Data Doctors Tech Tips

The industry standard for word processing is by far Microsoft Word, which anyone that's ever worked in an office environment will know. One of the great and powerful features in Word is the ability to create macros, which are essentially a recording of a combination of keystrokes that can be launched via a keyboard shortcut. Wouldn't it be nice to have that same capability for all the web-based productivity tools we use every day? Well, there is a Chrome browser extension called Auto Text Expander that will allow you to just that. The only limit to how many ways you can use this free tool is your own imagination, as you can take any large chunk of text and assign it to a made-up word. For instance, you could create a shortcut called bizadd which would quickly insert your full business address or create any number of signatures for your various email accounts. What makes this approach so useful is that it isn't just for Google's online word processor called Docs; it works in any text field that you use on any platform. It's really a simple but powerful tool that you should add to your toolbox!: and#160;https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/auto-text-expander-for-go/iibninhmiggehlcdolcilmhacighjamp

For a variety of reasons, you may want to minimize the data usage on your mobile devices and that's the focus of today's tip. When you don't have the option to use wifi for your surfing, every bit and byte counts against your cellular data plan. If you've never explored the Opera browsers for your mobile device, this is the reason you should consider downloading it, because it's designed to reduce your data usage while still providing a solid web experience. One of the ways they pull this off is through a clever compression process that takes place before you even start to download the info from the Internet. When you're on a really slow connection on the edge of your carrier's signal, Opera can really show off its differences. Opera also has a speed-dial startup option so you can have your most-used web links as your start page. It's easy to start using the Opera browser specifically designed for mobile devices just by going to https://m.opera.com on your smartphone or tablet.

Today's tip is for anyone that has to decide how to hold a web conference call, that includes people on smartphones and tablets. As great as video conferencing may be for some, for a large number of meetings, it's completely unnecessary. There's an online alternative to video conferences at https://www.uberconference.com that's exponentially more effective than traditional phone conference calls. This awesome service, which has no connection to the ride sharing service is better because the eliminated those long irritating meeting IDs and crazy long PINs that are required to access the meeting. The best part of the platform is that it identifies each participant with an avatar that represents each attendee. The host also has total control over who they can mute, which is great when someone decides to put the call on hold. Features like screen sharing and call recording are built in and this approach is so much more effective for those on mobile devices. You can hold small meetings for free and if you really get like the platform, increase to 100 attendees with their pay option. Learn more at https://www.uberconference.com

Most of us rarely go a day without checking into one of our social media accounts and it's also where we typically learn that someone has passed away. When that happens, Facebook is often the central place where friends and family will post pictures and memories that they had with the dearly departed. In far too many cases, the family of the person that has passed on has no way to access the account, so it will eventually be converted by Facebook to a memorialized account. Most Facebook users seem to be unaware that they created a way for anyone to appoint as the caretaker of their profile should you pass. The feature is known as a Legacy Contact, and it will provide that person access to your profile. The option can currently be accessed in the Settings menu in the General section under the Manage Account heading. No one really likes dealing with their mortality, but this is a simple way to make sure you give your loved ones control of all your precious memories, which can be very helpful as they grieve.

Nothing is more enjoyable for a techie than to discover a new trick, so today's tip is for those that have yet to discover IFTTT.com IFTTT stands for If This Then That and it's an awesome free tool that can leverage your various web-based accounts in a very powerful way, by creating something resembling a macro. For instance, you can use one of the 'recipes' that are posted to send a reminder to your smartphone when you click on the star in Gmail messages or text your spouse when you're leaving the office, automatically! This platform works with hundreds of online services and lots of users have already created very useful recipes for you to start using right away. If you really get into it, you can share your own recipes as you find new ways to use the tool. It's not confined to your computer either, as apps are available for all your mobile devices as well. We've talked about this before and we'll do it again until everyone realizes how cool IFTTT.com is!

Other than battery life, the number one complaint that I hear from smartphone owners is that they are constantly running out of storage space. It's especially problematic with smartphones that don't offer any type of memory expansion slot, which is becoming a lot more common these days. It's best to start with all those apps that probably haven't even opened for some time, but for a real increase in storage space, focus on your videos and pictures. Those quick HD videos that you can shoot with your smartphone can take up a lot more space than dozens of images, so if you don't really need them, dump them! A hidden area of your phone that could be hogging up lots of space is from all the attached images and videos that are in your text messages. I've seen a huge gain in free space on lots of phones by getting rid of old text messages, especially for those that use it as their primary communication channel. For more suggestions on managing your smartphone storage, check out this column: https://www.datadoctors.com/help/kenscolumns/22055

The power of your smartphone can be leveraged to create some amazing stop-motion videos, but the folks at Stikbot have an even better idea. Their app works like most of the other stop-motion options, which allows you to create videos with what appears to be movement of a particular item. Making something appears to move around a table or plate is pretty easy with this genre of apps. What makes the Stikbot offerings so compelling is that you can order their figurines to be the star of your movies. The wide variety of figurines are designed to allow the stop motion action to be much more elaborate because they can be attached to a variety of surfaces using suction cups. Let's face it, giving your kids the tools to let their movie making creativity come out could be the beginning of something amazing. Check out what all this looks like at https://stikbot.toys

If you've gotten tired of the games you play on your smartphone, today's tip is for you, especially if you can remember all the arcade fun we had in the 80's. Pac-Man was the all-time king of arcade games and mastering every level was the goal we all had. If you were actually able to master all the levels with the arcade game, you'll never get to the end with the new Pac-Man 256 because it's endless. For those in the know, the '256' is a nod to the famous glitch in the arcade game. You won't have the old familiar joystick, so you have to get used to swiping the screen to get around. Not only is this game endless, there are lots of new power capabilities that you can add when you gobble up those famous pellets, so if you're into old-school video games, it doesn't get much better than Pac-Man: Android:and#160;https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=eu.bandainamcoent.pacman256andhl=en iOS:and#160;https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/pac-man-256-endless-arcade/id1002340615?mt=8

Who doesn't love free apps, especially those that you discover are useful or entertaining on a daily basis? Something important to understand about free apps is that most of them are free because they include lots of advertising, which have a couple of hidden costs, especially if you have a limited data plan with a cellular carrier. Not only can all those ads eat up your data plan, but they can also increase the chances of you running out of battery power sooner. Studies have been done comparing apps that are available as both ad-supported or as a paid app and the findings were very surprising. Ad-supported apps can increase data usage to your plan by as much as 80% over the apps that you pay for to remove the ads. These apps can also take up valuable working memory on your smartphone and impact battery life by as much as 16%. For those struggling with keeping their phones charged through the day or those that are constantly bumping up against data limits, those free apps may be the culprit. Free apps can also overreach in the privacy area, which is another reason to be careful. Knowing this, paying a buck or two for an app to remove the ads may actually be a bargain if you use them all the time.

We're all making more meals at home these days so finding new dishes that don't drag you back into the usual suspects is a help. Well, there's an app for that and it's called Dinner Spinner from the people at All Recipes. The app asks you to choose that type of disk, like a salad or entree along with any specific ingredients that you have on hand and most importantly, how much time you're willing to spend on making the dish. My first time using app provided me twenty-five options for a 20 minute or less recipe that included chicken as the protein. As with Amazon, you'll also get suggested recipes from others that are similar or complementary to the one you are reviewing. For the more adventurous chef, you can ask the app for a totally random recipe by shaking the phone with the app open. For those with specific dietary items they want to avoid, the filter allows you to screen out recipes that won't work. Inspiration for discovering new family favorite dinner options await you at: http://dish.allrecipes.com/mobile-apps