Lifehacker

I don’t know about the rest of you, but the novelty of mask-wearing has officially worn thin in my family. My nine-year-old son thought they were pretty cool at first—he even wanted to create reasons to have to wear them—but now he sees them for the uncomfortable inconvenience that they are. Unfortunately, he (and me,…Read more...

When you make a budget, you’re likely to get advice to focus on saving early and often.Read more...

If you’re a Google loyalist who just happens to be an iPhone owner, too, you can now summon Google Assistant almost as easily as you would Apple’s digital assistant. All it takes is a little creativity, a Shortcut, and a finger—and it’s almost as good as having a physical button to hold.Read more...

Newly created Google accounts will come with auto-delete turned on by default for all data types—a feature that users previously had to go in and select.Read more...

There’s always a new Netflix series to start once you wrap up the one you’re currently binging, but with so many choices, there’s bound to be a few that you don’t stick with. But you still have to see them take up space in your queue, and that’s annoying.Read more...

Recent social media posts (which I won’t link to, but you can find them easily with a Twitter search) claim Apple and Google are installing contact tracing apps on your phone without your permission. The posts show even convincing screenshots and allude to statements made by both companies indicating they have been…Read more...

If you’ve worn glasses or contact lenses for a long time, you know the dance. You visit an optometrist for a new prescription. And then they want you to order from their optical shop. The optometrist doesn’t know if you’re on a budget, or prefer to shop with a particular brand, or just want the damn eye circles to…Read more...

I have been eating cucumber, tomato and onion salad since I was old enough to eat solid foods, and I have been making it since I was old enough to wield a kitchen knife. Over the two and half decades since, the ingredients have not changed. Besides the vegetables (and fruits, technically), you only need two of them:…Read more...

I’ve written about how to have a variety of “big talks” with our kids as they grow up—enough of them that we’ve grouped them into their own section so you can peruse them easily. Right now we, as parents, can’t afford to avoid talking with them about any number of challenging topics—the global health crisis, systemic…Read more...

I’ve loved Pride month since I first came out while in foster care. There’s just something about the pure joy in living life out loud and celebrating yourself exactly as you are. I didn’t have the money to spend on rainbow shoes or fancy eyelashes but I always dreamed of what I could buy one day.

Putting together your resume and cover letter is a challenge facing a lot of us right now. Millions of people are currently job hunting while dealing with a recession and high unemployment rate due to a global pandemic, never mind the usual concerns: How do you sell yourself, but not sound too braggy? Should you…Read more...

The fight is not over. Activists across the country are still hitting the streets demanding police reform and justice for Breonna Taylor, Rayshard Brooks, Elijah McClain, and countless other victims of police brutality.Read more...

Formatting this gigantic list of what’s coming to and leaving HBO Max, HBO Go and regular old on-your-TV HBO this month gave me the occasion to note a strange synchronicity between the new arrivals and planned departures on the streaming service.

If you’ve always dreamed of being a gymnast, or if you rank gymnastics at the top of the list of your favorite Olympic sports, good news: Champion gymnast and four-time Olympic gold medalist Simone Biles is doing a free, live-streaming lesson and Q&A session tonight (June 24) on MasterClass Live.

The reality of traveling with children is that they have so much energy and excitement and it keeps them moving—sometimes in the opposite direction. And then you get distracted for a half second, turn your head, and your child has seemingly vanished. There’s no fear quite like it. I have certainly been there.

It’s no secret that I love eggplant and, over the years, I’ve gotten every preparation under the sun down cold—with one glaring exception. With no space at home for a grill and a strong aversion to turning on my oven in the summer, grilled eggplant has remained my culinary white whale. Until now.Read more...

Summertime and the living is ... the best we can manage given current circumstances. 2020 continues to surprise, amaze, and horrify, but at least we’ve got a bunch of video games coming out.Read more...

The kids are bored. The kids are hot. The car is dirty. I think we all know what needs to be done.Read more...

A quick review of this month’s new, original Netflix offerings quickly reveals my personal biases.

If you live by the old Ben Franklin quote, you know the only two things we can count on are death and taxes. But with a little planning and organization, you can make one of them easier to manage. I’m talking about the taxes.Read more...

A massive undercover surveillance network was recently outed by the cybersecurity firm Awake Security. It’s serious enough that you should once again triple-check that you aren’t using shady extensions in your Chrome browser.Read more...

Apple’s annual operating system updates are always a cause for geeky celebration, but some of you have less reason to be thrilled. If your beloved, older Apple devices have faded into obsolescence, this annual ritual can feel like a grim reminder that this is it for you. Catalina is the highest mountain your aged…Read more...

Ninja Foodi 7-in-1 Pressure Cooker | $90 | Amazon

If you wear sunscreen every day, apply it properly and reapply it every few hours (or whenever you’ve been sweating, swimming, or toweling off), then you don’t need this article. But here we are. You’ve been burned, and you’re hurting. What now?Read more...

If you don’t want to try out iOS 14 or macOS Big Sur just yet, that’s fine. Developer betas aren’t for everyone. However, that doesn’t mean that you can’t enjoy at least one update both operating systems are bringing to the table: shiny new wallpapers.Read more...

Are you an adventure traveler or foodie traveler or even a bucket-list traveler sitting around thinking, “Well, I’ll never travel again”? With travel restrictions still in place, it seems like it’ll take months before travel will resume back to its regularly scheduled programming.Read more...

It is true that one cannot make an omelet (or any egg dish) without breaking a few eggs. And even if you are the most careful egg cracker around, a bit of shell will make its way into the pan from time to time. This is not the disaster it may seem, but it is annoying.Read more...

This week Amazon kicked off its Big Style Sale, in which you can save up to 60% on a variety of clothing and accessory lines including Champion LIFE streetwear, New Balance shoes and apparel, Levi’s jeans, Puma, Vineyard Vines, J. Crew, and more. Basically, they’re trying to raise awareness of their fashion department…Read more...

It is not stew season, not even a little bit, and yet the grocery stores continue to sell stew meat, with blatant disregard for the weather. It would be rude, almost mocking, except for the fact that stew meat can be used for non-stew applications, especially kebabs.Read more...

If you’ve ever aspired to be a real-life Mark Watney—collecting samples of rocks and dirt on Mars—now is your chance. With NASA’s AI4Mars project, you can take a virtual trip around the red planet in the Curiosity rover.

Those of us who are fortunate enough to have the option of working from home are now several months into this new lifestyle. Like a lot of things, there’s the good (no commute!), the bad (competing with other members of your household for flat surfaces to use as desks), and the ugly (when I catch a glimpse of myself…Read more...

Hand sanitizers that are effective against the coronavirus are those that include at least 60% ethanol or 70% isopropanol. But there are a few brands that use methanol, a more toxic type of alcohol, and the FDA recently issued a warning not to use them.Read more...

Sleep problems are pretty much a given at some point in parenthood—yours, theirs or, most often, both of yours. Guess what’s not helping? This pandemic, thankyouverymuch. Kids are more cooped up than ever. They’re dealing with pent-up energy and strange new schedules, plus some extra anxiety mixed in for good measure.…Read more...

When the CARES Act was passed in March, it made it easier for people to access the money in their retirement accounts if they were facing financial difficulty due to the coronavirus pandemic. Last week, the IRS announced an expansion of the rules for who can make withdrawals from their tax-advantaged accounts without…Read more...

You, like me, probably miss the days of taking in the scenery on vacation and figuring out how to best capture it with your camera. But now you’re stuck at home, and your DSLR is gathering dust; your phone’s photo archive is filled with pictures of your cat. We know how it is. But hey, this is the perfect time to …Read more...

Most of my reading has shifted over to audiobook form these days—it’s easier to fit into my schedule and sometimes more entertaining. I often find myself wishing I could just listen to articles in the same way I listen to audiobooks. Well, it turns out Android is equipped to do this very thing, via Google Assistant.…Read more...

Some will say there is no such thing as “leftover onion dip,” but running out of chips is a very real disaster, and it can leave you with a surplus of the stuff. Last night I faced just such a crisis: Out of chips, I was left with a small amount of extra dip—just a few tablespoons—but it was still far too much to…Read more...

If the past month has taught us anything, it’s that many Americans have a long way to go in learning about black history and systemic racism in this country. It may not be our fault that we were taught a bullshit version of American history in school in which we glorify white historical figures who were racist and…Read more...

We’re a few months away from the launch of Sony’s PlayStation 5 and Microsoft’s Xbox Series X. As is the case with any new console generation, there’s a lot of excitement around the new machines, but their arrival doesn’t mean your current devices will immediately become obsolete. Plenty of games will continue to drop…Read more...

35% Off Levi’s Jeans | Amazon Big Style Sale

Staying home is always a good way to stay safe during a pandemic, but what about somebody else’s home? Renting an Airbnb is relatively low-risk, if you follow a few precautions.

There are no sensors on the back of your iPhone for your finger to fiddle with—unlike, say, a Google Pixel, which does have a fingerprint sensor on the back—but a new feature debuting in iOS 14 allows you to tap the back of your iPhone to launch different iOS actions all the same. This “digital burping” gesture seems…Read more...

Tony Hawk Teaches Skateboarding | $15 Monthly | Masterclass

As much as “macOS Sausalito” might roll off the tongue, Big Sur is the California landmark repping Apple’s big operating system update this year. And what an update it is. If you hate how iOS or iPadOS looks, I’ve got some real bad news about macOS. You might want to sit down.

I love a good beta. And while I wouldn’t recommend that you install a developer beta of Apple’s just-announced operating systems on your primary devices, just in case something goes catastrophically wrong, the urge to play with new features is hard to ignore.Read more...

If your Samsung Blu-ray player isn’t booting up properly, you’re not alone. According to numerous bug reports from users around the world, Samsung Blu-ray players are stuck in a boot loop and cannot be used. This post from the Samsung support forums illustrates the issue most users are facing:Read more...

“Netflix and chill” was a great concept when the world was open and there was a plethora of other options that took us away from certain aspects of life. But now it’s safe to say that we are done enjoying the comforts of home, and aching to get out to a movie (or anything, really).

Happy Worldwide Developer Conference Day! In other words, “the day when Apple announces a bunch of software stuff.” Apple talked about improvements to each of its platforms during today’s virtual keynote for WWDC 2020, and we’re going to focus on the latest version of iOS—iOS 14—for this post.Read more...

The U.S. is currently facing a critical shortage of blood. Due to fears about the coronavirus, many blood drives were cancelled, perhaps because donors are feeling especially hesitant to sign up. Although there was a reduced need for blood during the lockdowns as many elective surgeries were postponed, the need for…Read more...

I love a food delivery system that is itself edible. Usually said delivery systems are employed in sweet and often ice cream-related scenarios (cones, waffle bowls), though one could argue that, when used correctly, the Bugle qualifies. But in my opinion, the best savory edible container is one that is made entirely …Read more...