At Home with Tech

January 26, 2025

Star Trek: Section 31 Tries to be a Dumpster Fire and Succeeds

If you’ve also been waiting since 2020 to see what happened to Michelle Yeoh’s Emperor Georgiou from “Star Trek: Discovery,” she’s finally reappeared in “Section 31.” Here’s my review of this crazy TV movie.

There’s been a hole in my Trekkie heart ever since the very first episode of “Star Trek: Discovery” back in 2017. My heart broke early in the episode when Starfleet Captain Philippa Georgiou played by the wonderful Michelle Yeoh shockingly died with a Klingon blade to the heart.

More than a plot device, it was a clear message from the showrunners to all Trekkies that the old Star Trek you knew and loved was dead.

I was all set to watch another five-year mission with Captain Georgiou at the helm. But no, that wasn’t the plan. That said, this unexpected Trekkie betrayal also contained a hidden twist… with a lifeline to a future redemption.

It didn’t take that long. Soon we had a mirror universe replacement of Georgiou. And I’ve got to admit that Yeoh’s Emperor Georgiou from the Terran Empire was a blast.

Yeoh was unleashed to embody a delightfully naughty version of Georgiou. Every scene with her was always a bright spot through the entire “Star Trek: Discovery” series until she was banished by the writers through the Guardian of Forever in season 3 (another disappointment).

But wait. Trekkies then heard the producers were going to create a Section 31 series with Yeoh as part of this sinister and secret Federation spy division that has popped up in so many Star Trek series, including “Discovery.”

But no… the series ended up just being a one-off TV movie, which has finally arrived.

Back to the Future
Running just over an hour and a half on Paramount+, this ‘extended episode’ feels somewhat Star Trek adjacent. It’s filled with the quirky characters you might find in a “Guardians of the Galaxy” movie but pulled from the back pages of a “Star Trek” encyclopedia.

When the movie begins, Georgiou has already been transported back to the past a few decades before “Star Trek: The Next Generation.” She’s set up shop running a ritzy space station bar just outside of the Federation. The opening credits explain she had previously joined Section 31 but then disappeared (to apparently follow in the ‘legendary’ footsteps of Quark from Deep Space Nine).

But a threat of galactic proportions sends a Section 31 team led by Agent Alok Sahar (played by Omari Hardwick) to find and re-recruit Georgiou to help save the Federation.

It’s Good to be Evil
Section 31 isn’t as scary an organization as I remember, and the team that finds Georgiou initially acts like a second-rate band of misfit thugs.

Thank goodness they’ve got the ‘evil’ Georgio to save the day. Clearly Section 31 needs her anti-hero vibe to stop a terrorist with an uber-destruction device called the ‘godsend.’

As the story likes to remind us, you can’t escape your past, and so the Terran Empire plays a prominent role in the story.

Warped Sense of Fun
“Star Trek: Section 31” is sometimes clever, but often silly. The writers are clearly Trekkies, but tonally, this story is out of control. The closest parallel might be “Star Trek: Lower Decks.” And that’s a cartoon.

The Terran Empire in the mirror universe used to be the place where the writers and directors allowed the actors to chew up the scenery, but the producers have flipped that equation on its head. Here, all the Terran Empire scenes feel like normal Star Trek. And now it’s the Federation that looks like an extended frat party.

Does that mean “Star Trek: 31” is bad?” Not necessarily. It tries hard to be irreverent, fun and completely over the top. Yes, it’s mostly absurd, which is not your typical Star Trek formula. And you’ve got to be a Trekkie to really appreciate all the hidden references in plain sight.

This movie ends up being an absolute dumpster fire, but intentionally so (both figuratively and literally).

Mayhem with a Touch of Heart
In the middle of the mayhem highlighted by near-constant fighting, shaky camera work and fire spitting out of almost every orifice in the scenery, you can find a small core of Star Trek humanity still aglow. It takes the form of lost love and impossible redemption. This gives Yeoh her only opportunity to stretch her role a bit.

For a movie specifically built for her character, the script doesn’t really offer her enough and instead needs to focus on the new characters, especially due to all the twists in the plot.

Plus, the script requires the film to burn precious minutes with an opening Terran Empire flashback sequence featuring a younger Georgiou played by Miku Martineau.

A Guilty Pleasure
The final scene with our newly congealed team feels like any TV series’ pilot, and as Shatner’s Kirk liked to say, “There are always possibilities.”

Is this gritty, crazy but imperfectly lightweight “Star Trek: Section 31” good enough to stream?

Sure.

It’s a nice diversion… perhaps even a guilty pleasure. And it’s always great to watch the awesome Michelle Yeoh. And yes, I could get used to spending more time with the new characters, who thankfully became more likable by the end of the movie.

No Future for “Section 31?”
But is “Star Trek: Section 31” deserving of getting its own sequel ahead of the non-greenlit “Star Trek: Legacy” spinoff from “Star Trek: Picard?”

I’m not totally feeling it, and no sequel has been announced. But it doesn’t matter, because we’re all going to “Star Trek: Starfleet Academy” soon enough with Holly Hunter and Paul Giamatti.

Happily, next up is season 3 of “Star Trek: Strange New Worlds.”

Hit it.
(please)

January 19, 2025

How to Catch Urgent Calls when your iPhone is on Mute

Occasionally, you’ll simply miss a call, because you’ve misplaced your iPhone. Otherwise, here’s how I silence calls I don’t want while also allowing the important calls in my life to get through.

I sometimes feel like the Grinch. “All the noise, noise, noise… noise!” With all the unwanted phone calls and emails, I want to scream, “Stop! Go away!” It’s disruptive, increasingly overwhelming, and I want none of it. (Sound familiar?)

The biggest source of disruption was my trusty iPhone which interrupted me throughout the day with calls from unknown numbers and people (or robocalls) I instinctively knew I didn’t want to speak with. (Sure, my iPhone is forever in vibrate-only mode, but too much of that silent-but-buzzy haptic sensation can make you twitchy.)

Contacts Only
So, I shut it down. No, not the phone. But I restricted the list of numbers that could get through to just my contacts. (If you are anyone else, you’re welcome to leave a message.)

Yes, it a was draconian step, but necessary.
Here how to set up this communication limit on your iPhone:

Go to ‘Settings.’
Tap ‘Screen Time.’
Tap ‘Communication Limits.’
Tap ‘During Screen Time.’
Tap ‘Contacts Only.’
Then ‘During Downtime’ can be restricted further if you want.

The result created more serenity in my life, and I was grateful. But there was still another problem waiting for me at the other end of the equation…

You Can Still Miss a Haptics Call
I realized that it was sometimes difficult for my family members to reach me on my iPhone. Of course, their calls and texts got through via haptics mode, but it was still easy for me to miss those important moments.

The fix would be if I could set up a ringtone bypass that would allow my wife and son’s calls/texts to gain back their audio oomph.

Well, as it turns out, Apple gives your iPhone that exact capability!

Ring and Text Tone Emergency Bypass
In your Contacts app, you can set up individual contacts to be able to reach you with the power of full audio ringing or pinging, regardless of how your iPhone is otherwise muted.

Here’s how to do that:

Tap ‘Edit’ for a specific contact.
Tap on ‘Ringtone,’ which is set to ‘Default.’
Then on the next page, tap on ‘Emergency Bypass’ to turn it on.
Repeat these steps for ‘Text Tone.’

That’s it.

Your Updated Communications Plan
When you’ve finished tweaking these iPhone settings, you will have more effectively tuned out what you don’t want while enabling the important people in your life to better connect with you.

Sanity restored.

January 12, 2025

It May Be Time to Update your Own Online Beacons

If you want to refresh your personal online brand or simply maintain your up-to-date digital self, you first need to do an inventory of the transmitters you’ve already set up. Here’s what to keep in mind.

Do you remember where all your online beacons are located? I’m talking about the websites that ping your digital identity out to the world. Yes, the ones you’ve intentionally set up. Are they all up to date with accurate information? When was the last time you checked? I bet there are at least a couple you’ve forgotten about.

Why not take an hour to do an inventory and review it to make sure all your data is current?

If you’re committed to curating your personal brand online, it’s important to make sure the digital ‘you’ properly reflects the real you.

You may find that the most obvious of places need some freshening up. I recently realized that even my own blog, which I spend time on weekly, required a little work. It was my ‘About’ page, which housed a wicked-old photo of me from when I launched At Home with Tech back in 2012. So, I replaced it with a current one. (More on photos in a moment…)

LinkedIn

LinkedIn Profile
Of course, maintaining your own blog or website can be the center of your online presence, but for many of us, LinkedIn is the go-to place to project your professional digital identity.

So, it’s always a good idea take a look and dust off your LinkedIn profile, especially if you’ve not been paying much attention to it.

LinkedIn Photo
And don’t forget to update your photo every few years.

Yes, time marches on, and after enough years, we’re all going to look somewhat different. That’s okay. It’s not being authentic to represent yourself as your decade-ago younger self. That’s simply not you today.

I wouldn’t project yesterday. Our own stories should be grounded in today and forward focused.

LinkedIn Connections
Bonus tip: While you’re spending time updating your LinkedIn profile, why not reach out to the folks you’ve been working with recently and add them to your LinkedIn connections? (Unless you’re a regular LinkedIn user, you’ll likely have built up a backlog of potential connections.)

Social Media

I know that many may not think of our social media activity outside the parameters of our ‘friends’ and ‘connections.’ But no matter how you set up your profile, I think it should always be assumed that anyone may be able see what you post. (That’s something to keep in mind… for life!)

Every social media platform allows you to create a profile. So that’s an opportunity, but also another chore to maintain. Don’t set it and forget it.

You’re likely sharing different information than on LinkedIn, and that’s fine. But you should always be mindful to ensure it all works well together. Because it may well be consumed together.

Do you Need to Share So Much of Yourself Online?
Several years back, I wrote a blog post that proposed you really don’t exist if you can’t be found online. I got some blowback on that, and for good reason. Today’s online landscape is complicated. I’ll just use the word ‘risk’ and leave it at that.

So, you’ve got to be smart and pay attention. And that means you need to keep track of those beacons you’ve set up.

I also wrote a blog post titled, At Home with Paper. It referred to imagining life at home without a computer printer (I still can’t).

But the title holds a different meaning for me today. It taps into a hidden yearning to ‘simplify.’ None of the above is simple. Sure, it’s easy, but that’s where your trains can easily go off the tracks.

Stay Close to your Digital Self for Life
But this is not blog for Luddites (though I bet there would be a growing audience for that).

I continue to promote what I believe is a best practice to curate your personal brand online. But you can’t forget about it. And of course, never share too much.

This needs to be a life-long strategy.

So, buckle up!

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