Facebook is 20 Years Old
Facebook, then called “TheFacebook”, was launched on 4th February 2004 by Harvard student Mark Zuckerberg and 4 others. Today, it has 2.9 billion monthly active users. In 2021, Facebook was rebranded as Meta with this new company owning the software products Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, WhatsApp and others. According to CompaniesMarketcap.com, Meta is valued at $469 Billion, making it the 7th largest company (at time of writing) in the world by market capitalisation.
Bard Become Gemini
Last time, I mentioned that Google had introduced a new AI technology called Gemini into the Bard chatbot. On the 8th February, Google rebranded Bard as Gemini. So, Instead of going to:-
bard.google.com
you can now go to:-
https://gemini.google.com
If you use the Bard URL above, it will now redirect you to the Gemini address.
Gemini is based on a Large Multi-modal Model (LMM) which handles images and audio in addition to just text. Having said that, I still can’t get it to produce an image, unlike Microsoft Copilot which I demonstrated last time – see last month’s blog for details:-
https://computerclub100.blogspot.com/2024/01/
Window Backup App
Windows 11 23H2 has a new Back up app.
If you look in the alphabetical list of apps in the Start Menu, you will find “Windows Back up”. Confusingly, because they have included a ‘space’, if you do a Start Search for “backup”, it does not find it! So, search for “back up” or just “back”.
The app currently does not do anything new, it simply brings together previously existing things, in particular, OneDrive Backup and the backup options in Settings. You can access the latter by going to Settings (Windows Key + i), Accounts, Windows back up.
Bear in mind that, if you backup/sync your files to OneDrive (which is the default when you set up a PC), you will need sufficient storage space. A free Microsoft Account gives you 5GB of OneDrive storage (NOT 15GB as I wrongly said at the meeting). If you subscribe to Microsoft 365, you will have 1TB (i.e. 1000GB) of OneDrive storage, which would be plenty for most people. See this Microsoft pricing information for more details:-
https://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/microsoft-365/onedrive/compare-onedrive-plans
Personally, I don’t subscribe to M365, so I turn off OneDrive syncing (right-click on the OneDrive icon in the System Tray and select Settings).
Note that the new Back up app does not offer a restore function, but you would have the option to restore from a backup when setting up a new PC.
For more details on using the Windows Back up app, see this Windows Central article:-
https://www.windowscentral.com/software-apps/windows-11/how-to-get-started-with-the-windows-backup-app-on-windows-11-september-2023-update
An alternative, arguably better, backup solution is available for free from EaseUS at:-
https://www.easeus.com/backup-software/tb-free.html
Whether you are using the OneDrive app to sync ('backup') files/folders or not, you can still access your OneDrive storage directly by going to:-
onedrive.com
and signing in with your Microsoft Account credentials. From here, you can download files/folders from OneDrive to your PC or upload files/folders from your PC to OneDrive.
Note that to have a 'backup', you must have at least two copies of your data. Storing data only on OneDrive is NOT a backup unless you also store that data on your PC or elsewhere.
iPhone – Stolen Device Protection
Stolen Device Protection is a new feature just introduced to the iPhone with iOS 17.3 which was released on 22nd January.
While iPhones are already quite secure, this adds an additional protection if a thief steals your device while it is unlocked. Previously, they would have been able to access the unlocked phone and remove your Apple ID and reset the device. Stolen Device Protection means that Face ID or fingerprint will now be required to access sensitive functions such as factory resetting the phone or passwords stored in iCloud Keychain - there is no fallback to using a passcode for these functions.
To enable this new function go to Settings, Face ID & Passcode and tap Turn On Protection. See this Ghacks article for more:-
https://www.ghacks.net/2024/01/25/how-to-enable-stolen-device-protection-on-iphone/
BBC iPlayer Restrictions
Linda drew this to my attention.
People who use a desktop or laptop computer to watch iPlayer will no longer be able to download programmes from 11th March. Any existing downloads can still be viewed until 8th April. This does not affect downloading by using the mobile app and you can still stream the programmes live on any device. See this BBC News article for more:-
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-68283165
The article suggests the BBC decided to restrict downloads in this way as a cost-saving measure. One use-case for downloading programmes would be to watch them later while travelling when you have no internet access - this is something more likely to be done on a phone or tablet, rather than a laptop and obviously would not apply to a desktop.
NHS App
Linda also drew this to my attention.
The NHS app was redesign in December last year – see:-
https://digital.nhs.uk/services/nhs-app/redesigned-nhs-app
This NHS Digital article suggests the redesign has moved functions around within the app, rather than introducing anything new. However, others thought that new functions were introduced.
The NHS app has similar functions to other health apps such as Patient Access and My GP. These functions include placing repeat prescription orders, booking/cancelling some appointments, seeing some of your medical records, etc. Some functions need to be enabled by the GP and may not be available for all patients.
Note that you can also use these services on the web.
For the NHS, go to:-
https://www.nhs.uk/
then click on Account and sign in with the same credentials used for the app.
For Patient Access, you can go to:-
https://www.patientaccess.com/
and sign in there with your Patient Access credentials.
Some surgeries use a secure messaging service called Patchs which you can access on the web at:-
https://patchs.ai/
Click on Login and you can sign in with either your NHS or Patchs credentials.
We had some discussion about the difficulties some people may face when trying to access medical services which increasingly rely on digital communications systems. While the digital route can be very convenient for many patients and potentially cost and time saving for the GPs, this should not exclude those who do not have access to the necessary technology or who are not sufficiently fluent in its use.
Reset Waste Ink Counter
Cherry used the WIC (Waster Ink Counter) Reset Utility for this on an Epson 342.
Inkjet printers have a waste ink pad which absorbs ink which is wasted when the print head is cleaned or wiped as it returns to its home position. After a period of time, these pads can become saturated and could then leak ink. To prevent this, printers have an internal counter which will alert you when the waste ink might be full. On certain Epson printers, this brings the printer to a halt. You could change the waste ink pads, but you will then have to reset the Waste Ink Counter to allow the printer to work again. The WIC Reset Utility works on some Epson and Canon models. You can run the free trial version to check if it works on your printer – this will reset the counter to 80%. For a full reset to zero, you need to purchase a Key for $9.99. This is a one-time key to reset one printer once only.
For more details and to download the WIC Reset Utility, see:-
https://www.wic.support/download/
For information on how to access and replace the waste ink pads for your particular printer model, search the internet and look for a YouTube video.
Next Session
Wed 13th March 2024 at 2pm by Zoom.
