Fire HD 10 (11th generation)

My Fire HD 8 is getting old and slow (it's the 10th generation from 2020), so I was in the market for a replacment.  Saw this Fire HD 10 (11th generation) for sale for $69 on Facebook Marketplace.   It's a 2021 model, but looking at the reviews, the latest 2023 (13th generation) model isn't all that much faster.  Plus this one came with 64GB instead of 32 and came with a case.  Looking at it now, it's only 1 year newer than my Fire HD 8.  So we'll see how much faster it is.

Picked it up and the case looks in excellent condition, unlike my old beat up cases.  It's a Moko case.  That's the same brand case as on my Fire HD 8.

OK, let's set it up.  Looks like the guy reset it to factory default.

Choose English (U.S.)

Log into my WiFi network.

Installing your updates...

then the screen blanked out

press the power button and the display goes back on

Register your Fire

Register your Fire using your existing Amazon account to get access to a large selection of digital content.

Email

Amazon Password

Continue

Registering your 'fire

Meet Your Fire Tablet

play the video

Restoring your Fire Tablet

if you restore to an earlier backup, this information will be restored

Device settings

Wi-Fi networks and passwords

Email settings

Bookmarks

Appls

Some settings for apps (varies by app)

Please note

If your Fire tablet is not on the latest OS version, it will update and restart your device

Your apps will download and install automatically.  Date and content from the apps will be restored based on their configurations

This may take a few minutes

Mike's Fire Tablet

[Cancel Restore]  / I want to set it up from scratch 

Enable Location Services [check]

Backup Device to the Amazon Cloud [check]

Save Wi-Fir Password to Amazon [uncheck]

Make this Tablet kid friendly?

Your Tablet allows you to create a personalized experience for up to 4 children, including custom home screen, preferences, and content.

With child profiles and Amazon Kids you can...

Set time limits and educational goals

Discover what your child enjoys with Parent Dashboard

Add your own content to the walled garden

Yes, create a child profile

Not now*

* you can always add child profiles later in the Amazon Kids app or Settings

Not now [I'll look up how child profiles work later]

[Continue]

Set screen lock

Set a lock screen PIN or password to protect the data on your Fire

PIN (instead of password

do I  have a PIN on my HD 8?

let me restart it and see...

nope, no PIN

so choose [Not Now]

Join Kindle Unlimited (3-months free)

No thanks

audible

Your first audiobook is free

Try for Free or No thanks

[No thanks]

Enjoy books alredy included in your Prime membership!

[Not now]

Get apps and games for free

[Not now]

Alexa Tutorial

[Continue]

Get started with Alexa Hands-Free

[Agree & Continue]

Try it now.  Just ask.

"Alexa, what's the weather?"

79 degrees Fahrenheit

partly sunny

[Continue]

Customize Hands-Free in Settings

Hands-Free allows access to Alexa even if your table is passcode-locked.  You can change this in settings.

The wake word is set to "Alexa" by default.  You can change it in Settings.

Turn Hands-Free off in Quick Actions or in Settings.  You can still press and hold the Home button to speak to Alexa.

[Finish]

Finally get to the Home screen

There are initial 19 icons on the screen.  Four rows with five icons on each row

Shop Amazon  Silk Browser    Appstore           Prime Video  Amazon Kids+

Utilities            Kindle              Amazon Music Audible         Freevee

Gallery             Games              Amazon Alexa Email             Camera

Settings            Amazon Photos Files                Microsoft 365 (Office)

Checking Settings

Storage

Internal Storage: 54.24 GB free of 56.36 GB

Display

Sleep

After 1 minute of inactivity

let's change that to 5 minutes

Brightness level is 52%

let me up that to 60%

I'm surprised freevee is on there

when I open it up it says Prime Video is the new exclusive home for Freevee TV shows movies and Live TV

Go to Prime Video

Back to Freevee

Oops

We had trouble loading additional contents

[So I guess I can uninstall it, but there is no uninstall option]

Prime Video is already logged into my account

Microsoft 365 asks me to sign in

Kindle

Syncing your account...

[took a little while]

my Library appears, nothing downloaded yet

a couple of books showed up even though the loans expires: Year of No Clutter, How Not to Invest, The Art of Spending Money.  [And I see more later.]

It shows the book in two colums, horizontally, but one colum vertically.  On my Fire HD 8, it's one column both ways.

let me adjust the font size, it's a little smaller than on my Fire HD 8.  It was on the fourth notch (out of 12).  Bump it up to the fifth notch.  Still two columns.   Ah, I see I can force it to single clumn in Layout.  (No matter the font size, it'll still go to two columns if that's how it's set.)  The sixth or seventh notch looks about right to me.

Looking at the app store.  Appstore Library.  I don't see YouTube TV and only a third party version of YouTube.

Let me change the Device Name.  It's currently named MICHAEL's Fire.  I'll rename it for Fire HD 10 (11th generation 2021) 3/25/26

How about email?  This is where my Fire HD 8 lags.  I often have to exit and go back in in order to delete emails.  Let's set it up.

put in my gmail first

switpe to delete [this is something I don't normally do]

swipe left on a message to delete it.  you can retrieve accidentally deleted messages by tapping on Undo at the bottom of the screen.

Got the email setup.  I wouldn't say it's blazingly fast, but faster than the HD 8 at least.  It's functional, at least so far.

***

[3/26/26] what have installed so far?  Zen Word, Facebook Messenger, Facebook.  Uninstalled Microsoft 365.

YouTube TV doesn't play all that well.  The bottom of the screen doesn't clear when I go full screen.  I want to install the Google Play Store so I can installed the apps not supported by the Amazon Appstore.  Starting with YouTube TV and YouTube.

I see I wrote down how to do it on my Fire HD 8.  It looks like I liked the instruction from How-To Geek the best.  So I'll go with that one.

Look up install Google Play Store on Fire HD 10.  Didn't see the How-To Geek article, so I added How-to Geek to the search and got this link dated Aug 24, 2023 (updated Sep 19, 2025).

Settings

Security & Privacy

Apps from Unknown Sources

says Silk Browser Not allowed / tap on it and Allow from this source

Find my Fire Tablet model.  It's Fire HD 10 (11th generation).

See my Fire OS version.  It's Fire OS 7.3.3.1

with that information, proceed to download the appropriate files (look for trhe Download APK button with the file size)

Google Account Manager v.7.1.2 [tap on it]

DOWNLOAD APK 6.25 MB

Silk needs storage access to download file.  [this message wasn't in the article]

[Continue]

Allow Silk Browser to access photos, media, and files on your devie?  [Allow]

File downloaded [don't open it]

Google Services Framework v9-4832352

DOWNLOAD APK 4.59 MB

File downloaded

(4.59MB)

Google Play Services (64-bit ARM, nodpi, Android 9.0+)

there's a bunch of links that showed up, I'll choose the one at the top which is the latest dated March 23, 2026

Google Play Services 26.11.32

DOWNLOAD APK

246.56 MB

Downloading file...  [then the messaged disappeared for serveral seconds]

File downloaded

Google Play Store (Android 10+, universal, nodpi)

the how-to geek website is getting popup ads now :( [not interested in buying a vacuum]

close the tabs and open up the article again

I'll choose Android 10+ (the second link)

Download APK

93.74 MB

File downloaded

OK, now back to the article on the laptop to proceed

close Silk on the Fire tablet

Open Files app

Downloads

change to list view (tap on the square at the top right)

install the files in order

com.google.android.gsf.login

Your tablet and personal data are more vulnerable to attack by unknown apps.  By installing this app, you agree that you are responsible for any damage to your tablet or loss of data that may result from its use.

[CONTINUE]

Google Account Manager

Do you want to install this application?  It does not require any special access

[INSTALL]

App installed

[DONE]

com.google.android.gsf

[same prompts]

Google Services Framework

[INSTALL]

App installed

[DONE]

com.google.android.gms

[same warning]

[CONTINUE]

Google Play services

[INSTALL]  [taking a while]

App installed

[DONE]

com.android.vending

There was a problem parsing the package

OK, let me look for another article and see what file to install for Google Play Store

techradar says to "pick the most recent one and find a file that’s listed as nodpi and universal for the version of Android your tablet has.

Last time, I chose the first Android 10+ on the list.  This time, I'll choose the second one which is the sixth link.

It's confusing. All the articles I see (including Wired, Android Police) imply there's only one version of the Google Play Store to install.  WTH, I'll pick the one at the top and work my way down.  Wait, that one doesn't say nodpi.  Let me choose the third one which is actually Android 12+, but I think the Fire tablet only supports Android 9.  So let me go to the sixth one which suppords Android 6.0+.

This reddit post says he got the problem parsing the package on his Fire HD 8, so he chose a 6+ package and it worked.  Let's try this Android 7.0+ APK (not bundle)

Download APK

94.14 MB

File downloaded

OK, go back to files

com.android.vending [try this one]

got the warning

[CONTINUE]

Do you want to install?

[INSTALL]

App installed

[DONE]

restart the tablet

OK, let's see

the Play Store icon is on 

tap it

Sign in

nothing happens at first

Checking info

sign in with your work account

Back up device date [turn off]

Sign in with your work account

sign in again, that account already exists

close the app and re-launch it

Welcome to Google Play

Get started

Level up your experience

Not now

OK

I'm in, it looks like

Let me delete the files that were download, since I don't need them now.  Well, at least the one that was giving me an error

OK, delete them all.

AOL update

AOL, the internet pioneer that introduced millions of Americans to the web in the 1990s, will discontinue its dial-up internet service on September 30. The company announced this decision after more than three decades of operation. The decision to end dial-up service marks the end of an era for AOL, once known as America Online.

Despite the widespread adoption of broadband and wireless internet, AOL maintained its dial-up service, which connects users to the internet via a landline. According to the 2023 US Census, approximately 160,000 people still use this method to access the internet.

AOL's dial-up service was a cultural icon in the 1990s, known for its distinctive connection sounds and the famous "You've Got Mail" notification. However, the company has since diminished in prominence, with its popular messaging service, AIM, shutting down in 2017. AOL, now owned by a private equity firm that also owns Yahoo, has undergone several ownership changes, including a notable merger with Time Warner.

Sora

OpenAI has released Sora, its buzzy generative AI tool capable of creating hyper-realist videos.

In a post issued on Monday, OpenAI said that the text-to-video generator is available for public use. An account must be made to use Sora, though sign-ups have been temporarily disabled due to heavy traffic.

The public launch of the tool comes as the entertainment industry grapples with deployment of technology potentially capable of slashing productions costs. Mainstream adoption in Hollywood has been slow but steady, with Lionsgate in September announcing a partnership with Runway in a deal that will see the New York-based AI startup train a new generative AI model on company content, which will be used to assist with behind-the-scenes production processes. This was followed by James Cameron joining the board of directors for Stability AI — creator of Stable Diffusion, an image- and video-focused model that is among those being closely watched by many in Hollywood, particularly in the visual effects industry — in a major coup for the company.

should you shut down your computer?

Shutting off your computer every night has downsides. If you just put your computer to sleep, everything is right where you left it in the morning. But if you shut down, you need to wait for your computer to boot up and then re-open all of your applications and documents. It’s annoying.

I wanted to get an idea of just how little power so I ran a few simple tests. First, I charged my laptop around 6PM after an afternoon of using it outside. In that time, it was just about fully charged, after which I unplugged it and closed the lid. The charge in my laptop barely went down—only by one percent—and this is on a nearly six year old laptop with a battery that doesn’t hold a charge like it used to. 

I wanted a slightly more precise number, though, so I used a Kill A Watt to measure how much power my laptop uses when asleep. Leaving it plugged in and suspended from 4PM until 7AM the following morning—15 hours—used up 0.02 kWh of energy. That’s not a lot. Here in Portland, Oregon the price per kWh for residential use is 19.45¢, meaning leaving my laptop plugged in overnight cost me a little over one third of a penny. Over the course of an entire year this adds up to $1.42. 

Now, this isn’t to say that you should never shut down. I shut down my laptop if I’m leaving town without it for more than a week. At that point the amount of energy the computer will use, compared to the annoyance of having to start it up again, tips back into being worthwhile for me. Plus, sometimes a sleeping laptop will run out of batteries when left alone that long, which is just plain annoying.

And there’s another reason to shut down, or at least restart, your computer regularly: it can sometimes solve annoying computer problems. The main reason for this is software bugs—over time such issues can fill your device’s memory and generally just cause your computer to become unstable.

-- Justin Pot, Popular Science

Auto Offload on Fire TV

Got this message when I switched to my Fire TV Stick 4K this afternoon.

What's New on Fire TV

"Auto Offload" feature to optimized device storage comes to Fire TV

Here's how it works.  If your device is low on storage, Auto Offload will partially remove some apps that haven't been used on the device in the last 60 days without deleting your login credentials.  When you want to use an offloaded app later, the app will be reinstalled for you along with restoring your log in credentials for that app, just like it was never removed.

This setting is automatically enabled.  To disable it, go to Settings > My Fire TV > About > Storage > Auto Offload > On/Off.

***

This is kind of how Roku does it.  Except Roku doesn't wait 60 days.  It seems only the most recent apps are loaded into memory and the majority are installed from the cloud when needed.

Let's see.  The last time I checked, I had somewhere between 400 MB and 500 MB free.  Let's see how much I have now...   It's taking a little while to get into Settings.  Go to My Fire TV, About,   I currently have 469 MB of 5.28 GB available.  Let's see if this goes higher over time.

Venmo and your privacy

On Apps Like Venmo, You May Be Oversharing

TECHNOLOGY

BRIAN X. CHEN

There’s an app for snooping on your friends, family and colleagues to find out about their dinners, the people they’re dating and the parties they’re attending.

But it’s not Facebook. It’s Venmo, the app that became popular more than a decade ago by enabling people to send mobile payments to one another and to post those transactions.

Even if you seldom use Venmo today, the app may be leaking sensitive information about you to the general public.

I recently discovered that my contacts list, which includes the names of people in my phone book, was published on Venmo for anyone using the app to see.

That’s because more than a decade ago, Venmo made people’s contact lists visible to its users. It created an option to hide the address book only two years ago.

Venmo is a strong example of how even as social norms shift the ways we use technology, the companies and their apps don’t change much. Venmo was founded in 2009 as a music start-up that let users buy songs from bands through a text message. By the time eBay acquired it in 2013, it had become a mobile wallet service that was trendy among younger people who were gung-ho about sharing information about themselves online.

At the time, social media was novel, and posting your thoughts, movements and achievements for everyone to know about was cutting edge, not sinister. Since then, we have learned that sharing such seemingly innocuous information can be hazardous. Stalkers, employers or data brokers can use the data to study our whereabouts and activities.

But Venmo remains an app with a strong social networking element, one of many in a generation of apps that are now nearly 15 years old.

In the early 2010s, Venmo rode the coattails of Facebook and Twitter, which brought the concept of a public timeline into the mainstream. Venmo allowed people to publicly post to a feed details of payment transactions, including the dollar amount, time, date and a description, such as a pizza or taxicab emoji.

Venmo, now owned by PayPal — which spun off from eBay in 2015 — has made some changes over the years to protect its users’ privacy. In 2021, it disabled its global feed, a stream where users could see Venmo transactions among strangers.

But critics say the app still falls short. Today, you can see transactions among people who are not your friends if you visit their profiles.

Venmo is still set by default to publicly share when you receive or make a payment. There’s an option to make the transaction private, but if you don’t notice the setting, you could unknowingly broadcast payments.

“It’s not just that I went out to pizza with this person,” said Gennie Gebhart, a managing director at the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a digitalrights nonprofit. “It’s a pattern of who you live with, interact with and do business with, and how it changes over time.”

Last month, The Guardian discovered through a Venmo feed that an aide for Justice Clarence Thomas was taking payments from lawyers who have had business with the Supreme Court, a potential conflict of interest. The aide has since hidden his Venmo activity from public view.

Venmo said in a statement that it had worked to change its privacy measures for customers and that privacy settings could be controlled within its app. “The privacyand safety of allVenmo users is always a top priority,” the company said.

To prevent your day-to-day life from being broadcast on Venmo, click the Me tab inside the app, tap the settings icon and select Privacy. Under default privacy settings, select Private. Then, under the “More” section in Privacy, click “Past Transactions” and make sure to set that to “Change All to Private.”

Venmo has made the contacts list, which can be generated from your smartphone’s address book or your Facebook friends list, viewable to other users.

That can make a lot of information public. In 2021, my colleague Ryan Mac, who was then at BuzzFeed News, used Venmo to discover President Biden’s account and personal contacts list. Mr. Biden later deleted his Venmo account.

On a personal level, a public address book can reveal a new romantic partner to an ex. For professionals, it could expose a doctor’s patients, a journalist’s sources or a salesperson’s clients.

To hide your contacts list from public view, visit the privacy settings, click on Friends List and select Private. Also, toggle off the option for “appear in other users’ friends lists.”

All tech companies change their data-sharing features and settings over time. So take a moment to scroll through your phone and review the settings inside apps you haven’t used in a while to see if there’s something you missed.

-- New York Times (Star Advertiser, August 20, 2023, page E6)

AI startup: xAI

(Reuters) - Elon Musk launched his long-teased artificial intelligence startup xAI on Wednesday, unveiling a team made up of engineers from the same big U.S. technology firms that he hopes to challenge in his bid to build an alternative to ChatGPT.

The startup will be led by Musk, the CEO of Tesla and owner of Twitter, who has said on several occasions that the development of AI should be paused and that the sector needed regulation.

"Announcing formation of @xAI to understand reality," Musk said in a tweet on Wednesday.

The website said xAI will hold a Twitter Spaces event on July 14.

The team at xAI includes Igor Babuschkin, a former engineer at DeepMind, Tony Wu, who worked at Google, Christian Szegedy, who was also a research scientist at Google and Greg Yang, who was previously at Microsoft.

Musk in March registered a firm named X.AI Corp, incorporated in Nevada, according to a state filing.

The firm lists Musk as the sole director and Jared Birchall, the managing director of Musk's family office, as a secretary.

The billionaire had said in April that he would launch TruthGPT or a maximum truth-seeking AI to rival Google's Bard and Microsoft's Bing AI that tries to understand the nature of the universe.

Generative AI caught the limelight with OpenAI's launch of popular chatbot ChatGPT, which came in November last year, ahead of the launch of Bard and Bing AI.

Dan Hendrycks, who will advise the xAI team, currently serves as the director of the Center for AI Safety and his work revolves around the risks of AI.

Musk's new company is separate from X Corp, but will work closely with Twitter, Tesla, and other companies, according to the website.

xAI said it is recruiting experienced engineers and researchers in the Bay Area.

floppy disks live

LAKE FOREST, Calif. (Reuters) - It has been two decades since their heyday, but one bulk supplier of the iconic 3.5-inch floppy disk used to store data in 1990s says business is still booming.

Tom Persky runs floppydisk.com, a California-based online disk recycling service that takes in new and used disks before sending them onto a reliable customer base - he reckons he sells about 500 disks a day.

Who buys floppy disks in an age when more sophisticated storage devices like CD-ROMS, DVDs and USB flash drives have been made increasingly obsolete by internet and cloud storage? Those in the embroidery, tools and dye, and airline industry, especially those involved in aircraft maintenance, says Persky.

"If you built a plane 20 or 30 or even 40 years ago, you would use a floppy disk to get information in and out of some of the avionics of that airplane," said 73-year-old Persky.

At his warehouse, shelves are packed with bright green, orange, blue, yellow or black disks sent from around the world. At one end sits a large magnetic machine with a conveyor belt that wipes out information on disks, while another machine slaps labels on them.

The warehouse also holds 8-inch floppy disks - an even older storage medium - including one labeled as containing the 1960 John F. Kennedy and Richard Nixon U.S. presidential debate.

Despite being a relic in the modern world, Persky says floppy disks have several redeeming qualities.

"Floppy disks are very reliable, very stable, a very well understood way to get information in and out of a machine," he says. "Plus, they have the additional feature of not being very hackable."

Persky ended up in the floppy disk business after working in software development for a tax company in the 1990s that duplicated its software onto floppy disks. He says he fell in love with the business and took it on after it was spun off.

But he is not expecting it to survive another 20 years.

"When I see the 'save' icon, I see a floppy disk. But most people just see the 'save' icon," Persky said.

"I'll be here for as long as people continue to want to have these disks. But it's not forever."

how to sign out everybody on your YouTube TV

If you keep hitting the three streams maximum on YouTube TV but don't think you should be, it could be that someone else is using your account without you knowing it.  [Or if you logged on at somebody else's house, but forgot to log out.]

What you can do is do a remote log off of all your devices

On a computer, make sure you're logged into your family manager account.  Then go to

https://myaccount.google.com/permissions

Scroll down to "Google apps".

Click on "YouTube TV", then click on "Remove Access".

After that, your account should be signed out of YouTube TV on all your devices.  Then you can sign back on to your devices one-by-one and see if you still have the problem.

If you're still having the problem, you might also have to sign out similarly for your other family member accounts (assuming you set up a Family Group).

[from my log 7/31/22 and 5/31/22

https://www.facebook.com/groups/YouTubeTVUserGroup/permalink/3000207953617346/?comment_id=3000463113591830

https://www.facebook.com/groups/YouTubeTVUserGroup/posts/3114570678847739/?comment_id=3114622855509188]

The Metaverse

In its most recent earnings call on July 29, Facebook Inc. (FB, Financial) CEO Mark Zuckerberg said he expects the social media platform to transition to a "metaverse" company. He said the company’s future is in the metaverse, a virtual social environment where people can be present in digital spaces. This is an embodied internet platform allowing people to play games, work and socialize using digital avatars and virtual reality technology. Virtual reality workspaces will be the company's first step into making the metaverse a reality. The company has been using Workrooms (VR workspace) for meetings internally for about six months, and on Aug. 19, Facebook introduced Horizon Workrooms to the public to showcase how it works.

Commenting on the launch of Horizon, Zuckerberg recently posted on his Facebook page:

“We just launched Horizon Workrooms – a new collaboration experience in virtual reality. When you use Workrooms, it feels like you’re really there with people. You’ll notice conversations flow more naturally and you’ll pick up social cues that are missing on video – people turning to listen to each other, hand gestures, and spatial audio to give everyone a sense of place in the room. There’s also a whiteboard for brainstorming together, a screen for people to video conference in, and virtual desktop so you can use your computer in VR for presentations or multitasking. In the future, working together will be one of the main ways people use the metaverse. Horizon Workrooms is one more step towards bringing the metaverse to life.”

iPad (10.2 inch, Wi-Fi, 128 GB, latest model, 8th generation)

 Ordered this for my sister.  And I get to set it up.  So here's the unboxing and setup.

It's the "gold" model but it looks more like pink to me.  Even the cover of the box has the picture of the iPad from the side and with the correct color.

On the bottom of the box, it says it includes iPad, USC-C to Lightning Cable, and USB-C Power Adapter.

Requires: Apple ID (for some features).  internet access.  ...  Battery may eventually need replacement.  1 GB = 1 billion bytes, actual formatted capacity less.

OK, cut it open.

First thing I notice is that this model still has the actual physical home button at the bottom unlike the newer models.

Lifting the iPad out of the box, there's not much else in there.  There's a smallish thin box which contains a skimpy user's guide and a sheet with two Apple decals.  Also a warning/warranty insert that helpfully states at the top "Before using iPad, review the iPad User Guide at support.apple.com/guide/ipad.

Under the box is a USB-C power adapter and the USB-C to Lightning cable.

There's a thin protective film over the iPad.  I wonder if I can operate it without removing the film.  Let me try.

Holding the iPad vertically, the home button is on the bottom.  The camera hole is on the top.  The lightning connector is on the bottom as well as the speakers.  The volume controls are on the right side toward the top.  At the top is the headphone jack, a tiny microphone hole (I think) and the power button.  There's three dots on the left side.  What's that?  That's the Smart Connector where a keyboard would attach.

OK, let me press the power button and see what happens.

It goes on with the Apple logo in black on a white screen.

Hello.  Press home to open (in different languages).  Then the screen blacked out.  Press the Home button.  The screen appeared again.  Press the Home button again.

Choose English.

Select Your Country or Region.  United States.

Quick Start

Bring your current iPhone or iPad near this iPad to sign in and set up.

If your other iPhone or iPad doesn't show option for setting up this iPad, make sure it's running iOS 11 or later, and has Bluetooth turned on.  You can also set up this iPad manually.

OK, maybe I'll do that instead (I want to see how that works anyway).  Back.  Goes back to the English (and other languages) page.

OK, press the power button to turn it off.  (I see the battery indicator is at 100%.)

slide to power off

*** 11/4/20 ***

OK, tried the automatic update putting the phone near the ipad.   The phone recognized the iPad was asking to be installed.

It asked a number of times to verify using fingerprint ID (my sister uses her thumb), so I had to wait for her to verify with her thumb.

When it finally got to the iPad screens, it looked like all (or most) of the apps were there.  But had to wait quite a while for the apps to download and update.

One thing I did was turn off backup to iCloud since the storage has been maxed.  And activate Google Photos instead.  Had to install a game again to get it working.  Otherwise, it's up and going.

Lenovo Duet Chromebook

I've been eyeing this for a while now.  Most (practically all) of the reviews (including YouTube reviews) have been favorable.  But first I wanted to get some stuff out of the way (like trimming my tree in the back).

This is a 10" Chromebook that can double both as a computer and a tablet.  I would say it's more of a tablet because it's 10", but it can act as a computer and comes with a keyboard/cover included.  And since I was looking for a replacement for my old iPad Mini (which can no longer run some of the apps I use -- like YouTube TV), I thought this might fit the bill.  Plus I've never had a Chromebook, so it be something new to experience.

The regular price is $299.00 which most people say is a bargain.  But I saw Best Buy had it down to $249.00 -- which was the first time I had seen it on sale.  I had seen it even lower as an Open Box item, but this was for a brand new one.  And I took the bait and ordered it on Monday (10/25/20) morning and picked it up in the afternoon.  (I was surprised that the Best Buy parking was pretty full, but the store didn't look like that it had that many people inside.)

In the meantime, I had picked up a Fire HD 8 (which had been also on sale at Best Buy) which actually looks to be the more-direct replacement for iPad Mini.  But this was something I could stuff into my bag and haul out when I wanted something more substantial to work on.

I might not have been so keen to buy this if my HP Pavilion x360 is flakey (the cursor just starts acting up sporadically).  So we'll see if this can be a replacement for that as well.

So now I'll be armed across the board.  From this Acer 15+" laptop I'm typing on, to the 10" Lenovo Duet, to the 8" Fire HD, to the Google Pixel 3a XL (which is 6" -- it doesn't look that big to me, but I guess it is).

Stay tuned for the unboxing.

*** 10/29/20 ***

The unboxing begins!

After opening the box, the first I see is the tablet on the top.

Then inside the long rectangular box on the right is the USB-C to USB cable, the power brick, and an adapter for a headphone jack.

Lifting up the boxes reveals the back cover and the detachable keyboard.  All wrapped in translucent plastic bags.

And there's a little Quick Start Guide in the bottom of the box.

OK, let's see if this thing has any charge in it.

Press the power button.  It's on the right, below the volume buttons.

Press and hold the power button until the screen lights up.

Chrome OS is missing or damaged.

Please remove all connected devices and start recovery.

[Not a good start.]

I must say the screen is nice and bright.

What do I do now?

For help visit https://google.com/chromeos/recovery

It says I need another Chromebook, or a Windows or Mac computer with Chrome installed

Turn it off, then turn it back on.

This time I got the "chrome" on the screen.

Then it got to the Welcome! screen  [whew]

Let's go.

Connect to network

To restore your data, connect to the internet

Google Chrome OS Terms

Accept and continue

Checking for updates (very quickly)

Sign in to your Chromebook

[using my Google account]

Please wait...

You're signed in!

Chrome sync

Your bookmarks, history, passwords, and other settings will be synched to your Google Account so you can use them on all your devices.

Personalize Google services

Google may use your browsing history to personalize Search, ads, and other Google services.  You can change this anytime at myaccount.google.com/activitycontrols/search

[x] Review sync options following setup

Accept and Continue

Choose your PIN [hmm...  6 digits... Let me think]

[Hey what happened to the PIN screen?]

Google Play apps and services

[] back up to Google Drive (I'll uncheck this)

More

[x] Use location

[x] Review Google Play options following setup

Accept

Install apps from your other devices

We found 11 apps from your account that can be used on this device

Speedtest  Tunein                      Roku

Netflix      Amazon Prime Vid  Pluto TV

Instagram  Peacock                   Google Home

Smule        Messenger

Skip

Meet Your Google Assistant

Turn on

Google partners work with your Assistant to help you

Continue

Access your Assistant with Voice Match

Voice match lets you access your Assistant directly by using your voice.

No thanks [what if somebody wants to use it?]

Your Assistant is ready

When your Chromebook is set up, press the Assistant button or say "Ok Google" to get help anytime.  Go to Assistant settings to make changes.

Done

Connect to your phone

Your Chromebook and Android phone work better together.  Connect them so you can text from your computer, share your internect connect, and unlock your Chromebook with your phone.

Select a device

Google Pixel 3a XL

When you connect your devices, you agree that your Chromebook can:

Send you notifications and default to remember this computer for Messages.

Automatically install apps

Offer new features as they become available

Accept & continue

Then it went to the Settings screen

Smart Lock is turned on

Next time, your phone will unlock your Chromebook.  You can turn off Smart Lock in Settings.

[I think I'll turn this off.]

Change Settings

Settings / Connected devices / Google Pixel 3a XL / Smart Lock (toggle to off) [I might try turning it on later]

I guess it's set up.

Swipe up and select Chrome

Gmail is disabled

To re-enable it, accept the new perrmissions

Display notificatons

Accept permissions

Swiping up I see seven icons.  Chrome, Gmail, Google Docs, Google Play, Messages, Settings.

How do I go to the desktop?  Or is there one?

Then someone I got into YouTube

There you go.  Tap on the left arrow to get to the desktop.

At the top there a searchbar: "Search your device, apps, web...

Then five small icons in a row: YouTube Docs Play Store Messages Chrome

Then twenty icons on the main screen

Chrome Play Store Files Gmail Gmail  [the first Gmail is through the Chrome browser]

Docs  Slides Sheets Google Drive Google Keep...

Calendar  YouTube  YouTube Play Movies Play Music [the first YouTube is through the browser]

Play Games Play Books Camera Photos Duo

Then I can swipe up to the next screen which has only one icon

Entanglemen  [I guess that's a game]

Then swipe up to the third screen

Maps Settings Get Help Calculator Chrome Canv [a paint program?]

Text [which looks like a Text editor]  Web Store Messages [text on your computer with Message for web]

Let me try put on the cover and keyboard now

The back cover has a fabric feel, but I think it's hard plastic underneath.

It's magnetized and pops right on.

Now for the keyboard.

It's magnetized and pops right on the bottom.  It positions itself, no need to adjust it.

There's a little plastic sheet taped over the track pad.  I guess you can leave it on because the track pad works with it there.

There's a little play with the keyboard cover moving around.  The excuse is that's it's cheap.

Now where'd the desktop go?  Now it's blank.

Press the little dot on the lower left.

A pane pops up with the upper part of the desktop (with the row of five icons) and an up arrow at the top of the pane.  Swipe up to see the desktop.  Actually just touch the arrow.

OK I'm getting used to this.

I wonder if I should install YouTube TV?  Well it probably works with the browser.  So let's go with that.

Looks like it has the url history ported over from my account.

Go to tv.youtube.com

https://tv.youtube.com/ wants your device's identify to be verified, but Google, to determine eligibility for enhanced playback of protected content.

It's working, but the sound is disappointingly tinny.  Even my Fire HD 8 sounds a lot better.

It's now 9:00 AM.  Let me see how long the battery lasts.

I guess no need to install a lot of apps since I can use the Chrome browser.

....

After using it for a little while, got a notification that Chrome OS update available.  Restart to Update.

OK, let's do that.  [tap it]

screen blanks out

Your system is applying a critical update.  Please do not turn off

Screen blanks

chrome logo

get to the log in screen

tells me to enter password.  is it my google password?

I guess so

I think I want to add a PIN

How do that?

Settings. Personalization.  People.  Security and sign-in.

enter password

show lock screen when waking from sleep

lock screen from sleep mode

password only

or PIN or password

let's switch it to PIN or password

Set up PIN

Hmm.  The PIN I chose is actually longer than my password.  But at least it's all numbers.  I can change it later I guess.

How do I shut down the Chromebook.  Unlike Windows, where you click to shut down, you press the power button.  Well, actually there's several options.  You can also click on the time on the bottom right and the power button.

But first, another update..

Entered the PIN.  Apparently with the keyboard attached, you have to do it with the keyboard rather than tapping the numbers on the screen.

OK, turned it off by tapping the clock on the lower right, then the power button.  It shut off fast.

Turn it back on by pressing the power button.  Apparently you have to hold down the power button, not just press and release.

This time I could tap my PIN on the screen.  The keyboard also worked.

Got a bunch of notifications from gmail.  I think I'll turn those off.

Went to notifications.  Went to the gmail app.  Got an option to turn on notifications for only important email.  I guess it's a setting in gmail?  Not sure where it it though.

***

Let me change my wallpaper.  Settings.  Personalization.  Wallpaper.  Open the wallpaper app.  Right now, it's kind of a purplish lava lamp like display.  For some reason, that's what's in My images.  Let's see what else they got.

I think I'll try Landscapes, Daily Refresh.

I don't like the one it chose.  I'll choose another one.  OK, the one with the stream.

***

Waiting for the Chromebook battery to die...  1% remaining, 2 minutes left at 6:29 PM.  Running YouTube TV on Chrome browser.  So it's been about 9-1/2 hours.

OK, it died at 6:36.  Then a red battery icon showed up in the middle of the black screen and disappeared.

Let me plug in the USB-C to USB-C cable going from my laptop.  It's now 6:37 PM.

closed the cover and opened it

A dim login screen appeared.

The screen is dim.  Putting the mouse cursor over the battery.  It says1% 3:17 until full.  So maybe it'll be charged by 10:00 PM?

Had to manually turn up the brightness.  It's now about at 50% brightness.

Fire HD 8

[10/22/20] I couldn't resist.  With my iPad Mini no longer able to run YouTube TV (because it doesn't support the latest iOS) and with my Fire Tablet 7" never being able to run YouTube TV, I was entertaining a replacement on which to watch YTTV.

I'm currently using my Google Pixel 3a XL which is a bit small (but not that bad) and my HP Pavilion x360 which is flakey but works for stretches at a time.

So anyway, I saw this discussion on Facebook about cheap tablets that can run YTTV and a lot of the respondents say they use the Fire Tablet.

Then I saw that Best Buy was having a sale on Fire Tablet that looked even cheaper than Prime Day for the Fire HD 8 for only $54.99 (was $89.99).  I had been considering the Fire HD 10 as well, but I'm still considering getting a Lenovo Duet which has a 10" screen, so this would fill gap between the Google Pixel and the Lenovo.

Anyway I ordered it today and I was surprised that they said it would be delivered by tomorrow.  I just got notice that it was shipped, so we'll see if it arrives tomorrow.

*** 10/24/20

Sure enough the Fire HD 8 arrived in the mail yesterday.

I opened it up and it was packed neatly in the cardboard box.

The first thing I noticed is that it's exactly (or almost exactly) the same size as my iPad Mini.  In fact, I'm wondering if the iPad Mini case would fit.  But even if it does fit, I notice that the power and button volume buttons are placed differently.  So the iPad case would cover up the volume buttons.  Better to spend the $12 for the cheapie Fire HD case.

...

This Plum is Amazon's choice (designed by Amazon).  It has a fabric texture and supports vertical in addition to horizontal standing.  But it's $29.99.  4.6 stars (5290 ratings)

This Famavala looks promising.  $11.99 (list $19.99).  4.5 stars (730 ratings).

This Moko is $12.99.  Looks like a leather-like texture with elaborate stitching and a handstrap.  4.6 stars (1084 ratings).  This Dadanism looks similar at $13.95.

This Moko is $10.99 (list $29.99).  Soft TPU translucent frosted back cover.  Soft shell/shock absorption.  The Rose Gold is $10.99.  The Black is $11.99.  4.7 stars (454 ratings).

This TiMOVO looks exactly like the Moko and is $10.95.  The black is $13.95.  The picture shows that tablet seems upside down (as a comment for Moko explained).  The camera hole is at the bottom when using the stand, whereas you would think it would be at the top (like on my laptops).  4.7 stars (154 ratings).

The JEtech is $11.98.  The camera hole is at the top when standing it.   [Checking Famavale, the camera hole is on the bottom.  Maybe bottom is better?]  4.6 stars (442 ratings).  JEtech sounds familiar.  I think I ordered a case from them before.  Let me check.  Yeah, I bought it for my iPad Mini four years ago.  It's still holding up OK (if that's the same case).  In the meantime, the Infiland case for my Fire 7 is kind of peeling off.  Then again, it was only $6.95.  The JeTech was $9.99.     

Android Central reviewed some cases.  This Dadanism looks similar to the Famavala.  But it also has a flexible TPU translucent back shell, so maybe it's more like the MOKO.  It also has the camera hole on the bottom.  $10.99 for Rose Gold.  $13.99 for black.  4.7 stars (602 ratings).

The Fintie Folio Case (black) is $14.99 and also has the camera hole at the bottom.  So maybe that's the thing now.  4.7 stars (536 ratings).  Save a dollar with the Z-Love Tree design.

I'm leaning toward the Moko black case.  I like the idea of having a TPU case.  I think that's what I have for my Google Pixel 3a XL.  Yeah, it says combination of TPU and polycarbonate.

OK, tried putting the Fire HD 8 into the case for my iPad Mini.  Doesn't quite fit.  The Fire HD 8 is just a bit bigger.

Another thing I noticed is that the speakers for the HD 8 are on the same side as the camera hole.  So if the case has the hole at the bottom, the speakers will be muffled by the bottom of the case.

But looking at the photo, I can see the speakers at the bottom.  So the speakers aren't covered and there's space for the sound to bounce off the table (or where ever).

....

Pressing the power button.  Sure enough it turned on.

Asked what language.  I chose English (U.S.)

Then it needed to connect to my wireless network to set up.

now at Christie's house

log on to the router

updated software (didn't take long)

log in with Amazon account

Restoring your Fire? (it would restore from my old tablet)

Do Not Restore

Enable location services

auto-save photos and videos

save wi-fi passwords to Amazon (no)

goes to an intro video

demos what Alexa can do

Enable Alexa [OK]

Make this Fire kid-friendly

Not now

Get More out of your Fire tablet with Goodreads

Not now

Audible

Start you 30-day Audible Plus free trial

No Thanks

Kindle Unlimited

Start your 30-day free tiral

No, Thanks

Enjoy videos already included in your Prime membership!

Add recommended TV to your Wathlist

Add recommended movies to your Watchlist

Not Now

Get apps and games for free

Not Now

Finally got to the Home screen

doesn't have my apps

Here are the default apps in the Home section

Shop Amazon   Silk Browser Appstore     Prime Video FreeTime

Utilities     Books        Music        Audible     News

Amazon Photos Games        Amazon Alexa Goodreads   Email

Camera        Settings     Newsstand    Files       Wash Post

Books has my books

Video has my videos that (my watchlist plus what I bought)

Games & Apps has suggested apps

Shop has previously viewed items and based on my browsing history

Music has my selections from my Prime Music

Audible has my one audible book that I borrowed or bought

Newstand has the Washington Post and the one magazine that I borrowed

Battery says 65% -- About 1 day, 7 hr left

...

Installed some apps.  Facebook.  Facebook Messenger.  Pluto TV.  YouTube.  Netflix.  Disney+.

I wanted to install YouTube TV but it's not in Amazon's app store.  Nor can you run it from the Silk browser (it asks you to install it from the Google Play Store).

Thus I now want to install the Google Play Store.

I found these instructions which have been updated to include the 2020 edition (10th generation) of the Fire HD 8 (which is what I have).

Enable installation from unknown sources.

Settings.  Security & Privacy.  Apps from Unknown Sources.

It said install unknown apps.  And listed Facebook and Silk Browser.  

If tapping 'Apps from Unknown Sources' brings up a list of apps, then you don't need to do anything. You may receive a popup when installing APKs, but you'll just have to tap the 'Allow' button when prompted.  [So I'm good.]

Now you're ready to download and install the APKs needed to get the Google Play Store running.

First find what model I have.

Settings.  Device Options.  About Fire Tablet.  Device Model.

I have the Fire HD 8 (10th generation).

Then I need to find out my Fire OS version.

Settings.  Device Options.  System Updates.

Your device is running Fire OS 7.3.1.3.  [But 7.3.1.6 is ready to install]

Now I need to Download APK

Go to http://andp.lc/firetabletplay on the Silk browser of the tablet.

For some reason I don't see the mobile data connection now

Settings/Internet only shows Wi-Fi / Data usage / airplane mode

That's because it's not my phone (dummy)

OK, let me connect to my wi-fi.

OK, now go to andp.lc/firetabletplay

cick on the link for Google Account Manager v7.1.2

then tap the Download APK button

Silk needs storage access to download files

Continue

Allow Silk Browser to access photos, media, and files on your device?

ALLOW

This type of file can harm your device.  Do you want to keep com.google.android.gsf.login_7.1.2-25_minAPI23(nodpi)_apkmirror.apk anyway?

OK

Your download will start immediately.  If not, please click here.

then pretty much instantaneously a window saying com.google.android.gsf.login_6.1.2-25_minAPI23(nodpi)_apkmirror.com.apk.

Open

Don't open it.

X the window instead

Next is the Google Services Framework

click on Google Services Framework v9-4832352

DOWNLOAD APK

This type of file can harm your device.  Do you want to keep com.google.android.gsf_9-4832352-28_minAPI23(nodpi)_apkmirror.apk anyway?

OK

then a window appeared saying com.google.android.gsf_9-4832352-28_minAPI28(nodpi)_apkmirror.com.apk

Don't open it.

Back to the first tab with tab with the guide to installing the Google Play Store.

Next is section Google Play Services

click on Google Play Services (64-bit ARM, nodpi, Android 9.0+)

look for the first version that doesn't say beta

That would be Google Play services 20.39.15 October 3, 2020

tap on the download link (the down arrow I presume)

an Ad came up, x it out

scroll down to DOWNLOAD APK and tap that

got the message that this type of file can harm your device.  Do you want to keep [the long file name]

OK

Your download is starting

Window below says Downloading file (114.52 MB)

waiting for the download to finish (took a little while)

don't open it

back to the web page on the first tab

Now for the Google Play Store

tap on Google Play Store (universal, nodpi)

There are different versions for different versions of Android.

I'll just choose the top one which is for Google Play Store 22.4.28-21 [0] for Android 5.0+

tap the down arrow

scroll down and tap DOWNLOAD.APK

Your download is starting

This type of file can harm your device (etc.)

tap OK

Your download is starting

Downloading file (32.68 MB)

took several seconds (much faster than the previous file)

again don't click on Open

Back to the first tab.  Actually back to my computer with the same page as on the first tab with the instructions.

Now it's time to install the apps.

Find the files app on your tablet (it might also be called Docs or Documents) and open it.

Press the home circle to get back to the Home screen.

I see a brown folder called Files.  Tap that.

I see seven files.

Open the apps in the below order.  Installing the apps out of order will cause the Play Store to not work.

1. com.google.gsf.login

I can't see the entire file name.  Tap on the list icon in the top right between the magnifying glass and the three vertical dots.  OK, now I can see the file names.

Tap on com.google.gsf.login_7.1.2-25_minAPI23(nodpi)_apkmirror.com

You table and personal data are more vulnerable to attack by unknown apps.  By installing this app, you agree that you are responsible for any damage to your tablet or loss of data that may result from its use.

Continue

do you want to install this application?  It does not require any special access

Install

App installed

Done (not Open)

Next is com.google.android.gsf

OK its the one called com.android.gsf_9-4832352-28_minAPI128(nodpi)_apkimirror.co

Tap

Continue

Install

Done

Next is com.google.android.gms

The file name is com.google.android.gms_20.39.15_(100400-335085812)-203915028...

Tap

Continue

Install (taking a several seconds)

App installed

Done

Finally is com.android.vending

The file name is com.android.vending_22.4.28-21_0_PR_338099147-82242810_minAPI...

Tap

Continue

Install

Installing...

Done

Once you have installed all four apps, hold down the power button, and tap Restart to restart your tablet.

Let me close all the background windows first.

Restart

OK, there's is now a Play Store icon on the bottom of the home screen

Tap

Sign in

Checking info...

took a little while, then got to the Sign in screen

enter email or phone

entered my email

enter your password

enter password

Hi Mike [followed by the legalese)

I agree

getting account info

Back up to Google Drive

turn off

Accept

And now I'm into the Google Play Store

Now for the point of all this.  See if I can install YouTube TV.

Search for it

Install

Installing...

Open

Already A Member?

Accounts with my name on it appeared

I guess I tap on my name? [yep]

And I'm in

Let's see if it plays.

Yep, it's working :)

I see a reason why I might want to get a stand that orients the camera hole on the top.  I'm used to putting the table on the left side of the computer.  With the camera hole on the top, the USB-C port is on the right side which is the side facing the computer.  So the cable from the computer wouldn't have to go across the table face to reach the port.

But I think the speakers actually sound better facing down vs. facing up.  The sound seems to bounce off to the table and toward my ears vs. being dissipated at the top.

*** 10/25/20

Now that I was able to do it.  I want to see if these 2019 instructions from How-To-Geek work my 2020 Fire HD 8 tablet.

First of all let me check what version of the Play Store was installed.

Settings.  Apps & Notifications.  Under recently opened apps, tap See all 49 (in my case) apps .   Scroll down to Google Play Store.  Tap.  At the bottom of the screen it says version 22.4.28-21 [0] [PR] 338099147.

OK now to reset the tablet and start from scratch.

Settings.  Device Options.  Reset to Factory Defaults.

Reset

Now my Fire HD 8 went blank.  Waited a few minutes, then pressed the power button.

OK.  Got to Welcome screen.

Choose English

Connect to my Wi-Fi

Updating Your Fire...

Downloading  the latest Fire software

Installing Your Updates

It remembered my account as it asked me to enter my Amazon password.

It also gives the option to switch accounts.

Enter my password

Sign In

Just a sec...

Restoring your Fire?

Do Not Restore

Enable Location Services yes

Auto-Save Photos and Videos yes

Save Wi-Fi Passwords to Amazon no

Continue

Meet Your Fire Table

hit the play button to play the welcome video

1:49 video / don't see a way to bypass this video / so let it play

I guess I could manually move the progress circle 

try asking Alexa, "just say Alexa to get your tablet's attention" (but what if you have more than one Alexa device around?)

OK, here's how to disable/enable Show mode

Make this Fire kid-friendly?

Not now

Goodreads

not now

Audible

No thanks

Kindle Unlimited

No Thanks

Enjoy videos already included in your Prime membership!

Not Now

Get apps and games for free

Not Now

Welcome!

Continue (to see the tutorial)

Finish

Alexa is Hands-Free

but when I tried speaking to it, nothing happens

Continue

Get Started with Alexa Hands-Free

Enable Alexa

Try it now.  Just ask.

Alexa, what's the weather?

that worked

You can also press and hold the home button and ask

that worked too

Continue

Customize Hands-Free in Settings

Hands-Free allows access to Alexa even if your tablet is passcode-locked.  You can changed this in Settings.

The wake word is set to "Alexa" by default.  You can change it in settings.

Turn Hands-Free off in Quick Actions or in Settings.  You can still press and hold the Home button to speak to Alexa.

Finish

OK, everything looks set back to how it was the first time I set up the Fire TV.  None of the apps I installed last time are there.

OK, let's go to the Howtogeek guide.  It's much simpler than the Android Police guide since it doesn't mention all the different Fire table models.  My worry is that it was written in 2019, whereas my Fire HD 8 (10th generation) was released in 2020.  Apparently it was released in June or July since this review from Tom's guide is dated 6/26/20.  According to this CNBC article, they were announced on 5/13/20 and were to be launched on June 3.

The first thing is to go to Settings, Security & Privacy, Apps from Unknown Sources.

The article says to enable.  But it just had Silk Browser listed.  The Android Police article said if an application is listed there, then it's OK (and apparently the option is always enable on the new tablets).

The tablet keeps going to sleep too soon and the screen blanks out forcing me to press the power button.  Settings.  Display.  Sleep.  Change it from 1 minute to 5 minutes.

Next, there are four .APK files you'll need to download.  The easiest way is to open up this tutorial in the Silk browser and click on the links below, which will take you to the download pages.

OK, go to the Silk Browser.  Type in Install Google Play on Fire HD 8.

The first article that came up was the Android Police article.  The second article was from tiliputing dated 6/5/20.  This article is also less complicated than the Android Police article since it was written specifically for the Amazon Fire HD 8 (2020) model.

The third article is the How To Geek article written in 2019.  I'll go back to this one because I'm curious to see if it works.

Google Account Manager APK.

scroll down and tap Download APK

Silk needs storage access to download files

Continue

Allow Silk browser to access photos, media, and files on your device?

Allow

This type of file and harm your device

OK

back to the web page

Google Services Framework APK

scroll down, Download APK

harm?

OK

back to the web page

Google Play Services APK

Scroll down.  Download APK

harm?  OK

downloading file 36.42 MB (wait a while until the bottom window appears with the name of the file.  don't tap Open)

back to the web page

Google Play Store APK

this is version 7.0.25.H-all [0] (80702500)

uploaded October 11, 2016

Download APK

wait I see there's a more recent version available below!

the latest version I see is the Google Play Store 22.4.28 dated October 22, 2020

I'll just download the old one and see if it works

Harm?  OK

Downloading file (16.34 MB)

file name appears.  Don't Open

Back to the web page

close out the silk browser

The instructions say to go to Docs, but from the Android Police article I know it's Files

tap list icon at the top right so I can see the file name

You need to install the APKs in order.  You can tell by the time they downloaded which one was downloaded first.  The order is:

com.google.android.gsf.login

com.google.android.gsf

com.google.android.gms

com.android.vending

Your tablet and personal data are more vulnerable to attack by unknown apps.

Continue

Do you want to install install this application?

Install

Done

do this for all for APKs

Go to Home Screen and see if it's there.  It is.

"It may not appear to work normally after you sign in, but just give it some time.  The Google Play Store and Google Play services will automatically update themselves in the background.  This may take as much as ten minutes.

Let me check the version number of the Play Store.

Settings.  Apps & Notifications.  See all xx apps.  Google Play Store.  Version 7.0.25.H-all [0]

Let me see if it opens.

Checking info...

Sign in

I agree

Back up to Google Drive [disable]

Agree

Get Started

OK, looks like I'm in

type in YouTube TV

the first result says YouTube TV - Watch & Google LLC

I assume that's the one

Install

23.28 MB

Installing...

Open

Update Google Play services

YouTube TV won't run unless you update Google Play services

Update

notice went away then the notice came back

Update

Went to Google Play services in the Google Play store

Update

32,31 MB

tap the arrow at the top left to go back to Google Play

search for YouTube TV again

Open

Already A Member?

tap on my account

tap on a video

asks to verify your home area

play another video

checking the version for Google Play Store, it's now 22.3.15-21.  So it updated, but not quite as new as the first install.

So I'd say the How-to-Geek article works even though it was downloading old files.  However there are a few things to note.

Applications from unknown sources is apparently the default on the Fire HD 8.  There is no option to disable or enable it.

After the APKs are downloaded, go to Files instead of Docs.  And tap on the List view icon at the top right, so you can see the file names.

The final difference is that it'll ask you to Update Google Play services (twice).

After that it worked.  The Android Police and Liliputing articles say to reboot after installing the APKs.  But it worked without having to reboot.

***

OK, let me try the Liliputing article now.

Settings.  Device Options.  Reset to Factory Defaults.

Erasing...

that went pretty fast

then the Amazon logo

then the fire logo

[waiting...]

Got to the Welcome screen

English (United States)

connect to Wi-fi

Just a sec

Updating your Fire...

Installing Your Updates

Just a sec

Register Your Fire

interesting, it didn't ask last time

enter my email and password

Registration error

the password, email address, or mobile number entered is incorrect.  Please try again.

OK

yeah typed in my email address wrong, correct it

Continue

Registering your fire

Just a sec...

Restoring your Fire?

Do Not Restore

don't save wi-fi passwords

Meet Your Fire Tablet

slide the video forward

kid-friendly?

Not now

goodreads

not not

audible

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kindleunlimited

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Enjoy videos already included

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Get apps and games for free

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Welcome

Exit

Alexa is Hands-Free

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Enable Alexa

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Customize Hands-Free in Settings

Finish

OK back to square one

I no longer see Washington Post on the home screen

change sleep to 5 minutes

Silk

Google Play Fire HD 8

let's try the liliputing article this time

again no option to install unknown apps

go to the Liliputing article on Silk

Google Account Manager (use the latest version which is 7.1.2)

tap the download icon

the arrow changed color

I guess it downloaded

let me check on Files to see if it did

nope

OK, had to tap it again to get to Google Account Manager 7.1.2

scroll down to All Releases

Google Account Manager 7.1.2

tap the down arrow

and it goes back to the same page

scrolling to the comments, Maria NoGames says "This puts you in an infinite loop and never downloads a thing"

Freshtek replies You gotta click "see available apk's" then scroll down to the download box & click the file # on the left & that will then take you to the real DL page

OK, tap on Available APK's.

Scroll to Download

I see 25 in red under the column Variant

tap that

that opened another window

scroll down and tap Download APK

Silk needs storage access to download files

Continue

Allow Silk Browser to access

Allow

This type of file can harm your device

OK

Then instructions say "After you download each file, you should see a pop-up alert asking if you want to install the app. Tap the OK button, choose Install, and then Done at the end and then proceed to the next app."

I don't see any pop-up alert asking if you want to install the app.  I just see the file name with the options to Open or to X out.

Let's try Open (I can always reset to default if this doeesn't work)

For your security, your table is not allowed to install unknown apps from this source.

OK, I see

From Settings, Security & Privacy, Install on unknown apps

tap on Silk Browser

then Allow from this source

try again

tap on the 25

Download APK

Download

Open

Install

App installed

Done

Back to the article (keep hitting the back arrow at the bottom)

Google Services Framework 9

tap on the download button

See Available APKs

tap on the red 28

Download APK

Harm?  OK

Open

Install

Done

Back to the article

Google Play Services

Not sure which one to pick

I'll just choose the one at the top which is the latest one

See Available APKs

I'll choose the second one listed since it says Android 6.0+ whereas the first one listed says Android 5.0+.  Probably both will work.

Tap on the red 62844.

Download APK

Harm?  OK

Open

Install

App Installed

done

Back to the article

Google Play Store

tap the download arrow on the first one on the list

See Available APKs

scroll to the Download section

tap on the red 82232908

Download APK

Harm?

Your download is starting...

don't see an option to click

X out

Your download will start immediately.  If not, please click here

Harm?

OK

Downloading file (30.35 MB)

Open

Install

App installed

Done

OK, supposedly they are all installed

Go to the Home Screen

Now I see Wash Post and Play Store on the Home screen

let me restart anyway, just in case

Play Store

This version of the app isn't compatible with your device.  To fix this problem, go to Settings and uninstall updates for the Google Play Store app.

Forget it.

I think reset to default and go back to the HowtoGeek article.

I notice the tablet didn't ask for confirmation after I hit reset.  I would have thought it would say something like Are You SURE you want to reset?  But it didn't.

Asks to Register Your Fire

Buffering on the Welcome video

No Washington Post on the home screen yet

OK, let's go back to the How-To Geek article

Settings, Security & Privacy, Apps from Unknown Sources

tap on Silk Browser

then turn on Allow from this source

Now go to the How-To Geek article on Silk

Google Account Manager APK

Download APK

Silk needs storage access to download files

Allow Silk Browser to access photos

[so apparently the Allow earlier for the Silk Browser didn't do anything]

Harm?  OK

Don't open when the file name windows open

Back to the article (in the first tab)

Google Services Framework APK

Download APK

Harm?  OK

Back to the article

Google Play Services APK

Download APK

Harm? OK

Downloading file (36.42 MB) [takes a while on my slow internet]

window with the file name finally appears

Back to the article

Google Play Store APK

Download APK

Harm? OK

Downloading file (16.34 MB)

window with the file name appears

Close the Silk browser

Go back to the Home screen

Go to Files (the article says Docs)

change to List view so you can see the file name

tap on com.google.android.gsf.login

Your tablet and personal data are more vulnerable to attack by unknown apps

Continue

Google Account Manager

Install

Done

Back to Files

tap on com.google.android.gsf

Continue

Google Services Framework

Install

Done

tap on com.google.android.gms

Continue

Google Play services

Install

Done

tap on com.android.vending

Continue

Google Play Store

Install

Done

Go to Home Screen

Play Store appears at the bottom

This article doesn't say to restart your Fire HD 8, but the other two do.  So I restarted anyway.

Go to the Play Store.

Checking info...

Sign in

I agree

Back up to Google Drive [disable]

Get Started

search for YouTube TV

YouTube TV - Watch & Google LLC [the first result]

Install

there was a delay before it started downloading

Downloading [taking a while]

Installing...

Open

Update Google Play services

Update

Update

Downloading 47.78 MB

There it is.  YouTube TV on my home screen

Already a member?

Finds my account somehow, probably because I'm signed into the Play Store.

Tap on my account

And I'm in.

Tapped on a local channel.

Asks to verify your home area

Next

Allow YouTube TV to access this device's location?  Allow

Next

Finding your current area...  Flashing

I guess I didn't turn on location services on the Fire?

exit out of the app

Settings, Security & Privacy, Location-Based Services'

it's on?

Go back to YouTube TV

turn into Youtube TV

Finding your current area...

Keeps flashing

Let me look at this article

Exit out of YTTV.  There's a lock icon on my local channels.  

Settings.  Location settings.  Current playback area looks correct, but update anyway.

You've successfully updated your current playback area.

Click my profile icon and tap on my account again.  The lock icon disappeared.  Let's see if I can watch a local station.  Yep, it works.

All in all, I'm happy with my purchase of the Fire HD 8.  Yes, the splash screen at the beginning is annoying and I'm sure it's not as good as an iPad Mini.  But it's much more responsive than my original iPad Mini and my old Fire 7.  And the screen display seems fine to me.

And it was only $55 (plus tax) at Best Buy.  It's back up up to the regular price of $89.99.  I would imagine it might get back down to that price on Black Friday.  (Oddly camelcamelcamel doesn't show this price on Prime Day.) At this price, this has to be a loss leader for Amazon.

*** [10/25/20]

OK let's write this up for posting on Facebook.

OK, I couldn't resist.  With my original iPad Mini no longer being able play YTTV, I was resorting to playing YTTV on my phone when using my computer (the TV is in the other room).  Then with Best Buy having a post-Prime Day sale on Amazon devices, and after looking at some reviews, I took the bait and bought a Fire HD 8.

I received the tablet in the mail the next day.

I believe I had read earlier that YTTV works on the Fire HD Silk browser.  So I tried that and it didn't work.  It asked to install it from the Google Play Store.  Which of course isn't on the Fire tablets.

Searching for "Google Play on Fire HD 8" brings up three main articles.  The articles are from Android Police, Liliputing, and How-to Geek.  I tried all three.

I first tried the Android Police article.  This is the latest article, dated Oct 3, 2020.  This is the most comprehensive article as it touches on all the different models of the Fire tablet.  It was slow-going because I was careful to follow the instructions and write down what I was doing.  But I finally got it working.

Next was the How-To Geek article.  I was a little worried because it was dated Mar 4, 2019 and the Fire HD 8 came out in 2020.  But I went ahead and tried it and got it working.

I also tried the Liliputing article which was written on 6/5/20, not long after the Fire HD 8 was released.  This was the hardest to do and it directed to confusing web pages which didn't exactly follow what the article was describing.  I had to sometimes guess on what to do, and at the end it didn't work.  It probably would have worked if I had done it differently, and I think I know what to do now.  But I still recommend skipping this one.

Though both articles worked, I would probably recommend the How-To Geek article since it was simpler to follow, especially if you have done it before.  The main functional difference is that it directs you to download older files, whereas the Android Police article has you downloading the latest files.  But it still worked.

A couple things I noted while I did the installs.  You don't need to change the settings for Install unknown apps.  Silk will later ask for access to download files anyway.

After downloading the APKs, go to Files, not Docs as the How-To Geek article says.  Then I would change the view from icon mode to list mode in order to see the complete file names (click on the List View icon at the top right).

After I installed YouTube TV, it asked to update Google Play Services.  I didn't get this request when using the Android Police article.

I also had a problem accessing my local channels at first.  I had to update my Current playback Area, then go to my profile picture, then go back into my account.  But everything seems to be working OK now.

If you don't want to worry about the little quirks of the How-to Geek article, you might want to go with the Android Police article instead as it's more up-to-date and complete.

All in all, I'm happy with my purchase of the Fire HD 8.  Yes, the splash screen at the beginning is annoying and I'm sure it's not nearly as good as a current iPad Mini (for example).  It's not super fast, but it's noticeably more responsive than my original iPad Mini and my old Fire 7" tablet.  It's almost exactly the same size as my iPad Mini (the actual viewing area is slightly wider and less high than the iPad Mini) and of course a little bigger than my Fire 7".  The screen display looks fine to me, though more reflective than my iPad Mini.

It was only $55 (plus tax) at Best Buy.  It's now back up to the regular price of $89.99.  I would think it might get back down to that price on Black Friday.

Super computers tackling COVID-19

In The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, by Douglas Adams, the haughty supercomputer Deep Thought is asked whether he can find the answer to the ultimate question concerning life, the universe, and everything. He replies that, yes, he can do it, but it’s tricky and he’ll have to think about it. When asked how long it will take him he replies, “Seven-and-a-half million years. I told you I’d have to think about it.”

Real-life supercomputers are being asked somewhat less expansive questions but tricky ones nonetheless: how to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic. They’re being used in many facets of responding to the disease, including to predict the spread of the virus, to optimize contact tracing, to allocate resources and provide decisions for physicians, to design vaccines and rapid testing tools, and to understand sneezes. And the answers are needed in a rather shorter time frame than Deep Thought was proposing.

The largest number of COVID-19 supercomputing projects involves designing drugs. It’s likely to take several effective drugs to treat the disease. Supercomputers allow researchers to take a rational approach and aim to selectively muzzle proteins that SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, needs for its life cycle.

slow internet?

Restricted to our homes for months now, many of us have been putting up with a persistent annoyance: a lousy internet connection.

When we are working, a video call with colleagues becomes pixelated, with delayed audio. When we are relaxing, movies and video games take ages to download. In the worst cases, the connection drops altogether.

As people have hunkered down to contain the spread of the coronavirus, average internet speeds all over the world have slowed. Some broadband providers are feeling crushed by the heavy traffic. And dated internet equipment can create a bottleneck for our speeds.

Even the most tech savvy are affected. Keerti Melkote, the founder of Aruba Networks, a division of Hewlett Packard Enterprise that offers Wi-Fi products for businesses, said that in recent weeks, his DSL service from AT&T had dropped periodically. He waited several days for a technician to arrive and is now contemplating subscribing to Comcast for a second internet connection.

“I had three or four days of calls, and I had to go find a particular spot in my house where I had better coverage,” Mr. Melkote said.

At the beginning of the pandemic, my internet also became unbearably slow and suffered several outages. So I asked experts to explain what’s causing our internet problems — and the different remedies.

First, diagnose the problem.

What’s causing your slow speeds — your internet provider or your equipment at home? Here’s a method to figuring that out.

• Download an internet speed test app on your phone, like Speedtest by Ookla (free for iPhones and Android phones).
• Stand near your router and use the app to run a speed test.
• Move to a room farther away from the router and run the speed test again.
• Compare the results.

Less than 15 megabits a second is pretty slow. Speeds of about 25 megabits a second are sufficient for streaming high-definition video; more than 40 megabits a second is ideal for streaming lots of video and playing video games.

If the speed test results were fast near your Wi-Fi router but slow farther away, the problem is probably your router, said Sanjay Noronha, the product lead of Google’s Nest Wifi internet router. If speeds were slow in both test locations, the issue is probably your internet provider.

If it’s your router, here’s what to do.

If you have pinpointed that the problem is your router, the bad news is that you may have to buy new equipment. The good news is that there are many approaches to improving your Wi-Fi connection.

Start by asking yourself these questions:

How old is my router? If it’s more than five years old, you should definitely replace it. In 2015, the Federal Communications Commission removed restrictions that had limited the wireless transmission power of Wi-Fi routers, allowing new routers to be 20 times more powerful than they were before. Upgrading to a newer router will probably be one of your most life-changing tech purchases.

Where is my router placed? Ideally, your router should be in a central location in your home so that the signal covers as many rooms as possible. In addition, your router should be out in the open, like on top of a shelf, not hidden inside cabinets or under a desk, to beam a clear signal. You should also avoid placing the router near objects and materials that cause interference, like large fish tanks and metal.

How big is my home? If you have a home with multiple stories and lots of rooms, and your Wi-Fi is weak in some areas, the best solution is to buy a so-called mesh network system. It’s a system of multiple Wi-Fi access points, including a main router and satellite hubs, that lets you connect multiple wireless access points together to blanket your home with a strong internet connection.

My favorite mesh systems are Google Wifi and Amazon’s Eero, which start at $99 for a single router and can be bundled with additional access points. In general, I recommend mesh systems even for smaller homes, because they are fast and very easy to install.

Are my other devices slowing down my connection? Gadgets with slower internet technology can slow down speeds for all your other devices.

For example, the iPhone 5 from 2012 uses an older-generation Wi-Fi standard. Newer iPhones, from 2014 and later, use a faster wireless standard.

Let’s say you own a new iPhone and your teenager owns the iPhone 5. If your teenager begins downloading a video on the iPhone 5 and then you start downloading something on your iPhone, the older phone will take longer to finish before the signal frees up for your phone to download at maximum speed.

As a remedy, many modern Wi-Fi routers offer settings that can give specific devices a priority for faster speeds. Consult your router’s instruction manual for the steps. In this hypothetical example, you would want to give your new iPhone top priority and move your teenager’s old iPhone to the bottom.

Are my neighbors slowing down my connection? In apartment buildings crowded with gadgets, the devices’ signals are fighting for room on the same radio channels. You can see what radio channels your neighbors’ devices are using with scanning apps like WiFi Analyzer. Then consult your router’s instruction manual for steps on picking a clearer radio channel.

This step is tedious, and many modern routers automatically choose the clearest radio channel for you. In general, replacing an outdated router is the most practical solution.

If it’s your service provider, there’s not much to do.

If you have determined that your internet provider’s service is the root of the issue, your only option is to call your internet service provider and ask for help.

When you call, ask a support agent these questions:

Why are my speeds slow? Occasionally a support agent can analyze your internet performance and make changes to speed up your connection. This rarely happens, and more often a technician will need to pay a visit.

Does my modem need to be replaced? The modem, which is the box that connects your home to the internet provider’s service, also can become outdated and occasionally needs to be replaced. If the support agent confirms the modem is old, you can schedule an appointment for a technician to install a new one.

Or you can buy your own modem and call the internet provider to activate it. Wirecutter, our sister publication that tests products, recommends modems from Motorola and Netgear, which cost about $80 to $90.

Can I buy faster speeds? Your provider may offer packages with more bandwidth meant for higher-quality video streaming and faster downloads. Ask about your options.

As a last resort, you can turn to backups. Many modern phones come with a hot spot feature, which turns the device’s cellular connection into a miniature Wi-Fi network. (Apple and Google list steps on their websites on how to use the hot spot feature on iPhones and Androids.)

Whatever you do, be patient. In these trying times, everything takes longer.

As for me, I confirmed my slow speeds were related to my internet provider, Monkeybrains. I called to report the issue, and after more than a month, a technician replaced the antenna on our roof. Now my speeds are even faster than before the pandemic, so it was well worth the wait.