Configuring JuiceDefender for Android

Posted 2 days ago, under Tech
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After my previous post about how JuiceDefender dramatically improves the battery life of Android phones, I received an inquiry about the many different settings that JuiceDefender offers. Well I don’t pretend to be an expert but I can offer some insight on the settings I’m using.

Easy Mode

First off, if you don’t want to mess with a dozen different settings, the initial configuration will set things up in a default “easy” mode that gives you substantial battery savings without any further adjustments. You don’t really need to do anything more than that. But Android owners do like to tweak.

JuiceDefender Interface

In all honesty the JuiceDefender interface is not user friendly. Basically it’s just a mass of buttons grouped in an order which I don’t entirely understand. So the easiest thing to do is just to address them in the order they appear on the screen.

  • Enabled – It’s the on/off button.
  • Notification – Turn this off unless you want to be constantly notified when JuiceDefender changes something.
  • Data / 3G / WiFi – Let JuiceDefender control your how often your Data /3G / WiFi connection is activated when the phone is idle. These options can be scheduled, see the Schedule button below.
  • CPU – For people with a rooted phone JuiceDefender can overclock or underclock your CPU allowing you to either run faster or save battery by running a little slower.
  • Schedule – Set up how often the Data/3G/Wi-Fi. I use a setting of 1 minute in every 15 during which time your phone will poll for data updates, synchronize contacts etc.
  • Night – A special night time schedule during which your Data/3G/Wi-Fi will be completely disabled. It can also mute the phone and put it in airplane mode for additional battery saving.
  • Battery – You can set the battery % at which JuiceDefender cuts all Data/3G/Wi-Fi in order to extend battery life. I set it at 15%,
  • Traffic – This setting is used to keep the data active if a download is occurring. I set it at a 10KB per second so it doesn’t shut down music streaming if the screen blanks.
  • Peak – The reverse of Night, you can define a time at which data should always be active. I don’t use this setting myself.
  • Apps – Forces data connectivity on or off if a certain app is running. I don’t use this one either.
  • Screen –  You can make the data connectivity stay on when the screen is unlocked or when the screen is turned on. I have it set to unlocked so I can check the lock screen for information without turning on the data.
  • Location – You can set certain locations where data is always on or always off.

Optimum Settings

I’d love to be able to give you a list of optimum settings for the program, but I really can’t, because it depends on how you use your phone. I’d suggest starting with the defaults and adjust one setting at a time. If you aren’t constantly checking your phone then a Schedule of 3 minutes out of 1 hour might save a lot more battery.

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Eoghann Irving is a sci-Fi fan, self professed geek, owner of too many computers and general know it all. Follow me on Google Buzz, LinkedIn or Twitter to chat about this or anything else.
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National Credit Relief Agency Scam

Posted 3 days ago, under Opinion
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When I picked up the mail this afternoon, there was an official looking letter addressed to my wife. Usually official looking letters are bearers of bad news, so I handed it to her as soon as I got home. Turns out this one was from an organization called the National Credit Relief Agency.

The letter was blatantly styled to look like a government form, complete with an eagle in the logo and references to the Accountability Responsibility and Disclosure act. NCRA does (at the bottom of the letter) mention that they are a private agency, but they’ve even gone to the trouble of setting up a DC address (despite mailing this out from California).

So what is the core of this scam?  They claim that they have reviewed your Experian credit file and that you may be “a victim of unauthorized interest rate adjustments and credit limit decreases”. Now given how the credit card companies have been operating I’m going to bet that just about everyone has seen credit limit decreases and interest rate adjustments. The NCRA letter then goes on to say that theycan give you a settlement on your consumer debt for a reduced principal amount and a lower monthly payment at 0% interest.

Here’s what you have to understand. The NCRA may be able to get you a settlement on a reduced principal and lower monthly payment. But if they do they will absolutely destroy your credit rating and it will take you years to recover from it.

Thats why the want to make it look like they’re connected with a government program of some sort. Because the truth isn’t nearly as appealing. If you received one of these letters in your mail, throw it straight in the bin and go to a reputable company to help sort out your debt.

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Eoghann Irving is a sci-Fi fan, self professed geek, owner of too many computers and general know it all. Follow me on Google Buzz, LinkedIn or Twitter to chat about this or anything else.
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Sherlock S01E01 – A Study In Pink, Review

Posted 4 days ago, under Reviews
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Sherlock Holmes is one of the most  over exposed characters in all of fiction.  He has been invented, killed, revived, reinvented, mocked and copied in magazines, books, theater, radio, movies and tv.  So how on earth do you do anything new with him?

Well one option is to twist his character to fit more of an action hero role. The result was an entertaining but shallow movie. Or you could take Sherlock Holmes and his supporting cast and move him to the present day. And that is what Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss chose to do.

Despite the move to modern times, this is a very faithful adaptation of the novels. Benedict Cumberbatch’s masterful portrayal of Holmes captured many of his nuances and the modern setting allowed Moffat to present Holmes as more than an exceptionally astute individual, but to narrow in on his “high level sociopath” tendencies. This is a remarkably good fit for the character of Holmes and an interesting angle  that I hope they pursue.

But while Cumberbatch really grabs your attention while he’s on screen, it’s Martin Freeman’s subdued performance as Doctor Watson that really makes the show work. Doctor Watson is a character which has been much maligned in adaptations. The worst offender’s probably being the Basil Rathbone movies. Freeman gives us a Watson who is both competent and brave and Moffat wisely uses him as the primary viewpoint character for the show.

And that’s important, because as fun as Holmes is, he’s not a character most of us could empathize with. Watson is though. He’s an ex-soldier. He has normal problems and as played by Freeman he is likable even when he is being aloof. Plus his calm mannerisms make Cumberbatch’s frenetic Holmes even more magnetic.

I should mention the distinctive direction of Paul McGuigan who gives us a fast paced episode with some very unusual visual ticks. The idea of having people’s texting appear on screen was clever, but occasionally distracting. I will be curious to see how Euros Lynn handles the second episode and if he follows the same style.

So far I haven’t really said anything about the plot and that’s because it’s really the weakest thing in the whole episode. It’s not bad, but the mystery really isn’t that complex and it really only seems to exist to introduce the characters and set up the relationship between Holmes and Watson. As such it serves its purpose effectively, but it doesn’t stand up so well as a plot in its own right.

But that’s a quibble. Sherlock is an outright success and I’m left wondering if Steven Moffat is even capable of writing something bad. Now the question is if Stephen Thomson and Mark Gatiss will be able to live up to the opening episode with their contributions.

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Eoghann Irving is a sci-Fi fan, self professed geek, owner of too many computers and general know it all. Follow me on Google Buzz, LinkedIn or Twitter to chat about this or anything else.
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JuiceDefender – Improve the Battery Life of Your Android Device

Posted 1 week ago, under Tech
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I’ve been using JuiceDefender for several months now to help extend the battery life of my Droid Eris. One of the biggest criticisms of all the Android phones has been the short battery life. Giving the multi-tasking capabilities of the Android OS this isn’t really that much of a surprise. But it is a problem.

The most frustrating thing for many Android users is the way their battery drops even when they aren’t using the phone. That’s where JuiceDefender comes in. The developer Latedroid has cleverly tweaked android’s data settings so when you’re not actively using the phone it powers down the wifi, 3G etc. But it if you want to keep getting your updates it has a user configurable schedule to reactivate the data and grab the latest information for you. For those of you with rooted phones Juice Defender can also throttle your CPU up or down.

Exactly how big a gain you get from JuiceDefender depends on how you use your phone. It won’t help your battery life while you’re actively using it, but my personal experience is it has almost doubled the battery life of my phone because there’s a lot of down time when I’m not using it.

I’m constantly surprised that more people aren’t aware of JuiceDefender. I’d consider it an essential Android app. If you’d like to try it out, then check out the free version (with limited features) and if you’re as impressed as I am I’m sure you’ll want to purchase the full Ultimate Juice version.

Do you have any battery saving tips for Android?

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Eoghann Irving is a sci-Fi fan, self professed geek, owner of too many computers and general know it all. Follow me on Google Buzz, LinkedIn or Twitter to chat about this or anything else.
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