Tuesday, March 10, 2020

we have tech for that

 My grandson has a college mid-term today or tomorrow. So, being the grandfather that I am I decided to send him a text and wish him luck. Yeah, I'm that techy Grandfather that's with it. Feeling confident in my skills I just pick up my phone and with a few swipes, a little text and an emoji, I send that MMS. Not even ten seconds after that my wife says, why are you sending me a message? Apparently I wished her good luck on her mid terms along with a few other people. Yup, a group message was sent. Opps guess I'm not as tech savvy as I thought. Oh well, the message could have been much worse. Note to self, never share gossip on a text message. I should be aware of that anyway as Judge Judy and others often use those text messages in their courts. I question the legality of that but it works on television anyway.
 I've been having problems with my computer lately and was getting frustrated. I have System Mechanic, that anti-virus and computer repair program. It seems to work fairly well for me. A few clicks and it does whatever it is doing. If nothing else it does make me feel like I'm doing something. But, that program didn't seem to be helping this time. I ordered the Fix me Stick. Maybe you've seen it advertised. Of course the ad popped up and for a limited time only I could get this device for just ten dollars. It usually sells for thirty nine  dollars or more! Well that's the hype on it anyway but I figured for ten dollars I'd give it a try. It arrived yesterday and I plugged it in. It ran for over seven hours, it was scanning my entire computer for malware. In the end it said it had found seven malicious software things on my drive. I looked out the window and there was nothing in the drive. Drum roll. But seriously, I clicked to have it remove and clean my computer. So far, fingers crossed, it appears to have improved the performance of this computer. I'm aware that these devices are aimed at people like me, and this time they hit the target.
 I saw an advertisement on television for a voice activated faucet. Yes, it's high tech stuff. Kohler offers this device. It operates in conjunction with Alexa or Google home. That is where the voice commands are processed and sent to the faucet. You can tell it to dispense one cup of water for a recipe or another set amount. It will turn on and off by itself. The ad says how it will free up your hands and make everything so much easier. No more measuring cups. And it can do it in liters as well, so no more converting from the metric system to the American system. I can't say I've ever had a recipe in liters or milliliters but it's good to be prepared. Then I thought about the kids in the neighborhood. Kids are pretty good at this tech stuff, how long before they are turning the water on and off. I've heard of issue with the nest thermostat and ring doorbell things being hacked by those silly kids, so cute. I'm thinking I'll just keep what I have. I also wondered what happens if the power goes off, no water for you! Well you can get it from the bathroom sink I suppose, these are designed for the kitchen, still, can the bath be far behind. Alexa, fill my tub to a temperature of ninety degrees. Ah, we are getting closer to the Jetsons every day. Where's the flying car in a briefcase? Maybe next year. In the meantime I'll just have to drive where I need to go. Of course I could just order whatever I need online, have it delivered, get a text message when it is at my door, and not worry about going out ever! I can work from home, on the computer, have my funds electronically deposited and spend those funds electronically as well. Hey it's 2020, we got this. Stay inside, breathing filtered air, and allow no contamination to enter our space. We have virtual reality if we really need to see things like the Grand Canyon of the Great wall of China. Yes, we have tech for that.   

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