Windows Phone 8 Field Guide: The Quickest Way to Get It Done with Windows Phone 8
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Windows Phone 8 Field Guide - Paul Thurrott
@thurrott.
Contents at a glance
Contents at a glance
Contents
Who this book is for
Acknowledgements
Introduction
1. Getting Started
2. The Windows Phone User Experience
3. Store
4. Search
5. People + Me
6. Phone
7. Messaging
8. Maps + Location
9. Email
10. Calendar
11. Internet Explorer
12. Office + OneNote
13. Music, Videos and Podcasts
14. Photos
15. Games
16. Security + Networking
17. PC Integration
Releases
Contents
Contents at a glance
Contents
Who this book is for
Acknowledgements
Introduction
1. Getting Started
Configure your Microsoft account
Configure Microsoft account settings
Change your account picture
Connect other accounts to your Microsoft account
Choose a Windows Phone handset
Understand Windows Phone hardware components and which really matter
Understand the Nokia advantage
Set up your phone
Complete the initial set up wizard
Connect to a Wi-Fi network
Set up and configure accounts
Set up a new account
Configure an account
Update apps
2. The Windows Phone User Experience
Basic navigation
Use the multi-touch screen
Device rotation
Understand the hardware buttons
Power button
Back button
Start button
Search button
Volume Up and Volume Down buttons
Camera
Understand common software interfaces
Status bar
Onscreen keyboard
Copy and paste
Start experience
Understand the Start screen
Understand All Apps
Customize Start screen tiles
Reposition a Start screen tile
Resize a Start screen tile
Remove a Start screen tile
Pin an app to the Start screen
Apps and Hubs
Understand apps and hubs
Understand the types of apps and hubs you will see on Windows Phone
Single screen apps
Pivot apps
Panorama apps
Understand which hubs are included with Windows Phone
Understand which apps are included with Windows Phone
Understand common app interfaces
App bars
Pop-up menus
Personalization
Understand Settings
Configure other accounts
Change the theme
Make text bigger
Configure ringtones and sounds
Configure the lock screen
Download apps and games
Name your phone
Name your phone using File Explorer in Windows
Download the Windows Phone apps
Name your phone using the Windows Phone desktop application
Name your phone using the Windows Phone mobile app
Use rotation lock
3. Store
Access Windows Phone Store from your PC or tablet
Edit your payment information
View your purchase history and reinstall previously downloaded apps
Browse and find apps
Launch the Store app
Tour of the Store user experience
Browse for apps
Search for an app
Learn more about an app
Install, buy or upgrade an app
Install a free app
Buy an app
Install a paid app you've already purchased
Try a paid app
Convert a trial app to a paid app
Download an app update
Share an app
Rate and review an app
Make an in-app purchase
Protect purchases with a PIN
Get app and game suggestions
4. Search
Understand the Bing hub
Tour of the Bing interface
Find anything
Understand Bing search results
Get instant answers
Learn more with quick cards
Find an image or video
Find a nearby place
Find a movie locally
Find and buy a product
Find out which song is playing
Find out what you're looking at
Scan a Barcode, QR code, or Microsoft Tag
Scan and translate text
Find out more about a CD, DVD, video game, or book
Find your location, directions, or a different place
Find it with your voice
Find an app
Search from Internet Explorer
Share search results
Pin search results to the Start screen
Customize Bing
5. People + Me
Understand how accounts and contacts impact the People hub
Understand the People tile and launch the hub
Tour the People hub
Find a contact
Quick navigate through the list of contacts
Search
Find a contact from other apps
See what's new with all of your contacts
Filter the What's New list
Read a post and post comments
Like a post
View and use post images
Quickly access recent contacts
Interact with a contact
View a contact card and reach out to that person
Pin a contact to the Start screen
Edit a contact
Edit a Facebook friend's contact information
Edit a linked contact
Edit a contact found in only one non-Facebook account
Link (and unlink) contacts
Share a contact
Delete a contact
See what's new with a contact
See a contact's photos
View your communications history with a contact
Add a new contact
Interact with multiple contacts at once
Groups
Create a group
Add a member to a group
Remove a member from a group
See what's new with a group of people
See recent photos from a group of people
Pin a group to the Start screen
Rename a group
Delete a group
Rooms
Create a room
Add a member to a room
Join a room that someone else created
Understand the room user experience
Manage a room
See what's new with all room members
See member photos
Send an email to all room members
Chat with room members
Send your location to other room members
Share a calendar with room members
Share a photo or video with room members
Share notes with room members
Customize People
Me
Understand how accounts impact Me
Find and launch Me
Tour the UI
Update your profile picture
Post an update
Check-in to Facebook
Toggle your chat status
Read and respond to what other people are saying online
Re-pin a missing Me tile
6. Phone
Launch Phone
Understand the Phone app
Manually dial a phone number
Call a contact
Call a contact with your voice
Call a phone number from elsewhere in Windows Phone
Call a location from a Bing quick card
Call a person who sent you a text message
Call a number in an email
Call a number in an appointment
Understand what you can do during a phone call
End the call
Do something else with your phone
Use the keypad
Enable the speakerphone
Mute the call
Place the call on hold
Add another caller
Create a conference call
Handle an incoming phone call
Answer a phone call
Ignore a phone call
Text a reply instead of answering a phone call
Understand what happens when you ignore or miss a call, or receive a voice mail
Access your call history
Return a phone call
Learn more about a person who called
Remove an item from your call history
Delete the entire call history
Search your history
Access your voice mail
Call your voice mail
Use visual voice mail
Listen to a voice mail
Use phone features while listening to a voice mail
Manage voice mails
Configure your voice mail
Use a Bluetooth headset
Pair a Bluetooth headset with your phone
Answer a call with a Bluetooth headset
Initiate a call with a Bluetooth headset
Customize Phone
Phone Settings
Other settings that impact the phone experience
Configure the ringer, vibration and ringtone and voicemail sounds
Configure a ringtone for an individual contact
Make volume, ringer and vibrate changes on the fly
Configure lock screen reminders for phone and voice mail
7. Messaging
Understand how Messaging uses accounts
Launch Messaging
Messaging tour
Create a new message
Use your voice to send a message
Send a message attachment
Attach a photo or video to a text message
Attach your location to a text message
Attach a voice note to a text message
Attach a contact to a text message
Send a group text
Use emoticons
Handle received messages
Understand Messaging notifications
Understand Messaging tile notifications
Understand Messaging notifications on the lock screen
Manage threads and messages
Delete a thread
Delete multiple threads
Delete a message in a thread
Use Facebook and Messenger
Enable Facebook Chat
Enable Messenger
Set your Facebook Chat and Messenger chat status
Chat with your Facebook friends and Messenger contacts
Switch between messaging services
Customize Messaging
Use Messaging Settings
Configure Ringtones + Sounds
8. Maps + Location
Bing Maps
Find and launch Bing Maps
Find your current location
Navigate through Maps
Find your way inside a mall or other location
Find a location
Clear the map
Get directions
Get driving directions
Get walking directions
Change between map-only and directions list views
Stop using directions
Configure the view
Show traffic updates
Show an aerial view
Favorite places
Add a location to Favorites
Access your favorites places
Access Bing Maps while offline
Pin a location to the Start screen
Share your location
Access Bing Maps from other apps
Customize Maps
Local Scout
Find and launch Local Scout
Understand the Local Scout interface
Find local places
Find places in a different location
Pin Local Scout to the Start Screen
Driving Mode
9. Email
Email and accounts
Understand which accounts support email
Add a new email-based account
Understand the Mail app
Select one or more messages
Mark a message as read or unread
Use message flags
Delete a message
Compose a new message
Voice to text: Compose a message with voice
Work with other folders
View other email folders
Move a message to a new folder
Pin another folder to the Start screen
View and interact with an email message
Communicate more with the sender
Communicate with other people who received the email message
View an attachment
Reply or forward a message from the message view
Delete a message from the message view
Switch to a newer or older message from the message view
Toggle a message flag from the message view
Mark a message as read/unread from the message view
Move a message to a new folder from the message view
Manually sync with the email service
Link inboxes
Link two or more inboxes
Understand how the Mail app changes when you link inboxes
Respond to meeting requests
Customize Mail
Customize Mail settings
Customize account sync settings
Customize email alerts on the lock screen
10. Calendar
Understand how accounts affect Calendar
Launch Calendar
Calendar tour
Navigate between the Day, Agenda, and To-do views
Navigate within the Day, Agenda, or To-do views
Use Month view
Navigate to today
Navigate to a specific day in the current month
Navigate to a different month
Navigate to a different month or year
Manage appointments
View an appointment
Find an appointment location in Maps
Create an appointment
Create a Quick Event appointment
Modify an appointment
Delete an appointment
Manage meetings
Accept or decline a meeting request
Reply to a meeting request
View meeting attendees
View information about an attendee
Add a meeting attendee
Tell meeting attendees you're running late
Delete a meeting
Access a meeting from an email
Use Facebook Events
View details for a Facebook event
Accept or decline a Facebook event
View Facebook event comments
Add a Facebook event comment or like
View a Facebook event guest list
Manage to-do's (tasks)
Change the display of the to-do list
Mark a to-do as complete
Delete a to-do
View and edit a to-do
Add a new to-do
Handle appointment, meeting and to-do notifications
Understand Calendar notifications
Understand Calendar tile notifications
Understand Calendar notifications on the Lock screen
Customize Calendar
Use Calendar Settings
Use Ringtones + Sound Settings
11. Internet Explorer
Find and launch IE Mobile
Tour of IE Mobile
Web page navigation
Navigate to a web page
Stop a web page from completely loading
Refresh the current web page
Navigate to the previous web page
Find text on the current web page
Search the web
Search the web from IE Mobile
Search the web with Bing
Change the browser search provider
Tabs
Access tabs
Delete a tab
Create a new tab
Open a link in a new tab
Access tabs from the address bar button
Open links from other apps in a new tab
Recent
Access Recent
Manage pages in the Recent list
Favorites
Access Favorites
Edit a Favorite
Delete a Favorite
Add a web page to Favorites
Access favorite web pages from the address bar
Access Favorites from the address bar button
Pin a web page to the Start screen
Save a picture from a web page to your phone
Watch a YouTube video
Share information from web pages
Share a web page
Share or copy a link
Copy and paste text from a web page
Customize Internet Explorer Mobile
12. Office + OneNote
Office hub
Tour of the Office hub
Understand and configure Places
Use SkyDrive with the Office hub
Use Office 365 with the Office hub
Add a SharePoint document library to Places in the Office hub
Access recent documents
Create a new document
Work with documents
Open a document
Pin a document to Start
Delete a document from the phone
Save a document to a different location
Share a document
Understand commands that are common to Word, Excel and PowerPoint
Exit
Save
Save as
Open the location that contains the current document
Share
Word Mobile
Open a word document
Edit a document
Navigate around a document
Select a word or a block of text
Copy and paste text within a document
Toggle the virtual keyboard
Format text
Find text
Use Outline view
Add a comment to a document
View document comments
Delete a comment
Excel Mobile
Open a workbook
Navigate through a workbook
Select a cell or a range of cells
Switch between available worksheets
Format a cell
Use a function
Use AutoSum
Find text or numbers
Sort a range of values
Apply a filter
Make a chart
PowerPoint Mobile
Display a slide show
View the slides in a presentation
Edit text in a presentation
Move a slide
Hide or unhide a slide
Return to Slide Show mode
Add or edit slide notes
OneNote Mobile
A OneNote primer
Launch OneNote
View and manage available notebooks
Open a notebook
Navigate through a notebook
Delete one or more notes
Create a new note
Edit a note
Edit text
Add a to-do list
Add a bulleted list
Add a numbered list
Insert a picture
Add an audio note
Increase and decrease the indent
Format text
Search for text across all of your notebooks
Share a note
Pin a note to the Start screen
Customize Office and OneNote
13. Music, Videos and Podcasts
Find and launch the Music + Videos hub
Tour of the Music + Videos hub
Collection
History
New
Apps
Xbox
Digital music
Tour of the Music experience
Explore an artist
Find more music from an artist
Get the buzz
Read an artist biography
Find related artists
Download music from your cloud collection
Download one song
Download multiple songs at once
Purchase or download music from Xbox Music Store
Find music with Search
Play music
Control music playback
Control music playback from outside the app
Return to Now Playing
Automatically shuffle your entire collection
Playlists and Smart DJ mixes
View a playlist
Play a playlist
Create a playlist
Create and play a Smart DJ mix
Save a Smart DJ mix as a playlist
Pin favorite music to the Start screen
Add music to Kid's Corner
Digital videos
Explore the Videos experience
Play a video
Manage videos
Podcasts
Find a podcast in Windows Phone Store
Stream or download a single podcast episode
Subscribe to a podcast
Find and manage subscribed podcasts
Pin a podcast to the Start screen
Delete a podcast
View a podcast and manage it further
Play a podcast
Other ways to enjoy podcasts
Sync a podcast from iTunes
Other podcast apps
FM radio
Find a radio station
Add a station to favorites
Remove a station from favorites
Access your favorite stations
Pin a radio station to the Start screen
Pause live radio
Switch to the internal speaker
Configure FM radio for your region
Customize Music + Videos
14. Photos
Manage and enjoy photos
Set up and configure accounts for photos
Launch the Photos hub
Tour the Photos hub
View your photo albums
View photos in a photo album
Share a photo
Edit a photo
Add or view tags for a photo
Delete a photo
Save an online photo to your phone
Add a photo to Favorites
Set a photo as the lock screen background
Set a photo as the Photos hub background
Use favorite photos as the Photos hub and tile background
Take photos and videos
Launch the Camera app
Configure the Camera app
Set photo settings
Set video settings
Take a photo
Toggle the flash
Zoom the viewfinder
Toggle between the cameras
Record a video
View previous photos and videos
Extend Camera with Lenses
Find lenses
Pick the best lenses
Take a screenshot
Customize the Photos hub and Camera app
15. Games
Understand Xbox LIVE
Get additional Xbox Games apps
Find and launch the Games hub
Tour of the Games hub
Find a game in the Games Store
Launch the Games Store
Understand the layout of the Games Store
Search for a game
Find Xbox LIVE games
Explore a game
Play a game
Send and receive game requests
Earn an achievement
Pin a game to Start
Uninstall a game
View and configure your online persona
Have fun with your Avatar
View your profile
View and edit your Xbox LIVE bio
Customize your avatar
View your achievements
Interact with your Xbox friends
See which friends are online
View a friend's profile
Send a message
Read, respond to, and delete a message
Remove a friend
Send and respond to friend requests
Customize the Games hub
16. Security + Networking
Security
Lock screen PIN
Wallet
Tour of the Wallet user experience
Protect Wallet and on-phone purchases with a PIN
View your payment methods and membership and loyalty cards
Add a new payment method
View or edit a payment method
Purchase an app, game, or music
Add a new membership or loyalty card
View your deals
Add a new deal
View and use a saved deal
Make a purchase with NFC Tap to Pay
Kid's Corner
Set up Kid's Corner
Use Kid's Corner
Customize Kid's Corner
Backup
Enable and configure Backup
Restore a backup
Find My Phone
Configure Find My Phone on your handset
Access Find My Phone on the web
Find your phone on a map
Ring the phone remotely
Lock your phone remotely and send a message to the lock screen
Erase your phone remotely
Phone Update
Networking
Cellular data
Understand which type of cellular data connection you have
Configure cellular data
Wi-Fi
Enable Wi-Fi
Connect to a Wi-Fi network
Handle Wi-Fi toast notifications
Connect to a hidden Wi-Fi network
Configure advanced Wi-Fi settings
Bluetooth
Understand which Bluetooth features work with Windows Phone
Pair a Bluetooth device
Pair a Bluetooth device with NFC
Data Sense
Configure Data Sense on first use
Understand Data Sense
Find nearby Wi-Fi connections
Configure Data Sense
Use the live tile to track data usage
Internet sharing
Toggle Internet sharing
Configure Internet sharing
Access a shared connection from another device
Airplane mode
17. PC Integration
Understand your options for PC/phone copy and sync
Choose what happens when your phone is connected to the PC
Use the Windows Phone mobile app
Copy files from the PC to your phone
Copy files from the phone to the PC
Learn more about the storage usage on your phone
Use the Windows Phone desktop application
Sync files from the PC to your phone
Copy files from the phone to your PC
Learn about your phone's storage usage
Rename your phone
Copy files using File Explorer
Import photos from the phone
Releases
Who this book is for
Windows Phone 8 Field Guide was written for current and future users of Windows Phone 8. It was written for real people—users—not technical experts, or those who need to manage mobile devices in a corporate environment.
The book makes no assumptions about your experience with prior versions of Windows Phone, but by this point in time, I do assume that you have at least some experience using a smart phone in general.
If you are already at least passingly familiar with Windows Phone, you can use the book as a reference and pick and choose from the various topics. Otherwise, you should read the first two chapters in sequence and then branch out from there. There's no need to read the book in sequence, though you may of course do so if you wish.
For the few times in which you need to connect your handset to a computer, I assume that the computer will be a Windows-based PC, preferably using Windows 8 or RT. Those with older versions of Windows should be able to follow along. (Those with Macs are on their own. Just as in real life.)
Acknowledgements
This book was a solo effort and a major update to my first attempt at self-publishing a full length technical book. I'm still learning. Thanks to Microsoft for creating and maintaining Windows Phone and to Nokia for really turning things up a notch with superior hardware, software, and services. And thanks to Rafael Rivera, my Windows Secrets and Windows 8.1 Field Guide co-author, for putting up with my inane chattering about this book. Finally, thanks to my readers and listeners from around the world. I've always thought about my work as a conversation about technology, and that was never truer than during the very public development of this book. Let's keep the conversation going: It's this back and forth that makes the whole thing worthwhile.
Introduction
Welcome to Windows Phone 8 Field Guide, my gift to the Windows Phone community. I've been enthralled by Windows Phone since Microsoft announced the new platform in February 2010 at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. I was so excited by this release, in fact, that I wrote the first-ever book about Windows Phone, called Windows Phone 7 Secrets, in the middle part of that year, before it even shipped to the public. In doing so, I was also one of the first people outside of Microsoft to obtain a prototype Windows Phone handset, and I took it to Europe that summer after writing the book and continued the conversation by blogging about my experiences. Since then, I've never stopped using or writing about Windows Phone. Few people have more experience with this platform than I do.
Long story short: Windows Phone was—and is—everything that Android and iPhone are not. It provides a wonderful new way of doing things. Oh, and unlike iPhone, it can actually make error-free phone calls too. Bam.
I've certainly had my ups and downs with regards to Microsoft's treatment of this platform. While Windows Phone has emerged during the writing of this book as the clear number three smart phone platform behind Google Android and Apple iPhone but ahead of Blackberry, it has yet to achieve what I consider to be a sustainable level of usage. But the trends are positive. My fingers are crossed.
But I've never wavered in my support of both Windows Phone and the people who use it (or are considering using it). I test new smart phones regularly, and while I've kept up on the advances in Android and in Apple's recent me-too moves with iOS 7, these platforms simply are not interesting to me. Yes, the iPhone was innovative when it arrived in 2007, but that's also when Apple stopped innovating and started protecting their product. Android? That was never innovative. Android is a mess.
Windows Phone isn't just different. Windows Phone is better. And you can tell that's true every time a feature emerges in the competition that copies one from Windows Phone. Social networking integration. Integrated experiences. Beautiful Swiss-influenced design and killer typography. Windows Phone did it all first. Windows Phone still does it better. And it keeps getting better.
Thanks for reading. And thanks for using Windows Phone. You made the right choice.
Paul Thurrott
July 2013
1. Getting Started
In this chapter, you will discover how to configure your Microsoft account optimally for Windows Phone, learn about the Windows Phone hardware features that matter most, and step through the initial configuration of your new Windows Phone 8 handset.
Configure your Microsoft account
To integrate its diverse families of online services, Microsoft has created a centralized account, called Microsoft account. It's the key to accessing your personal data in these services on a variety of device types, including Windows 8 PCs, Windows RT tablets, Xbox, and of course Windows Phone. (It also works cross the web, of course, and on competing devices such iPhone, iPad, and Android-based handsets and tablets.)
Microsoft account has become so central to how we as users access our information in Microsoft services that we can use this account to sign into a Windows-based PC, device, or phone. Because of that latter capability—which you'll experience when you set up your new Windows Phone handset for the first time as described later in this chapter—you should take care to properly configure your Microsoft account before purchasing the handset.
But this is not just about signing in to an online account. By configuring your Windows Phone handset with your Microsoft account, you will also automatically populate the phone with all of the data that is associated with that account. And it's potentially a lot of data: Email, contacts, appointments and tasks from Outlook.com, Skype contacts, SkyDrive-based documents and other data, your cloud music collection from Xbox Music, photos stored in SkyDrive and associated services such as Facebook and Twitter, your collection of purchased apps on Windows 8/RT and Windows Phone, your Xbox Gamertag and associated achievements, Gamerscore and other data, connected social networking services like Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter, previous Windows Phone backups, synced settings from Windows 8/RT and Office, payment options, and much, much more. And all of this information appears in the appropriate Windows Phone experiences, as you'll see throughout this book.
Of course, many of those associations don't happen automatically. And that's why it's important to properly configure your Microsoft account before you acquire a Windows Phone handset and set it up for the first time.
Note: Microsoft account was previously called Windows Live ID and is still occasionally identified by that name online.
Here's the kicker: Chances are, you already have a Microsoft account. In fact, you probably have more than one. When you sign up for Outlook.com (or its predecessors, Hotmail and MSN), Xbox Live, Xbox Music and Video (previously called Zune), Office 365 Home Premium, and other Microsoft services, the account you're creating is in fact a Microsoft account. And it will work across all of the services listed here and noted above, and with others as well.
If you do have more than one Microsoft account, you will need to think about which you will use as your primary Microsoft account. That's because certain services on Windows Phone can only be used with the same, primary Microsoft account. These include your sign-in, Xbox Live Gamertag (for games and Xbox entertainment services, which on Windows Phone is pretty much Xbox Music), and SkyDrive. You can later configure your other Microsoft accounts on the phone as well, and access email, contacts, calendar, tasks, and other data throughout various experiences on the phone too. (But you cannot use these secondary
Microsoft accounts for the phone sign-in, for Xbox services, or for SkyDrive.)
While it's not totally inconceivable that you do not have a Microsoft account, I'm going to assume you do. So head over to Outlook.com or Microsoft Account Sign-up with a PC-based web browser and sign up for one otherwise. (You can choose between @outlook.com, @hotmail.com and @live.com email addresses, or you can use an email address from another service, like Gmail, as your Microsoft account. I recommend not doing that, however, as there are some limitations when you use an existing email address from another service as your Microsoft account.)
Configure Microsoft account settings
To configure your Microsoft account, open Microsoft Account Settings in a PC-based web browser and sign-in.
(There's a lot of personal information on this page, so please excuse the edits.)
As you can see, there is a wide range of information that can and should be configured on this and subsequent pages on this site. And some of the key options you will configure are related to account security, so it's important to ensure that the account is configured properly. Here are some of the options you should spend time configuring.
Display name. On the default Overview page, you can change your display name, which will appear in a variety of places, including sent emails. Generally speaking, you should simply configure this setting to your actual name. So my display name is Paul Thurrott.
Personal Info. You can configure birth date, gender, profession, and home and work addresses.
Add or change aliases. The Outlook.com email address (which can actually be an @outlook.com, @hotmail.com, @live.com or even @msn.com email address) supports multiple email aliases so you can send and receive email from other addresses, and even sign-in to devices from these aliases. Windows Phone does not directly support aliases, however, so if you sign-in with the actual account address, you will not be able to send or receive email from the aliases from Windows Phone.
Password. For now at least, a strong password is your first line of defense between your Microsoft account—which, again, is the gateway to a lot of personal information—and hackers and identity thieves who may wish to illegally gain access to this account and its contained data. You can and should configure a strong password and might consider having Microsoft require you to change it regularly. And as noted below, there are other things you can do to further secure your account.
Security Info. When you sign-up for or configure your Microsoft account, Microsoft will require you to create some form of account verification, or security info,
typically a mobile phone number, that the firm can use to send a confirmation code to prove you are who you say you are. Microsoft will also require you to configure one or more alternate email address at which it can reach you. This information and other security settings can be configured through Security Info. Spend time here, and make sure you configure at least one mobile phone number, alternate email address, and security question. You can also optionally configure two-step authentication, which is a bit ponderous but can make your account more secure. Please refer to my web-based article Enable and Use Two-Step Authentication with Your Microsoft Account for more information about this crucial part of the security puzzle.
Notifications. From this interface, you can configure how and with which email account/alias you will be provided with notifications associated with this account, as well as your marketing preferences. (You can prevent Microsoft from sending promotional email to this account.)
Permissions. There are a number of important settings in this area, but one is particularly relevant to Windows Phone: Manage accounts. This is where you configure the other online accounts that are connected
to your Microsoft account. And since this is so important, we'll examine it further in the section Connect other accounts to your Microsoft account.
Billing. Because you can purchase apps, games, and music on your phone, and may subscribe to optional services like Xbox Live Gold, Xbox Music Pass, and Ad-Free Outlook that make Windows Phone and your Microsoft account better, you will want to configure one or more payment options. These include credit and debit cards, of course, but can also include a PayPal account or a redeemed Microsoft gift card, which will add a particular dollar amount to your account that you can draw from as you purchase items from the phone. See the section Wallet in Chapter 16: Networking + Security for more information about paying for items on your phone.
Change your account picture
It may seem frivolous, but you should consider changing the picture that is associated with your Microsoft account since this is the default picture that others will see when they add your Microsoft account to their own contacts lists. To do so, navigate to the Microsoft Account Profile site with a PC-based web browser and sign-in.
Now, click Change picture and upload a favorite photo.
Connect other accounts to your Microsoft account
One of the original goals of Microsoft account was to provide a single sign-on service that would work across various online accounts, including those for social networking services like Facebook and Twitter. Microsoft achieves this vision by letting you connect
various online services to your Microsoft account.
To connect social networking accounts to your Microsoft account, open Microsoft Account Settings in a PC-based web browser and sign-in. Then, navigate to Permissions, Manage Accounts and click the link See what you can add.
From this page, you can connect a variety of third party (i.e. non-Microsoft) online accounts to your Microsoft account. Three—Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter—are particularly relevant to Windows Phone, which offers nice integrated features that let you access contacts from these accounts, make posts, comment on posts, and more. (And if you're in China, Sina Weibo also offers this kind of connectivity.)
Note: You can only connect one of each account type to your Microsoft account.
Let's look at connecting Facebook as an example. Click the Chat with your Facebook friends link.
Click Connect. On the Facebook web site, you will be prompted to sign in with your Facebook email and password. Do so. The account will then be connected to your Microsoft account.
Click Done. Now, you can configure which information is shared through the connected account. On the left, click Manage Your Accounts.
Under Facebook, click Edit.
This page will vary from account to account, but for Facebook you have a wide range of integration capabilities on Windows Phone. Examine the settings and see whether you'd like to disable any of them. (If you actually use Facebook regularly, you will want to do so from Windows Phone and will most likely wish to leave most of these settings enabled.)
Note that you can also use this interface to remove a connected account.
Done? It's time to choose a phone.
Choose a Windows Phone handset
Hardware makers such as HTC, Huawei, Nokia and Samsung sell various Windows Phone handset models in markets around the world, and your options will vary not only by locale—some phones are only sold in the United States, for example—but by wireless