T he new year is a great time to look at your security and computer disaster readiness. Here are a few steps to take to make your online experience safer. • You likely know it, but it is time to make all passwords unique and not based on any personally identifiable information. If your passwords…

After recent operating system upgrades, it’s time to check your smartphone’s privacy settings. On an iPhone, go to Settings, then Privacy; on an Android, if you are running system 11, go to Privacy (but your phone vendor may have modified this location). If you find Permission Manager, you’ll find everything bundled together there. Decide whether…

When deciding between repairing a broken computer and buying a new one, you should consider the age of your computer, the repair cost, the cost of the replacement, and the cost of the new software that you might have to buy. Generally, if the computer is more than five years old, the repair costs may…

Were dinosaurs living near your house millions of years ago? You can find out at dinosaurpictures.org by clicking on the link to their interactive globe of ancient Earth. Be prepared for changes in water levels and locations. Internet Explorer 11 is finally going out of support next year, but it’s dropping out of Microsoft Teams…

Google Play Music is going away by the end of this year, which means you need to back up your music or transfer it to another one of Google’s products, such as YouTube Music. Backing up your music (and other Google info, if you want) is done through visiting takeout.google.com. Once logged in, select the…

I have seen some videos that help kids better handle video chat, and I would like to propose that adults follow much of the same advice. Suggestions include choosing the right time of day (when you are calmest and not hungry); having a list of ice-breaker questions to fall back on; having a short agenda;…