Tresorit - what to do when you delete a folder accidentally.

I just discovered a flaw in my favourite cloud platform Tresorit (https://tresorit.com/). Tresorit is a cloud based storage provided that syncs files and stores them securely with a secure 256Bit encryption programme. I use Tresorit for my business documents as I believe my clients deserve real security but I need the ability to access the files at any time wherever I am.  Tresorit fits the bill and ticks the boxes.  Up until now I have never had any difficulties with the service,  I am happy it allows access to only three devices as this limits my ability to work to only three work devices. 

I am not sure how, and I know lots of you will have been there and done that, complete with getting the badge, but I accidentally deleted my whole work folder from my desktop. To make matters worse, as I had not realised the error I compounded it by deleting the recycle bin as I had recently deleted a number of other useless things cluttering up my space. Absent mindedly, I added to the mess by installing something whilst deleting the recycle bin and so when the message ‘do you want to permanently delete you work folder’? I absent mindedly clicked ok... Then the penny dropped! But it was too late to cancel.

Fear not I thought. I make regular backups of things, but this will be out of date and not contain the article I had saved that I was writing.  I quickly Googled Downloading folders from Tresorit and found this was not possible.  I could download individual files, but my work folder has many hundreds of thousands of files so this is not a viable option.

There was a lot of concern on the internet that Tresorit is a live sync, so if you delete a file or folder from your Tresor, it syncs this deletion and you have lost your folder (bye bye).  There is no fall back like you get with other cloud sync programmes that allow you to revert to an earlier version, as this version apparently does not exist, according to Tresorit.

I did find a solution though and here it is:

1. Stop your desktop Tresorit programme running, as this syncs folders and files.

2. Search your computer, in Windows Explorer, for the Tresorit folder and click on the icon. 

3. Click on the shortcut to you Tresor.

This brings up you folder stored on your computer under my Tresors which is undeleted as long as the Desktop programme has not synced.

4. Copy and Paste you Tresor into its original programme.

5. Thank whoever you like for catching the problem before your computer deleted your Tresors altogether.

Tresorit add that also If Tresor is sync'd and colleague deletes file, hidden .tresorit/Trash folder contains deleted files.

I hope this helps people who also use this really good programme.  I will still continue to use it and will do manual backups to external hard drives which are encrytped on a regular basis.

Which watch face?

I would not say that having an Android smartwatch gives you unlimited, or even a really good selection of watch faces, but there are enough for at least one to appeal to you. I have assembled my current favourite watch faces. My criteria will undoubtedly be different from yours, and to spell it out, I need a low power consuming watch face (hence black is my preference) and ideally one which is clear at a quick glance and has the main information I require on it.

My current favourite is

Minimus 360

A simple interface with a little colour.  The colour you can change as you can with the date and the battery state which can be included in the background. I prefer analogue watch faces to digital and this is a great simple and effective interface which shows the time as well as other key information. To download Minumus watch face go here.

Luminous watchface by Liongate

This Luminous watch face is simple and effective, it has to extra dials to show the battery of the watch and your phone as well as displaying the date.  Its simplicity is why I like about this watch face most.  It is easy to read in daylight and at night. The only slight niggle is that the date can be obscured by notifications. To download Luminous go here.

 

Watch Face - Modern Classics

Modern Classics features a  simple and clear watch face which provides the day, date and watch battery charge as standard. For the addition of a few coins you can unlock other features such as the temperature or weather. I like the simplicity and the fact the hands are always clearly visible. to download Modern classics click here.

Angry Birds Aviator Watch Face

Yes, you are correct, Angry Birds have moved from a number of apps to a watch face. The blurb for this says "Pick your favourite Angry Birds character to style your smartwatch with vivid colours and the occasional angry outburst. If it’s a bad day, the birds get more angry. Wait for the clock hands to form an angry frown at 10:10.". Although I love the watch face I have never been able to change it from the standard red one, but that said I have not used it that much. to download it click here.

Speeds

Like the other watch faces, Speeds provides a clear and crisp interface with the time and key information such as the watch battery state, time, day and date in addition to a speedometer.  This ideal for the sporting person who needs to keep an eye on their speed. to download Speeds click here.

Motorola Minimal watch face

And finally my long term favourite is not available for download unless you have a Moto 360 smart watch as it comes with the watch direct from Motorola.  I am referring to the Minimal watch face. A simple black and which interface with a second hand which you can change the colour and the date which can be added.  It is a classic and a great lesson on how to design a watch face, It is a simple, effective and clean watch face... perfect.

Which is you favourite?  Let me know in the comments.

Silence is golden

One of the unexpected things I love about my Smartwatch is the fact that my phone is now silent. It stays in the silent state throughout the day and night. When I need to action something it comes through as a vibration on my wrist.  This makes my life calmer although it might appear strange to others that I keep checking my wrist. It is especially useful when I receive a call as my wrist has a constant set of vibrations so I know it is not another type of notification.

A good app

Thought I would give a heads up to what I regard as a good app.

For me a good app has to work as expected, do what you want it to, have the ability to configure things so that you can make the experience your own and be cheap enough to warrant consideration.

There are a lot of really good apps out there which are worth spending a few pennies on but the one I am thinking about is Textra.

Textra is a simple intuitive SMS texting app. it allows you to add emojis with an add on surprisingly called Textra SMS iOS Emojis as well as allowing various levels of configuration.  Most importantly the app is free to try and 61p to buy, so it will not break the bank. The app automatically adds photos from your Google account to match the people who are texting and there are options for quick compose and default signature as well as the ability to delay sending something.  All of these features and the ability to have a dark background or light one make the app a winner in my book.

Android Wear - is it worth it?

With the release of the Apple watch it is claimed that this watch has 3000+ apps which can work on it now, so how does Android wear compare?

Android Wear

Android wear is the operating system for android smartwatches. It is a pared down version of the full Android system and allows apps to use the watch.  The Smartwatch itself allows the apps to show notifications as well as start and stop apps on your Android phone.

Android Wear is tied to the Android system currently, as the AppleWatch is tied to the Apple iPhone 6 currently.

Android wear does have a few apps of its own as well as some basic games, most notable of which is a space invaders game as well as some bespoke fitness apps including my favourite app FitCloud which is a great app for cyclists and runners as it keeps a track of your whereabouts through GPS and can log the whole event with details such as Start and finish times, Average speed, Max Speed, Average Pace, Max Pace,Distance,Duration, Average Moving Speed, Average Moving Pace, Min/Max Altitude, Loss.Gain, Min/Max Gradient, Average Heart Rate and Max Heart Rate, Average Cadence and Track Points.

The key to Android Wear is using the built in devices in the Android Smartwatch such as the heart rate monitor and also using apps on your smart phone such as the  GPS app to bring hear rate and location data together.

Is there any difference between Android Wear Smartwatches and Apple watches?

Yes, There are relatively few apps on the Android Wear Play store.  Most of the store is full of watch faces, which are fun to have but do not enhance the functionality of the Smartwatch itself.

That said, I prefer the Android Smartwatch customisation ability as well as the ability to make your own custom watch faces with apps such as Facer. I am waiting for the new Android 5.1 update for the watch to come through and will write more on it then.

More fitness apps

Fitness is difficult at best when you are by yourself and your job is a static one.
Although I still use Virtual Gym as mentioned in a previous post, I now use a range of apps on my phone more and all come from one maker which is Runstastic.  The joy of these apps is they push you.  I started with the cycling app Runstastic Road Bike which is a great app for cyclists allowing you to plot your route, speed, gradient etc. basically most of the main things you need when you cycle.

I have the Pro versions of the apps as this opens more features than the lite version and they are not too expensive. I like looking at the history to see the progress that I have made, which could be in distance or speed or just the amount of rides I have done that week/month/year.

I also have since downloaded a number of their other apps including their squats, push ups and sit ups apps which are great for interval training and set you achievable progressive challenges.  Using the apps I have achieved more sit ups and squats than I ever thought I could do, so the apps work for me. Again I enjoy the fact I can see the progress and the exercise routines are short enough to squeeze into the busiest days.

Google Play had an offer of a free Runstastic Pro main apps which is also recommended as you can do all sorts of sports and have the app record your progress.

There are drawbacks with some of the apps such as they do not yet share information between the apps so you can do a work out on one app and it is not recognised by the other.  This is especially the case as the main Runtastic Pro app is connected to the Google Fit app which allows your record of achievements to be stored on your android devices.

My most used Android apps

The smartphone is an evolving phenomenon and apps come and go. We can install and uninstall apps at a whim, which makes the ones that you keep, special. 

I have different apps on my phone to my tablet as both are used for different things.  I should state I am not a gamer and therefore do not have the latest games rather I have apps that work for me in the way I want them to work.

1)   Pocket

My favourite app has to be Pocket as it allows me to store critical web pages and tag the page for reviewing later. I used to use Evernote for this but I prefer the simplicity of Pocket. I can access Pocket from all my devices including the PC and Chrome users have their own Pocket app as do Firefox Users.  It’s basically a superior bookmark facility which far outweighs the bookmarking of Chrome.

2)   Google Play Music

I must admit I was a bit of a sceptic when this first came out but now I find it invaluable to stream music via Bluetooth to a range of devices in the house.  I can store my latest music in the cloud to access via wireless at any time. I have even purchased a Bluetooth receiver for older devices to allow me to play music on them wirelessly.  Although with my iPod I am bound to iTunes, which I hate, Google Music and Google Play Music are my friends and allow me to effortlessly synch music between devices.

3)   Google Keep

I hate notes. I am always jotting things down and forgetting where I wrote it down. Keep is simple and solves the problem.  Note things down in Keep and they are safe and stored in the cloud. I can access them on any device and I use Keep more and more for starting things such as articles.

4)   Gmail or Inbox

I use email everyday and get a lot. Gmail and Inbox enable me to wade through the mire of emails and make some rational order to them. I am currently still evaluation Inbox and have that and Gmail on my phone as Inbox has fewer features but is good for ordering and sorting emails into Google arbitrary categories.  That said I also need to flag some emails as important and ensure they are stored with that tag for a long time. The snooze feature on Inbox just doesn’t cut it.

5)   Multipost

This is an essential app for those with an investment in social media. It allows posts to be shared to other social Medias. Hence a post, I make can be sent to Twitter, LinkedIn, Google Plus, Facebook , and any other social media outlet I wish to use. The simplicity of it is what I love and the fact it can post to LinkedIn as well as other social media. It is ad laden after each post you are presented with an ad to ignore, but this is a small price to pay for such as simple and great app.

6)   Tresorit

Everyone should be benefiting from the use of a good cloud provider, and I use Dropbox, OneDrive Box, pCloud and Copy amongst a number of other great providers, but I use Tresorit for work folders that I need kept safe and secure. It has a end-to-end security built in and offers a $50,000 to anyone who can hack their system. This to me is exactly what I need for sensitive files which are work related. I can also be used freely on up to three devices so my core devices have it installed. It also has a computer programme for those who work mainly on a computer.

7)   Press

Although my favourite RSS reader is GReader which I have been using for a few years now, I have recently found that it slows my phone down too much and takes a few too many resources, so I have turned to Press for my phone. Press is s simple RSS reader which has a surprising amount of power, offering a range of views and methods to access your feeds.  As feed readers go it is worth the small cost. I still use GReader on my tablet but on the phone it is Press all the time.