iTunes and Android — Play Well Together?

Folks, today I am seeking a little reader input, if you’d be so kind.

As I mentioned in Wednesday’s article, I am now (trying to) using an iMac for as many of my “daily computing” purposes as possible, as a learning experiment, and to be a better tech. Naturally, I quickly came to the point where I wanted to load up some songs and digital music, and explore the “wonderful world of iTunes”. And compare it to other music players.

Now I know that if I had an iPhone or iPad, all I’d have to do is connect the device (via USB) and my playlists/songs/devices would ‘sync’ automatically.

But I have Android devices.

And iTunes kinda pretends I’ve plugged nothing in, and seems to have no easy way to ‘sync’, and transfer song files from one to the other. In short, it’s refusing to play nicely.

So I have looked at some “apps” for syncing Android and iTunes – Easy Phone Tunes, TuneSync, iSyncr, and DoubleTwist, i.e. – but have yet done more than read about them. (I have been using Finder and ‘drag and drop’, to get the ball rolling..)

I am hoping folks out there will share with me the solutions they have found to like the best, in the Comment section below. (Bad experiences welcome, too.)

I’d sure like the tool to be free, and it does not need to sync over WiFi, and should be able to transfer more than 20 songs.

Thank you for your consideration.

Today’s quote: “It is impossible to defeat an ignorant man in argument.” ~ William G. McAdoo

Today’s You Gotta Be Kidding!

Again I say, beware the Easy E-Card…

Update: I have just learned that (sorry, I’m kinda slow) there is a major storm in the N.E. which could drop as much as 2′ of that vile white stuff commonly referred to as ‘snow’ (today??!!). I hope that everyone will exercise good cautions and stay safe out there.

Copyright 2007-2013 © “Tech Paul” (Paul Eckstrom). All Rights Reserved.

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All we really have, in the end, are our stories.
Make yours great ones. Ones to be proud of.

Changes Coming To SkyDrive – Act Now.

Those of you who are using the Microsoft “Live” online file storage service (called “SkyDrive”) should be aware that important changes are being made due to general service improvements — changes that will effect you, unless you act soon.

Up to now, SkyDrive gave you 25 Gigabytes of free storage — but that is being cut down to 7 GB’s, unless you “claim” more. You can keep getting 25 GB’s for free, or purchase even more space. Here’s what you need to do:

First, sign into your “Live” account (such as, Hotmail), and go to your SkyDrive (or, click here and sign in).

Click on the blue “claim your free 25GB”..

And click one of the “upgrade” option buttons. The top button “upgrades” you back to the free 25GB level.

(I believe you want to click these things soon.. like, now. Particularly if you are going to be “sharing” movies and/or music files.)

I like SkyDrive, and the recent improvements, and coming improvements, make this a hard service to beat for easy file sharing, syncing, and online access across devices.

“Think about all of the different devices you use every day. Wouldn’t it be nice if your files came with you, whether you’re on your phone, Mac, or PC?

When you use SkyDrive, you’ll never be without the documents, notes, photos, and videos that matter to you. Store anything on your SkyDrive and it’s automatically available from your trusted devices—no syncing or cables needed.” Read more..

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Related: I hope you didn’t think Google was going to sit still …

* Free storage for you! Google Drive to arrive today

“Google’s new cloud-storage service has arrived. It comes with 5GBs of free storage and up to 1 Terabyte of storage for paying customers.“ Read more..

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Today’s quote: “The most important single ingredient in the formula of success is knowing how to get along with people.” ~ Theodore Roosevelt

Copyright 2007-2012 © “Tech Paul” (Paul Eckstrom). All Rights Reserved.

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All we really have, in the end, are our stories.
Make yours great ones. Ones to be proud of.

What To Do When Windows Does Not See The Drive*

You Plug In A Storage Device, And Nothing Happens

A reader e-mailed me a question I believe will be of interest to other readers of this series. He wants to use a thumb drive to transfer files between his computer at his work and his home computer, but the work computer will not “recognize” (aka “see”) the thumb drive when he plugs it in. He wanted advice on how to fix this.

Q: My thumb drive works great at home, but when I took it into work to try and copy some files so I could work at home, I plug it in and the little window never opens so I cannot use it. What am I doing wrong?
A: There are several possible reasons for this, and here’s a few things to try: Read more..

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Bonus reading: Sync Box, Google Docs, Evernote and More With Social Folders

“If you use Box (online file storage service) and Google Docs, then you are well aware that there is no easy way to sync your online files (and folders) with your computer; UNTIL NOW! I came across an online service called SocialFolders where you can sync your files at Box, Google Docs and more (such “[…] Read more..

Copyright 2007-2012 © “Tech Paul” (Paul Eckstrom). All Rights Reserved.

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Better Than Dropbox and RapidShare (?)

Winners Announced And Some Friday Fun

Free Online File Storage/Sync/Share Sites You May Not Know About

Almost everyone, it seems, has heard of (and may already be using) Dropbox. And probably/maybe, at some point you have downloaded someone’s file from RapidShare.

Online file “sync”-ing services let you “upload” (to “the cloud”) files you select – such as MP3 songs, for example -where they are available to you (or, anyone you give access) from any Internet-connected device. This often is a better way to share than trying to send things by email – certainly is for large files.
People also use such services for keeping files “synced” between their work and home computers.
(BTW, I am told that no one uses email anymore..)

Intrepid Tech – for Everyone undercover operatives (you know who you are) have recently made me aware of two services I think you’ll want to know about. (I have not yet had time to personally test them out…)

• (WWW.CX.COM) Relaunched Cloud Storage App Still Offering 10 GB of Free Space

“Back in September I told you about www.cx.com, a Dropbox-like startup that was offering 10 GB of free storage space for new accounts, rather than the 2 GB offered by Dropbox. 

CX has recently undergone a major revamp.” Read more..

• Fyels Upload and share unlimited files up to 11GB each, for FREE

This (second) one does not even require you join, or give an email.. and there are no ads.. amazing.

Giveaway Winners Announced

The folks at Novosoft have generously donated 3 licenses for Office Backup 4.0 to me, to award to my readers. I sincerely thank thank them for that.

“Office Backup is an easy-to-use backup software designed to perform automated backup of your computer. If you are looking for a simple yet powerful backup utility, you have just found it – Novosoft Office Backup.“

Without further ado, the lucky winners are

Congratulations! My thanks to all who participated. (Winners, check your Inbox [and maybe your Junk folder] for the Subject Office Backup Winner)

Just plain fun:

Today’s quotable quote: “I am always ready to learn although I do not always like being taught.” ~ Winston Churchill

Copyright 2007-2011 © “Tech Paul” (Paul Eckstrom). All Rights Reserved.

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Syncing Your Devices – Calendars, Email, Contacts, oh my!

My job as a support and repair technician is evolving — which is only natural, as tech itself is evolving. At an exponential rate.

Years ago, my job consisted mainly of trying to cure non-booting Windows installations (remember “Error: ntldr.exe is missing or corrupt”?), getting a recalcitrant printer to ‘install’, crawling in attics and under houses “pulling” Ethernet cable, and removing the occasional virus.

Around 2007, the explosion of cybercrime forced me to become a virus removal specialist, and accounted for the majority of my hires. Affordable Wireless G networking gear pretty much ended my need for coveralls and flashlights, and I had to learn about (and master) RF ‘spectrum’, interference, and wireless security. Plug and Play’s finally maturing to functionality greatly reduced my printer install calls; but now there was “home entertainment centers” (with Dolby Surround Sound!) and “nanny cams” to install.

Today, the call coming into my shop – it seems – has a 50/50 shot of either being a nasty virus, or something like “I just synced my iPhone, and now I have three copies of each of my Contacts.” (or, “I just synced my iPhone, and now my Inbox is empty!“) We are transitioning to “cloud computing” – like it or not – and “mobile computing”.

People used to know better than to mix Apples and Windows (for one thing, it didn’t work), but today.. well most people seem to have at least one iGadget, maybe an Android phone (perhaps a BlackBerry), and their PC at home is Windows. And they expect them all to play together in some Utopian sense of “I paid for it, it should work.” Like.. the folks at Apple and the folks up in Redmond like each other, and go on picnics together.. and join hands and sing kumbaya, and the folks at Google just show up and join in. One big happy family. (I just made myself “lol”.)

“People are no longer tied to any specific location or device as they roam about getting work done on laptops, tablets, or even smartphones. The challenge is to keep everything synced so you can access the same data from each of those platforms.“

Well, here’s the real truth: it is not in Apple’s or Microsoft’s best interest to play well together, and in fact it profits them to try to “lock you into’ their products. Google? Yeah, it profits them to play nicely (and move you into the cloud) as their purpose is -> they want to learn every-single-thing they can about us, and then show us ads we don’t want to see.
Yippee.

Okay. So it’s 2011, and you want to keep your Outlook, iPad, and Blackberry all in “sync”, and you want it so, when you enter a new phone number for a Contact on one device, the Contact ‘merges’ seamlessly on your other devices with no errors, duplications, and do it in real time.
Good luck with that.

This is fledgling technology (learning to crawl), and everyone under the sun is selling some product which they claim can do this. But know this, (and I quote) “No perfect, seamless solution exists yet”.
Of course it doesn’t: this is all too new. This stuff isn’t even to version 1.0 yet, it sure seems to me. And there’s other agendas and cross-purposes in play as well (think “sales”).

But there are methods. Imperfect methods. But.. better than none, right?

For Outlook user who want syncing with iPads and/or iPhones, my (admittedly limited) experiences tell me you have two routes, really. And probably the best one is a $100/yr MobileMe account. Which, guess what? Is now closed for new sign ups (as of today?)(again, I made myself ‘lol’). But, coming this Fall, if you can wait that long, there will be a new version – called “iCloud“. Which probably will work.. and probably will stick around longer than MobileMe did… The other route is to ‘go Google’.. basically installing things so you can use Google’s (“cloud”) servers and services as your ‘middleman’. (So they can learn all your habits..)

What I suggest – if this topic is relevant to you – is you read this great PC World article: How to Keep Your Data in Sync Across Platforms and Devices

“Keeping your contacts, calendars, and other data synced across all your mobile devices and PC platforms isn’t as difficult as it seems.“

One thing about tech.. you have to constantly keep learning.. it isn’t sitting still! (TCP/IP v6 is here..)

Today’s (other) reading reco: Here is a Very Nice and Useful Firefox Add-On and Chrome Extension That Will Save You Paper

“Here is a nice Firefox add-on and Chrome extension, called iWeb2X,  that is engineered to convert a web page to a printer friendly PDF, image snapshot, or high resolution wallpaper. What sets this iWeb2X apart from the other PDF utilities out there is that no sign-up account is required and you get the following features: […]”

Today’s quote: “Do what you can, with what you have, where you are!” ~ Theodore Roosevelt

Copyright 2007-2011 © “Tech Paul” (Paul Eckstrom). All Rights Reserved.

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Contest Concludes In Just A Few Hours…

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** A Chance To Win A Valuable Prize! **

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The folks at SYNCING.NET have generously donated six Professional Edition licenses to me, to award to my readers. SYNCING.NET is a Business Class program which enables users to sync their Microsoft Outlook data on multiple computers.

To enter the drawing, please see: Software License Giveaway: SYNCING.NET
Enter my current giveaway and (possibly) win a pair of licenses!

Entries must be received before midnight (Pacific) tonight (Thurs. May 20th) so act now.

Copyright 2007-2010 © Tech Paul. All Rights Reserved. post to jaanix.

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Software License Giveaway: SYNCING.NET

Folks, I am pleased to announce my latest software license giveaway drawing.

The folks at SYNCING.NET have generously donated six Professional Edition licenses to me, to award to my readers. I sincerely thank them for that. So I am going to do a random drawing¹ contest from folks who “enter”. The contest will end midnight Thursday, and the winners announced Friday.

SYNCING.NET is a Business Class program which enables users to sync their Microsoft Outlook data on multiple computers. Contacts, calendars, notes, tasks, email, and Outlook features will be displayed the same on all your synchronized computers. The program provides secure, encrypted syncing (that doesn’t require a server), offline editing of files, and automatic document or file syncing of designated folders. SYNCING.NET keeps all your data in ‘real-time’ sync, which is automatically maintained.

Publisher’s description:
SYNCING.NET offers powerful Outlook synchronization, backup and file sharing tools for professional and personal use. By providing unique, secure peer-to-peer synchronization with integrated Outlook syncing and comprehensive file sharing, you can access your data anytime and any place. No additional software or expensive server hardware are needed to use our tools. SYNCING.NET gives you a powerful solution that is simple, secure and affordable.

“Syncing without Thinking“. We offer the most comprehensive syncing software with the highest security and best value.

• Real-time, seamless synchronization
• Automatic, background functionality
• No server or IT staff needed

Be aware, this software is pricey (it is “enterprise grade”) but if you are a “road warrior” and you’re tied to Outlook, I agree with PC World magazine reviewer Preston Gralla’s summation, “if you need to use Outlook on more than one PC regularly, you’ll find Syncing.net is well worth the price.” (See, Editorial Review of SYNCING.NET Home Edition)

How to enter? To enter the drawing, simply click on “comment”, and enter a name and valid e-mail (so I can send you the keys) in the form. Actually commenting is optional. And, I shouldn’t have to say this, but it seems I do — multiple entries will result in disqualification. (In this contest. Entry in prior contests doesn’t count against you.)

Note: Because a license is required for each machine to be synced, I am bundling the six into three prizes of a 2-license ‘pack’ (thus, a winner will be able to sync two machines).

While this contest is for the ultra-deluxe “Pro” Edition (which has some very kewl collaboration features) I believe that the majority of readers of this site will find the Home Edition more appropriate for their needs.
A 30-day, fully-functional free trial of SYNCING.NET can be downloaded here, Free 30-day trial (which includes features of the Business Edition) Try it out yourself. (And then leave a comment. You may just win one of these valuable prizes!) Again, I thank the folks at SYNCING.NET for making this giveaway possible.

¹ All entrants will be placed into Random.org’s “randomizer”, and the top 3 results will be the winners (of two licenses each).

Copyright 2007-2010 © Tech Paul. All Rights Reserved. post to jaanix.

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