-chatting-activities-for-grandparents-kids-during-the-coronavirus-pandemic-22629324 https://www.librarieshawaii.org/
Where’s the best spot for your wifi? (2/29/20 Part 1)
So, you got a nice wifi router. You spent a bunch of money on it. But, are you setting yourself back with bad placement? WiFi tricks! What’s the best way to get the best bang for your buck on your internet? And can you reuse old routers to improve your network? https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2020/02/the-ars-technica-semi-scientific-guide-to-wi-fi-access-point-placement/ https://www.howtogeek.com/104469/how-to-extend-your-wi-fi-network-with-simple-access-points/ https://www.cnet.com/how-to/how-to-turn-an-old-wi-fi-router-into-an-access-point/ Jonathan really likes Ubiquiti access points if you want to get yourself an easy way to expand your network! Q&A can also set these up for you!
Be secure on your phone! (2/22/20 Part 1)
Got a smart phone? Did you know its pretty much a computer? You probably take security seriously on your computer, so you should take it seriously there too! Mobile Security! So, tips and links to help you out! Use a PIN, Pattern, or Fingerprint reader. PINS and Patterns (android) are nice because you can change them, let other people know them if you need them to get into your phone, and you can change them. Fingerprints and biometrics are convenient, but aren’t foolproof. Also, whether or not they’re protected by the 4th and 5th Amendments is unclear right now. https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2019/01/feds-forcing-mass-fingerprint-unlocks-is-an-abuse-of-power-judge-rules/ https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2017/01/court-rules-against-man-who-was-forced-to-fingerprint-unlock-his-phone/ Encrypt your phone. Its an easy way to protect your data, photos, contacts, and more. It doesn’t incur much performance hit these days. If you want to sell your phone, just resetting it doesn’t make your data unrecoverable. Encrypt THEN reset. https://www.makeuseof.com/tag/7-reasons-encrypt-smartphone-data/ https://gizmodo.com/why-you-should-be-encrypting-your-devices-and-how-to-ea-1798698901 Don’t jailbreak/root your phone. This is often done to add customizations or run pirated apps. You can break the security of an iPhone doing this, leaving you with little or no protection. Pirated apps from outside the official stores run significant risk of having malware. If you use wifi a lot or travel a lot, get a VPN service. https://www.pcmag.com/news/what-is-a-vpn-and-why-you-need-one
But do you own it? DRM and you 101 (7/13/19 Part 1)
When you buy something digitally, do you actually own it? Are you sure about that? Do You Own It? Wouldn’t it be a shame if it went up in a puff of smoke? Many digital things you buy can get Digital Rights Management (DRM), be it eBooks, music, software/apps, movies and more. While its understandable for renting or borrowing, what about something you’re buying? We talk about this and offer our thoughts on the matter! https://www.cordcuttersnews.com/ultraviolet-is-shutting-down/ https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/3k3wkk/microsoft-ebooks-will-stop-working-because-its-shutting-down-a-drm-server https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2013/12/cant-stream-that-christmas-movie-you-bought-on-amazon-blame-disney/ https://io9.gizmodo.com/amazon-secretly-removes-1984-from-the-kindle-5317703
Free! Free! But is it? (5/18/19 Part 1)
Its been said, “if you’re not paying for it, you’re the product.” Its also been said, “the first one is free!” How Free Is it? When things are free or even cheap, is there a price you’re not seeing up front? How are they making their money? What’s the real cost? We talk about that this hour! https://www.forbes.com/sites/sujanpatel/2015/04/29/7-examples-of-freemium-products-done-right/#59c610646f15 https://www.symantec.com/blogs/threat-intelligence/mobile-privacy-apps NOTE: Due to a tech glitch, part of the show is missing. Hey, they even happen to us, sometimes!
Lock boxes and Gambling… uhm… (5/18/19 Part 2)
So, your friend plays a game. And in that game there are these boxes that show up. And they’re just a dollar (or so) to open. You could win some cool stuff if you’re lucky! No big deal, right? Loot! Well, it turns out they’re big money. https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2019/05/senator-hawley-announces-bill-banning-loot-boxes-pay-to-win-mechanics/ https://massivelyop.com/2018/09/17/international-regulators-co-sign-declaration-to-investigate-lockboxes-and-skin-gambling/ https://www.polygon.com/2019/5/7/18534431/fortnite-rare-default-skins-bullying-harassment
Picking out your perfect match! No, not for dating… (4/27/19 Part 2)
Its love at first sight. Smart, beautiful,and right there looking back at you. Do you make the move? Which Fits? – Part 2 Okay, okay, so maybe buying a new computing device isn’t quite a romantic comedy. But like signing up for a dating site, there’s some questions you should ask yourself about your perfect match! And we get into that. Windows? Mac? Chromebook? Tablet or Smartphone?
Surfing the Internet 101! (3/9/19 Part 1)
If you’re here, you probably typed AlertInternetSurfer.com! Well, why did we name our website that? Because that’s what we want you to be! So, in our ongoing 101 series we go into Surfing The Internet! Computers 101 – Safe Surfin’ Tired of Internet Explorer? Edge? Safari? Try out a new browser today! Mozilla Firefox – https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/ Google Chrome – https://www.google.com/chrome Opera Browser – https://www.opera.com TOR Browser – https://www.torproject.org/ Vivaldi Browser – https://vivaldi.com/
Updates! Keep’em Running! (3/9/19 Part 2)
When you’ve got a car, be it brand new, used, or a hand-me-down, one of the first things you learn about is the humble oil change. Later, its new tires. Brakes. There’s a bit of upkeep to keeping your car running! Computers 101 – Updating! Your computer and devices are the same. The operating system plus programs and even hardware get updates from time to time. Some are fixing problems, some improve performance, others add features. But, how do you do it?