Disqus - Latest Comments for KevinCTofel

Re: A very unique unboxing video from Chrome Unboxed

KevinCTofel — Fri, 29 May 2020 20:45:12 -0000

Congrats guys!

Re: Sideload Android APKs on Chromebook without dev mode

KevinCTofel — Fri, 27 Dec 2019 15:31:22 -0000

Would be appreciated to see a link to the source, About Chromebooks. Cheers!

Re: The Best To-Do List App

KevinCTofel — Sun, 18 Aug 2019 10:00:13 -0000

Hope an updated article adds Any.Do to the competition. Cross platform, elegant, simple but powerful IMO. Cheers!

Re: Cautionary tale: Hackers hijack phone number, break into man's Google account, then try to steal $25K

KevinCTofel — Mon, 17 Jun 2019 21:02:50 -0000

Right; I didn't take offense to your comment. ;) Totally agree that Matt doesn't deserve this. Could have taken more precautions to prevent this? Maybe. But ultimately, I feel his carrier was the real weak point here and I'm so disappointed in them. Cheers and thanks for listening to the podcast!

Re: Cautionary tale: Hackers hijack phone number, break into man's Google account, then try to steal $25K

KevinCTofel — Mon, 17 Jun 2019 20:49:15 -0000

Yup, and I’m pulling every string I still have to pull in order to help my podcasting pal. Crazy how difficult it is to get quick support in a case like this. 🙄

Re: Here Is How To Download And Get Android Apps On Chromebook

KevinCTofel — Sat, 25 May 2019 06:43:14 -0000

Developer mode is not the same as the Dev Channel. You don't enter Developer mode by using the listed steps.

Re: Google Pixel Slate Review: The Chrome OS Tablet Future

KevinCTofel — Fri, 07 Dec 2018 12:01:56 -0000

Great review! One question since it’s mentioned both on video and in the written review: Does the i7 model actually use NVMe storage like the comparable Pixelbook? I asked Google and their response was that all Pixel Slate models use eMMC. Wondering if they told you different.

Re: Linux Apps on Chromebooks Getting Google Drive, Play Store File Access Support

KevinCTofel — Fri, 30 Nov 2018 11:47:31 -0000

Yup: 72 currently supports SD cards/ USB drives in Linux: https://www.aboutchromebook...

Re: Review: Brydge’s G-Type keyboard for Pixel Slate solves the problems with Google’s version

KevinCTofel — Wed, 28 Nov 2018 17:50:57 -0000

How does the Brydge switch between desktop and tablet mode?

Re: Google to work with iRobot’s robot vacuums on mapping the inside of your house

KevinCTofel — Mon, 05 Nov 2018 13:33:41 -0000

Yup, HomeKit has this functionality available via manual setup. So does Google Home and Amazon Alexa; I use them all. You'd be surprised by how many mainstream folks don't understand how or why they should set up rooms.

Regardless, your view is very focused on the current state. I'm thinking more of the future state since the smart home market is really still at the beginning of its development lifecycle. Context is the right data at the right time and place; more of it will help any of these platforms add value. For example, cameras can tell me what they can see and what room *they're* in. But the can't (yet) tell me what actual room the activity is in. Maybe I have a pet that I don't want a certain room, for example. Lots of potential use cases. Again, I was simply trying to answer the question from a different perspective.

Re: Google to work with iRobot’s robot vacuums on mapping the inside of your house

KevinCTofel — Mon, 05 Nov 2018 08:54:18 -0000

"Who cares about room data?"

Anyone who wants to add more context to a smart home environment. Instead of having to remember the name of lights, cameras, thermostats , sensors and such, with context you can simply say "Hey [Siri, Google, Amazon, etc...] turn on the living room lights and tell me if anyone walks past the front door camera."

I'm not saying there aren't security/privacy implications, of course. Just answering the question that was posed.

Re: Chrome OS Gets Android 9, Pie (Canary Channel)

KevinCTofel — Sun, 21 Oct 2018 11:35:33 -0000

Thanks for checking!

Re: Chrome OS Gets Android 9, Pie (Canary Channel)

KevinCTofel — Sun, 21 Oct 2018 05:41:50 -0000

Great find, Dinsan! Have you tried to sideload any Android apps without being in Developer Mode out of curiosity? I know folks are waiting for that feature. Thanks!

Re: LTE-enabled Samsung Chromebook Plus On The Way

KevinCTofel — Wed, 03 Oct 2018 17:16:35 -0000

Thanks for the kind words! I think some folks may not realize how much time we (not just me, but you guys too!) put into digging around for information. Sometimes it's HOURS of scanning through boring stuff just to find one nugget. ;)

Re: Chromebook

KevinCTofel — Mon, 03 Sep 2018 08:13:22 -0000

Yup, been running Crouton on and off since 2013: https://gigaom.com/2013/02/... But I personally prefer using the Crostini containers for safety/security reasons. I also like the ability to move back and forth between systems without a reboot, plus the added convenience of files in the Linux container accessible in the native Chrome OS Files app.

You're correct that the original Toshiba Chromebook 2 won't get Crostini; I still have the 2015 model of that device and it won't see Crostini either. So, until you upgrade your device, Crouton is essentially it for running Linux and Chrome OS on a single device.

Re: Chromebook

KevinCTofel — Thu, 30 Aug 2018 10:42:28 -0000

Chrome is the only native browser for any Chrome OS device, yes.

However, you can install mobile browsers from the Google Play Store in the form of Android apps. And I've also installed Firefox in the Linux container; note that Linux is still a beta feature and not yet available on the Chrome OS Stable channel, nor is it available on certain older devices based on their chipset and/or the Linux kernel version used on the device.

In either case, Android or Linux, the 3rd party browser runs in its own resizable window.

Re: Chromebook

KevinCTofel — Wed, 29 Aug 2018 08:41:04 -0000

Offline Gmail is now native, but for Docs, you'll want to follow these steps: https://support.google.com/...

Re: Chromebook

KevinCTofel — Tue, 28 Aug 2018 19:42:16 -0000

Fred, one more thought exercise that I suggest to people considering a Chromebook: Create a list of all of the apps you use, or at least the non-web apps, i.e.: traditional desktop software, and how often you need them. It's helpful not just for the decision -- those that must use desktop apps for a non-trivial amount of time per day/week are less likely to switch, of course -- but also because it generates a list of what web/Android (or eventually Linux) apps you want to see if there are replacements for.

Re: Chromebook

KevinCTofel — Tue, 28 Aug 2018 19:38:02 -0000

Yup. Been using it since day one, a few months before Google announced it at I/O 2018. Getting better all the time. All of my experiences to date with it are here: https://www.aboutchromebook...

If you want to know how it all works, there's an incredibly technical walk through (presented by Googlers) on video here: https://youtu.be/WwrXqDERFm8

Re: Chromebook

KevinCTofel — Tue, 28 Aug 2018 19:35:59 -0000

Correct, the code for Windows booting is called Alt-OS. Still in the works and not officially announced.

Re: Chromebook

KevinCTofel — Tue, 28 Aug 2018 19:33:48 -0000

Info on Titan here: https://cloud.google.com/se... Long story short: Similar approach to Yubikey but Google created its own security chip and firmware.

Note that Google introduced its first (very small!)Titan chip in 2017 to secure its own servers: https://cloudplatform.googl...

Re: Chromebook

KevinCTofel — Tue, 28 Aug 2018 19:28:24 -0000

So the best answer I can give is: It depends. ;) Most of the G Suite apps work offline and sync back to the cloud when you get a connection. But in the case of using an Android app that needs cloud data all the time, or checking your Twitter feed on the web; that obviously won't work in offline mode - it wouldn't work on any platform, so it's not a Chrome OS limitation if that makes sense. It's hard to answer your question with any specificity because I'd need to know what type of apps you'd want to use offline. If you want to drop some examples in here, I'm happy to check or test.

Re: Chromebook

KevinCTofel — Tue, 28 Aug 2018 11:47:13 -0000

Disclosure: I used to work for Google and now run AboutChromebooks.com

I'm all on in Chromebooks, currently using a Pixelbook. Base model is fine for my needs, which sound very similar. I am taking some CompSci classes but even from a programming standpoint, the addition of Linux running in containers (https://www.aboutchromebook... -- available in Dev and Beta channels now, coming to Stable v. 69 in the coming weeks -- fills that need easily and securely. I don't do a bunch of video editing but I can do audio edits in Audacity for Linux once audio support arrives for Linux on Chrome OS.

I actually use Google for my password management. It's built in to Chrome / Chrome OS and syncs to all devices. Plus, you can always log in and look up passwords at passwords.google.com. Sure if Google is hacked, someone has my passwords, but same can be said for any cloud-based password manager or (if you run 1Password, etc... locally) if someone gains access to your device. I use Google's 2FA to log in to my Google account and even to log in to my Pixelbook - can be done with an authenticator app, SMS or -- my preferred method -- a Yubikey. I'l be buying a Google Titan Security key to replace my Yubikey once they go on sale.

Happy to answer any specific questions.

Note that we should have at least one, if not two, Pixelbook successors announced in October; details of what I've found out on my site as well as other sites. I anticipate one to be a detachable device, similar to the HP Chromebook X2, which I loved but was concerned about the 4GB of RAM for running Chrome OS, Android apps AND Linux containers.

Re: A warning about Google Drive in education

KevinCTofel — Tue, 14 Aug 2018 16:56:51 -0000

I'm going with option 3: "Norman and Diane are confused about how their data ended up on their daughter's school device." See my comment above on how this very likely happened.

Re: A warning about Google Drive in education

KevinCTofel — Mon, 13 Aug 2018 16:16:43 -0000

After reading the source article, I don't think they got it right.

Google Apps for Education are tied to a student Gmail address. So if a parent sees their information on a student's device, it's 99.9% likely that's because the parent has also logged in to the device with a personal Gmail account, in which case, with auto-sync enabled on the parent account, their passwords would appear on the student laptop.

I say this because even in the source article where it explains how to find out if your (your = parent) passwords are on the school device, they say step 1 is to log in to your account on the student device. In that case, of course your data will be there if you set your account to sync on any device.

Should there be more awareness made of what the sync settings actually do? Absolutely. And should school IT administrators control the sync settings - sure, and they can. In this case, it sounds like they aren't. So with all due respect, I don't see this as "Google being Google." I see this as a school's IT department not understanding how to control and manage the sync feature. It would be the same on any platform that had / has this capability.