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Articles by Isaac Akinleye
I changed what happens when I tap a link on Android and there's no reason to do it the old way anymore
Tapping a link is usually automatic. I see something interesting in a newsletter or group chat, tap it, and the page opens. What I rarely see are the tracking parameters and redirects that go unnoticed. Even short links hide where they land until you open them. I never thought much about what happens behind a tap until a network monitor showed me how many connections some apps make. That made me curious about the links I open from newsletters, group chats, and random clicks from other apps.
This extension is the whole reason I use Firefox instead of Chrome or Brave
Open enough tabs for research and the browser stops being useful. Every page you need is sitting right next to a dozen others you probably don't, and there's nothing to tell you which one led to which. You know you need a page, but finding it means you have to dig through several rows of similar-looking tabs. I found a way to keep my research connected instead of just keeping the tabs open. Firefox has extensions that can change how you use the browser, but one changed how I organize my work.
This extension is the whole reason I use Firefox instead of Chrome or Brave
Ugreen Now 10 Mini Gadgets From Ugreen That Are Actually Worth Buying bgr.com - By Aaron Mamiit • 21m Ugreen is a China-based consumer tech company that was established in 2012. With its portfolio of reliable products for charging devices, storing … Roger Marshall 4 hours ago Kansas GOP Sen. Roger Marshall pays off 6-year-old campaign cookie bill CNN - By Alison Main • 4h Republican Sen.
I switched from PowerToys to a free tool that remembers what I was doing, not just what was open
Reopening your apps after a restart is the easy part. Getting back to the folder, tabs, notes, or even the URL you were working from takes longer. PowerToys Workspaces helps by reopening your apps in their saved windows, but that doesn't necessarily bring back what you were doing inside them. I've been using a free, open-source tool for a couple of weeks to bring back those tabs, folders, and notes. It also has a gap I had to learn the hard way.
Windows built-in ransomware shield switch is off by default, and I figured out why
Windows has a ransomware shield most people never notice because it's off by default. It's called Controlled folder access, and it blocks apps from changing files in the folders you protect unless Windows trusts them or you allow them. It's one of the stronger Defender protections that Windows leaves to your discretion. I turned it on expecting trouble because I use a lot of third-party apps. Most of them never noticed it. A few did, and one of them wouldn't let me save a file.
Windows built-in ransomware shield switch is off by default, and I figured out why
Business 3 hours ago Flai’s AI dealership software is booking 50,000 appointments per month TechCrunch - Sean O'Kane • 3h When Flai was raising its seed round last year, it was just a team of three people pounding the pavement to get car dealerships to use the startup’s software to manage phone calls, emails, and texts.
I ran one Windows command and finally understood why my laptop dies so fast
If your laptop runs out of battery sooner than it used to, the battery icon doesn't tell you why. It reads 100% whether the battery still holds everything it was built to hold or barely hangs on. I already knew my laptop’s battery wasn't at its full abilities anymore. I just didn't know how much capacity it had lost until I ran this built-in Windows report. Plenty of apps can check battery health, but this one is already on your PC. It showed my battery now holds 64.4% of its original capacity.
Microsoft Defender has stronger protections you probably aren’t using
Windows Security does more than scan for viruses, but surprisingly, some of its stronger protections aren't necessarily active on your PC by default. There's usually a reason, since a few of them can block your apps or even cause compatibility problems. I assumed the important ones were already taken care of because Windows Security constantly notifies me to take action. So I recently checked them all on my PC and noticed four were off by default, and one wasn't even listed.
I used Android’s hidden app freezer for a week, and the battery difference surprised me
My Galaxy Tab A11 used to need charging twice a day, and I never questioned it. Overnight, and then once again during the day without fail. I'd already tried an Android app freezer to stop unused apps from working in the background, but the tablet’s Android 16 restrictions blocked most of what made it useful. So, I turned to Samsung’s own built-in option instead, one buried in Settings that I'd walked past for months without ever touching.
Samsung's budget tablet runs the same software as flagships, but the hardware can't keep up
Samsung’s less expensive tablets can look a lot like the more expensive Galaxy tablets. They now run the same One UI interface and use similar Android apps. They also handle ordinary browsing, streaming, and occasional work without much fuss. The difference becomes easier to notice when the tablet has to work harder. I didn't think much about the limits of my Galaxy Tab A11 until my phone broke, and the tablet became my go-to device. The hardware hadn't changed, but I started asking much more of it.
I turned my Android phone into a full desktop PC with an open-source app
There's something satisfying about giving an old piece of tech another reason to exist. My Pixel 4 XL has had several green lines running across its screen after a fall broke it. The touch has been hit-or-miss, and while the phone still works, using it was frustrating enough that I just left it sitting and moved to my tablet instead. But I think I just found a way to make the old phone useful again without staring at its damaged screen. I connected it to my laptop to see for myself.
I installed this free open-source app for Android to see what my apps were actually connecting to Original
I use my PC a lot, but honestly, I use my phone even more. That's where I keep my banking, chat, wallets, passwords, and basically the accounts that matter to me. After Portmaster opened my eyes to all the background connections running on my PC that I hadn't noticed before, I couldn't stop wondering what the apps on my phone were doing that I didn't know about. I didn't want just another permissions screen. I wanted to see the connections themselves and see what my apps were connecting to.
Windows still has a filename quirk straight out of the DOS era
Have you ever renamed a file or folder and had it come out different from what you typed? Recently, while pasting a document title into a rename box, I hit Enter, and the period at the end just disappeared. There was no warning or error message; Windows just removed the character without explaining why. Now, this wasn’t the first time it had happened. It's one of those tiny, odd Windows behaviors that becomes the norm, but I wasn't going to let it slide this time.
I had no idea Samsung Notes had a free alternative this good
I've used Samsung Notes for months without really thinking about whether I needed anything else. It came with my Galaxy Tab A11, and it worked, and that was enough reason for me to stick with it. I mostly type my notes anyway, and I've never regularly used handwritten notes, especially not on my smartphone or tablet. I'd actually seen xnotes mentioned on Reddit a while back, but never bothered much about it. Then I came across it again on F-Droid, and this time, my curiosity won.
I installed a free firewall, and one blocked connection led me somewhere I didn't expect Original
My PC doesn't have much going on most of the time. It's a low-end HP-15 laptop, so I keep things lean, with nothing more than Windows services, Chrome, Slack, and maybe any other tool I'm working on. I thought I had a decent idea of what my PC was doing online. Then I installed a free network monitor and firewall, Portmaster, to see if my assumptions held up. I left every setting on default without even signing up, and used my PC as normal.
I let temporary files pile up for months and recovered 3.3GB without breaking anything
Earlier this month, my laptop crashed during a Windows update. The reason wasn't down to a bad patch or some driver conflict; it was because my system drive was dangerously low on space at the wrong time. I had to move about 35GB of files just to get some breathing room again. That's not the kind of scare you shrug off, and it's part of the reason I've wasted money on cleanup tools before instead of using what's already sitting on my PC for free.
I stopped swiping apps away and used this free Android app freezer instead
I don't think swiping apps away is a bad habit. I don't do it often, but when I do, I'm done with the apps. Android already does a decent job of handling apps in the background, and you don't really need to close background apps for your Android phone to work smoothly. But plenty of apps on my phone sit untouched for weeks while Chrome, YouTube, WhatsApp, and maybe a few other apps get all my attention.
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