Database Develop

Most useful task killer app?

Pretty self explanatory title.
If one were looking for the best of the task killer type apps, who's the best? This includes the paid apps (because a buck or two really isn't "paid" in my opinion).
BTW, I hate the search feature of the market. Google (the king of searching) makes a kick ass OS and then completely fails to remember to put their search engine into the market. WTF?

i have used advanced task manager for a few months and it works great for me. though i haven't tried any of the other ones such as task killer, so you might want to wait until you see what someone who has used more has to say.

IMO TasKiller works great. Unless you need to ignore more than 2 apps not to close the free version does everything for you. I personally prefer TasKiller over Advanced Task Manager since it seems lighter to me. My vote is for the free version of TasKiller

I love the task killer in dxTop - plus you get a great launcher.

I've tried TasKiller, Advanced Task Killer and TaskPanel. I'm not impressed by any of them, primarily in that none of them come up with the same list of apps running in the background. I've run one after another (without actually killing any tasks) and have not seen the same list in each one.

Shouldn't this be in the application forum?

Why? It's a question that needs an answer hence Q&A.

dkb218 said:
Why? It's a question that needs an answer hence Q&A.
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Click to collapse
Thats what I figured.

Gilliland12 said:
BTW, I hate the search feature of the market. Google (the king of searching) makes a kick ass OS and then completely fails to remember to put their search engine into the market. WTF?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I completely agree; the market search is tedious. I found androlib.com, and so I search and browse there and use barcode scanner to pick up the QR Code on the phone. You can also subscribe to RSS feeds to see the new stuff as it's being posted.

I'm using ATK and have noticed a big difference in my battery life span. However I am having a problem with apps launching by themselves. Every bootup I check ATK and see at least a dozen apps running so I close them; but even if I don't use any apps I check the list again hours later and see many apps running again by themselves. WTF is going on with my system? My battery just died in 1 hour because I didn't use ATK to close the auto launched apps. Anyone have any idea of what could be the problem here?
D

I use advance task killer seem to work well for me

Why cant we just use the stock launcher?

In all the major ROM's for the Nexus, nearly all use ADW Launcher. And for the life of me, I cant understand why. Personally I find it slow, ugly and messy although I can understand why some would prefer it to the the stock one. However, why not just let the users download their preferred launcher from the market? Why does everyone feel the need to include that crap in their ROM?
Im not trying to start a flame war, Im just curious whether there is something Im missing here. Personally, I find myself sticking to Modaco's ROM and using Launcher Pro.

I remember the stock launcher being fairly buggy itself, and it was kind of lame not being able to switch out the Phone/Browser buttons. In my experience LauncherPro has been the fastest launcher out there, but I can't pull myself away from ADW's home screen swipe gestures.
P.S. - I understand not wanting to start a flame war, but you sure did write your post as if you were leaning that way.

isolated_epidemic said:
..P.S. - I understand not wanting to start a flame war, but you sure did write your post as if you were leaning that way.
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Agree!
..cause if you want, it´s no prob to exchange it to stock...

I am just frustrated as I feel I cant get a "clean" ROM with everything I want without having ADW infused into it all. Maybe its just my mild OCD tendencies, but even after installing Launcher Pro, I just know that ADW is there as well, and on Cyanogen it even has its own section in the system settings.. gah!

Well firstly, ADW is free. So it's no problem including it in Roms that are also mostly free.
Launcherpro has a link to a Plus version that is not free, so it's not a good idea to include that since there will be people complaining about trial versions etc.
The stock launcher is still stock, custom roms try to be as non-stock as possible, so it's a good idea to replace it with something like ADW, especially when it's so much better than stock.
If you must know, I only use Launcherpro.

musashiken said:
Well firstly, ADW is free. So it's no problem including it in Roms that are also mostly free.
Launcherpro has a link to a Plus version that is not free, so it's not a good idea to include that since there will be people complaining about trial versions etc.
The stock launcher is still stock, custom roms try to be as non-stock as possible, so it's a good idea to replace it with something like ADW, especially when it's so much better than stock.
If you must know, I only use Launcherpro.
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Click to collapse
Good answer! May as I ask what ROM you're using?

Untouchab1e said:
I am just frustrated as I feel I cant get a "clean" ROM...
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Click to collapse
Do you consider CM as a clean ROM ?

In my opinion:
Stock launcher is not buggy, it just less functionality & customization.
ADW.Launcher is nice with functionality and free, but recently it has less updates at the moment. It didn't look messy for me.
LauncherPro - due to it plus edition and source close, they is not possiblity added in any rom. At the moment I find it pretty cool, current use launcher and the launcher that make me leaving ADW.Launcher at the moment. I more prefer simplicity on theming, ADW just too complexity to build your own theme even just a small changes on dockbar. For friendly wise, definately LauncherPro. The only draw back I found about LauncherPro is not support semi-transparent status notification bar and no Samsung Galaxy S like apps drawer + off course semi-transparent on it.
Zeam - a new launcher (maybe not so new) I just notice recently, smooth and looks pro as well but less function compare with above 2 at the moment, it looks having a great opportunity in future.
** I also prefer developer keep the original stock one as all third party launcher all can download via Market. I also suggest that developer better don't integrate any third party launcher setting in their custom ROM as if user not using it, it looks weird.

Andrewtst said:
In my opinion:
** I also prefer developer keep the original stock one as all third party launcher all can download via Market. I also suggest that developer better don't integrate any third party launcher setting in their custom ROM as if user not using it, it looks weird.
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Exactly... I just dont see the need to include any non-stock launcher in the ROM to begin with when there are so many out there to choose from.

If you find adw slow and buggy it is user error, adw can be told how fast it needs to be in settings, if your still lagging you probably use a **** ton of useless widgets, in that case change the vm heap size and keep launcher in memory, that should do the trick

CyanogenMod is a collaborative open-source effort to improve Android and provide functionality not available out-of-box. And quite frankly, ADW.Launcher does add a hell of a lot of functionality as compared to the stock launcher (kinda like Eliot's Music Mod which add functionality to the stock Music app which is also included in CM).
Tweak your ADW.Launcher setting to improve it's performance.
If you want the stock Launcher, it's really quite simple to switch to it...
Code:
adb remount
adb push StockLauncher.apk /system/app/Launcher2.apk
adb shell
> rm -f /system/app/ADWLauncher.apk
> pm uninstall com.android.launcher
> reboot

musashiken said:
Well firstly, ADW is free. So it's no problem including it in Roms that are also mostly free.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, community mods like CM use ADW, not because it's free, but because it's open-source.

After all the ROMs i've tried, i still prefer LauncherPro + MCR combo. Even though it doesn't have 720p recording, it's rock stable.

I agree with th OP. If you can get it from the market for free, then why cook it into the rom? Some of us are actually happy with the look and performance of the stock launcher. I do see the attraction to all of the customization of the third party launchers, but I personally don't need it.

I posted the flashable zip below in another thread somewhere on XDA earlier since I agree with the OP.
replace-launcher-hdpi-signed
Just flash it over a 2.2 rom that uses ADW instead of CM. It simply removes ADW and adds stock Launcher2 from AOSP. Works fine on CM6 at least. I used to use this one before but I have since added several more tweaks to make it the way I like it.

Just add it yourself. There are system apps I don't like, that developers add to their roms, but I remove them myself via adb. By ranting you are being less productive than rather learning how to use adb. Google it, it's what I did and it solves all of your problems.
Sent from my Nexus One using XDA App

one thing i hate about the stock launcher is its not as smooth as launcher pro. you can see the frame rate chop when swiping screens. launcher pro is so smooth you cant even see that, unless you use live wallpaper, that makes it a little choppy.

Hmmm....so THAT's my problem...I always wondered why the drawer was so choppy. Well thank ya very kindly!
I'm an iPhone convert, so ADW is one of my favorite launchers for the fact I can put anything into the dock that I want, and make it look pretty at the same time. That's my favorite part about android, all the customization possibilities! Oh, and Flash Player

"All" the roms aren't using adw.
All the roms as just tweaked copies of CM6.

I can understand the OP's frustration. My least favorite part, and possibly only complaint, of CM6 is the replacement of the stock launcher with ADW. I find the feature creep and lack of UI refinement of ADW bothersome. It's not new user friendly, and even I was tripped up the first time I inadvertently swiped up on the screen and lost the status bar. Additionally the stock launcher is not available in the Market like AWD is making it difficult to track down and install manually and when the market version gets is updated, anyone that wants to run the newest version ends up with two copies installed and it's not obvious which is the newest when it comes time to pick the default home app.
Bad decision in my opinion, but the people putting CM together put in a lot of hard work and ask for almost nothing in return so I'm willing to accept it.

Must have applications?

Hello,
I have my new HTC Desire HD for a week now, this is the first time that I am using the Android system. There are lots of Applications in the App Market.
But what is a MUST HAVE application? I have Angry birds, Whatsapp, Pingchat, Nova, Barcode scanner.
But now I am stuck and I don't know any app's I could have, I don't know where to search in the market to be honest there are to many app's.
Thanks already for you're help and sorry for my bad English.

Hi,
For backups MyBackup Pro is a must have ; Check it out on the market, use it for free for one month, then get it; at 4,99$, that's a small price to easily backup your data, your apps or both.

There is My Phone Explorer which backs up and syncs and is free
http://www.fjsoft.at/en/
and the My Phone Explorer Client app for the DHD
http://www.appbrain.com/app/myphoneexplorer-client/com.fjsoft.myphoneexplorer.client#
Have a look at the Android market at the top listed ones in the Free section most are must haves
Just some I rate highly
Angry birds
xda app
barcode scanner
Chrome to Phone
AppBrain Market
Engadget
Cnet News
GDocs
Google Translate
Goggles
Layer
Google Sky Map

mesut19 said:
But now I am stuck and I don't know any app's I could have
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There are so many apps on the market that first of all you need to know what sort of apps you want ?
Do you want games, communication apps or what ?
A lot of very good apps are free or have free trial versions so try downloading them and see if they are what you would like to use, you can always delete them again if the arent.

Must have for me...
Shazam
Soundhoud
Angry Birds
Angry Birds seasons
Gun Bros
Sygic Aura
Gps status
Google goggles
XDA App
Engadget
IMDB
Tweet Deck
Appremover
Apptosd
Poweramp
Astro
Mybackup pro
Most of the games are changing every week or so therefore I'm not typing them here
Sent from my Desire HD using XDA App

Winamp
XDA Forum app
GPS Status
Elixir
Screen Filter
Spare Parts
Gmote
Sent from my Desire HD using XDA App

Not a complete list of everything I have but here's what I would say are my essential apps that I always install on fresh ROM.
Titanium Backup - A must for anyone who swaps ROMs often.
http://www.appbrain.com/app/titanium-backup-★-root/com.keramidas.TitaniumBackup
SMS Popup - Gives a nice pop-up when you receive a SMS. Great customizable notifications too.
http://www.appbrain.com/app/sms-popup/net.everythingandroid.smspopup
Root Explorer - To delete blotware and change bootanims etc.
http://www.appbrain.com/app/root-explorer-(file-manager)/com.speedsoftware.rootexplorer
GPS Status - To get the latest A-GPS data.
http://www.appbrain.com/app/gps-status-toolbox/com.eclipsim.gpsstatus2
PicSay Pro - Like a mini Photoshop in your pocket.
http://www.appbrain.com/app/picsay-pro-photo-editor/com.shinycore.picsaypro
Apps Organizer - Put shortcuts in pop-up style boxes to save space on homescreens.
http://www.appbrain.com/app/apps-organizer/com.google.code.appsorganizer
BatteryLife - Just because it's a nice looking battery widget.
http://www.appbrain.com/app/batterylife/com.curvefish.batterylife
BetterCut - Create your own shortcuts with custom icons.
http://www.appbrain.com/app/bettercut/com.betterandroid.bettercut
Dropbox - Great for sharing files between PCs and mobile devices.
http://www.appbrain.com/app/dropbox/com.dropbox.android
ES File Explorer - The best file explorer.
http://www.appbrain.com/app/es-file-explorer/com.estrongs.android.pop
Last.fm - Streaming music. I've had a Last.fm account for years so this is a must.
http://www.appbrain.com/app/last-fm/fm.last.android
My Tracks - Great to track your route / speed / distace / time etc when walking / cycling etc.
http://www.appbrain.com/app/my-tracks/com.google.android.maps.mytracks
SMS Unread Count - Shows number of unread SMS, Gmail, calls etc
http://www.appbrain.com/app/sms-unread-count/com.kanokgems.smswidget
Pkt Auctions - Because the official eBay app is crap!
http://www.appbrain.com/app/pkt-auctions-ebay/com.bonfiremedia.android_ebay
Uninstaller - A quick and easy way to remove apps
http://www.appbrain.com/app/uninstaller/com.rhythm.hexise.uninst
Appbrain - Works well in conjuction with the website. Send apps to your phone etc.
http://www.appbrain.com/app/appbrain-app-market/com.appspot.swisscodemonkeys.apps

Thanks everybody. There are some great app's in here ;D

You might find a few examples in my sig.

I mostly use Dolphin Browser HD/Mini, Math Alarm Clock, Quick Settings, Beautiful Widgets, SystemPanel, JetFlicks!, DI Radio (get it from www.di.fm/apps), Phonalyzr, 3G watchdog, RealCalc, CallMeter, Android System Info, ADW Launcher EX, DropBox, CurrentWidget, Titanium Backup Pro, MyBackup Pro, SMS Backup+, PowerAmp, RealPlayer (lets you download stuff streamed from eg JetFlicks! to watch offline), Scan2PDF Mobile, RootExplorer, SetCPU, Startup Auditor, TrueCaller Pro, XDA app and WiFi File Explorer, PhotoVault and Tasker.
The list is not prioritized.
That should keep you entertained for a while

i dnt want to sound like pirate . but how can i get cracked apps .. because i am medical student .. and no way in condition of paying 200+$ for medical apps ...
sorry for developer .. but i am helpless.

KILLERS
Youre Going to need task killer.
Memory Booster is a good app to free RAM

I hope you are not trolling. Task killers are the worst thing you can do your phone, trust me. You can google it if you want. Do not use task killers!

bidurmarasini said:
i dnt want to sound like pirate . but how can i get cracked apps .. because i am medical student .. and no way in condition of paying 200+$ for medical apps ...
sorry for developer .. but i am helpless.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Seriously your asking that here? Your likely to get yourself hung. I understand buying loads of app's can get expensive but if you want people to continue making them then pay for them, never ask for warez.
Sent from my Desire HD using Tapatalk

jkoljo said:
I hope you are not trolling. Task killers are the worst thing you can do your phone, trust me. You can google it if you want. Do not use task killers!
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Click to collapse
Hehe yeah my friend already told that ^^ Task killers are ruining the operation script of the phone if you use it to much, at least he told me that.

:O
Didnt Know That :O
Why/how those are bad to the phone??

MyFarewell said:
Didnt Know That :O
Why/how those are bad to the phone??
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Inactive apps sit idle in memory and don't use cpu. Kill them and you use more cpu when you start them again than just leaving them. Some apps need to be running all the time by their nature. Kill them and they just use more cpu restarting. So you see task killers use extra battery but the makers claim they save battery.
But I have no free memory you say? Lucky for you the Android os is smart. If an active app asks for more memory, the os will reallocate memory from the idle tasks and give it to the active one.
Actually free memory is a bad thing. Memory uses battery regardless of weather it has data in it or not. Surely it's better then to fill the memory to speed loading of apps than to waste it by leaving it empty.
Someone swyped my idea.

I understand that the 'Auto Memory Manager' app is supposed to be different from task killers though and quite effective? So you may want to look at that.

Nice
Thats good to know. Thanks!

jkoljo said:
I hope you are not trolling. Task killers are the worst thing you can do your phone, trust me. You can google it if you want. Do not use task killers!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Agreed, you don't need a Task killer on Android.

What to do after root?

I have just rooted my device and installed Titanium Backup. Should I uninstall Carhome and F-secure or upgrade to Titanium Backup Pro and freeze them instead? Freezing means that they will still be taking up space on the device right? Also, for my telecom stock apps, can I simply uninstall them without ramifications?
Any rom to recommend? I am new at this.

rambell said:
I have just rooted my device and installed Titanium Backup. Should I uninstall Carhome and F-secure or upgrade to Titanium Backup Pro and freeze them instead?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Freezing first is always the recommended action (to simply see what happens), however uninstalling these two has been properly tested by "the community", and there are no negative consequences. Just do it.
As for TB Pro, it is the only must-have application for rooted users in my view, just buy it, it's an awesome tool.
Freezing means that they will still be taking up space on the device right?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, but you won't get any more useful space by removing them. They're in the /system partition, which during normal use will never get written to. (Only you, the rooted user, can do that.) Even updates get installed to the /data-partition. The only real difference between freezing and uninstalling is what happens after a wipe (factory reset.) If you have frozen an app, it'll be active after a reset. Uninstall apps you are sure you'll never need, freeze everything else you don't want.
For example, any sane user will install an alternate launcher, like Launcher Pro, Go Launcher, ADW etc. These are so much better than the stock launcher you'll be convinced you'll never use LG Home again, and it'll be tempting to uninstall it. Mistake. The alternate launcher will get installed to /data/app, so if you ever need to reset your phone, it'll get deleted. When the phone boots next, it won't have ANY launcher installed, and you won't be able to do anything.
Also, for my telecom stock apps, can I simply uninstall them without ramifications?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Impossible to say without knowing what they do. Freeze them and see what happens during a week or two of normal use.
Any rom to recommend? I am new at this.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
They're all pretty good. With the latest batches of ROMs you basically have to choose between a Ferrari, Porsche or Lamborghini. There's a broken headlight or a scratch in the paint here and there, but you really can't go wrong. It's all a matter of personal need and taste- try them out and decide which works best for you.

Thanks for the detailed explanation esp on the pros and cons of freezing vs uninstalling. I am gonna try out launcherpro and see how it goes before venturing into the unknown world of roms.

from a greek post I made once translated with google because of boredome
The Root is the android that is the administrator for windows
Reasons for doing root:
Market enabler: see all applications on the market
Titanium Backup: You make backup all applications
startup manager: regulates what runs on the principle on your mobile
adfree: stop the advertisements
droidwall: close the internet on which application you want.
fasterfix: the gps you have set for GREECE consistently fast locking.
pimpmycpu: you over or underclock your mobile for extra performance or economy of battery
systemapp remover: place systems that take away but you are achristes or annoying.
widgetlocker: changing the lockscreen unrestricted
touchkeylights: lowers the Volt led for saving battery power or simply because it bothers light.
gscript: Giving orders linux with a click you want to do things like restart the application see longer eats a lot of space, the possibilities are endless
es file exporer: you can change the system files (dangerous not to try unless you know what you have) to put other icons or other boot animation, or a different shape battery tray bar displays etc.
These are some of the little you can do.

Gemini App Manager

I just downloaded this app today and while I normally dislike task killers this one is differant. While you can kill apps it has another more valueable feature.
If you find apps always running in the background sucking you battery , Gemini makes it easy to figure out why. You can choose a running app or any app/service on your phone, and configure autorun.
When you choose configure autorun on an app or service, Gemini will tell you all of the things that will start the app to autorun. Then it allows you to disable any or all the autorun features for that app. this is cool because you can now choose when a said app or service autoruns.
____________________
Just Flash It !!!

Just wanted to also add that there are obviously some services you don't want to **** with. As stopping them from auto running could effect the stability of your phone but really most installed apps should be safe to stop auto run. You will still be able to run the apps, but they won't be starting themselves.
____________________
Just Flash It !!!

wow, that's better than freezing them nice find!!!

A great find but when I went to download it it was marked as incompatible. I am running Slim so would dpi be the issue? I do have the modded market.
Rift

rift999 said:
A great find but when I went to download it it was marked as incompatible. I am running Slim so would dpi be the issue? I do have the modded market.
Rift
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I had the same issue with slim. While I kind of liked the resolution many of the apps I use daily didn't. So I just went back to cm9. So while I'm not sure, it may very well be the resolution...
____________________
Just Flash It !!!

Well I am not planning on staying mainly because the lack of mms. This is the first app I ran into issues with. I am thinking of trying that 4.0.4 rom.