Your daily dose of practical, easy to follow tech tips!
Coupons have been a staple of the Sunday newspapers for decades, and dedicated “clippers” often save hundreds of dollars per month simply by investing a few minutes each week combing the papers for the best deals.
Few people know it, but coupons and “promo codes” can save shoppers big bucks online as well.
The System Restore utility included with the latest versions of Microsoft Windows is one of the most wonderful tools Windows users have at their disposal. It works somewhat like a time machine, allowing you to restore your Windows installation and software back to the state they were in at any point in time at which a Restore Point was created. If you make a change to your system that renders it unbootable or if a virus or other problem causes issues with Windows performing the way it should, a System Restore can almost always save the day.
If System Restore is turned on, the system creates Restore Points automatically from time to time. Restore Points are also created before updates are installed or other major changes are made to your Windows installation. What’s more, you can create a Restore Point manually should you feel the need to do so for any reason. [Read more…]
For various reasons we often need to minimize all the open windows in order to see the Desktop. Instead of clicking the minimize button for each window one by one we can minimize all the windows at once with a single mouse click or keystroke – your choice. Here’s how:
1 – Click the “Show Desktop” icon located in the Quick Launch toolbar in the lower left corner of the screen. In the screenshot at right the “Show Desktop” icon is the first icon to the right of the “Start” orb. It might be in a different position on your screen. To restore the windows back onto the screen, simply click the icon again. Note: Windows 7 doesn’t display the Quick Launch toolbar by default so you’ll need to use option 2 below…
2 – Hold down the “Windows” key and press the “D” key. You’ll typically find the “Windows” key at the lower left corner of the keyboard between the “CTRL” and “ALT” keys. (Refer to the image at right.) Pressing Windows-D again will restore all the windows back onto the screen.
One of the great things about the Internet age is the availability of thousands of useful programs, tools and apps just waiting for you to download and use free of charge. I use a number of these freebies on a daily basis, and most of them work just as well (and in some cases better) than their commercial counterparts. If you aren’t careful however you can easily install “extras” such as browser toolbars and additional apps that can slow down your system or even steal your personal information.
These “extras” are usually downloaded with your permission whenever you install a “free” program. The reason many of these programs are free is because the companies behind the toolbars and “extra” apps pay the maker of the free software to help them distribute it. This is how it works… [Read more…]
From time to time we need to capture an image of the items currently being displayed on the computer screen. This is called a “screenshot”, and it can display the contents of the entire screen or just a portion of it. Windows makes it easy to create a screenshot of the entire screen. Here’s how: [Read more…]