text:
Refresh Downloads list
I have Android 4.4.3 on a Nexus 5.
I connected the phone to a laptop, and there I deleted most of the files in the Downloads directory of the phone.
Nevertheless, these files still show up on the phone when I open Downloads (of course, when I try to open them, I get an error).
Is there a way to refresh the Downloads list?

This is a correction for Akhil's answer. I have tried this on Android Lollipop and it works :
Settings > Apps > All > Download Manager (NOT Downloads) > Clear Data and Clear Cache.

Do as follows:
Go to
Settings->Apps->Downloads(in All Tab)->clear data and cache.

Thank you for this answer, that sounds like what I should do indeed. Unfortunately, for some reason I cannot clear data (the button is greyed out) nor the cache (the button isn't greyed out but clicking on it doesn't do anything). I also tried to clear all the cache on the phone (in Settings->Storage) but that didn't change anything either ):

try force close app and see whether data&cache clear button is enabled or not.

No, unfortunately it does not enable the button. Oh well, I guess I'll manually delete every "ghost" entry from the Downloads list as suggested by Dennis. I suppose my issue could be reported as a bug...

Long press on one of the entries to bring up the select menu. Click on each one of the files and press the trash icon in the upper right corner. The entries will be removed from the list but the files will remain in the Download folder. Too bad there is no 'select all' button.


text:
Device became slow after upgrade
After upgrading to Jellybean(4.2) my device became slow. I have done several resets, but  still have the same problem. How do I go back to 4.1 or can this issue be fixed?

What is your phone's model?

Generally with Samsung you can't revert to an older version as their official OTA (over the air) updates include a new bootloader locked to the version of Android you just installed. What reset have you done? Factory? Are you using your SD card a lot, could that be the issue? What device is it?

source: Stack Exchange

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

sort: votes


text:
Enable tamil font without rooting the phone
I have Micromax a87 android phone,in my phone doesn't support the Tamil font in browsers and Facebook,YouTube. I searched for solution but shows that its possible only by rooting the mobile.I don't want to root my phone. Is it possible to display the Tamil font in Facebook and browsers without rooting the phone?

Check the answers to http://android.stackexchange.com/questions/25359/how-to-make-an-android-device-to-display-complex-rendering-of-indic-characters which include suggestions for rooted and non-rooted phones.

I try without rooting use the Tamil Unicode Font only but still browser and facebook doesn't support the tamil font

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


text:
Installing Google Maps giving error "Application requires newer SDK version"
I have a galaxy S 3(d2att,US variant). Today I got an update for Google Maps.
But when I try to update it after downloading play store gives error as "Application requires newer SDK version".
I'm running on 4.2.2 Jellybean. Phone is rooted and using CynogenMod 10.1.2.
How can I update it? or Why it shows so?

Screenshot (click for larger variant)

Google Maps needs the correct version of gapps to work. Download the gapps and install it from recovery

From what I know, maps is not included

But gapps has other google apps, play store etc built in, maps needs the version of gapps to match what is on your phone to work. It's a conflict. Give it a go and see how it works out!

I have the latest Gapps installed..but I can't update. Always giving this error.

Have you tried clearing the data of the playstore app? If that doesnt work, try wiping cache and dalvik cache from the recovery. If it's still not working, download the apk from here


text:
Changing Play Store default language and/or country
I bought a Samsung S4 here in the Philippines but the default language in the Play Store is Korean. Also, the prices of the apps for sale are in Won (Korean currency). How do I change the language to English? And how can I see the app prices in Philippine Peso? Please help me!

Can you also try the solutions here: http://android.stackexchange.com/questions/26809/is-it-a-way-to-turn-off-translation-in-google-play

System settings > My device > Language and keyboard > Language.
Note: I also have an S4, and also from Philippines.

Hello @geffchang. I went to the Language and Keyboard option and it's already in English. :( My Play Store's still in Korean :(

@user33951 Where did you buy the phone? From Globe, Smart, or a cellphone shop?

@user33951 Does it have "English (Philippines)"?

I got it from Globe. Yes, it does have English (Philippines) and that's the one I chose.

@user33951 That's weird. Are you using any proxy, or bypassing Globe somehow? The phone is probably detecting you are on a Korean IP address.


text:
Error while restoring data using ClockWorkMode recovery in Micromax a110
So I decided to restore but I got an error

  Unable to copy file ./dalvik-cache/system@framework@core-junit.jar@classes.dex
    Error while restoring /data!
    I: Can't partition unsafe device: /dev/block/mmcblk1p1
    I: Can't format unknown volume: /external_sd
    I: Can't partition unsafe device: /dev/block/mmcblk0p6

What seems to be the problem?

Have you kept all the blobs under clockworkmod/. The real content of files to restore seems to reside there (deduplicated between different versions of the backup), and I got such an error when I didn't put all the blobs from the time I made the backup into place.


text:
How to take screenshot in Sony Xperia Neo l without third party app?
Since volume-down + power key doesn't work, is it possible to take screenshots on Sony Xperia Neo l? If so, how?

Press and hold Power button and Volume-down button exactly at the same time and hold them there until you take a screenshot.(in ICS)
I tried it now. And its working.

Take a look at the main post ;) The poster explains that vol down+power doesn't work

He didn't get it work, may be because of timing issue...I tried it and failed so many times, but when I click at same time it works.

Good point, I thought it was a default feature on Android 4.+ but it may have been disabled or the xperia neo may be on 2.3 I dont know really

Just checked and it comes with 2.3 upgradeable to 4.0 so maybe on 2.3 still?

Nope. Neo L is coming with ICS not GingerBread
http://www.gsmarena.com/sony_xperia_neo_l-4647.php

Wrong tagging as Neo V(it comes with gingerbread)

@MattLin: There were no [tag:sony-xperia-neo-l] tags, so I had no choice.

Use monkeyrunner or run the DDMS and take a screenshot.
Read more at How to take screenshots on an Android device.

I googled it before asking here, I'm interested in tricks where no third party apps is used for that purpose. Thank you for your answer anyway.

They're not third party apps they are the tools provided by Google for situations like this, I don't understand why anyone would mark down the answer. A third party app would require root access to the device, the tools I linked are from Google

Press Power off and volume key down at the same time for 2 secs...it will take a screen shot..

How is this different than the solution provided in this answer or this other answer?

Have you confirmed that this works on the Xperia Neo?

I know this isn't the easiest way but if you are desperate you can do This...But before you do that, try hitting the power button slightly before you press down the volume-down key. If that doesn't work than maybe Sony just overlooked this feature on the update.


text:
Is there a way to lock the Netflix profile in a rooted Galaxy Tab 3 Lite (SM-T110)?
I would like to lock account switching in Netflix. I found that you can do this with a restricted profile but this version of android doesn't have that feature. I can create new accounts with a terminal, but this does not enable the "Users" option in the settings menu.
Is there another way to lock the account switching, or is this impossible?
Android version: 4.2.2

authors: Роман Григорьев


text:
No charger connected but showing as phone is charging
Moto G 2nd Gen phone is not working properly with android lollipop. Sometime the charger is not connected but it is showing the phone is charging. Even if I use headphone the music comes out from the loudspeaker.

Sometime the charger is not connected but it is showing the phone is
  charging.

A restart would fix this problem. I had this problem just after updating to LP and I never got after a restart. It's probably a small bug.

If I use head phone also the music comes out from the loudspeaker.

You need to change your headphones. Bad earphones are the cause of this issue. I had a cheap quality headset then I faced the same problem and upgraded to a quality headphone like sennheiser or skullcandy. Even the headphones which comes in the package is not so good. I personally use mi headphones which I found better than skullcandy in terms of sound and quality.


text:
Is it possible to install Android 3.0 on my Android 2.3.6 Huawei m865c?
The title essentially explains my dilemma, but should I be able to, is it possible to install it via my BootLoader?

Android 3.0 (Honeycomb) is supposed to be a tablet-exclusive OS, and it's already deprecated. It's replaced by Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) which unites the OS both for phones and tablets.
As for official OTA, I couldn't find any information about that, so it seems that Android 2.3.6 (Gingerbread) is the latest official Android version available for the phone.
The only way to update your phone (unofficially) is to flash with custom ROM/ported stock ROM, which I find it hard to search, if available. ClockworkMod site lists 1 custom ROM, A2Tude, but it seems that it's just a custom ROM based on Android 2.3.6, so I couldn't find any ROM with Android version higher than that.


text:
Flashlight on lockscreen on Galaxy S5
I am soon going on a field trip and would like to give my friends the ability to use the flash light from the phone without giving them the pattern to unlock the phone. Is that possible to add the flashlight/torch to the locked screen just like the camera?
I have a Galaxy S5 with Android 4.4.2

Make sure your camera shortcut is on in the lockscreen. Open the camera from the lockscreen, drag your flash setting to the top from the camera settings and make sure it is on. Now all you have to do is open the camera shortcut and click video and your light will stay on. It will also record video while it's on but this is the only way to turn on your flashlight from the lockscreen.

Turn on the flashlight by holding both volume keys with Torchie - Volume Button Torch app.
Or shake your phone to turn on the flashlight with Shake Flashlight app.

Source: 5 Quick Ways to Turn on the Flashlight on Your Android Device

On the last models of Samsung was easy! Just press the volume key and the flashlight is turning on! (of course you should first to approve this in settings:) When you want to stop it just press the volume down! I have Xcover 1 and 2, I used it a lot, it is easy and good option but sometimes the flashlight was turned on in my pocket of my carhartt jeans and the battery finished very quick. So in settings you can make the flashlight to work only 1-2min. and to stop automatically. I bought S5 Active few days ago and I am very angry that the phone has no same option!!! I see one decision but. To upload a Torch APP and then to switch on this APP with functional extra key, which is over the volume key.

The S5 Lollipop update now has the flashlight available as a notification sort cut, you can add it to the list of 'quick settings' and just use it that way now. Tested as of today 25.02.2015.0

This doesnot answer the question. The OP has mentioned that he has a kitkat device and you have provided a lollipop answer.

You can try CM Locker by Cheetah Mobile. This is an iOS based Locker. Give CM Locker a try!

You may want to be careful about recommending Cheetah apps based on a new report out about Cheetah, and Google Play actions against them. See this: https://www.xda-developers.com/google-bans-600-apps-play-store/.

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


text:
Does Android TV require always-on internet access?
(this is not actually a dev question though it starts out sounding like one)
I've been working on a Chromecast app that functions mainly as a display of information that it gets from other devices on a network.  But internet access wasn't needed for any functionality except to load the Chromecast app which meant we couldn't use it at all in places there was power, WiFi networks, but no internet access.
Enter Android TV and the Nexus Player.  It seems to allow for actual installations rather than just pulling down a webpage for each running.  Is this accurate?  Does it require an always-on connection or else it shuts down?  Or does it work like phones/tablets when they lose access allowing things like local-only games to run without problem?

Yes on Android TV I can play local games without Internet.

You should get a demo from the store to be assured, don't trust my word :)


text:
Creating and enabling an internal storage swap partition on rooted Android Kitkat
System: Rooted Android 4.4 phone (actual rom: CM 11 Milestone 6) with 1GB ram, plenty of internal storage, but no sdcard slot. My phone's partition scheme is unmodified CyanogenMod 11.
Problem: lowmemorykiller/OOM handler on my phone keeps killing vital system processes such as the lockscreen, or incallui, or acore, causing at best long freezes, and more often soft and hard system lockups. I'm probably running apps that push RAM beyond system minimum, and it's making a suboptimal choice of background process to kill. I looked into fine-tuning lowmemkiller but got nowhere.
As ram and not CPU is the issue, I want to try enabling internal storage based swap instead of zRAM as a workaround, which the phone should handle. But I can't find clear instructions how to do so.  Every instructional page I found is either desktop not Android specific, external (SDcard) storage specific ("partition using USB+windows"), assumes you want file not partition based swap, or suggests a Google Play app to use. None explain step by step how to actually do it.
Assuming I've read the warnings and know the risks, and want to go ahead anyway, how do I do it? I really just want to get a list of the example console commands for using partition-based swap. I assume it goes something like this:

Resize existing partition(s) or subpartition(s) to create spare space for a dedicated fixed-size swap partition.
Create or define a new partition in the free space, and ensure it's formatted as swap, or the OS will format or use it as swap on boot.
Edit some other system files to ensure swap will be mounted and enabled appropriately on boot, so the OS can recognise and use it. (fstab, or something else?)
Disable or deprioritise zRAM, and edit swappiness to about 20-30.
Reboot, cross fingers, and hope I did it right.

My current *nix experience level: I know Linux uses partitions and subpartitions, that new partitions and partition changes probably need me to manually edit fstab or other files, and manual edits may also be needed to ensure partitions will be mounted/enabled/used at boot. I'm haven't used the actual commands or changed the actual files so I don't know what to expect. I'm comfortable with console, but this is a bit of a new area for me.
How do I do this, step by step, and what are the commands I'd use if they aren't obvious. I can figure the rest from that.

Just a raw idea, not tested/verified by myself:
Swap can also be established using a swap file, so you could easily test whether it works at all. Try via adb shell or a terminal app, after becoming root, whether the dd, mkswap, and swapon commands are available. If so, you can try:
# create a file to be used for swapping
# (adjust the filename to where the file should reside, and the count
# to the size in kb it should occupy)
dd if=/dev/zero of=</path/to/swapfile> bs=1024 count=65536

# initialize the file for swap use
# (use the file created in the previous step)
mkswap </path/to/swapfile>

# enable swapping
swapon </path/to/swapfile>

# to disable swapping to that file:
# swapoff </path/to/swapfile>

There are ways to fine-tune this (e.g. setting specific values for swappiness) – but with the steps described you can easily test whether it works at all, without big danger of breaking things. Not even a reboot is required. In the best case, it simply works – in the worst case it does not, and you might have to manually delete the </path/to/swapfile> ;)

dd worked once I replaced -if/-of with if=/of=, respectively. mkswap didn't give any response (might be how it works if there isn't a problem to report). swapon errored out (message was minimal: "swapon failed for /path/and/file"). No verbose option for swapon, 3GB spare; I couldn't see how to learn what the issue was.

Sorry for the typo with -if/-of (fixed). What file size have you tried with? What storage is the swapfile located on (e.g. an external card, or internal)?

One more thing coming to my mind: It might be the kernel has no swap support. You can check that with this app.

Just checked and says it's supported. I tried 512 MB on the internal storage /sdcard/swap.file (as mentioned in the OP, it doesn't have SDcard or external storage). It says it's able to work, judging by the "congrats, you can do it" message. So... what are the console commands to do so? Alternatively, it could be a permissions or path issue and the commands above are fine, what permissions/path should I use on Android for a test swap file?

Update I just checked again, using a different path (/cache/swap.file rather than /sdcard/swap.file) and it now apparently works - free increased to (128MB zRAM + the amount of KB I designated for swap.file). I haven't tested if it is retained on reboot, but the above commands do seem to work. So it looks like it's path-dependent. So next question is... how do I set up a contiguous file/partition for swap, and where to put a file, or how to modify partitioning? The /cache partition is too small for 400 MB swap. Plus, I'd like it somewhere more "visible", if Android allows it.

Update 2 It's lost on reboot. But at least the commands work. So I need to change something (I guess?) in fstab/init/whatever to keep it defined and active on reboot? I'd rather learn how to do it properly than just chuck in a hacked script to run these commands on every startup, if there's a "proper" way to do it.

If you want to change something in init, you'd need to modify the boot image (as the init files get re-created from there on each boot). Automation could be established by other means, e.g. using Tasker to execute the swapon command after each boot (the other steps don't need to be repeated). As for location, you could try /data/local.

/data/local seems to work well as a location. Does Android  have a standard (native) way to define a swap file or partition permanently, or if not, to run a script at boot-time to define it? Would like to use native methods if possible, myself, rather than download "yet more apps" that normally just package native methods anyway :) [And you might want to edit original answer again, you left the "-" before if=/of=]

Yuck, how can one put two typos in a single place #D Thanks, fixed that. But no, AFAIK there's no "native" way for swapping, except for maybe some selected custom ROMs. Sure you could use a swap partition, but considering the medium used you might quickly wear it out. I'd rather recommend using a file and re-creating it from time to time to avoid that, like the "good old" app named "Swapper" did automatically (no longer on Google Play, though an app by the same name again exists there). // BTW: Do you consider to accept the answer (click the check-mark next to it)? ;)

Btw. swapon </path/to/swapfile> did not work for me, but wrapping the file with a loop device did the trick: losetup /dev/block/loop0 </path/to/swapfile>; swapon /dev/block/loop0

I was having the same issue.  Tried 4 apps all failed.  I know how to do this in other Linux distros, also shown manually above, still failed.  Tried other ideas given above: moving to other mount points.  Most you are denied, others are too small to be worth it.
Then noticed when running df
I saw an output like this:
/storage/sdcard0
/mnt/media_rw/sdcard0

Using the /mnt instead of /storage or /sdcard appears to have allowed me to enable swap successfully.


text:
Can't hear caller after updated from 4.3 to KitKat 4.4.2 on Moto G
I have a retail Motorola Moto G 16 GB with 4.3.
After updating to KitKat 4.4.2 (using the official Motorola process), I can't hear the caller's voice. But when activating the speakers or using a headphone I can hear the other side. Prior updating there where no problems at all.
I also did a full factory-reset, which did not helped.
With this issue the phone is practically unusable, I appreciate any help.

We had some similar issues already asked for, which you might wish to check – though most of them have it the other way round (other side can't hear them).

@Izzy None of them was related to an android update, nor Moto G, nor the issue described here (not hearing the caller). Read thru all of them, no result.

If I had found an exact match, I'd pointed out :) Was hoping they might give a clue, though. Sorry to read they didn't. // As you're still using "official firmware", and unless you get a better answer, I'd say contact Moto service. If a factory-reset didn't solve it, it must be the system (or hardware), so with some luck, they might send you a replacement.

Just to close this issue, I exchanged the device at the vendor (same model), upgraded to Kitkat, and everything seems to work fine. Sorry for not having a more technical answer, I would love to have one, but in the end I needed a phone that works.

As stated in ayush's answer, Motorola customer care advises to wipe the cache to solve the issue, and it reportedly worked.
As ayush omitted the steps required to follow whis advice, here are the steps to do "Wipe the cache partition". This will remove any temporary files that may be causing the problem, but will not delete your files or settings.

With the phone powered off, press the VOL DOWN KEY for 2-3 seconds, then POWER key, then release.

The device will display different BOOT OPTIONS

Use the VOL DOWN Key to SCROLL to Recovery and VOL UP Key to select

Tip: If the device reboots, you may have waited to long to make a selection, you will need to begin the process again.

The device will display the Motorola logo and then the Android in distress (logo with Exclamation mark)

Press and hold the VOL UP key for 10-15 seconds. While still holding the VOL UP key tap and release the POWER key

Tip: You can try this step, holding the phone in landscape. If you are stuck on step 6, try a force reboot by pressing the POWER key and VOL DOWN key, and start the process again.

The device will display additional menu options (Text will appear in BLUE)

Use the VOL DOWN Key to scroll to wipe cache partition and the POWER Key to select this option

The device will then perform the partition wipe

The device will reboot and start the normal power up sequence

This solved my problem temporarily, a factory reset solved the problem when I call, I hear everything, but the problem persists when I receive a call. I found a suggestion that during the call, the system mistakenly redirects the sound to the headphones, so plugging in headphones would make you hear the caller. Unplugging them resets the audio stream to default phones. Seems I would carry a pair of phones with me now.. Hope that helps!

Motorola is working on a fix for this issue. See the forums on their site.

Following KitKat upgrade, devices appear to show any of the following symptoms:

lose mobile signal
display 'No Sim' icons,
fall into Aeroplane mode (while not displaying Aeroplane Icon status)
Mobile signal can often be recovered by swapping into and out of Aeroplane mode.
Pop-up errors about being in Aeroplane mode while attempting to make calls during signal problems.
Aeroplane mode observed in about phone status (while no aeroplane mode shown on icons)
7.Popup errors - the process "com.android.phone" has stopped
Not specific to individual SIM cards - multiple SIMs (cutdown/original confirmed as impacted)
Suggestion that it only occurs with mobile data enabled - to be investigated.
The release notes also mention your low volume issue.

Apparently the patch is ready and the release notes have also been confirmed. This is just a matter of time. People should not update to KitKat 4.4.2 on Moto G until above mentioned patch is available.
Note: I am NOT a moto employee, I am just a fellow user like you, who now tells others to beware before updating the phone to KitKat.

I am using Moto g (16GB comes with kitkat) for last 3 three week. And last night for the first time when i was calling then there were no sound at all. Seems there was no voice transmission. Then i rebooted and it worked but after some time same thing happened and continue to happened frequently . Then i did factory reset and now it works well. it has been passed 1 day and no issue. I think its a software problem. I goggled a bit about this issue and found a post which states the same issue and occurred after 3 week of usage.

Motorola customer care told me to "wipe the cache partition"  and it is now working fine. Follow the steps below to wipe the cache partition.

Lollipop Steps:

With the phone powered off, press and hold the Volume Down button and
the Power button at the same time until the device turns on. You will
see the word "Start" with an arrow around it.
Press the Volume Down
button twice to highlight "Recovery mode".
Press the Volume Up button
to restart into Recovery mode. You'll see an image of an Android robot
with a red exclamation mark and the words "No command."
While holding
down the Power button, press the Volume Up button.
Use the volume
buttons to scroll to "wipe cache partition" and press the Power button
to select it.
"Reboot system now" will be highlighted, press the Power
button to select it.

KitKat Steps:
This will remove any temporary files that may be causing the problem,
but will not delete your files or settings.

With the phone powered off, press the VOL DOWN KEY for 2-3 seconds then POWER key then release.

The device will display different BOOT OPTIONS

Use the VOL DOWN Key to SCROLL to Recovery and VOL UP Key to select

Tip: If the device reboots, you may have waited to long to make a
selection, you will need to begin the process again.

The device will display the Motorola logo and then the Android in distress ( logo with Exclamation mark)

Press and hold the VOL UP key for 10-15 seconds. While still holding the VOL UP key tap and release the POWER key

Tip: You can try this step, holding the phone in landscape. If you are
stuck on step 6, try a force reboot by pressing the Power key and Vol
Down key, and start the process again.

The device will display additional menu options (Text will appear in BLUE)

Use the VOL DOWN Key to scroll to wipe cache partition and the POWER Key to select this option

The device will then perform the partition wipe

The device will reboot and start the normal power up sequence

Thanks for the pointer, ayush! Maybe you want to [edit] your answer and include the steps required to "wipe the cache partition"? That would make your answer even more helpful.

Edited the answer to provide the steps for wiping the cache partition form the motorola website.

authors: กิตติพง หงอาร่าม


text:
How to disable the camera sound on a Huawei G525?
I have a Huawei G525 (Android 4.2 jelly bean). The Camera makes a sound when taking photos even when it's in silent mode. How do I disable the shutter sound altogether?

I'm not English, so feel free to correct me

Search the settings inside the camera app there should be one to change/disable camera sounds. If there's no such option, I'm afraid the only alternative you have is to try alternative 3rd part camera apps.


text:
Print screen in Samsung Galaxy Ace Duos
How to Take Print Screen in Samsung Galaxy ace Duos? Can please some body help me.

The standard Android screenshot method is Power Button + Home Button

Ok Where can i see that Image?

Look at your Gallery,there will be a folder named Screeshots

after Pressing Power Button + Home Button i checked but it doesn't work

It took me a while to get the hang of it properly. Press and hold power button then press home button (On my HTC I need to hold home for approx 0.5 seconds for it to work). Also don't hold power too long before pressing home else you will just get the power menu appear.

what button first i should press?

Power first, then Home


text:
Yahoo Mail App - Send Email To Contact List
I have created several contact lists in my Yahoo e-mail account by using Yahoo's website via Internet Explorer.  I would like to send an e-mail to one of the contact lists from my Android phone (which is a Galaxy S4), but I can't figure out how...  Here is what I've tried so far:

Unable To Access Contact Lists From Yahoo Mail App:  I tried accessing the contact lists from the Yahoo Mail App, which I installed on the phone, but I can't find the lists anywhere.  My contacts all appear in the app, and the information seems to be read-only.  I can't edit their names or any of their details, and I can only access a list of all of my contacts when I try to compose an e-mail and touch the "To" field in the newly composed e-mail.  There is no mention of the lists to which they belong.
Unable To Create New Contact Lists As Groups On Android Device By Syncing With Yahoo Account:  I went into the Yahoo Mail App Settings and selected "Sync Yahoo contacts".  This imported the contacts into my Android contacts, but it did not assign them to any groups.  If they belonged to contact lists in my Yahoo account, no new groups were created.  Also, existing groups on my phone that matched the names of contact lists in my Yahoo account were ignored and not used when the contacts were imported.

I realize that I could manually recreate the groups on my Android device and assign all contacts to them, but this would be a very tedious and time consuming solution to a process that seems to beg for automation.  Is there a quick way of doing this?
If necessary, is there another app I can download that is safe to use which will accomplish the task?  I tried the above solutions using Gmail as a workaround, but encountered the same obstacles.

Okay, I just figured out a workaround. You can export your Yahoo Contact Lists by:

Signing into your Yahoo Account via their web interface,
Clicking on the "Contacts" icon, and
Choosing "Actions" => "Export".

This will create a CSV file which can then be used to import the contacts into a Gmail account via Google's web interface. After that, you can sync your Gmail contacts to your phone using the Android Gmail app. This will create the contact lists from Yahoo and import them into your phone as contact groups on the device.

Laurence Marks commented: "Not bad, but it's a one-time fix. If I add someone to a list on my desktop it won't transfer to the phone or tablet. I'd have to jump through hoops again. Yahoo really needs to provide this function."


text:
Exiting itself from games
I have had this phone for a few years now and it has only started doing this a couple of months ago. I downloaded Five Nights at Freddy's 2 Demo (I'm a massive game freak) and after about 2 minutes of opening the app and started playing, it just exited itself to the home screen. This has happened multipule times with clash of clans as well. I really dont know what to do. I have tried turning it off and on again but it didn't work. What should I do?

"A few years"? The Moto G was only announced in November 2013...

Crashing to the home screen is an indication of the RAM in the device running out, you should try to reduce the amount of programs that are running in RAM and that are on the phone.


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Unlocking an HTC HD2 after installing android
I recently bought an HD2, which originally runs Win6.5.  But currently has a very modern version of Android installed.
Is it necessary to re-install the original OS in order to unlock the phone?

90% chance - no, 10% chance - yes.
The Android operating system is designed specifically for each device, which is why different phones get platform updates at different times. You're at an advantage starting with an HTC phone, as they build several Android phones.
Your best bet is to find an unlock process for an HTC phone as physically similar to yours as possible (physical in terms of hardware; processor, memory, etc.). If this does not work, chances that you will get anything to work is slim.

In this case, it would be the HTC Desire Z.  It's almost identical to the HD2.

to clarify, are you looking to unlock (as in enable the phone to be used regardless of carrier) or root (as in enable root access to change system files)?

if you have t-mobile as a carrier, and you have been a loyal customer for a couple months (i think 3 is the minimum but I could be wrong), and you pay on time. You can call up and ask them for the unlock code. if they ask why, you are going out of the county and purchased a prepaid sim for use in the other country.

In order for the HTC HD2 to run Android, the device needs to have a custom bootloader running Hardspl and radio version, which means your device IS ALREADY unlocked.
As for the device been rooted,  99% of the Android versions on the HD2 are rooted.


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Rooting acer liquid mini with Ubuntu?
can someone explain how to root android phone using ubuntu or any linux distro please? There are so many app like superoneclick, z4root etc..but android is based on linux right? so it should be easy to root with linux...but how? i'm using acer liquid mini 2.2.

use super one click. It worked with acer liquid mini...Acer custom ROM can be found here [link] (http://acer-club.ru/topic/10684-%D0%BD%D0%B5%D0%BE%D1%84%D0%B8%D1%86%D0%B8%D0%B0%D0%BB%D1%8C%D0%BD%D0%B0%D1%8F-%D0%BF%D1%80%D0%BE%D1%88%D0%B8%D0%B2%D0%BA%D0%B0-acefirmware-liquid-mini-e310-custom-rom/)

Super One Click is written in C#. You need Mono to run it under Linux and other Non-Windows platforms. You can check your Ubuntu Package Manager for Mono or download it from here.
The XDA-Forum-Link also has a link to a detailed description on how to make it work under Linux.
I have never personally used it on Linux, but once the program is up and running, it should be very self explanatory.


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Disabling Email app
I set up the Android Email app on my Samsung Galaxy SIII Neo because I thought I would move from Internet mail on Outlook.com to using Email. The app did not download all my mail but only downloads new mail, which I don't like. Besides, I am too used to using INternet for mail to think about using the Email app. However, the app is giving me annoying notifications all the time, and I definitely don't want to know every time a new email arrives. I prefer to see it on Internet. So how do I eliminate my account from Email? Or how do I turn off the notifications? Or how do I get to see all the mails I have on my Outlook account on the app instead of just the unread mail?

To "get rid of it", try the following steps:

From the home-screen, open Settings
Navigate to Apps, tap the "All" tab
Scroll until you find the Email app. Tap it.
Tap the buttons to "Clear cache", "Delete data", "Force stop", and "Disable" (in this order)1

Now that app should no longer bother you. If you wish to use another Email app instead, there are plenty; you might e.g. wish to take a look at my list of Email Apps for a selection.

1: Depending on the ROM builder, you might not be able to disable the Email app. That would only leave rooted solutions for that final step.

As you foresaw, the Disable button was grayed out :). However the problem should be solved now @Izzy.

Glad to read! Mind to tell us how you've solved the "grayed-out button"?

I didn't :). As long as it doesn't annoy me, it can stay there, since I have enough memory to not care about it :). I won't take the trouble of rooting just for that.

Yepp, that explains :) Still, it's not only RAM. See my comment on Trish's answer: at least the "Exchange component" polls all 60s even with no account configured (noticed that on a freshly flashed device). That might wake-up your Droid and eat some juice, even if little. But again, if you've got no trouble with your "battery uptime", that won't bother you either ;)

And yet another grayed-out button for "Exchange Services" :). It is really astonishing how much stuff I can't do :).

Going a little OT now (but it's related to the "gray buttons", so it should be fine): Many more good reasons to root. A device without root is a half device to me. See our rooting tag-wiki and check the linked information as well. Again, I'm no missionary – if you're happy without, stay happy ;) For more, better move to our chat room :)

Turn off notifications: (this is the same for all apps) Settings >> Apps. Slide to the "All" section and scroll down until you find "Email". Uncheck the box for "Show notifications". You should probably do the same for Exchange Services, which has the same icon.
Remove account from Email app: Settings > Scroll down to the Accounts and tap on Email. Tap the account you want to remove. Tap on the menu button on the upper right (three vertical square) and pick "Remove Account".

Good points, Trush! (+1 from me) To fully get rid of that crazy app, see my answer – and optionally apply the same steps to the "Exchange" app (which polls all 60s in the background even with no account configured and the Email app disabled).

@TrishLing the box is grayed out, and I see no "Email" under "Accounts".


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How to flash cyanogenmod to my HUAWEI P6 t00
I have a Chinese phone, Huawei p6-t00. I don't like the stock rom on the phone that much and i want to switch to cyanogenmod. The problem is there is only a version of cyanogenmod for Huawei p6-u06 on the Internet. And when i tried to flash that to my phone, it gave me some kind of error like this rom only supports Huawei p6-u06. So i am wondering is there any way that i can flash cyanogenmod to my phone without damaging it? Thanks in advance.

I didn't find a CM ROM for the p6t00 but i did find MIUI V5 JB 4.2.2 for your device. Download link is at the end of the first post.

Due to the device-specific nature of Android (it needs specific drivers for it to run on any one given device), it is generally impossible (or illogical, as it seems) to run a build of Android for a specific device on another device.
This also applies to custom ROMs. Unless you can find a CyanogenMod build specifically for your device or for an extremely similar device, there's no way for you to install CM.

Thanks for the answer. I am kinda upset for not having a CM for my phone.


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Chinese tablet does not boot
I have a Chinese Tablet that was working till last night. I did a factory reset and now it is stuck in small Android logo. I have tried all key combinations to enter into recovery with no success. Please help. Do let me know what information can I provide about the tablet.
System (Android 4.0.4)
Model- L26
Manufacturer - unknown
Device - crane-a088
Product - crane_a088
Brand softwinners
Android Version - 4.0.4 (Ice Cream Sandwich)
API Level - 15
Build ID - IMM76D
Fingerprint - softwinners/crane_a088/crane-a088:4.0.4/IMM76D/20120924:eng/test-keys
Display (800x432)

Processor (ARMv7)
Processor - ARMv7 Processor rev 2 (v7l)
Cores - 1
Max Frequency - 1200 Mhz
Instruction Sets - armeabi v7a, armeabi
SIMD Instructions - NEON

Memory (306 MB)
System RAM - 306 MB
JVM Max Memory - 48 MB

Internal Storage - 639 MB
External Storage - 935 MB

Back Camera - (1.9 megapixel)
Front Camera - (0.3 megapixel)

Sensors (2)
MMA 3-axis Accelerometer
Vendor - Freescale Semiconductor Inc.
Broncho 2-axis Orientation
Vendor - Topwise 3G Inc.

OpenGL 1.X (Mali-400 MP)
General
Renderer - Mali-400 MP
Version - OpenGL ES-CM 1.1
Vendor - ARM

OpenGL 2.0 (Mali-400 MP)
General
Renderer - Mali-400 MP
Version OpenGL ES 2.0
Vendor - ARM
GLSL Version - OpenGL ES GLSL ES 1.00

Features (20)
Graphics
OpenGL 2.0
Android Hardware
android.hardware.bluetooth
android.hardware.camera
android.hardware.camera.autofocus
android.hardware.faketouch
android.hardware.location
android.hardware.location.gps
android.hardware.location.network
android.hardware.microphone
android.hardware.nfc
android.hardware.screen.landscape
android.hardware.screen.portrait
android.hardware.sensor.accelerometer
android.hardware.touchscreen
android.hardware.touchscreen.multitouch
android.hardware.touchscreen.multitouch.distinct
android.hardware.usb.accessory
android.hardware.wifi

Android Software
android.software.live_wallpaper

Model number
L26
Android version
4.0.4
Baseband version
M1190_V1.0.3
Kernel version
3.0.8
lihongling@lihongling-desktop #30
Mon Sep 24 19.53.13 CST 2012
Build number
Ubuntu-L26-B-20121016

If it is stuck in bootloop, I suspect corruption in /system. You should either reinstall the stock ROM or install a custom one. The first thing you will need is a custom recovery. According to this post by flowish at XDA-Developers, you can do this by follwing these steps:

Download the recovery (recommended latest build)
extract and put to your /sdcard
open terminal applications (like better terminal
  emulator) ,or you can use from adb shell and type :
$ su
# cd /mnt/sdcard
# sh install-recovery.sh
# sh reboot-recovery.sh

Here is the button configuration of the recovery:

Power button : Select
Volume (+) : Up
Volume (-) : Down

After doing that, install a new ROM from the recovery. Here is a custom ROM (from a post by nizar07 at androidtablets.net) that you can install from recovery.

Thank you for your reply. It is not stuck in boot loop. When I start the tablet, it shows a small android icon at the center of the tab and freezes there. It does not boot, it just stays there until I press and hold the power button to switch it off..........
When I connect the tablet to my computer with the usb cable, the computer does not recoginze it, neither does it ask for any drivers............
Power button + VolUp + VolDown button does not boot it to the recovery.........
Now I am thinking why did I do a factory reset :(
Can you advice what do I do next?

Where did you perform the factory reset from? The settings app?

Yes.. from Settings -> Reset -> factory and ever since it is not booting and halts on the small android icon. If I connect it to the computer, it does not even detect the tablet and does not ask for drivers.

When you connect it to the computer, does it charge? If not, does it charge from AC? Is there any way for you to know that it is charging?

when i connect it to computer or AC power socket, the screen comes up with the small android icon. i dont know whether it is getting charged or not. Earlier a small blue LED light use to appear indicating charging but now it is not. If it is not connected to computer or AC, I can power it ON by pressing the power button but it halts at the small android icon that means it is charged. Right?........... I cannot even find a key combination to put it into recovery. i tried lot of combinations. The physical buttons on the tab are: Power, VolUp, VolDown and Back button at the bottom center.

When is "earlier" when the blue LED lights up? Before or after the reset? What we are trying to accomplish right now if either connect to adb or boot anything other than that little android icon (eg. recovery, test mode).

This is turning out to be a very weired problem. Few positive things happened that I described in the second answer. Now there is a new problem and I have started a new question. Here is the link http://android.stackexchange.com/questions/91664/unable-to-start-chinese-tablet-even-after-installing-recovery

I dont know what happened but surprisingly the tablet booted on its own. I did not do anything new. It is showing in Device manager as Alcatel ADB Android Device and I was able to see the memory card contents in My Computer too. Battery level was 74%, battery charging blue LED came back on,  phew!
The only negative thing I saw was that it gave a message on Root Checked app that device is performing very slow. RootChecker said that the device does not have root permission.
Now first thing what I wanted to do was... rooting the device. Here are the steps what I followed:
1. I saw your answer but I dont know terminal applications or adb shell so I configured Play Store and downloaded ClockworkMod ROM Manager - When I tried to install the recovery, it said, recovery for L26 device is not available
2. I then downloaded an utility from srsroot.com because my tablet was listed in the supported page ( http://www.srsroot.com/supported as unknown - L26 - Ubuntu-L26-B-20121016 - 4.0.4 ). There were few buttons Root Device (all methods), Root Device (Smartroot), Reset User Lock, Reset Gesture Lock, Read Gesture Lock, Reset Gmail, Wipe All Data, Reboot Device, Reboot Recovery - To be on the safer side, before rooting, I thought let me check if srsroot utility restarts the device, so I clicked Reboot Device and it restarted.
Refreshing moment came to an end. Now I am back to the same issue.... SRSroot utility rebooted my tablet but again it is getting stuck at the small android icon :(
Now do I need to wait for the magical moment to happen again or is there anything I can do?
Thank you for looking into my issue...

Do you have an external SD card? I am not sure if you would be able to reproduce a boot, but put the ROM that I posted in my original answer onto the root directory on your external SD card. You should be able to boot into recovery and flash it from recovery. At least we know that your tablet is not bricked.

reproducing a boot is a problem... I can flash the rom once it goes to recovery. It does not go to recovery mode :(

Honestly, all we can do is hope that you can "magically" get it to boot again.


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What does this icon mean, in the stock messenger app?
Pretty straightforward; when viewing the list of recent contacts/conversations, the stock messenger app on my Samsung Galaxy S3 shows this icon, but for only the one conversation.
I don't know if it's a button, or notification, but I'm afraid to touch it.
Can anyone explain what it is/does?

Well, I believe I've found it.
As per this thread (for example) on the interwebs, it has to do with the Tango app, which I've recently installed.
Essentially, since Tango integrates with your phone like a parasite, when a contact is not available to use Tango the (x) icon indicates this in the stock SMS app.
Having cross-referenced this against similar threads, it seems to be the answer.


text:
Nexus 7 (2013) 32GB Wifi only - difference between 1C010A and 1A034A?
I’m seeing these two codes appear in the product descriptions on various sites in my country (Croatia). What do these codes mean, why is the same product available via two separate codes and which one should I buy?

A store clerk informed me that those codes represent different suppliers and the the actual devices are identical.


text:
Control android tv-box with my tv's remote?
I have an AmLogic M8 android tv-box which has an ir-reciever on it. The box came with an ir-remote that works fine. But I would like to use only my universal remote that comes with direct tv to control everything (I'm already using it to control my tv). I'm wondering if the is an app that can learn arbitrary ir codes and assign them to remote control functions.
I know how to control the box with my phone through ir as well as VNC, UPNP,DLNA etc, but I don't want the phone involved (so the kids can use it as well, they don't have phones).
I'm also aware that there are "learning remotes" that you can point your crappy remote at and it will learn it's signal and you can assign it to a button. This does exactly what I want, and I'll get one as a last ditch effort, but I'm wondering if I can do the same thing on my android box without buying another remote.

After much reading, I ended up achieving what I wanted thanks to CEC. Thankfully the M8, and my VIZIO TV support CEC, which I had never heard of before, and I can control the M8 with my TV remote control (actually I'm using my direct TV remote which is programmed to control the TV). The signals get passed through the HDMI cable.
I had to enable CEC on both the M8, and my TV. At first it didn't work, but I tried with another HDMI cable and it started working. Apparently not all HDMI cables implement the pins that are used to do CEC, and the cable that came with the M8 did not.

Yep, swapped cables. Stated on it in writing on the cable, HDMI with Ethernet.


text:
Fix permission option removed from CWM recovery 6.0.3.6
I updated to latest ClockWorkMode recovery in my Galaxy S 3(AT&T,d2att).
New version is 6.0.3.6.
And noticed that Fix Permission option is removed from it.
I used that option when flasing ROMs.
I can't find why they did so. Will it affects flashing  new ROMs?   Is it not necessary?
Anyone knows reason behind that update?

It was removed because

It's total placebo these days. I wrote it for dealing with the silly things that happen when we used to put apps on SD before Android supported it. Since then, it's been something of a sugar pill that magically fixes all problems without actually doing anything.

(Taken from the commit history, posted by Steve Kondik)

So that's it.
It always did nothing. But Koushik Dutta keeps that option in ROM Manager.

That's probably an oversight, I don't think he's updated it recently but I expect it'll disappear from there soon too.

Based on this post from XDA, fix permissions was removed. I haven't seen any reason why. However, somebody made a flashable zip to put it back in.


text:
Edit Whatsapp contact name in Samsung Galaxy S3 Neo?
I wrongly saved one of my friend's name. Later renamed it with original name but when I searched contacts in WhatsApp I saw his name is still old one. I can't find a way to change name. I tried to edit via mobile contacts, but edit button in WhatsApp contact is disable. How to change WhatsApp contact that name in Samsung Galaxy S3 Neo?

Screenshots (click images for larger variants)

You can follow these steps:

Rename the contact in your phone book and save.
Go to Settings > Account > whatsapp > sync now (or any similar option)

Most likely, your contact is not synced after you renamed!

This may work :

Save your friend's number (copy & paste into a note taking app or write it on paper or just remember it).
Delete your friend's number.
Add new contact with the name you want and enter your friends number.

+1 Nice idea. I didn't think in this simple way :) I changed his whatsapp contacts name now :) but my doubt is why can't we change the name without deleting the contact?

Can't it be done by synchronisation of contact over whatsapp contact..
I mean editing contact in phone or sim card and sync to whatsapp then whatsapp replace the old contact and shows the new one.

WhatsApp seems to create a read-only version of the contact on many phones, so if simply changing the contact's name in your contacts app doesn't work, you might have to:

Delete the contact
Create a new one with the updated name.

It is to be done from inside Whatsapp and is simple.
1. Open Whatsapp
2. Tap Add Contact icon at the right bottom
3. Select New Contact
4. Select the choice of phone or SIM
5. Enter the Name
6. Enter the phone number
7. Save.


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How to unlock phone using ADM application?
I'm using Asus Zenfone and I'm not able to unlock it. I've tried ADM but without success. Utility says that password wont be used when there is a lock pattern. How to use this application?

Basing on Google's support site, it doesn't say that the Android Device Manager could be used to unlock a device that's already locked. Remotely ring, lock, or erase a lost device. It mainly depends on what is asked from your phone, usually, it's the PIN code, Passcode, or Pattern lock that was added on your device. If this doesn't work, I suggest Factory Device Reset.

here:
https://www.ifixit.com/Guide/Android+Device+Manager+-+Bypass+Screen+Lock+on+any+Android+Device/34600
remotely unlock your phone


text:
Lock Screen With Ads on Samsung Galaxy S5 mini
i've got lock screen, I do not know how I got into the phone, and I do not even know how to fix it, is it a virus? please answer, phone isn't rooted

Quickest and the most painful way would be to do a factory reset. Sure, you can try different malware removal options, but that would probably take a lot longer than to just re-setup your phone. Connect your phone to your PC, take you important files that you need, scan them with anti-malware, factory reset your phone, add files back in and check whats up.
In theory, if you really want to avoid resetting, you can try the following. Disconnect your phone from the internet if possible, if not, just turn off your router for a little bit, restart your phone, see if the screen-lock is there. See if you can access running processes, most screen-locks are pretty dumb and will still allow you to get to plenty of functions.


text:
Is it still possible to root my Samsung Galaxy J7?
I'm trying to root my phone and I am at a loss. I am pretty new to rooting. So, not surprisingly I soft-bricked my phone but luckily I was able to restore everything with Smart Switch but I read about how updates can prevent rooting.
I've tried a variety of guides but I keep wondering if it is even possible to do at all as I keep seeing comments about how some phones are not able to root at all.
Phone Information:

Name device: Galaxy J7 (2016)
Model number: SM-J710FN
Android version: 6.0.1
Build number: MMB29K.J710FXXU3AQF8

What I have tried so far:

XDA guide
KingoRoot
KingRoot
OneClickRoot
Dr. fone
TWRP recovery (which gives /Data error no matter what file system I change to in Advanced Wipe. It does work but the phone keeps bootlooping after)

Unfortunately the video with the guide on XDA doesn't work. Does that mean it is outdated? Should I maybe flash the firmware back to the original (before update)? Or is it entirely impossible? Any help would be greatly appreciated!!

The XDA link is improperly done, double-check that.

Yes, the link is invalid, see "...." in link.

Have you tried CF Autoroot method yet? This one seems to succeed on (almost) every Samsung devices.

Follow this thread: https://forum.xda-developers.com/galaxy-j7/how-to/root-galaxy-j7-sm-j710fn-root-t3448389/


text:
Insufficient storage error message
I have bought new Samsung Galaxy S7. And it has available space of 27 GB, though whenever I try to download app it shows insufficient storage error.
Please help me to solve this issue.

Check your internal storage, It must be minimum free in order to install apps.
Can you send your storage details.

try to reboot, check your storage settings or try using google:
http://recomhub.com/blog/galaxy-s7-how-to-fix-insufficient-storage-available-message/


text:
Sharing Windows PC Internet via USB cable
I cannot see any option to share My Windows PC Internet via USB cable.
How can I share PC internet to phone via USB? Please help.

what do you want to do, usb is not capable of sharing INTERNET.
If you are referring to sharing files, they you don't need usb, if you have wifi, where both your pc and phone connect, preferably a private home wifi.
to use the ftp on wifi: phone to pc, set sharing on phone, and pc will ftp. while pc to phone,  set sharing on a folder and use ftp or file explorer like es-file explorer to folder. I use this all the time to transfer photos. es if i want to post to intsagram from a digital photo(after transfer from camera to pc)

USB is capable of sharing internet. See the tethering and reverse tethering tags.


text:
Headphones compatible with phone only after switching the audio cable polarity
I recently brought the Marshall Major II headphones, which come with a two-way unprotected 3.5 mm cable.
According to the manual, you plug the straight end into the headphone, and the right-ended end in the smartphone. When I do so, I hear distorted audio.
However, when I reverse the direction of the cable, i.e., plug in the right-ended end in the headphones, the audio sounds amazing.
Why does this happen? Will the headphones get damaged if I keep using the cable reversed?
I suspect it's probably because my current phone (Xperia C2104, CyanogenMod 11.0) probably doesn't support two-way audio playback. Since I'm planning on getting a new Android phone in the coming months, would you please recommend one that supports two-way audio?
EDIT: Two way audio cable looks like image shown below

What do you mean by "two-way audio playback"?

My guess would be that one of the plugs on the headphone cable is slightly off-spec and isn't making good electrical contact in the socket. Swapping it around means the dodgy connector is in the other socket, and maybe that connection is slightly more forgiving. (Of course, it could just as easily be one of the sockets that's slightly off-spec. The symptoms would be the same either way.)
If this is the case, then having the cable "reversed" is a lot better for it than letting it spark across a poor connection. Sparking damages the metal surface of the plug and socket, so it would get worse over time.
The only reason they recommend having the cable a particular way around is that the right-angle plug sits better against the phone. It's a lot harder to accidentally pull it out of the phone, or knock it (and maybe damage something) against a table edge or your pocket. It also protects the conntector against wear caused by wiggling or pulling on the cable.
Unless there's some inline play/pause buttons on the headphone cable, the only disadvantage of having it reversed is that you lose this mechanical protection from the right-angled connector.

Right-angle plugs avoid wearing out the connector part, i.e. where the wire meets the plug. With straight plugs, that part gets strained whenever the wire is not perpendicular to the plug, eventually destroying the protection layer and exposing the metal wires. Otherwise, +1. I guess OP should just get another 3.5mm cable.

@AndyYan That's a good point. I've added it to my answer now.


text:
Lost hidden images
I used an app to hide certain images on my phone and I transferred the image folders from the phone to an SD card. Now it's not showing and the folders are empty :( how can I restore them?

Apps I've seen usually hide the images by changing their format and saving them in hidden folders at some random locations.

You can check the default saving location used by the app in the preferences. Explore the location from a file explorer and backup the file.
Uninstall the app and reinstall it.
copy the backed up files into the default location again.
try unhiding the files again from the app


text:
Read/write application data on android
I want to view data of a specific application and ideally modify the data and upload it back. I know the application data files are implicitly protected to prevent malicious application stealing passwords/accounts and other information.
However isn't there any API to back-up the data and load the back-up back? I would find this quite handy before doing un-revertible changes in applications as well.
Can I somehow read/write the entry without rooting the phone?

There's adb backup / adb restore for that. Problem still would be how to modify data in the backup files.

Are they encrypted? Or of unknown format?

Depends. If you provide a password, they get encrypted (otherwise not). They can be converted to .tar, but I don't know for the opposite direction (converting a modified .tar back to an .ab).

Reading and writing application data requires at least system permissions (user id 1000 or less) or explicit permissions (user id of the application itself). Some applications share user ids (like free and pro versions of an application) to share the same data but as a normal, not system user, you are unable to even list the files inside the /data partition where all the application data is stored.
The backup procedure from android/google itself is done with system permissions as the system user (id 1000) and does only work on applications which explicitly set the allowBackup tag to true.

And such backup, if allowed is performed how? Could it be possible to modify the application flags?

The backup is done by the Google Play Services which is a system application. Remember it does only backup apps that were installed with the Play Store (you can connect applications to the Play Store so it thinks you installed them with the Play Store) and uploads all the data except the cache encrypted to the Google Servers and links it with your account. it is possible to modify those tags by decompiling the application (with apktool) and modifying the AndroidManifest.xml file. Recompile the app and if you're lucky it will install as an update. If not you have to completely reinstall it

Thank you for extensively helping me, but every answer brongs more questions. How can I connect application to google Play? Googling this gives lot of google play links that are irrelevant. How could I change the data once I send them in google servers?

You can't modify the backed up data. If you want to modify a third-party application's data then just root your device, back up the data and modify it to see the results. You can't just modify protected information which may cause the other application to crash. There is a reason for a protection like that.

Connecting an app to Google Play may be done with TitaniumBackup. I think it modifies the value of installedBy: of your application to the package name of the Play Store inside the packages.xml file which can be found in /data. This, of course, requires root access.


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Unable to upload file to mediafire 2.70
I am trying to upload a .Rar file to mediafire version 2.70 from my Acer liquid z120d dualsim. I use the share with mediafire feature and it gives the popup that the file is placed in the "Upload" folder. But it's not, infact the upload folder isn't displayed within the apps folder browser.
Where is it then? Is it even uploaded? and most of all: how do I find my file?

Accordingly your file should be placed in the 'uploads' folder. But it is'nt happening.
Try to check following solutions.
Clear the app data and cache from app info in settings, and log in to the account and try again.
If it isn't working, What is the size of the file that you are uploading? If its to large, try to upload in modules. According to my experience large files are uploaded but it takes time and meanwhile it doesn't even show you the progress for very large files. So if its in gb or some 500 - 700 mb try to upload in modules.
If still it doesn't work try to upload a simple image file using the same procedure that you used before just to counter-check. If this small image is uploaded then the problem persists in the app in the form of a bug which do not uploads a large file.


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How to use Gallery app in Lollipop 5.0.1?
I have recently updated my Nexus 7 to Android 5.0.1 and I found that the Gallery app is missing. Is it possible to restore it?

The gallery app has been removed from Android 5.0 Lollipop. You can search google play for a gallery app (cyanogen team has one), or you can use the photos app that comes with Google+. This is what Google wants you to use.

The Photos app is actually just part of the Google+ app (and therefore part of the Google applications suite) with its own icon in the app drawer. It identifies itself as a photo-handling app and can work with whatever camera app you have installed. Photos has also been updated far more often than the Gallery app has as well, meaning you're more likely to have updated design and features.

Ryan Conrad has already explained the reason and the alternative, but if you really want to use AOSP (Android stock) gallery, then you might be interested to check these apps, which are based on AOSP source code:

Gallery KitKat: Nexus Gallery
Gallery KK - Gallery ICS


text:
HTC One M8 Charging Issues
I just wanted to check if my HTC One M8 is working fine, I just got it and it's brand new but the battery runs out in 4 hours of non stop use and mobile data usage and when I charge it, it charges at about 1% every 5-10 minutes, is this normal? And if not how do I fix it?

The charging issue may be caused thanks to some app which is running on background and a lot burdens CPU.
Try to kill all apps before/while charging to decrease CPU consumption

That 4 hours of nonstop usage are normal I think. If you were playing games or something like that you should be happy for 4 hours. :) So answer is: Yes, It's normal.
Look at this guide

How do I kill the apps before charging?

In multitask menu you can swipe to right or left to kill app. I do not own M8 so I don't know.
You can also use task manager

@PuppetCode you can also go into the app manager and individually disable apps you don't ever want to run. This will stop them from running again in the background when you restart your phone or when they just decide to run


text:
Can I get a virus on Android 4.4.2 by clicking "no thanks" on one of those virus browser pop-ups?
I opened a link using the built-in facebook browser yesterday, and pop-ups on the website kept asking me if I wanted to install some anti-virus and they had two options: No thanks and OK.  Normally I press the back button because I'm wary of clicking anything, but this time I clicked "Cancel."
I've noticed some weird behavior with my phone freezing this morning and now I'm paranoid.  Could have clicking "Cancel" actually installed something?  Was the message box option spoofed?


text:
Friendstream App do not update Twitter,Facebook
I am unable to get Twitter, Facebook updates in FriendsStream App (HTC Sense) on my Desire HD.
anyone knows how to fix this?Right now only Flickr updates come and I used to get all the above before.

Please, give more details. Have you saw twitter and facebook messages in the FriendStream before?
I have the same phone. Did you try to take a look at the "Menu->Settings->Show updates" in the FriendStream application? There are checkmarks for every stream-source.


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no sound via mobile network call
Last days I have strange behaviour:
No incoming/outgoing sound during calls via mobile network.
After reboot a couple of calls work find and then sound just vanishes.
Viber/skype calls are working just fine.
No external or suspicious applications were installed (actually no new applications were installed for the last months)
dmesg shows nothing related to audio system.
How I can fix the issue? What information I should dig in my phone?
I've Nexus 4 with cyanogenmod (20141205-nightly-mako) [actually before was 20141105-nightly-make and this thing started after almost a month of usage, then I tried to update, but it didn't help].

Cyanogenmod nightly builds are not suitable for everyday use. If you use them, you should expect behaviour like this, and even worse bugs.

Well, but it worked before for about a month

If bugs always manifested themselves right away there wouldn't be so many of them.

Yes, it may have worked, but they are called nightlies for a reason. It is the compiled source code built in to a new package, every night. I am a software engineer for my day job. We introduce sometimes hundreds of new bugs, with just one feature change. We then have to go through and fix those bugs. But, the priority of them differs, and if we are in "feature" mode, bugs wait until all the features are complete, then we address the bugs. If you don't want bugs, use the stable builds.

I'm not against bugs. This was just a question to get some directions to dig and find the root of such behaviour. And it's great that somebody ere is able to help me. Thank you for your answer and comments!

There seems to be a pretty bad bug that affects Cyanogenmod right now
https://jira.cyanogenmod.org/browse/CYAN-5728
A workaround provided in the thread:
from a root terminal (adb root/adb shell or terminal emulator/su)
pm disable com.google.android.gms/com.google.android.gms.checkin.CheckinService

+0.5 for linking to the issue, and +0.5 for your name, so 1 upvote for you :)

+1 for linking to an issue (that was affecting "stable" milestone builds) rather than just condemning someone for using nightlies. (I personally resolved it by upgrading to lollipop factory image and was relieved that it wasn't just my phones hardware crapping out)

A friend of mine who also faced the same problem and finally resolved the issue for me. The phone thinks earphones are plugged in due to which ear piece doesn't work. So take a pin and clean the earphone jack. Should resolve your issue.

This Problem usually comes with 250MB plus version of google Apps package. If the problem persists, try installing nano version of arm based GApps. hope it will solve the issue.


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Setting a shortcut icon to switch to another home screen in Nova Launcher Prime
In Nova Launcher Prime, is there any way to set a shortcut icon to switch to another home screen? When going to the left or right home screen, I would prefer to tap on some icon rather than having to swipe.

I believe you would need to use a third-party automation app such as Tasker. Nova Launcher is listed in the Go Home section of Tasker documentation as supporting the required action Go Home.
For example, you could create a shortcut icon to a Tasker task named Switch to Right Home. The Switch to Right Home task would contain the action Go Home with parameter Page set to 2 (possibly the right-most home screen depending on how many are displayed).
It is a variant of the solution on this blog, where he provides instructions for switching the home screen based on device orientation.


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Is there a flight mode feature where i can still browse the web?
Basically, I just want to appear to other people as I'm offline/my battery is dead.
How can I do this?
I'm not talking about blocking contacts, but the effect would be the same as to block all of them for a given period of time I guess.

You can press the Airplane mode and then enable only WiFi. So your mobile data connection to your carrier is off (can't receive calls/SMS) but your online and have a internet connection.
But if you want to appear offline for certain online-apps like WhatsApp or Facebook you have to manually close these apps or log out or something...

I thought I wasn't enabled to set wifi on in airplane mode. Is wifi allowed on flights?

Thats a different story and I dont know about that ... ;-)


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How can an NFC battery's NFC functionality be used on Android devices?
My Samsung Galaxy SIII comes with a battery with an Near Field Communications (NFC) label on it. Several earlier Android modles don't come with such a label on the battery. I would like to know what the NFC functionality on the battery enables Android devices and their OS to do with the battery.

What do you mean "how can it be used?" Are you looking for a list of every OS feature that leverages NFC? A list of every app that uses NFC? Something else entirely? Such lists would be too broad for an SE question, I would say. If you just want to know why the battery is relevant, that's answered by Why is the NFC in the Galaxy Nexus battery? The answer is that it's just an antenna. nothing more.

Thanks, that answers my question. As I need to get a replacement battery, I guess I will have to get one with the NFC label then if I want the NFC on my device to work. The original battery is a 2100mAh battery which used to charge in 4 hours and last several days, but now, about a year and a half later, once the battery level reaches 47% the device powers off, and charging only lasts 2 hours, hence the need for a new one.

Batteries labeled NFC come with the NFC antenna, without which it would be impossible for the NFC chip on the device to operate.


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how to make complete os backup to create update.zip?
how exactly can i create a update.zip file from  an android device that runs on android kitkat? i tried to backup using titanium backup but it needs root access. is there any way to backup the complete rom without rooting?

adb has a built-in backup command. See, eg, this question for details.


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How to place an link of "application manager" on the home screen?
I'm going many times daily to Application manager in Settings.
(Android 4.2.2:)
Settings --> More --> Application manager
Is it possible to put a link of "Application Manager" on the Home screen in order to avoid passing by Settings?
(I don't want to install external application managers apps)

That should be possible using a shortcut to the corresponding activity. Launchers like Apex have that feature built-in, for others you can use helpers like Activity Launcher. Both allow you to browse your apps, dive into their activities, and chose one to create a shortcut for. In your case, you would need to investigate the Settings app – and I'm pretty sure you'll find the matching activity.
Edit: Just in case you might miss that as well, you'll have to tap the entry of the app in question (here: Settings) to open the list of its activities.

Thank you Izzy. I installed Activity Launcher but unfortunately no Settings and no Application Manager in Recent activities or All activities.

I'm 100% sure "Settings" is in there, as I'm using that myself (both ways: on some devices with Apex, on one with Activity Launcher). It might be called differently (e.g. localized, which it is in my case) – so also watch out for that (and the corresponding icon).

But did you see also the Application Manager? (I already have the settings shortcut from android)

I didn't check that one explicitly, but it must be part of Settings. Activity names are not always that clear, you might have to try several until finding the right one.

I found the application manager link in an app with the name Swapps. With swapps you can open a list of starred apps or links. I was happy to see the application manager shortcut within it.

Swapps probably does exactly the same. I've just checked with Activity Manager, and found three entries for the Application Manager straight (in Settings – or rather "Einstellungen", as app names are localized).

I didn't see the dropdown arrow before Settings till now. Thank you very much. This resolved my problem. Still have to find which of the 2 application managers entries I have to take.

Oh, that's why. OK, I'll update my answer to point that out, so it will be clearer for others who might miss it as well :) Thanks for the feedback!

Found another, even better, app to do it: QuickShortcutMaker (because with this app you can also change icon and rename the shortcut). Tnx again Izzy for showing me the way how to resolve this problem.

Completely forgot about that one! Yes, indeed :) Enjoy!


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Remove password from Galaxy Tab4
My wife set password to her tablet and asks me to remove it. I opened settings -> security -> device encryption entering password but option none (i.e. no password) is disabled (with message turned off by administrator, policy...). As I understand if I am able to set password to none then password should disappears. But I cannot do it, so I suspecting that she is encrypted device somehow.
Is there way to ensure that device encrypted or not? If it is encrypted there is only one way, as I know, hard reset it to remove encryption. But if it is not encrypted, how to remove password?

In Settings→Security→Device Administrators, check whether some app is listed there. The error message suggests such. If there's e.g. an MS Exchange account configured, things like that are enforced (and your company's IT admin could factory-reset your device if he feels like =:-0).

@Izzy it is her private device, not related to any company. anyway, it was solved by reset to factory defaults.

MS Exchange was only one example – there might be other things doing the same. And sure: if you drop atomics on a fly, it will die :) Factory-reset is the "last resort" solution for many things.

Finally, after couple of days spent on lurking for the solution was decided to backup photos and other sensitive information and reset device to factory defaults.

1.From any home screen, tap Apps.
2.Tap Settings
3.Tap the Device tab.
4.Under 'PERSONALIZATION,' tap Lock screen.
5.Tap Screen lock.
6.Confirm your PIN / password, then tap Continue.
7.Tap None.

Option is disabled and cannot be selected.

Go to the settings.
Tap the device icon on the top.
Select lock screen in personalization.
Select screen lock. Confirm password and make in none or whatever  else.


text:
How do I access an attached thumb drive?
I've attached an external drive to my phone using a USB-OTG cable. I can open it in File Manager (v2.0.0), but when I go to /storage/usbdisk none of my files show up, and if I try to create a file it complains about needing elevated permissions. I've read online that I need to enable root access mode in File Manager's general settings, but there is no such setting on my device.

It turns out you have to enable "Superuser" mode in CM's settings app if it's disabled. I was only able to get to this setting by searching for it - I couldn't find it anywhere in the menu tree. Android normally restricts apps to only access their own special sub-folders on an attached flash drive, so File Manager needs special permissions to access everything.

I own a OnePlus One and, after plugging the USB Drive through OTG cable, use the ES File Explorer app which will save you from the hassle of permissions. In that app look under the Local tab to find your drive, usually called sdb. No need for root.


text:
My battery dies very quickly
I've had this issue a couple of months ago too but then I could fix it by turning off an option at my WiFi settings.
Now the problem is back but it my previous solution doesn't work.
I own a Samsung Galaxy S5 and I've had it for about a year now. It runs on Android 4.4.2. At some point the battery started to die really fast, and I don't have a clue what the reason could be. When I check the battery usage, it says "Android-System" uses about 30-40% of my battery, but I don't have a clue where this service comes from or how to kill it.
Has anybody got a solution for this?

Sounds like you could use a factory reset. This will reload your operating system. After you do that I would load applications one by one and see if any of your apps are causing the battery drain.
Here is a guide on how to factory reset your phone:
http://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/factory-reset-galaxy-s5/


text:
Import SIM card contacts not working? (HTC One X)
I have a new HTC One X. After storing all my contacts from my previous dumb-phone onto the SIM card, I tried to import them on the new smart-phone. (People->Menu->Import/eexport->Import from SIM) It says "No contacts on your SIM card". But I can see them there if I put it back in my old phone.
I don't think they are stored on my old phone itself, because for each contact it says "Stored to: SIM". Also this (brand new) SIM card is supposed to come pre-loaded with numbers for calling my phone company's customer service, voicemail, etc. so there should be SOMETHING on the SIM.
I am very new to Android and smartphones in general. Help?

Yes, I did try that, but it didn't work. As I already stated in my question.

Alternative: Do you have your old phone still? SonyEricsson phones for example can export in .vcf format to the memory card which you can then either import directly on your phone or via gmail.com. You could also send your whole address book at once via bluetooth. there's also software like MobileMaster that handles many brands.

I do still have it, but my old phone is so prehistorically old I don't think it can do that. That is, it doesn't have Bluetooth nor a memory card. I don't see the model number on the compatibility list for MobileMaster.
I broke down and manually copied all the data across (a glorious waste of two hours) but am still interested in the correct solution.


text:
How to upload multiple images at once to Google Drive?
I want to upload to Google Drive, all my image files that are within my gallery. At the moment I have to select the images one by one to do so.
Long pressing the images and the folders themselves does not open a context selection grid as it normally would.
I am using default gallery. I am also using the android 2.3.3 on an LG-P999-V21e.

Which Android version is your phone/tablet running? My Nexus 7 (on 4.1.2) does just that. Long press a folder in the Gallery app, select Drive as target, upload, done.

What app are you using? Default Gallery?

Do not go to Google Drive directly.

Gallery
Select the files you want to Upload
Share (icon like Branch) -NOW you choose Google drive and folder... Click OK and you are in Business

can't believe there's still no way to do this from within the Drive app itself smh

It seems the limitation is from the Android file picker -- you can't seem to select multiple items, and if you use Desktop mode from a browser at drive

Some time after reading this I discovered programs like FolderSync or autosync. I wouldn't use a method like this now, you can sync your entire phone in just a few taps to Google Drive or other services like Dropbox using FolderSync or Autosync.

Firstly, this is assuming you have ICS or higher (not sure if the Gallery works this way before then).
If you open an album, you should be able to long-press on a photo, and then at the top of the screen, where it says 1 selected, press that and you can say 'select all'.
Then upload them.

To be clear, this is via the gallery, not via the Drive app. Long-pressing does not work if you open the gallery via the Drive app. You need to select your photos then share it to a Drive folder.

I have two alternative solutions for you.
1. Zip it
Make a zip archive (or RAR) of the multiple items you want to upload. Then upload only that file.

Zipping has the advantage of preserving LAST MODIFIED (folder uploads tend to not preserve that field)
2. Auto file sync tools
Alternatively, you may choose to use a 3rd party tool like FolderSync or Autosync to sync entire folders automatically and periodically in the background. This kind of gets you the usual Desktop backup behavior you might expect from Drive. Unfortunately the current version of their app won't do auto backups. Using FolderSync or Autosync will allow you to sync entire folders easily without having to tap-check each file you want to sync in the folder.
I do not recommend using the Drive app itself to upload multiple files at once (it gets very slow and heavy with 500+ items).

This works on my S4, there is a maximum upload of 500 files per xfer.
Do not go to Google Drive directly.
Gallery
Select the files you want to Upload [press "1 selected box" to select all files or FOLDERS [DOES NOT UPLOAD FOLDERS...unfortunately].
Share (icon like Branch) -NOW you choose Google drive and folder... Click OK and files will upload [use WIFI for faster uploads]

This might help: On my Samsung A52 I could only 'select all' from the Gallery app, not just a few. Instead, go to the Samsung app folder, find 'My Files', select 'images', hit the 3 dots at the top, select 'share', and now you can choose which files you want to share. As soon as you select an image, or more, the share icon will pop up. and then you can share wherever.

I know the simplest way to upload multiplefiles to drive be it photos, your apps and their data, music's etc or whatever, is through your file manager. Say you want to upload all your apps, I use ES Explorer, I launch the app and select apps. Iong press on the apps I want to upload and tap share. From there I select save to Google drive. I am there directed to drive where I can edit the file names and change their location. That's all. This works too for folders even app data if only you know their directories

A simple way to get around the situation would be if you could use a microSD card. Just copy all the images into it and use it in a newer phone or pc/mac and upload the images to Google Drive / Photos.


text:
Add existing Google account without accepting Google Play agreement
I've received a new Samsung Galaxy S5.
I want to add my existing Google account to the phone, to be able to use Gmail and my calendar. However, when adding my account under Settings, the phone requires me to accept a bunch of legal agreements, including one about Google Play and its billing functions.
I don't want to be forced to accept a legal agreement concerning a service I don't intend to use just to access my email and calendar data.
How can I get around this?

I just made an account for that sole purpose of not wanting to give my information, if google wants to take it, I'll happily provide fake information. I knew I shouldnt have bought a smartphone, this was exactly what I wanted to avoid.
"btw, in order to use your phone, and get access to a bunch of things youll never ever want to use, we'll demand all your personal information, access to your phone and microphone (Samsung style) and synchronization of all gallery, but that will be all"

Indeed. These things should be sold with a warning: "WARNING: To be able to use this product even in the most basic way, you must accept 1,000 pages of arbitrary legal agreements subject to arbitrary changes."


text:
Can I safely do a factory reset without losing root?
Sadly my quesiton isn't that simple. To make sure everyone unerstands I will explain as short but specific as possible:
Initial: stock state, not rooted, nothing special

I updated my HTC One M8 to Android 5.0 (Lollipop) and noticed, that it drains my battery waaay faster than before and also lags pretty bad (almost every press of a button).
I searched for fixes online but couldn't find anything that may work except for a factory reset. Since it's almost impossible to backup all apps including data without root (e.g. titanium backup) I thought I may as well root my device, so I'm prepared for future restores (as I found out it's particularly easy to root an htc device, I was relieved I'm a noob when it comes to rooting).

I then did a factory reset and rooted my HTC One M8, installed SuperSU and all that stuff, you know.
It actually ran faster than before the Android 5.0 Update and the battery drain also seemed to be OK.

This Monday I woke up to a completely depleted mobile data usage (had about 450MB left - all gone over night). I forgot to turn on WiFi as I went to sleep. Below is the data usage of that night. I set everything I can (Play Store Updates and HTC Backups, as far as I know) to WiFi only, because 1GB of monthly mobile data seldom is enough for me.

I contacted HTC Support Chat and that lady told me to go to Settings -> Apps -> Reset App settings and restart my phone by pushing VolumeDown + VolumeUp + Power Button.  I did that and it seemed like my phone is as slow as before I did the factory reset.
I still don't know why the heck my phone used so much mobile data that night. I just hope this won't happen again. If you know why or how to prevent this, feel free to tell me!

Now I'm here with a rooted HTC One M8 with Android 5.0.1 and the same problems as in the beginning of this nerve-racking process. I searched a lot for solutions of the battery drain after the Lollipop update, but couldn't find anything helpful.
So my question is Can I perform a factory reset without losing root? because that's what helped me in the beginning. But of course I would be very happy about solutions addressing the extreme battery drain and lags I'm experiencing.
In Settings -> Power consumption there (almost) always is Google Play Services at the top. I found some solutions on how to keep this from draining my battery all the time, but they include messing with more root apps and I'm not sure if my device will also run faster after doing that.

Did you look at the screenshot you posted?  The Play Store downloaded app updates.

@MatthewRead It didn't! Did you read my whole question? I didn't see any notifications of updates, plus I set my Play Store to not do updates via mobile data, only via WiFi.

Recoveries like TWRP and Philz Touch checks for root verification and in the scenario of you losing root after  factory reset, boot into your custom recovery, attempt for a normal reboot and the recovery will offer to root the device. Take the offer. Come back to Android and install SuperSU from Play Store as usual. This worked well with my Android 4.2.1, 4.4.2, COS12 and stock Android 5.1 ROMs.
Note: do not use the said approach on a ROM running Android Marshmallow. It may cause boot issues which you might not be able to solve unless you do a clean and full flash of a device specific ROM or manually reverse the steps TWRP used to root the device.
As of now, to root a ROM prefer the flashable zip for SuperSU stable and flash it through your custom recovery. In case of installation issues, refer to this XDA thread.
Related: I've installed a custom recovery image, but not yet rooted my phone. How can I install SuperSU and subscribe to automatic updates?

SuperSU app offers to move itself into system partition which would make it a system app and invulnerable to any factory reset. The option is available under its settings as Install SuperSU into /system.
(As of now however, for ROMs rooted with system-less root mode SuperSU doesn't provide the said option.)

About battery drain, per my experience with it in Android 4.2.1, 4.4.2 and 5.0.1 I can recommend Greenify app in Boost mode. Boost mode requires Xposed Framework1 installed.

1  Xposed Framework: Android 4.x, Android 5.x and 6.x

So by in the scenario of you losing Root after Factory reset I understand that I will lose Root when performing a factory reset but I can save SuperSu by moving it to /System, correct? But I will have to root it again for sure? I haven't got Xposed to work well on Android 5 yet but I do got Greenify installed. I guess it's "importing apps to the new android" causing the battery drain and hope a factory reset will fix this again.

Yes, you can save anything by moving it into /System folder, let alone SuperSu. I did it for AFwall+ and one other apk. It is also correct that you'll have to root after reset for sure but (Recoveries like TWRP/Clockworkmod can do such thing just by booting into them) that your custom recovery will not be reverted back to Original is something cannot be assured unless your Current Rom has the feature for it. What I mean is some ROM's like Cyanogenmod has a feature in Developer's Option which allows Custom Recovery to be reverted back in the case of OTA/Reset.

Even if you do factory reset, you still have to import your apps, otherwise, I don't see any other way other than Greenify. However, are you certain that the battery drain is possibly only because of importing apps?

Ok, thank you. What is is, that Greenify can do so I do not have to import apps? I'm pretty sure it has to do something with that. What else could it be? It only occured after switching to Android 5 and after deleting app settings and restarting by pressing all three buttons (Vol. Up, Vol. Down, Power).

Looks like I missed certain part in my comment. Let me complete it. Even if you do factory reset, you still have to import your apps which may again drain the battery,and otherwise, I don't see any other way other than Greenify. to solve drain issue. Apologies for incomplete statement.


text:
Is there any known full device/disk encryption software for android 2.2?
I have not found anything in the app store or other stores, Is there any known full device/disk encryption software for android 2.2, that you have test on your device? if so what is the device?
FYI:I know honeycomb supports this natively, but my device does not support HC.

You wouldn't be able to get it via an app, you'd need it at the ROM level. I doubt anyone has done it.

possible duplicate of Are there any known rom(s) with full device encryption incorporated?

Full device/disk encryption can only be done correct with OS privileges. That's why there is no such App. But newer Android versions and some ROMs provide this features. Have a look at "Are there any known rom(s) with full device encryption incorporated?"

That's why there is no such app. ~> You are saying like there's no root app in the world. Apps can do this with root access.


text:
Why does photos 'edit in' change image app export behavior?
When you open a picture in Pixlr / Snapseed / etc., you are given option of resizing / export the resulting photo.

However if I 'share' or use gallery 'edit in', I cannot export in Snapseed, and Pixlr is missing image resize on save dialog.

Why does android differentiate these activities and more importantly can I turn it off?
Really dislike workflow of opening Snapseed first then hunting for a photo I already had open elsewhere. I thought it was a Pixlr issue until Snapseed did similar.
Missing image resize ui from Pixlr:

Reproduced with Android 7,8, and 9. Google Pixel

I use Photo Editor and it seems to be able to crop and resize images that other app sends / "shares" to it.
While I don't know exactly why and I don't do any Android development, I think that it could be those two apps provide functionality for "editing only", where the resulting (edited) photo is returned to the handler, in your case, your gallery app, instead of handling by themselves. This could be a possible reason why those apps can't export photos when the photos aren't opened from within the apps.

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


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data/log folder causes "internal storage has run out of space" message
So all of a sudden I'm seeing the dreaded "storage space running out" message. I'm running the nightlies of cyanogemod 10 on galaxy s2.
I looked into the storage manager and the numbers didn't add up.
Couldn't find any app that shows you content of internal storage (they all work on the SD), so I used the terminal emulator to view the files myself (requires super user permissions).
I found out that there is a directory data/log that takes a lot of memory, about 1 GB. From viewing the files in it it appears to have a lot of log files with names such as dumpstate_RESET_BY_CP_SILENTRESET...
What is this? Can I delete everything there?
EDIT:
found this http://forum.cyanogenmod.org/topic/71465-log-directory-full-of-dumpstate-files/

I just deleted it... it seems to be a bug with cyanogenmod. Will update if there are any problems.
Deletion was done through the terminal app. You type su to give it super user permissions, then you go to the path and use a linux command to delete the files.

On the forum, I suggested for them to post a bug report on https://jira.cyanongenmod.org, but as far as I know, this hasn't been done yet. If the developers aren't aware of the problem, they can't fix it (they don't frequent the forums).

You can use ES file explorer to delete these file also.

so it seems safe to delete /data/log completely to free up internal memory of my galaxy Y? I wonder if there is an application to automatically do that? I wonder if link2sd could link that folder to sdcard...

I believe you need root permissions for that.

in my fairphone, it was /data/log_other_mode but same thing otherwise