Convert an Old Laptop into a Chromebook, Secure Password Help, Google Drive Tip, Apple Notes App and YouTube tips

Do you have an old laptop that is just sitting around, taking up space, and collecting dust? If so, consider converting it into a Chromebook! I’ve been curious about Chromebooks for years and just recently decided to act on my curiosity. The solution I used can be found here…neverware.com.

What is a Chromebook? Many of the videos you will find by visiting the following YouTube search results page answer that question… www.tinyurl.com/yakmlqbx

Personally, when I visited the above-mentioned Neverware.com site, I chose NOT to download and install the encouraged “Chrome OS Flex” product and instead decided to install the more stable CloudReady product (the free “Home” version). From what I have learned since making the above decision, today, I would go with the Chrome OS Flex option. Why? Because it seems that most people who are using Chrome OS Flex are finding it to be quite stable after all.

HIGHLY ENCOURAGED: If you want to learn more about converting an old laptop into a Chromebook, before getting started, please go to YouTube.com and search for some CloudReady installation-related videos. Doing this will help you better understand the process and what you’re getting yourself into. When you get to YouTube.com, search for “CloudReady install PC” or “CloudReady install Mac” AND/OR “install Chrome Flex OS PC” or “install Chrome Flex OS Mac” After doing the appropriate YouTube.com search for your situation, simply browse through the results to identify videos that look interesting and helpful and watch some of them. (You will be better prepared to proceed after watching some videos.)

In addition to watching YouTube videos, you can also find more help and information by visiting the following web pages…
CloudReady Community support page: www.tinyurl.com/y88xmu8a
Google’s “How to Chromebook” webpage: www.tinyurl.com/kfvr89ut

Note: I recommend that you also search YouTube for helpful tutorials by searching for the word “Tutorial” along with the following terms “Chrome OS” and/or “CloudReady” and/or “Chrome Flex OS”

My top frustration-reducing tip: How do you get the functionality of a right mouse click (like when you are using a mouse on a Windows computer), on a Chromebook? Answer: By tapping your touchpad once, WITH TWO FINGERS. This is one of the best tips for Windows users to be aware of, as it stumps and frustrates many new Chromebook users.

Want to extend your Windows computer display to a second (Chromebook) screen? If the answer to this question is “yes” or “maybe” please visit techwiser.com’s article titled “4 Ways to Use Chromebook as Second Monitor (Free and Paid).” Here’s a courtesy link to the article…www.tinyurl.com/2p9e44ye

How Secure are Your Passwords?

If you are not using a password manager that includes a secure password-generating feature, you can use a free tool located at security.org to help you create secure passwords. Here is the link to the tool…www.tinyurl.com/46nrwwzf

Are you interested in learning more about “password managers” (what they are and do.)? If so, the following link will lead you to a web search results page that contains links to articles that highlight and discuss password manager applications/services/options…www.tinyurl.com/y9bvtrbx

Google Drive tip: Google Drive direct link generator

If you use Google Drive, you should familiarize yourself with the process of sharing links to files that are hosted/located in your Google Drive (instead of using file attachments). Sharing links to files, instead of attaching files to messages, helps to reduce the overall size of sent/received messages as well as offering recipients more file management-related options. However, when you share links to files located in a Google Drive account, the links normally take recipients to a Google Drive web page where they can access the shared file. If you would prefer to share a Google Drive file in a way so that when recipients click on the link to the shared file, the file simply downloads, then you should familiarize yourself with the free online “Google Drive Direct Link Generator” webpage that you will arrive at when you visit this webpage…www.tinyurl.com/2p8pc8vd (I suggest you consider bookmarking this site for future reference.)

Apple’s iPhone/iPad ‘Notes’ App Tips

Being able to quickly take a note is something that all Smartphone users should learn how to do. Fortunately, there are many apps available to help you to achieve this goal. If you are an iOS device (iPhone/iPad) user, the included/free Apple “Notes” app is a capable tool that I would encourage all iOS device users to learn more about. In addition to being able to take simple text-based notes, the Notes app also provides additional note-taking-related features and capabilities that make the app more than just a simple note-taking app. If you are an iOS device user and would like to get the most out of your use of Apple’s Notes app, the following two articles are recommended reads…

1): An igeeksblog.com post titled, “28 Tips to use Notes on iPhone like a pro! (iOS 15 updated)” …www.tinyurl.com/2p85cd62

2) A webtrickz.com article titled: “4 Ways to Undo in Notes on iPhone Without Shaking” …www.tinyurl.com/y4hb2vs6

How Remotely Located People Can Watch A Synced YouTube Video Together

If you ever find yourself in a situation where you want to watch a YouTube video with others (who are remotely located), and you want the video to be in sync for all video watchers, the following makeuseof.com article titled “How to Watch YouTube Videos Together with Friends: 8 Ways” identifies several ways that the goal can be accomplished. Here is a link to the article…www.tinyurl.com/5dc2cyw3

While we are on the topic of YouTube videos, the following web page offers several YouTube URL-related tips…www.tinyurl.com/24hdcrrf (I think tips one and four are particularly useful.)

If you have any comments, suggestions, tips, or questions, you can email John at john@johnvrooman.com