The biggest problem with batteries
I recently bought new Enegon batteries for the DSLR cam I use to make videos. Unfortunately, one of them died on me the first time I used it. This was particularly surprising given that the batteries got very good reviews on Amazon. So, I decided to open up the dead...
You’re using your A/C WRONG!
Common wisdom dictates that you're supposed to use your air conditioning in a certain way. Let it warm up during the day or when you're not at home. If you're really hot, turn it way, WAY down and it'll magically cool faster! How you use your A/C depends on who you...
3 Easy ways to make screen recordings
Taking screen captures is pretty easy. But what about VIDEO captures? It might seem like you need a PhD in computer science, but it turns out that recording a video of a single window or your desktop is VERY easy these days. Here are 3 easy ways to do screen recording...
Missing subtitles in VLC? Solve it with a few clicks!
When I watch a movie on my NVIDIA SHIELD TV, the Kodi media player conveniently lets me download subtitles from OpenSubtitles.org if the file doesn't have any. It's pretty handy! But then when I want to watch that same file in VLC media player on my laptop, well... No...
No more choppy video in VLC!
VLC media player is free, popular, and just awesome. It'll play just about any audio or video file you throw at it. Beginning in version 3.0.0, it supports hardware acceleration so that it should play even hi-res vids smoothly. But quite often when you try to play a...
Is Chrome spying on you?
Chrome is a fantastic web browser - except when it eats all your CPU power and crashes your puter. What's going on here? I thought Chrome was lean, mean, and zippy? Well, it IS... But the Software Reporter Tool that it downloads and runs to scan your computer "for...
Will Windows 11 run on your PC? YES!!
Microsoft can't seem to get Windows 10 right, and maybe now we know the reason: because they just announced Windows 11! Coming sometime around the end of this year, Windows 11 promises to be everything Win 10 is not. There's only one problem: Everyone is claiming...
The EASY way to use Material Design Icons
If you're a web developer, you've probably used Google's Material Design Icon font. It's a great way to include 1 small file and get gajillions of icons - instead of making 20 different pixel sizes of numerous icons, and then creating sprites and all that jazz. The...
Phishing Scams and how to protect yourself
Even if you don't know the term 'phishing scam', chances are you've already been targeted by many of them. A phishing scam is when someone uses a genuine-looking e-mail, login page, SMS, or whatever to fool you into giving up personal data - like logins, passwords,...
How to learn to code (or anything else)
For reasons unknown to me, other people are always asking me how to learn programming. Well, there's the traditional route: go to school, become a coder. Done! But as we all know, many of the best and most famous programmers were those who dropped out of school and...
Are you wasting your internet speed?
Most people probably don't even notice the actual speed of their internet connection. If it 'goes fast', they're happy. What many folks don't realize is that they may be wasting a large chunk of their very high speed net connection. If you use even newer flavors of...
The BEST way to stay safe on the Internet
Ah, the internet! It's so incredibly useful, and at the same time you won't find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy. Well, technically, it's more useful than villain-y. Still, it's good to be careful! So what's the best way to stay safe when using the internet?...
How to fix black thumbnail preview icons
This one is fun: One day, your thumbnail preview icons turn into black squares instead of showing a preview of the file's contents as usual. You may even find that the usual methods to fix the problem simply don't work. Fear not! With a few easy tricks, you can get...
Taking screenshots is easier than you think
Every now and then, you need to make a snapshot of what's on your screen - or maybe just the content of a single application window. Most people think you need some kind of special software to take screenshots, but the truth is that it's actually a whole lot easier -...
FLoC and the future of Internet Privacy
When it comes to privacy on the internet, the new word on the street is 'FLoC'. Led by Google, a group of businesses and advertisers is pushing a new standard that would have your browser identifying your particular group of interests by a unique ID number. This...
Why can’t I enable CSM on my new motherboard?
This is a fun one! You get a new motherboard with an Intel 500 Series chipset. You decide to just use the integrated graphics in the CPU, but you can't boot! It turns out your actual boot drive is missing from the Boot options menu. Gonzerooni! WTH?! UPDATE Nov 2023:...