Everything you missed at our FOURTH Wildcard Wednesday!

Hi friends,

Missed the May Wildcard Wednesday? You missed a good one.

Couldn’t make it to the June session? Don’t worry—we’ve got you covered.

This month was all about staying sane and informed in a noisy digital world. We packed the hour with tips on filtering the news, managing browser chaos, smarter ways to use AI tools, and more!

Here’s your full recap, plus, as usual, practical tips to try right now.

🧠 Taming the Firehose: News You Can Actually Use

What we discussed:

We explored why today’s news feels overwhelming and what to do about it. From deepfake disinfo to overhyped headlines, it's getting harder to know what's real.

Why it matters:
Overload = burnout. Curating what you see helps protect your time, energy, and mental health.

What you can do:

• Try the Brave browser to cut ads and trackers by default

• Use RSS readers (like Feedly) to follow only what matters to you

• Check Ground News to see how coverage shifts by political bias

🧩 Better Browsing, Fewer Tabs

What we discussed:
Too many open tabs? You’re not alone. We demoed OneTab, a free browser tool that collapses all your tabs into a tidy list you can revisit later.

Why it matters:
More tabs = more memory usage, more distraction, and more risk of missing something important.

What you can do:

• Install OneTab for Chrome/Brave

• Use built-in reading modes to simplify pages

• Create a 'reading list' in your browser to save must-reads for later

🌐 Search Smarter, Not Harder: The AI Shift

What we discussed:
We showed how tools like ChatGPT can answer hyper-specific research queries better than a basic Google search, like finding local stats or tech specs in seconds. But we also talked about why it’s essential to cross-check the results.

Why it matters:
Search is changing. Knowing how to use AI well = a real edge.

What you can do:

• Use ChatGPT for guided research, but verify with original sources

• Be aware that AI results are showing up more in regular search engines

• Treat AI like a research assistant, not an oracle

📡 Fixing Wi-Fi Flakiness: Simple Wins

What we discussed:
We helped answer a question about spotty internet during video calls. The culprit? A device was jumping between old, saved networks.

Why it matters:
Even fancy tech won’t help if your connection is unstable.

What you can do:

• Remove unused Wi-Fi networks from your saved list

• Run a speed test at fast.com

• Check your router settings - older routers can broadcast multiple network names that confuse your device

🍎 Tech Headlines & Apple WWDC Highlights

What we discussed:
We closed with updates from Apple’s WWDC, including macOS “Tahoe,” Siri’s AI revamp, and a growing trend of AI-first operating systems. We also flagged recent cybersecurity news, including a large data breach tied to ISP infrastructure.

Why it matters:
What the tech giants do affects all of us, whether we realize it or not.

What you can do:

• Watch for privacy tradeoffs in “smart assistant” updates

• Stay alert to new security patches and data breach reports

• Keep your devices up to date - yes, even the ones you barely use

🧰 Tools & Mentions from the Session

Here’s what came up in June’s conversation:

• Browsers: Brave

• News filters: Feedly (RSS), Ground News

• Tab tools: OneTab

• AI for search: ChatGPT

• Support tools: Fast.com, Downdetector.com

• Bonus: Zoom AI Companion for future sessions

🔁 Wildcard Wednesday returns next month

No slides, no sales pitch. Just real talk on what’s changing in tech, what you can do about it, and how to stay sane and secure.

📆 Mark your calendars for high noon Pacific, the second Wednesday of every month!

You never know what we’ll get into next. But you will walk away smarter.

👉 Got a topic or question you want to bring up next time? Just reply and let me know.

In the meantime, if you need a hand or want to explore any of these topics further, you know where to reach me. 😉