Windows tools and settings
Windows settings, tiling, macros, text expansion, dictation and browser extensions: fix the free settings before buying or installing anything.
Diane
Nov 7, 2026
Move your snippets from Espanso or TextExpander without retyping
Bring an Espanso match file, a TextExpander CSV or a spreadsheet into CMDglows: what carries over, what is left out on purpose, and how to export your library back.
Diane
Nov 5, 2026
Cut a video without recompressing it: the cut that loses nothing
Pulling one passage out of a video does not require re-encoding the whole file. A stream-copy cut keeps the original quality, as long as you know where the cut actually starts.
Diane
Nov 5, 2026
Find it without installing one more app
Before a universal search tool, a two-letter nickname in your browser fixes most of the searches you repeat. Set it up in two minutes, and see what it does not fix.
Diane
Nov 5, 2026
Flow Launcher won't save you seconds. It stops you from searching.
A keyboard launcher isn't about going faster. It removes the question "where is it?". What Flow Launcher actually does, and the full move to open a file in three keystrokes.
Diane
Nov 5, 2026
What your AI sidebar does with your notes, and where it goes
An AI sidebar reads your notes for you, but every question, document and image takes its own route. Here is how to check that route in ten minutes.
Diane
Nov 5, 2026
Windows keyboard shortcuts: chain gestures, don't collect lists
You don't need to memorize 200 shortcuts. You need a few gestures that chain together without releasing Ctrl. Here is how to choose them and keep them.
Diane
Nov 5, 2026
YouTube bookmark extensions: choose one without losing your notes
Smart Bookmarks, Bookmarker for YouTube, ReClipped and the rest: what their store listings say about maintenance, export and import, plus a ten-minute test to decide.
Diane
Nov 4, 2026
Text expanders on Windows: which one to choose for your use
Text Blaze, Espanso, TextExpander, PhraseExpress, aText, Beeftext: four questions about how you work, prices checked in November 2026, and why the right tool is chosen by criteria, not by ranking.
Diane
Nov 1, 2026
Browser extensions: one per problem, not a collection
Every installed extension opens access to your pages and a possible point of failure. How to keep only the ones that solve a specific problem, and how to test the doubtful ones for a week.
Diane
Nov 1, 2026
PC slow in the afternoon? Run this test before buying a new one
A PC that slows down around 3 p.m. does not necessarily need replacing. A twenty-minute test, with the right gauge, separates a memory shortage, a runaway process and a real hardware limit.
Diane
Nov 1, 2026
Text expander on Windows: freeze the right sentence, no misfires
A text expander is not a typing-speed tool. It lets you decide once what you write often. Why a trigger fires at the wrong moment, and how to write one that stays quiet.
Diane
Nov 1, 2026
Why your Windows macros break, and what to use instead
A recorded macro stores positions and delays, not your intent. It breaks the first time a window moves. Here is why, and a sturdier rule you can set up in ten minutes.
Diane
Nov 1, 2026
Windows tiling: the right level is not the most automatic one
Automatic tiling is tempting, but on Windows it moves the work into configuration. Here is the native gesture that actually tidies your windows, and when a tool is worth it.
Diane
Nov 1, 2026
Windows voice dictation: the mic and vocabulary beat the tool
Before you switch dictation software, fix your microphone and your vocabulary. Why these two settings outweigh the model, and a ten-minute test to check it on your own PC.
Diane
Oct 22, 2026
Productive desk setup: fix the settings before you buy gear
Gaming mouse, noise-cancelling headphones, monitor light bar: the four purchases people make for a more productive desk, and the free Windows setting to test before each one.