1. Smart Lists Setup and Configuration

The session focused on creating and configuring smart lists in the Reminders app, demonstrating how filters automatically sort reminders.

• Details
  • Siena(She/Her): Created a smart list called “Things to do when I get home” with location-based filters
  • Siena(She/Her): Demonstrated setting up arriving home location filter with 100-meter radius
  • Siena(She/Her): Explained that smart lists automatically include reminders matching specified filters
  • Siena(She/Her): Showed how to customize list appearance with colors (indigo, purple) and icons (house icon)
  • Ali: Asked clarifying questions about the filter options and how they work
• Conclusion
  • Smart lists use filters to automatically organize reminders without manual sorting
  • Location filters can trigger reminders when arriving at or leaving specific locations
  • Multiple filter types can be combined including tags, date, time, location, flag, priority, and list

2. Creating Location-Based Reminders

Discussion covered setting up reminders that trigger based on geographic location using the arriving home feature.

• Details
  • Siena(She/Her): Created reminder “Start setting up the Mac for the song bank” with arriving home location
  • Siena(She/Her): Demonstrated setting reminder radius options (100 meters, 300 meters, 500 meters, etc.)
  • Siena(She/Her): Showed how location-based reminders automatically populate smart lists
  • Siena(She/Her): Attempted to create “Put clothes in the wash” reminder but encountered autocorrect issue changing “wash” to “Washington”
  • Ashlyn: Identified that the period after “wash” caused the autocorrect to interpret it as Washington abbreviation
• Conclusion
  • Location-based reminders trigger when within specified radius of saved location
  • Reminders with location filters automatically appear in corresponding smart lists
  • Autocorrect can misinterpret abbreviations when periods are used

3. List Organization and Reordering

Extensive discussion on moving and organizing lists within the Reminders app, highlighting differences between platforms.

• Details
  • Siena(She/Her): Demonstrated dragging lists to reorder them on iPhone
  • Siena(She/Her): Showed that iPhone only offers “move above” option, not “move below”
  • Siena(She/Her): Encountered VoiceOver crashes requiring app restart during reordering
  • Ali: Suggested using edit mode and reorder buttons as alternative method
  • Ali: Recommended flicking down on reorder button to access move up/move down actions
  • Siena(She/Her): Successfully reordered lists after closing and reopening the app
• Conclusion
  • List reordering on iPhone can be finicky and may require app restart
  • Edit mode provides reorder buttons with drag functionality
  • Mac version offers more straightforward list reordering compared to iPhone

4. Creating List Groups

Demonstration of grouping multiple lists together for better organization.

• Details
  • Siena(She/Her): Created “Birthdays and Anniversaries” group containing Family Birthdays, Friends Birthdays, and Anniversaries lists
  • Siena(She/Her): Showed that dropping one list onto another creates a group
  • Siena(She/Her): Demonstrated that groups can be expanded or collapsed
  • Siena(She/Her): Reordered lists within the group to desired sequence
• Conclusion
  • List groups help organize related lists together
  • Groups are created by dropping one list onto another
  • Lists within groups can be reordered independently

5. Alarm Notifications on Locked vs Unlocked Devices

Discussion about handling alarm notifications in different device states.

• Details
  • Ali: Asked how to turn off alarms when device is unlocked
  • Siena(She/Her): Explained that on unlocked device, stop button appears as banner at top right of screen
  • Siena(She/Her): Noted that on lock screen, users can flick right to find snooze or stop buttons
  • Ali: Asked if locking device would allow alarm to snooze automatically
  • Siena(She/Her): Confirmed alarm would return after snooze period if device is locked
  • Siena(She/Her): Mentioned exploring full-screen alarm option in Clock or Notification settings
• Conclusion
  • Unlocked device shows alarm banner at top right requiring touch navigation
  • Lock screen provides easier access to alarm controls through flicking
  • Full-screen alarm option may be available in settings for easier access

6. Shared Lists Feature

Comprehensive demonstration of sharing reminder lists between users for collaboration.

• Details
  • Siena(She/Her): Created “Textravaganza 2.0 test list” with purple computer icon
  • Siena(She/Her): Shared list via Messages to Textravaganza Friends group
  • Ali: Attempted to accept shared list on Mac but encountered issues with collaborate button not responding
  • Ali: Tried multiple methods including clicking collaborate button, reminders link, and unlabeled images
  • Ashlyn: Observed that Mac appeared to hang while phone handled the request
  • Ali: Successfully accepted shared list on iPhone by tapping “Open” button
  • Siena(She/Her): Confirmed shared list appeared in Ali’s reminders with proper permissions
• Conclusion
  • Shared lists enable collaboration between multiple users
  • iPhone provides more reliable interface for accepting shared lists than Mac
  • Mac collaborate button may not respond consistently, requiring iPhone as workaround
  • Shared lists appear in all participants’ Reminders apps with edit access

7. VoiceOver Navigation on Mac Messages App

Detailed walkthrough of using VoiceOver to navigate Messages and accept shared content on Mac.

• Details
  • Ali: Demonstrated using Control-Option-Shift-Home to navigate to toolbar
  • Ali: Explained interacting with collections using Control-Option-Shift-Down
  • Ali: Showed navigating to messages collection and finding specific message
  • Ali: Attempted multiple methods to activate collaborate button without success
  • Ali: Tried actions menu, spacebar, enter key, and various VoiceOver commands
  • Ali: Noted that grouped navigation on iPhone differs from interact functionality on Mac
• Conclusion
  • Mac VoiceOver requires interact commands to navigate nested elements
  • Messages app collaborate button does not respond reliably to VoiceOver activation
  • iPhone VoiceOver provides more streamlined experience for accepting shared content

8. Technical Setup and Screen Sharing

Discussion of technical aspects of presenting and sharing screens during the workshop.

• Details
  • Siena(She/Her): Shared iPhone screen via cable connection to demonstrate features
  • Siena(She/Her): Encountered audio sharing issue when switching from Mac to iPhone share
  • Ashlyn: Confirmed audio was coming through speaker instead of Zoom
  • Siena(She/Her): Resolved by re-enabling “Share Sound” option
  • Ali: Shared Mac screen to demonstrate VoiceOver navigation
  • Ali: Requested pausing recording during screen share setup
• Conclusion
  • Cable connection provides reliable iPhone screen sharing
  • Audio sharing requires explicit enabling when switching between devices
  • Screen sharing setup may require brief recording pauses

9. Reaper Software Updates

Brief discussion about updating Reaper audio software on Mac.

• Details
  • Siena(She/Her): Checked for Reaper updates and found version 7.68 available
  • Ali: Confirmed downloading macOS Universal version for Intel and ARM64
  • Siena(She/Her): Explained process of downloading, copying to Applications folder, and replacing old version
  • Ali: Encountered security prompt confirming no malicious software detected
  • Both: Successfully updated and verified Reaper version
• Conclusion
  • Reaper updates should be installed by closing app first, then replacing in Applications folder
  • macOS Universal version supports both Intel and ARM processors
  • Security prompts confirm software safety before opening

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FaceTime Overview and Basic Features

The session covered FaceTime’s core functionality as Apple’s video and voice calling application available on iPhone, iPad, and Mac.

• Details
  • Siena: Demonstrated FaceTime interface on iPhone 16, showing the edit button, filter options, and recent calls list
  • Siena: Explained that FaceTime allows both video and audio calls between Apple devices
  • Siena: Noted that non-Apple users can join via browser links sent by Apple device users, but cannot initiate calls themselves
  • Samantha: Mentioned using FaceTime on MacBook Air for singing lessons, noting it can be less stable than Google Meet
• Conclusion
  • FaceTime is primarily designed for Apple ecosystem users
  • Cross-platform participation is possible but limited to joining via links
  • The app provides separate options for audio-only and video calls

Live Voicemail Setup and Functionality

Discussion focused on activating and using the live voicemail feature in FaceTime.

• Details
  • Jeroo: Asked how to activate voicemail for FaceTime
  • Siena: Explained the path is Settings/Apps/Phone/Live Voicemail
  • Siena: Clarified that live voicemail is separate from carrier voicemail and has unlimited storage
  • Siena: Demonstrated that live voicemail intercepts both regular phone calls and FaceTime calls
  • Siena: Noted that users can answer calls even while the caller is leaving a voicemail message
  • Max: Asked about custom greetings for voicemail
  • Samantha: Explained that FaceTime uses the Siri voice selected on the device for standard greetings
• Conclusion
  • Live voicemail must be enabled in Phone settings, not FaceTime settings
  • It works for both FaceTime and regular calls
  • The feature uses the device’s Siri voice for greetings by default

Answering FaceTime Calls

Participants discussed methods for accepting incoming FaceTime calls.

• Details
  • Jackie: Expressed difficulty answering FaceTime calls, noting the accept button doesn’t always appear
  • Siena: Explained two methods: navigating to the Accept button and double-tapping, or using the two-finger double-tap magic tap gesture
  • Siena: Recommended enabling full-screen incoming calls in FaceTime settings for easier access
  • Jackie: Confirmed that full-screen mode is acceptable as long as VoiceOver isn’t disrupted
  • Siena: Clarified that the two-finger double-tap works anywhere on the screen for all call types including Messenger, WhatsApp, Discord, and regular phone calls
• Conclusion
  • Two-finger double-tap is the most reliable method for answering calls
  • Full-screen call notifications improve accessibility for VoiceOver users
  • The gesture works consistently across different calling applications

Adding Participants to FaceTime Calls

Extensive testing revealed significant bugs when attempting to add people to ongoing calls.

• Details
  • Jeroo: Asked how to add someone to an existing one-on-one FaceTime call
  • Samantha: Described the process of tapping on your name, finding Add People button, searching for contacts, but noted experiencing bugs where it wouldn’t work
  • Hans: Asked whether the person who receives the call can add others, or only the caller
  • Siena: Attempted multiple methods including the More button and Add People feature, but consistently encountered issues
  • Siena: Found that selecting a contact from Add People only opened the contact card without actually adding them to the call
  • Ali: Attempted to join an ongoing call between Siena and Samantha, but the system ended the first call instead of merging
  • Hans: Suggested that FaceTime video calls work better than audio calls for adding participants
  • Siena: Successfully demonstrated that using Siri voice command to initiate a group call works reliably
• Conclusion
  • The manual Add People feature has persistent bugs preventing proper functionality
  • Attempting to add someone often ends the existing call rather than merging
  • Using Siri to initiate group calls by saying “FaceTime audio [name] and [name]” is the most reliable method
  • FaceTime video calls may have better success rates than audio calls for group features

Creating and Sharing FaceTime Links

The session demonstrated how to create shareable FaceTime links for group calls.

• Details
  • Siena: Showed the Create Link button at the bottom of the new call screen
  • Siena: Demonstrated naming a link “test call” and sharing it via Messages to Ali
  • Siena: Explained that links remain active until deleted by the creator
  • Siena: Sent a link to Samantha via WhatsApp for her to join from Android device
  • Max: Asked for clarification about the link creation process
  • Siena: Explained that Apple users can join directly while non-Apple users join via browser
  • Samantha: Successfully joined the call from Android device via browser link
  • Siena: Noted that approving join requests required multiple taps due to interface bugs
  • Hans: Asked if custom groups can be saved like in Messenger or WhatsApp
  • Siena: Explained that link-based calls appear in recents and can be rejoined easily
• Conclusion
  • FaceTime links enable cross-platform participation
  • Links persist until manually deleted
  • The approval process for browser-based participants has usability issues
  • Link-based calls serve as persistent group call options through the recents list

SharePlay and Audio Sharing Issues

Testing revealed that SharePlay features for sharing audio and video content are unreliable.

• Details
  • Max: Asked how the SharePlay feature works
  • Samantha: Reported that when testing with Nick, she could hear music but Nick couldn’t
  • Siena: Recalled similar issues when attempting to watch Harry Potter together with Samantha
  • Samantha: Mentioned having to use a separate device instead
  • Siena: Tested SharePlay with YouTube during the call with Samantha
  • Samantha: Confirmed she could not hear the YouTube audio being played
  • Siena: Noted that the only successful method was using an external audio mixer with internal audio button enabled
  • Max: Shared ChatGPT information suggesting YouTube SharePlay requires premium subscription
  • Siena: Confirmed having YouTube Premium but still experiencing issues
• Conclusion
  • SharePlay feature for audio and video sharing is consistently buggy
  • Neither Spotify nor YouTube sharing worked reliably during testing
  • External audio equipment may provide a workaround but isn’t a standard solution
  • The feature requires further fixes from Apple

Audio Settings and Voice Quality

Brief discussion about audio quality settings in FaceTime.

• Details
  • Siena: Asked Samantha about wide spectrum and other audio settings
  • Samantha: Mentioned Google Meet has similar features like Studio Mode and stereo mode
  • Samantha: Noted that wide spectrum setting has moved from Control Center to microphone services in the status bar
  • Siena: Asked if settings can be changed before calls
  • Samantha: Clarified that audio settings must be adjusted during an active call
  • Hans: Observed that FaceTime video calls seem to have clearer audio than audio-only calls
• Conclusion
  • Audio quality settings are only accessible during active calls
  • Settings location has changed in recent iOS updates
  • Video calls may provide better audio quality than audio-only calls

Device Compatibility and Cross-Platform Usage

Participants discussed their device usage and compatibility experiences.

• Details
  • Jackie: Mentioned using both Android Samsung Galaxy A03s with Android 13 and iPhone
  • Samantha: Stated using Google Pixel 10 as primary device after selling iPhone
  • Samantha: Noted Google TTS experiencing bugs with voice quality on Pixel devices
  • Siena: Confirmed using both iPhone 16 as primary and Android device
  • Samantha: Discussed using iPad and MacBook Air for FaceTime calls
  • Ali: Mentioned preferring Google Meet for one-on-one calls but Zoom for conferencing
• Conclusion
  • Many participants use multiple devices across platforms
  • Android users can participate in FaceTime via browser links
  • Different platforms have varying strengths for different use cases

Find Out What’s Coming Up on Future Workshops at The Following Link

Updated as of Mar 10, 2026, What’s Coming Up on Techstravaganza

Contact the team:

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