Just noticed that NewspaperDirect have shipped their first version of PressReader that's specifically intended for tablets:
http://www.prweb.com/releases/pressreader/android/prweb8616121.htm
I've actually started using PressReader myself, and although it's a bit more expensive than subscribing to the website of the paper I want to read (South China Morning Post), it's also more convenient in that I can read it offline and in the same manner as the real paper.
Here's hoping that Asus upgrades the existing version to the tablet one in their next firmware update. I'd definitely prefer to have a Honeycomb-specific version, but if I want it right now, I'll end up with two PressReader installs on my tablet.
I'll be talking to the PressReader folks in a few days when I upgrade to a paid account, so I'll see if they can tell me anything about whether Asus will be shipping an update at the same time... Fingers crossed!
Misread .. Doh but HoneyComb PressReader is way better now, the layout is so much user friendly.
Haven't installed it yet as I didn't want to risk it not coexisting with my existing subscription. What did they change, specifically?
the interface is ok but it really bugs me that i have to choose a country everytime i want to browse newspapers.
it would be better to be able to set a default and then browse other countries if required.
also, it seems pretty expensive. i've subscribed at the moment but i'm not sure that i can justify the cost ... i love reading the latest newspapers on my transformer though.
Granted...the shelf is different. But other than that..when actually viewing the papers I don't see much/any difference from the version that was already on our 3.1 Transformer. Maybe they just launched it with Asus first before bringing it to the app store? Do you notice any differences?
BTW. Although I like clicking on a headline to get just that story on one page.. I think it should include all the pictures associated with the story. Many times it's just text...sometimes one out of 3 pictures is included.
sbliner said:
Granted...the shelf is different. But other than that..when actually viewing the papers I don't see much/any difference from the version that was already on our 3.1 Transformer. Maybe they just launched it with Asus first before bringing it to the app store? Do you notice any differences?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Took a look myself, and what they've added is a new view mode accessed with a button near the right end of the top menu bar while viewing a paper. It gives you a supposedly more newspaper-like arrangement where you see (other than the front / rear covers) two pages side by side, with a faint darkening towards the division between the two pages, to mimic the look of an opened newspaper.
It's cute I guess, but only really of use if you tap headlines to read stories, which I don't. Except for the headlines, the font is too small to be readable even on a tablet.
What I'd much rather see PressReader add is a view that would fit the page to the screen width, which would make for a very readable paper in landscape orientation on a tablet. (Drag up / down to read the page, flick side to side to change pages). Right now, their default view choices are either zoomed (which requires 2D panning), single-page (with loads of wasted space around the edges), or double-page (with loads of wasted space around the edges).
Anybody else noticing lockups with Press Reader's tablet edition? I've found a few bugs, but this seems by far the most severe. It's specific to the tablet edition; never had anything similar with the standard edition that's bundled on the Transformer.
It's happened to me four times now, always while I'm panning around a page that's been zoomed in to 100% by double tapping on the page.
The symptom is that the tablet stops responding completely. Not only is Press Reader locked up, but so is Honeycomb's System Bar -- the Home, Back, Menu, and Apps buttons, and the status section at the right end of the bar all don't respond if tapped. Nor does holding the power button bring up the "Power Off" dialog. If I close the tablet screen on the dock and reopen it, the screen won't come back on.
Honeycomb itself *isn't* locked up, though, just its user interface. If I tap the power button, the tablet goes to sleep, and a second tap wakes it up properly. Also, the most recent time it happened to me, as luck would have it, I had a live radio feed playing on TuneIn Radio, and it kept playing for a couple of minutes after the Honeycomb UI had locked up.
The only way to fix the problem is a cold boot, by holding the power button in for ~10 seconds or so until the screen goes off. On rebooting, Honeycomb and Press Reader work correctly again. It's a bit alarming that whatever the Press Reader bug is can lock up the entire Honeycomb UI, though!
Other bugs I've found:
* When zoomed in 100%, sometimes the graphics in the newspaper appear on the wrong places in the page and/or extremely blurrily. Zooming out and back in again corrects the problem.
* Also when zoomed in 100%, sometimes part or all of the text on the page doesn't re-render, and stays unreadably blurry.
* When downloading new issues of newspapers, the status bar showing the download sometimes stays at zero and/or a thumbnail of the newspaper never appears even though the download has completed, but if I double tap on the incomplete status bar the paper will open, or if I exit and reenter Press Reader the paper's thumbnail will generate and the status bar will vanish.
* I've also had one issue lock up during downloading, and the download wouldn't complete despite working wifi until I rebooted the tablet.
* I also have problems with images seeming to be more compressed on the tablet version, or perhaps not rendering correctly. Comparing the same newspaper, which has a small comics section, the tablet version is blurry enough that I can barely read the text on the comics, while the standard version is much sharper and the same size comic text is very easily readable.
Considering all these together, the tablet version of the app is simply not ready for prime time. Asus didn't upgrade the bundled version of Press Reader on their just-released OTA update, and I'd say that's a damned good thing!
Hopefully NewspaperDirect can fix these issues, and add a "fit page to screen width" viewing mode, which would also require better quality font rendering at lower zoom levels. (Right now, when you zoom out a bit, text rapidly becomes blurry when it should be easily readable, just because the rendering is very poor; this problem applies to both tablet and standard versions, though.)
Obviously the most important bug is the lockup issue, and if anybody else is experiencing it, I'd really like to hear from them...
Related
Ok.. so i wont bore you with my mock review until the end, so that I can get some questions out first : (Im coming from a Wizard)
1) In the wizard, I was able to click on telephone numbers in MOST applications and dial straight from there. Specifically the web browser. I would search for the name of a place, the first link in google would have the address and number, I would click on the number and be dialing. Im guessing this was a PIE thing, but wanted to see what the deal was
2) The most annoying thing so far, is my inability to highlight multiple items. In my Wizard, I was able to go to the email screen and if there were 8 messages there, I could press firmly into the first message, slide my finger down to the last message and click delete. I am not able to highlight multiple items, and ive tried different pressure settings etc. Help.
3) Similar to 2.... I am unable to highlight text, atleast with my finger, for coy paste purposes
4) I am not able to get the setting where face down will mute the ringer. Ive tried Diamond Tweak, manual registery editing, nothing. Face down... the phone will ring everytime
5) When someone sends me a youtube link in an email and I click on it, it takes me to the youtube page (im on edge so, slowly) but cant get the youtube video to play. It loads the page, except the video window
6) What is the ideal screen sensitivity and pressure settings in the registry. Its the one thing that im a bit surpsied by, I know it is not a capacitive screen, but it takes some getting used to how much pressure it requires compared to an iPhone screen for example
I will write about my impressions after two more days to give myself ample time to get used to it so there is no wizard bias... :0
taimoorhusain said:
6) What is the ideal screen sensitivity and pressure settings in the registry. Its the one thing that im a bit surpsied by, I know it is not a capacitive screen, but it takes some getting used to how much pressure it requires compared to an iPhone screen for example
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is something I'd be particularly interested in .
Even though I use currently a phone with a capacitive screen I own a Wizard too. How would you say is the difference to the Wizard respectively how would you rate the sensitivity generally?
I'm answering to what I know...
2) The most annoying thing so far, is my inability to highlight multiple items. In my Wizard, I was able to go to the email screen and if there were 8 messages there, I could press firmly into the first message, slide my finger down to the last message and click delete. I am not able to highlight multiple items, and ive tried different pressure settings etc. Help.
In the message screen go to "Menu->Select->Some" then you will be able to select a group of items.
3) Similar to 2.... I am unable to highlight text, atleast with my finger, for coy paste purposes
This works for me!
5) When someone sends me a youtube link in an email and I click on it, it takes me to the youtube page (im on edge so, slowly) but cant get the youtube video to play. It loads the page, except the video window
This is due to lack of flsh support in Opera 9.5. You can play flash videos within CorePlayer.
chiccusmaximus said:
I'm answering to what I know...
2) The most annoying thing so far, is my inability to highlight multiple items. In my Wizard, I was able to go to the email screen and if there were 8 messages there, I could press firmly into the first message, slide my finger down to the last message and click delete. I am not able to highlight multiple items, and ive tried different pressure settings etc. Help.
In the message screen go to "Menu->Select->Some" then you will be able to select a group of items.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sweet.. I can live with that. Thanks
chiccusmaximus said:
5) When someone sends me a youtube link in an email and I click on it, it takes me to the youtube page (im on edge so, slowly) but cant get the youtube video to play. It loads the page, except the video window
This is due to lack of flsh support in Opera 9.5. You can play flash videos within CorePlayer.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yikes.. ok... blindsided by this one, so whats the roadmap on it?
drzoid said:
This is something I'd be particularly interested in .
Even though I use currently a phone with a capacitive screen I own a Wizard too. How would you say is the difference to the Wizard respectively how would you rate the sensitivity generally?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I had an iPhone, gave it to my wife... the iphone screen is awesome, from day one, responsiveness, finger touch etc etc. The Wizard screen was ok, the feel wasnt there, but then again it wasnt big and i wasnt doing much with my finger anyway. Compared to the Wizard, the Touch HD is better, but since you are doing so much more on the screen and with your finger, it isnt as good as it needs to be. Twice the pressure is needed from the iphone, it doesnt "feel" good under my finger, feels like i have to fight against it to scroll the TF3D scroll thing (again comparing a resisitve screen to a capacitive one). Touch wise, it is excellent, I dont have to force buttons or anything. Im mainly complaining about gestures and TF3D. Overall finger friendliness, if the iphone is an 8, then the touch HD is a 6 and the wizard is a 4.
For 4: It can be done, I've been lurking around here for days now and I recall seeing an app that covers this exact thing - I *think* it's either SKTools or the Advanced Customisation Tool - I'm about to load up on or the other shortly, so if I find out I'll be back and let oyu know (if you haven't found it already in the meantime of course!)
6 : again I've seen some mention of registry setting alteerations to adjust this - but for me, I've used the same method as I did on my diamond and my screen is VERY sensitive - enough for me anyway.
Go and fire up the screen alignment process again - this time when doing it use the stylus and hover over the cross hair then very lightly rest it on the cross hair center - applying a tiny amount more pressure until it moves (it moves with a v. small amount of pressure) - seems to set pressure from this process to some extent. Whether or not this REALLY works, or it's utter placebo I truly dont know - but mine's totally fine and that's all I did Worth a shot I guess
The TouchFLO interface might mean that finger pressure always translates as scrolling, but if you want to select anything then you have to use a fingernail or the stylus. This is how it works on my Touch (Elf) - to scroll the screen I have to use the pad of my finger. If I use a more pointed pressure then I'm selecting stuff. I quite like this system - it differentiates between sweeping gestures and detailed touches.
Try using the stylus or a fingernail to select text or multiple emails. It might work.
(If it doesn't then I'll be annoyed too!)
blackb1ade said:
For 4: It can be done, I've been lurking around here for days now and I recall seeing an app that covers this exact thing - I *think* it's either SKTools or the Advanced Customisation Tool - I'm about to load up on or the other shortly, so if I find out I'll be back and let oyu know (if you haven't found it already in the meantime of course!)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, I tried it all Schaps advanced config, Diamond tweak, Registery edits (havent tried SKtools yet) The option is there, in DIamond Tweak and in the registry. Jsut doesnt do anything...
blackb1ade said:
6 : again I've seen some mention of registry setting alteerations to adjust this - but for me, I've used the same method as I did on my diamond and my screen is VERY sensitive - enough for me anyway.
Go and fire up the screen alignment process again - this time when doing it use the stylus and hover over the cross hair then very lightly rest it on the cross hair center - applying a tiny amount more pressure until it moves (it moves with a v. small amount of pressure) - seems to set pressure from this process to some extent. Whether or not this REALLY works, or it's utter placebo I truly dont know - but mine's totally fine and that's all I did Worth a shot I guess
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Worth a shot.. did it.. nothing changed
I too would like to know if Opera can do what the OP wants in question 1?? That is one thing I love about my Iphone as it doesn't have a cut and paste but I can just click on the number in safari.
Can Opera do this? I was also looking at Skyfire today and was wondering if it did this and also when/if it will be available soon in the UK?
The select several option for email works.. so one problem down. Also ive realized that the screen sensitivity is just something I will have to get used to.
I have installed Flash Lite 3.1 for you tube and it seems to be working fine.
More updates as I have em. Anyone know why number links arent clickable in the browser?
Good thread, clears some things up.
I wonder how the pressure thing is.
How does it compare to an Elf (my current/old device) for example?
My HD should be in the mail tomorrow, but you never know with TNT mail.
I think its one of those things... you jsut need to get used to it...
I've just noticed something very strange when viewing PDF documents using Touch HD's built-in Adobe Reader LE 2.5: When zoomed into a document and scrolling horizontally by dragging with the stylus, the scrolling just doesn't stop and continues until the view hits the edge of the document! Is anybody else experiencing this?
Here's what I'm seeing in more detail: I zoom into a document (any document, textual or map-based) far enough that the document more than fills the available viewing area both vertically and horizontally. Then I tap and drag the document horizontally. At this point, after stopping dragging and until I lift the tip of the stylus, the document stops scrolling. But, as soon as I lift the tip of the stylus, the document restarts scrolling in the direction I just dragged it and just doesn't stop until it reaches the edge of the document in the scrolling direction. Trying to "catch" the document with the stylus during the scrolling in order to stop it is of no use.
I think I've also noticed that the first couple of attempts at scrolling immediately after opening a new document works fine. The problem sometimes only shows up in subsequent attempts.
This doesn't happen at all when scrolling vertically by dragging. It happens any time the dragging is "mostly" horizontal, but never when I drag "mostly" vertically.
Scrolling around using the scroll bars (by tapping the scroll bar or arrows, or dragging the scroll bar) works just fine.
Could one of you try this out and let me know if you're seeing the same thing?
Some more insights:
The size of the document doesn't seem to make any difference. Small documents or large, it happens every time.
I've played around with "non-linear" dragging. If I drag in an "L-shaped" motion, it appears that the problem only applies when the horizontal portion of the "L" is longer than its vertical portion. Dragging in circles and other jumbled motions produces mixed results.
I came across a map with "bookmarks", where a little "tab" appears near the top of the viewing area in Adobe Reader. When I click the tab, the window splits into two panes, with the top pane showing the bookmark list and the bottom showing the document. When in this mode, the problem disappears. Scrolling by dragging in either direction works perfectly. (And a little faster, oddly.) After I close the top pane, the problem returns. This is the main reason why I think this is an Adobe Reader bug, rather than a side effect of some other software or a setting change that I have on my Touch HD.
I used several other Windows Mobile devices before this one, and on all of them, the software I used for PDF documents was "Adobe Reader for Pocket PC 2.0". (This includes even my AT&T Tilt running WM 6.1.) This "Adobe Reader LE 2.5" is new to me. I wonder if there would be any adverse effects if I tried the 2.0 reader on my Touch HD. I'm worried it might clash with the built-in reader in some bad way. In fact, I'm sure the "Pocket PC 2.0" version of the reader doesn't support VGA (and higher) resolution screens. (I used to use a utility called "Real VGA" on my only other VGA PDA on which I used the Adobe Reader for Pocket PC 2.0 earlier, in order to get it to display documents at the right resolution.) Does anyone here have any experience related to this?
The whole issue evokes an attempt at "inertial scrolling" (not sure if that's what it's mostly called), where, if you "flick" the document with the stylus, the scrolling continues for a little while longer in the same direction after it slows down and stops. If that's what Adobe Reader is trying to do, it's certainly a failed attempt, because there's no sign of a slow down, it never stops, and this happens every time I scroll horizontally by dragging; i.e., even when I did nothing like a "flick".
Anybody have any relevant experiences?
No PDF users around??... Could I really be the only one here who views maps using the built-in Adobe Reader LE 2.5?!
Got something similar happening with PIE, not that that helps ya much!
When in desktop view, any drag continues until the screen is tapped again.
Hmmm... I don't use Pocket IE at all, but that's an interesting clue. Thanks.
I've noticed the issue with the scrolling on PDF documents that require a lot of rendering (note that "lots of rendering" reflects complexity of the document, not size).
It seems that the processor is too busy rendering the document to detect when you stopped dragging the screen (but funnily enough, not too busy to detect when you started).
The solution for me was to scroll using the scrolling bars, as opposed to just dragging the entire document. Either that, or scroll veeeryyy slowly .
milan_ns said:
I've noticed the issue with the scrolling on PDF documents that require a lot of rendering (note that "lots of rendering" reflects complexity of the document, not size).
It seems that the processor is too busy rendering the document to detect when you stopped dragging the screen (but funnily enough, not too busy to detect when you started).
The solution for me was to scroll using the scrolling bars, as opposed to just dragging the entire document. Either that, or scroll veeeryyy slowly .
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you for your feedback.
I had thought of the same thing about "the CPU being too busy to detect the end of dragging" too. To experiment with that, I tried waiting for the rotating "wait cursor" to disappear before lifting the stylus from the screen after a drag. It didn't change anything.
I must also state that I see the issue even with a 190 KB (i.e., small) PDF document with nothing but text in a table in it. I don't even see any delay or a "wait cursor" at any point when I'm interacting with this document. But, when I'm zoomed into it and I drag to scroll, it causes the same "neverending pan" behavior.
The point about the scroll bars is valid. I was just trying to check first whether the experience was common, or if it might be due to something goofy that I might have done myself. I guess it's the former...
If you press on the screen and then swipe your finger while maintaining pressure and then stop at the point you like, wait for a moment and then release your finger, you will have full control over the distance scrolled.
However, if you really want to make PDF reading a positive experience, intall diamond acrobat reader le cab that enables reflow on the documents that are not even tagged. It is available on this forum.
sproxy said:
If you press on the screen and then swipe your finger while maintaining pressure and then stop at the point you like, wait for a moment and then release your finger, you will have full control over the distance scrolled.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nope. Doesn't work for horizontal scrolling. It resumes scrolling in the same direction as soon as I lift my finger and doesn't stop until hits the edge of the document, no matter how long I "wait for a moment".
sproxy said:
However, if you really want to make PDF reading a positive experience, intall diamond acrobat reader le cab that enables reflow on the documents that are not even tagged. It is available on this forum.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not a bad idea. I might give that a try. Thanks.
Staying on topic about PDFs.
Does anyone know how a good software for the HD to read PDFs?
I went through Team Ones to PocketXPDF and they all had problems.
Team Ones was the best but it didn't seem to display the whole PDF at all, cutting parts at the end and it was heaps slow.
The Adobe one is just shocking.
Want one that wraps the text to fit the screen no matter what zoom, the Team One did this very well.
Do we have any solution for this? Reader 2.5 LE, with reflow mode enabled (needs a change in the registry) is just PERFECT to read eBooks, except for the horizontal scrolling issue. Because of that, I'm reading books in vertical mode.
does any body know how to disable the touchFlow for the reflow in the adobe reader 2.5?
True. It seems Reader 2.5 LE with reflow hack appears to be the best among all. But reflow can be very bad for certain documents..
What I think would be a perfect companion for Reader 2.5 LE would be a scroll hack app..
What the app should do?
1. User inputs the % he/she zoomed the given page for comfortable viewing.
2. Support tapping the 6 spots on screen see attach.(when the reader is running).
3.Scroll accurately the document into one of the 6 positions.
One input may be sufficient for a multipage documents with same lay out.
May be some more flaws in my idea... but seems possible --- anyone??
Too bad that I don't know prog for PPC.
Any way don't fire this newbie
montag09 said:
Do we have any solution for this? Reader 2.5 LE, with reflow mode enabled (needs a change in the registry) is just PERFECT to read eBooks, except for the horizontal scrolling issue. Because of that, I'm reading books in vertical mode.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Loving your new tablet but want more? Try some of these tips to add new experiences:
-Official Asus mini FAQ pdf HERE.
-Official English language manual HERE.
-----------
-If you have rooted your device, then applying the FOTA update (firmware over the air) from Asus will re-lock your device, as it enables signature checking. If you wish to keep root, either wait for a safe update to be released by a member of the forums, or don't update at all. If you have already updated from the original stock firmware you will have to wait for an updated root method.
*Root allows low level system access to all features of a device. Benefits include, but aren't restricted to, allowing everything to be backed up, blocking adverts, greater customisation, etc.*
-----------
-What apps are compatible?
Try HERE for a list.
-Getting lag from google search?
Set your home page instead of 'www.google.com' to 'www.google.com/webhp?complete=0'. This will remove the instant feature and give you lag free search results.
-Enable Quick Controls in web browser.
Open Browser>Settings>Labs>Quick Controls. Now go back to the browser window and swipe your fingers in from the side of the screen, for a cool options menu.
-Want a longer charging cable?
Certain USB 3.0 male to female extension cables may have the extra pins required to allow you to lengthen your cable. Failing this you could always use a mains lead to extend the electrical lead. Links HERE and HERE for more info. Full thread on cables working and not working HERE.
-Got a problem you can't seem to fix? Tablet locked up or become unresponsive? Speakers not working?
Try holding the power button down for 10-12 seconds, which will totally power off the device. This is different from other power down methods. It's fixed many people's various problems so it's worth a try if you are stuck.
-Install a different keyboard.
There are many keyboards available for tablet devices on the market. Settings>Language & Input>Keyboard Settings>Current Input Method. And if you hadnt noticed, the default Asus keyboard lets you swipe your finger to spell out words, just like Swype.
-Improve your wifi connection speed to the tablet.
Hold your pad vertically while facing the direction of your router or access point. You can get up to a 50% stronger signal just by doing this, as the aeriel is in the top of the device behind the screen. Also make sure your router is on a specific channel and not set to 'auto'. Use a free app such as 'Wifi Analyzer' to help you find the best channel.
-To store more files, expand your memory.
SDXC cards can be read by the keyboard dock. Format your new card to NTFS if you are planning on using files over 4gb. There is no need for partitions. If you are not planning on putting any files over 4gb on it, Fat32 filesystem is also an option.
-How can I get the best quality wallpaper as my background, and still have the scrolling effect?
For non rooted and rooted devices. Check THIS thread for an updated view of the wallpaper situation. Also a good app to help you create a wallpaper with the scrollable effect and still keep the quality is called 'Wallpaper Wizardrii' which is free from the market.
-What is the best resolution to make the wallpaper so I get that cool scrolling effect with the best quality onscreen when changing home screens?
For rooted devices. 2135 x 1408 pixels. The picture posted at the bottom of this post shows you the layout (credits to the Xoom forum people for this image). This is for adding wallpapers to the original directory once you are rooted. This way they are exactly the same resolution as the original 'asus tree' wallpaper. For reference, the middle area of the home screen is 1280x720 in size.
-Can I stop programs running when I start my device up?
You need to root your device and then you can install an app called Autostarts or Startup Manager which will allow you to disable apps that start up automatically.
-Change to an animated wallpaper.
Press and hold your finger on the home screen. Select Wallpaper>Live Wallpaper.
-How do I capture screenshots?
Settings>Screen>Screenshot Now go to the screen you want to take a picture of and hold down the task switching button for 1 second. Release and 1 second later it will take a screenshot. These are saved to sdcard/Screenshots/ in the file manager.
-How do I get into the bootloader?
Hold the volume down button and press the power button. Keep holding volume down until the screen lights up.
-Can I change the boot animation? (the animated 'Asus' logo at startup)
Details HERE.
-Add an internet bookmark list to your home page.
Press and hold finger on home screen. Widgets>Bookmarks
-Show the web browsing history.
Long press the back key in the default browser to show the last few websites you visited.
-Can I change the way web pages display in the default browser?
You can set the browser to tablet, desktop or mobile mode. This will tell the web server you are accessing, how your device should process a page and display it accordingly. It's recommended to set the option to desktop or tablet to make the most of the transformers large screen. To save on data costs when tethered, set it to mobile mode. Open the default browser. Open the browser settings>advanced>user agent string. Change it to whichever option you want. Close browser. Re-open. Should display the pages based on the option you chose.
-Add a finger pattern unlock screen.
Go to Settings>Location and Security>Configure Lock Screen>Pattern>Draw a pattern (and remember it)
-Use Battery Monitor Widget?
Set the battery to 6600mA instead of the default 1200mA. In battery monitor widget>settings>monitoring preferences>battery capacity (Check the underside of your box for the phrase '2CELL3300' to confirm, as there may be different versions for different countries). Setting it to this rating should give a more accurate reading for your battery stat tracking. (Thx to Edge929)
-You can plug other devices into the cable using a female usb to female usb connector.
Certain devices (such as usb memory sticks, keyboards, etc.) can be used via this method. Thread HERE with more info.
-How do I check battery usage?
Settings>About Tablet>Battery use>Click the graph OR Settings>Applications>Battery Use>Click the graph. Shows the system devices that have been using the battery.
-Email someone a lot? Add them to your home screen.
Press and hold home screen>Contact>Their Name. Adds a widget to the screen of your choice that lets you select a method of contacting them.
-What do the colours on the dock indicate?
Solid Green light = Battery above 95% charge.
Solid Orange (they call it orange, it's red on mine) = 10-95% charge.
Orange blinking = Battery less than 3-10% charge.
Orange fast blinking = Battery less than 3% charge.
-Hidden debug settings option in the default browser:
For advanced users. Changing these settings may dramatically affect performance. Type in about:debug into the default browser bar, then hit the options>settings>debug tab.
-Hidden easter egg in 3.1:
There's a honeycomb easter egg in 3.1. Tap the version number "3.1" in the settings>about tablet a few times.
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Got any handy tips? Let me know...
_______________
Maintaining these lists has started feeling like a job so if anyone feels like buying me a coffee (via the donate button) or a new house (wouldn't say no to that one ) it's much appreciated (I've made it through too many sleepless nights with a cup o' Joe lately). Or if you don't like that idea then please consider donating to The Red Cross, as they certainly deserve it a lot more than I do.
The browser quick shortcuts was new to me, thank you
Helium_Junkie said:
The browser quick shortcuts was new to me, thank you
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No problem. If anyone has any more, please let me know and i'll add to the list.
I was gonna open a thread on it but saw this one.
Another tips is that since we are going to see updates more often, please don't update it as soon as you see "new update" available. Wait for it, give it sometime. As we've already seen a thread where user bricked their transformer because of an update...
If its working, don't fix it.
Someone has to risk it. If no one will update we'll never know if it's safe to do.
dotpro said:
I was gonna open a thread on it but saw this one.
Another tips is that since we are going to see updates more often, please don't update it as soon as you see "new update" available. Wait for it, give it sometime. As we've already seen a thread where user bricked their transformer because of an update...
If its working, don't fix it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
New tips added...
Right... as of 28th April the first post is updated with as much stuff as I could find from the entire Transformer section of the forums. I'm sure I've missed a fair few things that could be added, so please send me any useful tips that you think others might like to use, or that may help improve their devices. Thanks.
swype
Looks like swype keyboard works w/o needing to download anything... just try swyping on your keyboard!
aarofloyd said:
Looks like swype keyboard works w/o needing to download anything... just try swyping on your keyboard!
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Thanks, I forgot to add that earlier. Added now.
screenshot function under settings > screen
This is really dumb
Sorry for asking this ..but this is my first tablet How do you get rid of the widgets from the homepage?? I have added about 4 email widgets by trying to get rid of one.
I dont see and delete option. Plus if any of you know where I could learn more about working this thing that would be great.
Just joined and trying to learn ASAP.Thanks for the help in advance.
long press on the widget in question and drag it to the trashcan in the upper right corner of the screen.
seshmaru said:
long press on the widget in question and drag it to the trashcan in the upper right corner of the screen.
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Thanks !!! worked like a charm.
If you have any other questions I'll be watching this thread for instant replies
Mr Dude said:
Sorry for asking this ..but this is my first tablet How do you get rid of the widgets from the homepage?? I have added about 4 email widgets by trying to get rid of one.
I dont see and delete option. Plus if any of you know where I could learn more about working this thing that would be great.
Just joined and trying to learn ASAP.Thanks for the help in advance.
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Hold the widget till you can move it and drag it to the upper right where you see remove
Sent from my Transformer TF101 using Tapatalk
Thanks guys one more question how do you close close multi windows..say like youtube ....camera....email setup window.???
just press back till you reach the homescreen
seshmaru said:
just press back till you reach the homescreen
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Still now luck I still have on the left side 5 windows email browser places weather and youtube. I have tried clicking on each window then hitting the back arrow still there.
oh you mean that, that isn't actually open apps, those are just most recently used apps. Doesn't mean they're still running. To make the 5 windows go away just press anywhere besides the 5 windows.
seshmaru said:
oh you mean that, that isn't actually open apps, those are just most recently used apps. Doesn't mean they're still running. To make the 5 windows go away just press anywhere besides the 5 windows.
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Ok ..got it ..thanks man. First 2 hours with this thing
Hi. I'm unsure if this is covered elsewhere. If so, please disregard.
After getting the OTA 3.2 upgrade (unrooted; obviously), I noticed a bug. If I had any applications that weren't set as the default app for a specific piece of functionality, then the option to choose which app to use no longer appears.
For example, prior to 3.2, if I clicked on a bookmark, I was prompted whether to use the default browser or Opera. I didn't set either to use as a default because I may use one or the other depending on the situation at the time since both treat pages differently.
Another example of this shows up when clicking on either the ASUS weather widget or the weather info on Beautiful Widgets. Again, clicking on the forecast for either of these will call up a browser page but since I didn't have a default one selected, the screen dims, but no option to choose a browser appears.
This isn't limited to the browser. I'm getting the same "dim screen, no option to choose" with other programs that had no default option set, such as movies. Prior to 3.2, clicking on an MP4 movie asked me if I wanted to view in the gallery or PowerAMP. Now.. ..nothing. Dim screen. Clicking anywhere or hitting 'back' returns to the screen without the file being played.
It seems any attempt to launch any file or in-app link that points to a link or file that is unassigned results with the same "dim screen" road block.
Anyone else experiencing this? or am I the only lucky one getting this frustrating bug?
Edit: Possible temporary fix...
Quick afterthought. It may be possible with some apps to set "use as default" for a specific file type in the app settings and this may fix this issue for myself and any others. Personally, I don't want to do this. I like being able to choose on the fly and would like this bug fixed. Still, if it's going to be weeks until a fix arrives, I may need to use this workaround (if it is even possible for all my affected associations) so I'm not standing still till a patch comes.
UPDATE:
While I can't be sure this fixed the problem, I undocked the tablet and removed both a 16GB MicroSD (from the unit) and a 16 GB SD (from the dock) and then re-inserted both memory cards and the tablet into the dock. After that, my links called up the association window again. I 'believe' it was reseating the tablet into the dock that corrected the issue, but ejecting and putting the memory cards may have been the answer. Note to self: check results after 'each' step.
Just tested this on mine and no I do not have this issue, I still get all the prompts for what to open stuff in be in links or videos from file managers etc
I just noticed this problem too. Very annoying, reverting to previous firmware...
I got this bug too. I tried the above solution as suggested but no luck. Then i tried another one from one of the threads here. It works!
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=16100385&postcount=4
Hell, my bookmarks don't even open at all.
There is no pinch-to-zoom either.
Edit: tried the above & it did work how strange. I have auto rotate turned off.
Regarding this bug in the default program selection when trying to run videos or pictures from file managers. As D3StRuCtO posted the link to the "cant play videos in stock players" thread, nego_0 posted a fix for non-dock users and this is verified a working fix. Simply turn your TF 90 degrees to portrait mode and go through the selection process. it works. Go back to landscape mode and everything is good again... Thank you nego_0! If you have a dock like me, just undock the TF and go through the selection process in the file managers and it woked. Redock the TF and everything is good again. It is a weird bug and I never would have found the fix without this forum. Thanks again! Our members ROCK!
*EDIT*
I found other programs that were supposed to bring up the "complete action using" selection that would simply dim the screen and not give you the option to choose are now fixed as well. It didn't seem to be limited to pictures and videos.
Removing the dock and putting it back on seem to have solved the problem. Thanks for the tip!
OK I did some more tests: upon a reboot with the dock on, the problem was back. With the tablet in the "stuck" state, I removed the dock and the selection screen magically appeared.
I had this very same problem. No dock or SD here... Did the portrait - landscape rotation cycle and everything is solved now.
Regards.
This makes for a workaround, and I'm thankful for that, but I think the underlying problem is that while in Landscape mode, the OS won't go through the process of asking for a choice of browser, and you can't make the rotation with the keyboard attached. I went through the removal and rotation, and that was fine until I reattached the keyboard and was back where I started.
I had to remove it a second time, and this time assigned a default browser, then subsequently was able to operate properly with the keyboard back on. This problem is going to confuse the heck out of casual users, and ASUS will need to fix it pronto.
JoTeC said:
Regarding this bug in the default program selection when trying to run videos or pictures from file managers. As D3StRuCtO posted the link to the "cant play videos in stock players" thread, nego_0 posted a fix for non-dock users and this is verified a working fix. Simply turn your TF 90 degrees to portrait mode and go through the selection process. it works. Go back to landscape mode and everything is good again... Thank you nego_0! If you have a dock like me, just undock the TF and go through the selection process in the file managers and it woked. Redock the TF and everything is good again. It is a weird bug and I never would have found the fix without this forum. Thanks again! Our members ROCK!
*EDIT*
I found other programs that were supposed to bring up the "complete action using" selection that would simply dim the screen and not give you the option to choose are now fixed as well. It didn't seem to be limited to pictures and videos.
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Thanks for the shout out! Im glad i was not the only one who had hit the dim screen default application bug.
nego_0 said:
Thanks for the shout out! Im glad i was not the only one who had hit the dim screen default application bug.
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Unfortunally this was the first problem I noticed. It happens all over again when you shut the unit off and restart with the dock plugged it. I guess with this official thread maybe someone from Asus will notice it? Not holding my breath. Wonder if full factory datat reset will help. I've found when updating android on my phone tht helps wierd problems but don't want to have to go through all the re-setting up and downloading of my programs.
What a hassel. I guess when they officially begin supporting 3.2 over the phone line I can get them to resolve? Not holding my breath for that either.
I've been thinking about this further and think I might at least be able to point to the culprit (granted, in a 'shoot an arrow into the air' and you're bound to hit something manner).
Recently, ASUS made a change to the way the tablet behaves when docked. Specifically, in the way the auto-rotate functions while docked. Prior to this change, you could view your screen in portrait mode (even if docked) by turning the entire tablet + keyboard 90° or more. After the change, the screen locks at landscape oriented with the tablet in place. Flip it around now and it stays oriented (even upside-down).
With some applications, display boxes are written to start in a specific orientation which will then flip based on the current viewing angle. Since Android was (first and foremost) a phone OS (that uses portrait as it's main orientation), it may start most pieces of functionality such as display of the "choose desired app" dialog box in portrait mode but rotates it based on a call to the current device orientation status. However, I'm wondering if the OS can't reconcile that it is in landscape mode because auto-rotate has been turned off with the change ASUS made when the tablet is docked (making it specifically an auto-rotate issue), or if this change is blocking the dialog in another fashion due to the way ASUS programmed this functionality to communicate with the OS (making this a 'ASUS isn't playing well with Google' issue).
In short, this may be a bug relating to either a "auto-rotate / forced orientation" toggle, or a bug with the ASUS "lock orientation while docked" functionality.
It could also be related to the new "default size / zoom to view" 3.2 functionality mixed with a locked viewing angle.
Thoughts?
Edit: Just did a test. Rebooted the tablet (while docked) and the bug occurred; as expected. I lifted the tablet out of the dock but didn't change the orientation. I just simply lifted it up, then set it back into the dock. When I launched an html link, it now works. I know that some users (without docks) are able to fix this by simply changing orientation after booting. The process of unseating, then reseating may be providing a similar function as changing the orientation does with a dock-less tablet.
Just to say that, as stated by others, as soon as I rebooted the bug came back. I rotated it and the bug disappeared, but I sure hope that Asus solves this on a future OTA.
Regards.
CalvinH said:
Just to say that, as stated by others, as soon as I rebooted the bug came back. I rotated it and the bug disappeared, but I sure hope that Asus solves this on a future OTA.
Regards.
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It is bit ridculous that the bug comes back aftrer a reboot. I guess with 3.2 we are supposed to reboot?
I'm not 100% sure about this but don't Android apps actually shut down and restart instantly when the orientation is changed?... so doing this restarts the Launcher?
And the same happens when removing and inserting into the dock? launcher restarts...
Try this... reboot in one orientation and test and try the other.. i.e. Boot in Portrait and see if the bug is there then change to landscape to see if that fixed it... then boot in landscape and test..
Hey all, I like using the phone one handed and zoom buttons are essential. I also like being able to zoom with just a tap, as opposed to more convoluted methods (xScope/Naked Browser, I'm looking at you...). But the stock Android zoom buttons are ugly and less functional than the ones I had way back when on 2.2 (Bionix for the Samsung Vibrant).
Could anyone tell me where in could find the images for the Zoom buttons? I'd like to replace them with the ones from an older ROM, mentioned above. Think it would be somewhere in the SystemUI.apk?
If anyone is curious, the buttons I would prefer are transparent circles with a black outline. They're a good bit easier to press and you can see elements that would otherwise be obscured.
I'm the developer of Naked Browser. Naked Browser has the option to enable/disable the zoom buttons. It also has the option to enable/disable one-finger zoom. It also allows zoom with just a double-tap. Am I missing something?
aminaked said:
I'm the developer of Naked Browser. Naked Browser has the option to enable/disable the zoom buttons. It also has the option to enable/disable one-finger zoom. It also allows zoom with just a double-tap. Am I missing something?
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Oh snap. No, it's just that one-finger drag zoom has poor performance (just isn't as smooth as it is on xScope). But I love your browser. It's why I mentioned it specifically. My niggle isn't to do specifically with Naked Browser or any other app, it's a system conflict. I think the stock zoom buttons are ugly and I want to swap them out with the zoom buttons I used on a different browser. It's easier to tap a round circle than it is to hit a little tic-tac. Also, the zoom buttons sometimes obscure elements in the bottom right and I have to wait until they fade out, so the transparent zoom circle buttons I mentioned in the first post would solve both of these issues. Rather than having you bloat up your fantastically minimal app, I'd prefer to do my own tinkering and fix the zoom buttons across my system.
I just wanted to say, your browser is fantastic. I found out about it just randomly perusing the big Android Themes and Apps forum and gave it a try. It's my default browser now. While I have your attention, if I could make a suggestion: you know how you have the swipe-from-edge toggle so the menu bars don't appear with unexpected frequency? It works great for making sure the bookmarks bar only opens with deliberate swipes. However, if you could provide a separate toggle for the address and tab bar, that'd be great. I never had a problem with the top bars appearing unintentionally. It's not much of a nuisance. However, in one-handed use, I have to reposition the phone in my hand and then swipe from the top to bring down that bar. On a big phone like the Nexus 4, you can understand how that extra little bit of effort adds up over a long browsing session.
Very cool. Thank you very much.
Let me address what you brought up:
One finger zoom in Naked Browser isn't as smooth as it is on xScope because:
- xScope is for newer devices. Naked Browser supports Froyo and newer and so far I've found that that kind of zooming isn't easy on older devices. That's really not much of an excuse because I could work on it. However, it could take days to figure out. I'm focusing on other features and bug fixes right now. Furthermore,
- I haven't used xScope in a long time but one finger zoom seems to work good enough in Naked Browser (no?). For comparison, it seems to work like crap in Google Maps, last I checked.
Regarding changing the zoom button pix, I use a smaller screen than you so I don't like the +/- buttons in a browser. I pinch zoom and I do it with one hand: small phone / big hands. Regardless, I'm adding your request to my list of items for the pro version.
Regarding adding the separate option for the menu gestures, I added those options (double swipe & swipe from edge) as afterthoughts. I feel that an experienced user of Naked Browser should turn both of these off because they've developed a feel for the menus, knowing instinctively how to avoid opening the bookmarks sidebar and top menu. For me it took about a week to get comfortable with it. Now, I think it is very efficient.
That being said, I may have messed up the gesture settings for larger screens as I don't have a tablet. What do you think about all this? Is it very hard to avoid opening the bookmarks menu? Tell me more about it, please.
Anyway, I hope you have luck changing the +/- on your devices and I do appreciate your feedback on Naked Browser. You're one of the few people I've seen mention stuff like this. Got my attention!
This is hijacking your thread for my app, so if you want to PM me or join me in the xda naked browser thread the feel free.
Thanks again, man. :good:
Hey, you've got a great app and I certainly don't mind helping it get more exposure. I know it's not a priority for you right now, but if it gets really popular, I'm sure you'll add a ton of lightweight features. That's how xScope became the best browser on Gingerbread!
On my Nexus 4, I've found that the bookmarks menu shows up by accident much more often than the URL/tab bar, and it's much more obtrusive when it does. It'd be nice to disable the bookmarks bar. I actually use the bookmarks menu a ton, so perhaps a better option would be to incorporate the menu button menu with the the bookmarks menu.
Also, I'm not sure if my options are causing it or its an inherent behavior, but it's inconvenient to have to scroll all the way to the top to bring up the URL/tab bar. I really wouldn't mind if it appeared every time I made any downward swipe. Maybe to accommodate other users, make the top half or quarter of the screen a zone that can pull up the URL/tab bar when the user swipes down from that region.
I basically want the navigation features of xScope but with the minimal, clean appearance of Naked Browser. I stopped using xScope because it's so bloated and unstable now. Naked Browser is 90% perfect for me. The 10% is just the menu behavior and tab navigation. xScope, for example, uses double tap and left/right to navigate between adjacent tabs while double tap and up/down to zoom. But if this decreases performance as it did on xScope, I'm happy with Naked Browser the way it is.
Maybe I need to optimize the swipe sensitivity for devices like the Nexus 4. I need to check one out, but for now the next update will reduce sensitivity somewhat. Regarding the separate gesture options, I had thought about adding them but I was resistant because I don't want to clutter the options view. However, I think it is the right thing to have and you've convinced me of how sorely it is needed. The next update will have them! I've tried it out and I like it.
If you press the device menu key it should show the top menu from anywhere on the page. Devices without a menu key should have 3 dots in a row that act as the menu key. Making it appear for every downward swipe is an interesting idea. I think that this would be more suited for larger screens though. I will make a note of this idea. There already is an option to start gestures from the screen edge for both URL bar and sidebar.
I haven't used xScope in years and it doesn't run on any of my devices. I think that if you give Naked Browser some time (about a week) you'll start to become accustomed to the menus. If you can get past the frustrating phase I think that you may find that the menus are very efficient. Of course, if the gesture sensitivity is wrong for your device then that's a different story. I really need to check this out.
Double-tap and swipe to change tabs shouldn't cause much of a performance problem (although I'd have to try it out to know for sure). I was going to allow customizations of this sort of thing in the pro version. For example, double tap and swipe to go quickly to the very top or bottom of the web page. The volume buttons could be used in the same way.
Thank you for the feedback. I appreciate it!
I figured out where the zoom buttons are. They're in framework-res.apk/res/drawable-xhdpi.