Simply Connected.

The official Tapestry company blog

May
10

By

From Faxes to FaceTime

Category: Seniors & Ageing, Technology 1 Comment

Cat on a fax machine

Photo credit: Secret Pilgrim

When I graduated from college my parents bought me a fax machine.

I was moving to a new city to start my first engineering job, and Mum and Dad wanted to stay in touch.

That should tell you two things:

Firstly, it gives you a hint about how old I am, and secondly, our family has always been keen to adopt new technology to communicate.

Since then, I’ve never lived closer than six hundred miles from my parents. For more than ten years, we weren’t even in the same country.

At every point we ask ourselves the same question:

What’s the best way to stay connected?

We have a tradition of recycling gadgets within the family. Someone gets a new phone, or a laptop, or an iPad and immediately offers the old one to the rest of the family.

It’s a win-win. I get a latest version phone, and Mum gets an upgrade.

Our family has taken the journey from fax machine, to phone calls, to emails, to Facebook.

And now? We video chat.

Kid on Skype

Photo credit: Jordan

So this Mother’s Day, I’ll be seeing my Mum – from a thousand kilometres away.

The usual setup is to stand the iPad up on the kitchen table just out of reach of my young son.

He entertains Nana with his latest trick: like blowing raspberries on the back of his hand, and the family has a chance to catch up.

It’s the perfect Mother’s Day gift.

If you’re new to video chatting software, here’s a comparison of Skype, Apple FaceTime and Google Hangouts to help you decide.

Happy Mother’s Day mum.

See you on Sunday.

May
7

By

Sisters sign up for Tapestry

Category: Seniors & Ageing, Usability 1 Comment

Learning how to use the Tapestry app

Photo credit: Phil Reither

Over the past few weeks, we’ve been rolling out the Tapestry app to a congregation of Dominican Sisters.

For many of the Sisters, this was their first introduction to email, the web and photo sharing.

Not only are the nuns excited about sharing photos with each other, but their families are also signing up.

Here’s a sample of the feedback we’ve had so far:

“I would like to express my immense gratitude for including my aunt, Sister Clare in the Tapestry trial. Aunty Clare is clearly delighted to have reconnected with our geographically-spread family via Tapestry.

Thanks for such a great initiative which brings laughter, smiles and most importantly allows families to come together and share memories.”

–Louise

It’s terrific to watch a new group of users getting excited about seeing their family photos.

Plus – when we observe how users interact with the app, it gives us a ton of quality feedback on how to improve the product and make Tapestry even easier to use.

We owe a lot to the Dominican Sisters for their help in getting Tapestry into the hands of people who really love it.

Apr
30

By

April media roundup

Category: Our Journey, Press Leave a Comment

Andrew Dowling presenting

Photo credit: Phil Reither

Wow. April has just flown by.

We’ve been busy at Tapestry, working on improving the app and getting some great feedback from our enthusiastic users.

We’ve received quite a bit of media attention in the past month too.

So here’s a quick summary of what the press have been saying about Tapestry.

Computerworld Australia

Computer World interviewed Andrew Dowling about the growth of the company and his involvement with Australian startup business community.

Pulse IT

Pulse IT spoke with one of our users on how the Tapestry app had helped her stay in contact with her granddaughter.

eHealth Space

Our pilot program at the Wesley Mission’s retirement village in Carlingford was featured in eHealth Space.

Anthill Magazine

Australian startup business website Anthill featured Tapestry in a recent article on our “no senior left behind” approach to technology.

Top News

US site Topnews announced Tapestry’s plans to visit Silicon Valley to meet with technologists and investors.

Aged Care Insite

And finally, Aged Care Insite highlighted our recent grant from Commercialisation Australia.

There’s a lot to get excited about, and we’ll keep you up-to-date with what’s going on inside Tapestry as we go.

Apr
23

By

7 Tips for archiving your family photos

Category: Photography, Seniors & Ageing 1 Comment

A picture is worth a thousand words, but only if you look after it.

The family photos and documents you archive will eventually become treasured items, so here is our list of the top seven tips to keep your photos in peak condition.

1. Avoid sunlight

Old Photograph

Photo credit: anyjazz65

Direct sunlight is the enemy of photos. (And vampires!)

Be careful where you hang and display your photographs. The longer they are exposed to the sun, the quicker they will fade.

Try regularly switching the photos around your home.

Not only will you help your photos last longer, but rotating the pictures allows you to see each picture afresh in a new location.

2. Don’t store them in your basement or your attic

It might be tempting to store your family documents and mementoes in the basement or the attic, but these rooms are also the most exposed to the weather and changes in temperature.

Heat from the attic or moisture from the basement can quickly ruin paper and photos.

Instead, find a cool, dark place in one of the internal rooms of your house where the temperature is better regulated.

3. Don’t use adhesives

Glue, rubber cement, tape or gum can all stain and mark photographs. Your best options for mounting and storing are albums with paper or plastic envelopes.

Plastic sleeves allow your family to look at the photos, while keeping them protected.

Paper envelopes are also great for archiving documents and mementoes. Just watch out for the adhesive gum on envelopes with a seal.

4. Mount your photos with a matte

Yacht photo mounted on a matte

Photo credit: Webb Zahn

If you’re displaying your photos in a frame, the biggest mistake people make is to have the photo touching the glass.

In time, the photo can stick to the glass, which means if you ever need to change the frame, half of the image will remain on the glass while the rest peels off in your hand.

Instead: use a cardboard matte.

You can keep the distance between the surface of the photograph and the glass. Plus the extra border can make your pictures more artistic and professional.

5. Don’t write on the photos in ink

It might seem obvious, but writing on a photo in ink is a really destructive way to label a picture.

The ink will damage the photo over time, plus the labelling is irreversible and overlaps with the image.

The best way to label a photograph is to write on the back with a soft 2B pencil in the margins. Just remember to keep a light touch. Pushing too hard will mark the photo and score through to the other side.

6. Don’t try to repair old photos with tape

This goes back to our previous recommendation: Don’t use adhesives anywhere near the photographs you wish to archive.

If a photo is torn, just leave it the way it is and store it in a paper or clear plastic envelope.

Careful mounting will let you view the photo, without causing further damage.

7. Wash your hands

Kid with dirty hands

Photo credit: St0rmz

There is a reason museum curators use soft, white gloves when handling the exhibits. Oils from your skin can damage paper and photography.

Peanut butter and photos do not mix.

Pick up the photos by the edges and handle them as little as you can.

If you’re sharing the photos around at a social occasion with small children, take the opportunity to teach the young ones how to do the same.

In an upcoming post, we’ll talk about the best ways to preserve your family memories by scanning your photos digitally.

Until then – what tips do you have for looking after old photos? Let us know by leaving a comment.

Apr
13

By

Tapestry Receives Early Stage Commercialisation Grant

Category: Business, Our Journey, Startups 1 Comment

Very exciting news here at Tapestry Central: we’ve just received a significant Early Stage Commercialisation grant from Commercialisation Australia, designed to help us extend Tapestry to the iPad, iPhone and Android phones, build in community, care and communication features to the platform, and help us expand internationally. We can’t overstate how much of a positive impact this will have on the company in 2013, and is another example of the excellent government support available to startups in Australia.

While this is great news for Tapestry, we think it’s going to be great news for our users as well, as it means we’ll be expanding the capabilities of the platform in ways we would not have been able to do without the help from Commercialisation Australia. Stay tuned for upcoming announcements as we roll out the new features!

Mar
28

By

March media roundup

Category: Our Journey, Press 1 Comment

Andrew Dowling at a Tapestry field trial

Photo credit: Travis Baker

March has been a really exciting month for Tapestry.

The number of people using Tapestry is growing fast. We’ve added three new members to our development team.

And now the media is starting to pay attention too.

In case you missed it, here are a sample of the recent appearances of Tapestry in the press.

ITWire Logo

ITWire.com reported on how Tapestry simplifies the social media experience for older users.

Sydney Morning Herald Logo

In a Sydney Morning Herald article on Tapestry, Andrew Dowling talks about his long-term goals for expanding Tapestry to be a platform where seniors and their carers can get access to the services they need.

Download This Show podcast logo

Finally, Marc Fennell from the ABC featured Tapestry on the “Download This Show” podcast. Have a listen from the 21-minute mark.

We’re enthusiastic about what’s happening at Tapestry, and now the media is getting excited too.

Mar
25

By

Study shows seniors online are less lonely

Category: Seniors & Ageing, Technology 2 Comments

Woman on laptop

Photo credit: KimSanDiego

A new study from the University of Sydney has shown that use of social media measurably decreases loneliness in the elderly.

Professor Robert Steele is the chair of Health Informatics at Sydney University and his research looked at connecting older adults to Facebook, Skype and Twitter.

Speaking at an event as part of NSW Seniors Week, Professor Steele said that seniors were significantly less lonely after using social media for six months, based on the 20-point UCLA loneliness scale.

Along with the health benefits, the study also revealed some other interesting findings:

You don’t need much training

The study involved a group of people over the age of 65 undertaking just five and a half hours of training.

At first, that might seem like throwing people in the deep end, but surprisingly, even a relatively short amount of education produced significant results.

After the initial training sessions, many participants said they asked their friends and family for help when they got stuck.

Social media is easy to use

In another unexpected outcome, 65% of participants either agreed or strongly agreed that social media was “easy to use”.

While there was a small group of trial members who were initially unreceptive, the majority saw the benefits once they found their feet.

Older man smiling

Photo credit: mrzeon

Technology is affordable

At first, Professor Steele presumed that cost might be a barrier for older people taking up new technology. In fact, the reverse was found to be true.

Around 90% of the study subjects said they agreed or strongly agreed that the technology was affordable. Many citing the example that by using Skype they were actually saving money on their regular phone calls.

Additional benefits

Interestingly, most of the sample group reported that using social media would enable them to stay at home longer before requiring a move to an assisted-living facility, and the vast majority said they would continue using Facebook even after the six month trial period ended.

In Australia, where around half of the population over 65 years old doesn’t regularly access the internet, it’s really encouraging to see how relatively small amounts of training can yield great results.

For more information on the research conducted by Professor Steele and his department, you can visit the Health Informatics, Computation and Innovation Lab website.

Mar
19

By

Tapestry welcomes three new team members

Category: Business, Our Journey 5 Comments

March has already been a huge month for Tapestry.

The number of families joining Tapestry is steadily growing and now we’ve just added three new members to the Tapestry development team.

Phil Reither

Phil Reither – Front-End Developer

Phil Reither has three passions in life: rock climbing, cooking and the web. Being a Front-End Developer for Tapestry quenches one of these three. (Guess which one?)

While his specialty may be jQuery, Backbone and CSS3, for him it’s all about making beautiful interfaces that our Tapestry Families will love.

Originally Phil is from Austria, and we’re so glad that he’s moved all the way around the world just for us.

Kara Neely

Kara Neely – Interaction Designer

Kara Neely joins the Tapestry team as our Interaction Designer.

Before moving to Australia from Canada she worked for a crowd-sourced stock media site and various software development startups as a creative involved in the user interface design, marketing collateral design and digital communication design.

Kara is fresh from maternity leave with a passion for taking photos, collecting treasures and researching design trends in web, print, fashion and interior design.

Kara is currently working part-time; her other hours are spent creating new purées, baking finger foods, folding small clothes and playing peek-a-boo.

Phil Willis

Phil Willis – Business Development and Community Manager

Finally, Phil Willis has come aboard as our Business Development and Community Manager.

Despite starting his career in software development, he has worked in a number of different jobs, ranging from university lecturer, project manager and animator for feature films and videogames.

Like Kara, Phil is a new parent, but he does what he can to watch as many movies as possible. (Don’t get him started on the Oscars.)

He is a huge Philadelphia Eagles fan and finds it odd talking about himself in the third person.

Welcome to all our new starters: It’s so great to have them on board.

Mar
13

By

Improve your Facebook privacy

Category: Seniors & Ageing, Social Enterprise 3 Comments

Woman laughing

Photo credit: francisco_osorio

Our users tell us they love the privacy Tapestry provides.

If you’re using Facebook as well as Tapestry, you’ve probably seen the mainstream media stories about privacy on social media, which only increases the apprehension for new people joining in the fun.

However, most of these stories talk about the default privacy and security settings applied by Facebook, and don’t explain how you can make your experience safer.

So here are our recommendations for people concerned about their privacy online.

Facebook basics

Never accept friend requests from anyone you don’t know

This seems simple and obvious but worth repeating.

Sharing posts and photos with your Facebook friends, can also unwittingly provide access to your posts and photos to any of their friends.

We’ll talk more about how you can prevent this, but the best way to protect yourself is to only accept people into your friends list that you know and trust.

Always log out of your account

If you don’t manually log out of Facebook, anyone using the computer after you can access your account.

Remember: Closing your browser will not log you out.

This is essential when using a computer that is not yours, but also highly recommended for your personal computer.

Computer keyboard

Photo credit: tamburix

Use a secure password

You need a secure password for any account you have on the internet. Not just Facebook.

There is a lot of information available on the internet on what makes a secure password, but in short it should be at least 6 characters, should contain letters and numbers and should not be something that is easily memorizable.

Don’t use the names of children, pets, places you have lived or your favorite sports team. You should also change your password regularly and it’s best not to use the same password for more than one account.

Facebook settings

Facebook menu privacy settings

At any point, you can adjust your specific Facebook privacy settings by clicking the gear button in the top right of your Facebook page and selecting Privacy Settings.

Facebook side menus

Once you see the Privacy Settings and Tools page, we’ll take you through the three most important items in the side menu: Security, Privacy, Timeline and Tagging.

These are the settings we recommend that anyone who is concerned with Facebook privacy:

Security

Secure Browsing – Enabled
This means that any time you use Facebook all data sent over the internet will be encrypted and secure from anyone that might be trying to spy on your data.

Login approvals – Enabled (Optional)
Enabling this will mean that anytime you log into Facebook using a browser you have not used before you will need to provide a secure code that will be sent by SMS to your phone.

This might sound a little over-the-top, and people inexperienced with technology may find this difficult to do. However, if you only ever access Facebook from your computer this is a great way to ensure nobody else can use your account even if they manage to get your password.

Privacy

Who can see my stuff – Friends

This setting controls who can view posts and photos you share on Facebook. If you really want very fine control, you can set this independently for each post, but most people will share with the default setting.

Who can look me up – Friends

This is the list of people who can look you up using the email address and phone number you provided when you signed up for Facebook.

Set this to friends and only those people you have already accepted as a Facebook friend can find you. This will prevent any pesky emails from people you don’t know.

Tagging and timeline

Your timeline is a historical record of your Facebook activity. It’s worth noting that other people can post to your timeline directly. You can change what appears in your timeline and who can post to it.

One of the great features of Facebook is the ability of people posting photos to identify the people in the photo by tagging them.

Restricting who can tag you in a photo, and asking for your permission to be tagged is a great way to control who sees photos of you: even if the photos were shared by someone else.

Here are our recommendations for the Tagging and Timeline privacy settings.

Facebook Timeline and Tagging settings

Facebook Timeline and Tagging settings

Notifications

Tags – Anyone

Finally, it’s best to be alerted whenever you are tagged in a photo.

Facebook changes their privacy options from time-to-time, so it’s worth checking your settings every so often.

How do you feel about your privacy online? Got a concern or a question?

Leave a comment and tell us about it.

Jan
18

By

Tapestry is Hiring Again!

Category: General Leave a Comment

Light bulbWe’re super-excited to announce that we’re hiring again, this time for a Senior Web Developer. This is no ordinary role, however … which means (of course) that we’re looking for no ordinary person.

In fact, we think it really needs to be called something like Startup Hacker & Creator of Interesting Things in recognition of the breadth of the role and the startup-oriented mindset we’re looking for.

We’ll be advertising the position via a couple of selected outlets over the coming weeks, but we’re more interested in finding the right person than rushing to fill the role. If we have to wait to find the perfect candidate, we will. Even if you’re not looking for a new position right now, if you think the job description below sounds interesting, think you’ve got what it takes and would like to hear more, then let’s chat.

Of course, if you think you fit the role and are keen to apply, we’d encourage you to do so as soon as you can — opportunities like this don’t come along very often so you don’t want to miss out! You can apply on our jobs board at www.tapestry.net/jobs.

Finally, please help us spread the word and tweet / share this post with your networks. You could be helping someone you know find the job of their dreams!

 

 

Senior Web Developer

(a.k.a. Startup Hacker & Creator of Interesting Things)

“Why do you guys always seem so happy?”
Tapestry’s local barista.

Make a positive difference to the world.

Tapestry is a small startup with the grand vision of transforming the way social aged care services are delivered to the fastest-growing but most neglected part of society worldwide, improving the quality of life for millions of seniors and their families all over the world.

We’ve been featured in TechCrunch, BRW, Sky News and more.

We’ve won a national innovation award for the impact we’re having on people’s lives.

And now we’re looking for a talented web developer to join our team and be part of our next stage of growth.

Be a driver, not a passenger

We love what we do, so we want you to love your work too.

Candidates for this role need to love everything about building web applications: writing lean, efficient, robust and scalable code; driving themselves and those around them to adopt best software practices; automating anything that moves; constantly learning, constantly building.

But they must also want to be more than just an everyday software boffin: they have to want to be part of a startup growth journey in which they’re not just a passenger, they’re part of the team that’s driving the bus.

If you’re looking for an opportunity to take control of your own destiny, work on a great product with a fantastic team, and make a positive difference to the world, read on.

About the role

There is a reason we didn’t give this job posting the title “Senior Ruby on Rails Developer”: we’re looking for someone who doesn’t define themselves by one technology alone.

Tapestry is a start-up, which means that everyone on the team wears multiple hats. Our web stack is Ruby on Rails + Backbone.js so we’re looking for a RoR gun, but you’ll also need to have a broad set of skills and be prepared to use them. This also means you can expect a wide variety of work along with a massive amount of freedom to learn and grow.

As the latest member of our small but talented engineering team, you will play a key role in defining and building our technologies. We’re looking for a generalist who enjoys rapidly learning and working with different technologies. Your scope will be broad with an emphasis on server-side Ruby on Rails development, but you’ll be expected to be pretty handy with front-end development when required on occasion too. You will be developing server-side data integration functionality, web applications, mobile app support, APIs, Facebook integration and more.

Requirements

To be eligible for this role you must have:

  • 4+ years software development experience
  • 2+ years developing production Ruby on Rails web applications
  • JavaScript / JQuery skills
  • Knowledge of HTML & CSS
  • Experience working with testing frameworks such as rspec, cucumber, capybara, jasmine and selenium
  • Experience deploying, running and scaling a production web system
  • Familiarity with the agile development process
  • Strong desire to work with a small team to transform an industry
  • A fun, relaxed and engaging personality

Extra bonus points for:

  • Startup experience
  • Experience with backbone.js, node.js, Android or iOS development
  • Great written communication skills
  • A love of coffee

Need more convincing?

Yes, we know that really awesome Rails hackers are in demand. So why should you join us over that sexy social-local / group-buying / gamified-mobile-app startup you’re considering?

  • We care deeply about our team: https://www.tapestry.net/jobs/ 
  • We’ve got a fast-paced environment with no bureaucracy
  • We offer a competitive compensation package with a significant chunk of equity
  • We’re obsessed with hiring only the best of the best; you won’t ever have to deal with incompetency
  • We work with leading edge technologies
  • We’re making a positive difference to the world. (Yes, we know we’ve said this already, but it’s worth saying again. There are enough startups out there inventing ways to help advertisers get eyeballs, companies sell products or banks make money. If you’re going to do anything, do something worthwhile.)

If you’d like to apply for this role please apply here.

 

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