In this fast-paced world, when we're firing off emails, posting status updates, and sending messages a mile a infinitesimal, we've all pressed "ship" or "delete" sooner than nosotros've intended at one time or another.

From posting a photograph of my "amazung view of the muntains" to sending an email prematurely, I know that feeling of regret all too well.

We're all trying to maintain control of our online footprint as all-time we tin can. But with so many opportunities to mess upward on the spider web, it'southward piece of cake to make silly tech mistakes from time to time.

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Luckily for us, there are ways to correct some of these embarrassing slip-ups. I consulted my colleagues and scoured the web (chapeau tip to you, PureWow) to observe the following tech hacks that are so uncomplicated and however so life-changing, you won't believe you ever lived without them.

one) How to Un-Transport an Email on Gmail

Accept you ever sent an email and immediately wished you could accept it back? If you employ Gmail, you lot totally can. Technically, the un-ship feature in Gmail doesn't really un-send your email -- what information technology really does is filibuster the sending of your message for a few seconds, giving y'all the choice to disengage the send while the clock is ticking. All you lot have to practise is enable the feature via Gmail Labs. Here's how to do it ...

Step i: Go to Settings from your Gmail homepage.

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The General tab should be open by default. If not, open it.

Step 2: Scroll downwardly until y'all see theUndo Shipsection. Click the check box adjacent to "Enable Disengage Send," and choose your cancellation flow. Yous can make information technology five seconds, 10 seconds, 20 seconds, or 30 seconds.

Stride three: Don't forget to click Save Changes at the bottom of the screen.

(For y'all non-Gmail folks, I tried looking for solutions in Outlook and other electronic mail clients but couldn't find whatever that really worked. If you lot know of any, feel free to share tips with readers in the comments section.)

ii) How to Restore Tabs in a Web Browser

If yous're like me and go on 10+ tabs open on your net browser at once, information technology tin can be a little devastating when you lot accidentally shut a tab without meaning to -- or, even worse, when you close all of them at one time.

That's why I rejoiced when I heard near this hack for Chrome and Firefox, which lets you recover i or of all your previously opened browser tabs without having to dig through your web history. (It doesn't work if you lot quit the application altogether.) It's simple:

On a Mac, hit Control-Shift-T.

On a PC, hit Ctrl-Shift-T.

3) How to Recover an Unsaved Discussion Document

This is the worst.Has Word e'er crashed on you? Or maybe your computer died and you lost hours -- or even days -- of work? In some cases, y'all tin recover that lost file the fashion it was at the moment you lost it. Unfortunately, if you never saved the document in the first identify, you're out of luck -- but that means you need to go into the habit of saving documents the moment you start them.

If your version of Microsoft Office has AutoRecovery, you can recover a file that's been autosaved past looking in the AutoRecovery folder the next time you open Word. Hither are the instructions for Mac, and and then for PC.

For Mac:

Open Microsoft Discussion and go to File, then Open Recent -- and your file will (hopefully!) exist listed in the Open Recent list.

recover-file-word

Alternatively, you tin find it by opening your Finder and looking in/Users/username/Documents/Microsoft User Data/Office 2011 AutoRecovery. (Note that you have to replaceusernamewith your personal username.)

To eliminate the guessing game in the futurity, you can take the precaution of choosing exactly where yous want Word to autosave files. To do this, get to Preferences in the Word menu and click File Locations.

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Choose AutoRecover files.

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Click "Modify...". And so choose where y'all desire your files to autosave. You can too create a new binder specifically for autosaved files.

Finally -- one more Microsoft Word tip! -- there'southward a feature on some Part applications that lets you save your files automatically on a regular basis. Yous can ready upwardly exactly how often y'all want your files saved. But make sure y'all don't utilise AutoRecover in place of really saving your files. Here's how to customize it:

On the Word card, click Preferences. Click Salvage (in the Output and Sharing section).

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In the "Relieve AutoRecover info every..." box, enter how oftentimes you want Give-and-take to autosave your documents. Click OK.

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For PC:

Step i: Open up Microsoft Word and get to File, then Open up,and clickRecent Documents from the dropdown menu.

Pace two: Scroll to the end of all your contempo documents, so clickRecover Unsaved Documents.

Step 3: If you observe the Word Document you're looking for, double-click to open information technology, so save information technology immediately.

Alternatively, you tin detect it by searching your computer.

If you have Windows 8.i or Windows 8 ...

Step 1: Press the Windows logo key + E to open up Windows Explorer.

Step two: In theSearch This PCbox, type the document name and press ENTER. (If y'all're unsure of the document name and don't take a ton of documents to sort though, you can also just type.docx in the Search This PCbox and press ENTER and expect through all your documents by date.)

Pace iii: If you run across the Give-and-take document you're looking for, double-click the document to open it.

If you accept Windows Vista or Windows 7 ...

Stride i: Click Start  Start button , blazon the document name in the Get-go Search box, and press ENTER. (If you're unsure of the document name and don't have a ton of documents to sort though, you tin can too merely type in.docx and press ENTER and look through all your documents past engagement.)

Step 2: If you see the Give-and-take certificate you're looking for, double-click the document to open information technology.

4) How to Edit a Facebook Post, Status, or Caption

If you write a post, status, or explanation on Facebook that you desire to change later, yous can edit it via an net browser. (Unfortunately, y'all tin can't yet alter it via Facebook's mobile app.) Here'southward how to practise it in a browser:

Commencement, hover your mouse over the post you want to edit. A modest, grey arrow volition show upwards in the top, right-hand corner of the mail.

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Click the arrow and cull Edit.

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Edit away! Click Washed Editing when you lot're finished. Note that edited posts will be labeled Edited, as shown below.

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5) How to Disengage Typing on an iPhone to Recover Deleted Text

Did you accidentally erase something you but typed? To become it back, you need to Disengage Typing. All you accept to do is milk shake your phone, and a window will pop up prompting you to Disengage Typing. Click Disengage, and you'll get that text dorsum.

undo-typing-iphone

Be warned, though: The "disengage" feature only seems to requite back text you've deleted by selecting the text andthen pressing delete -- not if you've deleted information technology letter-by-alphabetic character.

See it in action:

Image Credit: Chris Wade

6) How to Undo Typing on a Computer

This keyboard shortcut never gets one-time. Ever delete something you typed out, but really wish you lot didn't? Undo typing on a Mac past pressing Command + Z,or on a PC by pressingCtrl + Z.It'll "disengage" whatsoever the final thing you typed (or deleted) was. Alternatively, you can clickEditfrom the menu at the top of your screen and chooseUndo Typing.Y'all can repeat this action several times to go along undoing the last few key stroke sequences you fabricated.

7) How to Redo Typing on a Figurer

Change your listen and want to "redo" the typing yous just un-did? In most applications, in that location'southward a shortcut for that, too. Redo typing on a Mac past pressingShift + Command + Z, unless you're in Microsoft Discussion, in which example pressCommand + Y. On a PC, pressShift + Ctrl + Z,unless you're in Word, in which case printingCtrl + Y.Alternatively, you lot can clickEditfrom the carte at the superlative of your screen and chooseRedo Typing.

viii) How to Unsend a Text Message on iPhone, Android, or Blackberry

Have you always sent a text message you wish you could take back? At that place's an app for that! TigerText is a complimentary app that lets yous recall your text bulletin at any time -- even after the person has read it. This app can besides encrypt your text letters, fix them to self-destruct after a chosen period of time (kind of like SnapChat), and tin can permit you know when your texts are read past the recipients. You'll need to download the app, connect it to your email accost and phone, and create a password. This solution merely works if both you and the recipient accept the app installed, but I nonetheless thought it was cool enough to share.

9) How to Un-Send an iMessage

Without TigerText, you can't un-transport an iMessage on an iPhone one time it's been delivered. Just if you're quick enough, you can stop it from sending while information technology'due south yet in the procedure of sending.

How? By putting your phone in Airplane Mode to stop the text from sending. iMessages transport pretty quickly nowadays, and then y'all don't have much fourth dimension ... pregnant you'll probably want to practice if y'all e'er program on trying this in the future. Here's how to practice it:

Footstep 1: Every bit soon as you realize your error, press the Domicile button.

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Step ii: Get into the Settings app. (It may not be in the same place on your iPhone as information technology is here.)

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Pace three: Switch on Aeroplane Mode past sliding the button to the correct so it turns green. If it works, a small airplane will appear in the top, left-hand corner of your iPhone screen.

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Step iv: Become dorsum to the text message. If it failed to evangelize, then it worked! You lot can delete it if you desire.

(You can usually turn your phone on Airplane Mode by just swiping up from the bottom of your screen -- but note that youtin can'tpractise this while yous're texting, which is why you need to go into Settings instead.)

10) How to Rewrite Your Instagram Caption

Tin't think of a super clever Instagram caption on the spot? Not to worry: You tin always edit (rewrite) your caption afterward. Here'south how to do it:

Stride 1:Open the moving picture on your phone and tap the ellipsis.

Step 2: ChooseEdit from the carte du jour that appears.

Step iii: Edit the caption to your eye's desire, and to salve it, pressDone.

Note: To delete your caption entirely, follow the steps outlined in #11. When it comes to deleting the caption, Instagram treats captions similar it does comments.

11) How to Delete Instagram Comments

Y'all can delete Instagram comments and delete your own Instagram explanation using the aforementioned fob. Hither'south how to do it:

Stride 1: Open the moving-picture show on your phone and tap the thought bubble icon.

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Step two: Hold downwards your annotate for almost ii seconds, and swipe to the left. Tap the trash can.

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You can also practice this with any annotate on your photo. You can also do it with any comments yous make on other users' photos.

12) How to Disengage a Retweet on Twitter

E'er retweeted a mail service on Twitter, and later decided you lot want to remove it from your Twitter feed? Information technology only takes ane click of a mouse. If y'all used Twitter'southward retweet feature, the same retweet button you clicked (the rotating arrows) volition undo your retweet.

It won't delete the tweet from the original poster's page, but information technology'll remove it from your own feed.

If you lot retweeted with a comment, you can remove the retweet past clicking the "delete" link located beneat the tweet, just every bit you lot would delete a regular tweet from your profile.

Have any more hacks that'll help the rest of us right our tech mistakes? Share them in the comments below!

Editor's Note: This postal service was originally published in July 2014 and has been updated for freshness, accuracy, and comprehensiveness.

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Originally published October 12, 2015 8:00:00 AM, updated July 28 2017