Windows 10 Archives - Page 14 of 55

How to force Windows to create a new System Restore Point every day

Posted on December 19, 2022

System Restore is a handy tool that you can use to restore your PC’s Windows installation back to a previous (working) state if a virus or some other issue causes your computer to stop working as it should.

I’ve personally used System Restore to quickly get myself out of a lot of jams in the past, usually after installing a program or app that I was asked to test and review.

While it’s not as comforting as having a recent System Image Backup on hand, knowing that I can usually use System Restore to get my computer up and running again in a hurry if disaster ever strikes is great for my peace of mind. [Read more…]

How to enable the F8 key for booting Windows 10/11 into Safe Mode

Posted on December 16, 2022

Rick’s Tech Tips Newsletter

In Windows 7 (and earlier versions) we could easily boot our computers into Safe Mode by repeatedly pressing the F8 key when Windows first started loading.

Starting with Windows 8, Microsoft disabled that option in order to help speed up the boot process. Personally, I have never been very fond of that change.

If you miss being able to press F8 to boot into Safe Mode on your Windows 10/11 machine, you can easily enable it with a simple command line entry. [Read more…]

Q&A: How can I change where Windows 10 saves new documents?

Posted on December 4, 2022

Question from Paul: I recently discovered that the C: drive in my Windows 10 computer is almost full so I installed a second hard drive.

Everything works fine but when I create a new document Windows still tries to save it to the C: drive. And since that drive is full it can’t save it.

I have to manually choose the E: drive (the new hard drive) every time I try to save a new document.

How can I change it so Windows will automatically store the new files I create on the E: drive instead of the C: drive? [Read more…]

Q&A: Why does Windows 10 keep changing my default printer?

Posted on November 30, 2022

Question from Darren: I love your blog Rick, especially the questions and answers section.

I hope you can help me solve a problem I’ve been having ever since I replaced my old computer with one running Windows 10.

I use two printers with my computer. The first one is an Epson inkjet that I use every now and then to print photos. The other is a Brother laser printer that I use to print most everything else.

With Windows 7 I could leave the laser printer as the default printer, then switch to the inkjet manually on the rare occasions when I needed to use it. But with Windows 10, every time I print to either printer, that printer gets set as the default printer.

I really want the laser printer to remain as the default and switch to the inkjet manually when I need it. Is there any way to stop Windows 10 from changing the default printer without my permission? [Read more…]

How to quickly lock down ALL of Windows 10’s privacy settings

Posted on November 9, 2022

As you probably know by now, Windows 10 is a nightmare when it comes to privacy.

Truth be told, if you accept all of Windows 10’s default privacy settings you won’t have much privacy at all while you’re using your PC.

There are almost two dozen important privacy settings that need to be changed in order to lock down your privacy as much as possible, but unfortunately they’re scattered all over the place throughout your Windows 10 installation. [Read more…]