How do I remove unwanted programs from my computer?
Uninstalling software properly on Windows and Mac, clearing what starts automatically, and telling junk from things the system needs.
beginner30 min2 min read
Technology
Phones, laptops, home networks and accounts — with a bias towards fixing what you have rather than replacing it, and towards security advice that is actually worth the effort.
590 guides
How do I untangle my accounts and devices after a relationship ends?
The order to work in — email first, then the shared account layer, then devices, then the household — and the specific things people forget until months later.
intermediate1 hr 30 min4 min readHow do I wipe a device properly before selling it?
The order of sign-outs and resets that removes your data and unlinks the device from your accounts.
beginner1 hr2 min readI got a verification code I did not ask for — what does that mean?
Why an unexpected code usually means the password is already known, the one thing never to do with it, and the fifteen minutes of work that closes the door.
beginner15 min3 min readI got an email saying they have a video of me — is it real?
Why the email quotes a password you recognise, why there is almost never a video, what paying actually does, and the different route when the threat is real.
beginner5 min3 min readIs a password manager safe if the company gets hacked?
How the encryption actually works, what a real breach of a manager did and did not expose, the risk that is genuinely yours, and when a manager is still the right answer.
beginner10 min3 min readWhat do all the sockets on the back of a TV actually do?
Every socket on a modern television explained by what it is for, including why the HDMI sockets are not interchangeable and which one the soundbar has to use.
beginner15 min4 min readWhat would I actually lose if my computer died tomorrow?
Most backups protect the wrong things. This is the hour that finds what is genuinely irreplaceable on your machine — and it is rarely what people assume.
beginner1 hr4 min readWhy did my printer stop working after I changed my router?
A wireless printer stores one network name and password and has no way of being told they have changed. What to do, in what order, and how to make the next router change painless.
beginner25 min3 min readWhy does my computer say it is full when I have deleted everything?
The missing space is in snapshots, restore points, update caches, the recycle bin, the hibernation file and system reserves. Where each one lives and what is safe to reclaim.
beginner40 min4 min readWhy have some apps stopped working on my old phone?
Developers raise the minimum operating system version their app supports, and your phone can no longer go high enough. It is not a fault and there is no fix on the phone itself.
beginner20 min4 min readWhy is my computer screen flickering?
One test tells you whether a flickering screen is software or hardware in about thirty seconds. What it is, and what each answer means.
beginner20 min5 min readWhy is my upload speed so much slower than my download?
On most UK connections the asymmetry is designed in, not a fault. What sets your upload figure, when it genuinely matters, and the one symptom that means something is actually wrong.
beginner10 min3 min readWhy is there no sound on my computer?
A short check from the obvious to the driver level, in the order that resolves the most cases fastest.
beginner15 min2 min readAre QR codes safe to scan?
Why a QR code is just a link you cannot read, where fake ones are being placed in the UK, and the two checks that make scanning safe.
beginner10 min3 min readCan I move my WhatsApp chats from Android to iPhone, or back?
Yes, but only during the new phone's first setup, using the official migration route with a cable. Miss that window and you erase the new phone or accept a fresh start.
intermediate1 hr4 min readCan someone steal my phone number, and how would I know?
How a number is taken over, why losing signal is the alarm, the accounts to secure first, and the port-out protections most networks offer but do not advertise.
beginner12 min3 min readDo I still need to pay for antivirus software?
What the built-in protection now covers on Windows, Mac, Android and iPhone, where a paid product genuinely adds something, and why the biggest risks are no longer viruses at all.
beginner10 min3 min readHow do I buy gig or festival tickets without being scammed?
Why the sold-out moment is when fraud peaks, the resale sites that are actually accountable, and why paying by transfer to a stranger is the single decision that costs people the money.
beginner10 min3 min readHow do I choose a phone?
The specifications that actually affect daily use, and the ones marketing emphasises that do not.
beginner45 min2 min readHow do I choose a television?
Size, panel type and brightness matter; most of the rest of the specification does not.
beginner25 min2 min readHow do I choose headphones?
Start from where you will use them — that decides more than any specification.
beginner20 min2 min readHow do I download software without picking up junk?
Where to download from, the three moments during an installer where unwanted extras are added, and how to undo it if something slipped through.
beginner15 min3 min readHow do I factory reset a router, and when should I not?
The pinhole is not a restart. What a reset actually clears, the three situations where it is the right answer, the much larger number where it is not, and what to write down before you do it.
intermediate40 min6 min read
Going deeper: DecisionHQ
Product and option comparisons with explicit criteria, rather than a single recommendation.
DecisionHQ is in development — GuideHQ covers the practical answers in the meantime.