#88 An Update

Hi ya!

Just wanted to quickly update everyone.

First, I wanna apologize for not posting a blog these past couple weeks.
I'm currently working on fixing that and seeing if I can get myself back together.

That means that there may not be a blog post any time soon.

When I get this figured out, I will start blogging again. That may be tomorrow, 1 week from now, 2 weeks from now, and so forth.

Thought that I should notify everyone.

Sorry, again.

#87 Chromebook - 3 Keyboard Shortcuts every Chrome OS User should know

Hi ya!

Chrome OS has a lot of keyboard shortcuts.

From Alt + Shift + S launching the Status Menu, to Ctrl + Shift + Q (twice) logging you out.

There’s 3 keyboard shortcuts that you should know!

#1. Launch “Get Help” App

If you’re new to Chrome OS, then the Get Help app is what you need!

Ctrl + / is the keyboard command.

For more information, check out this blog post.

#2. Caps Lock

If you’re one of those angry gamers, or if you’re writing something that requires capital letters, then knowing the Caps Lock command is for you.

Alt + Search Key is the keyboard command.

Please note:

For me, I have to hold down the keys for awhile before Caps Lock has been enabled.

For more information, check out this blog post.

#3. Task Manager

If Chrome is running slow on your Chromebook, then ending some processes in the Task Manager might help.

Shift + Esc is the keyboard command.

And that is the 3 keyboard shortcuts that every Chrome OS user should know!

For further reference:

If you’d like to learn more, you can check out the Google Help Center.

If you have a specific question that the Help Center doesn’t cover, then you can ask your question on the Google Product Forum.

Thanks for reading!

Hopefully you enjoyed the read and learned something new.

If you did enjoy reading, then don’t forget to share your newly learned wisdom on social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter, Google Plus, etc.

Is there anything that you’d me to blog about? If so, then post your suggestion in the comment section.

Best of Luck,

▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬

W.C. Blitzy

#86 Hangouts - How to turn off Chat Notification

Hi ya!

Have you joined a group conversation on Hangouts?

Receiving a ton of messages that you just don’t want to read right now?

If so, then what you can do is turn off chat notifications on Hangouts!

Doesn’t matter if you’re using the Hangouts App, Extension, or from Gmail.

All apply the same way.

How to turn off Chat Notification in Hangouts

• Launch Hangouts.
• Click on the person (or group conversation) that you want to manage notifications.
• Click the gear icon at the top right.
  
• From the Options menu, make sure that Notifications is not checked.
  
  To put it simple:
  If Notifications is checked, that means you’ll receive notifications every time a new message appears.
  If Notifications is not checked, that means you’ll get no notifications letting you know there was a new message.

And that is how you turn off chat notifications in Hangouts!

For further reference:

If you’d like to learn more, you can check out the Google Help Center.

If you have a specific question that the Help Center doesn’t cover, then you can ask your question on the Google Product Forum.

Thanks for reading!

Hopefully you enjoyed the read and learned something new.

If you did enjoy reading, then don’t forget to share your newly learned wisdom on social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter, Google Plus, etc.

Is there anything that you’d me to blog about? If so, then post your suggestion in the comment section.

Best of Luck,

▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬

W.C. Blitzy

Thank You (v3.0)!

Hi ya!

Yet another milestone was smashed!

That’s right!

The first milestone was 10K views.

The second milestone was 25K views.

And now, this blog has passed 50K views!

I mean, 50K all time views is….completely...I’m so flabbergasted. Words can’t describe how feel right now.

Some numbers:

• According to my last ‘Thank You’ blog, it took 61 days for my blog to reach 25K views from 10K views.
• Now, From the last ‘Thank You’ blog to now, it’s taken 82 days.
• 82 days to gather 26738 views.
• Let’s see how long it will take to reach 100,000 views!

Thank you so much for taking interest in reading my blog!

#84 Chrome - 3 Basic Troubleshooting Steps

Hi ya!

If you’re having issues with your Chrome browser, then I have three basic suggestions for you to try.

3 Basic Troubleshooting suggestions

(#1) Reboot your device.

Sometimes a minor glitch can cause Chrome to mess up.

This glitch can happen on any type of device. From mobile (Android, iOS) to desktop (Windows, Mac).

Other times, your device may have to update and you just don’t know about it! Restarting the device may trigger the update that could fix the issue.

(#2) Test it out on another browser.

If Chrome is messing up, seeing if you experience same issue on another browser is a good way to find out whether if the issue is just browser related or something deeper.

For example, is Facebook loading funny? The fonts  looking funny? Images not displaying correctly?

Well, let’s see if Facebook operates properly on Internet Explorer, Firefox, Opera, Safari (for Mac users). Those are just to name a few popular browsers. There’s more for you to choose from.

If the problem appears to be working fine on the other browsers, then the issue could be with only Chrome.

Now, if the issue occurs on the other browsers, then it could be something more troublesome.

In that case, here’s what I suggest:

1. If you’re a Windows user, ask the Windows Community.
2. If you’re a Mac user, ask the Mac Forum.

(#3) Try it out in Incognito Mode.

Sometimes your Chrome browser will work smoother in Incognito mode. Have you ever wondered why? The main reason that I can think of is usually, no third party apps / extensions enabled in Incognito mode.

These apps and extensions (usually, extensions added to the Chrome browser) may cause issues to Chrome.

Browsing Chrome in Incognito is a great way to tell if the third party add-on is the culprit.

To browse Chrome in Incognito mode, follow the instructions below.

1. Launch the Chrome browser.
2. Click the Control menu on the top right of the browser.
3. From there, click New Incognito Window.
4. And that opens up Chrome in the private browser. Now you can test and see if the issue still happens in Incognito mode. If it does, then it’s most likely an extension causing the problem. Uninstalling the extension > browsing the web in normal Chrome (non-Incognito) > is the issue resolved? If so, GREAT! If not, well, that’s another blog in itself...

And that is 3 basic troubleshooting steps for you to try and see if they fix your Chrome browser!

For further reference:

If you’d like to learn more, you can check out the Google Help Center.

If you have a specific question that the Help Center doesn’t cover, then you can ask your question on the Google Product Forum.

Thanks for reading!

Hopefully you enjoyed the read and learned something new.

If you did enjoy reading, then don’t forget to share your newly learned wisdom on social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter, Google Plus, etc.

Is there anything that you’d me to blog about? If so, then post your suggestion in the comment section.

Best of Luck,

▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬

W.C. Blitzy

#83 Google Top Contributor Program

Hi ya!

Do you know a little about technology?

Know how to fix browser issues? Know what to do when a printer doesn’t work?

Or do you have an issue with Gmail? Chrome? Google Drive? An issue that you just don’t know how to fix.

Or, do you have a passion for Google products? You may not be knowledgeable about geeky things but you’re eager to learn.

I could go on. But hopefully you understand where I’m going with this.

What I’m getting at is Google has a program. This program is called Google Top Contributor Program.

“What is the Top Contributor Program?”, you ask.

The Google Top Contributor Program is a program for people who are passionate about Google products. For people who may or may not be knowledgeable about certain Google products.

These people voluntarily answer questions at Google Product Forum (GPF).

All different types of Google product users come to GPF asking a question, sharing an idea, reporting a bug, etc.

And these Top Contributors (TC) reply to the users sharing their feedback, helping the user fix their issue, general discussion about technology things, etc.

For example, someone comes to GPF with the question “I’m getting redirects from my Chrome browser. How do I get fix it?”. A TC reads the thread and sees about solving the users issue.

That’s just one example. I could list a thousand more.

To summarize what a TC is:

• A person who is knowledgeable about Google products such as Chrome, Gmail, Google Drive.
• A  person who voluntarily answers user questions at GPF.

“How do I join the Top Contributor Program?”

Being a TC is fun. You get to go to annual TC Summits.

In a way, TCs represent Google itself. So, you have meet a certain criteria before you can be a TC. Here’s a

list of some of the criterias:

1. You have to sign an NDA.
   That means you have to be the age of 18. No less than that age - as I have come to realize.
2. You represent Google. So, that means you should follow GPF posting guideline.
3. Before you can become a TC, you have to become a Rising Star.
   Becoming a Rising Star (RS) is easier than becoming a TC. You can be any age to be an RS. You don’t have to sign an NDA agreement to be a RS. You still represent Google as a RS, so you should follow the posting guideline.
   To become a Rising Star, you should post in GPF frequently.
4. Interact with the Community Manager (CM), other Experts, and the users.
   Having a friendly chat with other TCs and RSes is a good thing. Communicating well with your CM (a Google employee who manages a forum in GPF).
   Answering users questions at GPF doesn’t have to be treated like work. GPF is volunteer work. If you be active on GPF because you have a job, then that’s A-Ok.
   With that being said, I see no reason why you can’t have a friendly chat with the user you’re helping.
5. If you want to become a TC, being active helps.
   The more active you are on GPF, the better.
   However, if you can’t be as active as you want to be, then reach out to your CM and talk to them about it.

That’s a good list to start with. You always reach out to your CM and talk to them about the the qualities of a good TC.

Now, prepare for tons of links!

• https://topcontributor.withgoogle.com/
• https://support.google.com/groups/topic/2546991
• http://www.google.com/get/topcontributor/?utm_source=googleblog
• http://www.google.com/get/topcontributor/join/benefits.html
• https://support.google.com/groups/answer/1649693?hl=en
• https://productforums.google.com/forum/#!topic/docs/jqO8iF03WYQ

Thanks for reading!

Hopefully you enjoyed the read and learned something new.

If you did enjoy reading, then don’t forget to share your newly learned wisdom on social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter, Google Plus, etc.

Is there anything that you’d me to blog about? If so, then post your suggestion in the comment section.

Best of Luck,

▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬

W.C. Blitzy