Profeo LightControl v0.9.6 readme file

1. About Profeo LightControl

Profeo LightControl (Profeo LC) is an advanced light management utility for palmOne Treo 600 smartphones, which provides complete control over the screen and keyboard backlight, and the screen brightness and contrast. Profeo LC has been designed as a "set-and-forget" application - once configured, you will rarely need to start the program again. The main features of Profeo LC are:

day and night modes with individual light settings, which can be activated daily at predefined times;

"smart mode switching", which replaces the default "Opt+p" action with the option to switch between Profeo LC's day and night mode at any time;

"Stay On When Charging" option, which keeps your Treo on when it is plugged in.

Profeo LC is a donation-ware application - you can download the latest version for free and no registration is required. You are also encouraged to distribute the program, as long as it is not modified in any way. However, if you like the program, you are encouradged to donate through Profeo LC's home page http://profeo.mytreo.net or by purchasing the program from Handango.com or PalmGear.com. Your donations will support the future work on all existing and new Profeo applications.

2. Installation instructions

If you are running a version of Profeo LC lower than 0.9.5, the please disable and delete it before installing version 0.9.6, because the program options have changed.
If you are upgrading from version 0.9.5 to 0.9.6, then you can install the new version without deleting the old version. In such case, after you install the new version, you MUST go to the "Debug settings" and reset the "Stay On When Charging" functions!

If you have downloaded the zipped version of Profeo LC, please unzip it in any convenient folder. The zip file contains the main program - ProfeoLC.prc and this readme file (and its associated images). You can install the program by HotSync-ing ProfeoLC.prc to your Treo with your favorite HotSync program. After HotSync, you will be asked to reset your Treo. By default, Profeo LC is placed in the "Utilities" tab in PlamOS's default launcher. Please follow the instructions in the next section to configure Profeo LC.

3. Configuring Profeo LightControl

To avoid software conflicts, before enabling Profeo LC, it is strongly recommended to disable any other application that provides similar functionality to Profeo LC. Such are mLights, SilkDimmer, EnergyDimmer, BrightCam, STOIC, OnCradleOn, etc.

3.1. Main program settings

When the program is started, you will see the following main options screen:

On the main screen can be configured the automatic activation of each mode and the "Stay On When Charging" options.

The On and Off buttons allow you to turn on and off Profeo LC's functionality. When the program is turned off, it restores the default Treo settings, after which it is not active anymore, even after reset.

The next few controls allow you to configure the properties of the Profeo LC's Day and Night modes. By selecting the "Auto-activate at" checkbox after each of the modes, you will be given the option to select time of the day when the corresponding light mode will be automatically activated. If the checkbox is not selected, then this light mode will not be automatically activated. However, you can still switch to it by pressing the "Opt+p" key combination. Thus, if "Auto-activate" is enabled for both Day and Night modes, then they will be automatically activated at the specified time, with option to switch to the other mode at any time. If "Auto-activate" is enabled only for one of the modes, then that mode will be restored (activated) at the specified time, and the other one will be available only by pressing "Opt+p". Finally, if none of the modes is scheduled, then Profeo LC will default to Day mode and the modes can be switched only by pressing "Opt+p".

The last set of controls on the main screen is related to the "Stay On When Charging" function. To activate it, you must select the "Stay On" checkbox. When selected, you will be provided with a button to choose time period, during which "Stay On When Charging" option should be active, as shown on the screen snapshot below:

On this screen you can:

select start/end time during which the Stay On option is active;

select "All day" to automatically enter the Day mode auto-activate time as a start time and the Night mode auto-activate time as end time;

select "No time" to make the "Stay On" option always active.

If an interval is selected for the Stay On option, the Profeo LC will enforce it as follows:

if the screen is turned on or the charger is inserted while the current time is outside of the Stay On interval, then Treo will turn off after the selected system inactivity timeout;

if the screen is turned on or the charger is inserted while the current time is within the Stay On interval, then the screen will stay on until manualy turned off or the charger is disconnected.

The two buttons with the Sun and the Moon symbols are used to adjust the desired backlight, contrast and brightness state for Day/Night mode, as described below.

3.2 Mode-specific settings

Profeo LC provides you with a real-time preview of your choices, thus the screen/keyboard lights will change when you press the Sun or Moon button. Two typical settings for Day/Night mode are presented below.

From this screen you can make the following adjustments:

select if you want to have keyboard backlight (keylight), by checking the "Keylights" checkbox;

adjust the desired contrast and brightness of the screen;

select different dimming options by clicking the appropriate checkboxes.

The dimming options allow you to turn the keylights off and/or dim the screen after the handheld has been inactive for 10-15 seconds. The following combinations of dimming options are possible:

if keylights are selected and the display brightness is not at minimum, then it is possible to either turn only the keylights off or to dim the screen and turn the keylights off;

if keylights are selected and the display brightness is at minimum, then it is only possible to turn the keylights off;

if keylights are not selected and the display brightness is not at minimum, then it is possible to dim the screen only;

if keylights are not selected and the display brightness is at minimum, then no dimming can be selected.

3.3. Debug settings

In most cases you don't need to change any of these settings, but they are provided for your convenience or to help you isolate problems in Profeo LC or with third-party applications.

The debug settings allow you to disable certain features of Profeo LC. Their effects are as follows:

Disable after reset - if not selected, then Profeo LC will be automatically enabled after soft reset.

Disable opt+p override - if selected, this option will disable the "smart mode switching" and will restore Treo's default opt+p function.

Disable automatic mode switching - if selected, then day and night modes will not be automatically activated, no matter what is the state of the "Activate at" checkbox for the modes.

Disable contrast adjustment and Disable brightness adjustment allow you to prevent Profeo LC from adjusting these two screen parameters when switching between day and night mode automatically or with the hotkey.

Disable permanent keylights - Profeo LC uses non-standard functionality to keep the keyboard backlight permanent, because Treo's programming interface does not provide a standard way to keep permanent keyboard backlight in day mode. The functionality is well tested, but you have the option to disable it for debugging purposes. Note that in such case it will NOT be possible to have permanent keyboard backlight in any mode of Profeo LC!

Reset StayOn - resets the Stay On When Charging functionality when upgrading from version 0.9.5 to 0.9.6.

Restore default settings - restores ALL program settings to default values.

Please be advised that after selecting some of the debug settings (automatic switching, contrast or brightness control, or permanent keylights), the corresponding day/night mode settings will disappear from Profeo LC's main and mode settings forms!

3.4. Mode enforcement

It is important to know when is Profeo LC's current mode enforced. Under normal circumstances (none of the advanced settings is checked), Profeo LC will act as follows:
1. When a mode's scheduled time comes, Profeo LC will make it current and enforce its settings.
2. When opt+p is pressed, Profeo LC will make current and enforce the non-current mode (i.e., switch from day to night or vice verse). The new mode will be current until opt+p is pressed again or until the non-current mode's scheduled time comes.
3. The current mode's settings are enforced every time when Treo is turned on, i.e., you don't have to press opt+p every time when Treo is turned on, as you have to do when Profeo LC is not running. 4. When switching to/from the Phone and SMS applications in order to override their internal light control. This might result in a short blink of the keyboard.

4. Uninstall instructions

If you ever need to uninstall Profeo LC, then you are stronly advised to first turn the program off (see above) and then delete Profeo LC using PalmOS's delete command or any file/uninstall manager of your choice. If you don't turn off the light control before deleting the program, then your Treo might reset itself once, and also there might be some residual effects of Profeo LC (related to contrast, brightness, and "Stay On When Charging"). Note that you don't have to delete Profeo LC if you want to test another program or debug a problem on your Treo - in such case you can simply turn off the light control in Profeo LC's main options.

5. Known issues

1. The keyboard may blink when switching to/from the Phone and SMS applications. These applciations have internal light control, which Profeo LC's must override after they are launched/quitted.

2. The keyboard backlight might turn off during HotSync operations even when no dimming is selected. Profeo LC's light mode will be restored after the HotSync operation finishes.

3. The keyboard backlight will turn on when you go to "Contacts" even when it must be off. This is due to the internal light control of the "Contacts" application. The normal Profeo LC mode will be restored when you exit the "Contacts" application.

6. Other Profeo applications

The following other programs are available in the Profeo family:

Profeo RadioControl - program, which allows you to automatically turn on/off the Treo 600's radio (wireless mode) at specified times.

Profeo MinuteMinder - program, which beeps every minute or every 10 minutes of a phone call to remind you of the elapsed time.

Profeo SystemAlarms - application for any handheld organizer with PalmOS 4.0 or above, which allows you to set up alarms, based on the remaining capacity of the battery, main memory, and expansion card.

Profeo LineSwitch - allows you to switch between two alternative lines of service at specified times. It works only on GSM Treo 600s that have two phone lines on their SIM card.

Profeo 600 Lite - a profile management application for palmOne Treo 600.

For more information on these and other Profeo applications, please visit Profeo's home page at http://profeo.mytreo.net.

7. Support and contact information

For all problems and suggestions, please visit Profeo's home page at http://profeo.mytreo.net or the dedicated support forums at http://mytreo.net/profeo.