I periodically encounter something on my computer, phone, or car, which I wish to address, and am told that it can be managed in settings. Unfortunately, to me that is often the equivalent of “go look for your needle in that haystack over there.”
I’m not intending to rant against technology, but instead, trying to lessen my ignorance/resistance to some aspects of it.
Here is the most recent example. I opened my Apple computer one morning to see a small grey message rectangle saying something like: A device has accessed your email and messages. If the device is unfamiliar to you, delete it in settings. The message box had an x in the upper left corner, and a smaller rectangle in the lower right saying “Settings.”
I went to Settings, and none of the folder names clearly suggested that they were where I should look. Wi-fi? Network? Accessibility? Control Center? Privacy and Security? There must be 20-30 folders. None of them had any indication of a pending or recent change/notification.
I started opening folders I thought MIGHT apply. Each had 5 or more subfolders. None of them seemed to intuitively refer to the message I had received, and I quickly got fatigued with the process.
I went back to the screen with the message. I SHOULD have taken a screenshot - but that is not something I do often, and each time I have to look up how. I tried to click on the smaller rectangle saying “settings.” That closed the message window.
We eventually gathered that the message was referring to my wife’s AirDropping of photos to me the previous day. But I do not know where I can confirm that.
I experienced this recently with my car - trying to figure out where the tire pressure was displayed. I pretty much get in my car to drive places. The idea of sitting in my car in my garage and fucking around with al the various buttons is pretty low on my list of priorities. And doing that often enough to remind me of what is where.
I tend to be a “light” user of my technology. I do not try to customize settings, and I don’t do much besides word process, send/receive email/texts, make phone calls, take and send the occasional picture/video, participate on a few forums, and google various things. Do you have any suggestions for how I might improve my understanding of how “settings” menus are organized? Is there any solution besides just spending a lot of time clicking around in Settings to see what is done where - and repeating that process often enough that I retain it?
