Computer Tips for Travelers and anything else that these Geeks feel like writing about will show up here! For additional articles on Picasa, see our separate site PicasaGeeks.com
. For additional articles on Internet Connections on the Road, see our separate site WiFiSavvy.com
PDF files can’t be edited, right? At least that used to be the case. They were a snapshot of the text and images you created and anyone viewing the document would be seeing the exact same thing. There were no worries that someone would change your document without your permission if it was in .pdf format. Note: .pdf stands for Portable Document Format and it was a creation of the Adobe Acrobat software.
There were ways to edit these .pdf documents using the Adobe Acrobat software that created them, IF you had the full, paid version of the software. At the time, it was hundreds of dollars! All that has changed. Now, there are lots of ways to edit .pdf files. One of them is completely free with Google Docs. This works great on straightforward .pdf files – if the one you want has a lot of page formatting and images, it may not come across so well.
How to Open a .pdf file with Google Docs
Open Google Drive on the web at Drive.Google.com
Click the button to Add New and choose File Upload
Find the .pdf file you want to work with and click Open
The .pdf file is now in your Drive
Double click the .pdf file to open it
Now you should be seeing the document and there is a button with a drop-down arrow above it. Click that drop-down arrow and you’ll see the option to open the file with Google Docs. This will create a copy, in the same folder as the original, and that copy will be an editable Google Doc file.
Next time you’re looking at a .pdf document and see something that should be changed, you know how to do it! Let us know in the comments how it works for you.
Learn more
See Episode 255 of What Does This Button Do? for more about using Google Docs.
We don’t always take selfies … but when we do, it’s a happy moment
I like taking selfies, especially with a friend or two, but my arms aren’t long enough! I stretch my arm out as far as it will go to frame the people and the appropriate background, then I can’t reach the shutter button with my other hand, and the phone is too big to stretch my thumb over without fear of dropping the phone. When I’m using my Samsung phone, I can verbally issue the command, “Shoot” and it will snap the shutter, or I can press a volume button for the shutter release, but then I’m jiggling the camera and get a blurry shot. I’ve found that using the timer is the best technique for a stress-free selfie.
If the timer is set for 5 seconds, you tap the shutter button and then stretch your arm out to frame the shot. You’ll have 2 or 3 seconds left to summon your best smile and, click, the photo is taken. No stress over dropping the phone as you stretch your thumb to snap the shutter. No wondering if the photo will capture your mouth forming the word “shoot.” Just a nice easy way to take a selfie.
Using the timer on iPhone: On iPhones, when you open the camera, you may not see the timer at first. If you see a ^ symbol at the top of the screen, tap that, and you should see a new line of tools appear at the bottom of the screen.
Just tap the timer button and select 3 seconds or 10 seconds. Now, when you tap the shutter button, the timer will start counting down and then snap the photo. When the timer is on – you’ll see it referenced at the top right next to the ‘bullseye’ for live. It will reset itself to the off position eventually.
Using the timer on Android: this will be slightly different on every make and model of Android phone. On some models, you will need to go into the camera settings and find timer. On my Samsung S21 Ultra I open the camera app, then tap the timer icon at the top. I have the choice of Off, or 2 seconds, 5, or 10. When I want to take a photo, I tap the shutter button and it starts the countdown, giving me time to frame the shot and smile before it snaps the photo. It only snaps once. Note: the selfie timer and the rear camera timer can be set separately, and they stay set.
This Geeks on Tour monthly newsletter will always be free, but we also have a premium membership with perks like private Zoom meetings, eBooks, tutorial videos, and complete classes. Our premium members support us, making everything we do possible. It’s $58 yearly or $68 for one year only.
What’s up with Jim and Chris – the Geeks
March
At the beginning of March, we were still traveling in Indonesia. The photo above comes from Bali. It’s called Garuda Wisnu Kencana. Wisnu is the god, sitting on his eagle-like steed called Garuda. Imagine the statue of Liberty, now make it a third bigger! You can see this statue from the plane! It was quite impressive. We completed our travels and arrived home mid-March. We’re happy to be home for a while.
Classes
You can see all classes from past months on our Classes page. We presented 1 class during March:
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If you’re using Google Photos under the free 15GB plan, you’re missing some powerful editing tools
If you use Google Photos and you’re struggling to stay within the 15GB Free storage allotment. Stop Struggling! Bite the bullet and pay $2/month. That gets you a Google One subscription with lots more than just the storage. Included in the plan are some WAY Cool editing features like Dynamic, Magic Eraser, and Background Blur.
Can Artificial Intelligence like Chat GPT plan your next trip?
Every techie worth their salt is writing about the Artificial Intelligence tool called ChatGPT. In February I wrote about using
ChatGPT to write poetry! Now that we’re back home and thinking about an RV trip, I decided to ask it to plan a trip for us. It doesn’t actually make your reservations or give turn-by-turn directions, but I find it quite useful in giving me an outline of where to go. The key is in learning how to talk to AI Chatbots.
How Google Calendar can keep you from missing an event by setting your default notifications.
I’ve been using Google Calendar to notify me of upcoming appointments ever since I started using a smartphone, and yesterday I found it especially useful. I want to make sure that all of you know how to set the default settings so that you get a
notification before any upcoming event.
I had completely forgotten about my Yoga class at 10:30. I also completely forgot about a dinner party we were going to at 6pm. Because of my default settings in Google Calendar, I get a ringing automatic notification an hour before any
appointment. Whew! I made it just in time. Thank you Google Calendar!
If so, we’d love to get a review from you. Click the link below and you should see a right sidebar with all Geeks on Tour stuff, scroll down a bit and you should see Reviews and Write a Review.
If you like this newsletter, please forward it on to your friends! You might want to remove the Unsubscribe information at the bottom of the page. That will prevent one of your friends from Unsubscribing
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the archives of past newsletters. If you’ve learned something from us along the way, we’d love a Google Review from you!
The map of all the places we stayed while active with the RVillage App
If you were a member of the RV social site called RVillage, you may be one of the many who are disappointed that the site has shut down. One of the little touches that I really liked in RVillage was checking into RV parks as we traveled and having RVillage automatically track our locations on a map.
I signed in to the service during the last week it was open and noticed a way to get my data for that map. They sent me a .csv file with all the locations and that was easy to put into a Google MyMap to get the image above. If you had lots of locations logged in RVillage, you can do the same. Here’s how:
RVillage was owned by Roadpass.com, and they still respond to emails regarding RVillage.
Send an email to Support@Roadpass.com
Tell them your user name in RVillage and ask that they export your places map data and send you a .csv file
It may take a few days, but you should receive a .csv file from them along with instructions on how to import that into MyMaps to create a map like mine above.
The Google Photos editing features demonstrated in the photos above, “Dynamic,” “Magic Eraser,” “Portrait,” and “Background Blur,” are only avaialbe to you if you subscribe to Google One. How do you do that? Just pay a minimum of $2/mo for account storage. If you are struggling to keep your storage within the 15GB free account level – stop struggling! I think it is SO worth $2/mo for these premium editing features alone. Just open your Google Photos app, tap the account button (circle in upper right) and tap where it says “Get Storage.” That will take you straight to Google One and show you pricing options for monthly or annual payments. AND, you can share your Google One storage with up to 5 others!
The Google Photos app on mobile devices has an extensive set of editing tools. They are different from the tools available on the Web version of Photo.Google.com. This change happened in late 2020 for Android and mid 2021 iOS, and more tools have been added since. You can watch this video from Nov 2020 to review the main editing tools on mobile.
If you open any photo and tap the edit button you will see all your choices. Any tool with a multi-colored 1 is a premium tool. These are what I’m talking about. Right away, on the Suggestions tab, you’ll see “Dynamic” – this is the tool I used on the first photo above. Notice there is also a tool for “Color Pop” this one will only appear if your photo has people or other distinct objects in the foreground.
If you scroll over to the Tools menu, you will see more premium options:
If you try to use one of these premium features without having a Google One subscription, you will be prompted to “Unlock this feature and more with a 1-month Google One trial. After one month, you will need to pay the $2/mo. Once you try these features on your photos, you won’t want to live without them!
About the author: Chris Guld has been teaching technology since 1983. Since 2010 her focus is on smartphones and photography. She wrote a book on Picasa in 2009, you can get her current book: Learn Google Photos at Amazon. Chris is a Diamond Level Google Product Expert in Google Photos.
Don’t you just hate it when you see your friend and they say, “Where were you last night? We missed you at the party.” When the only reason you missed it was that you forgot!
I’ve been using Google Calendar to notify me of upcoming appointments ever since I started using a smartphone, and yesterday I found it especially useful. I want to make sure that all of you know how to set the default settings so that you get a notification before any upcoming event.
I had completely forgotten about my Yoga class at 10:30. I also completely forgot about a dinner party we were going to at 6pm. Because of my default settings in Google Calendar, I get a ringing automatic notification an hour before any appointment. Whew! I made it just in time. Thank you Google Calendar!
You can even set your default to give you two notifications if you want, like one at 2 hours and another at 1 hour before any event entered in your calendar. Here’s how:
Open Google Calendar (on Android or iOS – just make sure it is the Google Calendar, not Apple or Samsung.
Tap the 3-line menu at top left
Scroll down and tap on Settings
Tap Events (under your account)
Tap Notifications
Select your choice
You’re done, just tap the Back arrow at top left
note: the icon has changed since this video, all else is the same
Never miss a party, or a dentist appointment, or a meeting – ever again!
If you are a traveler, you really must give AI (artificial intelligence) a shot at planning your next trip. It’s so easy. I’ll give step by step instructions at the end of this article. Don’t expect it to make reservations for you, or to give you turn by turn directions, but it will definitely help you get started with bringing your travel ideas to life.
We are thinking about taking an RV trip to the Northeast this fall and see the famous fall colors.
I asked ChatGPT:
“I want to travel to New England and the Canadian maritime provinces this fall to see the sights and the fall colors. Can you plan an itinerary for me? I will be traveling in an RV and want to stay in campgrounds. The trip should start on September 12 in Boston and end on October 2 in Ship Bottom New Jersey.”
ChatGPT Responded:
Sure, I’d be happy to help plan an itinerary for your New England and Canadian maritime trip! Here’s a rough outline:
Day 1-2: Boston, Massachusetts
Start your trip in Boston and spend a couple of days exploring the city’s historic sites, museums, and delicious seafood restaurants.
Day 3: Salem, Massachusetts
Drive up to Salem, a historic seaside town famous for its witch trials and spooky atmosphere.
Day 4: Portland, Maine
Head north to Portland, Maine, a charming coastal town known for its lobster and lighthouses.
Day 5: Acadia National Park, Maine
Drive up to Acadia National Park, one of the most beautiful national parks in the country, and enjoy the breathtaking fall foliage.
Day 6-7: Bar Harbor, Maine
Stay in the picturesque town of Bar Harbor, Maine, which serves as a gateway to Acadia National Park.
Day 8-9: St. Andrews, New Brunswick
Cross the border into Canada and visit St. Andrews, a quaint town on the Bay of Fundy known for its charming architecture and whale watching tours.
Day 10-11: Fundy National Park, New Brunswick
Head to Fundy National Park, where you can see the world’s highest tides and hike through the beautiful forested landscape.
That’s not good enough
It continued like this thru Day 22, but notice that it did not include campgrounds for our overnight stays. Here is where we all need to learn how to talk to AI chatbots. It’s not like our past experiences with computer queries, where you only get one result. Talking to AI chatbots, like ChatGPT, Bing Chat, or Bard, is more like talking to a person. Imaging asking a friend to tell you about their vacation and they responded with “I went to Hawaii for 10 days.” You wouldn’t leave it at that, you’d ask a follow up like, “Give me details, who did you go with, what did you see?”
It’s the same with AI. So I continued the conversation with ChatGPT:
I asked ChatGPT:
Please suggest campgrounds for each night
Certainly, here are some campgrounds you can consider for your trip:
Day 1-2: Boston, Massachusetts
Normandy Farms Family Camping Resort in Foxborough, MA
Boston Minuteman Campground in Littleton, MA
Day 3: Salem, Massachusetts
Winter Island Park in Salem, MA
Day 4: Portland, Maine
Bayley’s Camping Resort in Scarborough, ME
Sebago Lake Family Campground in Standish, ME
Day 5: Acadia National Park, Maine
Blackwoods Campground in Acadia National Park, ME
Seawall Campground in Acadia National Park, ME
Day 6-7: Bar Harbor, Maine
Bar Harbor Campground in Bar Harbor, ME
Hadley’s Point Campground in Bar Harbor, ME
Day 8-9: St. Andrews, New Brunswick
Kiwanis Oceanfront Camping in St. Andrews, NB
Pine Cone Motel & Campground in St. Andrews, NB
Day 10-11: Fundy National Park, New Brunswick
Fundy National Park Campground in Alma, NB
Headquarters Campground in Fundy National Park, NB
You get the idea. Keep asking more detailed questions and you’ll keep getting better answers. If you want to give it a try, here’s what you do.
How to talk to ChatGPT
ChatGPT is a product of the company called OpenAI. Just browse to chat.openai.com/chat. The first time you go there, you’ll need to sign up to get an account. It’s free (at least as of this writing in April 2023), but you need an account in order to ask questions and keep a history of your questions and answers.
When you click Sign up, you’ll have the opportunity to simply click “Continue with Google” and use your Google account. Once you’ve logged in with your account, you’ll see a box with several examples, capabilities, and limitations of questions you can ask. Below that you’ll see a place where you can type your question.
Are there other Artificial Intelligence services I can chat with?
Yes, both Google and Microsoft have similar offerings. Google’s AI chatbot is called “Bard.” To talk to Bard, go to bard.google.com and make sure you are signed in to your Google account. Then you’ll see the box where you can type your question and then click send.
For Microsoft, you must be using the Edge browser. That’s the successor to Internet Explorer. If you have a windows-based computer, you will find it with the ocean wave icon. Once you are on an Edge screen, and signed in to your Microsoft account, go to Bing.com. From there you click the Chat icon at top left. Now you’ll see a box to “ask me anything…” and press enter to send.
Which one is best? This technology is changing daily! Right now, ChatGPT is the gold standard. Personally I much prefer the answers I get from ChatGPT than any of the others, but that may change tomorrow. Keep checking!
Is that a real photo?
Did you notice anything slightly off about the photo at the top of this article? You guessed it. That is not a real photo. It is a creation of Artificial Intelligence image creation. I used Dall-e, another tool created by OpenAI. I just went to the Dall-e web page and entered the following prompt:
a photo realistic image of the ocean at Acadia National Park with a hillside in the foreground, including a lighthouse and forested with trees in fall
When I clicked “Generate” I got four choices:
We’re in a new world my friends. It’s time to keep learning.
Another perspective from fellow Tech Nomads
For a deeper dive into AI, including some warnings, see this article at Technomadia.com. Our friends, Chris Dunphy and Cherie VeArd, are fulltime RVers, cruisers and fellow geeks. Chris used the Bing Chat AI to write an article and answer all sorts of existential questions. Check it out.
Let us know what you think about the possibilities and future of Artificial Intelligence in the comments below.
This Geeks on Tour monthly newsletter will always be free, but we also have a premium membership with perks like private Zoom meetings, eBooks, tutorial videos, and complete classes. Our premium members support us, making everything we do possible. It’s $58 yearly or $68 for one year only.
What’s up with Jim and Chris – the Geeks
A month in Indonesia …
February
The photo above comes from a liveaboard dive boat named the Mermaid 1. We were on board, doing 2,3, or 4 dives a day for 12 days in the Togian Islands area of Indonesia. We saw everything from whale sharks to nudibrancs (a beautiful type of sea snail) and a true explosion of beautiful corals and sponges.
See our Photo Album here. There are still more photos to come. I’m writing this on board the Mermaid 1 on our last day, then it’s off to Bali for one more week.
March – We will be home March 10.
Classes
You can see all classes from past months on our Classes page. We presented 1 classes during February:
Thank you to our premium members for supporting us and making this newsletter possible! If you learn something from us, and you’re not a member, consider joining us Join NowC
If You Can Send an Email, You Can Write a Blog Post
We’ve been keeping a personal, travel blog, using the free Blogger.com website for many years – you can learn how by watching Episode 190 of our What Does This Button Do? Youtube show.
While we’ve been on our dive trip, we’ve been without an Internet connection much of the time. Using the “Post by email” method, I can still write my blog posts
when the days are fresh in my mind. Since I can compose an email with no Internet connection, I can write whenever the inspiration suits me. When I click “Send”, it will go to Blogger whenever I do have a connection. This article teaches how to set it up.
Although I did bring a Chromebook laptop with me on this dive vacation, I’ve been using my phone for all basic tasks (including writing Blog Posts) and I’ve been reminded of a couple of nice shortcuts that I thought I’d pass along.
How to share an iPhone’s photo album with a non-iOS user
If you take pictures with your iPhone, you may use the Apple Photos app for making and sharing albums. The problem with this is that you can only share that
album with other iPhone users, (or iPad or Mac.) This is why I like Google Photos so much – it plays nice with both Apple iOS and Android. Albums are not transferrable between Apple Photos and Google Photos – you’re stuck with the tools in the app that you used to make the album.
This article will teach you the sharing technique that will work for anyone, whether they use an Apple device or not.
If so, we’d love to get a review from you. Click the link below and you should see a right sidebar with all Geeks on Tour stuff, scroll down a bit and you should see Reviews and Write a Review.
If you like this newsletter, please forward it on to your friends! You might want to remove the Unsubscribe information at the bottom of the page. That will prevent one of your friends from Unsubscribing you.
If you received this issue forwarded by a friend you can subscribe to get your own copy delivered to your in box – it’s free. You can also visit
the archives of past newsletters. If you’ve learned something from us along the way, we’d love a Google Review from you!
Using the timer on iPhone: On iPhones, when you open the camera, you may not see the timer at first. If you see a ^ symbol at the top of the screen, tap that, and you should see a new line of tools appear at the bottom of the screen.
Using the timer on Android: this will be slightly different on every make and model of Android phone. On some models, you will need to go into the camera settings and find timer. On my Samsung S21 Ultra I open the camera app, then tap the timer icon at the top. I have the choice of Off, or 2 seconds, 5, or 10. When I want to take a photo, I tap the shutter button and it starts the countdown, giving me time to frame the shot and smile before it snaps the photo. It only snaps once. Note: the selfie timer and the rear camera timer can be set separately, and they stay set.
you will see all your choices. Any tool with a multi-colored 1 is a premium tool. These are what I’m talking about. Right away, on the Suggestions tab, you’ll see “Dynamic” – this is the tool I used on the first photo above. Notice there is also a tool for “Color Pop” this one will only appear if your photo has people or other distinct objects in the foreground.
