Edward Kiledjian

Apple has an app on the iTunes AppStore called 12 days of gifts (link). Every day (starting December  26th) Apple will offer a free iTunes gift to its customers (for 12 days). These gifts can be songs, TV shows, movie rentals and iBooks content.

Apple seems to be in a giving mood and has already opened up a mini album from Lorde featuring her new song No Better and her music video for Royals. The content can only be downloaded via the special app (not directly from iTunes).

The Pebble is a neat little watch but most don't want to pay the $119-150 price. How do you feel about paying $89.99 for it (shipping included)?

If you have access to a .edu email account (students, teachers, faculty and alumni) you can get yourself a brand new flashy Pebble smart watch for $89.99. This is the cheapest I have seen this watch and this promo is being offered by BestBuy (link).

Sorry this is a US only promo.

Let's say you bought one of those $30 Windows upgrade promotion keys from Microsoft last year and now want to perform a clean install. What do you do?

The media you downloaded does allow you to perform the install but windows will refuse to activate a new install with that upgrade key. Unless you perform this magical process.

If you don't know what you are doing, stop and call a friend. If you make a mistake with regedit, you can harm your windows installation.

• Start Regedit
• Navigate to this registry folder HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE/Software/Microsoft/Windows/CurrentVersion/Setup/OOBE/
• Double click on the MediaBootInstall key and change the value from 1 to 0
• Open a cmd prompt with admin rights and execute this command: slmgr /rearm
• Now you have to reboot Windows

You will now be able to activate your windows with that upgrade key you bought.

I have been a technologist for the past 20 years helping customers streamline operations, reduce costs or increase profitability through the efficient use of technology. Over the years, the technologies have changed but one that has remained fairly influential over the last 10 years has been Microsoft Windows. Not only has it been a strong business platform but it has been my main personal (home use) platform. With Windows 8 and the increasingly unfriendly user interface, I finally decided it was time to finally go back to the Apple platform for personal use. 

Switching to Mac meant I also had to change many of my main applications so I wanted to share my top 10 Mac apps with you.

1 - Evernote

Evernote has been one of my main applications for the last 4 years and is my main data hub. It helps organize information, tasks and powers my GTD system. I love the fact that the Evernote team is constantly updating the product (trying to make it better) and that it exists for almost every platform (Android, IOS, windows, 

EVERNOTE

2 - Google Chrome

Discussing browsers is like discussing religion. There is no magically right answer and everyone has their own preferences. Sure you can use Apple's own Safari or Mozilla's Firefox but my browser of choice is Google Chrome. It is fast, synchronizes my data across all my devices and provides the tight integration with Google's cloud services I wants.

Google Chrome

3 - VideoLan Client

There are hundreds of video clients available for the Apple Mac OS platform but nothing else matches the features and versatility of VLC. It is a FREE open source client that supports almost every audio and video format under the sun. It is available for Windows, Mac, Linux, etc. Once you get a little more advanced you can even use it to digitize a CD or DVD, comprress videos, and much more.

VLC 

4 - Handbrake

Handbrake is a fantastic open source software (multi-platform) that allows you to rip and convert media. I'll admit it isn't the most elegant user interface and has some quirks but you get a powerful free tool. 

Handbrake

5 - Keka 

The more I use cloud, the less I use compression but there are still times when I need to compress a bunch of files to send it off. There are a bunch of good paid apps but since I don't use compression / decompression often, I wanted something function but free. Enter Keka.

Keka is a free (no advertising) compression / decompression tool that works extremely well. I found the app a little confusing at first, it doesn't seem to be update all that often and it doesn't really have a manual. 

It isn't perfect but the functionality is good. It supports a tone of formats.

Compression formats supported:
7z, Zip, Tar, Gzip, Bzip2, DMG, ISO

Extraction formats supported:
RAR, 7z, Lzma, Zip, Tar, Gzip, Bzip2, ISO, EXE, CAB, PAX, ACE (PPC)

What I liked most about Keka is that it works good for a basic non technical user but offers enough customization for a power user as well.

Keka

6 - Caffeine

Some of us need a big cup of coffee to get through the day because it perks you up, makes you more attentive and prevents drowsiness. Caffeine does the same for your Mac. It's a free app that is added to your menu bar that when activated ensures your Mac screen stays powered preventing dimming, sleeping or activation of the screen saver. 

Why would you want this? When reading a book (Kindle), a PDF or a webpage, you don't want to wiggle your mouse every couple of seconds to prevent your mac from sleeping.

Caffeine

7 - ExpanDrive 3 

ExpanDrive 3 is a simple little program that turns any cloud storage service into a standard mounted drive on your computer (like plugging in a USB key or hard-drive). This means that any app on your Mac can read and write file to any of the supported cloud storage services without modification.

Out of the box, it supports:

• SFTP
• FTP/FTPS
• WebDAV
• Amazon S3
• Dropbox
• Rackspace Cloud Files
• Dreamhost DreamObjects
• Openstack Swift

This is not a free app but well worth the money.

ExpanDrive

8 - Paragon NTFS for Mac

There will be times when you have to access an NTFS formatted drive (hard-drive, USB key, etc) and the Mac doesn't natively support creating, deleting or modifying NTFS stored files. This is where Paragon NTFS for Mac comes in. It provides that emulation layer required to use any Windows storage medium as you would a native Mac medium.

Again this app is not free but definitely worth considering.

Paragon

9 - Skitch

Skitch is a free app from Evernote that allows you to take screenshots then add text, graphics, shapes and annotations to it. It integrates with your Evernote account but also works as a stand-alone app even without an account.

I have skitch on my Mac, Windows PC and iPhone.

Skitch

10 - AfterShot Pro

AfterShot Pro is a paid photo management app from Corel. It use to be called Bibble Labs until Corel bought them. It is a cross platform phot management app that works on Windows, Mac and Linux. It supports everything you would expect such as photo management, raw support, non-destructive modifications and much more. I love the automatic photo improvement algorithms from a company called Athentiech (product is called Perfectly Clear). It brings 12 pro-level corrections down to 1 click:

• Exposure
• Beautify (for human faces)
• Vibrancy
• Noise-reduction
• Tint correction
• Sharpening
• Depth correction
• Skin tone correction
• Light Diffusion correction
• Red Eye removal
• Widening the dynamic range
• Visual spectrum improvement

You can buy this as a photoshop plug in for $200 but it it for free with AfterShot Pro

I loved this product when it was Bibble Labs and I love it as a Corel product. Works well and is often prices at 50% off which makes it a must have app.

AfterShot Pro

Most of us have gotten use to free storage tiers from the various cloud storage providers (Google Drive, Microsoft Skydrive, Dropbox, box.net, etc). Often times this free tier is enough to storage basic files and share things once in a while. Now SugarSync has said No More Free Storage. (link)

The company claims this is being done to allow Sugarsync to concentrate on updates and service improvements. The lowest cost paid tier will be $7.49 a month for 60GB of storage. 

TechCrunch is reporting that SugarSync will be offering 75% discounts for existing customers moving to one of the paid tiers (link).

When most of us think of the upcoming Bluetooth Low Energy retail revolution, we immediately think of Apple's iBeacon technology. why? Apple was the first to launch this tech at its annual WWDC conference. It will be deploying about 20 per store in its 250 stores. 170-200 million iDevices with IOS 7 currently are potential iBeacons. Companies, like Estimote (link) have already launched commercial Bluetooth LE devices compatible with iBeacons.

This doesn't mean Apple is the only game in town. Mobile heavyweight Qualcomm will be launching its own Bluetooth LE location aware service products (series 20 indoor beacons costing $5 with volume).

Qualcomm's beacon technology is IOS and Android compatible, which is a good thing for consumers.

This technology will allow retailers to track consumers (privacy safeguard are expected to be in both IOS and Android implementation) and deliver personalized offers based on the incredible signals retailers collect.

There is no denying Hong Kong is a densely populated business hub and Google wanted to build a datacenter to improve service to its 8 million population. Now we learn that those plans have been axed due to real estate issues.

In The Next Web (link), Google said :

"While we see tremendous opportunity and potential in Hong Kong – we’re actively hiring, just opened a larger office and recently launched a partnership with the Chinese University of Hong Kong to invest in tomorrow’s innovators – we will not be moving ahead with this project. To keep up with the rapid growth in users and usage across the region, we need to focus on locations where we can build for economies of scale. Unfortunately, there is a lack of land for expansion in Hong Kong. We will continue to work closely with the government on this process, and will continue to invest and grow in Hong Kong."

I am giving away a 1 year subscription to Symantec's Norton Mobile Security app for Android. It works on smartphones and tablets.

During the NSA leaks earlier this year, we heard rumors that Apple's iMessage employs end-t-end encryption making covert interception difficult. Anytime you add a new device to your account, your iMessages are automatically downloaded which means Apple could (if compelled by a competent court) hand over an unencrypted list of your messages.

I know many of you have nothing to hide but privacy isn't just for the "bad guys". We should all try to be as private as possible and this instant messaging app helps with that. The app (IOS and Android versions are available) is called Threema (link) and its a great piece of code.

Threema provides end-to-end encryption and employs a varying trust model for each contact. A contact for whom a key has been retrieved from the server shows up as 2 yellow dots and a contact for whom the key was retrieved by scanning the users bar code from their device gets 3 green dots.

Installing the App

You download the app from the appropriate store (iTunes or Google Play) and install it. As soon as you start it up, you randomly drag your finger on the screen to help generate a random seed so the app can create your truly unique private / public keypair (don't worry, it is super simple even for non technical users).

If you allow it, Threema can scan your address book to find contacts that are already using the app (to be honest, I doubt you'll find too many unless you work with security conscious people).

For the most secure communication possible, scan the other person's public key when you physically see them.

This is how the other party exposes their public key during a physical meetup.

Above you see a Threema contact and because this one has a verification level with 3 green dots, we know the person's public key was physically scanned (meaning it is the highest level of trust for the key exchange).

Saving your private key

After everything is setup, you can export your private key via email for safekeeping so you can easily restore it if the app has to be re-installed. Because Threema uses true end to end encryption you control, they do not have your private key and cannot recover it.

Know the status of your message

Threema offers these message indicators

Which means you will always know what happened with your message. Was it received? Was it read?

What can you send?

Threema is great because it allows you to send text messages, Emoji (handled by your OS), photos, videos and current location.

It handles everything you may want to send.

More technical stuff

Threema uses Elliptic Curve Cryptography (ECC) with the NaCl Cryptography Library. Which is fast and super secure. Threema uses asymmetric ECC based encryption with a strength of 255 bits (which would be the equivalent of a 2048 bit RSA key). Threema provides this additional clarification about the encryption:

"ECDH on Curve25519 is used in conjunction with a hash function and a random nonce to derive a unique 256 bit symmetric key for each message, and the stream cipher XSalsa20 is then used to encrypt the message. A 128 bit message authentication code (MAC) is also added to each message to detect manipulations/forgeries."

Threema actually has 2 layers of security protection:

1. End to end encryption between the participants (participants hold the private keys)
2. Protection for all communication between a client and the server

Threema has an encryption validation feature which allows anyone to verify the encryption quality . You can read up on how to log the encrypted stream and them validate it here (link). This is a good thing because it gives you piece of mind that they are doing what they say they are doing.

Verdict

I've spent the last 2 months looking at the various cross platform instant messaging apps trying to find one that was secure and easy. Threema is the only one that fit all my requirements. It does cost $1.99 but it is well worth the small investment.

Bitcoin is a decentralized digital crypto-currency that seems to have captivated the hearts and minds of millions around the world. Even with millions of fans, many of us still wonder about what this new crypto-currencty is. Is it a passing fad or the next evolution of value exchange? How risky is buying, trading and using Bitcoin?

China's central bankers have now put a stake in the ground and have made handling transactions with the digital currency, for financial institutions illegal, therefore not recognizing it as legal currency. It will allow Chinese citizens to use Bitcoins at their own risk.  Bitcoin trading platforms wishing to do business in China or with Chinese citizens must first register and receive a license from the Chinese Telecommunication Authorities.

Similar to other G20 countries, the Chinese authorities are concerned that Bitcoin transactions are veiled in anonymous secrecy and can therefore be used for money laundering or other illegal transactions. The Chinese authorities have said they will keep a close watch on all Bitcoin activities happening within its borders. 

Source: Bloomberg (link)

Anyone who is customer facing knows the difficulty in preparing your laptop to look professional before a customer meeting. What does preparing mean? It means cleaning up your desktop files, force closing applications so you are not interrupted with non customer notifications and making all customer folder quickly accessible so you don't spend precious minutes navigating a maze of folders & sub-folders.

This is where Pinstriped (link) comes in. It is an app that creates an overlay on your Apple Mac desktop separating your personal content from your professional customer focused ones, making you look professional.

Using Pinstriped is very easy. You download and install the app on your computer. Then you drag and drop the folders you will need for the meeting, choose a background that suits you, add a company tagline and even a corporate logo.

A Windows version will be released in the future o stay tuned for that. In the meantime download the beta version and play with it yourself.

The holiday season started with black Friday (in the US at least) and millions of people flock to online retailers hoping to snag a once-in-a-lifetime deal. Where there are hordes of people, there are criminals looking to take advantage of unsuspecting netizens.

So how can you stay safe? Here are some tips:

• Risky WIFI - Free WIFI may be tempting but I strongly recommend you stay away from them (unless you have a VPN solution) because someone may be sniffing your traffic looking for passwords or credit card information. It is recommended to do your shopping while in the safety of your home network.
• Don't click on that email link - Stores will be bombarding you with links to their special promo pages and criminals know this. They will often craft email attacks that look like they are coming from a reputable store but instead direct you (when you click) to their "evil" site. Type the retailers URL manually in your browser.
• Buy from trusted sites - In additional to creating fake Amazon like store-fronts, criminals sometimes set up entire fake online retailer storefronts complete with email marketing to SPAM lists they buy trying to lure you into giving them your credit card information. They do this by offering deals that are "too good to be true". If something is too good to be true it probably is. Only shop online from known and trusted retailers.
• Use strong passwords - This is a great time to make sure you are using long, complex and unique passwords. I recommend storing your passwords with a free tool called Lastpass (link). This is my preferred solution because it is online, secure, easy and free. I generate unique and strong passwords using a little known feature of Wolfram Alpha, instruction are provided here (link).
• Pay with plastic - Most credit cards have very consumer centric fraud protection limits therefore I recommend you make all of your online purchases with it (not debit cards which provide direct access to your bank account).
• Save purchase Information - Keep a record of all online purchases. This information will help you in the event of a fraud complaint or just to ensure the retailer treats you fairly. I recommend keeping:
  • date - time
  • exact model number, price and quantity
  • exact copy of final invoice
  • any shipping or tracking numbers
  • customer support contact information
• Regularly Check your bank statement - This the season of fraud so it is a good idea to check your bank statement for irregularities at least once a week (until end of January).

DisplayMate, a display testing company, has released a much awaited report (link) comparing the screens of:

• Apple iPad Mini
• Google Nexus 7 (2013)
• Amazon Kindle HDX

The bottom line is that Apple's iPad mini has the worse display using "out of date" technology.

"Amazon and Google, have significantly leapfrogged Apple by introducing Tablet displays using LTPS (in the Kindle Fire HDX 8.9 and the new Nexus 7), and they are significantly outperforming the IGZO and a-Si displays in the current iPads. Apple was once the leader in mobile displays, unfortunately it has fallen way behind in both Tablets and Smartphones."

DisplayMate explains that the Amazon HDX has the best display using a technology called Quantum Dots:

"Quantum Dots are almost magical because they use Quantum Physics to produce highly saturated primary colors for LCDs that are similar to those produced by OLED displays. They not only significantly increase the size of the Color Gamut by 40-50 percent but also improve the power efficiency by an additional 15-20 percent. Instead of using White LEDs (which have yellow phosphors) that produce a broad light spectrum that makes it hard to efficiently produce saturated colors, Quantum Dots directly convert the light from Blue LEDs into highly saturated primary colors for LCDs. "

They further explain that:

"The new iPad mini with Retina Display has a high resolution high PPI display like the other two Mini Tablets that we test here. But shockingly, it still has the same small 63 percent Color Gamut as the original iPad mini and even older iPad 2."

So the best screen is the Amazon Kindle HDX, then the Google Nexus 7 (2013) and last the Apple iPad Mini.

As little as 2 years ago, video conferencing was reserved for the most technically savvy amongst us. with the introduction of Apple's Facetime and Google Hangouts, millions have started enjoying it for work and pleasure. Videoconferencing is easy but that doesn't mean everyone is doing it right. Here are tips to help you video conference like a champ.

1. Good Lighting - Just life traditional photography, lighting is one of the most important factors to consider. If you have too little light, your webcam will digitally boost the ISO making the image look ugly and grainy. If you have the wrong kind of light, you will look overly pink or blue. You don't have to spend a lot of money to get good lighting. You should be able to pickup a handful of LED lights that you can place around you to create a soft and well balanced light. Try to avoid harsh spot lighting and direct sunlight. Also make sure you don't have any bright light behind you as that may trick the camera and underexpose you.
2. Good Camera - The better the camera the better the experience. Look for a camera that offers full HD support and reliable focusing. My favorite brand is Logitech so anything there should work just fine.
3. Good Microphone - 90% of all home and business videoconferencing users never even think about adding a good quality microphone to the mix but it makes a difference. The higher end webcams have decent microphones but anything that is built into a smartphone or laptop should be considered sub-par. If possible, add an external microphone that is closer to your speak organ (aka your mouth ). A good setup is to use a headset for sound when videoconferencing.
4. Frame the shot - I recommend starting the video chat software ahead of time and determine what is showing. If your face properly framed? Are there distracting objects showing in the scene (background, overhead, etc?) It's a good opportunity to make sure your lighting is good and that your video camera is configured optimally. Assume you may need to move when the video-conference is live and dress appropriately (aka don't wear Bermuda shorts when on a business video-conference)
5. My eyes are up here - The biggest mistake people make is looking in the wrong place. If you are watching your participants on your screen, you are not looking at them in their eyes. If possible, stare at the webcam.
6. Good networking - Spend the money and buy a reliably good router. I recommend the Asus branded WIFI routers. A bad router could cause huge videoconferencing issues.
7. Use Quality of Service - You should enable the QOS feature on your router to prioritize your videoconferencing traffic.
8. Mute - Make sure you have a way to quickly mute sound. It's good to mute when you not talking or quickly mute if you have to cough.

I have written about half a dozen articles about Roam Mobility. They offer the most competitive US cell phone service for Canadians traveling to the US. They have always been the cheapest option but they cut their prices in October.

There is a group of Canadian retirees that heads to various US sun destinations in winter that the media calls Snowbirds. Now Roam Mobility has a plan for these Canadians traveling to the US for longer than 30 days. You get all of the standard Roam Mobility goodness of unlimited calling to Canada and the US, unlimited text messaging, US number, voicemail, Caller ID and 1 GB of 4G data for only $39.95 a month. The only condition is that you must purchase this plan in blocks of 3 months.

Source: Roam Mobility Snowbird Plan