• Meeting and Q&A with Harry
• Annual Report
• Elections
• Approval of proposed bylaws changes
• Presentation to be determined
Minutes for November 16, 2022
by Madelyn van der Hoogt, Secretary
The meeting (held by Zoom) was called to order by Harry Anderson at 4:03 p.m.; 17 members were in attendance.
Harry announced that there will be no meeting in December; our next meeting will be the annual January membership meeting (by Zoom) on Wednesday, January 18, at 4 p.m.
We will continue with our monthly Zoom meetings for now. They are working well and make it possible for people all over the island to attend without traveling. The meetings will use a Q and A format. Members can send in questions at any time to the MAGIC email . If some questions require complex answers, our experts will prepare mini-presentations, which will be announced beforehand.
The Board of Directors is currently revising our Bylaws and will present them at the January meeting (our annual business meeting) in addition to the Q and A program. The Board is reminded that we will have a brief meeting after today's presentation.
Gary McIntyre gave the treasurer's report: $8,904.53. Gary has filed the annual 995N c report for 2021 (only one can be filed each year).
Ron Sharp then presented the November program on Editing Photos.
The main meeting was adjourned at 5:05 pm.
MAGIC Musings
Greetings and best wishes for a happy holiday on Whidbey Island or wherever your travels may take you!
It's been a great year at MAGIC as we continued to meet monthly via Zoom and enjoyed a terrific set of presentations by our experts Robert, Ron and Gary. Just as a reminder, here's what we learned about this year: iMovie techniques, Managing Photos, Preferences, All About Printers, Creating Presentations, Apple Mail, Calendars, Pages part 1 & part 2, and Photo Editing. Also, please remember that the video recordings of all those presentations are available on the web site: www.whidbey.com/magicmug/
We will not meet on Zoom this month. Our next regular meeting will be January 18, 2023 at 4 p.m.
At our November meeting, we told you that our Board has made the decision that going forward all our monthly meetings will be a general Q&A format, although some may be "mini-presentations" depending on the complexity of the questions asked. We had an excellent general Q&A session during our October meeting, and it's evident that MAGIC members always have a lot of questions needing answers and advice. To make this work, we will need you to send your questions in advance so our experts have time to do some research. Send questions, as many as you'd like, by email to magicmug@whidbey.net and our experts will pick them up there.
Our Board has also made some revisions to our bylaws as a nonprofit organization, reflecting who we are now. At our January meeting, our members can discuss these changes and we will vote to approve them. The draft of the new bylaws will be available this month on our MAGIC web site.
Happy holidays and see you on January 18!
Harry Anderson
MAGIC President
Note: This Software Update section of the newsletter lists the most relevant Apple updates. Not all updates are listed for all products. Additionally, I'll add other pertinent updates on occasion.
Apple releases iOS 16.1.2 with Crash Detection improvements for iPhone 14 users
by Filipe Espósito, 9to5mac
Apple on Wednesday released iOS 16.1.2 for all users. The update, which is now available, improves the reliability of the Crash Detection feature for iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Pro users. According to Apple, it also improves compatibility with wireless carriers.
What's new with iOS 16.1.2
According to Apple, iOS 16.1.2 also brings important security patches. Here are the full release notes for the update:
This update provides important security updates and the following enhancements for your iPhone:
Improved compatibility with wireless carriers
Crash Detection optimizations on iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Pro models
With Crash Detection, iPhone 14 models can automatically call an emergency service when the phone detects a car crash. However, a month ago, a small number of users complained that the feature was erroneously triggered when they were on a roller coaster. Apple then explained that the feature uses G-force sensors combined with other data to detect a crash, but the company acknowledged that G-force on a roller coaster could fool the system.
It's unclear how exactly Apple is improving Crash Detection with iOS 16.1.2, but since the feature is based on algorithms to detect potential car crashes, Apple is probably tweaking the system to make those algorithms more accurate.
The build number for iOS 16.0.2 is 20B110. iOS 16.1.1, released on November 9 under build number 20B101, brought bug fixes and security updates. Users can now update their devices to the latest iOS version by going to the Software Update menu within the Settings app. It's worth noting that this update is only for iPhone, so there is no iPadOS 16.1.2 for iPad users.
Following today's release of iOS 16.1.2, Apple's next software update for iPhone users will be iOS 16.2. This update is currently in testing with developers and public beta users. It includes a number of new features and changes, such as Apple's new Freefrom collaboration app, updates to the Home app, and more. It's expected to be released in mid-December.
Apple Launches Revamped iCloud.com Website With All-New Design
by Joe Rossignol, macrumors
Apple today rolled out a new design on iCloud.com following several weeks of beta testing. The page now features a colorful wallpaper with tiles for your Apple ID account and Apple apps like Photos, Mail, iCloud Drive, Calendar, and Notes. There is also a tile with icons for additional apps like Find My, Pages, Numbers, Keynote, and more.
icloud com redesign
The page can be customized, with users able to choose which apps appear in each tile or remove a tile entirely. The bottom of the page displays your iCloud storage plan and usage, as well as a link to recover recently deleted files from iCloud Drive and other apps.
In the top menu bar, users can click or tap on the plus sign to create a new email, note, calendar event, and more. The menu also provides access to settings for iCloud+ features such as Hide My Email, iCloud Private Relay, and HomeKit Secure Video.
All in all, the redesigned iCloud.com page provides a more streamlined experience that makes it easier to view information at a glance.
How to Use All the New Features in macOS Ventura's Mail App
by Dennis Sellers, macsales
Apple has made several improvements to the Mail app in macOS Ventura, adding some much requested featured and tweaking some long-time features. My favorite new features are the ability to schedule when an mail is sent and the ability to undo the sending of an email.
How to schedule when an email is sent
Launch Mail and compose an email as you normally would.
Click on the side of the Send button and a dropdown menu will appear.
Select one of the suggested times, or click Send Later.
Use the date and time picker to schedule your email.
Click on Schedule.
A new mailbox called Send Later will appear with your message and its scheduled send time displayed. It will be sent at that time — unless you turn off your Mac.
If you need to reschedule when an email is sent:
Launch Mail and open the Send Later mailbox.
Double-click the message. You'll see the time that the message is scheduled to send.
How MacOS Ventura's System Settings Differs from the previous System Preferences
by Dennis Sellers, macsales
With macOS Ventura, Apple has revamped the System Preferences app and given it a new name: System Settings. (However, you should note that settings for apps are still dubbed Preferences and are found in each app's Preferences menu).
System Settings from before Ventura
In System Settings in macOS Ventura, the icon view is gone. It's been replaced by a list in the left column. In the old System Preferences app, clicking an icon would open a setting's window. In System Settings, the setting that you click on appears in the main part of the window. Plus, some settings have been moved around in System Settings.
System Settings
Also, in System Settings, Apple has bid adieu to checkboxes for the various settings replacing them with toggles. This make macOS Ventura look more like iOS 16 and iPadOS 16 (which certainly) isn't an accident on Apple's part.
Search for a setting in macOS Monterey or older versions, and the System Preferences app would highlight the matching section with a spotlight. Not so with macOS Ventura.
The new System Settings shows search results directly in the Sidebar. Click on one of the results, and the search results stay onscreen. This takes a little adjusting, but it's pretty convenient. Now if you accidentally click on the wrong section, you don't have to do another search. Just click the "x" button in the search bar and click on another option.
For example, this is what you see if you search for Time Machine in System Settings:
Search for Time Machine
What's more, some former System Preferences settings have moved in System Settings. And some settings formerly found in the Dock and/or Menu Bar are now found in the Control Center.
However, to make matters somewhat confusing, Apple has moved items such as the Menu Bar, Dock, and home screen options to the Desktop and Dock tab. And Software Update, Date and Time, Language and Region are listed under the General section. Siri and Spotlight now share a settings page. Also, Login Items used to be under Users & Groups, but it's now in General.
Desktop & Dock
Moving on, the "About This Mac" panel has ditched the shortcut for Software Update and tabs for Display, Storage, Support have all been removed from the window. Clicking the "More Info" button takes you to the General > About section, which displays info about your Mac.
System Settings > General
Finally, System Settings in macOS Ventura has added other new sections:
Game Controllers
Game Center
Lock Screen (this was previously tin Security & Privacy)
Screen Saver (this was previously in Desktop & Screen Saver)
Wallpaper (this was previously in Desktop & Screen Saver)
Apple debuts Advanced Data Protection to bring end-to-end encryption to Messages in iCloud, Photos, device backups, much more
by Chance Miller, 9to5mac
Apple has announced a dramatic expansion of end-to-end encryption for its various cloud services. Called Advanced Data Protection, this initiative expands end-to-end encryption to a number of additional iCloud services, including iCloud device backups, Messages backups, Photos, and much more.
iCloud already offered end-to-end encryption for 14 different data categories, including things like iCloud Keychain and Health data. Today's expansion, however, brings the number of data categories protected by end-to-end encryption to 23. The new iCloud services and data types now protected by end-to-end encryption are:
Device Backups
Messages Backups
iCloud Drive
Notes
Photos
Reminders
Safari Bookmarks
Siri Shortcuts
Voice Memos
Wallet Passes
"iCloud encrypts your data to keep it secure," Apple explains. "Advanced Data Protection uses end-to-end encryption to ensure that iCloud data types listed here can only be decrypted on your trusted devices, protecting your information even in the case of a data breach in the cloud."
At launch, Advanced Data Protection will be opt-in only, meaning you have to go into the Settings app and navigate to the iCloud menu to enable the feature. While the idea is that the feature will presumably eventually expand to be enabled for everyone, it's still early in the implementation.
If you enable Advanced Data Protection, it means that no one will hold the keys to decrypt this data, including Apple. The only way to access the data is through one of your trusted Apple devices like your iPhone, iPad, or Mac.
This means that if you lose access to your devices, you will only be able to regain access using a recovery key or recovery contact. Because of this, if you enable the Advanced Data Protection feature, you'll be guided through the process of setting up at least one recovery contact or recovery key before the feature is turned on.
Ivan Krstić, Apple's head of security engineering and architecture, explained that this is Apple's "highest level of cloud data security."
"Advanced Data Protection is Apple's highest level of cloud data security, giving users the choice to protect the vast majority of their most sensitive iCloud data with end-to-end encryption so that it can only be decrypted on their trusted devices."
Advanced Data Protection is launching today in the latest iOS 16.2 beta. It will be available to everyone in the United States by the end of this year, with an expansion to the rest of the world slated for early 2023.
9to5Mac's Take
This marks a huge upgrade to Apple's cloud services in terms of encryption. In particular, the lack of end-to-end encryption for Messages in the cloud and device backups has been one of the most common complaints among users. While iMessage as a service has been end-to-end encrypted since the beginning, the loophole in the chain was that the iCloud backups and Messages backups were not end-to-end encrypted.
As Apple explains:
Messages in iCloud is end-to-end encrypted when iCloud Backup is disabled. When iCloud Backup is enabled, your backup includes a copy of the Messages in iCloud encryption key to help you recover your data. If you turn off iCloud Backup, a new key is generated on your device to protect future Messages in iCloud. This key is end-to-end encrypted between your devices and isnʼt stored by Apple.
But with the new Advanced Data Protection feature enabled, Messages in iCloud is "always end-to-end encrypted." So when iCloud Backup is enabled, "everything inside it is end-to-end encrypted, including the Messages in iCloud encryption key."
With this expansion, there are only three major iCloud data categories not covered by end-to-end encryption: iCloud Mail, Contacts, and Calendar. Apple says this because of these services needing to rely on protocols that "interoperate with the global email, contacts, and calendar systems."
More technical details are available in Apple's Platform Security guide. There's also a new support document with more details and an overview of end-to-end encryption for each service.
iPad buying guide 2022: Complete guide to all the iPads
by David Price and Karen Haslam, Macworld
Wondering which iPad is best? We discuss iPad sizes, processor speeds, price tags and more in our iPad buying guide, updated for summer 2022.
Which iPad is best for you? There is a lot of choice and it can be confusing. There are four different varieties of iPad, listed below, and each is available with or without cellular (including 5G on certain models), which costs extra. That's before we get into storage capacity, colors, and second-hand alternatives.
Our in-depth buying guide assesses the whole range of iPads sold by Apple and explores all the factors that should influence your iPad buying decision such as value for money, how much storage you need, and whether or not to buy a cellular version. We also reveal whether an updated version of each device is likely to be launched soon - answering the question of whether now is a good time to buy an iPad.
If you're thinking of buying an iPad for college or university you might also like to read our Best iPad for students guide. You may also like to read our Best iPad for kids guide.
How to improve iPhone 14 battery life: Why your battery is draining and 7 tips to boost it
Michael potuck, macworld
If you're seeing faster battery drain than expected with iPhone 14 or 14 Pro you're not alone. However, that doesn't necessarily mean there's a problem with your phone. Here's a look at 7 tips and tricks to improve iPhone 14 battery life as well as why you might be seeing spikes in battery use.
The iPhone 14 lineup comes with what Apple says is roughly 1 hour longer battery for each model and the 14 and 14 Pro do feature larger mAh capacities (14 Pro Max capacity is ever so slightly less but battery life is up).
Apple's New Cutout Tool Magically Isolates Subjects and Removes Backgrounds from Images on Your iPhone
by Daniel Hipskind, gadgethacks
One of the most useful new features Apple included on iOS 16 lets you instantly lift the subject out of a photo, separating it from the background. Once extracted, you can paste, save, or drop the cutout wherever you want as a new image, and you can even make it a sticker in messaging apps.
Before, you would have to use a third-party app like Erase.bg or Photoshop Express on your iPhone to cut out the subject in the photo automatically. Now, you can easily lift and cut out objects in pictures without needing an extra app. Apple has built the feature into iOS 16, and it works inside Photos, Files, Messages, Safari, and apps that utilize Quick Look, as well as in screenshots. The change also appears on iPadOS 16.1 for iPad and macOS 13 Ventura for Mac, both released on Oct. 24.
Apple's demonstration, seen below, shows how a dog can be isolated from the background in a photo and then dragged and dropped into the Messages app.
Apple analytics data sent from iPhones with or without consent; class action lawsuit filed
by Ben Lovejoy, 9to5mac
A security researcher has discovered that Apple analytics data is collected and sent from iPhones, whether or not users consented during the setup process. The amount of data collected was described by the researcher as "shocking."
A class action lawsuit has now filed, which says that Apple's privacy promises are "completely illusory" …
Background
The discovery was made by developer and security researcher Tommy Mysk, who previously found that many Apple apps bypass VPN connections when sending data to Apple.
He ran his own tests, looking at which IP addresses were being accessed when a VPN was active, and found that many stock Apple apps ignored the VPN tunnel and instead communicated directly with Apple servers.
This means that all the data sent to and from these servers is at risk from snooping by ISPs or hackers operating man-in-the-middle attacks, using easy-to-create fake Wi-Fi hotspots.
Mysk previously discovered that the Mail app on the Apple Watch was not using the Mail Privacy Protection feature. Apple subsequently fixed this.
Apple Card has been around for a few years now and, with it, Daily Cash. Up until now, you've only had one place to house all of that cash back: the Apple Cash Card.
It appears that Apple has decided to give everyone another option and has announced that it is launching a new savings account exclusively for Apple Card users. Jennifer Bailey, Apple's vice president of Apple Pay and Apple Wallet, says that its new savings account is another tool for its users to "lead healthier financial lives."
"Savings enables Apple Card users to grow their Daily Cash rewards over time, while also saving for the future. Savings delivers even more value to users' favorite Apple Card benefit — Daily Cash — while offering another easy-to-use tool designed to help users lead healthier financial lives," reads a statement from Apple on the new launch.
But what exactly will it offer, and is it worth moving your savings into an Apple-branded vault? Here's everything we know so far about the Apple Savings account.
Wizard Sez: Members should, of course, seek financial council before embarking on any saving scheme.
How to customize your iPhone 14 Pro always-on display in iOS 16.2
by Michael Potuck, 9to5mac
Apple introduced its first smartphone with an always-on display with the iPhone 14 Pro. Now with the upcoming iOS 16.2 release, users will get flexibility with the feature to make it more subtle. Here's how to customize iPhone always-on display.
While the iPhone 14 Pro gaining an always-on display has been welcome overall, some have felt it's a bit much with colored wallpapers plus notifications.
With iOS 16.2 (currently in beta), Apple is set to please those looking for customization as you can opt to disable the wallpaper and notifications for the always-on display. That results in a more subtle - and Android-like - always-on experience.
How to customize iPhone always-on display in iOS 16.2
Note: iOS 16.2 is currently available for developers or public beta testers (learn how to install). The public release is expected in the coming weeks.
On your iPhone 14 Pro or Pro Max open the Settings app
Swipe down and choose Display & Brightness
Swipe down and tap Always On Display
Underneath the main toggle, now you can turn off your wallpaper and/or notifications
Here's how the process looks to customize iPhone always-on display:
Customize iPhone always-on display 1
Apple is expected to release iOS 16.2 for everyone sometime in December. However, if you want to get your hands on this feature early, you can install the public beta for free. We've got a full explainer here if you haven't done it before: How to install the iOS 16 beta.
As a reminder, per Apple, no matter how you customize the always-on feature, the display will go completely dark if:
Your iPhone is lying face down
Your iPhone is in your pocket or bag
Sleep Focus is on
Low Power Mode is on
Your iPhone is connected to CarPlay
You're using Continuity Camera
You haven't used your iPhone for a while (your iPhone learns your activity patterns and turns the display off and on accordingly, including if you set up an alarm or sleep schedule)
Your iPhone detects that you moved away from it with a paired Apple Watch (Always-On display will turn on when your Apple Watch is close to your iPhone again)
Turning pages can now only be done by tapping on the right side of the page. The beautiful animation that allowed the page to be turned by dragging a finger from the right side slowly towards the left.
The controls are now in the bottom right hand corner and are normally invisible. To activate them you need to guess where the icon is and tap on it to make it visible:
New control icon after it has been made visible in bootom right corner of the screen
New control icon after it has been made visible and you are on a bookmarked page
Clicking on the new contrl icon provides a pop-up menu that gives these options:
Contents - How far threought the book you are
Bookmarks & Highlights - Click on this takes you to the page which list all the Bookmarks and highlights you have generated so far
Search Book - clicking on this brings up the search engine which allows you to find words or phrases in the books
Themes & Settings - takes you to the new settings that comtrol the look and feel of the pages in this book
The export icon - allows you to export items from the book to other apps
The bookmark icon - tapping this bookmarks the page you are on.
Pop-up menu for the Control icon
The Themes & and Settings menu item will invoke a new subwindow at the bottom of the page. Here you can change the size of the font for this book with the two 'A' icons. The next icon changes from single page to double page display. And the sun icon allows the user to chose light and dark modes.
The bottom row provides a set of default layouts. These can be controlled by the user.
Themes & Settings window
Themes & Settings window with the lightness submenu
The settings option in the Themes & Settings window brings up the following window called the "Paper Options"
Paper Options window
In the Paper Options window the user can chose fonts and make other adjustments to the themes.
Wizard's Take
This version was seems to have been made by programmers who are not into reading books and did not bother to consult with those of us who do. It is overly complicated for the average book reader. I took me a while to figure out how to use it. Not intuitive at all.
I am afraid that this update rates in the same category as the Pages upgrade that was made earlier in the millenium and caused a lot of negative feedback. I miss the page turn animation - it was not necessary but it was beautiful and cudos should be given to the creator. If Apple are listening - Please go back to the previous version. Listen to book readers before any future updates
Back to the drawing board please!
How to see your heart rate zones on Apple Watch and iPhone during or after workouts
by Michael Potuck, 9to5mac
A handy new health and fitness feature comes with watchOS 9 and iOS 16 that's available both during and after workouts. Follow along for how to see heart rate zones on Apple Watch and iPhone, what they mean, how to see your max heart rate, manually edit your zones, and more.
In watchOS 9, Apple Watch and iPhone automatically creates your five heart rate zones based on the Heart Rate Reserve method. Max and resting values are updated automatically on the first day of each month.
Here's how Apple describes the new feature:
"Heart Rate Zones are a percentage of your maximum heart rate and are automatically calculated and personalized using your health data. On Apple Watch, Heart Rate Zones are presented in five segments—effort levels from light to increasingly harder. By monitoring your Heart Rate Zone, you can make your workout more efficient and challenge yourself to improve your fitness."
See heart rate zones during a workout
Make sure you're running watchOS 9 on Apple Watch and also have your birthdate entered in the Health app on iPhone
Start a cardio-focused workout like a run or cycling (Apple hasn't shared exactly which workout types include heart rate zones except for "cardio-focused" ones
Swipe down on the first Workout screen to see your heart rate and which zone it's in>
See heart rate zones after a workout
After a workout, head to the Fitness app on iPhone to see heart rate zone data
Choose a workout from the main Summary screen or tap the rings or Show More to pick a different date/workout
Once you've picked a workout, swipe down until you see Heart Rate, tap Show More
Now you'll see the breakdown of how much time you spent in each heart rate zone:
How to manually edit your heart rate zones
While the heart rate zones are automatically added based on your age, height, and weight, you can manually change them (usually for advanced athletes).
Head to Settings > Workout > Heart Rate Zones on your Apple Watch and choose Manual at the top
Or on iPhone go to the Apple Watch app > Workout > Heart Rate Zones then choose Manual at the top
How to see your max heart rate?
Going beyond your max heart rate is considered unsafe by medical professionals. To see your recommended maximum:
Head to Settings > Workout > Heart Rate Zones on your Apple Watch, swipe down to find your max heart rate
Or on iPhone go to the Apple Watch app > Workout > Heart Rate Zones, swipe down to find your max heart rate
What do heart rate zones mean?
Understanding your heart rate zones can be useful in a variety of ways. But some of the most common practical applications are using heart rate training (properly rest or push yourself), target ing fat-burning or carb-burning heart rate zones, and awareness for those who have health conditions.
The Cleveland Clinic has a helpful article on understanding what kind of calories you're burning in different zones. This won't map directly to the five heart rate zones with Apple Watch, but is a good starting point.
Use your max heart rate (details on finding above) to figure out the numbers from the below calculations:
Lower-intensity zone: You're exercising at 50% to 60% of your max heart rate. At this point, 85% of the calories you burn are fat. The downside? You're burning fewer calories overall than you would if you were exercising at a higher intensity. You're generally able to sustain this zone the longest amount of time.
Temperate zone: You're exercising at 60% to 70% of your max heart rate. Roughly 65% of the calories you burn are fat.
Aerobic zone: Working at 70% to 80% of your max heart rate puts you in the aerobic zone. About 45% of the calories you burn are fat. But you're burning a higher number of overall calories compared to the other heart rate zones. You generally sustain this zone the shortest amount of time.
For heart rate training, the big idea is to "train your aerobic system without overstressing your skeletal and muscular systems, explains personal trainer Erin Carr." Check out this article from Runner's World for all the fine details:
One of the biggest critiques about the Apple Watch since the beginning has been its battery life. Here's how to use Low Power Mode which can up to double your battery life.
"Low Power Mode maintains many of the core features of Apple Watch" said Deidre Caldbeck, the director of Apple Watch Product Marketing, at Apple's September 2022 event. "Providing maximum battery savings with the least impact to the user experience."
Though not in the original watchOS 9 betas, Apple surprised users by announcing the feature at their "Far Out" Apple Event in September 2022.
Apple Watch Sleep Tracking: Everything you need to know
by Graham Barlow, imore
(Image credit: IKEA / Apple)
Sleep is important because without it we would, quite literally, lose our minds. And with an Apple Watch on your wrist, be that an Apple Watch Series 7, Series 8, SE, Apple Watch Ultra or other, you've got some great options to help track and improve your night's rest.
Sleep provides your brain with the essential opportunity to rest and repair itself. According to the Sleep foundation, every year, the United States loses 1.23 million working days due to insufficient sleep (opens in new tab) and sleep-deprived workers are twice as likely to miss work as their better-slept colleagues. And not only does a lack of sleep hit you in the wallet, it changes your mood too. If you are sleep deprived you are more likely to become irritable, anxious and depressed.
Sleep deprivation also massively decreases your performance. I wouldn't be surprised if it is the thing that eventually ends the human race. Remember the Chernobyl nuclear plant accident in 1986? That began at 1:23 a.m. because of human error. The Three Mile Island nuclear disaster in 1979 began between 4am and 6am when shift workers failed to recognize a serious change in the reactor, which led to it melting down later in the day.
Looks very official doesn't it? DO NOT CALL! Unless you are absolutely sure that this is a legitimate transaction, then you can be sure it is phishing.
This is a SCAM that came to my iPhone Messages DO NOT CLICK! In this case the sender is a complete unknown
Anything sent to "Recipients" is phishing for business and are probably crooked.
Anything sent to "undisclosed recipients" is phishing for business and are probably crooked.
This is a SCAM that came to my iPhone Messages DO NOT CLICK! The sender is a complete unknown - I Never used Venmo!
Internet Crime
Any one bothered by internet criminal activity should report it to the Federal Bureau of Investigation Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) at this web page. This includes phishing, malware, spoofing, any demand for money.
This is a good time to give away any useable electronic devices you have that you've replaced. You may have grandkids that can use your old device, unless they already have newer devices than you! Then you just have to recycle old devices at your local recycle center.
If you have old iPhones or computers to cast out there are some steps to take beforehand. And, don't let your old devices get too old before taking these steps or it becomes more difficult, ie. lost passcodes or unresponsive devices.
First you have to log out of your Apple account on old devices. If you have "Find my iPhone" or "Find My Mac" turned on then that has to be turned off before you can log out. And you'll need your Apple Account password to log out.
If your old device is showing a different Apple Account, then you may want to delete the old account. However, you should check all your Apple devices to make sure no other device is using the account or you'll lose data stored in iCloud as well as be unable to change settings for any subscriptions you may have with Apple. When you're sure you want to delete an account you'll have to follow all the steps for that procedure from Apple's website.
You should also "Deauthorize this device" from iTunes if you've ever authorized it or purchased any music. Now you're ready to reset you device. Another way to remove devices from an account is to go to Settings on your iPhone or iPad, select your name at the top of the list and then scroll down and you'll see it will list all devices associated with that account. You can choose one and delete it from the account. But again you'll have to make sure "Find My" is turned off in the iCloud settings.
On the iPhone you go to Settings, General, then scroll to the bottom of the screen and select "Transfer or Reset iPhone." Then select "Erase all content and settings." All your information will be erased and a clean install of the iPhone OS will be completed.
On the Mac the procedure is a little different depending how old your Mac is and what operating system you have. Typically you would shut down the Mac and then log into the Recovery Drive. You will see options there to reset your Mac.
It's not quite as complicated as it all sounds, but if you need help with any of this you can contact a MAGIC Mentor listed on the MAGIC website.
I've been thinking about buying the new iPhone 14 Pro, but if I order now, before Thanksgiving, it won't be delivered until Dec. 30th according to Apple's website. 😟 I guess I'll just wait bit. Lately I've been reading about some new features that may be on the iPhone 15 triggering me to think about waiting to get the 15. But I've done this before, waiting for the new model thinking next year will be better. Or maybe I'll wait until the iPhone 15 comes out and then buy the 14 Pro at a reduced price. That never works because I always decide I want the currant features. It's a crazy loop. It's not that there is anything wrong with my iPhone 11 except that I want the telephoto camera lens which only comes with Pro models. And I rationalize that it's one thing I allow myself to spend money on. Technology has always been an interest of mine, and a new phone I can afford, say versus a new car.
My MacBook is nearly 5 years old and it still seems new. Of course I know when I read about new MacBook features in the coming year I'll consider a new one. I consider new products way more frequently that I buy them. At least with iPhones Apple offers a trade in value. A bit more incentive to help make the decision. But the longer I wait the less I'll get for my old iPhone.
There is the quote -Indecision is the greatest thief of opportunity. However, I tell myself there are also the sayings: - "He who hesitates is sometimes saved," and.. -"Indecision is the key to flexibility." But indecision may or may not be my problem, I haven't decided!
If I buy a new phone now I imagine there's going to be some great feature on next years phone and think, Oh, why didn't I wait.
What is it about new technology that's so appealing? I know what you're thinking! …"it's not appealing. Why do they have to change things all the time?" And I agree, not all changes are an improvement. But to me the inspiring technology is like magic. It's being able to pull this device out of your pocket and ask for just about anything, getting directions in a instant, getting airline tickets without leaving your kitchen chair, being able to call someone half way around the planet without a second thought, taking photographs and sharing them instantly, being able to see someone you're talking to, and to have meetings with others without leaving your house. And with the iPhone 14 Pro, it includes the ability to make a call via satellite when you don't have a good cell signal!
If technology is your flavor of tea….I'm on it. I better order the iPhone!
MAGIC, the Macintosh Appreciation Group of Island County, serves people who use Macintosh computers, software and peripherals. Our goal is to share information and get answers to questions to make us more productive with our use of technology. Our monthly meetings give us a chance to discuss computer problems and share ideas with other Mac users, feature speakers on specific topics, and to keep apprised of Apple news.
