May 2012 eNewsletter http://ow.ly/1jFqL6

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May 2012 eNewsletter

News From High Tech House Calls

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iPad/Tablets Must Have Accessories Part II http://ow.ly/1iVd9K

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iPad/Tablets Must Have Accessories Part II

In one of my last blogs concerning iPads and Tablets,  I suggested cleaning supplies and styluses to buy. Here are some other accessories that you might find helpful: 

If you are a fan of playing audio books or music on your iPad or Tablet, there is a simple way of playing the sound through your car's stereo  speakers.

1. If your car stereo has an AUX port, the solution is to buy an AUX cable. Connect the AUX cable from the iPad/Tablet headphone jack to the car stereo AUX port. Select AUX from your car stereo and you're done. http://www.kensington.com/kensington/us/us/p/1485/K39202US/aux-audio-cable.aspx
2. If your car stereo does not have an AUX port, but has a cassette deck, you can buy an adapter that looks like a cassette tape with an AUX cable attached to it. Insert the cassette tape adapter in the cassette desk and the AUX cable to the headphone jack of the iPad/Tablet. Select play on your car stereo and you're done. http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=&sku=631469&Q=&is=REG&A=details
3. If you don't have a cassette deck or an AUX port, you still have an option. An FM transmitter will allow you to "play" your iPad/Tablet over an unused radio station frequency. Here is an example of an FM Transmitter: http://www.griffintechnology.com/ipod/in-car

Sync cables

A sync cable allows you to connect your iPad/Tablet to your computer. This cable allows you to share documents and photos between your computer and your iPad/Tablet. You can never have enough sync cables. It seems that I am either misplacing mine or they are being "borrowed" by my children. Apple accessories are expensive, so using non-Apple sync cables can be an easy alternative.

At present, if you have a Kindle Fire or Nook Tablet, you must buy sync cables from Amazon and Barnes and Noble directly because there are no alternatives available.

Carl Thorne

Expert Computer Consulting 

voice: 404.229.0839 email: carlthorne@hthcatlanta.com
web: hthcatlanta.com blog: hthcatlanta.blogspot.com

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iCloud Revisted

iCloud was launched October 4, 2011. How is iCloud doing for you?

Here is a list of some of the bumps in the road:

1. It is not supported with the Microsoft Win XP Operating System. Win XP is an old, unsupported, operating system, but it is stable and reliable. If you want your laptop or workstation to be part of  iCloud, you will need to change to Windows 7. Remember, you cannot upgrade from Win XP to Windows 7 directly. You will need to do a clean installation meaning all your applications that you were using for Win XP will need to be reloaded for Windows 7. Run the Windows 7 Advisor to see if your current hardware can support Windows 7. http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/downloads/upgrade-advisor If not, you need to buy a new computer. Start searching for your installation media now and remember to have a good backup of all your users data (documents, pictures and emails).
2. If your Apple computer is not running Lion (10.7), you will need to upgrade. You must be running Snow Leopard (10.6) to upgrade to Lion. If you are not running Snow Leopard. So you will need to upgrade to it first. Snow Leopard software DVDs were withdrawn from retail outlets by Apple. You will need to buy a Snow Leopard software DVD from Apple's online store.
3. Many of my clients were not able to upgrade to Lion because Intuit's Quicken for Mac 2007 release did not work on Lion. Buy Intuit's, released last month, Quicken for Mac Essentials instead, which does run on Lion. http://quicken.intuit.com/personal-finance-software/mac-personal-financial-software.jsp
4. Running Microsoft Office for Mac 2004? It is incompatible with Lion. You will need to purchase Microsoft Office for Mac 2011.
5. Lion also requires that your hardware be running an Intel Core 2 Duo, Core i3, Core i5, Core i7, or Xeon processor. Find out if your current Mac has one of these processors by clicking the Apple icon at the top left of your screen, then choosing About This Mac. If you're not running any of these processors and you want to run Lion, you will need to buy newer hardware running one of the above mentioned Intel processors.
6. Do you have multiple Apple computers you use to access email? Here is a newly discovered scenario. You have a G4 Laptop and a brand new Macbook Pro. The G4 is running the Leopard release of the Apple Operating System. The G4 cannot be upgraded to Snow Leopard or Lion because it does not have an Intel CPU chip. You migrate from MobileMe to iCloud successfully on your Macbook Pro. Email works on the Pro and your iPhone, but not on your G4. If your G4 was able to run Snow Leopard, you could change the email profile in Mac Mail or Outlook to get it to work without being part of iCloud, but don't meet the requirements for the upgrade. Therefore, your .MAC and .ME email not longer works on your G4. One way around this is to forward your iCloud email to your Gmail account and use Gmail on your G4 laptop. This is a less than desirable solution, but may be the only one available if you want to use iCloud and still use your G4 laptop.
7. If you use either Entourage or Outlook on your Apple computer, you will find that neither of these applications works with iCloud directly. Syncing Entourage/Outlook is complex and requires additional third party software.
8. If you iPhone or iPad is not running at least iOS 5.0, you cannot support iCloud on your iPhone/iPad. iOS 5.0 is available as an upgrade when you sync with iTunes.
9. If you share an Apple ID that you use to buy media from iTunes, this may cause problems when using iCloud. iCloud uses the Apple ID to identify devices that are part of that iCloud. iCloud will merge all contacts and all calendar events for all devices that are using the same iCloud ID. If you were keeping separate contacts and calendar events and want to continue keeping them separate, you will need to create another iTunes ID. Expect complications with purchases made with the old ID on devices using the new ID.

Do you need to be using iCloud?

1. Do you currently have a way of syncing your contacts and calendar events across all your devices? If you are happy with this solution, why change to iCloud?
2. The only email address iCloud will sync is a new iCloud email address. If you were using a .MAC or .ME email address through MobileMe, please be aware that MobileMe is being discontinued June 30, 2012. You  must change to iCloud to continue using your .MAC or .ME email address.

Carl Thorne

Expert Computer Consulting 

voice: 404.229.0839 email: carlthorne@hthcatlanta.com
web: hthcatlanta.com blog: hthcatlanta.blogspot.com

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When Computer's on the Frtiz, Know When to Quit by Bill Husted/AJC

When Computer is on the Fritz

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Fix Up Computer, But Don't Get in Fix by Bill Husted/AJC

Fix Up Computer

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Tired of Reading the Same Email Message Over and Over Again?

You are one connected person. You have access to email on your laptop, desktop, iPhone and iPad. Unfortunately, you are "seeing" the same emails over and over again on all these devices. How do you "fix" this?

There are two major ways of accessing email:

• IMAP - email that is deleted from one device, is not downloaded to the other devices.
• POP3 - all email is downloaded to all devices regardless of being deleted on one device or another.
  

POP3 is the default protocol for email. The majority of email providers support POP3. Your email probably has been set up this way on your various email devices and is why you keep seeing the same email over and over again.

IMAP is not supported by all email providers, nor on all email devices and email programs. You need to do your homework and search your email providers website to see if the IMAP settings for your email program (Outlook, Apple Mail, etc.) or email device, (iPhone, iPad, etc.) are supported.

Here is a list of common email providers and whether they support IMAP or not:
BellSouth IMAP is not well documented, but I have implemented IMAP
Gmail IMAP supported and documented on Gmail website
ATT IMAP supported and documented on ATT website
Comcast IMAP support is not documented
AOL IMAP supported and documented on AOL webiste

Downsides to IMAP:

• Synchronizing IMAP folders using Outlook can be slow. You may need to shutdown and restart Outlook occasionally to get this to work.
• Outlook will not show one integrated view of all your email accounts. Each IMAP account will have a separate inbox and user created folders. Your POP3 email accounts will share one IBOX and the same set of user created folders. This can make finding an email difficult if you are not consistant on how you file emails.
• Make a mistake and delete a message that you want, that message is gone and cannot be retrieved. The POP3 protocol is much more forgiving. If you delete a message and empty your wastebasket, that message is probably available via webmail.
• IMAP may not be supported on all your email devices. Unless all your email devices support IMAP, it may not make sense to implement it.

Carl Thorne

Expert Computer Consulting 

voice: 404.229.0839 email: carlthorne@hthcatlanta.com
web: hthcatlanta.com blog: hthcatlanta.blogspot.com

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iPhone, iPad or Mac Book Stolen? Now what?

We hope this never happens to you, but preparing for this event beforehand will make things a little bit easier after the robbery.


Recovery of the device:

Record all the serial numbers for your devices and keep them in a safe place. If you devices are recovered by the police, they can identify them as belonging to you.

Deny access to your personal data:

Find Me
Is the "Find Me" function set up and turned on for your device? A while back, there was controversy concerning your privacy because Apple knew where you were by knowing where your device was. Many people saw this as an invasion of privacy and turned the function off. If you want to find your missing device, simply turn the function back on. Remotely, you can lock the device, wipe the device or send a message to be displayed on the device.

It is not hard to turn this feature off. Once the theft has occurred, you need to act fast while you still have remote control over your device.

Passwords to Access Device
Did you create a passcode for your iPad or iPhone?  Do the user accounts on your Mac Book require a password to access them?

The only way to use an iPad or iPhone without knowing the passcode is to reset the device to the factory settings. This process will wipe out your personal data.

If you have an installation disk for your MacBook, you can reset the password for a user account. Once the password is reset, access to your personal data is not restricted. Unless your data is encrypted, anyone who has access to your computer can read your data. The Mac Operating System has built into it, the means to encrypt data. Details on encrypting data will be covered in a future blog.

Did you create a document called passwords that contains all the username and passwords to your online accounts. The thief now has access to that list. I hope you backed up the password document so that you can access a copy. As fast as you can, access all your online accounts and change the passwords.

Summary

1. Record serial numbers of all your devices and store them in a safe place.
2. Turn on "Find Me" for all your devices.
3. Create and use a "Passcode" for your iPad and iPhone.
4. Create passwords for all user accounts on your Mac Book.
5. Encrypt sensitive personal data on your Mac Book.
6. Store your online access passwords in more than one place so that you can change those passwords quickly if your accounts have been compromised.

Carl Thorne

Expert Computer Consulting 

voice: 404.229.0839 email: carlthorne@hthcatlanta.com
web: hthcatlanta.com blog: hthcatlanta.blogspot.com

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Survival Tips for College Kids Computers

Here are some time tested suggestions on getting your college student's computer to survive the school year.

• Buy a Apple Mac laptop instead of a Windows laptop. Mac's currently are not a target for viruses and the Mac Operating System is more stable and reliable than Windows 7. 
• Buy a Mac Book Pro instead of a Mac Book. The case is aluminum and protects the display better. As laptop computers get lighter in weight and screens get larger and thinner, it is more likely that the lid of the laptop will flex causing the screen to shatter. The aluminum case of the Mac Book Pro is less likely to flex than the Mac Book.
• If you are using a Windows based computer, buy Norton Antivirus. This is one of the best preventative measures against virus infection.
• Buy an external hard drive. Use the external hard drive to store iTunes and as a backup for pictures and photos that are stored on the built in hard drive of the laptop. iTunes music libraries grow like kudzu and will consume all free space on the built in hard drive. If no free space is available, your laptop will not boot. Move the iTunes library to the external hard drive. Here is a link with instructions: http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1449
• Never stuff a laptop into a book bag. Books packed next to a laptop will cause the screen to flex and shatter. Buy a back pack that is made to protect the laptop with cushioning or simply carry it around separately.
• Backup all your personal files with the external hard drive on a regular basis. Use cloud backup programs like DropBox as another means of backup; two backup methods are better than one.

 
Carl Thorne 
Expert Computer Consulting 

voice: 404.229.0839 email: carlthorne@hthcatlanta.com

web: hthcatlanta.com blog: hthcatlanta.blogspot.com

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Communication With College Students Tips

Here are some truisms regarding how college students communicate:

• They do not leave voicemails. A missed call on your cell phone from a college student indicates they want you to call them back. 
• Nor do they listen to voicemails. Don't bother leaving one. 
• They never answer a phone call from a parent.
• They do not read emails nor do they send them.
• If you are not up to speed on text messaging, you will not be communicating with your college student much. 

Arguing with a college student that the world uses voicemail and email will not move them to use either. This is a problem because your college administration will be using both to signal them that something is wrong and requires their attention. I have not yet devised a way to get your college student to use email and voicemail except after a negative consequence. The day you and your child have a meeting with the dean and the dean asks why your child did not answer the repeated voicemails or emails, may be the day your child starts to check this voicemail and email.

Text messages are very hard to communicate complex subjects, as well as very hard to keep track of. I suggest one text message per topic. Once messages have gone back and forth, get out your day timer and make a reminder to follow up on your college student on the commitment they made to you via text. So far this is the only way I have come up with to ensure that to do's committed to by my college student are done. Withholding money ensures completion of to do's. Text messages on the iPhone can be copied via the cut and paste function. I suggest copying text messages and dropping them into an appointment in your calendar. On the Blackberry Smartphone, the Cortado SMS2 Desktop application software will send your text message to your email. Here is the link for this software: http://www.cortado.com/euen/EN/Solutionsfor/BlackBerry.aspx

In this age of privacy and personal rights, you as the parent have no access to information such as whether the tuition has been paid or if there is an outstanding balance because of a change in the meal plan or parking tickets for parking violations. Your student needs to grant you access to the student's account dashboard for you to see these things. During the parent orientation class you attend, do not leave the campus until access has been granted by your student to the student's account.

Getting your college student to call you when they have a problem is key. They don't want a lecture when they ask how to get their towed car back. Take a deep breath and tell them how to solve the problem without making other comments on how you have never had your car towed.

College is a learning experience for both the student and the parent of the student. Enjoy the ride.

Carl Thorne
Expert Computer Consulting 

voice: 404.229.0839 email: carlthorne@hthcatlanta.com

web: hthcatlanta.com blog: hthcatlanta.blogspot.com

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March 2012 eNewsletter

March 2012 eNewsletter

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To Do's Managed Across All Your Computing Devices

My memory isn't the best. I am always looking for a methodology or tool to help me capture tasks and to make sure they get done. With Windows and Apple Laptops, an iPhone and a Nook Tablet, I was looking for a way to be able to access and maintain a task list across all these platforms.

Wunderlist is the application I have been using the for last month, successfully across all my computing platforms. Click here to go to their website: http://www.6wunderkinder.com/

Adding, changing or deleting a task on one platform automatically adds, changes or deletes the tasks on all the other platforms. The tasks themselves are not created as events on your calendar, but the application does allow you to display all tasks with a particular date.

Carl Thorne

Expert Computer Consulting 

voice: 404.229.0839 email: carlthorne@hthcatlanta.com
web: hthcatlanta.com blog: hthcatlanta.blogspot.com

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Your Summer Vacation at the Beach: Reading ebooks From the Library on Your Kindle

You are the proud owner of an eBook reader such as a Kindle or Nook. Previous vacations at the  beach involved buying paperback books to read that got donated to Good Will after you finished reading them. Now you can download eBooks from your library onto your eBook reader for free. Think of all the money you will save!

Here is the reality check: remember when you tried to check out books for the beach and found out that book was not available at the library or was only available after waiting three months when you were put on the waiting list. You will encounter the same situation with eBooks at your library.

Once you are at the top of the waiting list for an eBook from the library, how do you download the eBook to your eReader? Download the eBook to your computer via some software you need to download and install. Once the eBook is on your computer, connect your eBook Reader via the sync cable and drag the eBook from your computer to your eBook Reader. Here is a link to directions on getting eBooks from the library to your eBook Reader: 
http://beingruth.com/tutorial-library-books-nook-overdrive/

I think the eBook Reader is a great idea, but like anything else, the more you pay for something, the more the item is easier to obtain.

Carl Thorne
Expert Computer Consulting 

voice: 404.229.0839 email: carlthorne@hthcatlanta.com

web: hthcatlanta.com blog: hthcatlanta.blogspot.com

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New: Software Organization Servce

Spring is around the corner. Are you ready for High Tech House Calls to help you with a little spring cleaning?

If you need to reload your computer from scratch, do you have all the software required?

Buying a new or replacement computer? How much of the software you currently own can be used on that new or replacement computer?

How long would it take to go through all the software stuffed in that drawer or box and find the right software for your computer?

Let us organize your computer software for you.  We will identify the current software for your computer and software you can throw away. We will also identify missing software you need to reload your computer.

This service is free to existing clients! 

Carl Thorne
Expert Computer Consulting 

voice: 404.229.0839 email: carlthorne@hthcatlanta.com

web: hthcatlanta.com blog: hthcatlanta.blogspot.com

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February 2012 eNewsletter

February 2012

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Virus Attack or Hard Drive Failing?

Your hard drive is making sounds you have not heard before.

Is the hard drive failing, i.e. crashing or is a virus attacking your computer system? Try the following suggestions to determine which problem you have.

Can you get the task manager to appear on your desktop?*1
If the task manager does not display, usually a virus is stopping the task manager from appearing, which is used to delete processes. A virus does not want to give you a tool to delete it.

Does the high level of disk drive activity diminish when you boot your computer in Safe Mode?*2
Safe Mode runs a minimal version of the operating system in which you cannot print to a printer. The screen will look distorted because the normal video card driver is not loaded. This minimal version usually does not have the resources for the virus to thrive, but one exists in your computer in general.

If the S.M.A.R.T. status is good, your hard drive is probably not failing.*3 
S.M.A.R.T. enabled hard drives can predict if your hard drive is starting to fail. You can load and execute a program like Speed Fan, which can display the S.M.A.R.T. Status of your hard drive.

Running the Error-Checking utility will scan the hard drive and look for and repair hard drive errors.*4
If errors are found, your hard drive is failing. Back up as much as you can before the computer stops booting to the failing hard drive.

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*1 Press Ctrl, Atl and the Delete key at the same time. If your operating system is Win XP, the Task Manager should pop up. If your operating system is Vista or Windows 7, select Task Manager from the menu that is presented.
*2 Restart your computer and start pressing the F8 key. When the menu is displayed, select Safe Mode with the cursor keys.
*3 Click here to download Speed Fan.
*4 If you can get to the Properties Tab of the hard drive by right mouse clicking the hard drive icon and select Tools, you can run the Error-Checking utility. You will need to re-boot your computer to get the Error-Checking utility start running.

Carl Thorne High Tech House Calls
Expert Computer Consulting 

voice: 404.229.0839 email: carlthorne@hthcatlanta.com

web: hthcatlanta.com blog: hthcatlanta.blogspot.com

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Reducing the Cost of Duplicating Car Keys

Have you gotten any duplicate car keys made lately? The days of going to Home Depot and spending $2.00 are over!

Many car keys have a security feature built into them that dramatically increases the cost of obtaining a duplicate. The feature is a computer chip that must be programmed for your engine to start.

It appeared that there was only one way of obtaining duplicate keys with computer chips embedded in them: the car dealership.

1. Take the car to the dealership. 
2. Leave the car. 
3. Come back later in the day when the new key has been cut and programmed. 
4. Pay $150 plus to get your car back along with the duplicate key.

Here is an alternative: Go to West Paces Smith Ace Hardware in Buckhead. Present the key you need duplicated. Ten minutes later, walk out with a new key after paying $75.00.

Note: Not all car makes and models can be duplicated at West Paces Smith Ace Hardware. You might want to call first. They also can program new key fobs to go along with that new car key.


Note to buyers of used cars: When buying a used car from a dealership or individual, pay attention to how many keys you are getting. If you need to buy duplicate keys, you need to take this into account on the price you make for the car. 

Carl Thorne High Tech House Calls

Expert Computer Consulting 

voice: 404.229.0839 email: carlthorne@hthcatlanta.com

web: hthcatlanta.com blog: hthcatlanta.blogspot.com

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Recycling That Old Computer or Cell Phone?

Is there data on your electronic device that you don't want the world to see such as last year's tax return or the credit card information for your iTunes account?

 

There are two methods we offer for you to secure data from old devices:

1. Removal of the hard drive from the computer. You can keep the computer for the "just in case" situation where there is data on the old hard drive that you may still need. High Tech House Calls can read the data off of the hard drive and copy the files you need to your new computer at any time. Your old computer will be recycled without the hard drive that contains your personal data. 
2. Your hard drive can be re-formatted. This erases the contents of the hard drive.  For other devices such as cell phones and tablets, those devices can be reset to a factory default. The device will look the same as when you first bought it home with none of your data on it.

Once you device is secure, High Tech House Calls can recycle your equipment legally or help you sell it through eBay or other buyer/seller websites.

Carl Thorne 
High Tech House Calls 
Expert Computer Consulting 

voice: 404.229.0839 email: carlthorne@hthcatlanta.com web: hthcatlanta.com blog: hthcatlanta.blogspot.com

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Review of the Barnes and Noble Nook Tablet

The Nook Tablet is a great eReader that also has some functionality of a tablet.

If you are expecting a fully functional tablet like an Apple iPad or any Android Operating System Based Tablet like the Samsung Galaxy, think again.

• There are over 300,000 applications available for Android devices on the Android Marketplace. Unfortunately, Barnes and Noble has blocked your access to these applications. Amazon has a library of approximately 20,000 applications. Access to this library is also blocked by Barnes and Noble. You are limited to the Barnes and Noble library of 1,200 applications.
• Since the Android Operating System is owned by Google, a key component of any application is it's interaction with Gmail in order to synchronize data such as contacts, task lists or calendar information. The entire Gmail infrastructure is unavailable for the Nook Tablet. Any application that requires synchronization will need to have an alternative method of sharing data from the tablet to your PC and smart phone. 
• If a book, magazine or newspaper is not offered in the Barnes and Noble format, it is unavailable to you.

If you have a smart phone, you may have the ability to install more than one eReader such as the Kindle eReader from Amazon. By having more than one eReader, there was a good chance that your smart phone could access the book, magazine or newspaper you were interested in. Until recently, there was a way of loading applications from the Amazon Marketplace and the application files themselves from the Internet onto your tablet using a process call side loading. Think of this process as a back door to add applications to your tablet without going through the Barnes and Noble process of installing applications. Unfortunately, a recent upgrade to the firmware of the Nook Tablet closed the back door.

In order to restore the back door, you must initialize your tablet to the factory installed defaults. This erases all your data and all your back door installed applications. You must also root your tablet to stop the automatic installation of the update to your firmware that disabled your back door. Rooting is basically a way of granting you administrative privileges so that you can modify the operating system. Once you have rooted your tablet, you can change a setting so that automatic firmware updates will  not be installed.

If you are looking for a great eReader with some functionality as a tablet, the Barnes and Noble Nook Tablet is worth looking at. If you want a full function tablet, an Apple iPad or Samsung Galaxy may be more to your liking.

Carl Thorne High Tech House Calls Expert Computer Consulting 

voice: 404.229.0839 email: carlthorne@hthcatlanta.com web: hthcatlanta.com blog: hthcatlanta.blogspot.com

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Accessories for the iPad/Android Tablet you just got!

As the proud owner of a Nook Tablet, here is a list of some must have accessories I found useful: 

• Navigation with a Stylus - fingerprints will be a problem with any tablet. Use a stylus instead. Styli are also easier to use on touch keyboards for big fingers. Any iPad or Capacitive Touch Device Stylus will work on any touch screen tablet. I recommend the Targus ( http://preview.tinyurl.com/ctv9wnx)  or the Kensington Stylus ( http://preview.tinyurl.com/bsehaqu ). I don't recommend the Pogo Sketch Stylus (http://tenonedesign.com/sketch.php). This stylus has a different type of tip and did not work as well as the Targus or Kensington ones. Styli come in different lengths. I liked the longer ones. To minimize losing a $14 plus investment, a pocket clip is a must. You can also purchase styli that clip to your headphone jack ( http://preview.tinyurl.com/bmxugts ). Combination styli/pens are also available  (http://preview.tinyurl.com/cr9ktu9).  

• Cleaning products for the screen -  the Targus CleanVu Cleaning Pad is my choice for removing fingerprints and smudges from the tablet screen  ( http://preview.tinyurl.com/7eap7be).  Any microfiber cleaning cloth that can be  used to clean camera lens or sunglasses can also be used. Do not use Windex-like products to clean the screen. They will yellow the screen. A damp, lint-free cloth can also be used to clean the screen.

• Cases - A case is a must have to protect your investment. None of the cases I saw allowed room to store the wall charger. The case I purchased did have room to store a Targus CleanVu Cleaning Pad, plus business and note cards. Expect to pay in the $45.00 range for a case.

Carl Thorne High Tech House Calls Expert Computer Consulting 

voice: 404.229.0839 email: carlthorne@hthcatlanta.com web: hthcatlanta.com blog: hthcatlanta.blogspot.com

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What You See Is Not What You Get

With the holiday season fast approaching, here is some insight into way your computer processed photos do not look the same on your monitor versus when you print them out.

Printing Problems

You may notice a huge difference between the photos on your monitor. It can either be lighter or darker than the ones you preview on your monitor. They may even exhibit different color schemes than what you were expecting.
The problem you are running into is that your monitor is not calibrated with the printer you are using. The printer's black might look gray on your monitor if you have your brightness turned way up. What looks orange on your computer may very well print red because the color settings are off.

Adjust Brightness and Color

The two most common adjustments you can make to your monitor to balance it with your printer output are brightness and color.

Brightness

The most common issue with monitor brightness is that it is turned up too high. This results in prints that are much darker than you expect, and a loss of detail in shadow areas.

Let's say you take a photograph and transfer the photo from memory card to computer. You look at it on the monitor, where you have the brightness set to 100%. Everything looks good to you, so you print it out. Your printer may have a brightness setting of 50%. Your printed photo is twice as dark as what you see on your monitor.

This is an extreme example, but proves a point. When you have your monitor brightness turned up too high, all of your prints turn out dark.

Color

The colors displayed on your monitor can be as far off from your prints as the brightness. Monitors display colors using different color temperatures.

When the color temperature of your monitor does not match the color temperature of your printer, all the colors in your prints will be slightly off. You may have noticed this, you may not. You will certainly see it if you display an image on your monitor and hold up a printed photo next to it.

About the only drawback to changing the color temperature of your monitor is that it may turn anything white (like all word processing documents) into a sickly yellow color. Since this is really hard on the eyes, I recommend setting up two different color profiles for your monitor. Create one for general use and another special one to preview your photos. The ability to create a monitor profile is part of Adobe Photoshop software functionality. On Mac OS, you can use the Apple calibration utility to create a monitor profile.

Test Prints

The easiest way that I know of to get a really close match between your printer and monitor is to make some test prints. Without adjusting your monitor settings, send some photos to your printer. Make sure that you print at a fairly large size (5x7 or larger) — this will make it easier for you to see detail and color in the photo.
Once the print has been made, open the photo on your computer so that it displays on your monitor. Hold the printed photograph right up to the monitor and compare the two images side by side. Now you can adjust your monitor brightness and color settings. Make minute adjustments until the printed photo matches the monitor photo as much as possible.
While it will be hard to get a perfect match, you can get very close. Once you make these adjustments, you should see more consistency between the photos that you see on your monitor and the photos that you print.

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November 2011 eNewsletter

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Tablet Review

Why buy a tablet computer like an iPad? 

Here is an exercise I used to evaluate tablets for my business needs. I hope it helps you to think about what features you have to have and what features that would be nice to have. At the end of the blog, I have included some links to articles that compare and contrast the various tablets that are on the market. 

What would you do with a tablet? 

• Read eBooks. 
• Read Word Documents and PDFs.
• Read/create emails.
• Listen to music.
• Show photos.
• Stay connected to Social Media such as Facebook and Twitter.
• Surf the web.
• Watch NetFlix Movies.
• Maintain your address book.
• Maintain a calendar.
• Maintain a to do list.

What features are you looking for in a tablet?

• Can I buy and replace the battery myself?
• Fast processor. High amount of built-in ram for operating system to use.
• Connect an external keyboard via Blue Tooth or USB port.
• Move data back and forth using a USB Drive or a SD Card.
• Ability to download applications to extend functionality.
• Print to a printer.
• Sync data between tablet and laptop.
• Connect to the Internet via Wi-Fi.
• Large amount of user storage available.
• Middle cost in price.

Notes on tablet use.
eBooks:
You will find that eBooks cost about the same as printed books. There are books that I could read over and over again. I would download those books to my tablet so that if I was stuck somewhere and did not want to do some work, I would re-read those pre-loaded books. Storing thousands of books on my tablet for summer beach reading is not a goal of mine.

There are many formats for eBooks. Are you locked into a particular format because that is the preferred format of your tablet? Many eBook readers will work on different platforms. For example, the Kindle reader which is the pre-loaded eReader on Amazon's tablet. It is also available as an application for other non-Amazon tablets, Windows PCs, Apple PCs, iPhones, Android Smartphones, Blackberrys, etc.

Make sure different eBook readers are available for your tablet.

Read Word Documents and PDF's:
Instead of carrying around a USB drive pre-loaded with reference documents, it would be nice to be able to store and display those reference documents on the tablet. More than likely, an application would need to be purchased to add this functionality to the tablet.

Make sure this application exists for your tablet.

Listen to Music:
There is iTunes and everything else for music formats. iTunes is restricted to Apple products. Non Apple tablets usually have a music player that will play .wav, .mp3 or another music file standard. Music from your iTunes library would need to be converted to the format your tablet supports. Music you paid for from iTunes may require an additional payment of .30 per song for you to be able to convert it to a playable format. There are other iTunes-like music sources that may be supported on your tablet. For example, Amazon's extensive media library of music and movies would be available for Amazon's Kindle Fire tablet.

If you have a large iTunes music library, is playing that music on your tablet very important? Then staying with a platform that supports iTunes may make the most sense. At present, only Apple's iPad supports iTunes.

NetFlix:

NetFlix plays on many tablets. 

Check the NetFlix website for support for the tablets you are considering.

Browsing the Internet:

Make sure the browser speed is acceptable to you. The screen size needs to be big enough for you to see the web page.

If you cannot try the tablet first hand to test the browsing experience, look at reviews of the tablet for feedback.

Productivity Applications:

Go through your list of applications you must have to consider a particular tablet. If the application is not preloaded, can it be downloaded from an application library that supports your tablet?

Notes on tablet features:

Hardware Issues:

• Cheaper tablets will have performance limitations. These limitations may make them useless to use. Reviews should point out performance issues.
• Most tablets will not have a USB port.
• Most tablets will not have a way of increasing the amount of storage capacity. Make sure you understand how much storage you need. If the tablet you are looking at does not hold that much, I would eliminate it from consideration.
• Being able to plug in an SD Card to move files back and forth is very convenient.The SD Card can also back up your tablet.
• Most tablets will not have Blue Tooth capability, meaning that an external keyboard will  not be an option. If the touch pad on the tablet is hard to use or too small for your fingers, that tablet needs to be eliminated from consideration.
• Most tablets will have an application that allows you to print to a printer. Usually that printer will need to be a wireless printer. The printer application for iPad's is very awkward to use and I would expect that all tablets will share this same limitation. Printer manufacturers recognize this niche need and are starting to address it. HP and Canon have some printers with something called AirPrint built in. An AirPrint enabled printer can be printed to easily from an iPad from the tap menu without loading anything on the iPad. There are alternatives to printing directly to a printer from a tablet. You can send the file as an attachment via email to a computer that can print or you can copy the file to an SD Card and read the SD Card on a computer that can print.

Links for reviews of tablets:
http://www.goodhousekeeping.com/product-reviews/electronics-computers/tablet-pc-reviews/best-tablets?click=main_sr#slide-1

http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/nook-tablet-goes-head-to-head-with-kindle-fire/2011/11/07/gIQA9ilYvM_story.html

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Buy Microsoft Office 2010 Bonus Box - Office and Wireless Mobile Mouse

MS Office Bonus Box

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Syncing Your Email

Are your tired of seeing and deleting the same email message on your iPad, iPhone and Apple Computer? Is there a way of deleting the message once and not having it appear on your other email devices? Yes, there is a solution.

There are two basic protocols for email:

• POP3 - most prevalent. Email is downloaded from your server to your computer for you to manage. Unless you use WebMail (access email using a web browser), each device that accesses your email will download all messages that are new to that device. Deleting an email from one device does not mean that email is deleted from all other devices.
• IMAP - more likely to be seen in a corporate environment. Email is stored on the server. All email devices are accessing the same place for emails. Therefore, an email deleted from an email device deletes the email  from the server.

For example, Gmail supports both POP3 and IMAP protocols for email.  If your email account allows you to access it using IMAP, your email will be sync'ed.

If your email account supports only the POP3 protocol, you may be able to make your email account have a limited syncing ability.

• In Outlook, you can specify that email be removed from the server once it is downloaded. Unfortunately, this is not guaranteed 100% that once that email has been downloaded once, it will not be downloaded again because it depends on how long it takes to remove the email from being downloaded again before a different email device attempts to download it. Usually, you want all email devices to have a copy of all emails so you are not limited to where an email you want is stored.
• Outlook also has a setting to delete an email from the server once the deleted items folder is emptied. Again, you have a timing problem where an email may be downloaded to another email device before the deleted items folder is emptied.

Other email programs such as Thunderbird or the Mail Application on Apple computers may not have settings similar to Outlook that allow you to control somewhat what happens to deleted email or downloaded email.

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iCloud, MobileMe and Lion

You patted yourself on the back. Your iPad and iPhone are now running IOS5. You have a new feature called iCloud. Now what?

In order to use iCloud across all your Apple computers and devices, your Apple Laptop or Workstation must be running the Lion (10.7) version of the operating system.

• Can your Apple Computer be upgraded to Lion? Here are the Lion computer requirements: http://www.apple.com/macosx/specs.html

•  If you are not running Snow Leopard (10.6), you cannot download and install Lion. Lion is only available as a download from Apple via the Apple Application Store. The Apple Application Store access is only available on computers running Snow Leopard or higher. 

• What happens if you are running Leopard (10.5) or an older operating system release? You must buy a copy of the Snow Leopard upgrade disk. Unfortunately, that disk is not available to buy from any retail store in the U.S. including Apple Stores. You must go online to the Apple Store and place your order and wait for the disk to arrive via the postal system.

This seems like much time, trouble and expense. Why not stay with MobileMe? MobileMe goes away June 2012.  Here are the details of the transition from MobileMe to iCloud: http://www.apple.com/mobileme/transition.html

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Changing Your Email Address

If you use the email address you created from your High Speed Internet Provider, what happens when you change providers?

• You lose your old email address from your previous provider. Depending on the provider, you may be able to cancel your High Speed Internet Access contract, but keep your old email address for a small monthly fee. Usually, you will be able to receive emails, but not send them.
• You probably tell all your old contacts in your address book about your new email address and tell them when the old one will no longer work. Usually that was accomplished by creating a distribution list of all your contacts you wanted to update and sending them an email with your new email address. In the age of SPAM, this has become problematic. One of my clients had her email refused to send because the 179 contacts in the distribution list looked like an attempt to send SPAM. I left her with the task of making smaller, less SPAM-like distribution lists to send out her announcement with. One thing that might make your announcement easier is setting a vacation message. Once you log onto your High Speed Internet Providers website, somewhere in the preferences for your email account may be the ability to create an auto-reply message that gets sent to everyone who sends you an email during a period of time you specify. We have all seen these messages at one time or another where the message informs you that so and so will be out of the office for a week and will have limited access to email. You can change this feature to broadcast your email address change instead.
• If you are a business or someone who wants their own website, your alternative to ever changing your email address is selecting and buying a domain (the part of your email to the right of the "@" sign). Once you pay a web hosting company to host your domain, you can create email addresses with your new domain as part of the email address. As long as you renew the fee to re-register your domain, your email address will remain the same regardless of how many times you change web hosting companies. This concept is similar to your cell phone number where changing from T-Mobile to Verizon does not mean your cell phone number must change.
• An alternative to spending money on a domain is the Google Gmail account. This is free and the email address you pick is limited by your imagination and whether someone else has already used your idea. Gmail is not dependent on any High Speed Internet Provider.

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Android Cell Phone Is Not For Me

Three disturbing things have happened in the past month that have me wanting to get rid of my Android cell phone:

1. My staff have two different models from HTC that stopped charging. The mini-USB port where the charger fits into the cell phone is defective. Over time it appears that the port shrinks in size enough that any charger you use will no longer fit tight enough for the  cell phone to charge. The fix is to gently apply pressure on the top and bottom of the charger end that goes into the cell phone to slightly flatten the charger end. This tightens the connection between the charger and the cell phone, fixing the problem until the next time you need to re-adjust the charger end. This problem seems to be limited to HTC Android models. The two Blackberry cell phones my staff have that use the same mini-USB port design do not have this problem.
2. A recent upgrade to the Android cell phone operating system took away a feature that I am having trouble living without. Before the upgrade, I was able to have a distinct notification for a new voicemail, email, text, etc... With the upgrade I am limited to a distinct notification for your voicemail and one for everything else. A Google search uncovers procedures for Android users to un-install the last upgrade to recover the lost functionality.
3. Two weeks ago, one of my staff members reported that they could send texts, but not receive them. The Verizon store indicated that there was a problem with the Verizon text messaging system and that model Android cell phone. The remedy was a replacement cell phone. Another Google search uncovers that other Android cell phones have had similar problems receiving texts and the fix was a new cell phone.

When my contract is up and I'm eligible for a cell phone upgrade, I do not think Android will be one of my choices.

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Printing From Your iPad and iPhone

One of the major flaws with the iPad and iPhone is the inability to print from them.

This can be solved in one of two ways:

• The Print Central Application from iTunes Application Library http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/printcentral-for-ipad/id366020849?mt=8
• Printing from a HP or Canon Wireless Printer that has the AirPrint capability built in.

Note: Both of these solutions require a wireless printer that is located on the same wireless network that your iPad or iPhone are connected to.

The Print Central Application can be complex to install. If the application does not work after downloading and installing to your iPad or iPhone, you may have to install software to make your home computer a print server. This software is free of charge as a download from the application provider. The instructions to do this are pretty straight forward. A support phone number is supplied if you have problems. In the six times I have installed this application, I always needed to install the print server software. If you have to use the print server solution, the computer that has the print server software installed on it must be up and running on the wireless network for the print function to work on your iPad or iPhone.

The other problem with the Print Central Application is that it is not integrated into your iPhone or iPad seamlessly. You must set up a parallel email and web browser so that the print function works. In other words you cannot tap print while reading your email using the native iPad or iPhone application. Even with this drawback, this is better than nothing if you want to print from your iPad or iPhone.

Newer Canon and HP Wireless Printers are equipped with AirPrint. No software needs to be installed on your iPad or iPhone. Here are the details from Apple: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4356

If you are not looking to spend approximately $200 for a new wireless printer that has AirPrint, $8.99 looks like a bargain if you have a serviceable wireless printer.

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Cleaning your laptop, Smartphone and Big Screen TV Screen

When cleaning any LCD screen such as a laptop, Smartphone or big screen TV, be careful. Any liquid that gets between the LCD and the trim can damage the display assembly. Always spray the cleaning fluid onto a soft cloth and use the cloth to clean the screen.

You can buy commercial cleaners, but you can make your own for a fraction. A 50/50 mixture of isopropyl alcohol and water is used to clean your screen. Look for a 90% or higher pure isopropyl alcohol at your local drug store.

Don't clean your screen too often. To minimize the time between cleaners, use compressed air or a soft cloth to remove dust. Your screen should not have to be cleaned more than once every 3 to 6 months.

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What is a QR Tag?

Look a the picture on the right side of this article. Does it look vaguely familiar? That picture is an example of a QR Tag that you are seeing more and more often in magazine ads and on real estate agent for sale signs.

Think of it as a bar code for marketers. Using a QR Tag Reader application for your Smartphone, the tag is scanned by taking a picture of it using your camera via the reader application. The application then connects to the Internet to decipher the tag.

The tag at right, when deciphered, contains the name of my company and contact information.What you put into a tag for your business could be a coupon, a link to a webpage with interior pictures of the house you are trying to sell or whatever your imagination comes up with.

For your Blackberry, I recommend QR Code Scanner Pro:  http://appworld.blackberry.com/webstore/content/13962
 To create your own QR Tag, try  Kaywa QR Code Generator:   http://qrcode.kaywa.com/

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September 2011 eNewsletter

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Email Management

Tired of reviewing the same email message on your laptop, iPhone and iPad? Here are some strategies to think about that might make managing your email a little easier.

Email accounts are of two general types:

•   IMAP - email is stored on an email server. When you access email with Outlook or any other email application, the email you are reading is NOT downloaded to your PC or smartphone. When you delete the email, it is removed from the email server. Access your email again from another device and notice that the email is gone. Email is synchronized across all the devices you use to access your email. Email is not stored on your computer or smartphone. All email is stored on the email server. This is how an Apple MobileMe email account works. (MobileMe will soon be replaced by iCloud, due this Fall. http://www.apple.com/icloud/). Gmail can also be set up as an IMAP account. Unfortunately, most email accounts, by default, are not set up this way, and need to be reconfigured to work as an IMAP account. Some email servers may not support this type of email access.

•   POP3 - in this model, email is downloaded to each device that accesses the email. The email server keeps track if a particular email has been downloaded before to the device accessing the email message. If you delete an email, in general, only your copy of that email is deleted from your device. It is still downloaded to all other email devices.

Therefore, the easiest way to synchronize your email – if you use multiple devices – would be to configure your email accounts for IMAP.

What if your email account cannot be configured for IMAP access? There are some settings you can change to make managing your POP3 email accounts easier:

•   On a Windows PC running Outlook, on the advanced tab for your email account, make sure Leave a Copy on the Server is checked. This same feature is available for the Apple Mail program and for Microsoft's Office for Mac Entourage and Outlook programs.

•   In addition to the Leave a Copy option, you can select Remove From Server When Deleted from "Deleted Items". Delete a message, empty your Deleted Items and the message will not be downloaded again. I empty my Deleted Items constantly. I set Outlook to Delete Items when I exit Outlook. I have many clients who seem to never empty Deleted Items and have 1000's of messages there.

•   Many email accounts have the ability to be forwarded to another email account. You could forward all your email from a POP3 server account to an IMAP server account. If you did not access your POP3 emails other than through the forwarded copies to the IMAP account, your emails would be synchronized, but this will make the process of replying to emails complicated. To reply to a message, you would have to edit out the forwarded part of the text to make the reply look normal.

•   The settings for email on an iPhone and iPad are minimal. If you use your iPhone or iPad to review the bulk of your emails, there is no easy way of deleting an email from your iPhone and have that deletion synced with your other email devices.

Coming up with a strategy to manage your emails is a workflow issue that you will need to resolve based on your particular work style and email device circumstances.

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