The case of the missing apps

I had an iPad crisis.  Something, or someone, was eating apps.

BBC News disappeared, then BBC iPlayer, and Plants versus Zombies.  Then it got worse.  Instagram went, and the Camera disappeared.  YouTube evaporated and all apps that I still had that needed the camera refused to work.

In all I had about 30 apps that were there, but weren't.  They showed as installed which meant I couldn't blame Ethan for their accidental deletion.  This also meant I couldn't reinstall because the MacBook and the iPad both thought they were on the iPad.

I tried a restore from backup and I was left app-less.  I tried turning it off and turning it on again (the IT Helpdesk Special) and I tried a hard reboot (an action of last resort.)  Nothing.

I asked my trusty Social Media sites for help.  There was a glimmer of hope when Hugo sent me a link to something that was a bit like jail-breaking but not quite jail-breaking.  This sounded like a rather drastic course of action so I resolved to make a Genius bar appointment.

Navigating the Apple site I found an option to schedule a call.  This meant someone would call and advise me at a pre-arranged time.  That sounded easier than negotiating Christmas shopping crowds at Lakeside so I booked a call.

Lo and behold, the next day, at 1:00pm, I had a call from a lovely lady who helped me through a simple reset procedure.

I asked if she'd seen the disappearing app problem before and she hadn't.  She did reassure me though it was probably a software glitch and nothing I'd done.

Within about five minutes, I had all of my apps back.  They'd been there all the time but had somehow been hidden.  A reset set them free.

The service was brilliant and cost nothing.  My iPad is back to normal, all apps back where they belong.  I'm now even more super-impressed by Apple service.