Rick's Daily Tips

Q&A: Will a power cord from an old monitor work with my computer?

Posted on January 24, 2014

Question from Shelley: Hi Rick. I have a question and you’ll probably think it’s silly. Will just any power cord that will fit be ok to use with my computer? It’s an Acer Aspire ME600.

I just moved into a new dorm, and somewhere along the way I lost the power cord to my tower. I searched the entire campus between my old dorm and the new one and I couldn’t find it anywhere.

My new roommate gave me a cord that she had left over when she replaced her old monitor. It fits in the socket perfectly, but it seems to be a little thinner than the one that came with my computer.

Do you think this old cord will work ok, or do you think I should buy a new one?

Rick’s answer: [Read more…]

Q&A: Will upgrading Windows void my Microsoft Office license?

Posted on January 23, 2014

Question from Richard S.: Back in March 2011 I bought an HP Desktop computer with Windows 7 on it. I also bought a copy of Microsoft Office 2010 at the same time and got a discount on it because I bought it with the PC.

Now I want to upgrade Windows 7 to Windows 8.1, but I’m afraid that changing the Windows version will void my Office license since it came with Windows 7.

Can I safely upgrade my computer to Windows 8.1 without voiding my Office license?

Rick’s answer: [Read more…]

Do you own a domain name? If so, don’t ignore those “Verify Contact Info” emails from your domain registrar!

Posted on January 23, 2014

If you own a domain name for a website or blog, you’re probably familiar with the emails that your domain registrar sends out every year asking you to verify the contact information for your domain.

Up until now you could simply ignore those emails and nothing drastic would happen, but not anymore. Ignoring those emails will now result in your domain being suspended by the registrar!

New regulations just announced by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) specify that your domain registrar must suspend your domain if you fail to respond to a verification email within 15 calendar days. The suspension will remain in place indefinitely until you verify the information. [Read more…]

How to find drivers for ‘Unknown Devices’ in Device Manager

Posted on January 23, 2014

microsoft-windows If you have ever had to re-install or upgrade Windows on a PC, chances are you have had to deal with “Unknown Devices” in the Device Manager.

These unknown devices are easy to spot because they are labeled with a small yellow shield that’s stamped with an exclamation point. In some cases they will even be labeled with the words “Unknown Device”.

We end up with unknown devices after completing a Windows installation if Windows failed to recognize one or more devices and install drivers for them. And unfortunately, this happens fairly often.

Oddly enough, Windows will sometimes recognize the device and install the driver if we ask it to perform a re-check. Here’s how to do it: [Read more…]

Q&A: How do I change the screen resolution in Windows 8?

Posted on January 22, 2014

Question from Allie R.: Rick, I just bought a new monitor for my Dell Inspiron 660s computer with Windows 8 (which I am SOOOO confused about). I bought a new monitor and hooked it up but the text is so small I have trouble reading it.

My question is how do I change the screen resolution to make everything look bigger?

On my old computer with Windows Vista all I had to do was right-click on the background and I could change the screen resolution, but I can’t figure out how to do it with Windows 8. Can you help me?

Rick’s answer: [Read more…]