This post is based on a presentation I gave at the May 2014 SEAL meeting.

Adobe Flash is an add-on for web browsers that enables them to display animated and interactive content, it is commonly used to display videos and animated advertisements. In recent years many sites have stopped using Flash and have moved to HTML 5 which does not need a browser plug-in. However there as still some high profiles sites which require Flash, good examples are TV catchup sites like the BBC iPlayer and 4oD.

Flash is regularly subject to security issues. While Adobe issues patches and Apple (and the other browser developers) aims to make its use as secure as possible, you may want to limit where you allow Flash to run. With many sites dropping the need for Flash, you probably only use a handful where it’s really required.

Here’s how Flash can be disabled in browsers and enabled only for the sites where it’s really needed. This improves performance on sites where Flash is used but not essential and reduces the risk if you happen to visit a site with malicious Flash content.

Safari

To disable Flash by default on web sites

1. In Safari, select Preferences from the Safari menu.
2. In the preferences window, select the Security tab. Next to Internet Plug-ins, click the Manage Website Settings button.
3. Make sure “Adobe Flash Player” is selected in the list on the left.
4. Set When visiting other websites to Ask.

Enabling Flash for a specific site

When you visit a website that uses Flash any Flash content will show the message “Flash blocked for this website”. To enable Flash for a particular site:

1. Click the “Flash bocked for this website” message.
2. A message stating “Do you want to trust the website…” appears, if you do want to enable Flash for this site, click Trust.

Changing settings for an existing site

Sites which you have configured to run Flash are listed in preferences. To remove a site’s configuration so you are asked again:

1. In Safari, select Preferences from the Safari menu.
2. In the preferences window, select the Security tab. Next to Internet Plug-ins, click the Manage Website Settings button.
3. Make sure “Adobe Flash Player” is selected in the list on the left.
4. Select the site you want to change from the list of sites.
5. Click the - (minus) button at the bottom of the list to remove the site.
   Alternatively you can set how Flash is handled directly for that site. To do this select the required option from the pop-up selector next to the site address.

Further details of this feature along with the definitions of the various options are available on Apple’s Safari: About Internet plug-in management page.

Firefox

To disable Flash by default on web sites

1. Select Add-Ons from the Tools menu.
2. Find “Shockwave Flash” in the list and set the pop-up selector next to it to “Ask to Activate”
   Firefox will block Flash and show an “Activate Adobe Flash” place-holder.

Enabling Flash for a specific site

1. Visit the site in question and click the “Activate Adobe Flash” place-holder where the Flash content should be.
2. In the “Allow <site> to run Adobe Flash” pop-up request, click Allow Now to run flash on the site until Firefox is closed or Allow and Remember to enable Flash on the site permanently.

Changing settings for an existing site

1. Visit the site in question in Firefox.
2. From the Tools menu, choose Page Info.
3. In the Page Info window, select the Permissions tab.
4. Under Activate Plugins, find Adobe Flash and choose the required option. Use Default will allow you to choose again next time if you have the Flash Plug-in set to “Ask to Activate”.

Chrome

To disable Flash by default on web sites

1. In Chrome, select Preferences from the Chrome menu.
2. Scroll to the bottom and click Show advanced settings.
3. Under Privacy, click Content settings.
4. Scroll down to Plug-ins and select Click to play.
   Chrome will block Flash and display a place-holder with a jigsaw piece icon. Click the icon to run that piece of Flash content.

Enabling Flash for a specific site

1. Visit the site in question. In the address bar, click the jigsaw piece icon with a red x on it.
2. Choose the Always allow plug-ins on <site> option and click Done.

Changing settings for an existing site

1. Visit the site in question. In the address bar, click the jigssaw piece icon with a red x on it.
2. Click the Manage plug-in blocking button.
3. In the Plug-in exceptions page that opens, you can configure the treatment of plugins on that site using the pop-up selector.
4. Alternatively, click the x to remove the site from the list and return it to the default setting (Click to play if that’s what you selected).
    

Robert gave a presenation about Podcasts which are ten years old this year. He covered what podcasts are, how to find podcasts you might find interesting and then how to organise and listen or watch. Some useful and interesting resources he mentioned are:

• Apple’s Podcast help page - has FAQs and tips for both podcast consumers and creators.
• iTunes Essentials: Podcasts - recommendations of podcasts in many categories, a good place to get started.
• Podcasting - The First Ten Years - a two-part BBC Radio 4 documentary marking the anniversary.
  DaveK talked about a situation he’d been shown where a web site hides the browser controls on your iPhone. During the meeting it was suggested that you can tap the title of the site (which is in a thin bar at the top) to reveal the controls. If that doesn’t work, and alternative fix is to access a link in another app which will open that site in Safari. With the site open you can access the controls and then close the problem tab. One way to create a link in another app is to enter one in a note in the Notes app.

Ben showed us the Joby GripTight, a neat and inexpensive mount that clips onto you your iPhone (it’s universal and will also fit the iPod Touch and other smartphone models) to give it a standard tripod mount.

The main topic in the news discussion was the very serious Heartbleed security bug which has affects many web sites and was revealed in the last week. The current advice is to change your passwords on affected sites when those sites have been patched to fix the problem (and not before). It’s also a good idea to be wary of e-mails advising you to change your password and only ever do so by visiting affected sites directly (don’t follow links in e-mails just in case they are fraudulent). Here are a couple of articles with useful tips and lists of affected sites:

• Heartbleed bug creates confusion on the Internet - from the BBC, this lists the status of most of the UK banks.
• The Heartbleed Hit List - from  Mashable, a listing of popular web sites and whether you should change your password on them.
   

At the March meeting we had a number of smaller demonstrations and presentations from SEAL members.

DavidK showed us a neat tip with the 1Password iOS app. The main use of 1Password is to simplify the storage and use of strong unique passwords for on-line accounts. The 1Password app includes a built-in private web browser and Dave showed how you can save a custom site URL which will open directly in the 1Password browser. To do this enter the URL (for example https://www.facebook.com) into a note in the iOS Notes application and then amend it so it starts with the letters “op”, for example ophttps://www.facebook.com. Now you can tap that link and it will open in the private 1Password browser (after 1Password has prompted you for your master password) and use your saved credentials.

Robert demonstrated the PowerMac emulator SheepShaver, this allows you to run the classic Mac OS (9.0.2 and earlier) on a modern Mac. This can be useful if you need to use older software or access old documents but don’t have an older working Mac.

DavidK also demoed Play to Cure: Genes in Space, an iOS game from the charity Cancer Research UK. In the game, the player’s actions of mapping their route  and then flying their spaceship actually help analyse real genetic data which is used in Cancer Research.

Ben brought along another classic Mac from his collection, this time a PowerBook 165c, the first Apple laptop with a colour screen.  Ben showed how much the design of current laptops (both PCs and Macs) owes to Apple’s early PowerBooks. Shrine of Apple have some excellent pictures of the PowerBook 165c on their site but note that the written specs on their page are incorrect at the time of writing.

In our news discussion we covered the month’s Apple news including:

• The release of the updated iOS 7.1.
• The new CarPlay feature of iOS which is being supported by car makers including Volvo, Ferrari and Mercedes-Benz.
• The major SSL vulnerability in iOS and Mac OS that was fixed by latest updates.

January the 24th marked 30 years since the Apple Macintosh’s original introduction by Steve Jobs at the Flint Center in Cupertino. To mark the occasion, at this meeting we looked back at the Mac’s history. Robert had put together a time line of the key events which we discussed and members recalled their early Mac experiences.

Some other interesting Mac history links:

• apple-history.com - Details of all Macs and an interesting company history.
• folklore.org - Fascinating anecdotes on the development of the Mac from the original team members.
• A gallery of Mac history - This includes photos of many of the Mac models Robert mentioned in his presentation.
  Ben, our resident Mac collector, brought along his Mac Classic (made from 1990 to 1992) to show us. This model shares the same all-in-one design as the original 1984 Mac 128K.

DavidB mentioned a couple of iOS apps he’s found recently:
QuizUp - A quiz app which lets you compete with friends and people from across the world.
SwiftKey Note - a note taking app with a special predictive keyboard designed to make note taking faster. Optionally syncs with EverNote.

In our news discussion we covered the month’s Apple news including:

• Mac and iOS device sales exceeding Windows PC sales in the Christmas quarter.
• Apple hiring several health and medical sensor experts.
• iWork for iCloud updated with new iOS 7-like design and improved collaborative features.

In this video, SEAL member DavidB explains the Frequent Locations feature of iOS 7 and shows you how to disable it if you wish.

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The January meeting included the SEAL Annual General Meeting. The committee was re-elected for another year, thanks to the committee members for standing. The AGM included reports from the Chairman and Treasurer and a useful discussion of plans for the coming year.

We watched and discussed the iOS 7 tip videos on In-App Purchases and Location Services that DavidB has recently made. DavidK gave us a demo of the iOS game BADLAND which was picked as one of Apple’s Best of iTunes 2013.

Apple’s Best of iTunes doesn’t cover the Mac App Store. The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) have a long list of best Mac Apps of 2013 so if you’re looking for Mac Apps that might be worth a gander.

Robert then demonstrated some of the changes to Notifications in OS X Mavericks including some features that are less obvious like notifications from web sites, selectable “snooze” time for calendar and reminder alerts (click and hold the Snooze button) and the configurable do-not-disturb period. A complete list of new Mavericks features (including Notifications and much more) can be found on Apple’s See everything the new OS X can do page.

We also had a brief news discussion, this included:

• The first new Mac Pros are arriving with customers, various environmental specifications (PDF) and a detailed tear-down have been published.
• Face Time Audio may be coming to the Mac in the next update to Mavericks.
• The Mac OS X 10.9.1 update has been released including fixes for the reported problems with Mail.app and GMail.

In this video, SEAL member DavidB explains how to control Location Services on iOS 7. This allows you to disable Location Services when it’s not required, saving battery and to control which applications are allowed to access your location.

http://youtu.be/jxKXm-esJAs

There are occasionally stories in the media about children spending large amounts on iOS In-App purchases without their parent’s knowledge. SEAL member DavidB has created a video explaining how to use iOS 7’s Restrictions feature to disable In-App purchases if you’re giving an iOS device to a child.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xuguH5YbOh0

At our last meeting of 2013 everyone brought along Christmas food to share. We had an Apple Quiz, Ben got the most questions right, impressing everyone with his knowledge of past and recent Apple history.

During our show and tell segment, DavidK demonstrated the recently released iOS game Clumsy Ninja which features an impressively animated ninja character to interact with. The game is free with optional in-app purchases.

Ben brought along two original Clamshell iBook Macs (one in Tangerine and the other in Blueberry) from his Apple collection and told us about the history of these interesting machines and about the current collector’s market for them.

The meeting also included a discussion of the month’s Apple news including:

• Apple deploying iBeacon technology at US stores.
• The results of the one-off product (RED) auction which featured products designed by Jony Ive and Marc Newson.
• Western Digital updates the SmartWare software supplied with their external hard drives to fix problems with Mavericks.
  We’d like to take this opportunity to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. If you haven’t been to one of out meetings before, why not make a resolution to visit us in 2014!

At the November meeting we explored the new features of Mac OS X 10.9 Mavericks (a free upgrade available now from the Mac App Store for everyone with Mac OS X 10.6 or later and compatible hardware) and helped members decide whether they should upgrade. Some of the features demonstrated were:

• Tabs in the Finder making it easy to switch between folders and allowing the Finder to be used effectively in full-screen mode.

• Tags, a new way of organising files in the Finder which also extends to files stored in iCloud.

• Enhanced dictation which enables long-form dictation and doesn’t require an Internet connection.

• Improved support for multiple displays allowing multiple full-screen applications to be displayed and the menu bar and dock to appear on any display.
  The meeting also included a discussion of the month’s Apple news including:

• The announcement of the iPad Air and iPad mini with Retina Display.

• Apple offering iLife and iWork free with new Macs and iOS devices and free updates to current owners of eligible earlier versions.

• We highlighted to members that hard drive maker WD have warned that some of the utilities included with their external drives can cause data loss on Mavericks.