iPhone - Add a Virtual Home Button

While helping out with a new iPhone XR the following was seen:

Tap on it and:

Figuring out just what that was turned out to be a bit of a challenge since it was put there by an Apple employee when the phone was purchased and set up.

Well, after asking around and getting an answer from the ever knowing Merv Porter (he has way better search skills than me) it turns out it is called the Virtual Home Button and is in the AssistiveTouch menu.

To turn it on is quite simple:

1. Settings
2. General
3. Accessibility
4. AssistiveTouch

Turn that on. The menu above can be customized using Customize Top Level Menu… and the button itself can have several different touch abilities.

The button can be moved and moves about the screen depending on what's being done or read.
It grows opaque when not in use and disappears when trying to get a screenshot of it. The above were taken by my own iPhone's camera.

Philip Elder
Microsoft High Availability MVP
MPECS Inc.
Co-Author: SBS 2008 Blueprint Book
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Found: A Car Charger with Two 10 Watt (2.1A) USB Ports!

After a number of days looking around for a charging setup that can accommodate at least two devices that require a 2 Amp draw on the USB port we settled on the following:

• Scosche reVIVE II - Dual 2.1A USB Car Charger for iPod, iPhone, and iPad IUSBC4

The reason we ordered these units was that the basic USB chargers we have in our vehicles only support 500mAh draws. That is one quarter the capability of these units.

So, when using a Windows Phone like my HD7 or Monique's Lumia 710 while plugged in they were still losing charge if frequent calls were being made or we were streaming 8Tracks or listening to Zune content.

The HTC HD7 charger's USB port has a little over 1A at the port. The Nokia charger has 1.2A at the port.

So, we figure that 2.1A should be more than enough to provide a charge and run the phones at 110% _all of the time_ and not be stranded with a dead phone at our destination.

Next up will be to pick up their ISUBH4 wall wart (dual 2.1A USB port A/C charger).

We may also pick up a couple of the goBAT II - Portable Charger & Backup Battery units for those days when out and about to provide a backup power source while at a client site. They would be handy for long plane trips too.

Have any pointers to power accessories used to keep things charged up? Please do point them out to us!

Philip Elder
MPECS Inc.
Microsoft Small Business Specialists
Co-Author: SBS 2008 Blueprint Book

*Our original iMac was stolen (previous blog post). We now have a new MacBook Pro courtesy of Vlad Mazek, owner of OWN.

Windows Live Writer

Some Interesting Mobile Device Security Reading

These links are courtesy of Security MVP Harry Waldron.

• Harry Waldron – Computer Security News blog: Mobile Device Security - Best Practices
• Some thoughts on how to protect a device from various attack vectors.
• Symantec Community Security Blog: Android Threat Trend Shows That Criminals are Thinking Outside the Box
• While Symantec has a vested interest this post has some good reading on the various attack vectors.
• PCMag Blogs: Security Watch: Is 2011 Finally the Actual Year of Mobile Malware?
• References the Symantec blog post.

This final link comes via Susan Bradley:

• DailyTech Gadgets: Lost Your iPhone? Someone Can Grab Your Password in Six Minutes
• The title is pretty self explanatory. There is a bit of skill involved with the process but it _can_ be done.

It is up to us to advise our clients on any attack vector that may present a problem for their business and some ways to mitigate exposure. This is especially true for clients that hold sensitive client information in their systems.

The more integrated into our client’s systems mobile devices get the greater the need for caution _before_ integrating any device into those systems.

Philip Elder
MPECS Inc.
Microsoft Small Business Specialists
Co-Author: SBS 2008 Blueprint Book

*Our original iMac was stolen (previous blog post). We now have a new MacBook Pro courtesy of Vlad Mazek, owner of OWN.

Windows Live Writer

Apple iOS 4.1 to 4.3.3 Update is . . .

For several iDevices:

A whopping 666.2 MB large!

We are working on transferring iTunes from an old desktop to an HP TouchSmart PC that is hanging on a wall in a small desk type alcove for a client.

When we plugged their iPhone 4 into the system iTunes wanted to update right away. The connection here is fairly quick so we did not have to wait too long for 666.2 MB, though long enough, while the update on the phone took somewhere around 10 minutes.

We have a few other iDevices sitting here on the desk waiting for their turn to be plugged in so we shall see if there are any additional device firmware updates that need to happen.

The verdict is in on the iPad:

Weighing in at 593.3 MB all hopes were dashed that the previous six hundred Megabyte file would also do for the iPad.

And then the iPod Touch:

Yet another six hundred plus Megabyte download. There are a few more iPod Touches that need to be updated. Hopefully the above file will be used for the others. Otherwise this will turn into a very painful process as there are a few more to go. :(

Philip Elder
MPECS Inc.
Microsoft Small Business Specialists
Co-Author: SBS 2008 Blueprint Book

*Our original iMac was stolen (previous blog post). We now have a new MacBook Pro courtesy of Vlad Mazek, owner of OWN.

Windows Live Writer

A Mobile App That _Rocks_ !

And in a sense, quite literally.

One of the recent subject lines that caught my interest was a “Favourite Mobile Apps” conversation between some fellow MVPs.

One of the apps that was mentioned across all platforms is called Shazam.

Essentially, when one hears a song that they want to find the title and artist for they start the app, tap the Listen button, and hopefully the app comes back with the title, artist, and album.

It’s great for those moments where one is in the elevator and hears Henry Mancini’s Baby Elephant Walk or Pink Panther for the first time! ;)

On another note …

It may not be your cup of tea, but I grew up grooving to these beats among others! :D

• Bing Search: Baby Elephant Walk

• Bing Search: Mancini Pink Panther

Just in case, the original Pink Panther movie (Wikipedia entry) was and is absolutely hilarious!

Philip Elder
MPECS Inc.
Microsoft Small Business Specialists
Co-Author: SBS 2008 Blueprint Book

*Our original iMac was stolen (previous blog post). We now have a new MacBook Pro courtesy of Vlad Mazek, owner of OWN.

Windows Live Writer

Windows Phone 7 – March Update _Really_ Improved My WP7 Experience

We get to work with all sorts of devices from a large variety of vendors.

There was something about the HTC HD7 experience that did not quite sit right with me though it was not quite possible to figure out just what that was. . . at least until now.

When using an Apple iDevice the touch interface is probably one of the best out there.

The ability to touch, hold, and move the cursor about on the iDevice while working with text in the various Apps and the GUI is excellent.

The HD7 Windows Phone 7 (WP7) on the other hand was Neolithic in its implementation. Trying to get the cursor to move about precisely in IE, Word, e-mail, texting, and other places in the HD7 was nothing short of painful.

The WP7 March update that included the ability to Copy and Paste changed all that.

Not only do we now have the ability to copy and paste, which works really well, but now have the ability to move the cursor about with an almost absolute precision.

The cursor movement improvement will make, and already has made, the HD7 usage experience that much better.

Philip Elder
MPECS Inc.
Microsoft Small Business Specialists
Co-Author: SBS 2008 Blueprint Book

*Our original iMac was stolen (previous blog post). We now have a new MacBook Pro courtesy of Vlad Mazek, owner of OWN.

Windows Live Writer