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I wanted to create a QR code for a flyer I was making. In the past I would have used a specialist QR code creator.
I did a Google search and found out that Chrome browser had a QR code creator built in.
It can be found on the share menu from the address bar.
Go to the web address of the page you want to share via a QR code.
Select Create QR code.
You then get a QR code you can either use to transfer the URL to your mobile device, or download to print.
It is looking like that, as part of a plan to save money, train operating companies will be getting rid of the wifi. I have blogged about train wifi quite a bit in the past, I wrote this blog post in 2010.
I did wonder why CrossCountry Trains didn’t put in wifi as you find on the East Coast Main Line services and Virgin Trains Pendolino. Well it appears that providing wifi was part of their Franchise agreement with the Department of Transport. CrossCountry Trains was suppose to have wifi in place by November 11th 2009. They failed to meet this deadline!
I also asked about the lack of train wifi on First Great Western (now GWR).
My question though is much more, why isn’t there wifi on First Great Western services from the West Country to London and why wasn’t it in their franchise agreement? I travel with First Great Western much more than I do CrossCountry and would really like it if they had wifi.
Eventually both companies put wifi on their trains. I did use the train wifi, but the constant disconnections, or failed attempts to connect authenticate, often meant, either no internet, or falling back on my phone’s data connection.
Of course, though I didn’t always use the wifi, others did. However, the BBC published an article recently that said train wi-fi at risk as part of cost-cutting move.
Rail users could lose access to wi-fi on trains in England as part of cost cuts after the government said it was a low priority for passengers. The Department for Transport says cost pressures mean it will review whether the current wi-fi service “delivers the best possible value for money”.
Most times I travel by train these days I am more likely to use my own 4G or 5G connection as I still find train wifi unreliable. However I still think it should be on trains for those that don’t have their mobile connectivity.
In a recent blog post I talked about the problem I had with my Apple Lightning Digital AV Adapter.
I recently connected my iPhone to a Philips TV in a hotel room and attempted to play a TV show from Amazon Prime. The result was a stuttering video which was unwatchable.
I have an Apple Lightning Digital AV Adapter. As well as using it for presentations, I also bought it so I could connect my iPhone to a TV so I can watch video from services such as Netflix, iPlayer, and Amazon Prime.
According to the description on the Apple website this is what it does.
Use the Lightning Digital AV Adapter with your iPhone, iPad, or iPod with Lightning connector. The Lightning Digital AV Adapter supports mirroring of what is displayed on your device screen — including apps, presentations, websites, slideshows, and more — to your HDMI-equipped TV, display, projector, or other compatible display in up to 1080p HD.
Well for that purpose it does what it says on the tin.
The page also says.
It also outputs video content — movies, TV shows, captured video — to your big screen in up to 1080p HD. Simply attach the Lightning Digital AV Adapter to the Lightning connector on your device and then to your TV or projector via an HDMI cable.
Well yes, that is what it says, my experience is that this experience is less consistent.
So I was a little surprised when staying in a different hotel (same chain as it happens) and connected my iPhone to the Philips TV in the room and watched a programme on Disney+ and it worked just fine and as expected.
Checking back on my last experience, in the other hotel I was trying to play Amazon Prime, I wonder if that was the difference. I didn’t do any testing as I wanted to watch television. Next time I will do some testing.
I received an email from Apple about My Photo Stream closing down.
My Photo Stream is scheduled to be shut down on 26 July, 2023. The photos in My Photo Stream are already stored on at least one of your devices, so as long as you have the device with your originals, you will not lose any photos as part of this process. If a photo you want is not already in your library on a particular iPhone, iPad or Mac, make sure you save it to your library on that device. For more information on this transition and instructions on how to download photos from My Photo Stream, read Information about the My Photo Stream shutdown.
I really liked My Photo Stream. It made my blogging and writing workflow so much easier. I would take a photo on my phone and then using My Photo Stream I would be able to use the photo on my iPad or my Mac.
Sometimes I would load photographs from my Canon DSLR onto my iMac, then be able to use those photographs on my MacBook.
Now according to Apple the solution is to move to iCloud Photos.
Moving forward, iCloud Photos is the best way to keep the photos and videos you take up to date across all your devices and safely stored in iCloud.
The main reason I’ve not done this before, is partly as My Photo Stream worked, and I would need to upgrade to iCloud+ and with the number of photos in my library, I would probably need the 2TB upgrade.
Well I have until the 26th June.
As part of this transition, new photo uploads to My Photo Stream from your devices will be stopped on 26 June.
I have been using IFTTT (If This Then That) for quite a few years now. Though over the last few years my usage has got quite minimal. During some research activities using tweetchats and hashtags I did use it quite a bit for work.
Now in the main I use a recipe to post native photographs from Instagram to the Twitter.
Lovely sunny day https://t.co/mDp0WQxDDf pic.twitter.com/KKNuOfJ4wD
— James Clay (@jamesclay) May 16, 2023
So it was with minimal disappointment to read in my inbox this from IFTTT.
Starting on May 23, all free users will be limited to 2 Applets and unable to access Twitter Applets. We hope you understand this change is designed to help us support our community and continue to focus on improving IFTTT. To ensure that your existing Applets continue without interruption, consider upgrading to Pro or manage your Applets via My Applets.
Now the subscription is not excessive, at £2.50 per month, cheaper if you pay annually. However I really don’t think I will get £30 of value from IFTTT over a year. I can configure Instagram to post to Twitter automatically, or I could even just post manually.
I still also get two free applets if I need to use IFTTT.
I have an Apple Lightning Digital AV Adapter. As well as using it for presentations, I also bought it so I could connect my iPhone to a TV so I can watch video from services such as Netflix, iPlayer, and Amazon Prime.
According to the description on the Apple website this is what it does.
Use the Lightning Digital AV Adapter with your iPhone, iPad, or iPod with Lightning connector. The Lightning Digital AV Adapter supports mirroring of what is displayed on your device screen — including apps, presentations, websites, slideshows, and more — to your HDMI-equipped TV, display, projector, or other compatible display in up to 1080p HD.
Well for that purpose it does what it says on the tin.
The page also says.
It also outputs video content — movies, TV shows, captured video — to your big screen in up to 1080p HD. Simply attach the Lightning Digital AV Adapter to the Lightning connector on your device and then to your TV or projector via an HDMI cable.
Well yes, that is what it says, my experience is that this experience is less consistent.
I recently connected my iPhone to a Philips TV in a hotel room and attempted to play a TV show from Amazon Prime. The result was a stuttering video which was unwatchable.
I remembered though that a few weeks back I had done something similar, but with a Sony TV and that had worked fine.
I did check online for a solution, others had experienced the same problem. The solution offered though was to use AirPlay. Great if you have that set up (which I do at home with an Apple TV). However I don’t have that setup when travelling to different hotels.
So the end result is, if it doesn’t work, I am watching video on the 6” screen on my iPhone rather than the 50” TV screen in the hotel room.
There are several ways you can help to work towards creating more inclusive and equitable AI:
By taking these steps, you can contribute to creating a more equitable and just society where AI is used for the betterment of all people.
Might be just me but I quite like how the iPhone hides the time on my Lock Screen using my photographs.
Here is the full screengrab.
Though sometimes it is too good at hiding the time.
According to a BBC report, digital cameras back in fashion after online revival.
Digital cameras from the early 2000s are becoming must-have gadgets for many young people because of a burgeoning trend online. And in the past 12 months, videos with the hashtag #digitalcamera have amassed more than 220 million views on TikTok.
…and to think I still consider this *new* technology!
One of my favourite photographs, which was taken with a Sony Cybershot Digital Camera in 2004.
My first digital camera was HP PhotoSmart digital camera, this 0.3MP camera used proprietary memory cards, didn’t have a LCD on the back, went through batteries real fast and as for picture quality, well it left a lot to be desired, though outside shots weren’t too bad!
There is no way to view pictures on the camera, so you needed to upload them to a computer first.
Since then I used various digital cameras, including other HP PhotoSmart cameras. I then moved over to Sony Cybershot cameras, and I had about three of them. I still have one that I use now and again, though I seem to have lost the card reader for Sony’s proprietary Memory Sticks which the cameras used.
I also had a Canon EOS 300D for a while and I did think it took some really good photographs.
I bought a Canon EOS 400D back in 2007 and I still use on a regular basis today.
It’s not very good in low light conditions, this is when I use my iPhone instead. Today I take nearly all my photographs using an iPhone.
I am thinking though of getting a replacement for my EOS 400D
One of the (now not so) little people got a new 10th generation iPad for Christmas.
He asked if he could borrow my first generation Apple Pencil to do some drawing on his iPad. I realised that the pencil was paired via Bluetooth with the older iPad, so I unpaired them. We then tried to pair the now charged pencil with the new iPad and no joy.
Reading on the web, it was apparent that the method of pairing was to plug the pencil into the iPad. Now this is where we had a challenge. The 1st generation Apple Pencil has a Lightning connector, the 10th generation iPad had an USB-C connector.
We got one of those and then set about charging and pairing.
It seems to be failing to hold a charge, despite being connected and fast charging from the 10th generation iPad. Reading the web it looks like that as I hadn’t used the pencil in a while, the battery had died.
Though I had given up hope, my son hadn’t. While I was away for work, he tried once more to charge the pencil, and low and behold, it charged up, it paired and is working well with the 10th generation iPad.
It’s alive I tell you, alive!