Weather apps are the most downloaded category of apps in any app store. People seem to be obsessed with them.

Apple delivered a ton of "hidden" improvements in iOS15 that you probably won't be able to find on your own. One such improvement is the ability to receive real-time precipitation alerts through Apple's iOS weather app.

In order to enable this new functionality:

Open the weather app.
Tap the icon with three dots on the lower right corner of the screen
Click on the 3 dots in the upper right corner of the screen
Select Notification

Turn on the toggle next to the locations you want alerts for.

The free content blocker you should be using in Safari on IOS

October 1, 2021GeneralEdward Kiledjian

Apple’s Safari browser on IOS is a a solid browser but there are others that provide more privacy and tracker blocking. One of those browsers is Firefox focus.

“In IOS15, Apple added support for Safari extensions on IOS. Firefox can now be used as a standalone browser or as a plugin for Safari. ”

What does Firefox Focus in Safari do?

Privacy

It blocks known trackers such as

ads, analytics and social trackers
Other content trackers – this category includes embedded videos, photo slideshows, and news article embeds that could track you.

Speed

Because part of the website is being blocked, pages will load faster and you will consume less bandwidth (especially important when on LTE).

Unobtrusive

Once you enable it, you will forget about it, use Safari as you would normally do and will gain all of the benefit without having to do anything else.

How to enable in Safari

Step 1

Tap on Settings
Scroll to Safari
Tap Content Blockers
Tap the switch to enable Firefox Focus

Step 2

Open Firefox Focus
Click on the cogwheel to open the settings menu
Tap the switch next to Safari to enable it

Ed's favourite things - Best Qi wireless charger

June 29, 2020GeneralEdward Kiledjian

This is not a sponsored post, and links are not affiliated links.

Most moderately priced (or higher) smartphones now come with wireless charging, which means it is a little luxury you can easily add to your everyday experience.

When evaluating wireless Qi chargers, I only looked at the stand models because it allows you to use the device while it charges, and it makes finding the charging zone effortless.

Over the years, I have tested hundreds of cables, chargers and wireless chargers and have concluded that Anker and Ravpower manufacture the most reliable units. After testing about 20 models available on Amazon, I wasn't surprised to find that the best units came from these two brands.

The best wireless charger is the RAVPower Wireless Charging Stand (RP-PC069). The charge speed will depend on your smartphone (Androids will charge faster than iPhones), but the best in class wireless chargers perform 20-40% better than the cheaper competition. This unit delivers a constant 7.5 watts for iPhones and 10 watts for Android devices.

The RavPower is a complete kit that includes the charging cradle, charger cable and the wall adapter. The RavPower has 2 coils which means you can place you charge your phone horizontally (to play games while charging) or vertically (to check messages or video chat).

Unlike cheap Chinese competitors, the Anker and RavPower units are certified by the Qi Power Association, so you know it will not damage your expensive smartphone.

Additionally, the best units have dim lights (that won't bother you during sleep), and they don't make unusual noises.

Amazon Canada (~$70 CAD)
Amazon USA (~$53 USD)

Be aware these items regularly sell out so keep checking their availability.

If the RavPower isn't available and you need to buy something immediately, you can pick up the Anker PowerWave Stand. Anker includes the cable (micro-USB) but not the wall charger. It will deliver 5 watts for most devices and 10 watts to Samsung devices when paired with a QC2/3 certified wall plug. Expect it to perform 30% slower than the RavPower for most phones.

Amazon Canada (~$25 CAD)
Amazon USA (~$20 USD)

Don’t forget you will need a wall plug for this unit. You probably have one, but it you don’t take a look at this Anker QC2 unit.

Install IOS Update 10.3.3

July 20, 2017GeneralEdward Kiledjian

As mentioned in my various articles, keeping your operating system and applications updates is a critical component to good overall security.

Apple released IOS 10.3.3 yesterday, and amongst all of the bugs it fixes, there is one nasty security vulnerability that justifies installing it now. Right now. Do it. I'll wait. Come on, we don't have all day.

Put Apple's banal sounding description aside for a second ("A memory corruption issue was addressed with improved memory handling".) This vulnerability comes from the Broadcom BCM43xx wifi chipset (CVE-2017-9417) and allows an attacker to execute code on the targeted device with kernel privileges.

To be clear, millions of Android smartphones (e.g. HTC, LG, Nexus and most Samsung devices) are also vulnerable to the BroadPwn vulnerability.

Google also issued the BroadPwn fix in its July patch bundle (you are receiving the security updates for your phone right?)

Secret to a 3 minute better you

February 16, 2017GeneralEdward Kiledjian

Why continuous improvement is important

Companies have competitors, but so do employees. There are others that can do your job, the questions is who can do it better. Continuous development through education (formal and informal) is the only way to keep and and hopefully move ahead. Moving ahead means you gain unique differentiating qualities that hopefully will lead to promotions, better compensation and maybe lead to the job you've been dreaming of.

By improving who you are, you gain the ability to deliver better services to clients, your company, colleagues and friends. A true professional is always striving to become better so that they may serve their entourage better. It increases the value you deliver to others and it increases your value.

“ipsa scientia potestas est - aka Knowledge is power”

— Sir Francis Bacon

Continuous improvement is important both in your professional space and your personal one. You need to become better at what you do (your chosen profession) and who you are (your ability to handle different situations and make the best possible decisions). Sure in good times, better knowledge could lead to promotions but in bad times, it could be the difference that helps you keep you job.

So continuous personal development improves knowledge, skills and ability. At the same time it strengthens confidence and many times this new calm, cool confident you results in you being more relaxed (even in though situations) which means it improves your well-being.

The bank can take your house or car but they cannot take away your knowledge. What you learn is yours to keep and will benefit you your entire life. An investment in yourself is the best investment you can make.

The 3 minute secret

The biggest complaint I hear from people is that they want to learn and improve but they just don't have the time.

Time is one commodity we can't buy or make more of. So in the spirit of helping you improve without consuming large amounts of your personal time, I present to you the GetNugget.co app. It is a small and simple iPhone & Android app that distills the wisdom of thousands of well reviewed books into small easy to consume information snippets.