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Replacing stock launcher

Hi all,
I'm currently using LauncherPro and I was wondering if the stock launcher still runs in the background when LauncherPro is active, or if it's completely shut down.
Basically, I'm trying to find out if the stock launcher would take up any RAM/CPU when you're running a different launcher on top.
Thanks
/Mot

anyone?
/Mot

Interesting question. I think the easiest way to get an answer to this, is simply to ask one of the creators of the home screen replacements apps. I'll try to get in touch with them and get back as soon as I can.

swipee said:
Interesting question. I think the easiest way to get an answer to this, is simply to ask one of the creators of the home screen replacements apps. I'll try to get in touch with them and get back as soon as I can.
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Click to collapse
Thanks swipee

In the mean time, it can't hurt to remove all widgets and things from the stock launcher homescreens. This way it won't use resources.

OrganizedFellow said:
In the mean time, it can't hurt to remove all widgets and things from the stock launcher homescreens. This way it won't use resources.
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Click to collapse
not a bad tip

I'm pretty sure it doesn't.
Even if it does it would get killed after residing in memory long enough.
There can only be one default launcher and you'll notice if you switch between launchers, each time you do the launcher you load has to redraw everything on the home screen. Thus it's not residing in memory.
Heck, the default launchers don't stay in memory very long without some tweeks so I can say with confidence that launchers not actively running aren't gonna be taking up resources.

That's my observation as well, but I'm no expert
Sent from my GT-I9000 using XDA App

It's not used unless it is called, typically by another app using an intent, or it's set as your default launcher.
So, if it's not set as your default launcher the only resources it consumes is storage space EXCEPT until it is called by another app. For example, the stock launcher has a wallpaper picker intent so when you open the wallpaper picker it will "launch" that function (not the whole app) of the stock launcher because the stock launcher is registered (in androidmanifest.xml) to respond to such calls.
In reality it will sit idle for most of the time and use a tiny amount of resource if it's needed. It would be a measurable use of resources but probably not perceptible to a human.

Different launchers & battery life ?

Hello,
I'd like to know if having installed various launchers makes the phone lag or drain battery life ? I don't know which one to choose yet, so when I hit the Home button of my Nexus S, I get the choice of using all launchers that I've installed.
Would it be recommended to uninstall useless launchers ?
Also, let's say I want to use a 'light' launcher when I'm running out of battery, does running one launcher turn off widgets from my default launcher ?
Thanks for the help !

Bls440 said:
I'd like to know if having installed various launchers makes the phone lag or drain battery life ? I don't know which one to choose yet, so when I hit the Home button of my Nexus S, I get the choice of using all launchers that I've installed.
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Click to collapse
If you're not constantly switching between them, then the unused ones should be killed off and removed from memory. You should be able to select a default Launcher with a check box on that menu.
Bls440 said:
Would it be recommended to uninstall useless launchers ?
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Click to collapse
Go for it if you're running out of storage space.
Bls440 said:
Also, let's say I want to use a 'light' launcher when I'm running out of battery, does running one launcher turn off widgets from my default launcher ?
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Click to collapse
The only running widgets would be from the currently running Launcher. Try Zeam Launcher for one that's simple and light weight.

If you're looking for a lightweight alternative launcher that still gets the job done without all the bells and whistles nothing more better than Zeam Launcher

I personally don't think that you will improve battery life using a lightweight launcher. Maybe it does but the difference might not be something you would notice.
What I would advice is disable widgets constantly polling for data e.g YouTube, Facebook, genie Widgets ...
Sent from my Nexus S using Tapatalk

Thank you all for your answers.
I enjoy having multiple widgets running even though it drains battery. But as I said, I'd like to turn them off when I'm on my way back home but unsure that my battery will last. By switching to another light launcher, according to what droptothetop said, I can make sure none of them are running.

Launcher Pro Lag

Running Sensation XE...
Does anyone have lag when switching between the home screens?
I have 5 screens all pretty much full with desktop visualizer widgets.
I realise this might be alot for the phone to handle, and the problem is not THAT bad, but it is something I would like to know more about solving.
First of all can anyone tell me if Launcher Pro is an 'Overlay' to Sense, then presumably sense is still running in the background?
So would deleting all the widgets I used to have when running sense help? (from the screens) or clearing sense data through settings-applications.

kevinsmbuk said:
Running Sensation XE...
Does anyone have lag when switching between the home screens?
I have 5 screens all pretty much full with desktop visualizer widgets.
I realise this might be alot for the phone to handle, and the problem is not THAT bad, but it is something I would like to know more about solving.
First of all can anyone tell me if Launcher Pro is an 'Overlay' to Sense, then presumably sense is still running in the background?
So would deleting all the widgets I used to have when running sense help? (from the screens) or clearing sense data through settings-applications.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you have launcher pro set as the default launcher the sense launcher should not still be running, things from sense however may still be running, like weather. I noticed lag with lp, adw seemed to be better. I actually prefer sense, though I'm in the minority for that. I would personally remove all widgets and icons from sense launcher to be on the safe side if you're not planning on using it.

Many Sense things remain running in the background even if you don't use it, including the Launcher and Rosie, even if you don't use them at all. Sense is part of the ROM, so really invasive.
If you're using Launcher Pro, and never Sense, you should flash a Non-Sense script to completly remove Sense (or freeze it with Titanium backup)
That's what I do=> No Sense script from Mike1986, Android Revolution HD thread, post 2. It's supposed to work with every ROM
It will already be really faster.
Then go into Launcher pro options, advanced options, memory usage:
most of the time, by default, memory usage is set to light or medium. With the Sensation, and all the free RAM we have, you should set it to high or maximum memory usage.
Once it done, using Launcher pro with 5 pages full of widgets (like mine) will be as smooth or smoother that Sense.
NOTE: Sense is optimized to handle correctly or both cores, Launcher Pro may take time to wake the second core. But if you force CPU1 online, it will fly!
(no no, it won 't kill your battery, you'll just always consume 192mhz more, but your device will suddenly be so smoother that you will reduce your max CPU clock, so in the whole, battery drain is the same for better overall performances)

I'm surprised no one else suggested you use a different launcher that's being attended to. The developer of Launcher Pro updated it quite often up until he released the Plus(paid) version, now he doesn't update at all. I know of the lag issue you're having, as I've had it myself. It's basically old code trying to run along side new code. I promise you if you choose a different launcher you won't run into this problem. I too loved Launcher Pro, but even the most beloved apps need a little maintenance once in awhile.

this is the first time ive heard tht launcherpro is lagging. it never lags on me. ive been using it since the original g1! no lag

g1user101 said:
this is the first time ive heard tht launcherpro is lagging. it never lags on me. ive been using it since the original g1! no lag
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+1
I had the pro version on my three last android mobiles also. Never had a lag. I have all set to full speed in settings and it flies.
Never had a problem.

+1
even on the stock rom, the day I had my Sensation, Launcher Pro was smoother than Sense, once well configured.
Now with custom ROMS and kernels, both are smooth

Comparison of Android Launchers

Myself and a lot of other Android enthusiasts have been writing a pro/con comparison of the most popular and useful Android Launchers available. It is coming together nicely but there is always room for improvement. The whole site is much like a wiki where in everything compiled is community created and to be used as a source of information, of course the site is advertisement free as well.
Being that this was created by an Android community I figured it only fair to share it with other Android communities.
Each launcher is broken down by pros and cons of it’s features and problems, making for an easy way to see where they excel and fail as well as an easy way to compare to one another.
You can see the summary view of all the launchers here.
You can also click on each one to read all pros/cons not just the ones in the summary page.
The launchers so far included are:
Nova Launcher Prime
Google Now Launcher
Yahoo Aviate Launcher
Smart Launcher Pro 3
Buzz Launcher-Smart&Free Theme
Action Launcher 3
Apex Launcher
Go Launcher EX
Z Launcher Beta
Yandex.Shell
Launcher 8
ADW.Launcher
APUS Launcher
Lightning Launcher eXtreme
SF Launcher
Themer: Launcher, HD Wallpaper
Next Launcher 3D Shell
Mi Launcher (MIUI)
CM Launcher
SF Launcher 2
Hola Launcher
Zeam Launcher
EverythingMe Launcher
Zero Launcher
Hope you guys like it and feel free to add to it to make it even better and more useful.

As expected, nothing much can really beat Nova. Expected Apex to be higher though.

thekodols said:
As expected, nothing much can really beat Nova. Expected Apex to be higher though.
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I still really like the simplicity of the Google Now Launcher.

petrochemicals said:
I still really like the simplicity of the Google Now Launcher.
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Eh, there's something to be said about stock experience, but, seriously, some of the things Google locks down or forces are odd.

I always find reviews that start with 'one of the cons is that the many options for customisation can be a bit daunting' (or the equivalebt thereof) to be utterly useless; particularly when the core feature of the very app is the massive amount of customisation. The many options are the reason people use launchers. How is that a negative?
Why on earth would someone who doesn't want all those options even consider using the app?
It's like saying one of the cons of android is all the different settings and options. That's not a negative, it's the main reason we bought the bloody thing in the first place!
"The only downside to this car is that you need to drive it to go somewhere".
Sent From My Samsung Galaxy Note 3 N9005 Using Tapatalk

ShadowLea said:
The many options are the reason people use launchers.
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Not always. There are different reasons for why people use launchers (or OSs).

[Q] Does changing the stock launcher to a play-store one affects performance?

Hi.
So I see Nova is liked.
I am running stock CM.
I was wondering - does changing launcher affects performance (since the device needs to run both all the time)?
Isn't any launcher other than stock, behaves just like an app (memory draw, battery usage, so on)?
Thanks!

benyben123 said:
Hi.
So I see Nova is liked.
I am running stock CM.
I was wondering - does changing launcher affects performance (since the device needs to run both all the time)?
Isn't any launcher other than stock, behaves just like an app (memory draw, battery usage, so on)?
Thanks!
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Click to collapse
It doesn't affect performance.. Why running both..?? Get nova and freeze or remove the stock launcher.. You are a root user..

benyben123 said:
Hi.
Isn't any launcher other than stock, behaves just like an app (memory draw, battery usage, so on)?
Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Technically, even the stock launcher is an app.
I was wondering - does changing launcher affects performance (since the device needs to run both all the time)?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No. When you choose a default launcher, the other launcher does not draw much memory. If any services are present, it'll be killed after a certain period. So yeah, you can pretty much install any launcher.