I am here, because of reasons.

[Friendly]

I'm a 36 year old codger, my name is Friendly and I live in Canuckistan.

I bought an iPad Mini 4 because:
a) morbid curiousity, let's see what all the excitement is about
b) my parents are going iOS for it's ease of use, and I'm their tech support
c) my sister and her husband are securely in the Apple camp and I would like to FaceTime with them so my little nephew learns who is Om is.

I'm a Windows user, love Microsoft and their products...but, when family is involved, a man has to do what a man has to do, so I joined the dark side. my boss (I work in a PC store) said I have been added to his murder list, LOL!

in any case, signed up for an iOS 9 course at my local Simply Computing store (where I bought this thing) that starts in a couple weeks. now I'm looking for some suggestions for reading material on how to use this thing. so this leads to a couple of questions I'm hoping you all here can help me with.

a) are there any good iOS 9 tutorials out there?
b) where can I find retina resolution images of space for my background?
c) do you have any words of wisdom or advice for a novice?

also, I am pleased to make your acquaintance!

PS - a few more things came to mind!
d) I would like a good leather case with the tri-fold capacity. apparently the one that Apple has that's made with rubber is the pits. too big so the iPad shifts a bit once inserted and it leaves residue on the screen.
e) to avoid residue on my screen, what's a good 'glass' screen protector to use?
f) what is considered the best stylus to use?

I understand these new questions could be slightly premature, as the Mini 4 is pretty new to the market, so accessories haven't saturated yet, but maybe in the time since it's come out some options shine above the rest.

thank you for your wisdom and assistance!

 

[scifan57]

Welcome to iPad Forums, Friendly!

A good place to start would be the iPad user guide. https://help.apple.com/ipad/9/

There's also an iBooks version that you can download and read offline. iPad User Guide For iOS 9 by Apple Inc. on iBooks

 

[twerppoet]

a) The manual is the best place to start, and SciFan has covered that. I've never seen another user guide I liked.

b) All over the place. Google searches work pretty well. We have a Wallpaper forum area here. It's not very active, but you'll find a few suggestions.

c) Don't try to force it to work like a traditional computer. Treat it as a completely new kind of device where you have to learn new ways of doing things; or you're going to spend a lot of time being frustrated.

d) Apple makes both rubber and leather cases. The leather ones are bit more expensive, but much nicer. It's hard to pick a case for another person, since everyone has different needs/wants and expectations. I find Apple's smart cases a good starting point. Actually, a good enough stopping point for me. My needs are light and generic.

e) I don't use one. A screen protector does not prevent residue, it just lets you accumulate residue on a different, and generally more difficult to clean surface. Scratch protection is another issue. I don't use a screen protector, and haven't had problems. Other's tell a different story.

f) Put this on a back shelf. If you 'must' have a stylus to try then get a cheap one for now. Many people buy styluses, very few actually use them on an iPad. When they do, it is usually because they've discovered a specific use or app that they love, and is made better with a stylus. Most apps work fine with your finger. Most apps work better with your finger(s).

 

[NSquirrel]

A couple of points:
As twerppoet says in 'c' the ipad is very different and it takes a little while to get used to having every app sandboxed and no file manager, especially if you are used to systems like Windows where perhaps everything centres around the file manager.

Wrt stylus, I bought one at a local poundland, in the UK, for use with Sudoku via screenshots and a drawing app. The stylus needs to be fairly thick as it is emulating a finger; the tip of mine is around 5mm. Apart from that, for me, the stylus has no other use.

 

[Friendly]

well, so far my experience with iOS 9.0.2 has been very positive. it's very fluid and responsive.

I wish I could install a lot of the included app's that came with iOS, so I can install my preferred one's and regain the storage, but meh.

I'm going to have to play with the iBook reader more. I like the built-in ability to highlight text and make notes. However, I did find myself suffering from eyestrain with some reading that I did. does anyone know if there are any controls for the blue spectrum of the backlight? the new LG G Pad II 10.1 included reader app is supposed to have options to curb the blue's to make it easier on the eyes while reading, so would be nice if there's something like this for iBook or another compatible app?

also, I found using the stylus I have to be a bit cumbersome. the tip is too thick and kept interfering with highlight text when it was near a hyperlink to provide an associated thought with the subject matter. are there any more pointed tip stylus similar to what the iPad Pro will have? I know it will not work on the Mini 4 already, but something like it would be nice to use.

 

[twerppoet]

I've found the main cause of eyestrain when reading on a screen (even an iPad) is when there is a significant difference in the brightness of the screen when compared to the brightness of the room. If my eyes are constantly adjusting to different brightness levels, I get headaches fairly quickly.

So, turning down the brightness is key. And since iBooks has a separate brightness control that works just in the app, it is easy.

As for the blue levels, iBooks has four reading themes. Tap the double A button and check them out. The sepia has considerably less blue in it than the plain white, the gray mode is easy on the eyes, and of course the night mode emits even less light, blue included.

And don't forget to adjust the font size to something comfortable.