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- Herausgeber: John Wiley & Sons
- Kategorie: Wissenschaft und neue Technologien
- Sprache: Englisch
Get the most out of your Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK! Have a new Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK, but don't know where to start? Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK For Dummies is your go-to guide to get up and running with this great device in no time! From powering on your device to personalizing it, this easy-to-use resource provides everything you'll need to know to start using your Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK. You'll start with the basics, download and shop for e-books, browse the Web, watch video, listen to music, create your own e-books, and a whole lot more! Combine the power a Samsung Android tablet with the Barnes and Noble NOOK apps, and you have access to everything you need! Find out how to adjust the lighting, change font sizes, and customize your device to be the perfect e-reader that fits all your needs. * Get an overview of the Android tablet/e-book hybrid concept, along with a guide to everything your new device can do * Find out how to power up your tablet, use the touchscreen technology, setup wireless access, update your software, download e-books, and more * Watch video from Netflix and Hulu, listen to music, create photo slideshows, and browse the Web * Personalize your NOOK with accessories and applications, share books with others, and interact with your device with the built-in microphone For those who want to learn the ins and outs of their new multi-use tablet and e-reader, Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK For Dummies is the place to start!
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Seitenzahl: 386
Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2015
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Samsung Galaxy Tab® S2 NOOK® For Dummies®
Published by: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030-5774, www.wiley.com
Copyright © 2016 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey
Published simultaneously in Canada
No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning or otherwise, except as permitted under Sections 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act, without the prior written permission of the Publisher. Requests to the Publisher for permission should be addressed to the Permissions Department, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030, (201) 748-6011, fax (201) 748-6008, or online at http://www.wiley.com/go/permissions.
Trademarks: Wiley, For Dummies, the Dummies Man logo, Dummies.com, Making Everything Easier, and related trade dress are trademarks or registered trademarks of John Wiley & Sons, Inc. and may not be used without written permission. Samsung Galaxy Tab is a registered trademark of Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. NOOK is a registered trademark of Nook Digital., LLC. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. John Wiley & Sons, Inc. is not associated with any product or vendor mentioned in this book.
LIMIT OF LIABILITY/DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTY: THE PUBLISHER AND THE AUTHOR MAKE NO REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES WITH RESPECT TO THE ACCURACY OR COMPLETENESS OF THE CONTENTS OF THIS WORK AND SPECIFICALLY DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION WARRANTIES OF FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. NO WARRANTY MAY BE CREATED OR EXTENDED BY SALES OR PROMOTIONAL MATERIALS. THE ADVICE AND STRATEGIES CONTAINED HEREIN MAY NOT BE SUITABLE FOR EVERY SITUATION. THIS WORK IS SOLD WITH THE UNDERSTANDING THAT THE PUBLISHER IS NOT ENGAGED IN RENDERING LEGAL, ACCOUNTING, OR OTHER PROFESSIONAL SERVICES. IF PROFESSIONAL ASSISTANCE IS REQUIRED, THE SERVICES OF A COMPETENT PROFESSIONAL PERSON SHOULD BE SOUGHT. NEITHER THE PUBLISHER NOR THE AUTHOR SHALL BE LIABLE FOR DAMAGES ARISING HEREFROM. THE FACT THAT AN ORGANIZATION OR WEBSITE IS REFERRED TO IN THIS WORK AS A CITATION AND/OR A POTENTIAL SOURCE OF FURTHER INFORMATION DOES NOT MEAN THAT THE AUTHOR OR THE PUBLISHER ENDORSES THE INFORMATION THE ORGANIZATION OR WEBSITE MAY PROVIDE OR RECOMMENDATIONS IT MAY MAKE. FURTHER, READERS SHOULD BE AWARE THAT INTERNET WEBSITES LISTED IN THIS WORK MAY HAVE CHANGED OR DISAPPEARED BETWEEN WHEN THIS WORK WAS WRITTEN AND WHEN IT IS READ.
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Wiley publishes in a variety of print and electronic formats and by print-on-demand. Some material included with standard print versions of this book may not be included in e-books or in print-on-demand. If this book refers to media such as a CD or DVD that is not included in the version you purchased, you may download this material at http://booksupport.wiley.com. For more information about Wiley products, visit www.wiley.com.
Library of Congress Control Number: 2015956628
ISBN 978-1-119-17111-9 (pbk); ISBN 978-1-119-17112-6 (ebk); ISBN 978-1-119-17108-9 (ebk)
Samsung Galaxy Tab® S2 NOOK® For Dummies®
Visit www.dummies.com/cheatsheet/samsunggalaxytabS2nook to view this book's cheat sheet.
Table of Contents
Cover
Introduction
About This Book
Foolish Assumptions
Icons Used in This Book
Beyond the Book
Where to Go from Here
Part I: Meeting the Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK
Chapter 1: Another Galactic Leap for the NOOK
Cozying Up to Your NOOK
Charging the Battery
Putting the Tab S2 NOOK on the Table
Turning On, Turning Off, Going to Sleep
Locking Things Down
Jetting into Airplane Mode
Putting More on a microSD Card
Chapter 2: Laying Hands on the Screen
Keying In on the Basics
Gesturing at Your Touchscreen
Setting Up Screen Orientation
Starting at Home Base
Grabbing a Quick Menu of Notifications
Flying the Tab S2 Wayback Machine
Multitasking Lots of Windows
Chapter 3: Typing by Tapping and Talking
Finding the Keyboard to the Kingdom
Adjusting the Keyboard Settings
Moving the Keyboard
Improving Your Penmanship
Talking It Out: Google Voice
Swiping the Keyboard
Chapter 4: Getting Set to Go
Being a First Timer
Firing Up the Wi-Fi
Signing Up for Accounts and Other Preliminaries
Going into Private Mode
Doing First Things Last: Accessibility Options
Part II: Communicating Across the Galaxy
Chapter 5: Making Further Connections
Working without a Wire
Special Networks from Samsung
Virtual Private Networks
King Bluetooth Lives
Getting Physical: USB and Memory Cards
It’s In the Cards
Sending Air Mail
Printing from the Tablet
Chapter 6: Putting Things in Contacts
Roaming Friends and Countrymen
Everything but the Kitchen Sync
Grouping and Degrouping Contacts
Playing Favorites with Contacts
Managing Your Contacts
Sending Email from Your Contacts
Handling Repeat Contacts
Chapter 7: We’ve All Got Email
Hey Mister Postman
Writing Home about the Email App
Customizing Your General Email Settings
Open It Up!
Creating New Email
Starting an Email from Other Apps
Getting Attached
Chapter 8: Going Out on the World Wide Web
Looking from the NOOK
Speaking Your Mind with Voice Search
Sharing Is Caring
Signing In to Chrome
Protecting Your Privacy
Customizing Chrome Sync settings
Leaving Bread Crumbs: Bookmarking
Part III: Reading Electronics
Chapter 9: Buying and Reading NOOK Books
Calling All NOOK Shoppers
Making Your Own NOOK Shortcut
Opening and Reading an eBook
Lending and Borrowing Books
Reading Newspapers and Magazines
Getting Kids into the Act: Picture Books
Geeking Out about NOOK Comic Books
Shopping at the NOOK Store
Buying or Renting a Video
Managing NOOK Profiles
Being Your Own Librarian
Chapter 10: Finding Other eBook Sources
Snooping around Google Books
Taking Kindle for Samsung for a Spin
Going in to OverDrive at the Library
Subscribing to Scribd
Reimagining Gutenberg
Part IV: Getting Creative with Camera, Video, and Music
Chapter 11: Snapping Pictures
Taking Pictures with a NOOK
Taking a Camera Tour
Tap-Clicking with a Tablet
Making Movies
Chapter 12: Getting into the Gallery
Visiting Your Picture Gallery
Putting All Your Pictures in One Basket
Putting Your Images to Work
Searching for an Image
Sharing Your Images
Playing Your Videos
Shearing Videos
Chapter 13: Singing, Dancing, and Noisemaking
Starting with the Hardware
Speaking of Which …
Alternatives to Built-In Speakers
Jamming Out on Your Tab 4 NOOK
Showing Your Own Movies
Part V: The Part of Tens
Chapter 14: Ten Worthy Apps
An Alarming Clock
Get Offa My Cloud
Checking Your Latitude
NOOK! Take a Memo
Popcorn, Soda Pop, and Movies
Talking to Your Tab S2 NOOK
Pandora in the Box
What Was That Song? Shazam!
My Daily Planner
A Certain TypeMail
Chapter 15: Ten Galaxy Tips and Tricks
Extending Your Warranty for Free
Using Your Tablet as a Backup Device
Glimpsing Your Office on the NOOK
Transferring from One Device to Another
Taking a Screenshot
Staking Your Power Vampire In the Heart
Adding Apps from Strange Places
Taming a Misbehaving NOOK
Visiting Android System Recovery
Performing a Factory Reset
About the Author
Cheat Sheet
Connect with Dummies
End User License Agreement
Guide
Cover
Table of Contents
Begin Reading
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Introduction
In the beginning was the book, and it was good. There were books carved into stone and books inscribed on papyrus and eventually books made on printing presses in sizes small, medium, and large.
We skip forward to modern times and the invention of the computer, which began in sizes extra large (the first models were the size of houses, with snapping switches and whirring reels of tape). Eventually computers got smaller and more personal.
Then we entered the time of the tablet and the age of the smartphone, each of which are handheld computers. The first tablets were pretty good as a way to display electronic books, and some basic computer tasks including email and Internet access. The first smartphones connected to cellphone systems for telephony and had tiny screens that could be used to connect to the Internet and display fragments of pages of books.
And now … almost everything has converged.
Smartphones have gotten larger and smarter; the biggest of them are nicknamed a bit awkwardly as phablets: phone tablets. You can make and receive calls, read eBooks and newspapers, and watch TV and movies on the go.
At the same time, tablets have gotten smarter and quicker and thinner and lighter. And using a wireless connection, you can even make phone calls from a tablet.
Today’s buyers, then, have a choice between a relatively large phone or a relatively small tablet.
The full name of the device we’re gathered to explore is the Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK. It’s very much a member of the Samsung Galaxy Tab family, but please don’t ask me to explain Samsung’s very strange naming conventions. We simply don’t have the time. Suffice it to say, the Galaxy Tab 4 was followed by the Galaxy Tab S, which begat the Galaxy Tab S2. (For what it’s worth, Henry Ford’s Model T was followed by the Ford Model A. Go figure.)
The final word in the nomenclature is NOOK, and here’s what that means: The Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK comes predisposed to install the full suite of NOOK apps. They aren’t there when you first turn on the device, but you’re offered the chance to set up an account with Barnes & Noble and receive all the digital reading tools that come with that free membership.
For the record, you don’t have to install the NOOK apps on your new tablet, in which case you’ll be the puzzled owner of a Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK without NOOK features. There’s nothing illegal or immoral about that configuration, but if that’s your goal, you might as well purchase (at the same price) the tablet directly from Samsung or from an electronics dealer. Going the other way, though, if you happen to purchase a Samsung Galaxy Tab S2, you can always add the NOOK apps, which are freely available by going on the Internet to the Barnes & Noble, NOOK, or Google Play website and installing them on your tablet.
The Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK is one of the most advanced models on the market with a truly spectacular full-color screen, an advanced set of radios, an improved camera and video recorder (one each on the front and back), a built-in GPS system for maps and direction finding, and full permission for users to add specialized programs (apps) that are available from Barnes & Noble, Samsung, Google, and even (perish the thought) from Amazon.
The price, alas, has risen from bargain-basement levels, but buyers will be getting a no-excuses tablet. Depending on the way you want to look at it, the Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK is either one of the most advanced electronic readers yet made, or Barnes & Noble has added its NOOK software to perhaps the most advanced tablet on the market.
About This Book
I’ve been writing books about computers and tablets all the way back to the birth of the industry. And as good as the new Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK tablet is, they have continued a long tradition in computer manufacturing: The skimpy little instruction booklet that comes with it (all of 14 pages of minimal detail) is best used as a coaster beneath your cup of coffee (placed at a safe distance from the tablet, please). The online manual isn’t much better.
That’s just the way it is. Myself, I’m not complaining: I’ve made a nice living for a long time filling in the gaping blanks between. Herewith, then, the keys to the Galaxy.
You can read this book from front to back, if you wish. Or you can jump to a section that deals with whatever questions you have. Each of the parts deals with a particular task or function, and each chapter covers a specific topic.
My goal, as always, is to present news you can use and skip over as much unnecessary bafflegab as possible. When I feel it necessary to go a bit into technological detail, you’ll find those sections nicely fenced off; enter if you want, or keep the barn door latched. We’re in this together, and I’ve done my best to make the book easy to read and understand (and even entertaining in places).
I call the tablet by its first name when it seems appropriate, and in other places I call it the Tab S2 NOOK. And in places where the hardware isn’t the issue, I might even just call it the NOOK or the tablet.
Like other books in the constantly expanding For Dummies universe, you’ll be directed to do things by numbered steps. Sometimes you’ll be advised to choose a menu item, and then to tap a command. It’s all quite touchy-feely, I promise.
Foolish Assumptions
The first and most important assumption I make for all of my books of this sort is this: You, dear reader, are an intelligent, capable, and curious person who wants to know how to use what seems at first glance to be a very complex technical device.
Put another way, you’re not looking to build a Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK from spare parts recovered from your kitchen junk drawer, and you have no interest whatsoever in writing your own software to make the hardware sing and dance.
And the second assumption is this: You already own, or are seriously considering buying, a Tab S2 NOOK.
And because we’re nearly a decade into the Time of the Tablet, I suspect that you have seen a tablet and probably made at least a few swipes at one. Because of this, I skip the “Isn’t it amazing?” part and get right to the point: They keep getting better and better.
Although it isn’t essential, I also assume that you have your own desktop or laptop computer or have access to one. It doesn’t matter whether it be a Windows or Macintosh design. And I also assume that you have a Wi-Fi wireless computer network you can use at home or at work or in a public library or other place you can use.
The Tab S2 NOOK needs a Wi-Fi connection for you to register and configure it, and then reach the Internet for all purposes, including stocking the tablet with books and music and video and games.
Another assumption is that you’re aware of the relatively new world of apps. It’s short for application, which is another word for a software program. On a desktop or laptop computer, software has become larger and more complex year by year. But in the reduced world of the tablet, there’s a different concept: small and specialized.
Icons Used in This Book
This icon is there to tell you when danger — or at least serious problems — lie ahead. If you don’t heed this information, you might damage your tablet or yourself or you might lose really important information.
This icon is there to remind you of something. This information tells you how to do something you’ll often need.
This icon tells you of useful tips and suggestions to get the most from your new tablet. This information might save you time or money. Or better — both.
You probably don’t need to know this stuff, but aren’t you a little bit curious? Go ahead, try a few. There are no pop quizzes in this book.
Beyond the Book
I’ve written a lot of extra content that you won’t find in this book. Links to the articles are on the parts pages. Go online to find the following:
Make a profile for each person who uses your tablet at
www.dummies.com/extras/samsunggalaxytabS2nook
If you can’t automatically connect to an established email server, try Samsung’s recommendations at
www.dummies.com/extras/samsunggalaxytabS2nook
Get the best pictures possible from the camera with help from
www.dummies.com/extras/samsunggalaxytabS2nook
Take certain points into consideration before buying an app
www.dummies.com/extras/samsunggalaxytabS2nook
Find out about ten fun or helpful — and free — apps at
www.dummies.com/extras/samsunggalaxytabS2nook
The Cheat Sheet for this book is at
www.dummies.com/cheatsheet/samsunggalaxytabS2nook
Updates to this book, if we have any, are at
www.dummies.com/extras/samsunggalaxytabS2nook
Where to Go from Here
You go from here to the first part and the sections that lie behind. You could start by reading the copyright and trademark page, or read the names of all the fine people at Wiley who helped transform my keyboard taps into the book you’re holding. But perhaps you’d like to save that for an epilogue. Go forth and explore Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK and the device itself; they’re meant for each other.
Part I
Meeting the Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK
Visit www.dummies.com for more great Dummies content online.
In this part …
Explore the Tab S2 NOOK parts.
Turn it on and set it up it for first use.
Read about how to use the touchscreen.
Tap and talk to the keyboard.
Chapter 1
Another Galactic Leap for the NOOK
In This Chapter
Turning it on, turning it off
Flying off into Airplane Mode
Locking and unlocking the door to your tablet
Adding more memory on a microSD card
A rose is a rose is a rose,” wrote Gertrude Stein. I take her point: A tablet is a tablet is a tablet.
A small thin box frames a flat plastic screen that sits above some tiny processor and memory chips and a battery and we call it — in its dozens of brands — a tablet. That little box today can hold and display nearly all the world’s books, magazines, and newspapers. It can sing, show videos, take pictures, make movies, determine its location from an orbiting satellite, connect to the Internet, and send and receive emails and messages.
So I said a tablet is a tablet, but you could also say the same about cars. Yet you know there’s a vast difference between a Ferrari LaFerrari and a Nissan Versa.
With this version of the NOOK, Barnes and Noble has leap-frogged from a very basic model to one with nearly all the bells and whistles you could ever want. This tablet is more of a tablet than a basic tablet. Got that, Rose?
Just about the only thing the Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK lacks is a decent instruction manual. And that’s why I wrote this book.
Cozying Up to Your NOOK
To download books or email or to browse the web with a Tab S2 NOOK, you need access to the Internet. You’ll probably use the tablet’s built-in Wi-Fi to connect to a system plugged into the Internet. See Figure 1-1.
Photo courtesy of Barnes & Noble, Inc.
Figure 1-1: Wi-Fi signal strength, battery level, and time are in the upper right. The icon in the lower right displays apps.
When you purchase your Tab S2 NOOK, it comes in an unpretentious cardboard box about the size of a thick paperback book. (Remember those?) The box is there mostly to protect the tablet on its long and complicated journey from the factory to a warehouse and from there to a store and into your hands. Within the box: the Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK and a few little necessities:
A USB cable:
This cable carries data to and from your tablet when you connect the tablet to a laptop or personal computer. Use the same USB cable to recharge the internal battery.
A battery charger:
When you’re ready, plug it into an AC wall socket and attach the larger connector of the USB cable to it. Then plug the smaller connector to the Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK. See
Figure 1-2
.
Two business-card-sized booklets:
One is called the
Health & Safety and Warranty Guide,
and it advises you to not drop the tablet on your toe, and how if you do Samsung isn’t going to pay for the repair to your tablet or your toe. The other booklet, all 14 pages of it (plus two blanks), is called the
Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK Quick Start Guide.
It’s certainly quick, but not much of a start.
Figure 1-2: The AC adapter plugs into a wall socket; the larger end of the USB cable attaches to the charger.
Keep the box, along with the warranty information and your receipt. If you ever need to return the tablet to the seller, send it in for service, or ship it to someone else, the original box is ready.
Sooner or later, you should remove the protective plastic sheet that sits atop the LCD screen. It works well to protect the device in transit, but it will interfere with using the touchscreen and collect dirt. Put it back in the box as a treasured memento.
Nothing like Moses’s
What’s a tablet? Way back in ancient times, about 2007 or so, we came to behold the first electronic reading devices, which were single-purpose handheld devices that used something called eInk to draw text on a nearly white background. A few years later the two devices came together in the first successful tablets, which were thin, flat, multipurpose computers that used touchscreens instead of keyboards and memory chips instead of spinning hard drives. You can still buy an eInk reader, but it isn’t much use for anything but reading. The future seems to lie in faster and more colorful tablets with LCD screens.
Charging the Battery
The Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK comes with a built-in (and non-removable) rechargeable battery. Your battery probably still has some power in it from testing at the factory. (Mine arrived about half full.)
Although you can use the tablet without a full charge, or use it while it’s in the process of charging, don’t use it immediately after you get it.
Why would you want to fully charge the battery before first use?
You want to make sure that the battery, the charger, and the tablet itself are each working properly.
Bringing the battery to full charge may help it last longer. That is, if you properly condition it with a full charge before using it first. See Figure 1-3.
After the battery’s fully charged for the first time, you can use your tablet. But don’t be in a rush to top off the battery: Let it drain down to nearly empty, then recharge it fully. Do this for the first three or four cycles.
Recharge the battery when it’s at 15 or 20 percent of capacity; it’s generally not a good idea to let it go all the way to 0. In fact, the NOOK is smart enough to turn itself off before it reaches completely empty.
When you first turn on the tablet, you have to register the device at lots of places. You have to sign in to a Wi-Fi system and sign in with Samsung, Google, and a few apps makers. And if you want to use the NOOK facilities, you need to sign in and create a Barnes & Noble account or register using an existing account you may already have.
Be sure to install any software updates.
Don’t start the registration and update process with an insufficient battery charge. If the tablet were to turn off, you might have to reset all the operating system elements and apps when you begin again.
Figure 1-3: The tablet beeps and warns you when the battery level drops to only a few minutes of usable power, and the screen gets dim.
And so, here’s how to give your tablet its first full charge:
Attach the larger end of the USB cable to the charger.
The cable only fits one way. Pay attention to the white positioning bar inside the charger and its corresponding bar inside the cable. Don’t force the two positioning bars against each other.
Attach the USB cable to the Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK.
The smaller connector on the cable connects to the port on the bottom of your tablet. The side of the cable that has the three-forked USB symbol will be facing you as you’re looking at the front of the tablet. Again, don’t force the plug in the wrong way. See Figure 1-4.
Plug the charger into a wall outlet.
Go for a walk, mow the lawn, read a book printed on dead trees, bake a cake. A nearly empty battery can take as long as four hours to recharge.
For the first three or four times you use your tablet, I recommend draining the battery to nearly empty and then fully recharging it.
Figure 1-4: The smaller end of the USB cable plugs into the bottom of the tablet, slightly off-center to the right of the Home button.
You can check on charging by pressing the Home key on the tablet. Unplug the charger when it reaches 100%.
You can also recharge your Tab S2 NOOK by connecting the USB cable to a USB port on a PC or laptop, although this is a relatively slow process that can take six or more hours for a full refill. I consider the USB charging option as an emergency backup only.
Putting the Tab S2 NOOK on the Table
Begin with a physical examination. No need for a stethoscope or rubber gloves. Place your Tab S2 NOOK on a desk or table in front of you with the tablet lying on its back, with its top facing away from you. See Figure 1-5 for a guided tour.
Figure 1-5: A map to the external parts on the front of the Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK.
The front
The front is home to several items of note, the most significant one being the screen:
A Samsung logo, in case you need to be reminded who made it
A light sensor, which can automatically adjust screen brightness and contrast depending on the light levels indoors or outdoors
The front-facing camera lens to take a selfie or a picture of yourself with someone else (an “ussie”?)
The LCD color touchscreen
Three keys at the bottom (shown in
Figure 1-6
) left to right:
Recent.
Tap it to display apps you used recently, or hold it for a second to show Home screen options.
Home and Finger Scanner.
Press this key to go to the Home screen. The same key can read your fingerprint (which you can use instead of a password to get into your tablet); you have to set up this option, and I show you how soon.
Back.
Touch to return to the previous screen or option, or to close a dialog box, menu, or keyboard.
Figure 1-6: The keys just below the screen are Recent, Home, and Back.
The left side
Move along. There’s nothing to see here, folks. Really. Nothing. The left side of the Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK serves no purpose other than to give you somewhere to place your fingers when you hold the tablet.
The right side
The right side is where you’ll find several essential keys, a pinhole, and a slot. From top to bottom on the right side, they are:
Power.
Press and hold it for a second or two to turn on your tablet. Press it briefly and release to lock the tablet or wake it from sleep. Press and hold it to turn the device off or restart it, or to put the tablet into Airplane Mode.
Volume.
When the Home screen is displayed, press one end or the other of this rocker key to adjust the volume. When you’re playing music, any adjustments you make here affect only music volume. Either way, you know how they work, I’m sure: + means louder and – means quieter, all the way down to mute.
Memory card slot.
This tiny opening can accept a little sliver of microSD or microSDHC card that holds information in addition to your tablet’s built-in memory. The card can be as large as 128GB, and if that huge amount of real estate isn’t enough, you can simply remove it and install a new card.
The advanced Tab S2 NOOK also works with USB On-The-Go devices, including flash memory sticks and other accessories. I expect to eventually expand my NOOK by using flash memory that I can also use as a quick means of transport between the tablet and a computer.
The top side
A handsome, shiny near-twin to the left side, the top side has just a tiny little pinhole. Despite what Samsung and Barnes & Noble show in their manuals, this little pinhole is the entryway to the microphone.
Hidden behind a tiny hole, it picks up sound for videos, video conferences, and your voice for Internet (not cellular) phone calls. If you plan to use the microphone, make sure neither the protective case you use, nor your hand, blocks the opening.
Flying your NOOK to the moon
Okay, maybe not the moon, but perhaps you’d like to take your NOOK to Europe or another part of the world that uses a different electrical voltage. (The United States, Canada, Japan, and a handful of other countries provide power between 100 and 120 volts, while most of the rest of the world pumps out 220 or 230 volts and require a plug of a different shape.)
Not a problem for your Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK or Galaxy Tab 4 NOOK. The power adapter can work with incoming AC power in the range from 100 all the way to 240 volts. But you need a plug adapter to take the flat rectangular plugs and make them work in other shapes. All you need is the physical adapter — a plug into a different plug device — and not an electrical transformer. You can research plug adapters on the Internet; prices should be between a cup of coffee and a pizza.
The bottom
Way down here is the place where your tablet gets its power and outputs a bit of sound.
You’ll find not one but two tiny speakers on the bottom, producing something close to stereo sound (although you shouldn’t expect bone-rattling high fidelity). The speakers are used for music, voice, and system notifications. As with the microphone, make sure that the speakers aren’t covered, or else the sound will be muffled.
The second opening from the left is the all-important USB charger/accessory port. Here’s where you attach the USB cable that comes with your tablet. That cable, in turn, attaches to the AC adapter, allowing you to recharge the internal battery. You can disconnect that same cable from the AC adapter, then connect the cable to a PC or laptop to transfer or sync music or files.
Samsung promises that you can use this same port for accessories (not included in original purchase). What kind of accessories? Perhaps an external keyboard or an external memory storage device like a USB flash key.
The third opening from the left is the headset jack, which works with a standard 3.5mm connector for earbuds or connects to an external sound system.
The headset jack works well with earbuds or headphones, but you can also output audio from your Tab S2 NOOK to stereo systems with advanced controls and large speakers. For example, my car has a 3.5mm input jack for its radio; I bought a cable with a 3.5mm plug on each end (called a male-to-male cable) to use my NOOK as a music player for files I loaded onto the tablet.
The back
The tablet’s back gives the tablet something to hold up the front. To see it, turn your tablet over so that the front is facing down. Although you don’t have to baby your device, for safety’s sake put a cloth or a magazine under the screen.
Figure 1-7 points out the two items of note are on the back (plus some more advertising). Here’s what you find:
The rear-facing camera. The lens, above the advertising for Samsung, is part of your tablet’s main camera, for taking photos or videos while you watch the LCD on the other side.
A pair of Simple Clickers. These little anchoring points are used to attach certain designs of (unincluded) protective or special-purpose covers for your tablet. One Samsung accessory adds a physical keyboard for attachment to a larger 9.7-inch LCD screen.
Figure 1-7: The back of the tablet has the rear-facing camera and connectors for certain types of tablet cases.
Turning On, Turning Off, Going to Sleep
The high-tech battery in your Tab S2 NOOK can hold its charge for several weeks when it’s young and fresh, and the tablet is off. When you turn it on, the battery should provide power for somewhere between six and ten hours.
You can make the battery last longer by reducing the screen brightness and by turning off Wi-Fi and Bluetooth radios and the GPS receiver when you don’t need them.
Powering on
I’ve already told you how to use the Power key to turn on your Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK: Press and hold the key for two seconds (one Mississippi, two Mississippi).
If this is the first time you’ve given life to your tablet, you’re can’t use it for reading or viewing or Internetting until you complete a few setup steps. The initial setup can take anywhere from 10 to 30 minutes, depending on how much detail you want to get into.
You should charge your tablet’s battery before your first use, both for the health of the battery and to avoid the possibility of running out of power while the setup process is under way.
On the other hand, if you’ve already set up the device, turning it on brings you to either of two places:
The Home screen (for an unsecured tablet)
The Lock screen (if you require all users to enter a protective pattern, password, or PIN, or a swipe of the Home button to scan your fingerprint)
I recommend using one or another form of security to protect your tablet. The fingerprint or a very complex password is your best line of defense. Studies have shown that the most common passwords on millions of computers are 123456 and password. Why even bother? Remember that you’ll likely be storing personal data, photos, and logins that may keep records of your credit card or banking information.
Use a password that’s difficult and illogical. How about 16Friskie66laserBeam? Don’t ask me what it means, but it does have meaning to me, and I can remember it. And no, I’ll never use that password again, but it is of the sort I like.
Powering off
Press the Power switch for about two seconds while the device is running. A message asks if you really, really want to do that; tap Power Off to confirm.
Off is off. No alarms will ring, no email will be collected, no music will play.
Why would you want to completely turn off the NOOK tablet?
You’re on an airplane preparing for takeoff or landing and the flight attendant is glaring at you.
You’re in a hospital room with sensitive medical equipment (and doctors).
You want to put your tablet on the shelf for a month while you sit down with a yellow legal pad to write your own Great American (or Canadian) Novel.
Your battery is very low and you want to fully recharge it as quickly as possible. Attach the microUSB connector to the tablet and the full-size USB connector to an AC adapter that’s plugged into the wall.
Going to sleep/Locking the tablet
The third option is to put your tablet to sleep, which in electronic terms is not the same thing we mean when Fido is headed to the vet for the last time. Putting a tablet to sleep means that the LCD screen and most of its internal circuitry are turned off, and just a small amount of power is provided to the system — enough to allow the device to return from the vet, I mean from sleep, at the push of a button. If you put a fully charged NOOK into Sleep Mode, it should hold its charge for several days.
The other way to look at Sleep Mode is as “Lock Mode,” which is a way to block access to the tablet to unauthorized fingers and eyes without fully turning it off.
By default, the tablet automatically goes to sleep after the inactivity period. You get to set that amount of time.
Here’s how to put the NOOK tablet to sleep: Briefly touch the Power/Lock key. Don’t hold it and count river names.
While the tablet’s asleep, the following functions are still awake:
Email will still be received,
if the Wi-Fi radio is turned on.
You can turn off the Wi-Fi from Settings, or put the tablet into Airplane Mode to reduce power consumption.
If your tablet is playing music, that will continue.
Any alarms or timers you’ve set will remain active. (I discuss alarms in
Chapter 14
.)
To wake up a sleeping NOOK, briefly press the Power/Lock key. If you have to enter a pattern, password, fingerprint, or PIN, you’ll go to the Unlock screen; otherwise, you’ll go directly to the Home screen or the last page you were on.
Setting the sleep timeout
Your tablet goes to sleep all by itself if you don’t do anything for a while. Why would you want this to happen? It’ll save battery power and serve as some protection if someone lays paws on your NOOK without your permission.
Here’s how to customize the sleep control:
From the Home screen, tap the Apps icon, and then tap the Settings (gear) icon.
Choose Display.
Tap Screen Timeout.
Choose a timeout value from the list.
I prefer 5 minutes; the standard value is 30 seconds. You can set the sleep timeout in a range from 15 seconds to 10 minutes.
Press the Home key to return to the Home screen.
For most users, a safe amount of time is between 2 and 10 minutes.
You can manually lock the screen by briefly pressing the Power/Lock key on the right side of the tablet.
Locking Things Down
Please allow me to ask a few questions:
Will you ever loan your tablet to someone else?
Will anyone (family, friends, acquaintances, or perfect strangers) ever have access to your tablet when you’re not around? Almost certainly.
Can you imagine that your tablet might someday (perish the thought) be lost or stolen?
Preparing the tablet for lockdown
The Galaxy Tab S2 NOOK, as delivered, uses the very basic one-finger left-to-right unlock pattern, which is essentially an open door. Anyone picking up your tablet can figure that one out.
The swipe (or the choice of None for the Lock screen) offers no security for your tablet contents. You do have other options:
Pattern. A gesture you create by drawing on your screen. This option gives you a medium level of security, which is better than a mere swipe.
The screen displays nine dots in a three-by-three pattern. Set a pattern by tapping any one dot; keep your finger on the screen as you move to other dots on the screen. Don’t use an obvious pattern like a box or a line. The pattern lock can start at any dot. See Figure 1-8.
My favorite type of password is a phone number or address that has no direct connection to you but that you can recall from memory. An old phone number of a distant relative? The street address of the post office in the town you lived in three jobs ago? Oh, and don’t write it down on a sticky note and slap it to the bottom of the tablet.
PIN.
Enter a code number to unlock the tablet, with as many as 16 digits. A four-digit PIN offers 10,000 possible combinations, which makes this a medium- to high-security option … unless you choose something simplistic like 1234 or 0000. I often use all ten digits of a phone number that I know well but that isn’t in any way directly connected to me. Got a favorite pizza place?
Password.
Use a complex word, preferably with a mixture of upper- and lowercase letters and a number or two, of as many as 16 characters. Something like 23aArdvarK for a high level of security.
Fingerprint. Require the device to recognize your fingerprint for a high level of security. On the Tab S2 NOOK, the Home key has a fingerprint reader.
Figure 1-8: If you choose a pattern for unlocking, you can start at any of the nine dots and finish wherever you’d like; try something not very obvious.
Registering a fingerprint
The electronic fingerprint reader in the Home key can identify certain unique — or at least rare — characteristics of the markings on the end of one of your fingers. It’s not a perfect system, but you can experiment with friends and family, especially siblings. Here’s your chance to blame everything on your brother or sister if their fingerprints prove similar enough to fool the reading device.
You can register as many as four fingerprints, and a password will also be recorded as an alternative means of entry to the tablet.
From the Home screen, tap the Apps icon and then the Settings (gear) icon.
Tap Lock Screen and Security, and then tap Fingerprints.
Choose an option:
To add a fingerprint, tap Add Fingerprint and follow the instructions. You have to apply and reapply your finger (I use my thumb) about ten times so that the system has a number of samples.
To rename a fingerprint, touch and hold the fingerprint and then tap Rename.
To delete a fingerprint, touch and hold the fingerprint on the screen and then tap Remove.
To change the backup password for your fingerprints, do this:
From the Home screen, tap the Apps icon, and then tap the Settings (gear) icon.
Tap Lock screen and Security, and then tap Fingerprints.
Tap Change Backup Password.
Enter a new password.
Fingerprints can also give you access to your Samsung account and certain online accounts. You’ll find an option for those settings in the same Lock Screen and Security section.
Customizing your unlock scheme
While you’re choosing a pattern, password, or PIN unlocking scheme, you’re offered other ways to customize how your tablet greets you. Here are the options:
Clock Widget.
You can choose a clock size for your Home screens and decide whether you want to see the current date.
Personal Message.
You can put in, “Greetings, earthlings. I come in peace.” Or anything else. Keep it clean, people.
Owner Information. You can list your name and other information on the Lock screen, in hopes that a good Samaritan would return it. Tap Owner Information; then tap Show Owner Info on Lock Screen to enable or disable the option. Touch in the text field and type.
My owner information message has my name, email address, and REWARD FOR RETURN.
