Free Solitaire for all

If you’re making the jump from Windows 7 (or older) straight to Windows 10, you’ll be as shocked as everyone was when they started using Windows 8: No Freecell. Oh, Microsoft has a Solitaire app for you; it’s just going to cost you to remove the ads it throws your way. I have a better solution. And I have some more fun things to look at. Read on.

 

Microsoft introduced computer users to Solitaire in 1990 when Windows 3.0 was released. Legend has it that games were included with Windows to teach people how to use a mouse.

Apparently that worked well. People have been playing Solitaire on Windows computers ever since. Or they were until Windows 8. At that point Microsoft introduced a different version of Solitaire, available from the Microsoft Store, which was ugly, took up the entire screen, and included ads.

Windows 10 doesn’t include any free/ad-free games. You can download that Solitaire app, though, with even more aggressive ads. Can you get rid of the ads? Yes you can, for a $10 per year or $1.50 per month subscription. I mean, that takes a lot of nerve.

Yes, there are alternatives you can download, many of them either paid or loaded with malicious software or both. But there IS a truly free alternative, and you can play it on any version of Windows because you don’t download and install anything --- you play it in your browser.

Go to SolitaireForFree.com (http://solitaireforfree.com/) and choose which of the forty different solitaire games. (Yes. They have Freecell.) Absolutely ad-free. Interesting-looking decks and beautiful background colours. Go for it.

In no particular order, here are a few websites I’ve come across that are interesting and/or fun. I hope you find something here you like.

Origins of Common UI Symbols (http://visual.ly/origins-common-ui-symbols)

What the heck is that pitchfork thing you see on computers and cables all the time, and where did it come from? Why do we use the @ sign in email? The folks at the Visually website have put together a lovely infographic that explains these and more.

 

10MinuteMail (http://10minutemail.com/10MinuteMail/)

10MinuteMail is a secure temporary email service. You get an email address that you can use for 10 minutes, and then it self-destructs. Why on earth would you want to use this? People use this kind of thing to eliminate spam from websites they don’t trust but which demand an email address. You don’t want to do this with a website where you will need something again and again. But if you just need to register for something, click on a link, and that’s where you want the conversation to end, 10MinuteMail might work well for you. Learn more here: http://10minutemail.com/10MinuteMail/faq.html.

 

The 7-Word Autobiographies of Famous Writers, Artists, Musicians, and Philosophers (http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2013/07/11/nypl-live-holdengraber-7-word-bios/) I found this through the wonderful Brain Pickings website (http://www.brainpickings.org/). The NY Public Library interviewed well-known people and as part of the project asked each one to provide a 7-word biography. Can you write your own 7-word biography? Not all those famous people pared it down to seven words. Luckily, I’m not famous: caffeine-addicted, cyclist, dog-lover, geek, curler, writer, seeker.

 

OfficeSupplyGeek.com (http://officesupplygeek.com/)
Need I say more?

 

Do you have something interesting to share? Email [email protected] and I’ll share with everyone!

Do you need help with your computer? I'm here to help you and your home or business computer get along!

 

Cate Eales runs Computer Care Kelowna (http://computercarekelowna.com/) a mobile service helping home users and businesses get along with their computers. To arrange an appointment phone her at 250-764-7043. Cate also welcomes your comments and suggestions. Send email to [email protected].

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