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Why ‘turning it off and on again’ actually works

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Having problems with our phones, tablets, and other tech is an almost-universal experience, but one simple technique can fix almost every single one.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Popularised by the British show </span><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">The IT Crowd</span></em><span style="font-weight: 400;">, turning a device on and off again can fix a range of problems </span><a rel="noopener" href="https://www.news.com.au/technology/gadgets/have-you-tried-turning-it-off-and-on-again-the-easiest-fix-for-tech-issues/news-story/5759759b1b1b9926527da81457a826a2" target="_blank"><span style="font-weight: 400;">according to experts</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Restarting a device works because it wipes the current state of the software and restarts the system, meaning that any code that is stuck or misbehaving will be dumped too.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">In addition, scheduling regular reboots can even prevent issues from popping up in the first place.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">For phones and tablets, particularly Android and Apple devices, running non-stop can lead to issues such as slow performance, and connectivity issues. So if your issue is specific, such as a certain app or page not loading, restarting the phone should be your first step.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">But, that doesn’t mean you should be constantly restarting your devices, with experts recommending doing it about once every week or so for the best effect.</span></p> <p><strong>How to restart Android devices</strong></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The easiest method of restarting your device involves holding down the power button and pressing the ‘Restart’ option when it appears on your screen.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">If this doesn’t happen, you can just hold down the power button for 30 seconds to turn the device off, and start it again normally.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Some phones also offer an option to schedule automatic reboots, even letting you choose the day and time. To do this on a Samsung Galaxy for instance, go to settings and search for auto-restart at set times, or go to settings, then battery and device care, tap the three dots and select automation.</span></p> <p><strong>How to restart iPhones and iPads</strong></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Restarting an Apple device can be done by holding down the power button and one of the volume buttons until a slider appears which says ‘Power off’. Once you press the power button, you can push it again to restart the device.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Otherwise, you can try a force restart if the slider doesn’t appear.</span></p> <p><strong>Desktops and laptops</strong></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Though most modern computers prompt you when a restart is needed - such as after installing new software - it is recommended that computers have a full backup and restart at least once a year.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">To keep things running smoothly, it’s best to turn your computer off each night and switch it on when you need it again.</span></p> <p><strong>How to restart Windows PCs</strong></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">A Windows PC can be restarted by clicking the start menu, clicking on power, and choosing the restart option. It’s recommended that Windows devices are restarted about once a week.</span></p> <p><strong>How to restart Mac computers</strong></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Unlike Windows, Apple recommends that you only restart your device when you encounter a problem.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">To restart, click the Apple icon in the top left corner and then select restart.</span></p> <p><strong>What about Smart TVs?</strong></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Similarly to Apple, Smart TV manufacturers recommend restarting only when a problem arises, such as apps refusing to load or if the interface is slow.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The easiest way to restart a Smart TV is to turn it off, unplug it and wait for 30 seconds before plugging it back in and turning it on again.</span></p> <p><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">Image: Getty Images</span></em></p>

Technology

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“Check your receipts”: Unlikely glitch leads to free meat for happy shopper

<p>A Coles customer has confirmed customers should check their receipts before leaving the store.</p> <p>Shopper Wendi from a popular Facebook group has revealed how she scored a large pack of porterhouse steak for free after taking a closer look at her docket.</p> <p>The original posted said that when she picked up the meat from the display, she noticed that it had been marked down from $34 to $28 a kilo.</p> <p>However, when the steak was scanned at the register, Wendi was charged the full price instead of a reduced price.</p> <p><img style="width: 500px; height: 281.25px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7838502/coles-meat-1.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/5a474424fc49449f8f496fed41611a32" /></p> <p>After paying for her item, Wendi checked her docket and realised the mistake.</p> <p>She was able to get the product for free due to Cole’s “Promise on Price Scanning”.</p> <p>The Coles policy states that “If a single item scans at a higher price than the advertised or ticketed shelf price for that item, we will give you that item FREE.”</p> <p>Wendi said it pays to be careful when it comes to receipts.</p> <p><img style="width: 500px; height: 281.25px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7838501/coles-meat-2.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/fc89914bd3fb41cfb2796e50803a9027" /></p> <p>“Check your dockets, folks,” she wrote on the <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/2111126989104914" target="_blank">Markdown Madness Australia</a> page.</p> <p>Other shoppers went on to echo Wendi’s words of advice.</p> <p>“Just yesterday I got English muffins from a bin that said $2.50 and when I got home I see I was charged $5! So annoying,” said one.</p> <p>Added wrote: “Yep always check dockets, it’s crazy how many times you get over charged. At least one item each shop seems to get scanned wrong.”</p>

Food & Wine

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"This is incompetence": Centrelink payment glitch costs Aussies thousands

<p>Families on Centrelink have been left thousands of dollars out of pocket after a nationwide glitch on the website saw people inadvertently pay their debts several times over.</p> <p>Department of Human Services said about 400 welfare recipients across the country ended up paying more than they owed after the site showed an error message during the payment process.</p> <p>People who tried to make a payment for the second or third time unknowingly had their money withdrawn from their accounts with every failed attempt.</p> <p>A Melbourne mother said she was down by more than $13,000 after trying to pay her debt multiple times in late July.</p> <p>On Thursday, she was told the refund could take another week to arrive in her account.</p> <p>“We owed $4,300 on our family tax benefit debt due to underestimation of our yearly income and tried to do the right thing by paying it immediately,” she told <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.smh.com.au/national/this-is-incompetence-families-out-of-pocket-after-centrelink-glitch-20190806-p52eis.html" target="_blank"><em>The Age</em><span> </span>and<span> </span><em>The Sydney Morning Herald</em></a>.</p> <p>The woman said she logged on to the myGov portal to pay her debt. </p> <p>“We put the credit card details in, pressed submit and it said the page has not been found – it didn’t say it had been processed or give us a receipt number. It just looked like it hadn’t worked,” she said.</p> <p>“I did it again, and it was the same thing, it said ‘page not found’ and I thought it was an internet error and got no confirmation it had been processed. So I tried more times and my husband texted me and said, ‘Why did you pay it three times?'”</p> <p>When she contacted Centrelink, the agency said “it’s a nationwide issue with IT systems with all payments that have been made” and that it can take up to two days before her overpayments show up in the system.</p> <p>On Wednesday, a Centrelink representative called her to inform that the refunds of the two extra payments could take seven days to arrive, and that they still had no record of the third.</p> <p>“The payment portal was taking money from people, in some instances people paying multiple times, because it looked like it doesn’t work the first time,” she said. “This is incompetence ... Not good enough at all.</p> <p>“That’s money we need, we only have one income and a family of four, we can’t just have that amount in the ether missing for who knows how long.”</p> <p>According to Fairfax, Centrelink identified and fixed the nationwide issue on August 1.</p> <p>Department of Human Services general manager Hank Jongen said by Thursday morning, around 100 out of about 400 affected recipients have been refunded. </p> <p>“We’re deeply sorry to customers who experienced issues making payments to us last week,” Jongen said.</p> <p>“We’re reimbursing all affected customers their repeat payments. We’ve started contacting them to let them know and provide support.</p> <p>“People who have incurred costs associated with this issue should contact the department to discuss reimbursement.”</p>

Retirement Income

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The Voice grand final under fire over voting glitch: "Website crashed"

<p>Viewers of <em>The Voice</em> were unhappy as they tried to cast their votes for the winner, only to be met with a broken website.</p> <p>There was a technical glitch that impacted the site, which left viewers unable to cast their votes, and many believe that this is why Diana Rouvas was announced as the winner.</p> <p>She was ecstatic when she heard she was the winner and as a part of her prize, won $100,000 and a recording contract with Universal Music or EMI.</p> <blockquote style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/BzoXP5uF8a_/" data-instgrm-version="12"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"></div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <p style="margin: 8px 0 0 0; padding: 0 4px;"><a style="color: #000; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none; word-wrap: break-word;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/BzoXP5uF8a_/" target="_blank">Our All Star shines brightest of all ⭐@DianaRouvas is The Voice of Australia 🙌 #TheVoiceAU</a></p> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;">A post shared by <a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/thevoiceau/" target="_blank"> The Voice Australia</a> (@thevoiceau) on Jul 7, 2019 at 2:30pm PDT</p> </div> </blockquote> <p>A Nine representative confirmed the glitch in a statement during last night’s show. It read:</p> <p>"Hundreds of thousands of votes have been coming through during tonight’s show which has caused some technical problems for a small number of viewers, however, votes are continuing to flow through," they said, according to <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.mamamia.com.au/the-voice-australia-winner/?utm_source=Mamamia.com.au%20-%20All%20Newsletters&amp;utm_campaign=95a1552958-Monday%208%20July%20-%20Daily&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_term=0_9dc62997a2-95a1552958-211561537&amp;mc_cid=95a1552958&amp;mc_eid=c10f87c072" target="_blank"><em>Mamamia</em></a>.</p> <p>"The technical problem has now been solved. We appreciate everybody’s support for the artists and the show."</p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en-gb"> <p dir="ltr">Can’t vote. Website crashed??? <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/TheVoiceAU?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#TheVoiceAU</a></p> — KBR (@Kylie_Roden) <a href="https://twitter.com/Kylie_Roden/status/1147813559075627014?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">7 July 2019</a></blockquote> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en-gb"> <p dir="ltr">I’ve never heard of these two remaining contestants on The Voice... Who do I vote for? Well Known, or CGI Bin? <a href="https://twitter.com/TheVoiceAU?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@TheVoiceAU</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/TheVoiceAU?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#TheVoiceAU</a> <a href="https://t.co/U0vfKRs0k8">pic.twitter.com/U0vfKRs0k8</a></p> — Mick (@mikjcal) <a href="https://twitter.com/mikjcal/status/1147822526468251650?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">7 July 2019</a></blockquote> <p>Host of<span> </span><em>The Voice</em> Sonia Kruger announced that more than 600,000 people had already cast their votes and that it was going to be a tight competition.</p> <p>When Rouvas was announced as the winner, her coach Boy George was “shocked”.</p> <p>"I'm shocked, I'm shocked. In a good way. I think it was really close."</p> <p>Rouvas competed on<span> </span><em>T</em><em>he Voice</em><span> </span>previously in its first season back in 2012 and she placed fifth.</p>

Music

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Telstra glitch stops triple-0 calls from going through

<p>A technical glitch has stopped people from making triple-0 calls across Australia’s major cities, with the problem hitting calls to police, fire and medical emergency services.  </p> <p>NSW police has already advised people having trouble getting connected to the emergency number to call the NSW Police Assistance Line, 131 444.</p> <p>“NSW Police have been made aware of an intermittent Telstra Network issue affecting the receipt of Triple Zero phone calls,” NSW police said.</p> <p>The problem is reportedly hitting some callers in Queensland, NSW, Victoria and South Australia.</p> <p><a href="http://www.news.com.au/" target="_blank"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><em><strong>News.com.au reports</strong></em></span></a> Telstra issued a statement that said a cable between Orange and Bowral was cut by an “unknown party” and this what was causing the interruptions.</p> <p>Telstra has also said services are “progressively” returning to normal.</p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr">Update: There are still intermittent interruptions to 000 calls in NSW, VIC &amp; WA following the cable cut in NSW earlier today. We're working closely with emergency services in those States.</p> — Telstra News (@Telstra_news) <a href="https://twitter.com/Telstra_news/status/992140623871279105?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 3, 2018</a></blockquote> <p>“We’re working closely with emergency services in those states,” Telstra posted on Twitter.</p> <p><em>Update:</em> Telstra have since posted a photo on Twitter of the cause of the outage.</p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr">Update: <a href="https://twitter.com/Telstra?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Telstra</a> fibre repair crew on site at cable pit east of Orange. Significant fire damage consistent with lightning strike. We're working to restore services ASAP and are sorry for service interruptions. Current impact mostly in NSW &amp; some interruptions in VIC, SA &amp; WA. <a href="https://t.co/alyCfNIKpZ">pic.twitter.com/alyCfNIKpZ</a></p> — Telstra News (@Telstra_news) <a href="https://twitter.com/Telstra_news/status/992168736080543744?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 3, 2018</a></blockquote> <p>“Significant fire damage consistent with lightning strike,” Telstra wrote.  </p> <p>“We're working to restore services ASAP and are sorry for service interruptions. Current impact mostly in NSW &amp; some interruptions in VIC, SA &amp; WA.”</p> <p>What are your thoughts?</p>

Technology

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Did you spot this glitch on My Kitchen Rules?

<p>If you’ve ever watched <em>My Kitchen Rules</em>, you’ll no doubt be very familiar with the loud and very dramatic doorbell sound that plays whenever judges Manu Feildel and Pete Evans arrive at contestants’ houses.</p> <p>Well, as they are wont to do, eagle-eyed social media users (and even the <em>Gogglebox </em>crew) spotted something very wrong in a clip from a recent <em>MKR </em>episode.</p> <p>Can you see the mistake?</p> <p><iframe src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FGoggleboxAU%2Fvideos%2F1653139554766537%2F&amp;show_text=0&amp;width=476" width="476" height="476" style="border: none; overflow: hidden;" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowtransparency="true" allowfullscreen="true"></iframe></p> <p>It seems there’s been a bit of an error in the post-production room, with Manu appearing to press a doorbell that simply doesn’t exist.</p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr">Well the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/MKR?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#MKR</a> editing team stuffed this one up! Love Pete Evans' thumbs up endorsement encouraging <a href="https://twitter.com/manufeildel?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@manufeildel</a> to ring the invisible doorbell. Watching MKR from here on in will never be the same. 😂🙈 <a href="https://t.co/QMlRA5qSjC">pic.twitter.com/QMlRA5qSjC</a></p> — Chantelle Vella (@NutritionMunch) <a href="https://twitter.com/NutritionMunch/status/961217731025559552?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 7, 2018</a></blockquote> <p>In addition to the invisible doorbell, Twitter users also noted how strange it was that every single house somehow has the same doorbell sound.</p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr">Different houses, different kitchens but same doorbell sound... woah <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/MKR?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#MKR</a> <a href="https://t.co/LhZiGzdd1i">pic.twitter.com/LhZiGzdd1i</a></p> — john.gappi (@john_gappi) <a href="https://twitter.com/john_gappi/status/957913213567291397?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 29, 2018</a></blockquote> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr">It's amazing after nine seasons that everyone's doorbell still makes the same sound.... <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/mkr?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#mkr</a></p> — Two Fiddy Kay (@kholly265) <a href="https://twitter.com/kholly265/status/958259895517638659?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 30, 2018</a></blockquote> <p>Tell us in the comments below, did you notice the editing mistake?</p> <p><em>Image source: Seven.</em></p>

TV

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Glitch in lottery could mean $27.6 million in winnings

<p><span>A computer error could see a lottery company forced to pay out $27.6 million in prize money after duplicate winning tickets were generated for two hours.</span></p> <p><span>The programming glitch in South Carolina, US, created winning “Add-A-Play” tickets on Christmas Day, with each having a prize of $703.</span></p> <p><span>Nicole Coggins and her mother-in-law Shawanna Lad noticed the error and bought $140 worth of tickets, which resulted in them winning $25,000.</span></p> <p><span>“I played $10 first, and I won on every ticket,” she told <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong><a href="http://www.wyff4.com/article/sc-lottery-officials-explain-error-that-dashed-winners-christmas-dreams/14500982" target="_blank">WYFF News 4</a></strong></span>. “So I thought, ‘Well, maybe there is something wrong with their machine. This can’t be real.’”</span></p> <p><span>It turned out she was correct but as she went to collect their winnings, the machine said their tickets were invalid.</span></p> <p><span>The South Carolina Education Lottery addressed the issue with a statement.</span></p> <p><span> “From 5:51 pm to 7:53pm, the same play symbol was repeated in all nine available play areas on tickets which would result in a top prize of $500,” <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong><a href="http://www.sceducationlottery.com/winners/NewsDisplayArticle.asp?ID=2776" target="_blank" title="www.sceducationlottery.com">it wrote</a></strong></span>.</span></p> <p><span>“No more than five identical play symbols should appear for a single play. As soon as the issue was identified, the Add-A-Play game was suspended immediately to conduct a thorough investigation.</span></p> <p><span>“All players who purchased a Holiday Cash Add-A-Play ticket on Christmas Day during the time period affected are advised to hold on to their ticket(s) until the review is completed.”</span></p> <p><span>Later on, the company said there would be a meeting held before the end of January to discus the outcome, but would set aside the millions needed to distribute the winnings if they are required to validate the tickets.</span></p> <p><span>Have you ever won money in the lottery? Tell us in the comments below. </span></p>

Money & Banking

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Glitch in lottery could mean $25.1 million in winnings

<p><span>A computer error could see a lottery company forced to pay out $25.1 million in prize money after duplicate winning tickets were generated for two hours.</span></p> <p><span>The programming glitch in South Carolina, US, created winning “Add-A-Play” tickets on Christmas Day, with each having a prize of $640.</span></p> <p><span>Nicole Coggins and her mother-in-law Shawanna Lad noticed the error and bought $128 worth of tickets, which resulted in them winning $23,000.</span></p> <p><span>“I played $10 first, and I won on every ticket,” she told <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong><a href="http://www.wyff4.com/article/sc-lottery-officials-explain-error-that-dashed-winners-christmas-dreams/14500982" target="_blank">WYFF News 4</a></strong></span>. “So I thought, ‘Well, maybe there is something wrong with their machine. This can’t be real.’”</span></p> <p><span>It turned out she was correct but as she went to collect their winnings, the machine said their tickets were invalid.</span></p> <p><span>The South Carolina Education Lottery addressed the issue with a statement.</span></p> <p><span> “From 5:51 pm to 7:53pm, the same play symbol was repeated in all nine available play areas on tickets which would result in a top prize of $500,” <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong><a href="http://www.sceducationlottery.com/winners/NewsDisplayArticle.asp?ID=2776" target="_blank" title="www.sceducationlottery.com">it wrote</a></strong></span>.</span></p> <p><span>“No more than five identical play symbols should appear for a single play. As soon as the issue was identified, the Add-A-Play game was suspended immediately to conduct a thorough investigation.</span></p> <p><span>“All players who purchased a Holiday Cash Add-A-Play ticket on Christmas Day during the time period affected are advised to hold on to their ticket(s) until the review is completed.”</span></p> <p><span>Later on, the company said there would be a meeting held before the end of January to discus the outcome, but would set aside the millions needed to distribute the winnings if they are required to validate the tickets.</span></p> <p><span>Have you ever won money in the lottery? Tell us in the comments below. </span></p>

Money & Banking

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