In these days when there is an app for just about everything, we’ve all grown used to downloading new software. We expect to be able to use the app in question immediately for whatever it was that we first wanted it for. But how often do we look at the detail, or explore what else the software can do?
Some geeky types do, but most of us just want to get on with our day, and we may well be missing out on some cool features that would save us time.
So, our geeky types have got together to provide edited highlights of the best ‘hidden gems’ within Armour Mobile and SigNet by Armour that could make your day a bit easier.
Contact Management Features
Armour Mobile includes several features to help with contact and list management. Whether you want to set up a group for a one-off chat, set up a project group for on-going calls, or share contact details with a group, here are a couple of tips that will save you time.
A quick way to share contacts – using the paperclip
You can share contacts via message chat or by selecting export contacts and sharing as a message (if you still have the original contacts file stored within Armour Mobile).
While in the Message facility for both 1-to-1 and group chats it is possible to quickly send either individual contact details or a file of contact details to everyone in the chat session. Simply click on the paperclip icon at the bottom left-hand corner of the screen and select ‘Send Contact File’ or ‘Share Contacts’. If you select ‘Share Contacts’ you are presented with your contacts list from which you can select one or more contacts. There are a couple of options, here. You can either click on each entry you wish to share, or click on the box in the top right hand corner to select all contacts, you can then deselect people from the list (sometimes this will be quicker depending on how many contacts you wish to share).
When you have selected the contacts click on ‘Share’ at the bottom right-hand corner of the screen. Once ‘Share’ has been clicked a new entry is shown in your message timeline, which summarises how many contacts your are sharing (good to check it is actually the number that you are expecting). Then click ‘Send’ to share with everyone in the conversation.
Export contacts to import later – for a new device or to set up a specific sub-group
You can export contacts as a file that can then be imported later on. This is useful for a new device or to set up a new group for a specific call, or an ongoing project.
A file of contacts can be created by selecting the ‘Settings’ option and then selecting ‘Contacts’ and from there selecting ‘Export Contacts’. Your entire Contacts List is then displayed and you can use the buttons down the right hand side of the screen to select those entries you wish to include in the file (alternatively, click the box in the top right hand corner to select everyone, and then deselect any that you do not want). Choose the default option ‘Save to device’ and click on ‘Export’ in the top right-hand corner of the screen.
To protect all the sensitive details held in the Contacts file it’s essential to enter a high quality password to protect the file. Enter a password and then enter it again to confirm, then click on OK. The file is now saved with the name being the current date and time, for example: 2021-12-07-16-34.
Message Burn in Group Chat
As well as setting the Message Burn feature to delete messages after a set period of time for chats with individuals, it can also be used for group chats too, which saves time and is more secure.
In a group chat, at the bottom left-hand corner of the screen, just above where you type in new messages there is a small calendar+clock icon with the text ‘Message Burn: Never’. Click on the text to allow messages for the entire group to be deleted after a configurable period of time. This could be a number of days, hours or minutes. Message Burn can be timed from when the message was read, or when the message was sent, and it can be applied to a single message or to all messages sent to the group.
‘Scan text’ facility in iOS 15
For those using an iOS 15 device, briefly touch the cursor in the text entry field and this will then display the text ‘Scan Text’. Touch this text and then the camera is triggered to enable you to use Optical Character Recognition (OCR) to scan text into a message. This is a native feature of iOS 15 which we’ve included within Armour Mobile to provide a convenient and fast means of inputting text into a message.
Note to Self feature in SigNet
SigNet by Armour, our alternative product line to Armour Mobile, has a Note to Self feature which gets rave reviews from those that use it. If you’ve woken up in the middle of the night with a brainwave, or think of something while in a meeting, send a note to yourself with SigNet. Simply go to the ‘Chats’ section – select from the bottom of the screen, and click on the ‘Note to Self’ option. From here you can send yourself a message, either in text, as a recording or a photo. The note will also appear on any connected devices, including your Windows desktop.
