How-To Geek

Notepad has been a hallmark of the Windows operating system for decades, and for most of that Notepad has been largely unchanged. It has been simple, reliable, and one of my go-to programs. Recent updates have changed that, and I've started using something else entirely.

Look at almost any mission-critical computer system in the world—servers, workstations, embedded computers, and many more—and you'll see Linux in some form. The open-source juggernaut may not have a large share in the desktop market (yet), but when stability, security, and uptime actually matter, Linux seems to be the OS of choice.

2025 has proven to be a strange year for PC hardware, with DRAM prices surging late in the year just as graphics cards released at the start of the year began to fall in price.

The movie Flow was made on a small budget, with a modest team of people, all within the open-source 3D modeling software Blender. Yet, the result was good enough to snag this plucky film an Oscar for "Best Animated Feature."

In 2020, Apple pulled off one of the rarest events in the world of computers—a multi-generational leap. The first generation of Apple Silicon chips weren't just better than the Intel Macs that had come before, they were substantially better in every way. They were so good, that most people didn't need anything more than the cheapest Mac Apple sold—five years later, they still don't.

I love tinkering with my smart home. It's provided me with endless hours of fun and has made many aspects of my home life simpler. I have one terrible smart home habit, however, and it's one I don't see myself shaking any time soon.

Electric vehicles are becoming more capable, but long range and affordability rarely go hand in hand. Many EVs that promise 300 miles of driving on a single charge come with price tags that put them out of reach for mainstream buyers. That’s what makes this particular model so compelling. It delivers true long-range capability while remaining one of the most affordable electric vehicles you can buy today.

Smart switches are the usual go-to choice for reliable, full-featured smart home lighting. Be that as it may, they're not always the right option, and sometimes they're not even an option. While tech geeks like to scoff at smart bulbs, I personally love them for one simple reason—they're plug-and-play. Allow me to explain.

Microsoft included a new Terminal app with the 2022 update of Windows 11, and it quickly became one of my go-to apps. Before Terminal, you had to load PowerShell, Command Prompt, and WSL windows separately, which made me want to avoid using the command-line on Windows whenever possible. The Terminal app unifies all those shells and the apps I run inside them save me a lot of time.

All we need is for Apple to release a foldable iPhone, and we can officially say that the 2020s are the decade of the foldable phone. But we did have foldables in the 2010s, too. Kind of. Here's what they looked like.

There are tons of Linux distributions out there, and for better or worse, the list keeps growing. Here are some 2025 arrivals fresh out of the open source operating system development oven.

Are you exhausted by the “Year of Linux” predictions that never pan out? Do you roll your eyes every time someone declares Linux’s breakthrough is imminent? I don’t blame you for being skeptical—but there are six major shifts converging in 2026 that could finally make desktop Linux mainstream.

Luxury sedans don’t always have the same rugged dependability as hatchbacks or mainstream cars. RepairPal puts the average reliability for full-size luxury models at just 2.5 out of 5—not shocking when you consider brands like BMW, Mercedes, Alfa Romeo, and Audi dominate the segment.

As much as we’d like our devices to last forever, the sad reality is that many need replacing long before they’ve stopped working entirely. This sometimes takes the form of a welcome and considered upgrade, but too often it’s an early retirement due to servers being switched off and a lack of support.

Are you planning a dual-boot setup but worried about Secure Boot compatibility? Fear that disabling Secure Boot will compromise your Windows installation? Here are five Linux distros that work seamlessly with Windows Secure Boot—no BIOS tweaking required.

Do you want to try Linux but don’t want to relearn a new interface? Worried that an unfamiliar desktop might slow down your workflow? You’re not alone—and these five Windows-like desktop environments (DEs) are designed to help you feel right at home.

Linux Mint is famous for offering a familiar Windows-like desktop experience, but did you know it’s also one of the most customizable distros—with built-in tools to tweak its look and feel? To give you an idea of what's possible, here's how I made Linux Mint Cinnamon Edition look like macOS.

It may sound a little strange, but I've used a phone as my primary PC for nearly two years. My journey started with the Moto Edge+, but I've since migrated to a Samsung Galaxy Z Fold smartphone. Here's everything I've learned along the way.

As someone who absolutely loves his Apple Watch, you’d have to pry my wearable from my cold, dead wrists. That’s an eventuality that I’ve been trying to delay as much as possible, since health and fitness are my primary motivations for wearing it.

Even if you tend to avoid the Linux terminal, chances are, at some point, you will have to edit a text file within the terminal. By default, pretty much every Linux distribution uses the 'nano' text editor. It's entirely keyboard-driven and uses some old-school shortcuts from the 1990s. Those shortcuts are counter-intuitive for me and I just don't want to bother learning them anyway. I have two choices here: learn something like Vim, which would take even longer, or use a more modern alternative of 'nano.' I went with the second option and tested a lot of console text editors. These are my favorites.