I had a couple of questions sent in from the “Ask iPad Question” part of the iPad tutorial app — both are related to the newly released iOS 5.1 software and how to update. First, Kathy asked:

> Hi,
 >I cannot get the iOS5 to download on my iPad 1.
 > Can you walk me through the proper steps? Thanks

I also received a question from Patty, who wrote:

> How do I upgrade ipad2 ios5 to ios5.1?
> Why can't I buy the earlier version of Pages that works
> with my pad?
> I really do not want to upgrade. Some users say upgrade
> induces new problems.

You can update your iPad to the latest software by going to the Settings App, then General, and then Software Updates. The steps for how to update your iPad to the latest software are included in the iPad tutorial app – here’s how to find the lesson: Go into the tutorial app, tap on iPad Lessons, then tap the menu option “iPad Settings”. On the next screen,  swipe upwards to scroll through the list of lessons. Look for “Settings: General: Software Updates” and tap that to watch the video lesson that shows you how the updates work. Before you do the update, you want to make sure you’re connected to a WiFi network. Some iPads can get onto the cell phone network for Internet, but WiFi is faster and has fewer hidden charges so it’s the better option if you have it. If you need help connecting to WiFi there is a lesson about it near the top of the list of iPad Settings lessons. I also suggest plugging the iPad into a power outlet while doing the update just as a precaution. As far as Pages goes, the app had to be updated to work with features which were introduced with iOS 5.1 — the way the App Store works is they only offer the most current version of any app for sale.  Apple tries to keep things simple for people by only offering the version that works with the current software. Fortunately, the update is free and you have little to worry about switching from iOS 5 to 5.1 – it’s really a very minor update compared to iOS 4 to 5 and you shouldn’t have any issues. Let me know if that helps, and thanks for being a student! Worth

No comments yet.

Tags used for this post:

iOS 5 update · iOS 5.1 · iOS update · iPad software update · update iOS 5