All posts tagged: Realize

Dolby Atmos is great until you realize your setup isn’t actually using it

Dolby Atmos is great until you realize your setup isn’t actually using it

Published by skeptic

Dolby Atmos is a surround sound audio format that brought spatial audio mainstream. Rather than invest in an expensive surround sound speaker system, users can now experience spatial audio in Dolby Atmos with many of the earbuds and headphones they already own. Dolby Atmos is available for music, TV shows, and movies, and it creates an immersive and three-dimensional listening experience. The mastering process for Atmos content is object-based with a focus on spatial height, so you can really feel where sounds are coming from in a song, show, or movie. It’s rather easy to use Dolby Atmos with mobile devices and headphones. As long as your phone, streaming service, and headphones all support Dolby Atmos, you’re all set to start streaming spatial content. However, home theater or home audio setups are a bit more complicated. Dolby Atmos support on the best home theater and audiophile gear is still inconsistent, and you must seek it out. If one link in the chain isn’t compatible with the spatial audio format, you won’t be able to use …

I didn’t realize my TV was secretly ruining my picture until I found this setting

I didn’t realize my TV was secretly ruining my picture until I found this setting

Published by skeptic

While the era of online shopping reigns supreme in most cases, I won’t purchase a new TV without seeing how it looks in person first. I want to absorb the picture quality, see the major differences in color and image, and see if I think it would be the one I want. But, even at most big-box stores, displays suffer from one of the worst advancements in modern technology — motion smoothing. In some situations, motion smoothing can be an okay thing to have on. Sports, for example, look a little smoother. But anything else? It looks like a soap opera, running at way too high of a framerate, and ruining the overall look and feel of your fancy new display. And you may not even know that you can turn it off. What is motion smoothing on a TV? It may be the reason why everything looks just a little “off” Credit: Shaun Cichacki/MUO Have you ever watched a display that makes everything look too fast and unnatural? Then you’ve likely found yourself a victim …

Psychology Says Controlling Men Don’t Usually Announce Themselves — They Rely On 5 Behaviors That Feel Like Care Until You Realize What’s Really Happening

Psychology Says Controlling Men Don’t Usually Announce Themselves — They Rely On 5 Behaviors That Feel Like Care Until You Realize What’s Really Happening

Published by Jenni Sidey

A lot of us like to make excuses for our partner and believe they “just care a lot” when he does something that is controlling. It is difficult to take off the pink glasses that we put on during the honeymoon phase. However, research reinforces the importance of recognizing when a relationship is about to become more than unhealthy. Some specific behaviors suggest you’re with a controlling man who’s trying to convince you he cares, but recognizing these patterns early can help you separate genuine care from control before the dynamic becomes harder to untangle.  Psychology says controlling men don’t usually announce themselves — they rely on 5 behaviors that feel like care until you realize what’s really happening: 1. He doesn’t try to accommodate your schedule If you are living on your partner’s time, there is a problem. It’s nice to have Friday as date night, but if your significant other is not willing to accommodate you if you already have something planned for that day, there is an issue. This is especially concerning if …

I Didn’t Realize These 3 Habits Were Fueling My Codependency Until I Finally Faced Them

I Didn’t Realize These 3 Habits Were Fueling My Codependency Until I Finally Faced Them

Published by Jenni Sidey

The late lecturer and author Earnie Larsen defines codependency as “self-defeating, learned behaviors that cause a diminished capacity to initiate or participate in loving relationships.” Codependent people will typically place their worth in others and only feel “full” when they communicate with the person they are codependent on. Codependency can be emotionally draining for both parties involved. The codependent person doesn’t want to be codependent, and the person being depended on loses a lot of freedom, too. I didn’t realize that I struggled with codependency until about four months ago, when someone pointed out a few habits of mine that were fueling it. I knew I was dependent on others, but I didn’t know it was called codependency. But having a word for it has helped me in my journey to breaking my codependency. I didn’t realize these habits were fueling my codependency until I finally faced them: 1. I was unhealthily dependent on others One of the most common ways to combat codependency is to attend psychotherapy. Seeing a therapist allowed me to voice …

5 things your Chromebook can do that most people don’t realize

5 things your Chromebook can do that most people don’t realize

Published by skeptic

For the longest time, my Chromebook was a Gmail-and-Netflix machine. I’d have Chrome open, a few tabs going, and that was the extent of it. After realizing some of the downsides of Chromebooks when I first bought one five years ago, I figured I should dig into the other side of that coin now. What I found surprised me. ChromeOS has grown up a lot when nobody was paying attention, and there are features buried in it that changed the way I actually use the thing. You can connect multiple external displays All you need is a USB-C dock or cables Most people have no idea their Chromebook can power more than one monitor. Got USB-C ports? You might be able to push two or even three displays through a single dock. Google confirms support for up to three external monitors, though the exact number depends on your specific model. Plug a USB-C dock into your Chromebook — one with HDMI or DisplayPort outputs — and head to Settings > Device > Displays (or use …

I didn’t realize Android’s volume controls could look this good

I didn’t realize Android’s volume controls could look this good

Published by skeptic

Your phone’s volume overlay — the user interface that allows you to manage your volume and alerts settings — probably isn’t something you think about often. Each operating system has its own style of overlay, whether we’re talking about iOS 26’s Liquid Glass or Android 16’s Material 3 Expressive. In fact, each subset of Android features a different volume interface design, which is why the overlay style differs between Samsung Galaxy, Google Pixel, OnePlus, and other Android brands. I thought I was stuck with the volume overlay that came with my Android phone, but it turns out that isn’t the case. There’s a handy customization app called Volume Styles on the Google Play Store, and it makes it possible to select a custom volume overlay for your Android phone. You can make your Android volume interface look like a Windows PC, or like an iPhone, or almost anything else. Beyond that, Volume Styles can add extra shortcuts and toggles to the stock Android volume overlay, bringing functionality alongside the stylish designs. It’s one of the …

I didn’t realize these habits were hurting my Windows PC

I didn’t realize these habits were hurting my Windows PC

Published by skeptic

I’ve made a conscious effort to keep my Windows PC running smoothly by simply taking better care of it. That started with learning how to deep clean it properly, but it didn’t stop there. I also paid attention to everyday habits that cause long-term wear, such as poor charging practices and letting unnecessary apps run in the background. More than anything, it was about being mindful of how I use my PC every day. Over time, I realized that these small habits played a much bigger role than we give them credit for. When a Windows PC starts to slow down, it isn’t always because a setting is broken or the system needs a complicated fix. Often, performance drops because of repeated habits that quietly chip away at speed and efficiency, leaving the system feeling sluggish. If that sounds familiar, it might be time to pause before jumping straight into troubleshooting mode. Instead of repeatedly fixing the same issues, it’s worth recognizing the patterns that caused them in the first place. Breaking those habits can …

I didn’t realize my phone was tracking this by default

I didn’t realize my phone was tracking this by default

Published by skeptic

I had no idea that every time I took a photo, my phone was storing its precise GPS coordinates. Thanks to the photo’s EXIF data, someone could easily drop my pictures into an online tool to see precisely where I took them. This happens by default on most phones, which many people don’t even realize. It’s scary, especially for kids, but there’s a way to turn off this location storage on both Android and iPhone. Even if you want to keep it enabled, it’s good to know how to stop your phone from tracking your location every time you snap a picture. What is EXIF data, and what is my phone storing? Camera settings are benign, but GPS coordinates aren’t Credit: Brandon Miniman / MakeUseOf Every time you take a photo on your phone, the camera stores a bunch of information about it, called EXIF (exchangeable image file format) data. Some of it is helpful, like the camera used and its settings, but it also tracks the photo’s location. To view this data in Windows, right-clickany …

It Took Me 40 Years To Realize People Who Do These 3 Things Like Themselves Way More

It Took Me 40 Years To Realize People Who Do These 3 Things Like Themselves Way More

Published by Jenni Sidey

I was a teenage meatball, overweight and stoned and likable enough to other people, but never to myself. I wanted to be more, to feel better about myself. But I never let it happen because I didn’t know how.  Later, as a grown man playing in a pretty cool rock-n-roll band, touring the world and living the kind of life most guys my age only ever dream of, I still struggled with finding reasons to dig the person I had become. It was torturous for both the people in my life who I really loved and cared about, who had to deal with a man who wasn’t ever certain of his value in their lives, and it was torturous for me, too, as I constantly found myself staring in the mirror at a person I couldn’t stand. I felt trapped inside someone else’s body. I felt caged inside someone else’s life. But lately all of that’s changed for me. I can’t say for certain, but I’m pretty sure that getting divorced made me realize that …

When You Learn How Low the 2025 Murder Rate Was, You’ll Realize How Profoundly the Media Has Failed the American People

When You Learn How Low the 2025 Murder Rate Was, You’ll Realize How Profoundly the Media Has Failed the American People

Published by José Betancourt

The headlines of 2025 painted a portrait of America in chaos, driven by the financial logic of America’s media ecosystem. It’s number one product isn’t news, but fear. “NYC youth crime doubled since controversial state Raise the Age Law kicked in,” exclaims one hysterical New York Post headline from September. “Business owners express frustration over crime surge in Federal Hill,” reads a banner from FOX45 News, a local outlet in Baltimore. “Office shooter’s rampage shows terrifying rise of motive-free violence, experts warn,” goes a Fox News heading from August. The scary headlines were all underscored by inflammatory rhetoric from the Trump administration, which continued to insist that America’s cities are crime-ridden hell holes well into the new year. Selective media coverage of crime certainly isn’t a new phenomenon, though it’s worth revisiting — especially because new data suggests 2025 was actually one of the least violent years for the US in over a century. According to fresh Council on Criminal Justice crime statistics, Axios reports, murder rates fell 21 percent last year across the 35 …