How to find and remove duplicate files from PC

How to find and remove duplicate files from PC

Gizmodo | Jul 6, 2015, 11.55AM IST
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Duplicate files can crop up for all kinds of reasons: Maybe you downloaded a file, forgot it was there, and then downloaded it again.
NEW DELHI: Duplicate files can cause all kinds of problems on your computer, taking up precious storage room, confusing your photo or media manager apps, and generally getting in the way of searches and other operations when you'd rather they didn't. You don't have to accept duplicate files as an inevitability of running a PC, though: Here's how to get rid of them.
Duplicate files can crop up for all kinds of reasons: Maybe you downloaded a file, forgot it was there, and then downloaded it again; maybe you copied a folder of images and then never got around to getting rid of the originals. Whatever the reason, they clog up your disk space and shouldn't be left to gather dust.

For the purposes of this guide we're going to use DupeGuru-it's Lifehacker's pick as the best duplicate file finder for Windows, and it's available for Mac and Linux as well. If you're not taken with DupeGuru, then some of the best alternatives are CCleaner and Duplicate Files Finder for Windows, and Gemini for Mac (another Lifehacker recommendation).
Using DupeGuru
After you've installed the software, the first screen you'll see is a fairly sparse one. Tap on the plus icon to choose the folders to scan for duplicates-choose your entire hard drive to go the whole hog and scan everything. Click 'Scan' and DupeGuru gets to work.
You may have to wait some time, depending on the size of the selected folders, but eventually a list of matches appears on screen. Original files are marked in blue, with duplicates underneath, so tick individual files or select 'Mark' and 'Mark All' to tick everything at once. Files can be deleted, or copied or moved to another location for checking.

Back on the main dialog choose 'View' then 'Preferences' to change the way DupeGuru looks for files. You can scan for duplicates based on their filename or their contents (which is much more effective)-use the filter hardness slider to change how strict the search is (and how many results you get back.)
DupeGuru also offers dedicated 'Picture Edition' and 'Music Edition' applications alongside the standard edition, and for the most comprehensive clean-up you should install and run all three. The tools built specifically for pictures and music give you extra search criteria: Bitrate, track length, compression and several others.

How to fix all your Facebook 'mistakes'

• The Activity Log in Facebook is worth exploring
• To find Activity Log, click on drop-down menu on the far righthand side of the toolbar
• You can also get to it by adding "/allactivity" to the end of your Facebook URL
• You can delete posts, unlike posts, hide updates from your profile

NEW DELHI: You may not yet have stumbled across the Activity Log page in your wanderings around Facebook, but it's worth exploring. It provides a blow-by-blow account of everything you do on the social network, and you can use it to take back likes or comments, find your favorite posts again, change your privacy settings and more.
To find the Activity Log, click on the drop-down menu on the far righthand side of the toolbar at the top of the interface. You can also get to it by adding "/allactivity" to the end of your Facebook URL (don't worry, no one else can get to it.) Your most recent activity is shown first.

You get everything here: likes, event responses, comments, posts, photo tags and all the other comings and goings. Hover over the privacy icon on the right (typically two silhouette portrait shapes) to check who can view the content in question-if it's one of your own posts, you have the option to change the visibility of it.
Click on the pencil icon to the right of each activity entry to take it back and erase it from the Facebook universe. It's possible to delete posts and comments, unlike posts from other people, hide certain updates from your profile (like the acceptance of an event invite) and more besides.

Here’s how to download iOS 9 on your iPhone, iPad

Apple will release iOS 9, the new iteration of its mobile operating system on 16 September for its iPhone and iPad devices. This time the size of the update is not very large and you'll require about 1.3GB of free space on your device to install it. The update supports iPhone 4S and above, iPad 2 and above, all iPad mini models, and iPod touch fifth-generation.
Judging by the company's usual pattern, the update is seeded at 10am PT or 10.30pm Indian Standard Time.
Here's how you can update your iPhone or iPad...

On a device running iOS 8.4, you need to go to the Settings app, go to the General menu, and tap on Software Update. You'll get the Download and Install button if the update is available. You can tap on this button, enter your passcode (if you have one), agree to the terms and conditions and let the update download and install. You should have 50% or more battery level for the update.
You can also update your device through iTunes by connecting it with your PC or Mac. Most likely iTunes will prompt you to update the software or feature an Update button. You can follow the prompts and update your device.
We recommend backing up your device before going ahead with the update.
With the new iOS 9 update, iPad finally gets the much-needed support for multiple apps on same screen.
Following the update, iPad will allow users to open two apps via drag-and-drop in 50:50 or 70:30 format. However, this feature will be available only on iPad Air 2.
Apple Maps, which the company claims is used 3.5 times more on iOS than any other mapping app like Google Maps, will now get transit directions. One neat feature of the Maps app is that it will show 'multi-modal routing'; this feature will, for example, show if a single station allows passengers to switch from buses to inter-city trains to metro trains.
iOS 9's new low-power mode will give iPhones and iPads an additional 3 hours of battery life.
Location cards in Apple Maps will also show if any restaurant or other stores support Apple Pay.
The company has made the Notes app in iOS 9 more functional by taking cues from Samsung's S Note. Instead of just typing in Notes, users can now draw in the app, make checklists and add photos.
Apple has also decided to take on Flipboard and Google's Play Newsstand to launch its own News app to provide personalized content to users with iOS 9. The Apple News apps will curate content only from sources that the user selects, but customize the content into its own format for "beautiful" presentation. Like Flipboard, Apple News will also have an Explore tab featuring recommended topics and publications. It will be initially rolled out in the US, UK and Australia.