Setup Voice control in Windows11

The quickest way to control and manage the volume of your Windows 10 PC is using the Volume control icon in the system tray. However, you might encounter issues in using it especially if you recently updated your PC. After the update, if it no longer responds to mouse clicks, be it a right-click or left-click, read on as this post will show you what you can do to remedy that issue. If you think that you’re the only one who has experienced this problem, you are mistaken as several users also reported that the volume icon does highlight and shows the volume level if you hover the cursor over it but it does not really do anything at all. This is definitely the quickest way to change the audio output in Windows 10 especially when you have to change from speakers to your earphone and whatnot. If you are one of the users whose Windows 10 Taskbar Volume Control icon has stopped working and every time you click on the icon and nothing happens and you’re still not able to adjust the volume of your Windows 10 computer, read on as this post will show you what you can do to fix that problem. Although the audio is working just fine, you will still not be able to adjust the volume from its control icon. The problem is most likely related to the UI interaction. There are times when icons in the taskbar also experience the same issue where you can hover your mouse over them but nothing happens when you click on them. As mentioned, the issue with the volume icon does not seem to affect the actual audio of the computer. Double-check to confirm and if it turns out that the audio is indeed working fine, you can use the hardware of your keyboard to manage and control the volume, however, the software just won’t work. This issue is really inconvenient especially for users who connect their laptops to a bigger display. To fix this issue, here are some suggestions you need to check out.

Option 1 – Try to restart the Windows Explorer

This option may sound silly but it has actually worked in fixing the issue for some users. So if anything gets stuck on the taskbar or system tray, the best way to revive them is by restarting Windows Explorer.

• Right-click on the taskbar and then select the Task Manager.
• Next, look for Windows Explorer under the Processes tab.
• Then right-click and select restart.
• After that, wait for the restart process to be completed and for the user interface to refresh. Note that you will notice the Taskbar disappearing and reappearing again. It will reload the entire user interface and allows you to access the volume icon. It should work this time.

Option 2 – Restart the Audio services

Restarting the audio services in your computer can also help you fix the volume control issue and to do that, refer to these steps:

• Tap the Win + R keys to open the Run dialog box.
• Type in “services.msc” in the field and hit Enter to open Services.
• From there, look for Windows Audio and then right-click on it and go to Properties.
• After that, you have to make sure that the Startup Type is set to Automatic.
• Then click on the Stop button. Once it has stopped, start it again.
• Now restart your computer and see if you can now access the volume icon on the taskbar.

Option 3 – Try to update or roll back the Audio driver

If the glitch in your audio has something to do with software, chances are it might be related to the audio driver – it could be that the newest version of your Windows 10 does not work well with the old version of the driver. This is why you have to update your audio driver to the newest available version.

• Tap the Win + R keys to open the Run dialog box and then type in devmgmt.msc and tap Enter or click OK to open the Device Manager.
• Expand the section for the outdated device drivers.
• And then select the outdated driver(s) and right-click on it/them.
• From the drop-down menu, select the Update Driver option and follow the on-screen instructions to install the latest version of the driver.
• Then also click on the option, “Search automatically for updated driver software.
• Restart your PC after the installation.

Note: If updating the Audio driver didn’t work, you can go to the website of your PC manufacturer and look for the support section where you can download the drivers for your computer. You just need to take note of your PC’s correct model and model number so you can find the appropriate driver.

Option 4 – Try running the Playing Audio Troubleshooter

Since the Windows 10 operating system has the Playing Audio Troubleshooter, you can use this troubleshooter to try and fix the volume control issue on your PC. You can access this tool in the Control Panel or in the Taskbar Search and even on the Troubleshooters page of Windows 10. Run this troubleshooter and see if it can fix the issue or not.

You might have experienced a situation where you’re trying to install or update your Java application on your Windows 10 computer but were not able to do so for some reason. One of the problems you can encounter while updating or installing Java is Error Code 1603. There are two ways you can install Java – you have the option to choose where to get Java either from the online download or offline download. There are times when before you can install Java, you might have to disable the firewall first as it may interrupt the Java online installation. And while doing so, if you are getting the “Java Update or Install did not complete – Error Code 1603” error message, read on as this post will show you what you can do to fix it. At the time of writing, the exact cause of this error is still unknown. On the other hand, you must still check if you have fulfilled all the system requirements needed to install Java. You have to make sure that your Windows 10 PC has sufficient disk space available for the Java installation or update. In addition, you also have to make sure that you meet all the hardware requirements and you are using a popular web browser for the installation, and that you have administrative privileges for download and installation. To fix the “Java Update or Install did not complete – Error Code 1603” error, here are some suggestions you can try.

Option 1 – Restart your computer before you install the new Java package

You might have to restart your computer if you got the error code 1603 while installing Java through an offline download.

• Restart your computer.
• Next, download and install the offline installer of the Java package from the official site of Java and not some third-party source.
• In the prompt box that appears while downloading the Java package, select the option Save in and save the package in your preferred folder.
• After that, navigate to the saved, downloaded package on your computer and then double click on the file to begin the installation process.

After that, if it didn’t fix the problem and you’re still getting the error code 1603, follow the next given option below.

Option 2 – Uninstall the old versions of Java before you install the new package

• Open the Control Panel.
• After that, click on Programs and features.
• Then select the old Java package and click on Uninstall.
• Restart your computer and then try installing the new Java package again from its official site.

Option 3 – Disable the Java content in the browser you’re using via Java Control Panel and reinstall Java

• Open the Control Panel again.
• And then click on the Java icon to open the Java Control Panel.
• Next, navigate to the Security tab and then uncheck the “Enable Java content in the browser” option.
• Then click on Apply and then Ok to save the changes made.
• Now install the new Java package again after you download it from its official website.
• Once the installation is completed, re-enable the “Enable Java content in the browser” option in the Java Control Panel as it is essential especially if you are running Java content in your browser.

If you connected headphones to your Windows 10 computer to listen to audio but when you check it in the playback devices, you’re not able to find it, read on as this post will guide you in what you can do to figure out what exactly caused this kind of problem and how you can resolve it. This kind of issue could simply be with the headphone itself or the headphone port or your operating system. So if it turns out that the problem is with the hardware, you might have to replace the components. However, it is recommended that you troubleshoot the problem first before doing that. The most basic thing you can do is to try changing the headphone port, although this can be quite difficult since most computers don’t have any extra port for headphones if your computer has one, then give it a go. If it still didn’t work, follow each one of the options provided below.

Option 1 – Try to run the Playing Audio troubleshooter

Since the Windows 10 operating system has the Playing Audio Troubleshooter, you can use this troubleshooter to try and fix the problem with the “No Audio Output Device is installed” error. You can access this tool in the Control Panel or in the Taskbar Search and even on the Troubleshooters page of Windows 10. Run this troubleshooter and see if it can fix the issue or not.

Option 2 – Try to update the Audio driver

If the error has something to do with software, chances are it might be related to the audio driver – it could be that the newest version of your Windows 10 does not work well with the old version of the driver. This is why you have to update your audio driver to the newest available version.

• Tap the Win + R keys to open the Run dialog box and then type in MSC and tap Enter or click OK to open the Device Manager.
• Expand the section of the Audio inputs and outputs.
• And then from the drop-down menu, select the Update Driver option and follow the on-screen instructions to install the latest version of the driver.
• Then also click on the option, “Search automatically for updated driver software.
• Restart your PC after the installation.

Note: If updating the Audio driver didn’t work, you can go to the website of your PC manufacturer and look for the support section where you can download the drivers for your computer. You just need to take note of your PC’s correct model and model number so you can find the appropriate driver.

Option 3 – Try enabling the headphones from the playback devices

• Tap the Win + R keys to open the Run dialog box and type the “CPL” command.
• Tap Enter to open the Playback devices.
• Next, right-click on any open space section and check the boxes for the “Show Disconnected Devices” and “Show Disabled Devices” options.
• After that, this should help in displaying the headphones in the section of Playback devices.
• And if they are disabled, you can just right-click them to have them enabled.

Sometimes, some applications after they are installed will put their shortcut in the context menu (right-click on desktop) for easy access, most of the time these are some system tied applications like AMD and Nvidia control panels or archives like WinRAR or 7ZIP but it can happen even for some usual application to do this.

There are some applications that you use frequently and they could be worth putting in the context menu, if you want to avoid clutter on the desktop or in the taskbar this is the third place that you should consider placing shortcuts.

Doing this will require some playing and tweaking in the Windows registry editor so be careful when editing the registry since bad entries can lead to system crash or instability. Follow step-by-step instructions.

Adding apps to the context menu in the registry

Creating entry

Open the registry editor by searching Regedit and pressing enter than inside of the registry editor search for the next key:

HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Directory\Background\shell

Select shell and right-click on it, hover over New and in the submenu click on Key. In the next step, you need to name a key, this name will be the thing that will be shown in the context menu when you right-click on a desktop so type in the name that you would like or the name of the application that you wish to add to the menu.

If you wish you can even add a keyboard shortcut to launch this specific application. To do this select entry that you have created and edit the default value, inside the edit string in the Value data field type first & and after that key that you would like as a shortcut. Now after right click if you hit your shortcut key app will be launched right away.

Adding command

The next task is to create a command key that will actually hold the command to launch the application. Right-click on the entry that you have created, hover over New, and click on Key.

Next, you’ll need to create the command key that will actually hold the command used to launch the application. Right-click on the new Notepad key, and then choose New \ Key from the menu. Name this key 'command', all in lower case and without hyphens.

Now in order to finish setting the launcher, you need the full path of the file that you would like to run. Locate your file in file explorer or in another tool and copy its path by SHIFT + right-clicking on the file itself and choosing copy as path option.

Now click on the command key and double click on the default key on right to edit it, inside the field value data paste your path to executable. close and save the registry and you are done.

What is error code 0x80070103?

When visiting the Windows Update Website or the Microsoft Update Website to download the latest update for hardware drives, you could possibly receive Error Code 0x80070103 when clicking on the update driver. This error code occurs when Windows tries to download a piece of identical hardware for a second time. It could also occur when Windows tries to update a currently installed driver to an unsuitable version of that driver.

Solution

Further Information and Manual Repair

There aren’t many ways to handle this issue. Below are two methods of fixing Error Code 0x80070103.

Method 1:

• Visit the Microsoft Update Website
• After the "scan for updates" is complete, click the Welcome or Custom page.
• Next, click Hardware, in the navigation panel, and then on the tab for "optional hardware Updates", the Update client will display the available updates.
• For the graphics card, scan the second update after which you'll click to select the option that says "do not show this update again".
• Hit the "Review and install updates" button.
• Confirm that the second update for the graphics card is not present, then move on the installing the updates.
• Click on the start button, go to All Programs, and then click on Windows Update.
• Hit the "Check for updates" tab.
• After the "scan for updates" is over, click the"Optional updates" link.
• In the "Select the updates you want to install" section, right-click the update that is not needed and hide them.
• Hit the OK button.
• To install any additional updates that are selected, click "Install Updates". Close Windows Update if no other updates are selected,
• For touch screens, swipe in from the right edge of the screen, tap Search (or point to the upper-right corner of the screen if you're using a mouse, moving the pointer down, before clicking Search). Enter "Windows Updates" in the search box, click Settings, and then click "Check for updates".
• After the scan is complete, click the"Optional updates are available" link.
• Right-click or Tap and hold the update you want to hide, select"Hide update", and then select OK.
• If any other updates are available, save all work in "other programs", then restart the computer to the install updates; otherwise, opt out of the Windows Update window.

Open the search window and type “Windows Update” in the search box.

Method 2:

When trying to repair error code 0x80070103, if you find method one hard to follow, can contact Microsoft directly. Call up the help center number listed on their website, and a technician will be able to walk you through the process of ensuring the updater is not attempting to download multiple copies of hardware or trying to install unusable updates on your computer. Because the Windows Updater is set to a generic method of searching for updates, it may not be set to optimize the personal computer's settings. This is why you must select all of the optional update options and why this process is so long. It may be made easier by having a computer repairs technician walk you through it. However, if you want to automate the process of getting that problem solved, you can use a powerful tool to get the job done.

Windows 11 has been officially presented during Microsoft’s virtual event on June 24^th. Since presentation internet has been pretty live and busy with a discussion about it, some discussions are positive, some not so much but that is expected and it happens always when a new product is presented. One of information that we have about Windows 11 is tied to the home edition of this OS, Windows 11 home edition will require an internet connection at setup, and a Microsoft account in order to be installed and used. Previous versions of Windows could be installed and used with local accounts but it seems Microsoft has abandoned that idea for its new OS. OS will be delivered mostly as updates or via internet download so internet and online requirement make sense but why it cannot use the local account and must have a Microsoft one is beyond me.

This post will guide you in what to do if you are trying to share the internet connection from your Android smartphone to your Windows 10 computer but USB tethering is not working. Although you can always connect your Android phone to your computer using a USB cable, you still won’t be able to access the internet. However, if you’ve already enabled the USB tethering option in your smartphone, you should be able to access the internet but if you still can’t then you can fix this issue by reading this post. There are several potential fixes you can check out to fix the USB tethering issue. You can try running both the Internet Connections and Network Adapter troubleshooters or try installing the USB RNDIS adapter or disable any unnecessary network adapters.

Option 1 – Try to run the Internet Connections and Network Adapter troubleshooter

There are various built-in troubleshooters in Windows 10 that can help fix system issues. Since you are dealing with an internet connection problem, you can try running both the Internet Connections and the Network Adapter troubleshooters. To run them, follow these steps:

• Go to Settings > Update & security > Troubleshoot.
• From there, you can select the Internet Connections troubleshooter.
• Click on the Run troubleshooter button to troubleshoot the problem.
• Wait until the troubleshooter is done identifying and fixing the problem automatically.
• Then follow the next on-screen instructions that may appear.
• Once it’s done, check if the USB tethering issue is now fixed.

Note: You can also try to run the Network Adapter troubleshooter. It is also located under the Troubleshoot section. Just scroll down until you see it and then run it.

Option 2 – Try installing or updating the USB RNDIS adapter

RNDIS or Remote Network Driver Interface Specification can also help you resolve the USB tethering problem. If the pre-installed driver does not help you in connecting to the internet, then you can try installing the USB RNDIS driver that is, if it’s not installed yet. If it is already installed, you can try to update it instead.

• Tap the Win + R keys to open Run and type “devmgmt.msc” in the field and hit Enter to open the Device Manager.
• Next, expand the Network adapters section and look for the Remote NDIS based Internet Sharing Device. But if you are using a Samsung smartphone, you might see “Samsung” instead of under Network adapters.
• Right-click on it and then select the “Update driver” option.
• Then select the “Browse my computer for driver software” option.
• After that, select the “Let me pick from a list of available drivers on my computer” option.
• Now uncheck the checkbox for “Show compatible hardware”.
• From the given list on your left-hand side, look for Microsoft and then select the Remote NDIS based Internet Sharing Device on your right-hand side.
• Click on Next. A new popup will appear where you have to click on Yes. This will install the driver.
• Now click on the Close button and restart your computer.

Option 3 – Try disabling any unnecessary network adapters/connections

Assuming that your Ethernet connection is showing ping loss which indicates that the internet is not stable. In such time, if you use the USB tethering functionality, you won’t be able to access the internet connection from your smartphone. The internet connection will be frequently disconnected since your computer gives priority to the Ethernet connection. Thus, you have to disable the Ethernet connection temporarily.

• Right-click the network icon on your Taskbar and select the option “Network and Sharing Center”.
• After that, click the network connection. And then click the Disable button from the status box that opens.
• After that, check if you can now connect to the internet or not.

USB devices are one of the commonly used devices every day – from plugging mobile devices for charging using pen drives, you are making use of USB drives. However, there are times when you might encounter an error message saying, “Unknown USB Device” as you plug your USB device on your Windows 10 computer. So if you encounter this kind of error message followed by either of the following explanations, read on as this post will give you a couple of suggestions you can check out to resolve the issue.

• Device Descriptor Request Failed
• Port reset failed
• The device failed enumeration
• Set address failed
• Error code 43

You can fix this error using several ways. You can try changing the Power Options, update or roll back the USB drivers, turn off Fast Startup, or run the USB troubleshooter. Follow the options given below for more details.

Option 1 – Try to change the Power Options

• Tap the Win + R keys to open the Run utility.
• Then type “powercfg.cpl” and tap Enter to open the Power Options window.
• Next, go to your selected power plan and click the “Change plan settings” option to open a new page.
• From there, click on the “Change advanced power settings” option. This will open a new window where you can see various power consumption options.
• Now look for the USB Settings option and expand it.
• Then set the USB selective suspend setting to “Disabled” for both scenarios: On Battery and Plugged in.
• After that, click on OK and restart your computer to apply the changes made.

Option 2 – Update or reinstall the Universal Serial Bus Controller driver

Since it could be a driver issue, you can try to update or reinstall the Universal Serial Bus Controller drivers using the Device Manager. Refer to the following steps:

• First, click the Start button and type “device manager”.
• Then click on the “Device Manager” from the search results to open it.
• From there, look for the “Universal Serial Bus controllers” option and then right-click on each one of the USB drivers and select the Update Driver from the menu.

Note: If it is a regular USB drive, then it will be listed as a USB Mass Storage Device but if you have a USB 3.0 device, then look for a USB 3.0 Extensible Host Controller.

• Restart your PC and then click the “Search automatically for updated driver software” option.

Note: If updating the USB Controller drivers didn’t work, you can try to reinstall them instead.

Option 3 – Try turning off Fast Startup

• Tap the Win + R keys to open the Run dialog box and type in “control” to open the Control Panel.
• Next, click on the Hardware and Sound section and click on Power Options.
• Afterwards, select the “Choose what the power buttons do” option from the left side menu pane.
• Now click on Change settings that are currently unavailable and uncheck the entry that says, “Turn on fast startup (Recommended).
• Then click on Save Changes and restart your computer and see if it has fixed the problem or not.

Option 4 – Run the Hardware and Devices Troubleshooters

• The first thing you need to do is click on Start and then on the gear-like icon to pull up the window for Settings.
• After opening Settings, look for the Update and Security option and select it.
• From there, go to the Troubleshoot option located on the left-hand side of the list.
• Next, select Hardware and Devices from the list and open the Troubleshooter and run it. Once it is doing its job, wait for it to complete the process and then restart the system.
• After the system restarts, check if the problem’s now fixed. If not, refer to the next option given below.

There are a lot of users who use their Windows 10 PCs to create and access data on their servers using their network. However, some of them reported getting an error saying that the server is not accessible. Here’s the full content of the error message:

“\server is not accessible. You might not have permission to use this network resource. Contact the administrator of this server to find out if you have access permissions. Logon Failure: The target account name is incorrect.”

If you are among the users who experience the same issue, read on as this post will help you resolve this error when accessing your server. But before you start troubleshooting the problem, you might want to perform System Restore, especially if tend to create one. To use System Restore, here’s what you have to do:

• Tap the Win + R keys to open the Run dialog box.
• After that, type in “sysdm.cpl” in the field and tap Enter.
• Next, go to the System Protection tab then click the System Restore button. This will open a new window where you have to select your preferred System Restore point.
• After that, follow the on-screen instructions to finish the process and then restart your computer and check if the problem is fixed or not.

If System Restore didn’t help in fixing the ACPI.sys Blue Screen error now’s the time for you to make use of the potential fixes laid out below.

Option 1 – Try rebooting your router

The first thing you can try to do to fix the error is to simply restart your router. All you need to do is reboot the router from its Admin panel or you can also turn it off manually and turn it back on after a couple of seconds so that it can completely reboot. Once you’re done, try accessing your server again and see if the error is now fixed.

Option 2 – Try checking the status of the Workstation Service

You might want to check the status of the Workstation Service as the error might have something to do with it.

• Tap the Win + R keys on your keyboard to launch the Run utility.
• Then type “services.msc” in the field and click OK or hit Enter to open the Windows Services Manager.
• After opening the Services Manager, you will see a list of all the services on your computer and from there, locate the Workstation Service.
• Double click on the Workstation Service to open its Properties.
• Next, Stop the Service and Start it again or you can also right-click on it and select Restart and then make sure that its Startup type is set to Automatic.
• Now restart your computer and check if the error is fixed.

Option 3 – Try to change the File Sharing Connections setting

You can also try to change the File Sharing connections setting. All you have to do is go to Control Panel > Network and sharing center > Advanced sharing settings > File sharing connections. From there, you need to select “Enable file sharing for devices that use 40 or 56-bit encryption and check if it helps in fixing the problem. If not, undo the changes you’ve made and proceed to the next given option.

Option 4 – Try checking the Network Configuration

Checking the Network Configuration can also help you fix the error. Refer to the steps below to do so:

• Right-click on the Wi-Fi connection or on the Ethernet connection icon located in the system tray.
• Then select open Network and Internet Settings and then click on the “Change Adapter Options”.
• After that, a new window will appear and from there, select the network connection that connects your computer to your network – this can either be a Wi-Fi connection or Ethernet connection.
• Right-click on that connection and select Properties where you will see a list of items.
• Select the Internet Protocol Version 4 or Internet Protocol Version 6 from those items according to your system requirement.
• Then click on the Properties button.
• Check if everything is now configured as to how it is supposed to be and then check if the error is resolved.

Option 5 – Try to reset Winsock, TCP/IP & Flush DNS

You might also want to try resetting Winsock, TCP/IP, and flushing DNS might help you resolve errors. To do so, follow these steps:

• Right-click on the Start button and click on Command Prompt (administrator) so you can pull up an elevated Command Prompt.
• After that, execute each one of the commands listed below. And after you typed in one after the other, you have to hit Enter.

1. netsh winsock reset – type in this command to reset Winsock
2. netsh int ip reset resettcpip.txt – type in this command to reset TCP/IP
3. ipconfig /flushdns – type in this command to flush the DNS cache

• Next, restart your PC and check if the problem’s fixed.

Option 6 – Run the Network Adapter Troubleshooter

• Open the Search bar on your computer and type in “troubleshoot” to open the Troubleshoot settings.
• Next, scroll down and select the “Network Adapter” option from the right pane.
• Then click on the Run Troubleshooter” button.
• After that, your computer will check for any possible errors and will pinpoint the root cause of the problem if possible.

As you know, Microsoft’s consumer cloud storage platform is none other than OneDrive. It is where users can save any of their files albeit it’s mostly used to store common files like documents and photos. However, there are times when you might encounter some problems when saving these files. Recently, some users reported that they had problems saving Word documents to OneDrive and if you experience the same issue, then you’ve come to the right place as this post will guide you on how to resolve it. According to users who encountered the problem, when they try to save Word documents on OneDrive, an error message appears instead stating, “This is not a valid file name”. This kind of error only occurs when the file is opened from within OneDrive for saving in a different folder. In other words, if the file is saved in the same folder, the error won’t pop up but if it is saved in a separate folder, that’s when the error appears. Worry not though for fixing this error is not complicated and won’t take too long. It seems that this error is due to the 259-character limitation when creating and saving files as far as the Office products are concerned. To resolve it, there are several workarounds you can check out. Before you proceed with these workarounds, make sure that you have a stable internet connection.

Option 1 – Try renaming the file with a shorter name

The first thing you can do to fix the problem is to rename the file with a shorter name. Just right-click on the file and select the Rename option from the menu and then type in the new name and click OK or tap Enter to rename the file.

Option 2 – Try renaming the folders where the file is located

Like what you did in the first given option, all it takes is a right-click but this time on a folder. Rename the folder with a different name and save the changes made and then check if you can now save the Word document on OneDrive.

Option 3 – Try moving the file to a folder with a shorter path

If the first two options didn’t work, you can try moving the file to a folder with a shorter path. Note that it is not the same as doing it locally on a Windows 10 computer so you have to right-click on the file and select the “Move to” option. After that, locate the folder where you want to move the file and select it and then click on the Move button to complete the task.

Option 4 – Try making some changes in the document

You could also try to make some modifications to the document. Once you’ve done that, click the File tab and select the Save As option and then go to the folder where you want to save the file and tap enter.