How do you stop online trackers from following you? | E-Neighborhood Advisor

Last week we learned the difference between

first party cookies and third party cookies. The

reality is, we all need to be careful about who

we grant access to our browsing activity. Even

if we feel like we don’t have anything to hide,

there is no guarantee of what entities will do

with that information so it’s best to share as

little as possible with strangers. The following

tips help keep your information private online.

Great ways to block online tracking

Browser add-ons

One of the simplest things you can do to block

third-party cookies is download an anti-tracking

browser extension. The Electronic Frontier 

Foundation’s Privacy Badger uses algorithms

to learn which third-party requests to block

while Disconnect uses user-generated lists.

Ghostery allows users to choose whether or

not to grant permission to third-party trackers.

All three of these browser add-ons are

available for Chrome and Firefox.

Clearing and blocking third-party cookies

Most browsers also have options that help limit

the ability of third parties to give your device

cookies, although they are generally less

effective than the browser extensions listed

above.

Search engines that will not track you

Search engines such as DuckDuckGo or

Qwant do not track your IP address or log your

search history, letting you access information

with privacy. While using different search

engines will help, remember that Google can

also access your data via Android devices,

YouTube, and Gmail.

Email services that will not track you

The best option to keep your emails secure

and private are end-to-end encrypted services

such as ProtonMail.

Use a VPN

To avoid being tracked by your device’s IP

address, you can use a

VPN (Virtual PrivateNetwork).

This will route your Internet traffic

through a VPN server of your choosing and

replaces your IP address with the IP address of

that VPN server. Be sure to only use

trustworthy VPN services because the

company you choose can access and record

your online activity while you are connected to

their infrastructure.

Final Thoughts

There is no such thing as absolute privacy on

the Internet, but you can take positive steps to

limit your exposure. As there are many ways to

track you online, for maximum protection, you

should use a combination of the methods

outlined above. However, even if you only use

a couple of these tools, it will dramatically limit

the amount of information online trackers can

collect from you and help you take back control

of your personal data.

Your Flooring Consultant,

Matt Capell

Email: sales@capellinteriors.com

Phone (208) 288-0151

Fax (208) 917-6160

P.S. Here's a joke for you!

Did you hear about the monkeys who shared an Amazon account? 

They were Prime mates.

2 ways you’re being tracked online | E-Neighborhood Advisor

Stopping online trackers is clearly a hot topic.

An internet search for ways to block trackers

yields more than 32 million results. You know

tracking happens to you. You search retailer

sites for a new sweater, or a snow blower, or a

life insurance policy. Suddenly ads for those

items pop up every time you’re online. It’s not a

coincidence. Your travels about the web are

being monitored, creating both a privacy issues

and security risk. But what can you do? Is

constant surveillance the price you pay for

being online?

The ProtonVPN Blog has some tools and

techniques you can use to block websites from

tracking you, but first it’s helpful to know who is

following you, and how these services actually

follow you.

A quick way to evaluate which third-party

trackers are following you is to visit the EFF’s

Panopticlick or Am I Unique. These sites will

show you the trackers that still have access to

your online activity and help you see your

device’s “fingerprint.”

How cookies track you on the Internet

Cookies are tiny bits of text that websites place

on your device based on the websites you visit

and the things you click on. This text can then

be read when you return to the site, letting it

“recognize” you and re-create your previously

chosen preferences. These are what allow you

to remain logged in to a site unless you

deliberately log out. These types of cookies are

called first-party cookies, since they come

directly from the website you are accessing.

Third-party cookies are placed on your

device by third-parties — not by you, not by the

website you are visiting, but by secret

advertising services. These advertising

services then follow your device from site to

site, trying to see what websites and topics

interest you to improve the ads they show you.

They can also end up with a thorough record of

your online activity.

Generally speaking, first-party cookies can be

useful, while third-party cookies raise

numerous privacy concerns. Fortunately, third-

party cookies are easy to isolate. Next week

we’ll be discussing several ways to avoid or

block third-party cookies. Watch for our email

with the subject line: How do you stop online

trackers from following you?

Your Flooring Consultant,

Matt Capell

Email: sales@capellinteriors.com

Phone (208) 288-0151

Fax (208) 917-6160

P.S. Here's a joke for you!

Why do beavers spend so long on the Internet?

They never want to log off.

(COVID-19) A Message for Our Valued Customers of Capell Flooring and Interiors

(COVID-19) A Message for Our Valued Customers of Capell Flooring and Interiors

We have seen and understand the growing concern in our community over the spread of the coronavirus and wanted to let our valued customers know that we are taking the health and safety of both our staff and customers very seriously.

In our store and warehouse, we have increased cleaning frequency, provided hand sanitizers at entrances, desks, and other high-touch areas.  We have worked hard to ensure a clean, comfortable shopping experience for our customers.

Our staff is all dedicated to eliminating handshakes while still providing friendly service.  Our installers and sales teams are taking extra precautions before entering our customers’ homes.

We are happy to work with you over the phone or via FaceTime, Facebook Video, Skype, Google Duo or Zoom video conferencing.  We are also happy to arrange in-store appointments for a private consultation.

Currently, we do not have anyone on our staff (including the store, warehouse, and installation crews), who are showing any symptoms. If that changes, we have all committed to remaining home to ensure the safety and health of everyone else.  We are all monitoring our health very closely.  

Thank you for your continued support during this difficult and uncertain time.  The Treasure Valley is a wonderful place to live, and we are grateful to be a part of it.  We have said this a lot, but we truly do have the best customers in town.

We love our community and will continue to serve you in all your flooring needs as safely as possible.

Sincerely,

Matt Capell - President/Owner of Capell Flooring and Interiors, Inc.

#doingourpart #ourpromisetoyou #thisisboise #capellflooring #staysafe #behappy #yougotthis

Tricky tongue twisters and the history behind them | E-Neighborhood Advisor

March blows in like a lion and is known to

spawn some twisters. But where do tongue

twisters come from? And why do they exist?

According to Gwendolyn Purdom in Mental

Floss, early English tongue twisters were used

to teach pupils proper speech.

Whether it's selling seashells by the seashore

or buying Betty Botter's bitter butter, some of

these difficult phrases go way back to when

elocution was practiced as routinely as

multiplication tables.

Peter Piper

Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers;

A peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked;

If Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers,

Where's the peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper

picked?

Peter and his famous pickled peppers first

appeared in print in 1813 in John Harris's Peter

Piper's Practical Principles of Plain and Perfect

Pronunciation. But as is the case with many

classic tongue twisters, the rhyme itself may

have already been in common use by that

time.

How Much Wood Would a Woodchuck

Chuck?

How much wood would a woodchuck chuck,

If a woodchuck could chuck wood?

While it likely predates her, Vaudeville

performer Fay Templeton is credited with

singing a song with this chorus in 1903 in the

Broadway musical The Runaways.

She Sells Seashells

She sells seashells on the sea shore.

The shells she sells are seashells, I'm sure. 

And if she sells seashells on the sea shore,

Then I'm sure she sells seashore shells.

Legend has it the rhyme is a tribute to 19th

century English paleontologist Mary Anning.

Anning was thought to have been responsible

for being among the first to identify fossilized

poop. Anning is known in scientific circles

(Charles Dickens even wrote about his

admiration for her after her 1847 death) but the

idea that she’s also the muse behind the

tongue twister has given the general public a

nice way to honor her as well.

Your Flooring Consultant,

Matt Capell

Email: sales@capellinteriors.com

Phone (208) 288-0151

Fax (208) 917-6160

P.S Here's another tongue twister for you!

If you notice this notice, you will notice that this notice is not worth noticing.

Writing Effective Emails | E-Neighborhood Advisor

For 19 years, Seton Hall professor Dr. Dennis

Jerz has been maintaining a list of best

practices for email. The most recent updates

underscore the distinction between email and

social media conversations. Social media

allows us to chat informally with people we

usually know; email is largely a business tool,

so it’s important to use it in a clear, concise,

professional way.

Jerz and his colleagues have identified the top

strategies for writing effective emails, here are

a few of them.

Write a meaningful subject line.

Give your reader a concrete reason to open

your message. A clear subject line will help a

busy professional to decide that your email is

worthwhile.

Be kind. Don’t flame.

Think before you click “Send.” If you find

yourself writing in anger, save a draft, go get a

cup of coffee, and imagine that tomorrow

morning someone has taped your email

outside your door. Would your associates and

friends be shocked by your language or

attitude?

Don’t assume privacy.

Email is not secure. Just as random

pedestrians could reach into a physical mailbox

and intercept envelopes, a curious hacker, a

malicious criminal, and your IT department can

probably read any and all email messages in

your work account. If it’s not worth the risk,

then don’t put it in an email.

Respond Promptly

If you want to appear professional and

courteous, make yourself available to your 

online correspondents. Even if your reply is, 

“Sorry, I’m too busy to help you now,” at least

your correspondent won’t be waiting in vain for

your reply.

Show Respect and Restraint

Many a flame war has been started by

someone who hit “reply all” instead of “reply.”

While most people know that email is not

private, it is good form to ask the sender before

forwarding a personal message. If someone

emails you a request, it is perfectly acceptable

to forward the request to a person who can

help — but forwarding a message in order to

ridicule the sender is tacky.

Be tolerant of other people’s etiquette

blunders. If you think you’ve been insulted,

quote the line back to your sender and add a

neutral comment such as, “I’m not sure how to

interpret this… could you elaborate?”

For more tips and examples, check out

https://jerz.setonhill.edu/writing/e-text/email/

Your Flooring Consultant,

Matt Capell

Email: sales@capellinteriors.com

Phone (208) 288-0151

Fax (208) 917-6160

P.S. Here's a joke for you!

What was forest gump's email password?

1forest1

Welcome to March 2020 | Capell Flooring and Interiors

Dear Friends,

Welcome to the March edition of the Neighborhood Advisor! This month is

packed with loads of spring articles, trivia and tips for your home.

March always feels like a fresh start. From spring-cleaning flowers blooming

to warmer weather, everything just seems a lot brighter compared to the

gloomy winter months. Some ways that you can add a spark of brightness

and personality to your home also is by trying some popular home decorating

trends such as wood floors, porcelain tile, open shelves, colored kitchen

cabinets or adding plants.

If you’re thinking of redecorating your home for those spring/summer months

in time for your fun family gatherings and barbecues then why not stop in to

see us at Capell Flooring and Interiors?

Thank you once again for joining us for another month of the Neighborhood

Advisor. We hope you have a wonderful month!

Your friend,

Matt Capell