thursday, dec. 3, 2020 page 4 the comfort news computer
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Page 4 The Comfort News Thursday, Dec. 3, 2020
The Kendall County Burn Ban is ON
Buy, sell, trade, find help or look for work; The Comfort News classifieds can work for you! Call (830) 995-3634 today or
email us at [email protected]
Notice to Creditors
Computer scams: how to recognize them and what you can
do to avoid them
Legal Notice
amazing things.
My work with Celestron puts
me into contact with the
principles of almost every
telescope manufacturer, both
domestic and international.
From this unique perch I have
marveled at how during the
ongoing pandemic, thousands
of people have turned to
astronomy as an alternative
activity during the period of
Covid 19 isolation. This
massive public shift toward
astronomy has caught the
telescope industry off guard.
Around this time of year, the
manufacturers traditionally
have plenty of their popular
items in stock for the holiday
season. This year, everyone is
virtually sold out before the
holiday rush!
It is not the lack of
manpower or manufacturing
ability that is limiting product
availability, although there are
some shipping delays due to
the pandemic. It is an
unprecedented surge in
demand for ast ronomy
products that have cleaned out
telescope equipment stocks
that normally service the
holidays with ease. As people
seek activities that do not
expose them to the pandemic's
harm, the astronomy industry
has been cleaned out as if a
plague of locusts swarmed
their warehouses.
The demand for astronomy
equipment reached such a
fever pitch several months ago
that the Wall Street Journal
ran a story detailing this
unusual surge. For instance, as
part of Celestron's celebration
of 60 years in business, the
company released a limited
60th Anniversary Special
Edition of their most popular
telescope, the Evolution 8.
Only 600 of these special
edit ion telescopes were
manufactured. Astronomy
equipment demand has been
so fierce lately that every one
of the Special Edition
telescopes was sold BEFORE
the full page magazine ad
p ro mot ing t he m eve n
appeared in the October, 2020
issue of Astronomy Magazine.
Stunning!
Along with this surge in
astronomy product demand
comes the many astronomy
novices who need a little help
master ing a computer -
controlled telescope. Thus, my
invo lve me nt wit h t he
company grows as I help
guide the newcomers to this
hobby. To my delight, about
half of the requests for help
come from lady astronomers.
For years I have been
promoting they sky as a refuge
and place of exploration for
everyone, not just the good
old boys’ club of half a
century ago. Now there are
almost as many girls entering
this hobby and science as
there are boys.
It is a shame that it took a
health crisis of this extreme
ma g n it ud e t o in s p ir e
thousands of people to look
upward for refuge from the
uncertainty and loneliness of
the pandemic. The friendly
night sky has always been
there to amaze and teach us. If
there is any silver lining to
this crisis it is that thousands
of additional people are now
becoming interested in the
mother of all sciences:
astronomy. These people will
influence others and a
scientifically literate society is
one of the first lines of
defense against a future
pandemic becoming as tragic
as the current one is. I am
proud to be a small part of
helping this next wave of
future astronomers.
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from 13)
I have been doing astronomy
for 62 years, literally a
lifetime. During that period, I
watched in awe as the Space
Age came to life when
Sputnik was the sole man-
made satellite in the sky,
watched breathlessly as Neil
Armstrong uttered the words
“One small step for man...'',
and watched with delight as
amateur astronomy blossomed
from a science followed by a
few to one enjoyed world-
wide by millions. Science,
astronomy, and the world have
changed remarkably in the
past six decades.
After all these decades, I
have been blessed to have
become associated with the
largest telescope manufacturer
in the world; Celestron. My
invo lve me nt wit h t he
company grew from being a
sponsored lecturer and
promoter of astronomy to a
representat ive fo r t he
company at ast ronomy
gatherings around the country.
S a d ly, t ha t t yp e o f
representation has faded
recently as the Covid-19
pandemic has curtailed all
mass gatherings, including
science and ast ronomy
conventions.
However, amazing things are
still happening. As my “day
job” slowly disappeared due
to the pandemic, astronomy
has blossomed and now
commands much of my time.
Sometime ago, Celestron
asked me to be part of their
tech help team, primarily
answering questions about
celestial photography from
their product users. As the
p a nd e m ic e r a s e d m y
t radit iona l career , t he
Celesatron job has enlarged to
take its place. As this new
facet of my employment has
grown, I have noticed some
Classifieds Work!
Comfort Skies by Robert Reeves
Astronomy and a pandemic make strange bedfellows
Computer scams are an ever-
present, and intrusive, part of
the online landscape and
becoming more sophisticated
all of the time. Amy Sinclair
of Comfort recently provided
The Comfort News with the
following primer on what they
are and how we can all avoid
them.
First, an explanation of how
scammers operate, from
actual Microsoft support:
“Scammers may call you
directly on your phone and
pretend to be representatives
of a software company. They
might even spoof the caller ID
so that it displays a legitimate
support phone number from a
trusted company. They can
then ask you to install
applications that give them
remote access to your device.
Using remote access, these
experienced scammers can
misrepresent normal system
output as signs of problems.
Scammers might also initiate
contact by displaying fake
error messages on websites
you visit, displaying support
numbers and enticing you to
call. They can also put your
browser on full screen and
display pop-up messages that
won't go away, essentially
locking your browser. These
fake error messages aim to
trick you into calling an
indicated technical support
hotline.”
Watch a brief video about
this topic at (address is case-
sensitive):bmicrosoft.com/en-
u s / v i d e o p l a y e r / e m b e d /
RE4GzST
Do a search for “Microsoft
Protect yourself from tech
support scams” and do some
reading.
Now, here are a few ways to
avoid getting scammed.
1. Beware of fake “tech
help”: Scammers have call
centers, websites, and emails
that look legitimate, and once
they have you on the phone,
they can be very convincing,
get you to let them into your
computer, and use scare
tactics to trick you into paying
for "cleanup / protection
services." While they're in
there, they may gain access to
your saved passwords, email
accounts, lock you out of your
system if you don't pay them,
or try to get your bank account
& credit card info, spending
your money while on the
phone with you! Be cautious
and read on!
2. Don’t give anyone remote
access to your computer if you
can’t go talk to them in
person! If you need the kind
of computer help that requires
remote access, use a local tech
support company whenever
possible, so there is some
personal accountability. If
you are not sure who to call,
try asking your internet
service provider.
3. Phone call scams: If a
random caller claims to be
Microsoft / Windows Help
Desk, or says there’s a
problem with your Apple ID
(for instance) and wants to
gain access to your computer,
don't talk to them, just hang
up. Microsoft and Apple will
never call you out of the blue.
4. If you’re positive you have
a scammer on the line and are
feeling like making the world
a better place, tell them you’re
so glad they called, ask them
to hold a moment, set down
the phone and go take a walk
or wash the dishes. The
minutes they waste eagerly
awaiting your return are
minutes they’re not attempting
to defraud another potential
victim.
Pat yourself on the back.
5. Full-screen message
insisting you call a “help”
number: If you see this
message don't call the number.
On a Windows computer, just
hold down the CTRL and
ALT keys and tap DELETE
(or DEL) once. This should
open a screen with several
options; click on sign out or
log off. Then sign back in and
the message will be gone. If
your browser offers to “restore
your session,” decline, as that
will return you to the fraud
website.
6. Email (phishing) scams:
Never open attachments or
click on links in email
messages from unknown
senders, or even from some
that might look legitimate!
Scammers can make their
messages appear to be from
valid entities like your bank,
or PayPal, Netflix, etc. They
might say there is a problem
with your account and to click
on a link in their email to
confirm some account /
payment details. Don’t click
that link! See # 7 below.
7. If you’re concerned that
any of your online accounts
may be compromised, open a
new browser window
(Chrome, Edge, Firefox) and
go to the website like you
normally do, not by clicking a
link in a suspicious email.
Once there you can safely log
in and check your account
history and details. Following
a link to a website is like
being led somewhere by
someone you do not know. If
you know the way, go your
own way.
8. If you need technical
support, don't do a search for
"HP printer tech support" (for
instance) to find their phone
number. You might end up
calling one of the fake call
centers. Instead, as in #6, go
directly to the manufacturer's
webs it e , i. e . HP.co m,
Samsung.com, Brother.com,
etc., and look for a Support /
Contact Us link there.
Fraudsters spend much of
their ill-gotten gains to show
up fir st in searches.
9. If system seems stuck /
f r o z e n , t r y
CTRL+ALT+DELETE as in
#5 above. If it brings up the
screen with the options, click
on the Power symbol at
bottom right (circle with
vertical line in top) and
Restart. If this doesn’t work,
t r y # 1 0 b e l o w .
10. As a last resort, you can
do a hard shut-down by
holding down the power
button for 5-10 seconds or
unplugging the power cable.
If using a laptop, close lid,
disconnect power & remove
battery to force shut down.
Then start up again & see how
it does. These methods are
not recommended, except in
emergencies.
11. Whenever you have any
problem, before calling for
tech help, RESTART the
computer. Restart is normally
found by clicking the Power
Symbol in the Start Menu.
Computers sometimes get
confused, just like we all do,
so allowing the system a fresh
start resolves a variety of
issues. And it’s free!
Application has been made with the Texas
Alcoholic Beverage
Commission for a Mixed
Beverage Permit and a
Brewpub License by Cravey
Distilling, LLC dba Stagecraft
Brewing, to be located at 523
Seventh Street, Comfort,
Kendall County, Texas.
Owner of said corporation is
Russell S. Cravey.
From the Texas Water Development Board
Notice is hereby given that
original Letters Testamentary
for the Estate of HARA
SAFFORD PUE, Deceased,
were issued on November 19,
2020, in Cause No. 20-160-
PR, pending in the County
Court of Kendall County,
Texas, to: CHARLOTTE A.
KOCH and DAVID L. PUE,
JR.
All persons having claims
against this Estate which is
currently being administered
are required to present them to
the undersigned within the
time and in the manner
prescribed by law.
c/o: Charlotte A. Koch
234A FM 1621
Comfort, TX 78013
DATED the 23rd day of
November, 2020. Signed by
Chris Wallendorf, Attorney for
CHARLOTTE A KOCH and
DAVID L. PUE, JR.