West Florida Components

Google has released a great new feature for mobile users – Handwrite. It takes just a few seconds to enable this feature on your mobile phone or tablet. Once enabled, using the tip of your finger or a stylus, you can handwrite the term you are searching anywhere on the Google home page. Even with pretty sloppy handwriting, Google’s Handwrite is impressive at recognizing which letters you are handwriting on the search page. For most smart phones, this gives you three options to submit a Google search: type, voice entry or handwrite!

Here’s how to turn this feature on:
Go to the www.google.com homepage (mobile version). Scroll down to the bottom of the page and tap ‘Settings’. On the ‘Settings’ page, choose “enable” in the “Handwrite” section. Go back to your Google homepage and refresh the page – and now you can start writing your search term anywhere on the page. TIP: If you don’t have cookies enabled, you should turn that functionality on first in your settings as that is required in order for Handwrite to properly function.

Handwrite is available in 27 languages for iOS 5 (+), Android 2.3 (+) phones, and Android 4 (+) tablets (on Android devices, Handwrite works best using Chrome).

If you want to stop the Handwrite feature, simply tap in the search box. You can re-enable Handwrite at any time by tapping the cursive ‘g’ in the bottom of the Google home page screen.

This is an amazingly handy little light – thin enough to use on your house key or car key. Think of it as a stick-on LED! The Thumb-Lite’s compact design makes it easy to turn anything into a flashlight. Whether you use it for unlocking a car door or finding something dropped in the dark, the Thumb-lite is a convenient way to provide extra light when needed.

What makes this stand out from the other tiny LED lights is that the Thumb-lite can be used effortlessly with one hand. Pressing the button requires NO EXTRA EFFORT. The standard amount of pressure needed to turn the key is more than enough to turn the light on. This mini LED flashlight was designed to be used the way a person naturally grips an object. The Thumb-lite is easily activated and shines light in the direction the object is pointing. No tools or assembly are required. Just pull off the adhesive protector and stick it on a key or other object – it’s that easy. Because of it’s small size and advanced adhesive, Thumb-lite sticks to most size keys.

The light is very small but it’s just enough to be helpful in finding things in the dark. We’ve used them on our TV remote controls (ever try to find the right buttons on your remote in the dark?), our power tools, inside our purses and even attached them to our cell phones. We can think of dozens of uses for these mini LED flashlights. How about you?

We are often asked about the difference between the two different types of motor capacitors: motor run and motor start. Here are the basic differences between the two:

Motor Start Capacitors
The primary purpose of a motor start capacitor is to briefly increase the motor starting torque as well as to allow a motor to be cycled on and off very quickly. It operates in the circuit by staying active long enough to allow the motor to be brought to 3/4 of it’s full capacity. It is removed at that point by a switch in the circuit. You will find that the voltage rating is often one of these four: 125VAC, 165VAC, 250VAC, and 330VAC.

Motor Run Capacitors
Motor run capacitors will then operate after the circuit is started. Using a motor run capacitor will run the motor with greater efficiency. Motor run capacitors are designed for continuous duty. They are energized while the motor is in operation. You will often find motor run capacitors with a voltage rating of 370VAC or 440VAC with a capacitance of 1.5uF – 100uF. Typically, the construction material is polypropylene film.

Operational information
Electric motors that are single phase require a capacitor for a second-phase winding. If you use the wrong motor run capacitor, the rotor may hesitate due to an uneven magnetic field. The hesitation may result in performance issues such as a noisy or overheated motor, increased energy consumption and general decreased performance.

Faulty motor capacitors
You can sometimes spot a faulty motor run capacitor by it’s swollen appearance – or it may have blown and become leaky. Of course, these capacitors should be carefully replaced. In addition to an outright capacitor failure, the capacitance may become reduced over time. Capacitors that are operating with a decreased capacitance may create performance issues. Again, these capacitors should be carefully replaced.

We love finding products that make great use of solar electricity and our electronic components. How about a solar powered LED light in a mason jar? Perfect for your backyard porch or for mood lighting at a party – or even as a night light in your bathroom, bedroom or kitchen!

The ones we found at MyGrillfriend.com give you a choice – it can be a soft deep orange colored light (referred to as a ‘sun jar’) or a beautiful shade of blue (called a ‘moon jar’) just by flipping a switch. The solar panel inside the jar collects the sun’s rays during the day, and automatically turns on when the lights go down. So easy to use and the LEDS will burn for years! Can I just tell you how much we love this product?!

Of course we had to take our Sun & Moon light apart to see how they made it. Nestled inside the neck of the jar is a highly efficient solar cell which is attached to a rechargeable battery and two low power LEDS – one blue and one orange. On the bottom of the insert is a diffuser which spreads the light throughout the frosted glass container. The switch, which is located on the solar cell, can be switched to blue, orange or even ‘off’ for conserving more energy. Go get one – or two – or ten! They are great!

In an effort to increase personalized service, British Airways has introduced the ‘Know Me’ program which give airlines staff members the authority and the tools to search online for passenger information.

Using iPads, staff members search through a list of that day’s passenger names for images on Google so that they can recognize them as they enter the airport or the plane. Their name is then used by the employees so that they are greeted and recognized personally. In addition to using the iPads to search for images, the staff can search for other information about the customer including their travel history and any past complaints.

British Airways maintains that their goal is to deal with customer complaints more effectively. As reported in the Telegraph, the British Airways program must comply with UK privacy laws. Assuming the program does comply with privacy laws, the question is do we think British Airways employees should be googling their passengers in an effort to provide better customer service? Is this comforting to think that they care to learn about us or just a tad creepy?

Whether you have an iPhone, Android or any other phone with a camera, here are our top 3 tips for getting better pictures with every shot.

1 – Composition:
Even with an entry level camera phone, remember the basic rules of composition when taking cell phone pictures. The rules of thirds is important: don’t place the subject of your photo in the middle of the frame. Place your subject in about 1/3 of the way into the frame. Also, if you are photographing people, line up your shot so that their eyes are about 1/3 from the top of the frame.

Another tip for composing great photos is to declutter your background. Taking a picture of your new car? Be sure your garbage can is put away. Compose your backgrounds to tell a story. A day at the beach can be told in pictures with the sun, sand and surf behind your subject. If you can, change your perspective – always shooting from a standing position will never get you the best angle for the best possible picture.

2- Blurry pictures:
The most common problem with digital pictures is that the camera is not held steady which often produces a blurry pic. Brace your arm on a table or against a wall. If there is no table or wall in site, tighten your arms against your body and hold your breath as you take the photo. Release your breath as you take the photo.

3 – Lighting:
Poor lighting can produce blurry pictures, poor color and shadows. Whether you have a flash or not on your camera phone, be sure to compose your pictures to get the best light possible. Stay away from bright sunlight – that will create pictures with harsh shadows. Instead, compose your pictures in the shade. While this will result in a darker photo, you will have a more even tone without the harsh shadows caused by direct sunlight.

If you are indoors, try to keep curtains open and the lights on – but keep your subject from being right under bright lights. It is better if the light is all around the room rather than right over your subject.

With these tips and some practice, you will be able to take great photos on your camera phone.