Windows 8.1 is available to everyone starting today, October 18. The latest version of Windows improves on Windows 8 in every way. It’s a big upgrade, whether you use the desktop or new touch-optimized interface. The latest version of Windows has been dubbed “an apology” by some — it’s definitely more at home on a desktop PC than Windows 8 was. However, it also offers a more fleshed out and mature tablet experience....

WhatsApp is one of the most popular messaging apps around. Unfortunately, with that comes many security issues, including strangers tracking your online status. Thankfully, the company is making it so your online status is hidden by default. According to WABetaInfo, both the Android and iOS WhatsApp apps will make it so your “Last seen” status is only visible to contacts. Previously, anyone could see when you were last online, which made it a lot easier for strangers to stalk you....

There is nothing quite like the awesome feeling of finally being able to perform a major upgrade on your computer, but what do you do when your system refuses to make use of the whole upgrade? Today’s SuperUser Q&A post has the answer to a frustrated reader’s question. Today’s Question & Answer session comes to us courtesy of SuperUser—a subdivision of Stack Exchange, a community-driven grouping of Q&A web sites....

Windows has quite a few features for automatically arranging windows, placing them side by side or tiling them on your screen. These features are a bit hidden, so you may not have noticed them. We used Windows 7 here, but all of these tricks also work on Windows 8 or 10 except the ones that require the Task Manager. Many of the tricks also work with earlier versions of Windows....

Yes, Windows 7 is still available. If you want a new PC and you also want Windows 7, you can probably get it. This is easiest for businesses, but even home users have ways to get Windows 7. If you’re a home user, we wouldn’t recommend doing this. You’ll have to pay more and spend more time setting things up. Windows 8.1 isn’t as bad as Windows 8 was, and you can always install a start menu replacement....

Windows 8.1 invites you to “Get more features with a new edition of Windows.” You’ll get six more features if you upgrade to the Professional edition — plus a seventh if you pay extra. Windows 7’s Professional edition is similar. Features like BitLocker, group policy, and domain-joining require the Professional or Ultimate editions of Windows 7, too. (Note that BitLocker requires Windows 7 Ultimate). BitLocker Encryption RELATED: How to Set Up BitLocker Encryption on Windows...

When you are serious about online gaming, you look for every edge that you can find. The question is, will plugging your mouse into a USB 3.0 port provide any speed or response benefits over a USB 2.0 port? Today’s SuperUser Q&A post debates the question. Today’s Question & Answer session comes to us courtesy of SuperUser—a subdivision of Stack Exchange, a community-driven grouping of Q&A web sites. Photo courtesy of Jack Zalium (Flicker)....

If the only way you can access the Internet is a direct connection to your landlord’s router and cable modem, is it possible that they could breach your router and gain access to your personal network? Today’s SuperUser Q&A post has the answers and some good advice for a worried reader. Today’s Question & Answer session comes to us courtesy of SuperUser—a subdivision of Stack Exchange, a community-driven grouping of Q&A web sites....

All is well if you never need to move your Windows 7 license to a different computer or to a virtual machine environment, but what do you do if you find yourself in that situation? Today’s SuperUser Q&A post looks at the topic to help a confused reader find a solution. Today’s Question & Answer session comes to us courtesy of SuperUser—a subdivision of Stack Exchange, a community-driven grouping of Q&A web sites....

You don’t need a task killer because Android can normally manage processes better on its own. However, this all falls apart if there’s a buggy app hogging your resources and running when it shouldn’t be. But how do you identify these misbehaving apps? Carat, an app developed by a team of researches at AMP Lab at UC Berkeley, is an Android app that collects samples from many devices and suggests actions you can take to improve your phone’s battery life....

AWS Lambda Functions are a serverless computing model that lets you run code without servers. These are commonly written with languages like JavaScript and Python, but AWS now supports many different runtimes, including .NET for C#. Why Use .NET For Lambda? There are many different languages available for Lambda now, so you have a lot of options. Generally, JavaScript and Python are used for simple automation function that care about fast startup times....

Apple had a busy day on December 13, 2021, as the company released iOS and iPadOS 15.2. To go along with its mobile operating systems, Apple also released macOS Monterey 12.1, bringing new features to its desktop and laptop OS. What’s New in macOS Monterey 12.1? The most exciting new feature offered by macOS Monterey 12.1 is SharePlay, which lets Mac users watch content together through FaceTime. The feature came to iPhone with iOS 15....

Anyone who has dealt with Ethernet cables knows what it is like when a locking clip breaks and the cable constantly pops loose afterwards. Is there an easy DIY way to fix the cable, or is it simply better to replace it? Today’s Question & Answer session comes to us courtesy of SuperUser—a subdivision of Stack Exchange, a community-driven grouping of Q&A web sites. Photo courtesy of tlsmith1000. The Question SuperUser reader T… wants to know how to repair an Ethernet cable with a broken locking clip:...

You may not have noticed, but Firefox now includes a “Social API” that allows Facebook and other social networks to integrate with your browser. Firefox is providing Facebook a way to integrate with your browser and stay with you everywhere on the web. These features are a bit reminiscent of Flock, a Firefox-derived “social browser” that failed to gain traction a few years ago. This time, the features are baked into Firefox and are optional — you won’t see them unless you install a social provider....

The automatic white balance in digital cameras is, in most cases, a close-enough-but-not-quite solution. Read on as we show you how to use a white balance cap (both commercial and DIY) to achieve perfectly balanced color. What’s a White Balance Cap and Why Do I Want to Do This? There are several different techniques you can use to set the white balance in your camera (and later, in post-processing). The simplest technique, although rarely the most successful, is to just let the camera automatically set the white balance....

Before we begin, note that you do not need the Shazam app installed on your iPhone or iPad. What you will need is to be updated to iOS 14.2, iPadOS 14.2, or higher. Add a Shazam Button to iPhone and iPad Control Center The Shazam button isn’t placed into your iPhone or iPad’s Control Center by default. You’ll need to customize the Control Center to enable the music recognition button....

It’s easy enough to change an IP address on your PC using Control Panel, but did you know you can also do it from the Command Prompt? Changing your IP address with the Control Panel interface isn’t difficult, but it does require clicking through a number of different windows and dialog boxes. If you’re a fan of the Command Prompt, though, you can get it done more quickly using the netsh command, which is just one of the great network utilities built into Windows....

Names can say a lot about who you are. Maybe you primarily play first-person shooters, but you also moonlight as a roleplayer and want a different name for that. Maybe you just don’t like your current Steam name. Either way, Valve makes it easy to change your username. You can change your username through the Steam application on your desktop or phone, or through the website. Steam Desktop App Changing your username through the desktop application is pretty straightforward....

You may use WhatsApp for messaging, but you might not know what your WhatsApp phone number is. If so, it’s easy to check your number on Android and iPhone. Here’s how. Find Your WhatsApp Number on Android and iPhone Start by launching the WhatsApp app on your iPhone or Android phone. In WhatsApp, open the “Settings” page. If you’re on iPhone, tap “Settings” the app’s bottom bar. If you’re on Android, tap the three dots and select “Settings” in the top-right corner of the app....

How to Clear Facebook App’s Cache on iPhone Your Facebook cache includes data gathered from the news sites you access, viewing product pages, and ads from the links on Facebook. While the iOS app offers cache purging, it’s only limited to the website data gathered by the app. Start by launching the Facebook app on your iPhone. In the Facebook app, tap the “Menu” icon (three horizontal lines) in the bottom-right corner....