My first fun Apple device was my 2009 iPod Touch*, which I think means I've been dealing with iOS since version 3. By now, I know the routine. The new version of iOS comes out. I wait for a couple of weeks, so that the early adopters can find all the bugs for me. After installation comes the fun part: trying to figure out what it can do (and sometimes what it can no longer do—hey, I liked some of those old iOS 3 wallpapers that vanished in later versions). So this evening, armed with iPad and iPhone, I settled in to see what iOS 7 was capable of.
I started with the tips on maximizing battery life. Other tips may be useful, amusing, or irrelevant: battery life is nonnegotiable. No, won't be using Air Drop: shut it off. No, not using Bluetooth: off. I already knew to turn on Reduce Motion to turn off the annoying parallax motion for the wallpaper, but reading about it reminded me how annoying the whole idea was: why yes, I want nothing more than to spend some of my precious battery charge so that the wallpaper can twitch slightly. And hey, by turning off some of the more deeply buried features in Settings, not only do you increase your battery life, you increase your privacy as well. Win-win!
After the thrill of wringing out more battery life, the other tips paled in comparison. I will probably go back and study the camera tips later. I'm way too used to the camera in my old smartphone, which was barely adequate for even the most rudimentary photography; I basically got conditioned to not think of the phone camera as an option. I have a digital camera which I prefer to use, but I don't carry it with me routinely, and now that I have a better phone camera at hand, I may actually start using it. I use the Gmail app, so tips on using the native Mail app don't do me much good. Just before getting to this Thing, I'd found the iPhone's flashlight. I like the idea, and it wasn't a bad amount of light for such a little device. But will I remember that the phone is a flashlight when I desperately need to see something? (The phone is a flashlight. The phone is a camera. The phone is a computer. The phone is trying to be a personal assistant. The phone almost never gets to be a phone, poor thing.)
Let's see, what else do I know in the way of tips? Well, you can split the iPad's keyboard in two to make it easier to type with your thumbs, if you're used to that from your phone. I'm not, and my hands are small enough that I can use the horizontal keyboard normally. Plus, an iPad weighs noticeably more than a phone, and holding it like a phone is problematic. But you can split the keyboard by putting two fingers on it and pulling it "apart;" reverse that to reassemble it. More generally useful: tap the very top of the screen when you're in an app to scroll to the top of a feed (like Twitter, Facebook, or a blog) rather than manually scrolling and scrolling and scrolling. And my aging eyes like the fact that you can adjust the font size (Settings > General > Text Size or Accessibility), but the feature isn't implemented by all apps yet, so it's more of a wish than a reality.
Learning the tips and tricks for each iteration of iOS is productive and sometimes fun. But after four rounds of this, I find myself wishing the whole process was more intutive…which is supposed to be one of Apple's strong points, right?
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*Which I still use. It's more or less permanently installed in my audio system, since the battery no longer holds a charge, but it works just fine for my music and Pandora.
Monday, January 27, 2014
Wednesday, January 22, 2014
23 Mobile Things #1: Blogging & Registering
Write a blog post for Thing 1 telling us what you hope to get out of the program, says the first prompt for this latest version of 23 Things on a Stick. Expanded horizons, I answer.
When I participated in the original version of this program, I was comfortable using computers, but I wasn't all that adventurous. I spent most of my time online doing basic web-surfing and email, and I still spent a lot of my computer time offline, working with Microsoft Word. I participated in a number of mailing lists and I had a wee bit of experience dealing with Usenet. I knew there were things like MySpace, Facebook, and Twitter in the world, but I wasn't sure what they were, and no one I knew used them, so there was nobody to ask. Oh, and the whole blogging thing: why would you write whatever came to mind and make it public—and why on earth would anyone be interested? What I got out of 23 Things on a Stick was encouragement to try all these things. It was difficult for me to play with something if I couldn't see a practical reason to do so, and the program itself was such a reason: play with this and tell everyone what you thought of it and what your experience was like. And although I almost never used it as such, I thought of it as a support group: if I had a problem with one of the Things, I could read other people's experiences of it and see if that helped.
In the end, what I got was a much bigger online world. I had been introduced to Facebook and Twitter, and I still participate actively on both today. Okay, it took a while to decide I liked Twitter, but no one said I had to adopt everything instantly, and I only managed to stay on the MySpace site for about two minutes before fleeing it forever. My mailing lists have been replaced with Facebook groups and friendships. I miss the in-depth discussions, but on the other hand, I feel as if I have a much better sense of the other members as people. And it turned out I liked blogging and ended up starting several different personal blogs—and as you can see, I never took this one down.
So what do I want from 23 Mobile Things? The same thing: a bigger world. I'm still not the most adventurous soul in the world, although I love my mobile toys (iPad and iPhone). I tend to look for variations on the apps I already have, and despite all of Apple's exhortations of There's an app for that! I rarely think to look for anything completely new to me. I'm hoping to be introduced to totally new apps, to apps that help me do what I still have to do on my desktop computer, and to apps that maybe I don't need but that my friends will find useful. And above all, I hope to learn really interesting things. (Or Things. Whatever.)
When I participated in the original version of this program, I was comfortable using computers, but I wasn't all that adventurous. I spent most of my time online doing basic web-surfing and email, and I still spent a lot of my computer time offline, working with Microsoft Word. I participated in a number of mailing lists and I had a wee bit of experience dealing with Usenet. I knew there were things like MySpace, Facebook, and Twitter in the world, but I wasn't sure what they were, and no one I knew used them, so there was nobody to ask. Oh, and the whole blogging thing: why would you write whatever came to mind and make it public—and why on earth would anyone be interested? What I got out of 23 Things on a Stick was encouragement to try all these things. It was difficult for me to play with something if I couldn't see a practical reason to do so, and the program itself was such a reason: play with this and tell everyone what you thought of it and what your experience was like. And although I almost never used it as such, I thought of it as a support group: if I had a problem with one of the Things, I could read other people's experiences of it and see if that helped.
In the end, what I got was a much bigger online world. I had been introduced to Facebook and Twitter, and I still participate actively on both today. Okay, it took a while to decide I liked Twitter, but no one said I had to adopt everything instantly, and I only managed to stay on the MySpace site for about two minutes before fleeing it forever. My mailing lists have been replaced with Facebook groups and friendships. I miss the in-depth discussions, but on the other hand, I feel as if I have a much better sense of the other members as people. And it turned out I liked blogging and ended up starting several different personal blogs—and as you can see, I never took this one down.
So what do I want from 23 Mobile Things? The same thing: a bigger world. I'm still not the most adventurous soul in the world, although I love my mobile toys (iPad and iPhone). I tend to look for variations on the apps I already have, and despite all of Apple's exhortations of There's an app for that! I rarely think to look for anything completely new to me. I'm hoping to be introduced to totally new apps, to apps that help me do what I still have to do on my desktop computer, and to apps that maybe I don't need but that my friends will find useful. And above all, I hope to learn really interesting things. (Or Things. Whatever.)
Saturday, January 2, 2010
The end of the beginning?
Good-bye Web 2.0, hello Social Media. This story from Mashable is about how the second term has now become more popular than the first, so Web 2.0 as a term is probably on its way out. Has Web 2.0 itself actually become established now? This blog was about exploring bits and pieces of it, and now I take many of those bits and pieces for granted. Cloud computing still falls apart at inconvenient times, but I'm relying on it to get through grad school. Not only could I find my new address through Google Maps, but it showed me the building itself at street level, where I could turn my focus around and see my neighbors. My heart and my book collection belong to Library Thing. Now that I finally have high-speed Internet, YouTube is no longer terra incognita.
But through all this, social media reigns. Just about everything I read on the Web offers me options for sharing with others, via Facebook, Twitter, or a dillion other sites. I've got an idea of what many of my friends did for the holidays because they posted to Facebook. The sites I shop from want me to be their fan on Facebook or follow them on Twitter. Welcome to the mainstreaming of social media.
But through all this, social media reigns. Just about everything I read on the Web offers me options for sharing with others, via Facebook, Twitter, or a dillion other sites. I've got an idea of what many of my friends did for the holidays because they posted to Facebook. The sites I shop from want me to be their fan on Facebook or follow them on Twitter. Welcome to the mainstreaming of social media.
Saturday, June 27, 2009
$ea Change
Microsoft is discontinuing its Microsoft Money software. Credit this to Mint.com and its ilk: apparently online banking, both from banks and from free websites, has gotten to the point Microsoft decided to drop out. It's not that I have deep sentimental attachment to Money--please, we're talking financial software here--but I've been using it since 1998 and I'd gotten used to it.
I'm guessing there are ramifications here beyond just the end of one program. Just how well is Microsoft doing lately? It's a shaky economy for everyone of course, but here we are entering the era of cloud computing, and Microsoft is more known for tangible products sold in stores with updates only every few years. I hear they've discontinued Encarta as well, although that will barely affect me.
Off to explore my banking and accounting options...
I'm guessing there are ramifications here beyond just the end of one program. Just how well is Microsoft doing lately? It's a shaky economy for everyone of course, but here we are entering the era of cloud computing, and Microsoft is more known for tangible products sold in stores with updates only every few years. I hear they've discontinued Encarta as well, although that will barely affect me.
Off to explore my banking and accounting options...
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Thing 47: Evaluation
Oh wow, I actually made it. I gather that More 23 Things took about a month longer to complete than the original set. In my case, anyway, I see that the original 23 Things took place over the summer, while More 23 Things was running during winter and spring. It was easier for me to work on these sorts of things during the summer; earlier, I was in class and had less time and energy.
Overall, I enjoyed the program. I think each Thing needs to be fairly simple and straightforward though. Twitter felt like it had gotten out of hand. I enjoyed Books 2.0 and Bloggers' Toolkit, but it took way too much of that precious time and energy stuff to look at a good sample of the possibilities for either Thing. By comparison, Screencasting and Online TV & Video felt so much more manageable. It might've worked better if each Thing only mentioned a few activities or sites with the rest in a sort of "appendix" to each Thing.
As with the original 23 Things, I don't see our library getting much use out of most of these Things, although we've started Twittering and I suspect we'll find a use for screencasting. Personally, though, I'll be listening to Internent radio, watching online TV, discussing my travels online, and so on. It was a great introduction to Library 2.0 and Web 2.0; thank you.
Overall, I enjoyed the program. I think each Thing needs to be fairly simple and straightforward though. Twitter felt like it had gotten out of hand. I enjoyed Books 2.0 and Bloggers' Toolkit, but it took way too much of that precious time and energy stuff to look at a good sample of the possibilities for either Thing. By comparison, Screencasting and Online TV & Video felt so much more manageable. It might've worked better if each Thing only mentioned a few activities or sites with the rest in a sort of "appendix" to each Thing.
As with the original 23 Things, I don't see our library getting much use out of most of these Things, although we've started Twittering and I suspect we'll find a use for screencasting. Personally, though, I'll be listening to Internent radio, watching online TV, discussing my travels online, and so on. It was a great introduction to Library 2.0 and Web 2.0; thank you.
Thing 46: WebJunction Minnesota
Well, here I am at WebJunction Minnesota. I'm not sure what to say about this site. Like LinkedIn, it's something that's purely professional for me . . . and like LinkedIn, I suspect that means I'm going to forget to visit it after a while. Social networking--or in this case, professional networking--is just more attractive when you've met the people you're networking with. With WJMN, I suspect the only people I know are the coworker and former coworker that I've gone through the 23 Things programs with, and by now, we're connected on all sorts of websites.
I like the idea of a site specifically for library networking, but I think WJMN needs some time to mature. I glanced over the classes. This is a good idea for letting people know what's available, and ditto for the calendar. However, the website itself could do with a redesign. Overall, the design seemed scattered and I found it difficult to focus on any one section. The Quick Links are "below the fold" and it took me multiple visits to the page before I saw them, and through them, finally found where the groups were listed. After all that, I did join a group: on Library 2.0, of course. I see that you can read group discussions without necessarily joining the group. I like this, as I have a tendency to lurk on groups, and this way, I won't be building up a long list of groups I joined because I found one discussion months ago to be interesting.
At this point, it's probably the courses that set WJMN apart from all the other networking sites out there. Discussions, contacts--those could be found on other sites, including LinkedIn and Ning. Perhaps as more people join WJMN, they'll expand their features, much as these other social networking sites have done.
I like the idea of a site specifically for library networking, but I think WJMN needs some time to mature. I glanced over the classes. This is a good idea for letting people know what's available, and ditto for the calendar. However, the website itself could do with a redesign. Overall, the design seemed scattered and I found it difficult to focus on any one section. The Quick Links are "below the fold" and it took me multiple visits to the page before I saw them, and through them, finally found where the groups were listed. After all that, I did join a group: on Library 2.0, of course. I see that you can read group discussions without necessarily joining the group. I like this, as I have a tendency to lurk on groups, and this way, I won't be building up a long list of groups I joined because I found one discussion months ago to be interesting.
At this point, it's probably the courses that set WJMN apart from all the other networking sites out there. Discussions, contacts--those could be found on other sites, including LinkedIn and Ning. Perhaps as more people join WJMN, they'll expand their features, much as these other social networking sites have done.
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Thing 45: Cloud Computing
Huh. There's not much in this Thing about the downside to cloud computing. Try searching "cloud crash Google" (ironically, you can Google this). You'll get a slew of articles on what happened this spring when Gmail and GoogleDocs went down for a few hours. Apparently there are already a lot of people who can't function without them.
Obligatory cynical reaction now taken care of, let's move on to the benefits of cloud computing. I'm getting more cloudy by the moment, it seems. My most recent switch is to using web-based email for my primary account. I'm making the change for several reasons, but one of them is that I'm tired of not being able to access my email from any computer I'm at. Yes, I could have left my emails on the server, but my ISP's webmail is unpleasant to use. I figured I might as well switch to a service that assumes you'll be keeping your messages online, and doesn't just offer a MB as a backup while you're on vacation.
After peeking at the Web OS articles, I don't think I'm going to need to leap into this right away. Beyond surfing the web and handling email, much of what I do just involves the basic Microsoft Office programs. GoogleDocs can handle most of this--okay, it'd be nice if they'd upgrade to the point they can handle .docx files, but if I have to, I can revert to .doc. And rumor has it that Microsoft is planning to make the next version of Office cloud-compatible ("Office Web"), so maybe a little patience is all that's necessary.
On the other hand, I really do need to pay attention to data backup. Again, with a dial-up connection, online backup was just a fantasy. Now it's a practical option, and yes, sounds much cheaper than the therapy I'll need if I lose both the computers and the external hard drive.
At present, I don't think cloud computing is affecting my productivity one way or another. Basically, I don't take my work home and I don't travel as part of my job, so I almost never have to access work files when I'm not physically in the office. It's pretty obvious, though, how this could benefit all those people who do need to carry their work with them, at least virtually. Likewise, I'm not that worried about security right now, simply because I'm not working with confidential materials. But it's a good question: is your data safer in the cloud or on a laptop or flash drive that could be lost, stolen, or damaged?
Say, if I decide Mint.com is a safe option, that's cloud banking, isn't it?
Obligatory cynical reaction now taken care of, let's move on to the benefits of cloud computing. I'm getting more cloudy by the moment, it seems. My most recent switch is to using web-based email for my primary account. I'm making the change for several reasons, but one of them is that I'm tired of not being able to access my email from any computer I'm at. Yes, I could have left my emails on the server, but my ISP's webmail is unpleasant to use. I figured I might as well switch to a service that assumes you'll be keeping your messages online, and doesn't just offer a MB as a backup while you're on vacation.
After peeking at the Web OS articles, I don't think I'm going to need to leap into this right away. Beyond surfing the web and handling email, much of what I do just involves the basic Microsoft Office programs. GoogleDocs can handle most of this--okay, it'd be nice if they'd upgrade to the point they can handle .docx files, but if I have to, I can revert to .doc. And rumor has it that Microsoft is planning to make the next version of Office cloud-compatible ("Office Web"), so maybe a little patience is all that's necessary.
On the other hand, I really do need to pay attention to data backup. Again, with a dial-up connection, online backup was just a fantasy. Now it's a practical option, and yes, sounds much cheaper than the therapy I'll need if I lose both the computers and the external hard drive.
At present, I don't think cloud computing is affecting my productivity one way or another. Basically, I don't take my work home and I don't travel as part of my job, so I almost never have to access work files when I'm not physically in the office. It's pretty obvious, though, how this could benefit all those people who do need to carry their work with them, at least virtually. Likewise, I'm not that worried about security right now, simply because I'm not working with confidential materials. But it's a good question: is your data safer in the cloud or on a laptop or flash drive that could be lost, stolen, or damaged?
Say, if I decide Mint.com is a safe option, that's cloud banking, isn't it?
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