Discussion:
Two battery icons
(too old to reply)
Daniel Cohen
2014-09-11 17:39:44 UTC
Permalink
I have just started using my MacBook Pro with an external monitor as my
main machine.

There are afew oddities, of which one is that there are two battery
status icons in the menu bar. I thought at first that they might come
from different programs. But it seems that they both come from the
Energy Saver option to show batter status in the menu bar, since they
both disappear if this is unchecked and reappear if it is checked.

Any ideas of how to cure this.

I'll be asking some more important questions later.
--
<http://www.decohen.com>
The Labyrinth of the Heart: Changed Myths for Changing Lives
book and e-book <http://www.decohen.com/labyrinth.htm>
Send e-mail to the Reply-To address, not the From address.
Jolly Roger
2014-09-11 22:33:25 UTC
Permalink
Post by Daniel Cohen
I have just started using my MacBook Pro with an external monitor as my
main machine.
There are afew oddities, of which one is that there are two battery
status icons in the menu bar. I thought at first that they might come
from different programs. But it seems that they both come from the
Energy Saver option to show batter status in the menu bar, since they
both disappear if this is unchecked and reappear if it is checked.
Any ideas of how to cure this.
I'll be asking some more important questions later.
You seem to be having multiple peculiar issues with the operating system
on this machine. I'm curious: how was the OS installed on this machine,
was it installed by you, and how many upgrades have been applied?
--
E-mail sent to this address may be devoured by my ravenous SPAM filter.
I often ignore posts from Google. Use a real news client instead.

JR
Daniel Cohen
2014-09-12 13:55:30 UTC
Permalink
Post by Jolly Roger
Post by Daniel Cohen
I have just started using my MacBook Pro with an external monitor as my
main machine.
There are afew oddities, of which one is that there are two battery
status icons in the menu bar. I thought at first that they might come
from different programs. But it seems that they both come from the
Energy Saver option to show batter status in the menu bar, since they
both disappear if this is unchecked and reappear if it is checked.
Any ideas of how to cure this.
I'll be asking some more important questions later.
You seem to be having multiple peculiar issues with the operating system
on this machine. I'm curious: how was the OS installed on this machine,
was it installed by you, and how many upgrades have been applied?
Yes, all installation by me. Can't recall the answers to the other
questions. I did transfer stuff from an iMac and some preferences may
well have got screwed up.

As regards Displays not showing, that only happnes on my basic account,
not on any others. But the double battery status appears on all
accounts, though my recollection (not certain about it, though) is that
it only started when I changed the machine from a stand-alone machine to
having a monitor and Thunderbolt dock.
--
<http://www.decohen.com>
The Labyrinth of the Heart: Changed Myths for Changing Lives
book and e-book <http://www.decohen.com/labyrinth.htm>
Send e-mail to the Reply-To address, not the From address.
Barry Margolin
2014-09-12 14:09:41 UTC
Permalink
Post by Daniel Cohen
There are afew oddities, of which one is that there are two battery
status icons in the menu bar. I thought at first that they might come
from different programs. But it seems that they both come from the
Energy Saver option to show batter status in the menu bar, since they
both disappear if this is unchecked and reappear if it is checked.
Is your computer connected to a UPS? I have a UPS, and one of the icons
is the status of the UPS battery, the other is the MBP's battery.
--
Barry Margolin, ***@alum.mit.edu
Arlington, MA
*** PLEASE post questions in newsgroups, not directly to me ***
Daniel Cohen
2014-09-12 17:55:52 UTC
Permalink
Post by Barry Margolin
Is your computer connected to a UPS? I have a UPS, and one of the icons
is the status of the UPS battery, the other is the MBP's battery.
Almost certainly the answer. My MBP is connected to a UPS, and I didn't
have the two when it was not connected by a UPS.
--
<http://www.decohen.com>
The Labyrinth of the Heart: Changed Myths for Changing Lives
book and e-book <http://www.decohen.com/labyrinth.htm>
Send e-mail to the Reply-To address, not the From address.
Jolly Roger
2014-09-12 18:05:28 UTC
Permalink
Post by Daniel Cohen
Post by Barry Margolin
Is your computer connected to a UPS? I have a UPS, and one of the icons
is the status of the UPS battery, the other is the MBP's battery.
Almost certainly the answer. My MBP is connected to a UPS, and I didn't
have the two when it was not connected by a UPS.
A simple examination of the menu contents should have made this obvious,
no?
--
E-mail sent to this address may be devoured by my ravenous SPAM filter.
I often ignore posts from Google. Use a real news client instead.

JR
Daniel Cohen
2014-09-12 20:57:40 UTC
Permalink
Post by Jolly Roger
A simple examination of the menu contents should have made this obvious,
no?
Not that I can see. But I may be misunderstanding you.
--
<http://www.decohen.com>
The Labyrinth of the Heart: Changed Myths for Changing Lives
book and e-book <http://www.decohen.com/labyrinth.htm>
Send e-mail to the Reply-To address, not the From address.
Jolly Roger
2014-09-12 21:16:14 UTC
Permalink
Post by Daniel Cohen
Post by Jolly Roger
A simple examination of the menu contents should have made this obvious,
no?
Not that I can see. But I may be misunderstanding you.
Barry's reply seemed to suggest one menu is for the MacBook Pro, while
the other is for the UPS. In that case, I would expect the contents of
the menus to differ (one would show information about the built-in
battery, and the other about the UPS battery).
--
E-mail sent to this address may be devoured by my ravenous SPAM filter.
I often ignore posts from Google. Use a real news client instead.

JR
Daniel Cohen
2014-09-13 17:03:45 UTC
Permalink
Post by Jolly Roger
Barry's reply seemed to suggest one menu is for the MacBook Pro, while
the other is for the UPS. In that case, I would expect the contents of
the menus to differ (one would show information about the built-in
battery, and the other about the UPS battery)
I understand now. But when I click on either menu item I see the same
information, the only difference is in the percentages in the menu bar.
If I had used this setup with the MBP on battery I might have realised
what was going on, but as I am on mains power I couldn't see a
difference.
--
<http://www.decohen.com>
The Labyrinth of the Heart: Changed Myths for Changing Lives
book and e-book <http://www.decohen.com/labyrinth.htm>
Send e-mail to the Reply-To address, not the From address.
Barry Margolin
2014-09-14 01:45:33 UTC
Permalink
Post by Jolly Roger
Post by Daniel Cohen
Post by Jolly Roger
A simple examination of the menu contents should have made this obvious,
no?
Not that I can see. But I may be misunderstanding you.
Barry's reply seemed to suggest one menu is for the MacBook Pro, while
the other is for the UPS. In that case, I would expect the contents of
the menus to differ (one would show information about the built-in
battery, and the other about the UPS battery).
No, they're not two separate menu items. It's one menu item with two
icons at the top of it. So when I click on either of the icons, it pops
up the same menu. On my machine, that menu contains:

Battery is Charged
UPS: Unknown time remaining
Power Source: Power Adapter
----------------------------
Show ->
----------------------------
Energy Saver Preferences ...
--
Barry Margolin, ***@alum.mit.edu
Arlington, MA
*** PLEASE post questions in newsgroups, not directly to me ***
Jolly Roger
2014-09-14 03:34:27 UTC
Permalink
Post by Barry Margolin
Post by Jolly Roger
Post by Daniel Cohen
Post by Jolly Roger
A simple examination of the menu contents should have made this obvious,
no?
Not that I can see. But I may be misunderstanding you.
Barry's reply seemed to suggest one menu is for the MacBook Pro, while
the other is for the UPS. In that case, I would expect the contents of
the menus to differ (one would show information about the built-in
battery, and the other about the UPS battery).
No, they're not two separate menu items. It's one menu item with two
icons at the top of it. So when I click on either of the icons, it pops
Battery is Charged
UPS: Unknown time remaining
Power Source: Power Adapter
----------------------------
Show ->
----------------------------
Energy Saver Preferences ...
It occurs to me that a screen shot would do wonders here.
--
E-mail sent to this address may be devoured by my ravenous SPAM filter.
I often ignore posts from Google. Use a real news client instead.

JR
android
2014-09-14 03:42:14 UTC
Permalink
Post by Jolly Roger
Post by Barry Margolin
Post by Jolly Roger
Post by Daniel Cohen
Post by Jolly Roger
A simple examination of the menu contents should have made this obvious,
no?
Not that I can see. But I may be misunderstanding you.
Barry's reply seemed to suggest one menu is for the MacBook Pro, while
the other is for the UPS. In that case, I would expect the contents of
the menus to differ (one would show information about the built-in
battery, and the other about the UPS battery).
No, they're not two separate menu items. It's one menu item with two
icons at the top of it. So when I click on either of the icons, it pops
Battery is Charged
UPS: Unknown time remaining
Power Source: Power Adapter
----------------------------
Show ->
----------------------------
Energy Saver Preferences ...
It occurs to me that a screen shot would do wonders here.
It occurs to me that having an UPS to a laptop is an interesting
concept. It's even more so that Apple provided menulings for such a
setup!
--
teleportation kills
http://tinyurl.com/androidphotography
Jolly Roger
2014-09-14 04:07:32 UTC
Permalink
Post by android
It occurs to me that having an UPS to a laptop is an interesting
concept. It's even more so that Apple provided menulings for such a
setup!
Indeed. I could see connecting the *power* cable to a UPS for its
advanced surge protection; but why anyone would connect a *USB* cable
from a UPS to a MacBook Pro is beyond me, since there's little need for
power backup functionality due to the presence of the internal battery.
But to each, his own, I suppose!
--
E-mail sent to this address may be devoured by my ravenous SPAM filter.
I often ignore posts from Google. Use a real news client instead.

JR
android
2014-09-14 04:24:29 UTC
Permalink
Post by Jolly Roger
Post by android
It occurs to me that having an UPS to a laptop is an interesting
concept. It's even more so that Apple provided menulings for such a
setup!
Indeed. I could see connecting the *power* cable to a UPS for its
advanced surge protection; but why anyone would connect a *USB* cable
from a UPS to a MacBook Pro is beyond me, since there's little need for
power backup functionality due to the presence of the internal battery.
But to each, his own, I suppose!
You could give an old laptop some server duties, like a mail server...
That would make it useful even with flawed battery. Whatever..
--
teleportation kills
http://tinyurl.com/androidphotography
Daniel Cohen
2014-09-14 14:32:03 UTC
Permalink
Post by Jolly Roger
Indeed. I could see connecting the *power* cable to a UPS for its
advanced surge protection; but why anyone would connect a *USB* cable
from a UPS to a MacBook Pro is beyond me, since there's little need for
power backup functionality due to the presence of the internal battery.
Habit, largely, I suppose, since I only moved from my iMac earlier this
week.

But I do have a couple of hard drives running off the UPS, which is a
major reason why I have it. And I suppose having the UPS info available
on the laptop could be useful.

Problems with water and electricity have made the UPS useful in the
past.
--
<http://www.decohen.com>
The Labyrinth of the Heart: Changed Myths for Changing Lives
book and e-book <http://www.decohen.com/labyrinth.htm>
Send e-mail to the Reply-To address, not the From address.
Barry Margolin
2014-09-14 16:28:06 UTC
Permalink
Post by Jolly Roger
Post by android
It occurs to me that having an UPS to a laptop is an interesting
concept. It's even more so that Apple provided menulings for such a
setup!
Indeed. I could see connecting the *power* cable to a UPS for its
advanced surge protection; but why anyone would connect a *USB* cable
from a UPS to a MacBook Pro is beyond me, since there's little need for
power backup functionality due to the presence of the internal battery.
But to each, his own, I suppose!
It's still useful to see the level of the UPS batter. If there were a
problem and it wasn't charging, I'd know.
--
Barry Margolin, ***@alum.mit.edu
Arlington, MA
*** PLEASE post questions in newsgroups, not directly to me ***
Jolly Roger
2014-09-14 17:18:55 UTC
Permalink
Post by Barry Margolin
Post by Jolly Roger
Post by android
It occurs to me that having an UPS to a laptop is an interesting
concept. It's even more so that Apple provided menulings for such a
setup!
Indeed. I could see connecting the *power* cable to a UPS for its
advanced surge protection; but why anyone would connect a *USB* cable
from a UPS to a MacBook Pro is beyond me, since there's little need for
power backup functionality due to the presence of the internal battery.
But to each, his own, I suppose!
It's still useful to see the level of the UPS batter. If there were a
problem and it wasn't charging, I'd know.
Yeah, I suppose so. To be clear, I wasn't suggesting you were doing
anything wrong.
--
E-mail sent to this address may be devoured by my ravenous SPAM filter.
I often ignore posts from Google. Use a real news client instead.

JR
Barry Margolin
2014-09-14 17:34:21 UTC
Permalink
Post by Jolly Roger
Post by Barry Margolin
Post by Jolly Roger
Post by android
It occurs to me that having an UPS to a laptop is an interesting
concept. It's even more so that Apple provided menulings for such a
setup!
Indeed. I could see connecting the *power* cable to a UPS for its
advanced surge protection; but why anyone would connect a *USB* cable
from a UPS to a MacBook Pro is beyond me, since there's little need for
power backup functionality due to the presence of the internal battery.
But to each, his own, I suppose!
It's still useful to see the level of the UPS batter. If there were a
problem and it wasn't charging, I'd know.
Yeah, I suppose so. To be clear, I wasn't suggesting you were doing
anything wrong.
And until this discussion, it never occurred to me that I was doing
anything strange. But seeing it pointed out made it clear.
--
Barry Margolin, ***@alum.mit.edu
Arlington, MA
*** PLEASE post questions in newsgroups, not directly to me ***
Barry Margolin
2014-09-14 16:26:23 UTC
Permalink
Post by android
Post by Jolly Roger
Post by Barry Margolin
Post by Jolly Roger
Post by Daniel Cohen
Post by Jolly Roger
A simple examination of the menu contents should have made this obvious,
no?
Not that I can see. But I may be misunderstanding you.
Barry's reply seemed to suggest one menu is for the MacBook Pro, while
the other is for the UPS. In that case, I would expect the contents of
the menus to differ (one would show information about the built-in
battery, and the other about the UPS battery).
No, they're not two separate menu items. It's one menu item with two
icons at the top of it. So when I click on either of the icons, it pops
Battery is Charged
UPS: Unknown time remaining
Power Source: Power Adapter
----------------------------
Show ->
----------------------------
Energy Saver Preferences ...
It occurs to me that a screen shot would do wonders here.
It occurs to me that having an UPS to a laptop is an interesting
concept. It's even more so that Apple provided menulings for such a
setup!
I used to have a desktop, and swapped the laptop in its place, so I just
plugged it into the same UPS I'd been using before.

It's actually not totally useless. I have the laptop in clamshell mode
with an external monitor. It only runs this way when it has external
power. When running on battery power, it goes to sleep when the lid is
closed.
--
Barry Margolin, ***@alum.mit.edu
Arlington, MA
*** PLEASE post questions in newsgroups, not directly to me ***
android
2014-09-14 16:53:35 UTC
Permalink
Post by Barry Margolin
Post by android
Post by Jolly Roger
Post by Barry Margolin
Post by Jolly Roger
Post by Daniel Cohen
Post by Jolly Roger
A simple examination of the menu contents should have made this
obvious,
no?
Not that I can see. But I may be misunderstanding you.
Barry's reply seemed to suggest one menu is for the MacBook Pro, while
the other is for the UPS. In that case, I would expect the contents of
the menus to differ (one would show information about the built-in
battery, and the other about the UPS battery).
No, they're not two separate menu items. It's one menu item with two
icons at the top of it. So when I click on either of the icons, it pops
Battery is Charged
UPS: Unknown time remaining
Power Source: Power Adapter
----------------------------
Show ->
----------------------------
Energy Saver Preferences ...
It occurs to me that a screen shot would do wonders here.
It occurs to me that having an UPS to a laptop is an interesting
concept. It's even more so that Apple provided menulings for such a
setup!
I used to have a desktop, and swapped the laptop in its place, so I just
plugged it into the same UPS I'd been using before.
Old habits die hard... ;-)
Post by Barry Margolin
It's actually not totally useless. I have the laptop in clamshell mode
with an external monitor. It only runs this way when it has external
power. When running on battery power, it goes to sleep when the lid is
closed.
Good to know. :-)
--
teleportation kills
http://tinyurl.com/androidphotography
Daniel Cohen
2014-09-15 06:31:02 UTC
Permalink
Post by android
Post by Barry Margolin
It's actually not totally useless. I have the laptop in clamshell mode
with an external monitor. It only runs this way when it has external
power. When running on battery power, it goes to sleep when the lid is
closed.
Good to know. :-)
And, as far as I can see, it goes to sleep on external power if the lid
is closed and the monitor is turned off (rather than in standby). This
seems natural once one thinks of it, but I am still experimenting with
various settings. I had (when using the desktop) set various taks to run
at night when I am asleep, but it also seems natural to turn the monitor
off overnight. It seems that the MacBook then does not wake to perform
the tasks. I am not sure whether the best solution is to keep the
monitor on or to turn it off but open the MacBook lid. Best, I suppose,
meaning in terms of energy used and wear on the screens.
--
<http://www.decohen.com>
The Labyrinth of the Heart: Changed Myths for Changing Lives
book and e-book <http://www.decohen.com/labyrinth.htm>
Send e-mail to the Reply-To address, not the From address.
android
2014-09-15 06:54:08 UTC
Permalink
Post by Daniel Cohen
Post by android
Post by Barry Margolin
It's actually not totally useless. I have the laptop in clamshell mode
with an external monitor. It only runs this way when it has external
power. When running on battery power, it goes to sleep when the lid is
closed.
Good to know. :-)
And, as far as I can see, it goes to sleep on external power if the lid
is closed and the monitor is turned off (rather than in standby). This
seems natural once one thinks of it, but I am still experimenting with
various settings. I had (when using the desktop) set various taks to run
at night when I am asleep, but it also seems natural to turn the monitor
off overnight. It seems that the MacBook then does not wake to perform
the tasks. I am not sure whether the best solution is to keep the
monitor on or to turn it off but open the MacBook lid. Best, I suppose,
meaning in terms of energy used and wear on the screens.
Do you use the onboard screen? I have a blueberry iBook that I thought
could be a nice server. My plans was to put it in the bookshelf
positioned like this:

http://tinyurl.com/nmtds25

Thus saving processor and hard drive from unnecessary heat. And wear and
tear. I decided agains it though.
--
teleportation kills
http://tinyurl.com/androidphotography
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