Need to upload an image instead of a webcam selfie? Here’s how. I’m a desktop guy so I hate it when a site requires me to be on mobile to buy something. Recently I hit something even more pernicious: a site that required me to snap a selfie to buy something. Yes, really. They have […]
Category Archives: geek skills
Zoom Update Suckage
The Zoom update process sucks. Here’s how to fix it. Are Zoom updates chafing your hide? Now that almost all of us tech types are spending hours in Zoom every week, optimizing the Zoom experience is a big part of tuning our survival. And the default Zoom update hokey-pokey is galling in the extreme. As […]
Amazon Enables Spammers By Taking Away Review Comments
Have you noticed that you can’t comment on a product review on Amazon any more? One of my favorite uses of this feature was to ping a buyer for updates on their initial reaction to a product. A product really shows its stripes after a few months of usage, not at the initial unboxing. Additionally, […]
“My Cat Won’t Drink Water”: Here’s a Solution
“The cat won’t drink!” says your roommate. “The vet says he’s got to drink more and not drinking water is making him sick!” This isn’t your typical videogame blog post, but I just thought I would share my lifehack for all you cat-lovers out there. Cat dehydration is a big problem. Have you struggled with […]
Real Telepathy: Telepathy Is Here Now… With A Little Help
Real telepathy? Believe it, baby. NPR is reporting that telepathy is actually a reality, thanks to computers and some researchers at the UW Seattle Center for Neurotechnology. That’s correct: people are communicating brain-to-brain right now. They’re not even in the same room, and they’re telling each other how to play Tetris blind. It’s slow, it’s […]
Austin Central Library Picked By TIME As One of the World’s Greatest Places
We’re all proud of Austin Central Library. It’s an impressive structure right by Town Lake in the heart of downtown, with a lot of great books, an event space, a rooftop butterfly garden, a “tech petting zoo” where visitors can try out new gadgets, and even a world-class collection of self-published lit with a focus […]
Cheap Batteries? Are The Best Rechargeable Batteries In Your Trash?
I Found An Unlimited Supply of Cheap Batteries at the Library Rechargeable batteries aren’t cheap. And buying and trashing batteries ain’t cheap either. But I think I’ve found a limitless supply of cheap batteries and I bet you can too. The key is that most battery chargers don’t charge alkaline batteries, the most common kind […]
How to Harvest LR41 Watch Batteries from Junk Mail
In the Geek Skills category of Game Writer Central, I’m happy to announce this new lifehack: converting junk mail into value…! LR41 Watch Batteries in Your Mailbox If you’re in the right neighborhood, you’ve been getting an occasional giant postcard with a little plastic “sweepstakes” gadget attached, like this one. Mine comes from my local […]
Chrome Doesn’t Trust Google
A few days ago I tried an innocent Google search in Chrome — “master lock 141q” — and Chrome told me that www.google.com presented a certificate issued by an mysterious entity (the Elder Gods, I assume) that is not trusted by my operating system, aka Android. Essentially, Chrome doesn’t trust Google.com. Chrome, please help me […]
Hilton Hhonors Royally Botches Password Security
How Not to Handle Password Security Recently Hilton’s Hhonors loyalty program asked me to reset my password in their attempt to increase security. Makes sense, after high-profile security breaches at several online websites like Target.com. They dangled a 1000-point reward for early action so of course I hopped over and reset my password. Today I […]