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As the old saying goes, “Nothing is certain except death and taxes,” and just like every year, taxes are due in less than two weeks on April 15th.
Act fast to get your copy of TurboTax before the 15th and for this week, it will ship for FREE!
Baseball season has started, and I changed my chat status to “The Cubs are in 1st place” and started the pool in the office to see how long I can keep that status up. Matt, who, like most of the Small Dog team, is a Red Sox fan, just asked when the next game was. It is always great to see baseball season underway as that is the definitive sign of spring!
Thank you for reading this issue of Kibbles & Bytes!
Your Kibbles & Bytes team,
_Don, Kali, Stephanie & Mike_
Have you ever tried to open a document that takes forever to find because it was buried in folder after folder? Sometimes, I think it would be much easier to type the path of where I want to go instead of clicking through. The other day, I came across this little gem of a keyboard shortcut that allows you to do just that.
When you have the Finder window or an Open/Save dialog open, simply hit *command* + *shift* + *G*. This will open up a new window that lets you type in the directory path. You will want to use forward slashes (*/*) to separate your folder names and it even supports the use of the tilde (*~*) for home and tab completion.
The example that I tried went something like this: @~/Documents/newsletter/kibbles@. I found that you have to use the tilde if you want to change to a different root directory than the one you are currently in.
There are a few different ways to access this window in the Open/Save dialog. If you press the forward slash key, the window will open with a forward slash already entered in the field. Alternatively, if you hit the tilde key, the same thing will happen, except there will be a tilde instead of a forward slash.
You might notice that you can’t just press the tilde key because it is the alternate character on the grave/backtick key. To use the tilde function, simply hold shift and press the tilde key to open the directory dialog.
As per usual, I am using these shortcuts on OS X Lion (10.7). I believe they will work on much older versions of the OS, but I cannot guarantee it. I urge you to try this one out and let me know how it works for you!
Are you looking for the newest thing for your iPhone 5? Well, Small Dog has one of the hottest new cases to accessorize your phone.
Pong is new to the shelves at Small Dog, but it is making a big splash. With sleek style and durable protection, you get the best of both worlds.
This week, get your very own Pong Rugged in black and save $20, plus pay nothing in shipping!
*Start Soapbox*
I am an Eagle Scout, and the Boy Scouts were an important and meaningful part of my life. I was a Boy Scout camp counselor and active in the BSA until I left to go to college as a teen. The principles of “Trustworthy, Loyal, Helpful, Friendly, Courteous, Kind, Obedient, Cheerful, Thrifty, Brave, Clean and Reverent” are mostly great ethical teachings, although I have always struggled with the obedient one. I have watched the debate within the Boy Scouts regarding acceptance of gay scouts and scout leaders and have been embarrassed by the entire organization’s stand on this issue.
I still have my nearly 50-year old Eagle Scout medal someplace in my home and have considered sending it back as a protest. However, it wasn’t until this week, when I received a solicitation to make a contribution to the BSA, that I fully realized just how idiotic their stand on gay members really was and that as an Eagle Scout, I had an obligation to speak out. I declined the opportunity to make a contribution and made it clear that until the BSA drops its misguided ban on gay scouts and scout leaders, I would completely disassociate myself from the organization.
I have always been proud of achieving the highest rank in scouting, but the BSA has made it an embarrassing stigma instead of an honor. They will once again consider this ban on May 24th, and I urge the delegates to the Scouting National Council to immediately drop their ban on gay Scouts and leaders and enter the 21st century to welcome all who would aspire to the great principles of scouting.
*End Soapbox*
Have an opinion on this? “*Weigh in here!*”:http://blog.smalldog.com/article/embarrassed-by-the-boy-scouts/
As many of you know, Apple was founded on April 1, 1976 by Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak. For this reason, the day holds a special place in the hearts of all of us here at Small Dog. Of course, April 1 is also widely known and celebrated as April Fool’s Day — something that we and the internet at large take very seriously.
This year was a great one for pranks far and wide. Though you may have seen some already, I’ve rounded up our favorites from April Fool’s Day 2013.
*YouTube’s Best Video Contest*
“It’s finally time to pick a winner.” After eight years, YouTube announced that they were no longer accepting uploads, effective immediately, so that they could vote on the best video ever submitted. With some key cameos and convincing production, their execution was perfect.
“*Watch the video.*”:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H542nLTTbu0
*Google Nose*
Google has become well known for their April Fool’s pranks over the years. This year, they “released” several new products, but my favorite of the bunch was Google Nose. Because smelling is believing, right?
“*Watch the video.*”:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9-P6jEMtixY
*Bonobos Girlfriend Jeans*
Think “Boyfriend” jeans are silly? Well, Bonobos’ “Girlfriend” jeans are even sillier.
“*Watch the video*”:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kxK_1JsO6k8
*Roku’s Streaming Shades*
Featured in their signature purple (__er, mulberry__) color among other choices, these sunglasses are the kind of thing I’d likely buy anyway. Move over, Google Glass; Roku is getting into the eyewear biz.
“*Read about them on Roku’s blog.*”:http://blog.roku.com/blog/2013/04/01/announcing-roku-streaming-shades/
*Hulu Releases ‘The Rural Juror’*
…among other fictional shows. As a big fan of __30 Rock,’__ I actually wished that this new show was real. Same goes for the __Parks & Recreation__ staple, ‘Ya Heard? With Perd’ and __The Simpsons’__ ‘Itchy & Scratchy.’ Too bad…
“*Check them out.*”:http://thefw.com/hulu-april-fools-day/
There are so many more — too many to name. While some may tire of the onslaught of fake news on April 1, I say bring it on. (And stop being an ol’ fuddy duddy!)
What were your favorite pranks this year? “*Tell us!*”:mailto:kali@smalldog.com
The other day, someone asked, “Hey! Did you know that when you tap the clock at the top of the screen on your iPhone it will scroll back to the top for you?” I found that a couple of us already knew that, but a few didn’t. I figured that the following tips may be useful for a few of you out there as well!
* If you’re trying to take a “selfie” with the camera on your iOS device, there is more than one way to snap the shot. Tapping the camera button on the front of the screen isn’t the only way to trigger the camera; you can also press the volume up button to take the shot, which is way easier for group shots.
* If you’re wearing your Apple headphones to jam to some good beats, skip a song by double tapping the middle of the control on your headphones. This works with any music app. A single tap will pause or play music.
* This is one of my favorites that I use all the time and discovered accidentally when I got my first iPhone: Double tap the Home button on the lock screen and your media controls will appear making it easy to quickly skip to the next song or pause your music.
* If you double tap the Home button it offers fast access to jump between the last few apps that were used. You can swipe left and it will show you all of the apps that are currently open. Or, if you swipe right, it will give you your media controls.
* And last but not least — If you want to go back to the top of whatever page you’re viewing, simply tap the clock at the top of the screen and it will zoom right back up to the top for you. No need to swipe all the way back up there anymore. Save some time and give that thumb a rest.
Hopefully these will help make using your iOS device easier and more efficient. Enjoy!