Category: tech

Back to iPhone but I miss my Pixel

Back to iPhone but I miss my Pixel

Posted on by Jack

I’ve tried different cell phones. In the old days (the 1990s), I had a several different phones. But when I moved from my old flip phone to a smartphone I picked an iPhone. I think it was an iPhone 4 and then I moved up to a 5 after a few years I had the iPhone 5 for several years but was a bit curious about the Android world. So my next phone was a Samsung Galaxy. I liked that but next time I was ready to move I picked a Pixel.

I liked my Pixel but wanted to try the Apple watch. I was mainly interested in the ability to monitor some health issues and keeping track of some exercise things was probably a good idea too. Afterall, I do call this blog RetiredGuy and I am getting a bit older. So I got the new iPhone 12 and the Apple watch 6. The watch just came a few days ago so it it really to soon to comment on that. But I’ve had the phone for a week or so.

The main thing I miss about the Pixel is call screening. If I got a call from an unfamiliar number and did not know if I wanted to answer, I could let Google answer. Google would say they were screening the call and a transcript would appear on the phone. When they asked who the caller was and what the caller wanted, I would get a transcript of the answer. Of course spammers usually hung up at that point. But if there was an answer, I could decide whether on not to answer the call. I haven’t found something similar to the Iphone 12 yet.

Search Engines without Big Brother

Search Engines without Big Brother

Posted on by Jack

I wrote about a New Search Engine – DuckDuckGo last year. DuckDuckGo is a search engine that maintains your privacy since it does not record who is doing the searching.

This seems more important than it did last year. Continue reading “Search Engines without Big Brother”

Upgrading your Smartphone

Upgrading your Smartphone

Posted on by Jack

If you are thinking about upgrading your smartphone or maybe considering moving up to a smartphone, it might be a good idea to invest a few dollars in a book that can tell you what the new phone can and can’t do. And of course if it does something, you’ll want to know how. Continue reading “Upgrading your Smartphone”

How to create eBooks (EPUB files) for free

How to create eBooks (EPUB files) for free

Posted on by Jack

Dick Eastman in his Eastman’s Online Genealogy Newsletter has posted an article called How to Create EPUB Files for use in eBooks.

Since an EPUB has many advantages over the the PDF or even paper copies may be using now, you might want to consider it. The article goes into these advantages. But perhaps more importantly, it tells you how you can do this for free or with other paid options if you prefer that route.

Normally this article is available to customers of the paid version of the newsletter but this article is offered as free EPUB download to all who read the shorter version in the free newsletter online.

I read the article last night on my iPhone with the free Bluefire Reader app.

New Search Engine – DuckDuckGo

New Search Engine – DuckDuckGo

Posted on by Jack

So I go to this meeting and there is a presentation on a new search engine. Well, new for me; I’m not sure how long it has been around. You may ask – at what type of meeting would they talk about search engines. But that doesn’t matter. The point is that was one of the presentations.

But I’ll tell you anyway. It was a WordPress meet up for the Philly ‘burbs and I’ve gone a couple times now. You’ve probably noticed that I use WordPress for this blog. And I use WordPress as part of a team of volunteers that maintains a website for my community ( http://hersheysmill.org/ ). So I thought it might be a good idea to learn something.

So this search engine really had nothing to do with WordPress but it was interesting. DuckDuckGo is a search engine but unlike many, it maintains your privacy since it does not record who is doing the searching. I’m giving it a try now and it seems to work well. You might want to check out the More area or the options in the dropdown next to the search box.

I do a lot of searching for genealogy-related info and just about anything that comes up. DuckDuckGo does a good job and the privacy and options are additional benefits. So check out https://duckduckgo.com/. I think most people would like it.

Kindle App on the iPhone 5

Kindle App on the iPhone 5

Posted on by Jack

I had previously written about the Bluefire Reader e-reader on my iPhone so I thought I should also tell you about the Kindle App on the iPhone 5.

I have a Kindle which is several years old and really like it. I often use it to read the books I review on this website. More about that in my Bluefire link above.

The iPhone 5 screen is bigger that the old iPhones so that might make a difference in the experience but I suspect it would not make all that much difference. Any iPhone screen would be much smaller than a Kindle.

So if you are reading with similar size fonts the main difference is that there is less on each page. On the Kindle you have buttons to advance the page, but the app changes the page when you touch with screen at the side. Or you can also use the swiping action if you like that.

With the Kindle you have a bunch of buttons available to do various things but with the app those functions are hidden most of the time but reveal themselves when you touch the top or bottom of the screen. I haven’t checked to see if all functions on the Kindle are also on the app but those I use are there.

My Kindle is Wi-Fi only (no 3G) so if I am in the presence of Wi-Fi, the app and Kindle can synch so I can go back and forth between reading a book on one and then the other and my place carries over.

I usually read on the Kindle when at home. But the app is great if I am waiting somewhere and want to read my book for a while. I usually carry my phone when we go anywhere and carrying the Kindle around is not hard but now it is unnecessary.

I also use the app at home if my wife wants to use the Kindle so we don’t have to be a two Kindle family. Also sometimes I just use the app on my phone because I feel like it.

Note added:

I forgot to mention that the app is free from the Apple store. So if you have an iPhone and a Kindle account, you have nothing to lose by trying this. You’ll probably like it!

Bluefire Reader ereader on my iPhone

Bluefire Reader ereader on my iPhone

Posted on by Jack

You may have noticed that in some of the posts on this site I review books I have read recently. Quite a few of these are e-books from Netgalley, service that allows book publishers to make their Advanced Reader Copies (ARCs) available electronically for book reviewers, book sellers, librarians, and so forth.

I usually request copies compatible with my Kindle. However a few weeks ago I had requested book and was approved but sadly there was not a Kindle option. The available option was the Adobe Digital Editions which does a fine job but my only experience with it was reading a book on a laptop computer. It works but it is a bit inconvenient to fire up the old laptop and actually keep it in your lap as you read. A bit big and clunky for me.

I had read Kindle books on my iPhone with the Kindle App on the iPhone and liked it so I looked for something that could read Adobe Digital Editions files on the iPhone. I found Bluefire Reader, which was highly rated e-reader in the Apple store. So I installed it and gave it a try.

Since I already had Adobe Digital Editions on my main computer and laptop, I already had an account and just had to authorize another device (Bluefire Reader), download the book, and I was set.

Bluefire Reader was easy to use and did a great job in allowing me to read on my phone. Bluefire Reader is a wonderful e-reader for the iPhone.

Sine I have found myself posting about computer, software, and technology in general as I go about writing about genealogy, books, or other issues, I am adding a tech category to cross reference those posts. I’ll go back and add that category as appropriate. I guess, it is appropriate too that I have written this first post in the tech category with my Chromebook.

New generation Chromebook

New generation Chromebook

Posted on by Jack

I have previously talked about using my Chromebook for genealogy (Pros and Cons of Chromebook and Cons and Chromebook for genealogy).

I was pleased to see a TV ad the other day for the new generation of Chromebook. (I usually would not use “pleased” and “ad” together but it was a nice break from the political ads which are dominating the airwaves these days.) I do not plan on getting a new Chromebook but hope this new generation will spur interest and app development.

Dick Eastman’s Online Genealogy Newsletter has a nice article about the new $249 Samsung chromebook.

Pros and Cons of Chromebook

Pros and Cons of Chromebook

Posted on by Jack

Yesterday,I wrote about using my Chromebook for genealogy. Since I have a bit of extra time this morning I thought it would be good to mention a few pros and cons. Yesterdays post was mainly on the positives but there are a few negatives.

The thing that I see as the biggest downside is that if you don’t have an internet connection, the computer seems like a big paperweight and there is little you can do. But I knew that before I bought and intended to use it with WiFi so this is not a problem for me.

Documents on your Google drive are either unavailable or uneditable depending on where you were when you lost the connection. I believe Google has improved that but I haven’t had much luck with it. (I should mention that this is not the new version of the Chromebook).

A minor irritation but one that comes up often if you are typing is that there is a key next to the ‘a’ key and just above the shift key that opens a new tab in the browser (which is Chrome of course). You very quickly realize what has happened and close the new tab and go back to what you were working on.

You do almost everything in Chrome which seems a bit strange at first but you quickly get used to having everything in different Chrome tabs. For example if you edit a document, it is in Google docs and on your Google drive and done in a Chrome tab.

The touchpad is a bit of genius. You can scroll and move around with it like a laptop but it also serves as your mouse. It takes a bit of getting used to it but you can click, highlight, and so forth. Of course, you can add a real mouse via the USB port but that would partly defeat your desire for a small, compact, and secure computer.

So if you are willing to accept its limitations, the Chromebook is a fine second computer. I don’t think many people would be happy with the Chromebook as a main computer.

My main computer is a desktop and I use the Chromebook as a second computer at home and as a small and secure computer when travelling. Depending on your situation the dataplan may be a plus but it is certainly not needed if you are willing to live with WiFi only.

Once again this blog post was made with my Chromebook.

Chromebook for genealogy

Chromebook for genealogy

Posted on by Jack

A couple months or so ago I bought a Chromebook . For those who not familiar, it is a small computer, very light, highly secure, and it starts up very quickly. Here are the specifications of my model .

My ChromeBook model has both WiFi and a small data plan from Verizon. I use it mainly as a WiFi but the Verizon connection is nice because there are a few occasions when you need to connect but just can’t find WiFi. Since the many of the functions do not work if you lose your WiFi connection, the data plan is very helpful. My understanding is that it is a prepaid plan (and you paid for it with your chromebook) and it is renewed every 30 days by either Google or Samsung. So if you use all your data for the month you have the option of buying more data from Verizon or just waiting until the next 30 cycle.

So after that lengthy introduction, I can get down to why I was writing to begin with. I am spending a few days in New York City and decided I would use the time to look up some genealogy stuff. I have my family tree on Ancestry and thought the Chromebook would be a great way to have my genealogy with me in case I needed to look something up.

Of course you could just do things the old fashioned way and write down what you need, But if you are in a place with lots of information, you could decide to look up someone or something which was not anticipated. In my experience that happens alot when you are in places with lots of information.

For example now I am sitting in the library of the New York Historical Society. I had requested a few items (books and manuscripts) this morning before I came. (This part of the post was writen while I was waiting for my requests.) And depending on the results, I can access the online catalog and request more with my Chromebook (since they have WiFi here). This is particularly nice if you find something unexpected and wish to follow-up. I can also take notes with my Chromebook.

I visited the New York City main library (5th Ave and 42nd St) and made good use of their WiFi. The National Archives in New York (Houston and Varick Streets) does not have WiFi but they do have public access computers. I did use the verizon connection with the Chromebook to briefly check some information I had on the Google Drive but should have thought to write down.

It was a very nice genealogical visit to New York City and I made good use of the Chromebook. I’ll havee to write a bit more about this visit and the Chromebook. I have uploaded this to my blog from Google drive with my Chromebook.