Don’t be that person: People are spilling way more personal info to chatbots than they ever did to online search engines like Google. Take the man asking ChatGPT to save his marriage, the school case manager sharing specific details on students’ learning disabilities, and a minor worried about legal charges. Be smart and know anything you say to a bot can become public.
Tags: chatbots, ChatGPT, privacy
I’m using the new Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max with iOS 18.1. For some reason, Siri responds about 60% of the time when I ask it to call or text someone. Argh, this garbage even happens to me. That’s why I’ve channeled my frustrations into eight easy ways to make your tech less annoying.
By now, you probably know that you don’t have to leave home to make money. After all, many companies sent employees home to work during the pandemic. But even if you aren’t a salaried employee, you can still make a living from the comfort of your own home.
♻️ Hit reset: Get Windows back to a factory-fresh state without losing your personal files. Open Settings > System > Recovery > Reset PC. Just make sure you choose the Keep my files option. (You’ve got everything backed up anyway, right?)
“Summary cards”: That’s what Gmail calls those little boxes at the top of emails, like purchases, bills, reservations and events. Look for fancy, new buttons to track your packages, invite a friend to the concert, get directions and more. Handy … and a good reminder Google knows everything you do.
Hands off my Kindle: You can set a passcode. Go to the home screen and tap the three dots in the upper right. Now, tap Settings > Device Options > Device Passcode. Sweet.
🤐 Respectfully, be quiet already: You remembered to mute your phone, but now, your Apple Watch is buzzing every 10 seconds. Open Settings > Focus > Do Not Disturb > Add New to activate or set up a schedule.
⏳ When your kid (or someone else) is using your iPad: Lock an app to keep them off limits. Open Settings > Screen Time > Use Screen Time Passcode. Follow the instructions to set it up. Now, go to App Limits > Add Limit, choose the app, then tap Next > 1 min > Add. Use the app for one minute, then hit Ask for More Time > One More Minute. After the time runs out, the app is locked.
Are you getting the speeds you pay for? Use fast.com and speedtest.net to run internet speed tests. (Be careful not to go to the .com version of Speedtest.) Both report your current speeds a little differently, so I like to check ‘em both. If you’re way, way below what you pay for, call your ISP and ask them to fix it.
Stop the binge: Streaming apps usually queue up the next episode of a show automatically, but most have a setting to stop this. On Netflix, click your account picture (top right), then Manage Profiles and your profile to find the option.
Quick rename: On a Mac, click a file, then press Return to quickly change its name. On Windows, double-click on the filename. Boom!
