ldstephens

I heavily relied on Things to manage my daily tasks for quite some time. It's an app that many of us are familiar with and trust. However, as my needs evolved, I found myself turning to Apple Reminders for a change. But it wasn't long before I realized I needed more functionality, and that's where GoodTask came into the picture. GoodTask is a powerful task management tool that builds upon Apple's Reminders app and seamlessly integrates with your calendars as well.

Here are a few things that make GoodTask work for me:

GoodTask takes task organization to a whole new level. Its Custom Smart Lists feature allows me to sort tasks based on my specific criteria. Whether it's prioritizing, categorizing, or customizing the view, GoodTask offers a high degree of flexibility. You can choose to view your tasks as traditional lists or opt for a Kanban-style board.

In addition, you can create subtasks, attach tags to your tasks, and set customizable deadlines complete with alerts. And Quick Actions and Shortcuts simplify the automation of routine tasks.

While Apple Reminders is a solid choice for basic task management, GoodTask's exceptional customization options and advanced capabilities have allowed me to make my task manager function exactly as I want it to.

Hey friends, Apple Notes is one of the best note-taking apps for iPhone and iPad, with features like nested folders and tags for organization, support for rich-text formatting, Apple Pencil support on iPad, a built-in document scanner, and more. With the iOS 17 update, the Notes app has received several new features you will love but there are four that I'm really looking forward to using:

• Notes Linking: This will help me keep my notes organized and interconnected.
• PDF Editing: Annotating and marking up PDFs right in my notes is a game-changer. I'll no longer need a third-party app.
• Undo/Redo Buttons: Making corrections will now be a breeze. No more three-finger swipe.
• Block Quotes: Perfect for emphasizing important text or citing sources.

For an in depth review of all the new features, I recommend watching Christopher Lawley's How I Use Apple Notes: iPad Productivity YouTube video.

I typically don't install new OS updates on release day, but yesterday I went ahead and installed iOS 17 on my iPhone and iPadOS 17 on my iPad Pro and iPad Mini. The installations went smoothly, and I'm looking forward to using all the new features in iOS and iPadOS 17.

To help you get started, I've curated some resources that can be helpful as you start using iOS and iPadOS 17:

• iOS and iPadOS 17: The MacStories Review – MacStories
• New Features To Check Out On Your iPhone In iOS 17 – YouTube
• More New Features To Check Out On Your iPhone In iOS 17 – YouTube
• iPadOS 17 Walkthrough: EVERYTHING You Need to Know – YouTube

Hey friends, as an Apple tech enthusiast, I'm truly grateful for the privilege of having the latest gadgets. Currently, I own an M1 MacBook Air, an M2 iPad Pro with the Magic Keyboard, and an iPad Mini. You might be wondering how I use these three devices for different tasks so I thought I would share that with you today.

In recent months, my iPad Pro has become my preferred computing device. I love the versatility it offers with its combination of touch, keyboard, trackpad, mouse, and pencil. Plus, I've automated a lot of tasks on it using Siri Shortcuts and Drafts. Interestingly, I've become so accustomed to using my iPad that when I switch to my MacBook, I often catch myself trying to touch the screen. So here we go:

iPad Mini:

• Content consumption which includes reading, watching, listening to, and interacting with a wide variety of content

iPad Pro:

• Writing, editing and publishing blog posts
• Journaling
• Task management
• Communication
• Thinking

MacBook Air:

• Research
• File management

In summary, my tech workflow revolves around my iPad Mini and iPad Pro with my MacBook Air sitting on the sideline.

Hey friends, I just completed watching all 9 seasons of “Suits”. I happened upon Suits when Netflix put it in my recommended shows to watch. At the time I was looking for something to watch so I figured what the hell I’ll watch the first episode. I was hooked.

“Suits” is a hit on Netflix, even though it originally aired on USA Network from 2011 to 2019. And there’s a lot of discussion about what has prompted its resurgence. For me, it's simply because “Suits” is genuinely entertaining. Gabriel Macht, who played Harvey Specter, was a total boss. Patrick J. Adams as Michael Ross brought some real heart to the show. Sarah Rafferty's Donna Paulsen was just awesome, smart, and witty. And Rick Hoffman's Louis Litt? Hilariously quirky! These four made Suits a blast to watch!

By the way, Netflix is only airing 8 of the 9 seasons. I watched season 9 on Prime Video.

Every day, while using my iPad, I often stumble upon new apps that help me be more productive. Take, for example, my Mac setup – I've got Alfred triggers that speed up searches on certain websites. These websites usually have a predictable URL structure for search results, making automation pretty easy. With Alfred, you can set up the URL, add your search terms, and boom, you're searching away. You can kinda do something similar with Shortcuts on iOS and iPadOS, but it's not as smooth because it doesn't work directly from the address bar.

With xSearch, you can set up the same sort of thing inside the address bar. xSearch is an iOS and iPadOS Safari extension that allows you to seamlessly switch between multiple search engines with ease, and even search directly from Spotlight. This can make your browsing experience more efficient and.

Here are some of the features of xSearch:

• Switch between multiple search engines with ease: You can add as many search engines as you want to xSearch, and then switch between them.
• Search directly from Spotlight: You can also use xSearch to search directly from Spotlight, without having to open Safari first.
• Custom search prefixes: You can create custom search prefixes for each search engine. For example, you could set up a prefix of “g” to search Google, and a prefix of “ddg” to search DuckDuckGo.
• Shortcuts: You can also create shortcuts for frequently searched terms. For example, you could create a shortcut for “weather” that would search for the weather in your current location.

xSearch is a paid app on the App Store, priced at only $1.99.

I hope this app boosts your iPhone and iPad productivity!

Most iPhone and iPad users are familiar with the option to change font size in Mail, Contacts, Calendar, Phone, Notes, and other apps that support Dynamic Type. To do this, simply go to Settings > Display & Brightness, then choose Text Size and use the slider to select your preferred font size. However, many might not know how to adjust font size in an individual app.

Yesterday, I encountered a situation where I needed to change the font size in a specific app that utilizes Dynamic Type. I wanted to modify the font size in Goodnotes without affecting other apps. It took me a few minutes to recall the process, but you can indeed change font size for individual apps on your iPhone or iPad by following these steps:

1. Open the app for which you want to change the font size.
2. Open the Control Center by swiping down from the top-right corner of your screen. For iPhones with a Home button, swipe up from the bottom of the screen.
3. Tap the Text Size icon.
4. If the All Apps icon is blue, tap the [This App] Only icon.
5. Use your finger to move the slider up or down to change the font size for the app.

The more white bars, the larger the font size. Look at the top of the screen for a preview of the actual size of the font.

I hope this helps!

I recently wrote this article where I mentioned, “Coincidentally, my iPhone is also an 11. I have continued to resist getting a new one, and this story by Filipe has convinced me that I wouldn’t gain much (if anything) by doing so.” I'm fairly certain this will still be the case even after the announcement of the iPhone 15 in the next few days.

Since I don't have plans to upgrade to a new iPhone, I decided to check my iPhone 11's battery health to see if it needs replacement. I haven't been experiencing any of the common signs that usually indicate the need for a new battery, such as decreased battery life, quick draining, unexpected shutdowns, charging issues, overheating, or swelling.

So, that leaves only one other thing to check: the Battery Health Percentage. To do this, go to Settings > Battery > Battery Health. If it's significantly below 80%, you should consider a replacement. My iPhone 11 is at 84%, so I'm good for now.

Matt Mullenweg, CEO of Automattic “The 100-Year Plan isn’t just about today. It’s an investment in tomorrow. Whether you’re cementing your own digital legacy or gifting 100 years of a trusted platform to a loved one, this plan is a testament to the future’s boundless potential. The cost is $38,000”.

I have two questions. The first is, why would Wordpress.com do this? Is it a PR stunt or an urgent need for cash or something else?

Second, why would anyone be willing to pay for a domain and hosting for 100 years in advance? Hell, who even knows if there will be an internet in 30 years let alone 100 years? Who knows if Wordpress.com will last for 100 years? Companies change, go bankrupt, get greedy, etc. There are too many uncertainties to even entertain the idea of this being a serious offer that one should consider. And, after I'm dead I won't give a shit what happens to my digital legacy.

Published first to ldstephens.net – September 6, 2023

In 2024, the iPad Pro is rumored to receive it's first major update since 2018, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. However, this “major overhaul” doesn't seem that major to me. Here's what's expected:

• Introduction of the M3 chip.
• Slight screen size bump from 12.9 inches to 13 inches.
• A new Magic Keyboard with a larger trackpad.
• OLED screen.

Overall, I'm not feeling the urge to upgrade my iPad Pro in 2024. How about you?