text:
SamsungGalaxy S4 stuck on samsung logo
Yesterday I installed the newest software update for the Samsung galaxy S4(GT-19505). At first, the phone was stuck on a loop of the update 'installing' to 100%, turning on then switching off and repeating. I did a battery pull and removed my SD card. when i went to switch on my phone and it was stuck on 'android is updating. i left it and fell asleep. this morning i switched it on and it started as normal but then froze and got stuck at the glowing 'SAMSUNG' logo. i have tried using the power+up+home to and cleared the cache partition but that did not help. i have also taken out and replaced the battery many times. Samsung Kies also does not recognise my phone. How do I fix this problem? I am a complete newbie when it comes to phones and the technical side of them and would prefer an easy guide as to how to fix my problem/what the problem is. I would also REALLY REALLY REALLY prefer not to do a factory reset and wipe all my data.

Having experienced booting problems before, it's usually suitable to simply perform a battery-pull as you've done. The state that your phone is almost certainly 'recoverable,' but may require re-flashing the firmware (i.e. potentially performing a factory reset).
Have a think about it, and possibly wait for any more input from the community. If there is no more useful feedback, I'd advise downloading a copy of the official firmware for the device (should be pretty simple to find on Google). Download ODIN3 (http://odin3.en.lo4d.com/) (a tool used for flashing ROM's to Android devices) and have a read up on how to use it.
To put your phone into 'download mode,' reset the device and hold [POWER] + [HOME] + [VOLUME DOWN]. It should say "Downloading.. do not turn off target" or similar if performed successfully. Your computer should pick up the device and it is now primed for flashing.

The other Answer is very good. Just a view more hints: here a link to download firmwares.
http://samsung-updates.com/device/?id=GT-I9505
Make sure it's exactly your device. 9505 and 9506 are different hardware!
Don't try to flash firmware that is older than the one you had before.
After flashing, wait for the phone to do it's firt installations. This may take a while ( up to 7 minutes or so ).
It usually installs the stuff that was flashed in the cache partition upon first boot on the new firmware.
Normally you do not need to wipe the data partition, as this is where all your personal stuff is stored. But sometimes it's stuff on your data partition that make the device crash upon boot.
Yet another hint: Is adb enabled on your device? If so, try to connect to your device while it hangs. Usually this works and lets you adb pull your personal files before further modifications.
Good luck.


text:
Cannot charge Xperia Z3 Compact
I have a 3 week old Sony Xperia Z3 Compact (D5833). However, it suddenly turned off and refused to charge.
The phone was at ~10% charge before I plugged it in using the cable and adapter that came with the phone. I didn't notice that the charger light didn't light up because I was busy. Half an hour later, I noticed, and the phone refused to power on and also was unable to be charged.
I've attempted to follow the FAQs located on the Sony Support website:
(Main Page --> Z3 Compact --> Troubleshoot --> I cannot power on my device) and
(Main Page --> Z3 Compact --> Troubleshoot --> The phone doesn't seem to charge) but to no avail.
Is there anyone out there who can help?
Thanks in advance.

Sounds like a loose connection and/or hardware issue.
If you fiddle about with the cable in the port and the light comes on, it could indicate that the cable is potentially faulty, else, if it's only around three weeks old, can you not send it back and get a replacement under faulty/warranty terms?

Don't think its a hardware issue; tried fiddling it about and around already. Nothing goes. On the other hand, I've sent it to servicing, now's just the wait.

It's unlikely that it's a hardware issue, you're right. It's just a possibility as I've have a gadget with a dead USB port before, and I guess the same could apply here. Good luck with the servicing, let me know how it goes!

source: Stack Exchange

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

sort: votes


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How do I root a Zte Director..can't seem to find much info on how?
I have found numerous posts on other Zte phones, but only a few (dead ends) on the Zte Director(n850l). From my research, it seems to be (somewhat) comparable to the Fury, but again, I'm not sure...
I know enough to (possibly) get myself in trouble, and turn it into a paperweight...so, hoping for "easy" to follow directions (if there are any!)
If anyone could help, or even lead me in the right direction, it would be MUCH appreciated!
Thanks!!

Welcome to Android Enthusiasts. You should take a look at the Rooting Index and the rooting tag-wiki. These have some common techniques to root if there isn't a specific method for that device.

Here is the best thing I have found so far for this phone. http://www.how-to-root.club/mp3-0/zte-director-5470.html

Generally link only answers are not allowed as answers. If the site goes down, or the content is no longer available, then the answer is no longer relevant. Instead you should put the relevant information here and cite the original source. See the help center for how to reference content.

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


text:
Can I root a proprietary Lenovo Talbet of Vodafone?
I dont remember the series but I want to root a tablet at work.
I think its the A 5000 or H 5000 something like that but i cant seem to be able to find a rooting method and also if something cant be rooted cant i just install a custom ROM on it ? and have SU privileges ?

You'll have to find out (and [edit] your answer to include) exactly what model/series the device is before anyone is able to help you. It is possible/likely that the method of rooting will vary for different devices.

what is your android version ?
you can test this apps :
kingo root
framaroot
or Vroot ,
and or Cf-Autoroot :
check this link , but if your tablet doesnt exist on the list ,
reply to me for other methods.
http://autoroot.chainfire.eu/
regards.


text:
Messaging app (stock) not using full phone number to send text/sms
I am using Android 4.2 Jelly Bean stock Messaging App and the get "message not sent" error whenever I use my contact to send the message.  I noticed that the Messaging App might not be using the full 10 digit number to send the text/sms.  If I manually enter the full number, e.g., 155551234567 then the message is sent successfully.  But if I use the contact then it only shows in the top display that 123-4567 number and then it will fail to send any text/sms.
I am wondering if that is problem and if so how can I set the Messaging App to use the full phone number?  I did not find any setting for this anywhere so far.
Thank you for any help.

I presume you're talking about US numbers? If you haven't tried including a + at the start of numbers saved in your contacts that could be worth doing. +1 555 123 4567 is the international format and may help other apps know where to send your message/call.

Thanks for your reply.  I replied early but don't see it here.  So am doing again.  I already have full phone numbers.


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French in the Indian version of the Samsung Note 4
I have the Indian version of the Samsung Note 4. I want to change the language to French, but I don't see French or German in the list of possibilities. Is there a way to do it?

You might want to check out MoreLocale 2 from the Play Store.
Taken from the app page:

You can select more locales via this app.
  If your locale doesn't appear, please use custom locale function in menu.


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Why won't JRD MMITest go away?
This app (which doesn't actually appear to exist on my phone) keeps popping up randomly on my phone. Its called JRD MMITest and seems to want to test the functionality of the phone.
It covers such tests as accelerometer, touch screen, radio, speaker, bluetooth, wifi, etc but all of that works fine without the app even testing for it.
In what I suspect is a related issue, certain phone features have also turned off from time to time... Auto Rotation being one of them and I noticed my Play Store app's data had suddenly been restricted on wifi. I have since corrected these issues with no further anomalies becoming evident as yet.
My phone is a Vodafone Smart 4 Mini (Model Number 785) running Android Jellybean 4.2.2.
I've completed the testing successfully and restarted the phone under the impression that this would prevent it from coming up again. (as per Annoying MMI test on Alcatel one touch evolve?) however the app keeps coming up randomly.
I don't know what else to do here, does anyone have any suggestions?

I have done some researches and found that some carriers add this test on their devices. However, I didn't found anything to remove/ignore this test.

Had to factory reset my phone to get it to go away

According to tnagy on the topic of JRD MMITest:

This is the manufacture test of your Android phone's internal components. It will perform a check on the main components like LCD display, sound, etc.

You should be able to disable the app if you do not want this app to perform regular checks.

From Settings > Apps, slide all the way to the right until you see the all apps screen (not downloaded or running). Scroll down to MMI Test and click on it. Note: On some devices it might be listed as MMI Test II, or some other derivative.
After clicking MMI Test in your list of all apps, you should be able to Disable the app. This will keep the app on the phone, but it will not be able to run at all, even in the background.

If you want to permanently remove the app, you can root your phone and install an app like Titanium Backup, which can delete system apps, such as MMI Test.

The "Disable" button is... disabled. Irony :)

@WindRider In some cases, the manufacturer may not allow you to disable an important app to prevent breaking your device. One common example is the "Setup" app. It seems that the manufacturer does not allow you to disable the app. The only way to override this restriction is by rooting your device and using system privileged to either freeze or remove the app.

I already know this but is there some way to stop this freaking thing!? It appears every 2 seconds!  Basically on every activity startup! I should try to pass all these tests.


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Bizarre new battery behavior on Samsung Galaxy S3
After my old battery puffed up, it was time to buy a new one for my Galaxy S3 (GT-I9300) on stock ROM. After I got my new battery, I put it in and turned on the phone as I had some urgent messages to check. I was supposed to charge it to the max but I skipped that part because of urgency.
Well, I noticed that the screen flickered when the battery was 23% and the phone switched off. I decided to charge it to 100%. After I got the green light I turned on the phone and I noticed that the battery jumped down to 88%; indicating that I needed calibration.
I tried the good ol' discharge-recharge to 100% method, but the battery wouldn't go below 23%. I decided to use some app, like Advanced Battery Calibrator. After following the on-screen instructions, it asks to switch off the phone and let it charge to 100%.
The bizarre part is that as soon as the battery reaches 90% (in switched-off mode). it jumps back down to 20%.
I do not know what is causing this. Any leads would be appreciated.

It could be a faulty battery.

@ToDo Safe to continue using the battery?

If it's a new battery you could return it for a replacement under warranty I suppose. About your question: if the phone turns off haphazardly it could cause data corruption so even though I don't think I would cause physical damage (unless it heats up and burns) then at worst you'll need to factory reset the phone.


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Sending Google Play Credits
Is there a way to send or 'gift' a person Google play credits?  We would like to allow students to redeem points they earn for good grades, etc for Google play credits.

From the Google Play Help pages:

You can only purchase Google Play credit to add to your own Google
  Play balance. At this time, aside from giving someone a physical
  Google Play gift card, it is not possible to add credit to another
  user's Google Play balance as a gift.

That said, there are places like PCGameSupply.com that allow you to buy "digital" gift cards (Google Play included)- which means the redemption codes are emailed to you rather than a physical card in the mail/store. Just pick "Send as Gift" at checkout. These always seem to come with a caveat though- digital gift cards have an activation fee on top of the face value. Personally whenever I've bought a physical gift card in a store, there wasn't an activation fee.
Alternatively, since I don't know how your points/points redemption system works, you could just buy a stack of physical $10 Google Play gift cards, and once a student has earned enough points to redeem $10 worth, give them one of the gift cards. The cards don't expire, so no need to worry about that.


text:
Want to download an app from Kenya in the app store
Possible duplicates of
How can I circumvent regional restrictions in Google's Play Store?
How to change country?
Nevertheless, as the answers provided in the previous threads were not satisfying for me, i wanted to ask again in case anyone had an updated answer. I want to download https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.internet&hl=en on my phone but it is not available in my country.
Does anyone have any suggestions?

do u even read my own title?:D

Perhaps you could explain why you find the answers in the linked questions insufficient. Did they not work for you? If so, what was the behavior you saw? Simply saying they were "not satisfying" is too vague.

market enabler is no longer being maintained

yes correct , use this link for direct download from google play ,
http://apps.evozi.com/apk-downloader/
or chrome plugins :
http://apps.evozi.com/apk-downloader/#extension
or vpn or socks for change ip to usa or england.

General practice for me, if I'm looking for an app that is either no longer available on Google Play, supposedly incompatible with my device (though I know it will work), or not available in my area; I go to Google, enter in the name of the app I'm looking for + "apk". So in your case that would be "Internet.org APK". Lots of times you'll find someone or some third party that has uploaded the apk file.
Another way is to use an APK downloader site like APK Downloader. Unfortunately this doesn't seem to work for the particular app you want.


text:
m8 shows up as porable media player
I want to pull off my pics and no folders show up.  I tried with the screen on and off, different usb ports.  STill shows up at HTC on m8 with no folders.
Suggestions?
Thanks!
Julie

My suggestion is to describe more clearly what you're trying to do, what exact steps you took, and what the problem is. As it stands, it's not easy to understand your question at all.

Connect your device to your computer using the USB cable provided. Then make sure you unlock the device before attempting to access folders/files.


text:
Determining type of Wifi connection in Android
How do you determine which type of Wifi connection an Android device is currently using?
For example, is the device connected using an 802.11b, 802.11g, 802.11n, or 802.11ac connection?
Since, for example 802.11n Wifi adapters can connect with 802.11g or 802.11b, I want to know which method is actually used for the connection.
Answers should be compatible with Android KitKat.

If you can check Wi-Fi Link Speed It will give you an idea about the current connection.
"Maximum" link speed allowed is as follows-

Link speed 866.5Mbps - 802.11ac
Link speed 300Mbps - 802.11n
Link speed 54Mbps - 802.g
Link speed 11Mbps - 802.b

Also Link speed varies by your signal strength. So check Link speed of connected router in wifi settings, and get a idea. For example link speed shows 86.7, it is 802.11n. If your speed is greater than 130Mbps, it's 802.11n otherwise not. Some standard values for 802.11n are 150Mbps (single stream router) & 300Mbps (2 stream router).

Thanks! There were some typos, so I tried to clean up your answer a little bit.  I couldn't quite figure out the section around the words "otherwise not".  Maybe you can clarify that a little?


text:
How to set personal interval to check data usage?
On my Nexus 4 with stock Lollipop, I can check the usage data month by month, but my subscription is every 30 days (around the 15th).
New contracts last 28 days, so there is more difference between real interval and a month.
Is it possible to set a personal interval (the start and the during) to check it?

As far as I remember, even there is no setting to change the interval since JellyBean, and I'm afraid it's impossible to do it on stock ROM. Most possible, you have to use 3rd-party apps.

Unfortunately I don't have enough reputation in this sub-stackexchange, so I will answer instead of commenting.
This options is not available in Android (up to this date), but there is an issue (which you can star*), which has unfortunately been marked obsolete with no reason whatsoever. Maybe it can be rediscovered if enough people star it.
P.s.: Here is a similar issue which has not been marked obsolete (yet).
Edit: Another trick (which does not really give you the desired effect) might be to use an app from your provider (these often show you how much data you have left).
*Makes it more likely that it might be implemented at some point.

There appears to be another listing of the same issue (with a few more stars).

Go to data usage in setting, and click the drop-down that says some interval (5 Dec-4 Nov etc) and choose "Change cycle..." to change the start date.

It works for the starting day, but I am not able to set the during (30 days is not a month, but there are also week subscriptions)

I disagree with -1 vote because it reply to a part of the question

I found the "Change cycle" option today.
It's at the bottom of the drop-down
I had to scroll past every month from 2014 to 1970 (~520 months)

I am not able to find this setting

It's the same as saloalv's answer actually.

Andrew T, it's not the same answer

Ale, I had to scroll past 1970

Johgru, if it isn't the same answer as saloalv's, please add some additional information.

Can you please add the screenshot? Maybe it helps me to understand how to find this setting

@StephenSchrauger Better?

@Ale I have added a screenshot and some more info

@johgru this setting let me to modify the starting day, not the duration of the interval

@Ale I'm sorry! I missunderstood your question


text:
Adding a Google Apps account to Android L with External Authentication
I want to add a Google Apps account to my phone with Android L.
When I put in my username and hit next, it redirects to a page and says I do not have authentication. This isn't strange, for some reason my admins make you authenticate with an Active Directory login. However, I do not even get the opportunity to put in my credentials. Here is a screenshot of what I see:
https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B9MMQCxmnf8nZFA2M2tQRTI2ZU0/edit?usp=docslist_api
Going into incognito mode on chrome, I can get to the login prompt, but I can't continue adding my account from there:
https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B9MMQCxmnf8nMHRQUm9wUHZOVzQ/edit?usp=docslist_api
I haven't had this problem with previous versions of android. Is there a way around this?

The first error is not a google error page. I don't know what steps you did, or what type of account but that is an Error page for a Windows ASP.NET server, which google doesn't use. If this is the redirection to one of your companies services, you should contact your IT department. Google Apps accounts work fine in L, I have 7 Google Apps accounts tied to my phone, and 1 Gmail account.

@RyanConrad I understand, this was referenced in my question. I doubt my IT department would know how to solve this either. I was wondering if there was a way that I could "hack" it so I could bypass that secondary authentication somehow.


text:
Why can my tablet not use my phone's internet over bluetooth?
I have an old Nokia 6300 (2008-era) phone and an Amazon Kindle Fire HD (2012 model) rooted with CyanogenMod on Android KitKat.
The Kindle does everything I want it to do and I see no reason to carry around a smartphone as I have no need for one (yes, this is coming from someone who owned a Samsung Galaxy S3 for two years!).
I have connected the Nokia to my Kindle via bluetooth and have noticed the 'connect to this device for internet-access' option:

Over on the Nokia the E symbol is displayed within a box meaning that the device is connected to the internet; when I toggle the 'Internet Access' option on my Kindle off, the Nokia phone is no longer connected to the internet (the box around the E disappears).
The Kindle is certainly telling the phone that it wants to use it for internet access, but however Chrome on the Kindle is telling me that it doesn't have an internet connection.
I've read on various websites that Bluetooth DUN and PAN is disabled on KitKat because it's buggy and Google haven't fixed it yet. Is this true?
I've also tried various bluetooth DUN apps to try and get this to work and bluetooth DUN simply tells me 'this device is not supported' and the other doesn't do anything.
Is it possible at all to access the internet vi

Your phone probaly use bluetooth/DUN, in that case you need to get the connection parameter from your mobile phone provider. An another way is to tether a PC with linux/KDE installed on it to your Nokia phone (for using the phone as an internet acess to the PC). A configuration wizard will appear for asking you to pick a provider and will fill the parameters for you on the PC. Then if you look at the network configuration you will be able to copy them to your Kindle.

According to xerox89 at XDA-Developers:

I wont say 100% imposible .
  But its 90% NO . Try to get a smartphone to tether . A galaxy Y or xperia mini would be cheap option .

Why?

Bluetooth Stack on Phones/Tablets is incomplete.

How?

New rom w/better kernel
better kernel
Xposed framework + Bluetooth tether
the only sure, cure is root + debootstrap-chroot (linux installer) Then you use Ubuntu desktop to share it (pending you bind the bluetooth hardware.)


text:
Root Nexus 4 Lollipop without PC
Is it possible to root Nexus 4 Lollipop from the phone, without needing to connect to a PC of some sort? Since Lollipop update, Android file transfer cannot find my phone.

Community bump prevention: this question was closed because the question seems to have been abandoned (OP hasn't visited the site anymore after posting the question, and no answers have score above 0). If anyone can evaluate the existing answers, feel free to vote accordingly and reopen the question (or mod-flag the question requesting for reopening). For anyone else having the same issue, please post a new question and refer to this question as additional context.

Try Framaroot. I'm not sure if it will work with Lollipop, but it is the only option I can think of that does not require a PC. More info and FAQ in the link. Download the latest version from the bottom of the first post.

Go to http://kingroot.net, download and install their apk. Then run the app and try to root the phone. This is one of the best rooting app. Tried it with many many devices and it worked well.

2 questions: Are you sure kingroot will work on a Nexus? What about the side-effects of it? Seeing how many issues pop up here for one of them, I'm not sure I'd even recommend it as last resort.

Kingroot doesn't work on any devices. Tried and tested.

You can Root your device with any one of these 2 tools
KingRoot,
Kingoroot
its recommended to turn on oem unlock from developer settings as it won't block or trigger FRP,
apps which are mentioned above are used for mainly 3 reasons
1. No need for PC.
2. No Bootloops or other major issues like in flashing.
3. They first check for success rate and availability of root strategy for your specific device.
Note:
*NO ONE CAN GUARANTEE WHEN IT COMES TO ROOT WITHOUT PC.
*ANY APPS INSTALLED WHILE ROOTING WITH THESE APPS CAN BE REMOVED AFTER YOUR DEVICE GETS ROOT(u can even debloat system apps).
*ROOTING WITH SUPERSU OR MAGISK HAS HIGHER SUCCESS RATE OF ROOTING BUT U NEED TO FLASH CUSTOM RECOVERY MAY LEAD TO BOOTLOOPS AND BRICKING.
for devices running on lollipop there is a 50% probability of getting root without pc using any of these apps in your device just install Kingroot try to root if it fails then try kingo if that fails too then you need to flash custom recovery then use supersu or magisk zip to get root access
but rooting a device makes warrenty void I personally do not support rooting its purely your will


text:
How to turn off auto-capitalization on the HTC One M8?
This is bugging me while texting. I don't see an option to turn it off in the text app's settings, or Settings -> Language & keyboard.
Here's the screen when I open settings from the keyboard:

And here's the submenu when I hit Advanced:

Do you have a button on your on-screen keyboard that allows you to do capital letters?

Yes, so I can override the auto-capitalization each individual instance, but I want to turn it off in general.

Oh... Well that was what I was going to recommend. I don't know of a way to turn it off all the way.  Sorry :)

Unfortunately, on the stock HTC keyboard, you cannot turn off auto-capitalization. Consider Google Keyboard, which gives better customization options.

I'm able to access the menu by long-pressing the comma, but I don't see anything there referring to auto-capitalization.

Can you show me a screenshot of your keyboard settings screen?

Edited question to include.

See new answer.

Oh well. Thanks for the workaround! I'm liking Google Keyboard better in general anyway.


text:
How to delete a Play store accpunt through system
I have sold my old android mobile to a person and made sure that the mobile was completely formatted.
But, when I try to view the list of devices in Play Store it is listing both my new and old mobile phones.
Is it possible to remove this old phone from the list so that the other person doesn't use my account?

If you performed a /data wipe (factory reset) on your old phone, you have nothing to worry about; that person will not be able to "automatically" log onto your Google Account. Old phones will always show up on Play Store when you're looking from your PC.
You cannot remove the device from Play Store, but you can hide it from your Google Play Settings from a PC. Just untick Show in menus next to the device you want to hide.

IIRC you can remove the device after one year of device not connected to gplay


text:
Interruptions are either broken or some apps disregard settings?
So, I updated to Android 5 and I discovered this new feature, interruptions and priority notifications.
I set up the phone to interrupt me only for calls and messages and I went to sleep.
I was woken up by Facebook Messenger notification sound. Pissed off, I decided to check again if it was by chance whitelisted.
Is this behavior normal? Are Whatsapp, Telegram, and those kind of instant messaging app supposed to bypass this setting?

This may depend on the definitions of "messages" vs "notifications". One could certainly argue that Facebook Messenger receives "messages", which you asked to receive...

The problem stems from the fact that Android has multiple audio channels, for different kinds of output. The Priority Notifications feature will silence any apps that try to output over the "notification" channel unless they are whitelisted, preventing their notification sounds from being played.
However, not all apps actually use the proper channels. In the case of WhatsApp (and apparently Facebook and Viber), it appears that they may be using the "media" channel, which is intended for music, games, etc. These sounds do not get muted when you set your device to Priority mode because the system does not perceive them as "notifications".
The alternative (silencing all channels in Priority mode) would mean that you could not use any apps that output audio when your phone was silenced. This would effectively be like the (now nonexistent) "silent" mode. Google probably felt that was an unacceptable implementation for what they were trying to do with Priority mode, and has marked a bug related to this as working as intended. The advice given on the bug tracker was to contact the developer(s) of the offending app, because they are not actually using Android's notification API correctly.
In the meantime, you might be able to create a profile with something like Tasker that would help. Something that turned down the media volume to zero overnight might suffice, though I have not actually tested this myself yet. You could also try triggering the profile off of the notification itself, to see if you could just swallow it completely.

I tested a bit and the only "culprit" is Whatsapp. I'm going to deactivate their notification sound until they fix it, then. Thanks!

Facebook Messenger is a culprit.


text:
How to root a LG-E405?
I wanted to do this because it's a small phone so moving to the sdcard is a good option to me so... anyone can help me?
I am a linux (OpenSuse) user so if there a solution using the terminal or something it's great!
about the phone:
phone - LG-E404.
Android - 2.3.6
Kernel - 2.6.38.6-perf+
compilation - GRK39F
Software Version - V10f-SEP-14-1012

Ok saddly I have to use a Windows machione to acomplish that. But that was pretty easy after all.

Search for the drivers of your smartphone.I find mine in here:
http://www.mylgphones.com/lg-android-usb-device-drivers
Install a rooter software, searching I found this
http://www.kingoapp.com/android-root.htm
Set you phone in debug mode.
Finally install the drivers, the use the software and there you go
My phone is rooted...


text:
Viber deleted, but my account is still shown on my friends' Viber contacts!
I have deleted Viber app from my phone, but my account is still shown on my friends mobiles as a Viber user.
Is it a bug? What do I have to do to remove my account from my friends mobiles?

Uninstalling the app won't deactivate your Viber ID. If you want to deactivate your Viber ID, you have to reinstall Viber and do the following procedure:

Open Viber on your Phone
Tap on More
Tap on Settings
Tap on Account
Tap on Deactivate account
Enter your phone number
Tap on Deactivate account again
If you have a PIN enabled, you will be asked to enter your PIN
Tap Deactivate to confirm

More information: Viber Support Knowledge Base - Deactivate or Uninstall Viber on Your Phone

When you register a Viber account, that account is directly associated with your phone number (same case with Whatsapp) If another person who has Viber installed on their phone has you in their contacts, Viber will scan the contacts (which is why it needs accessing to your contacts as a permission) crosscheck them with the database and match your number with your account.
In shorter words: You deleted Viber application, not your Viber account.
If you want to delete your account then do as following:
Viber > More Options > Settings > Privacy > Deactivate Account

This is proper behavior. Account deactivation would impose a flaw.
In addition to what was said in other answers there is a normal scenario that you may want to continue using the same Viber account in other phones, tablets or PCs (Windows, Linux).
Therefore expectation that Viber should deactivate your account when you remove the app from a device is what would be unacceptable for practical use. It is like deactivation of your mailbox when uninstalling your e-mail client.

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


text:
Why does Wiko Cink Peax 2 reboot when it receives an SMS containing only '=' (equal sign)?
I have a Wiko Cink Peax 2 and when I receive one SMS with the only character '=' (equal sign), my phone reboots the system. How can I fix it?

It seems this is a known bug that affects majority of Wiko phones. Receiving an SMS with '=' (equal sign) as the only content will soft reset the OS.
References (in French):

Quand un simple SMS peut faire redémarrer un téléphone Wiko
Une faille qui fait planter les téléphones Wiko à distance

There is a suggestion from the first site: Use other messaging app, disable the pre-installed messaging app.
Flashing custom ROM doesn't seem to fix the issue. It might be caused by hardware issue, but currently there is no update on the real cause.
If it's still in warranty, then maybe it's possible to ask for replacement and ask them to test this issue first.


text:
Unknown error code during application install: "-25"
I uploaded an app to Google Play Store. But some users reported that they were able to download the app, but unable to install the app. They are getting the error

Unknown error code during application install: "-25"

Why is this happening and what can I do to fix this error?

I am getting the same error. did you have any luck in resolving this? what device are you using? (Smasung galaxy S4 in my case). My app is a phonegap app - is this also the case with you?

check to make sure that the versionCode of your new version is not lower then the one you have installed already.
For me this was what was causing the  "Installation error code: -25" error on samsung galaxy S3.


text:
How can I save Android photos in the WebP format?
WebP images are at least 20% smaller.
Windows can open WebP images after installing the WebP codec.

I don't think there is a camera app that directly converts the format as WebP. And I don't find any converter app on Android either. Anyway, WebP is only supported from Android 4.0+ officially, so the non-portability might be the reason why there is nothing useful at the moment.

I am using Android 4.3 - do you know if Google Camera can work with WebP (as it is for 4.4+ only) ?

No, there is no setting to change format in Google Camera. Everything is in JPG.

Open Camera added WebP support in version 1.45 (2019/01/14).
It can be set from Settings - Photo Settings - Image format - WebP.
However, from the official help page, it should be noted that:

WebP - This is an alternative (lossy) file format to JPEG. It offers smaller file sizes, but saving takes longer, and some applications may not support WebP images. Note that WebP images are generated by converting from a JPEG with 100% quality (since the Android camera API does not have native WebP output).

(Emphasis added)
There was also a remark by the developer on a discussion for "WEBP Support" back in 2016:

Unfortunately this isn't straightforward, as the camera driver will only output JPEG or (if supported) RAW. Converting from JPEG means it's already lossy (I support one could set 100% and convert, but that doesn't necessarily mean lossy AFAIK, just minimal compression). Converting from RAW could work, but requires adding support to decode/convert RAW images so is a fair bit of work (Android's RAW support is only for getting the files from the camera API, and saving them).


text:
Using a stylus on my Android device
Is there any way to use a stylus with an Android device like Samsung Galaxy Grand Neo or HCL Me U1 Tablets?

Any capacitive stylus will work with a capacitive touchscren (though not a resistive one). There's really nothing OS-specific to the way they function. Are you trying to do something specific with it, though? Particular functions might be software-driven.

I see this thread and thought it would be cool if I had a stylus too. http://android.stackexchange.com/questions/40934/use-an-android-tablet-as-a-wacom-drawing-tablet-for-a-pc

Definitely, yes. I can't see any problem using stylus on Android devices. But you need the one for capacitive screen (or "Capacitive stylus", as mentioned by eldarerathis)
As a proof, there is an article that lists some of the best styli for tablet devices.
Disclaimer: I'm not affiliated with the site or its creator. The site is used only as a proof that there are styli for Android tablet.


text:
What is the difference between a proximity sensor and a light sensor?
I've run across the specifications for this Android device, the HTC One V. On the PhoneArena site, the specs have it that the phone has both a proximity sensor and a light sensor. I thought a proximity sensor uses light to detect proximity. What is the difference between these two?

Related: Whats the use case of proximity sensor? Also see: Wikipedia: Proximity sensor and Proximity Sensor on Android Gingerbread . The latter article gives you a close insight in proximity sensors and how they're used on Android devices.

Thank you for your answer. The website you linked shows that while in general a proximity sensor can be implemented with various technologies such as electrical (inductive, capacitive), optical (IR, laser), magnetic, and sonar, the cheapest solution is the one implemented in mobile phones and makes use of optical (light) sensors. Thanks.

I just checked the Samsung Galaxy SIII Manual which can be downloaded form this site. According to the manual, at least on this mobile phone, the proximity and light sensor are the same physical device. This device is used as a light sensor to increase the screen brightness at night and decrease it during the day, and as a proximity sensor to make sure the screen turns blank when the phone is placed next to the earpiece when receiving a phone call to ensure non of the buttons get accidentally pressed against the user's face.
Despite the two sensors use the same hardware device, two separate software algorithms are used to make it behave as two separate sensors.
Other manuals such as the one for the Samsung Galaxy S Plus which can be downloaded here list the light sensor and the proximity sensor separately, although the appearance of these is always the two small adjacent circles that let light into the hardware behind those two light entrances.

If the proximity sensor worked by simply measuring received light, it would be useless at night :) There are various methods this sensor can work, but the main idea is to decide if the phone is being held up at a person's ear. This is a yes or no question so the sensor doesn't have to be able to measure the distance, there just has to be a designated treshold, which, when crossed, triggers the output value from 0 to 1 (and thus, it turns off the screen).
The light sensor, however, needs to measure the brightness the phone is exposed to, usually to be able to adjust the screen's brightness. This way, for example, it can turn up the brightness in sunlight and reduce it at night.

Thank you for your answer. However, I think that the proximity sensor is not useless at night, and can still use light to detect proximity. At night light is reflected from the screen against the user's face and back to the proximity sensor, which by comparing light entering the two separate openings somehow can determine the amount of proximity of the deive to the user's face. Correct me if I'm wrong. Perhaps not all proximity sensors on all devices work the same way.

@JohnSonderson That still wouldn't work, because the screen turns off when you trigger the proximity sensor. It would never know when to turn the screen back on again. Typically there's an infrared light next to the sensor, and it measures the reflection of that light. That's why the proximity sensor often has two adjacent apertures.

OK. I tried locking myself in the closet in complete darkness, called my mobile phone from my cordless home phone, answered my mobile phone, and placed it near my ear (phone went blank), then away from my ear (phone lit up again). So you are right here. But what I noticed is that as soon as I answer my phone the proximity sensor activates itself by displaying a red light in the LED on the left while no light is displayed in the LED on the right.

When I bring my finger within less than a centimeter of this light it blinks and the screen turns off, then when I move my finger away from it the light blinks again and the screen turns on. So, perhaps my theory was wrong, but it works pretty well despite the fact I still haven't figured out how it works. Comments welcome. Thanks.

@DanHulme, I think it is not the light of the screen which bounces off the user's face and activates the proximity sensor, but the intensity of the red light from the proximity sensor (or perhaps the infrared component of this light which is more likely), that bounces off the user's face and creates a reading on the proximity sensor itself. Regards.

Feel free to correct me if I'm wrong, but as I understand it, the proximity sensor is what's used in call to stop your face from providing unwanted touch input. It usually glows red while activated and emits infrared.
The light sensor is what is used to measure light levels for things like adaptive brightness.


text:
Obtain package name AND common name of apps via ADB
I'm looking for a possibility to retrieve both, the package names and the common names of apps installed on an Android device via ADB – or at least to retrieve the common name if the package name is known. A quick search on our site brought up two related questions, but they don't solve my issue:

How do I get the common name of an app having the package name (like com.android.blabla)? (command line or included app) doesn't work via ADB (but uses an app you've got to lookup with manually), matching the request of the OP
How to find app based on package name? just reverts to an URL lookup at Google Play, which doesn't always fit (as not all apps are available there).

I'm looking for a way to retrieve the information directly from the device, if possible – not "any" way (including "web lookups" or "via an app") as those two questions have it.
I know there are multiple tools available to obtain package details:

adb dumpsys package: While this lists all packages with a bunch of details, the "common name" is not shown
adb shell pm list: only gives the package names
aapt would be able to obtain the common name, but would require to first pull the .apk file from the device, which is not really convenient (and obviously will be pretty slow with many and/or large apps installed)

Did I miss something? I know the information must be on the device (how else could it show the app names in the GUI? I doubt Android parses the .apk file each time the GUI need the "common name"). So is there a way to get hold of it, using ADB directly?

TL;DR
Background (if somebody's curious): I want to be able to quickly obtain a list of user-apps from any of my devices, without having to revert to acrobatics. A list of their package names I can retrieve using adb shell pm list -3, but as those are package names only, recognizing apps is a guess-work. So if there were some ADB command to retrieve the common name for a given package name, I could simply use a loop like for pkg in $(adb shell pm list -3); do echo "- $(adb <whatever_the_command_is> $pkg) ($pkg)"; done – and get a listing of all the installed user-apps in a "human readable format" together with their package names.
Use-cases:

See what "superflous" apps are installed (which I could remove)
Cross-check lists from multiple devices
Documentation ;)
and probably more (but the above 3 are what I need it for)

Just an ideea (I think you tried already?). Why you just don't compile aapt for android and run instead from shell? :D

@user3344236 I'm aware of that possibility; but it is not always an option to install something to the device in question, especially not a self-compiled binary (I sometimes get handed-in devices which are not rooted, and have to keep "forensics-like conditions" – i.e. "do not alter the device, just explore it").

So the second idea is to write yourself a tool which runs via adb shell... without using modified adbd on device and without pushing some files there. I think it will take you some time to accomplish this (if ever you succeed) :D

@user3344236 too worrysome, especially as I'm not an Android dev. I currently use a "web based solution" (similar to that "Google Play lookup"), as there doesn't seem to be a native solution here (yet?).

Hi Izzy! Considering the comments (above), does it mean that you need a solution considering a non-rooted device in mind?

@Firelord Preferably yes, though root-only solutions would be better than none at all ;)

It's not that it would be the desired solution, but it's safe to assume that a non-rooted device  probably would have an active Google Play Store, and if that's the case then you can get at least few <APP_NAME> and <PKG_NAME> from the databases (localappstate.db) inside it. Have you tried it? I've not verified whether ADB backup covers Play Store or not.

Nice idea, @Firelord – but sure that would also apply to apps installed by other means (Aptoide, F-Droid, adb install) which the playstore doesn't know? And secondly, assuming a not-rooted device: would that database be accessible via ADB in some way? "From the databases inside it" surely means somewhere below /data/data, which is not "openly accessible" without root. Need to check whether that database would be accessible from an ADB backup – which still would require having the SSL libs available to decrypt that.

@Izzy I've three confirmations: If the non-root device has Aptoide or F-Droid installed, then consider them as gold mine, since their databases are covered by ADB backup, and they individually have <APP_NAME> and <PKG_NAME> of all system+user apps.  Talking about Play Store, its database is also covered by ADB backup, but it would give <APP_NAME> only for those apps which are installed using Play Store. The rest are listed by <PKG_NAMES> only. // It could help I guess.

Yeah, but it would mean to puzzle a lot, checking for all kind of app stores possibly installed until you've got all apps covered. Not really feasible. There must be some "central place" feeding things like the app drawer. That then would be the place to find my diamonds :)

It seems aapt is included with Android ROMs from 4.4 (Kitkat) onwards, see this answer. Can anyone confirm this for stock ROMs?

This is not a final answer, as it is not generic (only works on some devices) – but it's a start at least:
As we've figured out, at least CM based ROMs with Kitkat (Android 4.4) and above ship with the aapt binary available in /system/bin1. If your ROM doesn't have it, and installing the binary on the device is an option, you can find it here.
Using aapt, retrieving the app name is possible with
aapt d badging <path to apk> | grep "application: label" |awk '{print $2}'

The output will be something like label='Funny App', which you then easily can parse for the app name, e.g.
aapt d badging <path to apk> | grep 'application: label' | sed -n \"s/.*label\='\([^']*\)'.*/\1/p\"

(not good if the app name contains single quotes, but that might count as cosmetics – or you figure how to improve the sed part to deal with that).

1: we didn't find this in the Kitkat-and-above stock ROMs we've checked, so it might be CM based ROMs only

Note to readers: You need not to have a rooted device to use that aapt binary. You can very well download and rename the binary to aapt in PC, set Linux compatible executable permission on the binary and push it to /data/local/tmp, then use the absolute path /data/local/tmp/aapt to use the binary in those commands.

So for the name of the package (first part of the original question), you would do aapt d badging <path to apk> | grep 'package: name' | awk '{print $2}'

Here is my solution for a non-rooted phone which needed some slight changes from above which I ran on a Moto G 2nd gen running Android 5.0.2.
I didn't have aapt binary in /system/bin, so I first tried downloading from https://android.izzysoft.de/downloads
but when I tried to run it, I got an error saying:
error: only position independent executables (PIE) are supported.

So then I searched for a PIE version and found: https://github.com/Calsign/APDE/blob/fdc22eb31048862e1484f4b6eca229accda61466/APDE/src/main/assets/aapt-binaries/aapt-arm-pie
and this worked by copying binary to /data/local/tmp:
adb push aapt-arm-pie /data/local/tmp
adb shell chmod 0755 /data/local/tmp/aapt-arm-pie

So then:
adb shell pm list packages -3 -f

gets a list of 3rd party apps (apps you have installed, not system apps) and then you can use the package from the command above in aapt to get information on the package - example:
adb shell /data/local/tmp/aapt-arm-pie d badging /data/app/com.facebook.katana-3/base.apk

So, below is a script (for a Linux client) to get just "common" name for 3rd party apps:
for pkg in `adb shell pm list packages -3 -f | awk -F= '{sub("package:","");print $1}'`
do
  adb shell /data/local/tmp/aapt-arm-pie d badging $pkg | awk -F: '
      $1 == "application-label" {print $2}'
done

If you want package and version too, then change last but one line from:
$1 == "application-label" {print $2}'

to:
$1 == "package" { split($2,space," ")
name=space[1];version=space[3]}
$1 == "application-label" {print name, version, $2 }'

Example output:
name='com.ultimarom.launchnavigation' versionName='1.28' 'Navigation'
name='com.enhanced.skineditorstudio' versionName='3.3' 'Custom Skin Creator'
name='com.mojang.minecraftpe' versionName='1.2.6.60' 'Minecraft'
name='org.videolan.vlc' versionName='2.5.13' 'VLC'
name='com.jrustonapps.myauroraforecast' versionName='1.7.2' 'My Aurora Forecast'
name='de.j4velin.wifiAutoOff' versionName='1.7.6' 'WiFi Automatic'
name='com.facebook.katana' versionName='153.0.0.54.88' 'Facebook'
name='com.metago.astro' versionName='6.0.5' 'ASTRO File Manager'
name='za.co.hardrive.smartinfo.parkrun' versionName='2.0.2' 'My 5krun'
name='com.PYOPYO.StarTrackerVR' versionName='1.0.1' 'StarTracker VR'
name='cz.aponia.bor3.offlinemaps' versionName='1.1.19' 'Offline Maps'
name='com.groupon' versionName='16.11.63973' 'Groupon'
name='com.ebay.mobile' versionName='5.16.1.2' 'eBay'
name='com.runtastic.android' versionName='8.1.1' 'Runtastic
name='com.google.android.diskusage' versionName='3.8.3' 'DiskUsage'

PS: My download page now also links to the source you've specified – just "one level up", so folks can chose between ARM and x86 builds.

This can be achieved with Android Java API:
import android.app.ActivityThread;
import android.content.pm.ApplicationInfo;
import android.content.pm.PackageManager;
import android.os.Looper;

public class Main {
  public static void main(String[] args) {
    Looper.prepareMainLooper();
    PackageManager pm = ActivityThread.systemMain().getSystemContext().getPackageManager();
    for (ApplicationInfo appInfo : pm.getInstalledApplications(PackageManager.MATCH_UNINSTALLED_PACKAGES)) {
      System.out.println(appInfo.uid + " " + appInfo.packageName + " " + pm.getApplicationLabel(appInfo));
    }
  }
}

Compile the code to a dex file, push it to /data/local/tmp/list_app_labels.dex, and run from ADB shell:
CLASSPATH=/data/local/tmp/list_app_labels.dex app_process / Main

It should print the UID, package name and app label of installed apps like this:
10099 com.android.packageinstaller Package installer
1002 com.android.bluetooth Bluetooth
1073 com.android.networkstack.permissionconfig com.android.server.NetworkPermissionConfig
10230 com.topjohnwu.magisk Magisk
10087 com.android.providers.blockednumber Blocked Numbers Storage
10176 com.termux.widget Termux:Widget
...

If you don't want to compile the code, here are convenience methods:
Option 1
Download the pre-compiled executable (for arm64 or arm), extract the zip file, push the binary to Android device, and run:
adb push list_app_labels /data/local/tmp/ && adb shell 'cd /data/local/tmp/ && chmod a+x list_app_labels && ./list_app_labels'

Option 2
Push the given script to Android device and run:
adb push list_app_labels.sh /data/local/tmp/ && adb shell sh /data/local/tmp/list_app_labels.sh

Tested on Android 7-13.
Note:

Do not change the script. tail extracts the dex from a hard-coded line number.
If you are on Windows, run dos2unix on the shell script before executing.

list_app_labels.sh:
#!/system/bin/sh

export CLASSPATH=/data/local/tmp/list_app_labels.dex
trap 'rm $CLASSPATH' EXIT
tail -n +10 "$0" | base64 -d >$CLASSPATH

app_process / Main
exit
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AAEAAAAAAAAAAQAAAAsAAAABAAAADAAAAAEAAAATAAEgAAY8aW5pdD4AAUkAAUwAAkxJAAJMTAAG
TE1haW47ABxMYW5kcm9pZC9hcHAvQWN0aXZpdHlUaHJlYWQ7ABlMYW5kcm9pZC9hcHAvQ29udGV4
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AAIAAIGABKgGAQnABgAAAQAIgoAE+AcAAAANAAAAAAAAAAEAAAAAAAAAAQAAADEAAABwAAAAAgAA
ABQAAAA0AQAAAwAAAA8AAACEAQAABAAAAAMAAAA4AgAABQAAABMAAABQAgAABgAAAAIAAADoAgAA
ASAAAAMAAAAoAwAAAyAAAAIAAAAQBAAAARAAAAUAAAA0BAAAAiAAADEAAABaBAAAACAAAAIAAACR
BwAAABAAAAEAAACsBwAA

Hi! Just for the sake of curiosity and also clarity, do I get it right that the embedded Base64-encoded content is a Dalvik executable?

@AndrewT. Yes..

@IrfanLatif for transparency it would be nice to add the source code

@Wanted Java isn't compiled to a binary format. Java bytecode is as transparent as its source code is. I even don't have the source code. It would be a simple two liner loop calling getInstalledApplications and printing the required info to the terminal.

Added decompiled code from @IrfanLatif for completness:
https://gist.github.com/wanted0/6a54f08f78735ddfdec2622dc74c17fd

I get app_process: command not found

It looks like my shell doesn't have tail or base64 - note to anyone else, as it wasn't entirely obvious to start with - the first half of the script is just writing out to file the decoded form of the second half. I misread the tail as writing its directory to CLASSPATH (since it's a path, and this is what I've had to do with java before), but we are simply extracting the binary blob from the script. If your shell doesn't have base64, you can extract locally and transfer the blob. I think a heredoc or similar might make it clearer what is happening, as the tail is sensitive to line numbers.

To view all running processes with this from Termux, if list_app_labels is in ~, try: CLASSPATH="${HOME}/list_app_labels" su -c "/system/bin/app_process / Main; \"${PREFIX-}/bin/ps\" --no-headers ax -o user,pid,cmd" | gawk '$1 ~ /^[0-9]+/ { name = $0; sub(/^[0-9]+ +[^ ]+ /, "", name); apps[$2] = name; } $1 ~ /^u[0-9]+_/ && !($0 ~ /[()]/) { e = $0; sub(/^[^ ]+ +[^ ]+ +(.*\/)?/, "", e); sub(/[ :].*$/, "", e); if (e ~ /[.]/ && !a[e]++) { ++n; } } END { for (k in a) { name = k; result[j++] = name in apps ? apps[name] : name; } asort(result); for (i = 0; i < j; ++i) { print(result[i]); } }'

None of the suggestions were particularly good for me, so after some fiddling, here's my 100% on-device solution using Termux:
Get Termux and install adb and aapt through its package manager:
pkg install android-tools aapt

You need to be connected to a Wi-Fi network - any network will do - to pair Termux's ADB to your phone for "wireless" debugging.
Now here's the script I've made, with comments to make it easier to read and tweak (and also for me to understand as I've never been that good at shell scripting):
# ,- list all packages including APK path, in the format: package:/data/.../path/to.apk=com.package.name
# |  note that the path to the APK includes equals signs
# |
# |                                              ,- replace the last "=" (before the package name) with a ":"
# |                                              |
# |                                              |                       ,- remove leading "package:"
# |                                              |                       |                              ,- parse into shell vars $apk and $pkgname
# |                                              |                       |                              |
adb shell cmd package list packages -f | sed -e 's/=\([^=]*\)$/:\1/' -e 's/^package://' - | while IFS=: read -r apk pkgname; do
  # get label using aapt and filter out just the label with sed
  label=$(aapt dump badging $apk | sed --quiet --expression='s/^application-label://p')
  echo "pkgname: $pkgname"
  echo "apk: $apk"
  echo "label: $label"
  echo ""
done

Save this to a file somewhere in the termux home folder for easy access (e.g. ~/list.sh), and run it with sh list.sh
It takes about a second per app for aapt to process the apk, but it doesn't need to copy it anywhere - it accesses the apk directly where it is. The output is easily tweakable in the script as it's just a few echo commands. You can also change which files get listed by changing the arguments of adb shell cmd package, e.g. by adding -3, but be sure to keep the -f flag.
This may not be useful for the original question asker, but I do hope it would be useful to others!


text:
Why do some Android phones have two microphones instead of one?
Some phones such as the Samsung Galaxy SIII have two microphones, one next to the user's mouth which as is the case with most mobile phones, but also a second microphone next to the user's ear. Other models such as the Samsung Galaxy S Plus only have one microphone.
What are the advantages of having two microphones on a mobile phone device?
Thanks.

The second microphone is used for noise cancelling. The phone uses it to listen to the external environment (not including your voice), so that it can filter that out from the sounds it hears using the main microphone. That way, it can reduce the amount of noise that comes with your voice, and make your call more audible to the other party.

Do both mics work at different parameters?

It depends. One might be sensitive at a narrower angle, or there could be two (or more) mics the same, just positioned differently. Some tablets have a whole beamforming mic array like some laptops do.

As well as noise cancelling, some phones also use the two mics to record sound files and videos in stereo.


text:
No album icon on Google Photos
I am trying to follow the these instructions to create albums in my Google+ Photos app,
but when I am selecting photos I have the share icon but not the album icon.
I don't know why this is happening. I tried uploading from my computer and the albums work great. How can I create them on Android? I'm running Android 5.0.


text:
GPS readings: why is altitude inaccurate by 50m, while longitude and latitude are more precise?
I'm using the GeoTracker application to record position and velocity as I exercise along a track. I live on relatively flat ground, only shift up and down no more than5 meters at the very maximum, but while latitude and longitude readings seem quite precise, the program, which uses GPS (and IMHO does not use the pressure sensors / barometer to determine altitude) reports the difference between maximum and minimum altitude along the track to be about 50m. This is quite inaccurate it seems. Why is this?
Thanks.

It's likely due to the fact that GPS is simply not very well suited for getting precise altitude measurements, and never has been. Certainly not typical consumer-grade chips. Garmin suggests that variances of up to 400 feet are to be expected in their devices, for example. It's just a geometry problem.
With that in mind, I would doubt that Android has much of a meaningful impact here. Any GPS device will struggle to get a particularly accurate altitude reading. I suppose some apps may appear to be "more precise" than others by taking windowed averages of the altitude data or something (rather than directly surfacing the raw data to the user) but they'll all be getting the same values from the GPS chip.

Thank you for your answer. I was wondering, if a device comes with an pressure sensor (as some do), then wouldn't it be much more accurate if this were used to convert pressure readings into altitude readings? Thanks.

Maybe. Pressure sensors have problems too, though, just different kinds. The pressure sensor used in a typical smartphone may not be able to measure altitude much more precisely because it simply may not be sensitive enough. Extremely accurate readings would require components that are too expensive. You'd also have to recalibrate the sensor before every use, at a location of a known altitude, because local pressure will change with the weather. It's not as easy as equating some pressure value of "X" to some altitude of "Y" for every point on Earth.

Interesting. What about equating changes in altitude with changes in pressure. Is it possible to use a constant factor to change one reading into another here, or would such a constant factor also be weather dependent and hence require recalibration? Thanks.

There are apps that use the pressure sensor for this.  From my experience writing such an app (IpBike) the phones pressure sensors are accurate enough to do far better than the gps.  You can measure to better than 1m accuracy when doing relative style measurements over say 10 vertical difference.  Calibration and weather related drift are of course issues though.

@Ifor: That's good information. Out of curiosity, do you have any kind of numbers related to the kind of variance you might see due to weather patterns? Did you end up using any sort of manual calibration to try to compensate for it? I'm honestly not real familiar with the margin of error for a typical smartphone pressure sensor, and although I knew some of the external factors (like weather) that can impact them, I've not seen much data on the extent to which they're affected.

You can see your start and end altitudes at the same point vary by 20m an hour or more if a big depression is moving through.  I don't do anything to compensate for it automatically but there is an option in the app the post process the track one of the options being to do an online lookup for the start and end altitude and alter the track assuming a fixed rate of change.  I have manual calibration as well as various automatic calibrations like using the gps or an online lookup.

Thank you for your post. So if the weather changes and the smartphone stays in the same place then converting the reading using a constant factor can make the altitude reading vary by as much as 20m or more due to a change in weather conditions. I didn't get the online lookup bit though. Can you explain how this works? Thanks.

I had exactly the same problem with the gps data on my android smartphone. I live in the UK and noticed that the altitude displayed was consistantly 40 - 50 metres higher than the mapping showed. I too thought that this was a lack in gps accuracy.
In fact the answer was that the gps was showing altitudes related to the wgs84 global spheroid whereas the UK maps all relate elevations to mean sea level, hence the variance.

The problem is called geometric dilution of precision. In a simplistic view, the GPS system computes the distances between the receiver and a set of at least 4 visible satellites. Each of those distances has precision/error associated with it. The precision/error of the final location fix depends not only on the individual distance precision/error values, but also upon the geometric configuration of the satellites in the sky.
When a satellite is low on the horizon, the distance measurement with that satellite will not change much if the altitude of the receiver changes, which gives poor vertical dilution of precision. This combined with the constraint that orbiting satellites do not usually provide optimal geometries results in poor vertical dilution of precision in the final position fix. The vertical result would be better if you always had a satellite overhead, but the orbiting system simply cannot provide this.


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YouTube app holds a long wakelock. What app settings can I change to keep it from doing this?
I am using an HTC Evo 4g with Android 2.3.5 Gingerbread. I'm trying to deal with apps which keep my phone from entering sleep mode, and the YouTube app is a major offender. With downloaded apps, usually the fix is to remove the app and find an alternative app that doesn't suck the battery dry. But I want to keep YouTube enabled so I can watch YouTube videos.
What settings for the YouTube app can I change to get it to not hold a wake lock for hours on end? Are there any device settings that I can change to help?
So far I have disabled "Preload subscriptions", "Preload watch later", "Improve YouTube", and "Notifications" in the YouTube app's settings, but the wake lock still occurs.

adb shell appops set <pkg> WAKE_LOCK ignore

You can use Wakelock Detector in combination with Greenify to block wakelocks and save a lot of battery.
Update: Since Gingerbread is not supported by Greenify, you can use Wakelock Terminator to stop the wakelocks if you have root.


text:
Text messaging so slow it is nearly unusable
I have a Galaxy S5 running 4.4.2. I am trying to send a text message to a certain contact.
When I select their name from the list of messages, there is a 30 second delay. While typing, sometimes there will be a 10-15 second delay for each letter. If they send me a message while I'm trying to type, there will be a 30-60 second delay. Texting this person is so slow it is almost unusable. Other contacts are slow as well, but still usable.
This is with no other apps running.
My guess is that this could be caused by the lengthy text message history for this particular contact, but I doubt this is the case for the following reason: It seems extremely unlikely that I should be unable to store and display several megs of text on hardware made in 2014. I want to preserve this text history in any case, but I don't necessarily need to display it all on the screen at once.
Thanks!
Edit: I have tried clearing the cache, no effect.

do you have more than 500 or 1000 sms in your inbox..???

when you try to delete 1 sms from inbox does it takes more time then it should be..???

Yes, I have a lot of text messages. I want to save them. They are ascii data, it shouldn't be unfeasible to save and read ascii data in the year 2015, haha.

I have this problem also on 5.1 but was fine until I upgraded from 4.4. As a programmer, I can say that I suspect that they have an order n-squared algorithm in there somewhere. So 100 messages in a conversation takes 10000 times as long as 1 message. That is just my guess after 35 years as a developer. Some of these young folks forget the basics. ;-) Any order-n algorithm beats the most highly optimized order n-squared algorithm.

Most Likely your phone doesn't have enough Ram

Are you using a custom keyboard or just the default keyboard? As custom keyboards can lag out your phone
So your options can be:

You could slow down your typing  on your android phone
or
You can increase the CPU Frequency and/or Governor on your phone, thus it
ticks over a bit quicker and/or allocating more CPU time to the keyboard and allowing you to type faster

*Note: You shouldn't do anything unnecessary to your phone Like change your CPU settings un-less necessary and If you have the know the How-To
Why Scale the CPU And/Or Change the Governor?
You tap a few keys, the CPU ramps up, does it’s magic, presents its suggestions, then spins down again. You tap another few keys, and the CPU ramps up again, does its thing again, then spins down again.
The faster you type and the more pauses you take between words, the more apparent the lag is, and the more frustrating it is to the user
So you can change the CPU Governor to a govern that allocates CPU time differently, and also the CPU frequency. Thus it can allow you to type with less lag because the keyboard is/can get my CPU allocation

Why did you not consider seeking clarification first?

@Firelord  I didn't think to seek clarification at the time as it slipped my mind.
-Should I take this answer down Until they answer my Comment??  If this answer isn't good enough I can delete it.

I don't think RAM is the issue.

I'm using the standard keyboard. After a bit the lags seems to "settle", but I'll get another huge lag spike as more texts arrive, or if I try to change contacts, or if I send my message.

@catpants All that i can really say is that you'll just have to be patient while typing. Changing the CPU Governor to something that allocates more fairly/powerful is my only suggestion left, Other then backing up the messages and then restoring the messages onto the phone after a factory reset. You can't really do to much.


text:
Restrict read access on certain folders
I am looking for a way to limit read access for certain folders, for privacy reasons.
E.g. I want to have a folder that will be used for sensitive data. It shall only be accessed by a file manager app, office app, and picture gallery. And nobody else shall be allowed to read it (e.g. untrusted apps that may violate my privacy).
I am rooted, with CM11. Is there any existing solution for that? Or will it be a dirty hack?
I am thinking of creating a new user group, assigning the "private" folder to this group, and adding the apps (additionally) to this group. Is this possible? Or will I mess something up when doing this? I have a rough overview how the linux user system works, but I do not really know how the android users work in detail.

Install an app like KeepSafe, which is optimized for pictures, or Super Vault, which you can store different types of files in. They encrypt your data and require a password to unlock, so those will probably be the best choices for you. They don't even require root.
If you want to go a step further, you can even install an app like AppLock to require a password to open a specific app.
Alternative method: You can install a file manager like ES File Explorer and zip a specific folder with a password, so no one can unzip the encrypted data without the password. Keep in mind that you will have to unzip and re-zip every time you want to add/remove/modify a file.

Hi, thanks for the reply. I feel these vaults are only for specific media data, I want to use it for spreadsheets, documents,... Can the office app access files stored in the SuperVault? zip does not work as well, since the unzipped files will be on the media storage public for all - and it is very annoying to always zip/unzip. Any other ideas? I want to block apps to misuse my data, not people that have access to my device. So I want to create a share only between specific trusted apps. regards, Arnschi

Can these apps prevent someone from accessing the folders via MTP for example?

I am not sure about the vault apps, though I have successfully used ES File Manager to encrypt entire folders and subdirectories without compressing them.

FYI, except KeepSafe, the rest have been removed from Google Play Store.


text:
Avvio 792 4.2.2 Jelly Bean - ring time too short
Very new at Android, sincere apologies if asking incorrectly, just joined.
Ring time for incoming calls is only 15 seconds.  Just enough time to go to voice mail by the time I dig phone out of backpack or break my neck running to get it, let alone find it.
Can apparently only be reset in 5 second increments up to 30 seconds by dialing 61*local provider voicemail code30#.
Service provider is Claro in Colombia.  Appears to be due to no MMS available.  Is this due to phone itself, or due to local service provider?
Can this be reset on the device itself?  Is there anything in the code that can be modified?
Thanks!

Can this be reset on the device itself? Is there anything in the code that can be modified?

It is possible to extend the ring time, but you have to deactivate voice mail and call forwarding/divert for no answer (i.e. missed call).

Is this due to phone itself, or due to local service provider?

I found that Claro Colombia is one of GSM network provider. It seems there is a "standard" for GSM network to have 30 second divert 'rule'1. Most telcos will follow such rule, although some may ignore it. From Wikipedia,

In some networks there may be a limit of not more than 30 seconds before forwarding (i.e. "XX" can only be 5, 10, 15, 20, 25 or 30; all greater values, like 45 and 60, will result in the forwarding command being rejected and an error message returned).

Without voice mail and call forwarding/divert, the limitation will be gone, although most telcos still only allow ring time up to 40~60 seconds.
The most direct solution is to contact their service and ask if it's possible to extend the ring time before the call is diverted. A friendly suggestion is to put the phone at easier-to-reach place. Worse, you might need to find another provider that is suitable for you (off-topic here).
1 Based on research on many forums/articles such as this, though there is no legit reference.


text:
Manually lock device in Android 5.0 Lollipop
I have just upgraded my Nexus device to Android 5.0.1 from 4.4.2 and I can't find a lock button. Previously, you could tap your picture in the setting pull down menu.
I'm not asking how to set a lock timeout or how to have it lock when I turn the screen off/push the power button. I know how to do that and usually I don't want my device to lock when I turn the screen off. However there are times when I know I'm going to step away from my device and want to explicitly lock it without having to wait for the timeout.
Is this a feature they have entirely remove with 5 or is it just hiding?

Yes, they have removed this toggle in the quick settings menu. Custom ROMs may be able to restore the toggle.

I explicitly said in my question I'm not looking for this.

See updated answer.

AFAIK, there is no option to manually lock the device on Lollipop.
You can use 3rd-party app such as Lock Screen App (free) that has Device Administration privilege to force lock the device (similar to Android Device Manager).

On the other hand, maybe you can try the new "Smart Lock" feature to prevent the phone locking when turning off the screen.

You can set it to keep your phone unlocked when you have a trusted Bluetooth device connected to it, when it's in a familiar location like your home or work, or when it recognizes your face.

If "Smart Lock" is active and "Power button instantly locks" is set, then you can manually lock the screen by tapping the "lock icon" on the bottom of the lock screen.

After tapping that, Android will confirm it by displaying a message,

Device will stay locked until you manually unlock

Yes there is a way without resorting to 3rd party apps or jumping through hoops:
1) Check that you have some kind of security set up (PIN, Pattern, Password) or you can't get a lock icon. To do this, go to Settings -> Security -> Screen security-Screen Lock and choose a method. "Swipe" is not a security measure. (For Smart Lock, see note below)
2) Press the device power button twice in quick succession. (The first time, the phone will start to go to sleep, but you needn't wait until it completes - just press again to wake it before it completes the sleep process.) Some devices call the "power button" the "lock button" which is what yours is about to become.
3) The lock icon (a padlock) appears bottom center of screen.
4) Tap the lock button.
5) The device locks instantly with the message "Device will stay locked until you manually unlock".
6) It means it - none of your Smart Lock features will override that statement. If you want to put the device to sleep immediately, you can do so.
I'd love a less mechanical way, but that works and if it's a workaround, it isn't bad at all.
Smart Lock: I can't confirm whether Smart Lock "Trusted Voice" or "Trusted Face" methods are relevant to this, but I can confirm that even if you have a trusted device, place, face, voice or use on-body detection, they won't stop this method from locking the phone.
(Disclaimer: I'm using a Moto G 2nd Gen with Android Lollipop so how you make your baby sleep may need a slightly different lullaby ;) )

Pressing the power button twice quickly does not give me a padlock anywhere on the screen.  I have a patter setup and am pressing the button twice before the screen even starts going dark.

Well maybe the trick is to delay pressing the second time. As I said, "The first time, the phone will start to go to sleep...". So maybe you have to wait for the display to at least darken before the second press. Maybe try it and let us know ;)
(Of course, it may also depend on the device - Android isn't working its magic alone, right?)


text:
ZTE Midnight Memory
I just got a ZTE Midnight literally today and when I tried to download some of my favorite apps, it told me the memory was full. So I went in to see what was on my internal memory, and its already full from the apps the phone comes with, aka, apps that I can't delete. So I tried to set my default download location to my SDcard and after a completely failed attempt at googling how to do it, I decided to try asking about it on here. If somebody could give me a hand with this and possibly save me from breaking said brand new phone, that would be amazing. Thank you.

You may want to root your phone to debloat it so you can delete all the unwanted system apps on your phone. Ask for this if the following does not help you.
This might answer your question: from Installing to SDCard by default.
This article at HowtoGeek describes a possible way utilizing the adb:

enable USB debugging
connect your device to your computer
execute the command adb shell pm setInstallLocation 2
(or, new syntax, adb shell pm set-install-location 2)
disconnect, done.

This command will set the devices default installation target to your SDCard. That doesn't necessarily mean everything gets installed there: only apps supporting this will go there, and devs can "overrule" this in their apps manifest if they think it's needed. From the linked API reference:

Changes the default install location. Location values:

0: Auto—Let system decide the best location.
1: Internal—install on internal device storage.
2: External—install on external media.

Note: This is only intended for debugging; using this can cause applications to break and other undesireable behavior.

For more details on ADB, and how you can e.g. get a minimal version of it to your computer (without the overkill of installing the entire SDK), you can take a look at the adb tag-wiki.
Some clearance on the installation process:

you find some app on google-play-store and decide to install it
after you've clicked "install" and agreed on terms/permissions, the apk is downloaded to /data/local, i.e. to your internal-storage. You can't change that.
when the download is completed, the .apk will be installed automatically. Where to, depends on multiple things:

if the dev did not specify the android:installLocation property in his apps Manifest, the app will be installed to internal story. Full stop, no other choice (see: API reference).
if this android:installLocation is set to preferExternal, and external storage is available, it will go there.
if it's set to auto, it again depends:

does the app contain widgets, services, wants to start at boot, and several other things, it goes to internal storage. Full stop, no other choice.
it goes where the devices "default install location" points to.

Um.....I have no idea how to execute commands or change the values

I'm sure there are sources out there for you to find out, but if really you don't want to Google it:
On Windows Explorer, navigate to your ADB directory. If you have the sdk, it is usually under \*[path-to-sdk]*\sdk\platform-tools. Shift-rightclick an empty space in that folder and Open command window here. Then execute the adb code. You can also use Minimal ADB and Fastboot
Linux: Ctrl-Alt-T to open a terminal window. Then type cd /[path-to-sdk]/sdk/platform-tools, then execute the adb code.


text:
APN setting is missing on Nexus 5 bought from US
I have an unlocked Nexus 5 handset bought from Google in the USA. I just wiped it and installed Android 5.0 on it. However, the UI to edit the APN settings does not appear. By that, I don't mean that the APN info is gone, I mean that the actual UI to view/edit APNs is missing.
If I go to Settings -> More -> Cellular Networks, I see only the 3 settings shown in the picture below: Data roaming, Preferred network type, and System select. This meant there was no way to get the phone working with my SIM card using only the stock Android installation.
Now, I was able to get on Wi-Fi, download the app Tweakker APN INTERNET MMS (removed from Play Store), configure the APN settings using that app, turn off the Wi-Fi, and confirm that I was online via the SIM card, using LTE. So the phone is working. But the APN view/edit UI is still missing from the Settings app, even after adding and activating the OCN MOBILE ONE data-only Japanese SIM card I have.
I googled the hell out of this in the morning, and there is every indication that there are supposed to be APN editing controls at the bottom of that "Cellular network settings" panel in Settings. But there are not.
Does anybody know:

A way to get the UI to edit those settings to appear?
Why they might not be there in the first place?

The only weird/unusual thing here is that I am using a US phone in Japan. I bought the OCN MOBILE ONE data-only SIM card from Amazon here. It seems unlikely, but I suppose there might be weird country-specific telecom regulations that for some reason make Android hide these controls on an unlocked foreign-model phone?
EDIT: I should have mentioned: this occurs with or without the (NTT DoCoMo) OCN MOBILE ONE SIM card in the phone. I even re-wiped the phone and re-installed with the SIM card removed to make sure.

(Click the image for its larger variant)

It's indeed strange. I have Nexus 4 and I also manually flashed Lollipop 5.0, but I can see APN setting on the list. I don't know if this setting is controlled by SIM or not, but there is a similar case

Thank you for that link. No solution there, but it is interesting that the person having the same problem as me was also physically located in Japan. (I updated the post to reflect that I see the problem with or without the SIM installed.)

It seems the problem is related to GSM/CDMA network. As you bought the phone in US which uses CDMA networks, I kind of believe that the default setting is to use LTE/CDMA network.
You can change the preferred network type by:

Dial *#*#4636#*#* (i.e. *#*#INFO#*#*)
Select Phone info
Scroll down to Set preferred network type
Select the one with GSM (e.g. LTE/GSM auto (PRL))

In case it's already selected, select any, and select it back.

Reboot the phone, and the APN setting should be back.

Source: Cyanogenmod forum.

Thanks! That worked. Weirdly, the phone already showed "LTE/GSM auto (PRL))" when I followed your instructions. Nevertheless, I changed it and then changed it back, and after rebooting the APN editing UI did appear.

If your device is rooted, you can use ADB to open APN setting.
adb shell
su
am start -n com.android.settings/.Settings\$ApnSettingsActivity


text:
Huawei P7 connect to wi-fi but doesn't open any website
Hello my Huawei P7 connects to wi-fi but doesn't open any website in any browser! I also can't check my emails and any other application can't connect to internet.
I've also Factory reset my phone.

Well, that's weird did you checked your Wi-Fi connection if its working or not ?? Sometimes this happens because the router needs resetting, can try restarting the router and see if that help you ! At first I was thinking that the problem might be somewhere because of using some proxy app over your device but as you have factory reset it means, it also gets wiped out ! So, I guess try restarting the router will be a best option.

Thanks for you answer but the Wi-Fi router isn't mine! I mean it's my collage free Wi-Fi. I hope you understand what I mean; I can't access the router. my classmates are using this Wi-Fi without any problem

Well, in that case try heading over to the settings>wireless and Network>Look for your college wifi>Tap and hold over it until a popup shows up>tap Forget Network,once done switch the Wi-Fi off and then again ON, then again try connecting to the Wifi network and see if this time things work out for you !

In the place Peter just described, how is the network presented: "saved", "connected", or something else? It might well be that specific WiFi is locking you out (MAC-filter). Can you connect to other WiFi networks?

Today I brought my phone to it's Grantee and they flashed it and then they connected to their WiFi network; but when I came back to the Collage I still wasn't able to connect! again the same problem. so what should I do now?


text:
How to see Appointment Info in E-Mail Calendar App
I have a Motorola Android Phone with KitKat (however I think this issue applies to Android in general).
When I receive some appointment on my Exchange Account, it appears on the inbox, however the main view does not show any details about the appointment. So I have to open the "Appointment" tab and show the item in the Calendar, I have no other way to see the details of the appointment.
This is OK for new appointments, as looking into the calendar makes sense. However, it is common that appointments are changed, and this pattern does not help me to quickly recognize what was changed (location, description, timestamp). Worst thing is that opening the "changed" appointment in Calendar often does not even show the correct time (it just insists on the original time from the appointment).
I would like to see a view that shows exactly what changed on the appointment. Is there any way to get such a feature? I would even be willing to buy an app if it is necessary... :)


text:
Insufficient storage message when attempting to install app
I am using a Samsung Galaxy S2. I have been trying to download apps, but get the insufficient storage message even though I have enough space free. However, the internal storage is almost full (200 MB remaining). Below is the amount of storage space which is used on my phone:
Internal Storage: Used: 1.8GB/2.0GB
Device Storage:   Used: 3.9GB/11.5GB
SD Card Storage:  Used: 4.0GB/7.4GB

This happened to me sometimes when I uninstall any apk, and try to reinstall it. I use to search for some residual files of the prior apk, and android said you that you don't have space but actually is that it can't install the apk, it can't overwrite the residual files.
Maybe this is your case. It always fix this situation for me.


text:
Nexus 5 stuck in the start up screen
After running out of battery and turning off, I charged my Nexus 5 (which is running lollipop and not rooted) until the battery was full, but when I was going to turn it on it got stuck in the "flying dots" animation. I've tried waiting for several hours until the battery drains out and powering off and on again several times, it does not work.
I also tried going into recovery mode and doing a wipe cache partition, no result as well. However, when going to the recovery mode, there is the following message at the bottom of the screen:
E: failed to mount /cache (invalid argument)
E: can't mount /cache/recovery/log
E: can't open /cache/recovery/log
E: failed to mount /cache (invalid argument)
E: can't mount /cache/recovery/last_log
E: can't open /cache/recovery/last_log
E: failed to mount /cache (invalid argument)
E: can't mount /cache/recovery/last_install
E: can't open /cache/recovery/last_install
E: failed to mount /cache (invalid argument)
I've seen a lot of replies in other posts suggesting a factory reset, but I really don't wanna do that because I used this cellphone the whole year and took pictures of my trip around europe and I don't have a backup (Yeah, I know...)
So if there's any way to access my data before doing a factory reset or other solution at all please help me.
Thanks


text:
Can I select which email address I use to respond in Lollipop?
I have multiple email addresses. I have one through my ISP, work, gmail etc.
My problem is that I'd like to be able to choose which address I use to respond to an email. For example, if my boss sends something to my gmail, I'd like to respond using my work email without copying and pasting the whole thing.
In previous versions of Android, there were different apps for different types of email accounts but in 5.0 the gmail app handles all email. Is there a way to choose the from address when responding?

Not a Lollipop specific solution, more in general- works in other versions.

First you need to access your GMail account through your desktop browser.
Click the Settings cog in the upper right and choose "Settings".
CLick on the "Accounts and Import" tab/section.
Find the option labelled "Send mail as: (Use Gmail to send from your other email addresses)". Should be the third one down. Click "Add another address you own".
Follow the prompts in the popup to add your other email account (address, username, password, server, etc.).
Once finished, GMail will send a verification email to the account you're trying to add. Open up that secondary email account, open the verification email and either click the URL to verify or enter the verification code.

Now open up your GMail app on your phone (may need to reload it first). Try to reply to a message. If  you look at the "From:" line, there should now be a dropdown arrow at the right. Tap on it (or the email address) and there's be a dropdown where you can choose your newly added account.

This works about halfway. If someone sends to my gmail account, I can respond from any linked account but if an email comes into a non gmail account I am stuck responding from whatever account they sent to.

@user3053242 Yeah, but that makes sense. It is after all, a GMail setting.

Right, but I'm looking for a way to answer any email from any account associated with my device. My guess is that it would be an app setting in gmail or a third party email app.

This question (http://android.stackexchange.com/questions/45619/reply-with-a-different-account-multiple-email-accounts), though asking for an older firmware, has a suggested app (K-9 Mail) that appears to have the option you seek.


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Android 5.0 not downloading IMAP emails
my nexus 4 cell phone upgraded to android 5.0 lollipop, and now it doesn't want to download my POP3 or IMAP emails (used to work fine in Android 4.4)
It just gets stuck in "getting your messages" - even for 2 hours.
It does download my GMAIL accounts and Hotmail account properly.
I setup the accounts manually (as I always did in previous upgrades..it worked fine).

I encountered similar issue on my Moto G 1st generation.
Below steps worked for me:

Go to App Info of the app. Press Clear Data
Open App to check whether mails have loaded, if still same message appears restart your phone.
Check your app again and see.

Make sure Sync option is enabled in Data Usage of the email app.
I hope it helps!


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How can I keep apps from moving off the home screen?
I am using Samsung tablets for workers in the field. They only need to use one app but some users keep moving it off the home screen and then they can't find it.
How can I keep apps on the home screen from moving?

A work-around you could use on Android to refrain from having apps move or be uninstalled by either accident or someone trying to purposely do so:
Settings -> Accessibility -> Dexterity and Interaction -> Press and hold delay -> Custom
From here, you can just set an obnoxiously long press and hold delay so that when icons are held down to be either moved or uninstalled, it takes however long you've set the interval for to actually initiate that command. So, a) doing it by accident becomes harder and b) Someone who doesn't know you've set that feature will assume it doesn't work and not opt to wait 35 seconds of holding an icon down.
Just my little trick, at least.

The stock home screen doesn't support locking/pinning the apps permanently.
You could try 3rd-party launchers for this purpose: Solo Launcher, Nova Launcher, etc. are some of those. Locking a desktop is possible in these launchers.

On Samsung devices with One UI, with the default home screen of One UI Home, it is possible to keep the app shortcuts from moving off the home screen.

On the home screen, long-hold on an empty space, then select "Settings"

Alternatively, open the Settings app - Home screen

Enable "Lock Home screen layout"

Lock Home screen layout
Prevent items on the Home screen from being removed or repositioned.

Settings -> Accessibility -> Press and hold delay -> Long

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


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How to have Google Music playlists in shuffle by default?
When I open a playlist in Google Music and press the "play" button, it reads from first to last in the playlist's order - as expected.
My question is: is it possible to change this "default behaviour" to shuffling (instead of "1st to last")?
Thanks by advance!

From the Google Play Music App, open up your Playlist section. Find the playlist you want to shuffle, and tap on the three vertical dots on the lower right. Choose Shuffle on the popup.
You can turn on Shuffle mode by first starting song from your playlist, and while it's playing, tap on the banner at the bottom that displaying  your currently playing song. This will bring up Google Play Music's player interface, which has the song name scrolling at the top, album art in the middle, and the play/pause buttons at the bottom. Next to the play/pause button, in the lower right,is an icon that looks like two crossed arrows. That's the shuffle button. Tap to turn it orange and it's on. It will stay on even if you switch songs/albums/playlists.

Thansk for the answer, but that's not exactly what I asked ^^ I know how to activate the shuffle mode, but wanted to know if this was possible to make this the default playback option, right when initially opening the playlist, even at phone startup for example (why, may you ask? For automation purposes)

Well, if  you activate shuffle by tapping on the shuffle icon in the "Now playing view" It stays activated even when switching songs/albums or even closing the app until you turn shuffle back off.

Just checked, indeed. That's the best I can expect without resorting to crazy hacking I guess ^^


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Samsung Galaxy S3 phone - typing additional symbols
There are some symbols available when using the on screen keyboard on my Samsung Galaxy S3 phone, but I would like to access additional symbols, like percent sign and degree symbol.  How can I do that?

Originally I had 3 pages of symbols, including the degree symbol. There was an "update" and it's gone. I use it a lot and miss it.
I just downloaded the GO keyboard and it has a degree symbol °. Yay!

I'm using the Samsung keyboard on my S3. I can tap the "123 Sym" key to reveal the symbols keyboard.  Then, tap the "1/2" key to reveal the second page of the symbols keyboard.  You should find what you want there.  The confusion may result from the "1/2" key.  It's not intuitive that there's a second page of symbols under that key.

there is no degree sign on the second page.  It looks like there is 3 pages of symbols (123 Sym) but in fact there are only 2 pages..


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Help. Tried to return phone to stock. Now only see LG logo. When trying to power down it just restarts. Cannot boot to recovery
However, If I hold the power button to power it off and then hold off and down it turns on for a split second and then off permanently.

What exact steps did you follow to cause this problem? And what's your question?

I used this guide: http://theunlockr.com/2013/11/01/unroot-lg-g2-versions-video/ at IV, 10 I got stuck. I think that I might have not selected " Republic of Korea" as stated in step 8. My goal now is to somehow make my phone useable again. Thanks for you help.


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Change WiFi Mac Address
I am running on rooted Moto E (XT1022) Android 4.4, and want to change WiFi MAC Address. I had tried installing BusyBox with Terminal and run the following command.
busybox ifconfig wlan0 hw ether 00:00:00:00:00:00

This is Temporally, In fact it doesn't actually changes the MAC Address, If I look under Settings => About Phone => Status => WiFi MAC address is still old one.
I had found a file under, which I guess to do something with MAC Address /etc/firmware/wlan/prima/WCNSS_qcom_cfg.ini which is exact same in this link WCNSS_qcom_cfg.ini
Note: none of the MAC changer app working on Play Store - Might for this device.
Does anyone have any idea how to do this ?

Can you tell the output of find /sys/devices -name "*wlan*" after su