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Can deleting stock web browser cause problems?
I want to disable or delete stock web browser because I don't use it. Can it cause problems? For example, if its used as embedded rendering engine in other apps (like IE is used in Windows apps), they'll fail to load web pages.

Incidentally; I would disable, rather than delete. Just in case...

How do you delete the stock browser?

@Michael Root and nuke.. With root privilege, you can do anything which includes deleting stock apps. See this: http://android.stackexchange.com/questions/20746/ive-rooted-my-tablet-now-how-do-i-get-rid-of-this-bloatware

The stock browser can safely be removed. However, if you factory reset your android and are in a public institution or other such place that requires you to open your browser to finish connecting to the WiFi, then you will not have a browser available to open and will not be able to finish initializing your WiFi connection.

Worth noting that disabling (as the OP said he'll be doing in the comments) is perfectly safe, as factory reset re-enables any previously disabled apps.

Some devices like the Motorola Atrix HD will not allow you to update your firmware if you have removed any system apps. Now that the bootloader is unlockable this is no longer a problem.
With other devices like the SamsUng Galaxy S3 International unlocked GT-I9300 you can remove many system apps. Not everything, but browsers no problem. I deleted Google+, Facebook, Google Chrome and the stock browser with no problems at all. If you are unsure DO NOT DELETE -- try freezing and see if anything wierd happens.
Good luck!


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BSNL Penta TPad 701C Android ICS - Play store closes immediately after opening.
When I got the tablet, new version of play store was pre-installed and was working fine. Initially my 3G dongle was not connecting to Internet. After complaining to customer care, I was provided a firmware with which I updated my tablet. Then onwards, I could connect to Internet but Play store was gone. I managed to download it and installed it on tablet but now it opens and closes without any error message.
I have already tried:

Re installing the given ROM
Done factory reset
Tried to install different versions (v3.5.19, v3.7.16, etc) of Play Store app.

None of the above solved the probelm. Please help.

Have you tried to install appropriate version of GApps? If I were you, I will try installing gapps-ics-20120429-signed.zip from http://goo.im/gapps.

@Narayanan I have no idea what GApps is .... If you can explain me what it is  brother

Please give me proper link to download I don't know which one to select .....  and I hope this thing will not burst my tablet ....:P

I think gapps-ics-20120429-signed.zip is fine for me

Try this Link http://bloggerplugnplay.blogspot.in/2012/12/bsnl-701c-penta-tablet-3gplay-store-not.html

The ROM that BSNL customer care provided might not have GApps installed. You can download a relevant version of GApps from goo.im/gapps.  Based on the information you had provided, you can use gapps-ics-20120429-signed.zip.
Download that ZIP file and place it in your SD card. Install ROMManager from their site. Once installed, choose install ZIP option and select the ZIP file.

Thanks for the solution I will try. Is there any other method or app to download apps from play store ???

Check out http://wiki.rootzwiki.com/Google_Apps to know about GApps. In short, they are the apps developed by Google. Play Store, Google Maps, Google search, YouTube, Street View, Voice search etc are few. Though Android is an open source and free to distribute, GApps are not. Hence at times you may have to download and install them separately.

source: Stack Exchange

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

sort: votes


text:
Separate ringtone for calls from numbers not in the contact list?
Good old Siemens phones had a feature that allowed you to set a single ringtone for all calls coming from your contacts, and a single ringtone for all calls coming from numbers not in your contact list. Can it be done with stock Android 2.2, a manufacturer-specific distribution, or with an app?

There MUST be an easy way to do this in a newer Android .... right?

Amongst the many features it lists, WhoIsIt claims to have support for separate ringtone and vibrate pattern for Unknown Callers.
See if that helps.

Well, it almost works: for the first second or two the default ringtone is played before WhoIsIt switches to the correct one. Thanks!

If you are already using Tasker you can make your phone check for the availability of the incoming call number in contact list. If not available, it can be made to play a special ring tone.
This is explained here. The content of the same is reproduced here as well:

Different Ringtone for Unknown Callers: I missed my old Windows phone
  feature where I had a special ringtone for anyone NOT in my contact
  list, so I recreated it. Unfortunately my Galaxy S2 seems to have a
  lot of quirks about the way it handles the ring of incoming calls, so
  this pair of profiles is more complex than they otherwise would have
  to be. Also, on my phone I actually hear both my default ringtone and
  the "unknown caller" ringtone simultaneously (despite setting the
  ringer volume to 0 in the Task, it keeps ringing loudly).
Anyway, to use this you will have to modify the "Unknown ringtone"
  task so that the "file" in the second action points to a valid file on
  your phone (mine points to an mp3 of cicada).
The "unknown caller start" profile specifies that when an incoming
  call is not in your contact list, to start playing a special ringtone
  audio file, and to stop playing it (by calling the "unknown ringtone
  stop" task) after you ignore or pick up the call. Since on my phone
  the sound kept playing if I picked up (it successfully stopped playing
  if I ignored the call) I added a second profile "unknown caller stop"
  which actually stops the ringtone playing when you're in a call (after
  you pick up).
You could easily modify it to play a special ringtone under different
  circumstances by altering the context of the "unknown caller start"
  profile. Currently it has caller equal to "!C:ANY" (not equal to any
  contact), but you could use a pattern like "077*/Geoff*" to activate
  this profile if either the caller's number starts with 077 or is a
  contact whose names starts with Geoff.

There is a new app that lets you assign a ringtone for private numbers, block them and more -
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.blondy.privatone

While not quite what the OP asked, a good defense to the current deluge of telemarketing calls is to set your phone to only ring for telephone numbers in your contacts. For those who don't want to do this across the board, you may also customize when this setting is applied.
Android 5.0 (Lollipop) allows you to set this in Interruptions. Tap the 'Call/messages from' link and you can restrict this to just the people in your contacts list. (Settings => Sound & Notification => Interruptions => Call/messages from => Contacts only)

authors: عبد العزيز أول

all_licenses: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

all_licenses: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/


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Emulator takes forever to shutdown!
The title just says it all. My 3.3", Android 2.3.3 emulator (armeabi) boots averagely in 150 seconds on my Ubuntu 12.04, 64 bit system, with 2 GB DDR3 memory. However, sometimes when I tried shutting down using the power button provided in the emulator. I am made to wait indefinitely!
This doesn't hurt much, for I usually just close the emulator just like closing a window. However, I somehow can't reconcile the fact and need to know reason(s) why, in spite of booting fairly fast, shutting down takes ages! Does shutting down consume more resources than booting?!


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How do I find media downloaded to phone from XMBC?
I am using XMBC for Android on my HTC One and downloaded a movie to /storage/sdcard0/Download/
Where is that going to show up and how do I get to it? Is it possible to download to maybe a cloud or a computer?

You can use a file manager app to access the files in your SD card. There are many good ones out there. Androzip and Astro file manager are some of the bests.
If you want to copy files into your PC, use a USB cable and connect your phone. If you want you can use an app like WiFi File transfer to transfer files using WiFi.


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I modified vold.fstab and lost access to my SD card
Background:
I have Samsung Galaxy Ace GT-S5830, which has very low internal memory (181 MB).
I have an external micro SD card of 16 GB, but still couldn't install many apps due to insufficient internal memory.
I read on the Internet that if I modify vold.fstab and replace the word "sdcard" with "sdcard2" then my external SD card will act as internal memory.
So I rooted my phone and installed Superuser, but I haven't installed ClockworkMod recovery or any other custom ROM yet.
Problem Description:
I installed ES File explorer on my SD card and allowed root access to it via Superuser.
I then went to /system/etc/ from ES file explorer, edited vold.fstab and replaced the word sdcard with sdcard2.
When I restarted my phone the external SD was no longer accessible. ES File Explorer is also gone, so I cannot undo the change that i did. I tried installing ES again from my data connection, but the installation fails (and the phone reboots immediately). I am not able to install any new apps.
I am unable to access my external SD card, so I can't put anything there via PC or via recovery. I tried pressing the power button + home button to go into system recovery mode. I see only these options

Android system recovery <3e>

reboot system now
apply sdcard:update.zip
wipe data/factory reset
wipe cache partition

When I try to select the second option, it says "installation aborted" as the SD card is not accessible. I tried to select the 3rd and 4th options, but that didn't help either - I think factory reset will not reset vold.fstab.
I only have the default apps and Superuser now. I somehow need to find a way to get write permission to /system/etc or to /system/etc/vold.fstab.
Luckily I found "Android Commander". I installed it on my Windows PC and I am able to connect my phone and access the root folder, but I am not able to push a modified vold.fstab to /system/etc because  Android Commander says "no Root Access" - It is seeing it as read only.
Can someone let me know how I can edit this file again? I have an original vold.fstab on my PC, but I am not able to push it to my phone via Android Commander as Android Commander is seeing it as read only
Is there a way to give root access (aka read-write access) to Android Commander via the Superuser app?
Is there any other way to get write permission to /system/etc/vold.fstab so that I can modify it or replace it?

Download the Android Debug Bridge from here, and extract the contents (to the same directory).
Connect your device to your computer using the USB cable and open up a command prompt (Windows logo key + R, type cmd and press Enter).
Once that is open, type the following commands:
cd <entire path to adb.exe file>
adb shell
su

mount -o remount,rw /system
# if previous doesn't work try:
mount -o rw,remount -t yaffs2 /dev/block/mtdblock3 /system

exit
exit

adb push <path to original file> /system.etc/vold.fstab
adb reboot

That will grant root, mount the system as writeable and then push the original file and overwrite the modified one (and reboot your device).

Why isn't this working ??
$ su
su
# mount -o remount,rw /system
mount -o remount,rw /system
Usage: mount [-r] [-w] [-o options] [-t type] device     directory

You have an outdated mound command installed. See the edit which will be up in 2 minutes or so :)

I'd remove all windows specific info (where to get adb) - it's not related to the problem...

I don't know about Android Commander, but a simpler way (in my opinion) would be to use ADB. You may have already installed the Android SDK (if not, go here). I assume that you don't have modified your System Path.

Move your vold.fstab to C:\Program Files\Android\android-sdk\platform-tools or C:\Program Files (x86)\Android\android-sdk\platform-tools
Go to the android-sdk folder, shift+right click on platform-tools and choose "Open command prompt here"
Next steps depends if you have a custom rom (a) or not (b) (see comments).
We take root privilege:

a) If your device is 4.0 or above, type adb root
b) Type adb shell then su

We make /system writeable:

a) adb remount
b) mount -o remount,rw /system then exit

adb push vold.fstab /system
adb reboot

This should do the trick.

adb root will only work if 1. the device is running a custom ROM and 2. root to adb is allowed.


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Compile JellyBean's Keyboard for ICS Rom
I tried creating an Image with a JellyBean's LatinIME.apk, replacing ICS's LatinIME.apk, in system apps folder of ICS ROM, but it crashed. But when I put it in preInstalledApk folder, it got compiled and ran successfully.
But it needs to be selected from "Language and Input" in Settings and also both the keyboards have same name.
What I want is to install JellyBean's LatinIME.apk during compile time of Image and also be the default input method. I don't mind if its not a system app. And I will change the ICS's LatinIME.apk-Keyboard name from the code, so that user can selected any of them without scratching their heads.

I literally had to scavenge the code up and down to get to the solution. A xml called defaults.xml contains the default input method node. That needed to be changed to the package name of the JellyBean's LatinIME. This is yet to be tested; will let you all know if it runs okay.

Edit:
This worked. Please go ahead and get cracking.

What was the outcome? Can you update this answer?

Yes, this worked.

please update the answer, then. It will be better for future users looking into the questions.


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Can I safely downgrade an encrypted Asus Transformer TF101 from 8.6.5.21 to 8.6.5.19?
I want to root my encrypted Asus Transformer TF101 (Firmware 8.6.5.21; Serial B80...) and install a custom ROM. I read that the only way to do this is by downgrading to stock 8.6.5.19 and then using Razorclaw.
I know that using tablet encryption with Custom ROMs is a big no-no, so I will have to wipe my data (factory reset). However I do wish to keep some application Data (such as save games) to which I only have access via root.
So my question is, can I:

Safely(!) downgrade to 8.6.5.19 on my encrypted tablet
root
backup
unencrypt the tablet (factory reset)
install custom ROM

or do I have to:

factory reset (losing all my precious data)
downgrade to 8.6.5.19
root
install custom ROM

Update:
I found out that Asus already includes an app which allows to save application data without root (aptly named "App Backup"). So I will go with the second option. I'll leave the question open though as I still don't know if I could have downgraded without doing a factory reset.

I know some tablets can be upgraded while encrypted, so it would make sense if downgrading was possible also.  Is there an "official" method to downgrade, though?

not really, the downgrade itself is a hack of sorts, it gives the old firmware with a higher version number (see first link). The process should be similar to a regular upgrade so I am hoping it works, Id just rather someone who knows confrims it ;-)

Interesting.  Speaking personally, I'd risk it.  You don't have much of an option unless your current firmware is rootable, right?

Well I could go with option 2... I'd rather loose my save games than brick my tablet.

Fair enough.  Hopefully you get an answer.

So any progress on this? Would be nice to know whether one of the solutions worked (flawlessly). You could answer your own question and accept it -- the community will appreciate this :)

sure thing - I dont want to mess up the statistics ;-)

I ended up doing a factory reset on my tablet (after doing a backup of my data with "App Backup"). As far as I know the downgrade would probably have worked, but I decided not to risk it.


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Firefox mobile install problem on HTC wildfire
I tried to install firefox mobile edition on HTC wildfire (Indian edition) but it fails
anyone faced the same problem or any workaround available to install

Which way did you install Firefox? There are currently two ways to get and install it, either from the Android Market at http://www.appbrain.com/app/mozilla-firefox-web-browser/org.mozilla.firefox or as a download from Mozilla themselves that you can then "side-load" onto your device from http://www.mozilla.com/en-US/mobile/download/ Also can you let us know how the install failed. Did you get any error messages?

I'm afraid you may simply be out of luck for the time being.  The Wildfire is not on the list of supported devices

Credit to Matt H's comment for pointing me the right way.
If you follow through to the System Requirements page on their wiki, the HTC Wildfire is specifically called out as an unsupported device as it has an ARMv6 based processor; Firefox Mobile currently requires an ARMv7 compatible processor.
They do have an experimental build for ARMv6 based devices, which you can download here but according to the warning on the page, that is broken at the moment. If you keep an eye on there they may announce when it starts working.

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5/


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Droid Charge SCH-I510 Memory Dump Crash
I am a Android developer who has been noticing horrible performance and memory dumps that are crashing my Droid Charge SCH-i510. Besides the lack of roadmap for the phone ( because obviously they are targeting newer models) I know it will never really be updated again.
But I would like to see if any one else is having these issues and if they were able to pin point it. Does anyone know how to solve this issue or overcome it? Obviously not everyone will have the exact same issues.
But I notice the issue when processing images as well when a specific thread is chewing resources.
I reached out to Samsung and I was told to "Not have a lot of apps installed on the phone" or to "Not use so many apps on the phone" I tried to explain to them that Android when not using an app has a lifecycle that will free up resources from apps not being used so that it will not run out of resources. They just responded to that as "We are sorry you are mad"
Great job helping your dev's pin point an issue.

Please read the [FAQ]. "I just wanted to kind of see...", "I would like to see what everyone thinks..." and "Thoughts, feelings, other complaints?" are not the kind of questions which work here. "You should only ask practical, answerable questions based on actual problems that you face."

I updated my question to fit your changes. However maybe I was not descriptive enough. I need peoples thoughts and feelings about what they did to solve the mem dump issues. Sorry for the inconvenience.

You're still basically asking for discussion. You should ask about a solution to a specific problem.

How is this possible? I am asking to see if people could pin point the problem. I in a situation where my main development device is acting up. I need a solution not a discussion.

Ask a specific question. Don't ask "anybody else having issues".

I'd suggest you might probably want to ask for how to detect which app is at fault.

Maybe get rid of your current firmware? http://forum.xda-developers.com/forumdisplay.php?f=1146

I figured out why this is happening. The problem is due too a bug that most other Android users are having running 2.3.5 and higher. It happens when more than 50 apps are installed on the SD Card. To which it seems there is no work around for as of yet.
So we are stuck ATM.

Search the logcats for stack traceback. Try uninstalling apps one at a time, to see if the problem disappears when you uninstalled a certain app.
If the issue come from an installed application, then you should uninstall that app and/or contact the developer to fix the crash.
If the issue is system level, then there is not much you can do. You can either downgrade to a version that crashes less, or try upgrading to custom ROM, although with custom ROMs the crashes could also get worse.
It should be noted that newer Android versions have better application management than older versions. I recalled that there is an improvement that comes either in 2.1 or 2.2 or 2.3 that significantly improves the way the out-of-memory killer works.

I see what you are saying but I doubt highly that it has much to do with the apps that are installed. I think what you are trying to suggest is to see if any app has a process or thread that is causing the issue.
Having looked I don't think log cat is the correct place for this because you can't actually see the heap memory.The DDMS maybe a better solution because I could  actually look at memory allocation to apps and see where isn't getting repurposed when not in use.
I feel like this is going to be a ROM issue which is what I was worried about. Which like you said I need a new rom.Thanks

@chenger: I guess the inevitable question is that, what makes you so sure that it's not an installed app? If it is a ROM issue and you have a stock ROM, then you should be able to find many people on the internet having the same issue.

@Ryan: Because having done some research on this. Many other Charge users are having this issue. On numerous Charge forums Verizon and it's subsidiaries are suggesting they are " Working on a fix for all the problems" this. They came out with a patch that is supposed to clear up lots of these issues but the plain fact is it just dosen't. If it were infact a memory leak from a app I would be able to trace the memory stack back to the culprit. As of right now I am not seeing that. Thanks


text:
Corrupt Internal Storage File System
I am using an original RAZR that is partitioned using Safestrap running stock 4.1 on one partition and CM10.1 on the other.
My problem is the internal storage (internal SD card I believe) partition running CM10.1 has a corrupt file system and I am having trouble running a check and repair. The internal storage always shows 0.0b available and no files can be saved to that disk space. The OS restores to default on every reboot, I'm guessing the config files are failing to save when I get through the setup.
Troubleshooting steps/questions so far...

Using Safestrap I have tried to wipe the system and all caches, then reinstall CM10.1 but no luck. The version I have of SS does not provide a file system check.
I can connect using shell and ADB, just not sure exactly what commands to run from there. Specifically how do I find out what file system to mount and how do I type that out as an argument?

Do I use the fsck_msdos program that I have available in the /system/xbin folder?
If so how do I find the file system information to complete the syntax for running the fsck?
If fsck is the correct method to repair where do I run it from? Stock or CM installation? ADB shell or terminal from a running droid OS?

Community bump prevention: this question was closed because the question seems to have been abandoned (OP hasn't visited the network for more than 5 years, and no answers have score above 0). If anyone can evaluate the existing answers, feel free to vote accordingly and reopen the question (or mod-flag the question requesting for reopening). For anyone else having the same issue, please post a new question and refer to this question as additional context.

I once tried to Format my microsd card in my razr with a safestrapped rom. My phone rebooted and I ended up having to reinstall my rom. buy a microsd card reader and format with your pc. If you have a friend that has a digital camera, you could ask them to format it for you. You would need a microsd to sdcard converter tho.


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Nexus 4 phone speaker not functioning
The speaker phone of my new Nexus 4 is not working. I am able to hear the calls without the speaker phone, but on switching to speaker mode I hear voice from speaker for a fraction of second and then I hear no voice and it shifts back to speaker off mode even though it shows that the speaker is on.
I have no problem otherwise in the hearing on speaker as I am able to listen to music etc. I tried reformatting my phone and it solved the problem temporarily, but the problem reoccurred within a few days.
My phone is only a month old, and is fully updated to Android 4.2.2. Is there a permanent solution to this?


text:
What exactly is the APN field used for, and why do some providers require it while others don't?
I've switched providers and now have to enter an APN (access point name) in order to use the service. With my older two providers I did not need to do this and it worked out of the box. What is the rationale for requiring APNs to be entered on some cell phones, and exactly what features do they enable?
Why do some providers require them while others don't, and what do they do?

APN settings are necessary for data service on GSM and related networks (UMTS, LTE) to work.  It defines what network to connect to and the configuration of the network (e.g. the gateway GPRS support node address, which is the interface between the mobile network and the public internet).
APN settings are always required for data service on GSM and related networks.  The reason why you didn't need to enter them before would be either that you purchased the device from the carrier, in which case it would have been pre-configured with their APN settings, that the ROM (either stock or custom) included your previous carrier in their APN database, or your phone was able to accept automatic configuration from the carrier.
Most custom ROMs and some stock ones (in the case of direct-from-the-manufacturer devices) include an extensive database of different carrier's APNs and Android can automatically choose the correct one (Based on information from the SIM card) so you don't have to enter stuff manually.

Remember that CDMA carriers and devices don't use APNs (unless they're also LTE capable). If the OP's previous carriers were CDMA, this would explain the difference.

The APN (Access Point Name) is generally the gateway between your providers 3G network and the Internet. They are usually auto-detected but occasionally you have to enter them manually when you swap providers.


text:
Incompatible / error connecting as MTP device after unlocking and rooting Nexus 4
I unlocked and rooted my Nexus 4

it shows as connected
it shows in my computer

But when copying a file, it gives me an error stating "device is unavailable or may have been removed"
What should I do?

Are you able to replicate the same error on other computers and OSs? If it's just your computer, remove all drivers and related software and then connect your device and add them again.
Otherwise, you can attempt to ftp to your device using Solid Explorer. It does not require a cable; you'd be able to transfer files over WiFi (albeit a little slower).


text:
Call app needs long time to start
The call app on my Samsung Galaxy Ace takes a really long time to start (about 20 seconds). When it finally starts and I cancel the call and call again, the app launches normally. When I turn off the screen and turn it on again, the app starts again delayed. I was watching the LogCat output, and it gives me this:
07-21 21:11:08.710: D/PowerManagerService(1502): releaseWakeLock flags=0x1 tag=ActivityManager-Launch
07-21 21:11:11.390: D/BatteryService(1502): update start
07-21 21:11:14.703: W/PowerManagerService(1502): Timer 0x3->0x3|0x0
07-21 21:11:21.421: D/BatteryService(1502): update start
07-21 21:11:22.531: W/ActivityManager(1502): Timeout of broadcast BroadcastRecord{407bdff8 android.intent.action.SCREEN_OFF} - receiver=android.os.BinderProxy@40bd2f18, started 20000ms ago
07-21 21:11:22.531: W/ActivityManager(1502): Receiver during timeout: BroadcastFilter{40bf3618 ReceiverList{40bd2f88 23024 com.google.android.youtube/10057 remote:40bd2f18}}
07-21 21:11:22.554: I/Launcher(19091): ACTION_SCREEN_OFF
07-21 21:11:22.578: D/PowerManagerService(1502): acquireWakeLock flags=0x1 tag=GeofencerStateMachine
07-21 21:11:22.578: D/PowerManagerService(1502): releaseWakeLock flags=0x1 tag=GeofencerStateMachine
I think it has something to do with this line:

07-21 21:11:22.531: W/ActivityManager(1502): Timeout of broadcast BroadcastRecord{407bdff8 android.intent.action.SCREEN_OFF} - receiver=android.os.BinderProxy@40bd2f18, started 20000ms ago

but I don't know how to fix it.

What is the call app? Have you checked on Play store for updates? Emailed the developer in question?

I think he is talking about the default dialer app.

Re-reading the output of logcat, it's showing youtube is mis-behaving (Look at BinderProxy's address corresponds to com.google.android.youtube/10057 remote:40bd2f18) has nothing to do with call app... just saying

It is the default call app.
I don't know how to find updates for that...

I have experienced the same issue on my Galaxy S2(Android version 2.3.5). It was cause by Youtube, not the call app. When I saw the log related to youtube, I tried to start youtube by touching its icon, but it failed to start. You can try to see if you can start youtube now.
Then I went to "Settings/Application/Manage Applications" and found "Youtube". Cleared its data and cache. Now try to start youtube again. If it cannot start, check if you has disabled data sync. Enable it in "Settings/Account and Sync/Background data". Try to sync your data to allow youtube to update. After youtube is updated, it should be ok for the call app to work properly.
Hope this can also fix your problem. Cheers.

It is all about cache memory.
Whenever you load any application, it will be loaded in cache memory first and then Android will load that app on your screen from that cache.
If the call app was recently used, it might be stored in cache still, and thus it will load on your screen quickly.
Once you go out or lock the screen, cache memory will be cleared and when you start the call app, Android will have to load it again in cache memory as it is the first time. It will take some time to appear on screen afterwards because of this.
The trick to this situation not to kill the call app if you use it very often. Just leave it in your recent app list or background apps.


text:
Disable an app from creating bookmarks
Recently I have observed some of the apps (Photo editors) asking for permissions like 'creating bookmarks' at the time of installation from google play.
How can I disable a particular application from creating a bookmark on the home screen, like in disabling notifications on per app basis.
Thanks in advance

The Play Store does have an option in its central settings for controlling whether shortcuts on your home screen are automatically created for apps when you install them:

You can get here by opening the Play Store, pressing the Menu button on your phone (or the "three dots" menu icon if you don't have a hardware menu button) and select Settings, you should then see the "Auto-add widgets" setting that you can enable or disable.

Thanks for the information. Learned a new thing.
But the one which I am looking for is different. Some free apps create random bookmarks on the home screen for advertising. Is there a way to disable that permission specific to the app as in disabling the notification per app.

In that case you might be interested in these previous questions: Is it possible to install an app and exclude some of its requested permissions? or Revoke App Permissions Without Root?


text:
Can't change galaxy s4 lock screen wallpaper if security is in place
If I use no security for galaxy s4 lock screen I can use a custom wallpaper for the lock screen. But if I use a Pin security then the lock screen uses the default wallpaper of a kid running with a bunch of balloons when entering my pin. Can someone confirm this please? Thanks

From what I've read this is a known "issue" with the S4.  When using pin security you can't change any lock screen widgets either.  If I was sure that my Fitbit Flex would continue to work with the S4 I'd have flashed CyanogenMod onto my S4 (they have been producing nightly versions for the S4 for a couple of weeks now).

Thanks for your answer. Surprisingly i restarted the device and the problem fixed itself. Hooray


text:
How can I stop my phone sending an SMS every time I insert a SIM card?
I have one Samsung tablet and one Samsung mobile phone. When I insert my Airtel SIM in tablet then it automatically sends one SMS to an unknown number, and when I insert the same SIM card into my mobile then it again sends one SMS to an unknown number. So every time an amount is deducted from my balance.
I don't know what is the problem and how to get out from this problem?
Is it a problem with the SIM card or with the mobile/tablet?

Possible duplicate of: http://android.stackexchange.com/questions/32087/i-changed-my-sim-card-how-do-i-find-which-app-is-sending-sms-messages-to-my-ol

+1 for that hint with the duplicate, GreenGuy! @VinitVikash: Please check its first answer, it pretty much sounds like a perfect match to your problem.

Here in my case "Sim change Alert" box is unchecked then why it send SMS??? All the setting are factory set.

NO this question is not duplicate of other question. Here in my case "SIM change alert" box is unchecked but it till send SMS when I insert new SIM into the mobile.

Have you followed the debugging steps used in that post? Install RL Permissions and see what apps ave permission to send SMS, and then which apps can start at boot. The culprit is likely one of the applications that has both permissions.

Hey I got solution after giving lot of time on this problem.
This is the defect of Samsung Software. Actually every software version is linked with some number. But it not send any sms to that number. Because of licence, security reason they need to linked every version to particular number. If some problem occur in mobile phone then only it communicate with this number. But in some particular software there is some defect that's why it send sms when new SIM inserted into mobile.
The solution is go to your nearest Samsung Service Center and update your software.

Before changing the SIM, set your phone to flight mode. Then switch it off, and change the SIM. Switch on after 5 minutes, and disable the flight mode. It will help you save your balance deduction.

I had a similar problem. I had enabled mobile tracker & that why the SMS's were going. Disable the tracker & the sms'es will not be send out on sim change.


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How do I remove all social integration features with Google+/Google applications
I bought a Nexus 4. It's my first Android device, and I'm really disappointed at how this thing is a complete intrusion of my privacy and online behavior. Just in upgrading the default applications that came with the device, it seems like Google can literally do whatever it wants with my personal information. Every single Google app seems to require every permission under the sun.
One of the things that really bothers me is Google looking at my Google+ stuff and pulling it in for other applications. When I'm browsing the Google Play store for an application, I don't like that I see friends comments on products I'm looking at. Conversely, I don't necessarily want my friends to see a review I write for an application or book or whatever the case may be. How can I disable this? If I try to disable the Google+ application from Settings, I'm warned that I may break a bunch of important stuff that depends on it. Google Play is an important application.
I feel like this is all so crazy. I don't want this level of integration because its impossible to manage. My previous device was an old iPhone and everything was cleanly sandboxed. Here, Google unifies everything. I search for a certain kind of product or TV show or whatever and I get a bunch of Play Store recommendations for the same thing. This is messed up.
Can I get rid of all the social stream integration crap Google has infested the Play app with? Can I get rid of all social integration altogether?

No, not easily. one of the side-effects of using Google services, is that all the Google services link together in the back-ground. This can be incredibly useful in some cases (if I Google for a bar's address on my desktop PC, my phone will later offer me directions and estimated travel time to that bar on a Google Now card). Some can be spooky.
Having said that there are ways around this, the easiest is that just because you have an Android phone, doesn't mean you're limited to using Google's services, one of the strengths of Android is all the choices you have:

You could get your apps from Amazon's App Store, instead of the Play Store
You could sync your mail, contacts and calendar with an IMAP server, instead of GMail, or you could install Yahoo's apps or Microsoft's apps and use those instead.

Or alternatively you could create a second Google account, add it to your phone and use that account for the apps/services that you'd rather keep separate from the apps/services that you use "as you". Have a look through the google-account tag for some hints on how to set up another account and swap apps from using one account to another.

Thanks for the helpful reply. It's crazy how aggressive the service integration is.

How do I remove all the google services? I don't use Google now or any of that stuff

You might also want to look at other free replacements to Google apps. The Android fork Replicant has a list of them, e.g.:

Playstore: F-Droid
GMail: K-9 Mail
Google Maps: OsmAnd

Many more listed there.


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Titanium Backup Dropbox sync scheduling
I'm using Titanium Backup to automatically back up to my SD card. I also managed to get the "Sync to Dropbox " feature to work. How I can I automate "Sync To Dropbox"? I don't see it as an option when I add a schedule.

Is it not immediately synced when something changes?

Matthew, the timestamps on the files in dropbox are set to when I manually ran it. It doesn't appear to be doing it automatically.

In my experience, Titanium Backup didnt work like what i wanted it to do. So now i use RealSync Pro, witch automatically syncs all photos from phone to dropbox each time i'm on my home wifi network.
Works great!
Get it HERE.

Titanium Backup doesn't have this feature yet. But, you can do this to automate it:

Install Dropsync.
Link TitaniumBackup directory (whatever it is) with a folder on Dropbox.
Configure Auto Sync interval of Dropsync to whatever you want (Scheduling).

Done!
Free version of Dropsync allows only one directory sync which is enough for this job. I have been using Dropsync for 5 months and I haven't faced any issues yet.

Yup.. I've re-checked it after your answer. It was there! Thanks..


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Are there any other launchers that display a folder's contents instead of the generic icon?
The Xperia Neo V stock launcher displays a 2x2 grid containing the first 4 apps that a folder contains instead of a simple icon. Is there any other launcher that does this or something similar?

The stock Ice Cream Sandwich (Android 4) launcher has something similar built in (it shows a cascaded view of the first three icons in the folder).

This won't help people who are still waiting for their phone to be upgraded, but the stock Ice Cream Sandwich (Android 4) launcher has something similar built in - it shows a cascaded view of the first three icons in the folder.

ADWLauncher EX has this feature as well. It can display either a generic folder icon or a circle with the apps within it much like stock Ice Cream Sandwich.
To change from Folder Icons to the Preview Icons:

Go to your home screen

Hit the Menu Key

Go to ADWSettings

Go to UI Settings

Go to Folders

Make sure Show Contents is checked

Where is the setting for this?

Edited to show where to find this option

The folders section or submenu doesn't exist on my device. Are you running ICS?

I run Gingerbread and ICS and it showed up on both. It may be that I have the paid (ADWLauncer EX) version and it is not in the free version.


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Can I restart Bluetooth from the terminal?
I have a rooted Galaxy S 2 (I9100) and was wondering if I can restart the Bluetooth on my phone via the terminal client on my phone.

The following terminal command should enable Bluetooth via adb shell or Terminal Emulator app:
su
am start -a android.bluetooth.adapter.action.REQUEST_ENABLE

On most versions of Android, this command will present a pop-up window to the user asking to confirm request to enable BT.  I believe this was done for security purposes whenever an app that is not system is toggling BT.
I haven't found a way to disable BT via a shell command unfortunately.
With WiFi it's a lot easier, and does not prompt user for permission:
su
svc wifi enable

will turn it on, and
su
svc wifi disable

will turn it off.

Thanks for the answer. I'll try the same. Could you also list the same for WiFi?

Edited my answer with the WiFi info.  I haven't found a way to disable BT via a terminal command though :(

in android.bluetooth.IBluetoothManager, there some parameters

TRANSACTION_registerAdapter = (android.os.IBinder.FIRST_CALL_TRANSACTION + 0);
  TRANSACTION_unregisterAdapter = (android.os.IBinder.FIRST_CALL_TRANSACTION + 1);
  TRANSACTION_registerStateChangeCallback = (android.os.IBinder.FIRST_CALL_TRANSACTION + 2);
  TRANSACTION_unregisterStateChangeCallback = (android.os.IBinder.FIRST_CALL_TRANSACTION + 3);
  TRANSACTION_isEnabled = (android.os.IBinder.FIRST_CALL_TRANSACTION + 4);
  TRANSACTION_enable = (android.os.IBinder.FIRST_CALL_TRANSACTION + 5);
  TRANSACTION_enableNoAutoConnect = (android.os.IBinder.FIRST_CALL_TRANSACTION + 6);
  TRANSACTION_disable = (android.os.IBinder.FIRST_CALL_TRANSACTION + 7);
  TRANSACTION_getAddress = (android.os.IBinder.FIRST_CALL_TRANSACTION + 8);
  TRANSACTION_getName = (android.os.IBinder.FIRST_CALL_TRANSACTION + 9);

android.os.IBinder.FIRST_CALL_TRANSACTION=1
SO, with rooted device,
if you want to turn off bluetooth
in adb shell super user mode (su)
service call bluetooth_manager 8

if you want to turn on bluetooth again
service call bluetooth_manager 6

device I use is HTC One with android 4.4.2

Confirm, that this is working on Android 4.2.2

Service bluetooth_manager does not exist on Android 4.1.2

Enable bluetooth:
service call bluetooth 3
Disable bluetooth:
service call bluetooth 4

Negative voter: could you help identifying the issue with this answer (after edit)? These worked in my rooted phone after su - so technically nothing wrong AFAIK.

Enable bluetooth:
service call bluetooth 3
Disable bluetooth:
service call bluetooth 5 is working on my HTC Desire X

service call bluetooth 5 works in my Android 4.2.1 to disable bluetooth.

On a "Galaxy Fame GT-6810P", the correct numbers are 3 and 5.

This works from a shell:
am start -a android.bluetooth.adapter.action.REQUEST_ENABLE &
input keyevent 20 & adb shell input keyevent 21 & adb shell input keyevent 23
Basically it causes the dialogue to appear and then sends keystrokes to accept the command

My solution works.
am start -a android.bluetooth.adapter.action.REQUEST_ENABLE
sleep 1
input tap 872 1072

Notice that when execute first command, it jumps out a window ask you to select ALLOW.
So you need the auto click command.
You can get the X,Y position by enable Developer options->Pointer location, then touch the ALLOW button.


text:
How can I tell if an app can be a "link" target?
I have a couple of Bible apps on my phone. Sometimes, other apps link to a Bible verse, but they usually either embed a Bible viewer in the app or only work with a particular app.
I would like to be prompted for an app in the same way that one is prompted for a browser when clicking a link. But this doesn't happen. Why?
Is it the fault of:

The app generating the link;
The Bible app(s) I have installed;
Android itself; or
Some combination of the above?

I'm running Android 4.0.1 (MIUI) on an HTC/Google Nexus One.

Short and put in lay terms:
There's no standard defined on how to pass this information between apps, so there are no two apps who can interact the way you want.
Longer and with some more detailed information:
The app-selection menu for e.g. a browser or a homescreen only appears when multiple apps announce their being-available for  a certain service, and only when this service is called (to put it in easy words; the longer and more technical variant talks about intents and listerners). While web-browsers and homescreens are somehow "generic services" existing on all Android devices, there are standard "intents" defined (see e.g. this question on stackoverflow for opening a page in a browser -- or this question here which probably explains it even better).
As long as there is no corresponding intent (with a defined API for how to pass it the specific chapter:verse to show), your wish can not be fulfilled. Moreover, application developers must implement this into their apps before you can use it.
As to my knowledge neither such API exists nor is it implemented -- there cannot exist any programs acting according to your wishes (except, of course, both are from the same developer; if two or more agreed on terms of how to handle this, that already would mean defining an API).

Thanks for your detailed answer. There's one thing that I'm not yet clear on: Is there some formal process that must be followed to set up an appropriate API, or would it be enough for the developers of relevant apps to merely agree on some suitable API?

IMHO, technically both comes to the same end. If you take e.g. apps with support for Tasker -- here Tasker established an API, and other developers use it. This worked mainly due to the popularity of Tasker, I guess -- who would be the "central point" in your case, where multiple apps shall serve multiple other apps? Maybe if one comes up with a good API, others will use it as well. Easiest way for them would be using the "share with" feature. But I am no developer ;)

In addition to @Izzy 's excellent answer, I've had some observations of my own over the years:

You can copy an application (through ADB or a file manager such as X-plore) to your desktop and rename extension to .zip (or in X-plore, you can long-press and directly open-as .zip).  Extract if necessary, then look for a file called AndroidManifest.xml.  Open this file with your preferred text editor (I use Notepad++), and you'll see a bunch of text.  Generally, some (or even most) may be obfuscated, but there will generally be blocks of text that are human-readable (you may need to scroll down).  If you used X-plore instead, open the file using the internal text editor, and choose to edit the text contents; this will launch the editor rather than the viewer, which will eliminate a lot of formatting characters and make the contents more readable.  Among the contents, note that you'll see some intents being listed out, as well as different permissions flags, etc.  This is one way to more directly examine possible intent calls.
Another method, which also makes it possible to call upon these as shortcuts (where possible, compatible, and permissible), I'll be quoting my own answer from this post:

1) Go to G Play Market and install Nova Launcher.
  2) Skip all the setup and go straight to Home screen with Nova as default launcher (since you're just testing functionality at this point)
  3) Long press your background and select Widgets, then scroll down to Nova Launcher and find the "Activity" widget (for me it's the second widget); long-press then drag to an empty space on Home Screen
  4) Once you let go to set the widget, an overlay prompt will come into focus and start loading. Depending on your device and number of apps installed, this may take a minute or two, so don't be alarmed. Once it finishes loading, scroll down to your app and locate the activity thread you're looking for and select it (you can long-press them one by one to test the function as well, it will return you back to the previous overlay prompt if the thread didn't cause a crash...if it does, you'll have to restart from step 3.
  ... NOTE: I am enrolled in the Beta, and have the Prime (paid) version, so I'm not sure if that might affect this specific function or not. You can likely purchase for testing and request refund if necessary.

Another neat feature of X-plore (not sure if this is universal to other file explorer apps as well or not), you can attempt to share any file or list entry and choose to attempt to open-as a) specific MIME type, e.g., Video, Picture, Document, etc; or b) open-as wildcard (*), and see all possible choices.  Keep in mind though, this is technically circumventing the intended usage scenarios the developers typically anticipate, and can sometimes not work where it should or work where it it should not (and in the case of the latter, I bear no liability for what may ensue).  From what I've experienced, if you throw archive containers (e.g., .rar) and/or SMB file access into the mix, some unexpected behavior may also occur.  Just to even things out though, here's an example of a positive use case: having a media app (e.g., MX Player) that doesn't natively support a particular extension (e.g., .gif) -- when added manually through settings, MX Player will remove the entry on refresh -- successfully play the file regardless (NOTE: in this example, HW and HW+ video decoders seem not to work but SW does).


text:
How can I read PostScript files?
Is there a way to read PostScript files on Android? Currently when I click on a PostScript file web link it downloads it then takes no further action, unlike a pdf.

42 results on a search for postscript. Have you checked those apps?

@Izzy Once you filter for Free you get one file format converter and one that uses google docs.  I don't see any that just let you read a postscript file in that list.

I didn't check them all. A raw scan shows Prompterous fits your description, but doesn't come for free (1 buck, so it will make you bankrupt); DocsViewer would even fit better and comes for free (but needs Google Docs, yeah, so it wouldn't be my choice either). OK, was just a start. So I've to leave the place for better answerers ;)

"Prompterous is the first App who turns your Android Tablet into a powerful teleprompter !" This doesn't look right either.


text:
How do I mute the sound when opening a folder in the home screen?
I have a Galaxy Note 2, running Android 4.1.2.
Everytime I open or close a folder on the home screen, I hear a click sound. How can I mute this?

I have a Samsung Galaxy S4, but see if you can find something similar to this: Settings > My device > Sound > Touch sounds.

@Elad Benda If you found the correct procedure, please share it here so I can update the answer. :)

no, it's all turned off. That's the weird thing - I hear the tick sound only when I open or close apps folder. Not when tapping or anything else.

authors: พรนภา สุขสมร


text:
Samsung Tab 3 drivers reinstallation
I bought a Samsung Galaxy Tab 3. Upon connecting to the PC, some of its drivers were not installed. I'm using the Tab for the first time. Developer mode/option is checked.
I want to run my apps on it, but it is not recognizing it. So, how do I re-install the drivers?

Did you try unmounting any storage? Settings > Storage > [Menu]: make sure all boxes are unticked.

Download and install the Samsung Android USB Driver for Windows.
(It's the zip file at the top of the page.)
Go to Settings > Security > Unknown Sources and check the box.
Turn on USB debugging in Developer Options.

Please try the following:

Unmount any USB storage: Settings > Storage > [Menu] > USB Computer Connection: make sure all boxes are unticked.
Ensure that you have enabled USB debugging from Settings > Developer Options > USB debugging. After enabling it, you should see an ongoing notification that it is enabled when you connect it to your PC.
Ensure that you have the latest Samsung USB drivers for your device.

Download Samsung Kies, and install it. It will install all the drivers you need, plus the Samsung Kies software, where you can do back-ups and other phone management tasks.

but not work'n ,i'm nt able to run my app through pc

What do you mean by run my app through PC?

I believe he means to push an apk from his PC via an IDE, etc


text:
How do I change my photo in my message threads?
I have an LG Optimus Elite and I am running the stock ROM.
In my text message threads, under "Me" where my messages are, it shows one of my contacts, rather than my Facebook or Google photo. How do I change this?

As you haven't given your Android version, I shall give the steps I used for my device:

Open the messaging app.
Press your picture, or the standard picture.
An overlay should appear at the top. Click it, and select take picture or choose picture.
Crop picutre.
Restart the SMS app.

This video also shows it: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6hxULkTKe9E


text:
How can I flash CyanogenMod, or another mod, on an AT&T locked Note 2?
My Note II has a lot of useless AT&T apps, and I would also like some features that require root and are available on CyanogenMod.
Is there an easy way to flash CyanogenMod on a locked Note 2?
I wouldn't mind things like worse battery life and Bluetooth not working. The pen working would be nice, but it's not essential as well. I couldn't care less about NFC and other shenanigans like the proximity gesture commands.


text:
Error message in Words With Friends is preventing download? - "You already own this item."
I am trying to setup my replaced phone back up for Words With Friends as it was before, but
I am getting this error:

"You already own this item."

when trying to re-purchase the Ultimate Play Pack.
It may be related to the fact that Words With Friends was moved to my data originally. How do I get past this and/or re-purchase ultimate pack and other items?
I have a few apps that I want back on my phone. Will I have to re-purchase them or is there a way get re-installed with or without repurchasing?

You may have to contact the Words With Friends developers and request that they restore your purchases. They should restore automatically if you're logging into app with the same credentials however, some developers tend not to use this method so you have to buy the packs again. It's an easy way to make a few extra dollars.
The fact you're getting the message that you've already purchased the pack is a good sign. Get a hold of the developers and see if there is anything they can do.


text:
IMEI has become 0 - how to fix?
I was using stock Android Pie with build ALI_PPSS29.55-24-2 on my Moto G6 (ALI, XT1925-13). It was also rooted using Magisk.  After more than an year the performance degradation happened and I thought to do a factory reset using the menu option in Settings.
Do not know why the reset operation did not help and ended up in boot loop.
At this juncture I thought to restore the ALI_PPSS29.55-24-2 ROM image and also thought to install RevengeOS which is Android 10 from XDA.
Flashed the latest TWRP for my phone, copied the downloaded image zip file from the XDA page and installed. All went well but the network was not detected at all. Worried with that, I tried to reach out the telegram group but it did not help.
Left alone, I thought to restore ALI_PPSS29.55-24-2 and successfully returned to Android Pie (9). However the network is not detected. Typing *#06# shows bar code with IMEI as 0.
I now read that I should have backed up the EFS partition which was not known. When the instructions for the installation said to backup, I only backed up my files and not the EFS partition.
Is there any options left? Any help is appreciated. Thanks.
The reason for me to raise this as a new question is that time had moved on and the options/suggestions for other question might not work or might have improved.
FYI: I have the back up of persist folder which I am not sure whether is still intact.
Edit : after "Adb reboot bootloader" I can toggle to "Barcode" option and it displays the IMEI number correctly. Also seen with command "fastboot getvar all" - as said in this XDA forum:

Your IMEI is not lost, it's just sitting there. You can see it in fastboot using "fastboot getvar all" command, and in the "Barcode" in bootloader menu.
Any attempt in writing IMEI via QPST tool is futile, because our device is write protected.

Update: Flashed PPSS29.55-24-2 stock Pie image - all went well except the SIM/network/IMEI

If this is like other Moto devices (G3-G5) I have worked with, then the only option is to flash the official stock image via fastboot... you will either get your IMEI back or you need to send it to Moto for repair. Honestly, the likelihood of recovering it is slim. I am leaving this as a comment as I have been out of the "Moto world" for a few years and don't the resources to give a proper answer with links and instructions anymore, but finding them on XDA or using Google should not be difficult.

Thanks for the suggestion, indeed I have opened many XDA posts but all end up somewhere in middle and has one incompatibility or other (like for example, the solution provided is for G5 and not G6 etc).

[Solved] I read in many XDA posts that IMEI might not be actually lost by installing custom ROM, but it might be just a case that the permission might have been changed.  To verify, see if the IMEI number is shown in boot loader or bar code screen, if so then this is the case. Since my case is also similar, those posts suggested to flash factory image to restore the IMEI. I am not sure why it did not happen when I tried the same with the version that I already downloaded and have flashed already which is ALI_RETAIL_9.0_PPSS29.55-24-2.
Somehow inexplicably this did not work even though I tried to flash many times.
I stumbled on an XDA post which showed me a repository of factory images of various phones and in my phone case (Moto G6 ALI XT1925-13), I found the latest images from here.
From this site, I downloaded latest ALI_RETAIL_9.0_PPSS29.118-15-11-9 image and flashed which worked.
Edit
The above 118 version had was unstable and tried ALI_RETAIL_9.0_PPSS29.55-37-7-6_cid50_subsidy-DEFAULT_regulatory-DEFAULT_CFC.xml.zip which seems to be okay so far.

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/


text:
The power button on my Galaxy Nexus stopped working
I got a galaxy nexus at Google IO, and randomly today the power button stopped working. I was on a call, used it to lock the screen after I got off, put it in my pocket, and when I got home the button wasn't working. The rest of the phone works if I plug it in to charge (waking up the screen), but the button doesn't respond. Short press doesn't lock/wake and long press doesn't bring the power menu up. What happened and how can I fix it?
I've tried pulling the battery and letting it sit for a few minutes without rebooting it, and it didn't help.

Can you start the phone after you've turned it off?

@onik: I can only turn it off by pulling the battery, and inserting the battery automatically turns it on. I spoke with Samsung support and set up an RMA. They said it seemed to be a hardware problem. I'll post that as an answer when it's completely resolved, but I see no reason why it shouldn't.

If the phone is working normally except for the power button not responding, you most likely have a hardware issue. That is, the power button is probably physically broken.
In this case, you will need to return the phone to the manufacturer or the point of purchase for a repair or replacement.
Before returning the phone, copy off any personal data you wish to keep, and remove the battery, SD card, SIM card and any external case; do not ship those or any other accessories back along with the phone. You may get a replacement phone, and your data and accessories will not be transferred.

This is what I'm in the process of doing. When the RMA is approved and I get the replacement back (confirmation that they will repair this problem), I'll mark this accepted. Also as of today, rapidly pressing the button multiple times and/or pressing it very hard brings the screen on,  but it's not reliable.

Yep, sounds like the power button hardware has come loose. That happened to my original Motorola DROID.

Thanks, this was the right route to go. It was indeed a hardware defect, and Samsung was prompt in repairing it (covered under warranty).


text:
What's the difference between Android Beam vs S Beam?
What is the difference between Android Beam on the Galaxy Nexus and S Beam on Galaxy S3?
Are these two features inter-compatible? Can I transfer data between the two devices?

Even though Android Beam and S Beam serve similar purposes, they actually work very differently and are not compatible with one another.
Android Beam uses NFC to pair your devices over Bluetooth, then transfers files over the Bluetooth connection. I believe it can also transfer very small pieces of data (contacts, links, etc) directly over NFC, as the Ice Cream Sandwich version highlights page implies:

For larger payloads, developers can even use Android Beam to initiate
  a connection and transfer the data over Bluetooth, without the need
  for user-visible pairing.

S Beam, however, uses Wi-Fi Direct to perform data transfers instead of Bluetooth. Their reasoning for doing this is that Wi-Fi Direct offers faster transfer speeds (they quote up to 300 Mbps). Therefore, this will only work with other S Beam enabled devices, currently limiting it to communication between two Galaxy S3s.
However, the SGS3 also supports Android Beam, so you can use that to transfer something between a GNex and an SGS3. Here is a tutorial on Sprint's website (should be essentially the same for other versions of the SGS3).

Apart from the difference in data transfer method (Bluetooth vs. Wi-Fi Direct), Android Beam in Jelly Beam and S Beam are also different in how they use NFC. S Beam uses the  ICS Android Beam to do its work, while the new Jelly Bean Android Beam feature is not visible to an ICS device (it uses a different LLCP port). It will be interesting to see how this will be solved when (if?) the SGS3 is updated to Jelly Bean.


text:
How do I sharpen photos on my phone?
I am looking for a photo editor app or website that will let me sharpen photos, preferably using unsharp mask.
I tried several free photo editors from the market, but none of them lets me sharpen photos. I don't mind paying for an app, I just don't want to unless I know it is a good choice.

I have been using PicSay's free version and been happy with it.  I'll probably upgrade to the full version which has the ability to sharpen, but just haven't really had the need yet so I've been putting it off.  I'll report back if I do chip down.
Another alternative would be to use Pixlr's web based editor: http://pixlr.com/editor
Provided you have flash installed you can use their browser based editor that does have an "Unsharp Mask" filter.

I like using Adobe Photoshop Express because it makes photos look sharper and a whole list of other things too. I'm no photographer, and this app makes my pictures look professional.

Have you tried using Camera 360. It's a great all in one app and it makes most photos extremely clear. Try it. It has a free trial so you can try it before. :)

all_licenses: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5/


text:
How can I remove Camera app on Cyanogenmod?
I am running Cyanogenmod on my SamSung phone.
Can you please tell me how can I remove the Camera app on the phone?

If Cyanogenmod works just like Android 4 (and I have no idea if it does, never having used it), then you can go to "Settings", choose "Apps", tap on the Camera app; tap "Uninstall Updates" if that button is visible; then tap "Disable".  The app's icon will disappear from the launcher, and (as far as I know) from everywhere else except the Settings page, where you can, of course, re-enable it later if you want.

If you really just want to remove it (which, fair warning, may cause problems with the system; I have no idea) you can:

Use adb to delete the .apk file: adb shell rm /system/app/Camera.apk. You may need to first elevate to root (adb shell and then su from the shell).
Use Titanium Backup to uninstall it

A potentially safer route that people take is to use Titanium Backup Pro to "freeze" the app, causing it to essentially act as though it is uninstalled without actually removing it (so it can be "defrosted" later if needed). This does require the Pro version, though.

An app called NoBloat can freeze (disable) apps in the free version.

The camera app will be usually named Camera.apk, located in /system/app. To delete this first clear the data stored by the app in /data/data/com.sec.android.app.camera/ or something similar

Using Root Explorer, find the file, click mount rw and delete it.
Using terminal emulator,

Acquire root privileges
su

Mount system in read write mode
mount -o rw,remount -t yaffs2 /dev/block/mtdblock03 /system

Delete the file
rm /system/app/Camera.apk

Using adb

Mount system in read write mode
adb shell mount -o rw,remount -t yaffs2 /dev/block/mtdblock03 /system

Delete the file
adb shell rm /system/app/Camera.apk

Using titanium backup, select the app and click uninstall

When i use 'adb' method, I did 'adb shell mount -o rw,remount -t yaffs2 /dev/block/mtdblock03 /system ', but it said 'mount: Operation not permitted'. Any idea?

is your phone rooted?

Yes. I am running cyanogenmod and I have  'Superuser' installed.

can you try: adb shell (enter) su (enter)mount -o rw,remount -t yaffs2 /dev/block/mtdblock03 /system(enter)

If you really want to delete or replace system files ''at your own risk", first make sure you're rooted. Then install NQ mobile security. From the home screen of NQ, slide to the left to access ROM App Manager. Once you are there, MAKE SURE YOU BACK UP THE FILE BEFORE UNINSTALLING IT so you can restore it if anything goes south.
Good luck and just say thank you if i help!


text:
Why does the Yahoo Mail application for Android only show message snippets in search results?
When I do a search in the Yahoo Mail application and then open one of the search results, instead of seeing the entire message I only see a message snippet.
Is there a way to view the entire original email message?

I have the same problem. It's ridiculous.
I don't really have a solution, but here's my workaround: I forward the found email to myself. (Doing this, you still won't be able to read the message in the composition window!!)
So you'll be able to read the forwarded message only when it comes around in your inbox.
I really do hope they'll fix this.


text:
Stylish for Android?
I've occasionally used Stylish to improve usability of websites on the PC. Is there an equivalent for Android - either plugin to FireFox, the default browser (mine is a Galaxy Note), or other. Basically, there are some sites that don't have mobile-specific stylesheets that I'd love to improve with a bit of CSS...

Stylish 1.3b1 adds support for Firefox Mobile.

According to Mobyware there's a Stylish-Custom Addon available for the mobile Firefox. The page also mentions you need the Stylish Addon itself to make it work -- however, I could not find that. The compatibility list starts with Android 2.0 and goes up through the version to 4.0 (ICS), a list of compatible devices is available as well.
Moreover, some discussions on userstyles.org seem to mention some availability for Android, you might want to check them out.
Not sure if it works, I didn't try myself as I do not use the mobile Firefox -- but you might give it a try.

Thanks for the pointer. It gets a rating of 1.5 stars out of 5 - wonder what it did to deserve that?

No idea. As I wrote, I do not use the mobile FF - but I make extensive use of Stylish on my desktop. I just thought the little information I found could prove more useful to you than no answer at all -- especially as there was none for months...

There is Stylish add-on for the Dolphin Browser.


text:
Is there any highlighting or annotating software for ODT -format: LibreOffice or OpenOffice?
I read my LibreOffice/OpenOffice documents with tablets and smartphones.
Is there any software for the ODT -format which allows me to edit such files.
I often find things which I should fix and would like to note that to the file.

Currently there is no such software. However, the LibreOffice team is working on an app. A prototype was reviewed e.g. here, if you want to take a look. No release date so far, but it will hopefully hit the market soon -- it is really strongly needed, as there is not a single Office app capable of working with OpenDocument formats (aside from AndrOffice, which is a spreadsheet-only app and obviously discontinued, as it is no longer listed on the playstore).
Until then: There's a Viewer app available at least, OpenOffice Document Reader...

UPDATE: Meanwhile, things have changed, and you have the choice between AndrOpen Office and TextMaker Mobile for read/write access, as well as Coffice and the already mentioned OpenDocument Reader for read-only access.

TextMaker Mobile is the only word processor that lets you open / save .odt - plus plenty of other formats, and you may convert one into another.
This app is full of features, e.g., including a very good on-the-fly spell checker, footnotes, endnotes, comments, track changes, embedding of any font, access to several file hosting services etc., all TrueType and openType fonts can be embedded, it has a broad range of formatting and layout options, access and so much more.

Not the only one, see AndrOpen Office. But you're correct, my answer is no longer up-to-date :)


text:
Can my Google Docs app be secured?
I have sensitive information in my Google Docs.
I enabled two-step verification with my Google account; but just noticed that Google DOCS on my phone doesn't require any type of PIN number or password when I open it.  Is there a way to secure this app?
NOTE:  I also have a PIN number that must be entered after swipe.

So you're saying that your lock screen has a PIN? If Google Docs doesn't have a separate one, then that might be the best you can do. I'm not sure if there is an app that let's you control access to individual apps

All you need is an app locker app. There are many app lockers in Play Store. Just, search. I'd recommend Smart App Protector (I use its pro version which is great). Use it to lock Google Docs app.


text:
How do I synchronize my FireFox Bookmarks from my PC to both my android devices?
My web browser is Firefox 11 on Ubuntu 12.04 LTS and I have a lot of well organized bookmarks that I would like to synchronize with both my Android Devices (Galaxy 10.1 tab & Galaxy S Phone).  I want to maintain my PC as the book mark server.  I wasn't sure where to ask this question "Ask Ubuntu" or here.

By far the easiest way to do this is to use Firefox as your web browser everywhere, and then use Firefox's built in sync functionality. This will (optionally) sync not just your Bookmarks, but also your History, your Saved Passwords and your Preferences, and let you see the recent tabs you've had open on different machines.
Start by installing Firefox for Android, then on your PC go into Firefox's Options, click the Sync tab and run through the wizard to set up sync and the encryption key.
Then open Firefox on your Android device and you should see a prominent option to set up sync that will involve copying a short authentication code between your phone and PC copies of Firefox. After that it will start pulling all of the info down from your PC to your phone (you may want to make sure you're on wifi for this first sync).
For a clearer guide, with pictures, see this page on the Mozilla support site How do I sync Firefox between my desktop and mobile?


text:
Quick Dial Shortcut with Skype
Is it possible to make a desktop shortcut to dial a number with Skype?

Not that I have found. It doesn't appear possible at this point. Sounds like a good enhancement for a future release.

I dont think the Skype app has an api to do this I agree it would be great. This may be possible in the future with ICS I was testing my voip sip account to make internet calls, now whenever I make a call I am able to use the option to call with either wifi internet sip or regular mobile.

No you can't make quick dial shortcut in skype, But you can send this idea as a request to skype for apply in future versions.


text:
Send fax directly to or from phone without going through a web-based service?
Is there a way to send or receive faxes directly to/from the phone without routing through a web-based service?
There are times when I've needed to send or receive a document image without going through e-mail or a third-party service.  It may be a recipient without an e-mail option for a document I need to submit (e.g., a particular government agency) or it may contain sensitive information that I do not want going through other hands.  When I checked the app store, everything I found seemed to involve a web-based service (I could've missed one, though).
With a device that can take images and make phone calls, it seems like a natural extension of the capabilities to be able to communicate with a fax machine directly.

fax? why not simply send an eMail or the captured image to a webservice?

Under some circumstances fax can be more secure.  I don't want signatures or identity info going through e-mail or a third party.  (I realize an app or SD file could be a risk, too).  And sometimes the recipient doesn't do e-mail.

Did you search the Market before asking this question? I see at least 20 apps that come up with the keyword "fax".

Yes, I did.  I may have missed it, but I didn't see any that looked like they were direct by phone.  Everything I saw looked it went through a web-based service.

@Keyboard: Certain organizations (banks, hospitals and such) still work only with faxes, and email is not an option.

Are you sure fax over mobile network are actually secure? You're sending unencrypted data over the air, and you can't use encryption since that will break any unmodified fax system. GSM/3G offers only moderate level of security, and it is possible for a determined hacker with  some processing power to break GSM/3G's voice and data transmission. GSM/3G transmission passes unencrypted through your mobile operator (a third party you may or may not trust) and the receiver's operator, if you are concerned about privacy/security, you need an end-to-end encryption, e.g. PGP.

On the other hand, if you need to work with legacy systems that still relies on fax and does not accept emails at all; then you shouldn't need to worry about sending through web-based service?

I guess I figure that there's a lot more sniffing of web traffic than GSM/3G call traffic. I'm not worried about determined hackers because my usage is to infrequent and random to justify the effort - it would be FAR less work to break into my house and take it info. I'm concerned about casual and I guess I haven't seen anything that leads me to believe that I'm likely enough to be the victim of un-determined hacking on my calls.

Risk is not the same as security.  Sending email over an insecure connection is probably more risky than faxing, yes.  But sending email over a secure connection is less risky than faxing.  What are the chances someone breaks into the receiver's account (as opposed to walking past the fax machine) or cracks GMail's security (for example) and steals your message in particular?  Not high.

E-mail is not an option for some use cases, so acceptable risk with e-mail is irrelevant for my objectives.  Being able to send a fax image to a recipient is the point and I'm OK with the risk and have had more then one occasion when I would've appreciated an application that allowed me to send one.

As others have noted, this is not any more secure than email.  But yes, it is possible.  (See http://navasgroup.com/attwireless/fax.htm for an ancient example).  Has anyone written an app to do this with an Android phone? That's incredibly unlikely.

As above - I'm not convinced that for my use cases (which are infrequent) that it's less secure.


text:
Is there a free way of unlocking an Android phone from a particular network?
I bought a cheap Android handset for development and it is an exclusive to a particular network.
I would like to unlock it so I can use an existing SIM card from another network. I've done some googling and it appears that there are many services online where you can get a code from supplying your IMEI number.
Firstly, can anyone elaborate on what the unlocking process involves, and secondly, is there any application that can do this process, or are you forced to pay someone to generate a code for you?

Specifying the carrier you are trying to unlock from may help.  Its not absolutely necessary to answer the question but it may help.

I know that T-mobile will unlock your phone after x days of service. http://support.t-mobile.com/doc/tm51885.xml

It's an orange pay as you go San Francisco handset. Thanks

There are also device-specific methods.  The Galaxy S has the unlock code stored on the device, for example.

To unlock you phone for free you can root it. But it is at your own risk. I found this guide but don't know if it works for you.

-1, the OP pointed out this - It's an orange pay as you go San Francisco handset. Thanks

The Rooting method for the T-Mobile G2 / HTC Desire Z unlocks the SIM lock on the modem, but this is device specific.

Actually, for just about any HTC device, obtaining S-off removes the network lock.  The S flag is basically the master control for all "security", not just the bootloader.

-1, like the OP pointed out this dated Nov 2nd 2010 It's an orange pay as you go San Francisco handset. Thanks

I'm a little late getting to this (7 years actually) but if you still have it and it's still carrier locked, call the phone carrier and ask them if they have any conditions


text:
Shortcut to mark all SMS text messages read?
Is there an app that has a homescreen shortcut to mark all SMS text messages as read?  Or an app that does this when I run it?

Install Go SMS Pro & use its Mark all read option (Its in More tab of options menu). As data container of text messages are shared between apps, changes will be reflected in stock messaging app too.

Any option for less clicks? Is there an option to mark the message as read when it's short enough to read it in the notification?

Go SMS is kind of heavy on my RAM.

ChompSMS has a "mark all as read" option

But ChompSMS and it's lightweight analogue Textra SMS don't support dual-sim.


text:
Android Tethering DNS Problem
I am using a Sony Xperia Go mobile device with Android Gingerbread (2.3.7).
Whenever I try to use Tethering (USB/Mobile Wifi Tethering), I could not immediately access website using my laptop.
However, I know that there is an Internet connection because I can access websites using their IP address in my Google Chrome in my laptop. I tried nslookup in command prompt several times, trying to query Google's DNS servers (8.8.8.8 and 8.8.4.4) and 192.168.43.1 (my phone).
I always get the error DNS request timed out.
However, after several restarts, turning on/off Data and mobile hotspot, it would suddenly work and all the DNS requests through command line would get responses. But there is no definite number of restarts. Just today, it took me about 30-45 minutes doing this routine of restart-turn off hotspot-turn on-turn off mobile data-turn on.
Every time I do this, I can use my mobile phone to access the Internet. So, that is not the problem. The mobile phone can connect to the Internet.
I also use AirDroid. AirDroid is also working normally and I could access it in my browser. So there really is an established connection between the phone and the laptop. It's just DNS requests are not pushing through. I have tried this for both mobile hotspot/USB tethering.
My mobile provider allows tethering and I have a mobile data plan. Can you help me determine what is causing the DNS problem? This happens almost every day.

There's an update to Ice Cream Sandwich (Android 4.0) available, maybe it'll fix your tethering problems. Tethering on Android does NATting, just like a normal router. I.e., there's a DNS proxy running on your phone, probably dnsmasq. You could try to use 8.8.8.8 (Google's DNS) and see if there's a difference. Also you can try to use different means (Bluetooth-tethering, USB-tethering, WiFi-tethering) and see if the problem is the same there.

For your problems running Nslookup from the terminal, see Android terminal not able to nslookup? for more info.

Is your Mobile Network Setting correct?

Try setting your gateway on your desktop to that of your mobile device?

BTW What does your ipconfig output say?

Same results. Mobile network setting is correct - in fact, I am able to access the Internet using IP addresses.

You're not rooted on the mobile? Running Droidwall/AFWall+? Blocking DNS is what I suspect, you can access using IP addresses but not by DNS names...

@Mr.Buster Is there not a mini "dns server" for devices, such as this?

@t0mm13b Sorry, I removed my comment because I hadn't read the question thoroughly enough :-/ (where he mentions his carrier allows tethering). For those not as fortunate I imagine something like that might work well.

I was able to solve it by manually setting my DNS.

I ended up manually changing my DNS server to tether Internet from my mobile phone. My phone uses a local DNS server from my mobile carrier which I was able to trace using CompruebaIP.
Any other DNS server is blocked by my mobile carrier (Globe Telecom). I reckon that my phone's DNS service is not properly working. When tethering, the DNS provider should be my phone which serves as proxy when connecting to my mobile carrier's DNS servers. Thus, I had to set them manually on my laptop.
I am using Windows 8 and my phone is an Android Gingerbread 2.3. So basically, the problems are:

My mobile carrier is bad. They are blocking other DNS servers and are monopolizing DNS requests. This isn't good because their servers aren't that good.
My phone's DNS service appears to be broken. This means my laptop could not connect to the DNS service of my mobile phone which then forwards DNS requests to my mobile carrier's DNS service.

Fortunately, after two months of despair, I was able to resolve this. This is what I did:

Find out what the actual DNS servers are my mobile carrier is using through CompruebaIP.
Manually set my laptop's DNS servers to the one used by my mobile carrier.
Even better, I retained Google's Public DNS server 8.8.8.8 as my primary DNS server and used my mobile carrier's primary DNS server as my alternate DNS server.

So, now, I can use my mobile phone as my Internet provider for my laptop whenever I am not at home or at work without having to change anything every time I use it.

I had a similar issue, solved it by using proposal 3.

I had a similar problem for a while. It was working for years, but a few weeks ago I got this annoying dns issue.
After a lot of googling and various attempts, I changed the password of the android hotspot and hop, it was working again.


text:
Can I update my Saudi Arabian Samsung Galaxy S2 to the latest Android version over the air in India?
I have a Samsung Galaxy S2 I9100 which my cousin bought for me in Saudi Arabia. It is running on Android 2.3 ginger bread. Will I get firmware updates for this phone in India over the air (OTA)?

OTA update will depend on the CSC of your phone. CSC is Country Sales Code; it tells you which region your phone can be used in and which networks it will work with.
If you are in India (and your phone is connected to an India network), and your phone has CSC for Saudi Arabia, you will not be able to get OTA updates. What you can do is flash a stock ROM for India on your phone using Odin. After you do this, you will be able to get future OTA updates.  WARNING: Changing ROM might require a wipe of your phone.
Some ROMS have Multi-CSC that might support the region you are in. In this case, you don't need to flash a new ROM. You can just change it with the "Samsung Galaxy S / S2 / S3 CFC" app in Google Play. WARNING: Changing CSCs will wipe your phone.
The CSC code for India is ODD.

how can i find out the CSC of the currently installed ROM?

@Bonny Please check this link: http://checkrom.com/threads/multi-csc-explained.979/

@Bonny In my phone, I see I9505OXABMEA. OXA is the CSC code for my phone. I9505 (Samsung Galaxy S4) is the model.


text:
USB connectivity problems with Nexus 7 2013
I've just acquired Nexus 7 (2013) and can't connect it to my PCs. All drivers I have (one from Android SDK, as I'm a developer, and the second from the Android site here, named as latest_usb_driver_windows.zip btw) do not install either under Windows 7, or Windows XP. PC discovers new device as "Nexus 7", but wizard says "could not find the software on your computer" when I specify folder with drivers.
After some unsuccessful trials, I decided to disable MTP and mass storage modes on the Nexus, just to eliminate these parts of driver - in fact I need only debugging via USB. I enabled the debugging via USB at very beginning, and it shows up in Android's notification bar, but the device does not show up in adb/Eclipse.
So I switched MTP and mass storage OFF via notification area. This did not help to attach the new device. But now I can't enable either MTP or storage mode back. They are missing in notifications, and they are missing in Settings -> Wireless & Networks -> More, where they are supposed to be.
So the question number 1: how one can switch MTP and storage mode ON in Android 4.3, specifically on Nexus 7 (2013), other way than via notifications? I saw similar question on the Internet, and the only answer was to reboot the device - in some cases (from time to time!) this worked for someone. I restarted Nexus, but still nothing USB-related shows in settings.
Also I'd appreciate any clues on how to connect Nexus 7 (2013) to Windows PC? I should mention, that I have Nexus 7 of the first version, and I'm able to debug apps using it, that this first Nexus is connected to the same PC successfully. This brings another problem, because I do not want to lose connectivity with the first device by complete removal of drivers, because I have no guarantee that after this the first device will not become lost in the same manner as the second.
Thanks in advance.

FWIW: The MTP setting should be in Settings > Storage > (overflow menu) > USB computer connection, not in Wireless & Networks. On the ADB issue: do you see any entries in Device Manager on the computer when you plug in the N7 with debugging enabled?

@eldarerathis, thank you, I found the MTP/storage menu. Yes, I see "Nexus 7" device in the Device Manager when I plug it, and wizard starts.

@eldarerathis, strangely, I managed to update the driver from the same location which has failed so many times before this (did you help metally somehow? ;-) ). You may post your comment as the answer.

@Stan Since you've solved your problem, could you add your own answer and then "accept" it? That way, other visitors can see the problem is solved.

@DanHulme, my solution was just to keep trying again and again until it works I have no idea why. Do you think this is eligible for a real answer?

If that's what solved the problem for you, then it's the real answer. You're the only one who gets to decide what answer to accept. :-)

related: Android 5.0 Lollipop device not detected via USB. My device is not a nexus device, but I use the Nexus drivers as my device runs AOSP (CyanogenMod). And I know that my issue is for a lollipop, but should be relevant with other versions of android too.

I'm posting the solution (as @DanHulme asked me) despite the fact that it's trivial.
If you already use latest drivers and have no option to reinstall a part or entire system, the only way is to keep trying with what you have again and again.
I don't know what exactly happened, but after a day of trials (plugging the new device and removing it, pointing the system to the drivers in this way or another) it was finally connected.
As for the other side-question about MTP, it was actually answered by @eldarerathis in comments: MTP mode can be enabled/disabled in Settings > Storage > (overflow menu) > USB computer connection.

Had similar problem with Google Nexus7 (2012).
To solve it I passed next steps:

Uninstalled incorrect Nexus USB drivers.
1) Previously, I installed windows default MTP driver to have ability to connect the device. It was a bad solution, because it made a problem for me to install new drivers.
Each time I tried to install latest_usb_driver_windows.zip from developer.android.com, Windows told me:
“The best driver software for your device is already installed”
So I disconnected all USB devices, and in order to remove all previously installed USB drivers I used freeware tool DriveCleanup.
It was a bit unusual to run some tool, which perform some unknown system-related actions, but at the end of the day, it removed all USB-drive related stuff from Windows and didn't    harm a system.
In order to install proper USB drivers for my Nexus 7 on Windows 7 performed next:

Enabled debugging options on Nexus (Go to Settings > About tabled and tap 7 times on  "Build number" field);
Run "Settings -> Developer Options -> Revoke USB debugging authorizations", in order to start next negotiating between tablet and PC from scratch.
Enabled "Settings -> Developer Options -> USB debugging" to have ability to connect to the device by adb.
Connected device to PC. (Some informaition in the internet points, that in case of problems drivers installation, it's better to use USB 2.0, but I have only USB 3.0 on my PC)
Run "Device Manager" Windows tool. "Start -> Run -> mmc devmgmt.msc" or "Control Panel -> Device Manager"
Found Nexus Device, press right mouse button "Update Drivers -> Manual -> Browse", pointed to the latest usb drivers from google (In my case, they were downloaded by Android SDK manager: C:\Program Files (x86)\Android\android-sdk\extras\google\usb_driver). And press OK.
In most of cases, previous 6 steps should be enough to install drivers, but each time I received next error:

"The folder you specified doesn't contain a compatible software driver for your device. If the folder contains a driver, make sure it is designed to work with Windows for x64-based systems."
So in order to make USB drivers fit my device, I performed next steps:

Run "Device Manager" Windows tool. "Start -> Run -> mmc devmgmt.msc" or "Control Panel -> Device Manager".
Found Nexus Device, press right mouse button "Properties -> Details" chose "Hardware IDs" from the dropdown, right mouse button on ID values "Select All -> Copy"
In my case it was:

USB\VID_18D1&PID_4E42&REV_9999&MI_01&MI_01
  USB\VID_18D1&PID_4E42&MI_01&MI_01

Opened usb_driver\android_winusb.inf  file from latest usb driver directory by text editor, found [Google.NTamd64] section (there is also [Google.NTx86] section for 32 bit PCs). In amd64 section I found a ;Google Nexus 7 section. It looked like:

;Google Nexus 7 %SingleBootLoaderInterface% = USB_Install,
  USB\VID_18D1&PID_4E40 %CompositeAdbInterface%     = USB_Install,
  USB\VID_18D1&PID_4E42&MI_01 %CompositeAdbInterface%     = USB_Install,
  USB\VID_18D1&PID_4E44&MI_01

Basing on IDs, taken from my hardware:
USB\VID_18D1&PID_4E42&REV_9999&MI_01&MI_01
USB\VID_18D1&PID_4E42&MI_01&MI_01
I added to the Nexus section next lines, using as last parameter of CompositeAdbInterface device ID with removed revision and all the text after it:

%CompositeAdbInterface%     = USB_Install, USB\VID_18D1&PID_4E42
  %CompositeAdbInterface%     = USB_Install, USB\VID_18D1&PID_4E42&MI_01&MI_0

Nexus section of android_winusb.inf file started to appear next way:

;Google Nexus 7
  %SingleBootLoaderInterface% = USB_Install, USB\VID_18D1&PID_4E40
  %CompositeAdbInterface%     = USB_Install, USB\VID_18D1&PID_4E42
  %CompositeAdbInterface%     = USB_Install, USB\VID_18D1&PID_4E42&MI_01
  %CompositeAdbInterface%     = USB_Install, USB\VID_18D1&PID_4E42&MI_01&MI_01
  %CompositeAdbInterface%     = USB_Install, USB\VID_18D1&PID_4E44&MI_01

After this modification, Updating of USB Driver from Device Manager finished successfully. Maybe It is not the properest way to fix this problem, but it was first working solution, so I stopped further investigations.

When changing mode and looking at device manager:

MTP: i see only the "Nexus 7" device under "Portable Devices", not updatable
PTP: i see "Nexus 7" under both "Portable Devices" and "Other devices"
none: i see only "unknown device" under "Other devices", not updatable

So, to fully install drivers, with adb interface, i had to put it first into PTP mode (+debubbing mode).
Then update the drivers of the nexus 7 device under "other devices" manually with the google drivers.
Now put the tablet in MTP mode and update the nexus 7 driver under "portable devices". choose "let me pick...", then "composite..".
The "Android Composite ADB Interface" now appear under "Android Device".
et voila..

Seems like you need to turn either camera or storage in Settings > Storage > (overflow menu) > USB computer connection (on your Nexus7 2013) to install the adb driver

This Worked for me. I have uninstalled the old driver from Device manager.. While uninstalling driver choose "Delete the driver software for this device" option.
and reconnect your android device.
(
Control Panel -> Device Manager -> Right click "Nexus ADB interface" -> Properties -> Driver tab -> uninstall -> Check "Delete the driver software for this device" -> ok
)

I ended up doing a variation of this...the problem I had was the portable/other devices issue.  The MTP portion of the driver seemed to be working so I wasn't getting a warning in Device Manager...ergo, I didn't even know that existed until you mentioned it in this post.  Updated from the "Portable Devices" bit and it worked right off.


text:
How to change color of entities shown in Google map?
The present colouring scheme of Google maps gives me a challenge to differentiate between the road and its surroundings.  The contrast between these two are simply not sufficient for me and my screen guard is making it worse.
The following is how it looks in my screen (ignoring the volume notification) and the road color is not that apparently different from its surroundings during day time.

I am looking for some way to customize the colors of the entities, like road, buildings, grounds etc so that it will be vivid in my screen. Few navigation apps usually provide a toggle between day and night mode. I will be even happy with that. It will be great if a theme can be applied to switch colors, if it is not too much at this stage!
Are there any hacks/ways to achieve this?
I am running  Google Maps (version 6.11.1) in LG P500 (a.k.a Optimus One) on CM10 Android 4.1.
All my search effort only results about changing colors through API, which I do not want.

I could have sworn there was a high-contrast night mode, but I can't find it now...

With the newly designed Google Maps app, they have improved the appearance regarding contrast between roads and buildings even in day time. I couldn't find any day/night mode in settings, though.
Here is a screenshot for the same map taken in Google Maps version 7.5.0 (#705001723).

There's currently no way to achieve this in Google Maps. You can send feedback within the app, so you could suggest that they add such a feature.
There are alternative map apps you might like to try instead. Those based on the free OpenStreetMap database usually allow you to change which tile server to use, which gets you a completely different visualization of the map data: some tile servers are optimized for particular uses, such as cycling or marine navigation.


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My Lg P500 will not connect to internet servers
I was using my LG P500 perfectly fine on the internet when all of a sudden a messaged flashed up on the screen internet disconnected.
So I went into settings to my wireless & network settings and turned off my WiFi, then turned it on again then went into WiFi settings. When I went into here there were no known networks showing up and the scanning wheel was just going round and round.  So I thought since I know the pass word, I will just add a new network. Then after this on the screen popped up another message saying unable to scan for networks.
Then my WiFi turned off on my phone. So I rebooted my phone and again this is still happening. It is not just at my house but everywhere I go I cannot connect to networks. :(
Please help I am a person whom needs Internet !

Did you maybe install something new shortly before "all of a sudden" all the above happened? Just asking whether maybe some malware is involved, as what you describe sounds strange. If not, and nobody else has a better idea: Make a full backup and then a factory-reset might be your last ressort. If that doesn't help either, your WiFi hardware has gone nuts, and you would need to turn-in your device to service.

Try to enable 3G/GPRS data and enable Portable Wi-Fi hotspot. Give a unique name and password and try to access this network from other WiFi enabled device. If you could get access, then you can rest assured that your WiFi hardware is okay.

Thanks guys for the ideas , i tried both but i had to factory reset it :L


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Unable to connect keyboard to my EKEN tablet
I have a 7 inches Android EKEN tablet running ICS. It has Cortex A9 1.5 Ghz CPU.
I also have a leather case with USB keyboard which when connected to my tablet doesn't seem to work - nothing happens.
How can I make the keyboard to work?

Not enough information to say. Can you collect logcat information on what's going on when connecting the keyboard? Maybe that gives some clue.

you might need to have a powered hub for your keyboard. It might be taking too much power from the tablet for it to function properly.