The Google Pixel 7 Pro was recently eclipsed by the Google Pixel 8 in October, meaning, this holiday season, you’ll see the Pixel 7 Pro at its lowest price yet. The first retailer to do just that is none other than Woot, Amazon’s subsidiary online retailer. Until Dec. 9, or while Pixels last, Woot is selling new, 256GB unlocked Google Pixel 7 Pros for $599 (originally $999).

Keep in mind that Woot only ships to the 48 contiguous states in the U.S. If you have Amazon Prime, you get free shipping; otherwise, it’ll be $6 to ship.

Get these Pixel 7 Pro essentials:

It would be a shame if you dropped your new Pixel 7 Pro right out of the box :

• Pixel 7 Pro clear case $15.99 (was $29.99)

• MagSafe case with kickstand $29.98

• MagSafe case with wallet $29.98

• Pixel 7 Pro screen protector $5.99 (was $9.99)

Get the Pixel 7 Pro $100 cheaper than Black Friday

For those who didn’t buy a new cell phone during the Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals, I have good news for you: Woot’s current deal for the Pixel 7 Pro is the best one yet. During Black Friday and Cyber Monday, you could only get the 256GB version for $699 from Best Buy or Amazon, which was, at the time, the lowest price it had ever been. But Woot’s current deal is even better, according to Honey’s price history.

At its current price, you can get the 7 Pro for the same price that Amazon is selling the Pixel 7, making this a no-brainer deal. You should not consider the Pixel 7 when you can get the Pro version for the same price. You can see some of their main differences in our breakdown here. If you are considering switching to the Pixel 7 Pro, make sure to transfer your Google Authenticator codes before factory resetting your old phone. Also, keep in mind that if your phone breaks, you can now fix it yourself to save yourself a good chunk of money. You can read the full Pixel 7 Pro review from PCMag here.

Source: LifeHacker – The Google Pixel 7 Pro Is on Sale for Its Lowest Price Ever

Over the weekend, some parts of the internet were fixated on figuring out why an otherwise normal photo of a bride trying on wedding dresses turned out so bizarre.

At first glance, there’s nothing strange about the image—simply a bride standing in front of two mirrors in a wedding dress. However, if you look closely at the bride and both mirrors, you’ll see she’s striking in a different pose in all three locations, all within the same photo.

The bride in question, Tessa Coates, took to her socials to ask the internet for an explanation. Coates swore the photo was just a normal snapshot taken on an iPhone 12, with no added effects or features like Live Photo or panoramic. She even shared a screenshot of the metadata of the photo as proof:

Tweet may have been deleted

With all this in mind, the situation was a bit of a stumper. How could a standard photo capture three different poses at once? Coates shared on her story that she visited an Apple Store, where a Genius told her that it was the result of the iPhone taking multiple frames at once, then intelligently stitching them together. That is, for simplicity’s sake, how an iPhone takes HDR photos, however, it doesn’t seem to be the cause here. MKBHD writer and researcher David Imel didn’t even think the photo was real, poking holes in HDR theory, as the process happens way too fast to allow for photographing multiple poses.

Spoiler alert: It was panoramic mode all along

However, the case seems to have been solved. Faruk from the YouTube channel iPhonedo highlighted that the resolution of the photo (3028 x 3928) isn’t the standard resolution of an iPhone 12 image. When Faruk took a photo on his iPhone 12, the resolution comes back as 3024 x 4032. A small difference, but the clue Faruk needed to figure out what was going on. He correctly identified this resolution as being a panoramic photo after all, even though the photo wasn’t labeled as “Pano” as they usually are. As it turns out, if you don’t move the iPhone enough when taking a panoramic shot, it won’t label the photo as Pano. Go figure.

Panoramic shots work by taking a lot of photos in succession as you move the camera from left to right. It then stitches those photos together, to create the illusion of one long image. So, based on Faruk’s theory, what most likely happened here was Coates’ photographer actually took the photo in Pano mode, but didn’t move the camera enough to register as as panoramic photo. However, they moved it just enough to take multiple photos of the scene, including Coates in three different poses. The left mirror was captured first, then Coates herself, then, finally, the mirror on the right.

You should be able to replicate the situation yourself, at least with one mirror. If you place your subject in the frame with at least one mirror to their side, switch to Pano mode in the camera app, then take a photo slightly moving the phone left to right, the subject in the mirror should look different than they do themselves.

On to the next internet mystery.

Source: LifeHacker – How That Viral Wedding Dress Photo Showed a Bride In 3 Different Poses Simultaneously

Whether you want to improve your memory for everyday life, school, or work, it’s kind of hard to know where to start. After all, memory is kind of mushy and not a traditional “hard skill” like coding. In general, I recommend outsourcing everything possible to your phone. Why not use your smart device to enhance your original smart device, your brain?

There are many apps out there that purport to beef up your memory skills, though research on whether they work has been spotty and conclusions about efficacy are pretty limited. One thing we do know is that they’re not going to magically cure major cognitive decline. Still, if a few puzzles a day help you feel better and get your gears going, it could be worth a download just to get that rush. Apps are just one of many ways to get a little brain boost, but below are some of the better ones out there.

Old reliable: Lumosity

Lumosity is the app that crops up most often when you’re looking for a tech tool to improve your memory and overall thinking power. Basic functionality is free, but to unlock all the features—and there are a lot of features—you’re looking at $15 per month. You can pick a track to focus on, from memory to attention to processing speed, among others, and play games once a day to improve your skills. The app even allows you to track not only your own progress, but your progress against others, in case you’re into a more competitive element. 

For customizable content: Elevate

Elevate advertises itself as “your personal brain trainer” and makes good on that by making its content pretty customizable. You take a pre-test to determine your skill levels in reading, writing, speaking, and math, then get an “Elevate Proficiency Quotient” to represent your proficiency. You can play three games per day for free, but there are over 40 games you can access if you pay $4.99 per month. Some games can even be downloaded for offline use, so if you spend a lot of time on planes or subways, you can use your commutes to your (brain’s) advantage. 

To compete with friends: CogniFit Brain Fitness

CogniFit makes a big deal of its games being designed by neuroscientists and its product being “trusted by doctors.” That’s great. But you know what’s also great? Beating your friends at stuff. CogniFit allows you to compete against other people (and has nearly 5 million users already), plus get detailed insights into your own cognitive strengths and weaknesses, from contextual memory to hand-eye coordination. You can play four games for free, but beyond that you’ll have to pony up $13 per month. 

To spend no money: Brain Games

If you want to improve your cognitive skills without taking a toll on your wallet, consider Brain Games, which is ad-supported and doesn’t even ask you to create an account when you download it. It’s only available on Android, but it features enough games and features that you can complete three tasks a day for a month. The levels get harder as you go and you can even compete against other users. 

To remember specific things: Eidetic

The other apps on this list are for enhancing your memory overall, but why not practice that with things you actually need to remember? Enter Eidetic, which uses spaced repetition to help you remember anything from account numbers to long quotes. The app takes care of the “spaced” part of the repetition for you, sending you push alerts whenever it’s time to review. It’s also free!

Source: LifeHacker – The Best Apps for Improving Memory

Resetting your Windows PC can be a good way to clear out old junk files and help troubleshoot technical issues your computer is experiencing. In the past, you used to have to rely on physical disk media and ISO files to reinstall Windows. Now, though, Microsoft has made it much easier—you can reset your PC to get a fresh start, directly from the operating system and without completely reinstalling Windows. Here’s how to do it.

How to reset a Windows 11 PC

Reseting a Windows 11 PC only requires a few steps. Microsoft offers two options for resetting your PC—you can keep your files, which makes the process easier, or you can delete everything. If you want to delete everything and start completely fresh, make sure to back up any important files to an external drive and/or to your preferred cloud service before getting started.

Once you have everything backed up, go to Start > Settings > System > Recovery and then select Reset this PC.

At this point, you’ll be faced with the two options I mentioned before. If you want to keep your files and just reinstall Windows, choose Keep my files, select your preferred storage option (cloud or local), and change any other settings you see that you want to change. (If you aren’t sure about a setting, leave it set to default.) When you’re ready to continue, set Restore preinstalled apps to no and then continue through the process. If you don’t see Restore preinstalled apps in the settings, it means your PC didn’t come with any preinstalled apps that you can configure.

The process for wiping everything is pretty much the same, though you’ll have to confirm that you do indeed want to wipe all your files before continuing. Now all you need to do is let Windows complete the process, and then run through the setup to get everything back to where you want it.

How to reset a Windows 10 PC

Depending on which version of Windows 10 you are running, you will have to go about this process a little differently.

If you’re running a version of Windows 10 that is older than version 2004, you’ll need to utilize the Fresh Start option. Start > Settings > Update & security > Windows Defender > Device performance & health > Fresh Start. Next, select Additional info, then hit Get Started and follow the settings here.

If you’re running a version of Windows 10 that is newer than version 2004, follow these steps:

Start > Settings > Update & Security > Recovery > Reset this PC > Get Started. Select Keep my files if you want to start over with all your files still saved, or backup all your important files beforehand and choose to delete everything. Make sure to change Restore preinstalled apps to No and then click continue to finish the process and reset your PC.

Source: LifeHacker – How to Reset Your Windows PC for a Fresh Start

I haven’t met a winter food tradition I didn’t like—gingerbread cookies, plum pudding, roasting chestnuts on the not-so-open fire of my oven—but it’s possible that I’ve finally met my favorite: the raclette dinner. The winter tradition of griddling Raclette cheese is interactive, satisfying, communal, and a treat for cheese fans. Make a night of it with family and friends this holiday season and settle in for some quality time, which is always better with melty cheese.

Over the weekend, I went to my first raclette dinner. It was the coziest and cheesiest way to spend an evening with friends. You may have seen raclette on your Instagram or TikTok feed in the form of a half-wheel of cheese bubbling and browning under a close heating element. An anonymous hand tilts the wheel and scrapes the charred surface, and an impossible gooey glob of cheese slides off the wheel and piles onto a plate, sandwich, or French fries. Like much of social media, it comes off as excessive, like it was created purely for a food shock factor, but raclette is a tradition that has been enjoyed for far longer than the internet box in your hand.

What is raclette?

Raclette is a cow’s milk cheese that has the wonderful ability to melt into a saucy puddle, but it’s also the name of an entire dish. The meal, originating in the Alpine regions of France, Switzerland, and Italy, exhibits the extraordinary melting power of the eponymous cheese. You melt the cheese with direct heat from a nearby flame, or nowadays maybe an electric heating element. Scrape it onto boiled potatoes, cured meats, cornichons, or break away from tradition and scrape the liquified cheese mound onto veggies, pasta, or the closest sandwich. 

Products to consider:

• Boska Mini Raclette

• 8-Person Classic Raclette Party Grill

• SwissMar Oval Raclette with Wood Base

You could enjoy raclette at a restaurant, but it’s much more fun to do it at home with a group of friends or family. Don’t worry, you don’t need a fireplace, and you don’t need to hold a wedge of cheese over your electric stove. There are fantastic raclette grills you can buy that include a flat cooking surface and small, non-stick, angled scoops for you to melt slabs of raclette (like the ones above). There’s a heating element that runs underneath the griddle top and above the raclette scoops, so you can heat up meats or veggies and melt the cheese simultaneously. There are also models that only heat up the cheese scoops from the bottom but you won’t get a browned and bubbled surface with this kind. You can buy an eight-person set for entertaining, or a smaller two-scoop griddle for a constant flow of melted raclette on solo-cheese nights. 

Raclette like you mean it

You can buy wedges of Raclette at specialty cheese stores, but you can also find it at Trader Joes during the winter months. To enjoy raclette at home, add quarter-inch thick slices of the cheese to the metal scoops of your electric griddle set. Place the scoop under the heating element and let it cook while you gather slices of salami, cornichons, onions, and boiled potato hunks onto your plate. In the time that it takes you to do this, about two minutes, the cheese will be a puddle in the bottom of the scoop. Leave it for a minute longer and you’ll notice a crusty, browned surface bubbling up on the cheese. I love the crisp and chewy texture that develops on the cheese after extra time under the heat, so I leave it for extra time. Remove the non-stick scoop from the heater and slide the melted Raclette over your dish of hearty nibbles. There’s no need for a scraper really, the cheese surfs out of the scoop with no more than a tilt and shake.

You could certainly enjoy it year round, but raclette is usually a cold-weather treat. In many regions, this particular cheese is only widely available during the winter, and since melting it requires consistent intense heat, the immediate space tends to heat up. Raclette makes me think of chunky sweaters, mulled wine, and any edible vehicle for cheese. I can see this being the perfect centerpiece activity for Christmas Eve or New Year’s Eve, or any time you want to while away until the wee hours of the morning snacking and chatting with the people you love.

Source: LifeHacker – A Raclette Party Is Exactly What You Need This Winter

Water is humanity’s frenemy. Sure, the stuff is necessary for life and it’s fun to go swimming in, but water is also tirelessly seeking to destroy your property. When you think of the threat that water poses to your existence you might think of drowning and hurricanes, but in many cases the real threat is coming from inside the house; water damage makes up almost a quarter of all insurance claims in the U.S., causing an average of $12,514 in damage.

And that’s if your insurance covers it—most policies only cover water damage caused by sudden emergencies, like a burst pipe. They won’t cover storm-driven water damage, and they won’t cover damage done by a slow, methodical leak.

Those slow leaks can do just as much damage as a flood, eating away at the hidden areas of your home; by the time the leak becomes obvious it’s too late to do anything except rip everything out and replace it. The best way to defend your home from this kind of sneaky (and hella expensive) water damage is leak detectors. And when it comes to leak detectors, the rule of thumb is “the more the merrier.”

Leak detectors

Leak detectors are simple but effective—detecting moisture and triggering an alarm. You can buy dumb ones that simply make a lot of noise when they touch water, or you can buy smart ones that sound an alarm and alert you via text, email, or a connected app. You can also pair many smart leak detectors with automatic shutoff valves that will turn off the water supply when a leak is detected.

These devices can save you a lot of money and trouble because they alert you the moment water appears where it shouldn’t so you can turn off the water and immediately take steps to reduce the damage. That’s incredibly important—but just as important is where to place those leak detectors, because they can’t help you if they’re not in the right places. And you need them in more locations than you think.

Where to place leak detectors

Water leaks can happen in a lot more areas of your home than you might initially think:

• Water heater. One of the most common sources of water leaks in the home is a traditional tank-type water heater. These appliances typically last about a decade, and when they fail they often leak. Since they continuously refill, that leak can do damage for weeks or even months before it’s noticed.

• Crawlspace/basement. The spaces under your house are often ignored for long periods (especially if they’re unfinished), so water infiltration from appliances or groundwater can go on for a long time before it’s noticed. Leak detectors placed strategically around crawlspaces or basements—near drains and sump pits especially—can alert you immediately if water is building up under your home.

• Garage. Failing weather stripping and incorrect grading can lead to regular floods in your garage, which can erode your floor and damage your stuff.

• Toilets. Slow leaks from faulty water lines or imperfect seals at the flange can sip water into your floors, rotting wood and destroying tile or other flooring materials. This can go on for a long time in guest or basement bathrooms that don’t get used much.

• Under sinks. Every sink in your home is a potential water damage hotspot. A leaking drain or trap under the sink can rot out cabinets and potentially damage floors and walls as well.

• Dishwasher. A sensor under the dishwasher will alert you the moment your dishwasher starts to leak, as opposed to months later when the damage starts to spread throughout your kitchen floor.

• Refrigerator. If your refrigerator has a water line and/or an ice maker, it could start leaking water at any time. Aging refrigerators can also cause water damage if the defrost drain becomes clogged, and if your fridge stops working, the melt-off from the freezer can result in a small-scale flood that can do major damage to your floors.

• Laundry. There are a lot of ways your washing machine can silently betray you. If it’s an older model, it can rust and leak every time it runs. The hose connection to the water supply can fail and start to leak, or the drain pipe can become clogged and overflow. Since laundry facilities are often installed in tight spaces, the problem may not be visually obvious for some time.

• Roof. All roofs eventually fail, and many roof leaks start off as subtle, gradual problems that rot the decking. Placing leak detectors in attics or inside the ceilings of rooms directly under the roof can give you a little early warning that your roof has stopped roofing.

• Boiler/Radiators. If you have a hot water heating system that employs a boiler and radiators, you have water moving through the walls of your home all the time—and leaks can occur at any point along the system. A leak detector under your boiler and near each radiator can help warn you the moment a problem begins.

• Fish tanks. An enormous container of standing water in your home? Better to know that a tank has cracked or that your cat has gone fishing and knocked it over immediately instead of several hours later.

• HVAC. Air conditioning systems can leak for a variety of reasons. Clogged drain tubes can back up water into the house, so having a detector under the drip pan to detect overflows can save you a lot of headaches—and alert you that your AC system needs maintenance.

Water can get into your house in a lot of ways, and liberal use of leak detectors can provide just enough warning for you to avoid costly repairs. But they can only help if you deploy them—and enough of them.

Source: LifeHacker – You Need Leak Detectors in Your Home, and More Than You Think

The way we purchase movies and TV shows has changed a lot since the invention of home video. In fact, these days, many of us don’t buy anything at all, and stream all our content instead. Still, there are plenty who prefer to buy their entertainment, with a subsection happy to do so digitally. After all, with disc-less devices like Apple TVs and Fire Sticks all the rage, it’s the most convenient way to buy your media.

However, there’s a major catch that many don’t realize when they put their digital card down: You don’t actually own any of the digital movies and TV shows you buy.

PlayStation is the latest to remove titles from buyers’ libraries

Sony recently posted a “legal update notice” on the PlayStation site. That might not normally move headlines, but this time is different: In the notice, Sony outlines hundreds of Discovery-branded shows you will no longer be able to access starting Dec. 31:

As of 31 December 2023, due to our content licensing arrangements with content providers, you will no longer be able to watch any of your previously purchased Discovery content and the content will be removed from your video library.

We sincerely thank you for your continued support.

Thank you,

PlayStation Store

Hey, at least they thanked us for our support.

Is there a refund involved, at least? Nope. If you purchased any of this content on the PlayStation Store in the past, you simply lose both the content and your money at the end of the year. Whether it’s Breaking Amish, Cake Boss, or Mythbusters, you better rewatch your favorite shows now, because you’ll lose access to them before 2024.

If you’re pissed off, I don’t blame you. If you’re scared for the rest of your PlayStation Store content, I don’t blame you. Sony certainly didn’t make it clear when you make a TV or movie purchase that, hey, if we lose the licensing rights to this thing you’re buying, not only will it disappear from the store, we’ll remove it from your PlayStation. Of course, you can’t actually buy shows and movies on your PlayStation anymore, as Sony shuttered the service back in 2021, so you might think you need to look elsewhere for buying shows and movies anyway.

The problem is, you’re not better off buying your digital shows and movies from other platforms, like Amazon, Apple, or Google. Sadly, this issue affects all platforms who sell digital media: Nowhere is safe.

You don’t own digital shows and movies

Here’s the unfortunate truth: Whether you buy The Dark Knight from Amazon, or Community: Season 1 on Google, the digital media you “purchase” isn’t really yours. You don’t own it, and neither does the platform you bought it from. What you’re paying for is the right to watch that content for as long as the provider has the right to host it. As soon as their licensing agreement with the company that actually owns the content expires, and the platform doesn’t renew it, the platform loses the right to “sell” it, and, subsequently, you lose the right to watch it. No refunds, no discounts on future purchases, just a lighter wallet.

As frustrating as it is, we all technically agree to this arrangement when we make a purchase. You find some language outlining these conditions in the terms of service for any platform that doesn’t actually own the content they’re selling. Take Amazon Prime Video, for example. Scroll through their TOS, and you’ll this:

i. Availability of Purchased Digital Content. Purchased Digital Content will generally continue to be available to you for download or streaming from the Service, as applicable, but may become unavailable due to potential content provider licensing restrictions or for other reasons, and Amazon will not be liable to you if Purchased Digital Content becomes unavailable for further download or streaming.

Google’s TOS says something similar:

In certain cases (for example if Google loses the relevant rights, a service or Content is discontinued, there are critical security issues, or there are breaches of applicable terms or the law), Google may remove from your Device or cease providing you with access to certain Content that you have purchased.

Now, it’s not like this happens all the time. If it did, there would probably be more of an uproar about this sort of thing. I have movies and shows in my “Apple TV” library that I bought a decade or more ago that are still happily waiting for the next time I want to watch them, and will likely be there for years to come. But, if for some reason, AMC Networks revokes Breaking Bad from Apple’s platform, or if Amazon MGM Studios decides that Casino Royal doesn’t need to be available on non-Amazon platforms, I could see my library shrink. (Also, this is how I find out Amazon owns MGM now?)

While this situation sucks, it wouldn’t be as bad if they just made it clear. No one—I repeat—no one reads the terms of service for these things, and companies know that. Instead of a “Buy” button, there should be a “Lease” button, with a big pop-up warning you that you’re just renting the movie or show for the indefinite future. At least then, people won’t be as pissed when the $30 they spent on a TV season disappears from their Fire Stick.

If you want to own your content, buy physical

Betamax, laserdisc, and VHS were all beat out by advancing technology, but that doesn’t mean digital media killed physical content. In fact, DVD and Blu-ray sell quite well these days, and you can find them in abundance for just about any title you’re looking for. If you’re going to spend your money to “own” something, you might as well pick something that studios can’t take away from you in the future.

Even if you did own digital copies, there are plenty of benefits to physical media, from video quality to media preservation. Now, if the studios figure out how to block you from watching your discs, that’s another story. But even in 2023, as long as you have a disc and something to play it on, you’re set.

Source: LifeHacker – You Don’t Own the Digital Shows and Movies That You ‘Bought’

Finals season is here and if you’re anything like me, you’re feeling overwhelmed and suddenly unsure that you retained a single piece of information from any of your classes. You did retain it, of course—that’s just the stress talking. You can combat the stress by studying effectively, but to do that, you need a plan. I’ve spent months compiling great study and memorization techniques and the ones below are the best for finals. 

The best study methods for reading comprehension

The first step to studying is taking in new information. You can’t interrogate or grasp something you’ve never even read or heard before. Even on your first read-through (or your first time reviewing the material outside of class), you should be strategic. Try these methods. 

The SQ3R method

Use the SQ3R method when you’re taking in unfamiliar information or reviewing information you didn’t quite get enough context for in class. “SQ3R” stands for survey, question, read, recite, and review. You first survey your text (ideally a single chapter in your book) and come up with questions based on the headings, captions, titles, or other notable elements. These questions should be about what you’d like to know and what the titles appear to promise you’ll learn. Then, you read closely, looking for the answers to your questions, and recite by rewriting what you’ve learned in your own words, taking care to answer your own questions. Finally, review your own notes and the material itself. 

The KWL method

KWL is similar to SQ3R, but a little simpler: You make a chart with three columns: Know, Want to Know, and Learn. It’s better to make a separate chart for each chapter or chunk of information you’re tackling. In the “Know” column, write what you already know about the topic. In the “Want to Know” column, write down what you’d like to learn (based on a survey of the material, including titles, heading, captions, charts, and summary paragraphs). As you take a second, more thorough read, write down what you’re learning in the “Learn” column, taking care to mark down any answers to questions you posed in “Want to Know.” 

The THIEVES method

The THIEVES method helps you figure out what a chapter is about before you even start reading it. “THIEVES” stands for title, headings, introduction, every first sentence in a paragraph, visuals/vocabulary, end-of-chapter questions, and summary. Create a chart or write down each of those categories on a piece of paper, then look at each one in order, starting with the title. What can you guess the chapter is about, based on the title? Write that down, along with anything else you glean from the title. What do the headings suggest the subsections are about and why might the author have separated them that way? Make your way through the list before and while you read, taking note of the elements outlined by the acronym. 

The best ways to memorize what you study

Memorization is pretty key to doing well on a test. You’d like to really grasp material and understand it inside and out, but that noble goal isn’t always possible when you’re staring down five major tests in one week. Sometimes, straight memorization just has to be good enough. 

The Method of Loci

The Method of Loci is a solid option if you’re going to be taking your test in the same location where you learned what’s on it, whether that’s in a specific classroom or in your own bedroom for an online class. You can think of the location you’ll be in for the test or just a place you know really well, but there have to be some defining features present, like a room with a lot of items or a street you visit frequently. When studying a bunch of things you have to remember, imagine yourself placing them, one by one, in one of those little loci. One topic can go in the tray that holds whiteboard markers, another on the professor’s desk, and another in the windowsill, for instance. When you want to retrieve or recall the information, imagine yourself walking through the area again, picking up what you need to remember from its proper place.

Association

Use association to help you remember big chunks of information, too. Whether you prefer mnemonic devices like acronyms or painting a “mental picture” of something silly to represent the information you need to know, these associations can stick a fact or idea in your brain well enough for you to recall it at test time. 

The Leitner system

The Leitner system is the best way to incorporate active recall into your studying, but it does take some time. You create flashcards, then drill them on a schedule, sorting them into one of five categories every time you get them right or wrong. Every time you get a card from Stack 1 right, move it to Stack 2, which you won’t study as often as your Stack 1 cards. Click through to the link above for a full explanation, but know that this is the best way to really, really memorize anything you need to know. 

The best study methods for grasping concepts

If you have the time, it’s always worth really understanding your material rather than just memorizing it. That’s where these techniques come in: They enable you to really dig in on subjects, making real-world connections and cementing the information in your brain. 

The Feynman method

Use the Feynman method when you’ve finished reading, reviewing, and memorizing. It calls on you to explain the topic at hand to someone who knows nothing about it, like your mom or your roommate. Explain it as simply as possible and give them the opportunity to ask follow-up questions when you’re done. If you can explain it simply and answer their questions, you really know your stuff. If you can’t, it’s back to studying until you get it down.

Blurting

Blurting is similar to the Feynman method, except you can do it on your own. After reading and reviewing, hide your notes and texts, then write down everything you can remember on a blank piece of paper. Explain the topic as best as you can, then use your materials to check for anything you missed. This helps with memory retrieval, but also gives you an easy way to see exactly what you’re missing, so you can double down on studying the specific elements that are tripping you up. 

Source: LifeHacker – These Are the Best Ways to Study for Your Finals

Black Friday and Cyber Monday might be in the rearview mirror, but some deals are sticking around. You can get the Meta Quest 2 for $75 off, matching the lowest price it’s ever been since its release, according to Honey’s price history. The Meta Quest 2 is the most popular VR headset on the market and the cheapest as well, making it the best option for those who want to try a virtual-reality headset but aren’t ready to shell out big bucks for the new Meta Quest 3 (let alone the forthcoming Apple Vision Pro).

The 128GB Meta Quest 2 is currently $224.99 (before tax) on GameStop after a $25 discount that applies when you pick it up in person. The $249.99 base price is the lowest price it’s ever been, matching Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals. (For an extra $50, you can double the memory to 256GB.)

VR products to consider:

There are many VR headsets to choose from. You can buy the Meta Quest 2, 3, or Pro on Amazon. If you’re not sure which one is the best for you, we break it down for you here:

• Meta Quest 2 ($249 on sale)

• Meta Quest 3 ($499)

• Meta Quest Pro ($929.13 on sale)

The Meta Quest 2 is an affordable entry into the VR space

Though the Meta Quest 2 has been eclipsed by the Quest 3, most Meta Quest games are still compatible with it—there’s a large library of older games to choose from, and most recently, even Steam Link PC VR games are now available. But you can do more than just play games; you can lounge around watching your favorite streaming movies and shows in a virtual screening room, hang out with your family or friends, or even use it to watch porn. Whatever your plans, the Meta Quest 2 is by far the cheapest and most user-friendly way to dip your toes in the world of VR.

The Quest 2 is currently half the price of its successor headset, but that’s not to say it’s half as good. At its current sale price, the Quest 2 is a great way for families or VR-curious people to jump in without a big initial investment. The Meta Quest 2 got an “outstanding” score in its PCMag review, which praised its minimalistic design, great display, powerful processor, accurate motion tracking, and optional compatibility with PCs.

Source: LifeHacker – The Meta Quest 2 Is Off at GameStop Right Now

No matter what Mac you have, whether you use a Magic Mouse or trackpad, you don’t have a dedicated right-click button. This can be confusing to people new to the Mac—honestly, it’s confusing to some of us who have used Macs for years. As it happens, there are quite a few ways to right-click on Mac, so you can pick the one that works best for your workflow:

Click with two fingers (trackpad)

This is the simplest way to right-click on your Mac. Just click or tap the trackpad with two fingers (if you have Tap to click enabled) and the right-click context menu will pop up. 

Click right side (Magic Mouse)

If you have a Magic Mouse, by default, you can click the right side of the top portion of the mouse to right-click. It’s a bit confusing since the mouse appears to be all one button, but if you imagine the right side having its own button, you should have no problem getting this to work.

If you’d prefer to make the left side the right-click option, you can go to System Settings > Mouse, then, next to Secondary click, choose Click Left Side.

A quick keyboard shortcut to right-click

If you find it hard to press the trackpad with two fingers at the same time, then you can hold down the Control key on your Mac’s keyboard and then click with the trackpad or a mouse. This was Apple’s go-to method for right-clicking back in the day.

Click a corner of your trackpad

If you prefer, you can set up one of the trackpad’s bottom corners as a dedicated right-click zone. You can enable this by going to System Settings > Trackpad and selecting the drop-down menu next to Secondary click. Select Click in the bottom-right corner or Click in the bottom-left corner. You can now click either of these corners of the trackpad to right-click on your Mac.

The three-finger right-click method

Many of us are used to using the two-finger scroll gesture on the Mac, and this right-click method is a natural extension of that. With two fingers on the trackpad, use your thumb to click the trackpad. It’s a similar gesture to the two-finger click, but you might find using your thumb is more convenient in certain situations.

Use a mouse

Of course, for a true right-click experience, you can use a mouse that has two or more buttons with your Mac. You don’t need to make any changes or configure the mouse: In almost all cases, the right button on the mouse will work as a right-click on the Mac.

Source: LifeHacker – How to Right-Click on Your Mac

My American history teacher was every high schooler’s dream. When we were learning about Prohibition, she showed us The Untouchables. As we discussed the American experience during World War II, she used the film Come See the Paradise to teach us about the horrors in Japanese internment camps.

Both films are R-rated, so I never told my parents we were watching them. Growing up, I was never allowed to see movies with this rating (with some unusual exceptions, like Backdraft and JFK). I never understood why. Watching these films didn’t warp my brain like my mom and dad said they would. They made learning about history a lot more fun and entertaining.

Now that I have kids, I wonder when I can be like my history teacher and stop worrying about a movie’s content and more about the critical or historical message they share. In that spirit, here is a list of R-rated flicks that are significant for their positive and/or important messages. Many contain objectionable content (obviously), so do your research and view them with your child at an age you find appropriate. 

Schindler’s List (1993)

Welcome to December, garden friends. For some lucky folks in the deep Southeast or Southwest, there’s still some sunshine and tomatoes to be had. For the rest of us, it’s sleet city. While it’s a decent time to take a finally take a breath from the summer and fall push, there’s still plenty you could be doing, if you’d like.

If the ground is workable, it’s still a great time for bulbs

Yes, it’s cold, but so long as you can work the ground, you’re safe. Bulbs love this weather. Once you have consistent freezes, that should get much harder, so take advantage of the breathtaking sales that my favorite bulb houses are having now. Eden Brothers, whom I adore for their colorways, is offering up to 50% off for their fall bulbs. Holland Bulb Farm has a slew of different discounts and is great for buying in bulk. Breck’s end of season sale has all those new pink and pale daffodils and some great deals on alliums.  

This also means it’s not too late to plant garlic and shallots and onions. If your garden center doesn’t have garlic anymore, lots of people have success with store-bought garlic, and although it’s usually said you should buy organic for this purpose, my non-organic garlic is constantly sprouting in my kitchen. Same for shallots. If you can get ahold of onion starts, get them in. Since they’re often sold in sets, check your garden groups—someone always has too many. 

Let the rain do the work

You know how germinating carrots is miserable most of the summer? It’s not in the fall, because the rain handles your light work. Throw carrot seeds into your beds just before it starts raining for a few days, and then stand back and watch germination take off. Same for radishes, including daikon and onion seeds. Since onion seeds (all alliums) have such a short seed viability time, usually only a year, you might as well. If they germinate, great, and if they don’t, no loss. 

You should also be thinking about cold stratification right now. All those flower seeds that need cold stratification, they could go outside now to be planted, and after winter is over, they may take. You can also just stick them in the fridge now and take them out in six to eight weeks. 

It’s tool time

Now is when I finally put my tools away for the winter, out of the elements. It’s also the perfect time to take a good look at each of them, and see what might need tending to. Sharpen the edges that need it, including chainsaws and the rest of your saws. Check your hose ends, and examine shovels for rust. Make sure tools are clean when they go into storage. This is when I take out my snow shovel and ice scraper from storage and relocate them to my front door. 

Sleepy trees and shrubs

Not all plants hibernate in winter, they tend to do so just after their fruiting season. But an awful lot of your trees and shrubs are now settled in for winter, so it is time to do that pruning you’ve put off. Shrub trimmings will make some nice kindling for this year, and larger tree limbs can be cut down and seasoned for next winter. Pay attention to limbs that are going to be problematic in snow and rain, anything overhanging your home or the street, or over your car. You can now google how to prune absolutely any plant or tree, and I advise you do so on plants that matter to you. How you prune a lilac can affect next year’s fruiting. 

You might also have more fragile shrubs and young trees that would benefit from being shrouded for winter, which just means tucking them in with some burlap and leaves and insulation. Your nursery will know what might need this shrouding in your yard, but young fruit trees might benefit, or fig trees, if you have extreme temperatures in winter. You can get burlap at your garden center for this purpose. 

Seeds, seeds, glorious seeds

In about six weeks, it’ll be time to start seeds for next year. Seed houses are producing catalogs right now and most places have put next year’s new varieties online. Get your orders in before New Year’s to get the best selection—they go fast these days. If you kept empty seed packets from this past year, you should have a blueprint of what you need to order.

Source: LifeHacker – The Gardening Tasks You Should Do Now to Get Ready for Spring

If you’re looking for the Wordle answer for December 4, 2023 read on. We’ll share some clues, tips, and strategies, and finally the solution. Today’s puzzle is medium-easy; I got it in 3, but had a little luck. Beware, there are spoilers below for December 4, Wordle #898! Keep scrolling if you want some hints (and then the answer) to today’s Wordle game.

How to play Wordle

Wordle lives here on the New York Times website. A new puzzle goes live every day at midnight, your local time.

Start by guessing a five-letter word. The letters of the word will turn green if they’re correct, yellow if you have the right letter in the wrong place, or gray if the letter isn’t in the day’s secret word at all. For more, check out our guide to playing Wordle here, and my strategy guide here for more advanced tips. (We also have more information at the bottom of this post, after the hints and answers.)

Ready for the hints? Let’s go!

Does today’s Wordle have any unusual letters?

We’ll define common letters as those that appear in the old typesetters’ phrase ETAOIN SHRDLU. (Memorize this! Pronounce it “Edwin Shirdloo,” like a name, and pretend he’s a friend of yours.)

Four of today’s letters are in our list of common letters. The remaining one isn’t too unusual.

Can you give me a hint for today’s Wordle?

It’s bad. It’s not fun. It’s not good. (It’s also not a sausage.)

Does today’s Wordle have any double or repeated letters?

Nope, five different letters today.

How many vowels are in today’s Wordle?

Just one.

What letter does today’s Wordle start with?

Today’s word starts with a W.

What letter does today’s Wordle end with?

Today’s word ends with a T.

What is the solution to today’s Wordle?

Ready? Today’s word is WORST.

How I solved today’s Wordle

First I played ARISE, my usual starter. I noticed the green S and the yellow R. What words would have an S as the second-to-last letter but not end in an E? I figured the word probably ended in a T. (K would have been another good guess.) I tried BURST, and got greens on the R-S-T. That means the only vowel left was O, and what word could be spelled  _ORST? It had to be WORST.

Wordle 898 3/6

⬜🟨⬜🟩⬜
⬜⬜🟩🟩🟩
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

A primer on Wordle basics

The idea of Wordle is to guess the day’s secret word. When you first open the Wordle game, you’ll see an empty grid of letters. It’s up to you to make the first move: type in any five-letter word. 

Now, you can use the colors that are revealed to get clues about the word: 

• Green means you correctly guessed a letter, and it’s in the correct position. (For example, if you guess PARTY, and the word is actually PURSE, the P and R will be green.)

• Yellow means the letter is somewhere in the word, but not in the position you guessed it. (For example, if you guessed PARTY, but the word is actually ROAST, the R, A and T will all be yellow.)

• Gray means the letter is not in the solution word at all. (If you guessed PARTY and everything is gray, then the solution cannot be PURSE or ROAST.)

With all that in mind, guess another word, and then another, trying to land on the correct word before you run out of chances. You get six guesses, and then it’s game over.

The best starter words for Wordle

What should you play for that first guess? The best starters tend to contain common letters, to increase the chances of getting yellow and green squares to guide your guessing. (And if you get all grays when guessing common letters, that’s still excellent information to help you rule out possibilities.) There isn’t a single “best” starting word, but the New York Times’s Wordle analysis bot has suggested starting with one of these:

• CRANE

• TRACE

• SLANT

• CRATE

• CARTE

Meanwhile, an MIT analysis found that you’ll eliminate the most possibilities in the first round by starting with one of these:

• SALET

• REAST

• TRACE

• CRATE

• SLATE

Other good picks might be ARISE or ROUND. Words like ADIEU and AUDIO get more vowels in play, but you could argue that it’s better to start with an emphasis on consonants, using a starter like RENTS or CLAMP. Choose your strategy, and see how it plays out.

How to win at Wordle

We have a few guides to Wordle strategy, which you might like to read over if you’re a serious student of the game. This one covers how to use consonants to your advantage, while this one focuses on a strategy that uses the most common letters. In this advanced guide, we detail a three-pronged approach for fishing for hints while maximizing your chances of winning quickly.

The biggest thing that separates Wordle winners from Wordle losers is that winners use their guesses to gather information about what letters are in the word. If you know that the word must end in -OUND, don’t waste four guesses on MOUND, ROUND, SOUND, and HOUND; combine those consonants and guess MARSH. If the H lights up in yellow, you know the solution.

One more note on strategy: the original Wordle used a list of about 2,300 solution words, but after the game was bought by the NYT, the game now has an editor who hand-picks the solutions. Sometimes they are slightly tricky words that wouldn’t have made the original list, and sometimes they are topical. For example, FEAST was the solution one Thanksgiving. So keep in mind that there may be a theme.

Wordle alternatives

If you can’t get enough of five-letter guessing games and their kin, the best Wordle alternatives, ranked by difficulty, include:

• Wheeldle, which lets you play one puzzle after another

• Dordle and Quordle, which ask you to play two (Dordle) or four (Quordle) puzzles at the same time, with the same guesses. There is also Octordle, with eight puzzles, and Sedecordle, with 16.

• Waffle, which shows you several five-letter words, scrambled in a grid; you play by swapping the letters around until you solve.

• Absurdle, which changes the solution after each guess, but needs to stay consistent with its previous feedback. You have to strategically back it into a corner until there is only one possible word left; then you guess it, and win.

• Squabble, in which you play Wordle against other people with a timer running. You take damage if you spend too much time between guesses; winner is the last one standing.

• Antiwordle, in which you are trying not to guess the day’s solution. You’re required to reuse any letters that you (oops) guessed correctly, so the longer it takes you, the better you are at the game.

Source: LifeHacker – Today’s Wordle Hints (and Answer) for Monday, December 4, 2023

Existence increasingly resembles a subscription model, and the fees keep going up. Rents continue to be way up from just a few years ago, and buying a house now requires some form of supernatural assistance unless there’s a trust fund of some kind in your life. But when times get tough, folks get creative, and an increasing number of people are looking into the RV or Van Life.

While living in an RV full-time can definitely be cheaper than renting an apartment or buying a house, there are still costs involved. First, you have to buy an RV or camper. Then you need to rent space at campsites, which range from free (on federal land, but with zero utilities or amenities) to almost $15,000 a year at commercial campsites.

That’s still cheaper than most rents, but if you’re in a real money crunch you might be able to reduce your housing and utility costs to zero—and maybe make a little money as well. If that sounds pretty good to you, consider looking into camp host positions.

What’s a camp host?

A camp host or park host is the person who manages a campsite at a national or state park or a private campground. When folks arrive in their RVs, the camp host greets them, sets them up at their campsite, and makes sure they’re hooked up to the water, electricity, and other amenities, if any. The host is typically also responsible for a long list of other duties, including:

• Maintenance. The camp host typically does light maintenance work, which usually means cleaning bathrooms and other common areas and doing minor repair work.

• Rule enforcement. Campsites usually have written rules governing what’s allowed, noise levels, and other aspects of camp life. When someone violates those rules or has a complaint, the camp host is expected to deal with the issue.

• Information. The camp host is expected to be knowledgeable about camp life in general and the specific campsite under their care, and to answer campers’ questions. They’re not generally expected to be experts about the park itself, just the campsite.

The camp host lives right there in the campsite. Requirements to be a camp host are generally pretty light: You have to be at least 18 years old, you must own an RV of some sort (the type and size of that RV might limit the campsites you can work at), and pass a basic background check. Beyond that, some outdoor skills and familiarity with RV camping are essential.

Benefits and downsides

If you own an RV and enjoy the nomadic camping lifestyle, a camp host position can be an excellent way to cut back on your expenses because they almost always include free RV parking and hookups at the site. That means you can live rent-free and utility-free for as long as you serve in the role—plus you won’t be paying to gas up your RV on a regular basis.

Most camp host positions are volunteer jobs, meaning that the free rent, hookups, and WiFi are all you get in compensation. But some camp host jobs pay—up to $66,000 a year. Most camp host jobs will pay close to minimum wage, determined either by the state where it’s located or by the current federal minimum wage. You have to commit to a specific term of service, which can vary from just two weeks to a year-round commitment. You can also potentially string together several short-term positions in order to have free rent all year. Even if a camp host job doesn’t pay, it’s still an incredible way to cut expenses and save money.

Of course, there are potential downsides to consider:

• The work can be a bit messy, especially cleaning bathrooms.

• You’re more or less always on duty; if campers have a problem in the middle of the night, you’re the one they’re going to wake up.

• It’s a physical job, and can be a dirty one. You’ll also be expected to work in all kinds of weather.

• Utilities vary by campsite. One big pain point for many people is laundry—some campsites offer laundry facilities as part of the camp host perks, but many do not, so you’ll have to consider how you’re washing your clothes.

If you’ve considered all that and think this might be the perfect way to live cheaply and maybe earn some extra cash as well, how do you get a camp host job?

Finding camp host jobs

Finding a camp host position isn’t that different from finding other types of work. There are several ways to look for these jobs:

• Job boards. Just like any job, you can look for camp hosting positions on sites like Indeed. There are also camper-specific job boards like Kamper Jobs or CoolWorks, and campsite operators like Vista Recreation post hosting jobs needed for their campsites as well.

• Parks. State and National Parks are always looking for volunteer and paid camp hosts. You can find a lot of information by visiting various state park websites, or contacting the National Park Service or Forest Service.

If you’ve decided to pursue a camp host position, there are a few tips to keep in mind:

• Plan ahead. Just because these are volunteer or low-paying positions doesn’t mean you can just stroll in and get one. It can take several months between applying for a camp host job and getting it, so research where you want to live and get started early.

• Be flexible. There are a lot of parks and campsites around the country. If you’re seeking a host job to save some money, be prepared to travel. You might need to line up more than one position if you’re hoping to make this a full-time gig, and moving from one spot to another to keep those free hookups coming can require some logistics.

• Be certain. The RV camping life isn’t for everyone. If you’re new to it and mainly inspired by your anemic bank account, try a trial run as a camp host before you fully commit.

If you already own a camper, hosting offers a potentially cost-free living situation. If you think the camping lifestyle might work for you, it’s definitely worth checking out.

Source: LifeHacker – You Can Become a ‘Camp Host’ and Live at National Parks for Free

I’ve written a lot about different star-gazing opportunities, from meteor showers to interesting planetary alignments, and I usually suggest finding a dark area for best viewing results. But what does “dark” even mean?

The Bortle Scale and the measurement of darkness

The growing prevalence of light pollution caused by our accursed civilization created the need for amateur astronomers to classify which areas in the nighttime sky are dark enough for good stargazing. Enter the “Bortle Scale.” Created in 2000 by astronomer John E. Bortle, the scale breaks darkness into nine levels—from Class 1, the darkest skies, to Class 9, heavily light-polluted urban areas where you’d be lucky to see the North Star. Put simply, for the best stargazing, you want to be in a place with the lowest Bortle number possible. 

Thankfully, there’s technology that can instantly identify the Bortle number of anywhere on earth. If you’re looking for the nearest, darkest spot, you can check out this Light Pollution Map, enter an address or global coordinates, and identify the amount of light pollution anywhere. Don’t be surprised if it’s challenging to find Zone 3 or lower—about 83 percent of the world’s people live under light-polluted skies. Basically, anywhere with even a small city means light pollution.

Recommended products:

• Telescope filter

• Red LED headlamp

• Xasteria: Astronomy Weather app

• PuTian Merino Wool Blanket

• Ghirardelli Chocolate Premium Indulgence Hot Cocoa Mix

Finding the right area to stargaze

A dark night sky isn’t worth anything if you can’t see it, so find somewhere with an unobstructed view of the sky, or at least the part of the sky you want to see. Putting a mountain between you and the city is a great strategy for blocking out light; so is getting to the side of a wilderness area or body of water. Elevation can help too, because you’ll be above the haze, fog, smoke, and smog that can obfuscate your view of the heavens. You don’t necessarily need to travel off themgrid to stargaze, though. There are often spots right off the road—or even big highways—that are suitably dark. It’s not the few small highway lights highway that keep the stars dim; it’s the cumulative effect of all the lights in a city.

Plan around the phase of the moon

A full moon is beautiful, but it will basically blot out dimmer celestial objects; and unlike manmade light pollution, there’s no way you can avoid it except to wait until around a new moon. Clouds will obviously keep you from spotting anything in the sky too, so check the moon phase when you begin planning, and then start checking the weather when you get closer to the days you plan to leave.  

Connect with a local astronomy organization 

Most enthusiasts love to talk shop about their passion, so hook up with a local astronomy club or two to glean their inside knowledge of the best spots nearby to stare at the wonders of the cosmos. They probably have a Facebook page where you can ask questions online, and they probably have regular meet-ups if you’d rather talk to people in person. 

Travel to an even darker place

If you’re planning to travel for longer than one night in search of darker skies, check out the Dark Hotels website. It mashes up the international light pollution map with hotel listings from booking.com and Airbnb’s database. It helps make planning a stargazing trip super easy. 

Visit a Dark Sky park or reserve

If you want to take the guesswork out of stargazing entirely, consider visiting a dark sky park or reserve. These designated nature areas are designed to preserve darkness and provide optimum viewing for planet nerds, and if you visit the website of the International Dark Sky Places program, you’ll find a searchable listing for over 200 spots in 22 countries with “outstanding dark sky conditions and protection practices.”

Book a stay at an astronomy hotel

If you have the cash and like to do your stargazing in style and with as little planning as possible, consider an astro-hotel. Places like the Adero in Scottsdale, AZ provide guests with a dedicated “stargazing lawn” with telescopes and astronomy guides. The Hyatt Maui in Hawaii hosts a nightly “Tour of the Stars” with telescopes on the hotel roof, or you could check out the Northern Lights at the Alaska’s Lodge at Black Rapids. Those are only three of many astro-hotels all over the world.

Make the most of the darkness you have

Maybe you can’t plan a faraway trip to an expensive hotel in an area with a perfect Bortle score, and that’s obviously okay too. Looking up at the sky doesn’t have to be big deal, and the stars are still pretty when you see them from your backyard or fire escape. No matter where you go to stargaze, you can make the most of whatever darkness you have. 

• Set up your telescope one hour before viewing: If you’re using a ‘scope, they say you should give it an hour for the optics adapt to the conditions.

• Bring along a lens filter: If you’re using a telescope or binoculars in an area with light pollution, a filter can cut out a significant amount of glare. 

• Give your eyes a chance to adjust: It takes about a half an hour for your eyes to truly open up to the darkness. Don’t look at your phone or any other source of light during this time, unless your phone is emitting only red light.

• Set your phone to emit only red light: If you’re going to use your phone, you can change the setting to only red light easily (Red light doesn’t kill your night vision like other colors do.) On an iPhone, go to Settings > Accessibility > Display and Text Size > Color Filters. Click “on,” then “Color Tint,” and move both the “intensity” and the “hue” sliders all the way to the right, and, voila, red phone.

• Only use a red flashlight: You can navigate with a red flashlight or headlamp, but it won’t affect your night vision like other colored lights will. It’s also the kind thing to do for anyone else who’s out looking at the stars.

• Keep warm: You can’t go wrong with a wool blanket or two. 

• Bring a friend: Bring a friend and a dog and a mug of hot chocolate. (This might be the most important rule of stargazing).

Source: LifeHacker – Where to Find the Darkest Skies for Stargazing

Living arrangements change, and sometimes we need to prevent someone who has, once had, or may have a key to our home from being able to use it again. In situations like these, we might assume that changing our locks is the only option, but fortunately, that’s not the case. Instead of replacing an entire lock, it’s often possible to get away with simply rekeying it—a process that’s typically cheaper and easier. Here are some examples of when it makes more sense to rekey a lock than replace it.

What’s the difference between rekeying and replacing a lock?

Replacing or changing a lock involves removing the entire existing door lock and hardware and installing a different lock and hardware. It typically costs between $50 and $300, depending on the type of lock, whether you’re installing it yourself or hiring a professional to do it, and the complexity of the labor. Rekeying a lock, on the other hand, is limited to changing the pins inside the lock itself, so its current keys would no longer work, though the lock and hardware remain the same. This can cost as little as $10 or as much as around $160, based on several factors we’ll discuss below.

When does rekeying a lock make more sense than replacing it?

After years of use, some locks wear down, and no longer function properly. In this scenario, replacing it with a new lock is the solution. Similarly, if someone wants to change the look of a door, they may want to remove their current lock and hardware, and install a new set in a different color or finish. But beyond these relatively straightforward examples, homeowners have to decide between rekeying or replacing their lock if they want all current keys to the house to stop working.

Here are a few examples of when it makes more sense to rekey a lock:

• If one of your house keys gets lost or stolen

• If you had a roommate or ex who moved out and you no longer want them to be able to access your home

• If you have multiple exterior doors with different keys from the same brand and you want them to match

• If you purchase a new home and want to put off the expense of changing the locks, but want to make sure any current keys no longer work

Can you rekey your own locks?

Rekeying a lock is typically done in one of three ways:

1. Purchasing a rekeying kit and doing everything yourself

It’s not necessarily a beginner-friendly DIY project, so you’ll need some time and patience, along with a rekeying kit specific to the brand and key type of your current lock (e.g., a specific type of Schlage lock). These kits typically cost $12 to $15, and come with the materials you need to rekey six locks. It’s also possible to get a rekeying kit that can be used on any lock from a particular brand, but those usually go for $70 to $100, and they come with a lot of pieces you won’t end up using.

2. Calling a locksmith to come to your home and rekey your lock

You’ll probably pay between $50 and $160 for the convenience, but there are a few situations where this makes sense—like if security is a concern and you need it done quickly, or if you’re trying to rekey locks that have different manufacturers and you don’t want to buy more than one kit, or you have security concerns.

3. Removing the lock from your door and bringing into a hardware store to have it professionally rekeyed

In most cases, this will work out to be the cheapest and easiest option. Be sure to call ahead to make sure that a particular hardware store offers this service. In the past, I’ve had locks rekeyed at Ace Hardware: It took around 15 minutes, and cost $10 per lock with two keys included.

Source: LifeHacker – Here’s When Rekeying Your Lock Makes More Sense Than Replacing It