We Explain Technology
How-To Geek is an online technology magazine and one of the top 500 websites in the US. Since it was created more than a decade ago, the site’s 10,000+ in-depth articles have been read over 1 billion times. More than 15 million people read our articles every month.
Our readers love How-To Geek because of its unique voice. We’re not a website for geeks—we are the geeks. We’re the people you turn to when your computer isn’t working right, you need to do something technical, or you want to understand the latest gadgets. We explain it all in simple, approachable terms. When providing instructions, we use a copious amount of screenshots that make technical processes easy to follow. How-To Geek is for everyone.
How-To Geek has been recommended as an expert resource by industry groups like the Wi-Fi Alliance and newspapers like The New York Times. Organizations like the BBC and Wirecutter have directed their readers to us for our helpful tutorials. Technology news outlets like Techmeme, The Verge, Slate, Digital Trends, TechCrunch, and John Gruber’s Daring Fireball have linked to stories we’ve broken. We’ve been cited as a source in books like Team Human by Douglas Rushkoff, a media theory professor at the City University of New York’s Queens College and CNN contributor. How-To Geek has been used as a resource for everything from university textbooks to late-night TV.
Based in Virginia, How-To Geek is an independent company that remains wholly owned by its founders, Lowell Heddings and Erik Wang. Unlike many other websites, How-To Geek was built without any outside investment or corporate ownership. It remains an independent organization today.
Our Editorial Team
Chris Hoffman
Editor in Chief
Chris Hoffman is Editor in Chief of How-To Geek. Since 2011, he’s written over 2,000 articles that have been read more than 500 million times—and that’s just here at How-To Geek.
With nearly a decade of writing experience in the field of technology, Chris was a columnist at PCWorld for several years, and his writing was on the cover of PCWorld’s print magazine. He once ran MakeUseOf’s email newsletter, which 400,000 subscribers received each day. His work has been mentioned on the BBC, Slate, The Verge, Ars Technica, Lifehacker, and even the front page of Reddit.
Chris has been interviewed as a technology expert on TV programs like WGN-TV’s Midday News in Chicago and radio shows like WJR-AM’s Guy Gordon Show in Detroit. He brings a lifetime of experience with technology to the role of Editor in Chief, overseeing all How-To Geek’s content to ensure it’s as accurate and in-depth as possible. Read Full Bio »
Walter Glenn
Editorial Director
Walter Glenn is the Editorial Director for How-To Geek and its sister sites. He’s responsible for coordinating editors and editorial activities, hiring and managing freelance writers, setting editorial guidelines, scheduling publication, and generally making sure articles go out in good shape.
He has more than 30 years of experience in the computer industry as a computer technician, network administrator, trainer, and freelance consultant. For the last 20 or so years, he’s also worked as a technical writer and editor.
Before coming to How-To Geek, Walter worked as a writer and community editor at Lifehacker. Before that, he worked as a freelance writer and editor. As an expert on topics like Windows, Word, Outlook, Exchange Server, Windows Server, and general networking, he’s authored or co-authored over 30 computer-related books in more than a dozen languages for publishers like Microsoft Press, O’Reilly, and Osborne/McGraw-Hill. He’s also written hundreds of white papers, articles, user manuals, and courseware over the years—mostly for Microsoft.
Walter holds a Bachelor’s in English and Computer Science from the University of Alabama in Huntsville. Read Full Bio »
Cameron Summerson
Editorial Advisor
Cameron Summerson is an Editorial Advisor for How-To Geek and the Editor in Chief of Review Geek. He weighs in on topics big and small.
Cam’s career started nearly a decade ago as a news writer for Android Police, where he penned over 3,400 posts about Android and Chrome OS. He served as a Senior Editor on the Android Police team for three years before joining How-to Geek as the resident Android and Chrome expert. Cam’s work has also been published in several print editions of Consumers Digest magazine. He has written over 4,000 articles since 2011.
You can think of Cam as the How-To Geek family’s hype man. If there’s some cool, new, and exciting tech, he’s going to find it and make sure you know all there is to know about it. Read Full Bio »
Jason Fitzpatrick
Editor-at-Large
Jason Fitzpatrick is part of How-To Geek’s editorial board and has been with the company since 2010. He’s written thousands of articles on everything from the pressing—like how to stop Windows Explorer from crashing when you open your Downloads folder—to the less-pressing but radically more fun—like how to set up a Minecraft server to build with your friends.
Before joining the How-To Geek family, Jason was the Weekend Editor at Lifehacker—where he started as their very first intern and worked his way up. In addition to writing and editing, Jason has previously worked as a professional photographer, graphic designer, and spent over a decade as a college instructor.
Currently, Jason serves on the How-To Geek editorial board and as the Editor-in-Chief of LifeSavvy. If he’s not hard at work on the editorial board or steering the ship at LifeSavvy, you can find him working on his perpetual pet project, the trivia column at How-To Geek. It’s a labor of geeky love that ensures readers see an interesting trivia question 365 days a year.
Jason holds both a Bachelor’s and Master’s in English from Western Michigan University. Read Full Bio »
Justin Duino
Managing Editor
Justin Duino is the Managing Editor for How-To Geek. He is responsible for assigning tasks to writers and making sure all guides and articles are accurate and as informative as possible.
His career started almost a decade ago when he purchased his first Android smartphone (Motorola Droid 2). After learning how to hack and install ROMs on the handset, Duino began writing tutorials on his publication called AndroidMeter. This website eventually became a traditional Android blog where Duino and several others wrote technology news and reviews.
After several years, Duino began to work as a freelance writer for other publications. Over the years, he wrote thousands of articles and tutorials on sites such as 9to5Google, 9to5Mac, 9to5Toys, Electrek, Phandroid, and Android Central. Lastly, before coming to How-To Geek, Duino spent the year as a Staff Editor for Android Authority. Read Full Bio »
Amanda Gambill
Staff Copy Editor
Amanda is the Staff Copy Editor and a contributing writer for How-To Geek and its sister sites, Review Geek, and LifeSavvy. She un-splits our infinitives and lets us know when our participles are dangling. She has a bachelor’s in journalism from Indiana University.
Amanda began her career in publishing as a marketing copy editor and copywriter at NAPA in 2004. She also wrote freelance features and editorials for several Indianapolis newspapers and weeklies.
At Wiley Publishing (home of the iconic Dummies brand), Amanda was a Development Editor and Project Lead on dozens of educational and How-to books. She predominantly worked on the Portable Genius and Digital Field Guide series, which thoroughly dissected every Apple product that starts with “i,” as well as photography techniques, cameras, and Microsoft and Apple software. Read Full Bio »
Editorial Guidelines and Ethics
We strive to write the most accurate, useful articles we can. Our team of experts brings in-depth research, hands-on experience, and decades of knowledge to everything we write. We test every piece of software we recommend and fact-check everything before it’s published. If an article has become outdated or has another issue, please contact us at contact@howtogeek.com, and we will fix it.
At How-To Geek, we adhere to strict standards of journalistic ethics. We never accept money as an incentive to write an article, never recommend products because we have an affiliate deal, and never accept guest posts from people trying to get links on our site. We sometimes receive review units from companies, but we never accept anything as a form of payment for a review. Any advertisements on our website are clearly marked with the word “Advertisement,” and any sponsored articles are clearly marked with the word “Sponsored.” Sponsored articles are not written by the editorial staff. Our editorial team is separate from the business arm of the company and maintains editorial independence.
Our Expert Writers
We’ve got a great team of writers with an immense amount of experience in the technology industry. Here are just a few of them:
Ian Paul is a freelance writer with over a decade of experiencing writing about tech. In addition to writing for How-To Geek, he regularly contributes to PCWorld as a critic, feature writer, reporter, deal hunter, and columnist. His work has also appeared online at The Washington Post, ABC News, MSNBC, Reuters, Macworld, Yahoo Tech, Tech.co, TechHive, The Huffington Post, and Lifewire. His articles are regularly syndicated across numerous IDG sites. Read Full Bio »
Dave Johnson has worked as a tech journalist since the days of the Palm Pilot and Windows 95. He’s the author of almost three dozen books about tech, digital photography, small business, and robots, and he authored a children’s book that was later adapted into an interactive storybook. These days, in addition to How-To Geek, you can find him around the web on sites like Business Insider and IGN. Read Full Bio »
Dave McKay first used computers in the industry when punched paper tape was in vogue, and he has been programming ever since. His use of computers pre-dates the birth of the PC and the public release of Unix. He has programmed in everything from 6502 assembly to Lisp, and from Forth to C#. He is currently a Data Protection Officer and has worked as a freelance programmer, the manager of an international software development team, and an IT services project manager. Read Full Bio »
Michael Crider is a veteran technology journalist with a decade of experience. He spent five years writing for Android Police before working for How-To Geek. His work has appeared on websites like Digital Trends and Lifehacker, and he’s covered industry events like the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) and Mobile World Congress in person. He’s also Reviews Editor over at Review Geek. Read Full Bio »
Josh Hendrickson has worked in IT for nearly a decade. Roughly half that time was spent doing quality assurance, project management, and system administration for IDM Computer Solutions, which develops the popular UltraEdit text editor. Josh spent four years at Microsoft servicing and repairing computers, and he now writes much of How-To Geek’s Windows content. He’s also a smarthome enthusiast who built his own smart mirror with just a frame, some electronics, a Raspberry Pi, and open-source code. Read Full Bio »
Harry Guinness is a photography expert, traveler, and writer who’s been published in the New York Times and other newspapers. He’s been writing for a decade. Beyond How-To Geek, you’ll find him sharing tips from his life experience over at LifeSavvy, How-to Geek’s sister site. Read Full Bio »
Alan Murray has worked as an Excel trainer and consultant for twenty years. On most days, he can be found teaching about Excel in a classroom or seminar. He writes detailed Microsoft Excel tutorials here at How-To Geek. Read Full Bio »
How-To Geek alumni have gone on to write for publications like The New York Times, Popular Science, The Daily Beast, and iFixit.
Fan Mail From Our Readers
Here’s some of the feedback we’ve received from our readers:
“Love your work. I read tech documents a lot, and it’s your style that sets you apart. It can be read by anyone. Thanks again.”
-Andrew, July 2016
“What an excellent and well thought out article. The type of misinformation this addresses is an enormous pet peeve of mine.”
-John, February 2019
“I just read your posting “Fix: My Microphone Doesn’t Work on Windows 10.” Your post was the only mention I found referencing the global privacy setting for the Windows 10 microphone. It solved my problem where the microphone was auto-muting in Google Hangout meetings. I searched for more than an hour, checked all configuration, and updated drivers. Then I found your post.”
-Jason, February 2019
“I just wanted to tell you how helpful I found your article “10 Ways to Customize the Windows 10 Start Menu.” I got a new computer running Windows 10 last week after using Windows 7 since 2011. Of all the pages I’ve found and articles I’ve read, yours is the most helpful. It has saved me hours of exploring and experimenting with the programs list and start menu. Thank you.”
-Jon, April 2019
Management Team
How-To Geek is still wholly owned and run by its founders, Lowell Heddings and Erik Wang.
Lowell Heddings
Founder and CEO
Lowell Heddings is the founder and CEO of How-To Geek. He’s been running the show since creating the site back in 2006. Over the last decade, Lowell has personally written more than 1000 articles, which have been viewed by over 250 million people.
These days, he is focused on his role running the business side of the house and building the Moka publishing platform that powers the HTG family of sites, including Review Geek.
Before starting How-To Geek, Lowell spent 15 years working in the IT field doing consulting, cybersecurity, database management, and programming. The last decade of his previous career, however, was spent mainly doing business automation for large corporations. The e-commerce integrations he created are still being used to automate billions of dollars worth of transactions today. Read Full Bio »
Erik Wang
Managing Partner and CFO
Erik Wang is a veteran in the online publishing space. He has over 15 years of experience with a strong focus in the areas of advertising, affiliate marketing, and SEO. He is instrumental in the monetization of the How-To Geek and establishing strategic partnerships to further the company’s growth.
In a previous life, Erik came from the enterprise application software field, where he spent over a decade in consulting and implementation of electronic procurement and asset management solutions for ePlus Technology. Some of the company’s notable clients include Georgia Pacific, Aaron’s, and Kaplan University.
Erik holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Management from Virginia Tech and is also fluent in Mandarin Chinese.
Catherine Chang
Director of Contracts
Catherine Chang is a licensed attorney in the state of Maryland. She’s responsible for all things contract-related at How-To Geek and serves an integral role in developing and finalizing the company’s business deals.
Her wealth in knowledge in contract law and experience in supply chain management was developed through her work in a variety of industries. She’s worked for a boutique law firm in Washington, D.C., multiple companies in the telecom industry, and several defense contractors in the Northern Virginia area.
Catherine has a J.D. from American University, Washington College of Law and a B.A. from the University of Maryland, College Park.
About the Network
How-To Geek has been helping hundreds of millions of readers understand technology for more than a decade. We now have a network of websites focusing on everything from product recommendations to life skills.
Review Geek was founded by the How-To Geek team in 2017 with a mission of helping our readers save time and money. Review Geek’s writers spend hours researching, testing, breaking, fixing, and re-testing a mountain of products so that our millions of readers don’t have to. Whether you’re standing in the store debating between products on the shelf or shopping from bed on your tablet, Review Geek offers the best recommendations, reviews, and tips.
LifeSavvy teaches skills for a better life. Our team of expert writers has real-world experience in everything from fashion and baby products to travel, fitness, and relationships. LifeSavvy brings the reader-first, approachable style How-To Geek has always been known for to an audience outside the world of technology. We founded the site in 2019.
Contact Us
Want to get in touch? We look forward to hearing from you.
Computer Help
For computer help, we recommend posting in our Facebook Group. You’ll get a much quicker response from our wider community, and some of them have likely experienced the same problem in the past.
Feedback
We always enjoy reading feedback about our website, whether you have an idea for an article or a suggestion for something we should do differently. Please direct any feedback to contact@howtogeek.com.
Press Inquiries
For press inquiries, contact press@howtogeek.com. Our team of technology experts would be happy to provide a quote for an article you’re working on.
Join Our Team
We’re always looking for experienced freelance writers who are passionate and knowledgeable about technology. Here’s how to apply.
Advertising
Get your products and services in front of our millions of readers. We offer a range of options, including display ads, newsletter promotions, and sponsored articles. Please contact us at advertising@howtogeek.com for more information on custom advertising campaigns.
For IAB display ads, video ads, and programmatic, we are represented by Future PLC.
We strive to use only the highest-quality ads. If a poor-quality advertisement has slipped through the cracks, please let us know at contact@howtogeek.com.
Mailing Address
We recommend contacting us via email. However, you can mail a letter to us at the following address:
How-To Geek LLC
21010 Southbank St., #4015
Potomac Falls, VA 20165
