text:
Accidentally accepted update, how can I abort before it actually installs?
I have been deliberately avoiding the latest Verizon D2G update for a few months now.   It is really annoying that there is no way to make it stop asking me.  But tonight I was tired and my finger slipped and it accidentally accepted instead of delaying 12 more hours.  My phone started to shut down to install but I quickly pulled the battery out.  Now every time the phone boots after about a minute of starting services it apparently remembers it was going to update so it starts shutting down the phone.
I have tried going to updates and manually looking for an update, in the hopes that this would confuse the phone and it would start asking me again if I wanted to update, but in the middle of searching for an update it just suddenly aborted and threw me back to the setting menu, and subsequent attempts just immediately aborted. [edit:I tried this again, this time immediately looking for updates as soon as I could login.  This time it immediately started searching, and continued searching until the auto-shutdown started.] I also tried looking at the processes with a system monitoring app I have but wasn't able to identify a process to kill before it started shutting down - and even if I did I am afraid it might still start updating when I'm not watching later.
Is there any way I can abort the install?  I am afraid to let it actually start installing because I don't know what to expect. Does it offer me a chance to cancel?  If not, I fear I might brick my phone if I pull the battery after it starts to update.
And in case you are wondering, I absolutely will not allow this update because of the risk of the update breaking some obscure feature I depend on.  For another, this is the update that removes the ability to root.  My phone is not rooted, and I really don't have the the time or inclination to root it at the moment (it is another risk I don't want to take) but I won't accept the ability to be removed.
Edit:
The following information is from the adb log:
07-XX XX:31:15.883  1306  1433 I ActivityManager: Start proc com.motorola.Upgrader for broadcast com.motorola.Upgrader/.UpgraderReceiver: pid=2334 uid=1000 gids={3002, 3001, 3003, 1015, 2001, 1007}^M
07-Xx XX:31:15.953  2334  2334 W UpgraderReceiver: !!! INSTALL UPDATE !!!^M
07-XX XX:31:15.961  2334  2334 W RecoverySystem: !!! REBOOTING TO INSTALL /cache/Blur_Version.4.5.608.A956.Verizon.en.US.zip !!!^M
07-Xx XX:31:15.961  2334  2334 I RecoverySystem: in google bootCommand, 23103 disalbed^M
07-XX XX:31:15.961  1306  1340 D ShutdownThread: Notifying thread to start radio shutdown^M

So, it wants to install 4.5.608.A956.Verizon. [update: actually, that can't be right, because that is the version I am already running! ]
Also, the following did not work:
bash-4.1$ ./adb uninstall com.motorola.Upgrader
Failure

bash-4.1$ ./adb shell kill $(./adb shell ps | grep com.motorola.Upgrader | awk '{ print $2 }')
could not kill pid 2379: Operation not permitted

Update:
Well, I am thinking it is looking like maybe the only way to avoid the update is to actually root my phone. :-(

Hmm, the update wound up in /cache? Tricky. If it was on the SD card, I'd say delete the downloaded ZIP. If you were rooted, I'd say the same thing. Have you poked around in the recovery on the phone to see if you can wipe /cache from there?

try 'adb shell' and the 'pm' executable (package manager). It has a 'clear ' and 'disable ' command and others that might be useful for your problem.

Actually, there is a way to stop it asking, an app called Fota Kill. Too late now, maybe -- but if you get the update removed, it might still be interesting for you.

@ce4 looks like clearing and disabling the package also requires root, its giving me permission denied.

Can you not reboot into recovery? and mount the /cache partition and delete the zip from there.

well it's too late i have already wiped the device.  and as expected, trying to following the easy to follow instructions at http://wiki.cyanogenmod.com/wiki/Motorola_Droid_2_Global:_Full_Update_Guide  there is already pain, namely that once I run the exploit it no longer can find my device :(

strangely enough, i cannot get adb to root, but i can get a root terminal directly on the device.  so, problem solved, i guess.

you can get root in adb shell, but indirectly by executing 'su' probably. (Must be if you can get root via the console). You must accept the "allow root?" question from the superuser app onscreen though.

Ok, here is how I solved the problem:
I followed the first part of the directions here: http://oldwiki.cyanogenmod.org/wiki/Motorola_Droid_2_Global:_Full_Update_Guide  to wipe the flash and install older version of the Motorola software. (specifically, section 2.1.1)  Then I upgraded to the version that I was running before the update started attempting to run.


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Why is the NFC in the Galaxy Nexus battery?
Why is the NFC in the Galaxy Nexus embedded in the battery?
Wouldn't it make more sense to separate the two things? Is there any hardware advantage of being this way?
Disadvantages I can see several, like replacing the battery with another, without NFC...

The NFC feature does not sit in the battery, only the antenna does.
NFC consists of:

an integrated chip (soldered onto the logic board)
an NFC Antenna that needs free view  to the phone's back side
(antenna signals from the sticker on the back of the battery only need to pass the back cover)

If you look at the antenna you'll notice how big it is. It's basically just a coil with 4 windings, see ifixit's teardown. NFC allows for passive devices (Credit cards and such) which need to be fed energy from an active device through the antenna. Some engineer decided its best fit would be as a sticker on the battery.
There's only 2 positions where you can place it:

Back of the battery
Inner side of the battery cover (like with the Nexus S)

My guess is this: By placing it on the battery, the expensive and big 2-point connector (as with the Nexus S) could be merged together with the battery contacts to make it cheaper (and/or maybe more robust).

No way to use a NFCless battery and still  have NFC features? (without hardware hacking)

Is this your sole problem (you have a replacement without a battery I guess)? Sadly, you have to do some hardware hacking, I guess. At least peeling off the antenna sticker off the dead battery and subsequently resoldering it onto the new (cheap) one.

The NFC circuitry itself is in the phone, but the antenna is in the battery. This is due to the layout of the phone. Since the range of NFC is very small, the antenna is placed on the outer side of the battery to increase the range as much as possible.
Yes, the downside of this is that replacement batteries need to be NFC-enabled, but it's a small price to pay for a significant improvement in the functionality of NFC.

But does that imply that without an NFC battery it would also be possible to use it?

No, the antenna is necessary because of the limited range. Theoretically it's possible, but the range is less than millimeters.

source: Stack Exchange

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

sort: votes


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Unable to set tablet display mode to HDMI
I'm new to android and trying to connect my tablet to LCD TV using a HDMI connector. The instructions in the manual are as below:

Set the TV mode to HDMI.
Connected the HDMI cable between tablet and TV's respective ports.
Set the tablet display mode under Display Settings to HDMI.

Steps 1 and 2 went good, but in Step 3 I'm unable to find any option in Settings and Display Settings as HDMI. However my default video player named Vortex player has an option to "Play on TV" where the display can be set to HDMI and the video plays fine on the TV.
This leaves me to think that both the TV and HDMI cable are working fine but I suspect that the tablet's firmware might be that of a different model perhaps which does not support HDMI (wild guess).
The tech support suggested to download and install the latest "software" (not sure if it's a firmware or not, even they were not..) to help fix the issue with steps by connecting it to PC through USB with a bunch of steps. But this software which shows prompts in chinese doesn't seem to help the cause either. Tech support also says I should be prompted to select display mode on tablet when connected to HDMI but it didn't happen either.
Details of my tab as below:

Name: Penta T-Pad IS703C (T-Pad IS703C With BSNL)
Manufacturer: Pantel
Android: 4.0.3
Kernel: 3.0.8
Build Number: fj_vortex-userdebug 4.0.3 IML74K
eng.zjd1.20120413.113558 test-keys

Request thoughts and suggestions on the same that could help me fix the situation.
P.S the above information remained unchanged even after the "software update", so I suspect that it might've done nothing at all.

After hours of searching on the net and string of emails with the customer care I received a call from a member claiming to be from the technical team. The end result of the call was that there is no HDMI setting in the settings panel and the only way to display content on to the TV using HDMI is through the stock "Vortex" player, which basically has no options than to change volume, display mode and the tracker. I couldn't find any info on this player's version or if there's any update for it that could help. Also my search for some effective alternative like RealHDMI for DroidX almost has hit a dead end. Marking this as answered to serve as information source for people who buy this product and hope I might receive some effective alternatives in the future.

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


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Does Google Navigation Live Traffic reroute during the journey?
After setting a destination and start navigation and my journey, if a new incident occurs and slows/blocks the route, is Google Navigation able to update the route and find a faster alternative automatically before I get near?

In the new Google Maps app we finally have this feature.
From this post on the official Google blog:

Enhanced navigation: In addition to current traffic conditions, we’ve added two new features to help you navigate around traffic. You can now see reports of problems on the road that you can tap to see incident details. While on the road, Google Maps will also alert you if a better route becomes available and reroute you to your destination faster. This feature is available only on Android and is coming soon to iOS.

From http://productforums.google.com/forum/#!msg/maps/hL8UXVgRMcE/6PfnMZP8tIQJ

Once you are in the "navigation" mode, you will see a status bar on the bottom that gives you an estimate of time remaining to your destination. The text of the time remaining changes color based on the traffic situation. The colors correspond to the former colored traffic light dot. If the words are red, that means there is some serious traffic on your route. Yellow indicates areas of slowed traffic. Green indicates that there are no anticipated delays.

Finally this feature has been added after so long.

As far as I know and based on my testings with the same concern, I came to the conclusion that it doesn't update the route based on traffic or any other reasons.
I even took an alternative route that I knew it was faster in rush hour conditions and the navigator was still trying to reroute me back to its original route, considering that faster due to speed limits.

Google doesn't do this automatically, but you can ask it to do it.
In traffic view, there is a button in the lower right hand corner (looks like 2 diverging arrows (one dashed) both leading to a destination pin).
In turn by turn view, press Menu then Routes and Alternatives, and the same alternate routes button will show up second from the right.
However, Google Navigation will often not show you a route that avoids the traffic.  When that happens, start driving an alternate route and Google Navigation will eventually get the point, although you may have to listen to a lot of "turn around" alerts before it does.

The main issue with this that you have to know the alternative routes.

Well...yes and no.
I have been on 2 road trips where the google traffic turned red in front of me and I just got off at the next exit; after a mile or two google traffic snapped onto a new route that went around the traffic snarl.
Also, don't forget that google navigation has an embedded map which can help you figure out an alternate route, although this is most useful when travelling with a companion to act as navigator.  Otherwise, you should pull over 1st.
Most of all, google nav gives me the confidence to try stuff b/c I know that I can never get truly lost.

According to this post on the official Google blog, Navigation should have this feature but like slybloty said I have never noticed any evidence of this happening

+1, thx for the link. It's available for North America and Europe where both Navigation and real-time traffic data are available. The example in the post is for NY, for which Google might have plenty of crowd sourced traffic data ready. Maybe there's a boundary for data quality and quantity at which this feature is enabled only. Mind: An areas cell coverage may also play a role how much good data google gets


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MTP mode instead of charging with plugged in wall charger
My Galaxy Tab P1000 was charging when it fell down.
I tried plugging it in again to continue charging but the battery icon now appears with a cross mark and instead the MTP mode initializes. How can I get the Galaxy Tab to charge normally again?

It's possible the fall caused damage to the tablet's internals, and that damage is preventing charging.  If a reboot doesn't resolve this problem, your options might be limited to  getting a replacement unit, or taking this one to be repaired.

It's most probable that some pins of the micro-usb port in your phone have been disconnected from board due to falling down, so the phone does not receive charge, and it detects connection to PC instead of charger. Get your device repaired by official samsung service.

Alright guys, I had the same problem as you are experiencing. When I plugged my tablet to the wall charger it just showed a lightning icon crossed with a red cross, it wrote mtp connected and did not charge. I have read some forums about this problem there are only a few of them.  I have decided to reset to the factory settings, since I was desperate at this point, I did not even hope. Then i solved my problem just by checking the connection between the box u put in the wall plug and the cable. Honestly I wanted to throw it away but luckily i did not, it works fine now.
Hope this could help you or even if it does not I just wish you good luck with solving it.

I just blew into both the port on my tab for charging, and the port on the cable. Now, it charges normally again! Go figure!

Perhaps dust! :)

Sometimes the simplest solution is the best. Oh how i wish i could blow the dust out of some SNES games again...

Most of the time this problem is being caused by dust, dirt, grime, or some other type of contamination coating one of the usb pins on the inside of the usb port. Easiest fix is to blow some compressed air into the usb port repeatedly until the dust/dirt is blow clear. You can also use "Contact/Control Cleaner & Lubricant" available from Radio Shack. Remove the phone battery and hold the phone upside down while using the compressed air or cleaner/lubricant to blast the usb port clean. Wipe off any residue then re-install the battery. Power up your phone and it will now function properly.

The behavior you are seeing is consistent with plugging the tablet's USB cable into a standard USB port.
If you plug the tablet into the "official" power adapter, you should see neither the red "X" on the battery icon, nor the MTP scanning update.
The tablet will only reliably charge (and thus no red "X") when plugged into the special wall adapter, because the adapter is modified to deliver a higher current output than a computer's USB hub or a generic USB power adapter will deliver.  When the tablet detects that it is on a standard USB connection it displays the red "X" on the battery icon as the tablet may not gain battery charge as fast as it uses it (the tablet's screen and network connections together can drain more than a standard USB connection can supply).
The MTP scanner is the media scanner that runs when the tablet thinks it might be plugged into a computer.  I believe this is so it can quickly copy media off to your desktop, but I'm not sure on the details.  Basically, its another symptom of using a vanilla USB port.
See this question for more details:
How much power does a Galaxy Tab 10.1 charger need to supply?

I had the same problem until I tried one method by accident.

Connect the tab with the relevant port.
Now slowly connect the USB side of the connector to the USB port in your computer (remember to be slow enough till 50 percent of the connector is pushed in).
Your tablet will now start charging normally using the PC.
Now you can push in the remaining half of the connector into the slot.

This seemed like the strangest solution but guess what...IT WORKED FOR ME!!!  Wish I could give you more than one point!


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My nfc-enabled android-phone won't read a rfid key I own, why and what can I do about it?
Does it require some kind of activation-code?  If so, can I read it while I scan it on the original scanner?

Your question appears to be incomplete.

Not all RFID systems are compatible with NFC. NFC uses an RF frequency of 13.56 MHz (so-called HF), but there are other common RFID systems that use frequencies in the range of 100-150 KHz (so-called LF) or 860-960 MHz (so-called UHF). Your key may belong to an LF or UHF system. Another possibility is that your key is part of an HF system, but uses a command set or an RF modulation scheme that is not compatible with NFC.


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Certificate Install without mandatory PIN lockscreen
Google Support says:

The type of lock that's acceptable may be predetermined by your system
  administrator.

Where I can define what's acceptable? I can regenerate the certificate if needed.
So I can use slide lockscreen again.
(I'm using CM9 RC1, Android 4.0.4)

I will accept a solution that installs the certificate to system directly, thus bypassing the pin requirement.

To secure your credentials it's a requirement that you use one of the lockscreen types that has some kind of secret code (pattern, PIN or password). What that line is telling you is that your administrator can (normally via an Exchange ActiveSync policy) lock down your phone so that only some types of those are accepted, for instance they may not trust pattern-locks, and may think that 4-digit PINs don't have enough combinations. It's not saying that you can turn off this security requirement.

@GAThrawn I find that inacceptable if I just install a CA to authenticate my web servers via SSL (using self-signed certificates). I'd understand it if it were about signing keys on-device, or authenticating the user – but both are the other way around. Luckily, sgiebels solution seems to work for me, with some minor adjustments I've described in the comments there. Only drawback so far: it requires root.

The problem with disabling the lockscreen security using the toggle/profile is that the lockscreen widgets don't appear either so you can't slide to unlock. Also, when you reboot your phone the buttons don't work until you retoggle the setting again.
Another way is to install the certificate as usual then backup the /data/misc/keychain and keystore directories using something that preserves the ACLs such as Root Explorer to a location that supports ACLs. I suggest copying them to /tmp. Then clear the credentials from Settings and enable Slide To Unlock. Then copy back the folders from /tmp. The CA will be installed.

This does not work anymore. As soon as you try to use the certificate somewhere (such as in connecting to a wifi network) the OS requires you to set a lock on the screen again.

@CoryKlein If you click cancel it will prompt you for a PIN and you can enter the last one you set. It's needed to decrypt the data.

@Kurian - So I followed the instructions above, and when I try to connect to a wifi network it says "You need to set a lock screen PIN", I click "Cancel", and nothing happens. If I hit "Ok" then cancel out from there, it still doesn't ask for the PIN.

@CoryKlein I misread your previous comment. I was talking about VPNs. Connecting to a VPN prompts you for the last lockscreen PIN to decrypt your credentials. I don't know if it works for personal certificates with private keys. I know it does work for installing trusted CA certificates. It might also be the specific ROM you're using. Pre-ICS AOSP ROMs never needed a lockscreen PIN for saving VPN credentials.

I've described how to do exacly this on my page, "Installing CAcert certificates on Android as 'system' credentials without lockscreen - instructions" at http://wiki.pcprobleemloos.nl/android/cacert
I've also posted it on the cyanogenmod forum:
http://forum.cyanogenmod.com/topic/82875-installing-cacert-certificates-on-android-as-system-credentials-without-lockscreen/
Basically, the commands are:
openssl x509 -inform PEM -subject_hash_old -in root.crt | head -1

To get the correct filename, then convert the certificate:
cat root.crt > 5ed36f99.0
openssl x509 -inform PEM -text -in root.crt -out /dev/null >> 5ed36f99.0

Copy them to /system/etc/security/cacerts/ and chmod the new .0 files to '644'.
Reboot and verify. On your android device select 'Clear cerficates' and you are able to remove the pin (by entering the pin and changing your lockscreen to 'none' or 'wipe'
Here I used the CAcert root certificate, but you probably want the class3.crt certificate as well, or use your own certificates.

You mention "own certificates". I just tried it with my "CA" (created using TinyCA), and in the last step ("inform") only get an error: 140342119224992:error:0906D06C:PEM routines:PEM_read_bio:no start line:pem_lib.c:696:Expecting: TRUSTED CERTIFICATE. Checking with Unable to load certificate in openssl, the .pem file should be the match. But then, your last command changes nothing. Anything wrong, or is that expected for a self-signed/created CA? And before I start hacking: should that work nevertheless?

OK, worked and was accepted with my self-created TinyCA CA: openssl x509 -inform PEM -text -fingerprint -in cacert.pem > d6a2705a.0, then moving the base64 block to the top using a text editor, placing the file into /system/etc/security/cacerts/, running chown root:root d6a2705a.0 and chmod 0644 d6a2705a.0 from within the directory – et voila, it turns up as trusted system certificate. Yeehaa!

@sgiebels Do you by chance also have a solution how to use credentials (from the system credentials or other) in 802.1X WLAN connection? It seems like the keystore/keychain on the device (/data/misc/key...) use the password for encryption, thus: every time the credentials are needed (connecting to WLAN), the PIN/password is requested again an (in my system) the lock is on again.

This worked well except I also got an issue with the cert formatting due to dos line endings. dos2unix will convert them, then check you have the correct ending on certificate line (mine looked like this: -----END CERTIFICATE-----Certificate: which caused a parse error too.

Both links are dead! Is a Root device mandatory?

I've discovered a solution that works without additional software or manual file copying:

Set your lock screen to "pattern". Enter a pattern and an unlock PIN. Remember the unlock PIN.
Install your user certificate.
Turn the screen off and on.
Enter the pattern wrongly a few times, until the "Forgot pattern?" option appears.
Click "Forgot pattern?", scroll down, enter the unlock PIN and confirm with "OK".
Close the "Screen unlock settings" window with the back button without selecting an option.

The system is now set to "Swipe unlock", but the user certificate is still usable (tested with the web browser and a custom app using DefaultHttpClient).
Tested on an Android 4.1.2 on a Galaxy Tab 2 10.1.

doesn't work with wpa-enterprise/TLS on LG G2, certs disappeared after this

This is a great bug! Thanks! (worked perfectly with Galaxy S5, android 6)

Just wanted to add an answer that's a variant of guttermonk's for one particular use case: installing a certificate on a Bluestacks instance. At this writing the setting app for Bluestacks has been modified so that setting a pin or password is impossible, and so adding a user certificate is impossible also. But we can get a root certificate into the system with guttermonk's approach plus some other steps. I was able to install a certificate without a pin or password and without ever installing it in the user's certificate store.
Prerequisites:

Root privileges on the Bluestacks instance
openssl (on the host, e.g. as provided with Git Bash)
A terminal app in Bluestacks (e.g. Termux)

In my case, I had downloaded the cert file within Bluestacks and didn't have openssl available there. We can copy the file to the directory shared with Windows:
cp /sdcard/Download/mycert.cer /sdcard/windows/BstSharedFolder
In Windows we can use the openssl to get the hash of the certificate (I assume that's what this is).
cd C:\ProgramData\BlueStacks\Engine\UserData\SharedFolder # in CMD
cd /c/ProgramData/BlueStacks/Engine/UserData/SharedFolder # in Bash

openssl x509 -inform PEM -subject_hash_old -in mycert.cer | head -1
# e.g. abcd1234

Back in Android, we can make the system partition writable, copy the certificate to the system certificates directory, and fix up its permissions and ownership. Mount the system partition read only afterward, for safety.
mount -o rw,remount /system

cd /system/etc/security/cacerts/
cp /sdcard/Download/mycert.cer ./abcd1234.0
chmod 644 abcd1234.0
chown system:system abcd1234.0

mount -o ro,remount /system

You can make use of CyanogenMod's profiles.
(For other readers: this needs the custom CyanogenMod Rom version 9+)
Just create or modify an existing profile and switch off "screen lock" there.
It's: System Settings->Profiles->Default->Lock screen mode->Disabled
Integrate your certificate into the standard Android keystore file
See CAcert's excellent howto here
I'm not sure however if you can do this with a self-signed cert (you might have to switch to a self-made CA maybe (use tinyca for a nice gui-tool on *nix)).

This does not work (anymore). As soon as you have installed certificates (e.g. the ones from cacert.org), this option/item in the profile is grayed out.

I found a way to solve the problem, but it requires root and may only work with root, self-signed, or intermediate CAs.
If you have a certificate that is not trusted by Android, when you add it, it goes in the personal cert store. When you add a cert in this personal cert store, the system requires a higher security level to unlock the device. But if you manage to add your cert to the system store then you don't have this requirement. Obviously, root is required to add a certificate to the system store, but it is quiet easy.
Here is how to do it :
1 - Add your cert normally. For example, my cert was called some.crt. It will be stored in your personal store and android will ask you a pin/password... Proceed.
2 - With a file manager with root capabilities, browse files in /data/misc/keychain/cacerts-added or /data/misc/keystore. You should see a file here called 1000_USRCERT_some it's the certificate you have added in step 1.
3 - Move this file to system/etc/security/cacerts (you will need to mount
the system partition r/w)
4 - Reboot the phone
5 - You are now able to clear the pin/password you have set to unlock the
device.
Worked for me with a self-signed cert on Android 4.4.2. Hope it helps!

Interesting, that you didn't mention the original source, neither appropriately credited the author. Follow How to reference material written by others.

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


text:
Are there any ROMs (other than CM and MIUI) for the HP Touchpad?

Possible Duplicate:
Where can I find stock or custom ROMs for my Android device?

I'm looking for a ROM which is closer to stock Android for my HP Touchpad and haven't had much luck finding any information for ROMs other than CM and MIUI.  Is there anyone out there who's working on a AOSP ROM which hasn't been modded too heavily (aside from making it work, obviously)?

Sorry, we don't do individual ROM recommendations/finding.  I think the FAQ has been clarified somewhat since the last time I remember you being around, it mentions recommendations being off-topic now.

You may also be interested in AOKP ROM for the Touchpad.  It's a derivative of AOSP, with some CM.


text:
Alert Dialog List View Shows White Text on White?
I updated my Motorola RAZR to ICS lately, and was using the Go Launcher Ex launcher, and when I tried to select a widget, it popped up a "Choose Widget" dialog that showed the icons, but the text was white on white background.  I can see them if I select them, but not otherwise.
At first I thought this was a problem with Go Launcher Ex, so I installed the Apex launcher instead, and it's choose widget dialog shows the same white on white text again (see below).
I've tried changing Go Launcher Ex and Apex themes, but still have the issue so I began wondering if it was an issue with the underlying color palettes.  I've seen a few posts about this being an issue with the "Light Theme", and they suggest choosing a different theme when you create the alert dialog.  However, I'm just a user, not a developer, so I'm wondering the following:
1) Is this just a bug in Go Launcher Ex and Apex Launchers respectively, and I should complain to both of them?
or
2) Is there something goofed up with the color palette of my phone's light theme and I can tweak it?
Thanks in advance...

Screenshot (click image to enlarge)

Might be best to check with Go Launcher/Apex Launcher's respective forums to see if that's a known issue? For apps to maintain compatibility with ICS and later, and previous versions does take a bit of work to ensure consistency. :)

are you using a 3rd party theme on the device? or is that how ICS looks on the RAZR? do you have this issue when you use the stock launcher?

No third party themes, at the moment. That's just ICS on the RAZR with Apex running (can't get to the Choose Widget alert box in stock launcher)

Aparently this is an issue with several of the launchers in many of the ICS builds.  Will just have to wait for it to be addressed by Verizon, I suppose...
Droid Forums: ICS and Go Launcher Problems


text:
How to move applications to external memory card on ICS
I have an android ICS tablet and I'd like to install applications on the external memory card (not the internal memory / internal SD).
Is it possible to do so? A solution that does not require rooting would be great.

The "official" version disappeared in ICS. But you can use root-solutions (creating symbolic links) Therefore you need two partitions on your sdCard.
A complete explanation can be found here:
http://www.modaco.com/topic/331205-guide-how-to-get-more-free-space-for-your-apps/
(The root-variants still work)
you will need a rooted phone though

Which version are you mentioning?

You can use any of those versions, which require partitioning your SD-Card. But as I wrote: You have to root your device, sorry.
If its about memory. Most Applications which use a big amount of disc space can have their data saved on SD. (Like Navigation applications). If it is a specific application try searching for a solution for that specific application. For example: Sygic can save its maps on SD


text:
Tell HTC EVO browser to always "select all" when moving to URL field
Every browser I've used selects the full URL whenever I move into the URL field (address bar), but my new HTC EVO doesn't select anything. Almost always when I move to that field, it's to enter a completely new URL, so the extra steps (press, hold, wait, then select all) are annoying.
Is there some way to change this to work like every other browser on the planet? (Short of installing another browser, which I'll do now, anyway, while waiting for an answer here.)
Even a faster way to "select all" would be welcome.

My best guess is that this behaviour is not configurable and maybe solely HTC's fault (you most problably had a look at every option of your browser already before asking here).
Some options that come to mind:

You might want to try a different browser than the EVO's default (Dolphin, Opera, Firefox)
Root, unlock and install CyanogenMod or something different (alas, not an option for many due to difficulty, risk and warranty problems)

Thanks. I tried Chrome, which is horribly buggy. Right now, Opera seems to work quite well.

Good to know you like Opera, I'm also a long time Opera user from v5 or v6 on (cannot remember, must be early 2000's)


text:
Edit new calendar entries on AT&T samsung galaxy s2 using android 4.0.3
The 'edit' button does not appear when trying to edit a new calendar entry using the 4.0.3 ice cream sandwich operating system on my AT&T Samsung Galaxy 2 phone.  The calendar entries that were imported from gingerbread allow me to edit the entries.

One workaround I've found is to sync the phone calendar with Kies to Outlook calendar and edit in Outlook then resync. The edited update is then picked up by the phone.

Click on the actual event and then the menu button.
Goto Calendar -> Click day -> Click thru event -> Click the menu button -> Click edit


text:
Why does the Android device connect to a secured wireless router without providing a password?
During the weekend, I was able to connect to a secured wireless network via an Android device (Asus Transformer Tablet), but when I tried to connect to the wireless network via my laptop it was requiring the connection key (which I didn't know).
Can anyone explain me how was this possible?
I've tried to see the password of the wireless network on the Android device, but (I guess for security reasons) the current password for a wireless network is not shown in its settings.
(The secured network was not previously saved/configured on the Android device.)

You did not say if the Android device still had access while you tried to connect using your laptop. How soon after connecting to the network with your Android device did you try to connect using your laptop? It is possible but unlikely that the network was unsecured and then for whatever reason changed to secured. For example, the admin was in the process of adding a password.

Do you have another Android device (like a phone, maybe) that you'd previously connected to that same Wi-Fi point?
Android 4, Ice Cream Sandwich, (and possibly older versions too, though I don't have any to hand to check) has an option to sync saved Wi-Fi passwords between different Android devices on the same Google account. Here's the option under Settings -> Backup & Reset on my phone:

There are also apps that allow you to sync Wi-Fi passwords between your laptop and your Android devices, though I assume you'd know if you had one of those installed.

Having a 2nd look: that's most probably the right answer. Google knows everything :-) That  I don't know the key part confused me and I ruled your answer out. It's rather old , else I had asked the OP if he has another android

@ce4 I upvoted your answer. Without any other info "someone else already entered it" is as likely. Also, you did come up with the actual local storage option for the passwords.

You can see the password if your device is rooted, it's located in plain text at:
/data/misc/wifi/wpa_supplicant.conf

Normally your device won't connect to any secured and previously unknown Wi-Fi without your request.
The only possible explanation for me is one of the following:

You gave it to a friend who added the Wi-Fi for you;
You had another Wi-Fi with the same name/pass-phrase combination set up already.

At a guess, you're actually connecting automatically to another nearby unsecured network rather than the secure network.


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Can I sync my Chrome bookmarks with my Android phone?

Possible Duplicate:
How can I sync the bookmarks in the web browser?

Since I'm a big Google user, I'm used to everything (Google Contacts, etc.) being synchronised on my Android phone. Is it possible to use something similar to Chrome's bookmark synchronisation, but somehow get these bookmarks to my Android phone?

I'm not sure if this help You but there is delicio.us app for Android.

The Dolphin mobile browser is supposed to have built-in Google Bookmarks sync capability.

Have not tested, but I assume this will work.

Does not sync with the bookmarks as stored by Google Chrome, but with the older Google bookmark service on goggle.com/bookmarks (Chrome stores bookmarks in Google Docs)

err, that should have been google.com/bookmarks (mobile typing..)

I didn't see that... neither to google.com/bookmarks nor to chrome bookmarks (google docs based) How can I enable it?

There are quite a number of ways to sync bookmarks to your Android phone.
If you're looking for one-click-import, check out the MyBookmarks app for Android.
If you use Opera on your desktop, I think it lets you save your bookmarks on the cloud. You can then sync it to Android using Opera Mobile/Mini (i.e., if you use it as your primary browser)

If you use Firefox, you might want to take a look at Firefox 4 and Firefox 4 Mobile. Both have Firefox Sync built-in, syncing bookmarks and browser history across various desktop installations of Firefox as well as on your mobile.
It's enough of a killer feature and done well enough that I've stopped using the stock Android 2.2 browser.

I use Chrome on my computer, and Opera on my Android. So I installed Opera on my computer, opened Chrome's Bookmark Manager, exported bookmarks to a Chrome HTML document, started up Opera on the computer, imported Firefox bookmarks (no Chrome option, but Firefox option works), then synced to my Android's Opera. I'm assuming you could do the same for most browsers.

all_licenses: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5/


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Is there a way to route all traffic from Android through a proxy/tunnel to my Tomato router?
I'd like to be able to connect my Android phone to public Wi-Fi points (some with unencrypted connections), but:

People can see what I'm doing by intercepting unencrypted radio transmissions
The AP owner or other people logged into it can see what I'm doing
Hackers can pretend to be the access point and carry out man-in-the-middle attacks

There are tools like Wi-Fi Ruler and WeFi to automatically connect to access points, but I don't trust random APs.  I'd like all my traffic to go through an encrypted tunnel to my home router, and from there out to the Internet.
I've done such tunnels from other computers with SSH/SOCKS and PPTP before.  Is there any way to do this with Android?
More specifically:

My phone now has CyanogenMod 7.1.0
My router currently has TomatoUSB Version 1.28

I'm willing to change the router firmware, but I was having issues with DD-WRT disconnecting, which is why I'm using Tomato.  Some possible solutions:
SSH with dynamic SOCKS proxy:

Android supposedly supports this through ConnectBot, but I don't know how to get it to route all traffic.
Tomato supports this natively.

I've been using this with Tunnelier for my web browsing at work.  Requires setting up each app to go through the proxy, though.
PPTP:

Android supports this natively.
Tomato does not support this, unless you get the jyavenard mod and compile it?

I previously used PPTP for web browsing at work and in China because it's native in Windows and DD-WRT.  After a while I started having problems with it, then I started having problems with DD-WRT, so I switched to the SSH tunnel instead.  Also it supposedly has security flaws, but I don't understand how big of a problem it is.
IPSec L2TP:

Android (phone) and Windows (work/China) both support this natively
I don't know of a router that does.  I could run it on my computer using openswan, but then there are two points of failure.

OpenVPN:

CyanogenMod apparently includes this, and now has an entry to create a new OpenVPN in the normal VPN interface, but I have no idea how to configure it.

TunnelDroid apparently handles some of this.
Future versions will have native support in the VPN settings?

Tomato does not support this, but there are mods that do?  I don't know how to configure this, either.

TomatoVPN
roadkill mod
SgtPepperKSU mod
Thor mod

I could also run a VPN server on my desktop, I guess, though that's less reliable and presumably slower than running it in the router itself.  I could change the router firmware, but I'm wary of more fundamental things breaking.  Tomato has been problem-free for the regular stuff.
Related: Anyone set up a SSH tunnel to their (rooted) G1 for browsing?

You can configure android to use a proxy server. But you must do it either from the adb client, or from the terminal in a rooted g1.

> adb shell
# sqlite3 /data/data/com.google.android.providers.settings/databases/settings.db
sqlite> INSERT INTO system VALUES(99,’http_proxy', 'proxy:port');
sqlite>.exit

read about @ http://discuz-android.blogspot.com/2008/01/set-proxy-for-android-web-browser.html

This is just for the stock Android web browser, right?  I want every communication from any app to be tunneled.

You can use connectbot to tunnel your connection over SSH.

Really?  I know how to use Connectbot to log into an SSH server, but how do I configure it to tunnel everything through that connection?

I use it sometimes with android-vnc-viewer, check FAQ question #8:
http://code.google.com/p/android-vnc-viewer/wiki/faq
"...We recommend you tunnel your VNC connection over SSH with connectbot. Set up your connectbot connection to the server hosting your VNC server, and configure a tunnel to forward port 5900. Then you can set up an android-vnc-viewer connection to 5900 on localhost..."
Something similar can be done to tunnel especific data.

Ah, cool.  That doesn't cover sending everything over the SSH tunnel, though.  I asked the same question over here:  http://www.forceclose.com/questions/369/is-there-a-way-to-route-all-traffic-from-android-through-a-secure-tunnel  Maybe you want to add your answer?

I just added :D

That FAQ says "configure a tunnel to forward port 5900", but it doesn't tell how to do that.

in ConnectBot's Hosts lists:

Long press on a user@host line.
Edit port forwards.
menu
Add port forward.
Complete the form.

There's also https://market.android.com/details?id=org.sshtunnel but I'm not sure if it tunnels everythinI.

@endolith this should be part of this answer...


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LogMeIn Hamachi VPN
How do I connect my Android phone or tablet to a LogMeIn Hamachi VPN? Is it even possible?
LogMeIn has command line clients for Linux, and of course Android has built-in VPN settings.
Is there some way to hack my Android to get it on the Hamachi VPN? I'll try almost anything no matter how involved. Root and non-root answers welcome (I have root access).

As described in this how-to, you can do this by installing a "chrooted" Linux distro on Android such as Ubuntu, and then downloading, installing and configuring Hamachi manually.

Hamachi is a vpn program which can be used to link up computers. With
  hamachi on an android you would be able to access the files on
  multiple computers from anywhere in the world (provided that you have
  wifi, 3g, 4g or any other type of internet connection on your phone)
  this is useful when programs like dropbox can't hold the file that you
  want because it is too large and you know that you will need it at
  some point when you are on the go.  To get hamachi on android there
  are a few requirements which must be met first:

Internet access.
Ubuntu/Debian/Backtrack or any other Linux distro on your phone.
Rooted phone (root access).

Once those 3 requirements have been met you should be set to go.

Boot up the Linux distro on your phone
Either open up the browser on the distro or the browser on your phone.
go to http://www.mediafire.com/?jwng92o6j56ov8l and download the hamachi file. If you did this on the distro then you may skip to step 5A
If it hasn't happened already, move that whole file to emmc on your phone
(5A. Move the hamachi file from the downloads folder in the distro to
  /root)  Open up the distro and copy that hamachi file from /mnt/emmc to /root
Open terminal and cd into that directory and run the following commands
sh ./install
mkdir /dev/net
mknod /dev/net/tun c 10 200
apt-get install sudo
apt-get install libcrypto++7
ln -s /usr/lib/libcrypto.so.0.9.8 /usr/lib/libcrypto.so.0.9.7
sudo tuncfg
hamachi-init
hamachi start
hamachi login
hamachi set-nick [enter desired nickname here]
hamachi join [networkname] [password]
DONE.

Great answer. Thank you! I will try this out tonight hopefully.


text:
Disable emoticons

Possible Duplicate:
Is there any way to change the emoticons in the standard android sms app?

How do I disable those green smilies in the SMS app? I am using Cyanogen 7.2.0, if that matters.

I agree that isn't an exact duplicate, but don't the answers to that question answer this one?

@MatthewRead I don't think so. They seem to concern Handcent, whatever it is.

Because Handcent is the solution, they mention that there is no way to avoid the smilies in the stock app.

This is a duplicate of Disable smileys in SMS anyway, but both are simply linked to the more useful question (useful as in, it provides answers) as that seems like the best solution. As @MatthewRead noted - and the first answer in the duplicate states - the reason Handcent is brought up repeatedly is because the answer to your question is simply "You can't".


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Gmail stuck on "Waiting for sync"
My Gmail app recently stopped working.  I'm on a SGS Captivate running this custom ROM -- while I realize there might be some ROM-specific glitch, I thought I could ask here for general troubleshooting tips.  I stopped getting new emails last week, so I cleared the app cache, toggled sync off and back on, then finally uninstalled and re-installed the app.  Nothing seems to make any difference -- mail will not sync, sitting at the "Waiting for sync" message with a blue spinner for hours.  Am I missing anything?  Is there any way to get a handle on what exactly is going wrong here?

Have you tried rebooting your phone?

This question is rather ROM specific.
In fact the custom ROM post even says it's a "New Beta from vibraturk". If you want to continue using this beta ROM, please search the linked thread or ask the creator for for more specific help on his ROM.
You might want to consider a more "established" ROM like CyanogenMod for Captivate, there are even CM9/ICS nightlies already.

I understand that the problem is likely specific to this ROM, but I thought that there might be troubleshooting steps I could take (looking at system logs, etc) that are not.  At any rate, I started getting mail randomly on Sunday after uninstalling Firefox, so who knows what actually caused it.

You're right, there are generic ways to debug and of course ask for them here. #Do you see other sync problems with different apps? Question 2: Have you tried using "K9 Mail" to cross check? Maybe it's just a problem with the gmail app itself (and an incompatibility of the ROM that causes this only with the GMail app). Does 'adb logcat' or CatLog say more?


text:
How to disable automatic picture upload to Google+
I've got Motorola RAZR (XT910) and I decided to install the Google+ app to stay in touch with it. Whenever I take pictures with my phone it would upload those pictures to my Google+ account even though I have set my Instant Upload settings to OFF. How can I really disable that without uninstalling the Google+ app? I would like to hand pick photos from my phone to be uploaded to my Google+. Thanks

@ce4 I know how to find the settings and change them. And I did that but the pictures are still being uploaded to my Google+

You should report a bug to the G+ app developers.

Open the Google Plus app, go to settings and disable "instant-upload".

Please note if you enabled it:
Each photo you take will be uploaded to Google Plus' staging area but not be shared immediately. It's just for convenience so that you don't have to grab your phone if you want to share some past pictures you took with your mobile. You will be able to to share from any browser you're logged in at any later time you want.
You can also select if you only want to instant-upload when you're on wifi.

So in other words if I don't want the pictures instantly uploaded I have to remove the Google+ app then.

I did that, as stated in question, but that does not seem to work and my photos and videos are still being uploaded.

Eww! That's indeed strange! Reinstalling maybe? You will be prompted on the 'instant-upload' thing at first launch again. There's nothing to loose if you do, just give it a try. Maybe try a reboot first, that won't hurt either.

I just reinstalled the app and rebooted my phone. It seems to work but I'd like to wait at 12 hrs or so.

Uninstalling and installing again worked for me.


text:
What can I do when my GPS doesn't work (or if my tablet doesn't have GPS)?
The problem: I want to use an (offline|online) navigation app but:

I have an Asus Transformer Prime with very bad GPS reception
I have a tablet without GPS (e.g., a Nook Color)
My phone has a very low GPS signal
(Samsung is infamous here, Galaxy S, Nexus S, Gio and so on all have users complaining about it)
My phone often loses track of GPS satellites

My device has Bluetooth however.
What can I do to get a working and precise GPS signal?

I have several bluetooth-GPS adapters that I use with all of my devices when I need a superb signal because a specialiced receiver is almost always superior to a smartphone's internal GPS (due to integration constraints).

GPS Receiver: My favourite is the Bluemax 4043 bluetooth receiver. It has more than one day uptime, it can also log 32MB of GPS data and uses a cheap Nokia BL-5C battery. Linux support! OpenStreetMaps Wiki has a comprehensive list of good receivers (search for the bluetooth enabled ones).
Software support: Cyanogenmod7+ can connect to GPS bluetooth receivers, stock Android users may install 3rd party apps like Bluetooth GPS Provider.

It's very handy for my Nook Color tablet that has no GPS but bluetooth (Asus Transformer Prime users also have this kind of problem).

The Transformer Prime has a problem with its GPS all right. You can get a free external GPS adapter that fits into the docking port.
http://event.asus.com/ASUSPad/TF201GPS/


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galaxy s3 - clicking/crackling sound when button is pressed on headset
I listen to music on my international galaxy s3 with the included headset quite a bit.
I don't know if this is a feature or bug but whenever I press a button on the headset's controls (volume, skip track, etc), there is a crackling/clicking sound for each press.  It happens when there is no music playing as well. I know it is not the headset but the phone itself.
Is there a fix for this? What is causing this?


text:
Delete a folder in my home screen Android 4.0, Aquos?
My home screen looks like this:
Empty_folder | Application 1 | Application 2 | Application N

When I long press over the folder, I have the option to rename it.  How do I delete the folder, though?  I've been moving them to a different screen, but now I have three screens of blank folders that I accidentally created by trying to rearrange icons.
Also, I wonder how do I switch two icons on my home screen?  When I drag two items into each other, they don't switch but rather create a folder and then add themselves to it, which seems ridiculous.  In any other OS, if I want a new folder, I have to be very specific about that.

You could say that in any other OS you have to do something obscure and not easily discoverable to create a folder. Android just works out that if you're dragging one icon on top of another you're trying to fit more than one in that space and just automatically creates a folder for you.

@gathrawn I agree.  It's a little annoying when people talk about "the true linux way" to me, also, so....  Sorry if it came off like a rage.  Thanks for the edit.

If you press and hold the folder, one of the home icons will turn into a trash icon. Just drag the folder to the trash icon.

If you long press over something in the Aquos, "Peel off" is used to remove it.


text:
How do I invoke "su" from a terminal prompt?
I can get a root prompt in the terminal by running one exploits documented elsewhere. (e.g. here: http://wiki.cyanogenmod.com/wiki/Motorola_Droid_2_Global:_Full_Update_Guide)
At this point, I can install the "su" binary and give it permissions 4755. This should allow anyone to execute it, and since the owner of the binary is "root" and the sticky bit is set, I should become root.   But I apparently have no way of un-become root from the terminal short of rebooting.  But, after I reboot, then I can't seem to become root using 'su'.
$ ls -l /system/bin/su
-rwsr-xr-x root    app_101    26234 2012-07-09 15:00 su

Ok, the permissions look fine, should I should be able to run it to become root, but only in this particular invocation of the terminal.
$ /system/bin/su
Permission denied

It also fails if i specify the command to run as root, or with any other arguments:
$ /system/bin/su /system/bin/sh
Permission denied

Why?  Is there some other mechanism at work?  I don't want to install Superuser.apk, because I just want a way that I can temporarily get a root shell if needed, for instance to delete unwanted files manually.  Besides, Superuser.apk relies on the su binary anyway, so it must have some way of calling it, so why can't I replicate that in the terminal?
Edit:
I had another thought, so I tried copying /bin/sh to another locattion and made it suid root.  But while I can execute the new binary, it doesn't give me root.  Is Android doing something tricky/different with suid that regular Linux does not do?

Having an unprotected 'su' on the device is pretty risky, as anything that attempts to use it will get it without any of the user confirmation that things like that superuser app try to add as a gateway.

Right, well... I was trying to plan ahead.  Wasn't sure how a subsequent update would try to get rid of su, so I put it in a bunch of difference places with different names.  Turns out the update removes the sticky bit, and I can't run suid from places other than system.  Ah well.

The clue is in the owner/group id...
$ ls -l /system/bin/su
-rwsr-xr-x root    app_101    26234 2012-07-09 15:00 su

Notice the group id is set to 'app_101', that should be 'root', but then again, you need the busybox binary (which is part of the SuperUser.apk binary, when installed, it copies the relevant said binary into /system/xbin) in order to be able to chown it.

Yes, this would be a problem  Ultimately busybox is not needed as stock android chown can change the group as well, using chown user.group filename (at least from Froyo-ICS)

Try adding the -c option. e.g.
su -c sh

or
 su -c 'echo bogus'

(for more arguments)

A bit more digging and I think I have turned up the answer.  The reason it is not working is because the Terminal app does not request super-user permission in its manifest, e.g.:
<uses-permission android:name="android.permission.ACCESS_SUPERUSER"/>

This extra layer of security appears to be because the terminal application is a java application, although it does a good job of hiding it.  The Superuser appears to shim things somehow so java apps can get this permission, even if they didn't know they needed it when they were created.

ACCESS_SUPERUSER permission is not connected with your problem


text:
How do I recover the Dolphin Sonar icon?
In my application list, Dolphin Sonar/Sonar is not one of the icons.  I've "peeled off"/deleted all of the Dolphin Sonar icons by mistake, and I want it to be on my home screen.  I use it very often.  Where might I find the icon?  Do I need to reinstall Dolphin?

I think we need more information. What version of the OS are you running? Are you looking in the "Downloaded" section of the app drawer? If so, it means you've uninstalled the app. To be sure, check Settings | Applications to see if it's listed there.

@AlEverett I received a response from Dolphin HQ's support staff stating that this is currently not possible (at least not on my phone but more likely at all), and they plan to fix this in an upcoming patch.

@Wolfpack'08 Please put this as answer and mark the question answered

According to the Dolphin for Android phone faqs, you can manually create a shortcut to the home screen:

How do I create a shortcut for Dolphin Sonar to the home screen manually?
Please click Menu> More> Settings> Gesture & Sonar > Sonar Settings> Create Shortcut.


text:
Does Android have a "device driver" architecture?
Since 1990, when a new version of Windows comes out, the (only) thing that stops PC owners from upgrading is whether there are compatible device drivers for their hardware (network adapter device driver, display adapter device driver, printer device driver, etc.).
Does Android have "device drivers" that Acer, Archos, HTC, Huawei, and other phone manufacturers can publish on their website such that Android device owners can, if they want, upgrade their phone's OS and afterwards (download and) install the appropriate drivers?

Android does not have "device drivers". If you were to think of the entire Android ecosystem within your handset, split into 3/4, using the Java Programming language, the remaining 1/4 is the kernel written in C/Assembler. It is there within the kernel is where the drivers are embedded. That is part of the kernel's job to interact with touchscreen, accelerometers, compass, etc, and certain interactions with the hardware gets delegated to the Android side of things. That is a summary in abstract form for the layman to understand.
On to hardware manufacturers such as Acer, Huawei, HTC, Samsung, Sony, Zte, to name but a few, what each of those companies do, is publish the sources to the kernel, so that it can be built. Although, having said that, some are not exactly GPL compliant, some provide sources, which may not be fully complete, quite possibly, due to the restrictions on certain closed-source for a particular hardware, or others just flagrantly violate the GPL and not publish it at all. Perhaps, some do distribute the source in which the process of rolling your own kernel can fail due to malformed errors in the code or missing extra code.
That applies to, generally older kernels, version 2.6.x, in which a mix-and-match of the appropriate sources gets merged in manually, to create a build, this is where it can backfire quite horribly, the build breaks, kernel refuses to boot and lots of hacking to get the build to work.
Atheros, is one very classic example of a wifi chipset found in quite a large majority of handsets, notably, the sources for the device driver, are quite hard to find, which has resulted in broken builds of the driver, in turn, when integrated with the kernel, as a whole, Android refuses to start the wifi. Due to obscurity of the source, hackers have attempted to get the appropriate wifi driver from other stock ROMs thereby exacerbating the gambling on the functionality of the wifi which either work or break.
The newer kernel versions 3.1.x, have most of the device drivers employed for usage with Android, merged into the main kernel sources thereby minimizing the chances of mix-n-matching, merging the source manually for a hardware, be it a new compass, acclerometer etc.
If there's anything amiss feel free to comment, and amend this accordingly.

Steve Kondik's recent Cyanogenmod presentation explains a bit about how the device layer works in Android, and explains a bit about why its complicated (skip to minute 27 or so): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=puSdhvC0ExY&feature=player_embedded

It's eye-awakening that Android prides itself on running on hundreds of devices, yet it has no "hardware abstraction layer". Oh irony. Dear Android, it's 2012, not 1985....

@WilliamC sure Android runs on hundreds of devices, "hardware abstraction layer" hal - well... in a way you're correct, that hal is found on linux desktops (most distros having to support a vast array of devices such as PCI, on first boot from a live DVD etc which are quite standardized this applies to windows also) but sorry to prick your conscience, to each and to their own manufacturer, with a vast array of circuitary etc... hal at this stage is not quite viable due to differences in it. Its a different story with PC world of BIOS's,standards etc, sounds paradoxical though! :)


text:
How to put android 4.1 (jelly bean) on nook color

Possible Duplicate:
When will my device get the Android 4.1 update (Jelly Bean)?

I am running CM9, just so you know that it's been flashed before.
My question has 2 parts:

Will the nexus 7 rom work (https://developers.google.com/android/nexus/images#nakasi)
If not, how can I make it work?

Will the nexus 7 rom work (https://developers.google.com/android/nexus/images#nakasi)

No.

If not, how can I make it work?

This is quite honestly too extensive to cover in one Stack Exchange answer, and is arguably outside of the scope of our site anyway. Suffice it to say, you'd probably need to find or write driver implementations for all of the hardware, get them into a JB compatible kernel, and then put together a system image that actually boots with all of the above. Any driver/firmware code that is closed source would possibly have to be reverse-engineered.  It's not a particularly trivial task.

Would I be able to  use the CM7 or 9 kernel for nook color together with the nexus 7 image?

@m12: I have no idea. It depends on whether or not significant necessary changes have been made at the kernel level in Jelly Bean. It's possible, but if it actually runs it may not run well at all. You'd also likely have to still make some sizeable changes to the Nexus 7 image to even get it booting. If it was as easy as just dropping in the NC kernel then wouldn't you assume that there would be JB ROMs released already?

Probably, but its worth a try, I'll report here with whether it works.


text:
How do I get the camera of the Lenovo ThinkPad to stop making a sound when I take a picture?

Possible Duplicate:
How do I disable the 'click' sound on the camera app?

I'm not sure if this question is specific to Lenovo ThinkPads or if it is more general to Android 3.1 devices (I haven't upgraded to ICS yet since I don't want to risk losing root right now).
But basically, even when I turn the volume all the way down to 0, my ThinkPad still always makes a sound whenever I take a picture with it.

You're root, you could replace the sound files with silent clips. This is what I've found:
find /system -name '*ogg' | grep cam
/system/media/audio/ui/camera_click.ogg
/system/media/audio/ui/camera_focus.ogg

Audacity is a free and open editor to create an empty or  silent sample and export it as an ogg file.
EDIT: According to this question/answer you can also delete or rename the camera_click.ogg file. Plus: Before you do, you need to
mount -oremount,rw /system
[remove/edit the above ogg files]
mount -oremount,ro /system

According to this question's answers renaming/deleting the file works too, no nned for a silent clip.

Thanks for the hint, added that to the answer (sorry for the former typos, I really shouldn't answer on the go on my phone :-)

For non-root users (who cannot remount /system read/write), there are also some helpful apps in the playstore -- e.g. Silent Camera from Kinoko, or Silent Camera from Reason Rare Rat, or Debys SilentCam. And more...


text:
Shaking notification bar
On an Asus Transformer Prime, my notification bar at the bottom of the screen will randomly start dancing up and down, and sometimes just scramble then go normal. When it does either one of these behaviours, I need to restart my Android to get it to stop. When it scrambles, the rest of the screen is fine, and I can click on areas of the bar that are messed up as if it wasn't, and access their functions (i.e. Back, Home, etc)

I had similar problems with a Nook Color. Switching off the screen and cleaning helped most of the time.

@ce4 Cleaning what? The screen? A connector?

yeah, the screen. forgot an 'it' before helped

I'll give that a try tonight and see if I notice any change

I got my Nook calm by sticking a protection layer onto the screen. It has an oversensitive touch screen

@ce4 If that's the case, I think Asus should have provided one... But why the shaking or the random disappearing act?

maybe try to have one of these 'multitouch test' apps open when it happens next time. You could then see if its the touch digitizer that's causing this

let us continue this discussion in chat

Asus released an update, and it's been 2 weeks since it happened


text:
Unable to Sync Evernote?
I have a new Samsung Galaxy Y, I am able to sync in GMail, Google Calendar and also completely use Google Maps, but I am not able to Sync in the Evernote App. What's Wrong?

Un-installing the App and Installing it back again, fixed it.

Evernote has their own login-data which has nothing to do with your google-Account. Perhaps you just used the wrong password?


text:
GO SMS conversation grouping by number, not contact
I installed GO SMS pro today and it looks good, but there is one thing that is a deal breaker for me.
Some of the people I know use different numbers (grouped under one contact) to text me, however when I open GO SMS conversations aren't grouped by contact, but instead it looks like they are grouped by number (3 separate conversation threads for one contact).
Is there any way to group them by contact? This is how the default messaging app works (conversations grouped by contact, reply goes to last number used from the conversation).


text:
Foreign phone, stuck on 2G
I am currently working on a Coolpad 8150, a Chinese phone running Android 2.3.7. It is connected to T-Mobile (in the United States) and can place calls successfully. However, it is stuck on 2G. I have been lead to believe the phone supports 3G, though I may be mistaken. How may I further pursue this issue?
When I scan for networks, I only see networks marked 2G, like T-Mobile (2G).
In status, it appears I am still marked as using the China Mobile network operator.

Looking at this,

GSM:900/1800/1900 Mhz,3G TD-SCDMA 2010-20250 MHZ

And scrolling on down a bit on that page under the 'Data Application Features'...

Data Service  GPRS;EDGE;TD-SCDMA

That would explain it, no UMTS/HSPA/HSPA+ mentioned in the spec of that hardware, as that would be required to have T-Mobile operating to enable 3G data.
It may be basically a cheap and cheerful but crippled phone, but only for a certain market segment, if there is no supporting data protocol support such as UMTS/HSPA/HSPA+, it will fall back on 2G.

Am I correct in recalling that T-Mobile no longer supports data transfer over their 2G network? I ask because I am thus afflicted.

The problem is your phone is using china mobile's td- protocol. In the rest of the world all phones are CDMA or GSM. Thus yours is a 3rd strange Chinese type. If you had a China Unicom Coolpad you would be able to use it just fine. You are out of luck as this only works in china, except for calling.


text:
Google Currents vs Google Reader
They appear to perform the same functionality... only difference I see is that Currents layout is more like a magazine.  And I can import my Reader subscriptions to Currents.
What's the difference between the two? Is there any reason to use one over the other? Does Currents replace Reader?

Google Reader is a cloud-based feed reader service. On top of this service, there are many apps as a front-end to user. E.g.- Official Google Reader apps (Web, Android), Feedly (Firefox, Android) etc.
Google Currents is a front-end digital magazine/ newspaper delivery app (with cloud sync) available to Android and iOS (no web interface yet). Google Currents can read feeds, but it wasn't designed for that. Google has a vision attached with it: Real digital magazine/ newspaper delivery which is beyond normal feed reading! See the differences:

Feed publishers don't have control of content display in end app, but Currents publishers do have. They can divide their currents in sections, sub-sections. They can decide the layout of this digital magazine etc. Its not just nice looking magazine interface.. its more than that. Feedly, which sync with Google Reader, also provides magazine interface, but its not really a magazine. Think about your real-world magazine reading experience.
Currents can be premium. Current publishers can charge you which is not possible with Google Reader. While there's a concept of premium feeds (which is rare), Google Reader can only subscribe it. But, Google Currents can be marketplace for that.

Google Currents can't replace Google Reader because its different thing. If you don't have special interest in those hand-created digital publications, go for Google Reader. You can use it on web, Windows, Mac, Ubuntu etc along with tablets and smartphones (all in sync for read/unread status, starred items). You can have thousands of interface choices thanks to Google Reader API. And yes, you can always mix feeds in Google Reader to create your own feed DJ (which is not possible with Google Currents).

Google Reader
Google Reader is a Web-based tool for gathering, reading, and sharing all the interesting blogs and websites you read on the web.
It was released by Google on October 7, 2005 and graduated from beta status on September 17, 2007. Is available on any modern web browser with JavaScript enabled.

For further information visit:

Google Support - Getting started with Google Reader
Wikipedia - Google Reader

Google Currents
Google Currents is an APP that delivers beautiful magazine-like editions to your tablet and smartphone for high speed and offline reading.
It was released by Google in December 2011 is currently available for Android and iOS devices.

For further information visit:

Google Currents Webpage
Google play - Google Currents page
Wikipedia - Google Currents

To answer your questions

What's the difference between the two?

R: The major difference is that Google Currents is an APP to be installed on your tablet or smartphone, while the Google Reader is a web-based application.

Is there any reason to use one over the other?

R: The major reason is that Google Current is currently available for tablet and smartphones, while the Google Reader, being a web-based application can be used on every device with an JavaScript ready web browser.

Does Currents replace Reader?

R: Haven't found any indication that Google Currents came to replace Google Reader. Actually the opposite seems to be happening, as the Google Currents can accept your feeds from your Google Reader account. Think of Google Currents as a more flexible way of reading feeds without the need of a web browser.

Reader APP vs Currents APP
You've mentioned on the comment for this answer that there's a Currents app and a Reader app. Yes, it does exists and I didn't know about it.
Just installed to compare the differences:

Reader APP:
Continues to be a plain old fashioned RSS feed, just with a new "face".
From Differences between the mobile and standard web interface (Google Support)

The mobile interface accesses the same subscriptions as the standard web interface, and items read on your mobile device will be marked as read in the standard interface as well. Similarly, items read on the web will be marked as read in the mobile interface. The only difference is that you can't set up subscriptions from your mobile device.

Currents app:
Instead of adding direct RSS feeds, you can add featured sites from well over 150 publishers that Google has partnered with. They include Forbes, TechCrunch, AllThingsD, The Huffington Post, ABC News, Al Jazeera, and The Guardian.
You can choose sites from other featured topics including Business, Design, Science & Tech, Sports, and your RSS feeds from your Google Reader account.
Additionally, you can be a Google Producer and add your own content to Google Currents.

Well there's a Currents app and a Reader app (and you can use the browser too like Gmail, Maps, Youtube)... both of which pretty much does the same thing.  Just found it weird to have both apps from Google do the same thing though I see that Reader is more flexible since you can use it on a computer.

@Jack I've updated my answer, refer to the Reader APP vs Currents APP section to see my clarification regarding what you've mentioned on the comment.

Hmm now that you mention it, I haven't thought about the "Mark as read" functionality.  I guess Currents doesn't actually mark the posts as read.  Reader has widget much like the Gmail and Calendar widgets while Currents doesn't.  Though the Currents app does look a lot prettier (with scrolling images of new posts in your subs), you have to read it like a book by swiping side to side while Reader is traditional scrolling.  Seems to be mostly UI differences though.  Thanks for the answer.

You can add new subscriptions from the reader app. As I see it currents is for people with lots of time: I can go through 200 items in 3 minutes using the reader app starring stuff to read later.

One other important thing to add about Google Currents is that depending on how many things you subscribe to, it can add on tons of megabytes to your phone's memory. I have a Samsung Galaxy S3 and I noticed that with my subscriptions and feeds, the Currents app is currently eating up 180 mb of memory on my phone.
If that is not a problem for you, then Currents is a nice format to read info that you receive from your Google reader or maybe check out some magazines even. I myself can go without the frills to save that space on my phone. I believe in the end, it all just boils down to personal preference .


text:
Factory reset (including USB storage) prompts for password after I already typed it in
I went into Settings->Privacy->Factory reset and checked "Format USB Storage". Then I pressed the button to continue and it prompted for my PIN (just numbers) as usual. Then it said it was formatting the USB storage as I told it to. And then it just shut off. So I started it back up and it prompted for a password (full keyboard; any characters you want).
I don't know what I had set that password to (I haven't used that kind of a password in a while) so now I'm stuck. Going into recovery mode does the same thing. Download mode works just fine.
So now what do I do? Is there some way I can format /data manually from my computer?
Here's some more info about my device:
Samsung Galaxy Player 4.0
Samsung Galaxy S build.prop
Rooted
Stock Gingerbread ROM, stock kernel, stock recovery

Either it's possible with the stock recovery or, last resort, go full metal jacket and install a custom recovery (and maybe also a custom rom in that course) using heimdall and this guide

Since I don't know what the password is, I played around with it and failed enough times that it told me that if I failed one more time I could lose data on the SD card. So I failed one more time (I didn't care about the SD card) and it did the reset just fine.

If your Recovery Mode is also password protected, you are out of luck with GUI interface from device.
Go to Download Mode and flash the ROM. This is the only solution if you don't have password.

You can "wipe user data" from recovery mode, though that also means that you get to spend a few hours setting up your phone again.

Except that recovery mode prompted for the password too. I couldn't do anything else.


text:
Will I lose any apps / data if I upgrade my phone's OS?
I'm planning to upgrade my Galaxy S2's OS from android 2.3 to 4.0. This is an official upgrade from Samsung.
It sounds like it's an easy process. Just download the Kies program from Samsung and follow the instructions. But as I've never done it before on an android, would I still have all my apps and data? Or will I have to redownload them all again?
Is there a chance that something could go wrong?

Is there a chance that something could go wrong?

Yes, always!
There's a reason you should always keep up to date backups of anything that is of importance to you, because things do go wrong.
That said, I didn't have any issues what so ever upgrading my Galaxy S2, it just worked.

Except that to backup stuff you need root..

You don't usually have to wipe your data from a carrier upgrade. However, it's possible to have issues requiring data to be cleared for specific apps, and it's also possible that the upgrade will wipe your data for you.
Never fear, though. If you have the current version of Play Store on your phone now, then when you update to 4.0, even if you have to wipe your phone, all of your apps will be re-downloaded automatically (just don't interrupt the process when it starts). Data for apps which use Google Backup Service will also be restored, though only a small fraction of apps use this service.

That implies the user was insane enough, to send all his data to Google(’s Backup Service). No actual human would do this, so this only applies to humanoid drones.

I've read some say they've kept their data, but I've read others that say they got wiped. The best way to handle it is really to root and take a ROM backup first, but short of that, just back up as much as you can beforehand. There are apps to back up your text messages without root. The only way that I'm aware of to back up specific app data also requires root. I'll note here that anything on your SD card and internal memory should be safe, but it's always a good idea to back that up too.
Given that it's a fairly major upgrade, I wouldn't be surprised if it wiped your data deliberately. ICS is significantly different from Gingerbread, which means there could be a bunch of conflicts and incompatibilities. When flashing custom ROMs, it's generally recommended/required to wipe data first. That doesn't mean it will happen with this update, but it makes me wonder how reliable things would be if they didn't wipe.

The only time I lost any data when upgrading is when I manually wiped all the data.

One of the advantages of official updates is that they deliberately change the db schemas to the same as the old one.

@Richard Borcsick thanks for the clarification. I hadn't heard that before. Is that pretty standard across vendors?

I've seen this done by HTC and Samsung, so I guess it is. That's how they ensure that you don't need to wipe between updates. (And this is why you might need to wipe when you use custom roms - they use different schemas, so when the app tries to read it, it crashes. )

If the update works as it should (which is very likely), then you will still have all your apps and data. However, since some apps may have been upgraded in 4.0, their setting options may change. So after the upgrade, it's a good idea to check your settings.
A few apps (usually games which no longer get updates) are not compatible with android 4.0 so you might lose 1 or 2.
However, it's always safest to backup in case something goes wrong. Seeing as you will be using Kies for the upgrade anyway, you might as well use Kies to back up as much of your data as possible. You can backup contacts, SMS, calendar, music, photos, settings and more.
I'm not sure if Kies backs up your Downloads folder. If it doesn't you will need to manually copy that folder to your desktop.
If the upgrade deletes your apps they will be reinstalled by Google Play as soon as you login. Your apps will be backed up on Google Play, but the settings and data will not (usually). So you would lose your game data, for example.

It is very likely that the update works as it should and will not wipe any data, but of course things could go wrong.
This is very unlikely though, and because most of your stuff is already backed up by Google, most of your data will be kept even if the update failed.
Most apps are already updated to 4.0, but you might lose some.
I suggest you do a backup of your important data (Kies can do this) and then take the update.
Just don't fear, it'll probably work fine. Just take a small backup and you'll be safe.
Hope that helps.
--LProd


text:
Galaxy S3 Active Sync is not working, any help?
I cant sync my business email on my Android mobile (a Galaxy S3 with Android 4.0.4).
I tried to set up a business email account but all I get is unable to connect to server after I'm done with the set up. I'm pretty sure server and configuration details are correct.
I'm trying to connect to Microsoft exchange 2010.
Any idea how I can fix this issue?

I had the same problem and downloaded Touchdown for Smartphones, which worked.  Will Send the phone back as clearly the bundled app that came with the phone isn't working but another program with the same settings worked.  Only bought the S3 a week ago, first phone the WIFI and the Bluetooth wouldn't switch on, 2nd phone no exchange e-mail, third time lucky?


text:
What if I accidentally checked CDMA/LTE instead of GSM/HPA+ in the Galaxy Nexus Root Toolkit?
I tried to use WugFresh's Galaxy Nexus Root Toolkit to root my device, but I accidentally selected CDMLA/LTE while I have a GSM model.
I tried flashing CWM recovery afterwards, but it didn't work. Now I'm stuck at the white Google loading screen.
I tried doing a factory rest and flashing the stock rom, but it's still stuck.

??? What happened?

I tried to use WugFresh's "Galaxy Nexus Root Toolkit" in order to unlock and root my device. In the program itself, I mischecked at "select your model type" by putting "CDMA/LTE" instead of "GSM/HSPA+" how I was supposed. I am asking whether it somehow affected the rooting process because later I tried to flash clockworkmod and it didn't work. After that I even tried to flash a new ROM which didn't work either and now I'm stuck at the white Google logo loading screen. I tried factory reset, I tried flashing a stock ROM but since I don't have access I can't put the phone on debugging...

No worries. The Nexus line is rather fail safe. It pays that you bought one of the most hassle-free-to-tinker-with phones on the market. See CyanogenMod's guide if you want to use CM9. Thats rather uncomplicated. Do you miss some data, have you backed up?

No backup unfortunately. No worries though about the data because the phone was new... so not much data to backup. My problem is now that my computer doesn't see the phone anymore so I can't flash anything.

Turn the phone off and then hold down both volume buttons and the power button until the phone vibrates. Now you're in fastboot mode. The PC might recognise the phone. You can try downloading and installing one of the galaxy nexus factory images from google. Follow the instructions at the top of that page and make sure you choose the right model.

In root toolkit use the bricked option, selecting soft-bricked, should flash stock, however make sure you select the right version of your phone in options (in NRT) before you start.


text:
What is the difference between AOSP/vanilla and stock?

Possible Duplicate:
What's the difference between an AOSP ROM and a stock ROM?

When referring to Android ROMs or kernels (etc.), what is the difference between:

AOSP ("vanilla")
Stock

@cd4 Since kernel building is also done by experienced Android end-users it would say this question is ok.

@ce4: This is not necessarily a developer question. If someone wanted to roll their own custom ROM to flash onto their device, for instance.

reverted. You're right, one might just know the difference between those. Well, HTCs stock kernel itself is based on the AOSP kernel because AOSP's kernel  is not a vanilla kernel.org kernel but heavily patched as needed by android. However backporting of new android version's kernel patches or integrating htc's patches into a newer AOSP kernel is not for the faint hearted and definitely a dev task and not for power users. my 2ct

I've broadened this slightly since it doesn't really affect the answer, and removed the contentious points.  As noted we can't help you with developer questions here, but do feel free to ask any other questions relevant to end-users (like this one) that fit our [FAQ].

Oh man, I just found the duplicate.  Sorry about that.  Since I have the accepted answer to it I will make my answer Community Wiki, I don't want to redirect rep from the below answerers to myself.

Related http://meta.android.stackexchange.com/q/852/27149

They are both Linux, but the AOSP kernel is a very standardized, general Linux kernel provided by Google that requires minimal modification to work across different devices, to make it easier for manufacturers to get Android working.
The various modifications made by manufacturers to their own kernels relate to the different hardware found in these devices. So HTC may enable some features in their stock kernel that only works on that particular HTC device and would not work on other devices by other manufacturers.
An example of such a feature is voice recording which was present in a certain version of the HTC Hero stock kernel, but this feature would not be possible on the AOSP kernel because the drivers being used for voice recording were only compatible with the HTC kernel, not with the AOSP version.
Similarly, an AOSP ROM is one built directly from Google's unmodified sources whereas a stock ROM is the manufacturer-modified version of Android that comes with a device or is released as an official update.

AOSP software is released by the Android Open Source Project (i.e., by Google), while stock software may include modifications by manufacturers.


text:
Why Do I Need to Wipe Dalvik Cache?
When I'm updating a custom ROM, there's always an instruction to wipe the Dalvik cache. I don't see a reason why this is necessarily.
Watching the logcat while the system is booting I can clearly see that if an app changed, its dex file is invalidated and then regenerated. Yet still when I mention this anywhere I'm met with silence. As if not even some ROM developers are aware of this and they're only doing this because everyone else does.
So the questions:

Was there an Android version where Dalvik files were not invalidated during boot?
Is there any advantage in doing this yourself, instead of letting the system do the work it's supposed to do?

An ideal answer would include references to the relevant code, so I would have a reference the next time this comes up.

To answer your questions:

Am not aware of any Android version where the Dalvik was not invalidated on boot. Maybe the initial version 1.0 had that, I really do not know, have gone through Eclair, Froyo, Gingerbread, Ice Cream Sandwich. You need to look into the source tree and rebase it back to CupCake or Donut (1.5 and 1.6 respectively)
The detailed reason :)

The reason the Wipe Cache must be used is because all apks, including system apks, have a dex file attached to it, when the ROM is booted up for the first time, Android's Dalvik goes through each and every one of those apks, and extract the dex file from it and place it in the cache /data/dalvik-cache thereby speeding up the execution of the app itself.
Most ROMs have apks that are odex 'ed, the cache is bundled into the apk itself as an external file.
A lot of custom ROM modders would have those apks deodex 'd, meaning the dex file is replaced and repackaged to make it easier to theme/modify an apk.
When you flash a custom ROM, and did not wipe the cache, the newer custom ROM's apk's will have a different dex file attached to it, and when the Dalvik goes through them, it sees the existing cached dex file found in the directory, and skips it, then when you run the app, you're guaranteed a force close or ANR (Application Not Responding).
You are not losing data per se, if using ClockWorkMod Recovery, and Wipe Data is selected, then yes, all the settings relating to the apps are wiped cleanly - look in /data/app.
So you can Wipe Cache but not Wipe Data, what is done effectively, is slotted in the newer apks in place, in which it has the settings retained. This was quite a common scenario with CyanogenMod nightlies where a unstable/testing ROM build is flashed, and the settings retained with cache wipe. The mileage will vary depending on what apps downloaded from the market (settings would have changed by version bump quite likely).
For best results it would be wise to perform both Wipe Data and Wipe Cache to ensure integrity and no program errors within the app itself.
Yes that would mean the boot time would be slower but its initial once off moment. After that it would be booting quicker. Really in a nutshell, explicitly wiping the cache itself via CWM actually helps speed it up and ensure no residue from the previous version in place which could get munged in (Now at this stage, am realizing your question so in all fairness, have not actually seen Android not performing the invalidating of the cache itself upon boot when flashing a new ROM..)
Use the source Luke seriously! :D
frameworks/base/core/java/com/android/internal/os/ZygoteInit.java is the bootup code for each apk runtime. It interacts with the native C code found in the dalvik directory tree which contains specific chipset instructions to interpret the bytecode within the apk to native CPU instruction set. ARMv6 is pretty much a hacked version of ARMv5 (which was the original chipset in the older Android versions prior to Eclair), so you will not see ARMv6 in the AOSP source from google. CyanogenMod will have that ARMv6 in their source.

For the sake of this discussion let's assume that we're talking about an official CM7 release. Let me start by saying that I've never, ever wiped my dalvik cache and never experienced problems that would be solved by doing so. Because it's not odexed, there is no way there can be multiple (o)dex files present, and thus on boot the old file is replaced by a newly generated one. Oh and if it's a really big deal why don't the developers add this into the updater script? I will check out the source, thanks.

You can actually explicitly put that into the updater-script, but that can piss others off when flashing because "Oh crap, I lost my settings/data" and CM probably did not want to get burned by the flame questions/answers as in "Why did you wipe my cache when flashing a new release of CM?" - maybe its down to responsibility of CM so gave that option to the end user? And putting it back on them so that if they flashed without wipe, and whine on the forums a lá "Hey my app is crashing", CM can turn around and say "Did you wipe?"

I didn't mean data/data but data\dalvik-cache. Possibly just the system ones.

Stock AOSP ROMs are odexed, CM have modified the build system to use deodex.... just saying ;)

Last final comment, Some ROM Modders would either base their code of AOSP vanilla, CAF, or CM, so if you were to go from CM to CAF for instance, then explicitly wipe  the data/cache, due to differences, likewise same for going from AOSP to CM. Common sense comes into play here. But you seem to be focussed purely on CM, going from one nightly to the next or from stable to next stable, then yes no negligble differences in there apart from ROM signing keys etc. Likewise, if you are on GB CM72, and go to ICS CM9, then yes it would be prudent to do the same!

I'm only focused on CM because I only visit CM threads on forums, so I only see what they say. For switching between mayor branches I can understand the need to wipe it (differences in the VM maybe?) or between OS version (2.3 to 4.0), but I never do it for anything else, and my phone works OK. So it looks like for the original case (updating to never rom version) it's really just to have something as an insurance if users come complaining.

Note: this mindless do something because everyone else does it, is very common among modaco's rom chefs (the guys who work with winzip)

let us continue this discussion in chat

Thanks for the detailed answer t0mm13b.  Just so I'm clear... It seems the simple answer to the question posted is "You don't.  It's wiped by default at boot time."  Correct?

Does this answer still holds for Android 7 or higher? Because it seems dalvik caches aren't been generated upon reboot once they are deleted. what's happening?


text:
Google play login different GSM carriers
I moved to the USA from Kenya with my android handset, but am unable to log in to google play on my new network, T-mobile.
Can anyone help me fix this?

Contact Google...

Go to Settings > Applications > Manage Applications. Select Google Play Store from the list. Select Clear data. Then try using Google Play again.


text:
Audible Caller ID on Galaxy S3
Every time I recieve a call or a text message my phone audibly says out the name of the caller/sender.
How can I stop this?

It is a configuration that must be active to give you that information, usually it is used when you're driving, to prevent accidents:
Turn off the voice notifications:

Go to settings menu
Click on "Voice input and output" option
Select the option "Text-to-speech settings".
Uncheck the Driving mode setting.

From the user's manual
Driving mode: Activate Driving mode to provide audible notifications for incoming calls, messages, or event details.

Change alerts on call settings:

Settings
Call Settings
All calls
Alerts on call
Change from "voice" to "vibration" or "off" etc

I don't have the option within Settings as mentioned above on my S3. Instead I drag down the top toolbar and uncheck the Driving Mode option. (Scroll to the right as it is not usually immediately visible.)

Great - thanks - didn't know I could scroll top toolbar down so somerthing else I've learned !


text:
Tablets being able to make calls
I wonder can any of the Android tablets make calls (it's about Cellular calls, not Skype or other)?
Yeah, I am okay to have 7' or even 10' tablet near my ear and have a talk (well, or use headsets).
Having those tablets being able to make calls would make me throw the smartphone away and have the single gadget.
I know that Galaxy Tab 7' is capable doing this.
But how about Galaxy Tab 10' or Nexus 7?
Are they capable? Or is there any possibility to make them having this feature?

The Galaxy Tab 10.1 can make 2G/3G calls and calls over Wifi with Voip apps like Skype or Tango.
The Nexus 7 can only make calls over Wifi with Voip apps as I already mentioned. There would be no easy way of getting the Nexus 7 to make 2G/3G calls as it would require adding a radio to the tablet.

Galaxy Tab 10.1 can make cellular calls is that correct? HOw bout  the Galaxy Tab 2 10'?

Yes, it has a cellular radio.


text:
can i get a froyo 2.2 or other latest android OS which i can put on my samsung omnia i900 with all bluetooth, wifi, cdma and other phone features?

Possible Duplicate:
Can I install Android on my non-Android device?

my phone specifications:
Samsung i900 Omnia
Also known as Samsung WiTu

GENERAL 2G Network  GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
3G Network  HSDPA 2100
Announced   2008, June. Released 2008, July
Status  Discontinued
BODY    Dimensions  112 x 56.9 x 12.5 mm
Weight  122 g
DISPLAY Type    TFT resistive touchscreen, 256K colors (65K effective)
Size    240 x 400 pixels, 3.2 inches (~146 ppi pixel density)
    - Optical trackpad
- Handwriting recognition
SOUND   Alert types Vibration; Downloadable polyphonic, MP3 ringtones
Loudspeaker Yes
3.5mm jack  No
MEMORY  Card slot   microSD, up to 16GB (verified)
Internal    8 GB/16 GB storage, 128 MB RAM, 256 MB ROM
DATA    GPRS    Class 12 (4+1/3+2/2+3/1+4 slots), 32 - 48 kbps
EDGE    Class 12
Speed   HSDPA, 7.2 Mbps
WLAN    Wi-Fi 802.11b/g
Bluetooth   Yes, v2.0 with A2DP
USB Yes, v2.0
CAMERA  Primary 5 MP, 2592х1944 pixels, autofocus, LED flash
Features    Geo-tagging, face and smile detection, image stabilization, wide dynamic range
Video   Yes
Secondary   Videocall camera
FEATURES    OS  Microsoft Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional
CPU Marvell PXA312 624 MHz
Sensors Accelerometer
Messaging   SMS (threaded view), EMS, MMS, Email, Instant Messaging
Browser WAP 2.0/xHTML, HTML, RSS feeds
Radio   Stereo FM radio with RDS
GPS Yes, with A-GPS support
Java    Yes, MIDP 2.0
Colors  Modern Black
    - Pocket Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, PDF viewer)
- MP3/AAC/AAC+/WMA/OGG/AMR player
- DivX/XviD/WMV/MP4 player
- TV-out
- Voice memo
BATTERY     Standard battery, Li-Ion 1440 mAh
Stand-by    Up to 500 h (2G) / 450 h (3G)
Talk time   Up to 5 h 50 min (2G) / 6 h 30 min (3G)
MISC    SAR US   0.39 W/kg (head)     0.52 W/kg (body)
SAR EU   0.67 W/kg (head)
Price group
TESTS   Loudspeaker Voice 70dB / Noise 64dB / Ring 75dB
Audio quality   Noise -79.3dB / Crosstalk -78.7dB

Yes, it has been done. You can find the directions here.

thanks Michael Hampton but this build does not have any support for wifi, calls, bluetooth, mic and it is very unstable and gets the phone to become very hot. i have already tried it.

any1 else with a more accurate solution?

Exactly what is inaccurate about my answer?

Michael Hampton
i have tried this rom before and it's no good than just to go through menu. no calls, wifi or any other phone features. u said nothing inaccurate. i just need an accurate version of android to to test on my phone.

That seems to be the only build of Android available for your device. If it doesn't meet your needs, then you should probably get a different phone.

its ok my friend.........just wondering if some one else was working on android versions with more improvements for this phone.........that is why posted on this website in the first place.