Help Ridiculous amount of services

[teikyo30]

On my pc using msconfig and services i can disable services permanently. Not on tb. I've tried a few programs and none work. Every boot launches vznav, faceboom, imo, market, maps, search everywhere, mobile im, messages, stocks, pandora, etc, etc. Therw are easy 30 non essential things i can only force stop after i boot. Why? My tb feels ad crippled ad my ipod touch.

 

[McLabia]

On my pc using msconfig and services i can disable services permanently. Not on tb. I've tried a few programs and none work. Every boot launches vznav, faceboom, imo, market, maps, search everywhere, mobile im, messages, stocks, pandora, etc, etc. Therw are easy 30 non essential things i can only force stop after i boot. Why? My tb feels ad crippled ad my ipod touch.

Revisiting Android Task Killers and Why You Still Don’t Need One… - Droid Life: A Droid Community Blog

 

[teikyo30]

Revisiting Android Task Killers and Why You Still Don

 

[McLabia]

Okay, I read that, but aside from just not liking or seeing the logic in pre-loading things I never use like Pandora, Facebook, etc, as in NEVER use at all, when I do other things like play Angry Birds I notice it starts out fine, then all of a sudden a bunch of apps start loading for no apparent reason and the game is all messed up. It stutters, the sound cuts out, it just doesn't play right. The same will happen for movies. Why do I need to have the Facebook app pre-loading when I don't use it? Why is the Gmail app running in the background when I don't use it? Why are all these apps using ram? Just in case I might use them? It's the same principal on Windows. Nothing like Facebook is going to help my alarm go off or allow a text message to come through or make 4G work better. It's absolutely ******ed that I have to have that stuff running in the background. I hate using the radio on my phone. Yet I have 3 different pre-installed programs I will never ever use for any reason that are just sitting there. Waiting.
And I notice these things are building up a cache. How is something like Stocks that I never use creating more and more cache? I NEVER use it! And how is that making my phone work better? People say Android is better than Windows, and I say why? I decided to give it a hot because the whole thing is allegedly open-source, but it isn't really. Windows isn't open source but I can control what happens with everything except the most basic essential programs. Like explorer. You NEED explorer running for Windows to work right. You don't need Facebook running in the background, though.

If you never use Pandora, whyd you install it? Any apps that you dont use, remove it. However, it doesnt seem that you read the article. You would understand why it does things the way it does. Comparing Android to Windows is like comparing apples to oranges.

If you dont want to root, you dont get to complain. Read the article this time and maybe youll understand. /endthread.

 

[teikyo30]

If you never use Pandora, whyd you install it? Any apps that you dont use, remove it. However, it doesnt seem that you read the article. You would understand why it does things the way it does. Comparing Android to Windows is like comparing apples to oranges.

If you dont want to root, you dont get to complain. Read the article this time and maybe youll understand. /endthread.

I don't remember installing Pandora, but since we're on the subject, how do you remove stocks, City ID, Clock Widget, Facebook, Flickr, Friendstream, Gmail, HTC Weather Sync, Peep, Search Anywhere, and weather provider? Those are all running on ym phone right now.

And while YOU may think you comprehend the article you sent me, there is nothing in any of the programs I just listed that are pre-installed with the uninstall option grayed out, that have anything to do with making the phone work better. I don't care how Android utilizes memory. Unless those apps are directly related to the core functionality of the phone itself, I should be able to remove them.

Funny how you say comparing Android and Windows is comparing apples and oranges. So I take it android doesn't use HTML, or Flash, or Java, I'm assuming you're just a Windows hater and probably have a house full of Macs which is fine, but an open source operating system is supposed to mean I can control what it does. Not that Google's CEO is using it as a hype word, but doesn't really mean it. Aside from a bigger screen and having flash support, this phone isn't much better than my iPod Touch 4. How is that a good thing, to have such a little difference to Apple? Wasn't the Droid hype "Droid Does"? Does what, the same as Windows and Apple?

 

[teikyo30]

Read the article this time and maybe youll understand. /endthread.

"
What a lot of people don

 

[McLabia]

I don't remember installing Pandora, but since we're on the subject, how do you remove stocks, City ID, Clock Widget, Facebook, Flickr, Friendstream, Gmail, HTC Weather Sync, Peep, Search Anywhere, and weather provider? Those are all running on ym phone right now.

And while YOU may think you comprehend the article you sent me, there is nothing in any of the programs I just listed that are pre-installed with the uninstall option grayed out, that have anything to do with making the phone work better. I don't care how Android utilizes memory. Unless those apps are directly related to the core functionality of the phone itself, I should be able to remove them.

Funny how you say comparing Android and Windows is comparing apples and oranges. So I take it android doesn't use HTML, or Flash, or Java, I'm assuming you're just a Windows hater and probably have a house full of Macs which is fine, but an open source operating system is supposed to mean I can control what it does. Not that Google's CEO is using it as a hype word, but doesn't really mean it. Aside from a bigger screen and having flash support, this phone isn't much better than my iPod Touch 4. How is that a good thing, to have such a little difference to Apple? Wasn't the Droid hype "Droid Does"? Does what, the same as Windows and Apple?

"
What a lot of people don

 

[teikyo30]

LOL. You couldnt pay me to own an apple product. I dont have ANY of that on my phone, but then again the ROM I installed was already debloated. When I first rooted, I stripped all of that out though. If you dont want bloatware on your phone, you can root your phone and remove it. If you dont want to root it, you just have to deal with it. Other than that, this thread is useless. lol.

So basically the open source Android OS isn't open source unless you root the phone, which probably voids the warranty and insurance. Right? And leaving the phone as is, both the iPhone and WiMo phones are just as capable and possibly better? Are all the Droids the same way, loaded with crapware and locked from the user removing them, unless you want to void the warranty?

And you still haven't said how things like Flickr and Facebook are making my phone function better for the things I actually use it for. Does Flickr help with cellular reception or LTE? If not, how is it helping the phone?

 

[DoctorZaius68]

Have you looked into rooting your phone? If you root you have 2 options: 1. You can use a program like Titatinum Backup to freeze or delete (I recomend freezing) many of the apps you described in your posts; 2. You can flash a custom rom which does not include bloatware.

I would recommend doing research on rooting to see if it right for you.

DZ

 

[CharlzO]

So basically the open source Android OS isn't open source unless you root the phone, which probably voids the warranty and insurance. Right? And leaving the phone as is, both the iPhone and WiMo phones are just as capable and possibly better? Are all the Droids the same way, loaded with crapware and locked from the user removing them, unless you want to void the warranty?

And you still haven't said how things like Flickr and Facebook are making my phone function better for the things I actually use it for. Does Flickr help with cellular reception or LTE? If not, how is it helping the phone?

The way rooting is nowadays, it's FAIRLY safe, as long as you read and follow directions. And it's reversable, and as of yet, most people haven't had any issues with insurance or warranty. As for the others being better out of the box? Could be debated. Try customizing an iPhone to the extent you can a stock Droid, without jailbreaking it. Is that something every user needs to do? No, but it's there.

As for the other stuff, having Flickr and Facebook, etc. They are pre-installed, as you've found, and as are many other things. The are considered "bloatware" for obvious reasons. They are there, because they were deemed to be pretty popular apps or functions that lots of users would find helpful, and was preinstalled to save the user from having to do it themselves. Obviously the other suff (vcast, etc) is VZW specific, and they want to have their own services advertised and pushed as well. You'll find things like that from most carriers on phones.

As for the memory, and things, yes, it's annoying that they always start up. As you've read, the OS is designed to be smart with memory management. Not perfect, though. But we do get the option to root if we want, to eliminate that. It's tradeoffs either way you go, usually. I haven't noticed any major slowdowns on my TB, regardless of what's running, regardless of how many apps I jump into one after another, and I'm stock. I'm not sure offhand (since I didn't read everything) if you've experienced it or not, or if you're just concerned about it becoming an issue. If the latter, give it a whirl, see if it really impacts anything. Also, as a side note, many launchers give you the option to at least hide apps, so I did that with mine. All the pre-installed stuff, I hid. Is it running, sure, but I don't see it. Out of sight, out of mind.

 

[dguy]

Root your phone and uninstall the stuff. Rooting is the same thing as logging in as an Admin on Windows. Just be aware that like Windows, there aren't too many protections in place to stop you from messing up your system when you change a setting wrong or delete something you shouldn't have.

 

[teikyo30]

I never tried rooting a phone before, but I've been building computers for 15 years now so how hard could it be? What program is the best for doing so? And how do you pick the rom?

 

[teikyo30]

Anybody?

 

[Romikemi]

It's a pretty big topic. Big enough for a dedicated sub-forum. Hit the All Things Root link at the top of the Thunderbolt forum thread list. One of the sticky threads will cover methods and point to sites with step by step recipes. There's even IRC support if you get stuck.

 

[nkk]

And while YOU may think you comprehend the article you sent me, there is nothing in any of the programs I just listed that are pre-installed with the uninstall option grayed out, that have anything to do with making the phone work better. I don't care how Android utilizes memory. Unless those apps are directly related to the core functionality of the phone itself, I should be able to remove them.

Well...there is your problem. You are arguing and trying to change a situation that, by your own admission, you do not care about. How is that logical?

As for being able to remove them, you should be able to. Few would disagree. But becuase they are in /system/app and not /data/app, you cannot without root. End of story.

As for stuttering, that is not memory management. That has to do with the niceness of your processes. A process starts in the middle of angry birds, and since it is niced to 0 (same as AB), it gets a fair chunk of processing power to just start up and load. If AB had nice=-20, AB would get a much larger share of processing power and you would not experience this. I highly suggest reading up on the Linux kernel and its scheduler and mem management...it expands your knowledge and is sort of interesting (if you like technology/computers/that type of stuff).

Note: I have no idea how to change the nice of a process in Android.

As for rooting, go to the root subforum. There is a very good guide that links to all the files necessary. You need to be ok with ADB, but IMO you should be comfortable with ADB before you root so that if a problem occurs, you can start to fix it.

As for ROMS, find what you like. See what the features are, and go. Start with something like BAMF, then in a week or so try something else for a week. You will then know which you like better.

-Nkk

 

[teikyo30]

I was playing tonight and ll of a sudden the game is freezing. So I check services, and for some reason Android thought it could improve my experience by launching VZ Navigator, Facebook, Mail, Gmail, Imo, Flickr, Stocks, Messenger, Clock widget, Rate my town, bitbop, backup assistant, sync, calendar, blockbuster, city id, flashlight, fm radio, google search, serach anywhere, internet, lets golf 2, maps, market, pandora, slacker, vcast apps, voice, voice dialer, and weather. All at the same time. My phone basically froze till I went through and shut down each one one by one. But it's not just the game it affects. When it happens I can't surf the web, my camera will stop working, videos will stop playing, etc. That article said that Android nows what it's doing, that it manages memory better than windows. Bull. My computer has 4 gigs of ram. Know how much it's using now? 1.45 gigs. I have it locked down tight. It never freezes or overheats, no random reboots or just plain shutting itself off.

What exactly is the OS doing that's supposed to make my experience better? My ipod had issues with memory also but the program I have on it to shut programs down keeps them shut down till I reopen them or reboot. The Android programs shut them down for a few minutes, then Android or HTC starts them right back up again. Why?

 

[UBRocked]

Okay, take it easy everyone.

Android does have a built in task manager. If this worked exactly the way each user wanted, the manufacturers would not feel compelled to provide their own task manager which is becomming common practice.

Rooting allows you to remove some of the bloatware that the manufacturers and carriers feel compelled to throw on the phones. But just because someone doesn't root their phone doesn't mean they can't voice a concern or opinion. But also, if you don't root, you can't control as many aspects of your phone so you must consider that. If you choose not to root, that's fine...but you wont have the same level of control, period.

And open source doesn't have anything to do with pre-installed applications. Google puts their source code out there which allows ROMs like Cyanogen Mod to exist. Google has nothing to do with the bloatware that comes on this phone...just like they have nothing to do with Sense being on the phone.

Lets keep it civil or I'll have to lock down this thread. But with so much misinformation here that wouldn't be the worst thing I've had to do.

 

[nkk]

I was playing tonight and ll of a sudden the game is freezing. So I check services, and for some reason Android thought it could improve my experience by launching VZ Navigator, Facebook, Mail, Gmail, Imo, Flickr, Stocks, Messenger, Clock widget, Rate my town, bitbop, backup assistant, sync, calendar, blockbuster, city id, flashlight, fm radio, google search, serach anywhere, internet, lets golf 2, maps, market, pandora, slacker, vcast apps, voice, voice dialer, and weather. All at the same time. My phone basically froze till I went through and shut down each one one by one. But it's not just the game it affects. When it happens I can't surf the web, my camera will stop working, videos will stop playing, etc. That article said that Android nows what it's doing, that it manages memory better than windows. Bull. My computer has 4 gigs of ram. Know how much it's using now? 1.45 gigs. I have it locked down tight. It never freezes or overheats, no random reboots or just plain shutting itself off.

What exactly is the OS doing that's supposed to make my experience better? My ipod had issues with memory also but the program I have on it to shut programs down keeps them shut down till I reopen them or reboot. The Android programs shut them down for a few minutes, then Android or HTC starts them right back up again. Why?

Ok...again I will say this:

You lag is NOT a memory issue. It is a CPU scheduler issue. Read the article on nice. You are probably NOT using all your ram. You ARE using all the CPU cycles.

I am going to be honest, and please do not take this personally as it is the view from a cynic. You seem to not want help. I clearly (or so I thought) explained nice and why you had lag. Yet you come back using a memory argument. It shows me one of two things:

You did not understand what I wrote. In this case, the proper response is a request for clarification, not an argument.

You did not read what I wrote. This is just lack of caring, and really has no solution.

I would at any time be happy to explain the basics of a scheduler to you, and then redirect you to better resources as I am not an expert. But I will not argue. That is a clear waste of my time.

Nkk

 

[dylo22]

Ok...again I will say this:

You lag is NOT a memory issue. It is a CPU scheduler issue. Read the article on nice. You are probably NOT using all your ram. You ARE using all the CPU cycles.

I am going to be honest, and please do not take this personally as it is the view from a cynic. You seem to not want help. I clearly (or so I thought) explained nice and why you had lag. Yet you come back using a memory argument. It shows me one of two things:

You did not understand what I wrote. In this case, the proper response is a request for clarification, not an argument.


You did not read what I wrote. This is just lack of caring, and really has no solution.

I would at any time be happy to explain the basics of a scheduler to you, and then redirect you to better resources as I am not an expert. But I will not argue. That is a clear waste of my time.

Nkk

I get what you're saying Nkk, however that still doesn't explain why these processes needs to be started in the first place. Why can't Android manage scheduling more effectively? If AB is active and running, why does the OS need to start a random process that consumes CPU cycles. Shouldn't the OS know the processes for AB should take priority over other processes that are not being used.

 

[Yeahha]

Yeah it should, you are right. The applicaton running in the foreground should be given a higher priority than any running in the background. Some of the apps you had running in your background have sync settings (mail, gmail, backup assistant) you may get some help by changing the sync settings, I turned mine completely off because backup assistant started going crazy on me.

Are you running a task killer outside of the task manager built in to Android? This could be contributing to your problems, some apps will boot in the background on boot and do their thing then die, if you have a task killer or you are going OCD on them and manually killing them they will boot over and over.

Also what other apps are you running on your phone, any custom home launcher or lots of widgets these will also affect your phone performance?

 

[dylo22]

Yeah it should, you are right. The applicaton running in the foreground should be given a higher priority than any running in the background. Some of the apps you had running in your background have sync settings (mail, gmail, backup assistant) you may get some help by changing the sync settings, I turned mine completely off because backup assistant started going crazy on me.

Are you running a task killer outside of the task manager built in to Android? This could be contributing to your problems, some apps will boot in the background on boot and do their thing then die, if you have a task killer or you are going OCD on them and manually killing them they will boot over and over.

Also what other apps are you running on your phone, any custom home launcher or lots of widgets these will also affect your phone performance?

No task killers. I have a stock Thunderbolt (not rooted). I run Go Launcher with 3 homescreen with two widgets - pure agenda widget and widgetzoid. I only sync gmail, calendar and weather. Weather is set to sync every 6 hours by zip code (not gps). Calendar on pure is set to sync every 4 hours. I've loaded a bunch of apps, but nothing out of the ordinary. Almost all of them are apps that are highly rated and well recommended.

I don't have major lag issues, but just enough (usually switching between homescreens and playing games) to make it annoying. For example when I play plants vs zombies, there will be times when the graphics become choppy for a second or two and then return to normal. Same thing with homescreen switching, there will be occasional lags or stutters while swiping. Usually happens when I haven't touch my phone in a while.

I think my phone is fairly basic compare to others, yet I still experience these lags. I played plants vs zombies on an iphone before and I have never experienced hiccups. Everything is buttery smooth.

Don't get me wrong I love android. I just wish our user experience (in terms of smoothness) can be more like the iphone.

 

[Yeahha]

The iPhone handles everything different, the largest benefit of how it runs is that the app being used gets almost if not all cpu and memory. Have you moved your apps to the SD card? This is a shot in the dark but if you clear your defaults for launcher and go to the Sense launcher do you have widgets open on it? You could also try clearing cache on your apps using the manage applications part of settings or download an app that will clear your cache for you. You could choose the setting in go laucher to make it system persistent under advanced settings, that may make it smoother for you. I haven't played around too much with Go launcher on the TB but on the droid 2 global I would get lag like you are describing and my set up included 2 pure widgets, a weather widget, touchdown email, and an audio widget. Another suggestion would be to take a look at your apps and if you have any you don't use but have installed (man that is cool and free I'll give it a whirl...1 run and never touched again) uninstall them

 

[McLabia]

The iPhone handles everything different, the largest benefit of how it runs is that the app being used gets almost if not all cpu and memory. Have you moved your apps to the SD card? This is a shot in the dark but if you clear your defaults for launcher and go to the Sense launcher do you have widgets open on it? You could also try clearing cache on your apps using the manage applications part of settings or download an app that will clear your cache for you. You could choose the setting in go laucher to make it system persistent under advanced settings, that may make it smoother for you. I haven't played around too much with Go launcher on the TB but on the droid 2 global I would get lag like you are describing and my set up included 2 pure widgets, a weather widget, touchdown email, and an audio widget. Another suggestion would be to take a look at your apps and if you have any you don't use but have installed (man that is cool and free I'll give it a whirl...1 run and never touched again) uninstall them

I LOVE GOLauncher. Runs like a charm. Ive yet to have ANY issues with it for longer than a day or so then things get fixed in an update by the Dev. I tried LPP for a bit, but was dissatisfied how it ran on my phone. I also use Cache Cleaner and I dont have any lockups or lag. On the off chance that I do, I run it and generally it cleans 8 megs out. lol. Once a day usually keeps things clean and running well. My phone runs cleanly at 1.4ghz and was starting to get pretty damn good battery life as of late.

 

[Deleted User]

I don't remember installing Pandora, but since we're on the subject, how do you remove stocks, City ID, Clock Widget, Facebook, Flickr, Friendstream, Gmail, HTC Weather Sync, Peep, Search Anywhere, and weather provider?

Not trying to be a jerk here, but you meant Slacker, right? I mean, I only WISH Pandora came pre-installed.

 

[teikyo30]

Just checked and 34 processes are running all using memory. 490 mb of memory. Angry birds froze again. I'm just trying to understand how this is a good thing. The exact same thing happens in windows if you let too many things preload. The amount of bloatware is unreal.