Chapter 5
Finding and Exploring Chromebook Apps
IN THIS CHAPTER
Learning about apps
Reviewing some of the pre-installed apps
Searching for and installing new apps
Because Google’s original vision for Chromebook was to create a computer that did most of its work over the Internet, a lot of a Chromebook’s functionality is achieved through the Chrome web browser. Unlike Windows or Mac computers, few applications are installed on the Chromebook; instead, they’re stored on remote computers and accessed over the Internet. Google has numerous applications to help you with work, school, personal development, entertainment, and more. This concept — using online applications and reducing the need to install, store, and run software locally — reduces costs for both Google and for the consumer because the Chromebook doesn’t require expensive hardware to run the applications.
In this chapter, you get a brief overview of the applications that come with your Chromebook, as well as the lowdown on how to find and add new applications to your Launcher. Keep in mind that adding apps to your Chromebook requires little more than adding a shortcut to your menu and adjusting a few settings.
Your Chromebook holds many built-in apps, and more are available in the Chrome Web Store, which means that you can do a lot with your Chromebook! But don’t feel that you have to learn all these apps to get the most out of your Chromebook. If you just want to check Turner Classic Movies schedules with your browser and play Mahjong, that’s fine!
Exploring Chromebook’s Pre-Installed Apps
Apps, short for applications, are computer programs made for some purpose. For people using laptop computers, including Chromebooks, examples of apps are the Chrome browser, Gmail, Calendar, and Solitaire. Apps make computers useful and fun.
On a Chromebook, a few applications are pre-installed on the system. Many of the applications shown on your shelf are more like links that open web applications in the Chrome web browser. You can view the applications on your computer in a couple of different ways:
- Press the Search key. This opens the Launcher and places a cursor in the search bar. You can then scroll through your windows in the Launcher by using two fingers to swipe up or down on the touchpad.
- Click the Launcher. This is located on the bottom-left corner of your desktop on your Chromebook shelf.
Your Chromebook comes with shortcuts for several applications already in place. These shortcuts may differ slightly from Chromebook to Chromebook. If I cover an application not already existing on your Chromebook, you can easily add it through the Web Store. The next few sections give you a quick look at some of the more important applications.
Storing data in the cloud with Google Drive
Whether you’re creating applications through the Google web-based office tools or you just want a place to store your important files, Google Drive is your hard drive in the cloud. Save your files to your Google Drive folder, and it will sync to every device you own that has Google Drive installed. You can even access your files through a web browser on any computer with a web connection. Google Drive is a necessity for any Chromebook user.
You can find a lot more detail about Google Drive in Chapter 6.
Word processing with Docs
Docs is Google’s word-processing application. If you have done any work with Microsoft Word or Apple Pages, you’ll be at home with Google Docs. Create text documents; format your text; add links, images, videos, tables, and more; use templates to quickly create preformatted documents; and save in numerous formats, including Microsoft Word, OpenDocument, Rich Text Format (RTF), or Portable Document Format (PDF). Documents created with Google Docs are automatically saved to Google Drive and accessible from any device that can access the Internet. You can even invite others to collaborate on your Docs files without having to email files and worry about duplication of efforts or lost work. This feature means that two or more users can be working on a Google Doc at the same time.
More information on using Google Docs appears in Chapter 7.
Using spreadsheets with Sheets
Sheets is Google’s spreadsheet application. Sheets is a lot like Microsoft Excel and Apple Numbers. With Sheets, you can build lists, keep track of personal finances, analyze data, and so much more. A templates library helps you by creating worksheets that are already formatted. Build formulas for performing complex calculations and data analysis. Filter, sort, and otherwise organize your data with ease. As with Docs, all spreadsheets are saved in Google Drive and easily shared with collaborators.
Starting a new business? You should consider using Sheets for your cash-flow projections. You and your business partners can work on it without fear of losing information or overwriting each other’s work!
Learn more about Google Sheets in Chapter 8.
Making presentations with Slides
Slides is another of Google’s web-based office products. With it, you can create beautiful slide presentations with all sorts of prebuilt or custom themes. Import images, videos, and other interactive content; link to web content like YouTube videos; and more. Slides is a powerful presentation tool that allows you to present through the web or export to PowerPoint, PDF, and other globally supported formats. If you’ve used Microsoft PowerPoint or Apple Keynote, Slides will be familiar to you. Collaboration is also made easy with Google Drive.
You can learn more about Google Slides in Chapter 9.
Taking notes with Keep
Whether you’re a student, stay-at-home mom or dad, or in the workforce, note-taking is an important part of life. Google Keep is designed to make note-taking a breeze. Use Keep to take written notes or voice notes. Easily add pictures and videos. Save your notes to Google Drive to share with other users and collaborators. You can even export your notes to services like Dropbox (www.dropbox.com), OneDrive, or Box.com, or you can download them to your computer or storage device. In the usual Google style, your Keep notes will be available on all of your devices. Google Keep’s minimalist interface makes it fast and easy to use. Take notes more efficiently than paper and pen with Keep. Figure 5-1 shows a Google Keep session.
FIGURE 5-1: Take notes with Google Keep.
Organizing and playing music with Google Play Music
Google Play Music is the one-stop music service on your Chromebook. Move your music collection into Google Play Music and have it be accessible to you anywhere in the world. Organize your songs into playlists, share your playlists, or listen to your friends’ playlists. Stream countless themed music channels for free. Shop through the Google Play Music database of songs to purchase and expand your collection. You can even subscribe to get access to stream more than 20 million songs at any time. Google Play Music syncs with all your devices. (See Figure 5-2.)
Explore Google Play Music in all its glory in Chapter 12.
FIGURE 5-2: Take your music collection with you on Google Play Music.
Communicating with video, voice, and text with Voice and Duo
You don’t need any fancy hardware or additional software to make calls using your Chromebook. Simply launch Google Voice, and you can quickly call any phone number in the world. Domestic calls are usually free, and international calls cost a fee, but you don’t need a phone to call your family anywhere in the world! Chat via text, and take pictures and send them. With Duo, you can video chat with one, two, three, or more people all at the same time.
Chapter 14 explores Google Voice and Google Duo in a lot more detail, as well as the ever-popular Skype program.
Emailing with Gmail
Gmail is Google’s powerful free email platform. With Gmail, you can send and receive emails; attach files, pictures, videos, and links; and quickly save attachments to your Google Drive cloud storage. Gmail for Chromebook also has an offline feature so that you can check emails, write emails, and queue them up to send the next time you get online. Native Gmail apps are also available for Android and iPhones, and available on all other laptop and desktop computers through their browsers. Google also offers Gmail for businesses so that you can have hosted email that comes from your company domain. Learn more about Gmail in Chapter 10.
Organizing your schedule with Calendar
Google Calendar is a versatile calendar system. You can easily create events on your calendar, set them to repeat periodically, set alarms, invite others to attend your events, and more. You can create multiple calendars within your Google Calendar and share the calendar with your family, friends, and coworkers. Organize your calendar and view it by day, week, month, or even agenda. You can also sync your calendar with any modern smartphone, and if you need to access your Google Calendar from a Mac, you can sync it with your Mac’s Calendar. You can even bring your Google Calendar content into Microsoft Outlook on your PC. (See Figure 5-3.)
FIGURE 5-3: Organize your life with Google Calendar.
Remotely accessing with Remote Desktop
Google Remote Desktop is a handy tool for accessing your other computers, or for accessing your own Chromebook from anywhere. Install Remote Desktop on your Mac or Windows PC, and you can access them from your Chromebook anywhere in the world. Of course, the computers you want to access must be turned on and connected to the Internet. Other than that, accessing your files, running applications, and otherwise working remotely is a breeze with Remote Desktop.
Reading with Google Play Books
If you’ve used a Kindle or iBooks, you can probably imagine how easy and awesome Google Play Books would be. Shop for books at low cost and store them in your Google Play Books account. Easily sync your books to any device you own that has Google Play Books installed. Then you can read your favorite novel or business book on the beach, in bed, at the office, or anywhere else you like— and you can choose: from your phone, your tablet, or your Chromebook. (See Figure 5-4.)
FIGURE 5-4: Check out bestsellers at Google Play Books.
Getting directions with Maps
Google Maps is one of the most powerful map programs currently available. Look up point-to-point directions or route a road trip with multiple destinations. Wherever the wind takes you, Google can make sure you’re on the right road. Search for businesses, locations, or popular destinations within Google Maps; share maps with friends; and even zoom all the way down to the street view. Switch your views to satellite view and see whether you recognize the cars parked near your dwelling. Google Maps isn’t just functional, it’s FUNctional. Figure 5-5 shows Google Maps at a favorite location.
FIGURE 5-5: Finding your way with Google Maps.
Finding More Apps with the Chrome Web Store
The Chrome Web Store has many more apps to offer than what appears by default on your Chromebook. You can search for apps and add them with great ease by taking these steps:
Click the Launcher icon located in the bottom-right of your screen.
The Launcher, a window containing your applications, appears.
Find and click the Web Store icon.
A Chrome browser window appears and loads the Web Store.- Browse applications by category or search by name.
Click the desired application.
A window appears that contains information specific to the selected application.
To add an application, click the Add to Chrome button located in the top-right of the application window.
The application is added to your Launcher. (See Figure 5-6.)
FIGURE 5-6: Finding and installing apps at the Web Store.
Launching applications that you’ve added from the Web Store is the same as apps that come by default with your Chromebook. Just follow these steps:
Click the Launcher icon located in the bottom-right corner of your screen.
The Launcher opens.
- Move between Launcher windows until you locate the icon of your recently installed application.
Click the application icon.
The application launches.
If you’re curious about whether a particular app is useful or popular, you can read the customer reviews in the Web Store. These reviews, although public opinion, can be helpful in deciding between different apps. The majority of apps in the Web Store are free, so you take little risk in simply trying an application. If you don’t like or use it, you can always uninstall it.
The Google Play Store
If you have a newer Chromebook, or an older Chromebook with a current version of Chrome OS, you also find the Google Play Store on your shelf or in the Launcher. The Google Play Store is functionally similar to the Web Store, so why do you have two stores for getting apps? Originally, only the Web Store was available for Chromebook users; the Web Store has apps that run on Chromebooks, as well as extensions for the Google Chrome browser on Windows, MacOS, and Chromebooks. The Google Play Store is the app store for users with Android tablets and smartphones, but Google recently modified Chrome OS so that it, too, can run Android apps. The Google Play Store is shown in Figure 5-7.
FIGURE 5-7: Exploring apps on the Google Play Store.
I tell you about Google Play Music earlier in this chapter. Yes, this same Google Play Store, which is Google’s main distribution point for digital content, offers gazillions of Android apps as well as music.
Some of the apps available in the Google Play Store include Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Netflix, WhatsApp, Slack, Reddit, Adobe Reader, and more than I could list in this book.
Whenever you’re looking for an app for your Chromebook, I recommend that you first search through the Web Store; if you don’t find what you’re looking for, consider the Google Play Store. And remember, you can always try an app from either source; if you don’t like it, you can just remove it!
Installing apps
To install an app from the Google Play Store, just click the app’s logo and then click the Install button. The app downloads and is automatically installed. You can open it right away by clicking Open. If it’s an app that you want to run frequently, you can pin the app to the shelf, as discussed in Chapter 2.
Managing Installed Apps
You can use the Google Play Store app to manage all the apps that you have installed on your Chromebook. Just open the Google Play Store app (you probably know how to do this by now) and click the menu icon near the upper-left corner of the app (it looks like three little horizontal lines). A window slides out that contains your Google account name and a list of things you can do. Click My Apps & Games, which opens the window shown in Figure 5-8.
FIGURE 5-8: Managing your installed apps with the Google Play Store.
Updating apps
The Updates function in the Google Play Store shows apps where software updates are available. You want to periodically check this feature and install any updates that are available because doing so is a good security practice. Chapter 18 provides more detail on Chromebook security.
One thing about updates: If you decide to update an app, checking first to see whether it is running is a good idea. The update will stop the app and install a new version. Depending on the app, you might get a warning that you have unsaved work, but to be on the safe side, just stop the app if you’re not sure.
Finding out what apps you have installed
To see what apps are installed on your Chromebook, click the Installed button. Doing so shows the apps you’ve installed as well as how much storage you have used and how much remains. Figure 5-9 shows an example. Note that this list does not include the apps that were pre-installed on your Chromebook.
FIGURE 5-9: Checking and removing installed apps using Launcher.
Removing apps
If you want to remove an app that you have installed, Google Play (interestingly enough) doesn’t provide this feature. Instead, you go to the Launcher to do this. To remove an app, click the Launcher, and expand it to show all your apps. To delete an app, right-click or Alt-click the app and click Uninstall. (Refer to Figure 5-9.) It’s that simple!