Author Archives: Jamie

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About Jamie

I am a recent graduate of Bridgewater State University, in Bridgewater, MA, where I studyied Management with a concentration in Information Systems Management. Previously, I was a Computer Science major at the University of Massachusetts - Boston. Some of my interests include computers, technology, programming, education, business, biology, as well as learning Spanish.

PhotoShop.com Mobile

If you’re someone who likes to edit photos and would like to be able to do it on the go, perhaps you should try using the PhotoShop.com Mobile application for the iPhone.

When you first launch the application, you will be able to either select a photo from your iPhone’s camera roll or take a new photo. Once you’ve selected or have taken a photo that you would like to edit, you will then be taken to the PS Mobile editing interface, where you are able to choose from a variety of different tools and effects to edit your photo. Some examples of what you can do to edit your photo include cropping, straightening, rotating, and flipping the photo.

You can also adjust your photo’s exposure, saturation, tint, contrast, as well as make the photo into a black and white image. Also, you can use the sketch tool, which enables you to make your photo look as though it was drawn. Another feature is the ability to adjust the soft focus of the photo, as well as the ability to “sharpen” a photo.

The PhotoShop.com Mobile application also allows you to apply a variety of different effects to your photo, such as the vibrant, pop, vignette blur, warm vintage, rainbow, white glow, and soft black and white effects. Also, the PS Mobile application allows you to choose from a variety of different boarders that you can add to your images.

Once you’ve finished editing your photo, you can either save it to your camera roll and then exit the editing interface, or you can save the photo and upload it to your PhotoShop.com Mobile account. You can also save the photo to your iPhone’s camera roll and then upload it to either FaceBook or TwitPic.

If you’d like to try using the PhotoShop.com Mobile application, you can download it from the iTunes App Store for free.

Conserving iPhone Battery Life

Below are some tips and tricks that you may want to try if you’d like to extend your iPhone’s battery life.

Disable Wi-Fi

If you’re not going to be using a Wi-Fi connection, you should disable it on your iPhone so that your iPhone’s battery doesn’t drain when you’re either connected to a wireless access point or when your iPhone’s searching for new wireless access points.

If you’d like to disable your iPhone’s Wi-Fi connection, you can do so by going to the Settings menu and then to the “Wi-Fi” section, where you should be able to disable your Wi-Fi connection.

Lower the Brightness of the Screen

The brighter your iPhone’s screen is, the more your battery will be drained. If you would like to prolong your battery life by turning down the brightness of your iPhone’s screen, you can do so by going to the Settings menu and then to the “Brightness” section, where you should be able to select a brightness that you like.

Disable your iPhone’s 3G Connection

If you’re using your iPhone’s 3G connection, it will drain your battery faster than if you disabled it. Even if you disable your iPhone’s 3G connection, you will still be able to access the Internet, as well as fetch new data, but you will be using EVDO, rather than 3G, which may be slower, but you will still end up saving battery life.

If you would like to disable your iPhone’s 3G connection, you can do so by going to the Settings menu and then to the “General” section. From there, you should then go to the “Network” section, where you should be able to enable or disable your iPhone’s 3G connection.

Disable Bluetooth

Using Bluetooth will also drain your iPhone’s battery faster than if you weren’t using it. If you would like to disable Bluetooh, you can do so by going to the Settings menu and then to the “General” section. From there, you should go to the “Bluetooth” section, where you should be able to either enable or disable Bluetooth.

Disable Push Notifications

Even though Push notifications can be useful for knowing that you’ve received a new e-mail or tweet, they can also hinder your iPhone’s battery life.

If you would like to disable Push Notifications, you can do so by going to the Settings menu and then to the “Notifications” section, where you should be able to choose which applications are able to send you Push Notifications, as well as if you’d like to enable or disable Push Notifications all together.

If you are someone who would rather still use all of the above features on your iPhone, perhaps you should consider purchasing a portable charger, such as the Kensington Battery Pack and Charger, which is available from the Apple Online Store or the Monster Charging Case for iPhone, which is available from the Monster Cable website.

For more ways on how to conserve the battery life of your iPhone, I would suggest that you view this article, from iSmashphone.com.

LastPass

Remembering passwords for all of the websites that you regularly visit can sometimes be difficult. However, a program called LastPass may be able to put an end to the frustration of having to remember a variety of different passwords for different websites.

LastPass is a free program that enables you to have one master password that you can use to have access to all of the password that you would like to remember.

When you first download and install LastPass, you will be prompted to select a language, as well as create an account with LastPass. The password that you use while creating your LastPass account is also your master password, which you can use to access your passwords to various websites.

After you’ve created an account, you should be taken to your LastPass Vault, where you can view and manage all of your passwords.

Also, you should see a LastPass button, located near the top right of your browser, next to the search bar. If you click on the button, you will be able to go to your LastPass Vault, view websites that you have recently logged into, as well as other things.

When you visit a website and enter in your username and password, you should be asked if you would like to have LastPass remember your password for the website. If you choose to have your login credentials remembered, the next time you visit the website, you will not have to enter your username and password, as they will already be entered in for you.

There is also a paid edition of LastPass, called LastPass Premium, which has additional features, such as the ability to use LastPass for your iPhone, Blackberry, Windows Mobile, Symbian OS, Android, as well as Palm WebOS. LastPass Premium also has a variety of other features, which you can learn about from the LastPass website.

If you would like to learn more or try using LastPass, you can download LastPass for free from LastPass.com.

Flip Camera

If you’re someone who likes to capture events on camera, but don’t want to have to carry around a bulky video camera, perhaps you should try using the Flip Camera.

There are currently three different models of Flip Cameras, the Flip Slide HD, the Flip Mino HD, and the Flip Ultra, which is also available in an HD model.

Flip Slide HD

The Flip Slide HD camcorder is Flip’s newest camcorder, with the ability to shoot up to four hours of HD footage using H.264 compression at 30 frames per second, at a resolution at 1280 x 720, which gets stored in the camera’s internal 16 GB memory. The Flip Slide is also the first Flip Slide is also the first Flip Camera to feature a 3-inch, sliding touch-screen that enables you to view up to twelve hours of video and photos.  The Flip Slide HD comes in white, but is able to be customized from a variety of designs, which you can choose from on the Flip website. The MSRP for the Flip Slide HD is $279.99.

Flip Mino HD

The Flip Mino HD is another camera available from Flip, with the ability to record up to two hours of video on the camera’s internal 8 GB memory. There is also a 4 GB model, which enables you to record up to one hour of video. The Flip Mino HD has records video using H.264 compression at 30 frames per second at a resolution of 1280 x 720. The 8 GB model comes in a “brushed metal” color and the 4 GB model comes in both black and “brushed metal”. Both models, however, are able to be customized with a variety of designs. The MSRP for the Flip Mino HD is $199.99 for the 4 GB version and $229.99 for the 8 GB version.

Flip Ultra HD

The Flip Ultra HD camcorder has a built in 8 GB of memory and can record up to two hours of HD video with H.264 compression at 30 frames per second, with a resolution of 1280 x 720. The Flip Ultra HD camcorder comes in both black and white. However, it isn’t customizable, like many of the other Flip Cameras. The MSRP for the Flip Ultra HD camera is $199.99.

Flip Ultra

The Flip Ultra camcorder is able to record up to two hours of video on a built in 4 GB memory at a 640 x 480 resolution at 30 frames per second and uses H.264 compression. The Flip Ultra camcorder isn’t customizable, but is available in four different colors, including black, white, orange, and pink. The MSRP for the Flip Mino camera is $149.99.

A side by side comparison on all of the Flip Cameras listed above is available on the Flip website. Also, all of the Flip Camera models come with software that allows you to upload and edit videos on your computer. There are also many accessories that you can purchase from the accessories page on Flip Camera website.

If you would like to learn more about or purchase a Flip Camera, you can do so from the Flip Camera website.

iBooks for iPhone

As you may already know, the iBooks application for the iPhone was included in Apple’s iOS4 update last month. Also available on the iPad and iPhone 4, iBooks allows you to purchase and read e-books, right from the application.

When you first launch iBooks for the iPhone, you’ll see your library, which is where your purchased and downloaded books will be. Also, there are two buttons next to the “iBooks” title, which are “Edit” and “Store”. When you first launch iBooks, you should see a Winnie The Pooh book, which came with the application.

If you click on the “Edit” button, you should be able to arrange and edit your books, similar to how you’d arrange and edit icons on your iPhone’s homescreen. To move a book, you simply tap and drag the book to a new location. If you would like to delete a book, you just have to click on the “X” icon, at the top left of the book that you would like to delete and then confirming that you would actually like to delete that book.

The “Store” button, when tapped, takes you to Apple’s iBooks store, where you can purchase and download new e-books. The iBooks Store looks similar to the Apple App Store, but with a few different options. You can view featured books, books that are on the charts, browse through the top paid and top free books, as well as search for a book that you would like to read. There is also a button that will show you what books you either purchased or downloaded.

When you’re viewing your library, you can tap and drag the library screen down in order to search for books, as well as choose how books will be displayed. There are two book display options, which are thumbnail mode and list mode. Thumbnail mode will display your books in the “book shelves” and will show the book’s cover. List mode will display your books in a list, similar to how songs are displayed in the iPod song’s library. From the list of books, you can view books by bookshelf, title, author, as well as category.

If you would like to read a book, you can do so by simply tapping on the book. Once the book opens, you will be able to do things, such as view the table of contents, adjust the contrast, change the text size, search the book, as well as put in a book mark. There is also a meter on the bottom of the page, which will show you how far along you are in a book.

Once you start reading a book, you can turn the page by simply swiping your finger in the direction that you would like to turn the page. Also, below the progress meter, you will be able to see which page you are currently on, as well as how many pages are left in the chapter.

If you tap on the text, all of the options, such as the buttons and progress meter, will disappear, so you can just see the text and page number. If you double tap on the text, you can look up text in the dictionary, highlight text, create a note, as well as search the book for the highlighted text.

Also, you can choose to sync your progress and such between your devices, such as your iPhone and iPad, using iTunes.

If you would like to try using the iBooks application, you can download it for free from the Apple App Store.

Windows Live SkyDrive

If you’re someone who would like to be able to store files in the cloud and access them from any computer, perhaps you should try using Windows Live SkyDrive.

Windows Live SkyDrive is a free service from Microsoft that enables you to store up to 25 GB of files, such as documents and photos online. Your files are also password-protected, so you don’t have to worry about anyone else seeing them if you don’t want them to.

When you first log into Windows Live SkyDrive using your Windows Live ID, you should see a My Documents folder. Above the folder, there are buttons that allow you to do a variety of things, such as create a new Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, or OneNote document using an online version of these programs. There is also the option to create a new folder for your SkyDrive. You can also add files by clicking on the “Add Files” button and then choosing which files that you would like to upload or by using a drag and drop editor.

Windows Live SkyDrive also allows you to create a folder to store your favorite website URLs, which you can also access from any computer. You can also tag people, as well as upload files via e-mail if you’d like.

Even though your files are password protected, you can choose to share a folder between either, some friends, all of your friends, your friends, as well as their friends, and everyone, should you want other people to be able to view the contents of a folder.

There is also the ability so configure Windows Live SkyDrive to automatically sync files to the service from your computer, using Windows Live Essentials.

If you’d like to try using Windows Live SkyDrive, you can do so by going to the SkyDrive.Live.com and then signing in with your Windows Live ID.

McAfee Site Advisor

Every now and then, you may come across a website that you are unsure of how safe it is. Whether you’re doing some online shopping or filling out a form with personal information, you should know whether a website is safe to use or not and one program that may help you to do so would be McAfee Site Advisor.

McAfee Site Advisor, which is a free service provided by McAfee, enables you to look up a website and view information regarding the safety of the website. Some of the information that you can find out about a website using McAfee Site Advisor would be which country the website is in, as well as the popularity of the website.

Also, McAfee Site Advisor provides information about the number of e-mails a website sends out a week, as well as what kinds of programs can be downloaded from the website, as well as the safety of those programs, as well as which websites are being linked to from the original website and whether or not they’re safe.

In addition, McAfee Site Advisor provides a list of annoyances, such as cookies that you may get from the website, as well as user reviews that you can read. The user reviews are also summarized into categories, such as “This site is good”, “This site spams”, “Adware, spyware, or viruses”, “Excessive pop-ups”, as well as other things.

There is also a free plug-in that you can download, which helps you to see which websites are safe or which may pose a threat to your computer’s security, without having to search for a website from the McAfee Site Advisor website.

If you’d like to try using McAfee Site Advisor, you can do so by going to SiteAdvisor.com.

Forrst

Forrst is a relatively new startup, which enables designers and developers to share code, screenshots, as well as links with each other.

When you first log into Forrst, you will be taken to your dashboard, where you are able to view graphics, code, and links from people you’re following, as well as post your own. Also from the dashboard, there are links to the “Posts”, “People”, and “Tags” sections of the website.

From the “Posts” tab, you are able to see posts from people who you are following, as well as posts that are popular, as well as fresh, which means that they haven’t had much activity yet. The “Posts” section also allows you to view all of the questions that are being asked on Forrst. In addition, you can also view snaps, links, and code that is posted on Forrst.

The “People” section enables you to view what other designers and developers have posted on the website, even if you’re not following them. The “People” section also allows you to separate which posts you’d like to see, such as posts from A-Z, as well as posts from developers, designers, and rangers, which are users who are good at “tracking down quality content with a given tag”. Also, you view the newest posts, as well as posts from your friends.

Also, on the “Tags” tab, you should be able to to view common tags that are being used on Forrst in an A-Z list. Should you click on one of the tags, you will be able to view posts that are tagged with that particular word.

If you would like to post something to Forrst, you can do so by clicking on the “New Post” button, which is located near the top of the website in the “Posts” section, as well as to the right of “Activity from your friends” on the dashboard.

Once you’ve clicked on the “New Post” button, you should be able to select which type of content you’d like to post, including a link, snap, code, or question. Also, you should be able to enter in some information about what you’re posting, as well as add tags to your post. You can also choose if you’d like to have your post viewable by the public, which means that the post will be viewable by anyone who has the URL to the post. When you’re ready to post, you can do so by simply clicking on the “New Post” button, at the bottom of the the page.

If you’d like to try using Forrst, you can do so by going to Forrst.com. However, Forrst is presently invite-only, so you will have to sign up for an invitation if you’d like to try using this service.

Digg v4 Review

As you may have heard, Digg.com, which is a social news and networking website, will soon be launching version 4 of it’s website. However, Digg is giving out invites to try the new version of the website before it’s launched.

When you first go to Digg’s alpha website, new.digg.com, you should be asked if you would like to follow any of Digg’s recommended users.

Once you’ve selected which accounts you would like to follow, any news stories, photos, or videos that they Digg should appear in a news feed called “My News”.

The “My News” section is different than Digg’s traditional news feed, which has the top stories, which were dug by all users of the website. With the new “My News” section, you will only see stories that were dug by people that you’re following, which should give you some ability to choose which genre of stories appear.

However, if you prefer the traditional news feed, you can click on the “Top News” tab, next the the “My News” tab, near the top of the page, which will show you the top stories that were dug by everyone on Digg and not just the people who you are following.

Another different feature in Digg v4 is that story categories are displayed to the left of the “Top News” feed. However, in the current version of Digg, the story categories appear above the news feed.

The newest version of Digg has also made digging a story a lot easier. Rather than having to click on the “Submit New” button, paste a link to your story, choose which type of media it is, and then click on the “Submit” button, the new version of Digg allows you to submit your story in only a few clicks.

If you would like to submit a new story in Digg v4, all you need to do is paste a link into the “Submit a link” box, located above both the “My News” and “Top News” feeds.

Once you type or paste a link into the text box, Digg automatically presents you with the option to submit the story, only requiring that you enter in a title, description, and choose a picture and category. However, some of the fields may already be filled out once you submit your story. Once you’ve entered in the required details, you can click on the “Digg it” button, which will submit your story.

If the story you wanted to submit was already submitted, once you type or paste a link into the “Submit a link” box, you should be presented with the option to digg the story.

In addition to the features listed above, Digg v4 has other new features that you may be interested in trying out.

If you would like to try out Digg v4, you can log in or request an invitation by going to new.digg.com.

FarmVille for iPhone

A few days ago, FarmVille was released for the iPhone, iPod Touch, as well as the iPad after being announced at Apple’s WWDC, earlier this month.

The FarmVille application allows you to view and manage your farm without having to be at a computer to so.

When you first launch the FarmVille application, you’ll first see a Zynga logo and then you’ll see a screen where there is a “Let’s Farm!” button. When you tap on that button, a dialogue box will appear, asking you to enter your e-mail address in order to create a Zynga mobile account.

After entering your e-mail address, another box should appear, asking you to connect your FarmVille account to FaceBook.

Once you’ve provided FaceBook with your account credentials, the game should begin loading, which can take a little while if it’s your first time loading your farm on the application.

After your farm is done loading, you should be able to see your farm, just like you would on a computer. From there, you can plant crops, tend to your animals, as well as many other functions, such as visiting your friends’ farms and fertilizing their crops, as well as adding new neighbors and sending gifts to your friends, right form the application.

If you click on the button that has a picture of strawberries, coins, fuel, and a cog wheel on it, you should be able to perform actions, such as visit the marketplace, dig a new plot of land, delete plots of land, as well as other things.

Also from this menu is an “Options” button, which takes you to a menu where you can do things such as enable or disable harvest and neighbor push notifications, as well as sound

The FarmVille application also enables you to have push notifications sent to your phone when it’s time to harvest your crops, as well as neighbor push notifications. Also, you can turn sound effects, as well as music on and off.

If you would like to try using the FarmVille application, you can download it for free from the iTunes App Store.