text:
Can your android device get malware?
I admit, I watch porn now and then on my android phone. But I never, ever, download something or click any adds or links. But here's the weird thing, sometimes when I visit such a website, an automatic download starts. I thought I removed them but when I installed an antivirus it detected 5 threats, all from that site. And the weirdest is, when I installed an other antivirus, it detected 4 more threats! Are these the same threats or did the first antivirus fail on me?
And do android devices get severe viruses?

Did you see: http://android.stackexchange.com/q/341/23379 and http://android.stackexchange.com/q/4236/23379

No, Android doesn't "get severe viruses" or malware much; it's Linux based, and is generally quite secure from being exploited even if a user does manage to install a malicious app.  And while it is possible to get it from a website that uses an exploit on a mobile browser, it is extraordinarily improbable.  Most likely the AV is reporting non-malware like tracking cookies as "threats".
More details:
AV companies define "threats" extremely broadly, in order to keep users paranoid and buying their software.  One of the ways they do this is to include things like tracking cookies and the like, which aren't technically malware.  This is probably what your AV is "detecting", as website drive-by malware infection on Android is hugely unlikely.  AV for the average user is useless on Android (and worse, slows down your phone); AV providers prey on user ignorance and fear from the fact that Windows requires AV (which most users have had drilled into them by now) to sell their products for Android.
The most likely scenario for getting malware is installing an app from someplace other than Play (sideloading), followed by being incautious when installing a Play app and not bothering to check the permissions an app is asking for (even then, extremely unlikely that it could do much other than send some of your personal info to a server for marketers to buy, or use up your bandwidth to pop up ads).
Many malicious websites will start automatic downloads, in the hopes that you'll be foolish enough to run whatever is being downloaded.  So long as you don't install whatever it is, there isn't a problem.


text:
Samsung Galaxy S2 boot loop
Today I updated my S2 with the android version provided by the carrier, but I thought it went wrong because of the lack of space on /storage and afterwords some of the apps lost their settings. Also after the update all the apps started to have disk space errors when trying to update, so I deleted some of the apps or moved them to external sd, but still had little space on the 2Gb partition.
I looked for a rooting solution and since I'm on Ubuntu I downloaded Heimdall.
I downloaded the latest firmware version for I9100 from sammobile.com and in console I ran the following command (saw this in a tutorial)
sudo heimdall flash --factoryfs factoryfs.img

And I got this error
Uploading FACTORYFS
21%
ERROR: Failed to confirm end of file transfer sequence!
FACTORYFS upload failed!
Ending session...
Rebooting device...
Re-attaching kernel driver...

Now everytime I try to boot my phone it goes into recovery mode.
How can I get pass the booting sequence and install a new and functional android rooted version? Am I missing something in the process, is my first attempt to root my phone.

source: Stack Exchange

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

sort: votes


text:
how to open a .hbk files which contains the sms backup from htc one s
I can't open the backup of sms because after sending it on my mail I discovered it's a hbk file. How can you open this type of file?
I need to print them! thanks

Have you seen this blog entry about it?

Does renaming the file with a different extension work, like *.txt or *.zip?

In case you no longer have a copy of the SMS on your phone, but have backed-up the SMS to your PC or email, you need a combination of t0mm13b's comment and bmdixon's answer.
As  mentioned, it's not possible to open .hbk files on the PC. What you can do is:

Restore the .hbk to your phone as SMS

In your SD card, make sure you have a folder called sms_backup. If this doesn't exist, create it. This will be in the same level as the Android folder.
Copy the .hbk file to the sms_backup folder
Restore the SMS from the SMS settings

Export the SMS as .xml using SMS Backup & Restore
Email the .xml file to your PC
After downloading the .xml file, open it from a program like Notepad or Microsoft word, and print.

Take note that XML has a weird structure, so expect to see a lot of tags (in greater than and less than signs).

I don't think it's possible to open this file on your computer. It can only be read by the HTC SMS app.
If you still have the sms on your phone you could install SMS Backup & Restore which will allow you to back them up as xml which you can then print from your pc.

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


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How to restore adb backup on Nexus 4 (boot loop)?
Recently I have flashed unofficial cyanogenmod 10.2 for my Nexus 4. After testing some features I the device came into a "bootloop" (stays on cyanogenmod logo launcher).
I tried to reflash it with cm 10.1 (wipe dalvik cache and /cache partition) but the same effect.
Now I have completed the adb backup but if I restore it I get the same effect as described above.
I can launch the device successfully on clear cm 10.1 but it won't boot after restore of my backup. What can I do now ?

Do not restore the full backup taken, but Restore only part of it. And do it "piece by piece", so if the error re-occurs you at least know where it comes from and can skip the faulty part.
Edit: As I was not fully clear about where I pointed to: Titanium Backup is capable of restoring parts from nandroid as well as adb backups.

While that is true, my answer there is still partly valid here (will update my answer to reflect that – sorry for confusion)


text:
Can I share my wifi connection to wifi tethering?
Can I do it on my android? I seem can't find any reference for it.

As in Can we use an Android phone as a Wi-Fi repeater?

Tethering is a feature that is usually offered by the carrier for an additional fee.  You should check with your carrier.  Also it would have helped to include which android device you have.....


text:
how can i get back in my phone
I was playing around with my phone lock app and put in a pin password I later turn back on my phone and realized I forgot my pin I have no idea what to do will i still be able to get back in my phone I have tried turning it on and off,holding the power button with the lower volume sign nothing worked.

What phone? Android version?

I never use pins to unlock keyboards, but in pattern unlocking there was a choice where you were authenticating yourself with your google credentials. Not sure if it is applicable in android 4. So, if you are in Android 2, try many times.

If you enter your pin incorrectly a number of times, the device should present you with a temporary time lock. If you continue to enter it incorrectly you should be prompted to login with the Google account associated with your device to disable the lock.


text:
How to delete whatsapp without a SD card or a SIM card installed?
I have taken out my SIM card and SD card as I have a new phone, how do I delete whatsapp, as messages are still being received to my old phone?

In addition to the gettchang's answer below, you will not be receiving any messages to the old phone. You will receive new messages to the new device which has your SIM card. So no more ..messages are still being received to my old phone... :)

Uninstall Whatsapp from Google Play or from the phone's Application Manager (In the Samsung Galaxy S4, Settings > More > Application Manager).
If it's a pre-installed app and cannot be uninstalled by regular means, clear its data via Application Manager. In the Application Manager, click Whatsapp and you might see buttons like Clear data and Clear cache.

You might factory reset the old phone as well.

Just install the WhatsApp on your new phone, and sign-in with the same number. WhatsApp will automatically stop forwarding the message to your old phone, and you'll start receiving the messages on your new phone.
To uninstall WhatsApp from your phone, you can go to Settings > Application Manager > Scroll down to WhatsApp > Click on it > Click on uninstall and you are done.

You just need to install WhatsApp on your new phone and sign-in with the new phone. After you have signed in and verfied the account, WhatsApp automatically changes the password. The old phone which uses the old password won't be allowed to connect to the WhatsApp webservice anymore.


text:
Android shell script permissions?
I have a rooted phone, and I was playing around with Terminal Emulator. I tried writing a simple shell script (test.sh) :
#!/bin/sh
echo "Hello, World!"

Then I opened terminal emulator, cd'd to the directory my script was in, and typed:
./test.sh

and I got a  "permission denied"  error. So I tried:
su
./test.sh

Somehow, still permission denied. So I tried (still as root) :
chmod 775 test.sh
busybox chmod 775 test.sh
busybox chmod +X test.sh

None of the 3 gave errors, but ./test.sh still gave permission denied!  As a last resort I tried
sh test.sh

That ended up working. Finally.
I'm curious why permission was denied for my own shell script chmodded to 775 when run as root. How can permission be denied for anything as root? How can I fix this and make ./test.sh work?

This largely depends on where in the filesystem the script is, so if you could add that it would likely be helpful. If it's on the SD card (or whatever your device uses as "external storage") then you'd probably have to remount the partition or something, because Android mounts it with the noexec flag by default.

It is on the SD card. I'll try remounting.

busybox chmod +X test.sh is wrong, you’d want to be using +x (lower-case). Anyway, 775 ends up being the same, so it’s the noexec issue.

Execute permissions on the SDCard is blocked for that reason.
See this:
/dev/block/vold/179:1 /mnt/sdcard vfat rw,dirsync,nosuid,nodev,**noexec**,relatime,uid=1000,gid=1015,fmask=0602,dmask=0602,allow_utime=0020,codepage=cp437,iocharset=iso8859-1,shortname=mixed,utf8,errors=remount-ro 0 0

The noexec part of this line emphasized with two asterisks is the key to prevent any execution of scripts/binaries from the SDCard.
Have a funny feeling this was answered before...deja-vu
Edit
Yup @Izzy has answered this before and here as well.


text:
Android Sat Nav Apps
I have a few questions about Sat Nav applications running on Android.

Does the pre-installed sat nav app require a connection to the web? Does it operate in car and pedestrian modes and be updated automatically.
Am I right in thinking that the after market purchase of the Tom-Tom app can function without internet connection?

Thanks for any replies.

Android provides different methods for localization. Some of them are network based, some cell based, some GPS based, some mixed (well, that was simplified).
So yes: You could use plain GPS without network. Might take a little longer to get your initial fix, though. (Assisted GPS aka AGPS can speed this up, but requires a network connection.)
And quite logically yes to your second question as well, as far as GPS is concerned. For map data, if it's already downloaded to your device, no data connection is required either. But if you need updates while on the way, or want to be updated about traffic, things are certainly a little different.


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How can I do ADB backup without PC?
I can backup with PC by "adb backup"command.
 But can I create backup file without using a PC somehow?
Android device standalone.

Yes you can. There are some tools to provide you with this functionality, e.g. Helium - App Sync and Backup. If your device is rooted, this app should work out-of-the-box. Otherwise you will need to initialize it once after each device start (reboot), which then requires a PC with ADB.

As requested in the comments, a few hints on how to get Helium started on a non-rooted device. First, this requires you to have at least a basic setup of ADB done on your computer (see: Is there a minimal installation of ADB?). Having met that, it should be as easy as enabling USB-Debugging on your Android device, connecting it via USB to the PC, and run the helper script downloaded from Helum's web page. The last 3 steps have to be repeated only once after each reboot of the device, and activate a background process Helium itself requires but cannot start itself (the user via ADB has higher privileges than an app in user-space, and thus can).

my device is not rooted.can helium do backup without pc?

Yes. If your device is not rooted, you only need a PC once after each restart/boot of your device to get a background service started (no "normal" app gets enough elevated rights for that, so ADB has to do). For the backups themselves you don't need any additional device, and they are done to your SDCard.

Izzy - Can you elaborate on how to initialize the program with ADB, after each restart?

That depends on your pre-conditions. But you're right, I should include some hints although they can be find on the app's page.


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Unable to upgrade rooted 4.2.2 with OTA update 4.3
I bought my Nexus 4 from Google a while ago with 4.2.2 on it. It's using the stock rom, but it is rooted and has an unlocked bootloader.
When I try to install the OTA 4.3 update, the phone reboots and goes into Teamwin Recovery.
Then it looks like it tries to install it and then goes to the normal Teamwin recovery screen where I have to select Reboot > System to get back into the OS. And when I go back into the OS it's still 4.2.2.
What should I do? I think my best option is to manually install the update, but I don't know where it got downloaded to.


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Running TRIM from shell
Is it possible to run fstrim in stock android 4.3 from adb shell?
I understand it runs every 24 hours when the device is plugged in and idle but I would like to run on demand to test a few theories.

What phone are you using?

Any updates from your end? Don't forget to upvote and accept answer if it works.

WARNING: I have not tested this procedure.
You would need to have fstrim in system/bin. This XDA post has a DropBox download link.
start up adb and then switch users to root.
$ adb shell from your os terminal.
$ su to switch to the root user.
To copy fstrim to your /system/bin path you first need to mount the system path as Read/Write from adb or some other file manager
# mount -o remount,rw -t yaffs2 /dev/block/mtdblock3 /system to mount /system as R/W
Then copy fstrim to the system path.
# cp <pathtofstrim>/fstrim /system/bin
Next you need to change permissions of fstrim to include execute.
# chmod 766 /system/bin/fstrim to make fstrim executable by root
After setting the correct permissions on fstrim you can run these commands from adb (as root):
# fstrim -v /data
# fstrim -v /cache
# fstrim -v /system

OR, you could go the EASY WAY. Install the LagFix app, and trigger fstrim on demand, provided your device has fstrim support!

I'm running stock 4.3 and LagFix fails with permission error even though it has root. That looks promising but but I'm super hesitant given it has no comments. Not saying it's bad but I need to backup first. looking at it in a hex editor it has a number of good strings but since it's compiled who knows what it does :)

@hoss If you want to read more comments about LagFix, the developer has a thread for the app on XDA: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2104326 I say it's safe to use it. :)

Finally got LagFix working, I had to white list the app in su then clear the LagFix data then try again. Before I was getting a permission denied error even though it was white listed. I'll try this answer and see if it does as advertised.

I made some edits after doing some testing. The binary seems to be benign in that it doesn't seem to do anything malicious, and it seems to report that it did something but it's impossible to know if it did anything useful. I'll award this for the use of LagFix and if anyone can find an official fstrim bin that would complete the answer.

@hoss Did LagFix work? Did you download the fstrim on your phone, or did you download it on a Windows PC and copy it to your phone?

I did get LagFix working but I also tried the link you found and configured via adb.

Dropbox link is broken.

Do you mean permission=755 instead? Doesn't make sense to let non-root edit it.

On newer versions, Android runs fstrim with a daily schedule, provided that the conditions meet. Or it should run on a reboot if not run for 3+ days. See this answer for details.
However if you want to do TRIM manually, use Android's commandline tool sm fstrim. Previously this was vdc fstrim dotrim but added to Storage Manager in Oreo (1) and removed from vold in Pie (2).
In order to send FITRIM ioctl to selected filesystem(s) only, use fstrim tool; a busybox applet.
Both commands require root, or sm fstrim can be executed from adb shell.

vold, the (disk/eMMC) volume management daemon, has this built in.  Its shell client is called "vdc" (vold controller I guess, akin to rndc, remote name daemon controller for BIND).  The command and its relevant arguments, as the superuser, would be:
vdc fstrim dotrim
Note that at least on my tablet, 4.4.4, this will only trim /cache and /data, but this is mostly what I think you'd want.  You can see its progress with logcat (e.g., logcat from a shell on the device or adb logcat on a USB connected host).  Vold will output a message about each volume it trims and the fact that it's finished (in logcat).

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


text:
How to use AT commands in Android by 'root' the phone
We have various Android devices from Spike, Samsung, Micromax, etc. How can we issue AT commands from Android to the modem? We searched in Google Play but did not find any app related to this.
This Stack Overflow question suggests:

[F]irst you have to root the phone...`

How can we do this?

Please list your specific model(s) in the description on how to root the device. It looks like the overall question (how to use AT commands) is a developer-type question, which is out of scope on this site; at the very least, it appears to be answered, at the link you already provided, on stackoverflow.

possible duplicate of How do I root my Android device?

@DanHulme: The "how to root my Android device?" can be solved by giving your hint, but the rest is definitely not a dupe of that other question.

The question you linked to has the information you need to access the modem. You might also find this SO answer helpful for accessing the modem. Be warned that the device file you need to use is different for each model of phone, so you'll have to examine /dev on each device to find out which file to use.
As it points out, you need to be root to do this. The rooting process is different for each model of phone. For most models, you have to wipe the phone to achieve it, as the process involves unlocking the bootloader (and maybe flashing a custom recovery) in order to flash the su binary into the system image. Some models have security vulnerabilities you can exploit with a program you download, to achieve this without unlocking the bootloader. How do I root my Android device? explains more about the process, and has an index of questions about rooting particular devices.


text:
How can one know if one's battery is damaged
What are the signs of a damaged or completely drained battery for Samsung Galaxy Note II? The battery displays it is empty and yet does not charge. It does not power the phone either. Am confused

You can check the the battery status using the service menu of your android device.
You can see the current battery level there. The device suggests whether or not to change the battery.


text:
A second Boot Loop, any underlying causes?
Recently, a while after I rooted my Galaxy SII, I decided to take the plunge and flash a custom rom.
I went with the stable slimbean roms, It survived for a little over a month or two, with 1 maybe 2 updates to newer builds, but about 2.5 weeks back, it went into a boot loop.
I tried most solutions I could find, and nothing helped, so in the end I flashed AOKP rom, and that worked really well for 2 weeks. Now even that is stuck in a boot loop.
I am trying to figure out if these are one off things or if it is something I am doing wrong or could it be a hardware fault?
Details-

When I went from slimbean - AOKP, I did do a clean wipe (tried once without wipe and it was stuck in boot loop) but after the clean wipe I came across Nandroid Manager, and used it to restore my user apps data back.
The couple of days before it died I experienced some general sporadic slowdown along with a wierd problem that sometimes it would completely freeze when playing a song for a second or 2. I put that down to either sdcard issues or song corruption, but now I am not sure.

Those bootloops may happen because the ROMs you are using are not stable enough. and may by you do something on your phone that the ROM that you are using does not like(keeping in mind that may by the rom you are using is not so stable). I recommand reisntalling again a custom rom, but you allways have to do a full wipe of your phone and clear dalvik cache!

You could try connecting the phone to PC and reboot. After powering down, start  adb logcat on computer. In this way you could see system logs during booting and may find what's wrong with the phone.

I Tried, but didnt get anything, I assumed the phone side of the logging hadnt started yet? let me try again

yup, nothing, clean flashing a new rom now.. hope this one sticks


text:
Is the SHIELD an Android device with a fully open source software?
NVIDIA announced the Open Source Resources for the Tegra SHIELD device. Does this mean the SHIELD is a device with fully open-source software? How does it compare to another device, for example, the new Nexus 7 that will be released without the sources for the stock image, due to apparently issues with Qualcomm?

tl;dr NO, it is not fully open source.
From the site, SHIELD is described as a gaming platform based on the Android Jelly Bean OS. So, it uses Android, and you can create apps / games using Android. But most likely, they will also provide APIs that are usable only for the SHIELD device. If you look at the device, it has a lot of gaming controls or buttons that are clearly not available on a mobile phone.
The Open Source Resources section has a link to downloading (source codes, etc) and building your own OS image. So, it is Open Source (as of this time, anyway), but not completely. As Dan Hulme mentioned in the comments below, they still contain binary components, but are at least more open compared to Qualcomm.

To assist the Android open source and modding community, NVIDIA has
  published the required source code and binary packages to create
  custom OS images for SHIELD

How does it compare to a Nexus 7 2013? The SHIELD is a gaming device with gaming controls. Meanwhile, the Nexus 7 is a tablet. [Guess: While tablets can have Tegra chips, it's possible that the SHIELD can do other functions that a tablet cannot. In this case, you may be able to see the game on Google Play, but it may not be compatible with your device.]
UPDATE 2013-08-09: To answer your comment (and this is purely my opinion), I think that Qualcomm-based devices would not gain much attention among developers / modders, given that they can't do much about it. Think Apple / iOS. In this case, Tegra would have an advantage and have a larger community building apps for their platform. In short, Qualcomm's loss.
Related news on Qualcomm legal issue:

Legal Issues With Qualcomm May Prevent Factory Images For New Nexus 7 ('Flo') From Ever Being Published, JBQ Strongly Implies
Jean-Baptiste Queru quits Android project over Qualcomm drivers

How does it compare to another device, for example, the new Nexus 7 that will be released without the sources for the stock image, due to apparently issues with Qualcomm

@1486714871-896-4 Updated my answer.

Shame on Google for piling pressure on JBQ for quitting AOSP indirectly via Qualcomm's with-holding GPU drivers... my opinion. :)

@t0mm13b I think it's not Google's fault. Rather, it's JBQ's personal disappointment with Qualcomm that made him quit. But if Google did pressure JBQ, I would be interested to read more about that.

Like as I said its a opinion that he waited for 6 months to get the proper gpu drivers for nexus 7 (flo) to boot and couldn't get it out the door with the build.

No GPU vendor offers fully open-source drivers. The Tegra drivers have binary-only components too.

@t0mm13b Why are you telling me this? It doesn't change the fact that both the Qualcomm chip and the Tegra family have binary-only drivers.

@DanHulme Thanks for your comment. I edited that into the answer. :)


text:
Does Mobogenie for Android install adware on the phone?
Has anyone used Mobogenie? It looks like a very useful way to control an Android phone from a PC, but I found one review that says it installs adware in your browser. However, it wasn't clear if this was on the PC or on the phone.

What's your actual question? "Has anyone used x?" isn't a suitable question for this site, and I assume that's not actually what you want to know.

@DanHulme Rephrased the question

@geffchang Thanks for trying to help. I still intend to wait until we hear from the OP what he wants to know, rather than trying to guess.

Where did you see the review? Is it on Google Play, or a software review site [and which site]?


text:
Can the administrator on a Nexus 7 unlock a secondary user's password?
I've forgotten my password for the family's shared Nexus 7. We assumed that the primary user would be able to access my settings and reset the p/w for me, but it appears not.  I would prefer not to have to delete my account, and then recreate it, because I don't want to lose the various apps I've installed, and – frankly – I don't want the hassle! Can anyone help?
P.S. Note to self: next time, don't pick a password I am likely to forget.

Are you willing/able to run adb? See the following page: http://www.matthewhollander.com/locked-out-of-your-android-phone/ -- although in the end a factory reset and a reinstall of the apps might be the quickest solution.

Is it your lockscreen password, or the password on your Googel account that you've forgotten? If it's the lockscreen password have a look at this question (and the ones linked from it): Cannot unlock tablet as have no internet connection?. If its your Google account that you don't know the password for then try going through the wizard at https://www.google.com/accounts/recovery/


text:
For pre-Android 4.3, if a tablet (or any device) has root, will all its user accounts have root access?
This question is for Android 4.2 and below.
If a tablet (or any applicable Android device) has root, will all user accounts have root access? Will the SuperUser app also be installed for all users?
Also, would it be possible to disable root access for one of those users?
I no longer have a tablet, so I can't confirm this behavior myself.

With rooted device, only one account called root with both user and group id of zero is present, does not matter how many accounts there are. Similar to Mac OSX, Linux counterparts.
There is a singular Superuser.apk, all accounts can run an app that requires root privileges. It boils down to what apps have the permission granted. AFAIK Superuser.apk is not multi account aware? if I am wrong feel free to correct me
Multiple accounts are only available on tablets, however cannot confirm either as do not have one. :)


text:
Android: how to grant 666 privs to a device via ueventd.rc
I need to access an USB camera connected to my (rooted) Android. I'm on a Samsung Galaxy S4 with Android 4.2.2. I want to access it with a normal app, so I need the device to be world readable.
I can connect via shell and type
root@android:/ # su
root@android:/ # cd /dev
root@android:/dev # chmod 666 video4

and it works. But each time I disconnect the camera, and reconnect it, I have to do it again.
Via shell I can remount the root file system r/w
mount -o rw,remount -t rootfs rootfs /

and then  edit the file /ueventd.rc  (actually it's  /ueventd.qcom.rc )
and add
/dev/video*               0666   system     camera

But even if I put 666 I only get
root@android:/dev # ls -la video4
crw-rw---- system   camera    81,  18 2013-08-08 10:14 video4

Is there a way to grant a 666 permission permanently? So that each time I connect the camera it gets the right file permissions?
Thanks

Well, if you look at the standard rights for video4, the group "camera" also has read and write access to it. Is there any reason you couldn't just add every user on the system to the "camera" group?

Do i need root permission to access /dev/video1? or is there any other possibility without rooting phone? please let me know


text:
Why does TitaniumBackup not allow me to restore apps after upgrading to 4.3?
After upgrading to 4.3 from a previous version (in my case 4.2), TitaniumBackup might exhibit a behavior where restoring apps does not work and the process just freezes on some devices, in this case a Galaxy Nexus phone. It seems that restoring app settings might work, but when restoring the actual apps this triggers the freeze. Restoring XML data like Wi-Fi hot spots also works.

This may solve your problem read it carefully: https://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=71544556&postcount=22

To fix this issue, set TitaniumBackup to use the legacy path. The easiest way to do this is to go into TitaniumBackup, press "Menu" and then "Preferences". "Backup folder location" a bit down and click it. Click "DETECT!" and TitaniumBackup will ask you where to scan for backup locations. It's very important that you here choose to scan your whole device and not just the SD card.
After scanning is complete, you might as in my case see that TitaniumBackup presents two paths that seem almost identical (in fact they sort of are). Choose the path that has the string /legacy/ in it, in my case it is /storage/emulated/legacy/TitaniumBackup — which should replace a path similar to /storage/emulated/0/TitaniumBackup.
After TitaniumBackup has been reconfigured to use the legacy path, restoring apps will work as normal. Thanks to necropuppy for this solution.

This is after you've flashed the 4.3 ROM, correct?

Yes? Not sure I understand what you're asking, I made it very clear in the first words of the question that this happened after upgrading to 4.3

Sorry. I didn't make connection between the OP and the person answering.


text:
Not getting current location even if Location Services are enabled
Device: Samsung mobile phone
Android: 4.0.3
My Location Services are enabled, but I am not getting the current location. When I restart the phone, it works.
What could be the problem here?

So is it working now or does it stop working after a while and only a restart fixes it? And what app aren't you getting the location in? I've had a similar problem when developing an app (see http://stackoverflow.com/questions/13594932/network-provider-not-providing-updated-locations) but there isn't any known fix for the issue.

No, I cant able to found out the fix, can you have any solution regarding this

Nope I never did find a solution, neither did anyone else as far as I know, I just restart the phone occasionally if it stops working. Is it Google Maps that it isn't working in though? Do you have the latest version? I've never seen that problem on there.

so what's the the alternate way you are using for this fix, because i am getting this issue in several Samsung devices.


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Display GPX in Google Maps or other simple application?
I need an application that supports the following features:

offline map (no Internet connection)
bookmarks (POIs added by me from either my PC -> KML or in the app itself)

Since (Google) Maps doesn't currently support bookmarks, I use MapsWithMe Pro which does (along with offline maps).
I now need to import a GPX trace before going on a bike trip.
MapsWithMe doesn't support GPX yet, and failed importing KML files as converted with either GPSVisualizer or Gpx2Kml.
I then tried Locus Map Free and OsmAnd, but found them way too complicated for my need.
So... is there a way to simply display a GPX file in Google Maps on top of an offline map (no Internet connection available), or some other app that's a no-brainer to use?
Thank you.

What you want to achieve is working perfectly fine e.g. with Locus Maps, as I can say from my own experience. You can even use KMZ files − and if they are self-contained (i.e. all pictures etc. are inside the file, no external resources linked), you can even create your own travel guides (I did that, works like a charm). The offline maps can be selected and downloaded for free from inside the app as well.

Thanks. I gave Locus Maps a second try and it does look like what I was after, although its screen is busier than MwM.


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How to open data folder from android
http://postfiles6.naver.net/20130808_261/fermat22_1375962717749SdDOq_PNG/info.png?type=w3
This is app info
(setting->application manager->app)
I want reading this app's data(261mb) but i can't finding this folder.
How to find(or open) this app's data folder

If your device is not rooted, you cannot access any app's data folder.

The link you posted is dead: it gives a "Referral denied" error. I strongly recommend using the built-in "Upload image" feature to add your screenshot (if you must add one at all) instead of using some dodgy third-party site.

@DanHulme I guess he lacks the necessary rep for that.

An app whose package name is com.example.app has its data files in /data/data/com.example.app. This applies to pre–Jelly Bean systems, and to the first user on Jelly Bean systems. For other users on Jelly Bean systems, user 1 has the data files for com.example.app in /data/user/1/com.example.app, and so on.
Reading another app's data files can only be done on a rooted phone. Even then, you need an app that's designed to work with root access. See the rooting tag wiki, and How do I root my Android device? for more info, but bear in mind that rooting will void your warranty.


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How to prevent cell tower switching and data cut off
Samsung Galaxy S4 here. I found that my phone often switches cell towers through an app called GSM signal monitoring. I don't know if this is the phone's fault or not, but the most annoying thing about it is that when the switching happens any and all data transfer are completely interrupted and stopped, and are unable to resume even after the switching is done. This happens whether I'm mobile in a car or stationary sitting on my desk. I could be downloading 100 KBps and just completely stop and I have to restart the download all over again. Is there a way to stop this from happening? Maybe lower the tolerance on which the decision to switch is made?

What you're asking for is beyond the scope of this site? There could be masts nearby "competing" with each other, or the telephony layer determines that the signal is weak and switches to another to "strengthen" or even "roaming" around different areas and that causes the interrupted downloads. Really, downloading at 100KBps over 3G is not a good idea either for that especially if in a poor reception area.

Not really sure why it's beyond the scope of this site. Was wondering if there's an app or something to do that. Obviously I can't control how fast I'm downloading at any given point. I don't want the phone to switch towers while i'm stationary. It doesn't really make any sense to me. I'm sitting at the same place and having a good connection, why interrupt it? It makes an unreliable experience.

OP: this is network/carrier related and hence beyond scope of this site as there is no direct control over that nor preventing it from happening :)

I see. Well i guess my real question is IS there a way to programmatically control this behavior. I guess by your answer there is not. Is this a behavior that is encountered on all device and all carriers then?

No way to control that programmatically sorry! That is the telephony layer's function read - chipset and network/carrier related.


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How to transfer huge files between Android phones only with ES File Explorer and Wi-Fi?
I have few HD movies each occupying around 1Gb to be transferred from one Android phone to another.  I've read the question How to transfer files over Wi-Fi without a hotspot and its answers. Even before reading the question, I explored transferring one of the above said movie file from my LGP500 to my Nexus 7 (2012) successfully using ES Explorer and Wi-Fi.
Now at my work, I am trying to do the same to my friend's Micromax A110 and all my efforts goes vain. I tired to make Micromax A110 to host a random Wi-Fi network and I join my LGP500 to it before transfer. After selecting the file and choosing Send option, the upcoming UI just shows scanning... and a progress bar goes on and on. There are no visibility settings like Bluetooth in Wi-Fi transfer mode.
I tried the reverse the connection and again it failed.
I am bit puzzled and think I am missing something obvious.  Can someone help by providing a step by step guide to transfer files between two Android devices with ES File explorer using Wi-Fi?
I am sticking with Wi-Fi because the transfer rate was too good. I saw near to 10 MB/s. And I do not want to install other apps as I find ES File explorer available with many of my friends.
Some trivia:

My LG P500 is rooted and runs stock v2.3.3
My Nexus 7 is rooted and runs stock v4.3
My friend's A110 is not rooted and runs stock 4.0.1
Size of the file that I transferred successfully is 600Mb and face
failure on the same file.

If Es File Explorer doesnt work, I suggest that you use SuperBeam: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.majedev.superbeam
It uses Wifi Direct Technology to transfer files at wifi speeds, and the wifi direct connection is initialized by scanning a qr code generated by the app of by touching them together with nfc on.  You can "Share" the file with Superbeam and opening the app starts the reciever end of the communication

This app says it is not compatible with my LG P500, running v2.3.3. I successfully installed it in my nexus 7, but I could not even find it in Google play store in P500. When clicked on the link in the answer, play store explicitly says the incompatibility message.

Now with recent versions of ES File Explorer, I am able to transfer successfully. The issue that I still face is that the app becomes unresponsive during a Wi-Fi scan giving a false impression that the app is not working or crashed.

@Narayanan The best way to do it is have both devices connected to the same wifi and share over lan. That is what worked for me : Here is a video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xp4qg_QoNEM

If you open ES Explorer select the file you want to share then click more "has the 3 dots vertical"  and select send "has a image of a phone with a double sided arrow" it will scan and find the device. Select the device and share. This is the only way I was able to get ES File Explorer to work with sharing. I am sharing between my Note 3 and Nexus 7 (2012).

This is the right answer and should be the accepted answer! Both phones must be on the same Wi-Fi network with ES file explorer open in order for the first phone to find the second

In 2021 you can do this from Google's "Files" app directly. It has simple "send" and "receive" buttons and sets up peer-to-peer WiFi temporarily and securely with zero configuration hassle.


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Galaxy Note 8 unresponsive to touch input
I've been pulling my hair out over this one for a while now and have been unable to find anything on Google to help.
I recently bought a Samsung Galaxy Note 8 (wifi UK version) and found a very annoying issue with it.  I've found that whilst using touch input, the screen can become unresponsive to touch for a few seconds.  This seems to happen once every 5-10 minutes and lasts 3-5 seconds or so.  It's especially annoying when playing games that rely on touch input.  It's most noticeable with Plants Vs Zombies and Scribblenauts.
The tablet as a whole isn't hanging or crashing, because the game is still running, the music still playing and the screen still updating.  It just doesn't register any touch input.
The only thing I found that might have been remotely helpful to this issue was a forum post claiming that Dropbox could cause this.  I disabled Dropbox on the device and didn't notice any improvement.
I believe the firmware revision is 4.1.2 Jelly Bean.
Does anyone know what to do about this?
UPDATE: The 4.2.2 firmware became available for this device yesterday.  Installing it seems to have resolved the issue (so far).

Please do let us know if the 4.2.2 update fixes things.

I'll be keeping a close eye on it, but so far so good.  No input unresponsiveness incidents in the couple of hours I've had so far to play with it.

If you feel like it's all gone, I would suggest answering your own question as well. Make sure you put a little more than "Upgraded to 4.2 and it works now," of course. Specify whether it was an OTA update, etc.

It looks like the issue was in either Jellybean 4.1 or Samsung's supporting software.  I've upgraded the tablet to the official 4.2 firmware and have had no recurrences of the problem described above.

Alternatively, for anyone else potentially having similar problems, you can try using the stylus instead as it runs off a completely separate magnetic-induction-based digitizer.


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URL to promote your app on facebook/twitter
I am thinking about adding facebook/twitter buttons in the apps I'm creating, but one thing has been puzzling me. The URLs of my apps are of course Google play URLs, like this:
market://details?id=com.mycompany.mygame
but if I promote this URL in a facebook message or tweet then the receiver of the message will only be able to click on the URL if they happen to be looking at it on an Android device, if they're not, they will get an error report from their browser. I could instead point to the market web URL like this:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.mycompany.mygame
But it feels rather clumsy. So my question is this: - is there a way to tweet or facebook-like an app in a way where the receiver of the message will see the most appropriate URL for their device?

Is this a development question?

That's arguable...

Why is the web URL clumsy? On Android devices, the browser should suggest opening the URL in Play Store and shows the same as the first URL, and on other devices the web page is shown. If it's the length, use a trustworthy URL shortener.

"On Android devices, the browser should suggest opening the URL in Play Store" - it doesn't happen with my (dolphin) browser. Instead I see the web page - and the "Install" button on the web page is so small I have to zoom in to be able to read it.

@Mick: That's probably because in the dim-and-distant past, you set the Dolphin browser to be the default when opening suck links. I'll bet if you clear the defaults for Dolphin you'll once again be prompted for how to open a play.google.com URL, and one of the options will be the Google Play Store.

The play.google.com link you post is the correct form for linking to an app, and it's the documented solution recommended by Google.


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Is there a lightweight way to test C code on Android?
I want to write and run small general purpose C code snippets on my Android phone. These will primarily be data structures and algorithm implementations. Is there a lightweight  and quick way to do so?

It might be worth a try to install Android IDE (AIDE) - to quote a brief summary:

AIDE is an integrated development environment (IDE) for developing
real Android Apps directly on Android devices. AIDE supports the full
edit-compile-run cycle

However, typing on a device might make it cumbersome unless its a tablet form factor with bluetooth keyboard attached to save the pain in typing.
Edit
As per @Izzy's comment below, Terminal IDE is another such app, this one points to Google Play Store, however I got a 500 error trying to access the page below within the comment! Cheers for that \o/

Similar solution you might want to include: Terminal IDE. Even has midnight commander included, plus rsync, git, etc.pp. Of course also the gcc, make, javac, & Co :)

I looked at Terminal IDE but screenshots suggest that its extremely unsuitable for phones.

Lightest way is to not install anything at all and simply use a website, such as IDEOne.

What about - Compilr or Cloud9? :)


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How do I make the music player display on the lock screen?
When I'm listening to music on my Android using Music Player, I want to see what song I'm listening to on my lock screen, and maybe even play/pause and go forward/backward on the playlist, but not change the playlist.
How can I get this kind of a setting? Do I have to write my own app?

What phone are you using? What Android version?

Which music player are you using? Some apps don't have this feature, while Google Music/Play Music does.

The default music player for the Samsung Galaxy S III.

The upgrade to Android 4.3 came from my service provider last week, so I upgraded. Now I can play and pause music from the lock screen!

By default, the stock player has the player controls in Android. Play a song from your stock music player app (the one which was originally included in your mobile) and play a song. When you turn off the screen and get back to the lock screen, you must be able to see the player controls.
You can also try Sony Walkman which offers a number of features including lock screen controls. You can also use an app like Simply Lockscreen to enable music player functionality to your lock screen.

Nope. I have my music playing from my headphones with no indicator on the lock screen.

Maybe it depends on the player used. On one of my devices, I use Cubed, which places a "widget" on the lock screen (though a little clumbsy looking).

On my LG:

Settings-General-Apps & Notifications-Notifications-Lock Screen-Show All Notifications

Settings-General-Apps & Notifications-Notifications-Apps-Music-Categories-Medium (low setting will not work)

On your Andriod phone, when you can't see the music playing, on the lock screen. All you need to do is go to your phone settings and enter 'Apps & Notification' click on the music app, tap on the data usage and then clear your cache.."IT'S DONE"... That's all you need to do. It's pretty simple right?
But you should only do this if you don't care about your playlists anymore, cause as you clear your cache it removes all the playlists you've created from your music app and then your songs will start showing on the lock screen again.
NOTE: please do not clear your data usage, ONLY CLEAR YOUR CACHE because you may lose all your songs.

Tap and hold on the app until you see the 2 section dropbox. It should say/show APPS and WIDGETS. Tap on widgets. You should be seeing the Amazon Music widget. Tap and hold on the screen. You will be able to drag the Amazon control app onto your screen and yes, it does work on locked screens.


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Mysterious "Installation Failed" and reboots
Non-programmer here. I've noticed recently a message popping up on my 4.1.2 Galaxy S3 running stock firmware (except I have root)  build number JZO54K.T999UVDMD5. This was happening before I rooted it and before I installed DroidWall in an attempt to prevent any uncommanded activity. "Installation Failed" is what it says.  I've also happened to have observed it restarting a few times when I was not touching it. I installed aLogcat today and set it to "Events" so that hopefully I will get more information. Any suggestions on how to learn more about what's up would be appreciated.

I don't think aLogcat will be able to work on your device since you're running JellyBean. Android stops apps seeing each other's log entries from 4.1 I think, if you convert it to a system app then it should work.

Sorry for the irrelevant answer to the OP's question but felt a need to point out about aLogCat.
aLogcat seems broken at the moment under JellyBean (due to an additional introduction of permission READ_LOGS required for reading logs).
Just keep an eye out for the update soon (or flag the developer by starring the issue here).
If you fancy the alternative, try this version called CatLog found here on github, this has the permission in place to do so.
As for Droidwall, forget about that version - its old and obsoleted in favour of the more updated version AFWall+, the linky to the play store version is contained on the github page, alternative linky to F-Droid Repository here.


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How can I set up email on my GS4 to handle both email and gmail accounts?
I just moved from iPhone to a Galaxy S4, and I'm trying to get it set up. I have a gmail account, and two NON-gmail accounts. What is the best solution to have all of my emails managed in one place/app? I would really prefer not having to switch between two apps to check my emails if possible. Thanks for any assistance.

This official Google support page tells you how to access Gmail from a normal email client using IMAP: you have to turn it on through the Gmail web interface, then add the account to your email client like any other IMAP server.
The standard email client on Samsung devices supports having multiple accounts. Press the + button in the Email app's settings to add an additional account. Most third-party email clients for Android (such as K9-Mail) support multiple accounts too, but the set-up will be slightly different for each.


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Incorrect Phone labels for Google+ contacts
On the Samsung Galaxy S3 contacts synced from Google+ will have their phone number labels garbled.
In the following image you can see the three phone numbers associated with my contact. They are labeled (in swedish, english translation in parentheses):

Arbete (Work)
Personsökare (Pager)
Annat (Other).

In Google+ they are however labeled correctly, (swedish translation in parentheses):

Home (Hem)
Mobile (Mobil)
Work (Arbete)

I've tried all I can think of to get the labels correct but no luck:

Syncing with Google+
Delete and re-add the contact.
Changing the phone number labels in Google+ and re-syncing.
Deleting cache and data from Google+ app.
Deleting cache and data from Google Contacts Sync.

Doing some Google searches yielded only one relevant link. Same problem, no solution.
Does anyone know if this is a confirmed bug or is there a fix?

Does the same thing happen if you use a different contact app? Try exporting your Google contacts as Outlook CSV then open the CSV file in Excel (or similar). Do the labels in the file line up with the shuffled labels on your phone? I'm betting this is the Samsung contacts app incorrectly parsing the information from Google.

@Mr.Buster That's my guess too hence the question if this is a confirmed bug and if there is a fix for it. In the exported CSV file all labels are correct.

As to whether it's a confirmed bug or the possibility of an official fix from Samsung: your Google search is as good as mine (I didn't find anything when I briefly looked). As far as a workaround is concerned, though, I'd try a different contact app to see if you get the same result. Knowing the labels are correct upon export makes me more confident that it's the app rather than Google Contacts.

I found it even more weird that you could export your Google Contacts and check the labels were correct. If I interpreted correctly, you're facing the same problem as me, all of my friends from Google+ have "pagers" on their contacts on my phone (a Samsung Nexus S - no proprietary software, although it's also a Samsung). But Google+ contacts are only present when I sync them on the phone. In my case, they're not part of Google Contacts, although I can see their connections (but cannot find their numbers there). Still a bug with the latest version of Google+ (where I guess the problem resides).

Seems like it is a conflict between the Samsung's Phone app and G+'s way of storing labels. Using stock Android Phone app might solve your problem.


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How to enable debug mode on Sony Xperia V with broken touch screen?
My Sony Xperia V touch screen is broken in the right corner. The rest of the screen doesn't respond, but the LCD works fine.
I need to make a full backup, but I can't activate debug mode. Also, Windows can't see the internal or external memory.
Do I have any other options on retrieving my data?
UPDATE: This problem is SOLVED. I got debug mode turned on by using a USB (Female) to Micro USB cable (Male). I connected a regular wireless mouse, and moused it through the settings.

Close, but not really, me touchscreen dont work, the LCD dos, but i got debug mode turned on by using a USB to Micro USB cabel, and connected a Wireless Mouse, and Moused it through the settings, never tried that before, but it worked perfectly.

@MikaelDipper Could you post your UPDATE as an Answer, and mark it as an answer later?

There are several options available for you.

Given you have enabled USB debugging, you can use Droid@Screen to view the android screen on your PC and control it. (So you can get backups through the PC)
You can use an otg adaptor to control your device using a USB mouse. (So that you can use whatever the app you want to back up your device)

Seems you have got the [tag:otg] option working.


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Google Music Gapless Playback Works on my Galaxy Nexus but not my HTC One?
I've recently started using Google Music on my phone but gapless playback isn't working. I listen to a lot of mixed, electronic music albums where it's absolutely essential that it's totally seamless with no gaps at all.
On my old Galaxy Nexus, with CyanogenMod 10.1 (Android 4.2.2), Google Music version v5.1.1107K.753159, it works flawlessly.
On my new HTC One (stock), with Android 4.2.2 also, Google Music version v5.1.1107K.753159 also, there's a very noticable gap (1 second or so).
Is there a way to enable gapless playback with Google Music on the HTC One? Does anyone use Cyanogenmod on the HTC One? If so, could you confirm if gapless playback works?

This is a symptom of the phone's hardware, not Android, Google Play or your uploaded/cached music. I have the same problem with a 1st gen. Moto G (LTE/4G) with about 1s gap between songs, despite 4 cores and no other noticeable performance problems, but the same music works perfectly in Google Play on a laptop.
I've read many reports where the same version of Android provides gap-less for some users, but not others. This means it's either a hardware limitation or the file I/O processes are single threaded and take time to drop the current track before loading up the next one.
My experience is that using a faster phone fixes this problem.

This is on the borderline of not being an answer. Think about reformatting your post without the use of further questions. Sounds like you'll have some testing to do.

Good point. I've edited it to be more of a useful answer.


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Do signal booster apps work? How?
I do not have the best signal on my Galaxy S4. I have had a recommendation on downloading a Signal Booster App.

How do they work (or do they work at all)?
Are there ways to boost my signal strength without an app?

Note: I am referring to 4G Signal Strength. My signal strength ranges from -107 dBm 33 asu to -113 dBm 27 asu.

To be honest - the part that got me sceptical - that it doesn't waste battery power as you improve signal! If it claims to improve signal, it surely must be sucking juice? all the telephony layer is proprietary and closed-source, cannot see how that would work...is it faking figures somewhere..? do not know, I cannot really vouch nor say either... it reminds me of an app in which by shaking it you gain more battery juice - just saying...

@t0mm13b - After browsing this site this answer indicates that it "improves" your signal by toggling airplane mode on and off. Thus reconnecting you to the network. But do all work this way?

Well, by toggling airplane mode on/off is counter-productive as the time to take to switch off the signal (Wifi has higher priority than telephony) and back on again disrupts the signal scanning, and not to mention say, downloading a short youtubey over 3G/4G for example, will require a restart...

@t0mm13b the idea behind it is to force the device to re-scan and connect to the "strongest available signal". If you e.g. have a moderate signal, but there would be a slightly better signal source in reach, the device usually doesn't always switch by itself. But when initializing (and thus not having any signal yet), it uses the strongest one. So to the user, it seems to be a "signal boost" – while in fact it was just a switch to a different tower.

@Izzy thanks for the insight... its more of taking a gamble really with which tower has the more stronger signal which may decrease after connecting?

@t0mm13b Exactly. And if there's no stronger source in reach, the "boost" does not even work. I never worried to use such an app, as it's rather "placebo" usually (oh, look! One bar more...). If the difference in signal quality would be huge enough, IMHO the device does switch (after all, it scans in the background). So it's rather evaluating the signalling overhead ("hey, I'm roaming over to the neighbor.* check..check..off here..on there) against the gain, energy-wise. If it's worth it: switch. If not: stay. // Hm, is that worth to be converted to an answer already?

There are so many apps available (which may be helpful in some situation) but how can you solve a hardware problem with software. you need to buy some signal booster or signal amplifier e.g http://www.wilsonamplifiers.com/ that will helpful

Summing up from my comments above:
How do signal boosters work?
They work by forcing the device to do a re-connect. Though the device is permanently watching its neighborhood (for the case the signal gets too weak), it does not switch for just a trifle. Instead, it tries to weight the benefits against the costs: switching to a different cell has some signalling overhead to be considered. So if it's just for a trifle, it wouldn't switch. But if the other signal source is twice as strong, for example, it would. And it certainly does switch once you lose signal, even if there's just a weak signal available to switch to.
If it switches, it always choses the best and strongest signal available. And as I said, when you lose your signal it does switch: that's exactly the concept of the booster. By going to airplane mode, it makes you lose the signal, so switching on the radios makes the device connecting to the strongest signal. If your lucky, you see one more bar. If there was just one cell available, you just wasted juice.
IMHO it's not really worth it, but everybody needs to decide that himself/herself. Improvements are rather marginal/cosmetical in most cases, if at all.
Ways to boost without a booster
Well, if you followed my above writing, you might already have guessed it: Long-press your power button, and select "airplane", then do it again. Or, open your notification bar and tap the plane icon, and repeat it. Done. The difference is you need to do it manually – while the app at least partially automates it (maximum one tap with the app, while 4 manually).
Further hints
There are apps available which track cell signals. Some do even track the neighboring cells (most of them only work with selected devices). If you find one that does work with neigboring cells and your device, you should be able to tell the real numbers – and see if it would be worth to "boost", or if it rather would be to "boast" :).

Also, switching to airplane mode and back again in the hope of latching on to a "stronger" signal could actually have adverse effect on battery juice as well due to "bringing up" the telephony layer...

@t0mm13b thanks for the detail: that's what I meant by "weighting the benefits against the costs". And Lynda: Glad I was able to help shedding some light :)


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Changing (Forcing) Screen Resolution on OUYA
OUYA doesn't provide any built-in (UI-based) way to change or force a resolution. This is a problem for some (like me) who have no HDMI devices, and use HDMI to DVI adapters, or simply have devices which do not correctly display the best resolution. (For clarity, OUYA defaults to 640x480 if it can't display a higher resolution).
To clarify, I'm using a 20-something inch "normal" monitor (no HDMI input), so I see very pixelated writing that's hard to read in the OUYA menu. Some games, like Final Fantasy, appear to display decently though.
This XDA Developers thread found two methods that works for some OUYA users. It's not clear if these actually change the resolution though.
Method 1:

cat modes displays all the possible display modes. (cat mode displays the current mode.)
echo 0 > /sys/class/graphics/fb0/device/enable
echo (videomodefrommodesfile) > /sys/class/graphics/fb0/mode
echo 1 > /sys/class/graphics/fb0/device/enable

Method 2: Run am display-size (resolution). For example, am display-size 1080x720 should change the (virtual?) display size to 1080x720 px. But other users in the same thread report that this causes other display issues, like shrinking the display.
Is there a consistent way to change the display resolution?


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Problems with changing the default country in Google Play Store
I need help regarding changing my country on the Google Play Store. I tried everything from hard resetting my phone to changing all the details in the settings but it didn't work. I changed all my Google Wallet details to the US address, even added a US-based payment method, set the US address and payment method as default, then I tried clearing the cache, purchasing an app using the new payment method. I even did another hard reset, but unfortunately for me, nothing has worked so far.
I would be really grateful if you guys could offer me some help regarding this problem.
Please don't redirect me here: How do I change the Google Play country?
I tried that already but doesn't work for me.
Unfortunately I also can't root my device (Xperia Z Ultra) since root is not yet available for it and I am using a Mac.

See this => http://android.stackexchange.com/q/26809/23379

sorry that didn't solve it either.

Okay guys, so after nearly a whole day spent searching for ways to make this work I have finally, finally made it.
So here's what made it work for me. I did everything mentioned in my original post, then I gave up with my google ID and made a new US based google account. Removed the old google ID from my device, did another hard reset and then logged in with my new ID. The US play store worked fine for a while with Tunnelbear for vpn, but then it went back to my local play store, and then started to crash repeatedly until it refused to open anymore.
I was then fed up and put back my old google ID and removed the new one that I had just created, and guess what. Tada! It logged me into the US play store without any trouble. No need for vpn or any other fix. It's been working fine since, and fingers crossed it will forever.
So, what you have to do is log out of your current google ID, log in from another (new) one, and then remove the new ID and log back in from your old google ID.
Make sure that before logging in with the new ID, update all your google wallet and google account details with US address, payment and phone number on your old ID.
Hope this was clear.
Cheers.

unfortunately you can't do it in google play.but can login to your google account, and there you click on edit next to your email id and here you can see the option to edit information in the country field. Now you can change your country whatever you want.
but if this won't help you and want to access the playstore apps that have a country restriction, you can use apps like Hideman hideman VPN playstore link  to access play store apps via their servers at USA and you can actually download them.

I tried with the tunnelbear before, but a vpn solution is not what I'm looking for. I've posted my complete fix here as well.

When I faced similar issue I followed the following procedure to clear the foreign language and restored my local language back:
Go to App Manager -- open play store -- clear cache

Google is making it easier, as reported today, to change the country to a different one. From Android Police on 2018/03/20:

Now, Google appears to be taking one teeny tiny step toward making the switch easier for some people. If your Play Store country is set to country A (whether you lived there or, uhm, fooled Google into thinking you did because you made a purchase with a valid payment method and to a valid shipping address in that country), and the Play Store detects that you've moved to country B (likely based on your IP address), you'll get a new option in the Account settings: Country and profiles. There you'll see which country your Store account is on and an option to quickly switch to the new country - provided you have a valid payment method there.

There are some caveats to this:

Keep in mind that this Country and profiles option won't be there for everyone and won't let you switch to any country you want. It appears to only show up when it detects a discrepancy between your setting and your IP address.


text:
Can I program Tasker-like programs to do stuff if specific WiFi network is in range?
I'd like to try out Tasker, Llama or some such automated program.
However, I do NOT want to program events based on GPS or other location information (for a variety of reasons not germane to this question).
Is there a way to trigger tasks in Tasker or some equivalent program based on the fact that a WiFi network with a specific SSID (or other signature) is in range or goes out of range?
To clarify: one of the main tasks is to turn on/off my WiFi when I float in/out of the range of known networks. Therefore, merely being in range should be the trigger, NOT connected to the network.

In Tasker create a new State based context and choose Net as
state category.

Then choose Wifi Near as net action:

This will bring a screen where you can input data about the WiFi access point you are interested in. If you are near the desired WiFi access point then you could just press the scan button (the button with lens symbol at left end of the text SSID).

This scans the near by access points and lists its details. Simply select the one which you are interested in.  Now you are good to go to add an entry task and exit task to whatever you want.

Narayanan, you should update your Tasker app :) Today's screens look a lot different (Holo-UI). But +1 for the answer – that's how I would do it, too.

Thanks Izzy, the Tasker has different versions for 4.0+ devices and 1.6+ devices - just FYI. The screen shots were taken from my mobile running Tasker 1.6u2m on Android v2.3.3 and the Holo-UI are in v4.1+. Correct me if I am wrong.

Yo. Nes. Partly. I have the holo UI on 4.0.3 already, so it's not 4.1+. But yes, right after placing my comment I thought that might be the case. Need to check with my old Droid² which still runs 2.3.7 whether it updated to Holo UI – but I remember exactly that thing with some other apps (Holo on 4+, old interface on GB). // So let's replace my previous comment with a hint that on newer Android versions (most likely 4.0+) screenshots would look different :)

Nay. Yay. IIRC Tasker got a revamp for holo, using ActionBarSherlock(ABS) for older platforms < ICS :)

In Short: Both Llama and Tasker have the WiFi Network Connected/Disconnected State where you may trigger tasks/actions. Tasker also has a WiFi Near state so that you do not have to be connected to a network for a task to trigger, whereas Llama does not.

"WiFi Network Connected/Disconnected" is definitely NOT what I asked about, given that the task I want is to turn on/off WiFi when I'm in range of a known WiFi network :)  Does near state in Tasker know the difference between networks, or simply whether one exists in range?

@DVK My apologies! The way you worded your question suggested otherwise. Tasker does know the difference between networks - when you create a profile with the WiFi Near state you will get a list of multiple networks in range that you may choose from. If you are not in range you can input the SSID manually (and optionally the MAC of the network, which I would recommend doing). I've created a test profile with what you want to do and I can confirm that it works.


text:
Phone frozen for a short time after unplugging from charger
When my screen is off and I unplug my Nexus 4 from the charger, the phone is frozen with the screen off for about 10 seconds. Power/volume buttons have no effect and the phone will not wake.
If the screen is on when I unplug, there is no problem and the phone is responsive.  This isn't really a big issue, but I'm just curious as to why it happens and what's going on with my phone during that time. Any ideas?

Do you use a nexus 4? This should not be happening with your phone as nexus 4 is quite a fast one. It happens with slow phones especially when you have battery saving apps installed. Try formatting your phone and deleting apps you don't need.

Yes it is a Nexus 4.  I don't have any battery-saving apps installed, and not even very many apps.  I can't afford to do a wipe at the moment, but I'll give that a shot sometime and report back.

Do you have other apps that work or respond to your phone being connected to power supply ? Uninstall those. Also check the apps you installed just before this problem took place.

You can also backup before formatting. Android makes backing up quite easy.

I don't have any apps set up to do anything when the charger is plugged in.  The phone responds by turning the screen on, but that's it.  When I plug in the charger or remove the charger while the screen is on, everything is fine.

Then I am unsure of the problem. Sorry.


text:
Which app can create a background image without distortions?
My device is a Nexus 7 (2012 edition), running Android 4.3.
I downloaded some nice wallpapers from http://vathanx.deviantart.com/art/Impulso-114624053 and placed them in the SD card. Resolutions are 1920x1200 or 1600x1200.
To set the wallpaper I long-click the background, select Gallery, then the folder & the image & keep the cropping as suggested. However, once this is set, the image is distorted and not smooth. Besides, it seems some color information has been lost as well and the gradients are not smooth anymore.

Screenshot after adding the image (click image for larger variant)
Is there any App which handles this properly? I can accept a little blurriness and reduced colors, but the current result is simply too low quality.

Solved this by installing Image 2 Wallpaper.
One would expect such basic features out of the box..

You may try Wallpaper Changer from "j4velin development".
I hope this may do the trick for you. You can also customize the desktop by rotating a bunch of wallpapers. This app automatically adjust the background in the best possible way.
I know you found out your own way. But if you are interested, give it a try via this link


text:
How Android Custom Recovery roots the phone?
I rooted my Samsung Galaxy Note n7000. I performed some acrobatics and booted into the Stock Recovery of my phone and installed a zip that contained Philz CWM 6 Touch custom recovery. How can installing a custom recovery ROOT my phone when I have no idea of the root password? How can the said custom recovery even gain access to protected system level stuff without requiring some authentication etc. in the first place?

As davidgo explains, the recovery is like a separate, very simple operating system that your device boots into. When you boot into recovery mode, Android itself isn't running, so none of the OS-level protections like users and file permissions make any difference. However, the recovery mode does have access to the main filesystem of your phone. It's normal for a recovery to mount that filesystem to apply updates, but when you're rooting your phone, the update you supply just writes a suitable su binary to the correct place with the necessary permissions (i.e. with the suid bit set). Then, when you reboot into Android, the su binary is there and available to use.
If you want to think of it like a PC, it's like booting from a live CD, mounting the root filesystem of the PC, and editing /etc/sudoers or /etc/passwd to give yourself root access. Of course you can do this from a live CD, because the 'real' operating system on the PC isn't running.

Recovery is not actually booting into Linux, its running BEFORE linux runs and modifying how Linux runs.
[ I note that "locked boot loaders" prevent you from changing the kernel, luckily you don't have one !]
I'm not sure on the specifics, but if you can get access to the linux kernel bootup parameters it is always possible to "get root access" - because the linux kernel is what defines and controls root access !!!

The authentication on some android phones occurs at a screen where you type in fastboot oem unlock and unlock the phone allowing you to change what your phone will boot into when you load.
The Authentication your referring to isn't seen much anymore. one example would be in the earlier days I had a HTC legend with a signed boot load, this meant that I had to get HTC to sign a rom if I wanted to load it onto my phone. So to bypass this authentication we would load up the HTC update tool on our PC's stop on the screen just before the rom would be loaded onto the phone, go into the temp folder in windows and change the data to the data we wanted to load into our phones and let the HTC software load our content rather then there own.
These days the exploits to bypass authentication are rarely needed as most phones aren't locked.
EDIT
Got away from myself there and missed the main point in the title
Q: How Android Custom Recovery roots the phone?
A: It doesn't


text:
What's the native wallpaper resolution of HTC One?
I don't mean 1080p, but actual unscaled image size so when I set the wallpaper to an image with that size, it won't ask me to crop. It will fit without scaling.

The screen resolution of the HTC One is 1080 x 1920 pixels. This is also the same resolution when you trigger a screenshot on the phone.

Because of how Android's home screens work, the screen resolution is not the size you need for a wallpaper to be uncropped.


text:
Adding a thumbnail/icon to a newsletter
When you receive an email, you usually get the first letter of the sender as an icon on the left side, right? Well I was wondering how I would be able to change this icon when sending a newsletter (see example below - the newsletter was sent using MailChimp).

Do you want to change the icon as a sender of the email, or as the receiver of the email?

As a sender of the email (I'd like the logo of the company to be shown when I send out the newsletter, basically)

You can't. That's based on the photo attached to the contact in the receiver's contact list.

@AlEverett You might want to post that as an answer. :)

Not that I've tried, but it would seem to make sense that if you create a Google+ profile for the email address, then that profile pic would be used. Could be worth trying?

I'm pretty sure "Mystic Medusa" isn't on the contact list though. @GAThrawn That's a very interesting suggestion :)

The images come from your Gmail contacts so you would need to create a contact for the "The Nudge" and assign a picture to it. To easily create a new contact for that email, open it up and click the icon next to the name. You should then be prompted to "Add  to contacts?".


text:
Camera data of Galaxy S3 for tracking
I'm trying to make a camera tracking of a video make by my Samsung Galaxy S3 (I9300), but I can't find info about its focal length, sensor size, etc. so the scene and camera match exactly what was used when filming.
I think that maybe ok to use default settings but if some one know what need to be set for the Samsung Galaxy S3 could be very good, so things get more accurate.

Related (for other older phone/camera models): What are the technical specs of cameras in Android devices?

According to this thread on Blenderartists, sensor size is 4.54 × 3.42 mm and focal length is 3.7mm, which gives a crop factor of 7.7 and a 35mm-equiv. focal length of 28.5 mm.
Be careful to check if the video is cropped in comparison to the still images, reducing the effective sensor size.


text:
Swype keyboard does not show, after changing to Swype keyboard and locking screen
Device: Samsung Galaxy Grand
Android: 4.1.2
I downloaded Swype keyboard and selected it for use. After that, I locked my screen and tried to type my password, but the keyboard is not opening. Now, I can't use my phone.

Restart your phone (turn it off, turn it on). Then, let us know what happens.

sometimes its happen to me also.But I can deduce that issue can be happen with swype in two cases.

if you are running out of RAM then swype will take some time to launch. because as I have seen swype will take more than 30 MB of RAM and it can take more while it have to start.
If you have moved your application SD card then it may take some amount of time to launch.

what actions supposed to do ?
  If you are running any kind of task killers , set swype to ignore for killing.
keep swype in your Phone memory only.


text:
How can I see the fingerprint of my adbkey?
You should know that Android 4.2.2 (or just before) introduced RSA key checking for adb access. – The device asks now if you want to allow access.
To avoid asking every time, the computer presents an RSA key, which can be permanently accepted.
The dialog on the phone shows the RSA key fingerprint. – On Linux, the public/secret key pair is here: ~/.android/adbkey(.pub).
How can I show the fingerprint of that key file? (I’m looking for a command line to do that on the Linux system.)

This is also needed when trying to verify the RSA key fingerprint presented when enabling USB debugging.

adb is usb debugging @JonathanCross

Now the keywords "usb debugging" are inside this answer  :-)

This line will do it (found here):
awk '{print $1}' < ~/.android/adbkey.pub | openssl base64 -A -d -a | openssl md5 -c

awk '{print $1}' < ~/.android/adbkey.pub | base64 --decode | md5sum works as well

how do I run this in windows

since a commit on Nov 15 2018 (https://android.googlesource.com/platform/system/core/+/2dc4cabe0639c71014d729dd92eff19289429c89), adb keygen no longer generates the public key. You can use adb pubkey ~/.android/adbkey | awk '{print $1}' \ | openssl base64 -A -a -d | openssl md5 -c | tr a-z A-Z  to get the MD5 fingerprint. Source: https://joachimschuster.de/posts/debug-on-device-rsa-fingerprint

Run:
echo {public key} | base64 --decode | md5sum

On Android 5 and above, the hash function used was changed to sha256. If your hardware is such, your could try:
awk '{print $1}' < ~/.android/adbkey.pub | openssl base64 -A -d -a | openssl sha256 -c | awk '{print $2}'|tr '[:lower:]' '[:upper:]'

On Android 10 I am still getting MD5.


text:
What should I do before sending my bricked phone to repair?
There are similar questions here, but this one is about a phone that doesn't turn on. I can't reset to factory.
What should I do? Change my Google password? What information will the technician have access to?

You might want remove the external sd card before giving the handset.
It's safe to change your google account password associated with that phone.
Basically what they try to do IS a factory reset, in which case, you shouldn't be worried about the stuff on your phone.


text:
Enable dialer autocomplete feature in Android 4.3 on Galaxy Nexus
My phone was upgraded to 4.3, as I see in the Settings.
How can I enable the dialer autocomplete feature in Android 4.3 on Galaxy Nexus? I don't see any Dialpad autocomplete in my phone app setting.

Could tou post a screenshot of your call settings?

From mybookofknowledge:

Go to your Dial Pad and select the Settings options.
Under the other call settings, you can see the option Dial pad autocomplete.
Enable this option and now you can see suggestions when you dial a phone number.

NOTE: Make sure you are using the stock dialer.


text:
Whatsapp on emulator - Can't setup the recorder now, please try again later
I have Whatsapp on my emulator (2.3.3 version). I got the latest update - voice messaging. However, when I try to record a message, this is what occurs.

I have no idea how to get this diagnosed. Can anything be done to help? Any audio codecs need to be installed?
Tried adding Audio Recording Support, in vain.
UPDATE: Tried with ICS (4.0 version). It doesn't show the error, but it doesn't send the audio message either. (The clock symbol in the right-bottom corner never turns into a tick)

I don't have Whatsapp nor Android emulator. But I want to ask a question, can you make an ordinary call in the emulator?

This problem can be solved by installing the latest version of whatsapp it is 2.10.768 or 2.11.56.....you can also go to this link to download in your mobile http://www.whatsapp.com/android/

Have to test it sometime in my SDK. Right now my WhatsApp is on a phone. I am just guarding against high frequency phone number verification. But I am considering trying this out for academic interest!


text:
How to make notification lights turn off automatically when new email is read from another platform?
I'm using a Samsung S3 and I currently have the notification LED indicator option ON when an email arrives.
Is there a way to make the flashing blue light stops when I read this new email from another platform (Thunderbird for example)?
For example: Unread new email inbox : Flashing
             New email recently read: Stop flashing
Thanks!

Could be possible with Tasker. You might check for unread message count, then turn off the led.


text:
What Could Cause System Apps to Run that Are Not Used
When testing a widget I created, I wanted to make sure that it uses as little CPU power as possible. After some research I downloaded Watchdog to use as a monitoring tool, which works great. When I finished my testing I set the CPU threshold at 10%, just curious to see what process would randomly go above that level. One that exceeds the 10% threshold on a daily basis, at least a couple times a day, is com.motorola.Dlna.
I know what DLNA is, what it's used for, and how to set it up but I don't use it, nor do I have it set up on my phone. I spoke with a Motorola support analyst and asked why it would be running. The response I got was "it's possible you could have set it up without knowing it, maybe by an application that you downloaded but it's nothing to worry about".
Needless to say the answer I got wasn't very helpful so I'm really just wondering what would cause this service to use so much CPU power randomly? Most of the time it's not being used, but when it is, it shows that it's using usually between 12.5% - 15% CPU power. Do applications really access/use this service without me ever actually going through and setting it up?

I imagine the CPU usage is just that service doing its' routine functions (perhaps monitoring or surveying for surrounding available DLNA devices and the like), then going back to sleep. This doesn't necessarily mean any other app is using it.

@Namuna thanks for the input! Do you happen to know if using that much CPU power is normal for this service? Maybe it's just me but it seems really high.

You might want to use some package inspector like e.g. App Detective to see what receivers the app in question has set up. Most likely it's acting on some broadcast, such as e.g. "sdcard mounted", to check for media, or "network changed" to check for other DLNA services.
If your device is rooted, you might be interested in apps like ROM Toolbox or Autorun Manager, which allow you to disable selected receivers, or even freeze the entire app. Without root, you can try whether that app can be disabled in Settings → Apps. It's either running for nothing or (these days it's no longer called "paranoia") working for somebody else, if you don't use it yourself.

Haven't seen App Detective before, so since my device is not rooted I'll definitely check it out. And yes, these days there's always a chance it isn't paranoia :) and that's why I asked! Unfortunately I don't have 15 rep on AE yet or else I'd upvote but as soon as I do I'll make sure I do. Really appreciate the help though!

Without root you can only check what's causing it, but hardly do anything to avoid it (unless the system lets you disable that app). But as written, it's most likely some event listener. Same with Google Music, Google Maps, and others: I rarely use maps, and never the Music app, so they always are the first things I disable/freeze.


text:
"Obtaining IP" problem while connecting to WiFi home network on Jelly Bean 4.1.2
I have recently brought a new Samsung mobile with android jelly bean. Till now it was working fine but after the update it is unable to connect to WiFi network and getting stuck at Obtaining IP.
How can this problem be solved?

Usually this happens when the device is set back to default manufacturing date.
Reset the  date to current date and everything will work fine.

Also, check if you entered the WIFI password correctly.


text:
How do i make a new photo album on my HTC Hero S
I have Astro File Manager, but i still cant figure out how to create a new album in my Gallery.  If there is any way, can someone please help me out?

Just create a new folder, and put some pictures in it. The Gallery app will detect and show that folder automatically.

If you have a folder with a bunch of images you surely do have albums in your phone.
Astro is a file manager (it focuzes on managing files,not on the aesthetics of the gallary); Gallery (default gallery app) would do the task.
but if you like, you can always try a light weight photo Gallery app QuickPic via this link to arrange your albums nicely.


text:
Open source driver availability for main Android GPUs?
What are the current GPUs with fully open-sourced drivers on Android?
There's been issues recently with Qualcomm's GPU in the new Nexus 7, which makes me wonder how strict are the rules for open-sourcing all the code for a working Android device, including the GPU drivers.

GPUs will never be open sourced, neither telephony - the nearest pure open source handset is the Neo FreeRunner. Afraid this question is bordering on off-topic...

Broadcom, Qualcomm, Imagination's PowerVR, Nvidia's Tegra, and ARM's Mali GPUs all have partially (mostly) closed-source drivers. In general, the only open-source code in the driver is any vendor extension to the GL and EGL header files, and a GPL'ed shim that can be loaded into the kernel to allow it to communicate with the binary-only driver. Vendors often contribute related code to upstream projects, though, such as X Windows direct rendering code, or the Android graphics subsystem.
Most of the GPU vendors are afraid that open-sourcing their drivers will reveal details of how their technology works, which will provide leverage for patent trolls to make spurious claims that parts of the GPUs or drivers infringe their patents. For this reason, it's unlikely that any drivers will be open-sourced fully unless/until this risk changes.
There are no rules for open-sourcing all the code for an Android device. It would be very difficult to make a completely open-source device. Even if GPU drivers were open, most (if not all) cell radios have binary-only firmware for regulatory reasons: if you could change the drivers, you could make them run on illegal channels, or exceed the maximum permitted transmit power.

Neo Free Runner is one example of pure open source handset, Greenphone is another, there was also another one ... am googling it...

No googling, I just ducked it: Are you talking about the ZTE Open? :) [The smartphone] is completely open source [...]

@Izzy I'd take what it says in a press release with a pinch of salt, if I were you. It only means that Firefox OS is open-source: it'll still have binary-only drivers like most phones.

@t0mm13b You may be interested to learn that the GPU in the Freeruner can't actually render to the full screen of that device, and the vendor doesn't exist any more. OpenMoko's replacement model, the GTA-04, uses closed-source drivers for the GPU and the Wi-Fi chip.

This clarifies the situation for me. After googling a bit more, I found this: Avionic Design GmbH from Germany, are working on submitting open source drivers for Tegra upstream to the mainline Linux kernel which I guess refers to the interaction between the binary drivers and the Linux kernel.

I doubt it: mainline Linux doesn't accept drivers which can't be used without binary components. That's why you won't find vendors' kernel drivers for desktop GPUs in mainline, either. More likely, this company is trying to reverse-engineer an open-source driver, like the 'nouveau' and 'radeon' drivers on the desktop.

I found a bit more info, in this case related to one of the SoC GPU designs, ARM's Mali: The kernel-side Mali driver is open source and customers often have it as part of their Linux trees. The user space driver (i.e. the OpenGL ES/EGL stuff) is, however, closed.

Ah no, my guess was wrong: reading their press release, it's officially sanctioned, but it only a DRM driver, and doesn't support any acceleration.

@DanHulme Interesting but saddened to know and learn that GTA-04 uses closed source :( Meaning of open source is lost by manufacturers afraid to open up and getting hammered by patent trolls... +1 for your comment there :)


text:
What would be a good method to find popular, low rated apps on the google play store?
Apart from just scouring through the charts and clicking on each app individually. I calculate that would take a full week to complete.
I can't find any site that lets you sort the apps by rating, making this tough to achieve... if it's possible at all.
Thanks!

How come popular apps be low rated? :-O

Hang on, are you talking about doing this automatically? Google Play Store is proprietary and no way of automating it or by programmatic means to do so as that is a violation of Terms & conditions of the Play store. Google prohibits usage of screenscraping etc on that and would shoot down anyone doing that.

No. I'm not talking about that. There are many sites that have the data as well. appbrain, appannie, etc. I'm wondering if there's on that would allow sorting by rating which would then allow finding low rated apps. I can't find any so far.

Or there could be some other way of finding these insights that I'm not aware of - hence the question.


text:
Is it safe to Factory Reset my tablet to improve performance? Will I lose the uninstallable apps?
I'm going to reset my Android tab because its internal memory is low.
Is it safe to erase the system data of my android tablet (not rooted)? If I restore the factory setting of my Android, will the uninstallable apps be also removed or only those that can be uninstalled?

Is it safe to erase the system data of my android tablet (not rooted)?

Yes, it's safe to Factory Reset your tablet.

If I restore the factory setting of my Android, will the uninstallable
  apps be also removed or only those that can be uninstalled?

Only those that can be uninstalled will be removed. Doing a Factory Reset is like making your phone brand new. You will lose all your installed apps and all your data, but you will still have the stock / default apps that your phone came with.
Once the phone reboots after a Factory Reset, you start from scratch. You will log-in to your Google account, and have the option of restoring the apps you installed and bought before from Google Play.
Related questions:

Factory reset to restore performance? What are the disadvantages?
Should i do the factory reset? If yes, what will i lose?
Will factory resetting my device remove the Android upgrade?

Your phone will be as good as the day you brought it. Factory resetting your phone only cleans up the apps you installed yourself and not the preinstalled applications. A factory reset really only deals with the Data and the Cache partitions and does not mess with the system.


text:
Get common name of an app given its package name
I'm interested in a way to go from the package name (e.g. com.android.providers.telephony) to its common name (Phone).
I'd like to know if there's ADB/shell command (from the phone), or any system/preinstalled app.
I know that a bunch of apps reveal both once you could pin the app in it. – In Android 4.x (tried with 4.2.2) you can even use the system app manager to confirm the package name once you found and selected the app via the common name.

Robert, if you're still looking for this, my answer here might be interesting for you. In short: CM-based ROMS with Kitkat or later ship with aapt; and if yours does not, you can install it yourself (root required, though). Having that, a one-liner calling to ADB does the job for you. Details "over there" ;)

For users who are willing to use an app based solution for this: https://android.stackexchange.com/q/19865/96277

If you haven't given up on Android apps yet, you can use Titanium Backup. It lets you search either by app name or package name.

Screenshot of Titanium Backup (click image for larger variant)

is there a way to get it to show the package name for an app?


text:
Send SMS to Email address using Android without Internet
I would like to know whether its possible to send an SMS text message to an email address in Android. Moreover, I need to send it without using Internet. I have heard of SMS to Email gateways but then how can one use it

It is possible to send emails to SMS inboxes. But you can't send a SMS to an email inbox given you do not have an internet connection. You must already know that emails require internet connectivity. As you asked, SMS gateways can be used to send and receive SMSes provided you are subscribed to a SMS line via a Direct-to-mobile or a Direct-to SMS gateway. Simply put, you cannot use this functionality with your normal SIM card, if you are willing to do it in an offline method. Read more about SMS Gateways in Wikipedia.
On a side note, if you can go online (say mobile data), you can do this by way of a MMS. All you have to do is to send the MMS to the desired email address. Some of the gateway addresses for email to SMS are listed below.

Alltel: phonenumber@message.alltel.com
AT&T: phonenumber@txt.att.net
T-Mobile: phonenumber@tmomail.net
Virgin Mobile: phonenumber@vmobl.com
Sprint: phonenumber@messaging.sprintpcs.com
Verizon: phonenumber@vtext.com
Nextel: phonenumber@messaging.nextel.com
US Cellular: phonenumber@mms.uscc.net

Keep in mind that most of the networks tend to block and/or alter their gateways once the traffic is considerably high, as this method is widely used by spammers.

thanks for the quick reply..so in short i can't send an sms message to an email address (without internet)...but I can send an email to SMS using email to SMS gateways...do u know gateway addresses for indian mobile carriers like Airtel etc that provide such service?

There is a complete list in Wikipedia. Remember not all the gateways work as carriers block these for regular users.

Hi...can I do something like this..i have a phone without internet connection..using this phone I send a SMS msg to another phone..and this another phone is connected to some desktop or server that has internet...so this 2nd phone will send the email..that will involve setting up of server etc..but then can you tell me if this is possible?

@Parth_90 Yes, as long as the second phone can use MMS and programmed to forward the messages to an email address.

Yes you can send SMS to email without internet. You just type in the email address where the phone number would go in the SMS address field.
This has been possible for years, I did it in 2000 with a Nokia candy bar phone on a 2g network.
To go the other way, sending email to SMS, does require internet, and knowing the gateway address/carrier.