Archive for the ‘Tips & Tricks’ category

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2 Ways to Access Emoji in Windows 10

September 21st, 2017 by Admin

How can I use emoji on a Windows PC? Using emoji to express emotions is really fun and interesting. Start with Anniversary Update, Windows 10 adds native support for emoji and you can use them with your keyboard or touch screen. In this tutorial we’ll show you 2 simple ways to access emoji in Windows 10.

Method 1: Access Emoji in Windows 10 Using On-Screen Keyboard

  1. Right-click on the taskbar and select “Show touch keyboard button” from the context menu.

  2. This will add a keyboard icon to the system tray. Just click that icon to open the touch keyboard.

  3. Click the emoji button next to the space bar, and the alphabetical keys will convert into emoji keyboard.

  4. Select whichever emoji you’d like to use and it’ll be inserted where you left your cursor.

Method 2: Access Emoji in Windows 10 Using Keyboard Shortcut

  1. Put the cursor in any text field you’d like to insert an emoji. This could be Microsoft Word, Chrome, or Notepad app.
  2. Press the WIN + . (full stop) keyboard shortcut, or else the WIN + ; (semicolon). Either will open an emoji picker over the text field.
  3. Emoji are divided into several categories: smiley faces and animals, people, celebrations and objects, food and plants, transportation and places, symbols.

  4. You can pick a category from the bottom row and click any emoji to insert it.

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How to View or Reset Network Data Usage in Windows 10

September 19th, 2017 by Admin

If you’re using Windows 10 with a limited data plan, it’s advisable to monitor your network data usage and stop unnecessary applications from consuming your data. In this tutorial we’ll show you how to view how much network data you used in the last 30 days, and reset your data usage in Windows 10.

How to View or Reset Network Data Usage in Windows 10

  1. Press the Windows + I keys together to open Settings. Click Network & Internet.

  2. Select the Data usage option from the left side of the panel. From there, you can see the network data you used in the last 30 days on your Windows 10 PC.

  3. Click on the View usage details link. In the next window, yo can see which apps consumed how much data on WiFi or Ethernet.

  4. If you want to reset or clear the data usage, Click on the Reset usage stats button.

  5. Click the Reset button to confirm that you’re deleting all of network data usage stats for your selected connection.

  6. After a moment, the data usage for your selected network is reset to 0, as shown in the below screenshot.

Note that the option of resetting data usage stats is only available in Windows 10 build 16199 or higher. If you’re running an earlier build of Windows 10, open an elevated command prompt and run these commands to clear network data usage:

net stop DPS
DEL /F /S /Q /A "%windir%\System32\sru\*"
net start DPS

That’s it!

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How to Show Seconds in Windows 10 Taskbar Clock

September 18th, 2017 by Admin

How do I show seconds on the Windows tray clock? By default, only the hour and minutes are displayed in the taskbar clock. Since Windows 10 Anniversary Update (version 1607), there is a simple registry tweak that can make Windows 10 to show seconds in the taskbar clock, without using third-party software.

How to Show Seconds in Windows 10 Taskbar Clock?

  1. Press the Windows key + R together and then type regedit in the Run box.

  2. In the Registry Editor window, navigate to the following key:

    HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced

  3. Right-click on the Advanced key on the left pane, and then select New -> DWORD (32-bit) Value.

  4. Name the new DWORD as ShowSecondsInSystemClock, and set its data to 1.

  5. Log off and then log back into your Windows account. The taskbar clock should now display the seconds too.

This method works with Windows 10 Anniversary Update (v1607) and higher, and continue working with Windows 11.

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2 Ways to Disable Run Command (WIN + R) in Windows 10

September 14th, 2017 by Admin

How can I disable Run command in GPO? Just press Win+R keys together and you can get to the Run dialog box immediately. By typing different commands in the Run box, you can access the most used Windows maintenance tools – Registry Editor, Local Group Policy Editor, etc.

When you share a PC with others, you may want to prevent inexperienced users from accessing the Run command. In this tutorial we’ll show you 2 simple ways to disable Run command in Windows 10, so others can’t access Run from the WinX menu or use WIN + R.

Method 1: Disable Run Command in Windows 10 Using Group Policy

  1. Press the WIN + R keys together, type gpedit.msc in the Run command box and then press Enter.

  2. In the Local Group Policy Editor window, navigate to User Configuration -> Administrative Templates -> Start Menu and Taskbar. Double-click on the policy “Remove Run Menu from Start Menu” appearing on the right pane.

  3. Set the policy to Enabled and then click OK.

  4. This policy setting takes effect without rebooting. When you try to access the Run command, you’ll receive the following error message:

    “This operation has been cancelled due to restrictions in effect on this computer. Please contact your system administrator.”

Method 2: Disable Run Command in Windows 10 Using Registry Editor

  1. Press the WIN + R keys together, type regedit and then press Enter.

  2. In the Registry Editor, use the left sidebar to navigate to the following key:
    HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer

    If the Explorer key doesn’t exist, right-click on the Policies key on the left pane, then select New -> Key and name it as “Explorer“.

  3. Right-click any blank area on the right pane, and then select New -> DWORD (32-bit) Value.

  4. Name the new value as NoRun, and set its value data to 1.

  5. This registry setting does not take effect until you reboot your computer.

What to Do If You Want to Re-enable Run Command?

After disabling the Run command, the WIN + X keys doesn’t work any more and you need to use other ways to access Local Group Policy Editor or Registry Editor.

Once you get to the Local Group Policy Editor, just set the “Remove Run Menu from Start Menu” policy to “Not Configured“. Another way is going to the registry key HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer and change the DWORD of NoRun to 0. That’s it!

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How to Transfer Outlook PST Data Files to Another PC

September 13th, 2017 by Admin

How do I move an archive PST file from Outlook 2007 to Outlook 2016? Outlook stores all your data (including email messages, calendars, contacts and tasks, etc) in a Personal Folders (.PST) file. In this tutorial we’ll walk you through the steps to transfer Outlook PST data files to another computer.

Part 1: Backup Outlook PST Data Files

Follow these steps to find where your Outlook PST files are stored and backup them to external USB drive.

  1. Open the Control Panel and set the View by option to Large icons. Click the Mail option.

  2. In the Mail Setup window, click on the the Data Files button.

  3. Once there, you can see your PST files for all email accounts that were set up in the Outlook application. Choose a PST file and click on the Open Folder button.

  4. This will open the folder where your selected Outlook Data file (.pst) is saved, and you can then copy the PST file to external USB drive. If Outlook doesn’t store all your PST files in the same location, repeat the above step to locate other PST files and backup them as well.

Part 2: Restore Outlook PST Data Files to Another PC

Here’s how you can easily restore the backup PST files in a new Outlook installation or another computer:

  1. Open the Control Panel and set the View by option to Large icons. Click the Mail option.

  2. In the Mail Setup window, click on the the Data Files button.

  3. In Account Settings window, click on the Add button under the Data Files tab.

  4. When you’re asked to choose a PST format, select the Office Outlook Personal Folders File (.pst) item, and then click OK.

  5. Select your backup PST file and click OK.

  6. In the Name text box, type a descriptive name for your Personal Folders file, and click OK.

  7. Now, you’ll see the new Personal Folders on the left-pane in Outlook. Click it and you can expand to view your email messages in your backup PST files.

    That’s it!

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Best Tools to Create a Bootable USB Drive on Ubuntu

September 12th, 2017 by Admin

How can I make a bootable Linux/Windows USB disk on Ubuntu? In this tutorial we’ll show you how to use the best free tools (UNetBootin and WoeUSB) to create a bootable USB drive from any CD image on Ubuntu.

Option 1: Create a Bootable USB Using UNetBootin

  1. Right-click on your desktop and select Open Terminal.
  2. Unetbootin is available under the ppa:gezakovacs/ppa repository. Use the following command to add repository:
    sudo add-apt-repository ppa:gezakovacs/ppa

  3. Run this command to check the repositories for available updates.
    sudo apt-get update

  4. To install Unetbootin, type the following command:
    sudo apt-get install unetbootin

  5. Once installed, open UNetbootin from Ubuntu Dash or Terminal.
  6. Specify the path of your live CD image, select the USB drive which you want to make as a bootable USB. Click OK to begin creating a bootable USB drive.

Option 2: Create a Bootable USB Using WoeUSB

  1. Open a Terminal window from the Dash. Run this command to add PPA repositories of Ubuntu:
    sudo add-apt-repository ppa:nilarimogard/webupd8

  2. After having added the source above, you’ll update your system. In terminal, type:
    sudo apt-get update
  3. Next, type this command to install WoeUSB on Ubuntu:
    sudo apt install woeusb

  4. Once WoeUSB is installed, insert your USB flash drive and Start WoeUSB.
  5. Choose the “From a disk image(iso)” option, browse to the ISO Image you would like WoeUSB to put on USB. Make sure the correct USB drive is selected and click Install.

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How to View Group Policy Applied to Your Windows 10 User

September 8th, 2017 by Admin

When you try to make some system changes on your computer, you may get the following or similar error message basically stating that your operation is being blocked by group policy.

“The command prompt has been disabled by your administrator”

“Some settings are managed by your organization”

“This program is blocked by group policy. For more information, contact your system administrator.”

Sometimes it can be really difficult to figure out which group policy prevents you from making system changes, since most group policies available in Local Group Policy Editor are not applied by default. In this tutorial we’ll show you 2 quick ways to view local group policies applied to your user account in Windows 10.

Method 1: View Applied Group Policies Using the Resultant Set of Policy tool

  1. Press the Windows key + R to open the Run box. Type rsop.msc and press Enter.

  2. The Resultant Set of Policy tool will start scanning your system for applied group policies.

  3. After scanning, the tool will show you a management console that lists out all group policies applied to your currently logged-on account.

Note: The Resultant Set of Policy tool allows you to see what policies are in effect, and you’re unable to change any policy settings from there.

Method 2: View Applied Group Policies Using Command Prompt or PowerShell

  1. Press the WIN + X key combination to open the WinX menu, and then choose “Command Prompt (Admin)” or “Windows PowerShell (Admin)“.

  2. To view all the policies applied to a specific account on your computer, run the following command and press Enter.

    gpresult /user your_account_name /h c:\gpo.html /f

  3. It will generate a report of the applied group policy settings and saves it in HTML format as a file named gpo.html. Open the HTML file using your web browser and you can view applied policies under both Computer Configuration (Computer Details) and User Configuration (User Details).

    That’s it!

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Apply Local Group Policy to Non-Administrators or Specific User in Windows 10

September 6th, 2017 by Admin

How to apply local group policy settings to individual user or standard account in Windows 10? On a shared computer, you may want to restrict all users except Administrators from accessing CD, USB drive or other resources. Group Policy Object Editor can help achieve them.

In this tutorial we’ll show you how to apply local group policy to non-administrators or specific users in Windows 10. To do this, you have to log on to Windows as administrators because standard/limited users don’t have the necessary rights to access Group Policy Objects.

How to Apply Local Group Policy to Non-Administrators or Specific User in Windows 10?

  1. Press the Windows key + R to open the Run box. Type mmc and hit Enter.

  2. When the Microsoft Management Console opens, click the File menu and then select “Add/Remove Snap-in“.

  3. Select “Group Policy Object Editor” under the “Available Snap-ins” category, and click on the Add button.

  4. In the next dialog which appears, click on the Browse button.

  5. Click on the Users tab and select Non-Administrators (or a specific user you want to apply group policy settings to) from the list as shown below. Click OK.

  6. Now, you’ll find that this new group policy object is set to “Local Computer\Non-Administrators“. Click on the Finish button to close the wizard.

  7. You will be brought back to the Snap-ins window, click OK.

  8. In the main Management Console window, you will now have a group policy object for non-administrators ( or your selected user). Apply whatever restrictions you want.

  9. After editing the group policy settings, you have to save the snap-in. To do that, click the File menu and select Save As.
  10. In the Save As window, navigate to any location where you want to save this .MSC to. Enter a name for your new snap-in and then click on the Save button.

    If you want to customize your group policy latter, just double-click that .MSC file to make changes.

What to Do If You Want to Delete Group Policy Object for Non-Administrators in Windows 10?

If you want to cancel / disable the group policy applied to non-administrators on your computer, Follow these steps:

  1. Go through the same steps 1 to 4 as above. In the “Browse for a Group Policy Object” window, click the Users tab. You should see all local users, the “Administrators” group and the “Non-Administrators” group. To the right you can see if a local policy object already exists for the given user or group (Yes or No).
  2. Right-click on the Non-Administrators in the list, and then select “Remove Group Policy Object” from the menu that opens.

  3. Click Yes to confirm the deletion of the Local Group Policy object, and you’re done!

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Reset Notepad to Default Settings in Windows 10 / 8 / 7

September 2nd, 2017 by Admin

Notepad is a built-in basic text editor that’s been part of Windows for a very long time. You’ve probably customize the default font, font size, window size or word wrap in Notepad, but now you want to reset Notepad to its default settings. Luckily, there is simple registry hack that can reset Notepad completely back to all default settings in Windows 10 / 8 / 7.

How to Reset Notepad to Default Settings in Windows 10 / 8 / 7?

  1. Press the Windows key + R to open the Run command box. Type regedit and press Enter.

  2. When Registry Editor is launched, navigate to the following key:

    HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Notepad

  3. Right-click on the Notepad key in the left pane, and then select Delete from the pop-up menu.

  4. Click Yes to confirm your operation. All your saved settings in Notepad will be deleted. Your Notepad will be back to the default settings on the next run.

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How to View or Clear Update History in Windows 10

August 31st, 2017 by Admin

How can I find out which updates I have installed in Windows 10? When performing a manual or automatic update in Windows 10, the system keeps track of installed and failed updates for your review. In this tutorial we’ll show you how to view or clear update history in Windows 10.

Part 1: View Update History in Windows 10

  1. Press the Windows key + I keyboard shortcut to open the Settings app. Click Update & Security.

  2. Click on the “View installed update history” link located under the Windows Update tab.

  3. The update history shows the list of updates installed on your PC. You can find out which update was installed successfully or it failed along with date.

Part 2: Clear Update History in Windows 10

If you think the update history is not useful, you can remove it from Windows 10. Note: Clearing update history will only remove your history log, and it won’t uninstall your installed updates.

  1. Open the Command Prompt (or PowerShell) as Administrator.
  2. Type net stop wuauserv at the Command Prompt and hit Enter to stop the Windows Update service.
  3. Copy and paste the following command and hit Enter. It will delete the log file that stores your Windows update history.

    del "%systemroot%\SoftwareDistribution\DataStore\Logs\edb.log"

  4. Congratulations! You have cleared your Windows Update history. Type net start wuauserv and press Enter to start the Windows Update service again.

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