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So, for all you long-time Kibbles readers out there, we have an exclusive giveaway for you — the first person to email “*hello@smalldog.com*”:mailto:hello@smalldog.com with the correct number of this year’s Annual Halloween Costume Contest will win a brand new Chill Box!
Good luck, and we’ll see you next week.
Your Kibbles & Bytes team,
_Kali, Steph, & Will_
__(Another) Editor’s Note:__ “*Will*”:http://www.smalldog.com/will __is one of Small Dog’s oldest (in tenure, not actual age!) employees. He started as a high schooler, working in the retail store, and has held several different jobs in several different locations. Eight years later, he’s joined us in Waitsfield HQ in the “fishbowl” as part of our Product Management team. He’s passionate about almost everything, and we’re happy to be featuring his articles more here in Kibbles & Bytes. Welcome, Will!__
Everyone who uses iOS seems to have a favorite app, be it a game, weather report, or one that tracks your bike ride. At the moment, mine is “*Flipboard.*”:https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/flipboard-your-social-news/id358801284?mt=8&uo=4&at=11lb7k&ct=Kibbles Here’s why you should try it out: Flipboard “newspaperizes” the internet for you. That’s right, this app is so good that I created a word to describe it.
Imagine you visit a website frequently that has ads on the side, a scroller of articles at the top, and flash videos running everywhere (ugh). Enter Flipboard. Simply type in the website’s URL to the Flipboard search, and you’ll be able to flip (get it?) through the site with ease — no more ads, no more silly flash videos; just a small photo followed by the first few lines of the article. If something sparks your interest, simply tap and it opens the entire article. You can save articles for later, share with a friend via text or email, or post to social media.
If you have multiple devices (e.g. iPhone/iPad), I recommend creating an account. It’s free and easy and will keep your Flipboard organized and synced across your devices. It also syncs with Google Reader and accepts RSS feeds. One of its newest features is magazines — not Newsweek, Wired, or Time — but rather, user-created magazines. I like the DIY one, which has articles on how to make everything from flower pots out of recycled Chobani containers to various home repair tutorials.
Check it out, and enjoy!
Multiple customers approach our service counter weekly, requesting that their Mac be “completely wiped.” Normally, this means they would like their hard drive erased of all its content, and the appropriate operating system re-installed. I’m glad to perform this procedure or give the customer instructions on how to do it, but in many cases, it’s not necessary.
The majority of customers are requesting this service because they are planning on giving their Mac to a family member or friend, and for the most part, don’t want to share their personal data with the recipient. This is perfectly understandable, but in this specific situation, a clean install of the existing operating system is not required. Creating a new user account, and deleting your old account, will serve the purpose of removing any of your personal user data and most certainly save you some time.
Creating a new user account is done in “Accounts” located in “System Preferences.” Make sure the new account is an Administrator if you will be deleting your old account, as there always needs to be at least one administrative account at all times. Once the new account is created, you can log into it, and delete your old user account. When deleting a user account, you will receive a confirmation window. This window asks if you are sure you would like to delete the user account, and gives you three choices for erasing the data. The last option, “Delete the Home folder”, will successfully remove all user data from the account that’s being deleted.
Please note: While this does delete existing user data, it does not remove any installed applications. If the Mac was being sold to a stranger, you may not want to hand over any installed applications, and if the operating system is being problematic (e.g. slowness or certain applications not functioning properly), you could benefit from a re-install of the system software.
__Editor’s Note:__ “*Lonnie*”:http://www.smalldog.com/will __is a long-time Small Dog employee who has recently begun writing more frequently for our blog,__ “*Barkings!,*”:http://blog.smalldog.com __A self-proclaimed video game and music enthusiast, Lonnie will be contributing more here at Kibbles & Bytes. Welcome, Lonnie!__
One of the toughest things about being a retro video game fan is being able to find collections of games that aren’t going to require you to take out a personal loan to afford them. Certain games go out of print, and that’s when the price takes a big leap.
In a way, this is why I’ve come to appreciate digital distribution channels such as Steam, the Nintendo e-shop, and the App Store. You’re able to find so much in those channels, and as a result, you can (in most cases) find that rare game you couldn’t find before, or something completely different and at a price you can afford. Trust me, a physical copy of Guardian Heroes is worth a lot of money, but on Steam, it’s fifteen bucks. I’ll spend the fifteen dollars, thank you very much.
Dragon Quest (or Dragon Warrior as it’s known here in the states) is a good example of a series of games that were only available one time. There weren’t multiple remakes, like the Final Fantasy series (which currently has five entries) in the App Store, and the games were never available digitally — until now.
Square-Enix has recently announced that they’ll be releasing all eight games for iOS, starting this year. Granted, for the time being, these games will only be released in Japan. However, given Square-Enix’s track record with iOS and the App Store, it may only be a matter of time before these games make their way over to our shores.
I am a little curious about whether or not these games will be remakes or if they will be released in their classic 8-Bit forms (the first three games, anyway). I’m really excited about this announcement, since I do most of my handheld gaming on iOS; it’ll be interesting to see how these games translate to touch based devices. One thing is for sure, aside from my wallet getting lighter, Dragon Quest VIII is going to look amazing on a retina display iPad.
Apple has officially announced a special event that will be held next Tuesday, October 22. Rumors have been circulating that this event will most likely feature the 5th generation iPad, an iPad mini with Retina display, a Retina MacBook Pro with better battery life and hopefully, a ship date for the new Mac Pro.
The event will take place in San Francisco at 10am PDT (1pm EST). There should be a lot going on at this event, because as the image they released suggests, “We still have a lot to cover.” People might be most excited about the new design of 5th generation iPad, which is rumored to have a smaller bezel like the iPad mini and perhaps even a thinner and lighter housing.
Many are also hoping that they will finally announce the release date of Mavericks, which they said originally would be sometime this fall. Well, it’s fall already, so where the heck is it?!
Apple likes to announce all sorts of new products right before the holidays to get everyone excited. I mean, who wouldn’t want a sweet new iPad for Christmas? Be sure to tune in to our Twitter feed “*@hellosmalldog*”:https://twitter.com/hellosmalldog, where we’ll be live tweeting during the announcements, and/or check back here after the event to read all about the wrap-up.
Greetings, all!
Don is on the last leg of his international travels this week, so Steph and I are holding down the Kibbles & Bytes fort. I have Halloween on the brain right now, which won’t surprise our loyal readers.
We’re prepping for our Annual Halloween Costume Contest, and the competition looks to be especially fierce this year. Since our last contest, we have opened 2(!) stores, and our newest employees are champing at the bit to secure the grand prize — bragging rights and perhaps a new Apple toy, if you’re wondering. (FYI, I’m last year’s reigning champ, so I need to step my game up for a repeat!)
Take a look at “*last year’s contest here!*”:http://blog.smalldog.com/article/vote-now-2012-annual-halloween-costume-contest/
Of course, our annual contest wouldn’t be complete without a giveaway for our customers and fans — you’re the ones who keep us going over here! Be sure to tune into our “*blog, Barkings!*”:http://blog.smalldog.com on Thursday, October 31 (Halloween, duh) to vote on your favorite. You just might win something sweet!
Real time strategy games are known for their complex systems, and addictive gameplay. In some cases, this is mostly why some people stay…
The other day, I had a customer come into the store who was having issues emptying her trash. We tried all the normal…
One of the toughest things about being a retro video game fan is finding collections of games that aren’t going to require you…
Apple has officially announced a special event that will be held next Tuesday, October 22. Rumors have been circulating that this event will…
At least once a week (and sometimes, every 1-2 days!), a customer will bring a water-damaged computer into the Service department. Unfortunately, it’s generally already too late to salvage the damage by the time it gets to us.
The components in a liquid-damaged laptop corrode rapidly, even when nearly-dry and with or without intervention. However, sometimes what ends up damaged will not inhibit the usability of the computer. Drying/cleaning may not even be strictly necessary at times, making the use of heating elements not worth the risk.
A common misconception is that heat will dry out the components without damaging the machine. Frequently Apple laptops will find their way into ovens or beneath hair dryers. These methods are going to melt the plastics and potentially cause heat damage in the machine. It’s tempting to do because it takes a long time for moisture to evaporate without extreme heat. However, in our experience, adding heat into the equation is never a good idea.
The best techniques, as I’m sure many of you have heard before, involve letting the hardware dry slowly, preferably in an environment where moisture will be leeched from the air, and not somewhere humid. The most common trick is to leave the laptop in a sealed plastic box or bag full of dry rice. This is also frequently used for wet iPhones and iPods.
As always, avoiding liquid damage is preferred by all. Leave drinks away from tables with machines on them, or keep them on a different surface nearby. Try bringing a plastic bag on rainy days just in case. But if the worst does occur, try not to panic. Remove the power/battery if you are able, and get the machine in rice ASAP.
The other day, I had a customer come into the store who was having issues emptying her trash. We tried all the normal prompts, did PRAM resets, and nothing would work.
Using Terminal, there is a quick and easy way to empty the trash if you ever hit hangups while doing so. Just navigate to the Terminal app, open it up and enter the following:
*sudo rm -rf ~/.Trash/**
Since this command uses sudo, you will be required to enter your password at this point. After that, you’ll see that your Trash can icon is satisfyingly empty — and you’ll have your hard drive space back.
__As always, operate Terminal with care, as you can damage system folders if you enter the prompts incorrectly.__