WP8 Newbies Q&A

[WhyFiNYC]

Here goes my first: I can't type anything in website forms in IE or UC Browser. e.g. I can't post on this forum. The keyboard comes up then immediately goes down again. Any solutions?

Ditto - I'm having the same issue on some forums, but it only seems to be with certain fields. On one forum, trying to type in the Quick Reply text box will give me the disappearing kb, but if I "Go Advanced," it'll let me... odd.

 

[WhyFiNYC]

Weather flow replaces the photo I had and put up one of their own.

I just tried it - works for me, although I had a problem the first time around (in the opening set-up sequence, I didn't give it permission to control the lock screen, when I corrected that, it did pop up their own image. Going back in to the settings and re-selecting my image took care of it, though).

 

[jhnybgood47]

I just tried it - works for me, although I had a problem the first time around (in the opening set-up sequence, I didn't give it permission to control the lock screen, when I corrected that, it did pop up their own image. Going back in to the settings and re-selecting my image took care of it, though).

yeah I just got it to work. thanks.

 

[mase123987]

As far as a search box that works for multiple things all over the phone, I bet it has something to do with Apple's patent. Samsung removed this feature from at least one of it's flagships because of a patent dispute. Maybe to do it properly, a payment to Apple would be required. Just a guess though.

 

[Huime]

Figured I'd start a thread for this since a lot of us may be switching over from other OS's.

Here goes my first: I can't type anything in website forms in IE or UC Browser. e.g. I can't post on this forum. The keyboard comes up then immediately goes down again. Any solutions?

Yes some forum does not play well with IE. I have a 920. Usually I used IE in desktop mode and although when I try to post it keeps bouncing away from the type box, you still can navigate back and type like normal.

 

[hopmedic]

I have a couple of other newbie questions for someone potentially switching:

1. Can voice commands work without an internet connection? (ie "Call X")
2. With #1, can you voice dictate without an internet connection?
3. While playing with a demo, I could not find a way to search locally (meaning contents of a note, song, etc). Every time I hit search, it would just take me to bing. Am I missing something obvious?
4. While local music is playing, can WP display lyrics?

Thanks.

Voice commands will work locally, for the built-in apps - as far as launching them, or "call x". Dictation will not work without a connection. The voice to text conversion is done in the cloud. For those who don't know, you can dictate in both text and email, and you can post to facebook by voice by doing it via text message.

When Windows Phone 7 came out, the search button was contextual - it would search whatever app you were in, if search was enabled for that app. It wasn't global, but it was more than it is now. It was with the Mango update in 2011 that it was changed to always go to Bing. No, you're not missing anything obvious - you're missing something that we're all missing. Local search.

As stated above, Nokia Music + will play the lyrics if you have a premium membership.

 

[rick98761]

As far as a search box that works for multiple things all over the phone, I bet it has something to do with Apple's patent. Samsung removed this feature from at least one of it's flagships because of a patent dispute. Maybe to do it properly, a payment to Apple would be required. Just a guess though.

That's not the case. Apple and Microsoft have a cross licensing agreement. That's why you never see them suing each other.

 

[tribexx]

Hello all,

Converting from Trophy -> 928...a couple of questions:

1. Is there somewhere I can learn (from a beginner's point of view) about how/when to use:
   1. Camera vs Apps (No jokes, I mean vs using what the Forums say "Pro Shot" or some other app as a default to take photos)
   2. Smart Shoot (Is this just for action shots?)
   3. Cinemagraph
   4. Creative Studio
2. What tool/app allows you to remove a person/object from a photo? Is this feature coming standard in the amber update?
3. Which tool/app does the switch faces or is that also the amber update?
4. This "Low light" functionality of Nokia...Is there a setting to get this, or is this just natural to the phone, even using flash and the natural camera app? (I just don't want to miss anything.)
5. I have a Zune Pass, how doe it stack up with Nokia Music?
6. Where are the "Bing lockscreen" photos coming from? (They don't match the desktop/search one.) And when do they update?
7. What are the best windows phone 8 lockscreen apps?
8. Does the ROOM feature need for all users to have a Microsoft account? I sent a request to someone, who uses the fruit phone, and it asked them to input their MS account/password.

Absolutely loving this phone so far!

 

[WhyFiNYC]

^^^ Here's a few -

* Default camera vs Pro Shot - if the default camera app isn't giving you results that you're happy with, then it's time to explore the alternative apps that give you more control over exposure parameters (ISO, shutter speed, color temp - if this is Greek to you, don't bother with Pro Shot, etc.).
* Cinemagraph - this is for taking photos with a section that's animated. One of the examples that Nokia has used in their marketing is someone holding a sparkler and the sparks are flying, everything else is stationary. I think it's pretty cool.
* Creative Studio is used for editing photos.
* Family Room - yes, they need to sign up for a MS account. With an iPhone, add your MS email account and it'll sync your Family Calendar with the iPhone's calender. The wife and I just went through this yesterday, and we're liking it (she tends to plan stuff that I tend to forget about).

 

[Somerichs]

Hi all-

I'm (thinking about) coming over from Android.

One of the main drawbacks I hear (of course) is that there are far fewer apps for WP than for android.

For me, that's not necessarily a deal-breaker because I really don't use that many in the first place.

I am curious to know, however, if there are WP versions of the handful that I do use? I did search on a few of these, but was limited on time and didn't get too far. Also, I lend a lot more credence to first-hand knowledge of various things rather than star ratings.

So, can anyone tell me if these apps exist for WP, or if there is an alternative where they do not exist, and, as important, how well either works compared to its Android counterpart?

1. Facebook - Have heard it's not the most user-friendly in the world.
2. Google Maps/Navigation - I use this a lot when driving. I know there are alternatives for WP (Drive or something like that?). Are they pretty complete (particularly for southern California?)
3. Amazon Kindle - I use this on my phone a lot when I'm out and about and standing in line somewhere.
4. Yelp - didn't use to use it much but i've been finding it increasingly handy to have of late.
5. Pinterest - Nice to have to pass the time, but I don't have a burning need for it on my phone
6. Craigslist - Another "nice to have."
7. Yahoo Mail - Would like to be able to access my yahoo mail from my phone.
8. Music. I had a couple different things loaded, but didn't use any of them all that much. I think the standard google music player, and the amazon one. What's Nokia's music services all about? Also, any idea if there's a Grooveshark app for WP?

Thanks for any info/impressions any one can offer!

 

[Muessig]

Hey Somerichs, WP8 is a lot better with apps than it used to be, we've got 90% of the top 50 apps according to a recent keynote, if that means anything to you.

1. Facebook - yeah we've got it and it was just updated to be like the iOS and Android versions - works well.
2. Gmaps exists but if you go for a WP you can get the arguably better HERE Maps, Transit, Drive, City Lens suite that just overall rocks.
3. Yep we have Kindle.
4. Yelp - we do have this but it's not the best port. There are other apps im sure people here can tell you about that will do the job better.
5. Pinterest - Yep and its highly rated.
6. Craigslist there are a few choices, some rated higher that others but we do have it.
7. You can access your yahoo mail through the email yeah no problem.
8. Music - You can use the grooveshark mobile unofficial app - Grooveshark Mobile | Windows Phone Apps+Games Store (United Kingdom) or the Xbox music app or the Nokia Music app, all have their own quirks and all seem to work fairly well. Nokia music is highly recommended (I'd recommend you consider a Nokia phone generally if only for the apps and support.

 

[baaahthesheep]

There are tons of additional options for music. Pandora radio is also available, and WP8 users get free unlimited streaming with unlimited skips for 2013. Last.fm is also solid, and spotify.

 

[Somerichs]

There are tons of additional options for music. Pandora radio is also available, and WP8 users get free unlimited streaming with unlimited skips for 2013. Last.fm is also solid, and spotify.

Thanks baaahthesheep and Muessig. I will check out the unofficial grooveshark app, along with xbox music and nokia music, as well as last.fm and spotify (grooveshark is basically the same thing as spotify, but with (i've heard) questionable legality), but man do i hate Pandora. I want to listen to the actual song I want to listen to when I want to listen to it, instead of listening to a different a song that someone else has determined is similar to the song I want to hear while I wait to maaaaaybe hear the actual song I want to hear. And what they consider to be similar to what i want to hear is as often as not nothing I have any desire to listen to.

Been a few years since I've tried it, for those very reasons, so maybe it's improved since then, but I found it terribly annoying the last time I used it...

 

[painterface]

Can you open tabs in background with IE?

 

[baaahthesheep]

Yeah, I never really streamed music before because I didn't really trust that I'd like the similar artists, but I did some streaming recently with Pandora and last.fm and thought it was pretty enjoyable. Xbox music is also pretty good for streaming if you know what you want to listen to, instead of listening to similar artists. Haven't really tried Nokia Music much.

 

[enthuz]

There are tons of additional options for music. Pandora radio is also available, and WP8 users get free unlimited streaming with unlimited skips for 2013. Last.fm is also solid, and spotify.

Where is this stated and how do you get it?

 

[hopmedic]

Where is this stated and how do you get it?

It was announced with the launch of Windows Phone 8 back in October, and then when the app finally came. All you have to do is download the app. All Pandora on WP8 devices is commercial free/unlimited through 2013.

 

[enthuz]

It was announced with the launch of Windows Phone 8 back in October, and then when the app finally came. All you have to do is download the app. All Pandora on WP8 devices is commercial free/unlimited through 2013.

Sweet!

 

[Easttroywards]

Ok, longtime Android user coming over to WP8 with hopefully modest expectations. I rode the early days of Android out but have grown tired of trying to make things work and tinkering. There's a few things that I don't seem to have a handle on yet that are really holding me back......

The largest is the lack of a file manager and local (on phone) documents.

Where are downloaded documents stored and is there any way to get to them? I use my phone for business and regularly have to send and resend emails with attachments. Most if not all of these are stored on Box. I can get to them and download them, but I have yet to find a way to actually send them in an email. Please don't tell me the only way to do this is thru Skydrive. If I have a pdf quote I've got in a folder on Box, how do I attach it to an email? The Box app will natively let me send a link to the file, but I don't find that to be an acceptable solution.

The second is small compared, but is there an app to save an office document as a pdf? I used to have a converter that I could work on any file I could open on my phone.

Other than those, I'm learning and liking what I'm finding.

Thanks in advance,

 

[WhyFiNYC]

^^^ If you're in the document, tap the screen to bring up the menu on the bottom, tapping on the "..." will give you more options, from there you can select "Share" and then select the email account that you'd like to send it from. If you're not in the document, go to the Office app - scrolling from side-to-side will allow you to see/select docs from various places, whether on your phone, in SkyDrive, etc. Once you find what you're looking for, you can tap to open or just tap and hold to bring up the "Share" option.

Can't help with your other request.