The death of the optical disc has been swift, and most computers don’t even ship with an optical drive as standard anymore. Still, there are plenty of legacy devices that work just fine if you can convert your current digital content into physical form. Warning! Watch Out for PuPs (Potentially Unwanted Programs) This article focuses on CD and DVD burning software, but “free” almost always comes with another payment type....

If your computers are on a wired network, you can network two computers and then share files and folders, but it’s a lot of work! An easier way is to simply create a homegroup if you are running Windows 7 or higher. A third way is to use a crossover cable to connect two computers and transfer data. In order for this setup to work, there are a few things you need to make sure are setup or configured properly....

Today, your phone can become infected with a virus in much the same way as your computer, though the warning signs for a virus on your computer may be slightly different. Android phones are more susceptible to malware because they run on open-source code, and also because of the delays in carriers rolling out updates. These updates often contain fixes to vulnerabilities and bugs in the operating system, which is why you need an extra layer of protection....

The startup folder, conveniently shown on the Start Menu, made it easy to see which programs would launch when Windows booted up. However, in Windows 7, the startup folder is a hidden system folder that is not located in the same place as the startup folders in Windows XP. This article shows you an easy way to add programs to the Windows 7 startup folder for both the current user and all users of the computer....

One thing I learned about saving SQL query results into Excel format or CSV format is that it’s best to use the SQL Import and Export Wizard rather than trying to right-click on the results and saving them. You can always right-click and choose Save Results As, however, the CSV file that you get will not contain the column headers! This is a royal pain if you have 50 columns....

The first thing I thought was maybe there was some hardware issue and Windows 10 was not recognizing the key press properly. I decided to try to change the brightness level in the OS itself. I opened Action Center and clicked on Expand and then tried to adjust the brightness there, but again nothing happened! Now I was really confused. I also tried to go to Power Options and change the brightness there, but again it didn’t make any difference on the actual display....

Hmmm, of course I have a license! The product key was valid and it had activated fine over the Internet when I first installed it, so I wasn’t sure exactly why I was getting this error. Anyway, after playing around with a couple of possible solutions, it’s now running without the error message popping up. In this article, I’ll list out the various steps I tried to solve the issue and hopefully it will work for you....

Anyway, after playing around and doing some research, I was able to fix the problem. In this article, I’ll show you a couple of methods to hopefully resolve the problem. Method 1 – Check Startup Folder If the Explorer Libraries folder is popping up on every boot up, then the first place you want to check is the startup folder. Go to Start, All Programs and click on Startup. If there is a shortcut to the Libraries folder, go ahead and delete it....

There are a lot of reasons these behaviors can occur, so it’s important to be very methodical when you’re troubleshooting and trying to fix the issue. This article will walk you through the typical fixes that resolve this issue, from the most common issues to the more rare and complex ones. 1. Make Sure There Are No Internet Issues The first thing you should check before you worry about troubleshooting Chrome is whether your internet connection is down....

Unfortunately, free users only get about 15GB of free storage to cover all of the storage for those services. A Google One subscription plan lets you pay for extra storage, offering more benefits. But is it worth subscribing to? How Google Drive Storage Works The storage with your Google account is unified, except for compressed Google Photos. This means that your emails, Drive contents, device backups, and anything that has to be stored in the cloud count against the total pool....

Using an Ethernet connection, you can connect two devices together, or create a local area network with multiple devices. These require a router or switch device to allow the connected devices to communicate with each other. Let’s explore the Ethernet standard a little further, as well as compare and contrast it to WiFi. Different Ethernet Standards What is Ethernet? The Ethernet standard has evolved to cope with the changing demands of modern computer networks since it was first developed in the 1980s....

If you’re adding a second display to your desktop computer with a dual display adapter, then make sure all the monitors’ cables are securely fastened. If adding a second display to your laptop, then connect the second display to a compatible display port on your laptop and make sure it’s securely seated. Once the second monitor is attached correctly, Windows will automatically detect and duplicate your desktop on both or all monitors....

Exclusions may help improve systems’ performance, however, be cautious with this feature as Microsoft Defender won’t scan your excluded files and directories for malware. If these excluded directories are compromised, there won’t be any detection and your computer might be vulnerable to threats. On the other hand, you wouldn’t want to scan all files and directories. Microsoft Defender has built-in exclusions to improve the system’s performance. You can do the same if certain tasks or applications are being impacted by Microsoft Defender scans....

As you now know, Windows 11 comes with a simplified context menu in File Explorer and other functions. You can access the full context menu, but you need to click the Show more options from the simplified menu. If you want to restore the classic Windows 10 right-click context menu where all the commands are shown on one pane, then use the steps below to do that. The steps below will have you edit the Windows registry which can be very dangerous....

The same applies to your media files. If you have lots of home movies or you’re looking to burn copies of your own DVD collection, you might want to burn that disc with subtitles. You can burn a DVD disc on any platform, as long as you have a DVD drive capable of writing to DVDs, as well as a DVD-R or DVD-RW disc. Finding Subtitles For DVDs Before you can burn a DVD with subtitles, you’ll need to find a correct subtitle file to burn with the disc....

By default, all Windows applications are installed on the Local Disk C: (This PC) drive. This has been the default location since from the beginning of the modern Windows OS. Advanced users may choose to install new applications at a different location, but that process isn’t automatic. You must manually select the location to install a program during the program installation. With the introduction of Windows 10, now you can configure your systems to always install new programs and applications at a location specified by default....

The default font size that comes in Ubuntu Linux is usually good for the majority of people who use it. But for some small groups, it might be too small, and not helpful, especially for people with poor vision. With the use of wide screens and higher resolutions, it can be difficult to see clearly across bigger areas of the screen, or even double screens. If you have difficulty reading on your screen in Ubuntu Linux, you can easily change the font size so you can enjoy reading....

When you connect to a computer through the Remote Desktop client, the Remote Desktop feature on your computer “hears” the connection request through a defined listening port (3389 by default). Port 3389 is the universal default port for Microsoft’s Remote Desktop Protocol which is known by basically everyone. Windows allows users to change that listening port by modifying the system’s registry, and the steps below will show you how to do that....

For some laptops or computers, Ubuntu Linux automatically adjusts screen brightness based on the current lighting conditions. This automatic setting helps make sure your screen is readable wherever you go. If you’re using an external monitor, these automatic brightness settings might not be useful at all. For an external monitor, you may have to use the buttons on the monitor itself to adjust the brightness. In some cases, you may have to disable these automatic brightness settings and manually adjust the screen brightness to your liking in different environments....

Some modern Windows 11 PCs come with advanced graphics cards or graphics processing units (GPUs) that play an important role in what you see and interact with on your screen. While most newer computers have dedicated and advanced graphics cards, others come with low-power onboard or integrated graphics that allow for basic functions only. Some high-intensity games and advanced applications required advanced graphics cards to function. An integrated or onboard graphics card is usually not able to render these games or run critical applications....