TechByter Worldwide (formerly Technology Corner) with Bill Blinn

Internet access is slower and more expensive in the United States than in many other countries, so it’s important to figure out how much speed you need and then to confirm that you’re getting what you pay for. In Short Circuits: The Windows package manager, WinGet, provides access to more apps and utilities than the Microsoft Store does, but it’s a command line function that’s cumbersome to use. A graphical user interface, WinGetUI, makes it much easier. • Generative Expand has been added to Adobe’s Generative Fill in the beta version of Photoshop. Even in early days, these are powerful features that look like magic. Twenty Years Ago (only on the website): Scams have been around forever and this week we’ll take a look at one from 2003.

Sometimes saving money is a really bad idea. For example, doing without a backup system for the files on your computer because you don’t want to spend $100 to $200 per year. How much are your files worth to you? In Short Circuits: The utility CURL has been around since 1996, but it was just added to the Windows operating system this year. It’s a command-line function and it’s old, but it still performs some useful functions. • When it’s time to kick back and play with the computer, there are thousands of options. Let’s take a look at just a few. Twenty Years Ago (only on the website): In 2003, somebody floated the idea of a disposable digital camera. It failed to become a huge success.

Scammers are always trying to find new ways to extract money from people they can fool. New variants of old cons are common, and for the past several months phony feedback surveys have been big. Most scammers can be defeated by treating any offer with a bit of suspicion. In Short Circuits: Early personal computers had the command line and no graphical user interface until the mid 1980s. The command line is still useful and we’ll look at a few such instances. • When you need to copy text on paper, there’s a better option than using your smartphone’s camera app. It’s like having a scanner in your pocket. Twenty Years Ago (only on the website): SCO, the Santa Cruz Operation, became one of the most hated high-tech companies in history. By 2003, its greed had upended the company, but its lawyers were still busy.

When pointing your browser at a website, the browser needs to find the site’s IP address, so it calls on a domain name service server. Using a better DNS server can improve the browser’s response time, but only by a bit. There are other reasons to use DNS not from your internet service provider. In Short Circuits: Adobe’s Firefly (generative fill) function, even in beta, has shown itself to be surprisingly good at some tasks. It can also be used to create an oil-painting effect on a photograph. • After working with Beeper, a universal chat application, I’m ready to talk about its advantages and (because it’s still a beta app) some of the areas that need refinement. Twenty Years Ago (only on the website): In 2003, hardware and software for video editing were still expensive, but the future was clear.

Microsoft 365 might be the best office suite for you, or maybe Google’s offerings would be better. Or perhaps you don’t need a suite at all. Let’s ponder that. In Short Circuits: Correspondence today heavily favors email and text messages, but sometimes you might need to send a real paper letter in an envelope using the US Postal Service. You can, even if you don’t have a printer, an envelope, or a stamp—and without leaving your house. • Formulas can save time for spreadsheet users, but often the time saving is minimal. The primary benefits are better accuracy and reliability; and to increase comprehension, don’t neglect conditional formatting. Twenty Years Ago (only on the website): Digital cameras from 2003 often had noticeable delays between when the user pressed the shutter release and the camera captured an image. Digital SLRs eliminated that.

When you set up an account on a Windows 10 or 11 computer, it can be a Microsoft account or a local account. Some pundits maintain that Microsoft accounts should never be used, but I don’t like the word “never”. There are good reasons to use a local account and good reasons to use a Microsoft account, so let’s look. In Short Circuits: Scammers are finding that artificial intelligence is a marvelous tool they can use to hoodwink victims, but AI can also be used to identify scams. • There’s an easy way to modify Windows 11 settings and version 2 of the Windows 11 Fixer adds some options. Twenty Years Ago (only on the website): Scams have been around since the beginning of civilization and spams existed before the internet was created. Twenty Years Ago, only on the website, looks at attempts to eliminate spam in 2003.

Whether you need to replace a notebook computer that has a built-in screen or find a new monitor for your desktop system, it’s important to think about screen size and resolution. In Short Circuits: Renaming one or two files is easy, but when you’re faced with hundreds of files that need to be renamed, it’s time to call for the Bulk File Renamer. • Generative Fill, which Adobe also refers to as “Firefly”, can make image modifications in seconds that previously would have taken hours. I have an example. Twenty Years Ago (only on the website): In 2003, Microsoft had a security problem with version 9 of the Media Player.

Whether you need a huge camera with a lot of heavy and bulky lenses, just a smartphone, or something in between depends on how you approach photography. Let’s explore that. In Short Circuits: Most new computers come with solid-state drives. If you have an older computer that you’re not yet ready to retire, now would be a great time to upgrade the boot drive to an SSD. • Beeper is a new approach to messaging, whether you use Messenger, IMessage, Twitter, or one of the other services. Beeper puts them all in one location. Twenty Years Ago (only on the website): Scams are as old as the internet. In 2003, I was grumbling about scams of the day, an activity that has persisted for two decades.

A VPN is essential whenever you use a mobile device with a public Wi-Fi hotspot, but it can also improve privacy and security at other times. It’s important to understand the trade-offs, though. In Short Circuits: Some internet crooks are stupid and I like to make fun of them, but there’s no shortage of crafty criminals. We all need to be aware that they exist and to beware of their tricks. In other words, be wary. • I’ve been trying to find time to talk about some of the enhancements Adobe has added to the Creative Cloud suite, but blockbuster additions to the photography programs kept getting in the way. Today some of the other apps take center stage. Twenty Years Ago (only on the website): In 2003, Nikon loaned me a digital SLR camera. I had been using digital cameras since about 1999, but they were more like point-and-shoot cameras than the single-lens-reflex cameras I had used since the 1960s. The D100 was my first extended experience with the new breed of cameras and I was immediately sold.

Your browser blocks ads and pop-ups, you use incognito mode, and you don’t allow sites to access the computer’s hardware. Safe, right? Your browser can still be fingerprinted and you can still be tracked. In Short Circuits: Canary is an email application that runs on Windows, MacOS, IOS, IPadOS, and Android. In addition to artificial intelligence for creating or responding to messages, the app strengthens security and the versions work about the same on all platforms. • Artificial intelligence makes it possible for one person to sound exactly like another. The dangers should be apparent. Twenty Years Ago (only on the website): In 2003, legislators were wrestling with the effect the internet would have on intellectual property, and specifically how copyright would apply. I was still trying to figure it out.