Techno Life

I found a versatile Android editor, the 920 Text Editor.

Works well, will read some E-books, and is useful to explore folders as well.

I needed a simple way to capture source code to edit or study.

Most of the apps were too large, required unnecessary permissions, failed to run, or otherwise failed.

Then I found HTML Page Source Viewer.

It is small (72k), uses few permissions, and works perfectly.

HTML Page Source Viewer allows you to view, E_mail, save, and otherwise handle source code. It snatches the source instantly. Very handy.

The original article was all about using a google app to do this, but since I am not fond of google I was pleased for these alternatives, found in the Comments section:

This places a QR Code bookmarklet in your Bookmarks to convert URL’s.

OR …

Copy and Drop your URL, Phone, etc. on the bookmarklet found here “… not just limited to URLs

Here is my example:

OR …

“This bookmarklet generates a QR code for the current page:

Simply create a new bookmark and use the following code for the location:

javascript:void((function(){j=document.createElement(%22SCRIPT%22);j.src=%22http://dl.dropbox.com/u/6703…[0].appendChild(j);})())

When on a page u can click on the bookmark and the generated code will appear on the top right corner of your browser.”

Here are some Android apps I have installed as time has allowed … OK, so I have stayed up late a few nights surfing apps … :-)

A few of the apps are associated with my Amateur Radio hobby and thus are included for fellow Hams and to inspire your interest in the hobby.

I applied these filters to my selections:

A. Minimum permissions - should be relevant to task.
B. Small size to save space.
C. Good reviews.
D. Works on a Samsung Galaxy Droid (Verizon model).
E. Most are free but I don’t mind paying for a good app.

APRSdroid (so far - good)

Dangerous Goods Manual (simple - good)

DroidSSTV (looks good - testing)

DW Contacts and Phone (replace default E-mail/text app - good)

eShare share folder with wifi (folder problem - testing)

First Aid by Symptoms (simple - good)

FlashLight (soft front display lighting - good)

Folder Downloader for Dropbox (need to set up a Dropbox - testing)

Html5 Cheat Sheet (simple - good)

IP Webcam (connect problem - testing)

Metal Detector (looks and works well - good)

NCDXF Beacon (spot them and listen for openings - good)

Scan (Barcode/QR scanner - good)

Secret Coder Lite (text/e-mail in Morse or other codes - good)

Smart Compass (looks and works well - good)

Stopwatch and Timer (looks and works well - good)

StormEye (trouble finding location - testing)

Thread Pitch (simple scale pic - good)

Torch LED Flashlight (LED light - good)

Wireless File Transfer Pro (testing)

ZDbox (multiple utilities - good)

Two additional apps are worthy of mention:

Police Scanner (kept reactivating after being closed and even after being killed using ZDbox, so I had to temporarily uninstall it - otherwise good)

Listen In (Full) is another Police/Ham radio scanning app but reviews claimed it crashes the phone and the most recent update suggests that it may be abandonware, which is a shame since the permission list is admirably short and the size is small.

This is an interesting page but I have concerns …

http://www.androidauthority.com/best-android-apps-emergency-disaster-survival-81570/

Many of these apps insist on “permissions” that are not necessary to the purpose of the app, e.g. Network and Phone access and even Commerce (the app can commit to buy without asking).

You may choose to seek-out alternative apps with less invasive permission requirements. (From what I understand in most cases if one tried to block these apps from using those permissions they will fail.)

Note: From what I have read it seems that the old Android code was so primitive that one could not un-link the permissions when writing an app - that appears to no longer be true - now it’s either careless coding or a deliberate desire to gain access to private data.

Also, keep track of the size of the apps and whether they tend to run in the background even though you thought you closed them. (I use an app called ZDbox to check and kill running apps, monitor battery, etc.)

A Smartphone like the Samsung Galaxy Nexus (and others) lacks a SD-card slot so what comes with it is all the storage you have.

Also, when you are away from a connected wifi these apps may be chewing-up your phone’s data minutes. (I found this to be true of a police scanner app.)

BTW: Here’s a test. Try to find a police/Ham scanner app that does not require absurd permissions. I went through about 20 until I came upon “Listen In (Full)” and that appears to be ‘abandonware’.

It has been a while since I last posted to my Technolife blog.

I decided to give Twitter a second and more-serious chance to prove itself worthy of the time to build a presence. That time was taken away from feeding my blog.

For the second time Twitter has suspended my account, for the second time they have provided no reason, and for the second time there is no communication from them as to when they will repair their error.

Either Twitter is suffering serious technical failures (I am aware that they have been wrestling with dropped Followers as many users have complained of that) but the suspension of an account for days or weeks is far more serious.

I am told that a number of people who comment on political matters have suffered suspension of their accounts. Speculation includes false and malicious complaints filed by agents of those being criticized. (Celebrities have alternative means to effectively demand the prompt restoration of their accounts, the rest of us do not.)

In neither the first case or this one had I violated any Twitter rules but this time I had worked hard to build a Follower list of over 300 and was on-pace to increase that - so this is more-frustrating as I had diverted time from other projects to invest it in my Twitter presence.

Twitter’s “Customer Service” has been as poor as that of AOL and Yahoo. When one submits a form one is told that it failed, but then an automated acknowledgement E-mail later appears in ones Inbox. When one replies to the automated confirmation, as instructed, one receives no confirmation that it has been received – so a user cannot tell if Twitter’s Customer Service is even aware of the problem (because they say they will drop the case if the automated E-mail does not receive a user reply).

Twitter’s shabby service could doom it to a short-run as the industry leader; apparently-easy sabotage via false and malicious complaints, an ill-functioning customer service system, lengthy down-times, dropped Followers, and poor communication are all failings that will drive users to a competitor.