Free Memory Android TP2 ??
 

how much memory does my phone have? it seems the max (after I kill everything) at around 81mb

is this normal? way to get more? phone does not have more?

I got auto killer going (the good one that changes the built in app closure behaviour I just set all the values to 75mb and it seems to keep background apps under control :-)

but curious if maybe frx07 is not using all of the phones memory for some reason or is the android footprint just that large? or is my phones memory just that small :-)

Re: Free Memory Android TP2 ??
 

The [[Speed Improvements]] Brainstorming & Testing Thread!! has a great explanation of Froyo's built-in memory management and automated task killing, and how to configure it.

And you've already posted in that thread.

Re: Free Memory Android TP2 ??
 

Indeed he has already posted in that thread, which I agree has a great explanation of how Android manages memory.

To answer the first question, Android has full use of all the RAM our hardware provides. Keep in mind some of the 288mb is taken for video memory (15mb I believe?)

Oh, and the way Linux uses memory is very different from Windows. This applies to Android and WinMo just the same. Apps in Android are held in memory until the need for more memory becomes required. Adjusting those minfree values is the way to determine when the system starts freeing up memory from what types of apps... I would encourage you give that thread a solid readthru.

Re: Free Memory Android TP2 ??
 

and how much does android take. I thought the phone had almost 300mb. just wondering if having only 80mb left is normal or if there is something I can tweak.

I read all about the memory management and its dangers which is why I got auto killer. it does not kill apps it just tweaks the built in system that kills apps. ie I just increased the minimum memory. HUGE improvement in overall speed.

so if 15mb is for video and I have 81mb left over thats 96mb So android is using 192mb ??

Re: Free Memory Android TP2 ??
 

Oy...

Android (and Linux) manage memory differently than WinMo/Windows. Obviously low memory conditions are never good, but the way it manages RAM is much more efficient. My thread just goes over how to tweak these values. You can set them to whatever you want, but if you just want apps to get killed right after you're done with them you're missing the point. If you're just looking at how much free memory you have, you're also missing the point. If things are running well, then that's a good thing. If things are running like crap, then maybe you should worry about how much memory is free. That's when you go tweak those values to see if you can improve anything.

I can't say if any of the apps you're using are good or not. From the sounds of it, you have them set to free up memory when it hits 75mb... so if you have 80 free that sounds like it's doing its job quite well. Linux will try to use any and all free RAM, that's the point that you seem to keep missing.

Re: Free Memory Android TP2 ??
 

ahh no actually your entirely missing my point.

if I only have 80mb of memory at my disposal then I can only "RUN" 80mb of programs at any one point in time.

I will reiterate my point which was in my opening post.

How much memory does my phone have. Got that 288mb.

is having 81mb free with no processes in the task manager running normal? YES OR NO.

if yes. End of line I need no more info. IF NO I would like to know why and what I need to fix.

its really that simple. I have no idea why your blowing it up.

I don't care how many background programs linux and android want to run as long as it does not slow it down FINE run whatever it feels like running. I don't care.

what is the threshold if any for android between bloated and smooth?

I know in my winmo side if I get below 45-50mb free memory the system gets REALLY sluggish even with NOTHING running.

so when clean ram can no longer get me over 45mb I "reboot" no big deal

SO some new questions.

DOES such a condition exist with android on the TP2. is there a threshold of get below this and system gets unstable (though so far its EXTREMELY efficient at maintaining a memory level free)

ie should I always strive to maintain X amount of memory free to keep things smooth or does that not apply with android??

I KNOW it applies to some extent since previously (yesterday) when I whacked those background applications the system performance IMPROVED.

the only reason to run an app in the background is two fold.

#1 to load it faster when its recalled
#2 its actually performing a background function

If I need NEITHER of those two it makes no sense to slow the system down running it.

Do you agree or not? if not why? will it not slow my system down running them?

I am new to android maybe I am wasting my time trying to clean up ram but IT DID make the system faster by a visibly significant amount.

even just "swiping" the screen left and right is now visibly smoother and faster.

so stopping those apps DID help.

but how much? ie would stopping half of them have been enough?

I don't know the answers to these questions. WHY spend hours experimenting and never knowing if my data is even valid when I can just ASK someone else who has already done all this and just learn from them.

I read the thread where task killers are a bad idea. SO I chose not to use them. instead I altered the built in systems killer threshold as suggested. works like a dream I am happy.

PLUS it improves battery life DRAMATICALLY.

ie my phone actually goes to SLEEP when I turn it off now. before the orange led stayed lit tell me its still "active" chewing up the battery.

I had no way of knowing why sometimes it worked and sometimes it did not. since I set the memory free such that pretty much all backgroud apps close not only is it faster but it almost 100% of the time goes to "green" proper sleep now.

so thats another plus.

Re: Free Memory Android TP2 ??
 

I'm not going to quote your whole post, as it's ridiculous.

No one does. It's different for everyone. I never looked - that's the point, what does it matter. If it starts getting sluggish, perhaps you need to tweak the values to be a little more aggressive. If you notice apps closing when they shouldn't, well then you've gone a little too aggressive. Don't look at the numbers, they're meaningless numbers. You seem to be fretting way too much about hard numbers, when in reality the number really does not matter. Does the system feel smooth/snappy? Then good. Does it feel sluggish/slow? Perhaps you need to make some adjustments. Don't over analyze it... Everyone's situation is different, and what someone is comfortable with someone else might not be. It's really up to you how much time and effort you want to put into it. I found some values that seem to work well. I have no clue how much free RAM I have at any given moment, but I don't really care so long as the UI experience is fluid.

Edit - moral of the story, Linux/Android is very efficient at managing memory (as I've said before). It respects the boundaries set by the system (that the user can adjust, see my other thread) and maintains them. No need for constant reboots to free up memory... That's Windows/WinMo thinking. Abandon it ;).

Re: Free Memory Android TP2 ??
 

well mine was NOT fluid. this typically means ram is running out. killing apps sped it up CONFIRM this suspicion.

and no everyone is not different. by and large we are all likely the same actually. FRX07 on a TP2. that gets about as specific as you can get :-) at least until you start to customize. I figure to get it running well STOCK before I start heavily customizing.

not over analyzing. I was just CURIOUS. nothing more.

does it feel smooth? that is a nearly impossible to answer question. I can only compare it to existing experience.

is it smoother now than it was yesterday? YES. does that mean its as smooth as it can get? maybe but I have no idea.

HENCE I ask questions.

Re: Free Memory Android TP2 ??
 

It's really up to you whether it's acceptable or not.

If you think every single person has the exact same apps installed, the same number of apps installed, the same behavior in how they use those apps... you're insane.

My thread was to address the need to kill apps more aggressively than the default Android settings. Again, using app killers is usually not a good idea. Some have conformed to the standards of how to properly close apps, but others have not. I'd rather just avoid the whole debacle of worrying about whether an app killer is good or not and just condemn them all. Seriously, if you setup Android properly the need for an app killer disappears entirely...

Re: Free Memory Android TP2 ??
 

I have no idea what is acceptable. what is acceptable is the best I can get. am I there yet? how would I know.

I do and they do. FRX07 does not come with "options" we all get the same thing. if did you miss where I said clean install before customizing? it seems your missing these points that render your reply null and moot on purpose ???

I mean it was fully 40% of my entire post if not more let me quote it for you.

"and no everyone is not different. by and large we are all likely the same actually. FRX07 on a TP2. that gets about as specific as you can get at least until you start to customize. I figure to get it running well STOCK before I start heavily customizing."

MY thread. THIS thread was to address how much available ram is normal.

I don't use app killers. I read the threads detailing how those are a BAD IDEA (I told you this over and over and you keep ignoring it for some reason ???) so I used a program that adjust the android's built in app control system AS SUGGESTED. works great.

so let me tell you this again so you can understand me more clearly since you keep IGNORING ME.

I DO NOT AND NEVER HAVE HAD AN "APP KILLER" INSTALLED ON THIS DEVICE UNDER ANDROID.

is that clear enough for you?

if you don't think available ram is relevant then WHY are you arguing with me here?

Re: Free Memory Android TP2 ??
 

lol, I guess someone else should respond with RAM number to make you happy then.

Hopefully someone does. I know I don't care that much (er, at all) about the actual numbers. All I care about is how it feels. If it's snappy, then I'm fine with it. I guess I don't really feel like over-analyzing it that much.

Re: Free Memory Android TP2 ??
 

What arrrghhh is trying to say here is that the amount of free RAM available to the system is not what makes a system fast or slow. When you see "sluggishness" at a certain amount of free ram, that is because something didn't have enough free RAM to do what it needed to do, so it either sent some RAM to swap so that it could have free RAM, used some swap space for itself which is slower, or killed an app that was taking some RAM. All of those activities take processor/IO time. Getting more FREE RAM is like buying a bigger mailbox because the amount of mail you get is taking more than 75% of the available mail box space. Who cares if you only have 25% of your total mailbox space free? Until you exceed 100% you don't notice issues with your mail delivery service. Free RAM is wasted money, linux uses as much RAM as you tell it that it can have to store things for faster opening the next time. That's why that app lets you pick that threshold for how much free RAM you want to keep, if you are always opening a new app (maybe you like the free app of the day) or opening large photos, you'd want to have enough free ram to do those activities without swapping. Someone who opens the same 3 apps every day, never opens pictures or downloads anything new doesn't need to have as much free RAM, so they can adjust it up the other way to keep their 3 apps in memory at all times.

TL;DR: Linux will be greedy, if you tell it that it can have all but 20MB, it will take all but 20MB to give you better performance, try to ignore your free RAM count except to get it to match the way you use your phone.

Re: Free Memory Android TP2 ??
 

that was my point. what amount of free ram is "good" versus "bad"

I have no idea. hence why I asked. when I closed those programs the system got faster. apps did not load faster but the system "felt" faster in navigation. now when I overclocked it THEN the apps loaded faster.

so it "appeared" to behave like winmo does. more ram equals smoother OS while more CPU equals faster apps.

this is why I asked. I figured android was a lot "leaner" than winmo so I expected to have more ram and was surprised when it had the same 80-81 (actually even with cookie I get 85mb on boot in windows)

alas winmo is sloppy with ram and eats it up bit by bit till none if left and you have to reboot.

so far android is lightyears ahead in this regard. I think they call it memory leaks? it appears to have none or very few and or it "handles" them well.

Free ram is "money available" to spend when you call on it to me. Linux can't use as much ram as I tell it. only as much ram as is "available"

if I tell it I want 90mb it won't give me 90mb because there is not 90mb available (that I can see)

see what I mean? the more I can give it to "work with" the more I can "do" with it.

For example right now to keep 75mb free it has to pretty much keep ALL processes closed (background processes)

if I could free up another 50mb (I assume thats not possible) I would have 125mb to play with meaning I could LET it keep all those apps running in the background and "not" slow the system to a crawl.

at least thats how I thought it worked.

right now I am always opening new apps (its new) but I imagine like winmo I will get my "core" apps going and that will be what I do for the most part once I find all the apps I desire.

I don't see ram as the mail box. I see ram as the DELIVERY GUY. the mail box is "storage space"

if my delivery guy can only deliver 25% of what I desire that equals a lackluster experience :-) ie lots of waiting.

either way I am so far quite impressed with how stable it is. it only crashed one time (old market I think did it too many new installs going or something if I had to guess)

once I stopped all those background apps from going its a lot "snappier" now too. much much smoother. not as smooth as winmo but close.

I wonder if a faster SD card would help at all??