How to Speed up your Android Phone

Who don’t like to have their devices working at lightning speed? It’s always faster, the better. With the recent developments in technology, we now have smartphones with dual core and quad core processors running at GHz speed, almost matching a desktop and laptop speed. As the development in hardware, there is also lot of development happening in mobile OS and the apps used in it. These programs are equipped with amazing graphics and advanced features which needs more processing power. So it is essential to do maintenance periodically to keep your device in good condition.

Android device tends to slow down after a certain period of time. There are multiple reasons why your Android smartphone may slow down. Understanding the reasons can help you in speeding up your device.

Steps to Speed up your Android Phone

1. Keep your software updated

It is very important to keep software updated. The software updates carry lot of performance enhancements including fix for the lately discovered bugs or loopholes inside Android, optimized coding and better protection against malware intrusion. Sometimes, it is the hardware manufacturer who release the update to optimize software running on the hardware.

Check the system settings and check for updates periodically. Make sure the phone is fully charged or have enough charge to keep it running for some time. Also, keep the Wi-Fi running without interference to make sure the updates are downloaded properly before it gets installed.

2. Keep your home screen clean

The contents of your start and home screen also have an impact on the time it takes to load the contents. Plenty of Apps on the screen takes more computing powerful. It takes more computing power to process animated Apps especially on the starter screen.

So, if your smartphone is getting slower, reduce the number of Apps on the start screen. Only keep the very important App icons on the start screen. Reduce the number of animated apps on the start screen.

3. Remove unnecessary applications

Every application installed in your smartphone is additional resource that needs to be processed which takes additional computing power. Also some application even if not in use, will still be running in the background.

Go to Settings -> Application Manager -> Select the Application. Uninstall the Apps that you want to remove.

If you have an un-rooted phone, you may have to use Apps that specialize in removing or disabling Bloatware.

4. Remove unnecessary application data

Some applications download data all the time. If kept unchecked, they will soon reach a point where these junk files start interfere with normal functioning and consume precious memory space.

Go to Settings -> Application Manager -> Find the App that needs to be cleaned -> Click Force Stop -> Click Clear Cache

5. Clean the system cache

Like application data, cache files also gets accumulated in the system.

To clean system cache, follow the steps.

Turn off the smartphone. Turn it on. Press the “Volume-up” and “Camera” buttons. Let go of it when you get a system boot logo. Use the volume button to scroll down to Wipe Data/Factory Reset. Select Wipe Cache Partition. Once the cache is removed, it will reboot automatically. This will wipe out system cache.

6. Turn off automatic synchronization

Automatic synchronization is normally activated for email and social networking Apps. Having lot of applications which does automatic synchronization can slow down the system especially when it all starts working at the same time.

Go to application settings. Only enable automatic synching for essential Apps. You can configure the remaining Apps to synch manually, only when it is needed.

7. Reduce the number of startup screens

Just like removing unwanted Apps and limiting the number of Apps displayed on startup screen, you need to reduce the number of startup screens. This will reduce the demand for more processing power.

8. Turn off windows and menu animations

By default, Android comes with lot of animation effects and animated dialog boxes. Even though, it enhance user experience, it also consumes processing power. Disable the animation effects. You can see improvement in performance.

9. Reset back to factory settings

You may try all the above mentioned steps to improve its performance. But, there are cases where even these steps may not be enough to improve performance. The problem might be deep rooted. The best bet is to reset the phone to original manufacturer settings. The reset will also remove the data stored inside. So take a backup on cloud or just copy it on your computer.

Go to Settings -> Select Restore Factory Settings.

Hope this will help you to speed up Android smartphone.

How to Track Lost Device with Android Device Manager

The best thing about owning a mobile device is the mobility it provides; the worst thing is that being mobile raises the chances of you losing your devices in unimaginable ways. In circumstances where you actually lose a device, there are many third-party apps that can be used to track lost or stolen devices, but there are also dedicated tools for iOS and Android users.

For iOS devices, owners can track their iPhone, iPad or Mac with the Find my iPhone app. For Android users, the lesser-known equivalent is the Android Device Manager. Android Device Manager or ADM has been available in the Play Store since December 2013. In newer Android devices, ADM is pre-installed into your device.

We’re going to take a look at the features and functions of ADM that every Android user should know:

• How to track location of lost device with ADM
• How to bypass lockscreen with ADM
• How to ring your device remotely with ADM
• How to erase data via ADM

NOTE:ADM requires Android 2.3 and above to function.

Setting up ADM

First, we need to setup ADM. To verify that ADM is installed on your device and enabled to work properly, go to the Google Settings on your Android Device.

Tap on Security under the Services option and here you can see Android Device Manager (ADM) if it is installed on your Android device. If you cannot see ADM, it means it is not installed on your Android device and you can install it .

Once you are done with setting up ADM successfully, it is time to explore features and functions of ADM one by one. By default, Remotely locate this device is enabled and Allow remote lock screen is disabled.

1. How To Remotely Track Location of Lost Device

On any computer browser, go (ADM web version) to start. Sign in with thesame Google account you used on your lost Android device. If yourLocation is on, the location of your Android device is displayed on Google Maps, accurate to 20-25 meters of the precise location.

Access via Mobile Browser

If you do not have any laptop/desktop computer around and you want to access Android Device Manager on another phone, you can download the app instead of using it on a mobile browser.

On the mobile app, sign in via Guest Mode and enter your Google Account details to track the location of the lost device.

You can check the current location of your Android device without refreshing the page or signing in again. Click on the location icon button on the right to see the location of your device.

2. How to Bypass the Lock Screen

If in the event of losing your phone, you had not set a lock screen as an added security step, it’s not too late. With ADM you can not only bypass the lock screen and lock it with another password, but also add a custom message or alternate phone number on the lock screen.

To bypass the lock screen, choose the Set up Lock & Erase option.

Click on Lock and enter your new password, repeat the password to confirm. This can help minimize someone else intruding into your contact list, emails, photo gallery, messaging apps and other important information.

You can add an optional recovery message as well. This is a message that is directed to anyone who may have stumbled upon your phone so be constructive with the message in the hopes that your device will be returned to you.

You can also give an alternative contact number here. A button will appear on the lock screen. Tapping that button will authorize the phone to call you.

3. How to Remotely Ring Your Device

This step is best done after you have lock your device and set your recovery message and alternative phone number on your lock screen. Provided that yourLocation was on, and your device is online, you can click on Ring to make your device start ringing.

This option will confirm for you whether device did ring or did not. If you are at the location near your missing phone, this could alert to you or a passerby of your phone’s location. The device will ring for 5 minutes.

4. How to Erase All Data

If your phone carries sensitive information that are already backed up, and you don’t this info to fall into someone else’s hands (for instance business-sensitive information or banking info) you can use ADM to perform a factory reset.

Just choose the Erase option, next to the Lock option. This effectively erases all your data and settings on your device. If the device is offline, the factory reset will be performed as soon as the device is online.

Note that once all data is erased successfully, ADM is no longer available for your Android device.

Firefox OS

If you use the browser Firefox instead of Chrome and Safari, chances are you have heard about Firefox OS, the new open source operating system for smartphones and tablets from Mozilla. The organization is serious in working to make the Web open and accessible to everyone.

What is Firefox OS:

"Firefox OS (project name: Boot to Gecko, also known as B2G) is an open-source operating system – made for smartphones, tablet computers and smart TVs – designed by Mozilla and external contributors, based on the rendering engine of their Firefox web browser and the Linux kernel."

Mozilla has developed Web APIs so that HTML5 apps can communicate with the device’s hardware, which was only possible for native apps until now, e.g. Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, Camera, etc.

Mozilla Foundation has always worked to make the Web more accessible to everyone, and apart from Firefox OS, there are other tools such as the Firefox Browser, Firefox Marketplace, etc. However, some critics report that it a Mozilla tactic to reach a bigger mobile audience in order to level up to its primary competitor, Chrome.
How is Firefox OS different from Existing Mobile OS?
Built entirely using HTML5 and other open Web standards, Firefox OS is free from the rules and restrictions of existing proprietary platforms.

Firefox OS is different – you can think of it as something more than a browser running on a very lightweight Linux-based operating system. Every app in Firefox OS including the Camera and the Dialer is a web app, i.e. a website in the form of an app. Simple!

Web is the platform for Firefox OS – apps are built using HTML5 (along with CSS3 and JavaScript) instead of native languages. For comparison, Android apps are developed in Java; Windows Phone apps are developed in C++, C#, or HTML5, etc. Firefox OS is written entirely using open Web standards, with the exception in the lightweight operating system (codenamed Gonk) forming the base of Firefox OS.

How Are apps for Firefox OS different from apps for other Mobile OS?

Firefox OS, powered by Gecko engine, runs only websites in the form of apps, known as web apps. These apps are built using HTML, the same technology that powers the Web. These web apps will run on many operating systems in addition to Firefox OS. Every operating system (including Android and Windows 8) that runs Firefox browser will be able to run these web apps distributed through Firefox Marketplace.

Web apps will come in two forms for Firefox OS: hosted apps and packaged apps. Hosted apps will be hosted on Mozilla’s server and will be downloaded and loaded each time you access them, i.e., they are quite like web pages instead of apps, and they will not run if data connection fails.
Packaged apps will be downloaded once in the form of a compressed package and will be loaded from the local source each time you access them, i.e., they are quite alike apps on other operating systems. This is possible due to the local storage and cache features of HTML5 language.

Devices that currently support Firefox OS.
 Mozilla has released two phones with Firefox OS but so far they are only available for developers:

1. Keon by Geeksphone
2. Peak by Geeksphone

Firefox OS can be built and installed on some other compatible devices too. Check the guide for installing Firefox OS on a compatible device. It is even reported that Firefox OS can be dual-booted with Android on the Samsung Galaxy S2.
Some of the devices supporting Firefox OS are:

1. Unagi
2. Otoro
3. Pandaboard
4. Samsung Galaxy S
5. Samsung Galaxy S 4G
6. Samsung Galaxy S2
7. Samsung Galaxy Nexus

                    JAVA 

Java definition:

 Java is a programming language expressly designed for use in the distributed environment of the Internet. It was designed to have the "look and feel" of the C++ language, but it is simpler to use than C++ and enforces an object-oriented programming model. Java can be used to create complete applications that may run on a single computer or be distributed among servers and clients in a network. It can also be used to build a small application module or applet for use as part of a Web page. Applets make it possible for a Web page user to interact with the page.

 

The major characteristics of Java are:

• The programs you create are portable in a network. (See portability.) Your source program is compiled into what Java calls bytecode, which can be run anywhere in a network on a server or client that has a Java virtual machine. The Java virtual machine interprets the bytecode into code that will run on the real computer hardware. This means that individual computer platform differences such as instruction lengths can be recognized and accommodated locally just as the program is being executed. Platform-specific versions of your program are no longer needed.
• The code is robust, here meaning that, unlike programs written in C++ and perhaps some other languages, the Java objects can contain no references to data external to themselves or other known objects. This ensures that an instruction can not contain the address of data storage in another application or in the operating system itself, either of which would cause the program and perhaps the operating system itself to terminate or "crash." The Java virtual machine makes a number of checks on each object to ensure integrity.
• Java is object-oriented, which means that, among other characteristics, an object can take advantage of being part of a class of objects and inherit code that is common to the class. Objects are thought of as "nouns" that a user might relate to rather than the traditional procedural "verbs." A method can be thought of as one of the object's capabilities or behaviors.
• In addition to being executed at the client rather than the server, a Java applet has other characteristics designed to make it run fast.
• Relative to C++, Java is easier to learn. (However, it is not a language you'll pick up in an evening!)

Java was introduced by Sun Microsystems in 1995 and instantly created a new sense of the interactive possibilities of the Web. Both of the major Web browsers include a Java virtual machine. Almost all major operating system developers (IBM, Microsoft, and others) have added Java compilers as part of their product offerings.
The Java virtual machine includes an optional just-in-time compiler that dynamically compiles bytecode into executable code as an alternative to interpreting one bytecode instruction at a time. In many cases, the dynamic JIT compilation is faster than the virtual machine interpretation.
JavaScript should not be confused with Java. JavaScript, which originated at Netscape, is interpreted at a higher level, is easier to learn than Java, but lacks some of the portability of Java and the speed of bytecode. Because Java applets will run on almost any operating system without requiring recompilation and because Java has no operating system-unique extensions or variations, Java is generally regarded as the most strategic language in which to develop applications for the Web. (However, JavaScript can be useful for very small applications that run on the Web client or server.)
   Syntax of Java: 

 

What is 3G and 4G?

In these days, you must have been hearing these two words a lot – yup, I am talking about 3G and 4G.

Some of you know what these terms mean (good for you) while others are struggling to comprehend it.

Well no problem, this piece will give you an idea about these two terminologies and you won’t look that confused next time anybody says 3G or 4G in front of you.

What 3G and 4G can do:
The most important thing is not ‘what is 3G or 4G’ but ‘what 3G and 4G can do’:
Here is a comprehensible infographic from ‘Rianovosti’, that can define few major features of 3G and 4G;

What is 3G:

3G stands for third-generation – you may ask now what is first and second generation? Well, as a blogger Julia Layton put it, “analog cellular technology is generation one and digital/PCS is generation two.”

Layton further explains, “3G technology is intended for the true multimedia cell phone — typically called smartphones — and features increased bandwidth and transfer rates to accommodate Web-based applications and phone-based audio and video files.”

To make it simpler, here is 3G as defined by a reliable dictionary;

“A mobile communications standard that allows mobile phones, computers, and other portable electronic devices to access the Internet wirelessly.”

Basically 3G is all about wireless internet but with decent speed.

What is 4G:

4G stand for fourth generation. According to a blogger Chris Martin, “Loosely speaking, 4G is around five times faster than existing 3G services. Theoretically it can provide download speeds of up to 100Mbps but you won’t achieve this in real-world use.”

And a simple definition can be:

“A mobile communications standard intended to replace 3G, allowing wireless Internet access at a much higher speed.”

This image could clear the difference of speed between 3G and 4G:

3G and 4G in Pakistan:

Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) chairman announced auction results of most-awaited 3g and 4g licenses on April 23, 2014, The News Tribe reported.

A Pakistani cellular company, Zong won 10 Mega Hertz (Mhz) and 18 Mhz spectrums of 3g and 4g licences respectively.

Ufone and Telenor get licenses of 4 Mhz band while Mobilink grabs 21 Mhz band including license of 10 Mhz band of 3g.

Here are results of 3G and 4G licences auction in Pakistan by PTA:

GOOGLE PLAY STORE

GOOGLE PLAY STORE:

 Google Play, formerly known as the Android Market, is the official app store for Android smartphones and tablets. Google makes software applications, music, movies and books available for purchase and download through the store.
 The Google Play store, which comes pre-installed on Android devices, allows users to purchase, download and install applications from Google and third-party developers.  Google Play is the only way to download and install applications on Android devices without changing the device's application setting to "allow the installation of non-market applications."

Google Play was launched on March 6, 2012 with the merger of Android Market, Google Music and Google e Bookstore, marking a shift in Google's digital distribution strategy. The services operating under the Google Play banner are: Google Play Music, Google Play Books, Google Play Newsstand, Google Play Movies & TV, and Google Play Games. The Google Play store has reached over 1.3 million apps published and over 50 billion downloads.

Applications

Google Play makes free-of-charge applications available worldwide (except countries under United States embargoes),  while paid applications are available in 135 countries.Applications can be installed from the device using the Google Play Store app or through the Google Play website on a PC. According to AppBrain Stats, there are over 1,400,000 applications available as of November 2014 of which over 1,200,000 are free and over 200,000 are paid. Google seems to remove low-quality apps from the store roughly once a quarter, when the number of available apps go down.

Music

Google Play offers an online music store with over 22 million songs, cloud storage of up to 20,000 songs at no cost, and a subscription music streaming service called All Access. Google Play Music is currently available in 58 countries.

Books

Google Play is the world's largest ebookstore with over 4 million titles. Google adopts Adobe Content Server 4 as the digital rights management (DRM) solution to protect copyrighted ebooks. Books can be transferred to and read on a number of e-readers and other devices and applications that support the Adobe eBook DRM.

Movies and TV shows

According to Google, there are thousands of movies and television shows available on Google Play Movies & TV, some in HD, including comedy, drama, animation, action and documentary. Movies can be rented or purchased and watched on the Google Play website or via an application on an Android device.  Alternatively, users can download movies and TV shows for offline viewing and view them later using the Google Play Movie app.

Movies are available in 70 countries.^] TV shows are available only in Australia, Canada, Japan, the US and the UK. The app reached over 500 million downloads in October 2014.

News and magazines

Google Play serves subscriptions to free and paid news publications, and magazines for reading on Play Newsstand. At the time of the launch of Play Newsstand, about 1,900 free and paid news publications were available.

Google Play-branded applications

Play Newsstand

On November 20, 2013, Google launched Google Play Newsstand which combined the features of Google Play Magazines and Google Currents into a single product, which serves subscriptions to magazines, web feeds and server-generated topical feeds. All topical news feeds are free and can be subscribed only from within the app. Priced news sources and magazines can be subscribed from the Google Play Store app on Android or the Google Play website on any device, while free news sources can be subscribed from both within the app or from Google Play. Reviews and ratings can be submitted for all Newsstand content distributed through Google Play.

Play Games

Google Play Games is a service designed for Android which features real-time multiplayer gaming capabilities, cloud saves, social and public leaderboards, and achievements. It helps users to discover new games by viewing what friends from Google+ are playing. It lists both games and friends on its home screen and lets users see highlights from both categories. This service is similar to Apple's Game Center.

Five Generations of Computers

First Generation of Computers (1942-1955)

"The beginning of commercial computer age is from UNIVAC (Universal Automatic Computer). It was developed by two scientists Mauchly and Echert at the Census Department of United States in 1947. The first generation computers were used during 1942-1955. They were based on vacuum tubes. Examples of first generation computers are ENIVAC and UNIVAC-1."

 Advantages

• That was the only electronic during those old days.
• Those computers were very fast to calculate.
• Vacuum tube technology made possible the advent of electronic digital computers.

  Disadvantages

• The computers were very large in size.
• They consumed a large amount of energy.
• They heated very soon due to thousands of vacuum tubes.
• They were not very reliable.
• Air conditioning was required.
• Constant maintenance was required.
• Non-portable.
• Costly commercial production.
• Limited commercial use.
• Very slow speed.
• Limited programming capabilities.
• Used machine language only.
• Used magnetic drums which provide very less data storage.
• Used punch cards for input.
• Not versatile and very faulty.

 Second Generation Computers (1955-1964)

  

The second generation computers used transistor The scientists at Bell laboratories developed transistor in 1947. These scientists include John Barden, William Brattain and William Shockley. The size of the computers was decreased by replacing vacuum tubes with transistors. The examples of second generation computers are IBM 7094 series, IBM 1400 series and CDC 164 etc.

Advantages

• Smaller in size as compared to the first generation computers.
• The 2nd generation Computers were more reliable
• Used less energy and were not heated.
• Wider commercial use
• Better portability as compared to the first generation computers.
• Better speed and could calculate data in microseconds
• Used faster peripherals like tape drives, magnetic disks, printer etc.
• Used Assembly language instead of Machine language.
• Accuracy improved.

Disadvantages

• Cooling system was required
• Constant maintenance was required
• Commercial production was difficult
• Only used for specific purposes
• Costly and not versatile
• Punch cards were used for input.

Third Generation Computers (1964-1975)

 

The Third generation computers used the integrated circuits(ic). Jack Kilby developed the concept of integrated circuit in 1958. It was an important invention in the computer field. The first IC was invented and used in 1961. The size of an IC is about ¼ square inch. A single IC chip may contain thousands of transistors. The computer became smaller in size, faster, more reliable and less expensive. The examples of third generation computers are IBM 370, IBM System/360, UNIVAC 1108 and UNIVAC AC 9000 etc.

Advantages

• Smaller in size as compared to previous generations.
• More reliable.
• Used less energy
• Produced less heat as compared to the previous two generations of computers.
• Better speed and could calculate data in nanoseconds.
• Used fan for heat discharge to prevent damage.
• Maintenance cost was low because hardware failure is reare.
• Totally general purpose
• Could be used for high-level languages.
• Good storage
• Versatile to an extent
• Less expensive
• Better accuracy
• Commercial production increased.
• Used mouse and keyboard for input.

Disadvantages

• Air conditioning was required.
• Highly sophisticated technology required for the manufacturing of IC chips.

 

Fourth Generation Computers (1975-Present)

The fourth generation computers started with the invention of Microprocessor. The Microprocessor contains thousands of ICs. Ted Hoff produced the first microprocessor in 1971 for Intel. It was known as Intel 4004. The technology of integrated circuits improved rapidly. The LSI (Large Scale Integration) circuit and VLSI (Very Large Scale Integration) circuit was designed. It greatly reduced the size of computer. The size of modern Microprocessors is usually one square inch. It can contain millions of electronic circuits. The examples of fourth generation computers are Apple Macintosh & IBM PC.

Advantages

• More powerful and reliable than previous generations.
• Small in size
• Fast processing power with less power consumption
• Fan for heat discharging and thus to keep cold.
• No air conditioning required.
• Totally general purpose
• Commercial production
• Less need of repair.
• Cheapest among all generations
• All types of High level languages can be used in this type of computers

Disadvantages

• The latest technology is required for manufacturing of Microprocessors.

Fifth Generation Computers (Present & Beyond)

Fifth generation computers are in developmental stage which is based on the artificial intelligence. The goal of the fifth generation is to develop the device which could respond to natural language input and are capable of learning and self-organization.Quantum Computing and molecular and nanotechnology will be used in this technology. So we can say that the fifth generation computers will have the power of human intelligence.

 

Advantages

• It is more reliable and works faster.
• Available in different sizes with unique features.

Disadvantages

• The disadvantages of fifth generation computers have yet to be agreed upon, but many feel that they are two of its advantages: AI and the overall advanced technology. The addition of AI worries many due to the computers possibly becoming smart enough to replace humans altogether, and many people are becoming reliant on the advanced technology for tasks that they can do without computers.