Android :: Desk Clock

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

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.

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

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.