Setting You Straight on Settings - iPad Mini - page 367

Figure 15-5 shows the Notification settings for the Mail app (more specifically, Gmail). Some apps
offer other options, including sound alerts, and other apps may offer fewer options, but we think
you'll figure it out. To help you get started, here's a rundown of the options shown in Figure 15-5 ,
starting at the top:
Alert Style: Tap to select the style of alert you want to see:
• None: Choose None, and notifications won't appear spontaneously. They'll still
be available in the Notification Center (swipe down from the top of the screen;
see Chapter 13 ) but won't interrupt your work (or play).
• Banners: Choose Banners to display alerts as banners at the top of the screen and
have them go away automatically, as opposed to. . . .
• Alerts: Choose Alerts to display alerts that require action before proceeding.
Badge App Icon: Enable this to display the number of pending alerts on the app's icon on
your Home screen.
Alert Sound: Tap this setting to choose the sound that accompanies notifications of new mail
messages. (The Ding sound is selected in Figure 15-5 .) But you can pick from a lengthy list
of sound and ringtone alternatives and tap each possible choice to hear what the sound snippet
sounds like. Or select None if you're in the mood for total quiet.
Show in Notification Center: Tap the switch to enable or disable notifications for this app in
Notification Center. Straightforward enough.
Show on Lock Screen: Enable this option if you want to see notifications for this app when
your iPad screen is locked.
Show Preview: Enable this to see the first part of the mail or iMessage as part of the notific-
ation in Notification Center.
Apps that don't take advantage of the iOS Notification Center can still offer notifications, but you'll
have to scroll down to the Apps section on the left side of Settings and tap the app you want to alter.
Note that the app you hope to fiddle with doesn't always appear in the Apps section of Settings. For
that matter, many of the apps that do appear in the list don't offer notifications anyway.
The broader point we're trying to make is that we urge you to check out the settings for all the apps
you see in this list. You'll never know about many useful options if you don't.
If you find you went overboard with notifications at first to the point where they be-
come annoying or distracting, don't fret. You can always go back and redo some or all of the
notifications that you've set up.