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.

Google Assistant’s broadcasting feature works like a modern intercom. You can broadcast a message to your kid’s room to tell them dinner is ready, or send a message to the whole house when you’re away. It’s a very useful feature. Before we get into the process of broadcasting messages, let’s cover some basics. You can broadcast a message from the Google Assistant on your smartphone or tablet, or a Google Nest or Home device that’s a part of your smart home.

Broadcasts can be sent to every Google Nest or Home device in your house, or directed to specific rooms and devices. It’s also possible to reply to a broadcasted message.

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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.

We’ll cover a few solutions here: The built-in smarthome features in macOS and a convenient third-party utility for controlling Hue lights from your Mac’s menu bar.

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How to Increase the Screen Timeout Length

Screen timeout prevents your phone’s screen from remaining on when you’re not using your device. However, there are times when you don’t want it to do this. Fortunately, you can disable it on your Android phone or tablet. The screen timeout simply determines how long the screen will stay on after you’re done using it. This is usually 30 seconds to 1 minute, by default. If you’re using your phone for something that doesn’t require touching the display, you might find the short screen timeout annoying.

On Android devices, you can easily change the screen timeout length. The process slightly varies depending on which phone you have, as each manufacturer changes the Android user interface. Still, it usually only requires a few steps.

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How to Set Up Donations on Twitch

Many people on Twitch stream as a hobby. If you’re thinking about going full-time, though, you’ll need to raise some cash. Setting up donations on Twitch is one way you can do it!

Along with Twitch’s built-in subscription service, some streamers can accept donations using the platform’s built-in currency (Bits), which is purchased with real money.

If you don’t want Twitch taking a cut of your donations, or you’re unable to accept subscriptions or Bits, you’ll need to look at other methods. PayPal is one of the best ways, but there are other third-party donation services that make it easy for people to send you some cash.

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