Reader Support

Having a problem with our recommended software or expert tips? Email editor@computeractive.co.uk and we’ll do our best to help

Where are Kodi’s subtitle settings? QI tried to follow your instructions for adding subtitles to Kodi (Issue 496, page 43). But Kodi – at least on my PC – looks nothing like your screenshot. Am I missing something? Harry Latham Ajust

after we went to print a new version of Kodi (version 17) was released and – as bad luck would have it – completely changed the way you find its subtitles settings.

In this new version, you have to click the Settings icon (cog) in the main menu, then click ‘Player settings’, then Language on the left. You’ll see the ‘Default TV show service’ and ‘Default movie service’ options (see screenshot below) that we referred to in our Readers’ Tip. You may have to scroll down using the down arrow key on your keyboard to see them. In our next issue – out Weds 29 March – we’ll have a complete guide to using the latest version of Kodi.

Will this registry tweak damage my PC? QIN

your Make Windows Better section (Issue 495, page 46) you recommended changing the Menushowdelay registry key to improve the load speed of the Start menu. According to your tip, you shouldn’t change this setting to ‘0’, but you don’t elaborate on why not. I ran Iobit Advanced Systemcare, which changed this setting to ‘0’. Should I change it back? Ian Fair

AAS

we explained, the key’s value represents – in milliseconds – the time it takes for the menu to open. For example, the default value of ‘400’ represents 400 milliseconds (0.4 seconds). This lower key value can be applied to all menus in Windows to make them pop up faster. The reason we don’t recommend a key value of ‘0’ is because this means no delay whatsoever, which can make navigating Windows confusing.

For example, using an app which has menus and sub-menus can become distracting because you’ll get lots of pop-ups merely by moving your mouse around. Ultimately, there’s no harm in using ‘0’, although if you find that menus become annoying to use, we recommend selecting a higher value: 20 is a good compromise.

Why won’t Clickmonitorddc load? QI

followed your advice on managing your monitor settings (Issue 495, page 60), but I can’t get Clickmonitorddc to work. After downloading and opening the program, Winzip opened displaying the file ‘Clickmonitorddc_3_2.exe’. I could not get this file to run – what’s wrong? Ian Waterfield Aclickmonitorddc

downloads as a ZIP file, which is why Winzip launched when you tried to open your download. We’ve had problems with Winzip in the past and generally recommend the free Peazip tool instead.

First uninstall Winzip in the usual way: click the Start button, type remove program, then press Enter. Click Winzip in the list, then click Uninstall. Next, download Peazip from www.peazip.org. Once you’ve installed it, right-click the Clickmonitorddc ZIP file, move your cursor to ‘Open with’, then click Peazip. Double-click the ‘Clickmonitorddc_3_2. exe’ file, then click Yes when prompted (see screenshot above right). There’s a chance that Windows Smartscreen Filter will open, warning you that it can’t verify this program. Click ‘More info’, then click ‘Run anyway’. Clickmonitorddc should now work as explained in our feature.

Why doesn’t system restore work? Qsince

installing Windows 10 Pro I have never been able to get System Restore to work properly. I thought you had the answer in Secret Tips (Issue 495, page 48), where the tip showed how to make a shortcut for creating restore points. I followed the instructions, but I just get an ‘Access is denied’ error message. What’s going wrong? Gerry Hendry Athe

‘Access is denied’ error message suggests the shortcut you’ve created doesn’t have the right administrator privileges. To fix this, right-click the shortcut and select Properties. Click Advanced, select ‘Run as administrator’, then click OK. Doubleclick the shortcut again and click Yes in the box that opens.

There’s a chance you’ll see a different error message that says: ‘The service cannot be started’. If so, it’s because System Protection – and therefore System Restore – is turned off. To turn it on, click the Start Menu then type ‘Create a restore point’ and press Enter. Click ‘Local Disk (C:) (System)’ in the Protection Settings box then click the Configure button. Select ‘Turn on system protection’, then click OK.