Touch, click, type, and scroll with care

A touch screen waits for a clear, calm touch. Google’s Android help says: to select or start something, tap it. To type, tap where you want to type and an on-screen keyboard appears. In some apps you can touch and hold text to see more actions, such as when you play a song.

Apple describes the same idea with five basic iPhone gestures. A tap is a brief touch with one finger — for example, to open an app on the Home Screen. Touch and hold means you press an item until something happens (Apple’s example: touch and hold the wallpaper until the app icons begin to jiggle). You do not need every extra menu today. If icons start to jiggle and you did not mean to move them, tap Done or press the Home button if your phone has one, or ask a tutor — do not keep poking at random.

Type slowly at first. The on-screen keyboard may show letters, numbers, and a key that looks like a globe or a 123 key to switch layouts. If a letter does not appear, you may have tapped slightly beside the key. Delete with the backspace key (often an arrow pointing left). On a shared phone, do not type passwords or bank details as “practice.” This lesson only asks you to type a word such as your first name in a notes app you already use, or in a box a tutor points to.

If the screen does not respond well, Google also describes a Display & touch setting called Touch sensitivity on some Android phones (Increased sensitivity makes the screen more responsive to lighter touches). That is useful if you use a screen protector, but it is optional. Skip it unless a tutor helps you look.

Swipe means you move one finger across the screen quickly. Apple’s example is swiping left on the Home Screen to see more apps. Scroll is slower: you move one finger without lifting it, such as dragging a list up or down in Photos. Apple says you can swipe to scroll quickly, then touch the screen to stop. Zoom uses two fingers: spread them apart to zoom in, or move them together to zoom out. Google says that on some pages, such as a webpage or map, you can also tap twice to zoom in, or pinch open and closed.

Getting around the phone uses either buttons or gestures. Google says steps vary by device and maker. On many Android phones you can choose:

• 3-button navigation: dedicated buttons for Home, Back, and Recents (Overview). Google recommends this if you have limited dexterity or find precise gestures hard.
• Gesture navigation: swipe instead of buttons. To go Home, swipe up from the bottom. To go Back, swipe from the left or right edge (from the far edge if the app also scrolls sideways). To see recent apps, swipe up from the bottom, hold, then let go. From there you can tap an app to reopen it, or swipe up on an app image to close it.

You can go Back more than once, but when you reach the Home screen you cannot go back any further. On an iPhone without a Home button, Apple’s separate gesture list (not copied here in full) uses a swipe up from the bottom to go Home.

A useful extra: Google says you can swipe down from the top to open Quick Settings, then find a tile such as Auto-rotate. Two fingers swiping down opens the full Quick Settings on many phones. That is the same “swipe down” idea as opening an Internet panel, which you will use again when you connect to Wi-Fi.

On a computer, a mouse or trackpad moves a pointer (often an arrow) around the screen. Microsoft describes keyboard shortcuts as another way to do something you would typically do with a mouse. You do not need to memorise a long list. A few official shortcuts are enough for everyday work:

• Windows logo key + E opens File Explorer (you will use this in the next lesson).
• Windows logo key + L locks the computer (Lesson 2).
• Windows logo key + I opens Settings.
• Alt + Tab switches between open windows.
• Alt + F4 closes the active window. If no windows are open, Microsoft says this can prompt you to shut down — so use it only on a window you mean to close.
• Esc stops or leaves the current task, or dismisses a dialog box.
• Ctrl + C copies the selected item; Ctrl + V pastes it; Ctrl + X cuts it.
• Arrow keys, Page Up, and Page Down move through text or a page.

Microsoft’s File Explorer help also describes right-click or press and hold for more options on an item, and the shortcut list includes Shift + F10 to display the shortcut menu for a selected item. That menu is useful when you want to rename, copy, or see more choices. On a library computer, open only items staff say you may use.

Type on the physical keyboard the same way you would type a note: click or tap in the box first so a cursor (a blinking line) appears, then type. If letters show up in the wrong place, click in the box again. The Backspace key deletes characters to the left of the cursor; Delete removes characters to the right.

Take care with shared machines. A strong click is not better than a gentle one. If the pointer disappears, move the mouse; if the screen is dark, wake it the way you learned in Lesson 2 rather than hammering keys.

On the device in front of you:

1. On a phone: tap an app you are allowed to open, scroll a list, then go Home (button or swipe up).
2. Practise Back once, then return Home.
3. On a Windows computer you may use: open Settings (Windows key + I), switch with Alt + Tab if another window is open, then close Settings with the window’s Close (X) control or Alt + F4 while Settings is in front.
4. Type a short practice word in a notes box a tutor points to. Do not type a password.

Which is easier for your hands — buttons at the bottom of a phone, or swipe gestures? Google recommends 3-button navigation if precise gestures are hard.