HELPFUL HINTS

DEAR READERS: There’s nothing like the joy you feel from serving others. The Points of Light Foundation’s National Volunteer Week is April 19-25.

Founded in 1974, National Volunteer Week was established to acknowledge and thank those who selflessly grant their time, skills, donations of goods, services, funding and platforms to help other people.

There are so many ways to do good things for others. Check out www.pointsoflight. org for more information.

P.S. The nonpartisan Points of Light Foundation came about from President George H.W. Bush’s famous 1989 1,000 Points of Light speech.

DEAR HELOISE: What is artificial intelligence, or AI?

— Marie K. in Florida DEAR READER: “Artificial intelligence” is the part of computer science that works to develop intelligent machines that can “sense” their environment and “act” to achieve a goal.

Many drones work by artificial intelligence. Do you have one of those smart speakers/ virtual assistants that can play music, dim the lights, give you a weather forecast, as well as many other tasks, by your voice command? That is artificial intelligence.

DEAR READERS: The internet has revolutionized information management? Enter these bits of info into your search engine to save time and streamline your search:

▪ Looking for where a particular quote comes from? Put it in quotation marks. Ex: “To be or not to be.”

▪ bWhat’s the definition of a word? Type “define:” in the search bar before your word.

▪ To look for information on a range of things or information on a list, type two periods between the range. Ex: Comedy movies 1960..1970

DEAR HELOISE: I write online reviews of products, restaurants, hotels and services. It’s important for the company to get honest and fair reviews.

If I had a problem or bad experience, I contact the company directly to give them a chance to fix it. Normally, they appreciate the opportunity to solve the problem.

I always point out the positive and then offer a suggestion of how they can improve something minor. Example: The hamburgers are fresh and delicious, but my fries were a bit overcooked.

Companies read online reviews. Some even comment.

— Dan R. in Connecticut Send a money- or time-saving hint to Heloise, P.O. Box 795001, San Antonio, TX 78279-5000; fax to (210) 435-6473; or email