If you don’t innovate, you’ll evaporate: You need to start using AI in your business before it’s too late. Find out how AI can streamline your operations. Take a free test drive of Oracle’s Cloud Infrastructure now at Oracle.com/kim.
How NASA plans to back up data on lunar soil
Let me ask you a question: Do you think the cloud is a safe place to back up your data, the world’s treasures and government secrets? In a world of increasing breaches, hackers and threats, even cloud storage might not be enough.
Welcome to the next frontier: Lunar backups. NASA is teaming up with Lonestar, a Florida-based startup, and the Isle of Man, that self-governing British Crown Dependency you might’ve never heard of, to store data on the moon. Think of it like the ultra-secure Fort Knox but for digital information.
🚀 Blockchain goes intergalactic
How do you keep data safe on the moon? By using a blockchain — the same tech behind crypto. It ensures data is secure, genuine and tamper-proof. This isn’t your mom’s filing cabinet; it’s out of this world.
The first data cube, “Freedom,” landed on the moon in February 2024, proving the concept works. Lonestar’s first commercial mission takes off in 2026. Oh, and the Isle of Man’s post office got in on the fun, too, sending digital stamps to the moon. Now that’s first-class mail.
🌝 Why the moon?
The moon isn’t becoming a storage locker for your embarrassing selfies. The mission is first to preserve humanity’s crown jewels — our most vital data. Think of it as Earth’s external hard drive or a modern Library of Alexandria (hopefully, with a less tragic end).
What’s on the moon-bound list? Obvious candidates include:
- Scientific research: DNA sequencing data, climate models and pandemic studies.
- Cultural archives: Literary classics, historical texts and digitized art collections.
- Financial records: Stock market data, transaction histories and economic models.
- Health care information: Genome mapping and medical research.
- National security data: Sensitive classified information.
- Tech blueprints: Designs for critical infrastructure, from power plants to the internet backbone.
- “The Kim Komando Show”: Audio files of all my shows, because they’re that important to all mankind. (OK, I made that up!)
🌎 Earth vs. the moon
Not everyone’s on board with storing data on the moon. It’s not like you can send a tech to fix things. And retrieving something? Think “break glass in case of emergency,” not your daily backup.
Accessing lunar data would take spacecraft, encryption and dealing with space itself. Long-term storage? Sure. Easy? Not at all.
Reader question: 'What can I use instead of QuickBooks?'
If you’re a business owner, you don’t need us to tell you that running a business is tough. Don’t let QuickBooks and spreadsheets slow you down, making things more complicated than necessary. It’s time to upgrade to our sponsor NetSuite.
Big tech's big lies: Part II
I’ll break down how streaming, ride-shares, and cloud services have failed to deliver on their promises, costing you more than you bargained for.
Free AI test drive: You need to start using AI in your business before it’s too late. Take a free test drive of Oracle Cloud Infrastructure now at Oracle.com/kim.
How to deal with a cyberstalker
Let me tell you, more and more victims of cyberstalking are reaching out to me for advice using my Ask Kim page. Here’s one note I received recently from P.W. in Oklahoma:
“I’ve been cyberstalked for three years. I recently discovered it was my roommate. I moved out and he launched another attack. He’s on my and my fiance’s phones, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth — everything. He has stolen financial data, pictures, erased accounts, taken over emails and harassed me through VOIP. … He admitted to sitting outside our house all night. I thought he was spying on me. Now I know he was also gaining access to my Wi-Fi. I can’t do this anymore and need expert advice/help terribly.”
5 free alternatives to Microsoft Excel
When Excel first hit the market, businesses flocked to use it for their management needs. But it’s far from the only option. There are many free alternatives to Microsoft Excel you should know about.
Many people are so married to Excel they won’t consider other spreadsheets. At first glance, it seems like the perfect one-stop-shop for scheduling, accounting, compiling data, tracking sales and more. Tap or click here for three tips and tutorials that help you make the most out of Excel.
Free AI test drive: You need to start using AI in your business before it’s too late. Take a free test drive of Oracle Cloud Infrastructure now at Oracle.com/kim.
Are you cirrus? Turns out the government’s technology for controlling the weather doesn’t work. “Cloud seeding,” where silver iodide crystals are added to clouds to increase rain, only boosts precipitation by a measly 0% to 20%. Oh, and it’s not cheap, either; we’re spending tens of millions on this every year.
50% off: Using AI in your business is expensive. Take a free test drive of Oracle Cloud Infrastructure now at Oracle.com/kim to see if they can cut your bill in half. Hurry, this offer ends on Dec. 31, 2024.
When you don’t excel, people spreadsheet: On Tuesday, July 30, Outlook was stalling, the Starbucks app crashed and Office 365 was down for eight hours. We now know a cyberattack took down the cloud computing system Microsoft Azure and a ton of apps and services with it. D’oh! Microsoft’s attempts to stop the attacks actually made the outages worse.
Are your nudes safe in the cloud?
Is it safe to store sensitive docs in the cloud? Here’s my answer, in one minute.
Store 100,000 songs for free in the cloud
Do you have a bunch of vinyl records, CDs or cassettes lying around? Listen to this one-minute podcast for a free way to put them in the cloud so you can listen to them wherever you go.
Don't make the same mistake that cost me $90K
Photo 139683754 © Nopparat Khokthong | Dreamstime.com
I’ve been a small business owner for 25 years. Along the way, I’ve had some great successes, along with my fair share of mistakes.
Sometimes those mistakes are easy to recover from. You recognize what went wrong, regroup and try something new. And sometimes you realize, “Uh oh. This is something I can never let happen again.”
Do this now before you die
When you die, who gets access to your cloud data? Listen now to find out.
Why Apple delayed its plan to scan your cloud
Is privacy in the cloud even possible? Listen now for Kim’s take.
These versions of QuickBooks are no longer supported - Time to upgrade
© Andrey Popov | Dreamstime.com
Each year, Intuit discontinues older versions of its QuickBooks line. As of May 31, these versions are no longer supported:
If you were using one of those editions, it’s seriously time to upgrade. We say it’s time to ditch the spreadsheets altogether. Don’t let QuickBooks and spreadsheets slow you down, making things harder than necessary. It’s time to upgrade to NetSuite.
You can back up handwritten notes online with these erasable notebooks
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Although apps like Evernote and Google Docs are great for storing text, they cannot replace a pen and paper. There is something more intuitive about scribbling notes, and you have the option to sketch your ideas.
The Rocketbook Everlast Mini is a notebook that offers the best of both worlds. It works just like a traditional notebook, but you can back up every page to the cloud using your smartphone. Better still, you can easily erase the whole thing and start again.