Adobe Slate for storytelling

I've recently discovered Adobe Slate, their new blogging/web platform. I guess its their attempt to answer to the dominance of WordPress in the blogging world. 

After having a read over a couple of Slate posts I'm really impressed by the way it looks and feels. The pages feel light and fast. Colours and images can change as you scroll down the page with sections of the layout opening up to reveal an image underneath as you scroll by.

I haven't had time to play with it yet but first stumbled on it by reading Grappling with life, The Scottish wrestler Bette Noire's blog about preparing to return to wrestle in Japan. I was really impressed with the feel of the posts and how the page responded as I scrolled down. I liked the way the background images appeared as I read through.

Another one worth a quick look is Spirit Chasing which tracks the writer as they follow the Vulcan XH558 on its last flights across the UK. A different subject to the first but a similar feel, with maps and large photo's appearing as you scroll through the post.

Slate feels as thought it would be fairly straightforward to use and get a simple but polished result without having to spend too much time on it, although not having tried it yet I can't be sure. It certainly gives the posts I've looked at quite a slick and professional feel. The Adobe page has links to lot more examples and there is an iPad app too. They pitch it as the ultimate story telling tool and it certainly seems to be one of the main contenders to the traditional Blogger or WordPress routes.

Let me know if you have used Slate already, or if you have seen any great posts running on it.

Google Cardboard - Quick first impressions

A quick review of my first five minutes with Google Cardboard.

I decided to buy a Google cardboard kit off eBay recently as a novelty extra for our daughters birthday. She enjoys roller coaster videos and I thought she might like watching them on this either in one of the Virtual reality apps, or the YouTube 360 video's.

Google cardboard, if you haven't heard of it is a viewer which lets you slot your phone into it and then access a VR world of specially designed apps and videos. It uses side by side video to create a notion of 3D and your phones gyroscopic sensors to track your head motion. 

You can experience a similar version if this by visiting YouTube's 360 Video channel on your smartphone and them moving your handset around to see the full video view, or on your PC by panning with your mouse. 

On first impressions after spending five minutes putting it together I'm really impressed. Ok the cardboard nature of the viewer makes it a bit basic however I'm sure that if its getting used regularly we will move up from the £3.50 basic one to one of the more comfortable and sturdy looking plastic ones that are about £15.00 

Our daughter watched the demo video and was really impressed. It was great as a bystander watching her looking around and seeing her reacting to what was being shown on screen. I've had a quick play with the menu's and the Google Earth viewer for a minute or two and thought it was great. I have downloaded a couple of VR games from the Playstore but haven't had a chance to try them yet.

I will be posting a more detailed review once i have had some time to fully play with the functions however even on first impressions i would urge anyone to spend a few pounds and buy a cardboard kit from eBay and try it themselves. You won't be disappointed.

Has anyone already been using Google Cardboard, if so what are you thoughts? Are there any killers apps or videos to try out with it?

Broadband for Business and home workers

The recent BT Broadband outage which affected tens of thousands of home and business users this week brings internet access back to the forefront.

If you are a Business or someone who's job is internet based it is is essential that you have some fail-over in your internet connectivity.

As more and more job roles or project outcomes rely on information being issued online, whether by email, submissions to a portal, or electronic ordering and tracking, it is often imperative that this is done by a certain deadline.

Whilst some situations will allow for flexibility in this and people will understand if you have 'internet issues' others such as payroll or tax related functions, or issuing of contract specific project information may not be so flexible.

Both in my business life and on a general basis I would recommend that if your work relies on the ability to send or recive information online, to a deadline, you must have a backup connection.

In the UK that would usually be a combination of a BT Broadband Service and one from another supplier. Take care to ensure that your secondary supplier is not simply a re-branded BT service otherwise it's not really a backup. A combination of something like BT and Virgin would be a good option, especially if you can have both services on Fibre connections for the speed benefits that brings. 

Most modern business routers will be able to support dual connections. They can automatically switch traffic in the even of one connection failing, and manage the bandwidth between the connections to ensure the best service. 

Having two connections means if there is a broadband outage on one service you should still be able to work, send emails and get that document issue in by its deadline.  

Depending on budget you can either have two high spec connections or keep the backup service on a basic package. The main thing is to have one, the small additional cost to keep operational during an outage will quickly pay for itself. 

Review - Sonos Play system

Hardware Review - Sonos music system 

We had been looking at various solutions for listening to music at home for a while now and after much deliberation, discussion and scouring the internet we decided to go for a Sonos system.

We wanted something which would let us stream our music between rooms and listen to internet radio. The most basic option would have been a wireless/Bluetooth speaker to play content from our phones or iPad. Sonos gives a bit more functionality and seemed like the best all round choice.

The speakers themselves come in a range of options from the entry level Sonos Play:1, through the Play:3, Play:5, soundbar and a Subwoofer. The speakers connect to your wireless network and can be added at any point. The speakers are controlled by an app on your phone or tablet and can be named when setting up to allow for easier management of your music zones. This gives you various options and this is what separates Sonos from a simple wireless or Bluetooth speaker.

From the main interface you can play music from various sources. It can be music stored on your device or across the network from a PC or NAS. You can also listen to internet radio stations via TuneIn radio. You can play music from various streaming music services too such as Spotify, Deezer or last.fm. You have options for playlists, favourites, preset stations or shows and navigation between these is very straightforward.

The app allows you to play different music across each speaker or they can be grouped to play the same thing in different parts of the house. It's fairly easy to switch between rooms and sources or control individual volumes even when grouped.

Speakers can also be paired within a group to split the sound and give a more traditional stereo effect.

Over the last couple of years the Sonos range has expanded, the most recent edition being the Play:1.

The Play:1 is the recently released entry level speaker for the range. Priced to go against other wireless or Bluetooth speakers such as the Bose sound dock. This is a good idea as it would get users into the Sonos ecosystem where they may then add bigger components at a later date.

The most popular component is the Play:3, it uses three digital amplifiers and three speakers to give a full spread of sound. We have two of these and they are great, they easily fill the room with sound and its a good mix of bass, middle and treble to give a good spread to the sound.

The Play:5 is the biggest of the three main speakers. It has six speakers and amplifiers to give the fullest reproduction of the sound. Sonos have recently announced a new Play:5 with some touch sensitive controls and trueplay tuning which adjusts the sound to the shape of your room.


If you are in the market for some wireless audio or music streaming devices then in sure Sonos would be one of the options on your short-list. Check them out and let me know what you think. 

Up Periscope!

One of the newest Social Media Apps is Periscope which launched back in March. 

The Android and iOS app allows users to broadcast a live video stream from their mobile devices. I've been using it for a couple of weeks now and have been impressed by how some brands are using it to get the most out of the app and its style of broadcasting.

The main difference between this and something like YouTube is that viewers can interact with the live broadcast by sending messages to the broadcaster, and by giving love in the form of hearts which scroll up the screen. This allows viewers to comment, question and almost direct the broadcaster whilst they are filming.

Videos can also be watched at a later point, this is a bit more similar to YouTube or a SnapChat video in that you simply watch the video play through. Again however you can see the interaction between the broadcaster and the viewers who were commenting at the time of recording. It is associated with twitter so links into your follower lists. 

Periscope is starting to increase its user base and popularity. Some brands are now making sense of the style of content and how best to fit it in with their marketing. Periscope seems to be used to supplement their existing YouTube or snapchat video channels.

Car competition website Best of the Best have recently started using periscope to showcase some of their prize cars and a winner presentation. This works well for them as viewer can interact asking to see certain aspects of the cars or hear them rev the engine for example. 

Glasgow based wrestling company Insane Championship Wrestling have started using Periscope to show behind the scenes footage of their podcast and interview recordings.

Fitness and personal improvement entrepreneur Chalene Johnson has embraced Periscope in a big way. She is broadcasting some of her workouts on there along with interviews and some motivational speaking. Chalene has been hosting some Q+A sessions based around building a business and brand on periscope and highlighting other broadcasters to watch.

If you haven't tried Periscope yet it is certainly worth a look. You may find some of the users you follow on twitter are already active on Periscope, and perhaps find some new users to follow. Let me know your thoughts on it and if you have tried broadcasting on there or any other sites. 

Mini review - citizenM

We were staying in Glasgow recently and decided to book into the citizenM hotel on Renfrew Street. Whilst a hotel review might seem like a bit of a curveball for this blog the combination of cutting edge design and technology make it well worth a mention.

Having studied both Architecture and Spatial/Interior design I have always had a keen interest in hotel and bar design. Much like residential architecture its an area that can range from bog standard, ten a penny bland, to buildings and spaces that have a powerful impact. Hotels especially can become fantasy getaways, opulent and extravagant escapes into a world of classical refinement or modern whimsy.

A great example of this wide variety was the recent Sky 1 series Richard E. Grant's Hotel secrets. Well worth a watch to see the history, highlights and a peek behind the scenes of some famous and infamous hotels from around the world.

Interesting interiors 

Anyway, back to the citizenM. On entering the hotel the check-in is upstairs on the same floor as the bar and lounge areas. There's a member of staff on hand to help guide you through the process of creating your keycard and paying for the room, and to explain the facilities.

This first floor consists of a few lounge like areas each with their own styling and furniture. There is free wi-fi in and a separate computer area for internet access with netbooks which can be used in the lounge too.

Taking the elevator up to the accommodation levels brings you out into stark white hallways embellished with more design features. Shadow gap detailing around the doors and framing clearly identifies the spaces. Funky carpets which seem to be a Google earth style photo of a cityscape add to the drama. Each floor has its own style with quotes as artwork on the wall. Moving through this space brings you to the room itself.

You could say it's a European take on a capsule hotel. Much larger than the oriental equivalent but a similar concept. The room is the width of the massive bed which dominates one end. Beyond this is a combo of blinds within the glazing, controlled by both wall switches and the multifunction remote, but more on this later. 

Shine a light on design

The room is fitted with a variety of feature and task lights which can be controlled independently for various effects. 

Flanking the door you have a vanity area with sink on one side and a frosted pod containing the shower and toilet. The shower space is also illuminated by the colour changing mood lights and can be set to be a feature of the room. 

Multi-function Remote

The TV, blinds, heating and the lights can all be controlled by the multifunctional remote control docked beside the bed and separate wall switches.

Since our visit the multifunction remote has been replaced by a tablet that let you control all aspects of the room.

Whilst the atmosphere and experience is down to more than just the gadgets they certainly add to the overall impression. The design of the rooms, the public spaces and choice of furniture set it apart from the standard chain hotel. The technology adds an extra layer on top of all this and compliments the modern styling. 

If you haven't stayed here yet its certainly worth considering as an option. The emphasis on design and the integration of Tech certainly raise it above the run of the mill hotels. The citizenM certainly seems to be the location of choice for a lot of our friends when having a night out in Glasgow. We would definitely have this on the short list for our next city stay-over.

Paying it forward. My favourite blogs

One of the things I wanted to do this year was given a mention to some of the blogs I've enjoyed over the last year or two. The ones that keep me entertained, informed or help motivate me to write or keep learning. They all publish high quality blog posts which I enjoy reading and give me something to strive for. As part of my positive mindset for this year I wanted to pay it forward and say thanks. It's a varied mix of writers and subject matter but hopefully you will enjoy them.

My social media success of last year was reconnecting with one of my friends from College and University. We hadn't seen each other for over 15 years but caught up last year on Facebook. Paul has always been a talented and creative guy. We met on a design course and I remember him drawing and making music then. 

Paul Feeney has his blog at  Sound and Fury: and can be found on twitter @UncleFeeney Paul is a writer with a keen interest in horror. His blog is mainly a mix of book and film reviews. 

Paul had his first short story The weight of the ocean published on Amazon last year. I think he has a few more works coming out this year and I look forward to seeing his career development. Check him out folks.

My second entry is a wrestling blog Snapmare Necks by Martin Smith @SmithyCFC1 on Twitter. For those that don't know Glasgow is at the centre of a resurgence in the UK professional wrestling scene. Insane Championship Wrestling is leading this boom, being featured on TV and in the press and holding sell out shows both here in Glasgow including the famous Barrowlands, and Edinburgh and now even touring across the UK. 

Written in an everyman style Martin manages to perfectly capture the humour, energy and emotions of these shows perfectly. His description of a thousand people exploding with excitement at the surprise appearance of Prince Fergal Devitt before he went to become Finn Balor in the WWE is a perfect example. As well as humour and action Martin's writing can be highly personal as he has written about his battle with depression and how wrestling has helped with this. Again I look forward to reading more of his work this year. 

My last blog is someone I first discovered on Twitter who shares similar interests to myself. We both work in technology, have an interest in food and love pistachio ice cream. Michelle Muirhead's Ananyah Blog is a great starting point to discover great restaurants in and around Glasgow. She also posts about food and beauty events and can be found on twitter  @ananyah Michelle recently posted a piece on her favourite Glasgow restaurants and that's certainly a good introduction to her blog. 

Lastly is a curve ball, this one isn't so much a blog but a YouTube channel. Nick Drossos is a Canadian Fitness and Self Defence instructor. He has a YouTube Channel which had hours of video's covering all aspects of self defence. He recently appeared on Canadian Breakfast TV giving self defence tips and ran a couple of social experiments on Knife Defence and Women's self defence, both of which are well worth watching if you watch noting else. His system is practical and down to earth without fancy and complex moves. Some of the video's do include swearing but he strives to make them realistic as possible rather than the more robotic and cynical traditional martial art/self defence videos. Look him up and make sure to check out those experiment playlists as they do contain great advice. 

So there you have it folks. A few of my favourite bits and pieces, have a look at all the ones mentioned, even if its not your usual cup of tea im sure you will find them enjoyable. Hopefully some of them will be added to your reading lists, they are the staple items on mine. 

To the writers I have mentioned, thanks for your blogs and the work you put into them. I'm still starting out on my blogging journey but I know how hard it can be for me, and cant imagine what it must be like for some of you who have such a high output. 

Let me know your thoughts on this post and the blogs mentioned. What blogs are on your essential reading list? What are your blogging tips? 

Onwards and upwards in 2015

Happy New Year everyone!

Hope 2015 is a great year for you and that you can achieve all you want to this year. I think that recent events both very close to home in Glasgow and further afield in Australia and  Paris show that we need to make the most of every day.

Put your plans in motion, do the things you want to do, travel to the places you want to see. If you want to change career or start your own business go for it. Life is too short for regrets or missed opportunities.

This year I plan to get back up to speed with blogging, my output recently has been very poor. All the draft articles I've been working on will soon see the light of day.

My fitness is another area I plan to improve on. Hopefully I will manage some more bike rides this year as well as stepping up my general exercise levels.

Creativity wise, as well as blogging I hope to be more productive in general. Play more guitar, get back into drawing, take more photos.

Technology wise I have just got a PlayStation 4 which is great. The graphics are amazing, especially since my current/previous console was a Nintendo Wii. This might scupper all the other plans however as I can see it taking up a lot of my time if I'm not careful.

It's the CES technology show at the moment in Vegas. It's the annual conference where companies showcase their products that will be coming over the next few years. Its always a mixture of exciting glimpses of the future, some of the next big things and a collection of random nonsense. I'm sure we will see some of the key items making their way to the mainstream over the next 12 months.

Is there anything you are looking forward to in 2015, technology related or otherwise?

Raising your skill levels

There seems to haves been a recent trend in the gamification of learning and personal improvement. By that I mean more and more websites and apps related to improving yourself have taken an influence from gaming and role play.

The gain from any personal improvement has generally always been the improvement itself, eg getting fitter, learning a language or being more productive. Now however that doesn't seem to be enough, in our short attention span world where more and more things are competing for our valuable free time these services have had to resort to other means to keep our interest.

Most of these services now feature a combination of points and level based achievements. Some even have additional challenges and tasks to unlock and raise your profile. I'm not saying this is a bad thing, in fact its probably the opposite as they do manage to sustain your attention where you may otherwise had drifted away after the initial burst of interest has gone.

Health and fitness apps such as Map my ride, Strava or Fitocracy  are some of the most popular examples. These log your distance travelled (ran/walked/cycled etc), let you compare against others, set personal bests and compete in local challenges. 

Learning or lifestyle apps like Duolingo the popular language learning tool, or brain training apps like Lumosity offer a similar service. Here you can score points as you learn and level up as your knowledge grows.

Another category are the productivity apps like Todoist or Wunderlist. Both of which allow you to create and manage tasks lists. Again you are rewarded with points for logging in, creating or completing your tasks. 

Are these an example of our constant need for stimulus, or the advantage of smartphone culture and how it can improve our life experiences? Is it another example of our need for peer approval as we share these achievements on social media? Some think the opposite however, as the community aspect of these apps often help users stick with it or overcome challenges when their motivation is failing.  

Perhaps this is one of the main benefits over traditional go-it-alone self improvement. It can be the extra boost needed when struggling to go the extra distance or stick in for another lesson. Instead of the solitary run where it doesn't matter if you turn back early for home. Or stepping away from the learning zone to watch TV. Knowing you have a group behind you sharing advice, giving you praise on your achievements, or getting that next badge may be what you need to keep going.

What do you think? Are these useful tools of our smartphone world, or an example of our short attention spans? Have I missed any good examples of similar apps that make a difference in your life? Let me know in the comments. 

If in doubt, work it out

I was looking back over my blog history and realised I haven't published anything yet this year. Shame on me. It doesn't feel like that as I have been working on a few posts that haven't quite seen the light of day as yet. Perhaps that's why I hadn't realised or posted something sooner.

Someone once said that if you are struggling to write your posts, or have a few drafts waiting on their final edit, then just post something. Anything. A quick burst of productivity to get the ball rolling again.

So here it is folks, something short and sweet to show the blog is still active and that much more will be coming soon. In the pipeline we have a couple of reviews and a piece on learning and fitness apps. Hopefully they will be escaping from my drafts sections shortly...

One last wee bit to give this post some link back to technology before I sign off.

Its been an interesting week or so for apple. The iPhone 6 was released and snapped up by keen fans as always. However there are reports surfacing of problems with the phones bending if too much pressure is applied. Couple this with existing apple users, myself included, experiencing issues when upgrading their devices to iOS8, and problems after the upgrades is applied. Only yesterday apple withdrew the follow on 8.0.1 update as this had been causing some devices to loose connectivity amongst other issues.

It will certainly have been a week to remember for apple, both on the good and bad sides. The interesting part will be to see where they go from here. Can it be spun and resolved like the iPhone5's Antennagate issue? How quickly will the software updates appear and will users soon be singing their praises again?

Gone till Movember

As the end of October looms quickly this week its almost time for me to begin a month of ever changing facial decoration as I'm taking part in Movember again.

If you haven't heard of it Movember is a growing movement which started in Australia in 2003 and now has over 3 million members in 21 countries. The idea being it is that men will grow a moustache in November to raise awareness and donations for prostate and testicular cancer and mental health. You can find out more on the About Movember page on their site.

I did a bit of a dry run at this the other year, going for the 'tache but not actually the raising money and social media side of it. This year i decided to do it properly so will be updating my MoSpace with progress reports and a bit on my facebook and twitter pages. I won't be bugging everyone on here too much but will maybe have a couple of status updates along the way.

So for more details or to donate visit my MoSpace :  MoBro.co/JohnBurrow75

The great Gmail mistake

There's one common mistake that lots of small businesses and sole traders seem to make, and its one that can very easily be avoided.

It's a simple thing that can have a big impact on how people perceive your company. Are you seen as a reputable business or perhaps not quite so reliable or legitimate?

What gives your potential clients this impression of reliability or that you are someone doing it in their spare time?

It's your company email address

Potential clients may not even be conscious of the impression this gives them, but it may be one of the factors that makes them decide whether you are the person they want to do business with, or if they would rather go with another company as it appears more professional for some intangible reason.

All too often I have seen small businesses who use a @Gmail or @Hotmail email account. Quite often it's not just on their business card too, I know of one contractor who has well designed branded stationary, smart business cards and a body wrapped van, all big investments in a strong company brand but in my opinion let down by using an @Aol address. 

Maybe its just me but i think that these email addresses don't have the same impact as mail@yourcompanyname.com, which implies a level of permanence and stability not provided by the webmail alternative. 

Easy problem to solve

The sad thing is that this can only cost a few pounds to fix, probably less than the cheapest batch of internet business cards. Maybe people don't realise how inexpensive it is to register a domain name, only a few pounds a year. It may be that they think they only get a domain if they have a website hosted on it. Perhaps they think its something difficult which requires some IT knowledge, it's not. If you can fill in a form online you can buy a domain from one of the many domain registrars, the hardest part is often deciding on the domain name you want.

Most domain purchases include either small number of free mailboxes which then allow you to set up an info@, mail@, yourname@yourcomanyname.com etc, or a 'catch all' email account which will pick up any email sent to 'something'@yourcompanyname.com. You don't even need to have a computer at home, these emails can then be picked up on your phone, your iPad, anything with a mail app, although chances are most small businesses will have at least one PC for doing their paperwork on anyway.

Some domain registration packages may include the option to have a mini website, or landing page which lets you have an online presence even if you don't have the content for a proper website at this point. Quite often it's just a page with your company contact details, maybe a logo and a short description, but at least is means if someone does look for you online they can find out a bit of info. You can also then link any free listings (Google Places, Yell, Free Index etc) back to your site to boost the page ratings which helps with your online presence. 

So if you are starting off in business or looking to update your existing marketing material  have a quick look at your contact details. If you don't have your own domain take five minutes and go online now and get one. You wont regret it, it will make both you and your potential clients more confident in your business brand. 

Twitter hacking and password security

You may have noticed over the last month or so that a spate of high profile Twitter accounts had been hacked including Burger King, Justin Beiber, The fake Obama news story and the BBC Weather feed. Similarly sites like LinkedIn and Evernote have recently been forced to reset users passwords.

Some of these attacks have been blamed in certain circles on organised teams of Chinese cyber criminals, perhaps with official backing, to undermine these companies or to use their account information for their own ends. Some may have just been malicious/mischievous individuals doing it for fun.

Cyber crime, hacking, Fraping call it what you will, it is ultimately all the same. Whether your a corporate multinational or its your own personal feed, the problem is out there, all be it being carried out for different purposes. Which brings us to the point of this post, security. 

Yes, you have no real control over the servers or back end code that manages your precious online data. You do however have one key area of control and so many of us fail to maximise on this, that is dear reader : your password. Its your only real means of exercising some input on the safety of your personal information. 

I know most of us will never be targeted by teams of hackers crouched over their PCs determined to crack our Facebook password to view our recent photo uploads, but that's not the point. All too often people use the same password across multiple sites, get it for one and then they suddenly have access to a lot more personal information which could then be used in a more malicious manner. 

Lets look at it from a different angle though what if its not some nasty covert organisation trying to mine all your details but perhaps a not-so-close-friend or acquaintance? Someone from your office who has a slightly too keen an interest or underlying dislike of you, someone you have recently blocked, or an ex friend/partner of one of your close friends. These people could either want to dig into your profile to find out more about you, or perhaps use your profile to browse another persons profile. 

So i ask you, how secure are your passwords? 

Can they be guessed by people who know about it about you such as your pets name or favourite food or band? Is its just your name or worse still the word password? In the case of the Burger King Twitter hack their password was allegedly 'Whopper1'. Quite often these not-so-close acquaintances we mentioned might try a few guesses at these to see if they can log onto your webmail or facebook, just for the sake of it. 

A good piece on password security and the logic behind it was recently posted on the  PC-Pro website. It does get a bit techy with some of the background info but its well worth a look. This American blog has a good overall view on password strategy too and is worth a quick look. 

I guess the basics are:

• Don't use common password such as 'password' or '12345'
• Use letters and numbers to make it more complex and upper/lower case
• Don't use one password for all your accounts
• Keep your contact details up to date in case you need to reset them.
• Remember it doesn't have to be a password, a phrase is better. 

For example your password could be: 'ferrari' 
Lets make it a bit longer: 'fast ferrari'
Then change the case: 'Fast Ferrari' 
Next substitute letters for numbers: 'F45t F3rr4r1'

Lastly we can add some special characters. You could swap an 'a' with a '@' however i recommend avoiding that as different keyboard mapping can mean you don't always get the '@' character as as passwords usually don't show as you type you may never realise it is appearing as something else

And there you have it: 'F45t_F3rr4r1!'  

Its still something easily memorable as you think about the phrase and then substitute the characters as you type. This is by no means a super secure password but a lot stronger than the initial one. You can check your password here and get a quick indication of how long it would take to crack and a nice colour coding of the page as you type going from weak to very secure. 

Be safe, be secure and then relax knowing that the only people looking at your information online are those your want to see it.

Where is your phone just now?

A couple of recent incidents have raised mobile security or being able to easily locate your phone to the forefront for me.

One of the girls who works in our office lost her phone at the weekend. She was walking back from an evenings entertainment and dropped it on route. It being a white phone which was lost, on a snowy night, in the dark didn't give her much chance of finding it. Luckily a trip out the next day to retrace her route did the trick and she managed to find it before someone else did.

Something that would have helped in this situation would be a mobile security/finder app. These apps let you locate your phone on a website using the phones GPS or mobile signal. Handy if your trying to narrow down a search area or check if its even near where you think it might be.

I use an app called Android Lost. It has a range of features including phone location tools, enable ringer if phone was on silent. You can even use it to make the phone speak "I'm over here" or have the camera take a photo so you can see what's nearby.

Of course there is a more serious side to these type of apps. They can be used to lock or even reset your handset and delete personal data. Alert you if the SIM has changed and tell you the new number. You can even send a fake warning message to the phone which will then send you back a photo of the person reading the alert.

I started using this as a result of a colleague having his phone stolen. He had managed to track it with the police using his Google latitude account but alas the handset wasn't recovered. This caused us to look at a few of these apps before settling on one that seemed had the best mix of features at that point.

Some manufactures have their own apps which provide some of these functions. HTC Sense has a find my phone tool a few years ago. Apple have a locate my device function. As I said however most of these tools will do some basic functions, whereas a dedicated app offers a lot more, and may be less obvious if your phone is stolen, so have less chance of being turned off if it ends up in the wrong hands.

Everyone knows the saying about "shutting the door after the horse has bolted", but this is one instance where "better late than never" can also apply. One great feature of Google's Play Store and iTunes is the ability to push apps to your device. So if you do loose your phone you can push one of these apps on to it and hopefully still track it down.

That said however it is worth installing one of these apps now. Not only for the piece of mind it gives you but also because you may have to do some configuration once its installed to ensure you can use all the features and obviously you couldn't do this if you can't get your hands on your phone.

So do you know where your phone is right now? If you do, pick it up head to its app store and get one of these apps installed and hopefully then you will always be able to find it.

Update: 

A burglar was recently captured after stealing a couples car and phone using their Find my iPhone App. See T3 for more details. 

PC running slow, apps failing to respond?

We all know how frustrating it is to be sitting at a pc waiting for it to spring into life and complete an action. Or, you click on an app and it takes ages for something to happen. Its no fun, it makes any job seem like a painful task and you end up tearing your hair out with frustration. 

I guess for readers of this blog it may have been a bit like that recently. After a short burst when I started off I haven't been doing much posting recently. I've even started a few posts on Windows 8 which have been languishing as a draft for months. Sorry folks but normal service will be resumed shortly. I've been a bit like one of those slow machines, chugging along not getting anywhere fast, not running at my full potential. 

With slow PC's there's plenty you can do. My first bit of advice would be to check to see if your system can take more RAM. Use something like the Crucial System Scanner to see what is in your system and how much RAM is needed to max it out if possible. Bear in mind if its a 32 bit OS it will only support about 3.5GB so anything more than 4GB would be wasting your money. OK so its not free but RAM is fairly cheap at the moment and will generally make a big performance difference  Don't be afraid of fitting it either, its not hard job and there are plenty of videos on-line which show you how to do it.

Its no fun running low on resources. I haven't done any exercise since October, what with colds, a broken toe, dodgy coughs lasting for months with achy ribs. I'm starting to realise its had an impact on me and I'm not getting things done like I should have. Still I'm starting to feel a bit more normal now, so back to the gym soon and hopefully doing the Couch to 5K plan too. That should get me back to optimum working condition.

Other options which don't involve spending money include things like checking what programs are actually running on your PC, all those pointless things that load at startup for example. Have a check in your system tray to see what is running and what you actually need. Use MSCONFIG to disable things you don't need to speed up boot time and free up resources. 

Check your hard drive too, make sure its not running near capacity. Use disk clean-up or a program like Treesize or SpaceSniffer to check what's hogging your disk space and remove anything you don't need, just be careful what you delete. Once you have enough free space run a disk defrag to help improve file access. 

Guess that's what holds me and a lot of other people back too, half the time when I'm trying to get things done I end up doing the wrong tasks which ends up getting nothing much done at all. Once you take away the needless tasks you can actually focus on what needs to be actioned. 

Hopefully like giving your PC a spring clean this will give me a boost to get things done and be a bit more positive and pro-active in general. I've got plenty of good things to get busy for and make the best they can be, myself, my wife and family, my work. The move towards spring with the lighter mornings and nights also gives a boost with the temptation of sun looming on the horizon, its a bit like replacing the battery in a laptop you've had for a years now. 

Look forward to some more post soon dear reader, probably a bit more Tech focused but maybe the occasional fit-bit thrown in. Let me know if you notice any improvements after getting your kit in order if you've never tried it before. 

iPhone follow on

Since my original post on the new iPhone 5 there has been even more written and discussed on the successes and failings of the new handset. 

In short, yes the new iPhone is better. The screen size is more useful and the majority of apps have already had an update to make the most of the new screen space. The new handset is lighter, slimmer and possibly has a nicer feel depending on peoples personal preference. 

The one fly in the ointment which doesn't seem to be going anywhere soon is the maps issue. Perhaps apple could have saved some face if they had renamed it to navigation to emphasise the point of why the made the change. Here is a new app to allow iPhone users to access free turn by turn navigation which was missing from the native Google maps app but was present on the android equivalent. This would have lessened the emphasis on the mapping side of the application and its current shortfalls. They could even have kept the Google map app in place in this version of iOS for mapping whilst the Sat-Nav app developed and gathered enough map/search data in the background to make it more functional, then in the next iOS upgrade made the full switch and heralded it as the big shiny thing it would have then been. 


I read a good unbiased and quite well rounded review recently. I have attached a link as it is worth a look: 

Cult of Mac : Is iOS 6 holding back the iPhone 5?

One last thing for now, unless something spectacular happens, the next post wont be related to iPhones, so never fear we will be stepping away form the fruit based products. 

Much ado about nothing?

Oh well, the iPhone 5 got its official launch last week to a slightly better than mediocre response. Is this the first of the iPhone launches to miss the mark? 

It certainly isn't the set the web on fire, world beater that certain sections of the media may have expected from Apple. Quite a few commentators, myself included think its OK, but is that it? Apple could have taken the new iPhone and pushed the handset market forward again with a device that would still feel good to own in 2 years time (the length of most current contracts now). Maybe Cupertino's finest have become a victim of their own success and people were just expecting much more from them.

Image Courtesy of Mashable

Ok it has a slightly longer screen which adds an extra row of icons to the home screen but this still feels small against is main and current larger android rivals such as the Samsung Galaxy S3 and Note and the HTC One X.

Better camera features are always well received. In my opinion it's criminal when smartphone makers release a phone with a poor camera, there's no excuse for that. Certainly the iPhone cameras have always been very good and this one steps things up again. 

The new maps app which replaces Google maps with Apples own and brings free turn-by-turn navigation to the iPhone is a welcome addition, even though it has attracted less than glowing comparisons to Google maps. 

The other main feature change is one which already seems to have upset existing users, especially those with other pieces of tech which links into their existing iPhone, the new smaller 'Lightning' connector. This change away from the familiar 30 pin connector leaves users who have purchased expensive speaker docks or car kits having to now purchase a £25 adapter to make these work. There have been reports that certain items may loose some functionality and there is the added hassle of having to carry the adapter around, or buy more than one. 

Perhaps its just that the quality of android phones is now generally much higher across the range? There have always been handsets which have had a higher spec or better features than the iPhone but perhaps weren't so well known. Until recently for every great android phone there were many more poor cheap handsets flooding the lower end of the market and pulling down the overall reputation. This meant the early iPhone's could brag of being better and more stable than the early android phones. Now it seems the opposite, that this new handset is almost up to the standard of the best android phones, which means that in 12 months where will it place with any new handsets in the pipeline including the windows 8 phones from Nokia and HTC. 

Users who are now committing to a 24 month contact for their iPhone 5 may feel differently about it when they are a year in and the handset marketplace has changed. There will be more phones with Near Field Communication, or contactless charging to name but two features which were rumored for the iPhone but never made it. 

Already since the launch of iOS 6 on Wednesday the web has been littered with a slew of less than glowing comments on the new apple maps. Luckily iPhone users can still install the Google maps app and similarly a youtube app as this has been removed natively, however the iPad users don't seem to have their replacements yet. Again these features will no doubt quickly improve ans iOS 6 does bring other nice features so its certainly not a step backwards, just a change in direction. 

No doubt we will find out more today as users will finally get their hands on their new shiny iPhone's. It will be interesting to see the early feedback, will it be all people expected and more, or will they think why did I upgrade for this? 

Exciting times ahead

I guess now is as good a time as any to start off on the blogging path. Its been something I’ve been thinking about for a while as a place to share my thoughts on IT, the web and other Tech related randomness from my position as a reasonably technical but hopefully still everyman kinda guy.

The reason that now is as good a time, if not the best time to do this is related to the various events happening at the moment in the tech world. Microsoft will soon be launching their first new Operating System for a few years in Windows 8. Today will see the eagerly anticipated and much speculated on unveiling of the new iPhone. We’ve just had the Amazon launch of the new Kindle tablets and will be finally getting our hands on proper UK versions. 

Hopefully you will enjoy my blog, rest assured I won’t be blinding anyone by technobabble just giving a straightforward view on things with a bit of personality thrown in. Stick around and fingers crossed we will all enjoy it.