# Question
Title: How to check filesystem (/sdcard) for errors?
I would like to check my /sdcard, and possibly other internal partitions as well, for errors on the file system level.

I am wondering how this could be accomplished.

I am using a Samsung Galaxy Nexus (toro) with Verizon Wireless.

**Update:**
This device does *NOT* have an actual SD card and I believe the only way to do it is through: "adb shell" (*BEFORE* system boots (i.e. inside of recovery mode), this way /sdcard is *NOT* mounted and it's possible to perform checks on it in read/write mode)

# Answer
according to: Android Media Process (high CPU) | alexus' blog:

```
~ # e2fsck -n /dev/block/platform/omap/omap_hsmmc.0/by-name/userdata
e2fsck 1.41.11 (14-Mar-2010)
/dev/block/platform/omap/omap_hsmmc.0/by-name/userdata: clean, 53630/1875968 files, 1921615/7493115 blocks
~ #

```
> 2 votes

# Answer
Perhaps the easiest way to do this, would be to connect your Galaxy Nexus to your computer and use a 3rd-party tool to check the file system for errors.

Please bear in mind that using this method you will only be able to check the mountable storage, and only if your device is in USB mass storage mode.

At current, I know of no way to check the internal partitions for errors - this does not mean there isn't one, however.

EDIT:

Even if you only have an internal SD card, then you should still be able to mount it as USB storage - something has to act as an SD card, for the camera app to function. Something is mounted to /sdcard, and this is what is mounted when you enable USB mass storage.

EDIT 2:

Ok, last but not least - do you have a recovery installed? If so, you can use this flashable zip to do what you want. If not, then are you rooted? You MUST be rooted to be able to this, as it would involve copying a binary to your system.

EDIT 3:

Ok. This CANNOT be done while the device is turned on, in user mode, as the partitions must be unmounted to scan them. This is why that zip is that - a zip. If you cannot flash the zip, there is no other way unless you can find a way to unmount the filesystem's when they are being used.
> 3 votes

---
Tags: file-system
---


title: How to fast scroll on Chrome Mobile

text:
# Question
Title: How to fast scroll on Chrome Mobile
I just installed Chrome Mobile on my Galaxy Note (ICS, CM9) and while it has this nice card-like interface, I didn't find how to flick the screen to fast scroll to top or bottom of pages.

In other words, using the Android stock browser, when on a very long page, if I swipe the screen for up to down fast enough with one finger, the page will scroll very fast and continuously from the bottom of page to top of the page. How to do the same with Chrome Mobile?

# Answer
> 3 votes
The amount of scroll you get on a fling is based on the friction assigned to that flick action. In the stock browser the friction assigned to the vertical fling is really low. So your fling isn't a command to get to the top / bottom of the page, there just isn't enough friction to stop you from getting there. You can test this by finding an insanely long page and giving it a good fling. You'll go pretty far but you won't reach the bottom. The Chrome Mobile application applies a bit more friction to the vertical fling, so that same mighty flick you got so much travel from in the stock browser won't get you quite as far in Chrome Mobile.

All that aside, it would probably be worthwhile to send a request via the help page that Google use the same friction coefficient on both apps for consistency.

# Answer
> 0 votes
UC Browser or Maxthon Browser have the quick scroll/page down function.

---
Tags: chrome-for-android
---


# Question
Title: Only automatically connect to certain Wi-Fi networks
I have an HTC Desire with Android 2.2.

My problem is that there may be open Wi-Fi networks nearby that require a password once connected, e.g. hotspots at coffee shops. My phone connects to these, thereby blocking the 3G connection.

What I want to do is always use 3G unless I'm in range and connected to a list of certain Wi-Fi networks.

# Answer
> 3 votes
Go into your Wi-Fi settings. Long press on the networks that you don't want to automatically connect to and tap 'Forget'.

# Answer
> 1 votes
You could try Wi-Fi Ruler.

With Wi-Fi Ruler you can set up which access points you want to automatically connect to and which ones to ignore.

This might be good if you want to remember the settings (just in case you want to connect again) but still avoid connecting to the AP.

# Answer
> 0 votes
I suggest that when you disconnect to a wifi network, you also forget it.

It will not connect to a WiFi network that you have not explicitly connected to in the past, so as long as you forget the WiFi network, it won't connect.

I regularly find myself doing this, although I rarely turn my WiFi on.

---
Tags: wi-fi, 3g
---


# Question
Title: Changing the appearance of messages in the Messaging app on Droid RAZR Maxx?
I was just wondering if there was any (easy) way to change the appearance of the native messaging app on Droid RAZR Maxx - it doesn't need to be fancy, just resetting it to the default Android 2.3 style would be nice. Ideally, I'd like to keep the same app (so, in other words, without using GoSMS, Handcent, etc.).

If there isn't an easy way to do this, is it possible to do with a rooted Droid RAZR Maxx? If so, could anyone point me towards a tutorial? Thanks in advance!

# Answer
The easiest solution is probably to use a third party messaging app such as Handcent or Go SMS Pro. Changing the default app itself probably needs rooting and some difficult mangling.

Please bear in mind that I have not tested these apps, and cannot say if they work well or not.
> -1 votes

---
Tags: sms, motorola-droid, customization
---


# Question
Title: Droid RAZR MAXX encryption downgrades max camera resolution
After submitting my DROID RAZR MAXX to the whims of my company's OLA for getting access to work mail, calendar, and contacts, it was encrypted, including the storage. Encryption notified me, before proceeding, that my HD video recording resolution would be downgraded from 1080p to 720. Sure enough, after it was complete, the max video recording resolution option was "DVD (720 x480)". However, my front-facing camera can still do 720p.

Was this documented anywhere? Or is this something an ActiveSync admin can push? This cuaght me by surprise.

# Answer
It is the result of encryption, unfortunately I cannot find any documentation.

My device (Razr) showed the same message when I enabled device encryption on setup, before I had any ActiveSync accounts added.
> 1 votes

# Answer
This forum post suggests that it may be related to your company policy.

If not, it could be that some of the camera hardware could be used for encryption, however that is highly unlikely.
> 0 votes

---
Tags: camera, motorola-droid, encryption, motorola-droid-razr
---


# Question
Title: I need an app that transfers SMS to SD and can be moved to SD card itself
I just transferred phones from a Motorola Droid 2 to the Galaxy S III. I usually use Handcent, but forgot to back up my SMS before the new phone was activated. Now I have all my old SMS logs on the Droid, which can't back up because I have no data stream.

I've found multiple apps that can save SMS to the SD card and downloaded them to the S3, however I can't move any of those apps to the SD card to transfer the SD card to the Droid and install the SMS to SD backup app there.

I've tried using this Guide but even then, the apps won't move to the SD card. I don't want to root my new phone just to get an app transferred off it.

Can anyone give me suggestions for an app that meets that criteria or another solution?

# Answer
You want the old version of LifeSaver2 available from the free & open source Android app repostitory http://f-droid.org

It's available here or via the FDroid market app itself.

To be able to install it you need to enable *unknown sources*.

If you have no data connection on your old phone: Put the LifeSaver2\_1.0.apk on the SD card using your S3 or transfer it via Bluetooth and then side-load it.
> 1 votes

# Answer
You could also just move everything through your Gmail account, using SMS Backup +. (I recommend using wifi, as it can take a while on a mobile data connection, if you have a lot of content.)
> 1 votes

---
Tags: sms, external-sd, data-transfer
---


# Question
Title: How can I disable voice commands when double pressing the home button on the Galaxy S 2?
On Samsung Galaxy S2 (not rooted) everytime I accidently double press the home button, the voice command app comes up.

How can I disable this?

# Answer
> 1 votes
Now I have installed Cyanogenmod 9 and this does not happen anymore. I don't think, this problem can be solved via settings of Samsungs Android version

# Answer
> 5 votes
For a non-rooted phone, this is the best I have found:

* Double-tap, select Menu, Settings
* Voice Talk Seetings -\> Speak Prompts: *uncheck*

Now if you double-tap, a short sound will be heard, but you won't hear the "What would you like to do?" anymore.

# Answer
> 4 votes
I have disabled it using App-Freeze on Titanium Backup. This works well, and is entirely reversible, but appears to require both the Pro key (paid) and root.

A possible alternative would be removing it using either the terminal or ADB. The apk in question is /system/app/VoiceToGo.apk (com.vlingo.client.samsung), and my phone hasn't had a problem with it having been disabled. I would recommend backing it up, though, on the off chance.

# Answer
> 4 votes
From an article on WordPress,

> 1. Install Go Launcher from Google Play.
> 2. Open the app drawer.
> 3. Press and hold on the blue voice command icon until it starts shaking.
> 4. Click on the **"X"** button and choose uninstall. Follow the instructions.
> 5. Optionally, you can uninstall Go Launcher.

# Answer
> 2 votes
Double press the menu key in the S Voice application, go to Settings, and disable starting S Voice via double pressing the home button.

# Answer
> 2 votes
You can follow the following steps to disable `Voice Command` on ICS:

1. From the `home screen` go to `Settings` then `Applications`.
2. Find and select `Voice Command` in the `Downloaded` or `All` tabs
3. If the `Disable` option appears - select and then `ok`. It will not prompt again.
4. If not, select `Clear data` and then `ok`. The next time you mistakenly double click do not confirm the Samsung Disclaimer but select the back button instead.

# Answer
> 1 votes
I just upgraded my S2 to ICS and continued facing the same problem.. The solution for the problem is Settings -\> Language and Input -\> Keyboard and input methods. Make sure Google voice typing is unchecked... Problem solved...

# Answer
> 0 votes
On Droid Razr, running ICS, it is under Accessibility, in the system settings menu:

Scroll to the bottom and you should see a double tap home launch field, click it and it will allow you to set it to "none".

# Answer
> 0 votes
I don't know about the S2, but I've just discovered that for the Galaxy Note, there's a setting "Launch voice talk" (launch by double-tapping home) that only appears when Vlingo is set as the voice recognition engine. If you choose Google, the option goes away.

# Answer
> 0 votes
Inside the voice command:

* open *settings → voice talk settings → motion*
* then uncheck double tap option or
* uncheck motion activation altogether.

---
Tags: samsung-galaxy-s-2, voice-command
---


title: Copy Paste with Touch

text:
# Question
Title: Copy Paste with Touch
I have a Samsung Galaxy S3 and I have a problem with the copy and paste feature. Since about 2 Weeks ago, I have been unable to copy by holding on the text and clicking copy. If I long press on text the blue cursor will appear, but no context menu will to allow me to copy the text.

How can I fix this problem?

# Answer
> 1 votes
What is your Android version?

When you highlight the text, just click the highlighted text to copy it.

Then you can paste it by long clicking on a text input field.

On Android 3+ the system changed, and you now copy and paste using the bar that appears when you long press on some text.

---
Tags: text-editor, copy-paste
---


# Question
Title: LG Nexus 4's Internal Storage Dilemma & its Apparent Lack of Support for USB OTG Connectivity?
As my contract on my current android phone is soon ending, I am considering purchasing the LG Nexus 4 (if it ever becomes available again on the Google Play Store) as my next phone, as it supposedly is in the top league but "without the price tag" so i'm informed.

I am aware that many people are disappointed that a microSD card slot is unavailable on these devices (I believe the same to be true of the Nexus 7 & 10, if I am not mistaken), and this may detract them from buying such a device.

From what I understand Google's reason for not including microSD support (unlike other manufacturers) is that they want people to know exactly what is on the internal memory of the phone, as many people "get confused" between what is on the internal memory and the microSD card, and therefore people can choose the required storage space ie 8 or 16GB (and therefore they know exactly what they have beforehand and accommodate their apps etc accordingly). Another reason is that Google want people to move away from internal storage & use Cloud storage more and more (and integrate with its other "services" eg Google Music) - a clever ploy on Google's part

This put me off from buying the device until a few weeks ago when I heard about USB OTG (On The Go) Cables, which are essentially USB Cables having a micro usb connector at one end which fits into the Nexus 4 and a USB connector at othe other (which opens up a whole world of opportunities - more so for tablets rather than smartphones I think).

This being the case I thought joy, storage is no longer a "problem". However I have heard reports that USB OTG connectivity despite apparently being supported cannot be enabled on the device.

Is this the case, have people therefore found a solution like rooting the device and flashing with a Custom ROM ie CyanogenMOD Jellybean 4.1 to achieve USB OTG Connectivity ?

Have people been unable to get hold of the phone in the first instance to comment or have Nexus 7 or 10 owners experienced USB OTG connectivity issues ?

If this is unachieveable i'm sure it is premature as Google are bound to provide an update at a future date (that is of course if they can supply the phone, or was the LG Nexus 4 simply a one time purchase wonder, when it hit the Play Store a few weeks ago)

Excuse the long(ish) post, but I believe the relevance of it

# Answer
USB OTG compatibility is more dependent on the kernel than the actual operating system.

If the stock kernel doesn't support it, then it will (most likely) only be a matter of time until a custom kernel is released that has this functionality.

If you were to purchase it, remember that the tablet can only give 5V of power to the device - this stops you from using things such as portable hard drives with the device, which require a large power input.

You would be best asking on a dedicated ROM'ing forum such as XDA-Developers to find out if the stock kernel supports USB OTG, and if not, a custom kernel can be made to support it.

Please be aware, that you will need an app that allows you to use the USB OTG support.
> 3 votes

---
Tags: nexus-4, usb-on-the-go
---


# Question
Title: Problems with bluetooth pand on rooted android 2.3.1 device
I have a tablet Aishuo A820, rooted. I tried to connecto to my GSM using PAN network with following commands:

```
pand --connect <device address>
ifconfig bnep0 up

```

and it worked. Then I had to stop testing and later I tried the same commands but it never works. `logcat` shows:

```
E/pand    ( 3255): Connect to <device address> failed. Connection timed out(110)

```

I can't understand what's different this time. I used sshDroid to connect over wifi both times. I tried under some consoles with wifi off - same result.

I tried to re-pair devices. Then I start `pand` again with `--connect`. The phone asks to give access. I answer allow and again timeout. I also tried "always allow" so the phone don't have to ask for permission. Nothing works! How did it work the first time?

# Answer
> 1 votes
I can't specifically answer your question, however, what I've found BT paring my Nexus 7 (JB 4.2) to my (rooted) Motorola Defy phone (Froyo 2.2.2), using standard setup panels, is similar. That is, it works the first time. On subsequent attempts, I see a 'connecting..' message then the BT Paring/Connection panel quickly returns to 'waiting for user input' with no connection.

In order to 'fix' it I have to reboot the Motorola (phone).

---
Tags: bluetooth-tethering
---


# Question
Title: Can anyone recommend a good email client?
I have found that the email client which came with my device (Droid X, stock motoblur email client) is lacking in several areas. Some of my gripes are

* Limited number of emails shown in the inbox and no way to change this - At any given time, no matter how many emails are in my Exchange inbox, I can only see the most recent 7.
* No option for multiple signatures - with two different business email accounts and a personal email account, I want the option to have different signatures
* Accessing exchange folders - Items are not shown in the folders viewed on the device even though there are items in these folders

I have tried k9mail in the past, but the last few updates seem to have broken it for my device (I reinstalled twice and I still get errors when sending email and new email is not showing up in a timely manner). So are there any other options available?

# Answer
> 4 votes
I've been using the TouchDown client for the past month and have been very pleased with how will it works with our Exchange server. Not free, but worth a look imho.

# Answer
> 0 votes
I really like Enhanced Email. It is a paid app (though I got it free from one of the Amazon app of the day promotions), and I have used it as my main client for over a year. I really like all the options and customizations you can set, and it syncs with Exchange as well as standard POP and IMAP protocols.

---
Tags: email
---


title: ICS ROM for Samsung Galaxy Y

text:
# Question
Title: ICS ROM for Samsung Galaxy Y
> **Possible Duplicate:**
> Where can I find stock or custom ROMs for my Android device?

I am looking for a custom rom for my Samsung Galaxy Y S5360.

I want to install Android 4.0 ICS, but most of the custom ROM's I find are actually ICS themed, meaning they just have the ICS look and feel but the actual OS is still Gingerbread. I want ICS so that I can install apps that are incompatible with Gingerbread.

Please give me a link to a bug-free ICS ROM.

# Answer
> 1 votes
You should look at forum's such as XDA-Developers, where you will find many ROM developers, and a forum for your device.

Looking at your device however, it only has an Armv6 processor. ICS only supports the Armv7 architecture, so ICS will not be compatible for your device, unless someone ports it to your device which would be difficult, but not impossible as shown by the ICS ROM by mikegapinski for the LG GT540 at the above forum.

---
Tags: custom-roms
---


title: How to call from console?

text:
# Question
Title: How to call from console?
How to make or receive a call from console?

Expecting something like this, UNIX-style:

```
make_call +3750291234567 < played_data.wav > recorded_data.wav

wait_for_call < played_data.wav > recorded_data.wav 2> call_info.txt

```

Preferably this should have no side effects like sounds from the device. The phone is Xperia X10 (for which the call recording is reported to be working).

I want calls to be scriptable like other Linux things I've got used to.

# Answer
You're not going to be able to achieve this using just userland tools, like what you describe -- at least not while Android is running.

The reason is because the RIL opens the radio device (generally some device node under `/dev/*`) as a low-level linux service, and while that has an exclusive lock on the device, nothing else can read from or write to the radio. The RIL then communicates to the Android platform for all radio-related events.

It could be done with some *extensive* modifications to the underlying Linux kernel (it's open source, so definitely a possibility if you don't mind getting your hands dirty in C), or by replacing the RIL daemon (not as easy, because the `rild` is **not** required to be open source, therefore you don't know what the underlying implementation is without reverse engineering). Doing the latter will break Android's ability to use it properly, unless you somehow come up with a compatibility channel to proxy communication between the new RIL and the existing RIL - and even then, there's a good chance that Android will become confused when it tries to make a call (knowing that the modem *should not* currently be in use, but getting a response from the radio saying that it is in use).

Failing that, you might also be able to achieve it by replacing the Phone app and using all-native platform APIs. But I'm kind of thinking that it won't work (at least based on my knowledge of how HTC radios work). In an HTC device, when you place a call, Android notifies `rild`, which places the call, and then `rild` tells the **radio** that it should route all call audio through the handset speaker and route all sound picked up from the microphone into the phone call. The Android platform does not handle call audio routing itself.

All of the above requires rooting the device and installing a custom-built ROM at a minimum.
> 9 votes

# Answer
You should be able to make phone calls easily in the command line, assuming you have root.

The command is `service call phone 2 s16 "+18001231234"`. This will automatically start calling that phone number.

However, this is all done in the foreground. If you had the phone, you would see the normal call screens show up. If you were trying to launch a phone call behind the scenes without the user knowing, I'm not sure how you would do that.

Also, this is only for sending calls, not receiving. And you can't pipe a sound file to the call in lieu of using the actual microphone, nor can you record the incoming sound.

More information: Android – Call/Dial from the adb shell command line
> 5 votes

---
Tags: calls, command-line
---


# Question
Title: How to prepare touchscreen-based Android device for [emergency] calling using only hardware buttons?
If my touchscreen Android phone gets smashed I expect that it can happen that only touchscreen is broken (as it seems to be the most fragile part) while the device itself able to function somehow; and I maybe need to call somewhere using only hardware buttons (without screen at all).

Are there any programs to place and/or answer \[emergency\] calls by entering some pattern of hardware buttons without using screen as input or output? This can also be helpful when you are using the device in frost, in gloves, etc. so using touchscreen becomes problematic.

Having wet/cold/cracked\_screen phone and not being able to call for help just because of touchscreen is not working can be unpleasant. With hardware buttons you can type the "sos code" sometimes even if both your and your phone's HP is low...

My device is SE Xperia X10, but I expect the thing to work one way or another with all devices with at least 1 hardware button.

# Answer
I started implementing my own solution for my device.

Here (source) is a program that (started as root) will allow you to start shell scripts using series of button presses. Currently having started this monitor ( `andrhard 66 /h/andrhard < /dev/input/event2&`) I can easily toggle the flashlight without unlocking the phone (using `/sys/class/leds/lv5219lg:fled/brightness`)

Now the problems is how to call/answer from shell scripts...
> 1 votes

# Answer
This blog has a simple way of initiating a call via the command line. `service call phone 2 s16 "+18001231234"`. Combine that with Vi0's answer, and you could have a script to dial a phone number by pressing the button. I haven't tested this to see if dialing 911 would work, but I don't see why not (unless Android specifically disallows that).
> 1 votes

# Answer
In phones with cyanogenmod ROM you have voice dialer facility. Launching it will vibrate the phone with a beep informing you that it is ready to receive your voice input. Speaking to it like "Call John" or "Call 911" etc will make the device to call.

To enable this to work without the touchscreen you may have to configure the hardware keys. To do so, go to Settings-\>System-\>Hardware keys. Enable the custom actions and you can configure the search key's long press event for launching voice dialer.
> -1 votes

---
Tags: calls, touchscreen, buttons, broken-screen, emergency-calls
---


title: Prevent unauthorized image flashing

text:
# Question
Title: Prevent unauthorized image flashing
I wonder whether there is a way to prevent someone to use `fastboot` to flash an Android device.

Indeed, while one must be able to turn on *USB debug* in order to run `adb`, the bootloader does not offer any protection AFAIK.

# Answer
> 2 votes
You may only make `oem lock`, but if anybody really need to flash something - he can do unlock again (with removing anything from device).

And one old rule: if anybody has physical access to device - software protection will not help.

---
Tags: security, rom-flashing, fastboot
---


# Question
Title: Motorola Triumph changes Volume between Songs or with Notifications
I have a VirginMobile Motorola Triumph, stock but rooted.

I listen to music with both Pandora and Google's Play Music app.

When listening to music, the volume has two modes, 'soft', in which all the way down is too quiet and all the way up is too loud, exactly as it should be. The other setting is loud - just loud. The first click of 'loud' is enough to hurt my ears.

I can change the volume from 'loud' to 'soft' by playing with the Ring or Alarm volumes (not Media). They don't have to change, but they have to be altered briefly to 'reset' it back to 'soft'. Furthurmore, if I receive a notification, text, call, or any other sort of message, the volume becomes 'soft' again.

While listening on 'soft', if the song finishes and naturally continues to the next, the volume will jump to 'loud'. There are other occasions where it does this as well, but I haven't figured out exactly what they are.

---

\[ORIGINAL\]:
I have a stock rooted Motorola Triumph (which does not have MotoBlur) with Pandora installed. Media volume is pretty loud, so I keep it on the first click, always (I also have Audio Manager installed, but this problem was happening prior to installation).

However, when Pandora goes to the next song (either because I skipped, down-thumbed, or just finished the song), the volume gets really loud. It doubles in volume, if not more!

The weirdest part though is that none of the volume sliders (anywhere!) have changed. Not one. Furthermore, altering the Media volume (still on 1st click), has no effect other than to make it even louder. However, if I alter (or even touch) the Ringer or Notification volumes, the song volume drops to where it was.

I'm tired of changing my volume between every song. I'm willing to talk to whomever (Motorola, Pandora, Google, etc) in pursuit of a fix. How can I address this?

# Answer
> 0 votes
I reccomend you contact the makers of Pandora about this issue, as this looks like an app bug rather than a phone issue.

I would suggest emailing them with as much info as you can possibly fit in.

Another option would be to check the settings in Pandora - you may have missed an important setting that is causing this issue.

# Answer
> 0 votes
I've had a similar problem on my Optimus V, and according to other users of the ROM, it is specific to the ROM.

Sometimes the volume is max level no matter what. The temporary workaround is to actually turn the volume up all the way, then turn it down. As soon as I hear the volume blasting, I have to go against my intuition to turn the volume down (as it usually is in the lowest setting already) and turn it all the way up, then down.

Try that and see if it solves the symptoms. If so, the developers of your ROM need to fix the underlying bug that causes the volume indicator to be out of sync with the actual volume.

---
Tags: media-player, volume-control, motorola-triumph, pandora
---


# Question
Title: Nexus 7 issues with lagging, boot-loops, NFC greyed out, and depressed CPU states
I have a Nexus 7 16GB which behaved wonderfully for a few months. I used an NFC app once and the tablet began boot-looping, and lagging. I turned off NFC when I could and reset the tablet. It was fine for a day or two but then started locking up again. I've changed the bootloaders to try to recover it, to no avail. After attempting to upgrade the OS and it totally locked up, I finally RMAed the tablet (PAIN IN THE BUTT!!!, Thanks Asus...) I finally got my tablet back and the same issues have started again. I do have NFC turned on, but haven't installed the app that caused the issue last time (NFC tag writing apps)

I downloaded CPU Spy and have tracked the CPU states to find that my CPU isn't throttling up very much, and it hardly reaches Deep Sleep either. Instead, it spends 7+ hours (not touched by me) at 475 MHz. It doesn't respond to the unlock very quickly, and it often gets stuck in a screen orientation.

The RMA apparently didn't do anything, although they didn't charge me for anything, so they must have found something. Is there anything I can do to see if somehow software I've installed is causing this? Any suggestions? I'm really frustrated. I've attached the CPU spy screenshot, and have a logcat file as well. Is there anything more I can do to track this down?

See also my LogCat results: LogCat

EDIT: Further information: I've gotten it to consistently boot now, but it still falls into a 'always on' with "Android OS" being a major draw on the battery. It will say something like "keep awake for 7+ hours". I'm attempting to chase down an app which has the 'stay awake' permission and see if it is something like that.

EDIT: updating to Android 4.2 increases the stability, and the battery usage is more specific. The NFC service is keeping my tablet awake all the time. Battery use screenshot

# Answer
Please erase all data and the dalvik-cache (if you have recovery).

Are you using the stock or custom ROM?

This looks to me like a bug in the ROM to do with NFC - this is the only reason the device would lock up like that.

If you are using a custom ROM, I suggest you contact the ROM developer with the logs, if not, check for a software update.

EDIT:

The NFC service will only run if NFC is enabled - if you disable it, and then reboot, it should no longer be active. If it is you can kill it via `Settings->Apps->Running`.
> 1 votes

---
Tags: nexus-7, boot-loop
---


# Question
Title: Galaxy S3 randomly booted into safe mode. Strange behavior
I was using my phone (Galaxy S3 SGH-T999), not doing anything intensive, just web browsing on Chrome, then all of a sudden my phone restarts into Safe Mode.

I opened the app drawer and noticed most (possibly all, not sure) of my downloaded apps were gone.
My notifications bar was informing me that some apps were being re-downloaded.

Not sure of the reason, I just restarted the phone and it booted back up normally.

However strange things have been happening, like:

* Apps re-downloading or updating.
* Facebook app authorization failing
* All my contacts were gone. I use SmoothSync for Cloud Contacts. Opening the app asked me to enter my password. My contacts came back.
* My iCloud calendar was gone, again because SmoothSync logged out. Logging back in was no problem.

Nothing really bad has happened, but it just seems strange and random to me.

Why would Safe mode be activated out of nowhere?

# Answer
This is strange, and is most certainly a software issue.

It could be that, for some reason or another, Chrome (or another background app) took up all the available RAM, which caused the OS to crash - it could be a built in safeguard that the device boots into safe mode when this happens.

As well as this, safe mode (on my old device at least), disables all 3rd-party apps (so you can debug, and see if an app is causing the issue).

I would suggest you check your RAM usage, and maybe do a clean wipe if it happens again.
> 0 votes

---
Tags: samsung-galaxy-s-3, safe-mode
---


# Question
Title: How can I set a default contact for a phone number?
In my contact list I have a number of contacts that share the same home phone, because they are family members. For instance:

* my mother
* my father
* my brother
* the family's house

I keep the home phone number for each contact so that when I want to speak to one of them, I can choose the contact and then where to try to reach them. I keep a separate contact for the house so that I can call there when I don't want to talk to anybody specific.

When anybody calls from the family home phone, I want the phone to display the family house contact, not anybody in particular. Is there any way to specify that a phone number has a default contact?

# Answer
New contacts are added to the internal contactslist at the bottom.

They are displayed in the way you want: FirstName/LastName or LastName/FirstName.

When you are called by the family's House then the phonenumber is searched in the internal contactslist and returns the first match found.

What you have to do is: Make sure that the family's house is the first contact te be found. You can't do this by changing it to another name, because that doesn't change the order of the internal contactslist.

One way to do it is: Export all your contacts and edit the .vcf file so that the family's house is above all other contacts. Erase the contacts in your phone and import the edited file.

Another way is to erase all your contacts and type them in by hand, but make sure the family's house is before the other contacts with the same phonenumber.

You must actually do this with all contacts that are not one person, but multiple persons (i.e. Father and Mother) or a place (such as the family's house).
> 6 votes

# Answer
I solved this problem by renaming the contact that gets listed when I receive the call. In other words, one of my colleagues was listed each time I received a call from Work instead of listing "Work Landline", so I edited that colleague's contact info to be named "Work Landline" and then I created a new contact for that person. This achieves exactly what Fred described, but may take less work depending on your situation.

The downside to this is that you may need a call in your log to determine which contact to edit.

More explicitly, here is what I did (note that you can do 3 and 4 from your phone instead of the web and then you don't need #5):

1. Called my mobile phone from my work landline
2. Identified the contact that was displayed (our office manager)
3. Used Google Contacts website to change the name of my office manager to "Work Landline"
4. Used Google Contacts website to create a new contact with my office manager's name.
5. Waited for my contacts to sync to my phone.
6. As a final confirmation, I looked in my call log and saw that my office manager's name had been replaced with "Work Landline"
> 5 votes

# Answer
Sure, just open a contact, and long press the number that you want to make as a default contact, then choose default contact

(actual words may differ according to the ROM you are using and the contact application, but the way to do it, at least in the *standard* Android is this)
> 1 votes

---
Tags: contacts
---


# Question
Title: Do I have to charge my phone before I use it the first time?
When I got my last phone, a Sony Ericsson k850i, I was recommended to charge it fully once before I even turned it on. Does this apply today as well, for my coming HTC Desire HD?

Why was I recommended to do so in the first place?

# Answer
> 37 votes
All newer phones use Lithium polymer batteries.

### Why is it Partially Charged?

To decrease their aging they are intended to be stored at 40% charge. This means when you receive your phone it should be at 40% charge, otherwise they will have aged your battery for you. (you are probably used to the effects of aging, like a 2 year old phone seeming to have very short battery life). When you get your phone you can use it until it is discharged, but they normally say 'charge it' because people will not notice the partial charge.

### Do Not Fully Discharge

You should not fully worry about fully discharging, this is superstition to earlier battery technologies. Fully discharging a lithium battery is one of the best ways to make it fail. below a certain charge they will have their overcharge protection circuitry fail and you cannot charge it at all. I have seen studies that show that this makes up more than 75% of "failed" lithium batteries.

### Lithium Battery Aging

Lithium batteries have a set number of charge discharge cycles before they fail. This might be a number like 500 cycles. You actually get more like 1000 cycles if you only discharge to 50% before recharge. Lithiums really do not like a deep discharge, I cannot stress this enough.

If you would like more information about lithium battery technology let me know, I can get you many links, just drop me a comment. I have a few answers on the electronics and robotics stack exchange about it.

### Can I leave it plugged in all the time?

Yes, and no. This is very dependent on whom makes your device.

For example, my Lenovo laptop will not apply a charge to the battery unless it is under 97%. When it does charge the battery it charges directly to 100%, then stops until the battery sags below 97%. Many laptops did not do this, on most just applying charge if it is not 100%. This would put the battery through thousands of charge cycles in a week when you are not using the battery. This ages a battery quickly.

If your phone maker took the time and paid the extra cash then your phone will stop charging once it reaches full charge and just power the system from the wall outlet. It is significantly more likely that your phone is charging your battery on a short cycle and aging it thoroughly.

### Myths

Some people have some confusion from some of the myths that go about. The primary one is memory. As Battery University will say, this is mostly extinct, and actually applies to nickel-cadmium batteries. As was stated in a comment about crystals Battery university has in reference to nickel-cadmium:

> With memory, the crystals grow and conceal the active material from the electrolyte. In advanced stages, the sharp edges of the crystals penetrate the separator, causing high self-discharge or electrical short.

Now, talking about Lithium batteries, which your phone uses, there is even more difference. To quote them battery university directly from their simple guidelines:

> Avoid frequent full discharges because this puts additional strain on the battery. Several partial discharges with frequent recharges are better for lithium-ion than one deep one. Recharging a partially charged lithium-ion does not cause harm because there is no memory. (In this respect, lithium-ion differs from nickel-based batteries.) Short battery life in a laptop is mainly cause by heat rather than charge / discharge patterns.

I understand how this may go against what you have been taught, but I am someone who not only has researched this, but uses lithium batteries in my day to day work as an engineer.

# Answer
> 6 votes
No. You do not need to fully charge ANY battery to the max until usage. It does not matter if it's new, old, a phone, or even a remote. It does not affect the battery unless that battery has been over-used. So, what I am saying is, no. You do not need to fully charge something new before usage.

# Answer
> -2 votes
Most of the time, yes you have to charge the phone fully and then sometimes fully discharge it the first time you use it. Most of the time you'll be fine with the phone turned on while you charge it the first time, as long as it gets fully charged before unplugging it.

There are a few reasons for this, some historical, some practical. The historical reason is that with older battery tech, the battery had to go through a full charge/discharge cycle in order to keep the battery life high. Phones would be shipped with batteries that only had enough power in them for initial set-up, forcing the owner to do a full charge when they got home. The practical reason is that batteries don't maintain their charge indefinitely when they're unplugged, so although your phone may have been shipped with a battery that started off with a full charge, by the time it gets to you, it may already be very low.

---
Tags: battery, battery-life, charging
---


title: Gmail not being retrieved automatically

text:
# Question
Title: Gmail not being retrieved automatically
I have recently (since ~1month ago) experienced the following **problem**:

* When I get new mail on my gmail account, Gmail will **usually** not autimatically retrieve it (e.g., no notification; and when I manually open GMail app, the mail will NOT be in the inbox)
* However, **manual** mail retrieval/sync **DOES** work fine, for example if I click on "Sync" (retreieve) curcle icon within GMail app; or on Elixir 2's "start background data sync" icon; or check-off-and-back-on on the "Mail Sync" in Settings-\>Accounts for relevant Google account.
* Also, **sometimes** Gmail does get retrieved/notified; I am not 100% sure but there seems to be a very strong correllation between that and having recently opened GMail app (especially in foreground).
* GMail sync worked perfectly find till ~1 month ago
* The background sync does not work for ANY of the 3 Gmail accounts I registered.
* **OTHER mail apps seem to sync perfectly fine (e.g. Hotmail or Yahoo mail) in the background.**. So I have a hard time believing it is a problem with overall sync.
* The issue is independent of network - it doesn't work on WiFi or 3G.

**System details:**

* Droid X, running rooted stock Froyo 2.2.
* I have gone through 100% of intents in Autostarts and made sure every single intent is ON for both Gmail listener and Google Framework.
* Gmail version is 2.3.6 (it has a 7/1/2012 backup in Titanium Backup Pro, so I'm assuming this is when it was last updated. BUT the problem existed before 7/1)
* **Background sync is turned ON - confirmed via Quick Settings app as well as widgets from Elixir 2.** (also, as noted above, Hotmail and Yahoo mail seem to sync fine)

# Answer
I had the same problem. After reading kevinf's answer, I found the solution by checking the general Google sync settings. Gmail was not checked!

```
Settings->Accounts/Google->YourEmail@gmail.com Last synced MM/DD/YYYY 12:00 PM->List of Google Sync Settings.

```

As a side note, the Gmail app indicated that sync was turned off.

```
Gmail App->Menu/Settings->YourEmail@gmail.com->DATA USAGE/Gmail sync is OFF

```
> 2 votes

# Answer
I had a similar problem, Gmail sync would rarely work, for 3G and for Wifi.

My Galaxy S3 runs 4.0.4 stock ICS, background sync is enabled, and so is a mobile data limit. Wifi is set to sleep on display off.

What I didn't realize, is in the Settings -\> Data usage -\> Gmail, I accidentally checked the box "restrict background data". This correlates to "Also, sometimes Gmail does get retrieved/notified; I am not 100% sure but there seems to be a very strong correllation between that and having recently opened GMail app (especially in foreground)."

Wifi background sync *should* work, but if you have Wifi to sleep when screen off, then you still would fail to get notifications!
> 1 votes

---
Tags: gmail, motorola-droid-x, sync
---


# Question
Title: How to preview specific folder in email notification?
I have a Note 2 with Android 4.1.1 plus updates. I really like the built-in email client and I use it with my Gmail account as an exchange service. Even push mail works great with it.

However, I am subscribed to several folders. Whenever I am getting an email to one of the subscribed folders I have a notification. The problem is that when several emails arrive in different folders the notification preview always shows the first 2-3 mails from INBOX, even when the mails are in other folders. I would like to set this to "Gmail/AllMail" so that I can see in the notification preview the newly received mail.

# Answer
Unfortunately, its not possible with stock email client unless Samsung pushes an update. Try other email clients from Play Store.
> 0 votes

# Answer
You could always go back to the general Gmail app. It allows you to have multiple accounts (in case that's why you were using the other built-in client).

```
Settings->Add Account

```

Labels can be set and are visible. Lastly, since you're using Jelly Bean, you'll see similar email preview notifications - and it won't only show the first 2-3 inbox items.
> 0 votes

---
Tags: email, notifications, 4.1-jelly-bean
---


# Question
Title: How to use Microsoft Streets & Trips on Android?
Is there any way to use Microsoft Streets & Trips on an android device such as Galaxy Tab 2 or Google Nexus?

# Answer
There are several RDP/VNC application on Android, which can be used to "run" any Windows application.

What you basically need to do is fairly straightforward:

1. Setup a server or virtual machine running a Windows machine
2. Install a RDP/VNC viewer on your Android
3. Configure the viewer to connect to the server

Citrix and Azure virtualization platform can be accessed by regular off-the-shelf RDP viewer. As an alternative, many open source or off-the-shelf virtualization software like VirtualBox or VMWare also supports RDP or VNC protocol for remote displays of their virtual machines.

How to set up the server is outside the scope of \[android.se\], try \[superuser\] or \[serverfault\]. Once the server is setup, it's fairly straightforward to setup the Android part, come back with a more specific question if you had trouble when you get there.
> 6 votes

---
Tags: maps
---


title: Relative GPS accuracy?

text:
# Question
Title: Relative GPS accuracy?
GPS is not that accurate on Android devices (at least at mine) Measuring tools tell me the accuracy is between 8 and 12 Meters.

But what is about *relative* accuracy? When I place two marks on different coordinates in the distance of 1 meter will this distance be measurable?

# Answer
> 2 votes
Distance can be measured even if you place 2 points in one place - for mesurement used signal from satellites, and in city it's extremely difficult to predict it changes.

Accuracy depends on signal quality, and it's impossible to get it 100% even in a field, so when you move phone to 1 meter, signal change may be so small, what not detected, and it may be changed so seriously, what will displayed over 100 meters change (tested on buildings corners with HTC Desire and Nexus 7).

---
Tags: gps
---


# Question
Title: Samsung GT P1000: Install to internal storage?
Is it possible to install apps on the internal USB (`/mnt/sdcard`) storage of the Samsung GT P1000?

`/mnt/sdcard` has 7Gb free and the internal phone storage only 690Mb free.

Move 2 SD card fails with `"Failed to move application. No SD card."`

Surely there must be a way to install apps on the internal storage.

# Answer
> 1 votes
You can move apps that support it to that SD Card, as that is the one used by Android to install apps to.

Just go to settings apps and select the app, and then click the move to SD Card button.

If you want to move them ALL you must be rooted, and can use this app, which allows you to force apps to the (internal) SD Card.

---
Tags: installation, samsung-galaxy-tab, internal-sd
---


# Question
Title: Galaxy S2 9100 Apps Sms download or not notification in China
I recently bought a Samsung Galaxy S2 GT-I9100 in China. It is a great phone for apps, but I constantly get notifications via sms for new apps mostly in Chinese.

If I click on it, it says install or cancel. Now I don't mind doing this 20 times a day, but the real annoying thing is it keeps making my SMS notification noise, so I dash to my phone, only to realise that it is another app, which I don't want.

Can anyone help me stop receiving these app request sms things? I am starting to question whether or not it is because I live in China, as my Sony Ericsson Xperia is the 1st version, which I bought in the UK, doesn't do this. Maybe because it was the early days of Android?

# Answer
> 0 votes
This sounds like an SMS/Push message sent by your carrier in China.

I would suggest you contact your carrier, and ask them if they are sending these - and ask them if they can be stopped.

You can use this app to block these if your carrier won't.

---
Tags: applications, sms, notifications
---


title: Battery consumption

text:
# Question
Title: Battery consumption
My stats are the follwing: `Android system 37%`, `Stand by 36%`, `Inactivity 14%`, `Voice call 3%`.

I touch in android and appears a lot of programs like `alertrecipients,
google backup transport,
error,
?Perso?,
Tasks,
bluetooth test,
popupuiReceiver,
wssyncmlnps,
mobile tracker,
DRM,
definitions,
wlan test,
self test mode,
wipeoutreceiver,
VPN services,
android sistem,
facory test,
preconfig and
service mode`.

Can I turn off some of those tasks in managment, or better asked, is there any of those I cannot stop, that is essential to the phone? Mostly I just need phone, some ocasional pictures and sms, maybe 2/3 times a week use an app!

# Answer
You can go in settings, running applications and close the ones that you don't need. The application that the system needs you won't be able to close. Or you can just uninstall the undesired ones as well.

And reformat your question so it makes more sense and it's understandable.
> 1 votes

# Answer
This was my first cell phone with android sistem (Samsung Galaxy Ace android 2.3), i just have for 4 days, so some questions arose, like this one but is pretty simple to solve, and i hope that can help another people. To solve the problem is going to settings, turn off some applications that i/you dont need, if you like me dont need 3G always working as the GPS or WiFi, just turn them off, but pay attention if you run out of battery the app's will turn on when you turn on your cell phone.
> 0 votes

---
Tags: battery, task-management
---


# Question
Title: How to view list of subscriptions in Google reader app?
Is there any way to view the list of my blog subscriptions in Google reader? Currently it is showing "no subscriptions". Is this a bug?

# Answer
> 3 votes
On the main screen of the app press the `Menu` button and select `Show all`. You should see a list of all your subscriptions below the `SUBSCRIPTIONS` heading, with unread items showing in bold and the unread count to the right. It should look similar to this:

If you don't see anything listed there, you might want to double check the account you're using with the app by pressing the `Menu` button, and going to the `Accounts` option. There you can select your Google account, and check if syncing is enabled for Google Reader.

# Answer
> 0 votes
Does it say "**You have no subscriptions with unread items.**"? If not, then you may need to synchronise with your Google Account, or add some feeds manually.

If you've synchronised with your Google Account, and/or have added feeds, you should be able to press `Menu > Show all`
This should display all of your subscriptions, whether they have new items or not. To go back to updated only: `Menu > Show updated`

---
Tags: google-reader
---


# Question
Title: TeamViewer 8.0.772 crashes on Sony Xperia running ICS 4.0.4
I am trying to use Teamviewer 8.0.772 to remotely access my computer. However the app is crashing in no time once it is started.

System Info:

* Sony Ericsson xperia Neo V
* ICS 4.0.4

I have re-installed it but nothing works.

# Answer
Please try and clear the app data and cache - this fixed the same issue for me.
> 1 votes

---
Tags: teamviewer
---


# Question
Title: How can I group duplicate contacts from different sources (Google, WhatsApp, etc)?
I have installed an ICS ROM (Virtuous Inquisition 4.0) on my phone. In my address book I am syncronizing all contacts from my Gmail, Google+ and WhatsApp accounts with the consequence that some contacts have THREE entries! Is the ICS address book not able to group them together by default? I know this question is similar: How do I remove duplicate contacts from Google+?, but the proposed solutions don't seem to work or are not really adequate.

# Answer
Please try the following:

* Select the duplicate contact Edit the contact
* Access the menu for the edit contact page, and select the Join action
* Select the contact you want to merge with from the suggested list, or search for the appropriate one.

Doing this will link the contacts.
> 2 votes

---
Tags: contacts, 4.0-ice-cream-sandwich, google-plus, whatsapp-messenger
---


# Question
Title: How can I root my Verizon HTC Incredible 2?
I am technically inclined, I work as a IT technician and study computer science and engineering. Does anyone have a guide or guides, or can help me root my HTC Incredible 2?

# Answer
> 2 votes
Here a guide from XDA-Dev:

(If you like to learn visually and would rather not go through these steps, check out this YouTube video.)

> Some warnings:
>
> * This is not a FULL unlock (S-OFF or to unlock your SIM card slot.)
> * This WILL VOID your warranty.
> * This will work with ANY version of HBOOT.
> * This is a how to for WINDOWS ONLY.
> * If you are logged out of HTC Dev at any time during the identifier period (1–5), just sign back in and don't click anything. It will automatically redirect you to the last page you were on.
> * I am not responsible if you didn't follow a step correctly and your phone lights on fire, cracks into two, wants to destroy you, etc…
>
> What you are going to need:
>
> **STEPS TO ROOT:**
>
> 1. You are going to want to head over to the HTC Developer site and make an account or sign in. Once you have done one of the two, you are going to want to click 'Unlock Bootloader,' then 'Get Started.' It will next ask you what device you are trying to unlock, click 'Droid Incredible 2 (Verizon)' then 'Begin Unlock Bootloader.' Then a pop up window will ask you if you are sure, just click 'Yes.' Then, another pop up window will appear, just tick the two boxes and press 'Proceed to Unlock Instructions.'
> 2. Go to your phone. Take off the \[back\] battery door and remove the battery (don't hold the power button and make it a proper shut off, just rip the battery out. Then, put the battery back in. Once you have replaced the battery, hold the volume down button and the power button at the same time until a white screen shows up. You can use the volume rocker to highlight your selection, and the power button to select the highlighted selection. Right now, we want to highlight 'BOOTLOADER' and use the power button to select it. Next, grab your miniUSB cable and plug it into your computer to your phone.
> 3. Next, make a folder on your computer in the C:\ Drive. In Windows Vista & 7, you can just go to Computer from the Start Menu and it will be labeled Local Disk (C:). You can name the folder whatever you want, I am just going to name it Android. Next, you are going to want to download my ADB, Fastboot, and ADBAPI .zip file and place all three files into the Android folder. After you unzip the ADB/Fastboot folder, you are going to want to (if you have not already) download and install the Android SDK manager. You will need to install SDK tools \[and I believe a version of Android?\] After you have installed everything, you can go to the Start Menu again and type in 'cmd' in the search bar and press enter. Then type in the following: (Or you could take the easy way of going to your C:\ drive and shift-clicking the folder and press 'Open Command Window Here…)
>
> ```
> cd C:\Android
>
> ```
> 4. After you have got into Command Prompt and are in the \Android folder, type in the following:
>
> ```
> fastboot oem get_identifier_token
>
> ```
>
> You will then see a great big brick of random characters. Right click in the bottom right-hand corner of '\<\<\<\<\< Identifier Token End \>\>\>\>\>' and click 'Mark...' Hold down the left-mouse-button and select the great brick of text up until '\<\<\<\< Identifier Token Start \>\>\>\>' (don't highlight any of the 'INFO' things.) Then, right-click again and you will have the identifier token copied to your clipboard. Back on the HTC Dev site, it will ask you for your identifier; just paste the identifier in the box and it will send you an email with a .bin file (Unlock\_code.bin) and just throw that into the folder with ADB and Fastboot.
> 5. You are going to want to click the continue link that HTC Dev sent you as well to downloading the file. After you have finished downloading and put it in the folder, type in the following:
>
> ```
> fastboot flash unlocktoken Unlock_code.bin
>
> ```
>
> Once you have done that and pressed Enter, your phone will change screens. It will ask you if you are SURE you want to do this. Just press the volume rocker up and press the power button. Your phone will reboot and take you back to Android. It's normal and it doesn't mean it failed... Your phone is fine and it should have went OK if you followed the steps. We are done with HTC Dev now, so you can close it.
> 6. Next thing we are going to want to do is flash ClockWorkMod (CWM) Recovery onto your phone. You are going to want to download the .iso for CWMR and flash it to your phone (download link). After you are done downloading the .iso, place it into your ADB and Fastboot folder. Once your phone has finished starting up, take the battery out again and put it back into HBOOT mode (step 2.) You are going to want to go back into FASTBOOT (step 2, again) and flash the recovery by doing the following:
>
> ```
> fastboot flash recovery recovery(press TAB)
>
> ```
>
> Once you press enter and fastboot says it has completed, it will just have the Fastboot screen. Just highlight 'Bootloader' and press the power button. Next, to make sure it worked… Scroll down to 'Recovery' (which is right under Fastboot) and select it. The HTC screen should show and then CWMR should come to life.
> 7. This is where the real magic happens. We are going to install SuperUser on to your phone now. Reboot your phone into regular Android. Now, you can plug it into the computer and make it a disk drive or pop out the miniSD card and put it into a converter. Now, you are going to want to download SuperUser and put it onto the miniSD (I recommend not putting it in any folders so it is easy to find.) Now, put your phone back into CWMR (step 6.) Now, use the volume rocker to scroll down to 'install .zip from sd card' and press the power button. Now, find the SuperUser.zip (or whatever it is named) and press the power button. The 'yes' to install it is in the middle of all the 'no' options, use the volume rocker to select 'yes' and press the power button. Wait for CWMR to finish, and in the meantime... Just stare at your phone. After you have finished installing SuperUser, restart your handset into Android. Once it has finished restarting, go into the app drawer and find the SuperUser app. Press the 'menu' button and tap 'Settings.' Scroll down to 'Su Binary x.x.xx' and tap it. On the bottom it will say 'Update Binary,' just tap that and it will do its 'magic.' Once SU has finished updating Binary, you have a rooted DINC2.

# Answer
> 1 votes
The general approach to gaining "root" on the HTC Incredible 2 is to get S-OFF, so you can flash a custom ROM. I'm on the road now, and have neither the inclination nor the resources to compose a full guide here, so I will point you to the best rooting guide for our phone:

Gain S-OFF and Root the HTC Incredible 2

Note: the guide is aimed at Linux users--use an Ubuntu live CD if you have to.

Anyway, it's a much better guide than the ones I see in the Google top 10, which are either hard to follow along, or leave out (possibly) necessary steps, like hboot downgrading. Finally, another helpful resource:

Comprehensive S-OFF/Root Methods

---
Tags: rooting, htc-droid-incredible-2
---


# Question
Title: Is there a way to prevent applications from updating when running on battery
I know you can restrict applications to update on Wi-Fi only. Can you achieve the same thing with "update when charging on sector only" too?

# Answer
> 2 votes
The best option you can use open the menu in play store and then go to Settings and then mark the **Notification:Notify me about updates to apps or games that I downloaded** and then you will get the notification and update them whenever you want to.

Also unmark the **Auto-update apps** so it will never update them automatically.

# Answer
> 3 votes
There is no way to do this, except to only select to manually update apps, and them update them when you have your charger connected.

There is no way to automatically restrict them.

# Answer
> 0 votes
If you are asking about updating apps from the Google Play store, the latest version (v3.10.9 as of this writing) does not have an option for that.

If you are talking about updating content within apps themselves, this depends on each app. Most apps that connect to the Internet to refresh their content have controls of some sort that allow you to specify the updating frequency based on time of day, and sometimes based on WiFi state. It may be possible to implement refreshing based on charging state (possibly might need root privileges), but that functionality is up to the developers.

---
Tags: google-play-store, updates, battery
---


# Question
Title: Is there a way to wipe a device based on a certain password? A like a "Wipe-me" password?
Is there a way (an app perhaps) that will wipe a phone if a certain password is entered at the lock screen? For example "letmein" unlocks the phone, but if you enter "wipeme" it will start the factory reset process, or erase the decryption key or what have you.

# Answer
> 5 votes
There is no way to do this, although you *could* do it using SMS.

You would have to install an app like Cerberus which allows you to send an SMS to wipe your device.

# Answer
> 1 votes
There is none in my knowledge. The good reason why its not there because if its applied to specific models then anyone who owns the same model and knew the code can erase your privacy. So its not a good idea.

---
Tags: security, password, privacy
---


title: What is yakju, gn, yakjuxw, takju etc?

text:
# Question
Title: What is yakju, gn, yakjuxw, takju etc?
I'm in the market of buying a Nexus 7, and these are what I understand some kind of firmware/maker identification. Can someone please explain all the different names?

Google sadly wasn't much help for me today.

# Answer
For Galaxy Nexus these are different builds:

* takju: devices sold through the Play Store in the US. Contains the Google Wallet aplication.
* yakju: devices sold through Google outside the US.
* yakjuxw: devices sold by Samsung.

If you buy yakjuxw I would recommend that you update to yakju with factory images provided by Google.

This way you will get the updates in time.

I wasn't aware that there are similar builds for the Nexus 7.
> 12 votes

# Answer
It's device internal codenames.

Reasons:

1. Device specifications is secret before release. After release, firmware not renamed, to exclude misunderstanding for developers.
2. One device may have different firmware versions, depends on target market and hardware configuration (modem, NFC, Wi-Fi settings).
> 4 votes

# Answer
This is an exert from A Guide to Manually Install Android 4.2 Takju on Non-Yakju Galaxy Nexus written 14th Nov. 2012 available at: http://webtrickz.com/guide-to-manually-install-android-4-2-takju-on-non-yakju-galaxy-nexus/

Following the availability of Nexus 4 and Nexus 10, Google has begun the rollout of Android 4.2 Jelly Bean OTA update for Galaxy Nexus and Nexus 7 as well. Android 4.2 is currently available only for Takju variant of GSM/HSPA+ Galaxy Nexus and luckily Google has also released the Android 4.2 factory image for Takju Galaxy Nexus. Apparently, Non-Yakju Galaxy Nexus users wont receive this new update anytime soon as their phone is updated by Samsung whereas Yakju & Takju firmware are updated directly by Google.

However, users with adequate technical know-how can easily convert their non-yakju (yakjuxw, yakjuux, yakjusc, yakjuzs, yakjudv, yakjukr and yakjujp) device to Takju to receive prompt future OTA updates from Google.

Install Yakju or Takju? Takju, the firmware that ships with Google Play Store version of Galaxy Nexus (in US) apparently receives updates faster than the Yakju variant. So, it’s better to choose Takju over Yakju.
> 1 votes

---
Tags: device-firmware
---


# Question
Title: I Need Help Getting Contacts from Broken Android!
My Huawei Mercury M886 fell out of my lap when getting out of the car and it got run over...

Its not rooted. The screen is completely shattered off and I cant use the touchscreen or buttons so I cant get passed the lock screen.

I was able to get about half my contacts from my back up in April on the wireless server from Cricket, and I don't use the Gmail back up and purposely did it that way. I plugged my phone into the computer but I cant access the phone at all since I have to choose the USB/Computer option from the phone itself.

Anyone know of how I can get to them? They are not on the SD card either. I need a way to access the phone without using the touchscreen. Is there a way to sync the Android phone to PC without using the touchscreen?

I don't have my phone password protected. It seems as though that the Android can do everything except retrieve information without using the touch screen...this is a HUGE problem...very impracticable for bad situations.

# Answer
> 1 votes
There is no way to get your contacts back, for a number of reasons:

* You would have to have been rooted \[AND\]
* You would have to have USB Debugging enabled \[AND\]
* You would have to individually go through the contacts app database, and get the contact data. They aren't stored in vcard format.

---
Tags: contacts, backup, data-recovery, broken-screen
---


title: Root Android Tablet without USB Cable

text:
# Question
Title: Root Android Tablet without USB Cable
I have a tablet and its USB port is not working, I think it is broken or there is some hardware problem. I can not plug USB cable in it.

Now my problem is, I want to root my tablet can I do that without using USB cable. And can I use bluetooth, wifi or HDMI for this purpose.

There is a similar post (see link below) and it has answers put they are not applicable because they are suggesting some apps from market but these app will work only on rooted devices.

Get root or re-install the OS without a USB cable?

# Answer
> 1 votes
What is your android version?

If it is below 3.x, then you could use the browser to download one of these apps:

* Univeral Androot (desinged for android 2.2)
* z4root (desinged for android 2.2)
* Gingerbreak (designed for Android 2.3.x)

If it is above 3.x, then you cannot use this method, as Google patched the method used in these cracks.

---
Tags: rooting
---


title: How to troubleshoot a lockup/freeze

text:
# Question
Title: How to troubleshoot a lockup/freeze
I have a GNex running on CN(A) 3.8. It has started to lockup/freeze when the screen is off. So far it occurs mostly overnight while it's charging. I have to pull the battery to resolve. I believe it started a couple of ROM updates ago. I have not gone through the step of doing a factory wipe (but have cleared the cache/Dalvik), etc, but I was wondering what tools does Android have to troubleshoot freezes, etc.

Is there a system log, etc that I can look at to see if there's a pattern of what is occurring at the time of freeze?

# Answer
> 2 votes
There are apps that let you look at the system log, like CatLog.

What I would do is start logging before you charge it at night and then take a look at the result in the morning. The log will probably be staggering but the errors should show up in red.

---
Tags: samsung-galaxy-nexus, custom-roms, logging, troubleshooting, system-freeze
---


# Question
Title: Can I install takju ROM on unit with yakjuxw?
I bought my Galaxy Nexus a couple of months before Jelly Bean 4.2 was announced. It got updated to 4.0.4 fine, but did not find any 4.1 update at all. So I found this question which informed me of units that had ROMs updated by Samsung instead of Google for whatever reason. And my unit is of the Samsung update legacy, `yakjuxw`.

Since by the time I had concrete info on this `yakju`, `takju` or whatever the 4.2 release was nearing, I decided against flashing to `yakju` 4.1.2, and resorted to camp Android's factory image download page. And then 4.2 OTA rolled out on the 13th. Only for the `takju` units that is. The download page was similarly updated. But I am running out of patience, hence the question.

tl;dr refer to the title. I would like to know if there's any issues with flashing `takju` or a `yakju` device.

# Answer
> 2 votes
The answer is yes, you can install a takju ROM on a yakjuxw device. For that matter, you can also install a yakju ROM, or one of many other custom Galaxy Nexus ROMs (e.g. Cyanogenmod) on a device that originally had yakjuxw.

I have personally flashed both yakju and takju ROMs on my Galaxy Nexus, which originally had a yakjux (Canada) ROM. The only possible issue is that flashing a new ROM may erase user data from the SD card (pictures, SMS messages, wifi information, etc.). So you may want to back up your data before flashing.

# Answer
> 2 votes
This is an exert from A Guide to Manually Install Android 4.2 Takju on Non-Yakju Galaxy Nexus written 14th Nov. 2012 available at: http://webtrickz.com/guide-to-manually-install-android-4-2-takju-on-non-yakju-galaxy-nexus/

Following the availability of Nexus 4 and Nexus 10, Google has begun the rollout of Android 4.2 Jelly Bean OTA update for Galaxy Nexus and Nexus 7 as well. Android 4.2 is currently available only for Takju variant of GSM/HSPA+ Galaxy Nexus and luckily Google has also released the Android 4.2 factory image for Takju Galaxy Nexus. Apparently, Non-Yakju Galaxy Nexus users wont receive this new update anytime soon as their phone is updated by Samsung whereas Yakju & Takju firmware are updated directly by Google. However, users with adequate technical know-how **can easily convert** their non-yakju (**yakjuxw**, yakjuux, yakjusc, yakjuzs, yakjudv, yakjukr and yakjujp) device to Takju to receive prompt future OTA updates from Google.

The above link will take you through the various steps needed to achieve what you desire (**inc. video tutorial for Step 3**). So yes you can install takju ROM on unit with yakjuxw.

---
Tags: samsung-galaxy-nexus, rom-flashing, 4.2-jelly-bean
---


title: Can receive but not send SMS

text:
# Question
Title: Can receive but not send SMS
My Samsung Galaxy 2 (SC-02C) has been rooted and upgraded to 4.1.2. It seemed that everything, all phone functionality, was fine.

However, I've discovered that I can not *send* SMS with my phone. I can *receive* SMS from anyone from any carrier in my area just fine. I've asked at my service provider (DoCoMo, in Japan) and was told that I have the service enabled and my account with them should be fully operational.

I wouldn't have imagined rooting and upgrading the phone would impact SMS, but that seems to be the case.

How might my SMS functionality be impacted by my current ROM, and how can I fix it?

# Answer
For some reason I assumed that SMS functionality was integral to the phone, not the OS, and so it would be reliant on carrier configurations and settings. As a result, I automatically went looking for some kind of solution that involved ROMs or kernels and whatnot.

However, it turns out that there are SMS apps available on Google Play, and I was able to solve this by simply using an app other than the default. In my case, I chose Handcent. SMS works perfectly fine.

So it was only the default SMS app that was the problem, not anything more fundamental.
> 1 votes

# Answer
It could be a ROM bug - have you communicated to the author/thread of the ROM and asked if there are any issues with SMS sending?

If there aren't, I suggest that you wipe factory data completely, and then try again. You may wish to use an app such as My Backup Root or Titanium Backup to back up your apps before you do so.
> 3 votes

---
Tags: sms
---


# Question
Title: Using the a smartphone's speaker as a microphone
I have a hardware accessing question. For a project, I was wondering if it would be possible to use the smartphone's speaker as a second microphone, similar to the idea that you can plug in a headset into your computer's audio jack and use it as a microphone.

# Answer
Sorry, as far as I am aware, there is no way to do this.

The speaker is highly ingrained into the hardware, and it would be highly difficult to get this to work - never mind that it could be impossible.

It *could* be possible, but it would require loads of hard work - including rewiring, and possibly some soldering - and your device may not survive.

Proceed at your own risk, but I would say that it isn't possible.
> 1 votes

---
Tags: audio, hardware, microphone, speaker
---


# Question
Title: Droid 3 Gallery Generating Errorneous Thumbnails; Possibly Due to Infinite Loop, .nomedia glitch?
I have a stock Motorola Droid 3 on Verizon. The device is not currently rooted. I am not sure if the Gallery app on my phone is specific to the Motoblur UI.

I was testing the `.nomedia` trick/hack, by putting a zero-length file named `.nomedia` in my Downloads directory. I also cleared cache and deleted app data of the stock/standard Gallery app. it didn't appear to work, so I decided to say "screw it" and deleted the `.nomedia` file.

Sadly this kind of ruined things. I reopened the gallery app started showing duplicates of most (but not all) of the images. If I clicked on one, it'd only load the thumbnail with just "loading..." ontop, like it was trying to generate the full sized image. If I long-pressed and clicked "photo info" gallery would crash. If I hit delete, it would delete the entry from the gallery view with no problem. The other one of the duplicates appeared to be the real image so it loaded no problem.

Now, I could've manually deleted all the extra erroneous thumbnails, but that would be too time consuming as I had over 600-some correct images. So I decided to try a shortcut. I went to `/dcim/.thumbnails` and cleared the directory and I also went to `/android/data/com.moto.blur.mediaprovider` and cleared the thumbnails stored in that directory. When I went back to the gallery the situation got even worse. Now there's like 3 copies of the images.

My prediction is that it's generating thumbnails, then generating thumbnails of those thumbnails. I tried clear the `.thumbnails` directory, which had over 2000 images in there. As soon as I restarted the gallery app, it'd fill right back up again. I tried the same process and rebooting, but again, starting the gallery app causes it loop with the thumbnail generation.

I tried putting a zero-length file `.nomedia` into the .thumbnails directory but that didn't seem to be doing anything.

Is there something that I'm missing? I really don't want to do a factory reset as I don't have any easy way to back things up.

Also, I do not have an SD card at the moment. All of this is being put on the local storage for the phone.

# Answer
Please attempt the following:

1. Delete the entire `.thumbnails` folder
2. Delete the `/sdcard/Android/data/com.android.gallery3d` folder
3. Go to `Settings->Apps->All` and select the `Gallery` app. Select clear data.
4. Go to `Settings->Apps->All` and select the `Media Storage` app. Select clear data.
5. Reboot your device.

This will completely erase **all** data from the gallery app, and if you open it before you reboot you should notice that you have no thumbnails. They will be generated on boot.
> 1 votes

---
Tags: gallery, motoblur, motorola-droid-3, thumbnails
---


# Question
Title: Unable to update Galaxy S3 Android after flashing CWM
I just unboxed a Samsung Galaxy S3 and immediately, before first boot, rooted it installing CWM Recovery and SuperSU. I found it to be not the best idea, becuase I forgot to launch the Samsung update to 4.1.

In fact, stock upgrade does reboot the phone into recovery but then CWM says the signature is invalid, etc. I should have done all this in inverse order (first stock upgrade, then root).

The question is: how can I upgrade this Galaxy to stock JB?

Idea: restoring the original recovery... but how?

# Answer
> 0 votes
This thread gives a nice step by step tutorial on how to re-flash to stock ICS, which will relash the stock recovery.

In a nutshell:

> How to restore Galaxy S3 to Android 4.0.4 ICS XXLAF2 stock firmware:
>
> 1. Download the ICS stock firmware file from here or here.
> 2. After the ROM file is downloaded successfully, you should extract its contents and you will get a single file with the ‘.tar.md5′ extension. Save it on your computer’s desktop.
> 3. Download Odin3 3.o4 for Galaxy S3 I9300 from here.
> 4. Extract Odin.zip contents into a single folder and save it on your PC desktop.
> 5. Now, power OFF your Galaxy S3 phone and after this you will need to boot into download mode.
> 6. Boot into download mode by pressing ‘volume down’ + ‘home’ + ‘Power’ and release these buttons only after the display powers ON. Press Volume Up button to confirm that you want to load download mode.
> 7. Now, go to your PC and launch the ‘Odin’ executable file. The one you’ve extracted at step 4.
> 8. Next, connect your SGS3 I9300 to your computer and ODIN should display a message box saying ‘added!!’. If you don’t see this message then it means that the USB drivers aren’t installed on your PC and you should use the download links in the preparation guide, the ones listed above this tutorial guide. If Odin did find the Samsung USB Driver you’re free to move to the next step.
> 9. In Odin click the button that is called ‘PDA’.
> 10. Find the file you’ve extracted at step 2. It should have the ‘.tar.md5′ extension. Select it and it will be loaded into Odin. NOTE: Don’t change any of the Odin’s default settings and make sure that the ‘re-partition’ option isn’t selected.
> 11. Press the START button in ODIN and the program will now begin to install the stock firmware files. When the installation is complete you will see a ‘PASS’ alert displayed by Odin and this means that everything went according to plan. Your phone will also restart and after the Samsung Logo appears you are free to unplug the device from your computer. NOTE: If Odin gets stuck you are required to disconnect the phone from your PC and remove its battery and then re-insert it and, now repeat all the entire tutorial once again as something went wrong and the firmware wasn’t flashed.
> 12. That should do it, now your phone has been restored to factory stock firmware. Make sure to use the comments section in case you other questions.

---
Tags: rooting, updates, samsung-galaxy-s-3, 4.1-jelly-bean, recovery-mode
---


# Question
Title: How do I transfer from HTC SENSE to the computer?
I want to transfer contacts, photos and videos from my HTC SENSE to my computer. Does anyone know how to do this? Thanks

# Answer
One way would be to use WebSharing Lite available at Google Play/Android market. Once installed, you can navigate to an address set up by WebSharing via your computer and transfer any files you need.

EDIT: There are many applications to do this as pointed out by @richard-borcsik below. This is just one off the top of my head. If you establish a Google Account for your android device and then log into Gmail for that Google Account, the contacts that you have on the phone/device automatically show up in your Gmail Contacts list. At least, that has been my experience. So you may not really need a separate application to transfer/update contacts.
> 1 votes

# Answer
If your computer is a Windows PC, I recommend using Snap Pea described as "Android's Best Friend". Theres a short video tutorial, as well as explanation on the main front page of its functions. (Having never used it myself i'm not sure if it transfer videos, but as its free you have nothing to lose)

http://www.snappea.com/

If you are using an Apple Mac and your phone is incompatible with HTC Sync Manager, then I recommend using Air Droid which is browser based.

http://www.airdroid.com/
> 1 votes

---
Tags: file-transfer, htc-sense, data-transfer
---


# Question
Title: How can I encrypt my external SD card on Android?
I want to encrypt or password protect on my external sdcdard.

Thus whenever I remove my ex SD card it will not allow to show any of its data without password, even if it is inserted in Computer.

Is it possible or not? If yes then how can I achieve this?

# Answer
> 1 votes
Use BoxCryptor. It has companion applications for Windows, Mac, iPhone & iOS. You can keep your encrypted files in cloud (Dropbox, Google Drive or Microsoft SkyDrive) & access them on any platform.

I use it on regular basis for offline files too (what you are looking for). I keep encrypted container of BoxCryptor in my Dropbox and use FolderSync two-way sync to take all files offline on SD Card. Then, I use BoxCryptor to decrypt those files locally whenever I want.

If you don't want to use cloud, just don't use it. Choose SD card in BoxCryptor app. After inserting the SD card to PC or Mac, one needs BoxCryptor applications of Windows, Mac (Encrypted files are compatible with `EncFS-Linux` too) & password to read those files & folders (file names & folder names are also encrypted).

---
Tags: security, external-sd, encryption
---


# Question
Title: How can I get ADB to properly recognize an Alcatel One Touch 995 device on Windows/Ubuntu?
# The problem

I am trying to deploy a custom application to an Alcatel One Touch 995 running Android 2.3.6. I using Eclipse to compile the source code and push it onto the phone. The Android Device Chooser within Eclipse starts up and lists a device however it does not recognize the maker or model. The device shows up as **question marks** for the serial number (see screenshot).

I am able to install the application to a Samsung device. I tried the procedure on Windows 7 running Eclipse 3.7.2 and on Ubuntu 12.04. running Eclipse 4.2. The Android Development Kit is up-to-date on both systems.

I enabled "Unknown sources" and "USB debugging" in the application settings.

---

# The USB driver attempt

I found a USB driver from Alcatel. The archive contains driver for different Windows versions. When I try to update the "Android USB Device" in the Windows device manager I am informed that the driver version is up-to-date. Here is a screenshot of the "ALCATEL Dream Composite ADB Interface" properties.

It seems as if this attempt was not helpful. I leave it anyways in case someone stumbles into the same situation.

---

# The solutions

**Windows:**

Strange! I installed almost all available API Versions in the Android SDK Manager and now also selected the images for ARM, Intel and MIPS. The result is that the device is recognized on Windows.

I tried hard to **undo** the driver installation on Windows. To me, the most obvious is removing the "Google USB Driver". So I did and restarted Eclipse and the computer but still Windows remembers the maker and model. I further tried to remove other items **without success**. I will leave my experiments in this question for others to **figure out** the key installation module needed on Windows to recognize the device. I guess its "Google USB Driver" and the `.inf` file has been copy to the Windows system folder in the background.

**Ubuntu:**

Regarding Ubuntu, I like to grant the answer Flow (please put your comment as an answer). I configured a device rule as it has been explained by vsm and others. There is also an official guide entitled: Setting up a Device for Development.

---

# Speculations

It could be that when I tried to update the Windows driver with the USB driver from Alcatel that it actually updated my system without telling me. All I received was the message "Driver version is up-to-date". I missed to check the version before I started. If anyone can verify this theory on a "clean" system I happy to hearing from you.

# Answer
> 5 votes
If that happens on Linux the reason is usually that the adb daemon is unable to write to the USB device in `/dev`. For more information see this answer on stackoverflow.

# Answer
> 1 votes
Have you installed the relevant ADB drivers for your device, and is it in USB Debugging mode?

If that fails, then you could always compile it and copy it to your device, and install it using a file manager.

---
Tags: adb, usb-drivers
---


# Question
Title: What does 'extract exception, please check files' mean?
I've been trying to open a `.zip` file on my Android device, and whenever I try it tells me the same thing over and over again:

> Extract exception, please check files

What does this mean?

I went through all my files, and then when I try to extract the `.zip` file again, it gives me an empty folder and says that same message.

Can someone please help? What am I doing wrong?

# Answer
The most likely explanation is that the compressed file is corrupt. Are you trying to uncompress a rar file, or a standard zip file? rar extraction is only supported with certain processors.

The easiest way to tell, is to try and extract *the same* zip file on a computer, and see what it says.
> 2 votes

---
Tags: files, system-error, zip
---


# Question
Title: Gesture typing suggestions in Google Now
With the 4.2 update, I've begun using the default Android keyboard's gesture typing. However, I've noticed that in Google Now, the keyboard behaves as if it were a web browser. That is, it doesn't offer alternate suggestions when typing a word.

For example, my girlfriend's name is Brooke. If I'm attempting to pull up her contact details through Google Now, the keyboard interprets my gesture as "broke." But, if I use the same gesture in any other place (besides a web browser address bar) it offers me "Brooke" as an alternate suggestion. What I mean is this:

vs. this:

Is there a way to fix this? I know that I could work around by typing individual letters or using last names, but it's rather frustrating to have to do so. Thanks.

# Answer
I don't believe that there is any way to do this.

This must have been hard coded into the Google Now app - as that is the only way they will act like this.

The only way would be to contact Google and ask them to change it in their app.
> 0 votes

---
Tags: keyboard, 4.2-jelly-bean, google-now, gesture-typing
---


# Question
Title: Unable to flash CWM recovery to GS3 over stock 4.1 with Heimdall
I want to root and upgrade to 4.1 a just-unboxed Samsung Galaxy S3.

After running the official OTA update with stock Samsung ROM, I tried to follow the tutorial here with openSUSE.

I installed Heimdall from YaST and run the tool with `--param` and `--recovery` options with the files I downloaded for rooting.

The problem is that after reboot I always get stock recovery.

Why doesn't it work with 4.1 OS but with 4.0?

# Answer
While writing the question I found the solution.

## Explanation

In Odin Mode, when the phone accepts a new recovery to be flashed, the original Samsung recovery of 4.1 ROM automatically does everything to avoid being flashed, that's actually re-flashing itself on reboot, just like a good ol' computer virus!

## Solution

Run Heimdall with `--no-reboot` flag, or if you are using Odin for Windows, uncheck the auto reboot checkbox.

When flashed, physically remove battery and disconnect USB power supply. Congratulations, you just have ClockworkMod recovery installed!!
> 1 votes

---
Tags: rooting, samsung-galaxy-s-3, recovery-mode, heimdall
---


# Question
Title: There is an app to send/read SMS from the desktop using the Internet?
> **Possible Duplicate:**
> How do I send SMS from PC through Android Phone or to Android Phone?

There are many apps to send/read SMS from the desktop using a Wi-Fi connection, but my cyanogenmod rom doesn't play nice with my Thomson router so I can't use them.

There is an app that uses the 3G internet connection for that?

Better if it's a webapp.

# Answer
I found what I need!

There is Mightytext, mobitexter and mysms.

For now I use Mightytext, because it looks to be the best. (Also it weighs at less than 500k, that's great for my phone)
> 1 votes

# Answer
I have used DeskSMS over a Wi-Fi tether, and it works fine.

It is supposed to work over 3G, but I have not tested this.
> 1 votes

---
Tags: applications, sms
---


# Question
Title: To encrypt or install security app like Prey?
I have just bought an Android tablet and would like advice as to whether I should encrypt it or install some security app like Prey.

If I encrypt it, then if it is stolen the thief won't be able to access it and so could just reset it to factory settings. In this case my data would be secure but I'd have no hope of getting the tablet back. On the other, if I don't encrypt it then the thief might not factory reset the tablet and so an installed security app like Prey could be used to track the tablet and there would be some hope of getting the tablet back at the risk of perhaps exposing my data.

Are these my only two choices or is there something else that can be done to secure data AND have some hope of retreiving the tablet?

# Answer
The Cerberus app allows you to remotely track and wipe your Android device, as well as a lot more.

If you have root, you can install it as a system app, and it will survive a wipe - which is really handy, it can also be hidden from the app drawer.

I believe that this app will be the most use to you.

Please not that I am not affiliated with Cerberus at all, and am just a customer.
> 1 votes

---
Tags: encryption, prey
---


# Question
Title: Google Play website doesn't show all previously installed apps
When I browse my app history on the Google Play website(of apps that I have tried out in the past but aren't currently installed on my phone), it only lists them in alphabetic order until about 'L'. Nothing beyond that is shown. Does it have a hard limit on how many previous apps it can show?

# Answer
It stops for me as well, so I am lead to believe that it only stores so many in the database.

Looking at it, it seems to be limited to 20 pages (it doesn't even get to 'C' for me).
> 1 votes

---
Tags: google-play-store
---


title: Reusing old Android phone?

text:
# Question
Title: Reusing old Android phone?
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
> 4 votes
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:

* Create a script as a text file at the root of your SD card containing this text:

```
    #!/system/bin/sh
    #!/system/bin/radiooptions

    radiooptions 1

```
* Install Script Manager app.
* Open Script Manager and then select the script you created.
* Check the "Run as root" option and the "Run at boot" checkboxes.
* Click the "Save" button, and then click "Run" to test.

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.

# Answer
> 11 votes
I have an original Motorola Droid that no longer has phone service, but it works great as a WiFi device. It does almost everything except make phone calls and texts. Android MArket works, Amazon App Store works. Google Maps has a feature (look under the Labs menu) to pre-cache 10-mile square areas of a map. Then you can see where you are even when you don't have an Internet connection. I've even had it navigate somewhere with me, as long as it has WiFi coverage at the start, and as long as I don't go off course. Browser works. WiFi Analyzer works. It's still a great device even if it's WiFi only.

# Answer
> 2 votes
Yeah, just put it in Airplane mode. Hold the Power button for a second and choose it from the pop-up menu.

# Answer
> 0 votes
If the SIM card's been taken out, then you should be able to use it as a PDA, an MP3/video player, a pocket gaming device or even a mini web browsing tablet over Wifi without any problems. This is exactly the same as the people who reuse their old iPhones as iPod Touches for family members.

# Answer
> 0 votes
If the phone is part of a carrier contract and the contract is still active, you might still be liable to pay the bill until the contract ends or you might have to pay early termination fee.

If you truly owned the device (i.e. the contract has ended or you purchased it without contract), then just contact your carrier and tell them that you're disabling the service (or transferring it to your new phone). Android should still work as a Wifi-only device.

Obviously since the phone will no longer has an always-on internet connection, so you might need to make adjustments to how you use the phone as you find certain applications becomes useless without an always-on internet connection. For example, live train/bus schedule application becomes useless and you would find an alternative that stores their data offline, Google Map might become less attractive, and apps that polls data every 5 minutes becomes just a battery waster since it can't get you the latest data anyway.

# Answer
> 0 votes
With some certain programming and a google voice number, you instantly have a wifi sipphone. Basically free calls anywhere as long as you don't need 911 service on it. All you would need is sipdroid a google voice number and the google voice program on the device. Search around the net and you will find how.

# Answer
> 0 votes
You can use it as anti-theft device for your bike or anti-burglary system for your home. http://oplasoft.wordpress.com/products-3/

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Tags: wi-fi
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# Question
Title: Best designed android ROM for LG Optimus 2X P990
> **Possible Duplicate:**
> Where can I find stock or custom ROMs for my Android device?

I am really busy trying to find a ROM that fits my personality for my LG Optimus 2X P990. I have used CM7. CM9, CM10 and MIUI. I really like MIUI v4 and above, but i haven't found any MIUI v4 ROM that is stable enough for daily basis. I really like ROMS that has kind of flat buttons as seen in the metro UI and ics and above roms. I like it professional with not like big really graphic intense UI's. I have searched a lot, and i have looked into the Prada rom for the LG Optimus 2X, but i couldn't find a download link. Do anyone of you have a ROM that is fast, professional and stable enough for daily basis? Thanks

# Answer
Try the original rom... I came back to the original rom after a long spell on all kinds of developer mods, and was pleasantly surprised. I am on V20g and it is flying...I have yet to encounter any problems. MIUI and CM are all clever, but they all come with errors one way or another. If you need a rooted one with CWM then you could try this: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=34379632&postcount=267
> 0 votes

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Tags: 4.0-ice-cream-sandwich, 2.3-gingerbread, 4.1-jelly-bean, lg-optimus-2x
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