Rick's Daily Tips

Scam alert: Be wary of those “Watch out for this creep!” posts on Facebook

Posted on June 9, 2015

Facebook is a wonderful venue for sharing our thoughts, ideas and photos with our friends and loved ones, but it also has a very serious downside. It’s ridiculously easy for false information to spread like wildfire by “going viral”.

Just think of all the “Free Gift Card” and “Click and share to get Facebook to donate to this great cause” scams. We see them every day. And make no mistake about it, these are very serious scams.

But there’s another type of scam that routinely takes place on Facebook that is perhaps even worse. Some folks use Facebook to falsely accuse innocent people of crimes and infractions they didn’t commit. [Read more…]

Does your smart phone have an unlimited data plan? Better enjoy it while you can!

Posted on June 8, 2015

unlimited-data-plan It’s no secret that the major cell carriers are trying to ween customers off of their “grandfathered” unlimited data plans. I’m sure you have seen the commercials that are designed to entice folks to switch to one of the new “tiered” data plans.

While those new offers have indeed prompted many customers to give up their unlimited plans in order to qualify for the perks mentioned in the commercials, many more have stubbornly decided to stick with their current plans in order to keep taking advantage of their unlimited data allotments.

Well, I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but if you’re one of the folks who are still using one of those grandfathered plans (like I am), start preparing for the party to end before too long. [Read more…]

How to log in to multiple accounts on the same website with Google Chrome

Posted on June 6, 2015

A few months ago a reader asked me how to log into multiple Yahoo email accounts at the same time, and I answered that question in this post. In a nutshell, I advised her to use a different browser for each account.

Well, it turns out that there’s an even easier way if you use the Google Chrome web browser. An excellent Chrome extension called Multi-Account Login lets you easily log in to multiple online accounts on the same website by using nothing more than a single instance of your Chrome browser.

Here’s how to install and use the Multi-Account Login extension: [Read more…]

Apple recalls over 1/4 million Beats Pill XL speakers due to potential fire hazard

Posted on June 4, 2015

beats-pill-xl-speaker Apple has announced that they are voluntarily recalling over 1/4 million Beats Pill XL Speakers due to a battery issue that could potentially cause a fire.

About 222,000 of the recalled speakers have been sold in the United States and another 11,000 or so were sold in Canada.

If you happen to own a Beats Pill XL Speaker, you can refer to this page on the Apple website in order to determine whether it is affected by the recall or not.

If your speaker does fall under the recall, follow the instructions on that same page to arrange a return in exchange for either an Apple Store credit or a monetary refund via electronic payment. In either case, the amount of the refund will be $325 (US).

How to make Chrome the default browser on the Windows 8.1 Start Screen

Posted on June 3, 2015

If you’re running Windows 8.1, you’ve probably noticed that Internet Explorer is the default web browser on the Start Screen even if you have set Google Chrome as the default on the Desktop.

Or perhaps you haven’t even gotten around to installing Chrome at all. If you haven’t, I strongly recommend that you go ahead install it now and set is as your default browser.

The instructions below will walk you through the process of installing Chrome (if necessary) and setting it as your default web browser in Windows 8.1 – even for the Start Screen. [Read more…]