QR Codes

QR codes might seem like they are difficult to make and use but if you learn how make and use them they are quite simple. One of the easiest ways to create a QR code is to first start with the link to the website you would like your QR code to link to. You then need to shorten your url, going to goo.gl and copying your url into the box and clicking shorten url will give you the url you need to create a QR code. Next you will need to create your QR using that shortened url, the easiest way is to copy your shortened url and paste it into the search bar. At the end of your url type in a .qr and it should produce a QR code for you. Isn't that so easy? Now all you need to do is download a QR code reader app and you are all set. I also learned that if you have snapchat already and you take a picture of the QR a option will pop up to go to the website which I thought was pretty cool.

Here is a QR to a fun and random website. Hope you enjoy and get a good laugh!

Search Engines

Learning how to use different search engines has changed the way that I will search forever. Maybe it hasn't really changed me that much but it has made me think a lot more on what search engines do what and which ones are the best. For my whole life I have for the most part exclusively used Google for all of my searches. Learning about the different search engines has made me realize that Google isn't always the best for every single type of search. I learned that Google can be good for basic questions like how many planets are there in the universe? but when it comes to needing directions google maps isn't always the best. Bing does a really good job at giving you different routes and the fastest ones that avoid traffic and construction. Now that I know that I plan on using Bing for all those types of searches. Another thing that Bing does that Google does not do is when you find a video and click on it it will automatically start playing this reduces one more click that you will have to do. This may seem like a simple difference but Bing has a lot of those types of things that make life just a bit easier. Moving on to the search engine Wolfram-alpha, well it just might be my new favorite place to search. I really enjoyed the way that I could search in this engine. if you want to do any calculations or need any statistics about anything this is definitely the place to search for them. It was a very simple and I thought user friendly. I will now be using Walfram-alpha for any thing where I need to compare stats or just need any kind of info along those lines. I think that using the right search engines can make a big difference on finding the answer you are looking for.  The video below is an amazing Ted Talk by Andreas Ekstrom that I loved about search engines.