RELAX AND REBOOT FALL 23 The World’s #1 Internet Magazine IT’S GAME ON FOR GAMING AT ANYAGE ARE PASSWORDS BECOMING PASSÉ? 8 REASONS FOR A POST-RETIREMENT LINKEDIN PROFILE WebsiteCompass
can you TOO BUSY FOR FAMILY TIME THIS FALL? LEAF IT TO US. With school in session you may be battling never-ending scheduling conflicts. Suddenly the little family time you have is pushed to the back-burner after school, sports, clubs and play-dates. At Outdoor Family, we provide ideas for all the ways your family can spend time together outside, even when time is limited. Find us online or social media or flip through our e-zine while you wait for soccer practice to end. @youroutdoorfamily can you plug in a crockpot to a car can you take the carpool lane with a dog as a passenger can you die from too much laundry can you doordash school lunch can you use AI to manage a kindergarten classroom party www.outdoorfamily.com
WebsiteCompass 1 8 Contents WebsiteCompass 18 Website Compass™ is a publication of Cornerstone Publishing Group, Inc. 4815 Caravelle Drive Fort Collins, CO 80526 970-818-5012 ISSN 1525-951X No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form, electronic, photocopying, recording, mechanical, or otherwise without prior written permission of the publisher. Website Compass™ is a trademark of Cornerstone Publishing Group, Inc. Copyright© 2023 by Cornerstone Publishing Group, Inc. All rights reserved. TRADEMARKS – All brand names and product names used in this publication are trade names, service marks, trademarks, or registered trademarks of their respective owners. Website Compass magazine is an independent magazine and is not affiliated with, nor has it been authorized, sponsored, or otherwise approved by Microsoft Corporation, Google, Pinterest, Twitter, and Facebook. All screen shots are the property of their respective owners. ADVERTISERS – To obtain advertising information, contact: Cornerstone Publishing Group, Inc. 4815 Caravelle Drive Fort Collins, CO 80526 970-818-5012 INTERNET SERVICE PROVIDERS – To obtain additional information about distribution of Website Compass magazine to your internet subscribers and a free customized online version of Website Compass, contact: Shane Petersen Cornerstone Publishing Group, Inc. 4815 Caravelle Drive Fort Collins, CO 80526 970-818-5012 shanep@cornerstonenow.com Cornerstone Publishing Group, Inc. (the Author and Publisher) as well as any participating Internet Service Provider Partners hereby disclaim all warranties relating to Website Compass magazine or its website, whether expressed or implied, including without limitation any implied warrantied of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. Although the Author and its ISP Partners believe the information provided is accurate, neither party claims responsibility for any damage or loss of data to a user’s computer caused by utilizing this information. The Author and its ISP Partners will not be liable for any special, incidental, consequential, indirect, or similar damages due to loss of data or any other reason when utilizing information/tutorials from Website Compass magazine or its websites. In no event shall the Author or ISP Partner be liable for any damages, regardless of the form of the claim. The person using the information contained in Website Compass magazine bears all risk as to the use of the information provided. Cornerstone Group is not responsible for the quality, performance, or reliability of third-party tools or software. 2 10 16 13 FEATURE STORY 2 Relax and Reboot Prioritize downtime with online resources for journaling, meditation, and more INTERNET CONNECTIONS 8 Are Passwords Becoming Passé? New and better options exist for user authentication SOCIAL MEDIA BASICS 10 8 Reasons for a Post-Retirement LinkedIn Profile Rather than giving up on this powerful platform, start using it in different ways BACK TO BASICS 13 It’s Game On for Gaming at Any Age No matter your stage of life, gaming offers valuable benefits BEYOND THE BASICS 16 Beware of Fake Delivery-Service Texts Scammers claim to be from USPS, FedEx, or UPS to steal from you FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS 18 Ask Dr. Webbie Answers to your internet questions A TO Z 19 Internet Glossary Words and definitions Tutorials in This Issue 12 How to Modify Your LinkedIn Profile at Retirement
While it’s easy to push relaxation and restorative activities to the back burner, these pursuits can help us be more effective at things we tend to consider more important—such as work and parenting. In fact, experts recommend putting relaxation and restorative activities on your calendar to make sure they get the time and attention they deserve. Going for a daily walk, taking a yoga class, or visiting a soothing website can be as valuable as doing household chores or running errands. While the internet is sometimes a source of stress, it also offers many opportunities for relaxation and ways to find a healthy direction for your life. For example, journaling and self-reflection are positive ways to position yourself for new outlooks, habits, and goals. In the following pages, we present popular options for both relaxing and rebooting. They include websites, apps, YouTube channels, services, guides, and much more. So, take three deep breaths and stretch your mind to embrace these resources. 2 WebsiteCompass Meditation can reduce stress and anxiety, enrich memory and concentration, and boost physical health. Plus, it’s just one of many methods people use to relax and improve their lives. QUICK TIP: When you wake up each morning, identify three things you’re looking forward to that day. RELAX AND REBOOT Prioritize downtime with online resources for journaling, meditation, and more
WebsiteCompass 3 Quieting your mind, even if only for a few moments at a time, is one of the best ways to be calmer overall. But, with so many obligations and distractions, it’s not easy. These sites are designed to help. CalmDown with Relaxing Websites Calm (calm.com) With a variety of guided meditations, this site seeks to help you increase sleep quality, reduce stress, improve focus, and work toward self-improvement. Noisli (noisli.com) You may not realize how much unpleasant sounds contribute to anxiety. This site helps you put together your perfect sound mix to counteract annoying noises. Happify (happify.com) This website offers a variety of tools and programs to help you feel better whether you’re starting out sad, anxious, stressed, or a combination of all three. Daily Good (dailygood.org) If negative news contributes to your stress, try this good-news-only website featuring inspiring and hopeful stories. Silk (weavesilk.com) No special skills are needed to make relaxing art on this unique site. Choose colors and adjust other controls that contribute to your sense of calm. Multiplayer Piano (multiplayerpiano.com) While participating with a bunch of people playing random notes on a keyboard may not sound relaxing, it somehow is. Cat Soundboard (catsoundboard.com) Cat lovers will enjoy the soothing sounds of cats meowing, mewling, purring, and squeaking. Exhaler (xhalr.com) Visit this site and simply follow the instructions for regular breathing. In just a few minutes, you’ll start to relax. Adjust the controls to find a rhythm that works for you. Make Everything OK (make-everything-ok.com) If all else fails, visit this site that only requires one step—pressing a button that makes everything OK. Download Apps for Relaxation on the Go All you need is your mobile device and apps like these to relax no matter where you happen to be. Look for them on the Apple App Store or Google Play Store. Headspace Access science-based meditation and mindfulness tools to create lifechanging habits that support your mental health. A Soft Murmur This app is incredibly easy to use. Just start playing the audio track and adjust to find your perfect mix of rain, thunder, waves, birds, and other soothing sounds. Rainy Mood Another sound app, Rainy Mood allows you to explore classic, ocean, countryside, and café themes. Thisissand Let your troubles recede as you choose colors and create designs based on layers of sand. AntiStress Anxiety Relief Game From popping bubbles to chopping vegetables to sending off fireworks, these games are challenging enough to keep you engaged and easy enough to play anytime. QUICK TIP: Avoid listening to relaxation audio while you’re driving or performing other attention-heavy tasks.
4 WebsiteCompass Rejuvenation Delivered to Your Door If relaxing is something you have a hard time prioritizing, try a subscription box, which will remind you with regular deliveries that it’s time to unplug and unwind. Check out these websites for all the details. TheraBox (mytherabox.com) Get one happiness-boosting activity and up to eight premium self-care goodies with each box. Items include things like skin care products, anti-stress supplements, and affirmation cards. Bath Bevy (bathbevy.com) If you love baths, make them even more special and relaxing with soaps, scrubs, bombs, candles, salts, and other luxurious treats. Chakra Box (chakrabalanceshop.com) Take a chakra balancing journey with aromatherapy, crystals, cards, beads, incense, and other items to elevate your senses and enhance your spirit. Loti Wellness (lotiwellness.com) Curated by therapists and locally sourced from small businesses, these boxes include premium items like therapeutic workbooks, skincare products, healthy snacks, and more. FabFitFun (fabfitfun.com) If you can’t choose just one type of relaxation item, you might like this subscription service, which includes items from fashion, fitness, beauty, wellness, and more. Calmbox (thecalmbox.com) If there were such a thing as stress relief in a box, this would be it. Each delivery contains items like relaxation guides, calming music, meditation candles, and facial masks. Introverts Retreat (introvertretreatbox.com) You don’t have to be an introvert to appreciate a little you time with items like books, candles, bath salts, and healthy snacks. Simple Loose Leaf (shop.simplelooseleaf.com) A nice cup of tea can be comforting and soothing. Try this subscription box to get three teas to try each month. Silk and Sonder (silkandsonder.com) Explore your inner self with monthly planners, guided journaling, helpful content, and access to a community of other motivated subscribers. Unwind byWatching YouTube Channels YouTube isn’t just for how-to videos and hilarious animal antics. It can also be a source of soothing content. Check out these channels when you want to wind down after a stressful day. • Michael Sealey. These videos provide gentle spoken instructions for relaxation and calming. The visual component is minimal, so you can listen as you would to a podcast. • Nature Relaxation Films. Here you’ll find such soothing subjects as fish swimming around a coral reef or spring nature scenes, all set to soothing music. • Body Mind Zone. This channel focuses on calming tunes to help you sleep and relax. You’ll find such selections as Zen Meditation Music, Wellness & Healing, and Spa and Massage Relaxation. • Oddly Satisfying. The “oddly satisfying” online trend shows various everyday processes accompanied by pleasing sounds. If you enjoy it, this channel can help you relax. • Y ogaWith Adriene. Whether you’re new to yoga or have been practicing for years, there’s something for you here, including Airport Yoga or Yoga for When You Are Feeling Unmotivated. QUICK TIP: Crafts can be super relaxing, and you can find numerous online resources to help you explore them. Feature Story
WebsiteCompass 5 Many people think of vacations as relaxing, but that’s not always the case. It depends on where you go, what you do, and who’s going with you on the trip. Here are some tips for making sure your next getaway is truly tranquil. How to Plan a Truly Tranquil Trip Choose your traveling companions carefully. There’s no shame in ruling out certain friends and family members if you know you have widely different vacation priorities, since that can cause stress on a trip. If you want to find someone to travel with who shares your interests, check out sites like Workaway (workaway.info), GAFFL (gogaffl.com), and Join My Trip (joinmytrip.com/en/find-travel-buddy). Set a budget. There’s nothing more stressful than worrying about money while you travel, so be realistic about what you can afford. The website Budget Your Trip (budgetyourtrip.com) can help you identify average daily costs in various locations. Carve out time. Some sources claim it takes eight to 10 days to completely let go of stress and responsibilities—others say a three-day trip can be just as rejuvenating. Choose the length of trip based on your budget and ability to be away from work. Define“relaxing.” For some people, a beach vacation just doesn’t cut it. If your style is more about exploring a city or going somewhere to volunteer for locals, that’s perfectly fine. Knowing what will refresh you will help you plan the perfect trip. Take the quiz at Tripzard (tripzard.com) to help pinpoint your next destination. Create a schedule. If getting up early stresses you out, don’t plan things first thing in the morning. Also, don’t overschedule. One big event per day is usually plenty, and you can spend the rest of your time just exploring or resting up for the next activity. Forest Bathing Isn’t What You Think The University of California, Berkeley, as well as Time and National Geographic, have all published information about a healthful and relaxing activity called forest bathing, which is simply spending time in the woods. (No bathtub is required.) According to Time, “A two-hour forest bath will help you to unplug from technology and slow down. It will bring you into the present moment and de-stress and relax you.” This activity can address what Greater Good Magazine from the University of California, Berkeley called a “nature deficit.” A National Geographic article stated, “Forest bathing is not just for the wilderness-lover; the practice can be as simple as walking in any natural environment and consciously connecting with what’s around you.” But, if you do want to get out into the woods, National Geographic says there are plenty of incredible places to go, including mountainous regions in the U.S., Costa Rica, New Zealand, Kenya, and Hawaii. If you’re looking to spend some quality time forest bathing, use sites like Airbnb (airbnb.com) and Vrbo (vrbo.com) to find the perfect cabin or treehouse. Source: time.com/5259602/japanese-forest-bathing Source: greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/ why_forest_bathing_is_good_for_your_health Source: nationalgeographic.com/travel/article/ forest-bathing-nature-walk-health QUICK TIP: When you return from vacation, give yourself time to catch up on email and ease back into your work schedule.
6 WebsiteCompass Feature Story Rebooting Can Mean Replacing Bad Habits with Good Ones Rebooting your life often includes releasing negative elements to make room for positive changes. While breaking old habits can be challenging, it’s well worth the effort. Here are a few areas to consider. Smoking Quitting smoking can add years to your life and improve your sense of wellbeing. While quitting this addictive habit is tough, there are many resources out there to help. For starters, check out the CDC’s How to Quit Smoking guide at cdc.gov/tobacco/campaign/tips/quitsmoking/index.html. Unhealthy Eating Eating patterns can be built over years or even decades, so it’s no small feat to change them. But you can do it by taking one small step at a time. For some initial guidance, look to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Eat Healthy site at health.gov/ myhealthfinder/health-conditions/ diabetes/eat-healthy. Lack of Movement Exercise can seem intimidating if you think of it as running five miles per day. Instead of exercise, think in terms of movement, which could be as simple as getting up from your desk a few times per day, or taking a walk around the block. The American Heart Association recommends several other ways to move more at heart.org/en/healthy-living/fitness/ getting-active/no-time-for-exercise-hereare-7-easy-ways-to-move-more. Toxic Relationships You may not realize how much certain romantic, friend, and work relationships are impacting your health and your ability to be effective in the world. Ending toxic relationships isn’t simple, but it’s possible. PsychCentral offers 10 pointers for doing it at psychcentral.com/blog/ steps-to-end-a-toxic-relationship. Social Media Overuse Let’s face it, social media is a doubleedged sword. It can bring connection and delight but also disappointment and sadness. Changing the way you use social media can help. Find pointers from mental healthcare provider BetterHelp at betterhelp.com/advice/ general/too-much-social-media-10ways-to-find-a-healthy-balance. Unsubscribe from Unwanted Emails Unwelcome emails are annoying at best and stressful at worst. While you do have some control over your inbox, you need to make sure to do it safely. 1. Clicking Unsubscribe on anunwanted email isn’t always the best option because scammers sometimes send emails just to find out if your address is valid. If you click Unsubscribe, you’re letting them know it is, which could lead to more junk. 2. Only use the Unsubscribe option if you’re pretty sure the sender is a valid website but something you don’t want anymore, such as messages from a store you bought something from once but don’t want to hear from again. 3. F or other emails from obviously phony addresses like fnxdlrng@ googledygook.com, the better option is to mark them as Junk in your email application. Finally, you can avoid seeing as much junk email altogether by changing the preferences in your email application to reflect stricter spam filtering. QUICK TIP: Have a habit of overcommitting? Try saying“no” to small things and work your way up.
WebsiteCompass 7 Taking part in activities such as meditating, enjoying nature, journaling, or practicing yoga can help you think about where you are now and where you want to go next. Apps and Websites to Help You Reflect on Your Life Find these apps in the Apple App Store or the Google Play Store: Reflection This journaling app offers prompts, encouraging insights, and a simple design to help you keep your valuable reflections in one place. Insight Timer The Insight Timer app includes thousands of meditation and music tracks. Topics include dealing with anxiety and stress, better relationships, and improved sleep. Use for free or subscribe for more features. Colorfy Doing something simple can help your mind relax and your thoughts flow. This app provides pictures to color, and you can also add your own. Daily Haloha This unique app engages you by posing one simple question per day and enabling you to anonymously share with the user community. Check out these websites: Mindful (mindful.org) This site offers courses for mindfulness, meditations, and digital guides, all at affordable prices. It also includes in-depth instructions for things like How to Practice Gratitude (see mindful.org/ an-introduction-to-mindful-gratitude). Smiling Mind (smilingmind.com.au) This nonprofit organization focuses on supporting mental health in kids, but adults will benefit from the tools and programs on the site as well. Explore (explore.org/livecams) Being in nature has been shown to reduce anxiety and is a useful way to reflect on your life and the world at large. Can’t get outside? The webcams on this site are the next best thing. Our Mindful Life (ourmindfullife.com) This site is dedicated to helping people live naturally healthful lives. It includes many useful resources, including the list of self-reflection questions on life, love, mental health, and more at ourmindfullife.com/self-reflection-questions. Journaling Makes It Easier to Turn the Page and Go Forward Journaling can be a powerful way to help you release intrusive thoughts or track your progress in a certain area. By writing things down on a regular basis, you’ll inevitably learn a lot about yourself. Here are a few types of journals to consider. • Morning pages. Take a few minutes each morning to just write down whatever comes to mind. This exercise helps you clear out any clutter that might be getting in the way of your day. • Gratitude journal. Take time each morning or evening to write down what you’re grateful for. Read your journal when you need some cheer or encouragement. • Prompts. To get a new perspective, buy a journal with built-in prompts that help you consider things like “What makes you feel most inspired?” • Progress journal. Keep a journal of your accomplishments with a particular process, such as quitting smoking. Look it over when you are struggling to continue. You can also try simply answering the question, “How do I feel?” What comes out might surprise you. QUICK TIP: Once per year, reread your journal entries to remind yourself of how far you’ve come.
8 WebsiteCompass Internet Connections Problems with Passwords IT managers and security professionals have searched for years to find better alternatives to password-only authentication, which is one of the biggest security problems on the web. Passwords are prone to being hacked through dictionary attacks, brute-force attacks, and social engineering attacks. The sale of stolen passwords on the dark web proves that passwords are not a foolproof method of authentication and have security vulnerabilities. Managing so many passwords is also cumbersome for users, often leading them to reuse the same passwords across services. This practice can result in costly account takeovers, data breaches, and even stolen identities. While password managers and legacy forms of two-factor authentication offer incremental improvements, there’s been industry-wide collaboration to create more convenient and secure sign-in technology. Options for Replacement What technology is replacing passwords or will do so soon? Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) – This method requires more than one factor or element to verify a user’s identity. With MFA, traditional passwords are replaced with PINs (personal identification numbers) or OTPs (one-time passwords). Other approaches can include biometrics, codes on authenticator apps, and codes in emails. Biometric Authentication – Users must provide their biological data—such as touch ID, facial recognition, fingerprints, DNA matching, and retina scanning—as proof of identity to gain access. Biometric authentication is the most reliable method to fight password fatigue and implement passwordless authentication. Are Passwords Becoming Passé? New and better options exist for user authentication It may be hard to imagine a world without passwords, but some companies are already ditching them in favor of alternative ways for you to gain access to your account or device, including multi-factor authentication, biometric authentication, and behavioral recognition.
WebsiteCompass 9 Behavioral Recognition – To determine whether to trust a user and give access, behavioral recognition considers multiple data points to create a score. The data collected and analyzed can include keystroke dynamics, gait recognition, voice ID, mouse and touch use characteristics, and location behavior. Benefits of Passwordless Authentication Stronger cybersecurity is the main benefit of passwordless authentication since it prevents password-related cyberattacks. In addition, passwordless authentication methods are often resistant to phishing because users won’t be sending any login credentials via email or text to a hacker. Another benefit is a faster and more convenient login experience for users. They no longer need to spend time creating, entering, and managing strong passwords, thereby eliminating password fatigue. In the workplace, employees can dedicate more time to productive tasks. Role of Leading Tech Companies Apple, Google, and Microsoft announced plans in May 2022 to expand support for a common passwordless sign-in standard created by the FIDO Alliance and the World Wide Web Consortium. The new capability will allow websites and apps to offer consistent, secure, and easy passwordless sign-ins to consumers across devices and platforms. The expanded standards-based capabilities will provide the ability to offer an end-to-end passwordless option. Users will be able to sign in and access an account through a simple action similar to what they now do daily to unlock their devices, such as the verification of their fingerprint on the edge of an iPad to unlock it. This new approach protects against phishing, and sign-in will be more secure when compared to passwords and legacy multi-factor technologies such as one-time passcodes sent via text. The aforementioned companies have collaborated on passkey technology, which allows authentication with fingerprint ID, facial ID, or a PIN on the phone or device you use for authentication. (See the sidebar for a comparison of password and passkey.) Additional companies are also using passkey technology in their systems, including DocuSign, Kayak, PayPal, and Shopify. What’s the Difference Between a Password and a Passkey? A passkey is a unique login bundle used to identify a user and their account and designed to be easily and safely shared between devices. Passkeys are currently created with the WebAuthn standard and use public-key cryptography. The first time a user logs in with passkey technology, the technology generates a key pair. One key lives on your device privately and isn’t shared with anything else. The other key waits on a service’s servers. When the two keys match, the login information is shared. Users can use their device’s built-in biometrics or other authentication to unlock and share the key. How are passkeys different from passwords? First, you don’t have to remember anything. Passkeys are very long sequences compared to passwords, which gives them robust security, but they aren’t designed to be manually typed in. Instead, your device and the web server keep the passkey pair safe and match them up when necessary with a quick handshake protocol. You’ll then use biometrics or a similar security to log in to your authentication device. Second, passkeys are innately resistant to hacking attempts. Your private key is securely stored on your device, isn’t shared with anything, and can’t be intercepted. FAST FACT: According to a study sponsored by Yubico, a user spends an average of 10.9 hours per year setting, entering, and resetting passwords.
10 WebsiteCompass Social Media Basics Given those goals, what could LinkedIn possibly have to offer those who are no longer in the job market? Plenty. Today’s retirees are more like “retired-ish,” and many want to remain engaged with their industry and even work part-time or provide consulting services. LinkedIn is a great resource for enabling all that and more. Here are eight great reasons to maintain a LinkedIn profile at this stage of your career. 1. Industry News Even if you’re no longer working in your industry, you may still have a strong interest in it. LinkedIn is a great source of information for industry news. You’ll find it from the colleagues and companies you follow, as well as from the groups within the platform that you may be involved in. 2. Consulting Jobs Rather than being fully retired, many adults in the later stages of their career are working part-time, consulting, or otherwise staying connected to their profession. If you’re interested in consulting, you need a LinkedIn profile now more than ever, so those looking for your skills can easily find you. For the best results, use plenty of keywords in your profile descriptions. 3. Board Opportunities Like the reasons for keeping an active LinkedIn profile if you’re looking for consulting gigs, you should maintain one if you’re open to board opportunities. Serving on a board of directors is a great way to help companies or organizations by sharing the wealth of knowledge and experience you’ve gained over the years. 4. Collaboration You may be open to other opportunities as well. For example, if you’re an expert in your field, you might want to write a book about your expertise to help other people learn and succeed. LinkedIn is a great place to find a coauthor or be there for someone else to find. 5. Mentoring If you’re retired, your decades of work are now a valuable resource from which 8 Reasons for a Post-Retirement LinkedIn Profile Rather than giving up on this powerful platform, start using it in different ways LinkedIn is the world’s largest professional online network. You can use it to find jobs, discover and strengthen professional relationships, stay informed, and enable those looking for your skills to find you.
WebsiteCompass 11 others can benefit. You can use this know-how to help those in the early or middle stages of their career—especially within your former company—achieve important goals, connect with other resources, or move on to their next opportunity. 6. Writing Recommendations Recommendations are one of the strongest ways LinkedIn can help professionals showcase what they have to offer. Anyone on the platform can write recommendations for anyone else, and they help to promote people in ways simple job descriptions can’t. You can benefit your former colleagues greatly by writing recommendations for them on LinkedIn. 7. Connections With Colleagues A long career usually results in forming close relationships with colleagues over the years, and keeping your LinkedIn profile will help you maintain these relationships. Consider the joy you’ll get from watching younger professionals you worked with achieve professional goals, and the joy you’ll bring to them by offering your hearty congratulations. 8. Reconnect With Friends While LinkedIn isn’t a social networking site, it can be used to find people. If you’re inactive on social media sites such as Facebook but still want to be found by long-lost friends and classmates, LinkedIn is a good place to be. Your profile will come up in search engines, and anyone who wants to get in touch with you that way can. What LinkedIn Is Not LinkedIn has gotten some shade in popular culture, so it’s easy to think of it as the nerdy little brother to all the hot social media sites. To help clarify LinkedIn’s role, here are a few things this platform is not: • Simply an online resume. With rich features like search and the ability to showcase online media, LinkedIn is much more than just a place to list your former jobs. • A personal social networking site. Mentions of personal activities are fine if they’re related in some way to business. • An unpopular site. LinkedIn has 310 million active monthly users and 900 million users worldwide. • Pointless. LinkedIn helps people find jobs, clients, and connections that can help them get to the next stage of their careers. • A waste of time. Even if you’re not looking for a job, LinkedIn is a great place to stay up to date in your profession. In addition, LinkedIn is not the place for blatant sales pitches. It’s meant to be a platform to build relationships, not broadcast your sales material. QUICK TIP: After retirement, continue to like, comment, and post so people know you’re still professionally active, albeit at a reduced level.
12 WebsiteCompass How toModify Your LinkedIn Profile at Retirement When you retire, your goals change. So, it’s smart to make changes to your LinkedIn profile. TUTORIAL Modify Your LinkedIn Profile at Retirement LinkedIn allows you to create a story around your professional life. But after retirement, what exactly should that story be? For many people, retirement is a time to explore new interests that may or may not be related to the career they held. If you have a LinkedIn profile, updating it rather than deleting it can help keep you on people’s radar or help you consider other opportunities. 1. Edit your headline. You may think adding the word “retired” to the current position listed on your LinkedIn profile headline is the obvious edit, but experts insist that this is a mistake. “Retired” suggests you’re completely done with the working world. Instead, use the word “former.” Or create a generic title for yourself. For example, instead of beginning your headline with “Vice President of Marketing at XYZ Corporation,” use “Experienced Marketing Executive” or “Self-employed Consultant.”You can use the rest of the headline to explain how you want to be of service going forward or that you’re open to considering all options. 2. Edit your LinkedIn summary profile. This is the place to define yourself in your own words as you enter the retirement phase. You can put career choices into context, highlight your top achievements, and display your interests and personality. If you want to pursue opportunities such as part-time work or volunteer gigs, clearly express those goals. For example, you could say, “If you need someone with these skills, let’s talk.” If you have no idea what’s next for you in retirement, you say that, too! The LinkedIn community may be able to help you figure that out. 3. Make sure you post a recent photo. While you may show a few more wrinkles than when your last professional photo was taken, that’s OK. Have a new photo taken that communicates energy and warmth—and excitement for your retirement years. 4. Think carefully before you delete work experience and skills. Even if your retirement plans are totally unrelated to your career, deleting too much of your work experience and skills from LinkedIn could be a mistake. Those details help to paint the complete picture of who you are, what you’ve done, and what you can do. Maybe there’s a post-retirement opportunity out there that would be perfect for you, but you may never connect with it if your LinkedIn background doesn’t include all the relevant searchable data. Social Media Basics
WebsiteCompass 13 The stereotype of a gamer has been a teenage boy in the basement, but the reality of who plays video games is much different. The average age of a video game player is 35, and the ratio of female to male gamers is about 50:50. Worldwide, there are 3.24 billion gamers, with that number expected to rise to 3.32 billion by 2024. It’s Game On for Gaming at Any Age No matter your stage of life, gaming offers valuable benefits More than 214 million Americans now play video games, and there is at least one gamer in 75% of American households. If you think you’re not one of them, think again. A gamer isn’t only someone who sits on a sofa with a controller in their hands and headphones on their ears for hours on end. If you play Candy Crush Saga or any game on your phone for even a few minutes each week, you’re also a gamer. Though different generations may approach gaming differently, this pastime has become popular with folks of all ages. In the following sections, we look at the benefits of gaming for each age group and share tips to keep in mind for ensuring an optimal experience. Children Much has been made of the disadvantages of kids playing video games, including reduced activity and isolation, but gaming can provide many benefits to children: • Early learning skills. Games like Times Table Rock Stars and Endless Alphabet can help young kids learn the basics in a fun way. • Memory and concentration. Many games require players to remember a lot of information, contributing to improvement in problem-solving skills. • Skills for the future. Players often need to strategize and be able to analyze risk versus reward. Many future jobs will require these skills as well. • Teamwork. Through multiplayer games, team members learn to work together to achieve common goals. Back to Basics
Back to Basics 14 WebsiteCompass Parents can help their kids find the right games by keeping these tips in mind: • Read reviews from other parents. • For younger kids, stick to reputable sites like Nickelodeon and CBBC. The games there are appropriate for their developmental stage and, as a bonus, are also free. • Provide your child with a mix of different types of games, such as puzzles and shooters, so they can experiment with different skills. • Play games along with your child to connect with them and make sure they stay safe. Teens Children can continue to derive benefits from gaming in their teen years: • Manual dexterity. Gamers are faster and more accurate at performing tasks with their hands. • Increase in brain connectivity. Gaming has been referred to as a “fun workout for your mind” because it increases gray matter in the brain and improves memory, perception, and spatial navigation. • Social skills. Despite the stereotype of gamers as isolated individuals seeking to escape real life, gaming is often a team activity that enhances social skills and the ability to collaborate. • Physical activity. Yes, you read that right. Virtual reality (VR) games require players to engage with a virtual environment with their entire bodies, not just their hands. Parents can help their teens play games in healthy ways by keeping these tips in mind: • Establish boundaries, such as a limited number of hours per day they’re allowed to play or ratings they must avoid. • Encourage participation in other social and leisure activities to ensure gaming doesn’t take over their lives. • Play games with them to connect and learn about their interests. • Learn together about safety protocols for dealing with others in the gaming world. Adults Gaming is beneficial for adults as well. Here are some advantages for young adult and middle-aged gamers: • Stress reduction. Gaming can boost dopamine levels, leading to pleasurable feelings like surprise, happiness, and enjoyment. • Flow state. Becoming immersed in an activity to the point where you lose track of time is healthy, and doing so regularly can increase confidence and quality of life. • Better multi-tasking. Adults have a lot to manage—between work, family, friendships, community involvement, and hobbies. Playing games can help build multi-tasking skills to help. • Faster decision-making. All those responsibilities also create the need to make endless decisions, which is another skill games help to develop. If your last experience with playing a video game was Pac-Man in the 1980s, you may not know where to begin with today’s games. Not to worry! There are many games suitable for your
WebsiteCompass 15 stage of life and resources for getting the most out of them. For starters, consider the following tips: • Ask friends what games they play. Answers may range from staid New York Times puzzles to guilty pleasures like paint-by-number apps or intense active shooters. • Ask your kids. They may love to play games you wouldn’t like but may be aware of others you would. • Buy a gaming console. Once you have one, you can browse the selections available to play there. Seniors Older adults can also derive significant benefits from gaming. Here are just a few: • Memory improvement. Trying new things is helpful for maintaining brain health. Video games require learning additional skills, even across levels of the same game. • Social opportunities. For seniors with limited mobility, going out to meet friends may be a challenge. Gaming can enable social interaction without the need to be physically active. • Better eyesight. Those who play games become attuned to seeing more details in their environment, which is important for tasks such as driving. • Improved cognitive abilities. Your ability to recognize and remember objects can decline as you age. Gaming can help slow that decline. Seniors can learn from tips from the previous section for finding games to play. Here are some additional ones specifically well suited to this age group: • StardewValley. In this relaxing yet challenging game, you play a farmer who can plant, raise animals, fish, mine, and develop relationships with other characters to achieve goals. • Angry Birds. This game is played on a smartphone or tablet rather than a console. Cute, colorful, and somewhat addicting, it requires hand-eye coordination to use a catapult to fire birds into various structures. • Pokémon GO. The beauty of this game is in the “GO” part as you explore areas in the real world, with superimposed characters to collect. • Guitar Hero. Many adults over 50 still love to rock out. This game enables you to listen to some of your favorite bands and use a guitar-shaped controller to play along. How Gaming Can Help Those with Special Needs Gaming is not just for fun and leisure. It also shows up in the worlds of business, education, and health care. One of the ways in which gaming can be used to promote well-being is by enhancing the abilities of people with special needs, which might include more people than you’d think. According to the Centers for Disease Control, one in four adults—over 60 million people—in the U.S. has some type of disability that interferes with mobility, cognition, independent living, hearing, vision, or self-care. Gaming can help mitigate the effects of these disabilities in the following ways: • Increased interaction with the world. Video games, especially those with a VR component, can enable individuals with limited mobility to explore new places. • Improved emotional state. People with disabilities may suffer from depression more than others. Playing video games can help by offering stress relief and a sense of accomplishment. • Improvedmotor skills. Playing video games can enhance some of the skills those with disabilities may struggle with, including hand-eye coordination. Finally, games that allow people to play together can reduce social isolation, further contributing to a sense of well-being. Source: dataprot.net/statistics/gamer-demographics Source: cdc.gov/ncbddd/disabilityand health/infographic-disability- impacts-all.html
16 WebsiteCompass According to the Federal Trade Commission, Americans reported $330 million in losses to text scams in 2022, more than double the reported losses from 2021. And fake delivery-service texts—with most messages purportedly from USPS (U.S. Postal Service), FedEx, or UPS—were the third most reported type, behind fake bank texts and promises of free gifts or prizes. Examples of These Scams Most delivery-service texts start with an urgent message about delivering a package to your address and often include a “tracking link” that you’re urged to click in order to “update your delivery or payment preferences.”While these messages may look or sound legitimate, you should never click a link or call back the number from an unexpected delivery notice. Instead, contact the delivery service or seller directly using a verified number or website. A link may open a website that prompts you to enter personal information, or it may install malware on your device that can secretly steal personal information. The number you call back may be answered by a scam “operator” asking to verify your account information or the credit card number you used for a purchase. Other scam calls and texts may claim you need to pay money before the delivery can be made. Watch for theWarning Signs While there may be some variations between the fake delivery-service texts, depending on which delivery carrier they claim to represent, look for these common “red flags.” Beware of Fake Delivery-Service Texts Scammers claim to be from USPS, FedEx, or UPS to steal from you A growing number of Americans have received fake delivery-service texts that appear to be from a major delivery carrier, but are instead from scammers who are smishing—the term for scam attempts made via text, or SMS—for personal information and money. Beyond the Basics
WebsiteCompass 17 You receive notice about a problem with the delivery of your package when you haven’t made a tracking request. For example, unless you explicitly sign up for status alerts on a package, you won’t receive a text from USPS. So, if you receive a text message citing one, it’s certainly a fake. The message contains misspellings, awkward grammar, or excessive use of capitalization and exclamation points. These are classic signs of a scam attempt. Keep in mind, however, that with artificial intelligence and other advanced technology, scammers are becoming more sophisticated in their replication of legitimate business communications. The text—and/or the website it leads you to—requests payment and/or seemingly unnecessary information. You may be asked for a redelivery fee or a fee to release your shipment. The scammers may also request personal information such as your address, Social Security number, or credit card number. The website address is slightly altered compared to the real one. Instead of “fedex.com,” the scammers may use “fedx.com.” There is no tracking number when there should be. UPS says on its site, “If UPS contacts you regarding a package, the UPS representative will always be able to provide a tracking number, which you can verify on our website.” How to Protect Yourself To avoid becoming the victim of a fake delivery-service text, take these precautions: • Don’t click on any link unless you can verify that it’s legitimate. Scammers are skilled at making their links look legitimate at first glance. • If you’re suspicious of a tracking number, check it out. If the text cites a tracking number, copy and paste it into the search engine on the delivery service’s actual website. You’re likely to find it’s a fake. • Go to the source. If you’re concerned that there might be a problem with a package you’re receiving or have sent, contact the delivery carrier directly, not through the link in the text. In general, you should always be suspicious if you receive a message out of the blue asking for personal or financial information. 4 Steps to Protect Your Packages Not all delivery problems are the result of scammers sending you fake texts. Sometimes the issue is related to how you send or receive packages. Keep these steps in mind: 1. T ake precautions to ensure a safe delivery. If you’re having a valuable or fragile item sent somewhere, purchase shipping insurance. 2. R equest a signature. This feature can be well worth the extra fee, since it means the delivery service won’t be able to drop a package on your doorstep unless someone is around to sign for it. 3. Don’t leave packages sitting on your doorstep. Packages left sitting outside are vulnerable to theft. To ensure safe delivery, have your package delivered to your workplace or to a trusted friend or neighbor who will be home to accept delivery. Some delivery companies now have lockers where your packages can securely wait for you to pick them up using a one-time code. 4. Open your delivery upon receipt to check for damage or signs of tampering. Contact the seller immediately if you believe something is wrong with the shipment or it’s not what you ordered.
18 WebsiteCompass FAQs Dr. Webbie Answers your frequently asked questions QUESTION: I often order online. How can I prevent my packages from being stolen after delivery? ANSWER: This is a question many people are asking. An estimated 20 percent of Americans have had at least one package stolen from their front porches, mailboxes, or apartment mail rooms. Here are some options to help you minimize your risk of theft: • Carefully consider where to have the packages delivered. Instead of your home, use your office address, so packages will be brought inside a building instead of being left on a front porch. Other options include a P.O. box or parcel locker. • Opt to have the deliverer obtain a signature upon delivery. That way, the package can’t be left unless someone is home to sign for it. • Track the packages after ordering so you’ll know when they’ll arrive and can make arrangements to be there. • Band together with your neighbors. Ask if they’ll bring in packages when you’re not home, and offer to do the same. Additionally, let your neighbors know if you had a package stolen so they can stay vigilant. • Have the deliverer leave the package at the back door rather than on the front porch. • Install a security camera. Most cameras sync with your Wi-Fi and a phone app, so you can check on packages throughout the day. The mere presence of a camera may be enough to deter would-be porch pirates. But even if it doesn’t, you’ll at least have evidence for a police report. This last tip won’t prevent theft, but it will ensure you get financial compensation should a theft occur. If you’re ordering a high-value item online, such as a new smartphone or tablet, pay a few extra dollars for insurance. You can usually do this either through the vendor or the delivery service. QUESTION: Which U.S. states have the fastest average internet speed? ANSWER: According to April 2023 data from worldpopulationreview.com, here are the U.S. states with the top 10 fastest average internet speeds: 1. Maryland – 506.70 Mbps 2. Virginia – 505.60 Mbps 3. District of Columbia – 473.80 Mbps 4. Delaware – 469.70 Mbps 5. Washington – 451.00 Mbps 6. Rhode Island – 433.30 Mbps 7. Pennsylvania – 430.80 Mbps 8. New Jersey – 427.80 Mbps 9. Texas – 425.90 Mbps 10. Georgia – 414.90 Mbps For the U.S. as a whole, the average internet speed is 322.84 Mbps. Generally speaking, states with higher population densities and more urban areas tend to have faster average internet speeds, while rural states tend to have slower ones. However, even states with slower internet speeds overall may still have footprints with internet speeds among the fastest in the country. It’s important to note that every state is seeing increases in average internet speed each year as our country’s telecoms work diligently to provide faster speeds by building fiber networks.
WebsiteCompass 19 Glossary ADDRESS BOOK - A feature of an email program, or a stand-alone application, that stores and organizes a list of email addresses and other contact information a computer user frequently uses. ALERTS - Automatic notifications, often by email, that news on topics you’ve specified is now online. APP - Shorthand for application, app is popularly used to describe software that enhances the usefulness of mobile phones, media players, and social networking sites. AUTO-COMPLETE - Feature that predicts a word or phrase before the user types it in completely. BLOG - (short for Weblog) Writings similar to a journal or diary by individuals that are posted to the internet. Someone who writes a blog is a “blogger.” BOOKMARK - A reference to a file or webpage you plan to frequently visit. Most internet browsers let you maintain and organize a list of bookmarks (also called “favorites” when using Microsoft Internet Explorer) to make it easy to return to them again. BOOLEAN PHRASES - Linking words or symbols in all caps that indicate the relationships of words to each other and refine online searches. BOTNET - A collection of compromised zombie computers running programs automatically under remote direction. BROADBAND - (Broad Bandwidth) A high-speed network connection capable of supporting a wide range of frequencies. BROWSER - A software program that is used to look at various kinds of internet resources. The most popular browsers are Microsoft Internet Explorer, Firefox, and Safari. BYTE - A group of eight bits that represent a character. Computer memory and disk capacity are measured in bytes. (A bit is the smallest unit of measurement for computer data.) CACHE - The hard drive space your browser uses to temporarily store webpages. When returning to a recently visited page, the browser can get a copy of it from the cache rather than the original server, saving time and network traffic. The larger amount of space you allocate for the cache, the more webpages can be stored. CELLULAR DATA - A way for your phone to access the internet that ’s offered by your mobile carrier. CHATBOT - A computer program that mimics conversations with humans. CHAT ROOM - A system where people can “chat” on a website through their browser. CLIENT - A computer or piece of software that requests information or services from a server. Your computer becomes a “client” when you connect to your ISP for a service such as surfing the internet or using email. COMPRESSION - A method by which data, images, and text can be stored using less disk space. After a file is compressed into a smaller file size, it will require less time to transmit over a network. CONTACT GROUP - A group of email addresses specified by a user. A contact group allows one to easily send a message to multiple recipients by entering the group name in the “To:” field. COOKIE - A piece of information sent by a Web server to be stored by your Web browser. Whenever the browser makes additional requests to that server, the server is able to use the information stored in the “cookie” to customize a response based on data from a previous connection. CROWDSOURCING – Meeting a challenge by asking many people—via the internet—if they can help. CROWDTURFING – Organized, for-pay efforts that hire people to create accounts under false names and post certain reviews or push a brand or website. CSS - (short for Cascading Style Sheet) A specification for the presentation of html documents that allow Web developers to easily control the style and layout of single or multiple webpages. DNS - (Domain Name Server) A computer which translates a domain name into a set of numbers called an IP address. DOMAIN NAME - A “domain name” is a unique name that is used to represent and help locate a specific Web server on the internet. For example, “www.websitecompass.com” is a domain name. Each domain name corresponds to a set of numbers called an IP address. DSL - (Digital Subscriber Line) Allows users to download and upload data over standard telephone lines. It provides a constant internet connection over which users can receive voice and data simultaneously. It isn’t available in many areas because it requires a short distance to the DSL provider’s origin. E-LEARNING - Any kind of learning that is provided through the digital technology used by computers. E-PATIENT - An internet user who looks online for health information. EBOOK - (short for Electronic Book) A book in digital format that can be read on a computer or other digital device. EDU - When these letters appear as the last part of a Web address, it indicates that the host computer is run by an educational institution, usually in the United States. EMOTICON - (or Smileys) Short for emotion icon. Symbols composed of punctuation that help convey how an email message should be interpreted by the reader. Ex. :-) = Happy, :-( = Sad EMOJIS - Icons or small digital images that are used online to express emotions or an idea. E-ZINE - A periodic publication distributed by email or posted on a website. FAQ - Short for Frequently Asked Question. FAVORITE - See Bookmark. FILTER BUBBLES - Process by which websites show you search results and feed items based on your past choices and other factors. FIREWALL - A specially programmed computer that connects networks (usually a local network to the internet) and for security reasons lets only certain kinds of data in and out. FIREWIRE - (Also known as IEEE 1394) A fast type of computer connection–similar to USB 2–that allows for high rates of data transfer. FLASH - A multimedia program for viewing and creating interactive and animated content on the Web. FORUM - A section of a website where users post and read topics of common interest. FREEWARE - Software provided at no charge by its originator. FTP - (File Transfer Protocol) A common method of transferring files between two computers connected over a network. FTP is a way to login to an internet server for the purposes of retrieving and/or sending files. Many publicly accessible internet sites allow their materials to be obtained using FTP. Most FTP sites require a user name and password. GIF - (Graphics Interchange Format) A file format that uses compression for saving and viewing images. GIGABYTE - A measure of computer storage capacity equal to 1,000 megabytes, or 1 billion bytes. GOV - When these letters appear as the last part of a Web address, it indicates that the host computer is run by a government body, probably in the U.S. HACKER - A person who tries to defeat computer security measures and break into websites and computers. HASHTAG - A word or phrase preceded by (#) and used to categorize social media messages. HISTORY - A browser feature which keeps track of Web resources that have been recently visited. HOME PAGE - (or Homepage) Originally, a Home Page was defined as the webpage your browser was set to use when it was started up. The more common meaning now refers to the main webpage for an organization, business, person or simply the main page out of a collection of webpages. HTML - (HyperText Markup Language) A coding language used to create hypertext documents for use on the Web. HTML files contain instructions on how your browser displays text, images, links and etc. HTML files usually end in “.htm” or “.html.” HTTP - (HyperText Transfer Protocol) The standard protocol for moving hypertext files across the internet. HYPERTEXT - Text that contains links to other documents. Words or phrases in the document that can be chosen by an internet user which causes another document to be retrieved and then displayed. INTERNET OF THINGS (IOT) - A collection of unique objects represented and connected virtually. IP ADDRESS - A numeric address which identifies a particular computer or server over a network. ISP - (Internet Service Provider) An institution that provides access to the internet. JAVA - A network-oriented programming language specifically designed for writing programs that can be downloaded to your computer and run. By using small Java programs called “applets,” webpages can include functions such as animations, calculators, chatrooms, games, etc. JAVASCRIPT - A programming language used to add interactive and dynamic features to webpages. It shares some characteristics with Java but is independent. JPEG - (or JPG) Named after the committee that created it, the Joint Photographic Experts Group, this is a file format that uses compression for saving and viewing images. LAN - (Local Area Network) A computer network limited to an immediate area, usually the same building or just one floor of a building. LINK - (short for Hyperlink) A hypertext connection that can take you to another document or another part of the same document. On the World Wide Web, links appear either as underlined text or as pictures/icons. To follow a link, double click on the underlined text or on the corresponding icon.
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