Chromebook FAQ #2: How do I right click?

Another easy one once you know it: you simply hold the Alt key and click your mouse/trackpad.

E.g. when you do this when hovering over a link on a web page the right click menu will appear.

How to take a screenshot on your Chromebook

Often asked, easily done :)

Simply hold Ctrl and click the    key.

A moment later you will see the following pop up notifying you of the new screenshot:

Getting more life out of your Chromebook battery

Chromebook battery life is, in general, exceptional for the price. Everybody loves to squeeze out a bit more time from each charge though, so here are some ways to achieve this:

1. Use the brightness dimming key    to dim the screen's brightness.
2. Always shut your Chromebook's lid when you're not using it.
3. Turn off Bluetooth if you're not using it.

Chromebook FAQ #1: How do I Skype?

UPDATE 2018: Skype for web now exists

As yet (Jan 2015) there is no way to Skype from a Chromebook. That's the bad news. The good news is that Google Hangouts is available, and a very convincing alternative. Like with Skype, you can chat, voice call, video call, and use on it on desktops and mobile devices (Android and iOS etc.). It even offers some features that Skype doesn't (like Off The Record chats), and requires no extra software installation on the desktop or Android devices.

To try it out please visit the Google Hangouts intro page and share your experience in the comments below.

Why choose a Chromebook?

Why Choose a Chromebook? It's a question I'm often asked, so what better a subject for this blog :)

1. Security. Chromeos is seriously secure compared to other Desktop operating systems such as Windows, those found on Macs, and even other Linux distros. Check out ChromeOS security design notes.  Some highlights: fully encrypted disk (no need to worry about data theft if your Chromebook is stolen), verified boot, secure sharing, even an incognito guest mode. Some of these features are available on other OSes but with Chromebooks they're always there.
2. Hardware value for money. My current Chromebook is the first generation Toshiba 13.3 inch Chromebook (model CB30). Even now, months after I purchased it, I'd struggle to find any non Chromebook laptop that is as lightweight, long lasting (battery lasts 10 hours!) and adequately performing. This thing handles way more browser tabs than I'd ever use.
3. Boot time. There's barely any difference between booting and resuming from suspend with Chromebooks as the boot up is so fast!
4. Low/no maintenance. The only maintenance you'll ever do is restarting the Chromebook occasionally when Google pops up the little 'Update Avalable' arrow icon in the status bar.

Thoughts? I'd love to hear from other Chromebook users.

How to rename files on a Chromebook

This is a simple one.

Simply hold the Alt key and click the trackpad/mouse when you're hovering over the file you want to rename. This brings up a file menu with options, one of which is 'Rename'.

As the menu hint suggests, to rename a file you can also click once on the file in the Files window, then hold Ctrl+enter.

Chromebook gotcha: WIFI connection lost

I love Chromebooks, as you might have already noticed, but I have spotted a bug or two over the years.

The one that still affects me to this day involves the loss of WIFI connectivity when I start using my Chromebook again after having closed its lid and left it for a while.

The symptom: Chrome will display a page saying 'Unable to connect to the Internet' instead of the web page you're after.

The temporary fix:

1. Click on the WIFI icon in the lower right hand corner of your screen (it's usually just to the right of the battery icon).
2. Click on the 'Connected to <your network name>' menu entry.
3. Click on the new WIFI icon that's just appeared (just above and to the right of the one in your status bar). This disables WIFI completely. Click on it again. This re-enables WIFI. Websites should now load!

As you've probably guessed this 'fix' has to be run every time you pick up your Chromebook and it's lost its WIFI. (But once you do it a few times you get pretty fast at doing it :) .)

SSH from a Chromebook

To use SSH on a Chromebook simply open up Chrome, then hold Ctrl+Alt+t to open up the Chromebook shell in a new tab. From there simply ssh as you normally would, e.g.

ssh user@example.com

Happy SSHing!

Update: after the new tab opens, you might have to type shell before you can use ssh.