text:
Effect of Background Color on Battery Life in Android App
I am studying about the effect of different parameters of Android app on Power Consumption and tips for optimizing them . I came across this
paper which states that ligh background color consumes less power than dark bg color.
I wonder whether We can apply the same logic for apps. When I measured the power consumed by changing the back ground color of a mock Android App , I couldn't notice any change .
Is the change too small to notice or it didn't occur at all?

It would also vary with the type of screen, blacks on AMOLED screens do not turn on the cell, so there is no power drain. It's a bit more complicated than the paper suggests. Really the brightness will have far more effect than a colour, unless you are going all white or all black, and even then the screen type and the software rendering will have a huge impact.

It would be great if you can refer a paper so that I can study and include it in my thesis

where in the paper you refer to are you reading this?  it's the opposite of what I expect although it clearly depends on the display technology which has changed a good bit since that paper was written.

It would also vary with the type of screen, blacks on AMOLED screens do not turn on the cell, so there is no power drain. It's a bit more complicated than the paper suggests. Really the brightness will have far more effect than a colour, unless you are going all white or all black, and even then the screen type and the software rendering will have a huge impact. –  RossC Oct 22 '14 at 10:52

Always, kindly ask the user (RossC here) to post the comment into an answer and wait for few days (a week or so). 2) If the user does show up but doesn't post an answer or doesn't show up at all, then consider quoting his/her comment  into an answer and make the latter a wiki, so that the commenter can always edit it or shouldn't end up thinking that you tried to steal his/her reputation.


text:
Insufficient Storage Memory while installing apps
I have a Samsung Galaxy S3 International Edition operating with CyanogenMod-SnapShot-M11 11-20141008 Build. Lately when I was trying to install some Apps like Google Now Launcher or Updating Facebook and Facebook Messenger install fails and tells me:

Insufficient Storage Memory

while I have 5 GB free of memory.
I found an Alternative Solution of fixing this by calling *#9900# USSD code, but this is failing too by throwing this message:

Invalid MMI Code

Now I can't try the tutorial because of this thing, and I am stuck with this also I can't install applications to my Phone (not all apps but some of them).
Has this happened to anyone, or has anybody solved this issue?

Is your question about the dialer-code – or about the storage issue? In the latter case: I've just added the insufficient-memory tag to your question, its tag-wiki should get you started.

@Izzy is related to both of the cases so thanks for the tag! :)

In that case: This is a Q&A site, which best works with one question per post. I'd recommend splitting it: one post for the "Invalid MMI Code", and another for the underlying issue. But then, the former will probably be closed as "off-topic", as it's not an Android specific issue. Hence it might be best to [edit] your post, focussing on the real issue (insufficient storage; point out what you've already tried from the linked tag-wiki), and making the MMI thingy a "bonus point" (one thing you've tried and failed and would be interested in why and how-to-fix).

source: Stack Exchange

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

authors: พีรพล กองแก้ว

sort: votes


text:
Nexus 7 in Fastboot (recovery) not activating USB connection
I realise this is asked countless times but I genuinely believe my question is unique, please bare with me as I explain.
My Nexus7 (2013) is not working in fastboot mode, I connect my Nexus 7 and run the following:
$ adb devices
List of devices attached
07c15663    device

The Nexus 7 appears (once authorising adb), so I then reboot to fastboot (or bootloader):
$ adb reboot bootloader

The Nexus 7 reboots into fastboot correctly and I see the usual screen:

Nexus 7 in fastboot mode (click image for larger variant)
However, when I issue any fastboot commands it cannot see the device:
$ sudo ./fastboot devices
[empty response]

...and lsusb doesn't see the USB Connection:
$ lsusb
Bus 002 Device 002: ID 8087:0024 Intel Corp. Integrated Rate Matching Hub
Bus 002 Device 001: ID 1d6b:0002 Linux Foundation 2.0 root hub
Bus 001 Device 006: ID 5986:0266 Acer, Inc
Bus 001 Device 005: ID 0a5c:21e6 Broadcom Corp. BCM20702 Bluetooth 4.0 [ThinkPad]
Bus 001 Device 004: ID 147e:2020 Upek TouchChip Fingerprint Coprocessor (WBF     advanced mode)
Bus 001 Device 035: ID 045e:0745 Microsoft Corp. Nano Transceiver v1.0 for     Bluetooth
Bus 001 Device 034: ID 046d:c049 Logitech, Inc. G5 Laser Mouse
Bus 001 Device 032: ID 1a40:0101 Terminus Technology Inc. 4-Port HUB
Bus 001 Device 031: ID 1a40:0101 Terminus Technology Inc. 4-Port HUB
Bus 001 Device 002: ID 8087:0024 Intel Corp. Integrated Rate Matching Hub
Bus 001 Device 001: ID 1d6b:0002 Linux Foundation 2.0 root hub
Bus 004 Device 001: ID 1d6b:0003 Linux Foundation 3.0 root hub
Bus 003 Device 030: ID 0bdb:1926 Ericsson Business Mobile Networks BV
Bus 003 Device 001: ID 1d6b:0002 Linux Foundation 2.0 root hub

to add to this weirdness, once it's booted up properly the Nexus 7 appears as a Nexus 4 in lsusb:
$ lsusb
[...]
Bus 001 Device 060: ID 18d1:4ee2 Google Inc. Nexus 4 (debug)
[...]

I'm so confused, what have I done to my poor Nexus 7?? Please Help!
Also:

The device seems to freeze after extended periods in fastboot at which point the only solution is to push and hold the power button for 10secs (hard power off).
I can use fastboot with my Nexus 4 without any problems

Have you tried putting the proper drivers in the right locations on your filesystem? This has been an issue with my Nexus 7 as well, and was solved by acquiring the proper drivers.
Also, it seems from your fastboot screen information your Nexus is fairly custom at this point (product name usually reads grouper, the device codename, yours seems to call itself FLO?). This may affect what drivers are required, but I am not an expert in driver compatibility. Perhaps, due to the ambiguity of what can be flashed to the fully unlocked Nexus line, you may actually have pushed Nexus 4 firmware to your device, and due to the fact that they differ only in size, it may appear to you to still be running the software for the 7.
It appears your device has, in the fastboot information, a slot for reading to the user what carrier the device is currently subscribed to. This should, to the best of my knowledge, only appear on the Nexus 4, or the GSM capable 3G enabled version of the Grouper (Nexus 7). It can be very easy to push the files for your phone to your tablet accidentally, and might be worth consideration.
If you have a WiFi only device, this is likely the issue. A quick way to discern if you have the Nexus 4 software on your Nexus 7 is to run an application that has a user interface which is programmed to change from the phone to the tablet (a list of such apps should be easily found with a Google query. I believe Gmail is one, but that may be blurry for us with the Nexus 7 because it is considered a "Phablet", a hybrid style device).
I recommend trying to erase all Android drivers on the host computer, and reinstalling the specific drivers for the Nexus 7 only, then after hopefully solving the issue, redownload the other necessary drivers for other devices, only after this issue has been resolved.
If that is not helpful, I would consider a full overhaul of your system through pushing a Google supplied system image through adb, and using recovery partition to erase everything and reinstall stock flavor of this device. It may also be possible fully through adb, since you say it is detected when using that utility. Hope this helps you somehow :]
To sum it up, you either have interfering drivers, or have given your device its cousin software from your phone, a very small difference in terms of observable functionality assumably, but large for accessing the fastboot function.

Well, that's disconcerting. I'm usually very careful when flashing ROMs but I do also have a Nexus 4 so this is entirely plausible.
I've launched Apps like GMail etc and I do get the 'multiview' view (list on the left, content on right) - Is there a more definitive way to determine if it is the wrong ROM?

I believe that grouper is the name for the 2012 Nexus 7, while flo is the 2013 Nexus 7.

Flo (WiFi) and Deb (3g) 2013 Nexus 7 tablets , AKA razor and razorg. Grouper (WiFi) and Tilapia (3g), 2012 Nexus 7 tablets, AKA nakasi and nakasig . Here is a link for Google Factory Images, the Nexus 7's are about 1\2 - 2\3 way down the page.

I had the same problem, but it turned out that adb didn't have to see the device in order for fastboot to see it.
I'm guessing you want to flash Android 5.0 to your Nexus 7?
I just did that by following these instructions. An extra thing I had to do was adding a udev rule, as described here. (However, I removed the GROUP ="plugdev" part of the rule, since other sources omitted that.)

erm, adb can see my device and fastboot cannot. I need fastboot in order to flash a new ROM etc. but thanks for taking the time to answer.

I experienced the same thing and I found that it was because the USB ID was different in fastboot mode.
The answer by poolie to the question Android fastboot waiting for devices helped me solve my issue on Fedora 22.
Rather than restarting the udev service, I issued the command:
sudo udevadm control --reload-rules

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


text:
How to block/disable WiFiKill effectiveness on WiFi network?
I just gave WiFiKill app to someone I know in the region where the college is and I guided him how to get it work. That was before the ending of holiday.
At these days after holiday ended, he monitored that college WiFi network cutting all bandwidth on other connected devices, although they're connected to network. I hear all of them complain about the Internet while he's enjoying full internet bandwidth, which is not fair at all because that internet is only dedicated for college students only, not for citizens of that region.
How to disable this app affecting college WiFi network? What will happen if 2 users using WiFiKill on the same network and each one of them block internet on the other device?

Pretty much.. no. WiFiKill uses ARP poisoning to cause computers on the local network segment to use the wrong MAC address for the router, resulting in all packets being dropped. A second device running WiFiKill would have no visible effect; however, if you could spoof ARP reply packets which have the correct MAC address in them it could be used to mitigate the effects -- maybe. The two devices would be in a race at that point.


text:
Nexus 5 nothing bootable?
I add Paranoid OTA on my Nexus 5, and I tried to uninstall it.
During the processus, everything totally failed and my phone start rebooting itself all the time.
Now :
ADB is not working. (I tried to end and restart the server but nothing to do) My phone is not recognize on my computer (windows 8.1) I can't install the driver on my computer
And i CANNOT start my phone, I don't have any more any system on it ...
I'm totally lost and I don't know what to do =/
i'm trying to install ADB to install Android 4.4.4 but impossible, my phone is connect to my computer but windows doesn't recognize it (and i uninstall and reinstall the driver with the package manager from android studio)
Someone can help me =/ ?

Can you get it into fastboot mode?

@DanHulme
No, windows cannot recognize my Nexus 5 ... (linux same)

I'm not asking about connecting it to your PC. Can it boot into fastboot mode?

@DanHulme My phone can boot into fastboot mode yes.

I know Windows doesn't recognize the phone but I still want to try something.
Download Wugfresh toolkit from here: (For download links just scroll down, there are some mirrors)
http://www.wugfresh.com/nrt/
Once you install it, click "Full driver installation guide...". This will give you a thorough guide to uninstalling remaining drivers and installing the needed ones.
Hopefully, it will help you install the necessary drivers for the N5.
If it does work, Press the "flash stock + unroot" button on the right (I think you should check "soft-bricked/bootloop").
Hope it helps :)

Hi @Eran, thank for help, the soft is awesome ! but my still is still impossible to be connected to windows so it's imposible to use it :(

The driver installation guide gives you 4 driver options. Have you tried them all?

nop ... My phone is still not recognize on windows :(

Excellent :). What did you do eventually? I'm sure people would appreciate if you could edit your question and explain the solution.

I just used the answer of you finally.
But for windows to recognize my phone, I had to launch it in recovery mode (where you have starts, boot recovery and exit) and stay THERE ! In this place, windows recognize the phone and you can install a new rom.


text:
How to add multiple apps to the homescreen(s) at once?
I have a bunch of apps installed. I don't want to add them one by one, but I need many of them directly on my homescreen(s). Is there a faster way? This is Nexus 7 2013.

You can't with the stock launcher, but in Nova Launcher you can multi-select apps in the Add to Home screen list and add them all at once to either the home screen or a folder. I've also read that LG Lucid's default launcher has a customization that adds this feature. There may be other launchers that can do it, but those are the only ones I know of.


text:
Cannot get MTP to work unless USB debugging is enabled
I have a Samsung Galaxy S3 (i9300) running Android 4.4.4 (CyanogenMod 11-20141008-SNAPSHOT-M11-i9300).
If I have USB debugging disabled and I plug it into Windows 7 then:

I get a connection sound in Windows
Device manager reports "Google Galaxy Nexus ADB Interface"
The phone reports "Connected as a media device"
but the phone is not shown in Windows Explorer.

If I have USB debugging enabled and I plug it into Windows 7 then:

I get a connection sound in Windows
Device manager reports "SAMSUNG Android ADB Interface"
The phone reports "USB debugging connected"
The phone is shown in Windows Explorer
and I appear to also be able to copy files to and from the device.

This seems completely backwards to me and, given that I'm doing some development with MTP, I would really like it to work how normal people will have it work (as I seriously don't expect that everyone has to turn on USB debugging just to get it to work).
How can I fix this?

Do you have Samsung Kies installed? Samsung phones don't use the generic Google-provided driver for MTP in Windows, but if you install the correct Kies version it'll also load the relevant driver. This post on XDA-forums explains more about the cause, just don't forget to substitute the Samsung driver for the Google one when following the steps.
If you don't want to mess with Kies you can obtain just the Samsung driver portion here.

Typical, I post the question and then immediately find a solution (of sorts).
One way to resolve it is to go into Device Management, right click on "Google Galaxy Nexus ADB Interface", select "Uninstall" and make sure that the tickbox for removing the drivers is selected.
Once that has completed, install Samsung Kies (ugh) and you'll find that it is now reported as "GT-I9300" under "Portable Devices".
If someone has a solution that doesn't involve installing 72MB of software just to get a driver, then I'll mark it as the best answer.


text:
Is it always possible to recover from a failed installation of a ROM?
in the past I changed the ROM from my phone and the installation was correct. Now I'm currently working in a custom ROM, where I'm doing some alterations on Android Source code.
So, my question is: if I flash my phone with my custom ROM e something goes wrong, is it always possible take a stable ROM (that I already have) and install back to my phone? Or my phone can break without having how to recover it?
Once the installation failed on the middle, and I just start it again and everything worked fine, but the ROM were stable and now I'm customizing it. Or even in that time I had luck!
Thank you for now
Pablo

As long as you have recovery installed you can flash another ROM, stock or custom. The kernel/boot.img would be dependent on the ROM and they would most likely come with the ROM package. So if you have a complete ROM, with all necessary parts, you will be able to to recover from a bad flash.

Always make a backup/nandroid


text:
PC from/to Android voice communication without Internet
I want to call my PC using my Android phone (and vice versa) without internet. PC to Android or Android to PC, not just Android to Android. I think it is possible, but not sure if there is a program like that.
What apps do I need to install both on PC and Android phone?

Do you mean calling inside a WiFi without internet access, or without any data connection?

OK, just use Linphone. That's the app the old answer recommended, as you can just use the same program on Win/OSX/Linux/Android/iOS. You don't need internet, but you do still need to have IP connectivity between the devices (if one can ping the other then you're good to go).

Please don't add comments as answers. Invest some time in the site and you will gain sufficient privileges to upvote answers you like, or to add actual comments when seeking clarification of any issues. If you know of apps that will specifically help the OP then please provide links etc. I can't see how the answer will solve this to be honest, as it's phone to phone VoIP, rather than what the OP is attempting.

If the goal is to talk directly between PCs, Android devices, or a combination, then SIP is a good route to go. The question I linked to was about Android to Android SIP but, as the comments there discussed, SIP can be P2P or use a server, and SIP clients on an Android phone or PC are interoperable. Those clients for Android solve the Android half of this question, although some Googling also turned up Linphone, which runs on Win/OSX/Linux/Android/iOS: http://www.linphone.org/technical-corner/linphone/overview


text:
How to install Noto font on Android?
Google builds a beautiful font (Noto) for the world. How can I replace the system default font with the Noto font?

Does Android support new fonts?

As Per this site
Install gujarati fonts in Android

Google has finally added Gujarati fonts to Android 5.0 (Lollipop) in the Nexus line of phones. The fonts are called  Noto Sans Gujarati  and Noto Sans Gujarati UI and both come in regular and bold versions, though they are seemingly indistinguishable. Google still has to add Gujarati keyboard input though so we can type in Gujarati. Until then, SwiftKey Keyboard is currently offering a Gujarati input method. Images below show the Noto Sans Gujarati font displayed natively on my website. The third image shows the SwiftKey keyboar layout for Gujarati input.

 Note : you have to root your android device and it voids warranty from manufacturer


text:
Recovering from a bootloop in Lenovo S960
I've recently rooted my phone and have installed Xposed Framework. I'm used to this process and know what the consequences are. The phone was working fine until I installed a module for Xposed called Tinted Statusbar. Activated it and rebooted. thats when the bootloop happened. Tried all methods for disabling Xposed. The xposed-disabler zip didn't work when i tried flashing it, the hardware buttons just vibrate.
How can i recover my phone? The recovery is an old CWM v2.2.2 running on a Mediatek Processor.

The only way to overcome bootloop is to reflash the phone (start off on a clean slate) by using an SPFlashTool format firmware (where you have to use SP Flash Tool to flash).
Irregardless of the version release, replace the original recovery.img file with either CWM/TWRP recovery  file and rename it to "recovery.img" file. This will ensure that immediately after the reflash you will have custom recovery installed already.(but in the original firmware folder there will be a "Checksum" file. Remove/expunge this file from the folder since the CWM/TWRP (if it has checksum that doesn't match with the original factory recovery checksum)).
Then search for a "custom Firmware for S960" from NeedROM website and upgrade via TWRP/CWM. Install the latest updates you can find there (I do contribute firmwares on that site) and this bootloop issue is a normal occurence amongst users. I provide them with a downgraded firmware which is SP Flash Tool and then upgrade it back to the latest version with no issues, except you loose all the installes apps (better than having a paper weight!)

Factory reset will work, but will wipe everything in the process. You will have to reinstall everything again.
This will work even if you installed all the modules to system. It resets the module list in the framework app, the modules have to be re-enabled.
Update the recovery to the newest version that your ROM will work with.
Please read this part carefully:

Always make a backup/nandroid BEFORE you add or change anything.

Here is the download page for Lenovo S960 stock ROMs, plus install instructions. Latest ROM is 4.4.2 as of now.
Here is the instructions and download page for TWRP 2.6.3.0 and root. There are other recoveries, but TWRP seems the most stable for Lenovo.

tried Wiping data/factory reset in CWM, still bootloops. It reboots a few times then blank screen. @HasH_BrowN

Don't forget to wipe cache and dalvik-cache too!

Still same. Stock rom couldn't be found anywhere.

Same problem plus overheating..

@heywhite  edited my answer with ROM link

so should i install from ADB on my pc or should i push the file into my phone through ADB?

From either will be fine, but I (personal preference) would do it from the PC.

installation failed. Tried removing assert cuz the rom before was made by ROW

Well I guess that would leave you to do a complete wipe of the system, start it all from scratch. Nothing will get in the way then. You went this far


text:
Need one-line adb shell su push & pull to access /data from Windows batch file
I wrote a Windows batch file that replaces Amazon lockscreen ads with user images on rooted kindle fire hd 7", 2013 (kfsowi). Just learned I botched the adb commands because I was running "adb insecure" so was getting su access without writing it into the adb commands.
What I need: To run in batch file, I need one-line adb shell su commands to pull from/push to /data on this device. (Or I could use adb -d shell su -c "mount -o remount rw, /data on one line followed by the pull or push)
I have fixed an ls command like this:

this worked with adb insecure: adb ls "/data/securedStorageLocation"
what I needed was: adb shell su -c "ls ./data/securedStorageLocation"

Now I need same for pull and push. The problem:

With adb insecure, this works fine: adb pull "/data/securedStorageLocation" "C:/destination"
Without adb insecure I get: remote object '/data/securedStorageLocation/' does not exist

Above happens even if I first run: adb -d shell su -c "mount -o remount rw, /data
Can someone tell me how to do the pull and push with adb shell and su?
EDIT: adb root command doesn't gain root on this device

To use adb push or adb pull in root mode, the adb daemon on the device must be running in root mode (which is what ADBInsecure does).

@Izzy How can I get into root mode without adb insecure if >adb root< command doesn't work? I want to distribute this. Is there any other way to push and pull the directory? thx

I don't know (always used "ADB Insecure", as I couldn't get adb root to work either). Worth a separate question, maybe?

Well, you have to do a few commands, as I don't believe it will work in one.
You need to do:

adb shell
su
cd /data/path/of/file
cp /data/path/of/file/copyme /data/local/tmp
chown shell.shell /data/local/tmp/copyme
exit
exit
adb pull /data/local/tmp/copyme /destination/copyme

This works for me every time.

what exactly is shell.shell

@Remario https://linux.die.net/man/1/chown - it means owner.group. When you copy a file using SU, the owner and group will be root.root . The adb pull command runs as shell.shell and will not be able to pull the file from the temporary location. Changing it before doing pull will allow you permission.

do not forget to remove /data/local/tmp/copyme finally (after pull)

adb root; adb push /local/file /distant/root/owner/file

"adb root" will restart adbd as root
then your push is accepted

Thanks for this discussion. It led me to a solution that worked well enough for me while backing up my phone that won't mount its internal ext4, before I do something drastic while trying to fix it (apparently this needs root permissions).
Note that adb shell generally sets up a text terminal (so can convert single end-of-line characters to CRLF, mangling binary data like partition images or TAR archives). While you can work around this in Unix/Linux versions of adb (e.g. add stty raw to your shelled command) or use some newer adb with exec-out option, on Windows it still writes CRLF to its output. The neat trick is to pass data through base64 encoding and decoding (binaries are available for Windows en-masse). Also note that errors or verbose messages printed to stderr in shell end up on stdout of adb shell program in the host system - so you want to discard those after inevitable initial experimentation.
Here goes:
adb shell "su -c 'cat /dev/block/mmcblk0p25 | base64' 2>/dev/null" | base64 -d > p25

Can be easily scripted by Windows to cover all the partitions (can look the list up by ls -la /dev/block/ and/or by cat /proc/diskstats or cat /proc/partitions), e.g.:
for /L %P in (1,1,25) do ..\platform-tools\adb shell "su -c 'cat /dev/block/mmcblk0p%P | base64' 2>/dev/null" | base64 -d > s3-mmcblk0p%P.img

(Note to use %%P in CMD batch files, or %P in interactive shell).
Don't forget that there are also mmcblk0boot[01] partitions, and that the mmcblk0 overall contains all those partitions in a GPT wrapping, just like any other harddisk or impersonator of one :)
To estimate individual partition sizes, you can look at the output of:
fdisk -u -l /dev/block/mmcblk0*

Unfortunately, I did not quickly and easily manage to tar cf - mmcblkp0* and get the partition contents, so I could pipe it to e.g. 7z x -si and get the data out as multiple files in a portable one-liner as well.
To tar some files you can:
adb shell "su -c 'cd /mnt/data && tar czf - ./ | base64' 2>/dev/null" | base64 -d > s3-mmcblk0p25-userdata.tar.gz

UPDATED: Found some more tricks to transfer binary data.
Hope this helps someone else,
Jim Klimov

base64 isn't an ideal solution. For small files it works fine but for large files, it increases transferral time by one third!

Of course it is not perfect due to that, but given that for recovery purposes grasping for any straws that can help is good enough... well... :) In any case, if I send a whole partition for export like this, I do not really care if it takes an hour vs hour and a half, as long as it reliably does the job. Also if, as some others have documented, the Windows variant of adb.exe effectively always outputs CRLF separated text, there seems little we can do but abuse it with ASCII-friendly incapsulation. Alternately, adb exec-out might be the solution - but for some reason did not work well for me.

mine sudo adb shell su 0 -c 'dd if=/dev/block/mmcblk0 | base64 2>/dev/null' | base64 -d >./mmcblk0.img 2>/dev/null

But, what happen if we dont use base64 ?!

As commented above, there may be issues sending binary as plaintext between Linux (Android) and Windows (adb). You might not need encapsulation if both sides agree on line endings.

Not necessarily will it be one-line, but you can try to do the following actions:

(with adb shell, su) Copy the files to a temporary accessible location on your device (for example, /sdcard, or external SD card)
(with adb pull) Copy these files from the temporary location to your machine
Delete temporary copy

Possible drawback: between first and last step a malicious app, if you happen to be "using" it, may read and/or modify there files in temporary publicly accessible directory. In practice, this is very unlikely.

I use the batch script (extract-db-from-emulator.bat) below to pull local database out to the host:
@@echo off
SET adb_path="%USERPROFILE%\AppData\Local\Android\sdk\platform-tools\"
SET application_id="com.example.myapp"
SET root_access_filepath="/data/user/0/%application_id%/databases/local.db"
SET pullable_filepath="/mnt/sdcard/DCIM/local.db"
SET host_directory="%USERPROFILE%\Desktop"
SET root_command="su 0 cp"
%adb_path%adb.exe shell "%root_command% %root_access_filepath% %pullable_filepath%"
%adb_path%adb.exe pull %pullable_filepath% %host_directory%

I see an error with
adb shell "su -c '<your command>'"

su: invalid uid/gid '-c'

The solution is on Linux
adb shell su 0 '<your command>'

add -c before command, like: sudo adb shell su 0 -c 'whoami'

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


text:
save web Images with Xperia Z1
How can I save web Images with xperia z1 ? (kitkat)
I search for and image in google and find it. now how can I save it. it doen't have save image option like old versions :(

Yeah this has been annoying me for a while. I think they removed it as there was potential copyright issues, for example 500 px has scripts that stop you saving images by long pressing them as normal. The only options I know of are either taking a screenshot in the search app (not great) or clicking on the link, going to the website in a browser and saving the image from there (also not great).

authors: อัคนาน โต๊ะปาตี


text:
Mail app and exchange server
I am using Moto G and accessing my office mail on native Mail app synced with MS Exchange Server. Whenever I am forwarding a mail, the app downloads the entire attachments and the mail is only sent after that. My earlier HTC phone with similar setup used to do this without downloading the attachment, but the receiver would gett the mail with attachments. Am I missing some particular setting here? How can I make my Moto G to send the forwards without downloading entire attachments?


text:
Can I connect a Nexus 4 to 1080p hdmi screen (@1080p) with the phone screen off?
I am interested in using a SlimPort adapter to connect my Nexus 4 to an external monitor. I'm exploring the idea of using an Android device as a simple workstation with an external screen, keyboard & mouse.

Can Android run external HDMI monitors at a resolution other than the
native resolution of the Android Device? As I understand it, the
default behavior is to show the scale the native resolutions on the
external monitor, but I'd like to output 1080p rather than the N4 native res.
Can I disable mirroring and use the HDMI device only? I’d like to
run it with the screen off on the N4. This should reduce
power consumption a bit and reduce to graphics workload. Is there something similar to linux's xrandr on Android that would allows
this?
Could I user Tasker or anything else to accomplish this automatically when the SlimPort adapter is plugged in?

Nexus 4 running rooted 4.4


text:
Is goggles still solving sudokus?
Some time ago I tried to solve sudokus using goggles and it worked. But today I've been recognizing several sudokus, and goggles says "it's a sudoku" and performs a google search for me, but I don't have the solving feature anymore.
Is it a matter of versions? Do I have to adjust any setting?
Thanks,

Yes, it does. After scanning the Sudoku it should present you with multiple results, one recognized as a Sudoku puzzle, one recognized as an object, and one recognized as text. You'll want to select the Sudoku puzzle result and then select 'Solve' on the next screen that comes up.
This was just verified on v1.9.4

Thanks, I've updated to v1.9.4 and now I have the "solve" button. But I receive an error 500 when I click that.

I've tried again today [2014-11-03] and still get an error 500 (that's all we know) :(

Have you tried going to the Application Manager and clearing data for Google Search? I've had a few apps that refused to work properly after an update unless i did this.

I just did and receive the same error. The full page text is: [google logo] 500. That's an error. There was an error. Please try again later. That's all we know.

Oh! Looking at the address bar, it looks that the sudoku is solved, but somehow it cannot be displayed! This is the full address bar content: http://www.google.com/goggles/a/sudoku?original=530070000600195000098000060800060003400803001700020006060000280000419005000080079&solved=534678912672195348198342567859761423426853791713924856961537284287419635345286179&solutionOnly=y

I know the trick with address bar content, but now even this doesn't work anymore...

I've got the same error..but I have a answer: in the adress line there is the solution. The numbers are written there one by one from left to right and then the next line and so on. In your case it is: 534678912672195348198342567859761423426853791713924856961537284287419635345286179..look at your Link above.
Felix


text:
Trigger Mousewheel in Android Chrome without mouse
Is there any way to trigger the mousewheel javascript event without actually attaching a mouse? I'm asking as a user.


text:
Playback MP4 video clip in Chrome
I get several emails everyday from my security camera system. Such mail contains links to video clips (aprox 20 sec each) form cameras in MP4 format. I use native Gmail client for Android.
After clicking on such link the clip is open in browser but nothing is playback. Only controls are display and shows clip time "zero". I try both native and  Chrome as a browser
The same clip is properly playback when I use Chrome on desktop (Linux) platform.
For test purposes I downloaded MP4 clip from RedTube ;-) which is properly playback on my Android device. But when I try to playback it in the same way as clips from security camera, the result is the same (only controls are displayed in browser).
What I have to do to reach proper playback MP4 files in my Android unit?
I use Galaxy S4 mini, Android ver 4.4.2

Does the link point to the MP4 file itself, or to a web page that has the video embedded?

Point to mp4 file itself

I think the problem has been fixed in the latest release.


text:
Google Play Error Code: 495 on Android One
I am using an Android One mobile phone. When I try to install apps via WiFi I get Error Code: 495, but, when I do the same via mobile data it's working fine.
When  follow the procedure mentioned in What is error code 495 on Google Play and the YouTube app? I get a "Connection Time Out Error". If I try a second time I can see the "Installing..." indicator appear, but I don't see any downloading file information and finally I get the same Error Code: 495.
What could be the problem? How to solve this issue?

@DanHulme, Before i have posted this question i had seen the question what you have mentioned and the mentioned solution is not solved my problem. FYKI, I'm using #androidone mobile phone and installed os version 4.4.4kitkat

[Edit] your question and say what you've already tried, and what happened.

@DanHulme, i updated my question. please look into that


text:
Looking for a way to forward SMS messages from a spesific numbers
I'm looking for a way to forward SMS messages received on my phone from a specific number.
The problem is that the number is a "service", meaning I don't see a number, I see a name like "AMEX", "Dominos", "MasterCard" ect...
Is there a way to get the number from these "services" ?
[By services I mean all these companies that send sms messages with a name instead of a number]
I have tried using Sms Forwader but it seems there is a bug and it forwards  messages from unwanted "services".
Is there any way to forward all the sms I get from (for example) "Dominos" to a specified number ?


text:
Ringtones incompatible with custom rom. How to improve compatibility?
I have been using Samsung Galaxy s4 stock firmware up until now. Yesterday I switched to AOKP 4.4.4 (18/10/2014 build) and I've noticed that none of my old ringtones work (12 unrelated ringtones). I tried converting some of them to ogg, mp3 and wav formats with audacity. Whatever i do, they do not appear in ringtone list when moved to system/media/audio/ringtones. They cannot be selected with ES explorer - I get "Wrong file type, please select again" message. If I select them with root explorer the ringtone is set to "None".
Some mp3 files in my music library work, but not the ringtones.
I assume it has something to do with ringtone format, however, I have got no idea where to start looking.
Is there any setting I could change or an app I could change / install to add the compatibility?
Is there any particular app responsible for sound playback in android?
EDIT: I am running AOKP on Samsung Galaxy S4.
EDIT2: I recently installed latest official firmware. During instalation I tried resetting to phone default firmware and ringtones worked. Now that I am on new official firmware, old ringtones do not work again. Also, On the new FW I used official ringtone selection tool (that creates a ringtone file). The ringtone created works in ringtone selector list, but cannot be added to list if removed from the list or if moved.
This leads me to believe problem is with some update all newer firmwares (including AOKP) have.
No real answer to this question, I am forced to use a 3rd party app to use my old ringtones.

Possible duplicate of "Wrong file type, please select again" when choosing a ringtone

In my OnePlus 2 running OxygenOS 2.2 (Android 5.1.1) the problem was solved by removing .nomedia in the root of the SD card,  copying the audio folder from the media folder to the root of the SD, and then moving it back to the media folder. Don't ask me why but it worked again.

Uh.....I can't believe something like that worked, but it did.

It's weird that your ringtones are still incompatible after conversion to the Ogg Vorbis format, because it (as you probably already know) is what Android's native ringtones come in.
Since you mentioned that you put your files in /system/media/audio/ringtones, it is worth a try to check and set the permissions of your files. It's as easy as

chmod 0644 /system/media/audio/ringtones/*

in a terminal emulator or through ADB.
If you want, you can also put your ringtone files in /sdcard/media/ringtones and do a reboot. You should be able to see, preview, and set your ringtones in Settings. (This works with regular MP3 files, as I've tested months before.)
P.S. Since you also said you've tried using Audacity, it's worth noting that Android doesn't repeat custom ringtones when they stop playing (as is the expected behaviour with call ringtones) unless you include a tag named ANDROID_LOOP set to true in the ringtone's metadata.

No it's not permissions, originally, I saved the ringtones to SD card and made sure that permissions are set after it failed the first time.

I dont know why it works, but re-namimg a file from *.mp3 to *.wav makes the file work as a ringtone.
If you then rename it back to *.mp3, it still works.
No idea why.

Renaming .mp3 to .wav worked for me! Thanks for advice


text:
Out of memory errors on S2. Safe to delete all dumpstate files?
My Android S2 is out of memory and unable to update apps.  Specifically it is currently using nearly all of the paltry 2gb partitioned for apps.
I'm reading that you can issue *#9900# in the dialer, and select menu 2, that this will clean the dumpstate files.   I get Unable to process request.
My phone is rooted so when I go to terminal and ls -l on /data/log, I'm showing no .log files but several dumpstate.tar.gz files.  Is it safe to nuke these tar.gz files?

Just as a remark: According to this answer (and to several others as well), it's rather *#9900#. Typo here – or in general? // Also see: data/log folder causes “internal storage has run out of space” message and Can I delete the log files on my device?

That was a type-o in my post.  I used the asterisk on the keypad.

I read those posts before making my own.  When others refer to deleting log files, they are referring to /data/log/*.log files.  I'm not showing any *.log files on my device - only *.tar.gz files.

Try extracting one of those (e.g. pulling it to your computer and opening them with Winzip or tar xzf *.tar.gz) to see what's within. I bet the contents turn out being *.log files, which are just "archived". Everything inside "log directories" should be safe to delete; of course you're free to make a backup first to be absolutely safe.

Deleted the files and rebooted - no problems so far.

Data in "log directories" should generally be safe to delete, as they are mainly intended for debugging purposes. The files having an .tar.gz extension simply means they are archived (see: tar (computing) at Wikipedia); if you copy them to your computer for investigation (e.g. using Winzip on a Windows machine, or the command-line tar xzf <filename>) will probably show those files contain *.log files.
If you want to be on the safe side, make a backup first. But I very much doubt you'll ever need those files again.


text:
Installing flash images on an unrecommended device
I want to install the Nexus Hammerhead flash image on my Samsung Galaxy S Duos. Is this possible and if so is it safe?

Short answer: NO. Long answer: Noooooooooooooooooo! If you are flashing an image / ROM on a device it must be for the exact device and model, otherwise you will have a shiny paperweight!

@RossC Isn't that the answer to the question? Maybe adding a link to: Why are there not generic phone OS installers? / Why is it that Android still can't be installed as regular OS? Though basically, this is a dupe of a dupe: Is there any custom rom which can be installed on any android device even...


text:
Edit the field of a contact
is it possible to edit the field of a contact ("home", "work", "mobile", etc.)? I don't mean the content of the field, but the name OF THE FIELD ITSELF. I know it's not possible with the default app, so the question is: is there an app that allows you to do it?
Thanks,
Luke

You can add custom fields.  Is that not what you want?

A custom field would solve this in the easiest way, I'd agree with @rrirower on that. Otherwise I guess you could install some 3rd party contacts applications and see if they allow flexibility. I've never seen the option to change the labels, just add my own ones. I'd hazard a guess that "home, mobile, work" are kept generic so that a contact is standardised to some degree across devices / databases.

I have Android 4.4.2 and I can't add custom fields.


text:
Installing system apps on Android 4.4
I've installed apps on the system partition on Android 4.1 and it's as easy as moving an APK to the /system/app/ folder and restart the device. The PackageManager (I assume) will recognize a change in the directory and will install the application.
Now I'm trying to do the same thing on Android 4.4 and it's not working. I'm seeing the APK on the /system/app/ directory but I don't see the app on the launcher. I also tried moving it to the /system/priv-app/ folder but the end result is the same.
Does anyone have a clue of how to do this?
By the way, the 4.1 device was a Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 7" Wifi and the 4.4 device is a Samsung Galaxy Tab 4 7". Both are rooted.

Did you change the permissions when moving/copying apps to the system? What other changes were done to the device? Did the app end up on the hidden apps page?

I just copied the APK which wasn't installed on the device so no other changer were made, I just used the 'mv' command. What hidden apps page are you talking about?

Could you please post it as the answer. It did solve the issue after using "chmod 644 FILE_NAME.apk".

When copy/move files to system you need to change permissions using chmod 644 file_name.apk. The apps will then show back up.


text:
CyanogenMod emulation
The device is Samsung i9100. I have downloaded the latest AndroidStudio and going to modify
or create an addon for AOSP contact app.
The system itself is present on the website https://download.cyanogenmod.org/?device=i9100
Does anyone know how to go about Cyanogen emulation?
Also, what I am trying to do is explained by me at Modifying android system apps.
Guys, do I really need to emulate CyanogenMod? Or can I just modify "aosp contacts app"
testing it under any android emulator and then putting my changes into the CyanogenMod package for Samsung i9100?

Are you trying to install Cyanogenmod in an emulator? If so, what has the i9100 got to do with anything?

@DanHulme I actually don't think that the problem is in the device. I'm just going to modify a system app (aosp contacts http://android.stackexchange.com/questions/85613/modifying-android-system-apps). I think that after I modified it I can be testing my changes on any device and then I need to modify the CyanogenMod system putting my changes to the package for Samsung i9100. Am I right?

The Contacts app doesn't require any specialized device features, so you should be able to test your modifications in an AVD created from the images you download via Studio's SDK Manager. These are just basic Android images, not Cyanogen, but if you're not tying into some special feature of Cyanogen or i9100 hardware, then it will be adequate.
Once you get things working in an emulator, connect the i9100 to your development box and test the app for real. You'll need to enable the Developer Options menu and turn USB debugging on before Studio will see that i9100 as a run configuration target.

Thank you @paul-ratazzi ! Following your instructions and then coming back accepting the answer!


text:
Keyboard symbols popping up when using a blue tooth keyboard
I just wondered how to turn these off.  They are really annoying and come up all the time when I am using my blue tooth mouse.  I can't type the next word until I pick a vowel with a symbol which is absolutely incorrect.  How can I turn this blue tooth keyboard feature off completely?

What phone are you using? And what keyboard app is selected (i.e. it comes up when the Bluetooth keyboard is not connected)?

Thanks for responding so fast. It is a Galaxy tab 10.1 with a blue tooth keyboard.

Are you selecting the keyboard buttons with the onscreen mouse pointer? Or are you using your fingers, and the symbols are showing up when you type only because you have a bluetooth mouse connected (and the keyboard works normally when it isn't connected)?

Also, I see the title of the question mentions a bluetooth keyboard. Could you clarify a bit more about your setup?


text:
Modifying android system apps
Does anyone know a good articles or tutorials explaining how to go about it?
Do I need to recompile android sources after modifying system apps and then install them on my emulator device somehow?
Or maybe the process is much simplier than I imagine? (What I mean is just creating an apk and then just installing it on the phone?)
Thanks a lot in advance!

If you've got the AOSP source, then just import the app into Eclipse/Studio from packages/apps in the source tree.  Then you can modify it an run it on one of the emulators (a/k/a AVDs) or a real device connected via USB.
If you want to replace the system app in the build, then put your modified code back into packages/apps and rebuild the system image.  Otherwise you can just install and run it alongside the 'real' app.
FYI, if you get into this and have more involved programming questions, you should probably post in StackOverflow with an Android tag.

Paul, I am so sorry for posting too many questions today. Maybe I should have asked it right here within comments section. Here is the link http://android.stackexchange.com/questions/85617/cannot-import-a-project-androidstudio The question is about how to open such projects. With which IDE. Thanks in advance!


text:
not able to see recovery mode on my Redmi1s after I installed cyanogemod 11
After I installed cyanogenmod 11 on my new redmi 1s using clockworkmod recovery. I found that I am not able to see the recovery screen as the mi boot time logo is hiding the recovery screen.Can any one help me???
I have followed this tutorial.Please help me.

Boot time logo cannot hide the recovery. Try to reinstall recovery from fastboot:
fasboot flash recovery clockworkmod_recovery.img


text:
HTTPS sites no longer load on my Android after installing cert to truststore
I have a rooted Android 4.3 JellyBean. I was testing something and trying to install the certificate for Charles Proxy so I could sniff some SSL traffic. I was able to push the Charles certificate to /system/etc/security/cacerts and this allowed me to do what I wanted. However, ever since I did this, my browsers no longer load HTTPS sites. For example, Chrome gives me the "Your connection is not private" message.
Also, and not sure if this is normal, but when I look in Settings > Security > Trusted credentials, there are no System Certificates listed.
How can I fix whatever I did?

Did you "pull" the Charles  certificate out of the /system/…/cacerts? Did you make a backup prior to pushing the cert to system?

i moved the cert to the sd card, remounted the system mount as RW, copied the cert file over to the cacerts dir, then rebooted. I didn't modify existing files so there was nothing to backup.

If you check the certificates directory again (e.g. with a root explorer): are there any files in, or is it empty now? If the other certs are still there: Does it start working again when you remove that other cert?

"Whatever you did", you removed all of your trusted CA's (Certificate Authority).
Unfortunately I cannot help other than to say you should have well over 50-60 trusted CA's in that list (where you have none).


text:
Is It Possible To Completely Swap Storages On Kitkat 4.4.2?
I'm using a rooted Samsung SM-G313HZ Galaxy V device with Android Kitkat 4.4.2 OS. Is it possible to completely swap storages on my device so that every single application and game will read their data on extSdCard by default like jelly bean does? In simple words, /storage/emulated/0 is /storage/extSdCard and /storage/extSdCard is /storage/emulated/0 like on the image i attached.

I have a noname MT6572 tablet with Android 4.2.2, rooted, and I've figured out the trick: I've changed mount point directory names in the fstab.
The file is: /system/etc/vold.fstab, original version:
dev_mount sdcard /storage/sdcard0 emmc@fat /devices/platform/goldfish_mmc.0 /devices/platform/mtk-msdc.0/mmc_host
dev_mount sdcard2 /storage/sdcard1 auto /devices/platform/goldfish_mmc.1 /devices/platform/mtk-msdc.1/mmc_host

The modified version:
dev_mount sdcard /storage/sdcard1 emmc@fat /devices/platform/goldfish_mmc.0 /devices/platform/mtk-msdc.0/mmc_host
dev_mount sdcard2 /storage/sdcard0 auto /devices/platform/goldfish_mmc.1 /devices/platform/mtk-msdc.1/mmc_host

As you can see, I've only swapped /storage/sdcard1 and /storage/sdcard0, then rebooted.
I'm not 100% sure, probably Kitkat has different startup mechanism.
Caution: make backup! Move all your file editing applications to internal storage, so if something goes wrong, and you found yourself without any storage mounted, you can restore or repair it with apps launched from internal storage.


text:
How to install app in playstore without Google playstore in android emulator
I had installed AndroVM to use Android apps in computer. But when it comes to games like shadow fight even with OpenGL support enabled, AndroVM couldn't run many games such as Hill Climb racing, Gunship battle etc. Hence I tried Genymotion. When I installed Genymotion, it automatically detected AndroVM installed in Virtual Box. And I could only run Hill climb racing and rest of them didn't work. So I finally installed Android SDK and followed all instructions to add packages(Tools, extras and System Images). Even if I have installed Google play services and Google repository, I couldn't find Google playstore in the android emulator. Even this post suggests how to install Google playstore in emulator,it also have discussions about piracy and legal issues(in comments) and the apk's (GoogleLoginService.apk , GoogleServicesFramework.apk , Phonesky.apk) are not official packages. Hence

Can any one suggest how can I install apps inside emulator without using Google playstore, and
Why can't I find playstore even after I install Google play services and repository.

These are the packages I've installed. And I'm using Ubuntu 14.04
Update
If you cannot open the image. Here I've copied exact names of the packages.
Tools:

Name                              API   Rev      Status
Android SDK tools                       23.0.5   installed
Android SDK platform tools              21       installed
Android SDK build tools                 21.0.1   installed
Android SDK build tools                 20       installed

Android 5.0(API 21)

documentation for Android SDK     21    1        installed
SDK platform                      21    1        installed
Android TV ARM EABI v7a System    21    1        installed
image
ARM EABI v7a System image         21    1        installed
Sources for Android SDK           21    1        installed

Extras:

Android support Library                 21       installed
Google Play services                    20       installed
Google Repository                       12       installed

"These" is a link to an image that doesn't seem to load on my end. I'm running Android-x86 in VirtualBox on my Ubuntu machine, no issues with using Playstore, F-Droid, or Aptoide to install apps. Maybe you want to try that?

Hello @Izzy, What do you mean by "Android-x86"? Is it any kind of virtual box image like AndroVM? The link of "Andeoid-x86" took me to list of questions. And sorry the Image couldn't load for you. I'll update through text, but I need further help from you.

@GrIsHu In this link you have commented checkout my answer but you have neither posted any answer nor provided link. Even I want to access SD card (and it should be from inside emulator). Please give me link and I'll be happy if you can answer the above question too.

Yes, you can install it in VirtualBox like any Linux distro, as it's Android ported to the x86 platform (see the Android-x86 homepage). I've linked to the tag originally as we have already questions here explaining things around it, which I thought you might find more helpful.

I assume you have only one emulator running, then you can install an apk file by using adb
adb -e install <apk file>

You get more options by
adb -h

Its showing The program 'adb' is currently not installed. You can install it by typing: sudo apt-get install android-tools-adb But in the package I've listed, I've installed all the platform tools and build tools

Adb is located in /platform-tools. You will surely find it there. To make life easier, set your environment variable ANDROID_HOME and add it to your path.


text:
Choose a specific app to open a particular file
I created some e-learning using Articulate Storyline 2 which I want to view on my Samsung Galaxy. The files are physically in my Documents folder. The module is not on the internet - I'm still testing it. The file to run the e-learning module is "story.html." It will - I'm told - run on Android with the use of a free app called Articulate Player - which I have installed. When I attempt to run the "story.html" file I get three options - "HTML Viewer," "File Editor" and "DB Text Editor," none of which work. Articulate Player app is not provided as an option. So how can I choose Articulate Player app to run the "html.story" file?
I've looked in applications manager but there are no options I can see that help.
I must add, please pardon my ignorance as I know next to nothing about mobile phones. I have avoided them like the plague for years and only got this one recently as a matter of necessity. I would be grateful for any help from anyone and thanks for your time.

You can only open files with apps that tell Android they support that kind of file. If the app tells Android it can open that kind of file, it'll show up in the list of possible apps.
If this app you mention can open this kind of file, the developer needs to change the app to tell Android it can do so, by adding an intent filter in its manifest. You should contact the developer and ask them to do so.

The story.html file is supposed to open in your normal mobile browser, which will then open the Articulate Player app and load the content. Does the "html viewer" option open the real browser, or is it using a browser inside the file manager app? If the latter, then that's your problem methinks. Try opening the story.html file from Chrome or the stock Browser and see if that works. Also, read this as it explains how the content gets loaded onto the client and may help. BTW, you need to specify AMP support when you published the content or else it won't try to use the player at all.

Thanks to Dan Hulme and apraetor for your responses. Appreciated. To the latter, I know this will sound dumb but how would I open the file in Chrome or navigate to it's location? This android stuff is really new territory for me.

Ah, sorted! Downloaded Open In Browser app which lets me choose which browser I want to open a file. And it now works. Again, thanks for your input as it certainly put me on the right track.

Choose "send /share" and select the app you want to open the file with

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


text:
Disabled screen lock - don't want to clear credentials
I am using Samsung Galaxy Note 3 N9005. In order to use the university WiFi network I need to install an authority certificate (WiFi credential). To do so, the device made me installing a look screen (Pin or Password), any other lock screen choice is not available and grayed with a message "Disabled by administrator, encryption policy or credential storage"
I need to change/cancel the annoying pin lock screen, without needing to clear all credentials in order to keep using the university WiFi.
what can I do about this?

The certificate is stored in Credential Storage, which requires a pin/password to be set for use in encrypting/decrypting the certificate. The nature of the problem is documented here on code.google.com and you can star the issue, so hopefully Google will address it in future.

link is broken...

Yea, that version of Android is no longer in Preview so it appears Google has taken down the bug tracker. The link did not provide any further insight into the issue, beyond stating it was due to Credential Storage being designed to requiring a pin/password any time 3rd party certificates were installed.

Just go to setting / more networks / VPN
and delete the VPN after that go to screen lock u will find activated.

If your device is rooted, you can circumvent that by copying the CA file as system certificate. For that, the /system partition needs to be mounted read/write. Either use a "root explorer" (file manager with root support) to copy the file, copy it using a terminal emulator, or push it via ADB (requires the ADB daemon to run in root mode). With Android 4.0+:
# via ADB push:
adb push d123456.0 /system/etc/security/cacerts/d123456.0

# via terminal emulator (after having copied the certificate to your device):
cp d123456.0 /system/etc/security/cacerts/d123456.0

After that, mount /system read-only again (or reboot the device), and you are done.
Of course you'd need to revert your previous user-certificate stuff to get rid of the lock-screen restrictions. The appropriate functionality can be found in Settings → Security under "Credentials", where you have to "clear user credentials".

Those policies are imposed when you give an app permission to be a "device administrator". In order to remove the policies, go to Settings → Security → Device administrators, look for an item in the list associated with the app that imposed the policies, and uncheck it. Be aware that doing so may disable the application, or some of its functionality, and may delete associated data.

It is a wifi/vpn certificate and you cannot disable it,  removing it will prevent you from authenticating your next connection to the wifi/vpn. I only have android device manager in administrators list.


text:
Extracting code from lk.bin (little kernel binary file) & preloader.bin - MTK6572, mediatek
This is a changed question from the original, since nobody seemed to have answered, found most of the answer on my own.  As stated before, wanted to fix my userdata and fat area blocks after hacking my EBR1 on a MTK6572, as posted on my blog, how to:
http://elizabethswikis.blogspot.com/2014/10/update-tutoial-re-partition-mtk6572.html
Found the information using IDA Pro dissembler in the preloader.bin, here is how the code looks in IDA PRO:
ROM:00017520                 DCD 0x600000, 0, 0, 0 **< preloader**
ROM:00017530                 DCD 0x201A630, 0
ROM:00017538                 DCD 0x80000, 0, 0, 0  **< MBR**
ROM:00017548                 DCD 0x201A634, 0
ROM:00017550                 DCD 0x80000, 0, 0, 0  **< EBR1**
ROM:00017560                 DCD 0x201A639, 0
ROM:00017568                 DCD 0x300000, 0, 0, 0 **< pro_info**
ROM:00017578                 DCD 0x201A642, 0
ROM:00017580                 DCD 0x500000, 0, 0, 0 **< NVRAM**
ROM:00017590                 DCD 0x201A648, 0
ROM:00017598                 DCD 0xA00000, 0, 0, 0 **< Protect_F**
ROM:000175A8                 DCD 0x201A652, 0
ROM:000175B0                 DCD 0xA00000, 0, 0, 0 **< Protect_S**
ROM:000175C0                 DCD 0x201A65C, 0
ROM:000175C8                 DCD 0x20000, 0, 0, 0 **< SYS5**
ROM:000175D8                 DCD 0x201A663, 0
ROM:000175E0                 DCD 0x60000, 0, 0, 0 **< UBOOT**
ROM:000175F0                 DCD 0x201A669, 0
ROM:000175F8                 DCD 0x600000, 0, 0, 0 **< BOOTIMG**
ROM:00017608                 DCD 0x201A671, 0
ROM:00017610                 DCD 0x600000, 0, 0, 0 **< Recovery**
ROM:00017620                 DCD 0x201A67A, 0
ROM:00017628                 DCD 0x40000, 0, 0, 0 **< Secro_RO**
ROM:00017638                 DCD 0x201A684, 0
ROM:00017640                 DCD 0x80000, 0, 0, 0 **< MISC**
ROM:00017650                 DCD 0x201A689, 0
ROM:00017658                 DCD 0x300000, 0, 0, 0 **< LOGO**
ROM:00017668                 DCD 0x201A68E, 0
ROM:00017670                 DCD 0xA00000, 0, 0, 0 **< EXPDB**
ROM:00017680                 DCD 0x201A694, 0
ROM:00017688                 DCD 0x28A00000, 0, 0, 0 **< ANDROID**
ROM:00017698                 DCD 0x201A69E, 0
ROM:000176A0                 DCD 0x17800000, 0, 0, 0 **< CACHE**
ROM:000176B0                 DCD 0x201A6A4, 0
ROM:000176B8                 DCD 0x20000000, 0, 0, 0 **< USERDATA**
ROM:000176C8                 DCD 0x201A6A9, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0

This actually throws me because the first time I successfully dissembled it, could have sworn that the fat was there, can't remember what I did or if it was the case, maybe I imagined it...  The disassembly isn't really correct, still working on it.  Two theory is, it did not do it correctly, need to find the correct size, or, if I were to change the userdata would that relocate the fat and bmtpool, which also isn't decoding BTW.


text:
Hangouts doesn't show the content of vCard
When I receive a vCard (.vcf), Hangouts does not show the content of it! Is there a setting for this or simply this feature is omitted in Hangouts?
Here, in this picture I sent a vCard and the other persons sent another vCard. I cannot see the content of either of them.

And when I tap the message, I still cannot see the content from there.

Did you try clicking on it?

@DanHulme absolutely

Android doesn't have native support for vCards and it's annoying. Fortunately, since they come through as SMS/MMS messages they aren't only in Hangouts, any SMS/MMS-handling app you install can read the messages so long as you haven't deleted them. You can install bizcardmanager (it's $1.50 but there's a free version too) and it will show a list of vCards received via SMS and you can import them to your contacts from there. There are other apps which claim to share contacts, not all work very well. I recommend bizcard (I have nothing to do with the app or its developer) simply because I know for a fact that it works.

Not a great solution, but you can forward the MMS to your Gmail. When you open the attachment in Gmail, it will import the contact.

They do actually work, I have had the same problem with my Nexus 5 & 6. I just have to randomly press the vCard icon repeatedly, fast presses, slow presses, holding it just until the message options pop up, closing Hangout and reopening, I haven't been able to work out which one it is though, but they will always work eventually. So it is not an unsupported issue, it is a bug on opening them issue.

You just need to touch the vCard green icon. A new window "view content card" opens, and there you have all the information at the pulldown arrow. The option "add to people" is also available on the top of the window.


text:
Samsung Galaxy S5 died suddenly and without reason
Less than a month old my Samsung Galaxy S5 has completely died.
I was listening to music on my Galaxy S5 (<1 month old) when it cut out. The phone had 50% charge, but had suddenly turned itself off.
I restarted it and it showed only 10% battery life, so I turned it off--thinking this might be a battery calibration issue and I'd charge it when I got home and all would be dandy.
I charged it to 100% once home and began using it, and suddenly, the battery life began dropping 99, 97, 96, 95 probably once every second (the phone was also very hot) it died completely and will not turn on, will not charge, will not show any signs up life. Zero.
I've taken it out of the Otterbox case, taken out the battery, removed the SIM and micro SD card and still zero signs of life. Any idea what could have caused this of how to fix it?

Claim for Warranty! If you're lucky you can get your handset replaced with a new one.

This is likely a defective battery or similar. Seeing as you have just bought it, I'm not surprised that it is showing this behavior. You could probably pull up your warranty (assuming you haven't rooted it) and get it fixed for no charge.
In case it is not a defective battery, hold down the power button in addition to holding both volume button for about 10 seconds or so. If that doesn't turn it on I'd treat it as defective and get it fixed/replace the battery yourself (probably voids warranty, be careful)

The sign for less than is <   if it is less than one month, it's < 1 month old. OCD perhaps, but also wrong. The bigger value is on the 'bigger' side of the symbol. 1 month is bigger than the lenght of time he's had it. < 1  Same in programming: If ageOfPhone < 1month; Wiki article on the less than sign I'll strike through it to avoid confusion, and let you edit the answer.

I had this problem. Samsung suddenly died with 50% charge. I pressed down all the buttons including home key, volumes and ON/OFF nd held them for 20 seconds. As I released them, Presto, my Samsung came back to life.
Weird. I'll still be taking it back into the shop though.


text:
How can I control my Azpen Android Tablet with a broken screen without root or usb debugging?
I've had this Azpen A700 tablet for a while, but at some point it got the touchscreen broken. I can still see an image but the touchscreen is completely unresponsive. I'd like to still get some use out of it, but it is not rooted and it has USB debugging disabled. Is there any way to control it or root it without the touch interface? I have a USB cable for it, it's just that the USB debugging setting is turned off.
I've tried googling how to control an android tablet with a usb cable and it requires rooting. Then I looked up how to root a device and it requires usb debugging. Is it possible to do it without rooting or debugging?

You could get a USB-OTG cable, which allows you to connect USB devices to Android devices via the USB port (so long as the Android device supports OTG, which the A700 does). If you plug in a mouse you'll get a mouse cursor to work with; you could even use a USB hub to attach both a keyboard and a mouse if you want to type instead of using the on-screen keyboard.
You could also use the USB-OTG cable long enough to pair a Bluetooth mouse/keyboard to the tablet, then go wireless.

Interesting idea. I didn't know that was possible on android tablets. Is it possible to make one of these cables? I have a USB extension cable and a few USB charger cables, so I assume I could simply cut the ends off of both and rewire them to fit. Is this possible or would there be issues? (other than the obvious connecting the wrong wires together) I ask this because I don't have enough money to buy one of these cables at the moment.

@user1193112 Yes, you can make one yourself. Most USB controllers have OTG support at the hardware level; as long as the device manufacturer includes software support for the desired peripherals it can work.


text:
Already S-Off, need root on HTC One M8 Verizon
I'm relatively new to Android and I'm just trying to get root on my HTC One M8 Verizon device. I've successfully used the SunShine utility to S-Off, but I'm just really confused about what to do next to get permanent root. I don't care about custom ROMs and I'd really prefer not to have to install TWRP if I don't have to. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
FWIW, I've got the Android SDK and associated tools (adb, etc.) installed, and I am successfully able to connect to my device. Just don't know what to do from here.

Found the answer. There's a support channel, #sunshine-support on irc.freenode.org. Just go in there and type !info ring, and one of the devs pretty much instantly responds. Or, you can just type !info getroot directly and let them get some shut-eye. Anyways, that will provide you with a link to an apk called SUInstaller. At the time of writing it's at: http://theroot.ninja/apks/SUInstaller.apk. But, if it moves, follow the instructions I just gave to get the current one.
Anyways, you install this app and it will reboot your phone (installing su in the process). Then, just download SuperSU from the Play Store and follow the prompts. Reboot when it tells you to and then give it about five minutes after the phone boots up for everything to finish loading. Then, you can use something like Root Checker (also available on the Play Store) to verify that you have root access.


text:
How to bootup a Samsung s-duos with bad battery
My phone switched off because of low battery and when I kept it for charging a black screen appeared. It is just blinking on and off. The same problem occurred previously also. I gave my battery to a technician for repair then battery worked, he said that he booted the battery.  So how to boot when the battery is bad?

If you claim that you took  it to a technician to repair it, are you sure the problem of your battery was solved? Have you considered replacing the battery with a new one? Or using another Samsung's battery on the phone?
Once you have a good battery you can know check for other issues that could be affecting your phone.


text:
How to use existing Whatsapp account on new mobile with new SIM?
I could not use my existing whatsapp account because My mobile have been stolen. I bought new mobile and new SIM as well, now I want to configure my existing whatsapp account on new Mobile with another SIM number. Can anyone please help me?

You cannot use your old Whatsapp account with new sim when you don't have access to your old number.
All you can do is to contact your network provider and explain the situation, submit documents and request a new sim with the old number. Once you get your old number back, you can either choose to use whatsapp account with it or shift the account to new number.
Shifting Whatsapp account to new number maintains the old account's whatsapp groups, account info, settings. You still have to share your new number with your contacts so they know its you and update their address list.
To shift the WhatsApp account from old number to new number, login whatsapp with old number and open Settings >> Account >> Change number .


text:
Windows doesn't show device in Explorer
After updating my Nexus 7 to the latest version of Android (4.4.4 at this point), Windows decided that it would no longer show the device in Explorer in MTP mode. PTP worked fine, but obviously this is no good for putting files into the device. How do I solve this?

So there are many different threads and posts all over the internet trying to solve this issue for various Android devices. It seems that sometimes these work, but not always. I think I've finally found a step that works most of the time (it excludes hardware issues for example). Start off with your device connected.
Essentially, there is an issue with the driver on Windows. To fix this open the device manager (see here for how to do this on Windows 7 or Vista, here for XP and here for Windows 8). Now, at this point most posts and threads advocate finding anything mentioning your device (in my case the nexus 7) and uninstalling the driver. This seems to be the right thing to do, but first there is a very important step. At the top, click "View" and then select "Show hidden devices". Now, you can find all mentions of your device. Right click, and select "Uninstall driver". If there is a tick box for deleting the driver as well you should select this.
After completion, disconnect your device. The device manager will flash. Give it a few seconds and then plug your device back in. Windows will now reinstall the driver. At this point, it should work correctly.
Note that if you use ADB, you will have uninstalled this in a previous step and will have to reinstall it using your preferred method.

You will need probably install the usb driver. You can download it here.


text:
How can access on an android device be restricted to applications or widgets on the home screen only?
This is a rooted Nexus 7 with 4.4.4 (factory image from Google).
I'd like to restrict access to anything that's not on one of the home screens.
Apps and widgets on one the home screens should be the only thing accessible without entering a code. Ideally, just activating the apps button that shows the full list would ask for a code. The link to the full settings page from the drop down menu by the clock should also be locked.
This does not need to offer a high level of security against experts, just a basic level of protection.
Strong preference for open source solutions, but let's see what's available in general. Maybe some kind of a launcher?
Existing kids mode solutions are not a good fit. I didn't look through all of them, but they seem to limit the number of available apps, and would not be suitable for an adult due to their interface.
Kiosk and app lock solutions: I reviewed quite a few options. Some are geared towards showing a web page only, others have odd intentional characteristics such as not starting on boot. Most, however, have a long list of permissions that have nothing to do with their functionality. This is a common problem that open source apps tend not to have, hence my preference for them.
Thanks in advance.

Welcome to Android Enthusiasts! I've just added the kiosk-mode tag to your question, which seems to be what you're looking for. Please browse its questions, maybe there's already something suitable. If not, please [edit] your post and include why those don't fit, making your issue more specific. Thanks!

Thanks for pointing out kiosk mode being the adult version of kids mode. I edited my question. I'm also currently reviewing a few solutions, and will post an answer if one of them works.

It turned out that there's a solution without using additional apps, at least on 4.4.4.
Settings -> Users -> Add user or profile -> Restricted profile.
From there, it's just like an app locker, where the apps that should be accessible are turned on. Once the restricted profile is active, the apps that are not active are just not visible in the apps list.
The best thing about about this is that it's a built-in solution that doesn't require questionable permissions granted to an app.
Negatives: the main settings app can't be restricted for some reason and the system apps that are supposedly disabled, suddenly become active, which is particularly bad as the description for the feature says that it restricts access to apps from your account, so you'd have to do it all over again.
Advanced: Restrict Me module for Xposed is supposed to enable turning off settings as well. Not tested.

And here is the link for the module in answer.


text:
Confusing internal memory folder structure - Galaxy S3 (I9300)
I am using Samsung Galaxy S3 (I9300) for a while now. I have rooted the device, removed the stock ROM and replaced it with CM11. Of late, I have been having Camera FCs, poor battery back up and slow down in apps (I though it was due to low availability of internal memory - 1 GB out of 11.5 GB). I tried clearing several folders from internal memory. Since the results weren't satisfactory, I decided to re-install the OS by doing a factory reset.
Now that I have done it, to my surprise, the internal memory was still not completely cleared. Android was still reporting as 4.5 GB available, out of 11.5 GB. When digging little deeper, I found that it was due to my old user data folders still residing on the phone. They were available under \emulated\0 and also \emulated\legacy. I initially assumed it would be present in my external SD card and \emulated\0 possibly could be just a symlink to it. To clear up the doubt, I removed the SD card from the phone and rebooted it. But, I still see the files in \emulated\0. I again tried to do a Factory Reset, but nothing has changed.
Though, I can just delete the \emulated\legacy folder and go about installing a different ROM. I am trying to understand what actually has happened (how to correctly fix it) and if it could happen again, or if it could be something due to me fiddling around with any OS level settings. Any explanation as to why/how the duplicate files are created and how to fix it for good, will be much appreciated.

The folders you are referring to are for multi-user purposes: /emulated/legacy is a symlink pointing to the internal SD folder of the "current user", while /emulated/0 is that folder for the owner (if you created an additional user, his place would be /emulated/1, and logged in with that user /emulated/legacy would point there). There are sometimes issues when updating from older Android versions, where content gets duplicated from the old single-user place to /0 (i.e. it is copied instead of being moved). FactoryReset doesn't touch SD. Could it be that?

You are right, I updating CM11 all the way from CM10 without ever doing a clean install. So, that possibly explains duplication. I have done a clean install now, got back all the internal memory and installed another custom 4.4.4 ROM (NeatRom). Is there anything I need to do, to make sure, I don't face the same issue sometime later or it happens only when updating from version less than 4.2 to 4.2+?

Thanks for your feedback! As that confirmed the "culprit" I've guessed, I've made my comment an answer with some more details – including your concerns for the "next upgrade". In short: started with a "multi-user version", the conversion from "single-user" has no reason to take place, so it won't happen again.

The folders you are referring to are for multi-user purposes: /emulated/legacy is a symlink pointing to the internal SD folder of the "current user", while /emulated/0 is that folder for the owner (the number at the end will be incremented for additional users created thereafter, so e.g. if you created an additional user, his place would be /emulated/1, and logged in with that user /emulated/legacy would point there).
There are sometimes issues when updating from older Android versions, where content gets duplicated from the old single-user place to /emulated/0 during the conversion process (i.e. the content is copied to the new location instead of being moved, and not deleted afterwards). As a factory-reset usually doesn't touch "user storage" (external/internal SD cards), it offers no relief to that, so you'll have to clean that up manually afterwards (if it happens).
As to your question in your comment: If this happens, it does so only when converting from "single user" to "multi-user". So your next upgrade would already start with a "multi-user ROM", which means the same issue will not happen again (as no conversion is required in this context).

Just wanted to add that, I managed to regain back the entire space in internal memory by installing a Stock ROM and doing a factory reset!


text:
Permission denied while installing a system app with SSH
I have the APK file for an application I want to install as a system application via SSH on rooted Android tablets. I'm able to install this application via ADB with a script but the installation fails when I do it through SSH. The SSH application installed is called QuickSSHd and I log in as root. With ADB I'm connected with the shell account that I raise as root with the su command.
Here is the installation script:
if [[ $EUID -ne 0 ]]; then
   echo ">> This script must be run as root."
   exit 1
fi

echo ">> Remounting /system in write mode..."
mount -o rw,remount /system

echo ">> Installing Manager..."
wget -P /system/app http://update.esmart.net/apk/Manager.apk
chmod 777 /system/app/Manager.apk
chown system:system /system/app/Manager.apk

echo ">> Removing smanager..."
rm /system/app/smanager*

echo ">> Remounting /system in read mode..."
mount -o ro,remount /system

echo ">> Starting Manager..."
sleep 2
am start -W -n ch.esmart.managerapp/.MainActivity

echo ">> Finished !"

The application icon is not displayed and am command does not work.
After checking in logcat:
$ logcat | grep Manager
W/zipro   ( 3308): Unable to open zip '/system/app/Manager.apk': Permission denied
D/asset   ( 3308): failed to open Zip archive '/system/app/Manager.apk'
W/PackageParser( 3308): Unable to read AndroidManifest.xml of /system/app/Manager.apk

I also tried the su command in SSH but it changes nothing.
The permissions look good:
$ stat /system/app/Manager.apk
  File: "/system/app/Manager.apk"
  Size: 370990      Blocks: 728        IO Block: 4096   regular file
Device: 13h/19d Inode: 1448        Links: 1
Access: (0777/-rwxrwxrwx)  Uid: ( 1000/  system)   Gid: ( 1000/  system)
Access: 2014-10-24 12:10:05.000000000
Modify: 2014-10-24 12:10:05.000000000
Change: 2014-10-24 12:10:05.000000000

What does this error mean? Thanks a lot!

I found where the problem comes. When I want to change the rights on the file, the installation has already begun. I do not know exactly what happens during installation. So I downloaded the APK to the root file system, I change the permissions and copy the APK in /system/app with the -p argument to the cp command to keep the file permissions on the target.
if [[ $EUID -ne 0 ]]; then
   echo ">> This script must be run as root."
   exit 1
fi

echo ">> Remounting /system in write mode..."
mount -o rw,remount /system

echo ">> Installing Manager..."
wget -P / http://update.esmart.net/apk/Manager.apk
chmod 777 /Manager.apk
chown system:system /Manager.apk
cp -p -f /Manager.apk /system/app

echo ">> Removing smanager..."
rm /system/app/smanager*

echo ">> Remounting /system in read mode..."
mount -o ro,remount /system

echo ">> Starting Manager..."
sleep 2
am start -W -n ch.esmart.managerapp/.MainActivity

echo ">> Finished !"


text:
Importing photos finds all image files, not just camera pictures, with windows 7
Importing files with windows7 will detect all phone photo files and not just those under camera/DCIM directory , want to use windows so can change files names same way as when importing from camera, I know there are other programs, thanks, would appreciated tips how to do it importing with windows 7 resident program.


text:
Enable Wi-Fi tethering via Bluetooth?
Bluetooth uses low power, and hence I keep it enabled indefinitely for whenever I want to tether with my laptop.
Wi-Fi is much faster and thus I prefer it over Bluetooth, but I can't keep the access point enabled indefinitely as it drains my battery too quickly.
Is there some way for me to enable & disable the Wi-Fi access point via its permanent Bluetooth connection to my laptop so that I can get faster tethering without having to keep the Wi-Fi access point enabled (and without having to touch my phone to enable/disable it)?

I don't know about any way doing that via Bluetooth. But would an alternative using NFC be acceptable, too? You didn't name your device, so I cannot tell if it supports NFC. Another option I could name would be "location aware", i.e. enabling WiFi whenever you're in a certain location, and disabling it when you leave it. Or similarly acting whenever another Bluetooth device is in reach (or gets out of reach).

@Izzy: I see. Nope NFC isn't an option -- my laptop doesn't have NFC! But if I could make the Wi-Fi turn on whenever another Bluetooth device is in or out of reach that could be very useful too! How would I do that?

We cannot help you with your Laptop here, this site is about Android. See my answer for the Android part below, hope it helps you!

Performing actions whenever a certain Blutooth device is in reach and paired (and reverting them when it gets out of reach) can be done e.g. with tasker (see the tasker tag-wiki for details on the app):

Condition: BT Connected (parameter: name or address of the device)
Task: WiFi (parameter: On)
Exit-Task: (optional; Tasker should revert automatically to the previous state when the condition is no longer met) WiFi (parameter: Off)

This would similarly work with NFC when using the NFC plugin. More features are also offered by other plugins. Also see my Collection of Tasker Ressources for tutorials and available plugins.

Works like a charm, thanks. All I need to do now is just double-click my Bluetooth device and the Wi-Fi access point automatically appears! (The correct task for this seems to be "Wi-Fi Tether", not "Wi-Fi".)

Ah – facepalm sure, that's where the laptop comes in. Sorry for the lapsus. You're correct, in this case it's not "WiFi" but "WiFi Tether" :) But you've got the idea, so it wasn't that bad ;) Guess you'll find a lot of other interesting things you can do with Tasker – enjoy!


text:
Modifying Samsung ROM and flashing it on a device
I downloaded a Samsung firmware for my Samsung Galaxy Tab 4 (SM-T230) device and would like to remove certain applications and files from the firmware and then load it into the mobile device using Odin.
Is this possible? How do I extract the files from the firmware, modify them and then compress it again to use it with Odin?
Thanks for the help.

Try looking at this Removing files from & repackaging CyanogenMod ROM zip files. It doesnt deal with Odin, but provides you with valuable working  information. You should be able to use an archive program on PC and recompress to .tar, .gz, and others. Dont forget to re-sign the archive. Keep a copy of your untouched ROM until you have the modified ROM tested and running.
The ROMs are signed with a signature. When repacking if they don't get signed they will fail in flashing. This link will help explain it.
So basically after downloading the firmware you have to rename it so  you can extract the files, change them as you need, recompress them again and re-sign them, so you can flash them using Odin. Its as simple as that.

One thing remains to be clear for me. I'll be able to flash this custom Samsung Rom using Odin even though it wasn't signed with the same key as the original rom? or will I be able to flash it even though the device is not rooted or anything?

You will be able to sign using a different key. You should have a custom recovery installed.


text:
On Motorola G2 when on speaker call and power button ends call feature turned on. Cannot go to screen without ending the call
On Motorola G version 2. When:
1. On call using speaker, and
2. Power button ends call feature on.
I am unable to go back to screen in any condition. I have tried:
1.Using  volume keys.
2.Moving phone in every angle, i.e. proximity doesn't seem to work.


text:
How to change contacts name in Whatsapp?
I have a friend and I have added his real name in my Contacts. I want to put his nickname in Whatsapp simultaneously. I am using it in Android. How do I accomplish this?

AFAIK, you need to rename it in contact list of your phone!

I don't want to do that. I want two different names for the same person.

You can follow these steps:

Rename the contact in your phone book and save.
Go to Settings > Account > whatsapp > sync now (or any similar option)
Check if this has worked.

TIP you can force close whatsapp and try.

If the above method doesn't work

Backup contacts
Go to edit contact of the one you wanna change.
Copy the number of that contact.
Delete the contact.
Go to whatapp and refresh whatsapp contacts.
Add the contact number you copied with the desired name you want as a "new contact" in your address book.

I couldn't find the "sync now" option there, but I found "Refresh" here: press the floating button that starts a new conversation in the bottom right corner, press the hamburger menu button, and press "Refresh".

Renaming the contact in the phone book does not account for simultaneously having the real name in Contacts, as the OP is asking.

I am afraid to say this, but this looks highly unlikely.
The reason I am saying this is because I read following Lines in WhatsApp FAQ Page:
How do I add contacts to WhatsApp?
The important part is adding the contact into your phone's address book.
And in the same FAQ Section, at point 3. below lines are mentioned.
Note: WhatsApp cannot sync with Facebook friends, so you will need to manually enter their phone numbers in your address book in order for WhatsApp to find them.
The BOLD Line above is perhaps an indication that the "source" for WhatsApp to get contact info is Phone's "Address Book" and hence it won't allow to have "nickname".
Refer FAQ for WhatsApp at : https://www.whatsapp.com/faq/en/android/21082107 for above mentioned details.

Just go to the contacts list and click on the person whose name you want to change and change it. It will automatically change the person's name on WhatsApp.

OP does not want to change the real name in contacts but change only only in Whatsapp.

There's a simple solution that worked for me:
Delete the phone number -> save contacts -> and add the number again.
Whatsapp will update itself i.e. Whatsapp name would be changed to whatever is stored in contacts.

I don't think that deleting and readding the phone number is a simple solution.  It's a kludge.

On my phone I had a regular contact with correct name and a separate WhatsApp contact with the incorrect name. After deleting the WhatsApp contact my friend was still listed in the WhatsApp contact list, this time with the correct name from the regular contact. This means you can just delete the WhatsApp contact -- no need to re-add.

This was the only solution that worked for me. I had the same scenario as @10basetom.

For Whatsapp Users on Android platforms on  phones like the MOTO G.
Please use these steps:

Access your phone book.
Select the Contact/name you want to change or edit.
When the contact/name shows up on the screen, tap/touch on the Pencil [at the upper right hand corner of the screen] icon to edit.
If you are on Lollipop, tap on the  Triangle sign at the bottom [left] of the screen.
Lollipop does not give any confirmation if the edit is successful[or not]. Check if the edit has gone through.

If you don't have a name for that contact at all, and it is just the number, then add that number to a contact in the address book (or contacts) app that came with the phone with the name of your choice. Allow Whatsapp to view your contacts and it will automatically rename that contact with the name you entered in settings.
Hope this helps.

For Android phones.
There is another way. Say, you entered a new contact on whatsapp as An Unknown contact. Then you want to change it to a real name.
First add this contact with his real name, say, John Franklin. Then in the contacts click on a chain icon. It is on middle right and is chain shaped. There you will see a list of contacts to link with. Find the An Unknown contact and click on to link these two contacts. Close the phone contacts and look up in whatsapp. The contact name will be updated.

You need to delete the "linked" WhatsApp contact in your address book.
Here is how to do it on a Samsung phone:

Open the Samsung contacts app.
Find the contact.
Rename the contact name there.
Press the hamburger menu button, and press "Add/remove linked contacts".
Press "Unlink" next to the WhatsApp linked contact entry
Go back to the list of contacts in the contacts app, find the now separate WhatsApp contact entry, and delete it.
Open WhatsApp and find the contact. WhatsApp will automatically recreate the linked contact, but using the new name.

authors: ศรุตา สุมะจิตร์


text:
MarketMarks app: How to perform Backup and Restore
MarketMarks is an excellent Android app to create a sortable wishlist for apps offered in the Android Play Store, complete with editable tags, update dates, prices, and custom notes.
I can't get the Backup and Restore functionality to work in it.  How do you get that functionality to work properly?
I want to be able to backup the MarketMarks list and then restore it.
Here's what I've tried, in order:

Select Backup
Select Restore
Select Check Updates

Each time I do this, MarketMarks crashes on step 3.
How do you accomplish this essential task?
Please specify the version of Android you used in your answer as well as the version of the Play Store (the Play Store version number is indicated at the bottom of the Play Store's Settings page, under 'Build version').
Thanks for your answers!

An recent update to MarketMarks has fixed this bug, and it now works as expected.
Furthermore, the user can now customize the folder where the backups are stored.


text:
Shorcut Field missing in Android Keyboard 4.3 Personal Dictionary Entries
While trying to add entries in the Personal Dictionary,
 you first enter the phrase and then on clicking done, it asks you to enter the shortcut.
My new Xolo Q1000 Opus 2 phone has Android 4.3 and also an Android 4.3 keyboard.
However when I enter the phrase (for eg. Good Morning) and click done it does not show me the shortcut field (where I would enter the shortcut GM).
This worked perfectly well on my old phone which had Android 4.2.
Does anyone know why this is so and what is the best solution?
Please advice.
Thanks,
Sunny


text:
Android tether/hotspot - redirecting all requests to a webserver after IP is allocated, how?
I've set my phone (Kitkat 4.4.2 (18.3.C.0.37)) to set up a wifi-hotspot using the stock software. There's a simple http webserver on the phone @ 192.168.43.1:80
I can connect to the webserver from a machine that's logged into the hotspot. What I'd like to do is make -all- requests to the hotspot goto 1 webpage that's hosted on the phone instead of having to type the i.p. address in full.
Is there a replacement or a way to reconfigure the routing of the hotspot?

If the constraint is not to tweak your system's hosts file which is the easiest way, then on the device you can run a DNS server. There is a free DNS server app by Icecoldapps on Play Store which was recommended in an answer on AE. But that doesn't really worked for me since it requires port forwarding. My device is rooted, so I used Servers Ultimate Pro to create two DNS servers: 1) DNS Server, 2) DNS Native Server.
Once you have this app installed, create DNS Native Server and add your rules like "192.168.43.1" maps to "BCat.com". Then create a DNS Server and add the address of DNS Native Server in the place of Google's 8.8.8.8.
Setting up a server in this app is pretty much straightforward. Otherwise, Google is your friend for life.
Now start the DNS Native server followed by DNS Server.
It should now be working. If you have a Linux machine, you can use the command dig BCat.com to check the status of DNS.
All that's left is to type in the URL bar of your system's browser : http://bcat.com. Done!


text:
Samsung S4 and Kies error
I am trying to connect my Samsung galaxy S4 to Samsung Kies, yet it says it is not compatible and to download Kies 3 - which I did and then it says the device isn't supported - so both versions of Kies won't work - any ideas its driving me mad :( I have uninstalled and re-installed several times.
thank you

download the other version of kies at http://www.samsung.com/au/support/usefulsoftware/KIES/

Is the phone in Odin download mode? If you connect the phone when it's in Odin mode, Kies detects it, but gives you exactly those messages. You can't use Kies with Odin, it only works when the device is booted. To use Odin, you need the Odin desktop app for Windows.