Tony's Tech

First, an experiment

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Current tech

It’s been a while since I reviewed what tech I use on a daily basis and technology constantly grows and evolves. I’ll discuss not only the devices I use but also the significant apps I use regularly.

Artificial Intelligence

Probably the biggest single change in my tech repertoire is the inclusion of several AI apps. I use ChatGPT.OpenAI.com and Perplexity.ai many many times each day. Perplexity has become my default search engine and where I go to answer general questions. From simple questions like “what is olive brine made of?” to complex questions like “how does an internal combustion engine work?” to things that require current information like “who won the college football games that were played yesterday?” And I can ask Perplexity to give me an analysis of the stock market showing major indices and stocks that made major gains and losses. I tend to use the Comet browser which Perplexity makes available. It uses the same engine as Chrome so Chrome extensions work with it but it has Perplexity built in which makes using Perplexity quite easy - just type your query and Perplexity handles it

Whether I reach for ChatGPT or not depends largely on my mood. I can ask ChatGPT for the same things but I usually also include an instruction like “make sure you’re using the most recent information available - search the web".

I’m fortunate in that I pay for a subscription to ChatGPT at $20/month, but I get my subscription to Perplexity for free. If you have a Samsung phone, you can download the Perplexity app from the Samsung app store and get it free for a year. Otherwise, you can use Paypal to pay for it and you’ll get it for a year for free.

Laptop/Desktop

I have both a Macbook and a Windows desktop. I started using a Macbook before I retired because my company offered it as an option and I thought I’d give it a try. Now I find I use it many times each day.

I have a Windows desktop that I use to run my media server and to do my Zoom meetings. It’s a mini PC meaning that it has a much smaller form factor than a usual desktop (see https://www.amazon.com/s?k=mini+pc&crid=7K8P16DDD0T0 for some examples) They are generally less expensive and uses much less power than a typical desktop.

Headsets and ear buds

I tend to collect ear buds and headsets. It’s a foible, but to reduce costs, I generally pay less than $50 for any new device. I do not use any ear bud that goes IN my ears. What I use is generally called “open ear” in that they sit just outside the ear canal and direct sound into the ear. This makes it possible to remain aware of sounds around you. Bluetooth technology has continued to advance over the years. The most recent iteration is called Bluetooth 6.0. What does this mean in real life? It connects more easily, stays connected more reliably, and uses battery more efficiently. But don’t sweat over Bluetooth versions. Pretty much everything that’s NOT 6.0 still manifests the same characteristics as 6.0 devices just at a lower level. Battery life might only be 6-8 hours instead of 8-10 and so on.

I prefer two brands for daily use to listen to music and such - Soundcore and Truefree - and I get them from Amazon. They’re inexpensive, have great battery life, and each has an app that lets you change how you raise and lower volumes, skip tracks, etc.

For phone calls, I use Poly which used to be known as Plantronics. I prefer the Poly Voyager Legend (see https://www.amazon.com/s?k=poly+voyager+legend&crid=Y658S9RB7BC6&sprefix=poly+voyager+legend for a list of them). Currently they go for anywhere from about $70 to well over $150. I tend to go for the less expensive models and have never had any issues with them. My voice comes through pretty much regardless of background noise and I hear the other end quite well.

For Zoom meetings, I again prefer open ear headsets but they must have a boom microphone. I find the boom eliminates ambient noise better than any headset that does not have a boom, with the possible exception of expensive headsets. Here’s an Amazon search to show some examples: https://www.amazon.com/s?k=open+ear+headset+with+boom+mic.

Passwords and such

My password manager is Bitwarden (https://bitwarden.com/). I’ve been using it for several years and I’m quite happy with it. It handles all my passwords and passkeys as well as secure notes that I keep. It has apps for all platforms as well as browser extensions for all major browsers. Its free version will handle all of your basic needs, but for $10/year you get a one-time passcode generator as well as file storage. It’s open source so a paid subscription also helps support the developers. You can see the comparison of features for free and paid plans at https://bitwarden.com/pricing/

That’s all for this time

These are a few tech things that I use many times each day. If you’re happy with yours, by all means stick with them but if you’re looking for alternatives, check out mine. Don't hesitate to write to me if you have questions or suggestions for other items and topics.

As always, my intent is to help you understand the basics and equip you to search for more detailed information.

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