Communicating During an Emergency

Communicating During an Emergency:
Alternatives to Phone Calls

I am based on the Florida Gulf Coast. For the past week or so, we have been watching Hurricane Dorian. As the storm gets closer to Florida, the misinformation starts circulating.  And there is a whole lot of misinformation circulating when it comes to communicating with others during an Emergency Event.

Facebook and Twitter are riddled with posts about which app to download so you can still communicate when you have no service.  Cell phones are great, but they are not magic. NO APP will work when you have no service whatsoever. But there are many apps that will function perfectly fine when cell service is down and internet service is up.  You need to have some strategy in mind that does not rely on voice communications and/or working cellular service.  You do need to plan for how you will contact folks when cell lines are overloaded.  In this article, we'll look at what you need to do to prep for this type of situation.

Why Can't I Depend on Cell Service During an Emergency?

Unfortunately, our cell towers are overloaded in many places. Different towers have different carriers, and often, your carrier may not have service on a particular tower. Additionally, different towers have different capacities. During emergencies, certain frequencies may be set aside for Emergency Officials and Governmental communications only, leaving little capacity to serve other callers.  Voice calls are more taxing on the infrastructure than data transmissions, so calls may not go through. Additionally, cell service transmitters are often the first thing to fail in any type of storm.  For this reason, it is better for everyone if you limit voice communications and switch to data communications, whenever possible.  If you must use voice communications, it is preferable to use those that rely on wifi or VOIP, rather than those that utilize the over-taxed cell system.

Tech and a Storm Event Part 2: Communications--What Worked and What Didn't

Surviving a Storm Event, Part 2:
Communications: Winners and Losers

 

This is Part 2 in a series about surviving a Storm Event and its aftermath.  Part 1 discussed Lighting Solutions for your Emergency Kit, and it can be found here.  Having recently lived through Hurricane Irma, Techlaurels is sharing lessons learned from the storm.

As most people know, Irma severely impacted Florida, including the Island where Techlaurels is physically located. While some areas were hit worse than others, most Floridians experienced gas shortages, extended power outages, and a loss of utilities. While power and utilities have been restored, Florida is still cleaning up Storm Debris.  Forecasters warn that we can expect October to be an active Hurricane month. Most of us are NOT waiting for another evacuation to be called. We are restocking our Emergency Kits now. We are also looking at the services that failed us, and reassessing what worked and what did not.

Many of us felt extremely communication-challenged throughout the Storm.  When you are living in the Information Age, it's hard when you cannot access the news or Social Media.  In addition, the little information you're able to receive is plagued with urban legends and false assertions.  Today, we are going to discuss what worked and what did not when it came to communications during the storm.

Technology For The Beach

My Favorite Beach Technology

Underwater MP3 Players, Kindles, and Dry Bags

Summer is upon us.  And for many of us, that means Beach Season.  Here in Florida, we go to the beach all year long, even if it is not warm enough to go in the water.  Many of us like to read on the beach.  We like to walk and listen to music.  But sand and water can kill electronics if you do not protect them.

Believe it or not, one can safely take their tech to the beach with the right accessories.  You can purchase waterproof electronics.  You can also purchase cheap accessories to protect the gear you already own. Today, I am going to review what I carry in my own beach bag.

An Underwater MP3 Player

Did you know you can buy inexpensive MP3 players that you can wear while you swim?  I think my all time favorite piece of Beach Gear is my Underwater MP3 player.

Quick Tip: Find Your Android Phone

Use "Android Device Manager" to Find Your Misplaced Phone

Locate, Ring, or Wipe Your Phone Remotely

 

     

Did you know that you do NOT need to install a separate app to find your misplaced Android phone?  Finding your lost phone is another handy dandy feature included in the android operating system.

Now to use this function, you'll need to have set up sync.  If you have not already done so, follow the steps outlined tn the "Backup Your Phone Post" on this very blog.  Once you've done that,  you're ready to find your phone.  All you need is a PC or Tablet.

Android Tip: Backup Your Important "Phone Stuff" to Google

Set Your Android Phone to Backup to Google

Protect Your Contact Lists and Photos

Almost every day, I see someone post something to this effect on Facebook: "I got a new phone and lost all my numbers.  Please message me yours."  And I always reply "Just retrieve your contacts from your Google account."  This is one of the most powerful features of Android: it backs almost everything up to Google, so long as you turn sync on.

I cannot tell you how many times an SD card has crapped out with all my mobile photos on it.  I never worry though.  I just log into my Google Photos account and there they are.  And when I get a new phone, I just log in to my Google account on it, and I get all of my stuff back.  Yes, my contacts, calendar, apps, etc. are all restored with a couple of taps.

Now, in order to effectively use an android phone, you NEED to have a google account.  They are free, and Google allows you to have more than one.  And you may set up more than one Google account on an android device.  (I have 2 on my phone.) If you already have a GMail account, you can just use that.  If not, you will need to set one up.  (And, yes, you can do this right on your smartphone.)

This post will walk you through setting up sync on a new android. If you already have an android phone, follow the steps to ensure you have things set up correctly.  Things may be located in different places according to your version of Android.  But fortunately, it is similar for all.  You just may need to explore menus a little to find the appropriate submenu. This routine also applies to Android Tablets.  (Most anything that is not an iPhone or iPad is Android based, with the exception of Fire Tablets.)

Customize Your Android Phone

Google Introduces a Free Tool to Help You Make a Cool Home Screen

Make your Smartphone Look Prettier

Tired of the same old boring phone appearance?  Haven't gotten around to customizing your phone's look, or just not sure where to start?  Google has launched a new, browser based tool to help you change up your Android's look.