💡Run programs on an infected PC Malware may prevent a computer from running certain programs. Changing the name of the .exe file can often override this. If that doesn't work, changing the extension to .com is another useful alternative, and the program will still be able to run despite the extension change.
TIPS AND TRICKS
TIPS AND TRICKS
🗞Google marks Play Store's 10th birthday with a new logo
Google launched the Play Store in 2012 to unify all its online stores of the era under a single umbrella: Android Market (apps), music, e-books and videos. You could effectively buy anything Google offered through one website or a handful of apps. For a while, you could also shop a digital newsstand and hardware products like Nexus devices and Chromebooks. The service has unsurprisingly been popular given its importance to Android, with over 2.5 billion people using the store every month across 190 countries.The anniversary comes as the service is evolving. The company rebadged Play Newsstand as Google News in 2018, and wound down Play Music in 2020 as it finished transitioning to YouTube Music. This year, Google is pulling the Movies & TV section to put its content in the TV app. The Play Store is still intact, but it's considerably more focused than it was a decade ago.
TIPS AND TRICKS
Google launched the Play Store in 2012 to unify all its online stores of the era under a single umbrella: Android Market (apps), music, e-books and videos. You could effectively buy anything Google offered through one website or a handful of apps. For a while, you could also shop a digital newsstand and hardware products like Nexus devices and Chromebooks. The service has unsurprisingly been popular given its importance to Android, with over 2.5 billion people using the store every month across 190 countries.The anniversary comes as the service is evolving. The company rebadged Play Newsstand as Google News in 2018, and wound down Play Music in 2020 as it finished transitioning to YouTube Music. This year, Google is pulling the Movies & TV section to put its content in the TV app. The Play Store is still intact, but it's considerably more focused than it was a decade ago.
TIPS AND TRICKS
💡Read installers Even major programs can install toolbars and other unwanted pieces of software during installation. Take a few seconds to read each step to make sure you are not agreeing to install something other than the program you were actually seeking. Far too often people just push next over and over, and end up with a browser covered in various search bars that just aren't needed. In the worst of scenarios, these can have nefarious intentions.
TIPS AND TRICKS
TIPS AND TRICKS
🗞Micron’s 232-Layer NAND Paves Way for 200TB SSDs
Prior to the innovation, the company’s NAND topped out at 176-layers.The new NAND is also 50% faster than Micron’s 176-layer offering, at a top speed of 2.4 gigabytes per second, while featuring100%higher write bandwidth and75%higher read bandwidth.The company also says that the 232-layer NAND has 1 terabyte per die,the highest areal density in the industry, and has heightened capacity and energy efficiency over previous Micron NANDs.“Micron’s 232-layer NAND is a watershed moment for storage innovation as first proof of the capability to scale 3D NAND to more than 200 layers in production,” said Scott DeBoer in the company’s press release. DeBoer is Micron’s executive vice president of technology and products. Speaking to Techradar Pro in 2020, Micron CEO Thomas Isakovich spoke promisingly about what this kind of NAND density can achieve, saying “We can do 200 TB in2021and likely 400 TB by 2023, depending on the timing of NAND density gains.”
TIPS AND TRICKS
Prior to the innovation, the company’s NAND topped out at 176-layers.The new NAND is also 50% faster than Micron’s 176-layer offering, at a top speed of 2.4 gigabytes per second, while featuring100%higher write bandwidth and75%higher read bandwidth.The company also says that the 232-layer NAND has 1 terabyte per die,the highest areal density in the industry, and has heightened capacity and energy efficiency over previous Micron NANDs.“Micron’s 232-layer NAND is a watershed moment for storage innovation as first proof of the capability to scale 3D NAND to more than 200 layers in production,” said Scott DeBoer in the company’s press release. DeBoer is Micron’s executive vice president of technology and products. Speaking to Techradar Pro in 2020, Micron CEO Thomas Isakovich spoke promisingly about what this kind of NAND density can achieve, saying “We can do 200 TB in2021and likely 400 TB by 2023, depending on the timing of NAND density gains.”
TIPS AND TRICKS
💡Permanently remove deleted data so software such as Recuva can't undelete files/folders Open a command prompt and enter cipher /w:C: to wipe deleted files from your C: drive (change the letter to target a different drive or folder). If you need to go the extra mile and use a file shredder program, check out Eraser (Windows) and FileShredder (Mac).
TIPS AND TRICKS
TIPS AND TRICKS
🗞Twitter Testing Status Feature With Users in US, Australia
Twitter is testing a new status feature called Status Tweets with some users in the US and Australia, the company told CNET Thursday. Twitter wrote online that these tweets are meant to add context to your tweets."Whether you are about to drop a hot Tweet thread, share your shower thoughts, or have a bad case of the Mondays, your Tweets can better convey what you are up to," Twitter said.Users who have access to the feature say the available statuses include "Spoiler alert," "Shower thoughts," "Case of the Mondays" and "Living the Dream." Custom statuses are not available at this time."Just like with general Tweets, the recipient will be able to see other people's Status Tweets that the sender replies to, Retweets, Quote Tweets, or likes," Twitter wrote. Users will also see tweets associated with the status once you've selected it.
TIPS AND TRICKS
Twitter is testing a new status feature called Status Tweets with some users in the US and Australia, the company told CNET Thursday. Twitter wrote online that these tweets are meant to add context to your tweets."Whether you are about to drop a hot Tweet thread, share your shower thoughts, or have a bad case of the Mondays, your Tweets can better convey what you are up to," Twitter said.Users who have access to the feature say the available statuses include "Spoiler alert," "Shower thoughts," "Case of the Mondays" and "Living the Dream." Custom statuses are not available at this time."Just like with general Tweets, the recipient will be able to see other people's Status Tweets that the sender replies to, Retweets, Quote Tweets, or likes," Twitter wrote. Users will also see tweets associated with the status once you've selected it.
TIPS AND TRICKS
💡See who is logged on to your router Software such as Wireless Network Watcher makes this particularly easy and even has alarms for when someone new appears. You can also do this by logging into your router (common router IP addresses) and checking for a list of wireless clients which should display the name of the device, its currently assigned IP address and its MAC address.
TIPS AND TRICKS
TIPS AND TRICKS
🗞WhatsApp is testing rich link previews in Status updates
WhatsApp is testing a new feature that would allow people to insert rich link previews into their Status updates. Sharing a link via a Status update currently displays the URL and nothing more.That will all change if this new change is rolled out to everyone. As WABetaInfo reports, WhatsApp is testing allowing rich link previews to display a preview of the website that is being linked to, giving people an idea of what they will see if they click or tap through .WhatsApp is already one of the best iPhone apps for staying in touch with other people and the TikTok-like Status updates are one aspect of the app that Meta is working on improving. We've already seen signs that new group chat polls will also be made available via a future update.
TIPS AND TRICKS
WhatsApp is testing a new feature that would allow people to insert rich link previews into their Status updates. Sharing a link via a Status update currently displays the URL and nothing more.That will all change if this new change is rolled out to everyone. As WABetaInfo reports, WhatsApp is testing allowing rich link previews to display a preview of the website that is being linked to, giving people an idea of what they will see if they click or tap through .WhatsApp is already one of the best iPhone apps for staying in touch with other people and the TikTok-like Status updates are one aspect of the app that Meta is working on improving. We've already seen signs that new group chat polls will also be made available via a future update.
TIPS AND TRICKS
💡Scan suspicious files with VirusTotal If you're worried about a file being infected, you can upload it to VirusTotal to have it checked by a few dozen antivirus engines from the cloud. Often times someone has already uploaded the same file, sparing you the wait.
TIPS AND TRICKS
TIPS AND TRICKS
🗞YouTube allows creators to edit long-form videos into 60-second 'Shorts'
With this new update, which is now rolling out across iOS and Android devices, users can now convert up to 60 seconds from their own existing long-form YouTube videos and turn them into Shorts. YouTube Shorts is now being watched by over 1.5 billion signed-in users every month with more than 30 billion daily views."To make it easier to create even more new content, you can now convert up to 60 seconds from your own existing long-form YouTube videos and turn them into Shorts using all the same editing tools that you know and love (text, timeline editor, filters, etc.)," the company said in a developer update.The company said that this update will allow users to bring fresh life to their classic content and give them a new way to engage their audience.If users select a part of their video that is less than 60 seconds, they can shoot additional videos with the Shorts camera.
TIPS AND TRICKS
With this new update, which is now rolling out across iOS and Android devices, users can now convert up to 60 seconds from their own existing long-form YouTube videos and turn them into Shorts. YouTube Shorts is now being watched by over 1.5 billion signed-in users every month with more than 30 billion daily views."To make it easier to create even more new content, you can now convert up to 60 seconds from your own existing long-form YouTube videos and turn them into Shorts using all the same editing tools that you know and love (text, timeline editor, filters, etc.)," the company said in a developer update.The company said that this update will allow users to bring fresh life to their classic content and give them a new way to engage their audience.If users select a part of their video that is less than 60 seconds, they can shoot additional videos with the Shorts camera.
TIPS AND TRICKS
💡Lock your computer if you get up Sick of your "friends" going onto your computer at work or home and posting things on your Facebook/Twitter page on your behalf? It's certainly an annoyance, but an easy one to prevent.
Windows + L will lock your system right away, requiring a password (if you've set one) to log in again.
On macOS use Cmd + Option + Power to log off. On the latest revision of macOS (High Sierra) a quicker option to simply lock the screen was added which works using the shortcut Cmd + Ctrl + Q.
TIPS AND TRICKS
Windows + L will lock your system right away, requiring a password (if you've set one) to log in again.
On macOS use Cmd + Option + Power to log off. On the latest revision of macOS (High Sierra) a quicker option to simply lock the screen was added which works using the shortcut Cmd + Ctrl + Q.
TIPS AND TRICKS
🗞No, Google Stadia isn’t shutting down but will it survive for long?
Google’s game streaming platform has looked shaky since losing its first-party games studios just 15 months after launching. But more than a year after that ominous sign, Stadia is still plugging along, with around 100 games (of variable quality) added each year.Recently, an extremely sketchy rumor suggested that the service had finally run out of steam. In a now-deleted post in a Stadia Facebook group, someone claiming to have inside knowledge stated that Google had an “exit plan” for the service, with its shut down complete by “the end of summer.” “Just a heads up,” the post reads. “Old coworker and friend of mine, Is now one of the regional managers for Google,” it continues setting the scene for something which is almost certainly fictitious. “Long story short Google is beginning their [Stadia] exit plan. They did not have an exact date that end of service will happen, but they did say by the end of summer.
TIPS AND TRICKS
Google’s game streaming platform has looked shaky since losing its first-party games studios just 15 months after launching. But more than a year after that ominous sign, Stadia is still plugging along, with around 100 games (of variable quality) added each year.Recently, an extremely sketchy rumor suggested that the service had finally run out of steam. In a now-deleted post in a Stadia Facebook group, someone claiming to have inside knowledge stated that Google had an “exit plan” for the service, with its shut down complete by “the end of summer.” “Just a heads up,” the post reads. “Old coworker and friend of mine, Is now one of the regional managers for Google,” it continues setting the scene for something which is almost certainly fictitious. “Long story short Google is beginning their [Stadia] exit plan. They did not have an exact date that end of service will happen, but they did say by the end of summer.
TIPS AND TRICKS
💡Select multiple files using the keyboard To select a bunch of files using your keyboard, you can press Shift + Down Arrow to select a single file or Shift + Page Down to select a large group of files at one time. Ctrl + A will select everything.
Right click drag files and folders in Windows And you'll be presented with a context menu containing options to move, copy, zip or create a shortcut.
TIPS AND TRICKS
Right click drag files and folders in Windows And you'll be presented with a context menu containing options to move, copy, zip or create a shortcut.
TIPS AND TRICKS
🗞Apple expanding App Store ads from search to ‘Today’ tab and more
Apple notes that the rest tab will remain focused on curation and discovery the ad spot will be clearly marked as an ad using the same blue banner/background as Search ads.This is obviously going to be a quite lucrative ad placement for both Apple and developers,as it is right on the page users see when they first open the App Store.The second new advertising placement is coming directly to product pages themselves.This means that developers will now be able to place ads on the product pages for other apps. This spot is located at the very bottom of the product page,beneath the banner section that shows other apps by that developer.Developers won’t be able to target a specific application when bidding for product page ad placement. For instance,Twitter wouldn’t be able to target Tweetbot specifically.The ads however will be relevant for each of the product pages.This means you could see ads for direct competitors on app pages
TIPS AND TRICKS
Apple notes that the rest tab will remain focused on curation and discovery the ad spot will be clearly marked as an ad using the same blue banner/background as Search ads.This is obviously going to be a quite lucrative ad placement for both Apple and developers,as it is right on the page users see when they first open the App Store.The second new advertising placement is coming directly to product pages themselves.This means that developers will now be able to place ads on the product pages for other apps. This spot is located at the very bottom of the product page,beneath the banner section that shows other apps by that developer.Developers won’t be able to target a specific application when bidding for product page ad placement. For instance,Twitter wouldn’t be able to target Tweetbot specifically.The ads however will be relevant for each of the product pages.This means you could see ads for direct competitors on app pages
TIPS AND TRICKS