Requirements
Preparing Your Mac for Boot Camp
Install Windows via Boot Camp
Finishing Up

Requirements

– a Mac running the latest version of macOS
– a USB thumb drive at least 8GB in size
– an .ISO image of Windows 10, which you can download here if needed
– a valid Windows 10 registration key
– some time and patience – it takes somewhere between 1-3 hours to complete the process, depending on the speed of your Mac, download speed etc.

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Preparing Your Mac for Boot Camp

There isn’t a whole lot that you need to do to get ready to install Windows on your Mac via Boot Camp. While it’s very unlikely that you’ll have any problems, it’s still critically important that you perform a backup first. Time Machine is certainly good enough. After you’ve made a backup, decide how much hard drive space you want to allocate to Windows and make sure you have free space to cover it, and still have plenty left over for macOS. Finally, run through the list of requirements just to make sure you’ve got everything you need, and then get started installing Windows :)

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Install Windows via Boot Camp

1. Open the Boot Camp Assistant app, which you can find in your Applications -> Utilities folder.



2. Click Continue on the initial setup screen.



3. Place check marks in the boxes next to both Create a Windows 10 or later install disk and Install Windows 10 or later version and then click the Continue button.


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4. Now you’ll need to select the “up and down arrows button” – it’s the one to the right of the Choose a Windows ISO file… (see screenshot below).



5. Navigate to your Windows 10 ISO file, select it, and then click the Open button.



6. Now select your USB thumb drive from the list in the Destination disk: section. Make sure not to select one of your other external drives (if you have any) as it will be erasing everything on the drive you select. Click the Continue button when you’re ready.



7. Your USB thumb drive will now be erased…



8. and then the Book Camp Assistant app will start copying over Windows files.



9. The process may take some time, if you wanted to grab yourself a cup of coffee or tea now would be a good time.



10. Once the thumb drive has been set up you’ll be asked to decide how much hard drive space you would like to allocate to Windows. “Click and drag” the small bar between the two sections (macOS and Windows) until you’ve decided how much space you want to give to Windows and how much you want to leave for macOS. The final partition that Windows uses may be slightly smaller than you set here – that’s normal.



11. After you’ve made your selection click the Install button. The Boot Camp Assistant will partition your hard drive to make room for Windows and eventually your Mac will restart.



12. This time when it boots up, you’ll find yourself in Window. Select the language you want to use, time and currency formats, type of keyboard or input method and then finally click the Next button.



13. Enter your Windows product key in the space provided and then click the Next button.



14. If you’re prompted, select the version of Windows that your key is valid for and then click the Next button.



15. Place a check in the box labeled I accept the license terms and then, you guessed it, click the Next button.



16. Select the partition that includes the word BOOTCAMP (and make sure it’s approximately the size that you wanted it to be back in step #10). Click Next.



17. Now you’ll have plenty of time to enjoy that tea or coffee. Eventually, your Windows installation will finish up and you’ll go through the steps to setup Windows 10.

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Finishing Up

After Windows boots for the first time you’ll be prompted to install the Boot Camp installer. It’s super-easy – you’ll just click a “Next” button a few times and then reboot. Although you’re undoubtedly tired of going through installation and setup wizards, it’s very important to go through this one too. If for any reason the Boot Camp installer doesn’t run automatically, just follow these steps.

When your Mac starts up you can choose which Operating System you want to use by holding down the Option or Alt key and when the Startup Manager appears, use the up and down arrow keys to choose either Windows or macOS.

To change the default operating system – the one that starts up automatically without you holding down the Option key, just follow the steps in this guide.

The post Install Windows 10 With Boot Camp on a Mac: The Complete Walkthrough appeared first on Simple Help.

In fact, there’s more than one way to read a QR code without a camera. If you have access to a web browser (any browser – on your phone, laptop/desktop or “other”) you can upload the QR code to a site that will decode it for you. If you’re using an Android device or you already have the Google App (which is also available for the iPhone or iPad).

Whichever method you opt for, save the QR code to your Photos (Photo Library) if you’re using a mobile phone or your Downloads folder if you’re using a Mac/PC. If you need help saving an image on your iPhone or iPad, follow these steps.

Read a QR Code Using the Web

1. Visit the Web QR site. If you’re using a desktop browser you’ll see a message about the site wanting to access your camera – just click the X to close that box.



2. If you’re using a mobile device you’ll probably see a message similar to the one below – just click the Cancel or No button.



3. Now click (or tap) the camera icon found on the right side of the ’empty box’ (see screenshot below)



4. Select the Choose File button.



5. Navigate to your QR code file/image, select it, and click the Open button.



6. If you’re using an iPhone, select Photo Library and select the QR code from there.



7. Web QR will display the “human readable” message embedded within the QR code. In this example, the QR code links to the website www.simplehelp.net. That’s it!



8. If you want to test out the Web QR site, here’s a QR code for you to try:

Read a QR Code Using the Google App

1. Tap the Google icon to open the App.



2. Tap the Camera icon at the end of the search box.



3. If this is the first time you’re accessing your camera via the Google app, it will probably need to be granted permission first. Tap the OK button (Android users tap the equivalent Allow or Yes button).



4. Now tap the Open camera button. It’s probably also a good time to point out that the last couple of steps won’t be required every time you do this – it’s normally much faster :)



5. Instead of taking a picture of something and then performing a search of the item(s) in the picture, tap the photo button next to the shutter button (see screenshot below)



6. Tap Allow Access to All Photos



7. Select the QR code image file from your library.



8. Ta-da! The app will decipher the QR code for you and display the results right on screen. If the QR code contains a URL, you can even launch it in a browser by clicking the Website button.



9. That’s it! Now you know two ways to read QR codes without having to use a camera.

The post How to Read a QR Code Without a Camera appeared first on Simple Help.

There are a slew of reasons to use OpenDNS, but the big 3 are:

1. Websites will load faster and you won’t have to worry about DNS outages from your ISP.
2. There are more than 50 customizable categories for content filtering which means OpenDNS lets parents control what websites their children visit.
3. OpenDNS automatically blocks phishing websites that try to steal your identity and login information by pretending to be a legitimate website.

There are a couple of ways you can protect your devices with OpenDNS – at the router level, or at the device level. If you add OpenDNS to your router, that means all of the devices that connect to your home network will be protected by and using OpenDNS. Or you can add OpenDNS on a device by device basis (eg. just the kids computers and tablets). We’ve got you covered either way with instructions on how to setup OpenDNS on a router, in Windows and in macOS.

Add OpenDNS To A Router

1. There are hundreds and hundreds of different makes and models of routers. We’re going to provide general instructions on changing the DNS servers on a router, but for the specific steps on your make/model, you’ll need to refer to its website/documentation. OpenDNS offer instructions for various types of routers on their page which may also help.
2. Open your browser and enter the routers IP address into the address bar. For most home routers it’s https://192.168.1.1 – if you’re not sure what it is check its documentation or find your router on the OpenDNS page.



3. Enter in the user name and password to access your routers configuration settings. Look for a section titled something along the lines of DNS settings – and enter in the following IP addresses in the DNS server fields:

208.67.222.222
208.67.220.220

In all likelihood there will be a “Save Settings” (or similar) button – make sure to click it.



4. Then you should see a message similar to this one letting you know the changes have been set. Click Continue.



5. To verify the settings were successful you should have a section in your router where it shows the status.



6. In order for the devices that are currently connected to your network to use OpenDNS they’ll need to re-connect. Restart one of them and then on that device check to make sure OpenDNS is working. That’s it! :)

Setup OpenDNS in Windows

1. Click the Windows Search button (or use the keyboard combo Windows key + S to open the Search panel) and enter the word network in the search box. Select View network connections from the list of results.



2. Locate your current Network Connection (probably Wi-Fi) and double-click it.



3. Click the Properties button.



4. Select Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4) by clicking on it once, and then click the Properties button.



5. Select the Use the following DNS server addresses: option, and then enter 208.67.222.222 as the Preferred DNS server: and 208.67.220.220 as the Alternate DNS server:



6. Click OK and close out of the other open windows. Now all you have to do is check to make sure OpenDNS is working!

Setup OpenDNS in macOS

1. Open your System Preferences and select Network



2. Select your active Internet connection (probably Wi-Fi) and then click the Advanced… button.



3. Choose the DNS tab and then click the small “plus sign” ( + ) button located below the DNS Servers: section.



4. Enter the address 208.67.222.222, click the “plus sign” button again and add 208.67.220.220 as well.

   

5. Click on one of the two DNS servers you just added and drag-and-drop it to the top of the list of DNS servers. Then do the same thing with the other DNS server you just added so that they’re the first two addresses listed.



6. Click OK to return to the Network Preferences and then click the Apply button on that screen. Now all you have to do is check to make sure OpenDNS is working!

Make Sure OpenDNS is Working

1. To ensure OpenDNS has been properly added to your router or device, go to the Welcome to OpenDNS Page. You should see the following screen if everything was configured correctly:



2. When you click the demo phishing site InternetBadGuys.com you should see the following:

The post How to Setup OpenDNS to Speed Up & Secure Your Web Browsing appeared first on Simple Help.

Best of all – you don’t need to sign up for anything or download/install any software! Using the free service TuneMyMusic, you can copy the playlists you’ve created in Spotify over to the Apple Music app (and/or iTunes). Here’s how –

Please note: even though the screenshots used in this guide are from a Mac, the entire process is identical whether you’re using Windows, Linux or macOS.

1. Head over to the TuneMyMusic home page (link opens in a new tab/window) and click the big Let’s Start button.



2. Select Spotify as the source.



3. You’ll be prompted to sign into Spotify (if you aren’t already) and then click the large AGREE button so that TuneMyMusic can access your playlists.



4. Click the Load from your Spotify account button.



5. A window will appear with a list of all of the playlists you’ve created on Spotify. Place a check in box next to each of the playlists that you want to export to Apple Music and then click the Next: Select Destination button.



6. Click the Apple Music button to select the destination.



7. A small window will appear – click the Login to your Apple account button in that window.



8. Enter your Apple ID and password in the spaces provided.







9. Depending on your settings, you may be prompted to authenticate with 2 factor authorization. If you are, enter the auth code after you receive it.



10. Now click the Allow button so that TuneMyMusic can create new playlists in Apple Music.



11. Finally! Click the Start Moving My Music >> button. Note: your playlists aren’t “moved” – they’re copied. They will still exist and be accessible in Spotify, they’ll just also exist in Apple Music.



12. The process is actually pretty quick. It only took a minute to export 12 of my playlists (659 songs in total).



13. Once it’s done, you may notice messages about missing files (see screenshot below). If you do see a message about x missing files, click the Show list link next to that playlist.



14. Scroll through the playlist until you find the missing song(s). These tracks either aren’t available on Apple Music or TuneMyMusic wasn’t able to locate/identify them.



15. Open the Music app on your Mac, iTunes on your Windows PC, or the Apple Music app on your iPhone or iPad. Ta-da! All of your Spotify playlists are now accessible in your Apple Music collection. That’s it – you’re all done.

The post How to Transfer Your Spotify Playlists to Apple Music (or iTunes) appeared first on Simple Help.

Please note: the steps and screenshots in this guide are from HandBrake running in Windows. The steps are similar enough (though not identical) for the macOS and Linux versions of HandBrake that you should have no trouble at all following along, even if you’re not using Windows.

1. Get started by downloading HandBrake and installing it. The app itself isn’t very big and doesn’t take long to download or install. Once the installation has completed, launch HandBrake.
2. Now you’ll need to load the video that you want to resize. To do so, click the File – Open a single video file. link.



3. Select the video and then click the Open button.



4. Once the video has been loaded into HandBrake, select the Dimensions tab.



5. Locate the Size section – this is where you set the dimensions you want the video to have. Make your changes to both the Width: and Height: numbers by using the up/down arrows next to each item. Make sure to maintain the same aspect ratio or the resulting video will looked ‘squished’.



6. Confirm that the Output: lists the Display size with your newly set dimensions.



7. Feel free to review the other encoding options that HandBrake offers, if you’d like. They have great documentation, and the app itself has a lot of features. This step is not mandatory, and the default settings will probably suit your needs. Plus, you can always make changes and try again if you’re not happy with the result the first time.
8. Finally, give your new video a name and choose a location to save the file in the Save As: field at the bottom of the window. Click the Start Encode button when you’re ready.






9. The status of your encode will be displayed at the bottom of the HandBrake app window. The larger (file size) and longer the video is, the longer this process will take. You may want to go grab yourself a cup of coffee. Of course, you can continue to use your computer while HandBrake does its thing – it’ll just be a bit slower.



10. Once HandBrake is done resizing the video, open up a File Explorer and locate the newly created file. Select it and then click the Properties button in the ribbon or right-click the file and choose Properties from the context menu.



11. Click the Details tab and locate the Video section on that screen. Confirm that the Frame width and Frame height are set to the correct, new dimensions.



12. Open the file in your favorite video player and confirm it looks the way it should etc.



13. That’s it! You’re all done.

HandBrake is a super helpful tool you can use for much more than just resizing videos, like converting videos to play on your iPhone or iPad and copying DVDs to play on your phone, tablet or computer.

The post How to Resize a Video in Windows, macOS and Linux appeared first on Simple Help.

UPDATE: Due to a lot of confusion around TMP, Microsoft has created a document that explains how to enable TMP.

Here are the Windows 11 minimum system requirements:

Processor: 1 gigahertz (GHz) or faster with 2 or more cores on a compatible 64-bit processor or System on a Chip (SoC)
Memory: 4 GB RAM
Storage: 64 GB or larger storage device
System Firmware: UEFI, Secure Boot capable
Trusted Platform Module (TPM): version 2.0
Graphics Card: DirectX 12 compatible graphics / WDDM 2.x
Display: At least 9″ with HD Resolution (720p)
Other: A Microsoft account and internet connectivity are required to setup Windows 11 Home Edition.

If you read though those requirements and thought to yourself “uh what’s a Trusted Platform Module?” welcome to the club. I found this article explained what they are quite well.

Hands down the easiest way to determine if your PC can run Windows 11 is to download and install the small utility created by Microsoft named Windows PC Health Check (Note: Microsoft has removed this file and will replace it at a later date with a new tool). If you’re more comfortable downloading it directly from a Microsoft.com page, head over here and scroll down to the Get ready section. Once the download completes, run the WindowsPCHealthCheckSetup.msi file from your Downloads folder.

Once the installation has completed, make sure to leave a check in the box labeled Open Windows PC Health Check and then click the Finish button.

When the app opens up, click the Check now button found in the Introducing Windows 11 section.

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After a few moments you’ll get a message letting you know if your PC is going to be able to run Windows 11 or not. As illustrated in the screenshot below, I guess I’ll need a new PC if I want to use Windows 11.

That’s it! You can uninstall the app now, it’s not particularly helpful beyond determine whether a computer can run Windows 11.

The post How to Determine if Your PC Will Run Windows 11 When It Comes Out appeared first on Simple Help.

Overview

This process used to be a bit more complicated, but Google and Microsoft seem to have decided to play nice. Now it’s actually pretty easy to quickly attach your Google Docs files to an email in Outlook, although the process is a bit different depending on which version of Outlook you’re using. We’ve got you covered for each scenario though – with instructions for Outlook in Windows, Outlook in macOS and via Outlook.com.

Attach Google Docs From Outlook in Windows

By installing Google Drive for Desktop, a completely free app from Google, you can access your Google Drive files and folders right from within Windows. One of the cool features of Google Drive for Desktop is that you don’t actually have to store all of those files on your computer as well as on your Google Drive, although you can select files to make available offline if you want. Another cool feature is that it integrates directly into Outlook, which is how we’ll be using it.

1. Before you do anything, exit out of Outlook. Just for a few minutes. Then download Google Drive for Desktop. Once the download has completed, double-click the file to launch the installer.
2. The setup process takes about a minute in total and when it’s done you’ll have a new “drive” – your Google Drive. You can view it by opening a File Explorer and looking at the drives listed in the This PC column.



3. Now open up Outlook again. The first time you open it after installing Google Drive for Desktop you’ll be asked if you’d like to use Google Meet – you can click the X in the upper-right corner of the panel. If you do want to use Meet, you can always set it up later.



4. Click the New Email button to bring up the “Compose a new email” window. In the “Ribbon” you’ll see two new buttons – click the one named Insert files using Drive



5. Select Insert as Attachement







6. Choose your newly added Google Drive.



7. Locate the file you want to send as an attachment, select it and then click the Open button.



8. The file will appear exactly the same as any other attachment.



9. When the recipient receives the file it will appear exactly as any other email attachment, with no indication that it was actually attached via Google Drive.



10. That’s it! For more information on Google Drive for Desktop, check out the article What can you do with Google Drive for desktop.

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Attach Google Docs From Outlook in macOS

By installing Google Drive for Desktop, a completely free app from Google, you can access your Google Drive files and folders right from within macOS via the Finder. One of the cool features of Google Drive for Desktop is that you don’t actually have to store all of those files on your Mac as well as on Google Drive, although you can select files to make available offline if you want. Outlook & Google Drive for Desktop the macOS versions aren’t quite as tightly integrated as the the Windows versions are (no comment), but the functionality is identical. Here’s how to attach Google Docs files to emails in Outlook for macOS –

1. Start by downloading Google Drive for Desktop. The installation only takes a minute or two, but a reboot is required at the end, so make sure to save any open work before you proceed.
2. After you’ve rebooted, open up a Finder window and look in the Locations section of your Sidebar – you’ll find a new item named Google Drive. It contains all of the files on your Google Drive, but they are not stored locally, so they’re not taking up any space.



3. Launch Outlook and compose a new email as you normally would. Click the Attach File button.



4. Choose your newly added Google Drive and select the file you want to send as an email attachment.



5. It will appear as an attachment in your email the same way any other file would – even though it’s actually from your Google Drive.



6. The recipient won’t be able to tell that the file has come from your Google Drive either, it’ll appear the same as any other attachment.



7. That’s it! Now you can access your Google Drive files without having to open a browser. For more information on Google Drive for Desktop, check out the article What can you do with Google Drive for desktop.

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Attach Google Docs From Outlook.com

1. Start by heading over to outlook.com and sign in as you normally would. Compose an email (or reply to an existing one), click the Attach button and select Browse cloud locations



2. Select + Add an account



3. Click the Google Drive box.



4. Select the account you want to access the Google docs from.







5. Now you can select Google Drive from the list of cloud locations and all of the files on your Google Drive will be accessible.



6. You’ll be prompted to share the file itself, or a link to the file on your Google Drive. As long as the file is relatively small (outlook.com allows for attachments up to 34MB) you should select Attach as a copy



7. The file will attach itself to your email the same way any other file would.



8. The recipient won’t be able to tell that the file has come from your Google Drive either, it’ll appear the same as any other attachment.



9. The next time you want to attach a file from your Google Drive (it doesn’t have to be a document file) you won’t need to go through the ‘setup’ part again, you’ll be able to select Google Drive from the cloud locations.

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The post How to Access Your Google Docs Files From Outlook appeared first on Simple Help.

Background

Here’s a a very elementary explanation of what MD5 hashes (sometimes called MD5 checksums) are. From Wikipedia –

… MD5 has been employed in a wide variety of security applications, and is also commonly used to check the integrity of files. … An MD5 hash is typically expressed as a 32-digit hexadecimal number.

What does this mean to you? On many download pages, the software company/programmer will provide a 32 character “MD5 hash” or “MD5 checksum”. After you download the program or file, you can compare it’s MD5 hash with the one provided by the source. If they match, you’ll know that you have the correct, unaltered version of that file.

Once upon a time you needed to download and install an app in order to generate the MD5 hash of a file in Windows or macOS. Fast forward to today and now both Windows and macOS have the ability to generate MD5 hashes built right into the operating system. The instructions for Windows are directly below, and you can click here or just scroll down for the section on generating an MD5 hash in macOS.

How to Match an MD5 Hash With a File in Windows

1. Click the Search button in your taskbar and enter the word command. When Command Prompt appears in the list of results, select it. You can also open a Command Prompt by clicking the Windows “Start” button and scrolling down to the Windows System folder and then select Command Prompt



2. Enter the following partial command but do not hit enter yet.
   

   certutil -hashfile 



3. Now open a File Explorer window and locate the file that you want to check. Drag that file onto your Command Prompt window and let go.



4. Confirm that the line now reads like this:
   

   certutil -hashfile C:\path\to\file.xyz



5. Finally, add the characters md5 at the very end of the command, which should now look like this:
   

   certutil -hashfile C:\path\to\file.xyz md5



6. Hit enter or return on your keyboard to run the command. After a moment or two the 32 character MD5 hash will be generated and displayed inside of the Command Prompt.



7. Now compare that 32 character string with the actual MD5 hash provided by the software company. Assuming they match up, you can rest assured that you’re using the exact copy of the file that was provided by the company/author etc.



8. That’s it! Repeat as needed to generate the MD5 hash of any file on your computer.

1. Launch a Terminal by navigating to your Applications folder, then the Utilities folder, and then open Terminal.
2. With a Terminal window open, enter the command: md5 followed by a ‘space’. Do not hit enter/return yet.



3. Open a Finder window and locate the file that you want to check. Drag and drop that file onto your Terminal.



4. Confirm that the command now looks like this:
   

   md5 /path/to/the/file



5. Hit return on your keyboard to run the command. After a moment or two you’ll be presented with the 32 character MD5 hash for that file. Compare that code to the official one to ensure that the files are identical.



6. That’s it! Super easy and you can do it with any file you wish.

The post How to Match an MD5 Hash With a File appeared first on Simple Help.

You know when you buy a game and you put the disc in it shows an icon related to that game? Have you ever wanted to do something like that to your CDs or DVDs, or even USB flash drives? It’s actually really easy to do. It just requires a text file and an icon. This tutorial will guide you through the steps required to create both.

1. Find an image you want to use as the icon for your CD, DVD or flash drive. I’ve decided to use the logo image this site uses – a red question mark. Once you have the image, head over to IcoConvert so that you can convert it into an .ico file. It’s super easy and completely free. When you get to Step #4, make sure to select Custom sizes and Multi-size in one icon and then place a check in all of the size options.



2. After you’ve downloaded your newly created .ico file, open up Notepad on your PC. Enter [autorun] on the first line and then on the second line enter ICON=ICON.ICO, replacing ICON.ICO with the name of your icon file. As you can see in the screenshot below, my second line is ICON=logo.ico – since logo.ico is the name of the icon file I created.



3. Now save that text file as autorun.inf by selecting All Files (*.*) as the Save as type: option, otherwise your file will be named autorun.inf.txt






4. Finally, copy your two files (the .ico file and the autorun.inf file) to the root of the drive you want them to be used with (in other words don’t put the inside of a folder on that CD/DVD or flash drive, just copy them right to the top level).



5. If you’re creating a custom icon for a flash drive you’ll need to safely unplug it and then plug it back in again for the icon to appear. If you’re burning a CD or DVD the icon will be visible when you insert the disc into a CD/DVD drive.



6. That’s it! Now you can include a custom icon on all of the CD/DVD’s that you burn in the future.

The post How to Add a Custom Icon to Your CD/DVD and Flash Drives appeared first on Simple Help.

The Sumatra PDF developer(s) have found the absolute perfect balance between features, ease of use, and speed. I’ve been using this app since 2008 (it’s been around that long!) and I forget how slow and bloated other PDF viewers are until I try to open a PDF on a different computer. With Sumatra PDF it feels like .pdf files open as fast as .txt files. Even 20MB+ files open instantly.

You can switch between various “views”, search within documents, highlight text, add pages to favorites – all the standard stuff you’d expect. Then you can really customize it by editing the advanced settings.

Be sure to check out it’s extensive keyboard shortcut list and online documentation for advanced uses etc.

On top of all of that – it’s free! Not just free, but open-source free. It’s absolutely worthy of our “Windows App of the Month” award.

It works in Windows 10, Windows 8, Windows 7 and Vista. It even works in Windows XP you just need to use an earlier version. Download Sumatra PDF here. If you do find it super helpful and would like to support the author, there are a few ways.

click to enlarge

After you use Sumatra PDF for a bit you’ll almost certainly want to make it your default PDF reader, and we have instructions on how to do that in Windows 8 or Windows 10.

The post Windows App of the Month: Sumatra PDF appeared first on Simple Help.

When you double-click a file in Windows 10, that file will open up with what we call a “default” app. But what if you want to change the program that opens from whatever it is now to something different? Follow these instructions to change the app that opens when you double-click a file, based on the file type. In this example we’re going to change the program that opens .pdf files on my Windows PC from Microsoft Edge (the default) to SumatraPDF – my favorite PDF viewer.

1. Click the Windows 10 “Start button” and then select Settings (the “gear” icon). Select Apps from the list of Windows Settings



2. Select Default apps from the column on the left side of the panel and then scroll down and select Choose default apps by file type from the right side of the panel.



3. Scroll through the list of file types until you find the one you want to change. In my example it’s .pdf. Then click the app next to that file type, which in my case is Microsoft Edge



4. When you click on the app name a list of other apps will appear. These are the ones you can choose to open up when you double-click this file type.



5. Make sure your selected app is now the one listed next to the file extension.



6. Find a file of the type you just changed, double-click it and make sure it opens up in the right app. Repeat this process as needed with different file types. Now you know how to change change the default app by file type in Windows 10!

If you find that Windows repeatedly changes your preferred default apps we have a guide that explains how to force Windows to stop changing the default apps.

The post Change the App That Opens When You Double-Click a File in Windows 10 appeared first on Simple Help.

Accessing the files on your Mac from a Windows PC is quite a bit easier than you might have imagined, once you know the process. For this guide we’re going to assume both of the computers are on the same network.

1. First you’ll need to enable File Sharing in macOS. Click the Apple button in the Menu Bar, and select System Preferences… from the drop-down list. Click the Sharing icon.



2. Place a check in the File Sharing box and make note of the IP address displayed in the blurb below the File Sharing: On notification. You can close out of the System Preferences when you’re done.



3. Open a File Explorer window and click inside of the Address Bar (see screenshot below).



4. Enter \\ followed by the IP address you made note of back in step #2. For example, if the IP address of your Mac is 192.168.1.66, you would enter:
   

   \\192.168.1.66



5. Enter the user name and password that you use to sign into your Mac and then click the OK button. If you don’t want to enter this info each time you connect to your Mac, place a check in the box labeled Remember my credentials



6. Ta-da! You’ll now be able to access all of the files and folders on your Mac, from right within Windows.



7. If you’d like to keep this as a ‘permanent’ part of the File Explorer, you can map it as a Network Drive. To do so, click the Windows Search button, type the phrase map network and then select the Map network drive option when it appears.



8. Choose a drive letter that you’d like your Mac to be represented as. For the sake of this guide, I choose Z: but you can use any letter that isn’t already in use. In the Folder: field enter in \\ followed by your IP address again – but this time you’ll have to add \your_mac_username to the end. If you can’t remember your user name, open a Finder window on your Mac, then choose Go -> Home. Your user name is the name of the highlighted folder.

   Finally, make sure there are check marks in both Reconnect at sign-in and Connect using different credentials and then click the Finish button.



9. You may be prompted to enter the username and password for your Mac again. Then your File Explorer will display the contents of your Mac as a network drive.



10. If you open a File Explorer to the My PC section, your newly created network drive will also be displayed there.



11. NOTE: from time to time your Mac’s IP address may change. When it does, your network drive will not longer work. The fastest way to figure out what IP address your Mac is using so you can remap the drive is to hold down the option key and then click the Wi-Fi icon in the Menu Bar.

The post How Access the Files on Your Mac From Windows appeared first on Simple Help.

Background

The PortableApps app lets you turn any thumb drive into a “portable PC” filled with your software, settings and bookmarks, documents, photos, audio/video files, and more. It allows you to make any PC feel like it’s your own, and doesn’t leave anything behind. It’s incredibly handy to be able to plug it into a friends computer, work or school computer, and have everything you need ready and waiting for you to use.

It works on every modern version of Windows, all the way back to Windows 2000. Perhaps best of all, it’s completely free and it’s even open source, so you can rest assured that there’s no malware or spyware hidden in the app.

Installing PortableApps on a USB Thumb Drive

1. To get started, plug in your USB thumb drive. You don’t have to delete everything on it, but it might be a good idea to copy the contents over to your hard drive just in case something goes wrong and your data gets erased during the PortableApps installation – which is unlikely, but things happen…

   Visit the PortableApps download page and download the installer file. Once the download has completed, run the file.



2. After clicking Next a few times you’ll be asked what kind of installation you want. Select New Install and then click the Next button.



3. Choose Portable – install to a portable device and click Next



4. Select the drive that represents your USB thumb drive and then click Next



5. At this point you’ll be presented with a confirmation screen. Make sure the right drive has been selected and then click the Install button.



6. Just sit back and wait while the app installs itself onto your thumb drive. This process doesn’t take very long.



7. Finally, make sure there’s a check in the box labelled Run PortableApps.com Platform and then click the Finish button.

Setting Up and Using PortableApps

1. When PortableApps opens for the first time it displays the “About” screen. Close it by clicking the Close button.



2. The PortableApps app itself will be displayed in the bottom right corner of your desktop. To get started adding software to it, click the Apps button.



3. Select the Get More Apps… option and then the By Category option.



4. Give PortableApps time to load all of the software that it offers. This can take a minute or two so just let it do its thing.



5. Eventually a window will appear with a big list of all the software that works with PortableApps out of the box. Go through the list and place a check in the box next to each app you want to install to your thumb drive.



6. Click the Next button after you’ve made your selections.



7. Now PortableApps will download and install everything you just selected. This process can take quite a while, and unfortunately you can’t just leave it and come back later. Many of the Apps require you to click “Accept” to a Terms of Service. The good news is that you only have to go through this process once. Open Minesweeper or something to help kill the time.



8. Once everything has completed, click the Finish button.



9. Now the PortableApps app will have a list of all the software available on your thumb drive. Click one of the apps…



10. … and it’ll open up, exactly the same as if it was installed on the hard drive of the computer you’re using.



11. PortableApps also includes shortcuts to folders that it has created for you on the thumb drive. Click the Documents button.



12. Windows Explorer will open and display the contents of that Documents folder – which is on your thumb drive. This is a great place to store all of the files you want to take with you.



13. One last thing you may want to check out before you’re done – click the Options button.



14. Check out each tab/section and make any changes you see fit.


click to enlarge

15. The Themes tab contains a series of themes or “skins” that PortableApps can use. I didn’t love the default one, but I found a great one to use in this list. Select one of them and then click OK to apply the change.


click to enlarge

16. Keep trying the themes until you find one you like.



17. Finally – when you want to use this on another PC just plug in your thumb drive and navigate to it using Windows Explorer. Double-click Start.exe to launch PortableApps.



18. Remember that when you set up the apps on your thumb drive, the settings for those apps are stored on the thumb drive itself. So you can take your drive to use on another PC, and everything will ready to go. If you use Thunderbird to check your email through PortableApps, you may want to set it to leave mail on the server, so that your email is available to your “main” mail app as well.

The post How to Setup and Use PortableApps on a USB Thumb Drive appeared first on Simple Help.

About Deleting Files in Windows

When you delete a file in Windows you might think the data has been erased. That’s not exactly accurate. Windows doesn’t really remove the file from the disk, it just removes all the references to that file. It’s still there, and will remain there until another files gets written on top of it. Even then, it’s often possible for data recovery software like Remo File Recovery Software to bring it back to life.

The solution is to not only remove the file, but to write on top of it multiple times. With random data. That’s where the free and open source tool Eraser comes in. When you delete a file with Eraser, the file is deleted and then data is written on top of that file over and over again until it can’t be recovered.

Eraser uses the Guttmann (Default), Pseudorandom Data and US DoD 5220-22.M methods to securely delete data. If none of that makes sense to you, don’t worry about it. In a nutshell, the Guttmann method is the most secure, and it’s the default.

Using Eraser to Permanently Delete Files and Folders

1. First things first, download and install Eraser. The installation is very straightforward – mostly you’ll just click “Next” a bunch of times. On the screen that asks you the which type of setup you’d like, select Typical



2. Once installed, right-click on a file or folder (or several) that you want to securely erase (maybe start with a test file or two – remember – deleting files this way makes sure that they are totally unrecoverable). Select Eraser from the context menu and then Erase from the sub-menu.



3. If you’re using Windows Vista, 7, 8 or 10, the User Account Control prompt will appear. Click the Yes button.



4. When you’re asked if you want to erase the selected items, click the Yes button.



5. Depending on the number and size of the files and folders you selected, permanently deleting them can take anywhere from a few seconds to several minutes.
6. That’s it! Those files are gone and cannot be recovered.

Permanently Delete the Contents of the Recycle Bin

You can also use Eraser to securely and permanently delete all of the files and folders in your Recycle Bin. The process is almost identical to right-clicking on a group of files and folders to delete them.

1. Right-click the Recycle Bin on your Desktop and select Eraser and then Erase



2. If you’re using Windows 7, 8 or 10, the User Account Control prompt will appear. Click the Yes button.



3. When you’re asked if you want to erase the selected items, click the Yes button.



4. The Eraser app will now delete all of the files and folders in your Recycle Bin and write over the space where the files used to be with random data. This can take anywhere from a few seconds to a few minutes – it depends on how many files and folders are in your Recycle Bin, and how large they are. Once it’s done, your Recycle Bin will be empty and its contents unrecoverable.

   

If you’re concerned with keeping the contents of your hard drive as private as possible, you may want to take a look at this guide on how to securely store your files in Windows.

The post How to Permanently Delete Files and Folders in Windows appeared first on Simple Help.

One interesting thing about this trick is that it works from Windows XP all the way through Windows 10. Although this guide uses Windows 10 for the steps and screenshots, if you’re using a different version of Windows you’ll have absolutely no trouble following along.

It’s important to note that not all Windows apps use the same “Save As” box – there’s more than one. So this little trick won’t work for every app that has a “Save As” box.

1. Click the Search button in the Windows Taskbar and run a search for: gpedit.msc . Select that item from the search results. Note: if you’re using an earlier version of Windows, click the Start button and then Run. Enter gpedit.msc in the Run box.



2. The Group Policy editor will appear.



3. In the left panel select the + (plus sign) next to User Configuration to expand the list. Next select the plus sign next to Administrative Templates then Windows Components then File Explorer and finally, select Common Open File Dialog. Note: if you’re using an earlier version of Windows the path may be a bit different. Try: User Configuration to expand the list, then Administrative Templates -> Windows Explorer -> Common Open File Dialog



4. Double-click the Items displayed in Places Bar entry in the main Group Policy window.



5. The Items displayed in Places Bar Properties window will open. The first thing to do is place a check in the box next to Enabled



6. Now enter in the locations you’d like to have displayed in the Save As dialog box. You need to enter the full path to the location for the shortcuts to work. For example, if you want to have a shortcut to your Downloads folder, enter in:
   

   C:\Users\Your User Name\Downloads\



7. Once you’ve entered in all the locations you’d like to appear in the Save As window, click Apply and then OK.

   

8. Ta-da! If you open an App and select File -> Save As… you’ll see the custom folders that you just added. Note: in Windows 10, if you leave one of the 5 location fields blank, a shortcut to This PC will be included.

While you’re here and in the mood to personalize Windows, maybe you’d like to customize the Windows 10 “Quick Access” menu as well.

The post How to Set Custom Locations in the Windows “Save As” Box appeared first on Simple Help.