Apple Publishes Tribute to Juno Arrival

NASA’s Juno spacecraft will arrive at Jupiter on July 4, 2016. Apple Music teamed with NASA to create a short film to celebrate the Juno Mission.

If you have 9 minutes to spare, the audio/visual experience is well worth your time.

Migrating from Evernote to Notes

Updated 7/11/16

I really liked Evernote. I considered it a ‘must have’ App for Mac and iOS. It was really useful when I had a Mac, an iPad and an Android phone. Now though, as Evernote has changed and Notes has evolved, I rarely use Evernote other than to refer to the legacy content I had gathered.

I now have an all Apple environment, so Evernote is not as important as it once was. After seeing a comment about leaving Evernote by a colleague in CapMac, I decided it was time to start moving my Evernote content over to Notes.

This, I found, is relatively easy. Here is the process to follow:

1. Open up the Evernote App on your Mac
2. Navigate to the Evernote Notebook that you want to migrate (while you can do all Notebooks at one time, it is advisable to address each Notebook seperately)
3. With the Notebook open in Evernote go to Edit >> Select All (this will select all of the notes within the chosen Notebook)
4. Now go to File >> Export Notes
5. A dialog box will open allowing you to specify the name of the export file and where to put it ( I chose the file name Mac and the Desktop as the destination)
6. Click on ‘Save’ and the export will begin. A popup will show you the progress, with a final popup indicating that the export has completed.
7. Now on my desktop is the file ‘Mac.enex’
8. Open up Notes on your Mac
9. Go to File >> Import Notes and select the export file you just created in step #6 (Mac.enex in my case)
10. You will get a popup to confirm the import, click on ‘Import Notes’ to continue
11. A popup showing the progress of the import will be displayed
12. When the import has completed, a new folder will be created in Notes called ‘Imported Notes’ that now contains all of the content exported from Evernote.
13. If you Ctrl Click on the ‘Imported Notes’, you can choose ‘Rename Folder’ to give the newly created folder a more descriptive name. In my case it is ‘Mac Notes’
14. To keep my imported notes together, I created a new folder in Notes called ‘Evernote Imports’ and as I import Notebooks from Evernote, I drag each of the resulting folders into ‘Evernote Imports’ (you can see that in the image by #9 above)

I have 50 or so Evernote Notebooks, so I will be spreading the migration process out over the next few days. When I am done I will still have the content on all of my devices (Mac, iPhone and iPad – the free version of Evernote now only lets you share between two devices).

Sources:

1. How to switch from Evernote to Apple Notes
2. How to transfer your Evernote notes to Apple Notes
3. Evernote’s unfortunate move makes Notes look better than ever – added 7/1/16
4. Thinking of Switching From Evernote to Apple Notes? Here’s How – added 7/11/16

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See my other Mac OS X and iOS articles

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Review of “The Revelation Code”

“The Revelation Code” eBook was published in 2016 and was written by Andy McDermott (http://www.andy-mcdermott.com). Mr. McDermott has published 15 novels with this being the eleventh in his “Nina Wilder and Eddie Chase” series.

I received a galley of this novel for review through https://www.netgalley.com. I categorize this novel as ‘R’ because it contains scenes of Violence and Mature Language. The novel is set in a variety of locations in the US, the Caribbean, and the Middle East. The primary characters are archeologist Dr. Nina Wilde and her British ex-SAS body guard and husband, Eddie Chase.

During Operation Iraqi Freedom, a CIA officer, Ezekiel Cross, stumbles across an amazing discovery. He is convinced that the small statue he finds is one of the four angles of the Apocalypse, and that he is now a messenger anointed by God. Over the next several years he forms a religious cult with the goal of finding the remaining three angels. He then plans to use them to bring the End of Days as foretold in the book of Revelations.

Wilde and Chase are kidnapped by Cross, and he uses Chase as leverage to force Wilde to find the remaining angels. Wilde and Chase must find a way to escape Cross and find the remaining angels before Cross can. They know that if Cross is able to retrieve the remaining angels, he will use them and hundreds, maybe thousands will die.

I thought that the 11.5 hours I spent reading this 482 page Thriller were, for the most part, enjoyable. I liked the plot and event though there were several other books before this one in the series, it read well as a stand-alone novel. The one thing, for me, that was a detraction was the constant sarcastic remarks that many characters made to one another. That got very old, very fast. That said, I would probably read another novel in this series. I give this novel a 3.8 (rounded up to a 4) out of 5.

My book reviews are also published on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/31181778-john-purvis).

NASA’s New Launch System Closer to Launch

It is good to see that NASA will soon be back in the ‘heavy lifting’ business. This will open the way for new opportunities.

Tek22

NASA has a new launch vehicle in the works. The Space Launch System (SLS) is a super-heavy launch system that will carry primary components of NASA’s larger missions into orbit, including astronauts and hardware for a manned Mars mission.

Today, NASA completed the final ground test of the rocket booster that will provide the lion’s share of the thrust to carry the SLS and its payloads to orbit.

What’s the SLS Look Like?

The SLS is similar to the Space Shuttle in a couple regards. First, it sports a combination of solid rocket boosters and liquid fueled rockets. It also has a large tank between the boosters that holds liquid hydrogen for fuel, and liquid oxygen for oxidizer. The similarities stop there. Instead of a big space ship riding on the back of the tank, the payload sits atop the whole stack. It is a much more traditional approach, but one…

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Highbrow a new CE Alternative

Education is important, particularly continuing education. I am always looking for new ways to keep up and learn. I came across Highbrow a short time ago.

Highbrow offers relatively short (10 lesson) courses on a variety of topics. The lessons are short (about 5 minutes in length) and they are emailed to you over a 10 day period. Obviously these are not in-depth courses, but they do offer a quick overview of a subject.

The short lessons and short duration of the courses means that you can try several without the effort significantly encroaching upon your busy schedule. While I would not recommend this avenue if you seek expertise in a subject, I do think that Highbrow offers a unique offering.

I have finished one course and I am in another now. I have also identified a few others that I plan to take in the future. Fortunately, Highbrow seems to be adding a handful of new courses each month so I will not soon exhaust their offerings.

If you are interested in continuing education, this is a great way to expand your knowledge without committing a large amount of you time.

What was the most popular novel the year you were born?

I’m an avid reader. I came across “The Most Popular Book the Year You Were Born” today. The slide show in that article covers the most popular books every years since 1930. I thought it was interesting to look back and see what was popular over the past few years.

Free iOS, tvOS and macOS Software 6/16

I have been maintaining a list of free software for iOS, tvOS and OS X. You may find some of these programs of interest. Those titles which are NOT games are marked by “***” at the beginning of the description. I have also attempted to mark which Apple OS the title is targeted at (iOS, OS X, tvOS).

This is NOT a curated list. All I know about these titles is what you see below. None have been tried or tested.

June 2016

1. *** iOS – Sylex Technologies today announced the release of YouShield 1.0.17 for iOS and Android. YouShield is a new smartphone application that works as a sophisticated tool that performs health checkups based on user-provided symptoms and health data, and is able to generate personalized health risk assessment reports. YouShield 1.0.17 is free, and is available worldwide through the App Store in the Medical category. Download from iTunes
2. *** iOS – Indie developer and computer vision engineer, Mustafa Jaber, is pleased to announce the release of Capture Caption Lite, an AI-based app developed for iOS and Android devices. With the Capture Caption app, users can snap a photo with their smartphone or iPad and artificial intelligence will generate a word cloud using cutting-edge computer technology. These word clouds can be then downloaded to the user’s image library and shared across multiple social media platforms.  Capture Caption Lite 1.1 is Free and available worldwide through the App Store in the Photo & Video category.  Download from iTunes
3. *** iOS – iAppsTechnology is proud to announce the release of Meet Me – Powerful Meeting Manager 1.0, its amazing social networking and business app developed for iOS devices. MeetMe is very user friendly app that help people in creating meetings with their contacts on iOS phones. Set reminders for the meetings and get notifications for the reminders. Send messages and emails to the person you are going to meet and follow ups  Meet Me – Powerful Meeting Manager 1.0 is Free and is available worldwide exclusively through the App Store in the Social Networking category.  Purchase and Download
4. *** iOS – pxl:Artificer today is proud to announce the release of Famicam 64 (v1.0), the free and full-featured 8-bit retrogaming-style camera & photo editing suite for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch devices. With more than 40 real-time, non-destructive, and fully adjustable filters, Famicam 64 lets you recreate the most iconic retro palettes and styles of the early computers and video games. Famicam 64 (v1.0) is Free and available worldwide exclusively through the App Store in the Photo & Video category.  Download from iTunes
5. *** OS X – min:60 today is pleased to announce the release and immediate availability of Vernissage 1.0.0 for Mac OS X. Available now as a free download (with In-App Purchases) on the Mac App Store. Vernissage is a new vector based tool, that makes it easy for anyone, to create great looking app presentations and App Store presentations absolute easy and straightforward. It gives you the ability to add context to your plain app or webpage screens. Results can be instantly shared via email, iMessage, added to documents, presentations or printed. This new tool can also be used to create presentation screens for online applications stores, such as the iOS and Mac App Store. Vernissage 1.0.0 is available on Mac App Store for free in the Developer Tools category. The free version lets you explore base functionality, but excludes features which you can find in In-App Purchases Download from Mac App Store
6. *** iOS – Bluewave Solutions Fz. LLC. today is very pleased to announce the release of Shoplog 2.7, an important update to their ultimate shopping companion developed for iOS and Android devices. Previously in the older version, shoppers were able to build their own databases for any item they are interested in buying. The more expensive it is, the more time users need to take buying decision, the bigger database they need to make to check all options. In version 2.7 we are getting to the consumer and gamifying the shopping experience. In addition to that the company has upgraded the Android version to 2.0 where it has better layout, and more sharing features with your friends and family. Shoplog 2.7 is free for 3 Catalogs only and available worldwide exclusively through the App Store in the Shopping category. If the User needs more there is a premium $1.99 USD (or equivalent amount in other currencies) to open an unlimited number of Catalogs. Download from iTunes
7. iOS – If you’re looking for a new brain-teaser challenge, look no further than Annoying Brain, which promises to do exactly that to your gray matter – and delivers on that promise with an almost deviate combination of fun and frustration. Annoying Brain users say they’re totally hooked on a game that makes them want to throw their phones against the wall, drives them straight up that same wall, and at the same time develops the patience, focus and endurance that makes the game their favorite! Annoying Brain is free, and is available worldwide through the App Store in the Games category. Download from iTunes
8. iOS – Available from today on the App Store, Google Play and Amazon Appstore, Solitaire Free is the latest app from the developer Impala Studios. Solitaire Free is their response to people who love the classic card game and want to play it on their mobile device. Solitaire Free 1.0.0 is available worldwide through the App Store in the Games category.  Download from iTunes
9. *** iOS – Transn is proud to announce the release of TAKEASY 5.1.3, the important update to their translation app for iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, and Android devices. Takeasy can help users solve problems with guiding directions when traveling abroad. With 9 languages in Takeasy, anyone can overcome obstacles in traveling by human translation. TAKEASY 5.1.3 is free, and is available worldwide through the App Store in the Utilities category.  Download from iTunes
10. iOS – Full Fat, a leading games developer for mobile devices, today is pleased to announce the worldwide release of Blocky Soccer 1.1 for iOS and Android devices. Blocky Soccer is the latest in Full Fat’s growing library of Blocky Sports games, introducing new game mechanics for running, dribbling with the ball and shooting as a soccer striker. In the past year, five million players have enjoyed Full Fat’s ‘blocky’ series of games. Blocky Soccer is free to play, available worldwide on the App Store in Games, Sports and Arcade categories. Download from iTunes
11. *** iOS – Linear Blue Inc. today is very pleased to announce the release of Ditch My Car 1.0.1, the company’s new lifestyle app developed for iOS devices. Ditch My Car offers iPhone users a way to view their savings by using alternative transport to their car. Owning your own car in an urban environment may not be your most cost-effective option considering the ever increasing and accessible public transport options and car hire services. Ditch My Car is a practical app which allows you to compare the costs of running a car against the costs of alternative transport, allowing you to see how much money you’re saving. Ditch My Car 1.0.1 is Free and available worldwide (in English) exclusively through the App Store in the Lifestyle category. Download from iTunes
12. *** iOS – Six Overground is proud to announce the release of dropdrop 1.1, a new iPhone app that lets you leave “drops” where you travel for others to discover. A drop is a message or photo placed at a specific location in the real world. Missed that cute stranger on the train platform? Leave an anonymous drop for them to find when they return. Want to plan a pickup game in your area? Create a drop, set its size to your neighborhood, and see who responds. Have something to sell that needs to be picked up? Take a photo, leave a drop that covers a reasonable driving distance, and anyone in range will see your listing. New to the area and need some local tips? Look for drops around you for ideas. Want to get creative? Leave drops with hints for another location, and play a scavenger hunt with your friends. dropdrop 1.1 is free and is available worldwide exclusively through the App Store in the Social Networking category.  Download from iTunes
13. iOS – Usual Makers S.A.S. today is proud to announce the release of Step On Gregg 1.0.4, a new puzzle/platform game for iPhone, iPad, iPod touch and Apple TV. Welcome to Gregg’s universe, where our hero too busy to bellow, could not save one of the fowls in danger. Your mission is to help Gregg to save these poor beasts by using his head as a bridge! Magical objects (geysers, flying dice and teleporter-flutes and more) will help you solve the enigmas through 5 colorful worlds and 80 levels. All you’ll need is one of your fingers to control Gregg. And if you have multiple devices, your game is automatically synchronized via iCloud. Step On Gregg 1.0.4 is Free and available worldwide exclusively through the App Store in the Games category.  Download from iTunes
14. *** iOS – Triposo announces the release of Walter 1.0, their travel app for iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch devices. Walter is a smart travel compass that shows you where things are. When you launch the app you automatically get a radar view of what’s around you. Walter displays four bands of color representing sights, shops, restaurants and nightlife. The wider the band, the more things in that direction. All you need to do is point your phone and start walking. Walter’s clean interface is insanely simple to use and is ideal for spontaneous travelers. There is no signup page, no login and no settings. Like Triposo’s signature travel guides, Walter works offline and works anywhere in the world.  Walter 1.0 is free, and is available worldwide exclusively through the App Store in the Travel category. Download from iTunes
15. *** iOS – Smoky Cat Software Ltd. today announced that Heart Graph version 4.0 is now available on the App Store for iPhone(R), iPad(R) and iPod touch(R). Heart Graph lets users see graphically how their heart rate behaves during exercise or other periods of time, and supports comparison and analysis of the heart rate graph and other statistics across sessions. New with v4.0 Apple Watch(R) users can use the native WatchOS Heart Graph app to graph their heart rate on their wrist while they exercise, see time spent in different heart rate zones, or review up to 12 hours of heart rate data recorded by the Apple Watch. Existing data stored in the Health app can also be imported, and the new “Zone Totals” feature can be used to analyse time spent in different heart rate zones across sessions on a daily, weekly or monthly basis.  Heart Graph 4.0 is free to download worldwide, exclusively through the App Store in the Health and Fitness category.  Download from iTunes
16. *** iOS – HedgeHog today is proud to announce the up and coming release of Freya, the team’s new women’s lifestyle app developed for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch devices. After issuing the circular calendar app, CircleTime, the creators of the revolutionary cyclic display have upgraded it with a menstrual calendar named Freya. Freya will be available worldwide exclusively via App Store in the Medical category, free of charge. Freya
17. *** iOS – Indie developers, Pavlo Karnaukhov and Natalia Kursa today are pleased to announce the official release of Melody Composer Squared 1.2, an update to their popular music editor developed for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch devices. Melody Composer Squared was developed specifically for creating, browsing and editing melodies using their conversions to images. The app uses a diagram, with a coordinate system with two coordinates: one coordinate corresponds to a pitch of a musical note, and the second corresponds to a duration of a note or a pause. The method produces static images on the diagram and suitable for melodies of 4, 8, 12 and 16 bars (*).  Melody Composer Squared 1.2 is Free and available worldwide exclusively through the App Store in the Music category. The app offers a single in-app purchase with no ads.  Melody Composer Squared 1.2
18. iOS – Be a tasteful game addict and play a worth game! Today, Nada Fahim, a leading developer of interactive entertainment games for the mobile world, announces her first ‘slider’ game, Jelly Bean Blast – Match 3 Mania Puzzle Games, is now available to download and play for free on the Apple App Store and Facebook. Jelly Bean Blast – Match 3 Mania Puzzle Games 3.05 is free and available worldwide exclusively through the App Store in the Games category.  Jelly Bean Blast – Match 3 Mania Puzzle Games 3.05
19. *** iOS – Wulum Creative Technology Ltd today is very pleased to announce the release of Circuland 1.0, their new educational game story developed for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch devices. Circuland offers ten captivating scenes where little children learn words, shapes, numbers, colours and concepts that can be shared and enjoyed by all the family. This unique game features narration by a friendly voice that guides children through a fun bright coloured learning story, and so much more. Circuland 1.0 is currently Free and available worldwide exclusively through the App Store in the Education category. There are an optional 4 learning games to be release on version 1.1 that will cost $0.99.  Download from iTunes
20. *** iOS – Creekcats LLC is today pleased to announce the release and immediate availability of The Menu Says 2.52, their easy-to-use French to English menu translator for iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch devices. The app makes it easy English speaking diners to order from any menu written in French. Anyone can simply snap a photo of the menu, crop the photo, and tap a button to translate. The translation results are then displayed in an easy-to-read typeface, with each line of the original menu immediately followed by its proper translation, making it easy to simply point to the item they wish to order. The Menu Says 2.52 is free, and is available worldwide exclusively through the App Store in the Travel category. It can be launched three times for free, and several menu pages can be processed with a single launch of the app, so a user can use the app for several meals for free. They will then need to unlock the app via a convenient in-app purchase. Options for premium features include one week’s usage for $0.99, or unlimited usage for $2.99. Download from iTunes
21. iOS – ElitApps, Ltd. today is proud to announce the release of Floaties 1.0, the company’s new game title developed for iOS and Android devices. Meet the Floaties, a group of 4 differently-colored characters that must be helped to stay alive in their endless floating adventure. Tap your way to a record-setting number of floats with over 40 different characters ranging from clumsy chicken to ferocious dinosaurs while dodging crazy and unexpected obstacles. Floaties 1.0 is Free and available worldwide through the App Store in the Games category.  Download from iTunes
22. *** iOS – EarMaster ApS today is proud to announce the release of EarMaster 1.0, a brand new app for music theory, sight-singing, ear training and rhythm practice on iPad. EarMaster offers thousands of interactive exercises for all levels to learn to sight-read and sight-sing music, recognize intervals, chords, scales and melodies by ear, increase rhythm and pitch accuracy, learn to transcribe music by ear, and learn the core concepts of music theory. A very ambitious plan indeed, but also plotted by a massive app with a huge amount of content and features on tap: vocal input with instant feedback, MIDI input, support for solfege syllables, advanced jazz exercises, real-time rhythm tapping, and a lot more.  EarMaster 1.0 is Free (with in-app purchases) and available worldwide exclusively through the App Store in the Music category. To celebrate the release of the app, all in-app purchases are sold with up to 65% discount until July 1, 2016.  Download on App Store
23. iOS – FredBear Games Ltd and PlayPlayFun LLP together as an international joint publishing venture, are proud to announce the extended soft launch of Roti Studios (Vietnam Based Developers) new game Rising Warriors, available for Free in selected countries (see below) on iPhone, iPad and iPod touch devices with iOS 8.1 or newer. Rising Warriors 1.17 is Free (with in-app purchases) and available in select countries, exclusively through the App Store in the Games category. Players may purchase in-game currency to help them in the game. Please disable in-app purchase if you do not want to use this feature. July 7th Global Launch – Register your interest and sign up for free in-game diamonds at the FredBear Games website.  Rising Warriors 1.17
24. iOS – Wulum Creative Technology Ltd today is very pleased to announce the release of Circuland 1.0, their new educational game story developed for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch devices. Circuland offers ten captivating scenes where little children learn words, shapes, numbers, colours and concepts that can be shared and enjoyed by all the family. This unique game features narration by a friendly voice that guides children through a fun bright coloured learning story, and so much more. Circuland 1.0 is currently Free and available worldwide exclusively through the App Store in the Education category. There are an optional 4 learning games to be release on version 1.1 that will cost $0.99.  Download from iTunes
25. iOS – Mobile game fans looking for a creative and fun new app that they’ll spend endless hours of time enjoying – especially if they want to battle against a friend to see who will triumph – can now head to the App Store or Google Play and download the ultra addictive Choppy Tap. Choppy Tap 1.23 is Free and available worldwide through the App Store in the Games category.  Download from iTunes
26. *** iOS – OhMD, a portfolio company of the Blueprint Health Accelerator in NYC, has released a free version of the OhMD app that is now available in Apple’s App Store and the Google Play Store. Recently piloted by a world-renowned cancer hospital in New York City and used by 110 organizations across 35 states, OhMD allows for simple, secure communication between healthcare providers, care teams and patients. Secure and efficient communication improves the patient experience and health outcomes while decreasing the cost of care in alignment with value-based care initiatives. OhMD 1.2.4 is Free and available worldwide through the App Store in the Health & Fitness category. Download from iTunes
27. *** iOS, watchOS – Adoriasoft is proud to announce the release of WatchMyBattery 1.1.1, their Apple Watch app that tracks the charge of a connected iPhone, allowing users to view the device’s battery charge without needing to remove it from their pocket. WatchMyBattery 1.1.1 is free, and is available worldwide exclusively through the App Store in the Utilities category. In-app purchases of additional functionality are available starting at $0.99. Download from iTunes
28. iOS – Full Fat, a leading games developer for mobile devices, today is pleased to announce the worldwide release of Flick Soccer France 2016 v1.0, a new flick sports game for iOS and Android. Featuring five game modes including nail-biting free kicks, arcade style target practice and crossbar challenge, the game has innovative controls and realistic ball physics. Flick Soccer France 2016 (v1.0) is free to play, available worldwide on the App Store in the both Games and Arcade categories. Download from iTunes
29. *** iOS – Urban Design Ltd. today is proud to announce the release of Archisketch 2.01 for iOS, now with support for the Apple Pencil, Adobe Creative Cloud, smart one- and two-point perspectives, “Share Extension” and other advancements to the scale-aware sketching app for Architects and designers.Archisketch 2.01 is free for use with up to 30 shapes in two projects, with an in-app purchase for unlimited shapes and projects for an introductory price of $9.99 USD (regularly $14.99). It is available worldwide exclusively through the App Store in the Productivity category.  Download from iTunes
30. iOS – The European Football Championship – the most exciting and glamorous football competition this summer – is about to start for the 2016 tournament. Can Sergio Ramos lead Spain to defend their title? Can Ronaldo snatch the cup for Portugal? Will this be the year Schweinsteiger, Muller and colleagues re-establish Germans 2014 World cup dominance or will Italy reawaken past glories? Predictor for European Soccer Championship 1.10 is free, and is available worldwide through the App Store in the Games category.  Download from iTunes
31. iOS – Grand Prize Network LLC, the creators of the famous Prize Wheel App, today is proud to announce the release of Street Dice 1.2, its next hit app developed for iOS and Android devices. Street Dice(TM) brings the classic version of craps played in the streets worldwide for over a hundred years to mobile devices. Using the street craps rules everyone is familiar with, players can make pass or don’t pass bets between $5 to $10,000. Trying to win their way to the top of the leaderboards by amassing the best win/loss ratio and largest stack of cash. Street Dice 1.2 is Free and available worldwide through the App Store in the Games category.  Download from iTunes
32. *** Web – Developed by the famous photography software developer PearlMountain Technology, FotoJet has been a helpful and popular online graphic tool since its launch. The latest release of FotoJet 3.5 opens up a whole new world of creative photo editing, giving users the ability to crop, resize, rotate, adjust exposure, color, apply photo effects/filters, add text, clipart images and more. Users will have an unparalleled photo editing experience with FotoJet’s creative editing tools. FotoJet works flawlessly in any Web browser and is fully compatible with Mac, Windows and Linux. Best of all it’s totally FREE. Everyone can use it via the FotoJet 3.5 website. FotoJet 3.5
33. *** tvOS – Independent Developer, Nick Culbertson is proud to announce the release of Epic Orchestra 1.0, a swipe-based rhythm game designed specifically for Apple TV. The developer created this game to combine his two passions: music and retro games. Epic Orchestra excels at connecting the player to the music, having ultra-responsive swipe controls, and being easy to play, hard to master. Epic Orchestra 1.0 is free, and is available worldwide exclusively through the tvOS App Store. A convenient $1.99 in-app purchase is available to unlock all songs. Download from iTunes
34. *** iOS – DatChat Inc. is pleased to announce the availability of DatChat Messenger 1.4.2 for iOS, offering an unprecedented level of privacy control for both individual and group messages. DatChat Messenger is the first privacy messaging app that provides the option to dictate how long sent messages are accessible on the recipient’s phone. It is also the first to offer a “Nuke” option, which will erase both sides of a conversation on both the sender and recipient’s devices.  DatChat Messenger 1.4.2 is Free and available worldwide exclusively through the App Store in the Social Networking category. Download from iTunes
35. iOS – Independent developer, Yusuf Turk today is proud to announce the new update of Shade Combo, a game about ducks and combos for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch. 100 Moves Mode and Hard Mode is introduced on this version. Shade Combo is a new type of puzzle game for those tired of classic match-3 games. Shade Combo 1.03 is Free and available worldwide exclusively through the App Store in the Games category. Download from iTunes
36. *** iOS – Bits&Coffee are proud to announce the release of Step Counter & Pedometer by Activity Tracker 2.0, their activity tracking app for the iPhone 5S or later and Apple Watch. Many gadgets that track the daily activity, such as steps taken, distance walked and so on, have appeared in the last few years. The only problem is that users need to wear those gadgets everywhere and not forget to charge them, sometimes even daily. Yet, most people already carry a multi-functional gadget, perfectly capable of quantifying their daily activity: their smartphone! Step Counter & Pedometer by Activity Tracker 2.0 is free, and is available worldwide exclusively through the App Store in the Health and Fitness category. It also has advanced features locked under a single in-app purchase (US$2.99). Download from iTunes
37. *** iOS – Dolice today is proud to announce the updated Beautiful HD Wallpapers 20,000+ sheets for iPhone 6/6 Plus/SE Free. Over 20,000 beautiful wallpapers, carefully selected for you, available for free. Compatible with iPhone 6/6 Plus/SE/5s/5c/5 and iPod! Wallpapers will be added and updated daily. Each wallpaper is made to be compatible with iOS 9’s parallax effect. Beautiful HD Wallpapers 20,000+ sheets for iPhone 6/6 Plus/SE (Free) (v5.3.0) is available worldwide exclusively through the App Store in the Entertainment category. Download from iTunes
38. *** iOS – Steeltreelabs is proud to announce the release of Scala Architectural and Engineering Scale 1.1 for iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch devices. The app provides a new way to measure printed drawings on the go and at your desk. It includes standard imperial architectural, metric architectural, and engineering scales in a handy app.  Scala Architectural and Engineering Scale 1.1 is free, and is available worldwide exclusively through the App Store in the Utilities category. Download
39. iOS – Ovilex Soft, which has firmly established itself as the world’s premier creator of ultra-realistic 3D driving simulation apps – a fact that the company’s nearly 350,000 Facebook fans would enthusiastically agree with – has once again raised the standards with the launch of Coach Bus Simulator 1.0.1 for iOS and Android. Coach Bus Simulator 1.0.1, which lets users experience the fun and challenge of driving a bus across 3D landscapes, is Free (with in-app purchases) and available worldwide through the App Store in the Games category.  Download from iTunes
40. iOS – One More Round is proud to announce the global availability of Quasi’s Quest 3.1, its popular action/adventure game for iOS and Android devices. Quasi’s Quest promises to be one of the toughest games available in the market. One More Round touts it to be “harder than Flappy Bird.” The game also has an extensive yet immersive storyline for their main character Quasi. The story revolves around him and his quest to save the princess across 7 extremely challenging levels. Quasi’s Quest 3.1 for iOS is free and available worldwide through the App Store in the Games category. The game is free to download and play. You can get extra lives through optional in-app purchases.  Download from iTunes
41. *** iOS – People with challenges falling asleep have reason to rejoice. Hi Rawr Studios is proud to announce the release of Fall Asleep Now – Calmly & Relaxed 3.9, an update to their free sleep aid app that promises to help users quickly and soundly fall asleep. This sleep aid app works using a combination of knowledge and audio therapy to deliver safe and effective results. Wake up feeling refreshed and feel like you slept all night. Based on customer feedback, version 3.9 includes many new improvements. Fall Asleep Now – Calmly & Relaxed 3.9 is Free and available worldwide exclusively through the App Store in the Health & Fitness category. Fall Asleep Now – Calmly & Relaxed 3.9
42. *** macOS – Eltima Software has just announced the release of new version of Folx GO 5.0 a popular download manager for Mac OS X that is available through the Mac App Store. Folx GO 5.0 features meticulously revised interface and lots of newly added features. Retina displays and the latest Mac OS X versions are supported.  Folx GO 5.0 is Free and available worldwide exclusively through the App Store in the Utilities category. PRO features are available through the in-app purchase for $9.99 (USD) and add multiple benefits to download management. Purchase and Download (MAS)
43. *** iOS – The Sugar Jelly Crush now app, now with cookies gems, goes viral on the popular social networks sites like YouTube, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. California based independent developer, Super Addicting Games introduces Sugar Jelly Crush exclusively on the App Store, a fun, challenging, and entertaining game of matching candy, cookies and jelly. The juicy jelly game make this app very addictive and colorful. This game brings out our favorite sweets to life with physics and visuals that are fun and dynamic. Users can enjoy yummy designs and challenging stages. To play, simply switch and match the way through various levels in this delicious puzzle strategy adventure. Sugar Jelly Crush 1.7 is Free to download and available worldwide exclusively through the App Store in the Games category. Download from iTunes
44. *** iOS – Norcron today is proud to announce the release of Space Barriers 1.0, their new game title developed for iOS and Android devices. Available as a free download, Space Barriers is a puzzle game that has been highly praised by both novice and advanced players. Its 100 levels provide a great challenge to all types of players. The object of the game is to try and get the ball into the goal. Swipe your finger anywhere on the screen to navigate the ball through the puzzle and into the goal. The puzzle is ideal for kids and adults of all ages. Space Barriers can help train the brain and increase mental acuity. Space Barriers 1.0 is Free and available worldwide through the App Store in the Games category.  Download from iTunes
45. iOS – Sensori Games today is pleased to announce the release and immediate availability of City Salvation: Drone Wars 1.0, its latest game title developed for iPhone and iPad devices. City Salvation is possibly the world’s first mobile game to allow game play in virtual copies of real cities. In the game your mission is to remotely control a military attack drone to protect downtown Dallas, Chicago and San Francisco from massive attacking robot mechs, which drop from the sky. Zoom over and between city skyscrapers at breakneck speed controlling your drone by tilting your iPhone or iPad. City Salvation: Drone Wars 1.0 is Free and available worldwide exclusively through the App Store in the Games category.  Download from iTunes
46. *** iOS – Many gadgets that track the daily activity, such as steps taken, distance walked and so on, have appeared in the last few years. The only problem is that users need to wear those gadgets everywhere and not forget to charge them, sometimes even daily. Yet, most people already carry a multi-functional gadget, perfectly capable of quantifying their daily activity: their smartphone! Step Counter & Pedometer by Activity Tracker 2.0 is free, and is available worldwide exclusively through the App Store in the Health and Fitness category. The app also has advanced features that can be unlocked via a single in-app purchase for $2.99 USD (or an equivalent amount in other currencies). Download from iTunes
47. *** iOS – Ingeniousapps, an emerging application developer branching out into the mobile arena, today announces the successful recent release of Neon LED Keyboard – Glow Keyboards for iPhone with Colorful Themes and Fonts 1.0. This innovative app was developed to give users the chance of colorizing their keyboard, customizing background, key style, key color and much more. It’s never been easier or more fun to change your keyboard style with Neon LED Keyboard on iOS. Able to run on any mobile Apple device operating on iOS 9.0 or later, Neon LED Keyboard – Glow Keyboards for iPhone with Colorful Themes and Fonts is currently available for download on the Apple App Store in the Utilities category for Free. Neon LED Keyboard – Glow Keyboards for iPhone with Colorful Themes and Fonts 1.0 is Free (with in-app purchases) and available worldwide exclusively through the App Store in the Utilities category. Neon LED Keyboard – Glow Keyboards for iPhone with Colorful Themes and Fonts 1.0
48. *** iOS – BizNitz Inc. has released a new app designed to connect homeowners, contractors, and independent handymen. The app provides a simple contact point for homeowners to get household jobs done – no matter how big or small – and includes the services of both professional contractors and knowledgeable locals looking for odd jobs. BizNitz 1.2 is available now exclusively on iOS, and is a free download on the iTunes App Store. BizNitz 1.2 is Free and available worldwide exclusively through the App Store in the Business category. Download from iTunes
49. *** iOS – Markable, Inc., the leader in visual search technology, today is pleased to announce the public launch of Markable 2.3.0, the company’s new lifestyle app developed for iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad devices. After a successful beta test, Markable has created a mobile experience that allows its users to shop any photo(TM). Markable 2.3.0 is Free (with in-app purchases) and available worldwide exclusively through the App Store in the Lifestyle category.  Download from iTunes
50. iOS – Qrayon is proud to announce the release of Scramble: Sliding Tile Puzzle Maker 1.0 for iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch devices. Scramble lets you create visual sliding tile puzzles from your photos and share them with your friends. Just pick a photo, add an optional message, and share. Your friends will have to solve the puzzle to see the message. Perfect for Valentine’s Day messages, party invitations, or just sharing a special moment with someone. Scramble: Sliding Tile Puzzle Maker 1.0 is free, and is available worldwide exclusively through the App Store in the Games category. Scramble: Sliding Tile Puzzle Maker 1.0
51. *** iOS – AstralPad, the versatile and feature rich office app for the iPad, announced today that it is bringing its award-winning, free document editing app to the iPhone. With AstralPad’s iPhone App, mobile professionals can do all of their office document editing from the iPhone. AstralPad enables working on multiple office documents at the same time – an AstralPad user can, for example, open a financial spreadsheet and a marketing presentation at the same time, and copy and paste tables and charts across open documents. You can simultaneously edit your documents from dropbox, google drive or email with an interface that’s familiar to all iOS users. For a limited time, AstralPad 1.0 is Free and available worldwide exclusively through the App Store in the Business category.  Download from iTunes
52. *** iOS – MAG Technologies LLC launches the Sayfe (Safe) App in response to teens and millennials’ need for a safe and secure texting environment. In recent surveys, over 45% of users responded that security is extremely important in their day-to-day texting. Sayfe App, the secure end-to end encrypted messaging app, reported results from their user survey of April 2016. The survey highlights the demand for a safe and secure texting environment from users aged 19-29 in the United States. Sayfe 2.9.1 is Free and available worldwide through the App Store in the Social Networking category. Download from iTunes
53. iOS/Games – Independent developer Bethany Antonio is proud to announce the release of YoloH1 – Super Space Jumper 1.0 for iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch devices. YoloH1 is an exciting platform game with easy controls and addictive gameplay. YoloH1 – Super Space Jumper 1.0 is free, and is available worldwide exclusively through the App Store in the Games category. Download from iTunes
54. *** iOS/Utilities – Ireland’s most influential vlogger Cian Twomey has partnered with hot Dublin startup Emojitones to test the worlds-first text-messaging platform with sound. In YouTube comedy sensation Twomey’s new video, he challenges ever-patient girlfriend Emily to a game of “name that Emojitone,” naming the emoji messages by sound only, with hilarious results. Emojitones 3.3 is Free and available worldwide through the App Store in the Utilities category.  Download from iTunes
55. iOS/Games – Mobile game developer and publisher, Solverlabs is proud to announce that Planet Of Cubes is now available as a free download on iOS, Google Play and Amazon. With more than 10 million downloads on Google Play, Planet Of Cubes is a popular game with great features and real-time chat. Planet of Cubes 2.3 is Free (with in-app purchases) and available worldwide through the App Store in the Games category.  Download from iTunes
56. iOS/Games – Telehorse has released a new mobile game for both iPad and iPhone. It’s called Steamkraft – Steampunk voyages inspired by Jules Verne 1.0. The game is an endless runner with beautiful steampunk graphics. It is free and it’s already available in the App Store.  Steamkraft – Steampunk voyages inspired by Jules Verne 1.0 is free, and is available worldwide exclusively through the App Store in the Games category.  Download from iTunes
57. iOS/Games – Indie developer, York Burkhardt is pleased to announce the release and immediate availability of the game Football Pocket Manager (U.S.: Soccer Pocket Manager) 1.05. This game is developed for iPhone and iPad devices. In this football manager game your mission is to work your way up to the top making football history. It is lots of fun and easy to learn. In contrast to other games, it can be played fully offline. You start at the bottom of the division and by taking care of your team, your sponsors, fans and stadium, you will reach your dream: The championship! Football Pocket Manager is free, and is available worldwide through the App Store in the Games category. The game offers in-app purchases. Users can purchase the “Pro-Mode” to disable ads and enable new features, the “Game-Editor” to edit player and team names, or the “Fullversion” to unlock all features! Furthermore the player can purchase In game money or the Co-Trainer to automate the training and the formation. Download from iTunes
58. iOS/Games – Dress up your favorite breakfast with delicious toppings. Get Wowed and addicted with Cruise Cooking Dessert Dash 1.0 for iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, and Android devices, the newest creation from Flowmotion Entertainment Inc. an innovative mobile game studio. The success and popularity of the Cruise Ship series have compelled us to bring Bakery management games on the Cruise Ship platform. Your task is to cook and serve yummy pancakes, cupcakes, pretzels, beverages and desserts as quickly as possible. Cruise Cooking Dessert Dash 1.0 is free, and is available worldwide through the App Store in the Games category.  Download from iTunes
59. *** macOS/Photography – Systweak Software, a well-known IT solutions company, based out of Jaipur, India is proud to announce the release of Noise Reducer Pro 1.5, their noise reducing extension for the Mac OS X Photos app. Mac users can now reap the benefits of this powerful photo editing tool by enabling it as a third party extension in Photos app. Noise Reducer Pro 1.5 is free, and is available worldwide exclusively through the Mac App Store in the Photography category. Download (MAS)
60. iOS/Games – Drop D Studios LLC, the makers of the Tap Studio series of mobile games, today is pleased to announce the release and immediate availability of Tap Hero – Rhythm that Rocks 1.1, a new game in the long running Tap Studio franchise for the iPhone and iPod touch. With over 7 million downloads and over 450,000 user created taps shared, Tap Studio games are the most popular series of games for creating and sharing song taps on iOS devices. Tap Hero 1.1 is free and is available worldwide through the Apple App Store in the Games category. Tap Hero 1.1
61. *** iOS/Medical – HedgeHog today is proud to announce the release and immediate availability of Freya 1.0, the team’s new lifestyle app for women, developed for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch devices. After issuing the circular calendar app, CircleTime, the creators of the revolutionary cyclic display have upgraded it with a menstrual calendar called Freya. Freya 1.0 is available worldwide exclusively via App Store in the Medical category, free of charge. Download from iTunes
62. iOS/Games – Endless runner game fans in search of a fun new experience worthy of their time and talents – and a few joyful all-night gaming sessions where “just a few minutes more” turns into “hey, have I been playing for the last 6 hours?” – can now head over to the App Store, and download the ultra addictive and challenging app Star Charge by Covalent Gaming LLC. Star Charge 1.0 is Free (with in-app purchases) and available worldwide through the App Store in the Games category. Download from iTunes
63. iOS/Productivity – Simplifying day-to-day life with services is just a tap away, The Handlers rolled out a new feature, Same Day Delivery. Taking same day delivery services to the next level, The Handlers looks forward to making people’s life stress-free. Now customers can send documents, gifts, goodies and corporate items single or in bulk from one place to another in just a few taps. Convenient logistics redefined with The Handlers’ same day delivery services.  The Handlers 1.5 is free, and is available worldwide through the App Store in the Productivity category. Download from iTunes

Review of “Skyjacked”

“Skyjacked” eBook was published in 2016 and was written by Shirley Golden (http://www.shirleygolden.net). This is Ms. Golden’s first novel.

I received a galley of this novel for review through https://www.netgalley.com. I categorize this novel as ‘PG’ because it contains scenes of Violence and Mature Situations. This novel is set in 2154 when humanity has spread to the stars. The primary character is Corvus Ranger, a pilot with his own ship that operates just on the line between the law and being a criminal.

On a legal run transporting prisoners to the Europa prison colony, Ranger and his ship are taken over by escaping convicts. He is forced to pilot them far from Earth on a mission he does not understand. In addition to Ranger, there are Isidore, Shai, Josh and Bryce, inmates on Europa who are escaping. Warren and Janelle are among those Ranger had been transporting. Now the seven are on the run together.

Ranger is not happy at having his ship taken, but most importantly he is mad at Isidore and the others for keeping him from seeing his 10 year old son on his birthday. He had promised to be there and, for once, he had intended to keep his promise to see his son and estranged girlfriend.

As they encounter a few dangerous situations along their journey, secrets about the various passengers come out. Not all are as they first appeared to be. They also discover secrets that the “Core” (government) has been keeping from its citizens.

I enjoyed the 8+ hour I spent reading this 265 page Science Fiction novel. The characters were an interesting mix that made me think of the crew of “Firefly”. I liked the plot, but was surprised when the authored wrapped it up rather than laying an obvious path to a sequel. The Ranger character was not one of my favorite heroic characters. He would not be a person I would choose to befriend. I give this novel a 4 out of 5.

My book reviews are also published on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/31181778-john-purvis).

GoT Season 6 is a Wrap

GoT – Well Season 6 of Game of Thrones is over, and it ended with a literal ‘Bang’. I read all of the books Martin has published so far and of course I have watched all six seasons on HBO. I have thoroughly enjoyed both.

I came across the article “Relive All 59 ‘Game Of Thrones’ Episodes Through HBO’s Badass Posters” today that includes a poster developed for each of the episodes up to this season’s finale. I liked several of these and may try to print a few for my office wall. I thought that many of you would also be interested.

Space News #6

There has been so much in the news regarding space that I have been challenged to keep up with it. These are some of the more recent items that I thought were interesting.

Planet 9

This is a new planet that astronomers have been predicting. It is believed that the orbit is 10 times farther from the Sun than Pluto. There is still not solid proof, but the evidence is mounting in the favor of a new planet. The indicators are that it may well be an exoplanet that was captured by our sun from another star millions of years ago.  Read more here, here and here.

SpaceX Turns to Unusual Designer

We all know that astronauts must have space suits. SpaceX turned to an unusual source of their yet to be revealed design, Jose Fernandez and Ironhead Studio. Fernandez has been the one who has created the ‘superhero’ outfits seen in recent movies. The new space suit is said to be ‘stylish’ and ‘heroic’, though we will apparently have to wait until 2017 to see it for ourselves.

Of Course Aliens Exist!

In “A leading physicist says it’s ‘childish’ to think there are no aliens” the arguments of Carlo Rovelli as to why aliens are out there are detailed. In short the universe is so large, with so many stars, it is impractical to think that intelligent life only developed on Earth.

More Exoplanets

In May of 2016, NASA announced that it has discovered another 1284 planets using Kepler. This brings the total exoplanet count to 2325. Not all in the habitable zone, but there are candidates that could support life. These and as yet confirmed exoplanets will form the target for future searches for life as we know it. Read “NASA just discovered 1,284 new planets — here’s how many could potentially support life” for more details.

Human Exploration Limited

In “Even with sci-fi tech, it may be impossible to explore the known universe” the limits of what humans may be able to practically explore of our universe  is suggested. Due to the constant expansion of the universe, we probably will never – even if we discover ‘Warp’ drive – be able to get to many of the other galaxies that we can see. We may be limited to exploring the Milky Way, Andromeda and 50 dwarf galaxies. Yet with that limitation, there will be billions of stars within our reach.

‘Snow White’ Third Largest Dwarf

I am not talking Disney here, but planets. The 955 mile diameter 2007 ORIO has been declared the third largest dwarf planet in the Solar System by NASA. Snow White is not the official name, but stems from the surface ice. The orbit is slow at 548 years and the small planet has 45 hour long days.