There’s a decent chance that you found this post through social media. Most of us today use some form of social media: Instagram, Facebook, X/Twitter, TikTok, and a few others. There are other platforms that we need to consider when we explore today’s topic of platform risk. We use online marketplaces like Amazon and other…
I’ve heard several friends call social media “the new town square” — a big public space where anyone can say anything. Is it, though? Facebook, X/Twitter, YouTube, and TikTok aren’t public parks that a city runs. They’re privately owned spaces run to pay dividends to their shareholders. That means the people who own and operate…
In the past year, we’ve seen a pattern emerging. As you’re typing in a box, the application tries to finish your sentence. You may have interacted with a chatbot on a website. Your browser’s search bar seems to “understand” what you meant, not just what you typed. These moments are all powered by the same…
Have you ever looked at something and wanted to capture a close-up image of it? I mean, really close-up — like “macro” style? You’ve seen the photos of bugs so tight you can see the hairs on their legs. That’s true macro photography. It usually requires a dedicated macro lens, which a casual photographer is…
You send and receive emails, often with multiple accounts. You may make use of “cloud storage” for your phone photos and backups. Where do these things live? Where, exactly, is “the cloud?” The answers to these and many other questions lie in data centers. Before we go any deeper, though, we need to understand what…
One of our vacations gave us an opportunity to spend some time in the woods. That’s not terribly surprising, because we love the woods and forests. This particular time, I was leaning against a tall pine tree, and I pointed my camera up toward the sky. There were oaks around us as well, and several…
I’m going to try to do another weekly photography challenge. I’ve started these before and forgotten to continue, or hit a roadblock, or something else kept me from completing it. I’m willing to try again. Week one’s challenge is Eye Lines. Get your subject to direct the eyes of the audience with their eyes. What…
It’s difficult for me to be idle. The closest I come to enjoying idle time is after supper when I settle in to veg on videos. Right up till that time, I’m almost always doing something productive. I kind of take it to a ridiculous extreme. I know I’m not alone in this. We tend…
I looooove me some chocolate chip cookies. I also have a deep affection for Pepperidge Farm Chessmen and homemade shortbread. You know what other kinds of cookies I like? I like some kinds of computer cookies. Those aren’t sugar cookies that I baked in the shape of a laptop, but that’s something I may need…
Did you know that data storage media has a shelf life? Yep, it does; our current methods of storing data can all degrade within decades. For most of us, that’s probably “good enough.” I mean, I really don’t expect my grandchildren to put the same value on the data I’m storing that I do. But…
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