VPN What Is It For?

 People have asked me about VPN. What is it for?

A VPN (Virtual Private Network) is used to enhance online privacy, security, and access. Here’s what it does:

1. Privacy & Anonymity – A VPN hides your IP address and encrypts your internet traffic, making it harder for websites, advertisers, and hackers to track you.

2. Security on Public Wi-Fi – When using public Wi-Fi (e.g., in cafes or airports), a VPN protects your data from hackers who might try to intercept it.

3. Bypassing Geo-Restrictions – A VPN allows you to access region-locked content by making it appear as if you're browsing from a different country. This is useful for streaming services, websites, or apps restricted in certain locations.

4. Avoiding Censorship – In countries with strict internet censorship, a VPN helps users access blocked websites and services.

5. Secure Remote Access – Businesses use VPNs to allow employees to securely access company networks from anywhere.

WARNING: VPN can interfere with some websites and other apps. In those cases you will need turn it off. You will forget it is running and then you won't be able to login to a website or something else won't work. That is the moment when you will have to remember this warning. Shut off your VPN app and try again.

I'm currently using Proton VPN. You can use it for free but it may slow down your connection a bit. I have the lowest cost paid version VPN Plus.

I have it on my computer, my phone, and my TV. The $2.99 a month is for a purchase of a year. it renews at $6.66 per month again for a prepaid year. They have a whole set of security apps. I just use the VPN.

Links to some of the most popular VPN providers.

Protonvpn

Surfshark

Nordvpn

Printers Laser Jets or Ink Jet

If you are currently using an inkjet printer and are happy with it by all means keep using it. However my experience over many years went something like this. After several months without use I need to print something. The printer doesn't work or prints erratically. Why because the ink has dried up or has dried in the nozzle of the print head. After several commands to clean the print head ( a time consuming exercise ) it starts to work. However in the middle of the print job it glitches and I have to reprint one or more pages. Then I run out of ink ( can you say expensive ). 

 The answer. Buy a laser printer. The technology in a laser printer is proven. The ink will never dry up ( actually it's already dry ) it's a powder. Mine sets for weeks or months at a time and works every time. I've owned it for close to 10 years. 

Chances are you don't really use or need color printing very often. On those rare occasions you do need color use an online photo or document printer. If you really need color printing you'll pay at least another $100 for the printer. I know inkjet printers are cheaper but the truth is unless you use them often and consistently they can be the source of stress and frustration in your life. The ink cartridges can end up making them cost more over the long run. Here are some examples I found in a quick Amazon search. Check your local office supply store too.

Monochrome means black and white (black ink) only.

Color means guess what, that's right it prints in color. I would still print photos at a online photo printer. It's not really photo quality. Certainly good enough for charts and graphs plus some basic graphics and diagrams just not true photo quality.

If you take my advice on this you will be so glad you did. 

Microsoft Office Quick Reference

 

I like to learn hidden features from Quick Reference Sheets. Also they are handy as their name implies for a quick reminder of how to do tasks. These are a free download PDF.

Click Here to download.

Open AI and Chat GPT

You may have heard about Chat GPT by Open AI. Here is an explanation in it's own words. Followed by links to both websites.

OpenAI is an artificial intelligence research laboratory consisting of the for-profit corporation OpenAI LP and its parent company, the non-profit OpenAI Inc. Founded in 2015 by a group of entrepreneurs, researchers, and philanthropists including Elon Musk, Sam Altman, Greg Brockman, Ilya Sutskever, and Wojciech Zaremba, the company aims to promote and develop friendly AI in a responsible way.

One of the key projects developed by OpenAI is the GPT (Generative Pre-training Transformer) family of language models. These models are trained on a massive amount of data to generate human-like text in a variety of languages and styles. GPT models can be fine-tuned for specific tasks such as translation, question answering, and summarization, and have achieved state-of-the-art results on a number of benchmarks.

GPT has also been used to generate realistic text in chatbots and other conversational AI applications. When given a prompt, GPT can generate responses that are coherent, coherent, and appropriate to the context of the conversation. This has led to the development of chatbots that can hold natural, engaging conversations with users on a variety of topics.

Overall, OpenAI and its GPT language models represent an exciting development in the field of artificial intelligence, and have the potential to revolutionize the way we interact with machines and technology. However, as with any powerful technology, it is important to use it responsibly and ethically, and to consider the potential impacts and implications of its use.

Open AI

Chat GPT

Google Messaging Problems On Your Android Device?

It seems like messaging has a lot of issues. Here are some ideas to make it less of a problem. Also if you know someone who has problems receiving your messages send them to this article.

SMS = Short Message/Messaging Service, commonly abbreviated as SMS ~ Wikipedia

MMS = Multimedia Messaging Service ~ Wikipedia

Here is a great article for changing settings on your Android device. Click Here

MMS can have problems mostly due to WIFI carriers not supporting it. Here is an article on what to do to fix MMS problems. Click Here

Still having problems? Sometimes using Facebook's Messenger instead of Google's Messages will work better. Not a Facebook member? Try the WhatsApp messaging app.

Links:

Facebook Messenger

Google Messages

WhatsApp 

Wireless Charging and a Warning!

 I'm not going to reinvent the wheel here. This is a link to about as good a description as your going to find of the circuits and electronics function of wireless charging. >> Click Here <<

What I do want to share here is a warning. Wireless charging is done using a process called induction. Two coils close together. One sending out waves that the other coil takes and converts into energy inside your device.

Induction is a word familiar to the electronics world (Technicians, Engineers, Scientists). It's used a lot in circuits transferring signals and energy.

You may be more familiar with the term involved with a way to cook. Induction can heat certain metals very quickly. You've probably seen the ads promoting that the cooking surface doesn't get hot itself but can rapidly get your pan to cooking temperature.

I recently discovered this same heating effect on my phone case. My case has a metal ring with iron in it to attach the phone to a magnet on my cars dash. Iron really responds to induction. So when I picked up my phone from the charger I noticed it was really hot. Luckily no harm was done to my phone or the case. Still I considered the amount of heat  a threat to the case, the phone, and the charger. If you are not sure just check after 10 seconds on the charger. Remember induction works fast. Just feel the phone or case. You will be able to tell. You might prefer to plug in your phone.

I hope this saves someone from damaging their devices.

Find Your Phone - Control or Erase It

 If you can't find your phone goto  https://www.google.com/android/find. 

From there you can locate it. Stolen? Secure it and it is locked but still locatable. Get the police to go get it. Can't get it? Erase it so no one can access your info or data. I hope you never need it but if you do here it is.

Rapid Fire Notifications From Chrome On Your Phone

You click on the wrong thing and suddenly your getting slammed with notifications. Here is how to stop them. Open the Chrome app on your phone. Tap the 3 dots in the upper right corner. 

Find settings and tap it.

Next find Notifications and tap it.

Tap / throw the switch to the off position.

This should solve the problem.

PHONE DATA

Even if you have an "unlimited" phone data plan, there may be a clause in the contract that allows your carrier to slow your phone when you reach a "limit". To avoid this annoying breach you can take a couple of step to avoid hitting that barrier.
Most plans will probably have at least 1 or 2 gigabytes of data before you hit the speed reducing barrier. For most that should be plenty. For power users of anyone under special circumstances this limit can come too quick.
The number one thing that can eat up your data is streaming video. Phone screens have reached amazing resolutions. Before streaming a movie or other video source ask yourself if you need to see it at the highest resolution.
The best solution is always to get on a trusted wifi source. Then you won't be using any data from your plan.
 The next data gobbler is sending video and still pictures to friends and websites. Here is an important fact: You can't see 16 megapixel resolution on a phone or computer screen. So most of the time you don't need to shoot at that high of pixel count. Go into settings and set the pixel count to something that make more sense. If your going to print the picture above a 4x6 go ahead and use the highest resolution you can. For screen viewing something around 1200 horizontal pixel count should be fine.
I use a separate camera app preset for lower resolutions for most snapshots. See the settings screens below. Suit your own taste, but if you want to reduce your data use this is a good place to start.

I hope this helps someone with hitting your data caps.

Free Up Space On Your Android Phone With Google Photos

You can set up Google Photos app to save your pictures automatically to your Google Drive. First make sure you have Google Photos installed. If not here is the link. https://goo.gl/y7Hmdw
Now open Google Photos app.

Tap the three dashes in the upper left corner. Select settings.

 

Look for Google Drive and make sure the slide switch is on. Next tap Back up & sync. Make sure the slide switch is on there as well. If you have added camera apps you made have additional folders that contain images. if so tap on Back up device folders and activate the slide switch.

Now give it a day or so to back up your pictures.

If all this was already set you can go back into settings. Your ready to free up space.

So here is the part that will free up storage space on your phone. 

Go back into settings and tap Free up device storage. Or on the previous menu Free up space. A pop-up window will tell you how many files photos and videos will be deleted. It will also tell you that the pictures have been safely backed up to your Google drive. 

So you can easily free up hundreds of megabytes of space on your phone or tablet with this feature. I hope you found this helpful.

Mobile Maps - Android

In my opinion maps on a mobile phone are some of the most useful apps available. Here are some of my favorites.

Of course Google Maps has changed GPS usage forever. http://goo.gl/aUY7pZ 

Add Streetview and you have the ability to see what your destination looks like. http://goo.gl/n0cDFu

You can navigate just fine with Google Maps but the Driving shortcut makes it a little easier to get strait into that mode. For places you goto often.

Find directions

1. Navigate to the widget section on your phone or tablet.
2. Find the "Directions" widget .
3. Tap and hold the widget and drop it on your home screen.
4. At the top, choose a mode of transport.
5. Type a destination and create a shortcut name.
6. Check any boxes that match your preferences. ...
7. Tap Save.

You ask why do I need a GPS for places I goto often? Because Google maps gives up to date traffic reports. So you can quickly see how your trip to work is going to go for example.

 

c:geo is a Geocaching app. We'll save that for another post.

That brings us to GPS share. This app allows you to share your location with other people. Via all the methods you can share other information about yourself. For example you can text it to an individual. Making it possible for that person to find you in a crowd. Or you could share it on Facebook or Twitter to give a group of people a link to locate you.

You could also use it to mark a spot you want to remember. These are some of my favorite map apps. Do you have some to share?

Money Saving Tech: Free Magazines

I retired recently. So money saving measures are on my mind. OK maybe that not a new thing for me. Did you know your local public library is a source of free digital media? That's right besides free books you can get e-books, audio books, movies, music, and magazines. This post will be about magazines. Go to your library website. Chances are you will find a link to digital content similar to the one shown here.

Look for a electronic magazine link. You will need an account with the offering company. For me that is Zinio. I plan to check out Flipster soon. Warning! They also sell magazine subscriptions. You may want to purchase a magazine not carried by the library. That is fine, and the prices are usually quite good. However I have to warn you. I only purchase single editions. I bought a couple of subscriptions and had a very hard time keeping them from auto renewing.

Anyway the library selection is really very good. Hundreds of magazines are offered at my library.

The list is also searchable by topic. Photography for example.

You can read them from your PC at the Zinio website or you can put the app on your tablet. Download the magazine (many back issues are available too). Once you get used to the tablet page flipping technique you love getting magazines for free.

Some Online Educational Sites

How to Take Free Courses from Top Universities - Techlicious . I want to add a couple of my favorite online educational sources. Free step by step learning at http://www.gcflearnfree.org/ . Free and paid serious multimedia learning across a huge library of courses are here https://www.udemy.com/.

Happy learning!

Breaking From Cable TV

Breaking From Cable TV

Antenna
The latest disruptive technology. Streaming TV from the internet. Sometimes (rarely) things old are new again. This new thing includes an old thing. TV via antenna. It turns out that if you live in a metropolitan area you can get free TV over the air. You just need an antenna. There is a bonus to doing this. A better picture. Yes it's true. Your cable company compresses your local TV channels to save bandwidth. You may notice a slightly sharper picture by using an antenna. I recommend you get an amplified antenna (see the example link). It's probably a good idea to try this before cancelling your cable. Read 5 Steps to breaking with your cable company: http://goo.gl/lnG14F before you make the call. Antenna Example: http://goo.gl/aUUTdl

Internet
Besides an antenna you will probably want to have access to the internet. The internet has a huge amount of programming available for free or very little cost. If your internet service provider (ISP) is your cable company you will want to make sure you keep this service when you cut the cable TV service. To get internet programs on your TV you will need a device. The device can be the TV itself. Internet TV's (AKA Smart TV) are available from multiple manufactures in various sizes. If your not wanting to lay out the money for a new TV there are a number of devices to make your current TV "smart". Stand alone devices come with a remote and access the internet to bring programming to your TV. Some of them also allow you to stream video from your computing equipment. Desktop, laptop, tablet, smartphone, they can all be used to stream to an Apple TV for example. Or you can stream to a Chromecast from Google. WARNING: Your ISP may block premium streaming content like HGTV for an example. However you may still get the programs by going to their website or other websites like ULive.com.

Good Luck. Please share any information you have with me.
Update: Here is a current state of the cable industry. http://goo.gl/KcXDMC

Devices
Stand Alone.
Apple TV: http://goo.gl/7m3XU4
Roku: https://www.roku.com/
Amazon Fire TV: http://goo.gl/VY7V3C

Broadcast from other devices.
Chromecast: http://goo.gl/9CYtiR

Websites
Google: https://play.google.com/store/movies?hl=en
Apple: http://www.apple.com/itunes/video/
Netflix: https://www.netflix.com
Hulu: http://www.hulu.com/
Crackle: http://www.crackle.com/
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/
Sling TV: https://www.sling.com
ULive: http://www.ulive.com/
Reddit: http://www.reddit.com/
CBS all access: http://goo.gl/EWs8WX
5 little known sites http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/5-lesser-known-free-sites-watching-tv-shows/

Password Recovery

Have you ever needed to get your password from a site log in?
You know like this ...

Well it turns out it very easy. Just right click in the box where the dots conceal your password.

Select "Inspect element" from the menu that drops down. You'll see the code that makes the webpage. Look for the word "password".

Right click the "password" line, and select "Edit attribute".

Change "password" to "text". Your password will be displayed where the dots were. I hope this will be help you if you ever need it.

Case Study: Saving Money In The Digital Age

Everyone has different providers and plans. I thought I would give my example as a way to reduce cost.



Cable TV $120+ cellular service $120+. That's over $240 dollars a month. Think about that. That is what we were paying. When our year with AT&T U-Verse caused discounts to expire we received notice that our bill would jump to over $180. That shocked me into action.



TV:

We have changed to Comcast Xfinity Internet, HBO, Streampix, basic service $50+. Hulu+ $8.

Roku 3 is 5x faster and has a motion controller for games A one time $100.



Phone:

Republic Wireless Moto G phone $150 one time. Monthly cost $10 for unlimited Talk & Text, no Data except via wifi.



New monthly cost: Phone $20 TV $60 for about $160 a month in savings! That is $1900 in savings a year! Minus the one time costs and we will still save around $1500 the first year.

Intro To Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) 3D Printing

This entry is about the popular and affordable Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) form of 3D printing. Click the following link for a description of the 4 types of 3D printing.
Here are some links and information about FDM 3D printing. The first thing you need for a 3D print is a 3D drawing. You can create your own using software like Tinkercad for beginners and children. On the professional end of the scale is Solidworks, Autocad (free version), or Sketchup. There are more just do a Google search. Autocad and Tinkercad have Chrome apps. You have to save or export your drawing to an .stl file format. 
If you don't want to jump in to drawing yet you can download pre-made drawings. From websites like Thingiverse (free) or Yeggi (a search engine for 3D models), Turbo Squid. Of course the drawing programs all offer drawing in their format that can be saved or exported as an .stl file.
Next you'll need software to "slice" the .stl file. Slice is the term for generating the coordinates in X Y and Z 3D space where the printer will place the melted plastic. That information is saved in a G-Code file (.gcode). Some software for that operation is Slic3r, Simplify3D, and Cura. These can be incorporated into programs designed to give you complete control over your printer. Repetier and Matter Control are examples of printer control programs.  
Of course you will need a 3D printer to bring your object into the real world. Here are some to look at. First if you are interested in the famous do it yourself Reprap Project where a 3D printer is used to print the parts for another 3D printer. After that is the Makerbot line starting with the Mini at $1375 as I write this. I decided on a Robo3D for a balance of cost $799 and features. The market place is exploding. At a recent Maker Fair in Kansas City I saw the Q3D Printer which starts at $199. I was impressed with this tiny printer. 

Currently I mostly use models from Tinkercad. Slice them using Matter Control and Cura. Then load the G-Code on a SD card and print on my modified Robo 3D.

I hope this will help you get started in the fun of 3D printing.

What The Heck Is Alibaba?

I first heard of Alibaba a few years ago. The story claimed it was the Chinese version of Google. A search engine. That was not correct. The following description comes from a website called The Search Engine List. http://www.thesearchenginelist.com/

"Alibaba.com - Claims to be the world's largest database of suppliers. Based in China, it is a marketplace of export and import, offers search, company directory, catalog, trade leads and more."

That makes it the Asian Amazon for whole sale. I think that is a better description. Take a look for yourself. http://www.alibaba.com/.

Looking past Windows, Nadella seeks very different Microsoft - CNET

Looking past Windows, Nadella seeks very different Microsoft - CNET:



'via Blog this'

This looks like a great app for copy and paste in Android.

http://www.cnet.com/news/how-to-copy-and-paste-multiple-pieces-of-text-in-android/ How to copy and paste multiple pieces of text in Android