HomePipe Spring ’11 Release Offers More Mobile Features

HomePipe Networks™ (www.homepipe.net), the leading innovator in digital content access and file sharing for the mobile community, today announced the release of the HomePipe 2.0 service, including its new SecureShare features, Collaborative Computing capabilities and A La Carte Playlist generation. The new offerings further demonstrate HomePipe’s vision of on-the-go digital content access, offering an easy and secure way to tap into digital files from any device, without paying extra for unnecessary storage in the cloud.

With HomePipe, users have their digital files at their fingertips, regardless of file size or type, and independent of system or content location. By utilizing HomePipe’s apps, users can access and share their digital assets simply and securely where they want, when they want, without the hassle of uploading, syncing or organizing files in the cloud.

HomePipe’s enhanced mobility features include:

• HomePipe SecureShare: With SecureShare, HomePipe users can now easily share digital content with everyone in their network by importing contacts from Outlook, as well as Gmail, Yahoo!, Hotmail and other email providers directly into HomePipe. Enhanced security features enable users to protect sensitive information by providing selective access, and requiring specific recipients to login securely before viewing private files.

• Collaborative Computing: HomePipe eliminates the hassle of downloading, syncing and organizing documents in the cloud, or paying for expensive cloud storage. Using Apple®, Android and Windows® Phone 7 devices, users can open any document from their hard drive, edit, and resave the document back into HomePipe. Once saved in HomePipe, any recipient can immediately and securely access the updated document – no drag and drop required.

• A La Carte Playlist Generation: HomePipe’s new A La Carte Playlist capability enables users to generate playlists from multiple iTunes® and MP3 libraries on the fly using Apple, Android, or Windows Phone 7 devices. With one click, HomePipe’s app populates a list of all folders containing music files, and allows users to select from those folders creating a single, unique playlist. And please don’t stop the music just to send a text. HomePipe’s Now Playing feature enables users to stream music, or browse photos or documents, on Apple, Android, and Windows Phone 7 devices, while simultaneously using other applications.

To learn more about these and other features, click here.

Editions & Pricing
HomePipe is available in four editions designed to cater to the needs of individuals and businesses. HomePipe Standard edition is available for $23.99/year, and offers consumers unlimited access to any digital file, regardless of size. HomePipe Group edition provides collaborative access for 2-9 users, and includes all standard features, as well as APIs for Website/Application Integration. HomePipe Enterprise Edition provides collaborative access for an unlimited number of users, and includes all standard features and APIs, as well as customized corporate branding. HomePipe continues to offer its free Lite Edition, providing users up to 11 content accesses per month from any mobile device.

HomePipe Apps are available for Apple, Android, and Windows Phone 7 devices. The app for Apple iOS devices is available in the iTunes Store. Android users can download the app from the Amazon Appstore for Android, Android Market or search for HomePipe for Android. For Windows Phone 7, go to the Zune Marketplace and search for HomePipe.

How to Keep Your Photos Safe and Secure While Online Cloud Storage Services Disappear

Avoid online photo sharing shut down with HomePipe

I was surprised to receive an email a month or so ago from PhotoWorks to learn they are shutting down the site. It seems as though a number of multimedia cloud hosting sites are closing. Earlier this year, Yahoo! Video shut down as well. And sadly, there will be more.

As an amateur photographer and PhotoWorks subscriber, I had a limited amount of time to access my photos. PhotoWorks would give me a $30 certificate to buy merchandise if I transfer my photos to Shutterfly. According to the site, images not transferred to Shutterfly would be deleted. Great. I can’t buy a DVD archive of my PhotoWorks photos nor can I download them to my computer. But if I transferred them to Shutterfly, I could buy back my own images on a disc if I so choose. That’s what the $30 credit is for—to buy my stuff back!

Since January 2011, Shutterfly stopped allowing the viewing or downloading of high-res photos on the site. So I can upload my high-res photos to Shutterfly, but I am not allowed to download them again (see http://www.shutterfly.com/help/view_pictures.jsp#download). This puts a kink in using Shutterfly as my official backup plan. I can download a low-res version of my photos by right-clicking on the image, but it’s only suitable for viewing on my monitor, not for printing!

Shutterfly promises that they will “never delete [my] photos. Ever.” Ok, but that’s what I thought with PhotoWorks. I’m not sure there is a safe place in the cloud to keep my photos or videos.

Gregory Scoblete of Your Digital Life (http://your-digital-life.com), a digital media solutions site, agrees:

“...the demise of PhotoWorks is instructive: if you were counting on them to store your photos for the long-term, you’d have been disappointed. That’s why you should not ultimately rely on an online service alone to secure your photographs.”

Scoblete also brings up a very good point about online photo services—privacy (or potentially the lack there of). Every time we hand over a digital file to a service, no matter how reputable, we run the risk of that content being stolen or distributed by hackers. Let’s not forget WikiLeaks! If the government or credit card companies can be hacked, anything is possible.

So what to do? Enter HomePipe.

HomePipe is easy, fast and convenient. You never have to worry about your photos being deleted, transferring them to yet another online site or scrambling to download your files because your online photo service is closing down. You keep your photos and your memories safe and secure on your computer.

You always have access to your photos, music, videos, documents and you can share them with whomever you choose. With HomePipe, you can drill down to a specific folder to share with one specific person, group or distribution list. Now how cool is that?

And, it’s so easy to share your photos with family, friends and colleagues:

1. Once you’ve activated your HomePipe account, sign in and select the folder or file you want to share. Then click “Share This Folder” under the category “Folder Tasks.”

2. In the screen, complete the form by entering your name and the email(s) of those you want to share files with.

3. Just press the “Send” button at the bottom of the form and your email invitation(s) are automatically sent.

That’s it. It couldn’t be easier! Plus, HomePipe Lite is absolutely free for the occasional user. Sweet!

As Scoblete warns, why put your precious photos into a cloud service that may close leaving you high and dry? Choose HomePipe and keep your photos and your memories forever. Try HomePipe today at http://www.homepipe.net/web_signup.html. 

Focus on Travelers: Tips when Photographing your Adventures

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Summer is approaching and soon we’ll be dusting off the digital camera and taking pictures of family gatherings, vacation destinations and more. Here are a few photography tips to help you create beautiful long lasting memories.

1. When considering a camera upgrade, check out a camera with image stabilization (IS) or “anti shake” (AS) technology. Many new cameras feature image stabilization that compensate for shaky hands or long lenses. It’s worth the extra cost for travelers who often shoot in low light conditions like museums.
2. Choose a camera that accepts a common battery format such as “AA” and get  rechargeable batteries and a charger. Rechargeable may cost more, but in the long run, you can reuse rechargeable batteries hundreds of times.  If planning for a lengthy trip abroad, buy a set of plug adapters for foreign AC converters.
3. Purchase extra memory cards. Some secure digital cards (SD) are as inexpensive as $5 per gigabyte—that’s enough memory to hold a few hundred photos.
4. Stick with a smaller camera rather than a large bulky camera. Less is often more when it comes to travel especially when you’re out and about.

Here are a few tips on taking photographs:

1. Photographers sometimes refer to the first and last hour of daylight as the ‘golden hour.’ Under the right conditions, the golden hour can often lead to a soft and warm glow on anything in its path. Shadows also get long and pronounced during this time so look for angles that feature these contrasts. Save interiors and closeup shots, location scouting and phone call returning for the middle of the day.
2. The Rule of Thirds refers to the fact that the most eye-pleasing compositions for photos split the field into roughly equal thirds. The main focal point, whatever it is, should be roughly one third of the way from either the top, the bottom or one of the sides of your picture. Let’s say you’re taking a picture of a sunset. You don’t want to make the horizon line dead center, rather make it either one-third from the top of the frame or one-third from the bottom.
3. Crop people properly, that is, when framing your photo, don’t cut the photo off at a joint—elbows, knees, etc.  Instead, crop them mid-calf or mid-thigh or midway between their shoulder and elbow. Pictures of people will always end up looking better.
4. Turn off the flash. Often you really don’t need it as the natural light is better, softer and warmer. Using the flash too often can make subjects look too hard. Also turn off the flash when filming through glass or you’ll get the white glare of the flash in your photo.
5. Check out reflections in still water. This goes hand in hand with the golden hour tip and can lead to captivating photographs. Reflections in still (or nearly still) water add a natural special effect to a photograph that always makes it more interesting. Some photographers actually focus more on the reflection rather than the object itself. You can even look for compositions that utilize reflections on wet streets for an interesting shot.

1. Register for HomePipe. You’ll receive an email with an activation link. Click it and the HomePipe agent installs in seconds.
2. Next, download HomePipe to your travel iPad, laptop or other mobile device. (Get mobile apps here.)
3. Instantly access and share files of any size, anytime, anywhere from any Web browser or mobile device. That’s it.

The last and one of the most important tips for traveling photographers is HomePipe. Use HomePipe to save, access and share your photos while on vacation. Imagine saving your high resolution photos to your computer and sharing them with family, friends and colleagues while you’re still away.  It’s easy with HomePipe and it’s free.

HomePipe is easy, fast and flexible—available whenever you need it. While away, you can save your files on your home computer and allow your “Shares” to view and download or just view your photos. It’s easy to share your memories as you’re making them with HomePipe.

Nanci Browning of Browning Cruises recommends HomePipe. “I use HomePipe and recommend it to my friends, family and clients (also called Shares in HomePipe). My Shares use it to instantly access and view my photos when I’m traveling. HomePipe also offers the Cooliris photo display feature so my Shares can view my albums with a click—in the brilliance only high resolution can offer.”

Take it from a travel pro and try HomePipe today.


And don't forget to share your HomePipe story! Let HomePipe know how you use the HomePipe service to share photos with family, stream music and access documents while on the go. If they publish your story, you'll get a $25 gift card. And there is no limit to the number of gift cards you can win so share your HomePipe story today!

Go To Your PC for Free :: A Review of Remote Access and File Sharing Software and Services

Let’s face it. A lot of people use GoToMyPC to access files. It’s pretty simple and reasonably easy to install. But, it’s expensive. GoToMyPC charges $9.95/month or $99/year to connect one user and two computers. Adding a user is another $99/year if paid in advance, and every additional computer connection is $9.95/month each. Just my opinion, but that’s a bit rich to occasionally access a file.

While GoToMyPC is ok as a remote access tool, it lacks a lot of functionality for accessing and sharing different media. For instance, you can’t share a file with multiple users nor can you stream your audio or video playlists. There are other limitations including having to sync files once you’ve accessed and resaved them.

Another large drawback is that GoToMyPC is anything but transparent when accessing a file remotely. Let’s say you’re at work and want to access a file from your home computer. You login to GoToMyPC and remotely access your home computer. Unfortunately, little Johnny is doing his science project at the same time and entering data into a spreadsheet program. While you access your file, little Johnny is left in suspended animation—that is, he can’t do anything until you’ve finished accessing the file remotely. 

So if you want to access and share files remotely, there are other services that offer greater functionality for less money than GoToMyPC. For $99/year plus all the add-ons, it’s worth a search.

One of my favorites for remote access and file sharing is  HomePipe. HomePipe is an easy, fast and convenient alternative to GoToMyPC. For the occasional user, there’s no monthly fee to access and share files online. And you can share files of any size with anyone you choose on any platform at no additional cost. There are no extra charges to connect additional Internet or broadband-connected devices with HomePipe – those $9.95/year charges for each additional device after the first computer with GoToMyPC can rack up pretty quickly.

HomePipe takes literally seconds to setup and it doesn’t “freeze” your computer or mobile device when accessing a file remotely. You can seamlessly stream music or videos and access photos or documents from your home or work computer (works for both PC and Mac) to your Android phone while little Johnny finishes his science project uninterrupted.  Unlike GoToMyPC, HomePipe users can also share one file with multiple users—very helpful if you have a tight schedule and need feedback fast.  

If you compare functionality with GoToMyPC, HomePipe offers a better overall value. HomePipe is simple, easy to use and transparent to the remote computer. Plus, HomePipe provides greater flexibility as you can stream your music with HomePipe—you can’t with GoToMyPC. HomePipe also eliminates the need to synch and organize files in the cloud. Best of all, HomePipe is cost-effective since the Lite Edition is absolutely free. The unlimited use version called HomePipe Standard Edition is still only $23.99/year which beats $99/year or more a year for GoToMyPC.

So why spend hundreds of dollars to remotely access and share files with GoToMyPC when you can do it for free with HomePipe?  Compare GoToMyPC and HomePipe here.