Craig Given

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Moving Video Call Backgrounds

Animated Backgrounds in Video Calls & Virtual Meetings

Overview

Coworkers have been asking me how I get animated and moving backgrounds (and foregrounds) in my video conference calls and virtual meetings. So, I’ve created this article to give an overview of the process and tools. For this article’s background example I chose a video that won’t get me into copyright trouble. Its background is a recording of the city gates of Amnoon. And its a scene I recorded while playing the game Guild Wars 2.

The method to create this effect is layering. In oversimplified terms, the background is the bottom layer. In my example I used a video instead of a static image. Layered on top of the background is the output from my webcam. And finally, the very top layer is a graphic with some text. I combined all these layers using the free software tool OBS (Open Broadcaster Software) and output that as a single video feed.

Since I’m not actually “broadcasting” or streaming (OBS is primarily for Twitch, YouTube, Facebook Live, etc.), I need something to convert the broadcast into a useable format. Therefore, I’ve installed the OBS plugin VirtualCam, which makes the OBS output look like a webcam to other programs. Instead of selecting my actual webcam as the input for my video-conferencing software, I set it to the virtual device named “OBS-Camera.” This technique works for Microsoft Teams, Zoom, Skype, Jitsi, and GotoMeeting. I’ve done so much testing that some of the results are fading into a memory fog. So, I’m only “mostly positive” that it will work with Google Hangouts, Google Meet, and Discord. The only “failure” I distinctly remember is for my doctor’s tele-medicine product, and that was because it would not let you choose an input device.

OBS is just one “link” in the chain of tools used to create my desired output, and each software tool runs on a fairly beefy computer (see the end of article for details). Below is more detail on each link in this chain of tools. They are presented in a logical sequence: from the source to the destination. Along the way I’ll also mention some alternative tools that I’ve experimented with, since they may suit your needs better. And at the end of the article is a collection of miscellaneous notes, tips, and tricks.

The Chain of Tools

Environment

I’ve arranged my environment to improve the image and audio quality I can produce. I’ve added lamps and baffles to diffuse, bounce, direct and control the temperature (color) of the lighting. Not only of my face but also of the background (so it’s easier for the computer to cleanly “remove” my real background). For audio I do the same to optimize conditions: I set the timer on my air conditioner so it cools the room beforehand, and automatically turns off just prior to the start of the next meeting. I then turn down fans and other background noise. I’ve also covered the glass (bordering our front door) with a decorative overlay so the dog is oblivious to the comings and goings in our neighborhood. And finally, I close the office door if the grandchildren are visiting.

Audio hardware

My primary microphone is a dynamic mic with a cardriod sensitivity pattern (i.e., it minimizes off-axis and extraneous background sounds and focuses on just my voice). It’s a Samson Q2U in a Rycote InVision USM shock mount on a Gator Frameworks boom and stand. The mic can be connected via USB, but I’m using an XLR cable to a Zoom H6 acting as my computer’s Audio Interface. The Zoom H6 lets me mix multiple audio inputs, directly monitoring the mic, control gain, enhance the audio (e.g., volume compression), etc.

video hardware

Built-in webcams typically produce terrible video (grainy, choppy, dark, and low resolution) and at the wrong angle. Dell is notorious for their “nostril” cameras, which are mounted below the screen. Therefore, I began my journey with equipment already at hand. For video I used an iPhone XS Max because it has an awesome camera. To make my iPhone act as a webcam, I used Kinoni’s EpocCam app and PC software. To hold the phone at the proper height and angle, I used a Ram Mount X-grip with an extension arm and custom base (a glass brick filled with decorative river stones). A wireless Qi charging pad from Anker was stuck to the back of the X-grip to supply continuous power.

Although the iPhone was a high-quality solution, I wanted a dedicated webcam because I kept forgetting it was still mounted above and behind my monitor. Not only did I keep leaving it behind, it was also inconvenient to use the phone, as a phone, in this configuration. Although the cameras on iPads and Touch iPods are not as good as recent iPhones, they could be a dramatic improvement over the built-in webcams you’re using. And EpocCam works with Android devices and on macOS as well, as well as other competitors that I’ve heard of from other users.

Before for buying a dedicated webcam, I also experimented with other “normal” cameras configured to work as webcams. One option was using the HAYOX capture device to convert HDMI output to USB input (e.g., when connecting a GoPro HERO8 Black in a Media Mod “cage”). But the latency and low-light performance was poor. I also converted a security camera I had on hand (the Wyze Pan Cam) into a webcam by applying a special firmware change. This was purely out of curiosity since the camera has an extremely large field of view that makes it undesirable except for the most desperate of users. You also lose the Pan/Tilt/Zoom controls and Infrared features, so it’s now restored back to its “security camera” configuration. And I can feed it into OBS as a secondary camera view using an iPad connected with an Apple HDMI adapter—it’s pretty cool, but not particularly useful for virtual meetings.

None of the above experiments compared to the performance of a dedicated webcam like the Logitech Brio (which is what I’m currently using). The less expensive Logitech C920s, C922, and StreamCam are also great alternatives. And I’ve craved pricer upgrades such as the HuddleCam HD or an Alpha-series Sony mirrorless camera (e.g., the wallet-busting a7S III). But those are more suited to professional streamers and media influencers that broadcast for a living.

The final piece of hardware equipment I have is a “green screen” (for chroma keying). I would NOT recommend it for most users, and I only use it for special situations. A lot of the software that I mention below can be used without it. Green screens can be tricky to set up because they must be evenly lighted (no shadows or brighter areas) and can “splash” a green glow onto the subject if the light angles or distance are wrong. And when the screen is far enough back from your position, then it has to be humongous to still fill the camera’s FOV (field of view)! I use the Valera Explorer 90 and even at this size it is a challenge to position so that it fills my webcam’s FOV. I wish it came with other color screens (chroma blue, neutral gray, and white), and I may make some by hand if the vendor doesn’t add them. I had originally contemplated a retractable ceiling-mounted backdrop that pulls down like a movie-projector screen. But I went with the Valera since it collapses easily and is small enough to store out-of-sight in a closet corner. If I were a professional streamer, and had a larger office/studio, then I’d probably go for a fixed screen (like this massive 8x8 foot backdrop) or perhaps a wall covered with special chroma green paint.

Software

I use multiple software programs to create the video feed used in virtual meetings. And the combination changes based on the look to be achieved. If I’m using a static image as my background, then no additional software is needed. Both Microsoft Teams and Zoom include excellent features that do background replacement.

A more complex composition, like my example video above, uses a few more tools. Let’s look at the layers (from front to back) and the tools used for each. In the foreground is a graphic with text that provides additional information. The broadcast industry calls this a “Lower Third” (or L3) since it typically appears at the bottom of the screen. In my example video above, my L3 is actually positioned in the upper right corner. It was created using the free art program Paint.NET but any graphics software (CorelDraw, Photoshop, Procreate, etc.) could be used. I save my L3 graphics in the PNG format since it lets me save images with transparent backgrounds. But also because PNG does a superior job of compressing mostly solid, non-gradient colored shapes and text, which is what most L3s are.

Both L3 examples above have a section for a ticker (scrolling text). This text is layered over the L3 and comes from, and is configured in, OBS. The ticker is a “Text” layer with a “Scroll” filter added. Below is a screen shot from OBS for an AFK (Away From Keyboard) screen. At the bottom (second pane from the left) is the SOURCES pane and it shows the two layers that make up the preview being displayed. The bottom layer is named “Please Stand By TV” and it pulls in the background image. On top of that is the ticker: a layer named “AFK Text” which contains the “I will be back in just a moment” message (including settings for placement, color, font, size, speed, opacity, etc.).

For my example video at the top of this article there is a middle layer, which is me via the webcam. In OBS this is a “Video Capture Device” layer type. However, there is a software component that sits between the Logitech Brio and OBS. The “Logitech Camera Settings” application lets me adjust and optimize the camera’s video. I adjust saturation, white balance, contrast, etc. to match the background (whether moving or static). For example, if it’s a sunny beach scene then I would set the white balance to a warmer golden cast, increase the contrast, and bump up the brightness so it matches the scene. I also adjust my office lighting so that the shadows fall in the same direction as in the background. If the background is of a thunderstorm at sea, then I would match my image with a cooler white balance (i.e., a subtle blue cast), a darker exposure, and less contrast. I’ve also taken the opposite approach, and selected backgrounds that already match the lighting in my office. With more believable backgrounds (like a photo of an office or kitchen versus the cockpit of a spaceship), the matched lighting has been realistic enough to cause people to think I was actually in those locations!

In addition to the camera’s utility software, OBS can also apply filters, and adjustments, and LUTs (adjustment Look Up Tables). A LUT is customized to both your specific camera and to your specific lighting conditions. To create a LUT, you first capture an image from your camera, which is taken under set lighting conditions. Then use a photo (or video) editing program to make adjustments to the captured image until it looks best. The adjustments are not applied directly to the captured image. Instead they are put on a separate layer, and you’re viewing your image through the adjustment layer. (Think of it as if you were painting on a pane of glass that is sitting on top of a photo.) Next, you replace, cover, or hide your captured image with a LUT reference table (original and unmodified). The LUT table is now sitting below those same adjustments. The results are flattened (the layers combined) and saved to a PNG image. This file is a custom LUT that can be applied to your camera’s output so all video gets the enhancements. Below is the before-and-after for a Wyze Pan Cam, a camera that’s optimized for security monitoring, not image quality. As you can see it adds a terrible yellow cast to the video, but with a custom LUT applied, the colors are much more natural.

For an animated, moving background I’ve been using YouTube videos. Yep, it’s just that simple! In OBS this is a “Browser” layer and would be positioned at the bottom. If your videoing or photographing your own (or when choosing someone else’s) backgrounds, be mindful of the angle. In a meeting, your webcam is at eye-level while seated! So choose/take photos at that same height to create more natural backgrounds.

Picking a good background is a balancing act. If it’s too plain, then the artificial outline—the edge where the computer cut you out from your real background—will be very noticeable. A bit of detail and texture in the background helps to hide that outline. If the scene is too busy and detailed, it becomes distracting and you blend with it instead of being in front of the background. In real TV studios they use a “hair light” to ensure distinction and depth—to make the person stand out from, instead of blend into, the background.

When removing and replacing your actual real-life background, you want it to be plain and as uniform as possible. A blank wall would be excellent. This helps the computer distinguish your outline from the background. Angle your lights and use baffles (I use foam core boards) so that the light falls on your face and shoulders but not on the wall behind you which are slightly darker. To prevent “hot spots” and deep shadows on your face, bounce the light off the walls instead of pointing lights directly on yourself. This will soften and diffuse the lighting and create a more appealing appearance.

While on the topic of texture and detail in background images, it’s important to not go overboard. Some software cannot cope with an image that is too intricate. I had a photo of the interior of the NASA space station. The original was too complicated for Microsoft Teams to even display. Also, you don’t want to overload the software by having it to constantly downscale large images. And photos from modern cameras and phones are massively oversized compared to a computer screen. They are so large they can crash your software. To prevent big images from slowing down or crashing my software, I proactively resize my backgrounds to “Full HD” size—that is, 1920 pixels wide by 1080 pixels tall. (This is also the size that MS Teams would reduce a background image to, so it saves the time and effort required to convert it every time,) And while I’m cropping, sizing, and enhancing backgrounds, I will also flip them so the incoming light in the image matches my actual lighting. For example, a background photo may have a window (with incoming light) that is on the left. I will flip that photo so the window is on the right-hand side, like my real-life window.

While we’re discussing software limits, don’t load too many backgrounds into your meeting software! I learned the hard way that MS Teams will crash if you have over 100 custom backgrounds. I now keep all my custom backgrounds in their own folder and only copy about 75 to MS Teams at a time. Below is a script I use to replace old custom backgrounds with a set of fresh “finished” images.

DEL /Q C:\Users\Craig\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Teams\Backgrounds\Uploads\*.jpg COPY /Y C:\Backgrounds\Finished\*.jpg C:\Users\Craig\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Teams\Backgrounds\Uploads\

Tips, Tricks, & Notes

Use a wired ethernet connection when video conferencing. It’s not only faster, but also more reliable and stable than WiFi.

The Zoom H6 can be used with an iPhone/iPad, even without AA batteries! When the H6 boots up, select PC (instead of iPAD) as the connected device.

Video processing can be intensive and requires a computer with sufficient capabilities. My Windows 10 PC has a Core i7-7700K at 4.2GHz, 32GB of RAM, a Samsung 850 Pro 512 SSD, 4 Toshiba 7200RPM 500GB drives in a RAID 5 array, an ASUS Prime Z270-AR motherboard, an Anker 10-port powered USB3.0 hub, a 1000 watt Corsair power supply feeding dual video cards, and a Corsair Hydro H100i liquid cooling system to supplement two case fans to keep the whole thing from burning itself out. This computer sits next to a window air conditioner that counters all the heat coming from this PC, the monitors, and accessories. Before the AC was installed the office could reach 80°F even in the dead of winter with all the heating vents closed.

[craigedwardgiven]

Faster Notification Toggle

Faster Notification Toggle

Introduction

In this article I show you how to quickly toggle a specific notification type on or off. These iOS setting are normally buried in an inconvenient location that you must slog your way to. But using Apple’s Shortcuts app, you can create a button that jumps directly to the setting. You can even use a voice command and have Siri open the page for you.

For me, email notifications are especially vital during work hours. Because email is the lifeblood of an information business (like my employer’s), I want to respond immediately when a request or question hits my inbox. But it is equally important to prevent email alerts from interrupting meetings, disrupting doctor appointments, annoying cinema patrons, or awakening me and my spouse in the dead of night.

Therefore, I frequently toggle this particular notification on or off as the situation demands. I found the manual method unnecessarily cumbersome: First, find and open the Settings app. Then find the Notifications category. Next scroll through the massive list of apps in the search of the one I want (often scrolling past the Mail app). And, lastly, toggling the notifications to the desired state.

I have now fixed that pain point: I can say “Hey, Siri, toggle mail” or tap a “Toggle Mail” button in my widgets. Either method jumps immediately to the toggle page for Mail. Below I give the steps on how to create this shortcut on your iOS device. This technique requires iOS version 13 (it does not work on certain older versions or out-of-date devices). Apple’s earlier support for this mechanism was a bit waffled, so let’s hope this recent development signifies a stronger commitment to let the Shortcuts app access settings.

Create the Shortcut

Watch the video below for a quick walkthrough. Or keep reading for the full written instructions and some additional information for advanced users.

First, find and open Apple’s Shortcut app. If you don’t remember where you put it, use Apple’s Finder. On my iPhone the Finder is opened by swiping downward from the middle of the screen. Start typing the word “shortcut” and it will soon show the app in the Applications section. If you deleted it, then you can re-download it from the iTunes store.

After you launch the Shortcuts app, make sure you are on the “My Shortcuts” page by using the menu at the bottom of the page. To create a shortcut, you can either tap the plus sign in the upper right corner of the page or tap the “Create Shortcut” button at the bottom of the displayed list.

I named my shortcut “Toggle Mail” for several reasons. First, it is short enough to fit inside a widget button. Second, I could also use Siri to invoke the shortcut because the name was memorable, easy to say, and unambiguous. And third, (the reason that it was memorable) was because the name was logical and self-explanatory. But feel free to use something else if this name does not work for you. To set the name of your shortcut, tap the button in the upper right of the page (with three dots) to access the shortcut’s “Details” page.

Replace the “Shortcut Name” in the top field by typing in the name you prefer.

While still on this “Details” page, tap the existing icon if you want to change the symbol or color. I chose green and used the “alert” symbol for my glyph. The “Show in Widget” is already on by default so we can leave that untouched. You could optionally also tap the “Add to Home Screen” if having the shortcut there is more your style. When you’re finished on this page tap the “Done” link in the upper right of the page to begin building the actions of the shortcut.

Tap the “Done” link in the upper right of the Icon page to return to the “Details” page. On the “Details” page tap the “Done” link to return to the actual shortcut definition.

Now tap the blue plus sign button (with the “Add Action” link) centered near the top of the page. Our shortcut will have two steps (i.e., actions). First, define our destination: that is, tell the shortcut where this particular setting lives. And, second, open that defined location (that is, display that page so we can set the toggle to the desired state).

For our first action, begin typing in “URL” into the search field. Select “URL” when it appears in the “Actions” results list.

When the action is initially added it has an example destination of “apple.com” in light text. Tap this example text so we can type in a replacement.

Enter the following string precisely. I recommend that you copy and paste the line below to ensure accuracy.

prefs:root=NOTIFICATIONS_ID&path=com.apple.mobilemail

Now we are ready to add our second and final action. Again, tap the plus icon centered below our first action. When the search field appears begin typing “Open URLs” and then tap the matching result when it appears in the “Actions” list.

There are no parameters to configure for this final/second action. So, tap the “Done” link in the upper right of the page to finish your creation. It is now ready to use. You can invoke the shortcut from the widget button (swipe left-to-right from the center of the home page), or by name using Siri. If you took the option of putting a button on your home page, you might want to reposition its icon so it’s placed in a convenient location.

Advanced Users

For users that are a bit more adventurous and technically inclined, you can use the URL shortcut technique to access different settings. If you’re not using Apple’s built-in mail program, you need to replace the identifier with your product’s official internal name. The first action will still begin with

prefs:root=NOTIFICATIONS_ID&path=

But instead of ending with com.apple.mobilemail you need to specify your mail app after the equal sign. Here is how to find the official internal name of your application.

Go into the Notifications section of Settings and find the exact name as it’s listed there

Open a web browser and search for “iTunes” and the name of your application (for example, “Outlook on iTunes store”)

Find the search result that’s on the official Apple.com website. In the screenshot below, it was the first result.

Click the official App Store link and confirm it’s the correct application (vendor, version, etc.)

Make note of the final identification number in the URL. For our example, Microsoft Outlook’s URL to its App Store page is https://apps.apple.com/us/app/microsoft-outlook/id951937596 so the identification number is 951937596

Put this identification at the end of a lookup URL (i.e., after the equal sign). For MS Outlook (app identifier 951937596) the URL would be https://itunes.apple.com/lookup?id=951937596 

Go to the lookup URL and you’ll be prompted to download a file name 1.txt

Save the file and then open it in a text editor

Search this text file for “bundleId” and make note of the exact official name that follows. For our example, we found

, "bundleId":"com.microsoft.Office.Outlook",

So, the official internal name is com.microsoft.Office.Outlook

Use this name in your shortcut. For this example, the first action would define the settings URL as:

prefs:root=NOTIFICATIONS_ID&path=com.microsoft.Office.Outlook

Other Settings

A shortcut can have other destinations than just notification toggles. Below is a slew of other destinations to inspire your creativity and research.

Accessibility

Accessibility: prefs:root=ACCESSIBILITY

App Store

App Store: prefs:root=STORE

App Store ⮞ App Downloads: prefs:root=STORE&path=App%20Downloads

App Store ⮞ Video Autoplay: prefs:root=STORE&path=Video%20Autoplay

Apple Pencil

Apple Pencil (iPad-only): prefs:root=Pencil

Battery

Battery: prefs:root=BATTERY_USAGE

Battery ⮞ Battery Health (iPhone-only): prefs:root=BATTERY_USAGE&path=BATTERY_HEALTH

Books

Books: prefs:root=IBOOKS

Calendar

Calendar: prefs:root=CALENDAR

Calendar ⮞ Alternate Calendars: prefs:root=CALENDAR&path=Alternate%20Calendars

Calendar ⮞ Default Alert Times: prefs:root=CALENDAR&path=Default%20Alert%20Times

Calendar ⮞ Default Calendar: prefs:root=CALENDAR&path=Default%20Calendar

Calendar ⮞ Sync: prefs:root=CALENDAR&path=Sync

Camera

Camera: prefs:root=CAMERA

Camera ⮞ Record Slo-mo: prefs:root=CAMERA&path=Record%20Slo-mo

Camera ⮞ Record Video: prefs:root=CAMERA&path=Record%20Video

Compass

Compass: prefs:root=COMPASS

Contacts

Contacts: prefs:root=CONTACTS

Control Center

Control Center: prefs:root=ControlCenter

Control Center ⮞ Customize Controls: prefs:root=ControlCenter&path=CUSTOMIZE_CONTROLS

Display

Display: prefs:root=DISPLAY

Display ⮞ Auto Lock: prefs:root=DISPLAY&path=AUTOLOCK

Display ⮞ Text Size: prefs:root=DISPLAY&path=TEXT_SIZE

Do Not Disturb

Do Not Disturb: prefs:root=DO_NOT_DISTURB

Do Not Disturb ⮞ Allow Calls From: prefs:root=DO_NOT_DISTURB&path=Allow%20Calls%20From

Emergency SOS

Emergency SOS: prefs:root=EMERGENCY_SOS

Face ID

Face ID: prefs:root=PASSCODE

FaceTime

FaceTime: prefs:root=FACETIME

Game Center

Game Center: prefs:root=GAMECENTER

General

General: prefs:root=General

General ⮞ About: prefs:root=General&path=About

General ⮞ Background App Refresh: prefs:root=General&path=AUTO_CONTENT_DOWNLOAD

General ⮞ CarPlay: prefs:root=General&path=CARPLAY

General ⮞ Date & Time: prefs:root=General&path=DATE_AND_TIME

General ⮞ Dictionary: prefs:root=General&path=DICTIONARY

General ⮞ Keyboard: prefs:root=General&path=Keyboard

General ⮞ Keyboard ⮞ Hardware Keyboard: prefs:root=General&path=Keyboard/Hardware%20Keyboard

General ⮞ Keyboard ⮞ Keyboards: prefs:root=General&path=Keyboard/KEYBOARDS

General ⮞ Keyboard ⮞ One Handed Keyboard: prefs:root=General&path=Keyboard/ReachableKeyboard

General ⮞ Keyboard ⮞ Text Replacement: prefs:root=General&path=Keyboard/USER_DICTIONARY

General ⮞ Language & Region: prefs:root=General&path=INTERNATIONAL

General ⮞ Multitasking (iPad-only): prefs:root=General&path=MULTITASKING

General ⮞ Profiles: prefs:root=General&path=ManagedConfigurationList

General ⮞ Reset: prefs:root=General&path=Reset

General ⮞ Software Update: prefs:root=General&path=SOFTWARE_UPDATE_LINK

Health

Health: prefs:root=HEALTH

iCloud

iCloud: prefs:root=CASTLE

iCloud Backup: prefs:root=CASTLE&path=BACKUP

Mail

Mail: prefs:root=MAIL

Mail ⮞ Blocked: prefs:root=MAIL&path=Blocked

Mail ⮞ Blocked Sender Options: prefs:root=MAIL&path=Blocked%20Sender%20Options

Mail ⮞ Default Account: prefs:root=MAIL&path=Default%20Account

Mail ⮞ Include Attachments with Replies: prefs:root=MAIL&path=Include%20Attachments%20with%20Replies

Mail ⮞ Increase Quote Level: prefs:root=MAIL&path=Increase%20Quote%20Level

Mail ⮞ Mark Addresses: prefs:root=MAIL&path=Mark%20Addresses

Mail ⮞ Muted Thread Action: prefs:root=MAIL&path=Muted%20Thread%20Action

Mail ⮞ Notifications: prefs:root=MAIL&path=NOTIFICATIONS

Mail ⮞ Preview: prefs:root=MAIL&path=Preview

Mail ⮞ Signature: prefs:root=MAIL&path=Signature

Mail ⮞ Swipe Options: prefs:root=MAIL&path=Swipe%20Options

Maps

Maps: prefs:root=MAPS

Maps ⮞ Driving & Navigation: prefs:root=MAPS&path=Driving%20%26%20Navigation

Maps ⮞ Transit: prefs:root=MAPS&path=Transit

Measure

Measure: prefs:root=MEASURE

Messages

Messages: prefs:root=MESSAGES

Music

Music: prefs:root=MUSIC

Music ⮞ Cellular Data: prefs:root=MUSIC&path=com.apple.Music:CellularData

Music ⮞ EQ: prefs:root=MUSIC&path=com.apple.Music:EQ

Music ⮞ Optimize Storage: prefs:root=MUSIC&path=com.apple.Music:OptimizeStorage

Music ⮞ Volume Limit: prefs:root=MUSIC&path=com.apple.Music:VolumeLimit

News

News: prefs:root=NEWS

Notes

Notes: prefs:root=NOTES

Notes ⮞ Access Notes from Lock Screen: prefs:root=NOTES&path=Access%20Notes%20from%20Lock%20Screen

Notes ⮞ Default Account: prefs:root=NOTES&path=Default%20Account

Notes ⮞ Lines & Grids: prefs:root=NOTES&path=Lines%20%26%20Grids

Notes ⮞ New Notes Start With: prefs:root=NOTES&path=New%20Notes%20Start%20With

Notes ⮞ Password: prefs:root=NOTES&path=Password

Notes ⮞ Sort Checked Items: prefs:root=NOTES&path=Sort%20Checked%20Items

Notes ⮞ Sort Notes By : prefs:root=NOTES&path=Sort%20Notes%20By

Passwords & Accounts

Passwords & Accounts: prefs:root=ACCOUNTS_AND_PASSWORDS

Passwords & Accounts ⮞ Add Account: prefs:root=ACCOUNTS_AND_PASSWORDS&path=ADD_ACCOUNT

Passwords & Accounts ⮞ Fetch New Data: prefs:root=ACCOUNTS_AND_PASSWORDS&path=FETCH_NEW_DATA

Personal Hotspot

Personal Hotspot: prefs:root=INTERNET_TETHERING

Personal Hotspot ⮞ Family Sharing: prefs:root=INTERNET_TETHERING&path=Family%20Sharing

Personal Hotspot ⮞ Wi-Fi Password: prefs:root=INTERNET_TETHERING&path=Wi-Fi%20Password

Phone

Phone: prefs:root=Phone

Photos

Photos: prefs:root=Photos

Privacy

Privacy: prefs:root=Privacy

Privacy ⮞ Calendars: prefs:root=Privacy&path=CALENDARS

Privacy ⮞ Camera: prefs:root=Privacy&path=CAMERA

Privacy ⮞ Contacts: prefs:root=Privacy&path=CONTACTS

Privacy ⮞ Location Services: prefs:root=Privacy&path=LOCATION

Privacy ⮞ Microphone: prefs:root=Privacy&path=MICROPHONE

Privacy ⮞ Motion: prefs:root=Privacy&path=MOTION\

Privacy ⮞ Photos: prefs:root=Privacy&path=PHOTOS

Privacy ⮞ Reminders: prefs:root=Privacy&path=REMINDERS

Privacy ⮞ Speech Recognition: prefs:root=Privacy&path=SPEECH_RECOGNITION

Reminders

Reminders: prefs:root=REMINDERS

Reminders ⮞ Default List: prefs:root=REMINDERS&path=DEFAULT_LIST

Safari Browser

Safari: prefs:root=SAFARI

Safari ⮞ Advanced: prefs:root=SAFARI&path=ADVANCED

Safari ⮞ Camera: prefs:root=SAFARI&path=Camera

Safari ⮞ Clear History and Data: prefs:root=SAFARI&path=CLEAR_HISTORY_AND_DATA

Safari ⮞ Close Tabs: prefs:root=SAFARI&path=Close%20Tabs

Safari ⮞ Content Blockers: prefs:root=SAFARI&path=Content%20Blockers

Safari ⮞ Downloads: prefs:root=SAFARI&path=DOWNLOADS

Safari ⮞ Location: prefs:root=SAFARI&path=Location

Safari ⮞ Microphone: prefs:root=SAFARI&path=Microphone

Safari ⮞ Page Zoom: prefs:root=SAFARI&path=Page%20Zoom

Safari ⮞ Reader: prefs:root=SAFARI&path=Reader

Safari ⮞ Request Desktop Website: prefs:root=SAFARI&path=Request%20Desktop%20Website

Screen Time

Screen Time: prefs:root=SCREEN_TIME

Screen Time ⮞ Always Allowed: prefs:root=SCREEN_TIME&path=ALWAYS_ALLOWED

Screen Time ⮞ App Limits: prefs:root=SCREEN_TIME&path=APP_LIMITS

Screen Time ⮞ Downtime: prefs:root=SCREEN_TIME&path=DOWNTIME

Shortcuts

Shortcuts: prefs:root=SHORTCUTS

Siri

Siri: prefs:root=SIRI

Sounds

Ringtone:

prefs:root=Sounds&path=Ringtone

Sounds: prefs:root=Sounds

TV

Settings ⮞ TV: prefs:root=TVAPP

Voice Memos

Voice Memos: prefs:root=VOICE_MEMOS

VPN

VPN: prefs:root=General&path=VPN

Wallet

Wallet: prefs:root=PASSBOOK

Wallpaper

Wallpaper: prefs:root=Wallpaper

Wireless Radios

Bluetooth: prefs:root=Bluetooth

Cellular: prefs:root=MOBILE_DATA_SETTINGS_ID

Wi-Fi: prefs:root=WIFI

[craigedwardgiven]

Building a Battery Backup

Power outages are no stranger to Atlanta residents. Spring and summer bring lightning storms, strong winds, and sometimes tornadoes. Winter brings ice storms and in the autumn, we’re close enough to both the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico to feel the impacts from the tail of hurricane season. Even on cloudless, sunny days an errant driver can knock out a transformer and then there are the mysterious outages that last just a few minutes for no discernible reason. So, a battery backup seemed prudent to power my medical equipment and keep all my addictive gadgets charged. If you are an RV traveler or a camper with a vehicle at hand, then you might also find the following setup useful.

Avoid Inverters!

Inverters, which turn DC current into AC current, are both dangerous and horribly inefficient devices. The conversion process can easily waste 40% of a battery’s energy. It’s much more efficient to use a device’s DC adapter when one is available. Also, inverters can damage fine electronics because the “affordable” units output power that has a stepped or squared waveform. Simple devices like power tools, water boilers, fans, etc. can handle that rough output. But sophisticated electronics like TVs and laptops require a smooth waveform. The inverters that can produce the required sine wave output cost a lot more. If you need an inverter between your battery and device, make sure that it’s providing the correct type of power and is adequately fused.

No Car Batteries!

Car batteries are designed to provide a surge of power, all at once, and up-front to get the vehicle started. Once the vehicle is running on gasoline, the engine produces electricity through its alternator and recharges the car battery. These lead-acid batteries are not designed to handle a continuous or long-term power drain. So, you’ll want a Deep Cycle battery instead. Deep Cycle batteries are designed for an extended electrical pull and are what are used in golf carts, scooters, RVs, and boats and are often called “marine” batteries. Buy an AGM (absorbent glass mat) battery because they are sealed and can be used indoors. This prevents corrosive acid and awful fumes that could come from an unsealed battery.

Although lithium ion batteries can deliver power in a smooth sine wave and over an extended period, they cannot match the capacity or voltages of an AGM battery at the same cost point. Lithium battery capacities are typically rated in mAh (milliampere hour), which is one-thousandth smaller than the Ah (ampere hour) used to rate AGM battery capacities. A lithium battery with a 100 Ah capacity battery is insanely expensive compared to an AGM version of the same capacity.

What is Ah?

The unit of Ah (ampere hour) is the number of amps that can be delivered in an hour. So a 100 Ah battery, in theory, delivers 1 amp of electricity for 100 hours, or 2 amps for 50 hours, or 4 amps for 25 hours, etc. These are theoretical maximums because a battery’s age will reduce its capacity. Also, batteries do not discharge at the same rate for the entire duration. And environmental factors such as cold can reduce capacity. Nor would you use a battery's full capacity (i.e., discharge it completely) since that severely damages its ability to recharge. An AGM battery should not be discharged below 50% or its longevity will be curtailed. For my scenario, my medical device draws less than 10Ah per day, so a 100Ah AGM battery provides several days of service without going below the 50% threshold.

Wow! That's Heavy!

Also, the size and weight of a 100Ah is at the upper limits of portability. The model I purchased is a hefty 64 pounds and fits in a standard “group 27” battery case with barely space to spare. The case is important because of the danger of shorting out the battery terminals.  There's enough energy in these batteries that a short can melt metal or start a fire. Also, the case I purchased has two convenient 12V plugs for connecting my devices, two insulated posts for permanently connecting the charger, a battery meter, and circuit breakers. And speaking of chargers, I selected one that is specifically is safe for AGM batteries. I can safely leave the battery connected to the charger, which automatically cuts power to prevent overcharging and also prevents the battery dropping too low on charge. The external terminals would also allow me to connect multiple batteries in parallel (to increase capacity) and/or in series (for higher voltages) should I ever need those.  Or they can be used to attach solar panels to recharge the battery using sunlight.

[craigedwardgiven]

The King Is in Darkness

I was surprised to see the king in total darkness. Then it dawned on me…

I typically drive into work before the sun rises, and I get a dramatic view of the lights of crown on the King & Queen. These are iconic landmarks in north Atlanta, at the Concourse complex in the “Perimeter” area. They were designed with crowns to look like chess pieces. The photo I’ve attached was taken on a visit to Atlanta more than a decade ago, when I lived in Chattanooga and thought I would be staying there for the rest of my life. So obviously, I’ve been enamored with the King & Queen for a long time. Imagine my delight when I ended up working next to them. Over the years I’ve noticed the lights change colors to celebrate different holidays. But this is the first I’d seen a tower in complete darkness.  The other was lit in deep blood red, so I knew the King was in darkness on purpose.

Today is Good Friday, when we celebrate the crucifixion.  The day the sun was plunged into darkness during the midday.  And the day light of life in the King of Kings was extinguished and he was laid to rest in the blackness of a borrowed tomb. I found the commemoration and symbolism in the tower lighting very uplifting in the predawn hours of Good Friday.

It struck me as strange, in my younger days, why the day of Jesus’ murder and burial would be called Good Friday.  Until someone pointed out a passage in Psalm 118.  You’ll often hear verse 24 quoted without its context: “This is the day the Lord has made; We will rejoice and be glad in it.”  And it’s used as if it read “This is a day” instead of “This is THE day.”  But if you look at the verses surrounding this line, you realize this is a prophecy about a SINGLE day of incredible importance.

I will praise You,  For You have answered me,  And have become my salvation.  The stone which the builders rejected Has become the chief cornerstone.  This was the Lord’s doing;  It is marvelous in our eyes.  This is the day the Lord has made;  We will rejoice and be glad in it.  Save now, I pray, O Lord;  O Lord, I pray, send now prosperity.  Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!  We have blessed you from the house of the Lord.  God is the Lord,  And He has given us light;  Bind the sacrifice with cords to the horns of the altar.  You are my God, and I will praise You;  You are my God, I will exalt You.  Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good!

[craigedwardgiven]

Easter Garden Sign Project

Completed! Visit the project page to see how I crafted a hanging yard sign using craft store supplies and colored pencils. I couldn’t find a suitable Easter plaque to celebrate Resurrection Sunday, so I made a garden decoration proclaiming “He is Risen” embellished with a cluster of dogwood blossoms.

[craigedwardgiven]

How to Scan 35mm Slides

How to Scan 35mm Slides

Intro

The first, and most important question to ask yourself is, “Should you?” It might be better to give the task to the professionals if you don’t have the time, patience, skills, or equipment. Memories Renewed is a service that I have used and which came highly recommended by TheWireCutter.com.

I chose to do it myself because it satisfied several of my requirements. First, the number of slides—over a thousand—justified the purchase of a scanner. Some scanning services charge over a dollar per slide, and even Memories Renewed’s relatively low price of ninety cents per slide eclipsed the price of a scanner.

Second, I needed a new scanner and the replacement would be used even after the slide scanning project. My old scanner was so ancient it required drivers purchased from a third-party vendor. And it was doubtful the drivers that I bought for Windows 7 would also work under Windows 10. So, it didn’t make sense to keep investing in the old scanner, especially since it lacked the ability to scan film negatives or slides. This was a good opportunity to upgrade to a modern, supported, and more capable replacement. After researching my options and looking at reviews, I chose the Epson Perfection V600 scanner.

And lastly, I had the time, patience, and the skills for this DYI project. It is not a technically challenging task to operate a consumer-grade flatbed scanner. However, photo-retouching does require a bit of knowledge. Old 35mm slides will have scratches, blemishes, color casts, etc. and you’ll want the skills to correct or mitigate these issues. The Epson scanning software has tools to address some issues, while others are fixed post-scan in photo editing software. I’ll touch on a few of the basics, but in-depth coverage of photo editing is outside the scope of this article. You shouldn’t, however, have any trouble finding free video tutorials on photo-correction topics such as histograms, gamma curves, HSB, etc. And any investment into those editing skills also apply to the photos you’re currently taking.

In this article I’ll give you hints and tips on scanning 35mm slides specifically. Some of the tools and techniques apply to scanning film negatives and old photo prints also. This guide is not a replacement for your scanner’s manual, which should be the primary source of instruction.  Rather this is a supplement to clarify topics that are omitted or ambiguous. So, if you’re up to the challenge of slide scanning, let’s look at the equipment that will be useful.

Equipment

A slide/film scanner differs from an ordinary flatbed scanner because it has special illumination to project through the film or negatives. Also, a slide scanner typically uses a tray to hold the slides in the specific location of that lighting. The Epson Perfection V600 scanner has this lighting and the included tray will hold slides or negatives. But particularly appealing is the scanning software, which includes Digital ICE that can remove or mitigate blemishes and damage on both film and photos. The results can be amazing sometimes, and sometimes they will make a scan worse. You should make a slide-by-slide decision on whether to use Digital ICE, since you can often get better results from manual corrections.

You’ll want to remove any dust or dirt from the slides (and scanner flatbed) before scanning. The easiest method is to blow the dust away and I use a Giottos Large Rocket Air Blaster. Cans of compressed air can be too powerful, but they are useful for clearing your work area. For stubborn specs that can’t be blown away, I use a soft photographer's brush. These two tools were sufficient to clean most of the slides. I did have some slides with mildew damage and used lint-free wipes to apply a special emulsion cleaning fluid. These tools could also be used to clean film negatives, although I would add cotton gloves to the mix to prevent fingerprints. But gloves weren’t needed for my project since I only handled the slides by their frames.

Another way I protected the slides from fingerprints was by using a spudger. This is a tool with a point on one end and a flat screwdriver-like blade on the other. It’s made of nylon and won’t scratch the glass of the scanner’s flatbed. And it’s handy at lifting the slides from the tray. I already had several spudgers on hand (from my iFixIt toolkit), but they can be purchased by themselves. For a particularly stubborn slide, push it to one side of the frame and use the spudger tip on the opposite side to lever it out of the frame.

A zip bag or a sealed plastic box should be used to store your brush, spudger, lint-free wipe, etc. There’s no sense leaving them out between work sessions to gather dust.

Prepare

Before scanning wash your hands to minimize the oils on your fingers. And wipe down your work area, so you won’t be kicking up any dust while you work. If you’ve dug out your slides from an attic or closet, the box is probably dusty. Take the box to a different area to clean it so the air in your work area isn’t full of floating dust motes that will settle on your scanner and slides.

I learned the hard way that I also must prepare my work area by pausing my backup software. I use Google Backup & Sync, which gets confused when I edit photos. When I would go online to view the photos it showed the original version—not the finished version that had been corrected and edited. Therefore, I pause this software at the beginning of a session, and I don’t turn it back on until my photo editing is finished. I budget my time and work in batches, so I don’t scan more photos than I can edit, and thus ensure that the edited versions are what get backed up to the cloud.

Scanning

You should decide on a workflow and stick with it for a work session. A workflow is a series of steps that you’ll execute in the same manner, and in the same sequence, for each iteration. A workflow prevents mistakes and produces consistent results. You should position your tools and the slides to support your workflow. For example, I position the slide carousel to my left (since I’m working left-to-right) and rotate the carousel so the next slides to be cleaned are just below the 3 o’clock position. When I remove or return slides to the carousel I grip and rotate them the same way to ensure the emulsion side of the film is always facing the correct direction (more on that in a minute).

Another workflow decision is what you will be doing while the slides are being scanned. For example, you could do photo-retouching on the images that have already been scanned. But I have found the process goes much faster if I work on cleaning and documenting the next four slides to be scanned. I can accomplish more if I focus only on scanning. Switching between scanning and editing feels more productive, but it is actually much slower overall. So, I save all the photo editing until after I’m finished scanning.

Belly Down

Slides are placed on the flatbed of the scanner emulsion-side up. I’ve seen advice on using the text printed on the frame to identify the sides. However, my slide collection comes from photo labs in different countries and represented several brands, and I found that frame printing is neither consistent or dependable. Also, some frame brands didn’t even have text on them. To make matters worse, occasionally the film would be (even within one brand) inconsistently and incorrectly mounted. So, the best method is to always examine the film surfaces of every slide.

The emulsion side of film will be dull, and the opposite side will be shiny. For some film brands, it may be hard to discern the dull from the shiny side. Here is a list of indicators, in descending order of reliability, to help distinguish the emulsion-side:

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Emulsion side is facing you if film is… NON-emulsion side is facing you if film is… DULL SHINY CONCAVE (curves away from you) CONVEX (“belly” curves towards you) Any text in film image is reversed Any text in film image appears normal May have brand name, logo, and/or “This side toward screen” on the frame. WARNING: Not all brands or labs follow this convention. May have slide number and/or date-developed on the frame. WARNING: Not all brands or labs follow this convention.

Below are photos of different brands and style of slides showing the difference between their sides. The emulsion side is shown in the left column and the non-emulsion side of the same slide is to its right.

The frame's markings below are opposite from the Kodachrome brand shown above. The film, rather than the frame, are the real indicators of which side is which.

When you place a slide in the scanner’s tray, the emulsion side should face up (i.e., SHINY BELLY DOWN towards the glass). Also, be sure to rotate the slide so that the top of the image is towards the back hinge of the scanner.

When you return the slide back to its carousel, the top of the image goes towards the bottom of the carousel. And the shiny belly will be facing a higher numbered slot.

Problem Solving

Warped Frame

Slides in cardboard frames can warp over time, which can result in a suboptimal focus. You can sometimes gently bend the frames to compensate. But if they spring back to their warped state there is another solution: add a couple of empty, plastic frames on top of the slide when it is in the tray. This is just enough to allow the scanner lid to make contact and hold the slide flat against the glass.

Black Edge Bands or Strange Cropping

If the scanner adds black bars to a slide or crops it in strange ways, then it is probably because of light bleed. This light bleed confuses the scanner and it guesses the wrong slide size (inner window dimensions). The bleed is usually an outside edge and adding an empty slide frame on top will often stop the bleed.

But sometimes you’ll need a special light-blocking frame. I made such a tool using an empty frame. I added black electrical tape so that it wrapped each edge of the frame, giving the frame a tiny increase in dimensions and a snug fit in the tray. On rare occasions, it would take two of these frames on top of my slide to block all the bleed.

Because the tape on these special slides can peel back, I store them separately from all my other tools. This ensures no sticky residue transfers to any other item. And I check them before each use to make sure all the tape pieces are down and haven’t picked up a stray hair or other debris.

Also, when using empty frames to counter warping or to stop light bleed, be aware of the window shape. Most of my slides had rectangular windows, but I did encounter a handful with square windows. The empty frames need to have the same shape and size window as the underlying slide, and you should orientate them so that all windows in a stack align.

Fixing Images

The above problems fix the physical aspect of the slides to ensure a good scan. The Preview function is used to identify the issues and then again to validate they’re resolved. The next type of fix is made using software to correct defects in the film or created by the photographer.

Fix At Scan

Major issues are fixed during the scan. These problems are over-exposure (too light), under -exposure (too dark), blowout (combination of extreme areas that are too dark and too light), and color cast (overall image is red, or yellow, or blue, etc.).

Below is a screen shot of the settings that I use to scan 35mm slides. The very first item control is MODE and you must first set it to “Professional Mode” in order to access all the settings and tools shown below.  You’ll also notice that this panel is divided in two with an ADJUSTMENTS divider in the middle. 

Before discussing the adjustments, I want to discuss the RESOLUTION setting.  Memories Renewed uses a setting of 4000 dpi for their customers’ 35mm slides.  But you’ll notice I have selected 2400 dpi. That is because I will not be printing out any of the resulting images. Instead they will only be viewed online, so making them bigger than the size of most screens is a waste of disk space. Also, larger images take longer for the scanner to create, longer to load, longer to display, and longer to transmit. Consider how you will use the resulting images and choose a resolution that makes sense for that scenario.

In the adjustment tools (in the panel above) there is a row of icons. The only two that I use are the Tonal Curves (third from the left) and HSB (fourth from the left).  I'll give some examples of how they are used below. But before moving on to that topic, I want to discuss the adjustment settings below the row of icons.

I leave the UNSHARP MASK at Medium and have not yet encountered a need to change that setting. The COLOR RESTORATION is checked ON as needed on a slide-by-slide basis (with ON being most common). The preview will immediately improve if this setting is beneficial so you can make a decision without having to do a test scan and even without having to do another preview. And lastly, I will sometimes enable the Digital ICE setting. But this setting does display in the preview, so you’ll have to review any scans made with this adjustment. The review is necessary because sometimes Digital ICE will introduce undesired artifacts. Consequently, I only use this setting sparingly.

Adjustment Tools

In the photos below, the image on the left is an unadjusted image with a red cast. This is caused by age (tends to happen to certain film brands). The next image, just to the right, is a dramatic improvement. This adjustment is a result of setting the COLOR RESTORATION checkbox ON.

The image below and to the left has a blowout issue. This happens when a photographer is facing a bright light in the background, which cause the foreground to be too dark. To correct lighting problems such as blowout, over-exposure, and under-exposure, I use the Tone Curve adjustment. In the next photo you can see this tool floating over our sample image. The shadows are not quite as deep and the sky isn't quite as glaring. These adjustments were made by changing the curve in the adjustment tool.

In the grid above you’ll see a faint, straight, red line running diagonally from the lower left to upper right corner. This is represents the lighting before adjustment. By clicking the line and dragging you can change the straight line to a curve. You can also move the endpoints of the line to adjust the lighting. The bands along the sides of the grid indicate whether you're adjusting dark values (lower left) or light values (upper right). Wherever the line curves upward the values get lighter, and wherever the line curves downward the values get darker. In my curve the very darkest shadows remain unchanged, but everything else gets brighter. That is, except the very end of the curve.  The upper-right end doesn't meet at the grid corner but instead curves down, which makes the extreme whites not so bright. A full discussion of tonal curves is beyond the scope of this article. The best way to get the gist of this tool is by experimenting, since the preview will change in real-time and give immediate feedback. And the Epson software has a RESET button if you want to remove a curve experiment you’ve just tried.

The Tone Curve also has radio buttons along the mid-left for color channels, so you can adjust the curve for reds only, greens only, and/or blues only. The other tool for controlling color is the HSB tool (HSB stands for Hue, Saturation, and Brightness).  The Hue slider is used to shift the overall image toward red or blue. The saturation slider is used to give dull images a punch of color. Or, conversely, if the colors are excessively vibrant, you can desaturate them to more natural tones. Or, alternatively, you can completely desaturate a photo to convert it to a black-and-white image. Some brands of film accentuate reds, so you can choose to desaturate only the reds to bring the photo into balance.

Fix After Scan

The fixes by the scanner correct the most egregious problems that tend to change the photo overall. Tweaking and cleanup of individual areas of a photo are applied after the scan. Some fixes such as color adjustments, cropping, and resizing can be achieved using a free photo editor such as paint.net. But I’ve found Adobe Photoshop Elements is exceptionally good at red-eye removal, dust and blemish removal, and fine-tuning lighting. The healing brush alone is worth the price of this package. 

[craigedwardgiven]

Bad Battery Advice?

Do You Give or Follow Bad Battery Advice?

“That battery is about to explode!”

That’s the second time in recent months I’ve had to give someone bad news about why their laptop had an ugly bulge and why its performance had plummeted. I then suggested they quickly power it off and take immediate action. On the inside, however, I wanted to scream “Get that bomb out of my office, NOW!”

When they returned later in the day with a replacement, they shared some advice they’d received on preventing a recurrence. A misinformed technician instructed them to fully discharge the laptop battery on a regular basis. This triggered another fit of screaming (albeit, inside my head). While not as dangerous as an exploding lithium battery, such bad advice is destructive. And I’m dismayed at the number of people—even those with a technical background—who perpetuate such horrible advice.

To combat destructive and dangerous advice, I’ve assembled best practices on charging your devices. Most of you want the bottom line and don’t want to get deep into the weeds. But if one of the few that wants the research behind the advice, I’ve listed resources at the end of this article.

What Kind of Batteries?

Modern devices like your smartphone, tablets, laptops, etc. use lithium-ion batteries (also known as lithium polymer, Li-ion, and LIB). The advice in this article is for lithium-ion batteries only. The chemistries of lead-acid batteries, alkaline batteries, NiCad batteries, etc. are very different. Some of the bad advice that’s being given or followed for lithium-ion batteries comes from confusing and mixing advice from legacy battery types.

What Lithium-ion Batteries Hate

Overcharging

Junk Cables & Chargers

Extreme Temperatures

Full Depletion

Related Links:

“Here Are the Reasons Why So Many Hoverboards Are Catching Fire” —CNET.com

“Hoverboards Recalled for Fire and Explosion Risks — Again” —USAtoday.com

“Everything We Know About Samsung’s Galaxy Note 7 Recall” —DigitalTrends.com

“Apple Lawsuit Reveals Most Chargers Sold on Amazon Are Fake” —Engadget.com

“What to Look for When Buying USB-C Cables and Adapters” —AndroidCentral.com

“The Best Lightning Cable for iPhone and iPad” and “The Best Micro-USB Cable” and “The Best USB-C Adapters, Cables, and Hubs to Connect Old Accessories to Your New Laptop” —TheWireCutter.com

  Overcharging is probably the worst thing you can do to a lithium-ion battery, because that can lead to fires and ruptures. The good news is that major manufacturers take great pains to build in multiple safeguards to prevent overcharging.  So, overcharging is normally not a concern. When “smart” charging is used, the power to the battery is cut off to prevent damage or danger. Not all manufacturers are conscientious, however, and the cheap Chinese hoverboards popular in 2015 and 2016 omitted overcharging protections. This led to them spontaneously combusting and was a contributing factor to being banned. Consequently, I will not buy equipment that has warnings to unplug a device once it is fully charged. This is a bad sign they’ve gone the cheap route and have omitted overcharging protections.

Not that devices with “smart” charging are immune to overcharging. Even mainstream products can sometimes be flawed. The Samsung Galaxy Note 7 phone became infamous for the explosions and fires it caused. And Dell, HP, Lenovo, etc. have also made battery recalls. On the upside, these defects tend to be identified early and “up front.”

Prevent Overcharging

To prevent overcharging you should use quality chargers and cables. For Apple products, that means cables that are labeled as MFi certified. If I specifically need an Apple brand item (e.g., the HDMI lightning adapter), I buy them from a major retailer because I’ve had issues with counterfeits on Amazon.com (see article in sidebar). USB-C is another cable standard that’s suffered from quality woes.

But even if you’re not using a special cable, it’s still important to use quality components. Don’t buy cables or chargers from the local drugstore, gas station, or bargain bin. Not only is this important for the safety of your device, cheap components often deliver a weak and unstable power flow and can take longer to charge your device.

One way to ensure quality is to use the products provided by the device’s manufacturer. But there are also plenty of reputable third party sources that are just as good (or better) and can save you money. One of my favorite brands for chargers and cables is Anker and their products can be found in my home, vehicle, office, and backpack—as well as for my family, friends and relatives since I've given Anker products as gifts, too. I’ve also been happy with Monoprice brand cables. And I have heard good things about Amazon Basics as well, although I’ve been so happy with Anker I haven't been able to verify as many Amazon Basics myself.

Overcharging Danger Signs

Since there’s a chance even a major brand can have defective lithium-ion batteries, be on the lookout for danger signs, especially when you first acquire a new device. A bulge from a swelling battery is a red flag that something is horribly wrong. Extreme heat is the other indicator of an issue. Fast charging a battery normally makes the battery warm to the touch, but if it is getting extremely or painfully hot, that’s not normal. In the opening scenario I mentioned a third symptom, which is directly related to the heat problem. If your device is running really slow, it could be due thermal throttling. The faster a processor runs, the more heat it generates, so some devices slow down to avoid damaging temperatures. Unfortunately, in my opening example, the source of the dangerous heat was the battery and not the processor.

Keep Your Cool, But Not COLD

Like the processor, lithium-ion batteries don’t like heat. Leaving a device on your dashboard on a summer day is a good way to shorten the lifespan of a lithium-ion battery. Doing a fast-charge under those circumstances could lead to even more trouble. On the opposite extreme, lithium-ion batteries don’t hold a charge well in freezing temperatures. In the winter, I store my phone in an inside pocket, instead of an outside pocket, so it benefits from body heat. It turns out lithium-ion batteries like room temperatures just like humans—not too cold and not too hot.

Don’t Hit Empty

The most common and destructive practice I see is letting the battery hit empty. Lithium-ion batteries hate being fully discharged, and you damage it each time you let these batteries run dry. If done frequently, this reduces the charge your battery can store or deliver, and it eventually destroys the battery. The reason most people allow a full discharge is probably inattention, so it’s hard to provide an effective countermeasure other than “charge frequently.” I suspect that sometimes this destructive behavior is a holdover from the charging technique used on NiCad batteries to prevent the “memory effect.” However, this does NOT apply to lithium-ion batteries, so don’t let them hit empty!

Another source of the bad “full discharge” advice is a misunderstanding of battery calibration. Modern devices use sophisticated calculations to estimate remaining battery life. One way to improve those estimations is to recalibrate its monitoring by letting the charge run low (BUT NOT OUT). My recommendation is to only recalibrate when your device’s estimations are consistently and significantly off. And even then, don’t let the charge drop below 5%. This buffer is important because a lithium-ion battery discharges more quickly at the end of its spectrum. You could accidentally hit a damaging full discharge, especially if your device’s estimations are off.

A Few of My Anker Favorites

Red 10ft. Lightning Cable MFi Certified

Gold Double-Braided 6ft. MFi Certified Lighning Cable

4-Port Charger

Charging Best Practices

Cycles

While on the topic of charging, I wanted to clarify how charging cycles work. All batteries have a finite lifespan, and for lithium-ion it is typically measured in cycles. If a battery is rated for 1,500 cycles, it means it should survive to do 1,500 full recharges. A cycle is NOT consumed each time a device is connected to a charger. Instead it is the measure of a recharge that brings a battery from 0% to 100% full. Therefore, if a battery drops to 75% and then gets fully recharged, only a quarter of one cycle has transpired. If the next day the battery drops to 80% and then gets fully recharged, then only a fifth of one cycle has transpired. For those two days, that’s a cumulative 45% of just one of the cycles.

Always Charge Method

50-80 Method

Because modern quality devices have safeguards to prevent overcharging, a full discharge is the more likely problem people will face. Therefore, charging your iPhone overnight is not something to be feared or avoided. Devices with a smart charger or battery cut the power and stop charging when they get full. Therefore, my advice is to plug such devices into a charger whenever it is available. Of course, the manufacturer’s instructions and advice on charging should take precedence. This is especially important for off-brand and cheap devices which may lack overcharging protections.

Another option, although a bit impractical (especially since it is only minimally better for the battery) is to perform charging based on level. If you don’t find this practice too extreme, then let your device get to 50% remaining before recharging. And then, when you do recharge don’t let it reach 100%—instead disconnect it when it reaches 80% or 90% full.

Personally, I don’t like heading out the door with a device at 50% capacity. If I’m on the move for too long I could hit empty because I was unable to charge it. I have found no discernable lifespan improvement between the two charging methods. So why not choose the method with the better convenience? For the past decade, across a number of my devices, I’ve seen the empirical evidence that supports the “always charge” method. No device had to be replaced or repaired due to battery issues. In fact, they tended to live a bit too long, since they survived well into obsolescence (sigh—first world problems).

Resources for a Deeper Dive

“What You Should (and Shouldn’t) Do to Extend Your Phone’s Battery Life” by TheWirecutter.com

“Why Your Phone Dies When It Claims to Have Battery Left” by TheWirecutter.com

“Ask Ars: What Is the Best Way to Use a Li-ion Battery?” from Ars Technica

“Maximizing Battery Life and Lifespan” from Apple.com

“Five Tips for Extending Lithium-ion Battery Life” from TechReplubic.com

“How to improve battery life on your smartphone or smartwatch” from Engadget.com

Many technical articles and studies are available from Battery University at http://batteryuniversity.com/learn/

“A Look Inside the World of Batteries” (multiple blog postings by Nadim Maluf at Qnovo.com)

“Security Now!” from Gibson Research Corporation. Transcripts can be found by using the SEARCH box in the upper-right of the page to find episodes referencing “lithium.” Then set “SecurityNow!” as the filter. For example episodes 321, 322,324, 332, 334, 338, 526, 552, 575, 577, 582, 647, etc. have touched on the subject of lithium-ion chemistry and charging.

[craigedwardgiven]

Reviewed: 2K to 10K: Writing Faster, Writing Better, and Writing More of What You Love by Rachel Aaron.

A review of 2K to 10K:

Writing Faster, Writing Better, and Writing More of What You Love by Rachel Aaron.

Let’s get to the good stuff right away: This work made my list of top 10 best books on writing!

Keep reading to find out why. I also list some supplementary and complementary reading and offer a resource of my own that’s a free download.

If you’re pinching pennies it’s only fair to mention that this book is a compilation of key posts from Rachel Aaron’s blog, Pretentious Title (http://thisblogisaploy.blogspot.com). But having it all together and organized is well worth the very affordable asking price. I found all the formats so reasonable that I purchased both the Kindle and Audible versions.

I listen to lots of audiobooks and podcasts as a survival technique in Atlanta’s rush-hour traffic, so the Audible format was the first consumed and is 2 hours 26 minutes in duration. The narrator’s voice (Arial Burnz) was pleasant, and the subtitles and division breaks were fairly obvious from her modulations. The one place where audio didn’t work was a chart in the section titled “BONUS! How I Wrote a Novel in 12 Days.” It’s not a crucial component, and you’ll still get all the essential goodness of the book if your mind goes fuzzy during the recitation of all these numbers. The author kindly makes the chart available on the web at http://rachelaaron.net/audiotools.php so you don’t actually miss out.

Because of the chart, I’d mildly recommend the eBook over the audiobook if you’re going to get only one format. At the time of this review, the audiobook was the least expensive format, the Kindle held the middle ground, with the paperback version following. There is no substantial difference in content between the formats, and if you get both the Kindle and Audible formats they support Whispersync. That is, each remembers your place in the book as you switch between the formats. Also, you can play the narration in the Kindle version and it will highlight the words on the page as they are being spoken, which can help you focus on the content.

That content is, unsurprisingly, exactly what the title suggests: how to be a more productive writer. It reemphasizes the many studies made by the corporate world: planning greatly impacts productivity. While it might seem obvious or instinctual to many, there are plenty of writers trapped in the Writing into the Dark approach or emulating Stephen King’s method and advice to just write it all down and fix it later. That paradigm doesn’t work for everyone, and when it does, it tends to favor seasoned and experienced authors.

But for the budding or frustrated writer, this book includes plenty of encouraging guidance that is well thought out. And Rachel Aaron expands on her premise by examining other factors that contribute to productive writing. And I use the term “productive” in the full sense, because both quality and quantity were the results of Rachel’s methodology. Rachel then uses the second part of the book to give great information on plotting, characters, story structure, and editing. This gives aspiring authors an inside look at the entire writing process of an established novelist. Even writers who subconsciously already understand the concepts espoused by Rachel, will still find it refreshing and encouraging to have them laid out clearly, concisely, and objectively documented.

I would, however, encourage writers to investigate the story structure element further. While the Three-Act structure is incredibly popular and useful, a well-rounded writer should be familiar with different frameworks. Knowing the strengths and weaknesses of each framework equips a writer to adopt a method that fits their personal paradigm, fits the genre, and fits the story type (e.g., character-driven versus action-driven). In addition to previously mentioned Writing into the Dark by Dean Wesley Smith, I’d encourage authors to explore Lester Dent’s Master Plot Formula, Write Your Novel from the Middle by James Scott Bell, How to Write a Novel Using the Snowflake Method by Randy Ingermanson, the Monomyth structure, beat-based frameworks, etc.

While I’m on the topic of supplementary reading, I can’t resist a recommendation to go with Rachel Aaron’s penultimate chapter on editing—my all-time favorite—Self-Editing for Fiction Writers by Renni Browne and Dave King. And speaking of shout-outs, Rachel gives recognition to Scrivener and provides a productivity tracking template that you can download. It’s a very simple fill-in-the-form document to track times and record word counts. I already have a spreadsheet that does all the math for me, so I’ve taken the opportunity to convert it to Google Sheets and share it publicly. Feel free to make a copy and tweak it to fit your needs.

In conclusion, I’d also like to make mention how I came to find this gem. I’d semi-randomly sampled a new book on Audible: Nice Dragons Finish Last by Rachel Aaron. That taste led me to devour the remainder of the Heartstriker series only to find it was, as of then, incomplete. In my search for the expected release date of the next book, I stumbled upon Rachel’s blog and her excellent articles on writing and marketing. That in turn led to her 2K to 10K book. I’d so admired her potting skill in the Hearstriker series, that I had to give 2K to 10K a try and my curiosity was well rewarded. If you’re an aspiring writer—or even an experience writer looking to get better traction—I heartily recommend 2K to 10K.

30 Day Free Trial 2 free audiobooks when you join

FREE Kindle Reading App Read eBooks on Most Devices

Other books mentioned in this article:

Nice Dragons Finish Last (Heartstrikers Book 1) by Rachel Aaron

Self-Editing for Fiction Writers by Renni Browne and Dave King

Write Your Novel from the Middle by Jame Scott Bell

How to Write a Novel Using the Snowflake Method by Randy Ingermanson

Writing into the Dark: How to Write a Novel without an Outline by Dean Wesley Smith

[craigedwardgiven]

Logo Design: Guide for Customers

Logo Design: Guide for Customers

Logos are a difficult beast by their very nature. They’re an attempt to take an abstract idea, typically multifaceted and complex, and represent it in a single, simple, concrete form! The final image may take many forms (banners, brochures, T-shirts, etc.), but for simplicity I’ll refer to them generically as “logos.” Here are some guidelines I’ve codified from my experience working with customers to design logos.  Below is a list of considerations a customer can make before talking with an artist.

Every logo project requires time from the customer—usually more than they imagined.

Logos must survive shrinking. A logo must be distinguishable when scaled down to an inch square or smaller. Your audience will probably see the small versions more than the big versions.

For the same reasons as above, a logo must look good in black-and-white. When a logo does have color it typically uses solid colors (i.e., no gradients) and not too many different colors.  This also reduces printing costs and ensures consistency between printing lots since the image can be faithfully reproduced without variation. Blue and red are the most common and most psychologically appealing colors.

Upper case acronyms are more memorable than lowercase (IBM, BMW, UPS, HBO, etc.).

A logo must be simple. Be wary of “how about if we add …” since a complex image is a muddy image. “Say one thing and say it well” is the best approach. When combining elements from different logo proposals you can end up with a visual Frankenstein. A logo creates an identity first and foremost. If you’re lucky, you might be able to tell a story. Don’t insist on incorporating your entire organization’s philosophy and mission into the logo — create a memorable handle first. For example, picture the logos of Chevy, AT&T, Nabisco, and Target. They’re very distinct images, but those images say absolutely nothing about trucks, telephones, cookies, or department store merchandise! But when you see the logo, you instantly know who you’re dealing with and what they offer. Let your logo be identifiable, and let your newsletters, pamphlets, presentations, web sites, etc. clarify who, what, and why you are.

Know how the logo is specifically to be used. A silk-screened T-shirt design can be more detailed than a small embroidered logo on the pocket of a golf shirt, so these details are significant.

A camel is a horse created by a committee. You MUST minimize the number of people making decisions on your logo. It’s natural to work through several “what if” scenarios as logos are combined, tweaked, and brainstormed. With a committee this can turn into an almost endless process as myriads of permutations are tested. If a committee must make the final decision, at least narrow down their choices to a maximum of three options. It’ll save you a lot of headache!

Articulate what your organization or conference is all about in a short, single sentence. I would challenge you to pick three words that highlight what you are all about. Of those three words, which is the most important? The least important?

[craigedwardgiven]

Posting Planner

Why Plan?

Which would be better?  Should a husband give his wife a giant truck load of roses just once in their marriage?  Or a steady stream of romantic moments throughout the marriage with each punctuated with a single rose?  I hope for your sake you find the question rhetorical!  In the same way that it's healthier to spread out your meals, sleeping, work, play, etc., so should you pace your postings. Consistency is a major factor in retaining and engaging web site visitors. They’d rather see a weekly posting instead of 52 postings all-at-once followed by 51 weeks of silence.

Consequently, I'm using a spreadsheet to capture ideas for future posts, to track their creation and development, and to schedule when each will be published.  I wanted to share that creator’s tool with you, so let’s start by looking at each attribute (column) in my spreadsheet. You’ll also find a link to an example spreadsheet, that you can use for your own template, at the end of this article.

The Attributes

ITEM: The article title or topic  

TIMELY?: Is the post related to a date or deadline in any way? For example, an announcement or a status update should be posted in proximity to the event it discusses. While a product review or tutorial doesn’t necessarily have to be posted as soon as it is completed. The timeliness attribute has a major bearing on the priority of an item, both in terms of when it gets posted and what I work on first if I'm trying to make a due date.  The deadline itself goes in the POST column.  

SEQ: Once I determine an item’s priority, I record the sequence in which they will be created and posted.  Any row without a sequence assignment stands out and serves as a To-Do reminder that I need to complete its evaluation and make a decision. The sequence number represents priority in ascending order, so 1 (one) would be my number one priority.  Sequence numbers do not have to be consecutive or unique.  For example, I could have several items with a sequence of 99 to show they are all low priority. Assign values in steps of 10 so you'll have slots to insert items later (e.g., 10, 20, 30, 40, etc.). After an article has been posted, I change this value to zero and give that row a gray background to show it has been completed. And speaking of colors, throughout the spreadsheet I use highlighting and font color to draw my eye to outstanding tasks.  

READY?  This column identifies if an item is ready for posting. A value of “awaiting” means an item is finished, but the posting date is dependent on some external factor. The explanation for what I’m waiting on will be in the NOTES column. Otherwise I put “YES” if it's ready to be posted or scheduled or blank (which stands out better than putting “no”) or “POSTED.”  

POST ON: This is the date when an item is to be posted.  If it is relative to some other factor, then I put “TBD” and explain the dependency in the NOTES column. A value of “dry week” indicates an item that can be posted at any time and is suitable when there aren’t more pressing items taking priority.

 There are tools you can use to schedule the actual postings. For example, Squarespace’s blog/news postings can be scheduled, Twitter’s TweetDeck, or multi-site Buffer.com. The latter has a scaled-down free version. I’d previously used Hootsuite but found it limited and unstable, so I recently switched to Buffer. Both offer a free personal version, and the paid versions aren’t cheap.  But if your site is busy enough to warrant those premium features, then it is probably generating enough traffic and income to justify. Until then, you could use a spreadsheet to keep track of when you need to perform cross-posting announcements (like below). Set a reminder alarm for the next date and time. When it rings, navigate to the service listed in the SITE column.  Then copy and paste the EXCERPT and URL into the posting. Delete that row, and change your reminder for the next date and time.

There are many conflicting studies regarding the best time of day and day of the week to post for maximum impact. Your audience and their timezone plays a big role, but with a heavy bias in the Eastern Time Zone. Below is my personal guestimation that I cobbled together from a few different sources.  The letters represent good time slots for Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, LinkedIn, and Google+ (with optimal windows in red). Consequently, I moving my web postings from Mondays to Wednesdays since most social sites share a window during that day.

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  MON TUE WED THU FRI SAT SUN 0800   L L L       0900 G G G G       1000 G G,L G G       1100               1200 T,IT,L,IT,L,IT,L,IIFF 1300 T T T T,F T,F F F 1400 T T T T,F T,F F F 1500 T T T,F T,F T,F F F 1600               1700 T,L,I T,L,I T,L,I T,L,I T,I     1800               1900               2000           P   2100     P     P   2200           P  

Services: The next few columns list the services and social sites where announcements and cross-posting links are planned.  For example, after completing an art project and posting all the related images on the web site, I'd make an announcement in my NEWS feed (blog).  Although the project page may have many photos of the work in progress, the finished image is the main graphic. So, I’d want to post that photo on Instagram and Pinterest as well. I use “YES” (uppercase) and "no" (lowercase) to record my decision.  The “YES” values also serve as a checklist of assets to be created (e.g., a square image for Instagram, a portrait image for Pinterest, and/or a highly-condensed excerpt for Twitter).  And the READY? column will track if they’ve all been completed yet.

Google and tumblr (since I always post to the other if I post to the one)

LinkedIn (for items that may have an interest to the business community)

Twitter

Instagram (for items that have a visual element)

Pinterest (for items that have a visual element)

Facebook  

NOTES:  Any dependencies or clarifications are recorded here  

CATS & TAGS: The category and tags for the topic. They serve as a reminder to add them to the social media post. And they help balance and vary postings to keep the news feed fresh.  For example, if the last two postings were about art, I could pick a different category for my next posting.

Within this spreadsheet is a “Cats & Tags” page where I keep track of all my category and tags to ensure consistency. I will reference this list to identify which of them apply to a newly written article. And I update and supplement the list based on how readers might be searching for those topic. For example, an article about writing would obviously get a tag of #writing. But my list has a note reminding me that on Twitter users search for #writingtips more than for #writing. So my announcement post about my new article on Twitter would use #writingtips.  

URL: For copy & pasting convenience  

CHARS: A formula that calculates the number of characters in the Excerpt column  

EXCERPT: The hook that explains what the reader will get if they follow the link in the post

If you have a more formal workflow, you could add columns to track tasks with greater granularity. For example, for text-centric posts you could add a WRITE column with the values of blank (an idea yet to be started), “Research,” “Draft,” “Edit,” or “Done.”  In a team environment, assignee names could be used beneath various columns.  But as you customize a posting planner that fits your needs, beware of the trap of tracking too many attributes.  Only track what actively helps you:

Stay on track

Prevent omissions

Create quality

Deliver consistently

I leave you with one final benefit of pacing out your posts.  It’s always good to let a piece simmer for awhile. So when you return and give it one more review before publishing (which you should!), then it’s with a fresh perspective. That can surface issues you were previously blind to, and recharge your creativity so your edits have more punch and polish.

An example spreadsheet is available for public access on Google Docs. You can click the button below to view it. You can copy this example to create your own editable version which you can enhance and modify to meet your specific needs.

[craigedwardgiven]

Bad Dog, Good Sync

I’m a fan of cloud storage, internet backups, and automatic file synchronization between computers. For years my solution was centered around JungleDisk, but a change of ownership led to a switch to GoodSync. Then a recent decline in GoodSync reliability and support inspired me to write about these cloud technologies, the products I evaluated, and the strategies I followed to optimally leverage them.

What is Cloud Storage?

You may be familiar with cloud storage products like DropBox, Google Drive, Microsoft OneDrive, and Apple iCloud. These let you keep files on the internet, which is sometimes referred to as “cloud storage.”  The awesome benefit of internet storage and access came into sharp focus for me after losing a laptop to a burglar in 2010. Cloud technologies allowed me to survive the loss of that computer and its files. And cloud access let me remain functional and keep my momentum until I could purchase a laptop replacement. Depending on the product, you can leverage cloud storage in additional and useful ways. Here are some of the top benefits:

Backup

Files created on a computer or a device automatically get copied to storage on the internet. Online backups can be a component of a backup strategy, but by itself it can lead to trouble. If you accidentally corrupt a file, or if a malicious virus were to encrypt your files, that damage would propagate and thus destroy any “backup.” Also consider how you will be impacted if the vendor has technical difficulty and goes offline. See my discussion of the 3-2-1 best practice below. It lists the other factors that can supplement your cloud storage so that you have a real backup.

Cloud Drive

Because the files are copied to the internet, many vendors will let you access that copy from a browser or mobile device. JungleDisk even let you map a drive letter to the internet storage so it would appear like normal storage to all your programs. Some solutions also support standard protocols like WebDAV, SFTP, or Amazon S3 to allow apps to access files in cloud storage. I would avoid products that limit your access via a proprietary client program. I’ve often found those clients have small feature sets, awkward interfaces, unreliable behavior, and a limited number of platforms.

Sync

I’m too frequently disconnected from the internet, so I need offline access and local copies of my files. Therefore, my cloud storage needs to be compatible with synchronization. Since synchronization can leverage the backup copies in cloud storage, it would be even better if the synchronization were automatic and built into my cloud solution. That is, after new files or changes are copied up to the internet, those same changes can be copied down to other computers connected to that account.  Designated folders can be kept in sync across multiple computers, without requiring them to all be connected to a single local network. Some products also give you the option to configure “master” folders, so that changes only flow in a single direction. That is, changes on the master always propagate to the other connected computers. But changes, additions, or deletions on non-master computers do not propagate back to the master. Instead those changes are eventually overwritten and lost, and forced to match the master copy (also known as an “echo”).  For example, I have a two-way sync between my laptop and desktop. I can switch between computers and all changes are automatically synchronized to the other machine. But I only echo that folder to my wife’s laptop (which  I can access in an emergency). She doesn’t care about or use those files, so to prevent accidental changes from her end, the sync is one-way only.  In between all these computers is the cloud storage copy, which I can access from my phone, tablet, or even a guest computer.

Security

Some cloud solutions (e.g., SpiderOak) allow you to encrypt your files (with a key held only by you) to keep them secure. Others, like DropBox, allow your files to be visible to some of their employees. The ability to control the encryption key protects you from a disgruntled employee or a security breach at the service provider.

I Miss You, JungleDisk Desktop

JungleDisk Desktop had all the features and options listed above and was extremely reliable and easy to manage. I used it for many years and its pricing was very reasonable: they charged only a few cents per gigabyte for storage consumed and bandwidth utilized. They were purchased by Rackspace in 2008 and at first it looked like the parent company was going to invest and improve on an already great product. Unfortunately, about 2014 Rackspace changed to a direction that was consumer unfriendly. Rackspace’s focus for JungleDisk changed to big enterprise, their product emphasized only the backup feature, and their pricing model added per-seat licensing and payment minimums. Rackspace then announced that JungleDisk Desktop would be discontinued in September 2017 and forced all customers to either cancel their service or upgrade to the enterprise product (called JungleDisk Workgroup) . Although the enterprise solution still supported the same features as the “Desktop” product, none of those features were mentioned in any documentation or communication. You could only find out about them by contacting support, and Rackspace never made any efforts to correct this oversight. These portents strongly suggested the impending death of all these extra features, so I began searching for a substitute in the months preceding JungleDisk Desktop’s termination date.

There was no comparable competitor, so I had to cobble together multiple products to approximate a replacement. For cloud storage I settled on Google Drive Sync after OneDrive suffered synchronization corruptions (I’ve since heard Microsoft has fixed this issue). Google Drive Sync also has the advantage of adding photos found on your local drive to Google Photos. Dropped from the running was Apple’s iCloud since it is the most expensive solution; DropBox which had a smaller feature set; and SpiderOak whose complexity was more than I wanted to manage. I do, however, still use iCloud and DropBox in a limited capacity because some iOS apps and Windows programs only work with those products.

The 3-2-1 Backup Strategy

Google Drive also fulfills a portion of my backup strategy, supporting the “3-2-1” best practice:

3: Until there are a minimum of 3 copies of a file, you don’t really have a backup

2: Your backups should use a minimum of 2 different media types

1: At least one backup needs to be off site (e.g., if your house burns down)

Enter GoodSync

For synchronization, I opted not to use Google Drive Sync so that any file corruptions would not automatically propagate.  I only use the sync feature to propagate from one “master” computer for backup, storage, and cloud drive functions.  All other synchronizations would be manually initiated and configured to synchronize or echo with the master copy. A synchronization that goes wrong can result in massive destruction, so I wanted granular control until the reliability of the replacement solutions had been established.

GoodSync 30 Day Free Trial

One of the backup and sync tools that I have used for a decade is the free Microsoft SyncToy. And for massive ad hoc backups I would sometimes use the free utility FastCopy. Both products require that the source and target drives must be visible to the computer where these utilities run. So they can’t be used with remote computers across the internet. To fill that need I researched various solutions and decided upon GoodSync and purchased a license for each computer.  Some advantages of GoodSync is that it can synchronize across the internet or access local network and drives directly (i.e., faster). If you’re only doing local synchronizations, I recommend SyncToy instead as it is much easier to use and is free.

GoodSync chugged along happily for six months.  And I was about to schedule some automatic synchronization jobs when I began to run into problems. The first was self-inflicted, although non-obvious. Depending on how you set up a sync job, administrator credentials may get stored in that job.  So when I changed the login password on one of my computers, GoodSync jobs would lockout the account on that computer because it was submitting the old password. It took me quite awhile to figure out what was happening, but after recreating the jobs (so they’d use the updated password), everything started working again. That was only done to test my theory, and I was unhappy with this arrangement.  So I reconfigured the sync jobs so they “pushed” instead of “pulled” from that computer.  With that change the credentials did not have to be stored with the job.

Then in January I had one sync job stop running. Change is the main cause of computer issues, but I’d not made any changes to these jobs or computers. I validated the failing job against a working job and they were both configured identically. So GoodSync was the primary suspect and I opened a support ticket with the vendor. The technician working my case was lazy and incompetent, basically telling me to “read the documentation.” I pointed out that I had, and found deficiencies in said instructions and asked a series of questions for clarification, which were ignored. In the interim, I did the technicians job and did my own investigation. These were highly technical aspects and no customer should be expected to know about hidden file ownership attributes and ACL policies. I was eventually able to identify that the problem was indeed caused by GoodSync.  It would intermittently create a file named “_file_state_v4._gs” in a hidden directory named “_gsdata_” but omit the ownership. Without an ownership attribute, it couldn’t determine access permissions and the job would fail.  If the owner was correctly populated the job would work.  I eventually found a work-around: create a remote control session for the other computer, log in using an administrator account (full control permissions so the omission is overruled), and then run the job. It’s definitely a pain and I almost abandoned GoodSync completely over this issue. Because if it won’t run, what’s the sense of having it?

A few weeks later, all sync jobs on one computer refused to run. It was a new and different error and I validated that it wasn’t the owner attribute issue at fault. I couldn’t even recreate the jobs, so I opened another support ticket and got the same lazy and incompetent technician. So this might be a small, if not solo, business. Which does not bode well for long term viability. The first suggestion was “Upgrade to the latest version.” Hey, idiot, minutes before you made that stupid suggestion, I sent you the log files you requested and it shows that I’m already on the latest version. Then they reply “Disable your security software.”

Let me be clear, run (do not walk) away from any idiot that suggests you disable security as one of their first troubleshooting options.

Luckily, I persisted, and they eventually found and acknowledge that the problem was on their servers. After they fixed their issue, the jobs resumed running without requiring any changes on my end. All these issues do not bode well for GoodSync. On some days it still takes some prodding when GoodSync fails to set ownership attributes correctly. Although the work-around isn’t terribly hard, finding it was way beyond the technical expertise of an average person. Consequently, I have contingencies ready, and my worst case scenario includes a USB thumb drive and old reliable SyncToy.  Below are a couple of USB storage options that I’ve been using.

The Samsung features a good balance in performance and price.  But of particular importance is its full metal case, which is important for keychain carry.  Too many times, I’ve had thumb drive plastic attachment points break. Luckily, when they’ve broken they’ve not been lost, giving me time to replace them.  And I use TrueCrypt to create encrypted volumes on my thumb drives and my external drives to protect sensitive files in case they should get lost or stolen.

Metal Samsung 128GB USB 3.0 Flash Drive BAR

The one “plastic” exception is the speedy SanDisk Extreme CZ80. At 64GB it’s still roomy enough for my needs. To mitigate the plastic attachment point, I use a small key ring between it and the main key ring. This strain relief strategy appears to be working since I’ve had a couple of these drives for two years now.

  SanDisk Extreme CZ80

Alternatives

The products already mentioned and linked in this article are some of the big players which I’ve already researched. They are a good place to begin your search. But there are some equally big and capable offerings which I haven’t mentioned, and the following resources will include them.  These resources also catalog and review features which might apply more significantly to your specific needs.

“Comparison of Online Backup Services” by Wikipedia

“Comparison of File Hosting Services” by Wikipedia

“Comparison of File Synchronization Software” by Wikipedia

“Best Online Backup Service” by The Wirecutter

“The Best Online Backup Services of 2018” by PCMag

“Which Cloud Storage Service Is Right for You?” by CNET

“The Best Cloud Storage and File-Sharing Services of 2017” by PCMag

“The Best Cloud Storage Services of 2018” by TechRadar

[craigedwardgiven]

Get it “Write” on the Web

If you write for the web and want to be polished and professional, then you want to be typographically correct.  Below is a guide on what those correct punctuation marks are, and how to create them.

What’s the Problem?

When you write with a good word processor such as Microsoft Word, it will (in most cases) automatically use or substitute the correct punctuation for you. For example, if you typed this:

The company president wrote "The biggest impact--this isn't an exaggeration--is a 3/4 loss of revenues . . ." in an urgent email this morning.

The punctuation characters would be corrected to use the proper symbols like this:

The company president wrote “The biggest impact—this isn’t an exaggeration—is a ¾ loss of revenues…” in an urgent email this morning.

The “wrong” versions are fine for casual or personal communications with friends. But if you want your post to be polished and professional, you’ll want to use the visually appealing and grammatically correct versions. The easiest method for that is to use a word processor with the smarts to do that for you, such as Microsoft Word or Google Docs. But even those tools may sometimes not understand your intent, and you’ll need to make a manual adjustment. You’ll also find that working on the web often means you’ll have to manually enter these symbols. For example, when creating a blog post, composing an online article, or writing a feature for a business Facebook page.

Below is a chart of the special characters I most commonly use. For foreign language characters (like Ç) or esoteric mathematical symbols (such as Σ), you’ll can find thousands of them on a Unicode character tables (like this). The easiest way to get these characters into a web document is Copy & Paste. But if you’re using them frequently, it can be easier and quicker to type their codes. Because I write on the web so frequently, I’ve come to memorize the codes for quotation marks, apostrophes, and em dashes. And it’s much faster to type in their numeric codes than to open a reference, find the symbol, copy it, navigate back to where it’s needed, and then paste it.

 Chart of Common Special Characters

How to Use

Copy & Paste the desired punctuation from the “Symbol” column of this chart.

For Windows users: you can alternatively use the keyboard combination shown in the “Combo” column. For example, to create the copyright symbol (©) the combo is Alt-0169. That is instructing you to HOLD down the ALT key while tapping 0, then 1, then 6, then 9 on the numeric keypad. Release the ALT key and the symbol appears. Any digits in a combo must be entered using the numeric keypad—not the numbers above the letter keys.

table, td, th { border: 2px solid #EEEEEE; border-collapse:collapse; padding-left:0.5em; padding-right:0.5em; padding-top:0.1em; padding-bottom:0.1em; }

Symbol Combo Name — Alt‑0151 Em Dash: breaks, interruptions, or redactions – Alt‑0150 En Dash: ranges, connect/compare (but not join) words (e.g.,Sar­banes–Ox­ley Act) - Alt‑045 Hyphen: join words (e.g., topsy-turvy) “ Alt‑0147 Double Quote open ” Alt‑0148 Double Quote close " Alt‑034 Double Quote straight ‘ Alt‑0145 Single Quote open ’ Alt‑0146 Single Quote close / Apostrophe ' Alt‑039 Single Quote straight … Alt‑0133 Ellipsis: omissions Alt‑255 Non-breaking Space (mimic HTML’s   ) ° Alt‑0176 Degree © Alt‑0169 Copyright ® Alt‑0174 Registered ™ Alt‑0153 Trademark § Alt‑0167 Section ¼ Alt‑0188 Quarter ½ Alt‑0189 Half ¾ Alt‑0190 Three Quarters ÷ Alt‑0247 Division × Alt‑0215 Multiplication

Many manuals of style recently called for the replacement of two spaces between sentences with just a single space. The twin spaces are a holdover from the days of typewriters and typographes have declared them visually disruptive on web pages. It’s not a special character per se as much as it is a habit to break. For an oldtimer like me, who learned to type on a manual typewriter in the ’70s, and then constantly practiced the twin-space convention for 40 years, it may be impossible for me. My only hope is when I’m working with tools that allow global search-and-replace, and then only when I remember the “right” way is now the “wrong” way.

And speaking of grammatical correctness, the proper use of the above symbols is beyond the scope of this article. But I have added a short note for a few of them, in the chart above, as reminders of proper usage. If in doubt, an internet search along the lines of “when should I use an em dash?” will lead you to plenty of well-written grammar and style guides.

[craigedwardgiven]

Goodbye Pushbullet

My solution to the universal clipboard need now that Pushbullet is fading

https://www.craiggiven.com/news/2018/1/3/goodbye-pushbullet

[craigedwardgiven]

Quince Rocking Chair Project

I decorate a chair with floral artwork of quince blossoms using colored pencils.

https://www.craiggiven.com/quince-rocking-chair-project

[craigedwardgiven]

The Butterfly Boot Jack Project

I came up with the idea of creating a unique and visually appealing version of a boot jack. A boot jack is a simple device that lays on the floor, and you wedge the heel of a booted foot into the "V" of the jack to pry off a tight-fitting boot or shoe. These are typically plain, utilitarian, and somewhat ugly things. But I formed the V into the antenna of a butterfly.

See the project page for more: https://www.craiggiven.com/butterfly-boot-jack-project 

[craigedwardgiven]

Free: Mandala Coloring Book

A collection of my circular geometric designs, sometimes referred to mandalas, in a gallery and also as a coloring book — FREE: for your and your friends’ personal use.

https://www.craiggiven.com/free-mandala-coloring-book 

[craigedwardgiven]

Write Myself Empty

Writing Gnats

As I struggled to regain traction on my novel, my head was abuzz with distracting gnat clouds of ideas and issues. Prewriting seemed the accepted and logical solution, so I broke my manuscript into individual scenes in Scrivener as a precursor to outlining the entire plot. This, unfortunately, served only to stir up additional clouds of writing gnats. So my next attempt to silence them was a technique I use at my day job: write myself empty. It is as if I literally pluck the distractions from my mind and stick them to the paper. The effort of articulating an item is an acknowledgment and respect of its importance. Then that gnat is content to remain in storage, quietly awaiting its turn to be at center stage and to find resolution. Let’s seek inspiration from the work tool (which I’ll call the “fly paper”) that I use to snare and subdue distractions.

Fly Paper for Day-Job Gnats

Project Name

About

The “About” section rarely appears for most projects

It can be used to keep milestone or milestone dates top-of-mind

It can be used to capture names, addresses, or numbers of particular consequence

In Progress

A concise statement of one task to be accomplished

All items are dated since a superior may ask when an issue was reported, resolved, delegated, due, etc.

ISSUE: Issues are prefixed with an uppercase label to make them easy to identify because they also tend to be urgent

Items that are awaiting a response or action from another party can be prefixed with “AWAITING:” or colored (I use fuchsia)

Bold text, red lettering, and/or yellow highlighting identify important or urgent items

Next Steps

Like the “In Progress” section, except for items yet to be undertaken

On the Horizon

Like “Next Steps,” but for items much farther into the future

This section won’t exist for most projects

Completed

The reason for keeping a completed section is not so much for a sense of accomplishment, but a quick reference when a superior wants a status update 

All items in the completed section use a gray font to deemphasize them

Issues that have been dealt with receive a prefix of “Resolved,” “Work-Around,” “NAPWAD” (not a problem, working as designed), etc.

This section is also a place to document major decisions made, who made them, and when they were made

Although, the title on this document is “Status Report,” it’s not actually something seen by my superiors. I’m the primary beneficiary and I use this document to juggle multiple projects—some of which can be complex, lengthy, and large in scope. Every workday morning I open this document to set my course, and it stays open to capture the inevitable additions that pop up throughout the day. It helps me silence distractions, focus on the top-tier tasks, and ensure next-tier items don’t fall through the cracks.

Oh, wait! That sounds a lot like writing a novel! The structure of the fly-paper for writing gnats will be different than day-job gnats. But it shares the same act of capturing and the same benefit of silencing. If you’d like to apply my “Status Report” template to a project at home or work, I’ve shared the file below, in Microsoft Word format, for download. For those without MS Word access, I’ve also uploaded and converted it to Google Docs and hopefully that will provide beneficial.

Which Fly Paper for Writing Gnats?

Mind Maps versus Flow Direction

Finding the right technique is not the same as finding the right tool to perform that technique. Instead of assuming the same tool can be applied to the technique, I wanted to carefully consider which “fly paper” would be best at capturing my writing gnats. The first idea that came to mind was the popular and obvious solution of mind mapping. There are plenty of mind mapping tools available, including Scrivener’s sibling Scapple. However, despite its integration advantage, Scapple is only available on Mac and Windows, so it doesn’t work on mobile devices nor is it cloud based. And even though I’ve tried some mind mapping solutions that are cloud based and available as mobile apps, I haven’t been satisfied with the results. Mind mapping is great on a giant whiteboard or even on a big sheet of paper. But most screens can only show a portion of a map legibly. And no matter the device, onscreen mapping doesn’t flow like handwritten mind maps. Instead it stutters and drags since I cannot dedicate my focus to mapping—some attention must be diverted to operating the technology. I’ve persevered when such mind maps were part of a group event, or a presentation, or when I needed to capture or publish the results. So I know that, with enough dedication and practice, mind mapping software could fit your need. If you’re already at that point, be sure to share your software recommendations (in the comments below) for your fellow readers.

For me, however, when it comes to writing gnats, the goal is to eliminate distractions, not accommodate or outperform them. My energy and focus needs to go to actual writing, and that as quickly and easily as possible. But more importantly, mind mapping flows in a direction very different from writing. Writing in English flows from left to right and down the page. In contrast, mind-mapping expands from the center of the page in all kinds of directions. So I need a tool that works with the natural flow of writing. The relationships that were previously captured in the bubbles and lines of a mind map can be transformed into headings, indents, and other rubrics that are compatible with the directional flow of writing. Those methods have already proven both their ability to capture and organize thoughts in my day-job tool and will work equally well on writing gnats. And since my mind is already practiced in those features, I want a tool that not only offers them, but also allows me to invoke them without interrupting my flow (i.e., intuitive and easy controls).

Before listing my test bed, I feel the need to address the tangent of “distraction-free” writing apps. Unfortunately, that term is often code for “dumb” and the creators are trying to sell a lack of features as if it were a benefit. I’ve tried a few of these apps and haven’t found any benefit to them. Perhaps you are the type who is truly distracted by menus and toolbars, but I have found these “distraction-free” apps a waste of money and time. I do, however, have to give Scrivener credit for its offering, because it hides rather than eliminates features. Also, Scrivener gives you control over that “distraction free” experience such as selecting a pleasing backdrop, scaling the font, setting the editor width, etc. But for me “distraction-free” is not about what is on the screen, but rather what is buzzing in my head, and the features that will quell those distractions are:

Rubrics

Size, color, highlighting, bold, italic, underline: to draw the eye and triage importance

Strikethrough: to indicate a consideration was made but rejected

Headings: to organize and navigate the document

Layout

Indents: to show dependencies and relationships

Bulleted lists: the core element of the tool, and when sequence is not relevant

Numbered lists: when sequence and hierarchy are both important

Platform

Desktop: To leverage a full sized keyboard, mouse, and dual monitor setup (Microsoft Windows in my scenario)

Mobile: The ability to work on a project while away from a desk by using a phone or tablet (iPhone and iPad for my scenario)

Cloud: Allows work in a browser and ease of switching platforms because the files are stored in or synchronized through the internet.

Copy & Paste: I should be able to transfer what I’ve captured to a finished document. That's typically via Copy & Paste, and the platform should not mangle the style or destroy proper typographical elements such as:

urved double quotes, single quotes, and apostrophes: “, ”, ‘, ’ versus " and ' 

Hyphens, en dashes, and em dashes: -, –, and —

Ellipsis: … versus . . .

The Contenders

Scrivener

How is Scrivener a contender when it’s not even a cloud product? First, it is vigorously targeted at writers, so I want to know if it can stand up to the rigors of my demands. Second, its Dropbox support makes it somewhat cloud friendly. Dropbox sync is nearly automatic on desktops and on mobile the manual sync is so simple it’s hard to consider obtrusive. And, lastly, the iOS Scrivener app qualifies it for the mobile requirement.

Although it delivered on nearly every requirement, I found the interface quirky. Adjusting to its nuances had a slightly steeper learning curve than other products with which I’ve experimented. I also found its support for headings and numbered lists weak and indents can only be used with lists unless you elect to manually wrestle them into place. The most glaring issue was Copy & Paste, and a search of their forums found other Scrivener customers of the same mind. In the screenshots below you can see where I’ve pasted text into Scrivener. In the first example, the lines overlap each other and in the second they pasted as hyperlinks (although without any actual destination).

Google Docs

Google Docs passed with flying colors and offered all the features needed. It even made the sweet spot in the headings department, offering four pre-built levels (the need for levels deeper than four quickly diminishes as the hierarchy grows). The editor is responsive and fairly intuitive, and being browser-based not only qualifies it as cloud-based but multi-platform as well. But its crowning achievement is the price of “free.”

iOS Notes

I didn’t expect the Notes app to be a serious contender. But recent improvements under iOS 11 and iCloud support made it worthy of at least a passing mention and experimentation. Unsurprisingly I found font manipulation and list features minimal, so it’d only serve those with equally undemanding requirements. But, for those with an iPhone always within reach the convenience is hard to deny for short and simple captures.

Office365

Microsoft Word is the dominant platform when it comes to word processors. And this admission comes from a WordPerfect expert who remained loyal to the very end. But the end did come, and in the long years following, Word retained its throne legitimately with a powerful feature set. Its iOS versions are incredibly close to their desktop counterparts, but the browser version had two issues.  The most significant issue is the lack of smart quote support.  Instead of getting curly quotes and apostrophes (like “this” and ‘this’ it gives you "this" and 'this'), which is important if you’re writing dialog or using contractions. Of lesser impact is that Word Online lacks decent tab key support, which customers have decried since 2012. Tables can be used as a work-around for the lack of tab key support. But I thought I’d mention these two shortcoming and Microsoft’s extended attitude towards these issues. And it’s worth noting that Google Docs handles both these features without issue.

Then there is the price. And that’s exacerbated by being bundled in a hard-to-resist office suite. For less than a hundred dollars a household of five not only gets Word, but Excel (spreadsheet), PowerPoint (presentations), Access (database), OneNote (like Evernote on steroids), Publisher (desktop publishing), Outlook (email), and a terabyte of OneDrive cloud storage and synchronization. While you’re certainly getting value for your money, it also cannot be called cheap, especially when it must be paid annually. 

As a power user familiar with all the products in the bundle, with nearly 20 years of experience, and having multiple computers that can leverage the device licenses, it was easy to justify the subscription. But even into my second year of a subscription, I didn’t find myself using it fully due to a mental block. Despite my investment in Office365, I would catch myself in Google Docs to creating articles, idea lists, or project notes.

I couldn’t blame habit and familiarity because it only happened for personal documents—I dive into Word and Excel without hesitation every day at work. I can’t blame accessibility because even multi-factor access is both quick and flows smoothly. Nor can I blame capability because I hadn’t spent enough time using it to know if the features fell short or not. I was puzzled by my irrational reluctance until I realized that the annual subscription was haunting me, and that I was subconsciously treating its cost as a risk. Perhaps that was due to Microsoft’s troubled OneDrive history (I was an early adopter of the now defunct SkyDrive and Window Live Folders). But Google isn’t blameless either when it comes to abandoned customers (e.g., Reader, Picasa, Wave, etc.). So, I’ve begun to be intentional in my usage of Office365 to stamp out my irrational reticence and to surface and solidify any real concerns should they exist. 

Conclusion

Productivity is the goal, so if you’re already proficient and content with a tool then stick with it. However, if you’re without a tool then pick one compatible with your financial assets, your mindset, and your skill set. Google is free, quite powerful, and a great place to start your journey. Scrivener is an affordable solution targeted at authors who want an integrated writing environment and only need a basic text editor. And finally, Office365 is for users who relish a rich feature set instead of being daunted by its power or its price.