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ICE (Emergency) contacts from lock screen - how to access when SIP is configured?
Using Android version 4.4.2 (on Samsung Galaxy S5 Mini).
I have added one of my contacts to the OS built-in ICE contact group and assigned to one of the four emergency contact buttons that are shown when selecting "Emergency Call" from the lock screen.
However, since configuring the stock SIP (VoIP) client, the phone prompts the user to select Mobile Call or Internet Call before making the call. Unfortunately, although the dialler application seems to be awaiting user response, the prompt is not visible until the screen is unlocked, rendering the emergency contact unusable by a stranger in an emergency.
Is there a way to override this (preferably without using 3rd party applications)?


text:
What does this icon mean, in the stock messenger app?
Pretty straightforward; when viewing the list of recent contacts/conversations, the stock messenger app on my Samsung Galaxy S3 shows this icon, but for only the one conversation.
I don't know if it's a button, or notification, but I'm afraid to touch it.
Can anyone explain what it is/does?

Well, I believe I've found it.
As per this thread (for example) on the interwebs, it has to do with the Tango app, which I've recently installed.
Essentially, since Tango integrates with your phone like a parasite, when a contact is not available to use Tango the (x) icon indicates this in the stock SMS app.
Having cross-referenced this against similar threads, it seems to be the answer.

source: Stack Exchange

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

sort: votes


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Notifications have black and white colors - why are they both colors?
Currently as of Android 5.0.1 update my Nexus 7 2013 shows black and white notifications. I see no logic in the colors and it does not really look very good as well. Why is that? Is this a bug? Intention? If intention, what is it showing?
And while we are at it, what is the line that separates the notifications? The weather one is persistent and so is twilight, so it does not separate persistent notifications.

Is the first notification (weather) and the second notification (33m) from the same app?

The colour
I believe the background colour of each notification depends on the app that added it, I think the default is white for 'stock' Android.
The line
This is to separate the different levels of priority for notifications. I expect the Twilight one is set to lowest priority (MIN) whereas the weather one will likely have a higher priority (MAX). Whilst some apps do allow you to specify the priority, most will just set what the believe to be most appropriate. Google does provide guidelines on how to choose the appropriate priority to help developers in this regard.

It is strange that weather is considered as of highest priority...

So as I understand you, you believe, that the first two notifications explicitly set the background color of their rectangles to black? I mean, in the former android versions notification had no option in changing the notification rectangle color (not that I know of or ever seen any). So I would expect that by default old unmodified apps would have the color of the rectangle holding the notification default - which now seems to be white (or at least google now and twilight has it white)

It is/was possible to change the background colour in previous versions of Android so it's not something that would have changed in Android 5.0.

So you are saying that the first two notifications probably set a non-default layout for the notification, which makes them non-default-white but black? That may actually be possible. In that case thank you for the answer. As of the line, I still do not know if the important ones are supposed to be up or down and why one weather is up and one is down. It still may be that weather bug has set a default "important" priority and is up even though it should be down by new logic.

@Ev0oD I still remember Google Now sets its notification to minimum priority since KitKat... at least that's what I believe.

all_licenses: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/


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Can't view Location (textual desciption) information in Windows when opening picture taken with Camera app
On my Samsung Galaxy SIII, I have enabled GPS on my device and have also enabled the GPS tag feature in my Camera application. When a picture is taken, GPS information is attached to the image, and then as soon as either a mobile data connection or Wi-Fi connection is available, somehow the Gallery application is able to retrieve textual information about the street name, city, and country, corresponding to the GPS location stored with the image. When I press the menu hardware key and then select Details I can view this information alongside other information associated with the picture taken.

However, when I attach the phone to my Windows 7 PC and open a picture directly as Computer -> GT-I9300 -> Phone -DCIM -> Camera -> date_sequentialnumber.jpg I am not able to view the embedded textual/alphabetic location information which I was able to see when I was viewing the picture in the Gallery application.

So, what I would like to ask is:

Is it possible to embed the textual location information in the image (besides just GPS coordinates) as EXIF information inside the JPEG so that this information can also be viewed on the PC even when the PC has no network access?
If this information is already embedded but not being displayed by the Windows Live, then are there better, free, image (and video) viewing programs for Windows 7 which will allow you to view this information?

EDIT:
According to this Wikipedia article, the process of enriching geographical coordinates with a description of a location is known as reverse geocoding. This is what the Gallery application above was doing. Also according to this other Wikipedia article Geotagging can also attach not only coordinates, but also place names, which is what I'm after. The EXIF standard does not seem to include any specific tags for place names, although camera manufacturers can embed their own custom format metadata using the MakerNote tag. Upon searching for images with the Advanced Google Image Search, downloading, and viewing with Gimp 2.8.4 I found place name information embedded in the ImageDescription EXIF tag, whereas images downloaded from Panoramio it seems do not contain EXIF informaiton.
So, my question is, how do I embed reverse geocoded place name information inside the ImageDescription EXIF tag of pictures from within my Android smartphone? Thanks!

I guess XNViewMP can show MakerNote tags. You can grab the portable version and give it a try.

Thank you for your comment. I've tried installin XNViewMP on my PC. It's a nice software indeed. However the Makernotes tag under EXIF is empty, and the reverse geocoded information (place name) does not appear anywhere in the Info panel (EXIF data etc...). Hence, I can conclude that the Android Gallery application retrieves the reverse geocoded information from the Internet and displays it but does not embed the information inside the displayed pictures. Regards. Thanks.

authors: ห่าน harn ซิม Sim


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Google Play Store doesn't auto update apps on my Motorola Moto G
I have a German retail Motorola Moto G (2013) running Android 4.4.4 stock, no root. I have the Google Play Store not auto updating my apps despite it being set to do so (over Wifi only). I tried everything I could think of: I re-flashed the stock image, I deleted the Play Store cache and data, I removed my Google account from the phone, I deleted the Google Play Services data and cache and updated it. Nothing. If I boot my phone with the Wifi on sometimes it auto updates apps. If I boot it with the Wifi turned off and I turn it on after say 3 minutes it doesn't ever auto update. It's like some process which exists at the beginning then crashes. Please help.

Sometimes when Google Play Store auto update doesn't work, just running the Play Store once, that should get all pending updates by itself.

I tried that too. Right now, for example I have an update for Temple Run 2. It's in the Google Play Store. I know because I launched the Store and looked under My Apps section. But it does nothing. It just sits there. I re-checked my setting in the Play Store and apps are still set to auto update over Wifi.


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How to check if my phone components are what they should be (is Dual-core 1 GHz Cortex-A9 equal to ARMv7 Processor rev 3)?
I've bought LG Optimus L9 P760 - it came to me from China, without the foil and with unpacked charger. There was also no guarantee included (and I was assured there will be 24-moths written one). That's why I decided to check carefully everything else too.
It should have those parameters, according to specification:
Chipset              TI OMAP 4430
CPU                  Dual-core 1 GHz Cortex-A9
GPU                  PowerVR SGX540

But when I've installed the Android System Info application and exterminated the CPU:
Proccessor:          ARMv7 Processor rev 3 (v7l)
processor            0
BogoMIPS             1592.38
processor            1
BogoMIPS             1592.38
CPU implementer      0x41
CPU architecture     7
CPU variant          0x1
CPU part             0xc09
CPU revision         3
Hardware             LGE P760 board
Revision             0007
Serial               000000000000000
Frequency range:     300.0 -> 1008.0MHz
Current Frequency:   800HMz

Is that the right CPU? Because I see ARMv7 Processor rev 3 instead of TI OMAP 4430 - but maybe those are 2 different things or some alias? Or maybe I've been ripped off by the seller? Is that possible?
System Info Droid also listed ARMv7 Processor rev 3 (v7l) and I cannot find Dual-core 1 GHz Cortex-A9* anywhere (however, I see that it's dual processor).
Also, under Memory:
Download Cache Max:     194MB
data Max:               2.33GB
External storage Max:   2.33GB
Total RAM:              767MB
Threshold RAM:          64.00MB

I see 767MB RAM, where there should be 1GB RAM. Is there something wrong, or some amount of RAM is not listed somehow?

Try this . SysHard Info - show system and hardware information on Android
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.kinocat.andinfo

According to Wikipedia,

The ARM Cortex-A9 MPCore is a 32-bit multicore processor providing up to 4 cache-coherent Cortex-A9 cores, each implementing the ARM v7 instruction set architecture.

(Emphasis mine)
Also, from the same article,

Chips
Several system on a chip (SoC) devices implement the Cortex-A9 core, including:

...
Texas Instruments OMAP4 processors (TI OMAP 4430)
...

And with help from eldarerathis's comment

The RAM difference is because apps will only report RAM that is available to userspace processes.

(the detail can be read on that post)


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How to turn off multiple desktops on Android 4 (LG Optimus L9 P760)?
I would like to turn off multiple desktops that are on my Android 4 phone (LG Optimus L9 P760, if that matters). I can switch between them with touch, but I don't need that feature. And most of the time, I use it by mistake (when I want to click an icon close to screen's edge). So it's more like disadvantage for me to have multiple desktops.
Unfortunately, I cannot find any such position in top menu, settings menu etc.

Eventually I've used Apex Launcher that can be easily downloaded directly from several sites or with K-droid, so it's a good option for people that don't use Google Play / Google Account. Among its features there are options to change the screens count (I've set it to 1) and increase the grid size.
Vembu pointed out the Nova Laucher, which I was unable to test (it seems that working version can be downloaded only from Google Play). Still, it may be an solution for some of you (up-voted).

Try "Nova Launcher" app from the Google play store. The "Nova Launcher" has ability to customize home screens and etc. Try this and check your results.
Nova Launcher

Hi. Unfortunately I don't use Google Play and there is no way to download Nova Laucher apk directly (even when I did it after 1 hour of going throw fake links, installed version showed the window with "please download" that redirect to Google Play). Can you suggest me another application?


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Using Android without Google account
I don't like the idea that my personal information are gathered and by some company that make profit out of processing and selling it (or even when it has a possibility to do so). And yes, that's the reason I don't use Facebook and gmail (after reading their TOC).
I wonder if it's possible to use the Android smartphone without Google account at all in a long time?
So far I know that:

I don't use gmail/google+/chrome, so I don't bother about it.
I cannot download application from Google Play without Google account, but I can download most of them as .apk and install manually.

Did I miss something? Or it's possible to live with Android without Google account?
p.s. Does Google still collect any data about me, even when I just use Android, without Google account and without gmail/google+/youtube?

Related question: http://android.stackexchange.com/questions/65981/can-you-fully-remove-google-system-apps-from-android-including-the-play-store-up

Sure it is possible, and does a great job. Using it this way for months already :) Extensive information can be found e.g. in my blog (6 articles altogether). Not a single Google service installed (and of course no Fakebook). Even the location service replaced :)

Enjoy! Parts 1-5 give the details, part 6 is my "self-experiment" (all the experiences when I tried to follow my own advices ;) But the results are great, I only miss the SE notifications (which require Google Cloud Messaging, and thus the Google Play Services). Everything else works perfectly – including "offline location" using cell IDs. I even can access Play Store, and use the apps I've bought :)

Of course you can, in fact, the only reason a lot of people connect their Google account is to use play store and get apps easily.
I suggest you to install F-Droid: it is the best source for open source Android apps, where you can find a "copy" of all g-apps.
For the last part, technically, if you answered No to all google's attempt to get you accept their therms and conditions, they can't. But keep in mind that a lot of applications are based on Google API, so, they would use things like Google Play Services to get some jobs done. (I'm not sure, but I believe they pass all information directly to the app without saving anything on their databases about you if you did not accept TOC)
If you really want to avoid Google, I suggest the use of a custom ROM

Thanks for great answer. What you mean by "custom ROM"?

A custom ROM is an alternative OS for your device, built by the android community and under open source licences. Most of them are far better than the android version devices are sold with. The best ROMs are cyanogenmod and paranoidandroid and all their derivates


text:
How to root droid running 4.4.4 KitKat
I have a Motorola XT1080 (also known as droid maxx) from verizon, and it is running android version 4.4.4. Is it possible to root this device, and if so, how do I do this?

I've just re-tagged your question, so while waiting for answers you might wish to follow up to our rooting tag-wiki – and from there to the "rooting index", which also includes some generic methods.

Try to unlock the bootloader with Sunshine S-Off then use kingo rooting tool. Or try Kingo first as it's free but Sunshine will test your device to make sure it can unlock the boot loader. If so, it will cost 25$ but you have better odds of getting root with the boot loader unlocked.
I have the same phone, I lost root and could not get it back with traditional maxx rooting methods so I unlocked my bootloader with Sunshine then rooted with Kingo but I did all this on android 4.2.2 so it may or may not work on 4.4.4 (please comment on this answer with your results if you try this).
Another program like Kingo is Root Genius.

I have a XT1080 running 4.4.4 KitKat and did have some luck using king root ( not a typo Kingo root is a separate app ) then root checker to verify it was actually rooted and to also install busy box. Either because of my lack of knowledge or actual conflicts caused by the programs I kept getting error messages and finally did a factory reset out of frustration. It's something to try if you're familiar with rooting and tweaking the settings for performance.
P.S. Almost forgot I used device controller from the play store to do my phone tweaking

Well, that's weird I would say you would have got the device rooted using Framaroot, double cross check if you are using the latest version of the Framaroot to root your device?? I somewhere doubt that you are trying to do the same with older version of the Farmaroot, anyway I think it would be better for you to try doing that again using the latest version of Framaroot 1.9.3 over here.


text:
Flashing Cyanogenmod hltevzw to Note 3
I'm a bit confused with Cyanogenmod's announcement stating that they are breaking up the Note 3 builds into their own version. Source
Is the hltevzw a build specifically for the Note 3 or all Verizon phones? I just want to be sure before flashing the wrong rom.
Has anyone else flashed the hltevzw to their Note 3?

Is the hltevzw a build specifically for the Note 3 or all Verizon
  phones? I just want to be sure before flashing the wrong rom.

It's for the Verizon Note 3 only.


text:
I tried to swap my sd with extsd
I used es file manager and went to file vold.fstab and changed something wrong now I can't access my external sdcard or my file manager or my settings device storage. My phone is screwed up I cant figure out how to change it back to normal. I have the Samsung galaxy exhibit. Sght599. PLEASE HELP ME!

Restoring phone to factory settings is the easiest way. Tough way is to search on net for a valid vold.fstab file, which can be generally found in custom built ROMs.


text:
Battery Draining Faster than expected
Can someone help me take a look at my stats? I was wondering why my phone is draining faster than I thought it would.
As you can see, it's down 98% and Screen is on for just 7M in 23minutes time.
Time in the screenshot is 7:04 and currently it's 7:26AM - I now have 93% of battery.
I noticed these two running as similar as to my battery runtime:
1. No Data Connection
2. No or Unknown Signal
Please help me figure out what's the issue and how to resolve it. Thanks!
BetterBatteryStats
LOGCAT BBS

I won't say this is un-natural. Would suggest you to take a longer time period as test period and see the drain.
Setting the brightness to automatic should help reduce the overall usage somewhat.


text:
What does a single tap on the lock screen do?
The Swipe lock screen on my S4 running Jellybean and Kitkat has a number of actions.

Swipe left for camera
Swipe right for other widgets
Swipe down on the widget allows you to them click on the widget
Swipe anywhere in the middle unlocks
A single tap on a widget does...  I have no idea.

What does this mode do? It shrinks the widget and Iightens the bottom half of the screen with no apparent purpose.

It's telling you that you will have to unlock the device before you can access a widget tap's action.
Eg: If I tap on the clock widget on my lock screen, I will have to unlock the phone before it opens the clock screen. If I tap on a Google Now widget on my lock screen, I will have to unlock the phone before it opens Google Search/Now.
The dimming is trying to have you focus on the lock mechanism (where you swipe).


text:
Camera battery consumption report
I am using a Xperia Z3 with android 4.4.4. I can't find how much battery is consumed by the camera app.
I tried with the included Power Management-> battery usage option but can't find it there.

Android does not show every app's usage data; it only shows significant battery usage in apps, especially those of apps that run in the background -- Camera does not run in the background.
Try leaving your Camera open for a long time, then look in Battery Usage. Note: Depending on your device, many apps my be bundled into the Android/System battery usage entry.


text:
Is it possible to repair an accelerometer?
First of all, my device is a Moto E. It has fallen two times, both from bed height. So after the second fall, I noticed that my screen orientation stopped changing. I checked the "rotate screen automatically" option on settings and it was correctly set. I rebooted the phone hoping it would fix it but it didn't work.
I downloaded several apps to show the accelerometer's values, and they all show the same results: x and y are okay, but z, pitch, and roll, are stuck. Pitch and roll are stuck on 0, while z is stuck on -1.998.
The camera app is the only app that changes orientation, I'm guessing it is because it only reads x and y values.
I did a factory reset, but it didn't fix anything. I've seen some people suggest on forums that I reinstall the ROM or use a different ROM but I'm sure the problem it's hardware related.
So as it was caused by falling, there's no warranty for this. Is there a way this could be fixed? From what I've read, the fall could've caused the crystals in the accelerometer to break
So is replacing it the only fix? I know there are apps to force orientation changes, but that's not the point here.

The Z axis is pretty important to autorotation functionality, as you can see from the diagram:

Try these solutions:

You could always go back to who you sold it to and say it's a manufacturer's defect. Who would know that the problem was really due to the fall?
If you have some microtools, you might be able to patch it together. (Good luck with that.)
You could replace the accelerometer... If you wanna take your phone apart and mess with all the components.

Honestly, there are not too many options with broken hardware other than fix it or replace it.
Although, what I would do if I did not want to replace anything would be to install Xposed Installer and install the module Xposed Additions or similar module to set the long press of my volume button(s) to rotate the screen.

Nice photo of a moto e ;)

@saloalv The axes are pretty universal across most devices (including the Moto E); and I did cross-check to make sure that it uses the same variables.

it's just that the image looks like an iPhone (one of those devices with the awful ios operating system)

I had the same problem. making sure my cover was secure, I dropped the phone from 3 feet onto a carpeted surface directly on the "5:00" corner (lower right side corner). It unstuck the accelerometer and it's now working normally.

Yeah, my phone's accelerometer suddenly started working one day. Months later it got stuck again, and it got unstuck a month later. It has been 5 months now and the accelerometer is still okay.

I've had this problem with phones, but also with my DJI Phantom drone. You're not going to believe the solution that has worked for me in both cases: you gotta bash it!!
Yep, your silicon-based accelerometers have fingers that can deflect with G forces, but when they get a big impact, they can get stuck at the extreme bent side. You probably dropped your phone recently, right?? Well, you can probably fix it by dropping it again in exactly the right way.
You need to determine which side to drop it onto, and then drop it onto that side HARD onto a hard surface. You don't need to let it go, you kind of slam it with your hand. Do it at your own risk, of course, because you might break some other component!
Here's which side to whack it. For got sakes, don't just whack it randomly.
First, you'll need an accelerometer app. Install it and run it in metric mode. Set your phone on the table. Have a look at your values for X, Y, and Z. Two should be at near 0 and Z should be around 10 m/ss. The 10 reading is the table holding your phone against the force of gravity at 10 m/ss!
One or more of your numbers will NOT be as I stated, and that's the stuck accelerometer. It will be pretty much stuck and hardly changing at all, and it will be weirdly high, much greater than 10. ex: My X was at 167. (If you do not have one of your axis stuck on a very high number, you have a different problem, don't continue.)
If your X value is stuck sky high, hit the phone with the X+ (right) side onto the table
If your X value is a high number, but negative, hit the phone with the X- (left) side onto the table
The same above holds for Y and Z. Use the useful diagram that Lyricwulf posted on this page.
If you hit it sharply enough, you'll notice that it's no longer stuck on the super high reading, and you're all fixed :-)
Look on the bright side, it's not a drone. Since propellers etc get in the way of a table slam, I had to hit my $1200 drone - HARD - with a rubber mallet when it had the same problem. But it worked!

My phone's accelerometer has fixed and broken itself from different smalls falls. I've tried what you suggested but I've never managed to get it unstuck, I can see the values move a little when I whack it, but it doesn't get unstuck. Right now it's working properly, in a couple weeks it will get stuck again and so on. I consider it a feature now :)

had positive x, relatively small slam to right side as you said and it's good again!


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Previously Rooted Nexus 5 is not recognized via USB after stock 5.0 OTA update
I have a previously rooted Nexus 5 on 4.4 and updated it recently with the Lollipop OTA. I am trying to re-root it again but it is not recognized using my Windows 7, Windows 8 or Ubuntu 14.04 machines. I have tried the WUG toolkit on windows by installing and reinstalling the drivers and adb on linux, turning on/off the Developer-usb-debugging mode, turning on-off the MTP mode. I was previously using TWRP. Now when I go to recovery mode, the phone shows "No command" with the green droid.

"No command" in recovery mode isn't an error; that's just what the stock recovery looks like when you boot it directly (rather than as part of an update).

In lollipop when you enable the USB debugging, you will get a pop up on you mobile to allow the USB connection to your device. Did you get this popup after enabling USB debugging? Is the Nexus 5 device detected under you device manager?

Perhaps it is issue of USB connector. Most of the times due to dust it does not get proper contacts on USB pins and its not recognized over USB. Try to check that.


text:
Purpose of bookmark, imgcache and rev_geocoding files in cache?
I have an Alcatel and on my Android internal storage in my cache has all of these files with question marks and I can't view them and these files are:
bookmark.0
bookmark.1
Bookmark.idx
img.cache.1
imgcache.idx
rev_geocoding.0
rev_geocoding(0).1
rev_geocoding(1).1
rev_geocoding(2).1
rev_geocoding(3).1
rev_geocoding(4).1
rev_geocoding(5).1
rev_geocoding(6).1

and they're all saying "file format not supported".  What does this mean what do these files mean and how can I view these files?

Your title contains the answer: "Cache". I've added the related tag (cache), and you might wish to take a look at the corresponding tag-wiki (cache). Though it's pretty short, it's a valid answer to your question ;)

Those are cache files for specific apps and can usually only be read by the specific apps which they belong to.
If you really want to try to look at them (although they will probably not be readable by a human), you can install an app like ES File Explorer and open the file as a text file.


text:
Why Google still use my localisation when I have disabled all location services?
When I use google.com (usually I work with duckduckgo instead, because of privacy policy) on my Phone (in web browser), it shows me my city and country on the bottom of the page.
I have disabled everything in Settings -> Location services. What else do I have to do in order to disable any possibilities of sending my location to Google Search and other websites?
I Use Android 4.

The system setting and the browser setting for location use different systems. When you disabled those settings in system settings, you disabled Google Apps (and other apps) from using your location, using your hardware.
However the browser differs in that while you use a webpage, the web server can use your IP address to locate you (using IP-address-based geolocation). This does not have anything to do with system settings. The browser does not prompt you about this.  Indeed, once you connect to their servers, there is no way to prevent their servers doing IP-based geolocation, as their server can see your IP address and draw inferences about your location on its own.

I see. So the option is to disable them somewhere in browser settings? I've not confirmed any request for sharing localization on the website so far. I use the home wi-fi with dynamic IP and when I come to google.com from my PC (same wi-fi) it does not show the localization (I guess now that it's because of Firefox default settings).

Depending on the browsing app you use, you should be able to disable tracking under Tools menu > Options > Privacy > Do Not Track.

Google has alerady taken your location, but if you go to another one, it won't change. Diagram here:
Location service | .|ON
Your current location --> Google
Location service |. |OFF
Your location at Google: [current location]
You move to another location
Your location at Google: [old location]

That happens because Google can't detect your location anymore.


text:
How do I transfer music To a Moto4g phone without using Google Play?
When I try to transfer music files a pop up box appears warning me that the files will be transferred but I might be unable to ply them which happens.

Welcome to the Android Enthusiasts! We will need much more information to give good recommendations here. Please [edit] your question and include how you are transfering the files (step-by-step), so we can see what goes wrong. I never used "Google Play" to transfer music files (no idea why I should go that way, and even don't know how that should work), but simply copy them to my devices.

From what I understand, you get the default message Windows gives when you try to copy some files and it thinks your phone probably "wont" be able to play them.
Just select the "Ignore" option and go on copying anyways, the phone should be able to play the music fine.


text:
What causes latencies in the 1-10 second range?
I use my mobile phone as access point now and then. Both home and abroad I have regularly experienced extremely high latencies (10000ms) with fairly low packet loss (5%).
What causes this?
I have read How can I reduce latency while tethering? but that only answers what I already know: That it is due to wireless at the carrier.
So the question here is to get more details.
I never see the above behaviour in a wifi net (I will typically see loads of dropped packets, but a reasonable latency lower than 1000 ms), so something else is going on.
If I only get 5% loss, I imagine there is some store-and-forward going on: Where does that happen? Why can packets not be passed on for 10 seconds, but still not be lost?
If the carrier wanted to do something about it, what should they do?

I'm not sure whether this is really a question for Android.SE (it's rather a general networking question). So if you don't get answers in a reasonable time, you might wish to flag your question to be migrated to the appropriate SE site (most likely [SU], but I'm not 100% sure).

@Izzy How are you sure it is not limited to Android? I have only tested this on (several) Android phones. If you have seen the same behaviour on non-android phones, please share that information.

Ole, "I'm not sure" – as I wrote. It could well be implementations of the network stack specific to Android or a specific kernel (I'm no Android or Kernel developer, so I cannot say). I was just pointing out possibilities. But even if, the "issue as such" (i.e. what lies behind it) is rather network specific. Without knowing the underlying reason, it's hard to know where to look – and those are not Android specific ;) Note that I didn't mark your question off-topic, just giving some indicators.


text:
How to edit Sony Xperia J dictionary
I like to use the built-in dictionary that suggests words when I use SMS or Hangouts.
It works okay but I'd like to edit some of the words it suggests.
Where can I edit the built-in dictionary? Is there a function for it?

I don't know for the Xperia, but usually this is bound to the keyboard you're using. So I'd start checking there (Settings › Languages & Input, click the "gear" symbol next to the keyboard, and check its settings). On my Optimus (stock 4.1.2) with the stock LG keyboard, I only can delete all user-entries; for others I've seen you can remove single words, and maybe you can even add single words there with some.

There is no dictionary settings in the input preferences (there is a custom dictionary that is empty). It seems that Sony doesn't like to allow customization in their phones (you can't block a phone number, you can't edit the  dictionary).

Xperia: you can hold on the word displayed  and u have an option to delete it.
You can add words by going through 'language & input' then add your words in 'personal dictionary'.
I would like to edit from a 'list' of saved words but I haven't found my way to the list.

That list is what we're looking for... I don't know what you mean by 'hold on the word displayed'. The suggestions cannot be deleted.

open this PDF file and go start reading from page 23 (right column) about how to access the user dictionary. The instructions of editing user dictionary are on page 25 (right column). hope this helps.
http://help.mb.softbank.jp/xperia-z3/pdf/xperia-z3_en_userguide.pdf

you should post the answers yourself in the answers section, not just link them to an outside file for the user to find. if in the future that file would be removed, your answer would become worthless and downvoted.

More specifically, 27th page of the PDF file. Try editing the answer to show the infomation that you linked.


text:
Avoid opening Play Store after NFC scan for unlocking with Smart Lock
I want to use the Smart Lock feature of Android 5.0 Lollipop together with NFC. I've configured it and it works well, but my problem is, that after scanning the NFC Tag (and also after unlocking the phone) the Play Store opens and wants me to download an NFC app.
I only want to use NFC for the Smart Lock feature, so basically I want the phone to do just nothing after an NFC scan. Is this possible?

For the sake of completeness, could you mention the particular NFC app that is opened on Play Store?

Sure, it's the app "Trigger" (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.jwsoft.nfcactionlauncher&hl=de)

According to the answer by Michael Roland on same problem on SO,

Play Store opening up after scanning a tag is a clear indication that the tags contain an Android Application Record (AAR). A tag containing an AAR will only start the app referenced in the AAR or will open that app's Play Store page.
In order to re-use the tags, you should first format them or simply overwrite them with some other NDEF message that does not contain an AAR.
You could, for instance, use an app like NXP TagWriter to do that. [the rest is redacted due to related to app development]


text:
Stream FLV/MKV Files From a Windows Phone(Lumia 520) in Android Phone(Nexus 4)
I have a Nexus 4 (Lollipop) & a Lumia 520 (Windows 8.1)
Since, Nexus has limitations of Data size & Lumia supports a microsd, Most of my Videos/movies are stored in lumia 520's SD card.
Almost all of these happen to be in flv/mkv format which unfortunately is not supported by windows phone.
There are apps which claim to support mkv in lumia but have a lot of defects in decoding.
I tried mkv viewer,ccplayer, moli etc. but the experience is pretty disappointing.
So, I need a way to create a peer to peer network such that Lumia 520 acts as a media server & streams videos(no downloads.. all in memory as there is insufficient data space) to nexus 4(which can play these videos excellently).
There is an app in Windows store (Lumia Play To) which can cast screen to other devices.
Using BubbleUPNP on Nexus 4, I could get Nexus 4 to be seen in Lumia & works good.
However, this approach has two limitations :
1) You need a separate wifi router/network to which both devices can connect.
2) Lumia Play To cannot stream mkv/flv videos.
There is also an app (Easy Transfer) for windows which shows phone files via Browser.
This shows flv/mkv files but it does not stream videos.
Rather, it downloads the video & that is very slow. Also, a separate wifi network is needed.
So I need a Way/Apps wherein I can create a Wifi direct network between these two devices & watch videos in nexus 4 without fully downloading them.
(The last four words might be too much to ask but if at all it is possible, that would be good.)


text:
Android social apps: ability to post on behalf of the user?
Ever since I purchased my Samsung Galaxy SIII, it has been displaying a notification which when clicked causes an app to be displayed asking me to log in to Facebook and then displaying the following screen, which asks me whether I want to allow my Samsung Galaxy SIII to post to Facebook for me (the app is different from the Facebook app which can be downloaded from facebook, as there is a separate button to install the Facebook app, and the app asking me this question appears in the Android Task Manager under the name SNS (Social Networking Service) with a Facebook icon next to it):

If I say yes in the last screenshot above, will my device be posting posts to Facebook without my approval with content I have not even seen?
Thank you for clarifying my suspicion.

Yes you will have giving consent to post "things" to Facebook without seeing or approving them.
I suggest getting a 3rd party app to help. SystemPanel App, a full feature task manager, or App Detective, find every detail about an app. The first is a paid app, but there is a free version available.
Between these 2 apps you will be able find the culprit, get all the details about it, what app installed it, who made it, plus all sorts of other info, shut down the app, and to know the package name to uninstall.
Be careful when installing anything from other apps or questionable social websites. Read the fine print and examine permissions. And always make backups.

SNS Definition
A social network service or social networking service, most often called SNS, is a medium for establishing social networks of people who share interests and/or activities.
Social networking sites allow users to share ideas, activities, events, and interests within their individual networks. Most social network services are web based and provide means for users to interact in various ways, such as e-mail and instant messaging.
Modern internet-connected always-online phones stake a lot on SNS connectivity and integration with the various services getting more popular than ever.

SNS is used for your social site widgets. It allows to post to multiple social sharing apps at once. Anything that you post on one site will be posted to your other sharing site. It can be safely disabled or uninstalled (root) without hindering Facebook or other apps.
The Play Store has several apps that can manage the SNS. I'll leave the choice for you.

Thank you for your post. The application is called SNS. I was able to see it in the stock Task Manager and also in the Application manager. It came with my phone. What I don't understand is what would the purpose of an app posting stuff without me seeing or approving it be? How on earth would the app even know what kinds of things I like or would interest my friends on Facebook? Thank you for your answer.

I really don't get involved with social media (sharing everything in your life with everybody in the world), but it mostly has everything to do with analytics (marketing). You should be able to disable it in stock App Manager, but don't uninstall it (might be necessary for main app).

Thank you for your answer, but I was still curious about knowing, if I enable this option in the SNS app, what kind of stuff would it post automatically on my behalf? Thanks.

OK, perhaps the app is asking for permission to post to Facebook, but not without my consent. Basically, it can be used to post to Facebook using an alternative app to the official Facebook app for Android. Anyways, many people seem to think that with FB you share everything with the whole world, but you can actually make various part of your profile private and can also only share with who you want including with only yourself. Anyways, there is a Facebook app and a Facebook Status widget under Android's Apps button but I don't see the SNS app there, not even undet Task Manager. Not sure why.

Anyways, the System Panel and App Detective apps you mentioned do not show the SNS application either, which means the app probably deleted itself once I gave the app confirmation. It probably just created a Facebook account under Settings -> Accounts on my Android device so that the various menus of accessible from Android Samsung Galaxy SIII stock applications can post when the user wishes to do so without requiring the user to enter the FB password.


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forgot my pattern for lock screen
I'm locked out of my tablet because I can't remember what my screen lock pattern is. How do I reset factory settings if I can't get into the tablet?
please help this is all new to me

Boot into your Recovery in this way:

Shut down your device
Google for "(your device name) recovery"
In your recovery you can perform a factory reset.

authors: Орхонцэцэг Хорлоо


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How to figure out what the Android Software Update is?
I just received a "Software update" and in the details it says important [sarcasm] stuff like:

Size: 91.45 MB
  Improved stability.
  [WARNING: The devices will be restarted during the installation process.]
  Caution: ... blah blah about you can't use your phone during install.

but it doesn't state which version I'm updating to.
Phone details

Phone: Samsung Galaxy S4
Model: GT-I9505
Android: 4.4.2
Build: KOT49H
Baseband: I9505XXUGNG8
Carrier: unknown

It's secondhand phone, I think German/Austrian because it keeps installing some weird apps with german names on every OS update. I bought it in the UK and currently using it in Hungary.
News / 5.0
When I search for new news articles about S4 and OTA today, I find Android 5.0 Lollipop OTA finally arrives for Galaxy S4 Google Play Edition, there are a few problems with this:

I don't think I have Google Play Edition, because I have TouchWiz
I don't believe S4 would get 5.0 sooner than my Nexus 7 (1st edition)
I cannot believe an 5.0 update would be 90MB...

I'm really looking for some authoritative info on whether it's 4.4.3 or 4.4.4, because I want to avoid 4.4.3. Even the build number of the update would help a lot. By authoritative info I mean that it's possible to find out next time it happens without asking again. Maybe a global list of baseband/build numbers?

I admit it's annoying that I couldn't even get any info regarding the update on search engine. Searching for size 91.45 MB improved stability samsung galaxy returned nothing :(

Your updates typically come from the cell carrier. Have you checked their web site?

@rrirower the question has a body for a reason, please read the "Phone details" section! Note: I also have an S3 bought from CarphoneWarehouse without SIM, what is the cell carrier there?!

I tried a few methods I could think of:

Wireshark the WiFi packets -> nothing
adb logcat to see if anything extra info is logged -> nothing
I found out thought, that most of what we see on the "Update" screen is hard-coded and only the "Improved stability..." part is dynamic.
adb pull /cache/fota/update.zip or adb pull /data/fota/update.zip -> requires root

After almost giving up I found http://sammobile.com. The sad thing is that it only works for Samsung phones, which I have luckily. The fact that my phone's origin is German or Austrian and the date the update showed up helped me narrow it down to
12-11-2014 Firmware Updates:
Germany (DBT)                   GT-I9505    GALAXY S4 LTE   4.4.2   I9505XXUGNK4
Germany (Black Edition)(DBT)    GT-I9505    GALAXY S4 LTE   4.4.2   I9505XXUGNG8

and since I already have I9505XXUGNG8, it must be the first one, which is weird because I would swear the color is black like this
Then I checked the carrier's listing:
http://www.sammobile.com/firmwares/database/GT-I9505/DBT/ which seems to correspond with the timings of my past received the updates. So I checked my CSC (*#1234#) and found that indeed this is my current version so the update is still 4.4.2.
Edit
I did the update and after checking About device it was indeed updated to I9505XXUGNK4.

This doesn't really answer the question in general, only for Samsungs. I'll leave the question open in case anyone has a better way of telling.


text:
(Re)boot an Android phone from USB
I own a Samsung Galaxy Note 1 (not rooted) and its lock button doesn't wrok anymore. That means I couldn't boot my phone if it happened to be turned off.
But I need to restart it now because it's buggy.
Do you know a tool on PC that would allow me to call for a reboot via USB ? (The USB debugging option is activated).
If not, do you know a way to boot an Android phone without this Lock button ?
Thanks in advance.

Real Reboot

Works on Android 2.1 - 4.2.1 No Root
4.2.2 and up needs root.

For a PC method you will be using Android Debug Bridge, commonly called ADB. Here is a link for a download. It's from the XDA Forums. Read the page while your there and get some good insight on ADB.
After installed to the computer, open a command prompt (L shift + R mouse click) in the folder that has the ADB file. Make sure you have your device drivers installed and the phone plugged into the USB on the PC.

Type : adb devices (make sure device is seen)
Then: adb reboot (reboots device)

Here is a link to the Android Developers website that will give you full detail about the inner workings of ADB

Real Reboot works fine, it will do the trick until I get a new phone. Thanks!

That's what we're all here for :)

Just FYI,  the link I provided for download is a minimal installation of ADB & FASTBOOT, without the whole SDK. Its just to have everything work, so no huge install.

If you're rooted :
Just search for any app that restarts the phone. Just search on play store  -  "Restart". That'll do the work...
If you're not rooted
As HasH_BrowN told, adb is the solution.
The first step is to have USB debugging turned on, which you have.
Now, follow these steps :

Install adb and your phone's drivers on your PC/Mac/Linux machine. This is a good guide, if you haven't installed it already : http://lifehacker.com/the-easiest-way-to-install-androids-adb-and-fastboot-to-1586992378
Once done, go to the directory where adb is installed (I'm assuming you're on windows. If you're on mac or linux, just skip this step.)
Open command prompt/terminal in this directory.
Connect your phone via usb to your computer
In the terminal, execute this command : adb devices
If it says no devices found, then you've not installed your device drivers. Search how to install Note 1 drivers on PC/Mac/Linux.
Otherwise, it'll show you the device ID and the name.
Execute adb -s <device ID> reboot  - insert the device ID you got on the previous command in this command.

This'll reboot your cellphone or for that matter any android device.
You can also write a shell script which does this, so you don't have to write all the commands again and again, and just a double click would do.
Hope this helps.

All the apps that restart the phone need a root access, which I don't have. All the ones I saw, of course.

I've edited my post. Let me know if this works now.

I chose to use the Real Reboot app, but thank you for improving your answer and adding a simple guide to install ADB without the entire Android SDK.

The device ID in step 6 isn't necessary for a reboot. Plus your answer is mimicking mine. Good job on the edit.

HasH_BrowN I made the edit almost at the same time when you answered. I hadn't seen your reply then. Secondly, it's good to specify device id, say in case any other linux based device is also connected to one's machine, then it shouldn't reboot that too. I had no intentions of mimicking your answer or anything as such. Take a chill pill. His question got answered, that's all that's required.

I made a comment, now you don't get snappy - (chill pill)

You would only need to input a device ID, if when you typed adb devices and it returned multiple devices. (Good point though)


text:
Using the tablet for cell phone calls
My tablet is a SurfTab xiron 7.0 3G. It can take two sim-cards (dual sim-capable). I can receive voice calls over the bluetooth headphones. It does not seem to be able to alert by a ringer or flashing screen, when a phone call comes in and the bluetooth headphone is not turned on. Furthermore, I do not seem to be able to make outgoing calls. But I can send SMS'es from either of the two on-board SIM-cards.
I installed various apps - e.g. Talet talk. But none of these apps make use of the sim-cards on the tablet it-self.
Is there an app or any other fix out there, that could assist me in making voice-calls from the on-board SIM-cards? I am not interested in VOIP solutions (I use Skype extensively), as I must be able to make and receive calls, when in areas with no internet connection.


text:
How to have the OS launch applications at startup time?
I am running Android 4.3 Jelly Bean on a Samsung Galaxy SIII.
I am trying to figure out how to configure applications such a Skype to start up automatically once the system has gone through the bootstrapping process, finished booting, and started up. I would like to be able to do this via an application that does not require my device to be rooted, if possible. When I look at the information related to Skype in the default Application Manager, I can see that the Skype application makes use of the "run at startup" permission, which means that it should be possible to configure this app to run at startup but I could not find a checkbox to do so on this screen, nor from the Skype application settings. A similar situation may take place with other apps as well.
This post deals with preventing apps from starting up, and mentions useful third-party appilcations such as Autorun Manager which seems to be maily concerned with blocking applications from starting and from restarting once killed, or at least this is what I gather from the app's description on the play store, and Autostarts which triggers which manages which apps are triggered by events.
So, here are my questions:

Why isn't there a preinstalled native Startup Manager app on android to control which apps are to start by default and which aren't?
If skype requires the "run at startup" permission, and there is no place in the OS or in the app to configure such app to start up automatically, then what does this permission achieve?

Thanks.

I find your 2nd question interesting as I also just tested to see if there was something that Skype ran on startup (perhaps, background service?), and I didn't see anything. I'd say, "probably the developer forgot to remove the permission request", unless it's working on some other devices, for some reasons.

Yes, I also don't understand. Once my system was rebooted, under Task Manager, I find: "Active applications: 0", "Clear defaults: Launch by default: YouTube [Clear]". If YouTube is launched by default, as Task Manager points out, then why doesn't it appear under Task Manager active applications. Maybe an app needs to be running in the foreground to be listed as an "active application". Then in Application Manager, Skype does not appear under the RUNNING tab, but if I click on it under either the DOWNLOADS tab or ALL tabs there is an enabled "Force stop" button, which can be used to stop it.

So Skype can be stopped even though it doesn't appear in Task Manager or under the Application Manager's RUNNING tab. I don't understand what this all means.

I just checked again, and it seems that all apps have "force close" button enabled, even for those which haven't been opened, which I also don't know the reason.

I seriously don't know, maybe this means that their broadcast receiver components will be called when corresponding events they are set up to receive are dispatched. But this is only a wild guess which could be totally wrong. Maybe someone can clarify this issue.

I think your second question is very Windows like approach. When you install apps that uses this permission they are able to receive a broadcast and from there set a service, for example. But the option to start or not to start at startup is very Windows. Usually Android apps declare its permission needs in the beginning and then they decide how to act and react

@joaquin, thank you for your answer. It is very clear and useful.

It really would be nice to have some startup manager shipping with the system, which lets the user decide what to start and what not. But that's not the case, it works a bit different:
Apps with the "run at startup" permission can register a "listener" for the BOOT_COMPLETED broadcast – which the system always issues on that event. This way they get notified of that event, and can decide to perform some action. That could be starting some background service which keeps running – but they could also do something little and then exit again.
IMHO Skype has an option to automatically log you in after boot, so you're available for incoming calls. AFAIR that's even the default behavior of the app. If there's no background service running for that, it might register for some cloud messaging then – which again would "wake it up" to deal with incoming calls. That way the app had no need to permanently run in background. Indeed the app also declares the com.google.android.c2dm.permission.RECEIVE permission (C2DM stands for "Cloud 2 Device Messaging", which now is GCM = Google Cloud Messaging), so this could be the explanation.

UPDATE:
Andrew T. confirmed this in the comments:

I finally checked the Android manifest of Skype by opening its APK file (base.apk), and indeed there is com.skype.android.push.DeviceBootReceiver with intent filter android.intent.action.BOOT_COMPLETED. I didn't investigate what it's doing though. Also, I forgot that broadcast receiver is not listed under running process as John mentioned (I can confirm this being a developer). So, you're correct on your guess :)

That's also what I believed, but not sure after confirming that there is no foreground/background process related to Skype after booting. It might be possible that the startup only register for cloud messaging, but then again, from what I know, it's impossible for the message to be processed if there is no running process that will handle that. I might be wrong, though.

Thank you @Izzy for your answer. In Application Manager I can see that Skype makes use of the "receive data from internet" permission which corresponds to the C2DM permission com.google.android.c2dm.permission.RECEIVE. Since Skype is not listed under RUNNING my guess is that when there is no process or service running in the background, but rather the "run at startup" (android.permission.RECEIVE_BOOT_COMPLETED) permission allows Skype to register a broadcast receiver for C2DM, and when the C2DM message arrives from the server, the broadcast receiver launches the Skype activity.

My guess is that broadcast receivers are not listed under RUNNING in the Application Manager, as these are started by another system service (whose name I can't remember right now). Correct me if I'm wrong. Thanks.

@AndrewT. that's where I have to pass as well: not being a developer, I have no insight in how exactly this works. But my expectations go with what John described in his comments: Skype gets launched at boot, registers a broadcast receiver, and exits. Whenever a GCM message arrives and is directed at Skype, the corresponding broadcast "wakes up/starts" Skype again to process it. This way there's no need for a "useless" process to consume resources. BTW: The Stack Exchange app works the same way :)

I finally checked the Android manifest of Skype by opening its APK file (base.apk), and indeed there is com.skype.android.push.DeviceBootReceiver with intent filter android.intent.action.BOOT_COMPLETED. I didn't investigate what it's doing though. Also, I forgot that broadcast receiver is not listed under running process as John mentioned (I can confirm this being a developer). So, you're correct on your guess :)

Thanks for your investigation, Andrew! I've included this with my answer (giving credits to you of course), so it doesn't "get lost down here" :)


text:
How to read data pertaining to running applications?
On the Android 4.3 Jelly Bean interface of my Samsung Galaxy SIII, I have noticed there seem to be various places where an application's running state is documented. I would like to know what the difference is between an entry for an application appearing in the following four places:

Application appears in the Task Manager under the Active Applications tab widget.
Application appears in the Task Manager under the Clear Defaults tab widget under "Launch by default".
Application appears in the Application Manager under RUNNING.
Application appears in the Application Manager under DOWNLOADED or ALL, and when clicked the "Force Stop" button is enabled.

It seems applications can appear in any of these four places in a bunch of different ways, and would like to know what it means if an application appears in one of these four places as opposed to another one of these four places.
Thank you for clarifying this puzzling issue.

Cases 1+3 show the app is currently running; basically, both are "task manager" views.
Number 2 is rather related to "preferred apps" for a given action: if you e.g. have two web browsers installed, this decides which one is launched if you tap an URL.
Number 4 is the "application manager". Usually, an "active force-stop button" should indicate a running app which you can "kill" by clicking this; but I'm not 100% sure whether the button is always disabled when the app in question does not run.

Thank you @Izzy for your comment, but what is the difference between 1 and 3? I have applications listed under 1 but not under 3, applications listed under 3 but not under 1, and applications listed under both 1 and 3. What is the difference between these three cases? Also, is a service a process or is it part of a process. This page does a good job at explaining the difference between activities, services, content providers, and broadcast receivers. But it doesn't explain how a process differs from a service.

I understand 2, it can be used to clear which activity is launched corresponding to a given intent, so after clearing if multiple activities are available for a given intent the user will have to manually select which activity to launch upon the intent being emitted. I'm not sure about the buttons appearing when I click on such an app though.

I'm not 100% sure here, as I neither have a 4.3 device nor a Samsung device (Samsung often has "specific solutions"). If you could enhance your question with specific screenshots, that might help spotting the difference (and I'd update my answer then accordingly if I can).

(3) likely shows services in addition to apps.


text:
Opera Mini saved web page location
I have Opera Mini 7.6.3. I had saved some web pages that I was hoping to transfer to my computer but I can't locate them using File Manager. I have searched both Internal storage and external SD card. Where does Opera store saved web pages?

You could just set up opera link and install opera in your computer.

I remember I used to be able to find where sites were stored when saved but now I can't.

You could also use pushbullet, maybe something changed.

AFAIK Opera Mini saves webpages for offline use in a native format it can understand. You won't be able to use the pages even if you found them on your phone.


text:
How to remove all Google-specific apps from a rooted Android?
Some time ago I read somewhere that Chinese carriers are removing Google-specific software (Google Search, Google Play, etc) from Android devices they carry.
What I wanted to know is if this is difficult to do on already rooted Android tablets?
I know that I can log into a rooted Android tablet through a USB cable and delete packages, I am just not sure which ones can be deleted without causing dependency issues.
Is it sufficient to delete Velvet.apk, or do other ones need to be deleted to remove all out-of-the box Google apps?

If your on a custom ROM you can reflash it without the GApps package....no Google Apps!! :)

You can install an app like Root Uninstaller or Link2SD and remove any unwanted system apps from there. It is typically safe to remove:

Cloud Print
Drive
Google Photos
Google Play Books
Google Play Games
Google Play Magazines
Google Play Movies & TV
Google Play Music
Google Play Store
Google Photos
Google Search
Google Text-to-speech Engine
Google+
Google Text-to-speech Engine
Hangouts/Talk
Translate
YouTube

Be careful, removing these may break some functionality:

Gmail (reinstalling as user app may break functionality)
Google Backup Transport
Google Calendar Sync
Google Contacts Sync
Google Maps
Google Now Launcher (do only if there's an alternate launcher installed as system app)
Google One Time Init
Street View

Do not remove these:

Google Account Manager (causes FC's if you don't remove other gapps)
Google Partner Setup (may cause unexplained crashes)
Google Play Services (causes FC's if you don't remove other related gapps)
Google Services Framework (may cause crashes if you don't remove other gapps)
Setup Wizard

You may want to disable these apps first (Settings > Apps > All > [Selected system app] > Disable) or Freeze using Link2SD to test functionality with those apps removed.

Thanks to user1261104's comment for contribution to this answer.

Also safe to remove: Gmail,Google+,Google (the search app),Google Play (the market),Youtube and I think SIM toolkit as well. Just disable these apps via Settings>Apps>All apps> [Choose an app] >Disable. If you find that everything still works like you'd expect, delete them with Titanium Backup or Root Uninstaller like LyricWulf says.

Lollipop won't allow you to disable Play services / Google Now

@HelloWorld That may be true, but with root access, disabling and removing GApps is possible. As OP stated, the target device is rooted.


text:
Hangouts Icons Meanings
I know when someone reads your message, their picture in mini appears after the last message. Here's where I'm confused:

If it's shaded, that means they're not currently looking at your particular conversation?
There's a mini cell phone icon that appears beside the mini picture. It seems to appear randomly. Does it simply mean that they answered your hangout via cell phone? Or does it mean that they are currently using hangouts with another conversation (if the mini picture remains shaded)?

If there is a computer next to their icon, it means they are on a PC (or Chromebook).
If there is a phone, they are on their phone. The position of their icon shows the last message they read.
If the icon is dim, it means they are not looking at your message. Doesn't mean that hangouts is open, or closed.


text:
How can I force the Google Sheets app to update to the server?
I have been using the Google Sheets app a lot on my Android phone, and I have discovered that if I don't force the app to store the spreadsheet to the server, it sometimes loses updates.
This is the sequence I currently use to force the app to save to the server:

Clicks the check mark at the end of the "fx" input box.
Click the check mark at top left.
Click the "<" mark at top left.
Click on the spreadsheet again, and scroll back to the desired position.
That's a lot of steps for something that happens automatically after just a few seconds in the browser version, and pretty annoying (though not as annoying as losing data).

So, the question: How can I more expeditiously force the Google Sheets app to update to the server?

In 2014, when I originally asked the question, the multi-step procedure described in the question was necessary.
In 2015, an app update made it update automatically, as long as a net connection was available. So the simplest answer is to update the app to a version from 2015 or later.
The risk of data loss appears to persist (as of 2023) in the event that a spreadsheet is edited off-line when net access is unavailable, if the app shuts down (such as from contention for memory with other apps, or forced shutdown).
That Sheets behavior is different from the Google Docs app, which appears to store changes in local storage until a net connection is reestablished. Docs may still misbehave in the event of conflicting edits, but that's unavoidable.

all_licenses: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/


text:
How to upgrade my HTC desire 816 with lollipop
How can I upgrade my HTC desire 816 to lollipop

HTC is planning to release an OTA for the Desire 816 sometime in the future, but if you can't wait, there is a port of CM12 for your device.
Prerequisites

WinDroid Universal Android Toolkit
Your phone (duh)
Windows XP or higher
USB Cable

Unlock Bootloader

Open the WinDroid Universal Android Toolkit.

Download and install the ADB drivers if it prompts you to.

Choose your device from the list. Wait a few moments while it downloads the correct recoveries.

Turn on your device, go to Settings > Developer Options and Enable USB Debugging and plug it in. If the toolkit does not recognize your device immediately, click on the Refresh button in the bottom right corner. Note: If you are on Android 4.2.2 or above, and you do not see a button for Developer Options, you will need to go to Settings > About > Software Information > More and quickly tap on Build number multiple times until it tells you that Developer Options has been unlocked.

Click the button labeled Get Token ID in the Unlock Bootloader box. This will reboot your device into bootloader, retrieve your Token ID, and open a text file that contains your Token ID and further instructions.

Now that you have your Token ID, you can now submit it to HTCDev, which should have opened in the background when the text file opened previously. If it did not open, you can open the link here. Please login to your account or create and activate one with a valid email address. Once you have done that, go back to the HTCDev link, scroll to the bottom of the page, and paste the Token ID you were given in the previous step. Click Submit, and wait for the email from HTC on the email you created the HTCDev account with.

Once you have received the email from HTCDev, download the attached file in the email named unlock_code.bin. This is the unlock token that can unlock your specific device's bootloader. Once it has successfully downloaded, click on the button named Unlock Bootloader in the bottom left corner. If your device is not already in bootloader, this will reboot your device into bootloader, and flash the unlock_code.bin file. A prompt will appear on your device confirming if you would like to unlock your bootloader. READ THE WARNING COMPLETELY! THIS WILL WIPE ALL OF THE DATA ON YOUR DEVICE!

Press the Volume Up button once, and press the Power button once to confirm the unlock. Your device will now restart.

Your device is now unlocked! You can now proceed to flash a custom recovery and gain permanent root in the next steps.
Flash Custom Recovery

Move to the next box on the right named Recovery and Root.
Download this custom recovery and put it into the folder named Recoveries within the Data folder created by the toolkit. (The file should be named recovery.img.) Now click on the TWRP button. Your device will then reboot into bootloader and flash your chosen recovery.

You are now rocking a custom recovery!
Gain Permanent Root

To gain root access, click the Gain Root button from the tool.

Flash Custom ROM

Download the latest version of CM12
Once you have fully downloaded the ROM you want to flash, find the boot.img file. It should be in the main directory. Copy it and save it somewhere else for later use. Do not extract or unpack the ROM folder, and ensure that you didn't delete the boot.img in the ROM folder itself.
Navigate to the box in top right named Flash. Click on Flash ROM, choose Yes if you are ready, and choose the ROM .zip file you previously downloaded. The ROM you chose will be pushed to your phone. It may take a few minutes depending on the size of the ROM, so please wait until the loading icon has stopped spinning. Once it has finished pushing the ROM, your phone will boot into Recovery. Once you have booted into Recovery, choose Install. Scroll down until you see the ROM .zip file you chose previously. Choose it, and flash it. Once it has finished flashing, go to the Reboot options within the Recovery, and reboot to Bootloader.

You now have CM12, Android 5.0 on your HTC Desire 816!

Adapted from this post

If you are not new to android development ecosystem then flash a custom rom to update.But if you dont know how to do it then you can do it in three simple steps.1.Unlock bootloader 2.install recovery and 3.flash rom if you dont know how to install roms then check this out this might help you for sure link


text:
Will Xiaomi Mi band tracker work with Android 4.3?
Will the new Xiaomi Mi band (fitness tracker) work with Android 4.3? I know it says that it works with 4.4, but I also saw somewhere they said it won't work with 4.2.

It is compatible with Xiaomi Redmi 1S Android 4.3. Source.

Yes. it is compatible and I'm using with my Redmi 1S.

I didn't ask a question! I'm saying that I'm using the mi band with my Redmi 1S mobile which is running Android 4.3.


text:
Why confectionary names are used in naming the android versions?
Except alpha and beta, all the versions of android have been named based on confectionary items. What is the reason behind it?

Slightly related: What are the names of the various versions of the Android OS, and how are these names chosen?

The following is an excerpt from a CNN article:

"It's kind of like an internal team thing, and we prefer to be a little bit -- how should I say -- a bit inscrutable in the matter, I'll say," said Randall Sarafa, a Google spokesman. "The obvious thing is that, yeah, the Android platform releases, they go by dessert names and by alphabetical order for the most part."
  "For the most part" because two versions of Android, 2.0 and 2.1, were both called Eclair. And because Google won't say what it called the first two versions of Android, which you can assume started with "A" and "B."
"As far as the public knows, it started with Cupcake," Sarafa said.
  "I have some ideas, but I don't actually know for sure," he said of the first two Android names. "That was, jeez, like four years ago."

In what way does it answer the question?

It's kind of like an internal team thing, and we prefer to be a little bit -- how should I say -- a bit inscrutable in the matter, I'll say. --There is no functional reason why it is named that way. It's kinda like a motto, in a way, just for fun.


text:
Nexus 5 stuck on “flying color dots lollipop” screen after Hard Factory Reset
I updated my Nexus 5 to Lollipop a month back and it was working fine. Suddenly one day my device didn't boot up so I did a factory reset and I got wipe/cache error and if I switch off the power and restart I get the flying color dots page and nothing comes up after that. I went to service center and they said it's a software issue and they can't do anything about it. How can I fix this?

The initial bootup for lollipop takes around 10 to 15 minutes. How long did you wait?

There is nothing to worry. You just have to flash the images properly.
Please follow the steps mentioned in this Android Enthusiasts answer.
The initial bootup usually takes time around 10 to 15 minutes. I'm up and running 5.0.1 without any problems.


text:
Why am I not receiving network signals on a Samsung S3 T-999?
I just bought a Samsung S3 T-999. The problem is when I switch the cellphone on, it connects to my network but just for a second. The moment that second is gone, I lose signal completely.  So it's not like the IMEI is corrupted or something. Moreover, the phone is not asking for an unlock code at all, so I assume it is unlocked too.
What could possibly be the problem? How can I solve it?
This is the screenshot:

It was a really stupid thing. My phone's network mode was set to cdma while my country operates in gsm. It solved it.


text:
execve permission denied under /data
I have met a weird problem on a Samsung Galaxy Note 2, running Android 4.3, with an origin-forgetton rooted rom.

getenforce returns "Permissive", so selinux is Permissive.
cat /proc/self/status returns CapBnd/CapEff/CapPrm ffffffffffffffff after su, so all the capabilities are granted.
su is from chainfire's SuperSU.

The syndrome is, after su any executable under /data calling execve() fails with EACCES.  BUT, execve() under /data is permitted by a normal user.
To demonstrate, all the following experiments are carried out after su. Compile the following program into a static linked binary, say execve.
# gcc -static execve.c -o execve

/* execve.c */

#include <stdio.h>
#include <stdlib.h>
#include <unistd.h>

int
main(int argc, char *argv[])
{
  char *newargv[] = { NULL, "hello", "world", NULL };
  char *newenviron[] = { NULL };

  if (argc != 2) {
    fprintf(stderr, "Usage: %s <file-to-exec>\n", argv[0]);
    exit(EXIT_FAILURE);
  }

  newargv[0] = argv[1];

  execve(argv[1], newargv, newenviron);
  perror("execve");   /* execve() only returns on error */
  exit(EXIT_FAILURE);
}

Running "execve /system/bin/ls" should be equivalent to "ls hello world".
But if execve is put under any subdirectory of /data, "execve /system/bin/ls" results in "Permission Denied".

If execve is put into any of /, /system, /cache, /mnt/obb. execve() works.
Remounting /data with exactly the same mount options as /cache does not help.
Symlinking a subdirectory from /cache into /data containing execve works.
ln -s /cache/test /data/test # /data/test/execve works
And in reverse, execve does not work.
ln -s /cache/test1 /data/test1 # /cache/test1/execve Permission Denied
Bind mount /data to /bind. /bind/execve works, but /data/execve does not.
mount -o bind /data /bind

Conclusion: There is soming preventing any executables under /data from making execve() syscall.  The mechanism has nothing to do with the filesystem attributes, and symlink is dereferenced before the mechanism is applied.
Question: What mechanism in Android could give this strange behavior?
Reference:

http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=56264859&postcount=414

Hi, sorry I didn't know this question was too specific to developers.  Feel free to make it read-only or move it to stackoverflow.

Samsung has some restrictions hardcoded directly into the kernel. These things differ per device, per kernel/firmware, and are a real drag to work with, or around. Try a different firmware.

Thank you very much Jorrit. Great to have you here. I'll try to replace the offensive kernel.

Reflashing the phone with cyanogenmod works. Thanks!

authors: อนุถาพ สอนราช


text:
Recovering lost or stolen phone (security and feasability considerations)?
I am trying to understand a little bit about security in case my phone goes stolen. I have read that even if a phone is stolen and the SIM card is removed, it can still be possible to find your phone because the hardware has a built-in International Mobile Station Equipment Identity (IMEI) number which gets transmitted at regular intervals over the mobile network. Apparently this number can be changed in the software in the same way that, for example, the MAC (Medium Access Control) number of a hardware device such as an ethernet card can be faked on Linux via software methods, but it appears that doing so is not legal in most countries as it could help people stealing your device. So, here come my questions:

Am I correct in assuming that if the device is turned off (either manually, or perhaps because the battery runs out), then presumably the IMEI cannot be tracked until the device is turned on, which means that the device can go lost this way? Or is there some Android app which can reveal the location of your phone even when the phone is powered off (perhaps a phone which is powered off still uses a minimal amount of battery to make this IMEI information available to the carrier, or maybe via GPS given that GPS does not require a SIM card to be present to operate)?

Thanks.

John, we've had this kind of question already a couple of times: Off is off (unless NSA implemented some backdoor here), and without battery, dead is dead. And of course it's illegal to fake an IMEI – but so is stealing an device. And GPS also needs to be powered, besides from being rather one-way.

@Izzy, perhaps you are right, but PCs have a small CMOS battery which can be used to power certain features, including Wake-On-LAN which can be used to boot the PC's OS by means of sending a TCP/IP packet to the PC's ethernet card. I was wondering if, given the analogousness of smartphone hardware architecture to that of PC hardware architecture, if Android devices had a CMOS battery, I thought it might supply just enough power for supporting sending some network info while off.

You really believe that CMOS battery is powering the boot? Try disconnecting all power then, and "WakeOnLan" it up. I'd be surprised if you'd even get a response. No, that CMOS battery is just to keep your BIOS config, basically. There wouldn't be enough power in that to feed a data transmission.

@Izzy, I was not saying that the CMOS battery is powering the boot. But if the battery is not completely drained, then the CMOS battery should have enough power to react to the Wake-On-LAN, and as part of the reaction, cause the OS to start-up using the main battery for the boot-up process. I don't know if this is possible on Android, but since Android is based on Linux, if the mainboard supports this behavior then it should be possible (perhaps with root access).

Theoretically, the CMOS could also, if it supported a special mode of operation, just respond to special requests and send the IMEI over the network without all the battery require to boot up the full OS (perhaps some minimalistic network stack could be built into the BIOS, even though I've never seen this in practice, but it could be done). Then again, if this were the case, a thief could also remove the CMOS battery, and possibly replace the hardware chip containing the IMEI if skillful enough.

Though theoretically there might be ways to accomplish something like that (with a special mini-boot partition etc.), I've not heard from that in praxis. If it were there, I'm pretty sure someone would have discovered this. I have no definitive answer; all I can say is it's pretty unlikely.


text:
Is this notification that keeps coming up on my phone a virus?
This notification keeps coming up, and i'm not sure if it's real or a virus, or how to stop it coming up.
It says 'Android system warning! Google has found serious bugs in your Battery Module!Click on [OK] to view details.'

Screenshot (click for larger variant)
Any help appreciated, thanks.
Lauren.

I agree with Erman and kasperd's answers. As an additional resource, it might be a case of cross-site scripting, when an honest website is injected by malicious JavaScript hosted on other site, as seen on the screenshot.

No, it's not a virus. The notification is triggered by advertisements on the webpage.
Just don't click "OK" and ignore it.

Careful. What you see there definitely points to malware. No website scans your "battery module" (whatever that should be) and reports Google has found serious bugs in it. Google doesn't work that way. I'd rather go with TimoS' attempt on locating and eliminating the source. If that doesn't work out, check whether that happens on specific pages only and avoid those (at least for a while, as they might be infected). // Edit: Better make the "don't" bold and italics – I've just seen that after writing my comment :)

@Izzy: the website aren't doing any scanning, they would most likely still show that you have issue in your battery, even when you don't actually have a battery. It's a Trojan, your system is likely not infected (yet), the only way your system would be in danger is if you're stupid enough  to invite the horse in and install whatever "fix" the dialog box claim would've solved a nonexistent problem. Best action is to avoid the site that triggers them.

@Izzy - this definitely is not a virus or malware. Notice that it says "The page at http://---- says" -- this is a traditional window.alert() box, and that is the title that comes with it.

@Lie Ryan + Seiyra + lzzy: You are right. BUT: Cause of it's annoying you should find the application which opens this webpage/runs this js and uninstall/deactivate it. Just 'Click OK and relax' is not an option.

@TimoS: right, but you won't be finding the offending application by going through your installed application list, since it's the browser doing this rather than a native application. The OP has 16 pages open, and some of it probably are one he has been using regularly. The source of the alert is most likely a web page that he'd just recently opened. There's nothing to worry  because the system is not compromised; as long as he can avoid the page that triggers the message, there is nothing to freak out about.

@Lie Ryan: But it might be an app which opens this webpage.

No, it's definitely not a virus (there are none for Android) :) Lie's explanation is showing the most likely culprit (I forgot about window.alert()). So stick to the second half of my last comment (avoiding the site causing this until they've fixed it). You never know what happens when you confirm the request. Maybe they just want to "shock you" – but maybe they want to install some malware in the next step.

What you are seeing looks like a javascript alert.
As long as you don't believe the lies some websites will be feeding you, the only danger a javascript alert introduces is the possibility that a site may keep opening so many javascript alerts, that you won't be able to leave the site before another alert pops up. But a decent browser can stop that for you.
In this particular case I guess it is a case of an advertiser lying to you in order to convince you to buy a product which you don't need.

It seems to be an App which opens that dialog (over a webpage...).
Try to boot into safe mode:
Press and hold the power button until the power menu appears.
Hold down 'Reboot'. (On phones which do not have the option to reboot press and hold 'Power off')
Then your phone will reboot into safe mode. That means all your apps are deactivated for this session. IF you won't get any of these weird dialogs there THEN restart your phone (to get all your apps back) and deactivate/uninstall your apps step by step.
You can also try AdAway, which has an inbuilt AdWare Scanner. (https://f-droid.org/repo/org.adaway_51.apk)

I didn't knew adaway has an adware scanner.

Sure it's right in the menu. http://imgur.com/FUQqFeA

I agree with this approach. Though it might be an infected website displaying an "advertisement", the phrasing clearly points to malware – and the look of it to an app displaying a dialog. So follow this first – and if it doesn't work out, check whether the message only appears on specific websites (which might be infected); if so, better avoid them at least for a while.

Not a virus, but a simply advertising popup which leads at website to avoid. Block the url from your browser!

Screenshot Pro displays these annoying, persistent ads with "smart application management" notifications.   If that's not it then look for other apps that you recently installed or updated in Google Play with WiFi access. Disable notifications on the suspected app to see if it is the source of the ads,  then uninstall it if disabling removes the ads.  I had to disable it as a device administrator to uninstall screenshot pro.


text:
Unable to start chinese tablet even after installing recovery
When I try to boot my chinese tablet it halts on a small android icon and does not go ahead. It is not a boot loop. I just stays there.
It booted successfully a couple of hours ago after two days and after several attempts. At that time:

It showed up in device manager as Alcatel ADB Android Device (Windows recognized it that way - it did not ask for any driver).
I successfully accessed the SDCard in My Computer by going to "USB Connected" in the notification panel.
I followed instructions from @LyricWulf ( Chinese tablet does not boot ) and installed recovery (cwm_recovery_6.0.1.2_a10) with the # sh install-recovery.sh command and rebooted with the # sh reboot-recovery.sh - I used ADB Shell for doing this.
It took me to CWM recovery with a hat symbol. Over there, by mistake I selected the reboot option and again I am stuck where I was :(

Now once again, the computer is not recognizing the tablet. It is not going to recovery mode with Power and volume key combinations. Please advice what could be the problem.

Are you sure the version of recovery is compatible with your device? (Which you don't state). Is your kernel correct? Is everything the "right" version for your device?

*You don't state your device.

I dont know. I just tried it. before installing cwm recovery and after installing the recovery did not show any change... It just halts at the small android icon. The tablet starts only once in two days after several retry attempts. Once it starts and when I restart/shutdown it again goes back to the problem mode :(

That device doesn't have a button configuration to boot into recovery. You are going to have to run sh reboot-recovery.sh from the SDcard, (posted in my original answer) after your device gets past bootloader.

I did that when it started 2 days ago. I ran the sh reboot-recovery.sh from sdcard. It booted to recovery and the display was showing Hat symbol with menu and by mistake i pressed the power button when the cursor was on restart and now again the same problem

There is definitely a way to reproduce it if you just rebooted without changing anything. You might just have to get lucky again 8(. Did you do anything special when it booted correctly? eg. left it on overnight, or did it boot up right when you pressed power?

Booted only 3 times in past 1 week. *First when working, I did fact reset & after reboot it got stuck. *Second time when it booted, I rooted with srsroot since I was not knowing terminal emulator / adb shell but after reboot, it got stuck. *Third time it booted, I used your steps (adb shell) to install from sdcard with the sh install-recovery.sh command then sh reboot-recovery.sh took me to cwm recovery screen but on reboot it got stuck again. On all 3 occasion, the tab started when I inserted the usb cable. When I do that now, the moment I insert usb cable, it just shows me lil andoid icon :(

I would say to just keep trying it, and trying to repeat anything that had previously led to a successful boot.


text:
Retrieve back ONLY ONE deleted WhatsApp message
I have accidentally deleted ONE message from a chat conversation and I want to retrieve it back. I have read posts and articles on how to retrieve WhatsApp messages, but it talks about whole chat or whole conversation. There are solutions such as uninstall/reinstall WhatsApp before doing a manual backup and recover data, but this does not apply to my question.
I just want to retrieve the ONLY ONE message that I deleted a couple of hours back from a chat conversation. Is this possible?
EDIT: I assume something has to be done before whatsapp takes a backup. Appreciate an early reply. Thank you.
EDIT2 : Is there any way to change the autobackup time from 4AM to 4PM?

IIRC WhatsApp takes backups daily at 3 am or something

In Settings -> Chat settings, it says 4am. Is there any tool to undelete deleted message before the auto-backup time?

If you didn't take a backup after the message was received on your phone(and before it was deleted) then no you can't recover it.

I think I lost the message now. But i am still curious about what to do if this thing happens in the future. You mean there is no other way to recover that 'one single message'? There are no sofwares/tools/utilities that can recover the message before the auto-backup initiates at 4am?

Is there any way to change the autobackup time from 4AM to 4PM?

Sadly I don't think that too can be done. All you can do is make manual backups.

I have seen lot of articles that says how to recover deleted messages. You just have to take the backup of your whatsapp folder in the sdcard, uninstall and reinstall whatsapp then all messages are recovered. I tried that but I did not get that 1 important message i deleted :(


text:
Retrieving videos/photos from Vault app on Galaxy S3
Is it possible to retrieve photos/videos after uninstalling and reinstalling Vault app?  Please give me instructions how to retrieve.

They are no longer in gallery and I'm unable to locate on phone.

Nope. You will have to reinstall the app to use the files again. They're "encrypted" in a way such that only the Vault app can access them.


text:
External SD card keeps unmounting
Everytime my sd card unmount itself automatically and mount again and sometime... it won't mount. Restarting and/or shutting down the phone won't do anything.
I'm using Samsung Galaxy S5 with android 4.4.2.
Help someone.

You have to format the SD card.

Please don't use comments for extended discussion -- feel free to use [chat] for that.  And do incorporate any concrete solution into this answer post!


text:
Gallery app disappeared
I have a Nexus 5
and I've noticed that the Gallery icon disappeared. I can't find it either in the menu or in the apps settings (running or all).
I don't know exactly when it happened, but for sure after the upgrading to 5.0 Lollilop. Now, to open the pics, I have to launch camera and then swipe to the right.
Did it happen to someone else? Does anybody know how to solve it?
Thanks

Google decided to remove the Gallery app, replacing it by the "Photos" app.

Oh... I didn't think about checking that app and reading the upgrading notes. Thank you for your time! :)

Be sure that you haven't disabled it. Go to Settings -> Apps -> All/Disabled and see if you have disabled it.

I've already searched it in all apps settings, but it's not there.

I have just went to Settings-APPS-ALL-(Check any Apps set under protected Apps ) by selecting preferences.
I have kept Gallery App under protected Apps ..Now its visible on my home screen once i unchecked the Protected Apps


text:
Force new Mobile IP
I'm using my droid phone, running KitKat, to wifi tether my linux box to the internet.  The application that I'm writing requires me change my ip address on occasion.  Is there a way that I can communicate with my phone, connected via USB, and force it to obtain a new mobile ip address?  Using a VPN is not an option...

This sounds like it would be dependent on your network.  Quite possibly even a full disconnect and reconnect would not renew your IP, since they might expect occasional service issues and keep your IP lease active.

Did you find a solution to this?

What you can do is reduce the WiFi IP lease time to reduce the duration of time that an IP address is assigned to a device before a new one is assigned.
You could also manually assign an IP address from Settigns -> WiFi ->long hold the WiFi AP name -> Advanced settings and manually assign a IP.

I'm actually talking about the LTE connection, not the WIFI


text:
Is there a list of android system status bar icons?
I'm not sure what some of the status bar icons mean on my Android Nexus 5 device (I'm referring to the icons in top right of screen, adjacent to the time). I've googled frequently but I keep getting back a list of icons to use in app development.
I'm looking for a list of the system status bar icons and an explanation of the meaning of that icon. I'm interested specifically in the vanilla Android Lollipop OS on Nexus.

What kind of list do you want?

I assume you're after something like this but for stock Android 5.0?

@bmdixon - yes, exactly.


text:
Create whatsapp database from emailed conversation?
I recently switched phones and lost most of my whatsapp conversations. However, some of them I emailed to myself previously. Is there anyway to turn the text file sent by email into a database so I can restore it to the whatsapp app?

Nope you cannot do it. This has been explained in a previous question which should help you understand the reason.


text:
Installing custom ROMs: since most Android systems don't have a ROM, isn't this a misnomer?
My Samsung Galaxy SIII seems to have an internal SD card as internal memory,
and no ROM (Read-Only Memory).
As far as I know, ROM refers to a type of memory which can be only modified by attaching a cable from it to a special device and flashing; once the ROM is flashed, it is for all purposes read-only from the point of view of the users logging into the OS. Many sites report that one of the benefits of rooting is installing custom ROMs.
So why is installing an alternative system UI such as CyanogenMod still referred to as installing a custom ROM? Isn't it just replacing some files in the /system directory with some other files, i.e., deleting or backing up some old files and copying the replacement files to that directory?
Thanks.

Yeah, perhaps older and coarser devices still have ROMs, but I doubt any of the newer Android phones still have ROMs. Thanks.

You've tagged your question with the rom tag. Have you checked the corresponding tag-wiki? Find an explanation there. // Hint: Many of our tag-wikis hold good descriptions and first-aid, so it's always worth checking them :)

Thanks. I've checked the ROM tag wiki (sorry, was not aware of this SE feature). It provided me with useful information.

Old things tend to stick around. In everyday things (toasters, microwaves etc) there is some kind of software to control the device. That software is installed by the manufacturer and is usually hard to change, in practice read-only. While you can flash the system partition on android, with some electronic devices you needed to and still need to plug in some specific pins to some manufacturer application on a pc.
Nowadays ROM refers to the software by the manufacturer that drives the device, such as the /boot and /system partitions.

I would just add that it is viewed from the users perspective. Looking from their perspective, you can only write to the internal user storage, and the system indeed is ROM because the user can only read it and cant write it.
The only real ROMs are the ones that after writing burn the writing fuse and by that disable any possible write channels.


text:
What is the command line syntax of ClockworkMod recovery?
Background: I recently broke my phone's touch screen; everything else is working - I can even send inputs using adb shell sendevent ... and view the screen with screencap. ADB while in recovery works as well.
however, since the recovery doesn't have the screencap utility, I can't really do anything in recovery mode. I have found the recovery utility, though.
The recovery command though has no help as far as I can tell; there is no man, and neither recovery -h nor recovery --help show anything. Unsettlingly, the command doesn't even terminate immediately.
Are there any resources on this utility, especially on how I can do a full system backup like I would using the options on the screen?

You can use twrp instead, it provides command line.


text:
Blueish Screen and blue stripes
My phone has a blueish layer over everything, differing from app to app, also blue stripes. When I make a screenshot it doesn't show on the screenshot. It's a Motorola Moto G 1st gen

Sounds like a hardware issue, not software. Hence the clean screenshot.

After doing a reset with no result I contacted Motorola, they are going to replace the screen.


text:
Accidentally renamed APK file of default launcher
Yesterday, I was exploring my phone's system files and I accidentally renamed apk file of launcher when I was exploring /system/app folder. It renamed to "Launcher2.ap" but I absolutely know it's original name is "Launcher2.apk", so I noticed that and I renamed it back to "Launcher2.apk" and it was running normally. But today, I can't get any screen after boot (but it's booted normally) and there is no notification bar, no back/home/menu buttons and no errors have shown. I googled all solutions for this malfunction (including this website) and every solution says "you can fix this via adb" but I can't open USB debugging mode, because of blank screen. I also tried "wipe all cache and data" in boot recovery mode and tried to install a new launcher via Google Play's Website but the result is same: blank screen. What can I do for this error? Sorry for my english.
Note: The phone is rooted and it is automatically connects to wireless router (am I lucky?) and sometimes the "back/home/menu" bar and notification bar is flashing (~0.3sec) for once and then it goes blank screen again.
Thanks for any idea/help.

What else did you rename or erase from your system? Your going to have to reflash your ROM. Try a dirty flash - don't wipe data or system that way info(pics/music/app data) stays intact. If that doesn't work then a clean installation is required. Before messing with the system ALWAYS make a nandroid/backup, so you can restore if issues arise

@HasH_BrowN but there are no sections/options for "rom (Install from SD card, etc.)" and "backup/nandroid". There are 3 option: Wipe data, Wipe cache and Reboot. Am I in wrong place or what else can I do?

You will want to be in recovery. Have you installed a custom recovery (TWRP, CWM, or other)? If not, you should install one. You don't say which device your on, so I can't tell you the steps to enter recovery.

@HasH_BrowN No, I haven't a custom recovery tool and my device is General Mobile E-Tab 4 (runs Android 4.2.2). Also I am really sorry for "phone" word, it is tablet, not a phone.

This by chance isn't a Ministry of Education tablet (F@ith Project)?

No, it is for personal use, yes I bought that for 800TRY from Turkey but not that you said. Also I know their's tablet (from research of this error), that uses a management system and you can't do anything without ME's permission.

There were a bunch of results when I searched using : "General Mobile E-Tab 4 custom recovery". Most were in other languages.