Where has all my storage space gone? This is actually starting to annoy me!

Every so often, I get the 'Storage space running out' notification. I go into my settings, and it says I have 60MB left.

The thing is, almost a month ago I erased the device because of the same thing - I have my 1.8GB available, and everything was fine and dandy, until now.

I haven't installed anything recently, however I suddenly only have 60MB left. I added up all the app sizes according to Android:

Chrome - 65.55MB
Can You Escape - 34.75MB
Facebook - 31.77MB (why does Facebook use so much?)
Gmail - 27.46MB
Skype - 24.04MB
Facebook Messenger - 19.74MB
Search - 18.98MB
Tapatalk - 17.50MB
Hangouts - 17.33MB
Maps - 13.49MB
Google Play Services - 13.49MB
Google Play Store - 10.91MB
Youtube - 10.80MB
System - 10.27MB
Google+ - 9.39MB
Shazam - 8.37MB
Titanium Backup - 8.30MB
Spotify - 6.93MB
Ingress - 6.70MB (I still have 3 invites if anyone is interested)
Media Storage - 4.50MB
3G Watchdog Pro - 4.05MB
Cerberus - 3.02MB
Secret Codes Revealer - 2.99MB
Email - 2.93MB
Contacts Storage - 2.62 MB
Super SU - 2.50MB
Screen Standby - 2.27MB
Settings - 2.20MB
Titanium Backup Key - 2.12MB
DeskSMS - 2.09MB
Exchange Services - 2.05MB
Browser - 2.05MB
Root Explorer - 2.03MB
TalkBack - 2.02MB
Beats Audio - 1.90MB
Google Services Framework- 1.86MB
Google Text-to-speech - 1.78MB
Gallery - 1.75MB
Spirit UL - 1.66MB
Contacts - 1.65MB
Spotify Community - 1.53MB
Sound Search for Google Play - 1.34MB
I then have ~80 apps < 1MB in size.

Add them all together, and I get 490.53MB - nowhere near the 1.9GB Android says I am using.

Why is Android reporting me using 1.9GB? What is using this memory? Why isn't it showing in the settings?

And above all, how can I fix it?

I am using a Samsung Galaxy SII with Android 4.2.2 Cyanogenmod 10.1

Output of df shell command:

Filesystem               Size     Used     Free   Blksize
/dev                   395.3M    48K   395.3M   4096
/storage               395.3M     0K   395.3M   4096
/mnt/secure            395.3M     0K   395.3M   4096
/mnt/asec              395.3M     0K   395.3M   4096
/mnt/obb               395.3M     0K   395.3M   4096
/mnt/fuse              395.3M     0K   395.3M   4096
/system                503.9M   340M   164M   4096
/cache                  98.4M    72M    26.4M   4096
/efs                    19.7M     8.3M    11.4M   4096
/data                    2G     1.9G    83.9M   4096
/preload               503.9M   204.3M   299.7M   4096
/mnt/asec/com.keramidas.TitaniumBackupPro-1     2M   100K     1.9M   4096
/storage/sdcard1         7.4G   126M     7.3G   4096
/storage/sdcard0        11.5G     4.6G     6.9G   4096
/mnt/secure/asec        11.5G     4.6G     6.9G   4096
/mnt/asec/com.thales.android.view-1     3M     1.1M     1.9M   4096
/mnt/asec/com.nianticproject.ingress-1    26M    24.4M     1.5M   4096
/mnt/asec/uk.co.nickfines.RealCalcPlus-1     2M   340K     1.7M   4096
/mnt/asec/com.mikersmicros.fm_unlock-2     3M  1004K     2M   4096
/mnt/asec/com.eclipsim.gpstoolbox.pro-1     2M    76K     1.9M   4096
/mnt/asec/com.eclipsim.gpsstatus2-1     2M   912K     1.1M   4096
/mnt/asec/com.farproc.wifi.analyzer-1     2M  1000K     1M   4096
/mnt/asec/com.shazam.encore.android-1    10M     7.8M     2.2M   4096
/mnt/asec/com.hutchison3g.planet3-2     5M     3.8M     1.2M   4096
/mnt/asec/com.google.android.apps.plus-1    20M    18.5M     1.5M   4096
/mnt/asec/eu.chainfire.supersu.pro-1     2M    64K     1.9M   4096
/mnt/asec/com.speedsoftware.rootexplorer-1     3M     1.4M     1.6M   4096

I use DiskUsage for situations like this. It graphs the directory structure for you in a very pedagogical way to show you what directories (and subdirectories) that are taking up the most space. It literally solves situations like this in 15 seconds for me, because I'll see a big square with the text "Movies" or something on it, realizing I completely forgot I put an entire season of Wonders of the Universe on my device or something — or I'll se a folder with a name of an app that has long since been deleted with a bunch of useless cache :)

Try it out, I'm not sure how well it works on non-rooted devices but I think it should work on those as well, I don't think it does anything else than list directories and add their content size up.


When should I get suspicious over permission requests and when should I safely install an app? I'm pretty paranoid with the android apps and if I think an app requires too much, unnecessary permissions, I simply don't install the app. However, I feel like I'm missing out lately.

For example, I prefer to use browser for facebook, and I refuse to update my twitter client that requires excessive permissions.

So how can I distinguish a possibly malicious application from a decent application that requires lots of permissions? When am I safe and when should I be suspicious installing an app?

Well, there's a lot of questions in one. Let's handle a few:

If your concern is major applications, such as Facebook, Twitter, etc., from major publishers and services, then as long as you're downloading updates from the Play Store, there's no reason to assume you're downloading a possible malicious application. The apps are all digitally signed and scanned by Google. While malware HAS gotten onto the Play Store, it doesn't get on there as updates to major, legitimate apps. It ends up on there as its own unique app from shady publishers, or updates to apps that got sold to a new publisher, etc. If a major app like Twitter or Facebook wants a new permission, you can feel confident it's for a feature and not malicious.

What that doesn't tell you is whether or not you're comfortable feeling paranoid about how that major publisher intends to use that permission. Some people strongly distrust Facebook, and are unwilling to hand those sorts of permissions to them, even though the app isn't strictly malicious, as it's the company they have an issue with. That's more of a personal judgment call than anything else.

The other priority is to familiarize yourself with what the permissions actually mean (here's a good place to do that from Google), and get a basic understanding of how apps actually function. Some sound scary until you understand why they're necessary. An example was someone I found upset over a keyboard app requiring permission to monitor everything they type, oblivious to the fact that without that permission, it couldn't function as a keyboard. Understanding how apps need to communicate over the network, or be aware of incoming call status in order to pause a game, or being able to review contacts in order to try to suggest new friends based on people you know, or needing access to the camera because they can take photo notes or do video chat, etc., will help you parse which permissions fit within the mission of the app and which ones seem like a stretch to possible data-mining. Google's descriptions tend to focus on the worst-possible scenarios because they have to allow for them. But dialing back and recognizing that, yes, this permission does allow for scenario Z, but it's also the only way they can do scenario A, which is right in line with the goal of the app, will help you figure out when you're being a little paranoid.


Is there a way to bookmark all tabs in Chrome for Android? I have lots of open tabs in Chrome for Android. How can I bookmark/export all of them?

Follow these steps:

Sync the opened tabs in Chrome for Android with Chrome for PC.
Once the sync is completed you would see the opened tabs of your Android under History section (click Tabs from Other Devices in left panel) in your Chrome for PC.
Thereafter, click the three dots line in the upper right panel, choose Open all. Make sure to close other tabs in your Chrome for PC.
Once all of them have loaded, right click on any tab and choose Bookmark all tabs (as reported by Ed Rhee on CNET).

That's it. Since the two devices are now synced you can access those bookmarks on any device.


How can I disable the softkey backlight? I've been using Voodoo Display Filter to dim my screen further than the normal minimum at night, and it works great.  I want to do the same thing with the backlight for my touch buttons since it's incredibly bright.

I wrote a small script to try to do this:

cd /sys/devices/virtual/misc/melfas_touchkey/
while [1]; do
    echo 2 > brightness
    usleep 50000
done

This almost does the trick, but it seems to prevent some touches of the buttons from registering (presumably due to all the events being processed) and the light flickers when I touch one of the softkeys.  Is there any solution that avoids these issues?

Total Screen Control doesn't really work and I'd rather have a free solution anyways, since I'm pretty close already.  I believe CyanogenMod lets you control this as well but I want to stay on my current ROM (Bionix NextGen v1).

You can try Screen filter app in google play.


Is there a way to verify stock ROMs? When we download a .FTF or ROM file as a stock ROM, is there a way to verify that it is really the stock ROM and is not modified by someone?

Yes, you can check the SHA1 or MD5 checksum.

You didn't specify which ROM you are downloading. Let's have a look at the Nexus stock ROMs:

https://developers.google.com/android/nexus/images#mantaray

There is a download link and a version number and checksums listed like that:

Version: 4.2.2 (JDQ39)
Link: https://dl.google.com/dl/android/aosp/mantaray-jdq39-factory-d79f489e.tgz
MD5: b7a1162fb4e617143306ef6c4ca6c040
SHA1: d79f489e1001d183b31d8a407b47cd5b8e9505cd

To verify a checksum you can do it via command line:

$ md5sum mantaray-jdq39-factory-d79f489e.tgz
b7a1162fb4e617143306ef6c4ca6c040

Or:

$ openssl sha1 mantaray-jdq39-factory-d79f489e.tgz
SHA1(mantaray-jdq39-factory-d79f489e.tgz)= d79f489e1001d183b31d8a407b47cd5b8e9505cd

If it matches with the one stated at the google page, you can assume the file is not corrupted or modified.

Note: Linux, MacOS, Windows

The terminal commands only work out of the box in MacOS or Linux. To verify checksums in Windows there is a tool by Microsoft called Checksum Integrity Verifier.


In what language is Gingerbread OS written? Are all versions of Android written in the same language or in different languages?

Not Gingerbread-specific, but according to Ohloh, Android was created using:

C
C++
Java
Others


What does the charge counter in battery indicates? I have used the adb shell dumpsys battery command on my phone. It delivers the following results (posted on the image). Most of the terms, I can understand but not the charge counter. What does it indicate and why does it decrease whenever I connect my phone to the USB cable? What is the significance of charge counter for battery?

I tried googling but cant find the answers.

I checked the Android source and the value shows your remaining battery capacity in microampere-hours.

BATTERY_PROPERTY_CHARGE_COUNTER
Added in API level 21

public static final int BATTERY_PROPERTY_CHARGE_COUNTER

Battery capacity in microampere-hours, as an integer.

Constant Value: 1 (0x00000001)

Source - Developer.Android.com


How to enable SD MSC mount in Jelly Bean? Since upgrading to CyanogenMod 10, the dropdown notification when I connect my phone to the computer no longer appears. How do I mount the SD card via USB MSC in Jelly Bean? Note that the drive still appears to the computer, just empty. My phone is an Xperia Arc S.

Update: I see no mass storage mode under USB connection settings:

Settings screen (click image to enlarge)

Seems as if Google is evil¹ and removed that option from Jelly Bean to enforce their DRM schemes². I found however a tool which restores it: Automated Framework Kit

¹Like we didn’t already know that.

²I have no idea what was the rationale behind it, but remember it’s the company which has a mail service that’s immensely popular despite not properly working with any major mail client.


Bricked Droid Razr while trying to flash a custom ROM, Safestrap gone I'm so sorry for being one of these "help me, I don't know what to do!" noobs, but that's exactly my situation.  This is my first Android phone and my first time trying to do this.  I do come from a programming background, so I didn't anticipate it giving me any trouble.

I have a Droid Razr and I had Gingerbread 2.3.6 on it before I rooted it.  After the root, it started giving me notifications for the 6.1...something update, but since I rooted it, the update wouldn't take.

I tried to put Eclipse ICS ROM on it.  First, I backed up my apps, put Safestrap into safe mode, and created a backup.  I followed the directions here for flashing the ROM.  I waited about 5-10 minutes after rebooting - the Motorola logo came up on my phone, followed by the Safestrap boot options, then nothing.

I rebooted and got into the Safestrap menu and tried to restore my backup ROM.  The restore failed.  I tried formatting the device through Safestrap and it still didn't start up.

I followed the directions here up to step 7 to unroot/unbrick.  This uses Droid Razr Utility 1.42, and everything I tried came back with a "command failed" message.  I thought it was a little strange that the only option it was giving me was to restore version 6.12.173 while I had 2.3.6, but I figured I would at least try it, and I thought that was why I was getting the "command failed" message.  After googling, I downloaded Droid Razr Utility 1.8 and tried restoring it to 6.16.211 (official kernel) - again, the only option it gave me.

After that, I can no longer enter Safestrap.  The phone doesn't boot - it goes through the Motorola logo and then shows a small bar of static right at the bottom of the screen.  Fastboot recovery and restoring the phone to factory settings makes an error show up on the screen (the Android mascot and an exclamation point in a triangle).

I can still enter into Android recovery and I still have access to the contents of my SD card.  I can see the folder where my Safestrap backup should be, but there's nothing in there that the phone recognizes as bootable.  I can still also access the Eclipse.zip file.  I haven't tried flashing it again.

I don't know what's going on or what to do next.  Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Well, If you would have read the instructions for the installation of Eclipse ICS, you would have seen that you're not to install the ROM on top of Gingerbread.

That being said, have no fear.  Batman is here to save you.  Check out the trusty internets and get you a copy of this file.

DroidRAZRUtility1.6.zip

You will need to run this utility to restore back to factory ginger bread (option 1 I believe).

There are guides for this online.  I can't find the source right now.  Basically you put the phone into ap fastboot mode while Matt's utility flashes it back to factory.  then if you so desire, you can take the OTA ICS update.  Only then can you install safestrap and eclipse ics.

Hope this helps.


Touch Screen for Clock I want my alarm clock fade to black, but when I touch the screen will display the time. I want to this feature at night when my clock is charging on my nightstand. Is there a way to achieve this type of feature?

For that you can simply use any alarm clock – and enable Daydream with either the digital or the analog clock. That would result in exactly what you're asking for:

Configuring Daydream / Daydrem in action (source: HowToGeek; click images for larger variants)

That's what I'm doing with my "good old Droid²" which serves as nightstand. You can even define how bright that clock should be (it has a special "night mode"). That way you're totally free to use the alarm clock of your choice.


How to enable USB host mode in Moto G4 Plus I have Moto G4 Plus device. I have to do some stuff by enabling USB host mode on my device. I have enabled USB debugging and it is on charging. I am using USB cable. My device is non-rooted

It shows these option on click on "USB charging this device"

Does anyone have any idea how to do this?

As beeshyams pointed out in comments, the software doesn't control which endpoint is the host and which is the peripheral: the hardware itself controls it. On a phone that doesn't have a USB-A port, you use a USB-OTG cable or adapter. This has a "host end" and a "peripheral end". (On the early USB-OTG cables, it was hard to tell which is which, but on an adapter, the end that is a USB-A port is the peripheral end.) A resistor inside the plug tells the USB controller hardware on the phone whether to act as a host or a peripheral. When you plug the "host end" into the phone, it automatically acts as a host: no user input is needed. (That said, whatever app wants to use the connection or talk to a mass storage device will pop up a permission dialog.)

The options you show in your screenshot only take effect when the phone is in peripheral mode, so they're not related to your problem.

You say in your comments that you'd like to transfer data to a Windows PC, for example. That's not possible this way. Without extra hardware, a PC can only act as a USB host, which means the phone needs to act as the peripheral. To send arbitrary data this way (i.e. not acting as a filesystem), you'd need to write software on the phone using the USB Accessory API, and other software on the PC for the host side of the connection. This isn't a programming site, so we can't help you achieve this.


Changing SIM card reset/lost stored google password For troubleshooting reasons, T-Mobile gave me a new SIM card.

After swapping the card, my phone did not know the google password, I had to enter it again.

I tried to research the linkage (is it stored in the SIM, does the phone reset the stored password for a new SIM, etc.)

I am pretty sure that it does not happen on removal of the SIM, because I had taking my old SIM out several times, to ferry data from my old handset.

I believe it's linked to the SIM for security, but not stored on the SIM (so you can take it out).


Is there a browser that will display Armenian letters? I have just got a an HTC Desire as a present and I want to view www.mathnet.am which is an Armenian site. But insted of Armenian letters I see squares. I have read some advices in some forums, but could not solve the problem. Please help.

By the way I can't see www.Google.am (this is the Armenian variant of it) letters too. The same squares :(

I've tried visiting both those sites in a few browsers, and see the same problem with the square boxes rather than letters. It looks like this probably isn't a problem with the browser(s) but more that the fonts being used to show the sites in the browser don't have all the necessary characters.

Are you able to see Armenian letters in emails or text messages at all?

There was a previous question about installing Hindi fonts, that no one's come up with an answer for yet. Android 2.3 (Gingerbread) does add support for more languages, but unfortunately Armenian doesn't seem to be one of them.


Problem with unlocking the HTC Wildfire bootloader with HTC unlocker I tried to unlock HTC bootloader by the official tool but I get to the stage when I issue the command:

fastboot oem get_identifier_token

Unfortunatly I get error

...
(bootloader) [ERR] Command error !!!
OKAY [  0.007s]
finished. total time: 0.007s

Version of firmware matches the one listed for H3G UK. The HBoot is 1.01.0002.

I think your HBoot needs to be upgraded, and it sounds like perhaps you didn't run the RUU to do so. The HTCdev site notes that phones with an asterisk (*) next to them in the list must run an RUU before unlocking because the bootloader on the device did not originally ship with unlocking capabilities. So first you need to make sure your firmware is up to date (which it sounds like it is), and then you also need to download and run the RUU:

  BEFORE beginning the Unlock Bootloader process your product requires
  that you update the ROM to the version listed in the table below
  first, then download the RUU next to it to enable the unlocking
  capability.

The RUU's filename itself also seems to confirm this. It is listed as PC4910000_Buzz_Froyo_hboot_1.02.0000_R3.exe, indicating (to me, anyway) that you need HBoot v1.02.0000 in order to perform the unlock.


Google Weather's notifications show weather in F° I'm using a Samsung Galaxy A30s. The following is what I see in my notification panel - 70° in Peniche, Portugal

Clicking in it, I'll get the following screen which has the number for the weather correct

Clicking in the three dots, I can see that the weather is selected to show in Celcius

How can this be fixed?

I've gone to Settings, searched for the term "Weather" and got the following

Clicking in it could see that it was defined here as Fahrenheit. Changing it to Celsius solved the problem

See it working


How to disable all notification sounds in Android 6? I want the simplest way to say that I should never hear audible notifications from apps.

I don't want to have to configure apps individually, and once I set all app notifications to mute, newly added apps should still be mute.

I am happy to install a new app to do this, if needed.

Go to Settings>Sound & Notification>Volumes and tap on 'Notification sound' icon to mute it or drag handle to the left.
Or press Volume + or - than expand volume panel and drag handle to the left or tap icon (for notification sound)


Show current SSID under WiFi indicator in Notification panel I tried searching for a solution but this seems so stupidly trivial I can't even find any posts about it, not even a hint in those Android tips 'n tricks articles. The closest I could find is Add wifi network name in notification?, but it wasn't really applicable to my issue here.

I'd like to show my current WiFi SSID below the WiFi indicator in the Notification panel. See image below for example, I've marked where it should be with a red border.

Reason for asking is because a friend of mine with the exact same phone shows the SSID below the WiFi indicator, I saw it with my very own eyes. His phone was not rooted, just to be clear.

Phone details:

Model: Samsung SM-G900F
Android version: 6.0.1
Kernel: 3.4.0
Home screen: Google Now Launcher.
Rooted: no

I just tried changing Home screen to Samsung's TouchWiz, but it made no difference for the SSID indicator.

Any tips would be greatly appreciated, or please let me know if I didn't provide enough information. The fact it's such a small issue is bothering me even more.

I think android version is not the same anymore as on the question but on 7.0 (Nougat) if you pull down the status bar using 1 finger you don't see the wifi SSID (1st picture) and if you use 2 fingers you can see more icons and details (2nd picture), including the SSID. See pictures (on the same fone). (obs: pulling with 1 finger and pulling a 2nd time is the same as pulling with 2 fingers)


Some /system/app disappear on app drawer! How to start an app not in drawer? Android 4.1.2

Somehow the original Home launcher icon disappeared after OTA update, I'm not sure if it's the only app that disappears, but it's the most obvious when I'm testing other launchers.

It's registered as a launcher app, so if I unset the default launcher, I can choose it.  But I'm not able to call it in App Drawer, or shortcut->application.

I wonder if wiping the dalvik cache helps?

Anyway, I'm looking for work around like running a shell script to start the app or switch to it!

Is there a file which contains the list of apps for App Drawer?

If you replaced the stock launcher with a 3rd-party launcher, the only way to go back to stock launcher is to clear/unset the default launcher (which is what you did), and select a new launcher - in this case, the stock launcher. You will never find a shortcut to the stock launcher in your list of apps.


HTC Desire, Froyo - Gmail hangs when sending attachments I have a HTC desire with Froyo, stock rom (Orange 2.17.61.3). I never had any problems with Gmail (version 2.3.2). However, since a couple of days when I try to send attachments (any kind, pdf, pictures, etc.) it just hangs.

The mails are in the outbox but don't get sent and Gmail doesn't synchronize anymore. If I delete the mails from the outbox, Gmail still fails to synchronize. To resurrect it I have to force stop it and clear its cache.

There is constant internet connection through WIFI and I can browse, access the net through other apps with no problems. Current space on the phone, 15.7MB internal and 55MB on the sd card.

Any clues?

I've found that Android experiences random hangs and lockups when there are less than ~20MB of internal memory. In particular, I've found that on startup there will be a few force closes from the latin keyboard and the system; also the phone becomes noticeably laggy. When there are less than 10MB, the phone is so laggy that it becomes totally unusable. You might want to clean up your internal memory and see if it helps with your problem.


What is DSMLawmo? How to remove it? A recent AVG anti-virus scan on my Android tablet flagged DSMLawmo as malware. The antivirus states that it can't be removed and that DSMLawmo was pre-installed.

The tablet is a Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 7.0 inch and it runs Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean. Any information on DSMLawmo would be appreciated.

DSMLawmo is a Samsung system app that is preinstalled, it is not malware but it does have many of the characteristics of malware likely leading to a false positive detection, the description is:

  "DSM states for "Dedicated Security Management " Which allows this app
  to get a full control over the phone using voice channel only...
  Dsmlawmo is to get full control over the phone, track it, reset and
  stuff like that. It's probably to control and repair the phone
  remotely when calling cs"

Source - XDA

A simple Google search will get several results showing that this has been preinstalled on most Samsung devices since at least 2012. It can be safely Frozen or Disabled, if those are options.

This could also lead into the fact that unless you installing software from Unknown Sources (you had to turn on the ability manually), you likely do not need any antivirus or security app on your device and it will cause more of a hindrance than do any good.


Which devices can run xmod coc? I have zenfone 2. The guy that root my phone told me that I cannot run xmod coc there because zenfone 2 uses intell.

How do we know which devices xmod support?

Note: I tried and it didn't work.

I got that oops mod not working now

Also I already checked

http://m.xmodgames.com/faq/72.html

I am not sure if it's up to date. It says it doesn't support bluestack. Yet I've heard people playing coc with xmod with bluestack. It didn't work on my bluestack.

I am going to try xiaomi.

Zenfone devices have intel cpu. If you can root your phone so you can use xmod ,check your device support in xmod website!


Does increasing cache size of memory translate to higher I/O speeds? Hello Android Enthusiasts!

I recently came across this app SD Booster on the Play Store that claims to increase I/O speeds. On installing it, it showed me that the default cache size for my device is 128KB and the optimal size is 512KB.

My question is, will increasing the cache size to 512KB actually increase I/O speeds? Also, can changing the system defaults cause any adverse effects?

Any help is appreciated.

I did some research on the topic and came up with the following chart. It seems that increasing the cache size does NOT always translate to higher I/O speeds.

Test Device: Samsung Galaxy S-III i9300, 1.7GHz, 1GB RAM, CM 11 Custom Modded

Test Operation: 100MB Archive Read, Paste 100MB file to SD Card, Launch Time: Stack Exchange

The chart displaying the results of the test is as follows.

As seen in the chart, all the three test parameters were on their best with the stock (default) cache size of 128KB. Higher sizes gave equally good performance in reading speeds, but failed to perform in write and launch operations.

Conclusion: The default cache size has been already optimised for maximum performance and need not be changed by the user for day-to-day functions.


How can I fix Droid2 "Link Contacts" so it chooses the right primary name? I'm having a problem with my Motorola Droid2 (Android Version 2.2) (System Version 2.3.20.A955) when it comes to linking contacts.

When I link any Google Contact and/or phone contact with a Twitter contact, the meta-contact's primary display name always changes to the Twitter handle. If I click "Edit Contact", it very clearly lists all of the correct information, including all components of the correct Google Contact name, but as soon as I leave the "Edit Contact" menu and return to viewing the contact, the name returns to being the Twitter handle.

This, apparently, used to be a problem with Android itself, but has since been bugfixed. Apparently this latest incarnation of the same issue is specific to at least Droid, if not specifically just the Droid2. It is apparently a very common complaint from Droid2 users, and it seems to common solution is to log on the Motorola forums to rant and rage.

I am looking for a more proactive solution to the problem. I am not against rooting my phone to install a different version of Android if it fixes this issue, especially if it means I get to lose all the Motorola bloatware and unremovable apps.

Is there any way to solve this issue within the current OS on my phone? If not, is there another ROM without this issue that will behave properly with my Droid2?

The Droid2 has a protected bootloader, meaning custom ROMs can't be loaded unless it is cracked.  (It hasn't been cracked yet).

That said, you can root the phone and you might be able to replace the Contacts app with another one.  The problem is that the Contacts.apk file is more than just Contacts -- it's also the Dialer.  Kind of an important file.  Replacing should be OK though as long as you back up the original and can restore it, but don't expect the replacement to work.

Googling "2.2 contacts.apk" should give you a few different versions of the app that you can download and test out.  Note you probably need to deodex your phone before you can replace a system app.  To actually replace it, use an app like Root Explorer to browse to /system/app, mount that folder as R/W, rename Contacts.apk to Contacts.backup or something, and copy in the new Contacts.apk.


Samsung A8 KG State prenormal I have problem with KG State prenormal on my Samsung Galaxy A8.

So, I installed TWRP, after I installed SaboorROM, and after connect to WiFi, the device set's the KG state to Prenormal and I was unable to boot into TWRP or into SaboorROM. So I installed Stock ROM (AP: A530FXXSBCTC4 | CSC: A530FODXBCTC2). After install I enabled Developer settings and OEM was already unlocked. So I tried to "date|time changing experiments" to reach KG state checking, but nothing worked. Than I was about 500 hours if KG state will change, nothing :/

OEM: unlocked
FRP: unlock
KG: prenormal
Binary: 11 Android: Pie

How to change KG state?

[...] Sadly there is no workaround just yet. 1 week no reboot is useless if you are on Bootloader 7 (Android 10 or latest android 9 update)
https://forum.xda-developers.com/galaxy-a6/help/official-released-binaries-allowed-to-t4102447
:(


Portrait mode notification icon If you disable auto-rotate (i.e., force portrait mode), a notification icon shows up. It looks like the vibrate notification, except without the vibration lines. Inside Settings -> Display -> System icons, I can disable other notification icons like the battery, battery %, wifi, etc., but not this one.

Is there any other way to disable this notification, or even other ones not present in System icons?

I'm on Android 7.0, Sony Xperia X Compact.

Pull down the statusbar twice, press and hold the gear in the upper right corner for 5 seconds - then exit and go to settings: now the "System UI Tuner" is there. Disable auyo totate notification.


Why can't my phone connect to cell network data? I have a Nexus 6P running CyanogenMod 13.0-20160819-SNAPSHOT-ZNH5YAO0IN-angler based on Android 6.0.1. I used to be running a CM nightly build and my cell carrier is Ting. Here's what happened:

I was running a CM nightly build from March-ish for a while. A couple days ago, I upgraded to the latest CM nightly. Immediately after that my WiFi stopped being able to find/connect to networks, and a day or so after the upgrade my cell network data connection stopped working. (SMS and phone calls worked, however.)

I decided to switch to a CyanogenMod snapshot release, so I factory reset the phone and flashed CM and gapps (at the same time). I wen through the setup and lo and behold, the problem appeared fixed. However, when I restored all my stuff via oandbackup (including, I now realize, some system apps), the problem reappeared.

Thinking that there was somehow some system app with corrupted data that I'd now restored, I used oandbackup again (along with a TWRP backup) and factory reset again. I went through the setup, planning to simply restore apps one by one until I found the culprit, but the freshly-setup install had the same problem. Therefore I restored the TWRP backup, which brings us to now.

So, why can't I connect to data? Most of the time this problem causes the cell indicator in the status bar to have a "!" however sometimes it shows just the bars, without a "!" or the "LTE" indicator. I believe this behavior occurs when the phone is first booted and goes away for the remainder of the boot when Airplane Mode is toggled, but I can't confirm for sure.

Here's what hasn't worked:

Wiping Dalvik cache
Trying most of the APNs, toggling Airplane Mode in-between
Restoring the default APN settings
Selecting a network operator (there used to be two or so "Ting" entries available; I only tried one - now nothing shows up at all)
Selecting "choose automatically" in the Network operators settings
Toggling the preferred network type to 3G and back to LTE (toggling to 3G caused everything but the status indicator bars [i.e. the "!" and "LTE"] to go to away; I suspect Ting simply doesn't have 3G available anymore)
Turning on Data Roaming and toggling Airplane Mode
Downloading a factory image from Google and running flash-all.sh (i.e. flashing stock recovery, system, radio, etc.)

ADB logs of me booting my phone to the launcher and waiting a couple seconds for it to connect to the cell network: https://gist.github.com/strugee/cd61dbcc461bb17216c360516e711d29

Turns out this wasn't a problem with the phone. I called Ting customer support and apparently all that happened was I hit 5 GB of data usage, so they shut off my data automatically to prevent an unexpectedly huge bill at the end of the billing cycle.

According to the support person, you can self-service this by logging into Ting and looking at your device settings - the "can use data" option should be off. Turn it on and you'll be good to go.


How to block network traffic going to a specific remote port? Is there a way I could block a specific network port  connection for a specific app in Android? My phone is rooted. I know iptables -I OUTPUT -p tcp --dport xx -j DROP but this blocks those ports for every app. I want to block it for a single app.

You can block all TCP traffic from app with UID 10142, destined for port 53:

~# iptables -I OUTPUT -m owner --uid-owner 10142 -p tcp --dport 53 -j DROP

Change UID and port as per your needs.


transfer sms from Samsung Jet to Galaxy S Advance Am trying to get my messages transferred from my old Jet to my new S Advance. The Jet uses PC Studio which can export the messages as a .nef file. However, I am unable to use this .nef file to restore the messages on my S Advance.

Could anyone tell me how to get this done?

You might want to take a look at SMS Backup and Restore apps on the playstore. An example app would be SMS Backup & Restore, which allows you to backup the SMS from your device and restore it later. As it backs up to XML, you could backup on your old device, transfer the backup XML file to the new device, and restore it there.

As the screenshots show, this should be easy to do: From the settings, you define where to store your backups on the sd card, so you know where to find them. After having done the backup on your old device, connect it to your PC and copy that folder to your PC. Then connect the new device, copy the folder to it, disconnect the device, and run the app to restore the backup. Et voila: your messages are transfered.

Side effect: Keep the app, and have it creating backups from time to time. So in case you need to factory reset your device one day, that's one piece of data you already took care for not to lose ;)

Note: That's just one of the many possibilities. Depending on the OS running on your PC, it probably could be done with MyPhoneExplorer as well (so you have some more features) when running Windows. But there are also a lot more suitable apps on the playstore -- simply search it for sms backup.

If the "old phone" is not running Android, it gets a bit more difficult -- but not impossible, it seems. The playstore also lists some migration tools like e.g. the SPB Migration Tool, which promises:

  SPB Migration Tool provides phone data migration to Android from Windows Mobile and Symbian platforms and comes with a complete solution, which allows copying the call history, text messages, contacts and bookmarks.

With ~7 EUR it's quite a bit expensive compared to others. If you only care about your SMS, SMS Migrator might offer an alternative: about 2,50 EUR, but ratings look a bit mixed. So for messages only, I rather recommend to take a look at Phone Copier:

  It provides a complete phonebook and messages copy from almost any phone to your Android or from Android to any other phone.

You find a demo video on the Playstore page of the app. Hm, if I remember correctly, this tool was even written by an Android Enthusiast -- I wonder if he missed this question ;)


When launching the Screencast tool I receive a message "Application Blocked by Java Security" When I try to launch the Screencast tool in Droid Explorer I am presented with this dialog.

Disclaimer: I am the lead developer of Droid Explorer

The Screencast application is out of the control of Droid Explorer development team as it is a 3rd party project. The project actually seems like it has been abandoned.

I found a fork of the code on Github that looks like it is under more active development: https://github.com/xSAVIKx/AndroidScreencast

The workaround to get it working is only a few steps:

Open the Java Control Panel (Located in the Windows Control Panel)

Next click the Security Tab and Click on Edit Site List...

Click Add and enter http://androidscreencast.googlecode.com/svn/trunk/AndroidScreencast/dist/androidscreencast.jnlp (This may change in the future for the github fork)

Click OK
Click Continue
Click OK to close the Java Security Control Panel

  Note: When you launch the Screencast plugin again, you will be
  presented with a warning because the application is not signed by the
  developer.


How do I stop apps from getting killed while sleeping? I have a Droid 2.  I have a long, resource-intensive game (spectral souls) that I would like to leave running while I'm not using my phone.  If I hit the Android "Home" button to get back to the home screen and then immediately re-launch the game, it will be right where I left off.  Same if I hit the power button to sleep, and then immediately turn on the phone, unlock, and re-launch the game.

If I leave it for some amount of time (a few hours), then when I come back and launch the game, it starts fresh as if it were never running.  The phone hasn't been used for anything in the meantime, although syncing is on.

My question is twofold: how can I get more information about what apps are killed when & why, and how can I set it up to allow this app to continue running?  I don't need it to DO anything in the background, I just want it to still be there when I come back.

I'm familiar with the concept of Android clearing memory as it's needed and not needing a task killer, but I want it to not kill THIS task unless I really exit it.

Suggestion: Use Tasker to disable screen timeout for your app. This may prevent it from going to the background.


Samsung galaxy note knocking off other computers wifii My Samsung galaxy note 10.1 32gb knocks off the other computers on the WiFi network when I connect.  Mine connects fine, but the other computers (laptops) get knocked off and have to be rebooted or repaired to gain access again.  Why does this happen and how can I fix it?

Your Phone might be connecting to the Wi-FI network  using a static IP (thus knocking off whatever device is also using that same IP to connect), go to advanced settings on your connection and choose DHCP, that should fix it.


How do I disable faces on contacts? On an older version contacts without images are a solid color. Now its a solid color with a blank face drawn on top of it. It's irritating. How can I disable it? I also would like to disable the face/color box next in the text message conversation.

I'm using version 4.3

I think the stock Contacts and Messaging apps do not have the option to hide the profile pictures.

However, you can try GO Contacts Ex and GO SMS Pro. These are highly-customizable 3rd-party apps that allow you to hide profile pictures. I'm sure other apps can hide the pictures two, but those are are what I've tried so far, and it works well.


Can I flash an RUU coming from Cyanogen on an HTC One M8? I have an HTC One M8 Dev edition running CM12. I also have TWRP and S-OFF with unlocked bootloader. I want to know if I can use the RUU for marshmallow for my phone and if there are any steps I have to do before running the utility

None... Just put your phone in fastboot mode and run the RUU. Although the Motorola flasher in me always does a factory reset first for safety.


How can I transfer my all contacts from old HTC Wildfifre android 2.1 to LG Optimus Vu I just want to transfer all contacts from old HTC Wildfire with android version 2.1 to new LG Optimus Vu with android version 4.0. I have used different apps but still I am unable to transfer contacts and an unexpected error occures. Another issue is that I can't move contacts to SD card because LG Optimus Vu does not supports SD card. Please recommend a simple and easy way or an app which is helpful to transfer contacts to the new LG optimus Vu from HTC Wildfire.

Just a few steps:

Open the contacts app on the Wildfire
Tap the menu button, select to "Export" your contacts to SDCard. This will result in a 00001.vcf file on your SDCard.
Now use any way you like to get the exported file to the Optimus:

Mail/GMail it to your account
Send it via Bluetooth
Copy to your computer, and then to the new device's internal SDCard
...

On the Optimus, open the contacts app
As above, use the Export/Import feature to import the .vcf file

If in step 3 you chose to Mail/GMail the .vcf file, you most likely will be able to open it directly from the attachment, which should cause it to be offered for import into your contacts app (I never tried that variant, so I'm not sure about it).


How to quckly copy text from running app activity? There is running 3rd party app, random text appears every minute on screen. I need to quickly copy text, immediately after it appeared.
root, xposed and etc. are provided.

It is not stated which Android version or device. So, assumption is that the app is user friendly.

When the text appear, long press on the text until the edit text context menu appears. Choose select all, then choose copy. Can be done under 6 seconds.

Later you can paste and edit the text required.


Will deleting a photo on device, also delete the synced photos on Google? My SD card and internal storage are full, and I want to free up some space. Is it safe to delete photos if the photos show that they are being synced to my Google account?

Google Photos synchronize your photos to your online storage (your online storage is limited to 10Gb if you choose synchronizing the original size of the photos ,and unlimited if you choose the high quality upload size , this setting can be edited under Photos >> settings >> backup and sync >> upload size ) now when Photos app synchronize you photos you end up with two copies, one on your local storage (sdcard) and the other one on your google photo storage so deleting the local version of the photo will not delete the one on your google Photos online storage.
However if you had chosen the high quality option under the app's settings the app will not synchronize the original size of the photo
but it will re-size it and then upload it so in this case you have
two copies of the photos one with the original size on your SDcard
and one re-sized on the server deleting the local copy will make
you lose your original photo but your re-sized photo will still be on
the server.
Saving space on SD cards is one of the purpose of Google sync photo.


How to make a contact "group admin" of WhatsApp Group? I guess with new version of WhatsApp Application, for a WhatsApp group, it is possible to have more than 1 "Group Admin".

My question is, if I am currently the Admin of one of the group and I wants to add one more member(or 2 or 3) of Same group as "Group Admin", what steps I need to follow?

Secondly, does WhatsApp imposes any Limit on no. of Group Admins per group?

For example: If WhatsApp Group has 10 People, how many of them can be "Group Admin"??

Below is from the FAQ of WhatsApp for Android:


How to change the DATE format within Whatsapp messages in Android Problem: You see the date as DD/MM/YY or MM/DD/YY and you want it the other way around.

Issue:
Whatsapp doesn't read the DATE format settings from Android's DATE FORMAT settings, but rather it adjust the date format depending on the LANGUAGE set for Android interface.
Solution:
If you want DD/MM/YY change the LANGUAGE of Android to English (UK)
If you want MM/DD/YY change the LANGUAGE of Android to English (USA)

Settings > Language & Input > Language (IN the phone settings)


How to stop a text received from splitting up? I just got my first Smart phone (Galaxy S II) and it splits up texts longer than 160 characters when I receive them. I often forward these long texts. Is there something I can do?

The following may work: download an app called SMS Backup+ from Play which backs up texts to Gmail. From there, it should be simple enough to forward.


Bluetooth Headset Profile and the Nexus 7? I purchased the Nexus 7 3G to install as the radio in my vehicle. I stream all media from the tablet via Bluetooth to my factory head unit.
However, I have two main issues to solve before this becomes a feasible replacement:
1) I cannot set the microphone on the Bluetooth unit to work with the tablet.
The tablet ends up using the built-in mic; and since that is located behind the dash, it doesn't work so well. I have been researching on Google and XDA for months trying to find a solution. From what I have read, this is my current assumption: Tablets in the USA are not built with phone functionality on purpose to deter people from buying a tablet and using it as their primary phone.
It seems no big deal just learn how to hack to enable phone functions and that would activate the proper Bluetooth headset profiles to work with the external mic on a Bluetooth unit. So after a ton of research I have successfully unlocked, rooted and installed TWRP as well as edited the bool.xml in framework-res.apk to make the Nexus 7 voice capable. But still I have no external Bluetooth mic support.
Is this a problem with Android in general? or Jelly Bean in general? or all tablets?
At this point I have exhausted all that I can do on my own without asking for help. Does anyone know how to use an external Bluetooth mic on the Nexus 7 3g 4.2.1?
2) My second problem is the tablet will not consistently reconnect with the Bluetooth head unit every time the vehicle starts.
Sometimes it connects properly with phone and media profiles; sometimes just one of the two, and sometimes none at all. I have used the Tasker app as well as the Bluetooth auto connect plugin, but it still is very flaky at best.
I have never owned an Android device before this tablet, always Apple stuff that to be honest just worked right out of the box. But I love the customization available on Android especially for an in-car install. So again is this an Android issue, Nexus issue, or a tablet issue? It seems from the research I have done that most Android phones will auto-connect but these tablets seem to be missing certain Bluetooth settings or profiles that cause them not to work. So any ideas on how to solve this issue?

At this point, if I can not resolve these two issues, I am going to return the Nexus 7 3G and get a Samsung galaxy tab 2 7.0 3G P3100. From what I can tell, this tablet is a fully functioning phone right out of the box, so hopefully would solve my two issues above. But since this Nexus has MUCH better specs and is cheaper, I am hoping to find an answer to my Bluetooth problems.

Its not only your device's issue, but also in most of the devices. Android 4.2 has this issue. And Google officially confirmed it .

Look above link
"We have fixed the a2dp streaming stutter problem on N7. The next release should have the fix.Sorry about the problem."

Android 4.2.2  fixed Bluetooth audio problems on Nexus phones and tablets. You just try it out by using new 4.2.2 in your N7.


Internal memory explanation I have a Moto E 2º Gen, 8gb internal memory.

If we substract the Android OS requirements, i'm left with 4.98 Gb, which appears as available internal memory.

It shows 4.11Gb used memory, however, below the phone shows the following:

Apps: 2.21 GB

Images: 8 KB

Videos: 0 B

Audio: 120 KB

Other: 99.98 MB

Cache: 1.99 MB

which adds up  close to 3.2GB, so: 3.2GB != 4.11GB. What's going on with those missing 900MB?

Another hints that troubles me comes from plugging the phone to a PC via USB:

Internal memory shows only 342MB available, and the rest all occupied, but when i access the internal files, all files togheter only weigh 224MB!!, and there are no hidden folders.

Can someone explain why this happens, and what are the REAL numbers to take into account.

How could it be that there are hidden files that i can't see even with Windows option "see hidden files" activated?

This is a specific question, but i've seen this in other android devices, so maybe the answer could be in the OS and the way it manages data, more than a device specific issue. Maybe some internal OS memory is not being shown by the device?

I'll try to be straightforward. My answer won't give you a formula explaining why this exact amount of memory is missing from your phone, but it'll hopefully give you an insight about where it's being used and ... why it's needed.

Think of a storage as a copybook, in each page you can store certain amount of data, the technical term for that is a block and its size varies from a system (hardware + software) to another.

Now imagine that each of your files is stored in one page of that copy book, let's say you've got 24 pages and 14 files. You might think that the remaining pages are 10 pages (24 - 14 = 10) but that's not right.

You see, in order for your system to know the location of each file it has to store somewhere the location of each single file, it's like an index containing the number of the page for each file. This index itself might take some pages from your copybook and so does the index used by a real file storage system (FAT, FAT32, NTFS...)

This is probably where your missing storage is being used. Just check what file system is implemented on your phone, make some research and you'll get some more in depth explanations (may be some formula along the way).

Cheers!


Android stuck on roaming mode I own a Samsung Galaxy Note 3 (SM-N900), with Android 4.4.2 installed on it.
It was purchased through Partner (Israel) and I have recently moved to Germany for work.

Upon my arrival, I purchased a SIM card from a carrier called Lycamobile and I regularly top up my account per demand.

Problem - the device is stuck on roaming mode.

What I've done so far:

I toggled Data Roaming in the More Networks -->Mobile Networks menu; when enabled, the device is set on Roaming Mode automatically (see figure #1).

When Data Roaming is disabled, mobile data is disabled, too (see figure #2).

Taking the SIM card in and out several times hasn't helped much (I've see that it helped Verizon users in the US in some forums online).
I manually changed the carrier to my carrier (Lycamobile) instead of letting the device choose one automatically.

Now, the mobile data works as I'm obviously not roaming, but it doesn't work great and I also have to be on roaming mode enabled, which is simply wrong.

Is any one familiar with this behaviour? Thanks in advance for the helpers.

Try Switching your network mode to manual head over to the Settings>Under wirless and networks> tap more settings>Mobile Networks> Network operator> Search for the Network again now after searching select the appropriate network. This keeps happening with my device too there are actually two Mobile Networks, it usually arises because you may be living in border and somehow the signals from other Lycan network, I am sure you are doing the same, I know its weird but I guess you can't help it its up to you carrier, you could give them a call about it.


Dual Sim Oppo Reno Z - not receiving notification of voice messages or calls on 2nd sim I use vodafone as my 2nd sim and Optus as my 1st. I'm not receiving any notification that I have a voice message on my 2nd sim. I also don't receive a notification that someone called on the 2nd sim.

Any ideas on how to correct this?

Thanks

I've fixed it. It was actually an issue with the sim itself and I had to ring the voicemail settings and chose sms notification - which it had already been set up with - again. Vodafone is hopeless or it's an issue with this sim. Thanks


GT-I5500 Wi-Fi error I have working Wi-Fi connection. I can connect to any access point in range and I have no problems with passwords, etc.

But after some time (sometimes hours, sometimes days) my phone tries to connect to access point and it fails. In Wi-Fi settings I just have "Błąd" message which in English means "Error". Then I cannot connect to any network, I'm not eve able to scan available networks - Wi-Fi is totally dead.

When I reboot phone it starts to working normally again.

My phone specs:

Samsung Galaxy 5
GT-I5500
Android 2.2 - FROYO.XWJQ3
I5500XWJP4

I performed two steps to fix the issue:

Settings -> Wireless & network settings -> Wi-Fi settings -> click menu button and select Advanced, Select Wi-Fi sleep policy - > Select Never.
Dial *#*#526#*#* for WLAN Diagnostics. This will reload the Wi-Fi driver (I tried this before without step 1 and it rebooted my mobile).


How to know on which Google account text messages (SMS) are saved? I have 2 Google accounts on my phone. How can I know on which Google account text messages (SMS) are saved?

I use a Samsung Galaxy S5 SM-G900A with Android 5.0.

Currently, text messages are not saved to your Google account (however useful that would be...). However, Hangouts are saved to your Google account, and you can check which account is active in the Hangouts app by swiping from the left and checking which profile is shown at the top of the navigation drawer.


How can I watch HD Amazon videos on Logitech Revue? I'm running the latest updates for my Logitech Revue (according to the check for updates screen), but when I go to the Amazon Instant Video app, it just redirects me to Chrome.  Amazon doesn't support HD in the browser, so I can only watch SD videos.

When I try to play HD videos, Amazon says, I must use a supported device, which the Logitech Revue is, and that I must register it.  Its instructions to register it say to open the "Amazon Video" app on the device, then go to "register device".  As mentioned, my app (named "Amazon Instant Video") just redirects to Chrome.

I called Amazon, and they said it sounds like I'm running "google tv version 1.0".  Since my "firmware" says 3.2 and i apparently have the latest updates, I'd guess that I'm not.  Amazon support says only Google tv v2.0 has the application w/ HD.

Any ideas what I'm missing here?

It is a problem with the Google TV OS, not the device's firmware.

There was a Google TV update that supposedly came down the stream quite some time ago, but my Logitech Revue never got it.  It was SUPPOSED to have given Amazon Instant an ACTUAL app instead of the link to Chrome which is currently on the device.  Since Logitech is no longer supporting the device, I don't count on ever getting that update, or any updates.

What annoys me about this issue, though, is that I USED to get HD through Chrome on my Revue. I actually bought an HD season pass for Walking Dead at the beginning of the season, and watched the first half in HD.  I stumbled across the inability to watch HD content only a couple weeks ago. There must have been a software update on Amazon's end that created this new incompatibility, and since the Revue isn't getting any more updates, it will continue losing functionality like this.

I am going to try watching Walking Dead via PlayOn to see if it makes any sort of difference.  Though, that only runs through Chrome, also.  It does not have its own app on the Revue, even though it does on a lot of other devices and platforms.

It's only a matter of time before I replace my Revue with a Roku or something now.


How can I stop the Skype notifications from re-enabling? I have Skype on my Moto G, but I don't use it much. It's primarily for contacting cow-orkers at work. I certainly don't want to get notified every time anyone says one in a group chat while I'm on my day off.

So I switched off the notifications by selecting "block all" in the notification settings for the app. Then I got a notification. So I switched off the notifications again. Then I got a notification. So I switched off the notifications yet again. Then... you get the picture.

How can I keep the notifications from Skype switched off?

Or do I just have to uninstall it?

Skype running in background annoys me so much that I keep it signed OUT when not using.
To turn of notifications of SKype on Android :
Tap the menu icon (three vertical lines), tap Settings > Notifications, then tap Notifications to turn them off.

what you have been doing is , you were telling your android to mute the notifications its better to tell the app itself


How to permanently enable ADB in Huawei devices? I bought a huawei p30 for development purposes. So the first thing i did, it is enable development mode, enable adb over usb, then type adb devices... nothing!

When I enable adb over usb, the setting is not saved! If I go back, and then enter the developer menu, it's disabled again!

I found this workaround:

Dial *#*#2846579#*#*
Select background
Select USB mode
Select "Google mode"
Open settings
Find development options
Enable ADB over USB.

Now it works... for a little while! Just unplug the cable for 1 second, and I need to repeat all the steps again! ADB disabled, USB mode reverted to "huawei mode", and so on! This is ridiculous! I bought this device for development purposes, it should have a permanent way to enable adb, as expected in each single Android device since version 1.0. How devs can debug huawei devices if each time enabling adb is such an hassle???

I must be missing something, how to permanently enable adb on (newest?) Huawei devices?

I was using Huawei mate 10 lite, as I remember I had fixed this issue by selecting Allow ADB debugging in charge only mode at developer options section


How to stop mobogenie auto-download in Android? mobogenie application auto download in my mobile. My cellphone is Sony Xperia J and my Android version is 4.1.2. Once, I removed it from my device, but it's downloaded automatically again. How to stop that?

Go to Setting -> Accounts & Sync -> Google -> Ads( Reset the Advertising ID ) + Ads setting ( Google Ads Manager and Opt out )


What can I do to increase battery life on my Android tablet? Tablets have different usage profiles than phones. So many of the "Phone" suggestions don't apply.

So, what can I do to get better battery life on my Android Tablet.
(TechPad 7" Tablet from Chinavasion, S3C6410 Android 1.6;)

Works well, except something unexpected is consuming power; Just having the tabled turned on will drain the battery in 2-3 hours. Also, the power status shows 40% of my battery is always being used by "cell standby";

While this tablet has Wifi, it is disabled. It also has no built-in cell phone, so what could be draining the battery?

The key was to delete the Telephony application.  This tables has no phone.  After deleting the following built-in applications, TelephonyProvider & Phone, A new icon appeared in the top box, it was a signal bar strength icon with an X in it.

Now the "Cell standby" no longer appears, and the battery lasts 3-5 hours depending on what I am doing.


Why an android device overwrites the header named message-ID? I do not understand why android devices (I think mobiles devices in general) overwrite the mail header named message-ID. I need to pass some parameters through this header to build threads but each time I try, is overwritten.
My apps works very well with webmail and mail clients like Outlook and Thunderbird.
Any idea? Do you know some apps to debug mail headers within android devices?
Thanks
Adam

There are mail headers for threading (in particular I'm thinking of References: and In-Reply-To:), why not use one of those rather than trying to overload something else?


Save default installed sounds on Original Droid I have an original Motorola Droid. Is there a way I can save all the original pre-installed sounds/ringtones?

It looks like all of the default ringtones and notification sound files are in /system/media/audio.

If you can't get to them when mounting via USB, you should be able to use something like ASTRO file manager to copy the files to your SD card and then get them that way. They just appear to be ogg files.


Is there a way to sort backups listed in Rom Manager? One of the older versions of Rom Manager I used to use did this, but more recently my backups, as listed by Rom Manager, seem to be listed in whichever order they please. This is quite annoying when I keep a lot of backups and they are all named only by ROM, date, and time.

Is there a way to sort them alphabetically and/or by date?

I'm using a Motorola Droid X (shadow). I switch between MIUI (Feb. 2012, GB 2.3.7) and CM9 (July 2012, ICS 4.0.4). Using the latest Rom Manager from the Play store, which appears to be 5.5.2.8.

Thanks for any suggestions.

EDIT: Nevermind. Turns out the Rom Manager installation on CM9 wasn't actually up to date, and apparently my backups were not all named consistently. It seems that Rom Manager uses the format:

YYYY-MM-DD-HH.nn.ss

while CWM Recovery uses the format:

YYYY-MM-DD.HH.nn.ss

which is why they didn't seem to sort correctly. Updating and making the names consistent solved the issue.


Is it possible to set custom calendar notification sounds for each calendar event? I'm trying to create a custom notification sound for a single calendar event. For example, I want to use one mp3 for my reminder to take out the garbage, another for a birthday reminder, etc.

Is this possible? My phone is an HTC One running stock 4.4.2

thanks

Download "File Manager (Explorer)" from Google Play List and explore "Notification" Folder.
Copy your custom file - MP3 ringtones in the "Notification" folder.
Open the Google Calendar --> General Settings --> Sounds --> You can find your custom file to select.

Hope this resolves your clarification.


Remove "Acuttweather.com" widget on the top of the home page I have purchased LG K8 phone.Can you tell me how to remove the front screen's "Acuttweather.com" widget on the top of the home page?

Android ver: 6.0

Remove Items from Home Screen - LG K8 V

From a Home screen, touch and hold the item (e.g., widget, shortcut, folder, etc.).
Drag the item onto "Remove" trash icon or "Uninstall" trash icon (located at the top) then release


How to resolve the issue " Unfortunately app has been stopped" In my android phone how can I fix the above said error. I have tried to wipe the data,cache and dalvik cache but this doesn't seem to work. Can any one tell the best sure shot fix for this annoying issue. This happens mostly with the google applications.

Is your phone rooted? If yes then maybe you would have disabled some of the services of that app using some sort of app. If yes then enable those services back and you will not get the error. I also faced the same issue once and this solved the problem.

Another thing you can do if the above method doesn't work. If the app is a system app then uninstall updates of that app from settings. Update it again(if you need). That's it. Let me know if I helped you or not.


Is there anyway to bypass the Verizon Wireless block of the tethering? I have a rooted Droid X (v.1). I used to be able to use Wifi tether to connect my computer to the Wifi from my phone. Now Verizon is automatically blocking that and taking me to a page where they ask me to pay for the Wifi. I don't use the connection that much so I really don't want to pay an additional $25. Is there a way to get around this and activate Wifi tethering again or am I hosed?

Get pdanet. Screw Verizon.  Lifetime use is $14 and you'll never be charged another dime. It works well.


Battery Issues-Moto E I am facing battery issues from days,the battery does not survive even a day even without using the internet.
Tried uninstalling some apps but there is no effect. It is happening 10 days after 4.4.4 Kitkat update.

Are there any solutions?

Use battery monitor in settings to see what's causing the battery drain. Uninstalling apps is not the solution, until you've identified that as the problem.  You can either access your battery stats in settings or in notification shortcut.


samsung tab 3 cannot retrieve keyboard My daughter got a new samsung tab it was working with no problems , she dowmloaded a few apps then the keyboard went , so i went to check the settings and there was no option to retrieve it. i went into the playstore to add another but kept getting an error message which wouldnt allow me to install anything,
i done a factory reset thinking it would wipe everything off and retrieve the keyboard which i didnt i m left with no keyboard and having to try and speak each command which is very difficult and doesnt work ,
can anyone offer a way round this ?

I've run out of space  in comments so let's look at some options:

1) Go to Settings > Apps then go to Google Play Store and 'Uninstall Updates'. Then let the Play Store automatically update. Try downloading another keyboard.

2) If you have error 110 it MAY be hardware related.  Thread on similar issue
You may need to contact the seller or Samsung on this issue.

3) If you have error 101 then perhaps  Google Play Services is to blame try installing this from the link provided, reboot and try installing another keyboard.

4) Go to Settings > Apps and see if 'Samsung Keyboard' or similar is there at all, it MAY be disabled or something simple like that! (It will say 'disabled' beside it) You can go into it an click enable in this case.

5) See if you can download any apps at all from the Play Store. Pick something popular like "Facebook" or something from a reliable source. If this also fails there is somthing more fundemental wrong here.

6) If you are a bit more adventurous you could pop to XDA Devlopers and ask someone to post the APK (android application package, basically the app to be installed) for your keyboard and see if you can install it. This is a bit more advanced and I think best left til last resort for now. I'll talk you through it if you think it is a valid option. "Side Loading" is the term to look up!


How to add a custom keyboard layout? Disclaimer: There seem to be a number of potential duplicates to this question on common android forums and SX sites (e.g.: How to install a custom keyboard in Android?), but many are a couple of years old and none seem to be what I'm hoping for. Thence:

Looking for a solution that

does not require rooting
does not require additional apps, ideally
does not require "serious" coding

Any ideas?

See also:

http://forums.androidcentral.com/samsung-galaxy-s4/295480-custom-keyboard-layout.html
https://stackoverflow.com/questions/5091674/creating-custom-android-keyboard-layout
https://stackoverflow.com/questions/13326072/android-custom-keyboard-xml-file
and How to install a custom keyboard in Android?

Closest working solution I was able to get was to use JBak Keyboard which allows you to customise it's layout and skins using simple XML files.


Downloading videos from dnatube.com How can i download videos on my android mobile from dnatube.com ? After signing in when Ic click on dowload video button it shows "We are sorry, currently we are not allowed to give any permission for download due to copyright issues."
Is there any apps or online site which can capture videos from this site, youtube downloading ideas are not working.
Thanks !

Two popular apps are TubeMate (as zamin suggested) and VidMate. They can download videos from all popular video hosting websites. You won't find them in Play Store due to some copyright issues. Sites like YouTube, DailyMotion, Youku etc are provided as speed dials so you have to manually enter dnatube.com  in address bar. Comment if not working.


Setting Defaults for Links I've been confused about how this works for quote some time now-- when I click a link, say in a browser (Chrome for example) and get the "open with" dialog if you will, if I chose to save a default for a Google maps link, will that set the default to ALL Google maps links, that particular link, or am I missing something?

I'm often afraid to set defaults because I'm not clear on what it is I'm actually setting a default for-- is it the domain name?

I'd appreciate any tips, links to documentation, or app suggestions to make this clearer to me. Thanks!

Short answer: yes, it's for all Google Maps links.

The long answer is that Android's intent mechanism (which is the way Android decides what app to start) can use different parts of the URL to match the app. The app can register itself with Android to handle:

a particular URI scheme, such as market://
a particular domain, such as youtube.com
paths within the domain matching a particular filter, such as /users/*

Apps can also filter on other things not relevant to clicking a link, such as different actions (e.g. share) or different MIME types. One app can have more than one filter, and one filter can match any combination of the above things. For example, a YouTube app might have one filter that matches when all these conditions are met:

the scheme is http:// or https://
the domain is youtube.com
the path matches watch?v=*

and another that matches when all these conditions are met:

the scheme is http:// or https://
the domain is youtu.be (the domain for short URLs)

In this case, there are two different defaults to set: the first time you click a link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DJRFaR71HfY it will set the default for that kind of link. Then, if you later click a http://youtu.be/DJRFaR71HfY, it'll ask a second time, because that counts as a different kind of link.

In the case of Google Maps, there are several different kinds of link it can handle (as well as other intent filters not relevant to links):-

geo://*
latitude://*
http://maps.google.tld/ or https://maps.google.tld/ (with nothing after the /), for every TLD that Google has (google.com, google.fr, etc.)
http://maps.google.tld/maps* or https://maps.google.tld/maps*
http://mapy.google.pl/ or https://mapy.google.pl/ ("mapy" being Polish for "maps")
http://mapy.google.pl/maps* or https://mapy.googl.pl/maps*
http://local.google.com/ or https://local.google.com/
http://local.google.com/maps* or https://local.google.com/maps*
http://m.google.com/latitude or https://m.google.com/latitude
http://www.google.com/latitude or https://www.google.com/latitude
http://m.google.com/u/m/* or https://m.google.com/u/m/*

Each one of those lines counts as a different kind of link, so Android will ask again. In addition, all but the first of those have two separate entries: one for opening or browsing a link in the usual way, and another for scanning an NFC tag (or receiving by Android Beam) a matching link. Again, those two things count as different links for the purposes of setting defaults.

To get this information from the Google Maps app, I used the app PackageExplorer. The information it gives you takes some knowledge to interpret: you may find the Android intent API guide for developers useful.


Asus ME302KL tablet halts on loading I have a problem with my Asus MeMO Pad ME302KL

It halts on loading screen - Asus logo and loading spinner and loads forever, until the battery goes off completely.

Holding the power button for 10 seconds reboots it.
Holding the reset button (the one in the hole) for 10 seconds just reboots it.

Tried to enter service menus:

Holding the power button and volume down - after 10 seconds the tablet shuts down, after 5 more seconds shows system information. Asus logo and some text on the left. Does not react to any actions, except for holding the power button for 10 seconds and goes to reboot.
Holding the power button and volume up - after 10 seconds the tablet shuts down, after 5 more seconds shows "service menu". First for half a second there appears a standing android with spinning blue thing in front of him, and after half a second there appears a lying android with open bonnet and a red exclamation mark and nothing else on the screen. Does not react to any actions, except for holding the power button for 10 seconds and goes to reboot.

UPD: Tried to hold the reset button while on the "service screens" and it just goes to reboot after 10 seconds. Also have removed the SIM and SD cards.

UPD2: Before the lethal shut down I've installed a couple of games, ~5 I guess. I'm not sure, if it installed any updates, at least it did not ask m e about it.

UPD3: With use of fastboot re-installed this system https://mega.co.nz/#!QFEFFRCR!XV2tziLIueLET2aBXWBaXUp5qY5vw7vS740yYxgKO7M and absolutely nothing has changed :(

Found the combination to enter the recovery mode. Holding the power button and volume up - after 10 seconds the tablet shuts down, after 5 more seconds shows "service menu". First for half a second there appears a standing android with spinning blue thing in front of him, and after half a second there appears a lying android with open bonnet and a red exclamation mark (error) and nothing else on the screen.

Then you have to hold the power again and press the volume up - the menu appears.

Cleared the cache and device started normally. That's pretty weird, as I've re-installed the whole system and cleaned the cache with fastloader. But it works now :)


How to extract a compressed TWRP backup? There are a couple questions concerning how to extract a TWRP backup in this community, but none of them is really useful. All I found out is that the files like data.ext4.win000 are the tar archives, and I should be able to extract them via the following commands:

$ cat data.ext4.win??? | tar xvf -
$ cat data.ext4.win??? | tar xzvf -

Yes, that's true, when I type one of the commands above in a terminal, I can see that the process of extracting files has begun. But when it finishes, I can also see this message at the end: `

tar: Exiting with failure status due to previous errors

Looking through the lines leads me to this:

tar: Malformed extended header: missing equal sign

I can find many of those messages in the tar log, but when I check the size of the extracted dir, I can see this:

$ du -sh data/
1.6G    data

$ ls -hal data.ext4.win???
-rw-r--r-- 1 morfik morfik 929M 2019-01-28 01:48:28 data.ext4.win000
-rw-r--r-- 1 morfik morfik 945M 2019-01-28 01:49:47 data.ext4.win001
-rw-r--r-- 1 morfik morfik 549M 2019-01-28 01:50:23 data.ext4.win002

So it looks like it extracted only the fist tar file. I don't know whether any of the files in the archive was damaged during the process.

Are there any linux tools that would extract this backup in some easy automated way?

It's not a "paged tar", but each file is a TAR itself.

All you need to do is tar xzf on each file.


Getting text to speech to write a . (period) I have just started to use Googles speech to text on my Sony Xperia Z3+ and it is very precise, both in English and Danish. But I cannot get it to write any punctuation in either language.

A period would be just fine, but if I dictate in English and say "period", it writes the word "period". I have also tried "dot" and in Danish "punktum". There is a settings button, but no option to fix this.

The funny thing is, that if I pause, it will capitalize correctly, like there were a . but I still have to add them afterwards.

The most frustrating part is, that when I search for solutions, the solution is to say "period" or replies to people who want to have the literal word written.

Maybe it is your inflection, that is, the rise and fall of tonal character. Saying the word "period" works for me.

I say "PEER-Ee-uhd", falling in tone as I say the word.


Device stuck in boot animation after reverting to LineageOS 17.1 I tried to update my OnePlus One to LineageOS 18.1, following my usual procedure:

do a full backup (boot, system, data excl. storage, cache) with TWRP
then flash the new image, along with the zip files Magisk and microG

As I then noticed that Android 11 breaks some of the apps I use, I decided to roll back the update by simply booting into recovery, restoring the backup and rebooting. However, this failed with the system being stuck in the boot animation for significantly above 10 minutes.
I then tried the following:

boot into TWRP
flash LineageOS 17.1 from the previous image I had installed (plus Magisk and microG)
restore my backup
wipe caches

Still no joy, I am still stuck in the boot animation.
Suspecting the upgrade had converted some app data in /sdcard/Android/data, I moved all app dirs starting with com.android or org.lineageos off the device. (The rest should be user app data. I do not have Google Play services installed.)
That still was not successful, I am still stuck in the startup sequence.
I have never (knowingly) encrypted any data on the device.
What gives? How can I find out where the device gets stuck, so I can hunt the error down? Wiping all user data is not an option.

Everything that is in the backup is safe to wipe for a test (it can be restored later).
Therefore, rebuild the system step by step:

wipe system, data (excl. storage) and both caches
reinstall LineageOS 17.1
boot
if this works, return to recovery, install Magisk and reboot
if the device still boots successfully, restore data and retry
if the device still boots successfully, copy back app data to /sdcard/Android/data (possibly one by one, or in small batches rather than all at once) and retry
if the device still boots successfully, restore the system partition from backup and retry

If at some point the system no longer boots (i.e. gets stuck in the boot animation or similar), you can examine the step that broke it in more detail.
In my case, it seems the backup of the System partition was faulty and caused the system to hang on boot. Since this partition does not contain any user data, it is easy to rebuild if you still have the system image: Wipe the system partition, reinstall LOS 17.1 and Magisk, wipe cache and Dalvik, then reboot. That fixed it for me.


Default mode with USB, charging + USB Tethering? Is there anyway to make it so that my phone, when connected with a USB Data Cable to a computer automatically turns on USB Tethering?

Currently using Cyanogenmod 13.

I tried changing the option in Developer Options to RNDIS however it doesn't seem to work (by that I mean it doesn't seem to do what USB Tethering does), and it doesn't hold when I unplug and plug back in.

Is there anyway to make it so that my phone, when connected with a USB Data Cable to a computer automatically turns on USB Tethering?

Yes. Use automation. I successfully tested my solution using Automate v1.1.13 on CM13 (build:ZNH0EAO1QE).

You would need to make a flow and it should fairly look like this:

(Click an image to enlarge it)

Alternatively, you can use Tasker to detect the USB connection and then run this command with root access:

service call connectivity 30 i32 1


Can I transfer my Thunderbird Lightning Calendar from home computer to my Android phone I use Thunderbird with the Lightning extension on my home computer for email and calendar. Is there a way of transferring just the calendar to my Android phone? It would be so useful when away from home so I can make appointments. The only way to do it now is to print the page or remember!

If you use Google calendar, you can

Export the calendar from lightning as an .ics file
Import that .ics file into Google Calendar


How can I undo a botched rooting? Android 5.1.1 I've got a Samsung S6 G920F with Android 5.1.1 which I've tried to root by using the Chainfire method through Odin. Sadly something went seriously wrong when I ran the rooting and my phone is now stuck displaying the Recovery is not Seandroid Enforcing message when I try to turn it on. I've tried just redoing the rooting but it doesn't help.

So what I basically want to do is to undo the whole thing, or get this rooting to work asap.

And also, this doesn't seem right:
Current Binary: Custom,
System Status: Official

The log from Odin:

<OSM> Check MD5.. Do not unplug the cable..
<OSM> Please wait..
<OSM> CF-Auto-Root-zeroflte-zerofltexx-smg920f.tar.md5 is valid.
<OSM> Checking MD5 finished Sucessfully..
<OSM> Leave CS..
<ID:0/004> Odin engine v(ID:3.1005)..
<ID:0/004> File analysis..
<ID:0/004> SetupConnection..
<ID:0/004> Initialzation..
<ID:0/004> Get PIT for mapping..
<ID:0/004> Firmware update start..
<ID:0/004> SingleDownload.
<ID:0/004> recovery.img
<ID:0/004> NAND Write Start!!
<ID:0/004> cache.img
<ID:0/004> RQT_CLOSE !!
<ID:0/004> RES OK !!
<ID:0/004> Remain Port ....  0
<OSM> All threads completed. (succeed 1 / failed 0)
<ID:0/004> Removed!!

Log after trying to install firmware:

<ID:0/004> Added!!
<OSM> Enter CS for MD5..
<OSM> Check MD5.. Do not unplug the cable..
<OSM> Please wait..
<OSM> G920FXXU2COH2_G920FVDS2COH3_G920FXXU2COH2_HOME.tar.md5 is valid.
<OSM> Checking MD5 finished Sucessfully..
<OSM> Leave CS..
<ID:0/004> Odin v.3 engine (ID:4)..
<ID:0/004> File analysis..
<ID:0/004> SetupConnection..
<ID:0/004> Initialzation..
<ID:0/004> Get PIT for mapping..
<ID:0/004> Firmware update start..
<ID:0/004> boot.img
<ID:0/004> NAND Write Start!!
<ID:0/004> Complete(Write) operation failed.
<OSM> All threads completed. (succeed 0 / failed 1)

Check if you can reboot to stock recovery (Switch off the device completely. Boot into recovery mode by pressing and holding Volume Up, Home and Power keys at the same time. Release all three buttons when device screen flickers and the main screen of Recovery mode appears), from there you can factory reset your device.


Unable to unlock Android bootloader I have a Weimei We, it's an Spanish-Chinese brand, yes, really odd, anyway the other day I touched something in the system partition trying to remove the root (I rooted the phone a few months ago) and the phone wouldn't turn on again, so I started thinking how it could be fixed and it occurred to me that maybe flashing fastboot would be helpful, so I tried to flash the partition with an image that I downloaded from the internet(not really trustworthy but it was my only hope) but I was unable to write on the partition, I thought that maybe the bootloader was locked, that will explain it, I tried to unlock the bootloader using the fastboot commands

  fastboot oem unlock

and

  fastboot flashing unlock

a disclaimer appeared saying that it would void my warranty, etc... and when I pressed okay..... this

  Bootloader cannot be unlocked(or something like that)

I've emailed the manufacturer but they said they cannot provide me with the info to unlock the bootloader because they do not recommend doing that and telling me would be incoherent (asshole move)

I don't really know how the locking of the bootloader works, I guess the manufacturer has a private key zand cannot share it, but all the phones I had in the past, let me unlock it, I guess this happens to me for buying a "non commercial brand"

So my question here is, is there any way I can unlock it?

Thanks in advance

Weimei We Homepage

I think I might have found the solution to my issue, there is an option in the developer options called OEM unlocking which allows you to unlock your bootloader in fastboot, I haven't tried this in my phone since it's being restored, but I'm pretty sure that my terminal has that option

I will give it a try as soon as I have my phone


What kind of data is stored in website settings? While looking at my Android browser settings, I notice there is this advanced setting for individual websites.

So far I have only Twitter using this special setting on my browser. But I do not know what is inside. I can clear history, clear cache, clear forms, clear passwords for all websites at the click of a button. But I need to clear this website data individually.

Does anyone has any idea what is stored inside this website settings? And how do I read the data in it?

It varies from website to website. HTML 5 has a feature called local storage, which lets websites store a modest amount of data in the browser for future visits. They're a bit like cookies, but can be used to store more data. Like cookies, different sites use it for different things.

Some sites (most commonly web games) use local storage to save the Javascript and other files the site uses, so that you can keep using/playing it even when you don't have an internet connection. Or they might use it as a cache for icons on the site, so it loads faster next time you visit.

Some sites use it to save your preferences on the site (e.g. search options, or what posts you've read) to give you the same view or content on multiple visits without you having to login and save preferences on the server. They might even use it for your content: for example, a forum site might save draft posts/comments in local storage before you post them, so your work isn't lost even if you lose connection to the site while writing.

Because the data aren't meaningful outside of the site, and only the Javascript on the site knows how to interpret them, Chrome doesn't offer a way to view or edit the data for each site.

CSS Tricks has a brief description of local storage, along with some examples of what sites do or might use it for.


How do I turn off speech-to-text censorship in Android 7? This was the most recent article I found on it:

https://www.howtogeek.com/303489/how-to-disable-the-profanity-filter-in-google-assistant/

Problem is that the triple dot dropdown menu isn't there. I have an icon that looks like a new email message and one that looks like a compass needle. I've searched the settings for "censor" and "block" and there are no results.

How do I stop it from turning "fuck" into "f***" in Android 7? LG G5

The LG rebel 3 running Android nougat 7.0 there are a couple of paths to the Block offensive words toggle.

First it spelled f*** missing the k but then I manually typed in the word. When I tried by voice after that it was spelled properly and fully.
The path's to the Block offensive words toggle are:

/Language & Keyboard --> Google voice typing --> Block Offensive words toggle.
/Google services --> Search, Assistant, Voice --> Voice --> Block offensive words toggle.


How to make chrome open to a blank tab I'm running CM 10.1 on my Nexus S and it's definitely showing its age.  If I want to quickly google something I open up Chrome and then wait 15 seconds for it to load the last page, and then try and type in the location bar for 30 seconds as it freezes and then suddenly types my query out all at once.

My question is, how can I make Chrome open to a new blank tab each time I click its icon?

@Al Everett is correct. Use a shortcut on your launcher, because I do not see any options within the Chrome app to change your "home page".

Go to Bookmarks, add about:blank to Mobile bookmarks, navigate there, and then click and hold on the bookmark icon and select "Add to home screen". Presto.


How to be sure that you are not tracked with anti-theft software or similar when using tab previously owned by someone? I have seen the amount of pictures and personal data an anti-theft software can dig on person using a stolen phone. How can one make sure that he is not tracked through similar software when using a previously owned tab/phone? I understand that a factory reset is not enough in most cases.

I understand that a factory reset is not enough in most cases.

A factory reset is usually enough if performed through Settings, which removes Factory Reset Protection from the device (a reset from Recovery does not do this).  This will also unlink Android Device Manager and remove most other tracking tools.

If you are concerned about apps that may have been integrated into the system image, then yes you should flash a custom recovery and then a ROM (selecting the wipe option).  Unless there is a malicious bootloader installed (unlikely) then this will more than suffice.  You might also want do delete anything from /sdcard and format any external SD cards just to ensure that no malicious files are left there that you might accidentally use.


connection between spell correction, language selection, predictive text, and keyboard Can someone please explain to me the android conceptual model between

language selection
spell correction
predictive text
keyboard

I.e., is it the responsibility of the keyboard app to support multiple language, provide dictionaries, and analyze the sentences you type to try to predict the next word?  Or is the keyboard just responsible for noticing where your fingers touch and providing characters to another program which does the checking and prediction?

In most android keyboards, the keyboard app has its own dictionary and language packs. It records the language in the keyboard's data base. Spelling correction and predictive text depends on the language data, the script of the language that was selected and your most used words and sentences. It remembers your sentences or any new words that you type and try to help you complete your sentence by using the previous record of your conversation or anything.


Tasker: How can I delete a file after a month Is there a way to delete all files in a folder that are over a month old using Tasker?

That's rather a question of shell stuff. See this example shell command:

find /some/dir -ignore_readdir_race -cmin -depth -mindepth 1 -maxdepth 1 -type f +1440 ! -execdir fuser -s {} 2>/dev/null \; -delete

This would delete all files in /some/dir which are older than 1440 minutes (i.e. 24h). Just multiply the 1440 by 30 to get 1 month, and fire the command via a time-based profile.


Redirecting phone's audio to pc through usb So I want to basically redirect my phone's audio to my computer's playback device through USB and not through Bluetooth which is what most posts are seemingly concerned with.

This guy Streaming audio from smartphone to PC without bluetooth asked a similar question about 2 years ago which hasn't really been answered so far so I thought I would bring it up again.

Devices and Os's :

Phone : Samsung Galaxy note 4 under Android 6.0.1
Pc : Windows 10 pro

Download third party software Wondershare MirroGo. It works great (Not promoting).This works only for screen rendering and audio can only be heard in recordings. No direct audio routing.
Some instructions to follow:-
 - You can download Mirror Go from Here
 - After downloading and installing, Enable your phone's USB
    debugging, see here -  How to enable USB Debugging.
 - Simply connect your phone with USB and accept the adb authorization
    request pop-ups on screen and you're done.
Main advantages of this software is that:
 - You can render your phone's screen on Desktop/Laptop.
 - You can play games/movies/songs through MirrorGo.
 - You can control your phone via MirrorGo through Mouse/Keyboard.
 - You can record your screen via MirrorGo during the live view of your phone in your laptop/desktop.
You can Also use MirroGo with MobileGO ( an advanced software to backup your whole phone with one click and tons of features and works for Iphone too).

UPDATED: - (With audio/Video/Images support) Here's a solution using all time favorite media player VLC.It doesn't work with USB (sorry for this) but It works great with a local network. you can either create hotspot of your phone and connnect your lap/desk with it or you can connect both the devices to a same network.It's the best fluent method out there and It works for Audio/Video/Images.
So here's the method:

Download this apk in your phone and install it. I have decompiled it
without ads for easy use.
Connect your pc and phone with the same network or connect your pc to
your phone's hotspot.
Download this VLCdirect.bat file and Run it as Administrator.
Write click VLC, select properties and in target paste this --http-password=vlcdirect
after the location which is like this
"C:\Program Files\VideoLAN\VLC\vlc.exe"
.Note that there's a space between " and --.
Open VLC and enable Web interface, see this image.
Open the app and click done and skip everything as you would be done
with all those steps if you're on this step.
Now you're all set. Play anything through the app and you'll see it in PC's VLC without buffering. It really works fast.
Two points to note:
Usually .bat files contain the virus but it's secure. you can verify
it by right-clicking the .bat file and click on edit and see
yourself.
You don't have to do all this everytime. Just click on Web interface
in pc's VLC.


How to import Facebook Birthdays to get merge with Android Contacts? Apparently importing Facebook contacts to Android contacts is straight forward procedure by just checking sync option in Accounts and Settings, but is it possible to have birthday info imported from Facebook and merged with Android contacts.

PS: I was able to import FB birthdays imported to Google Calendar but that didn't help as the birthdays will just remain in calendar and not in Contacts.

If you sync your contacts with Google than you can add a special calendar. That you can only do on the web interface.

Select Settings | Calendar settings in Google Calendar.
Go to the Calendars tab.
Follow the Browse interesting calendars » link under Other Calendars.
Open the More tab.
Click Subscribe for Contacts' birthdays and events.

Now after syncing the events will show up in the calendar app.


“Unauthorized actions have been detected. Restart your phone to undo any unauthorized changes.” notification on Samsung device I have a new Samsung Galaxy A3 that keeps on giving me a security notice saying

  Unauthorized actions have been detected. Restart your phone to undo any unauthorized changes.

How do I stop receiving these notices?

Direct-copy from Samsung Knox official support:

My device displayed the notification: “Unauthorized actions have been detected. Restart your phone to undo any unauthorized changes.” What do I do?
During regular security checks of the Linux kernel, the system has detected that the kernel has been modified. Possible causes:

You may have installed a malicious or flawed app, which attempted to modify the kernel code or file system
You may have accidentally removed or modified a system file.

One of these messages will appear: "To protect your device. It is recommended you reboot." or "The device has detected an application attempting to perform actions that are not permitted. It is recommended that you restart your device."
Restart your device to try to restore the kernel code back to normal. However, some kernel modifications made to the file system cannot be restored. Also, the original cause of the problem might still persist. Therefore, you might continue to see this error after the reboot.
If issues continue to persist, contact the Global Customer Support center and provide details of the error.

It's suggested that restarting the device may fix the issue, but not always (and since you mentioned "keeps on", it seems this didn't fix the issue). So, you have some alternatives:

Contact their customer support and explain it (as recommended by Samsung)
If your device is still under warranty (assuming you really didn't do anything to the device), consider to request for device replacement.
If there is no other choice, try doing factory reset and see if it helps. Otherwise, you might need to reflash it with stock ROM & working kernel.


How to mark an app to check the price variation It sometimes happened that some app has a discount price (christmas - black friday), it is possible to check the  price trend during the past?

Mayve the bookmarked app

It could be useful to decide if buy an app that is not strictly necessary

You can check the app on AppBrain, which provides an alternative frontend to Google Play. Their app pages a.o. feature a history section. On the example of aCalendar+:

App history (source: AppBrain; click image for larger variant)

As the screenshot shows, you get a price history along with the changelog (right part) if the app was paid – and you also get a rating history (left part).


Apk Security on Automatic date and time Is there any way to "mock" the Android date and time even while the option "automatic date and time" is turned on?

The reason I'm asking for such information is that my new app will have to operate offline while still being safe, thus I would need to know the "work arounds" in order to block/prevent the change of date and time even when checking for "automatic date and time" returns true

It's possible on a rooted device with Xposed module Per app hacking

  Allow set a fake time to fake an app to a specific time just like time machine. Time format is YYYY-MM-DD HH:MI


Saved my contacts in google account but they don't appear on my new phone I have saved my all contacts to my Google account. But now in my new phone my contacts are not showing.

Ensure the following settings.

Your device sync is turned ON
Contacts are visible in Google Contacts web
Ensure Settings > Accounts > (your account) > (contact sync) toggle is ON
In Contacts app > Options > Contacts to display check whether Google account (youraccount@gmail.com) is checked.