Task Panel Auto-Kill feature not Auto-Killing?

[OstrichSaK]

I installed it on my Droid and when I open the list and long press on an app it gives me the option to Auto-Kill. I assume this means I won't have to kill this app any longer so I select this option but I find that I keep having to kill the same apps over and over again. What's the point of Auto-Kill or what am I doing wrong? There are lots of programs (most I didn't even install) that run all the time and I'm having battery issues so I don't have battery to waste on programs I'm not using and will probably never use.

 

[onion]

Simply read the manual....

1. You select which apps you want to auto-kill
2. Auto-kill only runs ONCE per interval. You can select 5min, 10min, 15min, 30min, or 60min intervals.

Auto-kill does NOT kill an app instantly once it starts up nor does it prevent apps from stating up.

 

[Brynk]

I did not see an interval option on the free app
Are you referring to the paid version?

 

[OstrichSaK]

Simply read the manual....

1. You select which apps you want to auto-kill
2. Auto-kill only runs ONCE per interval. You can select 5min, 10min, 15min, 30min, or 60min intervals.

Auto-kill does NOT kill an app instantly once it starts up nor does it prevent apps from stating up.

Thanks for the info. I read that but thought it was a setting to close all like the X at the top of the list to kill all. I tried that once and had to reboot to make my phone work properly again so I wasn't wanting to do that again. Something about the way it was worded or where it was located in the menu led me to think this. I'll give it a shot.

 

[A.C.Sanchez]

Just FYI, I recently removed TaskKiller and am not using any task killing apps. I have noticed that my Droid runs better. Somewhat counter-intuitive, but you may want to experiment.

 

[OstrichSaK]

Just FYI, I recently removed TaskKiller and am not using any task killing apps. I have noticed that my Droid runs better. Somewhat counter-intuitive, but you may want to experiment.

I agree with that statement to some extent. I uninstalled Advanced Task Killer and noticed a smoother running device overall. Task Panel appears to be working better so far however and the Auto-Kill functionality is an option I'm looking forward to once I set it up properly.

 

[OstrichSaK]

I did not see an interval option on the free app
Are you referring to the paid version?

Nope, it's in the free version. I just figured it out for myself with the info previously posted. Once you enable it go back one step and you have the option to not only set the frequency but also the threshold. Default is 60min and 50mb which means every 60min if the available memory falls below 50mb it will automatically kill the apps you've designated.

 

[Mike Anthony]

you have to enable auto-kill...not just assign things to be killed...

 

[OstrichSaK]

you have to enable auto-kill...not just assign things to be killed...

Already covered. Post #2.

 

[Brynk]

Once you enable it go back one step and you have the option to not only set the frequency but also the threshold.

sorry for being dense, but I have no clue what this means

enable = turn on/ activate?
go back one step?

 

[OstrichSaK]

sorry for being dense, but I have no clue what this means

enable = turn on/ activate?
go back one step?

It will make more sense when you're actually adjusting the settings. Once you enable (turn on but the options are enable or disable) it you push the back button once you will see the rest of the settings I described. Just go into the menu and you will see everything I described exactly as I've described it.

 

[Haruspex]

Something a lot of people miss:

If you press the back button (the far left button of the four on the bottom of the phone face, left of the menu button) it generally quits the application (sometimes you may need to press multiple times to back completely out of a program, some applications [such as the Dolphin Browser] let you press-and-hold the back button to exit immediately). This generally kills the application.

If you press the home button, you're asking to run the application the background and return to home.

A lot of these Auto-Kill application managers are unnecessary.


Edit: Sorry, didn't realize this was general Android Application discussion. I'm referencing the Motorola Droid.

 

[OstrichSaK]

Something a lot of people miss:

If you press the back button (the far left button of the four on the bottom of the phone face, left of the menu button) it generally quits the application (sometimes you may need to press multiple times to back completely out of a program, some applications [such as the Dolphin Browser] let you press-and-hold the back button to exit immediately). This generally kills the application.

If you press the home button, you're asking to run the application the background and return to home.

A lot of these Auto-Kill application managers are unnecessary.


Edit: Sorry, didn't realize this was general Android Application discussion. I'm referencing the Motorola Droid.

That's not entirely true with the Droid. Most will continue to run when you push the back key to back out. Most require you to press menu then close/exit and many don't even offer this function. The music player is a good example. More importantly than all of this is the fact that when I run a task manager of some sort there are 5 or more apps that I never even use that are running and soaking up my battery life. This is the first phone I've owned that comes pre-installed with bloatware that not only can you not delete but launches these and other programs you use by itself for no apparent reason. I'm surprised more isn't being made of those facts.

 

[AndroidEd]

Android is a Linux based operating system, so when you quit an app, it doesn't actually quit it, but it stops using any resources, so basically killing it won't do a thing different then exiting it. And if Android knows you need more memory, it quits apps not being used, to free up memory for the required task Android needs.

So don't bother getting task killers, because they are pretty much useless.

 

[Haruspex]

That's not entirely true with the Droid. Most will continue to run when you push the back key to back out. Most require you to press menu then close/exit and many don't even offer this function. The music player is a good example. More importantly than all of this is the fact that when I run a task manager of some sort there are 5 or more apps that I never even use that are running and soaking up my battery life. This is the first phone I've owned that comes pre-installed with bloatware that not only can you not delete but launches these and other programs you use by itself for no apparent reason. I'm surprised more isn't being made of those facts.

I just now launched the Music app. I pressed the home button to return to the home screen. I launched Task Manager to see that Music is indeed running. I then pressed back and activated Music again. I then played a song. I then used the back button to back entirely out the application. I then ran Task Manager to see the running applications. Music was NOT listed. It exited properly, just as I described before.

What you are saying is not mostly true. It may be true for some applications, but I have not found one yet. I have nothing errant running, no bloatware of which you are speaking.

What are you not able to delete?

What "bloatware" is bothering you?

Android is a Linux based operating system, so when you quit an app, it doesn't actually quit it, but it stops using any resources, so basically killing it won't do a thing different then exiting it. And if Android knows you need more memory, it quits apps not being used, to free up memory for the required task Android needs.

So don't bother getting task killers, because they are pretty much useless.

I agree, task killers are pretty much useless. However, a task manager, such as the aptly named Task Manager, can be useful for seeing what processes are running and generally having an idea about what is happening on your phone.

 

[OstrichSaK]

I just now launched the Music app. I pressed the home button to return to the home screen. I launched Task Manager to see that Music is indeed running. I then pressed back and activated Music again. I then played a song. I then used the back button to back entirely out the application. I then ran Task Manager to see the running applications. Music was NOT listed. It exited properly, just as I described before.

What you are saying is not mostly true. It may be true for some applications, but I have not found one yet. I have nothing errant running, no bloatware of which you are speaking.

What are you not able to delete?

What "bloatware" is bothering you?



I agree, task killers are pretty much useless. However, a task manager, such as the aptly named Task Manager, can be useful for seeing what processes are running and generally having an idea about what is happening on your phone.

The first thing that pops into mind as bloatware is Amazon MP3. I don't need it, don't want it, didn't install it and it appears to be undeletable by standard removal processes so to me this is bloat ware and I'm sure Amazon paid them nicely for this. I also have no use for corporate email or calendar so I would like the ability to delete them and install later from the app store should I need them since they regularly run in the background for no reason that I can see. There's more but that's a start to illustrate my point.

 

[Haruspex]

The first thing that pops into mind as bloatware is Amazon MP3. I don't need it, don't want it, didn't install it and it appears to be undeletable by standard removal processes so to me this is bloat ware and I'm sure Amazon paid them nicely for this. I also have no use for corporate email or calendar so I would like the ability to delete them and install later from the app store should I need them since they regularly run in the background for no reason that I can see. There's more but that's a start to illustrate my point.

Ah, I understand that. Amazon MP3 is the rival to iTunes, attempting to replicate the functionality of the iPhone. Calendar is actual Google Calendar, so it's a standard Android app, and Corporate Calendar is for those crazy business people running the awful Exchange server. I actually use the Calendar app, but the other two I completely agree, don't need them at all. I have yet to see a phone which doesn't come with stuff like this. Task Manager will let you uninstall them. Run Task Manager, hit the menu button, select Change View, and select Installed Packages. Click on the package you don't want (such as Amazon MP3) and select Uninstall. Worked for me, although from the sound of it you may have already figured out your own method, and there are plenty of other methods. Also, Task Manager is just generally awesome anyway.

Try out Task Manager from Market.
Try out the back button trick I was talking about.
Those should at least help for now.

 

[OstrichSaK]

Ah, I understand that. Amazon MP3 is the rival to iTunes, attempting to replicate the functionality of the iPhone. Calendar is actual Google Calendar, so it's a standard Android app, and Corporate Calendar is for those crazy business people running the awful Exchange server. I actually use the Calendar app, but the other two I completely agree, don't need them at all. I have yet to see a phone which doesn't come with stuff like this. Task Manager will let you uninstall them. Run Task Manager, hit the menu button, select Change View, and select Installed Packages. Click on the package you don't want (such as Amazon MP3) and select Uninstall. Worked for me, although from the sound of it you may have already figured out your own method, and there are plenty of other methods. Also, Task Manager is just generally awesome anyway.

Try out Task Manager from Market.
Try out the back button trick I was talking about.
Those should at least help for now.

I understand the difference between the Google Calendar and the Corporate Calendar and LOVE the Google Calendar but have zero use for the corporate email/calendar as I'm not running an exchange server. That doesn't mean in my line of work that I won't need to add it again down the road but am doing everything in my power to avoid that scenario and have been successful so far with one brief contract with a large corporation. I wouldn't even mind so much since I can hide icons with PandaHome if I didn't see them running all the time in task managers of various types and my battery life is nil so I need all the resources to be as free as possible save for what I'm actually using. As for uninstalling them whenever I attempt to use a 3rd part app to uninstall I get the error message that it was unsuccessful in doing so. Perhaps you were more successful where I failed? Also, should I need them again are they available somewhere (Android Market?) to install again?

 

[AndroidEd]

I agree, task killers are pretty much useless. However, a task manager, such as the aptly named Task Manager, can be useful for seeing what processes are running and generally having an idea about what is happening on your phone.

Yes, I agree, I have a task manager of my own.

 

[aeneas_shrike]

I've using this app for months, had the time interval setup at some point, but now after today's update, I can't find the menu option.

Has anyone else updated to the newest build? If so, can you give me your exact steps from app launch to the memory setting and time interval please?

 

[Bswartz95]

I just updated my Task Panel with the new release. I really like the auto kill option when you put the phone to sleep. I added a bunch of programs (camera, sms popup, gmail, facebook, settings, corporate calendar, etc..) to the auto kill list. I put my phone to sleep to test. All programs closed flawlessly. Also, they will reactivate if you get an email or text. My fear was that the program would stay closed and not be able to open while asleep, but that is not the case.

If you're using Task Panell, be sure to put the HTC & Google programs on your ignore list. You'll find out quickly which ones if you see your phone reloading when you kill something that needs to stay running.

 

[aeneas_shrike]

I got a response from the dev and he said that this way, without the time interval and the memory threshold, it should be faster, less processor intensive, and more battery friendly.

 

[OstrichSaK]

I got a response from the dev and he said that this way, without the time interval and the memory threshold, it should be faster, less processor intensive, and more battery friendly.

I kind of like that it now just auto kills on screen dim/shutoff. Seems like a good move.