Posts

Programs that automatically start with Windows can slow down your computer’s boot time, making you wait to get a useful desktop while icon after icon loads into your system tray. Fortunately, it’s possible to prevent these programs from automatically starting. Some of these programs perform a useful function, but many autostart programs are unnecessary and do little more than slow down your boot time — particularly programs that may have been preinstalled by your computer’s manufacturer....

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 An anonymous SuperUser reader wants to know if their browsing sessions are completely secure: An interesting question that certainly has implications for personal privacy. Let’s investigate. For example, I visit: https://www.website.com/data/abc.html Will the ISP know that I accessed */data/abc.html or just know that I visited the IP of www....

Windows installation disc-customizing tools are always useful. They allow you to add Windows updates to your installation media, streamline the installation process by filling in your product key and other information, and customize Windows’ default settings. We previously covered RT Se7en Lite for Windows 7, and WinReducer works similarly for Windows 8. Both tools work similarly to the nLite tool for Windows XP — WinReducer is like an nLite for Windows 8....

Since PowerShell is based on the .Net Framework and incorporates various other technologies like WMI and CIM, there is always more than one way to accomplish the same thing. Come join us for this short post where we learn how to choose the best method to accomplish our tasks. 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 Using PowerShell to Get Computer Information...

Google Docs has been building up its “chips” support over the past few months, which are shortcuts available by typing the @ symbol into a document. Now there’s an updated chip for adding locations from Google Maps. The Google Maps place chip was added to Google Docs last year, which allows you to type the @ symbol into a document, paste a Google Maps link, and then press space or enter to generate a smart link....

When learning about web servers and how they work, you may be curious if they are constantly listening for requests or if they wait until they receive a request to go into action. With that in mind, today’s SuperUser Q&A post has the answers to satisfy a reader’s curiosity. 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 third-party software to access FTP servers, WebDAV sites, and other remote files shares. Popular desktop operating systems like Windows, Mac, and Linux can all do this out-of-the-box. You can also access files stored on servers using the NFS, Windows file sharing (SMB), and SSH protocols. Different operating systems support different protocols. Windows RELATED: Stupid Geek Tricks: How To Download Firefox On a New Computer Without Using Internet Explorer...

If your gadgets never leave your side, what better place to charge them then next to your bed? With some inexpensive parts and a few minutes of time, you can upgrade your nightstand into an all-in-one charging station for your gear. RELATED: Stop Huddling by the Outlet: Longer Smartphone Cables Are Dirt Cheap Over the years, we’ve tried a variety of solutions to keep our gadgets close at hand while cutting down on clutter and cost....

If you want to take advantage of Microsoft Office’s draw tools in PowerPoint, you might add an animation to your drawing to make it a useful demonstration. This lets you create anything from a basic letter to teach a student to write to a fully detailed mockup to show your team a process. Create Your Drawing in PowerPoint When you visit the Draw tab in PowerPoint, you’ll see all of your ink tools at the top....

Animations in Microsoft PowerPoint can add pizzazz to your presentation. So, if you include a chart in your slideshow, consider animating it as well. With flexible options, you can animate parts of a chart instead of the whole thing. You might make each series in a bar chart fly in from the side or every piece of a pie chart appear and zoom. This can take a static graph and make specific elements stand out or simply create a dramatic effect....

If you need to raise your monitor higher than what the stock stand can achieve, a monitor mount or arm is a great way to do that. Here’s how to build your own. RELATED: How to Add an Extra Monitor to Your Laptop You can get monitor mounts and arms for pretty cheap, but if you’re not a huge fan of the selection or just want something really simple and customizable, you can build your own monitor mount that can clamp onto almost any desk surface....

If you connect a lot of drives to your Mac—or connect a particular external hard drive to a lot of different Macs—it can all be a lot to keep track of. Changing the icon for your drives is a quick way to visually tell them apart. RELATED: How to Change Drive Icons in Windows The process is similar to changing folder and application icons, but it’s different in a few key ways....

If you’ve found a better name that you think best suits your YouTube channel, you can remove that old channel name and add the new one. We’ll show you how to rename your YouTube channel on the web and mobile. What Happens When You Change Your Channel Name When you change your channel name, YouTube starts using the new name across its platform. If you have translated your current channel name with channel translations, you will have to update that translation for your new name....

A video’s bitrate is a key piece of information in determining the quality of said video. Even if two videos have the same resolution, a lower bitrate is going to result in less detail and clarity. Here’s how to see the bitrate of any video you’re playing in real time with VLC. RELATED: 10 Useful Features Hidden in VLC, The Swiss Army Knife of Media Players VLC is a powerful, cross-platform app that can play virtually any video file and has a ton of hidden features....

As with all social media sites, sometimes people want a break from Snapchat. You could just log out, but then people can still send you messages and they’ll think you’re ignoring them when you don’t respond. Instead, it’s better to deactivate or delete your account. If you want a more permanent solution, the steps are the same. When you deactivate your account, it will stay that way for 30 days....

Once upon a time, Linux desktops were full of wobbly windows, desktop cubes, and other over-the-top graphical effects. Ubuntu still includes the Compiz software that makes this possible, but it’s been toned down by default. Ubuntu includes some basic graphical effects on its desktop, but provides no built-in option for enabling and tweaking more effects. All you need is a third-party tool to unlock the advanced features in Compiz....

Reddit used to call its dark mode “Night Mode,” but has since changed it to the popular vernacular of “Dark Mode.” The settings to enable the feature are basically in the same place whether you use the website or the mobile app. Log in to whichever you use and follow the instructions below. RELATED: Dark Mode Isn’t Better For You, But We Love It Anyway Enable Dark Mode on the Reddit Website On the Reddit website, click your profile avatar in the top-right corner of the page and then select the “Dark Mode” toggle button....

The ability to sync data and settings between computers running Windows 8 is great, but it does mean that your information – possibly personal – is stored in the cloud. If you have changed your mind about syncing and want to remove your data from the cloud, here’s how to do it. Disable Data Syncing The first thing to do is to disable syncing on each of your Windows 8 computers....

Android has a built-in battery stats tool that shows you what is using your battery. Unfortunately, this tool doesn’t provide all the information you need to identify the root causes of poor battery life. BetterBatteryStats is an app that shows you much more detailed information about what’s actually using your phone’s battery. With BetterBatteryStats, you can identify exactly which apps and settings are draining your battery. Getting Started BetterBatteryStats is available for $2....

If you’ve used a Mac recently, you may have noticed tags now have a distinct presence in the Finder. Maybe you’re thinking, “huh? tags?” (it’s a fair response), but actually, tags are an excellent way to categorize, sort, and instantly find your important stuff. Tags are exactly what they sound like they are. You’re basically just selecting files and adding labels. These labels are just metadata for describing file content....