Rick's Daily Tips

Q&A: Can I retrieve my forgotten Wi-Fi password from my router?

Posted on December 11, 2025

Want to get my easy to follow Tech Tips in your email?

Note: The links in this post are affiliate links.

Question from Sean: My wife and I both connect our computers to the Internet via Wi-Fi. We rented out a spare bedroom to a college student a while back, and while we were on vacation our router died.

Not wanting to have to do without Wi-Fi until we got back, our renter purchased this router and installed it.

When we got back from our trip she gave us the password she had put on the new router’s wireless network and we used it to log on to the network with our Windows PCs.

When our renter left she told us we could keep the router, and we were very grateful. The problem is we lost the paper with the Wi-Fi password on it.

Now, our problem: My wife had to have the hard drive in her laptop replaced and when they reinstalled Windows it wiped out her password. Do you know of any way to retrieve the Wi-Fi password from the router so she can sign back on to the network? [Read more…]

Why employers care about your credit

Posted on December 11, 2025

The Overlooked Role of Credit in Hiring

When people think about job applications, they usually prepare resumes, references, and interview answers. What many don’t realize is that some employers may also look at credit reports before making hiring decisions.

It might seem unrelated — after all, what does paying bills on time have to do with professional skills? But for employers, your credit history can tell a deeper story about responsibility, reliability, and decision-making. [Read more…]

Linux replacements for popular Windows programs

Posted on December 10, 2025

Want to get my easy to follow Tech Tips in your email?

A while back I wrote a post explaining how to give an old PC new life by replacing Windows with Linux as a means of extending the useful life of older PCs.

After that post was published I received a number of emails asking for a list of Linux programs that can replace the Windows programs they’d leaving behind if they made the switch.

I decided that it might be a good idea to publish that list in its own blog post, and here it is: [Read more…]

How to choose a trusted online translation service in 2025

Posted on December 10, 2025

Imagine this: It’s 9 p.m. on a rainy Tuesday, you finally receive the long-awaited contract from your new distributor in Santiago, and it absolutely must be filed in two languages by the end of the week.

You could run it through free online software, cross your fingers, and hope for the best. Or you could trust an online translation partner that treats your words the way a jeweler handles diamonds carefully, deliberately, and with the right set of tools.

In 2025, when AI writes menus and court rulings alike, the challenge isn’t finding a translation service; it’s finding one that won’t burn you.

[Read more…]

11 easy ways to fool burglars into thinking you’re at home

Posted on December 9, 2025

Want to get my easy to follow Tech Tips in your email?

Note: The links in this post are affiliate links.

Burglars love targeting houses where it’s pretty obvious that no one’s at home.

After all, there’s less chance of them getting caught when there’s nobody there to catch them.

Are you worried about your home being burglarized when you’re at work, on vacation, or otherwise away from home?

If so, there are several things you can do to make it appear to potential burglars that your home is indeed occupied at all times – and prevent them from breaking in: [Read more…]