Computer Tips Archives - Page 4 of 232

Q&A: Can I use an old external hard drive with my new MacBook?

Posted on January 24, 2026

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Question from Lawrence: Hi, Rick. I’m hoping you can answer a question for me about hard drives.

I have an older Seagate STHN2000400 2TB external hard drive that I used for several years to store photos and other files from my old MacBook. Well that MacBook finally died and I replaced it with this MacBook Pro.

The problem I’m having is the MacBook Pro won’t work with the Seagate drive because there’s no connector on the laptop that will accept the old-style USB plug on the drive cable.

If at all possible I’d like to keep using this drive with the new MacBook Pro because it contains thousands of photos that don’t exist anywhere else.

Is there any way I can use this drive with the new laptop? Maybe some kind of adapter? [Read more…]

Q&A: How do you hide a folder in Windows 11?

Posted on January 22, 2026

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Question from Pauley: I have a folder on my Windows 11 computer with files in it that I don’t want to accidentally delete.

Is there some way to hide that folder so I can’t accidently click on it and delete it? I recently switched to Windows from the Mac world and I can’t find a way to do it.

Rick’s answer: It’s actually very easy to hide a folder on a Windows 11 PC, Pauley. All it takes is a few mouse clicks. Just folle the steps below.

To hide a folder on your Windows 11 PC:

1 – Right-click on the folder you want to hide and select Properties from the menu.

2 – Check the box beside Hidden, then click OK.

Important: You will need to remember which folder on your hard drive/SSD contains your hidden folder so you’ll be able to navigate to it again if you are unable to remember the hidden folder’s exact name.

For example, if the hidden folder is on the Desktop you’ll need to remember to look for it there the next time you need to access it.

Likewise, if your hidden folder resides in the Documents folder (or the Pictures folder or any other folder) you will need to look for it there.

To access a hidden folder:

Now that you’ve hidden the folder, you’ll also need to know how to unhide it when you need to access it. Luckily, that’s really quite easy to do.

There are two ways to access your hidden folder. First, if you know the folder’s exact filename you can simply search for it by clicking the Start button and then typing the folder’s name. You should see it pop in the search results. Once you see it simply click on it and the folder will open.

If you can’t remember the folder’s exact name you can navigate to the folder containing the hidden folder and then temporarily “unhide” all the hidden items on your PC. Just follow the steps below:

1 – Open File Explorer and navigate to the drive and folder the hidden folder resides in.

2 – Click View on the top menu bar, then click Show>Hidden items. The hidden folder should now be visible and accessible in the usual way.

3 – After you have finished using the folder in question you can repeat steps 1 and 2 and click Show>Hidden items again to rehide the folder.

That’s all there is to hiding (and unhiding) a folder from view on a Windows 11 PC.

Now, I feel compelled to mention this important caveat:

Simply hiding a folder won’t keep someone else with at least a basic knowledge of Windows from finding it.

Truth be told, hiding a folder doesn’t really secure its contents in any way. All it really does is keep it from being seen by a novice user.

I hope this helps, Pauley. Good luck!

Bonus tip: Since you’re new to the world of Windows you might want to get one of these. (#ad)

How to shop at Amazon without using a credit/debit card

Posted on January 16, 2026

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You probably know that Amazon is the world’s largest online retailer.

You’re also probably aware that you can often save money on your purchases due to Amazon’s low prices and free shipping on many items.

It’s true that Amazon is a great place to shop for the items you need, but many folks think they can’t shop there because they don’t have a credit card or debit card and they don’t want to use their bank account online.

But truth be told, you actually can shop at Amazon without having to give them any credit/debit card or bank account information whatsoever!

[Read more…]

How (and why) to force Windows 11 to show file extensions in File Explorer

Posted on January 15, 2026

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For whatever reason, the folks at Microsoft must have decided it’s a good idea to hide file extensions when using the File Explorer dialog in Windows 11.

I really don’t understand the thinking behind keeping file extensions hidden since they’re so useful for quickly determining a file’s type when viewing its filename.

Seeing a file’s extension can provide an important clue about which app you’ll need to use in order to open it, and there are other reasons as well. Here’s a great example (and it’s an important one). [Read more…]