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We were supposed to be living in a wireless future, but we’re not quite there yet. Still, many things we do with cables don’t actually require cables anymore — you can go wire-free with just a few tweaks. There are still reasons you might feel you have to connect your phone to your computer or plug in a cable, but those can be avoided with these tricks. Wireless File Transfers RELATED: How to Send Text Messages From Your PC With Your Android Phone...

When it comes to getting things done quickly, automation is the name of the game. We’ve looked at IFTTT before, and a new batch of updates has introduced a number of options that can be used to automatically do things with files that are sent to your Gmail address. What could this be used for? Well, the most obvious starting point is to simply create a backup of any files that you receive via email....

Verizon FIOS is great — the speeds are incredible, and the price is… well, kinda expensive. The real problem is that the terrible router they give you needs to be rebooted all the time, which is a royal pain considering it’s down in the basement. Plus, I don’t want to get off the couch. So I contemplated how I could solve this problem using technology. That’s what geeks do, right?...

Building an organizational chart in Excel makes sense because it’s easy to pull data from sources like other Excel documents or Outlook. When it comes time to show off that chart, you’ll probably want to use PowerPoint, though. Fortunately, bringing the Excel chart over to PowerPoint is fairly simple. Creating the Organizational Chart in Excel First, open a new Excel sheet. Head over to the “Insert” tab and select the “SmartArt” option....

Free, public Wi-Fi access points are popping up in more and more places around the world. They’re extra useful when travelling, as you won’t have your home Wi-Fi network and may not want to pay for international mobile data. These tips will help you find Wi-Fi hotspots on the go, whether you’re travelling to a foreign country or just to the other side of your home city. Two Restaurant Chains That (Almost) Always Have Free Wi-Fi If you want free Wi-Fi, keep an eye out for a Starbucks or a McDonald’s restaurant....

Google Drive sometimes displays a “drive.google.com refused to connect” error, which is usually the result of an account permission conflict. You can get around that problem using a few different methods, which we’ll walk you through. RELATED: How to Organize Your Google Drive Solution 1: Use an Incognito Window in Your Web Browser A quick way to fix Google Drive’s connection error is to use your web browser’s incognito window (also called a private browsing window)....

There’s never been a better time to be a geek in love with gaming: consoles, handhelds, PC games, AAA titles from big name studios, quirky indie releases that scratch a retro itch; there’s something for everybody in the increasingly diverse video game market. Whether you’re shopping big (like picking up one of the brand new game consoles), small (a game here or there), or somewhere in between, we’re here to help....

We’ve shown you how to pick the best backup battery for your computer, but what about configuring it and ensuring your computer shuts down gracefully and safely in the face of power surges, outages, and other undesirable power states? Read on as we show you how to configure a UPS and explain why each feature matters. Why Do I Want to Do This? We showed you how to calculate your battery backup needs and pick the right size UPS for your computer....

Similar to Google’s own Files app, Google Photos includes a “Locked Folder” feature. This allows you to hide sensitive photos behind some form of security. We’ll show you how to keep prying eyes away from your photos. Unlike the Files by Google app, Google Photos utilizes the screen lock on your Google Pixel smartphone. So, if you use a fingerprint to unlock your phone, that’s what you’ll use to open the “Locked Folder....

By adding a page break in your Microsoft Word document, you decide exactly where a page ends and a new one begins. Here’s how to insert and remove page breaks in Word. RELATED: How to Insert, Edit, or Remove Page Breaks in Microsoft Excel How to Do a Page Break in Word To insert a page break in your document, first, open your document in Microsoft Word. In the document, place your cursor where the new page should begin....

We’ve shown you how to jailbreak your Kindle in the past, but the new Paperwhite (with a beautiful higher resolution screen that begs for custom screensavers) requires a brand new bag of tricks to jailbreak. Read on as we jailbreak a Paperwhite and show off the new screensaver modes. Why Do I Want to Do This? There are two elements to this tutorial. First, there’s the jailbreak itself. The jailbreak allows you to access your Kindle Paperwhite as if you were a developer with full access to the operating system and file structure of the device....

Apple has added an increasingly sophisticated app permission system to iOS over the years. It’s up to you whether an app gets access to everything from your device’s sensors and personal information to notifications and cellular data. The first time an app wants to use something that requires permission, it has to ask you. You can see which apps have various permissions and manage them later, too. Permissions 101 RELATED: iOS Has App Permissions, Too: And They’re Arguably Better Than Android’s...

Fax machines are still trucking along in offices around the world. Government agencies, lawyers, doctors, and other slow-moving organizations often still require faxes — at best, it’s a necessary evil. Fax is often seen as more secure than email, although it really isn’t. Fax machines communicate over phone lines without any encryption and fax machines are often kept in busy areas where documents could be easily grabbed by anyone....

Siri has a bad reputation among many, but it’s perfectly usable for most tasks, and if you’re knee-deep in the Apple ecosystem it doesn’t matter how much better a competing digital assistant is because everything ties into Siri. That means that you’re going to need to use it, and that’s pretty easy to do when you know how. Let’s jump in. How to Enable Siri on an iPhone Just as is so often the case, this process starts in the Settings app....

User profiles on Google TV work with Google accounts. Each profile has its own suggestions and Watch List. The apps installed on the Google TV are available to everyone, but the accounts are not shared across profiles. RELATED: How to Add Movies and TV Shows to Your Google Watchlist To get started, on the Google TV home screen, select your profile icon in the top-right corner. From the menu, select your account....

By default, the HomePod Mini is always listening for the “Hey Siri” command. Unlike Google’s smart speakers, there’s no physical mute switch to stop or pause the “Hey Siri” functionality. Fortunately, there are two ways to quickly enable and disable the “Hey Siri” functionality on your HomePod Mini. RELATED: Interested in the HomePod mini? Here’s What You Need to Know Disable “Hey Siri” From Your HomePod Mini The first way to turn off the “Hey Siri” listening feature is to simply ask the HomePod to stop listening....

Cortana in Windows 10 is proving to be a promising new feature. To really take advantage of it, you can use voice activation to give your computer commands and perform tasks without needing to actually physically touch it. This feature works similarly to Android’s “OK Google” and iOS’s “Hey Siri.” With Microsoft’s version, you can enable this same kind of hands-free mode and then simply say “Hey Cortana” to make a Windows 10 PC respond....

Windows activation is designed to be as foolproof as possible, so Microsoft’s graphical tools keep it simple. If you want to do something more advanced like remove a product key, force an online activation, or extend the activation timer, you’ll need Slmgr.vbs. This command line tool is included with Windows, and provides options unavailable in the standard activation interface provided on the Update & Security > Activation screen in the Settings app....

Animations on a desktop PC, smartphone, or tablet are nice — the first few times. Eventually, you just wish they would hurry up and stop wasting your time. Disabling (or just reducing) animations can speed up almost any interface. Sure, the animations are pretty fast already, but waiting for them over and over each day can start to feel silly. Windows The Windows desktop has long offered convenient options for disabling animations....

If you only plan to use your microphone while gaming and aren’t interested in streaming, you probably don’t need this functionality. In that case, you can opt for a standard USB connection. But if you want the capability, you’ll need to seek out something that utilizes XLR inputs and is compatible with your current setup. Streamers will also want to consider the overall design and adjustability of their microphone. Not only will you need to be able to feel comfortable while using your microphone, but you’ll want it to look good on camera....