I've been concerned with tech issues for some years now and with all the new developments, I'm again surprised at what hasn't changed and what problems are STILL with us after so long. I just pulled a Sun workstation out of the storage building to see if the clock battery cradle has rusted away, but over on the desk is this month's cell phone. Which I trust about as far as I can throw it. And in all the time between those two devices, I sometimes think that almost nothing has improved.
As a little test, I'll rip off my post of about August of 2022. I listed eleven things I'd listed before, and will no doubt list again. Do these sound familiar?
1. The network might not be secure.
Network maintenance and patching is a round-the-clock job and the safety level of your electronic environment may fluctuate between maintenance periods.
2. It might not be good to have only one copy of that file.
Any backup idea is better than no backup idea.
3. It might not be good to get sued.
Certain kinds of phone or computer use can create copyright problems, police issues, work misinterpretations or even more spam than other channels. Limiting use or having multiple phones or laptops for different purposes (personal VS work) could mitigate risk.
4. It will not be good to lose your laptop or phone.
Do you depend on apps to do things you haven't documented or set up in some other way? How would you get by with no phone, or during a period of switching devices?
5. Things break.
Beer spilled in keyboard? Phone dropped down porta-potty? SD card had a really acidic soft drink spilled on it? Device run over by car? Memory nonfunctional due to cracking? Backup or duplicate plans are in order.
6. Settings break.
Reinstalling a browser or app can cause "forgetting" of settings needed for the thing to work. Even writing settings down on paper is better than nothing.
7. Don't forget how good desktops and laptops can be at certain things.
The most insecure thing about a phone is that it gets to the 'net through a phone company that sells your information and may not make security a priority. The "older" ways may have more tools you know or tools that work better.
8. Earphones or headphones can be distracting and even dangerous.
You need to pay attention to traffic, possible muggers and even other pedestrians when on the sidewalk.
9. Touch or proximity radiation from cell phones can be an issue.
Guys: the regular pocket? Girls: phones in the cleavage? Repeated storage of a phone in skin contact or close might cause radar-like burns over long periods of time. Consider a holster or some sort of shielding.
10. It's not good to improperly dispose of cell phones or other data-carrying objects.
I've been finding old user files on replacement or refurbished drives for almost 20 years. They were supposedly wiped clean. Nope.
11. It might be good to turn things off sometimes.
The OFF switch! There it is. In an always-on, always-connected world, disconnection or power-down situations (where practical) can head off many problems, and possibly stretch battery life.
