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Tips & Tricks

Life Hack

Cheaper Flights

If you're booking flights, the cheapest way to go about it is to do the following:
~ Use incognito mode or private mode (this can be done usually in the options tabs. Also ideally clear your "cookies" (usually found where you delete your browsing history in settings). This will prevent websites to track your browsing data and know you're looking at flights and hotels which will jack up the prices as you browse.
~ I like using Google Flights (flights.google.com), but if you have a preferred Airlines because you have miles, use them. Google Flights will give you a lot of the different airlines' prices and flight information with green numbers on the cheapest flights. It allows you to compare which days are cheapest up to 3 months in advance, use sliders and options to choose if you want to leave or arrive by certain times, and how long you're willing to layover for (There are overnight options I don't enjoy. You can avoid this with the slider).
~ When selecting tickets, the cheapest way to go is to do one way for the there and the back tickets separately as then it won't just give you one airlines both ways, you can find the cheapest both ways regardless of airlines.
~ When flying in or out of the US, if you're going or coming from the east, flying through New York or Newark airport is often the cheapest route. If you're trying to go to Europe, for example, flying from your home state to Newark to Dublin, Ireland, to whatever country will typically be the cheapest way to go even if it takes a little longer. Flying west, meanwhile, for example the Japan trip I'm planning, fly out of Seattle or LAX (Los Angeles Airport). Same thing. I'm going from my home airport -> LAX -> Tokyo. This is a great time to use your miles fly to LAX/Seattle or Newark for free/cheaper, then just buy the oversea flight and cut the price in half.
TL;DR: Use flights.google.com or your preffered airlines website in a private tab for cheaper flights

Computer Life Hacks

Keyboard Shortcuts

(Windows users use Control (ctrl); Apple users use ⌘ Command)

-Most Anywhere-
C = copy
V = paste
X = cut (copy and delete)
Z = undo
Y = redo what was just undone
P = print (you can "print" anything to a PDF to save it by selecting Save to PDF as your "printer")
A = all (select all text in the area)
S = save (doing this on a webpage can save the whole page as a PDF or something similar for easy saving confirmation screens or documents)
D = on browser, downloads or history. It changes. On Microsoft Word, opens a tips to preview highlighted text in different fonts and sizes easily so you're not going back and forth to find the right one
F = find (locate any searched text and its reoccurrences in the webpage/document you're on)

-Web Browser Specific-
R = refresh. Reloads the page
T = opens new tab
Shift + t = reopens most recently closed tab
W = closes current tab
Shift + w = closes entire window (all tabs)
Shift + n = opens Incognito Mode Tab (private mode that won't track your browsing data or cookies)

-Document Specific-
B = Bold
U = underline
I (i) = italicize
L = adjust text to the left
R = adjust text to the right
E = center text
J = justify text (make it all square by weird spacing, aligned to left and right both)
N = new document or new project most of the time
O = open document or project from your computer

Networking

DNS cache truthing when the internet "works" but nothing resolves

Try nslookup against a known-good resolver (e.g., 1.1.1.1) and compare to your default. Flushing local cache (ipconfig /flushdns) plus clearing the browser’s DNS cache can end a goose chase when a captive portal or stale entry is the real villain.

OpSec

Minimise metadata in screenshots you share

Before posting, crop out usernames, hostnames, ticket IDs, and clock/date regions. Strip EXIF by pasting into a new PNG via Paint or the Snipping Tool. A 5‑second habit that saves 5‑hour headaches.

Authoring

Cheat your future self less: build a snippets library

Keep a living document of canned responses, code snippets, and troubleshooting trees. Organise by topic and add a one‑line example for each. You’ll reply faster, more consistently, and save precious brain cycles for the weird problems—like printers.

Web

Fluid cards that auto‑size with content (no JS needed)

Use CSS Grid with repeat(auto-fit, minmax(260px, 1fr)) and let the cards’ height be auto. Each card stretches to its content without hard limits. If you want a tidy wall, add an optional line‑clamp + “Expand” toggle.

Dev

Recover a branch you just deleted locally

Use git reflog to find the last commit hash, then git checkout -b my-branch <hash>. It’s not lost—just hiding.

Hardware

Thermal throttling sanity check for laptops

If “it’s slow on battery,” compare performance plugged vs unplugged with a quick CPU stress test. Some vendors set aggressive eco profiles on battery that kneecap performance. Flip to a balanced profile before blaming the SSD.

Accessibility

Make docs skim‑friendly for neurodiverse readers

Use short paragraphs, descriptive headings, and bullet lists. Keep one idea per section and finish with a quick “TL;DR” so the brain can breathe.