Tech Questions & Answers Archives - Page 189 of 258

Q&A: Why won’t my PC connect to Wi-Fi automatically after installing updates?

Posted on November 20, 2017

Question from Lois P.: My computer (HP laptop with Windows 10) was working fine until it installed an update about a week ago.

Ever since that update was installed the computer won’t automatically connect to my Wi-Fi network when I turn it on.

I can connect to the network manually and it works perfectly until I shut the computer down. It just won’t connect automatically no matter what I do and I really miss having it do that.

I’ve searched Google from top to bottom and I haven’t found a solution to this that works. I even used System Restore to remove the update but that didn’t help either.

A friend told me about your website but I couldn’t find anything you’ve written about this topic on there. Do you know of a fix for this? You’re my last hope!

Rick’s answer: [Read more…]

Q&A: Why is my new custom built PC shutting down almost immediately after turning it on?

Posted on November 18, 2017

Question from Kenny V.: I watched a Youtube video that showed how to build a gaming PC and it really intrigued me.

I decided to build one for my son so I asked the guy at Fry’s Electronics for recommendations on the parts. This is what he recommended (and what I ended up buying):

ASUS ROG STRIX Z370-E Gaming Motherboard

Intel i7 7700k LGA 1151 CPU

4 Corsair Vengeance 8GB DDR4 3000MHz C15 RAM sticks – (32GB total)

EVGA GeForce GTX 1050 Ti SC GAMING, 4GB GDDR5 Gaming Video Card

Samsung 850 EVO 1TB 2.5-Inch SATA III Internal SSD

Corsair RMx Series, RM850x, 850W Power Suppy

I put everything together according to the instructions but when I turn on the computer a light on the motherboard flashes and then everything immediately shuts down. According to the manual the light that flashes is the “CPU Warning Light”.

Just to be sure it’s not a bad connection I re-seated the RAM sticks and CPU. There were no bent pins that I could see. I also disconnected and reconnected all the power cables.

Do you think I might have received a bad CPU? That’s the only thing I can think of that could possibly be wrong. I don’t want to go back to Fry’s claiming they sold me a bad CPU unless I’m sure they really did.

Rick’s answer: [Read more…]

Q&A: Can I use my HughesNet satellite Internet modem in two places?

Posted on October 16, 2017

Question from Carl F.: I live in rural Georgia but I also own a second home (a cabin) in the Missouri Ozarks. Both homes have a HughesNet satellite antenna installed.

I spend most of my time in Georgia but I head to the Ozarks for a couple of weeks several times a year.

My question is can I just take my HughesNet modem with me when I go to Missouri and plug it into that dish?

My cabin is in a pretty isolated area and satellite Internet is the only viable broadband option I have out there. There isn’t even a cellular signal available or I’d just get myself a hotspot box.

Anyway, it seems to me I should be able to just plug the modem into either satellite dish and have it work. Or am I missing something?

I’d just take the modem with me next time and give it a try but I’m afraid it might mess something up.

Rick’s answer: [Read more…]

Q&A: Why does my computer want to hibernate when I do a regular shutdown?

Posted on October 9, 2017

Question from Michael D: My computer has a strange problem Rick, and it’s driving me up the wall.

When I shut the system down, everything that was open when I shut it down opens back up when I turn it back on.

Every program reopens, every browser and website reopens… It’s like I hibernated the machine instead of shutting it down. But that’s not the case. I always do a normal shutdown.

Can you help me resolve this? My computer is a Dell Inspiron 3464 with Windows 10 Home.

Rick’s answer: [Read more…]

Q&A: Is there a way to password protect a file in Windows?

Posted on October 5, 2017

Question from Vicky J:. Rick, I share my computer with my two kids and I have a couple of files that I really don’t want them to see. Nothing inappropriate, just files containing sensitive personal information.

Is there any way to put a password on a file in Windows so that it becomes inaccessible to anyone who doesn’t know the password?

I’ve Googled this every way I could possibly think of and I just could’t find a way to do it. But surely there is?

I really appreciate your help!

Rick’s answer: [Read more…]