How-To Geek

DirecTV is finally making its streaming experience better for LG owners by launching a dedicated app that eliminates the need for an external set-top box. The new DirecTV app is now available for LG Smart TVs made in 2021 and newer, provided they are running on webOS 6.0 or higher software.

Tubi is one of the best zero-risk streaming services out there. It costs nothing (except a little ad time), and there's a boat load of movies and shows to watch, refreshed every month. And if you're into documentaries, you may be surprised to learn that the FAST (free ad-supported streaming television) channel has a cool and eclectic selection of docs.

When buying a car, reliability is usually near the top of the list. Even the fanciest sports car or luxury ride can lose its appeal fast if it’s spending more time in the shop than on the road.

JetBrains has released IntelliJ IDEA 2025.3, the first version of the new unified IDE for Java development. It's combining the Community Edition and Ultimate builds into one package and adding a few new features on top, including full support for Java 25.

Buying a used PC or repurposing your old computer is one of the most inexpensive ways to get a network-attached storage device (NAS). While specialized NAS units exist, they will cost you hundreds of dollars more than just picking up a cheap PC or using one you already own.

If you don't know how to deal with them, network issues are one of those things that can get extremely annoying. The worst part? You don't even know what's causing it. Over the years, I've been using these Windows network commands to troubleshoot most issues with ease.

As someone who replaced my PC with a Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6, I use my phone more than most—and gestures are a vital part of how I make it all work. Here are some of the gestures that make using a Samsung phone feel faster, many of which are so easy to overlook, you might never discover them at all.

Regardless of the online platform you use to track time for your personal or team projects, you can’t deny that you’re not in control of that platform. If Clockify or Toggl go down tomorrow because of a glitch or scheduled maintenance, you can’t access them or your data until they come back online. That’s why the most reliable and private platform is always the one you can host yourself and have total control over. Let me show you how you can do exactly that.

Blink, the Amazon-owned company known for its affordable smart home security cameras, just announced a big upgrade to its camera software. Do you ever wish your cameras were a bit more descriptive with alerts and notifications? If so, you'll be happy to hear about these new features.

I'm not a fan of gaming headsets, so for the Razer BlackShark V3 Pro to impress me enough for me to recommend it to you is no small feat.

Subscriptions are the new cable, and if you're not careful, you might find that your subscription costs wind up creeping higher than any cable subscription ever did.

Linux is generally less prone to malware than Windows, and so long as you're careful about the commands you enter, Linux systems tend to age much more gracefully than Windows systems. However, no system is truly immune to malware, and blindly following instructions online can easily break something on your system if you're not cautious. That is where immutable distros can save the day.

Windows has a vast ecosystem of its own apps, but many of my current favorite apps for Windows actually started their digital lives on Linux. If you're looking for a few free or open-source alternatives to your conventional Windows apps, some of these options are a great place to start.

Hot take: 1TB SSDs are fine for some people, but not for most people. Not anymore.

One of the most anticipated television events of the year has arrived—well, at least part one of it has—and with it comes the return of our favorite monster-fighting 80s teens. It’s been a long three-year wait, but Stranger Things season five has begun. The only bummer is that it’s dropping in three volumes. While we'd all love for the final season to drop at once, we must be patient.

We all know and rely on the glorious copy-paste shortcut. Seriously, imagine having to right-click to copy and then right-click to paste every single time you need to move a snippet of text. Frustrating, right? It completely breaks your rhythm!

There are some features that are easy to immediately dismiss as gimmicks. Then, over time, they start to make sense. Apple’s "Personas" are one such feature, one Samsung and Google seriously need to imitate.

Today, downloading a free Unix-like system for a PC or a single-board computer like a Raspberry Pi is routine. In the late '80s and early '90s, as computer hardware improved, these systems brought Unix power down from minicomputers and workstations to the personal level before the arrival of Linux.

Christmas is coming, the goose is getting fat. Most of my friends and relatives know that I'm a self-confessed geek and will often buy me tech gifts that they're sure I'll love. Sometimes, however, they would have been better off saving their money. If you're looking to buy something for a tech lover, please don't get them these gifts.

If you’ve ever had to reinstall everything on your Mac, or even on a second machine, you’ll know what a struggle it is. Even keeping track of what’s installed can be a pain if, like me, you’re constantly trying out new software.