Stories by Chris Byers

How to find lost iTunes files

Question: When I got my PC back after being repaired, everything that was on it before was still there, except iTunes. I'm worried I'll lose the playlists on my 30GB Apple iPod classic if I plug it into my PC after reinstalling iTunes.

How to use touch to control your Windows 7 PC

QUESTION: I want to use touch to control my Windows 7 Home Premium PC. Is it as simple as plugging in a touchscreen display? I'd also like to view a 3D image - will I need a new graphics card?

Initialise your PC's microphone

QUESTION: My Windows 7 PC plays audio through headphones but is unable to pick up sound from them. I've got a Creative SoundBlaster X-Fi card and a Logitech USB phone/microphone. The drivers are up to date.

Safely dual-boot Windows 7 and XP

QUESTION My PC dual-boots Windows XP 32bit and Windows 7 Ultimate 64bit. Every time I work in XP I lose all my restore points in Windows 7.

How to restore an iPhone

QUESTION I've bought a number of apps for my Apple iPhone via iTunes and the App Store. To avoid draining the battery by downloading apps directly to the handset, I'd like to connect my iPhone to my Windows XP PC using USB and transfer them over. However, when I connect the phone its icon doesn't appear on the desktop (although it does charge up). I've tried updating iTunes, restarting the PC and using a different USB port, all to no avail.

How to get more from a quad-core PC

QUESTION: My Windows 7 Home Premium computer has a quad-core processor and 4GB of RAM. I've not found any advantage to using four cores. How can I use the processor more effectively and allocate different processes to the individual cores?

Run multiple security software products

QUESTION: I've been told that I shouldn't have more than one antivirus program running on my PC. Can I use both McAfee and Microsoft Anti-Spyware (or another spyware application), for example? I want to be extra safe online, and I know that security suites are often good in some areas but not in all. Is there a list that will tell me what I can and can't use together?

Install Microsoft Fix it Center

QUESTION: I get an error message when trying to install Microsoft Fix It Center on my Windows XP Service Pack 3 PC. It reads: 'Detail: The remote name could not be resolved: go.microsoft.com'.

How to choose who sees your photos on Facebook

QUESTION: I signed up for a Facebook account and uploaded some photos to my profile. I was soon contacted out of the blue by someone I didn't want to hear from and who I didn't know could see my photos and profile. I've been told that I should stop using Facebook, but will I still be able to see my photos if I cancel my account, and how can I make sure no one else can see them?

How to fix a Windows startup error

<strong>QUESTION When I power on my <a href="http://www.pcadvisor.co.uk/news/index.cfm?spotlight=1503:p">Windows XP</a> Pro <a href="http://www.pcadvisor.co.uk/reviews/index.cfm?companyId=192&amp;prodcatid=5&amp;submit=View+company">Lenovo laptop</a> I get the error message: 'Windows did not start successfully. This could be due to software or hardware change'. It then gives options to start in Safe mode or Recovery, or to Start normally after 10 seconds. Whichever option I choose, the screen goes black and the power switches off by itself.I've tried restoring the machine to its factory settings, but the same problem occurs repeatedly. </strong><em>Onn Sein</em>

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