Tech Teach - May 2022

Tech Teach – May 2022

You got a Tablet, SmartPhone!  What now?

                Congratulations on your new mobile device.  What a wonder you hold in your hand.  With a tablet, you can check your email, search the web for information, read books, and so much more.  If you got a smartphone, you can make phone calls and send text messages (which might include attaching a photo).

                But there’s so much more you can do.  With an Android or Apple device, and the options from Amazon’s Kindle line, you download and install various apps (short for applications, small, mostly simple programs).

                With the Google Play Store and the Apple App Store, you can search for various types of apps.

                Including, but not limited to: streaming audio and video, content creation, games, scanner radio, emergency, science, weather info, and more.

                The majority of apps are free, some have in-app charges, others have upfront costs.  They are usually very reasonable, being about a dollar.

                For an Apple device, you may have to give the App Store your Apple ID / iCloud account password.  Google Play Store has no restriction that I’m aware of, but will ask for payment information, like a credit card.  You can tap to skip this.

                Any of the apps mentioned below can be searched for by tapping the magnifying glass icon (usually at the top right) and typing the name _or_ you can tap the microphone and just speak the name aloud in a normal voice.  Trust me, it’ll hear you.

                These apps can be organized by type.  A long press and hold, then you can drag the app icon off the screen and to the right to a “new” screen.

 For example, I have screens with all my audio apps: Radio stations (KVEC, KUSC), Zoom (free video calling), FM radio, Scanner Radio, Spotify (free music), iHeartRadio (more free radio statons), TuneIn Radio (again more free radio stations), InTo Tomorrow (long running show on computers and technology), BBC News.

Then a screen with video apps:  Pluto TV, Plex, YouTube, Peacock (NBC Network’s streaming app), Tubi, DISH Anywhere (if you have DISH Network), VLC (for watching downloaded videos), and various TV stations with apps, such as: KTLA, KABC, KNBC, KCBS, and FOX 11 LA.

Finally, a third screen with other apps.  There’s an app for Domino’s (you can order pizza right from your smart device!), a giant stopwatch (so I can read the numbers!), an app to test my internet speed, and the apps that came with my Lenovo table.

You can organize your apps by doing the long hold and drag, and then dropping like apps on each other to create a folder, then give that folder a name.  Just like in Windows.  These folders can moved around the same way. (Some systems even offer different colors to help make the folders different.)

On my main screen, sometimes call the Home screen, I have folders for Productivity (things like Google Docs and Polaris Office), Science (NASA, Stellarium, Zooniverse, Sky Tonight, and a Calculator).

You can even, should you feel that it’s okay, your banking from your phone or tablet.  Talk to your financial institution if this is an option for your needs.

One of the best things I even did with any of my tablets was get the Kindle app.  With your Amazon account, you can buy books and read those just about anywhere.  Your current book will be downloaded to your device.  Others will be downloaded as needed.  There are thousands of free books.  My favorites are the MegaPack books.  Out of print novellas and short stories packed up into anthologies for 99 cents.  Which makes it nice to be able to read science fiction stories I’d otherwise never see.

The only problem comes with older devices that run an out of date version of Android or iOS.  The app will let you know when you download it.  Sometimes, the Apple App Store will ask if you are okay with downloading an older version.  In most cases, apps that won’t need personal info (like a streaming audio app), would be okay.

This is far from a comprehensive list of the thousands upon thousands of apps out there.

Just from Google, there are apps for email, contacts, writing, maps, storing data, photos, web browser, and more.  You can keep in touch with people not just by making a phone call or sending a text, but by using Zoom, Skype, Discord, Twitch Twitter, Facebook.  And then the games: from casual games like Candy Crush Saga and Energy, to space ships and racing car games.  The possibilities are endless.

Plus, your device has a camera.  And if it’s less than three or four years old, or it’s an Apple device, it’s probably a pretty good one.  Just tap the Camera icon, then tap the shutter icon.  Depending on the camera, you might need to hold still, or hold on the subject for a second or two.  The default should be the highest resolution, but if the device is short on storage (8 or 16GBs), or you have a “real” camera, you might want to reduce the resolution in the settings.  Settings vary from operating system and even devices, you might need to press buttons to find the setting to change resolution.  If you end up somewhere you don’t recognize, just hit the HOME button and start over.

Also, there are apps that offer more options to increase the functionality of your camera.  A couple that I’ve tried, and haven’t uninstalled, is CameraMX and Pixtica.  They do have some in-app purchases.  Mostly, I just use the stock camera app and let that do its thing.