by Maximilian Lemos on July 14, 2011
Given the current state of technology, there are more security threats out there waiting for you then ever before. With more powerful devices and better security, comes more aggressive methods of hacking and exploitation. Whether it be for your iPad, iPhone, or computer, you should be taking the necessary precautions to ensure you are prepared for the worst. Considering the many saved passwords and personal information I have stored on my devices, I can imagine that I am not alone in saying I would be pretty worried if any of my electronics were stolen. Here is a great article about iPad security with some techniques that are sure to offer you greater piece of mind. [click to continue…]
by Maximilian Lemos on July 12, 2011
With Google+ rolled out and more invites flowing, I am seeing a lot more action on my Page. My friends are emerging and I can tell they are still getting their +1 legs. Despite the learning curve, I really like Google+, it’s lean, mean and already making Facebook look clunky and bland. Below is the best introduction to Google+ I have seen, all the subtle things that aren’t immediately apparent when new products launch are here and ready for you to get your learn on. Enjoy! 
Photo Credit: Simon Laustsen
by Maximilian Lemos on July 11, 2011
Recently, my brother Christian had his iPhone 4 stolen. This was a very frustrating experience for him, as you can imagine. Though this story has a fortunate ending, it just goes to show how important it is to have the proper precautions in place to preserve the digital extensions we have for ourselves.
Here is Christian’s story, in his own words. It’s pretty exciting, so grab some popcorn and enjoy the ride:
My iPhone 4 was stolen. None of my friends had picked it up, and the nightclub didn’t have it. The realization set in like a bad bout of food poisoning. As anyone who has ever been a victim of a crime can attest, the sense of violation is oppressive. When someone steals your wallet, they’ve taken your money; when someone steals your bike or your car, they have taken your means of transportation. Things get a little more complicated when it comes to technology. When someone steals your computer, tablet, or smartphone they have taken a lot more than just the physical object itself.
Over the last several years I’ve often joked that my phone was my “communication organ” and heard others talk about computers serving as “exo-brains.” While waking up and realizing your iPhone was stolen is not exactly tantamount to waking up in a tub of ice in Tijuana with a fun new scar to show girls and a lifetime of dialysis treatments to look forward to, it felt like a much deeper loss than losing the cash I had to part with to obtain it in the first place. The thief hadn’t just taken a “phone,” they had stolen my connectivity, my link to the invisible world where I spend so much of my modern life. So maybe not an organ but definitely a hard won hardware upgrade.
For better or worse, technology is a big part of our lives, and our level of integration with our computers is only increasing. Thankfully, the means to protect oneself, one’s privacy, and one’s investment in their hardware continue to make great strides forward. It is thanks to one such ingenious piece of software, that I was able to confront the thief and recover my iPhone. I’m embarrassed to say that until this rather sobering reality check, I had taken a somewhat relaxed approach to security. I only backed my iPhone up on a semi-regular basis, its 32 Gb hard drive was an identity theft treasure trove, and it wasn’t even passcode protected. [click to continue…]
by Wyn Matthews on June 29, 2011
Understanding Malware threats to your Mac
As a Mac user, one of the things you get to congratulate yourself about is choosing a computing world that is free from viruses. It’s true. In “the wild” there aren’t any Mac Viruses. But there is Mac Malware. The thing about Malware is that it can’t install itself. It takes your participation to install it. The latest is a fake anti-virus website MACDefender. The crooks placed fake ads on websites inviting you to click and get a free virus scan of your Mac.
Like most modern malware, MACDefender isn’t designed to erase your hard disk or display a message saying “Hahaha you have been cracked by ]-[@©Km£i$ste®”, or whatever viruses used to do when we were little. It’s all about making money. Having shown you a professional-looking anti-virus scan “Control Center” that lists all the terrible (imaginary) malware on your Mac, it invites you to enter your credit card details for a fix. Presumably its work is done at that point, but of course there’s no way of knowing where your credit card details might end up.
Until about a year ago I didn't pay much attention to the string of Mac malware. Then I got a new MacBook Pro and installed it from scratch. Every application was installed from install disks. Nothing was copied into the System or Library folders from any backups. The only files copied to it were my data files. I wanted to know if I had any tracking cookies in my system. I installed a program called MacScan and ran it, finding not only dozen tracking cookies, but a Keystroke Logger — a program that records every keystroke and sends them to a server somewhere consolidating this information for some criminal organization. I was freaked out! How the hell did this get on my computer? I never run rogue applications. No one ever works on my computer but me.
MacScan removed the Keystroke Logger, and the tracking cookies. I started to run it weekly just to see if anything else showed up. No more nasties like the tracker, but there are additional tracking cookies occasionally. Tracking cookies are placed on your computer by online advertising companies. These companies track your movement on the Internet for statistical and relevancy reasons. No thanks. I didn't give you permission to track what I read, what I buy, etc. Delete! Delete! Delete! [click to continue…]
by Wyn Matthews on June 28, 2011
Understanding password security and management
Passwords are like keys to the physical buildings, cars or rooms that you use. Your house, car, vacation house, hotel room, safety deposit box, etc. In our physical world, we take it for granted that each of these keys are different.
By these obvious standards, in our digital world, we are careless. We have the same key for our PO Box and our front door. Maybe another key for our safe deposit box and car. Understanding what follows will help you get a new set of digital keys and a digital lock box to manage them without stress.
I know there’s a lot to read here. Please take the time. It’s important. [click to continue…]
by Kazdyn Nicholson on June 23, 2011
I often browse Apple’s App Store for useful apps that are well thought out and will last. Now, I’m not worried about dropping .99¢ on an app that I end up never using again, but I do tend to research my purchases before committing. Today, we found a great list of 7 music related from Wired. If you need to brush up on your Circle of Fifths, practice with a Metronome, transpose a song, or heck, if you’re looking for a database of 2100 chords (!!) check these out!
Looking back to a time before our iDevices (before 2007) you would be spending well over $1000 on technology that might be able to accomplish what these apps can do. A lot has changed in only 4 years! Have fun and rock on!
Enjoy
~Kaz
It’s cool to play instruments — and even cooler to know how to play them, to an extent. We’re not talking about becoming the the next over-shredding Joe Satriani, but a little proficiency goes a long way when trying to express a musical vision, whether as a hobby or something more serious. (Editor’s note: Watch the author shred with Lil Jon above.)
Music teaching apps consistently rank high in the app stores. Tuners, metronomes, digital songbooks, reference guides and more benefit everybody with a smartphone or tablet, from the dorm room dabbler to the gigging professional.
Electronic musicians have been riding the digital wave for some time, but even the open-minded coffee shop crooner can benefit from technology designed to sharpen skills and bring new life to practice routines.
Metronome Plus: The Finest Metronome in the iTunes App Store ($2)
Designed by musicians with ease and simplicity in mind, Metronome Plus is the cleanest, smoothest-operating metronome app we’ve seen for iOS. Simple to use and brilliantly packaged, with no extraneous features or small buttons to fumble over, this app is dead accurate when it counts with user-customizable accents, meters, subdivisions and sounds.
Peterson Strobe Tuners’ iStrobosoft Puts You in Tune for Sure ($10) [click to continue…]
