Recover instantly from PC mistakes

Most PC mistakes are easy to undo if you know how. Edward Munn reveals quick, reliable fixes for six of the most common blunders

Instantly undo your last mistake Ctrl+Z is one of the most useful keyboard shortcuts you can ever learn. In Microsoft Office programs, such as Word and Excel, it can be used not only to quickly undo your last mistake but also to jump back an almost unlimited number of steps to restore anything you’ve recently edited. In fact, when you make a change anywhere in Windows, such as renaming or deleting a file, pressing Ctrl+Z is normally the quickest way of restoring it to its previous state.

Kobo Aura One

Nathan Spendelow looks at one of the strongest Kindle rivals we’ve seen in years

Amazon’s new Kindles might not command the headlines as they once did, but the retailer continues to sell e-readers by the bucketload and is more dominant in the sector than ever.

Kobo, however, is keeping up the fight and its latest offering, the Aura One, is a premium device with a generous 7.8in screen that has its sights set firmly on Amazon’s Kindle Voyage and Kindle Oasis.

With such a large screen, the Kobo is closer in size to a small tablet like the iPad Mini 4 than a standard e-reader. This has the advantage of fitting more words per page, providing a less cramped read. On the other hand, it’s significantly more cumbersome than the smaller 6in Kindles and is heavy for an e-reader at 230g.

Who's Spying Your PC?

Don’t think for a second that you’re ever truly alone when browsing the web. Mike Plant reveals how everything you do online is watched – and what you can do about it

How would you react if the next time you walked into a restaurant you’d never visited before the head waiter not only greeted you by name, but also reeled off your address? Then, before you’d had a chance to sit down, he asked you about your recent holiday to the Costa del Sol, before telling you that your best friend visited the restaurant recently and would definitely recommend the chicken chasseur.

Secret Tips For… Audacity

Record web radio, get rid of crackling noises and remove long silences

Record sounds playing on your PC

Free audio-editing program Audacity (www.audacityteam.org) is great for editing digital files from your music collection as well as voice recordings. But it can also record any audio playing on your computer – for example, an internet radio station, a YouTube video or an iTunes song.

To start recording, open Audacity, select Windows WASAPI in the Audio Host dropdown menu and click the record button. Once you’ve made your recording, click the stop button. If you’d like to listen to your recorded audio on an MP3 player or smartphone you should convert the audio file to MP3 (see next tip).

Test anything from your browser

You can do more with your browser than just visit web pages. Edward Munn looks at six useful functions you can perform from your browser with no additional software