SHORT: End-to-End Encryption Explained
Ever wondered what the big deal with end-to-end encryption (E2EE) is? There are 2 main types of encryption. One means the central server is a "man in the middle", and the other means the server is just a relay of sorts. Check out this 58-second explanation of E2EE:...
Left the WiFi on again? Not any more!
I'm not a big fan of WiFi, but I do use it from time to time. It's just convenient to use for some gizmos where an ethernet dongle is not supported. Trouble is, I kept forgetting to turn off my WiFi router when I was done. And then - two days later - I would discover...
How to download videos from YouTube, Vimeo, Facebook, etc.
Everything these days is online. It's all about the streaming, right? Well, what if you want to download a video for offline viewing? Maybe your internet connection isn't quite "fibrous" yet. Or maybe you want to download something to watch on your smartphone or...
Make any LCD computer screen high-end
Much ado has been made about certain brands and types of puter displays and how this kind or that kind looks so much better than the average LCD screen... It turns out that much of this hoopla is quite often mostly just marketing. In fact, some displays from certain...
How to delete a specific cookie in Firefox
The latest versions of Firefox have become increasingly sassy. Whereas older flavors of FF used to be slow and memory-hungry, things got a lot better starting with Firefox 57. You can read a bit more about these changes in my article Fix the tab bar (and other stuff)...
Why “Big Brother” can never win
Well, it's that time again. Some recent news items - and people's reactions to them - have once again compelled me to foam at the mouth about Big Brother. Every time one of these "revelations" like the Facebook data breach occurs, everyone gets all fired up... And...
Windows 10 April 2018 Update 1803: What you need to know
The Windows 10 "April 2018 Update" version 1803 was released a few weeks ago... in May, not April. Go figure. Initially, there were some serious problems with 1803, but those seem to have been ironed out now. Chances are, if you don't have it already, you'll be...
Ferrite: Those magic thingies at the end of your cables
You've probably noticed those strange cylinders at the end of your puter cables. It looks a bit like the cable was slightly overzealous at dinnertime and swallowed something a bit too large... As it happens, those strange meals are actually ferrite cores. Ferrite is a...
Speed up your browsing with CloudFlare’s public DNS
Back on April 1st of this year, CloudFlare announced a new public DNS resolver service. But in this case, it wasn't an April Fool's joke at all: the new 1.1.1.1 DNS service is very real and very fast! Well, that's nice, but what the heck does DNS do? And how is it...
Lightning surge protection that works
Most of us have "surge protector" power strips. They are supposed to protect against power line surges due to lightning and certain power line faults. But do they? Well, yes... To a small degree. But if you want some serious protection, you need a whole-house surge...
Walking Simulators: A different kind of video game
Ah yes, video games. Depending on who you ask, they're either totally fine and lots of fun, or the very reason that things like school shootings happen so often. Whatever your opinion, the relatively new gaming genre known as "walking simulators" has become...
Best strippers EVER (um, for techies)
Now, I know that everyone is pretty attached to their favorite stripper. The trouble is, sometimes this attachment is not terribly healthy... I'm talking about wire and cable strippers, of course! After decades of searching - across scorching deserts and over frosty...
How to update or install “Linux on Windows” in Windows 10
In the olden days, there was only "Bash on Ubuntu on Windows 10". This little gem gave you something like reverse WINE. You got an Ubuntu linux install that's running on top of the Windows kernel - with full file system access, the ability to install and run all kinds...
EEK! #6 – AC Power, RMS, and VA vs W
You probably do this all the time, but you don't even know it. I'm talking about AC power calculations with P = V x I. Technically, it works. But when you think about it, it shouldn't. AC has constantly changing voltage and current over time - unlike DC. So how on...
Fix a broken Start menu in Windows 10
Back in October 2017, Microsoft released the Fall Creators Update for Windows 10. For most people, all was well. But for a surprisingly large minority, the Start menu just sort of stopped working. Clicking the Start button did nothing, and neither did right-clicking...
Off isn’t really Off
In the olden days, our gizmos had electro-mechanical power buttons. When the thing was turned off, no power was sent to it. Nowadays, things have changed with the advent of electronically-controlled everything - including things like washing machines. You can even...