Remember where you heard it first. With AI saving a click over to a website, it’s only a matter of time until we say RIP to surfing the web.
A full wash: Just because Chromebooks use web apps doesn’t mean they don’t need resetting every once in a while. A reset is called a “Powerwash.” Sign out of ChromeOS, hold Ctrl + Alt + Shift + R, then choose Restart and Powerwash.
Online tool to stop ads
Ever feel like online ads know too much about you? I’ll share a simple tool that lets you stop companies from tracking you across the web — and it’s totally free.
You can’t spell cache without ache: (That was for my coders in the crowd!) In a leaked recording, the Amazon Web Services CEO said because of AI, programmers and developers won’t be coding much in one to two years. A great developer’s role will focus on the “most innovative work.”
The world’s first website, created by Sir Tim Berners-Lee, is still online today. In what year did this website launch? Was it … 1965, 1978, 1983 or 1991?
$100 million
In narcotics trafficked on the dark web by a 23-year-old. Authorities finally bagged the Taiwanese kingpin, Rui-Siang Lin. Over four years, he sold up to $5 million in illegal drugs every month on his site, Incognito Market. For reference, the guy who created the Silk Road was 29 when the feds caught him. He’s serving two lifetimes in prison.
What is the Dark Web?
It’s not just hackers and scammers … though, yeah, they are there. Let’s take a closer look.
No, thanks: Elon Musk wants to use your posts to train his Grok AI. You can opt out. From X on the web, click More > Settings and privacy > Privacy and safety > Grok and uncheck the box.
How to spot if a review is fake
When you’re looking on the web for a place to stay, eat, or work, here’s why you should think twice about online reviews.
Dirty diaper ruined a family business
Paul and Rachelle Baron own Beau & Belle Littles, a once thriving swim diaper business. But when Amazon resold a returned diaper as “new,” a one-star review flagged by more than 100 buyers left them $600,000 in debt. Plus, CrowdStrike trouble continues, web searches are changing, and a remote worker turned out to be a North Korean spy.
🪣 Leaky bucket: Two free PDF makers, PDF Pro and Help PDF, have somehow made public over 89,000 documents uploaded by their users We’re talking passports, driver’s licenses, certificates and more. People are still using these PDF tools, even as their private data leaks onto the web. Don’t be one of them.
🤖 “So, uh, where do I find ChatGPT?” Use it on the web or download it for iPhone or Android. You’ll need to create an account. The free tier works for most people. Give it a whirl if you’ve never tried it.
Put it on the tab(s): Windows File Explorer can use tabs, just like your web browser. Click the + (plus) on the toolbar at the top to create a new tab. You can also right-click on folders and pick Open in new tab. Nice.
“Needless Markup” hacked: Hackers stole info from at least 64,472 Neiman Marcus customers and employees, including names, contact details and birth dates. The data is for sale on the dark web for $150,000.
🦈This is so-fish-ticated: “Shark Tank” investor Kevin O’Leary, aka Mr. Wonderful, wants to crowdsource a TikTok acquisition. It’s pretty ingenious: If just 59% of the 170 million Americans on TikTok wanted in, they could contribute $1,000 each to collectively buy it for $100 billion. I’m just not sure that many Americans have a rack lying around.
I love free: ChatGPT just made free a bunch of features that were once exclusive to paid plans. You now get real-time web responses, data analytics, chart creation, file upload and the ability to remember you, plus access to custom versions of GPT. The catch? Only 10 requests a day.
Another lesson on trusting AI, compliments of Google
Less than two weeks ago, Google introduced AI Overview, a major change in web search. The problem? AI Overview sometimes gives odd suggestions, like adding glue to your pizza sauce.
Google Search is changing
Web traffic is dying, and now Google is putting AI answers at the top of its search results. What does this mean for your favorite websites? Plus, Uber’s new shuttle service, Tesla drivers ditch self-driving mode, and Jeff Bezos’ email etiquette.
🤖 OpenAI’s GPT‑4o is here: The new model responds to spoken words in real time (kinda like a human) and can “sense” changes in your tone and mood. Show it a photo and it’ll describe what’s happening in that image. GPT‑4o is available in the free tier of ChatGPT, but if you pay $20 per month, you get five times the message limit. Today, Google will announce its new AI products. The web as we know it will never be the same.
⛪ Need an ark? I Noah guy: Catholic “priest” Fr. Justin hit the web sporting a collar and gray beard to bring more people into the faith. He gave out sacraments and absolved sins … and said it was OK to baptize babies with Gatorade. Yeah, he was “defrocked” as AI. These days, Justin’s still giving bizarre advice … but as a regular ol’ layperson.