Please help me out while I am searching for answers

[Chellebyerly]

Hello- Total techo idiot here.

I went from a bb curve to a pro.

I like it. But I have alot I have to learn.
I have a personal cake buisness with an email address, contacts and use the calender
I have a non profit shooting range with 20 board members with its own email address and contacts and use the calender
both emails are yahoo.
I am VERY active on facebook- with my own personal profile (and I play a few games, so I have people who are on there JUST cause of the games.), my cake business profile, and the THREE non profit profiles that i run, PLUS the kids 4H club profile.

I wasnt REALLY aware of what 'syncing' was... and now I have added almost 500 people in my address book. UGGGGg
the non profit email that is yahoo, my husband and I share it. Well when his BB was set up to it, it sync'd all HIS phone contacts INTO it. and now my droid pro has sync'd all HIS contacts FROM yahoo INTO my phone. I dont want his contacts in MY phone. Heck, I dont even want HALF my contacts.


When I send out an email to my non profit board. I prefer to send it to a 'group'- how do I set up ONE group. for some reason I have 4 groups set up under this same name. I guess it took one from both Emails, (personal and non profit) AND one from my BB curve. but I cant find where I just can type in 'board' and it will put those addies in an outgoing email.

How long SHOULD this battery last? I am looking at 1.5 hours at the MOSt. Verizon seems to think its an issue with the phone, and sent me a new phone. NOT a new battery or a new charger, a new PHONE. so I have to use my OLD battery, and will loose??? I dont know what all- although some things ARE in my sim card.



Things that I NEEd to know now are:

 

[jpcalhoun]

Hello- Total techo idiot here.

I went from a bb curve to a pro.

I like it. But I have alot I have to learn.
I have a personal cake buisness with an email address, contacts and use the calender
I have a non profit shooting range with 20 board members with its own email address and contacts and use the calender
both emails are yahoo.
I am VERY active on facebook- with my own personal profile (and I play a few games, so I have people who are on there JUST cause of the games.), my cake business profile, and the THREE non profit profiles that i run, PLUS the kids 4H club profile.

I wasnt REALLY aware of what 'syncing' was... and now I have added almost 500 people in my address book. UGGGGg
the non profit email that is yahoo, my husband and I share it. Well when his BB was set up to it, it sync'd all HIS phone contacts INTO it. and now my droid pro has sync'd all HIS contacts FROM yahoo INTO my phone. I dont want his contacts in MY phone. Heck, I dont even want HALF my contacts.


When I send out an email to my non profit board. I prefer to send it to a 'group'- how do I set up ONE group. for some reason I have 4 groups set up under this same name. I guess it took one from both Emails, (personal and non profit) AND one from my BB curve. but I cant find where I just can type in 'board' and it will put those addies in an outgoing email.

How long SHOULD this battery last? I am looking at 1.5 hours at the MOSt. Verizon seems to think its an issue with the phone, and sent me a new phone. NOT a new battery or a new charger, a new PHONE. so I have to use my OLD battery, and will loose??? I dont know what all- although some things ARE in my sim card.



Things that I NEEd to know now are:

Your battery should last a lot more than 1-2 hours. I recommend the extended battery offered on line by Verizon (not offered in your local Verizon store)...Verizon on line. I'm not sure how you do a group email. I recommend you log onto your gmail account using your computer and research their email setup section.

 

[Shadez]

Welcome to the forums Hope you find all the answers you need right here!

 

[Chellebyerly]

Okay, Thanks

I went ahead and got the replacement phone that verizon sent, and am trying to set it up. So far its nekid. so no unwanted contacts as of yet. But i reckon that also means I have to start over at level 1 with angry birds... LOL

So the extended battery should help? I just cant imagine anything having less life than a BB curve battery. mine died it if looked at it sideways.

I will try to keep on trying to fiqure out how to just pick out a group of folks to send emails to. Like our newsletters and such. because otherwise i end up forgetting someone when I have to scroll through 800 contacts. half of whom I dont know except that they Do want to be on the email newsletter lists. of course, some of those are the same folks who are my 4H parents, AND some of those are ALSO on anywhere from 1 to all 3 of the Non profits I am on the committees for.


Heck, I know I have y'all confused, i stay confused trying to fiqure out what I am doing half the time

 

[guidot]

The difficulty is that you have so many sources of contacts. I wish I could give you the answers but if you looking in settings (homescreen>menu>settings >sync) you should be able to shut off the Facebook and yahoo sync options if you want.

And I don't know about the Curve but my wife had a Tour. If you are killing the battery in a BB in less than a day, Android will be a nightmare for you. I'd carry a charger with you at all times. The BB chargers will work in a pinch.

Sent from my A855, while on the move.

 

[jpcalhoun]

Okay, Thanks

I went ahead and got the replacement phone that verizon sent, and am trying to set it up. So far its nekid. so no unwanted contacts as of yet. But i reckon that also means I have to start over at level 1 with angry birds... LOL

So the extended battery should help? I just cant imagine anything having less life than a BB curve battery. mine died it if looked at it sideways.

I will try to keep on trying to fiqure out how to just pick out a group of folks to send emails to. Like our newsletters and such. because otherwise i end up forgetting someone when I have to scroll through 800 contacts. half of whom I dont know except that they Do want to be on the email newsletter lists. of course, some of those are the same folks who are my 4H parents, AND some of those are ALSO on anywhere from 1 to all 3 of the Non profits I am on the committees for.


Heck, I know I have y'all confused, i stay confused trying to fiqure out what I am doing half the time

Ok, I've done some research for you...here is how to create a "group(s)" in gmail: log-on to your gmail account using your computer. Click on "contacts" listed at the left of your screen under "Mail". On the left hand portion of your gmail window you will see "New Group", click on "New Group" and give your new group a name...once you have established that new group you can add contracts to that group. Hope this helps.
Here are some suggestions for increased battery life on your Pro. Like guidot said...if you were having battery life issues with your BB, your Pro is going to be a nightmare:
--Turn your display brightness down to as low a level as is comfortable in an indoor setting. You can always increase the brightness if you are using your phone outside.
--Make sure your network setting is set to CDMA...not global or GSM. Verizon is a CDMA carrier.
--If you downloaded and installed a 3rd party task manager/killer you probably need to uninstall it...they use a lot of battery and do very little good...most often bad.
--Live wallpaper is neat, but it uses a lot more battery than a non-live wallpaper.
--Turn WiFi, Bluetooth and GPS off unless you are actively using one of them.
--If you have widgets or apps (email, weather, facebook etc) that are syncing data in the background, set the time interval between sync to as long a period as you can live with. The constant syncing of data for numerous widgets/apps puts a strain on your battery resources.
--Again, I recommend the Verizon extended battery...it can make a big difference in the time required between charges.
--I don't know how many email accounts you are trying to keep track of, but one suggestion is to have your other than gmail accounts "forward" your email to your gmail account. By doing that, your phone does not have to sync those non-gmail accounts because gmail will "push" all mail, regardless of account, to your phone...like BIS/BES. Less sync...more battery life.
Hope these suggestions help.

 

[Chellebyerly]

Ok, I've done some research for you...here is how to create a "group(s)" in gmail: log-on to your gmail account using your computer. Click on "contacts" listed at the left of your screen under "Mail". On the left hand portion of your gmail window you will see "New Group", click on "New Group" and give your new group a name...once you have established that new group you can add contracts to that group. Hope this helps.
Here are some suggestions for increased battery life on your Pro. Like guidot said...if you were having battery life issues with your BB, your Pro is going to be a nightmare:
--Turn your display brightness down to as low a level as is comfortable in an indoor setting. You can always increase the brightness if you are using your phone outside.
--Make sure your network setting is set to CDMA...not global or GSM. Verizon is a CDMA carrier.
--If you downloaded and installed a 3rd party task manager/killer you probably need to uninstall it...they use a lot of battery and do very little good...most often bad.
--Live wallpaper is neat, but it uses a lot more battery than a non-live wallpaper.
--Turn WiFi, Bluetooth and GPS off unless you are actively using one of them.
--If you have widgets or apps (email, weather, facebook etc) that are syncing data in the background, set the time interval between sync to as long a period as you can live with. The constant syncing of data for numerous widgets/apps puts a strain on your battery resources.
--Again, I recommend the Verizon extended battery...it can make a big difference in the time required between charges.
--I don't know how many email accounts you are trying to keep track of, but one suggestion is to have your other than gmail accounts "forward" your email to your gmail account. By doing that, your phone does not have to sync those non-gmail accounts because gmail will "push" all mail, regardless of account, to your phone...like BIS/BES. Less sync...more battery life.
Hope these suggestions help.

THANK Y'all!!!


I will try the gmail forwarding or 'push'- I actually need it to check for mail every minute or two. not every 15 minutes, so this might be that solution

I will check the CDMA- and I dont have it on wifi because the only wifi I have, I pay for THROUGH verizon and DONT need my phone using it! LOL

I get texts and emails when something happens on facebook, (I rely on face book for 2 of my 'jobs') so I really dont need the phone to do it automatically I dont reckon.

I am looking at getting the extended battery- I agree- that seems like something I need to do.

I was able to get from 3am - 11am with moderate talking, texting and emails before having to charge this morning with the new phone (and thats with Sync still on) so maybe the phone was wonky. thats about what I would get with the curve.


I will also look into the brighness setting- and never did understand the 3rd party task killers, so I havent Dl'd any of them. and live wallpaper seemed like a real battery hog- I never even was tempted to check it out . LOL


I hope I can lick it with this syncing thing. because I do tihnk I like the phone. But, bottom line is- I am on a shooting range for hours at a time- or at the barn working with animals- I dont have time to worry about charging my phone.

 

[jpcalhoun]

THANK Y'all!!!


I will try the gmail forwarding or 'push'- I actually need it to check for mail every minute or two. not every 15 minutes, so this might be that solution

I will check the CDMA- and I dont have it on wifi because the only wifi I have, I pay for THROUGH verizon and DONT need my phone using it! LOL

I get texts and emails when something happens on facebook, (I rely on face book for 2 of my 'jobs') so I really dont need the phone to do it automatically I dont reckon.

I am looking at getting the extended battery- I agree- that seems like something I need to do.

I was able to get from 3am - 11am with moderate talking, texting and emails before having to charge this morning with the new phone (and thats with Sync still on) so maybe the phone was wonky. thats about what I would get with the curve.


I will also look into the brighness setting- and never did understand the 3rd party task killers, so I havent Dl'd any of them. and live wallpaper seemed like a real battery hog- I never even was tempted to check it out . LOL


I hope I can lick it with this syncing thing. because I do tihnk I like the phone. But, bottom line is- I am on a shooting range for hours at a time- or at the barn working with animals- I dont have time to worry about charging my phone.

I think the extended battery and the suggestions (above) will help your battery life quite a bit. I have the extended battery and with three email accounts (all forwarded to gmail), 10-15 text a day, at least 50 emails and 30-45 minutes of phone time, I can get from 7AM to 1130PM and still have 60% battery left. Also, set your display timeout to 30 seconds. Your display is the single biggest user of battery power. You'll be surprised on a change from, let's say, 1 minute to 30 seconds makes in battery life during the day. Let us know how it goes.

 

[Chellebyerly]

The Battery life has improved SOOO drastically- I am amazed- I guess that phone was wonky.

I am still having the email issues- cause I cant pay yahoo 20.00 a year for 3 accounts to send them to gmail. LOL I am having to manually check email constantly, but I guess its better than nothing.

I am getting a little better- But other than words with friends, and the bigger screen- I am not sure its better than my curve. None of the apps really do that much for me.
LOL

Now I just have to learn to quit buttdialing people, and find a decent case for it. I didnt realize the pro was so unpopular. LOL

 

[Shadez]

The Battery life has improved SOOO drastically- I am amazed- I guess that phone was wonky.

I am still having the email issues- cause I cant pay yahoo 20.00 a year for 3 accounts to send them to gmail. LOL I am having to manually check email constantly, but I guess its better than nothing.

I am getting a little better- But other than words with friends, and the bigger screen- I am not sure its better than my curve. None of the apps really do that much for me.
LOL

Now I just have to learn to quit buttdialing people, and find a decent case for it. I didnt realize the pro was so unpopular. LOL

It's not unpopular by any means. It's just a preference.

 

[guidot]

Depends on what you want in a case. My wife ordered the otterbox defender (has it on her Ipod Touch). It was waaaay too bulky (I thought it was awesome however). She now just has a $7 jelly case from amazon.

 

[jpcalhoun]

The Battery life has improved SOOO drastically- I am amazed- I guess that phone was wonky.

I am still having the email issues- cause I cant pay yahoo 20.00 a year for 3 accounts to send them to gmail. LOL I am having to manually check email constantly, but I guess its better than nothing.

I am getting a little better- But other than words with friends, and the bigger screen- I am not sure its better than my curve. None of the apps really do that much for me.
LOL

Now I just have to learn to quit buttdialing people, and find a decent case for it. I didnt realize the pro was so unpopular. LOL

Well, I totally disagree with "unpopular"!! Yeah, it got off to a less than stellar start, but with the updates it is a pretty stable, reliable phone. In my humble opinion (and I've had three different Blackberries), the Pro is the best querty keyboard phone available right now. It runs circles around any Blackberry to include the new 9900 series as far as I can tell. As for a decent case...yeah, you should get one of those. Carrying a cell phone around in your pocket is not usually a good idea...dust under you screen, scratches etc. etc. Verizon sells a shell/holster combination specifically made for the Pro that has a belt/waist clip on it and it's not bulky.

Maybe I don't understand the email issue. Let's face it, unless you restructure your email accounts your going to pay Yahoo $20 a month no matter what you do...it seems to me that having those Yahoo accounts forwarded to your gmail account would save you alot of time and trouble...your going to pay $20 a month no matter what you do. Gmail will sent those emails to your Pro immediately...it works just as fast as BB's BIS/BES.

 

[Chellebyerly]

Okay- NOW its NOT checking my email- The little spinning thing will spin, if I tell it to- I am not sure if its dont the 15 minute checks since sometime yesterday- I missed over 40 emails today- I HAVE to get my emails- I run 2 business' with my phone.

what could be the issue?


And JP, are you saying I should break down and pay yahoo? or is there a way around the forwarding that I dont know about?

Thanks!

 

[Shadez]

Okay- NOW its NOT checking my email- The little spinning thing will spin, if I tell it to- I am not sure if its dont the 15 minute checks since sometime yesterday- I missed over 40 emails today- I HAVE to get my emails- I run 2 business' with my phone.

what could be the issue?

And JP, are you saying I should break down and pay yahoo? or is there a way around the forwarding that I dont know about?

Thanks!

Hiya.. I haven't read this whole thread, but have you called VZW or motorola?

I don't understand the paying yahoo part. Is this new?

Now when I'm on my bionic, and goto accounts, and ad account, yahoo shows up... so I'm a little confused to what the problem is with your pro. Are you receiving a data signal?

 

[Chellebyerly]

I have yahoo email- The droid only checks yahoo every 15 minutes at the most. (I am used to a BB, I got my mail every minute. )

you CAN subscribe to an upgrade of yahoo mail and have it popped to outlook or whatever- BUT its 20.00 a year.

I decided to just stick with the 'every 15 minutes' checking- which it really doesnt do- and this DOES freak out my customers- they are used to me getting and answering emails quickly- and my board of directors REALLY freak out- they keep thinking I have died. LOL
LOL