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Few things focus an editor’s mind more than their boss asking “Have you gone mad?”, particularly when you’re explaining the next Cover Feature. “Doesn’t everyone use Google?” he queried in a tone that suggested my answer should be “Yes, you’re right, sorry – it was a stupid idea”. But actually, a growing number of users are fed up being tied to Google’s services. They’re beginning to question not just whether rival services are more private (short answer: yes), but also whether they’re better than what Google offers. My boss raised an eyebrow, admitted he’d like to know which tools trump Google, and gave me the thumbs up. Now, we’re not suggesting you’ll never want to use Google again. I still use Gmail and Chrome every day, plus its search engine.…

Microsoft is updating its grammar-checking tool for Word and Outlook so it can make more accurate suggestions to improve your writing. Called Microsoft Editor, the tool already highlights grammatical errors, but it will soon also use artificial intelligence and machine learning to suggest alternative words and phrases. This brings it in line with the online version of Word, which has used artificial intelligence since last April. However, to use the new version you’ll have to sign up to the Office Insider programme (https://insider.office.com). Once you’ve done this, you can bring up a menu of suggestions, synonyms and definitions by selecting a word then pressing Shift+F10 or Alt+Down. The revamped tool also checks other aspects of your writing, including clarity and formality, making it more of a rival to Grammarly. In…

LISTEN TO SPOTIFY PODCASTS ON ALEXA You can now listen to Spotify podcasts on Amazon Echo smart speakers. To turn them on, open the Alexa app on your device, then tap Settings followed by ‘Music & Podcasts’. You then need to link or manage new services. The service lets you pause an episode on one device, then pick it up on another, or on the Spotify app or website. MICROSOFT’S TWO? SCREEN PHONE COMING Microsoft will start selling its Surface Duo two-screen phone (pictured) in the UK in 2021, following its launch in the US last August. Writing online (www.snipca.com/37013), it said the device, which runs Android, can show different programs on each screen to allow “true multi-tasking”. Release dates and prices have yet to be confirmed.…

Many people in the UK have cut back on clothes and food in order to afford their broadband and phone packages. Research from Ofcom on the affordability of broadband and mobile (www.snipca.com/37029) shows that 19 per cent of households – around 4.7 million – found it difficult to pay their bills during 2020. Around one in 10 of those who struggle financially choose to switch to a cheaper package, while others simply miss payments. The number of people being disconnected for non-payment fell between March and May last year, as broadband and mobile providers and the Government agreed a set of commitments to protect vulnerable customers during the first lockdown. It increased sharply though between June and September, as restrictions were lifted. Ofcom said that generally customers are getting “better…

RECORD YOUR SCREEN ON SAMSUNG LAPTOPS Samsung has released a screen-recording app for Windows 10, which works only on its own laptops. ‘Samsung Screen Recorder’ is available for free from the Microsoft Store (www.snipca.com/36965). Once launched, a toolbar appears at the top of your screen (pictured) with options to start a recording, take a screenshot, launch a webcam window and open settings. It works only on 64bit laptops. WATCH AMAZON PRIME VIDEO ON SKY Q Amazon Prime Video is available on Sky Q boxes for the first time, though you’ll need a Prime subscription. The deal between the two companies also sees Sky’s Now TV app appear on Fire TV devices, though again you’ll need a Now TV subscription. Visit Sky’s site for details: www.snipca.com/36976. LATEST DRIVING EMAIL SCAMS REVEALED…

Creating a strong password takes more than typing a zero instead of an O in ‘password’. Chrome’s ‘Safety check’ tool now tells you how many weak passwords you have, though for now it’s available only in the Canary version of the browser, which is where Google tests new features. Download Chrome Canary from www.snipca.com/36962, then open it and type chrome://flags into the browser bar at the top (1 in the screenshot) and press Enter. Next, type safety check in the search bar 2 to bring up the ‘Safety check for weak passwords’ option. Click the dropdown menu on the right so it shows Enabled 3, then press Relaunch at the bottom right to restart Chrome. You’ll need to use Chrome Canary for a while, creating and saving passwords as you…

Can I get a refund for electrician’s fee to fix a faulty oven? LEAD CASE Q We ordered a new Hoover oven from Appliances Direct (www.appliancesdirect.co.uk) in November, but it tripped the fuse box when we started to use it. We paid £194.40 for a visit by an electrician, who established the problem had been caused by the oven. Appliances Direct passed us on to Hoover, which said it would send out an engineer to fix the oven. But do we have to put up with a repair? And can we get a refund for the electrician’s costs? Richard Tait A No, Richard doesn’t have to put up with a repair. It’s only after 30 days have passed from purchase that the seller is allowed to repair or replace defective…

Download regiments’ unit diaries There are plenty of records chronicling the service of our ancestors during the two world wars, but one overlooked – and fascinating – resource is their regimental war diaries, which provide a detailed timeline of where (and when) they served. Most World War One diaries have been digitised as online PDFs in The National Archives, so that’s what we’ll focus on here. Ordinarily they cost £3.50 per volume, but charges have been waived during the coronavirus pandemic, so there’s never been a better time to investigate them. Diaries from World War Two have yet to be digitised, so to read them you’ll need to visit The National Archives in Kew. Before you do though, visit www.snipca.com/36828 to identify which unit your ancestor served in. Identify your…

What can I use to scan CD and DVD barcodes? Q I have a substantial collection of CDs and DVDs. Is there a program that will let me create a searchable database by scanning their barcodes, possibly even allowing me to then export it to Excel? Ian Fradgley A Libib is without doubt the best tool for this, letting you catalogue not only your CDs and DVDs, but also your book collection. The free version lets you create a database of up to 5,000 items. If you want to store more than this (and get extra features such as the ability to mark items as being loaned out), you’ll need to pay £6.67 per month for the Pro version. To get started, register for a free account at www.libib.com, then…

It seems that PayPal and I disagree on the definition of the word ‘reward’. To me, a reward is something positive you’re given in return for an achievement of some kind. But for PayPal it’s a meaningless, empty promise you make to people in order to trick them into using your service. At least, that’s according to the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA), which recently upheld a complaint against PayPal for an email it sent to customers in September 2020 boasting ‘Here’s a £10 reward for you!’. However, what the email didn’t make clear (unless you scrolled down to the very small print) was that the offer was available only to the first 28,527 people to respond. The ASA rightly ruled that this marketing trickery was “misleading” (www.snipca.com/36945), and told PayPal…

SMART SPEAKER | £99 from Apple www.snipca.com/36934 Siri, it just isn’t good enough Apple usually charges a fortune for its products, so it was a pleasant surprise when it announced the £99 price tag of this smart speaker. It’s clearly intended to compete with Amazon’s £90 Echo (see our review, Issue 594) and Google’s £90 Nest Audio (see Issue 593), as it performs a similar job. It can play music, radio and podcasts; control smart home devices such as lights and smart plugs; and answer basic questions about the weather or traffic conditions. It integrates well with iOS, so you can do clever tricks such as transcribe voice notes straight to the Notes app. The speaker punches well above its weight when it comes to sound quality, thanks to clever…

LAPTOP Honor MagicBook 14 £600 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 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. ALTERNATIVE Amazon…

iOS Create videos with just a few taps Putting videos together can be fiddly – unless you’re using Apple’s free Clips app (www.snipca.com/36875). It lets you assemble a sequence of photos from your camera roll, and videos you shoot on the go, with captions, stickers and effects. There are presets for square, portrait and landscape orientation videos and, if you decide your shots are in the wrong order, you just need to tap, hold and drag them across the timeline (see screenshot below left). Trimming them down is just as easy: select the shot you want to shorten, then drag the handles on either end to isolate the section you want to keep. When you’ve finished, you can save the results to your phone or upload them to online storage,…

WINDOWS 10 Create shortcuts to shared folders in OneDrive In Issue 595 (page 38) we showed you how to use OneDrive’s new family-sharing tool. Now Microsoft has added another new tool to its online-storage service, this time letting you create desktop shortcuts to folders that others have shared with you. To use it, log into OneDrive at www.microsoft.com/onedrive, then select Shared from the list on the left. Now right-click the shared folder you want a shortcut to and select ‘Add to my OneDrive’ (see screenshot below) followed by ‘Add folder’. A shortcut to that folder will now be added to the ‘My files’ section of your OneDrive account. This means any PC that you sync your OneDrive account to will have the same shortcut when you open File Explorer (press…

If you type Monday into a cell within Calc, then click and drag the small square box in the bottom-right corner of the cell, the rest of the cells will automatically fill with days of the week. You can improve on this by adding your own auto-fill lists. Press Alt+F12, then select LibreOffice Calc on the left followed by Sort Lists. In the Lists box you’ll see Calc’s preset lists – select one and the words in that list will be displayed in the Entries box. To add your own, click New on the right, then type your additional words (this can be anything from names of people in your family to colours of the rainbow), pressing Enter after each one. Click ‘OK’ to save the list. Now return to…

Google’s unofficial motto ‘don’t be evil’ became the company’s mission statement in 2000. Those well-intentioned words appeared prominently in the company’s official code of conduct (which you can still read on the Wayback Machine site at www.snipca.com/37022). Tellingly, from around 2018 Google started erasing all reference to the phrase. Perhaps it belatedly realised it could no longer get away with this sort of hypocrisy given some of its dubious practices. To be clear, we think the tech giant has produced a number of genuinely brilliant products and services – most of which are available for free – and the company continues to push technology into new and exciting areas, such as advanced robotics and artificial intelligence. However, Google’s business model is increasingly leaving a sour taste. While other companies have…

Q I’ve noticed only recently that my photos folder contains images that variously have JPEG or JPG file extensions. I have no idea why this would be. Is there any difference between the two? Is there a time when I should use one over the other? Windows 10’s Photos app seems happy to open either, so I don’t have a problem as such – but I am curious. Thomas Barrett A For perhaps the first time in this panel we can say that there’s literally no difference, other than a single letter in the spelling: a JPEG is a JPG, and a JPG is a JPEG. The ‘correct’ abbreviation is JPEG, as it stands for Joint Photographic Experts Group (www.jpeg.org), which is the name of the industry body that began…

I’ve had terrible trouble this winter with the sound of pipes. Although I spent Christmas in Glasgow, I don’t mean the skirl of bagpipes, but the clangorous plumbing in my ancient block of flats. Every time my neighbour runs the tap or flushes the toilet, the pipes rattle and hum at a volume U2 could only dream of, denying me my much needed beauty sleep. “The last thing I needed was my laptop making a noise like a plane taking off” My landlord eventually arranged for a plumber to investigate a suspected airlock, but he arrived unexpectedly early while I was out shopping. After establishing with my neighbour that my complaint was “a lot of fuss over nothing”, the plumber departed and won’t be returning for a while because the…

OPENREACH CREATES 5,000 BROADBAND JOBS BT Openreach is creating 5,300 new jobs as it aims to deliver full-fibre broadband throughout the UK. It’s recruiting 2,500 engineers, and estimates a further 2,800 will be hired by partner companies that build the cable infrastructure. At the moment, Openreach extends its full-fibre network to 40,000 new households every week, but would need to increase that to 50,000 to hit its target of reaching 20 million premises by the late 2020s. ANDROID MOBILE DEVICES TO LAST LONGER Your Android phones and tablets should last longer after Google announced plans to keep devices updated with four years of security releases. It also guaranteed that your device will be able to receive four version updates of Android (the latest is version 11). The announcement was jointly…

Apple is forcing all iPhone and iPad apps to reveal much more detail about the personal data they collect about you, and what it’s used for. It has broken the information into three categories: data that tracks you; data linked to you; and data not linked to you. It means that apps will have to tell you what information they hold about you, including any financial details. They’ll also have to reveal whether they share any personal information with other companies that can be used to target adverts at you. In addition, they’ll have to state whether they link your current location – gathered from your phone or tablet – with other companies. Data that’s “not linked to you” includes information that can’t be used to target adverts at you.…

Press one for HMRC scam As a self-employed accountant, I listened with interest to an automated call that claimed it was from HMRC. It said there was a lawsuit filed against me because I hadn’t paid a tax bill on time, and should press one to proceed to speak to a “case manager”. The call was quite threatening because it said I could be arrested for tax evasion. I’m in a fortunate position, though, because through my job I know that HMRC would never phone you to make such a claim. But I wanted to share it through your pages so that other people aren’t caught out. Warn your fellow readers about scams at letters@computeractive.co.uk…

We hope Samsung got some common sense for Christmas because it sorely lacked it last year when it refused to honour a reader’s cashback deal. As explained in Issue 580, reader Neil Parkinson bought a Samsung TV from Currys, only to then be told that he would get money back if he also bought a Samsung soundbar. He did this, but Samsung refused his cashback claim because the two purchases were on different receipts. We’d understand Samsung’s decision if the receipts were for different days, but they were just minutes apart - Neil bought the soundbar as soon as the Currys assistant told him about the cashback. Yes, technically this might have broken Samsung’s terms, but it’s crazy that it couldn’t override this rule given that it was obvious Neil…

I’m trying to flesh out the Welsh branch of my family tree, but I’m struggling for precise dates for births, marriages, and deaths. Can you suggest any useful sources? Dave Barlow Ancestry.co.uk has recently added a large collection of baptisms, marriages and burials for Anglican churches in Wales from 1560 to 1994 – visit www.snipca.com/36820. Ancestors who worshipped in chapel rather than church may also appear in the Non-Conformist and Non-Parochial Registers (www.snipca.com/36821). You can also search and view transcriptions of the non-conformist records for free at FamilySearch (www.snipca.com/36822). Have a genealogy question for Nick? Email letters@computeractive.co.uk with ‘Grow Your Family Tree’ in the subject line.…

Sometimes switching is easy. I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve changed utility provider - it’s quick, saves me money and I appear to get the same gas and electricity no matter who I pay for it. Switching password managers requires a bit more thought. On this page a little over two years ago (Issue 543 to be exact), I explained how I use LastPass (www.lastpass.com) to securely store my passwords. Having recently grown frustrated at LastPass (particularly the mobile app, which repeatedly fails to fill in my passwords), I knew it was time to look elsewhere. But choosing another company with which to entrust passwords for my entire digital life proved difficult. Eventually, I settled on Bitwarden (www.bitwarden.com). Its free version lets me store unlimited passwords and…

ROUTER | £89 from Amazon www.snipca.com/36927 Down to the wire More and more smartphones and laptops are coming with Wi-Fi 6 (also known as 802.11ax). The router your ISP supplied almost certainly doesn’t support the standard, so if you want the fastest speeds from your newest devices, you’re going to have to upgrade. One option is this D-Link DIR-X1860 router, which is an affordable and feature-packed alternative to the Honor Router 3 (see our review, Issue 594). “Feature-rich Wi-Fi 6 router performs well at close range” The first thing to note is that there’s no built-in modem on this model, so you’ll have to wire it to your existing internet connection using an Ethernet cable. This doesn’t have to be complicated – you simply shut down the Wi-Fi on your…

Q My Roku controller (pictured) stopped working over Christmas. I’m not sure what happened to it but I suspect it had some drinks spilled on it. My grandchildren saved the day, introducing me to the phone app, but it would be far more convenient to have a physical remote control. What options are available to me? Guy Roberts A The best place to explore Roku remote controls is ebay (www.ebay.co.uk), where you’ll find brand new remotes for around £6 including delivery. If your Roku streaming device is one of the infra-red models, such as the Roku Express, it should work with any universal remote control. However, there are models specifically designed for this kind of device. Our favourite is the One For All Streamer Remote (£16 from www.snipca.com/36936), which you…

Painter 2021 is the latest version of the industry’s most powerful and creative professional digital painting software on macOS and Windows. Take complete control of every element of your painting including detail and colour matching with 12 new AI-Based Art Styles. Explore a new Thick Paint-compatible brush category and enhanced Thick Paint brushes. The Brush Accelerator analyzes hardware and graphics-card capabilities to deliver the best possible painting experience. Additional performance optimisations include twice as many GPU-accelerated stamp brushes, up to four times faster drop and liquid brush technologies, and quicker brush and tool switching. Painter 2021 streamlines the creative workflow for today’s professional and aspiring digital artists across industries. To enter this competition, email your address to cacomp@dennis.co.uk with ‘Painter’ in the subject line by midnight Tuesday 26 January. Good…

Task Air Free* Android www.snipca.com/36874 Some to-do lists try to do too much. Not Task Air. Its uncluttered interface makes it easy to see what you still need to do. Tap the button beside each listed task to mark it as done, and clear your completed jobs in a batch. Jobs can be organised into groups for personal, groceries and so on. Removing adverts costs 99p. DSLR Camera 79p* iOS www.snipca.com/36873 Take your phone camera further with a raft of manual controls, like shutter speed, focus and sensitivity. You can preview the results in real time to gauge the effect before you take the shot. You can shoot both RAW and JPEG photos, overlay the screen with a grid to help keep things straight and shoot bursts of photos for…

The URLs for some web pages can stretch to well over 100 characters. If you copy then paste one of these sprawling URLs into an email or other browser-based tool they’ll take up a huge amount of space, making it harder for the recipient to read your email and work out what the web link relates to. However, if you copy and paste a link using the latest version (87) of Microsoft Edge, it will now display with the full title of that web page, hyperlinked to the relevant address. This makes the links shorter and easier to read. You don’t need to do anything to make use of the new feature – simply copy and paste as you normally would. However, it only works if you copy the link…

Raise money through a silent auction One of the best ways to raise money for your club or for charity is by selling items that have been created – or donated – via silent auctions online. They’re quick and easy to set up, and you can choose when to run them, and how many lots to offer. Jumblebee (www.jumblebee.co.uk) is our favourite silent auction site. It doesn’t charge a fee to set up an auction page, but it does take five per cent of any proceeds once the auction has closed. The site can either collect the payments for you, or you can use PayPal if you prefer. Set up your auction page Click the ‘Set up an auction now’ button on Jumblebee’s home page. Create a new account by…

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 1 Return 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 Kindle 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 Open the Google Play Store homepage and navigate to the Newsstand…

Why can’t I install PowerToys? Q I tried to install PowerToys, as recommended in Issue 591’s Cover Feature, but it says my PC isn’t compatible. It runs a 32bit edition of Windows 10 but I think PowerToys requires a 64bit system? Can you advise me? Also I’m guessing the Windows 10 Pro special offer on the Computeractive Software Store (https://store.computeractive.co.uk) is the 64bit edition? Mike lillis A The new version of PowerToys only works on 64bit editions of Windows 10 (as stated by Microsoft in the screenshot below). There’s no solution, at least while your PC remains running a 32bit Windows 10. However, your PC could be capable of running a 64bit version of Windows 10. The Computeractive Software Store does indeed sell 64bit editions, which include the option to…

Google’s fix reinforces how sensible it was for Microsoft to rebuild Edge using the Chromium code that underpins Chrome. One tweak of the code updates both browsers, making life easier for users. Edge’s forthcoming password tools are welcome also, serving as further proof that Microsoft’s browser is a serious longterm rival to Chrome. Google’s browser is still the world’s most popular, with its market share of 65 per cent dwarfing Edge’s 10 per cent. But don’t be surprised if that gap narrows considerably during 2021.…

BT is now recommending its 4G home broadband service to more customers, not just those who can’t get 10Mbps and are therefore eligible for faster speeds under the Universal Service Obligation (USO). BT has previously recommended 4G mostly for USO customers, but the option now also appears when you use BT’s broadband availability checker (www.bt.com/broadband/availability) and find that you can’t get speeds higher than around 24Mbps, such as those offered by ADSL2+ broadband. The company’s 4G Home Broadband service (www.bt.com/broadband/4g-hub) comes with its 4G Home Hub to provide mobile broadband around your home. There are two 24-month packages available, with maximum speeds of 15Mbps (£45 a month) and 30Mbps (£55 a month). There are no upfront costs, but prices will increase in March by the CPI rate of inflation published…

BT is leading a group of companies working to establish the UK’s first commercial ‘drone corridor’, in which unmanned aerial vehicles will share the same airspace as aeroplanes. Project XCelerate, backed by £125m from the Government as part of its Fund Future Flight Challenge, will see drones flown along a five-mile flight path south of Reading, Berkshire. The aim is to fly drones out of sight of the person controlling them, something which is currently illegal. If successful, the trial could pave the way for drones to deliver urgent items such as medical and emergency equipment. These could help emergency services deal with road accidents, for example, because drones would be able to arrive at destinations faster than helicopters. In future, drones may also lead to the mass delivery of…

WATCH OUT FOR… Jump the queue’ vaccine emails What’s the threat? Interpol has warned people that scammers are likely to exploit the coronavirus vaccine by sending emails claiming to offer ways to sign up for one, potentially allowing you to get the jab before you’re entitled to it. It also called for law-enforcement bodies around the world to work together to shut down websites selling fake vaccines. Jürgen Stock, Interpol’s secretary general, said: “It is essential that law enforcement is as prepared as possible for what will be an onslaught of all types of criminal activity linked to the Covid-19 vaccine”. Its Cybercrime Unit added that sites selling fake cures aren’t just scams; they can also contain malware. In a study of 3,000 websites suspected of selling fake medicines and…

Nero helps me bridge digital divide Thanks for a great magazine. I’m not sure I could survive without it, especially as I provide some IT support to a debt-advice charity. As soon as I received Issue 596, I was attracted to the Cover Feature (‘Software You Should Never Install’, pictured above right), largely because I purchased Nero Platinum Suite last year, and it was one of the programs you said we shouldn’t use! If I only used it to burn discs, then it would be a rip-off, but it does a bit more than that. In particular, I can use it to edit videos. The Covid pandemic has emphasised the digital divide, which I have always been passionate about. Many people who live alone and who do not have access…

Reading a five-star review of Chillblast’s Fusion Onyx PC in Computeractive (Issue 572, page 22), I purchased one in June. I was impressed with it, but in August the processor fan failed. I got it working by changing how it was controlled in the BIOS but I still contacted Chillblast about the fault. Chillblast said that if I returned the PC they would put it right. As a man of some years (77) who relies on his PC for all sorts, I was reluctant to do this, not least because I had five hard drives in the machine with all sorts of family stuff on them. To cut a long story short, Chillblast built me a replacement PC for free. They upgraded the case and motherboard to better accommodate all…

IMAGE VIEWER ImageGlass 8 https://imageglass.org What you need: Windows 7, 8.1 or 10 Whereas tools such as GIMP (www.gimp.org) and Paint.NET (www.getpaint.net) focus on improving your photos and other images, ImageGlass concentrates on letting you open and view them. The program is small (under 40MB) and responds quickly when opening photos and moving between them. If you want your photos shown in all their glory you can view them in a borderless window by hiding the Image-Glass toolbars, or use the full-screen mode (as explained below). Format support is excellent, with ImageGlass able to open more than 70 formats, including the RAW formats used by most digital cameras (photos saved without any image processing, such as white balance). Version 8 not only adds support for CR3 images (Canon’s latest raw…

WARNING: JUNK AHEAD Junk offender: Windows 10 adverts Windows 10 is a brilliant operating system, but if there’s one thing that annoys me, it’s the adverts. Just when I think I’ve blocked all the ads from the lock screen, Start menu, Action Centre, live tiles and so on, Microsoft finds new ways to hit me with the hard sell – this time, it’s via the Settings app. Since the October 2020 Update, you may have noticed a new banner in the Settings home page saying ‘Get even more out of Windows’. Click the ‘Let’s Go!’ button and you’ll be taken to a full-screen prompt inviting you to finish setting up your computer. Similar screens often appear after Windows updates, but there are a couple of new things to watch out…

MINI PC | £479 from TechnoWorld www.snipca.com/36946 Make space Most desktop PCs come in tower cases, but if you’re short on space they can take up way too much room on or under your desk. You can still have a desktop PC, however, if you opt for a mini PC. HP’s EliteDesk 705 is an unobtrusive little box, sitting 34mm covering a surface area of 177x175mm. It can sit flat or on its side using the supplied stand. If you have a compatible monitor, it even has the option of screwing into a standard monitor mounting on the back (known as VESA, after the Video Electronics Standards Association that came up with the specification for it). “Decent space-saving PC for everyday Windows tasks on the latest Wi-Fi standard” It can…

What does it do? Creates a wired network between your router and PCs using Ethernet cable. It’s faster, more secure and less prone to interference from neighbouring networks than Wi-Fi. How does it work? Originally developed at US printer manufacturer Xerox in the 1970s, the Ethernet standard now uses fibre-optic cables to transfer data from one PC to another. This is efficient and can operate over long distances without problems. The downside is that you have to trail cables between connected devices. What are the specs? Ethernet originally transferred data at 10Mbps. Nowadays most modern devices come with Gigabit Ethernet, which can transfer data at a rate of 1Gbps (1,000Mbps). You won’t get this rate of transfer, however, unless the hardware at both ends supports the standard, and you’re using…

What is it? Samsung’s TV technology, which uses tiny light-emitting diodes (LEDs) to make slim TVs of almost any size. What does it do? Each microLED pixel is an individual multi-coloured light. Older TV technology relies on shining a backlight through several colour-changing layers, which isn’t as good at displaying detailed dark images because there’s light being emitted from behind. A microLED can switch individual pixels off to create a perfect black and flawless contrast. What’s the catch? Samsung has struck out alone with microLED while LG and Sony are opting for variations on OLED screens, which have revolutionised smartphones using similar technology to microLED. OLED TVs are becoming more affordable with similar levels of contrast and quality. So can I do without it? Yes. MicroLED screens are still too…

What you need: Plex; Network attached storage (NAS) drive Time required: One hour If you read Issue 590’s Cover Feature, you’ll probably already know that we’re big fans of the Plex media server. Put simply, Plex is a wonderfully easy way for you to set up your own streaming service, letting you access all your photos, music and videos from any device, wherever you are. But while you can install the Plex server on your PC, that might not actually be where you keep your media files. Even if it is, you may not be too comfortable leaving your computer permanently switched on in order to get the most out of Plex. Instead, if you have a network-attached storage (NAS) drive you might be able to run your Plex server…

TIP OF THE FORTNIGHT Turn on Control Panel to include in searches Thanks so much for recommending Ueli (www.snipca.com/36726) in Issue 595 (page 61). I was sceptical at first, but I can’t believe how easy and fast it makes searching your computer. You mentioned that it searches the Control Panel, though that didn’t seem to work for me. I discovered why while digging through Ueli’s settings. To find these, you have to right-click Ueli’s logo in the system tray, then click Settings. You’ll see a list of plug-ins on the left, some with a green button (switched on), some red (switched off). Control Panel was red, so I clicked it, then clicked the red power button at the top right so it turned green (see screenshot). The other essential settings…

Day One Free* iOS www.snipca.com/36880 This app provides daily prompts that help you think of something to write if not much is happening. Otherwise, this is a great way to collect photos, audio clips, thoughts and more so that you can roll back through them in years to come. The free app lets you write as many entries as you want in a single journal. Best for Versatile diary keeping Journey Free* Android www.snipca.com/36881 iOS www.snipca.com/36882 As well as giving you space to write traditional diary entries, Journey can note the weather (which it downloads from the web), lets you add locations (which it detects), tag entries, record your mood, attach photos and drawings and more. Best for Logging every aspect of your life Daylio Free* Android www.snipca.com/36883 iOS www.snipca.com/36884…

LIBREOFFICE CALC & MICROSOFT EXCEL Control tab zoom levels In LibreOffice Calc, you can zoom in or out of a spreadsheet by holding down the Ctrl key and using your mouse’s scroll wheel or using the zoom controls in the bottom-right corner of the window. However, doing this will zoom all tabs in your spreadsheet. If you want to set each tab to a different zoom level, press Alt+F12 to open the LibreOffice options window, expand the LibreOffice Calc section on the left by doubleclicking it, then select View. On the right of the window, untick the ‘Synchronise sheets’ box in the Zoom section (see screenshot below), then click OK. Any adjustments you make to the zoom level will now only apply to the tab you have currently selected. Excel…

Where’s that? You mean, what is that. OK, what is that? It’s the codename of a major redesign of Windows 10 that will make it look more modern, with new icons, splashes of colour and boxes getting rounded corners. Leaked documents from Microsoft call the design “reinvigorating”, making it sound more like an overpriced shower gel smelling of exotic fruit than a revamped user interface. Can I see what it looks like? Yes, if you’re signed up to the Windows Insider Program (https://insider.windows.com). Click the Start menu, type alarms, then open the ‘Alarms & Clock’ desktop app that appears. This is the first tool Microsoft has redesigned as part of the Sun Valley project. If you’re not a Windows Insider, take a look at the app being demonstrated at www.snipca.com/37021…