Forum: Wishes and new features - Topic: Battery Level [PLUGIN AVAILABLE] - Page: 1

Battery Level Meter on VDJ skin, not that I run on battery but the other night someone turned the extenson lead off that I had my laptop plugged into and I was non the wiser needless to say what happend :(

I highly doubt anyone would go through the trouble of creating a skin with a battery level meter considering every laptop I have ever seen will give you a warning when the battery is dangerously low.

I'd like to request this feature as well. It seems like most DJ applications do have this feature already, and if it were available in VirtualDJ I'd easily add it onto my skins.

Sometimes I forget to plug in my laptop, so it's handy to have a readily visible gauge when you're fullscreen, since you can't see the taskbar. It would be great if you could get the level as text, and also as a percentage for a slider (like CPU). Also if there were a variable that you could query to determine if it is plugged in, another for charging, etc, you could so some fancy stuff with VDJScript.

Who mix without the power connected?

As I stated, sometimes when I setup, I forget to connect the battery and don't notice until my battery indicator starts flashing (I'm in a scenario where I have to setup and start playing quickly very often). Also, I have a laptop I use for backup that I'll often not plugin, since I rarely use it. I'll just start up virtualDJ, load up a song, and put it into sleep mode. That way there is one less cable to worry about.

More than anything, it's a sort of warning and a reminder to plug the power in. That is how it's implemented in Serato Scratch Live, if I recall.

i know you guys have heard the rumours and the gossip about me been perfect and for the most part it's all true, but i've got to put my hands up and admit i have been known to not stick that three pinned thingy in its corresponding holes in the wall on occassions and have also wondered where that bloody infernal beep was coming from...

Which laptops are you people buying?

The few I have owned have all had an indicator light of some type that showed if it was on AC or DC..

also if you activate the "power Icon" in windows it will also show you if your on battery or not..

Which is moot if VirtualDJ is in fullscreen.

The point is that it should be fairly trivial to implement, and would be a handy thing for skinners to have, so that VirtualDJ could be competitive with other software that has this feature.

On my laptop, a Dell Precision M6400 the distinction is pretty subtle. There is a blue LED (sandwiched in between other blue LEDs) showing that the battery is charging when it's plugged in.

If I forget to plug in, I don't notice until the LED starts flashing orange, signalling a low battery level!

my point was most people start windows and then engage VDJ..

but your right.. once VDJ is full screen you would not know if its been unplugged.

I guess thats the part I cant wrap my head aorund.. In seven years I have never had just the laptop become unplugged midway thru a show..

At the beginning? sure.. but after I start? never.

When your working in different venues each week and with other DJ's and bands you have to put up with all types of crap including people turning off or unplugging stuff, I've had it on at least 3 or 4 occasions and now have to stick post-its on my stuff to be on the safe side.

I too have also forgotten to plug my laptop in before now.

I got the idea for a warning or level meter after buying and using Serato, couldn't believe how good a feature it was.

Good idea.. I've had this happen to me also... once I had plugged everything in my the connection between my jugcord and adaptor was loose. my old compaq laptop only had a small light in front which i never take notice of and a light where the power- in is....

I haven't had the problem since i bought my new toshiba.. has big lights that show you what you're using...

Serato has a small icon that shows you what power you're using... could help a lot of people out and even if it's just a comfort thing knowing the ;aptop isn't going to shut down!

The nice thing about Macs is a warning message pops up when your battery is low.

As does Windows?

So if Windows does it too then what exactly the point of this thread? If Windows warns you when your battery is low then why would you need a battery level meter in VDJ as well?

The one time I forgot to plug in my adapter I got a message from my Mac when I was down to 12% so I pulled out my power adapter and plugged it in... end of story. Why does everyone want a battery level indicator in VDJ? Please explain.

Hasn't this been explained ad-nauseam already? Other DJ software has had this for a long time, and it should be a trivial feature to implement that would be a useful display.

Sometimes it is convenient for me to do a short set on battery because of the difficulty of finding an open outlet, and it would be handy for me to keep an eye on the battery level since it cannot be seen when VDJ is fullscreen. This is what prompted me to suggest this feature in the first place.

Perhaps not everyone wants to wait until their system prompts them with some sort of warning at the point of critical failure, or perhaps such a warning might be ignored or lack visibility because of the way a system is configured.

I'm suspecting the simple answer is...
because Serato has it..

Lol, I think that about sums it all up.

I don't see why some people are getting so wound up about the suggestion of a battery meter? does it matter to you either way?

I use Serato from time to time and found the feature great, I don't want to see the two programs turn out to be like for like and for you two guy's to suggest this is childish.

I have to agree. Once you start working, I rarely see anything other than VDJ. In fact I know Windows has the low/critical power message baloon, but I didn't see it pop up when I too forgot to plug in my laptop.

If you're watching the crowd, mixing, selecting tracks, talking on the mic, taking requests etc. It's very possible that the message will come and go before you get a chance to see it.

Therefore a battery meter would be a very good idea. Not just a meter though - it should be able to detect whether you are running on mains power or not - as in charging vs. draining.

Even a friendly pop-up when you started VDJ would be nice that said "Warning: Running from laptop battery". And the same if the power got removed during a session. Optional, of course, from the VDJ settings ;-)

We are all human and can make mistakes...

Cheers,

Roy

LOL this is a funny forum to read....All this over a battery add-on for a skin. LOL

You guys have to be playing right?

Blessings
Kory