Every Windows PC usually starts from the built-in hard drive, as the term “Windows PC” implies. This is because the Microsoft operating system is not anchored in or with the hardware, but is installed on your storage device. However, given the right environment, the computer can also be started in other ways: from CD/DVD, via the network and from external data carriers such as USB flash drives. Because flash drives are most important for external booting, our guide focuses on this scenario. In principle, however, the explanations also apply to other connected storage, such as larger USB hard drives, internal data carriers that are connected via USB cable or adapter, and inserted SD and micro SD cards. Why boot Windows from a flash drive? If the PC usually starts with Windows from the hard drive, the question is justified as to why you should boot from a USB stick. In some cases there are good or even compelling reasons for this. For example, if you bought the computer without Windows, you have to install the operating system first. This can be done easily, quickly and flexibly from a flash drive with customizations. Or if Microsoft’s operating system no longer starts even in safe mode, you can of course reinstall it. get windows 11 pro for cheap Windows 11 Pro Firstly, however, it is advisable to attempt a repair with a bootable rescue system. The same applies to malware and virus infections as well as accidentally deleted data. This is because an externally booted, so-called live system also provides access to files that are hidden by Windows or the malware. When recovering data, it is crucial that a live system, unlike Windows, does not overwrite empty hard drive areas without being asked, thereby reducing the chances of recovery. Booting from a USB stick also helps with system-related operations such as partitioning the system hard drive and cloning the complete system onto a new PC or a larger SSD. Finally, live systems make it easy to try things out: Instead of installing a Linux distribution or something else on an additional partition including dual boot, booting from the stick eliminates any configuration effort. Important knowledge so that everything works when booting You might be familiar with Microsoft’s Media Creation Tool: It creates bootable flash drives for installing Windows 10 and 11. With this tool, all you need to do is confirm the default settings five times, so you don’t have to change anything to configure the setup stick. If it’s so easy, why bother with (a bit of) theory? In fact, the Media Creation Tool hardly causes any problems. But “how” Windows is installed with it is beyond anyone’s control. However, the way it is installed is crucial for certain functions and is therefore important, as the new system should run as long and error-free as possible. Back to the Windows installation stick. All newer computers have long been working with the modern bios successor Uefi (Unified Extensible Firmware Interface). This interface between the mainboard and other hardware ensures that all components function smoothly. Two advantages of Uefi over the old bios are the Secure Boot security function and the GPT (Guid Partition Table) partition style of the boot hard disk. Because the latter is closely linked to starting the computer in true Uefi mode and many computers continue to support the bios compatibility mode, the correct installation and operating mode is crucial. Because the Uefi menus differ from PC to PC, a particular setting is not always easy to find – if it is not missing altogether. The picture shows the choice of boot mode. IDG However, this is not easy to control, as Uefi has hardly any fixed standards: Sometimes the compatibility mode is called “CSM” (for “Compatibility Support Module”), sometimes “Legacy Bios”, sometimes simply “Legacy”. Some motherboards even change the boot mode automatically if the Uefi boot fails. In addition, each Uefi menu is structured differently and certain functions cannot always be found immediately – every motherboard and PC manufacturer really does its own thing here. However, as the Media Creation Tool does not allow any settings for the Windows startup mode, you may only be able to see after installation whether the PC is starting in true Uefi mode and the hard drive is running in GPT partition style. Rufus – More control during Windows installation Rufus offers much more configuration control for your Windows setup stick. This is how it works: Insert a USB stick of at least eight GB into the computer and then start Rufus; no installation is required. At the top of the program interface, you will see the inserted USB flash drive under “Drive”. In the line below, check whether the small black arrow is present on the far right behind “Selection”. If not, click on the settings icon at the bottom and change the “Check for new version” setting from “Disabled” to “Daily (default)”. After two clicks on “Close”, restart Rufus, now with a selection arrow for downloading the ISO file from Windows. The two functions mentioned are marked in the illustration at the top right. Tip: As an alternative to downloading via Rufus, you can obtain the ISO files from Microsoft or via the Windows ISO Downloader tool. Continue by clicking on the arrow behind “Selection”, switch to “Download” and click on the button again. Now select the desired Windows version including language and 64-bit architecture. Once everything is set, download the ISO file via “Download”, confirm the storage folder in the next step and wait until the download is complete. Before you click on the “Start” button straight away, take another look at the program interface: For real Uefi operation, the option “GPT” and to the right of it “Uefi (without CSM)” are correct as “Partition scheme”. Finally, create the bootable stick by clicking on “Start -‘ OK -‘ OK”. A stick configured with the option “Uefi (without CSM)” ensures that Windows works in real Uefi mode. On newer computers, it is usually sufficient to insert the stick, switch on the PC and press the boot selection button displayed on the monitor when starting. Use the arrow keys to select the USB stick and confirm with Enter to start the Windows installation. If booting from the stick fails, check the boot mode setting in the Uefi menu again and switch to “Uefi” if necessary. Also check that “Secure Boot” is activated. Tip: You can access the Uefi menu from the Windows operating system by clicking on “System -‘ Recovery -‘ Advanced Boot -‘ Restart Now -‘ Troubleshooting -‘ Advanced Options -‘ UEFI Firmware Settings -‘ Restart” in the Settings app. In Windows 10, “Recovery” is located under “Update and Security” instead of “System”. Important: There is no single correct boot option for all systems. If a live system does not offer Uefi, select the CSM variant in the Uefi menu of the PC to boot from the special stick. If booting from the stick fails What should you do if a USB stick boots without problems on other computers but not on one? First make sure in the Uefi menu that general booting via USB is authorized (“Enabled”). You may need to switch on the option separately for different USB ports. If the problem persists, plug the stick into a different socket. On a notebook, try both sides of the device; on a desktop PC, try the front and back – the only thing that really helps is trial and error. Avoid using USB docks and other pass-through sockets. Not all USB sockets on a computer are equally suitable for booting from a stick. In practice, the only thing that helps on both notebooks and desktop PCs is trial and error. IDG The stick configuration may also not match the current Uefi settings: Change the boot mode from “Uefi” to “Legacy” or vice versa. If the Uefi supports both modes at the same time, try this setting. Depending on the contents of the stick, the mobile data carrier may then appear twice. Another stick can also help. Many other tools: Balena Etcher, Unetbootin & Co. There are also a number of other tools for generating bootable USB sticks. Balena Etcher is characterized by its particularly simple operation. After selecting the ISO file – either saved locally or as a download link – and the flash drive, simply click on the “Flash” button. This is convenient, but nothing can be configured. The interface of ISO to USB is unadorned, but the program fulfils its purpose. Unetbootin focuses on different Linux distributions so it’s not recommended for Windows systems. With Universal USB Installer, the name says it all: In addition to dozens of different Linux variants, the tool offers presets for various anti-virus, rescue and emergency systems. The tool also creates installation sticks for Windows 10 and 11 by selecting the option “Windows 10 or 11 Installer”, not (!) “Windows 10 or 11 on USB”. With Balena Etcher, bootable sticks are created in no time: select the ISO file on the left, specify the USB stick in the centre, then start by clicking on “Flash” on the right. IDG Finally, Universal USB Installer can create multi-boot sticks, i.e. mobile data carriers with several installation or live systems from which you can select the one you want. Win-USB also supports multi-boot sticks, but here the pre-selection of systems is very limited. We will come back to the multi-boot sticks at the end of this guide. The prerequisite for creating bootable sticks with all the tools is the ISO file. You can usually download this from the provider’s website and then integrate it into Rufus & Co. Sometimes, however, a Google search is quicker than contacting the software provider itself. For licensing reasons, not all ISO files can be freely downloaded from the Internet. get windows 11 pro for cheap Windows 11 Pro This applies, for example, if a live system is not based on Linux, but on Windows PE (Preinstallation Environment) from Microsoft. In these cases, you must first install the Windows software and then generate the ISO file. The option can usually be found on the software interface under “Tools”, “Tools”, “Boot medium”, “Rescue” or similar. The ISO file is created with just a few mouse clicks and all the components required for Windows PE are then automatically downloaded from the Internet. Finally, you can generate your boot stick from the finished ISO file using Rufus, for example. Converting a PC from CSM to UEFI mode Computers that have long since been upgraded from Windows 7 or 8 to Windows 10 or 11 may still be running in CSM compatibility mode, although true UEFI operation would be possible. You can check this by typing msinfo in the Run field in the taskbar. If the system overview shows the entry “UEFI” after the “BIOS mode” entry, the PC is running in true Uefi mode. However, if it says “Previous version”, we recommend changing the system. To do this, check whether the mainboard supports Uefi mode in the Uefi menu as described. If the PC is running in CSM compatibility mode (“previous version”) and the conditions are right, it can easily be switched to real Uefi operation. IDG If this is the case, first convert the system data carrier to the GPT partition style using the MBR2GPT tool integrated in Windows before switching to true Uefi mode. Multiboot: Packing several live systems onto one USB stick Reserving separate boot sticks for the many live and installation systems would be confusing and a waste of sticks. You can avoid both with a multiboot system, where you call up the system of your choice after booting. Ventoy makes it easy to create and configure a multi-boot stick. To save several systems, select a sufficiently large stick with 16 gigabytes or more storage space if possible. After inserting the stick, start Ventoy and click on “Install -‘ Yes -‘ Yes” on the interface. This step, which is only necessary at the beginning, makes the stick bootable and creates two partitions of different sizes on it. While the smaller of the two often remains invisible in Windows Explorer, the larger one appears as a normal drive: you copy the ISO files of your choice to this drive. After booting from the stick, the Ventoy interface lists the different boot systems with their file names for selection and starting. While FAT32 is the appropriate file system for most boot sticks, Ventoy uses exFAT. This also allows ISO files over four GB in size. Tip: To add or remove a system, add or delete the corresponding ISO file in the Windows file explorer. Read...

I used to spend upwards of $10 on cans of compressed air for cleaning my PC and accessories—and every time I bought one, I’d always eye the electric air dusters in envious consideration. I knew it made financial sense to spend $30 up front to never buy compressed air again, but it was tough to justify spending that much just to blow out dust. But eventually I folded. I hated going back to buy yet another can every few months, racking up a bill for basically nothing… so I bit the bullet and bought this 2-in-1 cordless air duster and vacuum. (Actually, mine’s not available anymore, but the one I linked is nearly the same.) Jon Martindale / Foundry And let me tell you: it was $35 well spent. It’s as gloriously over the top as I’d hoped and far more effective than I’d expected. I’ll never have to buy cans of compressed air ever again, and my only regret is that I didn’t buy it sooner. Plus, it’s also a vacuum! What a bonus. It’s better than cans of compressed air Compressed air is great at cleaning inside computers, under keyboard keys, and inside any other nooks and crannies that are either too tight or too sensitive for your typical vacuum cleaner. But compressed air has its quirks. It’s hard to control the strength of each puff, making it feel almost arbitrary—you never know exactly how far you need to hold the can when blowing on certain components. It also has the habit of spitting out liquid propellant if you spray too long, it doesn’t last very long, and you have to keep buying more when it runs out. That’s bad for the environment and your wallet. An electric air duster doesn’t have that problem… and it often comes as a 2-in-1 device with vacuum capabilities. My Whatook air duster and vacuum can blow and suck at an impressive rate, making it useful for not just dusting things off but actively removing dirt and debris. Would you rather blow around the dust inside your PC case or suck it out? Before (left) and after (right). It’s not perfect, but it makes a real difference.Jon Martindale / Foundry The fact that it’s consistent means it can be more useful. You can happily blast away at a huge 480mm radiator with abandon, knowing that if it runs out of battery you can just charge it up again. No need to use quick bursts to avoid condensing propellant on your electronics or to save what little air the can has left for other jobs. You can use it how an air duster is supposed to be used: with all the powah! Yomile 2-in-1 Cordless Duster and Vacuum Best Prices Today: $33.24 at Amazon It’s more effective than expected Seriously, I laughed out loud the first time I used this on my graphics card and CPU AIO radiator. The amount of dust that came out was ridiculous. I wipe them down often and usually do a good job of keeping my dust filters clear enough to keep my PC as dust-free as possible. But with this 2-in-1 electric air duster, I really gave them a good clean. The vacuum attachment is nice. But it’s primarily a blower, not a sucker.Jon Martindale / Foundry It doesn’t remove caked-on dust, so just as you wouldn’t use compressed air to remove that kind of grime, know that this cordless vacuum isn’t going to magically clean it either. But for surfaces that are tricky to clear out, like between heatsink fins and fan shrouds? It’s perfect. I love this thing. It feels like it’d be a one-time-use gimmick, but it’s really the opposite of that. It saves me money, it’s fun to use, and it’s quite effective at its job. I recommend it to all PC owners. Forget the cans. Get this 2-in-1 cordless air duster and vacuum insteadBuy now on Amazon Read...

Greetings from Maryland, where I’m currently visiting family and using one of the best impulse buys I’ve made in recent memory. I’m taking about those cheap portable monitors that go on sale for about $50 on Amazon, available under a variety of unrecognizable brand names. The one I got is made by BIGASUO (a name I can’t stop saying), but you can find seemingly identical models from the likes of FANGOR and MNN. They all serve the same basic purpose as a travel-friendly way to add an extra screen to your laptop, and they all have the same basic features: 15.6-inch 1080p display USB-C or Mini HDMI input Built-in speakers Audio jack for headphones or external speakers A detachable folio stand Some variants, such as this one by the unfortunately named Dopesplay, have actual built-in kickstands instead of folio cases that double as makeshift stands, but otherwise appear identical. Are these monitors great quality-wise? Of course not. But they’re cheap, light, and versatile. They’re also refreshingly free from a lot of modern tech baggage. I’ve had a great time finding ways to use mine. Allow me to convince you why you should get one of these, too. This column first appeared in Advisorator, Jared’s weekly tech advice newsletter. Sign up to get tech advice like this every Tuesday. How does a portable monitor work? These portable screens work a little differently than full-sized monitors, mainly because they don’t have regular HDMI, DisplayPort, or VGA inputs. To connect these monitors, you have a couple options: USB-C to USB-C data cable. This provides power and video to the portable monitor through a single cable, but requires your computer to support video output through a USB-C port. (Modern Macs can do this, and many recent Windows laptops are catching up.) Mini HDMI to HDMI. For computers with HDMI outputs, you can send video to the portable monitor via Mini HDMI, but you’ll need a separate USB-C cable to power the monitor as well. A single USB-C data cable can provide video and power, or you can use the Mini HDMI and USB-C power ports instead.Jared Newman / Foundry Note that these travel-friendly displays don’t have built-in batteries, so they must draw power from either your laptop or an outlet. The lack of a battery makes the monitor lighter, but if you’re using the USB-C to USB-C connector, you’ll likely want to keep your laptop plugged into its own power source for lengthy computing sessions. My BIGASUO monitor included all the necessary cables, but they’re on the short side. To lengthen the connection distance, you’ll either need an HDMI extender or a USB-C to USB-C cable with 10 Gbps transfer speeds. (A basic USB-C charging cable won’t suffice for video connections.) What is a portable monitor good for? The most obvious use for a portable monitor is the main one: while using a laptop on the go, you can attach the portable monitor, prop it up with a stand, and have two screens instead of one. If you’ve never used a dual monitor setup before, this can be a revelation in itself. It’s nice being able to reference a document on one screen while writing on the other, or use one screen just for things like email and Slack while freeing up the main screen for more important tasks. I’ve also managed to prop up my BIGASUO monitor in portrait mode, which can be a bit precarious at times but does make my mobile workspace a bit more compact. (You can rotate the monitor orientation in system settings on both Windows PC and Mac.) Beyond the dual-screen setup, I’ve also experimented with: Turning a phone into a computer: Paired with a Bluetooth mouse and keyboard, your phone can become a makeshift portable desktop. Samsung’s Galaxy phones are especially well-suited with Samsung DeX, which launches a desktop-like environment when the phone connects to an external display. (You can even use the phone screen as a touchpad.) Plugging a separate USB-C charging cable into the monitor will send a charge back to the phone so you don’t waste battery life. A Samsung Galaxy Fold7 running DeX mode on the monitor, with the phone as a touchpad.Jared Newman / Foundry An extra (or alternate) desktop display: You don’t have to use a portable monitor on the road. I’ve been plugging mine into my desktop gaming PC in the basement while my son occupies the TV with the PlayStation 5. (We have plans to play Fortnite together this way but haven’t gotten around to it yet.) A bigger portable video screen: I’ve connected the portable monitor to my Steam Deck for a bigger view of the action, and I can envision plugging it into a phone or tablet to watch movies in bed or on a plane. A portable monitor just works In the past, I’ve written about using a tablet as an external monitor—and that’s still a viable option. Portable monitors are larger than most tablets, though, and they’re also less finnicky to set up. Not to get overly philosophical here, but portable monitors also remind me why I get excited about technology to begin with. Unlike so many other tech products today, a portable monitor is a no-fuss device that just works when you plug it in, asking nothing of you in exchange. There’s no pairing process, no login procedure, and no privacy policy to accept. I often hear folks pining for a dumb alternative to modern smart TVs—if you ask me, that idea is alive and well in portable monitors. But the biggest endorsement I can offer is this: my wife, after borrowing my portable monitor a couple days ago, now wants one of her own. This column first appeared in Advisorator, Jared’s weekly tech advice newsletter. Sign up to get tech advice like this every Tuesday. Read...

TL;DR: For two days only, you can get a lifetime license for Visual Studio Pro for only $15. Writing and testing code can be complex enough without the added friction of limited tools or slow environments. Visual Studio Professional 2022 is a comprehensive development platform built to support modern workflows across web, mobile, and desktop projects. It’s also only $14.97 for a lifetime license (normally $499). As Microsoft’s first 64-bit integrated development environment, this version of Visual Studio is optimized for large, complex solutions that demand more memory and better performance. Developers can build responsive user interfaces with Blazor, create cross-platform apps using .NET MAUI, and write, test, and debug .NET and C++ applications, including those targeting Linux systems. IntelliCode helps reduce repetitive typing by offering context-aware code suggestions, while Live Share enables real-time collaboration with teammates. You can co-edit, debug, and review code without needing to switch platforms or send files. Tools like CodeLens give quick access to commit history, test results, and author information, making it easier to stay focused and make informed changes. Visual Studio also supports hot reload, allowing you to see the effect of code changes immediately during runtime. This helps speed up debugging and shortens the iteration loop during development. With this lifetime license, you get ongoing access to a fully featured IDE used by professionals around the world. For a limited time, you can get a Microsoft Visual Studio Pro 2022 Lifetime License on sale for $14.97. No coupon needed. Sale ends September 14 at 11:59 p.m. PT. Microsoft Visual Studio Professional 2022See Deal StackSocial prices subject to change. Read...

According to an announcement post, Anthropic has launched a new feature in Claude that allows you to create and edit files directly in the AI’s chat—including Word documents, Excel spreadsheets, PowerPoint presentations, and PDFs. Previously, only basic file support was offered. Through a private computing environment, Claude can now write code and run programs to generate files and analyses. Anthropic describes it as the AI chatbot becoming an active collaborator, taking care of the technical side while the user (you) provides context and strategy. The file creation and editing feature is currently in preview and available to users with a Max, Team, or Enterprise subscription. Pro users will get access within a few weeks while Free users will have to wait longer. Read...

The council`s latest State of the Environment Report has found that lakes, streams and rivers are worse off. Read...

Auckland Transport is trialling playing classical music to help create a more “chilled-out environment”. Read...

Jeremiah Manele has called for Pacific solidarity in an `evolving global and strategic environment` during the 54th Pacific Islands Forum Leaders` Meeting opening plenary in Honiara. Read...

The tough environment, weather conditions or proving their guile against the cunning geese all add to the occasion for hunters, the organiser says. Read...

Mammotion announced a new robot mower navigation platform ahead of the IFA trade show in Berlin on Thursday: Its Tri-Fusion Positioning System combines LiDAR, Real-Time Kinematic (RTK), and vision capabilities into a single system. Combining two of these technologies is not uncommon. Older mowers have used a combination of LiDAR and RTK for much of the past half-decade, while combining one or the other with vision navigation has gained favor more recently. And while some robot mowers have all three technologies onboard, they aren’t necessarily connected for navigation, and serve other mower operation purposes. Mammotion says Tri-Fusion is the culmination of nine years of development effort, and that it be made available as firmware updates for its recently released Luba Mini AWD LiDAR and the Yuka Mini Vision robot lawn mowers as well as several yet-to-be-announced models. Mammotion “Whether you have a compact city garden or a sprawling countryside lawn, it delivers high-accuracy mowing in any environment, sunlit or shaded, open or obstructed, flat or hilly,” said Mammotion CEO Jayden Wei No positioning technology is perfect Each navigation technology has its own strengths and weaknesses. Vision has given mowers the capability to accurately detect and avoid obstructions, but it’s useless in low-light conditions, which is LiDAR’s strength. Vision combined with LiDAR isn’t perfect either, especially for wide-open lawns. Without any reference objects to help a mower orient itself in the world, navigation will fail. And while RTK is the best solution for precise positioning, a mower has no means of identifying obstacles in its way, and its signal is easily obstructed by trees and buildings (ask Husqvarna about that issue). By combining the three technologies into a single platform, Mammotion claims that true centimeter-level positioning accuracy can be achieved. Such a claim is not new and has been made in marketing for past Vision/RTK-enabled mowers we’ve seen and reviewed. The catch is that you need to set up the mower as closed to the manufacturer’s recommendations as possible, something I’ve yet been able to accomplish in my testing. Available in the U.S. and U.K. later in 2025 The Mammotion Luba Mini AWD LiDAR (€2,299), which can handle lawns up to 1,500 square meters (0.37 acres), was launched in Europe on July 31. The smaller Yuka Mini Vision (€1,199) is also now available in Europe. It can maintain lawns up to 700 square meters (0.17 acres). Both mowers will ship to the U.S. and U.K markets later this year. This news story is part of TechHive’s in-depth coverage of the best robot lawn mowers. Read...