February 3, 2013
It recently came to my attention that there are people who are under the impression that to allow a program to run at startup, you'll need to either enable it in the included program's options or preferences or expect it to be shown on your System Configuration page (for those of you using Vista or 7, as it doesn't exist in 8). That's just not the case. Anything and everything can be launched on your Windows startup.
Keep Reading »
January 25, 2013
For a long time now, Windows Explorer (the process on Windows that controls everything from the desktop to folder browsing) has had a poor reputation for being a clunky, slow, and arguably useless file navigator. More recent versions of Windows (namely 7) have improved upon it, but there are still a few options and features that are missing. Thanks to hobby programmers, there are a few options and tools that you can use.
Keep Reading »
January 17, 2013
We all like to bash Microsoft and Windows, but the truth is that they have been around for so long and given us so much software and technology, that we couldn't possibly imagine a computing world without them. Their software is installed by default onto every new PC (whether we like it or not) and who do you know that doesn't know Word or Powerpoint? Or how many young people don't know what an XBox is?
Keep Reading »
January 3, 2013
I recently purchased a new Windows Phone 8 device (the Nokia Lumia 920) and discovered a much-improved mobile operating system compared with the previous Windows Phone 7.5. However, as much as I am enjoying the new phone, its increased speed and wider selection of functional apps, there is one thing that is a bit of a [...]
Keep Reading »
November 28, 2012
Libraries, found in Windows 7 and 8. are more than a list of suggested folders for saving documents, music, pictures, and video. Customizing your libraries isn’t just tweaking for the sake of tweaking – with libraries, you can streamline the way you organize your files and make yourself more productive. If you’ve ignored libraries so far and opted to organize your files the traditional way, be sure to give libraries a try.
Keep Reading »
November 26, 2012
If you’ve installed Windows 8 and found yourself wishing that you could go back to Windows 7 or another operating system, there’s a way to do this. If you installed Windows 8 in a dual-boot environment and kept your old operating system around, it’s not too hard – but if you’ve installed Windows 8 over your old operating system, you’ll have to reinstall the old operating system from scratch.
Keep Reading »
November 23, 2012
Are you interested in Windows 8, but don’t want to abandon Windows 7 just yet? Well, why not dual-boot Windows 8 and Windows 7, selecting the operating system you want to use each time you turn on your computer? This allows you to test Windows 8 while keeping Windows 7 around as an escape hatch if you want out. This process will install Windows 8 on its own separate partition, leaving your Windows 7 system intact.
Keep Reading »
November 21, 2012
It’s been three years since Microsoft launched Office 2010. Released alongside online versions (Microsoft Office Web Apps) of its popular applications, the jewel in the crown of the suite was, of course, Microsoft Word. Offering some minor improvements to the user interface following the introduction of the ribbon menu in Word 2007, the 2010 release looks very much like its predecessor. With Word 2013, however, things are slightly different.
Keep Reading »
November 18, 2012
Microsoft has a knack for persistence in ensuring that any applications you download on the Windows OS meet their compatibility standards. Some of you may be very thankful for that security measure and others may find it intrusive and completely unnecessary. I've personally avoided it in every way possible, but I'm sure there are others out there who are making good use of it.
Keep Reading »
November 12, 2012
According to a recent poll we held here at MakeUseOf, over 60% of our readers don’t use Windows 8. Let’s say half of these are not even Windows users, and among the remaining, some are still using Windows XP or Vista, and we’re still left with a hefty chunk of Windows users who are probably [...]
Keep Reading »
November 4, 2012
Windows 8 was officially unleashed on the world on 26th October; I’m going to assume you either attended or held your own mini launch party, because that’s what everyone does every time a new version of Windows is released. However, we understand there are some of you who can’t afford the “upgrade”, so here are 5 tips to get the best features of Windows 8 on your shoddy old Windows 7 machine, right now.
Keep Reading »
October 29, 2012
There’s more to Alt+Tab than just pressing Alt+Tab to switch between windows. There are a variety of hidden keyboard shortcuts that make the Alt+Tab switcher quicker and easier to use. There are also ways to customize the Alt+Tab switcher, reverting to the old-style, classic Alt+Tab switcher or disabling the window previews that appear while Alt+Tabbing. You can even go beyond the Alt+Tab switcher that comes with Windows.
Keep Reading »
October 5, 2012
Bluetooth is an alternative to wires – with Bluetooth, you can connect Bluetooth-enabled phones, mice, headsets, printers, keyboards, tablets, and many other devices with a Bluetooth-supporting computer. You can transfer files back and forth, use a mouse or keyboard as a wireless input device, or use a wireless headset for audio input and output – Bluetooth can do many things, depending on the type of Bluetooth device you have.
Keep Reading »
September 19, 2012
How many times have you installed copies of Windows on a computer following a major hardware change? A case in point is probably Windows XP – although flexible, popular and easy to use, the operating system wasn’t great at dealing with hardware changes, in particular new motherboards. This shouldn’t come as any surprise, really.
Keep Reading »
September 14, 2012
How big is your hard disk drive? 80 GB? 300 GB? 5 TB? You might well have more than enough space, but if you own a device with a small SSD – perhaps a netbook, for instance – there is very little to worry about. There are several tools and tricks that you can use to make sure that the OS runs efficiently and without filling your SSD (or indeed any other small storage device).
Keep Reading »
