REQUEST - Screen On No Input
 

Hi I have thought of this useful tool/utility for the N900.

Several times when using the OVI Maps and GPS walking or driving I find it very annoying when I touch the display unintentionally and I have to adjust things back to where it was. I do also walk using OVI Maps and GPS and want to be able to have the N900 active in my pocket screen ON without the worry for the screen to be touched /activated by other pocket objects or my fingers reaching for the N900.

So the tool/utility should be something like this.

Another option on the "Power dropdown menu" maybe called "Screen ON NO Input"

Activating this should deactivate screen input and keep the screen ON until deactivated again.

Of course an incoming call should make the N900 respond as normal.

English is as you can see not my native language so I am also interested in those of you that think you know what I mean and could help describing this better.


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Re: REQUEST - Screen On No Input
 

The N800 had this with lock screen and keys when screen time out was not activated. I would find this usefull. Will have a look at giving it a go my self.

Re: REQUEST - Screen On No Input
 

casper27 your saying that you will try to make this tool?

Only two humans here interested in this? Big surprise for me :/

Re: REQUEST - Screen On No Input
 

You can have something like this:
* Install my Simple Brightness Applet and use the "Keep Display On" feature; and
* Run "echo 1 > /sys/devices/platform/omap2_mcspi.1/spi1.0/disable_ts" to disable the touch screen. 0, obviously, re-enables it. (The keyboard is still enabled when doing this):)

Not as nice as the power button thing, admittedly...

BTW: Your English is fine.

Re: REQUEST - Screen On No Input
 

hmmm which means a status bar app and running that line off code means it should be simple to make :) - alas i'm learning to develop something else at the moment :)

Cheers Qwerty :)

Re: REQUEST - Screen On No Input
 

Okay, I can see that this easily could be implemented in YOUR brilliant Simple Brightness Applet (hint hint :D ), and yes I mean that and I use it all the time and from day one that I got hold of the N900.

Re: REQUEST - Screen On No Input
 

Uhm, after what I read today, maybe I should sign up 50 bogus users and vote for this here :) ...

Re: REQUEST - Screen On No Input
 

Hey, I have to keep up my prickish reputation :p

I may look into it but one thing does spring to mind: How to disable it? I mean, with the touchscreen disabled, trying to hit the button is gonna be fun. Maybe detecting if the lock slider has been slid would be a possible answer to that question.

Re: REQUEST - Screen On No Input
 

Disable it by using any of the HW buttons or slide open keyboard, is my suggestion.

Re: REQUEST - Screen On No Input
 

i was having the same thought, and started hunting... i'm thinking keyboard slider / open camera lens or side slider.

Re: REQUEST - Screen On No Input
 

(((( Bump ))))

Re: REQUEST - Screen On No Input
 

Found two use cases for this within last last few days... Great this thread already exists ;)

First use case was: I was together with a group of friends and wanted to show them a photo. Opened the image viewer, handed device over to one of my friends, she passed it on... The third person unintentionally managed to leave full screen mode and bring up the task switcher. He actually did realize what had happened and wanted to tap on the correct window to maximize it again. Only he tapped in the wrong place and closed the window... In this situation, it would have been cool to lock the touch screen and keep the display on.

Second use case was somethig a friend of mine told me: He receives a link to his boarding pass as SMS. The boarding pass is nothing but a web page with a bar code that will be scanned right off the N900's display. He said he managed to load the page, lock the device, keep it in his pocket while in the queue, then unlock it again just to hand it over to the person who'll scan the thing... But he would have felt much safer if the other person could have touched the screen without triggering any action. Or if he could have left the screen on in the first place while having his "boarding passed" locked in his pocket.

Knowing that I can
echo 1 > /sys/devices/platform/omap2_mcspi.1/spi1.0/disable_ts
is great. Of course, a one-tap solution that does both (keep display on, lock touch screen) and unlocks the screen again whitch the usual slider action would be perfect.

Re: REQUEST - Screen On No Input
 

Thanks for the top about the echo 1 > /sys/devices/platform/omap2_mcspi.1/spi1.0/disable_ts part. I'd love to see this made simple and easy by an application, the Simple Brightness Applet would be perfect for it ;D

Re: REQUEST - Screen On No Input
 

mhm... how can you reactivate the touchscreen by tapping on a shortcut/widget/panel-button if the touchscreen is deactivated and doesn't recognize anything? XD

Re: REQUEST - Screen On No Input
 

the whole point would be to re-activate the touchscreen the "normal" way: use the slider on the right side.

Re: REQUEST - Screen On No Input
 

hey... just a simple shortcut for disabling the touchscreen :)

installation:
place it in /usr/share/applications/hildon. it uses the terminal-icon by default.

change icon:
if you want to change the icon, make a 48*48px image, name it for example "dts.png" and place it in /usr/share/icons/hicolor/48x48/hildon/
then open the desktop-file and change "Icon=terminal" to (in this example) "Icon=dts".

how to add:
ehm yes... then just add it to the screen you would like to have... you can have this shortcut on multiple desktops... but you have to add a line in the desktop-file... don't remember it right now... ^^

usage:
1. open the window/app you would like to show your friends or need for checking in somewhere *G*
2. minimize it and go to your desktop with the shortcut and click it.
3. empty/black terminal pops up for about 10 seconds.
4. it closes and you'll see the navigator view with all opened windows.
5. you have got additional 5 seconds for choosing your window.
6. let the rest of the 5 seconds pass and your touchscreen is disabled.
edit: for reactivating it, swipe the slider on the side two times. *only if you're worrying about how to get back to business*

voila :)

btw:
- it's just a noobish solution.
- you can't change the waittime of 10 seconds with the empty/black terminal.
- but you can change your additional time to more than 5 seconds:
open the desktop file and change the value behind sleep from 15 to something higher (value - 10 = additional time)

have fun :)

Re: REQUEST - Screen On No Input
 

and for all of you who want to have some feedback right after the touchscreen is disabled...

i did this mod to the file and it lets your phone vibrate for a short time right after the touchscreen is disabled :D

Re: REQUEST - Screen On No Input
 

and for all of you who don't like vibrating phones and would rather have a led-notification...

replace the whole dbus-command from the file above with this:
(edit: this should be all in ONE line!)
haven't tested it but the led should stay on for 3 seconds.
(ok... it uses the CommunicationIM pattern so it will maybe fade in and out ^^)

BIG THX 2 JEBBA for his awesome work on dbus.
(http://wiki.maemo.org/User:Jebba/DBUS)

Re: REQUEST - Screen On No Input
 

Hell yes! very good idea!

I know that the maintainers of ebook programs shold have incorporated this by default but even so sometimes I read complicated articles on the web and the screen dims/shuts down at least once on every new "page".

This should be deffinitley implemented.
Also the brightness applet toes that too but it's not in the power dropdown menu...

Re: REQUEST - Screen On No Input
 

That would be due to the shutdown menu not allowing you to place widgets on there. It is possible to add links to programs there, however.

Re: REQUEST - Screen On No Input
 

Did anyone get any further with this. I can see by the poll it would be quite popular and I would have a use for it.
I have had a look at this myself but cannot seem to regain control of the screen apart from powering down. Like above a nice link/attachment to the power menu would be awesome just likem the lock screen and keys option on the N800.