Re: How do you use multitasking in N900?
 

Good point! Here is what I'm looking for: It's open if it has an mini-window in the multitasking view aka Dashboard. I'm not counting widgets and background projects

Re: How do you use multitasking in N900?
 

I use multitasking the most when I'm browsing the web. When browsing, I quite often have a couple of sites open, such as Twitter, Facebook and a few pages on what I'm actually looking at. I switch between these windows, and in addition I usually have a music player or an IM chat going on as well.

But I like to keep my programs closed when I don't need them. I don't use multitasking to just have everything ready in the background. Once I'm done, I close all windows and open apps.

Most crucial for me in multitasking is moving information from one view into the other. This is where computer-like copy+paste functions and keyboard shortcuts (such as ctrl+a) come in handy. This is, of course something where Maemo really delivers. But I see that these functions are a great aid in multitasking, and perhaps even the functions that allow truly utilising it.

Re: How do you use multitasking in N900?
 

That would work except the device will open a mini-window if it wants one.

I put my n900 down 20 minutes ago, with no windows open. But when I pick it up again, it will have opened one saying I have new email (it's a maemo-community mail from QGil!). As it is currently on silent, I may also have missed a text message, so there'll be a window for my conversations app - and possibly one for my phone if I missed a call.

All these things happened in the background, but still open a dashboard window if they need to. I think part of the cleverness of the device is that it isn't quite so clear cut.

Re: How do you use multitasking in N900?
 

One of the best things is that I always have full control of any apps, and can easily close them. I dont need an arbitrary app manager or task switcher or whatever. It just works right there and then directly on the desktop. This is how all phones should be. The netbook Meego is very bad in this respect, really clunky. I hope Meego on the N9/900 will be as Maemo is, not as Meego netbook is.

Re: How do you use multitasking in N900?
 

I keep the minimum number possible open, since open apps make the phone stutter and slow down. I like reading on the phone, so I usually have fbreader(or more recently mebook) open. I would like to keep email open but it's a resource hog.

I find that having more than 3 apps open will ensure that I cannot take a call. By the time the call widgets show up, the call has been sent to voicemail. Another symptom is that all the sounds don't play properly. Under even medium load, the sounds will start stuttering or get stuck half way (commonly happens on new IM/SMS notifications). The UI will also freeze briefly during animations. Sometimes trying to load the dashboard is impossible if some app is hogging the CPU.

The browser, maps and email are the worst culprits. If I have a browser window open in the background for a day, the phone just grinds to a stop. Nothing short of rebooting will bring it back to life.

Suggestions:

I would like it if the phone app had precedence over all others. Next global UI interactions (notifications, loading the dashboard or desktop, app switching) should have precidence. Those should always work smoothly, no matter how hard any app is working. Finally all apps, widgets etc should have the lowest precedence. This will ensure that one rogue app doesn't bring the entire device to its knees.

Re: How do you use multitasking in N900?
 

Great, I hope you've made sure it is high on the "to do" list! :)

Re: How do you use multitasking in N900?
 

Typical number of apps for me: 2
(e.g. browser, mediaplayer)

About max for me in normal use: 6
(e.g. browser, mediaplayer, text editor, pdf reader, xterm, email)

Re: How do you use multitasking in N900?
 

You're welcome Peter. Thanks for replying. I presumed there are also other folks working on many different projects at Nokia, but when it comes to the N900 it just seems the majority (probably unintentionally) is silent. Nokia doesn't talk about it as much as their other products. I understand the N900 is not for everyone, eventhough you've tried hard to break that barrier, but knowing time to time Nokia hasn't abandonded it would feel more consolatory.

I am happy to hear that you are still working on things regarding Maemo 5. Developing MeeGo is obviously a big challenge for you, since it will become one of the core elements of Nokia in the near future. I understand you need to polish it as best as you can. So far, the tablet version of the OS impressed me alot, seriously alot. The mobile version not so much to be honest.

You are right with Flash 10.1 being a challenging feature on all fronts. It sometimes crashes even on PC, not to mention on the handhelds we have seen having it so far. But with the rapid progress of software and technology you also have to understand that Flash 10.1 on the N900 is a must have feature, not only because it is a mobile tablet, but also because competition is smart and fast. Many users have expressed their upset over this issue since the showcasted demo on the N900 very long ago, because we haven't recieved any real update on the situation since then. Hardware of the N900 isn't a problem. In my eyes, the N900 is Nokia's best product to date. Hopefully we can look forward to Maemo 5 updates soon.

Re: How do you use multitasking in N900?
 

Right now I have two X-terminals and xchat open. The x-terms because I like to monitor CPU and memory use so that I don't overextend the device's limited resources, and to monitor the battery because the original meter isn't that helpful in helping my ensure I don't run out.
Xchat is of course for keeping in touch with what's happening on the intarwebs.

This is my "minimal" setup. When I'm asleep, or in my freetime when I'm not using the N900. Sometimes I go to sleep with media player streaming something relaxing from internet radio, with the "Sleeper" widget from maemo.org extras repository.

At my dayjob I'll typically have the above plus gpodder and media player. I listen to various news and music podcasts during work, sometimes browsing internet too in the quieter patches of work.

At my currently second semi-volunteer job I actually need to communicate, so I'll have Conversations open to do directory lookups via sms, phone app open, Notes app open to take quick notes notes because those pens just vanish in my car, Ovi Maps and Sygic Maps open. It's easier to find stuff on the map with Ovi Maps, but it's harder to navigate there with Ovi Maps than with sygic maps. When I've found something with Ovi Maps, I usually try to find it again with Sygic, but Sygic has different idea of what every place is called, so it's not always easy. I like Ovi Maps feature of basically having free-text search of the globe, whereas sygic requires a city name (and it has a weird idea of that, not even locals are familiar with the naming sygic uses), or post code, which isn't usually mentioned in the addresses I get.

Especially the latter scenario stretches the phone's hardware resources to the limit with two GPS apps open, plus the phone and sms apps, and the apps from my "minimal" set. Sometimes I also need the browser on top of that, which usually means a half-minute pause for the page faulting and swapping in and out of stuff...

Re: How do you use multitasking in N900?
 

I almost always (meaning 90% of the time) run the following applications in the background:

• Phone: it is very convenient to just switch to it instead of having to launch it each time
• Media player: same reason. I very much like to listen to music on the N900, I do it everyday, even more than with my previous N95
• Calendar: I go to university and it is convenient to see what and where the next lesson is, or what todos I have
• E-mail: also very useful to have it there all the time
• Web: the start window of the web browser to let me quickly access my bookmarks anytime

In addition to the above, I usually run the following applications when I'm actually using the device:

• Contacts: usually I open it once, then keep it there
• 3-4 web pages at once
• 2-3 IM windows
• X Terminal: for doing stuff

Re: How do you use multitasking in N900?
 

usually 6-9

always:

fMMS
Witter
xTerminal
email inbox

usually:

one or more conversations
one or more browser

Re: How do you use multitasking in N900?
 

Usually browser (with several windows open) and email. Would like to have a quicker way to switch directly between browser windows (on desktop I often have several firefox windows with l tens of tabs open).
Email and couple of browser windows usually open all the time.

Often notes as well.

When traveling also Maps and/or Mappero.
I often have also GPS Jinni for keeping the GPS active while multitasking (ie. using browser sametime as Maps). eCoach for tracking when biking.

Note that I don't use my N900 as a phone (at all), it's my ultra portable pc.

Re: How do you use multitasking in N900?
 

I usually have these 4 open:

- Contacts
- Convos
- Email
- Media player

Then I open and close apps on top of those. Commonly I'll find myself having a browser window or 2 running, dial central, and often FBreader will still be running because I was reading something on the train.

Re: How do you use multitasking in N900?
 

I've always seen these devices as computer-first so, just as with my desktop and laptop, I multitask on the N900.

I typically have 5 to 8 windowed apps open, with the following coming to mind:

- web browser showing favorites
- Ovi email
- Instant Messaging (for SMS and twitter feeds)
- 1 game for downtime (typically Battlegweled)
- phone
- web browser opened to Nokia careers page :D

Re: How do you use multitasking in N900?
 

So, this is a designated bigwig participation thread? Interesting; the silence is often the loudest thing coming from Nokia.

The main way I use multitasking is if I am doing something time consuming (running app manager, for example, or accessing a slow internet server) when I get bored I just switch to something else.

I use FeedingIt to get rss feeds. While I wait for them to populate, I of course do other things, like read stuff with FBreader.

And jumping over to Witter or Xchat and seeing what's happening is always something to do while there's a hold up elsewhere.

In other words, mainly I use multitasking to work around traffic jams that naturally occur.

Re: How do you use multitasking in N900?
 

I tend to only have things open as I need them, but have a number of widgets on the main screen, some of which (Queen Bee) do things in the background for me, which I think should count as a multi-tasking app.

That said, when I do need to multi-task, I usually need to have a few windows open. Being able to open a browser to look up an address, then cut/paste that into maemo mapper to route to the place, then cut/paste the number in to the phone app to call ahead (while in route), and usually add it to my contacts after the call (for later use)...

Not many other phones would let your nav app run in the background, still calling out "turn left on Callance St" while you're entering a phone book entry for the place, or calling them to tell them you're on the way. VERY handy.

Re: How do you use multitasking in N900?
 

I agree but sometimes it would be great to have at least one window for the mail list in a folder and a new mail creation window open. Or a creation window and a message itself in an other one.

Re: How do you use multitasking in N900?
 

Understood, but I don't see any value in beating the horse in a thread where Nokia IS engaging.

Re: How do you use multitasking in N900?
 

The only time you can get any response from beating a horse is when it's present.

Re: How do you use multitasking in N900?
 

Most of the time, all my apps are closed. And i only use multi-tasking when needed.

Re: How do you use multitasking in N900?
 

would be a nice feature to have some menu to reach running apps on top all the time. like a taskbar.

Re: How do you use multitasking in N900?
 

To expand on that: One thing I would like to mention (while a Nokia representative is watching) is the atrocious sales/support fiasco they have going on in the US (via NokiaUSA). There are a number of threads about how horrible support is, and how hard it is to even purchase a phone in the US because of their ineptness.

I love that Nokia is asking about multi-tasking, and how to improve it for the next device. But if I can't order the device because their US sales group is too inept to sell that device to a customer who wants to buy one, what good is the input I'm providing?

Re: How do you use multitasking in N900?
 

I usually have running:
Panucci or Media Player
Homoculus (file manager)
Web browser - tweetgo.net
Web browser - gmail

Then on top of that pull up other apps like calendar, or more browser windows as needed.

Re: How do you use multitasking in N900?
 

The Indians and Europeans who will be buying the device will love your for helping them.

Re: How do you use multitasking in N900?
 

I close everything when I'm done, but when I'm using the N900 I can have about 4-8 windows open but definately not more than that... But if it wasn't for the swap (consumes battery and n900 becomes un-responsive sometimes) I would keep the windows open... So I think a phone with better ram and memory swap option would be great.. Also, if there's an option to refresh some windows every x minutes? :)

Re: How do you use multitasking in N900?
 

I generally have the following apps open:

• BatteryGraph -- 1 window, always open because battery voltage is a much better SOC indicator than the "bars" of battery left (even stock, but exacerbated by my aftermarket 2400mAh battery), but a little history+diagnosis is always handy, too.
• E-mail -- 1 window
• Media player (or sometimes Symfonie, etc.) -- 1 window, tunes for cranking through the speakers on my bicycle mostly, but I leave it open all the time.
• Microb -- 3-4 windows, the launcher, one or two pages I'm keeping active, and 2ish links opened off in new windows. A background window option has already been mentioned, I'd find it very helpful. I keep things down to ~4 windows when I'm actively browsing, but unless they're AJAXy or Flash-laden, I generally don't do any further cleanup when I'm done browsing.
• X Terminal -- 1-2, sometimes more; I find keeping several sessions with coherent histories invaluable even especially when I leave one of them sit for a couple days. I should use screen for this, but it's a testament to the N900's multitasking that it works so well, I haven't bothered to install screen yet.
• Maep -- 1 window, only if I'm out (i.e. not at work, not at home), generally stays on whether I'm on my bike (with N900 in homemade mount on bars) or in stores/restaurants/whatever.
• GPSJinni, or occasionally jSpeed -- 1 window, running exactly when Maep is running.

So that's 7-8 at home or at work, and 9-10 when I'm out. As a rule, webpages (and then only "bad" ones with heavy javascript or Flash), games, and the GPS are the only things that take much juice to keep running; I have adequate swap space, so unless I'm rather sure I won't be using an app for quite a while, I mostly don't close them.

Allow me to echo the request for shuffling tasks around in the dashboard -- personally, I'd like to go as far as reserving certain spots for certain apps, so they automatically go there, displacing any non-reserved app in that slot, but of course that's infeasible from a "friendly" UI perspective.

Some have mentioned phone calls breaking as a reason not to rock too many apps -- I haven't really experienced this. To me, phone call issues occur, starting heavy lag even with one app open, and becoming unanswerable with a handful, if I have the phone app set to always portrait or to rotate automatically (one of which, I believe, is the out-of-box default), but if I set it to always landscape, it may be a bit laggy coming up if I've got 8-10 windows open, but I can still answer it before it goes to voicemail. This is an issue that should be fixed, but it's not the show-stopper for me it is for some, probably because I changed the orientation away from the default and they didn't...

Oh, and FWIW, I overclocked my old N900 like a maniac (warranty? who needs a warranty? :cool:), but since it took a bath in the rain, I haven't gotten around to dialing in the voltage settings on my new one, so everything described in this post is on a factory-clocked device. I should probably do something about that...

And Peter, thanks for conducting this poll; I get the sense sometimes that Nokia does these great studies of what the average man on the streets uses/needs in a smartphone, then uses that to design the UI for a device so advanced that it sells mostly to geeks and hackers, even though you never did any studies on us. I fully understand the need to take the mainstream side into account (after all, you can hardly expand the market much to the`more nerdy side :)), but it's nice to see that you are looking after the existing, geeky, userbase as well. I've probably gone into some details you don't care about for this study, but I reckon it's easier for you to ignore something I did say than to read something I didn't.

Re: How do you use multitasking in N900?
 

I generally keep none open while it's in my pocket, and then while using it it goes up to three or so, mostly having to look something up, based on the real world, (eg, sister asks me what I think of a restraunt, I pull it up in MicroB), but I can easily snap back to whichever one I was using after I'm done looking at it. Occasionally I'm loading quick applications while I wait for others (eg, openoffice) to load, (yes, I'm really impatient) or copying information from one application to another (eg, terminal commands.)

Re: How do you use multitasking in N900?
 

most of the time my desktop is clean I only use two screens just for the sake of battery and use only weather and media-player widget on one and email and other regular shortcuts on another. I get and receive a lot of calls and email daily so I try not to do a whole lot of multi-tasking while I am on the go so that I do receive my emails and calls when in need. But when I do have time and when I am just chilaxing I have at-least 3-4 browsers checking bbc, cnn, and maemo.org(i probably check this atleast 52 times a day), and whatever other sites I can think of at the time.

Re: How do you use multitasking in N900?
 

on weekends, my mom, dad, and bro always beat me on being always in front of the PC at home, when i got the n900, i did not mind no more,

i voted more than nine apps, coz i do the same on my pc, viewing and editing word and or excel files (debian lxde, word to go and sheets to go open), e-mail, conversations, contacts, transmission (anime stuff and other movies), microb or firefox browser and weatherbug (yes you can laugh but i use it) plus more apps like games and x-term (there is no single day i did not open x-term).

it looks silly but i dont experience, most of the time, lags or so on with the 600mhz cpu speed and 250mb ram.

my job is one of my life's revolutions so i do office work with my n900. but i rarely use it as my phone (i got my Samsung phone for that) because i dont want an SMS or phone call while doing stuff on it (not any other Negative reasons).

and that is my n900 story in the last 7.5 months.

Re: How do you use multitasking in N900?
 

I think the above definition hides the platforms strength.
My main "multitasking" feature is skype (IM) integration. With every other platform this would be counted as "multi tasking" - but with the N900 it's just built in....

Just saying!

Re: How do you use multitasking in N900?
 

I have found that if you set the phone app to landscape mode, the phone app appears almost instantly, even while playing videos, and I now no longer miss calls.

The downside is its not so easy to use single handed.

Re: How do you use multitasking in N900?
 

Hi Peter, it is very important that Meego is also an enterprise device. I can not access my work email due to lack of provisioning on Nokia N900. That is why I currently use another device for my day to day functioning.

Re: How do you use multitasking in N900?
 

Done. Whatever, I always use the phone in landscape anyway. Thanks for the heads up...

Re: How do you use multitasking in N900?
 

The multi-tasking is the killer function of the Maemo 5 platform.

The ability to switch from browsing, to a game, back to browsing to find a hint how to beat a game, all while listening to music with a terminal connection open watching the load on a server after I've deployed some updates/packages and keeping up with some friends via IM (Skype or AIM) and not have it slow down terribly... that's how I multi-task.

And I'll be damned if I can do that on any other mobile platform without jumping all the way up to my laptop.

Improve on that - it's not perfect, but it's so damn good.

Re: How do you use multitasking in N900?
 

Hi Peter - thanks for popping into talk.maemo.org !

I have the following up all the time:

1. Microb - Facebook
2. Microb - tweetgo.net
3. Microb - Gmail
4. Microb - Another Gmail account
5. Microb - talk.maemo.org
6. Contacts
7. Conversations

I use multi-tasking as I would on a desktop computer. So, for instance, I will reload Gmail, then switch to Facebook, and reload that. Then switch back to Gmail, switch again to Facebook. I do this for many of the web pages I have open to keep a 'current view of things'. Also, I filter my contacts by 'availability', so I switch to that between other tasks to see if any of my contacts have suddenly come online.

The one thing I feel can be improved with multi-tasking is: CPU intensive tasks such as: App Manager (D/L and installing apps), Media Player, and Phone can make the N900 slow to a crawl with many apps open in the dashboard. This makes answering VoIP/Cellular calls difficult sometimes as the UI and phone app become unresponsive. Sometimes when I am placing a call, I will close every app down first. Improvements here would be greatly appreciated for Maemo 5, and MeeGo.

The multi-tasking, IM and VoIP integration, and loopable desktops are killer features of Maemo/N900! Please do not lose them!

Re: How do you use multitasking in N900?
 

there is a thing you install that adds a button to the power button menu to switch between phone and tablet mode, basicly it enables or disables the celular modem

Re: How do you use multitasking in N900?
 

got that one mate, i think its the cell-modem-ui app (and is installed) :)

but we do not want to missed calls or SMS too. so getting another phone as my primary line is my option.

Re: How do you use multitasking in N900?
 

Don't the missed calls and offline SMS' reach you about as soon as you turn on phone mode again?

Re: How do you use multitasking in N900?
 

I keep a lot of Conversation windows open. A LOT. SMS and IM. I also keep 3 xterm windows, mediaplayer, email. I really wish we had the ability to re-organize the dashboard - or set it to group windows based on parent/child process.

Re: How do you use multitasking in N900?
 

Got no wig, but thanks for the feedback! ;)