Windows 11 Tip: Navigating the Linux Subsystem in Windows, A Comprehensive Guide
In the evolving landscape of operating systems, the integration of Linux within Windows, through the Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL), marks a revolutionary step for developers and IT professionals. This guide offers a comprehensive overview of WSL, detailing its variations, installation procedures, potential uses, and the requisite system requirements. Understanding WSL The Windows Subsystem for
Should you side load apps now that iOS 17.4 allows it?
The concept of app sideloading is not new, but its implications have taken on new weight in the context of iOS devices. Traditionally, Apple has maintained a closed ecosystem for its App Store, arguing that this approach is essential for ensuring security and privacy. However, the European Union’s Digital Markets Act (DMA) is set to
Android TV tips: How to use managed child Google accounts with YouTube on your smart tv
If like me, you have a Smart TV that runs on the Android TV OS, and you’d like to login to the YouTube app for your kids managed accounts, but can’t, then this article should help you. I purchased a Philips Ambilight OLED 65OLED707 TV several months ago, and it’s a pretty decent TV, apart
LG 49WQ95C super ultrawide curved monitor review
I was recently got my hands on a Philips 499P9H super ultrawide monitor in work, and was really impressed with it. Despite it being an old monitor, and not the most advanced because of it’s age, it still performs well and made me want one at home. So I dusted off the credit card and
Firefox Tip: How to reduce memory usage
If like me, you’ve noticed Firefox eating all of your memory, I hope this article, sharing my troubleshooting journey, will help you to get better insight into why it is using so much. I started by closing tabs, removing extensions and in fact doing this took my memory from 4.8GB to 6.2GB, and then restarting
Windows 11 tips: How to setup zones on ultrawide screen to organise your applications
If you have a super ultrawide screen monitor, such as the LG UltraWide 49 Inch 49WQ95C Curved Monitor, you may find it frustrating having to manually resize the apps to fit them on the screen. I’ll show you a fairly easy solution to make this easier to layout your screen and apps for day-to-day use.
Microsoft Teams Tip: How to share your screen when you have an ultrawide screen
If you have an ultrawide screen monitor, and get complaints when you share your screen, this article is for you. I’ve just got my hands on an ultrawidescreen display, and have found within a day that when sharing your screen via Teams, and I presume it’s the same via Zoom, TeamViewer etc, it’s unreadable for
iPhone Tip: Smart shopping lists using the Reminders app
Do you still struggle with your shopping lists on a piece of paper, or perhaps an app, and then find yourself pacing the isles of the super market, as you check off items? I was using Microsoft ToDo, mostly because I was using Wunderlist for years as it had shared lists, and then Microsoft bought
Windows 11 Tip: Enable / Install Telnet
If you know what Telnet is, and you’re reading this, then I’ll save you the spiel about what it is, how to use it or even why to use it. I’ll just get into how to enable / install it in Windows 11, and this works in Windows 10 too. 1) Open the Control Panel
Bambu Lab X1 Carbon: 1 week review
Hopefully this won’t spoil the article for you, but I’ll start off by saying that the Bambu Lab X1 Carbon 3d printer is fantastic, it looks great, prints well, and I love it. It feels like Bambu Lab is the Apple equivalent in the 3D printing world, and I compare the two because the machines
Windows 11 tip: How to find your wi-fi password
If you have forgotten your wi-fi password, but have already connected your Windows 11 computer to your network, then these steps will help you to recover it. Recovering your wi-fi password in Windows 11 To find your wi-fi password, on a Windows 11 machine, simply follow the below steps: 1) Right click on the ‘Start’
15 Essential tips to maximise the security of your password manager
If you’re reading this, I hope it means you’re using a password manager and are just looking to maximise on the security of your passwords, data and accounts. I think most people understand the need for strong passwords and multifactor authentication these days, but some struggle to putting their faith in single data store for
Bambu Lab X1 Carbon Tip: How to format Micro SD cards over 32GB as FAT32
If you have a Micro SD Card that’s larger than 32GB and you’d like to use it in your Bambu Lab 3D Printer (I have a X1 Carbon), and are a Windows user, you might be struggling. This is because Windows uses exFAX for devices over 32GB in size. Most systems don’t care if it’s
Mac OS X tip: How to change the menu bar colour
If like me, you like dark mode, you might be looking through the settings on your nice new Mac, and struggling to see how it’s done. I’d love to know why the menu colour doesn’t change with dark mode, but we’ll probably never know. Instead, it’s somehow linked to the wallpaper colour. It’s actually quite
Getting started with Power BI: A beginners guide / tutorial
Power BI is a powerful business analytics tool developed by Microsoft that enables users to visualize data and share insights across the organization, or even embed them in an app or website. It can connect to a broad range of data sources, from Excel spreadsheets to cloud-based and on-premise SQL Server databases, and more. Power
Getting started with PowerShell: Your ultimate beginners guide
PowerShell is an extremely powerful scripting language developed by Microsoft that lets you automate tasks on your computer, and manage system resources. It is built on the .NET framework and comes with a command-line interface. Whether you’re a system administrator, a developer, or an IT enthusiast looking to enhance your automation skills, this article will
Power Automate Tips: Convert int to string
Power Automate is an amazing tool, but it can take a little time to get used to how it works. One thing that I find annoying is tha if you have variables or data sources which are integers and you want to store/use it elsewhere, as a string, you can’t easily. Let’s say you initialise
Škoda Enyaq iV tips: You don’t need to use the start/stop button or handbrake
So you’ve got yourself a Škoda Enyaq and you’re enjoying the car. I love mine, it’s a lovely drive, cheap to run and powerful. I have a couple of useful tips to make driving your Enyaq even better, and I thought everyone knew about them, but after speaking with two other owners recently, it seems
Zappi Tips: How to upgrade the firmware on the Zappi 2.1 EV charger
If you have a Zappi 2.1 and you want to update the firmware, the good news is that it’s automatic, so long as your device is connected to your wi-fi / ethernet and it has an active internet connection. However, if you want to manually update it sooner by following the below steps: 1) Press
Ordering a myenergi Zappi 2.1 charger
Recently I moved house, and the prices that electricians wanted to move my Pod Point Solo 2 charger from one house to the next were crazy, almost the cost of a new unit. The Solo 2 was reliable, and did its job well, but I decided to get a new device instead, and since one
Zappi Tips: How to secure your Zappi EV charger
It seems that most of the EV chargers come setup in an insecure mode that will allow anyone to use your charger, or enter the settings. Now granted, it’s unlikely someone will park on your drive and use your charger, but I did hear of it happening once, and if you have chargers in a
IFTTT tips: Flash your Philips Hue lights with the Alexa timer
This automation uses the Alexa timer reaching zero as a trigger, and that then actions the Philips Hue lights to flash. I find this useful when moving around the house, as you don’t always hear the timer. Before we get started, consider creating a zone in your Philips Hue environment with a group of devices
Škoda Enyaq iV tips: Update sat nav home / work destinations
I’ve just moved, and thought I’d update the home address on my sat nav, but it wasn’t done how I expected it to be done, so it took me a couple of minutes to figure it out, so I thought I’d share how it’s done to save others a few minutes. I mentioned that it
Lightwave RF tips: Automation for dynamic LED colour based on door / window contact sensors being open / closed
One of my favourite home automations uses Lightwave RF to change the LED colour on their light switches to a different colour based on the status of their contact sensors that I have in my house. So if any of my doors or windows are open, I change the LED colour to cyan with a
Smart home tips: Stop feeling clueless!
Are you feeling clueless when it comes to home automation and smart homes? If so, don’t panic, I’ll try to help you with a few smart home tips. Home automation is becoming increasingly popular as people look for ways to make their lives easier, be more efficient and save money, but it can be pretty
Troubleshooting 8 of the most common Active Directory issues
Active Directory (AD) is a powerful directory service, by Microsoft, which provides centralised authentication and authorisation for Windows-based networks. While it offers numerous benefits, domain administrators often encounter common issues that can impact its functionality. In this article, we will explore some of these issues and provide practical solutions to troubleshoot them effectively. 1) DNS
How to blur or change the background on a Teams call
I often get asked how I blur or change my background in Teams, so I thought I’d put together this quick guide. Before you start though, keep in mind that this will not work on older machines where the processor does not support AVX2 (Advanced Vector Extensions 2), so if you don’t see some of
Active Directory certificates not working
You’ve setup an active directory certificate authority and your browser isn’t trusting the certificates or they are showing as insecure. There are a ton of articles out there about sharing the root certificates via group policy, so I will presume you’ve aready done that. If you haven’t, please do that first. This article will cover
iPhone tips: Windows Phone Link for iOS
This article will help you to link your iPhone to your Windows 10/11 computer, so you can make calls, send / receive iMessages and sync you calendar etc from your computer. For a while now, the phone link application has been limited to Android devices only, but now Microsoft have rolled out iOS support. Downloading
Understanding and overcoming range anxiety in Electric Vehicles (EVs)
If you’re reading this, then I suspect you’re either interesting in getting an EV, or are looking into it more since there is a drive to get rid of petrol and diesel vehicles in the coming years (2030 in the UK), and you want to know if range anxiety is a real thing. Is range