HELP! Can't decide how to customize my 7 home screens

[jasonklass]

Warning: Android Newbie here! So I'm a little intimidated about exactly how to customize my 7 home screens on my Droid Eris. I come from the BB Storm and am not used to having so much freedom. So, I thought I would try to plan out an architecture of categories for each page, then add my apps and widgets. So far, I'm thinking something along these lines (#4 is the main home screen):

1. Bookmark Widget with my favorite websites
2. News page (BBC, NPR, RSS reader, etc.)
3. Navigation page (Where did we park app, Google Maps, nearest Starbucks app, compass, Yellowbook, etc.)
4. Main Home Screen (email, voice dialing, google talk, calendar, browser, weatherbug, flashlight, people, etc. The things I use most or want the quickest access to)
5. Favorite people widget
6. Tools Page (translator, calculator, video, camera, scale, etc.)
7. Settings Page (brightness, ringtones, battery, etc.)

I think I'll probably want to change the order of the pages based on which ones I use most. For example, The screens I would need most urgently should probably be 1-2 swipes away (like people and navigation), while the ones I'm more likely to use in my leisure time can be 3 swipes away (bookmarks, news). I'll probably figure that out after I use it a while.

So, what do you think? Any advice or examples you can give me? I'm aware there are posts where people show their screens but I'm more interested in hearing about how people plan their homescreens. Do you think I have a good approach or am I totally off track?

 

[TheBiles]

Right now mine are:

1. Phone utilities (wifi stuff, SetCPU, etc)
2. Apps
3. Apps
4. Home screen
5. Calendar
6. Bookmarks
7. Empty.

 

[jasonklass]

Right now mine are:

1. Phone utilities (wifi stuff, SetCPU, etc)
2. Apps
3. Apps
4. Home screen
5. Calendar
6. Bookmarks
7. Empty.

So you didn't fell the need to fill up the 7th screen? I kind of want all of them fleshed out but maybe I don't need to.

 

[stinky]

We cant tell you whats good for you. Fill your screens up with whatever you want, then change accordingly.

I started with most of the screens filled with crap. I narrowed it down to only 5 screens and few widgets.

Get an idea of what people do by viewing these threads:

http://androidforums.com/sprint-htc-hero/33446-share-how-you-use-your-screens.html

http://androidforums.com/android-themes/4425-post-your-android-desktop.html

Here is mine

 

[mrqs]

is it possible to take screenshots with a non-rooted phone?

 

[stinky]

Yes you can, but with the hassle you go through to do that you may as well get root access and download ShootMe or PicMe and do it that way.

I dont remember all the steps off the top of my head, but alot of threads have referred to this, try searching.

 

[seeking]

i only have 5 screens, i wish i had 7 but heres mine (3) is my main screen


1. Top half is games/bottom half is media player widget along with links to my music/sound settings

2. Facebook widget with internet apps underneath (browser, speed test, gmail, etc)

3. Weather widget with phone, txt, google voice, camera shortcuts, and then wifi/silent/brightness/battery widgets

4. Tools (notepad, alarm clock, calendar, flash light, maps, etc)

5. Apps (pdanet, virus scanner, mybackup, movie showtimes, etc etc)


if i had 7 screens id split the games and media to have their own screen, and then with the extra screen left over i would fill it with news

 

[TheBrit]

1. Music player widget, icons for camera, YouTube etc
2. Smooth Calendar Widget - shows multiple appointments in a 4x1. Office app icons.
3. Weather Widget
4. Flip clock, email, gmail, browser, messages, tCalendar widget
5. Maps, toggles, settings, market
6. Bookmarks
7. Games and some utilities like Advanced task killer.

Stinky, that's a nice theme you have there.

 

[Jlopcpa]

1. Web Bookmarks (List format)
2. Top Row - Pandora
2nd Row - Utilitie Icons (Blue Tooth, Wi-fi, GPS, Settings shortcut)
3rd Row - Program Icons (Google Maps, Brower, GeoBeagle)
4th Row - Google search
3. People Widget (1 x 4) along left side
Remaining space filled with people related shortcuts (mail, messages, gmail inbox, facebook, people shortcut and customer folders)
4. Home Screen - Default Clock Widget w/ weather, 1x4 calendar widget, and shortcuts
5. 2x2 picture frame in the middle and various program shortcuts around the edges
6. sports tap and music widget (2x4)
7. Full screen twitter

As a side note I have about 5 different saves of this layout, so the best advice is experiment and have fun, I probably move short cuts around every other day, just depends on what is going on...

 

[stinky]

Stinky, that's a nice theme you have there.

Thanks. Its Fresh 1.1 mostly (the twitter pic was when I switched to Modace), with stock HTC widgets, the background is from the Backgrounds app. All for freeeeee.........

 

[rizzla]

Screens on Hero

1. Music widget large.
2. Peeps (twitter) widget large.
3 widgets = Battery, htc dice. Short-cuts = java, Nimbuzz.
4 (home screen): HTC clock with weather widget. taskiller widget, seesmic market, googlemail, app organiser drawer, camera, camcorder.
5. Pure calendar widget, london underground status widget, facebook widget.
6 airplaine - wifi - bluetooth - gps widgets, astro, taskiller (short-cut) apps organiser (short-cut), picture frame GF, tools (apps organiser label drawer).
7 internet bookmarks.

most of my short cuts are stored in the apps organiser drawers so aren't really needed to take space up on screen. good way of saving space on your home screens.