On Computers

I just took my first Waymo, Google’s self-driving taxi. When a jaguar pulled up, I knew it was the Waymo because of the cameras and radar on top. I struggled for a second to unlock the door. Then I realized I had to tap “unlock” in the Waymo app on my phone. A cheery female voice greeted me as I sat down, encouraging me to press the support button whenever I wished. Instead, I asked Google Gemini on my phone. It told me how to play my favorite podcast on YouTube Music instead of the New Age-y stuff coming from iHeart Radio.  My Waymo proceeded cautiously, going slower than I would have as we rounded the first turn. Possibly it […]

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I have an ugly red blotch on my arm from a recent skin cancer surgery which will soon be on display at a formal wedding. What’s the best concealer? I went to the website TiraMuisu.ai to ask my new beauty bud. This artificially intelligent bot suggested Dermablend “Quick Fix” to make it blend in and setting powder to keep it from smearing when I’m hugging. But according to Google Gemini, by not recommending a third product, TiraMuisu goofed up. “If you put a flesh-toned makeup straight over the concentrated purple-red spot we see in your image,” it said, “the darkness will likely bleed through or turn the makeup gray.” Uh oh. A gray blotch sounds almost as bad as a […]

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Filed under: AI, apps, health, science, video, Windows | Comments Off on AI BEAUTY BUD

Without Gemini, Google’s artificially intelligent bot, I might never have figured out how to get the most out of my new Bilt credit card. Gemini is a whiz at finance. A Bilt card works like a virtual bank. Besides having its own routing number, it offers a virtual bank account number. This way you can earn points for charging your rent, mortgage or Home Owners Association fee without incurring a “convenience” fee. But you also need to make at least four other regular credit card transactions. “Could I buy a pack of gum four times?” I asked. Yes, Gemini said, but it wouldn’t be ideal. Here’s a better way to go. I could use my Bilt virtual bank account to […]

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Filed under: AI, apps, business, free stuff, Internuts, phones | Comments Off on USING GEMINI TO GET REWARDS

When I went on a 2025 Princess cruise to Alaska, I got spotty connectivity on my Android phone, compared to what my iPhone-owning friends experienced. I ended up paying $100 just to send email for a day or two. But at least I was able to make phone calls throughout the voyage.  It was whole ’nother ball game for my friend Tammy when she took an MSC cruise to the Caribbean in March of 2026. The ship offered an internet package for $35 a day that didn’t cover calls. “Too pricey,” she decided. More typically, Carnival cruises charge $23.80 a day if you buy it before the cruise, and $28 to $35 if you wait. So if I ever go […]

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Little kids love to pretend they’re on a phone call, even on a landline that isn’t plugged in. Now they can have their own landlines. It all started when a bunch of parents decided to surprise their kids with a “Tin Can” phone at Christmas. The kids, who had been told they had to wait to get cellphones until they were at least 13, were ecstatic, especially the girls. Through landlines, they discovered the joy of the mysterious ring. Was it Grandma or a friend from school? They knew it had to be someone on their parents’ approved list, but it was thrilling nonetheless, especially if the caller left a voice message. The landline taught them to communicate without screens […]

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Three months ago, my history club had a talk on the history and future of robots. The speaker, who has a PhD in artificial intelligence, predicted that five years from now, every home would have one. This sounded incredible at the time. Now it sounds plausible. Back in 1981, an IBM personal computer cost $5000 if you included the monitor and other essentials. But that didn’t stop people from buying them, especially as the price dropped. With robots, the price is falling faster. Now you can get one for $1500 or less. The $1500 Posha is a countertop robot chef with 1000 recipes up its sleeve and counting. In an article in The Verge, I read that it made a […]

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Filed under: AI, apps, Internuts, robots, security, spam, virus, wearables | 1 Comment »

The new $597 WavWatch 2.0 is on my wrist. If I put it up to my ear, I can hear the high frequency sounds it’s emitting. The low hums can be heard a foot away. It sounds hokey, but apparently the human body, in response to specific sound vibrations, can get a wellness tune-up. The “WavWatch Fanatics,” a Facebook group with over 6,600 members, swears by it. They say they sleep better and feel less joint pain. Some are no longer depressed. Is it just the placebo effect? According to a study published by the National Institutes of Health, low-frequency sound stimulation in patients with fibromyalgia produced statistically significant improvements in pain, sleep and mobility. But the test subjects weren’t […]

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Filed under: AI, apps, computers, health, Internuts, wearables | Comments Off on WELLNESS WATCH

Microsoft Copilot is a great shopping buddy.  With its AI “vision,” it looked at the websites I had open and analyzed the options. Not only did it save me money on a satin blouse, it picked out the right shoes. To start, I launched the Microsoft Edge web browser on my computer, then clicked the colorful icon in the upper right of my screen, though I could have just gone to Copilot.Microsoft.com in another browser such as Chrome. From there, I typed questions into the chatbox.  That’s how I found out which MBT running and walking shoes had roomy toeboxes but less structural support, and which ones were narrow but more supportive. Copilot also helped me choose an outfit for […]

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Filed under: AI, Amazon, apps, batteries, gadgets, kids, photos | Comments Off on SHOPPING WITH AI

“If I am sitting in my recliner and decide to make a quick copy of something from my iPad, I would like to do that without having to go to the other room to fire up the printer,” a reader wrote. Like most printers, his connects over Wi-Fi. “So what would be a good battery-operated printer that I could place on a nearby table, to bring the power switch within easy reach,” he asked. I recommended leaving his current printer on instead. Both laser printers and inkjets use only three-to-five watts of electricity in idle mode, much less than other appliances. There wouldn’t be the slightest blip in his electricity bill.  What’s more, keeping a printer on all the time […]

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Filed under: apps, education, Internuts, iPad, printer, social networks, Uncategorized, YouTube | Comments Off on LEAVE THE PRINTER ON TO EXTEND ITS LIFE

Years ago, my mom put a sign on our door that said: “Back in 30 minutes, come on in.” The thieves loved it. Of course, Mom could have avoided the robbery, including the theft of my class ring, by giving her handyman a code to get in. But smart locks weren’t a thing back then. So I got excited when Nuki sent me their Smart Lock. It didn’t work with my condo’s deadbolt, but my techiest friend was happy to try it out. His door didn’t even have a deadbolt, but he bought one for $16. After installing it, inserting the Nuki was “a piece of cake,” he said. “You could do it.” A smart lock is great for a […]

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Filed under: AI, apps, books, business, gadgets, security, Windows | Comments Off on THE PERFECT LOCK