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Instead of clicking on the small little “X” on the folder you can actually swipe from the center of the bottom bezel to the left side of the PlayBook (see image above). Doing so will cause the folder to quickly close letting you get back to what’s important, using your PlayBook. Now this has got me thinking, what other secrets are laying within the PlayBook OS 2.0? If you’ve found one let CrackBerry Nation know in the comments or in the forums at the link below. It’ll be interesting to see what else can be found.
Familiarize yourself with other Tips and Tricks from the forums
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cas118 Apr 14, 2012 at 2:19 pm
This is news?
I've been doing it since the beta!
CrossCanada Apr 14, 2012 at 2:21 pm
The thing about 'news' is it is always news to someone. I for one did not know this. Cool feature.
Ruslan Botsyurko Apr 14, 2012 at 8:02 pm
I didn't know this feature either. Also I have just figured out that the corner diagonal swipe (known as the "back" gesture in Android Runtime) also closes a folder.
westex#WP Apr 14, 2012 at 10:51 pm
this feature, swiping from the middle of the bottom bezel to the left does nothing on mine. What gives?
Ruslan Botsyurko Apr 15, 2012 at 9:38 pm
After a few minutes of testing it appears that it is actually not a horizontal swipe from the middle that does the magic (it works only if you accidantly touch the display while sliding your finger), the official gesture is the one from Android Runtime - diagonal swipe from the bottom bezel to the left (like you'd want to cut out a left down corner of your playbook). This works in 100% ;)
Just Me Apr 14, 2012 at 9:11 pm
Yup for some people myself included this is news. Thanks for the post.
knightfall Apr 14, 2012 at 2:20 pm
Brilliant! Wish I knew that one sooner. Thanks!
ignites Apr 14, 2012 at 2:20 pm
also work as a 'back button' in andriod player ;)
diagonal from bottom bezel to right bezel also takes u out of folder and straight to main dock
Martis94 Apr 14, 2012 at 2:22 pm
Didn't. Know
derrickps3 Apr 14, 2012 at 2:22 pm
must be a slow news days............i mean it tells you how to do that in the help icon
gregorylkelly Apr 14, 2012 at 2:29 pm
Welcome to CrackBerry.com. Weekends are slow when it comes to news here. Been like that since the site was created.
Zach Gilbert Apr 14, 2012 at 2:38 pm
We have a wide range of readers too. We're here to help everyone get the most out of their BlackBerry products.
axllebeer Apr 14, 2012 at 6:17 pm
I've noticed that if you do a diagonal swipe on the side bezel that nothing happens at all. Meaning that it won't switch to the next opened app. So there must be some functionality coming there because diagonal swipes from the top bezel make no difference as it still pulls up the same info as a regular swipe. So my point here is the OS is recognizing the side diagonal swipe, but there's nothing programmed into the OS yet for what to do with it.
Exciting none the less :) more gestures to come with side swiping is my guess.
thatplaybookguy Apr 14, 2012 at 5:31 pm
Welcome to the Internet, it's been like that on the weekends since 1994. My biggest pet peeve.
fearlessfurby Apr 14, 2012 at 2:44 pm
Bah, I posted something similar to this in the PlayBook forum about a month ago - if you swipe from the folder name to either the left or right it'll also close the folder.
walcolm Apr 15, 2012 at 5:27 am
if you swipe from the center of the bottom bezel to the right also closes the folder just like swiping to the left
NaijaBerry Apr 14, 2012 at 2:37 pm
Thanks didn't know this and i ran the beta from the get go!! Works if you swipe the other direction as well as diagonally from the bottom of the bezel upwards in any direction but the corners very helpful, thanks!
SlcCorrado Apr 14, 2012 at 2:41 pm
Great feature that has been working since the beta. Definitely allows for much faster navigation of the PlayBooks ui :D
toobs623 Apr 14, 2012 at 2:46 pm
For the record, I'm the one who told RIM to do that in the beta forums. You're welcome :)
axllebeer Apr 14, 2012 at 3:06 pm
And here you thought I knew it all lol. Learn something new every day.
Boldly sent from my 9930
ThaGill Apr 14, 2012 at 3:06 pm
You can also close a folder by dragging its name to the right or left (on the screen itself). E.g. when you open your "Games" folder, you can close this folder by dragging the word "Games" to the right or left :)
anthogag Apr 14, 2012 at 3:08 pm
Doesn't work for me...swipe from center to the left on the bottom bezel ??¿¿??
BSFA2008 Apr 14, 2012 at 4:07 pm
Right, because they got it wrong. That's not how you do it. Swipe up diagonally from bezel to screen, NOT horizontally.
As somebody else mentioned, this also acts as the "back" button in ported android apps.
CDM76 Apr 14, 2012 at 4:40 pm
Actually .... when folder is open, swiping from roughly center of bottom bezel to left side of bottom bezel DOES work to close the folder. So does swiping from diagonally AND swiping the folder title to the side.
Dont assume that just because YOU do it differently that the other ways dont work. They do.
BerryClever Apr 14, 2012 at 3:12 pm
I didn't know about that! The fact that the folder does not close automatically annoyed me, but this will help. Thanks!
giorgoskyropoulos Apr 14, 2012 at 3:30 pm
Doesn't work for me either.
spike12 Apr 14, 2012 at 4:03 pm
Me neither....
DJ Reyes Apr 14, 2012 at 4:29 pm
Swipe diagonally up to the left or the right if horizontal is not working for you. It does work both ways though.
CDM76 Apr 14, 2012 at 4:40 pm
Works for me ... exactly as shown and described
TIMSHULL Apr 14, 2012 at 3:30 pm
Just picked one up last night love it! But I can't figure out how to share a post on Facebook???
sk8er_tor Apr 14, 2012 at 3:46 pm
You have to use the website for that. It's not available in the app.
TIMSHULL Apr 14, 2012 at 4:43 pm
Thanks!
Techno-Emigre Apr 14, 2012 at 4:01 pm
The swipe is not working for me, either. Now, that is interesting. Why would it work for some and not others? We are all 2.0.7971, right? Upward swipe to close works fine, which is what I have always used.
Michelle Haag Apr 14, 2012 at 4:03 pm
Are you trying it in a folder, or in an app? It only works for folders.
BSFA2008 Apr 14, 2012 at 4:10 pm
I tried it in my bridge folder and in another folder, numerous times. Diagonal swipe up works every time. Staying on bezel doesn't. I assumed OP had a brain fart and didn't know what he was talking about. *shrugs*
So HORIZONTAL STAYING ON BEZEL does work for some of you????
BerryClever Apr 14, 2012 at 4:13 pm
Horizontal does work for me, but only if I do the swipe above the BlackBerry Logo (or where the logo would be on the other sides).
Techno-Emigre Apr 14, 2012 at 4:13 pm
OOOOH! Very slick. Thanks!
BerryClever Apr 14, 2012 at 4:11 pm
******For those that the swipe is not working**********
It wasn't working for me either, but I found I had to do the wipe ABOVE the BlackBerry logo (so the top of the benzel). For some reason it was not working when at the logo or under the logo (for me anyways).
jforce Apr 14, 2012 at 4:18 pm
The swipe from middle to left or right only works if you are partially touching the screen as well as the bezel at the same time. If you are only touching the bezel, it won't work.
I'd like to see more gestures added. Makes for a really cool user experience.
salamakal Apr 14, 2012 at 4:50 pm
And it works swiping left or right.
jvcvem2003 Apr 14, 2012 at 4:26 pm
It's cool gesture. But since when is swiping three inches of screen faster than tapping an X?
It just looks cooler to swipe. But it doesn't make it faster. LoL
salamakal Apr 14, 2012 at 4:32 pm
The otherside of the X will also close the folder. Which is much better and faster than the swipe
Techno-Emigre Apr 14, 2012 at 4:34 pm
What?!? I thought the whole point of everything with the PB was to look 10 times cooler than anyone else. This is just a slick move when you have the PB tethered to a monitor during a presentation LOL. Little x's just lack the coolness factor.
salamakal Apr 14, 2012 at 4:48 pm
Cool or not I rather have the option to close a folder close to both fat fingers when holding the PB and not having to stretch my finger all the way to center of the bezel just to close the folder. Easy access to gestures are what make the PB so great.
nickbettschen Apr 14, 2012 at 4:29 pm
I didnt know the bezel was touch
SlcCorrado Apr 14, 2012 at 5:20 pm
Happy weekend everybody!
Darlaten Apr 14, 2012 at 5:22 pm
That's a great tip. Although, it would have been nice to see Crackberry post a story/blog post about the intermittant/stable "your country is not supported" error message that a number of people across the globe have been experiencing. Perhaps a reach out to RIM for an official response as to what the heck is going on.
thatplaybookguy Apr 14, 2012 at 5:32 pm
You can also touch the bottom part of the apps window and flick upwards to the top and it closes.
robert.wason Apr 14, 2012 at 5:49 pm
I feel I may be the last to know of this as it may have been included from the start, but here goes!.. If you hold either of the -/+ volume buttons down while in the Podcasts or Music apps it will skip forward/backward one track. I was wondering why they only had volume buttons on top!
joanPorsche Apr 14, 2012 at 6:26 pm
What i discovered recently is swipe from any bezel 's upper corner diagonally to the centre of screen brings to show the upper menu bar.
Also swipe from bezel's lower left corner to the center and it shows the keyboard, which is useful because it not always appears when needed IMO.
abwan11 Apr 14, 2012 at 6:15 pm
They should have active left and right side bezels to scroll up and down pages so your fingers are off the screen. Would make for easier reading and scrolling through web pages without triggering a link by accident which happens often with my fat fingers.
joanPorsche Apr 14, 2012 at 6:24 pm
Agree!
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Catalonia, next state in Europe
Drasadex Apr 14, 2012 at 6:33 pm
Wow, did not know this one. I was always pressing the X to close my folders....
rickgainsmith Apr 14, 2012 at 7:12 pm
Swiping right from the middle also works.
Taping the opposite side of the X also works (top right of folder)
Darrweng Apr 14, 2012 at 7:11 pm
Was not aware of that. thanks CB.
evankikie Apr 14, 2012 at 9:21 pm
just like the android player back menu gestures.
Andrew4life Apr 15, 2012 at 2:09 am
Wow! This is so userful! I was always annoyed at trying to hit that tiny little "x".
From what Farokh said earlier about using the diagonal back swipe, I figured out 4 different swipes. (quite intuitive when you think about it)
While a folder is open
1) Swipe across the middle of the bottom bezel to the far left or the far right: will close the current folder
2) Swipe diagonally upwards at a 45 degrees angle in the bottom left corner will close the folder.
3) Swipe diagonally upwards at a 60 degrees angle (more up than diagonal), will close the folder and also bring the applications carousel into view (essentially hiding all your icon views except the one row)
4) Swipe up will simply bring the applications carousel into view (same as above, but the folder isn't closed)
So the more vertical your swipe is, it will lean towards hiding the icons/showing the application carousel, the more horizontal, it will lean towards closing the folder.
INTERESTING!
PKPDBERRYADDICT Apr 15, 2012 at 10:46 am
It is in the user manual ( diagonal to the left gesture)
Toasterg Apr 15, 2012 at 11:57 am
Very nice! Since I upgraded to 2.0 I kept wondering why do I have to tap a "X" button in the gesture-rich PB.
However, as much as it's interesting to have some of the unexplored/hidden features, may be it's also awesome to have a section in the Help app that talks about (actually, shows) all the gestures so the general users can easily take advantage of it?
xsacha Apr 21, 2012 at 5:25 am
The help app actually does demonstrate this gesture and all of the others.
cblguy Apr 15, 2012 at 12:18 pm
Something I just learned (and then later found out in a forum) was: holding both volume buttons does a print screen.
k-dogg Apr 15, 2012 at 1:16 pm
Hey Zach or anyone, how do you create a folder so i can place all my games into one spot?? i have no clue on this lol
thanks in advance
Michele Weisneck Apr 16, 2012 at 4:29 am
Kurdman, hold your finger on an app till they pulsate. Then drag one and drop it on top of another i.e. Angry Birds drop on top of Need for Speed creates the folder.
Easy peasy.
k-dogg Apr 18, 2012 at 8:32 pm
^^You are the man brother, so simple lol
thanks !!!
spatialmongrel Apr 15, 2012 at 5:39 pm
Didn't know that, and thought I had it all mastered. Thanks!
digitalhomeboy Apr 16, 2012 at 3:44 pm
This is actually cool! Though I was hoping to swipe on the scren view itself like that on OS7 to switch back to the main view.
xsacha Apr 21, 2012 at 5:26 am
Swipe the folder name. ;)