Fitness with FitBit

I've recently purchased a FitBit device so that I can pay closer attention to my activity level and overall fitness.  I like the dashboard that gives me steps, distance, and other statistics at a glance.  I can also track my sleep, my food intake and any exercise.

Once  I reach my steps goal for the day, it vibrates and flashes on my wrist, so I know that I've made it.  It's nice to get that little bit of feedback.

Unfortunately, it does not register steps when I use a stationary bike.  That's a bummer, but it's perhaps a good excuse to buy either a treadmill or elliptical machine.

There are a lot of great fitness apps, including pedometers and other trackers, that are available for my smart phone, as well.  I'll have to try out a few and give some thoughts on them here... stay tuned.

I'm way too sedentary most days, so I really need to "step" it up... wish  me luck!

Small Business Saturday is 11/28!

Have a favorite shop in your local downtown?  I know that I have a few.  The "official" small business Saturday event is always Thanksgiving weekend, so it's coming up on 11/28.  I'm not sure who started this concept, perhaps some retail association, but it's a great idea.

So get out there and start your holiday shopping on Saturday, 11/28 at all of your local shops.  The small business owners will really appreciate it, and it's a big help to your whole community.

If you're local to the western suburbs of Detroit, try downtown Milford or Howell for some unique shops with great gift ideas.  Maybe I'll see you there!

Fall Clean Up for Your PC

The colors are changing outside, and I'm thinking now would be a good time to do some basic maintenance on your PC in order to improve performance.  As always, if you need assistance with any of these tasks, feel free to contact me.


Here are some suggestions, including links to some free tools:

1. Do you have old photos or other files that you no longer need on your hard drive, but can't totally delete?  Purchase an external hard drive and move them off your hard drive and onto the external drive as an archive.  
2. Backup your essential files, if you're not doing it already.  You can use a tool like Microsoft's Synctoy to easily run a comparison of selected folders and back up any files that have changed since your last run.  To download and install Synctoy, which is easy enough for a novice to use it, click here, it's free.  If you have a backup tool such as Ghost, set it to run automatic backups for you on a regular basis (again could use your external drive).  This is good practice for your own protection.
3. Run a tool like CCleaner to get rid of old browsing history and other junk files that can clutter your PC and degrade performance.  Download CCleaner here.  There are several versions, including a free one.
4. Start using a password manager, such as RoboForm, rather than using the same password for everything (or writing them down).  Download RoboForm here.  There are free and paid versions, but I recommend the "Anywhere" version so that you can use it on all of your devices and any changes you make are synced.
5. Set up a DropBox account, if you don't have one already.  Take advantage of their feature which automatically uploads a copy of the photos from your phone, so that you have a backup (and easier access to them).  It's also great for sharing files with friends, family and business associates.  Download DropBox here.
6. If you have an anti-virus package, and you're not running scans automatically, you should run a scan right away.  Also, turn on the automatic scans so that you don't need to remember to do it regularly, it is dangerous not to do it often.  Hackers and scammers don't take vacations...
7. Apply any windows updates that are pending for your system.  If you don't have them set to update automatically, you should consider it, especially if you don't do regular maintenance yourself.

iPhone Setup for Emergencies - Medical Data

Hopefully you'll never need this, but just in case...

If you are ever hurt and end up unconscious in a hospital, how will they know who you are or contact your family?  You can save basic medical data such as allergies, emergency contacts, birthdate, etc. into the Health app on an iPhone (it's a built in app).  Open the Health app and touch the "Medical ID" option at the bottom right.  Then type in what ever details you'd like to save (you'll be able to look up your emergency contact information in your stored Contacts).

If and when it's needed, medical personnel can get to it on your phone by touching "Emergency" on your lock screen (bottom left corner).  When the screen changes to the "Emergency Call" style, it has an option at the bottom left that says "*Medical ID" that they can touch.  It will then display the details that you saved in the Health app.

I originally saw this posted on Facebook, and I've done it myself so I know that it works.  I hope you never need it...

Small Business Survival - Do You Have a Website?

This week, I needed to get in contact with a landscape contractor who I'd spoken with in the past.  I didn't have his phone number or name in my mobile phone, and I couldn't remember the name of his company.  I did a few google searches in an attempt to try to find him, and could not find him.

Fortunately for him, I was able to find his advertising postcard later that day, so I was able to contact him in the end.  Apparently he does not have a website for his company, which surprised me.  So many of the smallest businesses all have websites now, which it makes me wonder why he doesn't have one.  I'll have to  ask  him about it...

I also have a friend who owns a small business and we've talked about websites for her company many times in the past.  This week she contacted me about doing a website for her, so that project will be in my very near future.

I'm sure the slow economy has caused the death of many small businesses over the past several years.  I wonder how many of them had never bothered to create a website, thinking it was an expense they couldn't afford.  Perhaps some of the ones that survived were the ones that had websites and/or other technology tools that they were using effectively (email marketing, client databases, mail merges, accounting software, etc.).

Creating a website doesn't have to be expensive, and you don't need to be an expert.  Don't assume that you can't afford to hire someone to do it for you.  It is always worth it to ask around and get some quotes from providers that others have recommended to you.

If the price for a custom site is out of reach, then there are services available now that you can use to do it yourself.  Beware - sometimes a really bad website is worse than having no website at all.  Ugly sites with loads of text and colors that clash will not help your business to attract customers.  Try to focus on the most critical, minimum information and use a simple but attractive design.  Even if you just have a home page with your contact information and some basic details of the services you offer, that's a useful tool.  Give people the ability to find you in those google searches, and good things will come your way.

Are Phone Conversations Becoming Extinct?

I have two sons, ages 10 and 13.  I've recently noticed that they avoid using our house phone as if it's a rabid animal about to bite them.  Neither of them have mobile phones yet, so if they want to contact a friend, they typically ask me to call or text the mother.

One day recently I refused to make the contact for my older son, since he has the phone numbers of his friend (both home and mobile).  I forced him to actually CALL his friend himself. What a revelation.   He could barely use the house phone (and habitually uses the speaker function rather than holding it to his head, oddly).

What the heck are we teaching our kids?  Is it really such a big deal to call and actually SPEAK to someone?  What will he do when he gets a mobile phone later this summer?  I suspect that he'll use it almost exclusively to text, rather than to actually make phone calls.  I'm curious to see how that pans out over the next few months... stay tuned.

I suspect it's laziness that is at play here.  I mean really, is it that much more effort to call and have a 5 minute conversation?  Especially if the person you are trying to reach is not responding to your texts?  My kids just have no idea about the normal etiquette for contacting people.  When you try to text someone and they don't respond, then try to call and they don't answer - it's pretty obvious that they are not home or not available.  Calling them repeatedly is not going to change anything, and you're being a pest!  Yet another thing that I'll be teaching them, starting now.

Transferring Your Website to a new Hosting Vendor

Unhappy with your current hosting vendor for your website?  Running out of space or paying too much?  If you're thinking of moving your site to a new home, please keep these questions in mind:

• Where is your domain name registered?  Find out, because you'll have to login to the account with your domain registrar and tell them the new DNS (server name) of your new website host.  If you don't do this, your site will not actually be "moved" because people will still be seeing the contents at the old location when they go to your domain name.
• How much space do you currently have?  How much do you need?
• Do you need any special tools, such as PHP, web statistics, or others?
• Do you know how (and have access to) to move the contents of your site (text, images, etc.)? 
• Or do you have a support vendor that will need to actually copy your site contents to the new location?

If some or all of these questions are completely confusing to you, please contact me.  I can educate you on what is involved in a website move, and assist with moving your site, if needed.