[blackjack93117]

After the sales there are a lot of mysteries surrounding playbook operation, that are old hat to a lot of us but takes some learning and digging - I thought there should be a welcome wagon to avoid panics and accelerate the love!!

Please leave ONLY tips below - no conversations debates flaming anything but tips - keep it a concise reference please. Of what a newbie is likely to encounter - we were all newbies once - close your eyes and go back .. back... back....what did you know would have liked to know? How many times did you think your PB needed to be returned when it really didn't? What were you frustrated with trying to learn? What puzzled you? OK snap out of it and get to work! The more happy newbies there are - the better technology we get and apps!!!

If everyone plays nice this could be a concise reference and ultimately maybe a sticky.

Welcome to all newbies we need you!

First and foremost there are rumors circulating that playbook will be discontinued - ignore them! I don't think so and the next OS 2.0 will be awesome! Let not your hearts be troubled.

RIM reaffirmed their commitment to the PlayBook yesterday during their innovations forum in Toronto.

devices running OS2 were on display with various features we've been waiting for.

There is little doubt in my mind that PlayBooks will repopulate the shelves of retailers many more times, Futureshop is taking Backorders which means they do Plan to fill them

They had on Display,
native email, native calendar with some nice views
They had the PlayBook being able to use a BlackBerry handset as a input tool!!! (BIGGEST FEATURE for me hello awesome keyboard)
They had spellcheck Word Substitution included

[blackjack93117]

If you bought this as a gift or something to resell or hold unopened for a while - it is important to check operation, and things like dead/stuck pixels, an excessively bulging back, other physical defects, plus the inventory in stores is low and it may be difficult to obtain a replacement soon.

Other things to check for is the rubber seal around the edge (rarely) may not be recessed properly, dust trapped under the camera lenses ...

If it seems faulty or dead, it probably isn't.

When batteries lie dead for a while the playbook does funny stuff. That's why its best to keep it charged somewhat,. I don't let mine get below 50% but just as a safety measure. To make it worse the early operating system would not charge if the unit was turned off, so chances are the battery is drained. When you take it out of the box it may seem dead - but likely the battery is - this is tricky because if the OS is not upgraded from an earlier version, it will not charge unless the OS is booted, but will not boot unless charged - catch-22.

The solution I believe is to plug in the charger (be sure its the one that came wit the unit) then do the three button reset - hold the + and - volume buttons and the power button - all three at once for over ten seconds - then release. Then just let it charge before doing anything.

You may see a green LED pulsing on and off then goes steady green, or you may just see the red LED flash once - be patient.


Other things to test: The power button on some models is very flush and difficult to press - some call it a defect, not a huge deal really since it is rarely used the unit is kept in standby but if so, important to keep charged - don't let the battery run down completely if you can avoid it. -There will be an audible alarm when it gets to 10 percent. I find something like a lollipop stick works perfectly to press a flush power button.

Also take a few pics to be sure the camera is ok - front and back facing. Be sure to delete them from the photos folder (in the media section) - Sometimes there can be dust or other things trapped in front of the lens.


It is VERY important to open these and check them if they are gifts or you will miss the gift giving opportunity and have a bummed recipient who will hate you, and playbook as well. I just went through an annoying experience with my new 16g that had obviously been returned by a previous frustrated owner.

It was DOA when I took it out of the box. It had clearly been pre-owned the seal was broken and there were fingerprints - obviously I could have returned it but it was the last one and I didn't want to wait, as I new how to resuscitate it (see below)

It was full of personal info so bottom line: BEWARE before you return it if you think it has failed.
For one thing it probably has not failed, just requires some special care.
If you think you got a defective unit - chances are you haven't -




RESETS

A soft reset is accomplished by holding down the power button for ten seconds then releasing.

If this doesn't work a "hard" reset (similar to battery pull) is accomplished by holding down the power, and both + and - volume buttons for over ten seconds then release. Hold the power first, then the two volume buttons do be sure you don't do a screen capture instead. (two volume buttons only cause a screen capture - but only if not bridged to the phone)

Of course this wont work with a dead battery, plug it in with the PLAYBOOK charger or charging stand while doing this and give it some time to charge first.

LED - edited with thanks to "timekeeper" and kbz1960

Normally the LED only lights up RED when being rebooted. When off and charging it pulses green until full charge then it's full green.

When first new, the battery may be dead form sitting on the shelf...or when being debricked, etc. you will see some abnormal LED action.

You may get a brief red LED then nothing, or a green LED fading in and out at a 1 second rate. This is all good. when charged I believe it will glow steady GREEN. Then try the three button reset - be patient eventually you will see the blackberry playbook logo sign on. You're good, unless you then get an alternating green/fadein/fadeout to orange/fadein/fadeout with the logo stuck - that is where my unit is now - I think it means the OS has to be loaded from desktop manager - not often the case - but I will come back and edit this when I figure it out or someone leaves a note here.

OK here's the strange not at all obvious sequence I had to go through with mine, which inspired this thread- I would have thought i had a bad playbook multiple time - in fact I got the very last PB at Best Buy in stock which had obviously been opened and returned - broken seal even an identifiable thumbprint by the previous owner!

I had to do major life support to bring it to life, but apparently the other guy hadn't a clue and just returned it.

OK beginning with the state I left it in last night (blackberry logo showing but no boot- LED fading in and out from green to orange alternating...apparently meant it was charging. In the morning it was just glowing green with the logo showing.

I held down the power button (with a lollipop stick! as it was an early model with a flush power button lollipop stick fits perfect!) for ten seconds and released - it seemed to do nothing but eventually the LED went out - the logo was still there on black background and then YAY the booting graphics kicked in.

Patient revived. If I were a newbie this would have gone back and I would have been down for the count waiting for a new one.

Anyone please correct add detail to this if I am wrong.

If none of the above helps:

If it stalls, you need to use the DEBRICK method which does involve using Desktop manager (DM).

Turn off the pb.

Run DM. Plug in the OFF pb.

There should be a prompt to UPDATE. It can disappear so watch for it. Use it.

You may still need wifi to finish the setup. So have wifi or find a good wifi place to sit for a while.

Good luck.

Case bulge


Some playbooks have a bulging back - lay it flat on the table and see if you do -

This has been generally been determined to be a manufacturing defect- - not a functional problem only cosmetic. It wont hurt your playbook but may bother you cosmetically.
.

I think everybody should register for the 90-day service as it is not the same as the one year warranty.

Besides, registration gives you an approximate date of when your Playbook was sold (in case you get it at a secondary market).

Here is the link:

PlayBook Technical Support Phone Number - PlayBook Help Phone

See where it says "Direct support for BlackBerry PlayBook tablet" and " Tablet Serial Number Submit" (almost on the bottom of the page).

It will show you how many of the original 90 days of the service you have left.

[blackjack93117]

It may not be obvious that you will need to have some form of wifi if you don't have a blackberry phone. If you're not at starbucks or a hotel, you need a wireless access point at home, or wireless router. Beyond the scope here to help you with that.

If you have a Blackberry phone - the playbook can use it's 3G transmitter by pairing it via bluetooth, via the blackberry Bridge apps installed on both devices..lots of info in the forums. the most awesome feature in my opinion, because you no longer have to find hot spots, you can browse the web anywhere you can make a phone call -

If you are with AT&T you will have to do some workarounds to make the phone bridge work - because they block it in app world (isnt that nice - no other carrier does this)

There is a special link on here for downloading the file that AT&T has blocked from rroyy:

http://forums.crackberry.com/blackbe...-7-4-a-621230/

.

[blackjack93117]

Highly recommended!! not only for convenience, and to use as an alarm clock but also to save wear and tear on the USB connector.

It is likely to be charged at all times with this, so you don't have to use the playbook with the USB connector plugged in because the charge is low - not only is that awkward, but it is easy to damage the USB connector accidentally by accidentally dropping or tweaking the cable...then you are in bad shape especially because there will be no way to charge it or connect to the desktop - this is the Achilles heal.

rapid chargers have been spotted in the wild for $13 or so, retail is what $60? Get em while you can.

If you have problems with the charger, it could be the charger end of the connector as well or both - it takes two connectors to make a connection the USB port is fragile and subject to strong torque from the cable - so getting the cradle is a good investment. If you're talking about usb try a different charger like a phone charger - or the USB cable to your PC and see if it seats better, as a test to see which end it is...a new charger is cheaper than a new playbook.

sometimes dirt or oxidation causes connector problems in which case look here:
Connector problems? Try this

Regarding batteries:

Thanks for the guide nevertheless.

To summarize, your LiIon batteries:
- Do not have a memory effect (do not need to be fully discharged/charged all the time)
- Fully discharging/charging only helps to recalibrate the OS battery meter (should only be done occasionally).
- Battery health deteriorates more rapidly if the battery gets discharged too often (it's a good idea to start recharging your battery before it hits 0% (better start recharging at around 20%-50%). Similarly, having the battery at 100% all the time is also detrimental.
- Temperature plays a significant role. Heat makes the batteries deteriorate faster.
- To prolong the battery life (period before rechargings), you can lower the display brightness, turn off unused connections (Wi-Fi, GPS, BT). The showcase mode can also decrease battery life.
- Remember, the battery will not "die" all of a sudden. Battery deterioration is a continuous process.
- Don't worry about battery deterioration too much. If you are not "abusing" your battery, it should last long enough and you will probably get a new tablet before it becomes unusable.

Please, see Battery University's website for more resources (google "Battery University").

.

[blackjack93117]

There are three -

OFF /ON and STANDBY

The power button is rarely used once you are up and running. - It's just in and out of standby, as standby uses little battery power.

First!! See below to check your operating system version and upgrade it to the latest! See next topic for details
Early Operating Systems were buggy and featureless.

There is a timeout to automatically put it into standby after a preset time - the screen will go black - just swipe all the way across the face to wake it up and you are right back where you were instantly.

When always in ON or STANDBY, the beautiful thing is it is instant on and instant off.

Battery icon - contributions from ealvnv (aka Elmer Fudd?)

You will notice a lighting bolt or a "plug" superimposed over the battery icon if it is being charged properly.
The lightning bolt indicates a higher current source such as the special charger that came with the unit - or the charging dock.

If the charging source has less capacity, such as a standard phone charger , or the USB from your laptop desktop, it will charge slower - this is indicated by a "plug" icon instead of a lightning bolt icon.

Press the Battery Icon in the upper right corner, and there will be three options if your OS is upgraded to a later version. Just press Standby - then when you want to wake it up again, swipe from bezel to bezel any direction or press the power button.

tap on the battery icon to:

*adjust Brightness
*turn off
*restart
*stand by

IMPORTANT (well ok lets just say COOL! You will want to do this!) - special thanks to my friend kbz1960 a super nice and reasonable minded.. ...black labrador?

You can run in default, showcase or paused mode. Tap the "gear" and then "general" on the left.

Default: An application stays active in the background process until another application goes full screen.
Showcase: All open application are active and never pause in the background process.
Paused: All applications are paused in the background process and activated when tapped.

Edit: This might be old and changed now?
Also in this screen is “Demo Mode” on or off. This allows your BlackBerry PlayBook tablet to start playing back the “PlayBook HiDef Demo” video that’s included on the BlackBerry PlayBook tablet whenever you are charging your tablet and it’s idle.


Personally (BJ here ) - I say put it in showcase mode forever!!!!

[blackjack93117]

Check it by pressing "GEAR" icon in the upper right corner - this brings you settings.

On the left menu select "about".

the OS version should be up to 1.0.7.3312, but likely isn't out of the box.
If not, be sure you are connected to wifi with a good connection 4-5 bars (green"bars" in upper right) and press "Software Updates" in the settings menu.

You can then check and install updates - good idea to be plugged in and well connected before doing this.

[blackjack93117]

SCREEN CAPTURE thanks to for reminding me of this!
First I might add that there is a pretty cool feature that you may discover by accident - I rested my PB on the volume button edge and started hearing camera click sounds - I thought Great a virus is snapping pics of me and my house and sending them out to the internet! lol

Then I discovered I was unintentionally pressing both volume buttons at the same time and I'm thinking wtf?
Turns out it was faithfully taking pics of my screen and saving them in the photo folder ... Cool! unless you don't really want it to do that lol!

thanks to kmcobra for reminding me:

Taking a screenshot: Hold down the volume up and volume down buttons simultaneously and you will hear a camera shutter sound. The screenshot will show up in the "Pictures" application under "Camera Pictures". This can be done at any time in any application. Apparently it does not currently work while bridged to your phone.

In addition to what kmcobra64 have posted about using the Vol up and vol down buttons to capture screen ... I have since used this extensively to capture the cropped and refined pictures that I have on my PB i.e I'll enlarge the pic and move it around on the screen and then capture exactly the preferred image i would like to keep on my PB and show it off on this brilliant screen!

Upper right icons: right to left: -Battery icon - contributions from ealvnv (aka Elmer Fudd?) thanks!

Tap them!

GEAR - general settings
BATTERY ICON - power stuff
WIFI signal strength meter - tap to turn wifi on off
BLUETOOTH indicator - turns blue when on tap to turn on/off
ORIENTATION LOCK - Turn this on automatic if the portrait / landscape changing annoys you, or if you are lying on your side and despite what the playbook says, you want landscape mode!
CALENDAR/CLOCK - tap on the clock at home screen to get a calendar view and alarm view


GENERAL SWIPE GESTURES - BIG thanks to kmcobra64 for answering the call

Swipe from one bezel to the other bezel when in standby: will wake the playbook up.

Swipe up from the bottom: will minimize the current screen into a "card" on the homescreen. If you are already on the homescreen, this will maximize/minimize the application list.

Swipe down from the top: this will pull down the menu of a program if you are in one (if the program uses swiping gestures) or if you are on the homescreen, this will bring down the system options menu (same as clicking on the gear in the upper right corner). This same swipe will hide the menu. This is particularly important in the browser, because this is how you access your open tabs and create new ones.

Swipe left from the right bezel (or right from the left bezel): if an app is full screened this will bring you to your next open application if you are multitasking. It will slightly shrink your current screen and then pan over to the next screen, and then full screen that one. If you are not multitasking this will just slighy shrink down your current screen and then go back to full screen.

Speaking of multitasking: if you are on the homescreen and you have multiple app "cards" displayed, you can tap any one of them to make it full screen. If you wish to close an app, just touch it and swipe it up off of the screen.

Swipe diagonally down from either of the upper corners: when an app is full screened will display the status bar at the top of your screen so you can see the time, any notifications, battery life or access system options. This same swipe will re-hide the status bar.

Swipe diagonally upward from the lower left corner: will always bring up the keyboard. If for some reason the keyboard does not automatically appear when you put the cursor in a text box, this helps big time. This same swipe will hide the keyboard if it is displayed.

Pinch to zoom: it is sort of trial and error to see which apps support this but when viewing a picture or if you are in the browser you can "pinch" to zoom. This means you touch two fingers to the screen and drag them apart to zoom in, and drag the towards each other to zoom out.

SEE ATTACHMENT BELOW "BBPB Bezel Gestures.PDF" by togandergoose for a pictorial illustration of basic swiping gestures.

Bezel Scrolling - from shootsscores - thanks!

One of my favorite UI features. Very handy for scrolling busy web pages and also works in many apps as well. Start with your finger on the edge of the screen and slide your finger just off off it. Maintaining contact activates the first 3-4mm of the edge of the bezel next to the screen either in landscape or portrait orientation. Once contact with the bezel is broken, the scrolling is deactivated. Scrolling will not be enabled if there is more than one point of contact on the active part of the bezel so if you are holding the screen with your left hand and your thumb is on the active area trying to get the bezel active on the right side with a free digit won't work. The bezel, however is nicely wide enough to allow firm purchase of the device without interfering with the active portion of the bezel.

This scrolling feature cuts down on accidental link triggering and reduces fingerprints. It also helps create a larger viewing area as your finger or thumb never obstructs any part of the screen.

Warning! Beware of bezel blisters! You will use the feature so much that even though the glass is extremely smooth you may develop a blister on your prefered scrolling digit due to constant use.

BJ here -

I love this too and it takes some practice to master - I find it works very well if you touch a safe part near the edge and move your finger up (or down) at about a 5 degree angle toward the bezel

I am not sure where you would put this but it's a newbie tip I saw somewhere in this forum and tried myself... if you want to group all your downloads/app icons on the PB, on the Home screen press the app icon for a few seconds and drag it to a tab (e.g. Favourites, Games, Media etc). A copy of the icon will then move to the tab you select. You will still have all the icons in "All" on the main screen but it means you don't necessarily have to scroll down the screen to find them (if you've downloaded a lot of apps the screen, though beautiful will need much more scrolling . Moving the icons to tabs is a neat way to organize them.
It isn't obvious you can do this (I had no clue until I just happened to come across it in the forum and hadn't seen it anywhere) and I think it should go in these great newbie tips!

INDICATORS - big thanks to F2! (took care of the autocapping and auto correcting for ya

If you see an odd red halo (but not circular) in the upper left corner that is a normal indication that you have a notification - an email, calendar event or possibly an update to an app. Tap that corner and a count will show of what's what. You can instantly open the emails by tapping that symbol.


Attachments to email are generally downloaded and stored on your bb phone and not the pb. They can generally be opened on the pb in the appropriate app which can open automatically.

Browsers and browsing

When reading certain web sites a quick double tap will zoom the current text or news column to a larger font and fit it to the window. another tap tap will reduce it again.

In mail with the list on the left and an open email on the right. Tapping on a blank area on the email will make it full screen and a similar tap when full will go back to list and smaller email.panel again.

In some cases you may not be able to copy/paste from an open email. But if you start a reply, then you can usually cut and paste. Helpful if you want to copy a url from an email you just got.

[blackjack93117]

There are many apps that take advantage of the internal GPS

GeoRendr is awesome
There are many that use Google maps.

What's Up? is cool for looking at stars, uses the GPS to locate you and the next version will use the internal magnetometer compass to orient you.

Maybe a gps tip. It generally will not work indoors. As a first test, download the FREE Compass app. Go to an open area without buildings, if possible, give it a good 15-20 minutes. Move it away from your body a bit. (The compass app does not provide much in utility but is a good app to test the gps).

More specifics: gps' need a good view of the sky. A gps which has been off for a while (days or week or more) or moved a longer distance will take a longer time to get a satellite lock. Once it gets a lock, it can hold it inside of a moving car. I can get a lock in the upstairs of my wood-framed, shingle-roofed home. I cannot get one downstairs.

[blackjack93117]

INPUT STILL NEEDED!! physical connectors, multitasking while watching etc...setting up resolutions -

thanks to ealvnv
if you use the hdmi output and get no audio on your tv, go to options > HDMI > and turn on HDMI Audio
.

[blackjack93117]

IN PROGRESS SUGGESTIONS PLEASE ...quirks in app world?, ignore the books etc....
dispell android myths...

First App Suggestions. - thanks Jerbru

I had my pb 7 months before looking at NFB (national film board).
Totally amazing. Look at the Animations.
have kids 5 - 7? look at Leon Appoline. Interactive
Get used to bridging if you don't have wifi available.

Amazing device!

Jivegirl14 likes Bejeweled - with an addiction warning lol

From kmcobra64:

Amazon instant video works flawlessly on the Playbook and looks amazing on the screen. Also, most major networks' websites that allow you to stream full episodes will also work without a hitch.

****HUGE NOTE**** CONTRARY TO POPULAR BELIEF, YOU DO NOT NEED APPS TO DO THIS. THIS IS ALL ACCOMPLISHED THROUGH THE BROWSER JUST LIKE ON YOUR DESKTOP/LAPTOP.

Exceptions: hulu will not work through the browser and neither will netflix

Blackjack's fav fun apps:

Blackjack (of course)
Piano
Drums
Bubble level
Playbook Chess
Files and Folders - the best file browsing app
GEOrendr - awesome free mapping app - marine maps road maps topo maps satellite maps with GPS location.
Machinarium!
Automation 2015
PHONE REMOTE! (see and control your BB phone from playbook)
MODERN COMBAT
DEAD SPACE
Vevo for music videos
Nobex Radio for .. radio...
Barry Black will crack you up!
What's up? - stargazing fun for kids fun for adults.

I discovered "SimpleBrowser +" and the fact that I can have multiple instances of live tabs (and even view them) running simultaneously - quite amazing.

You can actually, for example have multiple instances of youtube open and view/hear them at the same time - plus, beats the stock browser in the way it manages tabs and bookmarks.
VERY NICE. - Done by an active Crackberry member - Hatax.

Maybe I'm late to the show on this - but I had been using the free simplebrowser and meanwhile in the background Hatax has been making big improvements to the paid app - "Simplebrowser +" with a new release in the works in app world - coming soon.

Absolutely must have app for playbook.

Open it, plug it in to the AC adapter or rapid charger (or dock), and connect to wifi. You will be prompted to update the OS immediately, so be prepared to spend a few hours with it.

***You will likely want to use the same BBID you use on your 9930. This helps keep your AppWorld purchases in line between devices.***

Some key free apps preinstalled on your PlayBook:

- Documents To Go (full version, as far as I can tell, I can create new docs with it)
- Adobe Reader
- Kobo Book Reader
- Music Store (I believe it's 7Digital)
- Podcasts
- YouTube
- Bing Maps (yeah, well, it's what we get)
- Slacker Radio
- Facebook
- Twitter (web shortcut only)
- Weather (quite nice for an integrated OS freebie)
- Tetris
- Need For Speed: Undercover

Recommended free apps to download from AppWorld:

- Air Browser (a file system browser to navigate your PB folder structure)
- RIDGID Digital Bubble Level (everyone needs a level, don't they?)
- ScoreMobile (if you are a sports fan)
- BlueBox (DropBox client, I think it's it's free...)
- The CB App (well, duh)
- TouchUp Lite (free version of a premium photo editor)
- Xploding Boxes (by Ebscer, great game, $3 for the full version, single purchase gets you the full game on BB and PB!)
- Pixelated (by Ebscer, like XB, great game, $3 for the full version (Pixelated Plus), single purchase gets you the full game on BB and PB!)
- Poynt

Paid apps I dig:

- Blaq (awesome Twitter client, $1.99)
- Files and Folders (comprehensive file explorer, zip/unzip tool, more capable than AIR Browser)
- Book Reader (more versatile than Kobo)
- Dead Space (great creepy FPS, great graphics and controls, currently $4.99)
- Angry Birds (if you dig it, buy 'em all. $4.99 each)

*These lists are my personal recommendations. Please feel free, everyone, to add your own. Let's help this guy love his PlayBook!

[blackjack93117]

WIFI , network issues

Thanks to F2 for the following way to setup your network to transfer file to/from the playbook:

Here's what I've captured on the subject:

WiFi Fileshare

once you have the wired connection set up go back to my computer and do the following (this is for windows 7, other versions should be similar)

before beginning, ensure your playbook and PC are both connected to the same wireless signal, and that "file sharing" and "wifi sharing" are both on in the storage & security tab of the settings menu

-just above the file explorer in the header or the my computer window there will be an option called "map a network drive"
-click on it and in the new window that pops up select the drive letter you would like to correspond with your playbook's wireless connection (i used Z)
-in the folder section you will type the ip address of your playbook followed by specifically locating the media folder. it should look as follows:
\\111.111.1.11\media
-replace the 1's above with the actual ip address of your playbook. This can be found in your settings menu, in the about section. there will be a dropdown menu in this section that has an option for Network.
-once in the network section of the about tab you will find your ip address. it is the one referred to as IPv4. you can ignore the grayed out / and 2 numbers at the end. All you need it the number corresponding with the 1's showed above.
-enter your ip address that you have now found into the map a network drive window and click ok. This drive will now be available in the my computer window.

your wireless file transfer is now setup

-------------

You can also type that ip address into an Explorer window. My desktop shortcut is:

\\192.168.1.103\media

If you have set up a saved network in your Playbook that requires a password for you to log on but the password, later on, is changed, you will need to edit the existing settings so that you can enter the updated password. To do this, press Gear Button, then select "wifi" from the left hand menu; then click the drop down arrow beside "Select a network"; then select "Saved Networks". Find the original saved network information and change the password; then press "Save and Connect"

Took me forever to figure out what to do when I had to do this the first time. lol

Big thanks to Darlaten!

If the browser hangs, one trick that may work is to clear the privacy settings and security settings. With the browser open, swipe down from the top bezel to expose the browser options gear, tap the gear, tap privacy & security scroll to the bottom of that page and tap clear all. Then hit the back button. You may need to try reloading the page. There are a number of ways to improve the battery life, starting with a screen brightness adjustment. I usually turn mine down below 50%.

First, check your wifi status page on the playbook. Tap gear icon, select wifi on the left panel and then tap the ? mark icon... next to diagnostic information select wi-fi information from the drop down menu, scroll to the bottom and see if it says network type: 802.11g.

Did you switch your router to 802.11G only instead of 802.11N or 802.11G/N? There seems to be a bug in the WiFi software with the latest update.

Since you just got it I imagine you don't have much on it yet? Even so backup what you can and I would do a what is referred to as a debrick.

Start desktop manager on your computer, have the playbook on and plug it in the usb port. After dm recognizes it tap the battery icon and choose restart. DM will popup a message with a choices, choose update and let it finish.

I've done nothing for about a week except try to get the wifi to work correctly with my playbook. Its disgusting how many hours I've wasted. I tried EVERYTHING imaginable changing channels, changing g/b/n setting changing from WEP to WPA personal. Talked to tech support 2x for 40 minutes each time. Nothing worked. Just now I looked in the QoS setup at the settings. I unchecked Enable WMM (Wi-Fi multimedia) Settings. So far it looks like this fixed my issues. It had something to do with prioritizing the wireless traffic. I was very close to returning the playbook. Still not 100% about keeping it, but we will see. Hope this helps others. Ive put soooo many hours into making it work, I felt like I couldn't let it beat me.

[blackjack93117]

Recommended must haves: -thanks to contributions by F2, others

The pb does not have a native file manager to look around and explore the files and folder - AirBrowser in appworld is FREE. "My File Manager" and "File Browser " are excellent likely there are others.

I like "File Browser" There is also "My File Manager", both great - your choice.
File Browser has FTP access,

My File Manager has a nicer file structure view, easier to navigate and keep track of where you are on the directory tree lets you create new folders - I don't think the other does?
allows unzip of zip files, hide files from shared access, password protection...many advanced features
constant updates - active developer


To explore the potential of Playbook and have some fun right off the bat there are some great EA games, plus checkout the free "Piano" app and "Drums" is near unbelievable.

[blackjack93117]

Current limitations? audio?

[blackjack93117]

First and foremost there are rumors circulating that playbook will be discontinued - ignore them! I don't think so and the next OS 2.0 will be awesome! Let not your hearts be troubled.

RIM reaffirmed their commitment to the PlayBook yesterday during their innovations forum in Toronto.

devices running OS2 were on display with various features we've been waiting for.

There is little doubt in my mind that PlayBooks will repopulate the shelves of retailers many more times, Futureshop is taking Backorders which means they do Plan to fill them

They had on Display,
native email, native calendar with some nice views
They had the PlayBook being able to use a BlackBerry handset as a input tool!!! (BIGGEST FEATURE for me hello awesome keyboard)
They had spellcheck Word Substitution included

[sqa4life]

This is an excellent thread/tips.
Would be nice if you could provide instructions or link (link post #3)

Thanks for the tips

[timekeeper]

If you bought this as a gift or something to resell or hold unopened for a while - it is important to check operation, and things like dead/stuck pixels, an excessively bulging back, other physical defects, plus the inventory in stores is low and it may be difficult to obtain a replacement soon.

RESETS and LED

A soft reset is accomplished by holding down the power button for ten seconds then releasing.

If this doesn't work a "hard" reset (similar to battery pull) is accomplished by holding down the power, and both + and - volume buttons for over ten seconds then release.

Of course this wont work with a dead battery, plug it in with the PLAYBOOK charger or charging stand while doing this and give it some time to charge first.

You may get a brief red LED then nothing, or a green LED fading in and out at a 1 second rate. This is all good. when charged I believe it will glow steady GREEN. Then try the three button reset - be patient eventually you will see the blackberry playbook logo sign on. You're good, unless you then get an alternating green/fadein/fadeout to orange/fadein/fadeout with the logo stuck - that is where my unit is now - I think it means the OS has to be loaded from desktop manager - not often the case - but I will come back and edit this when I figure it out or someone leaves a note here.

Anyone please correct add detail to this if I am wrong.

The only time I have seen my LED light up was red when I rebooted it. I don't see it at all, green or otherwise while charging. Is that normal?

[DD1968]

The only time I have seen my LED light up was red when I rebooted it. I don't see it at all, green or otherwise while charging. Is that normal?

Yes, that's normal.

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[ealvnv]

tap on the battery icon to:

*adjust Brightness
*turn off
*restart
*stand by

[ealvnv]

tap on the clock at home screen to get a calendar view and alarm view

[ealvnv]

if you use the hdmi output and get no audio on your tv, go to options > HDMI > and turn on HDMI Audio

[shootsscores]

Bezel Scrolling

One of my favorite UI features. Very handy for scrolling busy web pages and also works in many apps as well. Start with your finger on the edge of the screen and slide your finger just off off it. Maintaining contact activates the first 3-4mm of the edge of the bezel next to the screen either in landscape or portrait orientation. Once contact with the bezel is broken, the scrolling is deactivated. Scrolling will not be enabled if there is more than one point of contact on the active part of the bezel so if you are holding the screen with your left hand and your thumb is on the active area trying to get the bezel active on the right side with a free digit won't work. The bezel, however is nicely wide enough to allow firm purchase of the device without interfering with the active portion of the bezel.

This scrolling feature cuts down on accidental link triggering and reduces fingerprints. It also helps create a larger viewing area as your finger or thumb never obstructs any part of the screen.

Warning! Beware of bezel blisters! You will use the feature so much that even though the glass is extremely smooth you may develop a blister on your prefered scrolling digit due to constant use.

[theegoldenone]

Blackjack. First, very nice topic. Second, this is a suggestion for you, instead of adding a new post for every tip, just update your first post with the newer tips. And when others add tips, you can update your first post also. This will make it much easier to find/view the tips.

MODS. Please sticky this.

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[blackjack93117]

Blackjack. First, very nice topic. Second, this is a suggestion for you, instead of adding a new post for every tip, just update your first post with the newer tips. And when others add tips, you can update your first post also. This will make it much easier to find/view the tips.

MODS. Please sticky this.

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

Agreed - I intend to do a clean up and consolidation when I have a chance and this looks fairly complete - and will ask people to delete comments and I will delete mine as well - thanks! I think I mentioned that somewhere...
I'd like to sit out on this, but I have to keep making comments to bump it to the top because not many others are...

Mods - don't stick yet if you think it's a good idea too- I may ask for help in the cleanup as well

[kbz1960]

The only time I have seen my LED light up was red when I rebooted it. I don't see it at all, green or otherwise while charging. Is that normal?

When off and charging mine pulses green until full charge then it's full green.

[omega supreme]

OK beginning with the state I left it in last night (blackberry logo chowing but no boot- LED fading in and out from green to orange alternating...apparently meantit was charging. In the morning it was just glowing green with the logo showing.

I held down the power button (with a lollipop stick! as it was an early model with a flush power button lollipop stick fits perfect!) for ten seconds and released - it seemed to do nothing but eventually the LED went out - the logo was still there on black background and then YAY the booting graphics kicked in.

Patient revived. If I were a newbie this would have gone back and I would have been down for the count waiting for a new one.

Anyone please correct add detail to this if I am wrong.

hmm, well i guess i have an early model since my power button is also flush. i also thought i got a defective model for the following reason: when i got it out of the box it booted fine but when it told me to plug it in to download the latest update, after a few minutes it went to black and i couldn't wake it up no matter where i touched it. i then unplugged the power and plugged it back and it came to life again. it happened twice during the update...not sure if this was just standby mode but i thought it would wake up just by touching it which it didn't.

after reading the forums further i'm realizing that swiping your finger diagonally tends to wake it up from standby mode. i wish there were some basic instructions that came with it so we would know what to expect when we take it out of the box.