Getting a Grip on AutoCorrect!

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It’s downright embarrassing!  Causing my professionalism to be questioned!  Yes, you know what I’m talking about  #@%! – AutoCorrect!

Someone is putting their words in my messages! Recently I sent a message discussing something I thought showed that I was comprehending the subject and in the middle of the sentence was the word ‘toot‘!   The list is long of those AutoCorrect/Autocomplete moments; however, it seems we can’t live with, or without it. Just in case you want to remove it or venture into finding out how to control it more to your liking, here are some tips that i found for Android, iPhone, and iPad users.

First, let’s review some of the selections for inputting information with the keyboards provided by your mobile devices.  For example, you may find Swype easier to input text on your mobile device. Here’s a brief description:  Swype   is an input method for touchscreens where the user enters words by sliding a finger or stylus from letter to letter, lifting only between words. It uses error-correcting algorithms and a language model to guess the intended word. It also includes a tapping predictive text system in the same interface. Swype is designed for use on touchscreen devices with a traditional QWERTY keyboard. via Swype – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

♦ According to Swype, it’s a faster way to input messages.  Maybe this will help you to control those AutoCorrect errors (?) Swype provides basic/advanced training guidelines, which you can get at this link: http://www.swype.com/

♦ Android users can find a Tutorial for Swype  right on their mobile phones.  In addition, there is Swype Help with more details.

To find the tutorial  take the steps below:

  • Select Settings
  • Select Language & keyboard
  • Select Swype settings
  • Scroll down to find Help
  • Choose Tutorial

If you decide you want to stay with “Touch input” I suggest you take the Tutorial for how auto-correction works.

Use the steps below to find the tutorial

  • Select Settings’
  • Select Language & keyboard
  • Select Touch input
  • Select Tutorial

Touch input users may also want to consider adding their often used personal acronyms to their Personal dictionary, which is an option available right beneath the Tutorial. Choose the Edit personal dictionary, and add your words.

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iPhone users can check out Business Insider, which has some suggestions for “teaching” your phone new words among other ideas.  http://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-fix-iphone-auto-correct-2012-2#

iPad users can turn autocorrect off using the settings options.

I hope this is helpful.  See you at the next Post 🙂

The Facts Are In… From The FLA

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The Fair Labor Association (FLA)  has completed, and made public, their report about labor conditions at Foxconn.  Below is a summary of what I found at their site. As always you can click on the link to read the full disclosure at  the FLA website.

♦ FLA’s investigation found that within the last 12 months, all three factories exceeded both the FLA Code standard of 60 hours per week (regular plus overtime) and the Chinese legal limits of 40 hours per week and 36 hours maximum overtime per month.

♦ During peak production periods, the average number of hours worked per week exceeded 60 hours per worker.

♦ There were periods in which some employees worked more than seven days in a row without the required 24 hours off.

♦ Full worker survey data is available at http://www.fairlabor.org/affiliate/apple.via Fair Labor Association Secures Commitment to Limit Workers’ Hours, Protect Pay at Apple’s Largest Supplier | Fair Labor Association.

I was wondering how many people still  felt that Mike Daisey’s way of  getting this information out still should be judged so harshly.  Before he presented this information in his show,  I don’t believe many of Apple’s customers (myself included) knew much about  how the Apple products are made in China.  Here is an excerpt of an article by Mark Radcliffe that I found  in my readings about Mike Daisey I would like to share with you. As always click the link to read the entire article.

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Mark Radcliffe notes that discoveries of more violations at Apple’s Foxconn manufacturing plant in China prove that Mike Daisey wasn’t as wrong as once thought…

I wrote about this controversy last week, so I’ll try not to repeat too much of my argument. But my point is that the level of condemnation employed by most journalists against Daisey strikes me as misplaced. I find it troubling that there was such a frenzy to tear him down, when at the end of the day, it was still his show (and the general truth behind it) that is largely responsible for shining the light of scrutiny on the labor practices of the world’s richest company. There was an OCD-esque desire to throw out the baby with the bathwater as soon as a few smaller details were in contention.

But almost no one simply acknowledged that he did go to China. He did visit factories. He did talk to workers, all in an effort to know the truth. The headlines imply he made it all up while sitting on his couch at home. We should have two different levels of scorn for someone who lies about everything sheerly for fame, and someone who merely stretches the truth to help raise awareness about a labor rights issues. via Mike Daisey’s Lies Appear To Be Mostly True @MarkRadcliffe — The Good Men Project.

It’s certainly worth thinking about what Mark Radcliffe has to say on this topic.  I would also like to share a quote with you that I found before I close this Post>

Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, ‘What are you doing for others?’” Martin Luther King, Jr. quote

Eye Ergonomics

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I am certain that many of you spend hours working on  your desktops, laptops, mobile phones, then there is  Twitter, Facebook, Email,  Excel, Word, APPS, etc. etc.  Have you considered that all of this constant viewing of computer screens during the many hours of a given day  is having an impact on the ability for us to focus with our eyes?  I know I have not been thinking about the strain, although I have suffered from headaches. I have also had blurred vision during the course of the day, along with  neck and back pain.  That’s why I was interested to learn about a New York Times article by Mickey Meece, which offers solutions for eyestrain caused by computers. via Easing Eye Strain With the Right Lenses – NYTimes.com.  After reading the article, I thought it would be helpful for you to know what else I found out, so here is my synopsis.  As always you can click on the links provided for more details.

Computer vision syndrome (CVS) is a temporary condition resulting from focusing the eyes on a computer display for protracted, uninterrupted periods of time. Some symptoms of CVS include headaches, blurred vision, neck pain, redness in the eyes, fatigue, eye strain, dry, irritated eyes, double vision, polyopia, and difficulty refocusing the eyes. These symptoms can be further aggravated by improper lighting conditions (i.e. glare or bright overhead lighting) or air moving past the eyes (e.g. overhead vents, direct air from a fan).via Computer vision syndrome – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Presbyopia is a condition where the eye exhibits a progressively diminished ability to focus on near objects with age…The first signs of presbyopia – eyestrain, difficulty seeing in dim light, problems focusing on small objects and/or fine print – are usually first noticed between the ages of 40 and 50 . . .via Presbyopia – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

What can you do about eye strain?

♦ In the article by Mickey Meece he discusses special purposes glasses which enhance your ability to see the computer with a sharper focus.

♦ Here’s a list of suggestions I found at the Ergonomics website:
How To Prevent or Treat Eye Strains?

  • Take breaks by getting away from the computer desk for a few minutes
  • Eyes need to focus at different distances from time to time. It’s a good idea to follow the “20/20 rule” — every twenty minutes, look twenty feet away for twenty seconds
  • Every 20 minutes, blink 10 times by closing your eyes as if falling asleep (very slowly). This will help rewet your eyes.
  • Blinking is very important when working at a computer; it rewets your eyes to avoid dryness and irritation
  • Massaging the temples with your eyes closed for a minute may alleviate the symptoms
  • It is recommended that the viewing distance be around 45 inches away at horizontal eye level or 35 inches away with a 30-degree downward gaze angle
  • The general rule is to keep viewed material as far away as possible, provided it can be read easily. There is no such thing as sitting too far away from the screen as long as you can comfortably read what is on the screen! And don’t forget that you can increase the font on the screen by zooming into the webpage, document or changing the resolution on the screen.
  • keep viewed objects at about the same distance if you have to look back and forth a lot eg. Reading paper documents and looking at the screen to perform a task
  • Looking downward means more of the eye surface is covered by the eyelid, and two other things happen: the eyes unconsciously blink more, and they produce more lubrication

Computer glasses put the optimum lens power for viewing your computer screen right where you need it for a clear, wide field of view without the need for excessive focusing effort or unhealthful postures. The simplest computer glasses have single vision lenses.

a. This lens power relaxes the amount of accommodation required to keep objects in focus at the distance of the computer screen and provides the largest field of view

b. The lenses can be tinted to remove reflections of light from the front and back surfaces of your lenses that can cause eye strain. They also reduce glare caused by harsh overhead lighting found in many office environments. Read more about these unique computer glasses via Computer Eye Strain – Eyestrain.

I hope this is helpful! 🙂



The Scoop from IE about Online Privacy

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Many of us are  in a quandary, and at our wits’ end trying to figure out what to do about this online privacy thing.  I mean can we control what companies find out about us?  If yes, what does that do to our ability to surf online for information?  Does it put us as a disadvantage because we setup controls?  In fact, an article appeared in PC World By John Ribeiro, IDG News Feb 21, 2012, which reports what Google says about how newer cookie-based features are affected by Microsoft’s IE.  One example given was “Like” buttons in Facebook. Check out the full article via Google Says IE Privacy Policy Is Impractical in Modern Web | PCWorld.

Let’s review what P3P is: The Platform for Privacy Preferences Project (P3P) is a protocol allowing websites to declare their intended use of information they collect about web browser users. Designed to give users more control of their personal information when browsing, P3P was developed by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) and officially recommended on April 16, 2002. Development ceased shortly thereafter and there have been very few implementations of P3P.  Microsoft Internet Explorer is the only major browser to support P3P.
via P3P – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

It’s all very complicated! We covered what Google and Mozilla are doing about the online privacy concerns for users.  Below is a short summary of the highlights I thought you might want to know about , which Internet Explorer (IE) has posted on their Blog.  I urge you to use the links provided in this post to check out the information when you have time to read it for a thorough understanding, and how it may (or may not) affect you.

Highlights:

  1. Is Google circumventing the privacy preferences of IE? Yes. via Google Bypassing User Privacy Settings – IEBlog – Site Home – MSDN Blogs
  2. What does IE recommend to their users how to protect their privacy? One example IE gave is that IE9 has tracking protection which can protect you from Google.
  3. IE blocks third party cookies by default unless the site has a P3P Compact Policy Statement.
  4. IE has a Tracking List available for IE9 users.  Click this link to learn more via Tracking Protection – Microsoft Windows.

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When you finish reading up on all the things you can do to protect yourself,  read the article by Karl Bode at the link provided below.  His comments about “snoopvertising” will be a reality check!  via Press Realizing New Privacy Bill of Rights Won’t Do Much – ‘Do Not Track’ Doesn’t Mean What You Think it Means | DSLReports.com, ISP Information.

Perhaps what would be useful here is a quote I found from 1999!

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Polly Sprenger Email 01.26.99

The chief executive officer of Sun Microsystems said Monday that consumer privacy issues are a “red herring.”  “You have zero privacy anyway,” Scott McNealy told a group of reporters and analysts Monday night at an event to launch his company’s new Jini technology. “Get over it.” via Sun on Privacy: ‘Get Over It’.

I hope this is helpful ! 🙂

The Scoop About Online Snooping

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Just when you thought you understood how to handle the privacy protection issues, they pull us right back in. That’s why many of us are worried about how Google’s new privacy policy will affect our privacy online, and what we can do to have a say about how information is currently collected about us, and how it is manipulated.  Last week we delved into the use of  various tools provided by Google to allow us to put a stop to some of the information being collected about us in order for Google and other ‘first party(cookie) sites”  like Amazon to sell Ads.  For example,  consumers may not know that when they  go directly to first party sites (e.g. Google, Amazon) data can still be collected on them before they are given the option to “Opt-Out”.  It appears that the “Opt-Out” option works best with third party sites. Read more about how to Opt-Out and what controls you really have  at:  Network Advertising Initiative.

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I have listed some of  the topics reviewed by  Associated Press via Google’s new privacy policy: 6 key issues you need to know | NJ.com.

  1. Can Gmail, Google Plus, YouTube, users prevent personal data from being collected?
  2. Which Google services are covered by the privacy policy?
  3. What role does the U.S. Federal Trade Commission have in overseeing Google’s treatment of personal information?

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And, do not forget to check out what Mozilla’s Firefox has available to avoid tracking  in their new release.

Firefox for Android includes the Do Not Track privacy feature in this release, making Firefox the first browser to support Do Not Track on multiple platforms. Mozilla created Do Not Track to give users more control over the way their browsing behavior is tracked and used on the Web. The feature, which lets users tell websites that they wish to opt-out of online behavioral tracking, is now easier to find in Firefox Preferences. via Mozilla Delivers New Version of Firefox – First Web Browser to Support Do Not Track on Multiple Platforms | The Mozilla Blog.

I hope this is helpful 🙂

Privacy Online? What a Concept!

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I am sure you heard about the recently published articles regarding online privacy.  How sure can we be that the people who are watching us, are people we want to share our views and Internet behavior/habits with?  I think this is something we want to have control over, but, how much can we control?

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Jennifer Valentino-DeVries of the  Wall Street Journal reported on this topic in a February 16, 2012 article, ‘How Google Tracked Safari Users’.  The article discusses the use of “cookies’ being stored in a person’s computer to track online activities. Many online ‘savvy’ users are well aware of this common practice; however, Apple users thought Apple’s Safari Web Browser was defaulted to block this type of tracking.  You can get the full article details via  How Google Tracked Safari Users – Digits – WSJ

I wondered what others were thinking about this, and found some excellent points made by Alan Thompson, Principal Consultant, Marketing Analytics – July 29, 2011 article,  Is online privacy a realistic expectation?  Thompson makes some excellent points; such as he says Users benefit from free APPS , and without tracking the owners of these APPS can’t provide meaningful targeting for advertisers. In other words, without ads, charges would be required for the Free Apps users load on their devices.  He points out that we (users)  do have the choice to read and accept terms and conditions.  Many of  us often just ‘accept’ the terms without reading what they are because the benefits to us outweigh the privacy risks. We want to use these free Web Apps and services and have free access to information, therefore our privacy could be compromised.  In 2011 Thompson stated that the focus on mobile apps and privacy were not new, and that data aggregators have been collecting information on households for many years.  The first data aggregator that came to my mind was Nielsen reports.  You can read more about the various ways data is used in the article via Is online privacy a realistic expectation? | Tellabs Blog | Telecom News & Industry Trends | Tellabs News.

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 As consumers of these ‘Free APPS, Services and Information’, what can we do to be creative in protecting ourselves from these marketing strategies?
♦ Google has made a serious effort to find solutions for the privacy concerns of their users and provides  some ways to protect yourself. These are some of the tools available to you:  Encrypt searches, use Google Chrome, check Web History controls, use Gmail Chat “off the record”, Opt-out-install of Google Analytics Personalization.

♦ Make sure to visit Google’s Dashboard, via Privacy tools – Google, which has the guidelines for changing your privacy settings.

You can make a proactive choice in handling how some of your online habits are evaluated :).  I hope this is helpful.

APP Therapy?

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As Benedict Carey writes in Science Times . . . a new generation of apps may soon offer psychotherapy on the go. In the past few years, researchers have been testing simple, video-game-like programs aimed at relieving common problems like anxiety and depression. These recent results have been encouraging enough that investigators are now delivering the programs on smartphones — therapy apps, in effect, that may soon make psychological help accessible anytime, anywhere, whether in the grocery store line, on the bus, or just before a work presentation.via Coming to Your Smartphone: Therapy Apps – NYTimes.com.

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These days, many of us complain about the 24 hour response lives we are leading due to Smartphones, iPads, Laptops, Twitter, Facebook, Email, Internet, the SOCIAL MEDIA THING!  We want a break!  Now it seems, even our relaxation and therapy will  come from a computer!  The ‘Relaxation Response‘ is now available in various  APPS.  No Kidding!

♦ The Relaxation Response,  a term coined by Herbert Benson in a book of the same name, where he describes his research into the effects of meditation via Relaxation response – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

I am eager to see where this will lead us in the future since it seems  there is a serious discussion about the potential help these APPS may offer. The following excerpt is a brief description of what to expect. You can click the link at the end of this short description to read the full details.

♦ Objective: This exploratory study examined the potential of mobile phone technologies to broaden access to cognitive behavioral therapy techniques and to provide in-the-moment support. ♦ Methods: We developed a mobile phone application with touch screen scales for mood reporting and therapeutic exercises for cognitive reappraisal . . . and physical relaxation. via JMIR-Mobile Therapy: Case Study Evaluations of a Cell Phone Application for Emotional Self-Awareness | Morris | Journal of Medical Internet Research.

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Android cell phone users will want to take this opportunity to check out some of the APPS already on the market to help you with relaxation techniques available for Android cell phones.  Some favorites appear below, and are available, with many others at this  link  http://www.androidfreeware.net/tag-relaxation.html

Rainy Jungle – A rainy jungle view over a river and a stimulating hail of the raindrops for your relaxation or deep sleep.
Guide to Psychotherapy – Learn The Basics About The Healing Power Of Psychotherapy.
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iPhone and iPad users can find a great choice for meditation and relaxation APPS by clicking the links below.
I hope this is helpful 🙂   PEACE!


APPS Celebrate Black History

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Black History Month, or National African American History Month, is an annual celebration of achievements by black Americans and a time for recognizing the central role of African Americans in U.S. history. The event grew out of “Negro History Week,” the brainchild of noted historian Carter G. Woodson and other prominent African Americans. Since 1976, every U.S. president has officially designated the month of February as Black History Month. Other countries around the world, including Canada and the United Kingdom, also devote a month to celebrating black history. via Black History Month — History.com Articles, Video, Pictures and Facts.

Both Android and Apple are celebrating Black History Month with interesting APPS.  There is an exciting selection to choose from.  Take a look and see what meets your personal interest.

ANDROID APPS:  Description – Are you searching for facts and information about the lives of famous and important black people in history? Discover all the facts about the inspirational lives and achievements of Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King Jr., Harriet Tubman, and other famous and noteworthy black history people.Maybe you’re a teacher looking for ideas for Black History Month activities…a student researching a project… or a concerned parent who wants to make sure that their kids are fully aware of the many famous African Americans who can inspire them to follow their dreams. Nearly 100 profiles are included.via Black History People – Android Apps and Tests – AndroidPIT.

ANDROID App Screenshots

iPhone APPS for History and Inspiration

The Black History Month iPhone app offers pre-selected images that are relative to the time of celebration. A short description is available for each image, which can be used for your phone’s wallpaper or incorporated into the Gallery. For 99 cents, the iPhone app also includes a soundtrack for a full slideshow effect.

For an iPhone app that offers some perspective on Black History Month, there’s Then and Now Series: Black History. A relevant resource, this $1.99 iPhone app is also great to share with the kids. Learn of those that have made an impact in recent and distant history, with an easy-to-use interface offering information about 100 influential people.

For a more basic perspective, the 99-cent African American History iPhone app offers the run down on important African-Americans and their achievements. With a “This Day in History” option, you can also receive daily information made relevant throughout the entire month of February.

Aside from basic history quotes, African-Americans have had an impact on the country’s film culture as well. Check out the TCM iPhone app to see what related films will be included in February’s lineup. The free iPhone app also gives information about each film, its cast and crew, and its influence on America and cinematography.via iPhone and Android apps to celebrate Black History Month – iPhone app recommendations – Kristen Nicole | Appolicious ™ iPhone and iPad App Directory.

I hope you enjoy these APPS. 🙂

Phone Security

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Everywhere lately I am reading about how to protect one’s identity from phone loss or theft.  In recent weeks it is even more so.  This topic is without doubt something we all need to be aware of, and should do  something about.  Are you at risk of putting your identity in jeopardy because you have not taken the steps to add restrictions on your phone?

What are your risks today?  Have you ever lost your phone?  Do you think security on your device is important?  Don’t think so ? Below is a small part of an article that appeared in the New York Times recently.  I urge you to click on the link after the brief summary to get the full story.

Chuck Bokath would be terrifying if he were not such a nice guy. A jovial senior engineer at the Georgia Tech Research Institute in Atlanta, Mr. Bokath can hack into your cellphone just by dialing the number. He can remotely listen to your calls, read your text messages, snap pictures with your phone’s camera and track your movements around town — not to mention access the password to your online bank account. via Protecting a Cellphone Against Hackers – NYTimes.com.

Enough said?  Below are  recommendations  on how to begin protecting yourself from compromising the safety of your personal information.  In the New York Times article one of the smartphone security companies  mentioned is Lookout, Inc.  Check out the information below and get started with protecting your cyber identity.  🙂

♦ Award-Winning Security That’s Easy to Use Your smartphone is vital to your work and everyday life. Lookout provides award-winning security to protect you from viruses, malware and spyware, the ability to backup and restore your data, and tools to help locate lost or stolen phones. Lookout’s unique cross-platform, cloud-connected applications are designed to be lightweight and efficient while delivering the best protection possible. via Smartphone Security | Mobile Device Security for Smartphones.

♦ Apple iPhone and iPad users can checkout the 2 links below

Protecting and Recovering Your iPhone and iPad from Loss and Theft | Security Generation.

Frequently Asked Questions About Find My iPhone (and iPad) | Security Generation.

♦  Android phone users may want to check out how to protect their phones with Norton’s beta app

Norton Mobile Security Android security appSmartphones hold a lot of valuable data: Text messages, e-mail, and even credit card numbers can reside on the device, where they’re easily accessed. If you lose your phone, you run the risk of having your identity stolen. Sure, you can set up a lock pattern, but we have seen such measures circumvented in the past.

Symantec’s Norton Mobile Security (beta) allows you to remotely lock and wipe your phone by text message, so that whoever finds it can’t immediately go on a shopping spree in the Android Market with your money. You can even lock down the SIM card so that a thief can’t swap it out to another phone. Beyond that, Norton permits you to block calls and text messages, as well as to scan your phone for malware. Although the program is still in beta until the end of the year, Norton Mobile Security is a superb choice for anyone who wants complete cell phone protection. via Protect Your Android Phone With Security Apps | PCWorld.

I hope this is helpful 🙂