Have you ever been confused by your computer? Are you afraid of your phone? Many of us use powerful technology every day, but we don’t always know how to make the most of it. I write weekly tech tips to educate regular people about the technology they use. I’d like to share my love of technology with you and help you make friends with your software and devices.
Getting rid of your computer or external hard drive? Whether you are selling it or recycling it, always make sure to securely erase your hard drive first.
Erase an external Mac drive:
Erase an internal Mac hard drive:
Erase a PC hard drive:
Having trouble keeping track of your money? Here are a few pieces of software that will help organize your money and give you peace of mind.
Writing an email at 12am but don’t want it sent until a reasonable hour? Boomerang is a free plugin for Gmail that allows you to schedule messages to be sent in the future. It can also remind you to follow-up on the email after a set amount of time.
The Amazon Kindle is a fantastic device for reading books. But did you know you can get free library books to read on it? Check with your local library to see if they offer this (usually there will be a link on their website). For example, the Chicago Public Library offers many titles for the Kindle.
The best part about reading library books on your Kindle is that you can keep them for as long as you want by using this secret tip: Your Kindle will remove your books after the loan expires—but only if it can connect to the internet. If you turn off the wireless internet, the Kindle won’t know to delete your books. If you need to transfer more books in the future, just transfer them via your USB cable instead of via wireless.
Need to share several photos on your social network at once? Create a fun digital collage! There are many services and apps out there to do this. Both Fotor and PicMonkey are free and easy-to-use.
DayOne is my favorite app for keeping a digital journal. It has a simple interface and is very easy to use. Plus, you can use it on your computer or your phone/iPad. Here are some of its other great features:
With Twitter lists you can:
Need some artistic inspiration? Google has partnered with hundreds of museums, cultural institutions, and archives to share a huge collection of art online for free. Take virtual tours of galleries, see artworks in detail, create your own galleries of art, and share pieces you like with your friends.
Sending mail is always more fun with custom labels, and it’s not that difficult to create your own! Here’s how I do it:
Want to allow your kids to use your computer, but don’t want them surfing unsafe websites or using the computer for too long? Parental Controls is a feature that allows you to create a separate user account and limit that that user can do. For example, you can create a simplified desktop that’s easier to use, limit application use, limit which websites can be accessed, limit who can be emailed or chatted with, limit time usage, hide certain words using a profanity filter, and more.