Even with all of today's high-tech tools, many still prefer good old-fashioned pen and paper. This is especially true for jotting down notes and reminders.

So, what if you could combine the simplicity of paper note-taking with the power and convenience of a tablet computer?

A new app, Sticky Notes for iPad, aims to fuse these two worlds – and it works, for the most part. There's a lot of room to grow, but this free app is off to a great start.

As you'd expect from an app called Sticky Notes for iPad, this free download lets you post virtual sticky notes on the iPad's 9.7-inch screen. You can select the background colour and material of your board – be it a corkboard, cloth, blueprint, wood or chalkboard, to name a few --- and then you simply tap to start a new note in landscape or portrait mode.

Type what the reminder is, such as "Don't forget to call John about the meeting next Friday." You can use your fingertip to adjust the size, style and colour of the font, as well as drag the sticky note around the board and adjust the paper colour and size, if desired (such as larger notes take higher priority).

Alternatively, if you own the new iPad, you can touch the microphone icon to the left of the spacebar on the onscreen keyboard and speak your note aloud; your spoken words will show up as text a moment later as if you typed it with your fingertips. Speaking of the new iPad, the app was recently updated to support the new Retina Display screen with higher resolution than its predecessors.

The Sticky Notes for iPad app is drop dead simple to use, whether it's to stay organized at work or at home with the family.

But it's not a perfect produc. For one, because it's digital, it's too bad you can't set an alarm on a note, so that it can ring and show up on the iPad screen when you want it to. Otherwise, you might not get the reminder unless you manually open up the app and look at your virtual corkboard. How cool would that be to see a yellow sticky note appear with a note about something you need to know, when playing a game, browsing the web or typing an email?

Secondly, there is no iCloud support for this app; imagine if everyone in the office (or family) could post notes in the app and they'd automatically show up on everyone's device, wirelessly.

Finally, it would also be great if the app supported handwriting and/or hand-drawn sketches, and such, as many other apps do.

Even with these shortcomings, Sticky Notes for iPad is a free, simple and useful app to help keep you organized. It successfully fuses "old school" paper reminders with the power and customizability of a digital platform.

Just because you can afford a fancy new smartphone and accompanying data plan doesn't mean you've got money to burn. This is especially true for entrepreneurs and small business owners who need to watch their budget closely.

The good news is there are many free applications at your smartphone's online store that can help take some weight off your wallet.

The following are a few of my favourite free downloads.

Savvy shopper

While shopping in your favourite store, take out your smartphone and boot up ShopSavvy (Android and iPhone) to snap a picture of a product's barcode. Within a second you'll see the product onscreen and a list of local or online retailers who carry the same product – and for how much. If it's a local retailer, you can see the store's location as a pushpin on a map (such as a Walmart that's, say, 2.2 kilometres away). You can also learn about rebates, coupon codes and special sale prices to take advantage of.

Talk to me

Chatting with colleagues, family and friends over a cellular connection -- while roaming -- can really add up if you don't pick up a good travel plan ahead of time. If you can, also be sure to log onto your hotel, airport or café's wireless network and use your smartphone to make a VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) call for free. Video calling via FaceTime (iOS), Skype (Android, iOS) and Google Talk (Android) lets you see who you're talking to, and they can see you, too. BlackBerry smartphones also support Skype for audio-based calls.

Fill 'er up

Find cheaper gas prices with the help of Gas Buddy for iPhone, Android or Windows Phone 7. Designed for Canadian and U.S. users, this app that shows you which nearby stations have the lowest prices -- and provides maps if you don’t know the area. View gas stations by distance or price, plus you can see prices for regular, midgrade, premium and diesel fuel. Obviously this app is more useful when you’re in a big city – as it doesn’t pay to drive a few kilometres just to save, say, $2 on a fill up – but you can save some cash by seeing which gas station in the area has the best prices.

Take some direction

Android smartphone owners need not buy a standalone GPS, thanks to Google Maps Navigation. This free Internet-connected GPS navigation system not only provides visual turn-by-turn directions to a destination (as with Google Maps for other smartphone platforms), but for drivers it includes audio-based guidance, as well, so you can keep your eyes on the road. Additional features include a "search by voice" option, live traffic, satellite views, and the availability to find nearby businesses. iPhone and iPad users can try NavFree GPS Live Canada app, which also provides audio- and visual-based directions and local search.

Surf’s up

Don't pay for wireless connectivity when you can find thousands of free Wi-Fi hotspots around the world. As the name suggests, the Free Wi-Fi Finder app for iOS and Android asks to know your device's GPS location -- tap "Allow" and within a second or two you’ll find all the establishments in your area that offer free Wi-Fi, be it a café, restaurant or bookstore -- including handy maps to take you there. The latest version, 2.0, offers a number of new features and improvements over its predecessors.

Continuing with my theme differentiating yourself from the competition I thought I would share with you how the Small Business Community Network (SBCN—an organization I co-founded) decided it was time to check out new technology. We needed something that would not only display we were moving with the times, but could also save us time.

Even the smallest of businesses receives hundreds of emails, a lot of them spam, but some of them are legitimate and need to be read. I know I am guilty on occasion of reading the subject line and deciding the email does not need my prompt attention, or when I do read the whole email I sometimes skip through it and not read the message properly.

We decided to offer our SBCN members and non-members the opportunity to receive reminder text messages, which would be displayed on their mobile phones (the text messages are a quick reminder that an upcoming meeting was happening). In the first few months of using this service we have found that it works for some of our members, but not all. Obviously not everyone embraces new technology at the same pace, but we find as time goes on the numbers increase, as members understand more clearly how the text messaging service works. More importantly it costs our members nothing to receive these text messages, as long as they have an existing text messaging plan.

Here is the information we posted on the SBCN website so that people could be aware of what we were offering and why, and we feel this is the important part because by making people aware they are more likely to embrace change.

We know that your day can be busy! With so many appointments, we want to help ensure you don't miss meeting that great connection at one of our networking events.

In addition to our e-mail based reminder that let's you know about upcoming meetings, we're introducing our new FREE* SBCN TXT service. This will allow you to subscribe to receive automated reminders via text message straight to your mobile device.

How It Works

To subscribe to automated reminders on your mobile phone, simply text one of the following messages to 54500:

Text the words SBCN Waterloo to receive reminders for the Waterloo Region Chapter

Text the words SBCN YN to receive reminders for the Young Networkers of Waterloo Region Chapter

You'll receive a confirmation text message back to confirm your subscription. If you wish to unsubscribe at any time, instructions are included in your welcome message.

The SBCN does have an automated reminder via email that alerts the contacts who subscribed to the list when our events are, and this works well. But for those who prefer not to receive those emails the automated text messaging service is a good substitute. Both of the options we chose to use save us time and in turn save us money. The SBCN is also seen as an organization that moves with the times and looking to the future generation of leaders, they are more likely to want text messages versus emails.

Another nice aspect to the text service is a time saver for me when networking! We have an auto responder setup that replies with my contact details (akin to a business card) when someone texts my name to our special ‘short-code’ number. They then have my number, e-mail address and web-site details directly on their mobile phone. This is a great way to save money and is quick to do, and also works well if you find yourself out and about with no business cards.

We are lucky that one of our members introduced us to the text messaging service; otherwise I am not sure we would have known to look into it. My advice would be to check out what other organizations are doing to save them time and money and you will probably find there are a lot of applications and such like out there that can be put into place.

I am not a tech savvy person but I pick a lot up from my business partner and husband Dave. If you are not lucky enough to have someone on hand like I have, just ask your connections who do know about these kinds of offerings. I find it exciting to see new and useful technology being used by small businesses in particular and it is definitely something that is growing all the time.

“Once a new technology rolls over you, if you're not part of the steamroller, you're part of the road.” - Stewart Brand

Linda Ockwell-Jenner is President of Motivational Steps and  Co-Founder of the Small Business Community Network (SBCN) based in  Waterloo Region. Find out more about Linda at www.motivationalsteps.com and www.sbcncanada.org

Dubbed the "world's first mobile interviewing application," HireVue lets job candidates engage in a virtual job interview on their iPad, iPhone or iPod touch.

The app works similar to the website of the same name: Hiring companies or recruiters send out an invitation to candidates via email, and once accepted, the interview takes place on the iOS device itself.

Customized by the hiring organization, questions are created in advance and can include multiple choice questions (respondents tap to select one of four options), longer-form essay-style questions and video responses captured by the device's camera.

Benefits of a digital interview are mostly convenience-related. Candidates can respond at their own pace, wherever they might be with their iOS device, plus they can watch prerecorded employment videos to learn more about the company or position they're looking to fill. Employers, on the other hand, don't have to schedule interviews, nor do they have to pay to bring someone in from out of town.

Hiring managers or recruiters can then play back multiple candidate responses from their computer or mobile device to choose the best one for the job – or request a face-to-face chat as a "call back" of sorts.

HireVue does offer a live web-based interview option, too, if desired. The real-time video interviews connect employers and candidates, similar to video conferencing tools, but with the option to record, save and replay the interaction. Both the prerecorded and live interview options can then be shared with colleagues after the fact, with the option to make notes, give ratings and provide feedback electronically.

HireVue is free for the job candidate, but pricing is subscription-based for employers; HireVue says its packages start at about $5,000 annually for midsized businesses (for unlimited interviews) but claim traditional "offline" interviews typically cost companies about $1,000 apiece.

If you're interested, here's a video to learn more about HireVue.

You can protect your computer -- and more importantly, the sensitive information that may reside on it – without needing a degree in computer engineering.

If you've been following the news lately, you've no doubt read up on all the computer attacks, data breaches and cases of identity theft. Consider it a by-product of the information age.

So, what to do? We've covered a lot of ground in this Telus Talks Business blog over the past year – from tips on securing your wireless network to safer online shopping to reducing the odds of a spammed "phishing" attack – but now let's cover a few tips to creating a strong password for anything you or your business associates do online.

The basics

Creating a good password isn't difficult, but it does more time to come up with one than using common ones like "password," "123456," your phone number or your kids' or pet's names – all of which are not recommended for obvious reasons. A strong password is at least 7 characters long, has a combination of letters, numbers and symbols, and the same password shouldn’t be used for all of your online activities. After all, once someone finds out one password, they've got access to everything else. There are also some online password checkers that evaluate the strength of your password.

Words and acronyms work, too

If you don't want to use the recommended combination of letters, numbers and symbols, at least keep in mind single word passwords are easier to break than multiple word passwords. Instead of "monkey," use something like "orangemonkey" or "bigmonkeyface." Alternatively, use the first letter from a phrase – say, from a favourite song – so Bruno Mars' "Liquor Store Blues feat. Damian Marley" becomes "LSBFDM." This should be an easy password to remember – and better yet, at a number and symbol to this, too.

Managing multiple passwords

Because it's recommended not to use the same password for everything, come up with a system to better remember each of them, such as adding a relevant letter to the front, middle or end of the password – such as "b" for "banking," "s" for shopping, "f" for Facebook or "d" for an online dating site. If it's difficult to remember your passwords, use a trusted "password manager" program on your computer or smartphone, which requires a master password to get in, and then you can see all the rest of the passwords inside.

Change it up

Every so often, change up your passwords just to keep malicious types on their toes. How often you do it boils down to your comfort level, but I’d recommend at least every couple of months is probably conservative enough. Again, this is a personal thing, but the longer you keep the same password, the greater the chance someone could guess it, share it and use the information against you if they’re motivated enough. On a related note, don’t share your password. A recent U.S.-based survey showed tweens and teens frequently give out their passwords to friends -- and don't change it after they've had a falling out.

A step ahead

Google, for example, now offers a two-step authentication process, which serves as an extra security measure to protect your online accounts from being compromised. It confirms you – and only you – are granted access to your Google apps, such as Gmail. In addition to a standard username and password you'll also need a code that's sent via text message to your mobile phone. Before you gain access to the Google app, you'll be prompted to enter that short verification code. Instead of a text message, you can also download and install the Google Authenticator app on your Android, BlackBerry or iPhone. Many other companies are using two-step authentication, as well.

Heed the call

When you set up a landline or mobile phone voicemail, depending on your provider/carrier your voicemail password by default might be the last 4 digits of your phone number (9492) or the month and year of your birthdate (e.g. 0471 for April of 1971). Don’t keep these default voicemail passwords -- they're only meant to help you log in once and chance it to something else. Someone can easily see your birthday on Facebook; even if you don’t reveal the information, chances are family, friends and colleagues will post something to your wall on the big day.

Public enemy no. 1

If you're using a public computer – such as a shared PC at a library, cybercafé or airport lounge – be sure not to do private things better done at home (such as online banking). You might forget to clear the browser history, cache and cookies (or accidentally click to "remember my password" on these sites) and the next person could gain access. Or, there could be "keystroke logging" software or hardware on the public PC that tracks what you type on the keyboard -- a tip is to use the mouse on an onscreen keyboard offered by Windows if you must enter a password.

Recently touted by Techcrunch as “the fast-growing on-demand car service”, Uber brings the private driver experience to the masses, allowing you to request a private driver at any time by using the Uber iPhone and Android apps or SMS.  André Charoo, Uber Toronto Lead recently spoke at February’s TELUS Challenge Event Series.  We caught up with André after the event to talk more about their business and advice for aspiring entrepreneurs.

Uber has just ‘soft launched’ in Toronto.  What challenges have you faced in growing your business in new markets?

One of the challenges we have faced while growing Uber in new markets is the various transportation options that already exist in the city. Toronto has a number of different taxi services, but they all have their shortfalls. Customer service and dispatch in particular are simply not where they need to be. Drivers texting clients has never been presented as an option. The taxi companies haven’t kept up with mobile trends and the changing expectations of Torontonians.

Uber is here to change the negative stigma surrounding transportation in Toronto. Our transportation doesn't have to be unreliable, uncomfortable and infrequent. We believe in a service that works around your schedule, gets you where you need to be in time and takes you where you want to go in style. Moreover, we want to emphasize the fact that Uber won't cost too much more than a normal taxi, and your service will be infinitely better.

Another challenge we faced when entering the Toronto market was finding the right carrier to provide us with devices. Uber is unique, in that we provide all of our drivers with iPhone devices as a dispatch system for Uber. As such we have unique needs, and needed a lot of devices, hundreds of them in fact. This of course, can get quite costly. TELUS was able to accommodate our unique device needs and give us a great price as well.

Our relationship with the sales team made all the difference as they adapted to our seemingly never-ending work hours.  A special thanks to Frank Cesareo who went out of his way to make sure that all questions were answered and all needs were fulfilled, no matter the time of day!

Gartner estimated the mobile app industry to be $15.1 billion in 2011.  With so much growth, how do you ensure your app gets top bill?

Simple. We keep the Uber app easy to use and provide a great user experience. The app is intentionally minimalistic in style, but high in functionality. What's more, the app is free to download for everyone, client and driver alike, so there is no barrier to download in terms of price.

The Uber app is also very unique in that it provides a service that is fundamentally changing the way people travel around their city. Transportation happens every day, and in turn, the Uber app and service are used every day. We believe that the Uber app is one of the few on the market that seamlessly connects the online world with the offline world. The Uber experience is memorable, so as a result, the app is memorable.

How has Uber arranged it’s financing? Are you actively seeking investors?

Uber has raised approximately $45 million from some of the top angels and VCs around the country including Menlo Ventures, Goldman Sachs, and Jeff Bezos’ fund Bezos Expeditions.

Most small business owners often struggle with building their customer base with limited funds & resources.  What tactics do you use to attract customers in a new market?  What marketing activities have you used in the past to officially launch in a new market?

We believe that Uber is best experienced when you take a ride. It's one thing to explain the Uber service to a potential client, but the service truly sells itself once the person has experienced it first hand. When we enter a new market we work to figure out what hyper local initiatives that we can offer to various demographics that make up that city.

What role does social media play in your marketing mix? How are you measuring your success?

Social media is huge for us. We like to connect to the people who have a pulse on what's going on in the city. It's great to reach out and get these people as ambassadors of your brand. Part of the way we ensure this is also through our belief in strong and quick customer service and satisfaction. If you don't have an amazing experience with Uber, we will make that right. We address your issue immediately. Our Community Managers are connecting and chatting with our clients at 2:30 in the morning on Twitter on a Friday night because they love what they do and they believe in the service. This helps maintain customer satisfaction and illustrates a strong dedication to our clients and even prospective clients.  We also offer a lot of unique contests through our city-specific blogs and Twitter accounts. In regards to measuring the effectiveness of these ventures, just search Uber on Twitter and check out the love people have for our product. It speaks for itself!

What advice can you give aspiring entrepreneurs who think they have a really great idea and aren’t sure how to get started?

Definitely talk to people in your community and beyond. Hunt out the business and tech scene if that's what you are trying to target. Network as much as you can. Lots of networking events in Toronto at least are free or very cheap to attend. We just recently attended a great event called Founders & Funders which was organized by StartupNorth. We learned that there’s a very vibrant community of entrepreneurs in Toronto, who are willing to help each other out.

The most important piece of advice for someone with an idea is really to just go for it. Pursue your idea if you think it is great. There’s a plethora or resources available online for entrepreneurs to learn how to raise money, connect with the right people, build a team and so forth. People will help you out along the way if you let them. But you won’t find help unless you seek it out yourself!

The Uber app is available on the app store and Android Marketplace.

Spring is around the corner, which often means family vacations, road trips with friends and traveling more for business.

A GPS navigation unit in your vehicle can help you get to where you’re going quickly, accurately and safely – but not everyone wants to spend $100 or more for a good GPS nav unit or $50 for GPS smartphone software.

Guess what – you don’t have to pay anything at all.

A downloadable app called Navfree GPS Live Canada is the first free professional GPS navigation software for iPhone and iPad.

While not flawless, you’d be surprised how good this no-cost app is.

Navfree Canada from Geolife Ltd. gives you 2D and 3D maps (for the entire country), voice-based turn-by-turn instructions (so you don’t need to look at the screen), points of interest (such as restaurants, hotels, gas stations and tourist sites) as well as live Google Search (to find many other nearby places you might be interested in).

Unless you do a Google search, which requires a wireless connection, no data is used up for this GPS app as the maps are stored on your device.

Navfree uses map data from OpenStreetMap.org — often referred to as the "Wikipedia of map software" — as more than a quarter-million people contributed to it over the years. Therefore, there’s no cost to use the product, it’s continuously updated and you, too, can add to the map, as well, right from within the app.

The interface is quite clean, too. Aside from typing the word "Ontario" where it says "State" (er, this is the Canadian version of the software, so why not "Province"?), Navfree found the five addresses I typed in – in Toronto, Mississauga, Richmond Hill and Barrie – without a hitch. At least you can change "Miles" to "Kilometres" in the map's settings screen.

By default, it’s a British woman's voice but you can change it to other male and female voices and languages, too, if you like (15 in total, including French, Spanish, German, Italian, Dutch, and more). Note: It doesn’t say street names, but will tell you when to turn, such as in "1.2 kilometres or in 200 metres," etc. While hearing the directions you can also use your fingertips on the map to scroll ahead, switch between day and night maps (low glare maps are safer night driving) and even access your music library right from within the map (music fades in and out when the voice directions are playing).

Routing was fast and – for the most part – accurate. In one instance, I was about to hop on Highway 400 North from Woodbridge to drive to Barrie, but it was suggesting to go on Highway 407 east to some point. Huh? So, as with any GPS unit, general knowledge of your area is always helpful. But this was one instance out of an otherwise flawless experience.

Of course if you take a wrong turn or need to go on streets not recommended by the app (perhaps because of an accident or construction), it’ll automatically reroute for you.

Another issue is if you cross the border, you’ll have to close the app and open up Navfree U.S. version as this map is only for Canada. At least it's free, too.

There’s also a Pedestrian mode for when you’re on foot – for instance, it’ll say you can walk in either direction of a one-way street.

Other features of Navfree include the ability to send your route to a friend via email, text message, Facebook or Twitter; you can set a "Home" location to quickly get back to your home; and access a Navfree Store to purchase the "Ad-Free" version of Navfree for $1.99 – though I never saw one advertisement in this free version.

Overall, Navfree is an excellent – and free – GPS solution for iPhone and iPad owners.