text:
Is it possible to tether my Evo to a server to provide internet to my network?
I currently have an unrooted Evo using PDAnet/easytether to tether my phone to my PC. I am wondering if it is possible to tether to a server to provide internet to my network. If it is possible, are there any configurations I need to know? Also, how might this effect the speed?

If you're using Android 2.2's native tethering, then the phone acts as an access point. This means any Wifi-enabled devices can tether to the phone as if it is a regular wireless access point.
I don't know much about PDANet/Easytether, but it should be possible to set up "Internet Connection Sharing (ICS)" on Windows or "Masquerading" on Linux.
Speed will probably be not that great, since 3G is pretty slow on most areas. It will be usable, but unless the 3G speed in your area is blazingly fast, don't expect much.

I get 4G, which... Isn't to bad. I don't want to use wifi. I'll definitely look into ICS. Thanks!


text:
How can I make my emulator load faster?
I just installed eclipse along with the tools for developing android apps tonight; so I'm new to both of them. Anyway, my emulator takes about 5 or more minutes to load each time, and generally comes up with errors. And it is always really big, like as tall as my laptop screen, and about half as wide.. Any help?

Shouldn't this be on SO as a development question?

Since the question is about the emulator its on the fence leaning towards being on-topic.

@Daniel: This is definitely a developer question, and doesn't belong here, but on StackOverflow.com

@Jonas I'm only saying this because I have seen other emulator questions before with similar arguments: the question can be answered the same for a developer and a power-user.  No part of his question asks for help with programming or java code.  Now based on the OP comment on my answer its pretty obvious he's a dev but a non-dev user could ask this very same question in order to test out Android before buying a device.  This approach to emulator questions was decided before I found this site.

You could actually make quite a good argument that this is just a PC software/hardware issue and belongs on SuperUser...

If you're doing development in Eclipse, you don't need to turn off the emulator. If the debug/run button in Eclipse is set up properly, then Eclipse will close the current instance of your program inside the emulator, install your new program to the emulator, and start the program on the currently running emulator -- all without rebooting the emulator.
Yes, the emulator booting still takes 5 minutes, but it's not that bad since you only boot the emulator once a day (and booting up Eclipse at the start of the day takes roughly the same amount of time anyway).

Thank you, I didn't even think about; but it makes sense.

I'm another newbie to Android Dev and Eclipse.. when you say "If the debug/run button in Eclipse is set up properly..." what do you mean? I'm suspecting mine is not setup 'properly' because it reboots the emulator every time. Thanks

Found answer to my follow-up question here: http://stackoverflow.com/questions/506777/how-to-run-android-emulator-automatically-from-eclipse Leaving trail for anyone else that may wonder the same.

Lie Ryan makes a good point that once you start the emulator you don't need to close it when you are done testing a build.  Leave it open and each time you run or debug your app it will automatically be re-loaded and launched.
If you are having trouble with the size of the emulator you can modify the settings and have it display the actual size of the device you are trying to emulate. This can be done by opening up the "Android SDK and AVD Manager", select the AVD you want to manage and click "Start".  This will bring up the dialog on the right (in the screen shot below).  Check the "Scale display to real size" and then you need to modify the Screen Size field and the "Monitor dpi" field.  The "Screen Size" will be the size of the screen for the device you are emulating and "Monitor dpi" will relate to your monitor's dpi.  You may have to play around with this for a bit 'cause it took me a couple attempts to get it right.

Hope this helps

So, I guess all I have to do is open it from there, and then click to run the program once it loads?

@James It depends on how you have your project "Run Configuration"/"Debug Configuration".  If they are set to manual then you will be prompted to select a currently running device or emulator or launch a new one.  If its not manual then you will need to set the emulator you are running as the default so that it will install/run the program there.

Why the downvote?

I think there is nothing to do to accelerate the emulator, it is just really slow.
You'd better use a real device for tests, if possible.

Well, a real device is nowhere near my budget right now.. Do you at-least know how to make the emu smaller? So it's like a regular devices size?

Launch the "android" command (in sdk/tools). In the "Android SDK and AVD Manager" dialog, there is a "New..." button to create a new machine. A dialog called "Create new Android Virtual Device" appears. In its "Skin" section you can specify the resolution you want.

In addition to the other great answers here, this is sort of an obvious answer.
Anyhow, I figured I'd add it to the list here. If you increase hardware specs on the development computer your running this on (most specifically RAM or hard disk spindle speed) you'll see an increase in the speed at which the Emulator starts up and runs.
My development computer had 2GB of DDR2667 and when I went to 4GB of DDR800 I had a noticible increase in the speed of emulator startup and operations.

Development box?

Development Box = A computer bought or built to be used specifically for software development.  That doesn't mean it can't be used for anything else but development is its purpose.

Oops. Yeah I let geek-speek get into that one. Edited!

If you're using a multicore machine, you could try to force the emulator to use more cores. The Android emulator uses a single core by default, and on some processors it can be really slow. However, this decreases the stability of the emulator.
To do this, launch the emulator and press Ctrl+Shift+Esc to open Task Manager. Go to the Processes tab and right-click the emulator.exe process, select Set Affinity and select additional cores. Note that you have to do this every time you launch the emulator.
I did this on my old dev machine (Q9650, Win2008, 8GB DDR2 800MHz RAM) and it improved the speed a little, but crashed about once a day on average.

There is a feature build into the Emulator, named Snapshot.  Snapshot, basically saves an image of the emulator (in it's current state) when you close it.  Then next time, you can start it from the same place.  The emulator will start almost immediately, since it doesn't need to go through the boot process.  Using Snapshot, I consistently can start my emulator in less than 5 seconds (as opposed to 60 - 90 seconds to start it without).
Basically, when you create the AVD (create your emulator image) - there is a section titled: "Snapshot".  Make sure this is checked ("enabled").  You can also go back and edit an AVD to enable this if you missed it the first time.
Next time you start the emulator, the "Snapshot" options will be enabled.  Select "Launch from snapshot" if you want to start from a saved image, and select "Save to snapshot" to save whatever state your emulator is in when you close it.

source: Stack Exchange

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

sort: votes


text:
How to remove device(s) from My Market Account?
I know I can choose "Hidden in menus" and never see the devices again when I install a application. But I don't want my old mobile phones display in my account settings anymore. I have sold those phones already and never use them again!
In fact, the list look likes a cemetery in my mind now. ;(

I had two old Android devices, an HTC Magic and a Nexus S. Before giving them away I factory reset both. But the HTC Magic is no longer listed at Play Store, the Nexus S is.

As things currently stand, there is no way to disassociate a device from the ones shown in your Market Account. Keeping them hidden is the only way that Google currently offers.

Does any one has any idea on why Google doesn't allow removing devices from your account?

I wonder what would happen if I decide to sell my device, and the new owner signs it up. Is it then "our device" instead of "his device"?

I guess more than the device it's the account that matters. Android now has support for multiple users on a single device (albeit for tablets only).

A funny thing was happen to me: I had a HTC Wildfire S, HTC Desire S and actually a HTC Sensation. The Wildfire S was Hardware bugged and exchanged by the Desire S which I gaved to my wife - both devices still in my market account - when i bouhgt the Sensation they was added as normal to my market, restored a coupple of apps, settings a.e. as well as installed few apps from the market. I recognized a death pixel on my sensation, did therefore a ful factory restore (when you switch on the phone keep the power button pushed and same time the volume down - this is putting you in the service menu - select factory reset with the volume button and press the power button again) then i brought the device to the service to replace it with a new one. After I did the setup again on the new device and WONDER!! the old sensation wasn't in my market account anymore!!! no idea why and how but this was the fact.
Maybe it' neccessary to do the Hard-Factory Reset to remove the device...

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


text:
A reader for big HTML files and/or zipped HTML bundles?
I'd like to read a moderately big HTML file - about 3M. Another option is to have it split in several interlinked HTMLs.
Cool reader is the closest. Though it:

either crashes/gets out of memory, I don't know, on certain pages of 3M HTML file (3M not that much, actually, for a 50M free memory).
or doesn't support links to files lying in the same directory/zip file (in a form: a href="file.html#anchor")

Are there any other options around?

Have you tried converting this HTML file to a compatible eBook reader friendly format like ePub or plain text? You can use Calibre on your PC to convert the HTML file.

You could try using the default Android browser.  Open the browser, in the address bar enter: file://sdcard/file.html (replace the part after sdcard/ with whatever path leads to your file).  You can then bookmark the file and open it later in the browser without having to re-type the address.  However, trying to make a "bookmark shortcut" or using the HTC bookmark widget will not work for local files.

After testing several browsers (Dolphin, Firefox, Opera) and Readers (Moon+) mentioned in similar questions here, only
Offline Browser
seems to do the Job of reading interlinked offline .html/.htm files correctly.

Moon+ Reader has the ability to view HTML files - not the code, mind you, just the rendered part. It's an eBook reader and is available in both free and paid versions.

It wasn't even able to open my file - it crashed 8(
Though, I can always file a bug report...

Nice reader! Like it, but for the interlinked offline htm books it doesn't work, unfortunately.

Try iReader: https://market.android.com/details?id=com.chaozh.iReader&feature=search_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwxLDEsImNvbS5jaGFvemguaVJlYWRlciJd


text:
How to keep screen turned off when plugging charger?
I have an HTC Desire. When I plug charger into my phone with screen off, it always turns the screen back on. This is slightly annoying at night.
Is it possible to configure Android so that the screen stays off and charging is only indicated via charging LED?

On my samsung galaxy S there is a timeout setting for the screen on the settings menu. You have to set the timer from infinite to some period while charging.

For my Droid, anyway, I just tap the power button to turn the screen back off.

Just my thought: my Samsung Galaxy S used to do this too when it was running Android 2.1 and 2.2. But it doesn't do that anymore now that I am running 2.2.1. I can't recall uninstalling any application so to my experience, it was the upgrade which solved this. And be sure to turn your wifi off too.

@AI E.: Every time I plug my phone in, I want the screen off, not on.  That means every time I plug my phone in, I have to "just" tap my screen.  Also, sometimes I have a flaky USB connection, so the charge keeps turning on and off; the screen then keeps coming back on, draining my battery. (Like Michael just stated happened with him.)

SnooZy Charger takes care of this. The free app (as in beer and speech) that lets you manage behavior during charger connection and disconnection.
It requires no permissions but does require you to give it the device admin permissions. These permissions are only used to control device locking, as verifiable in its source code. From quickly going through the app’s source code, it looks totally harmless and benign.
If the app does not behave as you want, make sure to go through the Settings. For example, “Turn off screen only when locked” is enabled by default. This means that the app will not kick into effect if you have an on/off-button-press-lock delay or other related settings.
It works perfectly for my on a wireless charging pad and with a micro-USB cable using an LG Nexus 4 device. I am very satisfied.
I also documented additional issues here.

Bears are dangerous, not free! But seriously, this app is pretty close. Doesn't actually keep screen off, it just immediately shuts it off. One minor bug seems to be that when you unplug the phone, the screen stays off, but the buttons turn on and stay on.

I wouldn't say this app behaves "perfectly", although it's better than nothing.  The screen still turns on, then quickly turns back off--obviously more of a workaround than a fix.  Annoyingly, on my phone still does the silly "USB icon at the bottom that shifts your screen up", which I really just want to disable altogether.

I've used this app for some time but eventually uninstalled it. It was sometime turning my screen off when I when I was turning it on, and sometime twice in a row, not sure when or why, but this was quite annoying. What it's doing is more of a hack anyway.

I am from Brazil and I can't install it. I get this: "Sorry! This content is not available in your country yet. We're working to bring the content you love to more countries as quickly as possible. Please check back again soon." WTF. :(

I am using an old tablet as a small server. This app along with Gravity Screen keeps the screen off while the table is in never sleep mode.

Do you happen to have enabled Settings > Application > Development > Stay Awake (screen will never sleep when charging)?

This is the same as Matt H's (now deleted) answer ... OP's comments was "The problem is not that I cannot turn the screen back off. I want it to not go on in the first place. Seems like that's not possible, sadly :-(".

As far as I can see, the only way to archive this behaviour is to switch from stock Android to CyanogenMod - which does have this feature built-in (under "Display & lights" menu in preferences, disable the option "Wake on plug")
I'm also searching for a solution on stock Android, but it seems like that's the only way. Too bad, one has to change ROM just for this feature.

Do you know how does this feature work on CyanogenMod/LineageOS?

LineageOS has the same option.

If you install Xposed, All My... module has an option to prevent the screen from waking when plugging into a charger.

I realise this was asked a while ago but since this still comes up first in Google when you search for how to disable the coloured screen when charging a Samsung device, here the updated answer: in the settings menu under Display > Screensaver you can choose the screen saver that is shown while the device is charging. Simply set this to "none".

Which version of Android is this?

Is that a thing custom to Samsung?

@Chenmunka: I have One UI 4.1 (Android 12)

@VoY: I am not sure.

@VoY this feature is generally known as Daydream.

There is an app by mitskiP called Screen Stay Off. I've used it for a year and it works nicely. My only criticism is that the screen turns on briefly, then turns off.

Try using these two in harmony:

Smart Connect

Black Screen - without Wake Lock

It worked for me.

Looks like Sony's Smart Connect has been taken off from Play Store. Will this approach still work without it?

Having the "Ambient mode" on turns the screen on while charging, even if the option "Settings > Application > Development > Stay Awake (screen will never sleep when charging)" is off.
You need to turn the "Ambient mode" off as well.
I would not suggest to install further applications only for that, while you can do the trick directly from Android.

I have made a Tasker profile. It works by waiting for a state change and then reverting the screen state to whatever it was before said change.
Here is the copy of my Screen.prj.xml profile:
<TaskerData sr="" dvi="1" tv="6.0.10">
    <Profile sr="prof42" ve="2">
        <cdate>1658764422437</cdate>
        <edate>1658770109384</edate>
        <flags>8</flags>
        <id>42</id>
        <mid0>41</mid0>
        <nme>POWER UNPLUGGED</nme>
        <Share sr="Share">
            false
            <d>When you unplug your phone from a power source, have your screen automatically lock itself.</d>
            <g>Basics,Display,Security</g>

true

            <t></t>
        </Share>
        <State sr="con0" ve="2">
            10
            <pin>true</pin>
            <Int sr="arg0" val="0"/>
        </State>
    </Profile>
    <Profile sr="prof47" ve="2">
        <cdate>1658765139741</cdate>
        <clp>true</clp>
        <edate>1658770063039</edate>
        <flags>8</flags>
        <id>47</id>
        <mid0>48</mid0>
        <nme>DISP ON</nme>
        <Event sr="con0" ve="2">
            208
        </Event>
    </Profile>
    <Profile sr="prof49" ve="2">
        <cdate>1658765984104</cdate>
        <clp>true</clp>
        <edate>1658770076363</edate>
        <flags>8</flags>
        <id>49</id>
        <mid0>50</mid0>
        <nme>DISP OFF</nme>
        <Event sr="con0" ve="2">
            210
        </Event>
    </Profile>
    <Profile sr="prof51" ve="2">
        <cdate>1658764422437</cdate>
        <clp>true</clp>
        <edate>1658770092328</edate>
        <flags>8</flags>
        <id>51</id>
        <mid0>52</mid0>
        <nme>POWER PLUGGED</nme>
        <Share sr="Share">
            false
            <d>When you plug your phone in leave screen on/off state alone. (Will revert screen state after android toggles it).</d>
            <g>Display,Power</g>

true

            <t></t>
        </Share>
        <State sr="con0" ve="2">
            10
            <Int sr="arg0" val="0"/>
        </State>
    </Profile>
    <Project sr="proj0" ve="2">
        <cdate>1658764409345</cdate>
        <name>SCREEN</name>
        <pids>47,42,49,51</pids>
        <tids>46,50,41,48,52</tids>
        <Share sr="Share">
            false
            <d>Revert or maintain screen on/off state after power plugged in or out.</d>
            <g>Display,Power</g>

true

            <t></t>
        </Share>
    </Project>
    <Task sr="task41">
        <cdate>1650476952536</cdate>
        <edate>1658769236054</edate>
        <id>41</id>
        <pri>100</pri>
        <Action sr="act0" ve="7">
            547
            <Str sr="arg0" ve="3">%STARTED</Str>
            <Str sr="arg1" ve="3">%TIMES</Str>
            <Int sr="arg2" val="0"/>
            <Int sr="arg3" val="0"/>
            <Int sr="arg4" val="0"/>
            <Int sr="arg5" val="3"/>
            <Int sr="arg6" val="1"/>
            <ConditionList sr="if">
                <bool0>And</bool0>
                <Condition sr="c0" ve="3">
                    <lhs>%STARTED</lhs>
                    <op>13</op>
                    <rhs></rhs>
                </Condition>
                <Condition sr="c1" ve="3">
                    <lhs>%SCREEN</lhs>
                    <op>2</op>
                    <rhs>on</rhs>
                </Condition>
            </ConditionList>
        </Action>
        <Action sr="act1" ve="7">
            547
            <Str sr="arg0" ve="3">%UPTIME</Str>
            <Str sr="arg1" ve="3">%TIMES-%STARTED</Str>
            <Int sr="arg2" val="0"/>
            <Int sr="arg3" val="1"/>
            <Int sr="arg4" val="0"/>
            <Int sr="arg5" val="3"/>
            <Int sr="arg6" val="1"/>
        </Action>
        <Action sr="act2" ve="7">
            548
            <on>false</on>
            <Str sr="arg0" ve="3">%UPTIME</Str>
            <Int sr="arg1" val="0"/>
            <Str sr="arg10" ve="3"/>
            <Int sr="arg11" val="1"/>
            <Int sr="arg12" val="0"/>
            <Str sr="arg13" ve="3"/>
            <Int sr="arg14" val="0"/>
            <Int sr="arg2" val="0"/>
            <Str sr="arg3" ve="3"/>
            <Str sr="arg4" ve="3"/>
            <Str sr="arg5" ve="3"/>
            <Str sr="arg6" ve="3"/>
            <Str sr="arg7" ve="3"/>
            <Str sr="arg8" ve="3"/>
            <Int sr="arg9" val="1"/>
        </Action>
        <Action sr="act3" ve="7">
            248
            <Int sr="arg0" val="0"/>
            <Int sr="arg1" val="1"/>
            <ConditionList sr="if">
                <Condition sr="c0" ve="3">
                    <lhs>%UPTIME</lhs>
                    <op>6</op>
                    <rhs>1</rhs>
                </Condition>
            </ConditionList>
        </Action>
    </Task>
    <Task sr="task46">
        <cdate>1658764707914</cdate>
        <edate>1658765118823</edate>
        <id>46</id>
        <nme>Dont Screen On On Power</nme>
        <Action sr="act0" ve="7">
            548
            <Str sr="arg0" ve="3">%SCREEN</Str>
            <Int sr="arg1" val="0"/>
            <Str sr="arg10" ve="3"/>
            <Int sr="arg11" val="1"/>
            <Int sr="arg12" val="0"/>
            <Str sr="arg13" ve="3"/>
            <Int sr="arg14" val="0"/>
            <Int sr="arg2" val="0"/>
            <Str sr="arg3" ve="3"/>
            <Str sr="arg4" ve="3"/>
            <Str sr="arg5" ve="3"/>
            <Str sr="arg6" ve="3"/>
            <Str sr="arg7" ve="3"/>
            <Str sr="arg8" ve="3"/>
            <Int sr="arg9" val="1"/>
        </Action>
        <Action sr="act1" ve="7">
            248
            <on>false</on>
            <Int sr="arg0" val="0"/>
            <Int sr="arg1" val="0"/>
            <ConditionList sr="if">
                <Condition sr="c0" ve="3">
                    <lhs>%SCREEN</lhs>
                    <op>2</op>
                    <rhs>off</rhs>
                </Condition>
            </ConditionList>
        </Action>
    </Task>
    <Task sr="task48">
        <cdate>1658765152954</cdate>
        <edate>1658767756538</edate>
        <id>48</id>
        <nme>Display Uptime</nme>
        <pri>6</pri>
        <Action sr="act0" ve="7">
            547
            <Str sr="arg0" ve="3">%STARTED</Str>
            <Str sr="arg1" ve="3">%TIMES</Str>
            <Int sr="arg2" val="0"/>
            <Int sr="arg3" val="0"/>
            <Int sr="arg4" val="0"/>
            <Int sr="arg5" val="3"/>
            <Int sr="arg6" val="1"/>
        </Action>
        <Action sr="act1" ve="7">
            548
            <on>false</on>
            <Str sr="arg0" ve="3">started %STARTED</Str>
            <Int sr="arg1" val="0"/>
            <Str sr="arg10" ve="3"/>
            <Int sr="arg11" val="1"/>
            <Int sr="arg12" val="0"/>
            <Str sr="arg13" ve="3"/>
            <Int sr="arg14" val="0"/>
            <Int sr="arg2" val="0"/>
            <Str sr="arg3" ve="3"/>
            <Str sr="arg4" ve="3"/>
            <Str sr="arg5" ve="3"/>
            <Str sr="arg6" ve="3"/>
            <Str sr="arg7" ve="3"/>
            <Str sr="arg8" ve="3"/>
            <Int sr="arg9" val="1"/>
        </Action>
        <Action sr="act2" ve="7">
            549
            <Str sr="arg0" ve="3">%STOPPED</Str>
            <Int sr="arg1" val="0"/>
            <Int sr="arg2" val="0"/>
            <Int sr="arg3" val="0"/>
        </Action>
    </Task>
    <Task sr="task50">
        <cdate>1658766071199</cdate>
        <edate>1658769148172</edate>
        <id>50</id>
        <nme>Reset Screen Uptime</nme>
        <pri>6</pri>
        <Action sr="act0" ve="7">
            547
            <Str sr="arg0" ve="3">%STOPPED</Str>
            <Str sr="arg1" ve="3">%TIMES</Str>
            <Int sr="arg2" val="0"/>
            <Int sr="arg3" val="0"/>
            <Int sr="arg4" val="0"/>
            <Int sr="arg5" val="3"/>
            <Int sr="arg6" val="1"/>
        </Action>
        <Action sr="act1" ve="7">
            548
            <on>false</on>
            <Str sr="arg0" ve="3">Stopped %STOPPED</Str>
            <Int sr="arg1" val="0"/>
            <Str sr="arg10" ve="3"/>
            <Int sr="arg11" val="1"/>
            <Int sr="arg12" val="0"/>
            <Str sr="arg13" ve="3"/>
            <Int sr="arg14" val="0"/>
            <Int sr="arg2" val="0"/>
            <Str sr="arg3" ve="3"/>
            <Str sr="arg4" ve="3"/>
            <Str sr="arg5" ve="3"/>
            <Str sr="arg6" ve="3"/>
            <Str sr="arg7" ve="3"/>
            <Str sr="arg8" ve="3"/>
            <Int sr="arg9" val="1"/>
        </Action>
        <Action sr="act2" ve="7">
            547
            <on>false</on>
            <Str sr="arg0" ve="3">%UPTIME</Str>
            <Str sr="arg1" ve="3">0</Str>
            <Int sr="arg2" val="0"/>
            <Int sr="arg3" val="0"/>
            <Int sr="arg4" val="0"/>
            <Int sr="arg5" val="3"/>
            <Int sr="arg6" val="1"/>
        </Action>
        <Action sr="act3" ve="7">
            549
            <Str sr="arg0" ve="3">%STARTED</Str>
            <Int sr="arg1" val="0"/>
            <Int sr="arg2" val="0"/>
            <Int sr="arg3" val="0"/>
        </Action>
    </Task>
    <Task sr="task52">
        <cdate>1650476952536</cdate>
        <edate>1658769822832</edate>
        <id>52</id>
        <pri>100</pri>
        <Action sr="act0" ve="7">
            548
            <on>false</on>
            <Str sr="arg0" ve="3">%STOPPED</Str>
            <Int sr="arg1" val="0"/>
            <Str sr="arg10" ve="3"/>
            <Int sr="arg11" val="1"/>
            <Int sr="arg12" val="0"/>
            <Str sr="arg13" ve="3"/>
            <Int sr="arg14" val="0"/>
            <Int sr="arg2" val="0"/>
            <Str sr="arg3" ve="3"/>
            <Str sr="arg4" ve="3"/>
            <Str sr="arg5" ve="3"/>
            <Str sr="arg6" ve="3"/>
            <Str sr="arg7" ve="3"/>
            <Str sr="arg8" ve="3"/>
            <Int sr="arg9" val="1"/>
        </Action>
        <Action sr="act1" ve="7">
            547
            <on>false</on>
            <Str sr="arg0" ve="3">%STOPPED</Str>
            <Str sr="arg1" ve="3">%TIMES</Str>
            <Int sr="arg2" val="0"/>
            <Int sr="arg3" val="0"/>
            <Int sr="arg4" val="0"/>
            <Int sr="arg5" val="3"/>
            <Int sr="arg6" val="1"/>
            <ConditionList sr="if">
                <bool0>And</bool0>
                <Condition sr="c0" ve="3">
                    <lhs>%STOPPED</lhs>
                    <op>13</op>
                    <rhs></rhs>
                </Condition>
                <Condition sr="c1" ve="3">
                    <lhs>%SCREEN</lhs>
                    <op>2</op>
                    <rhs>off</rhs>
                </Condition>
            </ConditionList>
        </Action>
        <Action sr="act2" ve="7">
            547
            <Str sr="arg0" ve="3">%DOWNTIME</Str>
            <Str sr="arg1" ve="3">%TIMES-%STOPPED</Str>
            <Int sr="arg2" val="0"/>
            <Int sr="arg3" val="1"/>
            <Int sr="arg4" val="0"/>
            <Int sr="arg5" val="3"/>
            <Int sr="arg6" val="1"/>
        </Action>
        <Action sr="act3" ve="7">
            547
            <Str sr="arg0" ve="3">%DOWNTIME</Str>
            <Str sr="arg1" ve="3">0</Str>
            <Int sr="arg2" val="0"/>
            <Int sr="arg3" val="0"/>
            <Int sr="arg4" val="0"/>
            <Int sr="arg5" val="3"/>
            <Int sr="arg6" val="1"/>
            <ConditionList sr="if">
                <Condition sr="c0" ve="3">
                    <lhs>%STOPPED</lhs>
                    <op>13</op>
                    <rhs></rhs>
                </Condition>
            </ConditionList>
        </Action>
        <Action sr="act4" ve="7">
            548
            <on>false</on>
            <Str sr="arg0" ve="3">Downtime %DOWNTIME</Str>
            <Int sr="arg1" val="0"/>
            <Str sr="arg10" ve="3"/>
            <Int sr="arg11" val="1"/>
            <Int sr="arg12" val="0"/>
            <Str sr="arg13" ve="3"/>
            <Int sr="arg14" val="0"/>
            <Int sr="arg2" val="0"/>
            <Str sr="arg3" ve="3"/>
            <Str sr="arg4" ve="3"/>
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            <Str sr="arg6" ve="3"/>
            <Str sr="arg7" ve="3"/>
            <Str sr="arg8" ve="3"/>
            <Int sr="arg9" val="1"/>
        </Action>
        <Action sr="act5" ve="7">
            806
            <on>false</on>
            <Int sr="arg0" val="216"/>
            <ConditionList sr="if">
                <Condition sr="c0" ve="3">
                    <lhs>%DOWNTIME</lhs>
                    <op>6</op>
                    <rhs>2</rhs>
                </Condition>
            </ConditionList>
        </Action>
        <Action sr="act6" ve="7">
            248
            <Int sr="arg0" val="1"/>
            <Int sr="arg1" val="1"/>
            <ConditionList sr="if">
                <Condition sr="c0" ve="3">
                    <lhs>%DOWNTIME</lhs>
                    <op>7</op>
                    <rhs>1</rhs>
                </Condition>
            </ConditionList>
        </Action>
        <Action sr="act7" ve="7">
            548
            <on>false</on>
            <Str sr="arg0" ve="3">%DOWNTIME</Str>
            <Int sr="arg1" val="0"/>
            <Str sr="arg10" ve="3"/>
            <Int sr="arg11" val="1"/>
            <Int sr="arg12" val="0"/>
            <Str sr="arg13" ve="3"/>
            <Int sr="arg14" val="0"/>
            <Int sr="arg2" val="0"/>
            <Str sr="arg3" ve="3"/>
            <Str sr="arg4" ve="3"/>
            <Str sr="arg5" ve="3"/>
            <Str sr="arg6" ve="3"/>
            <Str sr="arg7" ve="3"/>
            <Str sr="arg8" ve="3"/>
            <Int sr="arg9" val="1"/>
        </Action>
    </Task>
</TaskerData>

Hello. No third-party link dependent answer please. I have added the content of XML file in your answer. A more readable solution to share Tasker profiles is to mention the steps needed to create the Profile and the Task. E.g. Profile: Action -> some_Action. Task: app -> launch app -> do_this

I had a similar issue and fixed it by first turning on "Developer mode" then deselecting "Stay awake" under Settings / Developer Options. Turn on developer mode by going to Settings / About Device, then touch/tap on "Build number" seven (7) times. Once developer mode is on, go to Settings / Developer Options, and deselect "Stay awake".
This resolved the problem for me.  Keep in mind that each Android phone is slightly different in where "About Device" is located, but it is in the Settings section. Go there and tap "Build number" seven times to turn on Developer mode.

Stay Awake keeps the screen on all the time, and is not enabled by default.

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


text:
With headphones plugged in, set incoming call ringtone to play through speaker
I use my phone to play music at work.  When I wander away from my desk, I often leave my headphones plugged in.  If someone calls my phone when the headphones are plugged in, the phone rings, but only through the headphones and I end up missing the call.  What I would like is to be able to set different audio to play through different outputs: my audio player through my headphones and my ringtone through my speaker.  I've looked through the sound settings and haven't found much that seems incredibly useful.
Are there any apps that currently support doing this?  Does the android api even support multiple audio output targets?
Phone info:

HTC Evo 4G (Rooted)
FreshEvo 3.5.1 (based on android 2.2)

I know CyanogenMod gives you the option to do this, but I imagine that it's implemented at the OS level rather than at the application level...

I use a stereo A2DP Bluetooth device connected to my phone and when the phone rings, the first second of notes actually sound on the phone and then it continues over the bluetooth :-) This is orthogonal from your point but I found it interesting that I would like to actually turn that off!

I am in the same situation: any solutions yet?

@Palantir CyanogenMod seems to be the best solution at the moment.  I haven't switched over since I've been listening to music on my phone less and less, but I would still like to find a more graceful solution than switching ROMs

I'm not sure if this will help you, but a habit that I have developed that helps with this issue is that I always pause the music by pulling the headphones. I started doing this on my iPod back in the days out of convenience, and I kept on doing it. Turns out, for smartphones it actually helps you avoid situations like this (and on the iPod, it helped you avoid battery drain from the iPod playing music all night).

I have the exact same need! For work, and for when i want to listen to podcasts in bed but need to hear sms and calls.

I was going to suggest CyanogenMod also, if that doesn't work or isn't something you are interested in, you should try Tasker
http://tasker.dinglisch.net/
https://market.android.com/details?id=net.dinglisch.android.taskerm
It pretty much can do just about anything you can think of without quite as much work as writing an app yourself.

So, how exactly does one do this in Cyanogen?

I had a similar issue at work. What i ended up doing was turning the "Vibrate" setting on in Settings/Sounds. My phone was bugging everyone else in the office before (which is why i started using headphones) but with that setting, the phone vibrates on receiving a call as well as ringing in the headphones. I didn't have to disturb anyone, and i still got calls when i forgot about my headphones!
Don't know if this would be practical for you, but it worked nicely for me, so i thought i'd share!

CM had indeed a persist.sys.ring-speaker property to do exactly this. I don't believe it was ever available outside of the android 2.3 tree though (and as of 2020, developers don't even seem to realize there is a need for "choice").
Then, while I think a "native routing selection setting" (like some vendors already independently offer) is the best solution, workarounds should still be doable. A phone dialer automatically switching/mirroring audio for you would be my second best idea, but unfortunately I'm not aware of any having such feature.
For this reason, the only other possible option is some kind of notification listener, re-routing the sound, or playing a new separate tone of its own, when a call approaches. In this thread "Shouter" was recommended, and I have to say it works quite neatly (a tasker recipe can also be found there, for more advanced users).
Take note, not all devices may like playing more than a single audio stream at once.

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


text:
Rooted Phone but still can't uninstall Apps
So I finally temp-rooted my HTC Desire HD and set about trying to uninstall some of the stock apps that came with it (Stocks (no pun intended), Facebook for HTc and so on). But it won't let me - the 'Uninstall' link is disabled inside Settings-> Applications.
Do I need to do a 'full' root to achieve my goal or am I missing something?
Thanks for reading.

I would be extremely careful about removing seemingly unneeded system apps.  In most manufacturer overlays (HTC's Sense, Motorola's BLUR, Samsung's TouchWiz, etc.) some of these apps might be very closely integrated with "core" apps such as Contacts or Phone/Dialer, for example.  Removing things you might think are useless (e.g. Happenings.apk on MotoBLUR) can cause instability of the core apps and make them Force Close on launch.  Try to do a search on this site (or better yet appropriate section on XDA-Developers forums) for a list of apps that can be safely removed from your handset.

TouchWiz is actually fairly loosely integrated, fortunately, but it's always best to make a backup.

The Settings application doesn't let you uninstall system apps; it's got nothing to do with root.  It doesn't check for root, or anything like that.
I recommend using Titanium Backup to remove system apps, it works wonderfully.  I even had a regular app yesterday that the Market just couldn't uninstall for some reason, and TB took care of it.

Cool, many thanks. It looks like Titanium Backup requires root access to work so I'll give it a try with temp-root.


text:
Do you have to root an Android device to install Ubuntu?
Just as the title says. In order to install another ARM based Operating System or to dual boot your phone, do you have to have root access?
I'm currently using a Motorola Atrix, not sure if that matters or not.

Are you looking to install it directly to the hardware? I haven't actually seen anyone do this yet, though it's possible it may be out there somewhere. Usually it's just a chroot environment alongside Android that either 1) Replaces the webtop distro with a full-blown install (for the Atrix) or 2) Runs with a VNC server up so that you can connect to it from the Android userspace via a VNC client.

+1 I didn't know much about the process overall, but interesting that there is a webtop replacement distro. That'd be slick for the Atrix which is what I'm running. I'll check that out!
Do you have any info on the webtop replacement?

I'm not incredibly familiar with it as I don't own an Atrix. There's a thread on XDA about it, though, and (if nothing else) it's a pretty interesting read. Seems like it's a pretty well-functioning install all things considered.

Yes. See this method or this one, for example.
As per eldarerathis' comment, these are both for running Ubuntu in a chroot environment.

What about LXC? Does LXC require root, too?

In theory, probably, no -- https://groups.google.com/d/msg/proot_me/h3rDV8na9kc/4mSCyOsX28UJ!
With the help of proot, which would simulate chroot (otherwise requiring being root).
https://sites.google.com/site/taldewandroid/ is a working implementation of this idea for the OpnWRT distro (not yet Ubuntu though).


text:
Why is it that many Android apps do not feature a true close application feature?
I was wondering why it seems many applications in the Android eco-system come without a true "close" feature?  It seems "different(to be politically correct)" to have to manage if an application is running through the OS rather than the actual application itself.

You'd probably have to ask individual developers why they did or did not. How are we supposed to know?

@Al Everett Matthew Read knew...

I think Al's point was that although Matthew was able to provide a generic answer, the only way of knowing why a given app doesn't have a close button is by asking the author. If they conform with the development guidelines then it's unneeded, and the problems people experience with apps draining battery in the background can really be attributed to poorly written applications. Then again, this is a bit of a generic question rather than "Why does  not have a close button?"

This is a policy encouraged by Google.  I can't find the exact link, but you can see related guidelines here: http://developer.android.com/guide/practices/ui_guidelines/menu_design.html
The idea is that users shouldn't have to explicitly manage their apps, they can just let the Android OS hibernate or terminate applications on an as-needed basis.  The problem, of course, is that this doesn't work perfectly.  I find it's often too aggressive with apps I want running, and not aggressive enough with services I'm not interested in.  But the goal is to minimize the time users need to spend managing application states.

Ah ok.  But this policy assumes all apps are implemented equally.  Some apps nuke battery-life even when not being "used" directly by me.  I have to get used to this coming from a blackberry world.

I agree, it's far from perfected.  One of the best advantages of rooting my phone was the ability to tweak the task killer settings.


text:
Can I have different default phone numbers for different actions?
Take a contact which has several phone numbers... say Home, Mobile and Work. When I click the QuickContact action to text them, it asks me which number... so I select Mobile. Now, I'd like to set this as default... because I always text them on their mobile. Problem is, when I do this, it ALSO sets it as the default phone for ACTION==CALL, which I do NOT want, as I regularly call them on all three numbers.
Is there any way to set a default number for texting while NOT having a default for calling, so that it will still prompt me to pick a number when I click QuickContact.Call?

I don't think you can set separate default numbers.  However what you could do is set a shortcut to message that contact and leave the default number empty so it can prompt you when you call.  To set a message shortcut: long press on the Home-screen, select "Shortcut", then select "Direct Message".  This will launch your default messaging app to send a message to that contact to whichever number you set when you create the shortcut.

Hope this helps

I guess this could be a workaround; though hardly ideal. Ideally it would be a method that would carry through to all instances where the QuickContact badges and placards are used.

@eidylon True, but I don't think you can accomplish that.


text:
How to check if GPS is working (Android 2.1, Samsung Galaxy-5)?

Possible Duplicate:
Easiest way for testing the internal GPS

My new Samsung Galaxy i5500 (or Galaxy 5 or whatever other name they confuse us with) (android 2.1) has a build-in GPS. However, I somehow think it is not working correctly or at all. Whenever I use Google Maps (in open air) and select 'My Location' the GPS icon appears in the top bar but keeps blinking (I waited several minutes), and it seems my location is only determined using wifi or mobile network wizardry.
Can I somehow easily check if the build-in GPS is working correctly? Is there some page that shows the longitude/latitude location it has received from the GPS?
(BTW: turning on the GPS in the power bar, or in the settings page, does work, but still leaves me puzzled if the GPS actually works)

I don't think this is a duplicate; there's a Galaxy-specific GPS testing mode.

Indeed, there is - the aptly named GPS Test app ought to help you.
The more popular GPS Status & Toolbox is also similar and will display your current lat/long co-ordinates and also a compass. Both are currently freeware.


text:
PDF reader app that remembers the last page you were on?

I usually access my PDFs via the DropBox app on my phone.
Every time I open the same PDF it starts back at page 1.

Is there a way to set up the Android Adobe Reader app to remember the last page I was on?
If not, is there another PDF reader app that has this option?

Do you need the pdf format ? Or can you convert it to epub ( so that you can use the readers on Android - they remember the last page you read when 'closing' the book ).

The problem here is that you're using the DropBox app, which downloads the file every time you open it (to a temp filename), instead of syncing the files ahead of time. If you use something like Dropsync (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.ttxapps.dropsync&hl=en), you'll use more storage on your phone, but the files will be local, and when you re-open, you'll be at the same point in the file.

Dropbox wasn't made to be a PDF reader, instead it's an application to have your files wherever you go. So I have two great suggestions for you:

ezPDF Reader - This is the best PDF reading application I ever seen for Android. I use it every time I need to read any kind of PDF on my Motorola Droid.
Adobe Acrobat Reader - A free alternative for ezPDF. Made by Adobe of course, which is very good to read your PDFs on-the-go too.

Both will restore from the place that you left

I use the Adobe Reader but I open my PDF files from the DropBox app. When I use Adobe Reader in conjunction with DropBox it does not remember the last page. Is this a DropBox issue?

@KenB Yes, the DropBox application won't work with Adobe Reader. I suggest you to download the PDF to your device and then open it using a File Explorer

Very disappointed, the whole purpose of DropBox is having a doc in the cloud and not worrying about particular clients. Oh well, thanks for the information.

@KenB: Dropbox stores files you have downloaded to the dropbox folder in your sd card.

Adobe Reader doesn't remember the last page you were on.

Can anyone suggest a good free pdf reader with similar functionality?
I tried Adobe Reader as well as quick pdf and it doesn't work. Every time I have to scroll down to the page I read before.

@GeroldMeisinger it works for Adobe Acrobat Reader in combination with Google Drive

Aldiko is an eBook reader that reads PDFs as well, remember the last page you were at and on top of that allows you to set bookmarks, something that Adobe Reader and most other readers I tried won't let you do.
Bookmarks are a must have for me so I chose Aldiko.

Moon+ Reader will sync pdf files from Google Drive and resume from where you left off across multiple Android devices.

Note that for the PDF features you will need the paid version of Moon+ reader. Apart from that: I can confirm this :)

position synchronization is terrible on Moon+ Reader

qPDF Viewer does remember the last page read in a PDF document. It's free and available for download from Google Play.

You appear to be affiliated with the product you're recommending, please see the FAQ section on self-promotion and in future please disclose this in your answer.

You could try the Adobe Reader app.

Adobe Reader will NOT restore you to your previous page. I'm on Android 4.0 on a tablet, it always goes back to the first page. Also as far as I know there's no bookmark feature, Adobe's fast and well known, but the Android version is not as good as the other competitors.

authors: Мухаммет Куатбай


text:
How can you determine if installed programs have dependencies with other installed programs
Is it possible to see dependencies of programs with other programs ? I mean, program which must be installed for other programs to run.
-- background of the question --
I installed a program a couple of weeks ago which let me read comics on my Android.
This program required Adobe Air - which was installed alongside the comic viewer.
After a couple of days I decided to uninstall the comic viewer.
I now want to remove Adobe Air (since it is a big program) , but was wondering whether other installed programs might require this too.

I'm guessing Android doesn't enforce this any more than desktop OSes do -- i.e. it's up to the app to check for its dependency -- but I'm not sure.

@Matthew Read: Yes, that's what I am thinking too. But you never know, some sort of (hidden) setting might provide this information. I didn't found one but that doesn't mean it doesn't exists.

App dependency is located in an apps manifest file, though not sure if the system makes checks on these.

Any program that needs Adobe Air will have a check in it's code when it first runs to see if adobe air is installed.
Therefore if you uninstall Adobe Air then open an app that needs it, it will notify you to download it.
So uninstalling adobe air is fine.


text:
My HTC Desire Z read messages showing up unread
I am starting to have some prolems with my Desire Z and was wondering if anyone knew how to help me. It is starting to show that I have an unread text message, but when I click on that contact, there isn't. So I tried to delete the message thread and then it just keeps loading and loading (all night even!) so i was forced to restart my phone in order to send any other texts. Also when I exit out of the message thread, "Sorry! The application Messages (process.com.android.mms) has stopped unexpectedly. Please Try again." With a "Force Close" button, comes up.. It's only doing this with one contact, any other messages I recieve don't stay "unread". And whenever I recieve more messages from that contact, the number of unread messages goes up!

Maybe backing up your data and clearing the Messaging app's data would help? Have your tried that?

Try another SMS app, see if it ends up fixing the DB for your SMS's.

It sounds like a problem with that contact, i would try deleting them from you contact list and putting them in as a fresh, new contact.


text:
How can I can open local files in the default Android browser?
I want to open local files that are on my sdcard in the Android browser. How can I accomplish this?

This is pretty close to a duplicate...Open HTML file from SD card

Sorry my search didn't catch that one. Yeah its pretty close - although I'm asking for more than just HTML files.

I probably wouldn't vote to close this (if I had 3k), but now the other one shows up in the "Linked" area. I think I might go back and leave a comment on the other one so that searchers will get links both ways. These seem to get hits for very different search terms. Edit: Hm, the "Linked" section already links both ways, but I'll add a comment on the old one since it would be more visible...

In order to view local files on the sdcard with the default Android browser just enter file://sdcard/ and then the path to the file you want to view.  For example if you have an xml file named "person" in a folder named "xmlfiles" it would look like file://sdcard/xmlfiles/person.xml in your address bar.  You can create bookmarks for the file you are viewing but if you try to make a shortcut to that bookmark or use a bookmark widget (at least the HTC one) these will not work and may give an error "The linked program is no longer installed on your phone".  The bookmarks will work if opened from within the browser.
So far I have verified that the browswer can open/render these files: xml, html files(htm), and image files
It cannot open pdfs.
According to this comment it works for Android 2.1 and above

This doesn't work for me with directories (so I can browse the file system rather than typing a lot): "The web page at file://sdcard/download could not be loaded as: Is a directory".  Can that also be made to work somehow?

what path must one use for internal storage??

Found a solution for the local file browser problem on my Xoom tablet
I tried opening a local file with Opera by typing file:///mnt/sdcard/Documents/blabla.html. Opera changed the adress in file://localhost/mnt/Documents... Using the localhost syntax on the android browser opened the local file.

The answer is here already, but I am adding my 2 cents worth.  I am using the Galaxy Tab S 10.5 and for me "file://localhost/sdcard" works in the Chrome browser on Android that comes with this device.  I thought that sdcard would refer to an external media device that you can plug in, but it turns out that the sdcard in this URI refers to the built-in memory of the device.  I wanted to test some DIY wireframes (with JavaScript, XHTML and CSS) and they work once I enabled JavaScript for Chrome.

You can browse the file system with Firefox for Android

In case anyone wants to try this, it's not obvious how to do it as there doesn't seem to be any option or button that lets you do it. If you select the address box at the top of the windows and type in file:// and then press enter you should see a file listing that lets you browse into directories and click on the files to view them.

@GAThrawn "ERR_ACCESS_DENIED"

@Spook I thought that it was possible that things had changed in the 3 years since I wrote that comment, but no. I just tried it on my Nexus 5 (Android 4.4.4) and my Xoom (4.1.2), both running Firefox 31, and it works in both. Firefox does change ‘file://’ to ‘file:///’ but that's the only difference from my comment above.

@GAThrawn Then it seems to be a problem with Samsung Galaxy devices. Tried on S4 and 10.1 2014 and got the same results :(

@GAThrawn on an Galaxy S5, Android 6.x, Chrome - file://localhost/storage/emulated/0/Download give a directory listing (and sub folders) but I could not find another folder that is viewable outside of that base folder. Galaxy S4 + Android 5.x + Chrome was like that too.


text:
Kerberos authentication
Does the android web browser support kerberos authentication?  If not, is there an open source web browser for android that works well, which can be extended to support kerberos?

No, it does not.  Unfortunately all the major Android browsers that I know of -- Firefox, Opera, Dolphin, Skyfire -- don't appear to support it either.  Firefox does support NTLM, and I'd expect it to support kerberos sooner or later.

Yes, Chrome M46 and later versions support Kerberos on Android, and I think its the only web browser that supports SPNEGO/GSSAPI/Kerberos on Android.
Lately, the Google repo at Github published a stand-alone client app for Kerberos. It's provided as a reference implementation; yet, I think it can be used in production with some caution. Below are some resources I have found that you might find helpful:

Writing a SPNEGO Authenticator for Chrome on Android: This page describes the interface between Chrome and the SPNEGO Authenticator.
Test DPC App: You may need this app to set managed configurations for both Chrome and the Kerberos client
Kerberos Test Utils: Simple app and scripts used to test Kerberos auth on Chrome and WebView.

If you don't want to write your own Spnego Authenticator you can also go for a commercial solution like www.hypergate.com

Firefox supports kerberos authentication I believe. You need to change the settings in About -> config

Can you support this opinion by giving a source proving it?


text:
Is there a way to set the IP configuration on a per network basis?
I connect to multiple wifi networks. On some of the networks I have to use a static IP address. Most with DHCP configurations are without the option to use static IP addressing.
For this reason I want to be able to set specific IP settings for the networks with special settings. Is such a thing possible?

There is no way to do this natively in the settings of Android, as you've noticed.
However, there is an app on the Android Market called "Wifi Static" that should help you with what you're looking for.

I'd give you +2 if I could. I didn't know that they updated the website with the send to phone feature.


text:
Wi-fi immediately disables
I have a Samsung Captivate.
This week, it's wi-fi stopped working.
To be more precise, it's wi-fi recognizes there is a wi-fi router nearby (my home's), and tries to connect.  But it immediately disables and tries again in an unending loop.

I have not tried connecting on another hotspot.
I have installed a couple of programs this week, but I don't remember any of them being wi-fi related.
I recently put JuiceDefender on aggresive mode, but now I've disabled it, and wi-fi still doesn't work.
Tried enabling/disabling Flight Mode, but no success.
I've restarted my phone a couple of times.

UPDATE (04/15/2011)
I managed to connect to a nearby hotspot, so I'm guessing the router is the problem.  It is a 5yrs+ old router (linksys).  What's strange is that my PC is connected to the router by LAN cable, and still works.  Also, I was able to enter it's configuration page (192.168.1.1).  Probably some hardware is damaged.
UPDATE (04/16/2011)
NOW I´m confused.  I connected to my router with an old low-grade tablet I forgot I had, with no problems.  I'm guessing now that the problem must be some app I installed on my phone.
CONCLUSION (04/16/2011)
I just had to press the router's reset button on the back, and now my phone is connecting.  Thanks to all who commented!

I presume you did reboot your phone ?

I couple of times.

Delete the saved network from the phone, then reboot both the phone and the router and try again.  If that doesn't fix it you'll need to test with another network to see if it's a phone issue or not.

I'm assuming that your phone isn't your only wifi device on your network. Verify that other devices will connect to your network via wifi, if you haven't yet done so.

I don't have another wi-fi enable appliance, but I connected to a nearby hotspot with my Captivate.  So I'm guessing there is a problem with the router itself.  The strange thing is my PC is connected to it by cable and works.

@lamcro That just means it's probably a problem with the broadcasting hardware, rather than the actual routing.  Introducing complexity always means a higher chance of failure.

I have the same problem with my friends Netgear wifi router, but all other wifi networks so far work perfectly, so it could be a compatibility problem with the phone and router. To verify this, i'd suggest the steps that Matthew Read and somehume already mentioned: try other networks and check other devices connected to the troublesome network.

If you can access the web interface of the router see if there are any error codes in a log or on the main page after you log in.  Most likely your radio is bad but the rest of the hardware is still good (or at least ok :)).  This happened to me with an old router too and confused me for a good while before I found the error codes and searched their meaning.  In my case it was time for a new router anyway so I just went and bought a new one - so I'm not sure if there's anyway to fix it, if it is a bad radio.


text:
how do I know the time involved in updating the firmware of my samsung I5801 phone via KIES
The official update for samsung I5801 is available now.
Has anyone done it before (using KIES, any samsung phone)?
How long it will take to update the firmware via Samsung Kies pc suite?
What are the additional things to do before and after I update my firmware?
(* I have taken backup of my contacts, messages and applications on the phone's memory card * I will reset my phone before and after updating the firmware using the settings -> factory reset option)
If something goes wrong then what can be done to revert.
Please help me as I don't want to fall in trouble after attempting an update.
Thanks

+1 because you alerted me to the update for this phone. YES! Have you succeeded yet?

@amir75: Yes. I was able to update successfully. Without any hiccups or glitch. I must say that Samsung has done a real good job by creating such a no-pains update system for it's phones. Awesome.

Well done. I couldn't get Kies to recognise my phone, so I'm stuck. I'm not in India, so maybe that's why. Ah well, good for you anyway.

Oh, could you pls specify your Windows version? Kies won't recognise my phone on Windows 7, so I'm wondering if it's worth trying another OS. Thanks

@amir75: I use windows XP professional with Service Pack 2. You can do it on any of your friend's machine having windows xp.

The actual update should take at very most half an hour, the download time may vary though.  Other than a backup, I don't see what else you'd need to do.
If you have trouble, come back and post a separate question with details.  The update usually either fails entirely (in which case you can try again) or works fine, you shouldn't end up in some half-updated broken state.

Thanks Matthew. :-) actually I tried it yesterday and everything went fine. It took around 40 minutes for the update process to complete. Posting the screenshots for other's reference.

Updated the firmware successfully. :)
Took almost 40 minutes for the upgrade process to finish completely.
After the update I was amazed to see that all the settings, programs, contacts and accounts were there. I didn't have to restore from the backup that I took earlier.
Froyo is much faster that eclair.
Hope this answer is helpful to those looking to upgrade their firmware but feared (like me) the risk of data being lost or phone malfunctioning.
Go ahead and upgrade your firmware. You will love it.
Here are the screenshots


text:
Does google voice require a data plan to place calls?
I own a Nexus S and will be travelling to US on a business trip. I will have a T-Mobile prepaid connection and intend to use Google Voice to make and receive calls.
Since I am currently outside the US, I cannot determine whether GV android app requires a cellular data plan to make calls.

You can call your Google Voice number from one of your forwarding phones and then enter the phone # you want to call, if you want to avoid data use entirely.

A little bit yes. (See comments below) The app will make this seamless but should still use a bit of data.
Edit: After checking Google Help I found this:

By calling your own Google number
When you call your own Google number
  and sign into the Google voicemail
  system, you’ll have the option to
  place a call. Just press 2 and enter
  the number.
For calls within the U.S, enter area
  code and number. For example:
  212-555-2222. For international calls,
  enter 011, the country code, and the
  number (or "1 and the country code,"
  depending on where you're calling).
  For example: 011442012345612345 or
  12464260200

Neat, I was wondering about this myself. I figured (wrongly) that the app dialed Google for you first.

Is it possible to have GV dial google and then place the call? This way I would only need an unlimited voice plan without data.

See edit, best way to see if I was a bit wrong with the Android app is, on your smart phone (2.2 or higher) turn off data packets and wifi. If you can still make a call with your Google voice number. The android app makes the calling using what is in my edit above

Correction: The GV app doesn't have Google call your phone. It actually calls a special number that gets hooked up to your destination number automatically. It then messes with the call logs to make it show the destination number instead of the middleman. It requires a data plan to get this special middleman number to call, but it caches it afterwards.


text:
Which apps are affected by the SYNC icon in Power Control Bar?
I can turn sync on/off in the Power Control bar. Which applications actually use this sync setting? Is that only Google-based products (calendar, contacts, gmail) or does it also influence apps like IMAP email, Evernote, etc?

I think you mean the Auto-sync. Go to "Settings -> Accounts & sync". You will find which apps are using the sync function under Manage accounts. Only the apps in the list will be influenced.

Thanks. Indeed, auto-sync seems to be the right name. The list confirms that it is only my google account that is influenced by this setting (unfortunately, as it would make sense for other apps to use the auto-sync on/off setting as well)

To identify the app that is causing sync. Go to "Settings -> Applications -> Manage applications-> click "Uninstall update" for the app (This is due to the updates that added background sync. only few app show this). These apps are the culprits to drain your battery.


text:
How to flash Nexus S (currently on custom AOSP build) with stock Gingerbread by Google (Android 2.3.3)
I have a Nexus S which I have flashed with a custom Android build. Now I need access to the Android Market and some other Google services and therefore I need the stock Android from Google.
How can I revert my phone back to Google's build of Gingerbread (Android 2.3.3 which includes Google apps)

What custom build do you have?  Do you have a custom recovery?

I did not know you could not access the market with Nexus S custom ROM! I'm on a custom ROM permrooted HTC DHD and have no issue whatsoever... what's the error you are getting?

@Matthew-Read I built the android source and flashed to the phone. So self-made custom.

@Stefano I built it myself. When Android is built from source, no Google applications or services are present.

interesting!

Here's a full stock ROM for the Nexus S (via XDA): http://android.clients.google.com/packages/ota/google_crespo/f182cf141e6a.signed-soju-ota-102588.f182cf14.zip (MD5: 3e8908941043951da5a34bb2043dd1a0)
You should be able to name that update.zip and put it in the root of your SD card; upon reboot it will be installed.

I do not need root. There don't seem to be any stock images provided by Google, and fastboot does not seem to work with image dumps which have been made using other custom backup tools like nandroid. Rebooting into recovery and using (update.zip) also always fails with signature verification. I guess I'll have to use one of the custom tools for recovery.

I guess that works for the Nexus One. Didn't work for the Nexus S though.

Shoot, didn't see that was for the N1.  Didn't expect Google to name the firmware the same, sorry about that.  Updated answer.

Bingo! I've googled the whole day and couldn't find this. Thanks mate. Also Google just released hardware drivers for those using AOSP, I'm including them here for reference.


text:
How to use GPRS (not wifi or 3G) to get internet access?
With my Galaxy 5, I can visit websites using wifi, but how can I access them using GPRS (=when no wifi around)? I don't want to pay for a 3G data plan with my mobile operator.
Background: On my old Nokia phone (which didn't have wifi), I was able to visit a website using GPRS (useful only for emergencies, but still, useful). This meant that I did not have to subscribe to some data plan with my mobile operator (at least in my country this is so); I did have to pay for the GPRS connection, but that was only when connected.

This sounds like something that you need to make sure your operator has enabled on your contract, normally with smartphones a data plan is a data plan, once you've got one they give you a (monthly/weekly/daily) bandwidth limit which you can use either on 3G or GPRS, the operator doesn't care which you use.
It sounds like you don't want to pay for a monthly data limit, you want to get a metered contract where you only pay for when you use it (normally charged by the megabyte or by the hour, or something similar).
You can then turn the data connection on or off depending when you want to use it. The exact setting for this can vary from phone to phone, but is normally under something like Settings -> Wireless and Network -> Mobile networks -> Use packet data. On many phones you can also switch to only use GPRS or 3G (sometimes called GSM and WCDMA modes) but all that does is control the speed of your connection, not normally how you're charged.

I am using Android 2.1, and can't find 'Use packet data'.  There is a setting 'use only 2G networks' though. However, I still have no idea how to configure the phone to use GPRS when using e.g. a browser (my contract hasn't changed).

GPRS is 2G. If your phone isn't doing any wireless connection at all at the moment, then you do need to change your contract to one that allows it, even if its just a pay-as-you-go type data contract. I haven't heard of any phone company that will allow you a data connection. Even years ago on a Nokia feature-phone that only connected to data when it was needed, there was a section in my phone contract that specified how much I'd be charged when I used the GPRS connection.

Settings -> Wireless and Network -> Mobile networks -> aftr this there no other option ... like as u said use packet data.. there is nothing as like.. so watelse i can do ??


text:
Is it possible to wipe the phone without uninstalling the apps?
I'm having problems with my Google account in my phone and because of that I want to remove it and add it again. When I try to do it, it tells me that I can't remove it unless I restore to factory defaults. But I don't want to reinstall every app. Is there a solution?

If you are rooted, you can use an app like Titanium Backup to back up your apps (and their data).


text:
unknown_error when installing couchdb on android
I was able to install CouchDB fine on my Samsung Captivate android phone using the app in the market. When I try and install it on my Samsung Galaxy I update the binaries, then I get an error:
{"error":"unknown_error","reason":"badarg"}

I have tried uninstalling and reinstalling but no luck. Any suggestions?

What model do you have?  "Samsung Galaxy" covers at least a dozen phones.

Sorry you're right - it's a Samsung Galaxy Tablet.

Thats a strange error, currently there are 2 common problems with the CouchDB install,

is that it isnt currently supported on 2.3.3 and above
is that your external storage isnt mounted on /sdcard/ (or it is currently mounted as a drive)

are either of those true? if so then they are already on https://github.com/couchbaselabs/couch-android-launcher/issues and I will update there when they are fixed, if not if you could run adb logcat it would be extremely useful
Cheers
Dale

I would guess it's (2) -- my Galaxy S has external storage mounted as /sdcard/external_sd/.

Thanks guys - sounds like 2 is a good candidate, as I am running the stock firmware which I believe is 2.2 (I don't have it with me). I will check the mount point and look into changing it.


text:
Recorded video visible on device, but not other media players once uploaded
When I record videos with the rear-facing camera on my Archos 43 Internet Tablet, I am able to watch those recordings on my device, but when I attempt to upload them to online video sharing sites like youtube or blip.tv, they aren't properly recognized or converted.  Likewise, when I transfer them to my computer, I can't play the video file correctly.  If I transfer the file back to my device, it plays just fine.
I know that the device produces *.mp4 video files.
How can I convert these (corrupted?) videos so that I can see them on my computer and upload them to video sharing sites?
Thanks.

trying playing on your PC with a all round play anything player like VLC. Your tablet may be encoding with a video type that is not common.

MP4 is a container that can contain different video codecs, it sounds like your device is creating its videos using an unusual codec that not many other devices have loaded by default. As Seth and Hcpl have said VLC Player can play almost any format and should be able to play your videos.
If you want to know what codec is being used, then try opening the video in a codec identifying app like GSpot, this should tell you exactly which audio and video formats and codecs are in your videos.

Try installing another player with support for many codecs, like VLC. If that one plays the video's well your Android device is OK and probably using a non supported codec.

I have installed VLC, and some of the videos play, but others have glitches in them.  All of my attempts to upload to video sites have failed in the conversion step.  Is there any way for me to fix the glitchy videos?


text:
Does Jorte synch with Google Calendar?
When I create events on Google Calendar, they don't end up in Jorte. Does Jorte truly sync events with Google Calendar or does it just import events when you set it up and then forget about it?

I use Jorte to add events to my Google Calendar linked accout without problems and without any specific setting tuning.

I take that to mean that the "synch" only works in one direction.


text:
Good idea to transfer all phone numbers from SIM card to google contacts?
I am new to the whole smartphone thing. Currently all of my telephone contacts are on my SIM card. I suspect it makes sense to move all my phone numbers from the SIM card to my Google contacts (i.e. adding the numbers to existing Google contacts who mainly contain only email addresses). The benefits would be: (a) no more duplicate contacts in my list, (b) automated backup of my contact's phone numbers.
Or, is there something I should be aware of before I do this effort? Will there be some workflow side effects? (apart from not having my contacts on SIM anymore)
Edit: I just transferred all. Actually, I did not remove the contacts from my SIM card, I just hid them using the contacts settings. So if I ever have to use my old phone as a backup, I'll have most of my phone numbers in there

I'm not going to answer if it's a good idea or not - you need to solve that for yourself :).
Having your contacts stored with Google Contacts will eliminate any duplicates (at least duplicates where you have the number stored in the SIM and e-mail in Google, or something like that) and allow you to manage/sync those contacts from anywhere you can access Google Contacts, like a computer.  You are correct that it will 'backup' your contacts so that if you were to switch phones or even carriers, you wouldn't have to worry about bringing your contacts as long as the phone you have supports Google Contacts (web or app).
Keeping your contacts on the SIM allows you to keep them from Google (if you're worried about privacy), and if you get another SIM-based phone, you can easily move them (provided you keep the same SIM).
Personally, having my contacts in Google Contacts has been great.  Easy synchronization, use photos from Picasa as contact photos, management from a computer... but you will have to decide for yourself which is "better".
You may want to see this answer to help you move your contacts from the SIM to Google Contacts.

+1 - Just about a carbon copy of the answer I just typed out, and binned when I saw yours :)

@Matt Great minds think alike :)

I can't think of any reason why this wouldn't be a good idea.


text:
Install APK from external_sd
I'm tearing my hair out trying to figure this out. I've read that you can copy an APK file to the SD card and use the browser to activate the installer to install it with this:
file:///sdcard/yourApp.apk
(from: https://stackoverflow.com/questions/4268803/android-how-to-install-apk-from-sd-card)
But, I cannot seem to get that to work with external_sd card. I've tried
file:///external_sd/yourApp.apk
I keep getting the following message:
"Data connectivity problem - The Web page contains an error."

Whats the message you are getting?  It also depends on how your sdcard is mounted.  Mine is mounted as 'sdcard' others are mounted as you mentioned 'external_sd'

If you have a Samsung phone, some of them have separate "internal" and "external" SD storage.  If it's on the external SD card, then you need this adress: file:///sdcard/external_sd/yourApp.apk

+1 I didn't know about the path being /sdcard/external_sd I thought it was just /external_sd

Yeah, Samsung is weird with their storage.

Thanks, I also didnt realize that you needed "sdcard" before "external_sd". Another thing that I just ran into - You can type in the following: file:///mnt/external_sd/yourApp.apk. That seems to work for me!

Yep, it's aliased.

Try downloading a file explorer like ES File Explorer, find the apk and select it.  Android should prompt to install from there.
The selected answer you are referring to says to download Astro - which is another file manager. I'm not sure about the default Android browser though.


text:
What limits a mobile phone to be upgraded to new Android version?
What is the main reason that you can't upgrade your phone to new Android version?
Is it the lack of drivers, or simply hardware limitation? Are there other aspects?

Related: Why aren't the manufacturers updating the phone to the latest Android version when it's available?

Somebody needs to write and test the drivers and core apps. That's all.
Most applications that are written for Dalvik (i.e. most apk programs) are pretty portable across different Android versions, but not so much for core programs that were written in C, the Linux kernels and drivers, and the Dalvik VM itself. At the very least, these programs need to be recompiled; occasionally, the new Android version may require new capabilities from the drivers, and someone will need to write the code for them.
Additionally, for official releases, manufacturers and carriers often adds value-added customizations; these customizations need to be ported, tested, and often debugged against the new framework. In deciding whether to write upgrades, manufacturers (and to certain extent, carriers) faces a dilemma, they make better profit by selling to you a new device instead of writing upgrades for free, but poor upgrade history will put off customers as well; so they will often drop support for older phones and only write one or two version upgrades at most.
Hardware limitation has never been a problem for upgrades. While it's certainly true that certain new features might have a much higher hardware demand than older phones can conveniently handle (e.g. Live Wallpapers), these features are usually either disabled or left to give sub-optimal experience.
Other limitation is space limitation. Some phones have very small internal memory, and Android tends to get larger for every upgrade. To port newer versions for these phones, some sacrifices has to be made; whole libraries may be left out (e.g. who needs the NFC on a G1?). These modifications needs to be written and tested.

Your device will run any version of Android, even if your carrier or manufacturer won't have a official update available you can check out XDA-Developers and get an unofficial ROM, that are a lot better in my opinion.
For an example, the HTC G1 that everyone knows that is a bit slow and out-dated, but was the first device to get an unofficial port of Android Honeycomb for it, even if it was made only for tablets the developers manage to get the screen resolution working and the other stuff that wasn't compatible.
Another example I that I have: I had a HTC Touch Pro2 that by stock runs Windows Mobile 6.1, I've installed a unofficial ROM first(called Simplicity ROM), so I was running the latest build of Windows Mobile 6.5 and within Sense 2.5, so I bought my first Android phone. And some time after the XDAndroid developer team released a Android port for my device, and now I use it too, but on Android.
My first Motorola Milestone is running a custom Android 2.3 Gingerbread ROM, even that my carrier haven't released any official ROM for it. It runs very stable and it's a lot better than the 2.1(stock default) and the 2.2(custom too). So there are no problems if you can flash custom ROMs.

"If your phone is a bit old so it will be slow running a newer version of Android" - not exactly true.  I have an HTC Hero which originally came with 1.5 (and now comes with 2.1) but since I put CM6 (which is Android 2.2) my Hero is much faster and has better battery-life.

That's because Android made some system performance improvements :)

Exactly - which is why what you said is not exactly true.

Ok, corrected :)

Right now Gingerbread and Honeycomb use hardware acceleration for graphics. While it could be done without, phones that lack GPUs that can do this will not see these version.
To be Google Certified devices must be able to launch core apps within a certain amount of mili-seconds.

@liori: your phone can't display time in "miniseconds"? you should ask for a refund.


text:
Where and how can I upgrade my Galaxy 5 legally to Froyo?

Possible Duplicate:
When will my phone get the Android 2.2 update (FroYo)?

I have a Galaxy 550 and want to upgrade it to android 2.2 where and how can i do this legal?
thanks already.

It depends also on your wireless provider.
Even if Samsung releases an update, that provider may need to adjust it to fit their technical (and commercial) needs.

If the update is available in your region, take it to your nearest Samsung authorised service centre and get it flashed. Make sure to back up all your data and perform a factory reset before handing it across.
I'm uncertain about what you intend to mean by "legal"?

Isn't it possible to upgrade to android 2.2 using Samsung's Kies (of course, supposing that the update would already be available)?

@Rabarberski - Indeed it is. Provided, as you mention, the update is available for the particular region.

Is there some easy way to know when Samsung will make it available for my region? I've looked for RSS on their site but couldn't find any.

Not really - although I'd recommend you check out http://samfirmware.com - it's an unofficial repository of official Samsung Firmwares (not customized).


text:
How do I change the Wi-Fi hotspot channel?
Is it possibe to change the channel my phone broadcasts its Wi-Fi hotspot on?
Right now it's using the same channel as my neighbour (6). My router is reporting several unused slots.

If you're referring to the one built into Froyo (and I assume Gingerbread), when you're creating your hostspot hit the Menu button and you'll see Advanced options. In there you can select the channel.

I'm reasonably sure that you cannot change the WiFi hotspot channel without firmware modification in standard Android Gingerbread.
I have an Nexus One (Android version 2.3.6) and I have not found any advanced menu accessible from the menu button and I've tried hitting the menu button to no avail in every WiFi tethering page. I've only been able to change SSID, Key & Security mode.


text:
How do I import all contacts from a SIM-card to an Android phone?
My mother have got a HTC Wildfire with Android 2.2.
Now I want to import all contacts from her old SIM-card to the phone. I did it and it worked. Then I switched to the new SIM-card, and now when I start the phone, the contacts has disappeared.
How can I import the contacts from the old SIM-card to the Android phone? This is a really annoying problem.

Possible duplicate: http://android.stackexchange.com/q/637/2422

@Daniel: I do not want to transfer my contacts to Google.

I found a pre-installed app on the HTC Wildfire Transfer Data that transferred all contacts and SMS from the old SonyEricsson phone, it was exactly what I needed.

Two questions:

Are you sure the SIM contacts were really imported or only displayed.
Is the option to show phone contacts checked after you changed the SIM.

If you go to Contacts, press Menu -> Import/Export -> Import from SIM card.
The SIM contacts should be imported into the phone and remain there. It is then just a matter of getting phone contacts displayed.

I did exactly this Menu > Import/Export > Import from SIM card and it worked. But all contacts were cleared when I switched to the new SIM card.

An additional hint: if you have swapped the SIM cards around while the phone was still switched on, the contacts app will show SIM contacts from whatever SIM was in the phone when the it was restarted, but there will be no "import from SIM card" option on the menu. You'll need to reboot to get this option back.

Follow these steps:

Open Contacts. You can reach this from the contacts shortcut in your app drawer or home screen, or via the contacts tab in your phone dialer.
Press the Menu button.
Select Import/Export.
Select Export from SIM.
Click Select All, or manually tick each contact you wish to copy to the phone.
You may be asked where to copy the contacts to; select the appropriate option.

It takes no more than a second or two to copy over a few hundred contacts, so you'll be done in less than the time it takes to send yourself just one via SMS.

If like most people you use a Google account on your android phone, import your contacts to your google account, then they will be on any future android phone as soon as you sign in.

You can copy all your SIM contacts to HTC Wildfire S. Import them as phone contacts, Google contacts, or Exchange ActiveSync contacts, if you have set up the relevant accounts.
From the Home screen, tap  > People.
On the All tab, press , and then tap Import/Export > Import from SIM card.
If you have Google or Exchange ActiveSync accounts set up on HTC Wildfire S, tap the type for the imported contacts.
Do one of the following:
Tap one or more SIM contacts you want to import.
To import all contacts, press , and then tap Select all.
Tap Save.

Isn't this the same as this answer describes? 2) OP referred to the "original Wildfire" (no "S") ;)


text:
Market app crashes when I try to scroll
For the last day or two I have had trouble in the default Market application.
When I try to scroll in the "Just In" area the application just stops working. I get a black screen for while then I get an error that process com.android.vending has crashed.
My device is a Samsung Galaxy Tab and I get crashes in all "Just In" sections such as "Just In" in games, apps/tool etc.
What it could be?

I would try and clear the cache of this application

menu
Settings
Applications
Manage Applications
All
Market
Clear cache

Just to see whether this should help.
You might also want to click the 'Clear data' button but than you must login to your account again.

I did it even before I asked my question but becouse lack of my English I did not mentoed that. But no help still no scrol

@adopilot: Try install AppDroid http://www.appbrain.com/app/appbrain-app-market/com.appspot.swisscodemonkeys.apps . You can at least install and lookup software . See if this works.


text:
Widget to immediately phone a specific contact?
I have a widget that places an icon of a specific contact on my home screen.
Whenever I touch it, the phone immediately dials that person.
Problem is - I already forgot what the widget is called (I'd like to install it on a new phone). Can you help me identify it?

I'm not sure if this is HTC specific, but this is what I need to do to get a "direct dial" icon on my HTC desire.

Long press on where you want to add the icon
Hit 'Shortcut'
Hit 'Direct Dial'
Select the contact you want to use (if the contact has more than one number, you'll need to pick which one)

There should now be an icon that will have that contact's photo and a small phone symbol on the bottom right. If you hit the icon, you'll immediately dial the contact.

This is standard since Android 2.1 at least, probably earlier.

There are too many 3rd-party apps and widgets that allow you to place "direct dial" type of widgets and/or shortcuts on the home screen.  Have you installed this from Android Market?  In that case you should be able to browse through your installed apps in Market -> My Apps section.  You can then look up each app's description to see if that's the one that gave you this functionality.


text:
Is there a way to save profiles on Motorola's Droid X?
When I had an HTC Eris I could change "profiles".  Each profile was basically:  wallpaper + screen lock image + all apps on your desktop.  So, I could have a work profile that had my apps that were geared for while I was at work, a social profile to switch my phone to having FB, Twitter, etc on my desktop with a different wallpaper, etc.
Is there an app for that?  ;)

Note: This looks like it is popping up as a feature in Gingerbread

What you're referring to are called HTC Scenes (Hero Scenes link).  Off the top of my head I don't know of anything like that and only HTC devices have the HTC Scenes.
I just did a quick search of the market and didn't come up with anything so my initial guess is:
No, there is nothing like that currently. You would either need a Sense-based custom ROM (not sure if there are any for the Droid X) or an HTC device.

well....  shoot!


text:
Android - how to install apk from SD card
Is it possible to install an app to an Android phone from an SD card?  To install it without a data connection, the marketplace, or using ADB?
I've tried searching for this but no luck so far.

If you have a file browser app installed, such as ASTRO, you can browse to the apk file on your SD card, click the apk, and it should pop up the apk installer.

You also have to enable unknown sources.

Another way is to copy it to the download folder of the browser (which can vary, so find it first) and than go over the browser to the downloaded files and start it from there.

Simply call the following URL in your browser:
file:///sdcard/yourApp.apk
It works!

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


text:
Samsung Galaxy S problem :WiFi doesn't reconnect with SSID broadcast disabled
Hi
I have a problem with my Wifi connection.
My Samsung Galaxy S does not connect to my Linksys wrt54g router after I'm disabling the SSID broadcast.
The connection is automatically returned when I enable the SSID Broadcast.
Why is it like that and how can I fix it?
Thanks.

Possible duplicate: http://android.stackexchange.com/questions/2782/android-2-1-htc-hero-eu-and-wifi-configuration-issues/

This is because Android by default (manufactures could of added something ) connect using only the SSID, not the BSSID.
See this issue : http://code.google.com/p/android/issues/detail?id=1041
This app here might help: https://market.android.com/details?id=jp.sourceforge.soopy.hidden.ssid.enabler&feature=search_result
This is the design to connect by SSID instead of BSSID for mesh networks, this becomes helpful.
Also if your router and phone support WPS button, try that.

Disabling the SSID broadcast doesn't provide any meaningful security to your wireless network. The days that it might help make your network harder to spot are long, long past.
As such the best "fix" is to re-enable the SSID broadcast.

This is right, not displaying the SSID does not help at all, you still show up to every computer. WPA is the only working security for WiFi. (WPA-AES has better OS support)


text:
How do I put back 3G data connection
Maybe a month ago I set my device to use only wifi for data connection. Now, with a bigger data package, I try to find where I can put back 3G for data connection.
I didn't do any fancy tricks nor # 4036# ... things.
Any ideas ?

You can turn 3G data back on through 'Settings'.

Go to 'Settings'
Go to 'Wireless & Networks'
Somewhere near the bottom should be 'Mobile Network' - enable it

Now you're phone should have both 3G and WiFi enabled. If it can connect to a WiFi, it'll use WiFi; otherwise, it'll fall back to use 3G.
edit: as Seth pointed out below, these instructions may differ slightly between android phones (but should be relatively similar). Instructions above are for the HTC Desire.

The option on his phone should list, Use Packet Data

Thank you. I had to turn off and on the device for the change to take effect.

I am using Samsung Nexus S.
I think most of the android phones are very similar.
Please follow the following steps;

Go to "Settings";
Go to "Wireless & Networks"
Scroll down to the bottom, go to "Mobile network settings".

Now you could enable "Data enabled" option, which is the first option could be selected.
Then, you could access the network through wifi or 3G.
Good luck.


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Blank screenshots on Android tablet
I use ddms to take screenshots of my phone and it works fine, but when I try to do the same with my tablet I just get a black image. The phone is a Samsung Intercept running Android 2.2; the tablet is a ViewSonic gTablet with Cyanogenmod 7. I found a forum post that mentions that Tegra devices (like the gTablet) don't use fb0, so normal screenshots don't work, but it also claims that screenshots taken through adb connections work and they don't for me -- I get the same black image. Is that the reason ddms doesn't work on my tablet? Is there a workaround that will let me take screenshots?

I believe I have one of these device (mine is branded as something else but the US brand is the ViewSonic gTablet). I cannot recall if I have tried to do a screenshot with DDMS or not. I don't know why the forums you read would say adb would work becuase ADB uses the same method as DDMS.
I will try my device when I get home from work today, in the mean time, I have read that these apps should work with the device.
All of these are paid apps, they may have a free/lite version but I dont know if they will work for your issue.
Screenshot ER - Requires Root
Screen Shot It - Requires Root
No Root Screen Shot It - NO ROOT REQUIRED (but I am not sure if this works)


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SSH Tunnel with Android
Without rooting, how can I SSH tunnel to my homePC running sshd?

I need ssh tunnel to VNC home, but i don't trust VNC, so I want to use it with SSH to make it safe!

Thank you for any help!

If you want to connect to your home PC from your phone, there is ConnectBot

Take a look at QuickSSHd - it claims "root" is optional, but I don't know whether it'll work with what you're trying to achieve.
There's also the quite popular ConnectBot which should allow you to tunnel in to your PC.


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How can I get a vanilla Android device?
OK I'm about to buy an Android phone for development, but I will try to keep this question from becoming a shopping recommendation.
I want to have vanilla Android on my phone (i.e. not Sense or TouchWiz or something similar). Can I just buy a random phone and somehow revert it back to vanilla Android? Is there any risk of compatibility problems or hardware problems when doing that?
An easier option is to buy a phone that comes with vanilla Android, but the options are limited. As far as I know (i.e. not much), the only phones with pure Android are Nexus One, Nexus S, ADP and ADP2. Is that really it?

I saw vanilla as an existing tag but cannot tag my question as such. Bug?

Vanilla android comes in: HTC G1 (Cupcake/1.5), HTC Nexus One (Eclair/2.2), Samsung Nexus S (Gingerbread/2.3), and Motorola Xoom (Honeycomb/3.0). Vanilla 3rd party ROMs exists for most phones with unlocked bootloaders.

@Lie Ryan: Nexus One was originally sold with Eclair/2.1, but now it has Gingerbread/2.3.3.

@Lie How do I find phone with unlocked bootloaders? Or should that be in another question?

If you buy a vanilla phone make sure the supported frequency bands match the provider you want to use it on. These are usually defined by the hardware and can not be changed.

This question allows vanilla to denote any stock Android version designed for Nexus, only allowing for variation in hardware drivers--thus preserving the look and structure of the OS as developed by Google.

Yes, you should buy a Nexus One or a Nexus S. If you buy another phone like e.g. HTC Wildfire, you can't easily get the "vanilla" Android.

As @Joanas said, if you buy a phone with some customized software, like the ones from HTC or Samsung you will end with a phone with extra software and libraries (not included in vanilla Android), so if what you are looking for is a "clean" phone for development purposes, I'll recommend you to buy a Nexus. There is also the fact that being Nexus the “official” Google phone, is always the first to receive the new android versions, so if you are a developer this is a plus to consider.

@Doliveras Thanks! I'm actually buying a Nexus S today!

You can get whatever phone you want, but since you're a developer you might not have any problems with flashing custom ROMs, and there are awesome custom ROMs for all the devices out there that will not come with any customization, just pure Vanilla.
If you want a good place to publish/promote your development work and also find the custom ROMs for the device that you need is XDA Developers

If you're on a budget, I believe many of the older Samsung phones (pre-Galaxy S) are vanilla since Samsung introduced TouchWiz with its Galaxy S line of phones.  You can get some of these older phones (not really that old, like a year) for very cheap on eBay if you're just looking for a device to develop on and don't want to pay for phone service with a data plan.
You can look at the list of phones that have TouchWiz at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TouchWiz and cross-reference it with a list of Samsung Android phones (you could use this: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_Android_devices#Smartphones).


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Plugging phones into tablets
I have an android tablet (1) and phone (2). Using the phone as a wireless hotspot drains the battery almost as fast as having the phone screen on. I'd like to be able to use it as a tethered hotspot and charge the phone from the larger battery in the tablet (3) but I have two problems - micro usb to micro usb cables don't seem to exist and i'm not sure that a micro to usb converter + a micro usb to usb cable is worth setting up - does it do anything useful?

motorola xoom - answer may be honeycomb specific
nexus one
Copying files would be nice but is a plus.

You would need to enable USB host mode on your xoom. Google this for some more details on this - you will need a rooted xoom; there will also be links to USB OTG (on the go) cables that will let you use this (most of them seem to be micro-USB to USB female, into which you would then need to plug your normal USB cable).
I don't know if this USB OTG configuration would actually charge your phone - some USB OTG don't provide power at all.
Copying files would work on this really easily (I think that's what it's generally been done for), but network may be a little trickier - it would rely on the xoom having the usb network drivers for your N1, which it might not (in that case you'd need to compile the drivers/kernel modules for your xoom, where it starts to get messy :-/ )

Sorry for dropping off the radar. It certainly sounds sensible, but as it happens I've upgraded to a galaxy nexus so I've not tested your answer as my xoom is mostly just sitting in my bag looking forlorn.


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How can I turn my android phone into a remote control (mouse/keyboard) through bluetooth for ubuntu/linux
There are a lot of apps that turn an android phone into a remote control for a desktop system, but only for windows based systems.
I use ubuntu and I only find Remote droid , works ok but only through a wifi network.
https://market.android.com/details?id=com.joshsera&feature=search_result
I tried to used blueputdroid, and the app told me that didnot have support for my rom. My phone is a samsung galaxy S with android 2.1
https://market.android.com/search?q=blueputdroid&so=1&c=apps
Are there other apps that I do not know?

Update: Check UnifiedRemote -- site reference.
Requires Windows and .NET Framework 4.

Older reference,
Have you tried URemoteDesktop?

Designed to remote control any Ubuntu
  desktop PC. (also can be used on
  windows, but was designed for Ubuntu).
  Change music (Previous, Next,
  Play/Pause, Mute)
  On Ubuntu any player
  on system. (Totem, SongBird <<< no
  need on focus the app).
  On Windows
  (Windows Media Player Presenter
  functions (Next, previous) Compatible
  with Power Point and OpenOffice.
Screen Control / Desktop Control
Remote WIFI Keyboard

Thanks its works, but I would like to have bluetooth support

Oops, I picked the wrong one then. Updated now.