q+a I use a broadband connection from Airtel where I get 40 GB at 8 Mbps. I use the WiFi sparingly on my mobile and laptop, but never download or watch movies. Yet the quota of 40 GB gets exhausted well before the end of the monthly cycle. I have changed my password several times, but it does not seem to help.
Atul Chaturvedi
First of all you have to make sure that no neighbour of yours is stealing your Internet connection by hacking into your WiFi. For this you need to hide the WiFi signals emanating from your home. Switch on your modem/router. Open your computer's browser and type 192.168.1.1 in the address bar. You will be asked for a username and password. Airtel has provided you with these when you took your connection. Click on the left panel of the window that opens up and select Wireless--Basic and change the name of your network under SSID to something that does not identify you or your home. Disable SSID broadcast to hide the signal. If hackers cannot see the network they will not bother to hack into it.
Next click on Wireless--Security and make sure the network authentication is WPA2-PSK. Enter a password that comprises letters in capitals and lowercase as well some numbers and special characters. Save the changes and reboot your modem/router. To access the WiFi network on your mobile or computer you have to put in the name and password that you have just given. It will not show up automatically as it did before.
This should reduce your broadband consumption. You can always check usage in detail by logging into www.airtel.in/myaccount . If you are still not satisfied post a complaint to Airtel's Twitter account @Airtel_Presence.
Win 8.1 problem
q+a I am using a pirated version of Windows 8.1. I am not getting the icon to 'safely remove hardware and eject media', when I want to take out the pendrive that I have plugged in.
Ronit Deb
First of all I advise you to get a genuine copy of Windows. And that should be Windows 10. It is not a good experience working with Windows 8.1. Microsoft issued an update to fix this bug in late 2014. Since you have a pirated copy of Windows it is unlikely that you will be able to install the update. You could try opening Command Prompt and typing rundll32 shell32.dll,Control_RunDLL hotplug.dll and Press Enter. This will bring up the Safely Remove Hardware dialog box. The only drawback is that you have to do this each time you want to eject an external drive.
Forgot password
q+a I have forgotten the password of my Gmail account. I tried the 'forgot password' option but it did not help.
Seema Pandey
Visit https://www.google.com/accounts/recovery and answer all the questions. If the account is indeed yours, you should be able to regain access. To avoid getting locked out of your account in future, make sure you set up a recovery email address and add a recovery phone number. You can do this by clicking on your picture after signing in and navigating to My Account. In the 'Personal info & privacy' section, select 'Your personal info'. Select 'Phone' and add a recovery phone number. Do this for the email field too.
Volume control
q+a The volume icon is missing from the Taskbar in Windows 10. How do I get it back?
Arin Chatterjee
Go to Start-Settings-System. On the left pane select Notifications and Actions and click on 'Turn System Icons On and Off'. Now enable the volume icon.
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