[Q] Cyanogenmod7 and task killers? - Wildfire Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

Quick question, using a task killer with Cmod7 has the same effects as using it with froyo (faster battery draining, instability etc.) or it's safe to use? I noticed that running apps (those in the background and useless) makes my wildfire lag, but when i close some of them (that really shouldn't have any reason to stay open) it starts again to run smoothly...
So, should i or should i not install a task killer?

I personally use a task killer, I don't set it to autokill and just use it to help manually kill apps that I don't need in the background.
I couldn't cope without one.
Sent from my HTC Wildfire using XDA Premium App

I don't use one, I have 180+ free MB on my wildfire on CM7 (not using that many apps or widgets).
I would not advice to use one, but if your wildfire lags than you can perhaps indeed close an app now or then (as I did when i was back on stock ROM and it bacame laggy sometimes). Make sure it's an app that is not used by any other program (like a game or so) and that doesn't matter if closed or not

what you must understand is that Android does not use memory (RAM) like a PC does, keeping apps "open" in the background is actually a good thing, as they can be opened a lot quicker, and "full" memory does not slow the phone down as Android has pretty good task managing abilities of it's own, and does not need any help or intervention. Using task killers will only slow down your phone, cause issues, and give you worse battery life. The best thing you can do to your phone is to not install a task killer.

I understand how it works, but disagree slightly with what your saying..........
I have always used advanced task killer pro, like I said not set to auto kill.
I have never had any issues with battery or my system slowing because of it and I have used it on just about every rom there is, the reason I use it is after a while I'd say a few hours using my phone it starts to slow because of all the apps laying dormant in the background and I don't feel the built on model deals with them like I personally would. So instead of using the built in android task manager which does take a while if there's a lot of apps there that don't need to be using task killer is much quicker to close all the useless ones. I think if it was set to autokill it may cause problems with some apps and battery but used wisely it keeps my system flowing nice and smooth.
Sent from my HTC Wildfire using XDA Premium App

Well, thnx guys for the replays, I guess I'll not install a task killer, but in doubt, I'll continue to kill obsolete and not necessary processes when lagging..

Related

Task Killer Apps, good or not???

I am a noob when it comes to android phones so anything will help! I have been told and pretty sure I read something about task killers being bad for your android phone??? Is this true? I currently use Advanced Task Manager free. Is this a good task manager? If not does anyone know of one thats better. I tried to search the forumn but was unable to find anything on this subject...I'm probably just searching wrong. Any knowledge will help!
Try searching the Q&A forum
Don't use task killers is the bottom line.
Use Google search to find out about google and task killers.
avoid them like the plague
Not. It's stepping on Androids toes. If you really need a kill an app (froze or its just using a lot of battery), you can do it in Android itself in Applications.
i noticed i acctually get more battery life with out a task killer, android will close out programs as it needs the memory any way so have had better performance with out it. the Sprint rep actually installed mine on my phone when i bought it so was suprised to learn all this at first but has long sense proven true
Been using Advanced Task Manager since I had my G1 and have not noticed any negative effects. The browser alone takes up a considerable amount of interal memory and does not close on exit. Task managers are good as long as you know how to use them and exclude system applications or user apps that you want to stay running like widgets and such. They may not improve battery life that much, but they help free up internal memory. However, if you're running a Froyo rom, they're pretty much useless until the app devs update the way they work. Froyo doesnt allow them to kill the app, just background data.
Here's some pretty clear literature on why you absolutely do not need them.
While I agree that a task killer is not needed it is not bad. I mean using one wont cause damage to your phone or anything. Some people get better battery with one and some get better battery without. I just avoid task killers because I had a bad experience. I use my phone as an alarm and one day it did not go off because I had killed the clock app. Ofcourse you can use a task killer and not have this problem by setting apps to ignore but after several weeks of not using it I noticed my battery is not better or worse so to each his own.
BTW I also used advanced task manager and thats a perfectly good task manager if you do decide to keep using it.
Best thing you can do is install and use it for a couple days to see if you like it. I have used one since my Droid and would not consider uninstalling. I notice an immediate improvement in the smoothness of my phone while using, and a noticeable choppiness when not using. Your mileage may vary, but I would give it a shot for yourself vs. just listening to others opinions.
87Octane said:
While I agree that a task killer is not needed it is not bad. I mean using one wont cause damage to your phone or anything.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
+1
If you kill a task and free up memory, Android just fills up that memory again with a program of its own choosing. If it needs the memory, it intelligently pulls programs out of memory on its own.

Do we need any kind of task manager or killer?

I see that people have those apps running; its in the status bar.. but is recommended? I just want to make the use of the phone to run on its max without performance loss, as we all. But before, in other forums.. Froyo didn't need any of that... ??????
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using Tapatalk
I use auto memory manager..
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App
no, they're not needed. the OS will handle that got you and if you do need to kill an app or service, you can do it in Settings > Applications.
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App
Android is pretty good at battery and performance management so not really.
Ok thanks..i just see pictures of the apps being runand I just wonder if we need it or why people use them.. Or is it just because to make them feel better
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using Tapatalk
I use a task manager, back in the day with the g1 it really helpped out saving bettery life im not so sure how much extra life I'm going to get with the g2 but we'll see
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App
I think it is needed seeing as how apps just start and run on their own.
AreOh said:
I think it is needed seeing as how apps just start and run on their own.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, just once in a while kill some programs, and you'll be fine.
gaarry said:
Yeah, just once in a while kill some programs, and you'll be fine.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sure but you dont need a task killer to do that. Just go to Settings - Running Services and then just touch whatever service you want to kill.
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App
Just in case you haven't seen this:
As long as you aren't put off by rooting for some reason, the following thread can help you disable all applications of your choosing from booting up (and the settings stay after a reboot). Goodbye Photobucket and Amazon.
Edit: Err, forgot to add: following that, you will rarely ever need to kill any processes, as the unwanted ones should be off anyway.
task killers usually just kill your available resources:
http://lifehacker.com/5650894/andro...ed-what-they-do-and-why-you-shouldnt-use-them
But is it true that in g2 u can not kill ana app like in older version, u have to force stop? I find my self doing that.
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App
U don't really need a task killer. I don't anymore. I just force stop only the apps that hang or stop responding other than that what's the point of killing an app if its just gonna start back up. 2.2 does a really good job of memory management anyway. If u don't want an app running in the background temp root and uninstall it.
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App
From what I remember reading, in Froyo their Kill API is handled different in such that the application/service isn't really "killed" it just restarts.
I could be wrong, but my understanding is that memory management and simply just management as a whole is much better in Froyo. I only use a task manager just to see what's running. If something does go haywire or hangs, then I'd step in. Otherwise, I just like the information being displayed; makes me feel like I know what's running back there.
This is from the developer of Mobile Defense:
"Note, we do not recommend installing task killer applications. These type of apps have the ability to kill other running applications with the promise of freeing memory. Not only are these apps unnecessary but they also waste battery and introduce instability by killing necessary processes. Google Android Engineers and leading Android developers are beginning to speak out against task killer apps:
hxxp://geekfor.me/faq/you-shouldnt-be-using-a-task-killer-with-android/
hxxp://droidtalk.net/should-i-install-a-task-managerkiller-on-my-android-device/
hxxp://android-developers.blogspot.com/2010/04/multitasking-android-way.html
And my favorite, with Cyanogen Twitter quotes:
hxxp://androinica.com/2010/05/07/google-and-cyanogen-comments-imply-task-killermanager-apps-are-pointless/
Even the developer of Advance Task Manager admits that it's not needed on new devices!
Arron La, developer of Advance Task Manager, suggests that task killers are more important for legacy devices like the G1 and phones running older versions of Android.
“Task Managers were absolutely needed in the past before the new services UI came out in Android 2.0 or 2.1,” La said in an e-mail. “Task Managers had a niche of allowing users to quickly kill services associated with apps – including all the other stuff as well, such as alarms – but that was the only way to do it before the introduction of the new services UI.”
Task killers only cause problems and eat up your battery.
Taskillers only for Android < 2.1
On Android 2.1 and later there is no need for task killers, the OS handles memory and apps much more efficiently than in older versions of Android.
Task killers were needed for the best performance on Android before 2.1 but overusing them could be detrimental to performance also.
My general rule is no task killers on 2.1 and later versions but sparring use of task killers on anything earlier.
To me taskers kill ur battery because they r always running. I use hot reboot it restarts the phone from bootscreen not from the slash. So it takes me about 14 too 17 secs to restart my phone. Sense i use my phone for almost everything. Rebooting to kill all apps and start from fresh is good for me sense it takes no time to do so.
sent from the moon on my Evo 4g

About the processes which cannot be killed

I am using advanced task killer to manage process. But some process can not be killed. Are these processes not killed or just respawned quickly. How to really kill them. Thanks.
Sent from my Desire HD using XDA App
yeah i wonder how to remove/uninstall apps such as stocks which i do not even touch at all.
The best method is to uninstall your task killer. They are junk and will only slow your phone down. Every time you kill those process, they have to restart which uses more cpu and battery than just leaving them in memory in the first place.
Please google about android task managers and you will find some good explanations as to why you shouldn't use them.
Sent from my super slick Android device.
iroquois said:
yeah i wonder how to remove/uninstall apps such as stocks which i do not even touch at all.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You need root and some form of s-off. Then you can either delete with root explorer, titanium backup, out adb.
Sent from my super slick Android device.
Like dr.m0x said, those task killers and other optimizer are the worst thing out there on the market.
Android handles these things just fine. If your RAM gets low it will kill tasks on its own. And if your RAM isn't low - then why kill tasks? Free RAM doesn't help at all.
Also background apps almost never use battery/CPU power. If you don't believe it check the battery usage history. And most background tasks have a CPU usage of a couple of seconds.
About removing stock apps, a nice and clean way is to use ROM Cleaner (download in the dev section). It removes apps from the ROM before you flash it.
Thanks, I think I got what I want
Sent from my Desire HD using XDA App

[Q] Task killer or Manager?

I am running Cm7 and my wife is running konis elite III (Sense) and just wondering what task killer or manger is the best for those 2 roms. I'm currently using "super Manager" to clean up RAM and a cache cleaner on my cm7. If anyone knows of a good task killer for cm7 and sense that would be awesome! Thanks in advance!
I have had no real trouble with memory management with either of those roms. This has been a topic of debate for a while, to task kill or not to task kill, I personally have found that Android runs better with out a task killer. Since Android 2 came out it has built in memory management which works pretty well I might say. "Personal Opinion" A lot of people think that Android runs like a desktop computer/laptop. In that you open an app and unless you close it it stays in ram/memory never letting the space go unless the app is closed. Android on the other hand does this a little different. When an app is opened it is in the foreground and has priority over other apps. Other apps are run in the background. Now if an app is opened that needs memory that is being used by a background process then the background app is closed, saving the state if handled correctly, giving the newly open app the space it requires. There are a lot of details on how this works and what I said is a cut down version of it.
Basically, using a task killer goes against how Android handles background tasks.
Task killer no good
I'd advise against them. Personally never had to run them. if you still want one, you can look into tasker, juice defender; some that others use.
Task killers/managers died in android 2.1, its now known that they cause issues with the way android handles memory/processes. Your phone is smart enough to close or keep something running on its own.
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA Premium App
teh roxxorz said:
I'd advise against them. Personally never had to run them. if you still want one, you can look into tasker, juice defender; some that others use.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
dirkyd3rk said:
Task killers/managers died in android 2.1, its now known that they cause issues with the way android handles memory/processes. Your phone is smart enough to close or keep something running on its own.
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA Premium App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree. Besides that, CM7 is a Gingerbread (2.3) based ROM. IIRC, 2.3 has slightly better/enhanced memory management over 2.2 as well - the garbage collector. 2.2 and 2.3 handle their memory management very well from what I see and read.
Concurrent garbage collector — The Dalivik VM introduces a new, concurrent garbage collector that minimizes application pauses, helping to ensure smoother animation and increased responsiveness in games and similar applications.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
http://developer.android.com/sdk/android-2.3-highlights.html#UserFeatures
More often than not, over-aggressive task killing running in the background can actually cause system instability and force closes if you run a lot of processes.
To add to what's already been said, a task killer is not only possibly harmful, it's a waste of time & counterproductive as well.
Most of the stuff that's running in memory is just sitting there, waiting to be reopened again. It isn't using any power or wasting battery, nor is it slowing your phone down. It's staying there so that when you do open it again, it opens more quickly instead of having to reload entirely.
Android will close those apps if/when it needs the memory. There's no need to have a separate app to do it less-efficiently.
Cool! Thanks Guys! Thats what I pretty much figured 2.2 and beyond but just wanted to double check.

[INFO] Why You Shouldn’t Use a Task Killer On Android

So i saw many posts on which people have asked as to which task killer should be used !
and then i stumble upon this site which provided me the details,
*I HAVE NOT WRITTEN THIS*
sources-by Chris Hoffman
http://www.howtogeek.com/127388/htg-explains-why-you-shouldnt-use-a-task-killer-on-android/
Android Doesn’t Manage Processes Like Windows
Most Android users are familiar with Windows. On Windows, many programs running at one time – whether they’re windows on your desktop or applications in your system tray – can decrease your computer’s performance. Closing applications when you’re not using them can help speed up your Windows computer.
However, Android isn’t Windows and doesn’t manage processes like Windows does. Unlike on Windows, where there’s an obvious way to close applications, there’s no obvious way to “close” an Android application. This is by design and isn’t a problem. When you leave an Android app, going back to your home screen or switching to another app, the app stays “running” in the background. In most cases, the app will be paused in the background, taking up no CPU or network resources. Some apps will continue using CPU and network resources in the background, of course – for example, music players, file-downloading programs, or apps that sync in the background.
When you go back to an app you were recently using, Android “unpauses” that app and you resume where you left off. This is fast because the app is still stored in your RAM and ready to be used again.
Why Task Killers Are Bad
Proponents of task killers notice that Android is using a lot of RAM – in fact, Android stores a lot of apps in its memory, filling up the RAM! However, that isn’t a bad thing. Apps stored in your RAM can be quickly switched to without Android having to load them from its slower storage.
In summary, you shouldn’t use a task killer – if you have a misbehaving app wasting resources in the background, you should identify it and uninstall it. But don’t just remove apps from your phone or tablet’s RAM – that doesn’t help speed anything up.
Empty RAM is useless. Full RAM is RAM that is being put to good use for caching apps. If Android needs more memory, it will force-quit an app that you haven’t used in a while – this all happens automatically, without installing any task killers.
Task killers think they know better than Android. They run in the background, automatically quitting apps and removing them from Android’s memory. They may also allow you to force-quit apps on your own, but you shouldn’t have to do this.
Task killers aren’t just useless – they can reduce performance. If a task killer removes an app from your RAM and you open that app again, the app will be slower to load as Android is forced to load it from your device’s storage. This will also use more battery power than if you just left the app in your RAM in the first place. Some apps will automatically restart after the task killer quits them, using more CPU and battery resources.
Whether RAM is empty or full, it takes the same amount of battery power – decreasing the amount of apps stored in RAM won’t improve your battery power or offer more CPU cycles.
hope u understood!
words of wisdom by fellow-mates
go into settings - apps and see how many running apps you have. now go to cached apps and see there, how many apps there are. you see? nearly 50% of those apps discovered by you in the processes are apps that you didn't opened ever but they are still opened and running. why? because that's how linux manages its resources. instead of having free ram for no use (what's the point of having 14gb of ram when you only use 1gb), linux fills all the ram blocks with useful apps or apps that you are running frequently so that when you call that app, it will bring it on the screen almost instantly. this my friend, is called multitasking.
and no, you are wrong. if you use a task killer killing the apps every 10 minutes, the cycles the whole system does - opening again apps and caching them, task killer closing them - results in much more functions done by CPU => more battery spent. even if you say that the battery life its the same, you are wrong. when using a task killer IT MIGHT drain your battery with 0.1% per hour. it's not that much, but IT EXIST.
oh and yeah, one thing: android has its own task killer. that's why you don't need one app to kill your other apps. because android its doing it by itself. if you don't believe me, strip down one kernel, open the init.rc file and find the values for task killer.
I understand this response, but I don't believe it. Task killers has always helped me in every matter. Even on a computer it helps greatly.
Conclusion: I noticed the same battery life using a Task Killer, than not using a task killer.
Sent from my HTC One V using Tapatalk 2
Curiousn00b said:
I understand this response, but I don't believe it. Task killers has always helped me in every matter. Even on a computer it helps greatly.
Conclusion: I noticed the same battery life using a Task Killer, than not using a task killer.
Sent from my HTC One V using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
you don't have to believe it. those are real facts. go into settings - apps and see how many running apps you have. now go to cached apps and see there, how many apps there are. you see? nearly 50% of those apps discovered by you in the processes are apps that you didn't opened ever but they are still opened and running. why? because that's how linux manages its resources. instead of having free ram for no use (what's the point of having 14gb of ram when you only use 1gb), linux fills all the ram blocks with useful apps or apps that you are running frequently so that when you call that app, it will bring it on the screen almost instantly. this my friend, is called multitasking.
and no, you are wrong. if you use a task killer killing the apps every 10 minutes, the cycles the whole system does - opening again apps and caching them, task killer closing them - results in much more functions done by CPU => more battery spent. even if you say that the battery life its the same, you are wrong. when using a task killer IT MIGHT drain your battery with 0.1% per hour. it's not that much, but IT EXIST.
oh and yeah, one thing: android has its own task killer. that's why you don't need one app to kill your other apps. because android its doing it by itself. if you don't believe me, strip down one kernel, open the init.rc file and find the values for task killer.
salve.
1ceb0x said:
you don't have to believe it. those are real facts. go into settings - apps and see how many running apps you have. now go to cached apps and see there, how many apps there are. you see? nearly 50% of those apps discovered by you in the processes are apps that you didn't opened ever but they are still opened and running. why? because that's how linux manages its resources. instead of having free ram for no use (what's the point of having 14gb of ram when you only use 1gb), linux fills all the ram blocks with useful apps or apps that you are running frequently so that when you call that app, it will bring it on the screen almost instantly. this my friend, is called multitasking.
and no, you are wrong. if you use a task killer killing the apps every 10 minutes, the cycles the whole system does - opening again apps and caching them, task killer closing them - results in much more functions done by CPU => more battery spent. even if you say that the battery life its the same, you are wrong. when using a task killer IT MIGHT drain your battery with 0.1% per hour. it's not that much, but IT EXIST.
oh and yeah, one thing: android has its own task killer. that's why you don't need one app to kill your other apps. because android its doing it by itself. if you don't believe me, strip down one kernel, open the init.rc file and find the values for task killer.
salve.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I hope u don't mind if I take some of ur message and put it in the op
Sent from my One V using xda app-developers app
That's great.. I liked the article. I qm giving you a thanks for it
Sent from my One V using xda app-developers app
cybervibin said:
I hope u don't mind if I take some of ur message and put it in the op
Sent from my One V using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
sure. no problem mate
soham_sss said:
That's great.. I liked the article. I qm giving you a thanks for it
Sent from my One V using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you
1ceb0x said:
sure. no problem mate
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sent from my One V using xda app-developers app
task killers were great before 1.6 but useless after that
Lloir said:
task killers were great before 1.6 but useless after that
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
+1 android has devloped a long way since!
cybervibin said:
Thank you
Sent from my One V using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
you're welcome!
I'm using task menager when is needed, and also I'm using custom system memory tweaks, it makes my phone running faster and smoother some apps knows to stuck and they keep the phone from entering deep sleep, and that drains the battery, so if you know what are you doing use task menager and customize when what apps the system should kill
Sent from my HTC One V
I have a task killer installed, but only use it manually, ie. if there's a stubborn app that's crashed/frozen/etc and just won't close and is eating the battery
donJim said:
I'm using task menager when is needed, and also I'm using custom system memory tweaks, it makes my phone running faster and smoother some apps knows to stuck and they keep the phone from entering deep sleep, and that drains the battery, so if you know what are you doing use task menager and customize when what apps the system should kill
Sent from my HTC One V
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Use auto run manager the answer to most of ur problems
qzfive said:
I have a task killer installed, but only use it manually, ie. if there's a stubborn app that's crashed/frozen/etc and just won't close and is eating the battery
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sent from my One V using xda app-developers app
yayyy so task killer only kills my battery
you got that right!
Good to know. Thanks

Categories

Resources