Using An Email Client for Gmail

Just because Gmail is a Web-based mail service doesn't mean you have to use your Web browser to access it. Instead, you can do what I do and connect to Gmail using familiar desktop software: Outlook, Windows Live Mail (formerly Outlook Express), Thunderbird, or the like.

Programs like these let you not only group and view e-mail conversations using whatever method you like best, but also organize mail into folders--something Gmail still doesn't properly offer.

How To Take Control of Recycle Bin

When you "delete" a file, Windows doesn't actually delete it; the OS moves the file to the recycle bin. That way, if you change your mind, you can easily recover it.

You pay for this safety net in hard drive space. A file in the recycle bin takes up as much room as it did beforehand, albeit only temporarily.

You can control how large the Recycle Bin gets before it starts actually deleting the files inside it. You can also turn it off, so that Windows truly deletes files when you click Delete. That's kind of dangerous, however, for obvious reasons.

How To Rename a Saved File

Has this ever happened to you? In your haste to save, say, a Word document, you give it the wrong name or introduce a typo in the filename. Happens to me more often than I care to admit.

Obviously you can open up Windows Explorer, find your file, and rename it the old-fashioned way. But there are two quicker, easier options, both of which let you stay inside the program you're already using:

How To Save Email as a File

In previous versions of Outlook, when you opened an email and selected File, then Save As, the program saved the message as a single Outlook mail file. That was nice, compact, and easy to transport.

It also was unreadable to computers that didn't' have Outlook installed.

To get around that, Outlook 2007 defaults to saving messages as .html files. Every computer can read one of those. Unfortunately, since the .html format doesn't support everything found in an email--even an html-formatted email--Outlook has to provide a folder with a few extra files. For the message to display properly, that folder must remain in the same location as the .html file.

Fix Windows Time Sync Problems

Windows 7 may be the best Windows yet, but it suffers from the same annoying problem that plagued Vista and even XP: Its clock doesn't keep good time.

That's because the default time server Windows uses to fetch the current time, well, bites. I don't know if this is because of server overload or what (obviously there are a lot of Windows systems out there, all looking for a clock fix), but I'm tired of getting the same cryptic error when I try to sync manually.

Ah, but there's a fix. If you're trying to get your system to keep better time, try this:

Immediately Switch to a New Tab in Firefox

Normally, when you click a link that opens a new tab (or hold down the Ctrl key while clicking a link, which forces a new tab to open), Firefox doesn't actually switch to that tab. It keeps you where you were.

That doesn't make a ton of sense. After all, why would you open a new tab if you didn't want to view it right away? Fortunately, there's an easy way to change Firefox's behavior when it comes to new tabs, and you don't even have to meddle with the about:config settings.

How to Take Proper Care of Your Laptop

You're more likely to damage a laptop than a desktop PC (no one has ever driven off, forgetting the desktop on top of their car), and once damaged, laptops are harder and more expensive to repair. That's why we have to provide more care when using this expensive gadget. Here's a few tips how:

Keep the battery cool. Today's lithium batteries wear out no matter what you do, but you can postpone the inevitable. Avoid heat and use the battery as little as possible. If you're going to be running on AC power for awhile, shut down or hibernate the computer, remove the battery, and work without it.

How To Hide The Desktop Icons

Personally, I think hiding all your icons permanently is a great way to go. It trains you to use the different shortcut keys and search optimizations that Windows has to offer.

And most importantly, desktop icons don't clutter the screen and you can enjoy seeing that beautiful wallpaper you set. ^^

Click below to view the instructions: