How-To Geek

The '90s and the '00s were one of a kind, and this isn't just my millennial nostalgia peeking through here. In the tech world, they were most certainly special, because they were filled with bold, brave, often useless innovations that may have crashed and burned, but will be remembered longer than the same-y laptops and smartphones we get every year now.

For years, Python threads could not use more than one CPU core at a time. That changed with the free-threaded build, which is now officially supported as of the time I'm writing this. Here's a brief introduction to it, and why it could be a big deal.

Being a Google Pixel user is hard, especially when you spend most of your time around tech enthusiasts raving about Samsung Galaxy phones. You see, Pixels offer a close-to-stock Android experience, while Samsung’s Galaxy phones are packed with features that naturally appeal to enthusiasts. And while I do love me some minimalism, I also like having access to powerful features that make my life easier.

Whether you've encountered an issue with Googlebook OS, you're planning to sell or return your Googlebook, or you just need a fresh start, a factory reset is something you'll need to know how to do. Fortunately, like with most things on Googlebook OS, a factory reset is simple to do, even if it's different than factory resetting a Chromebook. Here's everything you need to know about preparing your Googlebook for a reset, and then safely removing all of your user profiles, data, and apps.

Cordless power tools are wildly convenient, and they're getting better or more powerful all the time. By now, you've probably replaced several older corded tools, but that doesn't mean you should get rid of them.

I know I am just a drop in the ocean of people who've grown tired of artificial intelligence worming its way into everything. AI can legitimately improve our lives in many ways, but it also often makes things more complicated than they need to be. This sentiment applies to everything from simple productivity apps to creative tools.

I never like to leave my family's two cats, Benni and Comet, home alone for too long. For one, Comet is a young cat who likes to stalk the senior Benni like the Predator, and two, it just doesn't feel great leaving my fur babies in a silent house.

Docker makes running software feel lightweight, but that convenience hides a costly default. Containers start with no cap on memory or CPU, so a single forgotten service can quietly consume your machine’s resources around the clock. Here’s why it happens and what you can do about it.

It's hard to believe that there have already been five generations of the Pixel Watch. With Google's typically low trade-in values, you may have decided to hold on to old models. The good news is that there are some creative uses for an off-wrist smartwatch.

Nothing disappoints me more than a TV show that fails to live up to the expectations set by its first season. It's called the "sophomore slump." It happens more often than you think. Some shows deliver a near-perfect first season before taking a noticeable dip in quality.

Ubuntu was my first distro. I started with 20.04 LTS Focal Fossa and am still running it to this day, trying out every long-term support version along the way. The reason why I chose Ubuntu? It was everywhere.

Understandably, many people have concerns about the information that their smart home is sharing. If you use Alexa or Google Home, you might not want your location data or voice commands ending up on cloud servers. Home Assistant lets you store your data locally on your own hardware, and I use it to spy on myself on a daily basis.

Stop thinking that you have to spend hundreds or thousands of dollars to get started with self-hosting. If I were starting from scratch today, this is the homelab starter kit I would build for just $50.

Jellyfin is best known as a free, open-source Plex alternative. I've used it for some time to watch my library of movies and TV shows, but it's becoming increasingly useful for other types of content too. I now use it for gaming, eBooks, and audiobooks.

For the most part, I've relied on Windows built-in firewall since I left Windows XP. On a whim, I decided to install Portmaster, a third-party firewall, on my Windows PC to get a better idea of which apps were connecting to the internet and when.

There are all manner of video game-themed models contributed by a community of dedicated fans, but there are also occasions when the studios responsible for those games get in on the action too. Inspired by a recent Factorio release, this week we’ll take a look at some official 3D printing models for popular video games.

I've always liked the idea of a projector, and I've used them plenty of times at work over the years, but the tradeoffs were never worth the increased picture size for me until recently. First I was tempted by a new generation of portable LED projector, but now laser projectors are becoming affordable on a paltry writer's income, and I'm mighty tempted.

The first Google Pixel was released 10 years ago on October 20, 2016, with one mission: to raise the bar for Android through Google's own hardware and software. It replaced the Nexus line and ushered in an era in which Google was, to a degree, competing with its own phone and tablet partners.

Time is the enemy of old tech. Fortunately, cheap modern tools like the ESP32 can breathe new life into retro computing hardware, either by enhancing old functionality or replacing components that are difficult to get working today.