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Tech Tip - How To Quickly Open A Second Instance Of Any Application In Windows

Wed, 12 Feb 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Sometimes you may want to open a second instance of an application, for example, let's say you want to move some files about in your computer, moving them from one folder and filing them into another. Instead of going into the menu system and navigating your way to open up another instance of Windows Explorer, here is a quicker, far simpler way of doing it:

Look for the running application icon on the task bar
Hold down the shift key, then click on the icon of the application
This will launch another instance of that running application!

That's it, it will launch another instance of the application, what's more is that this works on any application in Windows. Give it a try!

Tech Tip - How To Paste A Copied Item But Remove Its Formatting

Wed, 05 Feb 2025 00:00:00 +0000

This is a very quick tech tip this week, but a VERY useful one that can help save a lot of time and headaches and whilst it is exceptionally useful, is not such a well know trick.

Sometimes you want to copy something but when it comes to pasting it, you want to loose all of its associated formatting, so if it is a bit of text, you may want the text, but not the font it is using.

Here is how to do it:

Find the text you want to copy and highlight it in the usual way and copy it, using CTRL+C
To paste the text without keeping its formatting press CTRL + Shift + V
This will paste the text just as plain text, taking on the format of the existing formatting instead of keeping the formatting that it was using

This is really handy if you are cutting and pasting text from one source using one font, text colour and size etc to another location or application where a different font, colour and size are in use, saving a lot of time and hassle, and helping you as you do not need to reformat the text!

This works in most Windows applications, give it a try.

Tech Tip - How To Use These Lesser Known Functions In Microsoft Edge

Wed, 29 Jan 2025 00:00:00 +0000

There are some lesser known features in Microsoft Edge that can really help boost your productivity, here are some features in Microsoft Edge that we find really help day to day

1. Translate text in a website

If you come across a language in a website that you do not understand, you can use Microsoft Edge to translate the text into English quickly and easily, here is how:

Highlight the text you want to translate
Right click on the text and select "Translate selection to English"
This will automatically translate the highlighted text into English and replace it in the web page

2. Convert a website into an application

Another feature in Microsoft Edge that is not so well known is the ability to convert a website into a stand alone application. This feature will build an application from the content of the website, package it up into its own application window that can be pinned to the start menu or task bar so that you can launch the website quickly just like launching an application. It runs in its own cut down application window and does not look like a web browser. To convert a website into an app:

Browse to the website
Click on the three dots menu at the top right of Edge
From the drop down select Apps then "Install this site as an app"
This will create a stand alone app that you can then pin to the start menu or task bar

3. Put tabs to sleep

Almost all of us are guilty of having too many tabs open at one time in a browser, but did you know that having lots of open tabs can result in your browser and computer slowing down? This is because all of these open tabs use resources, even when they are not being viewed, they are still active, only in the background of the computer. You can configure Edge to put open tabs that have not been looked at for a defined period to sleep. You can decide on how long a tab needs to be idle before it is put to sleep. To do this do the following:

Click on the three dots menu at the top right of Edge
From the menu list, select "Settings"
Then select "System and Performance"
Enable the feature "Save resources with sleeping tabs" by ensuring the switch is on
You can decide how long it is before tabs sleep by selecting the time from the drop down to the right of the "Put inactive tabs to sleep after the specified amount of time:" option. You can pick from 30 seconds, 5 minutes, 15 minutes, 30 minutes, 1 hour, 2 hours, 3 hours, 6 hours or 12 hours before the tab goes to sleep

4. Let Microsoft Edge read the website to you

Another feature that a lot of people don't know about is that you can get Microsoft Edge to read the text on a website to you. To get Edge to read to you, do the following:

Move to the cursor on the website to where you want Edge to start reading to you from
Right click with the mouse and select "Read aloud from here"
This will start reading the contents of the web page to you and control features will appear at the top of the website, this includes start/stop, fast forward and backward and also pick which voice you want to have read to you, including country of origin (so you can pick someone with an accent similar to yours)

Have a go with these lesser known features and see if you find them useful when using Microsoft Edge

Tech Tip - How To Do Full And Selective Screenshots On A Mac

Wed, 22 Jan 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Do you know how to do screenshots on a Mac? A Windows computer has the Prt Scr (Print Screen) button that allows you to grab screenshots but what buttons do you press to get a screenshot on a Mac?

With a Mac you have a few options which are:

Screen shot the entire screen - press Command + Shift + 3
Screen shot a specific section of the screen - Press Command + Shift + 4 and use the mouse to drag and select a box around the portion of the screen you want to capture
Screen shot an application window or a menu - Press Command + Shift + 4 + Spacebar which changes the cursor to a camera icon, and allows you to highlight the Window or menu to capture by shading it green
Open the screen shot tool - Press Command + Shift + 5 which will allow you to use the tools to capture or record all or part of the screen based on your selection(s). This even allows you to record what you are doing on screen and create a video that you can play back or share
Screen shot the Touch Bar - Press Command + Shift + 6 which will capture the touch bar if your Mac has one

These are really useful keyboard shortcuts for people that need to grab the screen on a Mac.

Tech Tip - How To Set Up Hot Corners On A Mac

Wed, 15 Jan 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Did you know there is a feature on a Mac called "Hot Corners"? What this allows you to do is to launch an application or carry out a routine on your Mac by just moving the mouse to the appropriate corner for that function.

It is also a great way to secure your Mac, which we will cover in this article.

How to setup Hot Corners

On your Mac, open the System Settings
Select "Desktop & Dock" from the list of menu items on the left hand side
Scroll down past all of the options in offer until you get to the very bottom of the list
Click on the "Hot Corners..." button
Once the Hot Corners configuration screen opens, select which corner you want to activate
Click on the drop down menu to select what you want the hot corner to do when you move the mouse there, for example use the bottom left hand corner
In this example we are going to get the hot corner to lock the computer, so from the list select "Lock Screen" then click Done
Close the System Settings

Now if you move your mouse to the bottom left corner of your Mac screen, the computer will lock, securing your computer, without needing to click on the Apple logo (top left) and select Lock Screen from the menu. Just quickly move the the mouse to the corner of the screen and hey presto, the computer is locked instantly, fast, effective, secure!

This is a REALLY handy feature to quickly launch various applications or system functions.

Tech Tip - Get The Most Out Of Windows Calendar

Wed, 08 Jan 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Did you know you can do quite a lot with the built in calendar in Microsoft Windows?Here are some of useful tips on how to get the most out of it and help you to increase your productivity and punctuality.

Tips for Using the Windows Calendar

Calculate Dates with Ease Use the calendar app to quickly calculate dates for appointments, deadlines, or projects. Simply click the date or time in the taskbar to open the calendar.

Navigate Dates Effortlessly Navigate forward or backward using the arrows or scroll feature. Click on specific dates to view events or set reminders.

Customise Calendar Colours To change a calendar's colour, click on the calendar in the sidebar and select "Colour." For a custom colour, click "Colour > Custom" and use the Colour Picker.

Master Keyboard Shortcuts Here are some handy keyboard shortcuts for working with events:

Ctrl+G: Add recurrence to an event.
Ctrl+S or Alt+S: Save changes on a calendar item.
Ctrl+F: Forward a calendar item.
Esc: Exit the event creation window without saving.

Set Up Notifications Ensure you never miss an important event by setting up notifications. Go to the calendar settings and customize your notification preferences for different types of events.

Sync with Other Calendars You can sync your Windows calendar with other calendars such as Google Calendar or Outlook. This allows you to manage all your events in one place. Go to the calendar settings and add your other calendar accounts.

Use the Search Function Quickly find events or appointments by using the search function. Click on the search bar at the top of the calendar and type in keywords related to the event you are looking for.

Create Recurring Events For events that happen regularly, such as weekly meetings or monthly check-ins, create recurring events. When adding a new event, select the recurrence option and choose the frequency that suits your needs.

Share Your Calendar If you need to collaborate with others, you can share your calendar. Go to the calendar settings, select "Share," and enter the email addresses of the people you want to share your calendar with. You can also set permissions to control what others can see or edit.