Apple Notes is a great app for jotting your thoughts down. It ships with your iPhone, reliably syncs across Apple devices, has great features like sharing, and best of all—it's free. Even so, there are a number of easy ways to improve the app you might not know about.

Not every note needs a title

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By default, the first line in each of your notes is automatically in title formatting, which means it'll be bold and use a large font size. Some people love this, but if you'd rather use a different font size, go to Settings > Notes > New Notes Start With. Instead of a title, you can choose to start your notes off with a Heading, Subheading, or Body text. For normal sized words, Body is the right option. The other two settings let you retain a title at the start of each note, but with a smaller font size when compared to the default.

Change how checklists are sorted

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You can use Apple Notes to make checklists, which are great if you use the app to create shared to-do lists or shopping lists. By default, when you check an item off in these lists, Notes will keep it in place. Some people like it when completed items are moved to the bottom of lists, which you can set by going to Settings > Notes > Sort Ticked Items, and selecting Automatically.

Use a different background color

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Apple doesn't allow you to choose a custom background color for Notes, but you still have a couple of options. If your phone is in dark mode, you can still force notes to use a white background. This is great for people who prefer dark mode in general, but find it easier to read text against a white background. Make this adjustment by going to Settings > Notes > Note Backgrounds and selecting Light. This option doesn't appear at all if you use light mode on your phone—it's only for people who've enabled dark mode.

Pick lines or grids for handwriting

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Apple Notes lets you use a stylus to handwrite your notes, but the default setting shows you a blank page when you start writing. If you're the kind of person who prefers a ruled notebook, go to Settings > Notes > Lines & Grids and take your pick. 

Make sorting work for you

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Apple Notes' default sorting options are good, but you can still make changes if you'd prefer something else. Go to Settings > Notes and scroll down to the Viewing section. If you don't like your notes grouped by date, you can disable that option, although I don't recommend it. You can also select Sort Notes By and choose Date Created or Title. The former will stop reordering notes every time you make a change to an older note, while the latter will sort your notes alphabetically.

View your notes as a gallery

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If you're tired of viewing notes as a text-based list, you can switch to a gallery view. Some people find the gallery view easier to skim through and others like it because it's aesthetically pleasing. Make the switch by opening the Notes app on your iPhone and tapping the three-dots icon in the top-right corner. Select View as Gallery to switch. 

Keep some notes on your iPhone

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You likely keep all your notes tied to your accounts in the cloud, which is convenient when jumping between devices. But if you'd rather keep some notes on one device specifically—say, your iPhone—you can do that. Go to Settings > Notes and enable "On My iPhone" Account. This will show a new folder in Apple Notes: Notes in this folder won't appear on other devices. However, if you have Notes enabled for iCloud, this folder will be included in an iCloud backup of your iPhone.

Embrace notes wherever you are

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Your iPhone lets you access notes from wherever you happen to be on your iPhone, including the Lock Screen, if you add the app toI Control Center. Just go to Settings > Control Center and add Notes. Now, when you open the app from the Control Center, it'll automatically open a new note. You can also make the app open your most recent note instead. To do this, go to Settings > Notes > Access Notes from Lock Screen and select Resume Last Note.

In the market for a new iPhone? Check out these latest options:

• iPhone 15

• iPhone 15 Plus

• iPhone 15 Pro

• iPhone 15 Pro Max

Telegram is one of the world's most popular messaging apps, but many of its privacy features, like end-to-end encrypted chats, aren't actually enabled by default. Not only are these features a bit buried, there are also ways to control what personal information of yours Telegram users can see, such as old profile pictures. If you use Telegram regularly, you should definitely check out these eight privacy features.

Use secret chats for privacy

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Unlike apps such as Signal and WhatsApp, Telegram’s chats aren’t end-to-end encrypted by default—which means your chats aren’t truly private out of the box. However, Telegram does have a feature called Secret Chats, which is protected by end-to-end encryption.

You can enable encryption by opening any chat in Telegram, tapping the contact’s name > three-dots icon > Start Secret Chat. Your contact will receive a secret chat request, and once they approve it, the two of you will be private.

There are some inconveniences with Telegram’s Secret Chat feature, the biggest being that it doesn’t work on all devices. In other words, you may be able to start these chats from your phone, but you won't be able to start one from Telegram’s desktop apps. Secret Chats are also device-specific, which means that if you start a chat from your iPhone, you won’t be able to see it on your Android.

Hide your date of birth

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If you've added your birthday to your Telegram profile, you can hide it from people who don't need to see it. Go to Telegram Settings > Date of Birth > Nobody.

Add a passcode lock

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Finally, you can keep your Telegram chats away from prying eyes by setting up a passcode lock in the app. Visit Telegram settings > Privacy and Security > Passcode.

Delete contacts stored on Telegram servers

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You can use Telegram without giving it access to your address book. If you had previously given Telegram access to your contacts, you can also easily delete all of your contacts from Telegram’s servers. Doing this will leave you with usernames and phone numbers in your chat list instead of the names stored in your contact list. This makes it harder to identify who you’re texting, but for some people the trade-off is worth it for better privacy.

You can accomplish this by going to Telegram settings > Privacy and Security > Data Settings > Delete Synced Contacts.

Hide your phone number

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You can also hide your phone number from everyone in Telegram. Go to Telegram settings > Privacy and Security > Phone Number. Select Nobody to hide your number from everyone.

Stop people from calling you or adding you to groups

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Telegram calls are a good alternative to regular phone calls, but if you don’t want to use the app's calling features, you can disable them. Visit Telegram settings > Privacy and Security > Calls and select Nobody. You can also stop strangers from adding you to Telegram groups by going to Telegram settings > Privacy and Security > Invites and selecting My Contacts.

Remove links to your account in forwarded messages

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If someone forwards one of your texts to others on Telegram, the app adds a link to your profile along with the forwarded message. Stop this from happening by going to Telegram settings > Privacy and Security > Forwarded Messages. Select Nobody from this list to remove the link. Your name will still be attached to forwarded messages, but you can update your Telegram bio to change your name to just initials or your nickname for better privacy.

Delete your old profile pictures (or hide them from strangers)

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Every profile picture you've ever uploaded to Telegram is stored on your profile, and anyone can go to your profile and swipe to see them. If you want to avoid that, tap your profile picture on Telegram and hit Edit. Swipe right to see all your old photos.

On iPhone, delete these photos by tapping the trash icon in the bottom-right corner of the page. On Android, tap the three-dots in the top-right corner and select Delete. While you’re at it, you can also hide your profile picture from strangers. Go to Telegram settings > Privacy and Security > Profile Photo. Select My Contacts on the next page.

The Windows key is your gateway to your PC's Start menu, but you can use it for a lot more than that. From opening settings quickly to managing virtual desktops, your Windows key is hiding some of your PC's most convenient shortcuts. In fact, there are 45 Windows key shortcuts I think all PC users should know about. Note that I'm focusing on Windows 11 here, which means a small number of these shortcuts may not work on older versions of Windows. If you're looking for more than just Windows key shortcuts, we've also got a list of the best Windows 11 keyboard shortcuts. And if you're on Mac, check out these hidden Mac keyboard shortcuts.

45 Windows key shortcuts you should know about

1. Windows-E: Opens File Explorer.

2. Windows-I: Opens Windows settings.

3. Windows-A: Opens quick settings, which allows you to toggle wifi, Bluetooth, volume, and other options.

4. Windows-Ctrl-Enter: Opens Narrator.

5. Windows-+: Launches Magnifier and zooms in to your display. Windows-- (minus) will zoom out.

6. Windows-. or Windows-;: Opens the emoji picker.

7. Windows-U: Opens accessibility settings.

8. Windows-Ctrl-C: Toggles color filters. To enable this, go to Settings > Accessibility and enable Keyboard shortcut for color filters and Color filters. Pick a filter and you're all set. I've been using it to toggle greyscale mode to help me decrease my screen time at night.

9. Windows-Alt-B: Toggles HDR (works only if you're running version 5.721.7292.0 or newer of the Xbox Game Bar).

10. Windows-K: Launches the Cast option in the quick settings pane. Helpful if you want to quickly Cast something to your TV.

11. Windows-X: Fires up the Quick Link menu, where you can access most commonly used troubleshooting options. This includes Task Manager, Settings, Run, shut down, and other functions.

12. Windows-L: Instantly locks your computer.

13. Windows-N: Shows the calendar and notifications.

14. Windows-R: Opens Run.

15. Windows-S: Opens Windows search.

16. Windows-V: Shows your clipboard history.

17. Windows-Spacebar: Switches between keyboards or input languages.

18. Windows-PrtScn: Takes a screenshot of everything visible on the screen.

19. Windows-F: Takes a screenshot and opens Windows 11's Feedback Hub. Lets you report any bugs or other issues with your computer to Microsoft.

20. Windows-Shift-S: Takes a screenshot of a custom selection of the screen.

21. Windows-Alt-PrtScn: Takes a screenshot of just the active window.

22. Windows-Alt-R: Records a video of the active game window using Xbox Game bar.

23. Windows-Tab: Opens the task view to see your virtual desktops.

24. Windows-Ctrl-D: Adds a virtual desktop.

25. Windows-Ctrl-Right Arrow: Switches to the virtual desktop on the right.

26. Windows-Ctrl-Left Arrow: Switches to the virtual desktop on the left.

27. Windows-Ctrl-F4: Closes the virtual desktop you're using.

28. Windows-H: Opens voice typing.

29. Windows-Alt-K: Mutes or unmutes your mic when apps are using the microphone. Useful when you're on a video call or a party chat.

30. Windows-M: Minimizes all open windows.

31. Windows-Shift-M: Restores all minimized windows to their original state.

32. Windows-P: Lets you quickly choose display modes. Useful for people who have multiple monitors. 

33. Windows-Ctrl-Q: Opens Quick Assist, which is a built-in app that lets you control other people's Windows PCs, or allows them to control yours. Used for troubleshooting.

34. Windows-Up arrow: Maximizes the active window.

35. Windows-Down arrow: Minimizes the active window.

36. Windows-Alt-Left or Right arrow keys: Snaps the active window to one part of the screen. Hold Windows-Alt and hit the arrow keys to adjust its position.

37. Windows-Home: Minimizes all windows other than the active window. Enter again to restore all windows to their original positions.

38. Windows-Shift-Left or Right arrow keys: Moves the active app to your secondary monitor.

39. Windows-Z: Launches Snap Layouts in the top-right corner of the screen. Lets you quickly choose a layout and start adding apps to make the most of your screen space.

40. Windows-,: Hold this shortcut to see the desktop. The moment you release it, your open windows will return to the screen.

41. Windows-T: Cycles through the apps pinned to your taskbar.

42. Windows-Alt-Enter: When a taskbar item is selected, this shortcut will open taskbar settings.

43. Windows-1: Opens the first app pinned to your taskbar. Replace 1 with any number from 2 to 9 to open the corresponding app.

44. Windows-W: Opens the widgets pane.

45. Windows-B: Select the first icon in the system tray, which is located in the bottom-right corner of the screen.

Keyboard shortcuts are a boon for productivity on Windows. Many things that take multiple mouse clicks, like taking screenshots, can easily be done with a couple of keystrokes. Windows 11 has several new keyboard shortcuts, but there's merit in learning about all of the best keyboard shortcuts on the platform. Some of these have been around for years, but aren't used often enough. I bet there's at least one shortcut you didn't know about but wish you had.

Keyboard shortcuts for Windows settings

If you're a Windows 11 user, you're no stranger to adjusting settings, since the OS ships with some not-so-great default options. Here's how you can make your system even quicker:

• Windows-i: Opens Windows settings.

• Backspace: If you're a few pages deep in your Windows settings, you press Backspace to go up one level. Keep pressing it again and again, and it'll eventually bring you back to the settings home page.

• Windows-A: Opens quick settings (the equivalent of Mac's Control Center).

• Windows-L: Locks the PC.

• Windows-D: Shows the desktop.

• Windows-N: Opens the Notification Center and also shows the calendar.

• Windows-R: Opens the Run window and lets you quickly launch apps.

• Windows-S: Allows you to use Windows search.

• Windows-V: Shows your clipboard history.

• Windows-Spacebar: Switches between keyboards or input languages.

Screenshot keyboard shortcuts

Taking screenshots is quite simple on Windows, but there are a few keyboard shortcuts that will help you do it quickly.

• PrtScn: If your keyboard has a print screen button, it's the simplest way to take a screenshot in Windows.

• Windows-PrtScn: Takes a screenshot of everything visible on the screen.

• Alt-PrtScn: Captures a screenshot of the active window.

• Windows-F: Takes a screenshot and opens Windows 11's Feedback Hub. Lets you report any bugs or other issues within your computer to Microsoft.

• Windows-Shift-S: Takes a screenshot of a part of the screen. You can define a custom area and Windows will take a screenshot within it.

• Windows-Alt-PrtScn: Takes a screenshot of the active game window, using Windows Game Bar.

If the default tools aren't cutting it for you, then you should switch to ShareX, the best screenshot app for Windows.

Window management keyboard shortcuts

There are plenty of shortcuts that make it easier to manage open windows in various apps:

• Alt-Tab: Perhaps the most famous window management shortcut. Lets you cycle through all open apps and switch between them.

• Shift-Alt-Tab: Cycles through open apps in reverse order.

• Ctrl-Tab: Cycles through open tabs in your browser, File Explorer, or other apps.

• Shift-Ctrl-Tab: Cycles through tabs in reverse.

• Ctrl-1: Opens the first tab in the browser. Change the number to anything from 1 to 9, and you'll jump to the corresponding tab.

• Tab: Cycles through all clickable elements on the screen. Keep hitting it to go to the next available option.

• Ctrl-Tab: The same as Tab, but in reverse.

• Windows-Tab: Opens the task view to see your virtual desktops.

• Windows-Ctrl-D: Adds a virtual desktop.

• Windows-Ctrl-Right Arrow: Switches to the virtual desktop on the right.

• Windows-Ctrl-Left Arrow: Switches to the virtual desktop on the left.

• Windows-Ctrl-F4: Closes the virtual desktop you're using.

• F11: Maximizes the open window or brings it back to its original size.

• Alt-F4: Closes the open window.

File Explorer shortcuts

Windows' File Explorer has a bunch of great shortcuts for productivity:

• F2: Quickly renames files. You can also select multiple files and use F2 to create a sequentially numbered naming scheme, such as Grand-Canyon-Trip (1), Grand-Canyon-Trip (2), and so on.

• F3: Quickly goes to the search bar in file explorer. Ctrl-E and Ctrl-F also do the same thing.

• Ctrl-L: Selects the address bar. Also works in your browser. In the File Explorer, you can also use F4 to do this.

• F5: Refreshes the active window. 

• Alt-Enter: When you select any file or folder, this shortcut opens Properties.

• Alt-Left Arrow: Go back to the previous page.

• Alt-Right Arrow: Go forward.

• Ctrl-T: Opens a new tab.

• Ctrl-Shift-N: Creates a new folder.

• Alt-P: Opens the preview pane.

Useful miscellaneous shortcuts

There are many, many more keyboard shortcuts in Windows. Here are some of the most useful among them:

• Ctrl-C: Copy.

• Ctrl-X: Cut.

• Ctrl-V: Paste

• Ctrl-Shift-V: Paste without formatting.

• Ctrl-Z: Undo.

• Ctrl-Y: Redo.

• Ctrl-D: Deletes the selected item and sends it to the Recycle Bin. You can also press Delete to do this.

• Ctrl-Esc: Opens the Start menu. Useful alternative if your keyboard's Windows key isn't working.

• Ctrl-Shift-Esc: Opens Task Manager.

• Shift-F10: The keyboard version of the right-click.

• Shift-Delete: Permanently deletes selected items.

• Esc: Helps you escape lots of things, such as pop-ups or accidentally executed actions.

Looking for a new Windows laptop? Our friends at PCMag have a list of the best notebooks for 2024, including:

• HP Pavilion Plus 14 (2023, AMD): $831.27

• Acer Aspire 3 (A315-24P): $414 (usually $499.99)

• Asus Zenbook 14X OLED (Q420): $838

• Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 12: $1,999 (usually $2,099)

• Dell XPS 15 (9530) (2023): $1,650

Steam's refund policy has been a big hit with players since it was introduced in 2015. You can ask for a refund on any game within two weeks of purchase as long as you haven't played it for more than two hours. This policy is so famous, there are many speedrunners who try to finish games within this two-hour window and get a refund. Until now, this policy had a loophole: Play time didn't count for some pre-release games. This meant you could play any game in Advanced Access for as long as you liked and then refund it, so long as you didn't accrue more than two hours of additional game time after launch.

What is Advanced Access on Steam?

Steam defines Advanced Access as the ability to play the final version of a game before release. Think of it as being able to pay extra to get into Disney World an hour before everyone else. Plenty of games include a few days or even a week of Advanced Access in their deluxe purchase bundles, and to help make this clearer, Steam has added a new label on the store page for games in Advanced Access.

Credit: Valve Corporation

Advanced Access is different from Early Access, where developers release games that are still in development and use Steam sales as a means of funding. While Early Access games were not vulnerable to this loophole, some players abused the refund policy on Advanced Access games to get dozens of hours of play in before a game's official release, only to refund it and snag all that play time for free.

Steam has fixed the Advanced Access refund loophole

On Steam's refunds page, the company has changed its policy to stop players from exploiting this loophole. The updated wording is as follows:

REFUNDS ON TITLES PURCHASED PRIOR TO RELEASE DATE

When you purchase a title on Steam prior to the release date, the two-hour playtime limit for refunds will apply (except for beta testing), but the 14-day period for refunds will not start until the release date. For example, if you purchase a game that is in Early Access or Advanced Access, any playtime will count against the two-hour refund limit. If you pre-purchase a title which is not playable prior to the release date, you can request a refund at any time prior to release of that title, and the standard 14-day/two-hour refund period will apply starting on the game’s release date.

Previously, the 14-day/two-hour clock started only after the game's official release date. Now, you'll have to be careful if you're impulse buying games that look promising. At the time of writing, TopSpin 2K25 is in Advanced Access, so if you start playing it now, know that your refund clock will be ticking.

Windows 11 has a search bar in the taskbar and the Start menu, which lets you look for things both on your computer and on the internet. But if you click any results from the internet, Windows will open them in Microsoft Edge, even if that's not your default browser. Luckily, there's a way to override this and force Windows to open links in your preferred browser.

Install MSEdgeRedirect to force Windows 11 to use your favorite browser

MSEdgeRedirect is the best way to stop Microsoft Edge from firing up every time you use Windows search. The app will also stop Edge from launching randomly, plus it'll let you use third-party services instead of Microsoft's own options for news, weather, and other live updates. Installing it is as simple as going through a couple of setup screens.

Credit: Pranay Parab/MSEdgeRedirect

One of these setup screens asks you to choose an installation mode. For most people, Active Mode is recommended. On the next page, you'll see a number of Active Mode preferences. First, select Edge Stable unless you're running a beta build of the browser. After that, go through the preferences to stop other Microsoft redirects such as Bing Discover, Bing Images, Bing Search, MSN News, MSN Weather, etc. For each of these, MSEdgeRedirect offers a few alternatives, so take your pick.

Take control of your browser and search engine

Once the app is installed, Windows 11's search bar will be a lot more useful. Now, internet links will open in your default browser and use your preferred search engine.

MSEdgeRedirect is a great way to fix Windows 11's default settings. But you can take it a step further. Some people really dislike how Microsoft has slowed down the search function by trying to show results from the internet. Luckily, you can remove internet results from Windows search, and focus on the apps and files that live on your PC.

Sharing your wifi password is a process that's probably better off being automated—especially if you have people coming over frequently, it's pretty annoying to keep telling everyone what the wifi password is. You can either print your wifi password and tape it to your fridge or use these clever ways to tell all your guests how to use your wifi. If these aren't an option for you, then you can easily share your wifi password from pretty much any device.

Share your wifi password from your iPhone or iPad

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Apple makes it pretty easy to share passwords with other Apple devices. You can use your iPhone to share wifi passwords with anyone else in the vicinity, who's using an iPhone, iPad, or a Mac. First, check the following things:

• All devices are updated to the latest available version of iOS, iPadOS, or macOS.

• On your iPhone or iPad, you're signed in to iCloud with your Apple ID.

• All devices have turned on Bluetooth and wifi.

• Personal hotspot is turned off on all devices.

• Your iPhone or iPad and your guest's Apple device are near each other.

Once this is done, ask your guest to connect to your wifi network. When they see the prompt asking them for the password, you'll see a pop-up on your iPhone or iPad, asking if you want to share the wifi password with them. Tap Share Password to complete the process.

As smooth as this is, there are times when this pop-up doesn't show up. If you encounter such a situation, or if your guests are Windows or Android users, you'll have to manually share your wifi password with them. To do this, you can go to Settings > Wi-Fi and tap the i button next to your wifi network's name. Tap Password and use Face ID or Touch ID to reveal your wifi password. You can now share it with your guests easily.

Share wifi password on a Mac

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As long as you have macOS High Sierra or newer, and your guests have Apple devices running relatively recent versions of iOS, iPadOS, or macOS, you can easily share your wifi password from your Mac. This method works well between Apple devices. Just go through the small checklist I highlighted above and ask your guests to connect to your wifi. You'll see a pop-up on your Mac asking if you want to share your wifi password. Tap Share to send it to your guests.

If this doesn't work, or if your guests don't have Apple devices, you can easily find and share your wifi password on a Mac. To do this, click the Apple logo in the top-left corner of your Mac's screen and head over to System Settings > Wi-Fi. Click the three-dots icon next to your wifi network and select Copy Password. You can paste this password in any app and send it to your guests.

Share wifi passwords on Android

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Go to Settings > Network & Internet > Wi-Fi and tap the gear icon next to your wifi network. Hit the Share button to reveal a QR code and the wifi password. Some of your guests will be able to scan the QR code to connect to your wifi, and others can get the wifi password that's written in plain text below the QR code.

Share wifi passwords on Windows

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Windows, unfortunately, doesn't allow you to easily share wifi passwords with others. You'll have to look up the password on your computer and send it to others manually. Fortunately, this process is pretty easy. On Windows 11, you can find saved wifi passwords by going to Settings > Network & internet > Wifi > [YOUR WIFI NETWORK]. Now scroll down to View Wi-Fi security key and click the View button next to it. You'll see the wifi password in a pop-up. With Windows 10, you can do the same thing by going to Settings > Network & Internet > Network and Sharing Center. Click Connections: NETWORK NAME and select Wireless Properties. Go to the Security tab and check the Show characters box under Network security key. You’ll be able to see your wifi password on your computer so you can manually share it with those who want to use your internet connection.

My job frequently requires me to switch from Windows to Mac and vice versa, which means it's easy to mix up the differences between the two platforms. For example, I keep forgetting that the "close" button doesn't work the same way on these two platforms. On a Mac, it usually hides the window. But on PC, it gets rid of it entirely. So imagine my annoyance when I recently booted up my Windows PC and accidentally closed Firefox, which had 11 open tabs. Recovering these tabs was easy, if a bit tedious, and I discovered a few useful methods to speed up the process.

One keyboard shortcut to restore them all

The simplest and fastest way to restore your tabs is a single keyboard shortcut. On Windows, this is Ctrl-Shift-T. On a Mac, it's Command-Shift-T. If you've closed or quit the browser, you can open it again and use this shortcut to restore all the tabs you had open. 

Restore tabs with a few more clicks

If the shortcut doesn't work, you can try an alternate method to restore your tabs. In Chrome (or any other Chromium browser), click the three-dots icon in the top-right corner and go to History > X Tabs > Restore Window. Under the History menu, you'll see a sub-menu with the number of tabs you had open from your previous session. Clicking into the menu reveals the option to restore them all.

In Firefox, you can click the three horizontal lines button in the top-right corner and go to History > Restore Previous Session to restore all your tabs.

Set up your browser to restore open tabs

The simplest way to restore your tabs is to ask your browser to open previously closed tabs each time you fire it up. In Chrome (and other Chromium browsers), you can do this by pasting chrome://settings/onStartup into your address bar, pressing Enter, and selecting Continue where you left off.

Firefox uses a similar process. Open about:preferences#general in the address bar and tick on Open previous windows and tabs under the "Startup" subheading.

I recently upgraded my "unsupported" PC to Windows 11 and was immediately bombarded with banner alerts, ads, and current affairs news that I'd rather not be force fed by my operating system. Windows 11 doesn't exactly offer a pleasant experience out of the box, but you can adjust a few settings to fix most of its issues.

You may be tempted to use a third-party tool to disable all of Microsoft's invasive tracking with one click. While this may sound like the easier method that following this guide, I don't recommend it—it's difficult to know what kinds of changes such tools are making under the hood, and if anything goes wrong, it'll be hard to troubleshoot the problem, as these apps generally tweak dozens of settings in one go. 

Remove start menu ads

Credit: Pranay Parab/Windows

If you hate the Windows 11 Start menu, you can replace it entirely. However, if you're willing to put up with it, you can at least remove ads from the Start menu. To do this, go to Windows 11's Settings menu. Then navigate to Personalization > Start and disable the following options:

• Show recommendations for tips, shortcuts, new apps, and more

• Show recently added apps

• Show recently opened items in Start, Jump Lists, and File Explorer

These options will give you more control over the Start menu and prevent random files and apps from appearing there. Next, remove the ads masquerading as pinned apps. To do this, open the Start menu and right-click the app icon for apps you'll never use, such as LinkedIn or Instagram, and select Uninstall or Unpin from Start.

Block junk from appearing on the lock screen

Credit: Pranay Parab/Windows

It's unfortunate that Microsoft doesn't want you to enjoy a clean, beautiful lock screen. Yes, the company has used the space to show you ads too. You can fix this by going to Settings > Personalization > Lock screen. Click the drop-down menu next to Personalize your lock screen and select Picture or Slideshow. A new option will appear below the photo selector, labeled Get fun facts, tips, tricks, and more on your lock screen. Disable this to stop promotional content from showing up there.

Hide OneDrive ads

Credit: Pranay Parab/Windows

Microsoft loves to nag you about signing up for OneDrive. To stop these ads too, go to Settings > System > Notifications and turn off alerts from OneDrive. Next, open File Explorer and click the three dots icon in the toolbar. Select Options, followed by the View tab. Now scroll down and disable Show sync provider notifications.

Block unwanted notifications

Credit: Pranay Parab/Windows

Speaking of spammy alerts, you should also take a moment to disable unwanted notifications. Go to Settings > System > Notifications and disable notifications for every app that spams you. Some apps don't appear in this list; in such cases, you'll have to open that app and disable alerts from its notification settings.

Stop Microsoft from collecting your data to show ads

Credit: Pranay Parab/Windows

By default, Microsoft collects your data to show you ads. Put a stop to this by going to Settings > Privacy & security > General and disabling everything on the page. 

Disable ads based on your device usage

Credit: Pranay Parab/Windows

Windows 11 tracks your device usage as another way to serve you ads. Go to Settings > Personalization > Device Usage and disable each setting on this page to stop them.

Fix taskbar annoyances

Credit: Pranay Parab/Windows

If you don't want to use Microsoft's Copilot AI or see the news widgets in the taskbar, then you can hide them. Go to Settings > Personalization > Taskbar and turn off the following options:

• Copilot

• Task view

• Widgets

This will give you a cleaner taskbar with just the Start button and the apps you've pinned. If you prefer to have weather on the taskbar, you can enable Task view from the settings mentioned above. Its icon will appear in the bottom-left corner of the screen. Click it and hide widgets manually until only the weather widget (and any others you actually want) remain.

Prevent diagnostics data collection for ads

Credit: Pranay Parab/Windows

Finally, you can stop Microsoft from collecting diagnostics data for ads. To do so, go to Settings > Privacy & security > Diagnostics and feedback and disable Tailored experiences. For good measure, you should also disable Send optional diagnostics data.

A lot of people with perfectly good computers cannot upgrade to Windows 11. When Microsoft released the latest version of Windows, it put some stringent minimum system requirements in place, the toughest of which was TPM 2.0 support. Plenty of people have PCs with older versions of Trusted Platform Module (TPM) or good gaming machines that lack TPM entirely, which means that Windows 11 is out of their reach. However, there's an easy way to bypass TPM checks and install Windows 11 on your PC.

The risks of installing Windows 11 on an unsupported PC

Let me state the obvious right up front: it's not a good idea to upgrade low-end PCs to Windows 11. Microsoft requires a minimum of 4GB RAM and 64GB of free space to install Windows 11, and if your PC doesn't have that, you should avoid this upgrade. This guide is primarily for those who have perfectly capable PCs, but can't upgrade to Windows 11 due to TPM restrictions.

Microsoft's main reason behind pushing for TPM is to increase security. PCs with TPM are more resilient against malware and ransomware attacks, and are able to store sensitive data locally in a more secure way. The company says that if you install Windows 11 on an unsupported PC, you may face compatibility issues, may not receive support from Microsoft, and may experience poor performance. You're also warned that any damage to your PC won't be covered under warranty.

If your PC is under warranty, it's recommended that you don't mess with it. However, if the warranty has expired, you might want to consider upgrading it to Windows 11 anyway because another deadline is looming. Microsoft has announced that it'll be discontinuing updates for these computers starting Oct. 14, 2025. 

What happens after the last Windows 10 security update

Once the last security update is issued, it's strongly recommended that you don't use your PC on the internet. You'll be vulnerable to new types of malware, viruses, and other threats from the internet, and there'll be no real security patches to protect you.

You do have the option to pay for updates as part of Microsoft's Extended Security Updates (ESU) program, but that is an expensive proposition. For businesses, it costs $61 per device for the first year, and the price doubles with each subsequent year. Microsoft hasn't revealed the pricing of these updates for individual users yet, but if you're a part of an educational institution, the pricing is $1 per device per year, which goes up to $4 per year by the third year. 

If the pricing of ESU for home users is reasonable, it may be a good idea to stick with Windows 10. However, if you have a working Windows 10 license, the upgrade to Windows 11 is free and it comes with free security updates for many years to come.

How to upgrade your unsupported PC to Windows 11

Before you proceed with upgrades, be sure to back up your PC. You don't want to lose all your data during the upgrade, so please ensure that irreplaceable data such as photos, videos, and documents are all safely stored elsewhere. When all of this is done, you can start the upgrade process. First, download a Windows 11 ISO from Microsoft's website. On that page, scroll down to Download Windows 11 Disk Image (ISO) for x64 devices, select the edition from the drop-down menu, and click Download Now. Follow the directions until you get the option to click 64-bit Download. The ISO file is over 6GB and it'll take a short while to download.

While that's underway, you should download Rufus, which is a free tool that lets you create bootable USB drives. You're also going to need a USB drive with at least 8GB of free space. If you have one of these, take a moment to back up any important data on this drive because it'll be erased as we proceed.

Credit: Pranay Parab/Rufus

Once the Windows 11 ISO is downloaded, plug in the USB drive, and install and launch Rufus. With this app open, go to the Device drop-down menu, and select the correct USB drive. Click the big SELECT button next to Disk or ISO image and pick the Windows 11 ISO that you just downloaded. Now, click the START button. 

You'll see a pop-up asking if you want to customize your Windows installation. This is where you should ideally enable the following options:

• Remove requirement for 4GB+ RAM, Secure Boot and TPM 2.0

• Remove requirement for an online Microsoft account

• Create a local account with username

• Disable data collection (Skip privacy questions)

The first option is crucial if you want to install Windows 11 on unsupported PCs. The rest are good to have because they let you skip the online account sign-in process that Microsoft keeps trying to push, and they also skip a few annoying setup questions about data collection. With all this selected, click OK and wait for Rufus to do its thing. 

Credit: Pranay Parab/Rufus

Once it's done, double-check that your data is backed up, and it's time to start the upgrade. On your Windows 10 PC, go to Settings > Update & Security > Recovery and click Restart now under the Advanced startup section. This will reboot your PC and start the Windows 11 setup process from your USB drive. 

I used this method to successfully upgrade my PC to Windows 11 and ran into just one hiccup. When the PC restarts for the first time during the upgrade, you should remove all USB drives from the computer (including the one with Windows 11). Otherwise, the installation may get stuck. Other than this, the upgrade went smoothly and I'm now happily running Windows 11. I didn't need to do anything to activate it either. I skipped the step asking me to type the product key and noticed that Windows 11 had activated itself after installation. My Windows 10 Pro key automatically activated Windows 11 Pro post the upgrade.