Rick's Daily Tips

Q&A: Why does my computer want to hibernate when I do a regular shutdown?

Posted on October 9, 2017

Question from Michael D: My computer has a strange problem Rick, and it’s driving me up the wall.

When I shut the system down, everything that was open when I shut it down opens back up when I turn it back on.

Every program reopens, every browser and website reopens… It’s like I hibernated the machine instead of shutting it down. But that’s not the case. I always do a normal shutdown.

Can you help me resolve this? My computer is a Dell Inspiron 3464 with Windows 10 Home.

Rick’s answer: [Read more…]

Review: CUK MSI GT72VR Dominator Virtual Reality Gaming Laptop

Posted on October 7, 2017

Gaming laptops are getting more powerful all the time, even as their prices continue to drop.

A perfect case in point is the awesome new CUK MSI GT72VR Dominator Virtual Reality Gaming Laptop.

To be blunt and straight-to-the-point, this machine has just about everything a serious gamer could want in a laptop. It’s even VR-ready right out of the box!

This is quite simply one powerhouse of a machine. Let’s take a quick look at the specs: [Read more…]

AOL Instant Messenger to shut down in December

Posted on October 6, 2017

AOL Instant Messenger (aka AIM) is probably the oldest Internet instant messaging service still in existence today, but that will soon change.

If you’re one of the millions of people worldwide who still use AIM to chat with friends and relatives you’ll need to migrate to something else before the end of the year.

I’ve had a feeling this day was coming for some time now since so many AIM users have switched to Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp and SnapChat in recent years.

For what it’s worth, AIM outlasted both the once hugely-popular Yahoo Messenger and MSN Messenger services, but now AOL has succumbed to the Facebook/WhatsApp/ShapChat steamroller as well.

AOL released a new help article this morning with the details of the impending shutdown. Here are the five most important takeaways from that article: [Read more…]

How to adjust the volume for individual programs and apps on your PC

Posted on October 5, 2017

Sometimes it can seem like your PC’s volume control has a mind of its own.

For example, have you ever turned the volume up to a comfortable level while listening to music only to have your ears blasted to oblivion the next time an ad started playing in your web browser?

That’s happened to me more than once, and I almost jumped out of my skin of every time!

But it doesn’t have to be that way. You can take control of the sounds emanating from your computer’s speakers and avoid unpleasant surprises. [Read more…]

Q&A: Is there a way to password protect a file in Windows?

Posted on October 5, 2017

Question from Vicky J:. Rick, I share my computer with my two kids and I have a couple of files that I really don’t want them to see. Nothing inappropriate, just files containing sensitive personal information.

Is there any way to put a password on a file in Windows so that it becomes inaccessible to anyone who doesn’t know the password?

I’ve Googled this every way I could possibly think of and I just could’t find a way to do it. But surely there is?

I really appreciate your help!

Rick’s answer: [Read more…]