iPhone 4 Announced

There’s no denying that when Apple makes a new product launch the world listens, and today is no different.  They’ve renamed their mobile operating system from iPhone OS 4 to iOS 4 and brought some much needed changes along for the ride.  Like Windows Mobile, iOS 4 lets you create folders to organize your applications and get rid of the dozens of pages of shortcuts which some users accumulate.  Like the newest Android smartphones iOS 4 now lets you shoot video in 720p high definitionm make video calls and includes fast switching between multiple email accounts.  And similar to HP/Palm’s WebOS there is now support for multiple Exchange Accounts  (you know who you are business people) and a unified email inbox so you don’t have to switch accounts at all.  We’re not going to go into the entire list of changes so feel free to click the picture above and check out full coverage of the WWDC Event and iPhone 4 over at Engadget.

Free and easy Windows troubleshooting by Microsoft, Fixit Center

Over the weekend we got news of a very quiet product release by Microsoft, the free Fixit Center application.  We’ve given it a try and think this program may serve a lot of our clients well as a first line of support.  After being installed Fixit Center automatically grabs all of the relevant details about your computer and looks for any problems you may have been having.  From there you must sign in with a Windows Live ID (don’t worry if you don’t know what that is, it’s just a free account with Microsoft and doesn’t automatically share any of your personal information) before the troubleshooter opens.  After that you’re presented with a list of automated troubleshooters which did fix a couple small problems on our test machine.  However, even if the Fixit Center doesn’t solve your problems it does record all the relevant details about your issue and give you the option to forward that to a professional technician.  It’s free, works pretty well and even if it can’t solve your problem it will assist a real person in getting your computer back to normal.  We like it and will be recommending it to all of our clients.

Make the move to Google Apps

Has your company been considering the move to Google Apps?  Many organizations are still getting by with expensive servers to host their own email accounts.  A recent poll from Gartner has shown that 80% of IT budgets are spent on  maintenance.  In this economic environment that kind of waste can put  a significant pinch on your bottom line.  Google Apps gives you a maintenance free, secure, and easy to use solution for your email, calendar, contacts, and documents.  Google Apps has been adopted by organizations ranging from the Government of the District of Columbia to Motorola.  Click on “Contact” above to talk to a TechMinds representative about your specific situation.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) for free

There are literally thousands of companies out there who will charge you or your business an arm and a leg for better results in Bing, Google, or Yahoo!.  And while we wouldn’t discourage any of our clients from using those services, a few minutes and a free tool from Microsoft could save your organization a lot of money.  Enter the free Microsoft SEO Toolkit, a powerful and very easy to use program which will tell you exactly what can be done to improve your website.  We’ve tested it here on the official TechMinds site and were pleasantly surprised at the productive feedback it creates.  You don’t need any real knowledge about how your website works to get results, to give it a try click on the picture above or follow the link after this post.

http://www.iis.net/expand/SEOToolkit

Video Short: Comparing Smartphone Virtual Keyboards

Keeping your bookmarks in sync

Whether your web browser of choice is Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome or Apple’s Safari there’s a quick and easy way to make sure all of your bookmarks are the same on every computer you use.  Over the years we’ve seen homes without a computer dwindle,  now it’s not surprising for a family to have two or more (Macs or PCs) in the house.  This creates a problem most people haven’t had to face until now, how do you manage all of the bookmarks you’ve accumulated over the years?  And why can’t these software companies make it easy to sync your bookmarks across different computers.  We’ve done the legwork for you by testing out each of the free solutions on the market, and we’ve compiled a short list of recommendations depending on which browser you prefer.

Internet Explorer - Xmarks the spot (please forgive us, we couldn’t resist) when it comes to most of the popular web browsers on the market and Microsoft’s is no exception.  In return for signing up for a free account with the Xmarks crew you’ll use your username and password to sign into their secure servers (once for each computer you use) and then follow the prompts to sync your bookmarks across computers.  It’s secure, easy to use and will automatically update your information as soon as a new bookmark is entered, making it easier to just enjoy your time online.

Mozilla Firefox - Originally named FoxMarks, Xmarks began as a very humble Firefox extension which let users sync bookmarks between computers.  Where the Firefox version sets itself apart is that not only will your bookmarks remain in sync, but you can choose to do the same with your password as well.  The Xmarks servers are very secure and this is a great feature for those of us with a thousand different online passwords and no method for remembering them.  If your use Firefox then Xmarks is a must have add-on.

Google Chrome - With a very colorful advertising campaign and the fastest browser on the market Google Chrome had developed a devoted following in short order.  Over the coming months it’s quite possible that we’ll recommend Xmarks here.  However, Chrome itself is still pretty closed to the outside world for the time being and we’re not comfortable with this version of Xmarks as it stands today.  To Google’s credit they acknowledged this shortcoming with a feature of their own creatively called “Google Chrome Bookmark Sync.”  By downloading the newest version of Chrome here you can use this new feature to sync your bookmarks instantly.  Google has posted a helpful video here (Windows only for now).

Apple Safari - Fear not Mac users, your bookmarks aren’t left out in the cold.  Xmarks also provides a version of their software which will sync with Safari (whether you use Leopard or Snow Leopard).  By clicking here you can compare the Mac version of Xmarks to the others and pick the one that’s right for you.  The standout feature for the Mac is that you can use Xmarks to keep your bookmarks in sync with all of your computers, and your iPhone or iPod Touch.  This is perfect for everyone who uses these devices to suf the web on the go and hates entering your favorite sites over and over again.

Windows 7 is just around the corner

We’ve got word tonight from Engadget that some lucky retail outlets in Chicago have started receiving their shipments of Windows 7 from Microsoft.  We’ve been using the new operating system for months now and it’s hard to reign in the excitement.  There really is no good reason anymore to stick with Windows XP, and we’re willing to bet a good number of Vista users will be jumping ship as well.  Windows 7 is downright snappy, and much more user friendly than past versions of Windows.

There’s an App Store for that!

Back when a Smartphone was just a PDA and your cell phone was a new thing (the ancient 1990′s), loading third party applications to make your device more fun or productive could be dangerous.  You never knew if you’d create the perfect storm by installing different programs and turn your prized piece of “geekery” into a paperweight.  Thankfully that’s no longer the case.  Every Smartphone operating system on the market right now either has a highly successful app store, or is planning on launching before the end of 2009.  So no matter if you prefer the iPhone, or are totally smitten with Android, there IS an app store for you.

App Store (Apple) – Over 1.5 billion applications downloaded in only one year, with over 65,000 available.  Very impressive.

App Catalog (Palm) – Only a few dozen application available so far, but with more in the works the future looks good for the Pre.

Android Market (Google) – With dozens of new phones launching over the next year, keep your eyes on Android.

Ovi Store (Nokia) – One of the oldest and most popular Smartphone operating systems worldwide.

Windows Marketplace for Mobile (Microsoft) – Still the main competitor from Blackberry in the corporate world; will launch this fall.

Blackberry App World (RIM) – Always popular among heavy email and text users; available in 10 new countries by the end of July.