Tech Tip

Tech Tip – Use ‘Near Share’ To Share Files

Posted on by Andy Miller

Windows 10 has a “Near Share” / “Nearby Sharing” feature, similar to Apple’s AirDrop, that allows you to share (by Bluetooth) files, links, photos, and more to nearby Windows PCs that also have the feature enabled. You can enable Nearby Sharing from either Windows 10’s Share dialog, or in Windows 10’s Settings app. Here’s how:

From the Share dialog –

– Click a “Share” button e.g. the “Share” button on Edge’s toolbar, or right-click a file in File Explorer and select the “Share” command.

– In the Share menu, click / tap the “Tap to turn on nearby sharing” option.

From the Settings app –

– Go to Settings > System > Shared Experiences.

– Turn on the “Nearby Sharing” toggle.

Nearby Sharing files are saved to the Downloads folder by default, but this can be changed in the Settings app.

Tech Tip – Lockdown Your Wi-Fi

Posted on by Andy Miller

If you’re using Windows 10 and you want to make sure you’re not exposed to the security risks posed by insecure wireless networks, there is a quick and easy way you can protect your Wi-Fi connectivity. Here’s how:

Go to Settings.

Go to Network & Internet > Wi-Fi

Make sure that the ‘Connect to suggested open hotspots’ option is disabled, unless you connect through a virtual private network or VPN service.

Tech Tip – Using OneDrive Cloud Storage on Windows 10

Posted on by Andy Miller

If you want to set up quick and easy cloud storage from your Windows PC for storing, sharing and saving files across your different devices you can use OneDrive. Here’s how to set it up:

– If you have a Microsoft account e.g. @outlook.com, @hotmail.com, @live.com email address, Xbox Live or Skype account you can use that to sign in.

– If you don’t have a Microsoft account, go to onedrive.com and click the click the ‘Sign up for free’ button – click on the Create a Microsoft account button, create a new email address and password, click ‘Next’ and follow the instructions.

– To set up OneDrive on your Windows 10 PC, open Start, Search OneDrive and click the top result.

– Using the setup experience, enter your email address, and click the Sign in button.

– Enter your Microsoft password and sign in.

– Click on ‘Next’

– Click ‘Not now’ if you’re using the free version of OneDrive.

– Click through the welcome tips, and click the Open my OneDrive folder button.

– To save your files to OneDrive, open File Explorer (Windows key + E).

– Click the OneDrive folder using the left pane.

– Drag and drop or copy and paste content into the OneDrive folder.

Tech Tip – Send Texts From Your Windows 10 PC With ‘Your Phone’ App

Posted on by Andy Miller

If you’d like to be able to send phone texts from your PC without having to unlock your phone, you can do it with the Your Phone app for Windows 10. Here’s how:

– Open the Your Phone app.

– Click on Messages.

– Click on the See Texts button.

– Click on the Send Notification button.

– On your phone, confirm the notification to allow Your Phone app to access your text messages.

– To send a new message, click the New Message button.

– Type the phone number or search for the contact you want to send a message to.

– Use the reply box at the bottom to send the text from your PC.

Tech Tip – Pin Your Key People

Posted on by Andy Miller

The ‘My People’ feature in Windows 10 lets you pin your closest contacts to your taskbar, thereby making it easier and quicker to email, chat with (text and video), or send files or media to them. Here’s how to set it up:

– Click the People icon / button in the Taskbar’s notification area (bottom right).

– Connect the communication apps it works with (Skype and Mail). If you’ve signed into your email accounts in the Mail and Skype apps they’ll already be connected.

– If you’re using your regular PC, you’ll see your top five contacts suggested. On a new PC, you can just choose the ‘Find and Pin’ contacts option at the bottom of the People bar. Tap this to show all the contacts in your address book, and pin three contacts as circular icons to your taskbar (more can be the ‘My People’ bar itself). You can also combine the different email and Skype accounts for a single contact here.

– You can now access your key people from the ‘My People’ pins, and even see any emojis sent to you via Skype.

Tech Tip – Get Alexa In Windows 10

Posted on by Andy Miller

Many of us are used to using Amazon’s digital voice-activated assistant for all kinds of things at home. You can also use it via Windows 10 in the office. Here’s how:

Many new computers may come with the Alexa App pre-installed. Look for the Alexa app in the Start menu or type ‘Amazon Alexa’ in the Start menu Search bar.

If your computer doesn’t support hands-free access, click the Alexa icon at the bottom of the app to call up the voice assistant.

If you don’t have the Alexa App pre-installed on your computer, you can install it:

Ensure your PC is up to date and configured with US Language settings.

Download the Alexa app and follow the installation instructions – https://www.windowscentral.com/how-install-amazon-alexa-windows-10

To show the Alexa app all the time in your Windows 10 taskbar:

Go to Windows Settings > Personalization > Taskbar > Select which icons appear on the taskbar and enable Alexa.

Tech Tip – Quickly Edit File Metadata

Posted on by Andy Miller

If you want to be able to quickly edit the metadata of any files in Windows 10 (e.g. set when photos were taken), and add tags and categories to files, it can be done in 2 easy steps. Here’s how:

– In File Explorer, use the Shift+Alt+P to bring up the details pane. This shows details such as picture dimensions and the date a file was created.

– Click on any of the file fields and edit the metadata as required.

Tech Tip – Set Preferred Folder View

Posted on by Andy Miller

If you’ve got a mix of display settings that suits your preferences and needs e.g. a certain thumbnail size, in Windows you can easily set this as the default for all folders of the same type. Here’s how:

– Open the View tab on the File Explorer ribbon.

– Click Options.

– Click Apply to Folders under View.

Tech Tip – Bypass Your Recycle Bin

Posted on by Andy Miller

If, in Windows, you want to stop your Recycle Bin from taking up storage on your drive, or stop anyone from recovering your erased data, there is a fast and easy way to bypass your Recycle Bin and go straight to permanent delete with unwanted files / folders. Here’s how:

– Click on the file / folder you want to delete.
– Hold down Shift before you hit the Delete key.
– Hit Delete.
– You will still get the confirmation question.