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I’m calling 2023 the Year of the Closed Loophole. Whether it’s Netflix charging to share passwords or YouTube declaring war on ad-blockers, tech firms are turning the screw to maximise profits. You can’t blame them, but nor can you fault hard-up users looking for ways to bypass new restrictions. As I hope you know, we’re on the side of the hard-up user. It’s why we’ve found the 20 best new downloads for 2024 that won’t cost you a penny. Among the software you’ll find a split-view browser, a VPN that keeps you anonymous and a long-overdue junk-cleaning tool from Microsoft. Our recommended phone/tablet apps include essentials from Firefox, Thunderbird, Winamp and others. 2024 is also the year Mickey Mouse, Dylan Thomas, Winnie the Pooh and Joan of Arc come out…

Google has launched its first Titan Security Key that can hold passkeys, so you can log into more accounts without using passwords. Security keys are small USB devices that you plug into your computer in order to verify your identity and sign securely into an account. The new Titan can hold up to 250 passkeys, Google claimed. It comes in USB-A (left in our photo) and USB-C (right) editions, both priced £30 from Google’s store: www.snipca.com/48352. It uses the FIDO2 security standard, which is the latest technology for letting passkeys work across devices. Like the previous version, it connects to phones and tablets wirelessly using NFC. Google said that when you create a passkey for your Google account on the new Titan Security Key, it will let you set up…

Five identical items that I bought in September from an eBay seller never arrived. I requested and received a refund for one of the items, but not the other four. EBay then closed the case before I had a chance to argue my side. I then sought help on the Payments section of eBay’s community forum (www.snipca.com/48255). I had no idea how I could get my money back, but once I had explained my plight I received several helpful replies from other eBay members. But the really useful reply was from someone in eBay’s ‘community team’, who said I had to make a separate refund request for each of the five items. What was impressive was how quickly he replied to three follow-up questions I had. I only had to…

AVG TuneUp for PC www.snipca.com/48396 Price: From £24.99 per year Free trial: 7 days What you need: Windows 7, 8.1, 10 or 11 AVG was once best-known for its free antivirus software, but since it was bought by Avast in 2016 it has focused more on paid-for tools such as AVG TuneUp. This claims to “make an old PC live longer or a new PC run better” by finding and removing junk. Our initial scan uncovered a worrying number of problems, including nearly 5,000 broken registry items, 2,700 broken shortcuts and 4.2GB of ‘system junk’ (see screenshot). As we regularly clean our PC using built-in Windows tools and third-party software, these figures seemed excessive and a closer inspection revealed most of the ‘issues’ to be negligible or non-existent. When we…

Modern blackmail doesn’t get much nastier than this. Sean Mokler hacked into the private accounts of women and threatened to share explicit photos of them unless they paid him. The 30-year-old from Cambridgeshire accessed login details for iCloud, Snapchat and OnlyFans accounts from online forums where they are shared and traded. He then contacted the victims through an anonymous Facebook profile. Cambridgeshire Police said Mokler caused the victims “real distress” and left them feeling “violated”. Thankfully, Mokler wasn’t quite as anonymous as he thought and was arrested following a “long and complex” investigation. He’s now serving 26 months behind bars after pleading guilty to five counts of blackmail at Cambridge Crown Court.…

What does it do? It holds your monitor up. This sounds like a simple job but there are many different types, so make sure the one that comes with any monitor you’re buying has all the functions you need. How does it work? Most need screwing into the back or base of your monitor when you first set it up. You can normally adjust the height and angle to your requirements. What are the specs? Stands tend to have some or all of the following positional functions: swivel, tilt, rotate and height adjustment. The first three are measured as an angle, while the latter is a distance, measured in millimetres. Swivel is how far the screen can be moved in a vertical plane, which is useful for shielding it from…

EBOOK READER | £261 from Onyx www.snipca.com/48324 While most ebook readers are a similar size to paper-based books, they’re not as easy to carry around as mobile phones. That’s why Onyx has launched the Boox Palma, a phone-sized ebook reader that lets you carry your books in your pocket. It makes it easy to carry on reading your book while you’re standing in a queue, for example. “An ebook reader with a few phone functions that fits in your pocket” It looks and works like a typical Android phone with two key differences: it has a Kindle-style E-Ink screen and has no access to mobile networks – just Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. This might come as a surprise, but at least it means you won’t be bombarded with phone messages while…

CHROME Check the memory usage of your tabs Back in February, Google finally addressed one of the biggest problems with Chrome: the browser’s excessive usage of system memory. A new ‘Memory saver’ feature, introduced in Chrome 110 (see Issue 654, page 42), stops the browser hogging RAM and slowing your PC, by automatically freeing up memory from inactive tabs. To round off the year, Chrome 119 (released in November) adds the useful ability to check how much memory individual tabs are using. This means you can close any that are consuming too much RAM and that risk crashing your browser – or entire PC. Simply hover your cursor over a tab and Chrome will display the ‘Memory usage’ in megabytes below the title and preview image of the web page…

LIBREOFFICE CALC Change the background colour of comments When you leave a comment on a spreadsheet in LibreOffice Calc, you’ll notice the background is set to a pale yellow by default (‘Accent 5, 80% Lighter’). Version 7.6 of LibreOffice adds a setting that lets you change this to another colour Click ‘Tools’ in the toolbar, then Options. When the window appears, click Application Colours (1 in our screenshot below). Then, in the main window, scroll down until you see ‘Notes background 2 ’, under Spreadsheet. Click the button to the right, which shows Automatic by default, then pick a new colour – we chose lilac (‘Followed Hyperlink, 80% Lighter’) 3. To confirm, click Apply, then OK. Our comment 4 changed its background colour to reflect our choice. ONLYOFFICE Use arrows to…

WHAT YOU CAN DO • Ditch Chrome for a smarter and more private browser• Boost your PC automatically when it’s low on memory• Use a streamlined email app with no Microsoft junk• Watch YouTube videos on your PC without any ads• Interact with two AI chatbots at the same time• Install hundreds of extensions in your mobile browser• Legally download free ebooks and audiobooks We all love a good freebie, but over the past 12 months free stuff has been increasingly hard to come by. Lots of software that was once free to download has become ‘freemium’ (see our Cover Feature in Issue 664); legal wrangles have forced the Internet Archive to remove swathes of free content (see Issue 666, page 60); and streaming services such as Netflix have increased…

Windows 11’s recent Moment 4 update was significant. It introduced a redesigned File Explorer, the AI tool Copilot and improvements to essential features like Paint and Snipping Tool. You can’t use these new options in Windows 10, but you can add them by installing third-party programs. Add tabs to File Explorer File Explorer is one of the most important elements of Windows, so it’s no surprise it received major improvements in the recent Windows 11 update. It now supports tabs, letting you keep several folders open in the same window. There’s also an image gallery, support for more compressed file formats, and an improved details pane (press Alt+Shift+P to see it). To get these tools in Windows 10 you’ll need to install Files 3.0 (www.snipca.com/48368 – click the small, blue…

Having a problem with our recommended software or expert tips? Email editor@computeractive.co.uk and we’ll do our best to help Do ISP payments stop when contracts end? Q I was puzzled by your answer to Colin Parry’s question in Issue 669’s Consumeractive (‘Should I stop paying my ISP if I can’t cancel?’). If his contract with Virgin Media is ending, where’s the problem? Surely his payments stop automatically when the contract ends? I will be in this position very soon, so I hope you can explain. Dave Fisher A It’s not quite as simple as that. When your broadband contract ends, your provider will automatically move you to a different package – and this will almost certainly be more expensive than the plan you were on. Or, as Virgin Media euphemistically…

Can I sue TalkTalk over lost film downloads? LEAD CASE Q Now that TalkTalk has closed its TV store (Issue 670, page 8), I can’t access around 75 films I bought. I’ve not been offered any compensation, which I’m furious about. Can I sue TalkTalk for removing this content? Gerald Schafer A Gerald could take TalkTalk to the small claims court, but we doubt it would be worthwhile because there’s no case law or precedent about losing digital content. Legally, TalkTalk has done nothing wrong. When Gerald downloaded films and TV programmes through the store, he was technically only renting them, not buying them to keep. This is different to when you buy a physical product, in which case you own the medium that the content is on – namely,…

How can I record items stored in boxes? Q I have several boxes in my attic containing many small electrical parts. Some are labelled, while others aren’t because the contents may change. Which Android app could I use to organise and find the location of a specific item? Tony Cronin A We’d recommend using the note-taking tool Joplin (https://joplinapp.org), which is available for Android and iOS, as well as a downloadable program for Windows, Linux and macOS. It lets you list the contents of each box in individual notes grouped into a single notebook. It can be fiddly typing on a phone, so consider writing your notes on your computer first before syncing them to your phone to view and edit. Launch Joplin on your computer, then click the plus…

What is it? The Samsung Portable SSD T5 Evo 8TB (www.snipca.com/48337, pictured) is the largest external SSD we’ve seen to date. What does it do? As with all external SSDs, the T5 Evo provides convenient, plug-in storage that isn’t installed inside your PC. It can be used to back up your files or for transferring them from one PC to another. What’s the catch? At the moment, it’s only available in the US, and isn’t listed on Samsung’s UK website. There’s also a question of cost – Samsung is selling it for $650, which converts to £523. It isn’t even lightning fast, reaching speeds of only 460MB/s. Smaller-capacity external SSDs routinely offer speeds of at least 1,000MB/s. So can I do without it? Yes. If you need 8TB of external…

ANDROID & iOS Respond to Gmail messages using emojis Replying to someone’s email with a simple ‘Great’, ‘Agreed’ or ‘Ha ha’ can sometimes seem pointless, but at least lets them know you’ve read their message and how you feel about it. To make things easier, Google has updated its Gmail app with the ability to respond to emails using emojis. Similar to the feature WhatsApp introduced last year, this saves you having to type and send a reply, by selecting a suitable emoji instead. Either tap the emoji icon to the left of the standard reply button (see screenshot below) or swipe to the bottom of the email and tap it there (if you don’t see an icon, the option hasn’t been rolled out to your Gmail app yet). The…

Infographics contain more information than simple bars, charts or diagrams, and are therefore a great way to present statistics in a more interesting way. They typically look attractive and inventive, helping to keep your audience engaged during a presentation. Thanks to the excellent – and mostly free – design tool Canva you can create one without much design skill, as we’ll explain. Select and edit your template First, you need to create a Canva account – visit www.canva.com and click ‘Sign up’ at the top right. Enter your email address then enter the authorisation code it sends you. Once signed in, click the blue ‘Create a design’ button top right, then select Infographic from the dropdown menu. If that option doesn’t appear, type it into the search box at the…

WHAT YOU CAN DO • Ditch Chrome for a smarter and more private browser• Boost your PC automatically when it’s low on memory• Use a streamlined email app with no Microsoft junk• Watch YouTube videos on your PC without any ads• Interact with two AI chatbots at the same time• Install hundreds of extensions in your mobile browser• Legally download free ebooks and audiobooks We all love a good freebie, but over the past 12 months free stuff has been increasingly hard to come by. Lots of software that was once free to download has become ‘freemium’ (see our Cover Feature in Issue 664); legal wrangles have forced the Internet Archive to remove swathes of free content (see Issue 666, page 60); and streaming services such as Netflix have increased…

Tiny11, which installs an unofficial stripped-down version of Windows 11 for PCs that can’t run the full edition, has been updated to include the 23H2 update. While the full version of Windows 11 requires 4GB of RAM and 64GB of hard-drive space, Tiny11 needs only 2GB and 8GB respectively. It needs less RAM and storage because it removes many apps, such as Edge and OneDrive, as well as features it deems unnecessary. The new version of Tiny11 (called 2311) has the potential to run new features in Windows 11 23H2, though to use some of these you’ll have to install software that Tiny11 lacks. For example, to use the AI tool Copilot you’ll need to install Microsoft Edge. The new version’s installation file is 20-per-cent smaller than the previous edition…

WATCH OUT FOR… Fake CPU-Z adverts on Google What’s the threat? Scammers are placing fake adverts in Google for the popular program CPU-Z, in the latest example of hackers infiltrating search results with malware. The ads are headlined ‘CPU-Z | Analytics and Monitoring | Single Sign-On’ (see screenshot 1), which sounds like it could be genuine, but the URL (corporatecomf.online) is fake. The person responsible for the ads is registered as Scott Cooper, but researchers at Malwarebytes say this is likely to be a false name. Clicking the link takes you to a fake version of the genuine tech site WindowsReport, with a green download button for CPU-Z (see screenshot 2). This looks almost identical to the real WindowsReport, though the URL (workspace-app.online) is false. Clicking the download button installs…

We’re happy to say that after we contacted Just Eat it has refunded reader Gilly Schofield for an order to deliver groceries (see Issue 671). In the process, it appears we’ve helped the company understand that it needs to deal with such complaints. To recap, she placed the order with Just Eat on the TopCashback website, but then cancelled it when the grocery shop couldn’t get a delivery driver. TopCashback wasn’t responsible because it doesn’t handle customer payments. It just acts as a shopfront for retailers to offer discounted services. We then spoke to the grocery shop, which repeated what it told Gilly: it hadn’t received any payment and so didn’t hand a delivery to Just Eat’s driver. Finally, we asked Just Eat what had happened. It initially claimed Gilly…

EBOOK MANAGER Calibre 7.0 www.snipca.com/48393 What you need: Windows 10 or 11, macOS or Linux This excellent open-source software is the best way to read and manage ebooks on your computer. Calibre lets you easily convert ebooks from one format to another, edit their contents and covers, download articles from the web, back up and share your library, and much more. Although the program is regularly updated with improvements and bug fixes, Calibre 7.0 is the first major update since July 2022. Its most notable new feature is the ability to add notes to the books in your library, so you can store useful information about the author, publisher, genre and other categories. These notes can include reviews, images and web links – for example, to relevant Wikipedia articles –…

SOFTWARE WARNING! OneDrive’s ‘Why are you quitting?’ survey Microsoft is continuing its transformation into a jilted lover desperate to know why you’ve stopped returning its calls. In Issue 671, I ridiculed how it asked for reasons why you were switching from Edge to Chrome. Yet barely a week later it started to ask why you were closing the OneDrive app. I say ‘ask’, but it was more of a demand because if you didn’t provide a reason you weren’t able to exit the app. It gave you seven options (see screenshot), but there should have been an eighth: ‘Mind your own business Microsoft, I’ll do what I like’. To be fair to Microsoft, this doesn’t feel quite as pitiful as the questions it asked when switching from Edge to Chrome.…

LAPTOP Huawei MateBook 16s 2023 £1,100 from www.snipca.com/47772 Tested Issue 669 In all our years of testing no laptop has ever performed Windows tasks as quickly as this. This breathtaking speed is down to the powerful Intel Core i9 processor. It also has a sharp 16in screen, 16GB RAM and long battery life. ALTERNATIVE Honor MagicBook X 16 2023 Also has a 16in screen and is great value, though it’s not especially fast. £450 from www.snipca.com/47868. ANDROID TABLET Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 £768 from www.snipca.com/47493 Tested Issue 667 With a much brighter screen than our previous favourite – the Galaxy Tab S8 – this is perfect for watching TV. It also has a faster processor, so tasks feel smoother, even with several windows open. It’s a great buy at its full…

MUSIC Use SonicStage and Audacity to play MiniDiscs I read with interest – and some degree of disappointment – about the experiences of Tom Borg (Issue 669, Letters), regarding the MiniDisc. I have used Sony’s MiniDisc players for over 23 years. I’m a massive fan of the optical disc and had hoped it would revolutionise the recordable media industry and replace the unreliable audio cassette tape. One of the two MiniDisc recorders I use is the MZ-RH710 (the Hi-MD version), and when it was released in 2006 I hoped it would rekindle interest in the technology. Sadly, it was thwarted by Apple’s iPod. I have always used Sony’s SonicStage (www.snipca.com/48193) to manage my music, and I’ve never had any problems with transferring music. Next, I simply choose which MiniDisc format…

WINDOWS 10 & 11 Create a shortcut to clear your clipboard If you cut or copy a lot of items to your clipboard, you may accidentally paste the wrong thing from time to time. Consider creating a desktop shortcut on Windows that lets you easily remove all items from your clipboard, without first needing to tap the Win+V shortcut to access the Clipboard menu. First, right-click anywhere on your desktop and hover over New, then click Shortcut. Now type %windir%\System32\ cmd /c echo off | clip (1 in our screenshot below – copy and paste this from www.snipca.com/48279). Click Next, type a name for the shortcut, then click Finish. Your new shortcut will appear on your desktop as an EXE file 2. Double-click it any time you want to remove all…

1080p Of the common types of high-definition video, this is the best quality: 1920x1080 pixels. 4K Video with a resolution of at least 3840x2160 pixels. 5G The latest generation of mobile networks. 64bit A technology that processes information in larger chunks. Most modern computers are 64bit. AI Artificial intelligence. Intelligence demonstrated by a machine rather than a human being. Often used to describe technology that can perform human-like tasks. ATRAC Adaptive Transform Acoustic Coding. A type of music file used by some older Sony players. AZW3 An Amazon file format for ebooks, succeeding AZW. Also known as KF8 (Kindle Format 8). Battery case An accessory that provides additional power and protection to a mobile phone. Benchmarking Comparing software and products with an accepted standard. Beta A version of software that’s…