Do you like shopping? Sure you do. And it’s shopping season. Which means shopping frauds and scams!

Season of Scams

The bad guys are hard at work trying to separate you from your hard-earned money. Oh, and we have a big tangent on Twitter (sorry).

* https://consumer.ftc.gov/scams

* https://www.aarp.org/money/scams-fraud/

* https://www.cbsnews.com/minnesota/news/heres-how-to-avoid-online-holiday-shopping-scams/

* https://consumer.ftc.gov/articles/mystery-shopping-scams

* https://www.fdacs.gov/Consumer-Resources/Scams-and-Fraud/Online-Shopping-Scams

 

 

 

How old is your computer? Is it time to get a new one?

Is It New Computer Time?

Many of us have computers that are getting close to their end of life and the holiday shopping season is looking very good this year! But are you going to get the newest, cutting edge stuff? Or are there better deals to be had?

Normally Dr. Armstrong comes every third Saturday of the month. However, we were able to get him AND Tracey onto the show. Five people? At once! Talking space stuff? Yes! Rockets? Yes! Artimis? YES!

Reaching for the Stars

We’re overly excited about all this so join us!

Dr. Armstrong and Tracey joined us for this show!

Moar SPACE!

We talk comets, black holes, ask if LD fell asleep, and more!

When the holidays hit folks will take photos.

Photos and your Computer!

Lots of them. Maybe you want to adjust the lighting, perhaps get rid of red-eye, or just sharpen it a little. Getting those photos ready for printing and framing, making cards or calendars and just sharing around is a great thing but doesn’t require Photoshop! So we’re talking about alternatives to Photoshop that are better suited to normal folks like us!

* Photoshop Elements is the Diet Coke of Photoshop meant for consumers. https://www.adobe.com/products/photoshop-elements.html

* Windows Photos and MacOS Preview are included with your operating system and can do many basic tasks. Even your smart phone has built-in tools in its photos apps.

* GIMP is a free, open-source program but has a bit of a learning curve. https://www.gimp.org/

* Paintshop Pro is a longtime alternative. https://www.paintshoppro.com/

* Corel offers a whole suite of graphics tools, including a photoshop alternative! https://www.coreldraw.com/en/

* Affinity Photo is a professionally aimed program with a budget friendly price. https://affinity.serif.com/en-us/photo/

And do you want better photos? Starting with how you take them will help!

* https://www.pcmag.com/how-to/10-quick-tips-to-fix-your-bad-photos

* https://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/how-to-take-good-photos-with-your-phone/

* https://www.pcmag.com/how-to/10-easy-tips-and-tricks-for-better-smartphone-photos

We’re getting into the holidays but it’s also Cyber Security Month!

Phishing Scams

Are you akamai about phishing? When the baddies try tricking you into giving you all your information? Be it through email or text message or anything you need to be vigilant.

* https://consumer.ftc.gov/articles/how-recognize-and-avoid-phishing-scams

* https://www.cisa.gov/cybersecurity-awareness-month

* https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/reviews/best-two-factor-authentication-app/

* https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/reviews/best-password-managers/

Are you burned out on social media? The constant negativity, drama, insane conspiracy theories and multi-level marketing invitations from friends? Perhaps you need a break or need to make an escape. We talk about doing that on Facebook and Twitter!

Escaping Social Media

Facebook

* How to temporarily deactivate your Facebook account: https://www.facebook.com/help/214376678584711?helpref=faq_content

* How to delete your Facebook account: https://www.facebook.com/help/224562897555674/

* How to download your Facebook information: https://www.lifewire.com/back-up-your-facebook-data-2655254

Twitter

* How to backup and deactivate your Twitter account: https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2022/10/how-to-download-a-backup-copy-of-your-twitter-data-or-deactivate-your-account/

* The official how to deactivate, delete, and download your Twitter account: https://help.twitter.com/en/managing-your-account/how-to-deactivate-twitter-account

Effects of Social Media and Mental Health

* https://www.cnet.com/health/mental/heres-how-social-media-might-be-hurting-your-mental-health/

* https://www.mcleanhospital.org/essential/it-or-not-social-medias-affecting-your-mental-health

* https://www.unicef.org/stories/social-media-bad-teens-mental-health

* https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/becoming-resilient/202108/how-social-media-affects-mental-health-in-adolescents

At some point of your computing life, professional or personal, you’ll need to migrate from one computer to another.

Migration Woes

Guess what? It’s not necessarily fun or easy. So Jonathan will fill us in on troubles, pitfalls, and more that can come up in the process!

Have you ever had a story stuck in your head? Something you wanted to get out but never got around to? Or you wanted to write your memoirs for your family. Well, next month might be the opportunity you’ve been waiting for! National Novel Writing Month has been helping folks write their first novel since 1999!

Some Words…

And what do you want to use for this endeavor? Well, a word processor!

* Microsoft Word: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/word

* Scrivener: https://www.literatureandlatte.com/scrivener/overview

* Google Docs: https://docs.google.com

* LibreOffice: https://www.libreoffice.org/

And links for writing!

* Hawaiian diacritical marks: https://www.hawaii.edu/askus/1767

* https://www.nanowrimo.org

* https://blog.nanowrimo.org/post/33839278502/hidden-nanowrimo-resources-at-your-local-library

* https://www.dictionary.com/

* https://www.merriam-webster.com/

Ready for some brand-new chips?

New Processors for 2022!

Intel and AMD have offerings for the upcoming holiday season. And who is the value leader this time? Who is driving the lower prices? And why does this matter? Well, join us as we talk about that! For further reading you can go to these sites!

* www.tomshardware.com

* www.anandtech.com

* www.arstechnica.com