Is there a way for a blind user to find the TalkBack tutorial? How can someone unable to see find and go through the TalkBack tutorial available on an Android device?

In theory when a blind user first starts up the phone they have the option to start talk back.  When it is turned on at start up, the tutorial automatically starts.

This option is available for devices running Android 4.0 and above.
When you first turn on your Android device, you can enable TalkBack from the initial setup screen.
Source

In reality sighted assistance should be considered a requirement for initial start up.
Assuming a blind user, who is key board dependent, with no previous mouse or touch screen experience. I suggest this process.

Sighted assistant completes initial set up, with feedback from blind user on desired options.

Both 'talk back' and 'explore by touch' should be activated. (sighted assistant completes tutorial)

Sighted assistant should become familiar with gestures.  Combining 'talk back' and 'explore by touch' create gesture combinations that are unique and different from neither or only 'talk back' being active.

Many of the gestures on a touch screen are easily grasped by users with mouse experience.  To users with primarily keyboard experience they will be unfamiliar.  Before starting the tutorial, give the blind user time to practice on the home screen, and get used to it.

Once the blind user has a basic grasp of moving around on the touch screen the tutorial can be accessed in the Accessibility menu.

With some experience the blind user will be able to re-access the tutorial without assistance. I think there is a only a small window of time when a blind user can access the the tutorial without assistance and will still get value from it.  For the most part consider sighted assistance for initial training a requirement.


Can a virus/spyware install itself on a system partition remotely? If I install malicious app accidentally can it copy itself onto the system partition? Or if a hacker gains access to my phone remotely can he install spyware onto the system partition?

I have read that malicious apps installed on system partition cannot be removed by factory reset or wiping the cache and the only way to remove them is by flashing the original firmware. Is this correct?

If possible then how can I prevent an unwanted software installing or being installed permanently?

Yes, under certain circumstances it is possible to install software remotely on your system partition. And yes, once a software is installed on the system partition it is immune to a factory reset, as the factory reset never changes the system partition.

However for doing so your device must be vulnerable to an exploit that allows to modify the system partition, as this is normally not possible from within a normal app.

Consider the two scenarios which are common ways to infect your device:

You install an app that contains malicious code that uses an exploit to temporary root your device and then installs itself onto the system partition.
You are surfing the web using a browser that has a vulnerability. You end up on a web site that exploits the vulnerability of your browser to download malicious code into browser. Afterwards the code additionally exploits your system similar to the first infection variant.

If you don't want to be affected by malicious code that installs itself permanently onto your device there are some basic guidelines:

Don't download apps from the internet or other untrusted app stores.
Or even better, don't install apps you don't know.
Always install the updates for your favorite webbrowser app(s).
Use a device that regularity gets security updates from the vendor (the more often the better, for some devices there are security updates monthly). Hopefully this allows you to fix the security problems before an malicious app can use it.
Don't use a device that no longer receives security updates. If your device is no longer supported I would recommend to to root/unlock the device and install a recent version of LineageOS. Of course this usually means that you should consider this when buying a device (possibility of unlocking plus supported by LineageOS).


How to differentiate between a full signal icon and an empty signal icon on my Andriod Device? My question is not a duplicate of this post as in that the OP is asking for the difference between the network icons for a rooted device  whereas mine is for mobile signal icons in an un-rooted device.

Mine is a Samsung trend  phone with Android 4.1.2.Every time i check my phone for any signals it shows full but in the notification tab(the area displaying the network name) displays no network.

When there is 1 bar and not greyed out i am able to receive messages but when it's full with a surrounding grey box there is again no network and some times it also display's a small triangle with an exclamatory symbol in it when the phone signal is completely empty bars.

I am confused and unable to differentiate how does Android 4.1.2 display the different availability of phone signal icons.(i.e. No signal,Full signal, etc)

Note:-I would be adding the screen shots of the device shortly .

The "no network" in the notification tray doesn't mean there's no signal: it means your phone isn't allowed to use the network it's connected to. For instance, this might happen if there's no SIM card. In this case, your phone's not allowed to make normal phone calls, because it can't identify you as a customer, but it still connects to the network and can make emergency calls.

It might also happen in an area where your operator has no coverage, but there is another phone network there. Again, you can't use it because you're not their customer, but your phone can connect to the network and make emergency calls.


Android system Webview installed but not used by apps I downloaded and installed the latest version of android system WebView from the app store on my android tablet (running 5.0.2).

But apps still go on using the old webview version (39.0.0.0).

How can I get them to switch ?

For info, I've tried disabling the old one, and it get re-enabled when I open an app that uses webview.

You can't change this without root.

The system framework is hard-coded to use a specific package for applications that request a WebView component. By default (in AOSP) it uses the value com.android.webview, which is the version that is compiled during the AOSP build process. On devices from manufacturers that modify this component, the package name may differ. Regardless, in order to replace the WebView that shipped with your device, you have to modify this value to instead be com.google.android.webview.

The "by hand" way of doing this would be to pull the framework-res.apk file from your device, de-compile it, and change the value of the config_webViewPackageName resource variable. It should be located at /res/values/strings.xml within the .apk. Once you've done this, you would need to re-package everything and push the new .apk to your device, replacing the old one.

An alternative method that you can attempt is to install the Xposed framework and then use the WebViewGoogle module. If you use a custom ROM, you may also be able to find a package that will permanently modify the necessary framework components (or it may be built to use Google's WebView by default).

My hypothesis would be that this restriction exists in part because the system relies on a WebView implementation existing in some form, so if it could be modified by a user it could break the system in odd ways. There would also be security implications to allowing apps to override the system WebView, such as a bad-actor attempting to provide a malicious one without the user knowing.

As a point of further explanation: the reason the System WebView is available in the Play Store to begin with is that Nexus devices (and possibly others) ship with it pre-installed, and configured to use it. It is, in effect, the system WebView for those devices.Thus, Google is able to provide WebView updates for these devices via the Play Store so that full system OTAs are not necessary just to update the browser/WebView. There are other components that Google has migrated to Play Store updating in a similar fashion, with the reasoning essentially being that it is faster. Phone and Contacts were two of the more recent ones, with the linked article providing some additional detail regarding why Google has taken this approach.


Galaxy S4 video problem I've bought S4 yesterday.

Everything works great except recorded video or Youtube video starts to flicker/artifacts, green lines appears and eventually the video stops.

I've tried installing Nexus camera but that didn't work either.

Also when i play videos that are from my PC it works normally, no flicker or artifacts appears.

Tested for dead pixels but there is none:

Increased brightness to the max
Installed a free app called Dead Pixel Test by UJACHA from Google Play
Cycled through the colors and inspected the screen.

Here's the screenshots when playing youtube:

Dummy recording is here

Should i return the cell and demand a new one?

I'm returning it today because the video is non-watchable, contains flicker and artifacts obviously it's from a bad batch (defective units out of the box, april 2013). At least I've tested it and saw artifacts when casting YouTube video to Google Chromecast.


How to restore GBWhatsApp chats & media from Google drive, when you've forgotten the email address you used to back up My GBWHATSAPP became obsolete & I couldn't access it anymore to be able to do a proper backup and it was equally challenging to update it directly from the app.
 After several trials, I uninstalled it and installed a different version I downloaded from a site on the internet. Now, the challenge is to restore my data. When tab on RESTORE they b tell me "No backup in my SD card".
I checked in my Google drive, but couldn't find the backup. I've attached a picture to show the backup that is shown there. It's an old (as of Oct 2018) & the phone backup.
How do I restore my data, please? I really don't want to lose it.

Your problems is challenging,hence why no ones brave enough to reply..i might gives 100% wrong advice here,but give me a try.

I just stupidly removed my gbwhatsapp because i wanted to download a new version(the antiban 7.0.0) but it says no backup in sd cards,and i freaked out because i love to keep my messages,went through some indian vids(lol) and found the answers,not like i know indian language anyway

*This is from gbwhatsapp to official whatsapp,but i believe the process is the same as its all located in your phone data

The trick here is you just have to transfer your gbwhatsapp database folder/files to your normal whatsapp folder,but i will give the steps

Following the instructions

1.Download the normal whatsapp,restore it like usual,and then backup it like normal in the chat backup.

At this point,you will only see your OLD chat that you last saved using the official whatsapp before going to gbwhatsapp

2.Go to your local files in your phone,find gbwhatsapp file>database and find your LAST backup chat( if its the only folder,thats the one..but if it has like 10 folders,the bottom one is your last backup)..mine is called msgstore.db.crypt12

3.Copy/move(copy is preferable) that folder to whatsapp>database

4.Go to apps>whatsapp>clear data
and then verify your number like usual
Then all your chats that you last backup in gbwhatsapp will be restored..

If you need vids help,search how to backup gbwhatsapp messages to normal messages working 100% by AB Tech in youtube

I believe you could do the same if you wanted to keep using gbwhatsapp..just transfer your old gbwhatsapp database to the new one,and the problems would be solved..this is theoretically,as i have never done it

I dont like using the gbwhatsapp anymore as it risks me losing all my backup data as it was not saved through google drive,it was saved only in your local files..so if you lose your phone and didnt backup all your files,you lose all your backup you made with gbwhatsapp..sure its no problemo if you backup your files into pc by using hisuite/samsung suite/sony suite whatever brand,but i prefer it being stored in google drive(cloud)

*just wanna inform you that the gbwhatsapp backup is not saved into google drive,only into the internal files of your phone,so you can really screw yourself there

hope that helps,and sorry if its a bit long...


Display other calendars in calendar app In my google calendar I created some new calendars. How do I get them to show in my "Calendar" app on Android? I'm using the stock one.

This answer applies to 4.4 (Kit Kat) and "Calendar" version 201404xxx. Although I am guessing it will apply to most other versions.

When I click on the menu in the Calendar app I have two options that may be relevant

1: "Calendars to display". I can choose from all the calendars connected to my various accounts including shared calendars and birthdays etc...

2: "Settings". I have the ability to add new accounts


is it possible to get location via a cellular network if the device doesnt have a data plan? is it possible to get location via a cellular network if the device doesnt have a data plan?

or does it need a data plan to be able to get location via a cellular network?

is a data plan needed to get location via a cellular network?

Yes, that is possible without a data connection by e.g. using UnifiedNLP and a corresponding location provider. I e.g. use the LocalGsmNlpBackend, which downloads a selection of the OpenCellId database (for the area I need) to the device for local usage. That database contains the positions of cell towers. As you are booked into at least one of those, your coarse location can be estimated. Add another location provider which is e.g. WiFi based for more accuracy if you wish. Apart from downloading the data (preferably while connected to your home WiFi), this works completely without a data connection.

Make sure you pick the correct UnifiedNLP package, depending on whether your device has the Google framework installed (stock ROM usually has this, or if you use a custom ROM but have GApps installed) or use a custom ROM without GApps.

For a more detailed description, please see my article Android without Google: microG, which discusses the variant on a device without Google framework.


Enter recovery mode from command line Does anyone know if there's a way to get an Android phone to reboot into recovery mode, from the Android command line?

Note:

I do NOT have adb access.

I do NOT know the magic power-on sequence to do it from the boot loader. I've tried the common things and nothing works.

I DO have root. (And can enter commands directly on the device using a terminal emulator.)

I know it's possible, somehow, because applications like ROM Manager do it. But how?

Generally, reboot binary provides a recovery switch. After switching to root, execute this command:

/system/bin/reboot recovery

This may not work if your manufacturer doesn't support it. ROM Manager type apps uses API of Android which you can't access via Terminal Emulator directly.


Stop GMS Firebase Indexing from collecting all of the personal data When I was playing with settings on my Nokia 6.1 Plus running a stock ROM Android 10 with bootloader unlocked and rooted with Magisk v21+, I noticed that Firebase App Indexing that comes under Google Account Preferences was collecting all of my personal data. Of course, GMS was the culprit.
Here's the proof: This was the message that I received from the bank for the transaction that I made yesterday.

Every message that I sent and received had been collected in this given format. Also, many apps that use Firebase API sent these kinds of information.
I'm a guy who thinks about user privacy all-day, so I've used:

Nuked_Script Magisk script that is used to disable trackers and ad services.
AFWall+ for Firewall (root).
Bouncer - Temporary App Permissions.
AdAway for nullifying ads (root) - ads on Gmail, Twitter, Instagram still exist though
Bromite webview and browser (Webview Switcher module).

When I turned the developer options off, Firebase App Indexing options also turned off (I mean hidden). So, does it mean that it stopped collecting my data? I still doubt that.
How can I stop this from happening?
P.S: I'm used to using Google Apps. But I don't want to give them such personal data.

You can add stronger measures , since your device is rooted

First is Xprivacy Lua which does an excellent job of protecting your privacy and also Firebase Analytics amongst other trackers (XPrivacyLua needs EdXposed. For EdXposed installation on 10, see How to install EdXposed on Android 10 without triggering safety net)

Next, download Warden App from F-droid or Izzy's repo. It is specifically aimed at killing trackers and loggers (with a few exceptions). You can selectively use the app to work on your apps or apps plus system.

By turning developer options off, you are only hiding what's happening w.r.t Firebase.
In addition, see answer here How can I make an Android app "forget" that it installed on my phone before?


Boot between different ROMs - OnePlus 2 I have an OnePlus Two and I'm currently running stock OxygenOS. I would like to try a beta CM12.1 build without having to delete my data and to be able to boot between the two until the CM build would be stable or suitable for me to use rather than Oxygen. Is there an app that flashes the other ROM and boots to it ? How do you actually do it ?

I managed to boot between ROMs using DualBoot Patcher.I am running OxygenOS as my daily driver and CyanogenMod 12.1 by Grarak

How to do it:

Download and install the latest .apk for  DualBoot Patcher
Open the app and go to Patch Zip File and select the cm.zip file you downloaded
At Partition configuration tap Data slot and enter a Data Slot ID (it can be a number or a word)
Tap again to patch the file
Do the same thing with gapps.zip file and supersu.zip (if you want root access)
Go to ROMs and tap the pink FAB button (the pink button in the right corner)
It will tell you that the feature is experimental, tap ok and then tap the pink FAB button and select the patched zip files in THIS ORDER: 1. cm.zip, 2. gapps.zip, 3. supersu.zip
Tap the tick in the top right corner
Let it do it's flashing and then go back to ROMs and then you should see the CM build on the ROMs list alongside the stock OS
Tap on it and it should get a green tick next to the picture
Reboot the phone and then it should boot into CM

To get back to the other OS you will need to get to the folder you downloaded "DualBoot Patcher.apk" and install it. Then go to ROMs and select the other ROM and then reboot.

To change the OS from Recovery Mode you can get "Dual Boot Patcher Utilities" zip from here. Select "Utilities" instead of Android. Flash it and it should bring a menu where you can select which ROM to boot to.

If you have any questions leave a comment :)


How do you move an app from the internal sd card to the external sd card Can someone answer my problem? I have a digital2 deluxe II tablet containing an internal storage of 1.97 gb and an internal sd card of 3.74 gb and it's kinda full and my problem is I have an external sd card of 32 gb and everytime I press move to sd card it moves the app to the internal and I can't move it to the external sd and it's kinda annoying can somebody help? Note: no rooting please

Moving applications to your external SD card is not possible anymore because Android has changed i's way of managing storage. Your internal storage is now your SD card and your external one is a different, second SD card.

If you'd like to move apps to your external SD card then you have to manually change your external SD's mount point and swap it with the internal one.
Of course this requires you to root your phone.


How to make Bluetooth tethering work? I have a Samsung Galaxy S4 (Lollipop) and a Visual Elite Prestige 10Q tablet (Kit-Kat rooted with KingRoot), and I'd like to be able to use Bluetooth tethering to let the tablet share the phone's data connection.  Wifi tethering works fine, but it creates a heavy draw on the phone's battery to run both the cellular and wifi radio systems; as I understand it, Bluetooth uses much less battery than wifi (less power required to transmit, hence the shorter range).

Unfortunately, even though I went through the process in this answer the tablet was unable to see the internet connection via the phone.  The two devices are paired, and I've used the phone's Bluetooth for months to play music in my car.  How can I trouble shoot this and get the connection working?

As noted, the other question linked in the question above is very similar, but for older versions of Android.  I did finally manage to connect my phone and tablet after finding android weasel's answer to this question.  Apparently, the prompts and status messages are poorly designed, but once I understood what I was supposed to see, I got the connection working.  Now, I can tether my tablet to my phone in under a minute, and use the larger screen and keyboard online anywhere I have cell service.


How can I get the LogCat before my phone restarts? Recently my phone keeps on restarting randomly through the day, and I would like to trace what is the cause for that.

I tried this app https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.jtb.alogrec but it doesn't seem to work in Android 6 (It creates the file but it doesn't write anything)

Any ideas on how can I get the logcat or how can I identify the problem?

If the reboots are caused by kernel panics (sometimes the case), you can get the last_kmsg file. It's located at /proc/last_kmsg. This file gets reset every time you restart your phone, so you'll have to grab it soon after a reboot.

Look at the bottom of the file to see why the phone is rebooting. If it's a normal shutdown from an app, it may point to the app that initiated the shutdown. If it's a kernel panic, hopefully it'll tell you what's happening.


What percentage of Android devices have BLE support? Just asking for a bit of data, as I couldn't find it anywhere. Useful to know whether to develop for BLE or Bluetooth. How about percentage over time as well?

Android has started supporting BLE from version 4.3 onwards. I guess all the android phones that now comes with Android 4.3 or above out of the box will be having BLE support in both hardware and software. Decide on which technology to use based on your application! If its some control application, and you don't have any end user who is still on devices that has stopped android updates beyond 4.0, go for BLE else BT classic will be your best bet.


Disable device lock when pressing Gnex power button When I press the power button on my Galaxy Nexus to turn off the screen, it immediately locks the phone, and I have to enter my code the next time I turn the screen back on.  However, if I let the screen timeout and turn itself off, I don't have to enter my code when I turn it back on.

This is highly annoying.  I'd prefer the device to only lock after a period of inactivity.  What's the best way to make that happen?

Stock ICS and Jelly Bean already support this option.  Go to Settings > Security and uncheck the Power button instantly locks option.  Now, your phone will lock only after the desired period of inactivity.

Note, you may have to set the Automatically lock option to something other than "Instantly" in order to get the delayed lock.


Galaxy S6 settings widget I want to add a shortcut to the tethering/mobile hotspot setting, but I can't find the settings widget. Does this not exists? Is there a way to add it to the quick settings (swipe down from top)?

The best solution I could come up with was to install Power Toggles, and add a shortcut to my homescreen. From unlocked, this is 1 tap. And if locked, because I use fingerprint unlock, it's hardly more than 1 tap anyway.

I can't use root because this is a work-supplied phone, and some required software won't work if the phone is rooted.


My Samsung Galaxy S2 keeps saying not registered on network when I try to phone My Samsung Galaxy  S2 keeps saying not registered on network when I try to phone also a no entry sign where the signal bars should be keeps randomly appearing.

Does anyone know how to fix it or whats happening?

It sounds like you may need to reset your APN settings, Your phone will be slightly different than mine, I'm using a Nexus 4.  Try locating the following:

Settings -> Wireless & Networks -> Mobile Networks -> Access Point Names -> and from there locate the "Reset to default" option.

If that doesn't work, you can backup your device, and factory reset it.


Does my battery seriously have a problem or do I have a virus? This notification keeps popping up on my phone and I don't know if it's real or not, it reads:

"Battery has been infected by 6 serious problem! Install DU Battery and all problems will be wiped out."

It's a virus/maleware.

Sources that describe very similar situations:

http://forums.androidcentral.com/ask-question/658156-apus-du-battery-saver-virus.html

https://productforums.google.com/forum/#!topic/nexus/7XbiK-frhVA

It sounds like it's actually a really old scam (this may be a newer variant of it)  Here's a story from 2011 that sounds like the same issue:

http://www.pcworld.com/article/241967/sleazy_ads_on_android_devices_push_bogus_battery_upgrade_warnings.html


Phone keeps restarting / shutting down randomly is there any logging to help debugging Sometimes my Samsung Europa restarts itself when it's on standby.

Does Android have any logging which I can access to see what caused the restart?

I have installed a few apps from the Android app market and some games. Haven't installed anything that I've developed myself.

You can install "Log Collector" from the android market, it's free. It can email the logcat to an email address. I am not sure whether the log clears or not if there is a reboot though. You should be able to see something in there regardless.


Are there any legitimate ways to watch NFL season on Android without cable/satellite subscription? Are there any effective ways to watch NFL games (preferably live) on Android devices this coming season?  Ideally, they'd be available in high resolution and streaming, but what options are available?  I know there is a DirecTV app, but it seems to require having a DirecTV subscription, which many do not have.

The NFL keeps a tight rein on its broadcast rights. Further, the outfits that ponied up those huge payments for those rights are not going to be happy if there is a cheaper alternative. So, no, there is not going to be a way to watch live NFL games without subscribing to cable or satellite.

If you're okay with watching games after the fact and you have an Android tablet, there's Game Rewind.

Things may be different outside the U.S. Using a proxy to bypass such limitations skirts the edge of legitimacy (in my opinion).


My SGS cell headphone's button doesn't work, what should I do? My wired headphones, the ones supplied by samsung with the Galaxy S, button doesn't answer calls, open music player, play a track, or even pause tracks. But when I downloaded the trial version of powerAMP, the button interacted only with the app. What should I do to make it work with the whole android again?

Mind that I'm running samsung's froyo on a rooted galaxy S handset.

According to this thread you aren't alone:

  Poweramp hijacks the headset
  controls(wired & BT) from all my other
  media players... I use headset
  controls with the stock mp3 player,
  pandora, xiialive, & fm radio.. they
  all surrender the headset controls
  when not in use, but when I bring
  poweramp in the mix the headset
  controls only work with poweramp.. I
  went into the headset options in
  poweramp and disabled everything, that
  stops the controls in poweramp, BUT
  doesn't restore the headset controls
  to the other players when I want to
  use them...

but according to the last post by the dev this should fix it assuming you are running latest version (uninstalling would probably restore control as well):

  Not exactly. I've made today a
  workaround I mentioned above - so
  unchecking Headset Buttons option in
  PowerAMP now should properly redirect
  next button presses to other players
  (applies to 2.2 only). This will be
  included in next minor release, coming
  beginning of the next week.

  Thanks for the report again.


Restore Android 6 on Moto G (2nd Gen) without adb? After trying to root my Moto G (xt1068) and getting stuck in a boot loop, I tried to restore a functioning version of Android and I got stuck in the middle with a re-locked bootloader because I followed an instruction online that seemed to work for some people (...).
So, now the bootloader is locked, the device only boots into fastboot, and has no proper system image installed right now. I cannot access adb because I cannot re-activate USB debugging. Is there any way at all to get this one back to work or did I completely destroy it? I can look up the link to the advice I followed for 'restoring' my device, if that helps.
I am using a Mac but I have access to a Windows 7 PC if necessary. Any advice or help would be highly appreciated, thanks in advance!
EDIT 29.10.16:
I have found a German version of the Moto G (2014) Marshmallow stock ROM, but it still does not solve the problem. The version is

titan_retde-user 6.0 MPB24.65-34 31 release-keysMSM8626BP_1032.3116.99.00R

Upon trying to flash boot or recovery, the phone itself says "version downgraded for recovery" and the terminal gives me the following result:

target max-sparse-size: 256MB
sending 'recovery' (10280 KB)...
OKAY [  0.349s]
writing 'recovery'...
(bootloader) Preflash validation failed
FAILED (remote failure)
finished. total time: 0.772s

Does that mean that the version I tried was also not the current one? I was not aware that there was anything newer than Android 6.0 for the Moto G, but I will look for more possible ROMs to try. If you have any further advice, I would definitely appreciate it!
Older Update:
I had initially used TWRP in the unlocking/rooting process, and it used to work when I first got stuck in the boot loop. Now, I tried 'fastboot boot twrp.img', which did not work ' FAILED (remote failure)', and I tried flashing TWRP again by using ' fastboot flash recovery twrp.img' and I got the following response in terminal:
(bootloader) has-slot:recovery: not found
target reported max download size of 536870912 bytes
sending 'recovery' (8092 KB)...
OKAY [  0.294s]
writing 'recovery'...
(bootloader) Battery Low!!
FAILED (remote failure)
finished. total time: 0.343s
This did not work, as pointed out below. I then tried the further suggestion to flash the bootloader and the gpt. I used the following commands:

fastboot flash partition gpt.bin
fastboot flash motoboot motoboot.img
fastboot flash logo logo.bin
fastboot flash boot boot.img

Upon the last command, I got the following error message:

(bootloader) has-slot:boot: not found
target reported max download size of 536870912 bytes
sending 'boot' (10200 KB)...
OKAY [  0.342s]
writing 'boot'...
(bootloader) Preflash validation failed
FAILED (remote failure)
finished. total time: 0.781s

The device screen gave me this information:

getvar:has-slot-boot
getvar:partition-type:boot
getvar-max-download-size
download:009£6000
flash:boot
hab check failed for boot
failed to verify hab image boot

Does any of that make sense? I am using the following version of the software:

SW Version: titan_retbr_ds-user 6.0 MPB24.65-34-3 3 release-keysMSM8626BP_1032.3116.99.00R

EDIT:
I tried another version of the Android 6.0 stock image (I got this one through the xda link: http://forum.xda-developers.com/moto-g-2014/general/official-stock-firmware-t3018682) and I got the same result:

SW Version: titan_retbr_ds-user 6.0 MPB24.65-34 32 release-keysMSM8626BP_1032.3116.99.00R

I thought this was the most current version, isn't it? I had updated to Marshmallow when the update was available, and (if that is pertinent info) I have a German Moto G.

The solution was to re-open the bootloader. It is possible to unlock it again by using the code provided by Motorola and the same command I used for unlocking the bootloader in the first place. I did not know it was possible to do that until a friendly person pointed it out to me. After that, I was able to (almost) effortlessly flash a stock ROM, and then (just for trying how it works) CyanogenMod 13.

Thanks for your assistance on this!


How to get text messages off phone with broken screen I would like to access and transfer text messages from an Xperia E to a new phone. I've found several applications that appear to let me do so, but all of them require USB Debugging to be on. Since the screen is broken (but I do still have touch functionality as far as I can tell) I have no idea how to turn this feature on.

All questions about the USB debugging issue get closed and redirected to an existing question that doesn't help me, so I'm hoping that there is some way to get the texts without the need for USB debugging.

If you still have touch functionality, you may be able to export the texts right from the app. (If your texting app has that functionality.)

In terms of USB debugging, if you are not seeing the "Developer Options" choice, you may need to go to settings > about phone, then find "Build Number" and tap it multiple times, until it says you are a developer.

If you really can't get USB debugging on, I would recommend Avast Mobile Backup, it will backup my SMS messages without USB debugging.

Hope this helps and good luck.


What's maximum of bookmark and history in defaut browser in Android A few days ago I viewed a site that I now want to go back to. However I can't find it in my history. I can't remember the exact day, hence my question about how long this is kept.

It only limited to your phones internal memory


How do I check tcp packets when they were blocked by droidwall? I'm using cyanogenmod's rom with droidwall activated with whitelist mode, and nothing checked.

I've seen some strange ips being called, and droidwall blocking them. I wan to analyse these packets. Which is the best way?

PS: I dont have Android Market installed.

Cyanogenmod has tcpdump installed. You can run it from the shell, just make sure you select the correct interface:

  tcpdump -i tiwlan0 -vv

Or, you can write the dump to a file on your sdcard, and analyze it with Wireshark on your desktop later:

  tcpdump -i tiwlan0 -w /mnt/sdcard/tcpdump.out

There is also software like Shark for Root, which will capture the packets like tcpdump (it requires root, but does not require tcpdump, which is available on my Cyanogenmod 7.1, but I'm not sure if it is available in all versions of Cyanogenmod).


How can I reset the default app for opening email attachments? Every time I try to open an attachment from emails from a specific person it goes to Stumble Upon.  I think I clicked Stumble Upon and "Always" once, and now I can't undo it.  How can I stop this?

You need to clear the "Launch by default" setting for StumbleUpon.

Open up your phone settings, then go to Applications.

Look for the StumbleUpon app, and click on it. Here is where you can do things such as uninstall/disable the app, clear the data, etc.

One of the options is to Clear defaults. This is the option you need to run. It will restore the app-selection menu for any actions where you set StumbleUpon to be the default handler.


Do Verizon 4g phones degrade to 3g when 4g is not available? I'm thinking about getting a Verizon Android 4G phone. But I have a question about how 4G works...

4G is supported in my city, however if I move into a part of the city where 4G isn't covered or it's spotty, does the phone degrade to 3G service (assuming that is available)?  Or does it degrade all the way down to normal slow cell service (the same service you get when 3G isn't available)?

I will say yes, but, that answer doesn't necessarily hold true 100% of the time. It really depends on the bands that the device supports.

On the device spec sheets you will usually see something like this:

  800/1900/700

These are the bands that the device will operate on. I pulled these numbers from the Droid Bionic. From that spec sheet, it goes even further and shows that it supports EV-DO rev.A (CDMA/3G), and LTE (4G). So this phone does support Verizon's 3G & 4G networks, which means that if 4G is not avaialble, then it will fall back to the CDMA data network (which is what the device will uses for Voice even when data uses LTE.

The same rules apply for GSM networks like AT&T and T-Mobile. The device spec sheet will say what bands the device can operate on, and if the carrier's network operates within that band, then the phone will work. This is why iPhone users can use unlocked AT&T iPhones on T-Mobile's network, but they only can get EDGE data. This is because the iPhone does not support the band that T-mobile uses for its UMTS/HSPA/HSPA+ (3G/4G) data networks.

T-mobile bands:

850/1900 (GSM/GPRS/EDGE)
1700/2100 (UMTS/HSPA)

AT&T bands:

850/1900 (GSM/GPRS/EDGE)
580/1900 (UMTS/HSPA) (3G)
700 (LTE) (4G)

Verizon bands:

800/1900 (CMDA/EV-DO) (3G)
700 (LTE) (4G)

Sprint doesn't know if they want to use LTE or WiMax so I am not listing their bands.


How to remove all icons from the Android home screen at once? I am cleaning some old Samsung Galaxy S2 with Android 2.3.4. Some application added shortcuts on the home screen:

Uncleaned:

Cleaned:

Is there any way to remove all icons from the Android home screen at once?

I know that I can remove icons one by one by tap, hold and drag the icon to delete:

but it is a bit tedious (I have several screens to clean) and I want to remove all icons at once.

Ideally, I don't want to clean all the screens but only one.

Your situation is due to the Auto add widget due to which when ever you install an app it wall automatically add an widget on your home screen thereby increasing the home screen count also.

I will first solve your home screen problem and below I will also give a screen shot where the problem can be solved for the future also.

The below steps is easy to follow and requires some patience to clean the clutter.

There are two ways to clean a home screen in any Android device.

Option 1 will help you clean your home screen through the apps available in the play store.

Option 1

Download any launcher which suites your requirement like GO Launcher  from the play store and clean the home screen as per your requirements from the settings.

If you don't want any hassle of any more apps then go for Option 2

Option 2

Step1-Do a normal zoom out in home screen (or) From home screen page, press the Option button, then click Edit  and it will display all the home screens and their content.

Step2-Either click on remove and remove all the home screens except for 1 or you will be getting a small minus (-) symbol right side corner of the home screen. Click on the minus and remove it.

Step3-If you have followed the above 2 steps correctly then you will be getting a single home screen from which you can easily delete the widgets(it solved your problem of deleting around 84 widgets and brings the count to only 12 with just a single home screen).

Step4-Under the Play store settings uncheck the auto add widget in order to ensure you do not face the problem in the future.


Use rooted android to capture all traffic on wan using monitor/promiscuous mode Before I begin, I've searched quite a lot and haven't been able to find exactly what I'm looking for.

I have a rooted Nexus 5 with Kali Nethunter installed.
It's very easy to capture all network traffic from my phone, however I would like to capture it using monitor/promiscuous mode. In other words, simply the traffic of anyone who is connected to my internet using my phone

So far, I've only been able to see what my own network activity, so is it possible to capture, let's say my laptop's network traffic using my phone if they're on the same network.

And by this, I don't mean to create a hotspot on my phone, make my laptop connect to it and capture it then.

hope I've made it clear enough.

Edit

My question isn't limited to Nexus 5. Any android supported phone which may be able to achieve this could work.

Any android device

Cyanogenmod provides you with an option to build your own Cyanogen-build and integrated kernel building. With this you can compile an compatible kernel for your phone with desirable features. Here's a post that walks you through the process.

R̲e̲qu̲i̲r̲e̲m̲e̲n̲t̲s̲:
Linux machine
USB cable
familiarity with basic commands

For Nexus 5

Approach 1:

Kali NetHunter won't allow you to use inbuilt WiFi card to perform packet capture.
Moreover most mobile WiFi cards does not support promiscuous/monitor mode.
You need to use external WiFi card(such as Alfa card/Tp-link Wln722n),
connect to USB OTG on Nexus 5 for packet injection, then you're all set.

R̲e̲qu̲i̲r̲e̲m̲e̲n̲t̲s̲:
kali NetHunter
Root previliges
Host-mode support
USB OTG adapter cable
External WiFi card

Approach 2:

No need to install Kali NetHunter/any custom ROM.
Android PCAP capture app lets user to capture WiFi packets.
It is developed by Kismet wireless.
It does not require Root previliges even.

R̲e̲qu̲i̲r̲e̲m̲e̲n̲t̲s̲:
Host-mode support
USB OTG adapter cable
External WiFi card

Other android devices,with Broadcom chipset

There's support only for Broadcom WiFi chipsets from this group.
There's bcmon android app to capture network (works on stock but rooted-android).
Only supported chipset (firmwares) are old BCM4329 and BCM4330 and there's been no development on official bcmon blog since July 2013.
Other firmwares you may have to compile the drivers for it.
You may have to compile the drivers manually for it.
Nexus 7(2012), Samsung galaxy S2 have BCM4330 whose internal wifi is capable of monitor mode.
Also Motorola Xoom, Galaxy Tab, Nexus S, Nexus One have BCM4329 and known to support bcmon.

 Little Experiment

And then I started searching firwares and drivers for Samsung galaxy S2 and started testing with this old phone.


Android driver resets DNS on my Win7 host Few days ago I plugged my android (HTC1) phone to my Win7 machine which never had any network issues.

When I connected, I also made th following change:

  Mobile Hotspot & tethering->USB network Setting->Internet pass through

Even when the phone is disconnected, from time to time, something (new) resets the DNS setting to my phone's IP address.  I reset with ipconfig /renew and it is fine for a while, but eventually flips back.

Update:

Ran wireshark on PC and it looks like the phone is sending DHCP ACKs and announcing itself as the router & DNS server etc.

This can't be a feature, How am I supposed to stop it?

Workaround: I am pretty sure got fixed after I enabled and disabled "Mobile Hotspot"

So while I am answering my own question, I will accept any answer that describes how to disable this faulty behavior


Supersu version difference What difference SuperSU that we download from download.chainfire.eu and www.supersu.com/download ?

Can we rooting using adb sideload from original samsung recovery?
My Device Samsung SM-T211 and SM-T11.

Thanks.

If you want rooting your device download supersu from the official thread on XDA
supersu thread

but if you have android 6.0+ you can install magisk instead magisk thread

You can't root your device with samsung recovery, you have to flash a custom recovery (it avoid the warranty) like TWRP and then you can install supersu/magisk


Change USB connection mode while on Fastboot mode I would like to unlock the bootloader of my Huawei P8 that has Android 6.0 and is not yet rooted.

It is shown as connected to the PC when running "adb devices" before rebooting to Fastboot&Rescue mode but after that I cannot change the USB connection type so that it can be connected to the PC in order to unlock it.

You don't need to change the USB connection type of the device due to whenever you boot into fastboot mode your device connection type will be the needed one.

So if your computer not recognize the device in fastboot mode you have driver(s) issue(s).

Try to reinstall your phone's driver and ADB.


Is it possible to install a ROM from TWRP ADB shell? Let's say I place a rom in /sdcard/. Can I install in the ADB shell through TWRP. For instance, if I

Start up in recovery of TWRP
Type in on the host adb shell

Is there anyway to install /sdcard/rom.zip

The TWRP provides a command line utility called twrp and the official site has a guide to twrp's subcommands of which the command needed is simply install

install FILENAME :

    install FILENAME zip file.

Usage: under adb shell environment, run
twrp install /path/to/rom.zip


Is the Samsung Galaxy S3 interface uglified by Samsung? Some this ago I read this article Seriously, Samsung? This is what you're calling Ice Cream Sandwich?

Is the Galaxy S3 interface Uglified as well, as described in this articles , what about Note?

Samsung apply their TouchWiz interface to all of their flagship "Galaxy" devices, except for the two "Google Nexus" branded devices they have made, and they are likely to carry on doing this for the foreseeable future. The Galaxy SII and Galaxy Note both have TouchWiz.

Whether it's "uglified" or not is a matter of opinion, there are benefits to having a common interface among devices and versions, that doesn't look massively different after an upgrade. Not everyone's a technophile looking for the latest and greatest upgrade, some people just want everything to look and work the same way it used to, just a bit faster and more reliably.


Can I still get caller ID in Gingerbread without having it as a service from my provider? In Gingerbread, Settings > Call settings > Additional settings > Caller ID, there are 3 options available:

Network default
Hide number
Show number

I'm currently paying $5 a month to get caller id.  If I were to cancel that service, will the OS still display the caller?

That option doesn't give or take the ability to see other people callerID, it only let's you choose whether the people you're calling see your callerID or not.


Calendar Agenda view won't stay on today I have the Optimus V.  I use Google calendar for all my calendaring needs.  I'm using the standard Calendar app that came with my phone, build 2.2.1.

I start the Calendar app, and go to Agenda view.  It's scrolled so that yesterday is the top.  Weird, I don't know why I'd care about my agenda for yesterday.  Any normal person would want to see today's agenda plus however much of tomorrow that fits.  So I go to menu->Today.  Now Today is at the top.  So far so good.

Now I go to menu->More->Settings, look at my settings and hit the back button.  Grrrr.  Yesterday is at the top again.  So I go to menu->Today.  Now Today is at the top again.

Now I hit the phone's power button.  Then I hit the power button again and unlock my phone.  Now the top entry in agenda is TWO DAYS ago, and today isn't shown at all.

Is there any way to prevent this extraordinarily irritating behavior?
I want "Today" to always be at the top of agenda view.  Not some completely random day.  Today.  Always Today.

Well, I tried "Business Calendar" which seems a lot less flaky and is free, so I guess the answer is to switch to another Calendar application.


Is there a way to recover a deleted SMS? I deleted an entire SMS thread by mistake from my HTC Wildfire. Is there any way I can retrieve that thread ?

If you use My Backup Pro and have regularly scheduled backups, you can retrieve your SMS messages, provided you've set them to be backed up.

Also see SMS Backup - it allows a user to backup the SMS directly into GMail, so you always have a backup away from your device - no harm even if your device is misplaced / stolen / not working and you need to refer to an SMS in a hurry.


Samsung phone still bricked via FRP after factory reset This is a continuation of this question, but here are the facts: I have a rooted Samsung Galaxy J1 Ace SM-J111F running the stock ROM in Android 5.1.1. I used this XDA-Developers guide to root it. It suddenly got bricked via FRP lock so I tried to unroot it using the stock boot binary.

Here is an Imgur album containing screenshots and images of the phone during the unrooting process.

Description of images:

The phone is set on Download/Odin mode.
Odin is ran as administrator and is loaded with boot-stock.tar provided by this XDA-Developers guide.
The settings of Odin.
This shows that the flash has failed.
The custom binary is blocked by FRP and I have to restart the phone to flash again.

I tried downloading from www.samsung-firmware.com and www.sammobile.com but all downloads have failed. It stops midway and asks for a HTTPS certificate and the archive becomes corrupted between 20 to 70 percent.

I therefore decided to wipe the data using the stock Android system recovery. However, after rebooting it, the binary is still blocked via FRP lock. I've wiped the cache as well.

What caused this issue and how do I solve this?

Be sure that the stock firmware is correct. It should be 1 or a few gigabyte(s) in size.

I've finally unrooted my phone. I used Updato's firmwares (which is the only one that has SM-J111F stock firmwares), specifically SM-J111F with product code XME and its PDA as J111FXXU0AQD2 (J111FXXU0AQD2_J111FOLB0APL2_J111FXXU0AQC2_HOME.tar.md5).


How to stop being visible to others in Whatsapp after deleting my account I have deleted my whatsapp account and application. Still my friends see my account, they believe I am still on and keep sending messages which never reach me. How to delete my account in such a way my friends no longer see me?

According to the this link, It's easy.

Open Whatsapp Application and tap the Menu Button > Settings > Account > Delete my account. Write your number and Delete account.

Important if you delete account:

  Delete your account from WhatsApp.
  Erase your message history.
  Delete you from all of your WhatsApp groups.
  Delete your Google Drive backup.


all android devices on my LAN can ONLY connect to the gateway I have a phone running 2.3 and a tablet running 3.1 on the wireles network along with a bunch of computers. I have a bit of a networking mistery.

Here are the facts:

all the devices can get the the internet.
the non-android devices can all connect to each other.
the android devices can connect to only the gateway not to anything else
none of the other device can ping the android devices.
the tablet can connect to local computers on my work's LAN.

on the phone I see only a route to the local netowrk and a default gateway

ip address:
... many rmnet addresses ...
eth0: <BROADCAST,MULTICAST,UP,LOWER_UP> mtu 1500 qdic pfifo_fast static UP plen 1000
inet/ether 64:a7:69:70:76:7b brd ff:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff
inet 192.168.11.4/24 brd 192.168.11.255 scope global eth0
inet <link local ip6>

on the tablet:

# ip r
192.168.11.1 dev wlan0  scope link
192.168.11.0/24 dev wlan0  proto kernel  scope link  src 192.168.11.6  metric 306
default via 192.168.11.1 dev wlan0
default via 192.168.11.1 dev wlan0  metric 306
#
#
# ip a
1: lo: <LOOPBACK,UP,LOWER_UP> mtu 16436 qdisc noqueue state UNKNOWN
    link/loopback 00:00:00:00:00:00 brd 00:00:00:00:00:00
    inet 127.0.0.1/8 scope host lo
    inet6 ::1/128 scope host
       valid_lft forever preferred_lft forever
2: dummy0: <BROADCAST,NOARP> mtu 1500 qdisc noop state DOWN
    link/ether 42:cf:a5:fd:26:81 brd ff:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff
3: usb0: <BROADCAST,MULTICAST> mtu 1500 qdisc noop state DOWN qlen 1000
    link/ether 1e:2e:a2:c3:16:7e brd ff:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff
4: sit0: <NOARP> mtu 1480 qdisc noop state DOWN
    link/sit 0.0.0.0 brd 0.0.0.0
5: ip6tnl0: <NOARP> mtu 1460 qdisc noop state DOWN
    link/tunnel6 :: brd ::
6: wlan0: <BROADCAST,MULTICAST,UP,LOWER_UP> mtu 1500 qdisc pfifo_fast state UP qlen 1000
    link/ether f4:6d:04:39:26:21 brd ff:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff
    inet 192.168.11.6/24 brd 192.168.11.255 scope global wlan0
    inet6 fe80::f66d:4ff:fe39:2621/64 scope link
       valid_lft forever preferred_lft forever

also on the tablet i see that the problem is arp requests failing:

# ping 192.168.11.100
PING 192.168.11.100 (192.168.11.100) 56(84) bytes of data.
From 192.168.11.3 icmp_seq=2 Destination Host Unreachable
From 192.168.11.3 icmp_seq=3 Destination Host Unreachable
From 192.168.11.3 icmp_seq=4 Destination Host Unreachable
^C
--- 192.168.11.100 ping statistics ---
5 packets transmitted, 0 received, +3 errors, 100% packet loss, time 4005ms, pipe 3
# ip neighbor show
192.168.11.100 dev wlan0  FAILED
192.168.11.1 dev wlan0 lladdr 00:16:01:a1:a4:18 STALE
#

broke out the packet sniffer and determined that broadcast arp request from android devices where being dropped in the access point.

turned out to be a bug with my Buffalo 300n wireless access point.
cheep new AP and problem gone... apparently some APs just don't talk to Android?

solved by using the principal of "replace the cheapest things first"


Where is the background image saved? Here's my situation:

I had an image from a website which I set as my background inside the browser. I am wondering now where I can find the image in the file system, because I can't find it online anymore. I am rooted.

I was annoyed by the exact same problem, so I have programmed an app that automatically saves your wallpapers and your live wallpapers too. It makes it easy to revert to a previous wallpaper. It is called Wallpaper Saver, by Appdictive, and it's free in the Play Store. (It does not require root access.)


Why is sound on my Android suddenly increasing? I am running Android 2.3 on a Samsung Galaxy S 2.

Recently, when I play music, at some random time, the volume will suddenly increase. It's hard to put an exact measurement on the increase, but I'd estimate it's about 20 to 30% louder.

It's quite jarring, and if my volume is already up near maximum, it can be a little painful.

This happens with any application that plays MP3s, so I don't believe it's application specific.

It also happens without any action on my part. When the volume jumps up, I'm not holding my phone or using any interface, or touching any buttons. It's not that volume buttons are accidentally being hit, either. It happened just now, and my Android is lying on the table beside my laptop, without anything touching it.

Is this a bug of some kind?

It could most likely be a bug. I suggest you upgrade your Android via Kies or manually.

Galaxy Nexus is known to have a similar software issue with volume: http://techie-buzz.com/mobile-news/galaxy-nexus-to-get-a-software-update-to-fix-the-volume-bug.html Perhaps it could be the same with your S2, especially since it is on older Android version.


Rooting for titanium backup What is the bare minimum that needs to be done to titanium backup to work? I am not big on flashing a custom rom at this time. Do I still need to install a TWRP? Or can I just unlock the bootloader and install supersu?

Bare minimum is rooting, which can be done by methods suggested for your device either using PC or one click apps. Search for methods for your device in rooting on this site or on XDA forums with particular attention to your specific device model and carrier (if applicable)

Unlocking bootloader does NOT equal rooting. That is usually the first step in rooting process. Once your phone is rooted SuperSU is a kind of permission manager to give root access to apps of your choice

You don't need to install TWRP or a custom recovery for your purpose but it would help you in taking complete backups ( Nandroid backups of your device ), even if you don't wish to install custom ROMs


Walking between Wi-Fi access points causes network to be disabled Testing my new Motorola Triumph the last couple of days, I've noticed issues with the Wi-Fi.

Aside from connection attempts to the 802.1x EAP network at school causing reboots (a known problem with the Triumph's software and/or wireless chipset), I've run into a problem where if I walk between buildings, it won't reconnect automatically. When I go into the Wi-Fi settings, the network is "Disabled", presumably because there were issues reconnecting while I was outside on the sidewalk.

My LG Optimus V never had this problem; I used it all semester and it always reconnected within a minute or two of settling into a new room. It occasionally disabled the network, but I can count those occurrences on one hand (in decimal ;-). The Triumph did it half a dozen times in one day. (I change buildings a lot.)

Is this something that can be fixed? Perhaps by rooting and tweaking some system settings file(s)? If I can work out most of the software issues by tweaking the phone myself, I'll live with the few that will undoubtedly be unfixable without an update from Motorola.

Meanwhile I've tested with the insecure campus network. The unauthenticated network reconnected within 30 seconds of my entering a new building. (How fortunate that IT maintains a network that dumb devices can use for Internet access.)

(Note: I have no desire to use a custom ROM unless it fully supports all the features of the phone. That includes HDMI output and the ability to have Wi-Fi & Bluetooth turned on simultaneously without pegging the CPU. Unfortunately that lets out ever using CM7 unless those known issues are fixed.)

This appears to be a bug related to the underlying issues with 802.1x EAP authentication in the Motorola Triumph's software / Wi-Fi firmware or wherever the bug is that causes the reboots I mentioned in my original question.

Short answer: Don't use 802.1x EAP networks. They will cause problems with the Triumph.


Android system battery drain My android phone has heavy abnormal battery drains coming from Android system. 2000mAh and above on a single charge! I know for certain this is a software issue and not hardware.

Before I hit the sack. Battery was around 96%, next morning 80%! Normal overnight drains on my mobile model is 1-2%, I am having around 15%.

During sleep, All my radios are usually off (WiFi, NFC, Bluetooth, Data, location), except phone.
My phone seems to be in deep sleep a good portion of that time (See WLD statistics - attachment #1).
Android system sucks my battery during sleep and it was at 90% relative consumption when I woke up (See screen shot #1, Android sys has consumed 1840mAh in such a short time span!! This is ridiculously high for a phone that is apparently in Deep Sleep!)
Also attached screen shots from WLD for Summary, Kernal / Partial wakelocks & Alarms.
Device is rooted.
Google sync is off, Backup is off.

I have searched all over. Read numerous threads from numerous forums. Some users have faced this issue on the same ROM while some others haven't. I have done my "homework". But this is one issue that I do not see any solutions wherever I look. I have searched days, not hours!!

Hence I decided to post over here. This is my hail mary attempt at solving this. If the experts here can't solve it, then I guess it would be pointless to search anymore.

What is the issue that is causing this battery drain from Android System?
I have noted that many users using my model (Huawei Mate 8) do not face this issue, while some users do face it.

Disabling automatic app updates has, for me, solved a severe battery drain problem that started a few days ago. Huawei P9.

For me Google Play Services and AndroidOS were the top users of battery.


Is there a phone number I can use to test sending a text message that fails each time? I am wondering whether I could test my application by sending a text message to a phone number that will always fail.

My idea is to see that my application behaves as expected when the sending of a text message fails. So I was hoping that some phone number could be considered invalid by the SMS system and using that number get a failed reply from the sendTextMessage function.

That way I can relay that error to the user. Having such a bad phone number would be cleaner than having a hack in the application since the hack could end up being a bug.

I've tried this and it's working.
This is related to changing the Message centre number.
Here's what you have to do:

Go to default Messaging app on your phone.
Open settings (generally, the  3-dots button).
Click on SIM 1 or SIM 2 SMS Center.

In Lollipop, Settings > Text Message (SMS) > SMS Service Center >
Your SIM.
In nougat, Settings > Advanced > SIM 1/SIM 2 SMS Center.

First take a screenshot or note the default number entered and then
change it to any incomplete random number.
Save it by clicking the Tick on Top-right corner and now text
message to any number will fail. Use your numbers to check whether
message is sending or not.

Whenever you want to send text message, just change the number to default.


Is there a way to test if a firewal (AFwall) l is blocking a specific app? I installed AFwall+ to block internet connection for my keyboard. Is there a way I can test if this is actually working? The keyboard is Swifkey.

Android setting has an option named 'Data Usage' where you can see per app data consumption. Compare consumed data on two instances to make sure it is not using any Internet.

PS: IMO If you've Xposed installed then LighteningWall could be a better option.


Does an Android Emulator exist which works with every possible app? I'd like to install a specific free android app, which works under different Android smartphones (minimal requirements of Android 4.0):

The freely available app is called PostCard Creator and useful to send Postcards in Switzerland where I live. It works under different physical android smartphones but not with all independent of the android version.

Installation via Google PlayStore:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=ch.post.it.pcc

I've tried different free Android Emulators for a lot of hours under Windows but without success.

Android SDK (tried with different virtual devices)
Genymotion (tried with different virtual devices)
www.manymo.com (App can be installed but not opened)
BlueStacks (App can be properly installed from Play Store but not opened)
AndY (Play Store notification "Your device is not compatible with this version", Version 4.2.2)
Oracle VM VirtualBox Android Version 4.2.2 (app can be installed from Play Store but not opened)
YouWave for Android: "There is a problem parsing the package." (I'm pretty sure: The apk is not corrupted.)
Droid4X 0.8.5 Beta (Play Store notification "Your device is not compatible with this version", Version 4.2.2)
Xamarin Android Player (CPU incompatible)

For http://www.manymo.com I've used the legal APK Downloader (https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/apk-downloader/cgihflhdpokeobcfimliamffejfnmfii) to download the APK file which I uploaded here: http://www.file-upload.net/download-10976262/ch.post.it.pcc.apk.html

The app perfectly runs in my physical smartphone with version 4.2.2.
Based on an email request, the app doesn't depend on the android version. The developer says, it does not work with all devices. I've also tested the app compatibility online. The result was good.

I would be very glad if someone succeeded to use the app PostCard creator on a Windows plattform. Does someone get it?

(Alternatively, if you also don't succeed with Android emulators, I would be very happy if you know a workable way to emulate the PostCard Creator app file from the Itunes App Store, because it works also on my Iphone for free)

Appendix with adb logcat (created on the 27.10.2015)

Download of the newest version Genymotion 2.5.4 (available since 08.09.2015 with Oracle VM VirtualBox included) here and installation on my Notebook (without physical GPS sensor) under Windows 8.1 Pro N / Intel(R) Core(TM) i3 CPU / 64-Bit OS x64 based processor / in Switzerland with own IP
Click "Add a first device" and select "Google Nexus 4 - 4.4.4 - API 19 - 768x1280"
Download "Genymotion-ARM-Translation_v1.1zip" from here and drop it (in unzipped form) directly to the virtual device. Press OK when asked. Again Press OK when asked. Click Win+R and open path cmd.exe. Navigate to the corresponding folder with cd C:\Programme\Genymobile\Genymotion\tools (must be adapted to your path: If you enter dir you must see adb.exe, then you are in the correct folder.) Write: adb reboot (until virtual device has been restarted)
Download of "gapps-kk-20140606-signed.zip" (needed for 4.4.x) based on
here
To install the PlayStore: Drag&Drop the downloaded file (also
unzipped) into the virtual device, click OK, wait, click OK, wait, write adb reboot into the console, wait. (Android is upgrading... Optimizing app XX of 22.) After the virtual device restarts, the PlayStore can be found now.
Login with personal Gmail-Account (also created in Switzerland)
Update of the Google Plus Service and all automatically installed apps.
Try to install "PostCard Creator" from PlayStore (GPS is enabled,
Camera is enabled, Identifiers is not enabled (impossible in the
free version)) failed with the message: "Your device isn't compatible with this version." Then I tried drag&drop of the PostCard-File.apk. The symbol "PostCard Creator" is available under the APPS list. But clicking results with the notification: "Unfortunately, PostCard Creator has stopped."
Write adb logcat in the console

There is a long output, so I only get the last lines from cmd.exe console which I uploaded here

This can happen for the following reasons:

The emulator presents an x86/MIPS CPU which the app does not support (probably not in your case as the app doesn't seem to require native code).
Google Play Services. The emulator does not have them, in fact no emulator can have them unless they licensed it from Google, and most apps depend on them.
Mobile data as an internet connection is required (maybe not at all in your case).
Location data. VMWare is the only emulator I know that can succesfully passthrough to a physical accelerometer/ GPS hardware on Windows tablets which support them. The app might need location services and will refuse to run if it does not provide the necessary location APIs.
The app developer has made the app actively check whether it is being run on an emulator or not, and the app will not run if it detects that it has been launched on an emulator. See this AE question.

For your case, I suspect either 2 or 4 is the culprit. Try:

Installing Android 4.4 on VMWare Player with a x86-compatible GAPPs package and see if it works (maybe on a Surface Pro, because it has the requisite GPS hardware). The GAPPs packages can be found on XDA threads.
If you use the .iso provided by the android-x86 project, set the VMWare boot mode to BIOS in VM Config.
Once the install completes, put the downloaded GAPPs zip onto a pendrive along with an apk for a file explorer app (I recommend ES File Explorer, that way you can extract the zip directly in the explorer).
Now once the VM boots up, assign the pendrive to the VM from the "Devices" (or similar) option in the menu bar.
Install the file explorer apk from the pendrive (use the built in file-manager) (ensure the "Unknown Sources" option is enabled under security settings).
Then root the VM following this guide.
Finally, extract the GAPPs zip to a convenient location (such that it extracts to /sdcard/) in the VM and follow this guide (use method 2) to install it.

The reason being most phones or other devices with Android from the factory have these Google Apps(GAPPs) preinstalled as the OEMs kicense it from Google, but any custom distribution of Android initially lacks these as their developers either can not or do not license these GAPPs from Google. Emulators fall into the second, custom, category.

Also, location hardware and region restrictions on the app can be the culprit too. The emulator cannot emulate location hardware and/or presents unexpected location or region data to the app, causing it to crash/freeze/whatever.

Edit:

From analyzing the logcat file, I can conclude that the Postcard Creator app actively checks for a touch-capable screen on the device (which any emulator other than the SDK one or Bluestacks/Youwave will fail). In the given case, this is probably what is causing the app to crash. Also, the app is loading a native library, libxwalkcore.so, which is succeeded by a Fatal Signal 11 (SIGSEGV) from the Dalvik VM library, which probably indicates a segment fault (segfault), which force-kills the app process. There is also an error in taking a screenshot of the activity, which is probably related to the one that Android displays for the recent apps, and understandable as the app has crashed.

Also, I think that VMware can passthrough to a touchscreen on a touch-capable device, but again, Android-x86, not being built to run on touch-capable devices exclusively, might lack the necessary drivers to present a touchscreen to apps which require it.

EDIT 2:

I came across this today: ConsoleOS (note that this isn't an emulator, it's rather like running a Linux distro in dual-boot mode on a PC with Windows, with  rapid switching (they say as little as 10s) between them).

This claims to be an Android all-in-one package for x86 PCs and tablets which allows for native licensed GAPPs and also is licensed by Google for OEM distribution. This might just cut it. If now your app doesn't run, its probably because it doesn't support the x86 platform. Then, I really have no idea how to go further.

Important

This is a developer focused release and is as such not at all feature complete and buggy. Think of it as an "alpha" ROM. It might refuse to boot or have various other issues. It might make your test PC completely unusable. Do not blame me if this happens, and please heed this warning.

Check this out ("their" comparison to other Android-on-x86 projects):

Image credits: ConsoleOS Inc.


How can I view my Google Contacts groups with my Samsung Fascinate? My phone's contacts sync with my Google Contacts, but they are all in the same group (called "Google"). I would like for the sub-groups that I have created in Google Contacts to be accessible from my phone, so I can view/organize my contacts by these groups. Is there any way to achieve this?

The Groups tab in the contacts app shows the individual Google contacts groups, including the built-in ones ("Coworkers" etc.) and my custom groups, and they are browsable.  This is on my Galaxy S Vibrant running 2.2, with TouchWiz.


Which engine does the stock Samsung Browser use? Which engine does the stock Samsung Browser use? Is it based on WebKit, Gecko, or something else?

After reviewing some user-agent strings, all native Samsung browsers I saw use WebKit.
There are particular idiosyncrasies when working with this family browser amongst devices, and a lot of weird behavior. According to What browser does the Samsung Galaxy use? on Stack Overflow, there is some "value-added" by Samsung to the AOSP browser.


PDF reader app that remembers the last page you were on? I usually access my PDFs via the DropBox app on my phone.
Every time I open the same PDF it starts back at page 1.

Is there a way to set up the Android Adobe Reader app to remember the last page I was on?

If not, is there another PDF reader app that has this option?

Dropbox wasn't made to be a PDF reader, instead it's an application to have your files wherever you go. So I have two great suggestions for you:

ezPDF Reader - This is the best PDF reading application I ever seen for Android. I use it every time I need to read any kind of PDF on my Motorola Droid.
Adobe Acrobat Reader - A free alternative for ezPDF. Made by Adobe of course, which is very good to read your PDFs on-the-go too.

Both will restore from the place that you left


Phone added contact unfindable My phone's contacts are synced with my Google and Facebook accounts. Whenever I add a contact through my phone it gets synced to my Google Account. Wonderful... Ok I usually send them a text message to let them know my number and then through my browser I'll add a picture and so forth, all that good stuff. Now under the 'Messages' application on my phone. (Where all my sms activity goes on) I can see this contact with their new picture and our conversation. However If I go to the 'Phonebook' application (the app that manages my phone's contacts) and I do a search for that name, nothing comes up. They are clearly already in my phone since through the Messages app I cannot add them again, but they are not find-able.

What am I doing erroneously??

In the People Application

Press the drop down next to phonebook and you can fine tune your contacts better. I had the phone tag checked and not the all contacts checked. I opted to switch to all contacts and have my phone filter out those without phone numbers automatically.

The alternative is to add a phone tag to each contact I want in my phone.


Display screen keeps waking up when locked When I lock my Samsung Galaxy Nexus by pushing the power button, my phone's screen darkens for a few seconds, then keeps staying awake with the lock screen displayed. This keeps eating away at my battery life. This started happening only recently. Why does it happen?

It seems like others have had this problem as well:

http://www.reddit.com/r/GalaxyNexus/comments/19y0a9/galaxy_nexus_screen_turn_on_durring_lock_screen/
http://productforums.google.com/forum/#!topic/mobile/PA5JZH-Oj4o
http://code.google.com/p/android/issues/detail?id=39625

It is a bug in Android 4.2, specifically with the Samsung Galaxy Nexus. I imagine you recently updated your phone, which is why it has only been occurring as of late.

It looks like the cause is from app notifications being pushed to the device and waking it up. Here are some common apps that have been known to cause this problem:

WeChat
Sleep Mode apps
MX Player
DropSync

Disabling auto-sync has also been known to solve this problem:

  settings> data usage> and disable auto sync and restrict background data

Some people have also had success just doing a factory reset.

A lot of people have had a lot of success getting rid of this problem by reverting back to 4.1.2.

Others have followed this approach and had a lot of success:

  I had this same problem and I tried disabling apps, uninstalling apps, and factory resetting all with no success.  What fixed it for me was taking a very small flat-head screwdriver and gently bending the pins of the micro USB connector up (towards the screen side).
  Over time and through usage, those pins got bent downward, away from the screen side.  I think this created some kind of electrical short.  I tried this because when the phone was plugged in, the screen stayed asleep.
  My GNex is now working perfectly again.  I hope this helps someone!

  HOW TO FIX PROBLEM
  The problem is that the hooks inside your charging port are too close to the bottom. Therefore with a small knife or needle, life the middle part up nearer to the screen and Voila! Your problem should be fixed. Its not the software. Its the hardware .

This seems to be a very weird problem with a lot of different causes. Some people have had success with removing or modifying the software, other people think that it's the pin problem. If you get any of these solutions to work, let me know. Hope this helps!

John


how do I delete search history on Firefox on an Android phone I've been reading countless articles about deleting the search engine history on Firefox on my Android phone.

Let me be clear: I'm not talking about clearing my browser history, rather clearing the search history, which still remains after I've cleared my browsing history.

None of the said articles helped.

Attached is a picture of problem.

I'm running Firefox 57.0.4

Firefox settings → Clear Private data → clear search history


Is rooting a surefire and safe process, or is it risky? Is rooting my tablet safe or something can go wrong with it?
Is rooting legal?
Does my device become slower if I root it?
What is the best rooting tool?
Is it possible to lose my data or something if I root it?

"is rooting safe"
The answer is difficult. Every tool you use to root your device says do with your own risk and we are not responsible for any damages caused to your device.

is root legal
Nothing to do with legal but it voids your devices warranty.

does my device becomes slower
No , many tools and tweaks are available to speed up rooted devices .

what is the best rooting tool
That depends on what device you use.

about data loss
No data will be lost. However a backup is taken to avoid data loss.

Try googling to find the best rooting tool for your particular device. Alternatively,
you can download some rooted stock roms (specific for your device) and flash them using recovery.

Try e.g. Kingo root, this is the best for me.


Only get sound notifications from contacts and certain apps I get a lot of annoying spam calls and texts. I want my phone to only give me a sound notification when someone from my contacts list calls or texts me. So I turned on the Do Not Disturb mode, and selected the priories, so that I only get notifications from my contacts.
The problem with this, is that now none of my apps give me notifications. I still want to get notifications from certain apps, like Skype for instance. So I clicked on the app notifications, to select the apps that I want to override the do not disturb. But I am only given a few odd app choices, not all of my apps. (See photo) But if I turn off do not disturb, I get spam calls and texts all day, which is pretty annoying.
Can anyone help me figure out how I can get sound notifications from my contacts only (Call and Text), but still get other app notifications?
I appreciate anyone's help. Thanks!

Info
You could be better off with another approach like for example:

Set the notification sounds for SMS and ringtone to an empty audio clip. (no sound)
Add all your contacts to a contact group.
Set your preferred SMS/ringtone sounds for that entire contact-group.

This may be better for long term use since it won't hide and silence notifications of all installed apps.
Note: This may depend on your phone make/model/firmware.
Answering your question
I'll use Skype as an example.
Open app info for skype
Settings->Apps->Skype
Notification settings
Select notifications, then tap the name of any notification category (not the toggle switch).
Then toggle (enable) the option named Ignore do not disturb at the bottom the list.


Android Box M8 - Issues with QWERTY Wireless i8 keyboard I just bought an M8 android TV Box here and as you can see, it has a remote QWERTY keyboard that i can't get to function properly...
I can use the touchpad (mouse) on it, but the keys in the keyboard just do nothing...
I've been messing with the input and language settings but nothing seems to work...
I dont think it might be a driver issue because the mouse pointer works...
What else can i do to diagnose the problem?
The box runs android 4.4.2
If any extra info is needed, just ask
Thanks

What input method is chosen? If you have chosen Google voice typing then the keyboard won't work.

Try choosing Google keyboard. If that is not working, try downloading a third party keyboard app from play store and choosing it.

For a bluetooth keyboard to work, you have to pair the device with your tv box first


Does wi-fi sleep policy "never" mean that my phone's battery will be drain a lot faster? I have just decided to change my settings on the wi-fi, because it seems to give me a hard time regarding the fact that the some application are "unable to connect to server".  However, I am worried about the battery life. Does the setting "never" mean that the phone will scan non-stop, draining my batter like crazy?

If you have "wifi-sleep" on, when the device goes to sleep, the wifi connection will disconnect from the access point. It doesn't happen right as the device goes to sleep, but a little delay after. It shouldn't drain the battery much more then just having wifi on.

Of course, if you have very network active apps running, then it may drain it a bit more. But on the other side, if wifi goes to sleep, and you have network active apps, they will just use your mobile connection, if it is available.


How can I set up email on my GS4 to handle both email and gmail accounts? I just moved from iPhone to a Galaxy S4, and I'm trying to get it set up. I have a gmail account, and two NON-gmail accounts. What is the best solution to have all of my emails managed in one place/app? I would really prefer not having to switch between two apps to check my emails if possible. Thanks for any assistance.

This official Google support page tells you how to access Gmail from a normal email client using IMAP: you have to turn it on through the Gmail web interface, then add the account to your email client like any other IMAP server.

The standard email client on Samsung devices supports having multiple accounts. Press the + button in the Email app's settings to add an additional account. Most third-party email clients for Android (such as K9-Mail) support multiple accounts too, but the set-up will be slightly different for each.


Download files from a .txt or .list file containing lines of URLs I am trying to download all files from a downloads.list file which contains about 60 lines of URL to download .deb packages from my Ubuntu computer which is not connected to the internet due to lack of wifi. I have internet access to my phone. My question is, is there an app or binary to download the URL of files listed on a .txt or .list file?

I just wrote a shell script to do it:

#!/system/bin/sh
while read url; do
am start -a android.intent.action.VIEW -n com.android.chrome/com.google.android.apps.chrome.Main -d $url
done < file.txt

This just reads each line from file.txt, opens the URL using Google Chrome Browser (using com.android.chrome package's MainActivity) and let Google Chrome manage the download.

As @Izzy said, you can also use this script to download using Download Managers, you've to just change the app package name and the corresponding Activity Name in the script.

Edit:
I just figured it out for Advanced Download Manager:

am start -a android.intent.action.VIEW -n com.dv.adm/.AEditor -d $url

Note:
The names of application package and Activity Name are subject to change as per the developer's wish. Use it accordingly.


Google Now for GingerBread? Is it possible to get Google Now on old phones ? It really sounds amazing.I would love to try it out :)

I found this for ICS.  - http://techzei.com/get-google-now-on-android-4-0-ice-cream-sandwich/

Unfortunately Honeycomb and below is "dead" development, people are focused on doing more on ICS than anything.
When Eclair rolled out, development stopped on Cupcake and Donut, and now its quite hard to imagine someone still working on those old versions of Android. There may be around it involving rooting your phone but I doubt it. Look at your link, the third requirement: Deodexed ROM. That is part of what is holding older phones back. My suggestion would just be to upgrade your phone but i realize that is not an ideal solution. Sorry man.


What type of hardware support is required for getting the widevine L1 level? It s said that widevine L1 level requires hardware support so that it s impossible even for manufacturer to provide it through a system update.
But what exactly has to be done by the hardware?

Widevine digital rights management explained

To meet security Level 1, all content processing, cryptography, and control must be performed within the Trusted Execution Environment (TEE) of the device’s processor, to prevent external tampering and copying of the media file. All ARM Cortex-A processors implement TrustZone technology, creating a hardware separation that allows a trusted OS (such as Android) to create a TEE for DRM, and other secure applications.

 (click to enlarge )
System update is at OS level (including drivers) but not at CPU/ TEE level which are totally independent. Quoting from wiki

The TEE is a standard which creates an isolated environment that runs in parallel with the operating system, providing security for the rich environment. It is intended to be more secure than the User-facing OS. ARM TrustZone TEE is an implementation of the TEE standard

For more , see The Complete Guide to Widevine
Google’s DRM Platform


One Plus 5 does not appears in ADB I wish to install an another OS on my OnePlus 5 phone. At least try...

So I follow the various guides on the web, valid developer options, click on "unlock OEM" and "USB debugging". OK. I also install adb as well as android udev rules on my linux desktop. The phone itself is on android 9.

Then when I plug in a USB cable (from the manufacturer), I can get some notifications in dmesg only. Not in lsusb.

So far I can see (in dmesg) the phone plugged in usb only when it's on usb tethering.

And I can never see it in the adb devices list. Nor can I see any prompt on the phone asking me to validate my computer RSA fingerprint.

Someone got a suggestion ?

Just bought a brand new cable. Phone is recognized by the computer and install' is done in the minute.


Voice on calls are too quiet I got a new phone and sometimes it's hard to hear the person on the other line. Sometimes people say it's hard to hear me. This is a high end phone and I don't think this should be happening. What options are available to change? I've pressed the volume-up arrow to the top when I'm on a call and it's still too quiet.

What exactly do the options: Speaker voice enhancement, equalizer and microphone noise suppression do?

Audio volume during phone calls appears to be a common complaint made by many Sony users.

I recommend turning off all the extras/enhancements to make a final determination regarding call volume. A different device may be better for you.

Below are the various options described:

Speaker Voice Enhancement provides "richer" voice listening during
phone calls (impacts what you hear). Turn this off.
Equalizer fine tunes the pitch of the call audio (impacts what you
hear). Turn this off or choose the most level/smooth option.
Phone Noise Suppression reduces background noise on your end (impacts
what other people hear). Turn this off if other people can't hear you
or experience breaks/skips in your voice. This feature may be useful
when you are outside.
Enhanced Voice Privacy provides an additional layer of voice
encryption (impacts both sides of conversation). Turn this off if the
option is available.


How do I prevent the media volume from changing when a headphone is plugged in? Device: Samsung Galaxy S4
Android: Stock 4.2.2

When I listen to music with a headphone using PowerAmp, I usually set the Media volume to the max setting. I am hard of hearing. When I'm done, I just close PowerAmp and unplug the headphone. Then when I want to  play music again, I plug-in the headset again. At this point, I assumme the media volume setting is still at max. However, it's not. Instead, the volume has been reduced to nearly half (or at least, not max anymore).

The same behavior seems to happen even with the stock Music player.

How do I prevent the media volume from changing when a headphone is plugged in?

Thought of using Tasker? I use it the other way. When ever I plugin my headphones, all volumes should come down irrespective of what ever value it was before.

I use Tasker to detect inserting the head phones and used an entry task to being down the volumes. I couldn't succeed sorting the volume levels before bringing it down so that I can restore them back in an exit task. Hence I restore them to a predetermined levels in the exit task.


Samsung Galaxy S2 shuts off when plugged in: screen goes black then a grey empty battery appears Samsung Galaxy S2 shuts off when plugged in. The screen goes black then a grey empty battery appears for a second then disappears. This "flashes" several times in about 4-5 second intervals. I can not turn the phone on unless the phone is unplugged.

If I try to holding the power button for around a minute it then goes to the "charging screen" (the battery with the charging level in green). This happens even if the phone is partially charged. If my phone is on and I plug it in it stays on for almost a minute then the screen goes black, grey battery appears blinks for about 3-5 minutes same as I mentioned above. When the phone is fully charged, when I get it to that state, it does stay charged.

I have taken out the battery, I have tried a different charger. I am convinced this is a hardware problem. Also this started happening about 3 days ago. Any ideas as to what may be wrong are welcome.

I followed this approach and it worked for me (and looks like for other people too):

  The way I got mine working was, remove the battery, plug the charger in, wait 5 seconds then start touching the battery on and off of the contacts on the phone, did this quite quickly, then the phone will vibrate. As soon as it starts vibrating, push the battery into the phone so it's permanently on. I got a picture saying the battery with nearly fully charged. Then when the picture goes off, the red LED came on to say it was charging. I left it like that for an hour, then turned it on and it's been working since.


How do I disconnect Bluetooth headset while in call Does anyone know how to disconnect from a Bluetooth headset/handsfree device while in a call? Sometimes when I'm getting into my car while on a call, the handsfree in the car will take over the call before I'm ready to hand the call off. I've been turning off the Bluetooth to take the call back, but that is cumbersome,  my palm phone before had an option on the call screen whenever on a call with Bluetooth to simply disconnect the hands free device.

Depending on your phone (please update your question with your specific model), the call screen does have an option to turn off Bluetooth. That will turn off Bluetooth Audio Routing for just that current call (and conference calls made while that one is active/on hold).

I've only used CyanogenMod; CM6 & CM7 both have this option on the call screen. If your phone's UI has been customized by the vendor, it may have been removed.


Android app x11 forwarding to computer I have "SSH Server" app installed. I'm able to connect and launch apps using am. I want to forward the apps through X11 forwarding to my linux computer. Is that possible?

There is a "X11 forwarding" configuration in "SSH Server" that I have enabled, although I have no idea what the effect is.

So far, when I connect to the phone I get:

$ ssh -X user@phone
user@phone's password:
X11 forwarding request failed on channel 0
u0_a107@phone:/ $

So it seems I have some extra issue with X11.

Anyone has tried this before?

What you're trying to do is not possible. Android has its own windowing system, not X11, so X forwarding won't do anything on Android.

There are other screen-sharing systems (such as VNC) which might be more suitable for what you're trying to do. This answer talks about a Samsung-specific app, and this question has a couple of options. The remote-access and remote-control tags have a lot more information.


Nexus 6P Bootloop - Flash "Google" on dark background keeps going on and off forever I own Nexus 6P, and am having nothing but problems with it. Definitely, the worse device I ever owned. It was rebooting daily (note past sense as this is not my main problem) often multiple times for no reason but the main issue is that it ended up in an infinite reboot loop.

Here is the description of problem: 2 days ago, phone suddenly rebooted but this time, "Google" text would show up, then black screen, and this would repeat endlessly, phone would never reboot and ends in bootloop.

What I tried to fix this?

Press Power button and Volume Down and hold until menu shows allowing you to do following and description what happens:

Restart,
restarts phone but ends in infinite boot loop again
Reboot bootloader, - no changes
Recovery mode, - no changes but see 2 below
Barcodes, - shows barcodes
Power Off. - turns off the phone

I tried all of these without success - phone is still in endless boot loop showing "Google" text on black background

Press Power button and Volume Down and hold until menu shows, then select Recovery mode. Soon after, "No command" shows on screen with little green android icon with red triangle. Next, press Power button and Volume Up and release. This bings Android Recovery screen with yellow text at the top showing google/angler/angler, 8.1.0, etc etc and blue menu at the bottom with options to:

Reboot system now - tried it, nothing changes

Reboot to bootloader - tried it, nothing changes

Apply update from ADB - havent tried it, dont know what to do with it

Apply update from SD card - tried it, get "cannot mount /sdcard" Installation aborted

Wipe data/factory reset - formats /data and /cache but nothing is fixed, still infinite reboot loop

Wipe cache partition - same as above, just formats /cache

Mount /system - nothing changes

View recovery logs - shows number of logs

Run graphics test - shows "Installing system updates" and then shows "Error". No changes

Power off - turns off the phone

I also tried every single of these options as described above but nothing will boot the phone. It always ends up in infinite boot loop with "google" text on black background showing and disappearing forever.

I have found that phone rebooting and above described infinite boot loop are so common that there are many complaints and even a law class suit going on against google and Huweii as per link Google and Huawei Will Face Class Action Over Nexus 6P Bootloop Issues

I have tried many suggestions, Google one's are useless as they all assume phone actually boots up, so ridiculous, and have no resolution.

How to fix this issue? How to install manually Android OS on my phone if I cannot do anything else to resolve this?

You can fix this issue according to Google only if you can somehow enable EOM but to do that you need to boot your phone.  Some suggested to put phone into fridge or heat it up with hair dryer or heat gun.  If you are lucky with this, you may get change to boot it up briefly and go to setting to enable OEM, then you can attempt to fix using fastboot but even this is not working all the time and will significantly downgrade performance of your phone

I tried both without success, heated it up for 1 hour, it was scorching hot but it would not boot up.  PUt it in fridge and freezer overnight, still no way to boot it.

It seems like you are facing the unfortunate end for your device. I personally have gone through 3 of these devices that fell victim to the same sudden BLOD (Boot Loop of Death). You have a few options at this point:

Get yourself on the list to be part of the class action lawsuit against Huawei and Google.
Contact Google or Huawei (don't have the link for this one sorry...) and demand a replacement. For a while there I know that people were given replacements for this reason well beyond their limited warranty.
If you're feeling particularly savvy you can perform these steps outlined on XDA that will give you functionality back to your phone. I've used this method for all 3 of my 6Ps that got the bootloop. Best of luck, I definitely feel your pain.


Vector Graphics Illustrator I am sorry if this is not the right place, but I didn't know where else to ask and I can't find an acceptable answer anywhere online.

I'm considering getting a tablet and would really prefer an Android.  However, the most critical requirement for me is the vector graphics illustrator.  I am a mathematician and make a lot of drawings for presentations and papers using Inkscape (an open source version of Adobe Illustrator).  The iPad has an app called Inkpad (which is not the same as Android's Inkpad), which is just like Inkscape, only it also allows the user to draw a curve freehand and convert it to a Bezier curve.

I was wondering if there was anything similar for Android and if so, how it compares in functionality and image quality to Inkscape/Inkpad for iPad.

Thank you!

There is an application called Infinite Design available in both free & paid versions. It will allow you to export to SVG for editing in your favorite graphics editor. It's been tested and works in Adobe Illustrator and Inkscape (paid version only).

Free Version: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.brakefield.idfree
Paid Version: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.brakefield.id

Another application is called Simplector, again available in both free & paid (pro) versions:

Free Version: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=plasma.vector.editor.app
Pro Version: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=plasma.vector.editor.app.pro

I cannot comment on the functionality & image quality compared to similar iPad applications.


No GPS reception on Asus Slider SL101 I am the owner of an ASUS SL101 tablet, runing Android 4.0 (ICS). Using the "GPS Test" app,  I cannot get any GPS signals, even when standing outside for extended periods of time. I have a standalone GPS that has no problems getting GPS signals under the smae conditions. Is this a harware or software issue, and is there any way to get any reception on the tblet? One of the tablet's primary purposes was to be a GPS, and at the moment the function is completely useless. Help is much appreciated.

Unfortunately, I would say you probably have a hardware issue here. I have had two phones do similar things, one did not connect at all, the other would connect only for a moment before basically shutting the GPS down. Both of these ended up being hardware issues resulting in me returning the devices. My best advice would be to try multiple apps to test GPS signal, ( I use GPS Status or Tricorder), and if you get no GPS reception from any of them, contact your manufacturer, or the people you purchased it from. Usually resellers will refund or replace products that malfunction without provocation.

If you do get signal with any of them or you get partial GPS signal sometimes, I'd still contact your reseller or manufacturer with the issues, while continuing to test it in different places alongside other (Android 4.0, if possible) devices.


Help need a way to know how to do bulk updates across multiple devices I manage a bunch of android devices and I was wondering if there is an easy way to do bulk updates when a new release comes out. Also would like to know if I can block certain devices from being updated at all?

Thank you

No, there's not. You have to manually accept evey software update from every device. Imagine how big of a security problem it would be if you could do that remotely.

Of course you can ignore updates. They'll ask you for confirmation to install them, so you can just say no and be done with it (recent versions will allow you to block the notification if you don't want to see it).
Some ROMs even have the option to only check for updates manually, so you don't even need to know there's one available.