TechByter Worldwide (formerly Technology Corner) with Bill Blinn

If you've recently bought a new computer, or plan to buy a new computer soon, you may be wondering what to do with the old one. There are many options, and the worst possible choice would be to put it in the trash. Let's consider better options. In Short Circuits: Last week I described how I gave up on repurposing an M.2 drive from my primary computer as a fast cache drive. Using a $15 case for the M.2 drive, I turned it into a fast cache drive anyway -- just not the way I had planned. • If you're trying to get rid of spam, maybe you've thought of changing your email address. There are other steps you might consider, but a better path involves an application that examines email before it gets to your computer so that it can flag suspected scams. In Spare Parts (only on the website): It's easy enough to rename the boot drive on a Windows computer, but there are good reasons why you shouldn't. • I ran across some ancient history a week or so ago. In June, it will be 26 years since I spent a week at New York City's Javits Center for PC Expo -- Windows 95 was about to be released. I have pictures. • Twenty years ago: Amazon still hadn't turned a profit. That's hard to imagine, isn't it?

Sometimes it's possible to turn what should be a quick, easy task into a frustrating multi-day adventure. Usually this happens because of incomplete planning, and yes I do have an example. In Short Circuits: Troubleshooting a strange problem can take time. Hardware and software like to drop red herrings that confuse the troubleshooter, but everything makes perfect sense once you figure it out. • Scammers are running in high gear to steal money based on false claims. These scams can fool anyone, but older people are often targeted. There are defenses against the dark arts. In Spare Parts (only on the website): Taking a few minutes to run diagnostic tests on a schedule can give early warnings about hardware problems that would otherwise be unpleasant surprises. • Firefox has added a new HTTPS-Only mode that forces all website connections to be secure if the website supports security, and it warns you if the site doesn't. • Twenty years ago: Macromedia acquired Allaire to gain full access to its text editor for use in Dreamweaver, and Macromedia was acquired by Adobe five years later.

If you're thinking about buying a new computer in 2021, it's important to think about what's inside the computer and about what you need the computer to do. In Short Circuits: Covid-19 vaccines are available now, but will be in short supply for the foreseeable future. If you receive a message that promises faster access for a fee, it's a fraud. • Some Windows 10 computers repeatedly ask the user to log in to Microsoft 365. There are ways to work around this issue, but they involve disabling features you may consider to be essential. In Spare Parts (only on the website): Say what you will about Microsoft, but the company earns high marks from its employees for diversity. • Google's new Chromecast device finally comes with a remote control. • Twenty years ago: Corel tried to port its applications to Mac computers, and to call that effort an utter disaster would be needlessly kind.

Some applications update themselves, but many don't. A utility called Patch My PC can help with more than 300 programs that may be installed on your Windows computer. In Short Circuits: This year's Pantone color of the year is actually two colors. I'll explain the reasoning for that and we'll take a look at Ultimate Gray and Illuminating Yellow. • The latest version of the MacOS, Big Sur, adds features, fixes problems, and creates problems. In Spare Parts (only on the website): If your Windows computer is still running version 1809, it's time to update it. • For the first time in its more than 50-year history, the Consumer Electronics Show goes fully virtual this year. • Twenty years ago: Microsoft's Internet Explorer and Netscape's Navigator were batting for supremacy, but Netscape was already entering what would become a death spiral.

There's no podcast this week, but if you have a minute and a half, we can take a quick look back to 2000.

Renaming files is easy when you have just one or two, but there's a big difference if you have dozens, hundreds, or even thousands of files that need to be renamed. Fortunately, there's an app for that. In Short Circuits: Laptop computers are quickly replacing big desktop systems for most people, but usually there are too few USB ports. A USB hub can help, but maybe a dock would be a better choice. Let's look. • Even if you don't use Adobe's InDesign, taking a look at what Adobe has added to the 2020 version is a good use of your time. I'll summarize the new features and explain why they're worth knowing about. In Spare Parts (only on the website): As of mid-2021, Google will eliminate free unlimited photo storage. Let's see what the options are. • Password disasters continue to be far too common, and password manager Dashlane has identified what the company calls the worst offenders. • Twenty years ago: How much was 520 megabytes? Not much by today's standards, but in 2000 it was a big deal.

If you're looking for the world's best photo editing program, PhotoDemon probably isn't it. Even so, it has some intriguing features, and that makes it worth looking at. In Short Circuits: Would you walk on the Amazon Sidewalk? Let's consider the good features and the cautions of neighborhood mesh computing. • We'll also take a quick look at Adobe Illustrator's new features for 2020, including a new version that runs on the IPad. In Spare Parts (only on the website): The digital divide in the United States hasn't been worsened by the pandemic, but the pandemic has worsened the effects of the digital divide. • Robocalls continue to increase, but scam calls were down slightly in November. Don't expect that to continue. • Twenty years ago: Online sales were down in 2000, but they've been up ever since. And in this pandemic year, they're one of the few economic bright spots.

Anyone who owns a scanner will get better results by dumping the application that came with the scanner and using VueScan instead. There are even more advantages if you have multiple scanners or multiple computers. In Short Circuits: Although I've mentioned replacing mechanical drives with solid-state drives before, I have a real-life example of how easy the process is. • If you think Facebook isn't showing the posts you really want to see, you're probably right. Let's consider a way to sidestep Facebook's "artificial intelligence". In Spare Parts (only on the website): Phishing scams are always worse around the end of the year, and this year the threat is worse than usual. • An organization is trying to help high school students who are dealing with distance learning while homeless. • Twenty years ago: Even Stephen King couldn't make ebooks popular in 2000. We just weren't ready.

There's no podcast this week, but if you have a little less than two minutes, we can take a quick look back to 2000.

Exposure X6 honors its legacy of creating outstanding film looks, and builds on its raw image editing capabilities. It's worth a look as a standalone application as well as a plug-in for Adobe applications. In Short Circuits: Ninite offers a free and easy way to keep more than 100 applications up to date, and for $12 per year, it can be even easier. • There's a new version of Evernote, but Microsoft's free OneNote still offers more features at no cost. In Spare Parts (only on the website): Download a free trial of a helper application for a game such as Minecraft, and you might find that the price jumps to $30 per week after a three-day trial. • Ebooks are making inroads into schools during the COVID-19 pandemic, a change that's likely to continue. • Twenty years ago: Spelling checkers were just beginning to be introduced.