[Omnitech]

OK I've searched high and low here, as well as in BlackBerry World and elsewhere, for some tool that would accomplish this, without any luck.

Sometimes I need to override the global screen timeout / lock timeout / backlight timeout when I have something on the screen I need to monitor for a while, without having to constantly touch the screen to keep the backlight from turning off or going into lock mode.

Some apps can do this apparently via some sort of BB10 OS API, but I need to be able to do this interactively.

There used to be all sorts of utilities for the legacy BBOS devices that could do this. I can't find anything for BB10, other than an old thing by a defunct developer that requires excessive permissions that I can't override.

Resetting the global timeout setting is not an option because I do NOT want to have to constantly reset that just because I need to temporarily watch something.

Anyone have any hot tips on this?

[SCrid2000]

Hmm. I don't think this will work, but it might be possible. Send me a PM or an email to support at scrapps dot org.
What I have in mind won't work on 10.2 right now but might work on 10.1.

[pkcable]

Try this....

http://appworld.blackberry.com/webstore/content/49660/

[SCrid2000]

The reviews for that app aren't very promising lol

[Omnitech]

Try this....

BlackBerry World - Stay ON

I saw that. If you look at the reviews, you will see that all the ones that are positive were datestamped before the Z10 was released, which suggests those are Playbook reviews. The more recent reviews all say it doesn't work.

I assume that means it was an auto-converted/added app from the Playbook store, and wasn't tested properly on BB10. So I chose not to try it because I didn't want it messing up something.

[pkcable]

I saw that. If you look at the reviews, you will see that all the ones that are positive were datestamped before the Z10 was released, which suggests those are Playbook reviews. The more recent reviews all say it doesn't work.

I assume that means it was an auto-converted/added app from the Playbook store, and wasn't tested properly on BB10. So I chose not to try it because I didn't want it messing up something.

Yes I don't have it on my Z10 but I remember it from my PB. Sorry for the bad advise.

[SCrid2000]

No worries PK
I'm trying something that might work. If it doesn't, the OS probably doesn't allow it.

[Omnitech]

No worries PK

Hey, I was going to write that...

[Money Soldiers]

I want this, too, especially when I'm playing games. Please do something. :'(

Posted via CB10

[rcozzo]

I need this too. I used to use a program called BBLight on OS7. What I need is a setting to keep the back light on when charging. I like to see the media player stay up while listening to music.

Posted via CB10

[Pearcestev]

Bblight was great on my storm 2 as when plugged in the screen stayed on so you could see your music etc. especially in the car. I think bb have taken the security and battery saving/Eco friendly element too far on the Q10!

[Omnitech]

Bblight was great on my storm 2 as when plugged in the screen stayed on so you could see your music etc. especially in the car. I think bb have taken the security and battery saving/Eco friendly element too far on the Q10!

What they have done is over-simplify the OS.

There is no need for that to impact battery-life or security if it defaults to the way it is now. Just give people the option to change it, at their own request.

But Blackberry staff have pointed out on numerous occasions they are trying to reduce the number of options given to users to make it "easier to use".

I dispute whether those choices in many cases actually make it easier to use, but they certainly force you into things you don't want a lot, at least they do for me.

[Elmanko]

Any luck with this? I'm looking for this option as well. I prop my phone up on my desk and constantly have to swipe it when a notification comes in. It would be nice if I didn't have to move, the majority of my day consists of creating clever ways to do less work. On a side note does anyone know if BB has an app to fill out these damn TPS reports? If there is I didn't get the memo...

[Omnitech]

Any luck with this? I'm looking for this option as well. I prop my phone up on my desk and constantly have to swipe it when a notification comes in.

Apparently there is no API that allows a 3rd-party app to turn on the backlight independently.

[ZeroBarrier]

Apparently there is no API that allows a 3rd-party app to turn on the backlight independently.

I believe there's an option for this in the 10.3 leak though.

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[joeldf]

What they have done is over-simplify the OS.

There is no need for that to impact battery-life or security if it defaults to the way it is now. Just give people the option to change it, at their own request.

But Blackberry staff have pointed out on numerous occasions they are trying to reduce the number of options given to users to make it "easier to use".

I dispute whether those choices in many cases actually make it easier to use, but they certainly force you into things you don't want a lot, at least they do for me.

I agree with you.

They took out many useful options that the legacy OS had. They've had to slowly add them back in over the past year, but many are still MIA. Having options does not make things more confusing, that thinking is just asinine. All it does is frustrate long time BlackBerry users - and I thought it was those users they wanted to appeal to and keep.

About the original question, I too think it would be nice to have an "always on" setting. Like for the stop watch, or timer portion of the clock. I used to have "Leave It On" for my old 9800 that worked great.

I do know that, somehow, Google Maps/Navigation 6.14 (I think) Beta knows how to keep the backlight on forever. But, every other Google Maps I've tried since can't seem to leave the screen on anymore - they all time out. I always go back to the 6.14 beta. It's also the only Google Maps that knows to switch the view to navigation view as soon as my car starts moving - without having to input a destination first. Even BlackBerry Maps can't do that.

Posted via CB10

[Omnitech]

They took out many useful options that the legacy OS had. They've had to slowly add them back in over the past year, but many are still MIA. Having options does not make things more confusing, that thinking is just asinine. All it does is frustrate long time BlackBerry users - and I thought it was those users they wanted to appeal to and keep.

Actually I definitely believe that having a lot of options can confuse many people. But here's the thing: it is not necessarily just the number of options - what is more important is how you design the UI and provide access to those options.

This is what Apple is very, very good at. BlackBerry, not so much. (Despite the fact that they clearly fantasized that BB10 would copy their strategy in an attempt to achieve their success. Too bad they didn't really understand why Apple's UI design is as successful as it is.) And while Apple often limits choices too much in my opinion - what I'm referring to are UI design tactics that even when a large number of choices exist, still do not make the UI seem "complex" to most people.

Case in point: look at the notifications settings for BB10. What an unmitigated disaster. Each account, contact, category and app listed must be drilled down to multiple levels, and then "back, back, back, back" to get to the top level, where you root around for the next thing you want to adjust, and then "drill, drill, drill" down again to set its settings, lather, rinse repeat.

Now look at BeBuzz 10 Pro. The entire list of relevant settings for ALL accounts are all on a single page, in a grid, with color-coded elements to show which LED colors are selected (which is far more complex than what the native OS offers), which sounds are selected, vibration status, reminder status etc, yet at a single glance you can spool down the list and immediately compare several aspects of each account's settings, and see how they compare to all the others.

THAT is how you simplify a complex set of choices, make it 10x quicker to adjust, 100x easier to get a picture of what your settings are and see how they all relate to each other.

[ragnoron]

Try running a video in the background using something like nobex or bpod. Any video podcast will do.

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[Uzi]

The screen will light up when notification coming in

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[SmellWhole]

... Sometimes I need to override the global screen timeout / lock timeout / backlight timeout when I have something on the screen I need to monitor for a while, without having to constantly touch the screen to keep the backlight from turning off or going into lock mode ...

I'm very curious. What type of things on the screen do you need to monitor for longer periods of time?

[Omnitech]

I'm very curious. What type of things on the screen do you need to monitor for longer periods of time?

Timers and clocks I'm trying to synchronize something to, network monitors, photos in some cases, remote sessions to other systems, certain types of webpages, something I'm reading while my hands are busy eating or doing something else, all sorts of things.

[joeldf]

Actually I definitely believe that having a lot of options can confuse many people. But here's the thing: it is not necessarily just the number of options - what is more important is how you design the UI and provide access to those options.

I can't argue with that. The way you get around the UI to get to the various notification options is a mess. If any part of the OS UI needs a serious revamp, it's the notifications. At the same time, notifications really needs the granular control of the legacy OS to return.

Maybe that's the other big change that's been hinted about for 10.3... but, I doubt it. maybe 10.3.1.

Now that I've drifted off topic...

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[Omnitech]

So lookie what I found in the signature of this guy on Crackberry...

https://appworld.blackberry.com/webs...ode=US&lang=en


Has anyone tried this? Some reviewers seem to rave about it, and some claim it doesn't work.

[Don_Henry]

I have been using Screen Timeout since it came out - it is AWESOME And has worked flawlessly for me. And I leave it on always - because when I am mobile and not on a charger, the holster magnet overrides the app and shuts the display down until removed from the holster

It has a "minimize" function - launch the app, turn it on, and the minimize button automatically shrinks it to an active frame - and the active frame shows ON so you don't forget


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[Don_Henry]

Forgot to mention - Screen Timeout is the app in the link Omnitech just posted.

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