text:
Is RAM/HDD Shared on Tablets PCs?
First off, this isn't directly Android related, I browsed through the humongous list of Stack sites but couldn't find a better fit. If this isn't allowed, move/delete/eat this post before reading on.
Now - how does Tablet RAM work? Is the hard drive (SSD?) shared with the system memory? I can't seem to find any info on this.

We do expect questions to be directly Android related, yes.

No, RAM is RAM, hard drive space is separate. A smokingly fast SSD would be much slower than typical RAM sticks, and it would be impractical to run a system like that. Even smartphones have real RAM sticks in them (usually LPDDR).


text:
Can I remove the .nomedia file from Google Music downloaded music folder?
I'm running version 4.1.511 of the Google Music app.
When it downloads songs for offline use they are stored in

/sdcard/Android/data/com.google.android.music/cache/music

This folder has a .nomedia file in it which prevents the media scanner from scanning the files. This means other music apps that I run don't see the songs?
Is there any problem with removing the .nomedia file from this directory so that the files can be scanned and picked up by other media players?

The .nomedia file is for the reason you stated. You can safely remove the file and other apps will be able to pick up the medias in that folder.
In any case, if there is any problem you can easily create that file again. It can be a empty file with the name .nomedia. You can use programs like ES File explorer to explore to that directory and create the file.
EDIT:
As per the comments below which contains very useful information:

Your Music apps may recreate the .nomedia file when you launch it.
Other players will only be able to play the music if only the musics are DRM free.

keep in mind that the music app may recreate the .nomedia file in that directory if you launch the music app again. I have not tested this, but it would be something that I would watch for.

This is also useful only if the tracks have no DRM on them that prevents other players from using the files.

Thanks all. I removed it and there is also a .nomedia file in the /sdcard/Android directory which I had to remove too. This works and now other applications can pick up the media. However there is a catch, the meta data for the tracks is not stored in the downloaded files so they just come up as unknown artist etc.

source: Stack Exchange

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

sort: votes


text:
What does the "modify/delete USB storage contents" permission really mean?
What does the modify/delete USB storage contents permission really mean? Does it grant access for the application to read, modify and write all the data on my USB storage? Maybe it is this only limited to a subset of that data (e.g. only data written by the application itself)? Or does it mean something else entirely?

If you are familiar with the concepts of read and write permissions on various PC platforms, that is pretty much the same as what is going on here. You are giving the application write access to your "external storage" Which could be an SD card, or some storage space that comes with your device.
That permission indicates that the application is able to create, modify, or delete any files that reside on the SD card (or the non-removable storage space that the the OS treats most like an SD card).
So it could download a file from online and manually save it to your SD card.
It could generate its own image, text, audio etc.. file and save it to your SD card.
It could delete any file on your SD card.
It could find a file that already exists on your SD (even one with nothing to do with the app) and make changes to it.

It means that an application can read/write to the entire contents of your sdcard. Even if the application does not have this permission it will still be able to read from the contents of the sdcard. Giving it modify/write permissions will allow the application to create, edit, or delete files.
99.9% of the time this is so the application can do things like save data to the sdcard. For example this could be images from wallpaper app, or if the app is used to backup your sms messages for you, or even a podcast app needs to save the mp3 file to the sdcard.
There has been some "fuss" lately about ios having access to your pictures and other data on the device. You have to remember that these devices are not Phones, they are computers that make phone calls. It is no different if I install an application on Windows/Linux/OSX, the application will have access to every file on the system that I have access to.
If you don't trust an application to install it on your PC, you wouldn't install it. You should use the same thoughts with your Phone, but keep in mind that you may have even more personal information on the Phone then you would on your PC.

Re iOS photos issue: Android does it too

@MartinTapankov Every computer does this. It's not a backdoor, it's already in the house. Especially sdcards, FAT32 offers no security protection, that is why the OS has the modify/delete permission in android to at least require apps to request this before it lets them modify the sdcard. which is more then any other OS does.

Each application has a specific storage folder. But, some folders are public, like the Pictures, Music and Ringtones folders.
So, basically an application can write/delete files from a public folder and from it's own folder.
Take a look at this link for further details: http://developer.android.com/guide/topics/data/data-storage.html#SavingSharedFiles

The application should be able to write/delete anywhere on the external storage. FAT32 doesn't implement any kind of file permissions (and that's what external storage devices invariably use) so there's no way to restrict access to specific folders/files. It's good design to use your application's storage folder, but you definitely don't have to.

Although FAT32 does not have permission system, there is no reason that the OS (Android/Linux) OS cannot implement a sandbox shim around the file system access to ensure that apps only can access an authorized portion of the file system. It blows me away that Google did not implement something like this as its really quite simple to do for systems developers.

@Timothy It did: according to Android API reference this permission is not required to access application-specific directories.

SD card is an adoptable storage and can be mapped as internal storage (https://source.android.com/devices/storage/adoptable), but USB is a portable storage and only be treated as external storage , thus require different permission treatment

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

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


text:
Windows doesn't detect Nexus S
I recently switched from Linux to Windows 8 consumer preview. I have installed the latest android SDK including the Google USB driver. I connect my Nexus S to the laptop, the phone goes into USB debugging mode. But Eclipse doesn't detect it. if I do >adb devices, the phone doesn't show up. Please help!

I don't know that this will be feasibly answerable. Windows 8 is, as the name says, a preview version. It could simply be that Eclipse won't work, or that the adb driver is broken (I have no idea if drivers of that nature would be affected by changes from Win7->Win8).

what do you mean it goes in to "usb debgging mode"? This is a setting that you have to turn on in settings->applications->developemnt. ADB will not see the device until this is set to true.

Eclipse works fine on windows 8. The devices gets detected in the files transfer mode. Also, the emulator works fine.

@RyanConrad I have enabled the setting on my phone. As soon as I connect my phone to my laptop, the phone automatically enters into USB debugging mode, just like it did under Linux.

What your suggestions be if I facing the exact same problem under windows 7?

Check device manager and make sure the drivers are installed correctly. make sure that there are not any components that have an "issue" with the driver.

try to run ur command with administrative privileges... >adb devices may require administrative access. I experienced the same problem in Ubuntu and It worked with sudo.

My Asus Transformer gets detected just fine - both, in eclipse and in ">adb devices". But still no luck with my nexus s.

reinstall the drivers. the transformer uses different drivers then the nexus s does.

Try this: find the .android folder in your home directory, and replace the adb_usb.ini file with this one. this tells your computer to let adb work with a load of different usb devices. You may need to restart ADB via the command line:
adb kill-server
adb start-server

and now adb should show you your device
adb devices

Try to edit adb_usb.ini and add your device id
you can find it by going to the device manager find the "Android ADB Interface" double click on it go to the details tab, and on the "Property" drop down menu select "Hardware Ids" on the box below it labeled "Values"
You should see something like "USB\VID_2207&PID_0010&MI_01"
The numbers maybe different based on your device vendor id, for example my vendor id is "2207"
No open the adb_usb.ini located on the folders below and add your device id in hex format
for example my device id is "2207" I'll put it there as "0x2207"
It is usually located in

XP: \Documents and Settings\.android\
Windows 7: \Users\.android\
Windows 8: I really dont know.

But if the folder doesnt exist try to create it by using cmd. And if the file adb_usb.ini also doesnt exist you can create it using notepad and only pasting only your device id and save it on the .android folder.

Try a powered USB hub. My (Win7) work laptop refuses to connect to my Samsung S2 except through the powered USB hub in the monitor.


text:
How to recover apps from a factory reset?
I have some apps installed on my device and I want to perform a factory reset. Is there a simpler way to re-install my applications after the reset (with the least possible number of user interventions), without having to search them all in the Market and re-install them again one by one?
Rooting is not a problem.
Thank you in advance.

If you have a 4.x device, the automatic backup/restore found under Settings -> Backup & reset -> Back up my data and Automatic restore options work fine.  It uses Google's own servers to save a list of apps installed on your phone.  After a factory reset once you sign in with the same Google account, it gives you an option to restore those apps.  Keep in mind that if the goal of factory reset is to change the default Google account, you'll need to first add that account to the phone, and change the Backup account to the secondary one you've just added.
On older Android versions the automatic backup/restore was not very reliable, but there are some 3rd-party apps in the Market that can help depending on what exactly your goal is.  If you want to simply re-install apps, then AppBrain along with Fast Web Installer are great.  AppBrain allows you to save the list of your installed apps to their online site, and after a factory reset you would only need to re-install these two apps, sign in, pick the list you created earlier, and it allows you to kick off a process that automatically installs the "missing" apps directly from Market.
If you also need to restore the settings and data associated with those apps, Titanium backup (rooting required) is a better choice.  This app backs up all installed apps and their settings/data to your SD Card.  After a factory reset you install Titanium from Market, and then do a restore.  It can also backup/restore system apps and settings, which can help after a factory reset, but it's generally not recommended to do so, especially if you are planning to install a custom ROM.

Great answer! However, that link to Fast Web Installer is broken. Do you know an alternative?

Unfortunately Fast Web Installer has not worked for a long time, possibly since "Android Market" was re-branded as "Google Play Store".  Google has been making good progress on first-time device activation process in the latest Android versions. Most often, your apps should start installing automatically when you sign in with your Google account on the phone, provided you previously chose to back up installed apps.

I'm running 2.3.5 - is that true for my version?

@TrojanName Difficult to say since I don't have a 2.3.5 device to test this on, but most likely not.  Root and Titanium Backup are your best options.

When you first set up a device it asks you if you want to sync your apps with google servers (I don't remember what it is called). I use that and the market goes and reinstalls all the apps I had installed. Sometimes it skips some here or there, for what ever reason, but for the most part it works well. The only problem is no data is restored with these apps. I also use Titanium Backup sometimes for this. The plus about Titanium Backup is that you can also restore the data, you know, so you don't have to redo all those levels in angry birds again.
The first option does not require root, but I don't know if you can change the setting after the initial setup. TB requires root.
Another option, but it is a bit manual and a little more work then the others, but you can go in to the market website and set them to install on the device.

After doing a factory reset, I was getting a 921 error could not download the apps from the google play store and found this page with helpful advice: http://www.chinatabletshop.com/forum/error---update-for-xxxxx-could-not-be-downloaded-due-to-an-error.-921-fixed/#simple-forum-post-5
If you see the same error, then follow the steps -

Menu > Settings > Personal > Accounts and sync > click on your google account (email)
click 'Remove account'. Don't worry, it's not deleting your physical account. Account related information is still saved in Google.
Launch Google Play Store again
When asked, use existing account to create the google account.
Provide your existing google account information (email & password)
try again to download

While potentially helpful for someone dealing with this issue, your answer doesn't seem to be related to the original question, which was simply "How do I restore apps after a factory reset?"


text:
Automatic factory reset and app installation
I have a Android tablet for which I want to do a factory reset, and then install some pre-defined applications.
This has to be carried out by someone who has no computer experience and no Android experience at all. All I get this person to do is connect the device to a computer by cable, and interact with a very simple interface with a couple of buttons.
All this has to be performed on a well known device and only for that model.
Is it possible to connect a device to a computer and with a couple clicks do all that?
If so, are there any suitable applications which do that already? Would it be necessary to create software for that?
Rooting is no problem.

possible duplicate of How to recover apps from a factory reset?

@Ryan Conrad it sounds like it's slightly different. The recover apps question implies the apps were previously installed. This question implies they weren't necessarily.

@rob05c - the question is from the same person. the original question should have been modified, not a new question started.

@Ryan Conrad ah, I missed that.

@RyanConrad I intended to ask both question separately. In fact, the plan was to obtain answers to the other question, and then ask this accordingly. Moreover, this question is more specific than the previous one, since here I'm asking for a solution for the whole procedure, while in the other one, I am asking the general thing.

Possible solutions, in descending order of idealism and difficulty:

Create a custom ROM, with the apps you want on it, which you can flash onto these devices. This question is a good starting place for that.
Write your own app, which automatically installs the other apps. The first answer to this thread provides the code to install apps programmatically.
The easiest solution, if it suits your needs, would to be to use one of many "installer" apps. If you can drop the apps on the tablets after installing your stock ROM (ideally on an SD card), you could then install an "installer" app. Then either run it yourself, or instruct your users to run it and install the listed apps.

In any of these solutions, you will have to write the desktop computer application which has the few-button interface for users, which does the flashing and installing. Whether you do a custom ROM or a stock one, you will have to automate its install. This thread has some help on automating ROM installation.

@MobileCushion I believe any solution to your problem will require development. I'm fairly certain what you want doesn't exist somewhere in prepackaged form. Just remember Android Enthusiasts is for Android users. For development questions, Stack Overflow is the place to ask.

Thank you for answering, and yes that is somehow what I was fearing. Looks like this would be an harder task than what I was expecting. ;)

I know it's a late answer -- but it does not need any "special app" to be written:
As to your apps installation: Put all the .apk files into a directory (you can catch them e.g. using AppMonster Free Backup Restore). Add the basic stuff from the Android SDK (you don't need the entire SDK package, just a few files which you can find e.g. in the AndroidForums ADB Guide, for Mac, Linux and Windows). Write a tiny Shell/Batch script to adb install *.apk.
The factory reset can be accomplished in a similar way:
adb shell "recovery --wipe_data"

So put that as the first line of your script Optionally prepend it with an adb wait-for-device. As the wipe is followed by a reboot, better make it look like this:
adb wait-for-device              # in case the user starts the batch before connecting the device
adb shell "recovery --wipe_data" # factory-reset (includes reboot)
adb wait-for-device              # wait until device has rebooted
adb install com.foobar.myapp     # install the apps you want
adb install ...
echo "=========================" # let the user know the process is finished
echo "All done -- Cut the rope!"
echo "========================="

Zip it all up and send it to the user.
Instructions to the user:

Unpack the ZIP to an empty folder (closer descriptions depending on the OS used)
Connect your device with an USB cable (maybe add instructions on how to see whether the connection was established successfully. On windows, added trouble might be special drivers needed)
Start the Shell script/Batch file

Taking a look at the ADB options might give you further ideas ;)


text:
Internal storage data disappeared, trying to dump
When I tried to use my SGS, it was unresponsive and didn't wake from sleep, then I rebooted it. After the boot, the desktop was like stock. I started checking my apps, some had its data intact and some lost all data. It seems that my data on the internal storage (NAND?) is gone. The internal SD card is ok.
The problem: I had hundreds of notes on the Notes app. I want to try to recover them.
The idea is to dump the internal storage raw data to the SD card (something like dd would do). My phone is not rooted.
Questions: any advices on this approach? Any ideas for a better approach?
Info:

Not rooted. Using stock Android 2.2 froyo.
Only a few apps installed.

If you're not rooted and completely stock there's probably not much you can do. You won't have permission to read from (the majority of) /data.

Thanks, but the access to the current Memo database file doesn't matter now, since it is empty. What I'm trying to do is get a dump of the internal storage raw data and save it to the SD card so I can search for the old Memo data there.

It should be possible to flash ClockWorkMod with Odin without being rooted (see XDA). From there, you could access everthing on the device, and such also do a "raw dump".

Ah, and I knew I saw something before which might bring a little light in here: Recover deleted content from userdata partition?


text:
How to Remote Control Google Doc Presentation?
I want to remote control Google Doc Presentations. Is there an app for this?
Bonus point if it can connect via Bluetooth to my Linux-based PC.

For those who came to this post as they knew support was built-in a long time ago, allowing for controlling using a mobile browser, that's no longer true: What happened to the "View Together" option?. Sad.

You could simply use a bluetooth/wifi mouse app like PRemoteDroid. There are a bunch of others, and generally speaking they just allow your device to be used as a mouse/keyboard input. If you can pair with your PC it should work, although I've never tried it myself (I do use PRemoteDroid to pair with and remotely control my Xoom, though; works great).
Another option would be some kind of VNC or remote desktop client, but that's not as lightweight and some of them don't support Linux (Splashtop, for example, doesn't have a Linux server, IIRC).

Google Presentation Remote is great and really easy to use on your Android phone. It is dependent on the Chrome Extension "Google Presentation Remote".

Link doesn't work

I'm the developer of an app called WatchPresenter, which lets you control Google Slides from your phone. It doesn't require phone and computer to be on the same network (as long as both have Internet it will work).
You control the slides by using the volume buttons, so you can switch the phone's screen off (easier to handle without hving to look at the phone, and less risk of unintentional clicks).
Additionally, if you have a Android Wear device, it lets you control the presentation with wrist gestures.

I wouldn't go so far to mark it spam – if you include a full disclosure with your post. References: How do I mention my own products in answers? / What is the correct way to add your own product to an answer? / Limits for self-promotion in answers

It works thx! But fix bug with multiple clicks per second :)

@DawidDrozd can you give me more details about the bug so that I can fix it?

I did end up using the paid app Presenter. I liked the interface and the way it dominantly shows the presentation time.

authors: อมรรัตน์ คําภูแสน


text:
Can I run CyanogenMod without mobile service?
I am wondering if I can run CyanogenMod on a phone without service? I have an HTC Incredible and am thinking of upgrading to a new phone and wonder if I can give my old phone to my daughter to use like an iTouch works where you only have internet access via a wireless connection and cannot make cell phone calls but can use applications.

Yes, even plain Android will do this.  I've heard of some unlicensed phones that didn't properly finish setup unless you had a SIM card but it shouldn't be an issue with CM.

I used to have an Incredible - moved on to a Nexus! - and I noticed a ROM in the XDA forums that was for Wifi only, ie, device without a data plan.
You can search here for it.
There is also a Wifi only mod that can be found here.
Link to Wifi Only Thread.


text:
Netflix-Xyboard error: "Sorry we could not reach the Netflix service. (1009)"
Rest of the error message: "Please try again later.  If the problems persists(sic) please visit the Netflix website."
I successfully used Netflix streaming video for over a week on my new Xyboard 8.2.  Suddenly, in the middle of a show, it started giving this error (and stopped streaming).
I tried other shows and different connections (WiFi and 3G).  I uninstalled and re-installed the updates to the factory version several times.  Rebooted several times.  Called Netflix, who said I should contact Motorola and re-install from scratch.  Rooted the Xyboard instead and installed from scratch. No change.
Netflix doesn't even think Xyboard is a supported device, although Motorola advertises it for the Xyboard.  The tech said they haven't gotten a rash of calls about this error.
All but the "1009" in the error messages seems to have occurred many a time on other devices with lots of weird resolutions that don't seem applicable and the few I've tried.
Any additional suggestions?
This was the coolest feature I found on the xyboard.

I think it's Motorola fault and I've found temporary workaround for me (Motorola Xoom 2 / Android Honeycomb 3.2).
Unfortunately only device factory reset is working. Before I had tried clear cache and data, uninstall Netflix app - nothing is working. Only factory reset.

Or you have not paid your service does not have a good internet connection. Check your account for view the payments


text:
Why is all audio suddenly phase cancelling on headphones?
When I listen to audio through headphones on my Galaxy S2, there's a phase-cancellation effect that attenuates any centered signal (so I often get most of the music but little of the vocal, or on podcasts with voices panned center I get very little anything).
But if I listen in the car - through a 3.5mm male-to-male aux cable -  or on the internal speaker, the audio sounds fine.
I've tried four sets of headphones, with both two and three contact jacks.
Also tried hard-resetting the phone, and this didn't have any effect.
All these headphones used to work fine. I started having this issue earlier this week, around 2/28.


text:
Can android smartphones (with Wi-Fi enabled) be detected by other WiFi devices?
So that the other Wi-Fi device knows an android phone (with wi-fi enabled) is nearby?

When you say that Wi-Fi is enabled I'm taking you literally: that Wi-Fi is enabled but is not actually connected to an access point (hotspot).
So the answer is no.
Just enabling the Wi-Fi on your phone does not make it visible to other devices.  It just sits there listening passively.  No one around you can see your wi-fi or get it to respond.
If you set your device to be a Wi-Fi hotspot (typically for tethering purposes) it will emit a signal called a beacon that allows other devices to see it.
Also, if you turn on Wi-Fi Direct then it can be seen, but this is a new feature in Android 4 that is not widely used yet and I don't know much about it.

And if you are using a open wifi network for example on a café, then you can be watched with a simple app called droidsheep.. But all devices can be detected by such app, even mac and windows and IOS... So just be careful when you are using a open wifi network...


text:
How to change Opera language back to English?

Possible Duplicate:
How can I set the language in Opera Mini 6?

I installed Opera in a Samsung Galaxy Y. Since probably it detected that I'm in the Philippines, the language defaults to Filipino. How do I change it to English?

Related: How can I set the language in Opera Mini 6?


text:
Where did the galaxy live wallpaper go in ICS?
Since I've upgraded to Ice Cream Sandwich on my Nexus S, the galaxy live wallpaper -  which was part of Android - is gone.
Can I get the exact same live wallpaper for ice cream sandwich? It looks something like this:

Why the downvote? Is the question not clear?

Pure speculation (that's why this is a comment rather than an answer): perhaps that wallpaper was found to use up too much CPU or something, so they yanked it.

You can try to switch your current live wallpapers with the Gingerbread pack the Nexus S came with. This will need your device to be rooted though.
As seen on this topic on xda-developers, you can use Root Explorer (or any other application that can get into the android filesystem, like Root Browser Lite) to switch your with livewallpaper.apk file located on system/app with this one, which contains the stock Gingerbread live wallpapers from the Nexus S, and possibly the one you're looking for.
--
Also, there's some really similar live wallpapers available on the Market, including one called Galaxy Core 3D LiveWallpaper, which looks almost like the one you're looking for.


text:
Can I use the default music app in ICS without linking it to my google account?
I somehow cannot use the music app in android without linking it to my google account first.
So - against my will - I linked it to my google account. I did this because I was hoping to remove that link later from within the app. As it turns out, this is not possible.
I do not use google music and want to avoid granting access to private data when it's not necessary.
Question

Can I use the default music app in ICS without linking it to my google account?

I'd guess this isn't CM9 specific, but based on a quick test on my Kindle Fire you can just hit the Back button on the account select screen the first time you launch Music and it will simply skip it. Also, you can unlink your account by clearing the Music app's data in your settings (Settings->Applications->Music->Clear Data).


text:
Tap screen to turn it back on after timeout
I noticed that on my Samsung Galaxy S II (Android 2.3.5) after the display is turned off (per Settings -> Display -> Screen time-out) you have to press the physical Home or Power buttons to get it back on. Tapping the screen doesn't do anything.
Obviously the screen should get locked soon, so that you can put the phone in your pocket when the screen is off, but letting you tap the screen immediately after it turns off to wake up the display shouldn't hurt.
Is it just me, or how do you handle this? Is there an app to fix this specific issue? Do you know if this was discussed on the official issue tracker or if it's just my phone/my OS version?
(Aside: I know there are apps that let you configure timeout per-app (see e.g.
Screen timeout when reading), but I'm getting hit by this independent of the app I'm using, and anyway I wouldn't like to have to lock the phone manually to save power when the active app prevents the screen time-out. I think the screen time-out should be based on whether I'm actually using the phone, not on the active app.)

This is OS and device independent AFAIK, not a bug.  Having a short grace period between screen off and lock makes sense though.  An app like this might be helpful to you.

I assume that if the screen has truly "turned off" then the touchscreen will simply not work in order to wake it up!? If, however, the screen has dimmed to zero brightness for a period of time before turning off...


text:
My HTC EVO 3D is unresponsive after charging
For about the past month or so, whenever I pull my HTC Evo 3d off the charger (wall primarily, haven't tested against USB yet) the phone is unresponsive for anywhere between 15-60 seconds, and it's getting worse.
If I pull the phone off with the display turned on, it will stay turned on in a frozen state; it does the same if I pull it off with the display off, just frozen with the display turned off. The battery is frequently incredibly warm but not quite hot. The unit is running stock Android (after a couple of updates; 2.3.4 Gingerbread, Sense 3.0).

What could be causing this? To me it sounds like some kind of power regulation problem, perhaps from it switching from AC to battery power.
How can I diagnose what is going on that is causing the overheat (is overheating a regularly reported defect of the Evo 3D)?
I am becoming more worried about long-term damage not only from the freezing, but from just charging my phone. So, most importantly, what steps should I take to fix it?

I have minimized the impact of this problem by disabling the [Stay Awake] setting (Settings | Applications | Development).
This setting had been enabled and once I had turned it back off the screen display became responsive sooner after unplugging. Apparently this setting on the HTC-Evo 3D is problematic.

If there are any workarounds for this setting being problematic I would be happy to hear it as my phone frequently remains plugged in while I work, and I regularly use it.


text:
Messaging input language is supported by Android or by handset makers?
I am interested in buying SE Xperia Ray running on Gingerbread.  An export set is selling $100 less but was told that it does not support messaging in Chinese. My question is whether messaging input language is supported by Android or by the handset maker, Sony Erisson?  If by Android, do I need to root handset and update firmware directly from Android?  If by maker, then I need to go to the maker for the language pack.  Is it worth the trouble to save on $100?

Do you ask wheather  your keyboard will have Chinese input?
Best part about Android is, that you can easily change the stock keyboard with whatever you like. You just install it like a normal app, and select is as input method. Bulgarian is supported, not only keyboard layout, but even text prediction.  I am pretty damn sure there are some good keyboards that will provide Chinese for you. Smart Keyboard Pro (I think) has one, you might check its features in Android Market. You can probably find text prediction in Chinese, do a search in Android market, too :)
If you want the whole ROM(menus,etc) to be in Chinese, though, this is ROM dependent, so it is not easy to change this, you will have to root.
In short: A good keyboard will cost you 5-6$, so you are saving 95 :) I hope I understood you question correctly.

I haven't used Android before so I may not asking the right question.  In my old Sony Ericsson phone proprietary system, there are 2 language settings: language for phone (which I select English) and language for texting (which I select English and Simplified Chinese from a list of languages stored in its OS).  Chinese input can use the same English keyboard becos input can be done in Romanised Chinese (called Hanyu Pinyin). So when I selected 2 input languages, a key is added to the keyboard where I can toggle between actual English and Romanised Chinese using a-z alphabet.

The salesman is not sure himself, all he can tell me is the export set does not support messaging in Chinese.  To me this mean Chinese is not in the list of languages installed into the phone memory by the makers.  So I am asking if I cannot download something to add Chinese as an input language choice.  Whether by way of language pack or keyboard change (if Chinese support is packaged together within the keyboard) does not matter to me.

All I wish to know is that I can easily add Chinese as the second messaging input language by download and install something.  Hopefully need not take the risk to go so technical as to erase and reinstall OS.

Maybe I should ask: What is my course of action if my choice of messaging input language (Chinese) is not in the list of languages pre-instal in the phone by the maker?  This is likely if the export set is intended for South Asia and Middle East region where Chinese is seldom used.

keyboard is not enough ! , i had android few years ago and Arabic was not supported then, there were keyboards supporting arabic language but , the arabic fonts are not there in OS and there is no way without rooting to add them, only way for me was a messaging app that supports arabic and have the arabic font in the app , by that app messeging problem was solved but again arabic was not there in the browsers, gmail, facebook, twitter, for browser firefox for android had fonts for arabic in it, for rest i had to wait till arabic got supported in OS

Hm, this might be a problem I never considered. I have rooted my phones anyway, and better ROMs come with various lang support. I have noticed that arabic is poorly supported on phones not meant for Arabian-speaking countries. Probably the right to left writing, dont know. Anyway, I cant check to be 100% sure, cos my phones are rooted and come with various lang support, and dont know anyone with this device. :( I think it is worth it to bite the bullet and nuy it, since Chinese is widely spoken, and there are lots of apps out there, at least some will solve the problem. Not 100% sure, though.

in android market there are lots of messaging apps that support languages not supported by the device , specially chinease , so you will not have problem with that,
many applications are built to support specific languages that are not supported by android so there also if in that app chinease is supported you will not have problem , but the issue for you will be in gmail app , facebook app, twitter app , these depend on fonts and language supported by the OS only


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set another CDMA operator in a verizon wireless galaxy tab
Got a galaxy tab 7 SCHI800BKV verizon wireless tab. It has no rim/sim port. Question is if I root the device will it be possible to set my country's CDMA operator in the device?
Thanks for your help.

The device may have to be unlocked first. Rooting will not Unlock the device. You will also need information from the network you want to run the device on. Like if the device is supported on their network, if they are able to active the device (they will be able to tell you if they support it if you give them the ESN/MEID) and what their mobile carrier code is (SID/NID/MCC).
I did find this info that may help once it is unlocked:

From here, I will walk you through programming the tablet for ota activation with that carrier.
  If its the verizon galaxy tab, to get to the programming menu go to the notepad and type **772 to get to the manual programming.
the spc code will always be 000000
from here touch down 3 times
  clear out the directory number with 10 0's
  then hit down
  then clear out the msin with 10 0's
  from here touch down
  here you will change the system id to what is necessary for that carrier.
  then you will hit left or right and then enter
  then hit down 4 times and you should see mcc, put the mcc number here
  then hit down 4 times, and the home sid should match the one you input, then you will change the NID for that carrier as well
  then you will hit down 64 times, and make sure cdma homesys reg is yes
  then hit down 6 times to where it says slot cycle index, change this to 1 by hitting touch here and clear it and hit 1
  then exit service

you would have to call Verizon, I would think.

I called verizon they say the ESN is good but they won't unlock it for me. Can I unlock it myself?

take a look at this video, it may work for this model too, I am not 100% sure.

Fast gsm also says sorry. Probably I am out of luck

Generally speaking, rooting is completely unrelated to unlocking.
CDMA unlocking is also more difficult than SIM unlocking a GSM phone, and CDMA phones need to be activated on the network, unlike sticking a SIM in an unlocked GSM phone and doing whatever you want.  You'll need help from both carriers (Verizon to unlock, your carrier to activate) in order to do this.

If I root the device will it not automatically unlock from verizon? If the answer is NO, do they (verizon) cooperates in the unlock process? (I purchased this from ebay, how can I do it?)

@newcomer Rooting won't do anything to unlock it. I don't much about Verizon's customer service, but it might be possible for your local carrier to handle the transfer from Verizon.  If the ESN is "dirty" (the device was lost or stolen) then you're probably completely out of luck ... this often happens with used devices from eBay, at least.

OK I called verizon they say the ESN is good but they don't unlock it for me. Can I unlock it myself?

@newcomer I would doubt it; from what I understand only the carriers have access to whatever tools they have that keeps track of the ESN globally.


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Is it possible to have Skype for Android automatically answer calls?
I have this working well for the Skype client on Ubuntu Linux, but I don't see any option to do this in the Android client.
I would like to configure the Skype client for Android to automatically answer calls from contacts.  Is this possible?
Thanks!

I have developed an app which dials automatically via skype depending on the phone no. So I think it will be possible.

Currently and sadly, there's no such option to allow the action of auto-answer an incoming Skype call.
You can keep an eye out on this threads, maybe in a nearby feature such solution will arrive:

Skype Support Network: Auto answer incoming call on Android OS
XDA Developers forum thread: [RQ] Skype auto answer
XDA Developers forum thread: [Q] Skype Auto Answer

Additionally, 3rd party solutions aren't possible to this end, since Skype uses a proprietary protocol with no available API as explained on this Stackoverflow answer.

Unfortunately Skype for Android DOES automatically answer calls. If my phone is logged into skype and someone calls, it always automatically picks up after the second ring if I don't do anything. I asked about this in the skype support forum and they said the next version of skype will have a new feature that will allow android users to disable auto-answer.


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Turning on encryption for an Android 4.0 device
I need to encrypt my full file system on Android device. From this link, I understand that Android provides support to enable full file system encryption based on a password but that need to be enabled explicitly. However, this link doesn't give complete details about the implementation (particularly for new users).
Has any one enabled this kind of encryption so far? Do people think that this is safe to do or it has some other drawbacks?

I'm not sure I understand what you're asking. Do you want to know about the encryption provided by ICS and how it works? Are you trying to find and use a different encryption scheme? What are you looking to accomplish?

I want to enable the default encryption on my file system so that my device by default encrypts all the data written to that file system and decrypts while reading it back. From the given link, it looked like Android 3.0 itself supports that but we need to enable it explicitly. I wanted to know how can we enable that.

Are you looking to encrypt the internal nand flash or external. From whatever I read most of the links point to encryption of the internal storage to protect personal information. The encryption using a blocked device is a feature that should be supported by the firmware provider without which I doubt you would be able to work off an encrypted external storage.

Yes, I need to encrypt the external storage as well.

In Honeycomb the option is in Settings -> Location and security.  In Ice Cream Sandwich it's at Settings -> Personal -> Security -> Encryption.
If you're wondering about how Android does encryption, take a look at this: http://source.android.com/tech/encryption/android_crypto_implementation.html
Naturally encrypting and decrypting requires some overhead, but I wouldn't expect it to be too bad.  Undoing encryption does require a factory reset, so if you're doing it "just to try" you may want to do a backup first.  If you're worried about security then I would definitely advise you to use it.

Encryption on ICS cannot be reversed without a factory reset (we've also had a question regarding that actually).

@eldarerathis Thanks. I must have misunderstood an old rumor as fact or something.

@MatthewRead any ideas for encrypting external storage?

@Buchi You could try something like DroidCrypt to manage any files you need to encrypt on the SD card.  If you'd need to encrypt the whole thing I'd say that you're doing it wrong :P


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Path where Firefox Mobile Addons store their data?
I've installed Firefox Mobile on my Asus eee transformer and installed the scriptish add-on for using some userscripts.
Some of them require editing. The problem is I don't know which path contains these scripts.
Does anyone here know that? Or know where the firefox data is stored?

As with all apps, they store their data below the /data/data directory, in a directory named according to their package name -- which is what you can see following the "id=" in the playstore URL. So for Firefox, data should be in /data/data/org.mozilla.firefox.
So far the good news. Now for the bad news: This directory can only be accessed by the app itself -- or by the root user. So if your device is not rooted: bad luck.
I could imagine that for userscripts and some other profile data, Firefox might (or might not) use some storage on the sdcard -- so you could check if you see a similar directory structure there. Certainly not with the "doubled" /data, and maybe even just named "firefox" -- as I do not have Firefox installed, I cannot check, but it's worth a look.

The good news is that Firefox have a very basic file browser and so you can open the URL file:///data/data/org.mozilla.firefox/ from Firefox itself without rooting.

As Izzy says, all the data are in /data/data/org.mozilla.firefox, which means you can only read them if your device is rooted. Inside that directory, the path files/mozilla has a very similar layout to your ~/.mozilla/firefox directory on a Linux desktop: it has a profiles.ini and a directory asdf12yz.default containing all the interesting files.


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Galaxy Nexus: how to upload music in Linux?
As you know, Galaxy Nexus supports only MTP protocol for USB connection, which is not greatly supported under Linux. As a workaround, I have tried to upload my music to Galaxy Nexus through WiFi. I have installed "WebDAV server" (The Olive Tree) from Market and uploaded a couple of tracks to Music folder. But, Music app on the phone does not see any music, shows just "ways to add music..." message. Is there a way to force a rescan?

Specific solution for my problem is to install Rescan SD application from Market and launch it after uploading music through WebDAV.

I suggest you to try QtADB, instead of your WebDav work-a-round.
I tried every way and this is by far the best.

I have to admit I have not played with Galaxy Nexus, but  AIRDOID is claimed to be a good solution for moving files. I use it with both my phones and works fine. I know the new way parts are mounted makes a huge difference. I usually use Zimly as media player, and it finds uploded with airdroid files without any problems. You might need to re-scan media, as well.
If you are on Ubuntu, you might try this as last resort solution

After buying and using Nexus for an year, I can confirm that webdroid is valid alternative. It wont mount your phone, but will allow wirelessly to copy music and an other file


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How to recover files from SD card on HTC Merge?
So today somehow my phone completely reset itself. I went into my local wireless office and they helped me a bit. My phone has lost all of it's contacts and apps (no biggie) but the employee told me that pictures and video would still be on the SD card. I can't find my pictures anywhere on my phone. Would they still be on the SD card? If so, how can I get to them?
Thanks

If there are video or photo on sdcard you see it to plugin your sdcard on device to can read an sdcard. On htc there are no encrypt of data on sdcard by default

try using a file explorer like this Astro File Manager on your phone and you will be able to see all files, photos , vids stored in your memory either phone memory or SD card


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Do I have to install a custom ROM if I root?

Possible Duplicate:
Does rooting require a custom ROM?

I have an HTC Desire S with the stock ROM.
Can I root the phone but keep my stock ROM, that is the one provided by HTC ?
Or do I HAVE to install a custom ROM if I root?
And what is ClockworkMod. Is it a custom ROM ?

You don't have to install a custom ROM, you can use a stock one. There's usually rooted versions of stock ROMs readily available for most devices, with the only difference between them and a completely stock ROM being the addition of Superuser and the su binary (and often busybox). If your device is supported by a simple software rooting method (HTC stuff often is) then you can simply root and be done.
ClockworkMod is not a custom ROM, it is a custom recovery image. The recovery system is basically a minimal environment and GUI that exists on a separate partition and can be used to backup or restore your device's state, install new ROMs, and perform some other functions that can help you fix your system if it gets into a bad state. The differences between these and other things is covered pretty well in What is the difference between: Rooting, Jailbreak, ROM, Mod, etc.? and What is ClockworkMod Recovery and what is it for?


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How can I view my phone's screen on a computer in real time?

Possible Duplicate:
How do I project the screen of my android phone for a presentation?
How to capture video stream from Android phone screen and show it on laptop?

I have made a demo app and it's installed on my phone. I want to be able to show the app in action from my phone using a projector.
The way I see this happening is if I can share my phone's screen with my laptop. Is there an app to help me do that?
Note: The main reason for me not to use the Android device emulator is that it runs extremely slow and at 100% of CPU usage which I don't think is good for my laptop. I have a moderately spec-ed machine, and I need to find a why to do.

do check
http://www.mightypocket.com/2010/08/android-screenshots-screen-capture-screen-cast/
http://code.google.com/p/androidscreencast/

One that I have used is Webkey. It requires root.


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Virtual Router software is keep on disconnecting
I'm using the Virtual Router from my laptop to connect my android mobile through WIFI. It's connecting properly but the connection is not extending more than 5 - 6 minutes. Is i have to change any settings in the mobile? OR is any other software providing this kind of service. I have SAMSUNG Young Model number : GT-s5390, Android Version : 2.3.5.

Do other devices maintain longer connections with your laptop?

No Idea. I never connect with other devices..


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Multiple force closes
I have intermittent issues with multiple apps forcing closing. This has happened on both my current ROM (Miui) and every version of Cyanogenmod I've tried.
Usually this problem crops up again a few months after a fresh ROM install or factory reset. I'll switch from 3G to Wifi, or vise versa, and then everything on my phone that uses background data will start force closing. The most usual suspects are Google Services Framework (com.google.process.gapps) and Facebook (com.facebook.katana), but almost any app seems to force close including ScoreCenter, Docs, and Smooth Calendar.
In addition to the force closes, the other big symptom is that I can't turn off or on airplane mode, mobile network data (3G), wifi, or background data syncing - but usually not all at the same time. Sometimes I'll be able to turn on Wifi but not airplane mode, or other times I'll be able to turn 3G off but Wifi won't turn off. Sometimes I'll be able to turn a service off or on after a reboot, other times not. Sometimes when I reboot a service that I turned off before will be back on again, other times not. Incredibly, utterly frustrating.
Neither rebooting, fixing permissions, nor wiping dalvik cache seem to help. I've only ever gotten my phone to work again by fiddling around with the radio settings and pulling the battery for hours before something magically starts working again. This most recent time I've even removed my Google account from the phone but that hasn't helped either. I know a factory reset would make this problem go away (for a little while, at least) but it always returns - I want to find the root cause and change whatever is making it happen in the first place (especially if it's something I'm doing!).
I know that this issue involves the interaction between app syncing and the wifi/3G radios but I have no idea what or why. I've uploaded a logcat here - I hope you all can make heads or tails of it. I saw E/ACRA    ( 1296): java.io.IOException: No space left on device and presumed it might be a partition storage space issue but all the partitions I could see (including those that require root) still have space.
Thanks in advance, I'm super frustrated with this one.

After investigating further and looking at the partitions again, it turns out that I did have a totally full /data/data (as described in a previous question).
For posterity, here's what I did:
Because DiskUsage, the app I normally use to investigate partition usage, had locked up as well I fired up Terminal Emulator (luckily it was still working) and followed this advice I found in an XDA thread:

You can check [the partition utilization] by running this command as root:
df /data/data
If you see % used = 100 then this is your problem.

It was, in fact, 100% full. As soon as I moved some apps to my SD card my phone immediately started working again. I must've misread the free space of the partition when I first looked into it (doh!). The radio issues I was sure were involved ended up being a red herring.


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Where does the Fastboot pull the information from?
I have a Motorola Xoom MZ601 but which is a GSM Wifi model. 3G on Xoom is not wokring currently. So I tried to debug the problem and when I did Fastboot getVars I got following info
NFOversion-bootloader: 1049
INFOproduct: xoom-cdma
INFOsecure: yes
INFOmodel: MZ600
INFOmemory-info: 0x101:0x5454:0
INFOmid: 001
INFOversion: 0.4
INFOversion-baseband: N_01.100.05P
INFOversion-baseband-2:
INFObattery-status: 64%:7.749V:0.9844A:36.75C
INFOunlocked: yes
INFOiswarrantyvoid: yes
all: Done
finished. total time: 0.946s

Can somebody help me find where does this info come from, as that partition or file may be corrupted.
The device is rooted.

If your problem is that 3G isn't working and the Xoom seems to think it's a CDMA version instead of GSM, why don't you ask directly how to fix that, instead of this very obscure question that may not help you?  You'll also want to include what you were doing before this happened.

Sorry if the question was unclear and I am absolutely trying to fix the 3g not working. But I have done my research before posting this question and fix I found for 3g not working didn't help. I have narrowed down the options to few issues and possible solutions. one of them was to replace the misc partition from working MZ601 as it contains information about baseband. But it didn't fix the problem so next possibility is to find this fastboot info as it is incorrect. Purpose of asking this question is to get specific anwsers and not suggestion of the solution that I have already tried.

Also regarding what I was doing befor this happned - I have bought this xoom as second hand device and it is not working since I bought. I have then flashed sbf images and stock xoom images which failed in fixing this problem and also failed in updating the fastboot info too.

OK. So you flashed a GSM image and verified the flash succeeded, but it still thinks it's CDMA?  I assume you've verified it is GSM (based on the presence of a SIM card or something) rather than trusting whoever sold it to you.

Yes I have flashed the correct xoom image and it still thinks that it is CDMA not GSM. Also in Australia you can only get GSM Xoom and it came with the box that says MZ601.

Good to know, thanks.  Hopefully someone can help.

the information comes from the misc partition.. /dev/block/platform/sdhci-tegra.3/by-name/misc
if you dd if=.... of=/sdcard/misc.img then do an adb pull /sdcard/misc.img you will see.. I stuffed up a root and had CDMA crap in there from one of the updates.. now no 3g either :)
but that's where it queries the information from.. doens't do an mdm_ctrl commands to extract it or anything.


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Tagged for Android not compatible with Mi320?

Possible Duplicate:
Why are some apps on the market incompatible with my device?

I use CSL Mi320 and I tried to download 'Tagged for Android'. The problem is that it stated that the app is incompatible with my phone. Why is that?

Could be a number of things.  App developers can set the minimum requirements for their apps which the Market will check before letting you download and install them.  The phone's OS version could be less than what the app requires, the screen resolution could be too low (320x480 of your phone as can be seen on the bottom of this page,) the phone could be missing some hardware component required by the app (e.g. GPS, front-facing camera, etc.)  The best way would be to contact the developer with your phone's specs, and inquire as to why their app is incompatible.


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Preparing A500 for warranty service
I have a rooted A500 with HC3.2 and I strongly believe that the focus problem is hardware. Since I'm under warranty I don't think I'll waste my time and send the tablet to repair.
Two questions:
How do I fully backup my device (let's say "snapshot") in order to easily restore all apps, wallpapers, settings, etc (possibly accounts too) when it returns? I can easily backup programs, but I don't know about their data. I also have a Bitcoin wallet there, so I need to back my private keys up in order to receive coins at the same address later.
How do I un-root and downgrade the firmware to Acer's original stock 3.0? When I updated Recovery I did a backup, so I believe the final step is to restore that backup.
By the way, does Acer consider rooting a warranty breach for hardware problems? I know many manufacturers don't care if you change their firmware when you send them a device with clear hardware problems, but they eventually restore everything to stock.
Thanks.

I could have found the solution by myself. Not sure because I haven't tested it yet.
For the backup/restore: Titanium Backup (tutorial)
For the downgrade/unroot thing: first I could restore Acer's original recovery via Acer recovery installer, then I could downgrade to HC3.0.1 with this
I'll give it a try
It works perfectly!!!


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hosts file keeps reverting
I run adb shell and append a line to /etc/hosts
using
echo IP DNSName >> hosts

It works for a some time and then reverts back to having only a single entry for localhost.
Any idea what could cause this?
I am using temp root using VISIONary and I am connecting my HTC Desire HD adbd via WiFi, because it refuses to identify my handset via USB.

No idea why it's doing it, but you could stop it by changing the permissions on the host file to read-only.
To set a file to read-only, log in as root via ADB (or use the Terminal application and log in as root) and then enter:
chmod 444 <path-to-hosts-file>
If you need to edit it again later on, enter:
chmod 644 <path-to-hosts-file>

I think you mean read-only. That should work as long as what's overwriting the file isn't an app that uses root, or the system itself doing it on boot.

Yes, that IS what I meant. DURRR. Thanks, I corrected it.  If the perms are set to ro, nothing should be able to overwrite it unless it also can set file privs, which is unlikely.

how do I set the file to read only?
Anyway, its not on reboot.
could it be a result of my "force close"ing an app and clearing its cache ?

Updated answer with more details on perms.  Also, it would be most unlikely to be from force closing an app unless it's an ad blocker.

No adblocker is involved. Nor does this help. It just keeps reverting even after I call chmod 444 hosts. Can I somehow log access to this file?


text:
Android App for StackExchange

Possible Duplicate:
Is there any app for Stack Exchange?

Is there an android app for StackExchange sites and if not is there one in development?

I'm not trying to be rude, but did you even attempt to search or look at the "similar questions list" when you asked this? I just used the "Ask Question" button and typed in your exact title and the duplicate was literally at the top of the similar questions list.

I know of 3, there may be more: I found these on stackapps.
DroidStack
Stack Remote
StackAnywhere
None of these apps really allow you to "login" and you can't ask or answer questions. This is probably a limitation of the StackExchange API. It also doesn't allow you to vote (since you are not logged in).

The current version of Stack Exchange API (v1.1) is read-only: http://api.stackoverflow.com/1.0/usage

the sooner the better


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Cant access abd
I cannot access abd on my computer it is quite annoying. I don't know what the deal is.
I have tried to modify the path variable on my system variables. It didn't work.
When I try to access it in cmd the command comes back "abd is not recognized as an internal or external command, operable program, or batch file.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.

It looks like you are calling the application by the wrong name. It is ADB not ABD. The message you posted from the console is when the file (or command) doesn't exist in the current directory (or in the environment path)
It stands for Android Debug Bridge.

You might need to reboot after changing the system's PATH variables.
In any case, if you navigate to the directory where ADB is installed before issuing commands, you won't need to modify anything.
cd C:\AndroidSDK\platform-tools
adb devices

This should work, assuming you installed the SDK to C:\AndroidSDK directory.


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Does automated mapping with voice come pre-defaulted in Android without needing a data plan?
Navigation is yes -- Does Android come with free navigation in non-US contries?
And it has voice -- Talking GPS software for Android?
But do you need a data plan?

I honestly have no idea what you're asking. What are you looking for here?

GPS doesn't use a data plan. GPS = Global Positioning Satellite. GPS (on any device) uses the same type of communication for getting the location when using GPS.

You've changed question too much...

GPS in most of the smartphones are aGPS.

"Standalone" or "Autonomous" GPS operation uses radio signals from
  satellites alone. A-GPS additionally uses network resources to locate
  and utilize the satellites in poor signal conditions.

So in my phone HTC Desire, it automatically updates some GPS system file via Internet so GPS lookup can happen quickly. However, in normal GPS operation it won't require Internet so it doesn't require a data plan.

On most (if not all) Android devices aGPS can be switched off to eliminate mobile data use on pure GPS lookups. E.g. in 4.0: Settings -> Location services -> Google's location service or in 2.1-2.3: Settings -> Location & security settings -> Use wireless networks


text:
Is there a way to record internal audio?
I have Amazon Kindle (I don't have a USB cable, so I can't root the Kindle). I also have online lectures. For some reasons, my Kindle can stream faster than on my PC.
Now, I want to record the audio from online lectures directly from my Kindle so that I can listen to it while offline.
Most of the Android applications I've found record phone calls, which is not what I want to do.

If you have a Samsung or LG phone, Mobizen Screen Recorder can capture internal audio.  I've tested on a Samsung but not LG.

Install Tape-a-Talk Voice Recorder. It can record even if you push it to background. If your Kindle doesn't have Android Market installed, try this link.

There is no support in Android for doing what you want. You would need kernel or OS patching of some kind.

If I understand you correctly, you want to record your android's internal audio without so much loss in quality right.
You can use a 3.5mm male to male cable and connect the other side of the cable in the Line in port (which is often marked as the blue 3.5mm port).
This way you can stream the audio/video on your phone and record it with a recording software like audacity on your PC.
This is not the original audio. This involves converting the digital to analog and back to digital again.
If you can't, for some reason stream near your PC you can make a custom TRRS jack which will feed the audio output back to your mic pin and record it with your phone. I'm not entirely confident this will work. I've tested it and it worked.

OP: "... directly from my Kindle "

Then the custom cable idea is worth giving a shot.
in this article, they are talking about a TRRS to RCA cable and using it to record external audio.
http://www.techradar.com/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/add-an-audio-input-to-android-1189160
So theoretically, you can use the cable to feed your phone audio back to itself and record it.
Challenges:

It may not work due to impedance. Although they've managed it.
You have to find an audio recorder which doesn't stop lecture streaming during recording.


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Reinstalling core / stock messaging app on android 4.0
I have got samsung galaxy nexus running ice cream sandwich (android 4.0).
I accidentally uninstalled the core messaging app on my phone and no longer have the stock messaging app. Is there anyway I can reinstall it without resetting my phone?
Please advise.

Since you were able to remove a system app, I assume that your Galaxy Nexus is rooted. Depending which ROM you are running, you should be able to download a copy of that ROM, extract the "Mms.apk" from system/app subfolder within the zip, and then push it via ADB to the same location on the phone. (For stock ROM you might also need Mms.odex file from same location.)
adb remount
adb push C:\path\to\file\Mms.apk /system/app/Mms.apk

I have been trying to get a copy of the ROM with limited success.. my phone system settings indicate that my build number is ICL53F and kernel version is 3.0.8-gaaa2611.. how do I get the ROM??? thanks for your help..

@Mahesh Have you ever installed a custom ROM (e.g. CyanogenMod, MIUI, etc.) on your Galaxy Nexus?

No, not yet.. i am using the default rom that the phone was shipped with by vodafone uk


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Cannot connect to mail server that requires no authentication: "invalid username / password"
I just picked up an Android tablet running 3.1 and am having a nightmare of a time configuring the email settings properly. It's quite embarrassing, really. This is my issue:
I have several POP3 email accounts from domains that I host. I am able to configure the android tablet to receive email from those accounts quite easily. However, I cannot get the bloody thing to connect to the SMTP server. I am in Canada, so port 25 is blocked and I need to use either 26 or 587. I use 26 on both my Linux laptop and my Blackberry. The server does not require authorization so I have that disable on both of the other devices. However, when I try to connect using the Android tablet I keep getting a server error for an invalid username / password. I have unchecked the "Require Sign In" box, so the device should not be trying to authenticate, and I have verified that the service is not asking for authentication. Yet, here I am with an authentication issue.
I know this has to be something ridiculously simple, but for the life of me I can't find it. I'm using the same settings that work on other devices and getting zero love from this tablet. I've tried using 587 and get the same response. I've been all through the settings on the device looking for another place to turn off SMTP authentication but I can't find anything anywhere other than the mail program itself. What am I missing here?

After you've set up the server and port, if you revisit the settings, do they still show what you've entered? This is a known issue in 4.x: https://code.google.com/p/android/issues/detail?id=36776

The Android mail app might have some bugs, especially because Honeycomb is relatively old and the mail app can't be updated.
Have you tried configuring GMail instead of the stock mail app? You can add POP or IMAP accounts in there too. It has all the features the mail app has, but it still receives updates so bugs are fixed.


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Samsung Galaxy S, Front facing camera is not an option
First off, I'm very very new to this.
How do I activate my front facing camera in my Galaxy S? It's up to date on software according to the US Cellular store, I brought it in for an update not long ago
(I'm running hardware version I500.04, it's model number SCH-I500, firmware version 2.3.5, and kernel version 2.6.35.7, not sure what's necessary)
When the camera, skype, or YIM is open, there is no option to change camera display. I'm not sure what to do, because it appears to have a front facing camera installed.
Does anyone have advice? I've looked around, but haven't been able to find an answer that truly answers my question.
So...how do I activate this camera? It's a large part of why I bought the phone.

Open pre-installed Camera app & tap this icon to switch cam:

Same icon is found in Camera360 Ultimate (my fav) to switch cam.
Front-facing cam is automatically activated during video calls over 3G (if you are using pre-installed Dialer app).

I don't have that camera button, my menu stops at the fourth icon from the bottom. I'll check out that app though! thank you.

Then, its better to use Camera360 Ultimate. If you're rooted, you can upgrade inbuilt cam app from others APK.. I have Galaxy S too and that button is there.

Sachin, sir, I think you grossly overestimate my skill set. I'm trying to figure out how to root, but am running gingerbread (I think), so that involves a new version of it, and some form of program I don't quite understand. Do you have a suggested walkthrough? I'm googling to no avail- need a 'rooting for dummies' style instruction manual, aha. I'm entirely out of my depth here. Thank you though, I adore that Camera 360 Ultimate app already!

Worths a new question..

On my S4 one day the icon for toggling between cameras simply disappeared.  After reading the above answer and the other replies not being of help , I just stated digging around. Sure enough what I cound was while in shoot mode I hit the menu button left of home and it listed only "change icons" or something like that. Up came a screen if icons one of which was the change-camera icon that had gone away! Just like any desktop icon, holding it down and dragging it to the location I wanted it in was the trick.


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Do you need a data plan to install Amazon's App Store?
And does the http://www.amazon.com/gp/mas/get-appstore/android have the same exact apps as on Android Market?
Followup from How to download apps without a wireless data plan

The exact apps exist in both only insofar as the developer(s) have submitted their apps to both.

This also depends on the device probably. You can download from the Market on devices that have no data plans provided that the device itself can operate without one. The question you've linked to is probably more appropriately phrased as "How do I bypass the SIM requirement on my device"?

As long as your device is allowed to install apps from Unknown Sources (Check Settings), there's no need of data plan to install Amazon AppStore. Carriers don't (and, can't) lock every third-party app to promote their data plan. In fact, it may become a legal issue for them.
Amazon AppStore isn't exact copy of Android Market, but it has really a large no. of app collection, thanks to e-commerce giant. Its the only app store for Android which could compete with official Android Market. In fact, its a threat for Android Market.


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Syncing / sending Google Maps landmarks to Android Maps
I can save Google Maps landmarks on the desktop browser maps.google.com service to my own maps. However is it possible to sync / send these maps to Android Maps?

I will look a destination landmarks beforehand on my computer
I sync them to phone
When I arrive to a destination (city) I can use my Android to navigate around

If this is not Google Maps I am free to use alternative services as long as desktop mobile sync connection exists.

On Android 4.0 at least, the "maps" app has a "My Maps" layer.  It will show you your saved maps.
On older versions of Android (sorry, but I can't confirm this) I think there's a separate "My Maps" app.

Does 4.x sync? 2.x has My Favorites.


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How can I open password protected ODS files (Open Office)?
Found many Open Office viewer apps, but couldn't find a password protected ODS viewer ... I wonder why it was not ported yet - it is open source so it would be just an issue of converting existing code.
ODS password protection is by far a lot better than XLS password protection.
If anyone knows of an app or some other method I would be grateful :)

LibreOffice is currently being ported to Android. It's reported they are making good progress, but I couldn't find any planned due-date yet. According to the article linked, they focus on having a viewer ready soon, and add the "tons of features" later to make it a full-featured office app. See also here for the original source, including some screenshots.
Apart from that, there seems no app currently available to effectively handle OpenDocument. True, there are tons of office apps on the market/playstore, but they all stick with the MS formats. Which leaves us to hope for LibreOffice coming soon to the Play Store...


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How do I view and manage the list of Intents that launch what apps in my phone? How do I unregister these apps?
During the day I notice that many of my installed apps run themselves automatically. For example, FB all of a sudden asks my GPS data or reads my contact list, without me launching the FB app.  FB does not have a persistent notification icon, so I do not expect it to be a background process.  Yet using Intents, apps do what it wants when it wants.
I want to be able to know -- then stop or control -- what apps launch by themselves in my device. I hope that's a fair thing to ask.

possible duplicate of apps automatically starting?

@eldarerathis That question explains why apps launch by themselves. I want to know what these apps are, which intents they are hooked to and how to unregister them.  The answers to that question also observe that apps are "pretty well-behaved". The FB app I used as an example is, in my opinion, not.

If you are rooted, install Autorun Manager. Make sure you've Busybox installed and use Advanced Mode of Autorun Manager. It displays all receivers of an app as well as intents to which receivers are registered. From there, you can disable a receiver of an app, too. But, you'd need pro version if you want to disable more than two receivers.

The only real way to control these apps is to remove them. Android doesn't provide any fine-grained settings to control the odd behaviors of individual apps.


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Sending all contacts *with number* via Bluetooth
I would like to transfer all my contacts to a different phone from my Android 2.2 device. In my phonebook I disabled showing contacts without numbers. When I choose sending via Bluetooth however all contacts show up, thousands of them without number. I would like to send only those that contain number. I have the option "select all" but this includes and sends all contacts. How could I send only the ones with numbers?

I am also a android phone user. To my knowledge it is not possible. when you import all your conatacts it dumbs everything into a single *.vcf file where with only this file you can export it to an other phone, it does not allow users to select their individual contacts to do so as you have mentioned. The only way is to delete it manually by choosing the contacts individually.

thanks. i'll wait a bit more to see if someone knows a trick. maybe there is an app for it.. :-)


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How can you add an reoccuring appointment at the last day of every month in the calendar
Is there a way to add a reoccuring appointment to the calender in Android at the last day of every month ?

Not exactly.  Here is what I ended up doing.  Maybe it will work for you:  In my case, I wanted an appointment to appear at a specified time on the last day of the month and remind me 1 hour early.  I ended up making my appointment on the 1st day of every month and then setting reminders to SMS message me 25 hours early and 24 hours early, respectively.
It seems that if you want it exactly on the last day, most people resort to setting up 12 separate appointments, one for each month, that repeat annually.  But, then you'll have that 29th day of February to deal with as was the case this year.  Mine worked anyway...

Yes, that is how I am doing it at the moment (1st of month and reminder one day earlier). Just thought there should be an easier way.

@Edelcom: Why mess with something that works... As long as you don't have an option that sais "Last day of month", you have to make the best of it ;-)

@awe : You are correct, of course. But is seemed such a logical option that I find it strange it is not included. Let's say you have to pay your rent in the last month, or you have to go to the bank to get your bank statements before a new month is started. I can think of several reasons why a 'last day of the month' option should be handy. I was just hoping I missed something.

Maybe you could ask if there is a calendar app on the market available that has this option.


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Auto focus not working on Galaxy Nexus
I seem to have lost the auto focus capability on my Nexus. The phone is stock, only one update done (so it's XWKL2). I don't use the camera much, but I think I had auto focus when I first started using the phone. Now I have to manually focus by tapping the screen.
I'd rather not clutter my phone with 3rd party apps for camera since I don't use it much, but I'd like to have AF for my random quick snaps.
Any tips?

Did you try resetting the settings to defaults? There is a reset button in the setting menu (open camera, the setting knob, then the three dots, restore defaults). If that doesn't work, then go to system's Settings and clear application data.

@LieRyan Tried both, didn't change a thing...

These suggestions might seem odd and they might not yield any results but they're worth a shot:

Try using the panorama and video settings in the stock camera, and I do mean actually use them.  Don't just switch to them and switch back to picture mode.  If you're lucky changing modes, taking a panorama/video, then changing back to normal picture mode will reset whatever needs to be reset.
In normal picture mode long-press the shutter button.  Try this twice, one time release the screen as normal and the next drag your finger away from the shutter button before releasing the screen.  I'm not sure if doing it these two ways will have different results, but I know that if you drag your finger away no picture will be taken.

Actually, after taking a panorama shot I noticed a slight AF shift when taking the next picture, but that was it, couldn't reproduce and the AF didn't "lock", just tried to focus but couldn't.

Well that's progress at least.  Are you on Verizon?  I ask because there's a rumor circulating on the tubes that Verizon's Galaxy Nexuses are going to get an update to 4.0.5 some time in April.  With any luck this will correct your problem if you can't figure it out before then.

Nope, I'm Finnish and the phone has no operator customization, pure stock.

The 4.0.5 comes from Google, not Verizon, so there won't be any additional carrier customization.  Still, Google considers 4.0.3 to be "base" ICS.  What version are you running?

I'm running 4.0.2, since 4.0.3 hasn't been officially released over here for some reason.

Yeah, my GN is on 4.0.2 (build ICL53F) as well.  I'm kinda stumped here, man.  I can't think of any reason why your camera's AF shouldn't be working aside from some kind of bad interaction between it and some app you've installed lately.  Have you taken inventory of your apps and tried removing them one at a time if you think they're suspect to test the AF?

Did you try resetting the settings to defaults and rebooting the phone? There is a reset option in the camera setting menu (open camera, the setting knob, then the three dots, restore defaults). If that doesn't work, then go to system's Settings, Applications, "all" tab and clear data.

Yes, tried both of these, didn't help.

If you tried clearing the app data, resetting to defaults, changing modes and did a factory reset than the only thing left to do is take it back to where you purchased it so they can have a look at it and fix it. It's entirely possible that you have a hardware failure.

Try this, Go to Settings -> Apps -> All Tab -> Camera -> Clear data.

Tried this, still gives just the "tap to focus" option...

What happened with my phone is that the scene selector got set to Landscape by an OS update or someone else fiddling with the phone and I didn't even know that there was a Scene selector. Once I found this setting I found that if I set it back to Auto (or Macro if you want to do a close-up) that the auto-focus starting working again.
Hopefully this helps someone.

And, for our enlightenment, how can others find this setting?

@AlEverett On my phone, I would open the camera (app) and then slide the menu open from the right. There are 4 options, from top: 1. Scene 2. Effect 3. Flash 4. Switch to. Select the first one which is Scene.

Did you clear the camera app data?
To do this:

Open your settings app

Tap the "Application" section

Tap the "All" tab

You can find the camera app. Select -> Clear App Data

If this not works, here is anthoer solution for you!
Reset the camera settings
To do this:

Open the camera app

You can find the camera knob. Press it -> 3 dots menu -> Reset Defaults!

Any help you will accepted!
Thank you so much!
Hope this helps for your Android device!


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Do batteries on new devices start discharging even when plugged in to the adapter?
On my old phone, HTC Hero, when it was connected to the charging adapter and the battery level reached 100%, it never went down when plugged in, like the battery wasn't used at all and the phone was running from the charger instead.
On my new phone, HTC Evo 3D, I left it plugged in into the charging adapter in the evening and when I woke up in the morning, the charging LED was green (implying the charging was complete) and the battery level was 98%, which seemed like the phone "discarded" the charging adapter after the charging was complete and started running from the battery, even though it could have gone from the charger.
Is this normal for all new devices, or at least for HTC Evo 3D?

The device does not run on the charger. It will always run on the battery, unless the battery is not present.
The discharge you see can be from just applications on the device running in the background. The charger stops charging the battery when it reaches full status. Note that this may not be 100%, even on a brand new battery. My battery doesn't charge past 96% any longer. Once it reaches that, it reports full and the device stops charging the device.
The device stops charging once the battery reports full so it doesn't over charge and damage the battery. This is why you probably see that the battery is at 98% after leaving it on the charger for a while. It does charge full (any probably to 100%, or close to it) but then the device stops charging once it is full. It wont just start charging the battery again when it drops below full, because this can also damage the battery if it was constantly charging/not charging the battery.


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What will be faster when moving to sd-ext via A2SD+ Data or Dalvik-cache? (or can I move both with no extra-penalty)
I'm using A2SD+ on my HTC Desire running on MIUI.
Currently only the app and app-private are under /sd-ext, but I'm running out of space very quickly :)
Currently my dalvik-cache consumes 46.3MB and the data takes 53.7MB of internal phone memory, so I think data will give me more value, but I'm not 100% sure of that either.
I know I can technically move both data and dalvik-cache to /sd-ext, but I understood there could be performance problems, but I need the space. So my question is which will have a lesser effect on performance? Moving the data or the dalvik-cache?
EDIT: Some tech info (if it helps):
My SD Card - Kingmax, Class 10, 16GB
I tested with SD Tools and got these results:
Writing Speed: 8.7 MB/s
Reading Speed: 18.6 MB/s
Note that the test was on the FAT32 partition, I don't know if the EXT3 partition I use for the /sd-ext will be any faster. The /sd-ext partition is 1GB.

"Better" based on what criteria?  Are you trying to speed up the phone or save space?  It also depends on the particular apps you use and your usage patterns.

I rephrased the question better - please see if this is a sufficiently clear question and reopen it.

I'm still not sure it's really answerable, but we'll give it a chance.

As Matthew already stated, there's no unique answer possible to your question -- all depends on your usage patterns. Generally spoken, I'd say moving app data should be preferred: If you move the Dalvik Cache, it would affect all your apps -- while moving the app data only affects apps which store some data (and by "some" I mean "data size exceeds their Dalvik-Cache size"), so a good guess is it affects only a few apps. But this can very well be those apps you are using most, and which heavily access their data -- so it may or may not be the better choice in some cases.
Guess you've got to try. I'd suggest starting with the app data. A class 10 card should provide sufficient speed -- so if the results are acceptable to you, stay with this. Otherwise, go back and try with the Dalvik Cache. If this isn't acceptable either, the only choice left is buying a new device with bigger internal storage...

Summary of my attempts:
APP - Good,
Dalvik - Bad


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Does Android hide some amount of RAM from the User?
I bought a new tablet, but Android (2.3.1) shows that it has only 150MB free of 256MB, and it should have 512MB.
I checked the file /proc/meminfo, MemTotal information. It only shows 256MB.
Is there a possibility that the Android "hid" 256MB of RAM from the user?

Install "Terminal Emulator" from Market & run this command: free -m..

Including the model might help.

Hi,
The terminal can`t find the command. Tablet is GoClever R93 - http://goclever.com/bg/en/tab_r93.html#specification

This is not uncommon in the embedded world. A prominent example is the Samsung Galaxy S, which is advertised with 512MB RAM. But only 300 something are actually available for the OS. I believe the other part is used for the (powerful) GPU.
This leads to effects where a similar device is faster. For example the HTC Desire/Nexus One both have 512MB (576MB for the Desire) and overall play in the same league as the Galaxy S, but IMHO they are in many situations faster then the Galaxy S. But I am not sure if it's because of the "crappy" stock ROM of the SGS or because of the RAM difference.

Just curious, where can I read more about this in a device agnostic way?

@Flow, there is some uncertainty as to whether the hidden RAM is used by the GPU or the Android kernel. How do we know for sure?

Android is not hiding some amount of RAM from the user.

shows that it has only 150MB free of 256MB, and it should have 512MB.

That is quite a common thing among cheap Chinese devices, two scenarios spring to mind:

The kernel is built with a memory model that is split up into two, half of it is occupied by the kernel, the other half is occupied by Android, otherwise known as a 2G VMSPLIT, 2Gb addressing space for kernel, 2Gb addressing space for Android and user apps.
The chip-set controller for accessing the RAM is "locked down". There are ways of "unlocking" the chip-set controller but sadly, that information is very difficult to obtain. There is a tool available which, I must add, very difficult to use and is not exactly friendly either, PSAS IIRC or one of the variants of it.

I can cite one handset that has this problem - Zte Blade, there's two variants of it, Chinese variant (which has 512Mb with only 256Mb available, the rest locked out), and the European variant which indeed has 512Mb - albeit limited and depending on the region within Europe.
Unfortunately, for some obscure reason, those chip-sets used on the circuit board could be either refurbished with the remainder of the RAM "locked down" or is a cheap clone of the real thing.
There was various reports on Modaco about this in trying "to unlock" the remainder of the RAM in the Chinese (and some European) variants of the Zte Blade, but IIRC, it was not successful.
The only thing that can be done to compensate, is either, roll your own kernel using VMSPLIT 3G, and flash it or, do some searching on the internet to find out if anyone has it unlocked and what steps are necessary, IIRC the tool used was PSAS which actually can talk to the chip-set - have heard some hard-core hackers using it to modify and alter the handset in that fashion.

Is there a reason for manufacturer to lock down half of the RAM?

You can use GameGuardian for this. Need root.
Memory editor tab - menu - memory dump - select range and folder - press ok - wait for toast "Dump end".
Here some video examples how to do this:


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Can I input a video signal into my HTC phone to use it as an external monitor of a camera?
I'd like to use my HTC Evo 3D as an external monitor for my Canon 7D camera. The Canon 7D has a HDMI output. It also has an USB port, naturally.
I was wondering whether this would be possible. I think the USB/MHL port on HTC Evo 3D is for output only and it cannot receive any signal inputs. Is that right?
That would leave the USB port for this. But I still don't know how to achieve it.
I want to achieve something like this:

If your HTC phone has OTG support. You can use one of these USB OTG adapters. Then you can plug your 70D using a mini USB cable and then plug it in to the OTG cable and plug it into your phone. Then you can download an app such as DSLR Controller and you should see  live feed of your 70D on the phone.

As far as I know, there are several apps on google play that will support several external cameras via USB, and I believe they allow for control of camera via android as well. Just search for Canon Camera Controller.

I think instead of controller the OP wants something like external monitor.


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Can I shorten the network name in my status-bar so I have room for more icons?
The network-operator name takes up that important real-estate in the top-left corner of my screen, on the left side of the notification bar. It takes up room that can better be used for notifications.
Can the status/notification bar be hacked in some way to eliminate the network operator name?
I've not yet seen any hack in the marketplace for this kind of thing. Would I have to write this myself?
FYI, using Android 2.x on a UK Motorola Razr

Since I cannot verify this, I will leave it as a comment: http://androidguyz.blogspot.com/2011/04/change-network-provider-name-in.html You may also need to be rooted?

This might be easier, it appears to be an app: http://www.addictivetips.com/mobile/change-carrier-name-on-android-phone-easily-how-to-guide/ It also requires root

See if Super Status Bar app works for you or not...

Yes you can root your phone then cook up your own ROM. The easiest way to cook up your own ROM is to use one of the online Kitchens such as UOTKitchen (http://uot.dakra.lt/kitchen/) or RomKitchen (http://romkitchen.org/). Then when choosing the status bar, edit it to suite your needs.


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How to force Samsung Galaxy Tab to shutdown?
My Galaxy Tab P1000 just hung up, at a point where the power button is not responding. Is there a way to force the devise to shutdown immediately?

There is no "force shutdown" as far as I know, but you can force a reboot by holding down the power button for about 15 seconds.

Confirmed that this also works for the Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 7.0.

Did not work for Galaxy Tab S5e. Had to hold down both Power button and Volume Down button for 10+s. (I was setting up fingerprint with pin code, I had set up the pin, but exited out of the fingerprint setup and locked the screen... there were no pin pad or keyboard on the unlock screen and nothing happened when I tapped on the normal restart or shutdown... after the reboot the pin pad showed up and I was able to unlock it... and remove the pin code. What a wonderful QA tested product...)

For Tab S and Tab A
and Tab gt-5100
Should work with 8.4 or 10.5
Hold the Power button, Volume Down button, and Menu key for 10 seconds.
You will enter download mode, simply press the volume down button to restart tablet.
After reboot, you tablet should perform as normal

For my SM-P550 (Samsung Galaxy Tab A with S Pen 9.7") the key combination is Volume Down button, Power button, and Home button for 10 seconds.

This worked with my son's SM-380 tablet.  It certainly beats waiting for the battery to run dead!

Thanks,  Volume Down + Power button worked on Galaxy Tab S5e.

No force shutdown for galaxy tab, but you can use this trick.

Plug the charger into your galaxy tab.
Hold down power button for 10 seconds, and wait to reboot.
After that, the screen will be change with charging battery.
Plug off your tab, and it will be shutdown.

This should be chosen as answer because it really does what the asker wants. I can confirm it works on Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 P5100

The right answer for a bootlooping device


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Data voice calls app
Does a free app exist in the UK which can be installed on two android phones allowing you to make free data voice calls over an internet WiFi connection for free without having to register a new account with the app installed?
For example, with Skype, you have to register a Skype account before you can start using the application.

You can try viber. You only need to put your phone number.
Personally I don't like it because of the UI and their notification mechanism but its a matter of personal flavor.


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HTC Desire (Android 2.2) connects then disconnects to wifi
I have a wifi router I want to connect to. It's a TP-Link (Model No. TL-WA901N / TL-WA901ND 2.0). I have enabled WPA-PSK/WPA2-PSK on the router, (the default), when I try and connect my HTC Desire to it (Android 2.2), it connects once I enter the password, but never successfully obtains an IP address.
It then it disconnects within a few seconds, it will repeat this 8 times, gives up and then tries the next available network and successfully holds that connection. I do know that the device is connecting initially because I am watching the router's console for connections, and the MAC address that connects matches the my phone.
I am using my router in the default "Access Point" mode, and the default gateway is 192.168.1.254.

Do you have an access control list set up on your router? if so, remember to add the phone's MAC address.

It sometimes helps to add the MAC-address of an unconnectable device to the list of allowable MAC-addresses even though all MAC-addresses are allowed by default.

Thanks... I have found the resetting the router seems to correct the issue.


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how to delete hotels.com app?

Possible Duplicate:
How can I uninstall applications that are locked by phone vendor?

I have an app on my phone called hotels.com. I can't seem to remove it at all.
I tried going to Application screen > Edit but this app doesn't have a little minues next to it so I can't remove it this way.
I also tried this method:
How to delete an app installed with Amazon Appstore?
but the Clear Data and Uninstall buttons are greyed out.

Did it come pre-installed on your phone?

I don't know actually. I didn't notice it if it did. I noticed it after running an update on my Market app

Hmm, OK. I ask because you usually can't remove pre-installed apps without rooting the phone.

I have a Galaxy Note. Is there a way I can find out if it was preinstalled? I wouldn't mind it being there but it keeps bugging me about updates and stuff.

It sounds like it probably came pre-installed, in which case you'd want to take a look at How can I uninstall applications that are locked by phone vendor?


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How can I get my ASUS Transformer 101 to see upgrades?
A group of us at work got ASUS Transformer 101's all at the same time.  (Now some of us are in the US, some are overseas).
I saw a note in our internal chat that ICS was available.  Yay, but I was away from home and left the pad at home.
So I got back a full week after my colleagues saw the update and charged it up, awaiting the upgrade to see the new hotness of ICS.
But Check for Firmware upgrades shows nothing available.  This happened before with 3.2.1 patches as well.
How do I troubleshoot the fact that my Transformer is not seeing the updates?  (I know how to get it from ASUS and apply it, since I had to do that for 3.2.1, but I want to stop having to work around it).

updates are usually rolled out in batches. maybe your batch of tablets hasn't been set to receive the update yet. Have you tried calling asus? they may be able to shed some light on the issue you are having.

I have the same problem. And worse: I couldn't install the update manually. I get some errors and the instalation is reversed. I guess I'll have to wait.

And suddenly this morning it saw the 9.2.1.17 update.  I had previously applied 9.2.1.11 manually.

It's a fairly common issue apparently.
Here's how to fix it: Link
Just killing the DMClient and CMClient services and rebooting did the trick for me. But disclaimer: Results may vary.


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It takes a long time to load the home screen
Returning to home screen after sending an SMS or making a call takes up to 7 seconds on an average where as it used to be much faster six months back. Its a Aug 2011 model. System hangs often coming alive with Force Close application message. Why?

possible duplicate of Do all android phones have to reload their home screen?

Because Sammy's software is buggy! If yours is a galaxy S i9000, then there are ICS Roms on XDA forum which I found far smoother and usable on my phone than Samsung's touchwiz Gingerbread.
If you don't want to go through the hassle of rooting, flashing a custom ROM, then I suggest that you backup your data and do a factory reset.
settings=>privacy=>factory data reset

You can try a custom home launcher, which is another term for home screen, instead of TouchWiz, Samsung's default launcher.  Go Launcher is a popular one and is very customizable.  ADW is another one that has good performance.  Doing a search for "launcher" in the Play Store will bring up multiple options.


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Controlling a Google TV remotely via SSH
I have a Sony Google TV running firmware 3.2. Is it possible to install a simple SSH server and log into it remotely via SSH, and then issue commands to change TV channels, load websites in Chrome, etc? I've seen some similar questions on this topic, but nothing specific to Google TV devices. I tried installing SSHDroid and QuickSSHd, but the Market said that neither were "compatible with my device".

Apps must be coded specifically to allow for installation on Google TV devices.  In 3.2 update, Google even disabled side-loading of apps, so the old trick from 2.x days to install APKs via a dropbox account won't work.
Modders from GTVhacker site managed to find an exploit in Sony units that allows for installing a custom kernel and a rooted build of 3.2.  With that build it's possible to enable side-loading of apps, and then you can install them via ADB:
adb connect 192.168.1.XXX:5555
adb install C:\path\to\apk\AppName.apk

Where "XXX" is the IP address of your GTV box/TV.
Keep in mind that the usual warnings of rooting apply, such as voiding the warranty, etc.