TechByter Worldwide (formerly Technology Corner) with Bill Blinn

Security threats surround us. Several months ago, I signed up for a Liker account as a possible alternative to Facebook. In mid-March, Liker abruptly shut down because of a serious data breach. They say they'll be back when they've reworked their code to be more secure. Threats can come from anywhere. In Short Circuits: When it's time to replace a computer monitor, you might consider a television because you can get a larger screen for a lower price, but should you? • If you use an application that shows the temperature of your computer's CPU, you may wonder why there's so much fluctuation and why the various cores don't all report the same temperatures. If so, I have just the information you're seeking. In Spare Parts (only on the website): If you're considering a Windows S Mode computer, be sure that you understand the limitations, and if you have one of these computers, there's a way to remove the restrictions if you find them too limiting. • Buying Apple products you see on Instagram might be dangerous. Beware fakes and counterfeit devices. • Twenty years ago: Typefaces on websites were limited to about half a dozen that were present on all computers, but Bitstream was trying to change that.

If your car doesn't have a dash cam, maybe it's time to add one. Even good models are reasonably priced now, so let's consider which features to look for. In Short Circuits: Do you need a $6000 camera that takes only monochrome images and doesn't even have a zoom lens? Quick answer: Maybe, but only if you know why you need it. • Large trade shows had been in trouble since 9/11 and the travel restrictions that followed, and just as they were beginning to recover, covid came along. Virtual shows don't provide all the benefits of in-person events. In Spare Parts (only on the website): Now there's a new threat to security: Smart sex toys. There's a story I didn't see coming, but security vendor Eset says it really is a thing. • IPad users just got access to the all-in-one Microsoft Office app that includes the ability to create and edit Word, Excel, Powerpoint, and PDF documents -- even for users who don't have an Office 365 subscription. • Twenty years ago: The dot-com disaster was well underway, but most people hadn't even noticed.

Anyone who's fond of print journalism might like to have immediate access to seven thousand or so newspapers and magazines. You can, and for just $30 per month. Or maybe for free. Let's look into that "free" part. In Short Circuits: Photoshop Camera is a most amusing free app from Adobe. If your phone is compatible, you'll be amazed by what can be accomplished without a computer. • Security firm Kaspersky labs says that corporate IT security employees who goof off while on the clock might actually be doing their employers a favor. In Spare Parts (only on the website): After more than three decades as one of the nation's premiere in-person electronics stores, Fry's has closed it 31 locations in the west and south. • Microsoft would like you to allow the company to listen to what you tell Cortana. The objective is to improve voice recognition technology. • Twenty years ago: GPS devices were just beginning to become available, but they were expensive. Apps for personal digital assistants foreshadowed today's smart phones with built-in GPS. Primitive as the old devices were, they seemed amazing at the time.

Maybe you've heard that the DuckDuckGo search engine is better than Google because it protects your data and doesn't track you. While those are valid points, they are among the least important reasons to use it. Let's look a advantages and disadvantages. In Short Circuits: Kroger is one of several companies that suffered a data breach because of outdated software used by a company that was hired to transfer data securely. Some personal identification information and medical details may have been exposed. • If you're thinking about replacing an otherwise still good set of headphones only because the earpads are worn out, there's a better option. In Spare Parts (only on the website): Have you reviewed your backup plan recently? Being prepared for trouble is a lot better than having to replace important data. • Carat browsing is available in all major browsers. I'll explain how you can use it and why you probably never will. • Twenty years ago: I was hoping that electronic books would soon be as easy to use as printed books. We're not there yet.

A British software publisher with fewer than 100 employees seems to be challenging Adobe with its 20,000 or so employees worldwide. The planet is large enough for both and each organization has useful features to offer its clients. In Short Circuits: If you have a print version of an encyclopedia at home, you're unusual. Even Britannica no longer publishes books, and Wikipedia has largely taken over. • This year's scam emails look different from last year's, but the underlying ploys are the same. Let's take a look at the current crop. In Spare Parts (only on the website): Windows 10 can allow computers on your local network to obtain updates from your computer. If that creates a problem for you, there's a fix. • If Watson isn't the most famous Doctor, then Who is. You may have seen that joke on the internet, and the answer is "YES". If you're trying to watch Doctor Who on DVDs, you may feel that the BBC is making the task harder. The answer is also "YES". • Twenty years ago: The Palm Pilot crushed Windows CE devices, the first step in Microsoft's ongoing lack of success with handheld devices.

Stop emailing files to friends, family, and co-workers! Google Drive is one of the easiest ways to share files, and you may not need more storage space than what comes with the free plan. In Short Circuits: If you like the vertical tabs I described last week in talking about Microsoft's new Edge browser but don't want to switch to Edge, there are add-ons for Firefox and extensions for Chrome-based browsers that do the same thing. • Adobe has added a powerful new feature to Photoshop, Illustrator, and Fresco so that users can invite others to edit their files. In Spare Parts (only on the website): Covid vaccine means office workers may soon be able to go back to their offices, but will they want to? • Probably there is no company that has done more to eliminate the need for paper than Google, and yet Google Senior User Experience Researcher Corbin Cunningham has written on Google's blog about the magic of paper. • Twenty years ago: We are approaching the end of a year in which distance learning became essential for all colleges, high schools, and even primary schools. In 2001 it was a new and exciting concept.

We've had access to home computers for more than 40 years and online financial services for at least 25 years, but we're still using old-style passwords to protect our information. In Short Circuits: By adopting Blink, the rendering engine that powers Google Chrome, Microsoft is developing a workable Edge browser that offers some useful new features. • Wacom finally has a digitizing pen that works with Chromebook computers, but beware the the confusing name the company gave it. In Spare Parts (only on the website): If you want to be a better photographer, take more pictures. That's easy advice to give, but more difficult to follow. It does work, though. • Does your Windows computer sometimes switch from a 5GHz network to a slower 2.4GHz connection? There's an easy solution. • Twenty years ago: We were all anxiously awaiting Windows XP, which would prove to be the most significant advance for Windows since Windows 95.

The graphical user interface didn't yet exist on personal computers 40 years ago, so we needed to understand the command line and batch files. These are still present under the hood on today's computers, and we'll take a long look at why they're still useful. In Short Circuits: Television programs and motion pictures on DVD can cause people with less than perfect hearing to lose some of the dialog. Adding specialized speakers to the television can help a lot. In Spare Parts (only on the website): The Windows Taskbar can get crowded if you often have many applications open or pin a lot of icons to it. Not everything Microsoft puts on the Taskbar by default needs to be there, and it's easy to dump the items you don't need. • If you've ever had a computer report that a Secure Digital card is locked, fixing the problem is usually quick and easy. • Twenty years ago: Visual Basic scripting attacks were common, and I suggested a couple of rules that guaranteed safety. They still apply.

Digitizing old photos and negatives can deliver modest quality quickly or high quality slowly. There's no way to get fast high-quality files, but there are some options. In Short Circuits: We'll look at three scanning methods you can choose from when you have both photographic prints and negatives, as well as consider which might be better in any given situation. • The first question most technicians ask when you have a problem is "Did you turn it off and then back on again?" Why do they do this and why does it often work? In Spare Parts (only on the website): Ever wonder who invented the computer or the internet? The answer is invariably complex because in most cases, it wasn't just one person. • With vaccines slowly becoming available to protect against covid, we're beginning to consider how we might keep surfaces clean in the future, and technology may help. • Twenty years ago: American Express was trying to create an online service called AmexOL.net. It was one of many such services destined to die.

Luminar AI from Skylum adds artificial intelligence to the company's photo processing application and reduces the complexity of the user interface. In Short Circuits: Normally shutting down or restarting Windows is done from the Power section in the Start menu, but there are times when having those options as icons on the Desktop, or using the command line, can be helpful. • If you've ever wondered why there are so many Microsoft Visual C++ entries in the Windows Apps and Features sections and whether you should remove some of them, we'll consider the choices. In Spare Parts (only on the website): There may be a pandemic that's keeping us from gathering in even small numbers, and limiting interactions to electronic meetings, but research by Adobe says that creativity is accelerating. • Realtor.com suggests there's a shift away from beachfront property to locations in the mountains for those who can afford a second house. There is a technology link to this story. • Twenty years ago: Remember receiving America OnLine disks and CDs that were mailed, stuffed into magazines, and handed out by the millions? I do.