Today, Apple begins its Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) in San Jose, CA. At 10am Pacific / 1pm Eastern, Apple executives will give a Keynote address that will likely include a preview of the next version of the iPhone/iPad operating system, perhaps also a preview of the next watchOS, and perhaps also new hardware products — maybe a new iPad, or a new stand-alone Siri device? Infinite speculation is possible between now and 10am Pacific. Jason Snell of Six Colors wrote about what he hopes to see at WWDC, and I found myself nodding at every paragraph of that article; in an article for Macworld, Snell wrote about what he actually expects to see announced today.
If you want to watch the two hour presentation as it happens, you can watch a live stream here. I won’t be able to do so because I have an oral argument before the U.S. Fifth Circuit this morning However, when my argument is over, I’m glad that there will be lots of iPhone-related news to think about to distract me from obsessing over every question that was asked by the panel of judges.
The big news of this week was that it is almost next week. On Monday, Apple kicks off its annual conference for developers called WWDC. And at 10am Pacific on Monday, Apple will hold a Keynote address to kick off the conference. This is the time when Apple previews upcoming versions of its operating systems, so I’m sure that the Keynote address will reveal new features to be added to iOS 11, which will presumably be released around September of this year. I also hope to learn about the next version of watchOS. Apple sometimes announces new hardware at WWDC, and this year there are rumors of a possible new iPad Pro and maybe even a new stand-alone Siri device similar to the Amazon Echo. Anything is possible, and it will be fun to see what Apple announces. And now, the news of note from the past week:
Ben Lovejoy of 9to5Mac reports that a child abuse suspect was jailed for six months after being held in contempt of court for failing to give police his iPhone passcode.
Apple announced yesterday that developers have earned over $70 billion since the App Store launched in 2008.
Mike Allen of Axios reports that President Trump has an iPhone with only a single app installed: Twitter. That just sounds covfefe to me.
And finally, Apple released a few more of its videos urging Android users to switch to iPhones. My favorite of the new crop is this one called Security:
I am thrilled to welcome a new sponsor to iPhone J.D.: AgileBits, the developer of 1Password. I have been using 1Password for over four years, and it is unquestionably one of my most important apps. When attorneys ask me what apps to add to an iPhone or iPad, 1Password is always on my shortlist of must-have apps. I simply cannot imagine using an iPhone, iPad, or computer without a password manager, and I have long considered 1Password the best-of-breed for users of Apple products because of its incredible features and ease of use. If you don't use 1Password yet, you are in luck because AgileBits has a special offer for iPhone J.D. readers.
Why is 1Password so essential for everyone, and especially attorneys, to use? You need to use sophisticated, unique passwords for every service to protect yourself, and — for services related to the practice of law — to protect your clients. We are constantly hearing about hackers getting access to systems, and if you don't have a strong password, you may be the next victim. And if your passwords are not different for each website and service, then hackers who exploit a security flaw on one website might be able to get your password from one website and use it on other websites. This is not a theoretical concern; it has actually happened, many times, and surely you have read news articles about incidents like this. But there is no way to remember all of those strong, unique passwords without keeping them somewhere, and because we are talking about passwords that somewhere needs to be a secure location. Not only does 1Password create secure passwords for you and store all of your passwords in a secure app, it can also automatically enter your username and password on your PC, Mac, iPhone and iPad. Thus you get both security and ease of use.
Here is the pitch for 1Password that AbileBits asked me to share with iPhone J.D. readers:
Going paperless? Everything is moving to the cloud, from research, to document creation, to client correspondence. But when so much of your confidential information is online, your passwords better be up to the task. If just one of them is compromised, your whole practice is at risk.
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1Password is more than just passwords. You can store all sorts of confidential information in the app, and even if a third party has access to your iPhone, they cannot access that information. The app has built-in forms for credit cards, driver licenses, memberships, passports, Social Security numbers, software licenses and wireless routers.
The app can also store Secure Notes — similar to what you can do with Apple's built-in Notes app, except Secure Notes are safely stored within the 1Password app. Only you can access the app, either by typing in your master password, or by using your fingerprint. So if a client gives you some confidential information that you want to jot down, Secure Notes is the perfect place to put it.
And 1Password is always improving. Just a few weeks ago, 1Password added a Travel Mode function, which lets you erase all passwords and other information, except for a few items that you designate to keep in 1Password, when you leave the country. That way, even if someone gets access to your device, whether it be a criminal in another country or a TSA agent as you are coming home, all of that confidential information cannot possibly be accessed on your iPhone because it simply isn't there. Once you cross the border to return home, you can turn off Travel Mode and all of your confidential information is restored. This feature is smart and, given recent news, incredibly timely. It is a perfect example of how AgileBits is always taking additional steps to improve your security.
AgileBits knows how important security is for lawyers, so AgileBits is currently offering a special deal for iPhone J.D. readers. If you sign up for 1Password Families or 1Password Teams, you can now get unlimited and free use of the app for three months. That is more than enough time for you to kick the tires and see how the app works on your iPhone, iPad, Mac and/or PC and decide what you think about the product before you pay anything. Click this special link to take advantage of this offer.
Thanks again to AgileBits for creating and constantly updating 1Password, and also for sponsoring iPhone J.D. this month. With the special free three month offer, now is the perfect time to discover for yourself how 1Password works. My guess is that long before the end of the three month trial, you'll understand why I have been such a big fan of 1Password for so many years.
Walt Mossberg has been writing about personal technology since 1991, mostly for the Wall Street Journal, but more recently for Recode. In his final column before he retires, Mossberg considers the future of personal technology. For many years, it was all about computers. Lately, the focus in personal technology has been the iPhone. Mossberg thinks that ambient computing may be the next big thing, the idea that the environment around us is intelligent and responsive, sort of like Siri or the Amazon Echo, with more features, always aware of what you are doing or saying. It is a fascinating piece that makes me think about what may be coming in the near future. And now, the news of note from the past week:
Florida attorney Katie Floyd and California attorney David Sparks released a great episode of their Mac Power Users podcast devoted to hidden iOS features. They are joined by Clayton Morris, and the episode is full of great tips. Worth a listen.
South Carolina attorney Justin Kahn notes that NotesPlus, a note taking app, was updated to version 5.0. Notably, the update adds iPhone support.
Mike Schmitz of The Sweet Setup explains how to remove the GPS info from an iPhone picture so that you can share a picture with someone else without also sharing the location data for the picture.
If you read my CarPlay review, then you know that I’m a big fan of the technology. In the past, many Ford cars did not support CarPlay because Ford promoted its own Sync software. Surprisingly, Ford announced this week that it is updating 2016 model Ford vehicles to support CarPlay, as reported by Ben Lovejoy of 9to5Mac. It is rare for any car manufacturer to add new features to old cars, especially something like CarPlay. This is great news for owners of those vehicles who have an iPhone.
David Pogue of Yahoo discusses the features in the new Samsung Galaxy 8 that are not on the iPhone 7, and indicates which ones are actually useful and might be nice to have on the iPhone.
Buster Hein of Cult of Mac reports that a new FCC filing by Apple reveals that Apple has started testing 5G network technology with the iPhone, technology that could provide speeds up to 1Gpbs. Wow. And it seems like just yesterday I was excited to upgrade my Mac’s modem from 28K to 56K.
For Global Accessibility Awareness Day on May 18, Apple released seven videos showing how people with disabilities take advantage of Apple products. Jim Dalrymple of The Loop shows off all seven videos on this page.
And finally, Apple unveiled a new part of its website devoted to convincing Android users to switch to iPhone. The primary message is let folks know that the switch won’t be complicated; Apple even has an Android app which moves everything over. But the webpage, and associated short videos, also explain why life is better on iPhone. Here is one example, which points out that Apple does more to protect privacy on the iPhone than Google does on Android:
Five years ago, Apple CEO Tim Cook was asked about Microsoft’s decision to merge laptop and tablet computers into one device. Cook said that he thought it was better to keep the iPad and the MacBook different devices, explaining: “Anything can be forced to converge. But the problem is that the products are about tradeoffs. You begin to make tradeoffs to the point that what you have left at the end of the day doesn’t please anyone. You can converge a toaster and a refrigerator, but you know those things are probably not going to be pleasing to the user.” Sometimes convergence is great, like peanut butter and jelly. Sometimes not so much, like Cook’s theoretical toaster fridge. One cannot help thinking about convergence when viewing the E.LUMEN, a multi-function flashlight made by Renogy.
Renogy was founded a few years ago by Yi Li while she was getting a Ph.D. in physics at Louisiana State University. The company was created to sell solar products, first as a part of LSU’s Technology Center, then it was based in Southern California, and now the company operates out of Ontario, Canada. Renogy makes many different types of solar products, but one of its smallest products is the E.LUMEN. The company sent me a free review unit, and I have been using it for the past week (as have my kids).
Solar power
The primary function of the E.LUMEN is to serve as a solar-powered flashlight. Expose the solar panel on the side of the E.LUMEN to sunlight during the day, and you can use the flashlight at night, without having to worry about batteries. The E.LUMEN rests on a side (it isn’t completely round like most other flashlights) so the solar panel will stay pointing up towards the sun.
Renogy says that if the E.LUMEN is at 0%, it takes about 29 hours of sunlight to get back to 100%. Renogy also says that the main flashlight mode of the flashlight can last 3-4 hours, but it lasted much longer than that in my tests. I turned on the flashlight at 9pm one night, and it was still going at 7am in the morning, although it was much dimmer. It took a few more hours for the E.LUMEN to be completely dead. I then left it outside for two days, and it charged up again. Unfortunately, there is no indication on the E.LUMEN of how much charge the device has, so I don’t know how close I got to a full charge after two days outside.
Three Lighting Modes
The main flashlight has three modes, and each of those modes has multiple settings.
The headlight mode functions like a normal flashlight. There are four settings within that mode, and you switch between them by pressing the main button on the flashlight. The bright setting uses 3W of LED light to emits 200 lumens of light for 200 meters. Press the button again to switch to a dimmer setting, press the button a third time to switch to a strobe mode (perfect for attracting attention, blinding an intruder, or hosting a disco party), and press the button a fourth time to turn off the headlight.
I’m not in the business of reviewing flashlights, but the E.LUMEN headlight mode seems very bright to me, and based on some research I did on the Internet, this output seems similar to other flashlights in its class. The light beam is brighter in the center (and unlike some other nice flashlights, you cannot twist to adjust the size of the bright center of the beam). It is bright enough that you will hurt your eyes if you look directly at it. Unless you are leading a search party or exploring a cave, I suspect that you will find this to be a sufficiently bright flashlight. It’s certainly brighter than the others that I have in my house.
If you hold down the button for three seconds, you switch to the second mode, the white floodlight mode. This mode illuminates 10 small lights on the side of the flashlight (around the solar panels) at 2W, 150 lumens. This mode is nice because it gives you a wide range of light, which could be useful if you want to shine light over a wide area to get some work done, or if you want to light up the inside of a tent. Press the button a second time to switch to a dim setting, and a third time to switch it off.
The final mode is the red strobe light mode, which I’m sure is useful for attracting attention in an emergency. Presh the button a second time for a dim red strobe light, and a third time to turn if off.
iPhone charger
A solar-powered flashlight contains a rechargeable battery, and people use rechargeable batteries to charge an iPhone, so why not combine those two functions? If you twist off the bottom of the E.LUMEN, two ports are revealed. One is a standard USB port. Plug in your USB-to-Lightning cable and you can charge your iPhone.
The battery is a 2,000 mAh Lithium ion battery with a 1 Amp output. That should be enough power to almost fully charge an iPhone 7 once, or enough to charge an iPhone 7 Plus around 50%.
Charging an iPhone from a flashlight might seem a little goofy at first, but if you are camping or if there is an extended power outage, being able to use solar power to charge the battery and then charge an iPhone could be incredibly useful.
Next to the USB port is a Micro USB port, which is used only for input. If you need to charge the E.LUMEN and either don’t have access to solar power or want to charge it more quickly, just use any standard Micro USB cable (one is included with the E.LUMEN). Unlike the 29 hours of solar power required to fully recharge an E.LUMEN, you can recharge via Micro USB in only 6 hours.
But wait, there’s more!
Just in case a solar-powered battery/flashlight/strobe light/iPhone charger isn’t enough convergence for you, the E.LUMEN has many more tricks up its sleeve. One side of the top of the flashlight has a seatbelt cutter. The other side has a high-strength, alloy glass-shattering hammer. With those two tools, the E.LUMEN seems like a useful device to keep in your car’s glove compartment.
Also, the side of the E.LUMEN has a small magnet. If you have something metallic and flat, like the side of a filing cabinet, the magnet is strong enough to hold up the flashlight. So the magnet makes it easier to store the E.LUMEN.
Finally, the very bottom of the E.LUMEN has a compass. It is on the part that you remove to expose the USB ports, so you could hold and use the compass without having to hold the entire flashlight. I haven’t had a need for a compass since I was a Boy Scout, and of course the iPhone itself has a compass app, but if you have a need for a small compass, the E.LUMEN has you covered.
Putting it all together
If you get trapped in your car in the middle of nowhere, you can use the E.LUMEN to cut your seatbelt off and shatter the glass window to escape from the car. Then you can use the compass to get your bearings, use the red strobe light to draw attention to yourself and seek help, and if nightfall comes you have two types of flashlights to look around. And if you haven’t drained the battery by using the flashlight, you can recharge your iPhone to call for help. Although perhaps using the phone to call someone for help should have been the first thing that you did.
Sure, that scenario is farfetched, but I have to admit that it does seem nice to have a flashlight with so many other functions — even if you never to use all of those functions at one time. Best of all, the E.LUMEN feels like a nice flashlight in your hand. It weighs 0.68 lbs, which is not too heavy but sturdy. It is made of strong aluminum (remember, this thing is strong enough to work as a glass-shattering hammer) and looks like it can stand up to a lot of abuse. The feel is somewhat similar to the feel of a Maglite flashlight if you have used one of those. It has an IP54 rating, which means that it has reasonably good protection against dust, and it is OK for water to splash on it (e.g. rain), but you shouldn’t direct a jet of water at it and you shouldn’t let it go underwater.
If you are looking to get a flashlight for camping or for your car, or even a flashlight that could be used during emergency situations in your house, the E.LUMEN seems like a great option to me. You get all of the features that you expect from a traditional flashlight, plus lots of extra features such as an iPhone charger that could turn out to be quite useful in certain situations. Using solar power on a flashlight can be good or bad depending upon the circumstances; you cannot quickly swap out batteries like you can with a standard flashlight, but you also don’t need to worry about keeping (and carrying around) those extra batteries because you can use the sun to recharge. In short, I was worried that the E.LUMEN would be a toaster fridge, but after using it and thinking about it for a week, I like the product and it seems more like a yummy PB&J.
New York attorney Nicole Black discusses a new ABA Opinion (Formal Opinion 477) on legal ethics issues surrounding email and other methods of communicating with clients. The bottom line is that you need to determine what is the right method of communication depending upon the sensitivity of the information, the risks of disclosure, etc., all of which requires a case-by-case analysis. The lack of a black letter rule makes it harder for attorneys. For example, you can’t just say that unencrypted email is always appropriate, becomes sometimes it isn’t. So essentially, before you send any email or text, before you use Dropbox to share a file, and before you decide whether to meet in person or just use your iPhone, you need to pause and analyze what approach is reasonable for a specific communication with your client regarding a specific topic. And now, the news of note from the past week:
Things is a powerful app for tracking your to do items (my wife uses the app every day), and this week it was updated to version 3. Lory Gil of iMore discusses what is new in Things 3.
Christina Farr of CNBC reports that Apple CEO Tim Cook has been seen wearing a device that tracks blood sugar connected to his Apple Watch, a suggestion that Apple may be developing a glucose tracker for folks with diabetes.
This one is really neat. Charlie Sorrel of Cult of Mac walks through the steps to use the Photos app on an iPhone or iPad (this works better with a big iPad screen) to see a 3D view of a city with flags indicating photos that you took in different areas of the city. I had no idea you could do that. Very cool.
Jonny Evans of ComputerWorld shares 15 Apple Watch tricks. One on the list that I didn’t know about was the ability to turn the digital crown to gently illuminate the watch face, useful if you want to be discreet and/or are in a dark room.
Rene Ritchie of iMore tells the story of a man who was saved by Siri. He was burned in an explosion and couldn’t use his fingers to dial 911, but he was able to ask Siri to call 911 for him.
Last week, I noted that Apple released three videos with tips on using an iPhone to take photographs. There are actually many more videos, and they are all collected on this page on the Apple website entitled “How to shoot on iPhone 7.”
And finally, this week Apple released a new ad to show off the portrait mode feature of the iPhone 7 Plus. The commercial was filmed at a barbershop right here in New Orleans. It’s a cute commercial. One minor thing I noted — at the start of the commercial, you see a lawyer’s office on the left side of the screen next to the barbershop. I know where this commercial was shot (the Family Barber Shop at 8112 Oak Street), and while I haven’t yet driven over there to confirm, I think that Apple digitally added the law firm sign over what is actually a yoga studio. Indeed, according to the Louisiana State Bar Association website, there is no “Donald M. Taylor” practicing in Louisiana. Interesting that Apple thought that the ad would look better if the barbershop was next to a law firm. I guess it just shows you that everyone loves lawyers and wants to be near lawyers. Here is the ad, which Apple calls Barbers:
Earlier this week, Apple released iOS 10.3.2 for iPhone and iPad. Any X.X.1, X.X.2, etc. update is typically considered a minor update which adds no new features and just addresses some bugs and/or security issues. Sure enough, the release notes for iOS 10.3.2 say that it “includes bug fixes and improves the security of your iPhone or iPad.” You can get more details on the security improvements on the Apple website; where you will learn that iOS 10.3.2 fixes things like memory leaks that could allow an app to get kernel privileges, a flaw that could let an app execute arbitrary code, and a memory issue that could allow an app to cause a denial of service. But the concept of “security updates” may seem so unexciting that I’m sure that many folks conclude that they don’t want to waste the time installing the update.
This week we learned, once again, that security patches are important. As noted in numerous news stories such as this one from the Washington Post, a few years ago the NSA developed something it called EternalBlue, a hacking tool that the NSA could use to access computers to help U.S. interests. But the tool was stolen by hackers, and after the NSA discovered that, the NSA revealed the tool to Microsoft so that Microsoft could patch the flaw in Windows that the tool exploited. Microsoft released that patch in March of 2017, but many computers had not yet been updated, and as a result … well, I presume you heard about all of the computers around the world that were the victim of ransomware a few days ago, including a number of hospitals in London. As the Post article notes: “The malicious code at the heart of the WannaCry virus that hit computer systems globally late last week was apparently stolen from the NSA, repackaged by cybercriminals and unleashed on the world for a cyberattack that now ranks as among the most disruptive in history.”
From a worldwide perspective, WannaCry may be one of the most disruptive cyberattacks. But for Rhode Island law firm Moses Afonso Ryan, the most disruptive cyberattack was last year when a hacker took control of its computers and the firm had to pay a $25,000 ransom to get access to its systems again after three months. Even worse, as reported this month by Debra Cassens Weiss in ABA Journal, the law firm lost $700,000 in billings due to the attack, and its business interruption insurer is denying coverage.
It is unfortunate, although perhaps unsurprising, for a law firm to be a victim of hackers. I’m more amazed that the NSA — which must be one of the most security-conscious organizations in the world — could even be the victim of hackers. If the NSA is vulnerable, anyone is vulnerable. And as a side note, this is the sort of thing I was thinking of when I noted in the past during the FBI vs. Apple litigation that it was foolhardy for the FBI to ask Apple to create a backdoor for the government to access iPhones. Even if a special key was created only for the government, and even if the government honestly tried to keep that key secret, the risk of it being accessed by bad guys is simply too great to ignore.
However, my goal today is not to reignite the FBI vs. Apple debate, but instead to point out that virtually all software and hardware can have bugs and flaws. Fortunately, when these problems are discovered, they can typically be patched. I don’t think I’ve ever seen an iOS update that doesn’t include at least some security patches. Hopefully, iOS 10.3.2 wasn’t patching anything as dangerous as the Windows flaw used by EternalBlue and the WannaCry virus, but you never know. What I do know is that when Apple (or Microsoft or any trusted vendor) releases a security update, you should install the update. Maybe you don’t want to install it immediately, just in case the update itself has a flaw. That happened in 2013 with iOS 6.1, in 2014 with iOS 8.0.1, in 2016 with iOS 10.0, and other times as well. But Apple typically discovers those bugs very quickly, and then pulls the update until the issue is fixed. Once an update has been out for a day or two, you can feel safe installing the update. Of course it is always best to backup your iPhone or iPad before installing any update. (I usually practice what I preach, but to be honest sometimes I just install the update and cross my fingers.)
If you haven’t yet updated to iOS 10.3.2, it is time to do so now. Open the Settings app, tap General, and tap Software Update.
One of the most useful apps in my law practice is GoodReader, the primary app that I use to read and annotate PDF files. The last major update was GoodReader 4, released in 2014. Since then, the developer of the app, Yuri Selukoff (whose mother was a patent attorney), obtained a difficult-to-receive EB-1 Visa (reserved for foreign nationals with extraordinary abilities) and moved from Moscow to San Francisco, as described in this interesting profile of Selukoff from last year on the Inside BlackBerry blog. I was pleased to see a recent confirmation on the GoodReader Facebook page that Selukoff is hard at work on GoodReader 5. There is no release date yet, but hopefully the reason for Selukoff’s recent post is that the release date is coming soon. Selukoff says in that post: “It’s a huge update with a completely new design and new features, some you may not even know you’ll want until you’ve seen them! So fear not, and get ready (or for those of you who’ve been ready, stay ready) – GoodReader 5.0 is on the way!” For all of us who use GoodReader in our law practices – and I know from the feedback I receive from iPhone J.D. readers that there are many of us – it will be great to see a major update to this essential app. And now, the news of note from the past week:
Speaking of PDF apps, legal tech consultant Brett Burney discusses on his Apps in Law website what is new in PDF Expert version 6, a major update to one of the best apps for working with PDF files.
If you have ever used Gogo in-flight WiFi, you know that it can be incredibly useful, but it can also be incredibly frustrating, depending upon how fast the speed is. Gogo realizes this and is about to unroll a new 2Ku system that offers much higher speeds, and can even stream video. Caitlin McGarry of Macworld had a chance to try out the new service, and it seems to work well.
Kunal Dua of Gadgets360 (a tech website in India) interviewed Apple’s Phil Schiller while he was in teh country, and they discussed a variety of topics.
Sometimes an email loses its importance shortly after it is sent, such as an email asking you to go to lunch once the afternoon begins. But other times, it is helpful or even necessary to preserve an email — perhaps even as evidence, such as an email to or from opposing counsel that is an exhibit to a discovery motion. Here is a tip for converting an email message to a PDF file on the iPhone or iPad, so that you can then preserve that PDF version of the email. The technique is similar on both the iPhone and the iPad. And unlike the tip that I shared a year ago (which only worked on an iPhone that supports 3D Touch), this tip works on either an iPhone or iPad running iOS 10 (released September 13, 2016) or later.
On the iPhone, start by looking at the email that you want to preserve in the Mail app. At the bottom of the screen, the fourth icon is an arrow that you tap to Reply to a message. Tap that button, and the third option is Print. Tap the Print button.
Tapping print brings up the Printer Options screen. Ignore the options at the top of the screen and focus instead on the print preview at the bottom of the screen. Use two fingers to do a reverse-pinch on that image; start with your two fingers together and then pull them apart on the screen. This tells your iPhone to enlarge that print preview to full screen.
Note that if you are using a newer iPhone that supports 3D Touch (iPhone 6s or newer), instead of doing the reverse-pinch gesture, you can just press down on the small print preview image to open it in the full screen print preview mode. Whether you use 3D Touch or reverse=pinch is up to you; the result is the same.
This print preview screen shows you a PDF version of your email. Now, you just need to do something with it. If you look at the bottom left corner, you will see a share button (the box with the arrow coming out of it). Tap that button to do something with the PDF file such as open it in another app (such as an app that handles PDFs), email the PDF file, save it to Dropbox, etc.
Screenshot
When you are finished doing whatever you want to do with that PDF version of the email, cancel out of all of the screens by tapping the arrow at the top left, then the cancel button at the top left.
Here is how to do the same thing on an iPad. Start by tapping the reply arrow at the top right of the screen. Then tap Print, the third option in the pop-up menu.
This brings you to the Print Options screen. Again, ignore the stuff at the top and reverse-pinch the preview on the bottom part.
Now you will see a full-screen version of the preview of the document. Tap the share button at the top right to see a pop-up menu of options, and choose what you want to do with the PDF version of the email — email that PDF file, open it in another app, etc.
Again, when you are done, just cancel out of the screens to return to the point where you are looking at the email in the Mail app.
Although particularly useful when working with emails, you can use this trick in other parts of iOS too, as long as you have the option to print something. For example, if you have an image in Photos on your iPhone or iPad that you want to quickly convert to a PDF file, just select the option to print the photo, reverse-pinch on the preview, and then act upon the resulting PDF file containing the image. Want to convert a note in Apple’s Notes app to a PDF? Just tap the share button while you are looking at a note, tap the Printer icon, and then follow the directions above.
What if you are using an app that doesn’t have a print function but you really want a PDF version of whatever you are seeing on the screen? You can take a screen-shot of the current screen by pressing the power and the home button at the same time. This puts an image in your Photos. Then follow the instructions above to convert to PDF — choose the option to print the photo, etc.
Note that sometimes, in some apps, the resulting PDF file isn’t perfect. For example, if you are looking at a web page in Safari, you can tap the share button and then select print and then create a PDF file, but the resulting PDF file will often look very different than the website, sometimes completely stripping off the top of a web page. You are better off using a dedicated PDF app that is made to do a nice job converting a web page to a PDF file. PDF PROvider is one such app that can do this, but I know that many others can too. [UPDATE: A reader just informed me that DAR Software, the maker of PDR PROvider, is shutting down operations and will soon pull this app from the App Store. So while PDF PROvider is still working for me, I can no longer recommend it. I know that many other apps can also prepare a PDF of a web page; if you know of one that is worth recommending, please let me know.]
But when it comes to emails, this simple trick typically does a nice job of converting an email to PDF format, perfect when you want to preserve that email or use it as an exhibit.
FBI Director James Comey was in the news quite a bit this week. No, I’m not going to talk about him admitting felling “mildly nauseous” about how his actions affected the presidential election, but instead about his reigniting the old FBI versus Apple issue regarding the encryption of private data on Apple phones. Natasha Lomas of TechCrunch discusses Comey’s desire to force Apple to put a backdoor on iPhones to give the FBI access to encrypted data. Comey claims that he isn’t asking for a “backdoor,” and instead just for a way for the government to bypass encryption to access secure data. Um… that’s what a “backdoor” is. I’m opposed to these efforts (as is Apple) because any backdoor created for the FBI would surely be exploited by criminals as well (and I’m sure would also be requested by every other government in the world). And when that happens, the whole purpose of encryption is defeated; the bad guys get access to your confidential data. I know that every lawyer (and doctor, and priest, etc.) appreciates the value of protecting confidential communications and information. Hopefully our government will understand this too and won’t do anything short-sighted. And now, the news of note from the past week:
Legal technology consultant Brett Burney shares tips for working with documents and much more in a Q and A follow-up to his recent “Top 10 Apps for Lawyers” presentation that he did for MyCase.
Speaking of Brett Burney, New York attorney and TechnoLawyer publisher Neil Squillante discusses the Airmail app on the latest edition of the Apps in Law Podcast, hosted by Burney.
California attorney David Sparks discusses a recent attempt to use only an iPad when traveling. Not to spoil the ending, but it worked for him until the last day when he needed to use a true computer to do track changes in Google Docs. I never take a laptop when I travel, but when I have a situation like this in which a computer is required, I use remote access software on my iPad to do the task via my Mac at home or my PC at work. The one that I use is called LogMeIn, but I know that there are less expensive alternatives that work for many folks.
Jonny Evans of Computerworld shares a list of iPhone tips, many of which are rather useful and good to know.
In an article for Macworld, Dan Moreen analyzes the possibility of Apple creating a system in the Messages app that would let you send (or receive) money from someone else. I hope Apple does something like this; person-to-person payments would be very useful.
Ben Bajarin of Tech.pinons discusses a recent survey of AirPods users finding 98% customer satisfaction.
In a wide-ranging 11 minute interview with Jim Cramer of CNBC, Apple CEO Tim Cook discusses lots of different issues — job creation, working with the Trump administration, artificial intelligence, the Apple Watch (and how it helped Tim Cook lose 30 pounds), AirPods, and more.
Yesterday for Star Wars Day, Lory Gil of iMore shared some Star Wars-themed iPhone wallpapers. My family prepared for Star Wars Day last weekend by watching the Blu-Ray version of Rogue One, which was fun to see again, and last night my kids and I watched the new short videos in the Lego Star Wars show Freemaker Adventures. I’ve always been impressed by the Lego Star Wars shows; they appeal to every age, and they are fun to watch.
Speaking of Star Wars, here is an amazing series of videos by Palette-Swap Ninja, a mash-up that tells the story of Star Wars set to the tune of Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band. It’s called Princess Leia’s Stolen Death Star Plans. Bravo; very well done. (Thanks to Jeff Gamet at The Mac Observer.)
And finally, Apple came up with a very clever way to showcase the Portrait mode feature of the iPhone 7 Plus, a mode that keeps your subject in focus but blurs the background, similar to what happens when you use an SLR camera. In the commercial, the rest of busy Shanghai disappears when a couple uses Portrait mode. Great commercial. (And nice song, too: Sing to Me by Walter Martin, with Karen O of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs.)
