Featured Articles - The Best of How-To Geek

How to Convert a Hard Drive or Flash Drive from FAT32 to NTFS Format

If you’ve got a hard drive formatted with the FAT32 file system, you might have found that you can’t copy large files to that drive. So how do you fix that, and convert the file system over to NTFS? Here’s how....

Lowell Heddings Apr 14th, 2011

Online Security: Breaking Down the Anatomy of a Phishing Email

Don’t think that it’s just your banking details that are important: after all, if someone gains control over your account login they not only know the information contained in that account, but the odds are that s...

Jason Faulkner Apr 13th, 2011

Jailbreak Your Kindle for Dead Simple Screensaver Customization

If you’re less than delighted with the default screensaver pack on the Kindle relief is just a simple hack and a reboot away. Read on to learn how to apply a painless jailbreak to your Kindle and create custom screensavers....

Jason Fitzpatrick Apr 11th, 2011

How To Get Started With Minecraft, a Game Geeks Love

Minecraft is favorite game of many geeks, but not everyone has heard of it. Here’s what it is, why geeks love it so much, and how to get started for yourself.

YatriTrivedi Apr 8th, 2011

How to Enable Flashblock in Chrome (And Make it 5000% More Secure)

Most people don’t realize this, but when your PC gets infected from browsing a web site, it’s not usually because of your browser—it’s because of your plugins, like Flash, Java, and others. They are sadly insecure, bu...

Lowell Heddings Apr 8th, 2011

How to Automatically Change Your Default Printer Based on Your Location

Windows 7 has a ton of great features, most of which are really obvious—but there’s also some great features hidden away that you might not know even exist. One of these is that Windows 7 can automatically change your def...

Lowell Heddings Apr 7th, 2011

How to Make Firefox 4 Look Like Firefox 3

After upgrading Firefox 3 to version 4, when you first launch the new release the interface is drastically different. If you find you are more partial to the Firefox 3 interface, with a few configuration changes, you can easi...

Jason Faulkner Apr 6th, 2011

How to Remove Win 7 Anti-Spyware 2011 (Fake Anti-Virus Infections)

If your PC is infected with the Win 7 Anti-Spyware 2011 malware or something similar, you’ve come to the right place, because we’re going to show you how to get rid of it, and free your PC from the awful clutches of this ...

Lowell Heddings Apr 4th, 2011

The 10 Most Ridiculously Awesome Geeky Computer Pranks

Everybody loves a good prank… unless you are the one on the receiving end of the fun. It’s time to hone your pranking skills, not just to make sure you are the best, but so you can avoid being pranked by others....

How To Make Custom Silicone Ear Molds for Your In-Ear Monitors

There’s little worse than an amazing set of in-ear monitors that constantly fall out, and without that seal they’re not doing their job right. With some silicone putty, however, you can get a fit that seals right and lock...

YatriTrivedi Mar 31st, 2011

How To Backup and Resurrect a Dead or Dying System Disk With Clonezilla

March 31st, 2011 is “World Backup Day”—celebrate it by using free software Clonezilla to clone an exact copy of your OS system disk, regardless if you use Windows, Mac OS, or Linux!

Eric Z Goodnight Mar 31st, 2011

Angry Birds: Video Cheats for Every Level

You’re tearing it up in Angry Birds, finding elegant smashed-avian-solutions for every level, and then you hit a wall. No matter what you do you can’t figure the level out. Take a peek at these video walkthroughs to blast...

Jason Fitzpatrick Mar 29th, 2011

How To Use Clipping Masks (And Not Layer Masks) in Photoshop

Layer Masks, like many parts of Photoshop, are rarely used because they aren’t intuitive or immediately easy to grasp. Learn about them in this How-To, with our video tutorial, and read how and why “Layer Masks”...

Eric Z Goodnight Mar 28th, 2011

How to Remotely Control Your PC (Even When it Crashes)

Being able to remotely control your computer is an age old geek trick. But what about changing BIOS settings or installing an operating system remotely? With Intel AMT KMS this is within reach for any geek with the right hard...

Justin Garrison Mar 28th, 2011

Use Windows 7’s Previous Versions to Go Back in Time and Save Your Files

Previous Versions is an incredibly useful feature built into Windows 7, which allows the OS to record and view earlier versions of files without a flux capacitor. Here’s a detailed guide to using this excellent feature....

Jason Faulkner Mar 28th, 2011

How to Boost Your Wi-Fi Network Signal and Increase Range with DD-WRT

Wireless is really convenient until you drop your connection or get really low speeds. Thanks to DD-WRT, it’s easier than ever to extend your home networks range with a few simple tweaks and a spare router....

YatriTrivedi Mar 24th, 2011

10 Common Photoshop Frustrations (and How to Fix Them in Five Minutes)

Photoshop is not always the most user friendly of programs. Sometimes it has frustrating issues, and the solution is not always clear. Here’s a list of 10 annoying problems you might have with Photoshop, and simple solution...

Eric Z Goodnight Mar 23rd, 2011

Firefox 4 Finally Released, and it Looks Like Opera [Screenshot Tour]

Firefox 4 has finally been released, and while it looks an awful lot like Opera, there’s no question that it’s faster, better, and an all-around great upgrade from 3.6. Here’s a couple of highlights....

Lowell Heddings Mar 22nd, 2011

Turn Your Home Router Into a Super-Powered Router with DD-WRT

Wireless is everywhere and routers are the force that makes it happen, so why not supercharge yours to take proper advantage of it? DD-WRT will let you boost your router’s range, add features, and more....

YatriTrivedi Mar 22nd, 2011

Download the How-To Geek Photoshop CS5 Cheat Sheet

When there’s a shortcut or trick that can help you save time, it’s our mission to pass that help along to you. Our new cheat sheets are a collection of exactly that, ready for your download and great for printing. Here&#8...

Eric Z Goodnight Mar 21st, 2011

How To Remove Vocals From Music Tracks Using Audacity

Ever get a sudden, inexplicably irresistible desire for karaoke? Maybe you like the music of a song but can’t stand the lead singer? Here’s how to use remove the vocals from most music tracks in a few simple steps....

YatriTrivedi Mar 18th, 2011

How to Create an Easy Pixel Art Avatar in Photoshop or GIMP

Boingboing.net has a cool set of meticulously drawn pixel art portraits for their key writers. If you’re a lover of pixel art, why not try and recreate a similar avatars for yourself with a few simple filters in either Phot...

Eric Z Goodnight Mar 16th, 2011

Internet Explorer 9 Released: Here’s What You Need To Know

Microsoft has released the final version of Internet Explorer 9, and there’s just one question you should be asking yourself: Should I bother installing it? Here’s everything you need to know about the latest release of M...

Lowell Heddings Mar 15th, 2011

How To Make Disposable Sleeves for Your In-Ear Monitors

In-ear monitors are great, until the rubber sleeves stop being comfortable. Here’s a quick and cheap way to make disposable ones using foam ear plugs so you can stay comfortable while listening.

YatriTrivedi Mar 10th, 2011

Macs Don’t Make You Creative! So Why Do Artists Really Love Apple?

Chances are you have at least one “creative” friend who’s a Mac advocate. Ever wondered how Apple got a reputation as the “creative company,” or why artists are so drawn to them? Surely, computers can’t make you c...

Eric Z Goodnight Mar 9th, 2011