If This Then That (Part 2)

So about 2 weeks ago I first posted (see post here) about this website called If This Then That (iftt.com).  I've now had some time to play with it and I have a few uses for it.  But it could be really useful for business professionals or artists.  Basically anyone connected to more than 1 social network could benefit from this.  Even just for the sake of archiving things.

The way the site works is by connecting your various accounts across the internet.  Then, using a simple If-Then statement (called a 'Recipe') you "put the internet to work for you" (the websites slogan).  By simple I mean SIMPLE:

Step 1:

Once you've created an account, click the Create button at the top.  To create the first part of your Recipe click the this in the ifthisthenthat logo.

Step 2:

Select from the list of channels you've activated (coloured) to create the trigger.  This is where you set the action that will trigger a recipe.  It can be that you published a new blog post, recieved a new type of email, have a new follower on twitter, etc


Step 3:
Now you need to click the that part of the logo and then the channel you want it to affect.  For example, I've selected my trigger to be when I publish a new post on my Blogger account.

Step 4:
This is the part where you tell the recipe what to do with the trigger.  Do you want to announce your new post on Twitter with a shortened url?  Do you want to post a link to it on Facebook?  Do you want to email it to a group of people?  Do you want to create a backup copy in Google Drive?

Step 5:
Write a description (so you know what it does) and then press Create Recipe.

I think the best use of this website is for people who use Twitter and Facebook.  There are even some work-arounds to connect your Google Plus account.  But it can be as simple as getting a text message before you leave for work to take your umbrella because it's supposed to rain.

iPod Touch Resurrection (In Progress)

Over the past few years I've come to appreciate the quality that comes with an Apple product.  Especially when my wife and I bought each other a 32 GB iPod Touch 3G for Christmas/Birthday a couple years ago.  In fact, when it came time to buy a new family cell phone 6 months later I decided to go with an iPhone because I knew it would one less new technology I would have to teach my wife.

Well a couple days ago my 15 month old daughter was walking around the house listening to her favourite music, The Gigglebellies, when followed my wife into the bathroom and threw my iPod in the toilet. AHHHHHHHHHH!

I was only a few steps behind her but not quick enough to keep my iPod from being fully submerged.  I scoop it out quickly, towel it dry, power it off, and shove it in a ziplock bag full of rice.  Everything said wait a full 24 hours but after 16 hrs I figured I was safe.  So I pulled out my iPod pressed the home button (nothing).  Pressed the power button (nothing).  pressed and held the power button (still nothing).  No!!!!!!!!!

Still hopeful, I plugged it into a USB charger and after a few minutes I heard the familar ping of an iPod coming back to life.  Woooohoooo!  But my celebration was short lived.  Because after 5 hours of charging it still only showed the smallest charge it could possibly have.

I finally began to accept that my iPod is no more.  That I'd be stuck with only 8 GB of music at a time with my old iPod Nano.  But the next day I decided to plug it in overnight to see what would happen.  low & behold it came back (kindof)!

I had to do a full restore to factory settings on my wife's netbook (because the stupid wireless card in my desktop doesn't see any networks).  So I downloaded the latest iOS for my iPod (5.1.1), loaded up the apps my wife had on her laptop, hit sync, and went to bed.

When I woke up this morning it looked ready to go.  But not exactly:

• The power button doesn't seem to work.  It won't turn it on or off.  I have to plug it into a computer to power the device on.
• The headphones level indicator is superimposed over everything until I press the down volume button
• I can't even send the eror messages to Apple because the wifi and bluetooth options are greyed out under settings

I've tried reseting the network settings.  I even selected to reset ALL the settings.  It comes back on but with the exact same issues.  I'm going to try another restore tonight.  Maybe even a backup from my desktop.  If all else fails I'm going to try a local shop that does iPod/iPhone repairs.

If This Then That

So in my trawling across the Internet I found this website that can be used as a powerful tool: ifttt.com

Using a simple if-then statement you can connect yourself across social media seamlessly, simplify your life, and many more things.

In fact, when I publish this blog post it will automatically create a Facebook status with a link to the post. It could just as easily post it on Twitter or backup a copy to your Google Drive.

Let's see if it works *crosses fingers*