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51
General Discussion / APCUG Free Wednesday Workshop for August 14, 2024
« Last post by rsutter on August 13, 2024, 07:29:00 AM »
Hello All,
The information that follows is an announcement from SLO Bytes' parent group, APCUG
Ralph Sutter

August 14, 2024
WEDNESDAY WORKSHOP

9 am PT, 10 am MT, 11 am CT, 12 pm ET
 
Hard Disk Sentinel
Gabe Goldberg, APCUG Representative
Potomac Area Technology And Computer Society
and Washington Apple Pi Mac User Group
 
Microsoft Edge
Bill James, Vice President
Computer Club of Oklahoma City
 
Get ready to celebrate National Cybersecurity Awareness Month in October
Judy Taylour, President
Santa Clarita Valley Computer Club
 
Register here ? https://forms.gle/wFERDJkxMvAT2Rid9
 
After you click Submit, you will receive a pop-up acknowledgment of your registration. On August 13, after registration closes at 6 pm Pacific Time, you will receive the encrypted Zoom link.
 
Hard Disk Sentinel with Gabe Goldberg. HDS is a powerful/flexible multi-system hard disk drive (HDD) and solid-state drive (SSD) monitoring and analysis software. It finds, tests, diagnoses, and repairs hard disk drive problems, reports and displays SSD and HD health, performance degradations, and failures. HDS reports drive health, temperature, and values of S.M.A.R.T. (Self-Monitoring, Analysis, and Reporting Technology). It measures disk transfer speed in real time to benchmark or detect possible failures or performance degradations. It's the perfect data protection solution: it can prevent drive failure and SSD/HDD data loss with the disk health rating system, which is extremely sensitive to disk problems. I've used this for many years; it's avoided potential catastrophic failures. It's a bargain, and the vendor provides brilliant product service.
 
Many APCUG group members have used HDS since Gabe's September 2022 presentation, and I thought he should spread the word to those who weren't involved in an APCUG group in 2022.
 
This is the first in a series of presentations on Browsers.
Microsoft Edge with Bill James. Maximize your browsing experience with Microsoft Edge by exploring a variety of tips and tricks designed to enhance productivity, security, and ease of use. Whether you're a seasoned web surfer or new to Edge, these practical features and hidden gems can help you navigate the internet more efficiently.
 
Edge has a robust set of functionalities that cater to diverse user needs. Learn how to efficiently organize tabs, manage passwords, and use powerful tools like Collections and Immersive Reader. You will discover how you can unlock the full potential of your Edge browser and make your online activities smoother and more enjoyable.
 
Get ready to celebrate National Cybersecurity Awareness Month in October with Judy Taylour. Cybersecurity Awareness Month is a global initiative dedicated to educating people about online safety and empowering individuals and businesses to safeguard their data against cybercrime. The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) and the National Cybersecurity Alliance co-lead the campaign. In the face of large-scale data breaches and cyberattacks, this month serves as a vital reminder that there are simple, practical steps everyone can take to stay safe online, protect personal information, and contribute to a more secure digital world. Judy's presentation will highlight various resources to help your group celebrate this critical month.
 
We are looking forward to seeing you this Wednesday. Do you have a presentation you have given to your group? Please volunteer to give it at one of the WWs. Have you seen a really good presentation at one of your local meetings? Let us know. Thanks, Judy & John (jtaylour@apcug.org -- jkennedy@apcug.org)
52
Ed Bott, ZD Net: You can upgrade your old PC to Windows 11 - even if Microsoft says it's 'incompatible'.

https://www.zdnet.com/article/yes-you-can-upgrade-your-old-pc-to-windows-11-even-if-microsoft-says-its-incompatible/
53
General Discussion / Alan Raul August 4, 2024 Meeting Notes
« Last post by Alan J. Raul on August 03, 2024, 08:00:04 PM »
Morfec Power Bank 50,000mAh - 22.5W
https://www.amazon.com/Morfec-Power-Bank-Charging-50000mAh/dp/B0CHJVFJ4G?th=1
 
IAPOS Power Bank 40,000mAh - 22.5W
https://www.amazon.com/IAPOS-Portable-Charger-40000mah-Charging/dp/B0CDH4Z3JR/?th=1
 
UGREEN Power Bank 25,000mAh - 145W
https://www.ugreen.com/products/ugreen-145w-power-bank-for-laptop?variant=40361061679166
https://www.amazon.com/UGREEN-25000mAh-Portable-Charging-Compatible/dp/B0BJQ7F16T/

Winaero Tweaker allows you to customize the appearance and behavior of the operating system in a flexible way.
https://winaero.com/winaero-tweaker/

CrystalDiskMark 8.0.5 ? HHD/SSD speed test
https://crystalmark.info/en/download/#CrystalDiskMark
 
ThioJoe YouTube Shorts
https://www.youtube.com/@ThioJoe/shorts

LosslessCut - The Swiss Army Knife of Lossless Video/Audio Editing
https://www.mifi.no/losslesscut/
https://github.com/mifi/lossless-cut/releases
 
Easily Cut and Edit your Videos with LosslessCut for Windows, Linux and macOS
https://medevel.com/losslesscut/
 
The best free (or low-cost) tools for video editors
https://www.theverge.com/23602829/best-free-video-editing-software-open-source-tools-free-shareware-encoding
 
PC software pioneer Gary Kildall's life and mysterious death at a Monterey bar
https://www.ksbw.com/article/pc-software-pioneer-gary-kildalls-life-mysterious-death-california-monterey-bar/61548404

Are Expensive Memory Cards Really Worth It?
https://youtu.be/Eez2Gv6WQnk

Intel 13th and 14th Gen 'Raptor Lake' instability troubles: Everything you need to know
https://www.tomshardware.com/pc-components/intel-raptor-lake-instability-troubles-everything-you-need-to-know
https://duckduckgo.com/?q=Intel+13th+14th+Gen+CPU+fiasco+and+Intel%27s+response+that+is+less+than+optimal&ia=web


54
Hello All,
This is a re-post of an announcement that I received today from SLO Bytes' parent organization, APCUG
Ralph Sutter
----
July 24, 2024
WEDNESDAY WORKSHOP
9 am PT, 10 am MT, 11 am CT, 12 pm ET
 
Drew King's cell phone is broken. What is he to do?
Drew King, Webmaster
Sarasota Technology Users Group
 
Removing Bloatware From Your Android Phone
John Krout, Writer & Presenter
Potomac Area Technology And Computer Society
 
Introducing the Samsung Galaxy 7 Smartphone
Bill James, Vice President
Computer Club of Oklahoma City
 
Register here ? https://forms.gle/nZ6m19et36KXpUjE9
 
After you click Submit, you will receive a pop-up acknowledgment of your registration. On July 23, after registration closes at 6 pm Pacific Time, you will receive the encrypted Zoom link.
 
Drew King's cell phone is broken. What is he to do? Drew found himself in a predicament when his phone accidentally got submerged in his niece's swimming pool. With his cell phone damaged, he could not access his password manager for strong passwords or receive two-factor authentication codes.
 
Drew faced another hurdle: He needed to contact his mobile phone company to arrange a replacement through his insurance plan. He was at a location where only a Mac computer was available. Without his phone, he couldn't complete the two-factor authentication process required by his mobile company or access his email, which also needed the same security step.
 
To resolve these challenges, Drew takes us through his steps to fix his problem.

Removing Bloatware from your Android phone. Apps pre-installed on an Android smartphone or tablet by the phone maker or the phone seller are useless to you. They take up space in the smartphone, both in flash memory and on the phone screen, and divert your attention from the apps you need to use.
There are three ways to remove Android apps. This presentation will show you how to accomplish all three.
One method is the standard method, which works on most apps you install. However, a significant fraction of apps resist that method. A second method uses a zero-cost uninstaller app. A smaller fraction of apps resist that method, too. The third method is more complex, involves your computer, and is quite irresistible.
 
Introducing the Samsung 7 Galaxy Smartphone. Equipped with the BioActive sensor, it offers enhanced accuracy in tracking key health metrics, including heart rate, sleep quality, blood pressure, blood oxygen levels, and stress. It also features an Advanced Glycation End products (AGEs) index to evaluate various biomarkers, aiding in predicting the risk of diabetes and stroke.

Additional advanced features include an improved AI algorithm and the FDA-authorized Sleep Apnea feature, which detects potential signs of moderate to severe sleep apnea. The Irregular Heart Rhythm Notification (IHRN) proactively monitors for atrial fibrillation (AFib) signs. You can also record and monitor your ECG (electrocardiogram) data, save it to your Galaxy phone, and share the results with your doctors if needed.

The new AI-powered Energy Score feature provides a score from 1 to 100 based on your recorded data, including sleep and physical activity measurements.
 
55
General Discussion / Free APCUG Wednesday Webinar - Manual Partitioning in Linux
« Last post by rsutter on July 15, 2024, 09:04:53 AM »
Hello All,
I am re-posting an announcement that I received today from SLO Bytes' parent group, APCUG
Ralph Sutter
---
July 17, 2024
Learning Linux Wednesday Workshop
9 am PT, 10 am MT, 11 am CT, 12 pm ET
 
Manual Partitioning in Linux
Alan German, Ottawa PC Users? Group
 
Distro Review ? SilverBlue
Cal Esnault, Cajun Clickers
 
Troubleshooting Loss of Internet on Computer
Minimum Requirements for Running Linux
John Kennedy, East Central Ohio Technology Users Club
 
Register here ? https://forms.gle/mDA4NqUyydXyH5w78
 
After you click Submit, you will receive a pop-up acknowledgment of your registration. On July 16, after registration closes at 6 pm Pacific Time, you will receive the encrypted Zoom link.
 
Welcome to another Learning Linux Workshop. We hope today's presentations are helpful. Alan will answer one of our survey questions about partitioning a drive before installing Linux. John will answer another of the survey questions about the minimum requirements for running Linux. He will share several different Linux distros and show how little some of them need, perfect for older computers.
 
Cal will review an immutable Linux distro (something new is coming down the pike) and share the immutable "atomic" version of Fedora (the distro we featured last week). Learn what makes a distro immutable.
 
Many people in the survey asked about troubleshooting problems. John ran into a problem with his computer when he lost the Internet connection on his computer. He will talk about the problem and the steps he took to try to figure out the cause. Then, he will share his first workaround solution, the real cause of the Internet loss, and what he's currently doing to bypass the problem. 
56
General Discussion / Notes for the SLO Bytes Photo Group Meeting of 07/14/2024
« Last post by rsutter on July 14, 2024, 06:10:45 PM »
Hello All,
Here are my Notes for the SLO Bytes Photo Group that met on 07/14/2024

TOPIC: Curves
The meeting began with Ralph Sutter sharing the link to the photos taken by Alan Raul at the July 7th SLO Bytes Pizza Party
View the thumbnails at https://www.slobytes.org/digital/2024pizza/thumbnails/ and the fill resolution images at https://www.slobytes.org/digital/2024pizza/

Ralph continued with images curving objects: scissors, noodles, chiles, bananas and giant jacks. Sutter used the background removal tool in ACDSee 2024 Ultimate among other tools to edit his images

Alan Raul shot a variety of curved images around the Pismo Beach Premium Outlets which included his Toyota pickup, a Tesla car, bicycle, basketball, water and gas pipes and more. He showed curved neon lights found while walking around Pismo Beach. These images were all shot with his Leica Q3 without any modifications. He photographed a vase with embedded Abalone pieces given to him by his sister as a gift. This image was modified in different ways using Photoshop. His last image was a colored drawing with curves made with Photoshop.

Kaye Raul found curves in water pipes, glass vases, electrical insulators, jewelry and antique foot warmers

Stanford Brown noted curves in the landscaping that he created at home, from garden paths to coiled cats and planters. He also shared photos of the curves of the San Luis Obispo Airport

John Waller saw curving handrails, garden hoses, walkways, palm fronds, sundials, power lines and the foothills behind his property.

After the sharing of images, Sutter showed the processes that he used to create the Pizza Party Slideshow available on the club's web site.
The documentation is viewable at https://www.slobytes.org/digital/documents/2024-Pizza-Party-Photos.docx

Ralph also made a slideshow using ACDSee but did not upload it to the website since the web host does not allow videos.

The topic for August 11th will be Landscapes. The meeting will take place via Zoom beginning at 2:00 pm,
The meeting schedule for the remainder of 2024 is as follows.

  September 8
  October 13
  November 10
  December 8

See the Links page; https://www.slobytes.org/digital/links.html, for tutorials and other resources

Ralph Sutter
57
General Discussion / Free APCUG Wednesday Webinar - Invisible Apps and Passkeys
« Last post by rsutter on July 08, 2024, 12:44:40 AM »
Hello All,
What follows is a re-post of a message that I received today from SLO Bytes' parent group, APCUG
Ralph Sutter

July 10, 2024
WEDNESDAY WORKSHOP
9 am PT, 10 am MT, 11 am CT, 12 pm ET
 
Invisible Apps
John Krout, Writer & Presenter, PATACS
and
Passkeys
Al Williams, President, Willow Valley Computer Club
 
Register here ? https://forms.gle/doXr7Go9rDP8ujWy9   
 
After you click Submit, you will receive a pop-up acknowledgment of your registration. On July 9, after registration closes at 6 pm Pacific Time, you will receive the encrypted Zoom link.
 
INVISIBLE APPS with John Krout. Does your smartphone or tablet heat up for no apparent reason? Invisible apps may be the cause.
 
We have long used the Windows and Macintosh operating systems. When you run applications on those desktops, each running app is identified by its small icons at the desktop bottom, even when none of the application windows are visible.
 
Android and iOS do not provide that convenience. Clear the handheld device screen of apps, and those apps continue to run unseen. Especially if you are using a smartphone for the first time, you may have dozens of invisible apps running and are unaware of that.
 
Join us as we delve into the presenter's experience with invisible apps on an early handheld device and his first smartphone, an iPhone 5. This journey will help you understand why and how to use a modern Apple or Android handheld device to identify and exit invisible apps.
 
PASSKEYS with Al Williams. Passkeys are a joint initiative of Apple, Google, and Microsoft to improve authentication. Are they the same as passwords? Are others using them? Should I use them? With this presentation, Al will discuss all this and more.
58
General Discussion / Re: Raspberry Pi 5 No Audio
« Last post by rsutter on July 06, 2024, 02:44:12 PM »
Hi Doug,
In April of this year, I purchased 2 GMKtec Mini PC N100 computers at $150.13 each.  The units came with Windows 11 Pro preinstalled.
I posted the specs on my website at https://www.fullbean.com/computer/gmk/gmk.pdf
The purchase details are at https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CH81C4K3?th=1

This device has been performing well since then.
Ralph
59
General Discussion / Re: Raspberry Pi 5 No Audio
« Last post by Doug on June 28, 2024, 12:10:32 AM »
Ralph, FYI - I just noticed a rival to the Raspberry Pi that does have an audio plug.

https://www.gmktec.com/products/amd-ryzen-7-5700u-mini-pc-nucbox-m5-upgraded-version
60
Hello All
Today I received the appended message from SLO Bytes parent group, APCUG
Ralph Sutter


June 26, 2024
WEDNESDAY WORKSHOP
9 am PT, 10 am MT, 11 am CT, 12 pm ET
 
Automating Your Mac
Joe Kissell, Take Control Books
and
Avoid the Trash Heap: 17 Creative Uses for an Old Computer
How to turn off Windows 11's Start Menu Ads
Dale Harrington, MiCRO-PC
 
Register here ? https://forms.gle/9xswjVzcDqyY4Nng6
 
After you click Submit, you will receive a pop-up acknowledgment of your registration. On June 25, after registration closes at 6 pm Pacific Time, you will receive the encrypted Zoom link.
 
Automating Your Mac, Joe Kissell, Author & Publisher, Take Control Books
https://www.takecontrolbooks.com/
 
Joe's presentation is a practical guide for Mac users who want to work more efficiently. He demonstrates how to save time and effort and avoid unnecessary errors using automation techniques. The presentation is designed to be accessible and beneficial to users of all experience levels.
 
You can begin by making the most of productivity features such as Siri, Spotlight (for launching apps), and text replacement?and then move on to the more sophisticated automation tools built into macOS, such as Shortcuts, Automator, AppleScript, services, and shell scripts.
 
Avoid the Trash Heap: 17 Creative Uses for an Old Computer. Keep your old laptop or desktop! With some effort and creativity, you can convert it to a NAS, try a new OS, set up a security camera, and more.
How to Turn Off Windows 11's Start Menu Ads. Dale Harrington, Program Chair, MiCRO-PC-Mile High Computer Resource Organization
 
We look forward to seeing you this Wednesday. Do you have a presentation you have given to your group? Please volunteer to give it at one of the WWs. Thanks, Judy & John (jtaylour@apcug.org -- jkennedy@apcug.org)
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