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First, open “Settings” by tapping the grey-colored gear icon. It’s usually on the first page of your Home screen. In “Settings,” tap “Do Not Disturb.” In “Do Not Disturb” settings, scroll down until you see the Auto-Reply options. Tap “Auto-Reply.” On the next screen, tap the text input area, and type any message you’d like. Depending on your settings (which we explain below), this message will be automatically texted to people who send you a message while “Do Not Disturb” is enabled....

PC gamers have to set a myriad of graphics options to balance performance with graphics quality. If you don’t want to tweak them by hand, NVIDIA, AMD, and even Intel provide tools that will do it for you. Sure, if you’re a serious PC gaming geek, you’ll probably want to do this by hand. Doing it yourself can still get you the best combination of performance and looks for your specific preferences, but you’ll have to know what the options are and spend some time testing it....

The BBC produces great detective shows similar to Sherlock, so it’s no surprise that this genre is such a huge hit with viewers. In fact, several streaming services will bring this show right to your living room. Sherlock is a show that follows the tales of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle as we watch Sherlock Holmes solve crimes in ways never before seen. With Watson by his side and Moriarity always on his tail, this show is non-stop fun and action....

Starting with the Windows 10 Creators Update, anyone who installs the Bash environment will get Ubuntu 16.04 (Xenial). But, if you’ve previously installed Bash in the Anniversary Update, you’ll be stuck with Ubuntu 14.04 (Trusty) until you manually upgrade. Ubuntu 16.04 contains more modern, up-to-date software packages. Ubuntu 14.04 was originally released in April, 2014, while Ubuntu 16.04 was released in April, 2016. Update: Starting with the Fall Creators Update, Linux distributions are now delivered via the Store....

You probably use Google search to find out everything from movie showtimes to how tall Jeff Goldblum is. However, you can also use the regular Google search page to find your emails, calendar events, and packages. Here’s how to find just your own stuff with a quick Google search. As an example, say I want to find the email for movie tickets I purchased recently from AMC. To find it, search for “amc” on Google....

Windows 10 has built-in real-time antivirus named Windows Defender, and it’s actually pretty good. It automatically runs in the background, ensuring all Windows users are protected against viruses and other nasties. Here’s how it works. RELATED: What’s the Best Antivirus for Windows 10 and 11? (Is Microsoft Defender Good Enough?) Starting with the Creators Update for Windows 10, Windows Defender’s interface changed a bit, and it was integrated into the new Windows Defender Security Center—which also provides access to security-related tools like family protection, firewall settings, device performance and health reports, and browser security controls....

Every Chrome extension that you install on your computer is actually constructed out of a special zip file that contains files and folders of Javascript code and other resources. The great thing is that you can actually look into the source code of an extension and see what it is really doing. RELATED: Browser Extensions Are a Privacy Nightmare: Stop Using So Many of Them The problem with browser extensions is that so many of them are spying on you, inserting ads into your browser, or doing all sorts of other nefarious things....

Facebook page can reveal a lot about you to anyone who visits. If your posts are Public, everyone can see whatever you share. There are ways to lock down your Facebook account, like making it harder for people to find or changing the privacy on all your old posts. But if you want to double-check what people can see, you can view your Facebook profile as someone else. Update: Facebook no longer allows you to view a page as a specific individual, but you can still use “View as Public” to see how your page looks to the general public....

Adding an image to a Word document is as simple as dragging and dropping—or clicking Insert > Picture—and then moving it to the right place. But what if you want to put your image in a specific place in the document and have the text flow around it in different ways? Well, here how that works. What Does the Default Text Wrapping Look Like? When you insert an object like a picture or shape into a Word document, Word treats that insertion differently depending on what you insert....

The Intel Management Engine has been included on Intel chipsets since 2008. It’s basically a tiny computer-within-a-computer, with full access to your PC’s memory, display, network, and input devices. It runs code written by Intel, and Intel hasn’t shared a lot of information about its inner workings. This software, also called Intel ME, has popped up in the news because of security holes Intel announced on November 20, 2017. You should patch your system if it’s vulnerable....

There’s a stigma attached to apps from phone manufacturers. They tend to feel like unnecessary bloatware. However, Samsung Internet—the company’s blandly named browser—is an exception. It’s actually quite good, and it’s not only for Samsung Galaxy phones. That widespread availability is a sign a Samsung app is more than just an unnecessary alternative to an existing Google app. When Samsung makes it available for other Android devices—just like it does with Samsung Health—you should pay attention....

Are you sick and tired of how slow your inkjet printer is? Does it seem like the ink constantly runs out? Do yourself a favor and replace that hunk of junk with a quality laser printer. RELATED: The How-To Geek Guide to Buying the Right Printer You may think that laser printers are meant for the business world and have no use in a residential setting, but you’d be woefully incorrect....

Since it was introduced, the Apple Watch has gained a number of different modes, but it’s not immediately clear when to use each. Let’s look at each mode, what it does and doesn’t do, and the best time to use it. There are now three modes available to Apple Watch users: Silent, Do Not Disturb, and, the newest, Theater—seen in the image above from left to right. All three modes can be toggled on and off by simply swiping up on your Apple Watch face to access the watch’s Control Center and simply tapping on the icon for that mode....

The iPad got a lot of updates in iOS 11 to make it a better productivity tool. Along with headline stuff like multitasking, you’ll probably notice that the keyboard got an overhaul. While it may seem a little cluttered at first, it’s actually a big improvement. Here’s what’s changed and how to use it. RELATED: What’s New in iOS 11 for iPhone and iPad, Available Now The first thing you’ll notice is that, rather than showing just the letters on each key, iOS 11 also shows a smaller, light grey symbol....

There’s a problem with the smarthome industry—multiple problems, actually. And after experiencing a huge boom over the last few years, smarthome as a whole has reached a plateau of sorts. Smarthome Standards Are a Mess The smarthome industry is fragmented. Every smarthome brand wants to create their own proprietary ecosystem, which results in a ton of products that you can choose from, but that don’t necessarily work well with each other if you have devices from different companies....

iOS 11 was released on September 19, 2017. Apple announced a number of new features and changes at WWDC 2017 this year. From improvements to Messages and Apple Pay to powerful multitasking and file management on the iPad, here are the best new features. iMessage Apps Are Easier to Access, and Messages Are Synced Between Devices The Messages app has a redesigned app drawer to make iMessage apps and stickers more discoverable and easier to use....

Windows 10’s October 2018 Update, also known as version 1809 and codenamed Redstone 5 during its development process, arrived on October 2, 2018. This major upgrade includes a clipboard history that syncs between your devices and a long-awaited dark theme for File Explorer. It was initially set to bring tabs to all your applications, but that feature didn’t make the cut. Text From Your PC With the “Your Phone” App Windows 10 now includes a “Your Phone” app that will bring Windows 10’s smartphone integration features together and make them easier to set up....

Microsoft is launching new “Always Connected PCs” that pair Windows with smartphone-class ARM processors. These devices can run traditional Windows desktop apps and offer long battery life with cellular connectivity, but they’re just too expensive and limited. Future Windows on ARM devices will likely have better performance at a lower price and be much more compelling. But, as usual when it comes to technology, we recommend you skip the first-generation products....

The new lyrics feature comes to smartphones, computers, gaming consoles, and TVs for free and premium Spotify users. It’s rolling out worldwide, so you’ll be able to learn the lyrics to your favorite songs all around the world. To provide lyrics, Spotify has partnered with Musixmatch. Spotify says it is “bringing song lyrics to life through in-app access across the majority of our extensive library of tracks.” Presumably, if there’s a popular song you want to know the lyrics for, it’ll be there....

Alexa is coming to PCs, according to numerous reports. Acer, ASUS, and Lenovo are all working on computers with Alexa support built in, meaning you’ll be able to ask your PC a question the same way you ask your Echo. Oh wait. They did. It’s just that no one uses it. OEMs are adding a third party voice assistant to PCs because they think that’s a feature that will help them sell computers....