Commentary From Elsewhere: Federal Emergency Alert System
Recently there was a test of the Federal Emergency Alert System. You may have noticed this, as the test covered multiple delivery methods. I heard about it in the news, but I did not encounter the actual test message. Continue reading CFE: Federal Emergency Alert System
Commentary From Elsewhere: The End of Location Tracking?
As you may know, much of what you do with computers is tracked. And as a smartphone is a computer, this applies there too. In particular, as the phone is a mobile device, talking to relatively stationary devices, it knows where it is. At least in a general sense.
Why am I mentioning this? Because some of those tracking your location through your phone have announced they won’t be. Now I think this is a good thing, the less data kept on our daily actions the less data that can inevitably leak or otherwise be used against us. But the ‘why’ for this change in approaches is interesting. Continue reading CFE: The End of Location Tracking?
Adventures In Computing: Closing Support Tickets
Background that is only relevant for setting the stage: I was having a technical issue so I used the companies support system to generate a ‘help ticket’. Details don’t matter, that’s not where the adventure was. No, that came after I realized that I didn’t need help, that I managed to solve my own problem (it had been a reading comprehension fail on my part). Continue reading AIC: Closing Support Tickets
Pointless Computer Tricks: Weekly Alarms
This is one of those things that I really should have noticed long before I did. But I managed without it for so long, I never thought about checking the options again. I can set weekly alarms on my phone.
That’s it, right there. Continue reading PCT: Weekly Alarms
So apparently there are people out there that will, instead of sleep, scroll through depressing ‘news’ on their phones. To such an extent, this practice has a name: doomscroll
I was a bit shocked and amazed when I heard of this. In retrospect, shouldn’t have been, but I was. It’s a fallen world, such stupidity should be expected. Continue reading CFE: Doomscrolling
Pointless Computer Tricks: Keyboards for Phones
If you are like me, you find sending text messages on your phone annoying. The on screen keyboard works well enough for a word or three, but three words does not a coherent sentence make. Sure, there are tricks to make it easier, but that doesn’t change that my fingers are too fat and the letters are too tiny.
Enter the OTG cable. Continue reading PCT: Keyboards for Phones
Pointless Computer Tricks: Phone for Haircut
The other day I decided my hair had gotten long enough that it was time for a haircut. So I got myself together, went outside, was all but ready, when I realized… I had forgotten my phone. Continue reading PCT: Phone for Haircut
Pointless Computer Tricks: Why I disabled my ringtone
Previously I wrote about how I made a silent ringtone to manage telemarketers. While that method worked as expected, unfortunately it wasn’t enough. Continue reading PCT: Why I disabled my ringtone
Pointless Computer Tricks: Silent Ringtone
I have a cellphone, as I suspect many of you do. I receive calls from various undesirables (collectively referred to as ‘telemarketers’), again as I suspect many of you do. I decided to do something to minimize that.
My particular phone number has been in use for approximately 40 years (it used to be a land line number). So a moderately large number of companies (and people) know about it. Many of those companies are making (semi) legitimate calls to people that used to be found at this number. Plus all the other junk that ignores the ‘Do Not Call’ list. Continue reading PCT: Silent Ringtone