Lifestyle

MUO is your guide to modern tech. Learn how to make use of the tech and gadgets around you, and discover cool stuff on the internet.

Widgets aren’t dead—most people just use the wrong ones.

When I bought my first Android phone in 2017, I was quick to dismiss widgets. I was just coming from Windows Phone 10, and nothing that Android or iOS provides could match the information my Windows Phone home screen could show.

I can keep track of where I need to be more easily.

There comes a time every day when I try to remember something I need to do and ultimately come up blank. I'd like to say I'm just forgetful, but it's so ingrained in me at this point that I need help remembering things, so I don't even try to do it on my own. I'm all for finding tricks and tips to keep my thoughts and plans organized.

I used Linux-born tools to clean Windows, and the results were surprisingly better.

Complacency, rather than bad hardware, is the cause of several PC slowdowns. Your system can accumulate background services, telemetry data, and temporary files, causing performance to degrade quietly. Some of the common cleaners we use aren't very effective, so I took the opposite route: using Linux tools to fix Windows. This is one of the habits I've carried over from years of using Linux.

Satya Nadella confirmed this week that Microsoft has access to all of OpenAI's IP — until an Artificial General Intelligence is achieved, anyway.

Satya Nadella, fountain pen diehard and Microsoft CEO, has made it plain: The company has comprehensive access to the intellectual property of OpenAI’s models and system design. When asked during a podcast interview how much access Microsoft had to OpenAI's intellectual property, Nadella offered a three-word response: “All of it.”

There's no one-size-fits-all solution to productivity.

When I found myself distracted during work hours and struggling to get things done, I decided to try the Pomodoro technique. Many people swear by it, so I thought I'd give it a shot. However, it quickly became clear that the Pomodoro isn't for everyone—at least not in its original form. Fortunately, there's a lesser-known variation that has become the perfect solution for my workflow.

The next few weeks of streaming look fantastic, and I can't wait for it to start.

When it rains trailers, it pours trailers. This week, studios from far and wide decided to drop an avalanche of coming attractions on us. We've got trailers for the hotly anticipated new seasons of spectacular sci-fi dramas, long-awaited sequels to beloved classics, and more. We've even got a new movie from Taylor Swift, who is essentially an industry unto herself.

it's an economical alternative, but not necessarily the better choice.

If you've spent money on a piece of software, and then watched it fail to do the one task you paid money for, open-source software seems the obvious choice. After all, it's free, transparent, and backed by communities of passionate developers and users.

Want to use Apple Music or Spotify's lossless audio support? You'll need some extra gear to make the most of it.

Audiophiles, casual listeners, and everyone in between can agree on one thing: why not listen to music in the best quality available? You don't need to spend a fortune on headphones and equipment to listen to high-fidelity audio. Except for YouTube Music, every major music streaming service offers lossless audio quality as part of its paid subscriptions. That includes Apple Music, Spotify, and Tidal. Gone are the days when the quest for lossless audio required listeners to seek out FLAC files on their own.

Black Mirror has been blowing the minds of sci-fi fans everywhere for years now, but it's not the only game in town.

Black Mirror is one of the premier sci-fi series on TV, and has been for a long time. Each episode tells a standalone story about technology, which has changed a lot in the 14 years since the show first premiered on Netflix in 2011; Black Mirror never lacks for new material.

This post is sponsored by Arzopa

'Tis the season of giving, and Arzopa is making it easier than ever to share joy—and save big while doing it. This Black Friday, the company will be offering exclusive deals, up to 50% off, and tiered gifts across a massive selection of the brand’s tech accessories, digital frames, portable monitors, and more.