Tag Archives: how to

How To Disable/Enable Windows 8 Action Center Messages [Tip]

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Action Center in Windows shows all the important notifications related to the Security and Maintenance of your system. It is basically a collection of messages that need the user’s attention. The number of components that Action Center notifies you about in Windows 8 is relatively higher than Windows 7. As you may know that in Windows 7, Action Center notification settings are divided into two different groups. The Security messages group contains six different options, including messages about Windows Update, Internet Security settings and Virus protection, while the Maintenance messages group includes three items, namely Windows Backup, Check for updates and Windows Troubleshooting. However, in Windows 8 there are some additional notification settings, including Microsoft Account, Smart Screen, File History etc. Read More

How To Close Running Metro Apps & Clear App History In Windows 8 [Tip]

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The more we're digging into Windows 8, the more features are coming across us. Apart from Metro UI and Immersive platform, Windows 8 includes a new way to handle applications running in the background. The Windows 8 applications, or modern UI apps keep running in the background until you manually close them. Android users might know that a similar feature also exists in Google's mobile OS. This feature, the Switch List, is included in Windows 8, so that users can quickly open metro apps and switch between them. Although this feature allows users to save time by instantly opening apps whenever required, on the other hand each app that is running in the background adds up to the memory consumption. Well, if you have humongous amount of RAM at disposal this might not cause any major problems, but users with lower memory might want to save those resources for other tasks. To properly close a Metro application, Windows 8 provides two methods, and an option to remove the Metro app history from the Windows 8. Previously, Usman explained how to automatically delete all the shortcuts to recently used documents and Jump List items when a user logs off. In what follows, we will explain how you can properly close Metro applications and remove Metro app history from the Switch List in Windows 8. Read More

How To Enable/Disable Fast User Switching In Windows 8 [Tip]

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Like previous versions of Windows, the Log Off and Lock functions in Windows 8 enable users to quickly switch between all the available user accounts without having to restart or shutdown the PC. When you lock the screen, it shows you a back navigation button on the logon screen to let you quickly switch to any user account without having to quit background processes. Often, when users switch to other accounts via Lock function, the background processes become unstable, and in some cases, Windows forcibly closes conflicting system processes. If you don't want to allow switching between user accounts on your PC, you can use the Microsoft Management Console snap-in called Local Group Policy Editor to change the Fast User Switching policy setting. In what follows, we will guide you through the process of disabling Fast User Switching in Windows 8. Read More

How To Enable Hidden Explorer UI Animations In Windows 7 & Windows 8 [Tip]

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Sometimes developers keep hidden features on their software, some, due to unfinished codes are left within or others, for reasons unknown. Windows 7 and Windows 8 are also no exception, and their integrated Explorer have some hidden animations that cannot be enabled via Control Panel or Registry Editor. Why Microsoft has chosen not to include them in Windows settings is still a mystery, but as curious as people are, things like these cannot stay hidden for a long time, as people are always up to find new things in the OS, no matter what's it related to. Earlier, there was a method for enabling the hidden animations in Windows Explorer that required you to replace the Explorer Frame file, namely ExplorerFrame.dll, with a customized library file, but most users find replacing system files quite a tedious process, as it includes changing the ownership of the files (and some just don't understand the technical jargon, anyway) Today, we have found a miniscule application called AniExplorer, which makes the job easier for you in enabling the hidden animations in Windows 7 and Windows 8 Explorer without having to manually remove or replace system files. Pertaining details after the jump. Read More

Find Files Based On Size Using Windows Explorer Search Filters [Tip]

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Not a long time ago, a hard disk of a personal computer with 1 Terabyte of available storage space was unheard of. Nowadays, it is considered to be the standard hard drive space for a personal computer, and we can easily fill it up, since we've stopped deleting large files after their use is over. For instance, most of us do not bother to delete HD movies, even after watching them. To help our readers analyze disk space usage and manage data on the hard drive, we have covered a lot of useful disk space management applications in the past; OverDisk (reviewed here), Disk Space Fan (reviewed here) and RidNacs (reviewed here), just to name a few. Disk space analyzers allow you to view the files and folders stored on your hard drive with respect to their size and provides you with the option to delete them. There is no question about their usefulness, but what if you can view all the files bigger than a particular size without installing any third party application? In this post, we will explain how you can use the Windows Explorer Search to find files bigger than a defined size. Read More

Add A File To An Existing Archive & Password Protect It On Mac [Tip]

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Compressing files and creating archives in Mac is easily accomplished through the default utility, Archive, which compresses to a whole host of formats. Files can be compressed in command line as well via the Terminal, but having to compress files or folders through the command line is much more complicated and inconvenient, which is why it’s best to use the tool provided. If you aren’t a fan of the native utility for some reason, there are plenty of other apps that you can use instead. and if nothing else works for you, the Terminal really isn’t going anywhere. One advantage that Terminal holds in this regard, is that, in addition to being able to create archives, you can add a file to an existing one through a few simple commands. This can save you a lot of clutter; you can add files to a single archive as per your need, and not have a mess of archives in a folder or on your desktop. Read More

How To Switch To A New Desktop Background Using A Hotkey In Windows 7 & 8 [Tip]

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The themes in Windows 7 and Windows 8 usually contains a number of images in each theme. Other elements remain the same, but the image changes to a new one after a specified amount of time. This time interval can be changed by opening Personalization settings and selecting the Desktop Background option. The time interval can be set from 10 seconds to one day depending on the user’s preference. If you are fond of using a large collection of wallpapers, you can set a lower time interval. However, having a large collection means that sometimes, an image may appear on your background that might not be according to your mood at the time and you might want to change it. By default, the desktop context menu of Windows 7 and Windows 8 contains an option called Switch To next Desktop Background, which - as the name suggests - allows you to switch to the next desktop background available in the image list. In this post, we will show you how to switch to the next desktop background using a keyboard shortcut rather than accessing the right click context menu of Windows desktop. Read More

How To Set Default Apps For Files & Actions On Mac OS X [Tip]

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If you’re new to Mac or have just recently discovered that your Mac runs smoother if you use third-party apps as opposed to the default ones, you might be exploring how to set an app as the default one for its relevant file types. Unfortunately, this isn’t very easy to do. Many rightly go to the Open with… options of a file and set defaults there but either that doesn't always work, or the changes are reverted for no apparent reason. What you need is a more permanent way to change default apps. In what follows, we will tell you how you can set an app as the default for one or several formats. Read More

Disable Display Of Recent Search Entries In Windows 8 Explorer [Tip]

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Just like Windows Vista and Windows 7, Windows 8 File Explorer includes real-time search feature to let you instantly find the required files and folders from any location. It shows you search results for files, folders, apps and other items as soon you start typing in search keywords. Although it provides users with quick search feature, it also displays search suggestions while you enter the search keywords in Explorer search bar. The search suggestions belong to MRU list that is stored and managed in Windows Registry, and if you want to remove the recent search suggestions, then you need to find and remove registry keys where all search suggestions are maintained. Windows 8 Local Policy Editor offers a simple policy setting for Windows Explorer search entries. Instead of manually removing the search entries from Windows Registry, you can use Local Group Policy Editor to permanently turn off display of recent search entries in Windows Explorer. In this post, we will guide you through the process of disabling search suggestions in Windows 8 Explorer. Read More

How To Install Any App As A System App On Android [Guide]

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While installing an app on your Android device is as simple as searching for it in the Google Play Store and hitting install, or sideloading its APK on your phone, that always installs them as user apps (also referred to as data apps). At times certain apps need to be installed as system apps rather than user apps in order to utilize their full potential, and that’s where things get a little complicated. In this guide, we will show you how you can install any Android app as a system app on your Android device. Read More

How To Disable Elastic Scrolling In Mac OS X Lion [Tip]

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iOS devices have a very neat little trick to their scrolling, known as ‘elastic scrolling’, that is, if you continue to scroll past the end of a page or try to scroll upwards more than you can, there is a limit to which you can do that before the page or app snaps back to the bottom or top of the window. The utility behind this isn’t exactly clear (we believe it to be purely aesthetic), but it has been mimicked in OS X Lion. If you aren’t fond of trying to see just how low you can drag the page before it snaps back, you can disable this feature with a simple Terminal command. Read on for details. Read More

How To Turn Off Windows Store In Windows 8 [Tip]

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Taking a page out of Apple's Mac App Store, Microsoft has begun to build its own version of application marketplace. This new-to-Windows notion is called as the Windows Store, and is designed to hold many Windows 8 applications. Although the introduction of games and other features are already in the pipeline, right now, the number of apps in the latter is nowhere near the amount available for Mac users. Just like the other app stores, Windows Store also features both free and paid apps, and anyone with access to your system can easily download them to your computer. If your system is also shared among other individuals or is currently available to some pesky guests, and you are looking for a way to temporarily disable Windows Store, then you are at the right place. In this post, we will let you know how you can disable the Windows 8 Store for all user account holders on your PC. Read on! Read More

Enable Keyboard Shortcuts & Create Custom Hotkeys In Gmail [Tip]

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Gmail is becoming an increasingly popular email service. When Google launched it back in 2004, no body knew it would receive such mainstream acceptance.  Right now, it is the 2nd largest email service around and time is not far for it, to claim the 1st spot. Albeit Gmail provide a lucid user experience, various tweaks and tips make it more robust. Keyboard shortcut support is a rather unknown feature of Gmail. If you love using keyboard shortcuts, you must know how convenient it is to use hotkeys to perform mouse-intensive tasks. If you're an avid Gmail user who spends the better half of the day managing emails, then you might want to use hotkeys to quickly navigate between mailboxes (Inbox, Sent Mail, Drafts etc.), and other Gmail sections including Contacts and Tasks. Gmail natively supports quite a few hotkeys used to jump between different Gmail pages & sections, and even allows users to create custom shortcuts for performing routine tasks. In what follows, we will let you know how you can enable keyboard shortcuts in Gmail and create custom hotkeys to quickly perform your routine tasks without loosing focus on your everyday computer work. Read More

How To Add & Remove Shortcuts From Windows 8 Win + X Menu [Tip]

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Compared to Windows 8 Developer Build, there are a lot of things that have been added to the Consumer Preview. In the past, we have extensively reviewed all the changes that have been made to the upcoming version of Windows. For instance, the removal of the Start Menu button has conjured up quite a debate on whether this radical change was for the good or the bad. Some people cite it as a step towards the future, while others claim this move to be a poor judgment on Microsoft’s part. Apart from some critical subtractions, there are some worthwhile improvements and additions in Windows 8. For example, the new Win + X menu of Windows 8 provides an easy way to access numerous System Utilities such as Programs and Features, Network Connections, Power Options, Task Manager, Control Panel, Run dialog box etc. However, there is no default option to easily edit this menu according to your own requirements. In this post, we will guide you through the process of adding and removing items from Windows 8 Win + X menu. Read More

How To Bring Back Windows Phone Marketplace In Zune [Hack]

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A few days back, Microsoft announced two major changes regarding WP7 - app support for pre-Mango versions of Windows Phone 7 was finally dropped (which shouldn’t be much of an issue, given the fact that no existing WP7 device is incompatible with Mango), and rather surprisingly, the guys over in Redmond killed the Windows Phone Marketplace in Zune. This may be to counter cracking of apps, or maybe the Zune Marketplace was just thought to be extraneous after the web Marketplace became active. Whatever the reason behind this move may be, apparently, it isn’t too difficult to get the Zune Marketplace back. Anyone can do this, even those who don’t have a developer unlocked device. In fact, to follow the method to hack the WP7 Marketplace back to Zune, you won’t even need to touch your phone, as everything will be done on PC. Read More

How To Access Mac From An iPad Or Android Tablet Using A VNC Client

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We’ve covered quite a few apps that allow you to control your Mac or view it's screen either from an iPhone or Android device. While there are free app available, the feature rich ones are mostly paid. Mac Lion actually has a built-in screen sharing feature that turns your Mac into a VNC server. You can then use a VNC client on your iPad or Android tablet to connect to your Mac. You will be able to view the Mac screen at the least, or, depending on the VNC client you’re using, may have complete or limited control over the keyboard and mouse functions. VNC clients may be free or paid, you aren’t restricted to using a particular one. This guide shows you how to share your Mac screen to an iPad using the Mocha VNC Lite free VNC client. Read More

How To Create Wireless Ad Hoc Internet Connection In Windows 8 [Tip]

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Apart from Start Orb and classic Start Menu, what most Windows 7 users, who decided to take Windows 8 for a spin, miss in Windows 8 is ability to create ad-hoc network. If you’re a power users, you might’ve noticed that Windows 8 doesn’t include an option to create and setup ad hoc network connection to share files and internet with Wi-Fi enabled computers and devices. Windows 7 ad hoc connection feature does nothing except creating a shared connection with separate IP address to register the device on the virtual network. This allows users to use router’s default or specified DNS server address to easily connect to internet. Even though Windows 8 comes with ICS (Internet Connection Sharing) feature to allow devices  to connect to yours PC internet connection, it doesn’t allow creating a wireless network connection to share the internet. In this post, we will look at some tools that let you easily create and manage ad-hoc connections in Windows 8. Read More

Set Your Jailbroken iPhone To Auto-Launch Any App On Connecting/Disconnecting Headphones

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Activator is one of the most useful Cydia tweaks out there. More than a mere tweak, it is a platform of sorts, based on which many other iOS tweaks are developed, like the recently covered BrightSlide (for controlling screen brightness & LED flash) and SwipeBack, the tweak for going back one step in any app. So, it certainly is an important news when Activator gets an update. The update for the gesture control powerhouse becomes even more significant when new "activations" are added to it. This is exactly what has happened recently, and now Activator is even more useful than before. On the surface, the new gesture might not appear to be something groundbreaking, but it can prove to be really handy in a number of situations. The gestures we are talking about are the two new ones added to the Wired headset menus, and now it has become possible to launch any app when you connect/ disconnect earphones from your iPhone, iPad or iPod touch. Read More

Find, Create & Share Tutorials For Anything With Snapguide For iPhone

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There is the rather popular saying that goes something like, “If it wasn’t awfully difficult, you did it wrong”, but that is not always true. Experts in different fields can help and guide people to make stuff seem easier than you first perceived. That’s why books and the internet is full of how-to guides and tutorials, explaining even the most complicated tasks in an easy to understand fashion. A step-by-step guide is designed to untangle the mysteries of things which ordinary people might find difficult otherwise. If you want to find a guide on any subject, you will most likely have to scour the web for a considerable amount of time before you find something useful; well, not any more ,if you are an iOS user. The newly released Snapguide app for iPhone lets users share how-to tutorials on any subject in the world, and has a really thorough database of tutorials which is increasing all the time. Read More

How To Remove iOS Firmware Update Badge From Settings Icon [Cydia]

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If your iPhone, iPad or iPod touch is jailbroken, then you must be familiar with the routine which is followed each time a newer version of iOS is released, The developers start working on finding new exploits and creating the appropriate jailbreak for the the latest release. The duration in which jailbreak masters carry out their search for exploits might consist of months at times, and all the while, jailbreak fans are usually instructed to stay away from the newer versions of iOS until the jailbreak is released. If you update by mistake, then you might end up stuck without access to the Cydia store forever. The main culprit for making people accidentally update in such scenarios is the OTA update (since iOS 5), which presents itself in the stock Settings app, with an annoying badge staying visible on it until you finally succumb to Apple’s wishes and update to their latest firmware. There is a solution to this problem though, and you can easily remove the Settings OTA badge using the Cydia tweak named noOTA. Read More