title: Verizon Droid X Stopped Sending SMS

text:
# Question
Title: Verizon Droid X Stopped Sending SMS
I have a Droid X running Gingerbread on Verizon and it is completely unable to send SMS messages. It receives them fine but every message I try to send is rejected. The details of the message reveal the following:

> Cause Code: Addr.Vcnt., 0

Rebooting the phone seems to fix the problem, but only for a day or so.

I also seem to have completely lost 3G connectivity on the phone as well when it is in this state.

\*228 on the phone fails until I can reboot it, but once reprogrammed there seems to be no lasting positive effect.

Has anyone seen this before? Does anyone have a resolution?

**EDIT:** I've just discovered all outbound calls immediately fail as well with no details as to the failure.

# Answer
> 2 votes
This was a semi-known issue on 4.5.585 Gingerbread (Verizon's first official Gingerbread update). Rebooting the phone when it happens was the only remedy.

The problem (I too was affected) appears to be fixed in the latest Verizon update. (4.5.602)

# Answer
> 2 votes
I called VZW, and they actually told me it was a bad *Google* update pushed to my phone prematurely, and that "Google would be fixing it in a couple weeks." Amazing that Verizon won't even take responsibilities for their OTA updates, but blame it on Google.

# Answer
> 1 votes
I hate to say it but if you have tried all those other things I would say the next thing to try would be a factory reset...

# Answer
> 1 votes
I had this issue quite a bit after I first loaded GB with an OTA update. I did a factory reset a few weeks ago and didn't have it happen again until today. I also contacted VZW and the first thing they wanted to blame it one was an app that I must've loaded that was behaving badly. It's all over Moto's support forum and all over VZWs. Hopefully they'll have an incremental update that will fix the issue.

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Tags: sms, 2.3-gingerbread, motorola-droid-x, verizon
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title: How to turn off media search?

text:
# Question
Title: How to turn off media search?
I have a Samsung GT i5800 and every time I turn it on, or just put a new SD card in it it says "Media search is running" (@the notifications) - How can I turn this feature OFF? Is it needed? What does it do? Android 2.1update1

# Answer
> 1 votes
The media scanner "indexes" the music, videos, images, etc on the sdcard so other apps don't have to scan the entire sdcard to know about them. another feature that uses this is the ringtones/notifications, if it does not scan, you will only be able to select the ringtones/notifications that are located on the device, not ones that are on the sdcard.

you can prevent media scanner from indexing a specific folder by creating a file called ".nomedia" in the folder you want ignored. I do not believe that this file is recursive though, so if there are sub-folders, and you dont want them scanned, you would have to create it there too.

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Tags: media-search
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# Question
Title: Is Adobe Air available on sony ericson xperia mini pro
I'm planning to buy a Sony Xperia Mini Pro, with the physical keyboard, not the x10 mini, but the latest one.

The sony xperia mini pro is not listed on Adobe's flash compatible devices list

I plan to use it for development and I also plan to develop apps in Adobe AIR, can somebody with a Sony Xperia Mini Pro confirm they are able to download and install Adobe AIR from the market, and run AIR and flash apps on this phone?

Thanks

# Answer
The official Sony page says it has Flash preinstalled (look on the "In business" tab, "Fast and full Internet" section).

The Xperia Mini Pro meets the specs for Adobe Air, so I see no reason to believe you couldn't download Air as well.
> 2 votes

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Tags: adobe-air, sony-xperia-mini-pro
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# Question
Title: How to un-install HTC's gingerbread ROM for Desire
I installed HTC's official (developer-only) Gingerbread ROM on my HTC Desire, but I'm not too happy with it, since it keeps running out of internal memory. So I've been searching for a way to revert back to the original FroYo firmware, but I couldn't find it.

Also, I tried to root my phone so I could install CyanogenMod, but that didn't work: apparently, my firmware is too new.

So, what's the best way to revert back to official FroYo? Or, failing that, to root my phone?

**UPDATE** with some context: I never rooted, or tried to root, my phone before this failed attempt, and I only did it because I couldn't find an official means to go back to FroYo. I tried both Revolutionary.io and Unrevoked. The latter complained that my firmware is too new; the former just got stuck while "waiting for fastboot".

**UPDATE 2** I just tried to install a RUU, but it complains about the boot loader being too new. So no help there, either.

# Answer
I was able to root my phone using Revolutionary.io after all, following the steps described here. However, instead of running `./revolutionary` as described on the page, I had to use `sudo ./revolutionary` to make things work.
> 1 votes

# Answer
The best known option for the HTC Desire is to use unrEVOked - http://unrevoked.com/recovery

unrEVOked has the added benefit of flashing in a version of Clockwork Recovery. That way you can just boot into recovery, do data wipes, and flash Cyanogenmod.

Note that there is a chance that Gingerbread could prevent unrEVOked from performing its usual processes. In addition, your previous rooting adventures could have placed an alternate recovery into the phone as well. I believe you can press Power+Vol-Up when starting the phone to invoke recovery mode. If Clockwork is present, you may proceed to flash away.
> 1 votes

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Tags: 2.2-froyo, htc-desire, 2.3-gingerbread
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title: Verizon Droid X - phone won't vibrate

text:
# Question
Title: Verizon Droid X - phone won't vibrate
I've got a Droid X that's been operating fine since a did a hard reset on it a couple weeks ago. Recently however the vibration function has completely ceased. I can't seem to find a setting to set the "strength" of the feedback- is there such a setting? The phone is running Gingerbread (2.3.3) build 4.5.602.

# Answer
On my Galaxy S, the vibration settings are under `Settings -> Sound`. The **Vibrate** option has 4 choices (Always, Never, Only in silent mode, and Only when not in silent mode) and when the **Haptic feedback** option is checked, **Vibration intensity** can be set to 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5 but I don't think that affects regular vibrations.
> 2 votes

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Tags: 2.3-gingerbread, motorola-droid-x, vibration
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# Question
Title: Are there any "compact" themes for Android?
So that I can only see the desktop icons, not the ex.: messaging, applications, call icon in the bottom..Are there any compat'er views for the Android Desktop?

Android 2.1update1 Samsung GT i5800

# Answer
One option:

* Install ADW Launcher as your home application and set it as default
* From your home screen press `Menu Button->More->ADWSettings` to open ADW's settings
* Select `UI Settings->Main Dock Style->None` to hide the bottom bar
* Optionally, you can also select `Screen Preferences->Hide StatusBar` to hide the status bar at the top, which effectively makes your home take up the entire screen.
> 3 votes

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Tags: themes
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# Question
Title: How can I upload a fresh photo to Facebook on Android?
How can I upload a fresh photo to Facebook on Android? One take with the camera of the phone. I have Android 2.1update1.

# Answer
> 1 votes
If you want to use your browser to upload the image, try switching out of mobile view from the page footer. Then you should be able to upload it the same way as on a desktop browser. You could also use the apps (either official or third-party) for more upload options.

# Answer
> 0 votes
Using the official Facebook app you can upload a picture, either from the gallery, or live straight from the camera, it then allows you to pick an album to add the picture too.

Open the facebook app and click the camera icon in the top-left corner. you're now given a choice to either go to the camera and take a picture, or go to your gallery and select a picture to upload.

While the picture is uploading, there is a text box that allows you to enter a caption for the picture, and there is an icon in the top right corner that will show you a list of all of your icons and pick which one to upload the picture to.

Once your picture has uploaded, you can go into the Photos section of the Facebook app, go into the album you picked, open the picture, and you should now be able to read/leave comments, or change the caption.

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Tags: facebook, photos
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# Question
Title: There is an Android equivalent to Microsoft's CTRL+Z?
> **Possible Duplicate:**
> Is there any undo command when editing any field

Today I just make a mistake when typing a text on a box over Android's browser and then I realise that I was missing the "back to past" CTRL+Z Microsoft Windows feature, which allows you to step back anything you made on Windows. So, there is such thing on Android OS?

# Answer
The back button serves as Undo or Cancel (or Back) in many apps, but won't help with a typo in a text box, it's more likely to lose everything you've typed in there than undo the last bit of typing.

I don't believe that there's any standard, central Undo function in Android at the moment. As very few devices have a hardware keyboard, and many devices are starting to drop even the four hard buttons, I'm not sure how Undo could easily be invoked/shown to the user. Ctrl/Alt etc key combos obviously aren't practical on a soft keyboard on a 4 inch touchscreen, and I'm not sure how else it would be done except with a dedicated undo button on the phone or the soft-keyboard.
> 4 votes

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Tags: editing
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# Question
Title: How can I get the Android to use wallpapers sized to my screen resolution?
When I only have one "desktop" on my Android phone and I select one of my photos for the wallpaper, it asks me to crop the image. The cropping tool only allows an aspect ratio that has nothing to do with the real aspect ration of my phones screen resolution. Why?

I have a Samsung GT i5800 running Android 2.1update1.

# Answer
> 2 votes
Pretty sure this was present in Eclair (but it's possible I'm mis-remembering and this was a new feature in Froyo) but when you select a picture in the gallery, at the cropping stage it should give you a choice of screen resolution/aspect ratios to use. One of them should be the resolution of your screen, the other one is for the side-ways scrolling multi-screen wallpaper.

I've ringed round the two selection options in the screenshot below, tap the wide option on the left for the multi-screen wallpaper and the one on the right to crop to a single screen. You should then be able to drag the crop box out to be the full picture (if you've got the aspect ratio right on your image).

Edit: This appears to be a Samsung TouchWiz feature, rather than a stock Android feature, it should still be present on OP's Samsung GT i5800.

# Answer
> 4 votes
If I remember correctly, the aspect ratio is always for a 5 desktop scroll. If you have enabled only one desktop, the you'll see just the middle part of the wallpaper.

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Tags: wallpaper, screen-resolution
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# Question
Title: How can I root my Pandigital Novel 7" Tablet?
I have a Pandigital 7" that is updated as far as the firmware updates go. However, I do not have access the Android Market and I do not have root access.

I am trying to install a SQL reader that I found on SlideMe.org and it says to update my ROM, but I have the most up-to-date firmware from the Pandigital Website.

I also found a link for a firmware update Android Open Source Kit here: http://www.pandigital.net/?PageID=335

Does anybody know if this open source kit will give me root access?

# Answer
> 3 votes
Slatedroid and its Wiki is IMO the best resource for the Pandigital Novel. The Novel does not do any signing checks of its firmware and it's running Android 2.0 so it's rather easy to root.

EDIT: I have learned that the bootloader is encrypted; my previous sentence about "not checking signatures" may be incorrect. (It may only be that the bootloader cannot be replaced.)

Latest community-modified firmware as of this writing

Flashable a-la-carte enhancements (including root)

I notice you posted over there too, so this is really for anyone else that has a PDN 7" and wants this information.

As of note, the White and Black versions are different; the White is regarded as better.

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Tags: rooting, pandigital-novel
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# Question
Title: How to use Google Talk voice and video calling on an Android?
How do you do Google talk voice and video calling from android.

The google talk application only appears to allow text based chatting. But Google talk on the desktop supports both voice calling and video chat.

# Answer
There is no official Google talk voice/video chat for Android phones. You can use Google Talk in Android 2.3.4+ to make video chats now. Additionally, any calls made via Google Voice are done via cell tower (using your minutes), not data.
> 6 votes

# Answer
Sorry to bump an old question, but you can now make both audio and video calls from android with google talk if you have 2.3.4 (gingerbread) or higher.
> 4 votes

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Tags: video, google-talk, video-conference
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# Question
Title: Does anyone have experience wireshark running on Samsung Galaxy Tab? (Verizon)
I need to get detailed request data times on Samsung Galaxy Tab on Verison network. Does anyone know what is invovled in getting Shark to run on this device?

# Answer
I run `tcpdump` command on my rooted Galaxy tab and capture the output onto SD card. When I have captured enough, I pull the captured file from phone onto a Linux box using `adb pull` and view the output using Wireshark.
> 1 votes

# Answer
I know how to do it.. With "Linux Installer" software you can install chrooted debian. Then I had to re-build my libpcap and wireshark on GTab because my Overcome kernel did support mmapped packet ring buffer.

I can give detailed instructions if anyone needs...

Oh, I forgot about X11.. You'll have to start X11 vncserver inside chrooted debian on your Android, and then connect to 127.0.0.1 from your Android with your favourite VNC client in order to access "X11".. Let's call this approach X11.99\_pre\_alpha\_8 ))
> -2 votes

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Tags: networking, data-connection
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# Question
Title: How can I get the new Google Talk on a Droid Incredible running 2.3.4?
I have the original Droid Incredible (hardware rev 0003) with the new Market. I just got the Gingerbread OTA but it didn't include the new Google Talk. I know I could manually install the new apk from some random website, but I'd rather get it the "official" way, if such exists.

# Answer
> 0 votes
Without having a custom recovery, such as Clockwork Mod, I don't know of any way you can get the new talk. If you have a custom recovery (which I don't think you do), you can install two zip files through ClockworkMod

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Tags: 2.3-gingerbread, updates, htc-droid-incredible, google-talk
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# Question
Title: How can you set a default calendar to use for new events on a LG Android 2.2.1 phone?
My wife bought a LG-P350 phone running Android 2.2.2.

Is it possible to set the default calender to use when entering new appointments using the agenda application ?

She added the google account of my son to her accounts, and now , every time a new appointment is created, the last agenda of my son's account is selected.

I have found no obvious way to change this default.

I don't know if this is the stock application of Android.

# Answer
As no one is answering this question, I presume it is not possible.

So I looked for another solution and found the Business Calender Free edition. This program not only displays a very nice monthly calender, but , most important, let you choose which colour you want to use for each agenda you want to display.

Very impressive indeed.

Just thought I'd let you know ...
> 1 votes

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Tags: calendar
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# Question
Title: Where can I find files/db/etc of Memo application?
I'm wondering is it possible (sure it is :)) to find all the memo notes manually and where exactly they are stored?

# Answer
> 1 votes
Android does not have a default memo application, but most android app stores their database in `/data/data/PACKAGE_NAME/databases/`.

Some applications write their data to the sdcard instead, so you might want to check that as well.

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Tags: 2.2-froyo, data-recovery, default-applications
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# Question
Title: Unable to connect Galaxy Tab 10.1 to Windows 7 for transferring files
I am unable to connect a Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 to a computer via included cable. Here is what I tried:

* Tried to mount on Windows XP (32), Windows 7 (32), Windows 7(64), and OSX (Snow Leopard).
* Tried installing official drivers from US and CANADA Samsung website.
* Tried installing several versions of Kies.
* Tried installing driver through each version of Kies.
* Tried to see/push to device in DDMS using Eclipse with latest Android SDK.
* Tried to connect using Odin, but I do not get any device information.
* Tried installing drivers from other websites.
* Tried Android File Transer for OS X.

None of these seem to work and after two weeks, I really have no other ideas of what to try. Does anyone have any suggestions?

# Answer
> 1 votes
Called Customer Support and it sounded like a defective unit. They covered it under the 1 yr included warranty. They pay for the shipping label as well, all you need to supply is the box.

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Tags: samsung-kies, samsung-galaxy-tab-10
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# Question
Title: How to access the microSD card on Asus Transformer?
Is it possible to access the microSD card on an Asus Transformer or is there some way to mount this so it is accessible remotely?

When connected via USB to a PC the SD card in the keyboard dock is available but the microSD card in the main tablet is not.

I have read some articles for similar Android devices which mention that the microSD card is mounted but I can't seem to see it.

It would be good to not have to remove the microSD from the main tablet every time I want to copy files to it since ejecting it isn't exactly easy!

*Edit* I've used the rather nice http://code.google.com/p/swiftp/ FTP tool, from this I can't see the microSD card either.

*Edit Part Deux* I've actually returned the Asus Transformer as there were too many problems with it, whether these were Asus problems or Honeycomb problems I couldn't determine. *caveat emptor*

# Answer
> 0 votes
A very simple way (but one that inquires a small cost) is to use something like WiFi File Explorer. The free version allows you to download files from a device on the same network as your PC, the pro version enables uploading and downloading directories.

Wifi File Explorer (click image to enlarge)

As for reading the SD card directly from the computer, i haven't found anything that gives instructions on how to do this. But if i find anything, i'll let you know!

# Answer
> 1 votes
You most likely have to power down and back up for the card to be recognized. Asus says you don't have to do that but if you don't it will not see the card. Typical of how terrible Asus is at supporting this tablet.

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Tags: external-sd, asus-eee-pad-transformer
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# Question
Title: How do you get Market to work when Android is Unable to Access Android Market?
Right now I am using HTC Hero, having firmware Android 2.1 and I have attached VODAFONE, India SIM-CARD in this phone, and also having Wi-fi connectivity.

Whenever I try to "sign-in" to Android-Market using Google Account, it is always showing "Can't Establish a reliable data connection to the server" titled error with the message "This could be a temporary problem or your phone may not be provisioned for data services. If it continues, call Customer Care."

Now what do I have to do to access "Android Market" from my HTC Hero phone?

# Answer
I don't know if this helps, but with SFR, in France, I have nearly the same issue ; i can't use the market OTA (unless I use WiFi).

It is due to limitation from the carrier ; perhaps rooting the phone could help to get rid of that limitation.
> 1 votes

# Answer
The Problem is Vodafone Live can only acess wap sites you can .... To get access to all sites e.g. Android Market, Maps etc you need to activate Vodafone mobile connect... it is little too expensive but it is the only solution....

Thanks
> 1 votes

# Answer
Can you verify you have a data connection? Try opening Internet from the apps screen. Can you navigate to various websites such as Google? If yes then you have a data connection and the likely answer is as eephyne points to in that link.

If you do not have a data connection and cannot browse the Internet then you need to call your carrier's customer support, in this case vodafone, and tell them you do not have a data connection. They will walk you through steps to get a data connection. After that then try the marketplace again.
> 0 votes

# Answer
My solution to this problem (SonyEricsson X10 Mini), after trying all sorts of resets of cache's on applications etc, and the only thing that worked was to **do a Factory Reset on the phone**.

Just remember to use the Backup And Restore feature first to backup your phone then restore it after resetting it.
> 0 votes

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Tags: google-play-store, connection-issues, htc-hero
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# Question
Title: How to select menu item in Android System Recovery? LG Optimus One P500
I'm started my LG Optimus One in System Recovery Mode. Vol Up/Vol Down buttons works - moving up/down through the menu. But i can't start menu item, for example 'reboot system now', or 'apply sdcard:update.zip'.

# Answer
What type of System Recovery do you have? On my P500 everything is fine.

In AmonRA Recovery there are such bindings:

* VolUp/VolDown - moving through menus
* Back - previous menu level, cancel action
* Menu - select menu item, approve action

Also I've noted that from some time back button doesn't work every time as I press it. I think it is hardware problem. Maybe I need to disassemble phone and make it maintenance.
> 2 votes

# Answer
Normally you click the Power button to select items. That's how my Galaxy S works, anyways.

**Edit:** According to this, try using the Send Call button. And End Call for cancel. Or according to this, use the Camera button. I guess it depends on what recovery you have installed. Try selecting something that won't do any harm -- a further menu, for example. Not "factory reset" :P
> 1 votes

# Answer
if you're use the same custom recovery, according to this, on P500 to select item you press Menu button.
> 0 votes

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Tags: lg-optimus-one, recovery-mode
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# Question
Title: Text editor that supports italic text and tab indenting, via keyboard shortcuts
Background: I've just become to proud new owner of an Asus TF101 honeycomb tablet, which has a nice hardware keyboard attached to it.

I do a lot of writing, and cannot find a text editing app which allows me to set text as italic using CTRL + I, or to reliably indent new paragraphs with the tab key\*.

Does anyone here have any recommendations? (I'm pondering writing my own app to do this at the moment, I'm that desperate).

The google docs app doesn't support it (and at any rate doesn't work unless there's an active internet connection). I have tried various free text editing apps, to no avail.
I've asked the developers behind Documents to Go if they support this, but no answer yet. Quickoffice have a feature request for it currently open. Unsure about possible Androffice support, but googling suggest unlikely.

Many thanks in advance,

UPDATE: Documents To Go does not support the CTRL + I shortcut, although italics are supported.

G

PS - I know android tablets are still in their early days, and it might be a case of waiting. The OpenOffice guys have released an ODT *viewer*, hopefully a potential full openoffice android app might do this.

* - the bundled productivity app called Polaris Office supports the tab key for indenting newlines, but not CTRL + I (it requires four screen-touches to turn italics on and off - OK for once in a while, not OK for frequent use)

# Answer
> 0 votes
Documents To Go is a very good app. It provides the formatting requirements you wanted and supports creating and reading Microsoft Office documents as well as Google Docs.

It supports word, excel and powerpoint. It can be found on the Android market https://market.android.com/details?id=com.dataviz.docstogoapp&feature=search\_result

There is a free version but I believe this only let's you view not create or edit documents

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Tags: applications, 3.0-honeycomb, editing, documents
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# Question
Title: what is my personal data storage as opposed to program storage  and how can I reduce it?
I am using Android 2.2, samsung galaxy tablet. When I look at task manager, summary it list 4 types of storage
1. program mine is 1.1 / 1.5 gb full
2. personal data 59.35 / 81.26 megabytes
3. internal sd storage 10 / 12.8 gb
3. external sd storage 13.7 / 14.83 gb

It is 2. personal data that is giving me trouble. For many weeks it was over 70 Mb / 81.26 mb and I was getting warnings about my database storage being nearly full. At times the phone would slow down or crash, mp3s would not play smoothly and SMS couldn't be received. Clearing phone logs and texts and programs I didn't use much etc only helped for a very short while.

When I look at main menu, applications, manage applications, running - it says my calendar storage is 180 kb contacts storage 0.98 MB maps 10.49 mb facebook 5.7 mb yahoo mail 4 mb Are these figures relevant? The big one in this list is media storage 53.0 mb (I have much more than that in my internal SD storage in many small files, but deleting 4000 of them didn't change my personal data storage even after a reboot).

For the last few days my personal data storage has stayed just under 60 mb and is not giving problems, but I'm not sure what is different this week and What does the personal data storage consist of and where is/was the main part of my problem coming from? I also note that when I reboot the phone the media scanner runs and takes forever and slows the phone. This last week I have just noticed that when it is nearly finished my personal data storage jumps to over 70 and I get warnings again. But it goes back to about 59/81 after a few minutes.
Is the amount of personal data storage I am using higher than usual ? Thanks for any help.

# Answer
> 1 votes
Program storage is the amount of space taken up by the actual app, i.e. the APK size, personal data storage is the space taken up by your personal data. I.e. if you have a to-do list program it would likely create a database and all the to-do are added to the database which would take up personal data storage space.

The only way to reduce personal data storage is to clear the app data, but this will delete all your personal data for the app, i.e. settings and based on the example above all of your to-do's.

What I tend to do is go to settings \> applications \> manage applications and then go to the all tab. Then on the menu go to sort by size and clear some of the apps near the top that take the most amount of size that aren't a big deal if I lose the data. Google Maps is usually one that takes a lot of personal data storage space.

Hope this helps

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Tags: 2.2-froyo, samsung-galaxy-tab, internal-storage, storage
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# Question
Title: How to bookmark an automatically redirecting link on the Android?
I am on page\_1. There is a link\_1 to page\_2 that redirects to a random URL page\_x. I cannot go to page\_2 because I will not see its URL in the address bar (it redirects to page\_x)

I want to bookmark link\_1. On a non-mobile browser, I would right click link\_1 and bookmark it.

I am using the pre-installed "Internet" browser that comes with the Android. How do I bookmark link\_1 on Android?

# Answer
I'm not sure I entirely understood the scenario you're describing, but a similar function to right-click-\>bookmark on Android would be to do a long press on the link, then choose Bookmark link. This should bookmark the link as it exists on the page, regardless of where it eventually sends you.
> 1 votes

# Answer
I don't see a "Bookmark Link" option on 3.1 Honeycomb's browser. An alternative would be to:

1. Copy the URL link by long pressing the link you need to bookmark and choose "Copy link URL"
2. Create a new bookmark by clicking on the star on the location bar on any page
3. Replace the label and location in the new bookmark options with the URL you just copied and the title of the page you need to bookmark
> 0 votes

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Tags: browser, bookmarks
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# Question
Title: Extra cables for the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1
I just got this new Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 from USA and I love it. However, I'm not the most organized person, and sometime I lose my cables. The GT has a special cable, which is not using the common connector. Is there a model-specific cable I have to order, or does any cable for similar Samsung Tab device will just work ? I saw third-party companies selling such cables. I don't mind paying some money for this, but this is basically essential for my tablet to recharge and exchange any large quantity of information.

# Answer
> 1 votes
Samsung sells replacement data cable.

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Tags: samsung-galaxy-tab-10
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# Question
Title: How to increase call log archive to longer than 30 days?
Is it possible to increase the time length covered by call history records? I think it's currently fixed to 1 month, older entries will be deleted by the log rotator. Is this hard-coded?

I know there are some utilities exist to backup / archive call logs, however archiving takes the functionality away from the dialer history. So I take archiving methods under another topic, for an even longer or a permanent call history.

Info: Using Samsung Galaxy S, not rooted, I can root if needed.

# Answer
You might be interested on applications to backup call logs:
> 2 votes

# Answer
You can create a phone call log using Google Calendar using the CallTrack app which has the option to send it to your Google Calendar.
> 0 votes

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Tags: calls, phone-app, call-history
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# Question
Title: App <X> isn't working correctly. How can I fix it?
I have an application that isn't working correctly. Either it's not launching, or not responding to commands, or some of the functionality isn't doing what I expect.

What are some simple steps I can do to try to fix the issue on my own?

*(This question and answer are intended to be a canonical and generic source for dealing with apps that aren't working quite right.)*

# Answer
The steps to take with an app that just isn't working properly are:

* **Rotate the device**

if that doesn't help

From `Settings | Applications | Manage applications | <application>` or `Settings | Apps | <application>` (depends on your version of Android)

* **Force stop**

if that doesn't help

* **Clear cache**

if that doesn't help

* **Restart the device** (turn off/turn on the device, or use the "restart" option if you have it)

if that doesn't help

* **Clear data**

and if that still doesn't help, try the nuclear option:

* **uninstall and re-install**
> 11 votes

---
Tags: applications, troubleshooting
---


# Question
Title: How do I convert videos for Samsung GT-i5503?
I'm using Samsung GT-i5503 with android version 2.2. I recently updated my Kies application. And after updating when I tried converting videos using Kies Video COnverter from youtube then saved in my phone, it won't play and error message was displayed(Sorry, this video cannot be played.). However, before updating my kies it works perfectly. How can I convert videos now so that can be played in my phone.

# Answer
I highly recommend Handbrake Video Converter. It can convert all common video formats to mp4,mkv that the samsung video player supports. Choose the iPod Profile which is supported by most phones or you could also create your own profile. I always use Handbrake to convert videos for my Galaxy Ace. The Samsung GT-I5503 shares many similarities with the Galaxy Ace and as Samsung is using the same Layer of Software on top of android (TouchWiz with all the Apps such as Music,Video etc..) the same settings should work for your phone.
> 2 votes

# Answer
MX Video Player supports quite a number of video extensions namely .3gp .avi .divx .f4v .flv .mkv .mp4 .mpeg .mov .vob .wmv .webm .xvid and many more but it will require you to install this codecs for GT-I5503 (you will be auto prompted after you install the player but in case not, use the link).

You will not need to convert videos anymore.
> 1 votes

---
Tags: video, samsung-galaxy-5, samsung-kies
---


title: Connecting to X11 on linux

text:
# Question
Title: Connecting to X11 on linux
I used to connect with SSH to school server on iPad with iSSH, which can work as X11 server, and remotely work through SSH and X11 with iPad as a server.

I thought since it is easy with iPad, it will be easy with Android. But silly me! It is not, as I see.

In this SE question and on other places, people are telling "don't use X11, just use VNC!". However, I can't see how can I remotely start x11vnc on a machine where I am not a root on.

The situation is as follows: I am NOT a root on the server machine. There is linux running on the server machine. I do NOT have physical access to the server. I can connect to the server through SSH.

When I log in to the server and I try to run `x11vnc` like this:

```
x11vnc -forever -shared -rfbauth ~/.vnc/passwd -create

```

I got this scary looking error message after trying to connect with AndroidVNC application (the error is displayed on the server and the x11vnc immediately crashes). If I don't use the `-create` option, `x11vnc` shows this scary message and x11vnc crashes before even waiting for the client.

So. My question is quite easy. What should I do to connect to the linux machine and do something simmilar to what I did with iSSH and X forwarding?

edit: aha, it seems like in our school we use outdated X11vnc version, so that's why it breaks. Awesome. Well, I probably can't persuade the admin to actually update it, so I will need another way of remotely running graphic applications, if nothing like iSSH exists.

# Answer
> 2 votes
I found out that it's possible to just run `vncserver` on the client - and it "just works".

---
Tags: ssh, vnc
---


# Question
Title: Will I lose root access on my Incredible if I install the Gingerbread OTA update?
Basically what the title says. I rooted my phone with unrevoked (I am not sure if I used the "forever" version or not). Will installing the 2.3.4 Gingerbread OTA update from Verizon remove my root? I'm not running any special ROMs if that makes a difference.

# Answer
You almost always lose root when installing an OTA update. I would keep an eye on RootzWiki or DroidForums for someone to confirm that it can be rooted or someone to release a rooted update.
> 8 votes

# Answer
Yes, what Cheuer said.

Installing an OTA while you're running a customized ROM in any way (even just rooted) pretty much always screws up root, sometimes even having a high risk of bricking your phone. NEVER install an OTA update while running customized software. If you ever want to go back to stock software, you need to go find the thread for your phone/ROM that tells you how to do this. Only after reverting back to stock should you attempt an OTA install.

Lastly, note that after an OTA update, you aren't always guaranteed to be able to root your phone again. Sometimes you're stuck unrooted.
> 5 votes

# Answer
I would recommend not installing the update while you have root. The manufacturer of the device could have changed something in the update which stops the root from working either intentionally or unintentionally. If this is the case there is a risk that the phone will be bricked (i.e. stop working). I would recommend seeing if you can unroot the device then perform the update and then put the root back on if you can.
> 1 votes

---
Tags: 2.3-gingerbread, htc-droid-incredible, ota-update, root-access
---


# Question
Title: Why do some Android apps need access to my SD card and fine location?
I understand why apps like Maps need to know my specific location, but is it safe to allow any application to access these things? Are there any clues as to which apps are safe and which aren't?

Also, when I take pictures does it save my longitude and latitude at the time the picture was taken? How can I get to this setting?

# Answer
Depending on your phone / software, there should be an option somehwere in the camera app, something about **geotagging** or **storing location data** (being the same thing). (Just open the camera app, click menu and scroll through the settings)

As far as app permissions are concerned: Does your app really need your location? Most likely not. Maps, navigation, GPS tools, geocaching tools, foursquare and pretty much any app that is *designed to* and *downloaded because of* their handling of location data all need the fine location (well, to be fair, foursquare doesn't as long as you don't use it as a substitute for google places).
Just ask yourself: Does the new version of Angry Birds *really* need to know where I am? Nah. From then on it's just one of two things:
Either you ignore the permissions since your really like that app, or you stick by your principles and don't download the app.

However, to be safe, simply disable GPS when you're not really using it anyway (for navigation or something), once GPS is disabled, apps won't get your fine location, only your estimated location based on last know location or wifi triangulation or whatever is used to get your estimated location via wifi.
> 2 votes

# Answer
> is it safe to allow any application to access these things?

No. There are malicious apps.

> Are there any clues as to which apps are safe and which aren't?

Not really, unless you look at the source code. *Generally*, you can trust popular, well-rated apps to not be malicious. They might be collecting your info for use in ads, though, and so on. If any info is ever sent from an app to a company's servers, they can use and abuse that data. If you don't trust a company (including trusting their internal security protocols and ability to maintain security, etc.) then don't trust their app.

You can use an app like DroidWall to ensure that apps that don't need it cannot access the network; that doesn't guarantee that they won't delete data on your phone and that sort of thing, but it will guarantee that your data stays private (unless DroidWall is malicious or defective, which I don't think it is, or can be worked around).
> 1 votes

# Answer
There is a setting in the camera for geo location. Go into the camera settings and there should be an option in there.

As for apps that use fine location and whether it is safe, its not always safe. It depends on the developer. Some developers choose to enable the fine location for location based advertising even if the actual app doesn't require it. You can't really tell if it is safe or not or whether it is necessary it mainly comes down to common sense and whether or not you trust the developer.

A way to stop the app using location is to disable the phones GPS which an be found in the settings.

Hope this helps
> 1 votes

---
Tags: applications, google-play-store, sd-card, settings, security
---


title: Where are my apps?

text:
# Question
Title: Where are my apps?
My handset was replaced under warranty and I was expecting my apps to sync to the new handset but when I check my apps in market none of them are listed. Do I really have to manually find every single app and widget to download it separately? Previously, such as after a factory reset, the apps would be listed and I could easily install them in one hit. I am using the same Google account on the same type of Sony Ericcson Xperia Arc handset, albeit a new one.

# Answer
> 5 votes
If you go into the web version of the Play Store and then click on the link My Market Account at the top of the screen it shows you all the free and paid apps that you have downloaded since you opened your Android Google Account. From here you can also click the app name and then click the download button which then sends the download to your phone.

I've done this quite a few times when I have had to reinstall my phone

Hope this helps

---
Tags: applications, google-play-store, restore
---


# Question
Title: How can I store Android apps on my SD card?
I just got my 3rd Android phone, the problem is that I must reinstall all my applications every time I get a new phone. Is there any way to store the apps on the SD card so that I can insert the new card and all my apps are there?

I would prefer solutions that don't require rooting the phone.

# Answer
> 6 votes
This is a feature that requires Froyo, so unless you have a Nexus One you'll need to either root your phone (which you've already said you don't want to do) and install a Froyo ROM or wait for your manufacturer/carrier to issue you Froyo in an update.

Either way, moving apps to your SD card is pretty straightforward. Go into Settings, then Manage Applications. There you should have the option to move your apps to your SD card.

# Answer
> 0 votes
I'm stuck with 2.1 (HTC Desire) for the time-being, so the APP2SD provided by Froyo isn't available to me.

I use Appbrain which allows you to keep a synchroised list of the apps installed on your phone in your own (free) online account - and then the Appbrain app on the phone will then automatically allow you to reinstall the apps you had before. I've used it numerous times when re-flashing my ROM.

Downside - it's a fresh install; so you lose any data within the apps. Upside - free, easy and takes the ball-ache out of reinstalling; it also allows you to install apps on the phone directly from the appbrain site.

# Answer
> 0 votes
Hopefully the next time you get a phone it's Froyo or better. I installed Froyo on my Nexus One and it knew what apps I had installed on the previous system and started to downloand and install a fresh copy for the new OS. Only downside was that any data with those apps was lost (like the data from My Tracks) but the NEXT time I upgrade I would imagine even that data will be transfered to the next phone!

# Answer
> 0 votes
Google has now launched (a while back, I believe) a website for the Android Market you'll find on your phone at market.android.com - just log in with your Google account that you have your phone registered to. From there, you can install apps, browse ones that are compatible with your device, and also view all of your purchase history and library of apps, books, and movies found on your device. I'm not sure if it will let you transfer apps back and forth between phones, as I only have one device, but I'm pretty sure that there is likely a way to re-download purchased apps from there after you de-activate your first phone. Hope this helps!

---
Tags: applications, sd-card
---


title: How can I turn off Wi-Fi in Android?

text:
# Question
Title: How can I turn off Wi-Fi in Android?
When my wireless is turned off, and I get near an open wireless network, it automatically connects to it. (Why?)

How can I completely turn off the Wi-Fi so that my phone will not do such insecure things?

# Answer
Another thing that you may want to uncheck is the alerts for open wireless networks and forget all the networks your phone has already connected to, as most Android phones are, by default, set up to re-connect to wireless networks they've already connected to. You can find these options, as Matthew Read said above, under Settings \> Wireless and Network.
> 1 votes

# Answer
If it was turned off, it wouldn't be able to detect the network.

Go to `Settings -> Wireless and network -> Wi-Fi settings` and uncheck Wi-Fi to disable Wi-Fi.
> 6 votes

---
Tags: wi-fi, security
---


title: Easytether and Gingerbread?

text:
# Question
Title: Easytether and Gingerbread?
I use a nifty little app called Easytether to tether my Andorid to my Macbook Pro so I can use my Macbook's browser, and get full websites. Will the Gingerbread upgrade affect the operation of this app?

# Answer
> 3 votes
Nope, not at all. I use easytether pro on my evo4g, which has the gingerbread update, and I use it for my pc, and my ps3, If im over a friends house.

---
Tags: 2.3-gingerbread, tethering
---


# Question
Title: Is there a way to reduce the CPU and memory usage of the stock Browser?
The stock browser in Gingerbread 2.3.3 seems to take a lot of resources in terms of CPU and memory. This causes other apps, including the launcher, to be killed. Are there any steps I can take to reduce the footprint of the browser?

I have a Samsung Galaxy S (AT&T Captivate) running a ROM based on Gingerbread 2.3.3.

# Answer
> 1 votes
The only things I know of are turning off images, Javascript and plugins. You probably don't want to do all that but setting plugins to "On demand" is quite useful -- pages with Flash ads and such won't waste your data or battery in addition to demanding less from your phone, and it's just one click to allow a particular object to run if you want to watch an embedded video or something.

---
Tags: samsung-galaxy-s, 2.3-gingerbread, browser, ram
---


# Question
Title: Has anyone found out why some BIONICs won't charge fully on non-BIONIC wall chargers?
This seems to be a fairly common issue.

Upon attempting to charge my Motorola DROID BIONIC with two non-Motorola microUSB wall chargers, I couldn't get the phone past 40%. With the Moto charger, it charges fully (though apparently pretty slowly).

I know the BIONIC's battery is a 3.8v, and my chargers are all 3.7, but the voltage difference doesn't seem large enough to cause a problem. Is is possible the BIONIC can read the difference in the voltage, even if it is small, and is coded not to fully charge on these non-Moto chargers?

Both HTC chargers I've tried were 200mA. It seems maybe the amperage is too low to charge the phone. I'll try and find a higher power one to test.

# Answer
> 2 votes
Does the phone begin discharging at 40%? Does it indicate that it is still charging, but the charge never exceeds 40%?

I have had charging issues with my Motorol DROID v1. What I've come to understand is that the power delivered by the car adapter is less than the power drawn by the phone when the GPS is on. I would suspect that a couple of factors might be in play here:

* Connectivity problems

If the connection between the charging cable and the phone might be poor, perhaps due to poor connector seating or swelling due to heat. It could be that, after charging for a period of time the phone heats up and expands to the point that the connection is lost. The phone stops charging, cools, and the connection is made again.

* Phone behavior at or above 40% charge

Do you have Tasker or some other automation tool running that has rules about which features / services to run at a particular charge level? If so, you could be seeing that the services cause the phone to draw power at the same rate that it is charged, preventing further charging.

These are really just guesses. If you have one, I would try hooking up a 3rd party charger that is rated for the same power output. If the phone charges completely this way, even though it is not a Moto branded charger, it is a pretty good bet that your HTC chargers just aren't cutting the mustard with your Moto phone.

# Answer
> 3 votes
I doubt this. I've charged my BIONIC using the following:

* Griffin technologies Power Jolt Dual car charger - rated 1A
* Motorola car charger for original Motorola DROID - rated 850 mA
* Motorola Wall charger for original Motorola DROID - rated 850 mA
* Motorola wall charger for BIONIC - rated 850 mA

In addition, I've used 3 different USB charging cables connected to my computer in 2 different ways - to a powered USB 2.0 HUB as well as directly off the motherboard USB rear connector.

* USB gold plated ferro-core cable from monoprice connected to powered USB hub - rated 500 mA
* USB original Motorola cable that came with the BIONIC connected to the powered hub - rated 500 mA
* USB gold plated ferro-core cable from monoprice connected to motherboard USB - rated 500 mA
* USB original Motorola cable that came with the BIONIC connected motherboard USB - rated 500 mA

All have charged the phone perfectly fine.

In addition, I've also charged the spare battery in the battery charger using the Griffin in the truck and both Motorola wall units at home to a full charge.

So far, I've had no issues with charging. Now, any charging performed through the computer USB and / or powered USB hub takes much longer than car / wall charging, but that;s to be expected, with a 35% increase in amperage in those versus regular USB.

I also have the power saving elements of the UI completely disabled, and I live in an area with only 3G access, but I have not disabled 4G on its own.

---
Tags: battery, charging, motorola-droid-bionic
---


# Question
Title: How to unbrick/reflash Nexus S using stock ROM, stock tools
I have a Nexus S that seems to have bricked itself. I have never modded the ROM or phone, and it was totally stock.

Now, it boots right int the white Google logo and stays there forever (I let it sit like this overnight and for many hours during the day, with several hard reboots.). The only way to get the phone to reboot from this state is to pull the battery.

I've downloaded the official Android SDK, and would like to reflash this phone back to a stock Google-provided ROM, using Google-provided tools.

Everything I've found on the internet is for ClockworkMod, Cyanogen, etc. I don't want to mod my phone, I just want to reflash a stock image using the "official" tools, but haven't been able to find instructions on where to get the images and how to do it.

Any other help on how to unbrick this phone would be greatly appreciated.

# Answer
> 4 votes
You should try a factory reset before trying to reflash the phone. AFAIK you need to unlock the bootloader (voiding your warranty) to flash a ROM, even on the Nexus S.

Instructions:

> 1. Turn the power off. If your Nexus S is frozen, pull the battery out and reinsert it
> 2. Hold the Volume Down button
>     1. Press and release the Power button
>     2. You are now presented with a menu that allows for Fastbook, Recovery, Clear Storage, and Simlock
> 3. Select Clear Storage by pressing the Volume Down button
> 4. Press and release the Power button
> 5. Now simply confirm your decision: Volume Up for YES and Volume Down for NO

---
Tags: samsung-nexus-s, stock-android, adb, android-sdk, fastboot
---


# Question
Title: How to make a URL desktop shortcut have the page's favicon?
Theoretically, it should do this automatically. In practice, sometimes it works, sometimes not. All the pages below have proper favicons, but only the O Globo and Amazon favicons made it to the desktop icon. (The former in a better way, as you can see.) I added them the usual way, with Menu -\> Add -\> Shortcut -\> Bookmark.

This is a (rooted) Milestone running Motorola's official 2.2.1 update. These are the pages involved:

Any reason for that erratic behavior?

# Answer
> 5 votes
It has to do with the site having an icon for "apple-touch" defined in the page. for example O Globe has the following:

```
<link rel="apple-touch-icon" href="favicon.png" />

```

And it works. There are differences in how other versions of android handle this. Here is an article explaining some how this works a bit. There could also be a "catch 22" to this though, as I see that the mobile Twitter site does have the `apple-touch-icon-precomposed` but doesn't seem to show the icon. This could be because of something Motorola did differently in their modified version of Android, or it could just be a bug.

If the site does not define the icon, then you can use a tool like Any Cut to change the icon.

---
Tags: browser, home-screen-shortcuts
---


# Question
Title: User can't download my app after Google Market Update
I have a user that is trying to download my app from a Samsung Vibrant running 2.2. But when she gets to the app page in the android market, there is no download button there for her to download! What's weird is once she resets her phone back to factory setting, she was able to download the app, but once the phone is automatically upgraded by Android, my app no longer is available for download again!

Have others encountered similar problem? I have been searching the web for similar issues, but am surprised to not be able to find it. Seems like a pretty major problem!

Some more background - my app does require 2.2 (which she has), permission wise, my app only require the following:

NETWORK COMMUNICATION - FULL INTERNET ACCESS PHONE CALLS - READ PHONE STATE AND IDENTITY Hardware controls - control vibrator Network communication - view network state

Any help is appreciated!

# Answer
> 1 votes
Make sure that your application manifest isn't making any requirements for hardware capabilities that the device doesn't actually have. It's possible that some capability that you were requesting was taken away in the device's firmware update; if you are requesting any capabilities in AndroidManifest.xml via `uses-feature`, make sure that you set `required="false"` for anything that you can use but don't actually require for operation. Common culprits are trackball and certain classes of multitouch support.

# Answer
> 0 votes
Have the user check their Content Rating filtering options. In the Market app they should tap the Menu button, then go to `Settings -> Set Level`, check the "Show all apps" option and tap `OK`.

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


title: Can I hang up using a button?

text:
# Question
Title: Can I hang up using a button?
When I'm on a phone call nothing is more important than the ability to *hang up*. If, for whatever reason, I suddenly find myself in an embarrassing situation or interrupted by something important, I *must* be able to terminate the call.

Currently the only option, that I know of, is a medium sized red button on the touch screen. I think this is deficient for a few reasons:

* the touch screen doesn't always behave as you want (too sensitive, or not sensitive enough) - how often do you listen to chat radio shows and the callers are always "accidently" hitting the dial buttons in the middle of conversation
* the GUI may be running slowly and be unresponsive

It there a way of mapping a generic button (such as a camera button on the HTC Desire) to perform the hang-up action? Perhaps someone could write such a service!

# Answer
> 19 votes
`Settings | Accessibility | Power button ends call`

> During a call, pressing Power ends call instead of turning off screen.

# Answer
> 5 votes
My first thought was the same as Al Everett's answer but if you, for some reason, don't have that setting, you can achieve it through Tasker.

1. New Profile -\> Event -\> Hardware -\> choose the button event you'd like -\> Done
2. `+` button on the left bottom corner to add a task
3. Phone -\> End Call -\> Done

And you are ready to go ;)

---
Tags: htc-sense, calls, htc-desire-z, buttons
---


title: Why is my GPS reception poor?

text:
# Question
Title: Why is my GPS reception poor?
I get very poor GPS reception on my Droid X. When I turn GPS on, the little icon in the overhead bar has a flashing center, which means it hasn't found a satellite. It takes forever to lock on, if at all.

I've found it's better if I move around -- if I walk a 100 yards or so, it will often lock on, but not always.

This seems to have changes recently. It was great, then something changed. I just hard-reset the phone, so it has fresh settings (and I was having the problem previously, so it's nothing I did then reset).

Is something wrong with the phone?

# Answer
> 4 votes
There are a lot of potential variables here, but a hardware failure is certainly one possibility.

After over a year of use, my Nexus One's GPS became terribly slow to lock until I had moved a bit (like you said, maybe 100 yards) or was outside in a relatively clear area. I assumed this was because the GPS chip had, over time, started to develop problems and was likely throwing errors - oftentimes it would have my location totally wrong, and it wouldn't come on/off correctly.

Download a GPS test app, like GPS Status and Toolbox (link here), and see how long it takes to pick up satellites.

Also, are you using a custom ROM? I've found some ROMs "tweak" Android's default GPS settings, and this could potentially cause issues.

Really, there a ton of possibilities here, so it's hard to say. But aging hardware sounds the most likely to me, unless you've recently started using a different custom ROM or kernel, or recently received an update from Motorola.

---
Tags: gps, motorola-droid-x
---


# Question
Title: Several general questions about Sony Ericsson Live View
First does it have an acceleration, compass, or "gyroscope".

Second can it make noises?

Third does it work for HTC Sensation?

Thanks ahead of time.

# Answer
From the Sony Ericsson website, the Live View specs page has no mention of a compass, gyroscope, accelerometer or similar. It doesn't mention anything about speakers either but does mention controlling phone calls and music playback on your phone, which would suggest its not designed to make noise itself but to control the music/sound on a phone (or other compatible device) that it's connected to.

The compatible phones page (other brands) lists a number of HTC phones, but not the Sensation. It does however say:

> Compatible with most other brands on Android 2.0 and up that are equipped with Bluetooth™ 2.1.

According to HTC's Specs page for the Sensation it has Bluetooth v3.0 compatibility, so it is likely that it will work with the Live View.
> 1 votes

---
Tags: htc-sensation, sony-ericsson-live-view
---


title: Home button for wake sleep

text:
# Question
Title: Home button for wake sleep
Using Verizon Samsung Droid Charge how can I wake the phone using the home button instead of just the side power button? (My phone is rooted.)

# Answer
well, in my opinion, you can use Cyanogenmod 7 ROM. I have Cyanogenmod 7.0.3 and I can wake my phone using the home button. You can use the ROM Manager to install clockworkmod and download cyanogenmod 7 specific to your phone:
https://market.android.com/details?id=com.koushikdutta.rommanager&hl=en
Refer to the following guide for installing cyanogenmod 7:
http://www.redmondpie.com/install-cm7-on-galaxy-s2-using-rom-manager-how-to-tutorial/
The guide is for samsung galaxy s2 but its almost similar for all.

Best of luck!
> 1 votes

---
Tags: buttons, standby, samsung-droid-charge
---


# Question
Title: How do I disable the lock-screen when my Samsung Galaxy S II is charging/connected via USB?
When I develop for my Samsung Galaxy S II, the screen locks as usual after the configured time. However, for development it would be practical if the phone would just stay awake while it is connected to my computer.

So, **How do I disable the lock-screen when my Samsung Galaxy S II is charging/connected via USB?**

Question: Display On when plugged in is not a duplicate, as this solution does not work on the Galaxy S II. Unfortunately.

# Answer
Try the app StayAwake, it should work for Galaxy S II too.
> 6 votes

---
Tags: samsung-galaxy-s-2, lock-screens, charging
---


# Question
Title: How can I update my Desire S from Android 2.3.3 to Android 2.3.4?
> **Possible Duplicate:**
> How do I update the OS in my device?

How can I update my Desire S from Android 2.3.3 to Android 2.3.4? Is it possible to update the OS for this model?

# Answer
> 0 votes
madlymad's right, there is no official update. XDA has several 2.3.4 custom ROMs, though. Should you choose to go that route, read a few of the linked ROM threads and then follow the instructions for the one you want.

---
Tags: 2.3-gingerbread, updates, htc-desire-s
---


# Question
Title: How can I improve the noise cancellation on my Nexus One?
Despite the highly praised Nexus One built-in noise cancellation, I need to use speech recognition in an extremely noisy environment with better noise isolation/cancellation. Is there a so called "speech recognition microphone" that would help? I'm not aware of the complexity or performance of the noise isolation algorithm used by the N1, is it as good as I'm going to get?

# Answer
> 5 votes
If you are working in a high noise environment, a traditional mic isn't going to help you. Even with a noise cancelling secondary mic it will be very difficult for the equipment to pick your voice out of the noise and isolate it. You might look into a throat mic instead, which grabs your voice by direct contact with you rather than conduction through the air. These are especially suited for noisy environments.

---
Tags: nexus-one, voice-recognition, microphone
---


# Question
Title: Tethering Droid 2 Global with Wireless Tether after 2.3 Gingerbread update
My D2G updated to 2.3 today, and I'm no longer able to tether.

Prevously, I had no problem using Wireless Tether 2.0.7 with Android 2.2.

Now that I'm on 2.3:

* Wireless Tether 2.0.7 will start up and I'm able to connect my laptop to its WiFi network, but Verizon redirects me to the self-provisioning page; I have no internet access.
* Wireless Tether 3.1-beta6 doesn't work. It says tethering is enabled, but the WiFi network does not show up on any other devices.

How can I fix this?

---

**Edit:** This appears to be a reported issue.

# Answer
I was able to solve this, but it's not pretty. Following the advice in this thread, I applied a hack to the radio that gets Wireless Tether working.

---

**Edit:** I can confirm this exact procedure will also work on a Droid X.

---

1. Download and install RadioComm. It worked fine on Windows 7 x64.
2. Open Radiocom. This was the first time I opened the app, and a splash screen asked for me to "select which MA to use." I couldn't find the MA mentioned in the thread in this list, so I just selected 3G All Others (or something like that).
3. Open the *Main* menu, select *MA*, *Common*, *MDM 6x00 Chipset Base*.
4. Open the *Settings* menu, select *USB*, *PST USB Driver*.
5. Connect phone to computer via USB. Change the phone's USB connection mode to *PC Mode*.
6. The *Radio Detection* icon on the right side of RadioComm will turn green.
7. Scroll to the *P2K 4* tab.
8. In the *STELEM / RDELEM* section, tick the *Dec Entries* radio box.
9. In the text boxes, enter:

```
Element ID: 8040
Record #:   1
Offset:     0
Length:     128

```

Press `RDELEM`. It will turn green and the following data should appear:

```
40767A7733672E636F6D00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

```
10. Change `Element ID` to `8041`.
11. Press `STELEM`. It will turn green.
12. Change `Element ID` to `8091`.
13. Press `STELEM`.
14. Change the phone's USB connection mode to *Charge Only*.
15. Reboot the phone.
16. Install Wifi Tether 3.1-beta6.
17. In Wifi Tether's settings, change the Device Profile to *Motorola DroidX (CDMA)*. (*Droid2* does **not** work.) This is a good time to set your SSID and encryption as well.
18. Done. You can now tether.

In case you need to revert the changes we just made, here's the original values: (these are the same on a D2G and Droid X)

`8041`:

```
4064756E2E767A7733672E636F6D000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

```

`8091`:

```
40767A7733672E636F6D00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

```
> 2 votes

# Answer
We have here two situations colliding. For Wireless-Tether to have worked in the first place, it means that you were rooted.

It is typical behavior of OTA updates to remove root access. You must re-root your device in order to ensure that Wireless-Tether will work properly again.

The root access portion of Wireless-Tether is what helps it work its magic that prevents that Verizon hijack page from coming up.
> 1 votes

# Answer
The Droid X has a similar issue with this, make sure that you set the device profile to Droid 2 in wifi tether. This is a setting that was added in the Wifi tether 3.0+ versions.
> 0 votes

---
Tags: 2.3-gingerbread, motorola-droid-2, verizon, wifi-tethering
---


# Question
Title: Unable to use apps that access the Internet on wifi
I have recently had a pretty weird problem with my new LG Shine Plus which I hope you guys could help, here is what I did:

When I first sign up for the phone, I purchased a one month data plan just to try things out, everything was great and I was able to use the data plan and wifi when I am at home and downloaded quite a few applications and they all worked perfectly.

I cancelled a data plan since it cost quite a bit, however I am a student and there are both wireless networks on campus and in my residence room. As a result, I have turned off the Mobile Data Networks.

After that, all the applications, for some reason, stopped working. When I opened up the Advanced Task Killer Free, for example, it will show You must have INTERNET and ACCESS\_NETWORK\_STATE permissions in AndroidManifest.xml and when I tried to hit KILL selected apps, it will crash. On Bloomberg, it says android.Manifest.permissions.INTERNET permission not set in AndroidManifest.xml file before crashed, and on a whole bunch of other apps, they just crash as soon as I open it up.

However, the most interesting bit is, I was still able to access the Internet on my mobile browser (tried several website that I know I did not go before just to make sure those are not cached pages) on wifi and I can access Android market on wifi as well.

So I turned Mobile Data Networks back on in hope that would resolve the problem, but the same thing happened even with the Mobile Data Networks turned on and now I am unable to use any apps I installed I have verified that I have the apn set up properly in there.

By the way, I have link2sd installed, but it was installed while I was using the data plan, and it worked fine then, I have also had AdBlock installed, which I have already uninstalled it and even apps without any add (dropbox) is crashing at the moment as well.

# Answer
At this point, I would suggest doing a factory reset. Your problem would likely require more troubleshooting than it's worth to fix. Make a backup if possible. Google *should* remember the free apps you've downloaded and re-install them.
> 1 votes

---
Tags: wi-fi, 2.1-eclair, lg-vs740
---


# Question
Title: What is the difference between Fastboot and HBoot mode?
and why can't I see an option to boot into recovery mode on my HTC Hero (Orange UK)? Is it already in recovery mode when I can see the Fastboot/HBoot menu?

Initial menu after holding vol-down when booting:

Initial menu after holding vol-down when booting (click image to enlarge)

If I press back, I get the following screen:

(Click image to enlarge)

# Answer
> 4 votes
"HBoot" mode is something of a misnomer, really, that I usually see when people mean "reboot into your HBoot menu". I think the reason these got conflated to each other is because `Fastboot` mode activates by default when you land on HBoot on most (possibly all) HTC phones. They do exist separately, though, as devices without an HBoot menu can still have a fastboot mode. This is definitely a little confusing, though, since what's really happening is that you're getting rebooted into HBoot which is then *immediately* loading Fastboot. You should be able to get to the bootloader's main screen by selecting `Bootloader` from the Fastboot screen.

Essentially, though, HBoot is just a bootloader, which gives you the ability to chain-boot into several other partitions or modes (including fasboot). I say it's not really a "mode" because it doesn't really allow for any interaction, it just loads and waits for you to choose something else from the menu (with one exception, see below).

HBoot also has the ability to install a properly named and signed zip file if placed on the root of your SD card, which it will attempt to do right after the bootloader has fully loaded. This seems to have been designed as a sort of last-ditch reflash method, and used to be a part of several manual rooting methods on HTC phones (which is now largely unnecessary). The exact naming convention depends on your device, but they're usually of the form `PC[some number]IMG.zip`.

Fastboot mode is the state your device goes into so that it can accept fastboot commands, which largely deal with manually flashing partitions on the device. Notably, you can flash unsigned partition images when in fastboot. It's handy for recovery purposes, but also useful for development and generally hacking around (depending on what you're doing). You can read a bit about the details of fastboot here.

Your "recovery mode" (or recovery partition) is different from HBoot. It is a separate partition on your device which contains a very basic kernel and GUI that can be used to repair and/or restore your system, with the features varying depending on the exact recovery you are using. Typically a manufacturer will ship their devices with their own "stock" recovery, but there are many custom ones available which are more robust. There is a related Android Enthusiasts question which also discusses this.

---
Tags: recovery-mode, htc-hero
---


title: What is an RUU?

text:
# Question
Title: What is an RUU?
I read that it stands for "ROM Update Utility".

What does it do?

How is it run?

What partitions does it affect?

How does it unroot a phone?

Can I accidentally use the wrong RUU on my phone?

# Answer
> 13 votes
An RUU is a Windows executable file (HTC currently does not support Mac or Linux) that installs a ROM to your device. It will overwrite the following partitions:

* System (the `/system` mountpoint)
* Boot (the `/boot` mountpoint)
* Recovery
* User data (the `/data` mountpoint, this means you lose **all** of your personal data)
* It may update your radio image (if newer)

You use an RUU by simply connecting your phone and running the executable file. I belive HTC Sync may also be required, but I haven't done this in a while.

The reason this unroots your device is sort of twofold, though it depends on your exact configuration. First, the `su` binary and Superuser app are typically installed to your System partition when you root. Since this is overwritten with a stock version of the partition, those two things will not be present. This prevents you from making calls to the `su` binary which is needed to grant root permissions to an app.

Secondly, the Boot partition has a flag which defines whether or not `adbd` (that is, the ADB daemon) runs with root permission, called `ro.secure`. The default value for this on a stock boot image is 1, which means that it is *not* running as root (so 1 represents "yes, it's secure"). Many custom ROMs set this to 0 so that you can immediately get a root prompt when you use `adb shell`, and also so that you can execute privileged commands without the need for a shell (i.e. `adb pull`).

Per your last question, I don't *think* you can run an improper RUU, but I've never tried. It does go through a verification process before the upload, at which point I assume that it checks to ensure that you have the proper device and whatnot. My guess would be that the verification would fail if you tried to use one on a device it was not designed for.

If you want more information, I managed to dig up a PDF from HTC's site which outlines how to use an RUU on the HTC Magic (Rogers wireless version). The steps are generally the same for any Android device, though.

Also of note, there is an open-source program which is designed to provide the same functionality while being cross platform. It is simply called HTCFlasher, and I have not used it myself. You can find it on Google code if it's of interest to you.

---
Tags: unrooting
---


# Question
Title: Why does my HTC Desire play a tune (like notification) without a visual message?
A friend of mine has a HTC Desire and every so often it play a little tune (like a message notification) even though there are no messages or calls. What's causing this?

# Answer
> 1 votes
It might be caused by a notification set for a calendar event (or a task, if you have a task organiser that integrates with the calendar). I found that if I dismissed a calendar notification, it would continue to activate but it wouldn't appear in the notification bar! I had to go through my calendar, look for events with notifications, and disable any outstanding ones that I found.

---
Tags: htc-desire, notifications
---


# Question
Title: Phone connected to charger full time - never sleepmode - any danger?
Yeah, might sound strange, but I managed do install Debian Linux on my Android phone. Because the phone needs very little power, it is, for me, the perfect server.

I plan to disable sleepmode and to leave the charger connected to the phone at all times.

Is there any danger in overheating, fire and so on?

# Answer
> 1 votes
Depending on the phone, my biggest worry would be screen burn. I have a Samsung Galaxy S Vibrant and I have screen burn at the top of my screen from the time and the notification bar. A screen like a Super AMOLED is actually a lot easier to get screen burn then I thought it would be. It is actually pretty annoying now, I have to limit the background images I use, otherwise the burn is really noticeable.

---
Tags: charging, overheating
---


# Question
Title: How can I override the Device Administrator security policy so that I can disable the lock screen?
On Android 2.2 Froyo, I added my Corporate Exchange Email account to the phone, however, the security policy set by the "Device Administrator" requires that I enter a 4-digit PIN at the lock screen and a maximum 10 seconds idle.

How can I hack my Android, through root access or otherwise, such that I do not need to follow this security policy. I am very annoyed at having to enter the PIN every time I want to use the phone, because I open/close it so often through out the day?

# Answer
> 7 votes
If you buy the TouchDown app (30 day free trial available), the lock code will not be on the phone, but on the app. That's ever so much better.

# Answer
> 3 votes
There is an altered version of the 2.2 email app here that disables the security features. You need root to replace the app with this.

Originally posted as a comment by hagope

# Answer
> 0 votes
If you are on a Galaxy S, just dial `*#*#7594#*#*` and check the box. Your phone won't ask you for the password each time you turn the screen on (although you lose the lockscreen).

---
Tags: security, lock-screens, exchange, device-administrator
---


# Question
Title: Why is Clockworkmod taking up so much memory?
Question: I was checking the memory storage and found that under miscellaneous, Clockworkmod took up 4.5GB of memory. Is that normal? I’m operating on a HC 3.1 3G 10.1 Tab. with 16GB only. Now I have 4GB left. The rest of the other files are less than 50MB. Please advise.

# Answer
> 7 votes
I would check your `/sdcard/clockworkmod/backup` folder and remove any old backups you have in there.

You can also remove them from within Rom Manager under `Manage and Restore Backups`. Then click on the older backups and select `Delete` from the menu.

---
Tags: internal-storage, clockworkmod-recovery
---


# Question
Title: want Calendar to stay open in its own window - HTC Evo
Working fine with Exchange sync of agenda view of Outlook Calendar. How do I keep the Calendar **open in its own slide window** without having to push the "Calendar" icon?

# Answer
You need to use the calendar widget and put it on the home screen. The widget doesn't really have any options, if what it supplies you isn't enough information, you will need to get a 3rd party app that has more info.

I use Business Calendar Pro. It shows an agenda widget and can display events from multiple calendars. There is a free version, but it is well worth the ~$5.00.
> 2 votes

---
Tags: calendar
---


# Question
Title: Dialog boxes only work when tablet is tipped! DDouble letterss?
One of my Samsung Galaxy Tabs v10.1 will not accept certain dialog input unless the tablet is some other direction than right-side up (left portrait, right portrait or upside down all work fine). For example hold the power button to turn it off, it asks "are you sure you want to shutdown?" It ignores all touches including "Ok" or "Cancel".

Also when you use the keyboard it often inserts two letters on one key push.

Thinking that this HAS to be a software issue I rooted and installed clockwork Mod ROM manager and restored an image from another working tablet. No change. This is the weirdest issue to date with my tablet adventures. Any idea what is going on?

UPDATE: Samsung repair said the screen was bad. They didn't elaborate but at least I have a working tablet now!

# Answer
Samsung replaced the screen (it was under warranty)
> 2 votes

# Answer
I'd suggest a full wipe, maybe it's a glitch. Otherwise it sounds like a hardware problem. By the way, I have understood that it's a bad idea to use a Nandroid backup from another device since some device-specific information could be moved as well.
> 2 votes

---
Tags: keyboard, 3.1-honeycomb, samsung-galaxy-tab-10
---


# Question
Title: How can I abort a voice mis-dialed call?
When I use voice dialing, the wrong contact is selected often enough that I'd like a chance to abort the call before it starts. If I tap the call button on my headset, it seems to transfer the call back to the phone; by the time I reach for the phone, and hang up, I've left a missed call on a random person's phone. What is the proper way to abort a call *from the headset* when the dialer picks the wrong contact? Is there some way to get a bit more delay before the call connects?

Moto Droid (stock), 2.2, Moto H720 headset.

# Answer
> 0 votes
I ended up compromising on this by setting Google Voice to "Ask on every call", which gave me a chance to cancel the call. The downside is having to touch "make call without Google Voice" to put the call through.

# Answer
> 1 votes
On my Spica (Samdroid Froyo Mod), there are two stock voice caller, the Android's stock "Voice Dialer" (`com.android.voicedialer`):

On the stock Android Voice Dialer, when you start the Voice Dialer app and then speak "Call ", this shows up:

the stock Voice Dialer can be cancelled by pressing the highlighted "Cancel" button. The Voice Dialer *does not automatically call* the contact, it waits for you to tap on the contact's name to start the call.

The other voice caller is using Google-branded "Voice Search" (`com.google.android.voicesearch`):

when you tap on the Voice Search button on the Google Search Widget and then speak "Call " this screen shows up:

the Google-branded Voice Search *automatically dial after a short delay* the spoken contact, and you can tap "Cancel" before the spinning highlighting is out to cancel the call without leaving missed calls.

I'm not sure which voice dialer you're using, can you clarify?

---
Tags: 2.2-froyo, motorola-droid, voice-command
---


title: Save an image in Android browser

text:
# Question
Title: Save an image in Android browser
When I save an image from a WebPage in android browser, can you please tell me where does that go? Which directory does that file go? I tried mounting the phone to my computer, but I can't find that file.

Please help.

Thank you.

# Answer
> 4 votes
Use a file manager such as ASTRO File Manager. I'll use my file manager quick to check though.

EDIT: So on my Galaxy S2 the directory is /sdcard/download. /sdcard is the root directory on my phone and not actually an sd card. It's the 2GB of app storage on my phone

---
Tags: browser
---


title: Mystery duplicated SIM contacts

text:
# Question
Title: Mystery duplicated SIM contacts
I recently noticed that while searching for contacts I see the same SIM contacts repeated more than 20 times. In the settings for contacts it says I have 5795 contacts on the SIM card but it's almost all the same contacts repeated over and over again. If I delete one of those contacts every other with the same name is also removed.

I have a HTC Desire that runs Android 2.2. I synchronize contacts with Exchange, Google and Facebook but I don't see how that would affect the contacts on the SIM.

Any thoughts on why this happens and how I can fix it?

# Answer
> 1 votes
I never actually found the underlying problem but by deleting all contacts on the SIM I at least didn't have to scroll through hundreds of duplicates anymore.

# Answer
> 2 votes
Are the contacts also duplicated in your gmail address book?

If it is just on your SIM, it might be worth going into your carrier and getting a new SIM card. It is possible that the SIM card itself is corrupted somehow.

---
Tags: contacts, sim-card
---


title: Upload a downloaded file

text:
# Question
Title: Upload a downloaded file
I downloaded a zip-file with the browser to my phone. Now I want to either upload it to a web site (form POST) or mail it as an attachment.

In the stock browser (HTC Desire with Android 2.2) I can only choose to upload from Gallery, Voice recorder, or Music.

In the Gmail app I can only attach photos and in the Exchange app can't seem to attach downloaded files either.

And finally, in the list of downloaded files in the browser I can only choose to Open (fails for zip) or Delete the file.

Is there another way?

# Answer
Install a File Explorer, say EStrongs File Explorer, and you would be able to upload arbitrary file from the browser or attach files to Gmail.
> 2 votes

---
Tags: browser, attachments
---


# Question
Title: Stop Android GMail from receiving GTalk offline messages notifications?
I've been trying to find a way to stop getting notifications on my phone when I receive offline messages to my GTalk account. It's highly annoying to be falling asleep and suddenly receive an email notification on my phone and once I open it, it's someone saying good night or some such.

Anyone know of a possible solution?

# Answer
If you still want them to show up in your inbox, things get complicated. You would have to create filters to label every kind of message you *do* want notifications for, and then in the Gmail app you would turn off notifications for the inbox, followed by syncing and turning on notifications for the label you just created.

If you don't care if they show in your inbox, do the following from the web GMail:

1. Go to `Mail Settings -> Filters -> Create new filter`
2. Put `youraddress@gmail.com` in the **To** field
3. Put `Chat with` in the **Subject** field
4. Hit **Next**
5. Check `Skip the inbox`
6. Hit **Create Filter**

Alternatively you could turn off the saving of chat history, which disables offline messages, but that has its own downsides.
> 6 votes

# Answer
You should set some things on your phone:

1. go to "Settings" page,
2. select "Accounts & Sync"
3. unselect "Background data"

You can't receive any Gmail messages, since you stop connecting with Google server. If you want receive Gmail messages, reselect "Background data".
> 0 votes

---
Tags: gmail, google-talk
---


# Question
Title: How do I upgrade my Android OS from 2.2 to 2.3 on an HTC Desire?
> **Possible Duplicate:**
> How do I update the OS in my device?

I am carrying a HTC Desire. I want to upgrade the OS from Android 2.2 to Android 2.3. How do I upgrade the OS?

# Answer
Check out on this following forums

1. modaco
2. Cyanogen
3. XDA Developers

Note: Please ready instructions carefully before performing anything. You can break your phone. You have to do everything on your own risk
> 1 votes

---
Tags: htc-desire, updates
---


# Question
Title: My HTC Android Touch is creating problems some times
All of a sudden with out touching the screen my phone works on its own like moving between screens. If I touch on one option it may navigate to some other. It happens very rarely, but it's impacting my ability to use the phone. Can any one suggest a solution?

# Answer
> 1 votes
It might be a digitizer problem, you should take it to a warranty. Usually problems like that can be cause of a digitizer issue.

---
Tags: htc-desire
---


# Question
Title: Can I stream video from PC to an android device over USB?
I'd like to be able to stream video to my android phone (Samsung Galaxy S rooted 2.2) from a PC running Windows XP (I'm at work!).

There's no wireless network here, VLC and similar marketplace apps seem to only offer this service over wifi/3G; can I over USB?

# Answer
I think the answer here is "in all practicability, no."

One hypothetical alternative would be USB host support, and to mount an external hard drive or thumb drive onto your phone. This would mean doing something like this, How To Mount External Hard Drive to Your XOOM. This seems impractical and potentially dangerous (who knows if that OTG cable might cause a short). The SGS may not even recognize the cable, or the drive, and the apk may not work with your phone.

That's the best answer I have on actually connecting via usb to a storage location.

Actual streaming from a PC via the USB port, though? Even if there were a way, it'd probably require extensive work on both the phone and the computer. Wouldn't a better (and way easier) solution be to buy a wireless USB adapter and set it to ad-hoc mode and SSID non-broadcast? Just a thought.
> 6 votes

# Answer
You could turn on "USB Tethering", then run some media server like VLC carefully configured with RTSP streaming on your local server. Then open up the stock browser on android, type in your local ip (prefixed with rtsp:// protocol instead of http) of the pc followed by the port number as set in VLC or equivalent. The Android media player should launch if all is set and should start to play the video.

The local ip must be the ip of the PC running VLC or equivalent media server. You'll need to find it through right clicking the active LAN connection (of usb tether) \> status \> "IP address : "..

Do disable firewalls or add exclusions appropriately for this to work, also, set the VLC with proper video transcoding format that your android can play.

Warning: you might want to disable data pack when enabling the usb tether to avoid incurring unwanted costs.
> 8 votes

---
Tags: usb, video, windows, streaming
---


title: Disable Phone's Built-in Microphone?

text:
# Question
Title: Disable Phone's Built-in Microphone?
I just conducted a tiny experiment with the original headset that comes with Nexus One: I plugged it into the phone, expecting the phone built-in microphones to be switched off, replaced by the microphone on the headset.

I was disappointed to see that the voice input behavior of the system didn't change: The phone seems to continue picking up sound from the built-in microphone(s).

So, I thoroughly covered the headset's microphone with tape and tried again...

Still, no change. The Nexus One's built-in microphone are fully enabled.

This is disappointing because I really need to disable the Nexus One's built-in mics, so that I can use a different microphone instead.

Is there a way to accomplish that?

# Answer
> 1 votes
Maybe disabling the noise cancellation feature might work..

Get a rooted file editor first, then from "/system/build.prop" change the `"media.a1026.enableA1026=1" to "media.a1026.enableA1026=0"`

Then do a reboot. See if your problem is solved. I simply suspect the android's mic always gets enabled for the purpose of noise cancellation during calls/voice input.

REMEMBER! I do not hold responsiblilty for any failure. I suggest you make a backup and everything when you try this.

SOURCE: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=6787214

---
Tags: nexus-one, headphone-jack, microphone
---


title: How do I update Android on my device?

text:
# Question
Title: How do I update Android on my device?
> This Community Wiki question is designed to be the "canonical question" for questions asking *how* to upgrade one's device to a new Android version.

I want to get a newer version of the OS for my Android device. ***How*** can I do that?

See also: Where can I find stock or custom ROMs for my Android device?

# Answer
> 45 votes
> *This is a Community Wiki post. If you see a way to improve it, please go right ahead and edit it.*

There are multiple factors that go into the answer in your particular case.

1. Is there an official update from the carrier/manufacturer? Then use the official method.
2. Is there no official update, but has someone created a ROM that you could install on your rooted device? Then you need to look for how to update unofficially.
3. If you have a little programming knowledge, and you know about Linux device drivers, you could try to make a custom ROM for the device. Start with an existing ROM project such as Cyanogenmod and port it to your hardware. This will take a lot of effort, there's a risk of bricking your phone, and it might not even be possible for your device (because of lack of drivers). If you still think it's worth a try, ask the developers of the ROM you're starting with where to start. (Note that questions about writing custom ROMs are off-topic on this site.)
4. If there is neither an official update nor a custom ROM, and you don't have the knowledge or free time to port one yourself, then your only other option is to buy a new device.

## Official

First, check to see that there is an official update for your device.

For most devices, you simply go to `Settings | About phone | System updates`. If the update is ready for your particular device, it will tell you so. If you're lucky, you won't even need to go that far, as there will be a notification telling you that an update is ready.

Note that it takes time for carriers and manufacturers to add their customizations to the OS. Just because a new version has been announced doesn't mean it's immediately available for your device. Even when a particular OS update is announced for your device, it is almost always a phased rollout, meaning that it could be days or weeks from the official release for it to be available for you. (Very often the update file is made available for savvy users to update manually.)

Some device manufacturers/carriers have slightly, or grossly, different ways of distributing updates. Samsung, for instance, was *notorious* for requiring users to use their Kies software, although recent updates have come over-the-air.

## Unofficial

If there is no official update for your device, you either need to wait for one (if one will be made) or install a custom ROM. There is a vibrant mod community that works very hard to make new OS updates available for old devices and devices where the manufacturer/carrier is very slow to do their customizations.

Rooting and flashing ROMs to your device is too large a topic to be covered in this post. Please refer to these other questions for that:

---
Tags: updates
---


title: Disable force close vibrations

text:
# Question
Title: Disable force close vibrations
I am developing some applications for Android and I'm getting some errors and force closes.

This is rather annoying, although not as much as annoying as the loud vibrations the phone does (a long vibration and 3 quick ones). This is very unpleasant for me and for my workmates.

I've set Sound \>\> Vibrate to "Never", but it keeps coming on and on and after searching through almost all the entire phone settings, a solution is still to find.

The device is the SGS running Froyo.

# Answer
> 0 votes
You're probably not going to like my answer, but I don't think there's anything you can do about it. I've tried to turn this off myself in the past, but the Android OS is such that you will receive a force close vibration no matter what. Now, regarding your application actually force closing, here are my two best guesses (since I can't see any of your code):

1. You are trying to use a feature that requires documentation in the manifest file.
2. You are overburdening the UI stack by not threading processes that take a long time to accomplish (i.e. contacting a server and receiving data, handling remote data, etc.), which can be solved with AsyncTasks.

Also, if you are getting frequent force close errors, please use DDMS. It's an absolute God send for this kind of stuff. I know a lot of people who just try to "figure out" where they went wrong. Debugging is a skill in its own right.

Sorry I couldn't directly answer your question. I instead tried to pinpoint where else you may be going wrong with your applications, which, to me, would seem to be a bigger issue.

EDIT:

To show you how I arrived at this conclusion:

I firstly tried to look through all settings (including my Galaxy S manual), and obviously no cigar.

I noticed that there are two classes that a developer must look into to at least see if this vibration can be turned off programatically (for your specific program). These classes are the Notification and Vibrator classes. Upon inspection, you can see that there's nothing within these classes that will allow you to do that. It's a system property. Realizing that you must put in a "vibration" intent into the manifest in order to even manipulate the vibration should further prove this point:

```
    <uses-permission android:name="android.permission.VIBRATE"/>

```

I wasn't really prepared to mess around with the actual Android low-level code so I brought the issue up with my friend (who has been messing around with the actual Android kernel and OS itself for a while) in order to validate my suspicion. He said that this property was built in. In other words, you would have to override the property within the OS itself in order to change the force close vibration. For me, that was the end of me trying to turn off this property.

---
Tags: samsung-galaxy-s, settings, vibration, force-close
---


# Question
Title: How to install kernel module for android?
I currently have a custom kernel and ROM installed on my android device. The kernel I'm using comes with a separate download with kernel modules that you are to install yourself if you want. However no instructions are given on how to do it, also I cannot find any tutorial on-line how to do it.

So I have a bunch of `.ko` files, Android SDK and my rooted android device. How do I install these kernel modules?

# Answer
> 11 votes
Use `adb` to push them to `/system/lib/modules`, then reboot. Android should load them at boot as long as they're in that directory, I believe.

```
shell> adb push module.ko /system/lib/modules/
shell> adb reboot

```

If you get a "read-only filesystem" error then remount `/system` as read/write first, then push them. Usually you can do this with `adb remount`. You could probably also put them onto an SD card and then use a file manager to copy them over if you want.

You can also use `insmod` to manually load a module into the kernel at runtime, but it wouldn't be reloaded if you reboot. This would allow you to skip the initial reboot, though, since you should be able to `insmod` all of the modules after you push them onto the device.

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Tags: custom-roms, installation, kernel, android-sdk, command-line
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