Help Just got Captivate and have a few questions

[jshoe22]

Hey,

I just got my new phone and I have a few quick questions.

• There's no manual (just a quick start guide) or CD in the box... Is this normal?
• There is a cover over the USB port but not over the 3.5mm headset jack ( wouldn't they have one in case theres a drop of rain)? Is this normal also?
• Does anyone know how to change the address book so it looks at the SIM or internal memory ( I have duplicate contacts, one on the SIM and one on the phone)?
• Anyone heard about the release date of Android 2.2?
• How do I access the AT&T phone book backup website? (the guy in the store zipped right through the screen and I couldn't see)
• Can I set a time that it checks email? I don't want it ringing all night... My old phone was set to check from 9am to 10pm. Can I do that with this phone?
• What is the best free Office document editing software?
• How do I access a "Task Manager"? Alls I can seem to find is all the processes running... I just want a simple list of programs running so I can switch back and forth. Is this builtin? I could do it at the store just the new phone out of the box.

Thanks to anyone who can provide any information. I know I asked more than a few questions but thought these were good ones to start with. Thanks again.

 

[mttfrog13]

There's no manual (just a quick start guide) or CD in the box... Is this normal?

normal

There is a cover over the USB port but not over the 3.5mm headset jack ( wouldn't they have one in case theres a drop of rain)? Is this normal also?

normal

Does anyone know how to change the address book so it looks at the SIM or internal memory ( I have duplicate contacts, one on the SIM and one on the phone)?

Go into your contact list and go to menu, then display options

Anyone heard about the release date of Android 2.2?

Nothing for sure. Most likely before the end of the year, maybe by the end of november

How do I access the AT&T phone book backup website? (the guy in the store zipped right through the screen and I couldn't see)

I have not used that. i use a backup assistant on the phone but not through the website.

Can I set a time that it checks email? I don't want it ringing all night... My old phone was set to check from 9am to 10pm. Can I do that with this phone?

You can change the interval but I don't think you can turn off the notifications at certain times with the default email manager. Might want a profiler which will automatically disable notifications or sounds at night. I use settings profiles lite, I've also heard good things about tasker.

What is the best free Office document editing software?

quickoffice for captivate

How do I access a "Task Manager"? Alls I can seem to find is all the processes running... I just want a simple list of programs running so I can switch back and forth. Is this builtin? I could do it at the store just the new phone out of the box.

Hold the home touch button. This shows the 6 most recently used programs. They aren't necessarily running, just the most recent.

 

[The Shape]

You can download the manual here.

Samsung

 

[Chris_Marie]

There's no manual (just a quick start guide) or CD in the box... Is this normal?
Yes this is normal.

There is a cover over the USB port but not over the 3.5mm headset jack ( wouldn't they have one in case theres a drop of rain)? Is this normal also?
Also normal.

Does anyone know how to change the address book so it looks at the SIM or internal memory ( I have duplicate contacts, one on the SIM and one on the phone)?
I didn't have that problem.

Anyone heard about the release date of Android 2.2?
Sometime before the end of the year but no official date as of yet.

How do I access a "Task Manager"? Alls I can seem to find is all the processes running... I just want a simple list of programs running so I can switch back and forth. Is this builtin? I could do it at the store just the new phone out of the box.
If you long press the home button it will bring up a list of the last 6 apps you have used. Other than that there is the Settings-Manage Apps-Running Services (but it doesn't really list everything you have used lately). I have read that 2.2 will have a built in task manager.

Also check out FAQ - CapFAQ
It has helped me out some.

 

[jshoe22]

Well I don't want all kinds of applications running that I have opened.... I also like to go from one program to another how is that achieved without a "Task Manager"?

 

[BookLover]

Well I don't want all kinds of applications running that I have opened.... I also like to go from one program to another how is that achieved without a "Task Manager"?

Android was built to allow you to multi-task seamlessly. So you need to get out of the mindset that applications in the background is "bad" -- in Android it is NOT bad, but actually a good thing as it allows you to go between apps at their last state without restarting the app, which can use a lot of battery. Read the article in my signature for an explanation for why this is.

I use Watchdog Task Manager to monitor CPU cycles of my apps and only kill those that are misbehaving. I've uninstalled all the bad ones, so I don't get many alerts. Every now and then a music player will cause an alert, but I ignore that and eventually, it goes back to normal

Killing Tasks in Android can cause probs. So let Android kill apps as it needs the memory. You don't need to worry about it.

I love my Android phone!! I hope you will, too!

BTW, I like Task Switcher, it's kind of like Alt-Tab in windows. Makes it easy to switch between active apps and also see which apps are open AND if you use it often enough, you'll see apps disappearing off the list as you open new apps...This is visually showing you that Android is killing apps as it needs to.

 

[jshoe22]

Android was built to allow you to multi-task seamlessly. So you need to get out of the mindset that applications in the background is "bad" -- in Android it is NOT bad, but actually a good thing as it allows you to go between apps at their last state without restarting the app, which can use a lot of battery. Read the article in my signature for an explanation for why this is.

I use Watchdog Task Manager to monitor CPU cycles of my apps and only kill those that are misbehaving. I've uninstalled all the bad ones, so I don't get many alerts. Every now and then a music player will cause an alert, but I ignore that and eventually, it goes back to normal

Killing Tasks in Android can cause probs. So let Android kill apps as it needs the memory. You don't need to worry about it.

I love my Android phone!! I hope you will, too!

BTW, I like Task Switcher, it's kind of like Alt-Tab in windows. Makes it easy to switch between active apps and also see which apps are open AND if you use it often enough, you'll see apps disappearing off the list as you open new apps...This is visually showing you that Android is killing apps as it needs to.

That sounds great.... So nothing is built-in to switch between apps at all? If it is not builtin how are you supposed to do it by going to the home screen everytime and hitting back? Basically how do you switch between apps with a stock phone?

I'm guessing you advise against Advanced Task Killer?

 

[BookLover]

Yeah. I would advise against ATK. You don't need it. Get Watchdog Task Manager instead. It gives you CPU information, which is what you should make your "killing" decision on, not on memory usage. WD will let you kill whatever you want. ATK is like a machine gun (if you put it on a schedule). Lots of collateral damage. WD is like a sniper rifle, take out only what you need to.

If you long-press the Home button, it pulls up your last 6 recently used apps (stock app switcher). I just like Task Switcher better, because I see the active AND the "greyed out" apps (often many more than 6) that are idle in memory (and can get to them if I want to). The stock recently-used app switcher doesn't indicate what's inactive (not a big deal), just which apps you've used last.

I've set Task Switcher on the home key, so every time I single click the home key, it opens the Task Switcher. On the next click, it goes to the home screen. I just find this very useful when I'm copying and pasting between apps and to open recently used apps. You might not like it. But Task Switcher is free, so you can always try it out and uninstall if you don't like it. Or just use the long-press to activate the stock app switcher. It's a matter of taste.

 

[jshoe22]

Yeah. I would advise against ATK. You don't need it. Get Watchdog Task Manager instead. It gives you CPU information, which is what you should make your "killing" decision on, not on memory usage. WD will let you kill whatever you want. ATK is like a machine gun (if you put it on a schedule). Lots of collateral damage. WD is like a sniper rifle, take out only what you need to.

If you long-press the Home button, it pulls up your last 6 recently used apps (stock app switcher). I just like Task Switcher better, because I see the active AND the "greyed out" apps (often many more than 6) that are idle in memory (and can get to them if I want to). The stock recently-used app switcher doesn't indicate what's inactive (not a big deal), just which apps you've used last.

I've set Task Switcher on the home key, so every time I single click the home key, it opens the Task Switcher. On the next click, it goes to the home screen. I just find this very useful when I'm copying and pasting between apps and to open recently used apps. You might not like it. But Task Switcher is free, so you can always try it out and uninstall if you don't like it. Or just use the long-press to activate the stock app switcher. It's a matter of taste.

Is task switcher something free? Alls I want is something to switch between programs and close unused ones like the browser when I finish to save battery life.... Is this my best option?

 

[jshoe22]

Android was built to allow you to multi-task seamlessly. So you need to get out of the mindset that applications in the background is "bad" -- in Android it is NOT bad, but actually a good thing as it allows you to go between apps at their last state without restarting the app, which can use a lot of battery. Read the article in my signature for an explanation for why this is.

I use Watchdog Task Manager to monitor CPU cycles of my apps and only kill those that are misbehaving. I've uninstalled all the bad ones, so I don't get many alerts. Every now and then a music player will cause an alert, but I ignore that and eventually, it goes back to normal

Killing Tasks in Android can cause probs. So let Android kill apps as it needs the memory. You don't need to worry about it.

I love my Android phone!! I hope you will, too!

BTW, I like Task Switcher, it's kind of like Alt-Tab in windows. Makes it easy to switch between active apps and also see which apps are open AND if you use it often enough, you'll see apps disappearing off the list as you open new apps...This is visually showing you that Android is killing apps as it needs to.

So you use Task Manager and Task Switcher? what one is best for just switching apps and closing battery hogging apps?

 

[sremick]

Contacts - CapFAQ
Froyo - CapFAQ
Recommended apps - CapFAQ
Task killers - CapFAQ