{"id":22649,"date":"2021-12-11T08:59:51","date_gmt":"2021-12-11T13:59:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thundercloud.net\/infoave\/new\/?p=22649"},"modified":"2021-12-11T08:59:51","modified_gmt":"2021-12-11T13:59:51","slug":"saturday-bonus-questions-answers-121121","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thundercloud.net\/infoave\/new\/saturday-bonus-questions-answers-121121\/","title":{"rendered":"Saturday Bonus Questions & Answers – 121121"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Saturday Bonus Questions & Answers – 121121<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Merry<\/p>\n

Wishing you and the ones you love a very Merry Christmas!<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\n

It’s Saturday. The weekend is here and you know what that means. It’s time for more Bonus Questions & Answers.<\/span><\/p>\n

Sometimes the best tips and tricks are hidden in the questions and answers we publish. And rarely do we post questions and answers on this website. Today, we\u2019re featuring some of the questions and answers from past issues of our InfoAve Weekly<\/a> newsletters.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

These answers were selected at random from past InfoAve Weekly newsletters.<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

Saturday Bonus Questions & Answers – 121121<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Susan has a black box that covers each letter as she types<\/strong><\/span>
\nAll of a sudden I am getting a small black box covering each letter as I type – especially when typing passwords when online.\u00a0 This all started when I followed your instructions to change my cursor size and color. I thought I followed your instructions, but maybe I missed a step.\u00a0 Can you help me?<\/span><\/p>\n

Our answer<\/strong><\/span>
\nHi Susan. You diagnosed your problem. Good job. Changing your cursor size (width) and color affects all pointers and cursors on your Windows user account. If it bothers you when you sign in then you’ll need to go back to Settings > Ease of Access > Cursor & pointer size, and change the mouse pointer so it’s narrower and, if necessary, change the color. Just guessing but it seems to me that you may have set your cursor to its thickest width and that can cause the problem you describe as a wide cursor can cover more than one letter or space at a time.<\/span><\/p>\n

Try making the cursor\/mouse pointer thinner. You may have to restart your computer to see changes on the log-in screen.<\/span><\/p>\n

I hope this helps you, Susan.<\/span>
\n——-<\/span>
\nSusan wrote back: “Wow! Thanks! You hit the nail on the head. All fixed now. Thanks so much. Susan”<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

\n

Judy wants to change her Windows 10 local account to a Microsoft accoun<\/strong>t<\/span>
\nI already have a password for my lock screen (and I really do know what it is <g>), but I want to change it to my Microsoft password. Is that doable? I know on my desktop, I get asked if I want to change the password, but my laptop doesn’t give me that option. Judy<\/span><\/p>\n

Our answer<\/strong><\/span>
\nHi Judy. If I understand your question, you want to change your Windows 10 Local account to a Microsoft account. If that is what you want to do, you can switch your account from a local account to Microsoft account, by doing this:<\/span><\/p>\n

1.\u00a0 Right-click on the Start button<\/span>
\n2.\u00a0 Click on Settings<\/span>
\n3.\u00a0 In Settings click on Accounts<\/span>
\n4.\u00a0 Select Your email and accounts and click on “Sign in with a Microsoft account instead”. <\/span>
\n5.\u00a0 Type the details for your Microsoft Account.<\/span>
\n6.\u00a0 Reboot the PC for the changes to take effect.<\/span><\/p>\n

Let me know if that does the trick.<\/span>
\n—–<\/span>
\nJudy wrote back: “God Bless you. Thank you so much, Judy.”<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

\n

Wayne wants LastPass back in Chrome<\/strong><\/span>
\nFirst of all, I would like to thank TC again for the wonderful repair he did on my Chrome Browser for my laptop. He has it working like a new computer again.<\/span><\/p>\n

My question is how can I get my password manager ” LastPass” back into my Chrome Browser. I really depend on this program for filling in passwords. As it is now I have to open a separate window and copy & paste my passwords. Any help at all will be greatly appreciated.<\/span><\/p>\n

Our answer<\/strong><\/span>
\nHi Wayne. Thanks so much for your nice comments! <\/span><\/p>\n

There’s an easy solution for your password manager problem. Open Chrome and click on this link https:\/\/tinyurl.com\/nzqap3p<\/a>, You’ll end up on the LastPass for Chrome page, and you can install it right into Chrome from there. It will put a LastPass icon on your Chrome toolbar. <\/span><\/p>\n

All you have to do then is click the icon and log in with your LastPass username (email address) and master password. When signed in the icon will turn red. That’s all there is to it! <\/span><\/p>\n

Let me know if this helps you.<\/span>
\n—–<\/span>
\nWayne wrote back: “Thank you again TC. The solution you gave for adding LastPass to my new Chrome Browser worked just fine. I am a very happy subscriber as are so others and so glad to have people like you and EB. to rely on for our computer needs. Bless you, both.”<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

\n
\n
\n
\n

Virginia has a question about drivers
\n<\/strong>It seems to me that at one time, I remember reading that Drivers were not necessary to install. But I am seeing now in my HP Support Assistant Updates that there are numerous Drivers ready to be installed. Are any in this list absolutely necessary for running on my HP all-in-one new computer?<\/span><\/p>\n

AMD High-Definition Graphics Driver<\/span>
\nAMD High-Definition Graphics Driver-Picasso (Windows 10 v1909)<\/span>
\nRealtek Bluetooth Audio Driver for Microsoft Windows<\/span>
\nRealtek Card Reader Driver<\/span>
\nRealtek Ethernet Driver<\/span>
\nRealtek RTL8000 Series Bluetooth Driver for Microsoft Windows<\/span>
\nRealtek RTL8xxx Series Bluetooth Driver for Microsoft Windows 10 (DCHU)<\/span>
\nRealtek RTL8xxx Series Wireless LAN Drivers for Microsoft Windows 10 (DCHU)<\/span><\/p>\n

When I type “Bluetooth” into the search box, I’m told that Bluetooth IS turned on, so I guess I have it. I don’t know what DCHU stands for. The computer is running just fine after a recent factory reset, so I’m wondering if any of these updates should be downloaded & installed. Can you shed light on this question?<\/span><\/p>\n

Our answer<\/strong><\/span>
\nHi Virginia. If your computer and its hardware (graphics, sound, USB ports, etc.) are working properly, you don’t need driver updates. Our #1 simple rule is -“If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”. And that has served us well for a long time.<\/span><\/p>\n

Unless you’re having problems with your PC or any of its components, you don’t need to update anything except Windows. <\/span><\/p>\n

Oh, by the way, DCHU is just a geeky acronym that refers to universal drivers (drivers that work with several different components).<\/span><\/p>\n

My advice? If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!<\/span>
\n—-<\/span>
\nVirginia wrote back: “Holy Cow, TC! You’re faster than a speeding bullet! (So you know what era I’m from, don’t you?) I had remembered something from the past about not downloading drivers – must have been from you guys, I read everything you two send out. Thanks a million for that confirmation, it puts my mind at ease now.”<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

\n

Jim wants to know if Microsoft did away with the checkboxes feature on Windows 10<\/strong><\/span>
\nI recently upgraded from Windows 7 to Windows 10. For the most part, I like Windows 10. But one feature of Windows 7 I loved but now can\u2019t find on Windows 10 is the item checkbox feature. Did they do away with the checkbox feature in Windows 10?<\/span><\/p>\n

Our answer<\/strong><\/span>
\nHi Jim. Good news! The item checkbox feature is alive and well on Windows 10. It works just like it did on Windows 7.<\/span><\/p>\n

You can enable item checkboxes in Windows 10 this way\u2026<\/span><\/p>\n

Press the Windows Key + E key to open File Explorer. Then click on \u201cView\u201d at the top. Now, tick the box next to \u201cItem check boxes\u201d (see below), then close File Explorer.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Cloudeight<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s a closer view:<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Cloudeight<\/p>\n

Now item checkboxes will work just like they did in Windows 7.<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

Sydney lost the Windows Photos app on Windows 10 and wants it back<\/strong><\/span>
\nLast night when I went to bed, everything on my computer was working correctly. This morning, after the backup was complete, I tried to open a picture with my default, Photo App. Nothing opened and I got an Error message. I have looked at the menu and programs, and it is not listed. I went to Microsoft to download the program and was told it is already on my computer. I still can\u2019t find it even searching, and still can\u2019t get the photos to open without going to another program. I have downloaded the My Photos App, but I liked the original better. HELP!<\/span><\/p>\n

Our answer<\/strong><\/span>
\nHi Sidney. Try re-registering the Photos app.<\/span><\/p>\n

Perform the following steps in order:<\/span><\/p>\n

1. Type POWERSHELL in taskbar search.<\/span><\/p>\n

2. In search results click on Windows PowerShell and select Run as administrator.<\/span><\/p>\n

3. Copy & paste the following command into Powershell and press Enter:<\/span><\/p>\n

Get-AppxPackage -allusers Microsoft.Windows.Photos | Foreach {Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register \u201c$($_.InstallLocation)\\AppXManifest.xml\u201d}<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Let the command run and finish.<\/span><\/p>\n

4. Close Windows PowerShell.<\/span><\/p>\n

5. Restart your computer.<\/span><\/p>\n

Let us know if this helps.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2014\u2014\u2014-<\/span>
\nSydney wrote back: \u201cI got it back!!!! THANK YOU. You are the best ever.<\/em>\u201c<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

Ellen wants a free program to open special zip files<\/strong><\/span>
\nI am hoping that you can help me find a free Zip file opener. I can not open some of the zip files that I get for my embroidery projects. Thank you so much\u2026 Ellen<\/span><\/p>\n

Our answer<\/strong><\/span>
\nHi Ellen. We don\u2019t know what type of compressed files you have, but we can tell you that 7-Zip is a free program that opens almost every kind of compressed (zip ) file including GZ and RAR.<\/span><\/p>\n

You can download it free from http:\/\/www.7-zip.org<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

There\u2019s a 32-bit version and a 64-bit version. If you don\u2019t know whether your Windows 10 PC is 32-bit or 64-bit, do this: Type ABOUT in the taskbar search and press Enter. Look under \u201cDevice Specifications\u201d and then \u201cSystem type\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

Jan can\u2019t see all her\u00a0 Chrome extensions<\/strong><\/span>
\nHi. I have one question which I think more people than I would like a solution to. I prefer using Google Chrome and as you know there is (like Firefox) a possibility to add different extensions. I think I have more than 20 of them installed but I can only see the icons of about 10 of them. There is no more place to show them. Is it possible to add more space so I can see all of them? Time for your magic fingers again? Best regards, Jan<\/span><\/p>\n

Our answer<\/strong><\/span>
\nHi, Jan. There is only so much room to show icons for extensions as space is limited by the size of the address bar.\u00a0 You cannot increase the space to show more icons for extensions.<\/span><\/p>\n

In Chrome if you want to see all your extensions, click on the 3-vertical dots in the top right. From the dropdown menu, click \u201cMore tools\u201d then click \u201cExtensions\u201d. All your extensions will appear on that page.<\/span><\/p>\n

You can also type chrome:\/\/extensions<\/em> in the address bar to open the extensions page which looks like this.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Cloudeight<\/p>\n

But remember this: Having too many extensions can degrade browser performance and cause problems as each extension uses memory. If Chrome\u2019s performance starts to slow or Chrome stops working correctly, you might want to cut down the number of extensions that are installed. Also, browser extensions are a favorite item for malware makers to bundle with freeware installers. Always be careful and make sure you\u2019re not using a PUP or malware extension.<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

George wants to know about AVG PC Tune-up<\/strong><\/span>
\nWhat do you think of AVG PC Tune-Up software? Is it worth installing on my 5-year-old computer? I try to keep up with maintenance and think I do pretty well keeping my PC clean. But I would like to get a few more years out of this computer. Do you think AVG PC Tune-up would help?<\/span><\/p>\n

Our answer<\/strong><\/span>
\nHi George. AVG supposedly protects your computer from software bundles, malware & viruses. How ironic that AVG is bundling its questionable one-click fix with their software. Installing \u201cPC Tune-up\u201d from AVG might just bring your PC to its grave a bit sooner. Our advice? Don\u2019t install it.<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

Thelma wants to sign in to Windows 10 with a PIN<\/strong><\/span>
\nI would like to log in with a PIN. How do I set it up, please? Also, the screen only stays for about 10 seconds then it goes to the background.<\/span><\/p>\n

Our answer<\/strong><\/span>
\nHi Thelma. The Windows 10 sign-in screen only stays visible for 10-15 seconds before going back to the lock screen (the picture). This is normal. You can just tap or click on the lock screen to get back to the sign-in screen, it’s not a big deal.<\/span><\/p>\n

To set a PIN, you first need to be using a password to log into Windows. <\/span><\/p>\n

Here is how to set a PIN:<\/span><\/p>\n

Type YOUR INFO into Taskbar search. On the page that opens, click “Sign-in Options” (it’s on the menu on the left). When Sign-in Options opens, click on PIN or Windows Hello PIN (depending on your Windows version)<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Cloudeight<\/span><\/p>\n

You can set up a PIN from there. You can use a 4-digit PIN (recommended) or you can create a complex PIN using numbers, letters, symbols – but that kind of defeats the purpose of using a PIN, I think.<\/span><\/p>\n

I hope this helps you, Thelma.<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

Don wants to start a weblog (blog)<\/strong><\/span>
\nDo you have any information about weblogs (blogs)? How to set up, etc. Thanks, Don<\/span><\/p>\n

Our answer<\/strong><\/span>
\nHere are two sites that will tell and show you how to set up your blog.<\/span><\/p>\n

https:\/\/www.wpbeginner.com\/free-wordpress-blog-setup\/<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

https:\/\/www.wix.com\/start\/blog<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

And there are many others. Both of those are reputable and both offer free blogs.<\/span><\/p>\n

I hope this helps you get started.<\/span><\/p>\n

\n
\n

Jay had files transferred to his new computer and now has duplicates\u2026<\/strong><\/span>
\nI recently purchased a new computer and had data transferred from my old one. The old one had transferred data from an older one on it. How can I find, and get rid of, duplicate files on my new computer?<\/span><\/p>\n

Our answer<\/strong><\/span>
\nHi Jay. You can remove duplicate files with programs called \u201cduplicate file finders\u201d. But be careful, most of them are too aggressive and can delete files you don\u2019t want to be deleted. The only duplicate file finder we recommend (and only when used with caution) is called Anti-Twin. We think it\u2019s the best and it\u2019s completely free.<\/span><\/p>\n

You can read our review and download it by visiting this page.<\/strong><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

We hope this helps, Jay.<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

Margaret wants to open Word documents but doesn\u2019t have MS Office or an Office Program installed<\/strong><\/span>
\nI have Windows 10, but I do not have Microsoft Office. All my files in Windows 7 were done on Word and saved to a CD. I am unable to open them. Is there a free download of Microsoft Office so that I can have Microsoft Word? Thank you.<\/span><\/p>\n

Our answer<\/strong><\/span>
\nHi Margaret. You can open Word Documents with WordPad which comes with every version of Windows. You will have to open WordPad first and then browse to the Word documents on the disk.<\/span><\/p>\n

You can open WordPad by typing WordPad in taskbar search and clicking on it when it appears in search results. Or you can open it from the Windows 10 Start menu \u2013 it\u2019s in Windows Accessories\/WordPad.<\/span><\/p>\n

We hope this helps you, Margaret.<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

Diane asks about OpenDNS<\/strong><\/span>
\nCurious is this site really as great as it sounds? https:\/\/www.opendns.com\/<\/a>. Also what exactly does it do for me?<\/span><\/p>\n

Our answer<\/strong><\/span>
\nHi Diane. We wrote about OpenDNS in 2013 (see this page<\/a>). But that was seven years ago and as with all things computer\/internet, seven years is a long time. <\/span><\/p>\n

It just reviewed OpenDNS again and it looks to me like they’ve decided to be your guardian or censor depending on how you look at it. Parental controls are fine as long as you decide what is inappropriate and not someone else. Having some else decide what’s appropriate never works out to be as rosy as it sounds. <\/span><\/p>\n

The only free OPENDNS service that you don’t have to sign up for is the free service where OpenDNS decides what you’ll see and what you won’t see. The free version with no sign-up is kind of like having someone else decide what books you can read and which books you’ll never see. Maybe you don’t want to see “Adult content” but who defines “adult content” for you? You or someone else? The free, no sign-up Open DNS option, decides for you… and is that ever a good idea?<\/span><\/p>\n

We’ve tried several DNS services including OpenDNS, Google Public DNS, and Cloudflare’s 1.1.1.1 DNS. I think Cloudflare’s 1.1.1.1 DNS is the fastest, most private, and the best. It’s also fairly easy to set up and you don’t have to give them any information or sign up for anything. We reviewed Cloudflare back in 2018 when it first came out. Today, I went back and took another look – and also set it up on the computer I am using. Again I was impressed.<\/span><\/p>\n

So, if you want to know what DNS services do and\/or if you would like to take a look at an alternative to OpenDNS, take a look at this article<\/a>. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n

Wait! Before you go\u2026<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Every week we help dozens of people with their computers without charge or any expectation of payment.\u00a0And we have helped many folks who have fallen for tech support scams or other scams designed to steal their money.<\/span><\/p>\n

And we now depend more on readers like you to help keep us going. Your donation helps us to help more people with their computers and helps us keep everyone safer online.<\/span><\/p>\n

Please help support our small business and help us to keep on helping you.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Help<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

\"Merry<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Saturday Bonus Questions & Answers – 121121 Wishing you and the ones you love a very Merry Christmas! It’s Saturday. The weekend is here and you know what that means. It’s time for more Bonus Questions & Answers. Sometimes the best tips and tricks are hidden in the questions and answers we publish. And rarely do\u2026 Read More »<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":17601,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1462,2574,1668,1678,1669,2509,1,3472,2942,3948,10],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thundercloud.net\/infoave\/new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22649"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thundercloud.net\/infoave\/new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thundercloud.net\/infoave\/new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thundercloud.net\/infoave\/new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thundercloud.net\/infoave\/new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=22649"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.thundercloud.net\/infoave\/new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22649\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":22650,"href":"https:\/\/www.thundercloud.net\/infoave\/new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22649\/revisions\/22650"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thundercloud.net\/infoave\/new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/17601"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thundercloud.net\/infoave\/new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22649"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thundercloud.net\/infoave\/new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22649"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thundercloud.net\/infoave\/new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22649"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}