Downloading your entire iCloud Photo Library to your iPhone or iPad might not be the smartest choice depending on your available storage. If you’ve been using iCloud for several years, there’s a good chance you have more media in your library than you have free space on your device.

You can check this by first heading to Settings > Your Name > iCloud > Manage Account Storage and taking a look at how much storage space you have used for Photos (above). Now head to Settings > General > iPhone Storage (or iPad Storage) to see how much free space you have available (below).

Downloading media locally to your iPhone won’t remove data from iCloud. Media will be kept locally on your device storage, accessible via the Photos app, and in the cloud. The fact that images are “stuck” in the Photos app does somewhat limit the usefulness of downloading everything, but at least you won’t need to rely on an internet connection to see your photos and videos.

To do this, head to Settings > Photos and make sure that “Download and Keep Originals” is selected (not “Optimize iPhone Storage”). Now it’s time to wait, as iCloud downloads all original media to your device. If you run out of space, you’ll get a notification.

You can reverse this selection if you decide you’d rather let your devices manage free space and store everything in iCloud again.

Download iCloud Photos on your Mac

Downloading iCloud Photos locally on a Mac uses the same process as it does on iPhone and iPad. The good news is that you probably have more free space available on your Mac.

Before you begin, check your iCloud storage usage under System Settings > Your Name > iCloud > Manage. Now make sure you have plenty of free space available under Settings > General > Storage.

To download your images from iCloud, open the Photos app and click on Photos > Settings at the top of the screen. Beneath the “iCloud Photos” checkbox select the “Download Originals to this Mac” radio button. Now wait as Photos downloads everything locally.

Switching back to “Optimize Mac Storage” will reverse the decision, removing local media files while keeping them safe in the cloud. You can also use some of the methods listed below for Windows, Linux, a command line tool, and by requesting data from Apple directly.

It’s surprisingly easy to download iCloud photos on Windows, but it’s an all-or-nothing approach. Using Apple’s iCloud for Windows application, you can download everything from Photos by checking a box (and even upload new items by adding them to the relevant folder).

First, download iCloud for Windows from Apple’s website and install it. You’ll need to log in with your Apple ID. The application supports two-factor authentication, so you won’t need to create an app-specific password. Just use your regular Apple ID and password combination and then authenticate using a trusted device like your iPhone.

Once you’ve logged in, open the iCloud Settings panel (you can do this using the system tray icon, just click on it and then choose “iCloud Settings”). Next, click on “Options” next to “Photos” in the list and enable the “iCloud Photos” option. All of your media will start to download to the listed folder.

You can also turn on Shared folders and tweak a few other settings while you’re here. Be patient while things download. To reverse your decision, and delete everything locally but keep your media safe in the cloud, simply disable the “iCloud Photos” checkbox again.

You’ll see a warning notifying you that local media will be removed.

There are other options for Windows users including using the iCloud website, a command line tool, and requesting data from Apple as noted below.

Download iCloud Photos Using iCloud.com 

Unsurprisingly, Apple doesn’t make an iCloud for Linux application. The easiest way for Linux users to download their iCloud Photo Library is to head to iCloud.com and log in using their Apple ID credentials. This works for most other operating systems too.

Click on Photos to be taken to your media library. From here you can select a photo, then click the “Download” button at the top of the page to download it. You can download up to 1000 items (using Shift or Ctrl to select multiples) at a time.

iCloud will download your media in ZIP file format which you can then extract to a location of your choice. Repeat as necessary to get all of your photos downloaded. iCloud will show you how many items you have selected at a time in the top-right corner of the page, which simplifies this process a bit.

Linux users can also use the command line utility and request data from Apple as detailed below.

You can also download your iCloud media using a free command line utility called iCloud Photos Downloader. The utility can be used on just about any platform, with native downloads for Windows, Mac, many Linux distributions, a container for Docker, and source code available if you want to compile it yourself.

Head to the iCloud Photos Downloader Github page to get started. Download the version you want to use from the releases page, use a package manager like PIP, or configure the Docker container. Once the utility is configured, you can keep a single command running to maintain a local media library based on what gets uploaded to iCloud:

icloudpd --directory /data --username my@email.address --watch-with-interval 3600

This command must be run in a command line interface like Terminal, Command Prompt, or Konsole. Replace “icloudpd” with the name of the script you download (or rename your download to match). “/data” corresponds to the drive location and the username will need to reflect your own.

iCloud Photos Downloader requires some setup to understand and use properly. I tested the tool on macOS, and I needed to make the script executable using a “chmod +x” command, then run it so that macOS would deny the application on security grounds, then allow the application in System Settings > Privacy & Security, and then run it once more to confirm.

[mai mult...]

Set a Wallpaper in the Settings App on Windows 10

To change desktop backgrounds individually for each monitor, head to Settings > Personalization > Background. Under Choose Your Picture, right-click a background image and select “Set For Monitor 1,” “Set For Monitor 2,” or whichever other monitor you want to use it on.

To add additional images to this list, click “Browse” and select a wallpaper you want to use. Windows will set it as your default on all desktops. Right-click the wallpaper icons and choose which monitor you want to use each on.

Set a Wallpaper in the Settings App on Windows 11

To set different wallpapers on multiple monitors on Windows 11, you need to access the Settings app. Press Windows+i to open the Settings app, then navigate to Personalization > Background. Alternatively, you can right-click empty space on your desktop and select “Personalization,” then navigate to “Background.”

Once you’re in the Background window, make sure that the drop-down menu next to Personalize Your Background is set to “Picture.” Right-click the image you want to set for one (or both) monitors and mouse over “Set for Desktop.” You’ll have options for each individual monitor, or the option to change all of them at once—pick whichever you like.

If you use a third-party app with more advanced wallpaper customization options, you should skim through that app’s settings instead. The Settings app won’t work correctly with whatever additional features the third-party app includes.

[mai mult...]

End a Program Using a Keyboard Shortcut

The easiest way to close an unresponsive app is by using a Windows keyboard shortcut. This hotkey closes any app in the focus—whether responsive or unresponsive.

To use this method, click the unresponsive app’s window so it’s in the focus. Then, on your keyboard, press Alt+F4. Soon as you press this key combo, Windows will quit the app in the focus.

If the app remains open, wait a few seconds and press the same hotkey again. Make sure not to keep pressing this key combo, or you’ll end up closing other apps as well.

Close a Program from the Windows Taskbar

Windows 11 offers the option to force-close apps right from the taskbar. This option comes disabled by default, but you’re only a few clicks away from turning it on and using it.

To turn on the force-close option, launch Windows 11 Settings by pressing Windows+i. From the left sidebar, select “System.” Scroll down the right pane and choose “For Developers”.

On the For Developers screen, turn on the “End Task” toggle. You can then close the Settings app. To remove the End Task option in the future, turn off the “End Task” toggle.

On the Windows taskbar, find the unresponsive app, then right-click the app’s icon and choose “End Task.”

Windows will force-close the selected app.

End a Task with the Task Manager

Task Manager has long offered options to manage app processes on Windows PCs. You can use this utility to kill an unresponsive app’s process, quitting the app.

To use this method, launch Task Manager by right-clicking the Windows taskbar and choosing “Task Manager.” Another way to launch this tool is by pressing the Windows key, typing Task Manager, and selecting the tool in the search results.

On the Task Manager window, from the left sidebar, select the “Processes” tab.

On the right pane, find the unresponsive app. Right-click the app and choose “End Task.”

Task Manager will immediately close the selected app.

Using Settings

Windows 11’s Settings app also offers the option to terminate unresponsive apps. This requires a few more clicks than the other methods.

Start by launching Settings using Windows+i. From the left sidebar, select “Apps,” then choose “Installed Apps” in the right pane.

Find the unresponsive app on the list. Next to the app, click the three dots and choose “Advanced Options.” If you don’t find Advanced Options for your app, you can’t use this method.

On the following page, scroll down to the Terminate section. Here, click the “Terminate” button.

Settings will close the chosen app.

From Command Prompt

If you prefer command-line methods, or you currently only have access to Command Prompt, you can use a command to list all the running apps and end the unresponsive ones.

To use this method, launch Command Prompt with admin rights if you haven’t already. You can do that by pressing the Windows key, typing Command Prompt, and choosing “Run as Administrator.”

In the User Account Control prompt, select “Yes.”

In Command Prompt, type the following command and press Enter. You’ll see the list of apps running on your PC.

tasklist

From the app list, find the unresponsive app. Then, run the following command, replacing AppName with the name you noted.

taskkill /im AppName /t /f

Here’s what each parameter does in the command:

• taskkill: This is the command that terminates the specified process.
• im: This parameter tells the command the next value is an executable file name.
• AppName: This is the name of the app to be closed.
• t: This parameter tells the command to close the specified app as well as its child processes.
• f: This forces the app to close.

The command has stopped the specified app on your computer.

Using PowerShell

PowerShell works much like Command Prompt, but you’ll use a different command (called a cmdlet) in this utility to force-close frozen apps on your PC.

• Start by pressing the Windows key, typing PowerShell, and choosing “Run as Administrator.”
• In the User Account Control prompt, select “Yes.”
• On the PowerShell window, type the following cmdlet and press Enter. This cmdlet retrieves a list of the running apps.

Get-Process

Find the frozen app on the list. Then, run the following cmdlet replacing App with the frozen app name.

Stop-Process -Name App

Here’s what each parameter does in this cmdlet:

• Stop-Process: This cmdlet terminates the specified process.
• -Name: This parameter tells the cmdlet the next value is a process/app name.
• App: This is the app to be closed.

PowerShell will close the specified app.

If nothing works, Restart your PC

If the frozen app remains frozen even after using the above methods, give your Windows 11 PC a restart to close all the running apps on your system.

Before you reboot your PC, ensure the frozen app isn’t on the startup apps list. If it is, the app will automatically launch (and possibly freeze again) when your computer turns back on. To prevent that, open Task Manager and access the “Startup Apps” tab. Select the unresponsive app on the list and choose “Disable” at the top. Then, close Task Manager.

Once all of that is done, restart your computer by opening the Start Menu, selecting the Power icon, and choosing “Restart.”

You won’t have the unresponsive app running when your computer turns on. If you launch the app, and it continues to freeze up, either the app installation is faulty or there’s a compatibility issue. In this case, uninstall and reinstall the app and see if that fixes the issue. Alternatively, download another version of the app and see if it works.

[mai mult...]

Technically, the only thing you need to swap the default app icons on the taskbar are the icon files. Some apps come preinstalled with extra icons that you can use. Most don’t, so you’ll have to find custom icon files online, put them all in a folder, and then individually change the app icons.

You’ll need to find the shortcuts for every app that’s going to be pinned on the taskbar, and place them all on the desktop. Depending on your chosen theme, you can create a theme pack for the taskbar that matches the overall design. This is what my selection looks like.

To break it down simply, you need two things:

• A folder with all the icon files for your taskbar apps. The file has to be in ICO, EXE, DLL, or ICL format.
• Move all the taskbar app shortcuts to the desktop.

Where to Get the Icons

You can download the icon files from any number of online libraries, some paid, others free. Icons8 and IconsScout are two free libraries. But there are dozens more available online.

Whichever source you pick, be sure to download the icons in one of the recommended file formats. The most popular format is ICO, and that’s the format in which I’ve downloaded the icons. Once you have downloaded all your icon files, place them in one folder for easy access.

Secondly, you want to get the app shortcuts in one place. I’ve collected them on the desktop for ease of use. If the shortcut isn’t already on the desktop, just create a new one.

Search the app name (press the Windows key on the keyboard or click the button in the corner). Click “Open File Location” and find the EXE file in the directory. Right-click on the EXE file and select “Send To” and pick “Desktop.” It should pop up on the desktop right away.

After that, your shortcuts and icon files are good to go.

Changing Taskbar Icons

Now you’re ready to replace the icons on your taskbar. Right-click on a desktop shortcut and click “Properties.” Head to the “Shortcut” tab and click “Change Icon.”

Here you’ll be able to upload a new icon file that replaces the original. Click “Browse” and locate the folder where you’ve saved all your custom icon files. Select the right icon and click “Open.” Click “OK” on both windows after that, and the desktop icon should change.

Repeat these steps for all the desktop icons. When you’re done, the desktop shortcuts should look something like this (except you’d be replacing them with your own icons).

When you’re done, right-click on the desktop shortcuts one by one, select “Unpin from Taskbar.” Then right-click again and select “Pin to Taskbar.”

After you’ve changed the desktop icons and repinned the taskbar icons, you’re all done. Here’s what my taskbar looks like after the changes. You can repeat these steps with other ICO files to get different results. You can also change the taskbar color.

Revert Changes

Reverting the changes and restoring the original icons is just as easy. Once again, right-click on the desktop shortcut and select “Properties.” In the “Shortcut” tab on the properties panel, you’ll find a button labeled “Open File Location.” Click it and copy the program address (you’ll need it later).

Now go back to the “Shortcut” tab under Properties and click “Change Icon” and then “Browse.” Paste the directory you copied earlier in the Explorer address bar. Select the EXE file, click “Open.” You’ll be presented with the default available icons. Pick one and click “OK.”

To change the icon in the taskbar, we’ll use the same trick. Right-click on the desktop shortcut, click “Unpin from the Taskbar.” Then right-click again and click “Pin to Taskbar.” The taskbar icon should change right away. Repeat these steps for the remaining taskbar icons to get back to the default look.

[mai mult...]

If automatic updates have failed to install, you have alternate ways to manually update your Windows 11 PC. We’ll show you the available methods, so you can get the latest bug fixes and possibly new features on your computer.

[mai mult...]