Searching for Symptoms on the Web

Computer Coaching for Seniors

José was frantic. Charlie was visiting his daughter in Osaka so he decided to call Karl.

"Karl what am I to do? I am INFECTED!!!!!!!"

"Hello, um ahh, José?" Karl replied.

"Yes it's me. Listen I don't know what to do? I got this strange rash and I thought it may be tied to that E-Mail I got from my co-worker about the Ontario water being undrinkable.Anyway, I searched the symptoms on the web and ... KARL I HAVE WALOWALO INFECTION!!!!"

"José, now calm down. Which website did you get the information from?"

"Karl, it was www.walowalo.com."

"José, although your symptoms match, it doesn't mean you are infected. You have no idea how trustworthy this website is. I am pretty sure it was not written by a medical expert.

Book an appointment with your doctor and wait and see what he says."

Searching for symptoms on the web is pretty common. The internet is a huge resource of information. However, not all of the information is accurate. Just because it is on the web does not make it true.

Also, symptoms can apply to many ailments or diseases. Usually when you search online you get matches to the worst case scenarios which can cause anxiety. Just remember that any match you get from your search is only ONE possibility out of many. The best place to get a diagnosis is from your doctor.

Here are some websites that are well known and more reliable for searching symptoms, medications and other health related concerns. You can use these as a starting point before talking to your doctor.

Dr. Koop

WebMD

Mayo Clinic

Not all E-Mail Messages are True

Computer Coaching for Seniors Ottawa Canada


Charlie sent you this message:

Karl read this!!!!! This was forwarded to me by José.

Forwarded Message

According to CBC reports, Ontario water has been contaminated. Only drink from bottled water.

There are unfortunately a lot of false messages that circulate via E-Mail. A lot of them are what is known as an "Urban Legend". This is why if you get a message like the one above, verify for yourself if this is true.

In the case above, you could simply go to the CBC website and see if they mention anything about the contaminated water.

Another website is snopes. It stores all the false messages that have circulated in the past and you can search if your message is one of them.

Security: Skyping more privately

Computer Coaching for Seniors, Ottawa Canada.

The stormy night would not let Charlie sleep. He decided to turn on computer #1 (in total he had 5) and check out how the Canadian dollar compared with the other currencies. As his mouse pointer hovered over his Canadian Exchange Rate bookmark, thunder roared outside his window and a chat window from Skype popped up.

(Chat window means you are communicating through typing and not through voice or talking like on a phone)

"Hi, this is Cindy, Charlie Keiko."

"Cindy, who is this Cindy?" Charlie thought.

He decided to ignore the intrusion, but again the Skype chat window popped up.

"Hey Charlie... why won't you talk to me? I am your long lost cousin Cindy Keiko. We should have a family reunion. I just moved to Ottawa. If you give me your address and phone number, I'll give you a call."

"I do have some relatives on the west coast that I haven't talked to in years. Could this Cindy be related to them?" thought Charlie.

.............

A lot of the information that "Cindy" got about Charlie was from his Skype profile. Charlie signed up for his Skype account using his first name, last name and city. Therefore, there is a big chance that Cindy may not be his long lost cousin.

Although Skype is a wonderful way to communicate, you still need to be cautious as to how much information you share. Here are some ways to Skype more securely:

1. Try creating a Skype userid that gives no information about you personally. For example, Charlie should create an account like 123Chucky rather than 123CharlieKeiko.
   

   You can let your friends and family know about your Skype userid through e-mail or by phone.

2. When you sign up with a Skype account, give as little information as possible. Try not to supply your first name or last name or even the city and country.

   If you have entered in that information, you can remove it by going to "file/edit my profile" and change it there.

3. You can set the privacy option on Skype to get only calls or chat from people on your contact list.

   Go to "Tools/Options" and select "Privacy" on the side panel. Check mark "Allow calls from my contact" and check mark "Allow chats from my contacts".

   You can also block people from calling by adding them to your blocked list ("Contacts/Advanced/Managed Blocked User".

Talk and SEE your Grandkids with Skype

Computer Coaching for Seniors, Ottawa Canada.

Charlie's eyes were bright and shiny when he finally showed Karl the last photograph.

"And that's little Melinda, who is now almost one month old," Charlie concluded with pride.

"They're adorable grandkids, Charlie! You must have had a great time visiting them in Japan."

"I sure did," he agreed. And then he added, after a pause, "If only there was a way I can continue to see and talk to them."

Karl smiled, knowingly.

"But there is, Charlie. It's called Skype, and it's completely free!"

* * *

Skype is a free computer program that turns your computer into a video telephone. It uses your internet connection to communicate with any one else who is also running Skype. As long as you have a microphone (for talking) and/or a web camera (for video capture), then you are all set!

In our next thrilling episode, we'll discuss how to safely and anonymously use Skype.