News that Geeks Care About

How to Make Chrome the Default Web Browser on iPhone and iPad

There was a dark time in Apple’s history when you couldn’t change the default web browser on your iPhone or iPad. You were stuck with Safari. Thankfully, this time has passed. Here’s how to make Google Chrome the default brow…

Khamosh Pathak Sep 16th

How to Set Up Sleep Tracking on Apple Watch

Sleep tracking is natively available on all Apple Watches Series 3 and newer. It’s an automatic feature that tracks data when you go to bed while wearing the smartwatch, but you do have to set it up. Here’s how to configure s…

Justin Duino Sep 16th

How to Disable Scribble for Apple Pencil on iPad

The Scribble feature, introduced in iPadOS 14, allows you to use your Apple Pencil to write in text boxes. Instead of typing, you can scribble a message and have your iPad automatically convert your handwriting to text. If y…

Justin Duino Sep 16th

Transform Your Wireshark Workflow with Brim on Linux

Wireshark is the de facto standard for analyzing network traffic. Unfortunately, it does become increasingly laggy as the packet capture grows. Brim solves this problem so well, it’ll change your Wireshark workflow….

Dave McKay Sep 16th

How to Change Your CarPlay Wallpaper

When it comes to CarPlay, Apple doesn’t let you modify much of the in-car infotainment system’s appearance. Thankfully, as long as you’re running iOS 14 or higher on your iPhone, you can change the CarPlay wallpaper. Here’s h…

Justin Duino Sep 15th

How Much Money Do You Save With Apple One?

Apple announced an “Apple One” subscription bundling its paid services like iCloud storage, Apple Music, Apple TV+, Apple Arcade, Apple News+, and Apple Fitness+ into a single payment. There are three plan tiers you can choos…

Chris Hoffman Sep 15th

How to Disable (or Enable) App Suggestions on a Google Pixel

Android 11 introduced a feature for Google Pixel phones called “App Suggestions.” The launcher will suggest different apps you might want throughout the day. If you’re not interested in this, it’s easy to disable….

Joe Fedewa Sep 15th

How to Monitor CPU Usage on Your Mac’s Dock

If you often run processor-intensive apps, it’s good to keep an eye on your Mac’s CPU usage. Luckily, Apple makes it easy to get a quick glance at CPU Usage and CPU History by changing Activity Monitor’s Dock icon. Here’s how…

Benj Edwards Sep 15th

How to Control Philips Hue Lights From Your Mac

Want to easily control your Hue lights? You don’t have to pick up your phone or yell across the room at Alexa, Google Assistant, or Siri. Here are some easy ways to control your Hue lights right from your Mac….

Chris Hoffman Sep 15th

Which Old Components Can You Reuse When Building a New PC?

Building a new PC is fun, exciting, and . . . expensive. After you’ve built a few desktops, all those new boxes of Corsair, NVIDIA, and Intel gear can lose their luster—especially after you tally up the bill….

How to Resize Images Using Paint 3D on Windows 10

If you need to perform a simple task like resizing an image on your Windows 10 PC, you don’t need to use software with a steep learning curve like Photoshop. You can do it using Microsoft Paint 3D. Here’s how it’s done….

Marshall Gunnell Sep 14th

How to Broadcast Messages on Google Assistant Speakers and Displays

If you have a number of Google Home or Nest speakers and Smart Displays scattered around your house, why not put them to use as a broadcasting system? That’s exactly what you can do with the Google Assistant….

Joe Fedewa Sep 14th

How to Control When Your Mac Automatically Goes to Sleep

It’s often a good idea to let your Mac sleep after a period of time when you’re not using it, but the way recent versions of macOS present sleep-mode options in System Preferences feels counter-intuitive. Here’s how to sort i…

Benj Edwards Sep 14th

Windows Me, 20 Years Later: Was It Really That Bad?

Twenty years ago, the turn of the millenium saw some serious software bugs. No, we’re not talking about Y2K here: We’re talking about Windows Me. Dubbed “Windows Mistake Edition” by PCWorld, Windows Me is not remembered fondl…

How to Track Your Data Usage on Android

As smartphones have become more popular, data plans have become more limiting. A lot of people need to keep a close eye on data usage to avoid surprise bills. We’ll show you how to do this with Android’s built-in tools….

Joe Fedewa Sep 13th

Why Are Some Mac App Icons Crossed Out?

If you’re seeing application icons on your Mac with a crossed-out symbol on top of them, it means that macOS can’t run the application. While there could be several causes, the most likely is that you recently upgraded macOS,…

Benj Edwards Sep 13th

How to See Your Notification History in Android

Notifications are a key component of smartphones, so it can be annoying if you accidentally swipe one away before reading it. Introduced in Android 11, “Notification History” is a log of every notification you’ve dismissed. H…

Joe Fedewa Sep 13th

20 Years Later: How the Mac OS X Public Beta Saved the Mac

On Sept. 13, 2000, Apple released Mac OS X Public Beta, the first public release of OS X to include the Dock. It was also the first to feature the unprecedented eye candy that was the Aqua interface. It marked the beginning o…

How to Force Close Apps on Android TV

It’s always annoying when an app doesn’t work as it should. Sometimes, the only thing you can do to solve the problem is force close the app. You can do this on your Android TV just like on your smartphone. Here’s how….

Joe Fedewa Sep 12th

How to Use Text-To-Speech on Discord

While Discord is a great platform for voice communication, you might not be able to (or want to) speak with your own voice. To get around the problem, you can use Discord’s built-in text-to-speech (TTS) feature….

Ben Stockton Sep 12th

How to Play Mozilla Firefox’s Hidden Unicorn Pong Game

It seems like every browser has a hidden game these days. Chrome has a dinosaur game, Edge has surfing, and Firefox has . . . unicorn pong? Yep, you read that right—here’s how to play it.

Benj Edwards Sep 12th

HDMI 2.1: What’s New, and Do You Need to Upgrade?

With next-gen consoles arriving by the end of 2020 and NVIDIA’s RTX 30 series of graphics cards cresting the horizon, HDMI 2.1 is looking more critical than ever. Does this mean you have to upgrade your TV to take advantage o…

What Are Google Play Points, and How Do You Use Them?

The Google Play Store is home to thousands of apps, games, movies, e-books, and more. You might find yourself making a lot of purchases there, so why not get rewarded for it? That’s where Google Play Points come in….

Joe Fedewa Sep 11th

When Is Android 11 Coming to My Phone, and How Do I Install It?

When a new version of Android is released into the world, the first question people ask is “when will my device get it?” The answer to that question is as complicated as the Android ecosystem itself.

Joe Fedewa Sep 11th