Your MobileMe Account Ends Soon: Moving to iCloud

Last summer Apple released iCloud along with iOS 5 and Mac OS X 10.7 Lion. iCloud offers many of the same features that MobileMe users have been enjoying for years, and iCloud is free.

At the same time, Apple announced that MobileMe would be discontinued this summer in favor of iCloud. Existing MobileMe users were given a free extension of their MobileMe account until June 30, 2012 – at which point MobileMe service will end. MobileMe users can migrate to iCloud, as long as your devices are supported.

iCloud requires your iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch devices to be running iOS 5, and your Macs to be running Lion.

PsiMac has been evaluating iCloud, iOS 5, and Lion since their releases, and we are prepared to begin transitioning existing MobileMe users to iCloud ahead of the June deadline.

Scheduling

We are scheduling iCloud migrations for April and May. Please check the online availability and let us know your preferred appointment.

Preparing for iCloud and Lion

Please send us some information about your systems so we can advise further about how you can migrate to iCloud.

On each Mac you plan to use with iCloud, please complete the following five steps:

1) Go to the Apple menu in the upper left of the screen and choose About This Mac. Please make note of the Version, the Processor, and the Memory. Click More Info and make note of the Serial Number.

2) Go to the Finder by clicking the Finder icon in the Dock. Click on your Startup Disk (usually named Macintosh HD) and then choose Get Info from the File menu in the menubar at the top of the screen. Please make note of the Capacity, Available, and Used.

3) Make a list of the non-Apple apps that you use. Older apps may need to be upgraded to a Lion-compatible version, and some apps do not yet have a Lion-compatible version. Here are some examples of common apps that are incompatible with Lion:

• Microsoft Office 2004 (upgrade to Office 2011; Office 2008 also compatible)
• Adobe CS 1 or CS 2 (upgrade to CS 5; CS 3 and 4 also mostly compatible)
• Quicken (no compatible version; consider Quicken Essentials or iBank)

Other apps can be checked against this compatibility table to determine whether they will need to be upgraded.

4) Click the Time Machine menu in the menubar in the upper right of your screen and make note of the status to be sure your backups are up to date.

5) Go to the Apple menu in the upper left of your screen and choose Software Update.  Install all updates. If a restart is required after installing updates, check Software Update again after restarting to be sure all updates have been installed.

On each iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch you plan to use with iCloud, please complete the following two steps:

1) Go to Settings: General: About and make note of the Version (e.g. 4.2.1 or 5.0.1) and the Model (e.g. MD278LL).

2) Connect your iPhone to your Mac to be sure it is synced, backed up, and up to date.

Please call the office at 203.247.5147 or email Ashleigh to let us know the info requested above. We would be happy to walk you through collecting the info and preparing for the upgrade.

We are scheduling iCloud migrations for April and May. Please check the online availability and let us know your preferred appointment.

iCloud rolls in

iCloud is now available to new members as well as existing MobileMe members who decide to upgrade.  iCloud is not a requirement for existing MobileMe members – you have until next summer to upgrade.

I recommend waiting a few weeks for the service to be brought online and tested under the load of millions of users.  There's no rush to upgrade unless you want to help Apple troubleshoot the new system.  The existing MobileMe service will continue to be operational for the next nine months.

iCloud requires all of your Macs to be upgraded to Lion, and iPhones and iPads to iOS 5.  These are major upgrades; care must be taken to ensure they go smoothly.

If you are excited to upgrade and wish to experience the new features of iCloud, Lion, and iOS 5 – and you don't mind the occasional hassles of being an early adopter – please get in touch with PsiMac to schedule a consultation to discuss the upgrades.

People don't do it.

Digital life means living with omnipresent technology. To benefit from your relationship with technology, you need to have backups.

If you don't want one flipped bit cramping your digital style, then you need to back up that bit and all the other ones.

And zeros.

Apple promised to make this easy when they announced Time Machine five years ago. They further simplified it by making it wireless when they announced Time Capsule almost four years ago. Before that time, it was necessary to physically plug in your backup.

I know.

As easy as it is to connect a small portable hard drive using a single FireWire or USB cable plugged into your Mac, people don't do it. Knowing this, Apple made one that doesn't need to be plugged in.

But too many people still don't have a backup, or not until it's too late.

Put another way:

People, don't do it.

Don't put your digital life at risk by failing to back up!

PsiMac offers PsiBack, an offsite backup service that securely backs you up to a remote location, automatically.

Contact PsiMac now to schedule a backup consultation.

How to properly restart and shut down

It is important to properly restart and shut down your Mac.

How often this should be done depends upon the pattern of usage.

Macs that operate as servers – for example, sharing files, sharing music, sharing other media, or sharing printers – should be shut down rarely; whereas most Macs should be restarted regularly. Many Macs are only restarted when software updates require it, or when improperly forced due to freezes or other failures. But restarting your Mac regularly is good maintenance.

When a system is running continuously, performance tends to degrade over time. Whether related to thermodynamic entropy or memory leaks, this is observable and measurable in normal use, so in practice it is advisable to restart as often as every week. To promote reliable operation, restart proactively. This will preempt freezes and crashes which could otherwise lead to data corruption and overall system degradation.

To Restart, click the Apple menu at the top left of the screen and choose Restart (or Shut Down).

Most Macs, iPads, and iPhones should be configured to go to sleep after a short period of inactivity, or when the cover is closed, which is the default setting. If you are expecting to be away for longer than a few days, it might be a good idea to shut down.

If the Mac is unresponsive, it is advisable to attempt to regain responsiveness so that the system may be properly restarted. If the system is unresponsive for longer than fifteen minutes and is determined to be frozen, then the system may be forcibly restarted by holding down the power button until the power is interrupted and the system goes dark and silent. Wait ten seconds, and then press and release the power button to start up the system normally.

The power button on the system should never be used to forcibly shut down the system unless it cannot be shut down normally (by using the Restart or Shut Down command in the Apple menu).

"Jailbroken" iPhones

We do not recommend or support jailbroken iPhones. This is the policy of Apple.

By jailbreaking, you take security, stability and support into your own hands.