By BD Bondy

I have a tiny desktop computer I use to write these articles on. I use my smartphone for everything else. I do use a Kindle to read, but not often. So, the question is, do I really need my computer? For me, I’d say no. I used Carol’s iPad to write articles while we were travelling. That screen was comfortable enough for me, and she has a keyboard that it fits in, so it was all quite comfy.

If I had to work a full-time job, I would guess that a laptop or my computer would be my choice, but since I only write on a weekly basis, I was fine using these smaller devices. When I used Chat-GPT, I used just my phone, so that’s a thought.

There used to be a computer that could use your smartphone as the ‘brain’. I don’t remember the brand, but it didn’t last long. Phones change so quickly that must not have been practical. Still, I liked the idea of a computer that could grow as your phone got bigger & better.

I read an article from CNET about a staff member using a Samsung phone to replace her computer. She attached it to a monitor, and a Bluetooth keyboard and mouse may also be attached. She wrote a detailed article on her experience HERE.
 
The article is worth reading. She seemed to think it went well, and an iPhone could do all that as well, so it’s worth considering whatever brand phone you have. Who knows? Maybe this will be my last desktop computer.

Note from Carol:  Our Recent survey shows this might already be the case for many of you.  27% of our readers open the News on their Smart Phone and 19% open it on a tablet.  

I’ve written about Starlink before. I think it’s the best way to get internet in our area, and likely in most remote areas. Directly around here, a T-Mobile hotspot makes sense if you can access the tower by the rural events center.

I thought I paid $599 dollars for my setup of Starlink, but apparently the price has been $499 for a while now. We just got notified that the price has come down to $299 in some areas. I checked, and our area seems to be at that price.

I don’t know if this price is temporary or not, but at $299, it’s a really good price for the Starlink product. It’s still $120/month for the service, but it’s been extremely reliable and the speed has increased over the two years we’ve had it.

Click got more information 

Also, I was notified that I can get a ‘mini mobile’ Starlink setup that is a companion to my regular Starlink account. What that gives me, for $499 up front and $30/mo., is a smaller satellite and router setup that I can use when I travel. It’s a neat idea though I doubt I’ll be doing it. Carol and I have been talking about getting the other mobile unit they have, but at $150 a month and another $499 up front, it’s quite spendy, since I’d need to keep the other Starlink.

The mini Starlink gives only 50Gb of data a month, which wouldn’t work for us. We have ‘unlimited’ data with our regular Starlink, so why they think a measly 50Gb would be sufficient is a mystery, but that’s the deal. Since I get 50Gb of data using my phone as a hotspot, that deal is crap, basically. If it were unlimited data, then I would do it, since we have been travelling so much.
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There are various plans they offer, but they are prohibitively expensive for us. You can check out their page above to see them all. Maybe they have something that’ll work for you.

By BD Bondy

I hesitate to call this an article about security cameras because we use our cameras more to watch the wildlife around our house. We have a camera devoted to what’s under our porch, for instance. Generally, we have a couple of cats under there, but often there are raccoons too. Sometimes a squirrel, mouse, bird, and once, a dog. 
 
The camera is also useful in letting us know who came over and dropped off some electronics. In front of the house we’ve seen dogs, a coyote, a baby bear, cats, raccoons. Behind the house we’ve watched bobcat, and an owl in the apricot tree. 
 
Same stuff at my mom’s house, capturing videos of javalina, bobcat, and other animals. If you have any interest in setting up a camera, then you should know that it’s pretty easy. We set up a camera a month back for the hummingbird that build a nest on an extension cord under the roof of our porch. I was able to use the cheaper indoor Blink brand camera as it’s protected. 
 
Our brand of camera overall is Blink. They come in multi packs if you want, indoor and outdoor, and plugin and battery. We have a couple that have security lights too. Choose which one you want for where, there’s a lot of flexibility. We have several that are outdoor, and they are a bit pricier. Usually you need a subscription to store the videos, but not always. 
 
For security purposes, you would want the cloud storage of videos, otherwise, the local storage could be taken along with other contents of your house. If security isn’t really the purpose, then a camera that does local storage on a flash drive would be fine. 
 
I have 2 articles to read about some ‘top choices’ of cameras by reputable magazines. 
https://www.cnet.com/home/security/best-home-security-camera/
https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/reviews/best-wireless-outdoor-home-security-camera/

Rick Rouse
Ricks Daily Tech Tips

As you probably know, scams of various types are ubiquitous on social media (here’s looking at you, Facebook).

Some scams run their course and are never seen again, but most just seem to pop up every now and then.

One of those recurring “pop-up scams” is a lottery scam targeting people who enjoy playing the Powerball and Mega Millions multi-state lotteries that frequently advertise massive prize payouts for the winners.

In one variation of the scam the scammer places a post in your newsfeed telling you that you have won a massive jackpot, and all you have to do to collect it is to pay a processing fee and/or give them your bank account info (so they can deposit your winnings – yeah, right!).

Another variation of the lottery scam requires you to purchase a “ticket” online. Of course there is no “ticket” because you can’t buy them from just any Internet rando.

In a slightly more benign version of the scam you are asked to simply “Like” the scammer’s fake lottery Facebook page in order to play.

They won’t ask you for any money or financial information, but after their Facebook page has attracted tons of Likes they’ll either use that page to perpetrate other scams or sell the page to another scammer.

Bottom line: If you want to play a lottery and have any real chance of winning (or at least not get scammed), you’ll need to either visit a local retailer and buy a physical lottery ticket or play via your state’s official lottery website or app.