Why spend over a thousand on a Macbook or Windows computer when you can get a Chromebook for peanuts?

According to ZDnet, there are five reasons why ordinary people would do better with a Chromebook than anything else.

First of all, they’re cheap. On Amazon there are dozens of them for $300 or less, including the Samsung Chromebook 4 for $120. Many of these, like the Chromebook 4, have only four gigabytes of RAM, but that’s enough if you’re not a multitasker.

If you do Zoom calls, however, you’ll want something more powerful than the Chromebook 4’s Intel Celeron processor. Experts recommend avoiding the Celeron or Pentium processor and going for an Intel Core i3 or above.

A second reason to get a Chromebook is ease of use. Since almost everything you do takes place on the web, it’s like a giant phone. You can install Android apps, including the Microsoft Word app, or do your word processing online at Office.com. Search on “How to use Microsoft Word for free” for more info.

The third reason to get a Chromebook: They’re fast. If you compare the latest Windows 11 computer to a Chromebook with a similar hardware configuration, you’ll notice the speed difference.

Fourth, they’re reliable. My Chromebook, a Pixelbook Go, is nearly four years old and as good as new. I’ve only had a problem once. Unlike a Mac that was destroyed when I spilled orange juice on it, you can spill on a Chromebook, bang it around and it’s still fine. Unlike other laptops, Chromebooks don’t get destroyed or slowed down by heat build-up.

Reason five: They’re easily restored. When I had my first and only problem on the Pixelbook, I did a factory reset, also called a Powerwash. To find it, click the “Launcher” button in the lower left and type “Powerwash” in the search box. When it comes up, click “reset.”

Here’s a sixth reason: Chromebooks are more secure. According to security.org, there are just 55 vulnerabilities for the Chromebook’s operating system, Chrome OS, compared to 1,111 vulnerabilities for Windows 10, and 2,212 for Mac’s OS X.

Doing More with Google Photos

Google One’s $20 a year membership fee for 100 gigabytes of storage space now comes with new photo editing tools inside the Google Photos app.

I like the “Magic Eraser.” It erases unwanted objects from a photo, whether it’s your pesky next door neighbor or a garbage can. It’s incredibly easy to use. When I noticed that half a chair was marring the view in a photo, I opened Google Photos and tapped “tools,” then tapped “Magic Eraser,” and rubbed my finger over the chair. It vanished. Other tools include “blur,” “portrait light,” “color pop,” “sky” and “color focus” and “camouflage.” “Camouflage” changes the color of an annoying object, so it blends in better.

Learning How to Publish

I’ve been hard at work editing a novella by a retired professor of Korean studies. We finally published the eBook on Amazon’s Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) platform. I have the paperback proof copy in my hands and am ready to publish it too.

At first, I thought I could do all the publishing myself, but that wasn’t the case. The hardest part was formatting the book before I uploaded it to KDP.Amazon.com. I gnashed my teeth for a week trying to get everything right. Finally, I gave up and hired Chris Moore at PeoplePerHour.com for $260. He finished formatting a paperback and an eBook in a few days.

Amazon charges nothing to publish your paperback, but it takes a cut of your revenue minus the printing cost. For example, suppose the royalty rate is 60 percent and you sell your paperback for $15, and the printing costs are $4.85 per book. You’ll get 60 percent of 15 minus 4.85. That’s $4.15 for each book sold. They’ll only print a book if you or someone else orders it.

Google’s Autofill

I like Google’s autofill. Rather than tediously type out my home address every time I encounter a form on the web, I can have it filled in automatically. But until recently, it always filled in my old address.

To change the autofill settings, open the Chrome browser on your computer, click the three dots in the upper right, then click “Settings.” Next click “Autofill,” and “Addresses and more.”  Click the three dots next to any address to delete or edit it.

On a phone, tap the three dots in Chrome, then “Settings.” Now go to “Addresses and More.”  Hit the trash can to delete an entry.

Internut

– “Meet Disney’s Rollerblading Robot Prototype.” Search on those words to uncover an amazingly-child-like robot, who catapults himself out of his box and moves like a human. He’s got a cute face, big hands and can do somersaults on skates.

– “Smithsonian’s Open Access.” Search on that phrase to find 4.5 million free images from the Smithsonian. You can add them to your own creation and sell them. Some images are even 3D.

 

 

 

 

Filed under: Android, books, computers, Google, Internuts, photos