Signup & Setup - Appendixes - iPad: The Missing Manual (2014)

iPad: The Missing Manual (2014)

Part 5. Appendixes

Appendix A

Appendix B

Appendix A. Signup & Setup

You gotta admit it: Opening up a new iPad brings a certain excitement. There’s a prospect of possibility, of new beginnings. Even if you intend to protect your iPad with a case, there are those first few minutes when it’s shiny, spotless, free of fingerprints or nicks—a gorgeous thing.

This chapter is all about getting started, whether that means buying and setting up a new iPad, or upgrading an older model to the new iOS 8 software that’s described in this book.

Buying a New iPad

Each year’s new iPad model is faster, has a better camera and screen, and comes packed with more features than the previous one. Still, “new iPad” doesn’t have to mean the iPad Air 2 ($500 and up) or mini 3 ($400 and up). You can buy an earlier model for much less, like an iPad Air ($400 and up) or mini 2 ($300 and up).

If you decide to get a cellular iPad, you’ll pay $130 extra, but you’ll be able to get online almost anywhere you go. In that case, you have to choose a cell carrier (Verizon, AT&T, Sprint, or T-Mobile). See Instant Hotspot for some guidance.

Setting Up a New iPad

In the olden days, you couldn’t use a new iPad at all without hooking it up to a computer. Now, though, the setup process takes place entirely on the tablet’s screen.

You don’t need a computer to back up your iPad, because iCloud backs it up. You don’t need a computer to store your music and video collections, because the App Store remembers what you’ve bought and lets you re-download it at any time. You don’t need a computer to download and install app updates, because they come straight to the iPad now. You don’t even need a computer to edit photos or to create mail folders; that’s on the iPad, too.

The first time you turn on a brand-new iPad—or an older one that you’ve erased completely—the setup wizard appears. Swipe your finger where it says slide to set up. Now you’re asked about 16 important questions:

image with no caption

§ Language; Country. You won’t get very far setting up your iPad if you can’t understand the instructions. So the very first step here is to tell it what language you speak. When you tap a language, you’re next asked to tell the iPad where in the world you live. (It proposes the country where you bought the iPad. Clever, eh?)

§ Wi-Fi Networks. Tap the name of the WiFi network you want, enter the password if required, and tap Join.

Or, if there’s no WiFi you can (or want to) hop onto right now, and you have a cellular iPad, tap Choose Cellular Connection.

§ Location Services. The iPad knows where you are. That’s how it can pinpoint you on a map, tag the photos you take with their geographic locations, find you a nearby Mexican restaurant, and so on.

Some people are creeped out by the iPad’s knowing where they are, worrying that Apple, by extension, also knows where they are. So here’s your chance to turn off all the iPad’s location features. Tap either Enable Location Services or Disable Location Services.

§ Set Up Your iPad. If you’ve owned an iPad before, or if you backed up this iPad and then erased it, you don’t have to load it up with all your apps and settings by hand. This screen offers to reload all your stuff from your most recent backup. (See Chapter 14 for details on iPad backups.)

Tap Restore from iCloud Backup (if your backup was on iCloud) or Restore from iTunes Backup (if your backup was on your computer).

And if you’ve never owned an iPad before, you can choose Set Up as New iPad to start fresh.

§ Apple ID. A million features require an Apple ID—just about any transaction you make with Apple online. Buying anything from Apple, from a song to a laptop. Using iCloud (Chapter 15). Playing games against other people online. Making an appointment at an Apple Store.

If you already have an Apple ID, tap Sign In with Your Apple ID and enter it here. If not, tap Create a Free Apple ID. You’ll be asked to provide your name, birthday, email address (or you can create a new iCloud email address), a password of your choice, and answers to a few security questions (you’ll have to get them right if you ever forget your password). You also get to decide if you’d like the honor of receiving junk email from Apple.

On the screen full of legalese, tap Agree, and then Agree.

(You can tap Skip This Step if you don’t want an Apple ID, at least for now. You can get one later in Settings.)

§ Use iCloud. You get this screen, and the next two, only if you did sign in with your Apple ID.

Since you’ve had a glance at Chapter 15, you already know how useful Apple’s free iCloud service can be. Here’s where you indicate whether or not you want to use iCloud at all.

§ Find My iPad. If you did opt into iCloud, you’re also asked if you’d like to Use Find My iPad. If you do, you’ll be able to locate your lost iPad on a map, using any Web browser. You’ll also be able to command it to start pinging loudly, so you can find where you left it in the house. It’s a pretty great feature.

If you turn Find My iPad on, you’re also asked to make up a four-digit password so that the bad guys can’t get around you just by turning Find My iPad off.

§ iCloud Drive. Here’s the new iOS 8 feature described on The One AirDrop Setting. It’s a “folder in the sky,” whose files you can access from any Apple gadget at any time. By all means use choose Upgrade to iCloud Driveunless you have non–iOS 8 devices, or pre–OS X Yosemite Macs, in which case you have a decision to make. Those older devices won’t be able to access the iCloud Drive.

§ Touch ID. If you have an iPad Air 2 or mini 3, you’re now invited to teach it your fingerprint, for the purposes of unlocking it without having to type a password. See 50 for more on registering fingerprints. (You can also tap Set Up Touch ID Later. When the time comes, you can revisit this process in SettingsTouch ID & Passcode.)

§ Passcode. Whether you opted to store a fingerprint or not, you’re now asked to make up a four-digit passcode (password) for unlocking your iPad. You’ll need it whenever the iPad won’t accept Touch ID—for example, after you’ve restarted the iPad. Passcode-protecting your iPad is a good idea but not required. If you don’t worry about its falling into bad guys’ hands, or you don’t want to have to enter a password every time you wake the iPad, you can tap Don’t Add Passcode.

§ iCloud Keychain is a terrific feature. It stores all your Web user names and passwords—and even credit card numbers—so you don’t have to memorize them and type them in over and over. It’s all synchronized across all your Apple machines (iPad, iPhone, Mac, and so on).

If you take this opportunity to set it up, you’re asked what you want to use as your iCloud Security Code. That’s yet another four-digit passcode, which you may need someday to recover all your passwords if you have a really lousy day and lose all your Apple gadgets. Fortunately, you can use your iPad passcode (the one you’ve already set up) as your iCloud Security Code, so you don’t have another code to remember.

On the next screen, you’re supposed to enter a phone number—of “someone you trust”—which Apple will use as a secondary way to verify your identity if you have to recover your iCloud Keychain without having any of your Apple gadgets available.

§ Use Siri. Here’s your chance to turn off Siri, the greatest feature in 15 years. So why would you ever want to turn it off? Because it works by sending your voice utterances to Apple’s computers for processing, and that thought alarms the privacy-obsessed.

§ Diagnostics. Behind the scenes, your iPad sends records back to Apple, including your location and what you’re doing on your iPad. By analyzing this data en masse, Apple can figure out where the dead spots in the cellular network are, how to fix bugs, and so on. The information is anonymous—it’s not associated with you. But if the very idea seems invasive, here’s your chance to prevent this data from being sent.

§ App Analytics. A related question: Is it OK for Apple to send statistics about how you use your apps to the makers of those apps?

§ Welcome to iPad. Your iPad is set up. Tap Get Started to jump to the Home screen.

Upgrading an iPad to iOS 8

If you bought an iPad Air 2 or mini 3, great! iOS 8 comes on it preinstalled.

But you can also upgrade many earlier iPad models to this new software: the iPad Air, iPad 3, iPad 3rd Generation, iPad 4th Generation, iPad mini 2, and original iPad mini.

You can upgrade in any of three ways:

§ Upgrade it wirelessly. Upgrading means installing iOS 8 on top of whatever is already on your iPad. You don’t lose any data or settings.

This is the easiest way to upgrade. You’ve probably already seen the little red number on your Settings app icon, and on the word “General” inside it; the iPad is trying to tell you that iOS 8 is ready to download. Tap SettingsGeneralSoftware Update to see the iOS 8 logo; tapDownload and Install. (You have to be on a WiFi network, and it’s wise to have your iPad plugged into power.)

§ Upgrade it from iTunes. If you wish, you can also perform the upgrade using the iTunes program on your computer. This method takes less time, but, of course, it requires being at your computer.

To begin, connect your iPad and click its icon at top left (see Chapter 14). On the Summary tab, click Check for Update, and then click Download and Update.

§ Restore it. This is a more dramatic step, which you should choose only if you’ve been having problems with your iPad or if, for some other reason, you would like to start completely fresh. This step backs up the iPad, erases it completely, installs iOS 8, and then copies your stuff back onto the iPad.

Connect the iPad to your computer, open iTunes, and then click Restore iPad.

The updating or restoring process takes awhile. You’ll see the iPad restart. When it’s all over, the PC-free setup process described on the previous pages begins automatically.

NOTE

Not all features work on all iPad models. For example, even with iOS 8, the iPad 3rd Generation, iPad 2, and original iPad mini don’t get the Continuity features described on Continuity.

Older iPads may also be very slow with iOS 8—you’ve been warned—and there’s no way to go back to iOS 7.

If you find your iPad crawling, especially when you type, consider turning off Background App Refresh in SettingsGeneral. And leave some space free; a full iPad is a slow iPad.

If your iPad is still crawling along like an anesthetized slug, there’s always the nuclear option: Erase it completely and load it up again. Many people report happier tidings after that extreme procedure.

Software Updates

As you’re probably aware, software like the iPad’s is a perpetual work in progress. Apple constantly fixes bugs, adds features, and makes tweaks to extend battery life and improve other services.

Updating Directly on the iPad

One day you’ll be minding your own business, and you’ll see a red numbered badge appear on the Settings app’s icon. Open SettingsGeneralSoftware Update to read about the new update and install it. Note, though, that unless it’s plugged into a power source, your iPad won’t install an iOS update unless its battery is at least half full.

Install Updates from Your Computer

Maybe you’re not that adventurous and you’d prefer to install your software update the old-fashioned way. No problem: Connect the iPad to iTunes, wirelessly or not (Chapter 14). Then click the iPad’s icon in iTunes; on the Summary pane, tap Check for Update.

Restrictions and Parental Controls

If you’re issuing an iPad to a child, or someone who acts like one, you’ll be gratified to discover that iOS offers a good deal of protection. That’s protection of your offspring’s delicate sensibilities (it can block pornography and profanity) and protection of your bank account (it can block purchases of music, movies, and apps without your permission).

To set this up, visit SettingsGeneralRestrictions. When you tap Enable Restrictions, you’re asked to make up a four-digit password (not necessarily the same as the regular iPad passcode) that permits only you, the all-knowing parent, to make changes to these settings. (Or you, the corporate IT administrator who’s doling out iPads to the white-collar drones.)

image with no caption

Once you’ve changed the settings described below, the only way to change them again (when your kid turns 18, for example) is to return to the Restrictions page and correctly enter the password. That’s also the only way to turn off the entire Restrictions feature (tap Disable Restrictions and correctly enter the password). To turn it back on, you have to make up a password all over again.

Once Restrictions is turned on, you can put up data blockades in a number of different categories.

Allow

For starters, you can turn off access to iPad features that locked-down corporations might not want their employees—or parents might not want their children—to use, because they’re considered either security holes, time drains, or places to spend your money: Safari (can’t use the Web at all), the Camera, FaceTime, Siri & Dictation, and AirDrop.

A second list of options lets you block access to iTunes Store and the iBook Store, and turn off the option to download Podcasts. You can stop your kid from Installing Apps or Deleting Apps, too. And In-App Purchases permits you to buy new material (game levels, book chapters, and so on) from within an app that you‘ve already bought. In other words, even if you’ve shut down access to your offspring’s ability to install new apps, as described above, this loophole remains.

Many of these restrictions work by removing icons altogether from the iPad’s Home screen: Safari, iTunes, and Camera, for example. When the switch says Off, the corresponding icon has been taken off the Home screen and can’t be found even by Spotlight searches.

Allowed Content

Here you can spare your children’s sensitive eyes and ears by blocking inappropriate material.

Ratings are a big deal; they determine the effectiveness of the parental controls described below. Since every country has its own rating schemes (for movies, TV shows, games, song lyrics, and so on), you use the Ratings For control to tell the iPad which country’s rating system you want to use.

Once that‘s done, you can use the Music & Podcasts, Movies, TV Shows, Books, and Apps controls to specify what your kid is allowed to watch, play, and listen to. For example, you can tap Movies and then tap PG-13; any movies rated “higher,” like R or NC-17, won’t play on the iPad now. (And if your sneaky offspring try to buy these naughty songs, movies, or TV shows wirelessly from the iTunes Store, they’ll discover that the Buy button is dimmed and unavailable.)

For some categories, like Music & Podcasts and Siri, you can turn off Explicit to prevent the iPad from playing iTunes Store songs that contain naughty language, or speaking them.

Websites lets you shield impressionable young eyes from pornography online. It offers four settings:

§ All Websites. No protection at all.

§ Limit Adult Content. Apple will apply its own judgment in blocking dirty Web sites, using a blocked-site list that it has compiled.

That doesn’t mean you can’t override Apple’s wisdom, however. The Always Allow and Never Allow controls let you add the addresses of Web sites that you think should be OK (or should not be OK).

§ Specific Websites Only. This is a “whitelist” feature. It means that the entire Web is blocked except for the few sites listed here: safe bets like Disney, PBS Kids, Smithsonian Institution, and so on. You can add your own sites to this list, but the point is clear: This is the Web with training wheels.

§ Require Password. Ordinarily, once you’ve entered your Apple account password to download something from Apple’s online stores, the iPad doesn’t ask you for the password again for 15 minutes. During that time, you can buy more stuff without any further security blockades.

That’s great for you—but a huge opportunity for naughty youngsters, who might be tempted to go nuts buying stuff within that window. This option lets you require a password for every purchase, even ones you make 2 minutes apart (turn on Immediately).

Privacy

These switches can prohibit the unauthorized user from making changes to the iPad’s privacy settings, which are described on Privacy.

Allow Changes

These items (Accounts, Cellular Data Use, Background App Refresh, Volume Limit) are safeguards against your offspring fiddling with limits you’ve set.

Game Center

These controls let you stop your kid from playing multiplayer games (against strangers online) or adding game-playing friends to the center.

Cases and Accessories

The iPad has inspired a torrent of accessories. Stylish cases, speakers, docks, cables, keyboards, cases with keyboards—the list goes on.

Just be sure you’re buying something that fits your iPad. For example, the Lightning connector (where the charging cable connects) on the iPad Air and later doesn’t fit any of the charging accessories that came before it—at least not without the help of Apple’s $30 adapter (or the $40 adapter that has an 8-inch cable “tail”).

Slowly, accessory companies are introducing Lightning-compatible gear. But for now, buyer beware—or buyer stock up on $30 adapters.

So what might you add to your iPad?

§ Cases. It’s the iPad Paradox: People buy the thinnest, sleekest tablet in existence—and then bury it in a bulky carrying case. There’s just something so wrong about that. On the other hand, the iPad is made of glass; the instinct to protect it is understandable. Hundreds of different iPad cases are available; most double as stands, which is supremely useful. Some have a Bluetooth keyboard built in, so your iPad can become a handy little laptop.

Apple, of course, would love to interest you in its own iPad Smart Cover. Its hinge snaps magnetically onto the iPad’s edge; the cover protects the screen; and the iPad wakes up and sleeps when you open and close the cover. Oh, and the scored panels of the cover fold up in creative ways to prop up the iPad when you’re using it.

image with no caption

§ Everything else. Speaker docks. Bluetooth speakers. Headphones and earbuds, wired and cordless. Credit card readers. Car cigarette-lighter adapters. Alarm clocks. Video-out cables. Stylish styluses. Touchscreen-compatible gloves. Tripods. Panorama stands. Kickstands. Car mounts. Activity monitors. Lenses. You Google it, you’ll find it. The iPad is, without a doubt, the most accessorized tablet in the world.