First, move your cursor to your desktop and click the right-mouse button. This will reveal a context mini-menu.

From that menu, select "Personalize" (normally, the last option). This will open up the Control Panel applet for personalization. One of the themes in use will be selected. If you want to access pictures from any other place than the current one in use, select that theme now.

At the bottom of the applet frame you will see an icon labele "Desktop Background" with the words "Slide Show" undernearth.  Select that link.

This will open up the library of images in the theme/feed you are interested in. Scroll down to the image you are interested in and right-mouse click the image. If your theme is a feed from the internet, this will bring up a security warning.

Select "OK" if you get the security warning (assuming your image feed/theme is secure and ok). 

This will bring up another mini-menu. Select the "Preview" option on the mini-menu. 

This will open the image in the Windows Preview browser.

Use the "File" menu on the Windows Preview application. Use the "Make Copy" option and save a copy of the image file to your desired location. 

You now have a copy of the desktop image from your theme or feed.

Kim Gentes

So here is the deal. All those browsers and platforms have changed so significantly, that the underlying technologies have become a mashup of mobile centric functionality (such as touch-screen operation, screen resolution/orientation), HTML5 A/V capabilities and desktop CSS sensibilities (along with web font assets etc). A modern mobile phone has a unique dialect for browsing websites and using its hardware and accessing the datastreams it connects to- notably digital cell phone calls and internet surfing.  Dumbing down the desktop versions of HTML and browsers into a mobile version is no longer an option. iOS and Android (both webkit-based) browsers have forced us to see the world of mobile as unique. In fact, it has pushed back much of the simplicity and elegance demanded of mobile devices back onto the design of desktop via what I call the "iPhonification of websites".  We are seeing web 2.0 (and 3.0) largely with the flavor pushed back onto the desktop world from the success of Apple's mobile i-world.

OK, so that is the set up.  Once we see the mobile world has its separate needs and reasons for requiring a different technology subset, we recognize that perhaps we need a different way of architecting these mobile browser experiences.  For the last 3 years, much of the desktop AJAX experience has been fueled by support from a toolsuit called jQuery. Free, but brilliant and solid software modules that provide a framework for AJAX/Javascript development and function.  And, up until now, people developing for mobile have been cramming jQuery solutions into mobile devices to stay consistent with their server side support.

Life just got a bit clearer. About 10 days ago, the version 1.0 of jQuery Mobile finally released. Initially, this will actually make more work for those software developers who want to support all the platforms that are continuing to proliferate onto the marketplace.  But with the creation of this unique mobile version of jQuery, hope rises for the huge range of sites/apps that rely on jQuery as their mobile solution for an AJAX foundation.

The new jQuery Mobile stands on top of (not in place of) the jQuery core, and reaches into various areas, most notably the touch functionality. Everything from attribute references to PhoneGap update tips are included on jQuery Mobile's flourishing documentation.  Everyone in the app/site space is rushing to support mobile, but none of that is possible (in a good long term way) without platform tools like this being brought to bear in the mobile space.

All you geeks out there can check out jQuery Mobile for yourselves right here.

http://jquerymobile.com/

A big shout out to all the folks in the jQuery cloud that make it all happen.

Kim Gentes

Windows Phone 7.5 Review
HTC Trophy

by Jordan Gentes

Microsoft’s new phone platform Windows Phone7.5 is intuitive, simple, and brilliant.  Wait, did you just use those three words in the same sentence as Microsoft and Windows?  Yes, I did.  This new development by Microsoft brings an important piece to the mobile environment.

Intuitive: The OS its-self is very intuitive.  When you power on the display you are welcomed to live tiles that are beautiful and easy to understand.  Gone are the days of cluttered notification bars and crowded clusters of apps.  Windows Phone ushers in a day of relevant information that updates seamlessly.

• People:  The ability to sync your contacts with external email accounts and Facebook are standard in the “smartphone world”.  Some phones settle for simply syncing photos and other contact information.  Windows Phone goes to the next level with a deep Facebook integration.  Now I can locate my contact in my People section and I am presented with the contacts’ Information, What’s New (On their FB wall, statuses, posts etc.), Pictures (feed from FB), and the History I have with that contact, from Texts, to missed calls, all of my interaction with that contact is stored in an easy and convenient location.

Simple: With the introduction of live tiles the Windows Phone OS is super simple to navigate.  The OS is attractive to all ages, something that neither iOS nor Android can say.  This OS provides an enjoyable user interface that is simple, but powerful. 

• Messaging: Windows Phone has done a great job consolidating text and Facebook messaging into a convenient and seamless process.  You can start a conversation with someone via text and continue the messaging on Facebook if they were to login while you were in conversation or vice versa. 

Brilliant: Windows Phone is brilliant; so many functions that users count on daily are built into the framework of the user experience.

• Windows Key: Probably one of my favorite features of the OS, hold the Windows Key, for two seconds and you are greeted with options to speak commands to the phone.  Texting, Searching, and launching apps are just a few of the options that are made possible by this feature.  And what do you know, it works!  If you speak clearly, it will understand the overwhelming majority of what you are saying, I have yet to say something clearly and have it misunderstand my instructions.  Try that Android.. 
• E-mail: I love the email client on the Windows Phone OS.  You can add most popular email services to sync with your phone.  This is a great thing for the user; I can’t tell you how frustrating it is that you can only sync Gmail (other than Exchange) with Android.  Microsoft’s decision to allow their users to sync Yahoo, Windows Live, or Gmail is very pleasing. 
• Search:  When you click the search button, you are greeted with more than just a traditional search.  Built into the “Search” is 4 icons at the bottom of the screen, one that finds local attractions near to your location, a music note that within seconds of touching finds your song (bye, bye Shazam),  an eye ball that scans barcodes, QR Codes, Microsoft tags, Books, CD’s and DVD’s.  I love that they have taken the time to add those recourses to the Search, no more need for 10 different apps to perform the various functions.  It’s clean, and it just works! 
• Apps: While the Marketplace for Windows Phone continues to grow, it is certainly newer to the market then iOS or Android.  With that “new comer” status there are less apps available.  However, due to the deep integration of features already provided in the OS I found my need for additional apps to be much lower.  Nonetheless, I found most popular apps available on the other platforms were available one Windows Phone.  To be frank, I found all the apps I wanted to use were available, however, to be fair I did want to mention the reality that the app selection is not as populous at this moment on Windows Phone. 

Synopsis:

This particular review was conducted on an HTC Trophy, however, yet another thing I love about Windows Phone is every phone gets updates, meaning everyone has a congruent user experience.  The battery life on this particular device is incredible (for a smartphone) I easily go the entire day with no problems.  On one day of very heavy usage I got a low battery warning at 15 hours, however, on a normal usage day (that would involve several emails, 100-150 text messages, 30 minutes on the phone, and some casual internet browsing) the phone still had 40-50% battery remaining at 15 hours.  Battery usage will vary by device somewhat, however, the OS manages power quite efficiently.  Windows Phone is a true representation of a modern mobile experience.  Windows Phone is clean and it’s such an inviting user interface that I am confident anyone would enjoy the experience. 

Amazon Product Link: HTC Trophy Windows Phone

If you are looking at purchasing a device, consider what you are interested in using the device for and see which device leans towards the features you are most excited about.

 iPad / Kindle Fire Comparison

eBook Reader	10	7
Web Surfing	8	7
Movie/Video	6	8
Music Player	7	6
Email	6	7
File Sharing	7	4
Apps	6	8
Gaming	6	7
Size/Form Factor	9	7
User Interface	8	7
Performance	7	8
Typing/Editing	6	8
Battery	6	6
Price	$199	$499

If you are interested in have a excellent ebook reading experience, web surfing, music playing (stereo speakers), sleek user interface and like small device size, then the Kindle Fire is in your strength list. If you are interested in watching movies, having a lot of custom apps usage, gaming usage, or want to take notes or data entry then the iPad is a strong device to consider.

What is also important to remember is this- the iPad and the Kindle Fire use the same essential hardware processor and architecture, but the iPad runs iOS and the Fire runs Android.  The differences in iOS and Android propogate much of the technical comparisons of the two tablet- iOS runs more tightly and slightly better performance; Android runs with broader access to external connections (even USB ports) and file systems giving you easier access in such areas. Such technical considerations are not often important to general users, since apps are virtually becoming synonymous across both the iOS and Android platforms. But they are important to technical people and developers.

If you are user, use the device that meets your needs. Technical considerations are less the issue.

As with everything, utility is the king.  At the price point of these two devices, it's important not to ignore your real functional requirements, since much can be saved (cost-wise) if you lean more to the Kindle Fire and it meets your needs. But if you must have the strengths of the iPad on your side, be sure you are ready to pay 2.5 times more for the Apple brand.

Kim Gentes

Perhaps, not "more of the same", if Amazon has anything to say about it. In fact, with the launch of their latest device Amazon looks like they have finally decided to weigh in, and weigh in heavily, on the device market. Not satisfied with having the world's most popular ebook reader, Amazon has launched a new line of Kindle devices that compete head-on with real tablets. Here is my review of the first version of that device.

Today is November 15.  It is a significant day for many other reasons, but one small reason is the arrival of the new Kindle Fire, personal tablet from Amazon. I had preordered the tablet for work reasons, but was anxious to get it open running as soon as the UPS man rang the doorbell.

The unveiling of my new Kindle Fire repeats a theme that has been taught well by Apple- simplicity. But Amazon takes this theme and perfects it, and expounds on its uses in a broader context. The shipping box containing the Fire was simple and well packed (all with eco-conscious packaging), as is most everything Amazon does in fulfillment. Popping the box open revealed the device (and a small power chord) and a simple sleeve box top. Inside the sleeve was a simple paper card, containing literally 5 simple sentences of instructions. No monster guide, no thing "getting started" manual, just a single card with a big picture and less than a handful of words (which all fit, nicely, in my hand). User guide? Who needs a user guide- this is the new Kindle. OK. Prove it.

The device itself is all black (mine anyways) with just one physical button (power), a single USB connector/power port and a mini-jack for audio. All located at the base of the portrait-held device. There are shallow indentations at the top edge for the audio speakers. The back of the device is a grippy, rubberized cover. Nice tactile surface, that doesn't slip from your hand and isn't rounded, unlike the iPad 1 whose rounded aluminum back was always slipping and pushing away from the user. Physically, the Amazon Fire form factor is literally 1/2 the size of iPad 1. However, the screen size of the Fire is only about 75% of height and 2/3 of the width, so you are still losing significant screen size, but it feels still large enough for use in your hands.

Booting it up, the Kindle Fire was ready to go by immediately powering up when I plugged it in. And the question to get going on the device quickly had me choosing a network and time zone.

Next came the fun surprise of seeing that the device recognized its owner without me doing anything. Presumably the device was tethered to my purchase account somehow, and immediately recognized who was the owner. Regardless of how this happened, the device customized itself to me and quickly loaded its updates and my own content connections.

On first opening of the device, initial "welcome" guides show how to use the basic functions of the device. In two or three easy arrows I was ready to run and rock with my Fire. 

Quickly, I jumped around to see all my kindle books (from my previous purchases of kindle books on the iPad app), all my audiobooks and Amazon cloud music was all available on this device. Some initial download time would get content, but all was accessible without extra logging in or such. Love it. 

I quickly went to the web browser and walked through a number of sites, including our favorite, WorshipTeam.com.  The Kindle Fire performed excellent on all fronts. Websites with HTML5 and Flash worked perfectly and the performance was snappy. Battery seems to be charged close to top when you get the device, but I topped it off. After five hours of playing media and websites and even videos, the device was still at 84%. Not sure what its battery specs are, but it seems pretty decent on heavy media usage. My version has 6.5Gb of storage, and I began downloading things to it.

After testing out some WorshipTeam.com functions, including the Android app for it, I went into the Amazon Prime area. I happen to also be an Amazon Prime user, so I was able to quickly access its library of many thousands of videos. I watched a couple minutes of Kevin Costner's "Postman" and the app, media and device performed seemlessly. The video was smooth, audio clear and I wasn't even using headphones, just listening through the on-device speakers.

From there, I went to the Android marketplace and installed a few apps and even downloaded a few not in Amazon store, to see how non Amazon-store apps would work. Answer- perfect! Android apps work well on this device, which of course is an Android tablet. I ran WorshipTeam.com app and it was crisp and responsive.

Overall, I like the Fire a lot. Primarily, the UI is its biggest advantage. Smaller than the iPad, it makes a book reading experience work, where the iPad is cumbersome. Movie view is good, though smaller than the iPad. For large app experiences, like car racing, the iPad is nicer, but for practical usages, the Kindle Fire seems well suited and nicely sized.  While this device won't eclipse the iPad for now, it is a huge step forward to a functional, easy-to-use, and perfectly sized tablet.  The preloading and easy connection of Amazon content is a long term combo-punch that iTunes can't match yet. iTunes is fine, but ultimately Amazon truly seems to understand content better than Apple, from books, ebooks, movies and music.  As they catch up with their device, I think you will see that content becomes the ultimately powerful propellant to growing this new tablet ecosystem.

Win Amazon. I highly recommend it!

Amazon Link: Kindle Fire, Full Color 7" Multi-touch Display, Wi-Fi

Review by Kim Gentes.

Since I brought in two devices, I will outline what happened for each:

Part 1 - Macbook Pro

I took my Macbook Pro laptop in.  The actuall LCD screen had cracked. I hadn't dropped it or lifted it by the screen or anything. I opened the screen one day and it was cracking across the middle from the left. After about 2 days it was completely cracked across the entire screen.

The tech looked at the screen and immediately said the following things:

1. First, my limited one year limited warrantee was out of date
2. Second, even if I had Applecare extended, that would have expired
3. Third, that neither limited warrantee or AppleCare covered physical breakage of the screen! (which he implied that I had obviously done something to the computer- which I had not).
4. Finally, the cost of a replacement LCD screen for my MacPro would be $600

I was beginning to let me blood boil a bit when he said, "those are all the things I am supposed to tell you. And I have. Now the good news. I am going to replace the screen without any further questions or cost to you."

Wow. I felt a nice happy moment. An Apple happy moment. I let it sink in. :)  Of course, I know that comes directly out of shareholder happiness, but as a product owner it was nice to feel some goodness.

In the very same visit, the next thing also happened.

Part 2 - iPad

I bought my new iPad in April of last year (2010). It arrived on April 13 via UPS. Three or four days ago, I plugged in my iPad to my Macbook Pro. iTunes on my Macbook Pro recognized the iPad and notified me that I should update to the latest software for iPad. I clicked accept and it proceeded to update to the latest iPad software revision (according to my iPad I have Model MB292LL, and it now has Version 4.3.5 (8L1)). The iPad rebooted after its update and all looked well. I was wrong.

Since then, the iPad hasn't been able to connect and be recognized by my computer. I also won't take a charge via USB /wall plug. For a couple days, I assumed I just needed to reboot or reset some part of the device. Finally, at 45% life of the battery I was concerned and I brought it to the store. They tried all they could think of. Nothing worked. Since it won't talk to iTunes (because it won't communicate through USB connection anymore), they said they can't reset it.

"What to do?" I asked. "Nothing" they said. It wasn't covered and they "believed" it was a hardware error, not software. Since they couldn't connect to the iPad from a Mac, they couldn't tell for sure. But even though it was the last update that marked the onset of the problem, they refused to believe that. My iPad was simply my problem. Nothing to be done. "Get files off by using WIFI if possible", they said, "before battery went total dead". The message was clear- sorry, its your problem, too bad. Next customer!

What the?! I really felt like this was bad judgment since the device clearly had worked fine for me for a year and now a software update causes a problem and they wash their hands of responsibility. While I was glowing with happiness at their Macbook Pro response, this made absolutely no sense to me. I left feeling a little like they didn't think it was worth it to help me on the iPad but since the Macbook Pro was more expensive, they'd make sure I didn't hate them.

Kim Gentes

Your Story?

Anyone else out there have a Apple Genius Bar story? Let's hear it.....

When I do a review of anything, I do so under my own convictions and opinions. People don't pay me to do reviews. Occasionally, I do get demo products sent to me, but more often than not, I review items I purchase and just tell you about it.  Either way, the goal is to give you honest, hopefully knowledgeable, and always fair reviews.

Back in February of this year, I posted a review of an iFrogz cover (original review is here). iFrogz "Luxe Lean iPad Skin" is a hardshell polycarbonate iPad protective cover. I loved the tactile/functional feel of the cover and liked the look of it as well.  It also seemed well made. Well, we wanted to update you on the item so that you know how it did during normal lifetime of use.

First, of all, as you can guess if I am writing an update now talking about product lifetime that means the cover's life has come to an end. If the cover only lasted until August, something was seriously wrong. About June, the corner of the cover developed a crack. The way I used my iPad, I only rarely took it out of the cover. I just felt it was safer, since there was always a chance I could accidentally drop it or something. I was surprised a crack developed in the cover, and I can't honestly remember if there was any bump or something that happened to the iPad. There certainly wasn't anything major or I would have noted that as a possible cause.

In any case, the cover developed a small crack. Once that happened, the cover corner with the crack deteriorated quickly. The whole are looked dry and brittle. Within 3 weeks the entire corner fell off when I was trying to put the cover on/off.  Once the corner fell off the cracked cover case was now brittle, sharp and dangerous, becoming a hazard itself.  I took the cover off completely to avoid slashing myself with the jagged, sharp edge.

I was, obviously, disappointed in the cover, especially after giving it a positive review on my initial purchase.  Of course, there was no way to know it was going to deteriorate, but I wanted to make sure to send an update so that you would know what happened, especially if you were considering buying one based on my original review.

by Kim Gentes

Beatlab isn't necessarily for hard core development of songs, but I like it as an inspirational pit stop on the creative internet highway. I stop by occasionally if I have a rhythm in my head and I want to flesh it out without pulling out all my musical gear.  You can save your compositions too, so you don't lose online ones you've created. It uses your Facebook credentials to store context, but it is not heavy handed (like some Facebook apps are) as it always asks if you want to post things to Facebook before doing so. I like that courtesy. One note on the technology side of this site- like almost every music app online- it does use Flash. So it won't work on your iOS devices. Just pure web folks.

Anyways for the loopers, scratchers and tweekers of the electronic and rhythm worlds, BeatLab is like stopping at Wafflehouse- not exactly the kind of meal you'd do important dates at, but it has the basics when you need to use them. And heck- its free.  Check it out.

http://www.beatlab.com

Here is a very simple loop I created with it.

http://bit.ly/oRQQSS

I noticed a lot of other users creating more beat loops for rap and such. I prefered a bit of an electronica loop myself, but you can create whatever you want. Go try it out.

in the rhythm of heaven

Kim Gentes

iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch users now have a greatly enhanced app for use with their core WorshipTeam.com service.  The app includes the "Music Perform" function that allows users to launch any service (set) into a music stand usable mode. Your iPad becomes a digital music display for all the songs in your services/sets in WorshipTeam.com. Simply swiping the iPad moves to the next song. Additionally added is support for PDF sheet music display incorporated right into the Music Perform function. If you have any songs included in your service/set that you use sheet music PDFs for (instead of standard chord charts) those now display in crisp clarity inside your WorshipTeam.com app.

The app will display PDF sheet music wherever any song can be displayed, including the single song display area or a list or service collection.

For those who haven't heard about the new "Music Perform" function in the WorshipTeam.com App, the goal of the "Music Perform" button is to allow you to have a simple, clean interface with all your songs (PDFs or chord charts) displayed allowing you to page through them, just like you would for a physical songbook on a music stand. Great for use on a stage, in a small group or at home practicing. Your service/set is ready to go without having to print anything off. Here is is how to try it out --

• STEP 1: Install the WorshipTeam.com App on your iPad. Download and install the app for free right here:http://itunes.apple.com/app/worshipteam-com/id409144474?mt=8

• STEP 2:  Login and select the "Services" option to see your upcoming services.
  
  
  
  

• STEP 3: Go to one of your upcoming services on your schedule and select the "Perform" button.
  
  
  
  

• STEP 4: You will see the first song appear. Controls on the top right allow you to page through the songs. You can also use motion/swipe to move through the songs.
  
  
  
  

• STEP 5: If you have loaded your own PDF sheet music into a song (view/version) it will display instead of the standard chord chart, as below.
  
   

• STEP 6: For regular chord charts, formatting controls are at the bottom of the page if you would like different font and size properties. Note that you can turn chords on or off, depending on your needs (vocalists often only want lyrics displayed for example).
  
  
  
  

The music perform function works great on iPads used as music stands (as can be done easily by mounts like iKlip (http://www.ikmultimedia.com/iklip/features/), GigEasy (http://www.thegigeasy.com/) or Griffin iPad music stand mounts (http://www.griffintechnology.com/products/mic-stand-mount).

The music perform function is free and included in the iPad app with WorshipTeam.com and does not cost extra. Any WorshipTeam.com user can use this function.

bless you!

Kim Gentes

Batuhan is a "sound artist" and programmer living in Istanbul, Turkey.  And he has done his part in bringing forth the joyous reality of that fantasy of almost all great science fiction- the fusion of technology and art. But is it that hoped-for utopia where ones own thoughts of melodies were enough for mind-reading computers to generate the symphonic masterpeices of the future?  Mr. Bozkurt doesn't promise such glorious realities, but he takes the needed baby-steps for our neophite, web-connected world. He calls it Otomata.

Quite simply, Otomata, is a sound generation web application. It generates tones based on a 9x9 grid which contains any number of bouncing boxes. You start with a blank grid. You add your boxes. You click play. The fun begins.

This might seem trivial (and it is), but Otomata is based on the same rules of operation that most iOS apps and even the first video game (Pong) held to- collision and redirection.  The boxes you place on the grid all move, in any of the 4 directions you instruct them to. When they hit another  box or a wall they alter direction. When they hit a wall, they emit a sound. The grid is set up in a specific musical configuration so that notes ascend a scale from left to right. You get the idea quickly. You develop patterns that create sound loops for basic rhythm and meter. Add some melodic chaos notes (boxes) to overlay said patterns of rhythm.

But the more complex you make them, the less sure you are of a clean results, or one that sounds musical (instead of an explosion of computer sounding blurps).

But enough talk. Try it out! Otomata is online, for all to try (apparantly, phone apps are in the works as well). You can go here and get started:

http://www.earslap.com/projectslab/otomata

Now for the really cool part. Once you develop an interesting pattern on Otomata, click the "Copy piece link" and you have the URL to your musical/web/grid configuration. Share it with your friends, build on each other's patterns. All very fun, time wasting and addictive.  Real musos will initially bauk at this trivial tool, but finding the patterns is the key. Don't waste your time just throwing blocks on the board (at least don't keep doing it after 30 minutes or so). If you just do that, of course, you will be bored. Instead, start to develop a library of patterns that you can re-use for your bass end, your mid-chords and your high end rhythms.  Then, start to mix and match and see what happens.

The app is online for anyone who has a web browser. Oh, a real web browser I mean- this one is in Flash, so you can't play it on iPads or iPhones (at least until they add Flash). 

Here are a couple patterns I worked on that I use as a base for more "compositions". Real music? Hmmm.. probably not. But inventive, thoughtful, and certainly musical fun. You decide.

http://www.earslap.com/projectslab/otomata?q=4g3k5z4x0d0v7n7a8d8v

http://www.earslap.com/projectslab/otomata?q=3n4n5n3a4a5a8j0q177r

http://www.earslap.com/projectslab/otomata?q=3n4n5n3a4a5a8j0q

It's a fun time waster.. and your pattern recognition skills may just improve along the way!

Thanks Otomata! Thanks Batuhan Bozkurt!

Let's go people---

Go forth and blipify! 

Kim Gentes

One of the most effective methods of quickly getting information out on Facebook is to "Link" an external page into Facebook, on a wall post or in a group or Page.  Facebook nicely slurps up a summary of the external web page, blog or site and creates a thumbnail and header for the link that is easy for people to quickly see what the link is for.  But there is a problem. Facebook sometimes cannot understand images that appear on external sites when the image or web page does not have interprettable or compatible properties.  You will see the webpage text summary in the link preview, but not the image. It will looking something like this:

If the page had images and you don't see the image as a thumbnail option in the above preview, you will know there was a problem with the page or the image being interpretted correctly by Facebook.

If you try to link to an external page to post your link on Facebook and you find your image does NOT show up in the link summary, here are a few things you can try to get Facebook to slurp your image and place a thumbnail for your link in Facebook.

• Standard Path and Filenames - Facebook interprets linked pages by use of its own webcrawling tools (called lint, but more about that later). When its tools read your website to grab information and images, it wants to see standard URLs for images.  If your image path inside of your webpage includes any spaces (either in the pathname or the filename), Facebook can fail the image slurp and hence you will not see a thumbnail.
• Website Errors - if your webpage has errors in interpretation, Facebook may fail to slurp it up properly and hence you will not see a proper summary or thumbnail. This might confuse you since your browser will appear to render the page proper- but Facebook won't like it. This is because most browsers have built in an excessive amount of forgiveness in their rendering schemes- meaning that they are able to pass over errors in the webpage and still render the rest of the webpage, despite the errors. You can check how Facebook is interpretting any link you provide it by using it's interpretation engine. Its interpretation engine is called Lint (which is actually a tool brought forward from the Unix world for many years). Here is the link to test your webpage interpretation on Facebook Lint : http://developers.facebook.com/tools/lint
• Remove slashes from webpage links to Facebook - if you submit http://www.kimgentes.com/ you may be in danger of Facebook having problems with interpretting the site correctly. Facebook prefers you submit links without ending "/"- hence submit http://www.kimgentes.com instead.
• Link Relative Image Tagging - to help Facebook Lint understand where images are, you can give it instructions by embedding your webpage with directives on where the images will be located, even before the image reference appears in the main HTML code of the page. To do this, simply include this format of a statement in the head section of your webpage
   <link rel="image_src" href="http://www.kimgentes.com/storage/wg-banner-500x160-pc.jpg" />
  (of course, replace the path name and image filename with your real image path information)
• Image Size - one thing that Facebook likes is reasonably proportional images. Specifically, it does not like banner type (wide/short) images.  If you have an image that is too wide (and short), it will dislike trying to thumbnail it. But an image that is tall and thin is much more agreeable to Facebook.  See below we have provided two images. If you use Facebook to Link to this blog entry, you will notice that it only likes the tall image, and doesn't like the wide image-- you will only be given the option to use the tall image as a thumbnail selections (along with the other two images in this post). Where you should see 4 images available as thumbnails, you will only see 3 from this post. This is an example of Facebook's finicky behavior regarding image sizes.

Taller / Narrow Image

Wider / Short Image

I wish I could tell you that Facebook is consistent with all the things it does, but frankly, it just isn't.  Try each of the above fixes to see what your particular situation might be.  There are several other articles out there that deal with meta data tagging and image specifications, but I have found that they are rarer cases, though important to look at.  For more information on addressing this issue of thumbnails in Facebook links, this is a good all around article to read:

http://www.ehow.com/how_4938148_thumbnail-show-up-facebook-share.html

Happy Facebook linking!

Kim Gentes

For iPad or android tablet owners, check out the new "perform" function now online in the new UI on the mobile site. The goal of the "Perform" button is to allow you to have a simple, clean interface with readable chord charts displayed allowing you to page through them, just like you would for a physical songbook on a music stand. Great for use on a stage, in a small group or at home practicing. Your service/set is ready to go without having to print anything off. Here is is how to try it out --

• STEP 1: From your tablet or iPad go to http://m.worshipteam.com . Login and select the "Services" option to see your upcoming services.
  
  
  
  

• STEP 2: Go to one of your upcoming services on your schedule and select the "Perform" button.
  
  
  
  

• STEP 3: You will see the first song appear. Controls on the top right allow you to page through the songs. You can also use motion/swipe to move through the songs.
  
  
  
  

• STEP 4: Formatting controls are at the bottom of the page if you would like different font and size properties. Note that you can turn chords on or off, depending on your needs (vocalists often only want lyrics displayed for example).
  
  
  
  

The music perform function works great on iPads used as music stands (as can be done easily b mounts like iKlip (http://www.ikmultimedia.com/iklip/features/), GigEasy (http://www.thegigeasy.com/) or Griffin iPad music stand mounts (http://www.griffintechnology.com/products/mic-stand-mount).

The music perform function is free with WorshipTeam.com and does not cost extra. Any WorshipTeam.com user can use this function.

bless you!

Kim Gentes

The core part of how that happens is your social interaction with various entities on Facebook. The more you "like" things on Facebook, the more likely you're name and image may be used in Facebook ads to your friends. 

However, you can stop all of that simply by adjusting your Facebook settings. Like each of its other personal data intrusions, Facebook has eventually provided ways to close off their extraneous use of your personal information and image.  In this case, here is the method for saying "no" to Facebook using your picture in their ads.

STEP 1- Once you are logged on to Facebook, locate the top right have side of the Facebook and click the word "Account".  A dropdown menu will appear. Select "Account Settings" option.

STEP 2- On the "My Account" page, you will notice several tabs. Select the "Facebook Ads" tab.

STEP 3- On the Facebook Ads page, the bottom half of the screen has a section called "Ads and friend". Select the link that says "Edit social ads settings".

STEP 4- On the "Ads and friends" page you can read how, why and when they may use your like and profile pictures in third party ads.  At the bottom, use the dropdown menu near the label "Pair my social actions with ads for ". Change the drop down to "No one".

STEP 5- Click "Save Changes" at the bottom.

There you go! You have now updated your profile so Facebook won't decide to use your picture to sell your friends stuff.  Well done you!

keeping the social network honest along with you,

Kim Gentes

First, Secure Sockets Layer is not new.  Facebook didn't just discover it or something, it has been around since 1995 (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transport_Layer_Security for more info).  The purpose of HTTPS (the particular implementation of SSL that is being talking about) is simply so that when you are talking to a particular website that the communications directly to that site cannot be falsely interrupted, decoded, or mimicked without someone who has a very, very high level of acumen in digital security.

However, the problem with internet security is not HTTPS usage- it is almost 99% about leading legitimate web surfers to an illegitimate site.  This means that there are people out there who try to get you to click on links that lead you to somewhere OTHER than where you expected to go. And once you are at their phoney site, they have you normally enter some personal data that they later use to exploit you or steal your identity.

It goes like this-

1. you get a link in email that looks like it is from Facebook
2. you click on it.
3. you go into the site, surf around and leave
4. you didn't realize that you had gone into a site that wasn't Facebook, and they stole your password and user login because you entered it to get into their fake site.

That above scenario happens in email scams with everything from Bank "notifications" (phoney ones) to Facebook updates to whatever.

The point is, SSL or HTTPS doesn't make that above situation any safer.  If you followed your email links then nothing appeared to be wrong, and HTTPS operating on the real Facebook won't be of any help to you while you are logging on a phoney website that is only made to look like Facebook to steal your access.

There are really two main rules that will cover about 80% (making that figure up in my head) of your problems on Facebook or any site:

1. NEVER use a link that you get in email from an organization. Instead, almost all places (like Facebook or your bank, etc) allow you to log in to their website directly, then see the notifications or items they wanted to bring to your attention. This is the MOST important safety precaution you can make on any site.
2.  In Facebook in particular, don't use Face Apps.  Apps are developer access to you and all your information. Regardless of what the app is for, they can access EVERYTHING about your Facebook account once you approve an app.  Of course, there are a few apps that people use anyways, but just know that an App can literally access any information in your Facebook context. You can see my other article on how to block Apps that may bother you.

The HTTPS thing in Facebook merely gives people a bit more safety while they surf facebook, but doesn't protect them from the above two items, which ultimately cause vastly more security and other problems.  If you aren't careful enough to note click on emails from anyone that might look like Facebook in your email, then you likely aren't watching to see if you are locked secure while surfing Facebook either.

Now don't get me wrong, HTTPS settings on your login in Facebook does make that part safer. But for most users, it is the email and other links getting you to a "supposed" Facebook location that cause more problems. And once people are in Facebook, it is the propensity to use Apps (and even spoofed bad apps as well) that poses a greater risk than actually getting thread attacks into your browser during an actual session on Facebook, in my opinion.

keep on surfing safely people...

Kim Gentes