Rick's Daily Tips

Q&A: Can a broken light pole fry a computer?

Posted on November 2, 2026

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Question from Elaine: I came home from work yesterday evening and the power company was replacing a light pole in the neighbor’s yard that had been broken off by a wrecked car.

It took several hours for them to get the power back on, and when they did my Dell desktop computer wouldn’t come on.

When I press the power button nothing happens. No noise of any kind, and no lights – nothing.

I know the outlet is working because I plugged a lamp into the same power strip and it’s working fine.

Do you think the broken light pole fried my computer somehow? And if it did, can it be fixed? [Read more…]

Warning: ‘Incognito’ mode won’t keep your online activities secret

Posted on November 1, 2026

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Lots of folks have started using their web browser’s Incognito or Private Browsing mode in an attempt to hide their online activities from prying eyes.

And with hackers, identity thieves, and even the NSA snooping into our online world, who can blame them?

Other folks who might have nefarious intentions also browse in Incognito mode in an effort to avoid being tracked down by the authorities.

The question is, does private browsing really keep your online activities private? Perhaps surprisingly, the answer is no. [Read more…]

How to keep from losing lengthy form data if your browser crashes

Posted on October 31, 2026

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Have you ever typed a lengthy email, blog post or other type of form entry, only to lose what you had written because your browser crashed, you clicked the wrong button or the web page timed out?

I sure have, and I can tell you that it’s no fun having to re-type everything!

Luckily, there’s a fast and easy way to prevent this from happening to you: [Read more…]

Monthly Tech Giveaway – November 2026

Posted on October 31, 2026

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November’s winner will receive a fantastic SentrySafe Fireproof and Waterproof Large Safe with Digital Keypad.

Your computer backup drive(s), your important documents, your expensive jewelry and your other valuables are worth protecting. This is an excellent way to do it.

All subscribers to the Standard edition of my Rick’s Tech Tips Newsletter have an equal chance to win.

Premium subscribers have two chances to win (their email addresses are added to the “pot” twice).

Not a subscriber? Just enter your email address in the sign-up form on this page.

Once subscribed you’ll be eligible to win each month’s drawing – starting with this month. Better yet, opt for a Premium subscription for double the chance to win!

The drawing for this month’s prize will be held on November 30 and the winner will be notified by email. The winner will be selected at random.

Good luck!

Here’s an easy way to avoid sky-high ATM fees

Posted on October 30, 2026

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Like most folks these days you probably enjoy the convenience of being able to pull up to an ATM and withdraw a little cash when you need it.

But it’s a pretty good bet that you aren’t all that happy with the fees you have to pay for that convenience.

If you’re lucky enough to have a bank that doesn’t charge their customers ATM fees, that’s great!

Otherwise you probably have to pay a fee every time you use a different bank’s ATM. [Read more…]