Setting Up Your Home Office

We may earn a commission from links on this page. When you get serious about your fitness goals, one first step is usually to get your nutrition in order. You want to get enough protein to support your muscles, fruits and vegetables for health, carbs for fuel, and a total amount of calories that supports your activity and your goals without undereating or overeating. Preparing your meals ahead of time ("meal prepping") really helps with that. But meal-prepping has its pitfalls. Maybe you will get bored with your meals. Or maybe you won’t even get that far, and you’ll burn out just from the mental and physical effort of cooking a whole week’s meals at once. With that in m…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. A depressing byproduct of global climate change is more powerful hurricanes—four of the six strongest hurricanes on record have occurred since 2005, and Hurricane Melissa, which tore through Jamaica yesterday as category 5 storm, may become number five. Everyone living near either U.S. coast is potentially in danger from these types of vicious storms, whether from debris made deadly from high winds, accidental electrocutions from downed power lines, and especially from storm surge and fresh-water flooding, the main cause of hurricane-related deaths. But you can keep yourself safer if you follow a few simple steps. Where a…

Americans are living through interesting times, economically. The tariffs imposed, delayed, and frequently adjusted by the government have thrown household budgets into confusion. One thing that’s pretty certain is that the baseline tariffs applied to just about every country are likely to raise prices at the grocery store no matter what happens from here (prices could go up by about 3% overall). For families that are already struggling to make their grocery budgets work, this is unwelcome news, but there is one thing you can do right now—while prices are still largely unaffected by tariff chaos—to help mitigate the impact and protect you from future grocery inflation: s…

There are times when I feel like my AirPods are pure magic. It's always impressive how they automatically shift from my Mac to my iPhone when I get a call, or how I don’t need to reconnect them to my iPad when I want to start watching a show. But when it comes to automatically swapping my audio over to Bluetooth speakers, they can get pretty jarring. Often, speakers and audio outputs will take over audio from my AirPods when I’m wearing them. This happens every time I get in my car while wearing a single AirPod, usually while listening to music or podcasts (I would not recommend driving while using both AirPods). As soon as I turn on my car, bam, the media starts blaring…

When you hit the share button on social media apps such as Instagram, Facebook, or Threads, these sites tack on a tracker to the link you're sharing. This tracker means that Instagram can tell who you've shared the link with, and it likely uses this information to further optimize its algorithm for ads. While the tech here is sneaky, it is easy to remove tracking information from these links. How do social media tracking links work?It's actually pretty easy to spot a link that has trackers. To check it out, copy the link to any Instagram post and paste it somewhere safe, like your notes app. A normal Instagram link looks like this: https://www.instagram.com/reel/DVrMKV…

If you're a Pixel owner, you may want to update your settings for Phone by Google. 9to5Google reports that a handful of users have experienced a bug with the Take a Message feature that records and sends audio to callers as they are leaving a voicemail. Take a Message is a recently introduced feature for the Phone app that activates when the recipient is not available to answer (or declines the incoming call). The caller hears the following: “The person you have called is not available. Please leave a message after the tone.” If you, as the recipient, tap the Take a message notification on your device, you can see a transcript of the audio in real time and hit Answer if …

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Super Bowl LIX kicks off on Sunday, Feb. 9 at 6:30 p.m. ET. This year, the game is being broadcast by Fox with a pregame show starting at 2 p.m. ET and game coverage at 6 p.m. ET. Even if you don't have cable, there are a few ways, both paid and free, that you can watch all the action live from Caesars Superdome in New Orleans. Watch free on TubiThe game—as well as pre- and post-game coverage—will be streaming on Fox-owned Tubi for free, with 4K available on some devices (including Roku, Fire TV, Android TV, and Apple TV). You do need to sign up for a Tubi account, but no credit card is required. Tubi also includes the NF…

With a historically bad winter storm expected to bring snow, ice, and sub-zero wind chills to many parts of the United States this weekend, it's a good time to make sure you're prepared for a potentially life-threatening disaster. While winter storms are generally less deadly than hurricanes and heat waves, they can be extremely dangerous, particularly when extremely cold, wind, and ice storms cause power outages. But with a little preparation and common sense, you should be all right when it gets extra snowy and cold. Here are some tips and instructions for blizzard and winter storm survival. Who is the winter storm likely to affect? …

App notifications need careful balancing across Android, iOS, Windows, and of course macOS. Too many of them and you're in a state of constant distraction; too few of them, and you risk missing out on something important that one of your programs is trying to tell you. macOS has you covered when it comes to finding the right balance for you, providing a full suite of controls for managing interruptions and staying up to date with your notifications. It doesn't take long to set up these notification options, and then once they're configured, you can use Focus modes for specific scenarios (like working or watching movies). Note that some individual apps come with their own …

All of the devices you own and every app running on those devices is eager for your attention, which can make it difficult to actually get anything done— and Windows is no different when it comes to regularly distracting you with pings and pop-ups. Leave the default notification settings in place, and it can get a bit overwhelming. Windows does give you plenty of control over how notifications work, though, including which apps and system events are allowed to bother you and when—there are even various Do Not Disturb options and modes you can take advantage of. Here's how to set Windows 11 notifications up to suit you. Notification settingsTo get started with notification…

Saving up to retire takes decades of planning (and sometimes sacrifice), not to mention a steady income that allows you to put that money aside. Not everyone makes it to the finish line; in 2024, close to 5% of people with 401(k) plans took a hardship withdrawal, pulling money from their future to solve immediate financial needs. If you’re not yet 59½ years old (and don’t qualify for one of the exceptions allowed by the IRS) this can be a costly decision, though, because in addition to paying taxes on the withdrawal (which is considered income), you’ll be slapped with a 10% penalty. But if you need to access your retirement funds a little early, there’s a way to do it wit…

Your phone’s camera does so much filtering, processing, and AI adjustments, it can make you question reality itself. In a world where Google can put you into photos you take, what's even real? If you'd rather avoid letting your phone decide what your photos look like, here's how to take control back from your camera app. Since Android is an open platform, the default apps on your phone may be different from someone else's. The various settings and apps I reference may be different on some phones, and some apps might not be compatible with all devices, but there are usually options that will work for you. Switch to RAW photos (where available)Much like higher-end cameras, …

Your iPhone’s camera is smart—perhaps too smart. It’s smart enough to relight your selfies and remove distracting background objects from your photos. It’s the kind of reality-altering power that normally requires an Infinity Stone. It can also make it much harder to get photos that are accurate representations of the real world. Fortunately, there are alternatives. It’s worth noting that it’s difficult to get absolutely zero processing on any smartphone camera. There’s always some amount of interpretation of raw data in order to display it. What we want to minimize here is how much your phone makes decisions about the “right” way your photos should look—decisions like ho…

Whether you're filling a prescription, rebooking a flight, or asking a question about your taxes, it seems like the first line of defense between you and any sort of real human helper is a never-ending string of automated prompts. But not all questions can be answered by a computer—especially when it comes to your taxes. The IRS expects more than 140 million individual tax returns for 2024 to be filed this season, which has a deadline of April 15, 2025. That's a lot of taxpayers on hold. Over the past few years, the IRS has certainly made improvements on its phone service, as well as expanding online tools. Still, anyone who has tried calling the IRS knows it can seem i…

Did you know you can customize Google to filter out garbage? Take these steps for better search results, including adding Lifehacker as a preferred source for tech news. In a world that seems increasingly determined to keep us apart, we’re all bound together by at least one universal experience: the frustration of talking to a real person on the phone at a customer service call center. Whether we want to complain, resolve a problem, or simply get information, call center interactions can be a maddening experience. Companies are increasingly hiding their customer service representatives behind phone menus and AI-driven tools, and even if you make contact, the experience is…

My number one hack to consistently exercise is my ability to lose myself in the moment. When the music fades, your doubts quiet, and you're simply there—fully immersed in the rhythm of your workout—is what psychologists call a "flow state." And it's not reserved for marathon runners, or professional dancers, musical geniuses or chess masters, or what have you. Whether you're lifting weights in your garage, following a YouTube yoga video, or taking a morning jog, tapping into flow can transform your workout from a chore into something genuinely energizing. What is a flow state?Flow state, a concept popularized by psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, describes a mental sta…

Did you know you can customize Google to filter out garbage? Take these steps for better search results, including adding my work at Lifehacker as a preferred source. Amazon's October Prime Day is nearly here. Between Oct. 7 and 8, you’ll find promotions on products from companies both big and small, all vying for your clicks and the contents of your bank account. Many of these offers will claim to be great deals, with the implication that not buying the item during Prime Day will mean you miss out on massive savings. But not all Prime Day deals are really all that great—just because a product is discounted on Prime Day doesn't mean it hasn't been cheaper before, and won…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. As Lifehacker's resident marathon runner and senior finance writer, there is one perfect point where my worlds intersect: buying sneakers. When it comes to investing in—and maybe even splurging on—running gear, nothing affects your running experience more than your shoes. Finding the perfect running shoes is about much more than style or brand preference. Proper footwear can be the difference between achieving your running goals and suffering through preventable injuries. Why proper shoe fit mattersMany runners unknowingly wear the wrong shoes for years. According to Jessica Lyons-Quirk, director of footwear merchandising…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Following a tariff-induced delay, retailers officially kicked off Nintendo Switch 2 preorders on Thursday. I could tell you that preorders went smoothly across all stores, and that there was plenty of stock for everyone who wanted one of Nintendo's new consoles. I could tell you that, but I'd be lying. The Switch 2's preorder launch was never going to be seamless: The console has eight years of hype built up around it, and fans want their chance to secure the first Nintendo console to play games in 4K. Even still, the preorder situation was rough: There were endless digital queues, error screens, and, in Best Buy's case, …

It's officially tax season. After filing your 2024 federal tax return—ideally for free—you're probably eager to get some money back. The IRS expects more than 140 million individual tax returns for tax year 2024 to be filed ahead of the Tuesday, April 15 federal deadline. Luckily, the IRS makes it easy to check the status of your refund online. Here's everything you need to know to track your 2024 federal tax refund. Wait at least 24 hours after filing The IRS needs time to process your tax return, so you'll have to be patient before checking your refund status. If you e-filed, you can check as soon as 24 hours after the IRS received your tax return. For paper returns, yo…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. The Apple Watch has a built-in sleep tracker, but it can be hard to find. Here’s how to access it, how to set it up so that it properly records how much sleep you’re getting, and how to understand the results. Does my Apple Watch support sleep tracking? Sleep tracking was introduced with WatchOS version 7 (released in 2020). That version of WatchOS works on watches from Series 3 and newer, paired with an iPhone 6S or newer, with iOS 14 and newer. In other words: The oldest devices that will work are a 2015 phone, a 2017 watch, and 2020 releases of the software that run on them. As long as your Apple Watch isn’t truly anc…

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Sometimes I fear my running career has plateaued. Well, not my career, but my pace. I lace up four or five times a week, push hard enough to feel pleasantly wrecked, watch my mileage climb steadily upward, and then—after months of honest effort—still find myself running the exact same pace I was running a year ago. It's clear that in order to get faster, effort alone isn't enough. I'm not alone here. It's well known in running circles that a lot of us unconsciously settle into what coaches call "the gray zone"—an effort level that's too hard to be truly easy and too easy to create meaningful high-end adaptation. It feels …

Microsoft announced a plethora of Copilot upgrades at the start of the week, and we're now starting to see some of them roll out—to Windows Insiders, at least. The Copilot app for Windows has now been updated to support Copilot Vision and file search, so the AI bot is better able to interact with whatever's on your PC. Copilot Vision first appeared on the web last year, but it's new to the Windows app: It essentially lets the AI "see" what's happening on your computer, so you can ask it about websites you're viewing, or documents you're editing, or songs you're listening to, without having to take a screenshot or do any copying or pasting. …

It seems every tech company on the planet has something AI-related to tout these days, but to most people, I'd wager "AI" is synonymous with ChatGPT. Sure, plenty of other AI platforms are out there, from Google Gemini, to Microsoft Copilot, to Apple Intelligence, but ChatGPT holds the enviable position of both having been the "first" to the generative AI boom, and having kept the crown in the years since. At least, that was the case—but now, a Chinese startup is threatening to take that crown for itself. That company is DeepSeek, a name you're likely familiar with if you have been following AI news. Like ChatGPT's OpenAI, DeepSeek develops generative AI models. The compa…

Even if you don't use a PC, you probably know about the Blue Screen of Death (or BSOD). This iconic error screen has been a core component of Windows since the OS' first version (though it looked a bit more like something out of The Matrix back then). The BSOD isn't something you necessarily want to see—especially if you're Bill Gates showing off a new version of Windows—as it means some factor has crashed your system, and now your PC needs to restart. However, soon enough, when you do see it, you might not actually recognize it. As it happens, Microsoft is changing the look of the BSOD. The company announced the redesign in a Friday post on the Windows Insider blog. (Th…