5
BASICS
In reading this book, you may get stuck if you don’t understand a few
basic iPad-related facts or a few conventions that the Take Control
series uses. Important things to know include:
• iPad touchscreen: I often mention tapping an item on the iPad
screen, such as “tap the Join button.” Occasionally, you may need to
double tap, or even touch. Touching means putting your finger on
the touchscreen and keeping it there until something happens. You
may also need to swipe or drag your finger across the touchscreen.
• iPad Settings app: I frequently tell you to adjust options in the
iPad’s Settings app. By default, this app appears on the first page of
the Home screen. To view the Home screen, press the round Home
button on the edge of the iPad. To open the Settings app, tap its
icon.
• iPad navigation: To describe moving around in the iPad’s inter-
face, I sometimes use a shortcut. For example, if I wanted to tell you
to open the Settings app, tap the W-Fi option at the left, and then—
in the right hand Wi-Fi Networks pane—tap Other, I might instead
tell you to “tap Settings > Wi-Fi > Other.”
• Using an external, physical keyboard with an iPad: Some
directions assume you are using the iPad’s onscreen keyboard.
If you are using a physical keyboard, you may need to press the
Return or Enter key to enter certain information, instead of tapping
the Join or Search button that would otherwise appear on the
onscreen keyboard.
More iPad information: For lots more general information about
the iPad, consult the free Take Control of iPad Basics.
• Desktop vs. mobile: In this ebook, a desktop device is either a
laptop or a traditional computer that would sit on a desk, typically
running Mac OS X or Windows. A mobile device means a portable
or handheld computer-like device such as an iPad, Kindle, or
Blackberry.
Mobile software or a mobile operating system refers to software
running on a mobile device, such as the iPhone OS (which, despite
