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Greg Higgins

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    Let’s talk about Notifications and Focus Modes

    I’m pretty sure Apple didn’t create Focus modes for this reason. But I’m trying something out. One of my biggest complaints with Apple has been the fact that you cannot customize notifications for individuals. You can set up VIP notifications in mail but that’s it. I want that type of notification control across my device. Mainly for messages. I do not need to see a text message with an advertisement on my lock screen.

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    When posting a link from my blog to a social media account (like Facebook, Twitter, etc), is there a way to have it show the picture associated with the article instead of my blogs logo?

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    I did a thing!

    In an effort to minimize my screen time, I decided to try out downtime on my iPhone this weekend. I decided to limit what apps I have access to in the evening time until morning. This prevents me from mindlessly scrolling and watching videos when I should be asleep. I don’t have a lot of data yet but plan on monitoring it over a period of time. I’ll have to do some tweaking to the apps that are/aren’t allowed as well as the time chosen for downtime.

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    This article has some really good points. I really liked this particular part:

    I also use Do Not Disturb quite liberally. Basically, it’s on from 5pm until noon each day. It’s like intermittent fasting but from distractions.

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    Not sure if it’s a beta thing or not but I had no clue that you can adjust exercise and stand goals on the  ᴡᴀᴛᴄʜ now.

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    Goodbye Reminders (again)

    For quite a while now, I have gone without a digital task manager. I was writing things down in a notebook (Field Notes I use for a monthly bullet journal). It was working great. Then, I saw some friends using reminders on their iPhone and I decided to go back and try it. Been experimenting with it for a little while now and I think I’ve come to this conclusion: there’s a reason why I left digital for analogue.

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    We’re getting close enough to WWDC that I can start griping about how we do not have global VIP on the iphone yet. We have it in mail. That’s it. How is this feature not available with messages? Or other apps?

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    Current Home Screen

    Here’s my current home screen setup: I’ve gone back to adding some apps to my home screen. I’ve been going back and forth with this for a while. For several years I went with no apps on my home screen. Then I started wanting to use specific apps for different things but would forget about them because they were buried (Out of sight out of mind). So now I’m using apps.

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    Dark Noise anyone?

    I know I’ve mentioned it before, but it’s been a while. Dark Noise is absolutely one of my favorite apps. There are times I’m working and I want some noise in the back ground, but not necessarily music. That’s where Dark Noise comes to the rescue. It’s a great app for providing back ground noise. Whether its simple white noise, rain, a camp fire, a cat purring or many of the other countless noises available, this app has it all.

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    iOS 14 and Homescreen Problems

    Since the release of iOS 14, I have messed with my homescreen more times than I care to count. Between adding widgets and customizing widgets, I can’t seem to get it right. Well, until now. I think I’ve finally settled on a combination that I like. Now ask me again in a few days and see where I’m at.
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    The Bullet Journal: Consider me Intrigued

    This weekend I decided to take some time and read The Bullet Journal Method. I’ve been fascinated by bullet journaling for quite a while. So I decided to read the book. I may give this a try. I like the idea having a distraction from screen time. Between working 8 hours in front of two monitors, using my iPad to write articles and radio sports updates and my iPhone I spend a lot of time in front of a screen.

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    Reminders

    Let me start by saying I think I have a terrific mother. She did an amazing job raising me and my brother. She’s a great nurse. Everyone loves her.

    That being said, she has a little problem. That problem is remembering to do certain things. No matter how many times I tell her to use reminders on her phone, she doesn’t do it.

    Obviously I’m saying all that in jest. The fact is a lot of people don’t take advantage of reminders or things like that on their phone or tablet. As we get older, our brains don’t work as good as they once did. It’s just a fact of life. There’s no shame in that. However, there is shame in forgetting to buy your grandchild a birthday card.

    So, whether you use an iPhone or an Android device, I would suggest making use of reminders. There’s something satisfying about putting information in the application, forgetting about it and then being reminded in several days. I use this all the time and it helps me keep my mind clear.

    Time Tracking

    I do not understand time tracking. I hear people talk about apps like Timery and Toggl and I understand what they are used for. What I don’t understand, is using them all the time to track regular time. If you bill people by the hour, I get using these apps. I’m sure it has a place but not in my little world.

    Stock

    I’ve been using third party apps quite a bit. Not sure how many apps I’ve downloaded over the years but it’s a lot of them. What I’m starting to learn, though, is that sometimes simpler is better. Every smart phone comes with Notes, Reminders, Calendars, and Mail applications already installed. Most of these apps are very well done and easy to use. They also require little to no setup.

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    "It's a Good Day" - Gabz

    My friend Gabz posted a short writeup concerning iA Writer and its recent update. You can read his post here: It’s A Good Day. Gabz makes some great points in this article including: “This is something I was able to do in other ways like with my beloved Drafts. But when it came to adding images to the post and such, doing so felt a little bit of a hack.

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    Let’s Discuss Homescreens

    Let’s discuss homescreens. Actually, lets discuss my homescreen. I used to obsessively try and get the perfect homescreen. I wanted a combination of the right icons but they also had to look good together. I would organize them by color a lot of times. I also wanted a dark background so the app icons stood out (I have included an example picture below from October 2018). That’s around the time I started reimagining my homescreen.

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