Weekly Tech Tips and News for April 20, 2018

Finally! Spring has agreed to make its grand appearance here in the Midwest - just when it looked like we would skip Spring this year. I'm a little giddy just thinking about sunshine and 60 degrees, how about you? Something that doesn't make us giddy, are the occasional mysterious behaviors of our tech devices and some of the websites we visit. Have you ever wondered how those extra toolbars appeared in your browser, or where that new message you don't understand came from? Understanding "Dark Patterns" on websites will help you avoid accidentally installing widgets and programs you don't really want. Other helpful posts include what to do if your, or a friend's, Facebook account gets hacked, and what that Not Optimized for Your Mac message is about. If your computer is slow, and you're feeling brave, you may even try increasing your PC's memory - it's not difficult, you just have to find the right RAM stick and snap it in. Next are the G Suite related tips that will enhance your skill set. Finally, if you are running out of room on your iPhone, or want to make sure your photos are backed up and you don't have a Mac or want to pay for cloud storage, learn how to move your photos from your iPhone to a PC. Enjoy the warm sunshine while you broaden your tech knowledge.

• What to Do if Your Facebook Accounts Gets "Hacked"
• How Tech Companies use 'Dark Patterns' to Trick You
• What that "Not Optimized for Your Mac" Message Means
• How to Transfer Photos from an iPhone to a PC
• How to Upgrade or Replace your PC's RAM
• G Suite Updates:  Record Macros in Sheets and Better Printing in Sheets
• Google Document URL Tricks
• Create G Suite Templates with this Mind Blowing Trick
• Creating Moveable Digital Activities with Google Drawings + Slides

What to Do if Your Facebook Account Gets "Hacked"

What to Do if Your Facebook Accounts Gets "Hacked", from How-To Geek by Cameron Summerson
Have you every received strange message or post that is very out of character for one of your Facebook friends? This happens when their Facebook account gets hacked - meaning someone else has figured out the password and taken over the account. Here's how to spot it, and what to do next.

How Tech Companies use 'Dark Patterns' to Trick You

How Tech Companies use 'Dark Patterns' to Trick You, from How-To Tech by Justin Pot
This is a ploy used on pretty much any web interface that is designed to sell you something - shopping sites, games, free app downloads, etc, and often how you end up with applications or browser toolbars you didn't want. The embedded video has very clear examples, but of course by the end of it there's a plug for a VPN. Dark Patterns are something all of us need to be aware of, so we don't accidentally activate something we don't want.

What that "Not Optimized for Your Mac" Message Means

What that "Not Optimized for Your Mac" Message Means, from How-To Geek by Justin Pot
Basically you have a year for the app developer to issue an updated version of the app, or find a replacement.

How to Transfer Photos from an iPhone to a PC

How to Transfer Photos from an iPhone to a PC, from How-To Geek by Chris Hoffman
This will work for your iPad too, as long is it is new enough to have the smaller lightning charging cable.

How to Upgrade or Replace your PC's RAM

How to Upgrade or Replace your PC's RAM, from How-To Tech by Michael Crider
After you've had your PC for awhile and it has experienced several upgrades, you may notice it has slowed down. There are several reasons for this, but often it can benefit from additional RAM, or memory. It's not hard to do, and the process is described here, along with how to determine what type of RAM and how much you may need.

G Suite Updates:  Record Macros and Better Printing Options in Sheets

If you work with spreadsheets much, this will definitely be a time saver. If you routinely export data into a sheet, and then have to format it, you can easily record a macro do automatically do all that formatting for you. No programming skills are necessary. You can record a macro that automatically performs any routine tasks you normally do in sheets. You will also now be able to add printing page breaks and print on custom page sizes. Additional new features include adding checkboxes to cells, more options for row and column grouping, more pivot table options. Full details and instructions are in this G Suite Updates post.

Google Document URL Tricks

Google Document URL Tricks, from Learning in Hand by Tony Vincent
Have you ever needed to force your students to make a copy of a file you've shared with them? There is a simple way by changing the last word of the URL. That's not all you can do! Read the full instructions (with pictures) in this post.

Create G Suite Templates with this Mind Blowing Trick

Create G Suite Templates with this Mind Blowing Trick, from Shake Up Learning by Kasey Bell
Here's a twist on the previous URL tricks post. Instead of forcing users to make a copy, change the link to make the doc a template. This way those you've shared the file with get a "Use Template" prompt instead.

Creating Moveable Digital Activities with Google Drawings + Slides

Think hands on, graphic organizer type activities where students can move things around in the file.