For today's tip, let's turn to the Bible. The Bible?? Pastor Adam Hamilton, Church of the Resurrection in Leawood, KS recently shared some rules for how we should interact on social media, aka 1 Corinthians 13: 4-7:
Love is patient;
love is kind;
love is not envious or boastful or arrogant or rude.
It does not insist on its own way;
it is not irritable or resentful;
it does not rejoice in wrongdoing,
but rejoices in the truth.
It bears all things,
believes all things,
hopes all things,
endures all things.
And, from the Psalms: “Let the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be pleasing to you, Lord."
Hmmmmm. Pretty much covers it all.
Tuesday, January 28, 2020
Tuesday, January 21, 2020
Phone ringing? Silence it instantly!
Have you ever been sitting in a meeting or at an event and someone's phone begins ringing? Of course you have! And more than likely we've all been the guilty ones at least once or twice.
Today's tip will help you learn the fastest way to silence that embarrassing ringing if it happens to you:
Grab your phone and squeeze; squeeze any of the side buttons!
Depressing any of the side buttons (on/off, volume, etc.) will immediately silence the ringing. Your phone will continue to ring; however, you (and those around you) will no longer hear it.
Give it a try....right now! Call your cell from another phone. As you dig your phone out of your pocket or purse, just give any of the buttons a squeeze to immediately squelch the sound. Don't wait until you have the whole phone totally in view.
Practice doing that several times until you are comfortable with the process without looking at your phone or fumbling. Practice makes perfect and saves embarrassment. You'll be glad you did and so will those sitting near you!
Today's tip will help you learn the fastest way to silence that embarrassing ringing if it happens to you:
Grab your phone and squeeze; squeeze any of the side buttons!
Depressing any of the side buttons (on/off, volume, etc.) will immediately silence the ringing. Your phone will continue to ring; however, you (and those around you) will no longer hear it.
Give it a try....right now! Call your cell from another phone. As you dig your phone out of your pocket or purse, just give any of the buttons a squeeze to immediately squelch the sound. Don't wait until you have the whole phone totally in view.
Practice doing that several times until you are comfortable with the process without looking at your phone or fumbling. Practice makes perfect and saves embarrassment. You'll be glad you did and so will those sitting near you!
Tuesday, January 14, 2020
Don’t click, don’t call, and don’t send!
Online security is always a topic of interest in my computer classes for seniors and in our iPhone group. Many people are concerned that their online presence increases chances of them being scammed. Rightly so. But, there are some things you can do to decrease your vulnerability.
We’re halfway through January and you may have already failed to keep some of your resolutions for 2020. According to one source, only 8% of resolutions made in January are actually kept. :-/ But, below are 3 resolutions you should make and keep ALL year to improve your online safety.
1) Don’t ever click on a link in an email or text unless you are 100% sure it is legitimate. Go directly to the website of the company and log in to your account there. Links in fraudulent emails and text messages can be created to mask the actual URL of websites.
2) Don’t ever, ever, ever call a phone number that pops up on your device offering help or computer support. Microsoft and Apple will never send you a message asking to call them. They also will NEVER call to tell you they’ve noticed there are problems with your computer. That is ALWAYS a scam.
3) Don’t send any personal or financial information via email or text....to anyone. If you need to communicate that to a company, login to their secure website and enter the requested information or call them on the phone using a number that you are certain is legitimate.
One last caution for Windows 7 users: If you are using Windows 7 on a computer, today is the last day you should feel ”safe” doing that. Beginning tomorrow Microsoft will no longer provide updates or tech help for that operating system on home computers. Your computer will still “work”, but the lack of security updates will make your computer vulnerable to viruses, malware, etc. Don’t risk it; install Windows 10 today.
Be smart. Be safe. Be secure. Hope you all have a wonderful week!
Jeline
We have another new subscriber this week; welcome! All of my previous weekly tips can be found here: http://tuesdaytechtidbit.blogspot.com
We’re halfway through January and you may have already failed to keep some of your resolutions for 2020. According to one source, only 8% of resolutions made in January are actually kept. :-/ But, below are 3 resolutions you should make and keep ALL year to improve your online safety.
1) Don’t ever click on a link in an email or text unless you are 100% sure it is legitimate. Go directly to the website of the company and log in to your account there. Links in fraudulent emails and text messages can be created to mask the actual URL of websites.
2) Don’t ever, ever, ever call a phone number that pops up on your device offering help or computer support. Microsoft and Apple will never send you a message asking to call them. They also will NEVER call to tell you they’ve noticed there are problems with your computer. That is ALWAYS a scam.
3) Don’t send any personal or financial information via email or text....to anyone. If you need to communicate that to a company, login to their secure website and enter the requested information or call them on the phone using a number that you are certain is legitimate.
One last caution for Windows 7 users: If you are using Windows 7 on a computer, today is the last day you should feel ”safe” doing that. Beginning tomorrow Microsoft will no longer provide updates or tech help for that operating system on home computers. Your computer will still “work”, but the lack of security updates will make your computer vulnerable to viruses, malware, etc. Don’t risk it; install Windows 10 today.
Be smart. Be safe. Be secure. Hope you all have a wonderful week!
Jeline
We have another new subscriber this week; welcome! All of my previous weekly tips can be found here: http://tuesdaytechtidbit.blogspot.com
Tuesday, January 7, 2020
Snopes.com - your resource for debunking myths and rumors
We've all probably had the experience of reading something online that just doesn't sound believable. Before sharing that information with others, please remember to verify its validity at Snopes.com
I usually highlight some of the text in the questionable Facebook post or online article and then copy/paste it into the search bar of snopes.com Snopes' rating system has evolved over the years to include more categories, but rather quickly you should be able to skim the results to answer your query.
If you're spending any kind of time online, Snopes.com should become one of your regular go-to resources; not just for those "shares" on Facebook, but to check out stories in the news. (Snopes should also be very useful during this election year.)
Did Iran offer an $80M bounty on President Trump? Was the picture of the Australian fires taken from the Space Station? Take a look at these "Hot 50" rumors that readers are checking out presently on Snopes.com
Hope you all have a terrific Tuesday (and week)!
I usually highlight some of the text in the questionable Facebook post or online article and then copy/paste it into the search bar of snopes.com Snopes' rating system has evolved over the years to include more categories, but rather quickly you should be able to skim the results to answer your query.
If you're spending any kind of time online, Snopes.com should become one of your regular go-to resources; not just for those "shares" on Facebook, but to check out stories in the news. (Snopes should also be very useful during this election year.)
Did Iran offer an $80M bounty on President Trump? Was the picture of the Australian fires taken from the Space Station? Take a look at these "Hot 50" rumors that readers are checking out presently on Snopes.com
Hope you all have a terrific Tuesday (and week)!
Tuesday, December 31, 2019
The best password ever!
"How to Create Good Passwords" articles abound, but I believe strongly in the method detailed below. Once your base password is created, it is easy to make a unique password for each of your online accounts.
1) Think of an easy phrase to remember - e.g., my car is fast and sleek
2) Remove the spaces in the phrase: mycarisfastandsleek
3) Capitalize the first letter of the second word: myCarisfastandsleek
4) Replace the letter "a" (all or some) with the @ symbol: myC@risf@st@ndsleek
5) Replace the letter "s" with the $ symbol: myC@ri$f@$t@nd$leek
6) Use that password as your base and then add on the first three letters of the website or account to make each password unique. For example, if I was using the above password for Facebook, it would look like this: myc@ri$f@$t@nd$leekfac and for Gmail it would look like this: myC@ri$f@$t@nd$leekgma
At first, you may be slow entering all of the characters, but with practice, it should become automatic and much easier.
Happy New Year! May 2020 be your most safe, secure online year ever!! :-)
1) Think of an easy phrase to remember - e.g., my car is fast and sleek
2) Remove the spaces in the phrase: mycarisfastandsleek
3) Capitalize the first letter of the second word: myCarisfastandsleek
4) Replace the letter "a" (all or some) with the @ symbol: myC@risf@st@ndsleek
5) Replace the letter "s" with the $ symbol: myC@ri$f@$t@nd$leek
6) Use that password as your base and then add on the first three letters of the website or account to make each password unique. For example, if I was using the above password for Facebook, it would look like this: myc@ri$f@$t@nd$leekfac and for Gmail it would look like this: myC@ri$f@$t@nd$leekgma
At first, you may be slow entering all of the characters, but with practice, it should become automatic and much easier.
Happy New Year! May 2020 be your most safe, secure online year ever!! :-)
Tuesday, December 17, 2019
YouTube - an excellent resource
Don't remember how to set Time Bake on your oven? Can't remember how to add items to your digital calendar? Need help setting up your new home security system? Want to start yoga at home? YouTube can be a wonderful tool to help you with all of these tasks and much much more!
Most of us know we can find the answer to almost any question online, but YouTube is one of the first places I look when trying to figure out how to do something. I love being able to watch a couple of quick videos to help me conquer my task.
EVERYTHING, absolutely EVERYTHING has been recorded on YouTube video, so do a search there before looking online for instruction manuals for your item or task. A word of CAUTION: Since anyone can publish on YouTube, some videos are much better (and more accurate) than others. It's always wise to watch at least 2 videos on a topic before following their advice.
And, if you are the lucky recipient of a new piece of technology for Christmas, remember that someone has already recorded a video online to help you learn how to use it!
Happy Holidays! Tech Tip Tuesday will not be published on December 24. If you are with friends and family over the holidays who may enjoy receiving weekly technology tips, feel free to share this subscribe link: http://eepurl.com/co9Hdn
Most of us know we can find the answer to almost any question online, but YouTube is one of the first places I look when trying to figure out how to do something. I love being able to watch a couple of quick videos to help me conquer my task.
EVERYTHING, absolutely EVERYTHING has been recorded on YouTube video, so do a search there before looking online for instruction manuals for your item or task. A word of CAUTION: Since anyone can publish on YouTube, some videos are much better (and more accurate) than others. It's always wise to watch at least 2 videos on a topic before following their advice.
And, if you are the lucky recipient of a new piece of technology for Christmas, remember that someone has already recorded a video online to help you learn how to use it!
Happy Holidays! Tech Tip Tuesday will not be published on December 24. If you are with friends and family over the holidays who may enjoy receiving weekly technology tips, feel free to share this subscribe link: http://eepurl.com/co9Hdn
Tuesday, December 10, 2019
Don't tell the world you are traveling over the holidays!
Have you read something like this post on Facebook?
"Jamaica bound! See you all in 7 days #HoneyMoon 🇯🇲🍻🍴"
Holidays and vacations provide fun times with family and friends that are worth sharing with others, but doing so on Facebook or other social media is not a good idea until you return home.
Social media has made it easy for you to share your activities with others but if you are out-of-town, it also alerts others to your empty house making it an easy target for break-ins.
Even if you have your Privacy settings set to "Friends", how do you know that they won't share with their Friends? Are all of their Friends trustworthy? This may seem a bit far-fetched but burglars use the information shared on Facebook every single day and the numbers are increasing.
Be safe this holiday season: feel free to share memories and photos AFTER you return home.
"Jamaica bound! See you all in 7 days #HoneyMoon 🇯🇲🍻🍴"
Holidays and vacations provide fun times with family and friends that are worth sharing with others, but doing so on Facebook or other social media is not a good idea until you return home.
Social media has made it easy for you to share your activities with others but if you are out-of-town, it also alerts others to your empty house making it an easy target for break-ins.
Even if you have your Privacy settings set to "Friends", how do you know that they won't share with their Friends? Are all of their Friends trustworthy? This may seem a bit far-fetched but burglars use the information shared on Facebook every single day and the numbers are increasing.
Be safe this holiday season: feel free to share memories and photos AFTER you return home.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)