Description:
Purpose:
Having to set your brightness throught the standard dialog can be a tedious task: Consider you set it to something low, to conserve battery, but then someone wants to see your new & shiney device, and you'd like to show-off with your brightness at its maximum level: Normally, you'd take out your stylus and point out that tiny "sun" on the lower left corner of your screen (after you tried, in vain, to tap it w/your nail ;), and then try to slide it quickly on-screen, and then make sure its fully maxed, using the hardware scroll buttons...right? No more!
With a stroke of your finger (depends on the DA launcher you're using and the options you choose to invoke my DAs) your could quickly choose between minimum brightness (great for reading at night), low (~20%, for battery-conscious users ;), medium (50%, should be enough for most situations) or maximum (100%. The range above 50% up to 100% is superfluous).
Right now, I know only of two programs that allow easy setting of the brightness, the one is shareware and the other requires OS5. However, my DAs are much more simple and focused: no interface, no idle behaviour - they just work! :)
Installation
- BrightnessMinDA.prc - Sets brightness to 0% (retaining backlight)
- BrightnessLowDA.prc - Sets brightness to approximately 20%
- BrightnessMedDA.prc - Sets brightness to 50%
- BrightnessMinDA.prc - Sets brightness to 100%
You'd also need a DA launcher if you don't have any:
- DA Launcher 5 : A very good stand-alone DA launcher for OS5 (the only freeware DA launcher for OS5?)
- EasyLaunch : The best hack for various tasks and convenient launching of DAs - MOST RECOMMENDED !!! (freeware)
- YAHM : The most stable hack-manager (required for EasyLaunch hack) - more stable than X-Master (both freeware)
Usage:
If you chose the combination of YAHM + EasyLaunch (a must for OS4.x users! ;) than my best advice to you would be to configure the stroke from the menu silkscreen button to the 3 different parts of the screen: from Menu to Display-Left would be nice for BrightnessMinDA, low brightness at the middle, and medium at the right. The rare need for maximum brightness (drains battery! only for show-offs ;) could be set from Menu to the Calculator silkscreen button. That way you have a logicaly, easy to remember and to invoke, control of your brightness! (The Menu icon is near the original brightness icon, but our route is much easier on the fingers! ;)
Other means of calling the DAs will of course work too. No windows of any kind will clutter your screen - you'll notice the immidiate change in brightness, and that's it! :)
Further Information:
A good place to learn about DAs: http://www001.upp.so-net.ne.jp/h-yama/da/whatsda.htm
A good place to learn about Hacks: http://www.79bmedia.com/hacks/
Credits:
These DAs were compiled on board using the best freeware PalmOS Pascal Compiler by Philippe GUILLOT, available at: http://ppcompiler.free.fr/PP.php?lng=en
Source code is zipped within this package. You will need the "PalmAPI.pas" library installed in order to compile my DAs on your palm, along with the other required Pascal Compiler files (see its website for help).
Being familiar with Pascal and having found this spectacular free tool, led me to make this first (fairly simple though) attempt of mine in the field of Palm programming.
Thanks goes to Philippe and the entire PPTeam out there!
Important: All the four different CreatorIDs used in these source codes are properly registered under my name in the PalmSource developers site! Do NOT use them publicly.
Requirements:
- Palm device or compatible with brightness control
- Palm OS version 4.0 or above is required (wasn't tested under OS5)
- DA launcher
*** WARNING: These DAs were only tested to work under Sony Clie SJ22. I cannot guarantee that they will work for your device - USE AT YOUR OWN RISK !!!
