World Backup Day is a commemorative date celebrated annually by the backup industry and tech industry all over the world on March 31 It highlights the importance of protecting data and keeping systems and computers secure.
Here are some gift ideas for World Backup Day – with all budgets in mind!
1 – Give the gift of an external hard drive or subscription to a backup cloud service. Who needs roses when you have peace of mind?
2 – Remind friends to back up phones, computers, and other technology like cameras and tablets. Back up all the technology!
3 – You might also want to encourage everyone to change their settings so that backups happen automatically. And if you’re especially tech-savvy, offer to help them change the settings, perhaps over a nice dinner!
4 – Set reminders on your calendar or smartphone that notify you weekly or monthly to do a data backup. This is the gift that keeps on giving.
5 – Encourage your family and friends to take the World Backup Day Pledge! “
“I solemnly swear to backup my important documents and precious memories on March 31st.”
Remind your loved ones that backing up their data will help them recover precious memories and information quickly! Data loss can happen in a number of ways:
Device Theft (it happens, unfortunately)
Device Damage (don’t try to pretend you haven’t spilled something on your phone)
Viruses (yikes, you clicked that link?)
Human Error (yes, you did just hit the delete button)
Spread the love this World Backup Day! And be sure to check out the official World Backup Day website at worldbackupday.com/en/
Cordless tools have been making strides over the past few years, as batteries become more advanced, smaller, and lighter. Lithium ion batteries have been slowly increasing their capacity and run time while shrinking in size and weight. But there’s a new material on the market for cordless tools: graphene, a lightweight material that has changed the battery game.
Graphene batteries charge faster and can power larger tools
Because graphene is so conductive, adding it to a traditional lithium ion battery can reduce charging time by three times. Graphene is 100 times more conductive than copper, to give you some idea of how much faster charging could become with graphene. This means needing fewer batteries on hand, as you won’t need to wait as long to charge one if you’re working on a big project. This technology can make cordless tools more practical even for larger projects.
Since the material allows for faster charging, it also allows for faster discharging, meaning that batteries with graphene can yield enough power for larger tools that use more power. Using a battery-powered chainsaw or concrete drill that runs for more than an hour could be in our near future. Cordless tools that are already popular like sanders and drills can benefit from increased torque.
Increased efficiency for graphene batteries also means longer run time, allowing you to go for hours between charges. Imagine running your shop tools until lunchtime and then charging batteries on a lunch break and using them for the rest of the day. Graphene batteries are also more heat resistant, allowing them to work for longer without overheating.
Since graphene is a relatively new material, the batteries are more expensive—almost twice as much as a traditional lithium ion battery. There’s a limited selection of tools to choose from at the moment that will work with the current batteries, and unless you have a CAT cordless system already, you would need to replace any tools you have to match with the new CAT graphene batteries.
As the technology develops, graphene will likely become more widely available for a wider range of cordless tools. Rumors are circulating that some other major cordless tool brands are working on graphene batteries for their tools, so keep an eye out for those in the near future. As the technology becomes more widely available, graphene batteries should also become more affordable.
A wifi connection disruption is never welcome, whether you’re in the middle of submitting a big work project or streaming music to your smart speaker. In many cases, a quick check of your router can solve the problem—restarting and/or resetting the device can clear memory or cache issues, stabilize your network connection, or improve wireless signal problems.
Remember that a router is not the same thing as a modem (though you can buy a modem-router combo unit). Routers act as the interface between all of your wireless devices and the modem, which in turn connects the data from your home network to the internet and vice versa.
How to restart your router
Restarting your router can help improve the speed, performance, or stability of your connection. If you still have issues, you may need to reset the device by returning it to factory settings.
Unplug the router
The very first step is to unplug your router from its power source by removing the cord from the router’s power input. Wait at least 30 seconds for the device to cool down and go offline, then reconnect the power. Depending on the model, you may also need to press the Power button.
Once the power is on, wait at least 30 seconds—and up to a few minutes—for the router to boot back up and reconnect to the internet. If the problem has resolved, you’re all set. Otherwise, you may need to take additional steps.
Note: if you are rebooting both your modem and your router, plug the modem back in first and wait at least a minute before powering up the router.
Reset the router
Restarting your router won’t change the settings, but that may be the next best step in the quest to troubleshoot connection issues. There are several ways to conduct a router reset, the most complete being a hard reset back to factory settings. While the router is on, locate the Reset button on your device and press and hold for 30 seconds. (Some buttons will require a sharp, pointed object, like a paperclip, to access.)
Because this process deletes all custom settings, you’ll need to log into your router’s admin using the default username and password, which are usually printed on the router or in the user manual and change your wifi password.
Troubleshoot your connection and location
If restarting and resetting didn’t fix the problem, you may be dealing with a bad Ethernet cable or some barrier to your signal reaching where you need it. Try swapping out the cable and/or moving your router to an open, centralized location.
If none of these steps improve your connection, it may be time to replace your router.
This goes against the grain, so there’s something wrong. You may have a slow Ethernet connection for the following reasons:
The Ethernet cable you’re using is faulty or damaged.
Ethernet cable is of a lower category and has a lower data transfer cap.
Ethernet ports where you are connecting the Ethernet cable are having a problem.
You are running outdated drivers on your device.
Your device is connected to a VPN.
You have outdated router firmware.
The connection settings are messed up.
Your device has been infected with malware.
There is a problem with your router’s hardware.
Let’s explore how each of the above causes contributes to slowing down the Ethernet connection and how you can fix it.
Performing Some Preliminary Checks
Perform the following preliminary checks before proceeding with serious troubleshooting:
Check the internet speed of both wired and wireless connections and compare the results to confirm Ethernet is slow. Don’t make a guess.
Reconnect the Ethernet cable to your router and PC.
Restart your router and device to ensure the temporary glitch isn’t slowing down the connection.
Turn off your VPN connection.
Check with neighbors who use the same ISP to ensure your internet service provider doesn’t throttle the Ethernet connection. Switch your ISP if others are experiencing the same problem.
Try the same Ethernet connection on another laptop. If it continues to be slower than Wi-Fi on other devices, you can skip the operating level fixes because it is most likely a cable or router problem.
If preliminary efforts prove unsuccessful, apply the following fixes.
1. Make Sure Your Ethernet Cable Is Intact
The speed you get with an Ethernet cable can be significantly diminished if it’s damaged or faulty. So, before anything else, take a close look at the Ethernet cable from start to end to see if it has been flattened by furniture, bitten by your pet, or stretched to the point of damage.
If there are any signs of damage in the middle of the cable, it’s probably a damaged Ethernet cable slowing down your connection. Therefore, replacing the cable should resolve the connection issues.
2. Check the Ethernet Cable Category
Are you using an Ethernet cable that is a couple of decades old? If so, check the cable category. Those of a lower category, like category four, could only transfer data at 16Mbps. It is the maximum speed you can achieve with such a cable, regardless of how fast your Wi-Fi connection is.
Therefore, if you have a Wi-Fi connection with a faster speed than an Ethernet cable can handle, you can expect to have a better wireless connection. You can increase the speed by replacing the cable with a higher category one.
3. Ensure the Connecting Ports Aren’t Faulty
When the ports to which the Ethernet cable is connected are faulty, even an intact or brand-new Ethernet cable will not perform optimally. You can confirm this by connecting the Ethernet cable to different LAN ports on your device and router.
If you notice a significant increase in speed with this switch, one or both ports are faulty. Therefore, you should avoid using them in the future. If this change makes no difference, suggesting ports are intact, move on to the next fix.
4. Update Your Network Drivers
The internet connection can also be sluggish due to outdated drivers. Even though Windows usually updates drivers automatically, it doesn’t always do so. Follow these steps to update network drivers:
Right-click on the Start button and select Device Manager.
Expand the category for Network adapters.
Right-click on the Ethernet adapter driver and click Update driver.
Alternatively, you can download drivers from the official website of your router’s manufacturer or get them from your ISP. If updating or installing new drivers does not make a difference, move on to the next step.
5. Update Your Router’s Firmware
In the same way that updating the network drivers is crucial for smooth signal transmission, updating the router’s firmware is also essential. Therefore, if your Ethernet is still not providing the best speeds, you should update the router’s firmware.
While updating your router’s firmware may differ depending on the manufacturer, most of it will be similar. If the firmware interface of your router seems complex, visit the manufacturer’s website for instructions.
6. Reset Your Network
Performing a network reset can fix underlying network problems, but it’s not recommended because it resets all networking components to their default settings, reverting any customizations you might have made.
However, if your Ethernet is still slow, you should try this less desirable solution.
7. Cut Off Electromagnetic Interference
An Ethernet connection is not immune to electromagnetic fields, which are poisonous to network connections. Having your Ethernet connection pass by a large electric motor may induce a current in the cable, resulting in signal distortion.
Check the appliances you have placed near your Ethernet cable and move them away from it if they could interfere with the signal. If that doesn’t solve the problem, it’s likely a hardware issue.
8. Check for Hardware Problems
If none of these fixes have worked so far, your hardware may be defective, which is the cause of the problem. Perhaps, your router is outdated or has technical issues, your network interface card (NIC) isn’t performing well, or some other network setting is limiting Ethernet’s potential speed.
To rule out these possibilities, take your router and device to the nearest PC repair shop, where a technician will test them for hardware issues and help you resolve them. Unless a technician has identified and fixed any hardware problems, it’s time to call your ISP and have them resolve this annoying problem.
Don’t Let Your Ethernet Connection Deviate from the Norm
Having an Ethernet connection perform poorer than a Wi-Fi connection could be one of the most frustrating experiences. Hopefully, our article will help you figure out what’s causing your Ethernet connection to be slow as a tortoise. Additionally, the fixes covered will assist you in speeding it up. If none of the methods work, your ISP should step in to save the day.
An unreliable home internet connection can make even the simplest Google search super frustrating. If you find that your Wi-Fi is always slow, no matter what internet service provider you have or how many devices are online, what do you do? Sometimes paying monthly fees to an internet service provider or having your router professionally installed might not even solve the immense problem of a slow and weak internet connection.
For most apartments and smaller homes (under 1,500 square feet), a single wireless access point should suffice. That said, if your router is several years old, you may want to consider upgrading to a newer model with support for 802.11ax, or Wi-Fi 6. That’s the latest generation of Wi-Fi technology, and it’ll give you the fastest wireless speeds possible and the best overall coverage.
For bigger, multilevel homes, it’s worth considering making the upgrade to a mesh network to offer consistent coverage throughout the entire house. Once the main access point is installed, if you find a far corner of your home doesn’t have solid wireless coverage, just add another node to that area. Problem solved.
What’s the best place to put your router?
Choose a central location
Routers send the signal out in all directions, so if it’s left in the corner of your home, a significant percentage of your wireless coverage is being sent outside your home. That’s why your best bet is to move the router to a central location to optimize the signal.
Installing a router across the house from the modem may prove troublesome. It may require manually running an especially long CAT5 or CAT6 Ethernet cable under the floor or along the bottom of your walls, or enlisting the help of power line network adapters, which use your home’s electrical wiring to pass an internet signal from point to point. But the improved wireless coverage will be worth it.
Raise the router
Routers tend to spread their strongest signals downward, so it’s best to mount the router as high as possible to maximize coverage. Try placing it high on a bookshelf or mounting it on the wall in an inconspicuous place.
Avoid other electronics
Try to pick a location that’s away from other electronics and large metal objects. The more walls, large obstructions and electronics near your router, the higher the chances are that something will interfere with the signal.
One type of electronic device to especially avoid is the microwave, which emits a strong signal in the 2.4GHz band, the same wireless band your router operates in. You’ll also want to be careful not to stick your router behind a large TV, which can cause electronic interference while also physically blocking or disrupting the signal.
Along with electronics, keep an eye out for bulky furniture that might be limiting the signal’s reach. Wi-Fi doesn’t travel well through water, for instance, so if you have an aquarium in your home, try to avoid situations where it’ll be in between your router and the device that needs to connect.
Those funny-looking antennas? They do actually matter
Some routers have no antenna at all, but some have up to eight. These antennas help direct the signal. If there are two or more antennas on your router, don’t position them all in the same direction.
Instead, make them perpendicular to one another — position one horizontally and the other vertically. Or slightly change the position of all the antennas to cover a wide range of angles. You might have to experiment a bit to find the most effective configuration.
The signal from each of those antennas will come out like a wave traveling in all directions, and that wave will be perpendicular to the antenna itself, so a vertical antenna is going to be more helpful in single story homes, while a horizontal or angled antenna is going to put out a signal that travels upward, which might be more useful in a multi-story home.
Map the signal
In worst-case scenario situations, it may prove useful to map out the signal in your home to see where there might be gaps or problems areas in your coverage. Several years ago, we used NetSpot software to map out the signal strength throughout the CNET Smart Home — in the end, we got a great look at the weak spots in our Wi-Fi network, which helped us shore things up by moving our hardware to more optimal locations.
If you’re considering upgrading your router, be sure to check out CNET’s picks for best routers. For homes with children, make sure to explore the parental controls of your router, too.
Microsoft is putting the final nail in the coffin of Internet Explorer, with the legacy web browser set to retire for good tomorrow.
The tech giant has gradually shifted away from the ageing software after 27 years on the scene, starting afresh with the new Edge browser in 2015 to coincide with the launch of Windows 10.
Support for the final version, Internet Explorer 11, has been maintained, even though most people have already moved elsewhere.
By ending support, this means important security updates and bug fixes will no longer be rolled out.
What would you do if suddenly you lost all access to the internet? This happened to me last Saturday. Ok I freaked out a bit, but fortunately, I have an ethernet connection that was up and working. So, what happened to my laptop?
Not seeing this symbol can really mess up one’s day, so what did I do to solve the problem. I turned to Microsoft’s troubleshooter that was installed on my laptop. It said to touch Fn+F3 to enable Wi-Fi. I tried it…nothing. Tried it again…nothing. Digging further into the details, the troubleshooter said that the radio HW switch was turned off. Thanks, but no mention of how to turn it on.
You won’t believe what caused the loss of my Wi-Fi, or how many days and unsuccessful fixes it took to solve. Long story short. I stumbled upon the Acer Community Forum and started looking for an answer to the problem. No luck, but someone suggested uninstalling the latest Windows update (occurred the morning of my outage). I didn’t realize that an update could be uninstalled. Guess what? As soon as I did that, the orange Wi-Fi light came on. And stayed on.
The MS troubleshooter never mentioned that its own company could itself be the source of the problem and the solution could be uninstalling the update. So, one week later, I know, and now so do you.
Technology is fantastic when it works. But, when it doesn’t…
Unstable Wi-Fi is often caused by wireless congestion. Congestion problems are common in apartment complexes or densely-packed neighborhoods when too many people using Wi-Fi leads to connectivity problems.
Wireless congestion is caused by issues with two factors: frequency overlap and limited Wi-Fi channels.
1. Download and install a Wi-Fi Analysis App
On Windows, many free apps can analyze the quality of wireless channels. One of the best options is available on the Microsoft Store: Wi-Fi Analyzer. For those without Windows, search your respective operating system’s app store for “Wi-Fi Analyzer,” and you’ll see dozens of options.
2. Detect Unstable Wi-Fi
Using Wi-Fi Analyzer is dead simple. Just install and run the app. After installation, you can launch it by going to Windows Search (Windows key + S) > Wi-Fi Analyzer.
The tool should detect your Wi-Fi signal strength, ranging from zero to -100 decibel milliwatts (dBm). If you have a 5GHz network, a toggle at the bottom of the app interface allows you to switch between detecting 2.4GHz and 5GHz.
To analyze your wireless router’s signal quality, take the following actions:
Click on Analyze in the top menu bar.
Wi-Fi Analyzer then displays a visualization of the Wi-Fi networks in your vicinity. If two networks broadcast on the same channel, you’ll notice overlap. Each channel has a number between one and 161 on the 5GHz frequency and one through 11 on the 2.4GHz frequency.
When two networks overlap:
The X axis represents the channels available on the 2.4GHz spectrum. As you can see, channels four to seven are unoccupied. Channels five and six have no competition whatsoever. Given the app’s analysis, I should change my router’s 2.4GHz channel to either five or six.
But how do you change your router’s channel?
How to Change Your Router’s Channel
Accessing your router’s settings requires a browser, like Chrome or Microsoft Edge. Accessing its settings, unfortunately, varies between different router models, but some general rules apply.
Linksys routers: In your browser, navigate to 192.168.1.1.
You can complete an internet search to find the login URL for your specific router brand and model.
Most routers use “admin” as the login and “password” as the password. The login details may also be printed on the back of the router or in the instruction manual that came with it. If you cannot access your router, try searching the internet for your individual router’s access method.
For my own Telus router, changing the Wi-Fi channel is easy. First, I navigate to the router login address and enter my login and password. Changing the channel is usually located under Wireless Settings > Advanced Settings.
I then change the network channel to the option which offers a good connection, save the settings, and restart the router by power cycling it (turning it off and on again). Afterward, it stopped randomly disconnecting.
One thing to mention is that most modern routers include a dual-band feature that combines 2.4GHz and 5GHz frequencies onto a single network name or SSID. This feature is notoriously unreliable, and if you’re having network problems, I suggest disabling it as a precautionary step. On my Telus router, it’s referred to as SmartSteering. Other brands have completely different names.
How to Fix Unstable Wi-Fi? Decongest It!
If your Wi-Fi sucks, a Wi-Fi analysis app is the best way to find out your router’s ideal network settings. If you’re still getting unreliable internet after changing your router’s channel, consider troubleshooting your Wi-Fi problems. Sometimes ironing out the kinks on your home internet will fix those irritating reliability issues.
So, your internet is acting funny, maybe a little sluggish, even after multiple router resets and disconnecting excess devices. While there are many possible reasons your internet is acting up, many folks will understandably start to wonder if one of the neighbors is mooching off their wifi.
While unlikely, it’s actually pretty easy to break into someone else’s wifi network using simple hacking software and a little patience—though it’s also possible your neighbor just overheard your password or made a lucky guess. Maybe you loaned them your wifi login when they were over once and they never stopped using it. Regardless of how they got in, you can check which devices are connected to your network and boot off any outsiders using your smartphone or PC—no extra software required.
There are a couple of ways to see who is currently using your wifi. Some routers and ISP offer network management apps for mobile and desktop that show you a list of connected devices and let you change permissions—including removing a device from the network and banning it from reconnecting. For example, Comcast/Xfinity customers can monitor home network activity through the Xfinity app. Check if your router or internet provider offers a similar app.
The other method is to access your router’s interface on a computer by typing in the local-access IP address into an internet browser. You can find your router’s local-access IP address using the following steps:
On Windows
Press the Window key + R then type cmd to open the Command Prompt.
In the Command Prompt window, type [ipconfig] then press Enter.
The IP address should appear next to “Default Gateway” or “IPv4 Address” from the results.
On a Mac
Go to System Preferences > Network > Advanced > TCP/ICP.
Look for the IP address listed next to “IPv4 Address.”
Type the IP address you found from the steps above into the internet browser of your choice. Your router’s configuration interface should appear, then login with your network password. Once you’re in, you can now review network activity.
Step 2: Ban unwanted devices
Whether you’re using a mobile app or connecting directly to your router through an internet browser, the next step is to see who’s using your wifi and block unwanted access. However, the steps for finding and managing the list of connected devices will depend on the app you’re using, and/or your router’s make and model. Consult your router’s user manual or look up steps for the specific model online.
When you find this information, confirm that only devices you or members of your household are the ones connected. This should be easy to tell just based on the names of the connected devices, but since some devices only list their MAC address (aka Media Access Control, which is another unique identification number devices use to communicate with the router), you may need to manually cross-reference each device’s MAC address.
If you do, in fact, find a moocher, you can ban them from the network. Once again, the method differs between router interfaces, but is usually performed from the device’s preferences menu.
Step 3: Enhance your security
Lastly, you need to change your network’s password and ensure it’s using the strongest possible security protocol to prevent moochers from breaking back into your network. Just like the previous steps, finding these options depend on your router’s software, but should be easy to locate. Make sure you create a strong password, and enable the highest network encryption possible—for some devices, that may be WPA3, while others may only use WPA2-AES or WPA2-TKIP. If your router doesn’t support at least WPA2, we strongly recommend upgrading to a newer model.
Even if you have a new TV that looks great, you might find yourself underwhelmed by the sound. One of the biggest problems with TV sound is dialog — you know, the voices of the actors that allow you to follow what’s going on. Sometimes loud sound effects and music can make the words too quiet to understand, and turning up the volume, or turning on subtitles, doesn’t work. The reason? Flatscreen TVs are so thin there’s nowhere for the speakers to go, and this means they can also sound thin.
But you don’t need to live with bad sound, because we’re here to help. If you’re struggling to understand the dialogue in your new favorite show, there may be a few speaker settings — similar to picture settings — you can tweak to fix the problem. You might also decide you need a new soundbar or other audio system to replace those TV speakers.
So if that dialogue sounds muffled and incomprehensible, whether you’re using the TV speakers or a separate sound system, here are three things you can do to fix it.
1. Check your TV’s sound settings
Bass in particular is the enemy of understandable speech: It tends to hide the frequencies that help us decipher what people are saying. Rather than play with individual bass and treble controls, the easiest thing to do is to try the preset sound modes first.
1. Use your remote to access the TV’s settings menu, then look for a section called Audio, Sound or something similar.
2. At the top of the menu should be a selection of presets such as Movie, User or Standard.
3. While watching a speech-heavy show or movie, cycle through the modes to see which one’s sound best.
If you’re finding the dialogue is mumbly, for example, try a Dialog, News or Speech Boost mode. If that’s not available, Movie or Standard is the next best option.
Also, try cycling through audio enhancements like Bass Boost or Surround, which often harm dialogue, or Night Mode, which can help (or not). Every TV and every room sounds different, so it’s worthwhile to experiment.
A little boost to treble may also help improve intelligibility. Once you’ve got the audio as good as you can, simply exit the menu. You usually don’t need to save it; the TV should remember.
2. Have a soundbar or speaker system? Try these tweaks
External speakers will sound better than what’s built into your TV, but they may need a little tweaking to help with dialogue too. Your speakers might be too close to the wall, for instance, or stuffed inside a cabinet.
Here are some common fixes for bad sound, and they don’t cost a cent. First, simply pick the kind of system that you have:
Soundbar
As with TVs in step 1, try setting the soundbar to a speech-enhancing mode, Movie or Standard.
If your system has a subwoofer, it could be too loud compared to the rest of the system. While explosions are fun, they shouldn’t be at the expense of a good story. If you have a separate bass or sub control, try turning it down.
AV or stereo system with speakers
If you have tower or bookshelf speakers, try moving them away from the walls and corners, and then point or “toe” them in towards the middle where you sit. Removing speaker grilles will also boost the midrange by a couple of decibels. These little changes alone won’t be enough to transform Sly Stallone into Laurence Olivier, but could be enough to discern what an actor is drawling about.
3. Buy a new soundbar
If the previous options aren’t cutting it for you, it may be time to invest in some new equipment. Thankfully excellent soundbars aren’t very expensive, and almost anything will sound better than a TV speaker. The Creative Stage, for example, is only about $90 and offers HDMI connections and a subwoofer. Vizio also makes an excellent range of soundbars.
There are some soundbars specifically designed to make speech more intelligible. For instance, when Zvox branched out into hearing aid design the company brought the tech to its range of AccuVoice soundbars. The company has models starting at $100, and it includes the flagship Zvox AV357.
Going the next step and buying a surround system also has added benefits — especially if the system has a dedicated center channel speaker. In surround mixes dialogue often comes primarily from the center channel and being able to increase its volume independently can really help.
(Note: I find it helpful to turn on cc, closed-captioning. This tool, found under settings usually, prints out on the screen the exact dialog being spoken. You may find the cc button on your tv remote also).
