Rick's Daily Tips

Tech Tips, Tricks and Tutorials

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Do you shop online? Save a bundle by using Amazon Coupons!

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Note: The links in this post are affiliate links.

Regular readers of this blog know that I’m a huge fan of Amazon, and I’m always eager to share ways you can use it more efficiently and save money while shopping there.

Today I want to tell you about Amazon coupons, a fantastic way to save a bundle off Amazon’s already great prices on tons of products.

It’s easy to find coupons for virtually any type of product you’re looking for, and even easier to use them once you find them. Here’s all you have to do:  [Read more…]

Warning: This malicious photo being spread on social media could ‘brick’ your smartphone!

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If it seems like the scammers of the world are getting more devious by the day, it’s because they are.

While Facebook, Twitter and many other popular social media sites are constantly being used as world-wide playgrounds for the miscreants, the ease with which they can can cause harm to innocent people grows by the day.

The latest dangerous scam involves posting a simple photo with accompanying text telling you to set the photo as your phone’s wallpaper image.

Just so you’ll know what to look for, this is the malicious image being spread that’s causing all the mayhem (DO NOT set it as your phone’s wallpaper!):  [Read more…]

How to force the Facebook app to open links in your device’s default web browser

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If you’re a regular Facebook user, you know that their developers love making changes to the way the Facebook app works.

Just about the time we get used to something, they go and change it on us.

For me, one of the most irritating changes they’ve ever made is forcing external links to open in the new in-app browser instead of my phone’s default browser.

I’ll admit that the in-app browser is fast, but it lacks much of the functionality of a typical stand-alone web browser.

If you too would prefer to have external links open in the default browser instead of the in-app browser, it’s very easy to make it happen. Here’s how:  [Read more…]

Q&A: How can I prevent my friend from accidentally deleting the files on a USB flash drive that he wants to borrow?

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Question from Tim:  I have three semesters worth of very important notes stored on a USB flash drive.

My friend wants to borrow that drive so he can use the notes to study for a certification exam.

I can’t afford to lose those files for any reason because they cannot be re-created or replaced.

I’m wondering if there’s some way to prevent my friend from accidentally deleting the files from the drive.

Unfortunately this particular flash drive doesn’t have a “write protect” switch. Any help you can provide will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance!

Rick’s answer:  [Read more…]

Scam alert: Facebook is NOT limiting your Newsfeed to the same 25 friends.

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If you’ve been a Facebook user for more than 10 minutes you probably already know that scams and hoaxes pop up all the time on there.

Well, the latest hoax to arrive on the scene is claiming that Facebook’s algorithm is limiting users’ Newsfeeds to the same 25 friends, and no more.

The supposed “fix” is to copy and paste the text of the hoax post onto your Timeline in order to “bypass the system”.

Unfortunately, the only thing posting the hoax on your Timeline will do is ensure that even more folks see it and post it on their Timelines.

The exact wording of this hoax varies quite a bit, but it typically looks something like this:  [Read more…]

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