Rick's Daily Tips

Q&A: Are Chromebooks safer than Windows laptops?

Posted on March 13, 2026

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Question from Patsy: My friend just bought a Chromebook after the salesman at the computer store told her they are safer to use than Windows computers.

Among other things, he said it’s impossible for a Chromebook to catch a virus.

I’d just like to know if you agree with him because I’m needing to get a new laptop myself.

So, are Chromebooks really safer than Windows laptops? [Read more…]

Why you need a ‘Whole House’ surge suppressor

Posted on March 12, 2026

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If your home is like most others these days it probably has surge suppressors plugged into the outlets that are powering a sensitive electronic device.

And some homes have one plugged into every outlet.

These portable surge suppressors are fine for protecting your computer equipment, flat panel TVs and other devices from moderate power surges.

However, if your incoming power line gets struck by lightning or a strong power surge you will likely be replacing many of those items the very next day. [Read more…]

How to find out if a website that won’t load is really down

Posted on March 11, 2026

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Have you ever tried visiting a website and have it refuse to load, yet find out later that your friends could get to it just fine?

That happens more often than you think, and it’s quite frustrating to say the least.

There are several reasons why your browser might not be able to load a given web page, some of which are completely out of your control. Here are some of the most common reasons why a page won’t load: [Read more…]

Q&A: Does clicking “I’m not a robot” really prove you’re not a bot?

Posted on March 11, 2026

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Question from Seth: Lots of the forms I see on websites have a button that I have to click on to prove that I’m a human and not a robot.

My question is how does this prove I’m is not a robot?

Wouldn’t it be easy for a hacker to program a bot to pretend to be a human by recognizing the button from the page code and “clicking” on it? [Read more…]