When you think of a search engine, your mind probably pictures Google, but many privacy issues come with using the site. As an alternative, Brave Search recently launched its privacy-centered search engine in beta as a way to search the web without being tracked. After a weekend of using Brave Search, I can see the value of using it for simpler searches, but it still leaves much to be desired for more detailed or location-specific searches....

Here’s a look at buy buttons, how to use these buttons, and what to look out for when making an immediate purchase decision. What Is a Buy Now Button? Since the dawn of e-commerce, merchants have presented us with a process that mimics real life. After selecting items in a brick-and-mortar store, you place those items in a shopping cart or basket and head to the checkout line. Many online merchants now offer buy buttons that bypass this traditional process....

Can You Use Multiple Range Extenders? You can use multiple range extenders, and there are a lot of situations where doing so can be helpful. If you have a big house or a complicated layout, you may need two, three, or even more range extenders. For example, if there are Wi-Fi dead zones on both the east and west sides of your house, you’ll need an extender on both the east and west sides to create Wi-Fi networks in both areas....

How DAC Works Whether you’re listening to a CD player, mechless head unit, smartphone, or some other digital tech, your car’s audio experience hinges on a component you may have never even heard of. The digital to analog converter (DAC) is responsible for taking digital information stored on CDs and streaming music files and converting it into something that can be played over your car speakers. The one exception to this rule is conventional AM/FM radio, which starts off with an analog signal....

Low Tech Car Diagnostic Tools Although cars have been trending more and more toward computer controls and diagnostic equipment in recent years, it’s important to start with the basics. With that in mind, there are a few decidedly low tech (and somewhat less than low tech) tools that every DIYer and backyard mechanic should have in his or her toolbox. Some of the most basic car diagnostic tools include a:...

Long presses on application icons in the system tray allow you to move them to the desktop. Long presses on widgets allow you to move or adjust the size. Long touches on the old desktop clock allowed you to remove it. Generally, the long press is used to display a contextual menu when the app supports it. A variation is the long-press drag. This is a long press that allows you to move objects that would ordinarily be harder to move, such as rearranging icons on the Home screen....

Corsair claims the K70 RGB Pro has lightning-fast responsiveness and long durability thanks to the company’s AXON processing technology, aluminum frame, and double-shot keycaps. The keyboard also comes with numerous customization options like a magnetic palm rest and the ability to customize its backlight. Because of AXON, the K70 RGB Pro can process key presses at 4,000Hz and transmit those inputs to the computer at 8,000Hz. According to Corsair, this makes the K70 RGB Pro processing eight times faster than standard gaming keyboards....

Entire “cookbooks” have been written on materials and shaders in Maya, UDK, 3DS Max, Vray, etc. It’s something a lot of beginners have difficulties with and for good reason! Tweaking an array of arcane parameters like “specular strength” and “diffuse weight” in an attempt to mimic real-world materials like wood, glass, stone, or ceramic tile is no easy task. So, here we are. Starting with ambient occlusion, we’ll start to introduce some application settings for some common real-world materials that are tough to nail down....

The introduction of the DVD is the main reason the home theater experience has become popular, serving as a foundation for elevating video and audio quality. However, DVD also has a confusion and often complicated side: Region Coding. DVD Region Codes, or How the World Is Divided DVD players and DVDs are labeled for use within specific geographical regions. The DVD world is divided into six major geographical regions, with two additional regions reserved for specialized use....

According to a new report from password manager and VPN service Nord Security, high-level executives use weak, easy-to-crack passwords, just like everyone else. In fact, as well as not bothering to protect their own, or their companies’, security, they seem to have a weird preference for fantastical creatures. “Interestingly, the study showed that top executives also extensively use names of people (i.e., Tiffany, Charlie, Michael, Jordan) and mythical creatures or animals (i....

What Is an EX4 File? A file with the EX4 file extension is a MetaTrader 4 Program file. It’s compiled programming code made for the free foreign exchange market trading program called MetaTrader. Stored in one of these files may be scripts or indicators used by that software. The file could instead be an Expert Advisor (EA) program used by MetaTrader for automating trading. The programming code in the file is compiled from an MQ4 file, which is an MQL4 source code file....

Using Facebook Stickers in Messages and Chat Stickers work on the network’s mobile apps—both the regular Facebook mobile app and its mobile Messenger, too—as well as on the desktop version of the social network. The stickers are only available in the chat and messaging area of Facebook, not in status updates or comments. Why Do People Send Stickers? People send stickers mostly for the same reason they send photos and use emoticons in chat—imagery is a powerful communication tool, especially for conveying our feelings....

What Is Facebook Watch? Facebook Watch is built into Facebook, can be accessed through the main Facebook website and the Facebook app on mobile platforms and streaming devices. It can be found on its own Watch tab, which is similar to the Marketplace and Messenger tabs. Facebook Watch isn’t a cable replacement service. It’s more like YouTube than YouTube TV, because it doesn’t include live television from networks or cable channels....

When you work in a regular job, in an office, with rules about not ruining employees’ bodies, getting a proper chair is easy. You either already have one, or you ask. Unfortunately, for home workers, there’s a good chance you will have to pay for it yourself, which is when you realize that you’re not going to get much change out of a grand. That’s crazy money for a chair, but if you continue working from a kitchen stool or a cheap Ikea chair, you’ll end up spending a lot more than that, either on medical bills or in pain and suffering....

Gdiplus.dll Errors There are several ways gdiplus.dll errors can show up on your computer. Here are some of the more common messages you might see: Gdiplus.dll Not FoundThis application failed to start because gdiplus.dll was not found. Re-installing the application may fix this problem.Cannot find [PATH]\gdiplus.dllThe file gdiplus.dll is missing.Cannot start [APPLICATION]. A required component is missing: gdiplus.dll. Please install [APPLICATION] again. These error messages might appear while using or installing certain programs, when Windows starts or shuts down, or maybe even during a Windows installation....

Since I’m still working from home, I’ve been using a built-in desk in my bedroom. It left me hunched over all day, and I would feel my back aching by the time I logged off my work VPN. Even worse with this desk, I couldn’t adjust it. I needed something that would not only fit into my hundred-year-old home aesthetic but would allow me to shift and stretch my back when I needed to....

There are numerous reports of this bug on the Samsung Community forum, and scrolling through the posts, it appears that it affects some Galaxy A and Galaxy M models. The most common devices afflicted are the Galaxy M30s, M31, M31s, A50, A50s, and A51, but only in India. No reports of the issue happening have come from anywhere else. A user recorded a video trying to use their phone only for the device to freeze and restart on its own....

Which Games Come With Windows Vista? The games available depend on which version of Vista you’re running: Vista Home Basic and Starter editions include FreeCell, Hearts, Minesweeper, Purble Place, Solitaire, and Spider Solitaire.Home Premium, Business, Ultimate, and Enterprise editions include the games listed above as well as Chess Titans, InkBall, and Mahjong Titans. To remove tiles, they must be “free”, meaning they can slide free of the pile without bumping into other tiles....

What You Need to Begin Gamesharing on Xbox One Before you can enable gamesharing on your console, each person needs the following: An Xbox One video game console. You can use either an original Xbox One, Xbox One S, or an Xbox One X. An internet connection for logging into the Xbox network online service. One Xbox network account for each user. This is the account you use to buy digital video games on an Xbox 360 or Xbox One console, in addition to movies and apps from the Microsoft Store....

It all starts with overhauled parental control tools to reduce the risk of curious kiddos happening upon inappropriate content while chatting it up with Google Assistant on speakers, smart displays, and related gadgets. These new tools will be available on multiple company-wide apps, including Google Home, Family Link, and Google Assistant. The software allows you to modify media settings to disallow certain content providers, completely disable Assistant functionality, and set up automatic downtime for your kids when the system will be unavailable....