text:
Space problem in Samsung Galaxy Pocket GT-S5300
I've seen many questions on this site asking about the famous space problems in Android phones. None of those I've seen helped me and since none of them asked about my phone, I'd like to present a new case.
I have three memories, and this is a table showing the usage:

What's most bothering is how an advanced phone like this would have such basic problems. I've tried:

setting the default installing path to the SD card: No such setting.
moving apps to the SD Card using apps like App2SD: Some cannot be moved.

I really don't know what else to do. Am I really forced to delete apps? I don't want to delete any of those I've installed (they are 14), why should I do that with over 9 GB of free space available? I'm just hoping there's an option I missed.

All images taken by camera/audio mp3s that you use get stored on sd-card by default. Some apps cannot be moved to sd-card based on their manifest.

@t0mm13b Ah yes, I forgot: since it's a new phone, I have no MP3, no photo, nothing.

what are the 14 apps? (Google maps is one biggie that refuses to be moved to sd-card which is enough to drive me bananas!)

I have solved my own problem today and I'd like to provide the solution for others that might encounter it. The actual Internal memory for this phone should amount to exactly 0,96 GB or close to that. I got aware of this comparing my phone to another one from the same model. I first tried formatting the Flash memory (or Mass memory) on my phone, but to no avail. So I tried doing a reset and it solved the issue.
To do this:

Go to Settings.
Choose Privacy.
Select Factory data reset or the corresponding example in your native language.
Wait for the phone to do its thing. You should see some code/script running on the screen. Now wait.
When everything is loaded and you configured the minimum settings, open the application Task Manager. You should be able to see the correct size.

Many people have that kind of problem and I have the same one. I finally figured out and it works great. I have a Galaxy Tab 7 but many android devices will experience that.
There are 2 important folders. the /system has a lot of system stuff. The one called /data is actually not really just data but it is where Android install the application apk and some of the data related to it. If you force the apk to install on SD card, it will still use some of the /data space (small amount) for some data.
Be aware that there is a confusing "sdcard" name usage. Most Android devices have a "sdcard" that is an internal flash configured like an SD card but the real external SD card is often named external_sd or something along those line.
The problem I discovered is in /data/tombstone, you will find 10 files named tombstone_0#. These are debugging info collected by android or at least that's what I found googling it. You want that if you want to debug applications and need longer information than "logcat". But, you don't need that for a normal user. Delete all of them. These 4 files were using 1.4GB of my 1.89GB internal tablet storage.
To do so, you will need to root your device. Yes, you must. And it won't explode don't worry, I've done it and many others too! Then get a program like "Root Explorer" to browse and delete the junk. It will request and be granted root privilege if you rooted your device before and you will be able to do whatever you want.
To root your device, just google "root android my device model" and you should find quickly how to root your device.

Tombstones are what is called "core dumps" on Unix/Linux systems. To my experience, there are rarely more than 10 "tombstone_nn" files in that directory -- and your case is the first I see where they occupy more than 10MB (see also this answer). And if you look again: more than 100MB tombstones would be almost impossible for Alenanno, as the internal partition is only 126MB altogether...

Thanks Sylvain but I was looking more for standard methods, not deleting files. Why is there no option for me to use the Flash Memory if the Internal is so small? This is what I cannot understand and it makes me thing I'm missing something on my phone.

@Sylvain Though the tombstone folder is accessible without root, the tombstone files unfortunately are not -- see my remark there: Unfortunately, all tombstones are owned by system, and permissions are set to rwx------ -- so if that's your troublemaker: you cannot remove them without root

@Izzy.  Thanks.  My mistake, I read to quickly. And I like your full answer you are pointing too.

Thanks -- and I know that feeling, happens to me from time to time, too :) And I'd wish there was at least a button somewhere to tell the system: "Cleanup dumps, I cannot read that stuff either" -- especially on non-rooted devices, who should read that? Only makes sense on development devices.

Perhaps someone can write an app to remove the tombstone files. :-P


text:
How to pair Apple Wireless keyboard with Android 2.3.5 -phone and iPad?
I use the Apple Wireless -keyboard. I want to be able to write with only one keyboard: control with it things such as iPad and my Android -phone. I tried BlueKeyboard JP here but I was unable to get it working. It was very easy to get the keyboard synced with iPad but haven't been able to get it working with any of my Android -devices. How can I pair many devices to one BT -keyboard? Is there some easy way to switch between them? Is there some easy way to control many devices with one BT -keyboard?
Perhaps related

Is it possible to be connected to two different bluetooth devices at the same time?

Apple bluetooth and Android bluetooth are extremely dodgy to work with, let alone pair with... best bet is to get a ordinary bluetooth keyboard that is not tied to apple... :)

...it is very unstable for me, it should still work like here.

What is your android device? Just because one worked with google nexus s and apple keyboard as per in the youtubey, does not mean its guaranteed to work across all handsets.. can you be more specific here?

@t0mm13b U8800 Huawei

Have searched on pdadb.net and gsmarena.com - zilch!

I know this doesn't answer your question, but I this keyboard supports being paired with 3 devices at the same time, no tweaking required. I have it, and it's excellent. Not that expensive, either. https://www.amazon.com/Logitech-Bluetooth-Multi-Device-Smartphones-920-006342/dp/B00MUTWLW4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1466584963&sr=8-1&keywords=bluetooth+logitech+keyboard

source: Stack Exchange

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

sort: votes


text:
Galaxy S3 - email notifications not working for emails going to subfolders
I have set up my GS3 to receive my work emails from Outlook exchange server all works fine, I found the subfolders, (not as easy as you would hope) I am using the defaul email app ( our security protocols are too hard to try to find new apps!)
Q1: I can't get the subfolders to stay up to date without going into each folder and synching. Can anyone give clear instrcutions relevant to my phone to resolve this?
Q2: I don't get a new email notification when an email goes directly to a folder. I only know about emails going into the normal inbox trays only. This was an issue with my old Blackberry too, but did get resolved eventually by setting up folder access rights. Does anyone have a resolution to this. In the account settings there is no way to change notifications for folders only the whole account so this is turned on and working if limited to the in box only.
thanks

I don't know about the default email app (didn't use it anymore in the last 2 years), but I don't see how to fix that there: to my experience, automatic checks are limited to the inbox. Which also is the default for most other clients; with K-9 Mail you can configure it for any folder.

While you're in each sub-folder go into Settings->Sync Options and change to sync automatically or on the schedule that you want.

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


text:
BSNL Penta TPad 701C Android ICS - Play store closes immediately after opening.
When I got the tablet, new version of play store was pre-installed and was working fine. Initially my 3G dongle was not connecting to Internet. After complaining to customer care, I was provided a firmware with which I updated my tablet. Then onwards, I could connect to Internet but Play store was gone. I managed to download it and installed it on tablet but now it opens and closes without any error message.
I have already tried:

Re installing the given ROM
Done factory reset
Tried to install different versions (v3.5.19, v3.7.16, etc) of Play Store app.

None of the above solved the probelm. Please help.

Have you tried to install appropriate version of GApps? If I were you, I will try installing gapps-ics-20120429-signed.zip from http://goo.im/gapps.

@Narayanan I have no idea what GApps is .... If you can explain me what it is  brother

Please give me proper link to download I don't know which one to select .....  and I hope this thing will not burst my tablet ....:P

I think gapps-ics-20120429-signed.zip is fine for me

Try this Link http://bloggerplugnplay.blogspot.in/2012/12/bsnl-701c-penta-tablet-3gplay-store-not.html

The ROM that BSNL customer care provided might not have GApps installed. You can download a relevant version of GApps from goo.im/gapps.  Based on the information you had provided, you can use gapps-ics-20120429-signed.zip.
Download that ZIP file and place it in your SD card. Install ROMManager from their site. Once installed, choose install ZIP option and select the ZIP file.

Thanks for the solution I will try. Is there any other method or app to download apps from play store ???

Check out http://wiki.rootzwiki.com/Google_Apps to know about GApps. In short, they are the apps developed by Google. Play Store, Google Maps, Google search, YouTube, Street View, Voice search etc are few. Though Android is an open source and free to distribute, GApps are not. Hence at times you may have to download and install them separately.


text:
How can I get my MK808 mini Android PC to output to my TV?
I had this mini pc from a friend. But I cannot power it up.
When I connect it to TV with HDMI cable, the light is blue, but I got nothing show on the TV screen. I've tried some different HDMI cables, but it will not put a picture out to the TV.
Can anyone suggest what the problem might be?

Welcome to Android Enthusiasts. Did you check if the HDMI cable is ok (by connecting a different device to your TV)?

I've tried some different HDMI cables. But it will not put a picture out to the TV.

My MK802 defaults to 720p60 (an unusual choice) when it first starts up, so you may want to check that your TV supports whatever mode your MK808 defaults to. How long have you waited for it to boot? If you are expecting instant-on you may be disappointed. *8')

Its the resolution setting. That or your tv/monitor doesn't support the default setting. I was switching mine to all the different sizes and switched it to one my monitor didn't support. Was a total pain to switch back as I flipped it to some off size. Just try every tv/monitor you can find until it comes up. I have noted on a few occasions, it doesn't seem like its booting up right away, I had to unplug and wait a minute, then retry.


text:
Is it possible to add a computer to Firefox Sync if I have my already configured Android phone with me?
Is it possible to add a computer to Firefox Sync if I have my already configured Android phone with me?
All the online tutorials cover the case where your computer is configured and you want to add your android phone to sync, but phone -> computer is much more useful since the phone is the thing you carry with you. I haven't been able to find the option in Firefox Mobile, is it at all possible?


text:
Google Calendar events created on the phone won't sync
In my 2.3.7 Android phone, when I use the Google Calendar application, I can see all the events that are listed in my Google account, as I would see them in the browser in my computer, but when I create a new event using the phone -- it shows as 'PC Sync', the new item won't sync up to the calendar as I see it in the browser. I have tried cleaning the cache and data for the 'Calendar' and 'Calendar Storage' application, and manually re-syncing the Google account from the phone, but it still won't show up. Any ideas?
EDIT: If the event is under 'PC Sync', where should they appear in Google Calendar?

Can you verify if you are creating the even in proper calendar?

To clarify roxan's question: your calendar app supports multiple calendars. This includes the Google Calendar, but may also have a "PC Sync", "Exchange", "Phone"... calendar. Only events created in the Google Calendar are synced with the Google Calendar. Are you sure your events were created there?

Answering my question after the comments, it turns out only 'PC Sync' would show when creating an event by tapping on a specific day/time, but when using the 'Add event' option, the other calendars would show as an option. Once this is used the first time, then tapping on the day/time shows the other options. All good.


text:
X3D format viewer for Android
Is there any X3D format viewer for Android platform ?

Did you bother to search in the Play Store?

@AlEverett I am not looking for 3D HD Wallpapaers. X3D is open 3D format but there are not many viewers for PC and I don't know any for Android.

The second app in the search Al linked to above is irrelevant (bad search results from Google there), but the first one is the exact same app noted in the answer Zuul gave below.

The link from Al gave me one result only ...

Might not be available in certain countries?

Answer:
You can use FreeX3D: VRML, X3D, STL viewer by John Alexander Stewart available from Google Play Store:

FreeX3D is a 3D VRML/X3D and STL viewer for Android.
NEW - Anaglyph rendering option for 3D viewing of your 3D files!
FreeX3D allows the user to browse local STL, VRML 97 and X3D files, and to view these files on their Android GLES-2 capable device. You can rotate or zoom STL files; X3D files you can walk, or examine, as defined by the spec. Use one finger to rotate or walk, two to zoom or move in +-Z, depending on navigation mode set.
This version works on Android 2.2 and above. It requires OpenGL ES-2.0, which is available in all modern phones/tablets, and most released over the last couple of years.

Related curiosity:
There's also an interesting project that worth mentioning, called X3DOM for free on Android devices that support WebGL:

X3DOM (pronounced X-Freedom) is an experimental open source framework and runtime to support the ongoing discussion in the Web3D and W3C communities how an integration of HTML5 and declarative 3D content could look like. It tries to fulfill the current HTML5 specification for declarative 3D content and allows including X3D elements as part of any HTML5 DOM tree.

I installed latest Firefox for Andorid and tried to open examples from X3DOM webpage but Firefox crashed.

I don't know what device you're using, but either he doesn't have WebGL, or the render is to "heavy" for it.

Galaxy S3, I will give a try Nexus 7 ...


text:
Is it possible to use an Android phone as network disk, so I can browse it on my TV?
Is it possible to connect an Android phone to my TV with a USB cable, and then browse a network disk instead of the SD card?
To answer comment questions: HTC Desire HD, TV is able to browse USB storage devices. At the moment I go to my PC, connect to my phone with the USB cable, and put a video file on the SD card. Then I walk to my TV and plug the phone into the usb port. Then I browse the SDcard to find the video file, and open it. Every once in a while I connect my phone to the TV, and then find out that I need to go upstairs to my PC again, because there are no video files left to watch. And then I think "If I only could use a network file explorer (like ES) and use it to browse it on my tv"...
The TV supports none of the protocols since it has no network connection (no cable/WiFi). It has a USB port to browse usb storage devices.

I'd say that very much depends on your Android phone, your TV, the operating systems and version used, and maybe some more criteria we'll never know before you tell -- as it currently stands, your question is hard to answer. Would you please fill in the other details?

OK, to answer your questions: HTC Desire HD, TV is able to browse USB storage devices. At the moment I go to my PC, connect to my phone with the USB cable, and put a video file on the SD card. Then I walk to my TV and plug the phone into the usb port. Then I browse the SDcard to find the video file, and open it. Every once in a while I connect my phone to the TV, and then find out that I need to go upstairs to my PC again, because there are no video files left to watch. And then I think "If I only could use a network file explorer (like ES) and use it to browse it on my tv"...

Give your TV specs for more answers. Is it Android TV? Does it support DLNA?

By the way, @dymutaos' answer will work.

The TV supports none of the protocols since it has no network connection (no cable/WiFi). It has a USB port to browse usb storage devices.

@spambas - On Stack exchange sites is is better to edit your question with information requested by comments. That way the question stands on its own and the comments can be tidied (deleted) later on, hence my suggested edit.

It should be possible. You would certainly need root.
If you could mount your network share onto your phone, you could mount it under /mnt/sdcard/network_share. Then your tv would simply browse that folder. To your TV, it would simply look like another folder on your SD card.
This post shows how to mount nfs on your phone. You may need a special version of busybox.
busybox mount -o nolock,ro,hard,intr,vers=3 -t nfs 192.xxx.xxx.x.x:/your/nfs/share /mnt/sdcard/network_share

mm. My HTC Desire HD is not rooted. Is it hard to do that? never had the need to look it up.

Ah, it took me a while to understand how this answer related to the question, but I see what you are suggesting. Can you think of any way of doing this without root?

The longer I think about it the less sure I am this is going to work. If I connect the phone to the TV as a diskdrive, the sd-card will be unmounted from the phone, or am I going at this the wrong way?

As dymotaos wrote, all possibilities to mount remote drives on your Android device probably require root. But you don't have to deal with the command line and parameters, as the Playstore offers some apps which can help you with this.
One of them is CifsManager, which can deal with Windows shares1, a second one would be Mount Manager, which additionally supports NFS2:

While CifsManager is completely free, while Mount Manager in its full version costs you about 3 Euro.

When the SD card is unmounted, and connected to my TV as a storage device, how will these mounts stay there?

What do those mounts have to do with the SD card? The mount points are more likely to be created in the internal storage (most probably in the root file system). I don't know why the CifsManager screenshot shows them below /sdcard; but check the second screenshot (Mount Manager), here they are located below /mnt/cifs, which definitly is not on the sdcard. So it's rather a question of configuration (where you create your mount points).

So this doesn't do what I (topicstarter) need at all...

You wouldn't need to "go upstairs" again with the "upstairs" file systems already mounted on your device, would you? To access those network drives directly on your TV, you might need to mount them on your TV. I'm not sure whether they become accessible via the device's USB connection, but you might give it a try.


text:
Share intent handler that will post source links from Twitter to Instapaper?
I'm currently grieving the loss of Twitter-related recipes on IFTTT (ifttt.com).  I used one of the more popular recipes which would go through the Twitter "favorite" tweets and scrape out the first link and send it to my Instapaper account.  It also did the work of following URL-shorteners until it reached the source link and only posted the source link to IFTTT.
I have an Android app that responds to the "Share" intent that I can use from the Twitter app to send links to Instapaper, but it only sends the Twitter.com link and does not scrape the contents of the tweet.
Is there any Android app that implements the "Share" intent that will scrape tweets for me that I share from the Twitter app and post the first embedded link to Instapaper?  I'd take recommendations for other Instapaper-like services but I'd prefer Instapaper if at all possible.

"Is there an app that does X" questions generally aren't a good fit here. If you can rephrase your question to be more about the problem you're trying to solve it will do better. (There very well may be a non-app solution.)


text:
Galaxy S Advance Android update
I've heard there are some Android alternatives. Like miui or Cyagenmod or Mozilla OS. I have Galaxy S Advance (GT-I9070) and i've heard Samsung is not going to provide any updates for my device. So, i got a few questions i should ensure before i done something stupid:

if i install something from the mentioned above, shall i lose my guarantee/licenses?
if i decide to install the software, should i perform some rooting of the device or something?
if i do decide to install the software, what's the best one which shall not slow down my device (as i noted android 2.3.6 to be slow)
could i use ICS update and shall it slow down my device or not?

Question #3 is too subjective to be answered here. The others have questions that have already covered that ground. Have a look around the [tag:rooting] and [tag:custom-rom] tags.

what in the world is "ROM"? Google knows only about CD-ROMs...

Google on android ROM or something like that

Or even better, just lookup our tag wiki for ROM

Miui en Cyagenmod are so called ROM's. ROM's are like modified versions of the original Android OS. They are built for various reasons, one of them being to add more features to your phone that aren't available in the stock OS (you could see those as your updates). Just Google about it because there is tons of information available about the particular subject.
The other questions are already answered but about the warranty. Most ROM's require your device to be rooted. I guess that rooting will void your warranty but then again, there's always something as UN-rooting.

Re your fourth question:

Starting in Russia, the S Advance is gradually getting an upgrade to Jelly bean 4.1


text:
Default video player not automatically expanded since last update?
Lately I've noticed that the default video player on Android is not automatically expanding to the full size of the screen, instead it is playing videos at the original resolution (which can be quite small). We noticed this problem on our tube site, and since confirmed it happens with every other tube site that we've tested.
We also tested on 2 different Galaxy S3's, one with the latest updates and one without any updates in the last few weeks. The one with the latest updates plays the video at the original resolution (very small on these phones) and the one with the latest updates plays the videos automatically expanded to use the full screen.
I'm wondering if there is a way to force Android (from a website) to always play the videos expanded, and if not, if this is a bug of one of the latest updates?
Thanks!


text:
How can I control both volume and track skip on my Android device from my headphones?
How can I control both volume and track skip on my Android device from my headphones? I.e with a set of headphones having 3 buttons

Button 1: Volume +
Button 2: Play/Pause/Skip Forward/Skip Backward
Button 3: Volume -

All android headphones I've seen to date only have a single button for skip control. I've been looking around the web for a clear answer very extensively, most of the answers revolve around either

Use Bluetooth headphones OR
Install app that converts the skip button to a volume control

Why can't android headphones have both features? Such controls have been available on Apple devices, Nokia Phones and Sony Phones etc. all through the simple headphones jack.

I'd suggest you re-phrase your question, as according to our [FAQ] it will be closed as OT. See my answer for a suggestion -- I guess it matches to what you really wanted to know :)

It seems like an okay question to me.

I have re-phrased the question as suggested. It becomes a slightly different question though. Maybe this wasn't the right place to ask about technical possibilities of the Android platform.

I will answer your question in the meaning "How can I control both volume and track skip on my Android device from my headphones?". This might not be supported by the system itself, but the Playstore holds a number of solutions available. Depending on your headset and Android device, one of them might work better than the other:

JAYS Headset Control
RemoteControl for Earphones
Philips Headset
Headset Droid Trial / Headset Droid (~ EUR 2)
Headset Button ControllerTrial / Headset Button Controller (~ EUR 2)
Klipsch Control

Ordered by their Playstore rating. These apps seem to share the same pattern -- and it is a pattern you use with the one-and-only button on your headset:

tap 1x for play/stop (or to accept an incoming call)
tap 2x for skip-to-next (or to reject an incoming call)
long-press to increase volume
tap 1x and then long-press to decrease volume

Plus more (up to 4x tap), but you've got the idea. I tried JAYS, which is the most configurable (1x tap and vol+ worked fine, but even after 3 weeks only 1 out of 10 tries for the other combinations worked, which might be due to hardware (headset) incompatibility) and the Philips Headset (which worked out of the box for all the above mentioned combinations -- no wonder, my Headset is a Philips, and that app was developed with this headset in mind). So if you have no luck with one of those, try another :)

Thanks for the good list of apps which will let me control everything with just one button. Once I find out for sure that the system does not actually support what I want, I'll probably go with one of your suggestions.

And if you find out that it does, and we just didn't see it: Please don't forget to let us know :)

Stock Samsung headphones have 3 buttons, volume +/- and pause.  They also have a mic.  They are only $5 on Amazon.  http://www.amazon.com/Samsung-EHS64AVFWE-Premium-Stereo-Headset/dp/B007C5S3AU/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1362357220&sr=8-1&keywords=samsung+headphones
Admittly, they aren't the best sounding and I don't like the remote being so close to the ear.

Note: These don't work with all android phones....

try these -
HTC Stereo Ear Bud Headset for EVO 4G SHIFT 36H00880-04M
the sound quality is pretty good, and the next\ previous buttons work for volume up \ down on my galaxy s4.
they have a similar functionality as apple's ear buds, but for android.

With my Android 8.0 device and Bluetooth headset, skip+ and volume+ are on the same key, but differentiated by the length of pressing.  By pressing for a long time during playback you skip forward, whereas by pressing briefly you increase the volume.  It works analogously for for skip- and volume-.  Not all apps seem to support this functionality though.

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


text:
Stop a force reboot
Today I was prompted to install (firmware?) updates from ATT on my HTC Vivid. My phone is rooted and this apparently breaks the update process. The phone shut down and went to the red exclamation point / dead Android image.
The phone restarts normally and runs for ~30 seconds. It then gives me a "your phone will restart in 5 seconds" message and force shuts down.
Is there any way that I can stop the restart from happening automatically?
UPDATE: Problem solved. I cleared the cache. To do this I restarted the phone into the bootloader by pressing and holding the power button and down volume key. I then selected RECOVERY. From the next screen I selected wipe cache partition.

ClockworkMod recovery installed?

Yep. Used that to clear the cache and the problem went away. Lesson learned.

@BryanGlazer Feel free to answer your own question then (and accept your answer). This way your problem is shown solved even in lists.

Problem solved. I cleared the cache. To do this I restarted the phone into the bootloader by pressing and holding the power button and down volume key. I then selected RECOVERY. From the next screen I selected wipe cache partition.


text:
How do I export display to Android native X server?
I downloaded Ubuntu precise with Complete Linux Installer which uses VNC by default. Then I found a native X server on Google Play and I'd like to try it. I read somewhere I must export display, but I don't know how to.

export DISPLAY=:0

when you type "xterm" a terminal should appear inside X
But doesn't work very well, because some x11-Features are not implemented in this Android-Xserver.


text:
How can I get acube effect app drawer on ICS or JB?
This is how my CM7 running phone looks like (although I got the screenshot from somewhere): Is there a similar effect launcher for ICS or JB?

Go Launcher, launch the drawer, click Application settings, click App drawer scrolling orientation, set Vertical Continuous or Vertical Loop and then Vertical Waterfall. WIN.

The drawer and its animation effects are part of the Launcher (a.k.a. Home) app.  Stock Launcher in AOSP (Android Open Source Project), which CM and many other custom ROMs are based on, hasn't included this particular effect since Honeycomb (Android 3.x).
You can most probably find the app drawer's "cube" scrolling effect in 3rd-party Launcher replacement apps.  I would start looking at Google Play store for various Launcher apps (e.g. Apex Launcher, AWD.Launcher, etc.)

Well, the question is, I guess, did anyone meet this effect in any of the launchers or should I try them all :/ ?

I'm afraid you'll have to try them on your own.  There is a reason app-shopping questions are off-topic on this site.  They invite a non-ending list that can (and usually does) get out of date.  You can always skim through Play Store comments, or try looking at the apps' websites or forums for details on the specific feature you're looking for.

A non ending list containing 0 elements. I see.


text:
How do I find the incremental upgrades direct download links?
Some time ago, I found this page that contains links for incremental upgrades: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=20843237&postcount=1
I'd like to know if there is a way to find such links for myself. If I try to go to http://android.clients.google.com/ I get a 404 error.

OTA for yakju is out: http://android.clients.google.com/packages/ota/google_maguro/24a9a760f32e.signed-yakju-JZO54K-from-JRO03C.24a9a760.zip

Please see Where can I find stock or custom ROMs for my Android device? for your second question, we like to keep all of that in one place and give general advice rather than specific links for every device and version, which would get out of hand.  It may also answer your primary question somewhat ... I don't think there's a simple way to see all possible updates.

Apparently it goes something like this:

somebody gets the OTA update on their phone
they use a logcat tool to find the URL in the logs.
they post the URL on some forum.

Source: http://forums.androidcentral.com/verizon-droid-incredible/31295-how-get-ota-download-location-share.html#post309933


text:
Removed sports team from Google Now keeps reappearing
I added few teams to Google Now to see how it worked.
Now I left San Francisco and I don't give a * about the Giants' score.
I tried to remove the team by going to settings, clicking on the team, remove.
The team is removed but after a few minutes it reappears.
I have two devices running Jelly Beans so I though it was a synchronization bug.
I removed the team on both devices at the same time, but it still keeps reappearing.
How can I definitely remove it ?
Edit: My Galaxy Nexus is running 4.1.2 and my Asus Transformer Infinity is running 4.1.1.

Sounds like a bug to me

The problem has been solved by updating "Google Search" after the 4.2 announcement.
So it was definitely a bug :)

According to the Google Now page sports cards are :

Shown based on Web History

so I suppose there are still many links related to the Giants in your web history.
Try to go to your google history page, search for everything related to Giants, then remove the shown items, then maybe Google Now will understand that you are no longer interested in Giants results.

Thanks for the answer. It did not work though :/

On top of the answer from Cédric Julien - it may be worth wiping the Google Search data & cache from Settings -> Applications.

It did not do the trick either :/


text:
Disable loudspeaker usage for audio playback?
I get my voicemail messages by e-mail (using K-9 mail), however, when I play the attached wavefile, the loudspeaker is used for the playback, so everyone around me can listen to the message, that's not what I want. How can I make sure, that the "phonespeaker" (the one used during calls) is used? I assume that K-9 mail uses a default android app for playback, so this should be about Android (Jelly Bean in my case), not about K-9 mail. Thanks :-)


text:
How to switch between personal page and Brand Page in the G+ Android app?
In Google Plus, I am able switch between my personal page and Brand Pages. (As described here.)
How do I do the same using the Android app version of G+?

The process has changed as of version 4.1. You no longer have to sign out and sign back in.
To switch:

Open the menu by swiping right or tapping the icon in the upper left
Tap the down arrow next to your name (or your Page's name)
If necessary, tap "Switch Google+ page"
Tap the name of the Page you want to switch to

The process is the same to go back to your regular account.

This is how to do it with versions 3.2 (or the version updated 11th October depending on your device) to 4.0.x.
To switch:

Sign out
Choose your user account (if you have more than one)

If you've recently updated the app you may need to go through a few settings screens

Choose to sign in as yourself or one of your pages

Not the most intuitive process, but I can imagine that they might have had to do it this way.

This doesn't work on my phone. I get nothing when I swipe. If I hit the icon, it takes me to the listing of Home, Profile and so on. No arrow next to my name. No option for "Switch Google+ page". Has this changed??

@DDH  Have you signed in for G+ with both of them? Have you added both accounts in Settings? For me, it's just as in the answer.


text:
Galaxy S3 is unable to transfer files over USB: "USB device not recognized"
I have Galaxy S3 with baseband version I9300XXLFB and I'm having problems when it is connected to the PC. I cannot transfer or retrieve any files or data over USB.
When I plug it in to my PC, it tells me USB device not recognized and the S3 does not appear anywhere for me to access it. I've tried different cables and PCs and they all seemed to exhibit the same issue. How can I get this working?

Is Settings > Developer options > USB debugging ticked?

Is the device unlocked at the moment you plug it? Have you checked the device manager (in case you're using Windows 7)?

You may need to use Samsung KIES (software for PC), or get your PC to recognize the 'new' "MTP" USB mode.
further background:
Ice Cream Sandwich supports USB mass storage after all, Galaxy Nexus does not
Wikipedia >> Media Transfer Protocol
Samsung >> SUPPORT >> Kies 2.0

Also see: Can I disable MTP mode and just have a regular USB connection?

For anyone having trouble connecting to Windows using USB in MTP mode, make sure you install the Samsung USB Driver for Mobile Phones from Samsung's website.  Here's a link for the Verizon model:
http://www.samsung.com/us/support/owners/product/SCH-I535RWBVZW
Navigate to the Manuals & Downloads tab, and then below the tabs, click Software.  There you will see the USB driver listed.

I had a similar problem connecting my Galaxy S3. The drivers were not installing properly. There were messages saying the USB device as malfunctioning. Despite being able to charge the phone, it was not being recognised as a mass storage device nor offering me an option on the phone as to what I would like it to connect to the PC as, until I changed my USB cable.
I had read some posts that had suggested this. After trying all the phone and device manager settings from debugging to reinstalling and updating drivers, this is what worked: trying a new USB cable. The drivers installed themselves. Then, I was able to select Use as Media Device from the phone notificaton menu. I double clicked My Computer, and opened Phone to display media. I was also able to select USB tethering from phone settings to allow connection to the internet, which is what kicked this all off in the first place.
Hope this helps some others.
What I also discovered during this process was how to set the phone up as a wi-fi hotspot. I just followed a neat youtube video detailing this, and was able to connect my laptop to the internet while I sorted out the rest of my problem.

I had a similar problem, but with no error message.  My computer just did not see my phone even though the computer recognized any other USB device i put in.  Note: on a previous session my computer DID recognize my phone and I was able to b/u some files.
My final solution was fairly simple, while the phone was still on I removed the battery from the phone and left it out for 5 minutes.  Then I reinstalled the battery and turned the phone on.  After plugging the phone into my computer via the USB cord I had a connection phone to computer.
No, I do not have a technical explanation for this.

This didn't work for me, but in opening up the case I did discover that it was desperate need of a cleaning, so it was helpful in that regard.

Have a look to the following Steps
Step 1 # Try cleanup and reinstall of drivers

http://www.droidforums.net/forum/galaxy-s3-general-discussion/216706-cant-connect-s3-pc-usb-3.html#post2340704
Pull the SIM card out and do a factory reset with format

Step 2 # You can to use Samsung KIES (software for PC), or get your PC to
   recognize the "MTP" USB mode.

Can I disable MTP mode and just have a regular USB connection?
Samsung Galaxy S3 not connecting via USB

Step 3 # Make sure you install the Samsung USB Driver for Mobile Phone

http://m.samsung.com/us/support/downloads
http://www.samsung.com/us/support/owners/product/SCH-I535MBBVZW
Driver issues when using Samsung Galaxy SIII via USB for development

Step 4 # For file transfers, you can use Airdroid, which connects through wifi.

http://www.airdroid.com/

Install the latest driver
Ensure you are using the factory cable that came with the phone (some cables wont work with the S3, the computer will even lie to you and give you error saying the "USB device not recognized")

Just use KIES AIR (pre-installed on your S3). Works perfectly and is user friendly.

Before updating my Galaxy S III to Android 4.3, didn't have any problem with Windows 7. It's obvious that W7 should have recognized it even if Kies software were not installed. That was with main before updating to new android.
But saddlery W7 was not able to find the Galaxy SIII in Media device (MTP) mode!
Solution for me:
Installing: Device(Install),USB Drive (Software) - Nov 9, 2012

you might need to clean the micro usb port. Try using a toothbrush or a safety pin to get the lint out. This worked for me

You need to use USB 2.0 ports only.

If you are using Android 4.3 open the dial pad and dial *#0808#
Android 4.2 *#7284# this will solve your problem.

What, exactly, do those codes do? How will they help?


text:
Why is Android System always keeping my phone awake?
I woke this morning and discovered that my phone's battery was at 70% capacity, even though it had been fully charged when I went to sleep. I went into the battery settings, and found that Android System is primarily responsible, having kept my phone awake the entire time. I searched a bit, and this does not appear to be normal behaviour. Reception and wifi are fine, and power saving is on. I'm hoping that there is an explanation and solution to this.

"Android System" can mean multiple things. I'd suggest you install BetterBatteryStats and check who's really responsible for "Wake Locks". You can find the app in the Playstore and at the XDAs.

So this is a actually pretty common, then. Thanks for the suggestion, I'll look into it more.

A common workflow to track down deep-sleep / wake-lock issues:

Install CpuSpy
Install BetterBatteryStats
Turn off your phone
Fully charge it while turned off
Unplug the cable
Start the phone, unlock it and open some apps like email, browser, facebook, and close them again
Don't touch your phone, let it be on your table for a hour
Open CpuSpy

"Deep Sleep" should be the longest bar of all. If not, the CPU works because a process (App, Service) constantly wakes your phone up or you use a non standard Kernel/ROM which has a Deep Sleep problem

Open BetterBatteryStats

Set the first dropdown to "Kernel Wakelock" and second to "Since unplugged", then see if any app you've installed appears in the list, using high % numbers (waking your phone up)
Then set the first dropdwon to "Partial Wakelocks" and check again for any app waking your phone up with a high % number

Uninstall the app which causes wake locks (preventing your phone from deep sleep)
If the problem still persists, google for further instructions with the following pattern:

"wakelock + [appname]" without the brackets, enter the app or service name which causes high percentages in BetterBatteryStats, and google without the quotes!

This is great, it's a nice and simple way to diagnose the problem. Seems the only solution is uninstalling, though, which doesn't help when system apps are responsible.

@ZongLi - By the way, it is usually the case that if an answer is good enough to be accepted (the tick) then it should be good enough to deserve an up vote (This answer is useful), so you might want to click on the up arrow whenever you click on the tick, so people feel appreciated. *8')

INFO: There are apps that work correctly, but missbehave because of some special case. For example my Google+ had constant wakelocks which drained my battery on maximum 1600 MHz constantly! In the settings I saw, that I've activated Google+ automatic Photo backup/upload. 2 days ago I clicked "Backup all photos from this device" to trigger a full upload of all the photos. One of the photos had a problem and it made the Google+ constantly trying to upload this photo in an infinite loop. The solution here wasn't to uninstall the app, but to futher investigate, WHY the app triggered a wakelock.

For non-techies, I recommend an app I develop called Wakelock Detector.
Check out this presentation, Android Wakelock Explanation, for more info about the "wakelock mechanism" in Android.

You only have two answers on Stack Exchange, both to promote this app. If this is your app, you must disclose this in your answer or it will be removed as spam.

You don't neccessarily have to uninstall the app. There times where there is a good reason for an app to keep your phone from sleeping. For example, I changed my login to my work email but forgot to update the email app on the phone that accesses my work email. It kept trying to login to sync and that was using up my batt charge.

How does this answer the question? It says that the Android System was draining the battery. Zong did not even mention uninstalling an app. How is this "answer" helpful?


text:
Slideshow Feature not available in Gallery after ICS Update
Slideshow feature is missing in Gallery for Picasa Web Album after ICS 4.0.4 Update in my Samsung Tab GT-P7310. I was able to run slideshow of Picasa Web Album in Gallery earlier with HC 3.2. This is the same issue even in SIII with stock ICS 4.0.4
I have synced all the Google Account including Picasa Web Albums. I am able to view all the picasa web album pictures in Gallery but not able to slideshow the pictures. Picasa button is in place of slideshow button. However Slideshow is working for Downloads, Camera, Screen Capture Pictures but not for Picasa Web Almums.
Please suggest how to fix or to make it work. Thanks.


text:
Is a 16gb class 4 micro sd card enough for hd gaming on Xperia Neo V GB?
I want to expand my storage to 16gb primarily for HD gaming (which the Neo V does so well). I have been offered a great deal for a SanDisk 16GB card Class 4 and wanted to clarify if it is enough for HD gaming, classwise.  I am using Android 2.3.

Classwise, this may be considered the "absolute minimum". I'd suggest at least Class 6, which should be sufficient.

I read from a question here that it was pointless to go beyond class 4 for smartphones

So maybe this requires a technical study. But if you already know the answer, why do you ask? :confused:

I just wanted some clarifications. Besides that article could be wrong you know :)

Sure -- and so could I, of course. You may not need the "faster access times" -- but to my knowledge, the higher the class the less energy it "eats". Reason might be the very same shorter access times...

So is Class 4 good enough for gaming?

I'm not a gamer, so I feel not authorized enough to answer that :) I recommend class 6, see my previous comment for reasons. Maybe someone else gives you the answer you want -- I cannot say more on this.

According to the specifications your phone has 512MB Memory, which is quite close to the lower limit for actual 3D games like N.O.V.A.3. Because the OS must read the game data into the allocated RAM for the game-process (a lot less than 512MB). The game-data is propably bigger than the total allocated RAM space so Android starts to cache the stuff internally (Internal Flash space, not SD Card).
So after loading the game the SD-Card class/speed isn't the most important part. A faster SD-Card will probably just speed up the loading progress but not the gaming experience itself.

Thanks for the info. N.O.V.A 3 and Modern Combat 2 & 3 work flawlessly


text:
Slide to unlock appears even when pattern lock is activated. How can I get straight to pattern lock mode after screen is turned on?
I thought the whole idea of pattern lock is to replace the 'slide to unlock' thing with something safe. Well I don't know if this is a bug or not but I have to 'slide to unlock' first before I can use my set pattern to unlock the phone (the epitome of redundancy). How do I get straight to pattern unlock after turning on the screen?.
By the way I own an Xperia Neo V running Sony's skin, Timescape UI

That is a bug indeed. Are you using something like GO Locker or any other third party app about locking the device?

Nope stock locker

@RodrigoGuedes - are you sure this is a bug?  My HTCs have all worked in a similar way, the slide to unlock (or pull up a ring) is always there, with security after that.  It stops you failing the code in your pocket and locking yourself out of the device.

I too have a HTC One S and when I set a pattern, the lock ring is also required first. cjk may have the correct explanation for that, but I don't recall any mention of some sort of maximum number of tries for the pattern, so yes it is indeed quite annoying. I guess screen lock and device lock are seperate things....

@cjk Actually I choose poorly my words, I'm sorry. I'm not really sure if it's a bug but I'm almost sure. That's because I have a device (Galaxy SII) with the same OS (Android) and version (2.3) and there is no such kind of redundancy.

@rodrigoguedes Android unfortunately isn't ubiquitous across devices, different skins can change the UI in many ways, so Samsung, HTC and Sony will all be different, and it only Nexus devices showing true Android. Your options to fix are to root and apply a different ROM, or to find a different lock screen that can override the Sony one and also be turned off.

Are you running a custom ROM?
I know that in cyanogenmod you can choose to keep the slide to unlock screen and then your unlock pattern. That's the way mine is set up.
To turn this off (in cyanogenmod 7's case) follow these steps

Go to settings
Tap Cyanogenmod settings
Tap Lockscreen
Tap Unlock options
Then uncheck the top option labelled "Skip on security"

You might be able to find the "Skip on security" setting somewhere else on your phone if you aren't running an official version of cyanogenmod or if the rom is only based on cyanogenmod

I believe this setting (or equivalent) is now called something like "Directly show pattern".


text:
Can I install a custom rom with SIM Lock enabled?
I purchased a phone for development purposes knowing that it was being sold for parts/repair. The phone can't read SIM cards for some reason and the battery always says 999%. No idea why, but everything else is fully functional.
When I go to Location & Security > SIM Card Lock its enabled. I cant unlock it because I dont know the PIN.
If I were to root the phone and install CM7 -- would the phone ask me to input this PIN after I install it?


text:
Is there a way to get GPS to work without Google Location Service constantly enabled?
The GPS on my Samsung Galaxy S2 cannot find my current location whenever Google Location Service is disabled.  I have it disabled most of the time because my battery drains much faster when the service is enabled. I disable the option via System Settings -> Location Services -> Google location service.  In the figure below I'm referring to the top option.

Is there a way to do one of these things:

Somehow obtain my coordinates using GPS without Location Services enabled?
Intelligently switch on/off Google Location Service when I need it (i.e. like when I'm using my GPS)
Keep Google Location Service enabled, but somehow prevent it from draining battery.

In short, the problem I want to solve is to get my location coordinates without having Google Location Service drain my battery.
I'm running ICS 4.0.3 on AT&T's network.

What way did you use to disable Google Location Service? Did you just turn it off in Location & Security settings by deactivating "Use GPS" and "Use Wireless..."?

@Izzy, see the picture I inserted into the question.

Wow, permanent flux. Almost looks like you can "allow network location" (first checkbox), but forbid Google to use your location data (last checkbox), as it was back in the days of Eclair? If I remove the last checkmark, the first is unchecked automatically... As I cannot verify, I can only guess: 3. won't be possible, I'm afraid. 1. obviously is not working (but why?). 2. could be achieved with Tasker, Secure Settings, and root...

You can still use GPS without having  Google location services enabled. When you disable the location services you are opting out of sending data to Google. Google location services is actually an internet database (Google Location Server) that is made available to mobile device manufacturers as an application licensed by Google. This is the database that is updated with WiFi and cell ID data from devices running Android, and was initially populated with data collected by the Street View cars (up until 2010 anyway). It helps your device obtain a quicker initial fix by using WiFi AP or Cell ID information. It is used to augment the GPS, uses less battery life, and is sometimes used instead of GPS if you are indoors or do not have strong GPS signal.
As noted on Google's support site, for ICS 4.0+ Maps will still work with just the GPS activated. http://support.google.com/gmm/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=165333
In short, the settings you have above should allow you to use your GPS without the help of the cellular network or nearby Wi-Fi APs. You will have to be outdoors in order to use this feature though, and it can take up to 4 minutes to get a location. So if you are waiting on a fix and you have Google location services disabled, you'll have to be patient.
Let's address the battery drain--review the third-party location-aware applications you have installed. Some are poorly programmed and could be requesting GPS refreshes at a high rate, taxing your battery. Also if you are only using GPS to navigate, it is a battery hog.

Thanks, I think that's a good answer.  When you say "outdoors", does that include being in a car?  As far as the GPS, I don't think the actual GPS location is being used frequently, but just the location via the mobile networks - basing this on the GPS usage icon in the status bar.

I would say anytime your device has an unobstructed view of the sky (required to locate the satellites) although, technically you could be indoors and next to a window and still get a signal. In a car you should still get a signal. Some chipsets are sensitive enough to get a signal indoors or without a clear view of the sky as well. If you have GPS and location service enabled, any of those sources (GPS, Cell ID, WiFi) could be used to determine your location. I do not own a Samsung, so I don't know whether the GPS icon appears when only GPS is used or whenever any location service is used.

With the recent update google navigation service only works with location activated.
I could not get it to work with location disabled regardless of gps status.


text:
Samsung Galaxy S3 WiFi authentication error with A&TT U-Verse router
My Samsung Galaxy S3 won't connect to my AT&T U-Verse router. I've gone through AT&T help and they say it's the phone. I've gone through Sprint (phone & service provider) and they say nothing is wrong with the phone. Samsung support also says nothing wrong with the phone.
It connects to unsecured networks no problem. If I turn security "off" on my U-Verse router, it connects no problem.
With security "on", I get an "authentication error occurred" error message on the phone,  even though the status bar on the phone shows it sees my router at excellent strength. I have verified the password with correct upper and lower case.
I've connected to several unsecured WiFi without issue.  The only secured network I have connected to is at work.  I know they don't have U-Verse, but I have no idea what the WiFi brand is. It connects no problem with security on and my office password.
The phone is running Android 4.0.4.
I've changed router settings to use channel 11 and power level 400. I've rebooted the router and reset the phone.
I can also see the phone's MAC address on the router, so I know they are seeing each other.

What is the authentication on the Uverse router?

Additional hint to t0mm13b's question: Could it be WPA/WPA2 are both enabled simultaneously?

Default: WPA-PSK (TKIP) and WPA2-PSK (AES)

Routers from Mikrotik with RouterOS has problems with 4.0.4 Androids as well. You have to upgrade to 5.22RC1. Contact Support@mikrotik.com to get this test version (In case if you are reading this the 5.22 isn't already released officialy =)

Easy fix.  Don't use your wi-fi password.  Use the Wireless Key #.  I have been trying over and over with my personal password and kept getting the same authentication errors everyone has been discussing with u-verse.  I pulled the paperwork that the installation guy gave me and just taking a last resort shot at it, I tried the Wireless Key # written on the paperwork.  It connected immediatley...
This reportedly also works with the Verizon branded Samsung Galaxy S III. Their 2nd level support only suggests factory resetting which won't help. Only the above mentioned technique does

I have AT&T U-Verse at home. My S3 connected to the gateway with no issues. Did you try to remove the saved network from the phone, factory reset the gateway and then try adding it. If that fails, try to manually add the SSID and key after you remove the network from the phone settings. Worst case ask them to send you a new gateway. If you changed the SSID at any point or added static IPs you might need to factory reset, add the phone and then add the statics to the gateway again.

I went around in circles with this by trying open and WPA security but nothing worked.  The phone was not even listed on the router's device list. The MAC address filter was the problem.  I fixed the issue by adding the phones mac address to the routers "white list" and now everything works well.  Check you router mac filters or turn them off.

I had the same issue, autentication error. By accident I tried the default router password listed under  settings/lan/wifi  - scroll down to the user network section and there will be a default wifi network password which is different from the password plastered on the side of the router with a sticker.  Once I entered the 'default wifi password' the connection has been stable for as long as it took my fat fingers to type this message.  This problem really had me going and I do this crap for a living.  on the router page the default wifi password is in tiny little font but I'm still connected.  This is on a uverse router on a dsl connection.  I'm not sure why there are multiple passwords because all my other devices connect with the password on the label.  You can google how to connect with a uverse router, highlight the ip address and chrome will open a new window so you can see the router settings.  If you don't understand something, don't change it. Just try the new password.  still connected and I'm signing off now.


text:
Android Estimate Battery Capacity
I have a phone with 3.7v, 1500 mAH genuine battery.
This being said, the maximum power that this battery can hold can be calculated easily:
3.7 v *1500 mAH = 5550 mV.
I'm trying to see what battery actually tells the Android when it's charged by %100 by using Nema's very known battery calibration app and it, unfortunately, says only about 4800 when charged %100 (I'll provide a definitive screenshot soon)
So,
Here is my question:
Is it possible, that the battery never charges to it's maximum and leaving about %10-%20 uncharged at each charge? And
If so, is there any way to tell the system to charge the battery until it reaches 5550 mV?
I'd also want to know if people can observe their battery-stated power limit when their Android device charged %100.
I'm talking about this battery http://www.batteryforum.org/t1356-alcatel-ot-995-battery-tli5baa on Alcatel OT-995.

V * mAH does not equal mV, mV is millivolt, which is a thousandth of a volt. 1500 mAH is milliamp-hours, which means if you were pulling 1500 milliamps, the battery would last for an hour (at full capacity).

I highly doubt you can tell nor force the system to charge to its maximum as that is the SoC that is handling the battery current, in which the kernel is periodically polling to measure the battery charge.
(You could in theory mess with the values of the threshold within the kernel's specific battery module, but that could have unintended consequences, possibly damage to the battery long term!)
Observing battery state power limit is subjective and debatable as to each and their own, depends on what they are using on their handset - you're not going to get a concrete answer out of that. :)


text:
How do Google Play app updates work? Are they free?
Let's say I paid for an app, and after some time there is an update for this app.

Is this update free?  Will all future updates be free?
Or do I have to pay some fixed % of the current price of the app?
If it can be either, is it up to the developer?

According to the Google Play Business and Program Policies, you may re-install any app you have purchased, unlimited. (also if the app has been updated since you bought it).
Based on my experience it works like that indeed: I have updated and re-installed paid apps without any issue. Please note that the re-install/update also works on any other android device that uses the same Google account.

Thank you for pointing out this policy, however for me it is not precise, because reinstalling app is something different than updating it. Thank you from pointing out your experience!

You pay only for current version of an app which you can use on any no. of devices. Update of app may not be free.

@SachinShekhar When you pay for an app (Splashtop for example) you will always be able to get updates for free for Splashtop, since it was paid for. However, the developer released a different "upgraded" app (Splashtop 2). If I wanted those upgrades, I would have to purchase Splashtop 2. It is technically an "upgraded" version of Splashtop, but was released as a different app. So as long as it is the same app, you are not charged for updates; if they change apps you will have to purchase the new one.

@Dylan I am talking about the purchased app update. Go read TOS and T&C. Generally, developers don't use this feature, so we don't have examples.

@SachinShekhar do you have a URL for the TOS?

When you download an app (whether free or paid), it is tied to your Google account, so you can get all updates for this app as long as the developer is maintaining it.
Every app has a package name. This can be something like
com.touchtype.swiftkey

This is the package name for SwiftKey. If you buy it*, the app is tied to your Google account. You can download it any time on any number of devices that are linked to your Google account, and as I said above, all updates are free. In case of SwiftKey, we already received two major updates (X and 3). If the guys at Touchtype decided that they wanted more money from us, they couldn't make us pay for updates for this app. There are, however, two options that they could take: make new features available as in-app purchases, or release a new app with a different package name.
* You should. It's awesome.

Swiftkey is indeed a great keyboard.


text:
Custom ringtones don't work on Cyanogenmod 9
I'm running Cyanogenmod 9 on my S3, and want to set an mp3 file as the ringtone. As this wiki page suggests, I've created the directory '/sdcard/media/ringtones` and put the sound files in there.
Just to be sure, I put both an mp3 file and an ogg file (of different songs) there. They're world-readable. The ogg file does not show up in the "choose ringtone" dialogue. The mp3 file does show up. However, when I choose it, there's no preview sound, as there is with the other ringtones that came with CM9.
What could I be doing wrong?

Before you wipe your phone, consider using a free app like Ringdroid to assign contacts with specific ringtones or even to just make a custom ringtone out of an mp3 track of choice.

This was an issue which has been carried over from gingerbread. Although it has been long since it was fixed and merged into gingerbread too. It should work out of the box. Also could you mention as to whether you are using the latest CM9 build for your device. My friend's S3 with CM9 doesn't have this problem.
Why don't you try wiping your sdcard along with your system once for a clean install.


text:
How can I connect a keyboard to HTC Evo 3D?
I have HTC Evo 3D, unrooted, with stock Android 4.0.3. I need to connect a keyboard to it so that I can type quickly to the phone.
If required, I can root the phone. If required, I can also install a custom ROM to it, although I'd prefer avoiding this. If required, I can pay for an android application.
I'd like to connect a wired keyboard to it, but I can also use wireless, if necessary.
I tried this already with my logitech wired keyboard + USB female -> micro USB adapter and nothing really happened. I don't know how to proceed.

I don't think this will be possible. The OS needs to be able to process the I/O signals the keyboard sends, and I don't think it supports that. What you can do is experiment with different keyboard apps, I use swiftkey and I had GO Keyboard before that. Practice often and develop a feeling for how well your keyboard can predict and what it will predict, you'll be typing quite fast in a matter of weeks...


text:
Android 4 USB charge only
When I connect my Android 4 phone (Galaxy Nexus) to a computer using USB, the storage of the phone is automatically mounted on the computer. How can I connect my phone using USB for charging only? In Android 2.x I had to explicitely choose "USB storage", in Android 4 there is only the choice between MTP and PTP? ):

It should charge it automatically when it's plugged in. Are you using a USB cable that came with the phone?

the problem is not that it wouldn't charge, but that it does not only charge, but also the internal storage is mounted on the computer.

Well, that's exactly what's suppose to happen. You can umount the devices fs and than leave it to charge without having access to it's storage.

Actually on my HTC Desire with Android 2.3 that was different, I could choose on the phone whether to mount the storage or not. Nice thing if you attach your phone on a foreign computer...

Aha, now I understand why you want that feature. Well, this is a feature of Android 2.3. Here is a person with the same question, check it out: http://android.stackexchange.com/questions/27632/prevent-ics-from-mounting-usb-storage

Thanks, but enabling USB debugging is even worse from a security perspective. This new behaviour really sucks.

No, no. I didn't mean enable USB debugging, I know that doesn't work. It doesn't work on my ICS phone, I thought it wouldn't work for you either. I meant follow this question for answers, it's similar to yours. And I cannot answer it right now. I'm trying what you want to achieve with some other ICS phones, if I stumble upon something I'll let you know.

When your phone is plugged into a computer there should be a USB symbol in the notifications bar. Tapping the notification associated with this should allow you to switch between MTP/PTP (whichever you have selected in settings) and "just charge".
EDIT: apologies, it looks as though this is an HTC-specific thing, and not general. I'm new here - should I leave this answer with this edit, or delete the answer?

My phone (Nexus S, 4.1.2) doesn't have this. Saying what phone/version of Android this applies to would add to your answer.

Apologies - it looks as though this is an HTC-specific thing.

Unsure, personally I'd leave it, there's a lot of HTC phones out there this could be useful for.

I have an HTC desire X.  What I do is to put a password on my phone and just plug it in without unlocking the screen, which lets the phone charge without giving someone on the computer the ability to open your files.  Hope that helps.

Strictly speaking as long as you leave the data lines open the behavior depends on the phone and the computer you plug it into. Your best option would be hardware-only to make sure that the computer doesn't get to see any of the data.
A recently funded Kickstarter project named LockedUSB aims to provide exactly that, also in light of potentially malicious "charging stations" in public places. I'm not linking it since that may be considered spam and that's certainly not the intent behind this answer. A web search can lead the way to them.
From their description:

LockedUSB is an small adapter that allows secure charging of your
  personal devices. It physically disconnects the data lines, while
  keeping intruders away from your personal information.

With this kind of solution you will also avoid bad surprises when you forget to switch something off in software on the phone and thereby involuntarily expose your device. Aside from that it's a generic solution that will work without software support on either side and gives you the peace of mind you seem to be looking for when charging your device in other peoples' computers.
Disclosure: I am one of the funders of the above mentioned project on Kickstarter.


text:
Prevent Android ICS downloading updates automatically
Can I prevent automatic update(system and app updates) downloads on Android ICS in order to reduce the bandwidth usage while using volume based internet data packages?

Hummm... volume based internet data packages as in using mobile data? Why not use Wifi?

Well, I want to update only when wifi connection is available. Wifi connection may not be available everywhere, so i have to use volume based data packages.

You can disable Automatic updates from Google Play Store app. Head over to Settings → Auto-update apps.
You can also set it to Update over Wi-Fi only, from the same settings page

But, this is not preventing system/security updates (such as Jelly Bean 4.2 system update).

To prevent app updates over your data plan, go to the Google Play app > Settings > Auto-update apps > Auto-update apps over Wi-Fi only.
To prevent system updates over your data plan, go to your phone's Settings > Connections > Data usage > select Google Play Services from the list of apps > check "Restrict background data".
By doing both of these, you will still be able to get app and system updates over wifi (when connected) and you will save a lot on your volume based internet data packages.

@wbogacz That's not quite true. The stuff about Google Play Services is only in this answer. It's a good addition.

No one fully answered how to prevent "system AND app updates". This answers the question completely.

There's two ways to deal with this:

Try Droidwall to block outgoing connections on 3G data, in that way, if in the vicinity of the wifi network, Droidwall will allow data over Wifi.
The other way is to go into Settings > More... Tap on that, Mobile Networks > uncheck Data enabled to prevent 3G data in and out.

Only caveat emptor with Droidwall, it requires rooted handset.

method 2 will prevent accessing internet from any apps (that are using low bandwidth, like messenger), right?

yes that's correct - cannot have it both ways :)

you can, actually.

my bad, completely forgot about that setting in the play store... :)


text:
HTC One X switches to silent on its own?
My HTC One X constantly is switching from vibrate to silent on its own. I put it on vibrate, put it down, and next time I look at my phone, it is on silent. This is extremely annoying because I am missing phone calls and texts because my phone is on silent, when I put it on vibrate.
Anybody else have this problem or know how to fix it?

Sounds like a gesture related thing, put the phone down, it switches to silent... Is there something in the HTC Sense itself, in a setting somewhere for Gesture related...?

Are you sure you are not accidentally hitting the volume-down button? This changes vibration to silent as well. Otherwise, I know my HTC One S can detect when it's in a bag or pocket and will increase ring volume, or you can flip it over during calls to activate speaker etc... Try what t0mm13b said.

t0mm13b: what do you mean? in the gestures the only option is "enable 3-finger output gestures and ignore gestures with more finger" and i dont have that selected.
Mario: i am certain it isn't on accident. I turn it to vibrate then turn off the screen and then next time i turn the screen on it is on silent. you can't change the volume when the screen is off.

Motorola has those SmartActions that do certain things at certain times of the day. Does HTC have something like that?


text:
my mail won't show after upgrading to 4.0.4
After upgrading my Samsung galaxy s2 to android version 4.0.4 my mail won't show in the default mail app (cant find out the name!). I only get a dropdown bar -- but when I clicked it, the arrow points below, but it doesn't "dropdown" ;(
How can I get my mail shown?
Here is a screen-shot of my mail app.

Where do you expect you mail to be shown? What place are you talking about? Please update your question so one can follow your steps -- without that information it is hard to help.

I updated my question....

Yepp, that should fit. Now people owning an SGS2 could look it up. "Default mail app" is precise enough, if you mean the one that comes pre-installed.

Yes, the pre installed mail app...

Does anyone knows how to fix this, or do i have to wait till the next update arrives to my s2?

I deleted my @Hotmail account, and then re-added it, but still the same problem!?.... HELP?!!!

Update to latest Jelly Bean

@Peter Not yet available. for Samsung Galax2 S2.

@blade19899: For GT-I9100 (international version) it is. Also did you do a full wipe when jumping from GB to ICS?

@Peter No, i haven't wiped this phone, since i got it.

Have tried to clear data and clear defaults on the application menu?

When chaging Android major versions, GB to ICS or ICS to JB or even GB to JB, its advised to do a full wipe, since many old files from the previous version might collide with the new Android version.
Since you haven't done it, I suggest you do the following:

Backup all your phone's data with either Titanium Backup or a Nandroid backup if you have a custom recovery installed.
Get your phone to recovery mode and wipe all data (factory reset). If you have a custom recovery you can wipe /system, /data and /cache.
Once clean, reboot in download mode and use Odin to update to 4.0.4 (or 4.1.2 if you have the international version GT-I9100)
Reboot and enjoy a clean installation of ICS/JB.

Don't assume that the person posing the question is rooted, and don't form your answer accordingly. As the question is posed, your answer should detail how to do this in Samsungs official application for backups and upgrades.


text:
Does Android USB host mode depend on an OTG cable?
In order to take advantage of USB host Mode on the Nexus 7 (Android 4.1.1) is it necessary to have an OTG cable? Can I do it using the standard micro to male cable, then use a female to female adapter?

See also this question for more info on testing Host mode and getting it working How can I determine if my device has USB Host Mode (OTG) support?

Yes, you need a specific OTG cable, or you need to modify your cable. An OTG cable has pins 4 and 5 shorted, which is how Android knows it needs to switch over to host mode. You can manually short (cross) the wires on a standard cable, then use a f-f adapter.
For my Nook Simple Touch, a kernel patch is needed to be able to use OTG. I also need to manually activate Host mode while using a OTG cable, so I know the grounding of pins 4 and 5 do more than simply tell Android to go into host mode.


text:
HTC One S vibration keeps getting turned on for normal profile
I have a HTC One S with stock ROM (latest update) and stock launcher, no root or anything. Android is 4.0.4 ICS. HTC Sense 4.1. In sound settings, for the normal sound profile, I turn vibration for calls/messages/notifications off, but after some time it mysteriously comes back.
I don't know what triggers it. It happens after switching profiles a couple of times, like switching to vibrate profile and later switching back to normal. I have a suspicion that it might be related to using the physical volume up/down button to switch the profile. I usually use the stock 1x1 HTC widget to switch between profiles. It kind of annoys me and I consider it a bug. Does enyone experience the same? How can I prevent it?
Update: it just happened again after a system crash. I'm getting these more frequently lately, and after every crash the vibration is back. I can now list this as a confirmed trigger, but I'm not sure if it's the only one.

I'm not familiar with how HTC Sense deals with vibration settings, but this does sound like a bug.
As a possible work around - you could install Tasker and set a profile for every time you turn the screen on to set vibration off.  This is a nasty hack, but would stop the vibration function on your phone from coming on all the time.

Thank you for your response. I might use that as a last resort. I'm getting more frequent system crashes and after every system crash, vibration is back. I think I'll reset my phone.

It may be worth resetting and if that doesn't work, perhaps root and stick a Cyanogenmod based ROM on there - way more stable than HTC Sense! Source: I've worked with a lot of HTC source code - it isn't pretty, even their own engineers warned me away from Sense.

I didn't know that, but I had a suspicion. I've read somewhere that it's normal for HTC devices to reset every couple of days. But the thing is, I like sense... And since my phone is only 2 months old, I don't want to wreck the warranty yet.

In my ICS (on LG Swift hardware) the switch to "ring" profile occured on every answered call during daytime. Somebody else at Polish LG forum complained about switching to "quiet" at night.
SOLVED: After some reading and a simple experiment I found that it is the system app to switch profiles for the nighttime (settings->sounds->"silence time" in my LG). This is a buggy app: after any event requiring sound on - like answered call or so -- it switches to the scheduled profile, even if it was overriden manually.
To make clear: I have "nighttime" quiet setting, so after manual switch to "loud", upon first call it automatically returns to "quiet". In the daytime, when quietened manually, after a first call it returns to "loud".
Switching this option off helps.
P.S. I have read about problems with tasker after upgrade - maybe it is some more general bug (or feature making some apps incompatible)


text:
How to make Opera Mini the default browser?
I have tried many times to change my phone browser from the stock android to Opera mini... As you all know the stock browser is slow and unresponsive.
Before I get overloaded with comment: YES I HAVE CLEARED THE DEFAULT FOR THE STOCK BROWSER THEN TRIED CLICKING ON A LINK. And: NO it has not asked me what browser I want to use. IT just opens in stock.
I then tried installing Firefox. I did the whole process again. I went to open a link and hit "open in browser" and what do you know, it opened up in firefox! This was great to see.
Unfortunately I can't get this to work for opera. Although firefox mobile is great I have a preference towards opera. If anyone knows of a solution to this I would apreciate it greatly.

It works fine with Opera Mobile.

It works with Opera Mobile, it should be the same for Opera Mini.
You can try this:

go to the default Android browser apps settings and click on "Clear defaults"
if settings in Opera Mini has a "Set as default" check box, select it
open a link with a browser and select Opera Mini as default

If the above doesn't work:

uninstall Androids default browser

For Android users, it's simple. Go to:
Settings › Applications › Manage Apps, chose All Apps, scroll to the Browser, tap that entry, and hit the button to Clear Default settings.
Then as you use the message links, select Opera as the default browser.

One can't simply uninstall android stock browser. Because it should be installed as a system app. If you are rooted, then you can.

OP didn't ask to delete the stock browser – so this does not answer the question, sorry.


text:
Why is pressing touch tone keypad not transmitted during calls?
My relative is running CyanogenMod 7 on her HTC Incredible. Recently, her phone started acting weird in that when connected in a phone call, pressing the touch tone keypad is not working.  You can hear the tone being pressed in the speaker, but the other end of the phone call is not getting the tone transmitted.
What might be causing this, and how could I go about getting this fixed?

In Settings - Phone settings
or
In Dialer - Menu -Settings
You'll find an option for DTMF. Try changing that to different values. It might even have been turned off.

I'm not finding either of those in the settings for CM7.1.

@roxan Are you sure it's from this version?

Actually no. I assumed after reading couple of post this is where it should be. Guess I also have to take my answer down :)

I have an international Samsung Galaxy S III (I9300). I got this to work under CM 11 by opening the Phone app, hitting the dotted line for settings, and then un-checking the "Dial pad touch tones" option.
I can't hear the touch tones anymore, but at least I can access my voicemail.

My problem was the opposite. Dial pad touch tones was disabled. When enabled, tones started to be transmitted again, though unfortunately annoying touch pad tones are now audible. This is probably changing as Android goes through each iteration, so worth toggling the Dial pad touch tones setting.

I don't even know if this will work, but after having this problem intermittently on an AT&T Samsung Galaxy Note 4 and not being able to find DTMF settings anywhere, I found this: Settings > Device > Personalization > Accessibility > Dexterity and Interaction > Press and hold delay (options short, med, long)
On a T-Mobile Samsung Galaxy Note 4, it was similar but not exact: Settings > Personalization > Accessibility > Dexterity and interaction > Press and Hold delay (options short, med, long)
I selected long.
I can't take credit for this; the idea came from someone making a post about a Samsung Galaxy S7, whom I wasn't able to thank but wish I could.

I had a similar problem of not hearing the touch tones. It turned out to be that the volume for "Music, video, games, & other media" was set to the lowest level.
"Settings > Sound > Volume" Maybe this will help someone.

The solution that worked for me is very different.
My mobile is a Lenovo K8. After searching a lot, nothing worked for me, and based on Lenovo call support, this worked finally: Network & Internet > Mobile Network > Enhanced 4G LTE Mode [DISABLE]
Disabling this only worked for me, changing the Touch & hold delay to different values [short, medium, long] also did not work.
Hope this helps someone. Definitely, this is a bug. However, no updates were also sent to my phone.

I just had this problem for 2nd or 3rd time. I'll say what happened in case it helps.
I'm on Samsung Galaxy with Android OS. I was in a phone tree; to get to the keypad, I backed out to the home screen and opened the phone call icon (for new calls), but the keypad didn't work for the phone tree.
There's a screen that shows after you start a call, it has a red end call button. You have to get back there and hit the keypad option, then it works. To get back there, I swiped down from the top of the screen and it showed my active call with a button that brought me back.

On the Samsung Galaxy S4, I changed to option "long" instead of "normal" and it worked:

From the Keypad tab, tap the Menu icon (located in the upper right)
Tap Settings
Tap Call
Tap DTMF tones
Tap Long

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


text:
How to remove all of default speed dials of Opera Mobile?
Opera Mobile comes with some pre-loaded speed dials which annoy me. So, I remove them all leaving speed dials added by me. But, whenever I restart Opera Mobile after that, those default speed dials are restored. How to counter this?

Where is it installed?

@Secko Its on internal SD which can't be removed (unlike external SD).

Do you use the desktop version of Opera / Opera Mini and have Opera Link enabled for sync?
If it's hardcoded in, though you're SOL.

@Sparx No, I don't use Opera Link.

It doesn't restore for me.

@SachinShekhar Try enabling the EXIT button in settings, then after you change the speed dials to your desired settings, manually exit the browser. Hopefully that will make it save the changes.

@Sparx :) I always use exit button to exit.

Have you tried the usual Windows remedy? Uninstall, reboot, fresh install ? ;-). I installed Opera Mobile to test out if the issue was being duplicated. Also, i have opera link and all my speed dials are restored without a hitch.

@Sparx The problem has been fixed after fresh install. Thanks... :)

The problem is gone after a fresh install. Now, there's no need to answer.


text:
Why is my 16GB SD card not being read in my Samsung Galaxy S?
Why is my 16GB SD card not being read in my Samsung Galaxy S?
I've tried to format it several times but nothing happens.

Have you installed Total Commander? If so it might tell you something about the mount point.

Have you checked the filesystem format on the sd-card? The Galaxy S only supports fat32 formatted sd-cards. It might help to insert the card into a PC and format it manually to fat32

Start by reading:
xda developers >. [Help] Changing Around Mountpoints for sdcard and extSdCard?

Excerpt: Some previous Samsung devices had no external storage at all but still mapped the biggest flash partition to /mnt/sdcard.
  The Galaxy Tab 2 7.0 has a Micro SD card slot on it (one of the reasons I bought the thing!), but I guess for compatibility they still mount an internal flash storage partition to /sdcard. The actual micro SD card gets mounted to freaking /mnt/extSdCard.

First you need to find out where it is being mounted (on Galaxy S), and whether the command you are using is for internal flash OR the microSD card ..

Answer with only link isn't considered helpful. If the link doesn't work in future this answer will be useless.


text:
How does goomanager work?
I want to install custom ROM on my HTC One XL. I have unlocked (not rooted) the phone following the unlock process on www.htcdev.com. Now I installed goomanager which supposed to let me install TWRP recovery.
I already downloaded openrecovery-twrp-2.3.0.0-evita.img and copied the file to my mobile but it doesn't seem to me that I can use this downloaded file.
More over it seems to me that I can directly use goomanager to install custom ROM and not to do it via TWRP as I read somewhere.
Q1) Can I install files that I downloaded using my computer and copied over to my mobile or goomanager will always download them for me?
Q2) Do I have to install TWRP to install custom ROM (cm10)?
Q3) Can I use goomanager to install custom ROM?

Though I wouldn't usually recommend device specific websites but since i'm not a One XL user I cannot verify its authenticity.
Next time when you ask questions about custom roms please mention whether you are already rooted, locked or unlocked bootloader(htcdev.com only unlocks your bootloader without giving you s-off). Try this to just get an idea of one of the methods to install a rom.
http://onexroot.com/one-x-roms/how-to-install-custom-rom-on-rooted-att-htc-one-xxl/
goomanager is a service used by developers to upload their roms into one location and users can check for available newer versions of existing roms. Follow the regular clockworkmod / twrp procedures to flash your rom.
You can always copy roms that you downloaded with your computer onto your phone.


text:
Is safe to give my IMEI to LeadBolt to enjoy apps without advertisement?
On the LeadBolt opt page you can specify your IMEI number in order to opt out from their service:

The IMEI/MEID is a number, usually unique, to identify GSM, WCDMA, and
  iDEN mobile phones, as well as some satellite phones. It allows us to
  identify your device and ensure you are opted out from our services.
  Importantly, the IMEI/MEID is only used for identifying the device and
  has no permanent or semi-permanent relation to you as the subscriber
  protecting your privacy.

Is this safe? Would let me enjoy Android apps without annoying and invasive ads?

If your device is rooted, use Permission Fix to give fake IMEI to the app. And, this works for ads opt-out too.

I can't tell if LeadBolt does as promissed, but I see no harm in giving somebody your IMEI. At least if you don't use services that do authentication with your IMEI (never heard of one).
But you should wait a little, maybe there is a objection regarding my statement.

An app developer has given me that link. I wrote to him because of the many ads in his application. Anyways thanks for you answer...

It's dangerous to give other people your IMEI, it can be used to login into services like WhatsApp!

Can you provide a reference for that claim? IMO WhatsApp authenticities with the Phone Number of the active SIM card and not the IMEI, although I am not 100% sure.

"At least if you don't use services that do authentication with your IMEI (never heard of one)." – I encountered one. When I had Xprivacy randomize IMEI for all apps on each call, I couldn't upload documents to my insurance. Contacted their support and finally was told  I'd seem to use multiple devices for a single upload, which confused the heck out of their support… Admitted, using IMEI that way is very bad practice (in my case, the insurance number would do). But it happens. And no, I wouldn't give it to any 3rd party, as they can use it to track me and build a profile to sell.

If you don't mind rooting your device then your best option to avoid all adds would be to use Adaway. It'll bock all ads on your device by modifiying your hosts file and is perfectly safe to use. I've been using it for over a year now.

Whether it's safe very much depends on what you count as „safe“. All that might resulting from giving LeadBolt your IMEI is that you won't be shown any ads by LeadBolt – but if you think that means „no ads at all“, you're completely mistaken. There are tons of other ad networks used by apps.¹ Some of them offer you the same way to „opt out“ by giving them your IMEI. Nevertheless, they'll continue collecting data on you, connecting it to your IMEI – which you now even explicitly give them (probably combined with some other data), to build a profile on you and maybe even sell it for money.
I'm currently writing an article on that topic (see below). My advice would be: Don't. That's the wrong way to act on ads. You should not „register“ your IMEI (or any other identifier) with a company to have it stop annoying you. Rather use other approaches to get rid of those annoying ads:

contact the developer of that app and tell him/her about the annoyance, asking to replace this ad provider by one less intrusive
if the app has a paid version that comes without ads², buy and use that. After all, the dev put hours or even months of work into the app, which should be honored
to find out what ad modules an app contains, check it out at AppBrain. Avoid apps which contain intrusive ad modules (compare e.g. with my list¹).
use an Ad Blocker. That's nothing dishonest in this context, it's pure self-protection considering several of those ad networks also ship „malvertising“ stuff, and what PII they collect on you without your consent or awareness. On Android, you don't need a so called „Anti-Virus“ solution, you need a good working „Anti-Ad“ protection.

For further reading I recommend you my article Android Identifiers: How Android devices and their users are identified. Hopefully the article I've mentioned above will be available at the same site at the end of this months, to give deeper insight on What´s it all about those modules apps contain? – i.e. ad and analytics stuff and how it intrudes our privacy.

¹ for some especially intrusive examples, see my listing here
² believe it or not, but about every seventh paid app ships with ad modules


text:
Whatsapp - last time seen online - what does it mean?
I'm using whatsapp and some of my contacts have been seen online AFTER my messages have been delivered..
My question is: If I read something like this:

[10:01] my message is delivered The contact has been seen online at
  10:08

Does this mean the contact has read my message/opened whatsapp by himself? Or does it mean that his Android OS has let Whatsapp application

Just to bring this current, WhatsApp have updated their What are those check marks next to my messages? page to highlight that there's a new feature to see when a message is actually read.

Check marks will appear next to each message you send. Here is what
each one indicates:
 message successfully sent.
 message successfully delivered to the recipient's phone.
 the recipient has read your message.

It's still likely that a message will show as delivered before a user has been "online" to actually read it.

A single green tick mark indicates the Whatsapp servers have got your message.
A double green tick mark indicates that the recipient's device has got your message.
However, it doesn't automatically mean that the user has read or seen the message.
The last seen online may merely indicate that the user may have been talking to someone on the contact list or been in the Whatsapp application for any reason like adjusting settings etc.
No guarantee that the user has read your message.
Taken from http://www.whatsapp.com/faq/en/general/20951546

My doubt is whether "last seen" indicates that the user has actively opened the applicaction, or that the application has been running on background connecting to WhatsApp servers? The WhatsApp FAQ now says:

"Last seen at..." refers to the time the contact left WhatsApp

But googling I found an old WhatsApp FAQ answer for the same question, maybe referred to the old versions:

"Last seen" simply indicates the state of the device network connection and not if the application is actively in use. For example, on some operating system such as BlackBerry and Android, the phone will connect on it's own if it has a new incoming message even if the phone is not in active use at the moment

I have seen "improvements to "last seen" and "typing..." correctness / timeliness" in the 2.7.4705 version (2012-MAR-05) changelog
I will test it
WhatsApp uses push notifications (the server notifies the device) so seems not neccessary connecting periodically to the server looking for new messages (pull). Another question is if once a notification is received the app connects to the server for new messages downloading. In any case, the question is if WhatsApp takes into account the connections with the app in background for the "last seen" indicator.

Last time seen on whatsapp means that the person has contacted someone on their contact list, basically sending a text to someone else.


text:
How do I remove the confirmation alert when choosing Silent mode?
SG2 with ICS 4.0.4: When I long press the power button and choose Silent mode, I get a confirmation alert stating that "Silent mode will be enabled".Then, I get to choose between "OK" or "Cancel", like I'm some clumsy child making bad decisions...
After long pressing the power button, and chosing Silent mode, I think that is one step too many, and it annoys me to have to confirm what I already confirmed that I wanted to do.
How do I remove the confirmation box ?
In a perfect world, I wouldn't have to go trough that extra step, and instead I'd just get a confirmation stating : "Silent mode enabled" or something in that line.

Have you considered using a widget like Widgetsoid so you have one tap access to toggle silent / normal modes?

Running Stock ROM?

This is not standard android behavior, it must be something added in TouchWiz or if you used custom ROM. In my stock Galaxy Nexus, toggling silent mode does not have any additional confirmation dialog.

This appears to be baked in to the stock ROM you are using.
There are widgets, like silentwidget which will let you toggle the silent mode without using the power button method, although this requires you to go to the launcher to do this - to get around this, have a look at a multitasking app like PowerStrip which will allow you to launch apps, see widgets and more from anywhere on your device without having to go back to the launcher.

In the new update this problem is luckily fixed. Additionally, you can now choose between silent, vibrate and sound. Whoever thought of it: Thank you!


text:
Rooting my device, i can root it from the ROM?
i have a Samsung S5660 that i have upgraded to Android 2.3.7 but none of the previous hack or utilities seems to work with this version of Gingerbread.
I need it to be upgraded and rooted, i was thinking if it's possible to hack the ROM directly since i have a tar.md5 package with the ROM itself, because i have already tried everything, even something with adb shell directly into the phone but apparently nothing works.
How to root my phone ?

Have you considered using an alternate ROM like CyanogenMod or MIUI? Most alternate ROMs come pre-rooted. take a look at http://androidadvices.com/info/samsung/galaxy-gio-s5660/

@Sparx yes but they offer really poor performance if compared to the OEM provided ROM, also they are not reliable when it comes to testing and developing purposes. As you said, since most of them are pre-rooted i was looking for ideas about how to do this with my original ROM image.

XDA has a method to root while on stock ROM - http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=20397899&postcount=2  What previous hacks/utilities have you tried?

@Sparx gingerbreak and gingerbreak.apk, superuser.apk, psneuter, oneClickRoot, etc etc, and basically all the other ones, but i would like to know how to root a generic ROM so i can easily achieve this. I already have tried that method but doesn't look like it's really rooted, most of the tools under android doesn't look like being executed with root privilege when su is used


text:
How do I view the "Other folder" on ICS browser?
I saved some links on the browser's "Other folder". How do I view them? When I go to Bookmarks, all I can see is "Local".


text:
Kindle Fire Power Adapter Specs
I have misplaced the power adapter for my v1 Kindle Fire. USB charging works but is dog slow. What are the specs of its adapter, including any branding, as they're never labeled properly. Also, a photo would be very helpful, since it is likely in the box o' adapters in the basement.

According to this page the original stats are this:

INPUT (AC): 100-240V, 50/60Hz
OUTPUT (DC): 5V, 1.8A

Here's an image:

The newer charger is 9V and 1.8A.


text:
Problem Sync'ing/Downloading from Google Play
Android Enthusiasts
I've been having problems when trying to download apps from Google Play. I'm relatively new to the Android Scene. Whenever I try to download and install from Google Play, I get a (-101) error, telling me it couldn't be downloaded and installed. On a related note, since I can't get the apps to sync via wifi, I've been trying to sync via USB, which doesn't work well either. Doesn't even show up on my external devices. Is there anyone who can lend a hand?

Can you include the logcat at the point when downloading from google play?

logcat? Like I said, I'm new to the Android Scene, so I'm relatively ignorant on all the lingo. Resolved the -101 error on my own, though still need to figure out how to move files from my PC to the Tablet.

Go to

Settings>Apps>All>Google Play Store>Clear Cache & Clear Data
Settings>Apps>All>Downloads>Clear Cache & Clear Data
Settings>Apps>All>Download Manager>Clear Cache & Clear Data

If you're rooted I would suggest wiping cache & dalvik-cache from your recovery.
Also you could try installing the latest version of google play application using the apk.

I find the above to be a satisfactory resolution to almost every encounter with this problem I have had up to date. All I will add is briefly-if you are interested in this case you are probably going to be interested in the benefits of rooting the device even more. Best wishes, Your Genesis Bloke