Tuesday, July 21, 2015

Is the Internet Down?

Is your favorite web service offline?

Or is it just you?

Find out by using DownDetector.

Downdetector.com scours social media to discover when key web services have service disruption.

For example, here is the report for Twitter:

Down Detector Twitter

Just a few comments here and there.  No real problems.

Had their been major issues, Downdetector would have shown the problem and also displayed social media user's comments regarding the problem.

Downdetector monitors a number of services and providers including Comcast, Time Warner cable, AT&T, Playstation network, Xbox Live, Netflix, Charter, SnapChat, and YouTube.

Enjoy!

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Monday, July 20, 2015

Make Your Dinner Reservations Online

Open Table
Making reservations is often a nerve racking experience.  Are there times available?  Why can't anyone spell my last name correctly?

Solve these problems by using Open Table to make your reservations.

Available online or via smart phone app, Open Table lets you search for nearby restaurants, search for times and make your reservation.

You can download the iOS app HERE and the Android app HERE.

Don't be stuck with a long line the next time you go out for dinner.  Use Open Table.

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Sunday, July 19, 2015

ICYMI: Internet Myths, Deleting Facebook Search History, NASA's Pluto Images, MS Word Hidden Format Marks, Google App Status, Muting Twitter Users

In Case You Missed It
Another great week of Cool Tips.  Did you miss any of these?  All of these tips had record number of readers this week.  Unsurprisingly, knowing if Google services are down topped the list in views.

So for your fine reading pleasure, a recap of this week's In Case You Missed It:

Mute Your Twitter Users
Learn how to mute tweets from those you follow.  You'll still be connected and can view tweets if you choose.

Is Google Down?  Learn How to Find Out
Learn how to check Google's status page.  If services like Gmail or Calendar are having system issues, you'll know it's not just you or your PC.

Show or Hide Microsoft Word Format Marks
Learn how to show the hidden formatting marks in Microsoft Word.

NASA's Pluto Images are Amazing
The flyby of Pluto by NASA's New Horizon spacecraft brought amazing photos this week.  And NASA has made these available online including via Instagram.

How to Delete Your Facebook Search History
Facebook knows how to show you ads based upon your search history.  Learn how to delete your history.

If You Read It on Facebook, It Must Be True
Not everything you read on the internet or on Facebook is true.  Before you share a dubious post, check out Snopes for the real information.

Enjoy!

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Saturday, July 18, 2015

Mute Your Twitter Users

Twitter
Sometimes too much is too much.

 If your twitter feed is out of control because someone you follow is over-tweeting, you can mute that user.

 And no one will be wiser.

 You can mute a user two ways, from a tweet or on his or her profile page:

 Tweet - Tap "More" (the three dots) at the the bottom of the tweet  and click "Mute"
Profile Page - Click the "gear" icon, click "Mute" from the dropdown menu.
President Obama Twitter Mute

 Muted users will still see your twitter feed.  And they can always direct message you, favorite, reply to and retweet your tweets.  But you won't see their normal tweets in your feed.

 You can also reverse the process and "Unmute"
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Friday, July 17, 2015

Is Google Down? Learn How to Find Out

Google
Is Google Down?  How about Google Calendar?  How about Gmail?

Sometimes it seems that we take for granted that the net services we use everyday are always working correctly.

Usually it the user's PC, laptop, iPad, or Wifi that is not working correctly

But sometimes it is the service itself that is experiencing technical difficulties. .

How can you tell?

For Google services, the best way is to check Google's App Dashboard.

The dashboard gives an overview of its services.  It there is a problem, it will be highlighted.

Google provides this status overview for its paying customers who have implemented Google services within their organization.

But unless otherwise noted, the status also applies to the free consumer services.

Google App Current Status


Enjoy!

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Thursday, July 16, 2015

Show or Hide Microsoft Word Format Marks

Microsoft Word
Most PC users uses Microsoft Word as their primary word processor.

It's been around for years and is easy to use.

One criticism of Word has always been that there are so many features that it can be easy to miss very useful ones because they get lost in the sea of menu options.

And so it is with the Show/Hide Format Marks function.

It's one of the best features of MS Word.

When you toggle on the Show Hidden Marks, you can see the specific format marks within a document, such as paragraphs, periods, and tabs.

This is especially useful to understand how a document has been created.  Are those spaces or a tab?

When they are displayed, these character marks also can be copied and pasted within the document much as a normal character.

For example, a paragraph mark that is at the end of a paragraph with formatting such as center and with different margins and tab settings can be copied and pasted at the end of another paragraph to format the second paragraph the same way.

To toggle the Show/Hide function on or off, use the Control+Shift+8 keyboard command.

In addition, the menu bar also has a  option that can be toggled to Show or Hide formatting marks.

In the example below, the Show formatting has been toggled on.  For demonstration purposes, the formatting marks have been highlighted to show them.

Screenshot - Microsoft Word Show Hide Format Marks

Enjoy!

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Wednesday, July 15, 2015

NASA's Pluto Images are Amazing

Pluto - NASA New Horizons mission
NASA's New Horizons mission passed by the dwarf planet Pluto yesterday and has sent amazing images back to earth.

Signals from the probe over 3 billion miles away were sent back to earth on Tuesday that confirmed the New Horizons mission's flyby success.

Fortunately,NASA likes to share these images with us mortal earthlings.

To keep up with the latest technology, NASA has shared them on the social photo site Instagram.  Take a look at them at the official NASA Instagram site

Don't worry, NASA also has an image gallery on a mission website HERE.

For full information on the New Horizons mission, check out NASA's mission page HERE.

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Tuesday, July 14, 2015

How to Delete Your Facebook Search History

facebook
Did you know that Facebook saves all of your site activity?

Did you know that all of your Facebook searches are saved too?

Have you searched out ex-boyfriends?  Ex-girlfriends?

Do you want to make these past search queries go away?

You can with a few simple steps.  Just follow these instructions below:



  1. Click on the settings cog in the top-right corned.  Choose the "Activity Log" option from the dropdown list.
  2. All of your recent Facebook activity will be displayed.  On the left-hand menu, select "More" under "Photos, Likes and Comments".  Then choose "Search"
  3. Your complete search history will be displayed.  You can delete individual searches by clicking the "block" icon (the circle with a line through it) and then "Remove".  To remove all searches, click the "Clear Searches" link at the top.

That's it.  Facebook can't use your past searches for marketing to you.

Enjoy!

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Monday, July 13, 2015

If You Read It on Facebook, It Must Be True

Snopes.com
"There's a sucker born every minutes".  That's a phrase often credited to circus promoter PT Barnum.

But on the internet, we're all potential suckers to the partly believable Facebook posts that pop up in our news feeds.

Especially when they are shared from trustworthy friends.

These are the latest versions of forwarded emails that plagued email users before Facebook became so popular.

Did you hear the one about Pope Francis wearing a Black Sabbath shirt?

Or the one about KFC serving fried rat?

Both are FALSE of course.

But how do you know?

Before you "Share" or forward a post that may or not be true, check out Snopes.com first.

The site is a collection of internet rumors and myths that are checked for accuracy.

Enjoy!

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ICYMI: Where's My iPhone?, Musical Sleep Timer, Waze Calendar Integration, Where's My Android? and Testing Internet Speed

ICYMI In case you missed it
Another great week of Cool Tips here at One Cool Tip.com.  Check out these great tips from last week:

Where's My iPhone?
Losing a phone can be very frustrating.  learn how to find a lost iPhone

How To Set Up a Sleep Timer on Your Phone
Do you like to go to sleep listening to music?  Learn how to set a musical sleep timer on your phone.

Waze Knows Where You are Going
Wouldn't it be nice if your GPS app knew where you wanted to go?  Waze now integrates with your phone's calendar.  Learn how to set up this feature.

Where's My Android?
Lost your Android phone?  Learn how to find it.

Test Your Internet Speed
Are you getting what you pay for with your Internet speed?  Learn how you can test your connection.


Enjoy!

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Saturday, July 11, 2015

Test Your Internet Speed

How fast is your Internet speed?  5 meg? 20 meg? 100 meg?

Are you really getting the speed you are promised (and paying for) by your ISP?

A quick way to find out is to use www.SpeedTest.net

Click the Begin Test button

Speed Test Begin


After download and upload tests are performed, your results will be displayed.  You can redo the test a few times to ensure you get consistent results.  This will show if you are getting close to what you think you should be getting for the service you are buying from your internet provider.

Speed Test Results


To ensure that you are getting accurate results, be sure to limit other activity on your PC during the testing, for example a virus scan, as well as internet activity on other devices on your home or office network, for example an Apple TV device streaming Netflix.

SpeedTest is also available as a mobile app for your iPhone and Android devices.  This is a good tool if you need to test the speed of your smart phone for your carrier's speed or a WiFi.

Finally, try a few other sites from time to time to validate your results:

Enjoy!


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Friday, July 10, 2015

Where's My Android?

Android Icon
Have you misplaced your Android phone again?

No more wondering if it is at the office, in the car or at home.

Google has made it easy to find your Android phone with a recent update to its search site.

Here's how to do it:

Simply type "find my phone" into the Google search engine from your PC.  You'll need to be logged into the same Google account as your phone on your PC.

Google will then display a map with the close location of your device.

This simple new way to find your phone is in addition to the existing Android Device Manager.

Android Device Manager lets you locate your Android device and do both a lock and remote data wipe--important if you need to ensure that your data is kept safe.  First, you'll need to go to your Android's device setting and select the Android Device Manager to ensure that  locate device option is set.

After that, just visit https://www.google.com/android/devicemanager to locate your device.

That's it.  Two ways to Find Your Android phone!

Looking to find your Apple iPhone?  Check out this Cool Tip: Where's My iPhone?

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Thursday, July 9, 2015

Waze Knows Where You Are Going

Waze app inon
Do you know where you are going?

We've shared a Cool Tip about the great driving app Waze here already.

But here's another Cool Tip.

Waze can get you directions to your destination based upon your iPhone or Android calendar.

This calendar integration means that you don't have to retype your destinations into the driving app.


Just put the destination into the "location" field in your calendar app when you are setting up an appointment or a meeting.

Waze Calendar integration

When you access Waze, the location will be available to confirm.  You'll need to allow Waze to access you mobile calendar when you access Waze.  You can also ensure that your "Calendar Sync" is turned on by visiting your Waze settings under "Calendar Events".

Enjoy!

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Tuesday, July 7, 2015

How to Set Up a Sleep Timer on Your Phone

Timer
Do you like to listen to music when you fall asleep?

You can easily set an iPhone timer to play your music for a set time.

And there are numerous Android apps to do the same thing for Android phones.

It's easy to do on an iPhone.  Here's how:
  • Open the Clock app on your iPhone.
  • Click on the Timer icon in the lower right-hand corner.
  • Set the number of minutes you want your music to play
  • Click the option "When Timer Ends"
  • Scroll to the bottom of the screen and select "Stop Playing"
  • Select "Set" to return to the timer menu.  Click "Start" and the timer will start.
  • Now choose the music or podcast you want to listen to.  When the timer ends, your music will stop playing.  This option generally works with most apps and streaming services.

iPhone Timer SettingsiPhone Timer Settings - When Timer Ends





For Android users, it'll take an app to do this same function.  Sleep Timer is a simple app that will let you set a music timer.

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Monday, July 6, 2015

Where's My iPhone (or iPad) ???

Find My iPhone icon
Where's My Phone?  Is it at home?  Is it in the car?  Is it at the office?

 Losing track of a smart phone or tablet can be very annoying.  For many, smart phones are now almost an extension of our self. Our phones are never more than a few feet, or even inches, away from us at any point during the day.  

 Every now and then disaster strikes and we misplace our phones.

 If this happens to you, don't panic.  

 Both Apple iPhones and Google Android make it easy to locate a lost phone.

 Today's Cool Tip will show how to locate an iPhone.  We'll cover Android in a coming Cool Tip.

Before you lose your iPhone!!! - Enable iPhone for "Find My iPhone"

  • On your iPhone or iPad device's Home screen, tap Settings, then tap iCloud.  If needed, sign in to your iCloud account with your Apple ID.
  • Scroll down and ensure that "Find My iPhone" (or "Find My iPad") is turned on.  If not, tap "Find My iPhone", and then tap to turn it on.
  • Tap to turn on Send Last Location.  This feature will send your device's last location if battery power becomes too low.
Find My iPhone Options - Play Sound, Lost Mode, Erase iPhone

 Locate an iPhone or iPad

 You can use the "Find My iPhone" app or log in to www.icloud.com/find to locate your device.
  • Open the "Find My iPhone" app or log in to iCloud and select a device to view its location on a map. 
  • You can choose to have the device "Play a Sound" if it is close where you can hear it.
  • Turn on "Lost Mode".  This will let you lock the device and display a custom message on your phone.  Also, your stored credit card information will not be usable on your iPhone while your device is in "lost mode".
  • You can also "Erase iPhone" if you need to clear all of the data on the phone.

 That's it!  Rest in peace knowing that if your phone is lost, there's a good chance you'll know where to find it.
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Sunday, July 5, 2015

ICYMI: Mobile Phone Videos, Accented Letters, Google Search Sites, Lorem Ipsum, Siri Joke, Wireless Emergency Alerts

Did you miss any of these Cool Tips this week?  Learn more about taking better videos, emergency alerts, Siri's latest joke, lorem ipsum, Google searches, hidden iPhone keyboard and Amazon Echo's Independence Day celebration.


Single Best Tip for Taking Better Videos 
Learn how this one tip will help you take better videos on your smart phone.

How to Turn Off or On Emergency Alerts on Your Smart Phone
Learn how to turn off or on wireless emergency alerts on your smart phone.

Siri, What is Zero Divided by Zero?
Apple's iPhone personal assistant Siri has a sense of humor.  Hear her latest joke.

Microsoft Word's Magical Lorem Ipsum Generator
Need some filler text for a design layout?  Let Microsoft Word generate lorem ipsum for you.

The Many Searches of Google
Learn how Google has specialized search sites to help you search for specialized information.

How to Type Accented Letters on an iPhone
There's more than meets the eye on Apple's iPhone.  Learn how you can type accented letters.

Amazon Echo Celebrates Independence Day
Amazon Echo celebrated Independence Day.  Learn how to ask Alexa these great questions.

Enjoy!

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#accent #iPhone #iPad #Android #Word #Microsoft #EmergencyAlerts #video
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Saturday, July 4, 2015

Amazon Echo Celebrates Independence Day

Amazon Echo
As a special surprise for American Independence Day, try asking your Amazon Echo these questions:
  • "Alexa, play the Star-Spangled Banner"
  • "Alexa, read the Declaration of Independence"
  • "Alexa, tell me an Independence Day joke"





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How to Type Accented Letters on an iPhone

Some days you just want to say Olé

 Or type an accented characters on your iPhone or iPad.

 But how do you access this hidden set of keyboard characters?

 The answer is pretty simple.

 Just press and hold the desired letter.  
Accented versions will display that you can select.

Olé!




Enjoy!

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Friday, July 3, 2015

The Many Searches of Google

Google Logo
When we think of searching Google, we usually just go to Google's main page, or use the Chrome browser's search box.

That is fine for most Google searches.

But Google has a number of specialized search sites that can assist you in finding the right information.

Check out these sites the next time you need to search the web:

Google Images - images.google.com
Search for images on the web.

Google News - news.google.com
Search news from news sources from around the world.

Google Maps - maps.google.com
Search for directions but also search for specific destinations.

Google Finance - https://www.google.com/finance
Search the latest financial information.

Google Video - video.google.com
Search for videos from around the web.

Google Shopping - google.com/shopping
Search for a variety of merchandise from thousands of merchants.

Google Books - books.google.com
Search through an extensive collection of digitized books.  Many in the public domain can be viewed completely and downloaded as a PDF file.

Google Patent Search - www.google.com/?tbm=pts&hl=en
Search through millions of patents from the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), the European Patent Office (EPO) and the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)

Google Scholar - scholar.google.com
Search for scholarly literature with this specialized site from Google.

Google Trends - http://www.google.com/trends/?hl=en
Search and explore top search trends on Google.

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Thursday, July 2, 2015

Microsoft Word's Magical Lorem Ipsum Generator

Microsoft Word
In publishing and graphical design, "lorem ipsum" is random Latin text used to fill a page.

It is used by designers as a tool to show others how a page layout design will look.

But why random Latin words?

This filler text allows the viewer to focus on the graphical elements and overall page layout rather than focusing on the actual words.

How can you generate your own lorem ipsum if you are mocking up a document, web page or presentation for review?

Fortunately, Microsoft Word has a built-in lorem ipsum text generator with a simple command:
=lorem(p,l)


Where "p" is the number of paragraphs to generate and "l" is the number of lines for each paragraph.

To generate lorem ipsum, just enter the formula in a document and press the "enter" key, for example, =lorem(5,6)
lorem ipsum

That's it!

Text can also be copied and used in other programs such as Microsoft PowerPoint to do the same thing.

Lorem ipsum is derived from the Latin dolorem ipsum, "pain itself".  The text is usually scrambled text from a text by Cicero, De finibus bonorum et malorum.

If you would like English words rather than Latin, replace "lorem" with "Rand" and random Microsoft Office help text will be generated and displayed in the MS Word document.

Enjoy!

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Wednesday, July 1, 2015

"Siri, What is Zero Divided by Zero?"

Homemade Cookies
Siri, Apple's personal assistant for iOS on the iPhone and iPad, is at it again with a new Easter Egg hidden in her response.

 Ask Siri, "What is zero divided by zero?"

 You'll laugh.  And then you might be sad too.

 Scroll down to see Siri's response.
---- Spoiler Ahead ------
"Imagine that you have zero cookies and you split them evenly among zero friends. How many cookies does each person get? See? It doesn't make sense. And Cookie Monster is sad that there are no cookies, and you are sad that you have no friends."
Enjoy!


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