One of the best, easiest and cheapest ways to get your kids started with coding is with an app, but the sheer number of kid-friendly coding apps can be pretty overwhelming. My five favorite coding apps for kids teach basic coding skills across a variety of age ranges and skillsets—and yes, they’re all budget-friendly.

Coding apps for kids: Pre-K through 4th grade

Code Karts (Download)

What’s more exciting than racing go-karts? For the little ones this app is designed for, not much.

Code Karts uses a series of logic puzzles to help kids “debug” their virtual go-karts.

An appealing option for four- to seven-year-olds, Code Karts uses a series of logic puzzles to help kids “debug” their virtual go-karts.

The simple nature of this app helps prepare tykes for the language of code before they actually start using it to create programs.

For variety, kids can toggle between Classic (play alone) or Competition (race the computer) and use code direction “bricks” to get their go-karts to the end of the game.

The price: The trial version of Code Karts offers 10 levels for free, while the full version (available as an in-app purchase) sells for $1.99. You can download Code Karts on the App Store, or learn more at Edoki Academy.

CodeSpark Academy with The Foos (Download)

Colorful, lovable characters form the bedrock of CodeSpark Academy.

Colorful, lovable characters form the bedrock of CodeSpark Academy.

This super-engaging and completely visual app teaches basic coding concepts—everything from sequencing and loops to Boolean logic and sorting—without words, making it an ideal choice for pre-readers and ESL students.

Highlights include unlimited coding challenges and a “game maker,” a series of pre-formulated code outlines to help kids personalize their own games.

The price: CodeSpark Academy comes with a free 7-day trial. After that, plans cost $7.99 a month and allow you to track the progress of up to three children on one account. Download CodeSpark Academy on the App Store, or learn more at TheFoos.com.

ScratchJr (Download)

The highly respected Scratch programming community inspired ScratchJr, a more elementary version of the popular block-based learning system. ScratchJr is geared for ages 5-7, but even older kids will find it enjoyable and addicting.

ScratchJr is geared for ages 5-7, but even older kids will find it enjoyable and addicting.

Scratch Jr. uses story creation to help teach basic code principles. Parents who would like to give their kids extra learning challenges may find this guide from No Starch Press to be a useful companion to creativity.

The price: Scratch Jr. is a collaborative project between many high-profile universities and companies, including Tufts and Lego. Because of the level of commitment that has gone into its development and maintenance, it continues to be free for users of all available platforms, which includes iOS, Android, Chromebooks, and Fire Tablets. You can download ScratchJr here, or learn more at the ScratchJr website.

Coding apps for kids: 4th grade and up

Tynker (Download)

Aimed squarely at the 7-and-up crowd, Tynker is best known for its Minecraft mod activities. Young coders will enjoy Tynker’s collection of more than 200 puzzles and games, coding tutorials, and customizable game templates.

Tynker boasts more than 200 puzzles and games, coding tutorials, and customizable game templates.

Perhaps the most exciting feature of the Tynker app is the “connected” play mode, which helps kids learn how to build apps to control their own devices, including select models of robots and drones, as well as Philips Hue and Lux personal lighting systems.

The price: Free! Additional courses and play modules can be purchased for use on a PC or Mac, starting at $8 a month per child. Click here to download Tynker, or get more information on all the plans at Tynker.com.

Codea (Download)

Is your teen ready to build games or apps using real coding language? Let ’em loose on Codea, an iOS app lets kids program in Lua, a popular programming language, with help from some simple student-friendly tools.

Codea demands a basic understanding of code, making it most appropriate for high schoolers.

Codea demands a basic understanding of code, making it most appropriate for high schoolers. The app boasts an impressive reference page for many of the commands, but budding programmers will learn best when they just jump in with Codea and start trying (and failing). For additional guidance, don’t forget to check out the official forums.

The price: One of the more expensive apps available, Codea costs under $15. But considering it’s a one-time purchase, with no additional membership fees to shell out, it’s a modest investment. Download Codea here, or learn more at Codea.io.

Bonus tips

What does “brick-based” mean?

As you’re researching coding apps for kids, you’ll hear the term “brick-based” tossed around a lot. So-called brick-based coding apps let kids work with pre-built command codes, or “bricks.” For example, one brick might contain the code for “move 5 steps,” while another has the code for “change costume.” Kids build their programs by dragging and dropping these bricks into place. Junior coders will get instant gratification watching their creations follow their commands, and they’ll learn how to troubleshoot—or “debug”—their programs by reordering their code bricks.

Setting a time limit

As a parent, I think kids need programming skills to compete in a tech-centric society, but I don’t want their eyes glued to their iPads all day. Monitoring screen time of any kind is important, and coding should fall into that daily or weekly allotment.

So how do I balance my desires for them to learn with their screen-time cravings? We’ve run into this issue quite a bit, and the best method I’ve used is an old-fashioned egg timer. When the bell rings, no more iPad. [Ed. note: Don’t forget the timer in iOS’s Clock app!]

Picking a coding language

Also, what about the question of which code is best to learn? Python? JavaScript? Lua?

My advice: don’t sweat it. Nurturing a child’s passion for code, setting good work and study habits, and offering a variety of safe resources are ultimately more important than picking a language. Besides, as coding evolves, so will the languages that are most “in demand.”

When kids get older, you can sample additional languages by playing around on websites such as Kahn Academy and the numerous Hour of Code partnerships online. After trying a few, kids may just gravitate to the code of their choosing.

Linsey Knerl is a freelance writer, mom of 6, and member of the ASJA specializing in parent and consumer news. You can find more of her work at LinseyKnerl.com or follow her on Twitter.

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Read on for four more things that’ll fit in the Android or iOS app dock, starting with…

1. App folders [iOS and Android]

Creating an app folder on your iOS or Android home screen is easy: just tap and hold one icon and drag it on top of another.

Nice, but here’s an even better trick: you can, if you wish, put folders in the app dock.

Wish you could add your favorite website to the app dock? No problem.

The folder should slide smoothly into place, perfect for accessing your favorite collection of apps from any of your swipable home screen.

2. Web site shortcuts [iOS and Android]

Both iOS and Android devices let you save shortcuts to oft-visited web sites to your home screen. For iPhone and iPad, you just open a web site, tap the Action button (the square one with the upward arrow), then tap Add to Home Screen. For Android, open a site in Chrome, tap the three-dot menu button, then tap “Add to Home screen.”

When you do, the shortcut will look just like a regular home-screen icon—and it’ll even act like one, too.

Want proof? Go ahead and drag that web site shortcut into the app dock. It should settle in quite nicely.

Adding a favorite contact to the app dock is easy—if you have an Android phone, that is.

3. Contact shortcuts [Android only]

Bad news, iPhone and iPad users: iOS still won’t let you create home-screen shortcuts for your contacts. One day, perhaps, Apple will see the light of day when it comes to this particular missing feature. Until then, this particular tip is just for lucky Android users.

Anyway, got a shortcut for a favorite contact sitting on your Android home screen?

You guessed it: drag it into the app dock for one-tap calling and texting to your bestie, no matter which of your various home screens you’re viewing.

You can add home screen widgets (like this “Directions” one for Google Maps) to your Android phone’s app dock.

4. Widgets [Android only]

In addition to contact shortcuts, Android users can also add app widgets—such as the “new document” widget for Google Docs, or “directions” for Google Maps—to their home screens, and if the widgets are small enough, they can be tucked into the app dock.

To add a widget to the app dock, tap and hold an empty spot on the home screen until the Widgets button appears. Tap the button, then find a small (“1 x 1”) widget and drag it directly into the dock.

Have more clever uses for your iOS or Android app dock? Post ’em below!

Note: This updated and expanded tip was first published in August 2014.

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Keep in mind, though, that there’s always the chance that something’s fundamentally wrong with the glitchy app, in which case you’ll just have to wait for its developer to release a bug fix. (Don’t worry, I’ll show you how to check for app updates.)

Read on for four easy remedies if your iOS apps keep crashing, starting with…

Just swipe up on a misbehaving app to make it quit.

Quit the app and launch it again

If you’ve got an app that’s freezing up or otherwise causing you trouble, sometimes it’s best to simply quit, clear the app’s “process” out of your iPhone’s memory, and start fresh.

• Start by pressing the Home key to return to your iPhone’s home screen (these instructions will also work for the iPad, by the way), then double-click the Home key to bring up the multitasking screen (which looks like a hand of cards).
• Swipe the cards left or right until you find the app that’s acting funny, then swipe that card up until it flies off the screen.
• Now, go back and find the app icon on your home screen, then tap to launch it again.

If apps keep crashing, restart your iPhone or iPad

So, you tried quitting your buggy application and restarting it, but still, no dice. Now what?

Well, it’s possible that your iPhone or iPad may simply be running low on system memory—in other words, it may have so much going on at once that it’s essentially suffering from brain freeze. Restarting your device might do the trick.

• Press and hold the power button at the top of your iPhone until a red slider appears with the instructions, “slide to power off.” Go ahead and do it.
• After a few seconds, your iPhone (or iPad) will power off completely; wait a few more seconds, then press and hold the power button until the “Apple” logo appears.
• Once your iPhone is up and running again, give your misbehaving app a try.

If you’ve got a crash iOS app on your hands, it’s worth it to check and see if its developer has issued an update.

Check for an update

Still not working? Perhaps something is wrong with the app itself—and if you’re lucky, the app’s developer may have already issued a “patch” for it. How will you know? There’s an easy way to check.

• Launch the App Store application, then tap the Updates tab at the bottom of the screen. You should now see a list of all the apps that have recently updated themselves, with “pending” updates at the top.
• See an update for your crashy app in the “pending” list? If so, go ahead and tap the “Update” button to the left.
• Wait for the app to update itself (the installation process usually takes a minute or so, although particularly large apps may take much longer), then launch the app to see if the patch made any difference.

Quick tip: Tap Settings > iTunes & App Stores, then toggle on the Update setting to make iOS install app updates automatically.

Delete and reinstall

So, no patch but your apps keep crashing? Let’s try one more thing: deleting the crashy app off your device completely and reinstalling it from scratch. (This is what fixed my New York Times app, by the way.)

• Find the application’s icon on your iPhone’s home screen, then tap and hold it until all the icons on the screen begin to shake.
• See the little “x” on the corner of the app icon? Tap it. A message will appear warning you that if you continue, you’ll delete all of the app’s data—including, for example, any saved documents or game progress. Keep that in mind before proceeding.
• Ready to move ahead? Tap the “Delete” button, and the app will be wiped off your phone.
• Now, time to reinstall. Launch the App Store application, and either a) search for the app you just deleted or b) find it in your list of previously installed apps. (Just tap the “Updates” tab at the bottom of the screen, tap “Purchased,” select the “Not On This iPhone” filter, and look through the list until you find your app.) Remember that you won’t be charged twice for an app you’re re-downloading.
• Last but not least, launch your reinstalled application; with any luck, no more crashes.

Click here for more iOS tips!

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A little gentle ribbing ensued, with various amused and/or annoyed journalists teasing the sender of the email for his mistake. Pretty soon, though, there were dozens of replies, some of them from people begging for the message thread to stop.

Here’s the perfect scenario for Gmail’s “mute” feature, which lets you silence an email message thread that keeps going, and going … and going.

You can mute endless email threads directly from the Gmail app for Android and iOS.

Once you’ve muted a conversation, new messages in the thread will skip your inbox and head straight to your All Mail archive.

Of course, there’s a downside to muting a conversation: namely, that you’ll miss a direct question from someone—like, say, your boss—in the message thread.

That’s why it’s probably best to only mute conversations along the lines of “What a cute baby!” or “Congrats on the new gig!,” and not those of the “Mission-critical project” variety.

That said, keep in mind that Gmail will automatically send a muted thread back into your inbox if you’re the only person in the “To:” line of the conversation.

So, ready for some peace and quiet?

Let’s get started…

• To mute a conversation, select it in your Gmail inbox, click the More button near the top of the page, then select Mute. If you have Gmail keyboard shortcuts enabled, you can also check the box next to a conversation and tap the “m” key.
• You can also mute a conversation using the Gmail app for Android or iOS. Just tap the thread you want to silence, tap the three-dot button (Android) or the down arrow (iOS) in the top-right corner of the screen, then tap Mute.
• Want to “unmute” a conversation? Type “is:mute” into the Gmail search box to see a list of all your muted conversations, select the muted message you want to unmute, then move it back to your inbox. Once that’s done, the message should be automatically unmuted, but you can double-check by opening the thread and making sure there’s no “Muted” label near the top of the latest message.

Click here for more Gmail tips!

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No longer was my iPhone making it through a full day with ease; indeed, I was regularly getting “Low Battery” warnings well before bedtime. If I dared to use my iPhone as a mobile hotspot while working remotely in the city, I’d be lucky to make it home before the battery up and died. And even when I barely used my iPhone, I’d notice the battery meter steadily dipping throughout the day.

There’s an easy way to pinpoint battery-hogging apps on your iPhone or iPad.

So, what was going on? Did I have a bad iPhone battery, or—more likely—was one of my apps being a battery hog? Luckily, there’s an easy way to find out.

If you tap Settings, General, Usage, then Battery Usage, you’ll get a list of all the apps that have been drawing power from your iPhone’s (or iPad’s) battery.

Related: 8 battery-saving tips for your iPhone

At the top of the list, you’ll likely see items like Safari, Mail, and other apps that you use all the time. What you’re looking for are apps that you don’t use that often, or anything that’s using a surprisingly large share of your battery. Find any? If so, you may want to consider evicting those power-hungry apps off your iDevice.

You’ll also see a few apps in the list with a “Background Activity” tag, denoting apps that are taking advantage of iOS’s “background app refresh” feature.

Background app refreshing lets certain iOS apps update themselves even when you’re not using them. For example, the Facebook app can go and silently update its news feed, the CNN app can grab the latest headlines, Twitter can download more tweets, and the Stocks app can check the latest stock prices, all without you ever opening the apps themselves.

Are too many of your iOS apps trying to refresh themselves in the background? Consider switching off that setting for some (or all) of them.

While background app refreshing is designed to use as little battery power as possible, too many apps trying to refresh themselves will take a toll on your iPhone’s battery life—particularly if there’s a specific app that’s using more than its fair share.

Want to see which of your apps are refreshing themselves in the background? Go back to the main Settings screen, then tap General, Background App Refresh.

Here, you’ll see a giant list of apps that support iOS’s background app refresh features, and most of them will probably be switched on.

My advice: switch off every app except those that you absolutely, positively need to be updated all the time. For example, maybe you want to make sure that Gmail is always checking for new messages, but you don’t really need Twitter to be constantly downloading the latest tweets. In that case, make sure to switch background app refreshing on for Gmail but off for Twitter.

Now, go back to using your iPhone or iPad and keep an eye on the battery meter. Is your battery holding out for a whole day again? If so, maybe the changes you made in your app settings did some good.

Click here fore more iOS tips!

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Hi Lee! Yep, you can download a PDF file from the web to your iPhone—or an iPad, for that matter. All you need is a PDF-friendly app that’ll let you store PDF files on your device.

For example, you can open and save a PDF in an e-reader app like iBooks or Amazon’s Kindle app.

You can also open a PDF in a desktop-syncing app like Dropbox or Google Drive, perfect for keeping copies of a PDF on all your Dropbox- or Google Drive-connected devices.

Let’s get started

• First, make sure you’ve installed a PDF-viewing app that can actually save PDF files to your iPhone. Plenty are available in the App Store, but I recommend one of the four mentioned above: iBooks, Kindle, Dropbox, or Google Drive.
• All set? Now, go ahead and open a PDF file on the web or in an email.
• If you opened the PDF in your iPhone’s Safari web browser, you’ll briefly see a pair of buttons at the top of the screen: “Open in…” and “Open in [name of app].” Tap the screen to make those buttons reappear, then tap the “Open in…” button. Did you open the PDF in the body of an email? If so, open the PDF, tap the Action button (the square one with the upward arrow) in the top-right corner of the screen.
• Next, a menu of PDF-viewing apps will slide up from the bottom of the display. Tap the one you want to use, and the PDF file will open in the app of your choice.
• If you picked either iBooks or Kindle, the app will automatically be saved to your phone’s memory. To open the PDF again, just launch either app, then browse the “PDFs” section of your iBooks library or “Docs” in the Kindle app.
• For apps like Dropbox and Google Drive, make sure to save the PDF for “offline” viewing. In Dropbox, open the PDF, tap the three-dot menu button in the top corner of the screen, then tap Favorite. For Google Drive, tap the little “i” button next to the file’s name, then make sure the “Keep on device” setting is switched on.

Looking for more iPhone tips? Click here!

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What if you’re not feeling the need to show off your Instagram-dipped photos to … you know, everyone? Luckily, it’s easy to control exactly who does—and doesn’t—get to see your latest works of digital photo art by fine tuning your Instagram privacy settings.

Read on for a few beginner-focused tips on how to get the most out of Instagram without becoming an exhibitionist in the process, starting with…

1. Change the Instagram privacy settings for your photo feed

Taking a photo with Instagram doesn’t just save the image to your phone’s photo gallery. It also publishes your snapshot to your Instagram photo feed—which, by default, is wide open to anyone who cares to look.

Don’t want just anyone gawking at your Instagram pictures? If not, just turn on “Private Mode,” which blocks your Instagram photo feed from everyone except your hand-picked “followers.”

• Tap the profile button in the bottom-left corner of the Instagram interface (it’s the one that looks like a litte silhouette), then tap the Settings icon (in iOS, the one that looks like a gear, or the three-dot button for Android) in the top corner of the screen.
• Now, see the “Private Account” setting? Flip the switch to the “on” position.

All done? If so, your Instagram photos are no longer accessible to the public, nor will they show up in public searches.

Of course, all bets are off if you decide to share your Instagram shots on Facebook or Twitter, so make sure to double-check which social services are selected on the final confirmation page before tapping the “Share” button (or, in the case of Android, the blue button with the checkmark).

Speaking of which…

2. Double-check your Facebook sharing settings

Instagram makes for an easy-as-pie way to share your latest photos with your Facebook friends. Here’s a question, though: when you share Instagram photos through Facebook (which you can do by tapping the Facebook setting on the final confirmation page before posting a photo to your feed), who are your photos being shared with?

Well, there’s an easy way to check exactly how Instagram is sharing your snapshots on Facebook.

• Visit your Facebook account, click the Privacy Shortcuts (the one shaped like a padlock) in the top-right corner of the page, select Privacy Checkup, then click the blue Next Steps button.
• Find Instagram in the “Your Apps” section (assuming you’ve already connected Instagram to your Facebook account), then check its privacy setting (anything from “Public” to “Only Me”). Want to make a change? Just select a new setting from the pull-down menu.

3. Block random followers

As with Twitter, anyone on Instagram can follow the photo feed of anyone else—including you—unless their profiles are set to “private.”

Let’s say, though, that a few strangers managed to follow your Instagram photos before you set your account to private mode. Now what?

If you don’t want randow followers checking out your snapshots, you can always just block them.

• First, head to your profile by tapping the profile button in the bottom-right corner of the screen.
• Now, see where your number of Instagram followers is listed? Tap the number, and you’ll arrive at a list of all the Instagram users following your photo feed.
• See anyone you don’t want thumbing through your photos? Tap their name to view their profile, then tap the three-dot menu button in the top-right corner of the screen.
• A pop-up window will appear with a few options, including “Block User.” Tap “Block User,” and clang! No more peeking at your Instagram photos for them.

4. Edit your profile

Your fellow Instagram users (well, the ones you don’t already know in real life, anyway) only know as much about you as you reveal in your Instagram profile.

Indeed, the only detail you need to reveal in your profile is your Instagram user name—which could be anything, really.

To update your Instagram privacy settings — go to profile, tap the profile button in the bottom-right corner of the page, tap the Edit Your Profile button, then add—or delete—any personal details you like.

5. Wipe photos off Instagram’s photo map

Instagram boasts a nifty feature that pins any photos you choose to a “photo map” that’s viewable from your profile.

Snap the vista from, say, the top of the Empire State Building, and other Instagram users will see it pinned to a map of midtown Manhattan, if you so choose.

It’s a neat feature for showing your friends where you trekked on your vacation, but you might want to think twice before sharing your home address—or the location of your friends’ homes, for that matter.

Before sharing a photo on Instagram, take note of the “Add to your Photo Map” setting on the final confirmation page, then ask yourself: do you really want the location of your photo pinpointed on a map?

If not, make sure the “Add to your Photo Map” setting is switched off.

OK, but what if you’ve already posted a stack of Instagram photos on your photo map? Never fear. Here’s how to peel them off.

• Tap the profile button in the bottom-right corner of the screen, tap the Photo Map tab (it’s the teardrop-shaped icon) on your profile page, then tap the Edit button in the top-right corner of your Photo Map.
• Zoom in and tap a specific photo you’d like to wipe off your Photo Map.
• Another option: tap the grid button at the bottom of the screen (for iOS) or tap the three-dot menu button in the top corner of the screen and select “View All” (on Android) to “deselect” some or all your Instagram photos from your map.

Note: Have you already set your Instagram photos to “private”? If so, no one else but you can see your photo map, not even your followers.

6. Delete photos from your photo feed

Did you take and share a photo on Instagram that, on second thought, you wish you hadn’t?

No, you can’t make your Instagram followers “unsee” a photo (oh, if only you could), but you can delete it from your photo feed even after you’ve shared it.

• Tap the profile button in the bottom-right corner of the screen.
• Below your profile details, you should see all the photos you’ve shared in Instagram. If your photos are displayed in a grid, tap one to select it; otherwise, just scroll to the photo you want to delete.
• Just below the photo and over to the right, you’ll see a little menu button marked with three dots; tap the button, and a pop-up will appear with a series of options, including a “Delete” button. Tap “Delete,” and whoosh—your photo’s gone from your Instagram photo feed, if not from the memories of your followers.

7. Share photos only with specific Instagram followers

Just snap a pic that you’d like only a few of your Instagram followers to see? Well, you’re in luck.

A feature called “Instagram Direct” lets you pick and choose which Instagram pals can see your latest snapshot.

Here’s the trick: take a new photo using the Instagram app, then tap the “Direct” tab when you arrive at the final confirmation page.

When you do, you’ll see a list of all your Instagram followers; just scroll down and select the ones with whom you’d like to share the photo.

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Hi Peter! So, I was all set to explain that creating recurring Calendar events on your iPhone or iPad that hit precisely on, say, the first Thursday of every month could be a bit tricky.

But after a little more digging, I found that it’s actually pretty simple—indeed, in a few taps, you can create an event in the iOS Calendar app that lands on the first Thursday of each month, the second Wednesday, the third Friday…you name it.

You can also create an event that recurs, say, once every four weeks on a Thursday (but not necessarily the very first Thursday of the month), or once every two (or three, or four) months, or even once every two (or three, or thirty) years.

Here’s what you do…

• Launch the Calendar app, create a new event, tap the Repeat setting, then tap Custom.
• Choose the “frequency” with which you’d like the event to repeat: daily, weekly, monthly, or yearly. For your particular question, Peter, let’s pick Monthly.
• Next tap “Every,” and make a selection—say, once a month, in this case. (You could also choose twice a month, three times a month, and so on.)
• Now, tap “Each” if you want to create an event that repeats on a certain day—like, say, the tenth—of each month, or tap “On the…” to pick a specific day of the week—such as the first Thursday of every month.
• Daily events can be set to repeat every day, once every two days, once every third day, and so on. Weekly events can happen once a week, twice a week, etc., and you can pick the day of the week (Thursday, for example) on which you want the event to hit. Yearly events follow roughly the same pattern, and you can choose the day of the year (like June 16) on which you’d like the event to begin.
• All set? Once you’ve made your selections, just back up to the New Event screen, then tap the Done button when you’re finished editing.

Hope that helps, Peter. Still have questions? Let me know!

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In just a few taps, you can gift iOS apps directly through your iPhone or iPad, and you can send gifted apps instantly or on a specific date in the future.

And while Google’s Play store still doesn’t allow you to gift apps (what’s the holdup?) directly over your Android phone or tablet, you can still wrap up an Android app (or an e-card for an Android app, anyway) with a minimum of fuss.

You can gift iOS apps directly over your iPhone or iPad.

For iOS:

• First, open the App Store app, find an app you’d like to give to a special someone, then tap to open the app’s detail screen (the one with the tap-to-buy button).
• Tap the Share button at the top at the top of the screen (or, on an iPad in the top corner of the pop-up window), then tap the Gift button.
• A new email message with details on your gift will slide into view. Type in the email address of the recipient, add a personal message, then (under the Send Gift heading) choose when you’d like the gift to arrive: either immediately, or at a later date.
• Tap the Next button in the top corner of the screen to pick from seven themes for your virtual gift, then tap Next again to wrap up the process.

Google Play gift cards are available online and from retails such as Walmart, Target, and Sam’s Club.

For Android:

• No, you can’t gift an app through the Google Play app store, but you can give a Google Play gift card to a special someone. Available in denominations of $10, $25, and $50, Google Play gift cards are available online and at brick-and-mortar retailers like Walmart, Target, CVS, Walgreens, and Sam’s Club, and they can be used to gift apps, music, and books sold on the Google Play online marketplace.
• Need to gift an Android app instantly? Amazon has its own Android store stocked with thousands of popular apps, which can be redeemed with a personalized gift card—and unlike Google Play gift cards, you can send Amazon gift cards via e-mail.
• Live someone other than the U.S.? If so, good news: Google Play gift cards are available at international retailers in more than two dozen countries, including Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Greece, Japan, Mexico, Spain, Singapore, and the United Kingdom.

Click here for more Android tips, or click here for help with your iPhone or iPad!

Note: This updated tip was first published in December 2011.

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Because I have the actual Find My Friends app tucked into a folder on one of my various home screens, I have to do a fair amount of tapping to launch the app—not a huge deal, mind you, but still a bit tedious.

So imagine my delighted surprise when I discovered a new, much easier way to pull up a map with a dot pinpointing my wife’s location.

The secret? The Messages app—yep, the same app you use (probably) every day for exchanging text messages.

Just tap the “Details” button for a “Find My Friends”-style map of a chat friend’s location.

Just launch Messages, open a recent conversation with a friend or loved one (and if you’re like me, there’s always a thread near the top with your S.O., a best friend, or a close family member), and tap the Details button in the top corner of the screen.

Now, this new Details screen lets you do a number of things; for example, you can view all the images or videos you’ve traded in the thread, or flip a Do Not Disturb switch to silence an ongoing a group conversation.

More importantly, though, you can also tap a button to share your location with your fellow texters —and if a specific texting partner has previously agreed to share their location with you, you’ll see their location on a map, just like in the Find My Friends app.

Now, keep in mind that the Messages app won’t let you create a “geofence” that alerts you when a “Find My Friend’ friend arrives at a destination or departs from a specific place; for that, you’ll need to open the Find My Friends app.

There’s also no easy way to jump to the Messages app directly to the Find My Friends app—or at least, none that I could find.

To be honest, though, I don’t really miss Find My Friend’s “geofencing” feature all that much (it never worked properly for me anyway)—and I certainly don’t miss having to dig up up the Find My Friend app.

Have more iOS 8 questions? Let me know!

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