Rick's Daily Tips

Q&A: Are SSDs just as reliable as hard drives?

Posted on February 19, 2026

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Question from Wesley: Hi, Rick. I hope you’re doing well.

I recently read that you can speed up your computer by replacing the hard drive with a much faster solid state drive (SSD).

I’m leaning towards doing this but I have one concern that’s holding me back.

I’m worried that an SSD might not be as reliable as a hard drive, and I really can’t afford to lose my files if it were to crash on me.

What’s your opinion on this? Are SSDs as reliable as hard drives? [Read more…]

Scam alert: Beware emails that link to a login page

Posted on February 18, 2026

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If you ever get an email that appears to be from your bank or some other online service saying you need to click a link in the email to log in to your account and update your personal information, don’t do it.

These types of emails are almost always fakes. And even the rare few that are legitimate should never be trusted.

ALL such emails should be assumed to be malicious, regardless of how authentic-looking they are. [Read more…]

Scam alert: Beware this dangerous ‘CVS Gift Card’ scam

Posted on February 17, 2026

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As you probably know, scammers love to target the customers of popular retail establishments by sending out fake “offers” in those company’s names.

The Lowes and Target scams (and several others) make the rounds at least once a year so most folks nowadays know to simply ignore them, but now another recurring retailer-related scam making the rounds once again.

[Read more…]

FYI: You don’t have to pay sales tax on gift cards

Posted on February 16, 2026

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Gift cards are very popular as birthday, anniversary, and holiday gifts, and for good reason…

They virtually guarantee that your money will end up buying something the recipient will like.

If you plan to buy gift cards to give away as gifts (or even to purchase something for yourself), make sure the cashier doesn’t try to charge you sales tax on the purchase of the card. [Read more…]