My latest high score in Nin Jump

Tags

android games, ninjump

Picture says a thousand words…isn’t it.

What skill would you most like to learn in 2012?

Tags

2012, dailypost, postaweek2011, resolutions, skill learning

Today when I was wandering on the net, my gtalk buzzed. What skill would I learn in 2012. Here goes.

- learn one new language. Arabic or French. One being language of Quran,  other bieng of love.
- learn new programming language
- learn to be more humble human. More controlled temperament,  emotions.
- praise someone genuinely and let them really give the idea of real appreciation.  These days many take actual praise as false, and then one has to tell them, that is it for real.
- be more in tune with my spiritual side.

Should I buy an IPhone, Andriod Phone, or a Black berry. (What Phone are you)

Tags

Andriod app Market, android, Black Berry, HTC, iPhone, OVI, which smart phone to buy

This is one the debates which is very similar to which car is best. Should I buy this car or that car? or in other words, which type of girl should I marry. Should I be marrying a working women, or the one sitting at home? (I wish answering this question was as easy as buying phone).

Anyway, back to buying phone.  Since the time, I bought an HTC Desire, many people were asking me as to which phone should they be buying. So I decided to write a blog post about what are the crucial factors one should consider on buying which phone.

Do apply the same technique on buying things which have multitude of brands / products, but not when marrying people, that is completely different arena we are talking about.

First off,

DECIDE ON YOUR REQUIREMENTS

Yes, you need to be absolutely clear about the requirements. What you need to do. Examples.

• I need a Camera with me all the time, so that I do not loose any moment to shoot an awesome image.

• Can’t compromise on Quality, you should be targetting anything not less than 5 – 8 Mega pixels.
• I need a phone, which will act as an Email client (probably Outlook functionality) on the go

• if emailing is of your highest importance, then you are better off with a BlackBerry. More on Black berries later. Not the ones you EAT.
• I need a phone, which could run games like (Angry birds, Need for Speed, Sniper Attack)
• I need a phone, which could make calls, video calls, use Skype
• so and so forth

Also, do keep in mind, that what is your idea of SMART Phone. Are you the person who

• likes to tinker a lot with your phone
• or the one who would be looking at your phone to do all the stuff. No need to add / edit / delete stuff

As of time of this blog post being written, there are different platforms which you should consider when buying phone. Each platform has it’s own pros and cons. Here is the quick run down

Nokia Smart Phones

• Nearly all Nokia smart phone have now access to NOKIA OVI Suite.
• Nearly all Nokia smart phones will sync with your Outlook on your PC.
• All all Nokia phones will import export your contacts to and fro in your mobile phones and PC
• OVI suite app is a bit limited in Applications, but it does hold quite a lot of applications for a limited business users
• Nokia phones are good in terms of re-selling a phone

Android SMART Phones, they being sold like hot cakes in market these days. The starking differences are as under

• Whenever an android phone is purchased, it has to be linked with a GMAIL / Google account.
• with that account, the phone will sync all the Emails / Contacts / SMS all the time, not just at the start of usage. All the time. So even if your latest brand new phone is lost, you do not have to worry a dime about loosing your contacts. All you need to do is to buy another android phone preferably a better one, sync it with same Google account, and within minutes, you will having all your previous contact
• An extensive App Market, where you could download OTA (Over the air) applications ranging from multitude of suites (Productivity, Games)
• Gone are the days, when you were keeping installers (on your PC) for Applications to install on your phone.  Google provides online (OTA) installers. Meaning, you are logged in (using the same account which is linked to your phone) from your PC to Google App Market. You browse to the application, select install in the PC Browser. Magically, after a short while, your phone will start downloading the app you selected. Your phone will off course, needs to be connected to either the WIFI, or GPRS connection
• Importing and exporting Contacts is also very easy in Android. Even if you are coming from Nokia phone to Android phone, your exporting and importing contact process will be very easy and harmless.
• You can use Custom ROMS to be installed on your Andriod phones, which will at times, change your Andriod Versions, meaning you can upgrade / downgrade to different android Versions plus you can change the entire look of your phone. For trying out Custom ROMS, you need to ROOT your Android Phone.
• Andriod phones are becoming good in terms of re-selling points, since they are being marketed more and people are becoming aware of them.

Apple IPhones, in Pakistan, to have an Iphone, is like you need

• Unlock it to be able to use local cellular network. Once unlocked, you need to Jail Break it. Without Jail Breaking an Iphone, you can’t use the phone freely. The process of Jail Breaking is quite similar and easy for a Techie Person, but a bit daunting for a non – techie. So if you are buying an Iphone, make sure its Jail Broken or have a Geek friend ready to Jail Break it. One can use the iPhone without jail breaking it, but then the free apps will be quite limited. Once jail broken, you will have plethora of apps
• Once the Iphone is jail broken, you have the most awesome phone in your Hand. You will be happy with its utmost performance, but there is no warranty of this phone unlike other brands. However, with the iPhone in your hand, You can use it to

• Place phone calls
• send SMS
• use Facebook
• use Twitter
• use Google Plus
• use it’s very own fast browser (Safari)
• use emails
• Play games
• Download Apps from it’s App Store

• But on Iphone, your data is pretty much locked. You will be sharing data on your own IPHONE Web Space.

• With an Iphone, there is very less re-sale value. You would be buying an Iphone by 50K PKR, but when you will be selling the same phone, the price may come down to 35 – 40 K. So be very cautious about owning an Iphone if you worry about re-sale value.

Black Berries

Black berry are most popular for their push Emails and Instant Messaging. Their one of the best selling points is their corporate usage. So if you are user whose primary functions is to use phone for the basic purpose (other than Calling / SMS / Alarms) is to have constant touch on your Emails and you need to respond to your mails ASAP, you will be better off with a Black Berry. Black berries do offer what other mobile phones offer but their starling differences are in corporate Emails / Instant messages.

CONCLUSION

Whether you have decided to buy an Iphone or Nokia or an Android Phone, you need to keep the following things in mind

• For using an I phone in Pakistan, you need to unlock it (must) and then JAIL BREAK it.
• For using an Android Phone in Pakistan, it is NOT Necessary to ROOT it. (Rooting and Jail Breaking the phone is the same thing). Your Andriod phone will continue to work even though you do not root it, however, once you have rooted the android phone, your phone will have

• Increased Performance
• More features will be enabled
• Adverts will be removed
• Many optimum Applications will be enabled
• Moreover, you will have more control on your phone
• Nearly all phone will offer the following

• Capacitive / Resistive Touch Screens
• Ability to make phone calls (DUH)
• Ability to SMS (Oh DUH)
• Alarms, Stop Watch
• Emails (Be it connecting your office mails, or your GMAIL / YAHOO / Hotmail)
• Web Browsing
• WIFI / GPRS /
• Connecting to your PC and Transferring your Images / Videos / Mp3s to and from your Mobile / PC
• Sharing your PIC / VIDEOS over the web to your Facebook / Twitter accounts, without transferring them to your phone

Nearly all Websites these days provide the functionality to Compare and Contrast the (Two / three) phones of your choice in terms of Camera Mega pixels, Operating Systems, available Features, Pricing. Some of those sources are listed below. Alternatively you can check the some vendors websites too.

Have a nice time hunting for the phone.

• http://www.gsmarena.com/search.php3 (Phone Finder)
• http://www.gsmarena.com/compare.php3 (Phone Comparer)
• What Mobile (here you can find Mobile prices in Pakistan (Rough Estimates)

• http://www.whatmobile.com.pk/
• Tring Tring  (A site for checking out OLD Cell Phones and selling your own phones). Quite nice site, if you are interested to buy second hand phones.

• http://www.tringtring.com/

Vendor Links

• http://www.htc.com/www/ – HTC
• http://www.google.com/nexus/ – Google NEXUS
• http://www.google.com/phone/ – All phone by Google
• http://www.nokia.com/global/wayfinder – Nokia
• http://www.apple.com/iphone/ – Apple Iphone
• http://us.blackberry.com/ – Black Berry Phones

How to calibrate your battery in your android phone.

Tags

battery, battery life, calibrate, mobile phone, smart phone

You may need to calibrate your battery if you have any of the following symptoms:

• Your phone is shutting down at anything above 10%.
• Your phone shuts down at a certain % then shows 0% when you turn it back on.
• The battery level drops very quickly once you have fully charged it.
• Android shows 100% but it takes more than about 10 minutes for the led to turn green, indicating that the battery isn’t at 100% when it says it is.
• Your phone never reaches 100% whilst charging.

Contrary to popular belief, particularly on that ‘other’ site, wiping battery stats does not calibrate a battery. The proper calibration process, detailed below, forces the battery to re-learn it’s true capacity, as the capacity of a battery diminishes with age and usage. To calibrate, follow these steps carefully and in the order given:

1. Plug the charger in with the phone turned on.
2. Charge until the notification LED turns green.
3. Unplug the charger and turn the phone off.
4. Plug the charger back in with the phone turned off.
5. Charge until the notification LED turns green.
6. Unplug the charger and turn the phone on.
7. Once the phone has booted completely, turn it off again.
8. Plug the charger back in with the phone turned off.
9. Charge until the notification LED turns green.

Your battery should now be correctly calibrated.

Android :: Desk Clock

Tags

android, clock, desk clock, HTC, tips and tricks

When you search for Android tips and tricks, you get many links stating tips and tricks to perform in your andriod phone. One trick I learned this week end, was never mentioned anywhere. At least I could not read it out on the web, so I decided to share it. Here it goes.

There is an App named DESK CLOCK in HTC and ClOCK in Andriod 2,3 (Ginger bread). That app can be used to act your mobile as a Bed time clock.

I am the user, who keeps the cell phone by keeping  a pattern. Whenever I switch on the phone, whenever  a message arrives, an email arrives, I need to unlock the phone by the drawing the pattern and then the phone will be unlocked. So at times, when I am sleeping, when I need to see time, I really need to concentrate and draw the pattern to see the time. Although at the time, of pattern entering the phone does display the time, but that time is stuck in a small corner.

Enter DESK CLOCK. Once you switch on this app, the first thing, you see is current date, along with DAY name, and time fully emersed in your screen and in big fonts.

So to use your desk clock, do the following

1. Run the Desk Clock on HTC or Clock on your android cell phone.
2. Lock the phone and go to sleep.
3. Now when at the middle of night, when you need to see the time, all you need to do is press the power button, and current date along wit day, and time will be displayed on your phone’s display in big fonts, without any unlock prompt, that you may have set, be that, pattern, numeric lock and password.
4. if you will interact with the clock, then off course, your phone will ask you for the pattern, numeric lock or password.

PS: You may choose the switch to night mode / day mode depending on which time frame of the day, you are looking at the cell phone.

How to import your contacts

Tags

Andriod, contacts, export, import, nokia contacts

This post is specifically more targeted to users who are planning to switch from Nokia mobile phones to Android Phones.

First and foremost, a bit of information. All the contacts in your (to be andriod phone) should be and would be synced to your Google account. Yes, all the contact along with Phone numbers, mobile numbers, their personal / official email addresses will be in GMAIL address book / Contacts.

The process would be to EXPORT all the contacts in your Nokia cell phone to your SD Card.

1. Goto your contacts in your nokia cell phone
2. MARK all
3. Choose the option such as EXPORT to SD Card

Most probably, all the contacts might have been exported to OTHER folder in your SD Card. (Technical Note for geeks: All the contacts will be exported in VCF format, a format most commonly known as back ups of contacts in all Email Clients ). Form here you can either choose the option which best suits you.

SD Can be inserted in your new Andriod Phone.

1. Insert the SD Card in your phone.
2. Switch on your phone
3. Go to Contact in your phone
4. Select option similar like IMPORT CONTACTS from SD CARD
5. navigate to OTHER Folder
6. Android would automatically import all the contacts

SD cannot be inserted in your new Andriod Phone.

You have quite a lot of options, like import these in YAHOO / HOTMAIL / OUTLOOK and then from there to your phone.

1. Combine all the VCF into one VCF by issuing a command in LINUX.
2. cat *.vcf > all_contacts.vcf
3. Import all_contacts.vcf into Google Mail.

Let me know if there are any other ways to import your contacts.

Andriod Software I can’t live without.

Tags

Andriod, applications, games, Google Maps, Software

Basic software which are installed on my phone are

- App Saver
This one basically saves the APK for the installed file, so that in case you apply the new rom, all you need to do it to run those APKs on your SD card. No need to re-download the apps from Market.

- Catch
This is the note taking software for the mobiles which are on lower hardware end. For higher end Smart phones, use Ever Note. BTW, catch is directly integrated with COMPASS and Google maps, so you can save the Latitude / Longitude links of any location in your Google Maps.

- Dolphin Browser
If there is one browser worth checking out on Android, it’s Dolphin

- Compass / Qibla / Adhan Timings
All in one app which provides the direction of Qaba, notificatioins when its time for namaz and Compass, which provides the direction of Kaaba / Qibla.

- Gmail / K9 Email
Off course, for checking Emails belonging in Gmail. For emails over non Gmail accounts, I personally use K9 Email, probably because of its customization and being snappier on my cell phone.

GAMES

There is no better thing such as games to waste valuable time on your mobile phone isn’t it. So far I have tried following games

- Reckless Racing

- Angry Birds

- Angry Birds Rio

- Dismount

- Slice it

- Traffic Jam

Let me know which software you can’t live without on your android.

How to boot your desire into recovery mode

Tags

Andriod, clockwordmod, htc desire, recovery

I always want to try new roms in my HTC Desire. For that, I frequently need to go to Recovery mode. Following is the procedure to boot into Recovery Mode.

1. Turn your desire off
2. Hold the volume down and power button in to boot into hboot
3. Use  the volume button to navigate to boot recovery and select it by pressing the trackpad button

If you followed the steps above correctly you should now be on a screen called ClockworkMod recovery.

Movies At You Tube.

Tags

Michelle Yeoh, movies, Silver Hawk, The young Master, Wheels on Meals, you tube

Quite Frankly I never knew I would see so many movies at you tube, and that too for free. I was searching for some nice Jacky chan action flicks on my HTC Desire and there I was having a plethora of movies.

So here I go, giving you the links to watch these movies online. Off course, I didn’t watch all of them on my HTC desire, but one of them.

The Young Master – Jacky Chan

Wheels on Meals – Jacky Chan

Silver Hawk

Plus you can always get to watch movies on Youtube at this URL.

http://www.youtube.com/movies

All in all, a good resource for nice Sunday.

Which Search Engine do you use?

Tags

bing, Clusty, facebook, google, Homeschooling, Power Seek, search, Tool Developed by me, Web search engine, Yahoo

Yesterday, I was searching for some stuff on my research on Home Schooling, and then I was doing the same thing. Opening new tabs, one for Google, one for Bing, one for Yahoo and one for Clusty. Did my searching from all those four tabs, I was in turn opening more tabs. So actually just to perform a quick search, I opening 4 x 2 = 8 tabs. Although with more computing power, it is nothing, but I realized that I was not searching in an effective manner.

It was then, that I suddenly realized that I had an amazing tool at my arsenal, which is Power Seek. A search tool I developed to make my research more easier. It allows me to open up the search results in one window, and perform my search, all while the Search is being displayed right in front of me, and I just switch the Search engine with a click of Combo box / Drop list. Once I change my search engine, the new Search results are displayed in the same smaller window.

Any time, I want the results to be bookmarked, I can just open the Search in new tab, by marking a check on the check box say, OPEN IN NEW TAB. Easy as pie, isn’t it? Oh by the way, for my small number of readers, the Search engine resides at

http://bit.ly/PowerSeek

and its user manual is residing at

http://powerseek.wordpress.com

So my few readers,

which search engine do you use and why?