“I solemnly swear to backup my important documents and precious memories on March 31. I will also tell my friends and family about World Backup Day — friends don’t let friends go without a backup.”
If, like me, you have a backup strategy implemented, then take this opportunity to make sure it’s working correctly — restore some files from your backup.
If you don’t have a backup plan in place, I can recommend a great ebook; Take Control of Backing Up Your Mac, by Joe Kissell. If you’re not a Mac user, sorry, I don’t have a book recommendation for you.
And don’t forget to backup your iPhones and iPads (and iPod touches, if you have them), too. Turn on iCloud Backup or connect your iOS device to your Mac (or Windows PC) and back it up with iTunes.
As some wise guy once said, “Don’t be an April fool. Be prepared. Backup your files on March 31.” All I can add to that piece of wisdom is to continue backing up your files every day of the year. 😃
Both my wife and I need new Macs. We each currently drive a 21.5-inch iMac; hers is a mid-2010 and mine is a mid-2011 (neither support macOS Mojave 10.14). We were planning on purchasing new iMac desktops sometime in the next few months, but holiday plans put a monkey with a wrench in the way. We will be traveling for the holidays and since both of us have work to do that can’t be completed on iOS, we decided to purchase a MacBook as a satellite travel Mac for us both instead.
I had been looking at the new MacBook Air announced in October as a possibility for a week or so since we made the decision when Apple announced their shopping event for November 23 through 26 where qualified Mac purchases would include a $200 Apple gift card. Even though it’s not technically a Black Friday discount, the gift card value exceeded the local government discount I could get. So we decided to buy on Black Friday.
I opened the Apple Store app on my iPhone early Friday morning and placed the order through the special shopping event links within the app, tapping through Shop, Apple Shopping Event, scrolling down to Macs, tapping on MacBook Air and finding the new models there immediately below the header stating “get a $200 Apple Store Gift Card when you buy select Mac models today.” It appeared as if the new MacBook Air was one of those, since it was listed right below that. So I went through the configuration process, found out it was available in store for pickup that day, and placed the order.
We were visiting relatives for Thanksgiving and planned a bit of a longer trip home in order to pick up our new Mac. After a lunch of Thanksgiving dinner leftovers, we headed out and arrived at Apple La Encantada in Tucson, Arizona mid afternoon. The store was packed, as expected, but after checking in with the associate at the door, it only took a minute or so for someone to arrive to help us pick up our purchase. As Carlos, the associate helping us, was finalizing the process, I asked about the gift card.
Carlos helping us check out with our new MacBook Air. My wife Lucinda is in the lower left corner.
He checked his list and as it turns out the only MacBook Air that qualified was the 2017 model that was still on sale for $999. I showed Carlos on my iPhone the way the special event section of the Apple Store app made it appear as if the new MacBook Air was part of the offer (if I had scrolled down to the old Air in the list I would have found the label “Special Offer – See in bag”).
He got his manager and I showed her. She agreed that it did seem to visually imply what I had assumed, based on the way the new MacBook Airs were listed first, and offered to pass that feedback up the chain. But, of course, they couldn’t just decide to ignore the corporate policy and give us the gift card anyway just because I didn’t scroll far enough.
We didn’t want the older MacBook Air, and the lack of the promotional gift card wasn’t going be a deal-breaker. But Carlos and his manager did suggest we could complete the purchase pickup and then immediately return it. They’d refund my credit card and then we could repurchase the same Mac using one of the discount programs we did qualify for (local government employee for me and educational for my wife, who teaches at our local community college). So that’s what we did. But the best customer service of any retail store chain I’ve ever experienced was not finished yet.
After the initial online purchase was completed and “picked up,” and then subsequently returned, as we started the repurchase of the MacBook Air, Carlos looked through all the special discount buying options Apple offers and applied the one with the biggest percentage off—more than what either of us actually qualified for—amounting to almost $150 off the retail price.
My wife Lucinda and I are happy owners of a new MacBook Air.
So a big shout out to Carlos and his manager at Apple La Encantada for going the extra mile in the midst of a busy shopping day to make our Black Friday one we’ll remember every time we use our new, discounted, MacBook Air (Retina, 13-inch, 2018).
Some time ago a client with both an iPhone and a Mac, who enjoyed using emoji on her iPhone, asked if there was a way to use emoji characters on her Mac. My answer to her was, “Why yes, Virginia, there is a Great Pumpkin!” Well, maybe not in those exact words, but this paraphrased quote is seasonally appropriate and in keeping with the theme of my latest Bazz MacGeek Quick Tip. Here, see for yourself.
Sorry for not posting last week. I was preparing for my local computer user group meeting (the Mountain View Computer User Group) and ran out of time. The meeting, that my fellow geek, Mike McLain, and I ran was yesterday and we covered the topic of “YouTube, why is it worth watching.” I had prepared this tutorial screencast so as to have something to demo how to upload and put into a playlist. I hope you enjoy it.
Thanks for reading (and watching). Please post your comments below and I’ll be back again next week with another blog post.
I started working on a 10-part series of posts of tips for better typing on a Mac this week. Actually, it began as a single post with 10 tips, but it gradually ballooned beyond my capacity to get it all done before my self-imposed posting deadline. That’s when I changed my mind, thinking I had enough material for ten week’s worth of posts, and decided to break it down to one tip per week.
The 10 tips are from a presentation I did for my local computer user group back in 2004, which was essentially a book review of Robin P. William’s The Mac is Not A typewriter.
However, as I progressed through the old Keynote slide deck and converted the content into blog posts, I realized after a few hours that I had quoted the book directly a number of times as part of that presentation. So I changed my mind again and decided I didn’t need to go to the trouble of creating my own versions of these tips — and risking plagiarizing Ms. Williams — I could just tell you about the book and provide you with a link. So here goes.
As a graphic designer and a self-proclaimed Mac geek I was already familiar with many aspects of typography that this style manual addresses when I became aware of it. But it was (and still is) a delightful read. Ms. Williams approach to writing about design and technology is entertaining as well as educational. She explains why using the typographic principles outlined in her book will help you create better documents. It’s easy to read and can be digested in convenient “helpings”.
My favorite tip — and my most frustrating pet peeve about text I receive to be put into a design — is “Use only one space after periods, colons, exclamation points, question marks, quotation marks — any punctuation that separates two sentences.” Ms. Williams goes on to explain why in compelling terms while bringing historical and technological context. It may be a hard habit to break, but your written words will look so much better.
It may no longer be in print, but it is still available new and used on Amazon and from the publisher, Peachpit. The tips in the book may be subtle, but they can make a big difference if you spend a lot of time writing for any kind of printed publication and even for the web.
Thanks for reading this week. If you have a copy of The Mac is Not a typewriter or get a copy, let me know in the comments what you think of the book. Maybe share your favorite tip.
Periodically I will share some of my favorite websites, podcasts, videos, and/or blogs I follow to learn about the Apple-centric tech-o-sphere. This is one of those posts. The last time I posted about a podcast was back in October of 2016 after I discoveredThe Checklist. Today, I’d like to tell you about Vector.
My new Vector T-shirt, pin, and stickers on the dining room table.
Vector is what I call a three-in-one resource by Rene Ritchie from iMore. It’s videos, a podcast, and a blog (or series of articles, if you wish) where Mr. Ritchie provides insight into the world of Apple technology with short, palatable, and entertaining morsels of online media. I say “three-in-one” because his content is provided in any of the three ways in which you want to consume it — as a blog (or article) you read, as a podcast you listen to, or as a video that you watch. I personally subscribe to the Vector channel on YouTube, but you can read, listen, or watch right on iMore.
His latest posts (as of this writing) are reviews of the Watch Series 4 and the iPhone XS and XS Max. They are a little longer than his usual five to 15 minutes, but well worth a look/listen if you are at all interested in the new hardware that Apple introduced on September 12, 2018.
So, check out Vector and let me know what you think in the comments below. As Rene would say, “Thank you so much for reading.”
I did not get an invitation, but Apple live streamed the event, so I watched. And I’ve got some questions. Whether Apple answers them or not is up to them.
Gather round?
What’s with this title? If it is a title, why is it not set in title case, as in “Gather Round”? And, does this really mean “gather around”? If so, where’s the apostrophe for the missing “a” (i.e. Gather ’Round)? The grammar police surely started surveillance back in 1997 with your Think Different campaign. Why they let you continue to get away with abuse of the English language, I’ll never understand.
What’s in a name?
I’ll tell you what. The shaking of heads (and probably some fists), that’s what. Last year was confusing enough with iPhone X. But it looks cool and goes along with the history of Apple using a roman numeral for 10 (except for when they don’t, like for Xcode). So I got used to the name and mostly remembered to pronounce the X as “ten”. I also love using it and am looking forward to the new iPhone experience that iOS 12 will bring.
But, iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, and iPhone XR? Seriously? Let me see if I got this right.
(In case it’s not obvious, that’s a man singer emoji — the closest thing to a tenor in the emoji character set. Don’t you just hate it when someone explains their jokes? 🙄)
My cell phone has a first name,
It’s I-P-H-O-N-E.
My cell phone has a second name,
It’s X-S-M-A-X.
Oh, I love to use it everyday,
And if you ask me why I say,
’Cause Apple people have a way with M-A-R-K-E-T-I-N-G!
What’s on your wrist?
It’s not a Capital One credit card, that’s for sure. Well, I take that back. I have an Watch Series 1 and I do have a CapOne credit card in the Apple Wallet app and can use it via ApplePay from the watch. After my iPhone X, the Watch is my favorite Apple device. The Watch Series 4 is the announcement from this week’s event that is most drool worthy for me. Will I buy one? I’m thinking it’s time to upgrade, yes.
After the Apple Watch was introduced in the Spring of 2015, I wrote a short post entitled “Which Watch.” Twenty months later, I finally purchased one. I did get the Space Gray 42mm aluminum with black fluoroelastomer sport band. Since I waited so long, I had a choice between the Series 1 and Series 2. Target made my choice easier due to a Black Friday discount on the Series 1.
I was originally planning on making this an unboxing photo essay, but it’s now been almost a year, so what’s the point? The introduction of the Series 3 has prompted me to come back to this draft post and wrap it up, finally!
My First Apple Watch
I did have an Apple Watch prior to the introduction of what the tech community is now calling “series 0,” however.
Even though it thought different [differently?], it was not smart. So I was glad to upgrade to the Series 1.
It has been a fun 11 months with the Watch Series 1. I use it primarily for notifications, a remote for playing audio from my iPhone 6s, and, in the last six months, walk workout fitness tracking. Having the watch has motivated me to get out and move more than I had been in many years, so I think it has been a good investment.
So, there you have it. I’ve incorporated the Watch into my daily routine. Now, another decision has to be made. Do I upgrade to the Series 3? And if so, do I go for LTE?
I recently started listening to a new podcast focused on Mac and iOS security called,The Checklist. It’s hosted by Ken Ray (of the dailyMac OS Ken podcast) with security geeks Nicholas Raba and Nicholas Ptacek of SecureMac, Inc It’s been going for about seven weeks now and I thought some of you may be interested in the content. Each episode is fairly short (approximately 30 minutes), and covers a short, five-item checklist of security-related steps.
Even if your not a podcast listener, the content of each week’s list is freely available for you to read on the episode’s web page. Episodes that have aired so far cover these topics:
I am really enjoying the podcast and you might find some timely information for your daily Macintosh computing. A new episode comes out every Thursday.
Do I want an Watch? Yes. Do I need an Watch? Probably not. Will I buy an Watch? At some point, yes. Which Watch? 42mm Sport with black fluoroelastomer band.
But first I want an iPhone 6. And before that I need a new Mac.
“Every once in a while a revolutionary product comes along that changes everything.” ~Steve Jobs
I neglected to mark the day on June 29, the seventh anniversary of the original iPhone’s launch. I didn’t own or use an iPhone until 2009 (iPhone 3Gs), but my computing life sure has changed due to the iPhone.
Bazz MacGeek 