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Closing Apps in iOS4

gazzrenn

gazzrenn

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Jul 18, 2008
608
178
Blackpool, UK
Ok, so... please don't burn me if this has already been mentioned.

In iOS4, when you want to close an app (which was previously achieved by pressing the home button once) you have to:

  • Press home button once to get to home screen
  • Double press the home button to see the app you want to close on the tray
  • Hold down on an app to enable 'closing'
  • Press the 'Close' button on the app.

Seems a little long winded to me. I don't want a number of apps running indefinately, or have to have a purge or running apps once a day.

...or am I missing something obvious?
 
Currently no apps run in the background as they are not using the background API's. All your seeing in the taskbar are shortcuts to last used apps. (Which is why they dont remember where you were in an app, it simply restarts it)

Once the Apps are updated you shouldn't have to worry about about closing apps.

Quote from Steve Jobs at the iOS 4 launch

Q: How do you close applications when multitasking?
A: (Scott Forstall) You don't have to. The user just uses things and doesn't ever have to worry about it.
A: (Steve Jobs) It's like we said on the iPad, if you see a stylus, they blew it. In multitasking, if you see a task manager... they blew it. Users shouldn't ever have to think about it.
 
Actually, I believe most (all?) of the native apps are utilizing the new save-states/backgrounding APIs, as I've noticed when switching back-forth between Mail, Mobile Safari, Settings, etc. on iOS 4.0.
 
bripab007 said:
Actually, I believe most (all?) of the native apps are utilizing the new save-states/backgrounding APIs, as I've noticed when switching back-forth between Mail, Mobile Safari, Settings, etc. on iOS 4.0.
Click to expand...

Yeah the native apps Mail, Safari and iTunes will use the new API's but they also ran in the background in previous iOS's.

Personally I don't see the iPhone grinding to a halt like Android and MSMobile phones when multitasking… I'd let the iphone manage it's memory.
 
marcopolo007uk said:
Currently no apps run in the background as they are not using the background API's. All your seeing in the taskbar are shortcuts to last used apps. (Which is why they dont remember where you were in an app, it simply restarts it)

Once the Apps are updated you shouldn't have to worry about about closing apps.

Quote from Steve Jobs at the iOS 4 launch

Q: How do you close applications when multitasking?
A: (Scott Forstall) You don't have to. The user just uses things and doesn't ever have to worry about it.
A: (Steve Jobs) It's like we said on the iPad, if you see a stylus, they blew it. In multitasking, if you see a task manager... they blew it. Users shouldn't ever have to think about it.
Click to expand...


Ahhh yes...I remember that now from the launch..well remembered!!

I must be overthinking it, a throwback from the days of using Microsoft Pocket PC when the 'X' to close an app just minimised it until your device died from having too many apps open.
 
To alleviate any concerns...

Basically you never have to open the multitask dock/fast app switcher. iOS4 will automatically "turn off" the oldest app(s) to support what you are doing at the present time. i.e as you open more up, the oldest get closed. If you need more resources for the latest game, it frees up the resources needed.
 
Apps in the multitasking toolbar are not running in the background. They are completely closed, and only have information about their last state saved, presumably in some file in the NOR flash memory. They are not using any system resources at all, unless they have handed off some task like background audio streaming to one of the APIs...in which case you use the iPod controls to stop the streaming.

The multitasking toolbar is not a task manager showing running apps, it's a recent programs list like the one in the Windows Start menu. It shows you the most recently used apps, period. Unless for some reason you do not want an app to restart where you left off (only for 4.0-compatible apps) or are concerned about someone seeing what apps you've been using, there is absolutely no reason to remove apps from the toolbar.
 
thelatinist said:
Apps in the multitasking toolbar are not running in the background. They are completely closed, and only have information about their last state saved, presumably in some file in the NOR flash memory. They are not using any system resources at all, unless they have handed off some task like background audio streaming to one of the APIs...in which case you use the iPod controls to stop the streaming.

The multitasking toolbar is not a task manager showing running apps, it's a recent programs list like the one in the Windows Start menu. It shows you the most recently used apps, period. Unless for some reason you do not want an app to restart where you left off (only for 4.0-compatible apps) or are concerned about someone seeing what apps you've been using, there is absolutely no reason to remove apps from the toolbar.
Click to expand...

:cool:

Good man.
 
The best analogy I've been able to come up with is the apps are hibernating just like a computer hibernates http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hibernation_(computing).

They only "run" in the background when they are doing something like streaming audio. In fact, there are 7 cases (technically 6) when an app will continue to use resources, albeit, less than if it were running in the foreground.

from http://developer.apple.com/technologies/iphone/whats-new.html

Multitasking
iOS 4 delivers seven new multitasking services that allow your apps to perform tasks in the background while preserving battery life and performance. These multitasking services include:

  • Background audio - Allows your app to play audio continuously. So customers can listen to your app while they surf the web, play games, and more.
  • Voice over IP - Your VoIP apps can now be even better. Users can now receive VoIP calls and have conversations while using another app. Your users can even receive calls when their phones are locked in their pocket.
  • Background location - Navigation apps can now continue to guide users who are listening to their iPods, or using other apps. iOS 4 also provides a new and battery efficient way to monitor location when users move between cell towers. This is a great way for your social networking apps to keep track of users and their friends' locations.
  • Push notifications - Receive alerts from your remote servers even when your app isn't running.
  • Local notifications - Your app can now alert users of scheduled events and alarms in the background, no servers required.
  • Task finishing - If your app is in mid-task when your customer leaves it, the app can now keep running to finish the task.
  • Fast app switching - All developers should take advantage of this. This will allow users to leave your app and come right back to where they were when they left - no more having to reload the app.
 
gazzrenn said:
  • Press home button once to get to home screen
  • Double press the home button to see the app you want to close on the tray
  • Hold down on an app to enable 'closing'
  • Press the 'Close' button on the app.
Click to expand...
Also, be aware: that first step is not necessary. You can double-click the home button from within any app to bring up the tray.
 
thelatinist said:
Apps in the multitasking toolbar are not running in the background. They are completely closed, and only have information about their last state saved, presumably in some file in the NOR flash memory. They are not using any system resources at all, unless they have handed off some task like background audio streaming to one of the APIs...in which case you use the iPod controls to stop the streaming.

The multitasking toolbar is not a task manager showing running apps, it's a recent programs list like the one in the Windows Start menu. It shows you the most recently used apps, period. Unless for some reason you do not want an app to restart where you left off (only for 4.0-compatible apps) or are concerned about someone seeing what apps you've been using, there is absolutely no reason to remove apps from the toolbar.
Click to expand...

I thought so too, but why do you need a multitasking toolbar at all ? It fills up after a few days with all apps you just ran once with their saved state.

In that case why going to the taskbar when I can just run the app from the springboard, instead of scrolling thru ?

I can see my taskbar having 100 apps after 1 or 2 weeks :rolleyes:
 
xtend said:
I thought so too, but why do you need a multitasking toolbar at all ? It fills up after a few days with all apps you just ran once with their saved state.

In that case why going to the taskbar when I can just run the app from the springboard, instead of scrolling thru ?

I can see my taskbar having 100 apps after 1 or 2 weeks :rolleyes:
Click to expand...

It eventually truncates them. And it puts the most recent first.

It's ideal when switching between two or three apps that are in various locations on SpringBoard.
 
jman240 said:
The best analogy I've been able to come up with is the apps are hibernating just like a computer hibernates http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hibernation_(computing).

They only "run" in the background when they are doing something like streaming audio. In fact, there are 7 cases (technically 6) when an app will continue to use resources, albeit, less than if it were running in the foreground.

from http://developer.apple.com/technologies/iphone/whats-new.html

Multitasking
iOS 4 delivers seven new multitasking services that allow your apps to perform tasks in the background while preserving battery life and performance. These multitasking services include:

  • Background audio - Allows your app to play audio continuously. So customers can listen to your app while they surf the web, play games, and more.
  • Voice over IP - Your VoIP apps can now be even better. Users can now receive VoIP calls and have conversations while using another app. Your users can even receive calls when their phones are locked in their pocket.
  • Background location - Navigation apps can now continue to guide users who are listening to their iPods, or using other apps. iOS 4 also provides a new and battery efficient way to monitor location when users move between cell towers. This is a great way for your social networking apps to keep track of users and their friends' locations.
  • Push notifications - Receive alerts from your remote servers even when your app isn't running.
  • Local notifications - Your app can now alert users of scheduled events and alarms in the background, no servers required.
  • Task finishing - If your app is in mid-task when your customer leaves it, the app can now keep running to finish the task.
  • Fast app switching - All developers should take advantage of this. This will allow users to leave your app and come right back to where they were when they left - no more having to reload the app.
Click to expand...

Riiiiight! I understand it a lot more now. Thanks for that! :D
 
We need to sticky this. Threads like this are popping up all the time and are sure to be even more prevalent once 4.0 gets into the hands of general consumers.
 
Badandy said:
We need to sticky this. Threads like this are popping up all the time and are sure to be even more prevalent once 4.0 gets into the hands of general consumers.
Click to expand...

I agree, we should have a sort of FAQ post. To refer folks like me to. I'm a fairly technical user but I'm not a developer so don't spend the time looking into API information meaning i'd never know all this.

Good for your average (non dev) user.
 
Its not enough

If I have streaming audio in the background and switch apps and happen to minimise the volume, I could easily forget its running and low and behold I have blown a fortune in 3G data usage.

I think there should be a close function for apps which do run and in particular stream in the background like Pandora or Tuned In so there is an option to close or switch the apps.

I think the current setup is going to end up costing someone a fortune in data charges and make headlines.
 
don't apps that fast switch take up memory? If so then there needs to be a fast and easy way to close all apps because I don't want to close an endless amount of apps just to free up resources to play an iPhone game.
 
Deewin said:
don't apps that fast switch take up memory? If so then there needs to be a fast and easy way to close all apps because I don't want to close an endless amount of apps just to free up resources to play an iPhone game.
Click to expand...

Try this: see if you can actually get the iOS to not run a game because it's run out of memory from fast-switched apps.

(Hint: you will be unable to do this)

The big thing to keep in mind with multi-tasking in iOS 4, quitting apps, whatever: don't worry about it.
 
Deewin said:
don't apps that fast switch take up memory? If so then there needs to be a fast and easy way to close all apps because I don't want to close an endless amount of apps just to free up resources to play an iPhone game.
Click to expand...

I'll put it this way: they don't take up RAM the way you're thinking. It's not in any way like having an app open in the background in OS X / Windows / Android.
 
There seems to be no point to the fast app switching bar as it is really no faster than just hitting home button once and swtching the app. Either way. It saves ur state. Seems like it's there as a recently used list, and to make it feel more like multitasking with the way it switches
 
I said this before in the thread in the Jailbreak section, but just because an App can background doesn't mean I want it to. All of the native/apps that utilize the multitasking api will run in the background and use memory after you exit them. I am currently jailbroken (don't have backgrounder installed) and looks at my process and see apps like App Store, Camera, Calculator, ESPN, etc... running after I have exited them, and when I close them I get more free memory.

Apple should have done it more like Backgrounder and let you choose what to leave in the background (if the app supports it).
 
Coukos34 said:
There seems to be no point to the fast app switching bar as it is really no faster than just hitting home button once and swtching the app. Either way. It saves ur state. Seems like it's there as a recently used list, and to make it feel more like multitasking with the way it switches
Click to expand...

You seem to be assuming the apps people are switching between are on the same screen.
 
G****ROW said:
I said this before in the thread in the Jailbreak section, but just because an App can background doesn't mean I want it to. All of the native/apps that utilize the multitasking api will run in the background and use memory after you exit them. I am currently jailbroken (don't have backgrounder installed) and looks at my process and see apps like App Store, Camera, Calculator, ESPN, etc... running after I have exited them, and when I close them I get more free memory.

Apple should have done it more like Backgrounder and let you choose what to leave in the background (if the app supports it).
Click to expand...

What is the point of free memory?
 
nik911sc said:
If I have streaming audio in the background and switch apps and happen to minimise the volume, I could easily forget its running and low and behold I have blown a fortune in 3G data usage.

I think there should be a close function for apps which do run and in particular stream in the background like Pandora or Tuned In so there is an option to close or switch the apps.

I think the current setup is going to end up costing someone a fortune in data charges and make headlines.
Click to expand...

A sensible design would stop streaming if the volume is muted, but I'm not sure if Pandora does that (Pandora does stop streaming when paused).

A forgetful user would presumably not be looking at the phone display, and would presumably forget to use the "close function" you mention. :D

There is no easy answer here, but iOS could query whether streaming should continue after some sufficient long period (a few hours).
 
G****ROW said:
I said this before in the thread in the Jailbreak section, but just because an App can background doesn't mean I want it to. All of the native/apps that utilize the multitasking api will run in the background and use memory after you exit them. I am currently jailbroken (don't have backgrounder installed) and looks at my process and see apps like App Store, Camera, Calculator, ESPN, etc... running after I have exited them, and when I close them I get more free memory.

Apple should have done it more like Backgrounder and let you choose what to leave in the background (if the app supports it).
Click to expand...

Suspended Apps are "frozen" in RAM and can be kicked out at any time when the OS needs more RAM. The RAM used by suspended Apps is effectively "Free RAM" which is temporarily borrowed as a cache :). Manually closing these Apps achieves nothing.

The whole point of background Apps using the multi-tasking API is that they are offering you a service. If you do not want a particular service then stop it via the App's own user interface, e.g. in Pandora simply press pause and it will not run in the background any more.

In other words, complex decisions about what Apps to allow to run in the background are distilled down to simple decisions about what Apps you are actually actively using. This is a win for user experience :D
 
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