Tasker is a very versatile tool for controlling your Android device. The more I learn about it, the more I want to learn. For that reason, I am starting this thread which I hope will be a place for people to not only ask specific advanced questions about Tasker, but also to show off the tricks and hoops they have been able to accomplish with Tasker and its plug-ins.
Example:
To start the ball rolling, and provide an example of what I think this thread should be about, here is an example of an advanced Tasker profile.
Time Recording Pro has a plug-in for Tasker. Following their FAQ to their Product Help page provides Public App Services and some basic directions for creating a task which (with Google Calendar Sync) will create timeclock-like punches.
Public App Services
'Time Recording' provides these public services for 3rd party check-in and check-out integration.
Broadcast receivers
com.dynamicg.timerecording.CHECK_IN
com.dynamicg.timerecording.CHECK_OUT
com.dynamicg.timerecording.PUNCH
Activities
com.dynamicg.timerecording.activity.CHECK_IN
com.dynamicg.timerecording.activity.CHECK_OUT
Sample setup in the 'Tasker' app:
1. Create a Task
2. Add an Action of type 'Action Intent' (found under category Misc)
3. Set Action=com.dynamicg.timerecording.CHECK_IN, Cat=None, Target=BroadcastReceiver
4. Done.
5. Hit the "Test" button
By creating a context of Cell Nearby (and scanning or entering the cells at a physical location), I have created a task to turn WiFi on, turn BT, Cell Data and GPS off, and record a time-punch to my calendar when I arrive at a site. These tasks are reversed when leaving. This not only saves battery at a site without using GPS, but also automatically records time at a location for Time Billing purposes.
The limitation of this is the time-stamp is fairly generic. I have tried entries in the Extra and other fields of the Action, but not had success creating anything more specific. So it is a very useful context, but has room for improvement.
Challenge:
Another situation that advanced Tasker development would resolve would be overriding the default function of hard buttons on a device. For example, creating a task that changes the default camera app that is launched by long pressing the hard camera button. You can imagine the possibilities are nearly endless for reprogramming the hard buttons, and the potential for problems equally vast. What is needed to accomplish this, however, would be some knowledge of the actions and broadcast receivers similar to those provided by Time Recording Pro. I suspect android programmers might be able to provide some of that information.
Summary:
I hope this thread will start a discussion. Tasker is a very versatile app with numerous plug-ins that offer the ability to accomplish extraordinary control without the need to develop a special app. Whether or not my specific examples are commented on or improved upon, I think there needs to be a better forum for Tasker users to gather and help each other.
Thanks
I'm reviving this old thread in scope of getting some help. As you can see here the list of intents has grown a little bit.
What I'm trying to achieve and can't manage is to get info back to Tasker about the current status of Time Recording.
I presume that com.dynamicg.timerecording.GET_INFO should be called and then wait for an answer on com.dynamicg.timerecording.RESULT, but I cannot seem to get this working.
Thanks!
This app is currently running and working on the Skyrocket using Embryo 5.1 Big thanks to Fahrbot for making this work for ICS users currently a feature like this is only going to working for JB only
Please Make sure to show your support to Fahrbot by purchasing this app Pro key
As featured on Lifehacker, Engadget, XDA Developers and many more!
SwitchMe is a unique application for root users that allows you to log in and out of multiple user spaces just as you would on a desktop computer, with each profile having its own separate system settings, apps and data.
Some of the benefits of this technology:
Privacy - Securely share one device among many users, protect your accounts with passwords and log out automatically.
Kids - Create a profile for the kids, with only the apps and access you feel comfortable with.
Gaming - Overclock your profile for maximum performance in intensive games
Speed - Imagine a buttery smooth profile, with no kids games, messengers or bloatware to slow things down.
Testing - Create a sandbox profile to easily test applications and themes - no more nandroid nightmares!
Battery - Switch to a profile which only contains the essentials to save power through brute force.
CRITICAL USAGE WARNING:
Incorrect use of this application can potentially harm your device. Before proceeding with use we strongly recommend that you perform a full nandroid backup through the device recovery.
CM 10 is not officially supported and milage will vary.
READ THE HELP FILE CAREFULLY TO AVOID ISSUES
Without the Key, this application allows a maximum of 2 profiles and no security features.
Only the standard Android implementation of Apps2SD is currently supported. Use all others at your own risk.
Most devices should be compatible as long as they have enough free internal memory to create secondary profiles. The application will warn users if available memory is low.
Stay tuned for new features, and please rate the application by pressing the star button on the main screen - good ratings help us improve and expand functionality!
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=fahrbot.apps.switchme#?t=W251bGwsMSwxLDIxMiwiZmFocmJvdC5hcHBzLnN3aXRjaG1lIl0.
I wrote this app mainly for fun and to explore android, but I thought I would share it here in case anyone finds it useful.
HasItChanged is intended for personal use when a website you're interested in updates irregularly, but you still want to know when it changes. Instead of firing up your browser only to find nothing has changed, let your phone do it for you!
While the app does have the ability to keep track and notify you when a site goes down, it is not intended to be a professional uptime tracking tool. Please don't use for sensitive or critical purposes.
Features
Ability to specify individual update intervals
Utilizes Android's built-in sync mechanism to reduce battery usage [This requires the Identity Permission]
Doesn't just check to see if it's up (although you certainly can); only be notified when the website changes!
Utilize HTTP content caching technologies to reduce network usage
Control specifics such as connection timeouts and network usage
Supports HTTP/HTTPS/FTP connections
No ads. Open source. Feel free to contribute!
Please submit bug reports via Github. Feature requests welcome! As this is a purely hobby project, no support is guaranteed, although I'll certainly try to do my best!
Play Store
Bug report
The app doesn't work for many websites, for example mojang.com, YouTube channels or YouTube Playlists. Every check if the website changed gives a positive result, so I keep getting notifications for those sites. I tried with smart compare on and off and also cache on and off.
The Android M developer preview was launched today at Google I/O 2015 in San Francisco. Sundar Pichai, senior vice president of products at Google, introduced the conference and said that the company had "gone back to basics" with the new version of Android. While Android Lollipop introduced a brand new design and aesthetic, Android M is bringing some much-needed stability and usability improvements, which might not be as immediately arresting, but may prove to be significant long-term additions.
Dave Burke, vice president of engineering at Google, followed Pichai on stage to outline six of the major new features you can expect to see in Android M.
Which phones will get the Android M update first?
1. App permissions
First up, app permissions. As had previously been speculated, app permissions have been overhauled in Android M, with users now being able to choose to accept or deny individual permissions as they see fit. Permissions have also been simplified.
Permissions will now be requested the first time you try to use a feature, not at the point of installation. "You don't have to agree to permissions that don't make sense to you," Burke said, and used WhatsApp to give an example of how this works.
If you want to record a voice message, WhatsApp will prompt you with a one-time request for permission to use your mic: if you still wish to give it access and record the message, you can, but you don't have to. Android M is giving users greater control of the information apps can access, and this is a truly positive step forward for Android.
You can modify the permissions granted to apps at a later date in your Settings, or you can view permissions by type and see which apps have that permission granted. It's all about giving the user complete control over their Android.
2. Web experience
Google has been exploring trends in the way web content is consumed to provide a better user-experience when interacting with websites and apps. "Chrome Custom Tabs is a new feature that gives developers a way to harness all of Chrome's capabilities, while still keeping control of the look and feel of the experience," said Burke.
Chrome Custom Tabs will allow apps to open a customized Chrome window on top of the active app, instead of launching the Chrome app separately. This will provide a faster and more intuitive user-experience when navigating between apps and the web.
Chrome Custom Tabs supports automatic sign-in, saved passwords, autofill, and multi-process security to assist the integration of the app and web experience. So, for example, a Pinterest custom tab will have a Pinterest share button embedded in it, can include custom overflow menu options and doesn't require the Pinterest developers to build their own web browser.
3. Fingerprint support
Google will "standardize support" for fingerprint scanners on phones running Android M. The new functionality will allow fingerprint scanners to be used not only to unlock phones, but to make purchases shopping in real-life or within Play Store apps.
Of course, your device will need a hardware fingerprint scanner to begin with, but with Google's full support, expect to see these appear on many more devices in the future.
4. Mobile payments
Android Pay is Google's new mobile payments system designed to make the checkout process easier and faster. Google is aiming to provide "simplicity, security, and choice," with Android Pay, allowing you to use your existing credit cards to pay for products in more than 700,000 stores in the US.
Compatible with any device housing NFC capabilities (and running 4.4 KitKat or above), the Android Pay platform is being supported by American Express, Visa, Mastercard, and Discover, as well as carriers such as AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile. Google's response to Apple pay is here.
5. App links
"When a user selects a weblink from somewhere, Android doesn't know whether to show it in a web-browser, or some other app that claims support for the link," this was the problem facing the Google developers before Android M.
You may be familiar with the "Open with" dialogue box which appears when you try to open a link within an app on Android. You might be asked if you want to open a link with YouTube, or with Chrome, for example.
App links are being changed in M so that Android has a greater awareness of which apps can open content directly, instead of stopping users every time with the dialog box. If you tap a Twitter link in an email, for example, the Twitter app will open automatically instead of prompting you to ask if you want to use Twitter to view it.
This is almost a blink-and-you'll-miss-it improvement, but it's representative of Google's attention to detail: Android M is probably going to feel more usable without the user ever understanding why.
6. Power and charging
Android M makes use of a new function known as Doze to improve device standby time. By using motion detectors, Android will recognize when devices haven’t been interacted with for a while, such as when a person is asleep or a device has been left on a table, to reduce background processes.
Burke said that Google tested two Nexus 9 devices, one running Lollipop and one running the Android M preview, and learned that M will provide up to two-times longer standby time. Even in Doze mode, your Android can still start alarms or notify you of priority notifications.
Android M also supports USB Type-C which provides faster charging, and lets users charge other devices with their phone.
Android M release date
The Android M Developer Preview is available today for Nexus 5, Nexus 6, Nexus 9 and Nexus Player, and the final version is due to launch in Q3, 2015.
What else is in new in Android M?
Auto Backup and Restore for Apps
Possibly the most interesting aspect of Android M not discussed in Google’s I/O keynote speech was Android Auto Backup and Restore for Apps. This feature will be used in conjunction with Google Drive to automatically backup app data and settings with a file size of 25 MB or less.
These backups occur no more than once per day, and run only when the device is idle and connected to Wi-Fi and power. The uploaded data does not count towards your Google Drive storage quota, and is encrypted.
If you lose your device or delete the app, your previous progress will be restored the next time you install it, and it even works with apps which are side-loaded or accessed through a third-party app store.
New app drawer
One of the most immediately noticeable visual changes to Android M is the new app drawer. This now scrolls vertically instead of horizontally, and is held against a white background, rather than a muted shade of your homepage wallpaper. Across the top of the menu you will see your four most recently used apps, and down the left-hand side are the letters of the alphabet.
Android M RAM manager
Google has introduced a new RAM manager to Android M with the aim of providing users with more accurate and comprehensible information regarding the maximum and average RAM usage of apps.
The menu can be found in Settings > Apps > Options (three dots button) > Advanced > Memory. Though it's a little hard to navigate to, the page offers a far clearer insight into app demands, and the overall effect they will have on your device.
With a reading of an individual app's RAM consumption, as well as how often it is running in the background, users will be able to better determine which apps should be removed in endless bid to increase device performance and battery life.
Android M even includes a simple bar at the top of the page displaying the current performance status of a person's handset; if it says "good performance", you're likely running an efficient set of apps.
Adoptable Storage Devices
Though Google has in the past tried to step away from external storage use (the reason why none of its Nexus devices house a microSD card slot), it appears that Android M is striking a compromise.
Adoptable Storage Devices is Google's new storage feature which essentially takes an external storage source (such as an SD card or USB drive) and formats it like an internal storage space. This means that app and personal data can be moved freely between a devices internal storage and its "adopted" storage source.
Adopted storage devices are wrapped in a layer of encryption to soothe security concerns and both microSD cards and USB OTG drives are currently supported.
Google Now
Google Now has been improved upon once again in Android M. Focusing on three key ares: being aware of different contexts, providing answers and helping you take action, Google Now is now smarter than ever.
Google Now's context awareness understand over 100 million different places, so when you ask ''How far is it to there?'' Google Now know exactly which ''there'' you're referring to. This awareness is compounded by Google's Knowledge Graph, which understands one billion different entities, from sports teams to gas stations, TV shows to recipes.
Google Now is also rolling out a pilot program called ''Now on Tap'' with 100 popular apps. Now on Tap provides Google Now-like content right where you are, without having to leave the app you're in. So if you're in Spotify and say ''Ok Google, what is his real name?'' Now on Tap will know you're talking about the musician you're listening to and provide search results right there an then.
The same goes for content in emails. If someone asks you a question about a restaurant and to not forget something on your way home, Now on Tap can automatically pop up a restaurant card with Maps info, Yelp, OpenTable and the dialer, as well as offer to set a reminder for whatever it was you were supposed to not forget.
Google Chrome
Chrome is also leaner and faster than ever before. Initially revamped with Android One devices in mind, where stable and speedy internet connections are not always possible, Chrome's new optimizations are set to arrive for everyone.
Chrome is now aware of network strength and can modify what you see as a result. For example, if your connection is bad, you might see colored squares rather than preview images in Search results. Optimized web pages will load four times faster and use 80 percent fewer bytes. You'll also see a memory usage reduction of up to 80 MB. Chrome will also support offline mode.
Google Photos
As expected, Google pulled the wraps off its new Google Photos service. Previously a part of Google+, Google Photos is now standalone photo and video storage and sharing service that provides unlimited free storage for up to 16 MP photos and 1080p video. That is seriously impressive.
The Google Photos service stores high-quality compressed versions of your photos and movies but doesn't store anything on your device, so you can search through thousands of photos at high speed and without bogging your device down with gigabytes of photos.
Popular features like Auto-Awesome and Stories are a key highlight, accessible through a new Assistant feature, which will automatically suggest creative uses of your images and footage. Through simple pinch gestures you can see tiled images for particular days, weeks, months or even years and then zoom right back in at any point you like.
Google Photos is also powerful for search, as you'd expect. You can search by People, Places, Things and Types, which are all automatically created, and you can drill down in each of those categories to see, for example, every picture you have of a particular person, all without ever tagging them.
Sharing is also a breeze. You don't even need you contacts to have the Google Photos app. You can simply share a link that they can view in Chrome. If they are logged in they can easily download an entire album in seconds.
Are you impressed by what Google has been up to in Android M? What would you have liked to have seen?
First off, if you're going to copy & paste something from another Android site, it helps to at least give credit to the original writer of the article (I have supplied a link to the original article below). Second, please post in the correct forum. The Apps & Games forum is the wrong place for this sort of post.
http://www.androidpit.com/android-m-release-date-news-features-name
Thread closed.
Hi Everyone,
Hopefully this is not considered spamming the community. I'm not selling anything!
I've been working on advanced AI for over a decade and have finally gotten it to a point where I've been able to turn it into a startup. Most experts are skeptical to our claims that we've built the first artificial general intelligence, but we will reveal our algorithms and theory at AI World Conference & Expo this November. You can read more about us here: http://www.techworld.com/big-data/what-is-artificial-general-intelligence-3645268/ and http://www.geekwire.com/2016/kimera-systems-nigel-ai-agi/
Anyway, back to my point. We're looking to bring our AI to the masses. We have no interest in building front-end apps and instead would prefer to work with Android developers who has an existing app with existing users and is interested in adding advanced AI to their app. Like I mentioned, we are not charging developers for adding our tech - 100% free.
To give you an idea what the AI does - Initially it sits in the background and just observes. Eventually it will start doing stuff based on what it learns from observing people. For example, it has learned to silence your phone at the movie theater. Previously (before we launched) the AI had learned enough to go out and find "web apps" - for example at a restaurant the AI would pull up a restaurant menu, personalize the menu and even "reprogram" the app to add functionality unique to that user in that moment. It also was able to auto-respond to text messages.
The Android apps I've envisioning would work great with this are lock screen apps, personal assistants, launchers, automation apps, custom ROMs and other apps that are designed to personalize devices.
If you'd like to chat, pm me.
Cheers,
Mo
how is this work ?