ALMOST SCAMMED
My 91-year-old neighbor almost lost $100,000. She would have been wiped out completely if she hadn’t run to the bank.
The scam started when she clicked on a message that appeared to be from PayPal. It told her she owed $500 and asked her to call. Unfortunately, she let the person who answered the phone take control of her computer. It didn’t seem odd to her, because Apple tech support often does that, with great results. But this was not Apple.
When her web browser automatically filled in the password for her online bank account, the scammer was able to initiate a funds transfer. But something he said reminded her of a previous scam. So she hung up and called her bank. “It’s an emergency,” she said. When she arrived, the banker told her that if she hadn’t come in person, she would have lost the whole $100,000.
You might be thinking that this person is demented. Not so. She writes books, travels abroad, walks for miles and gives lectures. She even knows a PayPal founder. But it’s a different world than the one she grew up in. She’s savvy in every way but tech.
The lesson: Only allow a company to control your computer if you initiated the call, and are sure it’s a legitimate company. Never respond to a text or email asking you to call about a debt. If in doubt about a message, ask a tech-savvy friend or relative.
Death by GPS
GPS once directed me to a non-existent California freeway. It also suggested going down a one-way street in the wrong direction. But things could have been worse.
Tourists have died of thirst in the desert or have driven into the ocean when following erroneous instructions on their phones, according to scientific studies cited by PC World. These so-called “victims of GPS” believe anything their gadgets tell them. But besides GPS errors, map apps can make mistakes about road conditions. For example, sports cars have gotten stuck on roads that off-road vehicles can easily handle. Distraction is another big issue. The study mentioned a guy who was zooming into his map when he ran over a cyclist.
ChatGPT Comes Up with New Products
“ChatGPT made up a product feature out of thin air, so this company created it.” That’s the headline for a story in Ars Technica that describes why Soundslice, a sheet music company, decided to innovate.
Previously, the company digitized sheet music from photos and PDFs to allow musicians to see the music scroll by as they listened or played. But after ChatGPT told customers that the software could also tell them where to place their hands on their guitar frets, a feature that didn’t exist, the company decided to develop it. Apparently, it’s been a big success.
Faster Computer
Why did the free CCleaner tell me to close Microsoft Edge so it can speed up my computer when I’d already closed it? Because Edge runs in the background regardless.
If this bothers you, open Edge and click the three dots in the upper right corner. Choose “Settings,” then “System and Performance.” Next, click “System.” Toggle off the switch that says: “Continue running background extensions and apps when Edge is closed.”
You can stop other programs from running constantly by typing “startup” in the Windows search box, launching the startup app, and disabling anything you don’t need.
Getting a Better Signal
If your phone isn’t getting a good signal, try these five tips from ZDNet.
First, turn on airplane mode. Then restart your phone and turn off airplane mode. This will force your phone to connect to the strongest signal.
Second, try taking the phone out of the case to improve its receptivity.
Third, if your battery is low, charge it.
Fourth, update your phone. To start, search on the word “update” in the Settings app.
Fifth, as a final resort, reset your network connection. On an iPhone, tap your Settings app. Under “General,” choose “Transfer or Reset iPhone,” then hit “Reset.” On an Android, go to Settings and do a search on “reset mobile networking.”
Robot News
A robot at John Hopkins University performed a lengthy phase of a gallbladder removal without human help. The patient was “human-like,” but the video of its organs undergoing surgery could have fooled me. Medical roboticist Alex Krieger said the operation went way beyond a 2022 robotic surgery on a pig, which was the equivalent of a robot driving along a carefully mapped route. The new robot is like a driver who is able to navigate any road, in any condition. It can respond intelligently to simulated complications and the kind of variations in anatomy that real patients exhibit.
Internuts
– “Kite-powered sailboat sets sailing speed record.” Search on those words to see a video of a wind-powered trimaran with a hydrofoil that goes 92 miles per hour, hardly touching the water. There’s no prize for beating the former 75 mile-per-hour record, but the SP80 team sees applications in hydroelectric power and maritime shipping.
– “Ancient Loaf of Bread Was Buried for 5,000 Years in Turkey.” The loaf survived intact, and a bakery resurrected the recipe, which proved wildly popular.
– “Boston Dynamics reminds us its robot dogs can dance.” Search on that phrase to see robot dogs on “Dancing with the Stars.” One collapses but the rest really groove.