Data Doctors Tech Tips

In the age of technology, it's a given that all new parents will commit to some form of a baby monitor of some type. A rather unknown option for monitoring your child, especially if you are going to be on the road is the app for Android devices known as Dormi. The app is a way to allow two Android devices to become a way to monitor your child no matter how far away you may be. Traditional baby monitors require you to be nearby, but because the Dormi app can leverage cellar devices, it allows you to be just about anywhere and still keep tabs on your child. Beyond providing a way to see and hear your child, you can also use the platform to speak to them as well. You can use the basic service for free or pay a one time fee to use it forever. Now those old Android devices that are collecting dust in a closet somewhere can become useful again with the Dormi app! http://dormi.sleekbit.com

All email systems limit the size of your attachments, which is why you need a good strategy for sharing large files with others. It's best not to use a process that requires the recipient to jump through a bunch of hoops or sign up for a service they don't already have. Dropbox users that also depend on Gmail should look into a great little add-on that integrates the two services. Once installed, it makes it really simple to share items you already have in your Dropbox account with anyone, even if they don't use Dropbox. This can save you lots of time because you don't need to upload the file to another online file-sharing website. This can come in really handy when you have a large number of files to share, which eliminates the need to send separate email messages or use a Zip utility that the user has to unzip. The utility does a lot of cool things, so if you use both services and haven't gotten the extension yet, check it out at: https://bit.ly/38aInGD

It's an uncomfortable subject, but it's something we all face and that's death.and#8232;and#8232; Most people have thought about their physical assets should something happen, but not enough have planned for their digital assets.and#8232;and#8232; By design, all of our online accounts are set up to keep those that don't have the proper credentials out, which is what can happen to our family if we were to pass suddenly with no access info left behind.and#8232;and#8232; It's a potential added layer of grief when a family member has to spend all their time trying to convince dozens of companies to allow them to get into your accounts.and#8232;and#8232; Storing your passwords in a management program or even in a bank vault is great as long as you remember to keep the lists updated.and#8232;and#8232; One way to make sure your family can regain access more easily is to make sure that they have the password to your email account or accounts.and#8232;and#8232; Since most password reset options send the link to the registered email address, making sure your family has it will make things much easier for them.and#8232;and#8232; Having been asked to help grieving families regain access to their departed relative's account on many occasions, a little planning up front can be a huge relief down the road.

As much as we like to treat our fluffy family members as humans, they're not, which means that they can't verbalize how they feel when they're sick. Consulting a qualified veterinarian is a no-brainer, but sometimes that isn't a possibility, so for those situations, a website called PetMD is worth remembering. As far as I've seen online, there's not much that compares to the depth and breadth of information specifically about pets of all kinds. From understanding terminology to browsing their health database to their symptom checkup option, it's about as good as it gets. Understanding what might be causing your pet's unusual behavior can be very comforting, which is where their emergency room resources can be invaluable. Beyond critical health issues, the website has great info on various breeds, basic health, feeding and nutrition. The next time you find a strange mass on your pet or if you ever wondered why dogs chow down on grass from time to time, https://www.petmd.com is the place to go and it's not just for dogs and cats!

The ongoing efforts by cyber-thieves to take over your online accounts are getting more sophisticated, so reviewing security information regularly is critical. Google offers a host of features that allow you to quickly see your account activity, including when, where and with what device it's been accessed. Their security dashboard allows you to see this important log-in information for the past 4 weeks, which helps you to know if you have been compromised. Most of the time, the general location information is included which should make it a little easier to figure out what device that you own is being used. The real value is when you see something logged in from either a strange device or a strange location and indicate that you don't recognize the device. Google will immediately suggest that you change your password and include the link to get it changed. This same page offers a link to do a security checkup: https://bit.ly/2Z6FTVm which I'd recommend you do at least once a month. Here's where it's all available: https://myaccount.google.com/security

Chances are, you have several devices that you use regularly that can take amazing high-resolution photos, but that can also come with a downside. All the advances in image capture technology mean that all those images are going to much larger in storage size than older low-resolution camera technology, which can eat up space on your hard drive. For those that have been copying everything from computer to computer over the years, it's highly likely that you may have a lot of space taken by duplicate images. Unless you have been extremely disciplined in how you organize your images, filtering out the duplicates manually just isn't going to be very efficient, which is where some free utilities can help. The programs are designed to scan a folder or your entire hard disk to find all of the duplicates for you to review. Depending on how many files you have stored, the initial scan can take a long time, so plan accordingly. If you are interested in trying these utilities, here's the link for Mac users (ignore the apps attempts to get you to buy the pro version):and#160;https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/photos-duplicate-cleaner/id592704001 And here's the link for Windows users: https://manyprog.com/duplicate-image-remover.php

Most of us are using our smartphones and computers at an equal pace these days, so wouldn't it be helpful to push info between to two easily? Discovering something online while on your computer that you'd love to have available on your smartphone is made easy with a utility called Push Bullet. It's a universal sharing platform that works as a web app for Chrome that integrates with Android mobile devices. It's a really simple way to share items that range from notes, pictures and data files to website links and lots of other useful items. It's a little quicker to use than some of the other sharing platforms that require a special download or program to be set up. One of the coolest features is the messaging that can be mirrored between your phone and computer. It's really very useful for those that spend a lot of time bouncing from their Android smartphone and their computer - Mac or WIndows. Web App:and#160;https://www.pushbullet.com

Who knew that carrots were originally purple or that sadly, the secret service was created by Honest Abe on the day he was shot! The Internet is full of generally useless but interesting tidbits of information as long as you're willing to go search for it. Social media has also become a daily source of useless but interesting items depending on who you follow or are friends with, but we have another resource you can check out. For the opportunity to learn some new bit of info every day, sign up for the Now I Know daily newsletter: http://nowiknow.com When you sign up, you'll start getting a daily message with some very interesting info that could make you much better in your next trivia game. There are 10 years worth of posts in the archives, so if you'd rather manually search through the info yourself, it can be hours of fun!

The general interest in wine has exploded over the past few decades, but so many are intimidated by the sheer breadth of choices that are presented at grocery stores, wine shops and restaurants.and#8232;and#8232; Learning so much takes time, but you can accelerate your learning and discovery with an app called Hello Vino.and#8232;and#8232; Since you'll never really get a grip of every one of the over 10 thousand varietals of wine grapes, why not make things easier by focusing on food pairings.and#8232;and#8232; Discovering those magical food and wine pairings will expand your appreciation for the nectar of the gods quickly.and#8232;and#8232; It doesn't matter if you're looking for the right wine for a backyard BBQ or the best to match multiple dishes at a fancy restaurant, Hello Vino is your wine assistant.and#8232;and#8232; If you get asked to select a wine for a group at a restaurant, it's so much easier if you start with what your friends are going to order for dinner or appetizers. and#8232;and#8232; The app makes it really easy to find the best types of wines that will work, so you can find the right options even when the wine list is huge. Try it out for yourself at: http://www.hellovino.com

You probably take the ability to open various websites in their own tabs for granted, but if you were around for the early days, you know how the 'back' button was the way we used to switch pages. Tabbed browsing is very convenient but when you open too many tabs, it can chew up gobs of valuable working memory. The result can be very sluggish performance or even temporary freezing of your computer, so here's a suggestion: download the Great Suspender utility! It's a free add-on for the Chrome browser which will keep track of what you are and aren't using at any given moment so it can pause the tabs that you haven't clicked on for a while. Disabling the background activities saves memory and it could even extend battery life on your laptop if you typically have a lot of tabs open. The cool thing with this utility is that as soon as you click on a tab you haven't used in a while, it automatically restarts the activity. For those pages that you do want to have actively working in the background, such as a stock ticker, you can simply add them to a list in the utility so it's always left alone. Here's the link to download The Great Suspender: https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/the-great-suspender/klbibkeccnjlkjkiokjodocebajanakg