Help How to create shortcuts

[Trel]

My father got a Nexus 7 for Christmas and when I was looking at it, neither of us can figure out how to make shortcuts on the launcher. If you long click, the only thing that comes up is the wallpaper selection.

I can add widgets from the app list as usual, but I can find absolutely nothing on shortcuts.

Can anyone tell me how to do this, and is the option not showing up due to some setting on our end?

 

[Teknologic]

Shortcuts to apps? Just drag those from the drawer, same as the widgets.
If you mean shortcuts to files in some directory, you'll need some sort of file explorer with that functionality. You'll probably find a widget that can link to a file after installing a file explorer (android doesn't give you an option to dig into the file system by default).
An example of a file explorer app is File Manager HD.

 

[Trel]

Shortcuts to apps? Just drag those from the drawer, same as the widgets.
If you mean shortcuts to files in some directory, you'll need some sort of file explorer with that functionality. You'll probably find a widget that can link to a file after installing a file explorer (android doesn't give you an option to dig into the file system by default).
An example of a file explorer app is File Manager HD.

Not that. On my phone, if I long click the launcher, I have a shortcut option where I can place for example a contact, a bookmark, a navigation address, etc (not a widget).

 

[El Presidente]

Doesn't look like you can do it with the stock launcher

If you want to add a contact, open the people app, navigate to the contact, hit the 3 dots in the top right corner and select Place on home Screen.

For bookmarks, open chrome, click the bookmark tab, then long press the bookmark you want and then select Place on Home Screen.

I'll have a play about, see if there's any way to add the other stuff you've mentioned.

 

[Groid]

I'm not sure about the stock launcher, but apps like Nova or Apex that replace the stock launcher allow great flexibility in the apps you want in the bar. Just long-press on an app shortcut and drag it into the launcher bar.

 

[Trel]

I'm not sure about the stock launcher, but apps like Nova or Apex that replace the stock launcher allow great flexibility in the apps you want in the bar. Just long-press on an app shortcut and drag it into the launcher bar.

I've personally switched to Nova, but I doubt I'll be able to convince my father to do the same.
But I'm not talking about the bar, I'm talking about shortcuts.

EDIT: I found the answer. 4.1 and higher seems to combine the widgets and shortcuts in the widget section of the app drawer. (Since I use Nova, I never had to look in there for them)

 

[Teknologic]

Many widgets actually are nothing more than shortcuts. If you go into the app drawer and look at the widgets you have 1x1 widgets for contacts, bookmarks and the like. Just a matter of terminology I guess.
Loads of apps come with 1x1 widgets that basically function as a shortcut to something within the app.