16 May 2023 | Gizmos, How to, Networking |
These days, darn near everything is censored – for your protection, of course!
While you may be able to read whatever web sites you want from home, mobile operators are particularly fond of blocking certain sites.
This is obviously particularly annoying for those of us who like to choose what we read and, ya know, make up our own minds. We’re not ALL brainless zombies.
While you could use a VPN, it’s often a PITA to set them up and use them. The best ones are also paid…
Wouldn’t it be nice if there was an easy, free option to view what you want? Turns out, there is!
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12 July 2022 | Computers, Networking |
In my last article, I told you NOT to push the button in order to try the new Thunderbird v102.
Well, they fixed the glitch, so you can safely upgrade if you want.
Keep in mind that v102 of Tbird is still in a more-or-less “release candidate” phase.
They aren’t pushing 102 out to all users yet – you have to go to About in Settings and manually Click the Button.
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5 July 2022 | Computers, Networking |
The other day, I heard about the new version of Thunderbird: v102.0.
Naturally, being a techy nerd who loves updates, I installed it.
BAD IDEA!
There are a few bugs, but one in particular results in corruption of e-mails and even losing entire blocks of new messages.
So, don’t upgrade just yet…
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15 June 2021 | Computers, Gizmos, How Does it Work?, Networking, Video |
Even if you don’t know the term ‘phishing scam’, chances are you’ve already been targeted by many of them.
A phishing scam is when someone uses a genuine-looking e-mail, login page, SMS, or whatever to fool you into giving up personal data – like logins, passwords, card and banking info, etc.
They often involve some kind of ‘hook’ that makes you worried or scared. When that happens, you stop thinking and fall into the trap.
But these scams are very easy to avoid with a bit of extra attention. I’ll show an example of a phishing scam I received recently and then take it apart piece by piece so that next time, you’ll know exactly what to look for to protect yourself!
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11 May 2021 | Computers, How to, Networking, Video |
Ah, the internet!
It’s so incredibly useful, and at the same time you won’t find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy. Well, technically, it’s more useful than villain-y.
Still, it’s good to be careful!
So what’s the best way to stay safe when using the internet? Strong passwords? Antivirus? Browser add-ons? Privacy enhancers? VPNs?!
That’s all well and good, but there’s one trick that will never let you down…
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20 April 2021 | How Does it Work?, Networking, Video |
When it comes to privacy on the internet, the new word on the street is ‘FLoC’.
Led by Google, a group of businesses and advertisers is pushing a new standard that would have your browser identifying your particular group of interests by a unique ID number.
This number will be sent to all sites you visit. VOILA! No more 3rd party cookies, and supposedly more privacy!
Of course, there’s the marketing mumbo jumbo and then there’s the reality of the situation.
So: What is FLoC? How does it work? And most importantly: Will it improve your privacy??
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21 July 2020 | Do-It-Yourself, How Does it Work?, Networking, Video |
This video is a continuation of Part 3!!
What happens if you want to set up a home network, but you already have existing Ethernet cabling and wall jacks?
While it may seem simple, it turns out that you need to do some investigation first.
In Part 1 of this video, I described the different types of patch panels you may find in your home, how they work, and how you will use them (or not).
In this video, I’ll show exactly how to connect everything!
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14 July 2020 | Do-It-Yourself, How Does it Work?, Networking, Video |
What happens if you want to set up a home network, but you already have existing Ethernet cabling and wall jacks?
While it may seem simple, it turns out that you need to do some investigation first.
In this video, I describe the different types of patch panels you may find in your home, how they work, and how you will use them (or not).
It’s worth noting that if you only have twisted-pair phone cabling (often called PTT-298), you CAN use that wiring for 100 Mbps Ethernet – but not for Gigabit+ speeds.
Fortunately, most homes these days have Cat 5e or higher cabling, so that part shouldn’t be a problem…
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23 June 2020 | Computers, Networking, Programming |
Ubuntu server 18.04 LTS is a rather popular linux OS for servers.
Unfortunately, it doesn’t come without its problems. For example, the current version of stunnel – an SSL tunnel – is woefully outdated.
It seems that although Canonical is aware of the problem, they have no intention of fixing it!
Fortunately, there’s an easy workaround that’s much simpler than you might think…
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16 June 2020 | How Does it Work?, Networking, Video |
First of all, it’s finally happened: 2.5 Gbps Ethernet is HERE!
It’s already rolling out, and consumer-grade 2.5 gig switches will arrive shortly.
The other big news is the unveiling of WiFi 6E.
A new flavor of WiFi 6, the 6E variant adds the 6GHz radio band and speeds of up to 11Gbps… Or so they say.
So, the question is: stick with wired, or go WiFi 6E wireless? Which is faster?
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These days, darn near everything is censored – for your protection, of course!
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