, ,

iPhone, iPad and Facetime Calls

, ,

        Jim Hamm asks for information and insight.  He says, "A friend has posed the question whether using Facetime on an iPhone use cellular minutes or data from one's data plan if connected to wifi? From reading the comments on the Verizon Wireless Forum, some say yes and some say no. Apparently calls to Verizon get different answers. 

        Here is yet another set of conflicting comments on a mobile forum.
        "I did a bit more research on my iPhone 5 and in settings I turned off  'Data Cellular' wherein no data can be transmitted over the cellular network. I'm connected to wifi and initiated a phone call on Facetime and it went through fine, but I know it's not using any data from my data plan. However, It may still be using minutes from my cellular minutes plan even though I'm connected to wifi -- but I'm not sure of that. 
        "This  question is important for my friend in that she has a certain amount of minutes and cellular data and doesn't want to burn through that unwittingly. 
        "If an iPad is connected to wifi one can make a Facetime call and for sure no minutes or data cellular are used. But an iPhone is different in that a cellular plan normally is initiated in order to use the phone. Some carriers now permit a Facetime call over a cellular network (no wifi) and in that case for sure the call is using minutes and may be using the data plan as well since video is involved."
        Jim asks for input,  "If anyone has further insight into whether an iPhone connected to wifi uses cellular minutes when making a Facetime call, let me know if you would. Thanks."

Solving Screen Saver Problems

        John Carter sends some screen saving ideas. "The following question came to me recently:   'My screensaver is set for one hour - however every time I watch [for example] Star Trek, the screen goes black in about 10 minutes and I have to reenter my password.  Pretty tight security :-O   How can I change this???'

       So, follow along for John's explanation and solution:  

        "There are TWO main settings in System Preferences to be concerned about. One is Screen Saver and the other is Energy Saver.

In Energy Saver, there are TWO settings. One is Computer Sleep and the other is Display Sleep.
In Energy Saver, you have TWO ways to set Computer Sleep and Display Sleep. One is when the computer is on Battery and the other is when the computer is plugged in (Power Adapter).
Check ALL these settings.
One application that I love is Caffeine 
(get it in the App Store). It allows me to click that little icon in the Menu Bar to prevent the computer from going to sleep no matter what.  It's great for watching movies, and I don't have to constantly go into System Preferences to change the sleep and power settings.
, , ,

Windows Registry vs OS X Property Files

, , ,

        "Although this article may be a little 'nerdy' for some," begins Jim Hamm,  "I found it quite interesting in explaining the difference between the Registry in Windows and .plist files in OS X.  

        "The author uses an analogy of thinking of the Registry as a skyscraper, with each program built on top of another. If one program, or 'floor', if you will, should fail it may bring the entire skyscraper down. Plist files (lists of programs) in OS X, on the other hand, are built kinda side by side. If one fails, it's not likely to affect the other programs.
        "Interesting analogy the author used, I thought, and helped me understand the differences between the two methods," Jim comments. 
        Here John Carter adds his thoughts to the situation, "Apple maintains .plist files in two places. One is in ~/Library/Preferences and the other is in /Library/Preferences. Notice that the '~' represents your home folder (/Users/). 
        Now, John goes into details.  "Apple's .plist structure does two things. It determines how an application will run on your computer and one of them will contain registration information, if needed. You can delete ALL the .plist files on your computer and the core system will still work. What you have mostly done is to remove the system and user preferences for how things work - and also the registration information for apps that you purchased, which means you would have to re-register those apps. 
        "Using AppCleaner will successfully remove all .plist files for a given app from the computer and thereby allowing you to re-install the app from scratch if that's what you need to do to make a failing app work again."
        And here John concludes his explanation, "One trick that IT professionals use to isolate the cause of a failing app is to rename ~/Library/Preferences or move it to another location. That folder and its content will get recreated when any of the apps storing a .plist file are run again. If the problem goes away, it's just a matter of singling out which .plist file in the original folder caused the problem.
        "The other trick is to create a new user, login as that new user, and run the app. If the problem persists, then it might be a system related problem which might be found in /Library/Preferences, but it's best to reinstall the app from scratch before messing around with system files." 
,

Backing Up With Time Machine

,

         John Carter sends this info, "I recently experienced that Time Machine on my computer would not delete an older backup to make room for a newer backup, and consequently the backups continued to fail with a message that there wasn't enough room for the new backup. I talked at length with Apple Support about this and we came up with no solution. I simply purchased a much larger backup drive and started over again. It may take months now before the new drive gets full.

        "What I suspect was the problem was that my computer needs a backup drive that is more than twice as large as the total space USED in my computer. Since I'm using a little over 1TB that I want to back up, my new 3TB backup drive should now be more than adequate to handle two complete backups plus any additional incremental backups."
, ,

New Desktop Wallpaper, FREE

, ,

        "Here are some interesting images that might make a nice desktop wallpaper for you," is how Jim Hamm begins his latest email.  "I think I might go for the Andromeda image. On the other hand, hmmm?"  http://osxdaily.com/2013/06/28/9-high-res-space-wallpapers/
        They're gorgeous, they're free.  But how do you put them on your computer?
        Jim to the rescue.  "Just right-click the image and 'save image as' or copy image and paste wherever you want.  You save each image separately and then select the one you want for your desktop wallpaper. You also can have the wallpaper change ever so often, if you want, in System Preferences."  

, , , ,

Is Your Router Vulnerable?

, , , ,

        With his thoughtful suggestion Jim Hamm forwards an interesting site.  He starts off, "Here is a description and test to see whether your router may be vulnerable to a UPnP discovery request. I ran the test, and our router is not vulnerable.

        Jim then comments, "In the real world, I don't know how serious this threat may or may not be. I don't recall reading anything about it, and don't really know anything about this vulnerability. So, proceed accordingly."
        Hmmm.  Let's look at this company and their blog to learn more.  Here's a photo of them,  http://www.rapid7.com/company/  and you'll learn more when you scan their Security Street blog: https://community.rapid7.com/community/infosec/blog 
       And this is the latest addition from Jim, "Here is more information on the Universal Plug and Play (UPnP) vulnerability issue. Although this article came out a while back, I guess reading it now is better late than never." 
, ,

Tagging Photos and Files

, ,

        Prez Art Gorski read what John said about tagging photos and files in his email just now.  Here's Art's comment, "This reminded me of Gmail, where, unlike normal IMAP email, you use tags instead of folders. Methinks this, like documents in iCloud, is another nail in the coffin of a file system with folders. Apple has apparently decided that most folks can't deal with a directory structure. Want more proof? Spotlight searching for documents and All My Files in the Finder."

, , , , , ,

Changes Coming in Mavericks

, , , , , ,

         Starting with a short note about the coming Mavericks John Carter simply pointed out, "Not an overhaul, says one reviewer, but just a tune-up.  Read the full article here."

        Then John emailed again and added more, "My comments below are not as a result of my being able to play with OS X Mavericks. I'm paraphrasing what other reviewers are saying.
        "Probably the most significant change in OS X Mavericks, in my opinion, is what they've done with Finder. They added tabs and tags. These will be the greatest tools that any user could use. Tagging files like you do with photos in iPhoto will be a boon in finding a needle in a haystack. But then, you first have to go through all your files and tag them - just like with iPhoto.
        "The second most important feature to me is iCloud Keychain. Storing all your login and private information in one place that can be instantly available on all Apple devices is like having 1Password, but without all the fancy features. However, this will mean that you should assign a separate Keychain master password, and it also means that you can have no login password on your desktop computer, a strong login password on your laptop and other mobile device, and still have all your password info secure behind a separate, strong password.
        "What I'm waiting to hear about are the changes to iTunes and iPhoto. Some of the changes that went into iTunes 10 made a few people really mad - because one very useful feature was removed (to be able to create a mix on the fly without having to create a new playlist). I like the new iPhoto, but the features in Aperture are so compelling that I hardly ever use iPhoto anymore. What iPhoto needs is a built-in library manager like what is available in Aperture."
        John has more to say!  "I'm hoping they don't mess around with Pages and Keynote much (the way Windows did with Word and PowerPoint by restructuring the toolbar), but it would be nice if Apple offers a much larger selection of templates - for free.
        "The new Maps isn't terrific, and its location sensing is not as accurate as Maps in iOS (which would be useful for a laptop, but not necessarily so for a desktop), but it does have some new feature that makes it fun to play with - still not as much fun as using Google Earth.
        "There's a lot of noise by uninformed people about why Apple derailed the cat names for OS X versions when they adopted Mavericks."  John concludes his email with a picture of a Saber Tooth Tiger and the final touch of humor, "All I can think of for a title is 'Windows, you're my next lunch!'"  
, ,

Web Developers to Meet

, ,

         Here's an announcement from John Carter:  "The Prescott Web Developers has scheduled a meeting on July 13 from 10 AM to noon at the Prescott Library. This is a general membership meeting for web developers. No specific topic has been established. All are welcome.

        "The PCS Developer's SIG meeting will be July 6 from 1-3 PM at the Library. The topic of that meeting is HTML and CSS for web developers. All are welcome." 
,

Gmail's New Inbox

,

        "If you use Gmail as your email client -- as I do --" Jim Hamm begins, " here is an article explaining the details of Gmail's new inbox, should you decide to try it. I've been aware of this new feature for some time, but haven't tried it yet -- but I think I'll give it a try now to see what I think about it. It would be nice , for example, to get the offers for coupons from, say, Red Lobster, all to appear in one inbox, Promotions, instead of being intermingled with my other emails. Plus, if you don't like this new feature you can always change back to the format you're accustomed to.

        "Just click the gear icon in the upper right of your screen and select 'Configure Inbox.' Good luck...(grin)...Now, if you don't use Gmail, you're missing a very good email client," Jim says in closing. 

Collecting for Doce Fire Relief

        The Internet provider Commspeed has emailed customers to inform about their appreciation for the firefighters on the Doce Fire.  They're taking up a collection of useful stuff to donate to the firefighters, such as T-shirts, underwear, deodorant, toothbrushes, combs, soles for boots, snacks and nuts, and homemade sweets.  Donations are being taken at the Prescott High School.  For info about the fire call 928-445-1089 or 928-777-5682.

, , ,

Mayo Clinic Using iPhone, iPad

, , ,

        A recent posting at www.apple.com/hotnews brings up an interesting article about Mayo Clinic.  www.apple.com/ipad/business/profiles/mayo-clinic/   Using custom apps for physicians and patients on iPhone, iPad and iPad mini Mayo is "transforming the capabilities of individualized patient care."  It describes the app Synthesis Mobile that gives physicians instant access, and iOS provides security for patients using their password for personal information.  
        You can get Hot News info updated via RSS to NetNewsWire. 

, ,

More Info for You

, ,

      Webmaster Mary Ann Clark has posted an informative piece on cookies by John Clark on the www.pmug.us site.  Go to Benefits >  Tips 'N Tricks to find this new article and nine other helpful pieces.    
        To keep up to date, click on RSS on the PMUG home page menu.  It will set you up with PMUG listing on NetNewsWire.  When that opens click to Refresh All, so the latest comes up. On this blog you scroll down to Subscribe to: Posts (Atom) and click. 

PMUG Officers for 2013-2014

        Well, what do you know?  Last week's PMUG meeting was the annual election of officers, and the "old" officers were willing to work another year!  So, the "old" is now "new."   Art Gorski, president!  David Rothgery, vice president!  Bobbie Pastor, secretary!  David Passell, treasurer!  Congratulations and thanks to all those who attend PMUG and help make it a friendly, helpful, interesting group!  

iPad at Work

The three seminars that were previously mentioned by this post are no longer available. David Sparks at Macsparky.com talks about his book iPad At Work. The book is available at Amazon.com. There are 24 chapters that cover everything possible for using an iPad in a working environment. This book is a derivative of his earlier book Mac At Work.

Apple often provides online seminars for similar products. The iPad at Work seminar by Apple can be found here.

, , , , ,

Short & Simple, Of Course, Mac Helps You!

, , , , ,

        Using your Mac is easy to do.  Here are some shortcuts.  How many are you already using?  Which ones will you try later today?  

        To write anything:  click to open Pages.  Up comes a blank document, ready for your report, a birthday blessing for one of your 45 closest relatives, an anniversary poem to send to some family member, or the first chapter of your fiction piece that’s been brewing in your head. 
        Jot down some key ideas.  Do Command + S to save it, giving it a short title. 
        Off the page where you’re writing do a click with the right side of the mouse which brings up a short list.  Choose New Folder and drag this latest writing into it.  Type a name for the folder.
        When you’re ready to add to that first version of the new writing do Command + D to duplicate what you have and add to it.  Keep Version 1 as is; work on Version 2.  As you think of other bright ideas during the day you make a new version and keep it in the same folder.  
        Your busy brain has thought of some important details to add, or some colorful adjectives, or . . . .   That first idea may present possibilities.  A “I remember when…” piece may have poetic notions.  Now you’ve got a document of prose and a document of delightful rhyme.  Keep these in the same folder.  
        As the deadline approaches you put the finishing touches on the one that fills the bill.  Name the final version  “June handout BEST.”  Those other ideas may lend themselves to some other use, so hold on to them for now.  
        With cursor in the background screen do Command + I to bring up Get Info on the left hand side, a nifty box for you to add info.  Keywords you put in can help you find this new writing later.  
        Command + R  when looking at a list from the Inspector you view a tiny picture of the various files.  Put your cursor on the one you want to find.  Command + R then brings it up in the files so you can see where it’s located. (When you see the one you want in Inspector you can just click on the title you want and it will open, but you won’t know what folder it’s in.)  
        To cut, highlight what you want to remove and do  Command + X.  Paste what you’ve then highlighted with Command + V.  To copy, highlight what you want and do Command + C.
        Find it on your desktop or a file list: On the Menu at top of page that lists Finder first, go to File > Label and choose a color.  Your folder will show up in a list with that color bar around the title. 
        Want to enlarge the type under the folders on the desktop? On the main menu bar on the top go to View > Show View Options.  Experiment with enlarging icon size, spacing, text. 
        On the Internet, Command + D  at the URL line of the website lets you add that site to a folder in Bookmarks. Scroll through the little box to find the suitable home for that URL. 
        Command + Shift + 4 brings up the screen shot that you stretch around the picture or text that you want to copy and saves the screen shot as a file on desktop. 
        Command + B makes what you’ve highlighted turn into a bold font.  Do it again over the bold and it toggles to go back to not-bold. 
        Command and + on a highlighted word lets you enlarge it by repeatedly tapping the +.  The opposite, Command and the - will shrink the highlighted word. 
        On Mountain Lion you can do some of this an easier way.  Highlight the word or paragraphs, etc. Then right click with your mouse on that document.  It lists choices, such as spelling, speech, etc.  Look under Writing Tools and it brings up look up in dictionary, thesaurus, search in Spotlight, Google, Wikipedia, and show statistics. 
        If you’ve set Pages to show word count at the bottom of the page:  click on Words and it gives the total number of pages, lines, paragraphs, characters and characters not counting spaces.  
        If you accidentally delete something -- and before you type in something else -- go to Edit on the menu across the top of Pages and click to Undo Typing.  It will replace what you took out. 
        Here’s 8 pages of shortcuts if you’re REALLY into shortcut info for every possible idea: http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1343  Keyboard by category
        Let’s Take a Look at Mail: When you’ve clicked to open a New Message and have written a first draft, then you can click on the last tiny icon on the top right.  Your Mac gives you choices of how to make your email more attention-getting with choices of colorful templates such as Birthday, Announcements, Photos, Stationery, and Sentiments.  You can drag in some photo to make this email personalized. 
        Shop on Amazon:  Go to amazon.com and click on Sign in to set up Your Account.  Must allow cookies! Command + ,  (the comma) then choose Privacy > Block cookies from 3rd parties.   Go to Your account to see history, using gift cards,  settings,  etc.  Your balance never expires. (I go back afterwards and change Cookies setting to Never.) 
        Start your own FREE blog:  https://accounts.google.com/  Must allow cookies first.  Then sign in with email address and a password.  Set up your account.  Go to view Dashboard where you have choices to make about web albums, YouTube profile, etc.  Go to www.blogger.com to look at available templates.  Here’s links to info: https://support.google.com/blogger/ 
        Keep up to date:  If you subscribe to NetNewsWire you can be notified when there’s a new entry to the PMUG newsblog  http://pmugnews.blogspot.com and also to the PMUG website:  http://pmug.us/    Take a look here http://netnewswireapp.com/mac           
        (That’s all for now!)       This is the PMUG meeting handout for June 15, 2013
from Elaine Hardt 
,

How Hot is Too Hot? Why? How?

,

The laptop computer felt hot to touch.  How hot is too hot?  That basic information was not evident with a Google search.  Then, a bright idea.  Yesterday the MacMedia email had arrived with the clever heading, "Geek Goods for your Mac Daddy!"          We had purchased the MacBook Pro at the MacMedia store down in Peoria in September.  Who better to call?  A helpful guy, Rob, didn't seem in too big of a hurry to chat. I explained, relating some of the temperatures I'd noted from iStatPro widget.  He explained the range of temperatures, reassured me that mine were OK, "That's why we don't call it a 'laptop' anymore."         The helpful widget is here.