I have an Android tablet without telephony capabilities. I can put in a SIM card. When somebody calls my SIM card number (mobile number), can I receive this call? What application do I need?
Answer
No, you usually can't receive calls with an tablet which doesn't provide this functionality. The SIM card slot is only for mobile data communication and there is no way that you just download an App which enables GSM phone functionality (AFAIK).
You can use VoIP though.
When I turn wifi on my 3g connection shuts down, which is fine in most cases however I need to connect to a LAN at work that is not connected to the internet and I'd prefer not to lose my data connection when I connect to the work intranet.
How can I keep both connections active?
Ideally I could limit this desired behavior to this one SSID, because I want it to continue to operate with the default behavior for all other wifi connections. If that can't be done is like a solution that is easy to toggle on and off.
I'm using a VZW Galaxy Nexus on CM9.
So I moved across the country (to Minnesota from Virginia) and now my location is always incorrect on my device, it shows my old home. I thought the initial problem was with the wifi but my wife's account shows her location correctly.
I can temporarily fix the issue by setting my location settings on the device to 'device only' but the problem reappears when I revert the setting back. I already tried clearing the Maps data. This problem occurs on any device with my Google account.
Any ideas how I can fix this issue?
Edit: This apparently isn't limited to Android devices. Google maps on the web does the same thing. If I'm logged in as my account, it reads me as in VA, if I log in as my wife (or incognito), it reads the correct location in MN.
Answer
If you keep your settings on "Device only" for a few weeks Google should see the new "pattern" and correct it in their records.
If not, then have Google Maps open while you commute to work every day and your account should quickly establish a new pattern. The Google Now algorithm picks up on patterns but for the same reason it is also stuck to your old location.
I upgraded my Moto G2 to Android Lollipop using over-the-air upgrade. It was awesome but I set a pattern lock which I forgot. Usually after 5 wrong attempts it shows the "forgot password" button but it is not showing that button even after 100 wrong attempts. How to unlock the phone?
I use the wireless hotspot function daily as part of business, providing a wifi network from my Nexus 7 tablet (Lollipop, oem) to other business-essential devices.
When I get back home (alternatively, within range of my home Wifi network), I'd like to have the hotspot automatically turn off, and the tablet to use the wifi network.
Currently, if I forget to turn off the hotspot, I can inadvertently empty or overuse my mobile data, which is obviously quite costly.
So, is there a way to have the hotspot turn off automatically (but not using a timeout) based on location and/or wifi availability?
I would prefer non-root, non-flash-another-ROM solutions but am open to these as well if they're more elegant.
//edit: An additional problem is that work and home are ~300m apart in a rural environment, so geolocation is flakey and the cell tower doesn't change. Wifi presence is the only good discriminant I see...
I dropped my Samsung S3. Now I cannot see anything, just a white screen with purple, black, and green lines. Before it blanked out, it wasn't recognizing my finger touch. Any idea on how or what to repair? I want to save my phone so I can backup all my data.
Screen has a small crack on the lower right part of the screen:
I've installed an app using Amazon Appstore, but I don't see a way to uninstall it. Amazon support has failed to respond to my question after 2 days.
I prefer a method that does not involve deleting it with a file manager or some sort of root access.
Answer
From the homescreen hit the menu button and select Settings. Then select Applications, and then Manage applications. Find the app you want to uninstall and select it, then clear the data associated with it by tapping Clear data and then tap Uninstall.
Voila!
Edit: I actually just noticed this in Amazon's official help documentation for their Appstore (from June 14th, 2011):
...
Amazon Tested
To ensure the highest quality apps in our catalog, we take all submissions through a series of tests. In this process we screen the apps for known viruses and malware, test the app to check that it actually does what it claims to do, and test whether the app affects the stability of the other functions of your phone. These tests include (but are not limited to):
- Installation: The application installs and opens, upgrades can be installed and the application can be uninstalled by following the phone's regular uninstall method.
...
(Italics added by me.)
Clearly they intentionally left out an Amazon Appstore-native method of removing apps you've downloaded and installed from them.
I am getting shortcuts in my home screen. I try to delete it, but it is appearing once again. Shortcuts names: Lucky try, Recommended.
Or, how do I root my device without a rooter?
Rooting instructions for Android devices that I have seen are typically of the following form:
Gingerbreak.apkSuperuser.apk has been magically installed, possibly along with busybox and other things, and enjoy your rooty goodness.What I am wanting to know is this: how does the rooting actually happen? What does Gingerbreak do?
I understand the end result of rooting:
su is present and workingSuperuser.apk is installed and controls access to suI also think I understand the basic idea of how Gingerbreak gets started — it exploits some local privilege escalation vulnerability and uses its new-found powers to deploy Superuser and whatever else is necessary.
So, unless I am wrong in some of the understanding I laid out above, the core of thing I want to know is what the root installer does to deploy and activate Superuser. It seems that just putting Superuser.apk in the right place wouldn't be enough — how does it get allowed root access? How does it get hooked up to moderate that access for other applications?
What does Gingerbreak do post-exploit to enable and secure root access?
Answer
After much digging, I finally figured it out. I was wrong about where the magic is - it is not in the installer script; all that has to do is put the su and Superuser.apk binaries in the right place and set their permissions. So it really is as simple as dropping files in place and setting permissions. No magic wiring.
The magic happens in the su binary (see the source and also this question). I was (incorrectly) thinking that su was a standard su, and that things were somehow wired up to moderate access to that binary through Superuser.apk.
Wrong. What actually happens is far simpler: Superuser provides a custom implementation of su that authenticates access through Superuser and its authorized application database.
So the process of rooting is as simple as @Sparx said. The deployed software contains the magic.
I am interested to know what commands can be used in Android to control WiFi direct from the terminal/command line. I took a look into p2p WIFI direct but I didn't catch these commands!!
I can find commands used with Linux from this link. Can the same be used with Android? If so, how can I access them on a rooted device?
I have Galaxy S3 with baseband version I9300XXLFB and I'm having problems when it is connected to the PC. I cannot transfer or retrieve any files or data over USB.
When I plug it in to my PC, it tells me USB device not recognized and the S3 does not appear anywhere for me to access it. I've tried different cables and PCs and they all seemed to exhibit the same issue. How can I get this working?
So I have an album that for some reason shows up as of an 'Unknown artist' in my library in the Google Music app. I already fixed the tags in Foobar (and also checked them again with MP3Tag) and then deleted the old files off my sd card and copied the fixed ones back on it. Yet still, they show up without an artist in the app...
I tried several things:
Nothing fixed it... Now I don't know what else I could try. Obviously something went wrong, since at first the tags were wrong, but I fixed them. Any other program I tried reads them just fine. Any ideas on how to fix it?
Edit:
I just tried another music app on android (doubleTwist) and that also shows those songs under 'Unknown artist'... Yet when I copy the file back from my SD card to my pc it does show both Artist and Album artist correctly. I'm stumped. Is there some kind of cash of android I can clear? (Already tried clearing the Google Music app cash.) I'm completely stumped on what's going wrong :(
Edit 2:
I just found that the 'unknown artists'-songs apparently use an older/different version of Flac than the other files. According to foobar the bad songs are flac 1.1.1, while the other files are 1.2.1. When looking in Mp3tag the bad ones says 'FLAC (FLAC ID3v2)' and the good ones say 'FLAC (FLAC)'.
Thanks a lot!
It bothers me that my Android Phone is permanently logged into my Gmail account.
I want to logout from the device and somehow make the phone ask for username/password when connecting to my account.
It seems there is no such option. What are my options?
P.S. Please don't suggest to lock my phone when not in use. I already do that.
Sometimes I need to have my phone shut down as fast as possible. In older phones I was able to remove the battery, but after some "innovations" this feature is no longer present. Is there any better option than using casual shutdown and waiting for long seconds until it gets down? It is especially bad when I pour water on my phone and the touchscreen refuses to work.
I am using Xiaomo Pocophone F1 with Android 9.0.
Is it possible to manually replace the RIL on a Samsung Galaxy S2?
I had previously flashed my device with CyanogenMod but lost my stock RIL due to careless use of the GetRIL app, so currently have no carrier network.
I have the details for the RIL (md5sum 163ecafa01912637fe344ec1f8264d70 for baseband I9100XXKE7) but it is not in the GetRIL database so I can't get it back.
I was wondering if it is possible to get the RIL that comes with CyanogenMod and install that on my phone to avoid having to reflash it.
See my related question: Samsung Galaxy S2 drops carrier network
When the device tries to connect to an access point or router, it has to sign in on the captive portal page with the message saying
"Sign in to Wi-Fi network".
How does the access point/router identify that a sign in is required for the device and what is the process behind it?
Answer
The detection url differs between different Android versions.
For Marshmallow, it uses connectivitycheck.gstatic.com/generate_204, check the code here AndroidXRef - Marshmallow 6.0.0_r1
For Kitkat, it uses clients3.google.com/generate_204 check the code AndroidXRef - KitKat 4.4.4_r1
For hardware reasons (My menu key doesn't work) I can not add an APN via settings. I read here about using sqlite and here about using code. But I need a more convenient way to do it. I need to do it using adb.
Answer
$ adb shell
$ su
# content query --uri content://telephony/carriers [--where "name=''"]
# content insert --uri content://telephony/carriers --bind name:s:"" --bind numeric:s:" " --bind type:s:"default,sulp" --bind mcc:i:<mcc> --bind mnc:s: --bind apn:s: --bind user:s:" --bind password:s:" "
Then check the listing again like Step 1
Note the _id, replace insert by update if this is not the first time you are setting the prefered apn
# content insert --uri content://telephony/carriers/preferapn --bind apn_id:i:<_id>
Try disabling and enabling your internet connection, if no change, restart your phone. if it is still not working, Keep Going
Change permission of settings file
# chmod 666 /data/data/com.android.settings/shared_prefs/com.android.settings_preferences.xml
# exit
$ exit
$ adb pull /data/data/com.android.settings/shared_prefs/com.android.settings_preferences.xml ~/
Add The following line before the last line that says
then save it and run
$ adb push ~/com.android.settings_preferences.xml /data/data/com.android.settings/shared_prefs/com.android.settings_preferences.xml
Hopefully, You should now see your apn in the access points screen in settings, and it should also work.
I am completing my contract on my EVO 4G and replacing it (with a Galaxy SII Epic 4G). Both are Android - I am wondering what is the best way to transfer my contacts (a few thousand) and calendar (a few dozen) from the old to the new?
Also, I assume I have to install all apps one by one on the new device, any better ideas.
This is a rooted Nexus 7 with 4.4.4 (factory image from Google).
I'd like to restrict access to anything that's not on one of the home screens.
Apps and widgets on one the home screens should be the only thing accessible without entering a code. Ideally, just activating the apps button that shows the full list would ask for a code. The link to the full settings page from the drop down menu by the clock should also be locked.
This does not need to offer a high level of security against experts, just a basic level of protection.
Strong preference for open source solutions, but let's see what's available in general. Maybe some kind of a launcher?
Existing kids mode solutions are not a good fit. I didn't look through all of them, but they seem to limit the number of available apps, and would not be suitable for an adult due to their interface.
Kiosk and app lock solutions: I reviewed quite a few options. Some are geared towards showing a web page only, others have odd intentional characteristics such as not starting on boot. Most, however, have a long list of permissions that have nothing to do with their functionality. This is a common problem that open source apps tend not to have, hence my preference for them.
Thanks in advance.
Basically touch input either doesn't work at all, or works erratically. This includes the the lock screen too. It happens both plugged in to a USB port or to the outlet.
I've had this problem on two phones, and HTC Nexus One and and Samsung Nexus S.
Does anyone have any idea about what the cause of this and if I can do anything to fix it? Have you seen this problem?
Is it possible to move the saved/downloaded exo YouTube files (downloaded with the YouTube app) between devices to avoid having to download them again on other devices? If so, how?
Answer
I am afraid to say this but moving videos between devices is not supported, Yet, AFAIK.
Here are few technical details.
When user download those videos, using official YouTube app, Android saves those videos on Internal storage(and not on external store such as sd-card)of the device. The path can be something like below:
Internal storage/Android/data/com.google.android.youtube/files/Offline/(system generated folder name)/streams
If you can go to that location, you will find that, all those downloaded files are saved as .exo files.
Since these .exo files are supposed to be system files, these are usually filled with System info(in another words, the device info) into it. Also, those downloaded videos are encrypted and the video file is split into chunks of .exo files.
Hence not only they can be played on the same device, but they can only be played with Official YouTube app.
You can not play these downloaded videos using any Other Media player.
You may want to check the links related to YouTube offline feature here and here for more information.
If my bf's viber shows he's online and then in the middle of the night it changes to offline, what does this mean? Does it mean that when he's at home and within reach of the internet it shows him to be online if his Viber app is active? And does it mean that he has gone out of range of the internet if his Viber states he's offline? (He has a Samsung Galaxy Fame.)
One of the things I hate about Android is the folder organization. Each app creates its own folder, usually in the root of the SD card. When I'm trying to find something, I have to search it through long lists of app-specific folders.
Is it possible to reorganize these? For example, this is how I would like my SD card to look like:
So in other words, can I restrict where apps put their data?
Answer
You cannot restrict where the applications write the data on the sdcard. You can go and delete what ever you want on the sdcard, but it may be data for an application. If you move it, the application will think it has been deleted or doesn't exist, and it will just create the data in the same place again.
Google recommends applications use the /sdcard/Android/data/ folder, but if the application has permissions to write to the sdcard, they can write where ever they want on it. Some applications were created before the recommendations, others may not know the recommendation, and others may not care for what ever reason.
The "standard" is the following for non-application specific data:
Music/
Podcasts/
Ringtones/
Alarms/
Notifications/
Pictures/
Movies/
Download/
and then application specific is:Android/data/
I am very concerned with security of my Google account in case I lose the phone (as in: lose it, have it stolen/robbed, etc.). Right now it seems that whoever grabs my phone will also have full access to mail, calendar etc.
I would be perfectly happy to sync manually and/or have a password prompt every time I try to sync, but I don't see this option.
How can I protect my account? Is screen lock any good? How hard is it to bypass it?
The phone is HTC Desire should it matter.
I have an old Samsung galaxy tab 10.1 (GT-P7500) 3G device which I bought many years ago from a carrier that does not support it anymore.
The android version of it is 3.2. Running "system updates" does nothing.
There is no recovery installed. I tried to flash twrp but Odin does not recognize the device(1) when in download mode (The device is recognized by Odin when not in download mode).
I can use adb to communicate with the device.
Any idea how to flash a newer stock or custom rom to this device ?
I configured 3 user profiles with each their own google account on my device (Nexus 5 with Android 5.1).
When I switch the user profiles, do the applications keep running in the user profiles that are not active at the moment and consume CPU, RAM, battery and data?
E.g. Does my email app/Facebook/Twitter keep on running and receive Push Mail and consume network traffic while the corresponding profile is not active?
I would like to remove unnecessary data usage. I have wifi at home and at work and I would like Android to synchronize/update apps/... only on wifi. In fact, I don't want Android to do any background action which consumes data when I'm not connected to a wifi network.
To sum up, basically, I would like a way (an app?) which disables data when not on wifi and enables it automatically when on wifi.
How can I achieve this?
I'm using Android 4.4 on a Galaxy Nexus (with the help of CyanogenMod 11).
Answer
There is one more standard Android setting, i.e. no app needed, which you can change - in fact anyone without unlimited cellular data should do this at first set up. As I can only check Android 5, I can't say how this is done in earlier versions:
Open the Play Store App
Go to Settings:
First section "General", tap first item "Auto-update apps"
Select third option "Auto-update apps over Wi-Fi only".
This disables a LARGE amount of the automatic data usage while apps auto-update whenever you're on Wi-Fi.
One warning about Restrict Background Data:
On the Settings->Data Usage page, you can scroll down and select each app and choose to restrict background data for that app. This will only allow background data on Wi-Fi for that app.
However, if you then use the Settings->DataUsage->more options->Restrict Background Data, this applies to ALL apps. If you then choose to allow it again, it resets ALL the Apps you've individually restricted back to no restriction. So if you're wanting that level of control, you will need to use a 3rd party app as suggested.
(Here's hoping that a future release of Android sets these as checkboxes on a list of ALL apps as it has for "Move to SD card" to make it easier to stop background data usage by unimportant apps off-Wi-Fi. Then it would be easy for a master control to restrict all apps not already restricted so that it wouldn't reset the checked items.)
Are there any risks to manually flashing a stock or custom ROM?
(See also: Are there any risks to rooting a device?)
When I increase the volume with the headphones, a message appears saying that prolonged listening with a loud sound can damage the ear.
Is there any way to remove this message on my Smasung Galaxy Note 4 ?
Thank you
Answer
As confirmed by OP the solution that worked is posted below
You can try automation. I prefer Macrodroid, being easy to learn and free (upto 5 macros)
Create a macro
Trigger: Notification → Notification received → Select Application → Google Play Music → Text content contains → prolonged listening with a loud sound can damage the ear
Actions:
Clear Notifications → Clear all
Optional if you don't want notification sound ; Volume Change → Set notification on slider scale to zero
Constraints : Leave blank
I'm trying to download podcast MP3s to my phone so I can listen to them in my car. Ideally, I'd like to be able to Chrome-to-Phone them from my computer at home, and then choose to download and play them back from my device once I get in my car.
The problem is that when I send an MP3 URL to my phone, the browser only gives me the option of playing the audio directly in a media player. This is a really poor experience because it can't properly buffer the podcast file for smooth playback and it doesn't seem to allow me to play in the background.
I tried both Download All Files and using ASTRO's "Enable Browser Downloads". The screenshot above was taken with both apps installed. I've also tried using Google Listen to download podcasts, but I can never seem to use that without the download getting corrupted or the app crashing in some way.
Does anyone know what I need to do to be able to download MP3s instead of just playing them back immediately?
I have installed Angry birds from the official android market. I tried installing the Angry Birds Seasons free version today, and while installing I got a pop-up message saying "Duplicate provider" and the installation terminated. I am running ICS on Nexus S, if it's relevant.
Answer
That means something's wrong with the package setup. For your reference, here are a few links with more detailed information:
Recommendation: Contact developer (for security reasons both developers, in case somebody faked the signature). It's most likely a copy-and-paste error during the packaging process, so the developer might release a fixed update soon.
I have a Sony Ericsson Xperia mini (running Android 4.04). I'm trying to remove a few embarrassing words which show up during typing. I tried through Settings → Language and input → Personal dictionary. When I checked the Personal dictionary, I see that there are no such words listed, though there is an option to add new words to this list. I added a few words and then afterwards I could delete them also. But I couldn't find any way to delete those words which come up during typing messages etc.
I might previously have typed those wrong spellings accidentally, and I think through the Learn new words automatically when typed feature the words have been added to the main dictionary.
Is there any way to remove them from there? I don't want to turn off the auto-complete/suggestions feature completely.
Bluetooth's Audio Profile A2DP supports multiple codecs. All devices have to support SBC (subband codec), then they can support additional "optional codecs" like MP3 and AAC, or "non-A2DP" codecs like apt-X.
Of course these codecs can't actually be used if the receiver doesn't also support them, in which case both devices fall back to SBC.
I use connectify to create a wifi hotspot which I use in my Android device. But a problem occurs that the internet access stops after a minute or so in my Android device. I have to restart connectify so that it works fine again, but again I face the same problem in a minute or so.
Its not a problem with my device as it runs properly on other wifi networks.
Any solution to this??
When you are viewing an app in Google Play store, it displays the following : Updated, Size, Installs, Current Version, Requires Android, and Rating.
I am trying to do some research and figure out the initial release / publish dates of different apps. Is there a way to get this information from Google Play, or perhaps a website with this information?
Answer
Check in www.appbrain.com for Android apps. It shows all possible information about app. Moreover, it shows release dates with respective released version numbers and number of downloads.
I am trying to encrypt my rooted Nexus 5 (running CyanogenMod 13/Marshmallow).
Here is how I am doing:
/mnt/asec/ is emptyadb shell on the computer then su to get root then pkill -KILL daemonsu to kill the SuperSU daemonadb logcatHere is what I see:
I ServiceManager: service 'drm.drmManager' died
D libEGL : loaded /vendor/lib/egl/libEGL_adreno.so
D libEGL : loaded /vendor/lib/egl/libGLESv1_CM_adreno.so
D libEGL : loaded /vendor/lib/egl/libGLESv2_adreno.so
I Adreno-EGL: : QUALCOMM Build: 09/02/15, 76f806e, Ibddc658e36
E BootAnimation: couldn't find audio_conf.txt
W BootAnimation: Audio service is not initiated.
D BootAnimation: Use save memory method, maybe small fps in actual.
D BootAnimation: Use save memory method, maybe small fps in actual.
E Cryptfs : unmounting /data failed: Device or resource busy
E Cryptfs : Bad magic for real block device /dev/block/platform/msm_sdcc.1/by-name/metadata
W vold : type=1400 audit(0.0:19): avc: granted { read } for name="mmcblk0p28" dev="tmpfs" ino=6735 scontext=u:r:vold:s0 tcontext=u:object_r:userdata_block_device:s0 tclass=blk_file
W vold : type=1400 audit(0.0:20): avc: granted { read open } for name="mmcblk0p28" dev="tmpfs" ino=6735 scontext=u:r:vold:s0 tcontext=u:object_r:userdata_block_device:s0 tclass=blk_file
W vold : type=1400 audit(0.0:21): avc: granted { ioctl } for path="/dev/block/mmcblk0p28" dev="tmpfs" ino=6735 ioctlcmd=1260 scontext=u:r:vold:s0 tcontext=u:object_r:userdata_block_device:s0 tclass=blk_file
D Cryptfs : Just asked init to shut down class main
W vold : emulated unmount requires state mounted
E Cryptfs : unmounting /data failed: Device or resource busy
W SocketClient: write error (Broken pipe)
W SocketClient: Unable to send msg '200 8 -
At that point the CyanogenMod loading screen keeps animating for 10+ hours and probably forever if I don't stop it. Pressing the Power physical button for 5 seconds makes it reboot and start normally this time. Obviously encryption has not been performed.
I tried the whole procedure twice.
What could be causing this Cryptfs : unmounting /data failed: Device or resource busy problem?
I have device with android 2.1 and I want to install android market app manually. Can I do that?
I have download android_app.apk file into my device but while installing getting following error. Package com.android.market_app requires unavailable shared library com.google.android.datamessaging; failing! I tried to search datamessaging.jar file but I can not able to find. Does I need to do something else.
After staying for so long on Marshmallow, today I finally made the decision to upgrade one of my secondary devices with Nougat (LineageOS 14.1 to be precise). Everything went smooth and most things stayed familiar... except this weird entry in Settings - Developer options - Running services.
Screenshots (click images for larger variants)
I'd keep the running process list as clean as possible (habit, don't question why), but when I clicked into this "Android Services Library" and tried to stop it, it says it runs a "Notification ranker service" (second screenshot).
Clicking "Settings" there takes me to an app preference screen (third screenshot; likely the same as in Settings - Apps) that contains nothing about the service or the app:
Furthermore, I can't find any reference on how this "notification ranker" mechanism works, or even what it is.
Note that I also flashed stock Nougat on my Nexus 6P before, and from what I remember, that one also has this service running, so it's not specific to LineageOS.
Can anyone with sufficient knowledge tell me what it does, and what will happen if I disable this service via external means, e.g. will notification functions be affected?
Answer
From arstechnica:
GoogleExtServices has an app name of "Android Services Library" and does actually contain something: an "Android Notification Ranking Service." A "Notification Ranking Service" was added in Lollipop, and it sorts notifications by "importance" based on things like freshness, app type (IM apps come first), and by contact. This seems to be an extension to the system that includes support for Nougat's "notification bundling" feature. This is a really minor feature, and with only this single chunk of code, GoogleExtServices weighs in at a microscopic 10KB.
What is master key vulnerability in Android? From looking at a few different sites, I understand that it is bypassing the authentication provided by signing of apps.
How can I detect an app is vulnerable to master key vulnerability. Can anybody please give an example?
I used to own a galaxy s3, and the default music player had that feature. Then I upgrade to a nexus 5, and it seems like it's missing it.
I'm huge fan of organizing my music by folders on my phone's hard drive, so I need an app that can do that, or figure out how google music app does it.
How can I search for these kinds of apps?
Answer
A good keyword combination is already given by your question: a music player which should play folder-wise should be found using the keywords "folder play", "folder player", and similar combinations. In fact, there are even some players named exactly such, e.g. Music Folder Player, Folder Player, and many more.
Possible Duplicate:
How to set up reverse tethering over USB?
Is there a way to do this?
I'm trying to reverse tether my Android phone. I'd like it to use my PC connection. Many guides on the net say that I should root my phone, but I don't want to do that.
What I would like to happen:
With no internet connection on my phone I can't connect successfully to the PC. So, I'd like to know if there is a way to let the Android device believe it is connected to the Internet.
I'm using Ubuntu 11.04
Is there some way to autostart the mobile hotspot once turning on the smartphone?
We have an external device relying on a mobile hotspot. We need some way to always run mobile hotspot when the phone is alive.
I have a rooted Nexus One and want to remove some of the pre-installed applications, like Amazon MP3, for example.
What is the best way to do this?
I have a OnePlus 5T and I can't install OTA updates anymore because my firmware is too old. In addition to that I don't have a full backup of my device because I'm using encryption and TWRP doesn't understand it.
I would like to simply try the new firmware and revert in case anyhting goes wrong without losing any data. Is that possible?
I'm not exactly sure what firmware means in this context and where to get it, but looking at the website, there is this download for a zip file with the following contents: 
I'm pretty sure that this is the complete stock ROM, meaning if I were to install it, it would wipe everything and replace my LineageOS with the stock ROM.
What I would like to do is to simply flash "the firmware" and only the firmware without losing data on my internal storage and also not my app data, contacts, sms, wifi passwords, bluetooth pairings etc etc.
And before that I would like to create a backup of my old firmware so that I can go back in case it goes wrong.
Can this be done? Can it be done with fastboot?
Maybe using fastboot flash PARTITION [FILENAME] and some other command to do the backup?
Edit:
The updater-script in META-INF/com/google/android/update-script contains the following code:
getprop("ro.display.series") == "OnePlus 5T" || abort("E3004: This package is for \"OnePlus 5T\" devices; this is a \"" + getprop("ro.display.series") + "\".");
is_part_existed("/dev/block/bootdevice/by-name/vendor") || abort("vendor partition is not existed, exit ota!!");
show_progress(0.650000, 0);
ui_print("Patching system image unconditionally...");
block_image_update("/dev/block/bootdevice/by-name/system", package_extract_file("system.transfer.list"), "system.new.dat", "system.patch.dat") ||
abort("E1001: Failed to update system image.");
show_progress(0.100000, 0);
ui_print("Patching vendor image unconditionally...");
block_image_update("/dev/block/bootdevice/by-name/vendor", package_extract_file("vendor.transfer.list"), "vendor.new.dat", "vendor.patch.dat") ||
abort("E2001: Failed to update vendor image.");
show_progress(0.050000, 10);
show_progress(0.050000, 5);
package_extract_file("boot.img", "/dev/block/bootdevice/by-name/boot");
show_progress(0.200000, 10);
ui_print("Writing static_nvbk image...");
package_extract_file("RADIO/static_nvbk.bin", "/dev/block/bootdevice/by-name/oem_stanvbk");
# ---- radio update tasks ----
ui_print("Patching firmware images...");
ifelse(msm.boot_update("main"), (
package_extract_file("firmware-update/cmnlib64.mbn", "/dev/block/bootdevice/by-name/cmnlib64");
package_extract_file("firmware-update/cmnlib.mbn", "/dev/block/bootdevice/by-name/cmnlib");
package_extract_file("firmware-update/hyp.mbn", "/dev/block/bootdevice/by-name/hyp");
package_extract_file("firmware-update/pmic.elf", "/dev/block/bootdevice/by-name/pmic");
package_extract_file("firmware-update/tz.mbn", "/dev/block/bootdevice/by-name/tz");
package_extract_file("firmware-update/abl.elf", "/dev/block/bootdevice/by-name/abl");
package_extract_file("firmware-update/devcfg.mbn", "/dev/block/bootdevice/by-name/devcfg");
package_extract_file("firmware-update/keymaster.mbn", "/dev/block/bootdevice/by-name/keymaster");
package_extract_file("firmware-update/xbl.elf", "/dev/block/bootdevice/by-name/xbl");
package_extract_file("firmware-update/rpm.mbn", "/dev/block/bootdevice/by-name/rpm");
), "");
ifelse(msm.boot_update("backup"), (
package_extract_file("firmware-update/cmnlib64.mbn", "/dev/block/bootdevice/by-name/cmnlib64bak");
package_extract_file("firmware-update/cmnlib.mbn", "/dev/block/bootdevice/by-name/cmnlibbak");
package_extract_file("firmware-update/hyp.mbn", "/dev/block/bootdevice/by-name/hypbak");
package_extract_file("firmware-update/tz.mbn", "/dev/block/bootdevice/by-name/tzbak");
package_extract_file("firmware-update/abl.elf", "/dev/block/bootdevice/by-name/ablbak");
package_extract_file("firmware-update/keymaster.mbn", "/dev/block/bootdevice/by-name/keymasterbak");
package_extract_file("firmware-update/xbl.elf", "/dev/block/bootdevice/by-name/xblbak");
package_extract_file("firmware-update/rpm.mbn", "/dev/block/bootdevice/by-name/rpmbak");
), "");
msm.boot_update("finalize");
package_extract_file("firmware-update/logo.bin", "/dev/block/bootdevice/by-name/LOGO");
package_extract_file("firmware-update/NON-HLOS.bin", "/dev/block/bootdevice/by-name/modem");
package_extract_file("firmware-update/adspso.bin", "/dev/block/bootdevice/by-name/dsp");
package_extract_file("firmware-update/BTFM.bin", "/dev/block/bootdevice/by-name/bluetooth");
set_progress(1.000000);
Should I just take the msm.boot_update("main"), and the msm.boot_update("finalize"), part and flash them like this?
# main
fastboot flash cmnlib64 ./firmware-update/cmnlib64.mbn
fastboot flash cmnlib ./firmware-update/cmnlib.mbn
fastboot flash hyp ./firmware-update/hyp.mbn
fastboot flash pmic ./firmware-update/pmic.mbn
fastboot flash tz ./firmware-update/tz.mbn
fastboot flash abl ./firmware-update/abl.elf
fastboot flash keymaster ./firmware-update/keymaster.mbn
fastboot flash xbl ./firmware-update/xbl.elf
fastboot flash rpm ./firmware-update/rpm.mbn
# finalize
fastboot flash LOGO ./firmware-update/logo.bin
fastboot flash modem ./firmware-update/NON-HLOS.bin
fastboot flash dsp ./firmware-update/adspso.bin
fastboot flash bluetooth ./firmware-update/BTFM.bin
Or would this already overwrite a partition that contains some sort of user data? Can I make a backup of these partitions first? And what about RADIO/static_nvbk.bin, boot.bin, system.transfer.list, vendor.transfer.list and all that msm.boot_update("backup"), stuff?
Edit: I ended up not being able to flash those firmware files via fastboot because it requires more than a "normal" unlocked bootloader. If I had done the necessary step to unlock the bootloader further it would have wiped all my data. Fortunately you can bypass that by creating a zip with the firmware files and a custom OpenRecoveryScript (updater-script). I found an awesome GitHub project that automates the whole process: https://github.com/angela-d/firmware_oneplus
I simply sideloaded the generated zip via adb sideload firmware-update-oneplus5T.zip and finally I was able to install my OTA updates.
https://github.com/angela-d/firmware_oneplus
Answer
1) You can boot into TWRP recovery from fastboot
fastboot boot twrp.img
2) Then you can backup your whole emmc from adb
adb pull /dev/block/mmcblk0
Does /dev/block/mmcblk0 include my internal storage, my app data, contacts, sms, wifi passwords, bluetooth pairings, system settings etc? Have you personally tried that method on an encrypted device?
It is all stored in userdata partition. If TWRP is able to decrypt, you should pull /dev/block/dm-0 (=userdata) to get the unencrypted backup.
Otherwise, you still can separate encrypted USERDATA partition (and correlated partition EFS/METADATA required for decryption) from mmcblk0
Do a research how encryption works for your device, i can't help with which partitions are required!
3) print partition table with start/size
parted mmcblk0 unit B print
Warning: Not all of the space available to mmcblk0 appears to be used, you can fix the GPT to use all of the space (an extra 991 blocks) or continue with the current setting?
Fix/Ignore? i
Model: (file)
Disk mmcblk0: 15300820992
Sector size (logical/physical): 512/512
Partition Table: gpt
Disk Flags:
Number Start End Size File system Name Flags
1 524288 3670015 3145728 proinfo msftdata
2 3670016 8912895 5242880 nvram msftdata
3 8912896 19398655 10485760 ext4 protect1 msftdata
4 19398656 29884415 10485760 ext4 protect2 msftdata
5 29884416 30146559 262144 seccfg msftdata
6 30146560 30539775 393216 lk msftdata
7 30539776 47316991 16777216 boot msftdata
8 47316992 64094207 16777216 recovery msftdata
9 64094208 64618495 524288 para msftdata
10 64618496 73007103 8388608 logo msftdata
11 73007104 83492863 10485760 expdb msftdata
12 83492864 84541439 1048576 frp msftdata
13 84541440 118095871 33554432 ext4 nvdata msftdata
14 118095872 159383551 41287680 metadata msftdata
15 159383552 161480703 2097152 oemkeystore msftdata
16 161480704 167772159 6291456 secro msftdata
17 167772160 176160767 8388608 keystore msftdata
18 176160768 2801795071 2625634304 ext4 system msftdata
19 2801795072 3070230527 268435456 ext4 cache msftdata
20 3070230528 15283519487 12213288960 ext4 userdata msftdata
21 15283519488 15300296703 16777216 flashinfo msftdata
4) copy the partitions into single files (partitions vary for each device model, this is just example for FDE. sometimes metadata is a file located at EFS partition, sometimes encryption footer is concatenated to userdata partition itself)
dd if=mmcblk0 of=metadata.bin skip=118095872 count=41287680 bs=1
dd if=mmcblk0 of=userdata.img skip=3070230528 count=12213288960 bs=1
this is just example for better understanding and is very slow (10 kB/s). of course dd will copy faster when we increase block size, so calculate bytes into 8k blocks
12213288960 / 8192 = 1490880
dd if=mmcblk0 of=metadata.bin skip=14416 count=5040 bs=8k
dd if=mmcblk0 of=userdata.img skip=374784 count=1490880 bs=8k
5) repeat this for all required partitions. for successful decryption system and vendor may required too. beware you can only decrypt with correlating rom on this unique device itself. decryption on other device (even same model won't work)
6) for restoring you can flash this partition dumps from fastboot
fastboot flash userdata userdata.img
fastboot flash metadata metadata.bin
another method is restoring from adb
adb push userdata.img /dev/block/bootdevice/by-name/userdata
adb push metadata.bin /dev/block/bootdevice/by-name/metadata
or even from within twrp terminal
dd if=/external_sd/userdata.img of=/dev/block/bootdevice/by-name/userdata
dd if=/external_sd/metadata.bin of=/dev/block/bootdevice/by-name/metadata
FIRMWARE UPDATE
for firmware update i recommend to flash complete stock rom (you will lose all data), then flash LineageOS, then restore twrp backup data.ext4.win* (which of course you have created from working TWRP before)
another method is using sdat2img to convert system.new.dat and vendor.new.dat into ext4 images system.img and vendor.img, which you can flash along with other partitions from fastboot
please also read the questions from Android Enthusiasts Linked and Related section
I read this article which says that I can "can install any custom keyboard as the default keyboard on Android". How can I do that? Does it require rooting?
Answer
Yes you can. I've used Swype as well as TouchPal Keyboard as alternatives.
Once you install any new keyboard, just go to Settings > Language & Keyboard to set your keyboard/text settings.
I am experiencing a problem with Google Play in my Android phone. When I download new apps from the Play Store, it completes 100% and then shows me an error:
(unknown Error code during application install:''919'')
I use Dvorak as my main typing layout. I own a Motorola Xoom tablet, for which I bought an external bluetooth keyboard. I couldn't find how to use Dvorak on the physical keyboard though; I tried some of the Dvorak-capable keyboard apps in the App Store (Hacker's Keyboard, Honso Multiling, XenionSH Dvorak Keyboard), but none of these seemed to help (ASK has an open issue for this: http://code.google.com/p/softkeyboard/issues/detail?id=181)
Has anyone managed to do something similar (using either an external BT keyboard or a phone with an inbuilt physical keyboard.)
Answer
If your phone is rooted I think that you can write your own keyboard layout. I'm using my own layout (on SGS I9000) for some Chinese blouetooth keyboard that I bougth recently.
Layout files are in /system/usr/keylayout/ directory. Layout file that is used by my keyboard is Broadcom_Bluetooth_HID.kl. I think that layout used by built-in keyboard will be qwerty.kl - you could modify it and check if it's working.
Remember to make backups of original files before changing it...
Today I have been researching a bit about the Android backup options (since I have seen some people having to lose all their data due to ICS serious bugs).
From now, I prefer to use native options, such as the "default" option or the adb backup -all command.
But my question is about the regular way.
I enabled the Settings->Backup->Backup my data option (on ICS). Now I would like to check on my Google Account Preferences when was the last backup was made, and which data is safely backed up - and which isn't.
I'm not sure if that's possible. Does anybody know?
Answer
I went to https://www.google.com/dashboard/b/0/ and found the section labeled "Android device"; that had a link labeled "More data stored about this device". Clicking that opened a popup window that showed a disappointingly short list of apps that had backed up some of their data: just some of the built-in apps from Google.
The above paragraph was written in 2012; five years later the situation seems better: the relevant link is now https://myaccount.google.com/dashboard, and my list of apps is nice and long: 85, and they're not all from Google :-)
I have a rooted Huawei G700-U10 with android 4.2.1. I removed the Android Play Store and Services, but now I need it. How do I reinstall them?
I am trying to flash a recovery-image file into my Nexus 7 but the flashing fails
know that I am working on windows and my image file is located in the same folder as adb and fastboot files are
here are the steps I am following:
adb reboot bootloaderfastboot devicesthen when I flash: fastboot flash recovery recovery-clockwork.img: I get this error:
error: cannot load 'recovery-clockwork': No error
what am I doing wrong ?
Answer
Most common errors (and solutions to them) are:
recovery-clockwork.img, in your example, or adjust your command according to the file nameC:\Downloads, but you're executing fastboot flash recovery recovery-clockwork.img from C:\: Either first change to the directory the .img file is located in, move the .img to where you want to execute your command, or try specifying the file with its full path (e.g. C:\Downloads\recovery-clockwork.img)adb/fastboot behaves strangely when executed from "somewhere else". In those cases it helps to first changing to the directory where the resp. executable is located, and run your command from there.The ISP I use on my N1 doesn't allow me to open facebook. Using a PC, I can use Google DNS server (8.8.8.8) to by-pass them but on N1, I can't find where to put the stufff.
Please help if you know how to.
Answer
While you're on Wifi, have a look in Wi-Fi settings > menu|Advanced.
It looks like it's easier when you're on Wifi than when you're on a celular signal (3 or 2.5g).I've found a blog post here that seems to do what your asking, but you may need to have rooted the phone, or at least be comfotable with editing a few system bits and bobs.
Alright so I try to get into the 'Language and Input' sub-setting on the 'Settings' menu, and when I click on it a message appears saying: "Unfortunately, Settings has stopped working". This only happens with 'Language and Input'.
I have Android 4.2.2 installed, on an Acer V370 (Liquid E2) phone.
So far I've tried clearing data from the 'Settings' app and fixing permissions using ROM manager, both didn't work.
What I'm really trying to do is get a working keyboard on my phone, as for reasons unknown I have no keyboard to type on the phone. So, I don't really care about fixing the 'Languages and Input' setting as long as there's a way to put a keyboard app in my phone again.
If I set up a VPN connection for Android, what gets routed over the VPN? Just web browsing? All internet connections from all apps?
In Cyanogenmod, in the Add OpenVPN config, "Advanced" settings, there is an option for "Redirect gateway - Force all traffic to berouted thru the VPN tunnel", which is off by default.
With this off, which apps/communications get routed through it?
The other VPN types do not have this option. Do they work this way or not?
After setting up a VPN, how can I verify that it's working?
My phone has 3 storage spaces available:
When I got to Settings > Apps > [any movable app], I only see the "Move to SD Card" button (even if I change the default write disk) but I'd like to be able to move apps to the "Phone storage" so that I can save space on my external SD card and be able to remove it without crashing everything.
Is there a way to do this, possibly without changing the default write disk?
(My phone is rooted so I have no problem using root hacks)
I always used to transfer files between my laptop and Nexus 5X phone. Upon connecting the USB cable, there used to be a notification thingy on my phone showing USB options, which was default on 'Charging' and then when changing that to File Transfer, I could transfer files.
I recently had to reset my phone and now that I have a new, freshly installed Oreo 8.1.0 environment, this USB notification does not appear anymore. And the device does not show up on my laptop at all.
While searching for a solution I came across these suggestions which I already tried:
None of these helped, unfortunately. Any hints?
Note that the cable is fine. It works OK on other phones, and upon connecting my phone to my laptop, it does show the charging indicator in the battery icon. It's just the USB notification and file transfer related options that are no longer there.
It is being surprisingly hard to achieve. I've tried so far:
Download file manager apps from Google Play. Unfortunately, "share" shares the files, not the file names. None of them had a option like copy file names
Download backup apps. Unfortunately, none of them backup the file names of a folder.
Any idea to copy to the clipboard or share the file names of all the files of a folder?
I am thinking about getting a subscription to google music after seeing so many good reviews (plus, the same subscription will allow you access to Youtube Red when it comes out! source).
I just have this doubt: if I can't renew my subscription one month, will I be able to hear those albums that I made available for offline listening? How does that work?
Thanks
Answer
Google music doesn't store the songs you save offline like if they were normal downloads, instead it saves them
in a randomized folder structure with obfuscated file names.
So you can't just browse them with a file manager and have access to them; they are in a cache of sort. When the subscription expires, Play music provides to delete them from your phone. If you think about it, this would make the subscription system useless, resulting in a financial loss for Google. You can try, though, this app (root required) which is able to locate the files and "decrypt" them, to make them available as simple stored files. Note also that the app currently doesn't work on Marshmellow. For more information and a guide on how to use Play music exporter check this article.
I have a Samsung phone with android 4.1.2.
When I slide down the notification bar there are multipls items. One of those are driving mode. I don't drive anywhere (I can't afford a car, gas, insurance, tickets, etc, and so I use public transportation) so I want to remove the button. This is what I'm talking about:
Notification Bar screenshot (click image for larger variant)
Second over from the right.
I have a Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 7.0.
I have files on an external SD card but I cannot mount the tab as a usb drive from my computer - I cannot find a way to turn on USB Mass Storage.
How do I do this in JellyBean?
Answer
Starting in 4.0 (actually 3.0, but few devices used that), most Android devices use the MTP (Media Transfer Protocol) class rather than the Mass Storage class. This was done for various reasons, including the annoyances attendant to having to unmount the SD card from the Android device to access it from the PC.
Samsung has embraced this new way rather fervently and doesn't allow mass storage at all under normal circumstances (If you have root, you can force it on some devices. Not sure if it works for a Tab 2).
MTP mostly "just works" on Windows since XP and on Mac, though getting it working on Linux can require a bit of effort if you don't use GNOME. The Arch Linux wiki has a useful article on the ways and means of accessing MTP devices on Linux.
I would like to discuss the best way(s) to automatically backup all data on a phone including system, data and sdcard to a server or computer. This should be scheduled so that one will loose as little data as possible if the phone or tablet gets lost/stolen.
I don't want to exclude Googles Backup system totally but I personally look for a different solution because I don't want to hand over my data to any cloud service, so if the best way would be the cloud it had to be encrypted.
Incremental Backups would be great but I don't see that happening.
My devices are all rooted, otherwise a system backup wouldn't be possible of course.
Tools that come to mind and their respective disadvantages:
What kind of backup system would you suggest?
Is there a way to reconnect to Wi-Fi whenever an application accesses the network?
Background: I have a rooted e-book reader that runs Android 2.2 (Sony Reader PRS-T1). The system offers an option to automatically enter Wi-Fi standby mode when the connection is idle, which I like: This behavior saves a lot of battery juice when reading an e-book.
Some of the preinstalled apps know how to reconnect the Wi-Fi whenever they need network access. Unfortunately, conventional Android apps do not know how to do this and fail. For example, I have installed the Kindle for Android app, and it fails to sync reading positions unless I have manually re-enabled the the Wi-Fi before trying to do so.
Is there a method to leave Wi-Fi standby mode and reconnect to Wi-Fi whenever there is demand?
ART has better performance and better battery life on paper at least. Should I consider switching to it on my moto g? What are the results I can expect? What precautions should I take? Is it easy to turn back to dalvik?
Answer
Just try it by yourself. I've felt no real difference. Maybe it is something that is device specific or there is just a very small difference.
But it can change with Android 5.0 'L' because ART on Android 4.4 is some sort of beta version.
Switching to ART is as easy as switching back to Dalvik.
Settings > Developer Options > Select Runtime.
There you can choose ART.
You have to reboot your phone to apply the changes.
If you want to go back to Dalvik, redo the steps and select Dalvik.
This keeps coming up on my phone and I have done factory resets thrice already.
My phone is only 3 months old, please help me get rid of this and it seems to infect other phones as well.
I think it was this URL:
http://androidmax.mobi/service.customermarket.5206/hwo3ng/back.php?brd=HTC&mod=One%20M9&brw=Chrome%20Mobile&ts=tfx03&var1=68cd67c2-563d-4b02&var2=55b77b9d2a2c4a382546679e&var3=&cs=zno1&voluumdata=vid..00000003-fee6-4323-8000-000000000000__vpid..7b2dc800-430a-11e5-8cee-c3f8afba77aa__caid..d27753a5-480e-4bf9-8fef-29072ffa67a5__rt..R__lid..6056fb29-a6f1-4b3b-82ff-56f1f82adadc__oid1..e43f1ba3-2cda-4f7b-94f8-176b5506c3a3__oid2..10897965-279f-4048-b4e9-d5cec6dc0941__oid3..85de288c-6197-4636-bea1-0dc212cab827__var1..68cd67c2-563d-4b02__var2..55b77b9d2a2c4a382546679e__var8..55599084af7e637526681985__var9..3510__var10..nativeButton__rd..&imp_id=68cd67c2-563d-4b02&app_id=55b77b9d2a2c4a382546679e&idfa=&mac_address=&android_id=&mobile_id=&campaign_id=55599084af7e637526681985&bid=3510&creative_size=nativeButton
The Galaxy Nexus is 1280x720, and the Nexus 7 tablet is 1280x800.
I realize that the tablet is physically larger, but it's screen resolution, not display size, that determines screen real-estate.
Why is it that the Nexus 7 appears to be able to show so much more content on-screen?
EDIT - My question isn't "why was it designed this way". My question is more "how is it that it is able to show more on the screen"? PPI doesn't explain this.
Is it just a matter of the scaling?
Answer
To understand why Nexus 7 can show more content than the Galaxy Nexus, I'll first explain two concepts: screen density and density-independent-pixel.
But before we go into technical details, it may be worth to clarify the design goals of using density-independent-pixels. The goal is to define a UI that is similar in dimension across devices, regardless of the screen size. So in this case the appearance of the menus is the same in the Galaxy Nexus and the tablet (side by side should look very similar), but, as one has a bigger screen, more content can be shown. The designer selects an appearance that looks good for a certain size (a 160 dpi screen is the base) and this is "simulated" in this case in devices with higher dpi.
Screen Density
Commonly referred to as dpi (dots per inch). Android groups all actual screen densities into four generalized densities: low (120), medium (160), high (240), and extra high (320). A device such as Galaxy Nexus has "extra high" screen density (more specifically, the dpi value is set at 320). The Nexus 7 uses "tvdpi" - i.e. 213 dpi.
Density Independent Pixel
Commonly referred to as dp. This is the virtual pixel unit used when displaying content. The density-independent pixel is equivalent to one physical pixel on a 160 dpi screen. To calculate dp use the following formula:
px = dp * (dpi / 160)
or equivalently:
dp = (px / dpi) * 160
The reason Nexus 7 can show more content than the Galaxy Nexus despite having similar resolutions is this: the dpi of Nexus 7 is lower than Galaxy Nexus.
Galaxy Nexus (320 dpi, 720 pixels wide)
(720 / 320) * 160 = 360 dp
Nexus 7 (213 dpi, 800 pixels wide)
(800 / 213) * 160 = 600 dp
This means that when apps are rendering on the Galaxy Nexus, the width of the screen is actually 360 dp (rendered using 720 pixels). Whereas on the Nexus 7, the width of the screen is 600 dp (rendered using 800 pixels).
Bonus
If your Galaxy Nexus is rooted, you can use an app such as LCD Density Modder and change the DPI of your device to 240. What you'll get is something a lot closer to Nexus 7 in a smaller package. On the left is a screenshot of the device at 240 dpi. You'll notice we can see a lot more content when the DPI is lower.
Nothing to do with PPI
The other answers mention PPI. The amount of content displayed has nothing to do with the PPI of a device. Though commonly, vendors select the DPI that is closest to the PPI of the device. (e.g. Galaxy Nexus has a PPI of 316, but a DPI of 320, where as Nexus 7 has a PPI of 216, but uses a 213 DPI).
Further Reading
http://developer.android.com/guide/practices/screens_support.html
I absolutely 100% hate, hate, hate mobile-optimized design sites, particularly ones that disable zooming. Up until now, I've done pretty well spoofing a desktop user agent to get the full pages, but with the advent of responsive design, it seems like more and more sites are feeling comfortable using viewport meta-tags to set user-scalable to false, which means that I am in effect forced into using the horrible mobile sites.
From what I understand, viewport tags are ignored by desktop browsers - is there a browser on Android which does the same thing, preventing web sites from removing key functionality from my phone? Maybe a Dolphin add-on?
I think potentially a greasemonkey script excising the offending viewport tags would also work, but I'm not sure there's a stable version of greasemonkey for android yet, and it might be preferable if the browser itself were built to always allow zooming.
I've installed Adobe Air, and I have a few AIR apps that I have built over time and am curious to see how they will look running on the device, but am not clear on how to install them.
I uploaded the app to the phone but clicking on the .air file doesn't provoke an installation process, instead, it just opens the browser and attempts to display it (and fails, obviously).
What to to do?
Answer
Were the apps developed using Above Air for Android? There seems to be a distinction between the two SDKs. Look at this tutorial for all the info on getting started. Even if some of the info is redundant, it does have a section on deployment to the phone.
The other day I was trying to flash a new rom (Android version 5.0.1) on my Samsung Galaxy S4 (GT-I9505) using Odin. The old one was 5.0.1 as well but I had some problems with it.
I flashed this device once before, so I kind of knew what I had to do. When I started flashing it gave me a message with "failed", so I tried it again. It was then showing that there was no PIT partition file anymore. I tried flashing it with a PIT file but nothing seems to have helped it.
I can only go in download mode, not in the recovery mode. The device is stuck at:
Firmware upgrade encountered an issue. Please select recovery mode in kies & try again
I have no idea what to do next.
Believe it or not, but I want to remove a few Google Apps which I have no use for and want to free up space, resources and mobile data usage by not having them on my phone at all.
These include:
I have ‘uninstalled’ them via the Play Store, but they still appear in my ‘Installed’ items in ‘My apps’ in the Play Store and instead of ‘UPDATE' and ‘UNINSTALL’ for any other app in my ‘Installed’ list, they stubbornly remain and only have ‘OPEN’ AND ‘UPDATE’ options.
Also going in the ‘All’ list in ‘My Apps’, all these apps are also different from other ones, where unlike other locally uninstalled apps that have their payment status (‘FREE’ or ‘PURCHASED’) and a ‘X’ at the top to remove it from your Google Account entirely, these Google Apps that I don’t want on my Android and want to be completely optional for my Android experience, only have an ‘UPDATE’ and no X up the top of their listing.
I don’t mind them remaining on the Google Account if Google insists on this, but I just want listings to ‘update’ them in my Google Play updates list to be removed, given this is Google basically forcing me to reinstall them against my will.
Is there a way to do this?
I’m on stock 4.3 Gnex.
Answer
The solution is to ‘Disable’ the apps from the Android system settings and they will no longer appear in your Play Store updates list.
E.g. for Google Currents:
Settings > Apps > All > find ‘Currents’ - tap it, select ‘Disable’.
The same applies to the all other listed apps in the question (with the exception of 'Google Play Newsstand’ which I couldn’t find in the list), and when you open the Play Store updates list anew, they will finally be gone from it as desired.
I was curious if there is anyway to reuse an old Android phone? I have a Motorola Droid 1 that has been sitting around since I got my HTC Thunderbolt. Is there a way to use the phone as a "PDA" with the cell radio disabled? I got family member that would find it neat.
Answer
You can still use all the functions of the phone (except carrier based calling of course) without a carrier contract. However, the cell radio will eat up battery hugely! To turn off the radio, dial *#*#4636#*#*, scroll down and click the "Turn off radio" button. Bluetooth and WiFi will still function normally.
If your phone is rooted you can actually turn the radio off by setting a script to run that will automatically turn off the radio at boot time:
#!/system/bin/sh
#!/system/bin/radiooptions
radiooptions 1
I do exactly this with my old og Droid myself and use it as a dashboard cam when I'm driving to record in case I'm in an accident.
The Wileyfox Swift 2 is QC3.0 enabled, but the only trusted brand adapter I can get is QC2.0. What happens when you charge a QC3 device using a QC2 adapter?
I noticed several other questions on this StackExchange, but none of them seemed to answer this particular scenario.
Answer
From Qualcomm product manager, responsible for Quick Charge
Of course, QC3 is backwards compatible to QC2 so your existing QC2 adapter will charge a QC3 phone and vice versa
(Emphasis supplied)
Thanks for asking this, I was under the impression that it is one way compatibility
How can I copy over the whatsApp chat messages to a text editor? Are there any specific files I need to copy? I don't care for the media files, I just need the transcript of chat.
I am using the Motorola G phone.
I have noticed the files are stored using some encryption on the phone. I am able to copy the files from the phones internal memory to my Windows 7 computer. The files look something like this msgstore-2014-01-08.1.db.crypt
Opening the file in a text editor gives out a bunch of unprintable characters. Since this is encrypted data, I expected that to happen. So how can I decrypt this text file on my windows computer?
Iï#®ÿùuÆÍ\ ¥Ÿ-5r
ƒX«¿œ‰ùjϽÄ!Ði°‘Ú¹^¬
Answer
The simplest method is to use the EMAIL CONVERSATION option from within a conversation.
Tap the overflow menu (3 dots), the MORE > EMAIL CONVERSATION.
That brings up a popup allowing you to either attach media files or send the chat without the media files.
There's also Whatsapp Toolbox which has similar functionality but requires ROOT access.
I have a Samsung Galaxy Grand with a 16gb micro-sd card. For some inexplicable reason, I am losing data on the sd card. Folder names are being changed to start with the character "μ." For example, my_music was changed to μy_music (this does not happen on the device's internal memory). There are more than 960 files with the name "μ" and it is replicating itself. Is it a problem with the Micro SD card or something else such as the phone itself? Is there any way I can fix this other than formatting?
Is there a way, maybe even with root, to increase the maximum speaker volume?
I own a Lenovo Thinkpad Tablet, which are known for their crappy and quiet speaker. There are ways to replace the speaker with another one. But I'd like to know a generic, not device related, software based method to increase the maximum volume on Android (if there is one).
Answer
There is an app which can do it for you... Try the free one first, and if it works, then buy the full version :)
Free: https://market.android.com/details?id=com.FREE.android.lvh&feature=search_result
Have a great day :)
Does this tablet support exFAT file system on micro SD card? Can this tablet recognize micro SD card formatted with exFAT file system?
What are the features that HTC Sense has that vanilla Android does not have?
This question is similar to What are the features that Motoblur has that vanilla Android does not have? but for HTC Sense.
What does the modify/delete USB storage contents permission really mean? Does it grant access for the application to read, modify and write all the data on my USB storage? Maybe it is this only limited to a subset of that data (e.g. only data written by the application itself)? Or does it mean something else entirely?
Answer
If you are familiar with the concepts of read and write permissions on various PC platforms, that is pretty much the same as what is going on here. You are giving the application write access to your "external storage" Which could be an SD card, or some storage space that comes with your device.
That permission indicates that the application is able to create, modify, or delete any files that reside on the SD card (or the non-removable storage space that the the OS treats most like an SD card).
So it could download a file from online and manually save it to your SD card.
It could generate its own image, text, audio etc.. file and save it to your SD card.
It could delete any file on your SD card.
It could find a file that already exists on your SD (even one with nothing to do with the app) and make changes to it.
