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    Help me gain battery life! plz :)

    Discussion in 'Linux Compatibility and Software' started by L4d_Gr00pie, Jul 1, 2009.

  1. L4d_Gr00pie

    L4d_Gr00pie Notebook Evangelist

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    I have 3 questions.

    First, right now when I run on battery in ubuntu 9.04 x64 it shows running on ac power and battery discharging. So I'm guessing the 'on battery power' settings don't get used while on battery. Is there a solution to this?

    Second, has anybody tried undervolting in ubuntu x64. I've seens some guides, but I'm not sure about x64 ubuntu and my cpu..

    Lastly, any other suggestions so I can save battery life (without setting the screen to dimmest so I loose my eyesight in 2 weeks) ?

    Laptop specs in sig.

    Thx :)
     
    L4d_Gr00pie, Jul 1, 2009
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  2. tuxedup

    tuxedup Notebook Enthusiast

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    You can try manually adjusting the cpu frequency using the power applet. Set it to powersave or ondemand
     
    tuxedup, Jul 1, 2009
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  3. mr_raider

    mr_raider Notebook Consultant

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    A few steps to try:

    add the laptop mode tools

    sudo apt-get install laptop-mode-tools


    Enable laptop mode by editing the file /etc/default/acpi-support and change the entry

    ENABLE_LAPTOP_MODE=true
     
    mr_raider, Jul 1, 2009
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  4. Bog

    Bog Losing it...

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    Use Intel's Powertop utility through the command line.
     
    Bog, Jul 2, 2009
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  5. Th3_uN1Qu3

    Th3_uN1Qu3 Notebook Deity

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    I can undervolt in Ubuntu x64 but i have an AMD processor in my laptop. Anyway, by far the biggest improvement you can make is what mr_raider described above. Then add the CPU frequency applet to the panel (two of 'em if you like to see the pretty bar bouncing for both cores) and by clicking on it you are able to set CPU speed directly (forces a certain speed), or change its usage policy.
     
    Th3_uN1Qu3, Jul 2, 2009
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  6. L4d_Gr00pie

    L4d_Gr00pie Notebook Evangelist

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    Thanks alot for the suggestions.

    I did all of your recommendations and I'm checking right now how much it improves my battery life. But what can I do with powertop exactly? It just displays what my computer and cpu are doing. It does give recommendations that I have no idea if it makes sense or no so what do you use it for tuxedup?

    Another thing is that when I set the cpu profile, I can set different ones for each core, which is kinda odd no?
     
    L4d_Gr00pie, Jul 2, 2009
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  7. Bog

    Bog Losing it...

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    http://www.lesswatts.org/projects/powertop/

    As you can see from the screenshot in the link above, PowerTOP gives suggestions for cutting power consumption as well as a shortcut key for implementing the suggestion.

    Ex, you can disable autodetection of the optical drive, thereby powering it off altogether, disable Bluetooth chips, etc.
     
    Bog, Jul 2, 2009
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  8. mr_raider

    mr_raider Notebook Consultant

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    Care to share the info on how to undervolt in Ubuntu?
     
    mr_raider, Jul 2, 2009
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