Articles written by Bob Delaurentis
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Artificial intelligence and ChatGPT, in its own words
This month’s Tech Talk is a little different. Nearly all of it was written by a computer. This technology has been under development for decades. It has been a staple of science fiction movies since I was a kid. Recently, one of the most advanced...
iPhone storage alerts, Gigabit Ethernet, Android notifications
Q. Every few weeks my iPhone nags me with an alert that my storage is almost full. What should I do? A. There are two common storage errors on iPhone. One is “Storage Almost Full” and the other is “iCloud Storage Almost Full.” There may be mi...
Apple Watch; iPhone screen sharing; Low light
Q. I received an Apple Watch as a gift. I love the Minnie Mouse watch face, but do not know what else to do with it. Please help. A. The small screen on an Apple Watch can be difficult without practice, but I hope to show you that working through cha...
iPad Pencil, audiobooks, laptop chargers
Q. Is the Apple Pencil useful? A. For me, it fits into the “nice-to-have” category. I have avoided writing about Apple Pencil before now because it was something of a curiosity. It only worked with pricey iPad models, and it seemed like a...
Password managers, shared photos, backup data
Q. I have promised myself that 2023 is the year I finally organize my passwords. What do I need to know? A. The list of things we have to remember grows longer each year. As phones have become the center of our digital lives, almost everyone has more...
Carrot Weather, Twitter and last minute gifts
Q. The built-in weather app on my smartphone is pretty basic. When I search for a more advanced app, I’m presented with an overwhelming number of choices. Is there one you would recommend? A. To paraphrase an old adage: Someone with one weather app...
Home automation, Nest Thermostat, Stable Diffusion
Q. I want to add home automation devices to my house. What is the best way to get started? A. When the topic of home automation has come up in previous columns, my advice has been to hold off investing in expensive hardware. Most of the devices you...
Photo scans, medication tracking, Apple Watch
Q. Years ago I converted a box of family photos with a desktop scanner. Are scanners still around, or have they gone the way of the fax machine and pay telephones? A. Tabletop flatbed scanners are still available. And far less expensive than they...
Zoom audio, online photo galleries, and QR codes
Q. What is the least expensive way to improve Zoom calls? A. Adding more light and positioning the camera so you look straight ahead are the easiest things to upgrade. But the improvement that delivers the biggest impact is better sound. Most people...
Web blockers, Cellular 911, new laptops
Q. Is it possible to block a website from view? A. Yes, but like so many questions, the how-to part of the answer begins with “it depends.” There are many different apps that filter website content. They use various methods behind the scenes and...
Podcasts, Internet Explorer, two great websites
Q. How do I listen to podcasts? A. As the old saying goes, “there is an app for that.” Many different apps, in fact. And beyond apps, most podcasts are just a click away on the Web. Podcasts are audio-only programs that have exploded in...
Photoshop alternatives, faster home networks, and laundry apps
Q. Is there a good image editor for making my photos look better? I want something like Photoshop but less expensive. A. Free tools to retouch photos are installed on many devices and bundled with cloud services like Google Photos. The power of...
Safeguard family stories; Exiting group chats
Q. I love making printed photo books on my computer. Is there a way to make something like a photo book, only with text instead? A. There are dozens of different tools for creating printed books on computers, but most of them are complex and hard to...
How and why to preserve your digital legacy
Imagine losing access to your phone and all the data you ever created. If that thought scares you, read on. The terms “Digital Legacy” and “Digital Inheritance” describe what happens to digital information created by someone who is deceased....
Slowdowns, iPhone mute switch, and Google Fi
Q. My computer is seven years old. Everything seems normal when it first starts up, but the longer I use it, the slower it runs. After an hour, the wait is awful. Restarting returns it to normal, but the slowdown repeats. Help! A. This is a...
Embrace the brave new world of tap-to-pay
There are newer, more secure, and more convenient choices available to make payments at most cash registers. Secret PIN codes and signatures are making way for methods like tap-to-pay plastic cards...
Put technology to work for your fitness
I am 25 pounds lighter than I was just a few months ago, and my blood pressure is far lower. A better diet and generous amounts of exercise were key ingredients, but the tool that helped me most was...
Turning off auto-play; PhotoStick; home inventory
Q. When I visit certain web pages, a video starts playing automatically. Is there a way to disable this annoying behavior? A. The simple answer is yes, there is probably a setting you can adjust to stop most videos from automatically playing. Where...
Installing Windows 11; Last minute gifts; Keeping devices connected
Q. I was able to install Windows 11 on my PC. What should I do now? A. Move that Start button back where it belongs! The Start button has been at the bottom left of my screen for decades, and that is where I think it belongs. To move it, right-click...
Windows 11, personalize a device, account passwords
Q. What is the latest information on the Windows 11 upgrade? A. Since I wrote about it last month, the picture is much clearer. Windows 11 will be available on October 5. Moreover, thanks to Microsoft’s refreshed PC Health Check app, you should be...
Emoji dictionary, device chargers, Windows 11 update
Q. Is there a dictionary for Emoji? A. What a delightful question. There is not just a dictionary, but an entire encyclopedia! Point any web browser to emojipedia.org, your one-stop shop for all things emoji. While many people know about emoji, fewer...
Home automation do's and don'ts
In the decades since George Jetson previewed his push-button lifestyle, some of us have dreamed of a smart home of our very own. Yet this branch of technology has resisted the kind of progress that has put supercomputers in our pockets. Most home...
Accessibility: See better with your smartphone
Q. How do I make the text on my phone larger? A. The good news is that both iPhone and Android have system settings to make text larger, and many apps support adjustable-size text based on these settings. The less good news is that these settings...
Windows 11, teaching online, Apple Watch battery life
Q. I am excited about Windows 11, but I do not want to wait until December to try it. Is there a way to get an advance copy? A. It has been six long years since Microsoft launched Windows 10, and from what I have seen so far of Windows 11, it was...
App removal, Tracker tags, Google Photos fees
Q. There is an app on my phone that I do not use. Can I save space by removing it? A. Not only will you save space, removing unneeded apps will make the phone much less cumbersome to use. When I set up my mom’s new iPhone, I removed all but the...