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Posts filed under iPhone
Identify a Lost Apple AirTag
When Apple launched their AirTag in the Spring of 2021, many people weren’t sure what to think of the small, battery-powered tracking device. It didn’t take long before we started to see the value in its power and what potential it had.
Fast forward to now, and they are everywhere! As of right now, I have 7 AirTags myself (laptop bag, wallet, keys… even our cat has an AirTag-friendly collar) and I see them everywhere. I have one friend that ships quite a bit of high-tech equipment and he includes an AirTag in every single shipment to give him real-time location information (which you can’t get from FedEx, UPS, USPS, etc). Smart, actually.
Animoji Performs "Bohemian Rhapsody"
The new iPhone X packs a serious punch when it comes to technology!! And with all great technology comes fun, right? If you can't have fun with tech, then you're doing something wrong (is it ok if I coin that phrase?).
When Apple introduced Animoji (animated emoji) on Stage at WWDC earlier this year, I immediately knew that I had to use this technology to create a music video for Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody". That song screams for Anomoji to perform in their place, right?
Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you "Bohemian Rhapsody", performed by Animoji!
How did I make it? It required a little bit of creativity, Apple's new iPhone X and Final Cut Pro.
Getting Creative with "Do Not Disturb While Driving"
When Apple came out with iOS 11, I was so excited for the “Do Not Disturb While Driving” feature. I was hoping this would help me never be distracted by my phone while on the road again! Unfortunately, I quickly realized that my phone acts as my GPS. I need my Maps App (whether you use Waze, Google Maps, or Apple Maps), to be active on my phone! And that does not happen when “Do Not Disturb While Driving” is enabled.
So, if you prefer not to use this feature while driving, what else can you use it for? We will discuss exactly that in this post.
The Importance of Staying Current with Software
My father, a practicing pediatrician, constantly advises patients to eat healthier foods. In response, they complain of how expensive eating healthy is. My father always replies, “Think how expensive your doctor and hospital bills will be if you don’t take care of your body. Plus, you will feel a lot better!”
In much the same way, staying current on our software ensures the best, fastest working systems possible. Effective technology allows businesses to increase profitability and everyday users to simplify their lives. As we keep our software up-to-date, we will need to consider (1) why software updates are vitally important, (2) how often we should update our devices, and (3) how to update our systems.
My Top 5 Favorite Features of iOS 11
At precisely 10 AM in Cupertino, CA, iOS 11 became available for iPhone and iPad. As a wannabe-technical-nerd, I wanted to be one of the first to download it. By the time dinner came around, I installed the update, tested many features, and was ready to tell my wife about all the awesome updates. Here are 5 of my favorites.
iOS 11 is NOW AVAILABLE!
Starting today, iPhone and iPad customers around the world will be able to update their devices to iOS 11, a major update to the world’s most advanced mobile operating system and the biggest software release ever for iPad. iOS 11 brings augmented reality to hundreds of millions of iOS devices and new professional capabilities improve images in Photos and Camera. Siri is more natural and useful and a redesigned App Store makes it easier to discover apps and games.
10 Tips for Safer Online Computing
Technology is wonderfully amazing!! Sit back and think about it for just 10 seconds... can you imagine working, playing and relaxing without your laptop, iPhone, iPad, etc? When is the last time you checked your email, Instagrammed (that's a verb, right?) or surfed the web? You're reading this so I know the answer already. We're all connected all the time.
Being connected has it's obvious benefits, but it also introduces a significant amount of risk. Malware, spyware, viruses, hackers... these are all things that can ruin an otherwise great day. But they don't have to, if we're doing the right things! To help keep you safe, I created a list of 10 simple things that everyone can (and should) be doing. There is no rocket science involved here. Mostly common sense infused with many years of my own experiences.
Using Custom Notification for VIPs iOS
This post comes from a recent reader question: "When I receive an email from a specific person, I want to be notified in a way that it looks and sounds different than any other email. How do I do this?!"
With phone calls and text messages, we can edit a contact entry in iOS so that when that person calls or texts, the ringtone or sound differs from that of everyone else. This is a great feature because it allows you to determine who is texting or calling without looking at your phone. Wouldn't it be great if we could apply that same principal to incoming email? While we can't set a specific sound for each individual when we receive email from them, we can use a relatively new feature in iOS called VIP to distinguish VIPs from everyone else. As long as that VIP list is short, it will do exactly what you're looking for. Here's how it works.
Apple's WWDC 2016 Keynote Event
Apple kicked off their annual WWDC event with their greatly-anticipated keynote, held in the historic Bill Graham Civic Auditorium in San Francisco, CA (the remainder of the conference will be held at the Moscone Conference Center in downtown San Francisco).
Markup Attachments Right On Your iPhone or iPad
One of the coolest, most powerful (and sadly the least used) new features in iOS 9 is the Markup tool in Mail. This feature allows you to quickly add signatures, lines, arrows, magnification circles and text boxes to any PDF or image file with the tap of a button. Once the changes are made, another tap allows you to easily send that file via the Mail app.
This is a great tool for signing contracts, marking up documents, annotating images and more. So why aren't more people using it? Quite frankly, because I think that most people don't know that it exists! So that's why I wrote this post. To educate and encourage you to use this tool. So let's dive in!
Quickly and Easily Recover Deleted Notes
The built-in Notes app in OS X and iOS is a great way to gather and organize your thoughts. It can be especially powerful when used in conjunction with the Apple Pencil on an iPad Pro (even without the Apple Pencil, the drawing features are very useful).
If you're like me, you know it's a good idea to tidy up once in a while by deleting notes that you know yo won't need anymore (quick drawings, reminders to yourself, etc). A quick swipe on the note and tap on "Delete" is all it takes to delete notes. Because it's so easy to delete, however, you may find yourself deleting notes that you didn't want to delete. There's a quick and easy way to recover those deleted notes.
Reader Question: Using your iPhone as a Speedometer
I receive questions from readers like you all the time, and I love it! The question I received that prompted this post was one that I hadn't really been asked before, so it was worth a post. The question is this: "I am an avid cyclist and am looking for an easy way to track my speed and distance using my iPhone, which is already attached to my handlebars for music and texting. Do you have any recommendations?"
My first thought was, why not use a Garmin or other devices that are specifically designed for sports like cycling? But if you already have you're iPhone mounded to your handlebars for music and texting, I have just the app for you!
Create a Screencast of Your iPhone or iPad
I love teaching people, including showing off new tricks and ways to improve their efficiency on their iPhone. There is a huge amount of power contained within these devices, and quick training sessions can help to unleash that power for the end-user. The problem is that it can be challenging to do this when you are remote. You can only go so far with, "Tell me what you see on your phone now".
In today's tech tip, I am going to show you an easy way to create a video screencast of your iPhone. Creating screencasts is a great way to really convey what it is you are trying to show off. Just like a screen recording of your laptop, a screencast of your iPhone is a video recording of exactly what you see on your iPhone's screen. This is super handy for training opportunities and helpful when showing off your favorite apps. Powerful? Oh yeah!
How to Create Your Own TrueType Font in Minutes
Having your own personalized font is more than just cool or fun, it can be useful. Many years ago, I had a professional typeface designer create my own font for me, and I called it "Kevin's Hand". I still use it all the time for filling out forms, writing personalized notes and more. While super-useful to have, to cost a pretty penny to create (around $400, if I remember correctly).
What would you say if I told you that you can create your own custom font in a matter of minutes using your iPad, and that it would cost you less than $10? I know, right?! And what if I told you that this font could be used on your iPhone, iPad and even your Mac? It's all true. Read more to find out how.
