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WMI and its newer brother CIM can both be used to manage the Windows machines in your environment. But do you know the difference between them? Join us as we take a look. Be sure to read the previous articles in the series: Learn How to Automate Windows with PowerShell Learning to Use Cmdlets in PowerShell Learning How to Use Objects in PowerShell Learning Formatting, Filtering and Comparing in PowerShell Learn to Use Remoting in PowerShell...

Google announced many new features coming to its beloved Chrome browser, one of which will change the way you go back to the websites you’ve researched previously. Plus, Chrome is adding more address bar actions. What Are Google Chrome Journeys? Essentially, Journeys takes the websites in your browser history and groups them based on topics. So, if you’re in the middle of doing some research and you need to get up and walk away, Chrome will group those websites together so you can go back and pick up where you left off with a simple search....

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. The Question SuperUser reader Belgi has a very simple request: Surely there is a trick, registry hack, or some clever maneuver that can help poor Belgi, no? I have no use for any other option on this screen, can I change it so the combination will get my directly to the Task Manager?...

Being able to have Microsoft Word track the changes you make as you go is great, but what do you do if you need to copy previously deleted text without rejecting the work you have already done? Today’s SuperUser Q&A post has some helpful suggestions for a frustrated reader’s text copying woes. 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....

If you have a compromised Windows system and want to analyze when services were installed or modified, then how do you do that? Today’s SuperUser Q&A post has the answers to a curious 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. Notepad screenshot courtesy of Flyk (SuperUser). The Question SuperUser reader Lucas Kauffman wants to know how to find the Creation Date (or Last Modified Date) for services in Windows:...

When it comes to computers, more is better. Well, sort of. Most users understand that a faster processor, with speed expressed in megahertz or gigahertz, is more desirable. Likewise, it’s fairly obvious that having more gigabytes of memory (aka RAM) is a good thing. But your RAM has another stat you might be confused about: speed. So, what does that speed rating on your RAM actually mean? The answer is simple, but how it actually relates to your system performance is complex....

Taking ownership of files or folders in Windows is not simple. Both the GUI and command line take too many steps. Why not add a simple context menu command that lets you take ownership of any file or folder? You can add a “Take Ownership” command to your context menu by editing the Registry manually in two locations—one for files and the second for folders. You can also just download our one-step Registry hacks to make those changes for you....

With each new version of Windows, new and innovative features are improving the total user experience in different ways. Windows 10 is quickly growing in popularity due in part to its innovative security features, and among these security options are new sign in options like the PIN code. You can enter a numeric PIN, or trace a pattern of gestures on a picture, or with appropriate hardware you can even use Windows Hello — a biometric sign-in method that scans your fingerprint, your face, or your iris....

Microsoft Word comes equipped with a tool that allows users to align text both vertically and horizontally, giving you complete freedom for determining the position of text in a Word document. Here’s how it all works. Aligning Text Horizontally in Word Horizontal alignment, also known as centered alignment, positions the text evenly between the margins on either side of the page. This tool also allows you to be selective with the text you align horizontally, giving you more control over what you can do to your document....

As you type in some word processors, quotes marks may automatically get converted from straight quotes to “smart quotes,” which are typographically correct quote marks that are curved one way at the beginning of a quote and the other way at the end of a quote. You can manually type an opening smart quote by holding down the Alt key and typing 0147 on the number keypad. The closing smart quote is also created by holding down the Alt key and typing 0148 on the number keypad....

Stardew Valley, the smash hit indie farming simulation role-playing game, is the kind of game players get quite attached to after sinking a lot of time into their farms, their relationships with the characters, and building their skills. Let’s look at how to safely backup your game so your farm is always safe. Before we dive into the specifics of manually backing up your game, let’s highlight a key point about how Stardew Valley saves your game....

Office 2013 is now upon us and, much like Windows 8, there are plenty of people who are unhappy about the way things look. One aspect of the interface that has caused confusion, annoyance and derision is the decision to completely capitalize the tab labels in the ribbon. If this is something that offends your eyes, it can be addressed in a few easy steps. Microsoft’s decision to use all caps for these labels is a little odd....

The Nintendo Switch comes with a pair of Joy-Con controllers attached to either side of the console. Normally, they’re used together to make one big controller, but you can also use each half as a controller for one person on its own. Here’s how to change your controller configuration for different games. RELATED: How to Play Mario Kart With Your Friends On the Nintendo Switch (Online and In Person)...

To do this, press Ctrl + Alt + T to open a Terminal window. Type the following command at the prompt and press Enter. NOTE: Linux is case sensitive, so you must type the line above as shown. Also, when we say to type something in this article and there are quotes around the text, DO NOT type the quotes, unless we specify otherwise. If you are returned to the prompt with no further messages, the command was successful....

Google TV streaming devices have a Home screen stuffed with recommendations. There are many ways you can fine-tune these, but if you prefer a less cluttered interface, you can also turn them off. The Google TV Home screen on devices like the Chromecast with Google TV is very different from the company’s previous streaming media platform, Android TV. For one thing, you don’t have as much control over how the Home screen looks....

The “FPS Boost” feature available on Xbox Series X and Series S can improve performance in older games. The game’s developer doesn’t even have to do anything. Here’s how it works and how to turn it on for specific games. What Is FPS Boost on Xbox? “FPS” stands for “frame per second” and refers to the speed at which a game runs. The frame rate was largely locked at 30 for the last generation’s big titles....

Starting with macOS Monterey, Low Power Mode reduces your Mac’s screen brightness and clock speed to make your Mac quieter and its battery last longer. Here’s how to enable it. What Does Low Power Mode Do on Mac? As previously mentioned, Low Power Mode reduces energy consumption by turning down screen brightness and reducing processor clock speed on a Mac. The screen appears dimmer, and the performance of apps becomes slower than usual on Mac....

Wi-Fi isn’t the same in every country. Regulatory agencies in countries around the world limit Wi-Fi to different parts of the radio frequency spectrum. Some routers broadcast the countries they think they’re in. The Wireless Diagnostics utility on Mac OS X shows you an error message if there are “conflicting country codes” nearby. Not every router broadcasts these details, but a misconfigured router can cause problems. Finding Conflicting Country Codes RELATED: Troubleshoot and Analyze Your Mac’s Wi-FI With the Wireless Diagnostics Tool...

iMessage got a huge update in iOS 10, adding things like third-party app integration, rich links, and a number of fun graphical effects for messages. If you’re seeing messages that say something like “(sent with Invisible Ink)” instead of seeing the actual Invisible Ink effect, we’ve got a couple of fixes for you to try. Sign Out and Back In to iMessage on All Your iOS Devices RELATED: The Best New Features in iOS 10 (and How to Use Them)...

PC games usually have built-in graphics options that you can change. However, you’re not limited to the options built into games — the graphics control panels bundled with graphics drivers allow you to tweak options from outside PC games. For example, these tools allow you to force-enable antialiasing to make old games look better, even if they don’t normally support it. You can also reduce graphics quality to get more performance on slow hardware....