|
|
|
|
Newsletter July 2018
I hope you are fit
and well and enjoying the summer sunshine, for a change. Here’s a roundup of the latest mews from the IT world. Apple Ipad Smart Keyboard
A couple of my customers have recently board the new Ipad Smart
Keyboard. It is just fabulous and a must for anybody who uses an ipad to watch
movies, TV or does documents and letters. It is a fold-up stand to hold the ipad either vertically or
horizontally, so that it is comfortable to watch TV or movies. It has a full size keyboard which is easier to use than the on
screen keyboard. It has Smart shortcuts, so that when you are typing a document it
will bold, italicise or underline — even copy and paste — with just a few
taps. Like all Apple products, the Smart Keyboard is stylish, beautifully
designed and works perfectly. It’s not cheap, costing £159, but if you can afford to splash
out, you’ll love it. Photo Books
Do you remember in the ‘good old days’ when you took your roll
of films to the local chemist, waited a week, then the excitement of going to
collect them, opening the packet, and thumbing through the shiny glossy
pictures, being careful not to handle the negatives. Then once you had looked
through them, sometimes you would put them into a photo album, but usually
you’d put the packet of pictures away with all the others, only to see the
light of day occasionally. Nowadays, that never happens. You take your pictures with your
mobile phone, tablet or digital camera. The pictures are downloaded onto your
computer or stored online. Only occasionally do you ever print out your pictures
or get them sent off to get them professionally printed. I was recently asked by one of my clients, to help her create a
photo album of old pictures, to give as a wedding anniversary gift to her
friends celebrating their golden wedding. So we selected the pictures she wanted to include in the album,
scanned them into her computer, then went online to a company that specialises
in creating Photo Albums, with the photos beautifully printed, together with
lovely words to accompany the pictures. It took a while to get it right, but it was a labour of love and
when it was finished, we ordered the album, which cost around £40. The photo
album was delivered a few days later and it was fantastic. Beautifully produced,
and worth every penny. When she gave it to her friends at their party they were blown away
with it, describing it as their best gift ever. So, it got me thinking; would you like to preserve your precious
photos and have them put into an album, either to give as a gift, or just to
keep for yourself? You probably have hundreds, if not thousands of old photos,
dating back many years. Wouldn’t it be great if you could preserve these
memories forever, or even delight someone with an album full of happy memories? I would love to help you do this, if you wish. Just call or email me and we can start the process. I’d be happy
to help you. Home Security Wi-Fi Cameras that can be viewed on
your Tablet or Smartphone.
I have found a
really great product which I just think is amazing and every home should have at
least one. It's a neat, compact
Wifi WEBCAM which allows you to keep an eye on what's going on at your
home or office, from your mobile phone or tablet. Whether you wish to
see who's in the house, keep an eye on the kids, or make sure the pets are not
creating havoc, and even to check up on elderly parents, this clever camera is
ideal. It also has two way
audio, so you can hear and talk through the camera, so you can have a
conversation from your phone or tablet. It also tilts up and
down and pans across left and right, so you can see the whole room from your
phone or tablet. You can even take a
photo and record video from the camera onto your device. How clever is that?? Once it has been set
up, there are no ongoing costs. It works through your home of office wifi. The one off cost of
me supplying the camera and setting it up on your phone is just £99.00. You can
buy additional cameras for £65 each if you wish. If you would like to order one or more and want me
to set it all up for you, please call or email me. Netflix
I have only just recently discovered Netflix. OMG!!!! How have I missed this, I’m ashamed to say. It is THE BEST
THING IN THE WORLD (slight exaggeration)! For the uninitiated Netflix is a TV/movie advert-free
streaming service which is for your Smart TV, tablet or Smartphone. It has
literally thousands of movies and TV box sets from every genre to suit every
taste. Whether you're into classic movies, current movies, US or UK TV box sets,
concerts etc. They also have many original productions made exclusively for
Netflix customers. In the last month, I have been totally glued to the best American TV
series I have ever seen, called Breaking Bad. OMG!!! But there’s also great
British box sets such as The Crown. You have to see it to believe it, but it
could turn you into a total couch potato! You can have it on a 30 day free trial, to see if you like it, and
then subscriptions go from £5.99 - £9.99 per month. Click HERE to go to their website Amazon Fire TV Stick
I was recently recommended to watch a new series on Amazon Prime TV.
I watched the first episode and was hooked from the start. (if you're
interested, it’s called The Marvellous Mrs Maizel). But I could only watch it
on my computer or smartphone. I wanted to see it on my proper TV at home. So I
made a major investment of just £39 and bought the Amazon Fire TV Stick with
Alexa Voice control. OMG!!! It’s a Must Have item for anyone who enjoys their TV. With
this little device plugged into your HDMI port on your TV and connected to your
home Wi-Fi, you get a mind blowing selection of movies, TV series and box sets.
You also get add on apps, such as BBC IPlayer, ITV Hub, Spotify, Netflix,
YouTube, and many more. It has Alexa Voice control, so you simply press a button on the
remote control and say something like The Sopranos, or whatever you're looking
for, and it will show you the show you are looking for. It’s unbelievable. I
even tested it by asking it to find a Pink Floyd Concert from Hyde Park, and it
had it available. It also includes the Silk and Firefox web browsers, which
means you can go to Google and find anything, on your big TV in the lounge,
instead of using your computer, phone or tablet. The only problem is that by
buying this superb little device, you could turn into a couch potato and never
move off the sofa for the next 30 years!!! Check it out at https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01ETRIFOW/ref=fs_tan Of course I would be happy to come and set it all up for you. Thinking
of buying a new computer??
Many of my clients are changing their old computers and laptops for
a shiny new one. But what do you buy? There are just so many variables, too many
to list here, but whatever you choose, I would urge you to buy one which has a
SSD Hard Drive included. Unlike conventional spinning hard drives that have been
around for over 30 years, the new generation of computers are being built with a
SSD (Solid State Drive), which is a fully digital drive with no moving parts. In
layman’s terms it is simply so much quicker to do everything, from starting
up, to switching between programmes, and everything becomes a pleasure to use.
Quick and very responsive. They may cost an extra £100 or more but well worth
it. Of course I’m
always happy to advise you as to what to buy, and then transfer everything
across from your old computer, onto your new one. And finally….
With World Cup fever
reaching its peak, you may like to see this video, of a man performing his
skills. Please bear in mind that I taught this man everything he knows and that
this video could actually be me!!! Enjoy That’s it for this
month, have a great summer. Call me if you need any help or advice. |
