A Voice from the Eastern Door
A Voice from the Eastern Door
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By Shelly Palmer | May 21, 2016 I love Alexa, the Natural Language Processing (NLP) system in my Amazon Echo. She wakes me up every morning, she knows my schedule, she can control many of my z-wave and Zigbee compatible devices (switches, outlets, etc.), she can tell me the temperature and weather forecast, she can play any piece of music available on Amazon Prime, she can play me an “A” (via a skill called The Pianist), and she’s the perfect oven timer. I love her so much (and, as we shall discuss, “love” is an interesting way to describe...
Buffalo, NY – December 4, 2015 – Whoops! COPPA is not one of Santa’s eight tiny reindeer. It’s the acronym for the “Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act,” a law that gives parents more control over who collects information from and about their children. The rules apply to all mobile apps and websites, even those based at the North Pole. The Apple and Google app stores list more than 50 Santa-themed apps this year; children can watch Santa feed live reindeer, track his sleigh on Christmas Eve, or relay their electronic Christmas wis...
The secret to making a trip to the airport less stressful this Spring/March Break is planning and being prepared. The best way to be prepared is to know what is ahead of you. And downloading a flight tracker app can be your key to easy traveling. So before you even head to the airport, follow the advice of travel experts and use your mobile devices to access airline information online. There are many travel apps out there, but finding a good one to suit your needs can be time consuming. Most airlines offer their own apps, but if you flying on...
You have your smart phone; your tablet and you have your child who is under the age of five. Where do you go from there when it comes to handing them your technology and what they are going to do with it. First – you need to make a folder for them, they can recognize this with their name and your child(ren) will be know as “just their space”. Anything app that goes in there should be carefully looked over before you allow your child to open it – even if it come highly recommended by your best friend, teacher or local newspaper. There may be thi...
A vulnerability in Microsoft’s popular Internet Explorer web browser can allow a “remote, unauthorized attack” on users’ computers, the company announced over the weekend via a Service Advisory. Although it is working to fix the problem, the company suggests “workarounds.” Meanwhile, the U.S. Computer Emergency Readiness Team, a division of the Department of Homeland Security, is urging computer users to employ Microsoft’s Enhanced Mitigation Experience Toolkit (EMET) if possible, or temporarily switch to a different browser until an offi...
(April 23, 2014) If you've ever dreamt of being a time traveler like Doc Brown, now's your chance. Starting today, you can travel to the past to see how a place has changed over the years by exploring Street View imagery in Google Maps for desktop. We've gathered historical imagery from past Street View collections dating back to 2007 to create this digital time capsule of the world. Now with Street View, you can see a landmark's growth from the ground up, like the Freedom Tower in New York...
Microsoft Corporation is no longer providing support for Windows XP, and Better Business Bureau is warning consumers and businesses that they need to take immediate steps to secure their computers and data. Starting April 8, 2014, the company will not provide technical support or security updates for the 12-year-old XP operating system, or for its Office 2003 software suite (which includes Word, Excel, Outlook, etc.). This means users will become more vulnerable to computer viruses and malware. Some security experts have speculated that...
Author: Monica Peters, MoniGarr.com She:kon Monica, I’ve heard that my website must be updated to be responsive. What does that even mean? I thought my website already responds to visitors because it shows information to all visitors. I want to sound like I know what I’m talking about when I tell my web designer that I’m not going to pay a million bucks to make my website responsive. Nia:wen, Responsive in Akwesasne She:kon Responsive in Akwesasne, Websites must be responsive in order to show content in the most appropriate format for deskt...
Author: Monica Peters, MoniGarr.com She:kon Monica, What do you know about Halloween mobile apps? Nia:wen, Boo! She:kon Boo!, Digital Dudz is a free mobile app that helps you create spooky and cute Halloween illusions. Cut a hole in your t-shirt, tape your mobile device inside your t-shirt, and play the app. The mobile app lets you choose scary faces with moving eyes, gross wounds that show your inner guts, a beating heart, and cute Halloween special effects. Of course you will find tons of spooky mobile games and Halloween makeup tutorials wit...
She:kon Monica, What is the best way for my family to store and share our music and video files? We have thousands of files and we do not want to store them on our computers and laptops. Nia:wen, Too Many Files She:kon Too Many Files, It’s common for anyone to have tens of thousands of songs, videos, podcasts, movies, TV shows, books, apps, and more. A large media library could easily take up space on a 1 Terabyte external hard drive. Running iTunes from a 1 or 2 Terabyte hard drive might make it easier for your family to store and share f...
Author: Monica Peters, MoniGarr.com She:kon Monica, How can I put my own webpage on the Internet? I want to share my work online and become super famous. Nia:wen, Super Famous She:kon Super Famous, First you need to build your webpage. Second, you need to get your webpage hosted on the Internet. You can build a simple webpage with a text editor using HTML (hypertext markup language) or you can use web development and design software such as Adobe Dreamweaver. To host your webpage on the Internet, you need to also purchase web hosting after...
Author: Monica Peters, MoniGarr.com Dear Monica, I saw something on TV that showed a guy that tracks all of his health information with mobile apps. What do you know about it and how can I track my own health with mobile apps? Signed, Healthy in Akwesasne She:kon Healthy in Akwesasne, The «Quantified Self» is becoming more popular as more and more people become interested in tracking their own health statistics using mobile devices and other popular gadgets. Quantified Self refers to the practice of self-tracking any type of data that is a...
Author: Monica Peters Dear Monica, Each time a new computer specialist works on my computer, they seem to install their own personal favorite web browsers and anti virus software. What is your favorite web browser and why? Signed, Too Many Choices Dear Too Many Choices, We do have many web browsers to choose from (Firefox, Chrome, Safari, Opera, Internet Explorer and many others). I actually use the top four I listed here because I test the web apps I develop for all popular web browsers. People that are not developers are typically happy with...
Dear Monica, I heard that you host online training with video and screen sharing. I want to do that for my friends so we can learn how to do raised beading together. Can you tell me how to host my own online video conferences? Nia:wen, Bead Happy Dear Bead Happy, You have many options available, but I will suggest one for you and your beading friends. Google Plus Hangouts are a free, easy, and fun way for you and your friends to bead together. You will need a computer or mobile device with camera. You will also need to login to...
Dear Monica, Is it safe for me to use online password managers? I like to use them because I have a hard time memorizing all the different passwords I use. Also, is it true the government can access all of my passwords? Signed, Forgetful in Akwesasne Dear Forgetful in Akwesasne, Online bad guys want the most return on their investment, so they are more likely to attack online password managers instead of trying to steal one individual password at a time. Yes, it is possible for someone else to access your passwords and a quick google search...
She:kon Monica, I’m looking for endangered language infographics and have not found any that will work for my projects. Do you have any suggestions to help me find good infographics online or how to create my own? O:nen ki:wahi, Infographic Fan She:kon Infographic Fan, One of my favorite online infographics that provides details about the world’s endangered languages is found at http://visual.ly/endangered-languages?view=true. You can also create and share your own free infographics at this website using your own data. I suggest you also con...
Dear Monica, Every day I am receiving odd messages and requests to connect from military Generals and high ranking Colonels on Skype. They are looking for a girlfriend and I’m very upset because they are creeping me out and I don’t understand why they keep contacting me. How do they find me and what can I do to make them stop contacting me? Signed, Happily Married Dear Happily Married, Skype does have a very high amount of scammers that target females. The scammers typically make themselves appear to be high ranking military personnel and cla...
Dear Monica, I have three children hoping to go to college and I’ve heard rumors that I can save money on textbooks with the Internet and even attend big name University classes online. Is this true? How does it work? Signed, Education Investor Dear Education Investor, You will be able to rent or buy digital textbooks in the Google Play store very soon. iBooks also provides digital textbooks for some courses. EdX.org offers free online classes from most every big name prestigious University you can imagine. Khan Academy also provides awesome f...
Dear Monica, I noticed your television lets you use the Internet just like a computer. How did you do that? Sincerely, Curious TV Dear Curious TV, I use the Roku and you can find it at most any retailer. You can also find televisions that have Internet features included when you purchase them. Roku and similar devices are nice because they include a remote control and you can quickly find movies from Netflix and many other Internet content providers. You may want to consider the $35 Chromecast HDMI stick because it streams the Internet...
Dear Monica, I plan to buy a laptop soon. What should I look for? Signed, I want a Laptop Dear I want a Laptop, The answer depends on your budget and what you intend to use the laptop for. As a student & busy entrepreneur, I prefer the MacBook Pro because the tech support is awesome for anyone that is super busy. It’s actually a fun experience to go visit the Apple “Genius Bar” for technical support and I can continue focusing on my own work and studies. One of my friends is a super busy single mother and a $200 eMachine with Windows 7 provi...
Just about everyone has a mobile device and tablet these days. Here are a few apps that are awesome to use on a tablet. Instagram is great for documenting your life and sharing interesting views with your network of online friends. You can snap a photo or record video and upload it to Instagram. Filters and effects are also included. Social sharing lets you share with facebook, twitter, linkedin, and more. Kayak uses the full screen to show your travel itinerary and help you plan your trip with powerful search features. Action Movie FX is just...
The only antivirus I ever suggest to my friends, relatives, and clients is ClamWin AntiVirus from ClamWin.com. I’ve kept it installed on my own computers with Windows and never had a problem with it for many years now. It’s used daily by more than 600,000 people worldwide and it’s totally free to use. Clamwin never nags you to buy anything and the software developers frequently update the software to protect against new viruses. The website provides a ton of technical information, support, and developers can even download the source code to vo...
Big data refers to sets of information that are so large and complex that it’s difficult or even impossible to process it with the older technology of database management tools and applications. Capturing, curating, storing, searching, sharing, and analyzing data is a challenge, and can be impossible when the size of the data is always moving and includes a few dozen terabytes or petabytes. About 2.5 quintillion bytes of data are created each day from mobile devices, remote sensors, software logs, microphones, cameras, rfid readers, and w...
If you enjoy reading, you will want to take advantage of the many free cloud storage services including One.Ubuntu.com and DropBox.com, so that you can save and access your ebooks, news feeds, and articles from any computer or device, without being totally dependant on a specific computer. IndianTime.net provides a search box at the top right of the website so you can find articles anytime. Bloglines.com, CommaFeed.com, Pulse.me, and Skimr.co show a history of what you read and lets you mark articles as your favorites. News360.com imports your...
Dear Monica, Can you suggest any online coupon saving websites? Thanks, Enska Penny Pincher Dear Enska Penny Pincher, Don’t forget our local library in Akwesasne also provides clipped coupons. For the items that I purchase the most in our household, I actually go to the manufacturer’s website to find coupons or you can email them and ask for a coupon. I also go to the Apple App Store on my iOS devices and search for “coupon shopping” or similar, to find mobile apps that help me save money while shopping. I currently use GeoQpons, Coupons, and G...
