New iPhone Question: a reader asks… I got a new iPhone for Christmas and am learning how to use it (came from an old flip-phone). It’s really nice and all, but there’s one thing that bothers the heck out of me. All of the sudden and at odd times, Siri will pipe up and talk to me. Short of turning her off completely, is there a way I can get her to wait for me to ask her a question? […]
User Account Control: a reader asks… I’ve recently switched from using a Windows PC to using a Mac. On my Windows PC I followed your advice and setup a standard user account for day-to-day use, along with an Administrator account for when I need it. I saved time and brain by using the same password for both accounts. Anytime I needed elevated privileges on my standard account, I got the UAC prompt and had to fill in the password. Should […]
Wonky Car Bluetooth: a reader asks… I have an iPhone 6s I recently updated to iOS 10 and am trying to use it with Bluetooth in my car, a 2011 Mercury Mariner (same as the Ford Escape). Ongoing problem in that I can make the first phone call ok, but then when that’s done the car won’t go back to the radio, and I can’t make any other phone calls through Bluetooth. The only solution I’ve found is to shut […]
Firestick Frenzy: this holiday season, a number of readers have asked… I have a [home theater receiver brand and model] and got a new Amazon Firestick. I want to use it with my home theater setup but can’t figure out how to do it. I have a flat-screen TV, as well as a DVD (Xbox, laserdisc player, etc.). Can you give me some advice? You can check out my article Firestick Theater for the basics, but based on the number […]
Website Down? a reader asks… I’m a small-business owner and have a website that’s built on WordPress and hosted by Bluehost. This morning my website isn’t working, and I’m seeing a “website can’t be reached” error message. I can’t get into my WordPress Control Panel either. What can I do? The most common reason for this error is that your webhosting service (Bluehost) is having a temporary problem. It could be that the server (just a computer) is down for […]
Dying Hard Drive: a reader asks… I have a 5 year-old Windows computer (Dell Inspiron desktop) with 2gb RAM and a 500gb hard drive. Last year I took the free upgrade from Windows 7 to Windows 10, and everything’s been going fine. Last week I started hearing a lot of noise coming from the CPU. I swear it sounded like bacon frying! This morning I saw the computer was off and turned it on. I get a blank screen with […]
Verizon Email Down? a reader asks… I use Verizon email and access it from the website at webmail.verizon.com. I was out of town for the weekend and came back, turned on my computer and when I try to go to the web page, I got a bunch of gobbeldy-gook. I tried restarting and no help. This only happens on Verizon’s website. Is there something I’m doing wrong? No, the problem isn’t you, it’s the Verizon server. Likely the server you […]
Recycle CRT: a reader asks… I’ve used my county recycling center to recycle old computers, printers and such. Recently, they’ve started charging to recycle old-style CRT monitors and televisions. Is there a free way to recycle these? Free recycling for such items is quickly disappearing. That’s because these old-style screens have hazardous materials in them (like lead), which must be carefully extracted before the rest of the device can be either broken up for parts, dropped into a landfill, or […]
Facebook Language: a reader asks… Help! All of the sudden, my facebook page is showing in a different language. I don’t know how that happened. How can I change it back? First, let me help you change it back, and then let me give you a warning to change your facebook password. Please heed the latter, if you didn’t change the language, someone probably hacked into your account and did that. Facebook allows you to change the language that its […]
Outlook Won’t Start: a reader asks… I have a Microsoft Office 365 subscription that I bought last year and have been using without any problems on my Windows 10 computer. Yesterday, all of the sudden Outlook won’t start up. I try and it sticks on “processing” forever. What can I do to fix this? I have three solutions for you, and you can do these each in turn. First, MS Office has a built-in repair utility, but accessing it isn’t […]
Messed Up Remotes: a reader asks… I’ve paired a new Samsung flat-screen TV with my Verizon set top box but now I can’t get those Smart TV options to appear on my screen for Netflix, Amazon etc. There’s no button on the Verizon remote that will make those options appear on the TV, and the TV remote no longer works to bring them up either. Can you help? The short answer is that your Verizon remote doesn’t have the capability […]
Another switch to Gmail: a reader asks… I read your article about moving my contacts to Google, thanks! I have a similar problem, and hope the solution is easy. I’ve been using Windows Live Mail tied to my Verizon account, and now I’ve switched to Gmail. I’ve got all Verizon email being forwarded to my Gmail account which is great. The problem is my old emails, which are still in Live Mail. Is there an easy way to get all […]
iPad Retread: a reader asks… I just got myself a new iPad! Well, it’s not really new, it’s a hand-me-down from my son. He just handed it over to me, so it’s still got the apps and stuff on it from him. Can you tell me how to reset it so I can have my own apps on it? Resetting the iPad is quite easy. Tap Settings, then General. Scroll down to the bottom of the list (by swiping upwards […]
New Mac Dongle? a reader asks… I just got a new Macbook Pro, and it only has the new USB type ports, the small oval-ish shape. The power adapter fits one of them, but there’s no place to put my thumbdrive or external hard drive (the larger rectangular ports), nor a place to plug my Mac into my TV (the hdmi port that’s rectangle with two notches in the bottom corners). Worse, there’s no SD card slot for my camera’s […]
Move iPhone Contacts to Google: a reader asks… I have an iPhone I’ve been using for awhile and have the addressbook populated with over a hundred contacts. I’ve recently switched from using Verizon email to using a Gmail account, but I see that all the contacts are on my iPhone, but not in my Google Contacts. Can you tell me how to get them moved over? Would that moving contacts be a simple single button-push, but you have to recognize […]
UPS Bizarro Beeping: a reader asks… Two UPS units, a TripLite and an APC (not at the same time), have given us the same problem…intermittent, irregular beeping at odd intervals, whether the desktop is on OR off, middle of the night or daytime, it matters not, all for no apparent reason. Both units were new, with fresh batteries. Both were plugged in to an extension cord (heavy duty), as the computer sits towards the middle of the room without being […]
iOS Music App: a reader asks… Why does music auto play ever time i plug in my earphones or connect to bluetooth? This occurs on both my iphone and ipad. Very annoying to have to go close the music app when not wanting to hear music? Is there a fix or setting to stop this? I previously wrote about this behavior in my article In-car auto-play music. This is an annoying problem, but I’ve found it limited to use in […]
Gmail Filters: a reader asks… Is it possible to set a filter based on the subject line and without an email address? I see a lot of spam with key words and I’d live to send them straight to trash. Short answer: Yes! Here’s how: Step 1: With a message open, click the More button at the top-right, which opens a list. On that list, click the Filter messages like these link. Step 2: The above brings up a form […]
TL;DR and more: a reader asks… Hi, i’m a new blogger (thanks for your tips on how to get started!), and I’ve started posting on social media. I’m seeing some comments with abbreviations like TL;DR and am not sure what the commenters are saying. Can you give me a quick decoder ring? Sure, in the interests of not getting a tl;dr comment myself, here’s just the top 10 abbreviations you might encounter in the blogosphere. I’m not including the most […]
My Android Battery: a reader asks… My Samsung Galaxy S6 isn’t that old, but the battery life is really bad. Seems I can’t get a full day anymore. I admit I use it a lot, but not for phone calls. Lots of texting and I do a lotta social media and a fair amount of web surfing. Is there something different that’s causing my battery to drain quickly, or is it just battery aging? I’m going to hazard a guess […]
Mac Screen Crack: a reader asks… My 5-month-old Macbook Pro screen has gone haywire. I’m not sure if it’s cracked or what. I didn’t drop the laptop or anything, the display just started showing these vertical lines one day. What should I do? It’s doubtful based on the picture you sent that the physical screen is cracked, more likely your internal hardware (specifically, the graphics adapter) has gone bad. Since your Mac is almost new, it’s certainly a defect and […]
iPhone 10.1.1 battery issue: a reader asks… I have an iPhone 6 and recently updated the iOS to 10.1.1 (it was on version 9 before). Ever since, my battery seems to drain really fast, and I find myself with less than 10% all the sudden when I last looked I had over 50%. Is there something I can do to fix this? I previously wrote about how to save battery life in my article iPhone Battery Life, and those tips […]
New Mac Options: a reader asks… I am finally going to retire my old computer and get a new one. I’ve decided to go with the Apple line, especially since I already have an older macbook, an iPhone and an iPad. I use Verizon for email right now but am willing to change. I’m looking for a big screen, so at the 27″ iMac, but am concerned about portability since I spend a few months every year at my vacation […]
Mac Wipe: a reader asks… I have a late 2006 iMac, the white, 20″ screen that I’d like to send for recycling. Can you tell me what to do to make sure my personal data is wiped clean? Anytime you want to send old computers off for recycling you need to first make sure that your personal data is wiped. In most cases it’s not enough to simply reformat the hard drive, since that doesn’t actually erase the data, and […]
iPhone 4 Kid: a reader asks… I would like to let my child (under 10) use my iPhone and iPad, but I want to be able to keep them from mis-using it when I’m not watching. What settings can/should I use? I’m going to give you two options. The first one is a way to temporarily let them use your iOS device (a single app), and you can remove the restrictions easily when they’re done. To do this, use Guided […]
Facebook Block: a reader asks… Thanks for your info on unfriending a Facebook friend you no longer want to be friends with. My question is a little different. I’m seeing stuff in my timeline that I don’t want to see, and these aren’t friends posting status updates. How can I stop that? Since you’re not paying Facebook to use it, they can do just about anything they want. As part of their way to make money, they will insert things […]
Blog Money: a reader asks… Tell me the truth, can I make money blogging? Truth – there’s a faint possibility. The internet is huge, and there’s plenty of room for voices. But I’ll tell you that it’s extremely hard to make money blogging. Here’s what you need: Something to say. With so many people online, there’s always an audience for any sort of information that you want to blog about. My advice here would be to choose a subject about […]
News-worthy: a reader asks… Perhaps this isn’t the right forum, but can you explain why the same news story sounds so much different on different channels or news sources? Is there some technology aspect at work? We’re now straying more into marketing, but let me give it a shot. Over the last 30 years or so, I’ve noticed a significant shift in the way news is reported. In the past, it was primarily factual, with just a little bit of […]
Mac TV Disconnect: a reader asks… I have an 2008 iMac that works just fine, and I recently got an Apple TV. I can’t get my iMac’s screen to show up on the TV, but I can get the Apple TV to play my iTunes music and show photos that are stored on my iMac. I don’t get the disconnect, why can’t I do that screen-sharing? The problem is one of graphics processing capability. Screen-sharing is the same as streaming […]
Burn Audio CD: a reader asks… I have an mp4 music video I got from the web and want to create an audio CD that will play in my car, not just on a computer. I have a Windows 10 laptop with a CD/DVD recording drive and a blank CD-R. What’s the easiest way to do this? I tried dragging the file to my CD in Windows File Explorer but that didn’t work. Unfortunately, this is a two step-process. First, […]
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