Lesser-Known Features of Google Play Store (formerly Android Market)

Occasionally you find and install a new app, and occasionally you get notifications that app updates are available. You're in and out of the Google Play Store (still "Android Market" to me) so quickly that you may have missed some features worth consideration.

Evernote - The First App You Should Install

Apparently, there are a few people out there that have not heard about Evernote, even though their Android app has over 10 million downloads!

I get the question a lot when people get their first Android phone, "What apps do you recommend?" I'll confess, I have over 200 apps installed on my Android - but NONE is as useful to me as Evernote. The irony here is that Evernote isn't specific to Android. In fact, it's available for iPhone, PC, Mac, or just online (evernote.com).

The magic of Evernote is at the heart of why you chose to get a smartphone or tablet in the first place: You want to harness the power of mobile. You want access to your stuff, and maybe the ability to share your stuff, anywhere, anytime.

Taming Your Android Contacts

Overwhelmed and confused by managing contacts on your Android phone? You're not alone.

Like most people, you've probably spent the last 15 years accumulating contacts on your cell phone. Meanwhile, you've also been building contact lists in your various email accounts. Imported together on your smart phone or tablet, you've got a colossal mess. Which of  the three home numbers you have for your buddy is correct? Why does he show up in your address book multiple times? And when he gives you his new contact info, which contact source (or sources) should you update?

Time to simplify! Consolidate your contact lists and merge those old "phone" contacts into a master list. Contacts are contacts and the fewer lists to maintain the better. In the age of smartphones, we finally have full-featured contact functionality to keep ALL your contact's info in one place.

I'll walk you through step-by-step instructions to conquer your contacts. You'll have to spend a bit of time for general cleanup and standardization - more or less time depending on how may contacts you have - but the mechanics of moving and "de-duping" contacts are easy. In less than an hour, you can have all your contacts consolidated. You can then chip away at cleanup (e.g., standardizing names to easily eliminate duplicates).

Android Basics: The Long Press - Android's "Right Click"

 A not-so-obvious feature of Android is the ability to "long press" (press and hold) many items to reveal additional menu options. Android developers call this a context menu. It's similar to the "right click" in the Windows world.

Some common examples:

• Long press the background of page to see options for adding app shortcuts or changing wallpaper.
• Long press an app icon to enable drag/drop mode to move it or remove it by dragging to the trash.
• Long press an individual email to see options for deleting, forwarding, or marking as unread.
• Long press a letter on the keypad to enter special characters.
• Long press a photo in Gallery for options for sharing or deleting.
• Long press a date in calendar to create a new event.

The back button will usually exit you from the long press menu. Note also that long press menu options will vary from app to app and by version of Android. So, next time you're sure it must be possible to do something, but can't figure out how, try the long press.

Here we go...

In the words of my grandmother, "here we go," an impromptu toast that became a favorite family saying. Today, I use it to launch my first blog.

Yup, if you know me, you probably know that I I have a thing for Android phones and tablets. You might even be one of the people that have asked me questions about how to use them. More likely, I noticed that you had an Android phone and I started telling you about my favorite apps.

In the coming days, weeks and months I hope to share helpful tips, thoughts and advice on using those Androids. I hope this blog will be a useful reference to you all. Oh, and I take requests.Here we go...