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December 21, 2024

✈️ Lost your luggage? United, Delta and Air Canada now accept Find My item locations. If your lost bag has an Apple AirTag, open the Find My app > select the tracked tag > Share Item Location. Grab that link and email it straight to the airline. Easy!

Netflix shortcuts: Try these next time you’re watching from a browser. Hit F for full-screen mode and Esc to exit. Hit the spacebar to play and pause. M mutes, and the up and down arrows control the volume. Sweet!

Before you hit the road: Download your directions so you can still navigate if your cell service cuts out. Open the Google Maps app and search for your destination. On Android, swipe up. On iOS, swipe to the end of the options. Tap Download to save an offline map you can access anytime.

🕵️ Website detective: Use this IP address tool to look up any URL. I do it all the time. Click the IP address to see where it’s located. Look for suspicious signs, like an American business with an IP address from somewhere overseas that just doesn’t make sense.

Growing your side hustle? Switch your Instagram account to a Business profile to add shopping links to your posts, run ads and lots more. From your profile, tap Edit profile > Switch to professional account.

Looking for work? 5 mistakes that will hurt your chances of getting hired

Social media is a place where we can loosen up a little. You can post jokes, silly pictures, or whatever on Instagram, X, Facebook and more. Unlike most social media sites, our sponsor, LinkedIn, is pretty buttoned-up.

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Tech steps to take before you die

It’s a grim topic, but we have to think about what happens to all our online accounts, data, notes, photos, videos, websites, playlists, blogs and subscriptions once we’re gone. Do your loved ones a favor and get this sorted out beforehand.

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If your health claim gets denied: FightHealthInsurance.com is a free AI tool that helps you untangle why your claim was denied and quickly draft a custom appeal letter. It was made by someone who had to fight their own insurer. Pro tip: Make sure you include the word “appeal” in your letter or it may not be considered one.

Scammers are targeting teens – Warn your Gen Zer about these tricks

I told you about the 14-year-old who committed suicide after following the advice of an AI chatbot. Another family is suing the same one — Character AI — after it told an autistic 14-year-old to kill his parents. It also exposed an 11-year-old to sexual content.

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🤳 Look your best: Ever been caught checking your hair in a video call? Kind of embarrassing. Adjust yourself and the lighting before the meeting. On a Windows PC, open your Start menu and search for the Camera app; on a Mac, open Photo Booth.

🇷🇺 So long and farewell, comrade: The U.S. government banned Kaspersky Lab and its cybersecurity products over the company’s ties to the Kremlin. If you’re using Kaspersky for your antivirus protection, try my antivirus pick instead.

So you’ve spotted a scammer on Facebook: Do your good deed and report them. Go to the scammer’s profile, and, in the top right corner, click the three dots. Select Find support or report, then follow the on-screen prompts.

👂 Alexa, can you hear me? Struggling to get your smart speaker to hear you? Keep it at least 8 inches away from walls and other objects to reduce echo and interference. Psst, look how cheap this Echo is.

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“Give me 10 more examples”: That’s a prompt I use with ChatGPT all the time to make the chatbot a better brainstorming buddy. Some of its “ideas” are downright bad, but it might spark something creative in your brain, too.

Hide-and-seek: You’re shopping online when your gift recipient walks in. Quick! Hide your open browser windows. On a PC, press the Windows key + M. (Use the Windows key + Shift + M to reopen your closed windows.) On a Mac, it’s Cmd + Option + H + M. Phew, no Santa spoilers.