confused! task killer or not ?! my evo had 20 apps running!

[dajeepman]

I use ATK and can tell a different in free memory. I had like every app on the phone using memory.. and i ran low. Apps took a while to load other than restarting it I use ATK and it helps 100% but I only kill what I started and leave on what the phone needs.

[jpucillo74]

I'm not gonna blow smoke up anyone's ass and say I am an Android expert cuz I'm definitely not. I can however analyze facts and data as well as the next guy and I can say that I definitely see a big difference when I use a task killer as opposed to when I don't. My phone is sluggish and unresponsive when I don't use one and the battery drains quickly. I understand how Android works and have read all the articles but I know what I see and that is that my phone is quicker, more responsive, and better on battery when I use one. Especially when I set it up to Auto Kill. Just my 2 cents...

[AB33]

IMHO....I am amazed to hear people say that the phone is slow and unresponsive without ATK, I must not be running enough programs on the phone...LOL Compared to my WinMo phones the EVO is lightening fast even without ATK.

FYI...I have about 30 apps downloaded, use apps like zillow and the GPS and 4G when needed, use a 16 GB card with like 700 songs, 3500 contacts that sync with Gmail and 1300 Facebook contacts, 6 email accounts, etc.

[mrhankey184]

My question is, why do RANDOM apps, I have never opened so on the ATK list? I have never even opened Fring or tried to use it yet, or Sprint Navigation, and those apps are always running in the background. I am new to android and very confused why these application start themselves. None of these apps aren't on any of my home screens.

Please educate.

[rydah805]

I want to know the same question as posted above me.

Sent From My HTC Evo Using Tapatalk Pro!

[cmdauria]

I am also not an android expert, but I can tell you that I have noticed a considerable difference in battery life with ATK. I went 1 week without ATK on a custom rom and am now on day 2 with it back on my phone. I was down to 20% by 3:00pm without it. With it I can easily run until 9:00pm with much heavier use. I was using the phone a lot more with it, just to see how long the phone would last, before having to recharge.

On a side note, I usually take my phone from the charger at about 8:00am!

[meccadon123]

I won't lie, even tho i posted the link with the huge break down on why task killers aren't needed with Linux i do still use 1. A. I must know whats running, not sure why, but i just gotta know. B. I also see apps like Sprint nav MP3 store etc. open when i never touched them. They seem to open as soon as i turn on my 3G/mobile network radio.

Now the argument in the article i posted was Some activities (Linux doesn't have "apps" according to the article) use "other activities" hence them running in the background without us touching them. don't ask me what activity uses sprint nav. Anyway another argument in the article was that even tho an app/activity might show that it is "running" in the background, it is most likely running in a "low state" and not using any resources. It's just there kind of "cached" so it will be more responsive if and when you need to use it. That being said, what if i don't ever want to use it? Then that's where the previous argument comes in that a different app/activity may be using it for whatever reason AND IF YOU CLOSE IT THE OTHER APP/ACTIVITY WILL JUST REOPEN IT AGAIN. this is the explanation for apps/activities opening right back up even after we just closed them. They also say that by closing the app/activity that we appear not to be using, this will cause the resource THAT IS USING IT TO RUN SLOWER OR LESS EFFICIENT because it has to reopen the app and start all over again.

I guess i can see both points, I just can stop closing apps even tho when I close them, they just open right back up again a few mins later.

[JZ*]

Seems the biggest advantage is preventing the programs from opening and running, that our providers, in their wisdom, stack on our phones!

I really "believe" they work...but you HAVE to understand how they work, how to properly set it up, and which programs to prevent from running/starting that hog battery (Sprint apps for one)...of course...just MHO

[JaredC01]

The ONLY thing I use ATK (even after paying for the full version) for is to kill a program that I'm having issues with that doesn't auto force-closed. As said, the Unix core the Android system uses stores program information in its memory so when the program is called to open, the immediate data it needs is right there, speeding up the task.

I have zero issues with battery life, even with high daily use. I currently have 26 programs in ATK with 109M free, and zero speed / battery issues. Until I see some cold hard facts proving that using a task killer helps ANYTHING other than closing troublesome programs, I'm calling placebo effect. The UNIX kernel has the best memory management of any kernel out IMO, so I'm going to let it do its thing.

[JZ*]

+1 ^

Well I wrote this nice long rebuttal to my post above...then I jumped over to check a detail online (switched tabs)...and I was logged out of PPCG! so I lost my long (probably boring anyways) post

To make a long-story (which you'll never see now) short "er"...I want to change my opinion/belief on the "normal" task and startup-app killers; I do not think they are needed for basic use, only for "stuck" apps.

I spent most of today (again) researching this issue...I now believe that Android works as intended, and one should only use a TK for a poorly written app that hangs. (To save battery, use all the great tips already mentioned on privious posts in the forums.)

Today I read alot about, and found a really well written, great looking app (and a geeks dream imho) called Systempanel. You need this app guys/gals...if your a PPCG, and you must be if your reading this...you need this app. I could not find anything else like it on the Market...yes it "can" kill apps (although the Dev says he does not believe it to be needed except as above) but it shows so much info of the phone, cpu cycles, "Active, inactive and system apps" etc so it is now clear to me that a routine TK is not needed for these programs that are just sitting, not consuming (ihmo of course )

I included the below link, to a pretty good overview review so you can see some of the things that the app can do...There is a ad-free, lite version, but if your geeky at all...spring for the paid version. Oh, and I HAVE NO AFFILIATION with this app/dev (or linked site) in any way...this program is just plain cool, and I wanted to share!...it will help identify what apps are running and consuming power, so you can deal with them appropriately...check it out

http://www.hardcoreware.net/android-...tempanel-beta/


Here is the dev original thread...or one of them. Some basic insight to his thinking:

http://www.droidforums.net/forum/app...k-killers.html