Smart Tech

Smart Tech

By Chuck MinearTechnology
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Smart Tech episodes

  • st1518: "Hey Siri" Unpacking Apple's Latest Announcements - new iPhones, iPad Pro, WatchOS 2 and Apple TV

    In today's episode I get to talk about my favorite thing, new goodies.  Specifically new goodies from Apple.  On September 9, Apple shared some new updates.  But instead of repeating the entire keynote, I want to give you some highlights, the things I thought were innovative.

    It is amazing to me, when apple announces something, the negative comments that come out.  I mean, if some of these things happened 20 years ago, the world would be in awe.  Instead we go, "Really, thats it.  Can’t you show me something really exciting."  Well lets see if we can pull out the exciting from the mundane.  Let's talk about the new iPhones, the iPad Pro, updates in Watch os and the Apple TV.

    20 min
  • st1517: Even the SmartTech Dude Gets Hacked!

    While on the road somewhere between Portland and Los Angeles I got a message from one of my listeners that the website was down.  This began an ordeal on tracking down the problem, getting it fixed, and trying not to have it happen again.  In this episode I tell you what happened and what you can do to prevent such a thing happening to you.

    40 min
  • st1517: Even the SmartTech Dude Gets Hacked! [Podcast]
    While on the road somewhere between Portland and Los Angeles I got a message from one of my listeners that the SmartTech website was down.  He was dutifully trying to use the Amazon link on the SmartTech site to give credit to his favorite podcast.  (I'm assuming it's his favorite!) This began an ordeal on tracking down the problem, getting it fixed, and trying not to have it happen again.  In this episode I tell you what happened and what you can do to prevent such a thing happening to you.



    UPDATE: Since I recorded this episode I have had less than stellar help from SiteLock.  I paid SiteDoctor through Bluehost to clean the site of malware and they wanted me to subscribe to a $200 package from SiteLock to continue to monitor and fix my site.  When I balked, they said they would package SiteLock and SiteDoctor (for 1 fix) for $200 for the year for the FIX plan.  I decided I had been down enough and I would try the service.  All seemed well for a couple of months when I was told I had been reinfected.  Now you would think that the FIX plan would actually fix something.  Well I was apparently wrong.  Even through there is a a FIX button on the FIX plan's control panel, I got a pop up message to call them instead.  I finally got ahold of someone who told me they wanted another few hundred dollars to fix my site.  When I explained I had the FIX plan already, the tech turned sales person told me something like "I wish they would change that name, it does not actually indicate what the service includes and causes confusion."  So the FIX plan does not actually fix your website.  I'm not sure what the FIX plan does besides monitoring for more money.  My analysis of SiteLock is it is a bait and switch.  STAY AWAY.  I have begun to use a service called SUCURI.  So far so good.  They fix your site and also provide a firewall to block malware.  We shall see how this goes.  I will do a future post on SUCURI.

    Links to things talked about in this episode:

    Sucuri

    Bluehost link

    Get Noticed Theme

    Social Media Subscribe and Follow buttons

    Simple Podcast Press

    SiteDoctor - NOT Recommended anymore

    1Password

    Recommendations to keep you from getting hacked!

    1. Scan your computers with latest and updated anti virus and spyware programs. Make sure they are virus free.
    2. Reset all your passwords.
    3. Password should not be simple. (use http://strongpasswordgenerator.com to generate passwords)
    4. Do not store passwords in your browser or FTP client.
    5. Log off sites, computers and devices after use.  Don't auto log into anything.
    6. Do not share passwords with any one.  Use 1Password!
    7. Log off of your computer after use and don't leave your computer unattended.
    8. Ensure your computer does not have any keyloggers or spyware.
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keystroke_logging
    http://www.actualspy.com/articles/keyloggers.html
    9. Ensure that all of your applications and plugins are updated to their latest stable versions.
    40 min
  • st1516: Let Evernote Help You Organize Your Life! [Podcast]
    My favorite tool for organizing my life is Evernote.  On today’s episode I want to introduce you to this great cloud service and let you know how you can begin to organize your life, and for free.



    Evernote is a cloud storage service which stores and indexes your digital files.  Think of it as a giant bucket in the cloud.  You upload web clips, or photos, or bills or other documents, and you have them available on any computer, and mobile device you own.

    The strength is in the indexing.  Depending on the level of service you purchase, you can search by file names, tags, and notebooks.  If you save a photo that has text in it, you can also search by text in the photo.

    So I basically scan all of my important files, I use a Fujitsu ScanSnap iX500 Scanner for PC and Mac (PA03656-B005), not cheap but hands down the best desktop document scanner, and automatically scan those notes into Evernote.  Then, if that is all I do, I can search for the notes later on by typing words in the text.   If I want to get more organized, I give names to the files.  If I want to get even more customized, I give the notes a tag.  So for example, lets say I am remodeling the living room.  I create a tag called “livingroom remodel” and then I start gathering notes.  In the store I might take a photo of molding and maybe the price tag.  Then I tag the photos with my Evernote tag Livingroom Remodel.  Maybe I see some great ideas on line.  Right from the browser I use the Evernote clipping tool to save the portion of the webpage I want and tag it with Livingroom Remodel.  Lets say I get a business card from a contractor, I take a picture of the card or scan it and tag it.  Lets say I buy some paint for the remodel, I take a photo of the paint sticker so I can recall the color in years to come and I scan or snap a photo of the receipt and tag it also.  Now if I do this, in the future, I just look for the tag Livingroom Remodel. and all of the notes that had to do with this project come up.  I also throw away my receipts, clips, notes, because everything is in Evernote and my project clutter goes away.  I also have my business emails forward to Evernote so I can save all of those in one spot.  I have also scanned my legal documents.  Once I was at an event with my step son.  He needed an ID to get in but forgot his wallet.  I remembered I had scanned his Driver's License at one point and called it up on my phone in about 60 seconds.  Crisis averted, they let him in.  I have lists of medications, tags for my trips, places reminders, store my favorite recipes, keep medical records and prescription info, have a photo of my printer cartridges so I know what to buy, clip web pages to read later, Make task lists with the built in task list maker,
    15 min
  • st1515: Google Photos and why I REALLY like it! [Podcast]
    There are many service vying for the honor of hosting our photos. But one is close to getting it right, and that’s Google. In this episode I explain Google's recently introduced updated photo management software and why I think you should give it a try.
    Google’s app installs on multiple devices. Then as you add images, it syncs these images to the cloud. Now a lot of services do similar but Google has tweaked its image analysis back end server software to analyse and organize your photos for you. I don’t know about you, but I am good at taking photos, not so good at organizing them. So I think this is great. What is even better is that Google is offering unlimited storage, with limitations on individual file size, for free. Apple offers this service but only stores your photos for a year from when they were created. So after a year, Apple deletes the photos. They give you the time to back them up to your main computer. But I think unlimited and forever sounds better.
    If you want to try this out, go to Google.com and create an account. Its free.  Then install the Google Photos app on all of your devices
    IMPORTANT: If you don’t have unlimited data on your mobile device plan, make sure you set the app on each device to only upload when connected to wifi.  Here's how: Press the menu icon (three parallel lines) on the upper left of the app, select Settings and select Back Up & Sync. Make sure the two switches at the bottom of the screen, "Photos back up using cellular data" and "Videos back up using cellular data," are turned off.
    Now remember I said Google Photos is free and unlimited IF your pictures are no larger than 16 Megapixels. Anything larger than that, Google will compress. Now folkes, 16 Megapixels is excellent quality. Any videos you upload will be limited to 1080p which is HD quality. If you want to save uncompressed originals or RAW files, you can. Google gives you 15 GB of storage to share with all your Google apps including email, after that they charge $1.99 a month for 100 GB up to 30 TB for $299.95 a month. Not even ME, the SmartTech guy has 30 TB of data! So for now I am opting for the free version.
    So install the app on all your devices, and check these settings on each one to make sure you have no data charge surprises.
    You can also set this up on your computer. Log in on your computer. The bigger screen makes working with google easier. Click on the little tick tack toe squares in the top right. That takes you the app menu, scroll down to Photos. Look for the Desktop Uploader and then install it. This will let you set which folder or folders syncs with Google photos.
    Now the fun begins. Just let it sync. It will upload all of your photos from your devices and folders to the cloud and make them available to you anywhere. You will also have search capabilities. You can search by people.  In fact it will even do facial recognition and connect people over time. So as someone ages, it will keep track of them. You can also search by places you have been, and things. So, for example, if I type in "beach", all the photos taken at a beach come up.  Or I could type in "water", or "San Francisco". It is very smart and it makes finding photos really easy.
    I can also share photos or photo albums straight to Google+, Facebook or Twitter, or come up with a sharable link to email to friends and family. Google Photos also has an assistant which will auto generate various projects like stylized photos or animations, which you can choose to save or not. You can also create the obligatory albums and what they call stories, which are album slide shows with movement.
    Now nothing is free, so let me reiterate. Google makes its money by selling aggregate data. Meaning trends, searches, etc… But you own all your photos. So the privacy you give up is how you pay for the service. Google looking at my buying trends or search habits really doesn’t bother me, so I think it is worth it.
    16 min
  • st1515: Google Photos and why I REALLY like it

    There are many service vying for the honor of hosting our photos. But one is close to getting it right, and that’s Google. In this episode I explain Google's recently introduced updated photo management software and why I think you should give it a try.

    16 min
  • st1514: 10 Technologies that have Changed My Life! [Podcast]
    There have been a lot of amazing technological discoveries/inventions that have changed the world.  But when it comes down to it, each of us has technologies that have personally influenced the way we live our lives.  In this episode I explore 10 of these technologies that have changed my personal life.
    Personal Computer (I Like Macs)
    Internet
    Smart Phone (I like iPhones)
    Evernote
    Satellite TV (I like DISH)
    Bible Software (I like YouVersion)
    On Line Shopping (I am an Amazon Prime member!)
    Digital Photography
    Fitness App (I like MyFitnessPal)
    Podcasting (I like SmartTech!)
    21 min
  • st1514: 10 Technologies that have Changed My Life!

    There have been a lot of amazing technological discoveries/inventions that have changed the world.  But when it comes down to it, each of us has technologies that have personally influenced the way we live our lives.  In this episode I explore 10 of these technologies that have changed my personal life.

    21 min
  • st1513: Amazon Prime – Why right now might be the right time to check it out

    I’m a fan of Amazon Prime.  July 15, 2015, I may be even more of a fan because they are having a Black Friday type sale for prime members.  The best part is that you can have a 30 day free trial to try it out.  So you can basically be part of this sale for free.  In this episode I'll tell you why I am such a fan and give you some reasons to at least take advantage of the 30 day free trial.

    12 min

About Smart Tech

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In each episode we cut through the technical mumbo-jumbo and explore the good, bad and ugly of technology and technical innovations. Technology effects our lives every day and we should know how to…