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Posts Tagged ‘Tips & Tricks’

This tutorial has been on my mind off and on for several months now. Joining the team here at Windows Guides has given me the opportunity to finally post it. After my son asked me a few weeks ago for a good proxy I thought maybe I dedicate this and the next tutorial to him.

This is a long yet not a really difficult tutorial if you follow along. I have done my best to simplify it as much as possible. May I suggest you read the whole thing and get your … [Read More...]

Keeping a list of complex hacker-vexing passwords is an absolute must for every computer user’s security plan. It’s also a royal pain in the neck. As we visit more and more sites, we consequently collect more login credentials, making for a motley collection of username and password combinations. In a bid to save their sanity, some PC owners opt to use the same login information for every site they frequent. Others resort to recording all of their login information on a piece of paper or pasting it into a Word document. With insecure stop-gap measures like these for keeping track … [Read More...]

A few weeks ago Mike Duncan, Director of Business Development at SUPERAntiSpyware.com asked me to take a peek at their software. Being the Geek that never sleeps and challenge accepted off we go on passage into the world of SUPERAntiSpyware.

The results of the testing are beyond the scope of where this post leads but let’s say this, SUPERAntiSpyware has replaced the previous Anti-Malware software installed on this geeks PC’s and no computer leaves this shop without a free version installed.

The masses of features that come with the Free Version launch SUPERAntiSpyware right to top of the class … [Read More...]

A lot of PC enthusiasts leave their computers on 24 hours a day, seven days a week. After all, you never know when you’ll need to get a quick task done, and it’s a pain to have to wait for your computer to wake up from sleep mode, or (worse!) to boot.

Still, a high-end PC can use a lot of electricity, and leaving yours on overnight can have a significant effect on your monthly energy bill. So, how can you get your computer to automatically shut down overnight, but not while you’re using it?

We’re going to show you … [Read More...]

Last week, we shared some commands you can run (from the Run box/Start menu) that can save you time and get you to the tools you need quickly. If you missed it, here it is: Use Start Menu/Run Dialog Commands to Access Windows Programs and Tools.

This week, we’ll point you to some of our previously-written guides that include keyboard shortcuts that you can use in Windows and in a couple of popular programs. If we’re missing any shortcuts or programs with shortcuts, let us know in the comments.

• General Windows Shortcut Keys

• Shortcut Key Combinations that Use the Windows

… [Read More...]

You don’t need to spend a fortune to take advantage of Intel’s newest platform

Previous builds in this section have tended toward the expensive side, whether they’ve been the $8,600 photo studio or our $1,800 mini-ITX gaming build. While we stand by those choices (this is Maximum PC), we’ve also heard your cries for more affordable options. Often, a budget build means buying parts that are a little past their prime—and don’t get us wrong, you can find great deals there. But for this month’s build, I knew I wanted to explore Intel’s hot new Sandy Bridge architecture—and, if I … [Read More...]

There are many ways to shut down and restart your computer: Power-Off, Reboot-Button, Hibernate and Sleep. But which does what and which should you use when ?

The answer depends mostly on you. Are you into saving energy or boot-up time? How often do you leave your computer and for how long ? There are three main shut down options available in your Windows: Shut-Down, Sleep and Hibernate. There is also a fourth one called; Hybrid Sleep, which is a combination of the two.

Let’s explore the topic.

Environmental friendly

If your concern is to save energy, and you don’t … [Read More...]

In this guest post, Tibor Schiemann, President and Managing Partner of TuneUp discusses how to restore lost data and repair damaged file. Find out more about Tibor at the end of this post.

Have you ever accidentally deleted the wrong photo? Or emptied the Recycle Bin and not realized that an important folder was in it? Unfortunately, it only takes a single mouse-click to lose a file.

So, what is the best way to go about restoring this lost data? It’s important to avoid write operations on the hard disk or flash drive inup anymore.question—if you can. Deleted files are … [Read More...]

So InPrivate Filtering has had a dose of steroids and changed its name (confusingly) to Tracking Protection. Tracking Protection helps protect users from being tracked online by blocking third-party content such as images, text & cookies. By importing a Tracking Protection List (much in the same way we used to import .xml files with pre-defined filters in IPF for IE8) we can better lock down our privacy and rid ourselves of ads.

To get started with Tracking Protection, head to Tools > Safety > Tracking Protection.

By default, there will be a “Your Personalised List” where you click on … [Read More...]

Microsoft finally announced Windows 7 SP1 availability!

MSDN and Technet subscribers will be able to pick up Service Pack 1 for the software giants best ever selling OS on 16th February 2011.  Respectively, the web release will be live 22nd February 2011.

As ever, expect a delay before actually getting your hands on the SP as Microsoft notoriously “underestimate sever loads”.

Final build number, for those interested: 7601.17514.101119-1850

[Windows Team Blog Post]

This article was written by Windows Guides (Source)… [Read More...]

Excel isn’t the sexiest application in the world–it has an unfortunate association with the type of Milton-esque office drones we all wish we weren’t. All the same, it’s a program that most people will end up having to use at some point in their life, and it’s one with a lot of arcane secrets. Read on for 10 quick Microsoft Excel tips and tricks that will get you accounting like a pro in no time flat.

Time to Pivot

Pivot Tables are one of Excel’s most useful—and misunderstood—features. Here’s a quick lesson: Click within a chunk of data, click Insert, and … [Read More...]

You may have heard it on the news: the world officially runs out of IPv4 addresses this month. Fear not, Internet will still be there, and it will work as usual. The problem is worse for the manufacturer of IP-dependent products than it will be for you. The problem has been forseen many years ago and the solution is to implement the next generasion IP-Adresses, called IPv6. More and more companies are implementing IPv6 on their system, and operating systems like Windows 7 all have the protocol installed by default. However, Windows XP has not. But of course where there’s … [Read More...]

Even though it’s the new kid on the block (relatively speaking), Google’s Chrome browser is rapidly becoming the standard that other browsers are measured against in terms of speed and usability. There’s a ton to be written about how to get the most out of Google’s deceptively-simple browser, but today we’re focusing just on the brass tacks. Read on for 10 quick tips to help you make the most of Google Chrome and when you’re done, hit the comments and tell us your own favorites!

Configure Multiple Homepages

Consider yourself a power user, do you? Then why rock but … [Read More...]

Buying a new computer these days, chances are, it will come pre-installed with Windows 7 Home Premium Edition. That makes sense from the vendor’s standpoint, as the license for Home Premium costs less and it still has most of the functionality and features that the average user will want. But what if you aren’t the average user?

Some Vendors only offer the Windows 7 Starter Edition, which in my point of view is a sham to make you pay even more money for your computer. Steer away from these offers I say – unless of course you enjoy NOT being … [Read More...]

The Holiday season is just recently past, and a lot of good boys and girls will have gotten a PC game, application, or iTunes gift card in their stockings this year. However, in order to enjoy your new software or media, you have to have enough hard drive wiggle room to use it. To get the job done, you could set out to delete a score of chunky media files and sizeable programs that you only use on occasion. You could also opt to purchase and install a larger hard drive to solve the problem. Either of these plans will … [Read More...]