Hey, mehniacs, I need your help

@medz Thanks, and you’re only half bad yourself.

Nope, installing Chrome on a Fire tablet would be beyond my pay grade. We need to keep this as simple as possible.

I’ll appreciate any help and advice you can give me.

@Barney I’ll dink with one tonight to see how feasible this would be. You could probably register the tablet to yourself and then create another “community” profile on the device that is locked-down (no purchases allowed) for the residents to use.

@medz I keep reading this as “I’ll drink with one tonight…” Maybe that’s one way I can become tech proficient.

@blaineg Good news!

Link above is for the old 8GB version. New 16GB model is $50. I’ve had a few of the old ones, but not the new one.

@walarney

@walarney Do I have to setup an account on the Nook?

@Barney yes. You can make a guest account where you wouldn’t need access to Amazon or whatever.

Not sure how updated the newer nooks are. My old one uses a stupid proprietary charger. I think the whole nook line was discontinued last year.

@Barney @RiotDemon The last several generations (ever since they quit designing their own) have had “normal” chargers. The newer ones are pretty much generic Android tablets with a Nook widget on the home screen. The latest ones came out in November/December, so I don’t think they’re discontinued. All Android based devices will want an account of some sort. There are work-arounds, but easiest to just set up a new gmail address.

@walarney Thanks for the info.

I’ve owned almost every generation of Nook tablet. Also some Walmart tablets, and a Fire (refurb from Woot). The Nook branded seem like better quality (and newer OS) than the Walmart. I don’t use the Fire much mostly because of the Amazon app store limitations. But I haven’t bought any tablets in at least a year, so my experience may be outdated. Not shilling for BN, but I would like for them to stay in business.

@walarney Yeah, I’d like to see them stay in business, too.

@Barney @walarney Plus with the Nook tablets you have access to Google Play and can even download the Amazon Kindle app.

@msklzannie But I’ll be using a fake account?

@Barney True but my point was more that the Nook series isn’t as locked down as Kindle.

@msklzannie Ahh, good point.

@Barney @walarney that was my confusion. They discontinued support for first gen nooks last year.

This just reminds me… My older nook won’t update Android anymore past whatever version it is on… Meaning a lot of newer apps don’t work properly. I found a video showing how to sideload a newer Android.

I just wouldn’t get too old of a nook then.

@medz That’s good to know. So, it looks like I need to rule out the Fire tablet and go with android. Thanks for your help.

@Barney yeah. Probably easier to just create a dummy Google account to download free apps vs messing with all the Amazon account stuff.
Fire tablets are generally more reliable than cheapo Android tablets, though.

@medz Or maybe I can win them some pizza at Woot.

@Barney @medz

Fire tablets can be had super cheap at woot and at the Amazon warehouse.

People will prob also need cases for them.

The niggle is the needed tie-in to the Amazon account.

But … As long as the user does not intend to use the tablet for shopping, any new dummy Gmail account will do for an Amazon account.

If the user intends to use the tablet for shopping, then they will need to sign in with their usual Amazon account and set up shopping security, etc. (haven’t used a fire tablet in a few years, can’t offer instructions on that)

Anyway, that’s a super nice thing to do.

/giphy super nice

@f00l @medz All I know is that I want to keep my name out of any kind of registration.

@Barney @medz

Yes. The user (or the family or the facility) has to do the registration

@Barney @f00l I think this is a pretty good way to go. Set up a junk Gmail account and use it to set up a junk Amazon account for the fire tablets.

My reasoning behind this is the fire tablets you can get for sub-$40 are way nicer than the noname Android tablets you can get from Walmart for that price. The touch screen on most cheap tablets is terrible and frustrating, and I’d go with the fire in that price range for that reason alone.

@djslack @f00l Woot certainly has some good sales on them.

@rockblossom I haven’t a clue as to how much Fire tablets cost. I never paid any attention when they were on sale because I never needed one.

Your suggestion about the Wallyworld tablets could be a good one – except they don’t come in purple. Just kidding. Seriously, this might be a way to go.

I don’t need anything fancy. In fact, I’m expecting them to be broken fairly quickly. That’s why I’m looking at cheap. That and I’m cheap.

Have you, by any chance, used this tablet?

@Barney Nope, haven’t used this one, so I can only go by reviews. I do use an Android tablet (Samsung Galaxy) on occasion, and I think it is much easier to navigate than a Fire tablet. Android tablets are just semi-smart phones without the whole “being able to make actual phone calls” bit. There may be more reliable ones for cheap. I’ll have to do some searching to find what is available.

Fire tablet at Amazon is a bit more expensive ($50) but has better reviews. Still no purple.

@rockblossom Confession time: If I purchase a purple tablet, it might not make it to the nursing home.

@Barney @rockblossom Just a heads up- I bought a Fire tablet for my 90 year old mother. She couldn’t get the touch screen to work- something about old skin. You might want to search that first. I would but I’m on spring break.

@Barney @rockblossom @sammydog01
Is there is truth to this, perhaps a cheap stylus?

@Barney @sammydog01
If that’s the case, I have some stylus pens I could send you.

@Barney @medz @rockblossom Or a sausage.
https://www.consumerreports.org/cro/news/2015/06/zombie-finger-and-touchscreens/index.htm

@Barney @rockblossom I got one of these for my kid. Black Friday special, with a case/keyboard included. It died under warranty. Replaced, and has been ROCK solid since.

I considered it to be a “disposible” learner for him to break.

It’s about 4 years old now. He’s even older than that.

Edit: the keyboard might help level that wobbly table at home, as long as it’s not too heavy. Like a nightstand. On the side of the bed that you don’t use. Maybe.
(I removed it pretty quickly.)

@G1 Wait, are you talking about the Wallyworld tablet?

@Barney @medz @rockblossom @sammydog01

Regarding “old skin” and tablet issues, a possible explanation (or at least a loosely related story): I bought my 72-year-old mom her first smartphone this past Christmas. I got it all set up for her, but we had a really hard time getting her fingerprints set to unlock the phone, and she was constantly having weird issues when trying to tap/swipe to open apps or answer the phone. We figured out the print issue after my brother-in-law set his up as a test (worked fine) and then asked to look at mom’s fingers. Turns out, she no longer has fingerprints at all. They’ve worn off over the years! I didn’t even know that was possible.

@PurplePawprints Your mom could start herself a new line of work:

Cat burglar

@Barney Yes, I am talking about the RCA brand tablet. I think it’s an older model than the Voyager, and it’s 10".

Sorry for my lack of clarity. My point is that I had very low expectations for a $30 Black Friday RCA tablet, and it met those expectations (it failed right away), but then far exceeded them after replacement.

You could say I have mixed reviews of RCA tablets.

@G1 No, no problem. This just gives me more to think about.

@Barney @rockblossom @sammydog01 Regarding the “zombie fingers” phenomenon, I actually ran into this decades before touchscreens even became a thing. Ever seen those toys with a resistance touch switch that needs to have two contact points touched in order to operate? (sample vid below) I remember my wife’s grandmother not being able to activate one and it was sort of funny at first as the toy worked for everyone in our family gathering, even the smallest toddler, but wouldn’t make a peep in her hands. But it really became heartbreaking because you could tell it was really bothering her. She felt like her body was “broken”.

As a result, I have been keenly aware of this phenomenon as I have witnessed it creating a bigger impact in the touchscreen age. I have seen different scientific explanations as to why it happens to some people (not always older people, but it is definitely more prominent with them). A stylus is indeed the fix.

Fortunately, I do have a way of acquiring free stylus pens. Btw, that chick would drive me crazy.

@Barney I have a couple of old fire 7 inch tablets I would be happy to donate if they work for what you need. Fires are one of the many things I hoard. Let me know if they need some fitness trackers too.

@sammydog01, my friend, I have imposed upon you way too much. I will, however, hold your offer in reserve if the Woot-offs or my other friends do not work out.

Besides, to give up some of your stash? I can see your hands shaking from here.

(Um, fitness trackers for their wheelchairs?)

@PurplePawprints My wife is having intermittent fingerprint reader problems with her phone, for the same reason. She had to get fingerprinted today (working with children), and the police had a hard time getting a decent read with their machine.

I’ve also suggest the new line of work!

@ruouttaurmind Nice! And I think I hate you.

@Barney I feel it, and it makes me feel yucky inside.

That wasn’t a brag, just a heads up that Amz often offers multi-packs of the Fire 7 on the cheap.

@ruouttaurmind Nah, I don’t hate you. I am, however, going to look for the Fire tablets at the next Woot-off.

@Barney Be wary of the older models as they were poor performers when they were new, let alone now. No matter how inexpensive, the older models just aren’t worth it.

@ruouttaurmind What years should i look for?

@Barney 5th gen or newer (2015 & up). Ideally 2017 models.

@ruouttaurmind Ok. Thank you!

@Barney @ruouttaurmind The sixteen buck ones on Woot were 2015. I think that’s where my pink one came from. I’ll check it out when I get home.

@sammydog01 Yeah, I think you are right. I hate to say that I agree with @ruouttaurmind, but I think I’ll look for the 2017 ones he said were pretty good, or maybe at the worst, the 8 inch 2016’s.

Also, I do not want any “Used-Unacceptable”. Too many of them are crappy or at least unacceptable to me. (And that’s pretty bad. )

@Barney @ruouttaurmind My yellow one is 2017. I’ll do a test run. When I pulled up Amazon to check what generations I owned it said my newest one is Sammydog’s 19th Fire. WTF? My black, blue, and orange fires are also 2015. And I have a couple of 8 HDs. Oh, I see. If the 2015’s are usable you’re getting a couple. If it’s frustrating I’ll keep them in their drawer. They may be too slow for streaming but they’re great for downloaded stuff.

@Barney RE: condition, I suppose that’s all relative to how well they’ll be cared for in their new home. Not everybody takes extraordinary care and caution with stuff. Especially if it’s someone else’s stuff.

@sammydog01 Aw, come on, you know you want that 20th Fire.

@ruouttaurmind I expect them to get rather banged up, but at least I’ll give them a chance, in the beginning, to have a decent tablet.

@lordbowen I don’t do social media, but I do have some internet friends who might have an old tablet lying around. Thanks for the idea.

@Barney @lordbowen

If you get the registration thing worked out, you could possibly even hit up Amazon or Woot to donate some fire tablets.

Long shot no doubt.

@f00l Yeah, it would probably be a long shot. Besides, I’m only looking at purchasing 2 maybe 3 tablets. And a hot water heater.

HIKING! VIKINGS! STRIKE KING [BRAND FISHING LURES]! AWESOME!

@mikibell I think that’s a very good idea, I really do, but how am I supposed to advocate for Alexa, when she scares me to death?

However, I will put on a brave face, and talk to one of my nursing homes about this. I’m pretty sure it won’t work at the first one Mom was at; their Wi-Fi sucks in the residents’ rooms.

@Barney yes wifi is essential… I suspect the google home stuff works just as well… I have little to no experience with either!! Best of luck!!

@Barney @mikibell I love my Alexa. My mom who is 82 loves hers, if that helps at all.

@Barney @mehbee @mikibell My 90 year old mother asks her Google Home mini for bedtime stories. But doesn’t the thing you want them to see require WiFi too?

@mikibell
/youtube cash ring of fire

You’re welcome.

@sammydog01 Yeah, they’ll need Wi-Fi for the tablets, but @mikibell is talking about Alexa’s for the bedrooms, which do not have a very strong signal.

In the common areas, where I’m envisioning the tablets to be used (Mom’s first nursing home), the Wi-Fi is pretty good and I think there will be no problem with streaming explore.org.

The other nursing home could probably use Alexa in the rooms, but Alexa scares me.

@Barney Alexa is my buddy. That Siri bitch can go fuck off. (If Alexa scares you the Tap is a good way to go. She only listens when you press a button and runs about thirty bucks on Woot. But I’m not sure you can set her up without taking your smart phone out of the drawer.)

@sammydog01 But how do you know that she hasn’t figured out some way to listen to you even with the button not pushed?

Confession time. I do have a Tap. somewhere in my house, probably never removed it from the shipping box.

Yeah, I’ve got a buying problem along with my smartphone app phobia.

@mikibell all the fires are sold out.

@RiotDemon bummmer… I have to say, all the different versions of kindles confuse me. I have one …but I love my samsung tab better…(stolen from my son…shhhhhh)

@Barney Now I’m watching bats. They’re asleep.

@sammydog01 Did you see Elsa Hummingbird? She’s such a busy little girl. We lost Bella Hummingbird a few days ago. They are trying to save her two babies. I dunno… They are so small.

Thanks for doing this. It hadn’t occurred to me that the Wi-Fi might be too slow. I’m wondering what other things I may be overlooking.

@Barney I was watching a hummingbird so probably? Nature cams are sad. I was watching the night a predator grabbed a baby owl and the last little owlet was huddled all alone in a corner waiting to die. (He survived.) No more owl cams for me.

I checked the pink fire and it’s much faster. Turns out my blue one is full of crap. Surprise, surprise. I’ll reset and ship the pink one. If it works I can track down another.

@sammydog01 The pink one from you will be just fine. You gotta leave something for me to do for this project. Besides, there have been a couple of other people who have volunteered to help out if needed.

Thank you so much, @sammydog.

@msklzannie Thanks! I did buy one, uh, make that two. (A friend bought one for me.)

I’m in a bit of a holding pattern right now. The Wi-Fi at the one nursing home is just not working right. I have a meeting with the head of their tech (cough, cough – I could probably do a better job with it and I don’t know what the hell I’m doing). Anyway, I’m meeting with him in about a week. He’s sooo busy…

I haven’t talked to anyone at the other home yet. I guess my excuse is that I’m sooo busy.

@ruouttaurmind Um, I’m seeing $49.99.

Edit: Ah, I see – you have to be a prime member to get the lower price.

@Barney oops. I didn’t realize the Prime stipulation.

@ruouttaurmind Hey, there was no way for you to know. It only explains the price difference to those who do not have prime.