Sunday, October 13, 2019

A Digital Life

At our last meeting this semester we talk about iCloud - photos, files and history. And as you read on you will ask yourself "Who is she to butt into my personal life?" Someone who's been down this path.

Over the weekend, enjoying time to read favorite photographers websites and blogs I ran across Managing The Elderly's Numeric Life shared by Numeric Citizen Blog. He reminded me of the unwinding of my parent's digital life.

In updating my personal trust last year the attorney asked this question: "Who will review your digital life - your online accounts, archive the important content and close the accounts?"

I'm recommending that you take a proactive stance in tracking your digital life and think about when you designate powers of attorney for health care, finances, you also designate an overseer of digital assets. Providing a roadmap is easier on them than forcing them to be a digital archeologist.

How are you organizing and prioritizing your online life? What accounts do you have? What have you subscribed to? Photos - What do you want shared, saved, discarded? Have you had this conversation with family and friends? How might you approach tracking your digital life so you can hand it off to the right person? 

Saturday, October 12, 2019

Day 6 Review

Actually, because our last session, Monday, October 14th,  has not yet happened this is a Day 6 Preview just in time for Indigenous People's Day.

Apple Support has 180 videos on their YouTube Channel as of October 2019. Check it out. After a quick review, the longest video was less than 5 minutes. These videos will help you make the most of your technology investment. I'm watching "How to navigate iPad Pro with gestures" and learning things that will help me!

We suggested you download the free Apple User Guides for your iPhone and iPad. Maybe we should have suggested you read the guide before and following the topics presented. In my years as an educator of adults, the more contact we have with the content in both hands-on activities and in reading, practicing and sharing techniques with others - the more we retain. This website is our way of providing links to resources discussed in class. It will not go away. Practice finding the past semester topics here.

Topics requested:
iCloud is full - Help!
There are 4 videos on the Apple Support YouTube channel about iCloud. Watch the "How to upgrade and manage your iCloud Storage" video for hints. From May 2016, Christine McKee of AppleInsider detailed "How to free up space on your iPhone without deleting photos or apps." Beside to turn on Reader view in Safari for this link to hide distractions and ads.

Storage is reported in Gigabytes and Megabytes. It takes 1,014 MBs to make 1 GB. Some of our phones are 64 GB, minus the operating system, let's say 60 GB = 61,440 MB. My latest cat photo on iPhone X is 2.6 MBs in file size, another is 5 MBs.

Check out these areas where big files can be identified:
Send Mail with photo attachments > tap Images to Reduce attachment file size
Settings > Messages > Low Quality Image Mode > On
Settings > Apple ID > iCloud > Manage Storage is your key to finding the large files
Settings > Apple ID > iCloud > Manage Storage > Photos > Optimize device Storage
Settings > General > iPad Storage > ...
  • Offload Unused Apps > Enable 
  • Messages > Review Large Attachments 
  • Podcasts > Edit > to delete items 
  • Books > see GB used then open Books app to delete from device as needed 
iCloud backups include our data and content, not the original apps. Our Apple ID is our "library card" to checkout and install apps. We can delete apps and reinstall at any time using our Apple ID.

I've sent out email to participants with an iCloud PDF handout for class discussion, view and print.
Carol reminded me that iCloud is a euphemism and not cumulus reality. Apple's iCloud service really is several large data centers tied together over the Internet. They keep updating each other as we make changes so that a hurricane in North Carolina will not take out our (cat) photos because they are backed up in Oregon, California and Nevada.

Share photos from another iPhone - AirDrop (also Mail and Messages), The "Sharrow" as Muffy calls it displays the Share Sheet of options. The icon is a box with an arrow pointing out. Open Photos, change to Albums view, open the Recents or All Photos album, tap Select in the top right corner of the screen, tap on one or more thumbnail images to see a blue circle with checkmark, tap the Sharrow icon in the lower left corner. This Share Sheet looks different on iOS 13 compared to earlier versions of the operating system. You will see circles referencing your friends and square icons representing ways to share the selected photos. Go slow and look at all the buttons or words to touch. Apple is giving us better privacy protections. After installing iOS 13, in this photo share sheet is Options > for sharing Individual Photos or as an iCloud Link and the option to not show Location or All Photos Data (exposure info). Because of researching this info for our class, I have new topics to share with my iPhone Photo Studio seminar. ;-)

AirDrop works over Bluetooth when you are in the company of other Apple devices. You are in control of accepting photos and documents AirDropped to you. The easy way to activate AirDrop is through the Control Panel. The block of connectivity icons (Airplane Mode, Cellular, WiFi, and Bluetooth) has hidden options. Touch and hold in the middle of the 4 icons to reveal 6 options. Tap the blue AirDrop circle to see three options: Receiving Off, Contacts Only, Everyone. When you want to quickly share photos, change to Everyone to send and receive. This is where it is really helpful is people have NAMED THEIR PHONES so your can identify the receiver. Settings > General > About > Name. Then turn this setting back to Contacts Only. How will your share photos with Android phones or Windows computers?

Photos Search and Creating Photo Albums
There is powerful Artificial Intelligence in the palm of your hand. This AI is most visible in the Photos app where People & Places and Search come in to play. Once you take a photo of a person and identify by name, there will be options to Review additional photos and mark the same person. You want to identify family and friends - not everybody. Because your iPhone includes a GPS sensor, Places can open a map and indicate how many photos were taken in that location. Pinch to zoom in to see the locations break apart. Zoom in more. If you are not seeing photos on the location view, then your iPhone might not record the location because of your Location Services privacy setting. Check the User Guide for details and suggestions. Oh, if you save photos from friends to your Camera Roll then their locations might also show up.

Search is where AI shines. Also, where you want to practice your Siri requests! On the Search view, type a city, date, person (identified in People), or category. The category search is fun. Type one of these keywords: beach, cat, dog, horse, bird, museum, tractor, sunset ...

Albums are virtual collections of the photos in your Camera Roll / All Photos / Photos / iCloud Photos. Creating albums of photos does not duplicate the images or take up extra space on your device or in iCloud. You can create many albums. You can delete photos from albums without deleting the image from your Camera Roll. You can delete Albums without deleting photos from your Camera Roll.

Sometimes AI is a great starting place but you want to tell a story in photos and that means setting the order images are displayed. Hello! Make a new Album, give it an appropriate name and add photos. This is different in iOS 13 and previous operating systems! (You've heard that before.) I will describe the process using the current/13 iOS and ask you to read up on the process in your free User Guide. Use Search or the Photos tab to identify related images. Tap the Select button (top right) and tap on thumbnails to select one or more photos. Tap Add To (bottom middle) and tap New Album ... type the name for this album. Continue finding additional images for this album, Select > tap to checkmark > Add Too... tap Album Name. Rinse and repeat. To set the sequence of photos, open the Albums tab > tap the Album Name > tap Select and then touch and hold a photo to drag it into place. Repeat. Review your images to make sure your horizons are level and the best photos are included. If there are similar shots, remove the duplicates, Tap Select > tap duplicates to show checkmark > tap Trash Can icon > tap Remove from Album option.

Other options to explore are Shared Photo Albums and iCloud Links. Read your User Guide. Attend Today at Apple sessions. Connect with friends to experiment. Have fun learning new techniques!

Organizing Apps on Home Screens - Create Folders
Do you remember panicking when the icons on your iPad or iPhone began to wiggle? What did I do??? Get me outta here!

Whatever action you did discovered a gold mine and instead of digging deeper you ran away. Let's do it again, on purpose. Before you DELETE apps, add them to a folder and move the folder to a back Home Screen, out of the way but still available when you realize how key the (Apple) app is to other apps.

This is your device, customize the look and app layout on Home Screens to reflect how you interact with the device and apps.
  • Using iOS 13 at a Home Screen hold your finger on an app icon to see a pop-up menu with Share InsertAppNameHere and Rearrange Apps. Tap Rearrange Apps to see them begin to wiggle. You will also see a circle with X, indicating you can delete the app. Hold off on deleting for now. 
  • Using iOS 12 at a Home Screen hold your finger on an app to see the wiggle begin. There are (X) bubbles indicating the app can be deleted. Hold off on deleting for now. 
Organize apps! Let the wiggle begin and now you can make the first Home Screen more relevant by placing the apps you use most often on this screen. Touch and hold on a wiggling app icon then move it up to the top right corner where other icons are pushed out of the way. Release your finder. Yeah! Touch and hold on a wiggling app icon then move it to the right edge of the screen and the second Home Screen appears. Release your finger.

Make app folders! While your apps are wiggling you can create a folder of associated apps. Or apps you don't use. Identify two apps. Move them to the same Home Screen. Drag one wiggling app over the top of another app and pause. App-up screen appears with a proposed name and both app icons float there, touch the title to rename your folder, touch off the box to finish this action. Add more apps to a folder by starting the wiggle again and drag the icon into a folder. Drag the folder to the right edge to move it to another Home Screen.
  • If you want easy access to several apps from every Home Screen, make a folder and move the folder to the Dock. iPhones can have 4 icons in the Dock, iPad can have more.
  • You can touch and hold a folder name to rename it.
  • You can drag wiggling app icons out of a folder and move them around on the Home Screen or into a different folder. 
  • Apps in folders can be hard to find. Use Search instead, swipe down between app icons to bring up search. Type the app name. Or use Siri to "Open Calendar." 
Cut, Copy and Paste 
In my world, the Clipboard is magical. When we select text there will be an option to Cut or Copy what is selected. Then we can tap to position the cursor in another part of the document and tap to see the menu with Paste. The Cut or Copy action moves the selection to the Clipboard. You can Paste the same text over and over. The text stays on the Clipboard until the next Cut or Copy.



Saturday, October 5, 2019

Day #5 Review

Jennifer introduces Messages and Maps. Magic Monday!

In class notes below. Read, check against your notes and read the Maps and Messages chapters in the User Guides so you'll have questions. Or search YouTube for hints.

Messages are how we communicate with the younger generation and grandchildren. Once you get the hang of it you will use Message to communicate with your peers too.

There are three colors of message bubbles, Blue, Green and Gray. You send Blue messages to other Apple device users and Green messages to Android & Windows users. The Gray messages are their replies. Apple-to-Apple messages are free and encrypted. Green messages are part of your cellular service and data plan.

Settings > Messages > iMessage ON; Send & Receive from phone and email (for iPad); Share Name and Photos > contacts or pix, name; Text Message Forwarding > to laptop and Mac computer; Send as SMS ON (for non Apple users); Group Messaging ON; Filter Unknown Senders ON maybe; Keep Messages > set timeframe; Audio Messages  >Raise to Listen ON; Low Quality Image Mode ON if your iPhone has limited storage

Messages - Send a new message, TO box searches your Contacts list. In body field, type message, press Blue Arrow button to send. Or view Contacts and find the name then choose Message at Contact Card. Siri can send message to a known Contact. Confirm delivery by swiping right-to-left. Your message bubble is blue color, the recipient bubble is gray.

Send text, photos, audio, emojis video clips, links, contact cards, etc.

Message Can’t Be Sent - you will see a notification “Not Delivered” > Try Again

Emojis - Tap Word icon to add faces or cartoons.

Quick reply to tap on message bubble to see little icons: heart, thumb up, thumb down, Ha Ah, !!, ?  ALSO MENU options of Copy Speak More ... to see Delete or Share options.

Delete all of one conversation at Message list screen. Swipe right to left to see delete.

Send audio recording in a message. Listen to message before sending and re-record if you can do better.

FUN THINGS - MAGIC
Delete all of one conversation at Message list screen. Swipe right to left to see delete. 
Send audio recording in a message. Listen to message before sending and re-record if you can do better. 

Tap in Message field - bubble in the screen effects tap and HOLD the blue arrow button then look at screen for two options: Bubble or Screen at the top then along the right side other options show up - touch options to preview effect and press blue arrow to send. 

Two ways to send photos to people. ONE In Messages > press the (A) then tap rainbow flower Photo library icon then tap a photo and add text. Tap Up Arrow button to send. TWO Tap camera icon to take a picture to send.

Open YouTube app and find Share option to send a link to a video to friends using Messages.

Turn phone sideways to see the option for handwritten notes.

Newer iPhones with facial recognition - can do Animoji with different animals. Monkey icon shows all the animals. Make your own Memoji of my facial characteristics. 

Make your own Memoji of my facial characteristics.

APPLE MAPS - might not be as good as Google Maps but is always getting better. Icon is a mapa.
Settings > Privacy > Location Services > ON 

Block Unknown Callers - iOS 13.x
Settings > Phone > scroll down > Silence Unknown Callers - auto send to voicemail, and will show in Recents or Voicemail; anyone from Contacts will ring, recent calls 




We don't cover every app in class

How do you learn about other apps on your devices? Attend MacNexus workshops on the first Saturday of the month. Attend Today at Apple sessions in a nearby store. Watch online videos. Read books about the apps.

Free Books from Apple:
Word processing and page layout (a la Microsoft Word and Adobe In-Design)
Presentations (a la Microsoft Powerpoint)
Spreadsheets and Budgeting (a la Microsoft Excel)

Use the Apple Store app to find Today at Apple activities for the week ahead or read about Product Skills sessions online.

YouTube hosts many tutorial videos, use the search option for "apple pages on ipad" for example to see a long list of Apple Pages on iPad tutorials. Modify your search to "apple keynote tutorials on ipad" and see the long list of Keynote tutorials. Change your search again to "apple numbers tutorials on ipad" to see the Numbers tutorials for iPad. Many of these tutorials will tell you what you need to know for iPhone as well. But just modify the search terms and swap out iPad for iPhone or Mac depending on the device you are using. Remember you want to match the tutorial to the version of your operating system and device.

Other free-access video sources exist for tutorials as well, but I found YouTube to be most helpful.

ScreenCasts Online created by Don McCallister is a monthly or annual subscription. There is an offer of 7-days free before you are charged. The video tutorials are downloadable. Consider the $8/month option if you are starting a project and want to brush up on the latest apps.

Video tutorials are a great way to learn. The option to PAUSE the presentation and try the techniques are very helpful. The REWIND feature too. Using a computer to view the tutorial while using your iPad or iPhone is also helpful.

Don't have a computer? You can go the your local public library and watch videos on their computers with audio headphones and use your iPad or iPhone with the techniques presented.

Or, if you are a solo learner, look at the templates for each app and dive right in.




Have you deleted apps?

The apps we are covering in this seminar were provided on your device at time of purchase. These Apple apps are critical and interconnected with each other and the operating system. If you do not want apps cluttering up your Home Screen, then collect them in a folder. If you have deleted these apps, then use the App Store app to download again.

An example of how apps are interconnected: make a Contact card for a friend with phone number, address and email, add a photo of that person using the Camera app. Create a Calendar event "Lunch at Panera Bread on Sunrise and Greenback" and invite your friend to the event using her email address. Because the address is on the event, tap it to open the Maps app to show you driving directions and travel time. See the menu for Panera by reviewing the details shown in Maps and open their web page in Safari. When your friend gets the invitation in Mail, she can create or add your contact info to her Contacts.

Please read the free Apple User Guide for your device, especially the Accessibility chapter.

Books
Calendar
Clock
Contacts
Mail
Maps
Messages
Notes
Reminders
Camera
Photos
Phone
Safari
Music
Weather

Tips
Apple Support
Find My iPhone or Find My
FaceTime
Calculator

Health
Activity
Wallet
Voice Memo
Watch

Productivity apps
Keynote
Pages
Numbers
Shortcuts

Less used apps
iMovie
Podcasts
Stocks
GarageBand
Home
Compass
News
Clips
Measure
Carpenter

Day #4 Review

Carol covered Notes and Reminders along with other related topics.

Remember the Radio Shack ad? All the items on sale added up to $799 - making our choice of an iPhone a great deal because we have all those features and can purchase additional apps at low cost.

Read the User Guide chapters and then play with these native apps... these overlooked apps.

Our journey with Notes begins with Settings > Notes > Default is iCloud. Settings > Notes > Sort Notes by > Date Editing. Settings > Notes > New Notes Start > Title.

Beware of settings a password on Settings > Notes because there is no backing out. This could be set after you have used the app and are keeping sensitive information there.

Open the Notes app and touch all the buttons. Experiment. Carol showed us her Travel Prep note listing with buttons to turn on off as items are packed. Notes can be organized into folders. If you want to see Notes on both iPad and iPhone, be sure you are saving them under iCloud.

From the Home Screen swipe left to right until you get to the Today View. Information is displayed on this screen view in Widgets. Many new apps you purchase can include a widget. To personalize your Today View, swipe up until you see the Edit button. The top segment of this list has red (-) markers and on the right edge 3-lines indicating you can re-order the list. If you do not want a widget on your screen, touch the red marker to move it to the hidden options. The bottom segment of this list are widgets not yet visible in the normal mode. Touch the green (+) mark to add the widget for your favorite apps. When you finish, tap the Done button at the top edge of your screen to dismiss the edit view.

The Reminders app is a fancy to-do list that is smarter than your average bear. You can set reminders based on time or location. This is a great time to practice with Siri - your personal assistant. You will want to create a Contact card for yourself and add the names (contact cards) for people you want to connect with. Then invoke Siri and say "Remind me to call my sister when I get home." My orange tree would like me to set a reminder to fertilize in February, April and September.

Working with anyone is a matter of appreciating each other's strengths. A little appropriate humor goes along way. Your personal assistant, Siri, is the same - it takes practice. Read what Apple tell you about Siri. Doesn't hurt to search for clues, tips and Siri jokes. Don't confuse Siri with Dictation, although you use voice commands for both services.

Search from Home Screen to find Notes, Pages documents, Mail messages and Calendar items.

You will find that re-reading the User Guide will help you measure what you know, what you've learned and what you want to know about effectively using your iPhone and iPad.

The Control Panel is another way to access a few features or apps. Add the Timer, Flashlight, Magnifier and Voice Memo apps.

Remember to practice gestures and touch controls. Tap, swipe, touch and hold, pinch ...  and more.

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

Day #3 Review

Camera and Photos apps.

Turn on the Grid for taking pictures. Open Settings > Camera > Grid > ON.
Now the Grid is visible when using the Camera, align the horizon or straight lines to a grid line. The grid lines will not be recorded with the photo.

A fun thing to do with photos is to set your device Wallpaper for the Lock Screen or Home Screens. In Settings > Wallpaper > Choose a New Wallpaper > ... choose from Apple images or from your albums.

Photos can easily take up both device storage space or iCloud storage space. Keep track of both --
Settings > General > About > Capacity and  > Available
Settings > Apple ID > iCloud > Manage Storage used GB of subscribed GB storage plan

Review the User Guide chapter on Camera to see what the buttons do. Naw, just press every button to explore the options! If a button color is yellow then that function is active/on. Review your screen to be sure your Flash and Live buttons are white, or turned off. Another button is the Timer, when active it will delay the exposure and take several images as a Burst.

Don't let the camera make the decisions for you! Open the camera, set landscape or portrait orientation then touch the screen to set the focus on your subject. You will see a yellow box appear with a sun icon. Slide your finger up or down the screen to change the exposure. Yea! You are in control.

Another type of image that is soooo helpful in using your iPhone and iPad is taking a Screen Snapshot, a picture of what you see on screen. This varies by device model, but usually entails touching two buttons at the same exact moment, the Wake and Home buttons or on iPhone X the Volume Down and the Wake button. Practice searching the web using Safari and type your question like this "make a screen snapshot on ipad"

After you take a picture it will appear in the Photos app. Again, touch every button to see what they do. Read the Photos chapter in the User Guide. Photos has different views that might take practice to master. A powerful feature in Photos is to Search by location or date or subject. An example of search using Artificial Intelligence is to type "cat" or "dog" in the search field. How about "beach" or "flower" for additional practice.

The Albums view in Photos includes automatic albums and custom albums that you make. There are many things to see here, Swipe from right to left and from bottom to top to see more. Some automatic albums are listed as text (iOS 12 & 13). Look at the number associated with Bursts, Live, Video and Snapshots. Important here is the Recently Deleted album. Photos deleted remain in this album for 30 days and then they disappear forever.

Monday, September 23, 2019

Best time NOT to update iOS

Just last week the iPhone OS 13 update was available. Did you update? What lessons can be shared about when is NOT the best time to update your mobile device or computer?

Lessons learned from school of hard knocks:
  • when you have limited time to see the process through
  • when you are in the middle of an important project
  • when your favorite app will not work on the next iOS
  • when you are on public wifi 
I remember a peer pressure reference while skiing on Mammoth Mountain. At the top cornice there was a sign that read "When your friends say 'Go!' have the courage to say 'No!'"

Just because others you know have updated, doesn't mean right now is the time for you to update. It will always take longer and require user attention from time-to-time.

Day #3 Topic - Camera and Photos apps

We will use the Camera app to take photos, use the Photos app to make basic edits, save photos from email messages and share photos using email or text messages.

Remember, we are not using WiFi at the Library. So your iPhone can send a photo from class, but your iPad might prepare an email with a photo and send once you get back home to your personal wifi.

Why do you take pictures? To remember family get togethers; to document events ... for art. 

Day #2 Review

Contacts and Calendars were the topics covered. Read the chapters in the User Guide and play with these apps.

Contacts tips: 
Add information in designated fields. Use the Company field to keep track of associations --
RS iPhone or book group or potluck and then the Search feature will help you find your connections.

Calendar tips:
On an iPhone, rotate the phone to landscape/sideways to see the Week At A Glance view. Toggle the Holidays calendar off to show fewer events.

Thursday, September 19, 2019

Beware Phishing Scams

Apple Support has a Twitter account and recently they posted a short video on Phishing Scams. Check it out! Beware of suspicious emails and texts. Watch our video to learn about phishing and how to avoid these types of scams

Friday, September 13, 2019

Day 1 Review - Part 1

 iOS Basics Class 
Seminar leaders are volunteers, not experts

We had a good start for iOS Basics. I just prepared an email that was upbeat and friendly and also informative. But somehow in moving from my laptop to my iPad it vanished! I’m ready to cry. But I have some follow-up information from our first meeting to share. This will be sparse but hopefully helpful.
Our iPhone only participants might feel left out, at least on the first session where I demonstrated all things from my iPad. But there are places you can get additional information and go at your own pace. Here’s my beginning list:

One question asked in class was about undoing junk status in email. I wonder how we could make a Google search on this topic question. Open Safari and type in the search field at the top: "how to undo junk mail on ipad" 
When looking at search results for iOS questions, here are some websites with good information: 

Best answer but old iOS - https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT202315
Correct false-positives: 
Filtering out junk mail can block a legitimate email from reaching your inbox. This is called a false-positive. If you feel that a legitimate email message was accidentally filtered, you can mark it as not junk sothat any future messages from the same sender go to your inbox:
On your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch with iOS 7or later, open the message in the Junk folder, tapthe folder icon at the bottom, then tap Inbox to move the message.
Again, read the User Guide for your device and version of the operating system

Day 1 Review - part 2

One activity promoted last Monday was to name your device. Do you remember the steps? Can you find the instructions in the User Guide? Can you practice a Google Search for the answer? There is a shorthand for writing step-by-step instructions for iOS. In reading the Google search results I found this quick reference to where you change the name of your device: Settings > General > About > Name 

Another question from Monday’s get together, “If I change the name of my iPhone do I need to reconnect to my car radio? “ How might you write a Google search question for that answer? Sometimes you just dive in and try something new to see what happens. So I changed the name of my iPhone, went out to my car and turned on the radio and as usual it played the radio and then it said "Connected to the phone." Success! I did notice that the navigation/radio screen reported that my iPhone name did not change. To me this indicates that the Bluetooth antenna ID is really what connected to the radio, not by the name. My car is a 2013 Honda and it does not have Apple CarPlay but I suspect you would get the same results. Report back if if take the leap to change the name of your phone and if the radio stays connected. 

Why change the name of your iOS device? Because of AirDrop! A great way to share via Bluetooth. Read about AirDrop in the User Guide. 

Saturday, September 7, 2019

Get Ready for Class

Greetings! Welcome to iOS Basics for iPad and iPhone 

Do not expect to use wifi in the library meeting room - same advise for on-campus tech seminars too. Why? Because so many devices trying to go online is like leaving the office at 5 pm and waiting at the freeway onramp for all the other cars to clear the intersection for you. (It hurts when I use "Back in the Days When We Worked" metaphors.)

But I have homework for you before class begins that requires using your home wifi.

Please download the User Guide for your devices. Scroll down to see previous posts for direct links.

Two other suggestions with video tutorials:
Now - make this website a shortcut on your Home Screen. It is your lifeline for questions and updates from class! 


TEB. Touch. Every. Button. You can't break your device by touching app icons or the buttons for volume, wake or Home. Explore. Practice gestures like swipe right to left with one finger, swipe down with two fingers, tap an icon, touch and hold an icon. There are so many more! (Watch a child use an iPad or iPhone to see how natural it is for them to touch, tap and swipe.)

Our class will have challenges when so many people attend with so many devices. We anticipate that some participants will come with just an iPad or iPhone, but some will bring both devices. We might ask the audience to sit in groups by the device they are using. That way the class helper is talking to the same users.

One of the best ways to learn tech is to repeat the lesson from today. Repeat it for yourself and find a friend to share your new skills by repeating the lesson.

User Guides - online edition

Just in case you want to view the user guides in Safari instead of downloading then into the Books app, here are the current links:

Remember, we are expecting iOS 13 to be released and FREE TO DOWNLOAD later in September.

Other references from Apple include



Wednesday, September 4, 2019

Free books by Apple - User Guides

Get your free user guides to have as reference on your mobile devices. Books is an app on your iOS device. Even though these guides are free, you will need to know your AppleID and password.

Touch any link above and a new window opens. Follow these steps:

  1. Touch the [View in Apple Books] link 
  2. Sign in with your Apple ID and password 
  3. Touch the [Get] link to begin the download process 
  4. (Free items pop up - Save) 
  5. Scroll through your Home Screens to find Books
  6. Touch Books to open it 

Read more about Books from the Apple Support team.

If you are not using iOS 12.x there are other user guides to match your version of the operating system.


Apple Support Resources:
Setup a new iPhone  - this happened so fast in the store or in the hands of a friend. Review the setup steps anytime.
Apple Support is also on YouTube with videos. Watch iPhone Support videos on demand.

Setup a new iPad -
Watch iPad Support videos on demand.

Coming in September - iPadOS read about new features compatible with
  • 12.9-inch iPad Pro
  • 11-inch iPad Pro
  • 10.5-inch iPad Pro
  • 9.7-inch iPad Pro
  • iPad (6th generation)
  • iPad (5th generation)
  • iPad mini (5th generation)
  • iPad mini 4
  • iPad Air (3rd generation)
  • iPad Air 2
Checkout this iPad video for beginners by Computer Care Clinic posted in December 2016. So Noah is not using the latest iOS. 

Friday, August 16, 2019

New, New & New: Location, Format and Dates

Fall 2019 Semester - Registration will be online

Rancho Cordova Library, 9845 Folsom Blvd., Sacramento
1:00 - 4:00 pm 
Six Mondays: Sept 9, 16, 23, 30, Oct 7, 14

This seminar always throws new things at you and this semester we were asked to teach off-campus. 

In this seminar you will learn iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch basics. Using a team approach to teaching, we will present the features that take advantage of your devices: Settings, Control Center, Notifications, Contacts, Calendar, Safari, Notes, Maps, Photos, Clips, iMovie, Health and Email. This seminar is for beginners or anyone wanting to improve their Apple skills. Participants will need to know their Apple ID and password. This seminar runs the whole semester. For additional information visit https://rsiosbasics.blogspot.com.

Participants will want to check your email and this website weekly for lesson reviews and links to resources. 

Team presenters and consultants: Carol Dabrowiak, Melissa Green, Jennifer Kerr, Muffy Franke, Tom Holt, Barbara Beddow, Carla Young.

The best way to learn about technology is to coach others. Join our team and do a deep dive into the features that you use most often. Make social connections and learn the language of technology. Share your discoveries with others. 

Wednesday, July 31, 2019

Dramatic Changes Coming - Fall 2019

As you know, the Renaissance Society is a guest of Sacramento State University and our seminars are offered when classrooms are available. The university is offering more classes to help students graduate in four years and that has reduced the number of available rooms on Fridays.

The iOS Basics team is looking at options for the Fall semester. Stay tuned!

Wednesday, June 5, 2019

iPhone and iPad Basics - full semester

Submitted June 1, 2019
Fall 2019 Semester - Registration will be online

9:30 - 11:00 am
In this seminar you will learn the basics of iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch and more. Using a team approach to teaching, we will present the features you need to know to take advantage of your devices: Settings, Control Center, Notifications, Contacts, Calendar, Safari, Notes, Maps, Photos, Clips, iMovie, Health and Email. This seminar is for beginners or anyone wanting to improve their Apple skills. Participants will need to know their Apple ID and password. This seminar runs the whole semester. For additional information visit https://rsiosbasics.blogspot.com.

We will not use, demonstrate or troubleshoot campus wifi access. Participants will want to check your email and this website weekly for lesson reviews and links to resources.

Team presenters: Carol Dabrowiak, Melissa Green, Jennifer Kerr, Muffy Franke, Tom Holt, Barbara Beddow, Carla Young

Thursday, May 9, 2019

Fall Semester 2019 details coming soon.

Watch this space ...

Get Ready Now!

Apps & Resources

Sac Public Library
  • Use your public library card to see classes offered at Lynda.com - open in Safari or use the Lynda app. See your local library for summer support.
  • Get the Libby app to read books or listen to audiobooks - free from the library!
See you soon!

Saturday, February 23, 2019

Ah Ha Moments

Fingerprint & Buying Free books or apps

We discussed how the Fingerprint reading on the Home button sometimes works and ... often does not. To unlock your phone if the sensor does not read your finger or thumb print then you are given the opportunity to tap in your passcode.

But what about in the Book Store or the App Store? Even free books require your fingerprint to finish the acquisition. How can you get the FREE iPad User Guide if the phone does not react to your fingers? No pop-up for the passcode or password.

First, get the password for your AppleID.

Go to Settings > Touch ID & Passcode. At the prompt type in your device passcode to see the options. The first block controls the Touch features. If the iTunes & App Store toggle is green, tap to turn it off.  Now go the the Books app, go to the Store and tap Search to open that screen. Your previous searches might be listed, or in the search field type iPad User Guide. Tap the cover for the current operating system. Tap the Get button (free books have "Get"). At the first prompt confirm your account username (formatted as an email address) and tap the Get button. On the second prompt, type your Apple ID password (not the device passcode). The download should begin automatically. [These instructions may not fit your situation exactly. Take notes on what you see on screen and the Home button presses it takes to get to the point where you type your Apple ID password.]

Sign In to iTunes Store prompt asks for your Apple ID password. Type it and tap OK button.


For questions that we can't answer in class, visit the Sac State Bookstore and the Apple Geek that works there. That could be a step before going to the Apple Store.

Other topics?

Friday, February 22, 2019

Day 4 Review - Camera & Photos

Some hints for today, but return later for more information.

Camera and Photos, what a fun topic.

Read the Camera and Photos chapters in the free iPad User Guide in Books. 

Camera Modes on your iOS devices. 

Edit Photos on your iPad.

Watch for other RenSoc seminars on iOS topics.

Other sources to soothe your creative muse include:
  • Today at Apple - free workshops and studio sessions. Sign up for a "photo walk" and enjoy the experience. There are two Apple Stores in our area, Arden Fair and Roseville Galleria. Check both locations for sessions and plan your adventure day. Invite a friend or two to join you!
  • MacNexus is the local "Apple Technology User Group" with morning workshops and triage on the 1st Saturday of the month at St. Marks United Methodist Church near Country Club Mall.  Monthly meetings at 7-9 pm are at the Sacramento Board of Realtors Offices on the 4th Wednesday. Come to one workshop or one meeting to check out this group. Annual membership is $40. The "tech support" and friendships you get with MacNex-ians is well worth this membership fee. The Saturday workshops often include Camera/Photos session.
  •  Why not make a recurring date with friends to practice using your iPad skills. Sharing with others reinforces your skills and puts you in the mode to absorb new information. 
Whiteboard Notes: 
 "Live" button on/off
Flash
Burst

Advice: Shoot with the sun at your back!

"HDR" is High Dynamic Range" where the camera takes 3 exposures to combine into 1 photo. The 3 exposures are under-exposed, normal exposure and over-exposed. HDR is good for landscapes but not for action (because of taking 3 exposures).

Your Support System

RenSoc iPhone and iPad Seminars are a great way to make friends (with people and the technology you hold in your hands). But ... wait, there's more.

Important support resources include:
  • Today at Apple - free workshops and studio sessions. Sign up for a "photo walk" and enjoy the experience. There are two Apple Stores in our area, Arden Fair and Roseville Galleria. Check both locations for sessions and plan your adventure day. Invite a friend or two to join you!
  • MacNexus is the local "Apple Technology User Group" with morning workshops and triage on the 1st Saturday of the month at St. Marks United Methodist Church near Country Club Mall.  Monthly meetings at 7-9 pm are at the Sacramento Board of Realtors Offices on the 4th Wednesday. Come to one workshop or one meeting to check out this group. Annual membership is $40. The "tech support" and friendships you get with MacNex-ians is well worth this membership fee.
  • Your local Senior Center might have tech sessions. Join. Help set the agenda of topics!
  • Apple Support is the online collection of references created by Apple for all their devices. Read the articles on iCloud,  iPad and iPhone as well as computers. There is information on your Apple ID - your key to all things Apple.
  • Apple Care+ - yes, this is an "extended warranty" but when you have a questions, problems or repairs for two years after purchase, it is fabulous to make a call 24/7. Covers online help and some repairs. Read the online information, talk to a sales associate or call 1-800/692-7753. If you did not purchase AppleCare+ when you bought your iOS device, then you can add it later, but don't wait. The time between product purchase and support could be 30 or 60 days! Call the number to find out for your case.
When you are the recipient of a hand-me-down iPad or iPhone that is wonderful. But your probably will not be able to purchase AppleCare+ support coverage.


Day 3 Review - Email & Messages

Coming Soon!

Whiteboard notes:
Creating a group
Create a Gmail account and add to Mail app
Where to save email attachments (PDFs, documents ..)
Un-spam a sender

Gestures (swipe, tap)
Send failures
Threaded conversations
Wait for answer (Notify Me, VIP)
Junk / Block Sender
Address updates
POP vs IMAP account settings
Delete old Yahoo account
Mailboxes
Search

Friday, February 8, 2019

Day 1 Review

Welcome to iPad Basics! The notes added to the whiteboard are listed below with links for more information. (You probably kept better notes than I did - Melissa)

This class is 1) Brain Work! 2) You are learning a new language and new motor skills! 3) You are building your problem solving repertoire. 4) This is a social network of live bodies who question, laugh and share successes.

You have friends and family that also use iPads. Some of you describe how they take over your iPad and make changes so quickly that you are left spinning with wonder. How about you share with them the strategy Carol announced in our class: "I will demonstrate the complete process and then we will walk through the steps so you can follow along. We have helpers to coach you to success." Let them whiz through a process. Then ask for them to watch and coach you through the same process. Most new skills take practice. Hopefully you will have tips and tricks from class to demonstrate to them!

Class is a "No WiFi Zone" where we give you information on apps already installed on your iPad. There will be a couple times where the demonstration fails due to no wifi, but that is why we want you to come to this website before and after class. 

The key to your iPad is in Gestures, Taps and finger Press (short time holding finger on a spot or a long time and how hard you press down, aka "3D Touch"). It is important that you touch the screen with the pads of your fingertips, not your fingernail. Where you touch the screen is also important. Tap an icon to open an app. Swipe from right to left can change your Home screen. Swipe down from the top right corner brings up the Control Center. Swipe down from the top of the screen brings up the Notifications Center. Swipe from left to right will bring up the Today (widgets) listing. Swipe down between rows of icons on any Home Screen brings up the Search field. 

Use the Control Panel to turn on Do Not Disturb - especially on your iPhone - so that ringtones and noises do not distract folks sitting around you. 

"What 'operating system' is my iPad running?" Also, "What model of iPad do I have?" You remember the question, right? Two important questions before we look at where you can find many answers. 

Settings > General > About > Version - gives you a number, as of 2/1/19 the current iOS is 12.1.1

The model takes more digging. Or online searching. iPads come in many models. 
Mini, iPad Air, iPad, iPad Pro (in three sizes: 10.5, 11 and 12.9"). 

Settings > General > About > Model - gives the product code (relevant to marketing people). 
Ah ha - when I touch Model is switches between two codes: A1584 and ML0T2LL/A. 

The easiest solution is to Google the numbers. Try typing this into Safari's address bar 
iPad A1584     or 
iPad Ml0T2LL/a 
The hits returned by your search might give all you need to know, in my case, iPad Pro 12.0" WiFi only. This does not tell me the month/year of purchase. I know that because it was my "reward" for sitting on a jury in 2016. This information is good to know, because at some point your iPad will no longer take an operating system update. Then it is time to save for the purchase of a new iPad. 

When I buy an iPad or iPhone I also purchase Apple Care for each one. Because these are mobile devices, lightweight and portable, they can suffer damage. This is an insurance policy. If your credit card or if your cellular service offers coverage equivalent to Apple Care then you have choices. 

You are on your home wifi, right? Now is the time to get the iPad User Guide for your model device and current operating system. This is a FREE download from the Apple Book Store in the Books app. The look and user interface of the Books app continues to evolve. Look for the Search icon. In the Search field type 
ipad user guide
Because you know which version of the operating system you have, you know which guide to touch. If a book says (GET) is is free. If it has a price (like $9.99) then you'll pay that price for it. Research other user guides and topics or authors of interest. 

You've got the User Guide book, now what? Look at the features of an "ebook." Contents, page color, font size, search and bookmark. Contents | Bookmaks | Notes. Return to view downloaded books with Wedgee (<)  in top left corner. Don't see it? Tap in the center of a page (not on contents page). While reading your book look at the bottom of the screen to see the page number of pages. If you enlarge the font, the number of pages will increase! Here are two tricks in Apple Books: Highlight, Bookmark and Notes. Ok, three tricks. Press on a word and hold; Look Up. Now four tricks. Ha, there are even more! This is a quick introduction. 

Tap Center of page. Tap lines icon top left to return to Contents. All topics are "hyperlinked" to jump to that section. You do not have to read from page 1 to the end. Jump around. Privacy and Security. "Location Services" is first topic. Return to Contents. Basics. Tap/Hold on passcode word to highlight it. Pop-up window > tap Look Up. Read definition. Tap Done to return to page. 

Now that you have your User Guide ebook, the rest of the recap will be easy. You have the video review and you can search/explore the ebook. 

My iPad goes to sleep while I am watching the demo in class. Can I adjust the time before I'm forced to tap in my passcode? This is specific to your operating system. 
Settings > Display & Brightness > Auto-Lock > 2, 5, 10 and 15 Minutes. There is Never, but that is generally not recommended. Sometimes you have a case or front cover for your iPad. When you close the cover it puts your iPad to sleep, open the cover to wake then add your passcode or fingerprint to unlock.

What is ...  Settings > Display & Brightness > Night Shift. Practice looking this up in the ebook. 

Today View = Widgets 

SORRY! Wandering into the weeds with details here. Lost track of time. So this is incomplete.

AppleTV
One of the Control Center buttons says "Screen Mirroring" and the iPad User Guide ebook does not talk about it. If you have an AppleTV (hockey puck sized device) and download the AppleTV User Guide then you will find "mirroring" discussed there. It allows iPad/iPhone/Mac on the same wifi network to send their screen through the AppleTV to the television. I use it to share Keynote presentations and Photo albums of selected pictures. Basically, an AppleTV makes any television "smart" with apps and online services. So that is also how we watch Netflix and Amazon Prime at my house. I am comfortable with Apple not selling my watching habits to other online retailers the way that my Sony SmartTV or a Samsung TV makes all those decisions without consulting me. 


In addition to Books, another app to find on your iPad or download when you are home is Apple Support. Log in with your Apple ID and password. Along the bottom of the screen are three tabs: Discover, Get Support and Account. Touch Get Support. You will see your devices and details about them.

Whiteboard Notes:
No WiFi Zone
Do Not Disturb setting (Control Panel)
Book > iPad User Guide
Gestures, Taps, Press, Swipe
Auto Sleep
What is Night Shift?
What is "Screen Mirroring" in Control Center
Today is a Home Screen view to see Widgets, reorder list
Control Center + to add items - to remove from your view
Notifications
Buttons (look for > and 3-bars)
 

Thursday, January 31, 2019

Spring 2019 Agenda

The topics for iPad Basics will follow this rough outline. Remember these three things:
  • We work with the apps that came on your device, right out of the box. 
  • We do not use or support using wifi on campus. Check your email at home, draft email while on campus and it will be sent after you get back on your home wifi.  
  • We use the latest iOS - version 12. 
2/1
Carol: Introductions, Control Center, Notifications, Clock
Melissa: Apple Books,  iPad User Guide for iOS 12.1.1

2/8
Carol: Contacts, FaceTime, Maps

2/16
Melissa: Mail, Messages, Safari, Sharing, Etiquette

2/22
Melissa: Photo, Camera, Videos

3/1
Melissa: App Store, Accessibility, Files

3/8
Carol: Calendar, Reminders, Notes