PC Doctor September 8, 2011
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Dear PC Doctor,
This isn't exactly a computer question, but I was wondering if there was a way to somehow back up my texts from my Android phone to my computer. I had to factory reset my phone because of a bug the other day and I lost all the texts I had received before then. I don't want that to happen again. Is there an app or way to download them to upload to my computer?
Christie
Dear Christie,
Yes, there is a way to back up your texts from your Android phone. There's a few apps in the Android Market that allow you to back up your texts to your Gmail account, therefore eliminating the need to upload the texts to your computer. They'll always be available whenever you log into your Gmail account from any computer! I use the SMS Backup+ application that you can find by searching for it online at market.android.com or by going to the Market on your Android phone. The application will even backup your MMS texts not just SMS, which I find to be a big plus.
To set the app up, download it to your phone. Next, log into your Gmail account on your computer and in your settings enable the IMAP options under “Forwarding and POP/IMAP” and press Save. In the app on your phone, log in with your Gmail credentials and grant permission for the app. Hit the backup button and let the app do its job. If you have a lot of texts, it might take a while. You might want to set up a schedule for SMS Backup+ to automatically backup your texts. All of your texts will be backed up in Gmail under a label named “SMS”.
Enjoy! If the occasion arises, you can restore your texts back to your phone by using the Restore option.
PC Doctor
Dear PC Doctor,
I have a new iPad 2 that works really well... except when I try to sync it to iTunes on my Mac. My iTunes is set up with English as my language, but the iPad name and information in iTunes shows up in another language. I'm still able to sync my iPad, but the non-English just bothers me a little because I can't understand it. Is there a way to fix this?
Tony
Dear Tony,
My experience with iPads is limited, but I've used iTunes quite a bit. I'm pretty sure it's something to do with iTunes. I'd first try updating iTunes. If that doesn't work, make sure the Language settings on your Mac aren't interfering. Click on the Apple logo in the top left of your menu bar. Click on System Preferences, then International. Click on the Language tab and click on the Edit List button. Uncheck every language on the list except for English. Exit out of System Preferences and plug in your iPad.
Hope that works for you!
PC Doctor
Until next time... happy computing!
