Rick's Daily Tips

Quickly get all of your PC’s specs with Speccy

Posted on March 23, 2024

Unless you enjoy “popping the hood” on your PC and getting to know its innards on a first-name basis, you probably have no clue what all is inside there.

Sure, you know there’s a CPU, a motherboard, a hard drive or SSD, RAM sticks and a number of other components, but you probably don’t know many of the technical details about those components.

Computer parts such as the ones listed above vary greatly in terms of speed, capacity, and software compatibility so it pays to have a handy reference just in case you ever need to call Tech Support or install a new piece of software (or even upgrade to a new version of Windows). [Read more…]

How to create (and use) an emergency virus removal flash drive

Posted on March 23, 2024

Let’s face it, computer viruses, trojans and other forms of malware are a fact of life.

Regardless of how carefully you try to avoid it there’s a good chance that your PC will become infected sooner or later.

Most pieces of malicious code can be quickly removed with a normal virus scan and cleanup, but some infections are so insidious that they are difficult to detect and remove with a regular scan.

Even worse, some strains of malware can even render your PC incapable of connecting to the Internet in order to download an updated virus definition file.

Others still will prevent your PC’s installed antivirus program from loading at all.

This is why you need a plan “B” – an emergency virus removal USB flash drive. [Read more…]

5 essential gadgets for a great summer vacation

Posted on March 23, 2024

Note: The links in this post are affiliate links.

Well, it’s that time of year again. Spring has sprung, and if you’re like most folks you’re probably busy planning your summer vacation.

The available choices of places to go and things to do are seemingly endless, but whatever you and your family end up doing this summer, your gadgets will probably accompany you during your travels.

With that in mind, here are a few vacation “tech tips” to help ensure that you enjoy the best summer vacation possible: [Read more…]

Understanding how eNotes work

Posted on March 23, 2024

A loan origination cycle is incomplete without a promissory note. Whenever someone borrows money, they sign a legal document called a promissory note.

This note confirms that the borrower promises to pay back the loan in installments or as a lump sum, as outlined in the loan agreement.

The promissory note is a legally binding document that can be used in court to validate the loan agreement. The note confirms the lender’s validity and the borrower’s creditworthiness. It is important to note that the promissory note only guarantees the repayment of the loan or credit that has been borrowed. [Read more…]

Beware of strange noises coming from your computer

Posted on March 22, 2024

If the hard drive in your computer is typical, it makes a distinctive sound that you probably learned to recognize once you had used your computer for a day or two.

The sound coming from your hard drive might be a quiet, smooth hum that you can barely hear (if you can hear it at all) or a slightly louder sound, but whatever sound it makes it should make consistently with very little deviation. [Read more…]