Converting Numbers Between Decimal, Binary, and Hexadecimal

If you want a quick and easy way to convert numbers between their decimal, binary, and hexadecimal form use Programmer mode in Windows Calculator.

Windows Calculator has come installed on all Windows operating systems for a long time now. Look in the accessories menu or just type calc at start to run it.

Go to the view menu and select 'Programmer' mode.

The setting at the left for the number form should default to decimal.

If you enter a number and click one of the other radial buttons, the number will be automatically converted.

Assign a Drive Letter Permanently to a Flash Drive

You can force your Windows operating system to always assign the same drive letter to a flash drive.

Go to Administrative Tools in the Control Panel. Then Click on Computer Management.

In Computer Management, you'll see a list of all of the drives connected to your computer. If you right click on a drive you'll have the option to change the drive letter.

Clicking 'Change' . . .

. . . will give you the option to assign a drive letter.

Anytime in the future when the drive is plugged into your PC, it will be assigned the chosen letter.

CPU-Z

CPU-Z is a free utility that Windows users can use to analyze the central processing unit, the motherboard chipset, and the RAM on their PC. It is available for download here.

As this screen grab shows, CPU-Z quickly shows the user on the first 'CPU' tab, the number of cores on her or his PC, the core speed, the type of processor the PC is using. Choosing 'Clocks' for the drop down Tools menu at bottom will show the individual core speeds in realtime. Multiple cores allow a processor to run multiple instructions simultaneously.

The SPD tab (Serial Presence Detect) shows you the memory modules (printed circuit boards) and the different speeds at which they can be run. The current memory speed will be shown in the Clocks option under Tools as well.