When iOS version 4.2 for the iPad was released, Apple changed the functionality of what was, until then, the “orientation lock button” (the one next to the volume control). Much to the annoyance of many users (including myself), it became a “mute switch”.
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Filed under: Apple, Mikes Musings | Posted on January 13th, 2011 by Mike Thomas | No Comments »
I have decided that I want my work schedule available when I’m not logged in to work. Now you may think that is sad but if there’s a last minute announcement such as “new iPads are going on sale on X date” or “Apple are coming to town to demo their latest stuff” then I need to know if I’m free so that I can book a day off.
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Filed under: Mikes Musings | Posted on November 6th, 2010 by Mike Thomas | No Comments »
Creating certificates is a time-consuming job that most trainers dislike.
Where I work there are some applications and IT systems that require users to have attended a training course before they are granted access to the system and the course certificate is the proof that they have attended.
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Filed under: Mikes Musings | Posted on October 13th, 2010 by Mike Thomas | No Comments »
Almost all of the training courses that I deliver involve PowerPoint. Let me be clear, I don’t mean that I solely deliver PointPoint training, rather, most of the courses require the use of PowerPoint. I have a few introductory slides (with not a single bullet point in sight!), I have a slide with contact details on that I display at the end and, for some courses, I have slides that are used to explain concepts.
When I deliver a live training course I don’t like to use cue cards or have a printout of the running order. So how do I remember which slide is up next and what about Speakers Notes?
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Filed under: Tutorials | Posted on September 13th, 2010 by Mike Thomas | 1 Comment »
Every month our team (at work) produces a newsletter packed full of IT tips and tricks. This month our Newsletter Editor asked me to write a couple of short paragraphs about Yammer, which has recently been introduced into the company. This got me thinking about how to explain what Yammer is to “non-Yammerers”?
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Filed under: Mikes Musings | Posted on August 20th, 2010 by Mike Thomas | No Comments »
Whilst building a Graphical Dashboard for a client I discovered that the Excel 2007 macro recorder doesn’t record actions that involve placing and manipulating the drawing tools/shapes.
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Filed under: TipsNTricks, Tutorials | Posted on August 18th, 2010 by Mike Thomas | No Comments »
At work, our team has recently started to offer eLearning courses. These courses are “bite-sized” (typically 15-20 minutes) modules, covering topics such as File Management, Excel formulae and setting mailbox permissions in Outlook.
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Filed under: TipsNTricks, Tutorials | Posted on June 30th, 2010 by Mike Thomas | No Comments »
Saturday morning came and we left the house in plenty of time but a combination of heavy rain, road closures and a closed car park entrance meant that I had to dump the car and run to the Apple Store. Poor Elaine spent the next 45 minutes sitting in traffic and driving round parts of Manchester she never knew existed looking for an alternative entrance to the Arndale car park.
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Filed under: Apple, Mikes Musings | Posted on June 23rd, 2010 by Mike Thomas | No Comments »
So the big day arrived. I’d planned to work from home on Friday 28th (as this was the expected delivery date) and now they were being delivered a day early and I had to go into work. At just after 9:00, I got a phone call from Elaine. “Mine’s arrived but now I’ll have to wait all day until you get home”. I had to forcefully tell her to open it, play with it and enjoy it – truth be known she didn’t need much persuading!
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Filed under: Apple, Mikes Musings | Posted on June 23rd, 2010 by Mike Thomas | No Comments »
When the iPad was first announced back in January I decided there and then that I wanted one (even though the UK price hadn’t been set at that point). Did I need one? Maybe, maybe not? I have an iPhone and a MacBook Pro (which I had purchased only 6 weeks previously) so from a “working on the road” point of view, I was pretty much sorted. But I wanted one and I’d find a use for it once it arrived.
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Filed under: Apple, Mikes Musings | Posted on June 23rd, 2010 by Mike Thomas | No Comments »