2 Create hotstring
Hotstrings work in the same way as
autocorrect entries in Word. Click the ‘+’
button to create your first hotstring. Type
the shortcut or frequently misspelled
word into the Hotstring box and the
correct text where directed.1 First steps
After installing (or adding to your
portable toolkit), launch Texter – it’ll appear
in your Taskbar notification area. First steps is
to right-click this icon and choose Manage
Hotstrings to bring up the main Texter
Management window.GETASYSTEMWIDE
AUTOCORRECTTOOL
Q Can you suggest a free
autocorrect tool that works
outside of Microsoft Word?
PeterHope
Cat’s solution
Try Texter – visit
http://bit.ly/texter-win
for download links.
Although 12 years old, it works
perfectly in Windows 10. It’s a text
substitution app that saves you
countless keystrokes by replacing
abbreviations with commonly used
phrases you define. Here’s a quick
guide to how it works.
Quickfirequestions
It also alleges to provide a stronger,
faster broadband download speed.
This suggests that broadband
providers don’t give you the speed
initially promised?
HaroldHaywoodAlex’s solution
Wi-Fi signal boosters
have no effect on the
speed of your internet
connection as it’s delivered to your
home by your broadband provider,
but they can improve download
speeds over Wi-Fi. To see how this
works, first visit http://www.speedtest.net
in your browser on a PC connected
to your router modem via Ethernet
cable. The results here provide the
benchmark speed of your internet
connection to your home.
Now repeat the test on a
Wi-Fi-enabled device (if you’re on a
mobile, install the free Speedtest
app) at different points in yourWhatever I do, I can’t get
OneDrive to open. I’ve
downloaded and reinstalled it,
but still: nothing. I’m running
Windows 10 Pro.
John PerkinPress [Win] + [R], type ‘gpedit.
msc’ and hit [Enter]. Navigate
to Administrative Templates\
Windows Components\
OneDrive under Computer
Configuration, double-click
‘Prevent the usage of OneDrive
for File Storage’ and set it to
Disabled. Click OK.After installing the 1903
update, my taskbar and
Start menu are now light
grey. How can I change this
to something less insipid?
Helen FosterNavigate to Settings >
Personalisation > Colours. Set
Dark mode as your default,
then scroll down, choose a
different accent colour and
then tick ‘Start, taskbar and
action centre’ to apply it to
these elements.How can I display the
difference in time between
two dates in Microsoft Excel?
Brian WillockUse the DATEDIF function – for
example, =DATEDIF(D9, E9, “d”)
returns the difference between
the dates in cells D9 and E9 in
days. See http://bit.ly/datedif-
excel for a complete guide.3000-series chips – unless you’re
intending to install such a chip, we
recommend avoiding this update
as it’s also been known to slow
down the POST process.Gaming
BLUETOOTHAUDIO
PROBLEM
Q When using my Bluetooth
headphones and playing a
game, the sound often cuts out
when the game starts, having
played perfectly well before
opening the game, and on the
game’s menu screen. Open the
game, however, and after a short
crackle it’s completely silent. This
behaviour isn’t consistent with
every game and makes me wonder
if it’s something to do with DirectX.
Any pointers?
DeanVineenNickP’ssolution
Wetracedthecauseof
thisproblemtothe
Bluetoothheadphones’
built-inmic.Manyusershave
complainedofsimilarissues,and
theworkaroundforthosewho
don’tusethemicis tosimply
disableit:right-clickthespeaker
iconintheTaskbarnotificationarea
andchoose‘OpenSoundsettings’.
ScrolldowntotheRelatedSettings
sectionandclick‘SoundControl
Panel’.SwitchtotheRecordingtab,
right-clickyourHeadset’sentryand
chooseDisable,whichshould
resolvetheproblem.Internet
CANWIFIBOOSTERS
IMPROVEMYINTERNET
CONNECTION?
Q There have been numerous
adverts relating to a
Superbooster Wi-Fi booster that
claims to provide stronger
broadband throughout the house.EXTEND RANGE
Improve wireless
performance with
a Wi-Fi booster.66 |^ |^ December 2019