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I really, really, really wish there was some way to disable the Home button on my iPad. My 19-month old and 4-year old kids, who absolutely love to sit with me

I really, really, really wish there was some way to disable the Home button on my iPad. My 19-month old and 4-year old kids, who absolutely love to sit with me and play with the iPad, simply find it irresistible to press that button. And when we're watching a movie, its a sure-fire way to ruin the whole experience. If it were lockable so that it didn't do anything, they wouldn't press it. Come to think of it, the sliding-lock switch could be used for so much more. I just don't get why I can't lock the touch-screen so that it doesn't react to things - okay I understand why Apple want to keep touch enabled at all times, but why can't this be an option? (Is it an option and I'm just clueless to know? No jailbreak-solutions, please..) Anyway, that one issue is an almost definite deal-breaker for us when it comes time to have some iPad time. It doesn't take long before the kids lose interest, because they press that button, the app dies, and then they're in the home-screen game, where not much exciting stuff happens (unless they make the icons jiggle and press the little X's, then Daddy gets very excited..) That said, I like this article - because I'm working on a game for kids too, and the point about the bottom area of the screen being a no-no for navigation buttons is a really good point. My kids have learned to press anything and everything they can, and the kids game I'm working on is essentially a plethora of weird and fun things to press and interact with, but there will have to be some sort of trick for navigation that makes equal sense in the mind of a 4 year (and 2 year) old, as it does for a 40 year old. Talk about your tricky software problem!! :)

Splines 15y ago
I've seen child-oriented cases that have a hard cover over the home button. This was for an iPhone/iPod, but they probably exist for the iPad as well.
- seclorum 15y ago
  Yeah, of course its the low-tech solution that makes sense, but I really believe this is a case where the Nanny-state like grip that Apple has over our iPads is not really delivering workable technology. Would it really "kill the cool" for Apple to add a pref about what the lock-switch can do: "Turn off Touch/Disable Home Button/Mute Music/Mute all/Lock Device" .. seems really, sorta lame.
j_s 15y ago
Per Miguel de Icaza, try a paper clip! http://tirania.org/blog/archive/2011/Mar-23.html http://tirania.org/blog/archive/2011/Mar-23.html
aculver 15y ago
Over time, as an app developer and a parent, I've come to appreciate the home button just as it is. As an app developer, it means my app will be rated and compared to other apps based on user experience for the child.. how engaging is the app, how much replay value does it provide. If the mechanics are frustrating or the content is boring, children will always vote with their finger and move onto another app. As a parent, I like that developers have to surpass a certain usability and experience threshold before parents are satisfied with the app and provide a good review.
- seclorum 15y ago
  Thats a fair point, but it doesn't really work when you're watching a movie - and my kids attention spans usually don't work so much that way. My 18-month old will push the button just because he's experimenting with the device - this means instant dissatisfaction for his big brother, watching the movie (or playing an app) with him. I think there is validity to the idea that you should be able to turn the touch interface off completely. Many apps exist where interaction is not only not necessary (movies), but often-times potentially very destructive to the use case (GPS/navigation). Its true, though, that its up to the app developers, and having UI-navigation controls be 'staged' with phases and states is probably the best all-round solution. Still, I think it would've been nice to Apple to consider the case where you really, really don't want the app - or movie - to be interruptible.
  - megablast 15y ago
    I guess he will learn what the button does after a while. Show him how to get the movies going again. You could always try turning the iPad upside down, he is probably less likely to touch the top of the device.
yusefnapora 15y ago
If you're willing/able to jailbreak your iPad, check out Incarcerapp - it lets you optionally disable the home button, multitasking, touch events, etc. It's triggered by an Activator action (by default, clicking volume up, then down). You can also customize it per app, so you could disable touch for netflix but not games, etc. It's free and works great.
Cushman 15y ago
DIY solutions aside, it seems like a thin, adhesive strip of hard plastic over the home button could provide just the right resistance to keep a child from idly or accidentally hitting Home, while still allowing an adult (or a kid who really, really wants to) to operate it normally. Has anyone experimented with something like that? Edit: Just tried it out a bit-- a strip of milk jug almost does the trick, deflecting softer presses while still allowing use. A little on the soft side, probably. Not sure what DIY adhesive you could count on being removable, though...
grandalf 15y ago
This makes skype pretty much unusable for a youngster who likes to press the big button too.
huhtenberg 15y ago
> way to disable the Home button A piece of cardboard and a sticky tape. Ask me how I know :)
delsarto 15y ago
Check out the "bubcap", it's a hard band-aid like thing that you stick over the button, and it stops little fingers from pushing it but allows adults to still work it. http://papercliprobot.com/ http://papercliprobot.com/

Splines 15y ago

I've seen child-oriented cases that have a hard cover over the home button. This was for an iPhone/iPod, but they probably exist for the iPad as well.

seclorum 15y ago
Yeah, of course its the low-tech solution that makes sense, but I really believe this is a case where the Nanny-state like grip that Apple has over our iPads is not really delivering workable technology. Would it really "kill the cool" for Apple to add a pref about what the lock-switch can do: "Turn off Touch/Disable Home Button/Mute Music/Mute all/Lock Device" .. seems really, sorta lame.

j_s 15y ago

Per Miguel de Icaza, try a paper clip! http://tirania.org/blog/archive/2011/Mar-23.html http://tirania.org/blog/archive/2011/Mar-23.html

aculver 15y ago

Over time, as an app developer and a parent, I've come to appreciate the home button just as it is. As an app developer, it means my app will be rated and compared to other apps based on user experience for the child.. how engaging is the app, how much replay value does it provide. If the mechanics are frustrating or the content is boring, children will always vote with their finger and move onto another app. As a parent, I like that developers have to surpass a certain usability and experience threshold before parents are satisfied with the app and provide a good review.

seclorum 15y ago
Thats a fair point, but it doesn't really work when you're watching a movie - and my kids attention spans usually don't work so much that way. My 18-month old will push the button just because he's experimenting with the device - this means instant dissatisfaction for his big brother, watching the movie (or playing an app) with him. I think there is validity to the idea that you should be able to turn the touch interface off completely. Many apps exist where interaction is not only not necessary (movies), but often-times potentially very destructive to the use case (GPS/navigation). Its true, though, that its up to the app developers, and having UI-navigation controls be 'staged' with phases and states is probably the best all-round solution. Still, I think it would've been nice to Apple to consider the case where you really, really don't want the app - or movie - to be interruptible.
- megablast 15y ago
  I guess he will learn what the button does after a while. Show him how to get the movies going again. You could always try turning the iPad upside down, he is probably less likely to touch the top of the device.

yusefnapora 15y ago

If you're willing/able to jailbreak your iPad, check out Incarcerapp - it lets you optionally disable the home button, multitasking, touch events, etc. It's triggered by an Activator action (by default, clicking volume up, then down). You can also customize it per app, so you could disable touch for netflix but not games, etc. It's free and works great.

Cushman 15y ago

DIY solutions aside, it seems like a thin, adhesive strip of hard plastic over the home button could provide just the right resistance to keep a child from idly or accidentally hitting Home, while still allowing an adult (or a kid who really, really wants to) to operate it normally. Has anyone experimented with something like that? Edit: Just tried it out a bit-- a strip of milk jug almost does the trick, deflecting softer presses while still allowing use. A little on the soft side, probably. Not sure what DIY adhesive you could count on being removable, though...

grandalf 15y ago

This makes skype pretty much unusable for a youngster who likes to press the big button too.

huhtenberg 15y ago

> way to disable the Home button A piece of cardboard and a sticky tape. Ask me how I know :)

delsarto 15y ago

Check out the "bubcap", it's a hard band-aid like thing that you stick over the button, and it stops little fingers from pushing it but allows adults to still work it. http://papercliprobot.com/ http://papercliprobot.com/