Titbits On Technology, Internet Services & The Web In Ghana

If you’re encountering issues with MySQL not launching in XAMPP, here’s a reliable solution that worked for me. This method involves replacing MySQL files while preserving your existing databases. The Problem When attempting to start MySQL in XAMPP Control Panel, the service fails to launch. This can be frustrating, especially when you need to work on your local development projects. The Solution The fix involves replacing the MySQL installation files while preserving your database data. Here’s how to do it: Prerequisites Your existing XAMPP installation The XAMPP installer of the same version you currently have installed A few minutes of your time Step-by-Step Instructions Backup Your Existing MySQL Folder Navigate to your XAMPP installation directory (typically  C:\xampp  or similar) Locate the  mysql  folder Rename this folder to  mysql_old  as a backup Get Fresh MySQL Files Download the XAMPP installer of the same version as your current installation Ex...

TIRED EYES My eyes were getting tired of the screen after extended periods of interacting with the computer screen daily. I was looking for an alternative to improve my experience with using the computer.  The first option I tried was to use the built in windows narrator. It didn't work quite well because it kept reading every dialog box on the screen. It also kept reading menu items and things I really didn't want to be read out loud. So I sought to explore other free TTS solutions. But most of the free ones had the limitation of. using only the available windows text-to-speech voices which are largely mechanical and robotic sounding. The Windows Narrator had natural sounding voice but the TTS apps somehow could not access it to use. Instead, they used the default windows. text to speech voices which are not pleasant to listen to. The TTS app options that had natural sounding voices were commercial. This was quite frustrating that in 2025 there appear to be no easy way to list...

  Clickup Tasks with Tags Introduction The Eisenhower Matrix, also known as the Urgent-Important Matrix, is a powerful tool for prioritizing tasks. It helps you distinguish between tasks that are urgent and important, important but not urgent, urgent but not important, and neither urgent nor important. By categorizing your tasks in this way, you can focus on what truly matters and avoid wasting time on less critical activities. ClickUp, a versatile task management tool, offers a feature called “Tags” or “Labels” that can be leveraged to create an Eisenhower Matrix within the platform. This article will guide you through the process of setting up and using this matrix in ClickUp. Step 1: Create Tags for Each Quadrant The first step is to create tags that represent each quadrant of the Eisenhower Matrix. Here’s how you can do it: Navigate to the Tags Section: Go to your ClickUp workspace. Click on the “Tags” icon in the left sidebar. Create New Tags: Click on the “Create Tag” button....

About NotebookLM Google's NotebookLM is a rather interesting AI powered product. It is unique in the sense that this AI focuses on the data you have personally provided it, unlike other general AI chat products that respond based on their training data and other data they can access from the internet if they have access. NotebookLM will basically digest your content in such a way that you can ask the AI questions about what information it found in the content. At the time of this writing, the AI supports pdf documents, website links and videos from Youtube. In addition to responding to your custom and specific questions about the content you have supplied, it can generate the following: A Summary of the content A Briefing document A Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) document A Podcast deep-dive audio discussion between to AI hosts. (Probably the most interesting aspect of NotebookLM) What Is The Use of NotebookLM NotebookLM can be useful for evaluating and digesting any information,...

Let me take you on a journey—a journey of frustration, mystery, and one miraculous discovery that had me simultaneously shaking my head and laughing out loud. It all began with my trusty (or so I thought) sedan, which started making some suspicious clunks and clanks that would make even a 1920s jalopy sound like a luxury ride.   The Symptoms That Launched a Thousand Google Searches It started innocently enough—uneven tire wear. “No big deal,” I thought, “probably just an alignment issue.” But soon after, I began noticing other strange things: the steering wheel felt like it was having its own dance party, shaking and vibrating whenever I hit the highway. As I drove, the car began pulling to one side, as if it had a magnetic attraction to ditches. All this was accompanied by a lovely soundtrack of clunks and knocking sounds, especially when I made turns or hit a bump.   Naturally, I did what anyone in my situation would do—I became an internet detective . I scoured ev...

 Speaking to your phone or PC and getting it converted to text is a really useful piece of innovation that is not only beneficial to physically challenged individuals but any user of phones and computers. It is in this light that a malfunctioning Speech-To-Text feature on your device can be quite frustrating. One observation is that if you have a strict firewall policy, the speech-to-text feature on your Microsoft gadget or PC may not work at all. This is due to the fact that Microsoft relies on the Azure Cloud Speech-To-Text engine to convert your spoken words into written text. A standard firewall setup using any firewall that can selectively block executables may result in the Speech-To-Text feature on your gadget failing. SOLUTION: Add TextInputHost.exe to your firewall exception rules to allow this executable to access and communicate over the internet.  Once you have stopped your firewall from blocking TextInputHost.exe, you can proceed to test the Speech-To-Te...