Technology Links for today's genealogist 16 Aug 2012

© Copyright 2012 Caroline M. Pointer

Today, I have some links to technology blog posts that may {or may not} be helpful to today's genealogist and family historian as well as some more magic tricks {Oops, I mean tech tools.} that I use in some way for genealogy & family history research as well as in my general business life.

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• How to Set Up a Wireless Router by Samara Lynn on pcmag.com ~ Okay. This is helpful. You should know how to do this even if the cable or tech guy comes out to your house and sets this up for you because at some point it's going to go down, and really? Do you want to have to sit there and wait for them? No. You don't. I've always setup my own wifi {much to the dismay of the Best Buy kid who I usually end up buying my laptops from}, and I think everyone should do it. Feel the freedom of telling that pimply faced Best Buy order taker, "NO! No, I don't need help with my wifi. Yes, I can handle it. I can find dead people and I can setup my own wifi. So there."
• How To Keep iOS Message Previews Private by Dom Espisito on appadvice.com ~ Okay. Dom has a point. You know how {if you have an iPhone} you get those message previews that popup on your screen? Well, what if you {gasp!} lose your iPhone? Then whoever finds it can read them. Dom has a fix for this in his blog post as well in video form so check it out.
• 1 Million Public Transit Stops Now on Google Maps for Android by Adario Strange on pcmag.com ~ This is cool if you live in a city that has a plethora of transportation modes to get around said city, and in this article, Adario explains how Google Maps' robust features and Google's updates work together to make getting around that much easier using your Android device. And? Not just for U.S. cities. So see if your city is supported and learn how to use this awesome Google Maps feature so you can get around to all those cemeteries, archives, and libraries that much easier.
• Better Browsing on Your Android Smartphone by Bonnie Cha on allthingsd.com ~ Bonnie compares the Firefox and the Chrome browsers for Android devices in her article. Check out what she has to say about their pros and cons.
• Beyond Instagram: Photo Editing Apps by Adam Harvey on iphonelife.com ~ I don't know about you but I'm one hundred percent addicted to photography apps on my iPhone. I'm too embarassed to tell you just how many, um, I've downloaded and use. And not just free ones either. And? Last week on vacation I bought several more including one that cost $10. That one was by accident tho. But? I'm absolutely lovin' it. {So it was meant to be. I just know it.} Anywho, here's a list of iPhone photo editing apps ~ some of which I have. Take a look. Download some. And start having some fun with them. I tend to take and edit the majority of my own stock images now. And then I share everything through Instagram. Cuz who isn't on Instagram? {What do you mean you're not Instagram? If you have genealogy-related biz you should be on there.} It's fun and easy.
• Sony Reader gets a new design, Evernote integration and a free Harry Potter book for $129 by Brian Heater on engadget.com ~ Looking for a new e-reader? How about one with Evernote and Facebook integration? And are you in love with everything to so with Harry Potter? Check out what the new Sony Reader, which started shipping today, has to offer.
• Jack Dorsey's Square Deal For Small Businesses: 0% Transaction Fee by Sarah Kessler on fastcompany.com ~ Do you have a genealogy related business that sells products at genealogical conferences? How are you taking payments? Have you checked into Square? You need to. And now instead instead of transaction fees they're offering something else up that's better and more affordable for smaller businesses.

Two of my favorite apps/websites that I currently use had fresh updates today:

• Photobucket Revamps To Rival Social Sharing Photo And Video Sites by Kit Eaton on Fastcompany.com
  
• Instagram 3.0 covers new ground with Photo Maps by Donna Tam on cnet.com {You can see an image of my Instagram Photo Map above, or if you follow me on Instagram: @familystories.}

And here are 3 more magic tricks {Oops. I mean tech tools} that I currently use on my iPhone to get whatever it is that I do, um, done:

1. Analyticsapp ~ to keep up with my Google Analytic reports for my 3 main blogs.
   
2. Reeder ~ to read all the genealogy posts that I've signed up to read on my Google Reader; this sucker syncs with Google Reader to keep it up to date with what I've read and haven't read.
   
3. mimedia ~ yet another cloud storage service {but also provides backup service} where you can get 7GB of free cloud storage and has free apps for the iPhone and iPad. Check out their video below and click the mimedia link to see their features. {Goodness, I love FREE.}
   

How it Works from MiMedia Customer Support on Vimeo.

Happy Researching! =)

~Caroline