Top 5 Android Launchers

Android is the number 1 operating system today and there’s no doubt that it is the preferred choice of many. You often tend to get bored with the user interface post the passage of a certain period of time. This is where the Android launchers come in. The launcher is your home screen and app drawer and barring the usual way Google meant it to be, you can customise the way you use your home screen and app drawer too. Here are the top 5 Android launchers for your smartphone and tablet:

Nova launcher

Nova launcher is easily one of the most popular Android launchers out there. The availability of various themes alongside a slew of customisation options such as the ability to change the colour scheme, icon themes, customisable application drawer, Subgrid positioning which allows you to snap icons or widgets half way through the desktop grid cells. It is quite an animated unit and still manages to keep things pretty fast too. It tops our list as a choice of Android launcher (personal choice too). The paid version adds features such as gesture controls and the likes but the free version gets the job done just as well too.  You can download it here.

Buzz launcher

Buzz launcher is a highly personalised android launcher courtesy of the customisation options on offer. It provides the user with over 4,50,000 themes to customise your device which is the maximum on offer by any of the launchers out there. You can even create your own homescreens with the help of it. It gets everything right courtesy of its wide array of themes and widget features made available to the user. You can also share your homescreen with others and it works pretty fast too. Homescreens can be downloaded and implemented in merely 5 seconds. The transitions are pretty fast and there are gesture controls on offer too. You can download it here.

Google Now Launcher

How could Google Now be left behind when talking about Android launchers. It gives you all the information you seek based on your interests but the only drawback is that it’s compatible with Nexus or Google Play edition devices with Android 4.4 only. It brings voice functionality too and you need to say “Ok Google” when you’re on your home screen to activate it. Faster search – tap the search box and you can enter your query immediately. It provides easy access to Google’s own products and services like Gmail, YouTube, and Maps. It keeps you updated with information about areas of your interest and offers the Android launcher experience the way Google wanted it to be. You can download it here.

Aviate Launcher

Aviate launcher is easily the most intuitive Android launcher out there and it is so good that Yahoo recently acquired it. It keeps on changing through out the day to adapt to your usage.  It transforms your phone into four, easy-to-navigate screens to make every interaction faster and more efficient. It’s everyday functionalities make it quite a nice one to have. When you wake up, it shows you how much you’ve slept and how is the weather outside. When you are travelling to work it shows the traffic conditions and shows you music apps and extra information about the artist/band you’re listening to, like recent tweets, upcoming concerts and bios when you plug in the headphones. It changes according to your interactions and even I am thinking of changing to this one. It can be downloaded here. 

Bazooka Launcher

This is not one of the most popular ones out there compared to the other giants but it is surely among the ones which offer something fresh and new.  It is light weight and provides you with blazingly fast performance.  It provides you with smooth transitions and animations while and has a wide catalogue of downloadable themes on offer. It also supports multiple gestures (swipe up’s and down’s) to reach the most used apps such as messaging, camera etc., right from the lock screen. It offers a wide array of lock screen customisations and home screens too. You can take a look at it here.

All the above listed launchers offer a high level of functionality and customisation. If you want to try something new, Aviate should be the choice as it is innovative and different from the rest. Nova and Google Now are one of the most functional ones. Bazooka and Buzz offer a good launcher too. There are many others out there as Apex, Go and the likes too.

Tc & Be Safe :)


#gotoarif

4 Lies Your Employer May Try To Tell You

While it would be nice to think that managers are always 100% truthful and accurate when talking to employees, the reality is managers sometimes say things that aren't quite true. Sometimes this is because they've been misinformed and don't actually know the correct information, but sometimes it's because it's easier to shade the truth.

Here are four things that managers often tell their workers that just aren't true.


1. "You can't discuss your pay with your co-workers."


Fact: Companies regularly tell employees they're not permitted to discuss pay with each other. But this is a direct violation of the National Labor Relations Act, which says that employers cannot prevent employees from discussing wages among themselves. The law, which protects employees' ability to organize and collectively bargain, reasons that employees wouldn't be able to organize if they were forbidden from talking with each other about pay or other working conditions. (One important note here is the prohibition on banning salary discussions doesn't cover every employee; it exempts management-level employees, but the vast majority of workers are covered.)


2. "I can't let you do _________ because then I'd have to let everyone else do it              too."

Fact: You might have heard a statement like this if you've asked your manager to let you telecommute, leave early every Friday or otherwise do something outside your office norms. The reality, though, is that managers generally do have leeway to approve special arrangements for one person that they don't approve for everyone else — and they'll often bend in areas like these to keep a great employee happy. What your manager might really be saying with this line is "I'm only willing to go so far to make you happy, and this is past that line."

That said, there are times when "If I let you do it, I'd have to let everyone else do it too" can be true. While no law prohibits managers from giving special privileges to top performers or even just to their personal favorites, it is illegal to dole out privileges based on protected classes like race, religion, sex or ethnicity. So some employers are hesitant to grant special privileges in case a pattern emerges in who does and doesn't receive those privileges, which can trigger concerns about this type of illegal discrimination.


3. "You have to resign."

Fact: Your employer can fire you, but they can't force you to resign if you don't want to. That decision is yours. If you refuse to resign, you might get fired — but some employees prefer that, since it often preserves their eligibility for unemployment benefits. Of course, some employees do prefer to resign when given the choice, to avoid having a firing in their job history. But that's not always the advantage it might appear to be on the surface, since most interviewers are going to be curious about why you quit your job without another position lined up and will assume that something happened that led to your separation.

If your employer does push you to resign, realize that they're asking you to do something for them, which means that you have some negotiating power and can consider negotiating things like severance and what your company will tell future reference-checkers.

4. "Sign this document, but don't worry — we don't really enforce it."

Fact: If someone tells you not to worry about what you're signing, that's a flag that you should read more closely, not less. If your employer truly had no intention of ever enforcing a signed agreement, they wouldn't be asking for it in the first place. That doesn't mean that they're intentionally trying to hoodwink you; they might simply not foresee the situations that would make the document relevant in the future.

In any case, don't believe assurances that a signed document isn't ever going to be used against you. Once you sign, it doesn't matter what you were told or how much the significance of the agreement was downplayed — it's a binding legal document, and you can be held to it.




Tc & Be Safe :)


#gotoarif

Things to do when you lose your SIM?

There are times when you unintentionally lose your phone resulting in the loss of your SIM card, you might just lose your SIM card just like that or you might happen to damage your SIM while inserting it or taking it out too. Today we have for you some tips to help you which can come in handy when you lose your SIM.

• Call your customer care and tell them about your loss of SIM card so that they can block it.
• If you have damaged it, go to your operator’s store, deposit your old SIM alongside your ID proof and apply for a new one.
• If you have lost it with your phone, you need to file a report at your local police station and submit the copy of the FIR along with the identity proof at the operator’s store.
• You need to carry your original proof when you go to collect the replacement SIM card.

It usually takes a couple of hours to block a SIM card. You need to pay a nominal fees to get a replacement SIM and all your previous services will be restored on the new SIM card.

There you go, you can undertake the following steps in case you lose/damage your SIM card. Let me know if you have any other queries.

Tc & Be Safe :)

#lostsim

#gotoarif

How to enable the OK, Google hotword from all screens (rooted KitKat only)

Last week Google rolled out an update to its Search app that brought an awesome piece of functionality – the ability to use the “OK, Google” hotword from any screen, without having to switch to Google Now first.

Unfortunately, Google seems to be enabling the feature on a per-user basis, meaning that you may not be able to activate it, even if you’re on the latest version of the Search app, which is 3.5.15. Also, Google appears to have slowed or possibly even halted the rollout of the feature, leaving many anxious users high and dry.

If you can’t wait to use voice commands from anywhere in the phone, there’s a relatively simple way to activate it manually.Be warned that the method requires KitKat, root access, and you can’t use it on the L release.

The method uses a special app called UnleashTheGoogle, which activates the Debug options in the Search app. You will need the latest versions of Search and Play Services installed.

Here are the steps:

• Install UnleashTheGoogle and grant it Superuser access.
• Force stop Google Search.
• In Search settings, access the “Config Flags” option from the new “Dogfood” section
• In the list of flags, find the “e300_voice_everywhere” and “enable e300” flags and set both of them to ON.
• In the same list of flags, select the “speaker_id_supported_locales” and in the dialog enter “en-US” and then tap OK.
• Scroll down and select “Save Config Settings”. You should now be able to activate the feature.
• In Search settings, select Voice, then “OK, Google Detection”, then check the “From any screen” option. This will launch a one-time training process that will allow the app to recognize your voice. Accept the terms and you are good to go.

If you want to undo the changes, you can uninstall the updates to the Search app from the App Info screen.

Tc & Be Safe :)


#google #Internet


#gotoarif

Which International Call Service To Use? Skype Out vs Nimbuzz Out vs Viber Out

When it comes to making international calls, let’s agree that telcos have really expensive calling rates.
One of the option is to use the voice over IP solutions, however, it requires a lot of planning from both the parties — from setting up a time to actually checking whether your mic is working. Hangouts on Android can actually solve a bunch of these issues if it also allowed one to just initiate a voice call instead of a video call.
I have compared three services that allows you make calls from your desktop or smartphone app to anyone with a cell phone or PSTN phone.

*Skype mentions that there might be additional connection fees applicable / ~ really variable rates

Couple of observations:

1. There’s no clear cut winner when it comes to making international calls. That is, if you want to make calls to multiple destination and want to enjoy the best price, you’ll have to keep switching between the apps
2. In all the countries that I looked for, Skype turned out to the costliest. Besides that, Skype offers way too many options to the consumers and thus confusing them. Almost every plan has some sort of conditions attached to it
3. Viber Out seems to be providing consistently best plans for most of the countries. If you have to buy credits from just one country, you cannot go wrong with Viber

Obviously, the trick here is to research on various services and pick up the best on that suits you. However, if you need to call up multiple destination and don’t want to bother with buying credits from different services, Viber Out would be the clear cut choice.


So which international calling service are you using?

Tc & Be Safe :)


#Voip #Internet


#gotoarif

How To Make Free Phone Calls On Android

The era of using actual land line telephones have all but come to an end. These days if you don’t have a mobile phone then you are considered old school. However, we are getting closer and closer to a day when making phone calls won’t cost us any money and they take place solely on data connections instead of wireless phone signals. Some people are already researching how to do just that and that is likely why you’re here. So in this list we’ll take a look at the nine best free Android apps to make free calls on Android!

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Facebook Messenger

[Price: Free]
First on list is Facebook Messenger. Facebook has only recently allowed free calls on its messenger service but so far it has been rather successful. Many people may not like Facebook these days and may be looking for ways to get rid of it. However, Facebook has one undeniable advantage of being as ubiquitous of a service as you can get. Since most of these apps require that both parties have the same application in order to make phone calls (i.e. both parties much have Facebook Messenger to make free calls), that makes Facebook Messenger an above average option since it’s more likely that your friends already use Facebook.

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KakaoTalk: Free Calls & Texts

[Price: Free]
KakaoTalk is very popular albeit mostly for people not in North America. Much like the others on this list, you can text and call people for free. KakaoTalk also includes group calls which can be a good option for those who frequently require calling multiple people at once. Another good feature of KakaoTalk is multi-platform support. So if you have friends with iOS devices, Blackberry devices, or Windows Phone, you can still make free calls as long as you both use KakaoTalk.

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LINE: Free Calls & Messages

[Price: Free]
Line is another popular option to make free calls on Android. It currently sports over 400 million users worldwide and contains a lot of nifty features. One of which is free phone calls to other Line users. You can call non-Line users but there is a small fee (which isn’t unusual for these apps). It also features text messaging and group texting. Like KakaoTalk, Line is also has multi-platform support for most mobile operating systems and PC which is always nice to have in case your friends or relatives don’t use Android.

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magicApp by magicJack

[Price: Free]
This is one of the more unique apps on the list in that magicApp by magicJack actually does allow you call non-magicApp users for free. However, there are regional restrictions. If you live in the US or Canada, you can make free calls to just about anyone. If you’re outside of the US or Canada or you’re calling someone outside of the US or Canada without magicApp, then you must pay a fee like usual. The exception, of course, is that if both parties have magicApp, all calls are still free. Also unlike most apps on this list, magicApp can only be used for phone calls. So if you just need an app for calling, this is a good way to go. If you need something that includes texting too, then this won’t be a full solution.

Nimbuzz Messenger / Free Calls

[Price: Free]
Nimbuzz has been around for a long time and rightfully so. It has all of the features that most of these other apps have and it still works rather well. As per the norm you can voice call other Nimbuzz users free of charge and the service boasts HD calling service which is a plus since a lot of these apps do not have the best voice quality when calling. Of course, your mileage may very. You can also do the usual stuff like use stickers, group chat, text chat, and others.

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Skype – free IM & video calls

[Price: Free]
The venerable Skype also fits into this category. Most people already know what Skype can do so we’ll keep this one short. You can make free Skype calls to anyone who has Skype and non-Skype numbers require a small fee. It’s on most mobile operating systems and computer operating systems (including Linux) so it’s one of the best solutions when it comes to cross platform use. Also included are free group, video, and text chats should you need those. It’s a reliable and highly popular service and much like Facebook Messenger, there’s a good chance people you know already use Skype or at least have it installed.

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Tango Messenger, Video & Calls

[Price: Free]Tango used to be a much more popular application a couple of years ago, but it remains a pretty decent option for free calls today. With Tango you can get free calls to other Tango users as well as the standard texting and group messages. It also has cross platform support and video chatting if you like those features. Tango also goes the extra mile with things like built in games that you can challenge friends to if you’re bored. Admittedly, it’s not an exciting addition but it’s definitely something you won’t find in other apps on this list.

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Viber

[Price: Free]
When this list was first written, Viber was just coming out on Android and it has made quite the splash since then. With over 200 million users, Viber is one of the most widely used free call solutions on the list. As usual, you have to be calling other Viber users for it to be free. You can also use it for text and group messaging. Viber is a little more simple than many of the other apps but it gets the job done. There is also cross platform support should you need it!

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Yahoo Messenger (and you’ll need this plugin)

[Price: Free]Last up is Yahoo Messenger. Yahoo Messenger is a weird case because it’s the only app that requires a plugin in order to make voice calls. However, with the plugin, it still does make voice calls. Without the plugin, Yahoo Messenger is just a text messaging service. With the plugin you’ll also get voice and video calling. It has a few more issues than most of these but given how Yahoo has been with updating and re-imagining their applications it’s only a matter of time before this becomes a top tier option. As it stands, it’s still a good option but beware of the bugs.

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Wrap up


Unfortunately, most of these applications have the same issue in that they only deliver free calls if both parties are using the same app. So if you have Skype, you can make phone calls to anyone but it’s only free if the other person is using Skype as well. This presents a unique paradox in that these apps are all not technically 100% free but they are free if you follow the rules. For now, there aren't many reliable services that call landlines that are free. For now, your best bet is to use these and talk your friends and family into using them too. One day, we’ll all be doing it anyway! As usual if i missed a great app, let me know in the comments below.



Tc & Be Safe :)


#Android #Freecall


#gotoarif