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You'll get one-year of computer care & repair and everything and all the other benefits of our SeniorPass, PLUS free setup of OE Classic (free version/one email account), free setup and installation of Emsisoft AntiMalware, plus we're knocking $10 off the price of our SeniorPass - for a limited time only.

Ann's friend said her HP printer won't work without Adobe Flash
This is for a friend. She has a windows HP Windows 10 computer and uses an HP Printer. She said her printer will not work without Adobe Flash Player. What is the simplest way to fix this? She knows nothing about computers other than to use one and I'm too far away to help her.

Our answer
Hi Ann. HP Printers (or any other brand of printer) do not need Adobe Flash player to work. If her printer is not working, it's not because of the demise of Adobe Flash Player. It's because it's not set up correctly. The best way to fix it is to get her printer model and go to the www.hp.com website and look up her model of printer and then download the software for it. Before she sets up her computer again, she'll need remove current printer from Windows by going to Settings > Devices > Printers and scanners, click on the HP printer she wants to re-install and she'll see a "Remove device" button appear. She should click on that. Then restart her computer and set up the printer exactly as she did when she first got it.

If you need more help (or if she needs more help), let us know.

Sharon read our article on freeware and wants to know about Privacy Badger
I read your article about freeware. Can privacy badge be used when I have Emsisoft installed? I love Emsisoft will not change it. Thanks, Sharon.

Our answer
Hi Sharon. Privacy Badger is not an antivirus or antimalware, it's a popup blocker and privacy enhancer. So, Emsisoft and Privacy Badger don't do the same thing, and they actually complement each other.

Richard has an old 1TB HDD (Hard Drive) and wants to use it in other ways
Good Morning my two longtime friends. If I have an HDD from another computer (2Tb) and want to clear all partitions on that HDD so I can put it into my Desktop (send bay) to use as a backup of my "System" and File History. Or put it into an external HDD enclosure so that I could either a) use it as a backup for 3 computers - My wife's desktop, my desktop, and my laptop. or b) put it on my router - perhaps with a network path - so that all three computers can be saved without having to move it between them.

I know this is a "Tall Order" but you two friends might know how to do it; or can direct me to a site that would explain it. Is it all possible that you can do it through one of your programs??? I would certainly be willing to support you two - as I have in the past - by purchasing that program. Though I started on computers when they were first birthed, (fist computer was MS Dos) at almost 85 yrs. old, I think I've forgotten more than I knew.

Please advise - I highly respect your advice and direction. Retired Pastor and former dBase programmer, Rich.

Our answer
Hi Rich, thanks for your nice comments. You have many different questions here and I'm not certain exactly what you're trying to do. So, I'm just going to guess and do the Cloudeight thing and give you the simplest, easiest answer.

You can buy an external enclosure for your HDD and essentially make a USB external hard drive out of it. Once you do that, you can use Windows Disk Management to remove the partition (combine them into one partition) however, if you've never use Windows Disk Management before you'd find it easier to use a partition manager like MiniTool's Partition Wizard (Free). Partition Wizard makes it easy to create partitions or combine partitions.

Here's an excellent tutorial on how to make an external hard drive from an HDD. You can do it in about 10 minutes. All you need to buy is an external case which you can buy from any computer store or Amazon or other online computer supply stores. These cases include a power supply, an interface adapter, and a method of mounting an HDD (either 3.5-inch or 2.5-inch). Here's an external case for about $23 from Amazon that supports both 2.5 and 3.5-inch HDDs).

If this does not answer all your questions, it should at least narrow the field for you and get you headed in the right direction. Let us know if this helps you.

Gordon has a warning for all computer users
SCAM - on my wife's computer. She received a message on her cell called a "confirmation of charges" ($299.08), so we went to her computer and her Gmail account. There we saw the email in its entirety. The charge was from Sam Server for purchase of McAfee security software. My wife's name was listed in the CCs. The odd thing about this, was the only contact information to SAM, was a 5xx phone prefix to call for questions. The first calls we made were to her credit card companies, who reported no charges on her account. Next, we sent copies of the email to their sites that collected suspicious documents. Then we deleted the email from her devices. We are certain that this was an introduction to a ransomware threat. I thought you might like an example to share. Thank you for all you do - you are unique.

Our answer (comments)
Hi Gordon. Thanks for sending this. We cannot emphasize enough or often enough that ransomware and identity theft do not happen because a hacker sneaks onto your computer; ninety-nine percent of the time they happen because someone clicks a link in a spam or scam email.

Again, thanks for sharing your experience. Let's hope that it helps others be more careful when clicking links in email - even if that email looks familiar (from banks, stores, financial institutions, governmental entities). If you're not positive, these kinds of counterfeit emails can be vectors for malware, scams, identity theft, and ransomware.

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Jeanne wants to know our opinion of the Vivaldi browser
What is your opinion of the Vivaldi browser? Thank you for your time.

Our answer
Hi Jeanne. Quite a while ago we recommended the Vivaldi browser. It several new features now, but if you're asking if it's safe or not - yes, it is safe.

Vivaldi, along with Brave, Opera, Iridium, Microsoft Edge, Google Chrome, etc. are all built using the Chromium browser engine. So, you can be sure that Vivaldi will perform well. But I can't tell you if you will like it or not. So, try it - it won't hurt anything. You can install as many browsers as you want, just make sure you make your favorite browser your default. Then you can use the other installed browsers whenever you want. I use Chrome most of the time, but I also use Firefox and Edge, plus have three or four other browsers installed as well.

It won't hurt anything to try Vivaldi and test it for yourself. It's free and it is safe. You can download Vivaldi here.

Doug has questions about a large System Volume Information file on one of his external drives
I have a 1 terabyte drive that is not a system drive. It says that the system volume information occupies almost 300 Gigabytes of space. I have two other Terabyte drives that have system volume information that is in the Kilobyte range. Can this be reduced?

Our answer
Hi Doug. System Volume Information is used, among other things, to store Windows restore points and Volume Shadow Copies which can be take up a lot of space. But you say it is not a system drive. and I do not know what you are (or were) using it for. If you were using it for System Restore, you can turn off System Restore for that drive or reduce the space allowed for System Restore points if you're still using that drive for that purpose. Better yet, you can also clean up old System Restore points, Volume Shadow Copies, and other old Windows files by following the instructions in our tutorial here. The tutorial was written for cleaning up drive C:\ (Windows drive) but you can use it to clean up any drive.

We hope this helps you, Doug.

Thomas is helping a friend who lost his Microsoft account password
I've been subscribing to your newsletter for a number of years, thank you for all you do. your help is greatly appreciated. my question is I'm trying to help a friend who is trying to bypass the password requirement for logging into his computer. The problem is he does not know his Microsoft account password, although he does know his pin number. Is there a way to find his Microsoft account password with just his pin number without resetting his password? thank you for all you do your help is greatly appreciated. God bless, Thomas.

Our Answer
Hi Thomas. Thanks for your nice comments and your support.

If he has a Microsoft account such as @outlook.com or @hotmail.com etc. he can reset his password. He can't find his password using a PIN though. Here's a Microsoft page with all the details about resetting a Microsoft account password. That page explains all the ways and steps to take to reset a lost password.

We hope this helps you help your friend, Thomas!

Delores doesn't use Skype and wants to get rid of it
I don't like Skype and don't use it. I have tried to get rid of Skype, but I can't find a way to do it.
Is there any way I can remove Skype from my computer?

Our answer
Hi Delores. It's easy to remove Skype from Windows 10. And while you cannot remove all Microsoft (Store) apps, this way, you can remove Skype.

1. Open settings Click on Apps.

2. In Apps, under ”Apps & features” find Skype.

3. Click on Skype and you'll see the uninstall button Appear.

4. Click on the Uninstall button. (See screenshot below)

Cloudeight InfoAve

That's all there is to uninstalling Skype.

We hope this helps you, Delores.

We can fix your computer while you watch. You never have to leave your home. Just sit back, relax, and watch us work. Get PC service from folks you trust at the best prices you'll find anywhere.

Try it right now! Open the File Explorer, press Ctrl+F3 to go to directly to the address bar and type Google.com, then press Enter.

To rotate a picture, select it, click the Picture Tools tab. (Note: The Pictures Tools tab won’t appear unless you have first selected a picture.)

And here’s a way to close File Explorer that very few people know. You can close File Explorer by using the Ctrl + w keyboard shortcut.

Why You Should Make a Windows 10 Installation DVD or USB Flash Drive
Windows 10 (all versions)

If you’re using Windows 10, you should make a Windows 10 installation DVD or USB right now. It’s easy to do and there are many good reasons why you should. And Microsoft makes it easy to do – at least for now. Who knows what Microsoft will do tomorrow?

Here are 3 of the most important things you can do with Windows 10 installation USB or DVD:

First things first. You’ll need to go to this Microsoft page, scroll down past “Update now” and go to the section called “Create Windows 10 installation media”. See?

Next, click on the blue button labeled “Download tool now”. Then, after you’ve downloaded it, double-click on the application to run it. When you do that, you will see the following:

When it’s done loading, click “Next” and agree to Microsoft’s terms. Click Accept:

Now the important stuff. Since you want to make an installation USB or DVD, make sure that you tick the circle next to “Create installation media (USB flash drive, DVD, or ISO file) for another PC”, then click “Next”.

If you’re creating installation media for the same PC you’re using now, leave the box ticked next to “Use the recommended options for this PC” ticked. Most of you will want to leave this box ticked click “Next”. If you’re creating installation media for a different PC, untick the box next to “Use the recommended options for this PC “, then select the language, edition of Windows 10 (Windows 10, Windows 10 Pro, etc.) and the architecture (32-bit, 64-bit) of the PC for which you’re creating the installation media.

Next: Choose which type of installation media you want to create. Choose USB if you have an 8GB (or larger) USB Flash Drive. A new, never-used flash drive is best, but you can use one you’ve used before, just keep in mind that whatever data is on the flash drive will be erased. Choose ISO if you want to create a Windows 10 installation DVD. You can burn the ISO file to DVD later. After you’ve made your choice, click “Next”.

After you click next, go make some coffee and relax. Windows 10 media file (ISO or USB) will take a while to download as it’s around 3.4 GB in size. For this article I chose to download the ISO file so I can burn a Windows 10 Installation DVD later. But either way you’re still going to be downloading over 3 GB of data.

If you chose the USB option, follow the onscreen prompts. If you downloaded the ISO to create a Windows 10 installation DVD disk, follow this guide:

And whether you choose the Windows 10 USB flash drive installation media or the Windows 10 ISO and made a Windows 10 installation disk, make sure you label it, so you know what it is – and keep it in a safe place. You never know when you might need it.

How Old is Your Windows PC?
Windows 8.1 and Windows 10 (all versions)

There’s a lot of confusion about Windows 11. We have had quite a few people asking us if there’s a way to find out when their computers were manufactured.

Generally, computers older than four years will not run Windows 11, but things could change. And yes, we know that there are workarounds posted all over the web. We’re not recommending any of them at this point.

So how old is your computer?

If you want to know when your computer was manufactured, here is an easy way to find out

Type MSINFO32 in the taskbar search to open “System information” and look for BIOS Version/date:

Cloudeight InfoAve Windows Tips

The BIOS Version/date shows the date your computer was manufactured. In the screenshot above, you can see the laptop I’m using is nine years old. It is running the current version of Windows 10 (Windows 10 version 21H1). It runs so well I use it instead of my newer one.

Please Note: There are always exceptions. If you changed your motherboard battery or flashed (updated) your BIOS, the date shown may not be the date your computer was manufactured.

Want more tips, tricks, and information?

We have thousands of Windows tips, tricks, and more on our InfoAve web site.

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Reg Organizer: Cloudeight recommended and endorsed.

Now available: Reg Organizer 8.70

If you purchased or renewed Reg Organizer through Cloudeight within the last 12 months, you're entitled to a free version upgrade to Reg Organizer 8.70.

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Reg Organizer - A Swiss Army Knife of Windows Tools - Works Great on Windows 10!

Cloudeight InfoAve Premium -Tips & Tricks

The Cloudeight Freeware Hall of Fame
All Windows Users

We grew up with freeware. When we first jumped on the Web over two decades ago, almost all software was freeware. Things have changed. But we still use and love freeware – not just because it’s free – but because it’s good stuff. And you can’t beat the price.

And yes, we know — there’s a lot of good freeware that is not on this list, but we think it’s a good start.

Here is our Cloudeight Freeware Hall of Fame

All the following programs work on Windows 8.1 and Windows 10 and should work well on Windows 11 too.

Irfanview – A super-fast photo viewer and simple photo editor. Always one of the first things we install when we get a new computer. Sometimes, the developer plays games with the installer, but Irfanview always has an option to not install anything other than Irfanview. If this were any other program other than the best and fastest image viewer on the planet, it might not be on this list. Get more information about and /or download Irfanview here.
MetaPad – It’s an oldie but a goodie. This little text editor leaves Notepad in the dust, But the next version of Windows 10 (version 1809) promises to update Notepad for the first time in over a decade – and it looks like it’s going to be good – but still not as good as MetaPad. You can get more information and download MetaPad here. Hint: You don’t want MetaPad LE – just Metapad.zip.
AbleWord – Another oldie – and still a goodie. If you need a word processor and don’t want to make Microsoft richer, this might be just what you’re looking for. The developers say “AbleWord (is) very simple to install and use, it is commonly used as a PDF Editor and also for converting PDF to Word® but of course it is also a splendid Word processor and supports most of Microsoft Word® features. ” Learn more about and/or download AbleWord here.
HiBitUninstaller – It’s an uninstaller on steroids. HiBit is a great uninstaller and a great startup manager, disk cleaner, services manager, browser extension manager, and a whole lot more. It’s a Jack-of-all-trades that has mastered most of them. You can learn more about and/or download Hibit Uninstaller here.
Geek Uninstaller – Geek does one thing well. It’s the fastest uninstaller around. It might not be the most thorough, but it’s fast. If you don’t need all the features of HiBit and you don’t want to pay for an uninstaller (or get a free one that is bundled with no-no ware), Geek Uninstaller (Free) should be on your PC. Nope, it’s not as robust as paid programs like Revo Uninstaller, but it is more than good enough to be on this list. Learn more about Geek Uninstaller and/or download the free version from here.
FastStone Capture (the last freeware version) – The last free version of FastStone is old and doesn’t have the features of the paid version, but we’ll stack the old, last free version of FastStone Capture up against any free screen capture tool around today. Read more about and/or download the last free version of FastStone Capture (version 5.3) here.
7-Zip – Windows users don’t really need a zip utility unless they need to unzip RAR files and/or need more flexibility working with compressed (zipped files). If we had to choose one zip utility for our computers, it’s going to be 7-Zip. Visit the 7-Zip website for more information and to download it. Note: There are separate versions for 32-bit and 64-bit computers.
AutoRuns – The all-time BEST Free startup manager – heck – it’s the best darn startup manager free or not free. But, alas, it’s not for beginners. But if you’ve been around Windows a while and you know the ropes, there is no better startup manager anywhere. If you’re not at least a moderately advanced Windows user, heed this warning: Be careful what you disable/delete with AutoRuns. Learn more about and/or get AutoRuns here.
Privacy Badger – Not exactly an application – it’s an extension for Chrome, Edge, Firefox, and Opera. This extension is the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) product – an agency advocating for a free and unrestricted internet. Regardless of your political views, Privacy Badger is an excellent ad blocker, anti-tracker, and privacy extension. If you’re looking for a very good and thoughtfully crafted extension to block ads and increase your privacy, we think you’ll like Privacy Badger. A lot more information about Privacy Badger – and download links for Chrome, Edge, Firefox, and Opera can be found here.
VLC Media Player – Without a doubt, VLC deserves a place on your computer. It’s a master at playing all types of media files. VLC can play almost any time of audio and/or video file natively. It also deserves to be installed on your PC. It’s our default media player… if you try it, it will be yours too. Learn more about and/or download VLC Media Player here.

And if you want to see our honorable mentions, visit this page.

Cloudeight InfoAve Premium - Essays , Rants, etc.

Happy Birthday, Darcy! May All Your Dreams Come True

Some of you know her as EB, some of you know her as Darcy, and most of you know she’s a special lady. She is the one who makes sure that everyone who writes gets an answer, every order gets filled, and everyone with a computer problem who has a Cloudeight Direct service key gets scheduled.

Without her, Cloudeight would not be around anymore.

She’s a fighter and she really cares. She’s the one who takes the ideas I come up with and makes them work. My head’s always in the clouds — which is why we are called Cloudeight…not really. She makes this our business and our site work. And she comes up with some great ideas too – like Cloudeight Direct, just to mention one.

Her birthday is July 30th. What I wish the most for her birthday is that all her dreams come true.

You don’t know this, but she used to own a bar, and that’s where I met her – in a bar. The bar was called...

Please read the rest of this essay here.

Cloudeight SeniorPass Summer Special

Our Cloudeight SeniorPass Summer Special is available all our friends 55 and older!

If you're 55 or older, this is a deal you can't refuse. Get all of the above for just $89 - but only for a limited time!

What’s the difference between Standard and Administrator accounts?

Administrator accounts have complete access to Windows and its settings, whereas Standard user accounts are limited. If you share a computer at home or at school or at the office, creating Standard accounts is a good way to ensure that the computer isn’t too affected by the changes the users make on it.

For example, if a school gave all students Administrator accounts, they could make changes to the computer’s security, delete system files, run programs that haven’t been approved, and more.

If it’s just you using the computer at home, making yourself the Administrator is the way to go. That way you can install software and make changes quickly and easily.

Our newest Cloudeight Endorsed Email Program - Very Similar to Windows Mail & Outlook Express. Stationery works great!

Read more about OE Classic here!

Sales of the following products and services help support our newsletters, websites, and free computer help services we provide.

Cloudeight Direct Computer Care: Single Keys, SeniorPass, or Season Tickets - always a great deal. Cloudeight Direct Computer Care is like having PC insurance. Get more information here.

Emsisoft Anti-Malware: Emsisoft is the only Cloudeight endorsed and recommended Windows security program. It provides users with a complete antivirus, antimalware, anti-ransomware, anti-PUPs solution. We offer single Emsisoft licenses and multi-computer licenses at discount prices. Also, we offer our exclusive Emsisoft with Cloudeight installation & setup. Get more information here.

OE Classic Email program. The email program that is most like Outlook Express. We can even set it up for you. Get more details here.

Reg Organizer: Reg Organizer is the Swiss Army Knife of Windows tools. It's far more than just a registry optimizer and cleaner... it's a Windows all-in-one toolkit. Reg Organizer helps you keep your computer in tip-top shape and helps you solve annoying Windows problems. Reg Organizer works great with Windows 10! Get more information about Reg Organizer (and get our special discount prices) here.
SeniorPass - One year of Cloudeight Direct Computer Care - unlimited sessions! Get more information here.
Windows 10 Customization: Make Windows 10 look and work the way you want it to. Learn more.

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We hope you have enjoyed this issue of Cloudeight InfoAve Weekly. Thanks so much for your support and for being an InfoAve Weekly subscriber.

Have a great weekend... be safe!

Your friends at Cloudeight,

Darcy and TC
Cloudeight InfoAve Weekly - Issue #929
Volume 18 Number 39
July 30, 2021

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