Handy hints, tips and tricks for iPad, iPhone, Mac and more

30/4/2017 5 Comments

Downloading the call history for your Telstra mobile phone

How to download your Telstra call history

Sometimes, finding things on the Telstra website is near on impossible. Just this last week, I wanted to look up the details of a mobile call that I made in in March. When I looked at the PDF of my Telstra bill, it only showed detailed data usage and not my list of mobile phone calls.

So I logged into my online Telstra account, thinking that I would be able to quickly download my call list for March. After much looking, clicking and Googling, I gave up and resorted to a LiveChat session with a Telstra representative.

Finally, she led me to the page where I could find the required option. Phew.

However, when I came to retrace those stops, I got lost again! Luckily, I kept the LiveChat transcript so that I could refer back to the instructions.

Here is my step-by-step list for anyone who struggles to find this option!

Log into your Telstra account at telstra.com
Click on my mobile service under ‘Plans and Usage’
On the right hand side, click on ‘Recent Charges’
On the page that appears, there is a heading called Recent Charges at the top, followed by Recent Charges Breakdown under that.
Click View Details next to the Recent Charges Breakdown heading.
In the left sidebar, click View Bills
In the right sidebar, the second section is headed Bill History
A date is shown in the box below this - click on the ‘down-arrow’ here to view a list of billing dates, and select the month that you require.
In the section below that, titled Download/Print Bill, choose Full itemised usage - CSV

Finally, this will download a CSV file detailing your usage!

Easy, isn’t it! (Not!)

5 Comments

23/4/2017 0 Comments

Trying out some interesting new Photo Book options

If you are a Facebook user, you may have recently seen ads for a couple of relatively new Photo Book products.

One of them, Chatbooks, comes with a very funny advertisement. You will especially enjoy this ad if you are a busy mum who can’t imagine having time to make a photo book! As an ‘old’ mum, I must say it even made me chuckle.

The other product I have seen more recently, called Zno (www.zno.com), features books that appear to have beautiful thick ‘cardboard’ pages, like those that cost a fortune from a professional photographer. They feature ‘flush mount’ and ‘lay flat’ books.

These books look like they might be great for very special occasions - they are much more expensive than those which I usually order.

As a huge fan of photo books, I was couldn’t help myself - I had to try out each these products to see how they 'stack up'.

Last month, I ordered my first Chatbook, made very quickly using photos that were featured in a recent family slideshow. The only thing that took any time was deciding on the cover photo for the book (which ended up being an old black and white photo that I had scanned).

This Chatbook arrived on Friday 21/4, after being ordered on 31/3 - over three weeks to arrive from the US (much, much slower than our usual provider, who only takes 3-4 business days).

The book is OK - if you like a very, very simple photo book. I have included a few photos of the book below, to give you an idea.

It is very small, at 6 inch square (or 15.24 cm square) - much smaller than I would typically order. It just shows the photos at the 'snapshot' size, one photo per page.

I must say that, having ordered the hardcover version (instead of the cheaper soft cover), it does sit very nicely on a shelf - a lovely unframed photo that has lots of snapshots shown behind it. You can see it in the 1st image above, sitting next to one or our larger photo books of a trip to Uluru (created using Snapfish). The cost of this Chatbook was AUD$40.70 - for 94 photos plus the hardcover.

What about Zno photo books?

I have just ordered a ‘test’ book from Zno, as they have an offer that allows you to order your first book for free (normally USD$50). The only cost is delivery, at USD$12 (around AUD$16.50). Delivery timeframe for that one looks like it will be a similar that of Chatbooks (they both come from the US).

I’ll report back when I get my Zno book - containing some of my favourite scenery shots taken with my iPhone over the past 2 years.

Is it time you learned how to make a photo book?

iTandCoffee would love to show you how to make a wonderful photo book, at our

‘Make a Digital Photo Book’ class
which next runs on
Tuesday May 2nd, 1-3pm.

It doesn't matter whether you have an iPad, Mac, or Windows computer - this class will show you how to make a beautiful book of photos using any of these devices. It is a 'hands-on' class where you will make a great start on your book (and perhaps even finish it!).

Places are limited, so get in quickly to avoid missing out.

Find out more / Book here

PS. If you can't make this one, the class will next be run on July 13.

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22/4/2017 0 Comments

Extracting a record of your Messages (or other data) from your iPhone or an iTunes backup

A client who visited iTandCoffee recently had a particular requirement. She needed to extract a record of her iPhone's Messages, so that she had a separate, permanent record - just in case something happened to her iPhone.

The good news for this client is that such a requirement can be relatively easily met.

Not only is it possible to extract a record of the messages, but also the Contacts, Calendar entries, voice recordings, call history, photos, videos and more.

It is even possible to determine a forgotten 'Restrictions' password.

The Mac app that iTandCoffee uses to extract the above information is called 'iPhone Backup Extractor', one that has served our purposes for the past few years.

How do you retrieve your music from an old iPod or iOS device? Here is an article that covers this particular topic.

Recover your iTunes library from your iPod or iOS Device

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18/4/2017 0 Comments

A tip for stopping those Facebook notifications

How many Facebooks notifications and ads to you receive each day? Would you like to be able to stop some of these from occurring?

For example, have you noticed how, when you comment on a post by someone else, you then start getting notifications about comments made by other people about that post?

Have you shared an article or some other post, and then started getting notifications on who is liking, sharing and commenting about it - and wondered if you could stop these?

If you find yourself getting such notifications, it is very easy to turn them off - either from your computer or on your iPhone or iPad.

In the Facebook app on the iPhone or iPad, go to your Notifications (i.e. tap the globe symbol in the bar at the bottom (or top on your computer).

You will see a list of recent Notifications. For any notification in this list, swipe from right the left across the notification to see the 'Hide' and 'More' options.

To stop receiving notifications about the post, just choose the 'More' option to reveal the 'Turn off notifications about this ...' and tap on this option.

On your computer, simply tap the 'down-arrow' that is at top right of the post to uncover some options. Once again, select 'Turn off notifications for this post'.

Would you like to learn more about Facebook?

Of course, Facebook can generate a whole heap of other notifications, whether they be within Facebook, as pop-ups on your screen or via email (and sometimes text).

You can also find yourself seeing all sorts of 'sponsored' posts and wondering how you can stop them appearing. And how do you 'turn off' someone who posts lots of rubbish without going to the extreme of 'unfriending' them.

iTandCoffee has two Facebook sessions that you might be interested in. Here are the details.

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18/4/2017 0 Comments

Can I change the date of a photo so it appears in the correct Year in Apple's Photos app?

Having recently scanned some old photos so that you have a digital copy, I found myself frustrated by the fact that they appear in your Photos app's timeline on the date they were scanned - not on the date that they were originally taken.

Luckily, there is an easy way of resolving this.

The Photos app on the Mac has a feature that allows you to easily change the date and time (or the location) of a photo, so that the Years, Collections, Moments timeline view of your scanned photos will be more meaningful. It is also possible to adjust this photo information on an iPhone and iPad.

The below image shows my own Photos library, reflecting some old photos that were taken in the late 50's and early 60's - after I have changed the dates of the photos that previously showed a 'date taken' of 2017.

If you would like to find out how this can be achieved, why not attend the 'Photos App on the Mac' classes at iTandCoffee in Glen Iris (Melbourne)

This class topic is run every 1-2 months, with the next classes scheduled for Monday May 1 and 8 2016, at 1-3pm.

A couple of places are still available for that class series, and for the next classes in July.
Find out more or book here ››

iTandCoffee Club members can find out about features like this any time - no need to come to a class. Here are the links to the members-only handy hints that cover this topic:

Not yet a member of the iTandCoffee Club? Find out more about the Club here ››

If you use Microsoft Word, you MUST install this update

Many of you will have already seen this item in the press recently, but I thought it worth mentioning in this fortnight's blog articles - just in case you didn't see it, or haven't acted to block the serious threat that it describes.

The Age on April 12th reported on a flaw in Microsoft Word that can be exploited to give criminals access to bank account details and other sensitive information on your computer - simply by opening a Word document received as an attachment to an email.

Here is the article describing this issue: Microsoft moves quickly to patch Word bug that steals users' bank details

Make sure you install the latest Word security update as soon as possible to ensure that you are protected from this flaw.

(If you are not sure how to do this, call 1300 885 420 if you would like iTandCoffee to book you in for an appointment. You can come to us in Glen Iris (Melbourne), or we can come to you.)

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8/4/2017 0 Comments

NBN woes - iTandCoffee shares your pain!

I was reading an article just this morning, about the serious problems being encountered by many residents who live nearby to iTandCoffee in Glen Iris. In fact, only last night I received a call from a family who have been without internet for two weeks.

Here is the article I saw in the SMH:

NBN cable rollout delayed as HFC 'false activations' leave homes offline for months

At iTandCoffee, we too have suffered a severe case of NBN frustration.

Having placed the order with Telstra in early January to switch to NBN (which resulted in multiple frustrating follow up calls to clarify incorrect information given by the person who processed the order), we then heard nothing for 6 weeks. As I'm sure you will understand if you are one of the huge number of people who has ever dealt with Telstra issues, I just couldn't find the energy to get on the phone to Telstra to chase up what was happening with the order.

Then, in late Feb, we received a text saying the install would happen the next day, along with a contradicting email stating that the install would occur in two days.

Having contacted a Telstra 'case manager' to clarify the date (and complain about the lack of warning), and then arranging for someone to be present for the 4-hour window of 8am-12pm on day, no-one from NBN turned up on the day or contacted us to explain the 'no show'.

Our case manager from Telstra then booked the next available appointment with NBN, which was on March 30 - again between 8am-12pm. This meant waiting another month for action!

Once again, we arranged for someone to be present for the 8am-12pm window. It was after 11:30 on March 30 when we finally received a call saying that the technician wouldn't be there until about 2pm!

Then, when he finally did arrive, we were informed that he couldn't do anything because a conduit from the 'pit' outside into the premises was not large enough, and that Telstra would need to fix this before NBN could do their 'bit'!

Now, we supposedly have a 'remediation appointment' scheduled for May 19 - over 4 months after the original order was placed.

What is not clear is when Telstra will fix the 'conduit size' issue. Yet more time needs to be wasted on calls to Telstra to resolve just what is happening, something that I could not face this past week.

Now, after reading this morning's article, I think I will be cancelling my order and sticking with my current ADSL internet connection for as long as possible.

Do you have a NBN tale of woe? Feel free to leave a comment below if you have.

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7/4/2017 13 Comments

A time to remember ...

Apologies for the late delivery of this fortnightly Newsletter, and to those whose appointments and classes were postponed recently.

Sadly, my family suffered the sudden loss of my Mum on March 24th - much loved mother of 5, grandmother of 14, and beloved wife of nearly 60 years to my Dad, Kevin.

Visitors to the iTandCoffee website will see Mum featured in several photos - a perfect example of an iTandCoffee client, one who embraced her technology in the last decade or so of her life.

Mum was an avid iPhoneographer, with the most organised albums of photos you will ever see on an iPad. She was there with her iPhone at every family event, and had so much joy showing off the photos of here family.

Facetime allowed her to keep in touch with her youngest grandchildren who live in Bairnsdale and she so enjoyed stalking her older grandchildren on Facebook!

And, of course, texting via Messages allowed her to keep in constant contact with us (and us with her), especially during the time she was in hospital - even at times when we couldn't call her. She knew that we were constantly thinking of her.

Of course she had her frustrations with her technology, and there were regular phone calls each week requesting assistance. She was lucky enough to have several tech-savvy kids and grandkids who could help her, something that I know many iTandCoffee clients lack.

We will forever miss you Mum, but are so grateful for the wonderful memories, captured in so many of our photos and videos.

Here is my favourite memory from a few months ago - one that captures the joy of our family gatherings, with Mum the glue that held us together. There we are, mother and daughter, with our iPhones out!

13 Comments

3/4/2017 0 Comments

Two iOS updates recently - what do iOS 10.3 and 10.3.1 deliver and should you update?

Last week (on March 28th), Apple released another major update to to our iPhone and iPad operating system iOS - iOS 10.3. Hot on the heals of that major update came another update overnight on April 4th - a 'fix' release, iOS 10.3.1.

If you visit Settings -> General -> Software Update, you should notice that the latest version awaiting download and install is 10.3.1 (which will incorporate 10.3 if you hadn't already installed that update).

iOS 10.3/10.3.1 provide some new functionality, a major overhaul of the 'file system' that manages everything on your device, as well as some significant changes in the location of some very important Settings.

See later in this article for details of what is included in these latest updates.

Should you update now?

Updating to this latest iOS version can be done at any time, with a couple of major warnings that need to be heeded before proceeding.

Due to the major changes to the underlying file system that iOS 10.3 delivers, is essential that you have backed up your device before you proceed with the update.

If something goes wrong during the update, you will need to be able to restore from this backup. This means ensuring that you have an iCloud backup or an iTunes backup of the device. (If you are not sure how to do this, iTandCoffee can assist - call 1300 885 420 to make an appointment.)
iOS 10.3 is a larger update update than most, and will take quite a while to download and install.

Don't be fooled into thinking it has stalled part way through - stopping the update during installation can corrupt your device and require a factory reset and restore from backup.

This slowness of the 10.3 update is due to the new file system that it is installing device, one that will improve performance and (hopefully) enhance battery life.

Where have iCloud settings gone?

Having updated to iOS 10.3 on March 28th, I had not yet had a chance to review the changes that it brought.

I was therefore surprised this week when I went to Settings to look at my iCloud setup, and found that the iCloud settings were no longer where they used to be. Drat. More changes to iTandCoffee guides and presentations!

It took me some time to work out just where they had gone.

Your settings for iCloud are now found at the very top of the Settings screen.

You should see your name with an > on the right-hand side.

Tap on this to view all sorts of information about your Apple ID, payment method, iCloud, iTunes and App Store, Family Sharing, and the devices that are using your iCloud (as shown in the first image of this article).

What is in iOS 10.3 and 10.3.1?

Here is the information on iOS 10.3 and 10.3.1, provided by the Apple Support page.

iOS 10.3
Released Mar 28, 2017. iOS 10.3 introduces new features including the ability to locate AirPods using Find my iPhone and more ways to use Siri with payment, ride booking and automaker apps.

Find My iPhone
View the current or last known location of your AirPods
Play a sound on one or both AirPods to help you find them
Siri
Support for paying and checking status of bills with payment apps
Support for scheduling with ride booking apps
Support for checking car fuel level, lock status, turning on lights and activating horn with automaker apps
Cricket sports scores and statistics for Indian Premier League and International Cricket Council
CarPlay
Shortcuts in the status bar for easy access to last used apps
Apple Music Now Playing screen gives access to Up Next and the currently playing song’s album
Daily curated playlists and new music categories in Apple Music
Other improvements and fixes
Rent once and watch your iTunes movies across your devices
New Settings unified view for your Apple ID account information, settings and devices
Hourly weather in Maps using 3D Touch on the displayed current temperature
Support for searching “parked car" in Maps
Calendar adds the ability to delete an unwanted invite and report it as junk
Home app support to trigger scenes using accessories with switches and buttons
Home app support for accessory battery level status
Podcasts support for 3D Touch and Today widget to access recently updated shows
Podcast shows or episodes are shareable to Messages with full playback support
Fixes an issue that could prevent Maps from displaying your current location after resetting Location & Privacy
VoiceOver stability improvements for Phone, Safari and Mail
iOS 10.3.1
Released April 3, 2017
Wi-Fi
Available for: iPhone 5 and later, iPad 4th generation and later, iPod touch 6th generation and later
Impact: An attacker within range may be able to execute arbitrary code on the Wi-Fi chip
Description: A stack buffer overflow was addressed through improved input validation.

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2/4/2017 1 Comment

How to add music to a Photos slideshow when you have Apple Music

When preparing a slideshow of photos last week, using the Photos app on the Mac, we were wanting to play a particular music track with that slideshow. This slideshow was just going to be shown to family as part of the celebration of the life of a loved one.

It seemed that this should be an easy thing to do. We had completed the selection of photos for the slideshow and it was time to add the finishing touch - the music, a beautiful song by Ed Sheeran.

Frustratingly, we found that when we tried choosing the iTunes track that we wanted to use, it was 'greyed' and not able to be selected.

I thought that because I had subscribed to Apple Music, I would be able to choose any track from my music library to use with my Photos slideshow. I thought all I needed to do was download the required track using iTunes, so that it was stored on my computer.

Unfortunately, this wasn't the case. Apple Music tracks are protected by DRM (digital rights management), and (apparently) can only be streamed using iTunes - they cannot be used in Photos slideshows.

I am not sure if this will change some time in future, but in the meantime we needed to find a way around this this limitation, as it was essential that we be able to play the chosen track with our slideshow.

Luckily, we found a solution.

My daughter had recently purchased the CD version of the artist's album, and we were able to import the track from the CD to iTunes as an MP3 track.

Magically, the track then became available for selection in the Photos app, and we were able to play that beautiful track with our beautiful slideshow.

If you would like to find out more about how we imported the music as MP3 or how we were able to select the song as backing for the Photos slideshow, why not come along to our "Photos on the Mac" class which will be running again soon.

Find out more about this class here ››

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27 Sycamore St, Camberwell, Victoria Australia

Call 1300 885 420

to book an appointment or class, or to enquire about our services and products

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YOUR CART

Tips, Tricks and Articles about your Technology

iPad, iPhone, Mac, Windows, Android, Office 365, Google services, iCloud, OneDrive, Dropbox, Apps, Social Media, Zoom, and more.

Downloading the call history for your Telstra mobile phone

Trying out some interesting new Photo Book options

Is it time you learned how to make a photo book?

‘Make a Digital Photo Book’ class
which next runs on
Tuesday May 2nd, 1-3pm.

Extracting a record of your Messages (or other data) from your iPhone or an iTunes backup

A tip for stopping those Facebook notifications

Would you like to learn more about Facebook?

Can I change the date of a photo so it appears in the correct Year in Apple's Photos app?

Related Handy Hints and Articles - iPhone and iPad

Related Handy Hints and Articles - Mac

If you use Microsoft Word, you MUST install this update

NBN woes - iTandCoffee shares your pain!

A time to remember ...

Two iOS updates recently - what do iOS 10.3 and 10.3.1 deliver and should you update?

Should you update now?

Where have iCloud settings gone?

What is in iOS 10.3 and 10.3.1?

How to add music to a Photos slideshow when you have Apple Music

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Call 1300 885 420

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YOUR CART

Tips, Tricks and Articles about your Technology iPad, iPhone, Mac, Windows, Android, Office 365, Google services, iCloud, OneDrive, Dropbox, Apps, Social Media, Zoom, and more.

Is it time you learned how to make a photo book?

‘Make a Digital Photo Book’ classwhich next runs on Tuesday May 2nd, 1-3pm.

​Would you like to learn more about Facebook?

Related Handy Hints and Articles - iPhone and iPad

​Related Handy Hints and Articles - Mac

​Should you update now?

Where have iCloud settings gone?

What is in iOS 10.3 and 10.3.1?

Receive great articles like this fortnightly to your Inbox

Follow us on Facebook

Join the iTandCoffee Club ​for free content, tutorials, videos, classes, offers, discounts and more

What's on at iTandCoffee ?

Archives

Categories

​​Call 1300 885 420 ​to book an appointment or class, or to enquire about our services and products

Tips, Tricks and Articles about your Technology

iPad, iPhone, Mac, Windows, Android, Office 365, Google services, iCloud, OneDrive, Dropbox, Apps, Social Media, Zoom, and more.

‘Make a Digital Photo Book’ class
which next runs on
Tuesday May 2nd, 1-3pm.

Would you like to learn more about Facebook?

Related Handy Hints and Articles - Mac

Should you update now?

Receive great articles like this
fortnightly to your Inbox

Join the iTandCoffee Club

for free content, tutorials, videos, classes, offers, discounts and more

Call 1300 885 420

to book an appointment or class, or to enquire about our services and products