How to Turn Your Old Mac into a Chromebook

If you have an aging Mac lying around that struggles to run the latest macOS and has stopped receiving security updates from Apple, it’s possible to give it a secure second life by installing software that essentially turns it into a Chromebook.

That’s because Google has released an early access version of Chrome OS Flex, which offers a way to replace the operating system on older PCs and Macs so that they can tap into a way of computing that is almost entirely managed in the cloud. Installing the cloud-first OS means using your Mac will stay secure with regular updates, it should boot fast, it and won’t slow down over time.

Chrome OS Flex is the result of Google’s 2020 purchase of Neverware, a company that offered an app called CloudReady that allows users to convert old PCs into Chrome OS machines.

Chrome OS Flex has the same look and feel as Chrome OS, which is shipped with every Chromebook, as it’s built on the same code base and includes Google Assistant, the Chrome browser, and Nearby Sharing. However, it’s worth noting that there’s currently no Google Play Store, and Google has outlined some other, mainly system-level limitations of OS Flex that distinguish it from Chrome OS on native Google devices.

What You’ll Need:

  • Mac released after 2010 with 16GB of free storage.
  • Chrome browser installed on your Mac
  • USB drive with 8GB or more of storage space.
[mai mult...]

How to Hide Your Instagram Online Status

Most social media networks and chat platforms these days include a feature that shows when a user was last online or last active on the service, which can be either helpful or a hindrance, depending on your personal or business situation.

WhatsApp includes an optional “Last Seen” status for the person you’re chatting with in a conversation thread, while Instagram tells you how long it was since a user was active when you’re viewing messages from them in your Direct inbox. Instagram also shows a green dot next to their profile picture and name if the person is currently interacting with the app.

Sometimes though, for whatever reason, you might not want someone – or indeed anyone – to know when you were last active on social media. Fortunately, WhatsApp and Instagram both allow you to hide your activity status in the app. Here our focus is on how to hide your Instagram status.

[mai mult...]

How to Use Spatial Audio on Beats Fit Pro

Spatial audio is a sonic feature of Beats Fit Pro that adds surround sound to Apple’s audio wearables. By utilizing dynamic head tracking, it brings a theater-like audio experience to the movie or video you’re watching, so that it seems as if the sound is coming from all around you.

Spatial audio uses the gyroscope and accelerometer in your ‌‌Beats Fit Pro‌‌ and iOS device to track the motion of your head and the position of your ‌iPhone/iPad‌, compares the motion data, and then maps the sound field to what’s happening on the screen even as you move your head or your device.

To take advantage of spatial audio on ‌‌Beats Fit Pro‌‌ earphones, you’ll need an iPhone 7 or later or one of the iPad models listed below.

iPad Pro 12.9‑inch (3rd generation) and later

iPad Pro 11‑inch

iPad Air (3rd generation)

iPad (6th generation) and later

iPad mini (5th generation) and later

You’ll also need iOS 15 or iPadOS 15 or later installed on your device.

[mai mult...]

How to Use WhatsApp on Mac Without a Connected iPhone

WhatsApp has rolled out multi-device support to all users on iOS and Android, allowing WhatsApp to be used on up to four linked devices without users needing to be connected via a smartphone.

Previously, the WhatsApp mobile app was required to authenticate an account used on another device, such as a computer, and used a QR code to link a user account to a web browser or desktop app. While that initial link is still required, the connected phone that has the WhatsApp app on it is no longer required once the link has been made.

[mai mult...]

iOS 15: How to Create a ‘Hide My Email’ Private Address

With iOS 15 and Hide My Email, you can create unique, random email addresses that forward to your personal inbox whenever you want to keep your personal email address private.

This is especially useful if you think that a business or website is likely to share your email address with ad agencies or other third-parties for marketing purposes. Providing them with a dummy address means you can delete the address at any time, ensuring any unsolicited emails don’t reach your inbox.

How to Create an Email Address Using Hide My Email

[mai mult...]

How to fix Facetime black screen on Mac

A Mac or MacBook both have a built-in webcam. The webcam will work with any app that can use it e.g, Microsoft Teams or Zoom but it is known as the Facetime camera and is meant to work with the app of the same name. Facetime, much like iMessage, works really well as a service but it does need to use the camera. Facetime calls generally do connect easily and immediately though you can expect a delay if you’re calling someone connected to a weak network

Terminal fix –Make sure the Facetime app is not open on your system before you try this fix. No other app that can use the webcam should be open.

[mai mult...]

How to use Snap layouts on Windows 11

Snap layouts on Windows 11

Window snapping has remained unchanged for the most part. It works more or less the same as it does when it was first introduced with users able to snap their windows to one half or one quarter of a screen. With Windows 11, the feature has been improved on. Users now get a grid of different snapping combinations. When a position on the grid is clicked, the window is snapped to it.

[mai mult...]

How to fix Second hard drive not detected in Windows 10

A Windows 10 system can support multiple hard drives. Some systems, depending on the motherboard they have, can support an internal SSD and an internal HDD. Likewise, you can connect multiple external HDDs (or SSDs) to a system. A hard drive isn’t difficult to configure; it will connect over a simple USB port, it can work with either a USB 2.0 or USB 3.0 port, and it’s plug & play. Windows 10 will automatically be able to detect it and install the right drivers for it. To access a hard drive, you can open File Explorer and it will be listed under This PC. You can copy and paste files to it as easily as you would to an internal drive.

Second hard drive not detected in Windows 10

A hard drive, regardless if it’s internally connected or externally connected, will be detected easily. You should hear the new hardware found sound when you connect it and there may be a few seconds of a wait while a driver for it is installed but the device will be accessible almost immediately.

Second hard drive not detected in Windows 10

If your second hard drive has not been detected in Windows 10, try the fixes below.

[mai mult...]

How to Downgrade From iOS 15 to iOS 14

If you’ve installed iOS 15 or iPadOS 15 through Apple’s developer program or the public beta now it’s been released, you may decide you want to downgrade because of usability or stability issues. Keep reading to learn how it’s done.

Apple usually only releases the public betas of ‌iOS and ‌iPadOS‌ once the developer versions are relatively stable. That said, Apple’s beta versions of its major software updates can be notoriously buggy, especially the early releases. You may find apps not working properly, poor battery life, device crashes, and features that don’t do what they’re supposed to. Fortunately, you can restore your iPhone or iPad to the previous version of iOS.

If you made an archived backup before you installed the beta, you can remove the ‌‌iOS 15‌ beta and restore the backup. If you didn’t make a backup, you can still downgrade, but you won’t be able to restore your device to its original state before you upgraded.

Also, if you’ve installed watchOS 8 on your Apple Watch, it’s important to note that you won’t be able to use it with your ‌‌iPhone‌‌ once you’ve gone back to iOS 14. And downgrading an Apple Watch to a previous version of watchOS can’t be done manually either – if you want to remove ‌‌watchOS 8‌‌, you’ll have to send your watch in to Apple.

[mai mult...]