"Fairly computer literate, but I'm unsure of what 'adb' is."
It's a tool used to push files onto and pull files off of your Android phone. Hang out at
Xda-developers.com for awhile and you will be able to put a custom version of Android onto your phone - a version which gives
you control over what your phone is and isn't able to do. Google hates that place. Apple doesn't care because no matter what you do an Apple phone will always be under their control.