Tabla de contenidos para No. 246 en iCreate

Creating a resolution to get fit and lose weight for the new year is an incredibly popular goal to set. Alas, giving up on the goal within a few days is also incredibly common. Being able to visualise your progress and to gamify your exercise and eating habits will bring muchneeded motivation, and it is more likely to help you succeed. This is where the iPhone and Apple Watch can work together to become your ideal virtual personal trainer, and you get to tailor the experience to suit your needs and abilities perfectly. We will show you some of the features you should concentrate on daily and also some thirdparty offerings that make getting fit much easier, and there are even accessories that can work with your Apple products to…

As you’ll see from this issue’s iMovie tutorial, you can mimic the effect of lightning and thunder by combining practical on-location lighting effects with post-production sound. Final Cut Pro’s more comprehensive collection of special effects enables you to go much further when it comes to adding stormy elements to your footage, such as pounding your protagonist with a digital downpour and even making droplets of rain trickle down the lens (without blowing your budget on a Hollywood rain-making machine)! We’ll also show you how to composite flashes of lightning into your footage for extra drama! Step-by-step Dramatic rain effects Import assets 1Click File>New Event. Label it ‘Wild Weather’. Click ‘OK’. Select File>Import> Media and browse to our supplied files. Drag Clip01 and Clip02 into the timeline. Bolt from the blue…

Apple’s Find My service is a shining example of how to track devices. Thanks to the huge network of iPhones, you can see the location of AirTags and other Apple devices in the Find My app. However, one missing feature is location history – you can see where AirTags and devices are right now, but you cannot tell where they have been. To work around this, you can save a screenshot of Find My showing where something is now, then later take another screenshot to see its new location. This way, the location is tracked in images. However, here we show you an Automator script that does it automatically. Take timed screenshots Anatomy of an Automator app Knowledge base Test your app This app is designed to run for several…

Focus modes enable you to silence unwanted distractions when you do not want to be disturbed. Focus modes have been around for some time, but they recently acquired new features that make them even better thanks to iOS 16. Previously, Focus was able to silence apps, but now you can choose to only block some things within apps, but not others. For example, if you have work and personal email accounts in Mail, you can block one, but allow the other. This is an example of a Focus filter. It works in apps that have more than one account, like Mail, Calendar, and Messages. Organise Safari tabs into groups and then add the group as a Focus filter Step-by-step Create a Focus filter 1 Pick a Focus Open the Settings…

Unfortunately, the iPhone’s battery is only designed to retain up to 80 per cent of its original capacity at 500 complete charge cycles. But how do you know how many cycles your iPhone has completed, given the information is not included in the Battery section of the Settings app? We have shown you this method before, but it has changed slightly since the iOS 16 update because the previous ‘log-aggregated’ files are no longer generated in Settings>Privacy & Security> Analytics & Improvements>Analytics Data. Now you will need to look out for the ‘Analytics’ files. Read on and we’ll guide you through it. Monitor the health of your battery Apple provides a wealth of information about your iPhone’s battery View battery health Tap ‘Battery Health’ to see the battery’s maximum capacity.…

When Affinity Publisher arrived on the Mac in 2019, we were impressed. Not only was this desktop publishing app available for a one-off fee (no subscription needed!), it also gave Adobe InDesign a run for its money. The main downside was that, unlike Affinity Photo and Affinity Designer, there was no iPad version. But that, we’re happy to report, is no longer the case. Today, you can download Affinity Publisher 2 for iPad from the App Store and trial it for 30 days. After that, you can purchase it for £17.99/$19.99 (although you may find it’s on special offer). Packed with layout tools such as text wrap and guides, it also offers advanced typography. Let’s get started. Create stunning pages using images, shapes and colour Step-by-step Create your first page…

Key features OpenCat framework • Arduino compatible motor controller & wireless connectivity Learn more petoi.com Available from amazon.co.uk Editor’s Choice ★★★★★ REMEMBER KIDS, AN OPEN SOURCE BIONIC ROBOT DOG IS FOR LIFE, NOT JUST FOR CHRISTMAS. Petoi, the maker of futuristic robot pets, has recently launched the Bittle STEM kit, a lower-cost version of its palm-sized robot dog that is designed to help teach tech enthusiasts, young and old, about the enjoyable world of robotics and coding. Perfect for kids and adults with an interest in STEM, coding and robotics, Bittle is also fun for anyone who just wants to play with a robot pet companion. It can be programmed to walk, do tricks and roll around just like a real dog – although we had to stick adhesive googly…

• Display: LCD monitor/TFT active matrix • Aspect Ratio: 16:10 • Contrast Ratio: 700:1 • Native Resolution: 1,680x1,050 • Colour Support: 16.7 million colours • Controls & Adjustments: Brightness, tilt • Connectivity: FireWire hub, USB 2.0 hub • Original price (23-inch model): £1,549/$1,999 • Price now: £99/$99 Those who prefer Mac towers and minis over iMacs have had to sort out their own monitor arrangements over the years, and Apple’s own offerings have generally been impressive. Released over the summer of 2004, the Cinema HD Display was a thing of particular beauty. Featuring a brushed-aluminium bezel that is completely devoid of interruption (the power button is tucked discreetly into the right edge of the display), and a one-piece, L-shaped aluminium neck/base with a white, plasticringed oval cable pass-through built in to…

WE ALL HAVE OUR FAVOURITE APPS AND GAMES THAT WE ENJOY ON A DAILY BASIS, BUT DO YOU EVER HAVE THAT FEAR THAT THERE IS OTHER GREAT SOFTWARE OUT THERE THAT YOU MAY BE MISSING OUT ON? Apple’s annual App Store Awards were dished out at the start of December, celebrating the very best app releases for the previous 12 months. So if you haven’t already, be sure to check out this list of worthy winners across Mac, iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch and Apple TV. And as well as crowning the best apps for the respective hardware, Apple also listed a selection of Cultural Impact winners – apps that have made a lasting impact on people’s lives and influenced culture. So without further ado, here are the winners… iPhone App…

EQ, or equalisation, is all about manipulating the constituent parts of an audio signal. It involves boosting or reducing the volume of frequency ranges or ‘bands’ to achieve a certain response. In practical terms, we might want to add brighter highs to bring out the treble. Conversely, perhaps our sound needs more bass, so boosting the low-end frequencies can help. GarageBand’s Channel EQ plugin enables us to do this, and it’s often the most powerful effect you can learn. It has some great presets to explore, and it can be used in multiples to layer EQ effects for combined impact. Step-by-step Using the Channel EQ plugin Locate the plugin 1Channel EQ is typically added to new project tracks by default. You can find it or add extra units in the…

Although modern games are amazing and your Mac is capable of playing a host of great titles thanks to services such as Apple Arcade and Steam, there’s a heap of fun to be had by delving into the past. With OpenEmu, you can do just that. Thanks to emulation, the free app lets you enjoy games made for a host of systems – you just need to be aware that downloading commercial games (particularly if you’ve never bought a copy) is legally murky. We would never condone pirating software, so make sure you do a little research and be sure what you are getting into when downloading ROMs for the emulators. Step-by-step Build a library of games Use Experimental version 1At openemu.org, don’t click ‘Download Now’. By selecting ‘Experimental’ instead,…

As Mac users, Apple’s Safari internet browser is a staple of our everyday lives. Whether it’s for checking Gmail, catching up on the latest news or watching YouTube videos, Safari is a simple and robust app for enjoying the best that the worldwide web has to offer. However, as is the case with most Apple apps, there is a lot more to it than meets the eye. For example, did you know that you can bump up the size of the website text outside of Reader mode? And did you know that you can watch videos in an entirely separate window free from the usual clutter? We’ve dug deep into Safari’s vast array of options and lesser-known features to provide a fun insight into how far you can take your…

The new Safety Check feature in iOS 16 is designed to do two things. First, it allows you to instantly cut ties – through data sharing, location-tracking, etc – with an abusive partner and help protect your personal safety. Second, it brings many of the checks you should perform regularly into one handy place, which you can run through in minutes. Safety Check makes you far more aware of how much of your personal information you share with people, apps and devices on a daily basis, and it provides a series of simple steps to help you review what is shared and with whom. Here’s how to use it for the first time. Safety Check also reminds you to regularly change passwords and device PINs Undertake an iOS Safety Check…

Being able to check when someone was last seen on WhatsApp, or when they’re currently online, is rather useful. It helps you determine how frequently someone uses the app, or whether they are currently available to be contacted. But you may not wish others to see this information, so is there a way to prevent this? As it happens, yes, thanks to management of the online status having recently been added. By taking advantage and removing such indicators, others won’t be able to see that you’re active and suddenly try to get in touch. You can also create a blocklist/ allowlist to ensure only those you want to share such details can see them. The online/last seen status is removed from under your name Step-by-step Hide your online status 1…

“Nura True Pro are the world’s first earbuds to support lossless audio over Bluetooth” Key features Bluetooth 5.3 • Spatial audio • 20Hz–40,000Hz Learn more nurasound.com Available from nurasound.com Editor’s Choice ★★★★★ IF YOU TOOK ONE LOOK AT THE PRICE AND BALKED, then consider just what these wireless earbuds are capable of. NuraTrue Pro offers CD-quality lossless audio, spatial processing, Adaptive ANC and a listening experience that is specifically tailored to your ears. Let there be light The big drawback with Bluetooth is that it introduces compression artefacts that negatively impact on the listening experience, and detail is lost from the audio as a result. But NuraTrue Pro are the world’s first earbuds to support lossless audio over Bluetooth with Qualcomm aptX Lossless. This means that all of the data…

Apple Music Get on song with Apple Music Sing Arriving in time for the holiday season, Apple Music Sing is an extension of Apple Music that allows fans to sing along to tens of millions of songs. We were distraught when Sony ceased support for its PlayStation karaoke service, SingStar. How would we punctuate our post-pub revelry if not with an air-clenching rendition of ‘Dead Ringer For Love’? Thankfully, Apple Music Sing not only fills that void, but does so with unparalleled convenience. You don’t have to de-tangle cables, find working batteries for the mics or wait for purchased songs to download. Apple Music Sing is built into your Music app, providing easy access to your favourite songs with adjustable vocals and lyrics that scroll in real time. “Apple Music’s…

Acore element that makes a professional movie stand out from an amateur production is the use of external light sources. Light effects add an extra level of colour and texture to a scene. With the appropriate light effects you can add neon glows, dramatic flashes of lightning or even add a police car to a crime scene. LED lighting kits such as the Nanlite PavoTube T8-7X can be programmed to add a range of dynamic lighting effects that you can customise via the free Nanlink app. We took the PavoTube and a model on location to produce a range of creative lighting scenarios. Step-by-step Upgrade your footage with light effects Light source 1To produce the effects featured in our supplied clips we used the PavoTube T8-7X. This LED lamp has…

Logic’s toolbox is full of goodies to enhance your editing workflow, but one of the most useful is the Fade tool, which allows you to draw crossfades between audio regions for smoother edits. If you chop up and rearrange audio regions, and/or unwanted clicks, abrupt changes in ambience can occur at the transition points where there’s a change between regions that weren’t recorded naturally together, i.e. ‘contiguous’ audio. Luckily, Logic has a powerful Fade tool that allows you to sort out these kind of issues easily, and also has a very useful hidden trick up its sleeve. Read on to discover how to utilise this handy tool. Step-by-step Work with Logic’s Fade tool Divide and conquer 1Let’s start with this one-bar drum loop. We only want to use the first…

Imagine you’ve placed an order for a pizza on your iPhone. You may get a notification telling you that your order has been accepted, that it’s in the oven, or with a delivery driver. When keeping up with the latest scores, you may also be pinged whenever a goal has been scored or a player has been booked. But imagine if such information was delivered in real time from your Lock Screen or the Dynamic Island. That’s the concept of Live Activities. Not only can you keep your iPhone locked to view information, but you can interact with the feature too. Updates are pushed via notifications or the app, and since third-party devs can make use of Live Activities, we’re seeing more and more coming on board. Activate Live Activities…

Contact us today Facebook iCreateMagazine Twitter @iCreateMagazine Instagram icreate_mag Email icreate@futurenet.com Glossary The place to come for key terms made easy Mission Control This is a feature of macOS that can be used to display and manage your open windows and desktop spaces. Using this feature you can create different desktops for different projects and switch between them using simple gestures. Private Relay Private Relay is a new feature of macOS Monterey and iOS 15 that keeps your internet activity private by hiding your IP address and browsing activity in Safari. It protects your unencrypted internet traffic so that no one can see who you are. Universal Clipboard This is an Apple ecosystem feature that enables you to copy and paste content between Macs, iPads and iPhones. To use it…

“The interface is sleek, offering fast access to key tools and then shifting them out of the way when you want to draw” Price £23.99/$26.99 Requirements iPadOS 13.0 or later Learn more pixaki.com Available from iPadOS App Store THIS APP PROVIDES iPAD OWNERS WITH A WAY TO CRAFT PIXEL ART. The style originated by necessity during the 1970s and 1980s, and might seem obsolete in an era when individual pixels are impossible to see on a screen. But the aesthetic remains popular, perhaps because you instinctively know that thought has gone into the placement of every dot. With this latest revision, Pixaki feels modern. The interface is sleek, offering fast access to key tools and yet handily shifting them out of the way when you want to draw. Layers are…