Category: Useful

  • Stop paying for subscriptions

    Stop paying for subscriptions

    Do you remember the time when the internet was a free place? Information was there, and you just needed to use AltaVista or Yahoo to find it. There was Limewire, DC++ or Napster. There were free MP3s floating around the internet. There was MySpace!


    The programmes that we were using on the PC were “free” or almost free. At least there was no monthly subscription. Pay once, use it forever.


    But when MySpace disappeared and YouTube appeared, that’s when things started changing. Companies started charging for extra things and extra services. For example, Microsoft Excel was (and still is) a program that you can buy once. But fewer people buy it nowadays as a separate software. Most people use it as part of the Office suite that comes with Microsoft 365. AutoCAD, a very well-known CAD software, started the software-as-a-service charging model, without offering much of a service. What you would buy once and use forever, now became a quite expensive monthly subscription. And worth mentioning, “Photoshop” – the pioneering software for photo editing, the one and only go-to program that photographers use to edit their photos – went from a one-off program to a monthly subscription software. Music became the same way. Movies too.


    But things haven’t changed completely. There are still plenty and pretty good alternatives to the “I want you to pay us every month” model that the big players have adopted.


    LibreOffice: The open-source (and free) alternative to Microsoft Office. With this one, you can replace MS-Word, Excel, and many more. Find it here: https://www.libreoffice.org/

    Linux (Ubuntu): Microsoft Windows comes pre-installed on each laptop. But…their price is already included in the new laptop’s price tag. There are laptops out there without a pre-installed operating system that are significantly cheaper than the ones that have an OS installed. What you have to do is install a Linux distro such as Ubuntu, which is 100% free and easy to use. Especially if the computer is going to be used for online work, then why bother spending hundreds of pounds on an OS? Find it here: https://ubuntu.com/

    Affinity Photo/Designer: Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator are two well-known programs that photographers and designers use. About 10 years ago, they jumped to the subscription boat, and they are quite expensive, especially if you are not a professional designer/photographer. Thankfully, there are a dozen alternatives out there that aren’t following the monthly subscription model, and they are as good as Adobe’s programs (or even better). I am using Affinity’s Photo and Designer to do creative work, and I can say I am impressed. They work amazingly well on almost all platforms, even on iPad. Affinity sells them as a one-off payment/use forever product, and you can either buy them separately or as a package for all platforms (Windows, macOS, and iPadOS) at around £100. Get them here: https://affinity.serif.com/en-gb/


    ProgeCAD: The best AutoCAD alternative in the whole market. That’s it. It is a 100% AutoCAD clone (but the design engine is completely different), and it can do whatever a drafter that uses AutoCAD needs. I cannot recommend it enough! I really love this program. And not only this, it can read AutoLISP scripts that you might have! Find it at: https://www.progesoft.com/


    Stremio: An alternative to Netflix. The media center allows you to watch movies, series, YouTube channels instantly. You can watch in HD, with subtitles, and easily cast any file to TV through DLNA, Chromecast, or AppleTV! CAUTION: As it allows the user to use add-ons that have access to torrents, I would use it with a VPN, as this is considered piracy, which of course I condemn.


    Cloud storage: You can also set up your own online storage server and say goodbye to the expensive cloud storage from iDrive, Google Drive, Dropbox, etc. Although you have to buy and set up your own small file server, there are so many easy-to-use solutions out there that are user-friendly and can be set up in less than half an hour. I would recommend Synology (https://www.synology.com/en-uk) or Western Digital (https://www.westerndigital.com/solutions/network-attached-storage) because of their brands.


    One software at the time! Regain your freedom from the subscription model and control of your digital life. The options are hundreds.

  • DIY Weekend: resurrecting a dead JBL Go Bluetooth speaker

    DIY Weekend: resurrecting a dead JBL Go Bluetooth speaker

    I had this JBL Go speaker laying around and haven’t touched it since I don’t know when.

    I generally like JBL as the sound quality is amazing and the price is way lower than some super high end brands (like BOSE).

    The only problem with this Bluetooth speaker, and generally with the Bluetooth speakers is that the battery is not easily accessible. This means that when the battery is worn off, then you must replace the whole speaker and buy a new one.

    But, if you want to experiment a little bit and you are not afraid to use a soldering kit, then with less than £10 you can give a new life to your speaker.

    The process is straight forward.

    First you remove the front mesh and reveal the speaker and the screw holes.

    Secondly, you unscrew the screw holes (T6 screwdriver to remove the four 9 mm screws).

    The motherboard is revealed. Unmount the speaker cable.

    The motherboard has only 1 screw. Unscrew it.

    The battery can be seen. It is glued on the case. Inside the battery there is a small “charging circuit” which allows the electricity to pass on the opposite way, from the cable to the battery so it can be charger. Remove the battery cover so this circuit can be revealed. Remove the old battery from it but let all the other cabling as it is.

    Solder 2 cables on the new battery. Red is the positive, Black is the negative.

    Connect the Black with the Negative pole on the charging circuit and the Red with the Positive and check if everything works (you don’t need the speaker to be connected, just press the TURN ON button and the blue led should light on.

    Then solder the cables. (not the best soldering in the world…)

    Start reassembling everything back. Put on the screws, mount the speaker and that’s it! The speaker is alive!

    Disclaimer: Use tape to hide all the naked cables so they won’t touch each other and will not create a short circuit.

    Have in mind, the battery that I used has a way bigger capacity that the previous one but there is a catch. It is thicker and I cannot close the speaker completely. So before buying a new battery make sure that the speaker and the battery fit inside the speaker box.

    The battery I used is a rechargable one for an old NOKIA 3310 phone with 3.6V and 1000mAh (£7.99 from Amazon).

  • Digitalisation of the construction industry

    Digitalisation of the construction industry

    We are living in the digital age. Everything nowadays is an app and the phones we have in our pockets are multiple times faster than the processor used to get the man to the moon. And yet, thousands of small/medium businesses haven’t jumped on the digital boat. Especially in the construction sector, pen and paper is still the king, even though COVID-19 gave a boost towards digital practices.

    There are several benefits into going digital but also there are some factors that for companies, especially small, are acting as blockers to the adoption. The negative factors include: the cost, effort and the changes needed. It is also worth mentioning that there is a shortage of skilled people that are equipped with the right digital capabilities to use new technologies.

    On the other hand, the benefits are countless. Just to mention a few:

    • Efficiency improvement: project management, project scheduling and communications can become more efficient, faster and reduce the project completion time.
    • Cost reduction: using software like BIM or CAD can help to avoid potential problems in the design, save costs on paperwork, printing and record keeping.
    • Better communication: Digital tools can enable better communication and collaboration among team members, subcontractors, and clients, leading to fewer misunderstandings and improved decision making.
    • Accuracy in data: Data are easier to access using specific software. Tools like Microsoft Excel can help with data analysis and keeping data up to date.
    • Remote working: The pandemic of 2019 showed that remote collaboration is achievable and, in many cases, can lead to even greater productivity between the team members, even if they are in different locations (even countries). This also leads to employee talented employees that would be difficult or impossible to employee before.
    • Reduced waste: Going digital can contribute to a reduced carbon footprint by omitting paperwork and physical folders and be replaced with digital storage and files.

    Simple digital tools and devices to make you become fully digital:

    • Storage Server

    First and foremost, going digital means you must have somewhere to store your files. Like old time folders and drawers, a server serves the same purpose. Of course, it takes way less space and money. There are 2 different ways to store files though. One is to hire cloud space or use services like DropBox, OneDrive etc. This is a solution that doesn’t require a physical server, but it adds on your monthly budget as it requires a subscription. The other solution is to buy a server.

    Server here, doesn’t mean the big chunky rack that will occupy a whole room. It is just a small device, or a computer (or in some cases a very small rack) that is 24/7 online. All of the office computers are connected to it and the files are accessible from all the connected devices that can see it as an additional Hard Drive.

    You can also add an additional remote server (somewhere far away from the first one, in another building probably) that will have the purpose of a backup machine. In case of a disaster there will be another exact copy of all your files somewhere.

    There are quite a few advantages using a server/cloud storage for your business:

    • There is a centralised file storage that can make it easier for employees to access the files they need.
    • It facilitates the collaboration between employees. Multiple employees can work on the same files from different locations.
    • It gives employees remote access to the files. Imagine being at the construction site and needing access to some drawings. You open a tablet, you go through the server, you open the drawings and voila! No need to carry any printed drawings with you.
    • It provides access to very old files that otherwise would be submerged under a pile of folders into a basement. You remember this old project back in 2018 near Exeter? You need to find your sign-off sheets from back then? No problem. Go through your server files and they will be there.
    • Microsoft Excel

    Excel is one of my favourite tools. Maybe it is my favourite, I don’t know. The one thing I know is that Excel has saved me thousands of working hours. It has helped me in calculations, in estimations, in tender preparation, in exporting hundreds of PDF files automatically. It is THE TOOL. It is a programming language wrapped around an understandable interface with understandable and easy commands.

    Excel can be helpful to construction companies in many ways. It can create and manage budgets, track expenses, create schedules, track progress, and identify potential problems, track inventory levels, order supplies and costs.

    It is used to create estimates for projects, track changes to estimates, and generate reports.

    It can be used to create and store documents, such as contracts, and invoices.

    I really don’t know why someone wouldn’t use it.

    If you are already using it check an article I have written back in 2019 regarding Excel commands that will make your life easier.

    • iPads (with a pen)

    When I bought my first iPad I wondered: “Why I haven’t bought one earlier?”. Yes, that was my reaction. I have written my review on my blog where you can read more about it. But how can it be used in the construction sector?

    As we are turning more of our processes into digital, the replacement of the physical paper is inevitable. We need something to depict the files we are using though. The mobile phone screens are too small. A laptop is too heavy. What a better replacement than an iPad? It has a large enough quality screen that can display drawings, photos and PDFs but it is not heavy and can be carried around. Add a digital pen to it and you have a killer combination for signing files, reading files and creating new ones. Give it access to your office server and you have your whole desk in a 10-inch computer machine!

    • AutoCAD

    AutoCAD is my second love (or first). I use it in combination with Excel in my everyday working tasks anyway. I could not live without it and despite that the software is around 40+ years, it is still irreplaceable.

    I use AutoCAD in all the take-offs I have to make in order to estimate budgets or quantities.

    Do you want to measure the volume of an excavation? AutoCAD is for you.

    Do you want to create a marked up drawing? AutoCAD will do this.

    Do you want to create a tender for a housing project? AutoCAD will help you with this as well.

    Do you want to draft a drawing of how your house’s front elevation will look like? AutoCAD…

    It is quite expensive though but there are lots of alternatives or clones out in the market.

    One of them is ProgeCAD. I discovered it in 2018 and I haven’t stopped using it since then.

    I wrote about my initial impressions on my personal block and you can read it here.

    • PDF Expert

    PDF Expert is a PDF editing app for iPhone, iPad, and Mac. It allows users to read, annotate, edit, and sign PDFs. PDF Expert also offers features such as OCR, form filling, and password protection. In my opinion is the best PDF tool on the app store but unfortunately it is only available for Apple devices.

    There are two reasons I like this app. First of all, it allows the user to annotate anywhere on a file. It means that you don’t have to use specific software to sign a document or to keep some notes on the PDFs. The second reason is that it has direct access to a WebDAV address. If you are using a server then it probably has the ability to provide access using various protocols (like FTP ie). One of them is WebDAV. I haven’t seen any other PDF tool using WebDAV protocol to be honest!

    • Project Managing tools (Trello etc)

    Project management tools are software applications that help project managers to plan, track, and manage projects.

    They can be used to improve the efficiency, productivity and profitability. They also help to improve the communication and the scheduling between different employees working on the same project.

    The most widely used software for Project Management are:

    • Microsoft Project: Microsoft Project is a popular project management tool that is used by businesses of all sizes. It offers a wide range of features, including scheduling, budgeting, and communication.
    • Trello: Trello is a visual project management tool that uses boards, lists, and cards to organize tasks. It is a popular choice for teams that need to collaborate on projects.
    • Monday.com: Monday.com is a flexible project management tool that can be customized to meet the specific needs of the organization. It offers a variety of features, including task management, scheduling, and reporting.
    • Wrike: Wrike is a cloud-based project management tool that is easy to use and affordable. It offers a variety of features, including task management, file sharing, and collaboration.

    I personally prefer using Trello and for smaller projects I also like KanbanFlow.

    • Communication apps

    Going digital means the meeting you would do face to face can be done online. Messages can be sent and received on various devices and files can be transmitted instantly with a press of a button.

    There are several communication apps on the market that can serve various needs.

    For normal messaging there are the classic apps like WhatApp, Signal, Viber etc.

    During the COVID-19 pandemic there was the boom of the online meeting apps. The usage of software like Zoom and Team skyrocketed.

    So which ones are the most popular?

    • Microsoft Teams: Microsoft Teams is a cloud-based collaboration platform that includes features for chat, video conferencing and file sharing. It is a popular choice for businesses of all sizes.
    • Zoom: Does the same as Microsoft Teams.
    • Google Workspace: Google Workspace is a suite of cloud-based productivity tools that includes Gmail, Docs, Sheets, Slides, and Calendar. It also offers features for chat, video conferencing, and file sharing. Google Workspace is a popular choice for businesses that need to collaborate on documents and spreadsheets.
    • Slack: Slack is a popular team messaging platform that allows real-time communication through channels, direct messaging, and integrations with various apps and services.

    I personally prefer Microsoft Teams. Not because is the best programme though, but because it is part of the Office365 suite.

    • Microsoft 365 Suite

    I assume that one way or another everyone uses some parts of the Microsoft 365 suite in their everyday work. Either, you login to your email account through Outlook, or you pay a monthly subscription for Excel then you are probably have access to the whole software package.

    The package includes so many programmes that can help you with productivity and digitalisation. Already mentioned, Teams and Excel are the ones that will help you a lot regarding productivity and admittedly, Outlook is a very nice email client.

    Other software included is the Microsoft Word (not much to explain here), Sharepoint, which can serve as a centralised document management and collaboration platform used for storing documents and allowing others to have access to them or create project specific sites and it also includes OneDrive which is cloud based storage.

    Overall, Microsoft 365 can improve the workflow of a business by improving collaboration, communication, file sharing and flexibility. It is definitely a must have.

    • Custom apps or specific apps for the sector

    Beside the above list, construction sector can benefit from various bespoke/sector specific apps.

    There are numerous platforms on the market that the user can build mobile/web apps with no code or low code (non or very little coding where the user uses a visual interface to build the apps by drag-n-drop).

    The most known are:

    The downside of those solutions is that the learning curve is quite steep and the monthly/yearly cost to use the platforms might be too high. The benefits of course are huge as you can build an app, that is not on the marker, as you want and make it do exactly what would help your workflow.

    On the contrary you can always hire an agency to code an application with normal code and databases that will run on a server. This is an even more costly solution but at the end you can have your own 100% bespoke app that can even scale.

    Finally, there are a handful of construction software on the market that might fit any purpose. To mention a few: COINS: an all-in-one ERP+ system that connects teams, devices, and all business processes on a single platform, On-screen Takeoff: a software that offers tools for estimating, managing bids and having project visibility, Bluebeam: a software application that allows users to markup, takeoff, organize, and collaborate with PDF files.

    Verdict

    The potential benefits in terms of efficiency, cost savings, communication, and environmental impact are undeniable. The digital era is here, and the construction sector should grab the opportunity to digitalise procedures in order to become more efficient and flexible. The benefits of going digital are numerous and compelling.

  • You have been scammed

    You have been scammed

    You receive an email. It is from someone that you have exchanged some emails with, someone you know or someone that someone you know knows. It is an offer for a new project to check and price. You think “nice”! You press on the link, you go to a page that says “Microsoft OneDrive” or “Office 365”. It says, “to download the files please sign in”. You put your Office 365/Outlook password and you press download. You download something but you get a message, “Password Incorrect”. You try 2-3 times and then you give up. Or something is downloaded, you try to open it, and it says: “corrupted file”.

    You contact the sender (if it happens to know them) and ask what file they have sent. They reply: “I haven’t sent any file. What email are you talking about?”. You explain but then you start realising…

    You have been scammed

    Every month I might receive 5-6 emails like the one in the picture below (blurred the sender as it was a real person that had their email compromised). At first glance, it seems a legit email. It’s coming from a legit account after all. But if you have received lots of them then you know the sender’s account has been compromised and the email is not coming from the sender.

    If you open the link, you will be redirected to a new page. You might be tricked that this is a legit OneDrive or SharePoint (occasionally) web page. It prompts you to put you’re your Office/Outlook account credentials to download the file.

    But take a closer look. The URL is not pointing to any OneDrive, SharePoint address (or any other known file sharing provider). What it is, is a copy of those pages and what it does is that: It collects your credentials.

    Why it is very risky? Because the scammer has access to your email account. Your email account might have stored information that you don’t want to share, like personal emails, bank account access info, passwords, phone numbers etc.

    What to do when you realise that you have been scammed? Change your password immediately and activate the two-factor authentication. Also, it would be nice if you could let the sender know that they sent a phishing email and that their account has been compromised.

    How you can be protected from those phishing emails and how to recognise them?

    First of all, the email looks a bit off. The text format is not constant, the fonts might be smaller of different between parts of the email.

    It might be completely ok though. So secondly, you might press the link. This will lead you to a page that looks like the official Outlook, OneDrive, Dropbox etc pages. But the URL does not match. If you check the URL it will be something that you won’t understand or a page that is NOT the official page but probably will include the official name somewhere. Like: onedrivedownload.awebsite.com or anotherwsbsite.com/AJ34YPW09/dropbox. Those kinds of URLs are not official.

    The official URLs would be something like outlook.com/whatever or dropbox.com/whatever. Thirdly, whoever wants to share files with you will use some services like WeTransfer, or the ones mentioned that WILL NEVER ASK ANY CREDENTIALS to download files. You will just receive a link, you will press it and the files will start downloading. Finally, to protect yourself from a phishing attack of this kind, it is better to use two-factor authentication. With this, even if you get scammed, the scammer cannot use your credentials to access your accounts because you will also have to put a code that you will receive with an SMS (the majority of the times) in a 2step process, besides your credentials.

    Companies can also train their staff on cyber security. There are numerous courses out there that can be found if you google the term: “cyber security awareness training for companies”. It is interesting though that the UK Government has a training course portal as well, although it is not updated since 2019. You can find the page here.

    One Extra Step – Making fun of the scammers

    There are some more things you can do from here. One of those is to destroy the scammer’s database.

    The concept is simple. The scammer’s page doesn’t have any security to check if you send too many requests to their endpoints. It is just a form to collect credentials that you put. So, one way to destroy their database is to inject 1000s of fake emails and passwords that look like real ones. This way, even if you have inserted real credentials it will be very difficult for them to recognise and check which ones are fake and which real. Of course, it is difficult and takes time to do it manually one by one.

    For this reason, I created a script in Python (with the help of ChatGPT) that will do this job for me. If you are interested in this project take a look here!

  • Save And Close All Open AutoCAD Drawings

    Save And Close All Open AutoCAD Drawings

    Recently, I found myself having 10-15 AutoCAD drawings open at the same time and wanted to close them all.

    An easy way to do it is with two commands.

    To do so, first you type SAVEALL at AutoCAD’s command line and all the open documents are saved. Secondly, the CLOSEALL command follows that will close all the open drawings.

    But… I wanted something more automated. So I wrote a small script that combines those two commands into one that will automatically save and close all the drawings.

    Here’s the script:

    (defun c:SCALL ()
      (command "SAVEALL")
      (command "CLOSEALL")
      (princ)
    )

    That’s all. The file is named SCALL.lsp and the command to run it is also “scall” typed at the command line of AutoCAD.

    If you want to know how to load an AutoLISP script in AutoCAD you can read this small article that teaches you step by step what you should do.