Computer questions you'd be embarrassed to ask any where else!

NIMAN

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121440894#Comment_121440894

Just seeing your Spotify query reminded me of a question I had around the service.

Is it possible to see Spotify yo always play the clean versions of songs? Kids have been playing some songs recently in the car and a few f-bombs landed!

Edit: OK, found it in Settings.

wandererz

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121441487#Comment_121441487

Based on the speccy output, a 2.5 inch SSD.

As per the Amazon link for the 1TB SSD posted previously

Dan Steely

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121441497#Comment_121441497

Your post reminded me of the time I blocked explicit lyrics on my son's Spotify. His music of choice is rap so it blocked most of what he listens to ao I had to switch off the block again.

NIMAN

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121442588#Comment_121442588

Yeah I suppose there is probably some songs with no 'clean' version, in which case you won't be able to hear that song again.

RiderOnTheStorm

to the Alexa experts out there ....

I moved into a new house with my son, brought my wifi router (it has 2 frequencies) & smart sockets with me. Smart sockets have to connect to 2.4Ghx signal, which I did. Tried to link them to his Alexa but she wont recognise them. Sockets do work through their own app and I can run schedules / scenes etc. But it was very handy to shout to Alexa to turn on/off X.

So, does Alexa and the sockets have to be on the same Wifi? (because they aint) . Sockets wont connect to the Wifi that Alexa is on because she is on 5Ghz and sockets are 2.4Ghz (they wont connect to 5Ghz) .... I dont know how to change Alexa to the 2.4Ghz wifi and not sure I want to as there are several other smart devices controlled by her (as i say, sons system and he has a lot of stuff set up and he pays for the Broadband)

all suggestions welcome!

wandererz

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121465818#Comment_121465818

What brand of plugs are they?

Do they have Tuya or Smart Things integration?

On the Alexa app you will have to add the integration for the device, which usually involves providing your login for Tuya, Smartthings or similar.

RiderOnTheStorm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121467121#Comment_121467121

i will have to check and get back to you..... thx for the lead

RiderOnTheStorm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121471723#Comment_121471723

have to check the plug brand , i mean.

The app i use to set them up & control them is Smart Life

wandererz

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121471731#Comment_121471731

https://smarthomeways.com/how-to-connect-smart-life-to-alexa/

Check here

wally79

I’m fairly sure they need to be on the same Wi-Fi to work.

EvoEvo

Hi Guys, quick question, do you recommend PC specialist? I read good reviews in general...just to be sure.

Is there any other physical alternative in Ireland ? I'm just a little bit worried about the delivery risks from UK, about damages etc

Thank you

Breezy_

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121494412#Comment_121494412

are you choosing your own spec on there or what ya buying?

https://www.lenovo.com/ie/en/pc/

Lenovo no good?

https://www.boards.ie/categories/pc-building-upgrading?utm_source=sidebar_categories

Probably some there have used specialist lately...it use to be fine.

cnoc

What is the difference between %temp% files and temp files?

waynescales1

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121518815#Comment_121518815

In Windows, anything between % symbols is a variable, in your case "temp" is defined somewhere else on your system, i.e.

temp=actualFolderLocation

The similarity that you noticed above is just incidental, the two folders are probably not related in any way.

cnoc

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121519354#Comment_121519354

Thanks for that info.

looksee

Am I exceptionally stupid (don't answer that, its just for dramatic effect) or is Google Docs very obscure and difficult to use? I have just spent 20 minutes trying to find a file that I used a couple of days ago. The file had been emailed to me to fill in, it is only useable within the docs system, as far as I can see. I was muddling in the dark, then suddenly there it was, so I emailed it before I lost it again, but if I need to find it again I am pretty sure I won't be able to. Where are the damn things hidden? Google suggested it should be in downloads on the cloud, but its a very inefficient way of filing anything and very unreliable.

sundodger5

if it is a form you filled in for someone else, work etc. You do not get a copy once submitted unless it is setup to do so.

Two things, the doc may be still in your browser cache and using the history function may find it.

Best approach with the likes of this is to print to pdf before submitting the form then you have it on file.

looksee

I had filled it in previously, this time I needed to adjust it and send it again. I still had a copy of the first one, though I had copied and pasted all the text just to be safe, I found it more or less by chance. However I just went in and found the doc in 'recent' and resaved it with a different name and it is now in a sensible place and findable. Its stupidly complicated though, I don't really have a sense that I know what I am doing.

victor8600

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121494412#Comment_121494412

My latest (3 year old) PC is from PC specialist. I like it. The build quality is good, the parts are good, no issues since it was delivered. The only problem is that the motherboard they had installed is smaller than I would have picked myself, with less expansion ports. Though to be fair, I do not need any more cards in that PC.

RiderOnTheStorm

Hi. looking to learn to code my own mobile apps. Anyone got a recommendation?

My coding skills were pretty good as I spent many years in IT on mainframes, but that was all before the internet & Java etc.

Looking for something free, and something I can do in my own time at home (not person lead).

I want to code apps for my own phone for my own use.

have spent a minute on google looking for same but it takes ages to drill down through each offering but none seem suitable and I dont want to sign up to one that later turns out to be coding in Python with no App development later. Or is it the same thing?

thx folks

muffler

I'm not sure if this is even the right thread for such a query. There are other forums where it might be better suited.

On a more general note I think the thread has lost its way for some time now. It was originally meant for discussing basic beginner issues but some if not all posts are really for those who are at an advanced level.

Breezy_

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121738285#Comment_121738285

We're all that good.

Nothing stopping someone with a basic query.

Non issue

muffler

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121738779#Comment_121738779

That's the point I was raising. The thread was started for basic queries but really and truly when you look back at what's been posted in the last year or two you could hardly class the content as being basic. Some queries would have been better suited to the computers category.

LambshankRedemption

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121739155#Comment_121739155

I think with the sites redesign, even I find it difficult to find the relevant sub-forums. If someone asks an advanced question, you could just provide a link to the computing or development subforums and suggest the poster ask there for more relevant replies.

looksee

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121738779#Comment_121738779

No, we are not, I vaguely understand in a general sense what coding is, and that's as far as it goes. If people see questions similar, as Muffler says, to some of the more recent ones they might feel that their question is too stupid to ask and they will get sarcastic answers. Those basic questions are the questions that this thread was intended for. I started the thread but I am no longer its mod (or any mod) so I didn't feel I wanted to mix in with the comment earlier. And tbh if you are on the thread feeling that basic coding is beyond simple then you really shouldn't be here either. There are some very computer literate posters who patiently explain the simple stuff without talking down to anyone, and they are very much appreciated.

looksee

So bringing it all back to basics, I have a recent problem that only seems to affect Boards but I am not absolutely sure of that. Sometimes - annoyingly often - while I am typing the words on the screen stop appearing, I am typing away and nothing is happening. I have to find the curser and click it back to where the words stopped, then start again. It did it about 5 or 6 times in my comment above, so far it has not happened at all in this answer. Is it likely to be Boards or my (new) laptop?

muffler

That's a fair point made above about sub forums being hard to find.

I'm not being critical of anyone and I'm certainly not singling out individual posters but it just feels as though this thread is the "go to" place for all computer related queries even the more technical queries that some of us might even struggle to read let alone answer.

con747

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121739592#Comment_121739592

I find the best option to find relevant threads since the changeover is by googling the subject/content with boards.ie at the end of it. I find most threads that way because the search here is beyond useless.

RiderOnTheStorm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121739496#Comment_121739496

this happens to me regularly on my laptop, and I am blaming the touchpad .... i seem to touch / bump it with my wrist as I type (if typing a lot) and then the cursor jumps around. Not specific to Boards however. Do you have a touchpad?

Again...not Boards only, but some of the websites / software I use for work have some very funny drop-down menus and depending on what you pick from a list, then another box is opened , and this can take several seconds to happen on a bad site / poor speed / busy system. The result is whatever you typed after clicking a selection is wiped when the new box is opened. Anything like that happening Looksee?

Lastly, the old reliable, delete your cache and/or power off the laptop. Dont just reboot. It has to power down and up. This will clear temp stuff and install new stuff (stop me if Im getting technical). The longer any computer stays up the more links / addresses / etc it has to monitor and so the more that can go wrong. Power down & up will start the programs in the correct order . 25 years in IT and I can swear this works more often that it should ....

TLDR - turn it off and on

looksee

Thanks for your reply. That's interesting about the touchpad, I will pay attention next time it happens and see if that could be a possibility, it does seem quite likely.

I have not been aware of the other issue you mentioned.

I do in fact turn off my computer completely at the end of the day so it is rebooted every day I use it, hangover from days when you had only a tiny bit of processing power/memory or whatever, and it was necessary. I also clear cache with reasonable frequency, I do agree it is a bit of a magic cure, along with the tioaoa cure which is my go-to action.

My new touch pad does not have separate left click right click sections, you just aim to hit the corner of the touch pad and hope for the best. I find it a bit temperamental - like a few things on this laptop. I have had randomly touching the touch pad result in a video speeding up briefly, I don't know what that is about, but it is not important.