There are 4 types of LinkedIn memberships: Career, Business, Sales, and Hiring. Each membership has a different purpose, and different features.

The one I decided to test drive was the Career plan, which is best for people in the job market.

LinkedIn’s Premium Career membership is $29.99/month. With this price tag, you can get more information about the job postings, who’s viewing your profile, and even access to online video courses. One of my favorite features is a newer one. LinkedIn Premium Career members have access to salary insights. Of course, there are websites like Glassdoor or Payscale. The salary insights from LinkedIn are for that specific job you’re thinking about applying for.

Another nice feature that comes with this premium plan is the insight as to who’s viewed your profile. You can see some people’s info on the free version, but there’s nothing more frustrating than seeing “someone with the title of Recruiter viewed your profile”. If you see that a Recruiter or a CEO of a startup is looking at your profile, you can make the first move and send them a message.

So more than likely, if you’re signing up for the LinkedIn Premium Career membership, you’re in the market for a new job. I don’t know about you, but when I’m applying, I try to only apply for the Easy Apply opportunities. Nothing is more irritating than uploading your resume, and still having to write it out on the application. Don’t even get me started with those 100+ question surveys. This is where the membership shines. You can see which jobs you have the best chances at scoring an interview!

On the top of the Jobs page, with the premium membership, you can see where you rank among other candidates for that particular job. You can also see how many other people have applied so far. If you’re in the top 10% for a job where less than 100 people have applied, you have pretty good chances at catching the hiring team’s eye. If you’re in the top 25%, you can also see exactly how you stack up against your competitors when it comes to what the company is looking for.

LinkedIn calls it “Competitive intelligence about other applicants”. The intelligence compares your profile information to the other applicants (another reason to optimize your LinkedIn profile). The algorithm looks at your listed skills, your past experience and current role, and education. You can see where applicants are located, and their approximate seniority level. It’s like being able to text Jennifer in HR.

When it comes to the Learning portion of the LinkedIn Premium Career membership, they seem to be beefing up their course offerings. These courses are available to add additional skills to your LinkedIn profile. So you add the skills you want to learn to your profile. You can also browse by subjects, software, and learning paths like “Become an SEO Expert”. Looking at the Project Management courses, they have courses for Beginners, Intermediate, and Advance. You can filter by how long it will take to complete the course, or if there’s a particular software you want it to cover.

I took one course, Writing to be Heard on LinkedIn, which was only about 30 minutes. You can see how many other people viewed the course, what they do, and where they work. There’s a certificate of completion available at the end, in case your employer accepts it as CEUs or other education credit.

Related: 3 Courses Social Media Strategists Should Take on LinkedIn

So the question: is the LinkedIn Premium membership worth the $29.99 price tag? My answer is yes, but for a limited time. This shouldn’t go in the same bucket as some people’s gym memberships, where you pay for it but don’t use it. For $30, you get access to courses, recruiters, job information you’ve been dying for, and potentially putting your resume to the top of the stack. If it lands you a new gig, all the better! I still recommend optimizing your profile, and also having your resume looked at by a professional. But the membership is a pretty cool investment so far.

The post Is LinkedIn Premium Worth the Price? appeared first on Awesomely Techie.

Chatbots are run on artificial intelligence, and managed by the rules you set in place for them. The person on the other side is interacting, and based on what they say, the chatbot will respond with specific responses you program for it. In other words, the tech world gave Siri & Alexa a keyboard.

I may be showing my age here, but my first interaction with a chatbot wasn’t in 2018. Actually, it was around 2002, when Colloquis, known then as ActiveBuddy, introduced SmarterChild to AOL Instant Messenger (AIM). Compared to today’s artificial intelligence, SmarterChild was pretty basic. It was able to give you things like weather reports, movie times, stock updates, etc. But being kids, my friends and I would truly push the limits. We asked SmarterChild all kinds of crazy questions (obviously, we didn’t get usable answers from it).

Nowadays, bots can do a lot more than before. You can now program them to automate some of your client-facing tasks that you used to do by yourself.

Businesses are using chatbots for Facebook Messenger either as an introduction to new members of their audience, or to provide entry-level customer service to their existing tribe. All kinds of businesses are using them: retail, coaches, real estate agents, lawyers, doctors, authors, etc. They run off the custom functions you set for it.

Related: 4 Ways Facebook Bots Can Help Your Business

In the grand scheme of things, chatbots operate off workflow, or rules. ManyChat is the leader in the chatbot industry right now, and allows you to get started with your bot for free! So we’ll walk you through their platform and show you how to get up and running with it.

1. Connect Your Facebook Page to ManyChat

Since ManyChat runs through Facebook Messenger, you want to connect it to the Facebook Fan/Business page of your choosing. Don’t create a bot for your personal page and start spamming your family and friends. However, if you have multiple pages you want to link, ManyChat allows you to “clone this bot” to another page. That’s not creepy at all.

2. Set Your Greeting

Once you’re set up with an account, you want to start with a greeting. Doesn’t have to be super complicated. But make it sound at least half-way like a human. For pages under a business name, you may want to give your bot a name, or call it a “team member”. For those who run a personal brand, it’s better to run your bot as if it’s you. You’ll get a lot more engagement that way.

3. Choose Your Flows

As I mentioned, chatbots run off workflow. You get to decide how that workflow goes. Most people start off with a standard Welcome Message. This is a great way to steer people in the direction you want them to go in. Setting up your flow may seem a tad overwhelming to begin with, but it’s also exciting because of how many options you get. Chatbots don’t have to just be text. You can include images, audio, video, downloadable files, and you can even add a time delay for a response (so it can at least seem a little human).

With chatbots, you get to control the narrative, even when you’re not the one actually doing the typing. You are basically guiding visitors down a specific path in order to get to either your product, service, event, or anything else you’re promoting.

4. Get To Know Broadcasts

Chatbots don’t have to be reserved only for use with evergreen content. They’re great for spur of the moment things too! For instance, if you’re doing an impromptu Facebook Live, and you want to alert your subscribers, simply build out a broadcast for a one-time blast. It’s just like a reminder you set on your phone or when you ask your friend to remind you to do something.

What I love about setting up the flows and messages in ManyChat is just how user-friendly their interface is. It literally walks you through the steps, and shows you an example of what the flow of the conversation will look like. Everything is real-time too, so once you save and publish, it’s ready to run right away.

5. Start Growing Your Audience

A great way people are using chatbots is to build their audience. In order to build up your email list, a lot of people offer a lead magnet, or some enticing incentive to join. Rather than doing that manually, you can set it up using the Growth Tools.

Growth Tools are ways to lead people straight to your chatbot. You can set up a header bar, a popup, or even an entire page takeover to move people to your Facebook Messenger to get their questions answered. This is a great idea if you set up your FAQs to be answered by your bot, and you just want to streamline it by sending people there.

ManyChat is a pretty powerful platform, even on just the free version. But their pro pricing isn’t half bad either. For folks with 0-500 subscribers, you only pay $10/month. Up to 1,000 subscribers only bumps you up to $15/month, and 2,500 subscribers is only $25/month. You can definitely get quite a bit of bang for your buck with those tiers. They also have a pretty flexible refund policy, and you can cancel at any time.

Chatbots is still relatively new marketing wise, but it’s so interesting to see how they’re working out for different companies. As we see the technology evolve, we’ll definitely keep you updated on ways you can use it.

Featured Photo credit: Janitors on Visual hunt / CC BY

The post Chatbots on FB Messenger: How to Get Started Using ManyChat appeared first on Awesomely Techie.

This post is not about that. 

Instead, we are going to go over the technology that helped Bitcoin (and subsequently all other cryptocurrencies) come to be: Blockchain. In my opinion, blockchain technology is the most important revolution of our generation, including the Internet. In fact, some consider this the NEW internet.

So what’s the big deal? Two hyphenated words:

De-Centralization & Power-Transfer

A Brief and Simplified History of Bitcoin

Before we dive into blockchain, let’s talk about the most popular cryptocurrency first: Bitcoin. Bitcoin was invented by Satoshi Nakamoto. No one really knows who it is, if it’s a man or woman, or even if it is an individual vs. a group of people. So for simplicity sake, we’re going to refer to Satoshi as “they.”

Satoshi dropped a white paper 9 years ago explaining that they found a way for people to securely transfer money to each other, without the use of banks or any other financial third party. You could buy things directly, as well as move money around as you pleased without anyone knowing.

They claimed this technology had more security than our current financial system. The best part: they would share all of the skeleton code (open source), so anyone in the world could take this idea and make it better.

“Wait, how is this different than PayPal?”

With Bitcoin, anyone and everyone in the world can view your account and transactions, and validate that the money is there. You could transfer the funds to your best friend to split that hotel in Jamaica, but no one would know that it was really you. None of your identifying information is associated with the account.

Instead, there is a public key (long series of random letters & numbers) that everyone can see and a private key (the one that give you access to the funds). The fund transfer is validated publicly, but only you and your friend know who the money went to. The fact that this system allows funds to move in more silence than the “g” in lasagna is why Bitcoin has been the go-to method of payment on the black market for the last 5-7 years.

“I like to think of it as digital dollars. What makes Bitcoin different than regular money is what’s called blockchain technology. This allows users to send money to anyone without worrying about the middle man like banks or government entities; this is the same effect if I were to hand you a $100 bill. The transaction is simple, fast and does not require the bank or fees, I just hand you the money. This is the goal of Bitcoin but on a digital scale.”

– Kevin Matthews, Building Bread

The entire world’s exchange of money currently runs off trust. It’s not that we trust each other, but we trust a third party. That third party can be a bank, or even a person. With blockchain, THE WORLD and everyone in it, is your third party. They validate your transactions, validate that you paid, and lock the info up in a permanent record of sorts.

The problem is, trust in third parties like financial institutions and corporations is deteriorating. Think about the hacking of Target, Equifax, Chase Bank, eBay, etc. Before now, there were no alternatives. That is, until blockchain.

“So how does blockchain technology work?”

Imagine an open ledger (like a sign in sheet at a funeral) but before you can sign, everyone else at the funeral has to verify that you are, in fact, there. Once everyone at the funeral signs and verifies everyone else, then the ledger is locked in a secure box with a crazy long password and put in a car to travel with the rest of the boxes on the blockchain funeral progression parade.

If you want to open the box with the ledger to view who was at the funeral, you have to figure out that very long key which would take at minimum 15 minutes on a really really fast computer. The “key” is the token (or cryptocurrency). And that has value. The whole point is that you no longer need a major third party to validate and secure information. Everything is “decentralized”, yet still secure. That’s how blockchain technology works.

This technology isn’t new; it has been around since 2007. Why is the world just talking about it now? Well, aside from a major run up in the original cryptocurrency, there have been hundreds of businesses that have chosen to go public and raise money via an Initial Coin Offering (like an IPO, but instead of going to Wall Street, they use blockchain).

“There are currently well over 1,000 different cryptocurrencies. Many are based on the same blockchain technology as Bitcoin. For example, LiteCoin uses much of the same technology with lower transaction fees and faster fund transfer times. However, many ICOs or initial coin offerings are scams. High-risk traders are trading them like penny stocks with minimal oversight so far.”

– Joshua Crum, Rebuild Repair Credit

Remember when I said that blockchain is open source? Well hundreds of people have taken the original code and improved on it! They have been making their own coins and/or blockchains to make their respective organizations more efficient. Companies are experimenting with this new area to make it easier to purchase and track real estate sales, execute contracts, improve video gaming, and even make the world’s fastest supercomputer using power from all of the computers currently in the world (including yours).

Imagine the Ways Blockchain Can Revolutionize the World:

• Being able to vote in the election and have every vote be verified by everyone would be huge. Votes could take place without anyone seeing the name of the voter, or more importantly, who they voted for. This could take the probability of voter fraud and ballot manipulation down to zero.
• Airlines could keep more accurate flight logs, which leads to more on-time flights and less technical difficulties.
• You would no longer need to have traditional bank accounts. Hey, we can dream!

The most important thing is that blockchain puts power back into the people, as opposed to a central power. If there is an unwanted change, or somebody attempts to manipulate the system, the blockchain will fork, meaning people will follow the most secure chain. 

We are still in the very early stage of this new technology. There has been a lot of hype and investment in this segment, but it is still too early to say if we will find a profitable use for blockchain. Is it wise for newbies to jump on board?

“Newbies should avoid it. Like Warren Buffett, don’t invest in anything you don’t understand. And there’s a lot to understand about Bitcoin, including how it works, who owns it, who created it, and who’s controlling it. Many hype Bitcoin as being this “alternative” to government currency, but it’s honestly “controlled” by about a dozen entities that own or have vested interest in the market. Just understand the dynamics before you get involved.”

– Robert Farrington, The College Investor

Maybe it will be adopted world wide and there will be a huge disruption in the banking industry. It’s possible the government will step in and “block” the growth of blockchain in order to keep things business as usual (as we are seeing in some other countries like China). Or, it would be interesting to see if the government will adjust and implement blockchain technology to keep the status quo (already happening now in the US).

Only time will tell, but it would not be wise to ignore this.

About the Author

Lafayette K. Ford is a banker, networker, consultant, and financial literacy educator. He currently leads a private banking team that specializes in financial planning, banking and providing personal cash management solutions.

This is not a recommendation, solicitation or endorsement of any investment or security.

The post Bitcoin and Blockchain 101: Introduction to Cryptocurrency appeared first on Awesomely Techie.

Since LinkedIn is the go-to profile for hiring companies, as well as businesses looking for strategic partnerships, we want to make sure you have all your ducks in a row. We’re going to show you 6 ways to optimize your LinkedIn profile, either as a job hunter or someone looking for the right connections.

1. Fill Out Your Profile Completely

Sounds simple enough, right? You’d be surprised how many people are walking around with the equivalent of a Twitter egg on their LinkedIn profile. If you have a long employment history, or quite the freelance career, it may feel daunting. But the more complete your profile, the more relevance it will show in searches.

At the very least, your LinkedIn profile should include:

• Your full government name, or the closest equivalent that you will be called in a business setting
• Your headshot (Social Media Search has a few examples of photos you shouldn’t use)
• Your headline/title, which you can get a little creative with (and I do mean a little)
• Recent professional experience (if your part time jobs you held in high school or college are at least 10 years behind you, you may want to leave them off)
• Skills/Endorsements, which we will talk about shortly

Related: 3 Courses Social Media Strategists Should Take on LinkedIn

2. Use the Right Keywords

Similar to any other social network or search engine, LinkedIn’s search feature is heavily influenced by keyword rich content. If you are trying to be recognized and found as a Columnist, you need to have that language sprinkled throughout your profile. This can be in your headline/title, your summary, job experience, and/or your skills.

This is just a piece of Julian Mitchell’s profile. Julian is “an award-winning creator with a passion for using content to design culture”.

This could be a personal pet peeve of mine, but for the love of all that is holy, please do not overdose on buzzwords like “ninja”, “growth hacking”, “guru” or “influencer” unless these are in official job titles of yours. Everybody is trying to show that they are an authority in their field. But it’ll make most professionals roll their eyes rather than want to actually get in touch with you.

3. Get Endorsements For Your Skills

The thing about LinkedIn, as well as any social network online, it’s easy for anybody to call themselves anything. That’s where endorsements come in. Endorsements are basically people vouching for you and insisting that you are knowledgeable in a particular skill. The more people endorse you for a particular skill, the higher that skill shows on your profile. So you want to be sure that people who know you’re good at a skill are willing to back you up on that.

Don’t just put any ol’ skill! Just like a resume, you will be found out if you’re faking it. But also make sure the skills are relevant to the opportunity you’re looking for. For example, my top 3 endorsed skills are blogging, social media, and SEO. That’s because my network knows that I do these things, and do them well. And those happen to be skills needed in any job or business opportunity I would pursue.

4. Get Real Recommendations From Real Connections

The one thing I wish I was more selective with in the beginning is who I accept as a connection. LinkedIn allows you to connect with (similar to following or friending) just about anyone if they give you the green light. While the majority of my connections are, indeed, people I know and have worked with in some capacity, others are people I’ve never met, nor have I spoken to. I plan on changing that very soon.

Related: LinkedIn expert Loribeth Pierson is (rightfully) judging you if you’re buying endorsements and recommendations.

In any case, recommendations take the skills endorsements to another level. Someone you’re connected with will actually write a recommendation for your profile! This is golden on the network because it shows people that 1) you actually know your connections, and 2) you really are good at what you do. A glowing recommendation from a variety of connections can speak louder than anything you type on your own profile.

5. List Your Accomplishments & Clout

You’ve talked the talk, but can you prove that you can also walk the walk? Again, anybody can say just about anything nice about you. It’s time to put your experience where your mouth (or mouse) is. LinkedIn allows you to list any accomplishments you’re proud of (professionally of course) to serve as more clout.

For example, on my profile, I list several relevant college courses I’ve taken, 3 certifications I earned in PPC/SEM, and 2 awards I won while at my current company. These things can easily set you apart from others who may be applying for the same job as you.

6. Have Updated Activity History

It amazes me how many people set up LinkedIn and forget all about it. You still see their headshots from 12 years ago, and their profile is collecting dust. Just like any other network, favor is given to those who are using the site on a regular basis. This could include sharing posts (especially publications you’ve been featured in), liking/commenting on others’ posts, and keeping your profile information up to date.

Contrary to popular belief, LinkedIn is not a passive “build it and they will come” type of profile. Those who frequent the site and keep their profile updated with fresh information are rewarded with higher placement. Of course, like any other platform, there is a premium paid version that gives you preferred visibility for opportunities. We’ll talk about that at a later date. First, make sure you have the above 6 tips complete before moving on to the next phase of optimizing your LinkedIn profile.

Do you have any tips on optimizing LinkedIn profiles?

The post 6 Ways to Optimize Your LinkedIn Profile appeared first on Awesomely Techie.

1. Book an aisle seat.

Thinking proactively and planning ahead can make working on a plane a lot more comfortable. Book an aisle seat to give yourself the most space to work. An aisle seat can allow for some elbow room you wouldn’t likely have in a middle or window seat.

2. Get connected.

With airborne Go-Go In-Flight Wi-Fi, you can stay connected with your colleagues on the ground while up in the air. T-Mobile offers free Wi-Fi for customers on their first hour of flight as well as unlimited in-flight texting. This is especially useful for frequent flyers that travel on a regular basis for work and can’t afford to lose time and production in the air. You’ll be able to use the internet and email from your devices without a hitch.

Related: Why Every Avid Traveler Might Want to Switch to T-Mobile

3. Pack portable, compact devices for work.

If working on a plane is integral for your job, make the investment in light, compact and portable devices. Tablets that have keyboard attachments are ideal for working on a plane because they don’t take up that much space on that small fold-up table. You can also opt for an ultra-lightweight laptop like a MacBook Air. It’s powerful and a cinch to lug around in the carry on.

Photo courtesy of Amazon

4. Stay charged.

Before you board, make sure you charge all your gadgets that you’ll need for work. You’ll preemptively avoid the risk of not being able to do your job due to technical difficulties. In addition to pre-charging our devices, bring a portable battery charger. Pick one that can charge multiple and various types of devices. The RAVPower Portable External Battery Charger is a top choice for travelers due to its three ports, compact design and powerful charging abilities.

5. Make a game plan.

Well before your flight takes off, set a game plan for the work you’re about to attempt. Think about all the details so nothing falls through the cracks or derails your productivity. This means creating a timeline of when each task should be accomplished, exactly what information you’ll need to complete each to-do and what end goals you’ll want to meet by the time the flight’s over. Holding yourself accountable for the work you set out to do can make all the difference when it comes to doing work on a plane.

Photo by Stacy Spensley on VisualHunt.com / CC BY

Related: 5 Tips on Boosting Productivity While on Your Computer

6. Eat and drink strategically.

What you drink and eat can affect your productivity on a plane. Avoid cashing in those free drink tickets if you plan to do work. Also, opt out of eating a heavy meal on or before the flight. Instead, eat light snacks that will fuel your brain and stay hydrated with water when you’re offered. You’ll be able to steer clear of the food coma and cloudy mind and be on you’re A-game on the plane.

7. Wear noise-cancelling earbuds.

If you’re one to get easily distracted with anything and everything going on around you, being on a plane can be especially conducive to distraction. Try to block out the noise happening around you, like those screaming babies and the chit chat, and wear noise-cancelling headphones or earplugs if needed. It’s a small addition but a huge help when it comes to removing distractions.

8. Rest up before the flight.

Traveling in and of itself can be exhausting. If work needs to get done on the plane, try to rest up before the flight so you’re not tempted to take a nap instead. Disciplining yourself to get the sleep you need to have the proper energy to put into work on the plane will go a long way in your productivity levels.

Working outside your usual office space is hard enough—and trying to work on a plane adds an extra challenge. With these tips, you can increase productivity and get the work that needs to get done efficiently all while you fly.

The post How to Work Productively on a Plane appeared first on Awesomely Techie.

Distractions for Drivers

Any time a driver on the road is paying attention to anything other than the road and the traffic around them, they are putting themselves, other motorists and pedestrians in danger. Although cell phone use and the practice of texting is in the news constantly as a cause of auto accidents, in truth there are plenty of other lower-tech distractions which cause their share of collisions.  Consider the person who just spilled hot coffee in their lap or dropped something on the floor, bending down to pick it up—while driving.

Unfortunately, our lives are so incredibly busy, that many people begin to feel as though they live in their car as much as they live at home. We eat breakfast in our car on the way to work, attempt to re-set the GPS, fiddle with the radio, and even put on makeup, shave and read, all while commuting to work. Parents find themselves turning around—while driving—to see what’s going on with the kids in the backseat, or attempting to put a bottle or pacifier into the mouth of a crying baby.  

Photo by Chris Yarzab on Visual hunt / CC BY

If you have ever passed a car where a woman was applying mascara, using the rear-view mirror, while navigating a busy city street, you probably were very alarmed—and with good reason. People who regularly eat in their car, also regularly spill, then their attention is completely consumed with cleaning up the mess from their clothing or the car upholstery.  Still, cell phones and other electronic devices are definitely a prime distraction—and a danger. Experts believe that those who regularly talk on their cell phone while driving are as much as four times as likely to have a car accident. That’s not texting, just talking on your phone.

How Many Accidents are Caused by Distractions?

Because many people don’t want to admit they were applying makeup or texting when they crashed into the car ahead of them, it’s hard to get solid statistics on just how many accidents are caused by distracted drivers. Research indicates that the number could be as high as fifty percent of all accidents being directly related to driver distraction—a number that truly boggles the mind. Teens especially, are among the worst offenders for talking and texting while driving, although the newest phones may have technology which shuts the phone down when it detects the motion of the vehicle.

The Types of Distractions Drivers Face

There are three main types of distractions, including visual, manual and cognitive. Visual distractions occur when you take your eyes from the road—most distractions tend to be visual in nature. Manual distractions occur when you physically remove your hands from the wheel of the vehicle, and mental or cognitive distractions happen when your mind is anywhere but on the task of driving.

Using an electronic device encompasses all three types of distraction, which is why Washington lawmakers took the somewhat unusual step to make DUI-E a primary offense, punishable by a significant fine for a first-time ticket–$136. A second DUI-E offense within five years of the first will result in an even steeper fine–$234. The fines are significant, however the increase in your insurance premiums is likely to hurt for many years to come. Consider the following statistics on distracted driving:

• Performing a secondary task increases the risk of a crash because it is so cognitively demanding.
• Texting increases the risk of a crash by as much as 23 times.
• Distracted driving fatalities increased by 32 percent in the state of Washington between 2014 and 2015.
• Almost three-fourths (71 percent) of distracted drivers are using a cell phone while driving.
• One out of every four automobile collisions involves the use of a cell phone immediately prior to the collision.
• Research done in 2013 found that at any given time, at least 10 percent of drivers on the roadways are using an electronic device, and half of those are texting.

Washington’s DUI-E Law

Washington’s new DUI-E law bans holding any type of electronic, hand-held device while driving, or while stopped at an intersection. What you are allowed to do is to call 911, or to use one finger to trigger a voice-activated app on Bluetooth. You can also pull off the roadway to a place which is safely out of the way of traffic, and make your call or read or send a text. Up until now, most laws which banned the use of cell phones made a violation only a secondary offense.

That is, a police officer had to witness a primary offense—such as speeding or running a red light—in order to charge the driver with the secondary offense of using a cell phone while driving. This new law changes that, in that a police officer must only see a driver with a hand-held electronic device in their hands while driving to pull the driver over and issue a ticket. If you are a Washington State resident, it is time to think twice about using your electronic device while driving—and to get serious about safety.

Barbara Bowden is attorney and owner of The Law Offices of Barbara A. Bowden. Barbara’s favorite part of being a defense attorney is handling a case from beginning to end. She loves having the ability to turn something negative into something positive with the help of her office. When Barbara is not in the office, she is doing her other job-being a mom to her two daughters.

The post What Is Allowed Under the New Driving Under the Influence of Electronics Law appeared first on Awesomely Techie.

On January 1, 2018, some users will no longer be able to use WhatsApp the way they used to. The Facebook-owned company has decided to phase out support for older platforms, and focus their technical resources on the biggest smartphone operating systems: iOS and Android.

If you have one of the following phones, WhatsApp has deemed it is no longer supported:

• Android versions older than 2.3.3
• Windows Phone 7
• iPhone 3GS/iOS 6
• Nokia Symbian S60
• BlackBerry OS and BlackBerry 10
• Windows Phone 8.0 and older

Those with a Nokia S40 have until December 31, 2018 to use the app on their existing device. And those with a phone running Android versions 2.3.7 and older have until February 1, 2020.

The support team at the company explains their decision:

These platforms don’t offer the kind of capabilities we need to expand our app’s features in the future. If you use one of these affected mobile devices, we recommend upgrading to a newer OS version, or to a newer Android running OS 4.0+, iPhone running iOS 7+, or Windows Phone 8.1+ so that you can continue using WhatsApp.

So your solutions are either to upgrade your phone to a newer model, download WhatsApp for your Windows or PC computer, or use their web-based browser to keep in touch with your contacts.

The post Why Did WhatsApp Stop Working On My Phone? appeared first on Awesomely Techie.

Performance & Power

The new suite of iPhones, the 8, 8 Plus, and X, are all powered by Apple’s A11 Bionic chip (also known as SoC for systems on a chip) with 3GB of RAM. In broken down nerd speak, that means this phone is super powerful. The new chip actually scored higher than the Intel Core i5 chip that’s inside the latest 13-inch MacBook Pro base model. Granted, you won’t be putting your iPhone X through as much as you put your MacBook through, but it’s good to know you have the power behind it if you needed it.

Samsung’s Galaxy Note 8 is powered by a Snapdragon 835 chipset for US customers, and Exynos 9 for the international market, with 6GB RAM. This allows you to be able to handle 4K Ultra HD videos (capturing and viewing). Comparing the two: iPhone X wins. The A11 chip is faster, leaner, and runs more efficiently.

Photo via Qualcomm

What this means for bloggers: a faster phone that doesn’t hold you back from multitasking, and doesn’t completely kill your battery in record time.

Display and pixel density

iPhone X is 5.8-inch with a screen resolution of 1,125 x 2,436 OLED technology. That translates to a pixel density of 458 per inch. Galaxy Note 8 is 6.3-inch with a 1,440 x 2,960 resolution of AMOLED screen translating to a pixel density of 521. Translation: pixels. Lots of them! The more pixels per inch, the clearer and crisper the image. The Galaxy Note 8 wins this round.

What this means for bloggers: choose the Samsung Galaxy Note 8 for a phone with a beautiful display (like playing back your videos before uploading them to YouTube).

Camera

iPhone X comes with 12MP duo lens camera with f1.8 wide-angle and f12.4 telephoto lens, and a back camera of 7MP. Apple brings True Depth too. The upgrade to the megapixels in the FaceTime camera was a welcomed feature, as you can now take better selfies, and go live without it looking like you’re a grainy version of the Sims.

Galaxy Note 8 has 12MP duo lens, with f1.7 wide angle and f2.4 telephoto lens. Slightly higher aperture on the telephoto lens compared to iPhone X. Both phones offer 4K and HDR, Dolby Vision standard videos capability. For the casual users, the wide-angle and telephoto lens difference won’t matter much to you. But photographers will see the difference! Better lenses = better shots.

Related: 6 Great Photo Editing Apps for iPhones

You want professional quality pictures on a beer budget. We know, we know. So iPhone X made sure to focus on portrait mode. You now have Portrait Lighting, which gives you access to real-time studio lighting effects. Apple wants people to think a professional took your photos. You can also include some fun new live photo effects (anyone ready to create their own gifs?), and the True Tone Flash is focused on making sure you don’t come out extra shiny or ultra dull when the flash goes off.

Galaxy Note 8 also wants to give you some picture perfect shots. With Live focus, you can give off the effect of a blurred background and a focused subject without needing Adobe Lightroom. The phone also has different modes depending on your needs: food mode (for all you food bloggers out there), pro mode (for your much needed outfit of the day shots), and slow motion for those extra special shots.

Both cameras can record 4K videos at 60fps (frames per second). That’s pretty dang crisp! Most people don’t need to shoot in 4K, mainly because your viewers probably have devices that can’t play it back in that quality anyway. But for those who need the capability, it’s there!

This one is almost a tie. But the Galaxy Note 8 has a slight advantage: expandable memory. One thing that can catapult Androids over iPhones is the fact that you can add additional storage via microSD card up to 256GB. So you don’t have to worry about deleting apps because you were being modest and bought the 64GB version rather than the 256GB (remember when iPhones started with just 8GB of storage? The horror…)

What this means for bloggers: Either phone would give you beautiful shots. But who wants to keep moving photos around so they don’t run out of room?

Price

Let’s be honest. The price is steep for both. This whole “finance your smartphone” trend has made phone companies cocky, and now buying your phone outright will set you back a whole month’s rent depending on where you live. The iPhone X 64GB is available at $999 (retail) or $33.34/month for a 30-month installment agreement. You can buy the 256GB version for $1,149 outright, or $38.34/month on the installment plan. The Galaxy Note 8 is only available at 64GB, so you can either buy it at the retail price of $949.99 or pay $31.67 over 30-months.

What this means for bloggers: This is completely up to you. Whatever you can afford.

Design

iPhone X has a 5.8-inch screen, stainless steel frames, and all glass. Note 8 is a 6.3-inch phablet, all glass, and metallic frames. The all-glass body allows QI Standard wireless fast charging. Both are identical portrait height with duo-lens vertically aligned.

What this means for bloggers: Whatever you do, buy a phone case.

Features & Functionality

Both phones are neck and neck when it comes to battery life: iPhone X gives you 21 hours and Note 8 gives you 22 hours of talk time.

Galaxy Note 8 comes with the fantastic Samsung S Pen, which can read, take notes, zoom or even translate a text. Unfortunately, Apple has not made the iPhone X, or any other iPhone model, compatible with the Apple Pencil which is used on iPad Pro tablets.

Galaxy Note 8 has a curved screen to slide menus and buttons to life. iPhone X does not have a home button. Samsung offers an unlocked version for customers who want their freedom to choose their wireless carrier. Curiously, the FM function is added in case the cellular network is knocked out in an emergency. iPhone X offers none of this.

Both iOS and Android bring a lot of functionality. These two phones compare well regarding functionality and speed, with iPhone X having a slight edge. When it comes to waterproof capacity, iPhone X is IP67 certified Note 8 is IP68 certified. iPhone X comes with Face ID too. You just stare at the phone, and it unlocks.

What that means for bloggers: Choose iPhone X if you want your phone to be super secure (you do unlock it with your face, afterall). Choose Samsung Galaxy Note 8 if you want a cool stylus and the freedom to take your phone talents wherever you’d like.

Conclusion

Both phones are amazing, especially compared to the hot phones we were buying 10 years ago (BlackBerry Curve, RAZR2, various Nokia models, and the very first iPhone). The choice depends on what you prioritize most. If your blog constantly has you on the go for events and such, Galaxy looks like the choice. For bloggers looking to spruce up their Snapchat and Instagram, iPhone X is a good match.

Alissa Davis is an ardent contributor on tech revolution, and is a freelance writer with a love for all things technology. You can also find her on Twitter sharing her love of technology.

The post iPhone X vs. Galaxy Note 8 – Which Is Better for Bloggers? appeared first on Awesomely Techie.

Strong passwords are becoming required for most websites, but that’s still not enough sometimes. So more websites are encouraging users to enable two-factor authentication. Often abbreviated as 2FA, or referred to as 2-Step rather than two-factor, this is a method sites use to double confirm your identity. Step 1 is to enter your password. Step 2 is a verification code you receive to ensure it’s really you.

I’ll be honest. Two-Factor Authentication is a pain in the butt. It’s not bad enough that we can’t use our dog’s name and our birth year for our password anymore. Now we need another layer just to check our messages? Honestly, it’s better to be safe than sorry.

Where Should I Enable Two-Factor Authentication?

You should 2FA everywhere you possibly can. But the most important places you should enable it are sites that contain sensitive information:

• Anything having to do with your identity or having access to your social security number
• Your financial accounts, including your online banking, payment gateways, and cryptocurrency
• Your email accounts
• Online retail sites
• Your domains, web hosting, and content management system, like WordPress & Shopify
• Your online gaming accounts (remember, PlayStation Network had a breach in 2011)
• Your social media accounts

Related: How to Protect Yourself from Cyber Attacks, Identity Theft, and Viruses

That’s really just a short list. The site TwoFactorAuth.org gives you a list of categories and websites, so you can see which ones offer it and which ones do not. I was surprised some big names don’t have the option available, like American Express, Citibank, and 1and1.

If you are a public figure, 2FA is especially important for you to use for your social networks. All these “my cousin hacked my account” excuses wouldn’t need to happen if you needed more than just your password to get into your accounts. Facebook, Instagram, Twitter (the big 3) all offer 2FA. It is imperative that you activate it for all of your public accounts so you are a less vulnerable target.

Need Help Enabling 2FA?

Telesign, one of the leading companies in the security space, has a site called Turn On 2FA that has step-by-step tutorials on enabling two-factor authentication on your most used sites and apps, including Instagram, Outlook, Amazon, Evernote, and more. Otherwise, go to the “settings” of your accounts, and it is usually under “Privacy” or “Security.”

There’s An App For That: Google Authenticator

Google has a free app available for iPhones and Androids called Google Authenticator. This app is basically your one-stop shop for the 2nd step in your two-factor authentication. When you install it, and link your accounts/profiles that have 2-step enabled, it generates a new random 6 digit code every few seconds.

One of the downsides of this app is that it is device specific. I downloaded it on my iPhone 6, and 2 weeks later, got the iPhone 7 and was essentially locked out of my MailChimp account for a minute. So before you switch devices, be sure you switch your Google Authenticator app’s access to your device.

The post Two-Factor Authentication: Why You Need It and How It Works appeared first on Awesomely Techie.

You might want to also export your contacts into an Excel spreadsheet, that you can then sort or do whatever with. Here’s how you do it.

Step 1

While logged into your Google account or Gmail inbox, go to Google.com/contacts. If you’re in your inbox, you can also access it by looking at the upper left corner of your screen, under the “Google” logo, and hitting the dropdown. “Contacts” is an option there.

Step 2

When you get to your Contacts, you will either have the new version or the old version. What you need is the old version. IF you have the new version, your screen will look like the picture below, and all you need to do to switch is click “Switch to the old version” button at the bottom.

Step 3

Once you get to the old version, you go to the upper center, and hit “More.” In that dropdown is the option to “Export.” Click that.

Step 4

Once you click that, you will have 3 options: Google CSV format, Outlook CSV format, vCard format. Many will tell you to pick the Google CSV format but what that gives you is a spreadsheet of information that is squeezed into one column. The choice you need is the Outlook CSV format, because it spits the data out in a neat spreadsheet, with a column for each piece of information.

Go forth and sort to your heart’s desires!

Related: How to Make Google Calendar the Only Scheduling Tool You’ll Ever Need

The post How to Easily Export Your Google Contacts into Excel appeared first on Awesomely Techie.