Hey there! It’s me, someone else, with a few more password security details for you! As a follow up to last week’s post, Staying Safe: The Password Security Challenge, I thought I’d pop in and give you a few additional tips on how to stay safe on the web. There are two things I want to cover in this little addendum. The first additional thing I think is important to note about password security: Do not, and I repeat, do not use the same password across multiple services. Sure, I doubt a huge company like Google or Facebook is going to risk their credibility trying to hack into your...

I’ve got four computers in my house. A little excessive, I know, but when you spend ALL day writing about computer parts, it can be tough to keep your wallet closed. I’m proud to say however, that each of my computers, whether built or bought, was chosen carefully in answer to the question, “how much computer do I need?” While, in my case, the better question was probably, “how many computers do I need?” the approach has served me well. The idea is to identify how much money you need to spend in order to get a computer that will meet your needs, and not a hair more. Sure, grandma could...

When you’re a college student, your computer means lots of different things to you. It’s your friend when you’re bored, giving you a portal to the internet as you pass the time in the library. It’s your trusty study buddy, where all your notes are and where you collaborate with teachers and classmates. It’s the glow in your room, watching over you while you sleep. Your whole entire life is on that thing. All your Facebook posts. Your folder of .gif files you found on Tumblr. That folder on your desktop called “Personal Goals” that’s totally not fooling...

Since it’s not too nice to just sit here all day and plug our own products in blog posts, it’s about time we share with you a couple of our favorite tips for staying safe online. Today’s tip is related to one of the most sacred things we possess in the technological world: our passwords. We try our best to think of a clever password that we’ll always remember and that nobody would ever guess…and then forget it about an hour later. I know how you feel. As it turns out…no, as these things often turn out, the whole world is just way, way overthinking this whole password...

“Oh, these wires will be fine bare for the moment,” you say. “Oh, I just need to test these real quick.” Or even, “I need to make sure it works before I bother with the electrical tape!” STOP. STOP RIGHT THERE. WRAP YOUR EXPOSED WIRES IN ELECTRICAL TAPE. PLEASE. Splicing wires together is great. It means you can hook up things to other things they’re not normally designed to hook up to. You can make your own adapters and cable gender changers at home, save money on extension cables, or even do more unorthodox things like hook your computer case fan up to a battery. But I’m telling you....

One of my favorite things to do is try to find new ways to bring zen to my bedroom. My bedroom is the place where I end up spending most of my free time, whether I’m doing homework or reading comic books or playing Xbox. Because of that, I’m very particular about the way I arrange my desk, nightstand, bookshelves, and whatnot. And the other day, the worst thing ever happened. My freaking desk lamp burnt out. Not just the bulb, the whole lamp. Dead. Gone. No more. Ceased to be. An ex-lamp, if you will. I was in a dilemma. I’m one of those people who needs a lamp. Like needs one. There...