Category: Apple

How to Make a Slideshow on Google Photos

Using Google Photos‘ slideshow feature, you can have all or specific album photos play one after another automatically. You can make this slideshow on both your desktop and your mobile device.

RAYMOND OGLESBY @RaymondOglesby2
July 25, 2023

This is for the desktop and smartphones. Screenshots are from Windows 10 and iPhone 14 Pro running iOS 16+

Using Google Photos‘ slideshow feature, you can have all or specific album photos play one after another automatically. You can make this slideshow on both your desktop and your mobile device. Let’s explore how this is done.

On Your Desktop

To create a slideshow on your desktop computer, first, open a web browser and launch the Google Photos site. Sign in to your account on the site if you have not already.

Next, once you see your photos, if you want to include all your photos in the slideshow, then click the first photo on the main screen to open it in full screen.

Now, once the photo opens in full screen, at the top-right corner, click the three dots (the Menu icon). Refer to the below image:

Photos 1
Selecting the Menu icon

Next, in the menu that opens, click Slideshow. See the below image:

Photos 2
Selecting the Slideshow option

Now, your browser will go full screen and your slideshow will start playing. Sit back, relax, and enjoy recollecting your memories with your photos.

Next, you can stop the slideshow at any time by pressing the Esc key on your keyboard. See the following image:

Photos 3
Exiting the Slideshow

Now, if you would like to make a slideshow using photos from a specific album, then access that album on Google Photos. On the album page, in the top-right corner, click the three dots (the Menu icon). Refer to the below image:

Photos 4
Selecting the Menu icon

Next, from the three dots (the Menu icon), select Slideshow to start playing your photos. You can close the slideshow by pressing the Esc key. See the below image:

Photos 5
Selecting the Slideshow option

On Your Mobile

To play your photos slideshow on your phone, first, launch the Google Photos app on your phone.

Next, to include all your photos in the slideshow, then tap the first photo on the main screen.

Now, when your photo opens in full screen, in the top-right corner, tap the three dots (the Menu icon). See the following image:

Photos 6
Selecting the Menu icon

Next, from the three dots (the Menu icon), select Slideshow to start playing your photos. Refer to the below image:

Photos 7
Selecting the Slideshow option

Now, Google Photos will start playing a slideshow for all your photos. If you would like to stop this slideshow, tap anywhere on the screen then tap Done in the top-left corner. See the below image:

Photos 8
Exiting the Slideshow

To create a slideshow using photos from a particular album, first, tap Library and choose your photo album. Select the first photo in the album, then in the top-right corner, tap the three dots (the Menu icon). See the following image:

Photos 9
Selecting the Menu icon

Next, in the menu that opens, tap Slideshow. Refer to the below image:

Photos 10
Selecting the Slideshow option

Now, your slideshow containing photos only from the selected album will play. If you would like to stop this slideshow, tap anywhere on the screen then tap Done in the top-left corner. See the below image:

Photos 11
Exiting the Slideshow

Disclaimer

Technology is always changing; there is rarely static tech for smartphones and desktops. Thus, the contents of this post are only valid at the time of writing. Blog posts older than six months may have directions incompatible with your device or OS. Hopefully, older post content will continue to work as advertised. Thank you for reading TechSavvy.Life for Technology at Work For You.

Quote for the Day

My view is that if your philosophy is not unsettled daily then you are blind to all the universe has to offer.

Neil deGrasse Tyson

Tweet Info

That’s it. Please feel free to share this post! One way to share is via Twitter.

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Checkout TechSavvy.Life for blog posts on smartphones, PCs, and Macs! You may email us at contact@techsavvy.life for comments or questions.

Author’s E-Book

You can access the e-book from a Kindle device, the Kindle App for the desktop or smartphone, which is a free app.

The author’s Vietnam eBook on the Battle for Tra Bong Vietnam: Events and Aftermath

Threads the New Social Media App

Meta, formerly known as Facebook, has made a history of copying features from other platforms. This time, Meta has launched Threads, a social media app connected to Instagram that works more like Twitter and should eventually connect to Mastodon.

RAYMOND OGLESBY @RaymondOglesby2
July 18, 2023

As of this writing, We have reached 50,000 views in 487 posts!!!

This is for devices that use social media

Meta, formerly known as Facebook, has made a history of copying features from other platforms. This time, Meta has launched Threads, a social media app connected to Instagram that works more like Twitter and should eventually connect to Mastodon.

Meta, as the maker of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, has been after Twitter for many, many years. The company attempted to buy Twitter back in 2008, but that did not work out. Last year, Elon Musk acquired Twitter, and then promptly ran it into the ground. That has led to a surge in popularity for Twitter-like platforms, and now Meta’s app is live.

What Is Threads

Threads is a micro-blogging platform that looks and feels just like Twitter, letting you post texts up to 500 characters. This is almost twice Twitter’s 280-character standard limit, but still just enough for posts to not look like so much text. The platform itself is heavily linked to Instagram, and if you have an Instagram account, you can sign up for Threads with a couple of taps. All handles are pre-reserved; your username on Instagram will be your username on Threads. Refer to the below image of Threads:

Threads 2

Threads is actually seeing plenty of adoption, with the platform getting up to 20 million users within the first hours of launch. However, many of those accounts are brands instead of actual people. Instagram’s user base is in the billions, so we can only expect this number to keep increasing as time passes.

As it keeps growing, we can also expect a number of other changes, too. Threads is supposed to play nice with Mastodon and the Fediverse, and it will be getting ActivityPub support down the road. The exact degree to which Mastodon and Threads will be interoperable remains to be seen, but you will be able to follow and interact with Mastodon users from Threads. Likewise, Mastodon users will be able to follow Threads users by using their full username, such as “@john@threads.net.”

Pause Before You Download

Be aware of Threads Privacy Policy and the Dara the app collects. In our opinion, the app collects way too much data about you. This includes Data from your: Health/Fitness, Financial info, Contact info, User Content, Browsing history, Usage data, Diagnostics, Purchases, Location, Contacts, Search history, Identifiers, Sensitive data, and Other data.

In contrast, Facebook and Instagram only track Contact info, Identifiers, and Other data.

According to its Privacy Policy, you cannot delete your Threads account, until you delete your Instagram account. You can deactivate your Threads account at any time but you can not delete your Threads account without also deleting your Instagram account.

Our Summary

We recommend you wait until the Data collection and Privacy Policy issues are addressed.

If You Want to Download the App

If you want to give it a spin, Threads is now available from the Apple App Store and the Google Play Store. In the Apple App Store and Google Play Store, the app name is “Threads, an Instagram app”. There are other Threads apps, so ensure you download the correct one.

Disclaimer

Technology is always changing and rarely is there static tech for smartphones and desktops. Thus, the contents of this post are only valid at the time of writing. Blog posts older than six months may have directions incompatible with your device or OS. Hopefully, older post content will continue to work as advertised. Thank you for reading TechSavvy.Life for Technology at Work For You.

Quote For the Day

Always deliver more than expected.

Larry Page

Tweet Info

That’s it. Please feel free to share this post! One way to share is via Twitter.

Just click the Tweet icon below. This will launch Twitter where you click its icon to post the Tweet.

Just click the Tweet icon below. This will launch Twitter where you click its icon to post the Tweet.

I Would Like to Hear From You

Please feel free to leave a comment. I would love to hear from you. Do you have a computer or smart device tech question? I will do my best to answer your inquiry. Just send an email to contact@techsavvy.life. Please mention the device, app, and version you are using. To help us out, you can send screenshots of your data related to your question.

Author’s E-Book

You can access the e-book from a Kindle device, the Kindle App for the desktop or smartphone, which is a free app.

The author’s Vietnam eBook on the Battle for Tra Bong Vietnam: Events and Aftermath

How to Change Link Handling in Outlook for Windows

You may have noticed that opening a link in Outlook behaves differently and not in your chosen browser. That’s because Microsoft wants to push their Edge browser, though they have some excuses for the change.

RAYMOND OGLESBY @RaymondOglesby2
July 11, 2023

This is for devices running Microsoft Outlook. Screenshots are from Microsoft Outlook 365 in Windows 10

You may have noticed that opening a link in Outlook behaves differently and not in your chosen browser. That’s because Microsoft wants to push their Edge browser, though they have some excuses for the change.

When you click on a link in Outlook for Windows, it might open in the Edge browser, even though you have chosen a different default browser in Windows settings (like Chrome or Firefox).

And instead of just opening the web page, the email appears in a right side-pane alongside the link you clicked. Refer to the below image:

Link Handling 1
Side-by-Side View

According to Microsoft, this change means “No more disruptive switching—just your email and the web content you need to reference, in a single, side-by-side view.” They may have a point and it’s a change that suits some people.  

It’s also a shameless attempt to push people to the Edge browser by overriding their browser choice with Microsoft’s preference.

This applies to Windows 10 or 11 only. Microsoft only says this is for ‘Outlook’ not which versions, but presumably Outlook 365 for Windows. For now, it only works on Microsoft-hosted emails including Outlook.com/Hotmail however it will be extended to Gmail later.

Change Browser via Windows

First, the default browser is chosen in Windows. To set up this browser, head to:

Settings | Apps | Default Apps

and choose your preferred browser. See the below image:

Link Handling 2
Setting Chrome as the web browser in Windows

Change the Search Engine and Default Browser

Next, for Chrome, ensure you have set the search engine. To find out, open Chrome and head to:

Menu (the 3 dots in the upper right) | Settings | Search engine

and, if necessary, set your search engine to Chrome. See the following image:

Link Handling 3
Setting Chrome as the search engine

Now, for Chrome, ensure you have set the default browser. To find out, open Chrome and head to:

Menu (the 3 dots in the upper right) | Settings | Default browser

Refer to the below image:

Link Handling 5
Your default browser

The reason why we are doing the above is to ensure we are using Google products. You can have Firefox as your browser and Chrome as your search engine.

Change Outlook Links Default Browser

Next, open Outlook and go to:

File | Options | Advanced | Link Handling

to change the browser to Default Browser. See the below image:

Link Handling 4
Setting Default Browser in Outlook

Side-by-Side View May Not Work

To be honest, you may not get this feature to work no matter what combination of Outlook, Windows, and Edge you try. We prefer to test for ourselves and not take Microsoft’s word. If your email links open in your browser with no side-by-side view, do not worry.

Disclaimer

Technology is always changing and rarely is there static tech for smartphones and desktops. Thus, the contents of this post are only valid at the time of writing. Blog posts older than six months may have directions incompatible with your device or OS. Hopefully, older post content will continue to work as advertised. Thank you for reading TechSavvy.Life for Technology at Work For You.

Quote For the Day

Ideas are easy. Implementation is hard.

Guy Kawasaki

Tweet Info

That’s it. Please feel free to share this post! One way to share is via Twitter.

Just click the Tweet icon below. This will launch Twitter where you click its icon to post the Tweet.

Checkout TechSavvy.Life for blog posts on smartphones, PCs, and Macs! You may email us at contact@techsavvy.life for comments or questions.

I Would Like to Hear From You

Please feel free to leave a comment. I would love to hear from you. Do you have a computer or smart device tech question? I will do my best to answer your inquiry. Just send an email to contact@techsavvy.life. Please mention the device, app, and version you are using. To help us out, you can send screenshots of your data related to your question.

Author’s E-Book

You can access the e-book from a Kindle device, the Kindle App for the desktop or smartphone, which is a free app.

The author’s Vietnam eBook on the Battle for Tra Bong Vietnam: Events and Aftermath

How to Save iPhone Voicemails

The Visual Voicemail feature on iPhone makes it super easy to access and manage your voicemails, freeing you from the drudgery of dialing a number and doing it the old-fashioned way. Not only that, but it also lets you save important voicemails to your iPhone with just a few steps.

RAYMOND OGLESBY @RaymondOglesby2
July 4, 2023

This is for the iPhone. Screenshots from iPhone Pro 14 running iOS 16+

The Visual Voicemail feature on iPhone makes it super easy to access and manage your voicemails, freeing you from the drudgery of dialing a number and doing it the old-fashioned way. Not only that, but it also lets you save important voicemails to your iPhone with just a few steps. Let’s explore how this is done.

Save Voicemails on iPhone

First, open the Phone app and choose the Voicemail tab in the bottom right-hand corner. Refer to the below image:

Voicemail 1
Selecting the Voicemail tab

Next, you should see a list of your voicemails. Scroll to the message you want to save and tap it. This will bring up a pop-up window with several controls, including a play button, speaker icon, and phone button. On the top right, you will see a Share button that looks like a box with an arrow coming out of it. Tap it to bring up the share sheet and see all the possible ways you can save or share your voicemail. See the below image:

Voicemail 2
Selecting the Share button

Now, to save the voicemail locally on your iPhone,, select Save to Files and then On My iPhone. Choose a folder where you want to store the voicemail and hit Save.

Voicemails displayed here are stored on your cellular carrier’s servers until you download them.

You can also save the voicemail directly to a cloud storage service like iCloud. To do so, choose the Save to Files option (same as above) from the Share menu. See the following image:

Voicemail 3
Selecting the Save to Files option

Next, select iCloud Drive or Google Drive under the list of storage locations. Refer to the below image:

Voicemail 4
Choosing a location to save the voicemail

If you wish to export voicemails to your Mac or IPad, you can use AirDrop. From the Share menu, tap the AirDrop icon and choose your Mac or iPad. Ensure the receiving device has AirDrop set to receive from Contacts only. The file will be transferred instantly and saved to the Downloads folder on the receiving device. See the below image:

Voicemail 5
Selecting the Airdrop button

This approach only works if your carrier offers Visual Voicemails support. If you can see a list of voicemails when you open the Voicemail tab, your carrier supports the feature. On the other hand, if your carrier requires dialing in or other methods for accessing your messages, this method will not work.

Save Noicemails Without Visual Voicemail

You can also use Screen Recording to save and share voicemails. This is a great workaround if you do not have access to Visual Voicemail and thus can not save messages using the standard method discussed above. This method also comes in handy if you want to capture additional context along with the voicemail contents, such as caller ID and timestamps.

Tip: This will also let you save audio “voicemails” and video messages from apps that do not normally allow you to save or download those messages.

First, to screen record a voicemail, use the Screen Recorder. First, swipe down to reveal Control Center and tap the Screen Recording button. See the following image:

Voicemail 6
Selecting the Screen Recording button

If you do not see the button, go to:

Settings > Control Center > More Controls

and add the Screen Recording toggle by clicking the green + icon. Refer to the below image:

Voicemail 7
Finding the Screen Recording option

Also, make sure you have turned on the microphone in the Screen Recording settings, or your recording will have no audio. You can check this by holding the Screen Recording toggle. Lastly, head to the Phone app, play the voicemail through the speaker, and let Screen Recording do its job.

Next, tap the Screen Recording button when you are done to finish saving the recording. The screen recording will be saved to the Photos app.

After exporting your voicemails to your iPhone, it’ll be a good idea to back them up to a cloud storage service such as iCloud or Google Drive. This will allow you to easily access your messages from other devices, and you will not have to worry about losing them if you ever lose or reset your iPhone.

Disclaimer

Technology is always changing and rarely is there static tech for smartphones and desktops. Thus, the contents of this post are only valid at the time of writing. Blog posts older than six months may have directions incompatible with your device or OS. Hopefully, older post content will continue to work as advertised. Thank you for reading TechSavvy.Life for Technology at Work For You.

Quote For the Day

Even in such technical lines as engineering, about 15% of one’s financial success is due one’s technical knowledge and about 85% is due to skill in human engineering, to personality and the ability to lead people.

Dale Carnegie

Tweet Info

You are finished. Please feel free to share this post! One way to share is via Twitter.

Just click the Tweet icon below. This will launch Twitter where you click its icon to post the Tweet.

Checkout TechSavvy.Life for blog posts on smartphones, PCs, and Macs! You may email us at contact@techsavvy.life for comments or questions.

I Would Like to Hear From You

Please feel free to leave a comment. I would love to hear from you. Do you have a computer or smart device tech question? I will do my best to answer your inquiry. Just send an email to contact@techsavvy.life. Please mention the device, app, and version you are using. To help us out, you can send screenshots of your data related to your question.

Author’s E-Book

You can access the e-book from a Kindle device, the Kindle App for the desktop or smartphone, which is a free app.

The author’s Vietnam eBook on the Battle for Tra Bong Vietnam: Events and Aftermath

Is it Okay to Run Your Laptop With the Lid Closed

If you use your laptop with an external display docked at a desk, you may want to run it with its lid closed to save space. However, your laptop was not designed to run full-tilt with a closed lid, right?

RAYMOND OGLESBY @RaymondOglesby2
June 20, 2023

This is for laptops

If you use your laptop with an external display docked at a desk, you may want to run it with its lid closed to save space. However, your laptop was not designed to run full-tilt with a closed lid, right?

Depends on the Laptop

The main concern when using a laptop with the lid closed is inadequate cooling. However, whether this is true depends on the cooling design of the specific laptop. If we are talking about the fanless, low-power M1 or M2 MacBook Air computers, you can run them this way. You can even buy stands designed for this use case.

On the other hand, if you have a workstation or gaming laptop, there is a good chance that the top deck of the computer plays a role in ventilation. If you close the lid, it can affect airflow. Some laptops are designed to lift the bottom of the laptop off the surface of your desk when the screen opens. With this type of design, running the system with the lid closed is not a good idea.

If you are unsure, check with the manufacturer whether they condone running the system under load with the lid closed.

Heat Can Damage the LCDs

Even if your laptop can adequately cool its CPU and GPU with the lid closed, another consideration is whether the LCD panel could be damaged by being close to the hot laptop body during operation.

Like any electronic device, LCD panels have a maximum safe operating temperature. The exact numbers differ from one device to the next but are typically between 40C and 60C, based on the specifications we have read. Since a closed laptop screen traps a layer of air between itself and the laptop body, it’s conceivable that the temperature in that gap can reach the point where it affects the lifespan of the liquid crystals or the screen’s coating.

Of course, it’s difficult to state conclusively that the heat from your high-performance laptop will damage the laptop’s LCD in either the short or the long term. However, it stands to reason that subjecting an LCD to temperatures outside the room-temperature range it was designed for is a bad idea.

Cooling Pads?

Cooling pads are popular as laptop stands with integrated cooling fans and vents. The idea is that they remove heat from the laptop through its vents and body so that the internal fans do not have to work as hard.

In theory, this is not a bad idea, but it depends on the exact cooling design of your laptop and the cooling pad. Even then, cooling pads offer relatively small drops in temperature, and they are not helping cool the gap between your screen and laptop body directly.

Running Overnight or as a Server?

Some users are not looking to run a laptop with its lid closed while attached to an external display. For example, you might be using your old laptop as an in-home server, or downloading to run overnight.

Assuming you are sure any vents are not blocked (and enabled it to run while the lid’s closed), you can leave the laptop running with the lid closed if it’s only doing medium or low-intensity work that will not heat it up much.

However, you can go the middle way and close the lid just enough to switch off the screen, but not enough to close the laptop entirely. As long as hot air is not venting directly onto the screen, this should work. However, it will not do much to keep dust out, so be prepared to clean your laptop regularly.

So What Is the Problem?

If your laptop is overheating or throttling its performance when you have the lid closed, that’s clearly an issue, and you should strongly consider opening the lid to prevent this from happening. If you are mainly worried that heat exposure will ruin your laptop screen, there’s no clear evidence we could find that this is the case. We have run laptops with their lids closed for years and have never experienced a display failure that could be directly linked to heat. That being said, it’s impossible to rule it out entirely.

Ultimately, the only safe option is to run your laptop with the lid open. Besides, this offers a second screen if you are using an external monitor, which is almost always more useful than only having a single display. Then again, running your laptop with the lid closed frees up space-saving benefits, so the tradeoff depends on how much you value form over function, or what specific job you need your laptop to do.

Disclaimer

Technology is always changing and rarely is there static tech for smartphones and desktops. Thus, the contents of this post are only valid at the time of writing. Blog posts older than six months may have directions incompatible with your device or OS. Hopefully, older post content will continue to work as advertised. Thank you for reading TechSavvy.Life for Technology at Work For You.

Quote For the Day

Art is obsolete now. New technologies are taking over.

Jeff Koons

Tweet Info

That’s it. Please feel free to share this post! One way to share is via Twitter.

Just click the Tweet icon below. This will launch Twitter where you click its icon to post the Tweet.

Checkout TechSavvy.Life for blog posts on smartphones, PCs, and Macs! You may email us at contact@techsavvy.life for comments or questions.

I Would Like to Hear From You

Please feel free to leave a comment. I would love to hear from you. Do you have a computer or smart device tech question? I will do my best to answer your inquiry. Just send an email to contact@techsavvy.life. Please mention the device, app, and version you are using. To help us out, you can send screenshots of your data related to your question.

Author’s E-Book

You can access the e-book from a Kindle device, the Kindle App for the desktop or smartphone, which is a free app.

The author’s Vietnam eBook on the Battle for Tra Bong Vietnam: Events and Aftermath

How to Use Bionic Reading in Chrome

We are all constantly absorbing information online. Bionic Reading is an approach to reading that can help you read faster, retain more information, and boost your productivity in your favorite web browser, like Chrome.

RAYMOND OGLESBY @RaymondOglesby2
June 6, 2023

This is for desktops using Chrome or other browsers. Screenshots are from Windows 10

We are all constantly absorbing information online. Bionic Reading is an approach to reading that can help you read faster, retain more information, and boost your productivity in your favorite web browser, like Chrome.

Bionic Reading Explained

Bionic reading is a method of reading that combines traditional reading with technology-assisted tools. This helps readers increase their reading speed, improve their comprehension and retention, and ultimately become more productive in their reading activities.

Was the above paragraph easier and quicker to read? If you said yes, then you have just experienced some of the benefits of Bionic Reading. Now, imagine that but for a whole article, essay, or book.

Your brain does not always read every letter of every word. It only intakes enough information for you to understand a word, and then it moves on to the next one. The bolding of the first half of each word lets your mind fast-track through paragraphs.

The bolding aspect is the most notable factor in Bionic Reading, but there’s more as well. A lot of apps and extensions also remove colors from images and change white or black backgrounds to gray. These changes help your eyes focus on the text.

Why Use Bionic Reading

Using Bionic Reading in Chrome, or any other web browser, can offer several benefits.

It can help you read faster and more efficiently, which allows you to cover more material in less time.

Bionic Reading can also help you retain more information by training your brain to focus on the most important parts of any text.

As a result of the two above-mentioned benefits, it can improve your productivity by allowing you to process information more effectively. This can be particularly useful in academic or work-related settings.

Bionic Reading in any browser can be a valuable tool for anyone looking to optimize their online reading experience.

Think of Bionic Reading as akin to Speed Reading but they are different in their approach. Speed Reading is the process of rapidly recognizing and absorbing phrases or sentences on a page all at once, rather than identifying individual words.

How Bionic Reading Helps You

Bionic Reading helps you read faster and more efficiently with techniques including skimming, scanning, chunking, and altering images to be easier on the eye. Refer to the below image:

Bionic Reader 1
Bionic Reading example from Chrome Web Store

For example, when you skim a text, you quickly glance through it to get a general idea of the content without reading every word. Similarly, when you scan a text, you search for specific keywords or phrases that are relevant to your reading goals.

By using these techniques, you can save time and energy. Bionic Reading tools like web browser extensions or apps can help automate some of these techniques.

Bionic Reading Trains Your Brain to Retain Information

By using Bionic Reading, you can begin to retain more information by training your brain to focus on the most crucial parts of any text, such as key concepts, arguments, or evidence.

Through using techniques like skimming or scanning (as mentioned above), you can quickly identify the main points of the text and decide what information is relevant to your reading goals. In turn, this uses less mental energy.

By consistently applying these techniques, you can train your brain to become more efficient at processing and retaining information. Studying, researching, and editing your own work can become easier as a result.

Bionic Reading Improves Your Productivity

Before we go into how Bionic Reading increases your productivity, you need a frame of reference for how your productivity can suffer through everyday means.

Using your eyes takes up about 50% of your brain power. That’s more than any of your other senses. We, as humans, heavily rely on our vision for pretty much everything we do.

As your brain becomes able to retain more information, you will need to re-read the same text less often.

Reading faster and more efficiently drastically cuts down on the stress your eyes and brain suffer while researching, writing, and doing similar work, especially when you are mentally digesting new information.

To summarize, by improving your reading efficiency and training your brain to better retain information, your productivity should increase.

Bionic Reading Chrome Extension

You can get the Bionic Reading extension for Chrome on the Chrome Web Store. See the below image:

Bionic Reader 2
Adding Bionic Reading Chrome extension

At the top of a Chrome window, click the Menu icon (the 3 dots) to open the Menu. Now, click More Tools > Extensions to view the extension. See the following image:

Bionic Reader 3
Bionic Reading Chrome extension

After installing it, you can manage the Bionic Reading extension through the Extensions menu at the top-right of your window (click the little jigsaw piece icon). Refer to the below image:

Bionic Reader 4

Activate Bionic Reading

You are now ready to begin using the Bionic Reading extension! When you want to activate it on any given webpage, all you need to do is click the jigsaw piece icon at the top-right of your window and then click the Bionic Reading icon. To turn Bionic Reading off, do the same thing again. See the below image:

Bionic Reader 5
Bionic Reading example

Everything is removed from the web page but the text. That’s all there is to it! Start saving your energy for tougher tasks by letting Bionic Reading do the heavy visual lifting.

Disclaimer

Technology is always changing and rarely is there static tech for smartphones and desktops. Thus, the contents of this post are only valid at the time of writing. Blog posts older than six months may have directions incompatible with your device or OS. Hopefully, older post content will continue to work as advertised. Thank you for reading TechSavvy.Life for Technology at Work For You.

Quote For the Day

I would like to die on Mars. Just not on impact.

Elon Musk

Tweet Info

That’s it. Please feel free to share this post! One way to share is via Twitter.

Just click the Tweet icon below. This will launch Twitter where you click its icon to post the Tweet.

Checkout TechSavvy.Life for blog posts on smartphones, PCs, and Macs! You may email us at contact@techsavvy.life for comments or questions.

I Would Like to Hear From You

Please feel free to leave a comment. I would love to hear from you. Do you have a computer or smart device tech question? I will do my best to answer your inquiry. Just send an email to contact@techsavvy.life. Please mention the device, app, and version you are using. To help us out, you can send screenshots of your data related to your question.

Author’s E-Book

You can access the e-book from a Kindle device, the Kindle App for the desktop or smartphone, which is a free app.

The author’s Vietnam eBook on the Battle for Tra Bong Vietnam: Events and Aftermath

Using a Keyboard Shortcut to Clear Your Browser History

Want to clear your browser history quickly? There’s a keyboard shortcut for that. It works in any browser, including Google Chrome, Apple Safari, Microsoft Edge, and Mozilla Firefox (on both Windows PCs and Macs.)

RAYMOND OGLESBY @RaymondOglesby2
May 30, 2023

This is for popular browsers on a PC or Mac

Want to clear your browser history quickly? There’s a keyboard shortcut for that. It works in any browser, including Google Chrome, Apple Safari, Microsoft Edge, and Mozilla Firefox (on both Windows PCs and Macs.)

Depending on your web browser of choice, you can speed things up in the future by activating the Clear button with a few keystrokes. You may have to tab through the interface to select the Clear button before hitting Enter.

Here’s how it works on a few popular browsers on a Windows 10 or Windows 11 PC:

  • Google Chrome: Press Ctrl+Shift+Delete and press Enter.
  • Mozilla Firefox: Press Ctrl+Shift+Delete and press Enter.
  • Microsoft Edge: Press Ctrl+Shift+Delete and press Enter.

You can now configure exactly what you want to delete. Your browser will remember the settings you pick here, so you will only have to set this up once.

You can pick a time range, or history from a time period like the last hour, last 24 hours, last week, or from all time. You can also pick the types of data: browsing history, download history, cookies, cached files, and more.

When you are done, click the Clear data or Clear now button. Refer to the below image for Chrome:

Clear Chrome 1
Selecting to Clear data in Chrome

Incognito Mode

In the future, you can eliminate the need to clear your browser history by browsing in a private-browsing mode, like Incognito Mode in Chrome. You will just have to close the private-browsing window, and your browser will immediately forget the history associated with your private browsing.

You can use keyboard shortcuts to open and close a private-browsing mode window, too.

  • Google Chrome: Press Ctrl+Shift+N
  • Mozilla Firefox: Press Ctrl+Shift+P
  • Safari or Chrome on a Mac: Press Command instead of Ctrl; for example, press Shift+Command+N.

When you are done, press Ctrl+W to close a single tab or Ctrl+Shift+W to close an entire window. (On a Mac, press Command instead of Ctrl.)

Just remember that Incognito Mode does not offer complete privacy online. It only prevents your web browser from storing your browsing history locally. You may want to combine it with a VPN to boost your online privacy.

Disclaimer

Technology is always changing and rarely is there static tech for smartphones and desktops. Thus, the contents of this post are only valid at the time of writing. Blog posts older than six months may have directions incompatible with your device or OS. Hopefully, older post content will continue to work as advertised. Thank you for reading TechSavvy.Life for Technology at Work For You.

Quote For the Day

Knowledge is of no value unless you put it into practice.

Anton Chekhov

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I Would Like to Hear From You

Please feel free to leave a comment. I would love to hear from you. Do you have a computer or smart device tech question? I will do my best to answer your inquiry. Just send an email to contact@techsavvy.life. Please mention the device, app, and version you are using. To help us out, you can send screenshots of your data related to your question.

Author’s E-Book

You can access the e-book from a Kindle device, the Kindle App for the desktop or smartphone, which is a free app.

The author’s Vietnam eBook on the Battle for Tra Bong Vietnam: Events and Aftermath

Amazon RxPass for Your Prescriptions

Hot on the heels of shutting down the AmazonSmile charity platform, a new add-on to Amazon Prime has been revealed. It aims to fill prescriptions for generic medications for one low monthly price.

RAYMOND OGLESBY @RaymondOglesby2
May 11, 2023

Hot on the heels of shutting down the AmazonSmile charity platform, a new add-on to Amazon Prime has been revealed. It aims to fill prescriptions for generic medications for one low monthly price.

This is for devices using Amazon

Amazon already runs a pharmacy through its online store, bolstered by the purchase of PillPack in 2018, but now the company is going a step further. Instead of buying each drug individually, Amazon is launching an optional subscription called RxPass, priced at $5 per month in the United States. No health insurance is required, but most (if not all) of the medications are controlled substances that require a prescription from a doctor.

RxPass does not cover every drug Amazon sells, but it does provide access to “commonly prescribed generic medications that treat more than 80 common health conditions.” There’s a full list on the RxPass website (scroll down to see the list), which includes anti-inflammatory drugs like Piroxicam and Naproxen, nine medications for high blood pressure and cardiac dysrhythmias, and even some drugs for treating Parkinson’s disease.

The new subscription could potentially save some people a lot of money, but there is a darker side to RxPass. CNN reports the subscription is almost certainly a loss leader for Amazon, meaning it’s intended to maintain subscriptions to Amazon Prime rather than be self-sustaining. You are probably going to be less likely to cancel Amazon Prime on the next price hike if it’s responsible for your access to critical medication, and Amazon’s FAQ page says canceling Prime will also cancel RxPass.

Disclaimer

Technology is always changing, and rarely is there static tech for smartphones and desktops. Thus, the contents of this post are only valid at the time of writing. Blog posts older than six months may have directions incompatible with your device or OS. Hopefully, older post content will continue to work as advertised. Thank you for reading TechSavvy.Life for Technology at Work For You.

Quote For the Day

We live in a society exquisitely dependent on science and technology, in which hardly anyone knows anything about science and technology.

Carl Sagan

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That’s it. Please feel free to share this post! One way to share is via Twitter.

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I Would Like to Hear From You

Please feel free to leave a comment. I would love to hear from you. Do you have a computer or smart device tech question? I will do my best to answer your inquiry. Just send an email to contact@techsavvy.life. Please mention the device, app, and version you are using. To help us out, you can send screenshots of your data related to your question.

Author’s E-Book

You can access the e-book from a Kindle device, the Kindle App for the desktop or smartphone, which is a free app.

The author’s Vietnam eBook on the Battle for Tra Bong Vietnam: Events and Aftermath

What is the New Rapid Response from Apple

Rapid Security Responses are a new software release for iPhone, iPad, and Mac. They deliver important security improvements between software updates — for example, improvements to the Safari web browser, the WebKit framework stack, or other critical system libraries. They may also be used to mitigate some security issues more quickly, such as issues that might have been exploited or reported to exist “in the wild.”

RAYMOND OGLESBY @RaymondOglesby2
May 9, 2023

This is for iPhone, iPad, and Mac

Rapid Security Responses deliver significant security improvements between software updates.

Rapid Security Responses are a new software release for iPhone, iPad, and Mac. They deliver important security improvements between software updates; for example, improvements to the Safari web browser, the WebKit framework stack, or other critical system libraries. They may also be used to mitigate some security issues more quickly, such as issues that might have been exploited or reported to exist “in the wild.”

New Rapid Security Responses are delivered only for the latest version of iOS, iPadOS, and macOS — beginning with iOS 16.4.1, iPadOS 16.4.1, and macOS 13.3.1.

By default, your device allows Rapid Security Responses to be applied automatically and, if necessary, will prompt you to restart your device. To check your device settings:

On iPhone or iPad head to:

  • Settings > General > Software Update > Automatic Updates

Then make sure that Security Responses & System Files are turned on. Refer to the below image:

Rapid 1
Security Responses enabled

On a Mac head to:

  • Apple menu  > System Settings >General > Software Update > Show Details button next to Automatic Updates

Then make sure that Install Security Responses and system files are turned on.

When a Rapid Security Response has been applied, a letter appears after the software version number, as in this example: iOS 16.4.1 (a).

Suppose you choose to turn off this setting or not to apply Rapid Security Responses when they are available. In that case, your device will receive relevant fixes or mitigations when they have included in a subsequent software update.

Source: Apple Support

Disclaimer

Technology is always changing and rarely is there static tech for smartphones and desktops. Thus, the contents of this post are only valid at the time of writing. Blog posts older than six months may have directions incompatible with your device or OS. Hopefully, older post content will continue to work as advertised. Thank you for reading TechSavvy.Life for Technology at Work For You.

Quote For the Date

Even in such technical lines as engineering, about 15% of one’s financial success is due one’s technical knowledge and about 85% is due to skill in human engineering, to personality and the ability to lead people.

Dale Carnegie

Tweet Info

That’s it. Please feel free to share this post! One way to share is via Twitter.

Just click the Tweet icon below. This will launch Twitter where you click its icon to post the Tweet.

Checkout TechSavvy.Life for blog posts on smartphones, PCs, and Macs! You may email us at contact@techsavvy.life for comments or questions.

I Would Like to Hear From You

Please feel free to leave a comment. I would love to hear from you. Do you have a computer or smart device tech question? I will do my best to answer your inquiry. Just send an email to contact@techsavvy.life. Please mention the device, app, and version you are using. To help us out, you can send screenshots of your data related to your question.

Author’s E-Book

You can access the e-book from a Kindle device, the Kindle App for the desktop or smartphone, which is a free app.

The author’s Vietnam eBook on the Battle for Tra Bong Vietnam: Events and Aftermath

How to Check if Your Smartphone Has 5G

With 5G frequently being portrayed as a game-changer in cellular technology, you may wonder: is my phone 5G?

RAYMOND OGLESBY @RaymondOglesby2
May 4, 2023

This is for Android and iPhone. Screenshots are from Android and iPhone Pro 14 running iOS 16+

With 5G frequently being portrayed as a game-changer in cellular technology, you may wonder: is my phone 5G? Let’s find out in a few simple steps.

5G Explained

5G, a successor to 4G, is a moniker used to describe the fifth-generation cellular network technologies used by carriers worldwide. It comes with a promise of faster data speeds, greater bandwidth, and reduced latency than previous-generation cell networks. So if you use 5G on your phone, you should be able to download content faster, stream high-definition movies and TVs without buffering, play online video games without connectivity issues, and do much more.

But like any new major technology, it needs new hardware. Carriers are upgrading hardware on their end to deliver 5G networks, and as a consumer, you need a 5G-compatible phone to enjoy its benefits. Any 5G compatible phone has specialized hardware, such as newer cellular modems that can connect to the 5G networks. So how do you check if you have a 5G phone?

How to Know if Your Smartphone Has 5G

As of March 2023, pretty much all new high-end and mid-range phones being launched can use a 5G network. And the same is true for quite a few budget phones as well. But if you are unsure whether your phone is 5G, it’s pretty easy to check.

But remember, apart from having 5G hardware, a phone must be certified to work on a carrier’s 5G network. So if your 5G phone did not come certified to work on your carrier, it would need that certification, which often accompanies a software update to enable carrier support. Otherwise, you will not be able to use 5G on your device.

Is My iPhone 5G Compatible

Apple has included 5G hardware in every iPhone shipped since iPhone 12 series, including the iPhone SE (3rd gen). So if you own iPhone 12 series or newer, your phone is 5G-compatible. Apple’s relatively simple iPhone lineup makes knowing if your iPhone is 5G compatible easy. But as mentioned earlier, it’s not as simple as having 5G hardware in the phone; you also need the necessary software to support your carrier.

To check if your iPhone can work with your carrier’s 5G networks, first, navigate to:

Settings > Mobile Data > Mobile Data Options > Voice & Data

Or

Settings > Cellular > Cellular Data

If you do not see either one, go back one screen. You may see that you have an eSIM. The Cellular Data option will point to Primary or Secondary. Under eSIMs section, tap the corresponding option. Refer to the below image:

iPhone 5G 1
Selecting your Primary option

Next, tap the Voice & Data option. See the below image:

iPhone 5G 2
Selecting Voice & Data option

Now, if you see 5G Auto or 5G On options listed, your iPhone can work with your carrier’s 5G networks. But if only LTEor 3G options are listed, your iPhone will not work with your mobile operator’s 5G network. See the following image:

iPhone 5G 3
Your iPhone supports5G

In case you own an iPhone 12 series or newer iPhone, but there is no 5G on the Voice & Data page for your carrier, you will have to wait for Apple to update iOS to include the necessary support for your cell carrier.

What is 5G+

If you happen to be lucky enough to see this symbol in your status bar, you have access to a multi-gigabit connection. 5G+ indicates you’re connected to a mmWave 5G NR tower, short-range radios that deliver breakneck speeds. Performing a speed test will reveal download speeds of 1–3 Gbps.

Is My Android 4G or 5G Compatible

The process of checking 5G compatibility on an Android phone is similar to iPhone, but given the diverse nature of Android handsets, the options and their location in the phone software can differ depending on your device manufacturer.

So if you own an Android phone, you can confirm whether your phone is 4G or 5G by navigating to:

Settings > Network & internet > SIMs > Preferred Network Type

If you find 5G listed as one of the options, then your phone supports 5G. Otherwise, see if you have 4G or LTE listed; their presence will indicate support for 4G. Refer to the below image:

Android 5G
Your Android phone supports 5G

However, if you do not see 5G option on your phone even though it’s marketed as a 5G phone by the manufacturer, it’s not currently certified to support 5G on your carrier. You will have to wait for the phone manufacturer to release a software update adding the necessary support, or it’s possible your phone supports some 5G bands, but not the ones used by your mobile operator.

Another way to confirm 5G support on your Android phone is to check its specifications on the manufacturer’s website. But this will only tell you whether your phone has 5G hardware or not. For carrier-specific compatibility, the previously-mentioned method is the best way.

Is 5G In My Area

5G compatibility is only one part of the equation when it comes to enjoying 5G data speeds and other benefits. You will also need 5G network coverage at your location. As of 2023, 5G networks are still being deployed in the US, so not every city or town has extensive 5G coverage. But carriers are gradually rolling out 5G networks, so the places that do not have 5G coverage right now may get it in the coming months or years.

If you want to check if your carrier offers 5G in your area, the best way is to contact them directly. You can call their customer service or ask a representative at their store. Alternatively, you can check the network coverage maps available on their websites. All three major carriers in the US—AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon—allow you to check their 5G and 4G coverage on their website. You can even search your address or zip code for coverage information.

Disclaimer

Technology is always changing and rarely is there static tech for smartphones and desktops. Thus, the contents of this post are only valid at the time of writing. Blog posts older than six months may have directions incompatible with your device or OS. Hopefully, older post content will continue to work as advertised. Thank you for reading TechSavvy.Life for Technology at Work For You.

Quote For the Day

Technology is both a tool for helping humans and for destroying them. This is the paradox of our times which we’re compelled to face.

Frank Herbert

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Checkout TechSavvy.Life for blog posts on smartphones, PCs, and Macs! You may email us at contact@techsavvy.life for comments or questions.

I Would Like to Hear From You

Please feel free to leave a comment. I would love to hear from you. Do you have a computer or smart device tech question? I will do my best to answer your inquiry. Just send an email to contact@techsavvy.life. Please mention the device, app, and version you are using. To help us out, you can send screenshots of your data related to your question.

Author’s E-Book

You can access the e-book from a Kindle device, the Kindle App for the desktop or smartphone, which is a free app.

The author’s Vietnam eBook on the Battle for Tra Bong Vietnam: Events and Aftermath