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  • The Crypto Craze Part One: Overview

    Between work, band practice, recording, and going on those gorgeous autumn hikes, I’ve been spending a solid chunk of time familiarizing myself and delving into the science and application behind the digital currency craze known as Cryptocurrency. Unless you haven’t been on the internet in the last 5 years, you’ve no doubt heard of Bitcoin, the first and still most important cryptocurrency out there. But while a lot of us have heard of it, some may find themselves asking…

    What is Cryptocurrency?

    You’ll get a different answer from each person you ask, and some may give a lengthy response that still leaves you scratching your head. But the simplest definition of cryptocurrency is that it’s a form of digital money that is designed to be secure and anonymous.

    Full disclosure: the theories, protocols, applications, and sciences behind cryptocurrencies vary between the various types of cryptocurrency (Last documented number of cryptocurrencies was clocked at over 900 and still growing!). For the sake of these guides, I’ll be referring specifically to Bitcoin. And another warning: this stuff is dense, but throughout this series, I’ll do my best to make it palatable.

    While the boom of cryptocurrency (henceforth called simply ‘crypto’ in these guides) is not new, it only truly took off within the last ten years. Throughout the early 2000’s, there were a number of attempts to create a digital currency system (see: Digicash) that ultimately failed. It wasn’t until late 2008 that the concept of crypto became more than just a failed pipe-dream.

    In October 2008, an individual, (or individuals, the identity is still debated) using the name Satoshi Nakamoto published a paper on a cryptography mailing list titled “Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System”. This has come to be known as the Bitcoin “White Paper”. Within the white paper, Nakamoto describes and details the methods of using a peer-to-peer network to generate what was described as “a system for electronic transactions without relying on trust”. By the following January, Nakamoto implemented the Bitcoin software as open source code and released it to the public. The Bitcoin network was born after Nakamoto ‘mined’ the first ever ‘block’ on the ‘chain’, known as the “genesis block”, for a reward of 50 Bitcoin***. Embedded in this first block was the following text:

    “The Times 03/Jan/2009 Chancellor on brink of the second bailout for banks.”

    But wait, block? Mine? Chain? What do these mean, you may be asking yourself? And we will certainly go down that rabbit hole! But I think it’s better left for The Crypto Craze Part Two: Party On The Blockchain.

    Fun fact: 50 Bitcoin would be worth $275,497.50 at the time of this writing.

  • Hello and welcome to another fall edition of Tech Tails!

    Temperatures are starting to drop around here and the crazy October weather continues! On Sunday night, we had an epic wind storm here in Vermont and ended up with dozens of customers seeking backup battery packs for their Apple devices. I’m sure a lot of you have considered what to do in a power outage, but for some younger homeowners, forming a backup plan is a great idea. We lost power about ten times in the night, only in short bursts. Nevertheless, I was thankful for the APC battery backup unit that my iMac is connected to. Without it, I’m not sure how the surges may have affected my computer, scanner, and audio interface. At Small Dog, we carry portable battery chargers by Outdoor Tech, which have a little flashlight attached. I usually recommend these for your toolbox, as they serve two purposes and you’ll never know when you’ll need reserve power.

    Moving on to what has been on my mind this week: Sony dropped the new A7RIII and the DSLR community is going crazy. As a Canon shooter, I have to say, Sony is like the Sirens calling from the rocky coast. I have always looked at the A7 line with envy, but fear that switching will result in a few lost features I’m not sure I could part with. On one hand, Sony has more autofocus points, megapixels, and frames per second than the latest 5D by Canon. But numbers like this can be a false flag, depending on your actual needs. I would encourage anyone in the market for a DSLR to speak to a photographer and figure out what they use their system for. As far as I can tell, Canon still has Sony beat for battery life, and weather resistance. If you’re photographing icebergs, those things might come in handy! Especially since cold climates deplete lithium batteries much faster! Sony does have some alluring video features that should not be overlooked. At this point, I would say independent filmmakers should be legitimately considering a Sony rig, but leave extra budget for spare batteries. They’ve introduced image stabilization into their sensors, whereas Canon makes you buy that in every lens. Things like that, or adding higher frame rates to their video format options are what make Canon look a bit old school. That said, Canon is known for reliability, and I’ll take that over flashy new features any day.

    Despite my allegiance to Canon, I am in fact in the market for a new DSLR. As I primarily shoot film, I find the digital market overwhelming, but there are lots of in-depth reviews out there to help navigate the options. For now, I am reading deeply into the 5D Mark IV, A7SII, and A7RIII. All fantastic cameras and I hope if any Small Dog customers out there are looking for DSLR support, we have a couple folks at the store that can help. Just about everything I know about digital camera operation, I learned from our consultant, Nate Poirier. Make sure to stop in some time and talk cameras with us!

    That is all for now, we’ve got computers to diagnose and Apple Watches to sell, so I’ll get back to work, please enjoy this edition of Tech Tails!

    Patrick McCormack
    patrickm@smalldog.com

  • Snowbirds fly south. We have been seeing the flocks of geese heading south even though the weather seems to be staying warm. While we are not flying, we will be driving the Volt with the pups to our home in Key West next week. Packing up our house here is always interesting. I think I have too much stuff. The first year we hauled multiple boxes downstairs to stash in the cellar. It has gotten to be less and less as we decide not to bring things like our winter clothes back upstairs.

    Nevertheless, we will be making a pile for our trip to Key West, another pile to be stashed and of course, the suitcase of winter clothes to be at Small Dog for my visits. I have to put gas stabilizer in the motorcycles, plug them into chargers and put baggies on the exhaust to keep out the mice. Change the batteries in the cameras, smoke detector, and locks and we might be ready to hit the road.

    Meanwhile, it is likely to be in the 60s this weekend and that will mean one last ride in the Green Mountains for me!

    Thank you so much for reading this issue of Kibbles & Bytes!

    Your Kibbles & Bytes Team,

    Don & Emily

  • Do Not Pay The Ransom!

    I was scrolling through my Facebook feed a few months ago and saw a post from a friend. Her iPhone appeared to be frozen, she was locked out of it and there was a message that she needed to pay a $50 fee in order to regain access to her iPhone. Over the years I have seen several similar instances. I remember seeing once on my own iOS device a message in Safari that took over my screen and told me to contact Apple because I had a virus on my iPad. Knowing that Apple would never send me an alert about needing to call them I simply ignored it. I tried to close out of Safari by hitting the home button, that worked, but when I opened Safari again the message was still there. Ultimately I had to power down my iPad and upon restart, it was gone, I never saw the message again. I had a few friends send me some panicked messages with screenshots of this same message on their device, I let them know to just turn off the iPad or iPhone. Historically, that is all you needed to do to avoid a scam about a virus or hack. This particular message was not isolated to an iOS device, it could happen on a desktop as well. However, all this was, was a scam to get some money out of a concerned user and nothing more.

    Fast forward a few years and now we are seeing reports of Mac computers or iOS devices locked and messages demanding a ransom be paid to regain access to your device. Unlike the Safari messages from a few years ago, just powering down your device or clearing your browsing history is not going to fix this problem. These new Bitcoin or PayPal ransomware are locking users out of their devices. Victims can not use them and are stuck with often one question running through their minds, do I really have to pay a ransom?

    Do not pay the ransom! But how do you regain access, and, more importantly, how did you get locked out in the first place. As hackers have gotten more sophisticated, so has their ability to scam you. In almost all of the reported cases we have seen or heard about, users have been locked out via find my iPhone/iPad or find my Mac. Unfortunately, their iCloud account was accessed by the scammers who have locked users out of their devices by initiating the lost mode feature. Sometimes you might simply be locked out with a message that says the device is in lost mode and requires a code ( a code you don’t have access to ) or it’s asking for the ransom.

    Thankfully all is not lost, but it does require a bit of work. Regaining access to your device will mean a trip to your local Apple Authorized Repair location or calling and talking to Apple directly. You will need to provide the service location or Apple a proof of purchase to prove you are the owner of the device and you will be able to regain access and most likely without losing your information. You can also follow some troubleshooting “tips online“https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204306 from Apple, potentially if you are not being asked for a ransom these steps might help.

    But how did this happen? As I mentioned earlier, this is through your iCloud account, which was compromised. You will want to take immediate action and change your iCloud password as soon as you regain access. If you do not have two-factor authentication enabled on your device you will want to do so. Setting up two-factor authentication and ideally setting a stronger password for your account will prevent these kinds of breaches. I always recommend passwords with a combination of letters, numbers and even special characters, and your password selection should be somewhat random. Hopefully, with these tips you can avoid being locked out of your device!

  • iPad Pro 10.5 inch Keyboard Showdown – Apple Smart Keyboard vs. Brydge

    I took advantage of our recent liquidation purchase and bought myself an iPad Pro 10.5 inch unit. My plan was to use this many of the times that I would normally use my Mac but do not need the specialized features of my MacBook Pro, like accessing Small Dog’s custom database.

    Aside from that database, my initial impressions after extensive use of the iPad Pro is that it could easily replace my MacBook Pro for much of what I do and provide me with some advantages, too. I am not giving up my Mac but I am also not carrying it around when I do not need. So, on my recent trip to San Francisco, where I would normally pack my MacBook Pro and my iPad mini, I left them both behind and took my iPad Pro. I was nervous about this since I normally travel with all my devices but it worked out great!

    While I can type okay on the on-screen keyboard, it just is not the same as having a real keyboard so over the past couple weeks I have been testing both the Apple Smart Keyboard for the iPad Pro and the Brydge Aluminum Keyboard for the iPad Pro that was generously provided to me by the good folks over at Brydge.

    The Apple Smart Keyboard for the iPad Pro is a lightweight keyboard that connects via the Apple Smart Connector on the iPad Pro so it does not require its own power source and you never have to charge it up. The Smart Keyboard has an integrated stand that folds both for typing and viewing and provides a cover for the iPad Pro when not in use. It is “splash-resistant” and the keyboard is easy to connect and use.

    Pros:
    Lightweight keyboard with good key action. The keyboard case folds to protect the screen and also into both a typing and a viewing mode. It is easy to set up and because it connects via the Apple Smart Connector there is no Bluetooth pairing to deal with. Did I mention that it is lightweight?

    Cons:
    I am not usually so negative about an Apple product but I have to say the Smart Keyboard does have some drawbacks. First among those is that it is not backlit. I am so used to using backlight on keyboards that this really was obvious to me as I was trying to answer an email with the iPad Pro on my lap on a darkened airplane.

    It is a regular keyboard – i.e. it has all the normal keys but no function keys and no special keys that would make working with the iPad Pro easier. I think the keys are a bit noisy but not that bad. It only comes in one sorta boring, ugly gray color and while I am not using a pencil it would be nice if it had a slot for that.

    At $159, the Apple Smart Keyboard is not a bad choice, especially if you want to maintain the sleek low weight feel of the iPad Pro.

    The Brydge Aluminum Keyboard for the iPad Pro 10.5 inch is a much heavier device and at first that put me off on this choice. But then I started using it and I came around to love it. The Brydge keyboard is made of aluminum and comes in 4 colors that match the iPad Pro colors. Maybe it is just me but the Brydge keyboard made me think I had just come up with the perfect combination of MacBook and iPad Pro in one device.

    The keyboard is easy to set up and pair. Once you have inserted the iPad Pro into the hinge, you hit the power button which responds with a green light. Hold down the Bluetooth button for 3 seconds to pair the keyboard and your power button will turn blue, indicating it is in pairing mode. Once it is paired the light on the power key goes off and you are good to go.

    The keyboard connects via Bluetooth and must be charged from time to time, although the battery is good for up to a year in normal use. The iPad Pro slips easily into the patented hinge, just make sure the camera is on top and not in the hinge. The hinge allows the iPad Pro to be used at 0° to 180° angle for typing viewing or slouching on the couch. And if you want to switch to iPad mode you just pull it out of the hinge!

    Backlighting is one thing but 3-levels of backlighting take it to another level. You can adjust to your ambient lighting and still be able to type away in the dark. I liked the feel of this keyboard and its natural tactile feel. The keys are a bit smaller than on my MacBook Pro but even my fat fingers had no problem getting productive on this board.

    Unlike the Apple Smart keyboard, the Brydge has a row of special keys that are made for iOS operation. This may be the single reason that the Brydge has won this keyboard shoot-out. I find myself utilizing this top row of keys frequently to enhance my productivity. It has keys to toggle between the on-screen and physical keyboard, it has a Home and Control Center button that I learned to use all the time. It has a quick lock key, keys to control your music and volume and of course, an on/off button. In the lower left corner, it also has a Siri button which Apple oddly omitted from their offering.

    Pros:
    Backlit keyboard, specialty iOS keys, great typing action, great screen protection, matches your iPad Pro color, 1-year battery life. At $139 it is less expensive than the Apple Smart Keyboard. Feels substantial and highly protective of the iPad Pro.

    Cons:
    It is heavy but you are essentially making your iPad Pro into a laptop and the combination of your iPad Pro and the keyboard is about the same weight as a MacBook and less than a 13-inch MacBook Pro. It also does not have anywhere to stash a pencil if you are using an Apple Pencil. It is Bluetooth so it must be paired but that was super easy to do and once paired is stays paired.

    Conclusion
    Having used both of these keyboards extensively, I have decided that I will be using the Brydge keyboard for my iPad Pro. Whether I am on an airplane or just being a couch potato the iPad Pro 10.5 with my Brydge keyboard is my device of choice. The Brydge keyboard offers the protection I want for my expensive iPad Pro screen and the keyboard connects easily and is great to work on. The backlighting and iOS specific keys make this a productive combination that simply cannot be matched by the Apple Smart Keyboard. The winner is Brydge by a span.

  • Dear Friends, Grace and I lived up to our motto of “More Fun!” in San Francisco. We had a ball celebrating and visiting…

  • We have so many deals here at Small Dog Electronics that we thought we would pull some of our best deals into one location. We have a wide variety of discontinued, used and dented carton iPads and Macs. Many of these deals are single units, so if you’re interested in one do not delay scooping it up.

    Would you prefer a new Mac or iPad? Our selection of new Macs and iPads are just as large plus we stock many custom configurations! You can e-mail us, sales@smalldog.com or call us toll-free 1-800-511-6227 and we can help you find the perfect iPad or Mac.

    We have free shipping on orders over $75 and no sales tax to most states!

  • As you read this I am probably on an airplane with Grace heading for our long weekend celebration of our 50th anniversary. Damn, we are so old but we are still having fun! We will see Joe Bonamassa in concert, check out comedy by Margret Cho and then I rented a fancy car through Turo to visit some old haunts from when we lived in the Bay Area. Our motto is the same exclamation that Grace tells me every time I complain about some random age-related pain – MORE FUN!

    This trip should bring back memories of our days as hippies and political activists in Berkley and Oakland in the 60s. I think we are gonna have some fun.

    Thank you so much for reading this issue of Kibbles & Bytes. I hope you find some value both in our content and the specials that we bring you each week.

    Your Kibbles & Bytes team,

    Don & Emily