Apple Domination

[Press Release] Apple Domination partners with Orbicule

2014-09-09T09:00:00.000+02:00

[Blog] The Safe Mac Announces AdMedic

2014-09-08T17:50:00.000+02:00

This morning, the well-reputed Mac Security Blog, The Safe Mac, released the successor to their older Adware Removal Tool and the System Reporter script, named AdMedic.

The older tools did a great job, but ran as scripts, and required full app re-downloads to update the adware signature database.
This was one of the driving forces behind creating the full-blown app.

The new app will not only allow for adware signature updates on the fly, but also more effective adware scanning and improved snapshots.

The snapshots feature allows AdMedic to "scan" your machine and spit out a report of what it has found, without actually removing the items.

This is particularly helpful for dealing with the dreaded Genieo that might remove files causing the Mac to crash gloriously and not start back up again.

The actual scan itself will remove any unwanted (all?) adware off your Mac, and leave you feeling confident about the security of your machine.

Since AdMedic needs access more than a traditional Sand-boxed app, it can only be downloaded from The Safe Mac Website, and is not expected to hit the App Store anytime.

Although in the previous scripts users were able to view the source code, this is no longer possible with the new app.
This is a concern with professionals and developers, due to the sensitive nature of the app.
This is being dealt with though, and may appear online soon, perhaps on Github or the like.

If you untrusting of apps like AdMedic, for obvious reasons, then feel free to do all the handwork yourself, following the Manual Removal Instructions from The Safe Mac.

For a full run-fown of the app, and all the information you need about it, read the author, Thomas Reed's article on it.

The app is running under the Donation-Ware banner, so it is free to download and use, but support the developers and make a donation if you can.

Use little tools like AdMedic to help keep your Mac secured and remember, Common Sense helps, A LOT!

If you have any question or concerns for the developer, chat to thomas@thesafemac.com

Keep Safe, and Enjoy!

[Press Release] Apple Domination partners with Watchman Monitoring

2014-09-08T09:00:00.000+02:00

[Review] PhotoSweeper - Get rid of those pesky duplicate photos

2014-09-06T18:54:00.002+02:00

15 years ago, you rarely took a 2nd photo of something, since it cost you money to develop them afterwards, and a pretty penny at that.

But now...a slightly different problems exist.

We are all too happy to just start snapping and keep at at, without fear of creating doubles, triples or even more.

While this is not a problem with development costs, it is starting to cost us hard drive space.

Having a 100GB photo library now is nothing special anymore. We don't even raise an eyebrow at 100GB.

So how do we find any and all duplicates?
And even worse, what about photos that are not duplicates, but are 99.98% exactly the same as the handful photos before it?

Enter PhotoSweeper!

PhotoSweeper does just what you think it would; it looks for duplicate photos, and removes them.

But PhotoSweeper has a twist to it.

It uses multiple algorithms, to find duplicates in different ways.

It can do the simplest search, and find photos that 100% identical.

But what about that photos that are just under the 100% mark in similarity?
PhotoSweeper can help!

Once you have loaded your picture libraries from iPhoto, Aperture or Adobe Lightroom, you will be able to choose how you want to compare your photographs to each other.

Your choices are:

Duplicates Only
Bitmap
Histogram
Time Interval
Time + Bitmap
Time + Histogram

So the Duplicates-Only is the obvious one mentioned above.

The not so obvious ones are Histograms, Bitmaps and Time-Intervals.

The histogram of a photo can be used to find other photos with the exact same, or extremely similar histograms and find duplicates.

"What is the histogram?" I hear someone in the back ask?

Well, the histogram of a photo is a visual representation, like a chart, of the colour shades, tones and brightness levels found in the photo.

The far left of the chart indicates pure black, and pure white is found on the far right of the histogram.

Now that you know how bright each colour is in your picture, the height of each wave in the histogram will show you how many pixels will be found in the picture of each colour. Remember, it's all made up Red, Green and Blue (RGB)

If the histogram is not what you are looking for, then perhaps the bitmap option will excite you.

If you have ever created reduced file-size versions of existing files, this is the option you are looking for.

Set Bitmap to the desired size of the reduced image you are looking for, from 16x16 pixels to 128x128 pixels, and let PhotoSweeper do its thing.

If you are more like me, you'll probably have 25 photos of the exact shame shot, separated by a second or so from each other. Really unnecessary and a big waste of space.

So pick the Time Interval option, set the interval from 0 Seconds to 24 Hours, and feel the power of PhotoSweeper comparing your photos for you.

If you are feeling particularly frisky, you could always combine the Time Interval option with the Histogram or even with the Bitmap algorithm.

So apart from comparing your photos and finding the duplicates, PhotoSweeper will automatically mark the newly identified duplicates, and if you choose to, will delete the duplicates too.

If you find a group of duplicates, or extremely similar pics, and you would like to remove them out of this particular library, but you don't really want to delete them, why not copy or move them to another folder/drive? PhotoSweeper has you covered for this functionality.

And a little bonus?

If you move or copy photos to a folder, you'll be able to do a batch name change too. Awesome!

Once you've loaded a photo library, you will be able to Quick Look any photo you'd like to, using the native OS X Quick Look functionality, just as an extra feature.

So overall, I am extremely impressed by not only the functionality of the app, but also by the accuracy of the algorithms to find the duplicates, using your different choices of course.

Check out a quick demo of PhotoSweeper in action:

PhotoSweeper comes from the development house, Overmacs, where the team is constantly improving their apps, one release at a time. Check out them for other apps too.

Grab this app on the App Store for $9.99.

The price might seem a bit steep, but just think about the functionality you get for those measly 10 green-backs. Just try think about you manually going through your photos looking for duplicates (aannnndddd.......SOLD!)

And also, Overmacs has thought this through, and so, provides not only 2 versions of their App, but also trial versions of each.

The link above is for the Full version at $9.99, but there is also a lite-version for a very reasonable $2.99

Naturally the Lite-Version has some limited functionality, like not being able to move or copy marked photos, and also does not have intricate settings for looking for photos that are similar, instead of identical.

But if you are unconvinced, you can get the demo of the full or lite versions, to give it a whirl, before buying. The demo can load only 101 photos, so it really is for testing purposes only.

PhotoSweeper has been featured in the "Apps for Photographers" section of the App Store, and even featured in the Top-10 in the photography category, over the last 2.5 years.

Today it is the 9th top grossing app in the photography category.

6 September 2014 Chart

I loved using PhotoSweeper, so I know you will too.

Go get it, and as always, Enjoy!

[Review] Never lose your iDevice again, with Marco Polo

2014-09-04T13:23:00.000+02:00

I don't know about you, but easily one of the most regular things that I utter to my wife is: "Honey, have you seen my phone anywhere?"

Until now, that is.

Now I utter, to the room: "Marco!"

One of the funniest ways, yet most effective, to find your iDevice when you misplace it (without using find my iPhone of course).

The Marco Polo app works on the iPhone, iPad and iPod touch, so your iWorld is covered!

Canada-based developer/designer, Matt Wiechec, is the brainchild behind Marco Polo, and thank goodness for him!

Once you switch on MP on your iPhone, "Marco" begins listening for that magic word.

And if it hears it? "POLO!" it shouts back at you. (The dogs were so confused)

Luckily, you can set the voice it responds in, so you can have a bit of fun with that, and drive everyone else in the room crazy :)

You can even set the volume of the voice that it responds in.

This is particularly handy when you've left your phone on silent, under the couch, in a sock. Or, of course, just set the "Volume Boost" option, and the voice will respond back at maximum volume.

It also works while on silent, and even in sleep mode!

If you set the Push Notification option on, MP will utilise iOS's notification centre, to send you an alert when it responds to your Marco rants (Which you won't be able to read until you find the darn thing of course).

Once you switch the App on, and it begins listening for you, you will have the opportunity to change the word that it listens for.

So if you don't like shouting "Marco" around the house or office, change it to SweetiePie, or something of the sort. (Or better yet, set your friend's MP app to that, then hide his iPhone in the canteen, and send him an email, informing him of what he will need to shout in order to get his phone back...)

My good friends' little one is named Marco, so this would be a great time to change that listening word!

During my testing of the app, I was really surprised at how well it picked up my voice, and responded back immediately.

It could hear me effectively from as far as about 5m, and I could hear it fairly clearly.

In the beginning, my wife had some trouble with the range. If she wasn't within 1m, it simply wouldn't pick up her voice.

But with the latest update that came through though, she can now register up to about 3 to 4 meters.

Naturally the pitch of most women's voices would be higher, making the signal more difficult to register on the device further away.

The app is a mere $0.99, so well worth the cool, and fun functionality it gives you.

My only gripe with the app, is that once it is listening, and switched on, a red bar appears at the top of your iPhone screen, similar to when you are on a call, or hosting a personal hotspot.

While this did NOT put a lot of load on my battery, i did find it kind of off-putting.

But hey, I'm OCD like that :)

Other than that, the app is great, effective, heck of a lot of fun, and simple.

Great job Matt!

Go out and get it guys, you won't be sorry.

Enjoy!

[Review] Undercover - Bad news for Mac Thieves

2014-09-02T01:36:00.001+02:00

Undercover was easily one of the best pieces of software that I have had the privilege of reviewing for 2014!
Like any good Apple user, you probably have Find my Mac (Find my iPhone, you know what I mean) enabled, and hope to heck that you will never need to use it.

Touch wood though, should that day ever come, will it be enough to get your own back?

While I have the utmost respect for Apple's native software and services, this is clearly a tool that is playing in a league of its own.
FmM feels like a lonely peg-leg pirate at a square-dance competition.

So, once you head over to Undercover's website, you will be presented with an option to Try or Buy.

While I recommend this software 110%, and urge you not to even bother with the trial and just go and buy it outright, I do get it.

Press the Try button and get the process started. This will get you going with a 7-day trial.

When you select the Try option, you will be required to enter an email address.
Do it! There's no getting the trial without it, as your email address becomes your username.

You will receive an email with simple instructions, asking you to select a link that will take you to the UndercoverHQ dashboard and force you to select a new password.

That's it, you are ready to get to the good stuff!

In the dashboard, you are presented with a side panel and a menu bar.

In the side bar, you will see any and all Macs that you have enlisted for protection, and the menu bar will be specific to each machine you select.

Since you have no Macs enrolled just yet, you can tap on the huge option called "Add your Mac".
Once selected, you will see 2 important items.

The link to download the pkg installer for version 6
How many Macs you can still enrol under your registered licensing option

For now it will be 1 :)

Hit the download Link and install the magical software.

It's just a normal installer, but there is a bit of voodoo in the background.

For instance, it doesn't actually install an app, and it most definitely does not install a System Preference pane either. "So what does it do then" I hear you ask?

First, it installs a Launch Agent in /Library/LaunchAgents called com.orbicule.ucagent.plist

Then it installs a Launch Daemon in /Library/LaunchDaemon called com.orbicule.uc.plist

And finally, the payload. It installs a folder called UC inside of /usr/local . This is where the actual agent is located.

(These locations are great for when/if it ever comes time to uninstall)

After you install the agent, reboot the Mac and voila! Your Mac is now registered within your UndercoverHQ dashboard.

Without doing anything further, you will be on the INFO tab on top of the page.

Here you will see 3 sections, including the basic information about your Mac, any recent activity logged and what the current status of the Mac is (Stolen or not)

So without further stalling, what can Undercover do exactly?

If that day every comes that your machine gets misplaced within the hands that are not your own, first things first, head to the THEFT REPORT tab.

Here is the all-important button, Report Stolen.

This puts the Mac into Stolen mode, and kicks in all the various services to begin the hunt to get your own back.

This not only puts it into Stolen mode, but it actually generates an official-looking theft report.

The moment you put your machine into stolen mode, an email is generated informing you of the state of the Machine too, i.e. Stolen.

You can then tap on the button to set the Police Contact Details for this case.

While this actually works in the USA, unfortunately SAPS does not play well with these auto-generated black-magic self-proclaimed police reports. They want to do it their own way, the hard way.

With or without the Police contact details, you will be able to generate your theft report, and download a package with all the little goodies that Undercover has been collecting since your machine was marked as stolen.

When you download your package (no snickering please, we're all grown-ups here) it will include amongst other things, a PDF report with as much detail as you could hope for, for an official investigation.

So, what are these goodies that Undercover collects for you, to bust your perpetrator in the act?

Head over to LOCATION.

The obvious thing to expect here is the current location of your stolen device.

But Find my Mac can also do that?

But what FmM cannot do, is scrub the timeline at the bottom of the screen, to see the history of locations since your machine was put into Stolen mode.

The location is transmitted every 30 minutes.

I feel like Nifty Points +1 is in order here.

When you tap on your location marker, it will show you the GPS coordinates, the internal AND external IP addresses, as well as the network name that it is connected to.

Nifty Points +1 anyone?

Now that we know where the master-douche is hanging out, let's take a look as to who exactly is behind this dastardly crime.

Tap on PHOTOS.

The built-in iSight camera will take a selfie every 8 minutes, hopefully catching the perp in the act, or at least enough to catch his/her mug.

If you would like to see a photo within the 8-minute window, just tap on take photo for instant selfies.

The only cue is the green light on the camera, which is so quick, it is often missed.

I don't recall FmM taking photos?

Nifty Points +1 indeed.

Want to see what the bad guy/girl is up to?

Head over to SCREEN SHOTS.

While you know it can't be good, whatever it is they are doing, at least this way you will be able to see if they are after something super-specific, like data-espionage or simply looking for some juicy photos.

Screenshots, like photos, take place every 8 minutes.

But these screenshots leave no visual cues behind, like the photos.

While unnecessary, we are definitely adding this feature to the Nifty pile.

Nifty Points +1

Not only can you see the screens that they are working on, but you will also be able to see physically what they are typing, character for character.

Every single little things gets logged under the KEY LOGS section.

Well, all except for usernames and passwords!

This puts even my mind at rest.

This means the good folks at Undercover won't be able to get into my sensitive accounts, and neither will the feds. (Apart from the 128-bit encryption between your machine and the mothership of course)

At the bottom of the screen, you will be able to filter the Key logs according to apps, as well as text typed versus text highlighted.

Interesting choices.

Key logs are recorded continuously. No time intervals for this one.

Nifty Points +1 for sure!

So now that you know everything about the person that has mistakenly taken your laptop and is mistakenly trying to log into your internet banking sites, what else does Undercover provide yo with.

Well you have a PRIVACY tab on top for, wait for it, privacy settings.

Basically, do you want Undercover to be taking photos, logging key strokes, snapping screens and locations ALL the time, or only when Stolen?
I think we all have the same answer here...only when stolen please!

No nifty points, but critical nonetheless.

Oh yeah, then there's PLAN B. My fav!

Plan B is taking the perp-tracking tool to a new level.

You have 3 options for Plan B. Or Plans B, C and D if you will.
No not really, they are all called Plan B, whether you will or won't.

Firstly, you can simply leave Plan B on the default option, which is Off.
I know it seems counter-intuitive, but this basically means do nothing that will give our game away, and keep tracking in the back ground.
Apart from potential emails coming in, and the odd green-light selfies, there is no indication to the thief that you are tracking them.

You could set Plan B into Hardware Failure mode.
This is brilliant!

It runs a script in the background that randomly adjusts the brightness of the screen at incredibly quick intervals, making it look like a hardware failure with the display.
Don't worry, this won't damage your Mac, but it will make the would-be thief want to get rid of it ASAP.
Perhaps this will lead to the recovery of your Mac, perhaps not.

Either way, Nifty Points +1 in the bag!

And finally, your 3rd Plan B option is to lock the screen with a good old-fashioned screen message.

This message can be whatever you want it to be.
Polite and sincere or obnoxious and rude.
I would opt for somewhere in the middle.

The nifty points for this will come from the fact that not only does this message take control of the screen, and does not allow for any other key stroke or mouse click, but it also calls the message back if you hard-reset the computer.

A few moments after restarting the box, the message will take control of the screen, and the thief can see and do nothing, nada, zip!
And to top it all off, Voiceover kicks in at full volume and reads the contents of the message out LOUD! How embarrassing!

Yes, you can turn the volume down, or even off, but once the voiceover finishes reading the screen, it starts all over again, and resets the sounds settings, to LOUD.

Definitely +1 in the Nifty Jar.

Anything else that Undercover can do to help get your machine back?

Why yes, now that you ask.

Undercover version 6.0 now supports Undercover Watch.

This gives you 2 options to begin Auto-Tracking a machine, without you actually clicking on Report Stolen.

The 2 options are:

When I leave this network (You can specify a few)
When a user logs into a specific "dummy" account, or more commonly, OS X's guest account.

Any/both of these options will auto-trigger the stolen attribute, and begin tracking and taking a few snaps shots for the photo album.

That deserves +2 Nifty Points.

So, that's it. Finally!

That is all that Undercover can do for you and your home, business, studio or classroom. It will give you peace of mind, that no matter what, you will have options to get your own back again.

Some overall thoughts?

In the beginning I was instantly put off by the price of the software.

Costing R540 to cover 1 Mac or R640 to cover 5...there isn't really a choice is there?

You can also up this license to cover up to 25 machines, but it will set you back R5500, or R220 per machine.

When you look at all of the above features and consider the entirety of the 9 Nifty points, Undercover should be charging more!

So what are the pitfalls and considerations?

Well, first and foremost; If someone manages to format and reinstall your Mac, your tracking days are over, since the agent will have been wiped off the machine for good.

How do you prevent this? Set a firmware password!

Reboot the Mac and hold CMD+R, tap on Tools, and choose to set a Firmware password.

Then, why can't someone just remove the agent manually, since I have listed the exact locations above?

Well, firstly the user would need your administrator password in order to do this.

"But what about the builtin Password Reset Utility found in the Recovery partition" I hear you say?

"Please refer to the above point of setting a firmware password" you will hear me say in return.

This will prevent anybody from getting into the recovery console in order to reset your password.

Does Undercover play nice with FileVault2?

NO!

Apple specifically designed FileVault2 to not allow any 3rd party utilities or apps to alter the booting process or drive encryption.

So unfortunately, you either use FileVault2 or Undercover, not both.

But what if you want the benefits of both? Tracking and drive encryption? Well, invest in a 3rd party drive encrypting utility out there, there are many to choose from.

So all in all, Undercover is definitely going into the hall of fame for 2014 of Apple Domination!

I always feel that if I don't personally believe in something, like a piece of software, I cannot endorse it.

I am extremely happy to endorse Undercover!

Not only will I be using it on my household Macs, but I will also be providing it as a service to my Mac Clients.

Go out, get it, and feel better knowing that you have done everything that you can to prevent and recover your machine from theft!

Enjoy!

[Support] Mavericks Calendar and Exchange Syncing Issue

2014-08-08T22:03:00.000+02:00

After a successful migration of a user from Microsoft Outlook 2011 (*spit*) to Mail for Mac, the user started experiencing this error on a one particular calendar event.

"Calendar can't save the event "event name" to the Exchange Server"

After some research, it turns out that the Calendar cache that is created by the Exchange server on the local Mac, was causing the issue, not allowing the Mac to update the Exchange server correctly.

I attempted to remove the entire Exchange account and re-add it again, but because the cache was, well, cached, it didn't solve the issue.

So to fix it?

Quit Mail and Calendar
Navigate to ~/Library/Calendars
Rename "Calendar Cache" to "Calendar Cache Old"
Now reopen Calendar, and find that the calendar has been removed from the Exchange account setting preferences
Simply open System Preferences, Internet Accounts, Select the Exchange account and tick the box for Calendar
Calendar is forced to recreate the cache
This resolved the problem perfectly

Hope it works for you too!

Technical Specs:

Client:

MacBook Pro 8,1
OS X Mavericks 10.9.4
Calendar Version 7.0 (1841.1)

Server:

Microsoft Exchange 2013 SP1

Thanks to Delcour Solutions for the help sorting this out!

[Review] Hide your secret stash on your Mac with Hider 2

2014-07-21T12:18:00.000+02:00

We all have those little folders on our Macs...

The ones that are usually tucked away, a few folder levels down from the Desktop.

Those folders that are fine and dandy for your eyes and fingers, but not quite for anyone else's.

And remember, you can use the age-old "hide it in plain sight" technique, behind your profile's password, but a quick OS X recovery exercise will render that null and void (excluding of course for the brilliant technologies like Firmware passwords and FileVault).

So what else can you use to keep certain files from prying eyes?
Enter the Hider 2 app from MacPaw.

Alongside a plethora of other Mac Utilities, MacPaw hit the nail on the head with Hider 2.

Apart from some brilliant encryption, 256-bit AES no less, the desktop UX is pretty flawless.

Run through the intro info screens when you install the app for the 1st time, and set your Hider Password.
This is kind of like a Master Password. Forget it, and you can forget your files.
You will need this password, anytime you want to access your hidden away data.

Now that the app is up and running, and waiting for you, you can very easily just start dragging in any files and folder from anywhere in the finder, and it will be immediately encrypted, and hidden away.

If you want to access that file or folder again, you'll need to open the Hider console, with a smart little menu bar icon, unlock Hider with your master password, and choose the simple toggle switch to make the file visible again.
When you are done your editing or viewing, simple "hide" it again with the toggle switch.

Remember, if you close Hider, while the file is visible, it will remain visible.
Pretty cool control if you ask me!

You have the option to create some secure notes in the desktop app as well. Maybe some credit card details you need to jot down?

And pretty sweet, if you had an already tagged file in OS X Mavericks, and then added it to the Hider, it will maintain the tags, and make it even quicker to find your files. The Tags aren't editable once encrypted.

On the technical side of things, when you "hide" your data, the item is copied into a discreet location that Hider uses, and of course is fully encrypted, and the original item is deleted.

This means of course 2 things:

When you "unhide" the item, it will need to be decrypted, and copied back to the original location. This means that for large files and folders, it's going to take some time to decrypt on the fly.
Because the original item is deleted, and not securely deleted, the data is technically still susceptible to data snoopers using specialised recovery tools. (Remember that OS X's Disk Utility will allow you to secure erase all your free space if you are super-paranoid)

So, a whole lot of positives, and a great design.
What's the catch?

Well, my only gripe is the app comes in a little heavy on the Mac App Store at $19.99.

But then again, when you think about the alternative, it's worth it.

You could manually hide your files and folders through a simple'ish Terminal command, but then you would need to unhide it manually every single time you want to use it.
And this does NOT encrypt your data, it simply hides it. And of course, you can simple unhide it again if the user's password is reset.

Also, on the note of alternatives FileVault encrypts the entire drive, not just a specific location. And, FV uses 128-bit OR 256-bit XTS encryption. So it may be as strong, or half as strong than Hider's encryption.

So for an easy to use interface, great UX and UI, effective encryption, and best of all, it works?
Yes, it is worth $19.99, if not more.

Go and get it, and I know you will enjoy!

[Review] Choose your noise and focus your mind with Noisli

2014-07-20T21:11:00.002+02:00

Whether you are trying to drown out some particularly distracting sounds from the local Internet Cafe, focusing your mind on the way to a big presentation, or even trying to calm your thoughts for a good night's sleep, Noisli is just the app for you.

I have been using Noisli for a few weeks now, and it genuinely is one of my favourite, and most used apps.
It has been around for some time now, in the form of a very simplistic website, but finally, developer Stefano Merlo, has launched the iPhone and iPad app.

I often use it to drown out the humming of the aircon and the buzz of the office, and even use it at night to fall asleep to wind blowing the through the trees, or my personal favourite, rain and thunder.

If you are in a coffee shop editing or working on the laptop, simply head to the website and pick your favourite sound.

When you are away from your laptop, just launch the app on your iPhone, pop in the EarPods and pick your favourite sound.

I found the sounds that are used in the app are of a particularly high quality, and not just a 3 second loop, that will drive you slowly insane. They are incredibly realistic and very effective in their various scenarios.

To compliment the website, there is even a basic text-editor that will allow you to jot down some text, ideas, blog posts or whatever, while in the calm (or not so calm if you choose) sound bubble, and not distracted by the usual things that run our lives.
You can save the text edit into a little text file if you want to save it for more editing later.

You can switch on the fader at night, so that you don't wake up in the middle of the night to fake thunder and rain :)
And if you become a regular user, like me, then save your own custom combinations. Very easy to apply your own favourites at just the right levels.

Noisli is of course available on the App Store for a very attractive $1.99.
Now that I know the power of the app, I would easily pay 10 times that price for it! (But don't get any crazy ideas now Stefano!)

Go and grab it on the App Store, and I promise you will love it!

Enjoy!

[Review] Track exactly how much time you spend on your iPhone!

2014-07-20T15:41:00.000+02:00

It's something that I have been made aware of before, but like most less-exciting things in life, I chose to just ignore it.

"Are you on your iPhone again!?"

Enter the clever little app called Moment.

Moment comes from developer Kevin Holesh, who actually wrote the app for himself, who suffers from the same problem we all do...spending too much time on our phones.

The app is quite clever in how it tracks your usage.
It only tracks usage when you are "on" your phone.

This means that while your screen is unlocked, and busy in an app, it counts the usage.
But when you are say, listening to iTunes through your EarPods, or getting turn-by-turn directions from Siri, it doesn't count. Very clever!

When you set the app up for the 1st time, you have a handful of simple settings to set and forget.

Firstly, choose to auto-track your phone usage. (Why wouldn't you right?)
From my experience, this does not eat away at the battery, and if you get down to around 15% battery or so, the app switches off auto tracking until you charge again. Very nice of you Moment :)

Then choose if you want to track the places you go.
I didn't think too much about this, but looking back now, you can actually see the exact routes you have taken or moved through as your phone was on and tracking. Might be a great addition to the over-protetctive dads out there ;)

Choose when to actually track your phone usage, between the morning and evening hours of the day. Make it 24 hours if you want, but that might be a bit over the tip right?

Set yourself a daily limit.
I hd no idea what I would/should need to set here, so I kept the default of 60 minutes. Clearly, this is not enough for me...yet.
The interesting thing about this setting, is that when you reach the limit, every couple of minutes you go over it, it gives off a little annoying alert (you can choose your annoying alert of course), reminding you that you are into overtime with your allowed usage.
Makes you think about what you actually did in the day to get to your limit. (Dungeon Keeper for iOS is not helping my 60 min limit)

Set yourself a little "mini reminder" every X minutes. This keeps you aware of your usage all day long. Thank goodness, these are subtle alerts, and won't scare the meeting members out the room.

And that's it!

Keep on using your phone, and learn to curb the usage very quickly, and creatively.

The app is available on the App store for a reasonable $4.99, and is most definitely worth every single cent.

Also check out Kevin's app website here for more info about the app specifically.

This app has definitely made very aware of how much time I am spending on the phone, sometimes good, sometimes bad.
But it is definitely the start of something interesting...

Go and get, and enjoy!

[Review] Expires - Track all your expirations on your iPhone

2014-05-03T20:11:00.001+02:00

Most of us have been there.

We whip out the credit card on the Sunday evening bread and milk run, only to find that the card has expired...and now you have to use cash.

Or even worse, you get pulled over in a routine traffic check point, to be told that your driver's licence expired 3 months ago.

Oops...

Enter Expires.

Expires is such a simple app, and yet I haven't stopped using it since I got my grubby paws on it.

For all of the various things in your life that have an expiration or a renewal date, Expires is designed to keep you well in the loop at all times.

I didn't realise how many things there were in my life, and that of the family/household, that have an expiry date.

From things you deal with fairly regularly, like online subscriptions on a monthly basis, to some things a bit less regular, like smartphone contracts, to the big bad-boys that we all forget about because they renew in five years or more, like that pesky driver's license and passport.

Simply create an item in the app, and set the expiry date, reminder date and a simple note.

There are some default items to choose from, but if that doesn't meet your requirement, then simply make an "other event" entry, and name it whatever you want to.

The reminders that you set will come through using the native notification centre on iOS 7, and will simply badge the app too.

Once you've rounded up all your expiring items, and created the entries, you are done!
Sit back and wait to be reminded.

Expires comes from developer Jiří Urbášek

The app is available on the App Store for a mere $0.99, and definitely worth it.
And remember, it only runs on your iPhone, not your iPad.

Check it out, and enjoy!

[Review + Walkthrough] Clockwise - Your Digital Butler

2014-04-26T12:45:00.001+02:00

If you are reading this, then there is a pretty good chance that you like to tinker with your Mac, and believe in the motto "Work smart, not hard!"

And if this is true, then Clockwise is just the app to help you do it!

The app is very easy to get started with, and is very much self-explanatory.

You can create many different kinds of events, that combine a range of options, settings and configurations, to run on very specific schedule, to automate your life.

When you want to create a task, a handful of choices need to be made, and you will be on your way.

Here's how you do it:

First, set when the event will take place.

This can either be at a certain time of a day (ALARM), After a certain amount of time has lapsed (TIMER), or on a keyboard shortcut (SHORTCUT).

Next, set your repetition, if any.

This will be once-off (RUN A SINGLE DAY), run every few days (REPEAT EVERY X DAYS), and you can even have it run every day from now on (RUN FOREVER)

Just before you get to the good stuff and setup your event, big or small, you can choose your post-event choice. You have 2 choices.

Set your Post-Run options.

If you close Clockwise, or your Mac is asleep, when the event should trigger, do you want the event to run once Clockwise comes back online? You can simply choose Yes, or customise it to only run, albeit delayed, if the date is within a certain number of days from the event date. (ENABLE DELAYED TRIGGERING).

And if this is a once-off task, that you never want/need to run again, then choose to have it removed after completion (DELETE WHEN COMPLETED)

Once these simple configurations are set, move on to the actual event configuration, and get down to business.

Finally'ish, create your event/s.

The events that you can set here are almost limitless!

There are 16 native events, that cover a super-wide spectrum. But if that's not enough, you can always run a custom script, no problem.

The events include:

Alert (Can use Notification Centre of Growl)
Tweet
Change Brightness
Change Volume
Flash Screen
Play Sound
Play/Pause iTunes (Just play or pause the current iTunes)
Change iTunes Volume
Play iTunes Music (Play a specific track or playlist)
Open File/Folder/App
Open Internet Address
Run User Script
Send Email
Take Screenshot
Take iSight Photo
Wait for Internet (Simply waits for internet connection to become available)
Pause (Apply a pause between events)

The events are fairly self-explanatory, and super-easy to set up.

I personally love using the Volume and brightness options, to reset each back to a certain percentage every morning, before I deliver my next class. That way I always know the volume level before playing Keynotes and Videos to a room full of students.

You can set multiple events to take place, and set them to run in a specific order. Very powerful!

Using a combination of alerts, apps, iTunes and files, can easily act as "alarms" or notifications for you, for certain timings, or certain tasks.

If you want iTunes to play, and then pause after 30 minutes, use the Pause event, between the Play iTunes Music and Pause iTunes events.

If you want to send a tweet or an email, be sure to use the Wait for Internet event, or else an error will be issued if internet is not yet available, say after Mac startup.

Once you have set up your various events, you are DONE!

But if you want granular control as to when exactly, or not, you want the event/s to run, then you have a schedule you can set, as well as calendar exceptions.

Then, set your daily, weekly, monthly schedules.

The schedule is pretty comprehensive.

It allows you to set a start and end date first of all.

Then you can set which days of the week, as well as choosing the occurrence of a weekday in the month, from the beginning or the end, for it to run on.

Say you want to run the event on the 3rd Monday of every month, between April and June, as well as the last Sunday of every month for the whole year? Yip, you can do it!

Once you have the schedule, you can then start to exempt certain days.

Now, set your calendar exceptions.

This manual, as you will specify the individual days based on the calendar. You can then have the day run, or not, as you choose.

And finally, really, check the logs for errors.

If an event throws an error, for whatever reason, there a section in the app for error logs, which is really handy to troubleshoot.

All in all, I am very impressed with Clockwise.

The app is easy to use, easy to understand, and really simple to figure out.

Clockwise comes from a development house called ACT Productions, and they host a range of apps to use on your Mac, so check them out!

CW is available on the App Store today, on version 1.3, for a nifty $6.99 (Worth every cent!)

If you want the app, but don't want to bill, then why not pop into the next Mac Tech SA, and if you are lucky, you might get a complimentary promo code for ClockWise :)

Enjoy!

[Review] Command-C. Clipboard sharing, made easy

2014-04-13T21:43:00.001+02:00

We've all been there...

Working on your iPhone or iPad, you come across a website address, phone number, image or a particularly foreign name or surname, and you need to copy and paste it to your Mac, or other device.

Between sending text messages, emails and note syncing with iCloud with myself, I came across this awesome app to solve this simple problem.

Enter, Command-C

Command-C has uses 2 apps, the iOS and the OS X versions.

Once both apps are installed, you will be able to pair the devices together, in a very simple code-verification style.

Once paired, you will be able to share your clipboard contents between devices.

Here's how you'll do it:

If you are on the iOS device, simply copy the text/image in question. It doesn't matter which app you are in when you copy it, just so long as you do the copy.

Then exit the app, and open the newly installed Command-C.

Once you open the app, you will be able to see all the devices you are paired with.

This can be any of your other devices, or possibly that of your team that you are collaborating with.

NOTE: Be sure to be on the same wifi as the other device, or else it won't show up.

Find the device you want to send it to, and select it. DONE!

On the receiving device, say your Mac, you will receive a simple alert in the native notification centre, informing you of the clipboard contents sent by the other device.

These contents will now be on the recipient's clipboard, and ready to complete the original copy and paste exercise.

If the recipient device is an iOS device, the notification centre will still alert to the app receiving the contents via the sender, and you will be able to paste the contents anywhere you like.

From the iOS side, you will be able to keep track of every single share done, so you can retrieve pretty much any shared item for as long as you keep the list going.

The awesome suite of apps was developed by long-time App store developer, Danilo Torrisi. Drop him a mail or even catch him on the Twitters

Now down to business.

The OS X app will not cost you a cent, but the iOS version will set you back $3.99.

For what you are getting, I feel that amount of money is well worth it.

Go ahead and check it out, and I am positive you will not be disappointed!

Enjoy!

[Review] Multiple Attachments - iOS Email Bliss

2014-04-01T12:00:00.000+02:00

If you're an avid user of your iPhone and iPad mail app, and who isn't, then you know the frustration; 1 email means 1 attachment!

Sending 3 mails for 3 attachment is not an option.

So what can you use as an alternative?

Multiple Attachments attachments from developer Jan Mazurczak is an excellent choice!

From any app on your iOS device, choose the "open with" option, and select the attachments app

Keep on doing this until you've added all your attachments, and finally hit the attach icon (same as the share icon in iOS)

This then calls up the mail app, and attaches all your files you chose earlier

Simple, easy, functional.

What more do you need?

The app is available on the US App store for a very reasonable $1.99

Check it out, and I know you will enjoy it!

[Review] Wireless Wipes "Dirty talk is bad for your health!"

2014-03-30T10:00:00.001+02:00

You may already know about one of my newest projects, Mac Tech SA.

Mac Tech SA is funded purely through the community as well as through sponsorships.

We are extremely fortunate to welcome onboard a new member to the Mac Tech SA Family, namely, Wireless Wipes.

I had never used Wireless Wipes, or any sanitising wipe for that matter on any of my advices before now.

I was very guilty of using a micro-fibre cloth and "shifting" the grime and bacteria around.

I can confidently say now, never again!

Wireless Wipes are super easy to use, and acts like any other hygienic-wipe, but for your devices.

As a parent, I am well versed in the arts of utilising wipes on difficult to reach areas :)

What makes these different to regular wipes that a lot of us are used to, is the fact that they are purposefully made for mobile devices.

They contain alcohol, so they are fast-drying, not leaving moisture behind.

They don't streak (major bonus), and leave a super shine behind.

And best of all, they are non-corrosive to the devices and the device covers.

The pack is resealable, so you don't waste the others that are still in the pack.

There are 12 wipes in each pack, and a fantastic range of 3 flavours/scents.

Pomegranate Citrus, Green Tea Cucumber and Rosemary Peppermint

Get your Wireless Wipes in Store now, or online now!

The iStores exclusively stock Wireless Wipes for in-store buying, and you can buy online on the Wireless Wipes website.

Tough choice to make? Well, buying online gives you FREE 72 hour delivery. Easy right!

@ 49 South African Rands for single packs with 12 wipes in at the iStores, they really are a good deal.

And if you need more than 12 wipes, for multiple devices, people, children's devices etc, they buy the economic bulk packs that range from 3 to 24 packs on the online shop.

This is a great product that I not only live, but completely endorse!

Practical, Feasible, Easy!

Go and get yours now, and clean that bacteria off your idevices right now.

Or, come swing by our next Mac Tech SA and pick up a sample.

Enjoy it!

Mac Tech SA November edition is around the corner

2013-11-01T15:57:00.000+02:00

So Mac Tech SA had a fantastic launch event in October, and it is now time for the 2nd meet up to take place.

The details for the November meet up are:

Venue: Spice4Life, Paddocks Shopping Centre, Milnerton, Cape Town
Fee: R50 (Donated to iPads for Lion Hearts)
Date: 14 November 2013
Time: 18:00 to 20:30

We are ecstatic to have the community sponsoring our event again like last month, and this month we welcome onboard BlueBerry Creatives and Digital Express as our newest Mac Tech SA Super Heroes

Look out for their details at the event too for further information.

If you would like to get involved as a Mac Tech SA Super Hero Sponsor, then check out our brochure on the Mac Tech SA website.

If you want to find out more information about Mac Tech SA, then check us out on:

W: www.mactechsa.co.za
T: @MacTechSA
F: /MacTechSA
E: info@mactechsa.co.za

If you would like to attend the November event for Mac Tech SA, then simply RSVP here.

Enjoy!

3 Reasons why BYOD fails, and what to do to avoid them...

2013-11-01T15:42:00.000+02:00

I was asked to compile a blog post for enterpriseappleization.com in the US, relating to BYOD and all the joys that go with it.

I put together the article from my own experience, and it turned out pretty well.

It revolves around the fact that although BYOD is brilliant in concept, if you don't manage the implementation thereof, it is going to be more of a nightmare for the IT team/s than anything else.

Check out the article and let me know what you think?

Have you had similar experiences or maybe different ones?

"3 Reasons why BYOD fails, and how to avoid them" - My post I did for @Appleization

Check out Enterprise Appleization on the web and on the Twitters

Please take 4 minutes, and enjoy :)

Mac Tech SA is finally here!

2013-09-09T13:21:00.000+02:00

There has not been a face-to-face user group for anything Apple related in South Africa for many, many years.
As such, Apple Domination has taken it upon itself to launch a brand new user group called Mac Tech SA.

The group is dedicated to creating a platform in South Africa where Mac admins, technicians, users and even fanboys can simply come together and share, learn and eat cookies with their own kind.

I am so excited to be a part of this project, and I know that it is going to flourish in the Cape Town area to start off with, and grow to the north of country very soon.

If you would like to attend our official launch on the 3rd of October, then simply RSVP here at: mactechsalaunch.splashthat.com/appledomination
All the event details and specifics can be found there.

Please spread the word so that we can grow this community and be a force to be reckoned with by those lovely folks that support other platforms that we love to hate.

Cheers, Lee

Gripcase is the iPad cover you didn't know existed

2013-07-25T13:31:00.000+02:00

As a family man, with a closet-technical wife and an ever curious 3 year old, I have been searching for the right cover for the family iPad for some time now.

I found the perfect one!

I found the Gripcase.

It is practical, elegant and funky.

The little one can pick it up, put it down hard and run with it and I don't have to worry about hearing that terrifying "crack" that makes parents weak in the knees and puts wallets on diets.

The wife can browse until the cows come home with a functional handy grip on each side, and when it comes to bed time, reading is a dream. (see what I did there?)

The case doesn't just look good, but it is super functional and protective too.

Gripcase managed to actually make "crumple-zones" on the edges of the case. The separation of the border to the actually iPad means that excessive energy, like a sudden drop, is diverted around the edges, as opposed to the actual device.

The designers managed to create a propriety compound of EVA (basically fancy foam) that would meet all the needs of any day-to-day use of an iPad.

Their Tech Specs page on the website mentions these benefits:

Lightweight, - just 7.05 oz (that’s less than a short nonfat latte!)

Shock absorbent

Resistant to surface abrasions

Mildew and bacteria resistant

Stain resistant

Washable

Heat-shrink resistant

UV resistant

Fade resistant

Soft and supple for comfort and ease of use

More good news? It's available for iPads from the 2nd generation onwards, including the iPad Mini.

Even more good news? Gripcase makes other products too, including iPad stands, and charging stations.

What could be even better than that?

Oh yeah, I know. It's already available in South Africa!
Head on over to our good friends at DigiCape, and you can pick up a funky Gripcase for only R499.00If you need one for your iPad Mini, you can pick it up for a mere R449.00

I know you will enjoy this one, and so will I. So do it...

Shuttle, your new SSH Utility

2013-07-22T20:01:00.002+02:00

So we all love shortcuts, it's the techy way.
And when it comes to administering servers, there's nothing better than finding practical tools that allow us to do our jobs more efficiently.

This little tool comes courtesy of Trevor Fitzgerald over at Github.
Shuttle is a tool that helps you connect quickly to different servers using SSH.

Not that it is difficult to connect the traditional way to an SSH connection via Terminal, but why go the long way if Shuttle exists?

Shuttle is tiny, thanks to not bloating the app with unnecessary settings and configurations.

There is only one configuration; your SSH connections to your Server/s.

Once the app is launched, simply select Configure.

This will open the ~/.shuttle.json in a compatible app. I used TextWrangler.

It's pretty simple to make your own connections and groups of connections.

Simply modify Trevor's existing text with your own, and you are done!

Definitely a new tool for me that will be sitting in my menu bar permanently.

Go ahead and grab Shuttle and Enjoy!

WhatsApp is free, again...sort of

2013-07-22T08:27:00.000+02:00

That's right folks, WhatsApp has made their extremely popular chat platform to go for free on the App Store.

But for all those that are not yet on the popular platform, don't get too excited just yet.

The app is indeed free to purchase, but now follows the same pricing model as all the other mobile platforms in place already offering the app.

This means that it is free to purchase, and use for the first year, but will cost an annual renewal of $0.99.

So of course $0.99 is nothing to fret about, but it does mean that you cannot keep using your iTunes account that has no payment method linked to it, unless you utilise a voucher of course.

WhatsApp makes no reference about how they will "recover" this cost if you do not have a payment method linked to your account.
I would have to imagine that they would deactivate your account until you do actually pay for it after the 1 year free.

If you are already using WhatsApp, then nothing changes for you, as we become exempt from the pricing model.

That's it. Short, sweet, free.....Enjoy!

iPads For Lion Hearts

2013-07-17T22:28:00.001+02:00

I love those moments when I discover something on the interwebs that shows how Apple tech is being used in the local community.

This one hit home for me quite deeply, and I couldn't wait to share the story.

iPads for Lion Hearts is a non-profit organisation run by an amazing Stacey Vee, who is mom to a child with special needs.

Because of her own experiences with her little one, she created this Non-Profit Organisation.

#iPadsforLionHearts created a platform where normal folk like you and me can donate our second hand iPads to be handed over to little Lion Hearts, children with different forms of autism, that can utilise apps on the devices to help with their autism in many different ways.

This is something that Apple begun promoting when the iPad was released 2 years ago, and this story is proof of this actually happening.

Parents can use iPads as tools, rather than toys to help their children with special needs communicate and develop skills that would be near-impossible without it.

I have watched how my own 3 year-old has used the iPad now pretty much since he could hold it properly, and there is no doubt in my mind that these devices are changing this generation, changing them for good.

Developing hand-eye coordination, recognition, memory and language skills at such a young age is mind-boggeling.

If this is what happens to my son that has the privilege of using all his senses to their full extent, I can only imagine, and smile, when I think about how much it could help those that don't have that luxury.

It's not a mystery as to why organisations like this as well as individual parents don't simply go out and get iPads then for those that need it. iPads are of the most expensive, most utilised gadgets at this time.

With a waiting list of 15 Lion Hearts, they are in desperate need of iPads, of all shapes, versions and sizes.

Check out their website for all the information about the project and details for sponsoring.

I was going to use our current iPad as an "extra one" for whatever when I upgrade later this year, but now, I am definitely donating it!

If you keen to help out, Lion Hearts is always in need of:

iPads

iPad Covers

Accessories like styluses, headphones etc

Screen wipes and screen protectors

iTunes vouchers

iTunes vouchers are a great help, since many of the premium autism apps are pay apps, at around $4.99.

If you are keen to donate an iPad, don't worry about where you are or where they are. #iPadsforLionHearts will collect your device anywhere in SA.

So, sorry, you can't use that as a excuse :)

I truly hope that this opens your eyes to the use of Apple technology not only in our local communities, but also to those that have special needs, in a big way.

If you don't have an iPad to give, then maybe someone you know, or someone they know etc etc may have, so please go ahead and share this story, for their sake.

I hope you do something here, and most of all, enjoy doing it.

Celebrate the App Store's 5th Anniversary with premium FREE apps

2013-07-08T19:59:00.001+02:00

I can't remember the time before the iTunes App Store.

The time of Nokias, Siemens and Samsung (Yes, I had 1 samsung, many years ago) cellphones.

Lucky for us though, we don't need to remember the time before the iPhone and the App Store.

We can simply celebrate it's 5th birthday with downloading some premium apps, for FREE.

Top of the list, for obvious reasons, is Infinity Blade II.
This latest version 1.3.2 includes Bonus Content which includes ClashMob, Vault of Tears, and Sky Cages expansion packs!

Next is Badland, the award-winning atmospheric action adventure platformer. (say that 10 times fast)

Following Badland, for the music lovers is Traktor DJ. Rated as the world’s #1 pro DJ software bringing high-impact DJing to iPad. Touch your tracks and create stunning mixes in seconds.

Back to the more relaxed gaming, grab Where's My Water for the first time on the App Store that it is free.
Version 1.12 debuts the new character Allie, the most sassy and creative alligator yet.

For the younger generation of world travellers, or those that travel digitally with their kids, get Barefoot World Atlas now.

Staying on top of things is always difficult. Why not try a new style of journalling with Day One. Enter your memories, ideas, events and photos to have them synced to your iPhone and iPad using iCloud or Dropbox.

Not too sure about the next one, but go and test Superbrothers: Sword & Sworcery EP out, it won't cost you a cent. A Pixel adventure game that was runner up for App of the year 2011 and rather polarising in its reviews.

For some more casual gaming, definitely give Tiny Wings a bash. As app of the year for 2011, it is well worth every cent, and even more since it's free.

And last, but certainly not least, is Over. Add beautiful text and artwork to your photos and share them on Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr & Instagram.

All in all these apps usually retail for around $40. Traktor DJ alone is $20.

So what am I saying? Go and get them all, and Enjoy!

Is your business getting the most out of Apple?

2013-06-28T15:22:00.000+02:00

So many of the smaller businesses that I consult for have barely scraped the top of what Apple could/should be offering on their network.

Whether a printing house with 15 employees, or an Online Education Provider with 100 users, there is so much that Apple can provide to maximise efficiency and productivity in your network.

Gone are the days where Windows dominated networks as the preferred desktop/laptop/server Operating System platform.

The last 10 years saw Apple's OS X (pronounced "OS 10") creep

into networks, mainly in the design, artwork and production departments.

The last 5 years have seen the number of Apple products in almost every industry increase exponentially.

And in the last 2 years, iPads have made an impressive impact on the way that businesses and users supplement their daily duties with mobile technology.

So what is it that Apple can be doing for your network, and is it the right choice for you and your users?

Let's talk about Hardware first.

One of the biggest points that Windows fans bring up when discussing implementing Apple hardware into their business is the upfront costs.

Apple has always been more expensive than most vendors for their hardware like the iMac, MacBook Pro, MacBook Air and Mac Pro.

These margins have been reducing year on year though, making them every more attractive.

The thing that always catches the IT Director's attention though, is the lower Total Cost of Ownership (TCO).

Yes, the hardware is marginally more expensive than other products with the same specs.

However...

The support costs are so much lower for Macs than Windows machines.

So many Administrators that I speak to that deal with mixed networks, can't compare the support they do for the Windows network vs the Apple network.

"Stuff just works", I hear a lot.

No Blue-screens, little to no application hanging. Machines don't slow down after 6 months of intense usage. Machines aren't being formatted twice a year to fix a problem or speed the computer up.

All these items need support, and more importantly support staff. Even small support teams mean big $$

One last note on the hardware aspect.

What's the average life span of the machines on your network?

If I can count the number of Windows users I know that use their laptops/desktops for more than 3 years because they want to on one hand, it will probably be over-exaggerating.

Usually it is because it is too expensive to replace the entire machine, and new OS and all the bells and whistles that go with it.

Many Mac users I know get a new laptop at least every year. But these are the exceptions to the rule.

I would happily put a number of 4 to 5 years on any Apple product and it will just keep on working like a trusty plough-horse on a farm. A little bit or memory does wonders on the old gals.

I know of a company that is now donating their older machines because they can't use them anymore. These machines are 8 years old, and are no longer eligible to upgrade to the newer Mac OS X 10.7 and the latest 10.8. There is nothing wrong with the machines after 8 years!

So what about the productivity software?

So yes, you still need to get a productivity suite for the nitty gritty day-to-day work.

The cool thing is that you are not pigeon-holed into using Microsoft's Office suite.

Office 2011 is indeed available for the Mac, and is great package for the productive users. It is pretty much Rand for Rand the same as 2010 or 2013 for the Windows users, so not much saving there.

But what's the alternative?

Apple's iWork suite.

The iWork suite contains Pages, Numbers and Keynote.

Pages is the equivalent to Word, Numbers is the equivalent to Excel, and Keynote is the answer to Powerpoint

Pages is a fantastic Word Processor that will give Word a run for it's money any day of the week.

Keynote is by far more superior than PowerPoint in pretty much every respect.

One thing that I will admit to though, is that Numbers is not quite as feature-rich as what Excel is.

Give Numbers to a CFO or FD, and they will give it about 20 minutes before switching back to Excel.

So in short, unless you are a serious number-cruncher or function-creator, then Numbers will be fine for you.

"But Office 365 is now in the Cloud" you say?

Well so is iWork.

Just announced 2 weeks ago, iWork in the Cloud is coming with the release of the new OS X Mavericks in about 2 months or so.

This means that you will be able to use all 3 products, in a web browsers, with all the features. Even on a Windows machine.

See what Apple did there?

What's the best part of iWork? Each of the 3 products only costs $20 each.

Yes, you don't have to purchase the whole suite, just what you want to use.

And what about mobile access?

Yip! iOS has versions available of ALL 3 products, costing $10 for each.

These already support Documents in the Cloud, a cloud storage solution for Apple Native apps, including iWork. This means that your content is wherever you are, provided you have internet access.

And email?

Well, you could purchase Office 2011 if you are an Outlook die-hard fan, or simply use Apple Mail.

Of course it doesn't have all the fancy bells and whistles that Outlook does, but it is a really good alternative to the overly-bloated Microsoft email client. Costing? Free, built in.

So what about the network then? How will the IT department benefit?

Most importantly, OS X has its own Server platform.

Currently OS X Mountain Lion Server is the newest kid on the block.

What does it cost, and what can it do for me?

Here's the best part. ANY user that wants to run OS X Mountain Lion will only pay $20 (~R200) for the complete operating system.

Want the server edition too? No problem.

No, you don't need to purchase a special "server edition" of Mountain Lion, you just purchase an App on the App Store.

OS X Server now costs $20 (~R200).

Combine these 2 costs, and you have an enterprise-level Server platform that can serve your network independently, or even integrate into a Windows network to get the best of both worlds, for a mere R400.

Licensing per user that connects to my Mac server, like other popular Server platforms we all know?

Nope. No user or device licensing fees. Just the cost of the Server App.

Okay, it's cheap. Real cheap. But then it obviously can't do all that Windows Server can do, compared to how much I paid for it. Right? Right?!

Wrong!

OS X Server is equipped to manage a network of pretty much any size.

If you are not technical, feel free to scroll down to the bottom, as it may get a little techy now.

Some of the basic services that the Server offers are things like DHCP, DNS, Software Update and Time Machine.

What about the over-complex roles and features from Windows?

Like Routing and Remote Access (RRAS) to allow my corporate users to connect to my network when they are away from the office? Yes, we call it VPN.

What about Internet Information Services (IIS) to host my very complex web server internally and externally?

Yes, we call it Web.

Okay, so what about Windows Deployment Services (WDS) to deploy hundreds of fully configured machines in my network?

Yip, we simply call it NetInstall. Catchy right?

Well what about a Directory service where I can centrally store all my users, computers and groups accounts, as well as providing Single Sign On (SSO)? You call it Active Directory, and we call it Open Directory.

Okay, so then what about communications. Specifically, Microsoft Exchange.

Let's be honest, Exchange is an amazing piece of software and hats off to MS for it. However...

Exchange is incredibly complex to setup, maintain and support. It requires it's own server with it's own resources.

It costs around R8000 to R15000 to purchase, then Client Access Licenses (CALs) are required for every single user or device that connects to and uses the Exchange server.

Apple's alternative?

Well they have a built in Mail server.

No, it does not have the amazing plethora of features that Exchange has, but it's fully functional email server. Cost, Free.

This then integrates beautifully with 2 more services, Calendar and Contacts.

Allowing users to store their calendars and address books on the Server, as well as shared Calendars and shared contact lists. Kind of like a Global Accounts List.

Costing? Free.

Okay, so what about that new buzzword, collaboration?

Microsoft offers Lync Server and client for unified communications, and Sharepoint for Intranet services.

Dont get me started on the pricing for these 2 products, or the skills required to set them both up, or the fact that their resource-footprints are so large that they usually require their own servers.

Apple hosts a simple Messages service that provides Instant Messaging, video conferencing, file transfer and iMessage integration for chatting to iOS users on the outside of your network.

For the answer to Sharepoint, Apple provides the famous Wiki Service.

It sounds strange, but it is a highly functional server for hosting wiki sites.

Wikis are collaborative websites that can be used and shared amongst the users of the network, and even the public realm on the outside too.

So I think we covered all the major services. Anything else from Apple?

Built-in to the Server app, there is still a sweet little FTP service that is highly functional.

A built-in interface to any XSAN solution from Apple, with no 3rd party software required.

A Caching server, that not only caches applications purchase from the App Store, but also apps that are purchased from the iTunes App store. So when any user wants to purchase/download an app that somebody else already did, they will get it exponentially quicker and save a bucket-load of bandwidth too.

Oh, and one more thing...

Profile Manager.

I'll drop a second little buzz term here, Bring Your Own Device (BYOD).

Profile Manager has the features to actively manage Apple devices on your network.

By Manage, I mean that the administrators can not only lock or wipe a device should it be compromised (stolen if you live in SA), but they can also push settings, configurations, content and even apps to Apple devices.

These devices include all Macs AND iOS devices. iPad, iPhone and iPod Touch.

This means that you can truly adopt a BYOD policy that can be controlled by IT, without locking users out of their own devices, while still securing the intellectual property of the company when a device falls into the wrong hands.

Installation costs? Licensing Fees? Setup fees? None whatsoever.

As an Apple Trainer, I could go on and on about the technical efficiencies that Apple has implemented into their OS's and hardware over the last few years, but that is not the point here.

The goal behind this article is to illustrate to companies, small, medium and large, that Apple is no longer the red-headed step-child in the corner that is too different to play with anyone else.

It is now a real competitor in the corporate network space, and IT administrators can no longer keep their heads in the sand about it.

I look forward to few interesting comments below :)

Enjoy!

P.S. Apologies to you if you are indeed a step-child with ginger follicle pigments that may also have suffered from social anxiety. This was not intended at you and by no means meant to be generalised. Thanks

Apple Power Sessions 1&2 @ Torque IT

2013-06-03T23:04:00.001+02:00

Great news!

I am hosting the first Apple Power Sessions at Torque IT this coming Thursday and Friday in Cape Town, Tygervalley.

There are 5 seats still available for these free sessions! First come...you know the rest.

So if you want to join me, and get a little taste on what can be done with your Apple Server; come and watch the magic for a few hours, and even have a great cuppa in the process.

Inbox. Direct Message. Tweet. Like. Do whatever you need to do if you need more info, and want to attend. Do it!