Tips and Tricks to Get The Best Out Of Windows 10

Here here some cool tips and tricks to get more out of Windows 10

From the time, Microsoft launched its new operating system Windows 10 on July 29, it has been in the news for all the wrong reasons. While some complained about the security issues, some said that it is little better than Windows 8. However, not all of the things in Windows 10 are bad.

Here are some tips and tricks for those who have recently purchased a computer with Windows 10 or have upgraded, that will help you save time and make the operating system more effective and user-friendly.

Use Cortana

You can ask Cortana anything, and you will get your answer. For example, you can ask Cortana question about the weather, the age of your favorite celebrity or the events coming up on your calendar. Cortana, a digital personal assistant not only finds files and launch apps, but can be also used to type in requests for Cortana.

To send emails, you need to simply type in “Send an email to about and then you can set alarms or reminders as well. You also do not have to open a separate app to do so. You can save a lot of your time, as you can do almost anything with Cortana by just requesting or asking it something.

Get a Longer Battery Life

Are you aware that there is a battery saver mode that will start when the AC power is unplugged? There are some things that you can do to make your battery life last longer. All you need to do is, go to “Start” and then “Settings”, click on “System” and “Battery Saver”. This will allow you to see what apps on your computer are consuming the most battery power. You can then add apps to the list of exclusions, which means that when the battery is low, Windows 10 will restrict those apps. This can really help you when you have very low battery power.

Increase Monitor Size

Windows 10 has an in-built function for a virtual Desktop, which makes it very simple to control the open apps that you have on your computer. All you need to do is to keep moving these open apps to their own Desktop, until you have to access them. In order to see the three Desktops that are the default, press [Windows] + [Tab] and you will be able to get a summary of the open apps on each of the three Desktops. To see the contents, all you need to do is keep the mouse pointer over one of the Desktops at the bottom of the screen.

You can also drag the apps from one Desktop to another Desktop, and then add more Desktops by clicking on “New Desktop”. This is very helpful for those who work from home and who require a lot of windows and apps to be opened at the same time. For instance, if you are looking at multiple types of documents at the same time, or browser apps and Excel or Word. You can also switch easily between the Desktops by pressing [Windows] + [Ctrl].

Using the Hidden Start Menu

With Windows 10, Microsoft brought back the Start Menu. The best feature about the Start Menu is that you can customize in a number of ways. Every one is aware of the left click, but you can now also right-click the Start Menu too. If you right-click on the Start button, it will allow you to access a range of shortcuts that are basically for the more complicated parts of Windows. Just use the right-click option on the Start Menu, if you want to access these advanced parts promptly.

Record Videos of Apps

Use the in-built app Game DVR for taking screenshots and recording videos. Meant for taking screenshots of videos games, Game DVR can be used with any open app and can make screenshots or record any types of videos of anything that you may have opened in Windows 10. It is very simple to use and helpful when you are looking to make a video for a family member or friend on your computer. You can access it through the shortcut by using [Windows] + [G]. However, it might not work through shortcut all the time.

Change File Explorer’s opening folder

In Windows 10, File Explorer opens with Quick Access selected. Old-school Windows users might prefer to start in This PC (previously known as My Computer), which includes the six standard data folders in your user profile as well as any local drives and removable media such as USB drives.

No problem. On the ribbon, open the View tab, click Options, Change folder and search options, and then choose one of these two options.

Use the expanded Send To menu

Yes, you can right-click a file or folder (or multiple items, for that matter) and use the Send To menu to do a few interesting things, like move or copy the selection to your Documents folder, create a compressed file (in .zip format), or send the selection as an email attachment.

Customize the Send To menu

Speaking of the Send To menu, you can make it much more useful by adding and removing the options on the default (short) menu. They’re just shortcuts, but good luck finding them, because they’re buried in a folder hidden deep within your user profile.

To get to that folder, open the Run box (Windows key+R), typeshell:sendto, and then press Enter.

Source: Techworm

How to Enable Full Disk Encryption in Windows 10 in Simple Steps

Full disk encryption in Windows helps you encrypt your data. Since every encryption uses some encryption key, full disk encryption on Windows takes out personal data as key for encryption. These pieces of personal data could be your Microsoft account or your Microsoft account password, your computer’s name or even an odd combination of all these data in a further encrypted way.

Nonetheless, Windows does not provide any integrated encryption tool on Windows like Mac OS X, Android, Chrome OS and iOS. Thus, you will have to pay Microsoft for a professional edition or use some third-party vendor tool to encrypt your data on your Windows.

Here are steps on How to enable full disk encryption in Windows 10:

To turn on Device Encryption in Windows 10, you need to be already logged in to your Microsoft Windows account.

Step 1: Go to Start and enter ‘BitLocker‘

Step 2: After you enter ‘BitLocker’, you will see ‘Manage BitLocker‘ option showing in the search results. Click on that.

Step 3: Once you click it, it will show you an option to Encrypt your full disk. Starting with ‘C’ drive where most of your OS data are found, click to encrypt your full disk on Windows 10.

There is also another way to Enable full disk encryption on Windows 10. Follow the steps below:

Step 1: Search ‘About‘ in your Start Menu and you will see ‘About Your PC‘ showing up in the search results. Click on that.

Step 2: After clicking on ‘About Your PC‘, it will take you the about page of your personal computer. At the bottom, you can see ‘BitLocker settings‘.

If this option is not there, then understand that your PC does not support disk encryption. If it’s there, click on it and it will do the same thing as explained in the steps above.



Source: fossbytes

Top 10 VPN Service providers which ensure that your browsing stays private and anonymous

Virtual Private Network -VPN is a network technology which links the private network over internet using encryption methods. VPN is generally preferred by corporates, educational institutions, Government agencies and private citizens to facilitate easy access of remote users to secured private networks. VPN is economical as it is much cheaper when compared to private networks, it provides flexibility, not only that VPN users can maintain their anonymity as well as protect themselves from being snooped. VPN works on 4 protocols:

• IP security (IPSec):IPSec utilizes two methods to encrypt its user’s data :a) transport mode or b) tunneling mode. Transport mode means encryption of message within the data packet also termed as Payload. Tunneling mode means encryption of the entire data packet.
• Point-To-Point Tunneling Protocol (PPTP): s is the most widely used protocol; PPTP uses the tunneling method wherein PPTP stores data within the PPP packets which are further stored inside the IP packets which are transported to their destination.
• Tunneling Protocol (L2TP): Works on two major features: L2TP Access Concentrator (LAC) and L2TP Network Server (LNS). LAC: this is a device which terminates the call and LNS: this authenticates the PPP packets as seen earlier in the PPTP.
• Transport Layer Security (TLS) and Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) TSL/SSL: This method uses a combination of the authentication and encryption methods which leads to transportation of the data between the servers and client.

There are several VPN service providers which vary in the way the data is secured during its transit over the public network infrastructure. Out of the various VPN providers, Techworm brings you the Top 10 VPN service provide you with privacy and data security :

TorGuard:

No logs are monitored. In addition to a strict “no logging policy” TorGuard also provides second layer of data security with a shared IP configuration due to which it becomes next to impossible to trace the user’s IP address. TorGuard VPN has multiple Socks proxy servers and VPN’s around the world. The entire data is wrapped into single packet by encryption via tunnel method through secure servers and then this data is again connected to the BitTorrent cloud which gives it the second layer of insulation from being attacked. TorGuard currently maintains 1000+ servers in over 44 countries across the world and are in continuous expansion. TorGuard retains its control on all hardware though it seeks partnerships with data centers who can adhere to strict security criteria. All servers are arranged and managed exclusively by TorGuard’s in house networking team through a single, secure key. TorGuard advises its clients to use OpenVPN connections only and for encryption use AES256 with 2048bit RSA for better security. URL : bit.ly/torguardvpn

Mullvad

Logs are not monitored. Here again a second layer of data security is ensured by making users to share their IP addresses both for IPv4 and IPv6. Users are normally not monitored however only in case of extreme network abuse the basic tools are used to tackle such network exploitation. This service does not maintain any personal information of the user. It supports BitTorrent. Open VPN using Mullvad client program is the most secured VPN connection. Mullvad assigns a unique number to each downloaded program. This account number identifies user’s account which can be used to make payments and to enable the program to connect. Due to the unique number assigned it helps in the security of the data. URL : mullvad.net/en

IPVanish

This creates a secure environment for day to day web usage. Before user logs onto the net, it is essential to establish IPVanish VPN connection, which will convert entire online data into encrypted tunnel including emails, data transfers, online banking, instant messaging and all online browsing. The encrypted data cannot be intercepted by any third party including ISP (Internet Service Provider). It supports P2P traffic. It uses OpenVPN, L2TP, and PPTP Protocols for its operations. URL : bit.ly/ipvanis


LiquidVPN

Logs are not retained. LiquidVPN uses the ‘Modulating IP’ technology, wherein the user’s IP address is changed continuously making it very difficult to track the actions of user on internet. Added to this is the use of shared IPs, great encryption standards, and a very low starting price. For mitigation of network abuse the SNMP and Mikrotik Layer 7 firewall rules works at hardware level and Zabbix and OSSEC at host level. Their data centers are on short term lease across the world. URL : liquidvpn.com

BTGuard

This service is based on proxy service where the user is able to hide their true IP address from the rest of the world. This is a service specially built for the BitTorrrent users to protect their anonymity. BTGuard was just a basic proxy service that user would need to configure to avail the BitTorrent service however now BTGuard is becoming a handy tool with its easy to install software to protect their anonymity. BTGuard also has an encryption tunnel software for users who require special security for their data. BTGuard stores username, password and e-mail addresses however the IP addresses are never stored. URL : btguard.com

BolehVPN

It hides true location of the user by encrypting and encapsulating the entire data which passes through the VPN hence making it difficult for the snoopers or the third party to intercept or decode the internet traffic. Various features of BolehVPN can be listed as : it protects the user by masking the IP address, the data is encrypted throughout i.e. to and fro when it passes the VPN server, it accelerates the P2P, It also hides the true location of user due to which user appears to hail from a different location and last it also helps users to bypass certain corporate firewalls. It is based on Open VPN and SSL VPN. URL : bolehvpn.net

HideIPVPN

It is based on combination of PPTP, SSTP, L2TP, IPSec, OpenVPN and SmartDNS. It is compatible with a huge list of operating systems Windows, Mac, Linux, Routers etc. HideIPVPN offers a very high quality of anonymity to its users on the internet wherein user can access even the blocked websites, surf the web anonymously, hide the IP address and encrypt user’s data. HideIPVPN does not restrict access to any online sites or services. All data going out and coming in via VPN is encrypted, secured and it also hides IP address which means one can safely access secure websites without anyone intercepting the connections. The encrypted data is hidden from user’s ISP and network administrator too which means only user and the destination will be able to see what is being sent. SmartDNS service helps the user to access more than 35 online media services from around the world hence it is ideal for anyone who has limited cable access to TV channels, by using HideIPVPN user can change their DNS name and hence get easy access to the blocked TV / media servers. URL : hideipvpn.com

SlickVPN

An IP address acts as a digital signature which helps to detect the location of the user to any website or to the Internet Service Provider i.e. ISP. SlickVPN hides the true IP address of user by assigning them an anonymous one hence enabling user to hide their location from snoopers. If any user connects to SlickVPN, a connection will be created between user’s computer and our servers. SlickVPN encrypts any data transmissions or online activity so that user’s presence is anonymous; in addition the connection is also secured by SlickVPN so that the Internet activity, usernames, passwords, emails, instant messages, downloads, uploads, etc. are shielded from third party. URL : slickvpn.com

Unspyable

This uses an Off-Shore VPN service wherein VPN encrypts the entire internet connection and creates an encrypted tunnel between the user’s computer and the server chosen by user from the preferred list of servers. Now whenever user browses the internet, all the web sites which user visited would see the address of the remote server and not the real IP address of the user. Due to the encrypted tunnel between user and server, user’s IP address is now anonymous. Hence none of user’s information is available on the local network nor to the local ISP or to government censors and monitoring. For users who want a higher security Unspyable also offers the Multiple Hop VPN wherein just as in Off Shore VPN the data is made to pass through a multiple off shore hops / servers which is very difficult to crack. Major benefits of this VPN :Provide secure and private offshore email logs which is not saved or monitored, correspondence is secured using hot spots, Anonymity of IP address. URL : unspyable.com

NordVPN

This provides a great 256bit AES OpenVPN protection and there are PPTP and L2TP/IPSec connections available. As soon as user connects to the NordVPN a tunnel is created between user and the server and all the data in this route is encrypted. NordVPN is also one of the only VPNs to allow Tor over VPN and has a double-hop encryption system which cannot be cracked. Tor over VPN is an advanced privacy solution provided by NordVPN.

The basic principle here : User first connects to NordVPN server which then routes all traffic through a widely known Tor network. Here the data is encrypted within NordVPN layer at the initial stage and later sent to the Tor network. The Tor is more safer for privacy as the encrypted data is made to route through a few Tor hops and finally reach its destination helping in maintaining the anonymity of user’s vital information and also DNS traffic is also routed through the Tor network user’s will be able to access ” .onion websites” or the hidden websites just using NordVPN. URL : nordvpn.com

The above are the top VPN services that we like, however there may be others which are better those given above. If you have found a better VPN service, drop the name of the provider in the comments section so it can help other users to stay secure and private.


Source: techworm

Google Says Its Quantum Computer Really Works – “It’s 100 Million Times Faster Than PC”

If you follow the developments being made in the world of quantum computing, you must have heard the name of D-Wave systems. This controversial company calls itself the first company to make commercially available quantum computers. Two years ago, NASA and Google bought a D-Wave 2X quantum computing system and the internet giant seems pretty satisfied with it.

Google has said that it has proof that D-Wave 2X really uses quantum physics to solve complex problems. “The Google Quantum A.I. Lab Team has found that for certain hard optimization problems, quantum annealing on the D-Wave 2X Quantum Computer significantly outperforms both simulated annealing and Quantum Monte Carlo, showing a processing time speedup of ~100 Million!,” said Google in a blog post.

Notably, big names like IBM, Microsoft and Google are also trying to make their own quantum computers and use their immense calculation powers in applications like artificial intelligence and material sciences. On the other hand, NASA seems interested in using the technology to power its future space missions and spacecraft.

“It is a truly disruptive technology that could change how we do everything,” said Deepak Biswas, director of exploration technology at NASA’s Ames Research Center in Mountain View, California.


In the industry, people have labeled the D-Wave systems as overhyped, but the latest paper published by Google team has a different story to tell. Betting on the future, the internet giant has signed a seven-year contract with D-Wave to utilize more hardware.

The D-Wave quantum computing system, bought by Google and NASA, is kept at NASA Ames Research Center, near Mountain View, Calif. According to the researchers who work on this giant box, the machine is filled with a big refrigeration system and a quantum computing chip dipped inside.

The results obtained by the Google research team are noteworthy. But, even if it’s verified, it would only represent partial justification for D-Wave. The researchers stressed on the fact that quantum computing is still in the experimental stage and a full commercialization is yet to be done.

“If quantum computing were to work, it is truly a disruptive technology and it could change how we do everything, almost,” Biswas said. “No company would like to be left behind, in some sense.”

Source: fossbytes

Make a Google Custom Search For Your Blog, and Make Money

Why should you use Google Custom Search?

Because the WordPress search function isn’t the best. WordPress just lists every post with the search terms in it, with no priority given to the most relevant posts. Also, WordPress search doesn’t allow you to make money from it, but Google Search does.

In this tutorial I am going to show you how to create your own Google custom search and make money with it.

Step-by-Step Instructions

1 – Start by creating a page were you want to show the search results. Go to your WordPress menu and select Write > Page.

Give the page a title like “Search Results”. Don’t enter any content now. Deactivate the comments and pings, and publish the page. After that click “View Page” and copy the URL from your browser’s address bar and save it somewhere for later.
 2 – Go to the Google Custom Search Engine page and click the button that says “Create a Custom Search Engine”.

Google will ask you to login. If you already have a Google account you will be redirected to the configuration page. If you don’t have a Google account, you will have to create one (It’s free!).

After the login, the “Set up your search engine” page will appear. Here you will have to fill in some details about your search engine:

- Insert the Search Engine Name
- Insert a Search Engine Description
- Insert some Search Engine Keywords
- Choose the Search Engine Language
- Select “Only Sites I Select”
- Insert your Website URL (Click on “Tips on formatting URLs” for more information)
- Select the “Standard Edition” option
- Check the box
- Click Next

Click on either of the 2 images below to see screenshots of the completed form.




After you click Next, another page will open. In this page you can try your new custom search engine.

Try it out, then click Finish.

This page will appear:


Click “Control Panel.”

3 – Start by styling your search box. Click on the “Look and Feel” menu and choose one of the available options that Google has to offer. The most interesting is the watermark one, but it requires JavaScript.

I would change the color scheme for the results that are displayed. Choose wisely, and try to use the color scheme of your website.


4 – Now is the time to start making money with your custom search engine. Click on the “Make Money” menu. You have two options.

If you don’t have an AdSense account, choose “I am a new AdSense User” and you will be redirected to a Google page were you can create one. After you have created your account you can follow the next steps.

If you already have a AdSense account click “I already have an AdSense account”.

After that Google will ask you for your email, your Zip or Postal code, the last 5 digits of your telephone number and your preferred locale. Enter all the information and press Submit.

Before you do this, you will have to be signed up to Google AdSense for Search. If you aren’t already, you can do so by signing into your AdSense account and selecting “My Account” and then “Account Access”.

Now you have to allow access from www.google.com/coop to your AdSense account.

Then try clicking Submit in your search engine page and all should be fine. If you haven’t done it right, you will get an error saying: “Your account does not have SearchAds. Make sure you are signed up for AdSense for Search and not just AdSense for Content or Referrals.”

ow click the link “Add Custom Channels” so you can filter the revenue that comes from the Search Engine.

Choose a channel name. I choose “SE_Revenue” (Search Engine Revenue). Click Submit.

5 – Now we have to put the Search box and Search page code in our blog. To do that click in the “Code” menu and select the option iFrame.

The new option Overlay only shows 8 results and doesn’t allow you to make money from AdSense. Only choose this option if you’re not interested in making money form your search engine.

Next insert the URL of the page were you want the search results to appear. Remember that URL that I told you to save in at the beginning of this How-to? Now it’s time to use it. That will be the page were the search results will appear.

Select were you want the ads to be placed.

Now scroll down and there you have the codes that you need to place on your site or blog.

Copy the first code and paste it were you want your search box to appear (usually the Sidebar).

Then copy the second code and in your WordPress control panel go to “Manage”, then “Pages”, select the page you created, choose HTML View, paste the code and press “Save”.

All done! Now test your custom search engine.

Testing

If you followed this how-to correctly than you should have everything working as it should. Here’s a screenshot of how mine looks.


The first block of text is the AdSense Ads. If people click there you will make money. But remember, never click your own ads or Google will ban you from AdSense!

The second block is the results, based on the keyword or text that the reader entered in the search box.

This system isn’t going to make you rich, but it will make you a few bucks.

I hope you enjoyed this tutorial and don’t forget to comment.

Source: http://www.problogdesign.com

New Windows 10 Update Makes Your Anti-Spying Apps Useless

Windows 10 operating system was released by Microsoft earlier this year on July 29. Along with tons of praises received for being the ‘most complete Windows OS‘ yet, this new iteration of Windows faced widespread flak over its data collection methods. As a result, we saw a flood of anti-spying software that disabled the data collection methods of Windows 10.

In a recent development, Windows 10 users are complaining that Windows 10 November Update has made some unwanted changes to their PCs. Apart from the numerous improvements, Threshold 2 update has changed the PC configurations of users. This has happened as this update literally reinstall the entire operating system.


If you head over to this “Windows 10 re-enables tracking” discussion thread on Reddit, you can see about 500 comments and 5000 upvotes. Users have complained that previously used apps for disabling telemetry in Windows 10 are now useless as their settings have automatically changed.

A user named Piremin0rez describes the experience as follows: “The November (Fall) Update literally reinstalls the entire operating system, which is why program defaults and a lot more end up reverting and disabled things may come back. I honestly hope they improve this upgrade system for the next big update because this has seriously caused a lot of people some trouble.” These claims made by the users are true as the Windows 10 November Update also removes some apps, labeling them “not fully compatible” with the new version.

Another user ProfessorCrumbleton writes: “That update also took default pdf permissions away from adobe acrobat and handed them to edge. The next update a few days later re-enabled Cortana and took default document permissions away from Microsoft Word and gave them to WordPad.”

Time and again Microsoft has called these practices ‘necessary‘ for maintaining proper ‘system health’. But, this lack of proper communication gap between the users and Microsoft has created this confusing situation.

Source: fossbytes

Ookla Launched Another Internet Speed Test Site in HTML5

When I usually get on new internet service, the first thing I do is to check the speed of internet. I guess many of us do that and till now we were using the popular Ookla’s speedtest.net that used Adobe Flash to perform the test.

Since Adobe Flash is ditched by all the browsers and internet community, Ookla has decided to re-write its speedtest.net service in HTML5 – and believe me – it’s way better than Flash.

With HTML5-based version, you won’t be needing any plugins anymore, as it performs everything in your browser without any additional requirements.

As fewer important tools rely on Flash, it gets easier to drop it entirely from our computers — we just need Netflix and Hulu to fully say goodbye to Flash, so we can get rid of it forever.

Give it a try – Speedtest Beta

Source: http://fossbytes.com