Kibbles & Bytes Blog

  • _Dear Friends,_

    Artie brought in a whole basket of pears from the tree at his house. They were pretty darn tasty, too. September is harvest time and while there still is some great sweet corn out there, apples, squash, potatoes and other root crops are ready. We have eggplant and some nice jalapeño peppers in the garden, too.

    “Hey Siri, give me a hint!” That is the invite sent out by Apple for the big event on September 9. Excitement and anticipation of new toys from Apple is always fun. We will have full coverage for you in next week’s Kibbles & Bytes but we will be playing the guessing game until then. If you say “hey Siri, give me a hint” to your iPhone or iPad or Apple Watch, she will give you some clever responses that hold no clues like “What, you can’t tell from my colorful wavey words?” Interesting that she misspells wavy – that might be a hint.

    Have I ever told you how valuable Time Machine back-ups are? Of course, I have. I had another experience that just proves how important backing up your data can be. Grace left Key West to come home this week and called me in a panic at the airport, waking me up at 6AM to say she forgot her Mac at the house. After I cleared my head a bit and after the “and why are you calling me?” I realized that I could solve her dilemma. When she got home, I had a demo Mac ready and got it on my network and restored from her backup on our Time Capsule and after a few hours of data transfer, she was ready to go with all her data, music and pictures. Joe, our Key West manager extraordinaire, was kind enough to retrieve her MacBook Air so we will reverse that process once that gets up to Vermont. Backing up your data can be a life saver and Time Machine is the tool to use!

    One of the easiest ways to backup your data is to have an external hard drive that is dedicated to that task. For this week’s Kibbles & Bytes special we are offering the “*1TB Seagate Backup Plus Slim drive*”:http://www.smalldog.com/wag900001943 for only $59.99!

  • Zoom and Voiceover in iOS

    Working at the Service Check-in Counter, I often have customers asking me how to get out of Zoom and/or Voiceover on their iOS devices. While most people have Zoom and Voiceover disabled, it still shows up now and again.

    If you have used Zoom, the image to the right may seem familiar. If this happens, you can try to enter your passcode and navigate to Settings to turn off Zoom but this can be difficult. An easier way out is a simple 3 finger tap twice which will Zoom you back out.

    If you have seen the image above, then you also must have experienced Voiceover. Instead of using your finger to select individual apps, the screen is sectioned into rectangles, and you select that shape as whole. It is very hard to navigate, and the whole time a voice is instructing your movement. Voiceover is helpful for the visually impaired, but can be a hinderance if turned on. You must navigate back to Settings > Accessibility and turn Voiceover off if you do not wish to use it. If you have the shortcut enabled, you can try triple clicking the home button. This will turn off Voiceover. I would recommend turning off both Zoom and Voiceover, unless of course you need them and are familiar with their commands.

  • The Learning Curve of Technology

    A question I frequently get from customers is: “How did I learn all this stuff?” It’s not a hard question, but it’s one that’s caused me to reflect a lot. The short answer is that I’ve been doing this for a very long time, and I’m -completely obsessed- very passionate about this stuff. There are a lot of resources I frequent that are very helpful.

    Some of my favorite websites for Mac-specific information are:

    “*Apple*”:http://www.apple.com – I make a point to read the marketing materials and learn about all the new features. If that’s what they’re using to sell their product and it’s a feature I’m not aware of or using, this will educate me, and sometimes even convince me to explore. The keynotes are very helpful as well. These are streaming videos of Apple executives on stage publicly announcing what they’ve been pouring their hearts and souls into since the last announcement. They’re easily every bit as excited about their products as anyone else and I feel that in every one of these streaming announcements. The next announcement is on the ninth of September. I honestly don’t know what it’s about. I’ve got my suspicions and hopes, but I don’t really know for sure. That day is marked on my calendar and might as well be a holiday.

    “*Macworld*”:http://www.macworld.com – This is a flashy website that can bring my computer to a slow grind with everything that’s going on, but there’s a ton of great content on there. I started reading their magazine on a friend’s coffee table before I was totally convinced that an iPod touch would be a good gizmo to have.

    “*Take Control Books*”:https://www.takecontrolbooks.com – They write books on technology topics, almost all entirely Apple/Mac-centric. There’s some good stuff in there, and though there’s a paywall, they frequently have sales, and to me, the investment in their books has been well worth it.

    There are many more resources on the web (like TechTails, of course!) that have been helpful, but frequently a printed book is just as good, and there aren’t any load times or internet related complications. David Pogue’s Missing Manual Series has been absolutely wonderful. The books are frequently enormous, but they’re wonderful and comprehensive. Sometimes they’ll even decide not to print a chapter and instead give a web address to visit it online. There’s a lot of content in them and I’ve found that just reading the table of contents can give me a wishlist of skills/knowledge.

    Another thing that’s been really helpful in learning all this is friends and the people I meet. They’re often doing things differently, or working on very different projects. These discussions I’ll have really help to broaden my understanding and interests. It’s always been an ongoing process and the excitement of the future and “world of tomorrow” helps me chase this dynamic world that changes faster than I can learn about it.

  • Zoom and Voiceover in iOS

    Working at the Service Check-in Counter, I often have customers asking me how to get out of Zoom and/or Voiceover on their iOS devices. While most people have Zoom and Voiceover disabled, it still shows up now and again.

    If you have used Zoom, the image to the right may seem familiar. If this happens, you can try to enter your passcode and navigate to Settings to turn off Zoom but this can be difficult. An easier way out is a simple 3 finger tap twice which will Zoom you back out.

    !http://blog.smalldog.com/images/4503.jpg!

    If you have seen the image above, then you also must have experienced Voiceover. Instead of using your finger to select individual apps, the screen is sectioned into rectangles, and you select that shape as whole. It is very hard to navigate, and the whole time a voice is instructing your movement. Voiceover is helpful for the visually impaired, but can be a hinderance if turned on. You must navigate back to Settings > Accessibility and turn Voiceover off if you do not wish to use it. If you have the shortcut enabled, you can try triple clicking the home button. This will turn off Voiceover. I would recommend turning off both Zoom and Voiceover, unless of course you need them and are familiar with their commands.

  • Retro Gaming on Your MacBook

    Want to turn your Mac into a retro gaming machine? Of course you do!

    “*OpenEmu*”:http://openemu.org is a software emulator which allows you to play old games from your favorite systems of the past on your Mac. With the same philosophy of “it just works,” OpenEmu is easy to use with a wide range of options from systems to controllers. You can play old handhelds like GameBoy, Super NES and Sega consoles, and even the very rare Nintendo Virtual boy. For controllers you can use Wiimote, or PS3 or 4 controllers (bluetooth required), plus many more options.

    In OpenEmu, systems are called “Cores” and games are called “Roms.” There is a rom out there for just about every game that has ever existed. One caveat, however, is that you can only legally acquire the roms of games that you own. One of the coolest features is that OpenEmu organizes your games in the “Library” as OpenEmu calls it. This makes it really easy to find the game your want when you want it.

    Now think about this…you can now have all the systems you wanted or had as a kid on a device that is fully mobile. Need a break from work? Play some Sonic the Hedgehog! Need to take out some aggression? Try Mike Tyson’s Punch-Out!!

    “*Check it out at OpenEmu.org.*”:http://openemu.org

  • _Hello Fellow Tech Enthusiasts,_

    Frequent readers of the various Small Dog newsletters will be familiar with this announcement: I have a new position! Over the years, I have written articles for you as a phone/web associate, Hammerhead/Chill Pill rep, marketing assistant, business sales guru, and as a Macintosh consultant. This has given me a wide depth of knowledge and I am frequently referred to as SDE’s utility infielder. For all of you nerds (like me!) that read this, ask a jock to explain what that means.

    Today I am coming to you as Small Dog’s Service Manager. I will be here every week introducing Tech Tails, so please write to me at the email address below with any suggestions, Mac tips, comments, praise, corrections, or spam offers for quick weight loss solutions. Actually, thanks to the fantastic Google Apps spam filters, that last one probably won’t make it to my inbox, but good luck trying!

    Thanks for shopping with Small Dog Electronics! We are sincerely and truly always by your side!

    Michael Scott Duplessis
    “*michaeld@smalldog.com*”:mailto:michaeld@smalldog.com

  • Grace has been down in Key West so I have been hanging out with the dogs and celebrating national dog day with the pups. Normally, Grace lets Max, our Papillon out early in the AM and it has been a bit disconcerting to be waken up every morning with him licking my face but I have convinced him to institute a “snooze-lick”.

    School is in but our Dog Days of Summer and back to school sales are still going on until Labor Day so it is not too late to take advantage of the specials!

    Thank you for reading this issue of Kibbles & Bytes!

    Your Kibbles & Bytes Team,

    _Don, Dean, Scott_

  • iOS Tip: Taking a Screen Shot with your iPhone

    As I look through my photos from time to time I notice a bunch of accidental screen shots from my iPhone or Apple watch. I have not had any real occasion to use screen shots from my iPhone but in writing up the article above I needed some to illustrate so I wanted to show you how to do it. That way maybe you, too, can avoid taking unintentional screen shots and do really good intentional ones.

    It is really simple. Press and hold the Sleep/Wake button on the top or side of your iPhone and then immediately press and release the Home button. You will see the screen flash or hear the shutter click and then you will find your screen shot in the Photos app.

  • Dog Friendly Apps

    Anybody who has a Twitter, Facebook, Instagram etc. knows that Wednesday was National Dog Day. As news feeds clogged with puppy pics, tags such as #nationaldogday and #happydogday held the top spot of the trending lists all day long. Here at Small Dog Electronics, we celebrated with our pups and welcomed yours into our stores with a treat and a good scratch behind the ears, which actually happens every day because we think Dog Day should be every day!

    It’s good to be a dog in today’s tech-driven society. With all of the dog-friendly apps out there it’s easier than ever for owners to train their pup, monitor their health and even find other dogs in the area in need of a good home. I was able to find some really cool apps in the app store that do all of those things and so much more.

    The first app that I came across was an app called “**PetCoach**”:https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/petcoach-ask-vets-trainers/id799167181?mt=8. PetCoach serves as a platform for users to ask verified vets, trainers and other pet experts their pet-related questions for free. Whether Buster got into your bag of chocolates or he just won’t stop peeing inside the house, PetCoach will be there to help with helpful training tips or crucial diagnosis quick. You can also browse topics on the forum or schedule appointments with trainers and/or vets in your area.

    We love our dogs and wish that we could take them everywhere with us, but sometimes that just isn’t possible. With the app, “**DogVacay**”:https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/dogvacay/id595856620?mt=8, it takes a little bit of the trouble away from finding somebody to watch your dog while you’re gone. DogVacay allows the user to find a certified dog-sitter in their area to watch their dogs while they’re away. One of the coolest features of this app is that the user can reserve and pay the dog-sitter right from the phone and it requires the sitter to to send daily photo updates to the owner so you can travel with peace of mind. Forget the kennel; leave your pup in a real home with fellow dog-lover!

    Some dog-lovers are still looking for that special dog to come into their lives. “**BarkBuddy**”:https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/barkbuddy-adopt-a-dog-near-you/id875026451?mt=8 makes that easier than ever as it connects you with cute pups in search of a good home. All that you have to do is fill out an easy application and once you’re approved, you can browse dogs up for adoption and find the perfect one based on your preferences. BarkBuddy also allows users to become matchmakers and connect other users with pups in need of a good home.

    We would love to hear about how you celebrated National Dog Day and hear your reviews of these pup lovin’ apps!