Gretna, Virginia · Serving Pittsylvania County

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TECHNOLOGY & AI

Make technology useful to you.

Learn a practical skill, compare a device and put AI to work with clear costs and a human review.

LEARN IT. TRY IT. USE IT.

Start with one everyday skill.

Learn to write a useful AI prompt, check an answer or organize a document. Each lesson includes a worked example, a practice task and a quick check.

Your first useful AI task

  1. Choose one task: a draft, checklist, explanation or comparison.
  2. Give the audience, real facts, length and desired format. Leave out private customer and account data.
  3. Choose a model and read the credit cost before running it.
  4. Check names, calculations and sources. Edit the answer before sharing.
Try this prompt
Help me draft a 120-word announcement for a community cleanup. Use only these facts: [place], [date], [organizer], [supplies]. Ask about missing details. Use a warm, direct tone.

Choose the model for the job

  1. Start with an economical model for short rewriting and checklists.
  2. Use a stronger model for multi-step reasoning and complicated documents.
  3. A more expensive model can still make mistakes. It does not automatically have current web data.
  4. Keep requests focused, reuse approved facts and set a spending limit.

Before buying a phone, laptop or gaming device

  1. List the apps, games, accessibility features and connections you actually need.
  2. Check the manufacturer’s support window, repair options, compatibility and warranty.
  3. Compare the whole cost: accessories, storage, subscriptions, energy and repairs.
  4. Read independent testing as well as the manufacturer’s claims. Sponsored and affiliate links are labeled.

Set up a safer device

  1. Install supported updates and turn on automatic security updates.
  2. Use a unique passphrase and multifactor authentication or a passkey.
  3. Review location, microphone, photo and notification permissions.
  4. Back up important work and test that you can recover it. Never share a recovery code with a caller.

From the source

Headlines and links from public agencies and original publishers. Feeds refresh on visits, at most once every 15 minutes per source.

Loading publisher feed…

Create responsibly

  • Use AI to help with a draft, then check important facts.
  • Keep private documents out of public posts.
  • Ask permission before using someone’s voice, likeness or copyrighted work.