Google has revealed Android Oreo, the next major OS update. The software builds upon the success of Nougat, offering new features and upgrades to smartphones and tablets. If you have an Android device and want to know more about the Oreo update, here’s a quick rundown, including how to get it early.

Picture-in-picture mode
First of all, picture-in-picture mode is now built into Android OS. This means you’ll be able to view YouTube videos or Skype calls in a shrunken window while another app runs in the background. Android users with larger devices will certainly appreciate the ability to multitask.

Enhanced notifications
Google is also introducing another small quality-of-life improvement for Android users with bubble pop-ups and notifications. When a colored circle appears on the top right corner of an app’s desktop icon, users can long-press the app to see more details about the notification without running the app itself. This saves time and battery life.

Longer battery life
Speaking of battery life, Android Oreo is also optimized to help your charged-up phone perform longer by limiting the power and memory consumption of apps running in the background. This leaves much more computing resources for active apps.

Intelligent copy and paste
For those who like to do work on their phones, Google is adding machine learning to the old-fashioned copy-and-paste function.

For example, whenever you highlight an email address, Android Oreo will provide you a link to Gmail so you can quickly compose a message. Meanwhile, long-pressing an address will automatically provide a link to your Google Maps.

Faster boot time
Another major upgrade involves faster boot times. According to Google, Oreo will be able to start up software twice as fast as Nougat. If true, users with older Android devices will definitely notice a difference.

Release date
Like most Android OSs, Google will be pushing out updates in waves starting in late August 2017. Users with a Google Pixel, Nexus 5X or a Nexus 6P will be the first to receive the update once it’s officially released.

Unfortunately, those who use devices from third-party manufacturers like Sony, Samsung, HTC, and Huawei will have to wait a bit longer.

How to get it early
If you have Nexus 5X, Nexus 6P, or any version of Google Pixel and can’t wait for the public release, you can always sign up to the Android beta program. Once you’ve enrolled, simply open your device settings, tap on About Device, and select Software Update to get a taste of Android Oreo.

Google will likely roll out more Android features in the next few months, so keep in touch with us to stay abreast of the latest updates.

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One of Mac’s selling points is its powerful, highly intuitive, and user-friendly operating system. In fact, most companies using Macs today do so to save time and increase productivity. But you can take your Mac computer a step further with these tips and shortcuts.

Use Siri to change your Mac’s system settings

Rather than going through your computer’s System Preferences menus to find the setting you require, you can use Siri to quickly make these changes. Simply activate Siri by pressing command + spacebar and then say out loud the changes you want, such as “increase brightness” or “turn on bluetooth”.

You can even ask how much hard drive space is left to determine your computer’s available storage.

Copy and paste between devices

Universal Clipboard is an extension feature that was first introduced in the Mac OS X El Capitan and has now made its way to macOS Sierra. With this time-saving tool, you can cut and copy items on your macOS and iOS devices, and paste them onto other devices. These include text, images, and even videos without having to use AirDrop or email.

To enable Universal Clipboard, simply turn on Bluetooth on your Mac and iPhone and make sure both devices are logged in using the same Apple ID. Then press Control + C on your Mac and then hold down and select Paste on your iPhone, or vice versa.

Sync Desktops on multiple Macs

Another new feature in the macOS Sierra syncs desktops across iCloud. This means you can go to your iCloud Drive on any device and access the files and folders on your desktop. You can also access your Documents folder on your desktops too. All this depends on is the amount of storage space you have on your iCloud.

To sync your Desktop, go to System Preferences > iCloud. Make sure the iCloud Drive is selected at the top and click on Options. From there, select Desktop & Documents to share those files. iCloud will then upload these files to the cloud, allowing you to access them on other Macs from anywhere with an internet connection. Just go to iCloud.com, log on, and open the Desktop folder there.

Autocap and full stop on your Mac

The Sierra operating system features the auto capitalization of the first word of a sentence as well as the auto-added full stop when you press space twice, a feature that many iPhone users rely on. To activate it, head to System Preferences > Keyboard > Text, and select: ‘Capitalize words automatically’, and ‘Add period with double-space’.

Once these two options are ticked, the necessary capitals and full stops will automatically be added in TextEdit, Pages, and other relevant apps.

Use your trackpad to sign things

Thanks to the magical feature of trackpad, you can now sign PDFs within Preview. Just open the PDF you need to sign and click on the toolbox icon at the top right of the Preview toolbar. Then click the signature icon that looks like a squiggle beneath it, make sure the Trackpad tab is selected, and click Create Signature.

Once done, you can select the signature from the menu and drag it to wherever you want it to appear.

Quickly free up space

macOS Sierra features a number of options available to help you free up storage space. Start by clicking on the Apple logo on the top left of your screen, then click About This Mac > Storage > Manage.

You can choose to store files and photos in iCloud and only keep recently opened files and optimized photos on your Mac as required. You can also choose Optimized Storage, which helps you save space by removing iTunes movies and TV shows and only keeps your recent email attachments. Last but not least, you can choose for your trash to be emptied periodically.

Save battery

The latest macOS Sierra can warn you if your display brightness is too high so you can make adjustments to save battery life. If you click on the battery icon in the top menu bar, you’ll be greeted by a drop down menu that shows your current power source and highlights apps that are draining your computer’s battery. From there, you can choose whether to cut down on those apps or not.

These are some of the tips and hidden features that Mac operating systems have to offer. As always, if you’d like to learn about how Apple products can drive value for your business, or have any questions at all, just give us a call.

The post Best Mac timesavers appeared first on Complete Technology Resources, Inc..

To ensure optimal security, two-step authentication is used. This requires a password as well as a unique six-digit code that is typically sent via SMS. The National Institute of Standards and Technology has voiced its concerns about this method and Google quickly responded by having users try an alternative method.

Security was the main concern. According to Google, "This is being done because SMS text-message verifications are one-time codes that are more susceptible to phishing attempts." Hackers can dupe network operators into redirecting the message to their phone. Even worse, there are numerous Android apps that can be used to capture SMS codes sent from banks to customers.

To defend against these threats, Google introduced 2-Step Verification in user accounts. If a user tries to log in to an account, Google will send a phone alert prompting that person to confirm his or her identity. Prompts-based 2-Step Verification (2-SV) sign-in is safer because the entire process occurs over an encrypted connection. In February 2017, Google improved the existing 2-SV prompts with additional information on the device, location and time of attempted sign-ins.

Google hasn’t confirmed ending support for SMS authentication but has already sent invitations urging 2-SV-SMS to switch to the prompts-based version. Users will be given the option of whether they want to retain the prompt-based sign-in. However, users who refuse to switch will receive follow-up notifications after six months.

Android users will enjoy a seamless transition because they will receive prompts without having to download an additional app. However, iOS users who rely on SMS for 2-Step Verification are required to install the Google Search app on their phone.

For any questions, get in touch with us. We’ll help you stay on top of the latest IT management and technology news.

The post Stop using Google’s SMS sign-in appeared first on Complete Technology Resources, Inc..

To ensure optimal security, two-step authentication is used. This requires a password as well as a unique six-digit code that is typically sent via SMS. The National Institute of Standards and Technology has voiced its concerns about this method and Google quickly responded by having users try an alternative method.

Security was the main concern. According to Google, "This is being done because SMS text-message verifications are one-time codes that are more susceptible to phishing attempts." Hackers can dupe network operators into redirecting the message to their phone. Even worse, there are numerous Android apps that can be used to capture SMS codes sent from banks to customers.

To defend against these threats, Google introduced 2-Step Verification in user accounts. If a user tries to log in to an account, Google will send a phone alert prompting that person to confirm his or her identity. Prompts-based 2-Step Verification (2-SV) sign-in is safer because the entire process occurs over an encrypted connection. In February 2017, Google improved the existing 2-SV prompts with additional information on the device, location and time of attempted sign-ins.

Google hasn’t confirmed ending support for SMS authentication but has already sent invitations urging 2-SV-SMS to switch to the prompts-based version. Users will be given the option of whether they want to retain the prompt-based sign-in. However, users who refuse to switch will receive follow-up notifications after six months.

Android users will enjoy a seamless transition because they will receive prompts without having to download an additional app. However, iOS users who rely on SMS for 2-Step Verification are required to install the Google Search app on their phone.

For any questions, get in touch with us. We’ll help you stay on top of the latest IT management and technology news.

The post Stop using Google’s SMS sign-in appeared first on Complete Technology Resources, Inc..