Touchscreen basics: tap, swipe, pinch

Tap, swipe, pinch: the moves that control every touchscreen. On a phone or tablet, you control everything with your fingers. There are just a few moves to learn, and once you know them, you can use almost any app. The most important move is the tap. Touch the screen lightly, then lift your finger. Tapping an app opens it. A double tap is two quick taps in the same place. In photos and maps, it zooms in. A long press means touching and holding for about a second. It usually shows extra options, like this menu. To swipe, put your finger on the screen and slide it. Swipe up and down to scroll through a page, or left and right to move between screens. To pinch, use two fingers. Spread them apart to zoom in, and bring them together to zoom out. And to drag, long press an item, then slide it to a new place before you lift your finger. That's how you move app icons around.

Buttons that help you get around

Most Android phones have three buttons at the bottom of the screen, or swipe moves that do the same jobs. Home takes you back to the home screen from anywhere. Back takes you back one step, like closing a menu. Recent apps shows the apps you've opened, so you can switch between them. On iPhones and many newer Android phones, you swipe up from the bottom edge to go home instead. To type, tap inside a text box, and the keyboard pops up from the bottom. Tap the letters one at a time. The arrow key makes a capital letter, and the backspace key deletes a mistake.

Quick check

Quick check. You want to zoom in on a photo. Which move do you use? Spread two fingers apart. That's a pinch outward, and it zooms in. Double tap works in many apps too. Options: Long-press the photo; Swipe left; Spread two fingers apart; Press the power button.

Recap

Tap to open things and press buttons. Long press for more options. Swipe to scroll and to move between screens. Pinch to zoom in and out. And use Home, Back and Recent apps to get around your phone.

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