According to the usage statistics of user application from Microsoft, 60% of the time people spend on the PC is within the web browser. Google Chrome is a cross-platform web browser developed by Google based on Chromium project. According to StatCounter website stats, by January 2022, the market share of Chrome browser is over 63% across all platforms worldwide. 

Hybrid core architecture combining high performance cores and power-efficient cores became more and more popular, especially after Intel launched the Alder Lake CPU product. Performance cores are designed to provide maximum compute performance, while efficient cores are designed for maximum power efficiency. Usually OS schedulers can manage hybrid core scheduling, but they lack details of application behaviors, like critical paths. It’s difficult for OS schedulers to cover all scenarios. 

We come from the Web Optimization team, and focus on power and performance optimization for Web platforms, mainly Chromium, aiming for better user experience on IA. This article introduces our work to utilize hybrid core capability to schedule specific threads/processes’ execution in Chrome browser to efficient cores, which adopts dynamic policies to reduce power consumption on different levels based on device state. All the analysis and tests below are performed on the Chrome OS platform.

On the hybrid core platform, Chrome can schedule threads to efficient cores to save power consumption. However, putting browser threads on efficient cores all the time is impractical since lots of threads may surge and demand higher performance. So we propose a hybrid core scheduling technology in Chrome browser to apply dynamic throttles on specific non-critical threads through scheduling them to efficient cores to execute. The technology is based on Web runtime scenarios, like background/idle/ads/video, as the importance of threads would change in different scenarios. Moreover, device information, like battery/thermal status and hybrid core information, need to be exposed to Chrome. Based on them, hybrid core scheduling would apply different core allocation policies to balance power and performance. Normally we schedule low priority threads to efficient cores. But when the device is in a critical stage like running out of battery, the scheduling policy would be more aggressive to prolong device usage time. The application of scheduling policy relies on the OS support, and we can use thread priority or QoS mechanism according to the customs of the OS. On Chrome OS, currently we change thread priority and its cgroup association. Whole architecture of the proposal is shown in Figure 1.

Figure 1: hybrid core scheduling in Chrome browser

On the hybrid core platform, Chrome can schedule threads to efficient cores to save power consumption. However, putting browser threads on efficient cores all the time is impractical since lots of threads may surge and demand higher performance. So we propose a hybrid core scheduling technology in Chrome browser to apply dynamic throttles on specific non-critical threads through scheduling them to efficient cores to execute. The technology is based on Web runtime scenarios, like background/idle/ads/video, as the importance of threads would change in different scenarios. Moreover, device information, like battery/thermal status and hybrid core information, need to be exposed to Chrome. Based on them, hybrid core scheduling would apply different core allocation policies to balance power and performance. Normally we schedule low priority threads to efficient cores. But when the device is in a critical stage like running out of battery, the scheduling policy would be more aggressive to prolong device usage time. The application of scheduling policy relies on the OS support, and we can use thread priority or QoS mechanism according to the customs of the OS. On Chrome OS, currently we change thread priority and its cgroup association. Whole architecture of the proposal is shown in Figure 1.

The implementation of hybrid core scheduling technology mainly contains three parts, scenario detection, scheduling policy, and OS support work.

First we need to determine the current scenario of a process based on inputs from various browser components. For example, the Chrome render process has a status about background state, which indicates whether the process is foreground or background scenario. For another example, Chrome has an Ad Tagging mechanism to detect ads and the resources they load in the browser. Ad Tagging works by matching resource requests against a filter list to determine if they’re ad requests. An iframe will be marked as an ad iframe if its url matches the filter list, if the tagged script is involved in the creation of the iframe, or if its parent frame is an ad iframe. If all frames are ad frames, the render process would be tagged as an ad process. The browser collects all these inputs and uses a prioritization mechanism to decide the overall mode for the process. Based on the scenario, we adopt an appropriate scheduling policy next.

The scheduling policy varies based on the device status. As shown in Figure 1, the browser will monitor the power status of the device via APIs provided by the OS, including the battery level, charging status and the thermal state. For hybrid core scheduling, two stages are defined below.

The first one is the normal stage, which means the battery level is over 20% or the device is charging, meanwhile the thermal state is normal. In this stage, the users care more about the performance than power consumption, so we only schedule low priority threads/processes to efficient cores, like the background processes or the threads handling low priority tasks such as logging/profiling.

The second one is the critical stage, which means the battery level is very low without charging, or the device is in critical thermal states, or the web developer explicitly wants to enter power saving mode, like using battery-savings meta tag. In this stage, we’re going to apply more aggressive policies to save more power, prolong device usage time or avoid thermal throttling due to high CPU temperature. Under this circumstance, many threads/processes in normal priority will be scheduled to efficient cores as long as they are not involved in UX critical tasks.

There is some work required to be done to make Chrome utilize OS capability. Battery and thermal status are two important factors to UX. Based on them, Chrome could make appropriate policies to balance performance and power consumption. Previously, there was only battery status exposed to Chrome. Our team has landed a thermal status notification feature in Chrome. In the feature, we introduced 4 thermal levels: Nominal, Fair, Serious, and Critical referring to Apple’s Thermal Hinting API. So that Chrome can get the real-time thermal status. With battery level, charging and thermal status reported, Chrome would decide which stage to enter and apply different scheduling policies.

Furthermore, we have built a bridge between Chrome threads and efficient cores on Chrome OS using the existing cgroup mechanism. Background priority threads are placed in a specific cgroup, which has a specified CPU set. On hybrid core platforms, efficient cores are likely to be allocated for the group. So if we want to schedule unimportant threads to efficient cores to execute, we can lower the thread priority and put them in the non-urgent cgroup. The scheduling is dynamic. When the threads become important (e.g. switch to foreground), we would raise the thread priority to normal right away, hence remove from the specific cgroup.

We use the local build Chromium browser to evaluate the power impact of hybrid core scheduling per each scenario, currently focusing on background renderer processes, ads processes, and idle processes (idle is a state defined in the Chrome RAIL model). According to the experiments performed on Alder Lake Chromebook, we observe 4.2% CPU package power reduction for web browsing when scheduling idle processes to efficient cores, and 3.8% CPU package power reduction when dispatching advertisement processes. At the same time, we use a 4-tab browsing workload to test the power impact of placing background processes on efficient cores, and see 0.9% CPU package power reduction. The power saving would be larger when the number of background tabs and page activities increase.

The experiment data shows that we achieve distinct power reduction by utilizing hybrid core capability in Chromium browser to schedule non-UX critical processes/threads to efficient cores in chosen scenarios, which helps extend device battery life.

We will continue to explore more scenarios, which don’t demand high performance, and corresponding processes/threads can be scheduled to efficient cores. Besides, as for some scenarios like ads and idle, running on efficient cores might have performance impact, we are about to conduct performance evaluation soon and adjust the scheduling policy accordingly. Furthermore, we intend to extend our analysis and hybrid core scheduling optimization to Windows and Linux platforms.

If you’ve ever tried to answer an email or surf the Internet from your mobile device in public—or even at the office or your house—chances are you connected to a Wi-Fi hotspot. Not only is this connection highly convenient, you also didn’t have to use your smartphone’s data. Not surprisingly, hotspots are becoming an essential part of public infrastructure—and our Internet experience.

Millions of people every day connect to public hotspots for their data needs. By some estimates, there are almost 200 million hotspots around the world, and there will be one hotspot for every 20 people on earth by 2018. Thanks to our modern always-on digital lifestyle, people expect to be constantly connected, and public Wi-Fi access points are expanding to a global network of hotspots to meet those needs.

Before we dive in to how to connect to a hotspot and related security issues, let’s define what we mean. While some people use the terms “hotspot” and “mobile hotspot” interchangeably, they have distinct meanings.

• Hotspot: A hotspot is a physical location where people can access the Internet, typically using Wi-Fi, via a wireless local area network (WLAN) with a router connected to an Internet service provider. Most people refer to these locations as “Wi-Fi hotspots” or “Wi-Fi connections.” Simply put, hotspots are the physical places where users can wirelessly connect their mobile devices, such as smartphones and tablets, to the Internet.
  A hotspot can be in a private location or a public one, such as in a coffee shop, a hotel, an airport, or even an airplane. While many public hotspots offer free wireless access on an open network, others require payment. Later in the article you’ll learn how to connect a mobile device to a Wi-Fi hotspot.
• Mobile hotspot: A mobile hotspot (sometimes called a portable hotspot) is a hotspot that’s just that—mobile! While a “regular” Wi-Fi hotspot is tied to a physical location, you can create a mobile hotspot by using your smartphone’s data connection to connect your laptop to the Internet. This process is called “tethering.” More on this process later.
  You should also know these terms when you’re talking about Wi-Fi hotspots.
• Access point (wireless access point): A wireless access point (WAP) is a networking device that allows a Wi-Fi compliant device to connect to a wired network. The WAP can either be physically connected to a router or be integrated into the router itself. A WAP is not a hotspot, which is the physical location where Wi-Fi access to a WLAN is available.
• Wi-Fi: Wi-Fi is the technology that allows your smartphone or computer to access the Internet through a wireless connection. It uses radio signals to send and receive data between your enabled device and the WAP.
• SSID: A service set identifier (more commonly known as an SSID) is the unique name of a wireless network. You’ll need to know the name of the wireless network to connect to it. Your computer or smartphone can search for available wireless networks; often people name their network for easy identification—anything from “Bob’s phone” to “hotel guests” to “Get off my LAN.”

Now that you understand some of the terms associated with hotspots, let’s learn how to connect to them.

You probably connect your smartphone or laptop to the Internet via several Wi-Fi hotspots throughout your day, whether you’re at your office, in your home, or at public locations like coffee shops and airports. Using hotspots is an easy way to keep connected to your busy life.

Connecting to a wireless hotspot is a simple process. Let’s use your smartphone as an example. You want to answer an email at the airport while you’re waiting for your flight, and you don’t want to use your data. You can set your smartphone to notify you when it’s in range of a wireless network, or you can find wireless networks through your phone’s settings. The steps you need to follow to connect to the Wi-Fi hotspot will depend on the device—Android*, iPhone*, or another brand—but here is an overview.

1. Click the wireless icon on your device to see the names of nearby wireless networks. Select a wireless network; in some cases, you might also have to click “Connect.”
2. Enter the security key or the password. Most wireless networks are secured and require a password to accept a connection. Some networks are unsecured or open and do not require a password; you should take care when accessing them as they could introduce a security risk.
3. Select the network type (home, work, or public, if you are on a Windows* device). Choosing the network type will establish a security level appropriate for your location. If you select “home” or “work,” your device will be discoverable to other devices. Be sure to select “public” if you are in a public location like a coffee shop, hotel, restaurant, airport, and other similar locations.

Depending on where you are and the types of hotspots near you, you may be on either an open, unsecured wireless network or a paid/commercial wireless network. You may be asked to sign up for an account or use a paid service like Boingo* or iPass*, which offer various Wi-Fi access plans depending on how much time you plan use the Internet.

Let’s say, though, that you can’t find a Wi-Fi hotspot nearby. Read on to learn how you can use your smartphone as a portable hotspot.

If you’re in a location that doesn’t have a hotspot and you want to connect your laptop to the Internet, you can use your phone as a mobile Wi-Fi hotspot through a process called “tethering.” This allows your laptop to access the Internet and share your smartphone’s data connection.

While the set-up steps vary depending on your smartphone and your Internet service provider, you can usually find the instructions in your phone’s Settings or Manage Connections menu. For security, you’ll want to make sure that you use a Wi-Fi password so that nearby Internet users can’t access your phone or laptop. Also, be aware that tethering your laptop to your phone will use your phone’s data allowance; so be sure to keep an eye on your usage to avoid any overage fees.

Now that you’re connected, that’s it, right? Well, not exactly. You should be aware that while using Wi-Fi hotspots is a convenient way to stay connected with work, family, and friends. Hotspot connectivity also presents some security risks.

One of the risks of being connected to the Internet is that the very technologies that help us keep up with our work and personal lives can be vulnerable to hackers and identity thieves.

When looking for a public Wi-Fi hotspot, be sure to connect your smartphone or laptop only to reputable providers—for example, the hotel’s or coffee shop’s wireless network. Be wary about connecting to hotspots that have misspellings such as Bongo instead of Boingo, as hackers sometimes use these seemingly innocent names to lure busy users who aren’t paying close attention.

It’s also possible for hackers to distribute malware (software that can damage or disable your computer) through an unsecured Wi-Fi connection, especially if you are using a file-sharing program over the same network.

If you have security concerns about using a public Wi-Fi hotspot, you could consider creating a virtual private network (VPN), which allows you to use to the Internet through an encrypted connection. While this can deter hackers because your data is encrypted, be aware that it will slow down your Internet access because of the processing power required to encrypt and decrypt your transmitted data.

If you’re interested in using a VPN to safeguard yourself online:

• Invest in a monthly service. This is one of the most commonly used solutions. Make sure to do your research before you buy.
• Consider purchasing a VPN-enabled router. There are several models on the market that make setting up your own VPN easy.

With more than 9 billion Wi-Fi-enabled mobile devices expected to be in use by the end of the year, the importance of hotspots and Wi-Fi in our lives really can’t be overstated.

The company did not specify how many employees in total were affected. Lacework had reported having more than 1,000 employees in March, following a $1.3 billion funding round at an $8.3 billion valuation in November.

A well-funded startup in the cybersecurity industry, Lacework, has become the latest tech firm to disclose a major round of layoffs amid fears of a broader economic slowdown.

In a statement provided to Protocol, Lacework confirmed that the layoffs impacted 20% of its employees, in connection with what it called a “decision to restructure our business.”

The company did not disclose how many employees in total have been laid off. Lacework had previously disclosed having more than 1,000 employees as of March 2022.

A Lacework representative said that a figure for the total number of employees affected by the layoffs shared on Twitter on Wednesday was a “significant overestimate.”

In a blog post Wednesday, the cloud security vendor said that “today, we made the very difficult decision to say goodbye to some of our colleagues, as part of a restructuring and modification to the company plan.”

The company has “taken every effort to provide those impacted with severance encompassing compensation, healthcare coverage, and access to outplacement support. As they pursue opportunities outside of the company we will help in whatever way we can,” the company said in its blog post, signed by co-CEOs David Hatfield and Jay Parikh.

Lacework has raised $1.85 billion in funding since its launch in 2014, most of which was announced in 2021. The company disclosed raising $525 million in January 2021, followed by a $1.3 billion funding in November 2021 that brought with it an eye-popping valuation of $8.3 billion. Lacework touted the fundraise as “the largest funding round in security industry history,” and the firm ranks at No. 3 in terms of the biggest valuations for privately held security companies, according to CB Insights.

The company has said that its customer base grew by 3.5X in 2021. Between the massive funding and rapid expansion of its business, Lacework went on a hiring spree last year — going from 200 employees in January 2021 to more than 1,000 as of March.

However, “over the past several weeks and months, a seismic shift has occurred in both the public and private markets,” the co-CEOs said in the post. “While we do not have control of the environment around us, we do have a responsibility to control how we operate our business and make changes as needed to best position the company for continued and long-term success.”

Lacework offers a “data-driven” service that aims to stand out in the fast-growing cloud security market by collecting and analyzing data from across a customer’s cloud environments. The goal is to to provide customers with crucial security insights, such as which threats should be prioritized for action, the company has said.

The Lacework platform supports AWS, Google Cloud, Microsoft Azure and Kubernetes (Amazon EKS) environments. Previously disclosed customers include VMware, Snowflake and Pure Storage.

Lacework is also notable for having been just the third company to be incubated out of Sutter Hill Ventures, following a model that was used to launch Pure Storage and Snowflake. The company is led by Hatfield, who was formerly the president of Pure Storage, and Parikh, previously Facebook’s vice president of engineering.

“Despite the broader economic environment – demand for cloud security will remain strong, and it is critical to all online, cloud businesses,” the co-CEOs said the post Wednesday.

Over the past few years, smartphones have evolved a lot. Apart from making calls, smartphones are nowadays utilized for various different purposes like browsing the web, watching videos, playing games, etc. So, Android smartphones can now do almost everything that a computer does.

Do you know that you can remotely control the power on/off the menu of a computer with a smartphone? Actually, it’s possible to remotely shutdown a PC from anywhere with a smartphone. In this article, we are going to share a few best methods that would help you to remotely shutdown Windows PC from anywhere using Android smartphones.

To remotely shut down a Windows PC from anywhere using Android, we need to use a few third-party apps. Below, we have shared the three best methods to shutdown Windows computers from a smartphone.

1. Using Airytec Switch Off

Airytec Switch Off is one of the best and easiest to use Windows software to shut down, suspend, or hibernate Windows 10 system. It’s a web client that works inside the browser. Follow some of the simple steps given below to use Airytec Switch Off

Step 1. First of all, download and install the program Airytec switch off.

Step 2. Once installed, you will find a shutdown icon in the system tray.

Step 3. Click on the icon and tick the options there according to your need. Just make sure to enable the option ‘Force applications to close’

Step 4. Now right click on the shutdown icon and click on settings. Now open the ‘Remote’ tab and click on Edit Web interface Settings.

Step 5. Under the web interface settings, check the option ‘Enable Web interface’ and uncheck the ‘Enable Authentication (basic)’ option. Once done, click on the ‘Apply’ button.

Step 6. Now click on ‘view/update static addresses’ and note down the Shutdown URL. You can bookmark the webpage URL on your mobile. Now double-click on the Airytec Switch Off icon on the system tray and enable tasks.

Step 7. Now open the URL on your mobile and you will see a screen like below.

Step 8. To shut down your computer, just click on the ‘Shutdown’ option. You can also Restart, Sleep, and hibernate your PC from mobile.

 

 

That’s it! you are done. By using this, now you can easily shut down your computer from anywhere using your phone.

2. Using Unified Remote

Unified Remote is by far the best remote control app for Android available on the Google Play Store. With Unified Remote, one can easily turn their Android device into a universal remote control for PC. Once turned, it can be used to remotely shut down a computer from anywhere. Here’s how to use a unified remote.

Step 1. First of all, download  & install the app named Unified Remote on your Android device.

Step 2. Now, download & install the unified remote desktop client on your PC.

Step 3.  Now open the Android app, make sure your device and computer are connected to the same WiFi network. If you are connected you will get to see the screen like below.

Step 4.  Now on the mobile app, you will get to see lots of options like “Basic Input”, “File Manager”, “Keyboard” etc.

Step 5. Now you need to click on “Power”

Step 6. Now you will see various options like Restart, Shutdown, etc.

Simply, click on shutdown and your computer will be turned off from your mobile device. This is by far the easiest way to do so.

3. Using Shutdown Start Remote

Shutdown Start Remote is an app for Android to remote shutdown or start your computer. It is very easy to use. Users need to download a Windows client and an Android app to shut down the computer remotely.

Step 1. First of all download and install Shutdown Start Remote on your Android smartphone.

Step 2. Now in the very next step, you need to download the client for Windows. 

Step 3. Make sure you are connected to the same wifi network. Open the Android app and you will see the screen like below. Simply scroll down the screen.

Step 4. Now you need to tap on ‘Start Search’. It will detect the computer automatically.

Step 5. Once the app detects the computer it will show you the screen like below. Here you need to tap on your computer.

 

Step 6. Now you will see the screen like below. Here you can set the time to schedule a shutdown. Or else, you can choose to restart, shutdown, or hibernate your computer immediately.

That’s it! You are done. This is how you can use the Shutdown Start Remote to control your computer from your Android smartphone.

4. Using Shutter

The shutter is one of the great Windows tools developed by Denis Kozlov. The tool allows users to shutdown, restart, and hibernate computers through a web browser. That means you can use Shutter to remotely turn off your computer from a web browser running platforms including iOS, Android, etc.

Step 1. First of all, download the shutter on your Windows computer and install it as usual. You will now see the main interface of the tool.

Step 2. Now you need to set events that will trigger actions. For example, you can select low battery on events to trigger the ‘Shutdown’ or ‘Hibernate’

Step 3. After selecting the event, configure the actions. In ‘Action’ you need to select ‘Shutdown’. Now click on the ‘Start’ button.

Step 4. Now open the ‘Options’ and then go to the ‘Web Interface’.

Step 5. Under the web interface, you need to select your computer’s IP Address from the listed IP Menu and then choose the port that you would like to use. Enter the Username and Password and click on ‘Save’.

Step 6. Now open the web browser and then enter the IP Address with the port number. It will ask you the username and password, enter it and then choose anything from the list.

Using Shutter

That’s it, you are done! This is how you can use the shutter to remotely shut down your computer from anywhere with a smartphone.

So this is all about how to remotely shutdown a PC from anywhere with a smartphone. I hope this article helped you! Please share it with your friends also. If you have any doubts related to this, let us know in the comment box below.

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Social media giant Facebook has decided it’s time for change — by changing its name. But before you think that you’ll have to log in to some different website, it’s only the name of the company that’s changing, not the name of the social media site.

Think of how Google operates, with a parent company Alphabet and the search engine service is called Google — along with all the other Google-owned services like Gmail and YouTube. There are other examples as well, like the photo-sharing and editing app Snapchat, owned and developed by Snap Inc.

Founder Mark Zuckerberg wants Facebook to be known for more than just its social media platform and wants to focus on building a “metaverse.” That’s a fancy word for the online universe the Big Tech founder sees in his company’s future. The new name hasn’t been revealed yet, but the internet definitely has some suggestions.

What you need to know about Facebook

The shift in direction — and name — will allow Zuckerberg to group all of Facebook’s products and services together under one main entity. Together with WhatsApp, Instagram and Oculus, Facebook will eventually only refer to the social media platform.

We won’t have to wait too long to hear the new name. Rumor has it Zuckerberg will announce it later this month during Facebook’s annual augmented reality and virtual reality conference.

There’s speculation it could happen sooner, though. And with no indication on what it will be called, online users had plenty of suggestions.

Novelist and playwright Paul Rudnick had some choice suggestions for Zuckerberg, which included Facebook ‘N Things, Facebook Zero and That Thing Your Mom Loves.

Facebook is rumored to be changing its name to become a larger brand. Possibilities:
1) I Can’t Believe It’s Not Facebook
2) Mark’s Mart
3) Facebook ‘N Things
4) Friendster+
5) Facebook Zero
6) Facebook NCIS
7) Markwarts
8) That Thing Your Mom Loves

— Paul Rudnick (@PaulRudnickNY) October 20, 2021

The replies to his tweet naturally elicited more suggestions from his followers. A few of our favorites:

• 2 facebook 2 furious
• How I Met My Stalker
• Mark’s Space
• Platform formerly known as Facebook
• Faceplant
• Data Hoover
• MySpaceBook

Here are some more suggestions from Twitter users. Some are excellent plays on words, others are tongue in cheek and the rest are just plain funny.

Faceverse
Metabook
FaceXR
Metaplace
Instaverse
Facespace
MetaFacial
Spatialbook
FBXR
Virtualface
FloatingHeadlandia
Zuckaverse

— Craig Wilson (@craigwilson) October 20, 2021

new theory: they’re changing it back to THE facebook dot com

— The Kleevil Dead (@MilesKlee) October 4, 2021

2016: Snapchat -> Snap
2021: Facebook -> Face

— Turner Novak 🍌🧢 (@TurnerNovak) October 20, 2021

Heard Facebook is changing its name. Will it be https://t.co/9V9SmwKdnr now?

— Jordan Rachel (@TheJordanRachel) October 21, 2021

Guess this job posting is confirmation of the new Facebook name? pic.twitter.com/izSZM3A7tH

— Jessica Galliart (@JessicaGalliart) October 21, 2021

Facebook name suggestions.
Given charges of duplicity – Two Faced Book
For the blunders it makes – Face Palm Book
For the photos you put up – Face Filter Book
For the times it gets scared – Faze Book
If it loses its glory – Fade Book

— Naomi Datta (@nowme_datta) October 21, 2021

Facebook is changing its name to Three Facebooks in a Trench Coat

— 🎃Imani Gandy Corn🎃 (@AngryBlackLady) October 20, 2021

Karenbook

— KG (@1Graveseh) October 20, 2021

Dear Facebook:

We’ve received your request to change your name. However, due to our real names policy, you will first need to fax us a copy of your court order and new driver’s license….

— Ina Fried (@inafried) October 20, 2021

In a July interview, Zuckerberg outlined the new direction the company will take. “We will effectively transition from people seeing us as primarily being a social media company to being a metaverse company,” he told The Verge, indicating the process will happen over a few years. To achieve this goal, the company is looking to hire as many as 10,000 new employees.

Wait, tell me more about the metaverse.

Think of the metaverse this way: You slip on a headset and you’re connected to infinite digital worlds that you can use for anything. Meet up for digital concerts, sit in a virtual office with your remote coworkers or explore faraway destinations you can’t travel to in real life.

You’ll need a 3D avatar, or a representation of yourself. And you’ll need the right gear, namely a VR headset.

Facebook is pouring millions of dollars into developing the metaverse. Specifically, it’s working on VR apps for both social hangouts and the workplace. This could revolutionize the world of advertisements, too.

Epic Games, which makes Fortnite, already hosts concerts and events inside its digital world. CEO Tim Sweeney says eventually you could use the metaverse to test-drive new cars from the comfort of your own home. Imagine that.

Don’t get too excited yet. The metaverse may take another 10 or 15 years to build.

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10 useful tech tips you’ll use over and over. Everybody loves a cool trick such as phone case cleaning tips, . No matter how well we know an app or program, there’s almost always some shortcut we never learned. The same goes for hardware: We may use gadgets every day without knowing their helpful quirks.

10 Useful Tech Tips You will Use Over And Over.

Here are some of my favorite popular tech tips, tricks, and shortcuts for a range of popular programs and tools:

1. Put your USB drive in the right way the first time

Plugging in a USB cable the right way feels like a no-brainer. Then why do we get it wrong on the first try so often?

Here’s the secret: Grab any USB cable sitting around your house. See that symbol on one side? It’s not just branding or decoration. That symbol will point up if you’re plugging in horizontally and if you’re plugging a cable vertically, the USB symbol will face you. Now you know.

2. Reopen a closed browser tab

It happens all the time. You have a dozen tabs open in your browser and accidentally close the wrong one. You could open up your browser’s history and reopen the tab from there, or you can do it with a couple of keystrokes.

Hit Ctrl+Shift+T on your PC or Command+Shift+T on your Mac to automatically reopen the tab you just closed.

3. Share a YouTube video at a precise point

If you see something in a YouTube video that you want to share at a particular point, you can get a link that takes people directly to that moment, you can get a link that takes people directly to that moment. Click the Share button below the video. Look for a checkbox below the link. It will automatically display the time at which you currently have the video stopped.

You can stick with this time or choose a different time. Copy the link and share it on your preferred social media or email it to a friend. When someone views the link, the YouTube video will automatically skip right to the point you chose.

4. Search using “Site:” to find content like a ninja

A Google search can return millions of results. Cut that down significantly by searching just a single site with Google’s Site: feature. Open Google in your browser and type “site:” and then the website you wish to search. Like this: “site:komando.com” but leave off the quotation marks.

Tip in a tip: You can enter “site:komando.com search term” in your browser’s address bar and no need to go to Google. Again, no quotation marks needed.

5. Report junk texts and stick it to the scammers

Junk texts are downright annoying. You can block them, but it feels good to take action, too.

Report texts to the GSMA’s Reporting Service with just a few clicks. Forward the message to 7726 (guess what that spells?) or just hit “Report junk” in your messaging app.

6. Use your voice in Google Docs

I bet you already use your phone’s speech-to-text to dictate text messages or even emails, but did you know you can do the same in Google Docs? It’s free and it works surprisingly well.

Open a new document in Google Docs, then enable Voice Typing from the Tools menu. Then start dictating. Voice Typing recognizes commands like “comma,” “period,” and “new paragraph” as well.

7. Download movies on Disney Plus

Each streaming service has a different policy for downloading video content and watching offline. Netflix was a major holdout until 2016. But Disney Plus allowed this option right away. The download icon is located at the bottom of the menu. Using the Disney Plus app, you can also download as many titles as your hard drive can hold.

8. Crop a screenshot

Screenshots are common practice, but you often capture more than you need. Revealing too much of your screen in a single image can actually threaten your security. Instead, you can take a screenshot with precise cropping, so that you include only what you want.

On a Mac, press Command + Shift + 5, and a rectangle will emerge, which you can manipulate as much as you want.

On Windows 10, go to Start, enter the Search Bar, and type Snipping Tool. This will give you a similar box that you can drag to any shape over your screen.

9. Search WhatsApp chats

Messages accumulate over time, no matter what platform you use. We want to find that one hilarious quote or a vital street address, but it’s lost in a disjointed sea. WhatsApp may be the most-downloaded app of the decade, but many users are unaware that you can search your messages, just like Google.

For iOS versions, there’s a search bar; for Android, there’s a search icon. Either way, find words unique to a specific conversation to narrow down the exact message you’re looking for.

10. Unsend an email

Did you just send out an email to everyone that was meant for one person? Well, Gmail has the ability to unsend an email by adjusting one setting prior to writing your email.

This recall of a message will also allow you to modify spelling errors, incorrect recipients, subject line and even append forgotten attachments.

Be sure to adjust the setting to a higher number than the default setting of five seconds. Let’s face it; five seconds isn’t even enough to realize you made an error, let alone hit the unsend button. Thankfully, Gmail settings provide the option of pausing an email delivery up to 30 seconds.

Bonus Tip: How to electronically sign a PDF

PDFs are already starting to replace paper documents in many offices across the country. They’re more flexible, portable and convenient to use – but not everyone knows you can sign a PDF document just like a physical one.

Nearly every PDF-reading application features some way to electronically sign documents and forms.

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20+ Hack & Tips

20+ Hack & Tips compiled by Palmacedar Limited are listed as follows:

1. Resend your email to people who didn’t open it a few days later. With a different subject line.
2. Spend the time to figure out how to do something faster if you have to do it more than twice.
3. Add an image to your Gmail profile for increased open rates.
4. If you save your PowerPoint presentation in .PPS instead of .PPT, your file goes into slideshow mode when you open it.
5. Want a quick way to unfreeze a frozen phone? Plug it into its charger.
6. Hitting the Spacebar scrolls down a web page; hitting the Spacebar + Shift lets you scroll back up.
7. Laptop batteries can last longer if you charge them up to only 80% instead of the full 100%.
8. Want to play Tetris on Mac? On Terminal, type Emacs then press Enter. Press Esc + X, type tetris and Enter. Use the arrow keys to move and rotate your Tetris blocks.
9. To find the solution to one of your many computer troubleshooting issues, add “Solved” to sift through the results.
10. Saving an Excel file as an .XLSB will shrink the size by half or 75%.
11. Someone’s incessant morning alarm is going off but the owner is refusing to get up and turn it off? Call the phone to turn it off for them.
12. To prevent sending emails to the wrong person, write your email first, and write your recipient last.
13. To paste copied text without the formatting, use Cmd / Ctrl + Shift + V.
14. Can’t watch YouTube videos that have been age restricted but don’t want to sign in to do so? In the URL, delete the “watch?v=” and replace it with “v/”.
15. If you live near a stadium or a hall that hosts public venues, set Google Alerts for the location to avoid being “surprised” by sudden traffic congestion.
16. Want to surprise someone at the airport but don’t know their arrival time or flight number? Google where they’re flying from and to, and the airline they are on e.g.
17. Set important lists e.g. schedule, events, shopping list, errands, as the wallpaper for your phone.
18. The easiest way to crank up your smartphone’s speaker volume is using an empty cup.
19. To delete files or folders quickly without dragging it to the trash bin, just use Shift + Del .
20. Have a lot of tabs open on Chrome? Use Cmd + 1, 2, 3 to go to specific tabs based on their position, or use Cmd + Tab to just cycle through the tabs.
21. Pressing down on Cmd then scrolling on your mouse, zooms in or out of the web page you’re on.
22. In Excel, to highlight the whole row (horizontal) use Shift + Spacebar, and to highlight the whole column (vertical), use Control + Spacebar.
23. Don’t throw away the box your smartphone came in. They are great, sturdy storage spaces to store charging cables and earphones you want to keep with you while travelling.
24. To make sure someone isn’t giving you a fake number, read the number back to them incorrectly and see if they correct you. If they do correct you, then it’s the right number.
25.  Ensure you contact professional cleaning company for the frequent cleaning  of your office or operating environment especially in any environment without air conditioning.

1. Small Dev tools

Link

Handy developer tools with a delightful interface. Provide 20+ tools that help developers with commonly performed tasks like Encoding/Decoding, Minifying, Test Dummy data set, and a lot more.

2. Random Image via API

Link

The most powerful photo engine in the world. The Unsplash API is a modern JSON API that surfaces all of the info you’ll need to build any experience for your users.

3. Carbon

Link

Create and share beautiful images of your source code. Start typing or drop a file into the text area to get started.

4. Peppertype

Link

Generate better content copies in seconds with the power of Artificial Intelligence. Expanding your content for writing blogs is easier than ever before. Get AI-Generated tweet ideas in seconds.

5. Poet. so

Link

Capture and share Twitter posts as beautiful images. You could use this as social proof on your website.

6. Embeddable Widget Apps for Notion

Link

Add 3rd party apps embed or create a custom embed for your Notion Document.

7. SigmaOS

Link

Fly through your work. The browser that makes you faster and better at working on the web.

8. Metatags

Link

Meta Tags is a tool to debug and generate meta tag codes for any website. Tags you can edit and experiment with your content then preview how your webpage will look on Google, Facebook, Twitter, and more!

9. Smart Mockup

Link

• Create stunning product mockups easily and online
• The fastest web-based mockup tool
• No experience or skills needed, super easy-to-us

10. Responsively

Link

Develop responsive web apps 5x faster!

Thanks for stopping by and reading this article, I hope must have learned many new sites which will be helpful to you at some point in time.

Happy learning! 💻 😄

Microsoft has refreshed its Slim Pen to magnetically fit into the Surface Pro 8’s keyboard. Notably, the Slim Pen 2 has a custom chip called Microsoft G6 and haptic functionality that aims to make writing and drawing feel more realistic. Microsoft says that it’s extending the haptic tech to work in several apps, and it showcased the stylus being used in Adobe Photoshop. The artist on display claimed that its sharper tip makes it easier to use and more responsive. It can work with every product announced today, including the Surface Pro 8, the Surface Go 3, the Pro X, and the Surface Duo 2 via its pen cover. It can attach magnetically to the side of the new Surface Laptop Studio.

Microsoft says the Slim Pen 2 offers increased accuracy and “incredible” shading. The most notable new feature in the $129.99 Slim Pen 2 is the haptic functionality that aims to make writing and drawing feel more realistic. Additionally, the hardware feature can send tactile signals when you use gestures in supported apps. In Microsoft Word, for example, you’ll feel a vibration when you’ve scribbled through a word to delete, or circled text to select or highlight it. We’ll see how widely this is adopted soon enough, but regardless, it’s a good idea — especially from an accessibility standpoint.

This clever haptic feature will only work on select devices, including the new Surface Pro 8 and Surface Laptop Studio that run Windows 11. Though, it’s compatible with a wide range of Surface devices old and new, as well as devices that support the Microsoft Pen Protocol (MPP).

Here’s the full list of compatible products:

• Surface Laptop Studio
• Surface Pro 3 to Pro 8
• Surface Pro X
• Surface Duo, Duo 2
• Surface Go, Surface Go 2, Surface Go 3
• Surface Hub 2S
• Surface Laptop 1 to 4
• Surface Studio 1, 2
• Surface Book 1 to 3
• Non-Surface devices that support Microsoft Pen Protocol (MPP)

The Slim Pen 2 supports Bluetooth 5.0, and Microsoft says that it can last up to 15 hours per charge. As for how it charges, there are multiple ways. There will be a charger that’s sold separately, and the Slim Pen 1 USB-C charging base will soon receive an update to be able to charge this new one. In addition, it can charge wirelessly while magnetically attached to the Surface Pro Signature Keyboard, to the side of the Surface Laptop Studio, or with the Surface Duo 2’s pen cover. Microsoft says the Surface Slim Pen 2 is available for preorder starting today for $129.99.