News from MicroWorks Consulting, Inc.

MicroWorks July 2011 Newsletter

BJ Levitt

Please feel free to forward this email to anyone who might appreciate it.

As a client of MicroWorks you have an easy and direct way to get answers to all your technology questions.

Just email me at bj@microworksfl.com

and I'll respond as soon as possible. MicroWorks doesn't charge clients for email support.

I look forward to your questions and comments.

BJ Levitt

MicroWorks Consulting

So many Apps.

So little time.

We'll recommend some especially useful or entertaining Apps in this space each month. Try them and let us know what you think -- or, better yet, let us know what your favorites are.

(Click on App name for a quick link.)

Bing for iPad. (free)

This is my Dad's favorite portal onto the Internet. And I understand why. It's beautifully constructed, easy to scan and navigate, and always up-to-the-minute. When Bing was first introduced as Microsoft's search engine, pundits liked to say it stood for "But Its Not Google." With this App, Bing has finally found its own niche. The Bing App for the iPhone is also good (and free) but not as impressive in the smaller format.

FingerpaintApp

Fingerpaint Lite 2.0 (free)

While this is available for both phone and iPad, you really need the larger format. It's great for creating a quick birthday card or other personal note that is sure to get a pleasantly-surprised response. Easy to create and email. Also a guaranteed winner for entertaining children or grandchildren. (The iPad is as close to childproof as an electronic devise can be!)

tap tap tap Camera+ (1.99)

Upgrade your iPhone camera instantly and enjoy easy-to-use photoshop-like features to crop, edit and share your snapshots. Very user-friendly, and with just a little practice you'll look like a pro!

Words With Friends. (2.99)

This has become the preferred Scrabble-like App. The board and scoring are slightly different, but the game is essentially the same. Except there's no penalty for trying a non-existent word! My dad, the Scrabble purist and haiku master, puts it this way:

Scrabble1

WordsWithFriends.Scrabble
for the iGeneration.
You can look it up.

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If you have questions or comments, email, call or text me at:

bj@microworksfl.com

561-880-5566

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Welcome to the iGeneration.
No age limits.

Those of you with long memories may recall the "monthly" newsletter we began in January 2008. It lasted until June. The truth is I got so busy working with many of you that I didn't make time to keep the newsletter current.

The tech world moves at warp speed. In the three years since that last newsletter, smartphones have become standard, laptops are lighter and much more powerful (all but replacing desktops), and tablets (like the iPad on which this is being typed via a wireless keyboard) promise easy access to everything from bestsellers and newspapers to email and social networks to streaming Netflix and anything you can App, Google or Bing.

So while we're busier than ever now, we've staffed up and made a commitment to stay in touch and update you on both the practical and the fun aspects of everything important that's happening in our field.

You can't spell technology without t-o-y.

I think all of us remember growing up with science-fiction dreams. And whether they were fueled by Flash Gordon and Dick Tracy or by Star Trek and Star Wars, the hand-held personal communicator was a touchstone we all envied.

That smart phone in your pocket or purse surpasses anything we could have wished for. Not only can you talk to anyone, anytime, anywhere -- but you can text and email photos, video, and links to just about anything. The newest phones and tablets let you Skype or FaceTime making the futuristic video phone a commonplace reality. Essentially, the computer you hold in your hand outperforms all but the supercomputers of just a decade ago.

Here are some useful tips to get more pleasure and less aggravation from your TechTools and TechToys:

Batteries: Don't leave home without them!

Lithium-ion batteries provide the energy for most laptops, cell phones, iPods and iPhones. They are generally much lighter and they store more energy than other rechargeable batteries. They also hold their charge better and they have no memory effect which means you do not have to completely discharge them before recharging. (In fact, recent tests show that recharging when your lithium-ion battery is down to about 40% is probably the best choice to maximize battery life.)

That's the good news. The bad news is they start degrading as soon as they leave the factory. They will only last two to three years whether you use them or not. They are extremely sensitive to high temperatures. Leave your phone or iPad in the sun or any hot place (like a parked car) and the battery will degrade much faster. And they are expensive, adding to the cost of your device.

Here's a good rule of thumb: Expect your lithium-ion powered device to lose about a third of its storage capacity every year. In other words, your new iPhone starts out with six hours on a charge (it varies with usage) -- after a year you should expect only about four hours. After two years only about 2.5 hours. By the third year, it's time to upgrade to a new phone. Your iPad starts out with an amazing nine hours, After a year, you'll still get a very good six hours. After two years, though, you'll be down to four hours and it will probably be time to upgrade.

Link here for more useful battery-saving tips from Apple.

Are you power challenged?

Here's a very handy way to increase your iPhone battery life if you are too often losing power:

mophieFront2

The juice pak air from mophie is a well-designed iPhone case that adds an external rechargeable battery to effectively double your phone's time between charges. It's been named an International CES Innovations 2011 Design and Engineering Award winner and I've been using it for a couple of months now. It does add some weight and size to your phone, so I only use it when I'm traveling or expect recharging to be inconvenient, but it works great and could be especially helpful if you're looking to extend the life of your older iPhone 3. You can shop it on Amazon and expect to pay about $30 for an iPhone 3 model or $60 for iPhone 4.

We give this product 4 BJ Stars **** for being useful, well-designed, user friendly, and fairly priced!

Link here for the mophie website.

Mom's Cubicle

The :20 race to answer the phone.

My Mom's been a desktop publisher practically since the dawn of the personal computer age. She's slow to adopt the newest bright and shiny technical innovations, but once she becomes a user, she learns everything there is to know about a product and its applications. Last month, I finally convinced her to upgrade her "dumb" cell phone to an iPhone 4 and she loves almost everything about it. The one thing she didn't like was that her ringtone lasted just 20 seconds before forwarding to voicemail. Too often she got to the phone just after it stopped ringing. Telephone tag is not her favorite activity so she decided to extend the ring time -- and that's when the iFun began! I'll let her explain.

I thought this would be easy so I called customer service and got a "genius."

"How do I extend the time for my ringtone," I asked.

"Why would you want to do that?"

"So I have more time to find and answer my phone. I'm sure you get this question often."

"Actually, no. I'll have to google that."

"Really? Well I've already done that and I'll give you the site, but it seemed pretty complicated and I was hoping you could give me a shortcut."

"I don't think you can change the timing. Our research shows that twenty seconds is just right."

"Not for me. I guess I'm slow. I'll just follow the online directions."

"It won't work. Twenty seconds is perfect. Some people want it shorter but we've determined twenty seconds is best."

Where do they find these geniuses? Anyway, here's how to change the timing.

Note: These instructions are for the AT&T iPhone.

1. On your phone keypad: type the * key, then # key, the number 61, then # key.

2. Press "Call." You should then see the following:

Setting Interrogation Succeeded

Voice Call Forwarding

When Unanswered

Forwards to +1xxxxxxxxxx Enabled

3. Write this actual +1... number down. It's a unique, one-time use 10-digit number. You will need it in the next step.
After writing down the number, press "Dismiss."

4. Now dial *61*+1your number*11*30# (hint: to get a + on your iPhone keypad, hold down the 0 for a few seconds until it changes to a +)

5. Press "Call" and if you've entered everything correctly, you'll see the following:

Setting Activation Succeeded

Your ringtone will now last for a full 30 seconds. If you have any difficulty following this, you can always contact BJ -- our resident genius -- and he will be glad to help!