Articles tagged: Featured
How to Fix Windows Not Recognizing USB Device
A checklist to resolve Windows not recognizing USB devices.
What I’ve Learned Answering Questions for 20 Years
It was 20 years ago today I started having something to say.
How Can I Avoid Losing My Business Email Account?
Losing your business email account can have dire repercussions. I’ll show you how to protect yourself.
Why Can’t I Upload a Backup Image to the Cloud?
Uploading backup images sounds good until you do the math.
Dealing With Proprietary Backup Formats
If your backup program writes to a proprietary format, you may not be able to access it decades from now. I’ll discuss how to prepare.
Can’t I Just Delete My Hacked Account?
Deleting an account you don’t have access to is kind of the same as deleting an account you don’t own.
Is Using a Shared Wi-fi Hotspot Safe?
Free accessible Wi-Fi is almost ubiquitous, and most systems are set up to use it safely. There are a few things to pay attention to in order to stay safe.
If I Leave a Service Like LastPass, Does My Data Remain Online?
When you leave a service, or if your information is stolen from that service, there may be steps you need to take.
How Do I Move Email to an External Hard Drive?
The Outlook.com/OneDrive space limitation has many people looking for ways to download and preserve emails offline.
What Is a Passkey?
Passkeys are a new form of authentication that promise to be both easier and more secure.
The Problem With OneDrive Backup
OneDrive’s backup function is broken. I’ll explain why and what to do about it.
Ignored by Online Services? Remember, You Are Not the Customer
When free services seem to change arbitrarily, it’s easy to wonder if they’re paying attention to their customers. They probably are — just not the ones you think.
Can I Still Use LastPass Safely?
Selecting another password manager is now the common recommendation. I’ll review what you can do if you elect to keep using LastPass.
Is It OK to Leave a Thumb Drive Inserted All the Time?
Leaving a flash drive or USB thumb drive plugged in all the time runs a small risk of prematurely wearing it out. We’ll look at why, and what to do.
Will AI Crack Your Passwords?
We’re seeing AI associated with many things. Cracking your passwords is now on the list.
Don’t Use Windows Built-in Image Backup
The Windows 7 Backup and Restore tool is still present in Windows 11, but that doesn’t mean you should use it.
Why is My Outlook.com Email Suddenly Full?
Microsoft made a confusing change to how storage is allocated between Outlook.com and OneDrive.
What’s the Best Password Manager for 2024?
The best password manager is the password manager you’ll use (within reason, of course).
Is AI Taking Over the World?
AI isn’t about to enslave humanity — at least not any time soon — but it’s definitely here and changing the world in both positive and negative ways.
Running CHKDSK When CHKDSK Won’t Run
Normally, you can request CHKDSK be run on the system drive at the next reboot. If that doesn’t work, there is another way.
Why You — Yes, You — Are a Target of Hackers
Even if your bank account is zero or you’re just not that interesting, hackers are still after your accounts. Here’s why, and what you can do.
How Should I Back Up When Traveling?
Backing up while on the road can be a challenge. I’ll review what’s practical and how to keep your data safe.
What Encryption Software Do You Recommend?
There are many different tools for encryption. The right one depends on what you’re attempting to accomplish.
Why Is It Important to Have Different Passwords on Different Accounts?
Using a different password for every login is crucial — and it doesn’t have to be difficult.
How to Use Cloud Storage Safely
Cloud service providers often give us lots of storage we can use for cloud backup. How to use it safely, however, isn’t always obvious.
Just What Is Common Sense?
‘Common sense’ is frequently suggested, often missing, and rarely defined. I’ll take a look at some of what I feel are the characteristics of common sense.
It Pays to Be Skeptical
If we would all be a little more skeptical, we’d be safer and the internet would be a more trustworthy place.
Is Using the Cloud Safe?
As security compromises seem to happen regularly, many ask, “Is using the cloud safe?” It’s as safe as you make it.
Internet Safety: 7 Steps to Staying Safe Online
Online security is critical. Here are the key steps you can take to keep yourself safe on the internet.
Why Can’t I Get My Account Back?
Way too often, I hear from people who have lost their accounts permanently. Here’s how to avoid being one of them.
What to Do About the LastPass Breach
The most recent LastPass security incident has many people concerned.
Is OneDrive a Backup?
OneDrive is a powerful tool, but thinking of it as a backup can take you down a dangerous path.
Someone’s Sending from My Email Address! How Do I Stop Them?
Email spoofing is rampant. Spammers often send email that looks like it came from you, and there’s little that you can do about it.
Your Social Media Posts Can All Disappear
Every time you use someone else’s service, you put yourself and your content in their hands… for better or worse.
Please Set Up and Maintain Account Recovery Information
Account recovery information is an important yet often overlooked part of account security. Managed poorly, it can lead to permanent account loss.
How Do I Tell If My Hard Drive Is Too Old?
Age isn’t the most important factor when evaluating hard disk risk of failure. I’ll discuss what is, and what you should be doing to protect yourself.
How Do I Disable OneDrive in Office 365?
OneDrive can be useful, and it can be annoying. It’s on by default, but it’s not terribly difficult to decouple or turn off.
How to Back Up a Machine That Won’t Boot
The rescue or emergency disk provided by many backup programs is more useful than most people realize.
How Do I Make My C: Drive Not ‘Dirty’?
A dirty machine is the result of improper shut downs. There are ways to clean it up, but getting control of your shut-down process is important.
Why Ask Why?
It’s common to ask “Why?” when it comes to computers. It’s also common to be frustrated with the answer.
What is a Digital Fingerprint?
Digital fingerprints are another way that websites might track you, should they want to. What can you do? Should you be worried?
Coping with Gray Text
Gray text is a problem for many people. Unfortunately, there’s no simple solution, though there are some (very) ugly ones.
What Is Smishing?
Smishing is simply text-messaging spam. Learn to recognize and respond appropriately to it.
Does CPU Speed Matter Any More?
CPU speed doesn’t matter quite as much as it once did. I’ll discuss why, and what you should also be looking at.
What You Need To Do About the LastPass Hack
A portion of LastPass was breached. Here’s why it’s not a disaster, and why I’m not leaving LastPass.
