Category: troubleshooting

Weekly Round Up 4/27/18

 

 

This really isn’t news…
Tech has no moral code. It is everyone’s job now to fight for one


Damn, China. Way to raise the bar….?

China turns to tech to monitor, shame and rate citizens


Can’t afford not to be these days…
How a News Junkie Stays Plugged In: Newsletters and Her Kids

 


So cool…
Paralyzed 34-year-old man completes London Marathon using Israeli tech

 


Because something has to give…
Why Big Tech is Plotting an Invasion of the Healthcare Market

 


Nerds Unite!
Workers of Silicon Valley, It’s Time to Organize

 


I’d pay to watch this on PayPerView…
Apple, Facebook feud as tech faces heat in D.C.

 


Which is why I have a job…
Apple has become an HR issue for enterprise IT

 


Wouldn’t you love to be a fly on the wall for that one?
Apple’s Tim Cook Meets With Trump in Oval Office

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WIT: Women In Tech: Educated, Ambitious And Underpaid

 

By Laurence Bradford , CONTRIBUTOR of Forbes.com

As Women’s History Month nears its close in 2018, many people have been reflecting on the struggles women have faced in the past and the strides they are making toward changing the future.

Tech is one area of specific interest here, as it’s a place where women have traditionally been under-represented. But is that changing too?

Let’s find out. Using data from several large tech surveys, I’ll examine the current state of women in tech and see where things stand.

More Women Are Learning To Code Than Ever

 

While tech has historically been a male-dominated industry, there’s a new generation of women who aren’t intimidated by that fact. According to HackerRank’s Women in Tech report, women now represent the highest number of new CS grads and junior developers (53%) entering the workforce.

What’s more, women often learn to code as young teenagers: almost as many women learned before the age of 16 as men who did the same.

Further illustrating the evidence for the shifting demographics of coding as a profession, twice as many women as men have been coding two years or less. Once these women enter the workforce, we will likely see other statistics continue to shift as well.

The tides are turning, but for now, men still vastly outnumber women in tech careers. As an example, look at the demographics of the respondents to Stack Overflow’s 2018 developer survey: nearly 93% were male.

(But There Is Still A Gender Pay Gap In Computing)

Many industries still suffer from a gender pay gap, despite rising public awareness of the issue. Tech is one of them.

In fact, according to LiveStories’ data for the Computer and Mathematical category, the pay gap was actually worse in 2016 than it had been in 2005. Their numbers are based on income statistics from the United States Census Bureau. Women in computers in 2005 earned 87% as much as their male counterparts, but by 2016, it had fallen to 85%.

Women Prioritize The Skills Employers Want

 

As the data demonstrates, women in tech are overwhelmingly practical.

They tend to pursue proficiency in the languages most in-demand and valued by employers.

Specifically, the top 5 programming languages that most women have proficiency in are,
Java (69%)
JavaScript (63%)
C (61%)
C++ (53%)
Python (45%)

These are the exact same languages that companies value most in front-end, back-end and full-stack developers.

(But Women Are More Likely To Hold Junior Positions)

 

Despite the fact that women have skills in demand by employers, Hackerrank found that women of all ages were more likely to hold junior positions than their male counterparts. The difference was especially striking for women over 35, who were 3.5x more likely to be in junior roles.

It’s unclear whether women are being passed over for promotions out of implicit bias or because of life events–like having children–that stall the journey into senior positions.

However, there are plenty of inspiring women out there who demonstrate that you can have multiple life paths–like Vidya Srinivasan, who defied workplace stereotypes while pregnant and then successfully integrated back to work after maternity leave.

Furthermore, tech companies who are willing to offer fertility benefits like egg freezing enable women to pursue their professional goals during the crucial growth years, without sacrificing family if that’s something they want in the future.

What Women Value In The Workplace

 

As part of Stack Overflow’s annual survey, they ask participating developers what they prioritize while searching for a job. The most popular answers differ when broken down by gender.

When assessing a prospective job, women say their highest priorities are company culture and opportunities for professional development, while men say their highest priorities are compensation and working with specific technologies.

The fact that women actively seek out professional development opportunities shows that there is desire among women to progress to higher roles. They simply need companies who will support their quest to do so.


Laurence Bradford is a product manager at Teachable and the creator of Learn to Code With Me, a blog and podcast for those wanting to transition into a tech career later in life.

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WIT: How to make Women’s Day every day in tech

 

By Petra Andrea of Financial Review

It’s 2018, which means we have fridges that are probably better at planning our groceries than we are. We’ve found new planets that could potentially harbour life, and we’re eating stem-cell-produced medium-rare steak burgers without a trace of steak in them.

Innovation in tech and science is creating a whole new world of possibilities at an almost alarming rate. And yet there’s still one area of technology that seems stubbornly untouched by progress: persistent gender inequality in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).

Multiple reports indicate that women hold just under a third of all IT jobs, and less than 10 per cent of technology jobs in Australia. Female tech entrepreneurs are outnumbered by their male counterparts at a rate of about four to one.
So why is so much progress being made within laboratories and workshops around the country in terms of tech innovation, and yet so little is being made on the gender inequality front?

Below are some of the ways women in technology continue to be held back – and what might be done to address them:

1) Problems in the playpen

Walking down any toy-shop aisle, it’s hard to miss the vast difference between the toys marketed for boys, and those aimed at girls.

Aside from the glaring colour differences – who knew pink came in so many different shades? – girls’ toys are more generally associated with domesticity, physical attractiveness and nurturing. Boys’ toys, on the other hand, are largely more functional – tools for building, creating and achieving. They promote skills in mathematical, engineering and scientific fields in a way the pink cohort sadly doesn’t.

And while a plastic pink tea set doesn’t have to be destiny, there is evidence that this type of early gendered socialisation creates a variety of social and economic consequences that can extend into adulthood. Research demonstrates it can contribute to the education gap in schools, it can affect a child’s choice in tertiary majors and it can even guide his or her future occupational choice.

It may be challenging to influence the purchasing preference of any three-year-old. However, non-gendered toys and STEM toys made especially for girls, are both now on the rise. From friendship bracelets that require programming (“Jewelbots”), to dolls houses with building kits complete with circuits and motors that allow girls to light up the structures they build themselves (“Roominate”), choices are increasing, parents may be relieved to know.

2) Schoolyard blues

Australia’s STEM education gender gap isn’t news to anyone.
Only 16 per cent of STEM-qualified people are female, according to a report by the Office of the Chief Scientist. Just one-10th of engineering graduates are women, and a quarter of IT graduates. Women also occupy less than 20 per cent of senior researcher positions in Australian universities and research institutes.

Dealing with a “boys’ club” culture in the classroom or lab of these degrees, a lack of encouragement into these fields by peers, family or professors, even low levels of female STEM representation in popular culture, all contribute to the ongoing socialisation and pressure on women away from these pursuits.
To address this, institutions must question how their learning environment contributes to or detracts from building interest in women for STEM degrees, and supporting them within the classroom and beyond.

3) A vicious VC cycle
For those women who have overcome a lifetime of socialisation, the challenges unfortunately don’t stop there. Only 5 per cent of female founders of tech start-ups are funded – a gender bias in venture capital that is seriously hurting our female tech entrepreneurs’ capacity to succeed.

This issue can actually be exacerbated when a female founder is seeking funding for a more “masculine” technology. Female founders seeking capital for “women’s” or “children’s” products, such as baby products or fashion platforms, are often far more likely to receive funding than those seeking capital for deeply technological and highly proprietary products.

This is indicative of a blatant subjectivity at play. The subtlety of some of the forces driving this are also likely to make it a challenging issue to address.
Internal bias (experienced by both men and women) can cause scepticism about a woman’s ability to manage a high-growth-potential start-up. This could be as ludicrous as believing women don’t have “what it takes” to make a tech-based start-up succeed, or concerns about balancing family with work. The sense of “sameness” that attracts us to people who are similar to us can also strongly weigh in subconsciously, with the majority of VCs being male.

In the end, tackling gender inequality in tech is likely to require multiple campaigns by numerous stakeholders targeting different individual issues across the entire life cycle of a woman’s childhood, education and career.
But if we can find artificial intelligence applications for the humble pizza delivery, surely resolving gender disparity on our own turf shouldn’t be considered an insurmountable challenge.

Do you think these suggestions will work for the US? Sound off in the comments below!

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How to: Set a Timer on HomePod

 

 

By Juli Clover of Mac Rumors

HomePod has built-in Siri functionality, which means it can be used to do a lot of the same things that can be done with an iPhone or an iPod, like setting an alarm or a timer.

If your HomePod is in the kitchen, setting a timer while cooking can be useful, and it’s as simple as using a single Siri command.

All you need to say is “Hey Siri, set a timer for X amount of time”

You can set a timer for a select number of minutes or hours, with a maximum timer limit of 24 hours. If you ask Siri to set a timer for longer than 24 hours, Siri will suggest you use a Reminder instead.

If you need to know how much time is remaining on the timer, you can ask Siri a question like “Hey Siri, how much time is left on the timer?” and Siri will give you a time update.

When the time is up, the HomePod will play a sound. To stop the timer sound, you can either tap the top of the HomePod or ask Siri to stop it.

Turning Off the Timer

At any point while the timer is running, you can ask Siri to turn it off with a command like “Hey Siri, turn off the timer” or “Hey Siri, pause the timer.”

You can also change the timer countdown with a command like “Hey Siri, change the timer to 10 minutes.”

Timer Limitations

Unfortunately, you can only set one timer at a time. If you attempt to set a second timer while the first timer you set is still running, Siri will say “A timer is already running at x minutes. Would you like to replace it?”

There’s also no way to view or manage your HomePod timers on an iOS device like there is with alarms — timers on HomePod all handled via voice with Siri.

 

Do you have a favorite HomePod Tip? Tell us about it in the comments below!

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Tips & Tricks: 5 ways to boost your MacBook battery life

 

Photo: picjumbo.com/Pexels CC
Save yourself some battery power when you go remote.

 

 

5 ways to boost your MacBook battery life

Jovan Washington of Cult of Mac

Despite the MacBook’s svelte design, their batteries last a long time because Apple put a lot of thought into how the hardware and software work together. Still, if you find yourself running out of juice, some simple changes can help you extend your MacBook battery life.

Apple designs its laptops to maximize user productivity and minimize extra work, but following these simple tips will boost MacBook battery life considerably.

HOW TO BOOST MACBOOK BATTERY LIFE

While your MacBook’s battery life totally depends on what you’re doing on any given day, making small sacrifices can pay off big time. (See Apple’s specs listings to see exactly how much screen time you can hope to attain.)
These tips should boost your MacBook battery life noticeably.

TURN DOWN MACBOOK SCREEN BRIGHTNESS

Screenshot: Cult of Mac
Decrease the brightness levels on your MacBook to save battery power.

Apple’s Retina display is pretty adaptive and vibrant even at low brightness settings. In most conditions, you can turn down your brightness settings — especially if you are not accessing highly visual content — to extend your battery life.

Go to System Preferences > Displays. In the Display tab, move the Brightness slider to the left and uncheck Automatically adjust brightness.

SWITCH OFF BLUETOOTH AND WI-FI

If what you’re doing doesn’t require Bluetooth and/or Wi-Fi, turn them off. These two laptop mainstays can eat up a big chunk of your battery without you realizing it. Ask yourself, “Do I really need to be connected to Wi-Fi if all I’m doing is working on a spreadsheet?” Switch off your Bluetooth and Wi-Fi when not in use.

  • To switch off Bluetooth, go to System Preferences > Bluetooth and then select Turn Bluetooth Off.
  • To switch off Wi-Fi, go to System Preferences > Network and select Turn Wi-Fi Off.

 

DISCONNECT PERIPHERALS

Believe it or not, keeping a compact disk inserted or USB device connected consumes significant MacBook battery power. While on the move, even the slightest of battery wastage can prove to be a heavy blow and reduce overall performance. Always disconnect any peripherals to conserve and extend laptop battery life.

TURN OFF BACKLIT KEYBOARD

Having a light-up keyboard definitely proves convenient in certain situations, but you only really need it in dim lighting. Turning off your backlit keyboard will extend the battery life of your MacBook.

 

INVERT COLORS

Screenshot: Cult of Mac
Select this option to give you a bizarre view of your desktop while saving battery life.

Designed for people with limited vision, this option saves MacBook battery by displaying energy-saving black pixels rater than juice-devouring white ones. If you can stand the pain of working in such a stark environment, this is a good way to get more from your Mac’s battery.

BONUS MACBOOK BATTERY TIPS

Screenshot: Cult of Mac
Safari is using significant energy.

MacOS helpfully informs you if any apps use significant amounts of power. Just look in the Battery menu. Click on Battery in the Menu bar and check under Apps Using Significant Energy. Safari is the culprit in the example above. But you should quit any hungry apps and use a low-energy alternative instead.

You can also get more detailed information on energy usage using the Activity Monitor app.

1. Launch the Activity Monitor app.
2. Click on the Energy Tab and Energy Impact header to view the apps and processes taking up the most power on your Mac.

Also, check the following options in System Preferences > Energy Saver:

  • Put the hard disk(s) to sleep when possible.
  • Slightly dim the display when using this power source.
  • Automatically reduce brightness before display goes to sleep.
  • Disable Power Nap.

Those quick changes can boost Mac battery life considerably.

Do you have any tips for preserving battery life on your laptop? Share them with us in the comments below!

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Weekly Round Up 5/26

 


Um…Trump University isn’t on this list.
25 Colleges that pay for themselves if you want to work in tech

Except that it didn’t work…
How Silicon Valley is trying to topple Trump — beginning with a special election in Montana

Honestly, who didn’t see this coming?
Tesla’s solar roof tiles are already sold out ‘well into 2018’

I’d just be happy if their was one to make my cat less of an a**hole.
Wearable tech latest must-have for China’s proud pet owners

Because they need all 14 or so women working in the tech field to keep working.
At tech companies, egg freezing benefits are all the rage

Why is everyone looking at Zuckerberg?
Tech companies need to stand up to the jerks in their midst

I’d be really disappointed if it didn’t.
Tech Ups The Ante In Orlando’s New Theme Park Experiences

Here’s to the crazy ones…
Walt Mossberg signs ‘out’

Kinda like watching the Hall of Presidents but with cooler tech.
Apple will live stream WWDC 2017 keynote on June 5 at 10AM PT

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20 Secret iPhone Tips And Hacks That You Didn’t Know About

 

 

Ladies,

There are some great tips in this article for iPhone users. I knew about most of them, but was never sure anyone besides me would find them useful. Until I read this article. Time to share the wealth… Happy Weekend!

The iPhone tricks that will change how you use your handset

By Luke Johnson and Justin Mahboubian-Jones of Esquire

Sure, there’s plenty your trusty iPhone can already do, even if you’ve not upgraded to the shiny new iPhone 7 yet. It can help you find your way home, settle pub debates and, heck, even make the odd phone call or two. At a pinch you could probably serve small canapés off it. But this pocketable box of wonder isn’t just a pretty vessel into the world of internet joy and messaging madness. Oh no.
There are dozens of cool iPhone features hidden beneath the surface that you probably weren’t even aware of – and not just the knowledge that cat litter can bring your phone back from a watery death. These are some of the best iPhone hacks you didn’t know about, and exactly how you can find them.

1. CHARGE YOUR PHONE FASTER WITH A SINGLE BUTTON PRESS
Tired of waiting for your phone to recharge? Well, there is a way to speed up the re-juicing process, and it’s surprisingly simple – just engage Flight Safe mode. By knocking out all your phone’s Wi-Fi-searching, data-draining communication skills, it takes the strain off your battery while it’s being powered up. Not hugely, true – but if you’re pressed for time and looking to eke out every bit of juice, that extra 4% you’ll add in 30 minutes connected to the mains could make all the difference.

2. SHAVE SECONDS OFF YOUR SEARCHES
When it comes to finding out the footy scores or proving a point, getting where you need to go on the internet is all about speed and precision – something missing when you’re forced to knock out type-heavy web addresses. So save time by holding down the full stop icon whilst typing out an address to bring up a short-cut series of URL suffixes. From the classics (.com, .co.uk) to the less used (.edu, .ie), there are quick hit shortcuts for all.

3. DISCOVER EXACTLY WHAT YOUR PHONE KNOWS ABOUT YOU
Slightly sinisterly, your iPhone is always gathering data on you in the background – be it the apps you’re using the most, how much data you’re churning through… or even, most creepily, where you are. To see what we mean, head to Settings > Privacy > Location Services > System Services > Frequent Locations. Here you can see not just where you’ve been, but how long you’ve spent in each place. Big Brother really is watching…

4. REPLACE A TOOLBOX ESSENTIAL
You’ve probably filed away the Compass app alongside the Stocks and Find Friends apps in a folder entitled ‘Crap I can’t delete’. You should pull it back out, though – as it’s got a secret second function that will help with your DIY duties. No: not using your iPhone to hammer in nails (although it can – briefly – do that too). Instead, swiping left in the Compass app brings up a very useful spirit level – a digital bubble gauge than can check if that shelf really is level. (Spoiler: it isn’t.)

5. LOCK YOUR CAMERA’S FOCAL POINT
We all know that tapping the screen while taking a photo will set the camera’s point of focus, right? Good. Annoyingly though, every time you move the camera after picking a focal point, it disappears. Well, no more. Instead of just tapping the screen, press for a second or two until an ‘AF Locked’ box pops up. Now you can twist, turn and swing the thing around without losing focus.

6. CREATE CUSTOM VIBRATIONS
Ever wished you could tell who’s calling just by how your phone feels buzzing against your leg? Now you can: In Contacts, select your person of choice and hit Edit. Here you’ll see a Vibration option. Selecting this will give you plenty of options, including the Create New Vibration tool. Making your bespoke buzz is as simple as tapping the screen to the beat of your choice.

7. CORRECT SIRI’S PRONUNCIATION
Siri’s a bit of a smug know-it-all – so there’s nothing better than calling it on its cock ups. Like when it mispronounces peoples’ names like an ignorant Brit abroad. So if Siri says something wrong, just tell it. Following up a mistake by saying “That’s not how you pronounce…” will see Siri ask for the correct pronunciation then let you check it’s got things right. Because we all know it’s Levi-O-sa, not Levi-o-SAR.

8. CLOSE THREE APPS AT ONCE
It’s not just pictures and web pages that support multi-finger gestures. You can throw additional digits into clearing up your iPhone clutter too. If you need to shut multiple applications in a hurry – for totally innocent, not hiding anything, honest reasons – you can drag three fingers up on the multitasking menu to cull the clutter quicker. Which means your phone should be snappier in double-quick time.

9. SET YOUR MUSIC ON A TIMER
Enjoy listening to a little soothing background music as you drift off to the Land of Nod? Then you’re probably all too familiar with waking up at 3am to some unwanted tunes. Unless, of course, you set your music to turn off on a timer. In the Clock app, slide along to the Timer options. Here under the ‘When Time Ends’ tag, you can switch out the alarm option for a ‘Stop Playing’ tag. This will turn off the tunes, be it through Apple Music or Spotify, when the timer hits zero.

10. TAKE A PHOTO WITHOUT TOUCHING YOUR PHONE
An oldie but a goodie iPhone hack is using your volume control buttons to capture a snap – thus saving your meaty paw blocking the screen as you attempt to hit the touchscreen controls. But if you prefer to be even further removed from your photo-capturing shutter controls? Hitting the volume button on a pair of compatible, connected headphones will have the same effect.

11. SAVE YOUR DATA ALLOWANCE BY LIMITING APP ACCESS
Related: Best iPhone 7 cases and covers
You’re just a third of the way through the month, and your 2GB data allowance is already starting to look a little stretched. You don’t have to cut back on your on-the-go Netflix viewing though. Instead, select which apps get demoted to the Wi-Fi-only B-list. Go to Settings > Mobile Data where you can make the big decisions one app at a time.

12. IMPROVE YOUR BATTERY LIFE
Spotlight, Apple’s connected quick-access for key data and services, is great for offering instant access to the latest breaking news, sports scores and social update. But that much stuff going on in the background can eat your battery life whole. Unless you turn off Spotlight features for certain apps to eke out more life per charge, that is. ‘How?’ we hear you cry? Just go Settings > General > Spotlight Search and limit what’s pulling in data behind your back.

13. IMPROVE YOUR SIGNAL BY KNOWING WHERE TO LOOK FOR IT
No need to hang out of a first floor window trying to discover where your iPhone’s connection is best. Type *3001#12345#* into your iPhone’s dialler and hit call to launch the hidden Field Mode tool. This sub-surface menu turns your bar chart-based signal indicator into a far more straightforward numerical-based signal signifier. Got a score of -50? Then you’ll be enjoying HD video streams on the move. Down around -120, though, and you’ll struggle to send a text. Just follow the numbers to better signals.

14. USE YOUR PHONE LIKE AN ETCH-A-SKETCH TO ERASE
You might have already stumbled across this one in a fit of rage, but like your childhood etch-a-sketch, your recent iPhone activities can be erased simply by giving the thing a good ol’ shake. Perfect for the plump of finger and poor of spelling, who want to skip the endless backspace bashing with a firm handset rattle. And if you’re shivering rather than shaking? Don’t worry: a pop-up will ensure you want to delete before erasing your typing.

15. FIND OUT EXACTLY HOW LONG YOU’VE BEEN WAITING FOR A REPLY
We’ve all been there: endlessly rechecking our phones for a text reply, wondering how long it’s been since we sent our message of love/ ransom demand. There’s an easy way to find out, though – simply swipe in from the right-hand side of the screen when in a messaging thread, to show precise delivery times for every message sent and received. True: it’s not as morale-beating as WhatsApp’s blue ticks, but it will still give you a complex over why it’s taking over 42 minutes for your other half to reply. Do affairs really take that long?

16. SHARE YOUR FAMILY TREE WITH SIRI
Does referring to your parents by their given name make you feel awkward? Then teach Siri to know who you’re chatting about. Ask Siri to call your dad and the digital PA should ask who your father is. Once a contact has been assigned to the parental moniker, every time you ask for pops moving forward, you’ll be backed up by simple, fuss-free calling.

17. SWIPE RIGHT TO RETREAT
For iPhone-owning Android converts, living without a dedicated back button can be a difficult adjustment to make. While the iPhone might not have an ever-present command to put things in reverse, there is a simple way to head in the wrong direction. Within a number of apps – from Safari to Mail, via Messages – swiping from left to right on the screen will send you back to the previous page or menu. Who needs a dedicated button when you’ve got a more elegant solution?


18. HARD-RESET WHEN IT CRASHES
You may not have realised that Home button of the iPhone 7 isn’t really a button. That’s right, it’s a fraud. Haptic feedback gives the impression of a depression, but none actually occurs, making it totally useless for a hard-reset when your phone crashes. Instead, hold down the power button and the volume down button at the same time. Your phone should reset and spring back into life.


19. CUSTOMIZE THE FEEL OF YOUR HOME BUTTON
Speaking of haptic feedback on the iPhone 7 Home button, it’s also possible to customise the vibration via the iPhone’s settings. Just go to Settings > General > Home button and you can select the level of feedback that feels right to you.


20. CREATE CUSTOM REPLIES FOR MISSED CALLS
It happens all the time: someone calls and you can’t answer. iOS comes with a few stock text responses which can be sent with a single tap, but it’s actually possible to create your own. Go to Settings > Phone > Respond With Text to create your own message.

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10 Tips Every iPhone 7 Owner Should Know

Ladies,

These Tips make owning an iPhone 7 easy to operate and fun! This is an article I found on CNET and wanted to share!

LOCK SCREEN LIMITS

Your iPhone can show a lot of information on the lock screen, which is convenient for quickly glancing at reminders, messages and more. Should you want to restrict what information can be accessed from your iPhone without your passcode, go to Settings > Touch ID & Passcode and disable whichever items you don’t want showing up on your lock screen.

REST OR PRESS?

With Slide to Unlock a thing of the past, you now press the home button to unlock your iPhone. If you’d rather just rest your finger on the home button, go to Settings > General > Accessibility > Home Button and toggle on the switch for Rest Finger to Open.

CHOOSE YOUR CLICK

If you back up a level from the previous tip, you can adjust the strength of the buzzing haptic feedback you receive when you press the home button. Go to Settings > General > Home Button and you can choose your click, from a slight (1) to heavy (3).

HIDDEN CONTROL CENTER PANEL

You know how you can swipe up from the bottom edge of your iPhone to call up the Control Center? It lets you adjust Wi-Fi and Bluetooth settings, turn on the flashlight and a bunch of other settings and features. But did you know that you can swipe to the left when viewing the Control Center? That lets you access its second panel of playback controls for music or podcasts.

SEND MESSAGES WITH EFFECT

The Messages app received a substantial overhaul with iOS 10. You can now add stickers and GIFs as well as message effects. There are four bubble effects — Slam, Loud, Gentle and Invisible Ink — and five screen effects — Balloons, Confetti, Lasers, Fireworks and Shooting Star — and they are somewhat hidden. To access them, type your message into the text field as you normally would but instead of tapping the blue up arrow button to send your message, tap-and-hold the up arrow button to send your entered text with one of the nine effects.

PRESERVE CAMERA SETTING

By default, the Camera app opens to the standard Photo mode (as opposed to Video, Square or any of the other camera modes). If you would rather it remember what mode you last used and open to that instead, you can do just that with the iOS 10.2 update. Go to Settings > Photos & Camera > Preserve Settings and toggle on Camera Mode. There are also toggles for preserving photo filters and Live Photos.

LOCK CAMERA (7 PLUS ONLY)

For iPhone 7 Plus owners, you have the luxury of shooting photos and videos with one of two rear-facing cameras. Switching between the two cameras, however, can create some flicker when recording video. To prevent such flickering, you can lock down whichever camera you want to shoot a video. Head to Settings > Photos & Camera > Record Video and toggle on Lock Camera Lens.

ON THE NIGHT SHIFT

Turn the cool, blue colors that may make it harder for you to fall asleep at night into warmer hues in the evening. Go to Settings > Display & Brightness > Night Shift and schedule this setting for a specific block of time or manually enable it until the next day.

BEDTIME ALARM

Flicking up on my iPhone, tapping the Timer button from Control Center, tapping the Alarm button and then tapping to turn on my alarm is a familiar sequence, but that’s no longer the last thing I do at night before going to bed. Apple has added a new Bedtime button to the Clock app. It lets you set a time to wake up and the number of hours of sleep you’d like to get each night.

 

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There is a better way to search your Android phone

Ladies,

I came across this article and thought I’d share with the many Android users out there. While, I’m not as versed in the Android world, I do want Android User’s to know the Blonde Byte loves them too…

This article was written by Rick Broida of CNet.

“Anything iOS can do, Android can do better, right? Or maybe it’s the other way around? Bottom line: If there’s a particular feature built into one platform, chances are good you can emulate it on the other.

Take Spotlight search, one of my favorite iOS capabilities. Tap a few letters and you can quickly locate an app, contact or just about anything else on the web or your device. It can be a big time-saver, especially when the alternative is manually sifting through the data yourself.

FastKey Launcher isn’t the first app designed to add Spotlight-style search capabilities to Android, but it’s a new one that’s free, fast and worth a look. If you’ve ever used any kind of keyboard-powered dynamic search, you’ll feel right at home with FastKey. The app adds an omnipresent keyboard to your home screen. Just start typing and presto: It immediately presents matching apps and contacts. Usually you can drill down to what you’re looking for with just a letter or three.

 

Because it’s embedded and not a pop-up, the keyboard does take space away from app icons and widgets. But I suspect you’ll find yourself needing (or wanting) far fewer of the former, because it’s so much quicker and easier to locate apps this way — especially if you’ve never really taken the time to organize them.
Take Twitter, for example: You probably won’t have to type more than “T” for the app to become visible, and certainly no more than “Tw.” Once you get accustomed to searching this way, you won’t go back.

FastKey lacks a number row, a problem only if you have apps with numeric names (2048, anyone?), and obviously it doesn’t extend beyond apps and contacts the way Spotlight does. Of course, most Android users rely on Google for searching beyond the phone, so that’s not much of an issue.

If there’s one other wish I had for FastKey, it would be for a widget option — a way to add it to an existing launcher such as Google Now without fully replacing it.
Even so, I’m a big believer in keyboard-driven search, and this gets the job done really nicely. “

Download FastKey Launcher

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Got a new iPhone 7 for Christmas? These are the Apps I recommend you check out.

Spark – Free
I have a habit of downloading and trying new Mail Apps quite regularly. I’m always on the lookout for an App to help tame the daily insanity that is my Inbox. This is the one that has impressed me the most.
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Macworld Says:

“Spark works with all of your favorite Apple, Google, Microsoft, and Yahoo email accounts, along with plenty of others supporting IMAP. There’s also built-in support for the most popular “read later” services, Evernote, OneNote, and cloud storage providers, which can be used to send file attachments or save them directly from messages.

The app features a unified inbox which can be viewed in two ways: Traditional mode, where inbound messages are displayed in threaded conversations similar to Apple Mail; and what Readdle calls a Smart Inbox that automatically organizes email into personal, notification, and newsletter categories to help focus on what’s important.”

Download Spark

ProCam 4 –  $4.99

I absolutely LOVE this App!! If your a shutterbug that loves digital photography, this App is worth every penny.
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Slashgear says:

 

“While iOS’ own camera app is OK for amateurs and instant captures, photography nuts will prefer one that takes them as close to DSLRs as possible. In that realm, ProCam 4 remains the crowd favorite.The app features all the knobs and buttons you can have in a digital camera and then some, with that “some” referring to the ability to shoot in RAW. And for iPhone 7 Plus owners, the app can also do 3D photos!”

 

Download Pro Cam

Launch Center Pro – $2.99

If you’re busy and love timesaving short cuts, this is the App for you.
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Slashgear says:

“iOS has had notification widgets since version 8, but iOS 10 really puts the spotlight on them, especially in how they’re now available right from the lock screen. With that new focus, it’s time to give widgets some serious thought.

Among power users, Launch Center Pro is thrown around the most. It practically gives you a mini launcher right on your notification panel. Paired with even more powerful apps like Pythonista, you can almost launch anything from anywhere. But don’t worry, Launch Center still respects security settings, so you won’t suddenly find your iPhone unlocking just because you launched an app from the lock screen.”

Download Launch Center Pro

 

Evernote: Free – Paid Upgrades
Evernote is my all time Favorite note taking app. I’ve used it from the beginning and have evolved into a Power User and Premium Evernote subscriber. The beauty of this app is that it adapts to your level of use.
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PC Mag Says:
“Evernote’s iPhone app continues to be a wonderful productivity tool. It’s one of those rare iPhone apps that critics have loved since the beginning.In terms of functionality, however, Evernote is the best note-taking and syncing service, which is the reason it remains PCMag’s Editors’ Choice. You can bend it to your will and use it for practically anything, from recording and sharing meetings, to searching for text inside PDFs, to keeping a daily diary.”
Download Evernote
Pixelmator – $4.99 
Who needs Photoshop? Not this girl with this great Photoshop Substitute that’s a third of the price.
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Stuff.tv Says:

“If your image-editing needs are more creative in nature than fine-tuning photos, Pixelmator’s where it’s at. Essentially a miniature Photoshop squeezed into your iPhone, this powerful, impressive app provides tools for working up complex multi-layered imagery comprising photography, digital paint and text.

Like desktop equivalents, Pixelmator is happiest when it can tap into plenty of power – which makes the new iPhones ideal partners (and especially iPhone 7 Plus with its extra GB of RAM).”

Download Pixelmator
Square Cash – Free
Money sharing Apps very fashionable right now and incredibly convenient. The most popular being, Venmo, PayPal, and Square Cash. Do you homework and find the one that works best for you, but I love everything about Square Cash.
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Life hacker Says:
“If you want the simplest money transferring option for friends and family, or to easily transfer money anonymously, go with Square Cash.”
Download Square Cash
1Password – Free
Hands down, the best Password Manager out there.
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MacWorld Says:
“If you’re looking for a secure way to store your passwords and credit card details that isn’t stored on someone else’s servers, but either on your own device or on your own Dropbox account, use 1Password. With Touch ID, it’s really easy to go into the app, and get the passwords.”
Download 1Password 
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