Rick's Daily Tips

Q&A: How can I find out if ‘Secure Boot’ is enabled on my PC?

Posted on February 10, 2022

Question from Denise: I recently started a new job and the IT folks said I can connect my personal laptop to their network but only if it has something called Secure Boot enabled?

Can you tell me what that is and how to check to see if its enabled?

[Read more…]

Q&A: How do I clone a hard drive to a larger Samsung SSD?

Posted on February 9, 2022

Note: The links in this post are affiliate links.

Question from Mike: First of all, I love your blog, Rick. Your tips have helped me a lot over the years.

Now I need your help with an SSD upgrade if you don’t mind.

I’ve read several of your tips about replacing a hard drive with an SSD.

Some of those tips discuss cloning the contents of a large hard drive to an SSD that has less storage capacity than the hard drive, but my situation is exactly the opposite. [Read more…]

How Amazon Prime members can get interest-free financing

Posted on February 8, 2022

Note: The links in this post are affiliate links.

It’s no secret that I buy most of my tech gear from Amazon. I also recommend that others do the same for the reasons stated in this post.

Well, did you know there’s an easy way for Prime members to get a full 12 months interest-free financing on any Amazon purchase of $600 or more? [Read more…]

Q&A: How do I stop the ‘Launch Device Pulse’ notifications on my phone?

Posted on February 8, 2022

Question from Jim: I have a TracFone Motorola Moto G smartphone and at least twice a day I get a notification that says this:

Launch Device Pulse

I’ve tried everything I can think of to make it stop giving me those notifications. I even deleted the “Device Pulse” app and I’m still getting them.

Can you tell me how to put a stop to it? [Read more…]

7 practical tips for extending the range, speed and security of your WiFi network

Posted on February 6, 2022

Rick’s Tech Tips Newsletter

Wireless routers make it very easy to share your high speed Internet connection with guests and family members.

They also make it easy to use your laptop or mobile devices in any room in the house without running cables all over the place.

But if you live in a large house and/or have multiple devices all using the Internet at the same time, chances are your WiFi connection is weaker and slower than it could be due to obstructions, distance and bandwidth limitations. [Read more…]