I get asked about spreading internet throughout someone’s property. Sometimes it just a big Adobe house, sometimes it’s to the house and a nearby Casita, and sometimes it’s out to a garage or casita that isn’t terribly close.

There are lots of ways to do this, and some are better than others, and some are more expensive than others. At our house we used to use a pair of devices that put the internet into our house electrical wiring. This is called a Powerline Adapter. Read about them HERE. 

We then used a pair of WiFi devices to bridge the space between our house and our workshops. If your workshop (garage, etc) is on the same electrical panel as your house, then a Powerline adapter may work. If not, then a cable and a trench may work if it’s close enough. Otherwise, going WiFi may be the best solution. It’s a bit of setup on the front end, but once it’s going, it works great.

We use a device called EERO, which is an Amazon product. It’s a bit spendy but it’s been flawless. We got 3 devices for about $300. There are less expensive add-on devices too, which we got one of, just to fill a space around the corner on the porch. Here’s a link to the 3 pack. 

This 3-pak is the base unit plus 2 beacons. I see that the 3-pak of all pro devices is now $500, which is quite a bit more than we paid 2 years ago. There are other options that are cheaper, like getting Ubiquiti brand of devices, you can see HERE. 

​While I have found Ubiquiti devices to be very reliable, they have been more complicated to set up. I do recommend them though. There are other brands and connection methods. Some are a bit more involved but use less expensive devices, which can be fine if you are on a budget. First things first though, you will have to have a good internet signal to start with, in order to distribute the WiFi on your property. None of these products will make the internet better.  

The headline caught my eye, as it is meant to do, however, it was a useful article. If you don’t want to spend the money for a yearly subscription to Office, and I don’t blame you, but you still want to use Word, which came free with your Windows computer back in the day, then there might be a work around.
Read the article HERE. 

While few of us are Teachers or Students at this point, with the necessary school ID, you are apparently allowed to use many Office products in a browser. Since we are usually connected to the internet anyway, that seems a useful solution. I recommend Google Docs or Sheets to folks needing a word processor or spreadsheet program for free. It seems that the same type of solution is free from Microsoft. You need a free MS userid to start, but that’s simple enough. If you don’t have one, create it. If you are a Skype user, then you can use that sign in, since Microsoft owns Skype. Once you have a MS account, you can use it to log into Office 365, and use the available apps.
There are some limitations, but I doubt I would notice them as I am a pretty basic user.

While a couple of these are laptop specific, they are generally good tips. I’ve published the keyboard shortcuts many times already, like cut & paste, so these are different, a bit more involved but still useful.
Read about them HERE. 
 
For me, the Snip & Sketch was the best tip. I’ve seen the results but didn’t know how easy it was to perform. Sometimes I have wanted to take a snapshot of my screen and then draw on it to send to someone else to show them what I am talking about. It’s very handy.
 
If you’re even more nerdy on your computer, then a link to some more technical apps you can use on Windows 10 is HERE. 
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There are a number of utilities that tell you what your computer is doing in detail, what your computer is made up of, and many useless but some useful tools to help figure out what’s going on with your computer. Power Toys has been around a long time, and amazingly, it’s still available. Some of those toys are actually helpful. 

There has been an important iOS update recently, 14.4.2, hopefully you have completed that. It was somewhat urgent due to it being a security patch for some ‘holes’ in the last release, 14.4.1, which was meant to patch ‘holes’ in the prior one to that. Read about it HERE. 

The next release is out in beta, 14.5, and that’s the one to talk about. Among other things that weren’t particularly interesting to me was one, Battery Recalibration, that caught my eye (and dragged it 15’)

My phone isn’t too old, so when it runs out at 4pm I’m a bit annoyed. Of course FaceTime is a HUGE drain, I get that. But I don’t use that till about 4:30, and my phone is way too drained by then. Battery recalibration will hopefully help me out with the battery, looking at usage and possibly altering battery drainage and making some improvements. We’ll see. Read all about it HERE.

Popular Science
BY JOHN KENNEDY MARCH 30, 2021

These built-in features can help you call for aid quickly and stealthily.

Emergencies are, by definition, unexpected, so it’s critical to know exactly how your phone can help when you need it most. Both iOS and Android have built-in capabilities that will almost instantly alert first responders, family, and friends to the fact that you need assistance.

If you fear pocket-dialing the paramedics, you can limit these settings, but you can’t shut them off entirely--federal law requires all phones sold in the US to be able to dial 911, whether or not they have an active SIM card or are linked to the available wireless networks. As long as your device can make some sort of connection, you should be able to call for aid.

Emergency call settings on iPhones. The fastest way to call emergency services on an iPhone is to use Emergency SOS. Fully enabled, you’ll be able to notify first responders without taking your device out of your pocket or bag—as long as you can grab your phone, you can fire off a cellular flare.

By default, an iPhone 8 or later model will call for help if you hold down the side button and either volume button. Do this, and the Emergency SOS slider will appear within seconds. Then, you can drag it to the right to make the call, or keep holding to activate a five-second countdown before the call goes out. You cannot turn this off. During the countdown, your phone will vibrate to let you know it’s working. Stop the countdown at any time by releasing the buttons.

On all iPhone models, you can rapidly press the side or top button five times to do the same thing. While this setting is default on any iPhone 7 or earlier model, you can turn it off on newer devices by opening the Settings app, finding Emergency SOS, and toggling off the Call with Side Button switch. If you do use it, you have to press it quickly or it won’t work. This method starts a three-second countdown before the call goes out, and will activate a loud alarm even if your phone volume is completely off. The only way to prevent the siren is to toggle off the Countdown Sound switch within the Emergency SOS settings. Cancel a call by tapping the Stop button and confirming that you want to Stop Calling.

There’s also an Auto Call toggle switch within the Emergency SOS settings. When on, your phone will automatically dial the local emergency number once its countdown ends. If you turn it off, you can still use the slider to force the call, but your phone won’t make calls on its own. This could help if you’re prone to accidentally activating the emergency call features, but it won’t help if you can’t interact with your phone. This feature also requires a SIM card and you might still need to specify an emergency service in some areas, Apple says.

You can manage your emergency contacts within the Emergency SOS settings by tapping Edit Emergency Contacts in Health, which will take you to Apple’s built-in Health app. There, hit Edit in the top right and scroll down to add emergency contact. After any emergency call ends, your phone will text these contacts about your situation unless you choose to cancel the message. Your device will also send them your location and update them when your location changes, even if location services is off.

No matter which Emergency SOS shortcut you use, your phone will disable biometrics like Touch ID until you enter your passcode, even if you cancel the call. This prevents anyone from using your fingerprint or face to open your phone.
You can also dial for aid by activating the lock screen, tapping Emergency and dialing 911 or another emergency number.

Emergency call settings on Android phonesThe emergency call settings built into Android phones may differ depending on your device’s manufacturer, but Google includes its Personal Safety app on stock Android handsets and other users can grab it for free from the Google Play store.

If you’ve set a lock screen on your device, the passcode entry screen will have an emergency call button at the bottom. You or anyone else will be able to dial 911 from this screen, whether it does so automatically or requires you to plug in the number manually.

Your phone may also send your location to first responders during an emergency call or text, if you have Android Emergency Location Service on and it’s available in the country you’re in. To manage this feature, open the Settings app, tap Location or Security & location, and then hit Location. Next, go to Advanced > Emergency Location Service or Google Emergency Location Service and turn it on or off.

Don’t stop there
No matter which operating system you use, make sure you take some time to learn the safety features built into various apps once you’ve got the built-in settings set up the way you like them. Then, consider downloading some other apps that may help with specific emergencies. You can never be too prepared.