On Computers

You probably know about “Street View” in Google Maps. But did you know that you can see inside the buildings your friends are in, if they’ve turned on “Location Sharing?”  While at home on the East Coast, my friends could see inside my Chicago hotel room, alongside a map pinpointing my exact address.  They could even see my room’s wallpaper and pillows. When I moved to the other side of the room, they saw the couch. When I was at a Cubs game, they could see the seats. At an art museum, they could see the painting I was looking at. But they couldn’t see me in any of the pictures. These interior shots, like Google’s “street view,” were taken […]

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Filed under: Amazon, Apple, Google, Internuts, maps | Comments Off on GOOGLE MAPS LETS YOUR FRIENDS SEE INSIDE THE BUILDINGS YOU’RE IN

I’m horrible at finding a car after I’ve parked it. But one of my friends is even worse. Once, when we couldn’t find hers, we walked all the way back to my place, got in my car, and drove around in circles till we found it. Thankfully, phone apps can help. My favorite is Google Maps. After you park, open the app and tap the blue dot in the middle. You’ll see the option, “save your parking location.” After saving it, you’ll see a red marker and the words: “You parked here.”  When you’re ready to find it, tap the red marker to get directions. Apple fans might prefer the built-in Apple Maps. Just as with Google Maps, tap the […]

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Filed under: apps, business, gadgets, Internuts | Comments Off on HEY DUDE, WHERE’S MY CAR?

Getting pure water is a bear. I’ve tried everything. Recently, a company sent me a new reverse osmosis system that sits in a small space on my counter. It’s called “Aquibear.” Before Aquibear, I tried water pitchers with replaceable filters, such as Brita and ZeroWater. My new condo has an LG refrigerator with a filter built in. But none of these things were as good as Aquibear is so far. I know because I tested them. I bought a $15 “HoneForest” water-quality testing stick on Amazon. All I had to do was put the stick in each glass of water I tested and check the digital read-out. A high score means lots of pesticides, parasites, arsenic, lead, microplastics, virus nitrates, […]

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Filed under: education, games, health, Internuts | Comments Off on PURE WATER

The rivalry between TurboTax and H&R Block is like Hertz and Avis. I started with one company and ended up with the other. Despite my glowing review of TurboTax a couple of months ago, I ran into a snag. I had a complicated tax situation because my husband invested in partnerships. They generated a kind of document called a “K-1.” Actually, lots of them. On the TurboTax website, I pushed the “Do my taxes for me” button and got a nice lady in Missouri. But she bailed out when she found out about my K-1 tax docs. TurboTax experts won’t handle returns with more than one of those. She suggested I do them myself and use their live chat, but […]

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Filed under: apps, business, email, security, troubleshooting | Comments Off on FOR COMPLICATED TAXES, GET A HUMAN

DJI makes the best drones, according to just about everyone. But who wants to spend a thousand dollars? I don’t know about you, but I’m not planning to become a drone professional. Recently, I borrowed a $31 Holy Stone “HS 210” mini-drone from a friend. It’s astonishingly easy to fly, compared to the last miniature drone I flew. The old quadcopter shot past me like a rocket, banging against every obstacle in my apartment. Not this time. Push a button on the three-inch-by-three-inch flying machine and it launches. Push another and it flies in circles. Push another and it does aerial flips, or lands. Push two buttons —  if it’s about to hit Aunt Sally — and it shuts off […]

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Filed under: apps, art, drones, education, Internuts, tech support | Comments Off on I LEARN TO FLY A MINI DRONE