Greg's Corner

Updates from July, 2016 Toggle Comment Threads | Keyboard Shortcuts

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  Geebo 10:03 am on July 15, 2016 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: games ( 3 ), NES Classic Edition ( 2 ), Nintendo ( 3 ), video games ( 3 )   

  Off Topic Friday: Nintendo to release new ‘old’ console 

  

  Nintendo made headlines for the second time this week cashing in on nostalgia once again. The Japanese game company has announced that they are releasing a mini version of its classic Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) from the 1980s. The newly announced NES Classic Edition not only fits in the palm of your hand but it comes pre-loaded with 30 games from the classic 8-bit era. Some of the titles include all three Super Mario Bros. games, the original Final Fantasy, and Zelda I and II. The best part is there are no cartridges to blow in to get them to work.

  If you were a gamer from back in the day this could be a great opportunity to show gamers of today that there is a beautiful simplicity in these 8-bit classics that kept us engaged for a generation.

  The console is set to be released in November of this year.

  The must have holiday toys are already gone | Greg's Corner is discussing. Toggle Comments

   

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  Geebo 2:01 pm on July 14, 2016 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: know your rights, Police ( 8 )   

  Help protect yourself during a police stop 

  

  Police in the United States have a tireless and thankless job. While most of them will go through their entire careers without having any issues, as we have seen recently, some are not up to the task and innocent lives have been tragically lost in the process. Although not all situations can ever be predicted and no solution is perfect there are steps that can be taken to help protect yourself and your rights.

  The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) not only has apps that can be used to record police stops they also have a plethora of information regarding your rights when it comes to being stopped by police. The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) also has information regarding your rights when it comes to recording police activity.

  While apps like Facebook Live and Periscope have been used recently to record police another good idea might be to have a dash cam installed in your car. Most models can record audio as well as video and some models can swivel between the external view and internal view.

  As I said before, most police do their job without incident however, the ones that either willfully or ignorantly abuse their authority need to be put on notice that they can be monitored by citizens while they’re on duty.

   
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  Geebo 10:00 am on July 13, 2016 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: donating blood, healthcare ( 39 ), Red Cross, summer ( 2 )   

  Red Cross facing severe summer shortage 

  

  A great many of us will donate blood to the American Red Cross after a natural disaster like Hurricane Sandy or a crime of great tragedy like the Orlando massacre. Instead of waiting for an event like that to occur before donating we should be donating now. Right now the American Red Cross is facing a severe shortage of blood donations. Most of the shortage is due to it being summer here in America and with schools out and families on vacations not many people are thinking about blood donation nor are many blood drives being organized.

  If you think about it, summertime is great time to donate blood. Summertime always has the potential to bring about the most widespread natural disasters in our country, like hurricanes. Rising temperatures can also lead to massive brush and forest fires and heavy rains have already brought major flooding to the country. Sadly, our country is also susceptible to tragedies like those that happened recently on Orlando and Dallas. While I’m sure the Red Cross is grateful for the donations received in the wake of events like this, wouldn’t it be better if they had enough blood on hand before these events take place?

  Please visit http://www.redcrossblood.org/ today ro find a donation site near you.

   
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  Geebo 11:42 am on July 12, 2016 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: apps ( 15 ), Exchange Initiative, Human trafficking ( 97 ), mobile phones ( 7 ), TraffickCam   

  New app let’s you help fight human trafficking 

  

  Many times when human traffickers advertise their victims online, they often use pictures taken in the hotel rooms of where they’re being sold out of. Law enforcement can sometimes use those pictures to locate where the victims of trafficking are being held captive. Now, a smart phone app aims to help law enforcement by creating a database of pictures from hotels all over the country.

  The app, called TraffickCam, was designed by anti-human trafficking group, the Exchange Initiative. Users can download the app and when they stay in any hotel they can take pictures of the room and add them to the ever-increasing database of pictures. The more pictures there are the more chances law enforcement has of rescuing a woman or child from being sold into sexual slavery.

  With apps like Snapchat and Instagram we’re already taking scores of pictures of our surroundings everyday. With TraffickCam you can take just a few more pictures that have the potential to rescue someone from a life of violence and sexual servitude. However, an even bigger boon towards this end would be if the hotel and motel industries themselves would get involved instead of often turning a blind eye to what goes on behind their doors.

   
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  Geebo 9:56 am on July 11, 2016 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: apps ( 15 ), games ( 3 ), mobile phones ( 7 ), Pokemon Go   

  What exactly is Pokemon Go and is it safe? 

  

  In case you haven’t heard, the new must have app among mobile users is Pokemon Go. If you’re not familiar with it, it’s a mobile game for both iOS and Android that is based on the wildly popular Pokemon video games made by Nintendo. In the original games, the player travels around the confines of the game capturing the fantastical creatures known as Pokemon. One of the great features of the games was that you could play and trade with your friends.

  Pokemon Go is what’s known as an augmented reality game. That means that it overlays elements of the game into the real world through the screen of your mobile phone. The game puts you into the role of a Pokemon trainer and allows you to catch virtual Pokemon in the real world. The game was designed to not only get players to get up and move around but it also has a social aspect that allows other players to meet in real life.

  Even though the game is incredibly popular and fun to play, that doesn’t mean that there haven’t been drawbacks. The first thing to consider is that the game keeps its players looking down into their cell phones. If a player is not aware of their surroundings it could lead to injuries and in fact it has. Any game ultimately leads to cheating and in the case of Pokemon Go it has led at least one man to use a drone in order to try to locate rare Pokemon without putting in the footwork. Some people have even used Pokemon Go to allegedly rob players when they show up to areas where Pokemon are said to be.

  However, having said all of that Pokemon Go can be a fun and safe time for both adults and kids and even parents and their children as long as you use common sense.

   
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  Geebo 11:33 am on July 8, 2016 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: Jeff Wysaski, Los Angeles ( 3 ), Obvious Plant, prank ( 2 ), Zoo ( 2 )   

  Off Topic Friday: Jokester posts funny fake facts at L.A. Zoo 

  

  Recently, at the zoo in Los Angeles, California, someone posted fake but funny placards around the zoo that contained phony facts about the zoo’s animals. All of the silly signs were in good nature as they contained such goofy ‘facts’ like “If you give a tiny If you give a tiny trombone to 76 ducklings, they will lead the most adorable parade you’ve ever seen.”

  The signs were all part of comedian Jeff Wysaski’s Obvious Plant project. All the different signs that Mr. Wysaski left at the zoo can be seen here.

  Not to sound like a Pollyanna about things, but we need more jokes like this and less mean-spirited pranks like ‘swatting’ and similar trolling.

   
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  Geebo 11:15 am on July 7, 2016 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: Cabin Creek, Colorado ( 8 ), ghost town, real estate ( 127 )   

  Colorado ghost town for sale online 

  

  Do you have $350K burning a hole in your pocket and you’ve always wanted to live in rural Colorado? If so then do I have a deal for you. Cabin Creek, Colorado, which is 45 minutes from Denver, could be yours. The property contains five acres, a gas station with a garage, a small hotel, a diner, an RV park and two homes. The property isn’t in the best condition but the current owner has said that he has installed modern security equipment. Cabin Creek became a ghost town after a murder there in the 1970s. The current owner says that he is selling the property in order to travel.

  If you’re interested in purchasing Cabin Creek or just checking out its history you can go to the town’s website or its Facebook page.

   
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  Geebo 10:02 am on July 6, 2016 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: Facebook ( 179 ), News ( 7 )   

  Facebook changes its newsfeed again: How to keep Geebo on yours 

  

  In today’s digitized society almost all of us have to use Facebook. We have to use it because that’s where most of our friends and family are and how we stay in touch with them. Because of that publishers, businesses and content creators are almost beholden to Facebook since that’s where a great deal of their traffic comes from. That made Facebook a destination for multitudes of people looking for the latest news by liking the Facebook pages of their favorite news outlets, blogs and brands. This would allow the news that users would be looking for to be mixed in with the posts from their friends and family on their newsfeed. That all changed recently.

  Not too long ago Facebook made announcements that it would not only be changing the newsfeed feature once again, as it has done so many times in the past, but that it will now focus more on friends and family than publishers and the like. I’m sure many people will enjoy this new feature but what about the people who use Facebook for their news and consumer information? Major publishers are claiming that their numbers are down, bloggers that I’ve talked to have told me that they’re numbers are down, and sadly even the numbers for the Geebo Facebook page are somewhat down.

  For those of you who want to keep the news, and Geebo, in your newsfeed there is a solution. Many news organizations have posted detailed instructions on how to keep your favorite Facebook page in your news feed. For example you can check out this one from the Minneapolis Star-Tribune here. You can use their guide not only to get your favorite news pages back in your newsfeed but hopefully you’ll use it to get Geebo’s back in as well.

  Thank you for your continued support and patronage of Geebo.com, the safer community classifieds.

   
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  Geebo 11:38 am on July 5, 2016 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: find of the week ( 4 ), school bell   

  Find of the Week: Cast Iron School Bell 

  

  In case you were busy celebrating our nation’s independence yesterday you may have missed this find posted to one of our social network feeds yesterday. A seller from Ogden, Utah, had posted an ad for an old cast iron school bell. The seller says that the bell is 1′ 10″ tall by 2′ 10″ diameter.

  Not exactly sure what one might do with an item like this, besides annoy your neighbors, but this piece could definitely be an interesting conversation starter. Who knows? It could even be a rare historic find. Antiques Roadshow anyone? Although, your mileage may vary, so to speak.

   
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  Geebo 10:16 am on July 4, 2016 Permalink | Reply  

  Happy Independence Day 

  

  From all of us here at Geebo.com have a safe and happy Independence Day.