iPods Episode #16: iPod touch Tips

Dec 25

Learning in Hand: iPods Episode #16: iPod touch Tips is online. In this video podcast I share some of my favorite tips and tricks for Safari, text entry, and the Home screen.

In the video I do not attempt to show you the basics of using iPod touch. Mostly because Apple.com has a great iPod touch Guided Tour video and 116-page User Guide. Instead, I share tips that I hope are at least partly new to even experienced iPod touch and iPhone users. Here's a quick list:

Safari

Tap the time to skip to the top of the page
Double-tap a column or image to zoom in
Save an image by tapping and holding
Tap and hold a link to show its URL
Add a bookmark icon to the Home screen
Use bookmarklets to find text on a page, find similar pages, look up words, skip to the end of the page, and more
Turn iPod touch horizontally before entering a web address or search to get a larger keyboard

Text Entry

Double-tap Space for a period, space, and capitalization of the next word
Type "im" and "cant" and let iPod touch autocorrect to "I'm" and "can't"
Move the cursor by tapping, holding, and dragging
Enter student names into Contacts to add them to the auto-correct keyboard dictionary
Reset the keyboard dictionary in Settings > General > Reset > Reset Keyboard Dictionary

Home Screen

You can have up to 9 pages of apps for a total of 148
Tap the bottom right or left corners to move between pages
Tap and hold one icon until they all jiggle to rearrange them
Push the Home button to go to the first page of icons when on any other Home screen page
Put commonly used icons on the first page
Put most accessed icons in the dock
Download Backgrounds free from the App Store for thousands of images to use for wallpaper

Watch all 18 minutes of Episode #16 to see these tips in action!