How To Fix Your Macbook Keyboard Lights If They Don’t Work

Fix #1: Ensure that your keyboard lights are enabled

  1. Click on the Apple logo in the top left corner of your screen.
  2. Open System Preferences
  3. Click on Keyboard
  4. Make sure that “Adjust keyboard brightness in low light” is un-checked.
  5. Press F6 to increase brightness. The keyboard should light up.

Fix #2: Reset the Ambient Light Sensor setting

  1. On your keyboard press the keys Shift, Command, and the letter G at the same time. This will open the “Go to Folder” box.
  2. Type in /library/preferences
  3. In the folder that opens delete the following file: com.apple.iokit.AmbientLightSensor.plist
  4. Restart the computer.

Fix #3: Reset your Mac’s System Management Controller (SMC)

Choose the correct procedure depending on what Mac you have.

To reset the SMC for a macbook with a battery you can remove (such as the plastic Macbooks) without opening the case:

  1. Shutdown the Mac. Disconnect the power cord. Remove the battery.
  2. Press and hold down the power button for ten seconds. Then release the power button.
  3. Put the battery back in and connect the power cord. Power up your macbook.

To reset the SMC for a macbook with a battery you can’t remove (such as all the unibody Macbook Pros and Macbook Airs):

  1. Shutdown the Mac. Make sure that the power cord is connected and charging.
  2. On the Macbook’s keyboard press and hold the Shift-Control-Option keys on the left side (has to be left side) as well as the power button at the same time. Hold for five seconds.
  3. Release all keys and the power button.
  4. Turn on the Mac.

To reset the SMC for an iMac or Mac Pro Desktop:

  1. Shutdown the Mac. Disconnect the power cord.
  2. Press and hold down the power button for ten seconds. Then release the power button.
  3. Connect the power cord. Power up your macbook.

 

 

How To Fix The 4SNS/1/40000000: TB3T-128.000 Macbook Error

Some people have run the Apple Hardware test on their Apple computers and have run into the error message 4SNS/1/40000000: TB3T-128.000. This is especially an issue on the unibody aluminum Macbook Pros.

According to Apple this error message refers to the sensors inside the computer, specifically the battery temperature sensor.

In order to resolve this issue try one of the following fixes:

Fix #1: Reset your Mac’s NVRAM

The NVRAM in your Mac is a special type of memory that stores certain settings in order to give your computer quick access to them. Sometimes these settings may become corrupted or wrong. By resetting your NVRAM you can bring these settings back to how they were when you bought your computer.

To reset your NVRAM:

  1. Turn off the Mac.
  2. Press down the following keys: Command (⌘), Option, P, and R.
  3. While still holding down the four keys turn on the Mac.
  4. Hold the keys until the computer restarts.
  5. Release the keys.

Once the computer boots you might need to correct your timezone or screen resolution settings. Run the Apple Hardware Test again to see if the 4SNS/1/40000000: TB3T-128.000 has gone away. If it hasn’t then move onto the next fix.

Fix #2: Reset your Mac’s System Management Controller (SMC)

The System Management Controller (SMC) is a system on your Mac computer that controls various battery and system functions. Sometimes it needs to be reset in order to fix error messages like the one you’ve run into.

The process of resetting the SMC is easy however it differs depending on whether you have a macbook with a battery you can remove or a macbook with a battery you can’t. I’ve provided steps for both, choose the correct steps for your computer.

To reset the SMC for a macbook with a battery you can remove (such as the plastic Macbooks) without opening the case:

  1. Shutdown the Mac. Disconnect the power cord. Remove the battery.
  2. Press and hold down the power button for ten seconds. Then release the power button.
  3. Put the battery back in and connect the power cord. Power up your macbook.

To reset the SMC for a macbook with a battery you can’t remove (such as all the unibody Macbook Pros and Macbook Airs):

  1. Shutdown the Mac. Make sure that the power cord is connected and charging.
  2. On the Macbook’s keyboard press and hold the Shift-Control-Option keys on the left side (has to be left side) as well as the power button at the same time. Hold for five seconds.
  3. Release all keys and the power button.
  4. Turn on the Mac.

Fix #3: Have you recently replaced your battery?

If you have a unibody Macbook Pro on which you have recently replaced the battery with a new one then this error is something you can ignore according to Apple. Multiple users have reported that Apple is telling them that this error message is completely normal to have after battery replacement especially if you have a mid 2009 Macbook Pro.

You can always bring the machine to an Apple store so that Apple can their specialized software on it to make sure nothing is wrong but you can probably safely ignore the error message. Many others have. Speculation says that the error has something to do with the Macbook getting confused with a newer battery design thus producing a false positive error message. But the battery and the Macbook Pro should work fine.

 

How to turn off and block ads in Skype

Skype is an excellent communications service but Microsoft has begun to litter the app with ads. Fortunately there is a simple way to disable and block Skype ads so that you don’t have to see them anymore.

The Method:

  1. Open Control Panel
  2. Click on Network and Internet
  3. Click on Internet Options
  4. Switch to the Security Tab
  5. Select Restricted Sites and then click on the Sites button
  6. In the dialog box that appears type in the following: https://apps.skype.com/
  7. Click Add

Then close Internet Options and Control Panel and restart Skype. The ads should be gone! If they’re still there then restart your computer and enjoy your new clean, and less commercial, Skype experience.

 

Solution for Windows XP crashing because of MsMpEng.exe Application Error (Microsoft Security Essentials)

Microsoft recently ended support for Windows XP and has been warning users that future versions of Microsoft software will not be tested for the old operating system. Possibly because of this many users are reporting an issue with Microsoft Security Essentials where their computer runs slow before crashing. The error given is “MsMpEng.exe – Application Error”.

Here is the solution:

  1. Open the Microsoft Security Essentials application window.
  2. Click on the Settings tab.
  3. Click on “Real-time protection” in the list on the left.
  4. Un-check “Enable Behavior Monitoring” so that it is disabled.

And that should do it! Also make sure that you download the latest signature updates.

For sysadmins: If you have multiple computers to take care of you can make a registry modification to the same as above (for mpengine.dll version 1.1.10501.0):

reg add “HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Microsoft Antimalware\Real-Time Protection” /v “DisableBehaviorMonitoring” /t reg_dword /d 1 /f

 

How to Boot into Safe Mode on Windows 8 and 8.1

Unlike previous version of Windows where you could boot into Safe Mode by pressing down the F8 key Windows 8 and 8.1 have a different method for booting into Safe Mode. It’s a little bit more complicated by don’t worry! I’ve listed the steps:

Method #1:

  1. Press and hold the Windows Key and then, while still holding the Windows Key, press the R key.
  2. Into the Run window that appears type in msconfig
  3. A System Configuration Window will appear, click on the Boot tab.
  4. In the bottom left under Boot Options, check both Safe Mode and Minimal
  5. Click Apply
  6. A smaller window will appear, within it click Restart

Your computer will be re-booted into Safe Mode. Do what you need to in Safe Mode and when you’re done repeat the same steps as before except in Step 4 un-check Minimal and Safe Mode. This will allow you to boot into normal Windows.

 

 

How to Easily Find Out What Version of Windows You Have

If you want a quick way to determine which version of Windows you have you can use this handy keyboard shortcut:

  1. Press and hold the [WINDOWS KEY] (the button with the logo on your keyboard)
  2. While still holding the windows key press the [PAUSE/BREAK] key

This will bring up the System Properties window that will display what version of Windows you’re running along with other information.

 

How to fix Error 0x80244018 in the Windows Store

Method #1:

You may have proxy enabled in your internet settings. If so then you can simply disable the proxy in order to resolve the Windows Store error. Follow this steps:

  1. Open Internet Explorer
  2. Click on the Tools button (looks like a gear).
  3. Click on Internet Options
  4. Click on Connections tab
  5. Click on LAN Settings
  6. Check the option “Automatically detect settings”
  7. Make sure “Proxy server for your LAN” is unchecked
  8. Click apply

Restart your computer or tablet and try the Windows Store again.

Method #2:

If you need the proxy server enabled in order to connect to the internet or for some other reason then you may be able to fix the problem by writing the proxy information to a second location where windows store proxy settings.

Simple follow these steps:

  1. Open a Command Prompt (Make sure you run as an Administrator by right clicking on Command Prompt and selecting “Run as Administrator”
  2. Type in “netsh winhttp set proxy IP ADDRESS:PORT NUMBER” (don’t type in the quotes and replace IP ADDRESS with the address of your proxy server and port number with the correct port number, don’t forget the : between in them)
  3. Press Enter

Restart your computer or tablet and try the Windows Store again.

Method #3:

If you are connecting to the internet and you, or your network, uses a firewall then the firewall might be blocking connection to the Microsoft servers. Open your firewall setting and add these entries to your whitelist or list of exclusions (Note: If you’re connecting to a network you’re not the administrator of you need to ask the administrator/IT Guy to add these to the firewall):

  • http://download.windowsupdate.com
  • https://*.update.microsoft.com
  • http://*.update.microsoft.com
  • http://update.microsoft.com
  • http://*.windowsupdate.com
  • http://download.microsoft.com
  • http://update.microsoft.com
  • http://ntservicepack.microsoft.com
  • http://wustat.windows.com
  • https://update.microsoft.com
  • http://*.download.windowsupdate.com
  • http://*.update.microsoft.com
  • https://*.update.microsoft.com
 

How to Download and Install Flappy Bird on iPhone

Despite the game being wildly popular the developer of Flappy Bird decided to pull the game from the the Apple App Store. Fortunately there are three ways you can get the game back on your iPhone or iPod Touch:

Method #1

If you have downloaded Flappy Bird in the past you can restore the game from your iCloud Backup:

  1. Open the App Store app
  2. Tap on “Updates”
  3. Tap on “Purchases”
  4. Scroll down through the list to Flappy Bird and tap on the cloud download button.

And Flappy Bird will install!

Method #2

If you’ve never downloaded Flappy Bird in the past then find a friend who has and ask them to login to their iTunes account on your iPhone. Then they can simply download Flappy Bird from their iCloud backup as described above.

You can find details here: http://www.ilounge.com/index.php/articles/comments/using-apps-from-multiple-accounts-on-a-single-ios-device/

Method #3

If the above two methods don’t work then your last resort is to jailbreak your device and download Flappy Bird from a third-party website. WARNING: Jailbreaking will void your warranty and could break your device. Only do it if you know how to do it. In additional downloading Flappy Bird from a third-party website is considered piracy by most governments.

I won’t link to any website that describe the detailed process for method three but you can find instruction by inserting into Google “How to jailbreak iPhone” and then “How to install Flappy Bird jailbreak”.

 

Youtube video is black – Solution

Are you trying to play a youtube video and where the video will usually be there is only a black screen? Here are some solutions to this problem:

Fix #1: Clear browser cache and cookies

A lot of the time this problem is easily fixed by simply clearing the cache. To clear the cache on Google Chrome do the following:

  1. Click on the button with three horizontal lines that sits next to the address bar
  2. Click on Settings
  3. Scroll to the bottom and click on Show Advanced Settings
  4. Scroll down to Privacy and click on Clear Browsing Data
  5. Select “Cookies and other site and plug-in data” AND “Cached images and files”. Make sure everything else is selected.
  6. Next to Obliterate the following items from: select “From the Beginning of Time”

Try playing the video now.

Fix #2: Download a new version of Flash Player

If you’re using a browser other than Google Chrome you should update flash player.

To download the newest version of flash player click here.

Restart the browser and restart your computer and try playing the video now.

Fix #3: Disable hardware acceleration

If you can play some videos on youtube but not others then disabling hardware acceleration for flash may help.

Follow these steps:

  1. Browse to a youtube video that does work
  2. Right click on the video and click on Settings
  3. Uncheck the box next to “Enable Hardware Acceleration”
  4. Click close
  5. Close your browser and restart it.

Now try playing the video that wasn’t working before.

Fix #4: Update Java

I’m not totally sure what Java has to do with playing a video on Youtube but many users have reported that updating Java has helped resolve the youtube black screen issue.

Click here to download the latest version of Java.

After the install is finished restart your computer and then try playing the video again.

Fix #5: Disable browser extensions like Adblock or Noscript on Youtube

If you’re using something like Adblock or Noscript then you should try disabling it for youtube.com. Sometimes they cause issues like this.

You should also update your filters for Adblock Plus. You can do this from within the Adblock Plus setting page.

Fix #6: Disable all extensions

Disable all your extensions/add-ons in your browser. If the video plays then re-enable each extension one by one testing the video after enabling each extension to determine which one is the culprit.

 

 

How to enable Developer Options in Android, Nexus, and Kitkat

In previous versions of Android the option to enable Developer Options was really clear. However in Kitkat Google decided to switch things up and hide Developer Options from regular users.

 img1   img2

In order to enable Developer options you need to open Settings, then scroll down to the bottom and tap on About Phone, and then scroll down to the bottom again to locate your Build Number. Tap on Build Number a few times and you’ll see a countdown until Developer Options are enabled.

That’s it! Go back to the main settings page and Developer Options can now be found right above About Phone.