How to use Optimize Drives in Windows 8

1. From the Windows 8 Start screen, search for “Optimize Drives.”

2. Click on “Defragment and Optimize Drives” to get started.

Optimize Drives will show you all available drives on your PC, including removable devices and hardware. You can check the “Current Status” section to see which drive can be optimized and which one is not available for optimization.

If a drive or removable device is currently being used, you won’t be able to optimize it. When running Optimize Drive, it’s best to leave your computer alone and let it do its work. If you’re using another application or editing files during the optimization process, it will affect the overall efficiency of Optimize Drives.

If a drive doesn’t appear at all in this list, it’s possible that it’s corrupted or has some other error keeping it from being optimized. You can run chkdsk to see if that corrects the problem in order to optimize it.

3. Before analyzing and optimizing a drive, click “Change settings.”

Optimize Drives in Windows 8 can be run automatically at any interval you choose, and this is often the best way to defrag your hard drive or removable device. You can schedule this during the night so that it doesn’t interfere with your everyday computer activities. You’ll also be able to see notifications if the schedule was missed as well as choose what drives are included in the schedule you set.

4. When you’re ready, click on the drive you want to analyze and click “Analyze.”

Generally, if your drive is more than ten percent fragmented after analysis, defragging the drive will improve its performance.

5. Click “Optimize” to begin the process.

Windows will first analyze the drive, then do a pass over your drive before consolidating it. During the consolidation process it will attempt to organize data on your drive in a way to make it quicker to access. For the most part, you won’t notice the difference when using your PC, but it does make a difference in the way your computer accesses information.

Depending on the size of the drive and whether or not it’s been optimized before, this process can take anywhere from thirty minutes to several hours, which is why it’s advised to schedule this process overnight and step away from the computer.

6. Once the process is complete, restart your computer.

Conclusion

Ideally, Optimize Drives in Windows 8 or Disk Defragmenter in Windows 7 should be run any time your fragmentation is at ten percent or higher. This will improve the overall performance and functionality of your PC. This is one of the hidden tools of Windows systems that many users neglect to take advantage of. Run Optimize Drives or Disk Defragmenter yourself to see what an improvement it makes.

The post How to Optimize Drives in Windows 8 to Improve Performance appeared first on Make Tech Easier.

Backup jump lists in Windows

The backing up process is very simple. All you need to do is to open the Windows Explorer and navigate to the path:

%APPDATA%\Microsoft\Windows\Recent\AutomaticDestinations

and

%APPDATA%\Microsoft\Windows\Recent\CustomDestinations

Backup all the files in these two folders. (note that the files’ name contain the folder name that they belong to, so you won’t be confused which file belongs to which folder.)

Alternatively, you can download this bat file and run it in your computer to automate the whole process. What this bat file will do is to first create a “Jump-Lists-Backup” folder on your Desktop and then copy all the jumplist folders and files over to this newly created folder.

Don’t delete or modify this folder, as you’ll need it intact to restore your jump lists.

Restoring the jump lists

When you’re ready to restore your jump lists, you can simply copy the files that you backed up earlier and paste to the same locations where you save the files from earlier. (You can use Dropbox or Skydrive to sync the files from one PC to another.)

Restart the Windows Explorer.

Alternatively, you can download this restore bat file and execute it in your computer, assuming that the Jump-Lists-Backup folder is intact in your desktop (if you are doing it on another computer, make sure you copy the Jump-Lists-Backup folder to the desktop first before executing this bat file).

Your screen may flicker for a second as Explorer is refreshed during the jump lists restore.

Once completed, click on the jump lists and you’ll see they’ve been restored to when you backed them up.

What’s nifty about this trick is that if you use the same programs between two computers running Windows 7 or 8, you can use the .bat files to backup jump lists on one PC, then restore them on another PC by copying the backup folder to the desktop destination on the new computer, then running the restore .bat file.

You will need to make sure you’re using the same program versions on each PC for this to work properly, otherwise you may restore only partial jump lists as opposed to everything you backed up.

Conclusion

If you’re used to using jump lists in Windows, being able to backup jump lists and restore them on another PC can be beneficial, especially if you’re using two computers and want access to your jump lists no matter which one you use during the day.

The post How to Backup Jump Lists in Windows appeared first on Make Tech Easier.

Downloading and installing

WinAero Librarian is available for Windows 7 and 8. Once you download the archive from WinAero’s web site and unzip it, you’ll see that it contains Windows 7 and Windows 8 versions. This allows you to open only the version you need and run its program to get started.

There is also a folder for Cool Libraries Icons within the archive; this can be used as a way to change the default library icons from WinAero Librarian. Wherever you decide to house the WinAero Librarian folder, store this icons folder in it, to be used later.

Creating a new library

WinAero Librarian utilizes a simple user interface.

In order to create a new library, click the “Star Icon.”

Name your new library anything you want, then click “OK.”

Clicking “Change Icon” will let you pick a new icon to represent the library. This is where the new folder of icons comes in handy.

If you click on “Browse,” you can navigate to where you stored the icon folder and choose a more exciting icon for the library.

If you want to change the type of library you’ve created, click “Library type.”

You can choose from a drop-down menu what type of library you’re creating or just leave the library as a generic one. For the most part, it no longer matters in Windows what type of library you create because you can link multiple locations to it.

From the New library window, you can click “Add” to add folders and locations to the library for easy access. There is no limit to what you link to your library.

Modifying existing libraries

If you right-click on any library from WinAero Librarian, you can click on “Change” to modify it.

For the default Windows libraries that it ships with, you cannot change the names, but you can change the icons, type and what folders link to it.

You can also delete the default libraries as you see fit by right-clicking the one you want to remove from Windows.

Other features of WinAero Librarian

WinAero Librarian also allows you to view the old-fashioned library locations where you can add or remove folders as necessary.

The only difference in using this versus Librarian’s interface is that with WinAero, Windows will show you whether or not a folder is public. This can be useful when working with a shared library.

Another useful feature of WinAero comes through viewing your libraries as a XML file.

If you need to import/export library structure from one Windows PC to another, you can use this information to do just that with WinAero Librarian.

Save the Notepad file as something unique, then transfer that file to another Windows PC using WinAero Librarian. Open up the XML file associated with the library you want to mimic the same settings. Copy and paste the Notepad file contents into it, then Save the XML file.

Conclusion

Windows always seems to give users the bare minimum when it comes to customizing the operating system. However, using tools like WinAero Librarian will give you more control over your Windows libraries.

The post Manage Your Windows Libraries with WinAero Librarian appeared first on Make Tech Easier.

Setting up WebCopy

The first time you open WebCopy after downloading and installing it, click on “Tools,” then “Options” to take a look at its settings.

General, Copy and Notifications Options are all basic and require no real walkthrough.

Appearance Options, however, are a way for you to customize how the saved websites look. You can change the variable and fixed fonts as well as how the Sitemap created for your offline website looks and feels.

Saving a website

For the purpose of our walkthrough, we’ll be using Cyotek’s tutorial web site to show you how to get the most from WebCopy.

1. Enter in a URL in the Website field, then click “Copy Website.”

2. If everything goes smoothly, WebCopy will begin the process and save the website for offline viewing.

Depending on the website and hierarchy of how it’s designed, it’s possible that WebCopy may not be able to actually download it for offline use. If this occurs, the copy will be halted and you will see an announcement.

You will also be given the opportunity to look at the error logs to hopefully determine what the problem is. However, most likely there will not be much you can do on your end to correct it.

3. Once the website is finished downloading, there might still be errors detected, and you will still be alerted and allowed to go through the various results.

4. Click on the “Green Arrow” next to Save folder.

This will open the folder where you website has been downloaded, if you click on any of the web pages, it’ll open in your brows navigate through the site as you would normally.

WebCopy saves the layout, and by generating a sitemap of the web site, it can create a natural direction through the site as if visiting it in real time. This is where the real beauty of WebCopy comes into play.

5. Click on the “Floppy Disk” icon to save your new saved website.

Saving your website project allows you to come back to it, re-download components and use the website offline any time you need.

Working with the wesite panels

After you save websites for offline viewing, these results show you what was downloaded properly, what errors occurred, the background files downloaded to load your offline site and more. This can be a way to piece together what pages are missing, what changes have been made between fresh downloads of a single website and issues you might encounter when browsing a website offline.

The first panel you’ll work with is the Results. This will give you a breakdown of how WebCopy downloaded a website. You can see if a page was successfully downloaded, if an error occurred and other information.

The next panel you work with is the Errors. This will show you every error that occurred during the download, such as 404 errors.

The Sitemap panel gives you a look at how the sitemap organizes after the download.

The Skipped panel shows what pages were skipped in the website hierarchy during the download. In most instances, any domain linked outside the original domain you wanted to download offline will not actually download as part of the overall structure.

The Files panel showcases everything that was downloaded to create your website offline, including HTML files, images, JavaScript applications and more.

Finally, the Missing panel will show you what downloaded in a current website copy that may not have been included in previous downloads.

These panels give you an overall picture of the website hierarchy which can be useful for creating rules to govern how a website is downloaded for offline use.

Utilizing rules for offline web site downloads

WebCopy lets you create a set of rules to apply when downloading a web site for offline use. For instance, you might not need the images from a website when viewing it.

1. Click “CTLR + R” to open the Rules Editor.

2. Under the “Rules Properties,” in the “Pattern” text box, type “\.jpg” or substitute whatever image type you want to exclude from your website downloads.

3. You can select what Options you want for the rule, in this case, we’ll click “Exclude.”

4. If we click “Enable this rule,” this will exclude all JPG images from downloading when you get a new copy of a website for use offline.

You can create a variety of rules for a particular website and save them all within the Project for use whenever you update your offline sites.

Conclusion

WebCopy gives you control over how you save websites for offline viewing. It’s an amazing utility for websites you visit frequently and would like to have available when you can’t get online.

The post Save Websites for Offline Viewing with WebCopy appeared first on Make Tech Easier.

Open source licensing

Open source licensing has been around for a very long time.  It’s a type of accepted copyright license for software that allows developers to modify and share the source code behind it.  Beyond that, open source software can be freeware, shareware or paid for outright by users depending on the developer’s preference.  It’s also determined by each open source developer whether or not their name must be attached to the source code should it be modified or distributed in a new way.

There are many organizations and groups that oversee open source licensing, which makes it a more viable way to protect the work as a software developer.  Since more people recognize the oversight, it’s easy to protect your source code should someone use it in a way you didn’t authorize.

Open source comes as is with no guarantee it’ll even work or that you’ll have the support behind it to fix an issue that comes up.  Since open source software is being developed, tweaked and distributed with changes by various developers, they may not have the time or energy to fix or change anything that is considered an issue.

Some of the most well-known open source software out there includes Linux, WordPress, Firefox and the Chromium engine.

Proprietary licensing

Proprietary licensing is more of a free form licensing that has no real oversight.  When you download a software title under a proprietary license, the developer makes the rules of what can and can’t be done with it. However, under the law in most countries, there are really no repercussions to govern this because proprietary licensing is not overseen by any laws backing it.  This is why you see many well-known proprietary software titles being modified without official access to its source code.

Since proprietary licensing is not recognized by the law, that means that just about every proprietary title requires you as a user to accept a long set of Terms and Conditions.  Once you accept this legal document, it becomes a binding contract between you and the developer, which means you’re liable for any terms you break.

Proprietary licensing offers support, bug fixes and patches, along with other helpful solutions when needed from the developer.  Since they’re the only ones who can fix issues related to the source code, the developer is most apt to find the fixes and apply them to continue turning a profit.

Some of the most common proprietary-based software out there include Windows and Mac OS X.

Open Source and Proprietary License Compared

Open source licensing and proprietary licensing have two very different goals in mind: The latter has turned into a game of making a profit whereas the former is all about taking a basic idea and turning it into something bigger and better.

Can Open Source and Proprietary License Work Well Together?

Opera has recently taken the step forward as a proprietary-based company deciding to make the leap into a more open source atmosphere.  Opera has made the move from using its rendering engine to utilizing the WebKit engine.  In this case, the brand of Opera is still proprietary, but the engine it uses is open source, meaning developers can tweak the coding behind Opera in ways they never could before.  This can lead to leaps forward for the Opera browser, similar to how the Chromium engine has evolved, without them giving up everything about the Opera brand.

Conclusion

Big name companies can still retain the rights to the brands they own, but by allowing developers and everyday users to tweak the code in places, who knows what could be possible for your favorite software titles and operating systems.  This is how open source and proprietary license can work together to produce better software for everyone.

The post Open Source vs. Proprietary License: What You Need to Know About Software Licenses appeared first on Make Tech Easier.

Using an SD card is a must

If you aren’t already using an SD card with your device, what’s stopping you? An SD card is a powerful tool not just for Spotify but for our increasingly mobile lives. SD cards are dirt cheap at this point, and many phones and tablets come with them by default.

If you have an SD card, Spotify will automatically detect it and directly downloaded playlists will store themselves there.

You can’t turn this off or change this setting, which is beneficial to being able to listen to music when you aren’t connected to WiFi or another active Internet connection.

Spotify allows you to download a maximum of 3,333 songs to a mobile device. That’s about 16GB of music if you use Normal Quality (~160 kbps) and 32 GB of music using High Quality (~96 kbps) settings.

Lower quality vs. higher quality

In Spotify’s settings on your phone or tablet, you can change the quality of music you stream and download. This can save a bit of storage space on your device if necessary. The quality on Spotify, even on the low range, isn’t horrible to listen to, but if you’re a music aficionado, it may be subtle enough to ruin the experience.

You can utilize three quality settings in mobile Spotify: Normal, High and Extreme. Normal is your lowest setting, whereas the differences between High and Extreme are debatable.

Creating playlists based on what you listen to on the go

If you are using a small SD card or not using one at all, creating playlists for mobile purposes is the way to go.

You can do this in Spotify on your computer or on your mobile device, by creating a new Playlist and name it something like Mobile.

Only place songs in the Playlist that you listen to frequently and that you want to download. This can be an effective way to manage limited storage space on your phone. You can also use this playlist as a way to download a song, delete it when you’re bored of it and add to it when you see fit. This lets you take the music you want with you on the go.

The only downfall to creating playlists this way is that you have to manually remove songs once you “delete” them from Spotify. You can’t just Clear Data or Clear Cache to remove them from your SD card. However, this is a small price to pay to conserve space on your phone or tablet.

Conclusion

It should be noted that while some users may want to go offline with mobile Spotify, the app itself was designed to work well with 3G and 4G networks. This gives users a higher quality streaming experience than previously available on most mobile phones and networks. Depending on your phone and provider, if you find that the tips above aren’t cutting it, try out Spotify’s streaming power and see for yourself just how it works. If you have additional tips not mentioned here, please let us know in the comments below.

Image credit: Spotify

The post How to Conserve Space When Using Mobile Spotify on Android appeared first on Make Tech Easier.

Downloading and using for first time

Windows App Boss can be downloaded from its CodePlex page. It doesn’t need to be installed, so you can start using it as soon as it’s finished downloading.

When you first start using Windows App Boss, it’ll take a few seconds to populate its database with the apps installed on your computer.

Once filled, you can see the name, version, publisher and family the app belongs to. This is often information that you don’t have access to when you install/uninstall Windows 8 apps.

Installing apps

Windows App Boss lets you install Windows Store apps as well as test-signed apps which may not have been approved yet by Microsoft to appear in the store.

Click “Install” in the top left corner to open the Advanced Package Installer.

This is the utility to use to install apps manually as opposed to doing it through the Windows Store. As always, be careful what you install in Windows 8 especially if you’re not familiar with the source.

You just have to add the package, add the dependencies and then select the right options before proceeding with the install. This is definitely for more advanced users but can be beneficial if you want to use an app not offered on the Windows Store, yet.

Working with apps

On the main screen, you can click on any app to get more information, open it or uninstall it.

Just click on an app, then click “Settings.”

You’ll be able to view the Settings.dat file for the app, which is something you can’t access from the app directly when launched. These are the background settings for the app and how it runs on Windows 8 and not the traditional app settings you’re used to tinkering with.

By clicking “Snap Shots,” you can actually take snapshots of the app’s state which can be useful for diagnosing problems or submitting bug reports to a developer to help improve an app.

You can even restore an app to a previous state by using this mini-restore tool.

Uninstalling apps

Uninstalling an app can also be done from the desktop in Windows App Boss. Just highlight an app and click “Uninstall.” A small pop-up window will appear and run through the basic uninstall process, the same way you would be uninstalling an app from the Start screen. There is no difference in uninstalling an app through Windows App Boss or the way Windows lets you from the Start screen.

Developer License management

Windows App Boss also lets you manage your Windows Developer License from its program as opposed to having to go through Power Shell to do it.

If you haven’t acquired a license before, you can start by doing that.

From there, you can manage, renew and remove the license as necessary while you work on apps for Windows 8.

Conclusion

Windows App Boss lets you work from the desktop and interact with apps in Windows 8 in ways Microsoft doesn’t. If you’re looking for more information on Windows 8 apps or even to develop your own, Windows App Boss is just one way to go about it. Let us know in the comments below if you have another preferred way.

The post How to Manage Windows 8 Apps Directly From the Desktop appeared first on Make Tech Easier.

Downloading and running Windows Menu Plus

Download Windows Menu Plus from MooO’s web site. Windows Menu Plus doesn’t need to be installed; click on the EXE file you downloaded to start.

Working with Windows Menu Plus’ options

1. From the notifications area in your taskbar, “Right-click” the Windows Menu Plus icon.

2. Ensure “Turn On” is checked.

This will activate Windows Menu Plus, and as long as it’s running in the background, you’ll be able to take advantage of everything it has to offer.

3. Open the same menu and click “Show/Hide.”

This will allow you to customize what you want to see when you click on a Windows app title bar. Check each item you want to add, and it’ll be added when you right-click on title bars from now on.

4. Clicking Language will let you change the default language Windows Menu Plus runs in.

This will also change the language for the additional functions you added through Windows Menu Plus.

5. Back at the main Windows Menu Plus context menu, click “Start on System Boot.”

In order to get the most from Windows Menu Plus, you want to ensure it starts on boot. This will keep the options you’ve selected running instead of you forgetting to start it when you log in to Windows.

Also, if Windows Menu Plus stops booting on startup, despite this being checked, you can open its Task Scheduler entry to help troubleshoot the issue.

6. One more time from the menu, click “About.”

This will give you various information on Windows Menu Plus, including the current version you’re using along with information online for using the program on your PC.

Using Windows Menu Plus

Keep in mind that some programs won’t let you utilize Windows Menu Plus for security reasons. If you right-click a window and nothing pops up, this is something that’s been blocked by the developer or Windows.

For this example, we’re using the Windows Calculator, and when we refer to a number, you can head back to this image to see what area we’re talking about.

In area one, you can keep the window on top, maximize the window if available and change its transparency.

Transparency can be changed from 0% to 100% depending on how light you want the window or app to be.

In area two you can kill the app’s process, change its priority and even free unused memory it may be eating up in Windows.

Click “Process Priority.”

Process Priority will allow you to change how the app utilizes CPU, cache memory and RAM. For most cases, you shouldn’t need to change the priority process of anything in Windows unless you believe a program is utilizing too many or too few resources.

If you click “Free Unused Memory,” Windows Menu Plus will cycle your cached memory to release memory the app is utilizing and doesn’t need. This can help improve your overall computer performance.

In area three, you can find this program in its own folder or get additional information on the program.

You are given a variety of information on the program with this option, from how long it’s been running, to how much memory it’s using and even how it writes to your hard drive. This can be useful to find out version information or even if the program is eating memory.

In the final area, four, you can create a tray icon for any app with Windows Menu Plus even if it doesn’t normally offer this option for quick and easy access.

Conclusion

Windows Menu Plus has enough options for any computer user to find it useful in some capacity. If you’re looking for additional functionality from right-clicking your apps, Windows Menu Plus is the solution. If you’ve used it, comment below to let us know what you think of its uses.

The post Add Extra Useful Menu to App Window With Windows Menu Plus appeared first on Make Tech Easier.

How to use the Windows 8 Reliability Monitor

1. Begin searching for “Reliability Monitor” from the Start screen in Windows 8.

2. Click on “Settings,” then on “View reliability history” to open the Reliability Monitor.

The first time you open the in Windows 8 Reliability Monitor, it will take a few minutes depending on how long you’ve been using the PC.

By default, the Reliability Monitor will open showing you the days of the current month and issues that popped up on each day.

The Reliability Monitor breaks down events in the following ways:

• Application failures: This relates to any issues with applications, such as failed installs and failed updates
• Windows failures: This relates to any issues with Windows, such as failed updates, improper shutdown procedures
• Miscellaneous failures: This relates to any issues that can’t be classified into application or Windows failures, such as driver issues and hardware issues
• Warnings: This relates to any unsuccessful software, driver, Windows update or any critical events
• Information: This relates to any successful software, plugin or driver installs, along with others

3. Click “Weeks” to switch views.

Depending on the issue and how long it’s been going on, switching views can give you a clearer idea of what the overall pattern might be.

4. Click on “Any Day” on your Reliability Monitor.

This will open the specific details of issues Windows 8 had that day. You will be given a breakdown of what popped up, so you can go through and see what happened. This can be a way to see what the underlying issue might be so you can further troubleshoot and correct it.

On this day, there was a warning about Adobe Reader XI. Clicking on “View technical details” next to it to gets more information, since there was also confirmation that the alleged reconfiguration went right in the Informational events area.

In the Problem Details window, there is a date and time of the issue along with a technical description of it. This information is handy because most of the time you’ll be given the error code that went along with it. This is rarely given to you by the software or app in question. You can then open up Google and look to see what the error code means. You can also refer to the Windows Installer Error Messages to see what the error code means.

You can do this with any event that occurred in the Windows 8 Reliability Monitor to get details about what occurred to try and pinpoint what caused them.

In this example, there is a critical error that caused Windows 8 to shut down unexpectedly.

When we click on “Check for a solution,” we’re brought to a Microsoft database article on what could cause it to occur and how to prevent it.

Conclusion

When something seems off with your computer, checking the Windows 8 Reliability Monitor is one way to try and troubleshoot what may be causing the issue. System instability, functionality and even speed issues can be diagnosed by seeing what has been happening recently on your PC.

The post Troubleshoot Your PC Problems With the Reliability Monitor in Windows 8 appeared first on Make Tech Easier.

Download and installing

You can download and install Ringtone Maker from the Google Play Store through either your mobile phone or online.

The installation is standard on Android phones, and the permissions for the app ask for a wide variety of access, mostly to your call logs and contacts.

Settings

After opening Ringtone Maker for the first time, you can start by accessing its settings. You can do this by opening the menu on your phone.

From there, you can organize your music in a certain way or open the options.

The options of Ringtone Maker let you set your default music folder on the phone as well as where you store your ringtones, alarms and notifications.

Keep in mind that creating custom Android ringtones will take up storage space, so choosing where to keep what you make can help conserve space on your device.

Creating and editing ringtones

Once your music folders are set, Ringtone Maker will populate them with all the possible files to make ringtones with.

Choose a song to create a ringtone and click Edit.

The quickest way to find the perfect spot to start your ringtone is to click the “Play” button and listen to your song. Perhaps, you already know where you want to start your ringtone or maybe you’re waiting for the right moment. Once there, you can pause the song.

From there, look at #1 on the image above. These sliders can be used to pinpoint more exact spots in your song along the musical graph. You can drag them left and right to get the right spot to start and stop your ringtone. If you pull the sliders away from one another, you can extend the amount of time the ringtone runs.

Let’s say you know the exact time stops for your ringtone. If you click on “Start”, indicated by a #2 on the image above, you can then enter in those time stops to be used.

During the use of the slider tool or the time tool, you can zoom in and out on the track for a closer look, as shown in #3 above.

When you have set the time length and find the right starting and stopping points, click on #4 in our image to save the ringtone.

Save what you created as a ringtone, notification or alarm, then name the ringtone and click “Save.”

Setting default ringtones

When successfully saved, you can do a variety of things with your new ringtone.

You can save it as a default ringtone for a particular group or function or you can assign it to a specific contact. You can also share ringtones through e-mail so others can use what you’ve created, as long as their phone supports third party ringtones.

After saving the ringtone, you can go back to it at any time by using Ringtone Maker. You can edit it as you see fit or create a new ringtone.

Conclusion

Ringtone Maker is one of the most used and simplest ways to make custom Android ringtones, notifications and alarms. It’s easy-to-use interface lets you create ringtones in no time, so if you’re looking for a way to make your own, Ringtone Maker is the go-to Android app.

The post Create Custom Ringtone in Android with Ringtone Maker appeared first on Make Tech Easier.

Getting started

In order to get the most out of My Facebook Theme, you actually have to install two extensions: My Facebook Theme and Facebook Theme Creator.

They are both by the same developer and work well with one another to give you the most pre-made themes, along with the ones you create yourself.

Once both are installed, you can open the extensions to either utilize a pre-made theme or create your own. There are a wide variety of pre-made themes to choose from. In other wordss, you have many options for adding a theme to Facebook.

You can open My Facebook Theme from Facebook with the handy little link added to your top toolbar.

Creating your own themes

My Facebook Theme’s biggest asset is being able to create your own theme. While this is a very simple theme maker, it can make a big impact depending on what you want to do and the time you have to be creative.

The first part of the Editor deals with the Background.

You can choose the color of the background or use an image. If you use an image, you can choose whether it scrolls or stretches across your Facebook page or how to tile it for the best fit possible. Then, you can choose the image position if you choose to center it or off-set it.

The second part of the Editor lets you change how the primary Facebook toolbar looks.

You can change its background color and link color.

The final part of the Editor lets you change the links, text and header colors of your Facebook feed and profile.

Depending on the type of changes you make and the background you use, you are given a lot of leeway in the color choices you make to get just the right match.

These changes, along with the pre-made themes you may end up using, will be utilized across all profiles and pages on Facebook.

Using pre-made themes

My Facebook Theme also utilizes pre-made themes. These come in a variety of categories from cartoons to nature to holidays and more.

They are easily implemented by clicking “Install” on any theme.

If you want to uninstall a theme, go back to My Facebook Theme and click “Uninstall.” You are then free to install another pre-made theme or create your own.

You can also take a pre-made theme and make it more your own by customizing it with the “Build Your Own” option once you have installed it.

Sharing your themes

After you create your own theme, you can save it to My Facebook Theme by linking the two via Facebook.

You can then switch in and out of themes as you see fit but still keep the creations you have worked hard on.

You can also share the theme with others through social networks and if they use the extensions, they, too, can use it to theme their Facebook.

My Facebook Theme used to be available for Firefox but is no longer supported for the browser.

Conclusion

My Facebook Theme is a great way to customize your Facebook experience, especially if you are bored of the everyday look of the social network. You can add a theme to Facebook by using pre-made themes, tinkering with them or creating your own which gives you creative control over what Facebook looks like.

Image credit: Facebook wallpaper

The post Add a Theme to Facebook Using My Facebook Theme appeared first on Make Tech Easier.

Getting the Google Now feature is only an install away. After the install, the new tab page will open with the Google Now look.

Google Search and Google Now banner

The first thing you can do with New Tab Page is utilize Google search. You can search the old-fashioned way by typing in a query or using voice search. Your results will be displayed in the same tab in the usual way you see Google search results.

New Tab Page’s banner representing Google Now actually changes with the time. So, at night, it will be black and during the day it will be blue which is a nifty little feature based on your OS’ current time.

Most recent pages

Below the Google search box, you will see a list of your most recently opened pages in Chrome for the day.

This changes daily and is based on how long you have spent at a given site. Depending on the site or service, you will see its link, its favicon and a preview of what you spent the most time visiting that day. You can click on any of the sites to load and open it in the same tab.

News

News will display the latest headlines from Google News.

If you click “More News,” Google News will open for you to see what is going on during the day. At the moment, there is no way to localize the news or change any settings related to it.

Weather

Weather will display the local weather for your area once you set the location.

You will set your location right after you install the extension, and if you want to change it, you will need to uninstall the extension and then reinstall it. Clicking on a day of the week will open that day’s weather details.

Apps

Remember when you opened your boring old new tab page and your Chrome apps were listed for you to use? This is the same thing except in a neat little box.

Just click the app you want access to, and your app will open in a new tab ready for you to use.

Conclusion

New Tab Page for Google Chrome is a beautiful way to display your new tab page by utilizing the Good Now look and feel, though the extension needs some work. Being able to set your news and weather would be a major step forward in its development. You can also suggest new features or changes to New Tab Page, but let us know first in the comment below what you’d like to see.

The post Add Google Now’s Look And Functionality to Chrome appeared first on Make Tech Easier.

Making a new copy of a scripted spreadsheet

The first step is to make a copy of the scripted spreadsheet. This has the original script created by Skipser that you can use to create a “web app” for your Google Drive.

This is hosted on my personal Google Drive, so I can vouch for its safety. Click “Yes, make a copy” to copy it to your Drive account. You do have to be logged in to your Google account for this to work.

Creating your own “web app” to run spreadsheet script

Initially you need to ensure you can run the scripts within the protected spreadsheet in your Google Drive account.

1. Click on “Tools,” then click “Script editor….”

2. Click “File,” then “Manage versions….”

3. Click “Save New Version.”

There is no need to describe anything at this point. A new “version” will be updated for your spreadsheet, click “OK” to head back to the Script Editor.

4. Click “Publish,” then “Deploy as web app….”

Again, there’s no need to change any settings. This simply allows the script that lets you password protect a spreadsheet to run within the confines of your Google Drive account. Click “Deploy.”

5. Click “OK” to confirm the creation of the web app script.

Anytime you want to create password protected spreadsheet, you will need to copy the above link, and rename the spreadsheet. Because you created the web app script, your Google Drive will automatically add it to your newly protected spreadsheet.

Encrypting and decrypting your spreadsheet

When you go back to your spreadsheet, you’ll see a new menu option: Protect File. This is what you created when you deployed the web app script.

1. Input any data you want to protect in rows three and down. Any data in rows one and two will interfere with the web app script you created.

2. Click “Protect File,” then “Encrypt File.”

The first time you run the script in Drive, you’ll be warned about the potential hazard of running such scripts.

This occurs any time you use a script for the first time in Drive, and you must click “OK” to continue to use it.

3. Now, create a password for your spreadsheet.

This can be anything you want, but I advise against using your Google account password for security reasons. Click “OK” once you have entered the password.

You will see the data within your spreadsheet begin to change as it encrypts itself. This is a very basic encryption, so keep that in mind when you decide what information you want to store this way on Google Drive.

4. When you need to decrypt your information, click “Protect File” once more, then click “Decrypt File.”

You will be prompted to enter the password. Enter the password and click “Submit.” This is the only area of using this method you may have some issues with. If you receive an error, simply go back and hit “Submit” again to decrypt the data.

If you head back to “Protect File,” you can change the password for your spreadsheet at any time. Keep in mind that if you change the password for the spreadsheet, you will not be able to change the content of it without copying a new spreadsheet and starting the process again.

You can also get a webapp URL so that you can access the document directly from the Protect File menu.

You can then enter the password and click “decrypt.”

If at any time the Protect File menu disappears, simply click the “Script Link” in the spreadsheet to get it back.

Conclusion

This seems like an awful lot of work to password protect a spreadsheet in Google Drive, yet until Google introduces a more permanent solution, this workaround is your best bet. If you know of a different solution, let us know below in the comments area.

Image credit: Master lock with root password

The post How to Password Protect a Spreadsheet in Google Drive appeared first on Make Tech Easier.

How to show network usage statistics

1. Head to your Windows 8 desktop.

2. Click on the “Internet Connection” icon in the taskbar.

3. “Right-click” your Internet connection.

A small menu will appear.

4. Click “Show estimated data usage.”

5. “Left-click” your Internet connection again.

A drop down menu will appear that will give you your estimated usage since Windows 8 started recording it. If you have never turned this on before, it’ll be since you installed Windows 8. You can reset the stats at any time by clicking “Reset.”

Windows 8 only gives you an estimate of usage. For more in-depth statistics, we will take a look at a Windows Store app that gives you more information.

Using the Network Usage app

You can download the Network Usage app from the Windows Store.

Once installed, Network Usage will breakdown your monthly and daily MBs sent and received on an Internet connection.

If you click on any month with data, you can see the breakdown daily of what was sent and received.

On days that have particularly high data usage, you can recall what you did that day to figure out ways to cut back on sending and receiving data.

Network Usage will keep records for all network connections you have utilized until you reset it. This includes networks you merely connected to once or your home network you stay connected to most of the time.

How to limit your network usage

If you are already using a metered connection, you may need to ensure you are not downloading over it. Depending on your data plan with your ISP, you may or may not have to worry about limiting your usage. Windows 8 has a built-in setting to help meter your own connection.

1. In order to do that, open the “Charms Bar.” Then click “Change PC Settings,” followed by “Devices” under PC settings.

2. Scroll down below your devices, and you will see the “Download over metered connections” option.

3. Ensure this is turned off.

This means you will never download software drivers, information, apps or updates when you have a metered network connection. This will help save bandwidth and keep your usage low when you cannot afford to go over.

Windows 8 lets you quickly go from ametered connection to a non-metered one through the network properties.

4. Open your network connection.

5. “Left-click” your Internet connection.

Keep in mind that only wireless connections can be metered in Windows 8. Wired connections cannot.

6. Click “Set as metered connection.”

The unwanted data that was configured above will no longer be downloaded.

You can toggle this on or off any time by following steps 4 through 6.

Conclusion

Check with your ISP to see if you are on a metered data plan. You could be and may not even know it. If you are, the steps above can help give you an idea of what you are using each month, and you can take precautions to not go over your data allotment.

What methods do you use to monitor your network usage statistics in Windows 8? Let us know below in the comments section.

The post How to Monitor Your Network Usage in Windows 8 (And Prevent Paying For The Extra Bandwidth) appeared first on Make Tech Easier.

1. Wired vs. wireless

Whenever possible, connecting your PC to a wired Internet connection will always offer the best Netflix playback. Wired connections can get up to 100 Mbps depending on your ISP, modem and/or router configuration. Wireless connections, however, can be fickle depending on the weather and interference, and often have performance issues. The wired versus wireless scenario can vastly change the quality of streaming in Netflix.

2. Testing your Internet speed, contacting your ISP

Netflix automatically adjusts playback based on your Internet speed. If you have two computers in your home, depending on the circumstances, one could have better playback than the other. If you notice the picture in particular beginning to degrade as you are streaming, it is possible your Internet speed has slowed below what is required for optimal playback.

Netflix has recommended the following speeds for certain aspects of playback:

• 1 MB/s: Streaming on a laptop
• 2 MB/s: Streaming on a standard definition television
• 4 MB/s: Streaming in HD
• 5 MB/s: Optimal audio and video streaming

Testing your Internet speed through a service like Speedtest.net can give you an idea of what your download speed is so you can see if you meet the requirements of Netflix’s.

If your download speeds are low, you will want to check your hardware first, and then contact your ISP to see if there’s anything they can do on their end to increase it. This could involve a change in hardware or a better Internet plan.

3. Change your Netflix video playback settings

After logging into Netflix, click “Your Account.”  Then, click “Manage video quality” under Your Streaming Plan.

Netflix offers users a chance to control how much data is downloaded to offer better streaming quality. You can choose which quality you want; Netflix will not choose one by default for you. If you are not capped by your ISP, you can increase the quality for better overall playback.

4. Finding the right window size for playback

Window size can impact playback for many Netflix users utilizing monitors or screens 20″ or higher. If you are using two monitors or more, this can also affect playback, and at the moment, there is not many ways to combat that issue.

However, you can reduce the window size of Netflix in your browser for better playback. This will take some tweaking, as no two computers will have the same configuration. You will have to play with the Netflix window size to find the right streaming playback.

For example, on my desktop PC, I use two 27″ monitors for my setup. Coupled with the amount of temporary memory and Internet connection I have through Comcast, I have found if I reduce the Chrome browser window to about 1024 x 748 in size, I can get optimal playback as long as my wireless connection is steady.

5. What else is running in the background?

When you stream through Netflix, part of the video you are watching is temporarily stored in your computer’s memory. If you are using a lot of programs, playing games or doing other things while trying to stream, this can impact the quality of playback from Netflix. Ideally, you want to run the bare minimum when streaming Netflix, especially if you want to use full screen mode to watch a program.

Conclusion

There is no catchall solution for fixing Netflix streaming performance that will work on all PCs. It takes some time to find the right setup, but these five tips can help optimize your Netflix playback on your PC.

The post 5 Tips to Improve Netflix Playback On Your PC appeared first on Make Tech Easier.

Download and install

Preme for Windows is available here. It is a quick install and Preme starts right away when it is complete.

When active, it is contained within the taskbar for you to customize or turn on or off as you see fit.

Customizing

The first time you open Preme, it may seem overwhelming. Packed within its main window, you have the options to change each corner of an open window. Preme calls this the functional screen corner.

With a functional screen corner, you can create the following functional corners:

In this example, we have made the bottom left corner of our windows able to open the Task Switcher. So, when we hover over that corner of a window, the Task Switcher will pop open for us to use.

If you opt to use the “open any file” option in Preme, you can set a window corner to open a file. You simply pick the file you want to open and when you hover over that corner, Preme will open that for you.

You can add options to your title bars and buttons, too, for more options in how you interact with windows in how they scroll, move and close.

You can also adjust the time delay in the response of each corner so that you do not accidentally switch between or open something you do not want to. In order to do that, you want to click “Advanced.”

This opens additional options for each corner and settings in Preme.

For the time delay, simply move the sliders in each corner to your desired delay.

Blacklisting

You can also whitelist or blacklist apps, windows and more by clicking “Black list” next to the options you want to work with. This will ensure that certain windows, apps or programs are not affected by Preme’s options.

For example, when Preme is activated, you can opt to click “Esc” twice to close any open window. You can set up a blacklist for this option so that certain windows, apps or software are not affected by it.

Keyboard shortcuts

Preme lets you remap keyboard shortcuts in Windows. You can access this by clicking “Keyboard shortcuts.”

In order to do that, you need to know what keyboard shortcut you want to replace and input it first. Then, you can choose what you want that keyboard shortcut to do when Preme is activated. You can also disable a keyboard shortcut as well.

Conclusion

If you ever wanted to have more control over your windows on your PC, Preme is one of the best ways to do that. You can customize windows your way which makes your computer work for you and not the other way around.

The post How to Manage Application Windows More Efficiently With Preme [Windows] appeared first on Make Tech Easier.

Many users became accustomed to the bubble notifications that came with previous versions of Windows from the taskbar. In Windows 8, you can turn those off and on and can also disable toast notifications.

Disable

Before you start, you must be logged into the Administrator account for the computer.

1. From the desktop or Modern, open the Charms Bar by either hovering in the right-hand corner of the screen or using the “Windows Key + C” keyboard shortcut.

2. Click “Settings.”

3. Click “Change PC settings” to open the Windows 8 settings.

4. Migrate to the “Notifications” settings.

You can turn app notifications on or off, show app notifications on the lock screen or play sounds when you get notifications. These can all be shut off by default by clicking “Off” for Show app notifications. You can even tweak the notifications for specific apps you use.

This will also remove the ability to go back in with the above steps to enable them again. Also, this will only disable app notifications and not other toast-style notifications utilized by Windows 8.

Turning Off by Group Policy

The steps above work quickly enough for one account in Windows 8. If you want to do it for all users as administrator in Windows 8, you can do so through the Group Policy.

This will also be the steps you follow to turn them back on after disabling them. We will point out how to enable them again, too.

1. From the Start screen, search for “group policy.”

2. Click on “Settings” in the search window.

3. Click “Edit group policy.”

4. Head to User Configuration ->Administrative Templates -> Start Menu and Taskbar -> Notifications.

5. Double-click on “Turn off toast notifications.”

6. Click “Disabled,” then “Apply” and “OK.”

This will save your change in Group Policy settings to disable toast notifications.

7. Follow steps 4 through 6 for “Turn off toast notifications on lock screen.”

You have successfully turned off toast notifications for every user in Windows 8 on your PC.

After turning them off, as we mentioned above, you cannot go into the traditional settings for Windows 8 to turn them back on again. The Notifications settings will be gone. If you follow the above steps and Enable them both again, you will be able to see toast notifications again as well as disable them from the settings once more.

Conclusion

The biggest issue with toast notifications is that they only appear for certain tasks in Windows 8. From the desktop, you can still see the traditional bubble notifications that look out of place with the new sleek Modern UI. By turning off the toast notifications, you can deal with just one type of notifications in Windows 8.

The post How to Disable Toast Notifications in Windows 8 appeared first on Make Tech Easier.

Most users do not realize they have to sync app licenses they purchase in addition to everything else tied to their Microsoft Account. This is not with the traditional sync settings in Windows 8, and if not enabled, can cause issues when you log in to your account from another computer.

How to force sync app licenses

1. Open the “Windows Store.”

2. In the right-hand corner or use the “Windows Key + C” to open the Charms Bar.

3. Click “Settings.”

4. Click “App updates.”

Make sure you are connected to the Internet before continuing, otherwise you will not be able to properly sync app licenses.

5. Click “Sync licenses” under the App licenses sub-header.

This will take a few moments to do, especially if you utilize a lot of apps in Windows 8.

Once finished, Windows 8 will let you know. Now, whenever you install or uninstall an app, Windows will sync the app license associated with it so that you can access it on another computer when you log in. This means no matter what apps you have paid for, you can use them no matter where you use Windows 8.

How to force sync everything else

After creating your login account for Windows 8 during upgrading or installation, you will have several opportunities to sync your settings, apps and other personalization options for Windows 8.

If you ever need to change or update these settings, follow these steps:

1. Use “Windows Key + C” or open the Charms Bar the old fashioned way.

2. Click “Settings” and then click “Change PC settings.”

3. Go to “Sync your settings.”

4. Ensure “On” is checked for syncing your settings, the top option.

5. Go through one by one and choose what you want Windows to sync to your Microsoft Account.

As soon as you turn a sync setting on or off, Windows will automatically save the change without you needing to click apply or save.

In order to log in to another PC using Windows 8, you must make sure you are logged out of your primary PC to ensure all saved settings can load properly. Log in to another computer, and you will be good to go using Windows 8 the way you are used to using it.

Windows 8 allows you to sync everything from your desktop background to window colors to app passwords. You can choose the most important aspects that make using Windows 8 feel like home to you, then take them with you no matter where you use a computer.

Conclusion

If you are not using a Microsoft account to sync app licenses, you are not taking advantage of one of the best upgrades offered in Windows 8. With the world going more mobile, Windows 8 – even on a PC – is giving users the chance to take the operating system they use at home and take it with them anywhere they need to use Windows 8.

The post How to Force Sync App Licenses in Windows 8 appeared first on Make Tech Easier.

Setting up Windows Backup

1. From the Start screen, search for “file recovery” and open it.

2. Click “Set up backup.”

This will take a couple of minutes to start up as Windows File Recovery runs for the first time. Windows never updated the title window in File Recovery, so it may seem odd to see Windows 7 File Recovery at first.

3. Choose your location.

You cannot choose the primary drive of your computer. However, you can choose a partition, a flash drive or an external drive if it is plugged in. You will see these options displayed for you to choose. You can also save your recovery image over your network if you have a HomeGroup setup in Windows 8.

Once you choose where to save your recovery, click “Next.”

4. Then, you want to choose what to save.

Windows 8 gives you two options: Windows automatically picks for you or you pick what to save in your recovery image. The latter allows you to be nitpicky about what gets saved and what does not. Choosing the Windows option allows for the maximum amount of recovery protection for your system.

Keep in mind, when you choose to create a system image in addition to backing up your files, you may need a system repair disc in order to properly restore your system.

When you have made your choice, click “Next” to continue.

5. Click “Change schedule.”

You can choose how often, what day and what time your backup will be created. Windows 8 will create backup after backup for you, each time backing up the most recent files and folders for your computer. As long as your computer is on during that time, Windows File Recovery will run.

Click “OK” when finished making changes to the schedule, then click “Save settings and run backup.”

6. Depending on the size of your system image, files and folder backup, this process can take anywhere from twenty minutes to an hour. Sit back and let Windows File Recovery run.

7. When finished, click “Close” to head back to File Recovery.

Now that you have run File Recovery, you’ll see all the details of the current backup. This includes file size, location, when it was run, when it will run again and what it contains. You can change the settings for file and folders, and it will only update the system image if major changes are made to it.

8. Click “Manage space.”

You will be given a breakdown of the space utilized by your current backup.

9. Click “View backups….”

You can manage the file and folder information stored in the backup and delete it at any time. Simply click the backup, then click “Delete.” This will free up space for new file and folder backups using File Recovery.

10. Click “Change settings…” to allow you to do the same thing with your system images.

Restoring a backup created in File Recovery

When you need to recover a backup you created in File Recovery, you want to head back to the File Recovery window.

1. Click “Restore my files.”

The most amazing feature of File Recovery is that you can restore an entire system image, a folder or an individual file as needed.

You can also search for a specific file or browse for files or folders.

2. Click “Browse for files” to see how this works.

You can navigate to the folder that the file you want is in, then click on it.

3. From there, you can choose to restore the file to the original location or choose a new location to restore it to.

4. Click “Restore” when ready to recover the file.

Now, you can click “View restored files” to head directly to that file location.

The same steps can be repeated for a folder, as well as a system image or entire backup.

Conclusion

We have shown you how to use the File History Tool, and now coupled with the File Recovery utility, you can utilize multiple methods to set up Windows backup in Windows 8 to keep your files, folders and system image available should you need to restore them. What other utilities do you use in Windows 8 for data recovery? Comment below and let us know.

The post How to Set Up Windows Backup in Windows 8 to Save Your Files and Folders appeared first on Make Tech Easier.

You can get Power8 here. The installation is no fuss and when complete, an arrow will point to the familiar Start Menu to let you know where to get started.

Getting your Start Menu back

Power8 will be a rough Start Menu to start with that you will be able to tweak to your liking. For now, you can open your most commonly used apps and programs, you can open a more traditional Start Menu by clicking “Start Menu” at the top and you can even turn off your PC from here.

You can open the settings by right-clicking your new Start Menu to start customizing Power8 to work for you.

From here, you can turn on auto-start so that Power8 will start when you boot Windows. You can also have Power8 automatically check for updates.

Configure Start button allows you to change how the Start Menu button looks. You can change its aspect ratio to make it larger and you can select an image to represent it as well.

Searching from Start Menu

The Web search engines area of the settings shows you the shortcuts related to the search feature of Power8. Power8 can search your PC, Windows and the Internet.

In order to search the Internet in Power8, in the search box, type the letter corresponding to the search engine and then your query, like this:

g maketecheasier windows 8

You can add search engines by selecting on an empty box and copying the format from the other search engines, like this:

"http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query={0}"

Disabling Metro options

Block Metro features is a nifty little tool from Power8 that does just what it says: When enabled, Block Metro features turns off the Metro UI. You will no longer have any access to the Start screen in Windows 8. You will open anything, even apps, from the Start Menu you create with Power8. It simply disappears. You can turn this on either by right-clicking the Start Menu or from Power8′s General Settings.

Customizing Mostly Recently Used lists

This area lets you choose how you display items in the most frequently used (MFU) list. By default, Use system data will be utilized. This will list the MFUs in the order they are used the most.

You can create your own list or even hide certain areas by adding additional strings in Power8. If you are looking to stop an item from being displayed in Power8′s Start Menu, you want to include its location or its EXE file name, like this:

c:\windows\downloads\ms.fresh.exe

or

worldofwarcraft.exe

Is having a Start Menu necessary in Windows 8?

This is our finished Start Menu from Power8:

For some Windows users, eliminating the Start Menu was one of the most devastating changes to Windows 8. With utilities like Power8, you can get your Start Menu back. You can disable the Metro UI completely, then use the above settings to tweak the Start Menu exactly the way you want. What other features do you want to see back in Windows 8?

The post Adding A Powerful Start Menu in Windows 8 appeared first on Make Tech Easier.