RichC | April 19, 2019
All who have been through computer and cellphone issues know what a headache little glitches can become. For me, ever since having my battery replaced on my iPhone 7-plus back in January, the front facing microphone has not worked. After a couple back and forth evening phone calls with Apple Support, we set up an […]
RichC | April 12, 2019
The “customer experience” (a marketing buzz-term nowadays) can make or break companies. Some do it right, others fall on their face early in their start-up cycle … and others like Ebay ($EBAY) and Paypal ($PYPL) have employees, customer service departments and management issues dragging their company down … yes, this is going to be a […]
RichC | April 11, 2019
A Smartthings- like plug that I used with the Amazon Echo virtual assistant failed this past week, so I took it to the workbench in order to diagnose. I suspected that I was not really going to be able to fix it, but was curious as to what what inside anyway (sort of hoping, but […]
RichC | March 29, 2019
It has been a year since I’ve checked my Internet speed since we have not had any problems, but I doubted we were getting the advertised 500Mbps speeds , but then that my internal network problem. Speed aside, there hasn’t been any reason to question Cincinnati Bell’s service (our TV and internet service provider). They […]
RichC | March 22, 2019
This is project for work as I wanted to demonstrate to a customer what I was referring to when I encouraged them to add a simple “read a script” podcast channel or simple YouTube video component to their marketing. It is a way to capture audiences who have moved away from reading articles and blogs […]
RichC | March 22, 2019
There is isn’t anything wrong with my current 2014 Apple iPad, it is just getting older as far as technology goes, and is a little sluggish (or so it seems). It is still the single most used tech device that I have … and the reason I’ll likely replace it with another when the time […]
RichC | March 15, 2019
Just upgrading blog to WordPress 5.1.1 and needed a little text copy to try out the new editor (below). It does seem a bit snappier? BTW, did you know WordPress now powers over 1/3rd of the top 10 million sites on the web? Site Health With security and speed in mind, this release introduces WordPress’s […]
RichC | March 15, 2019
I enjoy receiving the occasional email on words from Science Diction (Science Friday folks) and this one from the word emoji was a good one. READ the full history here … or on the archived WaybackMachine LINK
RichC | March 8, 2019
Animated GIF of Dolphin pod jumping and leaping
RichC | March 8, 2019
Chromebooks are not my preferred devices, but they are excellent for those with more limited computing needs. For the most part, they are relatively inexpensive, easy to update, very reliable and frustration free. They boot/start quicker than most devices and data, apps and setting are easily backed up on Google’s cloud … so as long […]
RichC | March 1, 2019
This is an unusual Tech Friday post, but after being frustrated this week in clicking a dead link to an article that disappeared after a website was updated, I decided there must be a better way to ensure information, links and websites remained useful … WITHOUT having to archive them entirely on my computers, servers […]
RichC | February 22, 2019
TechFriday advice for those of us who enjoy using virtual assistants like those from Google, Apple or Amazon: 1. Change the Default Password on Your Wi-Fi Router 2. Set the Voice Lock 3. Decide Whether You Want to Shop By Voice 4. Understand that Privacy Rights in the US Are on the Way – but […]
RichC | February 17, 2019
Like clockwork, it was time to either renew or cancel SiriusXM (again). I refuse to pay the month to month rate with them or the very few newspaper/magazine subscriptions I still use that does the same thing. Thankfully I marked my calendar with a notification as to the last day to cancel service … otherwise the […]
RichC | February 14, 2019
It may be a quirky Valentine’s Day gift, but Brenda tossed our alarm clock of 36+ years into the trash a couple months ago saying, “I don’t trust it anymore.” I was relatively happy to see it go since the “honk, honk, honk” of the alarm was the most annoying alarm ever. Besides, I’ve been […]
RichC | February 12, 2019
Having worked on my family tree with Ancestry.com back in 2010 and then ignored returning 9 years later, it has been interesting to look into it again now that DNA testing has grown in popularity. My results came back a few days ago and they were “as expected” (although the map a bit deceiving). From […]
RichC | February 8, 2019
Yup … I have over 1000 photos. Once again, the lesson to take to heart is to "control your own data" whenever you can or be blackmailed into new subscription rules or lose everything. Even more challenging if a company goes out of business or deciding you have infringed on their user policy without warning […]
RichC | February 7, 2019
The 2018 wireless phone Tax Foundation report came out in December 2018 and although we may have seen income tax rates drop, wireless phone plans continue to be ripe for the taxman’s pickings. It is shocking to see such a wide rate structure from all the different states (map above) but that doesn’t tell the […]
RichC | January 25, 2019
It won’t be long before virtual assistants end up in our car … question is, which one will it be? (from what I’m seeing as of 2019, it would be Amazon’s Alexa). Currently Amazon has definitely taken the lead in our home as the affordable Echo Dots are now throughout our house. I … well […]
RichC | January 21, 2019
It has been a morning of computer server problems after updating Certbot on one of my Linux servers in order to keep the Let’s Encrypt certificates updating properly (the email warning below). For customers on Consolidated Printing and Publishing servers, there will not be a problem as the certs are commercial … but for my […]
RichC | January 18, 2019
The recent price increases rumbling through the economy are starting to be felt in the products we all use and have learned to appreciate. One of the services I’ll likely eliminate before the monthly price increase is the streaming service Netflix. We did this once before, but with all the new added content and lack […]
RichC | January 11, 2019
The Amazon Echo in Kitchen/Great Room and the new Echo Dot 3rd Gen in my workshop Not a day goes by without Amazon’s Echo devices doing something for us in our home … and it is only a matter of time before “she” (Alexa) will be assisting me in the car too. It is almost […]
RichC | January 8, 2019
No matter who you talk to, running the processor at water’s boiling point is too hot and not healthy for a computer chips. After replacing my iMac’s power supply board … and hard drive … I thought my problems were over, but probably not. It looks like I’m going to have to clean the old […]
RichC | January 7, 2019
After years of posting what I suspect are now considered “oldies” for Music Monday posts, I’ll at least start 2019 with a change. The Christmas season was a chance to listen to holiday music performed by a variety of different artists, and as I have in the past, enjoyed songs by almost all contemporary country […]
RichC | December 28, 2018
Those of us who manage our own computers likely do our share of “desktop” cleaning and are regularly warned by our anti-virus software that we need to do more than prevent viruses and hackers from accessing our computers. The current “free” anti-virus companies all push to sell their paid software … and regularly highlight registry […]
RichC | December 25, 2018
Every tech-loving guy needs a subject for a new gizmo … my son-in-law Drew is no exception. He set up his new GoPro-like camera (gift from Katelyn) to time-lapse our Christmas morning. His effort was a little bit too fast for me to watch … so I stretched out the MP4 clip to last almost […]
RichC | December 23, 2018
After my recent issues with my overheating iMac, I’ve become a lot more fastidious about what software I keep running and tax the quad core 3.4 GHz i7 chip. Frankly I still don’t think the relatively light computing demands asked of this aging Mac are all that much, but Apple has sardined in a lot […]
RichC | December 14, 2018
"Hey Rich, should I wait for a 5G phone … and by the way, what is 5G?" One of these days I’m just going to say, "I don’t know," but until then, I bump along pretending I know more than I do … that is until I get in too deep to walk away. This […]
RichC | December 7, 2018
A couple years ago I added Simple Slideshow Manager to MyDesultoryBlog as a way to include a series of photos in a single post. Having "attempted" different approaches that fail in one OS, Browser or device before the above plugin seemed to work … that is, until it didn’t. Having posted to the forums, trying […]
RichC | November 27, 2018
This may be the end for Freedompop, the low cost wireless "backup" hotspot service I’ve been using for years — at least it probably is for me (started with the Photon back in 2010). For the most part their hotspot service has been a decent value for me while traveling and giving me LTE connectivity […]
RichC | November 24, 2018
This really should have been yesterday’s Tech Friday post, but between the holiday with turkey, family and football watching on Thursday and another market drop and oil plunge of another 7.7% to $50.42 on Friday my focus was elsewhere. As for a tech tip, a viral tweet last week caught hold when it really shouldn’t […]
RichC | November 16, 2018
The Brydge keyboard attached to my aging iPad Air2, which I love, has been slowly causing me a few irritation when it come to getting a connection while charging. The tightly sealed aluminum clad keyboard was much better than my original Kensington (left) and tested Zagg (right), both which were great. Still the Brydge is […]
RichC | November 9, 2018
Having used a Brydge keyboard with an iPad from their first introduction, I can say that IF I were to update my current iPad Air2 to the 2018 just introduced iPad Pro that I would seriously consider waiting for the 2019 Brydge keyboard … they are that good. But with all current Apple updates to […]
RichC | October 31, 2018
It is a favorite time of year for those who enjoy seeing the new product coming online from Apple. iPhones in September,new iPads and Apple Air notebooks this week and even a new Apple Mac Mini (used an older Mini for my desktop next to a Windows machine for years). This year it seems even […]
RichC | October 8, 2018
The new low cost Wyze Cam Pan that I bought to put in the Delray Beach Condo arrived this past weekend and so opted to set it up temporarily at home. So far so good with the image and impressive panning control with even motion tracking (less impressive though). The reason I chose the Wyze […]
RichC | October 5, 2018
The Amazon Echo has been a fun gadget to use and have in our home since Katelyn and Drew gave it to us for Christmas. After having our granddaughter Annalyn with us for a few days last week, I realized we don’t always have the volume set appropriately especially when she is sleeping. Hm … […]
RichC | September 28, 2018
Facebook Inc. discovered a security flaw affecting almost 50 million accounts, the company said Friday. Attackers exploited a vulnerability in Facebook’s code for its “view as” feature, which lets users see what their profile looks like to someone else. Facebook discovered the problem Tuesday, the company said in a blog post.A problem in the code […]
RichC | September 14, 2018
In recent years, we’ve grown accustom to DOTcom retail companies delivering on their promises. Thanks to Amazon and their outstanding efficiency and reliable fulfillment and delivery services. Perhaps I’ve forgotten that not all online retailers live up to what we now take for granted? One expects that when a product is listed on a major […]
RichC | September 12, 2018
The biggest awaited tech news for most Apple lovers took place yesterday as they introduced their latest Watch Series 4 with "heart monitoring" capabilities and improved everything. From edge to edge larger screens, to a 64-bit processor that is twice as fast at their earlier version. The speaker is louder (common complaint), a walkie-talkie feature, […]
RichC | August 31, 2018
Tech news this week highlighted Yahoo and AOL brand email services. There are still plenty of users still using them and unknowingly being spied on (including me since I still use Yahoo for "junk" mail — I started with AOL & Yahoo in the early 1990s kept the simple rdc2@ addresses). The search algorithms and […]
RichC | August 24, 2018
|￣￣￣￣￣￣ | | WE | | ARE NOT | | THE | | NATIONAL | | ENQUIRER | | ＿＿＿＿＿__| (\__/) || (•ㅅ•) || / づ — Enquirer (@Enquirer) August 23, 2018
