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Were he alive today, William Avery ‘Devil Bill’ Rockefeller Sr would be flogging software that promised to fix problems your computer doesn’t have. This notorious 19th-century conman peddled ‘Rock Oil’ across the US as a cancer cure. In reality, it was a mix of laxative and petroleum. None of the programs in our Cover Feature leave such a bad taste in the mouth (metaphorically and literally), but plenty make claims they can’t back up, such as promising to perform tasks for free before clobbering you with a hefty fee. We also expose software that spies on you, smuggles junk on to your system, and offers expensive tools that are actually a free part of Windows. Someone whose word you can always trust is Robert Irvine, formerly editor of our sister…

Google has launched a phone app that helps people with speech and movement impairment use their eyes to communicate. Called ‘Look to Speak’, it tracks the user’s eye movements to let them select words and phrases, which the app then speaks aloud. The user is shown in which direction to move their eyes – so it’s left to say ‘hello’ and ‘thank you’, and right to say ‘yes’ and ‘no’ (see screenshot). Looking up ‘snoozes’ the app. Richard Cave, a leading speech and language therapist who worked on the app with Google, said eye-gaze software can “open up new possibilities – especially for people around the world who might now have access to this technology for the very first time”. Writing in Google’s blog (www.snipca.com/36939), he said his favourite feature…

Scientists have urged viewers to stop streaming TV in high definition (HD) because it’s bad for the environment. In a report on tackling climate change, the Royal Society estimated that streaming in HD generates eight times more carbon emissions than standard definition (SD). It claimed that globally digital technology contributes around 1.4 to 5.9 per cent to global emissions. The report’s authors want tech companies to set the default video to standard. They also recommended several changes users can make to reduce emissions, such as switching from ultra high-definition (UHD) to HD on a smartphone. You’ll barely notice the difference in quality, they claim. The Royal Society also suggests switching off the video on sites like YouTube if you’re only listening to content in the background, rather than watching. Not…

In response to your feature on refurbished laptops (Issue 589, page 62), I’d like to recommend Stone Refurb (www.stonerefurb.co.uk), which is based in Stafford. Soon after the start of the first lockdown I was in need of some cheap laptops for myself and my son, who’s studying at sixth-form college. Stone Refurb came up trumps with two reconditioned laptops, both with Windows 10 Home and six-month warranties. They have webcams, fingerprint readers and all the bells and whistles of new laptops at a cost of under £300 for both. They were delivered by courier within 48 hours and were in protective boxes with a quick set-up leaflet. I can understand that some people want to place their trust in brand-new tech, but for some that’s not an option due to…

What can I use to disable my scroll-wheel button? Q I frequently press the scroll wheel by accident when using my Logitech mouse, activating the automatic scroll feature and shooting me from one end of the document to the other. Is there a tool that can disable this button? Jack Lawes A You don’t say which Logitech mouse you have, but if it’s relatively recent (bought within the last couple of years) it should be compatible with Logitech’s Options tool, which lets you adjust how the buttons work. To download it, go to www.snipca.com/36890 (you’ll find the full compatibility list at the bottom of the web page). Once installed, run the program and select your mouse from the main menu. You’ll now see a picture of your mouse. Click the…

PHONE | £329 from OnePlus www.snipca.com/36855 North star OnePlus started out selling affordable Android smartphones but over time drifted to more expensive models to compete with the best Samsung and Apple devices. Its new Nord range is an attempt to return to affordable devices, starting with the £379 Nord (see our review, Issue 587, www.snipca.com/35716) and now continuing with the Nord N10, which shaves £50 off that model. Like its big brother, the N10 is ready for 5G mobile networks and has a smooth-scrolling 90Hz screen with a resolution of 2400x1080 pixels. The N10 is a little bulkier, with a larger bezel at the bottom of the screen (to accommodate the 3.5mm headphone socket, which the first Nord lacked), but realistically you’d need to get a ruler out to spot…

Q I use a fabulous Xerox 6515 laser printer to organise church events and some cartridges now need replacing. Xerox-branded cartridges are very expensive and as treasurer I know money is short. Should I buy non–Xerox versions and, if so, which ones? Remanufactured or completely new ones? Also, I can’t find any comparison reviews to help me buying brand X rather than brand Z. Any help would be welcome. Ray Ekins A Xerox claims that its own cartridges maintain the best print quality, but you can judge that for yourself. Xerox costs are high but come in three capacities: Standard, High and Extra High. The standard cyan cartridge, for example, costs £71 and prints 1,000 pages (7p per page). However, while the Extra High capacity option costs £135, it’s more…

TV-STREAMING DEVICE | £99 from Amazon www.snipca.com/36904 We will Roku In Issue 593’s Cover Feature we looked at several devices you can use to bring video-streaming services to your TV screen. We touched on the Roku Streambar but we thought it was worth bringing you an extended review of this innovative two-in-one device. It combines a Roku TV-streaming device – so you can access Netflix, BBC iPlayer and more – with a sound-boosting soundbar designed to enhance your TV’s audio capabilities. “Aimed at people looking to upgrade both streaming and sound quality at the same time” This is aimed at people looking to upgrade both streaming and sound quality at the same time so, if you already have a decent streaming device or audio setup attached to your TV then…

Toshiba’s 3.5in P300 is a versatile drive ideal for a range of computers – all-in-one PCs, desktop PCs, gaming computers – as well as external enclosures. The dual-stage actuator in the 2TB to 6TB models improves positional accuracy, negating the vibrations caused by the head-track being aligned. This design makes for more precise and faster read and write speeds, giving you instant access to your data. It also has an internal shock sensor, ensuring no data is lost. In addition, ramp-loading technology means that when your hard drive or desktop PC are being transported, the drive slider does not make contact with the disk and risk it wearing out or data loss. To enter this competition, email your address to cacomp@dennis.co.uk with ‘Toshiba’ in the subject line by midnight Tuesday…

What you need: Chromecast; Google Photos; Android or iOS phone or tablet Time required: 20 minutes If you have a Google Chromecast plugged into your TV, you can use it for much more than just streaming programmes and films. In this Workshop, we’ll show you how to access its hidden Ambient mode, which lets you display a slideshow from your Google Photos library when you’re not casting anything. You don’t even need the latest ‘Chromecast with Google TV’ version of the device (£30 from www.snipca.com/36851) to use this feature – it works on all previous versions, including on the original Chromecast (released in 2013) we’ll be using here. STEP 1 By default, when nothing is being casted Chromecast will display a series of photos from the ‘Recent highlights’ folder in…

What you should install this fortnight Craft Free* iOS www.snipca.com/36772 Craft is an eye-catching note-taking app that lets you embed notes within each other for more structured note-keeping that should help you keep track of related notes. You can export your jottings as a PDF, sync them between devices, and can even add images and videos – either as illustrations or simply so you know where to find them. Mahjong Free* iOS www.snipca.com/36776 This attractive recreation of the classic Chinese tile-clearing game could be just what you need to find a bit of peace. Every puzzle is solvable, if you’re careful. There are daily challenges, 22 board shapes to choose from and a selection of seven different tile styles. Although it’s free, it costs £11.99 to remove the adverts. If…

MICROSOFT WORD & EXCEL Sync changes between documents Copying text from one document to another isn’t difficult - you can press Ctrl+C (copy) then Ctrl+V (paste). But what if the text you’ve previously copied regularly changes (such as with a running total in a fundraising document)? If you don’t like the idea of having to constantly re-paste the text to keep it up to date, you can instead paste the text as a link. If the text in the document changes, the linked text in the other document changes in tandem. Open the document you want to copy text from, then highlight the text you want to copy and press Ctrl+C to copy it. Next, open the document you want to paste the text into, but instead of pressing Ctrl+V…

The pandemic changed how we all lived last year, but it didn’t seem to disrupt the flow of new and updated software. As always, you were keen to master programs that let you bypass Windows restrictions, but your most downloaded software was actually a revamped Microsoft tool. The reason we know this is because our Snipca URL-shortening service tells us how many times a link has been clicked. It helps us know which programs you’d like to read more about in the future. Here are your top 10 from the past 12 months. 1 Edge www.snipca.com/33864 Last January, when the world was just learning about a deadly new virus emerging from China, Microsoft relaunched its Edge browser. Built using Google’s Chromium source code, it’s faster and more secure than its…

32bit/64bit A measure of how much data a PC can process at once. Most older computers are 32bit, more modern ones are 64bit. 3G/4G/5G Technologies that deliver faster mobile broadband. 4K Video with a resolution of at least 3840x2160 pixels. Adobe RGB A wider colour space than sRGB, extending into richer cyans and greens. AMOLED Active-Matrix Organic Light-Emitting Diode. An alternative technology to LCD for creating flat-panel displays. Most commonly used in smartphones, tablets and smartwatches. Aspect ratio A measurement of the shape of a display. Benchmarking Comparing software and products with an accepted standard. Beta A version of software that’s being tested. Beta versions are often released so problems can be ironed out. Cast To send content from your PC to TV. cd/m2 Candela per square metre. Standard unit…

Microsoft looks set to release Windows 10X, a new lightweight version of the current operating system (OS), in the first half of 2021, according to reports circulating online. Sources in the company said it had finished building the first version of Windows 10X and was ready to release it to computer manufacturers so they could install it on their devices. It’s thought these could go on sale as early as June. The idea behind Windows 10X is to produce a streamlined version of the main OS, with fewer tools, a simpler design and a new-look Start menu (see screenshot) without the ‘Live’ tiles that show updated information in real time. It also has a redesigned Action Centre with new volume, power and battery controls. The company announced the system in…

BT has proposed a further five years of cheaper prices for customers who pay for a landline only, without also receiving broadband or a TV service. In April 2018, it cut its monthly line rental for landline-only customers by £7 – from £18.99 a month to £11.99. It also capped any subsequent increases to line rental and call charges to the CPI rate of inflation, which was 0.9 per cent in October. These measures followed Ofcom’s claim that landline-only customers had been “getting poor value for money compared to those who buy bundles of landline, broadband and/or pay-TV services”. BT’s monopoly in the landline-only market allowed it to raise prices, even though it had become cheaper to provide the service. The company has now offered to keep the price of…

Who’s responsible for a missold USB stick? Q In July I bought a GoGroopie (www.gogroopie.com) voucher for a 1TB USB drive from Impress Gadgets (www.impressgadgets.co.uk, based in Dewsbury). The voucher cost £14.99 and postage from Impress Gadgets was £3.99. When the drive arrived the actual capacity was only 32GB. I’ve contacted both GoGroopie and Impress Gadgets, but am being ignored. Can you help? Arthur Gray A We’ve also contacted both companies to find out what’s happened. It may be that Arthur was simply sent the wrong stick, in which case it should be easy to resolve. However, it would become more complicated if the stick was faulty, or has been wrongly described. Whatever the truth, he’s entitled to a swift refund. Initially, Arthur’s contract was with GoGroopie because he paid…

Discover crimes your ancestors committed Reader Justin Eastham asked if we could help track down information about his great-great-grandfather Hansell Pilcher, who he discovered was serving time at Pentonville Prison during the 1911 census. Justin wanted to know how he could find out what crime Hansell committed. Search criminal records between 1791 and 1935 There are two main online resources for finding criminal ancestors. The earliest, covering 1791 to 1892, is the Criminal Registers for England and Wales, comprising record sets HO26 and HO27 from The National Archives. You can access it through Ancestry (www.snipca.com/36731). The other set – CRIM9, or the Home Office Calendar of Prisoners – covers 1892 to 1935, and can be accessed through Find My Past (www.snipca.com/36732). More recent records are locked away. Unfortunately, when we…

All-in-one home appliances are enticing, but they rarely work as well as a dedicated device. Take my washer/dryer. It does a great job of cleaning clothes, but it’s absolutely hopeless at drying them (and when it broke down earlier this year, the engineer pointed his finger squarely at the drying element). It’s often the same with software. I love using Shotcut (www.snipca.com/36840) for quick video-editing tasks, but its audio-tweaking capabilities pale in comparison with those of specialised tools such as Audacity (www.snipca.com/36841). So after discovering my recording of one of my kid’s old school Nativity plays was blighted by the noise of a nearby air-conditioning unit trying to take centre stage, I used Shotcut and Audacity to fix it. First, I imported the video into Shotcut by dragging it from…

LAPTOP | £1,299 from Apple www.snipca.com/36844 Taking the M1 fast lane Apple stopped building its own processors into its computers back in 2006, with that year’s MacBook Pro 15 being the first Apple machine to be powered by an Intel processor. Since then it’s been Intel all the way, with Apple developing chips only for its iPhone and iPad ranges. However, this is all changing and the final Intel-powered laptop is the MacBook Air (2020) (see our review, Issue 587, www.snipca.com/35660). Starting with this new 13in MacBook Pro and – rather confusingly – yet another new MacBook Air, Apple’s computers will come with the company’s new processor, the M1. It sounds like a small detail but, as you find out when you start using this stunning new laptop, it’s a…

What does it do? A screen’s resolution is the number of pixels it has. It’s stated as the number of columns of pixels times the number of rows. For example, screens with 4K resolution have 3840x2160 pixels. How does it work? Pixels are arranged in a grid on the screen. The device you’re using controls the colour and brightness of each individual pixel, and does this several times per second, depending on the screen’s refresh rate. This way you get an image built up on screen and the constant changing provides the impression of animation. This grid of pixels is configured and controlled in a standard way, so PCs can be plugged into any monitor (as long as it has the right connections) and can display some kind of image,…

What is it? These wireless chargers (www.snipca.com/36887, pictured), made by Dutch firm Lens, let you build a customised raft of pads you can simply drop your gadgets on to when they need recharging. Its modular approach means you can choose the exact units you need for maximum tidiness. What does it do? Wireless charging lets you reduce the clutter and inconvenience of cables. However, if each gadget needs its own wireless charging point, the object is soon defeated. These interlocking modules could be the answer. What’s the catch? Price. The 65W Dual Wireless Charger Main Station costs €99 (around £88) and is big enough for two phones only. You can add another four modules to it, including pads and stands for phones. These add-ons cost between €40 (£36) and €70…

What you need: USB stick, audio cable or adapter, depending on your choice Time required: An hour Just about any piece of music ever recorded is available on your computer. With a wide choice of streaming providers and the ability to make digital versions of your CDs, records and tapes, it’s easy to build a library of a size that would have been unimaginable just a decade ago. If you haven’t yet digitised your vinyl and tapes, read the How To we published in Issue 554. In many cases, though, you’ll have to leave it all at home when you jump into the car – unless you’ve saved it online and listen via a smartphone app compatible with Apple CarPlay or Android Auto. But what if your car doesn’t support…

TIP OF THE FORTNIGHT Create hyperlinks in Word documents Since my children acquired their first computer in the early 1990s, I’ve been fascinated by the seemingly magical way technology achieves actions undreamt of by us mortals. Hyperlinks are a typical example. In PowerPoint this is easy: create a shape, remove the border, colour it the same as the slide background and ‘hyperlink’ it to another slide in the same presentation, then move it to one of the corners in the slide. When presenting the slideshow, clicking the ‘invisible’ object in the corner of the slide changes it to the target slide. I find links useful in documents such as a directory of utility companies showing telephone numbers and contact details. This gives me their details at my fingertips. Take a…

Walkers MapMyWalk Free* iOS www.snipca.com/36779 Android www.snipca.com/36780 If you’re bored of your regular walks, this app could help. We found dozens of new circular and point-to-point walks in our local area (up to 40km in length). You can track your progress on screen while the app measures your pace rate, bookmark your favourites and create challenges if you need a target to work towards. Best For Finding new walking routes Footpath Route Planner Free* iOS www.snipca.com/36777 Trace a route with your finger and it will snap to roads and trails on this app’s map. You can create routes for a variety of activities aside from walking, including running, cycling and even canoeing. You can follow the route on screen, but by upgrading (between £1.99 and £21.49) you can also export…

Many businesses use PowerPoint to create presentations for company strategy, marketing aims or finance projections. If you run a club, you can do something similar to explain to members what the club’s future plans are or to present a photo slideshow. Here we show you how you can avoid spending money on Microsoft Office and wasting time trying to connect your laptop to the club’s TV by instead using Google’s Chromecast streaming device. Set up a Chromecast Chromecast is a dongle that connects to your TV and displays anything you send – or cast – to it over Wi-Fi. The newest model, Chromecast with Google TV, costs £60 (www.snipca.com/36435), but Google also sells an older model for £30 (www.snipca.com/36434) that will work fine for your needs. To set up your…

Subscribe to computer active today and save on the single issue price. Each issue of computeractive will be delivered directly to your device each fortnight. SEE NEXT PAGE FOR SET-UP INSTRUCTIONS HOW TO SUBSCRIBE… … on an iPad or iPhone STEP 1Return to the Computeractive library STEP 2 Choose your subscription term and tap twice on the 'price' box STEP 3 Choose whether to create an optional PixelMags account STEP 4 Enter your Apple ID password to confirm … on a l<indle Fire Kindle Fire subscriptions come with a FREE one month trial. STEP 1 Tap 'Free Trial Subscription' in the Computeractive library STEP 2 Chose your subscription term from the drop down menu on the popup that appears STEP 3 Tap 'Subscribe' … on an Android device STEP 1…

Hi, I’m Robert Irvine. You may know me from such magazines as Web User and Web User Back Issues Disc. With that title now retired, Computeractive editor Daniel Booth has kindly asked me to step into his brogues and write this fortnightly column about trying tricky tech things. “‘Good job, looks great!’, proclaimed WordPress, which seemed a slight exaggeration at this stage” As I can no longer use Web User as an outlet for my knowledge of Windows 10 privacy settings, Chrome extensions and 1980s TV game shows, I decided to set up my own blog. I did have a Blogger blog many years ago, but I stopped updating that after nobody visited. Besides, if I’ve learned anything from the ‘Build a Better Site’ section of Web User (which we…

You’ll soon be able to uninstall Windows 10’s Snipping Tool, as Microsoft encourages people to use ‘Snip & Sketch’ instead. Introduced in Windows Vista, the Snipping Tool offers a fast and simple way to take screenshots, though Microsoft said in 2018 that it will eventually replace the tool with ‘Snip & Sketch’, which has more advanced options. It’s been reminding users with messages that pop up when you launch Snipping Tool, and has now made the tool optional in the latest preview version of Windows 10 (Build 21277), available to Windows Insiders, meaning it can be uninstalled. It signals that Microsoft might be preparing users for the removal of Snipping Tool. To try ‘Snip & Sketch’ press PrtScr on your keyboard, or press Windows key+Shift+S.…

RENT PHONES ON MUSICMAGPIE MusicMagpie has launched a phone-rental service, letting you upgrade to a new device every 12 months rather than the standard 24. Priced at £9.99 a month, it currently includes more than 10 unlocked Apple and Android (mostly Samsung) phones. The site said it will add more devices soon. For more details visit www.musicmagpie.co.uk/store/rental (pictured above). ADOBE TO BLOCK ALL FLASH CONTENT Adobe released the final update for its Flash plug-in on 8 December, and has announced it will block all Flash content from 12 January. Writing online (www.snipca.com/36951), it said it was proud of the role Flash played in “evolving web content” across the web. Read Issue 594 (page 62) for instructions on avoiding Flash online and uninstalling it from your computer. TOMORROW’S WORLD Zoom is…

WATCH OUT FOR… Fake VPN extensions for Edge What’s the threat? Hackers are creating fake Edge extensions for several of the world’s most popular VPNs. In the past month Microsoft has removed extensions that claimed to be VPNs from NordVPN, Windscribe, AdGuard and TunnelBear. Once installed, these VPNs were showing users suspicious adverts, and redirecting their Google searches to a dubious site called OKSearch. How can you stay safe? Fake extensions are nothing new, but until now they’ve been a bigger problem on Google’s Chrome Web Store, which has been the world’s most popular browser for over a decade. But where users go, scammers always follow. So as Edge continues to gain ground on Chrome after its relaunch last January, expect more malicious extensions to appear on its store (https://microsoftedge.microsoft.com).…

When will companies realise that after a failed repair or replacement they must offer a full refund? This has been law since October 2015, but five years later firms are still putting customers through unnecessary despair. Microsoft is the latest guilty company. As we reported in Issue 594, it replaced reader Michael O’Donnell’s £1,500 Surface Pro laptop after the screen cracked within three days of purchase. Microsoft was allowed to do this. Starting 30 days after purchase, companies can offer one repair or one replacement only, though not one of each. But when Michael found that the replacement was also faulty, Microsoft should’ve refunded him Instead it fobbed him off with another replacement, which had a German keyboard (not what he wanted). He asked for a refund, only for Microsoft…

SYSTEM TOOL WizFile 3 www.snipca.com/36847 What you need: Windows 7, 8.1 or 10 If you want something faster and more accurate than Windows’ search tool, try WizFile (from the developers of the excellent WizTree tool, www.snipca.com/36848). Instead of indexing files, as Windows’ tool does, it uses what’s called the Master File Table (MFT) - a hidden database on your hard drive that contains details of all files, including their names, sizes and more. While this means it can’t search inside files (such as for specific words in a document), it does mean searches are near instantaneous, with WizFile updating the results as you type. If you’ve used Everything (www.snipca.com/36845), you’ll instantly see the similarities. However, while Everything keeps things fairly basic, WizFile offers a few more options. Using the buttons…

WARNING: JUNK AHEAD Junk offender: MyCleanPC New Year is often the time for a fresh start. But if you’re thinking of treating your PC to a tidy-up in 2021, then let me give you a word of warning – don’t let MyCleanPC (www.mycleanpc.com) anywhere near it. It’s easy enough to stumble upon. It appears on the first page of Google’s results when you search for ‘clean my pc’. The entry is not a ‘sponsored’ link or an advert, which could give you the impression that it’s more genuine than others. Click through to the site and you’ll be offered a free tool to “diagnose and clean up” your computer “in minutes”. The tool’s homepage is plastered with reassuring customer ratings, along with a stream of unerringly positive user testimonials. However,…

MINI PC | £67 from The Pi Hut www.snipca.com/36859 Pi and microchips For many of us, home computing started with devices that had a computer built into a keyboard, which you plugged into a TV. We have fond memories of the ZX Spectrum, the Commodore 64 and the BBC Model B, to name but a few, so there’s something deeply nostalgic about the new Raspberry Pi 400. It takes the famous, diminutive bare-bones PC and surrounds it in a retro keyboard case, like a modern-day version of the Acorn Electron (see www.snipca.com/36849). “Not as easy to carry as a laptop but it’s the most portable desktop PC we’ve ever seen” There are two options available: the unit alone, which sells for £67; or a kit that also comes with mouse,…

PC MONITOR | £126 from Amazon www.snipca.com/36858 Screen star If you want a new PC monitor but you have less than £150 to spend, you’ll have to make a compromise. A clear picture with decent colour representation are the key ingredients you’re likely to insist upon, but what would you be willing to forfeit to get it? You have to look quite hard to find the corners that have been cut to bring this 24in monitor in at £126. It has a good range of inputs, including VGA, DisplayPort and HDMI, and two USB 2.0 ports, mounted on the side for easy access. The slim bezel around the edge of the screen is minimal, giving it a sharp and stylish look. We were particularly impressed with the stand. The screen…

LAPTOP Honor MagicBook 14 £550 from www.snipca.com/34688 Tested Issue 580 Using an AMD Ryzen 3500U processor, this lightweight metal laptop beat Microsoft’s Surface Laptop 3 with Intel’s i7-1065G7 in our tests. The 14in Full HD screen lacks colour accuracy but looks decent. For the money, it’s a great buy. ALTERNATIVE Dell XPS 13 New Intel CPUs and a taller screen make this a more powerful, all-round slim notebook, although prices now start at a steep £1,629 from www.snipca.com/36642 ANDROID TABLET Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 Lite £299 from www.snipca.com/35795 Tested Issue 582 PRICE DROP Competing with Apple’s cheapest 10.2in iPad, this slim aluminium tablet comes with an S Pen stylus and a generous 64GB of storage at a reasonable price. It’s less powerful, but a great buy if you prefer Android.…

ANDROID & iOS Use YouTube’s new controls Poking at tiny on-screen buttons is a sure-fire way to lose your concentration. That’s not ideal when you’re trying to focus on a video. So, Google has re-thought the controls in its YouTube app, which is a free download for iOS (www.snipca.com/36773) and Android (www.snipca.com/36774). One of our favourite tricks, which was already built in, is skipping forwards or backwards 10 seconds by double-tapping the right or left halves of the playback window. This has now been supplemented by a swipe-up gesture, which switches to full-screen playback, and swipe-down to switch back to the small player window with comments and related videos below it. And, if you’re wondering how much longer a video still has to run, rather than how far through it…

WINDOWS 7, 8.1 & 10 Slow down Command Prompt If you use Command Prompt (click Start, type cmd, then press Enter) to show the contents of a large folder, you’ll find it displays all the information at lightning speed, leaving you to scroll through a lot of data to check it all. If you want an easier way to view the results, try adding ‘ | more’ to the end of whatever command you’re using. So, if you want to view all files in your Windows folder, you need to type dir c:\windows | more (see screenshot below).You can produce the ‘|’ character (known as a pipe) on most keyboards by holding down the Shift key and pressing the ‘\’ key. When the Command Prompt output fills your screen, it’ll…

What is it? Microsoft’s plan to make Android apps run smoothly on Windows 10. It’s a software subsystem that Android developers will be able to use to convert their apps so they work on computers as well as phones and tablets. What’s a subsystem? Also called a compatibility layer, it’s a computing method for allowing one operating system to ‘translate’ programs that were written in a different coding language for another operating system. Windows already has a subsystem for Linux software. Really? When did that launch? It was announced in 2016 and since June 2019 has been available to Windows Insiders. Called Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL), it creates a virtual Linux kernel in Windows. You can run Linux tools by typing commands into PowerShell, which is Microsoft’s long-term replacement…

Should I ditch my old hard drive? Q Following your ‘Reclaim & reuse your old hard drives’ feature in Issue 591 (page 60), I decided to give it a go. I removed the drive from an old BT YouView set-top box, and put it into an enclosure I’d bought from Amazon. Following the instructions in your article, I connected it to my PC. Although the drive is displayed, I’m unable to access it – I keep seeing a message saying the drive is write-protected. I have tried two of these hard drives, with the same result. Is it possible to access and use these drives, or will I have to discard them? Mike Lavall A It’s certainly possible but, depending on the specific boxes and drive models, the process might…