Interrupt19

How to Print with an iPad

David Balogh — Mon, 26 Apr 2010 12:00:08 +0000

One of the iPad’s mysteries is printing. There’s no USB cable to attach to a printer. No built-in way to transfer stuff to a printer via WiFi. Not even in the iPad’s iWork suite is there a “Print” function.

If you were to use an iPad for any sort of business or educational purpose, what are you supposed to do?

Here are your iPad printing options:

Read the rest of How to Print with an iPad

Share this article on Digg | Del.icio.us | StumbleUpon

Managing your Blackberry on OS X

David Balogh — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 12:00:47 +0000

Before the iPhone, the smartphone of choice was a Blackberry. Even now Research in Motion’s offerings are a great competitor. Yes, the iPhone has the interface, touch surface and the app store that RIM envies but the Blackberry is still standard issue in the enterprise world. Many of you who have a work cell phone most likely have a Blackberry.

What if you have a Blackberry and a Mac? Not a problem. Here’s a simple way to sync your Blackberry’s contacts, music, photos and email with OS X.

Read the rest of Managing your Blackberry on OS X

Share this article on Digg | Del.icio.us | StumbleUpon

Time to Replace your Earbuds?

David Balogh — Mon, 19 Apr 2010 12:00:23 +0000

Apple’s earbuds are decent headphones but they don’t last forever. For example, after a few months of exercising with them, I’ve noticed mine showing wear and tear. That’s not the only reason you may want something else.

Perhaps you find the earbud design either uncomfortable, lacking in sound quality or just want something different.

Since you can plug anything with an 1/8″ jack into your iPod / iPhone, let’s look at what else is out there.

Read the rest of Time to Replace your Earbuds?

Share this article on Digg | Del.icio.us | StumbleUpon

How to Troubleshoot a Power Issue

David Balogh — Thu, 15 Apr 2010 12:00:46 +0000

Power issues are annoying. Either your laptop shuts off suddenly because the power cord unplugged, the battery craps out after 20 minutes, or it just doesn’t turn on at all..

Like all laptop manufacturers, Apple sometimes has battery issues. Or power adapter issues or power related logic board issues. How can you tell what exactly is wrong with your laptop that either won’t run or has a chronic dead battery?

Here’s how you can troubleshoot a bad battery, bad power adapter or bad logic board and is it covered under warranty / AppleCare.

Read the rest of How to Troubleshoot a Power Issue

Share this article on Digg | Del.icio.us | StumbleUpon

Quick Ways to Tag Audio Files for your MP3 Player

David Balogh — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 12:00:18 +0000

How does your MP3 player, iTunes and iPod know what song it’s playing, who wrote it and where did that tiny picture of the album cover come from?

Audio files like MP3s and AACs carry all sorts of meta data inside them, called tags. Common tags are the song’s name, artist, album title, year, track number and genre. Another common tag is an embedded picture, usually the album cover. iTunes and other MP3 players read these tags to organize their music libraries in an understandable way.

If you’ve ever had to manually tag audio files, you know how much of a pain it can be. Here are three quick and easy ways to easily tag your audio files for your iPod or whatever MP3 player you own.

Read the rest of Quick Ways to Tag Audio Files for your MP3 Player

Share this article on Digg | Del.icio.us | StumbleUpon

Impressions after playing with an iPad:

David Balogh — Thu, 08 Apr 2010 12:00:59 +0000

iPad, iPad, iPad. That’s the big focus in the news, on the internet and in all the Apple websites. Now, don’t get me wrong – I think its a pretty sweet device and I’ve spent some time playing with one. However, to call the iPad “Revolutionary” is a bit of a stretch – for now.

The following is a list of 10 observations I noticed about the iPad after playing with one for a little bit. Hopefully they will help you in deciding if one is for you or not.

Read the rest of Impressions after playing with an iPad:

Share this article on Digg | Del.icio.us | StumbleUpon

Replacing an External Drive

David Balogh — Mon, 05 Apr 2010 12:00:25 +0000

One fact that many consumers aren’t aware of is that external drives can easily be replaced or upgraded. All it takes is a little know-how, total lack of respect for possible warranties and a small eyeglass / electronics screwdriver.

Armed with the following knowledge, you’ll be able to replace or upgrade your drive and use it as an enclosure for other drives.

Read the rest of Replacing an External Drive

Share this article on Digg | Del.icio.us | StumbleUpon

10 Ways To Keep Yourself, and Your Mac Secure

David Balogh — Thu, 01 Apr 2010 12:00:56 +0000

OS X running Safari was hacked again at Pwn2own by Charlie Miller for the third year in a row. Tired of Apple’s (and other software companies) lackluster approach to securing their product, he announced he will not be disclosing vulnerabilities to them anymore. He’ll gladly show Apple how he finds them, hoping they will begin scanning and patching OS X.

While this doesn’t translate into a tsunami of OS X malware, nor is it a threat of impending doom, it reminds us that OS X is not the invulnerable OS you may think it is.

Since turning off the computer and hiding under a rock isn’t an option, follow these 10 tips to keep yourself secure.

Read the rest of 10 Ways To Keep Yourself, and Your Mac Secure

Share this article on Digg | Del.icio.us | StumbleUpon

What is a Femtocell?

David Balogh — Mon, 29 Mar 2010 12:00:31 +0000

Femtocells are in the news lately, especially with AT&T’s announcement of an upcoming nationwide rollout, beginning in April. However, they aren’t the only ones in the Femtocell game. Sprint and Verizon are running trials in select US cities and T-Mobile is testing them in Europe.

Let’s explore what exactly is a Femtocell, what does it do, and should you consider one.

Read the rest of What is a Femtocell?

Share this article on Digg | Del.icio.us | StumbleUpon

What To Look For In An External Hard Drive

David Balogh — Thu, 25 Mar 2010 12:00:55 +0000

Out of all the accessories for a computer, one of the most useful is an external hard drive. With more and more of your life on your computer’s hard drive, the more files you’ll accumulate. Whether you want extra storage space, an easy way to work with large files on multiple computers, a backup solution, or just a place to keep your data, an external hard drive is a must have.

Shopping for one can be a bit tricky. There’s many brands, sizes, interfaces and price points. Here’s what to look for to determine what you need and what to shop for:

Read the rest of What To Look For In An External Hard Drive

Share this article on Digg | Del.icio.us | StumbleUpon

Recover Lost Data from Memory Cards and USB Drives

David Balogh — Mon, 22 Mar 2010 12:00:43 +0000

Memory cards, USB Drives and even SSDs are small, hold a good amount of data and don’t have all those pesky data corruption issues that traditional hard drives have… Or do they?

Yes, even data on a flash media can get corrupted or at the very least, accidentally erased. If this has happened to you, I’ll show you what you can do – assuming the media itself isn’t damaged, crushed, or physically destroyed in any way.

Read the rest of Recover Lost Data from Memory Cards and USB Drives

Share this article on Digg | Del.icio.us | StumbleUpon

Your iPhone – A Portable, Professional Music Making Device

David Balogh — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 12:00:53 +0000

About a decade ago, making music with computers became affordable for those without a ton of money. A decade before that, major label albums were done on very expensive, yet hardly sophisticated systems. Now, your iPhone actually rivals those systems in terms of computer specs (processor, memory, etc).

All you need now to produce professional quality music, other than the expertise, is the right software. With the iPhone, you can work on the go, use it as a musical scratchpad, field recorder, or even an instrument. Here is some of the iPhone’s best:

Read the rest of Your iPhone – A Portable, Professional Music Making Device

Share this article on Digg | Del.icio.us | StumbleUpon

Securing Your Mobile Device at a Wireless Hotspot

David Balogh — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 12:00:18 +0000

Wireless hotspots are convenient, and with mobile devices such as the iPhone, Blackberry, iPod Touch, Android phones, the iPad and other wireless gadgets, its not just laptops connecting anymore.

With a free and unencrypted connection in a public space, its just as easy and convienient for someone else to monitor your internet traffic.

Here’s what you can do to secure yourself and your mobile device in a free public wireless hotspot.

Read the rest of Securing Your Mobile Device at a Wireless Hotspot

Share this article on Digg | Del.icio.us | StumbleUpon

What to Look for in a Solid State Drive (SSD)

David Balogh — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 13:00:28 +0000

Current Hard Drives are using the same basic technology that drives used beck in the 1950s. Sure, size, speeds and interfaces have changed but its still a platter spinning with a read/write head hovering over it like a needle on a record.

Solid State Drives (SSDs) are the next wave in Hard Drive technology. With no mechanical parts, no noise, less power requirements and less susceptibility to damage, its a no brainer that they’re better. However, SSD technology is still very much on the cutting edge and not all perform equally well.

Here’s a quick rundown of what you need to know about SSDs in order to purchase one that works well for you.

Read the rest of What to Look for in a Solid State Drive (SSD)

Share this article on Digg | Del.icio.us | StumbleUpon

Convert your FLAC, Ogg and Shorten files for iPod Use

David Balogh — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 13:00:13 +0000

In your digital media journey you’ve probably encountered music files called FLAC, Ogg Vorbis or Shorten. Getting them to play on your Mac is pretty easy but playing them on an iPod or other MP3 player isn’t an easy task for the average person.

Instead of doing things the hard way – messing around with unsupported and warranty breaking alternate firmware, go the easy way and convert your FLACs, Oggs, and Shortens to MP3 and get on with your life.

Read the rest of Convert your FLAC, Ogg and Shorten files for iPod Use

Share this article on Digg | Del.icio.us | StumbleUpon