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My Samsung Galaxy GT-19100 phone is stopped taking snapshot after my up-gradation from ICS 4.0.3 to ICS 4.0.4. Volume (-) key and power button pressing together is not taking snapshot now. Is this version of ICS doesn't have screenshot facility or something else is the reason? | You can do this by holding the power button + the home button simultaneously. | How to take screenshot on GT-19100 with ICS 4.0.4? | android |
It may be too late to ask for such a thing... I checked my Kindle Fire 1st generation model and found a camera on the top left of the device. At least, it just looks like the camera on any phone or camera enabled device. The listing of features on original Kindle Fire shows that there is no camera. Is this something any others have experienced? Or is it something different from a camera? I have not tried to download any app to use camera on the device. Any interesting info would be helpful. | Are you sure that this is camera? It is more likely a light/proximity sensor... | Does the Kindle Fire original have a camera? | android |
galaxy nexus unlocked bootloader no adb enabled rooted device encryption on with 10+ characters (Cryptfs Password - Google play) PIN screen lock with 6 characters Am I safe if someone wants to extract data from my phone with phone on and off ? what should I do improve ? Did I miss anything ? | The combination of encryption, PIN lock, and having ADB turned off should protect your data pretty well. It could still be compromised if someone finds a security flaw that can be exploited through the network or the MTP USB connection, but that risk exists in any case. However, with your bootloader unlocked, someone could take your phone, flash a malicious ROM that contains keystroke loggers or something, and then return the phone to you and wait for you to type your PIN or decryption password. It'd be better to keep the bootloader locked whenever you don't actually need to flash things via fastboot. You can use BootUnlocker to lock and unlock the bootloader from within the running Android system. Unlike <code> fastboot oem unlock </code> , this doesn't wipe your data when you unlock. | Unlocked bootloader, encryption | android |
My mother is considering to get an Android tablet - probably a Nexus 7 or 10. Because I don't live near her, I might need to provide some remote assistance -- and you probably know that talking her through things on the phone is not very efficient, especially when I can't actually see what's on her screen. I don't want to access the file system, read SMS messages, download photos, etc. I just want to see what she sees so that I can talk her through whatever she needs help with. Is there an Android equivalent of running a VNC server so that I can see the exact screen my mom is currently seeing? The "VNC server" apps I've seen in the Play Store are more like remote desktop apps and they all seem to require to launch an app from the device -- then you can see Android on your pc but not on the device which wouldn't help my mom. Is it possible to do some kind of screen-sharing on Android, similar to a PC running VNC? Could this work via a PC (Windows, Linux), or would I need another Android device, or perhaps even an identical Android tablet? | I attempted to get VNC options working, but they're all buggy. In particular the keyboard mappings and clunky and the screens never seem to render correctly. I even wrote to an author offering money for improvements but never got anything back. Teamviewer 8 is the only solution I've found where it actually works the way it is supposed to (i.e. seamlessly). Teamviewer is free for personal use, which is a bonus, but it is by far and away the best solution I have found. It properly supports the Android home/nav keys and has complete and properly mapped support for keyboard input. To use it, install Teamviewer 8 on your PC/Mac, and " Teamviewer Quicksupport " on your Android device. As far as I know, root is not required. No, I don't work for Teamviewer. | How can I remote support an Android tablet? | android |
I lost my data upgrading to M1 CM10.1 through CMUpdate, but I still see it when I go into clockwork recovery mod. I tried accessing it through adb and adb shell but I cannot find it. Furthermore my Galaxy Nexus is reporting that it's full. I have tried this method: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1994705 However, it does not recover all my data and if it does it's often renamed and/or corrupted (i.e. images merged together, mp3s losing metadata, and so on) Is there a way to access it using CWM and copy it to my PC? What commands is CWM using to access that otherwise inaccessible data that I could run from adb? I tried tweeting the CWM guy but he never got back to me. | If you were going from CM10 to CM10.1 — that is, moving from Android 4.1 to 4.2 — your data "loss" is probably because the path to your emulated SD card has changed due to the new multiuser support. Previously, the SD card was <code> /data/media </code> , but now it's a subdirectory such as <code> /data/media/0 </code> , with additional subdirectories (such as <code> /data/media/1 </code> ) for additional user accounts. The files should've been moved to the new location automatically when you first booted CM10.1, but maybe that didn't happen. Using a root file manager or shell, create a <code> /data/media/0 </code> directory if it doesn't exist already, and then move all the other files from <code> /data/media </code> into the <code> 0 </code> subdirectory, and it should become visible within Android again. If you use ClockworkMod for backups, you may find that it can no longer find your backups directory, because it's still looking for <code> /data/media/clockworkmod </code> , not <code> /data/media/0/clockworkmod </code> . You can fix that by creating a symlink in the old location. From a root shell, run these two commands: <code> cd /data/media ln -s 0/clockworkmod clockworkmod </code> | Lost data upgrading roms, but data is still there when viewed with Clockwork and Clockwork alone. Can I recover it? | android |
I found several questions here where people want to merge several of their contacts into one. I'm having exactly the opposite problem: On both my Android devices (Google Nexus 4 and Nexus 7), two of my contacts were automatically merged, without noticing or asking me first. I noticed this when I didn't find my mother anymore in my contacts. After some searching, I found that my father's entry now had two cell phone numbers (his own and my mother's) and two dates of birth (again, his own and my mother's). Now I understand how it's possible that they were recognized as "similar" (both share the same last name, street adress, non-cell phone number and e-mail adress), but it's beyond me why on earth it would just merge them automatically, without any notice? Please note that they are still two separate contacts in the GMail web interface. They are just merged in the contact apps of both my Android devices. I had another Android phone until a few days ago (HTC Wildfire with Android 2.2), but I don't know if they were already merged there too or if this is a new bug in Android 4.2. Finally, I compared my complete contact list on my phone with the one in GMail, on order to find out if more contacts were merged. But my parents were the only ones, even though I have a few more married couples with the same names and adresses in there. Any idea why this happens and how I can separate them into two different contacts again? | I found a solution that kind of works, but IMO it's still unsatisfying. After some googling, I found that this is a known bug in Android . Apparently it's fixed (the issue is closed), but I don't think so, because not only do I have these problems now , there are also comments with complaints which were posted after the date when the issue was closed. One of the comments had a solution that works for me, but it's not ideal: When I edit the contact (which has my father's name, as mentioned in the question) it shows both contacts to edit...still on the same screen, but clearly separated as different contacts. On this screen, I can separate or merge them in the options menu. When I choose to separate them, they become two different contacts again...but only on this device. I have to repeat that on the other device in order to separate them there as well. | Why were some of my contacts automatically merged without notice? | android |
I have an LG Optimus One P500 phone which has an official update limited to Android Gingerbread 2.2.3. But I've heard of people installing ICS custom ROMS on their phone even though officially it is not supported. My phone has the following specifications: CPU: 600MHz RAM: 512MB Current OS: Gingerbread (runs very smoothly with no lags for any tasks) So I'm just trying to find out what are the minimum requirements for ICS and whether a phone will continue to function as smoothly as it did for Gingerbread. | As stackexchange-url ("Peter mentioned"), the requirements given might apply to stock ROM. Things may look different with special Custom ROMs. Take e.g. the HTC Wildfire , which comes with just a 576MHz single-core CPU and 384MB RAM (see GSM Arena for full specs), and thus wouldn't meet the minimum requirements. But put Paranoid ROM on it , which runs 4.0, and it's reported to run even smoother than before (no big deal, after kicking HTC Sense, I guess ;) So it very much depends on multiple factors: How close does the device come to the "minimum requirements", and how well was the custom ROM optimized. I'd say with your specs that close (even slightly above) to the mentioned HTC Wildfire/Buzz, chances are good -- very good, indeed: Head over to XDA, read the topic, and grab your copy of Paranoid Android for the Optimus One (P500) : Android 4.1.2 ParanoidAndroid v2.2 Fully source compiled. | Is it possible to install a higher Android version on a phone and have it still running smoothly? | android |
I Googled for one document, a PDF file. If I navigate to that link using my device browser, the document starts downloading. However, what I actually want is the actual URL to the document copied to my clipboard, not the Google link which redirects. | I have Samsung Galaxy S2, running CM10.1 On my stock Browser, I can long-press a link. A menu opens, and one of the menu items is <code> Copy link URL </code> . | Copying links off Google Search results directly | android |
I recently updated to the 10.1 M snapshot of CyanogenMod for my Sprint Galaxy S3 (d2spr). Ever since I did the update, I have been seeing crazy high battery usage from Google Services. I have tried just about everything I can think of to shut it off, but nothing seems to be working. I'm connected to Wi-Fi most of the day, so I don't think 3G has anything to do with it. Attempted Troubleshooting: Turn off Google Account Sync (per stackexchange-url ("this question")) Turn off Google Now Turn off Location reporting If possible, I'd like to fix this without using Juice Defender or any other battery management apps, but if that's what it takes, so be it. So how can I get Google Services to stop sucking the life out of my phone? | This is most likely some app utilizing Google Services. You don't show the details screen to be reached when tapping the graph on top of your first screenshot. Please check there, and cross-check with stackexchange-url ("How to deal with (orphaned) WakeLocks?") -- the "keep awake" of your second screenshot suggest Wakelocks as the "source of evil". The part What if it is the Android System itself? should help you track the issue down further. Another possible -- no, very likely candidate is found in another question I just stumbled upon: stackexchange-url ("Google Services is killing my battery by keeping phone awake"). Sound familiar? ;) | Google Services battery usage | android |
Is it possible to disable the native email application that comes with the samsung galaxy s3? I feel that the UI is inferior to the gmail app . If so would this require rooting into my phone? | Summary of comments, as requested by the OP: If your device is running Android 4.x, you can simply go to Settings → Applications → Manage Applications , scroll to the app, oben its entry, and hit the "Disable" button -- et voila, it's "gone", and will no longer appear in any other place. If you need it again at a later point, it will still be at the end of the list, so you can enable it again. Note though, that some manufacturers / ROM builders decided to preventing some apps from being disabled. Nothing you can do in that case without root. If you rooted your device, on the other hand, apps like e.g. Titanium Backup ★ root would let you freeze those apps as well. Note also GAThrawn's comment: If you don't configure the email app, it won't run. Some homescreen replacements (aka "launchers") allow you to hide unwanted apps from the app drawer (e.g. GO Launcher EX ), so you at least can ban them in some way. | replace native samsung galaxy s3 email app for gmail app? | android |
I own Samsung Galaxy Nexus, it has been unlocked, rooted, I'm using CWM Recovery Touch and a few weeks ago I updated firmware to <code> 4.2.1 </code> (build <code> JOP40D </code> ). It seems that <code> Superuser </code> is no longer working on <code> 4.2 </code> versions and I must use <code> SuperSu </code> (so I installed it from the Play, but probably it's not at all). Problems: can't start Recovery in fastboot mode, it shows something like <code> no command </code> on some error screen (but in my language). Before this screen it tries to boot or something (Google logo for a while). can't do anything with ADB or Galaxy Nexus Toolkit, after reboot to the fastboot I stuck at <code> <waiting for device> </code> message. can't update CWM Recovery from CWM Rom Manager, probably due to <code> su </code> problem. I haven't found any solution within discussions (useless as always), but everybody's asking about <code> adb devices </code> , so my output is: <code> 0149A5310A021040 device </code> I can hack it with my Windows or Linux, but need some advice, thanks. | Problem solved, but I don't understand what happened. While I got stuck on <code> <waiting for device> </code> message, I've tried <code> Reboot bootloader </code> option and process has been successfully completed. But I haven't to do this first time when I was unlocking, rooting, and installing Recovery and AOKP. | SGN 4.2.1 - stuck at | android |
Sometimes my SD card gets "corrupted" and this leads to many read/write errors. Usually, connecting the SD card to the windows 7 and selecting the "Error Checking" (Right click the drive > Tools > Error Checking) option finds the corruption and fixes it. Is there any tool or app for checking SD cards for drive errors and fixing the same from within the android itself ? I'd also like to mention that I'm on rooted froyo with busybox installed. | You can fix this with the help of root and a terminal emulator (e.g. Android Terminal Emulator (or, alternatively, using <code> adb shell </code> ). The binary to do the job is called <code> fsck </code> , and usually located in either <code> /system/xbin </code> or <code> /system/bin </code> . Sometimes you need a special variant of it, which might e.g. be called <code> fsck.exfat </code> or the like. So first let's make sure we find the right binary: <code> cd /system/xbin ls fsc* </code> If not found, repeat with <code> /system/bin </code> . I will assume here it was found in the first place, and is simply called <code> fsck </code> (adjust the following correspondingly if that's not the case). As <code> fsck </code> comes from the "Linux core", we can consult its man page for the syntax. Though there might be some options not working on Android, the most basic ones should. See the linked man page for details (or run a Linux VM and use <code> man fsck </code> in case that page disappears) -- I will stick to the basics here: First we need to find the device your SD card is bound to. If it's mounted, the <code> mount </code> command will assist us: <code> mount </code> That's it, basically: Check the output and see where your SD card sits. Usually this is something using <code> vold </code> , but it's different between devices. Output may include something like <code> /dev/block/vold/179:17 on /mnt/storage/sdcard </code> -- in that case, the first part of my quote is our device. In order to repair the "drive", you need to unmount it first. This can be done via the settings menu, or, as we're just in the terminal, by issuing <code> umount /dev/block/vold/179:17 </code> Now we can go for the repair job. Basic syntax is: <code> fsck [options] [-t fstype] <filesystem> [fsoptions] </code> So we first try the simplest approach and hope <code> fsck </code> figures out everything itself: <code> fsck -C -r /dev/block/vold/179:17 </code> Which basically means: Show progress (-C), and always ask the user to repair (-r) any errors on <code> /dev/block/vold/179:17 </code> . If this does not work out, check with the linked man page for further options. | Check and fix SD card errors within Android itself? | android |
I recently flashed my HTC ONE X ATT with CyanogenMod 10.1 and noticed that Flash Player is not installed. I tried to find it on Google Play, but it says that Flash is not compatible with my handset. How can I install Flash Player on my handset, so flash content works on all my browsers (Browser, Dolphin, Firefox and Chrome)? I manually installed Flash Player 11.1.115.36 for Android 4.0, but it's only working on Firefox. | Download flash from here: http://helpx.adobe.com/flash-player/kb/archived-flash-player-versions.html . The stock browser is best but if you can't use that Firefox is 2nd when it comes to | Flash player issue on CM 10.1 | android |
Somehow I have managed to get my Android phone (HTC Wildfire running Cyanogenmod 7.1 / Android 2.3.7) into a state where the system load (in unix uptime format) and running process list is constantly displayed on top of the screen, no matter what is running. How do I turn this feature off? (For the avoidance of doubt, I think this happened while the phone was unlocked in my pocket. I never explicitly asked for this behaviour.) | Oh dear, the moment I offer a bounty on this question, I bump into the solution myself. Cyanogenmod has a "Dev Tools" app. In "Development Settings" in this app, uncheck "Show running processes" to make this go away. | How to switch on/off system load and running processes overlay | android |
I have Samsung Galaxy S Duos and had a issue of calendar sync. While trying to clear data, I mistakenly force-stopped the Google Calendar Sync app. Now, the calendar sync is not working. It gives an error: <code> Sync is currently experiencing problems. It will be back shortly. </code> How do I start the Google Calendar Sync app again? | Download and install the Google Calendar from the Market. Source . | Starting the Google calendar sync in Samsung Galaxy S Duos | android |
Both my Motorola Bionic and OG have bad audio jacks that require significant jiggling around to get a constant connection almost every time I plug them in. Once it's "good" I can leave it alone and it works great but if I bump the connection it could disconnect again. Is there any resolution to this? Is this true for other phones as well? It doesn't matter what OS version, it's the hardware connection itself. | The jack is probably dirty, or the wires could have loose connections in the phone. Try cleaning the headphone jack. | Motorola Bionic and OG have bad audio jacks | android |
Google Now can call all of my contacts... except for one: James P*****. See the following screenshot: Screenshot: Call James (click image for larger variant) What? Who the hell is James A. Kellam? An attorney, apparently, but I don't know him. Let's try a similar name, also in my contacts: Jimmy P***** (same last name, different contact): Screenshot: Call Jimmy (click image for larger variant) As you can see, that works as expected. I find this strange because they are both Google contacts. They both show up on <code> http://contacts.google.com </code> and they are both marked as Google contacts on my phone. Why can't I call James through Google Now, but I can call Jimmy? I am running CyanogenMod 10.0.0-d2vzw on a Samsung Galaxy S III. | I have several contacts that act the same way. Sometimes when I append the contact's number's label to the end of my spoken command it helps; something like, "Call John Smith, mobile" or "Call John Smith, home." | Google Now is not able to call one of my Google contacts | android |
I have the following scenario: A user have a Android OS tablet that have Android 4.0 The tablet have a full USB port (not the mini USB port) The user have a thumbdrive that have a <code> boot from USB </code> version Ubuntu. Is it possible and how do the user goes about booting the USB Ubuntu on an Android OS tablet? This also apply to any <code> boot from USB </code> version OS. | Short answer: No . Longer answer: The thumb-drive version of Ubuntu is for x86 processors. There are ways to run Ubuntu in Android, all of them requiring a Ubuntu port with an ARM architecture. Search for Complete Linux Installer in the Play Store for basic stuff. It will rum on top of Android in a virtualized environment, and you can connect to its environment and everything. Just download the image and put it on your flash drive instead. | Can I boot into other OS (such as Ubuntu) from an Android OS tablet that have a USB host? | android |
I have a Galaxy Nexus phone. I want to install JellyBean manually, but I don't know which one of these I should download. How do I know if my phone is maguro, toro or toroplus? | Go to <code> Settings > About phone > Model number </code> , and see which one matches: Samsung Galaxy Nexus (Maguro; GSM/HSPA+) - GT-I9250 Samsung Galaxy Nexus (Toro; Verizon; CDMA/LTE) - SGH-I515 Samsung Galaxy Nexus (Toro Plus; Sprint; CDMA/LTE) - SPH-L700 Edit #1: You can also check the back casing if it has Verizon (toro) or Sprint (toroplus) written on it. If not, then you have maguro. | How to find out my Galaxy Nexus' version? (maguro, toro or toroplus) | android |
I'm switching from iPhone to the Nexus 4 (yay!) and I know that the Nexus 4 doesn't come with a headset. I also know that for simple audio playback, any stereo headset can be used -- but I also want to use the headset to: adjust volume with in-cable +/- buttons, start/stop music playback with in-cable middle button, start/end calls with in-cable middle button, telephony with in-cable microphone. The Apple headsets provide these abilities on iPhone so I'm assuming that something similar would work on Android as well (and specifically on the Nexus 4). I've tried connecting the Apple wired headset to a borrowed Nexus 4, but the in-cable buttons didn't work. I'm not really surprised because I assume that the buttons send coded signals that are proprietary. How can I select a wired headset that is compatible with the Nexus 4? I can't very well buy one and test it, buy another if it doesn't work right, and continue until I succeed. Surely, there is a solution here that I have been too Apple-brainwashed to see? Alternatively, if this isn't possible on a stock Android: Is there an add-on package to Android that catches the signals from an iPhone headset and sends appropriate commands to the system? | Summary from my comments, as requested, as an answer: There are plenty of other headset controller apps on the playstore if you're worried about the permissions. I tried Jays once, but it only worked partially (in 9 out of 10 tries, I had no luck to adjust the volume -- instead, other actions were triggered, as e.g. pause/play). Having a Philips headset, I tried Philips Headset -- and am quite satisfied: Volume control, play/pause/skip, accept/refuse/hangup call, all possible smoothly. Most of the headset control apps want to make calls. As my device is rooted, I control such things with the LBE app: Neither Jays nor Philips Headset abused this privilege. Most headset control apps seem to work with most headsets, more or less. As my example with Jays and a Philips headset shows, some features might not be available/working. But you cannot break anything trying. So I'd suggest to give it a try first: If one app doesn't work out, try another. If none works the way you need it, you still can go for another headset; having checked some of the control apps, you then already know which companies have a specific app. As said, my Philips headset works fine with the Philips app -- others reported the same for Jays. Reading the comments will give you more details and help you finding a good combination. | How do I choose a wired headset whose buttons work? | android |
I have been using my Nexus 7 for schoolwork and I love it. One problem, however, is that when I connect to my Bluetooth keyboard I no longer get auto-correct suggestions. I then decided to install Swiftkey 3 and discovered that if I had SwiftKey set as the default I could see a prediction bar, but there was still no auto-correct/auto-completion. How can I have auto-correct enabled when a hardware keyboard is connected? | Looks like it has been reported as a SwiftKey bug for the Nexus 10 as well. Your best best is probably wait to get this fixed. I suggest you click the Vote button in their support site to increase the bug's priority. I just added 3 votes for you! NOTE: I don't use SwiftKey. I use GO Keyboard. | Turn on auto-correct when using a Bluetooth keyboard | android |
As everyone knows, the development of Adobe Flash for mobile devices was discontinued. I have an external device I want to access. It has a web server installed running a HTML script with an embedded Flash movie. Since I am not able to download a compatible Flash version on Google Play and have a device that runs Android 2.2.1 Froyo and another device that runs 4.0.3 Android Ice Cream Sandwich, my question is: Where can I get an Android version of Flash Player that may run on Froyo as well as on Android 4.0.3 ICS? I've downloaded the APK files here . NOTE: I am no way affiliated with chip.de | You can obtain the apks for Flash for all versions of Android directly from Adobe in their old version archives. http://helpx.adobe.com/flash-player/kb/archived-flash-player-versions.html Scroll down a bit and you'll find "Flash Player for Android 4.0 archives" and "Flash Player for Android 2.x and 3.x archives". These include the last versions of each released before Abode dropped Flash for Android. | Where to get Flash Player for Android 2.2 Froyo | android |
The apps kept crashing on my phone (even MIUI Home) so I shut it down using the long power press and selecting shut down/power off option. When I powered it back on, it just stays stuck on the Samsung logo boot screen with the yellow warning sign (which has been there ever since I rooted it). Here's what I tried which didn't work: List item cleared cache, dalvik, fixed permissions - FAIL with above, it means booting into CWM works fine but booting into OS fails reflashed with MIUI i9100 ICS 2.12.14 (still downloading 3.1.25 as I type this) - FAIL removed micro SD and SIM and tried booting - FAIL earlier today, it started doing the crashing thing too but after reboot, it went into Safe mode. I rebooted again to get out of safe mode. After booting back normally into OS, all my non-system apps were out of there arranged folders and just listed in the next home screens like they were all reinstalled. So I got to backing up my data with CWM and did a data wipe and it now boots successfully. I need to restore my data. Can't work with a fresh wipe. With this, at least I know it's not a HW problem. Or is it? :O | First of all, it always a good thing to have USB Debugging on. It can help you check your phone and even recover it if something is wrong. When your phone is on a boot loop and won't start correctly, you can use adb to check where might be the problem. Connect your phone via the USB cable to a PC with adb and then type the following: <code> adb logcat </code> Power your phone and you should see, as your phone starts the boot secuence, a lot of information in the adb window. That is the current log of your phone boot secuence (like the one you can see in linux for example). If the phone ends in a boot loop, you should be able to see what is trying to do and then try to fix it. | How to determine cause of boot halt in Samsung logo screen? | android |
I rooted my Android ICS with some script. It was rooted then I installed and removed some system application. Then I formatted the device and re-installed the ICS. Now when I try to root it again it gives error could not copy are you a root? I searched for that and finally found that though I re-flashed it any times. /system is read-only. So then after I tried <code> adb shell mount </code> then command of mount and it gives error permission denied. Please help to reset the permission of /system so I can manually add the su file in it. The technique i used to Root is at this link . Then i format using cwm and install new rom. Now i am not able to root it. | I have posted the question on same link shown in question. Till that i tried everything format SD card totally, also tried different roms of ICS still it was not worked. Then as in reply i got on that forum saying install gingerbread rom then root it, use OTA root keeper and upgrade. So i did similar to that i installed gingerbread. Then i formatted all using cwm. Then i installed new ICS refrec v2 rom. And then after i tried to root it. And it worked. Hope so if anyone face the same problem they can downgrade to GB then again move to ICS to root it after flash if their favorite rom doesn't come rooted. :) | Rooted, then flashed, now not able to root again /system is always read-only | android |
I noticed this function on Alcatel with same version of Android (2.3.6) . When you talking phone blocked, but when you changing phone to horizontal position(standart position for working with phone) it unlocks screen. This function is very helpful if you need to finish call fast. is ti posible to add this function to my Samsung Galaxy Pocket Duos ? | It's not normally to do with the position of the phone, there's normally a "proximity sensor" on the front of the phone that locks the screen if the phone is against your face, and unlocks the screen a few moments after you take it away from your face. According to the Galaxy Pocket Duos's specs on GSM Arena there's no proximity sensor built into that model, compare with the Alcatel OT-991 or Samsung Galaxy S's specs where you can see they do have a proximity sensor. | Samsung Galaxy Pocket Duos unlocking screen in horizontal position when calling | android |
Are there any solutions to the Google Nexus 4 weird sound problem? This is how it sounds . Will Google replace the phone? I am in Singapore and bought this phone through a friend in the US. There is no proper support information for this phone from Google / LG. I tried calling '855-83-NEXUS' but they are closed for the day. I will try calling them tomorrow. | Answer from stackexchange-url ("vi.su.") in comments (to make it clear for other users) Found out solution to this problem. In fact, this is not a problem at all. NFC device in the nexus phones is the source for this sound. When placed near a RFID / smartcard, it actually tries to read it aloud. Galaxy Nexus NFC Weirdness | Google Nexus 4 weird sound problem | android |
I'd like to know how to install Opera Mini without internet connection, because I'm going to test an application in my tablet, but it needs a browser that support proxy configuration and I don't have wi-fi to install Opera Mini. I already downloaded the apk, but to install Opera Mini it needs connection to download itself. There is anyway I can install it without internet connection on my tablet? There is a full apk? If you have can you post the link for download or upload by yourself? Thanks in advance. | Looks like this is not possible. In the Opera Mini FAQ, it says: You must have a compatible phone with an Internet connection . When you download Opera Mini, you will be told if your phone is known to work. To see if your handset can run Opera Mini, visit the list of supported devices. | How to install Opera Mini without internet connection? | android |
I have ASUS eee pad transformer. I used OLife to use Ubuntu on it, it worked but it crashed Ubuntu. Now when i boot it always goes to APX mode, so i have black screen only. No Android, No Ubuntu i got. Nothing shows up on the screen. But when i connect the device using USB to my PC i can see its showing <code> Bus 003 Device 077: ID 0955:7820 NVidia Corp. </code> (Which means its in APX mode.) Now, I dont want to use Ubuntu on it. How can using APX mode, completely install the Android as new on the device from my PC? Is there any OLife like package available to install Android straight quickly on it? | If you can access APX Mode, you can restore a stock ROM using Easy Flasher . The steps are the following: Check if your Asus Transformer is supported. Download Easy Flasher Download the latest stock ROM from Asus website. Copy the update zip to asusupdate folder (inside Easy Flasher folder). Open Easy Flasher and hit Flash Asus stock zip The application will install the stock ROM back to your Transformer, so from there you can root or install a custom ROM without problems. | How to install Android completely as new to ASUS Eee pad transformer? | android |
Running: Verizon HTC Eris (No service) with the recommended Cyanogenmod for the device + Amon RA recovery as prescribed by the gscript lite method of rooting found in the "Universal Eris root for dummies" guide (the one with step by step pictures) When i got the CM7 rom up and running i was looking through the preinstalled apps and found the rom manager. inside was the option "Flash ClockworkMod Recovery". From what iv gathered online (CWM > AmonRA)... Is this so? Should i use this option? I fear that by breaking my current recovery in an attempt to upgrade i will brick my device... Should i do this? | This is entirely up to you, and your personal preference. There is one thing I would suggest though: do not use ROM Manager ! It has a nasty history of damaged devices. I would suggest that you go with either CWM or TWRP, if it is available for your device. I would suggest you flash it using fastboot, if it is available on your device. If it isn't, then you should see forums such as xda-developers for info on how to flash recovery images. | Clockwork Mod. To flash or not to flash? | android |
I accidentally turned on talk back in the Accessibility menu. When I turned it on I got some kind of walk through on how to use it. I couldn't cancel it. So I turned off my phone. When I turned it back on again it took me 15 minuts to unlock my phone. Apparently I had to touch a button to give it focus and then double tap it to click it. Now my question is: how do I turn this off? I can't reach the settings because I have don't know how to access a drop down and I can't scroll through all my apps. | I got the solution! Somehow I could get into the settings menu by turning aeroplane mode on and starting Google Maps (which is on my home screen). Google Maps then sends you to settings. In there I can scroll using three fingers. ps: I feel stupid :) | accidentally turned on talk back | android |
Where in HTC Sync is the option to disable synchronization upon connecting the phone to the computer? There used to be plenty of options in the old versions of HTC Sync. By old versions I mean versions like 2.0 that came with my phone. This is the version I have been using for two years now. I just thought I would update to get all the latest bells and whistles. But little did I know that the newest HTC Sync version is just one big splash screen with a picture of my phone on it and one big SYNC button. And it is very resource hungry. I am downloading the new HTC Sync Manager right now. But I don't think it's compatible with HTC Desire or other older HTC devices. I think it's mainly made for the HTC One series of phones. So I don't expect much from it, but I'll give it a try anyway. Are there more sync options in Sync Manager than in the regular Sync? What's a good alternative to HTC Sync that I can use with HTC Desire? Which ones are popular? I don't want anything too fancy. I don't need anything that's too much resource hungry and media focused. Just plain sync tool (PIM). Update: HTC Sync Manager doesn't even start The first time HTC Sync Manager started it was scanning my computer for media files. I aborted the operation and went to settings to change the language. It prompted me to restart the program so I clicked OK. It restarted and got stock at the splash screen. Now it does that every time and the only way to close it is to terminate the associated process. Great software indeed... it should not stop working just because the user changes the language in the settings. Looks like I will have to install it all over again to erase any conflicting config files and such. | According to the download page of HTC Sync Manager, HTC Desire phones should be supported. In my case when I first started the application it started loading all my media files from my pc (which took some time). After everything was loaded, the music etc was stored in my Media gallery of the HTC Sync Manager. If you want to disable the synchronisation of your phone on connect, disable the option "Automatically start sync when device is connected" under the More tab. In my case that tab was only available when you connect your phone (probably to be able to use different settings for multiple phones). So maybe you should just try to reinstall the latest HTC Sync Manager, because it should work for your phone too. Just be a little patient. | How do I disable auto-sync in HTC Sync 3.3? | android |
The Nook Simple Touch is an android-based eReader. In their interface for reading books, you can highlight a word or set of words, then attach a note to that. The notes are limited to 512 characters, but you can have an unlimited number of notes for a book. I currently work around the limit by highlighting a word, writing the note, then highlighting the next word and continuing the note. Is there a way to remove the limit of 512 characters, or increase it to a very large number? My nook is fully rooted, so I imagine it is a simple config file or sqlite entry somewhere, but I don't know where to look. | @Liam's comment in my question was correct. The max character value is hard-coded into the Reader.apk file. Therefore, the answer to my question is no... Unless you modify the program itself. I made changes to the file to increase the limit; details can be found at this xda forum post . Because the solution required programming, I won't post the entire answer here, as programming is outside the scope of the Android site. | Any way to remove the 512 character limit on Nook Touch notes? | android |
I just flashed my HTC One X AT&T Build number 1.73.502.1 710RD ATT US edition with CM 10.1 as described at CM10.1 Android 4.2.1 ROM for AT&T One X/One XL Everything seems fine, but once I connect my device with wifi, its gets connected but data is not being transferred. Does someone has idea if this is bug or is there any solution for this ? I am trying to connect via my broadband router. Sometimes, it shows signal of being connected, but the data connection speed is too less and gets disconnected. Even Airdroid doesn't work, it should have work when being on same network. | Once I unchecked Automatic date & time and Automatic time zone on Date & time settings, everything worked perfectly. | CM10.1 Wifi issue | android |
After upgrading my Nexus 7 to 4.2.1, which was an adventure in itself, I noticed that in the pull down menu at the top of the screen (notification bar), where you get to see notifications about updated programs or even available updates, I don't see the icon for "settings" and for the screen lock (so it doesn't readjust when I tilt the screen) anymore. Up to now I was able to use this as a convenient and quick shortcut to go into the settings. Do I now have to pin it to my dock or the home screen in order to have a quick way to access the settings? How can I get this back in Android 4.2.1, or was this functionality completely stripped from the new release? | Swiping down on the left side of the screen should bring down the notification window shade and swiping down on the right side of the screen should bring down the new "quick settings" window shade which has the settings icon and some other handy settings easily available. As far as the screen adjusting, this is known as auto-rotate and can be changed in the quick settings as well (Shown below). Notification Shade: Quick Settings Shade: | After upgrade to 4.2.1 how to get "settings" and "screen lock" back in pull down menu? | android |
If I were to get an android tablet that uses an app market like GetJar , would rooting it allow me to use the google play store? I want to get a Android Hipstreet Flare, but I am hesitant because it uses GetJar. If I'm going to dive in to the android world, I want to be able to use the legit app store. | When your Android device is rooted, you should be able to flash images. There is a "gapps" package that contains the Google applications (like Gmail, ...) that is delivered with most AOSP roms, so you can flash that through recovery. If I'm not mistaken, this enables the Google Play Store on the given rom. I think the gapps package must be (somewhat) compatible with the rom it's being flashed on. There are also separate apk files that you can install directly (without flashing), though I have no experience with those. And again, they probably must be compatible with the rom you're currently running. Please refer to xda-developers.com for more information. | Will Rooting android give me access to Google Play? | android |
I just installed Jelly Bean 4.1.2 on my Samsung Galaxy Note N7000. I am not able to add words to the dictionary. I use more than one language while texting. There are no options in the settings either. How do I get myself out of this rut? | Ok I believe I'm a step closer to solving this adding to the dictionary issue. This is how I'm getting around it Firstly my keyboard is set to portrait type 3x4 Predictive text on with continuous input. Now to add a word turn OFF predictive text. Now type your word manually and when your done, and with the cursor flashing directly next to the end of your word, goback into settings and turn predictive text back ON. Now when you back out of setting you should see your word in the suggestion list above the keypad. Tap your new word and you should find it added to your dictionary. This method also works for email addresses. Just to be clear this is for use on Android 4.1.2 my device for all concerned is Samsung GS2. Let me know if this helps. | Not able to add words to dictionary while texting on Jelly Bean 4.1.2 | android |
I'm trying to root my phone with Unrevoked recovery reflash tool and it all goes well - it installed the needed service and the root tool - up until it's supposed to actually do the root process. It reboots the phone and then says "waiting for system to settle" and then it says "running root". Then it gives me the message "error: failed to get root. Is your firmware too new?" But how do I tell if my firmware is too new? Do they mean the Android build number? And where can I see what versions are supported? Or is it my HBOOT version that's causes the problem? Some info about my device. <code> Android version 2.2 Baseband version 32.49.00.32U_5.11.05.27 Kernel version 2.6.32.15-gf@5a401c htc-kernel@and18-2#1 Build number 2.29.405.2 CL263770 release-keys Software number 2.29.405.2 BRAVO PVT3 SHIP S-ON HBOOT-0.93.0001 MICROP-051d TOUCH PANEL-SYNT0101 RADIO-5.11.05.27 Aug 10 2010,17:52:18 </code> Is this thing compatible with Unrevoked or not? If not, will it help to downgrade to Android Eclair 2.1 RUU and then try to root? Update: Downgrade attempt failed I just tried downgrading from 2.29.405.2 to 2.10.405.2 using the <code> RUU_Bravo_Froyo_HTC_WWE_2.10.405.2_R_Radio_32.44.00.32U_5.09.05.30_2_release_142828_signed.exe </code> file but the process failed. I get error code 140 - "bootloader version error". So much for plan B... | One click root methods use a simple rootkit exploit package to gain root permissions to the Android kernel. Once this is done, they modify file permissions to make the rooting permanent. These exploits have been patched by Google and device manufacturers for a long time now, and the vast majority of one click rooting solutions are outdated and no longer work. In other words - your firmware is too new. It has been patched against rootkit exploits. | Unrevoked: Is my firmware too new? | android |
Is there a way to tell if an Android phone is rooted? Where can you find this information in the phone? I used Unrevoked to root my HTC Desire (GSM) and I had the tool set to disable the phone security as well. But when I start the HBOOT menu it still says S-ON on top of the screen. Shouldn't that say S-OFF now? Maybe Unrevoked failed to set S-OFF, but managed to root the phone? It has definitely changed the recovery system, because now it says ClockWorkMod Recovery. There is also a new app called Superuser Permissions. Does that mean it's been rooted? I could try to install some app that requires root, but I thought I would hold off with that since I have just completely re-flashed it and don't want to clutter it with any bloatware until I have set up A2SD+ and partitioned my SD card. I'm also curious as to why it didn't set the security flag to S-OFF. Would I need to use AlphaRev for this now? And can I skip this part, and still install A2SD+ and partition my SD card? What I'm asking is this: is S-OFF a requirement for A2SD+ and partitioning the SD card and messing around with things like partitioning, /system and Dalvik cache? | Is there a way to tell if an Android phone is rooted? The easiest way of root checking is to use program Root Checker . | How to tell if a phone is rooted? | android |
I've been using Dropbox camera upload to automatically sync my pictures to my PC using my data plan (this part is important, I can't use a wifi). However, this autosync eats up the battery like crazy, so I'd like it to only sync when the phone is charging. I always connect my phone to its stand as soon as I'm home, so I'll still have the pictures synced to my PC merely a few minutes after getting home (without having to do anything manually). Dropbox, unfortunately, doesn't offer this option (syncing only when charging). Is there another photo-sync service/app that does? (picasa, g+, facebook, etc) | Google+ Instant Upload offers a setting to allow uploads only when the charger is connected. Facebook's instant photo upload does not offer such an option. The Gallery is linked to your Google Account and thus to Picasaweb. However, there's no option within the Gallery app to restrict data transfer only when the charger is connected. Carbonite recently started offering a mobile app, and that includes backing up photos and videos. It offers an option to use battery or not for when uploading. So Google+ or Carbonite Mobile are your choices. (At least from the photo auto-upload services I'm aware of.) | Service that syncs pictures only when charging | android |
I just got root with Unrevoked and S-OFF with AlphaRev. I partitioned my SD card in GParted as following. <code> Part 1: 4096 MB ext3 Part 2: 25842 MB fat32 </code> The card is a 32 GB SD card. I intended to have 4 GB reserved for apps and such. Now I am trying to do a NANDroid backup using the new ClockWorkMod AlphaRev Recovery 2.5.1.8. But it keeps failing and says that /sdcard can't be mounted. I tried to navigate to Mounts and storage, and then Mount /sdcard but it gives me an error. <code> CWM-AlphaRev Recovery v2.5.1.8 E:Can't mount /dev/block/mmcblk0p1 (or /dev/block/mmcblk0) (Invalid argument) Can't mount /sdcard //I attempted mounting it manually here.// E:Can't mount /dev/block/mmcblk0p1 (or /dev/block/mmcblk0) (Invalid argument) Error mounting SDCARD:! </code> I noticed that, after partitioning the SD card and rebooting the phone and loading Windows, when I clicked to do a safe unmount of USB drive in Windows there was a message in Android that said it was safe to unmount the SD card now. ????.... And then I went into recovery mode in Android and found out that it couldn't do a backup because it couldn't mount the SD card. Is my SD card damaged or what? Do I have to do some kind of data/cache wipe first? I had the phone shut down since the last attempt, just to make sure that the SD card really gets mounted when booting up. But that didn't help at all. Update: I tried a solution I found over at XDA forums. In CMD, go to dir C:\Android\android-sdk\Tools Type: path C:\Android\android-sdk\Platform-tools) Input "fastboot oem enableqxdm 0" But I tried this and it says <code> < waiting for device > </code> in my CMD prompt and nothing happens. Does the phone really communicate with the computer in this mode? My ClockWorkMod screen has changed to an icon of a white software box with a blue android mascot next to it. So it looks like it is in this so called fastboot mode now. <code> C:\>adb devices * daemon not running. starting it now on port 5037 * * daemon started successfully * List of devices attached SH08KPL03467 recovery C:\>fastboot oem enableqxdm 0 < waiting for device > </code> So it looks like the daemon was not running but the phone definitely communicates with the computer. Do I have to press some button? I tried mounting the SD card again and it still doesn't work. | Recovery images are hard coded to use the first partition of an SD card are the main FAT partition. As such, you need to ensure that the first partition on the card is the FAT partition, or recovery will try to mount the ext partition as the fat partition. You can use any partition tool to modify the card. You also said that fastboot wouldn't work - this is most likely due to lack of fast boot drivers. | Can't mount /sdcard while doing a NANDroid backup! | android |
I would like to download the RUU for my phone but I can't figure out which one to get. There are several options on sites like shipped-roms.com. Can you help me figure this out? The phone is a HTC Desire (GSM). Here is some additional information. <code> Android version 2.2 Baseband version 32.49.00.32U_5.11.05.27 Build number 2.29.405.2 CL263770 release-keys Software number 2.29.405.2 </code> And here's some info from the HBOOT menu. <code> BRAVO PVT3 SHIP S-ON HBOOT-0.93.0001 MICROP-051d TOUCH PANEL-SYNT0101 RADIO-5.11.05.27 </code> First of all, do I pick the Bravo or the Desire link at the website? I know that Bravo was the codename of HTC Desire before it was released, but then why are there two categories? And why does it say BRAVO in the HBOOT menu? Bravo: http://shipped-roms.com/index.php?category=android&model=Bravo Desire: http://shipped-roms.com/index.php?category=android&model=Desire If I look at the baseband version in the Desire group I find these two. <code> RUU_Bravo_Froyo_HTC_ARA_2.32.415.3_Radio_32.49.00.32U_5.11.05.27_release_157343_signed.exe RUU_Bravo_Froyo_HTC_WWE_2.29.405.14_Radio_32.49.00.32U_5.11.05.27_release_224699_signed.exe </code> What's the difference between ARA and WWE? Is that Arabic and World Wide English? What about European sold devices with Scandinavian (and English) localization? Also the 2.29.405.14 seems to be a too high number, or highly developed version that may not be available in my region. The highest update number I have been offered to install is 2.29.405.5 and it was 4.82 MB (incremental update?). There are many more options in the Bravo group. There are special versions for Vodafone and other operator specific versions. My phone is not re-branded and is not locked to any network operator. The ones that I most likely would need (in the Bravo group) are these two: <code> RUU_Bravo_Froyo_HTC_WWE_2.29.405.5_Radio_32.49.00.32U_5.11.05.27_release_159811_signed.exe RUU_Bravo_Froyo_HTC_WWE_2.29.405.2_Radio_32.49.00.32U_5.11.05.27_release_151783_signed.exe </code> Do I really have to match the baseband version and the build number? Can I get a higher build number even if it is a different radio version? Will it work? Is radio version something you can upgrade?... Long version short... Do I have a Desire or a Bravo? Do I have to match the baseband version and the build number? Will the WWE releases include Scandinavian languages or only English? | Both. Bravo is HTC's internal codename name for the Desire. They do this as they want a constant name for internal purposes as they often sell the identical device in multiple markets under different names (e.g. the HTC Magic is also sold as the HT-03A, the myTouch 3G, and has the codename Sapphire) or multiple devices (e.g. GSM and CDMA versions) under the same name (e.g. both the Marvel (GSM) and the MarvelC (CDMA) are both sold as the Wildfire S). HTC does it with names, Samsung uses model numbers, same basic idea. No, not unless you want to stay at your current version for some reason. RUU means ROM Update Utility. For most purposes, you most likely want to go with the newest not-carrier-specific RUU to have the latest update so you have the latest Android version and radio firmware. The RUU is the master update-everything. Android, radio firmware, and h-boot. It does it all. WWE is World Wide English. It includes all languages they translate for. The English bit indicates that English is the base language and all other languages included are translated from English, rather than being written directly in those languages. The ARA bit indicates the same thing, but that the base language is Arabic. | What RUU do I need for my HTC phone? | android |
Tired of not being able to tell who's calling me at all, I ended up putting out the additional monthly cost and getting caller ID display in my phone plan. And since I took it, I... still cannot tell who's calling me most of the time. Let me explain. When you have a home phone and have caller ID display in your plan, it displays the number of the person calling you as well as the name associated to that number in the phonebook. But that doesn't happen on my mobile phone. Unless it's a contact of mine, it's Unknown / No name that comes with the number. But the absence of such information makes the feature half as useful as home phone caller ID display (for the same price > _> ). I realise this is more of a network / carrier issue, and that there's probably no way for me, myself, to change it (or is there? :D), but I'm wondering if there's a workaround. For example, a way for me to create my own phonebook with some names. Of course, I could just add them to my contacts, but adding people who aren't actually contacts would clutter my contacts list a ton. And categories don't really work on my phone. you can't manage them on the phone at all. You need to create contacts at the root of the contacts, and then log in to the Google website with your computer and sort them. So... Yeah. Is there any remotely convenient way for me to "fix" caller ID display, so I know who is that non-contact who's calling? Edit: I forgot to say. I did ask my provider about it. They said the system is different for mobile and home phones and they can't do anything about it. My phone: Samsung Galaxy Q (SGH-T589W) Android 2.3.6 Gingerbread Processor: 600MHz Qualcomm MSM7227 Internal storage: 152 MB RAM: 279 MB SD card: 2 GB Carrier: Videotron | I use Current Caller ID and it seems to work ok, better if you let it connect with Facebook. It is not perfect but it will help out. I also use Reverse Lookup . It is after the fact, but it does a good job. it will google the number and quickly add it to your phone book if you want. Neither are going to get you coverage all the time but it is the best I have found. | Having Strangers' Names in Caller ID Display | android |
I'm creating a guide for noobs on editing the SystemUI.apk on the US Galaxy S3. But, before I post the guide, I want to make sure I know my stuff! I'm looking to learn about ADB (and ADB shell) and its various commands. I've noticed that some users mount their system read-write like so: <code> mount -o remount,rw /system </code> But, others mount like so: <code> mount -o remount,rw -t yaffs2 /dev/block/mtdblock4 /system </code> I have a little bit of knowledge behind this (-o signifies options, yaffs2 signifies the file system, /dev/block/mtdblock4 signifies mount point, and /system is the actual directory), but why do people have different commands? Is it unsafe to miss some of the arguments? Why do some people include the mount point? The file system? Some separate multiple options using commas, others use spaces: does that matter? Instead of asking 50 questions like those, does anyone know where to find the documentation/reference/explanation of the mount command, and describing its options? If you are feeling extra great, any documentation/reference/explanation regarding ADB and busybox-for-android available? (Besides these: http://busybox.net/downloads/BusyBox.html and http://developer.android.com/tools/help/adb.html , which are a little lacking.) Someone knows these things, but my Google-fu is took weak... :( I would sincerely appreciate your guidance, any at all! :) | On some devices/ROMs most mount points seem to be defined in a special config file called <code> /etc/fstab </code> . In this case, you can ommit the device information and options, as they can be automatically determinded. However, other devices/ROMs use init scripts to create the mounts, and have the special options defined there (CM7.2 on my Motorola Milestone seems to be one example for this). If you omit the device information here, you will simply get an error. So which variant to take very much depends on the device/ROM. Safest way is to first check how the file system in question is mounted (e.g. using <code> mount |grep system </code> to show it for the <code> /system </code> mount point), and then adapt this information for your use. | adb shell mount command: documentation? | android |
I followed the i nstructions on the official TWRP site on how to install TWRP on the Kindle Fire. So I did <code> wget <twrp.img> adb shell idme bootmode 4002 fastboot -i 0x1949 flash recovery <twrp.img> </code> But now, my Kindle Fire wont boot. It just shows a yellow triangle. How can I fix it? | You need to reset the bootmode. This can be easily done with <code> fastboot </code> . Execute the following commands: <code> fastboot -i 0×1949 oem idme bootmode 4000 fastboot -i 0×1949 reboot </code> | My Kindle Fire is stuck at the yellow triangle screen after installing TWRP. How can I fix this? | android |
When I shut off USB Debugging in the developer settings I get a USB Mass Storage prompt upon connecting the device to my computer. However, for the life of me I can't find a place to shut off this prompt (i.e., turn it into a notification rather than have the window pop up) or change to MTP mode (I'm assuming I no longer get Kies mode — I have a Vibrant). Does this exist? | If you go to Settings -> Storage , then hit the menu button, you'll find an item called USB computer connection . Here you can set USB settings. | Are there USB settings in CyanogenMod 10? If so, where? | android |
I have a Nexus S running 4.1.1 and a Nexus 7 running 4.2.1 and they both have the same problem with Beautiful Widgets. Whenever I reboot either device, the widgets no longer show up on the home screen or lock screen (for the tablet). When I open the Beautiful Widgets config app, I can see that they're still tracking the widgets I added but I'm unable to get them to show up on my home screen again unless I add a new one and reconfigure it. Is this a problem with the latest versions of Android or is this a Beautiful Widgets problem? | The problem is caused by a bug in Jelly Bean that causes apps installed via Google Play to be installed to the external storage regardless of the "internalOnly" qualifier in the application manifest. Source: Android Bug Tracker 1 and 2 The issue of widgets disappearing can be resolved with a work around using Titanium Backup. You install Beautiful Widgets through the store, back up and uninstall Beautiful Widgets using Titanium Backup, then reinstall Beautiful Widgets to internal storage via the backup. I believe Titanium Backup requires root access so I won't be using this solution on my personal phone but I have tested with a rooted dev tablet and it works. The issue has been marked as fixed for the next Android release so aside from rooting my device, waiting for an update is the only solution. | How to stop Beautiful Widget from being removed on device reboot? | android |
I have an HTC Desire S II. I use Viber only occasionally. To save battery, I want to "kill" it when not in use. The menu has an <code> Exit </code> button that seems to work, but Viber still comes back to life after a while. Is there any way to make it stay "dead" without uninstalling it? | This isn't possible, since Viber needs to be running in order to receive calls which are routed via Viber. If you shut down the background process, you can't be reached via Viber. The exit button just means it closes the UI, but keeps listening for calls in the background. | How to stop the Viber process? | android |
Can such an app freely read my emails/calendar/message/docs/etc.? The "USE ACCOUNTS ON THE DEVICE" permission is also known for developers as android.permission.USE_CREDENTIALS. Example of such apps: WhatsApp, MightyText. | Android has a centralized system for managing credentials for online services (such as your Google account). One component is called the <code> AccountManager </code> . Some apps can " act as an account authenticator ". This means that they understand how to log into a particular online service, and can log in to that service for the <code> AccountManager </code> . Other apps want to use that login information to identify you or perform actions on your behalf, without you having to enter your password every time. Example: logging into Google Your phone has a built-in app that "acts as an account authenticator" for your Google account. It knows how to log into Google, and it has the email and password you entered when you set up the phone. There's also a YouTube app, which wants to log in to show your favourite videos, and to let you comment, but without having to enter your email and password again. This YouTube app talks to the <code> AccountManager </code> and asks if it has any credentials for a Google account. Asking this question requires the "find accounts on the device" permission. The <code> AccountManager </code> has a list of authenticators installed on the phone, which it consults to answer this question. If it does have any credentials, the app will then ask for what's known as an authtoken for the Google account. This request requires the " use accounts on the device " permission. The <code> AccountManager </code> then asks you if you want the requesting app (YouTube) to be able to use the requested account (Google account). This might be in a dialog that appears over the app, or in a notification. Alternatively, the app can choose to do nothing if you haven't already answered yes to this question: it might want to ask later at a more convenient time. This step ensures that an app with the "use accounts on the device" permission can't immediately use every account without asking. If you say yes, the <code> AccountManager </code> forwards the request to the authenticator (the built-in Google app). What happens next is up to the authenticator and the particular service you're logging into. You might need to log in if you haven't previously done that, and logging in might require a username and password, a photo, an SMS, or something else entirely. Whatever the authenticator does, it can either fail, or give an authtoken back to the requesting app. Further checks The authenticator and the online service can also control what actions the requesting app can perform. For example, when you connect an app to your Google account, Google lists permissions the app needs (such as "upload videos" for YouTube). Thus, the app can only do the actions listed. However, some services might not have anything like that; for such a service, once you've allowed the app to use your credentials, it can take any action in your name. Once the requesting app has obtained the authtoken, it can continue to use it to perform actions in your name without any further interaction from you. That is, once you've agreed that Dan's Twitter Client can post to your Twitter feed, it might run in the background and post further tweets without you knowing. You should only grant the app access to your credentials if you trust it not to do that. Summary An app with the " use accounts on the device " permission can, once installed, ask you to access an online service (such as Google, Facebook, or Twitter) in your name. You can choose to let it access the service or not. If you do let it access the service, what actions it can take on your behalf might be limited by the service (it's up to the service), and the service might let you revoke that permission later (usually through a list of "connected apps" on the service's website). | What can an app do with the "USE ACCOUNTS ON THE DEVICE" permission? | android |
Okay, so basically the Google Play store search is only for typing in the exact name of the app you already know and want to install. Every time I look for an app with certain functionality, Im having great problems in finding it. Usually the results contain tons of spam applications and very few of usefull ones, or ones actually fitting the search keywords I used. Sometimes I find the apps I was looking for while browsing the store (hundreds of pages...) or digging through "top xx apps for yy" sites that usually come as a result of a regular google search. My question is - are there any alternatives? How do I search for Android apps that do what I want them to do without digging through hundreds of pages of crappy, unrelated apps at Google Play or reading lists of hundreds of apps on silly web pages whose sole purpose is advertisement? I've read that there once was something called Chomp, but it seems like it doesn't exist any more (not sure, I think Apple bought it). | Try combined search words to narrow down the result list. If you e.g. look for an alarm reminder, "alarm reminder" gives you 1.000+ results -- while "alarm-reminder" (note the "minus" replacing the space) shrinks it to 48, relating to both terms (and not just either one of them). Sometimes also the rules from Google's main search engine apply here (I could not yet figure out when they do and when they don't). So "alarm +reminder" should list only apps whose name/description contains both terms -- while "alarm -reminder" should list only those containing "alarm" but not "reminder". As said, this works sometimes , while the first rule mentioned seems to work always . I just tested it, and surprisingly even some more advanced keywords work: "clock +intitle:alarm" really lists only apps having "alarm" in their name (and "clock" in their name or description; though this I did not verify completely). I suspect the playstore search is just a "customized Google search" -- so you might play with other "tipps and tricks" from its "big brother". | How to effectively search for apps on/without using Google Play? | android |
These docs suggest that it has been available (only) since Android 3.0 Honeycomb. By contrast, conversation on discussion boards suggests it was available in 2.3.4 Gingerbread . So, what is the answer to the titular question? Bonus points if your answer clarifies the following. Are the official docs misleading? Or were those Gingerbread devices instead released after Honeycomb, and loaded with some kind of backported encryption feature? Or were those Gingerbread devices instead loaded with some kind of encryption feature added by the device manufacturers, that wasn't part of Android? In short, what gives? | Gingerbread 2.3.4 ROM added support for device encryption, but the feature wasn't accessible from settings until Honeycomb (tablets) and ICS (smartphones). To enable device encryption in Gingerbread device, you need to add an Exchange account. Not sure, but it should be accessible through API too. There are also some hacks to enable device encryption directly in Gingerbread: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1405165 | In which version of Android was encryption of /data made available? | android |
When installing an application, the application lists permissions that it needs to perform its functions. I am creating this list of the the system defined permissions and a description of what they mean. It is a community wiki so if new permissions are added in the future they can be added to this list. | This is all the available permissions that an application can require. Of this list, there are some that can only be "requested" by "System" applications. Applications that are not system applications will not be able to request permissions to "System Permissions". Only applications that are in the /system/app location and signed with the System key can request these specific system permissions. These are the names that are used by the developer of the application to request the permission, but the name that is displayed when installing should have some similar wording to the name. Permissions ACCESS_CHECKIN_PROPERTIES Allows read/write access to the "properties" table in the (Unix security) checkin database, to change values that get uploaded. Group: LOCATION Level: SYSTEM ACCESS_COARSE_LOCATION Allows an app to access approximate location derived from network location sources such as cell towers and Wi-Fi. Group: LOCATION This permission is usually used by applications that display location based ads by publishers like Admob (Google). ACCESS_FINE_LOCATION Allows an app to access precise location from location sources such as GPS, cell towers, and Wi-Fi. Group: LOCATION This permission can be used by applications that display location based ads by publishers like Admob (Google). It is also used by applications that want your exact location. Examples would be Navigation applications, "Check-In" apps like 4square. ACCESS_LOCATION_EXTRA_COMMANDS Allows an application to access extra location provider commands. A good example for poor documentation, as even books on Android application development state: The Android documentation doesn’t tell us which location commands are “extra,” so we’ll ask for all of them. Group: LOCATION ACCESS_MOCK_LOCATION Allows an application to create mock location providers for testing, and is intended for development use in e.g. the Android Emulator (to save the dev from having to run around to check if positions are displayed correctly). Cases where this is needed in an app ready for endusers should be rare. This allows an application to fake the location information. Group: LOCATION ACCESS_NETWORK_STATE Allows applications to access information about networks. Information including if a network is available (or just connecting), what type of network the device is connected to, if any (WiFi, 3G, LTE), if it's in Roaming, and also reasons for a failed connection attempt (if any). Good use: The application may check the state of your connection before trying to access the internet, and e.g. restrict itself to WiFi for some actions. Bad use: Only in combination with other permissions (e.g. data collection for profiling). Group: NETWORK ACCESS_SURFACE_FLINGER Allows an application to use SurfaceFlinger's low level features. SurfaceFlinger is part of Android's media framework. It provides a compositor which takes care for rendering in frame buffers (so this has to do with graphics). Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS Level: SYSTEM ACCESS_WIFI_STATE Allows applications to access information about Wi-Fi networks Group: NETWORK This could be requested by any application that uses internet access. The application may check the state of your connection before trying to access the internet. Good/Bad use: See ACCESS_NETWORK_STATE above. ACCOUNT_MANAGER Allows applications to call into AccountAuthenticators. Only the system can get this permission. An account-manager is the service working behind the scenes and taking care everything works as expected. Group: ACCOUNTS Level: SYSTEM This permission is reserved for system apps. ADD_VOICEMAIL (4.0+) Allows an application to add voicemails into the system. Group: PERSONAL_INFO AUTHENTICATE_ACCOUNTS Allows an application to act as an AccountAuthenticator for the AccountManager Group: ACCOUNTS This is for applications that would authenticate you to their service. An app using this permission usually provides an interface to deal with a certain account type (which is not known by the pre-installed Android system), such as Dropbox. As shipped, Android does not know how to login to Dropbox and how to deal with a Dropbox account – so the Dropbox app provides the mechanism. Additionally, an "account authenticator" might restrict the actions an app can perform with the account (so it would e.g. be possible to administrate this via some web interface offered by the service). BATTERY_STATS Allows an application to collect battery statistics Battery widgets and other battery information tools use this permission Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS BIND_APPWIDGET Allows an application to tell the AppWidget service which application can access AppWidget's data. The normal user flow is that a user picks an AppWidget to go into a particular host, thereby giving that host application access to the private data from the AppWidget app. An application that has this permission should honor that contract. Very few applications should need to use this permission. Group: PERSONAL_INFO Level: SYSTEM BIND_DEVICE_ADMIN (2.2+) Must be required by device administration receiver, to ensure that only the system can interact with it. Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS Level: SYSTEM BIND_INPUT_METHOD Must be required by an InputMethodService, to ensure that only the system can bind to it. Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS Level: SYSTEM BIND_REMOTEVIEWS (3.0+) Must be required by a RemoteViewsService, to ensure that only the system can bind to it. Level: SYSTEM BIND_TEXT_SERVICE (4.0+) Must be required by a TextService (e.g. SpellCheckerService) to ensure that only the system can bind to it. Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS Level: SYSTEM BIND_VPN_SERVICE (4.0+) Must be required by a Vpn Service, to ensure that only the system can bind to it. Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS Level: SYSTEM BIND_WALLPAPER (2.2+) Must be required by a WallpaperService, to ensure that only the system can bind to it. Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS Level: SYSTEM BIND_* many more like the above for different services, like NFC, PrintService, and others BLUETOOTH Allows applications to connect to paired bluetooth devices Group: NETWORK BLUETOOTH_ADMIN Allows applications to discover and pair bluetooth devices Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS BLUETOOTH_PRIVILEGED (4.4+) Allows applications to pair bluetooth devices without user interaction. This is not available to third party applications. BRICK Required to be able to disable the device Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS Level: SYSTEM BROADCAST_PACKAGE_REMOVED Allows an application to broadcast a notification that an application package has been removed. Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS Level: SYSTEM BROADCAST_SMS Allows an application to broadcast an SMS receipt notification Group: MESSAGES Level: SYSTEM BROADCAST_STICKY Allows an application to broadcast sticky intents. These are broadcasts whose data is held by the system after being finished, so that clients can quickly retrieve that data without having to wait for the next broadcast. Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS BROADCAST_WAP_PUSH Allows an application to broadcast a WAP PUSH receipt notification Group: MESSAGES Level: SYSTEM CALL_PHONE Allows an application to initiate a phone call without going through the Dialer user interface for the user to confirm the call being placed. Group: COST_MONEY This will allow the application to "prompt" you to place a call. You will not have to enter the number, but you will have to place the "call" button. You will be able to see the number that is being called. CALL_PRIVILEGED Allows an application to call any phone number, including emergency numbers, without going through the Dialer user interface for the user to confirm the call being placed. Group: MESSAGES Level: SYSTEM CAMERA Required to be able to access the camera device. Group: HARDWARE_CONTROLS Any application that uses the rear or front cameras. CAPTURE_AUDIO_OUTPUT (4.4+) Allows an application to capture audio output. Not for use by third-party applications. CAPTURE_SECURE_VIDEO_OUTPUT (4.4+) Allows an application to capture secure video output. Not for use by third-party applications. CAPTURE_VIDEO_OUTPUT (4.4+) Allows an application to capture video output. Not for use by third-party applications. CHANGE_COMPONENT_ENABLED_STATE Allows an application to change whether an application component (other than its own) is enabled or not. Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS Level: SYSTEM CHANGE_CONFIGURATION Allows an application to modify the current configuration, such as locale. Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS CHANGE_NETWORK_STATE Allows applications to change network connectivity state Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS CHANGE_WIFI_MULTICAST_STATE Allows applications to enter Wi-Fi Multicast mode Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS CHANGE_WIFI_STATE Allows applications to change Wi-Fi connectivity state Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS CLEAR_APP_CACHE Allows an application to clear the caches of all installed applications on the device. Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS CLEAR_APP_USER_DATA Allows an application to clear user data Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS Level: SYSTEM CONTROL_LOCATION_UPDATES Allows enabling/disabling location update notifications from the radio. Not for use by normal applications. Group: LOCATION Level: SYSTEM DELETE_CACHE_FILES Allows an application to delete cache files. Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS Level: SYSTEM DELETE_PACKAGES Allows an application to delete packages. Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS Level: SYSTEM DEVICE_POWER Allows low-level access to power management Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS Level: SYSTEM DIAGNOSTIC Allows applications to RW to diagnostic resources. Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS Level: SYSTEM DISABLE_KEYGUARD Allows applications to disable the keyguard Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS DUMP Allows an application to retrieve state dump information from system services. Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS Level: SYSTEM EXPAND_STATUS_BAR Allows an application to expand or collapse the status bar. Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS FACTORY_TEST Run as a manufacturer test application, running as the root user. Only available when the device is running in manufacturer test mode. Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS Level: SYSTEM FLASHLIGHT Allows access to the flashlight Group: HARDWARE_CONTROLS Allows application to control the LED flash from the camera and have it act like a flashlight. FORCE_BACK Allows an application to force a BACK operation on whatever is the top activity. Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS Level: SYSTEM GET_ACCOUNTS Allows access to the list of accounts in the Accounts Service Applications that require some type of authentication from accounts that are "connected" to the device. A list of the accounts are ususally displayed so you can choose the account to use with the application. To really use those credentials, the <code> USE_CREDENTIALS </code> permission is required. Group: ACCOUNTS GET_PACKAGE_SIZE Allows an application to find out the space used by any package. Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS GET_TASKS Allows an application to get information about the currently or recently running tasks: a thumbnail representation of the tasks, what activities are running in it, etc. Bad cop: spy for possible security leaks (vulnerable apps), data collection. Good cop: check whether the app's own service is running, show recently used apps (task-switcher). Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS GET_TOP_ACTIVITY_INFO (4.3+) Allows an application to retrieve private information about the current top activity, such as any assist context it can provide. Not for use by third-party applications. GLOBAL_SEARCH This permission can be used on content providers to allow the global search system to access their data. Typically it used when the provider has some permissions protecting it (which global search would not be expected to hold), and added as a read-only permission to the path in the provider where global search queries are performed. This permission can not be held by regular applications; it is used by applications to protect themselves from everyone else besides global search. Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS Level: SYSTEM HARDWARE_TEST Allows access to hardware peripherals. Intended only for hardware testing Group: HARDWARE_CONTROLS INJECT_EVENTS Allows an application to inject user events (keys, touch, trackball) into the event stream and deliver them to ANY window. Without this permission, you can only deliver events to windows in your own process. Very few applications should need to use this permission. Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS Level: SYSTEM (or APPLICATION ONLY) INSTALL_LOCATION_PROVIDER Allows an application to install a location provider into the Location Manager Group: LOCATION INSTALL_PACKAGES Allows an application to install packages. Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS Level: SYSTEM INSTALL_SHORTCUT (4.4+) Allows an application to install a shortcut in Launcher (Homescreen) INTERNAL_SYSTEM_WINDOW Allows an application to open windows that are for use by parts of the system user interface. Not for use by third party apps. Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS Level: SYSTEM INTERNET Allows applications to open network sockets. Group: NETWORK Any application that accesses the internet for any reason will have to request this permission. KILL_BACKGROUND_PROCESSES (2.2+) Allows an application to call <code> killBackgroundProcesses </code> Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS LOCATION_HARDWARE (4.3+) Allows an application to use location features in hardware, such as the geofencing api. Not for use by third-party applications. MANAGE_ACCOUNTS Allows an application to manage the list of accounts in the AccountManager Group: ACCOUNTS This permission allows an application to add/remove accounts in the account manager. Like when you log in to facebook, it adds your account to the Account Manager accounts. For further details, see: stackexchange-url ("What does permission “MANAGE_ACCOUNTS” mean?"), and also the AccountManager Documentation on the Android Developers site. MANAGE_APP_TOKENS Allows an application to manage (create, destroy, Z-order) application tokens in the window manager. This is only for use by the system. Group: ACCOUNTS Level: SYSTEM MANAGE_DOCUMENTS (4.4+) Allows an application to manage access to documents, usually as part of a document picker. MANAGE_USB Allows an application to manage preferences and permissions for USB devices Group: HARDWARE_CONTROLS Level: SYSTEM MANAGE_MTP Allows an application to access the MTP USB kernel driver. For use only by the device side MTP implementation. Group: HARDWARE_CONTROLS Level: SYSTEM MASTER_CLEAR Level: SYSTEM MEDIA_CONTENT_CONTROL (4.4+) Allows an application to know what content is playing and control its playback. Not for use by third-party applications due to privacy of media consumption MODIFY_AUDIO_SETTINGS Allows an application to modify global audio settings Group: HARDWARE_CONTROLS MODIFY_PHONE_STATE Allows modification of the telephony state - power on, mmi, etc. Does not include placing calls. Group: PHONE_CALLS Level: System MOUNT_FORMAT_FILESYSTEMS Allows formatting file systems for removable storage Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS MOUNT_UNMOUNT_FILESYSTEMS Allows mounting and unmounting file systems for removable storage Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS NFC (2.3+) Allows applications to perform I/O operations over NFC Group: NETWORK PERSISTENT_ACTIVITY Allow an application to make its activities persistent. <code> deprecated </code> Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS PROCESS_OUTGOING_CALLS Allows an application to monitor, modify, or abort outgoing calls. Group: PHONE_CALLS READ_CALENDAR Allows an application to read the user's calendar data. Group: PERSONAL_INFO READ_CALL_LOG (4.1+) Allows an application to read the system's call log that contains information about incoming and outgoing calls. READ_CONTACTS Allows an application to read the user's contacts data. Group: PERSONAL_INFO Check the app permission.READ_CONTACTS to see what informations can be obtained with this permission. READ_EXTERNAL_STORAGE (4.1+) Provides protected read access to external storage. In Android 4.1 by default all applications still have read access. This changed with Android 4.4 (API level 19), which now requires that applications explicitly request read access using this permission. If an application already requests write access, it will automatically get read access as well. Group: STORAGE READ_FRAME_BUFFER Allows an application to take screen shots and more generally get access to the frame buffer data Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS Level: SYSTEM READ_HISTORY_BOOKMARKS Allows an application to read (but not write) the user's browsing history and bookmarks. Group: PERSONAL_INFO Check the app READ_HISTORY_BOOKMARKS App. to see what information can be obtained with this permission. READ_INPUT_STATE Allows an application to retrieve the current state of keys and switches. This is only for use by the system. Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS Level: SYSTEM READ_LOGS Allows an application to read the low-level system log files. Log entries can contain the user's private information Group: PERSONAL_INFO No longer granted to user apps starting with Android 4.2+ (user apps can now only see their own log entries). Work-arounds are possible on rooted devices. For details, see: stackexchange-url ("Read logs from all apps on android from within an app for android 4.2+") READ_OWNER_DATA READ_PHONE_STATE Allows read only access to phone state. Group: PHONE_CALLS This permission gives access to your device's identifiers (IMEI/IMSI), SIM ID, voice mailbox number, your phone number and, if a call is in progress, the remote number. It's not required for things like call state (whether a call is in progress/pending), network operator, or the network provider used – according to the app permission.READ_PHONE_STATE , which shows what this permission is needed for (and what not) automatically granted to apps targeted at Android 1.6 or before good use: ??? bad use: you can be tracked across networks via your IMSI/IMEI/phone number neutral use: targeted ads (service can see what ads have already been displayed on your device, and don't need to be displayed again, for example) See also: stackexchange-url ("Why do so many applications require permission to read the phone state and identity?") Phone Calls </code> application permission allow developer to read my contact book? READ_PROFILE (4.0+) Allows an application to read the user's personal profile data. Group: PERSONAL_INFO READ_SECURE_SETTINGS Allows an application to read the secure system settings. Group: HARDWARE_CONTROLS READ_SMS Allows an application to read SMS messages. Group: MESSAGES Check the app permission.READ_SMS to see what information can be obtained with this permission. READ_SOCIAL_STREAM (4.0+) Allows an application to read from the user's social stream. Group: PERSONAL_INFO READ_SYNC_SETTINGS Allows applications to read the sync settings Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS READ_SYNC_STATS Allows applications to read the sync stats Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS READ_USER_DICTIONARY (4.1+) Allows an application to read the user dictionary. This should really only be required by an IME, or a dictionary editor like the Settings app. Group: PERSONAL_INFO REBOOT Required to be able to reboot the device Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS Level: SYSTEM RECEIVE_BOOT_COMPLETED Allows an application to receive the <code> ACTION_BOOT_COMPLETED </code> that is broadcast after the system finishes booting. If you don't request this permission, you will not receive the broadcast at that time. Though holding this permission does not have any security implications, it can have a negative impact on the user experience by increasing the amount of time it takes the system to start and allowing applications to have themselves running without the user being aware of them. As such, you must explicitly declare your use of this facility to make that visible to the user. Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS RECEIVE_EMERGENCY_BROADCAST Allows an application to receive emergency cell broadcast messages, to record or display them to the user. Reserved for system apps. Group: MESSAGES Level: SYSTEM Pending API council approval RECEIVE_MMS Allows an application to monitor incoming MMS messages, to record or perform processing on them. Group: MESSAGES RECEIVE_SMS Allows an application to monitor incoming SMS messages, to record or perform processing on them. Group: MESSAGES RECEIVE_WAP_PUSH Allows an application to monitor incoming WAP push messages. Group: MESSAGES RECORD_AUDIO Allows an application to record audio Group: HARDWARE_CONTROLS REORDER_TASKS Allows an application to change the Z-order of tasks Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS RESTART_PACKAGES <code> deprecated </code> - No longer supported SEND_RESPOND_VIA_MESSAGE (4.3+) Allows an application (Phone) to send a request to other applications to handle the respond-via-message action during incoming calls. Not for use by third-party applications. SEND_SMS Allows an application to send SMS messages. Group: COST_MONEY SEND_SMS_NO_CONFIRMATION Allows an application to send SMS messages via the Messaging app with no user input or confirmation. Group: COST_MONEY Level: SYSTEM SET_ACTIVITY_WATCHER Allows an application to watch and control how activities are started globally in the system. Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS Level: SYSTEM SET_ALARM (2.3+) Allows an application to broadcast an Intent to set an alarm for the user. Group: PERSONAL_INFO SET_ALWAYS_FINISH Allows an application to control whether activities are immediately finished when put in the background. Group: DEVELOPMENT_TOOLS SET_ANIMATION_SCALE Modify the global animation scaling factor. Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS SET_DEBUG_APP Configure an application for debugging. Group: DEVELOPMENT_TOOLS SET_ORIENTATION Allows low-level access to setting the orientation (actually rotation) of the screen. Not for use by normal applications. Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS Level: SYSTEM SET_POINTER_SPEED (3.2+) Allows low-level access to setting the pointer speed. Not for use by normal applications. Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS Level: SYSTEM SET_PREFERRED_APPLICATIONS <code> deprecated </code> No longer useful Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS SET_PROCESS_LIMIT Allows an application to set the maximum number of (not needed) application processes that can be running. Group: DEVELOPMENT_TOOLS SET_TIME (2.2+) Allows applications to set the system time Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS Level: SYSTEM SET_TIME_ZONE Allows applications to set the system time zone Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS SET_WALLPAPER Allows applications to set the wallpaper Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS SET_WALLPAPER_HINTS Allows applications to set the wallpaper hints Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS SIGNAL_PERSISTENT_PROCESSES Allow an application to request that a signal be sent to all persistent processes Group: DEVELOPMENT_TOOLS STATUS_BAR Allows an application to open, close, or disable the status bar and its icons. Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS Level: SYSTEM SUBSCRIBED_FEEDS_READ Allows an application to read the subscribed feeds ContentProvider. Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS SUBSCRIBED_FEEDS_WRITE Allows an application to write to the subscribed feeds ContentProvider. Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS SYSTEM_ALERT_WINDOW Allows an application to open windows using the type <code> TYPE_SYSTEM_ALERT </code> , shown on top of all other applications. Very few applications should use this permission; these windows are intended for system-level interaction with the user. Group: SYSTEM_TOOLS stackexchange-url ("continue here") too many characters (Body is limited to 30000 characters) , so it had to be split | What do the permissions that applications require mean? | android |
Is there any way to block only H+ (3.5G) and still have H (3G)? I use Android 4.2.1 CM10 Galaxy Nexus. I want to do this because 3.5G signal in buildings is poor (1 bar), but 2G (which signal is good) is too slow. | No, you cannot block that, unfortunately! You can either switch to 2G (which saves battery) or continue with 3G. Cannot have it both ways! The telephony signal is deep within Android itself and no way of messing with that! Not alone that, Android picks up that radio signal strength from the heart of the Silicon On Chip (S-o-C) where the base-band radio firmware resides in and is off-limits and proprietary . | Block H+ (3.5G) but not H (3G), possible? | android |
I'm trying to install a large application (EA games' Scrabble free), but I have insufficient space on my phone, so I can't complete the installation. I have plenty of space on my SD card though, but I don't see any option to install the app directly there without passing through the phone. What can I do about this? | You are out of luck sorry! The only way to do so, is to install to internal space on Phone, then: Tap on Settings Tap on Applications Then tap on Manage Applications Scroll down looking for the appropriate game, then tap on it Finally, tap on <code> Move to SD Card </code> ... You will have to free up space temporarily in order to do this. | Can I install an app directly to my SD card? | android |
With the growing number of Android devices in all sorts of different form factors (dev boards like Raspberry Pi/ODroid, Android-on-a-stick, etc), it seems like it would be great to be able to actually do development work on Android and not just simply for Android. For example, having the standard Linux build tools available would let me easily run a server. | In case you only need a cross compiling environment with the standard Linux build tools there is an easy solution already included in the Android-NDK: In the subdirectory <code> build/tools </code> of the NDK you find a scrip named <code> make-standalone-toolchain.sh </code> . using the parameter <code> --install-dir= </code> you can specify a path where to create the standalone-toolkit - for example as shown inthis call: <code> build/tools/make-standalone-toolchain.sh --install-dir=/tmp/android-stanalone-toolchain </code> Adding the bin directory of the created toolkit allows you to use the standard build process for compiling projects. Just make sure that you call the <code> configure </code> script properly for cross compiling: <code> ./configure --target=arm-linux-androideabi --host=arm-linux-androideabi </code> Afterwards you can simply call <code> make </code> and then pray that the application you want to compile is compatible with ARM/Android platform. | Is there any easy way to get GNU build tools on Android? If not... why not? | android |
I had recently gifted my Mom a Nexus 7, with a hope that she will like to read books. She is old with poor eye sight and can't read English that great. I find her eager to learn and she had made a good progress in reading few books. Since she is not used to these gadgets, I am trying to keep settings in her tablet constant. Recently I observed that the shortcut in home screen for PDF reader disappeared and resulting in discontinued reading till my arrival. The frequency of this sort of interruption has increased now a days. Rather than finding how the shortcut is being deleted, I think preventing changes to home screen is sensible. Hence, I would like to know about any means to keep the icons or shortcuts in home screen and in launcher constant, immune to long press and drag and drop operations. Device info: Nexus 7, running stock 4.2.1, unrooted, but willing to root if required. | There's no built-in functionality for this, but there are a handful of third-party launchers that support locking the desktop. Off the top of my head, I know that both Apex Launcher and ADW.Launcher do. For Apex, simply double tap on an empty space on the home screen and then select "Lock Desktop" to prevent icons from being added or removed. On ADW.Launcher you should be find a "Lock Desktop" option in the settings, which you can access from the overflow menu in the top right of the app drawer (Apex also has a settings menu there). Other launchers that have the “Lock Desktop” option: Holo Launcher and Holo Launcher HD Lightning Launcher | Can I prevent home screen shortcuts from getting deleted or moved around? | android |
I just switched from the SG2 to the SG3. They transferred all my contacts at the store. I now have a lot of duplicate contacts, some of which are Phone contacts and some of which are Google contacts. I am working to clean this up. On my old SG2, joining contacts did what I desired: 2 contacts would become 1 with all of the information from contact A and contact B 'joined' together. On my new SG3, when I join contacts, I get a message saying 'Contact Joined', but there is no visible effect. No additional data is added, no additional joined contact is present, and when I browse through my contacts, both copies of the contact are still present. What am I missing? There are similar questions such as stackexchange-url ("Merging duplicate contacts - is my phone broken?"). My question seems very similar, but no one sufficiently answered the poster's original question in my view. It might be a good idea to start over, but I would need a way of separating out the Phone and Google contacts when I export. Thoughts on that point? Thanks. | After much searching for an answer, I found this in another forum. I use Companionlink to sync my old Palm Desktop database to my S3. The contact records come into the device showing as a phone record, but most times don't auto join to Facebook and LinkedIn records...even if the names match exactly. I tried in vain on many records to join contacts by clicking on a contact then selecting the paperclip icon to join contacts. I would go through the motions and join the contacts, and get a confirmation that contacts were joined, even though it never actually happened. This solution below works ! It appears that the 'main' way of getting this done (at least with Jelly Bean) has a programming flaw. Hopefully it will be fixed when Key Lime Pie comes out. In the interim, use this solution below. Do this: Open the settings for one of the contacts (click on the "pencil" while viewing the contact) Put the cursor at the end of the contacts last name, like you're changing their name, and type a space (hit space bar) then it will bring up other similar contacts below. Choose the account you want join by touching it and the phone will prompt you to join contacts. This method has not failed! | Joining Contacts has no effect (SG3 4.1.1) | android |
In Nokia PC Suite we can backup mobile data (contacts, message etc) on a computer. We can also send, receive sms or manage sms by computer using Nokia PC Suite when a Nokia mobile is connected with a computer by Bluetooth or by data cable. Is there any software or application by which I can use my HTC Desire SV mobile phone the same way as above? I want to send or receive SMS by my laptop which is connected to my HTC Desire SV because this saves my time. Is this possible? | Try MyPhoneExplorer to control (almost) any Android device. You can easily send and receive sms on your PC when this software is connected to your phone. or HTC Sync Manager for synchronizing. | Is There a Computer Application To Manage SMS Messages The Same as Nokia PC Suite Can? | android |
I just acquired a newish Kindle Fire, software version 10.2.6. Normally when I plug a Kindle or any USB device into my laptop (running Ubuntu 12.04) I get a popup screen asking me what I'd like to do and the device mounts. It has worked this way with 2 previous Kindles but they were software version 6.x.x. So my question is, how do I mount this device so that I can move my books and files onto it from my computer? I have ADB enabled and allow installation of applications from unknown sources. I don't have ADB installed on my computer because until now it wasn't necessary to move files back and forth in a Linux computer. On the notification screen the Kindle says "connected as media device." I should also note that despite using Ubuntu I'm relatively unskilled when it comes to the terminal. | Summing up from the comments above... As eldarerathis wrote: "connected as a media device" suggests it's using MTP , which would require special software to be installed (there are MTP packages available for different Linux flavours). Try getting UMS working You might also want to check your "notification area" when the device is connected: I don't know the Kindle Fire, but it might offer to switch to UMS (USB mass storage) mode. If you don't find anything corresponding in the notifications, also take a look through the settings. Just a possibility, nothing granted. Try it with MPT utilizing the MTP file system If you cannot get UMS working, there's a helpful link stackexchange-url ("pointed out by eldarerathis") is stackexchange-url ("Connecting Google Nexus 7 to Linux") on how to make mtpfs working on Linux. Basically, this can be done by issuing 4 commands in a terminal: <code> sudo apt-get install mtpfs mkdir ~/NexusDrive mtpfs ~/NexusDrive nautilus ~/NexusDrive </code> Short explanation on what it does: install the <code> mtpfs </code> package, which provides the MTP file system creating a directory where to mount your Kindle to actually mounting your device opening nautilus to show the files contained Of course, the last step can be replaced by opening any file explorer you like :) And as the "missing sudo" on lines 2-4 indicates, <code> mtpfs </code> is running in userspace. Graphical MTP frontend There's also a graphical MTP frontent available in the Ubuntu repositories: gMTP . It's mainly intended to be a MP3 player, but you also can manage your files with it: <code> sudo apt-get install gmtp </code> (it's in the universe branch, so you might have to enable universe first in your package manager) (screenshots taken from LinuxAndLife ) So you could use this instead of Nautilus -- or next to Nautilus, depending on what you want to do. With gMTP installed, simply connect your Kindle via its USB cable, then launch gMTP . Click the Connect button then will mount the device, and the Connect button gets re-labeled to "Disconnect", as shown in above screenshots. | How do I mount a Kindle Fire 10.2.6 on my Linux computer? | android |
A device presents me with an error message, and I want to google the problem. The error message is displayed translated, making it harder than necessary to find others with the same issue and/or a solution. Is there a way I can search the translation dataset and find the original string in english? | After some digging around, it turns out that there is indeed a way to handle localization in the SDK that could help answer this question, but from the Localization documentation, I don't get the impression an end-user can easily find these files and read them. Izzy's two suggestions from the comments are really the best available solutions here. Switch the system language in the settings, provoke the error message, write it down, and switch back. While the system language is switched, all apps will use this if not explicitly told otherwise. You could try is to google for the translation, which might turn up the translation XML file holding both, original string and translation. | Reversing translation of (error) messages? | android |
Every weekend I go out and ride my bike through the exact same boring old route. Now I've decided I want to start exploring new parts of the city, but I need my phone to help me that. Today, using google maps, I decided on a new route I want to follow next weekend (and I'll probably have a new one each week). The problem is that I've never been to these streets, so I need my phone to guide me through it. Specifically, I need something very similar to android's GPS navigation. I'll define where I want to go, place the phone in my pockets (with earphones), and just listen to the turn-by-turn "driving" instructions and follow them. The reason I don't just use android navigation is that the route isn't a simple <code> Go from A to B </code> , it's more like <code> Go from A to B, then to C, ..., then back to A </code> . That means I would have to re-type these destinations one by one in the phone, which is far from ideal. Ideally, I need a system that allows me to do something like: plan a complex route on the computer, send it to my phone, have it guide me with turn-by-turn voice instructions. Is there an app for that? Or is there a way to do that with standard GPS navigation? | The solution I use for similar situation is Trekbuddy . I am sure you will discard the idea of using this app if you didn't understand it well. Hence, read through its description in its Play site and their forums . It requires little homework before any such serious use. But once you know your way (pun intended ) through the application, it will be a breeze. With this app, you can plan your route on computer export it as GPX and together with few MP3 files you can create a turn-by-turn pre-planned navigation. Be aware that if you miss your turn this will not reroute you back. You have to see the map that and continue either on the new route or try to join the pre planned route. To know about its other uses, take a look at my answer for the question "stackexchange-url ("How to import GPS coordinates track for using offline")" You may also try OSMAND . You can create a pre planned route and export as GPX file. OSMAnd can be configured to use this pre defined route. I could not get my head through the options and configurations to make this work. But from reading its help, I understand that this can do the above and even reroute in case if you miss your turn. Personally, I like Trekbuddy for its simplicity and its many features as I described in my answer to the other question. If you happen to succeed with OSMAnd, please share your procedure with us. Update: After reading through the forum pages of Trekbuddy, I finally figured out how to use a pre planned turn by turn navigation feature and I tried today to ensure it is working. The steps involved are (from scratch): Install Trekbuddy either from PlayStore or from their download link . Run the app with GPS switched on. Press <code> Menu </code> and press <code> Start </code> and wait for GPS fix. If GPS fix is a success you will see the cross hair at your location in the World map. To display a map, you have to download raster map tiles from the service provider. These tiles are to be placed in a particular format and an application called Mobac comes for rescue. This app creates such map tiles, indexes and even compress. Various map sources like OpenStreetMap , OpenCycleMap , Google Maps*, Google Terrain*, Google Earth Satellite*, Yahoo Maps etc can be used. Explaining how to create a map will be bit out of scope here, and I will leave it to a rare tutorial available here in German. Assuming you had successfully created a TARred atlas (collection of map tiles as said above), you have to place the <code> .TAR </code> file and its subfolder inside <code> \mnt\sdcard\Trekbuddy\maps </code> folder. To load the map, press <code> Menu </code> button and touch <code> Maps </code> option and select the <code> *.Tar </code> file. Depending on how you had layered the atlas, layers might appear in the next screen and if so, select a layer. Trekbuddy might prompt you to mark this as default atlas. If acceptable click <code> Yes </code> and you will save all this step doing again. One map is loaded, you can ensure it by tapping any where in the screen, which will show the cross hair on your location in the map as identified by the GPS. In your computer plan a route and mark turning points as waypoints. As an example, in this following image six waypoints are marked as WPT1..WPT6. In computer, using a text editor, create a GPX file with following template. Place the GPX file created as above in <code> \mnt\sdcard\Trekbuddy\wpts </code> folder. Place sound files in AMR format (MP3 not tested) in <code> \mnt\sdcard\Trekbuddy\sounds </code> folder. The file name of these files should be as mentioned in the GPX file. And finally, in Trekbuddy app, press <code> Menu </code> , <code> Navigation </code> , <code> Waypoints </code> and choose the above GPX file. Then choose the final waypoint, in this case WPT6 and press <code> menu </code> again and choose <code> NavigateTo </code> . When you start moving approach WPT1, the sound assigned to WPT1 will be played. The setting <code> Settings->Navigation->Wpt Proximity </code> determines the proximity radius. The value is in meters and when the current GPS position is within this imaginary circle, the sound will be played. I believe it has been discontinued since Mobac version 1.9 onward due to legal pressure. Old versions are not officially available but are still at large. | How to have my phone guide me through a specific route | android |
When the contact items (or several) are set to 'phone', how can they be changed to 'gmail' in order to sync? In the post stackexchange-url ("Contacts Sync problems: phone contacts not syncing to Google"), it says that contacts set to 'phone' will not sync. So, how can they be changed? | You need to export your phone contacts in to vcf format and then again import it into Google contacts. Steps in Android 4.2: contacts -> settings > Import/Export -> Export to storage. contacts -> settings > Import/Export -> Import from storage. - This will ask you to select your Google account to save. Edit/Delete or remove duplicates in http://contacts.google.com . Thats easy. | Change existing contacts from 'phone' to 'gmail' | android |
I went over some of the old forum posts about this issue and there seems to be a lot of confusion about this. I am planning to root my HTC Desire (GSM) which at the moment is running original UI/ROM and everything on Android 2.2 FroYo. One of the root guides said that I should disable Fastboot by going to Settings and then Power. But I don't have that option. And apparently I am not the only one. So what's this all about? And how do you disable something like that when the option is not there? Can this be done from HBoot menu?... | I am on Android 2.3.3 with root, S-OFF and custom ROM (SuperNova) and I can confirm now that the option to toggle between Fast boot enabled and Fast boot disabled is available. Now, to properly answer my own original question, this is how you would disable it on HTC Desire. Press Menu button. Tap Settings. Tap Applications. Remove the checkmark from the option "Fast boot" to disable it. Press Home button. Screenshot: | How do I disable Fast boot without the Power option in Settings? | android |
I am following a Wiki on how to install and set up Android SDK and I am stuck at a step where I am supposed to test if the ADB server works by using the command <code> adb start-server </code> . Is this command correct? The Wiki can be found here: http://wiki.rootzwiki.com/Android_SDK I have done what it says in step 5. But it doesn't seem to work. I get the standard message in CMD that the command is not an internal, external command or a program. Add the following to the end of the Variable value field: Windows XP: ;C:\Program Files\Android\android-sdk\tools\;C:\Program Files\Android\android-sdk\platform-tools\ Windows Vista and later: Replace YOURUSERNAME in the following lines with your Windows username 32-Bit: ;C:\Program Files\Android\android-sdk\tools\;C:\Program Files\Android\android-sdk\platform-tools\ 64-Bit: ;C:\Users\YOURUSERNAME\AppData\Local\Android\android-sdk\tools\;C:\Users\YOURUSERNAME\AppData\Local\Android\android-sdk\platform-tools\ Click OK, OK, and OK to close the Advanced settings. So what gives? The CMD prompt is at <code> C:\Users\myusername </code> when I run the command. Maybe I need to CD to the android-sdk folder first before running the command? But then what use is it to add the path in the PATH variable?... | I have solved my own problem. Those search paths are all messed up! I checked the installation path and it's installed in C:\Program Files (x86)\Android even thou I do have a 64-bit version of Windows. But nevertheless, this is the default installation location. So I updated the PATH variable with following line. <code> C:\Program Files (x86)\Android\android-sdk\tools\;C:\Program Files (x86)\Android\android-sdk\platform-tools\ </code> And now I can start ADB server from CMD regardless of where the prompt is at. I have no clue why they are referring to AppData\Local\ folder in the guide for the 64-bit systems. That makes no sense at all. If anywhere, the installation location should be in "Program Files" folder for a 64-bit system. They actually put this in for the 32-bit systems... like I said, it's all messed up. I should point out that <code> adb.exe </code> has been moved from <code> C:\Program Files (x86)\Android\android-sdk\tools\ </code> to the new location <code> C:\Program Files (x86)\Android\android-sdk\platform-tools\ </code> . This has been done in later versions of Android SDK. So if you are reading this in year 2013 then you can probably just get the latest SDK and use only this last search path. You don't need them both. At least not for ADB and Fastboot. If you're a developer then you maybe need to access tools from both directories, although if you're a dev then you probably won't need to read this at all. How to edit a system variable Here's a short how-to for the newbies. What you need is the Environment Variables dialog. Click Start (Orb) menu button. Right click on Computer icon. Click on Properties. This will bring up System window in Control Panel. Click on Advanced System Settings on the left. This will bring up the System Properties window with Advanced tab selected. Click on Environment Variables button on the bottom of the dialog. This brings up the Environment Variables dialog. In the System Variables section, scroll down till you see Path. Click on Path to select it, then the Edit button. This will bring up the Edit System Variable dialog. While the Variable value field is selected, press the End key on your keyboard to go to the right end of the line, or use the arrow keys to move the marker to the end. Type in <code> ;C:\Program Files (x86)\Android\android-sdk\tools\;C:\Program Files (x86)\Android\android-sdk\platform-tools\ </code> and click OK. Click OK again, then OK once more to save and exit out of the dialogs. That's it! You can now start any Android SDK tool, e.g. ADB or Fastboot, regardless of what your current directory is in CMD. For good measure here's what the dialog looks like. This is where you edit the Path variable. | What do I type in PATH variable for ADB server to start from CMD? | android |
Is there a recommended way to clear out the thumbnail data that I have in <code> DCIM/.thumbnails </code> folder? It occupies about 50 MB and I want to clear it out but when I press Ctrl+A in Windows Explorer it stops responding. There are maybe 10,000 files in there. Is that enough to cause this problem where Explorer just hangs? I read in another post here at AE that you're supposed to go to Settings, Applications, and then pick the Gallery app and tap Clear Cache button. I tried this and it didn't help. Also it said in the dialog that the size occupied is like 170 KB or so. So I don't think that's it. But this is on Android 2.2, just for the record, so maybe it doesn't work that way in this version. | You could use any file explorer directly on your Android device to do this. A good choice is e.g. ES File Explorer File Manager , which as a side-effect also enables you to directly access your PC from the Android device (accessing your Shared Folders via WiFi), and has many other nice features: Start the app Go to Settings → File Settings , and enable Show Hidden Files option Navigate to the folder long-press the folder name, and select "delete" from the pop-up menu Confirm the deletion of folder and contents, if asked for for "normal operations", you might want to disable Show Hidden Files again It is pretty safe to delete the entire folder (instead of deleting all files separately). After all, with a new phone/sd card, the folder won't exist either. The app/service using the folder will simply re-create it if it does not (longer) exist. | How do you clear .thumbnails folder without hanging Windows Explorer? | android |
I was about to download a CM ROM file for my phone, here Now when I use that (first) uploaded link, it showed me a folder, in which there are a bunch of different versions, such as anzu aoba mango etc and many more. How do I determine which would be the correct version for me? My Phone is a Sony Ericsson Xperia x10i, if that is of interest. I hope this was not asked before, I was searching around for a while. Thanks for any help! | I do not think there's any support for the x10 from CM for the v9 release. For reference: Xperia Arc => anzu Xperia Neo => hallon Xperia Pro => iyokan Xperia Mini Pro => mango Xperia Ray => urushi Xperia Mini => smultron Xperia Arc S => ayame Xperia Neo V => haida Xperia Active => satsuma Live with Walkman => coconut Xperia Neo L => phoenix Edit: CyanogenMod is a ROM that targets a lot of handsets. A souped up/bloated version of the Stock Vanilla AOSP Android ( the ones found on the Nexus series handsets ) The FreeXperia project was founded by jerpelea who (unofficially works for Sony, gets freebies and contributes to porting CM for that handset etc). Also, FreeXperia project is officially merged into the CyanogenMod tree. Not all legacy devices are supported using the CM ROM, especially for the newer v9 and v10 (ICS and JB respectively. If visiting this Get CM you will actually find that CM is not supporting the legacy devices! Have not tried FreeXperia, but have heard it is not 100% stable, as some things are broken on it (If anyone wants to correct me, feel free to say so in the comments) :) | Which CM9 ROM for sony ericsson x10i? | android |
For example on my galaxy Tab 7.7 plus sc_01e running ics , the phone app apk is installed but does not show up in my app drawer. It will actually show up if it is called by a widget but there is no launched icon for it anywhere. In the system settings it shows as running This tablet is not rooted but I did buy it off a yahoo auction. | Android has many apps that run either in background (such as Accuweather daemon) or only appear as widgets (for example TypoClock). Since these two apps don't need the user to open them from the launcher, they don't add an icon to it. The same happens with Live Wallpapers. If you use a root explorer or another root app that will let you see all the installed apps, you will see that the list is higher than the apps that appear in the launcher. | Why are some apps hidden and how to unhide them | android |
I noticed that what makes installing SDK packages so slow is because these two packages take too long to be downloaded and sometimes it hangs on these two. Do you really need to download these two packages on every API version in the SDK Manager. | These system images just enable you to run Android emulator with processor of some architecture (depending on system image version; for example, Android 4.0 supports x86) and Android SDK doesn't require these images at all. If you use your phone (or some real device) for android development and don't use emulator at all than you don't need to install them at all. | Is ARM EABI v7a System Image and Mips System Image important? | android |
That is, I want my browser to start with two tabs open, set to two different URLs. I have tried putting "google.com | facebook.com" into the URL but that does not seem to achieve the intended effect. | No, it's not possible. How did I get such result? As always I started to google this possibility but found nothing interesting. So I decided to check Android Browser source code . If you want you can download it by typing in console: <code> git clone https://android.googlesource.com/platform/packages/apps/Browser </code> After 5-10 minutes (I'm not new in programming) of looking repository I found 2 facts: 1) The homepage is saved as one <code> String </code> (Java type). 2) The homepage is opening by calling this function (in <code> Controller.java </code> ): <code> @Override public Tab openTabToHomePage() { return openTab(mSettings.getHomePage(), false, true, false); } </code> So as you see (If you know programming a bit) it returns one tab , not several (like <code> List<Tab> </code> ). | Is it possible to specify multiple home pages for the default android browser? | android |
One of the big reasons I installed CyanogenMod (10.1 latest Monthly) was to be able to have the ability to selectively deny apps certain permissions (most importantly the network and device ID ones). However, I am not able to find it in the settings, in spite of there being blog and forum posts from several months ago mentioning that CM will have this feature. Does anyone know if this ever made it to the main ROM? If I want to include it myself, is there a specific source tree I can merge into the CM main repo code? Thanks. | This was available in CM7, but got removed in CM9 and above, for reasons I do not know myself. It is possible that the maintainers of CM couldn't find a way to make this compatible with Android 4+ and so left it out. There are apps on the market that can do this, such as Permissions Denied however this is now a paid app, and I am unable to report whether this works. EDIT: Ad eldarerathis pointed out in the comments, there is an open feature request to add this to CM10 and later. I suggest you follow this request for updates. | How to enable selective app permissions on CyanogenMod? | android |
While working fine for almost a year now (since I've installed CyanogenMod on my device), a couple of days ago synchronisation stopped all of a sudden: Network indicators turned white (no longer green on Gingerbread / blue on ICS and up), which indicates the device is not "in-sync" with the Google servers. First I thought it might be some Google Server outage (as all of us know them), I waited a couple of days. But it didn't solve up within a few days, so I decided to take a closer look. <code> logcat </code> then showed: Always when trying to sync, the network connection timed out. Further side-effects: Google Playstore app did no longer open ("network timeout"), Google Talk insisted on a "username/password failure". That's where I got stuck: What to do? Reboot didn't help, shutdown/restart didn't help either, nor did clearing cache/data from the contactssync app. I couldn't log off GTalk (which would be the next logical step), as GTalk immediately insisted on that username/password error. Now what? | Analysis Luckily, <code> logcat </code> gave the IP address along (in my case: <code> 74.125.93.113 </code> ). On my PC, I first checked with the browser ("https://74.125.93.113/") -- and in fact, connection timed out. Next I checked what's behind the IP: <code> host 74.125.93.113 113.93.125.74.in-addr.arpa domain name pointer qw-in-f113.1e100.net. </code> Didn't tell me anything. But checking with <code> /etc/hosts </code> on the Android device, I found the entry: <code> 74.125.93.113 android.clients.google.com </code> A lookup of that host reveiled: The IP <code> 74.125.93.113 </code> no longer belongs to it -- which explains the trouble. Solution The solution requires root, unfortunately, as <code> /etc/hosts </code> is owned by root and read-only for everybody else. Furthermore, <code> /etc </code> is just a symbilic link to <code> /system/etc </code> , which means the entire file system is read only. What you need root a terminal emulator app (e.g. Android Terminal Emulator ) What to do Open the terminal app, and follow these steps: <code> # make yourself root su # SuperUser/SuperSU may require approval at this point. Give it. # check how /system is mounted: mount | grep system #output will look similar to this: /dev/block/mmcblk1p21 on /system type ext3 (ro,relatime,barrier=1,data=ordered) #remount /system read-write, using the values obtained: mount -o rw,remount -t ext3 /dev/block/mmcblk1p21 /system #edit /etc/hosts vi /etc/hosts # put a comment-sign (#) in front of the line containing the bad IP, e.g. # 74.125.93.113 android.clients.google.com # save the file # re-mount /system read-only (or simply reboot, that will do it as well) mount -o ro,remount -t ext3 /dev/block/mmcblk1p21 /system </code> Now just wait a short time -- or simply call up Google Play to check. It shouldn't take long for the lights to turn green again. | Synchronisation of contacts and calendar suddenly stopped working | android |
I have connected my Samsung Galaxy Y mobile with Windows XP (64 bit) operating system. It is asking me to install the CDC ACM Data. I have selected the 'install automatically' option, but it is saying that it can't install the software. Where can I find the software? I have searched a lot. | Here they say, installing Samsung Kies should solve the problem. I haven't tried it yet, but it is available on Samsung's official website for their various phone models. | Samsung Galaxy Y asking to install CDC ACM DATA? | android |
I am having lot of Video files which are my personal to give to my girl friend. My girl friend personal video files are also to send to me. Now both together, i want to keep them as Album, Which i need to upload to Google Drive or Microsoft Sky-drive or Drop-box. Like Photo upload/share concept, is there Video upload/share apps in Android? Which could also help me: While using, WhatsAPP, or Skype i need to send my google drive videos to someone using send video? Is there any way in Android? | Yes, you can use Google Drive , Dropbox or SkyDrive to upload your Videos. I think though that the YouTube app would be better, just remember to mark your video as "private". You can even set up an extra Google Account just for that which you can both use with the same password. | Where to upload video files? to have online video albums? To share them for WhatsAPP apps | android |
If I delete a message with a single tick, does that just get deleted from my local device ( Android) or does it no longer get delivered to the recipient? | If you wish to stop a whatapp message from being delivered to a recipient, I have found that after you have sent this (✅) and before this is delivered (✅✅) you add the person temporarily to your block list until they come on line next as you can still see there date stamp. The message then doesn't get delivered. You can then reinstate them and the message will never get delivered and stays in the status of ✅. Hope that helps. | Can I stop a WhatsApp message from being delivered? | android |
I'd like to use my iMac's audio (i.e., microphone and speakers) for a call that is handled on my Samsung galaxy i5000 Android 2.2 phone. Is that possible? I've paired my iMac (OSX 10.6) and smartphone through Bluetooth. Then, during a call, I opened the context menu on my phone (where you can also enable/disable the speaker of the phone), but the Bluetooth icon is disabled. (although Bluetooth itself is active and working, e.g. from my iMac I can see the files on my phone). Is there any way to get the above working? (I wondered whether to post this under apple- or android-stackexchange, but given the Bluetooth icon being disabled, I decided to post it here) | The reason for the Bluetooth icon being disabled is that you haven't paired the phone with a device that supports the Headset profile . Bluetooth uses profiles to categorize which services a device supports, and Macs don't support acting as a headset, only connecting to a headset (see list of supported profiles ). To use this functionality, you'd need additional software which enables the Mac to act as a headset and connect to a headset gateway (which your phone most likely supports). | Can I use my iMac's mic and speakers for a call with my android 2.2 phone (through Bluetooth)? | android |
I know how to stackexchange-url ("show the developer options menu"). How do I hide it again? | Clearing the data on the "settings" app will get rid of the developer options on the Galaxy Nexus (at least on 4.1. Not sure about 4.2), but that may only work on that device. It doesn't do it on my Galaxy S3. Note : The above action clears the settings of the settings app, i.e. not actually importanty data per se. You should be fine doing this. The only other known method to get rid of them requires root and deleting /data/data/com.android.settings/shared_prefs/development.xml . See stackexchange-url ("Where are the developer options in Android 4.2?") | Hide Developer Options in Android 4.2 | android |
I want to push music to my Android device running Google Music. Is this possible? | It's actually pretty simple but not obvious at first. Create a Playlist (e.g. 'Offline') Open Google Play Music on your Android device and select the playlist Check 'Keep on device' for the playlist Go to http://music.google.com and add tracks to this playlist You device will download the tracks, even if you add them with the web interface | How can I push music to my Android device with Google Play Music? | android |
I tried googling this, but it kept giving me the USB tethering option, which I don't want. My laptop currently cannot connect to the Wifi we have at work, because there is a problem with Cisco, Windows 8, and Killer Networks cards not working together. However, my Galaxy S3 can connect to the Wifi at work perfectly fine. I know that you can take your phone's mobile data connection, and use that as an internet connection over USB or Wifi. My question is, if your phone is connected to a Wifi network ALREADY, can you USB tether it to your computer, and use that to connect your computer to the same Wifi network? Thanks. | You should be able to just tether and while your phone is connected to the wifi network that connection should be used. If this is not the case turning off the mobile data should force it to use the wifi connection | Connect Galaxy S3 Wifi Connection to Computer | android |
I want to be able to connect to my VPN connection whenever I am connected to wifi, is it possible to add a shortcut on the home screen where the widget including wireless, Bluetooth, GPS, sync and brightness options is? | Yes. This is possible Use 1-vpn app which lets you do this. But, it's not compatible with Android 4.0+, and you have to pay for it (only a $0.90). If the payment is worth the burden you go through every time you connect, that's your best option. Alternatively you can use 5-vpn which is free and requires you to go through 5 taps to connect. Your last alternative is VPN show which is only capable of taking you to your vpn settings screen. | Is it possible to create a VPN connection shortcut on home screen? | android |
When I want to get/download books from Google Play Store, I usually get this notification: But then I am not sure what to do afterwards to be able to read those pdf books on my phone. I've installed to ebook reader apps (kindle and another one), I also downloaded Google Play books app but I can't find those books exploring in those ebook reader apps and I can't find Google Play Books app on my phone to check whether it is possible to read them there. | You can download the Google Play Books app from the market ( link ) If there is a problem with your installed app, open the app using Play Store app and uninstall and reinstall it. Now you should have the app shortcut in your app drawer. In this app, you will be able to view your purchased books. | Reading pdf books on my phone | android |
I think I've bricked my device (Huawei G330, U8225-1). I was adb pushing while I received a "push failed: no space left on device". The phone boots in recovery, I've root but the bootloader is locked. If I try to push an update to SDCARD/dload it says "no such file or directory", if I try to adb shell it says "exec '/system/bin/sh' failed: Permission denied (13) -" What can I do? | That's a soft brick, for the reasons below: Handset is still powering on adb is responding handset recognizes usb cable plugged in (how else were you able to adb?) handset recognizes the sdcard Look at this question to see Izzy's stackexchange-url ("answer") on what is classified as a "brick". Something went awry there and it clobbered the recovery environment... mind giving a bit more details...? Edit From the comments below, it transpires that the OP pushed over the shell binary file <code> sh </code> from the root of the phone, (either overwriting it and or/had incorrect permissions) and ended up with a "locked-out" of executing shell commands and fail. By the way, there is no way to set the permission as the <code> sh </code> interpreter does not have the appropriate permission for executable bit! So executing any commands on that will fail . The only remedy is to re-flash the recovery image directly onto the recovery partition, by going into fastboot mode on the handset, usually Power + Volume up , armed with a fastboot binary that must be entered on either the Linux's terminal or Windows's cmd, i.e. two operating system environments, choose one of your own preference: Linux <code> sudo fastboot flash recovery recovery.img </code> Windows <code> fastboot-win flash recovery recovery.img </code> That will restore the recovery environment and then the shell interpreter should work from within <code> adb shell </code> session next time recovery gets booted into. | Is it a hard brick? | android |
I have an Samsung Galaxy S3. TouchWiz is great, but I want to use the vanilla Android OS you see on the Nexus 4. Is this possible? | In theory, it should be possible to compile Android from source, with proprietary blobs for the specific device. In practice, however, this is largely impossible, with the exception of Nexus devices and those from community dev-friendly manufacturers like Sony. Samsung, in particular, is notorious for providing terribly (un)organized sources, and even the talented hackers of Cyanogenmod team are frustrated, and many have sold off their devices and moved to Sony and Nexus devices. So, your only realistic option is to install a community ROM like CM10.1. Again, it is not bug-free or fully featured as stock firmware. | Can you install vanilla Android on any phone? | android |
Both MediaMonkey and MusicBee, as music players let you 'rate' songs from 1 to 5 stars. I would like to have this functionality as well in an Android app. The main problem is syncing these ratings. Android apps like NRG Player do have a rating, however if I rate songs using NRG Player, they are not 'understood' by neither MediaMonkey nor MusicBee. Also, any ratings I give to songs via MediaMonkey or MusicBee are neither understood by the NRG Player. Is there any app which reads/writes ratings in the same format that either MediaMonkey or MusicBee do? Or any app which syncs such ratings? | After I posted this question, I found out that 'PlayerPro' music player allows you to choose the type of ratings it saves to. MediaMonkey is one of them, so this basically is what I needed. Unfortunately, it is not a free app, but for me although this is a tiny feature, this is something I'm willing to pay for. | Sync MP3 Ratings on Android, with MediaMonkey / MusicBee on Windows | android |
Has anyone successfully used a MIDI Keyboard (through USB OTG, specifically) with a Nexus 7? (I am not looking for commentary on the particular keyboard, but please state which you have used.) | You can use any standard Midi keyboard with your device. ( src ) There are several keyboards with Korg and Roland . Choice of the device is all yours. But unfortunately there are reports that your nanopad is not working with this as you asked in your original question. ( src ) You may want to verify that with the manufacturer first, before you go for a new one. Once you have a standard Midi device (which does not require driver installations), you can use apps like USB MIDI Monitor or Grand Piano Note: You can try eBay for good solutions. Visit a local music store and check compatibility before you buy as stackexchange-url ("Izzy suggested") | USB On-the-go MIDI Keyboard with Nexus 7 | android |
The screen woke up at 4am or 5am at night, and had been on ever since. How can I find out the process that was responsible for screen-wake ups? The device is Galaxy S III running Android Jellybean 4.1.2. Thank you | Download the GSam Battery Monitor (formally knows as Bad Ass Battery Monitor) it will keep track of the number of times and for how long each app keep the device awake. Open GSAM and go to the App Sucker view (icon on the lower left). Then change the view to Time Held Awake. To see the number of time an app held the device awake press on the app. (click to enlarge) | How do I determine which process woke up the screen? | android |
I have HTC Explorer and with Root Explorer put a file into <code> /system/lib </code> directory. After reset, the phone will not boot. Now I cannot access to the internal memory via the phone and I need to access it via the PC in order to delete the file from <code> /system/lib </code> . How can I do it? | If you had ADB debugging enabled, there is an easy way to do this using the SDK. All you have to do is connect the device to the computer while it is booting, and type: <code> adb shell su mount -o remount,rw /system rm -rvf /system/libskia.so mv /system/libskia.so-back /system/libskia.so </code> To get the ADB binary you will have to download the Android SDK, or Google 'Android Mini SDK'. If you didn't have USB debugging enabled, then the only thing you can do is flash a new ROM. You would have to install CWM recovery, and find a ROM for your device. If your device has fastboot you can easily flash a recovery file that has been made for your device by using the <code> fastboot flash recovery <recovery .img file path> </code> . | How to access the internal memory of HTC Explorer | android |
When I connect a USB Flash drive to my Galaxy SII Android 2.3.4, it alerts me with this message: USB Storage Blank or Has Unsupported Filesystem What is the problem and how can I resolve it? | Best thing you can do is first try and get anything off the drive you want from a computer. Then reformat the drive to FAT32 and try connecting it again if your still getting the error report back | USB storage blank or unsupported filesystem | android |
The Video Player app that came with Galaxy Note 10.1 will start at the background when connected to a Windows computer through USB. And there's no option in that app to disable it. It always appear in Task Manager when connected. Is there any way to disable this auto-start? | Most likely the video player registered a listener to be notified on "USB connected". If you want to keep the app but get rid of that annoyance, the only way goes via root. You won't need a custom ROM for that -- just an app like Autorun Manager PRO which allows you to disable listeners of any app: As the screenshot shows, AutoRun Manager lists up all apps along with their registered listeners. Check here for your video player app, find the responsible listener, and remove the checkmark in front of it. That should do it. If you do so for some apps, and some day decide to remove AutoRun Manager , your restrictions would persist unless you reset them before uninstalling ARM (the app has a "revert" option, and can even revert all changes at once). If you forgot that, and want to re-enable disabled listeners, the only way is to re-install the affected app (not ARM , that won't help as it remembered its actions in its settings, which are removed when you uninstall the app). | Video Player in Galaxy Note 10.1 keeps starting itself when connected to computer through USB | android |
I'd like to be able to push PDF files onto a phone/tablet with a Bash script. Is it possible to transfer data using scp (or even rsync) from a Linux computer to an Android phone over wireless? Could I even run Unison on the phone? And is it possible to run Bash (or only POSIX Shell) scripts on the phone remotely? | Many things are possible. Installing an SSH Server app (e.g. SSHHelper or DigiSSHD / SSH Server - Android Apps on Google Play ) would give you the possibility to login via ssh, or remote-copy via scp. Terminal IDE gives you a quite complete package, even including the famous Midnight Commander, and a lot more useful tools: javac, java, dx, proguard, aapt, apkbuilder, signer, ssh, sshd , telnetd, bash 4.2, busybox 1.19.2, vim 7.3, nano 2.2.6, midnight commander 4.8, htop 1.0, TMUX 1.5, rsync 3.0.8, git 1.7.8, BitchX 1.1 and a nice terminal emulator are all available. (emphasis are introduced by me to pick the items your question was for) So except for Unison, the latter package should cover your needs :) | scp and rsync to transfer data from Linux to Android | android |
I got myself an OTG cable for Nexus 7, which works just fine. Now, I am wondering if I can connect the Nexus 7 with my Arduino for serial communication between the two. | Yes, according to this blog post . It involves Android programming, something I'm not very familiar with. | Can I use usb OTG for serial connection between nexus 7 and Arduino? | android |
The nightly builds of CyanogenMod 10.1 for the Samsung Galaxy Note II was just released. I have been using CM on my devices since the G1 (ADP1) days so I decided to give it a try. I have only had 2 issues so far. (Bluetooth is wonky but I don't use it very often) Lack of support for ExFAT. This was easily worked around by converting my SDCard to FAT32. While I wish there was support for ExFAT, I doubt there ever will be since it is a propitary format that was licensed to Samsung. Unable to successfully install the MTP drivers (Windows 7). I have tried rebooting, uninstalling the "existing" drivers and rebooting. Nothing seems to allow the driver to successfully install. It goes through the entire process of installing the driver. It even downloads it from Microsoft Update after I uninstall the existing driver. But it will not successfully install. | It seems that all that I needed to do was reboot my PC. Once I rebooted my PC had no problems installing the MTP driver for the device. | MTP Driver fails to install for CM 10.1 on Samsung Galaxy Note II | android |
I have a Sony Xperia P, with Android ICS. I have Ingress installed on my phone. Today, I synced my phone, and Ingress got updated. I had an icon on the homescreen. However - whenever I click on the shortcut, the toast message appears and says <code> Application Not Found </code> . I can't find the Ingress icon in applications list too. I thought that it might get accidentally uninstalled, so I went to Play store to download it again, but I can see that it's already installed on my phone. I clicked on open button and Ingress got opened, and is still working fine. So what is wrong here? I didn't yet try to reinstall the app, and don't want to do that. Where's the app-icon, and how can I get it back? | This happened on my Nexus - you just have to reboot your device, and the Icon will show up. Most likely Niantic changed the Launcher activity, so the short cut is no longer pointing to the correct activity, hence the error message. Rebooting the device/restarting the launcher, and then re-adding the home screen shortcut will fix this. | Application not found | android |
I installed <code> whatsapp </code> on virtual device : Where can I find the media downloaded from <code> whatsapp </code> ? I searched the android directories but couldn't find the media I downloaded. | It will not be on the Windows filesystem. The emulator makes a <code> .img </code> file that it then mounts as the virtual SD Card. So, to answer your question, the file is stored in the sdcard <code> .img </code> file in the avd folder. (You may be able to extract it using winRAR or another unzip utility. Check the <code> C:\Users\<your username>\.android\avd\<avd name>\sdcard.img </code> ) EDIT: This program claims to mount <code> .img </code> files. I am using Ubuntu though, so cannot test sorry. | Where can I find the media downloaded from whatsapp installed on a virtual device? | android |
I got a Nexus 7 last week, and I love it! It has NFC functionality, and I was wondering how I could test it? I don't actually have any NFC tags that I can use (have you seen the price of them?!?). So, how can I test NFC without NFC tags? | Take any NFC enabled thing to test it out and install this task launching app. Now create an action using the app to do anything (click the <code> + </code> icon and follow instructions). When it asks you to write the tag, just touch the back of the device to your NFC enabled thing. It may fail to write, but it will still work. Examples of some NFC enabled things you might just have lying around: Metro cards Some electronic keys Any other NFC enabled phone | How can I test the NFC capability of my Android? | android |
When using Google Chrome mobile (or any other android web browser) is the Javascript VM running on top of the Java VM? Or is the JS code compiled to Java bytecode? I ask this because JS seems to run obnoxiously slower on Android using Google Chrome vs a PC. Granted a PC is much faster, but I have a Galaxy S3 which should be on par with a 2yr old netbook right? | The Javascript engine in Android's Browser/WebView can be either JavaScriptCore (lower end phones) or V8 (higher end phones). Chrome also uses V8. Both engines are written in C++. Javascript is never compiled to Java bytecode, instead it is interpreted and/or JIT compiled into ARM bytecode. My guess on why V8 on PC is much faster than V8 on Android is probably because JIT compilation to x86 is more mature than JIT compilation to ARM. | Are JS apps effectively running through 2 VM's? | android |
I have a DroidX running Android 2.3.4. When somebody sends me a text message that goes to other devices too, is there anyway I can tell? Usually the only way I find out is when somebody else does a "reply all" (probably using a newer version of Android), and I get some random message from a number I may or may not recognize. Also, what about when I reply to the message? Does it only go to the person who sent it to me, or does it somehow auto-reply-all behind the scenes? | I am on 2.3.5 In the basic "messages" app you can go to the message, clicknhold, view message details. There it shows all recipients. If i just reply it only goes back to the sender. Now, others that I know have iphones replied and it went to everyone... There is a "reply all" option after you click and hold. | Text Messaging: Group Text Message | android |
I'd like to be clear, and as my question indicates, I'm very ignorant of mobile devices in general so my apologies if this is common knowledge. Say I want to install a custom ROM onto a device, then it would appear I need root access. I'm able to find out from every web page on how I can root a device, but I'm unable to find how why I need to root a device. I understand that rooting a device simply gives me root access on the device, but why is this needed? If I connect the phone to a PC then doesn't that give me access to the entire file system of the device? If so, then why can't I just overwrite the relevant parts of the FS with whatever ROM I want? Also, why would rooting and using a custom ROM cause a device to be bricked? Couldn't I just overwrite the ROM that was causing the issue with the original one (that I'd thought on to back up! ;)). | Short answer: For security and warranty reasons. Detailed answer: This is mostly a precaution taken by most (not all!) device manufacturers to save them from too many service requests from "playing kiddies" (and the sort of people who want to try everything, even if they are not understanding anything). So those manufacturers took special actions to avoid "custom ROMs" (or, more precisely, any ROMs not provided by themselves) to be flashed. As t0mm13b already pointed out in his comments above, by default you do not get physical access to your devices file system simply by connecting it via USB. Depending on device, Android version, and some more criteria, you get only to see parts. This might be the entire SD card (physical, in UMS mode), or even only "logical" access to parts of it via MTP. Some more privileged access can be gained via ADB when enabling USB Debug -- but with a stock ROM, in none of these cases you gain full access . Now how are updates accomplished then? One very common practice is the use of a special ZIP file ( <code> update.zip </code> ). This is placed on the SD card, which is inserted into the device, and the device is booted into a special mode (recovery), where the <code> update.zip </code> can be applied from. BUT: the device checks the integrity of that <code> update.zip </code> -- it must be signed with the manufacturers key. For obvious reasons, that key is not freely available -- so no custom ROM can be installed this way on such a stock system. All these things can be circumvented only with super-user access to the device -- which means: you must root it. So that's for the WHY part -- while not handling the HOW part of rooting. Exactly as you asked for :) Update for even more details As Liam pointed out in his comment that using <code> fastboot </code> would be a method to flash Custom ROMs without the pre-condition of having the device rooted, I did a little more research to find out about this. I will continue looking into this, but still already wanted to add my first results here. Up to a certain point, Liam is right with this: It seems not only valid to Samsung devices (as I assumed first), but some other devices (not all) also support this method, without root being involved (aside from the fact that most Custom ROMs will ship rooted, of course -- so you will have root available after installing them). However, there are devices which seem to require root even for <code> fastboot flash </code> (see e.g. TheUnlockr concerning the Iconia A100, quote: You must have rooted your device before doing this procedure. -- and yes, they use <code> fastboot flash recovery recovery.img </code> afterwards). However, even if <code> fastboot </code> works for your unrooted device, there is one crucial point to consider: To Flash a ROM for your Android device with fastboot you must have an unlocked bootloader or an engineering bootloader (Flashing Guide - Android - XDA-Developers) Which means: If your bootloader is locked, you need to unlock it first, which will wipe (factory-reset) your device. So all data will be gone for good this way -- while with root you could have done a complete backup (Nandroid, Titanium Backup) before this step. However, starting with Android 4.0, this is no longer a real problem -- as you can do a full backup via ADB (see: stackexchange-url ("Full Backup of non-rooted devices")) Summary: There are devices requiring to be rooted before you can flash a Custom ROM. If your device falls into this category, the reasons for Why is root access required to flash a Custom ROM are those mentioned above. However: There are also devices which can be flashed using <code> fastboot </code> without being rooted before. If your device falls into that category, the question Why is root access required to flash a Custom ROM becomes invalid (the answer not, as ex falso quodlibet sequitur ("from false can follow anything") you can draw any conclusion from a wrong premise :) That is: IF rooting is required, the above is WHY . | Why is root access required for a custom ROM? | android |
I want to run a task every time my phone loses connection to my truck's bluetooth device. I can see a way to run a task when it connects, and obviously I can "invert" it, but inverting it doesn't sound right to me. What is the right way to run a task upon BT connection loss to a specific device? | Create a profile that is active when connected to the Bluetooth device and set up an exit task to run whatever you want when the profile becomes inactive due to the device disconnects. | Tasker: Run a task when a specific bluetooth device loses connection | android |
I occasionally have a toast notification that is too long to read in the given amount of time that it is displayed. Is there any way to change the length of time these notifications display? Also, is there any way to view these notifications after they are gone? This would be ideal, like an app or a folder that logs all the toast notifications where I can review them later. | I love it when I can give these answers ;) Simple Answer: No, this isn't possible. Long Answer: Toasts are built into apps, and are low level. There is no way for 3rd party apps to catch toasts, and there is no way to view them longer. This could be possible if you made your own custom ROM however. | How can I make toast notifications stay on screen longer? | android |
Here is a screenshot from Evernote app: How do I stop Evernote from using this service? I have looked around the settings but did not find anything. | 1. First Turn -On your GPS 2. Go to Evernote Settings 3.Under General Settings you can find "Other Options" 4.Uncheck "Use GPS Satellites" option. Also Uncheck "Use wireless networks" If you didn't turn on your GPS, "Use GPS satellites" option get greyed out. Now your note will not store your location. | Stop Evernote from using Location based services? | android |
I downloaded this 80 MB ZIP file containing 27000 files to my SD card and unzipped it using stackexchange-url ("this code"). A no space left error occurred before all files could be extracted. I couldn't remove the folder, neither with <code> adb shell rm -f </code> nor the Open Manager app nor by mounting the SD card and removing from Ubuntu/Nautilus: <code> $ adb shell rm -f /sdcard/OxygenGuide rm failed for /sdcard/OxygenGuide, I/O error </code> Ubuntu/Nautilus: <code> There was an error deleting 08267130495190304.html. Error removing file: Read-only file system </code> It looked like trying to remove this particular file makes the whole SD card read-only. Unmounting/remounting made it read/write again, but the same error happened when I tried to delete again. I decided to reboot, and now I just have a black screen with just the top bar, showing the "Checking SD card" icon and usual network/battery/date. <code> adb logcat </code> shows this: <code> I/ActivityThread( 323): Publishing provider downloads: com.android.providers.downloads.DownloadProvider W/Vold ( 71): Filesystem modified - rechecking (pass 2) I/Vold ( 71): Device /dev/block/vold/179:1, target /mnt/sdcard mounted @ /mnt/secure/staging D/Vold ( 71): Volume sdcard state changing 3 (Checking) -> 4 (Mounted) I/ActivityThread( 270): Publishing provider call_log: com.android.providers.contacts.CallLogProvider W/logwrapper( 71): In fsckdelay end. Kill dosfsck, ret=-1 </code> Android 2.2 | Here is how I solved both problems: 1) Remove battery and reboot. Two times because it was still behaving strange the first time. 2) Remove files little by little, until I found the problematic file, called <code> %01.%02 </code> , I recognized its content as a tile from the Maverick map app (which I have not launched so it is more of a random casualty). Anyway, I renamed that file to <code> a.a. </code> and then deletion was successful. | SD card full bricks Android 2.2: In fsckdelay end. Kill dosfsck, ret=-1 | android |
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