Public bug reported:
The power saving section of system settings has the title "Power saving"
(all GUI text is translated to English in this report, but I suspect the
wording is similar enough in the English localization of the UI that the
points still stand). There are some problems with that title in
combination with the actual options in that section:
- Screen backlight level
- Automatic backlight level
- Keyboard backlight level
- Dim screen when inactive
- Empty screen (after interval)
- Automatic suspend
- Wireless network: The wireless network can be turned off to save power.
- Bluetooth: Bluetooth can be turned off to save power.
1. Let's start with the problem with the two bottommost controls
(wireless network, and bluetooth). Their subtitles in combination with
the section title "Power saving" gives a very clear impression that
these settings enable/disable *the ability for these components to be
automatically turned off in order to save power*, but that's not what
they do at all. They're just switches to turn off the components
manually, as though the focus of this section weren't to automate power
saving but to offer manual controls that are already available not only
in their own respective setions of system settings, but readily
available at any time in the global system menu in the top right corner
of the desktop.
There's no good reason to believe that the Power saving switches are
just triply redundant instances of these already highly available
switches, since no one is actually that interested in manually managing
their power saving from a buried panel in system settings every time
they decide to go battery powered or are critically low on battery.
What's expected in this section are settings unique to power saving,
like automating it during battery power, as opposed to just general
preferences about whether you need wifi or bluetooth. It doesn't hurt to
suggest turning the transmitters off in the power saving section, but
doing it this way is misleading.
I mistakenly turned off the Bluetooth transmitter in this way in an
attempt to prevent the system from automatically power it off, during my
efforts to troubleshoot Bluetooth. Needless to say, that didn't help,
and I was later surprised to discover that Bluetooth was off.
2. The other problem in the Power saving section is that many of the
settings aren't really about power saving strategies -- they're just
general preferences that would have to be adjusted manually every single
time you want to save power:
- Screen backlight level
- Keyboard backlight level
- Wireless network: The wireless network can be turned off to save power.
- Bluetooth: Bluetooth can be turned off to save power.
Sure, they technically have the potential to save power, but then they
would have to be micromanaged all the time, i.e. not very useful in
practice if you're using battery power on a daily basis. You would have
to be extremely proactive for these settings to be preventative of
needlessly draining your battery, and they're instead very likely going
to be used when it's "too late" and you're already low on battery.
Here are the ones actually concerned with power saving strategies, i.e.
preventing battery from draining prematurely:
- Automatic backlight level
- Dim screen when inactive
- Empty screen (after interval)
- Automatic suspend
Notice how you don't have to babysit these settings every time you
decide to use battery power, and how they're actually focused on the
problem of conserving power before it's too late.
To alleviate these issues, the easiest quick fix would be to:
1. either remove or change the subtitles of the two bottommost to
something like "WiFi/Bluetooth can consume a lot of power" which
succinctly explains why these switches are here while at the same time
not misleading the reader to think the switches control something else.
2. Move the "micromanagement settings" to their own section to clearly
separate the more relevant "power conservation strategies" from the
"general user preferences for devices with potential for high power
consumption that can be manually adjusted here if you're in a pinch and
are critically low on battery".
The less easy fix would of course be to offer automatic keyboard
backlight levels instead of manual controls, and to offer actual
automatic wifi and bluetooth power saving (if that's a thing). Not to
mention a general "power saving" mode, which is the reasonable level at
which regular power saving could be expected to be managed manually.
Ubuntu 20.10
gnome-control-center 3.38.3
** Affects: nautilus-share (Ubuntu)
Importance: Undecided
Status: New
** Description changed:
The power saving section of system settings has the title "Power saving"
(all GUI text is translated to English in this report, but I suspect the
wording is similar enough in the English localization of the UI that the
points still stand). There are some problems with that title in
combination with the actual options in that section:
- Screen backlight level
- Automatic backlight level
- Keyboard backlight level
- Dim screen when inactive
- Empty screen (after interval)
- Automatic suspend
- Wireless network: The wireless network can be turned off to save power.
- Bluetooth: Bluetooth can be turned off to save power.
1. Let's start with the problem with the two bottommost controls
(wireless network, and bluetooth). Their subtitles in combination with
the section title "Power saving" gives a very clear impression that
these settings enable/disable *the ability for these components to be
automatically turned off in order to save power*, but that's not what
they do at all. They're just switches to turn off the components
manually, as though the focus of this section weren't to automate power
saving but to offer manual controls that are already available not only
in their own respective setions of system settings, but readily
available at any time in the global system menu in the top right corner
of the desktop.
There's no good reason to believe that the Power saving switches are
just triply redundant instances of these already highly available
switches, since no one is actually that interested in manually managing
their power saving from a buried panel in system settings every time
they decide to go battery powered or are critically low on battery.
What's expected in this section are settings unique to power saving,
like automating it during battery power, as opposed to just general
preferences about whether you need wifi or bluetooth. It doesn't hurt to
suggest turning the transmitters off in the power saving section, but
- doing it this way is misleading. Better to just suggest it and link to
- the proper section in the settings window instead.
+ doing it this way is misleading.
+ I mistakenly turned off the Bluetooth transmitter in this way in an
+ attempt to prevent the system from automatically power it off, during my
+ efforts to troubleshoot Bluetooth. Needless to say, that didn't help,
+ and I was later surprised to discover that Bluetooth was off.
- I mistakenly turned off the Bluetooth transmitter in this way in an attempt
to prevent the system from automatically power it off, during my efforts to
troubleshoot Bluetooth. Needless to say, that didn't help, and I was later
surprised to discover that Bluetooth was off.
-
-
- 2. The other problem in the Power saving section is that many of the settings
aren't really about power saving strategies -- they're just general preferences
that would have to be adjusted manually every single time you want to save
power:
+ 2. The other problem in the Power saving section is that many of the
+ settings aren't really about power saving strategies -- they're just
+ general preferences that would have to be adjusted manually every single
+ time you want to save power:
- Screen backlight level
- Keyboard backlight level
- Wireless network: The wireless network can be turned off to save power.
- Bluetooth: Bluetooth can be turned off to save power.
Sure, they technically have the potential to save power, but then they
would have to be micromanaged all the time, i.e. not very useful in
practice if you're using battery power on a daily basis. You would have
to be extremely proactive for these settings to be preventative of
needlessly draining your battery, and they're instead very likely going
to be used when it's "too late" and you're already low on battery.
Here are the ones actually concerned with power saving strategies, i.e.
preventing battery from draining prematurely:
- Automatic backlight level
- Dim screen when inactive
- Empty screen (after interval)
- Automatic suspend
Notice how you don't have to babysit these settings every time you
decide to use battery power, and how they're actually focused on the
problem of conserving power before it's too late.
To alleviate these issues, the easiest quick fix would be to:
1. either remove or change the subtitles of the two bottommost to
something like "WiFi/Bluetooth can consume a lot of power" which
succinctly explains why these switches are here while at the same time
not misleading the reader to think the switches control something else.
2. Move the "micromanagement settings" to their own section to clearly
separate the more relevant "power conservation strategies" from the
"general user preferences for devices with potential for high power
consumption that can be manually adjusted here if you're in a pinch and
are critically low on battery".
-
-
- The less easy fix would of course be to offer automatic keyboard backlight
levels instead of manual controls, and to offer actual automatic wifi and
bluetooth power saving (if that's a thing). Not to mention a general "power
saving" mode, which is the reasonable level at which regular power saving could
be expected to be managed manually.
-
+ The less easy fix would of course be to offer automatic keyboard
+ backlight levels instead of manual controls, and to offer actual
+ automatic wifi and bluetooth power saving (if that's a thing). Not to
+ mention a general "power saving" mode, which is the reasonable level at
+ which regular power saving could be expected to be managed manually.
Ubuntu 20.10
gnome-control-center 3.38.3
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https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/1915744
Title:
System settings power saving section has misleading wording
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