Is a 6 year old computer worth fixing?

 If the computer six years old or more, and it requires a repair that is more than 25 percent of the cost of a new computer, I'd say don't fix it,” says Silverman. ... Pricier than that, and again, you should think about a new computer.   So probably limit the repair to under $500. My repairs are usually about $150 to $225.

how to fix the windows 10 camera bug

 Once you have your camera installed properly...check in the device manager and see that your drivers are updated.  You can open and  check your camera by typing camera into the search bar and opening it up.

Give your apps permission

If you recently updated Windows 10, you might need to give apps permission to use the camera. In newer versions of Windows 10, some apps don’t have default access to the camera. 

 

To let your device access the camera, select Start , then select Settings  > Privacy  > Camera . In Allow access to the camera on this device, if Camera access for this device is turned off, select Change and turn on Camera access for this device. 

 

 

How to Set Up and Optimize Your Wireless Router for the Best Wi-Fi Performance

 https://www.pcmag.com/how-to/how-to-set-up-and-optimize-your-wireless-router-for-the-best-wi-fi-performance

Interesting reviews on free anti-virus software

 

https://www.pcmag.com/picks/the-best-free-antivirus-protection

20 Great Gadgets for 2020

 https://my-smartgadgets.com/v2/index2.php?gclid=CjwKCAiA-_L9BRBQEiwA-bm5fhT6hQztT-gjy5rTeufsrr2pk6AnivURMm-qR3zy9P7iPlzp0R7RAhoCxeQQAvD_BwE

See the complete file name in Windows 10

 “Microsoft hides file extensions in Windows by default even though it's a security risk that is commonly abused by phishing emails and malware distributors to trick people into opening malicious files,” the site warns. 

File extensions are the letters shown after a file name. for example report.txt and “txt” is the file extension. You will be familiar with many common file extensions such as .doc (Word documents), .pdf (Adobe documents), .mov (QuickTime media files) and, perhaps most famously, .mp3 (music files). And yet it is likely you can’t name many modern types now because, yes, Microsoft now hides them by default to simplify the end user experience. And that’s dangerous. 

Hackers will send malware files to users via spam, trick browser downloads and more and they often look like innocent files thanks to Windows 10 hiding their extension. Hackers do this by giving their malware an innocent name and the icon of a legitimate program, for example, malware could be called “Scan_002_01” and use the Adobe Reader icon (the Windows 10 zip file icon is popular too). But if you could see the file extension, it would reveal this is not a .pdf file but a .exe (executable) file which, when opened, will install malware on your computer which opens it up to multiple attacks, such as remote control of your system and ransomware. 

How To Protect Yourself In Windows 10 

To avoid being such an easy target,  change Windows 10 settings to enable the ability to view file extensions by default. Do the following: 

• Windows 10 Start Menu > type ‘Folder Options' > open ‘File Explorer Options’
• Click ‘View tab’ > Advanced settings > Uncheck "Hide extensions for known file types"
• Click ‘Apply’ > Click ‘Ok’

Yes, it’s a simple fix for a serious problem and advanced users are likely to do this as a matter of course. The problem is Windows 10 is now on over 900M devices so millions of users won’t have. Consequently, while I can understand Microsoft’s desire not to confuse its Windows 10 users with file extensions, in this instance I think dumbing things down does more harm than good. 

It would be crazy if gas stations didn’t clearly label the types of fuel on their pumps. Microsoft needs to realize when it comes to Windows 10, users shouldn’t need to dive into settings just to see what they are about to run on their PCs. 

Shortcut to Task Manager

The easiest way to invoke the Task Manager is by pressing Ctrl-Shift-Esc. 

Switch to the Startup tab, and you'll see all the programs that load at Windows startup.