long tap gesture

How to use Multi Window on Galaxy S9 and S9+?

The ultimate guide of Multi Window on Galaxy phones: how to use split screen view, pop-up view and snap window.

Galaxy S9 Multi Window allows you to use two or more apps simultaneously on Samsung Galaxy S9 or S9+ to improve your productivity.

This Galaxy S9 guide explains what Multi Window can do for you, how to use split-screen view, how to use the pop-up view, and how to use the snap window on Galaxy S9 and S9+.

Update: a new section of Changes of Multi-Window in Android Pie update for Galaxy S9 and S9+ was added. In Android Pie update for Galaxy S9 and S9+, many Multi Window features were removed. Please check this section and Android Pie update guide for details. You may also check this guide for using the Multi Window on Galaxy S9 and S8 with Android Pie.

As Multi Window is available in many other Galaxy phones, this guide also applies to many other Samsung Galaxy phones and tablets including Galaxy S8, S8+, Note 8 and Note 9.

What is Multi Window on Galaxy S9 and S9+?

Multi Window on Galaxy S9 and S9+ allows you to use two apps side-by-side in the split-screen view, or simultaneously use two or more apps in the pop-up view.

For example, you may want to browse the info of a product in the Amazon app and share some key info with your friends in the Messages app.

Or you may want to get some numbers from a spreadsheet in Google Sheets for an email.

Without the Multi Window, you will have to switch between apps several times.

If you are familiar with Multi Window on Galaxy S9 and S9+, you can greatly improve your productivity, and therefore get a better ROI of your Galaxy S9 or S9+.

Samsung introduced Multi Window many years in Galaxy Note 2 in 2012, which is 4 years earlier than the stock multiwindow feature introduced in Android Nougat.

Over the years, Samsung has improved and polished the multiwindow feature and made it one of the best features in Galaxy phones.

Basically, if you need to switch apps a few times for a task, you very likely will benefit from the Multi Window feature once you get used to it.

What are the two Multi Window modes on Galaxy S9 and S9+?

There are two screen modes of Multi Window on Galaxy S9 and S9+:

Split-screen view.
Pop-up view.

In the split-screen view, two apps share the whole … Read the rest

How to use Galaxy S9 edge screen on Galaxy S9 and S9+?

Use and customize Galaxy S9 edge screen

simon · Leave a Comment

Galaxy S9 edge screen on Galaxy S9 and S9+ is one of the productivity features associated with the curved screen.

Although the edge screen on Galaxy S9 and S9+ is not a new feature, many Galaxy S9 and S9+ owners still know little about using edge screen to improve their experiences with the phone.

This Galaxy S9 guide explains the details of Galaxy S9 edge screen, and how to use and customize edge screen on Galaxy S9 and S9+.

Since Galaxy S8, the edge screen features are unified on Galaxy S and Note devices. So this guide also applies to edge screen on Galaxy S8, S8+, Galaxy Note 8 and Galaxy Note 9.

What is Galaxy S9 edge screen? The history of the edge screen on Samsung Phones

Galaxy S9 edge screen can be traced back to Galaxy Note Edge (Note 4 Edge), on which Samsung introduced a separate physical screen on the right edge of the standard screen in 2014.

But the reception of a dedicated edge screen was not as warm as expected. So, Samsung introduced the new “shared” edge screen in Galaxy S6 edge and S6 edge+. The edge screen was further polished in Galaxy S7 edge. Since Galaxy S8, Samsung has used curved screens on all flagship phones (Galaxy Note and Galaxy S series),

Galaxy S9 edge screen is a more or less matured feature in both Galaxy S9 and S9+.

There is no dedicated edge screen. Instead, you can trigger some useful features in the (curved) edge part of the main screen.

Edge screen on Galaxy S9 and S9+ is actually a productivity and software feature. It allows you to quickly access some features like opening apps, access tasks or contact your favourite friends.

Although the edge screen is conceptualized with the curved screen, only edge lighting utilizes the curved display. Other Galaxy S9 edge screen features (edge panels) do not rely on the curved edges of the infinity display and therefore can be easily implemented on a flat screen,

By default, edge screen on Galaxy S9 and S9+ was enabled when you got the phone.

In the right edge of the screen, as shown below, you can find edge screen handle.

Swipe to the left side to access Galaxy S9 edge screen features.

For example, you may open apps edge to quickly start a favourite app you added to … Read the rest

How to pin files to Galaxy S9 Home screen (add file shortcuts to Galaxy S9 Home screen)?

use Samsung My Files to pin files to home screen

simon · Leave a Comment

You can pin files to Galaxy S9 Home screen so that you can open them directly by tapping them without fiddling through apps. For example, you can add a PDF file to the home screen and open it without opening the file explorer or storage manager.

After you add files to Galaxy S9 home screen (to be precise, you are actually adding file shortcuts to the home screen), you can use them just like using apps and widgets: open, relocate, delete them.

A file pinned on the home screen always occupies one spot (icon). This is different from adding and showing photos on Galaxy S9 Home screen as a widget, which is resizable.

This Galaxy S9 guide shows you how to pin files to Galaxy S9 Home screen, manage files added to the home screen, and how to add files to task edge in the edge screen.

When you may want to pin files to Galaxy S9 Home screen (add files to the home screen)?

Many owners who use Galaxy S9 or S9+ as a productivity tool often need to open or edit some files repeatedly.

By default, this means you have to open a file explorer (e.g., My files), navigate to the folder, find the file, tap on it to let the default app to open it.

But if you pin the file on Galaxy S9 home screen (i.e. add a shortcut of the file to Galaxy S9 Home screen), then you can tap the shortcut on the home screen to open it straight away.

If you want to show photos on Galaxy S9 Home screen, you may check this guide.

When you pin a file to the home screen, you actually add a shortcut of the file to the home screen. The file is still in the original folder and is NOT moved. If you delete the icon in the home screen, the corresponding file will NOT be removed. But if you update the file, the file in the original folder will be updated.

Technically, the shortcut (the pinned file) in Galaxy S9 home screen is a symbolic (soft) link to the original file, not a copy of the file.

How to pin files to Galaxy S9 Home screen?

There are many third-party apps that allow you to add file shortcuts to Galaxy S9 Home screen. But you do not install any of them.

The pre-installed … Read the rest

How to show photos on Galaxy S9 Home screen?

You can use the picture frame widget to show photos on Galaxy S9and S9+ home screens.

simon · Leave a Comment

Many Galaxy S9 or S9+ owners want to show photos on Galaxy S9 Home screen so that they can easily see the slideshow of their loved photos without opening the Gallery or other photo apps.

Samsung made it easy to pin photos to the always-on display as explained in this guide. But showing photos on Galaxy S9 Home screen does not work out of the box.

Although there are many solutions for you to show photos on Galaxy S9 Home screen, using Samsung's picture frame widget probably is the easiest way to show photos on Galaxy S9 and S9+ home screen.

This Galaxy S9 guide shows you how to show photos on Galaxy S9 home screen using the picture frame widget provided by Samsung. You can also tweak the slideshow by including or excluding photos, adjusting slideshow timing, the layout of photos, and how the photos fill the spots.

The picture frame widget was available in Galaxy phones with Android Marshmallow 6.0 or earlier. Samsung removed it in Android Nougat firmware and offered it as an optional feature in Galaxy Apps.

So, this guide applies to most Samsung Galaxy phones. For Galaxy S9 and S9+, you need to install the widget from Galaxy Apps.

You may follow the steps to install the widget and show photos on Galaxy S9 Home screen. These steps als0 are applicable for Galaxy S8, S8+, S7, S7 Edge, Note 9, Note 8 and Note 5. If you have an older Samsung phone, very likely, you can skip step 1 (as the widget was part of the old Gallery app).

On Galaxy phones (e.g., Galaxy S10, S20, S21, S22, and S23, Note 10, and Note 20) with Android 12 (One UI 4), Android 13 (One UI 5), or Android 14 (One UI 6), the Picture Frame widget was replaced with Gallery Widget. Please check this guide on using the new Gallery Widget to show photos, albums, and stories on the Home screen. You can even use stackable widgets to stack multiple copies of the Gallery Widget to display different sets of photos concurrently.

Step 1: Install Picture Frame from Samsung Galaxy Apps

Galaxy Apps is preinstalled on Galaxy S9 and S9+. You cannot remove it.

Samsung now puts many optional features on Galaxy Apps.

In Galaxy S9 or S9+, tap the Galaxy Apps icon in the home screen or … Read the rest

How to reboot Galaxy S9 and S9+ if Galaxy S9 hangs?

Everything you need to know on powering on, powering off and rebooting Galaxy S9 and S9+.

simon · Leave a Comment

You may already know to use the power button to power on, power off and reboot Galaxy S9 or S9+.

But occasionally, the power button may be not working as expected. You may have to use button (key) combinations to power off, power on or restart Galaxy S9 or S9+.

This Galaxy S9 guide explains how to reboot, power on and power off Galaxy S9 and S9+ in both normal situations and abnormal situations (e.g. when Galaxy S9 or S9+ hangs.).

Please note, in this guide, we do not differ reboot and restart. They are used interchangeably.

Why do you need to reboot Galaxy S9 or S9+ periodically?

You may know you have to reboot Galaxy S9 when you update the phone (for example, updating Galaxy S9 or S9+ to Android Pie). In this case, some system files being used have to be replaced. Therefore, you need to “stop” the system, then restart the system with the updated files.

For apps, normally, it is not necessary to reboot Galaxy S9 if you update them. Apps in Android are running in its own container. The system can destroy the container and then reload the app with updated apps on Galaxy S9 or S9+. Therefore rebooting Galaxy S9 or S9+ is generally not required for updating apps on the phone.

But some tech guys may tell you to reboot Galaxy S9 or S9+ periodically (from once a month to once a week, NOT daily) to make the phone more responsive.

This is actually a valid suggestion.

When you reboot Galaxy S9 or S9+, all app leftovers (some apps sometimes may fail to clean up their own files after you close them) and ghost processes will be cleaned.

How to automatically reboot Galaxy S9 or S9+?

Samsung added the feature of “auto restart” feature in Galaxy S9 and S9+.

You can enable auto restart on Galaxy S9 and S9+ in Settings — General management — Reset— Auto Restart.

As shown in the screenshots below, you can enable auto restart so that Galaxy S9 or S9+ will be rebooted automatically within one hour of the specified time.

You can only set the schedule as once a week only. Frequently restarting/rebooting Galaxy S9 and S9+ will not be helpful.

How to power off and reboot Galaxy S9 and S9+ with the power button options?

The safest way to power off or reboot … Read the rest

How to use Galaxy S9 Apps screen on Galaxy S9 and S9+?

Everything you need to know about Galaxy S9 Apps screen

simon · Leave a Comment

Galaxy S9 Apps screen is an integral part of Galaxy S9 and S9+. Unless you hide the apps screen, you have to work with it.

Although Galaxy S9 apps screen is just a special version home screen, there are some major differences between Galaxy S9 Home screen and Apps screen.

This Galaxy S9 guide explains what Galaxy S9 apps screen is, how to access it, how to use it and how to manage apps and app folders on it.

What is Galaxy S9 Apps screen?

Galaxy S9 Apps screen is the placeholder for all apps installed on your phone. All other Android phones also have a similar apps screen.

Sometimes, apps screen is referred to as the app drawer. In the old versions of Android, widgets were normally hosted in the apps screen as well.

Galaxy S9 Apps screen actually is a special version of Galaxy S9 Home screen.

You can find apps, hide apps, sort apps, manage apps in Galaxy S9 apps screen.

By default, all apps will be listed in the apps screen unless you hide them.

How to access Galaxy S9 Apps screen?

By default, there are a couple of different ways to access Galaxy S9 Apps screen. These include:

Use the apps screen button (apps button) in the favourite apps tray of Galaxy S9 Home screen, if you did not hide apps screen button on Galaxy S9 or S9+.
Swipe upwards on Galaxy S9 Home screen.
Swipe downwards on Galaxy S9 Home screen, if you did not enable quick-open notification panel.

Of course, if you hide the Galaxy S9 Apps screen, then you are working with Galaxy S9 Home screen only, and the apps screen will not be explicitly available.

How to use Galaxy S9 Apps screen interface?

On Galaxy S9 apps screen, if you tap on any app icons, the app will start. This is similar to that on the home screen.

If you tap and hold (long tap) an app icon without moving your fingers, you will get the context menu as shown in the following two screenshots.

For all apps, there are at least 3 options in the context menu:

Select items. You can then continue to select more app icons in the selection mode. You can use the selected apps to create an app folder. Or you can uninstall them in batch.
Add to home

… Read the rest

How to use Galaxy S9 touchscreen gestures?

Seven Galaxy S9 touchscreen gestures: tap, double tap (and triple-tap), long tap, swipe, drag, pinch and spread, are explained and illustrated.

simon · 2 Comments

You have to use some Galaxy S9 touchscreen gestures if you want Galaxy S9 or S9+ to do anything for you.

Although most Galaxy S9 touchscreen gestures work on all other Android phones, you may not be aware of some gestures that help you use Galaxy S9 and S9+ effectively.

This Galaxy S9 how-to guide illustrates the 7 Galaxy S9 touchscreen gestures with animations, explains the features of these gestures and gives examples of using these gestures.

What are Galaxy S9 touchscreen gestures?

As Galaxy S9 and S9+ do not have a physical keyboard or other input devices, you have to interact with the phone either through the touchscreen or voice (e.g., Bixby or Google Assistant).

In addition to the on-screen keyboard or keypad, Galaxy S9 and S9+ also accept some touchscreen gestures.

When your finger(s) or other capacitive pens (please note S Pen on Galaxy Note devices does NOT work with Galaxy S9 or S9+ screen) move on the screen, Galaxy S9 and S9 can recognize certain patterns and therefore responds accordingly.

These moving patterns are usually referred to as Galaxy S9 touchscreen gestures.

So, understanding and correctly using Galaxy S9 touchscreen gestures are essential if you want to use the phone efficiently.

Similar to other Android phones, there is nothing special in Galaxy S9 touchscreen gestures. These gestures can be used in almost all other Android phones.

Although most of Galaxy S9 touchscreen gestures are used on the screen, some can also be used on the physical buttons. e.g., the power button accepts press, double press and long press gestures.

List of Galaxy S9 touchscreen gestures in Galaxy S9 and S9+

You can use the following 7 Galaxy S9 touchscreen gestures on Galaxy S9 and S9+ for various operations.

1. Tap gesture (press)

Tap is one of the most used Galaxy S9 touchscreen gestures.

As shown in the animation below, you need to tap an icon or a specific area to activate something, for example, to start an app, or to open a menu item.

The tap gesture actually mimics “click” of a mouse (e.g., when using Samsung DeX with Galaxy S9 or S9+).

Of course, the action or response of the tap gesture depends on what was tapped, or where you tapped.

Some example of using tap gesture includes:

You can open an app by tapping an app icon in Galaxy S9 home screen or

… Read the rest