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30 FOUR SEASONS BREEZE | JANUARY 2023 The day my wife said "Give me a remote, forget about the app." OK, if you've followed me for a while, Martha saying "no" to an app isn't exactly news. But it does illustrate a point – just because an app exists for a function, that doesn't mean that's the best way to perform that function. (Wow, three "thats" in one short sentence. Time for a writing refresher course.) We were shopping for a new bed last summer. Whether you're in the market for a bed or not, you can't help but notice that there are dozens of ways to buy a bed. There are stores that sell only beds and stores that sell beds as one of many items for the home. You can buy a bed online without even trying it. If after you receive it you find you don't like it, you can get your money back. We preferred to try before we bought so we went to several stores that sold only beds. OK, it's time to admit my bias. I prefer Sleep Number beds. When I bought my first one, I thought I liked a firm mattress and set the bed to 80. I subsequently found I didn't like a firm setting and ended up with a setting of 45. So, I like that ability to adjust my bed from time to time. But Martha was more open-minded, and we tried many different beds. The bed we ended up with has certain adjustable parameters; we were told there's a convenient app for making those adjustments. Well, neither of us sleeps with our phone nearby. We prefer not to be disturbed with the seemingly endless rings, dings, and vibes our phones make. (Emergency calls will be answered on our house phone.) (By the way, calling a house phone a landline is a misnomer. In Four Seasons, our phone lines are digital and will go out when our internet goes out.) So, the idea that we have to fire up our phones to make an adjustment for our beds was not attractive. Fortunately, we could get a remote control for that function. And that isn't the only case where a phone app is not the best way to do something. I've mentioned that our own dwellingLIVE gate entry system is better addressed on a computer than on a phone. And while it's easier to enter a search word using the keypad on your phone while using the app associated with your TV DVR, I prefer seeing a guide grid on a widescreen TV to the narrow screen on my phone. You probably know by now that I ride a bike regularly – three times a week in fact. And I've been following the European bike racing calendar for 30 years. In the early days, I'd have to wait for a VHS tape to come out to actually see a race. Then some of the big races started appearing on TV. Before DVRs, I'd record the races on video tape as European broadcast times weren't exactly convenient for West Coasters. More recently these bike races have been available on streaming services. The one I prefer is GCN – the Global Cycling Network. I subscribe to their GCN+ service ($49 a year and well worth it to me). Of course, GCN+ has an app. Everything they offer can be viewed on a phone. Well thank you very much, but viewing a race on a four-inch screen doesn't exactly convey the excitement of the event. (Writer's note – I'm sure most of you would be bored to tears watching a bike race even if you did know the names of some of the racers. But let me tell you, once you understand the many races within a race, it's really quite exciting to watch a race.) But don't watch it on your phone. Watch it on your computer or cast it to a big-screen TV. I did recently find an app that not only is the best way to control a device, it's the only way. A good friend of mine installed an attic fan to help cool his Four Seasons home. I tried an attic fan a decade ago and didn't like it for a number of reasons including my inability to control it without having to go into my attic. No such problem with my friend's fan. He has an app on his phone which gives him great control including setting temperature parameters for two fans speeds and seasonal presets. So there! Sometimes an app is the best way to get something done. If you use an app you'd like to share with others, let me know at steve.benoff@verizon.net. ~ Steve Benoff THERE'S AN APP FOR THAT! To App Or Not To App

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