Bitcoin, the digital currency, has risen like crazy. But is it a better store of value than gold?
In the past year, Bitcoin rose from just over $ 7,000 to over $ 26,000 per digital coin. On January 8, a single coin reached $ 40,675.80.
I have had some experience with cryptocurrencies. In 2017, I bought part of a bitcoin at Coinbase.com when it was valued at around $ 4,000. I bought a little more when it got to $ 15,000. What can i say i’m a gamer. Unfortunately, I sold it after it dropped below $ 4,000. Catastrophe. I admire those who like “HODL,” a Bitcoin acronym that stands for “Hold On For Dear Life”.
According to a survey by deVere Group of their own customers, 67% of Millennials – who were born between 1980 and 1996 – say, despite these ups and downs, that the future lies with Bitcoin. But how much can we trust deVere’s prediction? Well it’s a global organization with 80,000 customers in 100 countries. The poll went to each of them.
Another reason Bitcoin has risen, says deVere, is inflation. When central banks around the world go overboard with printing money, traders become suspicious of investing in currencies and look for safe havens. We will see.
ZOOM TRICK
A free app called Overviewer was recently developed by the husband of a kindergarten teacher. She wanted her Zoom class to be able to look down at her work while drawing and at the same time see her face in a side window.
To help, her husband used a pile of books to mount his iPhone from above and turn it into an overhead camera. For more information, do a web search on “New app allows teachers to use their iPhone or iPad as an overhead camera on zoom” for more information.
FREE MOVIES
I love showing classic movies to a 10 year old girl that I babysit, including the 1933 version of “Little Women” starring Katharine Hepburn. Such classics are free on YouTube and make for an interesting discussion about the difference between “earlier times” and today.
More and more classics are being uploaded. For example, “Little Lord Fauntleroy” was posted on YouTube in June. Other freebies are “The Inspector General” with Danny Kaye, Rodgers and Hammerstein’s “Cinderella”, https://www.nwaonline.com/news/2021/jan/16/millennial-survey-offers-a-bit-of-bitcoin -advice / “Jane Eyre”, https: //www.nwaonline.com/news/2021/jan/16/millennial-survey-offers-a-bit-of-bitcoin-advice/ “A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court ” and many others.
FREE BOOKS AND AUDIO BOOKS
Library Explorer lets you borrow books for free to read on a screen. I borrowed Irish memoirs in 1996 called Are You Somebody? The always lonely author likes to say hello to the refrigerator when the engine starts. You can borrow as many books or audio books as you want from openlibrary.org. When your session expires, simply click the “Re-Loan” button.
TELEPHONE SERVICE PRICES
A reader told me about Ultra Mobile, which uses the T-Mobile network to offer really cheap cell phone services. It gives you unlimited calls and text messages and a gigabyte of data for $ 10 a month paid for a year in advance. If you exceed a gigabyte, your internet experience will slow down but never end. “You could truthfully say that it has unlimited data if you have the patience,” notes the reader. Fortunately, he didn’t have to buy an Ultra Mobile device. “I brought my own phone, a Motorola 5G + Plus,” he said.
One Ultra Mobile user on Amazon contested that his free international calls would end after 20 or 30 minutes. Another user argued that phone service slows down after 500 megabytes, not one gigabyte. But everything sounds fine to me. An Amazon review explains in detail how to set it up. It’s a little techie.
STYLUS REVISITED
One reader liked my suggestion that instead of using a pen to tap a phone with smeared fingers. But he was afraid of losing it. So he bought the Hprime 3 Pack Stylus Pen Holder. “I taped one on the back edge of my iPhone case,” he said. The results were mixed.
The stylus went in and out of the pocket all day, sometimes snapping. It works better if you keep your phone in a pocket or purse. However, sticking a pen on an iPad or tablet is not a problem. The reader uses a $ 10 Diodrio pencil / pen holder that is held in place with a rubber band. In addition to tablets, it works with any paper journal.
NEW FROM GOOGLE
According to bleepingcomputer.com, the Chrome browser is now automatically blocking ads that are consuming excessive computer resources.
In other messages, Chrome will now show you the battery level of everything that is connected to your computer via Bluetooth, such as: B. headphones or speakers.
Speaking of batteries, the new Extreme Battery Saver that works with the Pixel 3 pauses most apps and slows down processing to help extend battery life even more than the regular Battery Saver.
Google’s new Hold for Me feature also works well for Pixel owners. But I found it hard not to hang on the phone and watch the transcript roll by while a voicemail message played silently. I got a beep when it was time to speak to a representative. But at least I didn’t have to hear endless repetitions of: “Your call is very important to us. Please stay on the line.”
Joy Schwabach can be reached by email at [email protected]
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