References
- iCloud User Guide - online guide from Apple
- What is iCloud, and How Do You Use It? Reader’s Digest
- Apple iCloud Support
- Apple ID Support
- Apple What is Family Sharing?
- Family Sharing Share your favorite things with your favorite people
- Check iCloud System Status all Apple Services
Each person needs their own Apple ID. Even if you share a device. Your Apple ID should be protected with a secure password and two-factor authentication, 2FA, where your other device approves changes. "Family Sharing lets you and up to five other family members share access to Apple services (Apple Music, Apple TV+, Apple News+, Apple Arcade...) as well as iTunes, Apple Books, and App Store purchases. You can even help locate each other’s missing devices."
Search your iPad for the Support app. Or get the Apple Support app and enter your Apple ID to see all your devices listed and support articles for each one. Also search for the Apple Tips app, and get it if you don't find it on your iPad.
"iCloud" is Apple's trademark for Services, Syncing data and Online Storage. Storage space is scalable, from 5 GB to 50 GB to 200 GB to 2 TB up or down per month. Through your individual Apple ID, your Calendar, Contacts, Files, Keychain, Notes, Notifications, Photos, Safari bookmarks and Wallet appear on all your devices. Through iCloud you can share Photos and documents and collaborate with others in Notes, Pages, Keynote and Numbers apps.
Other online storage options are available from Dropbox, Amazon Prime, Microsoft OneDrive, Adobe Creative Cloud, among many other subscription options. The Internet is often referred to as "a cloud" as the design of the world-wide information superhighway uses multiple servers in multiple locations for multiple services.
Some iCloud services are available by logging into iCloud.com - a handy tips for Windows and Android users. Services include Mail, Contracts, Calendar, Photos, iCloud Drive, Notes, Reminders, Pages, Numbers, Keynote, and Find iPhone (all devices). (If you are using iPadOS 15 or earlier, you can create Groups in Mail that will sync to your devices. iPadOS 16 will call groups "lists" instead.) Start collaborating on a Note or document in Pages, Numbers and Keynote after logging in.
Review iCloud data in Settings > Apple ID > iCloud >
iCloud Syncing visual - create a document on iPad and with a wifi connection the document is uploaded to iCloud account. When you unlock your iPhone and connect to wifi or cellular, the document will be available to your device. When you unlock your computer ... the document is available. Create or edit a document on any of your devices and iCloud will make the document available to your other Apple ID devices. Syncing works with Notes, Calendar, Contacts, Mail, Reminders and Messages. If information does not sync to your other device, make sure you have logged into both devices with the same Apple ID and review the enabled items on each device in Settings > Apple ID > iCloud.
iCloud Photos includes Shared Albums and ways to share photos and videos. On iPhone and iPad consider Settings > Apple ID > iCloud > Photos > Optimize device Storage. Full size images are in iCloud and thumbnails are on your device depending on available storage. When you edit a photo, it downloads to your device for full detail. Shared Albums are how you can invite any Apple user to subscribe to the album, upload photos, write comments and mark Like. If you add a Caption to a photo before Sharing to a Shared Album, the text in the Caption becomes a draft comment before you Post. Captions are synced to your other devices. In Photos, look at a photograph full screen then tap the Share button. At the top of the screen is Options >. This is easy to miss! You can send an iCloud Link instead of attaching the photo to email or messages. An iCloud Link disappears in 30 days. You might also have friends or family that use Windows or Android devices. Shared Photo Albums can be made “public” and you can share the randomized link with them
Questions asked last week in class about iCloud and Apple ID:
- iCloud: would it be possible to share some sort of VISUAL with iCloud ? Like what its connected to etc?
- How do you know what of your data is in the cloud?
- Do the Photos captions change in all devices?
- I have notes on my phone but they didn’t transfer to my iPad. Why?