The myth of driver backups

<div class="department" style="margin:0px 0px 10px;overflow:hidden;color:rgb(34,34,34);font-family:'Helvetica Neue',Arial,sans-serif;line-height:21px"><a class="topCatLink" href="http://www.pcworld.com/category/windows" style="color:rgb(172,31,43);float:left;font-family:facitweb,sans-serif;font-size:16px;font-weight:700;text-transform:uppercase;margin-right:5px"><br> </a></div><span itemprop="articleBody description text" style="color:rgb(34,34,34);font-family:'Helvetica Neue',Arial,sans-serif;line-height:21px"><img alt="" border="0" height="300" src="http://images.techhive.com/images/article/2013/07/windows-drivers-image-100047713-medium.jpg" style="box-sizing: border-box; border-width: 0px; vertical-align: middle; width: auto; height: auto; max-width: 100%; float: left;" width="300"><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em"> I'm an expert at learning things the hard way.</p><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">For example, my two-year-old Acer PC had reached the point where it desperately needed a hard drive reformat/Windows reinstall. (For background, read <a href="http://www.pcworld.com/article/255907/how_to_decide_when_its_time_to_reformat_and_reinstall_windows.html" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)">"How to decide when it's time to reformat and reinstall Windows."</a>)</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">Having been through this process many times before, I backed up all my data, made a list of the programs I'd need to reinstall, located my Windows DVD, and, because I'm a smart cookie, made a backup of all my drivers.</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">This last is really important, because once you wipe your hard drive and reinstall Windows, your system may have no audio, no Ethernet, no Wi-Fi, and possibly even no USB--all potentially major problems.</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">Following my own advice from a couple years back, I used the <a href="http://www.pcworld.com/article/235051/Drivers.html" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)">free Semper Driver Backup utility</a> to copy every installed driver to the same external drive that contained all my backed up data. I checked the folder and, sure enough, saw a lengthy batch of driver-looking files. Now I was good to go.</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">Or so I thought. Once I'd finished reloading Windows, I checked Device Manager and found exactly what I expected: little yellow flags next to a half-dozen drivers. No problem; for each one I clicked <em style>Update Driver</em>, navigated to my external drive, and let Windows do its thing.</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">Except it didn't work. Windows balked at nearly every driver I'd backed up, saying they "weren't digitally signed" or simply weren't compatible with the device in question. D'oh!</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">And because the problem drivers included Ethernet and Wi-Fi, I couldn't go online to get the correct ones.</p><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">Thankfully, Acer makes it fairly easy to find model-specific drivers via its support site, so I was able to use another PC to download what I needed. For the record, most of these drivers had their own installers, so it's possible Windows needed more than just the "raw drivers" for the various hardware elements.</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">Interestingly, I had one moment of serious concern when the machine wouldn't even read my external hard drive, meaning there was no way to access any drivers. Turns out I'd plugged into the sole USB 3.0 port, which itself required a driver that wasn't present. But the USB 2.0 ports worked just fine with Windows' stock drivers.</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">The moral of the story: When you're prepping for a reformat, head to the system maker's site and download all the drivers for your machine, because a driver backup may not provide everything you need.</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">And this is definitely one point in favor of Windows 8, which has<a href="http://www.pcworld.com/article/251527/windows_8_refresh_feature_makes_it_easy_to_start_with_a_clean_slate.html" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)"> that awesome refresh feature</a>. In theory, a lot of these shenanigans will be a thing of the past.</p> </span>

The myth of driver backups

I'm an expert at learning things the hard way. For example, my two-year-old Acer PC had reached the point where it desperately neede...

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The myth of driver backups

<div class="department" style="margin:0px 0px 10px;overflow:hidden;color:rgb(34,34,34);font-family:'Helvetica Neue',Arial,sans-serif;line-height:21px"><a class="topCatLink" href="http://www.pcworld.com/category/windows" style="color:rgb(172,31,43);float:left;font-family:facitweb,sans-serif;font-size:16px;font-weight:700;text-transform:uppercase;margin-right:5px"><br> </a></div><span itemprop="articleBody description text" style="color:rgb(34,34,34);font-family:'Helvetica Neue',Arial,sans-serif;line-height:21px"><img alt="" border="0" height="300" src="http://images.techhive.com/images/article/2013/07/windows-drivers-image-100047713-medium.jpg" style="box-sizing: border-box; border-width: 0px; vertical-align: middle; width: auto; height: auto; max-width: 100%; float: left;" width="300"><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em"> I'm an expert at learning things the hard way.</p><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">For example, my two-year-old Acer PC had reached the point where it desperately needed a hard drive reformat/Windows reinstall. (For background, read <a href="http://www.pcworld.com/article/255907/how_to_decide_when_its_time_to_reformat_and_reinstall_windows.html" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)">"How to decide when it's time to reformat and reinstall Windows."</a>)</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">Having been through this process many times before, I backed up all my data, made a list of the programs I'd need to reinstall, located my Windows DVD, and, because I'm a smart cookie, made a backup of all my drivers.</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">This last is really important, because once you wipe your hard drive and reinstall Windows, your system may have no audio, no Ethernet, no Wi-Fi, and possibly even no USB--all potentially major problems.</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">Following my own advice from a couple years back, I used the <a href="http://www.pcworld.com/article/235051/Drivers.html" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)">free Semper Driver Backup utility</a> to copy every installed driver to the same external drive that contained all my backed up data. I checked the folder and, sure enough, saw a lengthy batch of driver-looking files. Now I was good to go.</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">Or so I thought. Once I'd finished reloading Windows, I checked Device Manager and found exactly what I expected: little yellow flags next to a half-dozen drivers. No problem; for each one I clicked <em style>Update Driver</em>, navigated to my external drive, and let Windows do its thing.</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">Except it didn't work. Windows balked at nearly every driver I'd backed up, saying they "weren't digitally signed" or simply weren't compatible with the device in question. D'oh!</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">And because the problem drivers included Ethernet and Wi-Fi, I couldn't go online to get the correct ones.</p><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">Thankfully, Acer makes it fairly easy to find model-specific drivers via its support site, so I was able to use another PC to download what I needed. For the record, most of these drivers had their own installers, so it's possible Windows needed more than just the "raw drivers" for the various hardware elements.</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">Interestingly, I had one moment of serious concern when the machine wouldn't even read my external hard drive, meaning there was no way to access any drivers. Turns out I'd plugged into the sole USB 3.0 port, which itself required a driver that wasn't present. But the USB 2.0 ports worked just fine with Windows' stock drivers.</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">The moral of the story: When you're prepping for a reformat, head to the system maker's site and download all the drivers for your machine, because a driver backup may not provide everything you need.</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">And this is definitely one point in favor of Windows 8, which has<a href="http://www.pcworld.com/article/251527/windows_8_refresh_feature_makes_it_easy_to_start_with_a_clean_slate.html" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)"> that awesome refresh feature</a>. In theory, a lot of these shenanigans will be a thing of the past.</p> </span>

The myth of driver backups

I'm an expert at learning things the hard way. For example, my two-year-old Acer PC had reached the point where it desperately neede...

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Put your passwords in your pocket and take them everywhere you go

<div class="imageContainer580xX" style="width:320px;height:auto;clear:both;margin:auto;color:rgb(34,34,34);font-family:'Helvetica Neue',Arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:19px"><img class="largeImage imgId100045195 " itemprop="image" src="http://zapt3.staticworld.net/images/article/2013/07/0725-thumb-100045195-large.jpg" style="box-sizing: border-box; border-width: 0px; vertical-align: middle; width: 320px; max-width: 100%;"></div> <div class="department" style="margin:0px 0px 10px;overflow:hidden"><a class="topCatLink" href="http://www.pcworld.com/category/software-security" style="color:rgb(172,31,43);float:left;font-family:facitweb,sans-serif;font-size:16px;font-weight:700;text-transform:uppercase;margin-right:5px"><em style="color:rgb(34,34,34);font-family:'Helvetica Neue',Arial,sans-serif;line-height:1.45em;font-size:14px">Password managers help you keep more passwords than you can memorize. Eric asked if he could carry one on a flash drive.</em><br> </a></div><span itemprop="articleBody description text" style><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">I discussed password managers recently in <a href="http://www.pcworld.com/article/2040921/manage-passwords-and-not-just-on-the-web.html" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)">Manage passwords, and not just on the Web</a>, but I didn't discuss portability. How do you take your passwords with you when you step away from your computer?</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">What you need is a <em style>portable </em>version of your password manager. A portable program is one that can run on a PC without installation, and thus can be launched from a flash drive.</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">My own personal favorite password manager, <a href="http://passwordsafe.sourceforge.net/" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)">Password Safe</a>, isn't officially portable. But in practice, it sort of is.</p> <img alt="" border="0" height="271" src="http://images.techhive.com/images/article/2013/07/0725-launch-passwordsafe-100045196-medium.jpg" style="box-sizing: border-box; border-width: 0px; vertical-align: middle; width: auto; height: auto; max-width: 100%; float: left;" width="300"><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em"> After you install Password Safe onto a computer, you can drag and drop the program folder onto a flash drive and safely remove the drive. Then you can connect it to another Windows PC and launch Password Safe. You'll want to keep your password database file on the flash drive too, of course.</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">But this doesn't work perfectly. It has two flaws, neither of them serious.</p><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">First, when you launch Password Safe from the flash drive and browse to open a password database file, the program will default to your Documents folder. You'll have to navigate drives and folders to get to the file, which will be on the flash drive.</p> <img alt="" border="0" height="351" src="http://images.techhive.com/images/article/2013/07/0725-remove-100045194-orig.jpg" style="box-sizing: border-box; border-width: 0px; vertical-align: middle; width: auto; height: auto; max-width: 100%; float: left;" width="256"><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em"> Second, when you close the program, it leaves an icon running in the notification area. You must right-click that icon and exit the program before Windows will allow you to safely remove the flash drive.</p><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em"> You can find unofficial portable versions of Password Safe around the Internet. I've tried a couple, and they both had these same two problems.</p><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">Password Safe isn't the only option. The popular <a href="http://keepass.info/" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)">Keepass </a>program is available in a <a href="http://sourceforge.net/projects/keepass/files/KeePass%201.x/1.25/KeePass-1.25.zip/download?use_mirror=iweb" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)">portable version</a>, which lacks Password Safe's portable annoyances.</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">Another option: If you have a smartphone or a tablet, both Password Safe and Keepass are available as Android and iOS apps.</p></span>

Put your passwords in your pocket and take them everywhere you go

Password managers help you keep more passwords than you can memorize. Eric asked if he could carry one on a flash drive. I discussed pas...

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Put your passwords in your pocket and take them everywhere you go

<div class="imageContainer580xX" style="width:320px;height:auto;clear:both;margin:auto;color:rgb(34,34,34);font-family:'Helvetica Neue',Arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:19px"><img class="largeImage imgId100045195 " itemprop="image" src="http://zapt3.staticworld.net/images/article/2013/07/0725-thumb-100045195-large.jpg" style="box-sizing: border-box; border-width: 0px; vertical-align: middle; width: 320px; max-width: 100%;"></div> <div class="department" style="margin:0px 0px 10px;overflow:hidden"><a class="topCatLink" href="http://www.pcworld.com/category/software-security" style="color:rgb(172,31,43);float:left;font-family:facitweb,sans-serif;font-size:16px;font-weight:700;text-transform:uppercase;margin-right:5px"><em style="color:rgb(34,34,34);font-family:'Helvetica Neue',Arial,sans-serif;line-height:1.45em;font-size:14px">Password managers help you keep more passwords than you can memorize. Eric asked if he could carry one on a flash drive.</em><br> </a></div><span itemprop="articleBody description text" style><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">I discussed password managers recently in <a href="http://www.pcworld.com/article/2040921/manage-passwords-and-not-just-on-the-web.html" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)">Manage passwords, and not just on the Web</a>, but I didn't discuss portability. How do you take your passwords with you when you step away from your computer?</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">What you need is a <em style>portable </em>version of your password manager. A portable program is one that can run on a PC without installation, and thus can be launched from a flash drive.</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">My own personal favorite password manager, <a href="http://passwordsafe.sourceforge.net/" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)">Password Safe</a>, isn't officially portable. But in practice, it sort of is.</p> <img alt="" border="0" height="271" src="http://images.techhive.com/images/article/2013/07/0725-launch-passwordsafe-100045196-medium.jpg" style="box-sizing: border-box; border-width: 0px; vertical-align: middle; width: auto; height: auto; max-width: 100%; float: left;" width="300"><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em"> After you install Password Safe onto a computer, you can drag and drop the program folder onto a flash drive and safely remove the drive. Then you can connect it to another Windows PC and launch Password Safe. You'll want to keep your password database file on the flash drive too, of course.</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">But this doesn't work perfectly. It has two flaws, neither of them serious.</p><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">First, when you launch Password Safe from the flash drive and browse to open a password database file, the program will default to your Documents folder. You'll have to navigate drives and folders to get to the file, which will be on the flash drive.</p> <img alt="" border="0" height="351" src="http://images.techhive.com/images/article/2013/07/0725-remove-100045194-orig.jpg" style="box-sizing: border-box; border-width: 0px; vertical-align: middle; width: auto; height: auto; max-width: 100%; float: left;" width="256"><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em"> Second, when you close the program, it leaves an icon running in the notification area. You must right-click that icon and exit the program before Windows will allow you to safely remove the flash drive.</p><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em"> You can find unofficial portable versions of Password Safe around the Internet. I've tried a couple, and they both had these same two problems.</p><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">Password Safe isn't the only option. The popular <a href="http://keepass.info/" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)">Keepass </a>program is available in a <a href="http://sourceforge.net/projects/keepass/files/KeePass%201.x/1.25/KeePass-1.25.zip/download?use_mirror=iweb" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)">portable version</a>, which lacks Password Safe's portable annoyances.</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">Another option: If you have a smartphone or a tablet, both Password Safe and Keepass are available as Android and iOS apps.</p></span>

Put your passwords in your pocket and take them everywhere you go

Password managers help you keep more passwords than you can memorize. Eric asked if he could carry one on a flash drive. I discussed pas...

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7 browser tricks to get the most out of your Chromecast

<div><br></div><div><div class="imageContainer580xX" style="width:320px;height:auto;clear:both;margin:auto;color:rgb(34,34,34);font-family:'Helvetica Neue',Arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:19px"><img class="galleryImage imgId100047455 " itemprop="image" src="http://zapt4.staticworld.net/images/article/2013/07/chromecast_5_plugged_in-100047455-gallery.jpg" style="box-sizing: border-box; border-width: 0px; vertical-align: middle; width: 320px; max-width: 100%;"></div> <div class="department" style="margin:0px 0px 10px;overflow:hidden"><a class="topCatLink" href="http://www.pcworld.com/category/gadgets" style="color:rgb(172,31,43);float:left;font-family:facitweb,sans-serif;font-size:16px;font-weight:700;text-transform:uppercase;margin-right:5px"><span style="line-height:1.7em;color:rgb(34,34,34);font-family:'Helvetica Neue',Arial,sans-serif;font-size:15px">For $35, you might not expect much from</span><span style="line-height:1.7em;color:rgb(34,34,34);font-family:'Helvetica Neue',Arial,sans-serif;font-size:15px"> </span><a href="http://www.techhive.com/article/2045493/review-googles-chromecast-puts-most-of-the-internet-on-your-tv-on-the-cheap.html" style="line-height:1.7em;font-family:'Helvetica Neue',Arial,sans-serif;font-size:15px;color:rgb(37,167,215)">Google's Chromecast</a><span style="line-height:1.7em;color:rgb(34,34,34);font-family:'Helvetica Neue',Arial,sans-serif;font-size:15px">. As it turns out, this little TV dongle can do a whole lot more than just stream video from Netflix and YouTube, or view browser tabs on the big screen.</span><br> </a></div><span itemprop="articleBody description text" style><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">Unlocking the true potential of your Chromecast, however, requires a little ingenuity and some deep digging into the Chrome browser's Cast extension. With these hints, tips, and secrets for Chromecast, you'll be able to improve streaming video performance, mirror your entire PC screen, display locally stored files, and more. Not bad for a device the price of a few pizzas!</p> <h2 style="font-family:facitweb,sans-serif;margin-top:1em;margin-bottom:0.25em">1. Reduce streaming quality to improve video casting</h2><a class="zoom cboxElement" href="http://images.techhive.com/images/article/2013/08/chromecastvideoquality-100048585-orig.jpg" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)"><img alt="" border="0" height="247" src="http://images.techhive.com/images/article/2013/08/chromecastvideoquality-100048585-medium.jpg" style="box-sizing: border-box; border-width: 0px; vertical-align: middle; width: auto; height: auto; max-width: 100%; float: left;" width="300"></a>That's the one you want. (Click to enlarge.)<p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em"> Chromecast works best when it's streaming Netflix and YouTube videos directly from the Internet, with your phone or tablet serving as a remote control. It's not quite as reliable when you're using the "<a href="https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/google-cast/boadgeojelhgndaghljhdicfkmllpafd?utm_source=chrome-ntp-icon" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)">Google Cast</a>" Chrome extension to mirror browser tabs. Depending on the strength of your wireless network and the power of your computer, you may have trouble casting videos from Chrome without the audio falling out of sync with the video.</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">If this happens to you, chances are you can solve the problem by turning down the video quality of the stream. Click the <em style>Cast</em> button in Chrome and then click <em style>Options.</em> Under <em style>Tab projection quality,</em> select <em style>Standard (480p).</em> Video won't look as sharp on your television, but hey, at least it'll be watchable.</p> <h2 style="font-family:facitweb,sans-serif;margin-top:1em;margin-bottom:0.25em">2. Keep the full-screen video going</h2><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">When you send a video from your phone or tablet to Chromecast, you're free to close the app and do other things at the same time. But when you're using the Chrome browser to watch a video on your TV, you must keep that video running in full screen at all times, or else it won't appear in full screen on the television.</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">Fortunately, there's a workaround for Windows users: Just hit <em style>Alt</em>(+)<em style>Tab</em>while the video is playing in full screen. You'll find yourself outside of the video window, while it continues to occupy the whole screen on your television. To get back to the video on your computer, click the untitled Chrome window in the taskbar.</p> <h2 style="font-family:facitweb,sans-serif;margin-top:1em;margin-bottom:0.25em">3. Stream local files from a Chrome tab</h2><a class="zoom cboxElement" href="http://images.techhive.com/images/article/2013/08/chromecastlocalfiles-100048587-orig.jpg" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)"><img alt="" border="0" height="189" src="http://images.techhive.com/images/article/2013/08/chromecastlocalfiles-100048587-medium.jpg" style="box-sizing: border-box; border-width: 0px; vertical-align: middle; width: auto; height: auto; max-width: 100%; float: left;" width="300"></a>You can browse your local files with Chrome, which lets you play them on your Chromecast. (Click to enlarge.)<p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em"> It turns out that Chromecast doesn't always stream its content straight from the Internet. When casting a browser tab through Chrome on a Windows PC, Mac, or Chromebook, you can open local files in the browser, and they'll stream to the big screen over your local network.</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">To do this, you can enter<code style="font-family:monospace,serif;font-size:1em">file:///C:/</code> in Chrome's address bar (or (<code style="font-family:monospace,serif;font-size:1em">file://localhost/Users/yourusername</code>on a Mac), and then drag and drop the file into Chrome—or press Ctrl-O or Command-O—to show your system's file browser. Hit the <em style>Cast</em> button either before or after you choose the file you want, and Chrome will play the file as long as it's compatible with the file's codecs.</p> <h2 style="font-family:facitweb,sans-serif;margin-top:1em;margin-bottom:0.25em">4. Mirror your entire PC display</h2><img alt="" border="0" height="229" src="http://images.techhive.com/images/article/2013/08/chromecastwholescreen-100048586-medium.jpg" style="box-sizing: border-box; border-width: 0px; vertical-align: middle; width: auto; height: auto; max-width: 100%; float: left;" width="300"><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em"> Google didn't make a big deal about this feature, but you can actually mirror your entire PC display through Chromecast, not just your open browser tabs. Click the <em style>Cast</em> button in Chrome and look for the little drop-down arrow on the far right, on the same line as "Cast this tab to...". Then click <em style>Cast entire screen (experimental).</em></p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">This is truly an experimental feature; it doesn't even support audio right now. Still, it could be useful for sharing photo slideshows on your local PC, or throwing PowerPoint slides onto the big screen straight from Microsoft Office.</p> <h2 style="font-family:facitweb,sans-serif;margin-top:1em;margin-bottom:0.25em">5. Stream audio from iTunes, Windows Media Player, and other desktop programs</h2><a class="zoom cboxElement" href="http://images.techhive.com/images/article/2013/08/chromeremotedesktop-100048589-orig.jpg" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)"><img alt="" border="0" height="314" src="http://images.techhive.com/images/article/2013/08/chromeremotedesktop-100048589-large.jpg" style="box-sizing: border-box; border-width: 0px; vertical-align: middle; width: auto; height: auto; max-width: 100%; float: left;" width="580"></a>Using the Remote Desktop extension to access your local PC is odd, but it gets the job done if you want to stream audio from desktop programs to your big screen.<p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em"> The experimental full-screen sharing described above is easy, but it doesn't support audio streaming, at least not yet. So what if you want to use Chromecast to play tunes from iTunes, VLC, the Spotify desktop app, or another local media player? You could install a media server software, such as<a href="http://www.techhive.com/article/2020227/meet-plex-the-media-streamer-that-will-make-you-forget-netflix-and-hulu.html" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)">Plex</a>, which will allow you to play those files through a browser tab. But if you'd rather not install anything new, Google's own <a href="https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/chrome-remote-desktop/gbchcmhmhahfdphkhkmpfmihenigjmpp?hl=en" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)">Remote Desktop</a> Web app can help.</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">Oddly enough, it's possible to open the computer you're currently using as a tab within the Remote Desktop app. Once you've set up Remote Desktop (<a href="https://support.google.com/chrome/answer/1649523?hl=en" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)">instructions here</a>), open the app and select your current computer from the My Computers list. The browser tab itself will show an infinite cascade of windows, as the computer is essentially mirroring itself, but your local applications will open up without issue. Just make sure to turn off the audio on your computer, or else it will play on the computer and Chromecast at the same time.</p> <h2 style="font-family:facitweb,sans-serif;margin-top:1em;margin-bottom:0.25em">6. Check out the hidden cast settings in Chrome</h2><a class="zoom cboxElement" href="http://images.techhive.com/images/article/2013/08/chromecastadvanced-100048584-orig.jpg" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)"><img alt="" border="0" height="385" src="http://images.techhive.com/images/article/2013/08/chromecastadvanced-100048584-medium.jpg" style="box-sizing: border-box; border-width: 0px; vertical-align: middle; width: auto; height: auto; max-width: 100%; float: left;" width="300"></a>Chromecast's hidden settings. (Click to enlarge.)<p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em"> Hidden within the Cast extension's Options menu, you'll find <a href="http://wiki.casthacks.com/index.php?title=Hacking_the_Chrome_extension_for_advanced_options" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)">additional streaming settings</a> that control nuts-and-bolts things like the bit rate and frame rate of casted tabs. To uncover them, right-click anywhere in the Options menu and select <em style>Inspect element.</em> In the frame that pops up, expand the line that reads <em style>"quality == 'custom'."</em></p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">On the expanded line, double-click the text that reads "<em style>display: none"</em> and delete that text. Look down seven lines further, for another <em style>"display: none"</em>. Double-click and delete that text as well. The new options should appear on the page. (If you close the Options window, you'll have to perform these steps again.)</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">There's actually not much evidence that these settings work right now. You can play around with them, but adjusting things like frame rate and bit rate produced no noticeable changes for me.</p> <h2 style="font-family:facitweb,sans-serif;margin-top:1em;margin-bottom:0.25em">7. Use the TeamViewer app as a makeshift remote</h2><img alt="" border="0" height="467" src="http://images.techhive.com/images/article/2013/08/team-viewer-100048592-large.png" style="box-sizing: border-box; border-width: 0px; vertical-align: middle; width: auto; height: auto; max-width: 100%; float: left;" width="580">Using the TeamViewer mobile app to seize control of your PC acts as an ad-hoc Chromecast controller, albeit a somewhat clumsy one.<p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em"> The nice thing about Chromecast is that it lets you use your phone or tablet as a remote control, but right now the number of apps you can control is limited. If you have a laptop or desktop on your local network, you can use the free <a href="http://www.teamviewer.com/en/index.aspx" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)">TeamViewer app</a> to launch a video from Chrome on your PC and cast it to Chromecast.</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">TeamViewer acts as a remote control for your PC, so once the video is up and running, you can exit the app and keep doing other things on your phone or tablet. It's not the prettiest method, but it works if you want to cast, say, <a href="http://www.techhive.com/article/2045732/hulu-wont-crack-down-on-chromecasts-browser-slinging-capabilities.html" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)">Hulu</a>or Spotify's Web player to your big screen and would rather not lug your laptop into the living room. Just make sure to turn your PC's audio off before you start casting.</p> <h2 style="font-family:facitweb,sans-serif;margin-top:1em;margin-bottom:0.25em">Bonus! Help yourself to Chromecast's gorgeous wallpapers</h2><img alt="" border="0" height="326" src="http://images.techhive.com/images/article/2013/08/background4-100048597-large.jpg" style="box-sizing: border-box; border-width: 0px; vertical-align: middle; width: auto; height: auto; max-width: 100%; float: left;" width="580">That's pretty, even if it is only 720p resolution.<p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em"> When Chromecast is on but not casting anything, it treats you to some lovely wallpapers, along with some text letting you know that it's ready to cast. It turns out those wallpapers are just<a href="https://clients3.google.com/cast/chromecast/home" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)">sitting on a Google webpage</a>. One member of the XDA-Developers forums grabbed them all and <a href="http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=44086763&postcount=4" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)">threw them into a ZIP file</a> for your viewing pleasure.</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">Eventually Chromecast should get more apps and eliminate the need for all these workarounds. Until then, making the most out of Google's Cast extension should help plug some of the gaps</p> </span></div>

7 browser tricks to get the most out of your Chromecast

For $35, you might not expect much from   Google's Chromecast . As it turns out, this little TV dongle can do a whole lot more than ju...

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7 browser tricks to get the most out of your Chromecast

<div><br></div><div><div class="imageContainer580xX" style="width:320px;height:auto;clear:both;margin:auto;color:rgb(34,34,34);font-family:'Helvetica Neue',Arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:19px"><img class="galleryImage imgId100047455 " itemprop="image" src="http://zapt4.staticworld.net/images/article/2013/07/chromecast_5_plugged_in-100047455-gallery.jpg" style="box-sizing: border-box; border-width: 0px; vertical-align: middle; width: 320px; max-width: 100%;"></div> <div class="department" style="margin:0px 0px 10px;overflow:hidden"><a class="topCatLink" href="http://www.pcworld.com/category/gadgets" style="color:rgb(172,31,43);float:left;font-family:facitweb,sans-serif;font-size:16px;font-weight:700;text-transform:uppercase;margin-right:5px"><span style="line-height:1.7em;color:rgb(34,34,34);font-family:'Helvetica Neue',Arial,sans-serif;font-size:15px">For $35, you might not expect much from</span><span style="line-height:1.7em;color:rgb(34,34,34);font-family:'Helvetica Neue',Arial,sans-serif;font-size:15px"> </span><a href="http://www.techhive.com/article/2045493/review-googles-chromecast-puts-most-of-the-internet-on-your-tv-on-the-cheap.html" style="line-height:1.7em;font-family:'Helvetica Neue',Arial,sans-serif;font-size:15px;color:rgb(37,167,215)">Google's Chromecast</a><span style="line-height:1.7em;color:rgb(34,34,34);font-family:'Helvetica Neue',Arial,sans-serif;font-size:15px">. As it turns out, this little TV dongle can do a whole lot more than just stream video from Netflix and YouTube, or view browser tabs on the big screen.</span><br> </a></div><span itemprop="articleBody description text" style><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">Unlocking the true potential of your Chromecast, however, requires a little ingenuity and some deep digging into the Chrome browser's Cast extension. With these hints, tips, and secrets for Chromecast, you'll be able to improve streaming video performance, mirror your entire PC screen, display locally stored files, and more. Not bad for a device the price of a few pizzas!</p> <h2 style="font-family:facitweb,sans-serif;margin-top:1em;margin-bottom:0.25em">1. Reduce streaming quality to improve video casting</h2><a class="zoom cboxElement" href="http://images.techhive.com/images/article/2013/08/chromecastvideoquality-100048585-orig.jpg" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)"><img alt="" border="0" height="247" src="http://images.techhive.com/images/article/2013/08/chromecastvideoquality-100048585-medium.jpg" style="box-sizing: border-box; border-width: 0px; vertical-align: middle; width: auto; height: auto; max-width: 100%; float: left;" width="300"></a>That's the one you want. (Click to enlarge.)<p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em"> Chromecast works best when it's streaming Netflix and YouTube videos directly from the Internet, with your phone or tablet serving as a remote control. It's not quite as reliable when you're using the "<a href="https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/google-cast/boadgeojelhgndaghljhdicfkmllpafd?utm_source=chrome-ntp-icon" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)">Google Cast</a>" Chrome extension to mirror browser tabs. Depending on the strength of your wireless network and the power of your computer, you may have trouble casting videos from Chrome without the audio falling out of sync with the video.</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">If this happens to you, chances are you can solve the problem by turning down the video quality of the stream. Click the <em style>Cast</em> button in Chrome and then click <em style>Options.</em> Under <em style>Tab projection quality,</em> select <em style>Standard (480p).</em> Video won't look as sharp on your television, but hey, at least it'll be watchable.</p> <h2 style="font-family:facitweb,sans-serif;margin-top:1em;margin-bottom:0.25em">2. Keep the full-screen video going</h2><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">When you send a video from your phone or tablet to Chromecast, you're free to close the app and do other things at the same time. But when you're using the Chrome browser to watch a video on your TV, you must keep that video running in full screen at all times, or else it won't appear in full screen on the television.</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">Fortunately, there's a workaround for Windows users: Just hit <em style>Alt</em>(+)<em style>Tab</em>while the video is playing in full screen. You'll find yourself outside of the video window, while it continues to occupy the whole screen on your television. To get back to the video on your computer, click the untitled Chrome window in the taskbar.</p> <h2 style="font-family:facitweb,sans-serif;margin-top:1em;margin-bottom:0.25em">3. Stream local files from a Chrome tab</h2><a class="zoom cboxElement" href="http://images.techhive.com/images/article/2013/08/chromecastlocalfiles-100048587-orig.jpg" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)"><img alt="" border="0" height="189" src="http://images.techhive.com/images/article/2013/08/chromecastlocalfiles-100048587-medium.jpg" style="box-sizing: border-box; border-width: 0px; vertical-align: middle; width: auto; height: auto; max-width: 100%; float: left;" width="300"></a>You can browse your local files with Chrome, which lets you play them on your Chromecast. (Click to enlarge.)<p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em"> It turns out that Chromecast doesn't always stream its content straight from the Internet. When casting a browser tab through Chrome on a Windows PC, Mac, or Chromebook, you can open local files in the browser, and they'll stream to the big screen over your local network.</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">To do this, you can enter<code style="font-family:monospace,serif;font-size:1em">file:///C:/</code> in Chrome's address bar (or (<code style="font-family:monospace,serif;font-size:1em">file://localhost/Users/yourusername</code>on a Mac), and then drag and drop the file into Chrome—or press Ctrl-O or Command-O—to show your system's file browser. Hit the <em style>Cast</em> button either before or after you choose the file you want, and Chrome will play the file as long as it's compatible with the file's codecs.</p> <h2 style="font-family:facitweb,sans-serif;margin-top:1em;margin-bottom:0.25em">4. Mirror your entire PC display</h2><img alt="" border="0" height="229" src="http://images.techhive.com/images/article/2013/08/chromecastwholescreen-100048586-medium.jpg" style="box-sizing: border-box; border-width: 0px; vertical-align: middle; width: auto; height: auto; max-width: 100%; float: left;" width="300"><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em"> Google didn't make a big deal about this feature, but you can actually mirror your entire PC display through Chromecast, not just your open browser tabs. Click the <em style>Cast</em> button in Chrome and look for the little drop-down arrow on the far right, on the same line as "Cast this tab to...". Then click <em style>Cast entire screen (experimental).</em></p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">This is truly an experimental feature; it doesn't even support audio right now. Still, it could be useful for sharing photo slideshows on your local PC, or throwing PowerPoint slides onto the big screen straight from Microsoft Office.</p> <h2 style="font-family:facitweb,sans-serif;margin-top:1em;margin-bottom:0.25em">5. Stream audio from iTunes, Windows Media Player, and other desktop programs</h2><a class="zoom cboxElement" href="http://images.techhive.com/images/article/2013/08/chromeremotedesktop-100048589-orig.jpg" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)"><img alt="" border="0" height="314" src="http://images.techhive.com/images/article/2013/08/chromeremotedesktop-100048589-large.jpg" style="box-sizing: border-box; border-width: 0px; vertical-align: middle; width: auto; height: auto; max-width: 100%; float: left;" width="580"></a>Using the Remote Desktop extension to access your local PC is odd, but it gets the job done if you want to stream audio from desktop programs to your big screen.<p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em"> The experimental full-screen sharing described above is easy, but it doesn't support audio streaming, at least not yet. So what if you want to use Chromecast to play tunes from iTunes, VLC, the Spotify desktop app, or another local media player? You could install a media server software, such as<a href="http://www.techhive.com/article/2020227/meet-plex-the-media-streamer-that-will-make-you-forget-netflix-and-hulu.html" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)">Plex</a>, which will allow you to play those files through a browser tab. But if you'd rather not install anything new, Google's own <a href="https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/chrome-remote-desktop/gbchcmhmhahfdphkhkmpfmihenigjmpp?hl=en" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)">Remote Desktop</a> Web app can help.</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">Oddly enough, it's possible to open the computer you're currently using as a tab within the Remote Desktop app. Once you've set up Remote Desktop (<a href="https://support.google.com/chrome/answer/1649523?hl=en" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)">instructions here</a>), open the app and select your current computer from the My Computers list. The browser tab itself will show an infinite cascade of windows, as the computer is essentially mirroring itself, but your local applications will open up without issue. Just make sure to turn off the audio on your computer, or else it will play on the computer and Chromecast at the same time.</p> <h2 style="font-family:facitweb,sans-serif;margin-top:1em;margin-bottom:0.25em">6. Check out the hidden cast settings in Chrome</h2><a class="zoom cboxElement" href="http://images.techhive.com/images/article/2013/08/chromecastadvanced-100048584-orig.jpg" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)"><img alt="" border="0" height="385" src="http://images.techhive.com/images/article/2013/08/chromecastadvanced-100048584-medium.jpg" style="box-sizing: border-box; border-width: 0px; vertical-align: middle; width: auto; height: auto; max-width: 100%; float: left;" width="300"></a>Chromecast's hidden settings. (Click to enlarge.)<p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em"> Hidden within the Cast extension's Options menu, you'll find <a href="http://wiki.casthacks.com/index.php?title=Hacking_the_Chrome_extension_for_advanced_options" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)">additional streaming settings</a> that control nuts-and-bolts things like the bit rate and frame rate of casted tabs. To uncover them, right-click anywhere in the Options menu and select <em style>Inspect element.</em> In the frame that pops up, expand the line that reads <em style>"quality == 'custom'."</em></p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">On the expanded line, double-click the text that reads "<em style>display: none"</em> and delete that text. Look down seven lines further, for another <em style>"display: none"</em>. Double-click and delete that text as well. The new options should appear on the page. (If you close the Options window, you'll have to perform these steps again.)</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">There's actually not much evidence that these settings work right now. You can play around with them, but adjusting things like frame rate and bit rate produced no noticeable changes for me.</p> <h2 style="font-family:facitweb,sans-serif;margin-top:1em;margin-bottom:0.25em">7. Use the TeamViewer app as a makeshift remote</h2><img alt="" border="0" height="467" src="http://images.techhive.com/images/article/2013/08/team-viewer-100048592-large.png" style="box-sizing: border-box; border-width: 0px; vertical-align: middle; width: auto; height: auto; max-width: 100%; float: left;" width="580">Using the TeamViewer mobile app to seize control of your PC acts as an ad-hoc Chromecast controller, albeit a somewhat clumsy one.<p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em"> The nice thing about Chromecast is that it lets you use your phone or tablet as a remote control, but right now the number of apps you can control is limited. If you have a laptop or desktop on your local network, you can use the free <a href="http://www.teamviewer.com/en/index.aspx" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)">TeamViewer app</a> to launch a video from Chrome on your PC and cast it to Chromecast.</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">TeamViewer acts as a remote control for your PC, so once the video is up and running, you can exit the app and keep doing other things on your phone or tablet. It's not the prettiest method, but it works if you want to cast, say, <a href="http://www.techhive.com/article/2045732/hulu-wont-crack-down-on-chromecasts-browser-slinging-capabilities.html" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)">Hulu</a>or Spotify's Web player to your big screen and would rather not lug your laptop into the living room. Just make sure to turn your PC's audio off before you start casting.</p> <h2 style="font-family:facitweb,sans-serif;margin-top:1em;margin-bottom:0.25em">Bonus! Help yourself to Chromecast's gorgeous wallpapers</h2><img alt="" border="0" height="326" src="http://images.techhive.com/images/article/2013/08/background4-100048597-large.jpg" style="box-sizing: border-box; border-width: 0px; vertical-align: middle; width: auto; height: auto; max-width: 100%; float: left;" width="580">That's pretty, even if it is only 720p resolution.<p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em"> When Chromecast is on but not casting anything, it treats you to some lovely wallpapers, along with some text letting you know that it's ready to cast. It turns out those wallpapers are just<a href="https://clients3.google.com/cast/chromecast/home" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)">sitting on a Google webpage</a>. One member of the XDA-Developers forums grabbed them all and <a href="http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=44086763&postcount=4" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)">threw them into a ZIP file</a> for your viewing pleasure.</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">Eventually Chromecast should get more apps and eliminate the need for all these workarounds. Until then, making the most out of Google's Cast extension should help plug some of the gaps</p> </span></div>

7 browser tricks to get the most out of your Chromecast

For $35, you might not expect much from   Google's Chromecast . As it turns out, this little TV dongle can do a whole lot more than ju...

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Print all the files, or a list of all the files, in a folder

<div class="imageContainer580xX" style="width:320px;height:auto;clear:both;margin:auto;color:rgb(34,34,34);font-family:'Helvetica Neue',Arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:19px"><img class="largeImage imgId100047724 " itemprop="image" src="http://zapt0.staticworld.net/images/article/2013/07/0801-thumb-100047724-large.jpg" style="box-sizing: border-box; border-width: 0px; vertical-align: middle; width: 320px; max-width: 100%;"></div> <div class="department" style="margin:0px 0px 10px;overflow:hidden"><a class="topCatLink" href="http://www.pcworld.com/category/printers" style="color:rgb(172,31,43);float:left;font-family:facitweb,sans-serif;font-size:16px;font-weight:700;text-transform:uppercase;margin-right:5px"><br> </a></div><span itemprop="articleBody description text" style><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">To print all of the files in a folder, open that folder in Windows Explorer (File Explorer in Windows 8), press <strong style>CTRL-a</strong>to select all of them, right-click any of the selected files, and select <em style>Print. </em>Of course, you can also select a few specific files and print them the same way.</p> <img alt="" border="0" height="501" src="http://images.techhive.com/images/article/2013/07/0801-print-from-explorer-100047725-orig.jpg" style="box-sizing: border-box; border-width: 0px; vertical-align: middle; width: auto; height: auto; max-width: 100%; float: left;" width="666"><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em"> <strong style> [Email your tech questions to</strong><a href="mailto:answer@pcworld.com" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)"><strong style>answer@pcworld.com</strong></a><strong style>.]</strong></p><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em"> But this doesn't always work. Sometimes, you right-click the files and <em style>don't </em>see a Print option.</p><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">Some file types just aren't printable. It's usually pretty easy to guess which ones they are--.exes, .mp3s, and .zips, for instance. These are files without paper-friendly content.</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">Another limitation: The Print option won't show up if the files are of different types--even if all types are printable. For instance, you can select and print multiple .jpgs and multiple .docxs, but not .jpgs and .docxs together. The workaround for this is to group the folder by type (right-click a blank spot in Windows Explorer and select <em style>Group>Type</em>), and select and print one type at a time.</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">You can print a <em style>list </em>of files by returning to the dark days of DOS. But don't worry; it's not as scary as it sounds.</p><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em"> in Windows (or File) Explorer, hold down the <strong style>SHIFT </strong>key as you right-click the folder. Select <em style>Open command window here</em>.</p><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">This opens the DOS-like command window. Type <strong style><code style="font-family:monospace,serif;font-size:1em">dir > printit.txt</code></strong>, then press <strong style>ENTER</strong>.</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">Return to Windows Explorer, where you'll find a new file, printit.txt, in the folder. You can either double-click the file to load it into Notepad and print from there, or simply right-click the file and select <em style>Print.</em></p> <em style><img alt="" border="0" height="538" src="http://images.techhive.com/images/article/2013/07/0801-file-list-100047723-orig.jpg" style="box-sizing: border-box; border-width: 0px; vertical-align: middle; width: auto; height: auto; max-width: 100%; float: left;" width="692"></em><em style></em><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em"> You can change the look of that printed list by adding additional instructions to the dir command. For instance:</p><ul style="margin:1em 0px;padding:0px 0px 0px 40px"><li style="line-height:1.45em"><strong style><code style="font-family:monospace,serif;font-size:1em">dir /b > printit.txt </code></strong>will print only the file names.</li> <li style="line-height:1.45em"><strong style><code style="font-family:monospace,serif;font-size:1em">dir /o:d > printit.txt</code></strong> will sort the files by date.</li><li style="line-height:1.45em"><strong style><code style="font-family:monospace,serif;font-size:1em">dir *.png /o:d /s > printit.txt</code></strong> will list only *png files, sorted by date, and will include those found in the current folder's subfolders.</li> </ul><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">To find more such options, use the command <strong style><code style="font-family:monospace,serif;font-size:1em">dir /?</code></strong>.</p></span>

Print all the files, or a list of all the files, in a folder

To print all of the files in a folder, open that folder in Windows Explorer (File Explorer in Windows 8), press  CTRL-a to select all of...

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Print all the files, or a list of all the files, in a folder

<div class="imageContainer580xX" style="width:320px;height:auto;clear:both;margin:auto;color:rgb(34,34,34);font-family:'Helvetica Neue',Arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:19px"><img class="largeImage imgId100047724 " itemprop="image" src="http://zapt0.staticworld.net/images/article/2013/07/0801-thumb-100047724-large.jpg" style="box-sizing: border-box; border-width: 0px; vertical-align: middle; width: 320px; max-width: 100%;"></div> <div class="department" style="margin:0px 0px 10px;overflow:hidden"><a class="topCatLink" href="http://www.pcworld.com/category/printers" style="color:rgb(172,31,43);float:left;font-family:facitweb,sans-serif;font-size:16px;font-weight:700;text-transform:uppercase;margin-right:5px"><br> </a></div><span itemprop="articleBody description text" style><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">To print all of the files in a folder, open that folder in Windows Explorer (File Explorer in Windows 8), press <strong style>CTRL-a</strong>to select all of them, right-click any of the selected files, and select <em style>Print. </em>Of course, you can also select a few specific files and print them the same way.</p> <img alt="" border="0" height="501" src="http://images.techhive.com/images/article/2013/07/0801-print-from-explorer-100047725-orig.jpg" style="box-sizing: border-box; border-width: 0px; vertical-align: middle; width: auto; height: auto; max-width: 100%; float: left;" width="666"><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em"> <strong style> [Email your tech questions to</strong><a href="mailto:answer@pcworld.com" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)"><strong style>answer@pcworld.com</strong></a><strong style>.]</strong></p><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em"> But this doesn't always work. Sometimes, you right-click the files and <em style>don't </em>see a Print option.</p><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">Some file types just aren't printable. It's usually pretty easy to guess which ones they are--.exes, .mp3s, and .zips, for instance. These are files without paper-friendly content.</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">Another limitation: The Print option won't show up if the files are of different types--even if all types are printable. For instance, you can select and print multiple .jpgs and multiple .docxs, but not .jpgs and .docxs together. The workaround for this is to group the folder by type (right-click a blank spot in Windows Explorer and select <em style>Group>Type</em>), and select and print one type at a time.</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">You can print a <em style>list </em>of files by returning to the dark days of DOS. But don't worry; it's not as scary as it sounds.</p><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em"> in Windows (or File) Explorer, hold down the <strong style>SHIFT </strong>key as you right-click the folder. Select <em style>Open command window here</em>.</p><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">This opens the DOS-like command window. Type <strong style><code style="font-family:monospace,serif;font-size:1em">dir > printit.txt</code></strong>, then press <strong style>ENTER</strong>.</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">Return to Windows Explorer, where you'll find a new file, printit.txt, in the folder. You can either double-click the file to load it into Notepad and print from there, or simply right-click the file and select <em style>Print.</em></p> <em style><img alt="" border="0" height="538" src="http://images.techhive.com/images/article/2013/07/0801-file-list-100047723-orig.jpg" style="box-sizing: border-box; border-width: 0px; vertical-align: middle; width: auto; height: auto; max-width: 100%; float: left;" width="692"></em><em style></em><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em"> You can change the look of that printed list by adding additional instructions to the dir command. For instance:</p><ul style="margin:1em 0px;padding:0px 0px 0px 40px"><li style="line-height:1.45em"><strong style><code style="font-family:monospace,serif;font-size:1em">dir /b > printit.txt </code></strong>will print only the file names.</li> <li style="line-height:1.45em"><strong style><code style="font-family:monospace,serif;font-size:1em">dir /o:d > printit.txt</code></strong> will sort the files by date.</li><li style="line-height:1.45em"><strong style><code style="font-family:monospace,serif;font-size:1em">dir *.png /o:d /s > printit.txt</code></strong> will list only *png files, sorted by date, and will include those found in the current folder's subfolders.</li> </ul><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">To find more such options, use the command <strong style><code style="font-family:monospace,serif;font-size:1em">dir /?</code></strong>.</p></span>

Print all the files, or a list of all the files, in a folder

To print all of the files in a folder, open that folder in Windows Explorer (File Explorer in Windows 8), press  CTRL-a to select all of...

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Seamlessly sync your data across devices

<div class="department" style="margin:0px 0px 10px;overflow:hidden;color:rgb(34,34,34);font-family:'Helvetica Neue',Arial,sans-serif;line-height:21px"><a class="presentedBy" href="http://adfarm.mediaplex.com/ad/ck/12309-189045-1105-2?mpt=%%CACHEBUSTER%%" style="color:rgb(51,51,51);float:none;font-family:facitweb,sans-serif;font-size:10px;font-weight:700;text-transform:uppercase;background-image:url(http://csmb.staticworld.net/images/ads/DellLogo-Blu-54px.png);display:block;width:300px;height:30px;text-align:right;padding-right:30px;vertical-align:middle;line-height:30px;background-repeat:no-repeat no-repeat"><span style="line-height:1.7em;color:rgb(34,34,34);font-family:'Helvetica Neue',Arial,sans-serif;font-size:15px">Work isn't anchored to one device or one location. In a typical day, you can go from working on a</span><span style="line-height:1.7em;color:rgb(34,34,34);font-family:'Helvetica Neue',Arial,sans-serif;font-size:15px"> </span><a href="http://www.pcworld.com/article/2044039/desktop-land-grab-essential-tips-for-multimonitor-productivity.html" style="line-height:1.7em;font-family:'Helvetica Neue',Arial,sans-serif;font-size:15px;color:rgb(37,167,215)">multimonitor desktop rig</a><span style="line-height:1.7em;color:rgb(34,34,34);font-family:'Helvetica Neue',Arial,sans-serif;font-size:15px"> </span><span style="line-height:1.7em;color:rgb(34,34,34);font-family:'Helvetica Neue',Arial,sans-serif;font-size:15px">in the office to a laptop at a client site to a desktop at home, working in sips on a tablet or smartphone in between.</span><br> </a></div><span itemprop="articleBody description text" style="color:rgb(34,34,34);font-family:'Helvetica Neue',Arial,sans-serif;line-height:21px"><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">This unfettered mobility means its more critical than ever that you're able to access important files across devices, platforms and apps. Follow these tips for keeping all your data in sync, so you can keep doing business wherever your business takes you.</p> <h2 style="font-family:facitweb,sans-serif;margin-top:1em;margin-bottom:0.25em">Bookmarks and browser settings</h2><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">One of the more frustrating experiences of switching between multiple devices is the interruption to your Web browsing experience. Fortunately, popular browsers such as Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox offer built-in support for automatically syncing bookmarks, history, open tabs and even passwords.</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">When you sign in to Chrome, your browser settings are saved to your Google account to be used by the Chrome browser on any other computer or device. To choose what settings get synced, sign in to Chrome—you will be prompted for your verification code if you have 2-factor authentication enabled—and follow the prompts to to either "sync everything" or select individual items.</p> <strong style><a class="zoom cboxElement" href="http://images.techhive.com/images/article/2013/07/02b_chrome-advanced-sync-screenshot-100048411-orig.jpg" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)"><img alt="Chrome advanced settings" border="0" height="426" src="http://images.techhive.com/images/article/2013/07/02b_chrome-advanced-sync-screenshot-100048411-large.jpg" style="box-sizing: border-box; border-width: 0px; vertical-align: middle; width: auto; height: auto; max-width: 100%; float: left;" width="580"></a>Signing in to Chrome allows you to save your browser settings to your Google account.</strong><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em"> Syncing Firefox settings requires a bit more work. Because all data is encrypted prior to being uploaded to Mozilla's servers, a pairing process is required to synchronize the encryption key with each device you want to sync.</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">In the Firefox menu bar on your main computer, click Tools and select Set Up Sync. The first time you do this, you'll need to create an account with the Firefox sync server. Once you complete this setup, go to the Sync tab of the Options dialog box. Click on "pair a device," which will brings up a dialog box with three empty text fields. Do the same on your other device, but select "I have an account" when prompted instead. This will display an "easy setup" key that you need to put into the empty text boxes to get the second device verified and linked up. The process is the same for Firefox for Android. You can read more about the process on the <a href="https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/how-do-i-set-up-firefox-sync" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)">Firefox support page</a>.</p> <strong style><a class="zoom cboxElement" href="http://images.techhive.com/images/article/2013/07/02a_firefox-settings-sync-screenshot-100048413-orig.jpg" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)"><img alt="Firefox sync setup" border="0" height="568" src="http://images.techhive.com/images/article/2013/07/02a_firefox-settings-sync-screenshot-100048413-large.jpg" style="box-sizing: border-box; border-width: 0px; vertical-align: middle; width: auto; height: auto; max-width: 100%; float: left;" width="580"></a>Firefox requires you to pair each of your devices to a Firefox Sync account using an "easy setup" key.</strong><h2 style="font-family:facitweb,sans-serif;margin-top:1em;margin-bottom:0.25em"> Documents and files</h2><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">Not so long ago, it was necessary to shuttle documents between computers on thumb drives or other external storage. Fortunately, we now have cloud services such as Dropbox, SugarSync, Mozy and Box to store our files for easy access from any Web-connected device.</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">A frequent mistake when using cloud storage is neglecting to save newly created files in synchronized folders. Depending on your cloud service, it may be possible to synchronize the entire desktop or default document folders to prevent this. An alternative is to discipline yourself to create all new documents in a synchronized "catchall" folder – you can always file them into a more appropriate subfolder at a later stage.</p> <h2 style="font-family:facitweb,sans-serif;margin-top:1em;margin-bottom:0.25em">Email, contacts and calendar</h2><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">Chances are your email is either already accessible from multiple devices through the default system on your platform or from a Web interface. But if your email system uses only POP (Post Office Protocol), in which emails are downloaded and erased from the server, it's time to switch to a modern cloud-enabled system or one with IMAP (Internet Message Access Protocol).</p> <p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">These two options work similarly in that they allow you to see the same messages and folders from multiple devices. IMAP does not keep contacts or calendars synchronized. Cloud-based systems such as Exchange Online in Office 365 offers Contacts and Calendar sync via the Exchange Active Sync (EAS) standard; Google Mail and Yahoo Mail do so with their support of the open CalDAV and CardDAV specifications respectively.</p> <h2 style="font-family:facitweb,sans-serif;margin-top:1em;margin-bottom:0.25em">Instant messaging</h2><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">Most Instant Messaging (IM) services have clients available for all the major platforms. Things get trickier, though, if you juggle between two or more IM applications. There are a number of third-party chat clients that offer support for multiple IM services, with<a href="http://www.digsby.com/" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)">Digsby</a>, <a href="https://www.trillian.im/" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)">Trillian</a> and <a href="http://pidgin.im/" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)">Pidgin</a> being some popular options. Trillian offers a "continuous chat" feature that syncs conversations across all your devices. This makes it possible to switch from a desktop to a smartphone without missing a word.</p> <a class="zoom cboxElement" href="http://images.techhive.com/images/article/2013/07/switchdevice_03_trillian-100048412-orig.jpg" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)"><img alt="Trillian accounts" border="0" height="427" src="http://images.techhive.com/images/article/2013/07/switchdevice_03_trillian-100048412-large.jpg" style="box-sizing: border-box; border-width: 0px; vertical-align: middle; width: auto; height: auto; max-width: 100%; float: left;" width="580"></a>Trillian syncs chats across all your devices so you can pick up conversations right where you left off.<h2 style="font-family:facitweb,sans-serif;margin-top:1em;margin-bottom:0.25em"> Notes</h2><p style="line-height:1.7em;margin:0px 0px 0.7em">Finally, you'll want to make sure that your notes, ideas and other scraps of digital info are properly synchronized. There are several solutions available, ranging from text-only solutions such as <a href="http://simplenote.com/" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)">SimpleNote</a> to more comprehensive options such as <a href="https://evernote.com/" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)">Evernote</a> and Microsoft's <a href="http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/onenote/" style="color:rgb(37,167,215)">OneNote</a>. Not all platforms are supported by each of these—SimpleNote, for example, is not available on the BlackBerry 10—so do your research before you commit to a service.</p> </span>

Seamlessly sync your data across devices

Work isn't anchored to one device or one location. In a typical day, you can go from working on a   multimonitor desktop rig   in the of...

Read more »