LauncherPro Plus breaks standard dialer

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Hello

I just purchased and installed a LauncherPro Plus on my myTouch 4G. The application is apparently incompatible with the standard dialer on this phone. I didn't use the non-Plus version of LauncherPro before, so I can't say whether this problem is specific to Plus version. So, here is what happens.

Firstly, let's take a look at how the standard dialer works under HTC Sense. I enter the dialer by hitting the receiver icon and I immediately see the following screen (see the attached picture #1). It shows my last dialed contact and has a "Enter name or number" prompt in the middle.


As I start dialing the number ("408" in this case) the "Enter name or number" prompt disappears, replaced with "408" and the top of the screen now contains the search results for the sequence I dialed so far (see the attached picture #2).


All works as it should.

Now, let's try using this standard dialer from LauncherPro Plus.

As I enter the dialer from LauncherPro Plus (by hitting the receiver icon) I right away get the following strange picture (see the attached picture #3).


Right from the start it doesn't look right. Note that there's no "Enter name or number" prompt. And instead of the last dialed contact I see some strange search results that includes all my contacts (I have 59 of them total) with pictures, but no names or numbers under the pictures.

Why does it happen? I could make a good guess: when you enter the standard dialer from LauncherPro, it immediately pre-dials some weird invisible character. This pre-dialed character makes the "Enter name or number" prompt disappear. And this pre-dialed character makes the dialer to perform the search for matching contacts. Since all 59 contacts got included into the search results, it must be some kind of "empty" characher (which is why it not visible on the dialer screen).

Another possible confirmation of that above theory is that I can actually delete that invisible pre-dialed character by hitting the "backspace" icon on the dialer screen. Once I do that, the sceeen changes to what you can see on the attached picture #4.


Note, that now the screen looks almost normal. The "Enter name or number" prompt is back. But the weird search results are still there.

Hitting the "backspace" does not really get the dialer back to normal. If I try dialing the phone number (the same "408") the dialer appears to act normally: each digit makes the expected dial tone sound and the search results change accordingly. However, the digits I dial are never displayed on the screen. The "Enter name or number" prompt now refuses to go away. See the attached picture #5 - it shows how my screen looks after dialing "408". The search worked fine, but digits "408" I dialed are not displayed.


So, again, I don't know whether the problem is specific to Plus version of LauncherPro, but in any case it is safe to say that the current version of LauncherPro Plus is not compatible with the standard dialer used in this phone.

Umm using the xda app most of these aren't showing... Weird

Only thing I can say its I use launcher pro plus and mine works.

Sent from my stickie key HTC Glacier using XDA App

I tested another myTouch 4G with LauncherPro Plus and the behavior is the same as mine (will try to locate and test more phones).

Note that the dialer "works" in a sense that if you open dialer and dial a number, disregarding any user interface quirks - it will indeed successfully call that number. I.e. the physical dialing functionality is there, it is just the user interface and search functionality that's broken. For this reason, many people probably don't even notice that something is broken and believe their dialer "works". So "mine works" is not really a precise/useful description. I want mine to work under LauncherPro exactly as it worked under HTC Sense, including GUI, search and everything else.

Unfortunately, LauncherPro web site has been in ruins for a while, so I can't post it there.

I've never had this issue. Not sure how LP could effect the dialer, since the only thing it effects is the home screen. Thats strange.

No problems here. Can dial any numbers and it will start a search and display all the matching contacts. Also displays the number im dialing.

Sent from my HTC Glacier using XDA App

Originally Posted by smellmyfingers

No problems here. Can dial any numbers and it will start a search and display all the matching contacts.

Great, but that's not exactly what I'm talking about. Here's a link to my thread on LauncherPro forum

http://www.launcherpro.com/forum/vie...hp?f=14&t=5884

Again, when you enter dialer from LauncherPro and just ignore the weirdness of the screen, i.e. just start dialing the number right away, then the dialer will appear to work fine: the numbers you dial appear on the screen and the search works properly. This is probably the reason many people don't notice something is wrong.

So, the weird things are only noticeable when you just entered the dialer, but haven't started dialing yet (no "Enter name or number" prompt, for example). Weird things also happen if you hit "backspace" right after entering the dialer.

I already had a chance to try this on three phones in person, and I also got several confirmations from other people that they observe exactly the behavior I described (some from different phones running LauncherPro Plus). One poster in that thread originally experienced an issue with entering first character of USSD codes under LauncherPro (I have a reason the believe that the issues are related).

I could be wrong, of course, but at this time I assume that [most] people who say that it "works" on their phones simply are not paying attention to the issues I described. As I said above, if you enter the dialer and just start dialing right away, it works fine. No surprise that some people might not even notice that something is amiss.

Again, if you are running LauncherPro Plus, please try the following:

1. Just enter the dialer. Do you see the "Enter the name or number" prompt? If you see it, they your phone appears to be OK. If you don't see it, proceed to step 2.

2. How hit the "backspace" icon on the screen. The "Enter the name or number" prompt should appear now.

3. Now try dialing a number. The number should dial, but the digits should not appear on the screen (the "Enter the name or number" prompt should just stay there).

Do you get this behavior on your phones? As I said, so far I only had a chance to physically try it on three phones, and all three reproduced the same broken behavior.

Originally Posted by speoples20

I've never had this issue. Not sure how LP could effect the dialer, since the only thing it effects is the home screen. Thats strange.

LP does not affect home screen only. LP is a launcher, as the name suggests. Launcher is responsible for launching other applications per user request. When you hit the dialer icon, it is LP that registers the hit and it is LP that launches the dialer application in response. Apparently, LP is launching the standard dialer incorrectly, which results in the strange behavior I described above.

Originally Posted by TheKorbenDallas

Great, but that's not exactly what I'm talking about. Here's a link to my thread on LauncherPro forum

http://www.launcherpro.com/forum/vie...hp?f=14&t=5884

Again, when you enter dialer from LauncherPro and just ignore the weirdness of the screen, i.e. just start dialing the number right away, then the dialer will appear to work fine: the numbers you dial appear on the screen and the search works properly. This is probably the reason many people don't notice something is wrong.

So, the weird things are only noticeable when you just entered the dialer, but haven't started dialing yet (no "Enter name or number" prompt, for example). Weird things also happen if you hit "backspace" right after entering the dialer.

I already had a chance to try this on three phones in person, and I also got several confirmations from other people that they observe exactly the behavior I described (some from different phones running LauncherPro Plus). One poster in that thread originally experienced an issue with entering first character of USSD codes under LauncherPro (I have a reson the believe that the issues are related).

I could be wrong, of course, but at this time I assume that [most] people who say that it "works" on their phones simply are not paying attention to the issues I described. As I said above, if you enter the dialer and just start dialing right away, it works fine. No surprise that some people might not even notice that something is amiss.

Again, if you are running LauncherPro Plus, please try the following:

1. Just enter the dialer. Do you see the "Enter the name or number" prompt? If you see it, they your phone appears to be OK. If you don't see it, proceed to step 2.

2. How hit the "backspace" icon on the screen. The "Enter the name or number" prompt should appear now.

3. Now try dialing a number. The number should dial, but the digits should not appear on the screen (the "Enter the name or number" prompt should just stay there).

Do you get this behavior on your phones? As I said, so far I only had a chance to physically try it on three phones, and all three reproduced the same broken behavior.

I get the enter name and number prompt. That is weird what is happening to you.

Originally Posted by TheKorbenDallas

Great, but that's not exactly what I'm talking about. Here's a link to my thread on LauncherPro forum

http://www.launcherpro.com/forum/vie...hp?f=14&t=5884

Again, when you enter dialer from LauncherPro and just ignore the weirdness of the screen, i.e. just start dialing the number right away, then the dialer will appear to work fine: the numbers you dial appear on the screen and the search works properly. This is probably the reason many people don't notice something is wrong.

So, the weird things are only noticeable when you just entered the dialer, but haven't started dialing yet (no "Enter name or number" prompt, for example). Weird things also happen if you hit "backspace" right after entering the dialer.

I already had a chance to try this on three phones in person, and I also got several confirmations from other people that they observe exactly the behavior I described (some from different phones running LauncherPro Plus). One poster in that thread originally experienced an issue with entering first character of USSD codes under LauncherPro (I have a reason the believe that the issues are related).

I could be wrong, of course, but at this time I assume that [most] people who say that it "works" on their phones simply are not paying attention to the issues I described. As I said above, if you enter the dialer and just start dialing right away, it works fine. No surprise that some people might not even notice that something is amiss.

Again, if you are running LauncherPro Plus, please try the following:

1. Just enter the dialer. Do you see the "Enter the name or number" prompt? If you see it, they your phone appears to be OK. If you don't see it, proceed to step 2.

2. How hit the "backspace" icon on the screen. The "Enter the name or number" prompt should appear now.

3. Now try dialing a number. The number should dial, but the digits should not appear on the screen (the "Enter the name or number" prompt should just stay there).

Do you get this behavior on your phones? As I said, so far I only had a chance to physically try it on three phones, and all three reproduced the same broken behavior.

Weird...None of these issues...

Confirmed.

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Hey man I just checked it out on mine as well and I can replicate the same error. Irritatingly enough I never noticed the issue and now that I backspaced in my dialer it made it so I couldn't backspace numbers anymore at all!

I pulled my battery and that appears to have corrected it, but yeah something is not operating correctly, but I'll be damned if I understand how launcherpro could have done that, but its obviously a common link.

I'm going to play around with it more and see what I can see, but thanks for bringing this up.

ANYONE WHO READS THIS WITH LAUNCHERPRO GO TO THEIR DIALER AND HIT THE BACKSPACE BUTTON ON THE TOP RIGHT OF YOUR SCREEN. I think a lot of people, myself included, skimmed your message and didn't read the details =P