Free video calls

Facetime: how to make free video calls on Apple devices

 

If you've got an iPhone, iPad or Mac, you can make free video and audio calls using Apple's FaceTime app.

FaceTime is available for free on most of Apple’s recent devices:

·         iPhone 4 or later

·         iPad 2 or later

·         iPad mini

·         Mac computers (OS X Lion or later)

·         iPod touch (4th generation) or later.

 

It is also available for older Mac computers, for $1.29, from the Mac App Store.
 

How to get started

The first step is to enable FaceTime. On iPhone, iPad or iPod touch you can do this by opening up ‘Settings’ on your device and tapping ‘FaceTime’. Once here, turn on FaceTime by tapping the on/off slider. You may now sign in with your Apple ID, and if you own an iPhone you may choose to use your phone number to receive FaceTime calls. 

Now navigate to the FaceTime app on your device and open it. You may be asked to sign in with your Apple ID again, after this is completed you will now be able to make and receive FaceTime calls from other users. If you can’t find the app, try searching for it in the “Finder” if you’re on a Mac, or “Spotlight” if you’re on an iOS device. 

How to make your first call

Now that you’re set-up, you need someone to call! If you know for a fact that any of your friends or family are using Apple devices, you can try calling them. To do this open up the FaceTime app and select someone on your contact list to call. If you succeed in making your call then they must have FaceTime enabled, otherwise you’ll be told that they are “not available for FaceTime”.

If this is the case, you’ll have to ask them to enable it. Why not teach them how to do this, now that you know?

You can also choose people to call from your iPhone or iPad’s address book. To do this, open the “Contacts” app and select a contact. From the following screen there will now be a FaceTime option and from it you will be able to video or audio call someone, by selecting the corresponding icon.

FaceTime is free to use, but it will use internet data, so before you make any calls check that you are either on a wifi network or that you’ve got plenty of mobile data left to use.

Related articles:

Four iPhone and iPad tips and tricks video tutorial

Six scams to watch out for in 2016

 

Bad Passwords

SplashData has revealed its 2015 list of the worst passwords

 

SplashData has released its fifth annual ‘Worst Passwords List’, which once again highlights the unsecure passwords used by internet users the world over.

On this year’s list, we see the emergence of longer passwords, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they’re any more secure. Take for example the absolute worst password, which is ‘123456’ and a newcomer to the list ‘1234567890’ – as you can see, longer, but by no means more secure.

The top two passwords on the list remain unchanged from last year, in fact, whilst they’ve swapped rankings, they have otherwise been the same since 2011.

The longer passwords show that internet users are at least being a little more cautious, but they are so ineffectual that they may as well be ‘1234 let the hackers in the door’ (hey, that’s not such a bad password!).

According to CEO of SplashData Morgan Slain, “We have seen an effort by many people to be more secure by adding characters to passwords, but if these longer passwords are based on simple patterns [it] will put you [at] just as much risk of having your identity stolen by hackers”.

SplashData offers these three simple tips to help protect you:

·         use passwords or passphrases of twelve or more letters with mixed types of characters

·         avoid using the same password over and over again on different websites

·         use a password manager such as TeamID to organise and protect your passwords, generate random passwords and automatically log in to websites.

 

Anyway, here are the top 25 worst passwords of 2015. Here’s hoping that none of you use any them.

1. 123456

2. password

3. 12345678

4. qwerty

5. 12345

6. 123456789

7. football

8. 1234

9. 1234567

10. baseball

11. welcome

12. 1234567890

13. abc123

14. 111111

15. 1qaz2wsx

16. dragon

17. master

18. monkey

19. letmein

20. login

21. princess

22. qwertyuiop

23. solo

24. passw0rd

25. starwars

What’s the worst password you have used? Have you used any of these passwords? If so, you need to change them. So check out our data security article for some handy hints on choosing better passwords.

Read more at www.teamsid.com

Related articles:
Best password managers
How to make a strong password
Five tips to protect online privacy

 

January App

App of the month January 2016

 

Create or watch a live stream with an innovative new app, or relax and have some fun playing the newest Cut the Rope game with the January app of the month.

Periscope

This new app, which has partnered with Twitter, allows anyone to create their own live stream and share it with the world. So you can hold your camera and record what you’re doing or seeing, and anyone who is using the app can tune in and see it too. While you might not find sharing your life with millions of strangers overly appealing, it can be fun to tune in and see what some of the other 10 million users are up to.

The streams you can watch on the app vary from the people going about their daily lives (cooking or shopping) to more unique events (live concerts or feeding time at the zoo) and the completely bizarre, such as a large sidewalk puddle in London which, a few weeks ago, attracted over 20,000 viewers. 

It’s a fun way to pass some time and if you’ve ever wondered what life is like in another country, it’s a great way to find out. I just watched some Russian University students studying between classes… I think.

Available for free on iPhone, iPad and Android.
 

Cut the Rope: Magic

The original Cut the Rope has over 750 million downloads, and the newest sequel is a just as fun, featuring new mechanics that have greatly improved the game.

The premise of the game is simple and remains unchanged (if you haven’t played the original, you can get it here), Om Nom (the adorable little monster) wants to eat candy but he needs your help to do so. By cutting ropes and activating objects you must get the candy into his mouth. This new instalment allows Om Nom to transform into different magical forms to aid his quest for candy. It’s really addictive and you’ll be surprised by how challenging the game can get as you move through the levels.

Available for $0.99 on iPhone and iPad, and for free on Android.

 

Wipe your mobile before sale

How to wipe your iPhone, iPad or Android before selling it

 

Selling or giving away your old iPhone, iPad or Android is a great idea, but you should first make sure that your personal data has been erased, otherwise your private data might be up for grabs. Here’s how to do it.

iPhone and iPad

If you’re upgrading to a newer device, you should back up all of your data.

on your iPhone or iPad so that you can transfer it, if you haven’t already. If possible, you should wait until your new device is up and running before deleting your data off your old one.

Next, open up Settings on your device then tap iCloud, then tap Sign Out. Now tap Sign Out again and then tap Delete from My iPhone; you will now have to enter your password.

Now go back to Settings and tap General > Reset > Erase All Content and Settings. You might have to enter your password again during this process.

All of your data will now be cleared from the device and you can safely sell it or give it away.

Read more about wiping your iPhone or iPad on Apple’s website. 

Android

As Android devices do not encrypt data by default, the first step is to enable encryption on your smartphone or tablet. You can do this by navigating to Settings > Security > Encryption > Encrypt device. When this is finished, open Settings again and head to User and backup > Backup and reset and then tap Factory date reset and follow the prompts.

As different manufacturers have slightly different menus for Android devices, you might have to look for similar sounding settings to find the ones listed in the steps above.

If you’re having trouble, feel free to leave a comment below.

Now you’re free to give your smartphone or tablet away. If you’re interested in selling it, keep an eye on our newsletter for our guide on how to sell your smartphone or tablet next week.

 

Group Chats

How to make group chats on Facebook

 

Find out how you can chat with a group of your Facebook friends in the one chat with this quick and easy tech tutorial. 

The easiest way to do this is to open up a chat window with one of the people you would like to make a group chat with. If you’re on a computer, you can either select a friend from the chat sidebar at the right hand side of the screen or you can click ‘Messages’ at the left hand side of the screen, towards the top. If you’re using a smartphone or tablet, simply download the Facebook Messenger app. 

Once you have a chat open, click or tap on the gear icon at the top right (on some devices the icon is shown as an ‘i’ within a circle). Now click or tap on ‘Create Group with (name of your friend)’ or ‘Add Friends to chat’. And that’s it, you can add as many friends as you would like and you can change settings such as the group’s name, picture, members and more by clicking on the gear or ‘i’ icon. 

Facebook recently updated group chats and now allows you to change colours for your chats and set nicknames for all the members of the chat, this is also accessible by clicking or tapping the gear or ‘i’ icon but may not be available on all devices. If you can’t see the options, try updating your app. 

Do you use group chats on Facebook? Or do you prefer other methods of chatting? 

If you want to learn more about Facebook and its features, we’ve got dozens of articles about the world’s most popular social network. 

 

Digital cleaning

How to digitally clean your computer, smartphone or tablet

 

The new year is a great time to get on top of your digital data and make sure you keep it in check. By tidying up and deleting old files you can speed up your computer, smartphone or tablet. 

These tips will keep your computer junk free and running fast, best of all they don’t have to be performed very often.

Backup your smartphone photos

If your smartphone or tablet is your primary camera, you might want to look into a method of backing up the photos from time to time. This way you can delete the photos off your device (knowing they are safe elsewhere) and create room for more photos. Backing up to a computer is a great way to do this, but you can also back up all of your photos to the internet for free. This means that anywhere you are in the world, if you have an internet connection, you can access your entire photo collection (just make sure you don’t lose that password). Have a look at this article for your best options for backing up your photos online for free.

Free up space on your device

Having a lot of stuff on your computer, smartphone or tablet is one of the most common reasons for a sluggish device. Just like us humans, your device needs some space to function properly. If you fill up your entire device with photos, videos, apps and other files, it’s going to struggle. Click on your device from the following list for a simple method for freeing up space on your device: iPhone, iPad, Android, PC, Mac. 

Get some software to do the dirty work
No matter how vigilant you are, there is always going to be junk on your device, lots of it you won’t be able to find no matter how hard you try. CCleaner is your saviour when it gets this bad. Available for Windows, Mac and Android (unfortunately not iPhone or iPad at this stage) CCleaner will delete all of the invisible junk on your device and speed it up. It can also notify you when your device is getting a little cluttered and will offer to do the cleaning for you – nifty. Visit CCleaner’s website to learn more.

Get rid of those apps

I’m sure we’ve all got a dozen apps or programs that we don’t use anymore. If you want to make some room on your device, you can delete these old apps or programs and speed up your device. 

To delete an app on iPhone or iPad, tap on the app icon and hold down your finger until the apps begin to wiggle and then tap the little X that appears. 

On Android you can delete apps by navigating to Settings and then opening up Apps or the Application Manager. From here just tap the name of an app and you should be able to delete/uninstall it on the screen that opens up. 

To uninstall a program on Windows 7, click on the Start menu, then click Control Panel > Programs. Now select a program and click Uninstall. 

On Windows 10, click on the Start menu, then click Settings > System > Apps & features. Now select a program and click Uninstall. 

For help with Windows devices, visit Microsoft’s website.  

If you’ve still got some energy left over after all this digital cleaning, why not read up on how to keep your devices clean physically?

 

 

Un-send messages

How to ‘un-send’ messages

 

Immigration Minister Peter Dutton’s text message snafu has caused quite a stir, but is there anything he could have done to avoid it (other than not sending a nasty text message in the first instance)?

You’ve probably heard about Peter Dutton’s big mistake of accidentally sending a message (in which he referred to journalist Samantha Maiden as a “mad f***ing witch”) directly to Ms Maiden herself. 

Commentators from all sides have been raging, laughing, shocked and more. Ms Maiden has since updated her Twitter biography to read “Totally mad witch” and has accepted Mr Dutton’s apology.

Sure, Peter Dutton could have avoided all of this by not sending the disrespectful message in the first place, but whether it was full of insults or not, I’m sure we’ve all wished we could un-send a message at one point in our lives. It turns out that there are a few services that allow you to un-send a message, if you act quickly.

Gmail
If you have a Gmail account, you can head to ‘Settings’ and then under the ‘General’ tab you will find an option to ‘Enable Undo Send’. This activates a 5, 10, 20 or 30 second period between when you hit send and when your email is actually sent, allowing you to frantically let expletives fly as you make a mad dash for the un-send button within the small window of time you have to un-send the message.

Facebook
While direct messages cannot be deleted, posts on someone Facebook profile can. Just click the little arrow at the top right of the post and click ‘Delete’. People may still see the post before it’s deleted, but unless they’ve taken a screenshot, it’ll be gone for good.

SMS messages on Android, iPhone and iPad
Apple devices unfortunately don’t have any way to un-send messages at this time. Android devices on the other hand allow you to change the app that manages your SMS messaging. So if you want, you can change from the default messenger to an app which allows you to ‘un-send’ messages if you act fast. Popular apps which allow this include Chomp SMS andOn Second Thought (SMS).