How to share Calendar on iOS

Sharing your calendar with a spouse or close friend can certainly make your day easier.

At times, it is difficult to commit to anyone for a meeting without checking your calendar. Those who are usually busy with work can share their calendars with the people they trust. Apple iOS has this feature, and it certainly helps if you can share your calendar with your family or office team.

Calendar App on the iOS platform is robust enough to be shared and accessed by a number of folks at the same time. Of course, several people accessing your calendar may affect your device's battery life a bit, but not drastically. Here are the simple steps you can follow to share your calendar(s) with others.

Step one:

Open the Calendar App.Add caption

Step two:

Click on the Calendars button on the top left corner.Add caption

Step three:

From the list of available Calendars, click on any one you wish to share.Add caption

Step four:

Tap on Add Person and add the email address of the person you wish to add, and send him or her a message.Add caption

Step five:

Click on View and Edit, if you wish to limit the person's access only till viewing, or let them edit your calendar as well.Add caption

How To Share / Beam Any File On Android Via NFC

I cannot say it enough that Android has evolved a lot over the years that it has been out there in the market. Not only has the operating system received a major interface and performance (under the hood) overhaul, but a slew of new features has also been added to the mix, making it all the more useful to any smartphone owner out there. With the improvements in the operating system also came certain new technologies to the block in terms of hardware, and some of them joined hands such that they not only complement each other, but are so dependent that you cannot use one in the absence of other. One such technology remains, NFC.

Near Field Communication is a hardware mechanism for capable devices to communicate with each other in a more “primitive” manner, requiring physical contact (or at least, proximity) for the connection to be established. The implications of this technology, however, are far and wide, and for that purpose, NFC is the new “in” in Android devices especially. Smart Tags also use the same approach, and believe me when I say it, they are a blessing to have if you wield an Android. From a general user’s perspective, however, the most common use for the NFC chip in a device is file sharing. 

Android, by default, allows sharing of only specific file types using NFC, including browser data, contacts, pictures and videos. For the rest of the items on your device, you’re restricted to the more conventional means, like Bluetooth, Email, online sync and whatnot (even hot-swapping of memory cards, in some instances). Nevertheless, NFC is really cool, and much easier to establish a connection with, so it makes sense that a user should be able to send any file via this technology. With this in mind, XDA member MohammadAG came up with File Beam.

This minimalist app has only one function – enabling Android beam through NFC functionality for all file types in any file browser. Essentially, the app calls up the NFC API in Android 4.1 and above and integrates it with the “Share” menu for most apps. Hence, once you have the app installed, all you need to do is select your desired file – APK, ZIP, Document, or pretty much anything – and invoke the Share menu on your file manager, wherein you’ll find the new option to send the file via “Beam”. Neat and efficient!

There are certain limitations to File Beam, however. For one, NFC API support was added only in Android 4.1 Jelly Bean and above, so all devices below that are already rendered moot. Second, NFC is hardware dependent, so unless both the sender and receiver devices support the the hardware chip, this won’t work. Only the sender requires the app to be installed, though. It should also be noted that NFC is only a means of establishing connection – the actual transfer happens over Bluetooth, so in the rare chance that your BT radio might not be functional, File Beam won’t work, either.

Over all, File Beam is a brilliant concept that makes an existing technology all the more useful. The app is still in its infancy, so don’t be jumpy over some minor bugs or funny behavior. The source link below provides more details.

(Source: XDA-Developers forum thread)

How to Back Up Your Cydia Downloads Before Upgrading iOS

The jailbreak for iOS 6.1 just arrived, but Apple had to quickly introduce two emergency patches to the OS to fix Exchange support and a lock screen privacy bug. Thankfully, you can still jailbreak the updates, but if you're already running iOS 6.1 you might not want to hunt down your apps and tweaks again. Here's how to make it a little easier on yourself.

Backup (and Restore) Your Tweaks with Free Software

 

We've talked about backing up your jailbreak apps manually, as well as with AptBackup (which actually just backs up a list of your apps, not the apps themselves), and PkgBackup (which does, but costs $10). Those all work fine, but we prefer OpenBackup because it's free, easy to use, and backs up everything you need. 

Here's how to use it:

1. Download OpenBackup in Cydia.
2. Open the app and select "backup." This backs up your iOS device to either iCloud (if it's enabled) or directly in iTunes. It also stores a local copy if you want to be doubly sure about the backup (you can find it at private/var/mobile/Library/Preferences/OpenBackupFiles and then save it to your computer's hard drive with software like iFunBox).
3. Open up iTunes, and then download and install the newest version of iOS.
4. Jailbreak your iOS device (again).
5. Head into Cydia and redownload OpenBackUp.
6. Select the "restore" option in OpenBackUp, and let it do its thing.
7. Wait for your iOS device to respring, and you should be done.

When OpenBackup is complete, you device should restore with all the tweaks and Cydia apps you downloaded originally. In the end, you have a lot of options for backing up Cydia apps, but the reason we like OpenBackup is because it provides that extra failsafe of both a copy on your machine and iCloud. It's also essentially the same process as PkgBackup, but it's free. If you want to pick and choose which apps and tweaks to backup, PkgBackup is the way to go, but if you want to do it in one quick swoop, OpenBackup was the most reliable for us.

Take the Opportunity to Get Rid of the Apps You Don't Really Need

 

An automatic backup and restore option is fantastic, but personally I actually prefer the process of manually downloading everything again so I can clean out the clutter of too many tweaks. I've also had mixed luck with all three of the backup solutions listed above, so I tend to provide a failsafe anyway. Figuring out what's slowing down your jailbroken phone is kind of a pain, but when you manually reinstall everything you can really track down where a problem might be.

Generally, I just pop into Cydia and write down the apps and tweaks I want to reinstall. If that sounds too tedious, Appinfo is a simple little app that'll export a text list of all your installed apps and sends it to you as an email. Then, when you're updated and jailbroken again, you can just go through the list and reinstall. It's tedious, but at least it keeps things clean.

How To Jailbreak iOS 6 On Your iPhone, iPad Or iPod Touch

At last, the untethered jailbreak for iOS 6 is here. That not only means that the iPhone 5, iPad Mini and fourth generation 10-inch iPad can be freed from Apple's restrictions, but that it's safe for hardcore jail breakers to upgrade older devices to iOS 6 as well. Starting Monday, iOS users can do a lot more with their devices.  

Jailbreaking isn't a difficult or highly technical process, but it does demand some caution. The evasi0n jailbreak tool comes with simple step-by-step instructions in its readme.txt file, but we thought a more thorough walk-through would be worthwhile, lest you accidentally delete your cherished, digitally-captured memories.  

Note: The screenshots used in this tutorial were made on Mac OS X. For Windows and Linux, use the analogous options within iTunes.

1. Getting Ready: Download Evasi0n And Back Up Your Device

The first thing you'll need to do is download Evasi0n onto your computer. There are versions available for Mac OS X, Windows and Linux. Once it's downloaded, unpack it, install it and open it.

Before you do anything with Evasi0n, plug your iOS device into the computer via USB, and open iTunes so you can back it up.  When the device appears within iTunes, right-click it and choose "Back Up."  In iTunes, you have the option to back up to your local hard drive or iCloud. For the sake of speed, backing things up locally is probably the better option. Make sure the "Encrypt backup" checkbox is unchecked. 

If you've download apps directly to your device, you'll want to transfer those purchases to iTunes first. Go to File -> Devices -> Transfer Purchases from [whatever your device is called]. 

This way, when you restore the device, you won't lose anything. If any apps go missing, you can always restore them on the device later by going to the "Purchased" tab under "Updates" in the iTunes store. 

2. Back Up Your Photos And Videos

Backing up your device in iTunes does not include your photos and videos. Before proceeding with the jailbreak, import everything using iPhoto, Adobe Bridge or any other photo management software. If you don't back up the photos and videos on your device, you will lose them forever - and be sad.

3. Upgrade to iOS 6.1 (If You Haven't Already)  

If you haven't upgraded to iOS 6.1 yet, this is when you'll want to do so. Once everything is backed up, go to the device's "Summary" tab in iTunes and click the "Update" button under the iOS version number. 

Finally, if you use a passcode to lock your device, go into iOS's Settings and turn it off. It can apparently screw with the jailbreaking process.

4. Launch Evasi0n And Jailbreak Your Device

 Once everything is backed up and updated, launch evasi0n. Take a deep breath. Click "Jailbreak."

At this point, you might want to do some leisurely reading or get back to work, because the jailbreak itself may take 15-30 minutes to complete.  

After several minutes, evasi0n will ask you to go to wake up your iPad and tap the "Jailbreak" icon now installed on your home screen (alongside your existing apps). Do that. 

From there, evasi0n will inject the last of the jailbreak files onto your device and it will reboot itself. Unlike the older Absinthe A5 jailbreak, evasi0n will automatically restore your device from its backup, saving you the extra manual step. 

5. Getting Started With Cydia

Cydia is the jailbreak equivalent of Apple's App Store. At first glance, Cydia app store is not quite as polished as Apple's, but it doesn't take long to find your way around. 

You'll want to start by browsing through the "Featured" list and looking at the themes that are available. Cydia does a pretty good job of breaking things down into useful categories, and even provides a list of tools to start out with. 

There are a lot of apps, tweaks and design themes available in Cydia. It's worth taking the time to scroll through each list, check out the descriptions and screen shots, and start installing things you think would be useful for you. When I first jailbroke my iPhone 4, I started small by adding a fifth icon to the dock, enabling app-renaming, making Sparrow my default email client and adding a new theme. There are plenty of Siri-related tweaks, which you can find by searching "Siri" within Cydia. 

Other popular enhancements include additions to Notification Center, Wi-Fi tethering, game emulators and a variety of lock-screen modifications. Most tweaks and apps are free, but a handful of them cost a few bucks. The tethering and hotspot apps tend to run $10-$20, but price tags that large are otherwise pretty rare in Cydia.

iOS: How to update your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch

Update your device wirelessly (available in iOS 5 and later)

1. Ensure your device is connected to a power source. To avoid potential data costs connect your device to a Wi-Fi network.
2. Go to Settings > General > Software Update. iOS will automatically check for available updates.
   
3. If an update is available^* you can tap Download to download the update.
4. After the download has completed tap Install to update your iOS.
   
5. If you leave the update to download in the background, once the download has finished you will receive a notification saying an update is available for your device. Tapping Details will take you to Settings > General > Software Update. Tap Install Now to install the iOS update. If you decide to leave the installation for later Settings will display notification badge until the update has been installed.
   
* Some iOS updates may not available as over-the-air updates. VPN or proxy connections may prevent your device from contacting the iOS update servers.

Update your device using iTunes

Additional Information

Tips for updating your iOS device

• Ensure that your device is backed up to iCloud or back up with iTunes before updating. Find more information about backing up your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch.
• If you experience an alert when updating your device with iTunes, see this article about resolving update and restore alert messages.
• When updating from iOS 4.3.x or earlier, see iOS 4: Updating your device to iOS 5 or later.

Unable to update, not enough available storage

When updating wirelessly, your iOS device needs enough available space to download and install the update. If "Download and Install" is grayed out or you see the message "This update requires at least x.x GB of available storage", use one of the following options to update:

• Use iTunes to download and install the update instead

or

• Remove content you no longer need from your device, including:
  • Movies or TV shows from the Videos app. On iPhone and iPod touch, use the "swipe to delete" gesture. On iPad, either tap Edit or tap and hold on a video, and then tap "x" to delete.
  • Apps you no longer use. Tap and hold until they jiggle, and then tap the "x" to delete.
  • Photos or videos you've taken with the camera. To save your content, you can transfer photos and videos from your device to a computer.