Primary Shortcut Orientation

[crkckr]

I know there is a way to do this - I did it on my Tab 3 - but I'll be hanged if I can remember how. I have just purchased an S2 to replace my aging (and cracked) Tab 3. I would like to set it up the same way as the 3, since it's what I become used to and is what works best for me. However, I have been unable to find a way to change the orientation of the primary shortcut bar from it's present 'horizontal, along the bottom' to 'vertical on the right side,' as I have it set up on my 3. I've searched for quite some time on the 'net and AC (and I even read the manual!) but I am finding nothing. Does anyone remember how it's done?
TIA
Mike aka crkckr

 

[B. Diddy]

That might have been related to the older Android/TouchWiz version that the Tab 3 had. If you can't find this feature on the Tab S2 (and BTW, I moved this from the Galaxy S II forum to the Tab S2 forum), then it might have been removed from this current version of Android/TouchWiz.

I'm pretty sure that the favorites tray defaults to vertical in landscape mode if you use the Google Now Launcher, so that's one workaround (but it's only vertical in landscape, not portrait). Otherwise, try other 3rd party launchers like Nova.

 

[crkckr]

Only Android would have a difference between SII and S2... thanks, I wouldn't have been able to find my own thread!

TouchWiz is not something I have on either of these tablets... at least, as far as I know. From what I read on a quick search it's only for phones. It's certainly nothing I can find in the .pdf manual using the search function - but then again, I can't find much of anything using search!

On my Tab 3 the row of 5 apps that follow the pages are called Primary Shortcuts. On the S2 they are called App Shortcuts. Using the search (in the pdf manual) putting in "App shortcuts" returns zero results! Go figure.

At any rate, when I enable screen rotation, the App Shortcuts row remains on the bottom of the page no matter what the screen orientation is. I normally have the screen locked in the landscape mode and only use portrait on apps that only work in that mode. Oh well, while I know I won't get a response, I will still send Samsung a nastygram regarding this. There's a couple of other things they've managed to screw up as well, such as not being able to access the home screen using the Handy Soft Key function. With my Tab 3, if I used the HSK I could either touch the screen and return to the home screen (leaving the current app in the background), close a specific open app or close all of the open apps. For some silly reason they have made it so that I can only "close all." It's not a big thing but it's something I got used to doing on the Tab 3. I'm sure that within the next few months of using the S2 that I'll find something much larger to complain about.

Of course, whenever I really start to hate my Android Tablet... I mean, really, really hate it, to the point of wanting to smash the thing on the ground - I just use my wife's iPad for a while and suddenly things don't seem so bad after all.
Cheers,
Mike

 

[B. Diddy]

Only Android would have a difference between SII and S2

You can thank Samsung for that--it's not a Google thing!

TouchWiz is not something I have on either of these tablets... at least, as far as I know. From what I read on a quick search it's only for phones. It's certainly nothing I can find in the .pdf manual using the search function - but then again, I can't find much of anything using search!

TouchWiz is the name of Samsung's user interface for all of their devices. It may or may not be called "TouchWiz Home" in the App Manager. It might just be called Home, Homescreen, or Launcher.

On my Tab 3 the row of 5 apps that follow the pages are called Primary Shortcuts. On the S2 they are called App Shortcuts. Using the search (in the pdf manual) putting in "App shortcuts" returns zero results! Go figure.

What this row of shortcuts is called depends on the manufacturer. I'm used to calling it the Favorites Try.

At any rate, when I enable screen rotation, the App Shortcuts row remains on the bottom of the page no matter what the screen orientation is.

If you always have the tablet in landscape, and if you still want to use your Tab S2 rather than your wife's iPad, then you might like the Google Now Launcher, which as I mentioned above, puts the Favorites Tray vertically along the right.