Firefox Web Browser Can Make the Internet Easier to Read

I’ve been having a lot of trouble seeing clearly when trying to read websites. The style seems to be small, pale grey fonts which are very hard to read. No problem for a computer, or other machines. I wonder if these sites which are hard to read just expect machines and not human being to read the information? Are they just looking for web traffic for marketing. Content doesn’t seem to be very kingly when you can’t read it. Anyway, that’s a bit off topic but the issue really frustrates me, personally.

I found a way to change settings in Firefox to make websites easier to read. It seems to be working, so far.

Go into your settings, click those three stacked lines in the right top bar of the web browser. Then Settings. From there you should be able to find the Languages section. See images below. Just click the "zoom text only" to turn that feature on. Then go into Advanced and set a minimum font size which your web browser should stick to when it opens web pages. The minimum font size may not work 100%. Some web developers choose to force font settings rather than letting readers choose what works for them. Again, likely valuing cosmetic looks instead of a readable site.

The zoom text only is great and has worked every time for me. Instead of enlarging the entire site, images and all, only the text is made bigger. So sites are not warping as much when I want to read them. Of course, this means zoom will not work for images now if you have been using it that way. But, I find it works well to open images in a new tab. Most of the time the image file is actually larger than the one used on the web page.

Zoom is a feature which allows you to increase or decrease either the size of a web page or the size of the text. This article explains how it works.

Source: Font size and zoom – increase the size of web pages | Firefox Help

Are NFT’s a Backlash to Grinding and Online Games?

I’m trying to understand about NFT’s (non-fungible tokens). The more I read the more this seems to be some kind of backlash to online games in which you work/grind/farm to get what is essentially a digital image or file, one copy of it, which you in fact do not own.

NFT seems to be a way to own something which you still don’t really own. You may have fought, worked, or otherwise feel you own it, but you did not create it so you have no copyrights to the original image/game/whatever digital file it is.

If the original artist does not create an NFT for their image and then agree to sell the rights along with the NFT, what does anyone who buys the NFT really own? Kind of claiming to own something without having any real rights to do so. Or, do they own a copy, like a screen capture of the original, and then believe the artist no longer has rights to the image?

Complicated.

My Idea – Build A Lot More Gamification into Online Shopping

Why don’t stores, with online shopping, use more gamification?

Games online use it, but they don’t have the merchandise to take it farther. I think an online shopping retail outlet, like Amazon, Walmart, Shopify, Etsy, etc should combine with an existing game site. Or go on their own with a game developer of their choosing. But, it would be simpler, cost effective, to work with an existing game and merge together.

Set up an account and create a character (your personal avatar won’t start with much, features can be earned) – you get a permanent 5% discount on anything you buy, as long as you keep that account. This could be limited to early adopters, which of course, could last an entire year. After that they would have to spend X amount of money to get the permanent 5% discount.

Use your character to battle the mighty monster and get 10% off your purchase. This carries on with different discounts as they level up. If they want to buy books have them fight a library related monster – get a discount and a badge (level one). If they buy electronics they battle something related, with levelling up, discounts for successfully defeating the monster. When they get to level ten in defeating that particular monster they get another reward, a feature.

Features can be unlocked. People can spend X amount, level up, post to social media, to earn a garden, a farm, a house, different outfits for their character, more and better weapons, seasonal and holiday stuff to decorate their house and character. It can go on forever. Once someone has everything there are better everything, deluxe this and premium that, for them to work towards.

People won’t want to shop somewhere else and miss out on points and rewards for their character.

Of course, characters can be posted to social media, with branding for the store. A mobile application which they can take with them anywhere and show off to friends. Bragging rights for who has the most, gets the best, etc.

Rewards can include branded merchandise too. Send them a ‘store name’ Christmas t-shirt as a reward they can wear outside of the game. Also merchandise which proclaims their status as a big winner, a home owner, etc at the ‘store name’ online shop.

Bring in guilds so people can meet at the online shop and get together to buy more. Let them pool their resources to make big purchases together. Sell them credit cards to build up more online shopping points with the store.

People who level up and have lots of rewards can be featured on the site. A reward for being such a loyal shopper and an example/ showcase of what others can achieve with store loyalty and frequent shopping.

How to Streamline Your Computer Desktop

In no time at all my computer desktop, even though I have a big screen, gets cluttered and disorganized with files, shortcuts, and things I have pinned. It bothers me. I haven’t found a really great way to fix it and tidy it up. Keeping everything really isn’t a long term solution, but it works short term.

It is easy to make folders you can keep on your desktop for moving files into. Label them with whatever works for you: House, Bills, Family Photos, Work, etc.

You create a new folder by right clicking your mouse. Then find "new" and click on "folder". Very easy. I doubt it is any more complicated with other operating systems, like a Mac.

Once you have folders you use your mouse to drag and drop files into the folders. Put your mouse on the file/image/shortcut, hold it down rather than clicking to open the file. If it opens just close it again and try again. Once you have a hold on it, move it to the folder you want it in and let it go. It does need to be fairly centred on the folder or it will just move to beside the folder. The folder will have a halo/ highlight when the file is in range to drop. So it isn’t tricky, once you get used to it.

You can make folders inside of folders. Same process to create a new folder. So you can sort everything into smaller topics/categories inside each main folder.

Important to note – Having all these things on your main desktop will slow things down. Unless it is something you use everyday, or often, move all these folders off the main desktop and into Documents or Pictures which already exist in Windows. You can use the File Explorer or just drag and drop your files and folders into the existing Documents or Pictures folders. using File Explorer you can create new folders also.

You can have all your files and folders just as you want to use them, without taking up space or bandwidth on your computer desktop.

Eventually you should clean up all the files and folders. There will be things you no longer need, those are easiest to choose to delete.

Delete any file by right clicking and choosing "delete". You may have a long list of options but delete will be there.

Once your desktop is cleaned up think about adding a new wallpaper. There are an endless supply and variety of them online.

Add Gamification to your Site?

Have you heard about gamification. Adding badges and such to your site to get people using more parts of your site in order to earn rewards and work towards goals like badges for good attendance, most comments, etc.

It’s likely you have already been on a site which uses this technique. What do you think about it? Does it make you feel belittled, is it addictive or is it just simple fun?

Resources:

Website Magazine: How to Gamify your Website

Mashable: How to Gamify your Marketing

Mashable: 4 Reasons Every Online Brand Should Explore Gamification Strategies

Of Mice and Dust Bunnies

I keep a bottle/ container of hand sanitizer on my computer desk. I use it on my hands and every now and then I use it all over my computer mouse. If you look at the crud on the mouse, think of your hand there, creating that crud. Now, doesn’t it seem a good idea to keep both well cleaned?

How does crud build up like that? Has anyone got a really great theory? I expect it is the dust bunnies, as always. They are persistent little things.

When Dust Bunnies Attack Your Computer!

It’s a regular kind of morning, you’ve made your coffee and you sit in front of the computer. You’ll probably check email first or just check email before you get ready for work. But, when you turn it on… you get a massive disk error and the only sounds in the room are your own bated breaths and the ominous clicking coming from inside your computer tower/ case.

Are you prepared? Do you have your important and essential stuff backed up? Or will you now lose family photos, information you saved about everything under the sun and all your bookmarks too?

It can happen to you! It happened to me this weekend. I got lucky and it finally did start up again. After I tipped it over to look for the serial numbers when I gave it another try it worked. I think the little needle which operates my hard drive must have been pushed off it’s setting by one of the dust bunnies hiding in my computer tower. I should open it up and clean it but I’m delaying touching it at all now. I dare not even look at it the wrong way until I have the last of all my photos cleared out of there and burned onto a fresh DVD.

Heed this warning – back up your computer files today! Don’t let the dust bunnies mess you up!