This freebie may be a big deal or just a splash in a large pond.  The real question is will you consider using iWork on your iPad?  What about for kids, will this be a suitable resource for their school work?

I for one have used SkyDrive which is the free version of Office (in the cloud), Google Docs and iWorks Pages (on iOS), the first two are competent word processors but unless Apple updates Pages and more than likely all of iWork I don’t think it will come even close to being able to play in the big leagues of the other two cloud services.  iWork looks very basic and unpolished at this point.  Granted it is a cloud version still in beta but the iOS app is not though still lacks a great deal of functionality and modern necessities.  Unlike Google Docs you can’t collaborate with others to input data into a spreadsheet or document.  This is 2013 soon to be 2014 and that’s a basic feature and necessity, at least it is to me.

My personal pet peeve in Pages on iOS and in the cloud is not being able to easily add and edit hyperlinks.  I’m writing this post in iWork (beta) on a computer browser and I’m unable to add a hyperlink to an old Phone.com blog post and on my iPad it’s a ridiculous experience to try to create hyperlinks.  I will have to complete writing this blog post by copying and pasting it into Google Docs add the hyperlinks to the post I’ve already written.  This is an injustice to the user and a sad state of affairs IF this is what’s going to be presented to the public this week.

I for one will stick to composing all of my documents in Google Drive and on the rare occurrence I’m not able to edit or email the document to a Microsoft Word user I’ll use my MS Office suite on my computer for this purpose.  I hope Apple will fix Pages because at this point I wasted the $10 I spent buying it on the iPad.  Maybe that will change this week, we will just have to wait and see.  

With  Phone.com being a small business phone service I have SMB’s on my mind a lot.  What I got from the announcements is that the iPhone 5s is absolutely the most important device of the year for companies in terms of security.  Every week I read or hear another story about how a company lost it’s secret work because some employee left his or her phone at a restaurant or in a cab and inevitably they never thought they would so even though their IT department or boss mandates they utilize the passcode on their phone they thought they knew better and did not.  

To let you in on the news if you haven’t read or seen it yet somewhere, Apple has put a fingerprint scanner on their new flagship device.  This will enable folks to avoid the delay in unlocking their phone associated with using a password.  Now they can just place a finger on the home button and the unlocking magic happens.

What’s important is that now the thought is that users will be much more likely to protect their phone by fingerprint protecting it.  The hope is that now all the employees required to lock their phones (plus the ones that are not) will lock their phones and keep their data safe.  A recent report found that 79 percent of small businesses experienced mobile security incidents much of this can be avoided if your phone is locked, it’s a deterrent for petty crime which is the most common in terms of mobile phone and in turn data theft.

My hope is that many small businesses will realize that when it’s time to update their companies cell phones they’ll purchase iPhone 5s’s and take advantage of this new implementation of security technology and get their employees using is.  Don’t allow your company to become a victim when it’s so easily can be avoided.

All the time I hear these excuses and they’ve been valid but are losing their importance due to Android rapidly evolving. The one thing that hasn’t changed is security. It’s a big deal but what does that really mean? Well it was brought to the surface for me recently. I’m running the new beta Apple iPhone operating system iOS 7 on my iPhone 5 and it’s very nice but my bank’s check deposit app doesn’t run properly. I’m lazy and don’t want to have to run to the bank to deposit my Phone.com check so I pulled out my newest Android phone I’ve been reviewing, the Samsung Galaxy S4. It’s a fine phone and I really like it but it’s Android. And once I downloaded my banks e-deposit app I started to put my bank credentials in and then it dawned on me. I’m giving access to my phone to my bank account. I never faltered doing this on my iPhone but I decided it wasn’t the best idea to do on an Android phone. We regularly hear about security issues on Android and I just had some niggle in the back of my mind saying don’t do it.

I waited till my wife got home and used her phone to deposit my check but that was a turning point for me. I don’t think I’m comfortable putting my entire life and trust into an Android phone that seems to be more prone to being violated than my iPhone. This is what I’m going to tell my friends that ask me what they should purchase for their employees, family and friends. No reason to put your security at risk which I feel you are doing using an Android phone at least for your most important details, in my case it’s my banking. I’m just not willing to take that chance.

They continue, “This is the second consecutive month for growth in job creation among smaller firms. In May, small businesses created 63,000 jobs, up from 57,000 in April.”

What does this mean for Phone.com customers? Are you adding new employees? Is your company growing? What can we do to help your company grow? We want to be part of the solution and help your company in any way we can. Drop us a line on Twitter or Facebook and tell us what we can do.

For starters:

1. Every piece of luggage I travel with gets a bright red handle cover. If I have to check a piece of luggage I can easily spot it on the conveyor belt at baggage claim. Additionally if it’s lost for any reason it now stands out. I tell this to the agent and it makes it a lot easier to find.
2. Use technology. I use my phone now to check in and as my boarding pass. Additionally I can check the weather, make Phone.com calls and keep track of all my reservations.
3. Join every loyalty program and be loyal. My father-in-law taught me this. He joined every program he could and so have I. Over the years I’ve gotten 5 international airline tickets and some rental cars just from my miles alone. Whenever I get the opportunity I point my miles to American Airlines, my airline of choice.
4. Get a credit card that gives you miles. I personally chose a credit card that gives me miles on most major airlines. Some cards give you points versus miles and typically those don’t give you the most bang for your buck in my calculations. Typically the cards that give miles 1:1 or better for every dollar spent have an annual fee, but that’s ok with me. It’s always worked out in my favor.
5. Always carry food with you. I’m not suggesting you act like my mother and carry an entire chicken or a salami, but I always carry some snacks. Whether it’s a granola bar, a bag of nuts or some junk food, there’s always a few snacks in my bag. My mother was right, sometimes you get stuck on a runway, in the airport or you just get hungry on a long flight. Starving yourself isn’t good especially when traveling.
6. If you’re flight is canceled or you’re going to miss your connection I suggest calling the airline on your cell phone versus standing in line with everyone else to face that poor unfortunate counter attendant that is getting an earful from upset passengers.
7. On that note, be nice and smile. Even if you’re having a horrendous trip or are stressed to your breaking point, I suggest you be nice if you want to get anything from anybody. Want to rebook a canceled flight? Don’t scream at the unfortunate soul behind the counter; talk to them nicely and they’ll likely do their best to help you out.
8. If you’re a frequent traveler, need a tax deduction or can get your company to splurge for you, a membership to an airline club can make your travel significantly better. Private bathrooms/showers, quiet secluded areas, free food and drink plus a whole list of other benefits make club membership one of a traveler’s best friends.

One friend of mine always flies with a scarf that he pulls up over his mouth and nose when he sleeps on planes. He claims he doesn’t get sick from flying because of this. Do you have any tips or tricks you can share with us? What do you know that others may not? Please share on Facebook or Twitter.

In the spirit of giving… The first 3 people to post to our Facebook page a picture of a “special” Father’s Day present from this year or any other will get $10 off their next bill. Additionally anyone who shares (to our Facebook page) a fun story about about being a Phone.com customer and running their small business will get a free phone number. (This will run until this coming Wednesday)

Let’s see those “wonderful” Father’s Day presents and hear some stories! Happy Father’s Day.

1. Control Center. Apple finally allows you to switch on and off wifi, bluetooth, airplane mode and a few other settings, set the brightness of your screen, play music, activate AirDrop, Airplay and turn a bunch of other commonly used features… including an all new flashlight.

2. AirDrop. One of my favorite additions, you can now transfer files like pictures or contact info wirelessly and over a peer to peer wifi network. No wireless router needed. Yes it’s like Samsung’s SBeam but with no need to touch devices.

3. Folders. Folders aren’t new but now there’s no limit to the number of apps you can keep in a folder, you can have page after page of apps in them. What’s really nice is the ability to finally put Newsstand into a folder.

4. The camera is all new. It includes filters, the ability to shoot square pics and filters like in Instagram. I threw this one in because my wife really likes it.

5. New security. iPhones are stolen daily and once they’re gone they’re just gone. You can use Find iPhone to lock or wipe your phone but that’s about it. If someone formats it they’re able to use it, until now. With iOS 7 once your iPhone is locked or wiped it can’t be used until you put your password in. So it’s useless to a thief in turn hopefully cutting down on iPhone theft.

For starters, connectivity is a huge issue and it shouldn’t be.  I travel a bit, more then some and less then others, working on an airplane has become part of my routine on many flights.  I don’t mind not having internet connectivity, what I can’t stand are apps like Google Drive who’s documents/spreadsheets can’t be edited unless you have connectivity.  I almost exclusively fly American Airlines and many of their planes do not have wifi.  I should be able to survive a few hours or more without being connected so I shouldn’t need wifi to use a word processor.  

Second, I’m admittedly a bad speller.  I need spell check when I write like I need food to survive, it’s a necessity.  Now Quickoffice Pro does have spell check but Google Drive and Evernote do not, at least when using an external bluetooth keyboard which is how I do nearly all of my word processing on the iPad.

Lastly is hyperlinking, it’s part of blogging.  I link back to my blog, the Phone.com blog and to any sites I reference in my writing.  Sadly Quickoffice Pro doesn’t support hyperlinking as far as I’ve been able to tell, neither does Google Drive (funny how it keeps popping up lacking integral features).

I haven’t found what I’m looking for yet, I’m considering buying Polaris and/or Apple’s word processor Pages.  I don’t mind paying for apps but I’ve spent money on apps that I thought had features and come to find out they don’t and I’m out money.  

So what do you use?  What do you suggest? My 3 big needs are that it works without internet access, there’s spell check and I can hyperlink texts.  One other thing I’d like is the ability to save to DropBox if possible, not just Apple’s iCloud (if I were using Pages).  Tell me on Facebook or Twitter.

I suspect that our readers have lots of suggestion and I’d love to include some of them in the post.  I’d like anything from put your keys, wallet, cell phone and watch into your carry on when you pass through security so you don’t have to put them in a bin to tricks getting upgraded to a better class of seats or an exit row.  I’ll include some of my own as well.  

Please post them on our Facebook or Twitter pages, alternatively you can email them over Jeb@Phone.com.  I hope to get a fair number of tips and I’ll give credit to everyone unless you ask to be anonymous, I’ll respect your wishes.

As I prepare to leave for a short trip to Denver I was thinking, I have more calls this week than usual and I’m really going to miss my desktop IP phone. The convenience of the great speaker phone and clarity with the HD voice is hard to beat. The thing is I have a robust work phone in my pocket and I take with me everywhere I go.

I’m talking about my cell phones. Remember back in the day when cell phone companies advertised that digital calls and networks had great sound quality? I do and they were and still are right. I make calls on both my Android and iPhone all the time utilizing our mobile apps, both over WiFi and 4G and the sound quality is great plus I can make my calls seamlessly. I’ve been known to use hotel wifi but it’s a rare occasion, 4G calls have always been fine and in all honesty 3G calls are usually reasonable if you get a solid signal.

What I’m saying is don’t fret if you have to make or take calls out of reach of your IP phone and office. We’ve got you covered and we’d like to think we do it in style. Check out our Phone.com mobile app offering and tell me (Jeb) how you use Phone.com out of the office on Twitter or Facebook.