Tech Talk with Toni

 The longest word in many English dictionaries is "Pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis," a lung disease caused by inhaling very fine ash and sand dust.   Today's post is inspired by the influx of Excel formula-related questions people have asked me (even though I'm not that good at it). Steve Jobs said, "If you define the problem correctly, you almost have the solution."  I've solved many problems by doing this well enough. When you are unable to put your problem into words, you have a harder time finding the solution since you will be Googling or prompting ChatGPT with the wrong things. Imagine a dictionary with a bunch of nonsensical definitions – pretty useless, right? That's what our problem-solving process becomes without a solid starting point. Speaking of foundations, did you know I used to obsess over the origin of words (aka etymology) in science class? Turns out, every word has a story, and it can be surprisingly illuminating. Ta...

  "The palest ink is better than the best memory." — Chinese Proverb Writing things down is the best way to ensure that knowledge is accurately passed down from one generation to the next, rather than solely relying on our memories. For instance, let's consider our approach to cooking. To achieve the best results, you'll often search for the sponge cake recipe your mom uses, even though you've made cake many times. Similarly, when I discuss the work I completed last week with my coworkers, and I start with  "Do you remember when...,"  they often respond with, "Toni, just assume I forgot everything." Both of these scenarios confirm our lack of confidence in our ability to recall information.  As a result, I've developed the habit of writing down anything worth remembering, from my friend's birthdays to my Pennywise list, and I believe that this is a habit that everyone should adopt.  I would have briefly touched on this in  Blog 16 : Com...