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Category: Tech Trends

July 9, 2017

Two Devices Your New iMac Needs Now

If you’ve just purchased a new Mac, and you think you’re done… you’re not. Your computer needs some friends to play with!

So you just bought yourself a shiny new Mac to replace your old Apple machine. Congrats. Now for the bad news… You’re probably not done adding to your shopping cart. You’ve got a couple more important decisions to make…

Apple Refresh
I’ve just upgraded to a 2017 iMac and thought that as a veteran Mac owner I knew all of the ropes. Guess what? I don’t. If you’re like me and like to hold onto your Apple products for as many years as possible (versus always having the latest and greatest) you may not be entirely up to speed on current needs and best practices to properly get your new Mac up and running.

Here are a couple of items I had to consider after unboxing my new pride and joy:

New External Drive for Time Machine Back Up
Cost: $199.95

Eliminate the Weak Link
You might be wondering… “What about Barrett’s old backup drive? Can’t he use that with his new iMac?”

Well, sure I can. But the idea of a years-old drive working to back up all of your files worried me more than a little byte…
(Bad joke)

I say buy yourself a brand new backup drive, and get a good one.
I’m a big fan of G-Technology drives. They’re not the cheapest game in town, but the extra bucks are well spent when it comes to preserving your digital life.

I could have gone with either USB 3.0 or Thunderbolt 3 drives (similar pricing) but figured on reserving my two iMac Thunderbolt 3 ports for faster needs than Time Machine backups.

You’ll Always Need More Storage
Now, you must be thinking, “Wait a minute! Why get a 6TB drive to back up a 3TB machine?!”

Good question.

The answer is if you’re like me… eternally generating lots of photos and videos and plan to move into the 4K video landscape… you’re going to need plenty of storage.

Yes, a Time Machine drive can do double duty and simply store files along with Time Machine backups.

I recommend always buying a bigger drive than you think you’ll need. Trust me.
It was only another thirty bucks for an extra 2TB.
(Isn’t that crazy cheap?)

External DVD/CD Drive
Cost: $79

How Old is Too Old?
Thinking about whether I need one of these gives away how ancient my old iMac is.
(If you’ve read this far, I hope you’re a friendly tech geek or a Luddite who’s turned over a new leaf. Either way, I’m hoping you’re not going to judge me when I admit my old iMac is from mid 2010.
(Be gentle.)

Can you believe it’s seven years old! And it’s still ticking. Yes, it’s slower and glitchier, but it’s doing okay. Still, sometimes you’ve just got to call it, before the circuits just don’t fire up anymore. So when Apple announced the 2017 iMac refresh, I knew my number had come up… before my iMac’s did. I think by all reasonable considerations it was time to do the upgrade.
(Agree?)

At Home with Discs
So my iMac slid out of its packaging looking lean and mean and without a slot for discs. Actually, Apple eliminated native optical drives in iMacs a long time ago.

Your choice is to buy an Apple USB SuperDrive to plug in or utilize “DVD or CD Sharing” from another Mac.
Apple explains how to do that here.

I appreciate the work-around option, but remember that CD transfer project you started but never finished? Yeah, I’ve got one of those too. I’m not quite ready to entirely eliminate discs from my life yet.
(Maybe I’ll be disc-free in time for my next iMac upgrade!)

  • Apple’s USB SuperDrive is only $79.
    Considering how much we’ve already spent on our new Mac, I think we can give ourselves permission to take this step.
    (However backwards-thinking it may seem)

And yes, there are cheaper third-party optical drives on the market, but if you’re buying a Mac, there’s probably a part of you that doesn’t want to immediately turn it into a ‘Franken-computer’ with some no-name drive attached to it.

I give you permission to keep it all-Apple.

Click.

Sticker Shock?
Spending an extra $280 to activate your new iMac is not insignificant. On the other hand, there are always add-on devices to any all-in-one solution. The iMac is no different.

The only choice here is whether to spend a little more on better quality.
When it comes to maintaining your digital harmony over the long term, that’s always money well spent!

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July 2, 2017

At Home with Paper

Can you imagine a paperless world? Do you aspire to live in one? Are you already there? If not, please find a bit of solace in my flawed journey towards this elusive goal.

Last week, I was boarding a plane to Chicago, and I was flying with a few work colleagues. At the gate, I pulled out my paper boarding pass. My travel companions all whipped out their iPhones. They clicked to their digital boarding passes. Then, they looked at me like I was holding an ancient hieroglyphic tablet.
(And they also offered a few choice words, which I gladly stole for the title of this post.)

Hey, it’s not like l’ve never tried the digital boarding pass thing. I just didn’t get around to checking in online before I got to the airport.
(Isn’t it ironic when you don’t have the time for something that’s designed to save you time?)

And wouldn’t it be funny if I showed up with a digital boarding pass, and my iPhone was out of juice?
(Just saying)

But the truth is I still like using paper.

Memory Jogger
I just find it easier to keep track of a paper receipt that I can throw in one place with other paper receipts during a trip for later T&E reconciliation.
(Are you ready to stone me as a Luddite?)

Sure, digital receipts are cool.
(Like my Uber email receipt for my trip to the airport.)
But then you’ve got to remember to go back later into your email and retrieve them.

When something is already in physical form, it’s not as easy to forget.
(All right… I’m ready to be banished to the prison of analog misfits.)

But seriously…
Paper does have its benefits.

At Home without a Printer?
Five years ago, a friend of mine told me he didn’t own a home printer. He said he simply didn’t need one anymore. I was impressed but also annoyed.

Why?

Because I couldn’t fathom a life without the convenience of a fax/scanner/copier/printer at home.

Fast forward to the present, and you know what?
I still can’t.

Nobody Faxes Anymore?
Does anyone really need a fax machine at home? I just had this conversation last week with my 84-year-old father, when he asked me to ‘fix’ his old HP fax unit.
(It ended up just being out of ink.)

I tried to convince my dad he didn’t need one anymore, but by the time I was finished presenting my case, I had changed my mind.

Because you do.
You think you don’t, but you do.

It’s not a frequent need, for sure… probably just a couple times a year. But at the most unexpected moment, you’ll suddenly need to sign a silly (or important) form and then fax it.

I suppose you could also scan it as a PDF and email it back, but that assumes the recipient’s rules allow for that.

It’s Still Cool to Copy/Scan
Speaking of scanning, if you ever hope to live in a paperless world, you’ll need a scanner to convert all of those precious family archival photos and documents you’ve been holding onto for future generations.

Digital conversion is a huge time suck. So you might have to depend on one of your descendents to finish the job. But I’m sure they’d be mighty thankful if you did your fair share during your lifetime!

And since you can scan, you can also copy.
Tell me that you never need a copy of something.
Enough said…

Printing is Evil
Yes, I’ve progressively reduced the number of pages I’ve printed out over the years. I try to save whatever I need long term as a digital file instead of printing it out and slipping more paper into my bulging file cabinet.
(And then never looking at it again, only to throw it out ten years later)

But other times, I just want a simple, printed page for the moment. Sure, there are digital workarounds. But I can’t imagine they all take fewer steps than just “File” and “Print.”
(And then ‘grab’ and ‘go!’)

Printing is sometimes…. just faster.
(I suddenly feel a digital lighting bolt forming above my head. You should take cover.)

Physical Photos Can Warm Your Heart
And don’t tell me there’s no longer any value to printing up that priceless family photo moment from your weekend trip to the lunar colony.
(Oh… apologies… I think I was channeling fragments of the future via the Force.
I just rewatched “Star Wars: The Empire Strikes” back and Yoda’s famous line, “…There is another.” Am I the last science fiction geek in the galaxy to make the connection that this line is probably super significant to Episode 8?)

But I digress…

Of course your local chain pharmacy can print up your photos for you, but it’s so much easier to print out your one-off pics with your own photo printer.

All-In-One Printers to the Rescue
So that’s why I’m still at home with paper.
Call me crazy.

The good news is one multifunction printer can handle all of the above needs.

I’ve been a big fan of Epson all-in-one printers over the past few years. Epson’s current flagship model, which gives you “photo quality” printing is the
Epson Expression Photo XP-860.
($262.87 on Amazon)

  • Print
  • Copy
  • Scan
  • Fax
  • #Boom

Guilty As Charged!
If you have completely shed the need for paper in your life, I applaud you.
(And please tell me exactly how you do this.)

For everyone else, don’t feel guilty.
(At least not for your ongoing, messy relationship with paper)

It’s still a journey to the paperless world…

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June 25, 2017

Two Reasons Why You’re Failing as the Family Photographer

It’s not difficult to snap a picture. In fact, it’s never been easier. But if you don’t follow a photo library management plan, you’ll quickly be in a world of hurt. I’ve got seven steps that should help make your day…

No matter how hard I try, I feel like I’m fighting a losing battle as the family photographer. Sound familiar? The good news is you’re probably doing just fine taking the pictures.
(I snap a few winners here and there.)

The problem is what comes after…

Sure, you can quickly flip a photo or two out to your world from your smartphone, but if you’re like me, I like to bring my photos home for review, grading and improvements.

I have a five-point numbering system when I go through my pictures in
Adobe Lightroom:

5 = Great
4 = Good
3 = Okay
2 = Not very good
1 = Terrible

I immediately throw the 1’s and 2’s into the trash, because they’re the stinkers. But then I hold onto everything else. But after years of following this practice, I’ve discovered a severe flaw.

Only Keep Your Best Photos
My plan has allowed me to retain pictures that I just don’t need. More importantly, the sheer mass of accumulating photos clogs up my computer’s hard drive, and they simply take too long to catalog.

The 5’s are the only ones I should be focusing on.
(Sometimes, I also highlight a few of the 5’s as ‘extra special’ by making them a ‘pick.’)

If I’ve nailed the shot as a 5, why would I need to save a version of it as a 3 or 4?

New rule:
When you’re done cataloging all of your 5’s, go through everything else with the intent of deleting them. All of them!

Question why you need to save your 3’s and 4’s.
(Really)

There are No Shortcuts
For me, the underlying problem in my faulty photo management process is committing enough time to do the job right.

That means taking the time to correctly ID your 5’s on the first round of review.

And at the back end, you’ve got to do the ‘clean up’ phase and not leave around a lot of useless 3’s and 4’s you’ll never use again.

Because years will go by, and you’ll realize you’re holding onto way too many pictures.
(Like thousands of them)

Sure, I know I’m a big supporter of taking ‘multiple’ shots of a particular moment to ensure you actually get what you want. But that means you need to choose the best one and then delete everything else!

You Must Find the Time
Second new rule:
This all takes discipline and a daily commitment of thirty minutes of digital photo management.

I know that can be hard to fit in to a busy schedule. So I try to carve out the time first thing after I wake up in the morning with my cup of Joe.
(Yes, you probably need to set your alarm earlier to generate these precious minutes. I do.)

Without this regimen, your system will break down in a number of ways:

  • If you don’t share your photos quickly, their value drops off over time.
    (Who wants to see last year’s photos? Your family and friends want yesterday’s pictures!)
  • Your computer’s hard drive will fill up. Or you’ll have to shell out for cloud storage.
  • You’re never going to create those photo books, as that’s usually the last step in a photo organization plan.

Keep It Simple
I just finished up a few days of ‘staycation’ expecting I would be able to catch up on all of this. Guess what?
Not possible.

If you’re months behind, the only solution is to chip away it.

Thirty minutes.
Every day.

Delete all of your 3’s and most of your 4’s.

Remember, you only need a handful of pictures to tell a story.
Less is more.

You’ve just got to take the time to figure out which ones they are…

Time.

Seven Steps to Success
So let’s review my updated rules for effective digital photo library management:

  1. Don’t let your pictures languish on your camera’s memory card or computer.
  2. Stop grading a group of photos on a five-point scale. Find your 5’s. And that’s it. Really everything else should be deleted.
  3. Proceed with the ‘tweaking phase’ to improve your remaining ‘best photos.’
    (Cropping, color balance, exposure)
  4. Then, go find the four or five best 5’s. Those are your ‘uber 5’s.’ Share those. Family and friends rarely want to see more.
  5. Email your photos to your family and friends within the week!
  6. Don’t forget to copy your 5’s into the appropriate ‘theme’ albums or collections you’ve set up.
  7. Commit half an hour every day to your life-long photo management project as the family photographer.

Thirty minutes.
Every day.
Promise me.

Now, promise yourself.

It’s not a snap, but it’s the answer.

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