Chapter 5. Connecting to the Internet, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth Devices

In this chapter, you explore how to connect to the Internet and browse the web using either the Palm Pre’s cellular data connection or Wi-Fi. You also learn how to connect to Bluetooth devices such as headsets. Topics include the following:

→ Connecting to a Wi-Fi network

→ Using the web browser

→ Adding web pages to the Launcher

→ Connecting to Bluetooth accessories

Your Palm Pre can connect to the Internet in two main ways. By default your Palm Pre uses its cellular data connection, which is always available if you have cellular coverage. When you launch the web browser or use an application that communicates over the Internet, your Pre uses the cellular connection.

If, however, you are in range of a wireless network, also called a Wi-Fi network, you can associate with that network and take advantage of the increased speeds. In this chapter we cover how to connect to Wi-Fi networks and use the web browser. In addition we cover using Bluetooth to connect to Bluetooth accessories such as hands-free head sets.

Connecting to Wi-Fi Networks

Your Palm Pre always connects to the Internet over its cellular data connection, but you can make use of Wi-Fi networks to enjoy much higher speeds and an improved web browsing experience. Applications that can stream video and audio can also benefit from these high speeds. The great thing about Wi-Fi networks is that they are all over the place. You can typically find them in places like coffee shops, airports, restaurants, hotels, and probably in your home.

Step-by-Step: Setting up a Wi-Fi Network Connection

Here is how to connect to a Wi-Fi network.

1. Tap the Wi-Fi icon from the Launcher.

   

2. Tap the On/Off switch to turn on (or off) your Palm Pre’s Wi-Fi radio. When this option is set to On, your Palm Pre scans for Wi-Fi networks in range, and after a few seconds you see a list of them.
3. Tap the name of the Wi-Fi network to which you want to connect.

   

4. If the Wi-Fi network you select requires a password or key to connect, your Pre prompts you to type that password or key.
5. Tap Sign In to connect.

   

6. If you connected to the Wi-Fi network successfully, you see a check mark next to that Wi-Fi network in the list of available networks. At this point, if you tap on the name of the network, you can view details about it, including information about the IP address (or network address) that is assigned to your Palm Pre by that network.

   

7. If you want to disconnect from the Wi-Fi network, tap Network. Otherwise, you can close this screen by tapping Done.

   

   Joining an Unspecified Network

   If you need to join a Wi-Fi network that is invisible (or not advertising its SSID), from the screen that shows the list of available networks, tap the Join network button shown here, enter the network name (SSID), and, if it is a secured network, the necessary security type and access key.

The Web Browser

Your Palm Pre comes with a web browser that enables you to browse the Internet as if you were sitting at a desktop computer. Browsing the Internet on a phone is normally a frustrating activity where the phone tries to change the web pages to suit its screen. In many cases the websites you visit direct your phone to a stripped down mobile version of the website. The Palm Pre’s web browser accesses the Internet almost exactly like a desktop computer does. The web pages appear almost exactly like they do on a desktop computer with the layout and formatting in place. In addition to a great web browsing experience, you can do a few tricks with the web browser such as saving links directly to the Launcher. Let’s take a look.

Step-by-Step: Using the Web Browser

1. Tap the Web Browser icon on the Launcher bar.

   

2. When the web browser opens, you see large icons that represent web pages. These are your bookmarks. Your Pre comes with several bookmarks preconfigured, but as you add more they display on this screen. Tap a bookmark to open a website from this list, or enter the address or URL of a website into the top bar.

   

3. When your web page opens, you see that it looks almost the same as it does on a desktop computer. Tap the circular arrow in the bottom-right part of the screen to refresh or reload the web page.
4. Tap the arrow in the bottom-left part of the screen to go back one page.

   

5. To show the website in landscape mode, tilt your Palm Pre to the left or right side. The website flips to a horizontal or landscape view.
6. To zoom in on a part of a website, put your thumb and forefinger on the screen and move them apart. As you move them apart, the web page zooms.

   

7. To type in a new website address, use your finger to pull the web page down to reveal the address bar.
8. The address bar will not be ready for input, but will show the title of the website you are on. Tap the address bar to enter a new address. Type a new address, or if you don’t know the web address, type a search term.
9. Tap the Google line to search Google for your search term, or tap Wikipedia to search Wikipedia for your search term.

   

10. To add a bookmark to a website, tap the application menu on the top-left part of the screen.
11. Tap Add Bookmark.

    

12. On the Add Bookmark screen, because many websites use the website title to include more than the actual title, you might want to backspace over much of the title until you see only the name of the website.
13. Tap Add Bookmark to add the site.

    

Adding a Web Page to the Launcher

One cool feature of the Palm Pre is that it enables you to add a web page directly to the Palm Pre Launcher. This enables you to tap directly on that page to launch it, instead of first launching the web browser and tapping the bookmark. This is how to do it.

1. While the web page is open, tap the application menu in the top-left part of the screen.
2. Tap Page to expand the Page choices.
3. Tap Add To Launcher.

   

4. On the Add To Launcher screen, you can edit the title line if you choose. It is best to shorten it up as much as possible.
5. Tap Add To Launcher.

   

6. On your Launcher you see the new web link with an icon that represents the website.

   

Browsing Multiple Web Pages at One Time

On your Palm Pre you can open many web pages at one time, allowing you to switch between websites. Each website becomes a new Card on your Palm Pre’s screen as if it were a separate running application. To open multiple web pages, do the following.

1. With the web browser open, tap on the Application menu on the top-left part of the screen.
2. Tap New Card.

   

3. You see your current web page shrink, and a new card opens directly on the main browser screen. If you press the center button you see both web pages as cards. To switch between web browser cards, simply tap the card you want and it maximizes.

   Work with the web pages

   Because each new web page card appears like a new application, you can swipe left and right to scroll the web pages left and right, and you can rearrange them on the screen by tapping on a card, holding, and then dragging the card left or right.

Sharing a Web Link

If you find a web page that you want to email to someone, you can do it right on your Palm Pre. To share a web link, do the following:

1. With the web browser open and the page you want to share opened in it, tap on the application menu on the top-left part of the screen.
2. Tap Page to expand the Page options.
3. Tap Share. Your Pre creates a new email message with the web page link already inserted into the body of the email and a screenshot of the page attached.

   

4. Use the To field to enter the recipient’s information.
5. Click the Send button to send the email to its recipient.

   

   We will cover sending email in much more detail in Chapter 6.

Accessing Your Browsing History

Sometimes you want to go back to a website where you’ve already been but cannot remember its address. Your Palm Pre keeps a history of which websites you visit so that you can find them. To access your browser history, do the following:

1. With the web browser open, tap on the Application menu on the top-left part of the screen.
2. Tap Page to expand the Page options.
3. Tap History.

   

4. Scroll through the websites you visited in the past.
5. When you find a site where you want to return, tap it.

   

Configuring your Palm Pre Browser

You can configure some settings for your Palm Pre web browser that control how it works and clear its cookies, cache, and history. To configure your Palm Pre browser, do the following.

1. With the browser already open, tap on the application menu on the top-left part of the screen.
2. Tap Preferences to open the Preferences page.

   

3. Tap the Yes/No switch next to Block Popups to enable or disable browser pop-up windows. Although some browser pop-ups occur as a desirable result of an action you initiate on a web page, most of the time these are just annoying advertisements that can be avoided by leaving this option enabled.
4. Tap the Yes/No switch next to Accept Cookies to enable or disable cookies accepted by the browser. Cookies are small files that can track your Internet browsing habits but are also used by many websites to personalize their pages when you return. In most cases you want to leave cookies enabled.

   

5. Tap the Yes/No switch next to JavaScript to enable or disable JavaScript support. JavaScript can be useful on web pages that make use of it because it helps to add attractive formatting to a web page. JavaScript does many other things on web pages, so you might want to leave it enabled at all times to improve your browsing experience.
6. Tap Clear History to clear your browser’s history. You might want to do this to hide websites you have been visiting.
7. Tap Clear Cookies to clear any cookies stored on your Palm Pre. Note that if you clear out all the cookies stored on your Pre, this includes any stored login information you might have entered into sites that you regularly visit.
8. Tap Clear Cache to clear your browser cache. When you browse to websites, your Palm Pre uses the browser cache to store images so that the next time you go back to that website, it can get many of the images out of the cache instead of loading them over the air. This helps speed up web browsing, but also takes up space in memory. Clearing the browser cache frees up extra memory.

   

Bluetooth

Bluetooth is a type of wireless network technology that enables devices and accessories to communicate within a small area. This is sometimes called a Personal Area Network. Although you can connect two computers or two smartphones together using Bluetooth, the most common use is to connect a phone to an accessory such as a headset or an in-car hands-free system.

Step-by-Step: Pairing Your Palm Pre with an Accessory

1. Tap Bluetooth from the Launcher.

   

2. Tap the On/Off switch next to Bluetooth to turn on your Palm Pre’s Bluetooth radio. At this point you must also enable Bluetooth discovery mode, or pairing mode on your Bluetooth headset. All headsets are different, so refer to your headset’s manual.
3. Tap Add device on your Palm Pre. This makes your Palm Pre search for in range Bluetooth headsets or other audio accessories.

   

4. If the accessory is found, tap it to set up an association with it. Note that some devices require you to enter a passkey. If this is the case for your device, refer to your headset’s documentation to find out what code to enter. Often the code is 0000.

Pairing Your Palm Pre with a Computer, Phone, or Car Hands-Free System

Sometimes you need to connect your Palm Pre to a computer, another phone, or a car’s Bluetooth hands-free system. Here is how to do that:

1. With the Bluetooth application open, as described in the previous section, make sure that your phone is discoverable by turning the Bluetooth switch to the On position. On the other device, start a Bluetooth pairing. The other device searches for your Palm Pre and generates a random number or passkey for you to enter on your phone.

   

2. When the other device makes contact with your Palm Pre, you see a message asking if you want to allow the new device to pair with your phone. Tap Yes, Allow.

   

3. Next you see a number. This number needs to match the number displayed on the other device. If it does, tap Yes, Connect.

   

4. If your pairing is successful, you see the other device listed on your Bluetooth screen.

   Pairing your Palm Pre to another device can have many benefits, including the ability to share files, and in the case of a car hands-free system, the ability to synchronize your Contacts with your car, and make and receive calls using your car, via Bluetooth.