What You Need to Know About Excelsior Pass FAQs, Windows 11, New Google Pixel Event and More

New York State maintains online information and answers to frequently asked questions (FAQs) regarding both, the Excelsior Pass and Excelsior Pass Plus (proof of Covid-19 vaccination) apps. While you may not have an immediate need to know more about the different versions of the Excelsior Pass, I would encourage you to take some time to review the FAQ pages for both pass types to become familiar with them. Links to the FAQ pages for both Excelsior Pass types follow…Excelsior Pass FAQ’s…www.tinyurl.com/yhohdjea, and Excelsior Pass Plus FAQ’s…www.tinyurl.com/yhnkbhh9

One FAQ topic that I want to highlight is the ability for you to add other people’s proof of vaccination passes to your own Apple or Android “NYS Excelsior Pass Wallet” app (and vice versa). This capability could come in handy if you were to be traveling or attending an event with others and you (or they) lose a phone, run out of battery power, or encounter another situation where someone’s pass(es) cannot be accessed or presented from their phone. In that situation, it could be helpful to be able to access one’s pass(es) from another person’s phone! If adding other people’s passes to your phone’s wallet app does not interest you, an easier and faster alternative way to get an Excelsior Pass from one phone to another person’s phone is to use the NYS Excelsior Pass Wallet apps built-in “share” feature. When you open a pass in its “details view” (by simply tapping on your pass within the app) you will find both a share and print button on the top right of your phone’s screen. From the share button, you can select one of the many ways (e-mail for example) that you can share your pass with other apps and services.

Windows 11 is Now (Sort of) Available

Windows 11 was officially released on Oct. 5, 2021. However, many will not be able to get it until late 2021/early 2022 via Microsoft’s “Windows Update” service. From what I have read on the topic, those who have newer computers will be offered the update before those with older computers. So those with older computers will likely have to wait (possibly for months) before the free operating system update becomes available.

Unfortunately, for those with older computers, there’s also a good chance that their computers will not meet Windows 11’s new minimum specifications. The minimum/required specifications for Windows 11 have been raised quite substantially over those of Windows 10.

To find out if your computer(s) meet Windows 11’s minimum specifications, you can download and run a free app on your computer called “PC Health Check”. The download is available near the bottom of the web page…www.tinyurl.com/ygd7shb6

The following pureinfotech.com article titled: “How to enable TPM and Secure Boot in BIOS for Windows 11” may help you enable two required features that may not yet be available and/or enabled on your PC…www.tinyurl.com/4nm6dk2c

Those of you who want to install Windows 11 now, and not wait for the upgrade to become available through Windows Update, can achieve that goal by visiting an Askvg.com article titled: “How to Create Bootable USB Drive to Install Windows 11.” Here is a courtesy link to the article…www.tinyurl.com/yfunkqxw

If you are interested in wiping out your current Windows installation and starting fresh, the following makeuseof.com article titled: “How to Clean Install Windows 11” will help you to achieve that goal…www.tinyurl.com/yzkxqd5w

Want to Watch the Google Pixel Fall Launch Event?

If you are an Android phone fan and want to learn what Google’s newest versions of their “Pixel” line of phones will offer, feel free to tune in to the product’s launch event that is scheduled to take place on Oct. 19, 2021, at 1 p.m. Eastern time. The event is pre-recorded and will be available to be viewed at your convenience (even after the scheduled event time) at the following web page…https://pixelevent.withgoogle.com

PDF24.org Offers Powerful and Free PDF Tools

I recently learned of an impressive, free, online (and offline for Windows users) PDF tool called “PDF24.” I recommend that you visit and explore the PDF24.org site because you will quickly learn that it offers many PDF file creation, modification, etc. capabilities. One capability that I want to highlight is its “Compare PDFs” tool that enables you to compare two different versions of a PDF file and be able to identify the differences between them. When I evaluated the Compare PDFs capability, I noticed that the tool was not perfect (some files were handled better than others) but the feature is still worth knowing about as PDF file comparison tools aren’t as common as PDF creation, split, merge tools. Do yourself a favor and visit PDF24.org. I am confident that you will be glad you did. Here is a courtesy link to the site…www.pdf24.org

Online Microphone, Webcam, and Audio Tests

Is your computer’s built-in microphone and/or your headset’s microphone working? How about your computer’s built-in, or attached webcam? Murphy’s Law says that you will find yourself asking the previous questions when you are late and rushing to join an online meeting. Fortunately, there is a nifty website called themictest.com that you can visit and run some quick and free audio and video-related tests. If the tests determine that things are working okay, great! However, if the tests do not work out and you need to fix a problem, the site offers some troubleshooting steps that should be able to help you fix the problem(s) right on the page where you run the test(s). I would recommend visiting the site, running the tests (to familiarize yourself with how to use them), and then bookmark the site for future reference. Here is a link to the site and I wish you success with your tests…www.themictest.com

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