Howdy. My friend Steve and I made Sesame so we wouldn’t have to swipe around looking for things anymore.
It puts your favorite apps in a ranked list on the lock screen along with a keyboard that can filter to pretty much anything in 1 or 2 touches. What’s cool about Sesame is that it learns from your behavior and makes new shortcuts deep into native apps.
This thing is like a power tool for Android. It takes some getting used to but it’s worth it.
Shortcuts it makes today
All your apps (ranked by how often you use them)
All contacts w/ 1 touch to text, call, or email (WhatsApp too!)
Websites you visit (but not when browsing incognito)
Music library and new stuff you listen to (Spotify only atm but expanding soon)
You can Quick Search: Maps, Waze, Netflix, Spotify, Google Music, Chrome, Play Store, Yelp and YouTube
It makes shortcuts back to your searches
Hangouts conversations, including groups
Alarms you set
Uber/Lyft see live ride options w/ ETA & Surge Pricing
Smart Keyboard
The keyboard is designed to pull things up fast. It’s not swipe, it’s faster. You don’t need to type full words. It understands shorthand, so if I want to play music by Ratatat I can type ’S’ for Spotify then ‘R’ and 'Spotify: Ratatat' will come right up. It also learns from your choices so next time only ’S’ might get the job done.
Lock Screen and/or App Switcher
The Lock Screen version displays your notifications and keeps your existing security 100% intact. Note: some device types see display issues when transitioning from Sesame to the system lock screen. If that happens, you can still use it as an app switcher.
There’s no registration and none of the data leaves your device.
It’s still got some rough edges. If you do try it, give it a shot for a few days. Our test users said it took some getting used to but they’d never go back now. We try to get out 2-3 new versions a week. So please give feedback, we want to make it better!
It’s free in the play store, check it out!
Will take it for a spin and give feedback later. thanks.
Hey, I'm Steve. I'm the developer working on this. Happy to answer any questions on how this works.
Hope you like it!
GerManiac said:
Will take it for a spin and give feedback later. thanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How'd it go?
We pushed a new update. Version 0.5.16 now makes Reddit shortcuts and has an improved keyboard.
This post didn't exactly catch fire irl like it did in my dreams but if you've tried it and want to give feedback, we're definitely listening. Cheers.
Pwallius said:
How'd it go?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So far so good. I think it's a great idea, and you made the idea into a fantastic app, but I for myself noticed that I hardly launch apps or anything from the lock screen, since I automatically unlock my phone with the fingerprint.
GerManiac said:
So far so good. I think it's a great idea, and you made the idea into a fantastic app, but I for myself noticed that I hardly launch apps or anything from the lock screen, since I automatically unlock my phone with the fingerprint.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What if you could launch it by swiping from the edge of the screen? I'm thinking the upper right edge is easily reachable and out of the way. You could swipe and pull down to pull Sesame up right away.
Lots of people just aren't interested in changing their lock screen but I do think there's some potential here. Thanks!
Pwallius said:
What if you could launch it by swiping from the edge of the screen? I'm thinking the upper right edge is easily reachable and out of the way. You could swipe and pull down to pull Sesame up right away.
Lots of people just aren't interested in changing their lock screen but I do think there's some potential here. Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That sounds good, however, maybe you could give the option to choose from where to swipe, upper right is for me a no go, since I've got a six inch Huawei Mate 8, it would still be reachable but not convenient.
GerManiac said:
That sounds good, however, maybe you could give the option to choose from where to swipe, upper right is for me a no go, since I've got a six inch Huawei Mate 8, it would still be reachable but not convenient.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Roger. That can be done.
I think we're going to try to make the Lock Screen pretty first. Something like this.
There are lock screen apps w/ 50MM users that are basically rotating pretty pictures. They get around all the lock screen compatibility problems by building their own security then having the user turn off the system one. This isn't 100% secure, which is why we didn't go that way. But it'd keep out anyone except a motivated hacker. And if the system security is OFF we can build a seamless experience. So maybe that'd open Sesame up to a wider audience. It'd be totally optional, you could still keep the system security if you wanted.
Thanks for the feedback. It def moves our thinking. Let me know if there's anything else we can improve.
Pwallius said:
Roger. That can be done.
I think we're going to try to make the Lock Screen pretty first. Something like this.
There are lock screen apps w/ 50MM users that are basically rotating pretty pictures. They get around all the lock screen compatibility problems by building their own security then having the user turn off the system one. This isn't 100% secure, which is why we didn't go that way. But it'd keep out anyone except a motivated hacker. And if the system security is OFF we can build a seamless experience. So maybe that'd open Sesame up to a wider audience. It'd be totally optional, you could still keep the system security if you wanted.
Thanks for the feedback. It def moves our thinking. Let me know if there's anything else we can improve.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, I understand, but you are right you are not going to get the audience you want.
Take for example hilocker I've been watching the locker growing but then it grew slower and slower. however it was not only the app which wasn't always running smoothly, but also the little to non response of the dev.
The features however integrated are great.
Giving the user the option to decide to keep security or to have a better experience at the cost of some security, is a good idea.
GerManiac said:
Yes, I understand, but you are right you are not going to get the audience you want.
Take for example hilocker I've been watching the locker growing but then it grew slower and slower. however it was not only the app which wasn't always running smoothly, but also the little to non response of the dev.
The features however integrated are great.
Giving the user the option to decide to keep security or to have a better experience at the cost of some security, is a good idea.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yup. We've got a few cards try to play. Let me know if some insight hits you about this conundrum. Thanks for the legit feedback.
I'll let you know when the next version is out.
No posts in close to three years. Did everyone stop using this? What are you using instead? The googl app?
user2837 said:
No posts in close to three years. Did everyone stop using this? What are you using instead? The googl app?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I just started using it on my NexS and it's very good. I've always liked these types of apps having used Fastkey Launcher and Launchboard previously. This is much better and very customizable. I use it as a widget and not the lockscreen.
Related
Hi everyone,
A friend of mine just got a Palm pre plus. Nice phone, not bad at all. I still prefer my Nexus but one tool really did caught my eye on the Palm.
The multitasking ability is wonderfull on the Pre. the ability to view small windows of every tasks you are running, moving left of right to switch and up to close/kill an app is just plain awesome.
I know jailbroken Iphone can download a similar app through cydia. So if the Iphone can do it, Why can't I find anything alike for Android?
That would be a great app that for sure many would download as it is just nice looking.
thanks a lot for reading.
Aeonys
Aeonys said:
Hi everyone,
A friend of mine just got a Palm pre plus. Nice phone, not bad at all. I still prefer my Nexus but one tool really did caught my eye on the Palm.
The multitasking ability is wonderfull on the Pre. the ability to view small windows of every tasks you are running, moving left of right to switch and up to close/kill an app is just plain awesome.
I know jailbroken Iphone can download a similar app through cydia. So if the Iphone can do it, Why can't I find anything alike for Android?
That would be a great app that for sure many would download as it is just nice looking.
thanks a lot for reading.
Aeonys
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I would love love love this.
That would be way cool Been wanting something like that for a while now
You mean a task switcher
And yes, would be a nice feature
Aeonys said:
Hi everyone,
A friend of mine just got a Palm pre plus. Nice phone, not bad at all. I still prefer my Nexus but one tool really did caught my eye on the Palm.
The multitasking ability is wonderfull on the Pre. the ability to view small windows of every tasks you are running, moving left of right to switch and up to close/kill an app is just plain awesome.
I know jailbroken Iphone can download a similar app through cydia. So if the Iphone can do it, Why can't I find anything alike for Android?
That would be a great app that for sure many would download as it is just nice looking.
thanks a lot for reading.
Aeonys
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can simply long press the home button. It's not all your running tasks, just your six most recently executed applications. It's not nearly as cool of an interface as the Palm Pre may have, but it effectively does the same thing. For killing processes I recommend Advanced Task Manager.
I'm sure we'll have a similar interface on stock Android in future releases. 2.5 perhaps?
@mhaedo:
Thanks for the tip! I tried it and it aint bad.
I already had Commantalb and ES task manager.
Both of them and this trick do partly what I ask (and other too.)
Check out the proswitcher on youtube. I'm sure it ain't too hard to have an app running in the back that shows up like commantab show you the windows let you kill them with a vertical slide, etc.
If I wait for this to happen on android 3.1 I may as well buy an Iphone (oh dear no way!)...
Proswitcher looks fantastic.
Now that we have a phone with some decent power, I'd love to see a graphical task switching app with thumbnails and gestures like this!
Aeonys said:
@mhaedo:
Thanks for the tip! I tried it and it aint bad.
I already had Commantalb and ES task manager.
Both of them and this trick do partly what I ask (and other too.)
Check out the proswitcher on youtube. I'm sure it ain't too hard to have an app running in the back that shows up like commantab show you the windows let you kill them with a vertical slide, etc.
If I wait for this to happen on android 3.1 I may as well buy an Iphone (oh dear no way!)...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Having used the two multitasking solutions available on cydia (multifl0w and kirkae) I can report that they are buggy at best. In theory it works well but in practice, I often had apps crash when backgrounded (pandora was a fine example of this). The phone was not meant for it and could barely support it.
Using backgrounder alone with pandora worked well most of the time but even then pandora would close.
Personally, I have no real compelling interest in a pre-esque multitasking ability on the n1 but if someone came out with one, I would definitely try it out for no other reason than "why not".
coming from a 3gs and having used mquickdo and kirikae, I also would like to see how the n1 would handle task switching.
yep, backgrounding + task switching via card view on the iphone (specially through kirikae) was nice to have and would like to see how a similar solution would operate on the n1 - which supports unfettered multitasking out of the box.
aside from task switching, i would really like to have a nice way to invoke favorite, instead of recently used apps.
You're gonna end up with like....8 million cards when you want to switch.
aleitry said:
coming from a 3gs and having used mquickdo and kirikae, I also would like to see how the n1 would handle task switching.
yep, backgrounding + task switching via card view on the iphone (specially through kirikae) was nice to have and would like to see how a similar solution would operate on the n1 - which supports unfettered multitasking out of the box.
aside from task switching, i would really like to have a nice way to invoke favorite, instead of recently used apps.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
if you want to use a set of favourites, why not just make the "home" desktop where you keep your favourites? Seems to satisfy that ask, no?
deprecate said:
if you want to use a set of favourites, why not just make the "home" desktop where you keep your favourites? Seems to satisfy that ask, no?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Stop being so logical.
aleitry said:
i would really like to have a nice way to invoke favorite, instead of recently used apps.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can create a folder on your home screen, name it favorites, then dump shortcuts of all your favorite, top 5 or top 10 apps in there.
legitimate suggestions and really i'm in no way being critical about current support for folders or shortcuts. pre like task switching or swipe-to-invoke features would be cool - but not necessary. bottom line - my n1 runs circles around my 3gs - without jbreaking.
deprecate said:
Having used the two multitasking solutions available on cydia (multifl0w and kirkae) I can report that they are buggy at best. In theory it works well but in practice, I often had apps crash when backgrounded (pandora was a fine example of this). The phone was not meant for it and could barely support it.
Using backgrounder alone with pandora worked well most of the time but even then pandora would close.
Personally, I have no real compelling interest in a pre-esque multitasking ability on the n1 but if someone came out with one, I would definitely try it out for no other reason than "why not".
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have to disagree with you on this Sir. proswitcher and Multiflow are both apps made by some user to compensate a HUGE lack in the Iphone. They are comparable to Cyanogen making multitouch on the Nexus (on the video it was shaky and unprecise at best). Besides, they can hardly work well because of the phone's design (solo tasking).
Now you've got the Nexus: Lots of power, and able to multitask. So with such a device I don't think it would be SOOOOO complicated to actually make a switching feature like it exists with great success on the Palm PRE.
I had to spend quite a long while the first time on my wife's Iphone just to get Proswitcher (unlock/root/blackstuff/cydia/backgrounder/proswitcher/settings) to get this important app: because quite frankly, yes it's buggy but it's awesome to be ABLE to do more than 1 thing at the same time like looking for apps and installing apps for example... My Pal who's got the PRE now has this feature built it. His PRE is nice, no offense, but the Nexus kills it. This feature would be one of the only thing I'm really jealous about.
lol from the dev of ProSwitcher when asked about making a similar app for Android.
chpwn
@xManMythLegend If you send me an Android phone, sure, but I don't own any.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
proswitcher is sooo cool its almost sickening! our n1's can run x2 amount of apps as the iphone and yet we only get to switch between the most recent 6?! thats weak! i bet if we keep this thread alive (and on topic) we can see some development. lets see what dev is up to the challenge. i would definitely pay for something like this!
your posts needs some clearing up.
Iman07 said:
our n1's can run x2 amount of apps as the iphone
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
N1 can run not just x2 amount of apps as the iphone. More, way more...prob more near 10? 20? obviously depending on the app itself.
Iman07 said:
yet we only get to switch between the most recent 6?! thats weak!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
We are able to switch between any open apps by loading up the app again from either the drawer or any shortcuts you've made. I understand you may mean by touch holding the home button but tbh its far far easier to press home once and nav to your app, and having it open instantly. Rather than sifting through pages to find it.
m00moo said:
your posts needs some clearing up.
N1 can run not just x2 amount of apps as the iphone. More, way more...prob more near 10? 20? obviously depending on the app itself.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I was basing it solely on the fact that our N1's have twice as much RAM as the iPhone, 512 vs 256 respectively. Of course it depends on size of the app but it wasnt meant to be scrutinized over.
m00moo said:
We are able to switch between any open apps by loading up the app again from either the drawer or any shortcuts you've made. I understand you may mean by touch holding the home button but tbh its far far easier to press home once and nav to your app, and having it open instantly. Rather than sifting through pages to find it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes I do mean by holding the home button, but I find it more work to have to open the app drawer and sift through my 100 apps, though alphabetical, can be cumbersome. To each his own though.
Still would love to see a more effective and efficient method of switching between apps than the obvious (placing shortcuts on the desktop), sifting through app cards is cooler than sifting through the app drawer. Perhaps if the cards were limited to a certain number so it doesnt get out of hand. Who knows!
Hello all! I had a thread but it was locked because it was a paid app. Now, there is a free one to check out. It's called Prox Lite and it has just been added to the Android market.
Prox makes use of the phone's proximity sensor and accelerometer to initiate an action. Prox figures out what orientation you are holding the phone and then activates that action when you swipe your hand across the proximity sensor. Prox Lite has 4 actions:
*Flat - Emulate home button
*Toward - Expand and contract notification panel
*Left - Launch phone dialer
*Right - Launch browser (google.com)
All you have to do is turn on the service through the app and then tilt the phone in the direction you are trying to activate the action for and then pass your hand over the proximity sensor and it will activate the action for that direction.
You can amaze your friends, and feel like a Jedi. Imagine the look on your friend's faces when you do things without even touching the phone itself. Just to ease your mind, Prox is disabled when the screen is off and when you are in a call. Normal proximity sensor usage is preserved during these situations to you don't have to worry about Prox doing things when you don't want it to
Here are some thoughts about the app
Gizmodo best apps (June 10th)
Lifehacker App of the Day
Droid-Life App of the Day
Addictive Tips Post
Make Use Of Post
Here is a video of it in action (Pro version) if the description I have provided doesn't really make any sense Be sure to follow me on Twitter: @SemperGumbee for updates and support.
Here is another video made by one of our own members here at XDA. Thanks patrick848!
He also wrote a little write up here if you want to check it out.
And, here is a link to the android market
Download Prox Lite from Android Market
Download Prox Lite from GetJar
If you have an issue where it doesn't show up in the market or it says that your device is incompatible, I have made Prox Lite available to XDA peeps via direct apk. If your device will allow install from the market, please use the link above, otherwise, click here to download the apk directly. Downloading from the market allows for easier tracking so I would appreciate it if you would download it from there This is for the members that cannot find the version because of certain software...
P.S. Some users are having trouble with making this work properly. If you are having issues with the left and right actions, try just a slight tilt and then a swipe. Refer to the video for an example of this. Also, different phones have different proximity sensors and some of them just happen to work better than others. Give it a try to see what you think and don't forget to leave a rating in the market. I hope you enjoy this app
Reserved for Wants, Updates, and Changes to the OP...
UPDATES
* Direct apk download added to OP (7-29-2011)
* App added to GetJar (8-2-2011)
* Added ability to disable constant notification
* Added other apps page...
WANTS
*More intuitive orientations
Let me know what else to add here
This is really cool. My biggest concern right now, having only just tried it for a few minutes, is potential battery drain. If it doesn't end up being too bad, i may consider trying the full version. It would be nice to be able to hide the notification bar icon, but the full version may already have that.
Battery drain is really not all that bad. The listeners are unregistered when the screen goes off. During normal phone use during the beta a few months ago, Prox was only using around 3 - 4 % battery during a normal day. But alas, this depends entirely on how much you actually use the phone itself. If your screen is on for the better part of the day, then drain will occur. But under normal use, it really isn't that bad. Thanks for the feedback
Market says its incompatible with my hd2
hewlett777 said:
Market says its incompatible with my hd2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hmm. It should show up for anyone running android 2.1 and over. I will investigate...
fun idea, i'm going to have to try it even though i probably won't use it regularly.
orlandojumpoff said:
fun idea, i'm going to have to try it even though i probably won't use it regularly.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah. I was originally going to put it into the Productivity category on the market, but I think it's more of a novelty than an actual productive applications. It's just cool to show people. There are some things in the paid version that can be put to actual use though. There is a Timer mode that activates an action based on how long you cover the sensor. It could be useful in a car dock or a cradle at home.
What version of Android are you running?
hewlett777 said:
Market says its incompatible with my hd2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Forgot to quote. What version of Android are you running?
I picked up the pro version. So far it's pretty solid. Battery drain is pretty much non-existent, maybe 2% with a lot of screen time.
Some things I would like to see:
Tasker integration (this would be the best addition by far).
A combination of the Timed and normal types so you could hold over the sensor longer for a different option.
Being able to hide the icon in notifications.
Media button options like Previous Track, Play/Pause, Next Track.
Simulating a long-press of the search button to bring up Voice Actions.
Profiles that automatically change based on what app you're in.
Thanks for making this, I've been using it a lot today, and it has already become habit. Keeps my screen cleaner, too.
Dungeon47 said:
I picked up the pro version. So far it's pretty solid. Battery drain is pretty much non-existent, maybe 2% with a lot of screen time.
Some things I would like to see:
Tasker integration (this would be the best addition by far).
A combination of the Timed and normal types so you could hold over the sensor longer for a different option.
Being able to hide the icon in notifications.
Media button options like Previous Track, Play/Pause, Next Track.
Simulating a long-press of the search button to bring up Voice Actions.
Profiles that automatically change based on what app you're in.
Thanks for making this, I've been using it a lot today, and it has already become habit. Keeps my screen cleaner, too.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Im glad that you're liking it! A lot of the things you have mentioned have already been pointed out to me and I am thinking which ones will actually be possible. Some of the things will require root access. But I have a summer job atm (10 1/2 hour days) so I am not really tinkering with it right now. When I get back into school mode, you can pretty much expect to see some if not all of this added to the pro version. I appreciate the feedback and be on the lookout to some awesome future updates
P.S. please leave a comment and rating in the market
Do you have it on any other markets? AndroidPIT, SlideME or anything similar where I can buy it with a paypal account?
For some reason the Android Market site says it's only compatible with my Wildfire and not my Desire HD :S
GigiAUT said:
Do you have it on any other markets? AndroidPIT, SlideME or anything similar where I can buy it with a paypal account?
For some reason the Android Market site says it's only compatible with my Wildfire and not my Desire HD :S
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It is not currently on any other market but the Android Market. I may add it to some of the ones you have mentioned but it may be a bit before it gets there.
My portal says that it should show up as compatible for the Desire HD. I see that you are running MIUI so that may be the reason for it not showing up. Some custom ROMs and leaked builds of Android cause this and I have no reason why.
I love the camera holding thing.
And the app downloads at the moment, looks super awesome!
TriforceKommando said:
I love the camera holding thing.
And the app downloads at the moment, looks super awesome!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Glad you got a kick out of it
Let me know what you think when you have had a chance to play with it a little
Amazing!!!
this is app is so awesome! the lite version works perfectly on my samsung vibrant running simply honey 4.0 revolution 2.3.4. im seriously amazed by how well it works. Good job man! im definitely getting the pro version!
Emalasto said:
this is app is so awesome! the lite version works perfectly on my samsung vibrant running simply honey 4.0 revolution 2.3.4. im seriously amazed by how well it works. Good job man! im definitely getting the pro version!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks dude! I hope you enjoy the Pro version!
I just bought the pro version, setup my loadouts and all I can say is awesome!
Sent from my Nexus S 4G using XDA App
So far, I love almost everything about Mango. But there's one thing that's pissing me off. It used to be that you could start a download and just keep right on browsing. I found this VASTLY superior to the experience of the marketplace on iPhone, where you choose an app to install and it dumps out of the market.
Unfortunately, the new Marketplace on WP7 does exactly what the iPhone app store does now, and it sucks. SUCKS! Is there any way to revert it to the old behavior? Of all the features to parrot from iOS, this was the worst!
I think there's no way to revert the old function in Mango. But I think you just have to hit "back" one time to go back to the market? I will try it
Edit: Hitting "back" one time works fine for me In my opinion it's not really annoying.
Yes, back button is a quick workaround. I was annoyed also, but as I don't install a lot of apps at once, this is only annoying at the first configuration.
iOS has back button?
It annoys me a lot more the dissapear of the "tabs" button in the web browser than this.
Just hit the back arrow, it's not that big of a deal.
I'm not sure if iOS / iPhone has got a back button
Wait?! On NoDo there was a button for the "tabs", right? And now we have to slide up the menu and click on it. Am I right?
No, of course no iOS devices have a back button, that's common knowledge. This IS a big deal though, when you factor in that Zune STILL can't simply backup your apps for easy reinstall, making it a giant hassle to get all your apps back. Now it's made worse because you have to back straight up again. Still not as bad as iOS, but definitely a step in the WRONG direction.
I agree about the tabs in IE; the new way to get to them is lame.
I must say I don't tend to install 10 apps at a time, so pressing back if i need to add a second one is not an issue at all.
In other words I think this is a step in the right direction
Personal choice I guess ... but imho nothing to start an entire thread on ..
jasongw said:
No, of course no iOS devices have a back button, that's common knowledge. This IS a big deal though, when you factor in that Zune STILL can't simply backup your apps for easy reinstall, making it a giant hassle to get all your apps back. Now it's made worse because you have to back straight up again. Still not as bad as iOS, but definitely a step in the WRONG direction.
I agree about the tabs in IE; the new way to get to them is lame.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you install your app via Zune, it'll automaically installed when you reflashed / hard reset your phone.
Nope, not a single app I'd installed from Zune automatically reinstalled. On top of that, if you *didn't* install it from Zune to begin with, you can't install it from Zune at all--EVER. It's locked out. No choice but to do it from the phone ad infinitum.
So far I'm loving 95% of Mango, but it's not without its missteps, unfortunately. I agree it's not usually a HUGE deal to have to press the back button, but it's still a step in the wrong direction. Android marketplace has it right, and Windows Phone marketplace used to.
There's another thing which is absolutely broken. You can't reinstall anything from Zune. If you try, it will tell you it's already installed and the install button is greyed out.
People have different tastes, I get it. You might say the back button is a big plus in usability compared to ios.
But I think on ios they rarely screw this kind of functionality.
maybe they haven't update their zune or marketplace according to mango.
I read an article from Microsoft about this before, if i recall correctly, the reason why it dumps you to the application list is to show you where you can find your app once it was installed.
People were not aware of where their app was located once they hit install in the Marketplace. You hit install, the progress bar appears, and then once its done, the app simply disappears with no indication as to where it went. People were confused by this behavior. By visually showing people that their app was being installed into the application list, they now know exactly where to find their app, and they can also launch the app once it is done installing/downloading. Same thing with games, people were not finding the game they installed, so now it shows you that its in the Games hub.
In my opinion, this method is more intuitive. An option to disable it would be nice, because I know where my apps are going, but I think for most people, this method makes more sense and is more fluid.
The upside is that you can simply press back to get back to the marketplace. Another positive is the fact that you can now launch your app immediately as it finishes, instead of having to back out all the way start screen, then swiping to the right. I'm sure most people install apps one at a time, rather than a whole bunch at once, so in the long run, this method makes much more sense.
andycted said:
There's another thing which is absolutely broken. You can't reinstall anything from Zune. If you try, it will tell you it's already installed and the install button is greyed out.
People have different tastes, I get it. You might say the back button is a big plus in usability compared to ios.
But I think on ios they rarely screw this kind of functionality.
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The back button is a HUGE deal and makes an incredible difference over any iDevice. I'm all about different tastes, of course. I completely agree that the Zune software's ability to reinstall apps is completely, totally, 100% BROKEN. However, that's not an iOS advantage, that's an iTunes advantage (and let's face it, iTunes has so few of them, LOL) and I'd never go back to the crapware that is iOS now that I've enjoyed WP7 and especially Mango.
But that said, yes, there is still work to be done. I'd hoped mango would fix everything, but alas it's failed to do so. I must give it credit, though--it fixes *almost* everything
prjkthack said:
I read an article from Microsoft about this before, if i recall correctly, the reason why it dumps you to the application list is to show you where you can find your app once it was installed.
People were not aware of where their app was located once they hit install in the Marketplace. You hit install, the progress bar appears, and then once its done, the app simply disappears with no indication as to where it went. People were confused by this behavior. By visually showing people that their app was being installed into the application list, they now know exactly where to find their app, and they can also launch the app once it is done installing/downloading. Same thing with games, people were not finding the game they installed, so now it shows you that its in the Games hub.
In my opinion, this method is more intuitive. An option to disable it would be nice, because I know where my apps are going, but I think for most people, this method makes more sense and is more fluid.
The upside is that you can simply press back to get back to the marketplace. Another positive is the fact that you can now launch your app immediately as it finishes, instead of having to back out all the way start screen, then swiping to the right. I'm sure most people install apps one at a time, rather than a whole bunch at once, so in the long run, this method makes much more sense.
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I get where you're going, but I humbly disagree. it would be better to prompt the user once an app finishes installing: "Would you like to see where we've installed your app?" Let's face it: if you can't figure out that your app is in the *alphabetical list* of APPS, maybe you shouldn't be using a smartphone at all
jasongw said:
I get where you're going, but I humbly disagree. it would be better to prompt the user once an app finishes installing: "Would you like to see where we've installed your app?" Let's face it: if you can't figure out that your app is in the *alphabetical list* of APPS, maybe you shouldn't be using a smartphone at all
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Well now that is a more annoying solution. That last thing I want is another prompt asking me another question. The old way or the new way is much better than having to go through another prompt. That breaks the fluid flow of the app installation process. The less prompts, the better.
Not to mention, the new method feels more complete. Like a full circle. Find an app -> choose to install it -> see download/installation progress and where its located -> launch and go.
Though I do agree that if you can't find where your apps are to begin with, you've got some issues there, but one of the points of Windows Phone 7 was to be a friendlier and more intuitive phone, and this only reinforces that thinking.
jasongw said:
I get where you're going, but I humbly disagree. it would be better to prompt the user once an app finishes installing: "Would you like to see where we've installed your app?" Let's face it: if you can't figure out that your app is in the *alphabetical list* of APPS, maybe you shouldn't be using a smartphone at all
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A prompt will be completelly awful, the current behaviour is very intuitive for all users, but Microsoft usually add things for power users like a lot of key combinations and stuff, so I feel that in this case they are missing like a "Install in background" option if you hold your finger over the install button, or the application, or in a menu.
Also about the tab switch in IE, I also feel that a 2 finger swipe is REQUIRED to switch tabs. WP7 barely uses finger gestures, and in this case flip a tab is a 3-step action...
eried said:
A prompt will be completelly awful, the current behaviour is very intuitive for all users, but Microsoft usually add things for power users like a lot of key combinations and stuff, so I feel that in this case they are missing like a "Install in background" option if you hold your finger over the install button, or the application, or in a menu.
Also about the tab switch in IE, I also feel that a 2 finger swipe is REQUIRED to switch tabs. WP7 barely uses finger gestures, and in this case flip a tab is a 3-step action...
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A prompt might not work, it was just a thought. However, having an option in settings to be able to choose the preferred behavior would be ideal.
prjkthack said:
I read an article from Microsoft about this before, if i recall correctly, the reason why it dumps you to the application list is to show you where you can find your app once it was installed.
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This actually makes sense. I did have this exact problem in NoDo, where I wasn't sure if an app had downloaded, or where it could be located. Dumping the user into the application list is not a problem when the system has a "back" button.
two finger swiping to change tabs would be awesome. Even pinch zooming right out like with the pictures.
jasongw said:
No, of course no iOS devices have a back button, that's common knowledge.
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Maybe for you as you had an iDevice before. But why should I know this? I don't care about iDevices
The methods mentioned in this thread sound great I'd like to be asked whether to use a "tabs" button or the "two finger swipe". An option in the settings would be perfect.
And I also like how an app is installed
But the best solutions are to provide options so that the user can choose his favourite way
Just getting to grips with this Pixel 5.
Been on Android for as long as I can remember, but this is my first ever pixel phone.
Fair play, I'm really liking it.
One thing that I especially like is the Now Playing feature.
What I would like this feature to have is to allow the track+artist text to scroll at the bottom of the screen (ticker-tape stylee) as rarely there is text there that fits without having to cut it off short at the end. Would also be great to see the year the track was released too.
For what it's worth, I've made the suggestion to Goggle (via Feedback in the About Phone screen)
Not sure if this will get noticed at all, but if there is anyone on here who would also like to see this, then it may be worth you sending some feedback too? Who knows!
hawkerpaul said:
Just getting to grips with this Pixel 5.
Been on Android for as long as I can remember, but this is my first ever pixel phone.
Fair play, I'm really liking it.
One thing that I especially like is the Now Playing feature.
What I would like this feature to have is to allow the track+artist text to scroll at the bottom of the screen (ticker-tape stylee) as rarely there is text there that fits without having to cut it off short at the end. Would also be great to see the year the track was released too.
For what it's worth, I've made the suggestion to Goggle (via Feedback in the About Phone screen)
Not sure if this will get noticed at all, but if there is anyone on here who would also like to see this, then it may be worth you sending some feedback too? Who knows!
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I can see the usefulness of that. It's not a necessarily bad problem but a nice enhancement. My 2nd cars Sirius XM radio doesn't show enough of a title and I've often wanted to see more on the screen.
Agreed, not a problem at all, as I think this is an excellent feature (being new to pixels, this is the first time I've had this)
Would be nice to see them enhance the info text to scroll tho (and add the year of release)
Better still would be a config screen to select which info you want to see get displayed, but now I'm being greedy!
Wondering what the actual difference is between them. I am hesitant to go deep into trying them as I'm still setting up other stuff on the phone, and I don't want to bork something, but eventually I'll probably try them both. Was just wondering before I do what the actual pros/cons are of them. They seem to... imply they do similar things, but the examples are few and far between (especially on the samsprung one).
both quite buggy and sometimes work and sometimes dont....nice idea for both but not the easiest to navigate....gave up in the end as both just not quite there yet....give them a try and if you dont like them just uninstall.....simples...HTH
I know about CoverOs, what's the other one?
You can also use the Good luck app and download multistar and it allows you to put a widget that holds five icons that you can activate on the cover screen for the galaxy flip 4. When you download the app just click on the iHeart foldable and it'll be right there
Bxrider117 said:
You can also use the Good luck app and download multistar and it allows you to put a widget that holds five icons that you can activate on the cover screen for the galaxy flip 4. When you download the app just click on the iHeart foldable and it'll be right there
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Thanks for the tips!
I remember I tried them (or at least one of them) when I first got my Flip 3 and you had to delete Samsung Health, has that ever changed? I kind of like using that Samsung Health sometimes!
mt2020 said:
I know about CoverOs, what's the other one?
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Samsprung TooUI
This is the one that used to require deleting the health app, in order to take over the widget spot. However... I assume this isn't needed for either of the current launchers?
nirurin said:
Samsprung TooUI
This is the one that used to require deleting the health app, in order to take over the widget spot. However... I assume this isn't needed for either of the current launchers?
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SamSprung TooUI never required deleting Samsung Health and could never be added to the widget list. It was the Z Flip 3 Launcher, which was remade into SamSprung, that could replace Samsung Health to run as a widget. Somehow, a year later and having posted it everywhere, we still get people asking why SamSprung is not in the widget list and why they had to remove Samsung Health.
sheridan2000 said:
both quite buggy and sometimes work and sometimes dont....nice idea for both but not the easiest to navigate....gave up in the end as both just not quite there yet....give them a try and if you dont like them just uninstall.....simples...HTH
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Both have very extensive bug reporting features, or at least I assume because most of what I add has been mimicked. I can't speak for the other one, but if you reported it on SamSprung, then it was investigated.
nirurin said:
Wondering what the actual difference is between them. I am hesitant to go deep into trying them as I'm still setting up other stuff on the phone, and I don't want to bork something, but eventually I'll probably try them both. Was just wondering before I do what the actual pros/cons are of them. They seem to... imply they do similar things, but the examples are few and far between (especially on the samsprung one).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
https://github.com/SamSprung/SamSprung-TooUI/wiki has a bunch of information and being the first of its kind to release, SamSprung was used in a lot of videos on how to run apps on the cover screen (https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=SamSprung). Most of the videos are a bit dated, so again there is no deleting Health and no widget (Android 11 loophole). It gives you the general idea, though.
https://forum.xda-developers.com/t/samsprung-tooui-cover-screen-home-free-zf4.4484079/ is the thread for SamSprung on Z FLip 4. I can't really give you a comparison, though. The short version is that I started an open-source project to compensate for a shortcoming that got played off as an "original" idea for profit. Rather than stress about it, I ignored the author.
Best thing to do is try any that seem interesting and if there is one you like that has an issue, see if you can get it fixed or deal with it before moving on to your second choice. The only one that really "is what it is" is good lock because they are affiliated with Samsung and still hijacking the widgets. For some, that is an advantage. For others, it's restrictive.
I have tried CoverScreen OS from @jagan2 and it`s really as best as it can get!
It transforms the coverscreen to a full fuctional ... mini phone.