You need to flash stock recovery to install stock OTAs without computer-based intervention.

Alternatively, you can download the relevant OTA for your version of KitKat, put it somewhere on your Nexus's internal storage and flash it in TWRP  like you would any other flashable zip. Although you may want to note that xposed doesn't work with Lollipop yet, and rooting is a little bit more involved than it was on kitkat.


Will it be a good idea to block Google play store to save my data?

Your phone would be a paper weight. Most of those app blockers are garbage. They eat up resources and battery life.

Most google apps require a network connect to work.

Best bet simply set your phone to wifi only when you can. Turn on wifi only updates. Something like Tasker can help if you can get past the learning curve.


Where is the folder that Termux defaults to?

You don't need to root your device. All you need to do is run the following command on a non-rooted (or rooted) device to allow termux to access your existing directories, particularly /storage/emulated/0:

termux-setup-storage

this creates a new directory in termux, ~/storage, which contains simlinks to /storage/emulated/0 and can be accessed by a standard gui file manager.

You will need to grant file access to termux when prompted after you run the command.

See here.


Why do I see less memory on my Asus tablet then specified?

An part of the RAM is reserved - often for the GPU - and not useable by the dalvik VM and Apps. This is not uncommon: Samsungs Galaxy S has also 512MB but only 334MB are useable by Apps. This can differ from ROM version to version.


Lollipop: override security policies (specifically lock screen/Exchange/Office 365)

Try the Mail Wise app. It bypasses Exchange security, but you won't be able to use the Gmail app.

For details, read this Mail Wise FAQ.


Sony Experia E5 microphone only produces static when I talk

Rub over the microphone hole with a magnet.

This will work if there is metallic dust stuck to your microphone, or if the cone is stuck inverted. The magnet can dislodge the metallic dust and force the cone to move.

If that doesn't work, bring the device in to a repair facility. It might be physically damaged.


What is the "Attempting HD" icon when placing calls?

This icon comes from Sprint's HD Voice feature.  The "Attempting HD" icon appears in all calls, but the feature only activates on Sprint-to-Sprint calls where both devices are supported.


How to power off Samsung A6 without screen

You can take out the battery, as shown here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oVl9EGJdTHE

if you are willing to DIY

(You might need to go that route anyway, if you plan to replace the screen yourself -- which is probably much cheaper and faster than using a repair shop)

P.S. Actually, it's probably best to let the battery drain before opening the phone, but I'm not sure.


Try Framaroot. I'm not sure if it will work with Lollipop, but it is the only option I can think of that does not require a PC. More info and FAQ in the link. Download the latest version from the bottom of the first post.


Programmable MP3 player with audio recording capability

Just buy any Android phone and you can easily have all of the features of an iTouch and more. I'm sure you could find one on Ebay now for $100 or less. Maybe an old G1 or something like that. You can use cell phones just fine without activating them, including Android phones. But you will want an Android that has WiFi in it if you won't be activating it. That way you can still use the marketplace and such.

Update:
I forgot that you could also look at devices supported by Rockbox. You won't likely get anywhere near the functionality of Android or IOS, but might be enough for you depending on the device.


What is the difference between CMDA, GSM, P1000L. and P1000N?

GSM and CDMA refer to the 2G/3G cellular technologies used by phones and tablets.  In USA, AT&T and T-Mobile use GSM, while Sprint and Verizon use CDMA.

GT-P1000L and GT-P1000N are variants of the international Galaxy Tab GT-P1000 version that were released by Samsung for Latin America markets.  Both P1000L and P1000N models have GSM connectivity.  You can find the exact version you have in Settings -> About under the Model number section.

In terms of rooting and installing CyanogenMod, you will need to refer to the CyanogenMod wiki for the respective model (P1000L or P1000N).


How to root Android using CF-Auto Root Solution

When you decide to root your Android usually you have to pick a proper rooting solution next. Otherwise, you have to face a lot of problems. In the worst-case, you might have a bricked mobile phone or tablet instead of a rooted one. So in this article, I'm going to talk about one of the best rooting tools if you have a Samsung smartphone or a tablet. We are going to root it using CF Auto Root through download Odin.

Preparations before Root Android

So this an invention of the famous XDA developer Chainfire. The exploit is working for more than 300 common Android devices.  But today we are gonna focus on Samsung. If you want to work with this you better check the compatible list which is available in the XDA Developers forum. It usually unlocks the bootloader first. So make sure to keep backups unless you will lose your data. And the other special fact is that Samsung drivers are only compatible with Windows. So you should have a Windows PC for the task.

Android Rooting for Samsung

First, you have to make sure to install proper drivers. Check this
link out and you will be able to download them. You just have to extract the zip and launch the .exe.
The next step is to download the correct CF-Auto-Root file. There are
many. So to find your compatible version check the model Number and
the Android version. And then click the download.
Make a new folder and extract the downloaded zip file there. The file
should be located in the hard drive.
Then put your smartphone or the tablet into the download mode. Volume
down button, home button, and power button will help to do this.
Press and hold it simultaneously.
Now connect it with the windows computer using a USB cable.
Now browse to the folder that has extracted the content of the
downloaded zip file. On there you will see a .exe file with a name
ODIN. Right-click on that select to run it as an Administrator
Once Odin is running it will detect the device.
In the interface  "ID:COM" field should be turned to blue.

Click the AP button and keep the rest unchanged.
Again you have to browse to that exact same place that has extracted
the content and select CF-Auto-Root.rar.md5 file. Then click Open
When the log tab displays a message saying "Leave CS" click the
start.
Now the rooting process has been started.
When its finished the device will reboot back to Android.

Wrap Up

So this is an almighty process of rooting your Android Operating System using CF-Auto-Root and Samsung Odin. It is safe and pretty easy compared to some other tools. So if you want to check the root status you should download the root checker.


Per the comment by alecxs, above, adb-sync gives me the functionality I'm looking for: https://github.com/google/adb-sync

Some day I'll also try Adebar.

Thanks to alecxs!


My Google Voice services keeps getting stuck on “restarting”

I haven't seen this particular issue before, but Kevin Purdy's "Holy Trinity" of steps to take with apps that just aren't working properly is:

From Settings | Applications | Manage applications | <application>

Force stop

if that doesn't help

Clear cache

if that doesn't help

Clear data

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

uninstall and re-install


How to flash and root OnePlus 3T on Linux?

Gather the steps in a gist.

How to flash and root OnePlus 3T on Linux

Update

2017-jan-05:

fix SuperSU with  no-verity-opt-encrypt-5.0.zip and SR5-SuperSU-v2.78-SR5-20161130091551.zip² ;

Requirements

  Disclaimer: I've already done those kind of install on different phones and I'm familiar with the steps. So be sure to read the resources to get an understanding of what happens.

[ ] battery are >60% ;
[ ] know what you are doing?
[ ] remember that version used worked for me.

Screenshots are not mine, thanks to their author.

Flashing Recovery to TWRP

  Flashing require to do a factory reset. Backup your data.

Prepare Phone

enable Developer Options

in Settings -> About Phone -> Build Number (at the bottom)
by tap on it for 5-7 times to enable Developer Options

enable USB Debugging

in Settings -> Developer Options -> USB Debugging.

enable OEM Unlocking (in the same list).

developer-options http://cdn3.freeandroidroot.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/Enable-OEM-Unlock-USB-Debugging.jpg
Install adb and fastboot tooling:

sudo apt-get install android-tools-adb android-tools-fastboot

Reboot to bootloader either with adb reboot bootloader or through power button ;
Unlock the bootloader:

sudo fastboot oem unlock

Flash the recovery with TWRP:

sudo fastboot flash recovery twrp-3.0.3-0-oneplus3t.img

Reboot to recovery to wipe cache ;
Reboot to recovery to mount the device ;
Download SuperSU and no-verity-opt-encrypt-5.0.zip

SR5-SuperSU-v2.78-SR5-20161130091551.zip (the 2.79² didn't worked for me) ;
no-verity-opt-encrypt-5.0.zip (dm-verity and forced encryption disabler).

Copy to your smartphone Internal Storage directory (using nautilus or nemo¹) ;
install both of them with TWRP ;
reboot and enjoy!

Root

  The rooting procedure given here is not a data-loss process but it won’t hurt to have a backup of your smartphone’s personal data.

  source

Resources

How To Flash TWRP Recovery And Root OnePlus 3T - freeandroidroot ;
How to root opt using Linux - forums.oneplus.net ;
OnePlus 3T: How to Unlock Bootloader | Flash TWRP | Root - devs-lab.com ;
Direct link to working version of SR5-SuperSU-v2.78-SR5-20161130091551.zip - download.chainfire.eu.
Direct link to no-verity-opt-encrypt-5.0.zip - build.nethunter.com.

Footnote

¹: I didn't manage to access my smartphone storage with Dolphin ;
²: SR1-SuperSU-v2.79-SR1-20161221223537 didn't work for me.


Do I need Android SDK to connect my phone in USB debug mode?

No, you don't need to install the Android SDK.  The SDK's drivers don't work for the Galaxy S, actually, at least not the last time I tried.

You best bet is to download Samsung Kies and update the drivers through it, as per this answer to another question.  You can get Kies most easily from Samsung UK here.


How to disable camera → Google Photos sync on Android 9?

The easiest option (and maybe hence easiest overlooked) is disabling the Google Photos app altogether (in Settings › Apps make sure you show "all apps", scroll to Google Photos and tap the "disable" button).

Revoking storage permissions from this app cannot hurt (who knows what might still invoke one of its intents; still in Settings › Apps tap the "wheel" icon in the upper-right corner, select "Permissions", then "Storage", scroll to the app, and toggle it off; you might have to do that before disabling the app as afterwards it might no longer show up here).


Samsung Galaxy S4: Get files from broken & locked screen

I believe the S4 supports USB On-The-Go. If you get yourself an OTG adapter, you can use it to plug in a USB mouse and unlock the screen that way. A mouse click/drag works just like a screen touch in Android.


It takes a long time to load the home screen

Because Sammy's software is buggy! If yours is a galaxy S i9000, then there are ICS Roms on XDA forum which I found far smoother and usable on my phone than Samsung's touchwiz Gingerbread.

If you don't want to go through the hassle of rooting, flashing a custom ROM, then I suggest that you backup your data and do a factory reset.

settings=>privacy=>factory data reset


"Mediaserver" under Power management / Battery usage (xperia ZL)

It could be that it's not a particular file that's corrupt, but the filesystem itself. I've had a similar problem on a Galaxy S3, and the culprit was a filesystem error on the SD card. Removing the SD card and scanning the filesystem for errors from a computer fixed the problem.


Android driver resets DNS on my Win7 host

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

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


Gingerbread has drastically reduced my battery life

Revert?  If the OS itself is not sleeping properly, you can't do much else besides install a kernel or ROM that behaves better.


How can I tweak the amount of RAM allocated to Chrome for Android?

I found a tweak that will allow me to manipulate the amount of RAM that is allocated to the Chrome browser on Android.

By default the Chrome browser for Android can only access up to 128MB of RAM. This can be tweaked by simply opening the application Chrome Browser and typing the following string in a new tab and tap Enter:

  chrome://flags/#max-tiles-for-interest-area

In the menu that pops up, change the value from Default to 256 or 512.

You will be prompted with a notification that will ask you to Relaunch Google Chrome in order for your changes to take effect. Click Relaunch Google Chrome and enjoy the added speed.


I cannot remove Administrator Rights from any app

It was blue light screen filter that was causing the problem and deactivating that fixed the problem as confirmed by OP .Tinted screenshot lead me to suspect this :-)

For additional details on what such apps do see What does "Drawing over other apps" mean?


SOAgent (package name com.sec.android.soagent), is a system application or rather manufacturers tool that comes preloaded in most Samsung devices.

It is one of the packages responsible for checking software/security OTA updates, readying, alerting the user  and downloading such updates. As a system application it does have such privileges to access the internet to check for updates regularly to the annoyance of many users (not really necessary to sending alerts to download) because sometimes one may not be ready to install new updates.

One can remove (if rooted) or disable this package if not rooted.

Android already has mechanisms to do such checks, since other devices receive updates without the presence of such an application or even doing offline updates will be great news for some.


Get N on screen when trying to access developer options

You are hitting the wrong area to get developers options. Within setting/about phone/software/build number you need to hit Build number 7 times to enable the developers options. Hitting Android Version multiple times enables a google cookie for the android version.


install a flashable zip, using the "Install Update from SD card" option built into any stock recovery

Unfortunately this is not possible on devices newer than Android 5.0.

After 5.0, signature verification was enhanced to combat the Universal Signature bug.

Prior to Android 5.0, a bug existed in the Signature verification program, something to do with the way the signature was validated allowed another signature to result in the same validation ( The Universal Signature ) .

To answer your question for Android 5.0 and lower..

Repackage the custom system.img into an OTA Update format
Sign the update package with the Universal Signature
Hope that it validates through the stock program.

In most cases, the recovery program checks the format and signature are correct, then it check's if the package is designed for your device by reading the build.prop.

If your build.prop matches the package, and the signature is validated it will install.


How to send notifications based on location?

There are many many apps on the Google Play Store that do this.

If you want to stick to a basic and free app, you can use Google Keep.

Simply create notes for each event and add the location to the note, Google will then remind you.

Here is a tutorial, on an external site.


Ways to improve battery life on Droid Incredible?

In general, I believe reducing use of vibration helps save battery life on a phone. So for the Incredible, I even disabled the feature of vibrating when entering keystrokes.

Here are some good tips from wikiHow.


Where to get help for unrooted phone that won't boot after switching from original carrier?

T-mobile (toll free): 1-877-746-0909.
T-mobile (direct): 1-505-998-3793.

I called T-mobile, and they said I had to contact the manufacturer.

LG (toll free, US): 1-800-793-8896

They also have a french version of the website, which you will go to by default when accessing lg.com if you are on a French ip.  You can otherwise access it by going to lg.com/fr . Conversely, you can go to the US version of the site via lg.com/us .  Either version supports a live chat function and has other relevant contact information.

That answers my question of who to contact for support, but I feel it is worthwhile to now note what options I appear to have.

After talking to the US support and French support, I don't really have any options for a quick repair.

I could send it in to LG in the US, which will take them 5-7 days after they receive it, but then they will only return the phone to an address within the US.  Taking into account the mailing times, the cost to get the phone there, and the cost for someone to send it back to me, then this gets a bit costly and slow.

They won't repair American phones outside of the US.  And to make things worse, my particular model isn't even available in France.

So the only reasonably quick solution to needing a phone is to buy a phone here in France.  What to do with my existing phone is a problem that's outside the scope of the question I initially asked, so I leave it at that.


Find history of entering and exiting apps on Android

I don't think there is anyway to get this info from Android (at least, I am not aware of it, if it exists).
You have an app alternative, Usage Analyzer: Apps, Data & History, which gives this information and much more information.
It does not give you explicitly exit time but it gives you start time and usage time, and you can add both to get exit time. Chrome usage highlighted in screenshot below

(click to enlarge )
It also gives you day/week app usage details.


remount file system with "adb remount" in production builds Marshmallow 6.0

Why would you want to do this?
Anyway,

adb root
adb remount

This should work. Works for me on my OnePlus 2.


Are there any risks to rooting a device?

Does it have the potential to brick the device?
Although it has become relatively simple on the Droid, some methods of rooting pose more risk than others. So in short yes there is a potential.
Will it void my warranty?
It mostly depends on where you live and on your manufacturer (and their warranty policies). But technically this does void your warranty in most cases.
Will I stop getting updates?
Again this depends. Some manufacturer provide updates for rooted devices while others do not. These will usually continue to come in and may unroot your phone if you install them, or even require you to unroot manually before you can receive their updates. If you install a third party ROM, then there's nothing else to do with your original manufacturer.
Will the cops show up at my front door the next day?
I certainly hope not :) but if rooting involves cracking a bootloader, it could theoretically get you in legal trouble in some jurisdictions (anti-circumvention laws, etc.)
EDIT:  Also be aware that there are different root methods based on which current build you are running.
EDIT:  It may (as of May 24, 2017) prevent you from installing some apps: Google Play can now prevent rooted users from downloading certain apps


Cloning a SIM card is not what you think it is. Apart from the simple contacts information, the only thing stored on it is a code which identifies your phone to your carrier. It's like a user ID, which the carrier can use to look up which plan you're on and what phone number you should have.

Although cloning a SIM card is possible, it's not something you want to do as a customer. It's a technique used by crackers to impersonate another user to the phone network, in order to illicitly receive their phone calls. It may be illegal where you live.

Think of the SIM card like a credit card. It belongs to the carrier: they just lend it to you for the purpose of using their service. If your bank sends you a new card, or you change bank, you don't "clone" your old card onto your new one: you just use the new card. And, just like a bank card, if your carrier didn't send you the new card as a replacement for the old one, then it refers to a completely different account.

If you simply want to move your old phone number to your new phone, you need to contact your (old) carrier to do this.


How to delete ROOT APPS from Andoid jelly beans?

That's not possible on stock ROMs. And it's not possible on other ROMs either when you want Google Apps. As long as Google Apps are installed (and a network connection is available), they will update automatically.


How does Wi-Fi sharing in Samsung Galaxy S7 work?

Software, not hardware
Thanks to the brilliant research of xavier_fakerat
If you look here, What is the functionality concept behind Wi-Fi sharing (aka Wi-Fi Profile share)?
You will see that software can accomplish this. So it's not just a special hardware thing.
You can use https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=kha.prog.mikrotik&hl=en To get similar results that the S7 produces


How frequently is it okay to let the battery discharge fully or as low as possible?

once or twice a month a full battery drain and then a 100% charge helps increase the battery life

That is incorrect, a full discharge is never beneficial to LiON battery capacity. The battery life of a LiON battery is dependant mostly on temperature, discharge rate, and age. In fact, low charge state actually is harmful to LiON battery capacity; although modern batteries have circuits that tells the system to shutdown before it became really harmful to the battery, it is best for LiON battery to be plugged in as often as is convenient.

  also gives more accurate battery readings.

As for calibrating battery meter by full discharge-recharge, that is partially true. Modern smart battery comes with a microchip to keep track of the state of charge. The following is a quote from HP regarding Smart Battery System in their laptops:

  Repeated short discharges and recharges cause increasing inaccuracy between the state-of-charge of the battery and the Power Meter readings. Periodically, the battery needs to be calibrated to "relearn" its usable capacity so it can synchronize its charge status with the Power Meter. ... The user simply has to periodically discharge the battery until the 5% capacity alarm is received. The need to perform this procedure will vary with individual use. In general, a Li-Ion battery should be calibrated a minimum of once every 3 months. A battery that is seldom discharged completely should be calibrated about once a month.

and the following is from Battery University:

  How often does a battery need calibrating? The answer depends on the application. For practical purposes, a calibration should be done once every three months or after 40 partial cycles. If the portable device applies a periodic deep discharge on its own, no additional calibration will be needed.

The need for calibration comes from the mismatch between the battery's chemistry and the microchip that estimates the battery's state of charge. This mismatch develops over numerous partial discharge, although unlike the memory effect in NiCad battery, it does not affect the battery's actual chemical capacity and is reversible by letting the battery relearn its bottom and top charge state. Do not do calibration too often since deep discharge does permanently harm LiON's actual capacity.


In OsmAnd+ 2.3.5:

tap the menu button -> Configure Map -> swipe up to reveal more options

and set the text size from there:


Why has my GSIII's battery life dropped from 50-60 hours to 16 hours?

Cell standby being high means you have a really weak signal wherever your phone was.  The phone cranks its radio up to maximum power to try to maintain a usable signal.

There are several ways to stop it - none of them ideal:

Put the phone somewhere with a better signal (near a window maybe)
Put it in airplane mode to turn off the radio (but you won't be able to get phone calls/texts)
Switch to a carrier that has a better signal near your home/workplace

As for why it's doing it now, it could be that you're leaving the phone in a different place in your house most of the time, or weather is affecting the signal strength, or sprint is extra crummy in your area lately.


how to turn on phone when power button is broken?

If you can get it into fastboot mode, here's how you can bootup your device:

Get Google's platform-tools (aka adb), from here
Boot your phone into fastboot mode
Run this command with platform-tools:

fastboot reboot


I took the SIM card to a carrier outlet, and they said that it is a damaged SIM card and replaced it. Thanks @Izzy for the helpful comment! :)


Sending sms from tablet not allowed or not possible?

The hardware and software support SMS, but not calling. The most likely explanation is that your contract is a data-only contract and SMS messaging is disabled by your operator.

There is a chance, however, that the problem is your SMS settings. You can check these by opening Messaging, then open Settings from the top right corner and check that the Message center under Text message (SMS) settings is correct. The Message center number is network specific, so check it from another phone that uses the same network or ask your operator.


How does Android calculate battery consumption by apps?

Android tracks events that affect battery usage and stores this information in batterystats.bin file. Some examples:

length of time screen was on with a specific brithness setting
which application (or non Android app process) and how long held a wake lock (prevents device from sleeping)
CPU usage per process (Android app or other process)
phone signal strength
GPS usage
etc.

Android computes how much power each Application or component (e.g. screen) uses based on configuration information included on the device by the manufacturer.

Not everything is measured so the statistics can be sometimes misleading, but it gets better with every Android Platform release.

Battery statistics can be dumped from the device using:

adb shell dumpsys batterystats

Here is interesting fragment of a post by Diane Hackborn with more details about wake locks power consumption:

  There are two ways power from wake locks is computed.

  On some chipsets, simply holding a wake lock needs to prevent the CPU from going to a full deep sleep. In the reported battery usage,
  this extra power use will be distributed across all apps holding wake
  locks.
  Even if the wake lock itself doesn't cause power use, holding a wake lock in one app can allow other applications to run and CPU when
  they wouldn't otherwise. (For example, some app may have a { sleep(1);
  do something; } loop that wouldn't run if no wake locks are held.) To
  address this, half of the CPU usage of applications is distributed to
  be blamed on the ones holding wake locks.


SD card will not format within Android therefore cannot mount. Works fine on laptop

I had the same problem...new 32gig sd card works just fine with Windows, but in my Samsung S2,S3, and EVO it says damaged, or unsupported, etc. I then read on another droid forum about this issue, and here is the easy fix:

Put your sd card into a usb reader for mem cards etc. You will notice that your card reader has a drive number like G:, or H:, etc. Make a shortcut on your windows desktop and make the shortcut location as (cmd). You may remember that cmd is the DOS-box command line prompt. Now your shortcut to cmd is on your desktop. Right click that shortcut and select "run as administrator". Now at the DOS prompt type

chkdsk <drive letter of the sd>: /r

Let it run through it's checks, etc. Once done just pop your sd card back into your phone and enjoy!


What is the maximum Xperia X10 memory card size?

Acording to the specs here GSM Arena: Sony Ericsson XPERIA X10 the X10 can take up to a 32GB microSD card.


Get rid of toast message when Spotify Track changes

From the toast message,

  MP:com.samsung.MusicPlayer.playstatechanged

and comparing to a source code, it seems that the user is using Simple Last.fm Scrobbler.

The app also supports many music players, such as

  Supported apps: Android Music Player, HTC Hero/Sense Music Player, Google Music, PlayerPro, Meridian Player, MixZing, Archos Music Player, Rhapsody Android, Vanilla Music Player, bTunes, ³ (cubed), WIMP, Zimly, Just Playlists, PowerAMP, Winamp, myTouch 4G, RockOn, jukefox, DAAP Media Player, Folder Player, GoneMAD Music Player, MIUI Music Player, ServeStream, Default Sony Ericsson/Xperia Music Player, Neutron Music Player, Music2Dance2, Rdio, DeaDBeeF, Music Pump XBMC Remote (Beta), JRTStudio Android Music Player, Music Folder Player, Apollo, LG Music Player, Now Playing, Shuttle Music Player, My Cloud Player, SoundSeeder, Amazon Music, more...

Uninstalling the app will remove the toast message when playing musics with listed players.


Deleting messages in whatsapp with mobile data off

The message can be deleted based on the status that is shown in whatssapp.

1.That is there is clock symbol is shown it can be deleted safely (iff internet connection is off).

2.Otherwise that is a single tick mark is showing means it is now at whatsapp server so if you deleted or not it doesn't matter it will reach at the receiver whenever internet connection is available.


How can I prevent my Wi-Fi connection from glitching?

This could be a solution, but it's more a hint at the issue:

The ZTE Blade suffers with losing it's Wi-Fi connection when it comes back from sleep. Perhaps you have a similar issue?
The app Blade Wifi Fix by AA Android available from Google Play Store, fixes it on the Blade, you could give it a try:

  Some people with the ZTE Blade / Orange San Francisco phone find that the Wifi doesn't always come back on after the phone wakes up from being locked or asleep.

  Install this and you wont know its there until you wake up your phone and the Wifi jams, at which point it will flash a message to tell you its fixing it.


Xperia J becomes little unresponsive after I make or receive a call

Do a general reset all will be well. If you still have trouble, do a factory reset by holding the volume down and power buttons as you turn phone on.


USB internet option for tethering greyed out. How to fix it?

I wrestled with greyed-out USB tethering for 3 days.
I factory reset, changed VPN settings (when for an unknown reason I lost data capacity), read all the forums, etc.
It's embarrassing. Despite having a $40 metal-braided, multi-tipped cord with amazing mall-metal jacks that works for charging, for tethering it wouldn't. Trying the $3 cord I had the same effect, I discovered it was the cord. That's all.
The expensive cord obviously isn't made to do anything but charge, and the cheap factory cord was simply defective. (When I wiggled the wire where it goes into the hack, my phone beeped and all the charging/tethering options appeared.)
That whole time it was the cord, poorly manufactured or damaged.
Try a brand new cord. It's likely just that. (My defective cord was only 1 day old!)


How to get files from a Galaxy S6 Edge with Android 5.1 to a computer with Windows 10 by USB

Windows 10 is currently not compatible to galaxy s6 edge.

I've made it works on some windows 10 computers sometimes, but sometimes there is nothing to do to make it works.

If you want to be able to connect your phone to your computer, do not upgrade to windows 10.


Can't run any Python script on my Android phone

Easy peasy:

I was using adaway (an app that blocks ads) and somehow its tweaking of my hosts file was not accepted by Python.

Yay! :D


What method does Monospace use for encryption?

Looking at the decompiled source code I would not call it "encryption".
Instead "encrypted" texts are simply the markdown text encoded using base64 plus the SHA-256 hashed password appended to it:
From com.underwood.monospace.main.MainActivityFragment.encryptText() :
 this.mEncryptedText = Utils.base64Encode(new SpannableToMarkdown(
    new WeakReference(getActivity())).toMarkdown(this.mEditText.getText())) +
    "\n" + this.mHashedPassword;


Do I have a branded smartphone (HTC Desire)?

Being that you get a T-Mobile graphic then I would say yes you have a branded Desire. Having said that my father has a branded O2 Desire and he has already received the Froyo update (today - Monday). I too have an O2 branded Desire, but I have not received Froyo yet which I suspect is because I am on a Business plan with O2, whereas my father has a personal plan.


How do I install Xposed Framework on Android x86 running in Virtual Box?

I see you made a mistake,you should do cd then the derectory of the extracted file then sh flash-script.sh such as su enter cd /sdcard/download/ file name /META-INF/com/google/android/ enter" sh flash-script.sh


SHELL Command works fine as a standalone command, but fails when put into a shell script?

Removing #!/bin/sh fixed my issue. Thanks


Tethering options for the laptop and the phone

In my experience, bluetooth tethering (using Bluetooth Garden) has been problematic. It disconnects too often, or can't open certain sites.

USB tethering (via ClockworkMod Tether) was OK. This way, my phone would be charging while providing internet to my laptop. Downside is I needed to install a program (not an issue, because the program is safe) on my laptop. Another downside is I couldn't tether another device (like a tablet) to the phone.

Turning my phone into a hotspot, was a better choice. I could surf with little issues. I could connect my tablet or laptop to the phone via WiFi. However, this drained my battery quickly. I'd occasionally fix this by plugging my phone to an outlet with a charger.


Is there a way to capture a full resolution picture automatically and send it by email at certain hour each day?

Tasker or Llama should both be able to accomplish this, from what I understand, though I have never tested them with taking pictures.


Getting "operation not permitted" error when trying to symlink a directory

What's the partition format of the SD card? FAT does not supports symlinks, although I believe it should be possible to create a symlink in ext3 that points to a FAT directory.

Also, there are operations that even root are not allowed to do, such as writing to a read-only drive or writable drives that are mounted read-only. What's the output of 'mount' command?

Also, your command looks fishy; try using absolute path (i.e. do not prepend the path with ./, instead prepend with /):

$ su
# ln -s /mnt/emmc /mnt/sdcard/external_sd


Reason for process stopped unexpectedly?

There's no simple answer to the question, "Why do programs crash sometimes?" The error message you see tells you that an app has crashed, just like when a program crashes on a desktop computer.

Usually this indicates a bug (programming error) in the app or in one of the libraries included in the app (e.g. an ad network, or a library for accessing a particular web service). The bug might always happen when you try to do a particular action, or it might be caused by being in a particular state. For example, a calendar app might have a bug that only happens when you create an event on the first of the month, in a month that already contains an event. If the bug is triggered by particular circumstances, clearing the data or cache for that app might make the bug go away until the same circumstance arise again.

Sometimes, the app itself might be correct but the crash caused by a programming error in Android itself. The app might be relying on Android to behave in a particular way, and if Android does the wrong thing, that could later cause the app to crash. Similarly, the crash might be caused by hardware problems: if the phone overheats, the hardware might compute the wrong answers sometimes.

In the first instance, you should report a crash to the developer of the app that crashes. Android's crash-report process will automatically include relevant information with the report, to help the developer see what's wrong. Even if the problem turns out not to be their fault, they will know the right place to report it, and might be able to suggest a workaround you can use to avoid the problem. If you don't report a crash, it probably won't get fixed.


Deleteing photos from device but still have them in the backup (default Google+)

With the latest update to Google+ something changed in the Photos app. To ensure you are deleting the right pictures take the following steps:

Go into the Photos app
Click on the top left corner for the side menu
Scroll down to Folders and click on it

You will be presented with the different folders on your phone. Delete everything from there and check your storage again.


@Swing's solution works, but requires more information to be useful.

Running

netstat -nao | findstr 5037

will display all connections on port 5037, which is the TCP port that ADB daemon runs on.

Terminal should output something like this:

  TCP    127.0.0.1:3592         127.0.0.1:5037         ESTABLISHED     9984
  TCP    127.0.0.1:3603         127.0.0.1:5037         ESTABLISHED     6204
  TCP    127.0.0.1:5037         0.0.0.0:0              LISTENING       9904
  TCP    127.0.0.1:5037         127.0.0.1:3592         ESTABLISHED     9904
  TCP    127.0.0.1:5037         127.0.0.1:3603         ESTABLISHED     9904

The last column of numbers (like 9904) is the PID or Process ID that is running on the port that ADB uses. In some cases ADB doesn't end its previous process and cause future instances to hang/wait like you described.

If you're on Windows, open Task Manager, click Details, and find the matching ID in the PID column. Right click the process and end it, and try your adb command again.


Is it possible to use an Android phone in "disk mode"?

Absolutely, and it's very easy.  This is the procedure for my Samsung Galaxy S; other phones may be different:

Plug in the USB cable and a USB icon
appears in the notification area at
the top of the screen.
Pull down the
notification and tap "USB
connected".
Tap "Mount" on the
dialog box that's displayed.
Two
removable drives show up on my PC;
one for the built-in flash memory,
and one for the expansion SD card.


How can I move in-app downloads (e.g. Coursera videos from Coursera app) onto my SD card without rooting the phone?

It depends on the application in question, typically there should be an option within the app itself along the lines of "Save to External Storage" which should save the videos to your SD Card

I know Udemy has this option as I have it set to Save to External Storage on my Note 3

HTH


I figured this out only after months of being without most of my phone's functionality and taking it to a 3rd-party repair place that declared it "unrepairable".

It is stupidly easy:

Download an apk of your home launcher (I got one from here: http://forum.xda-developers.com/archive/index.php/t-1125331.html )
E-mail it to yourself
Use voice commands to send yourself a test e-mail. If you don't have gmail set up, then it will give you the screens you need for configuration.
E-mail the apk to yourself. When you check your gmail on your phone you should see an "install" button next to the attachment name. Install it and enjoy your new old phone.


use Android as real Gamepad (Not keyboard mapping)

Droidjoy does this that you want, but be aware that since it requires a server application, it can only be used on a PC.


Asus EEE Transformer never gets a GPS fix unless I reboot it

It definitely is a software configuration. There are 2 possible reasons for this problem:

Servers its contacting - When Google Maps on your tablet/phone contacts the GPS satellites, its done through a special set of servers. Sometimes, the manufacturer might have set the system to connect to a set of particularly busy servers. It has been shown that connecting to other servers with lower traffic can give dramatically faster lock on times.
Possible bug in the initial configuration - when the manufacturer was setting up the initial build configuration, an unintended bug could have been introduced.

The solution to both can be done I believe through a simple fix in the gps.conf file but that would require root access. When I was running the stock firmware on my Asus Transformer, I was having the same problem. Now I am running a Custom ROM and I have no troubles with lock on in Google Maps.


Samsung Galaxy emitting constant beeping sound

After further investigation, the issue turned out to be that a card with an NFC chip was interacting with the NFC receiver in the phone.

While there were no open applications, this still caused a constant beep every few seconds. Removing the card, or disabling the NFC, both solved the issue.


If you have complete kernel sources for your device from the manufacturer, then compile your own kernel and AOSP and flash the device.. I guess this is the only approach if you don't have any alternate solutions


Is SIM network unlocking using app normal if phone simply expects a code?

Such unlock apps aren't official.

They employ various methods of unlocking based on the information they gather from the app installed and querying from supposedly authentic database of unlock codes.

I have personally used an unlock service for an iPhone which was locked to a carrier. I needed to supply device information and within a few hours they reverted with the code, which worked. All at a pittance of $10. I chatted with them and they revealed their modus operandi. Official unlock codes are obtained (read stolen) from the carrier database and these operators pay to obtain these. Payment is done only after unlocking is successful.

Bottom line is that there is nothing official or expected in such methods. If it works, good, else ask for refund


Long press on the app in Titanium and choose "Detach from Market".


My device is getting slow, apps start misbehaving/crashing. What can I do?

A behavour as described above in most cases indicates something's messed up in the system. The most likely candidates here are:

Application Cache
Dalvik Cache

As you might have guessed already, different solutions are available for rooted devices -- but only few for non-rooted devices, which cannot directly access the Dalvik Cache. So read on below examples until you hit something working for you, or continue to the very end for all options.

rooted and non-rooted devices: remove obsolete apps

Cause of a slow-down might be some app, hogging all resources. Those apps usually can be identified via the "battery consumption" page in Settings. But even if you cannot find it there, it cannot hurt to remove apps you once installed but no longer need (see e.g. Alix' answer).

You can also disable some system apps you don't need (keyword: bloatware). To do so, go to Settings → Applications, select the "All" tab, and walk the list to find those apps. Tap their entry, and you should find a "disable" button. It might be grayed out: if so, you first have to "force stop" the app, and maybe to "uninstall updates", before the "disable" button becomes accessible. Note however, that this possibility will not exist for all system apps. For rooted devices, there are several tools available allowing you to "freeze" or even remove system apps (be very careful with the latter); one famous example is Titanium Backup.

rooted and non-rooted devices: Clear the Application Cache

If you're lucky, it's simply that: the Application Cache got filled/messed up. This can be easily resolved, even on non-rooted devices:

With methods available by default on each Android system:

From your homescreen, go to Settings → Apps → Manage Apps. Make sure to view All Apps, not Downloaded only
Walk the list, open each app, and hit the Clear Cache button

Easier method using helper apps: There are several apps available on the Playstore which allow to clean all application's caches at once, so you don't have to walk a long list and do it manually. One example for such an app is 1Tap Cleaner, which also can clean up several other histories like e.g. the browser history

rooted devices: Clear Application Cache and Dalvik Cache

Even more likely for the described case is a messed-up Dalvik Cache -- especially if you tested a lot of apps, permanently installing/uninstalling different ones. So a cleanup of the Dalvik Cache most certainly will solve the situation. As a side effect, it will certainly speed-up things. No negative side-effects are to be expected.

Via Custom Recovery
This is the most effective way and sure to really do the job. This example is based on the ClockworkMod Recovery, which is most widely spread. It should be equivalent with AmonRa Recovery.

Boot into recovery mode (how to do this often depends on the device/ROM used. For CyanogenMod users it's most easy: Long-Press the power button, select "Reboot", select "Recovery")
Using the Volume controls, select Wipe Cache and approve it using the power button. On the next screen, approve the action the same way. This way you easily clear the Application Cache as described above, all at once, without the need of an extra app.
Go to the Advanced menu, select to Clear Dalvik Cache the same way with the Volume and Power keys and approve it.
Go back to the main menu, and select Reboot. The next reboot will take longer as usual, so don't worry: Android needs to rebuild the Dalvik Cache, that's completely normal behaviour.

Helper apps:
Several apps offer options to cleanup the Dalvik Cache (e.g. SystemCleanup and Titanium Backup PRO Key ★ root). You can try those; but I'm not sure if one of them really "wipes" the Dalvik Cache. At least for Titanium Backup I know it only removes remains from uninstalled apps (i.e. obsolete Dalvik files).

rooted and non-rooted devices last resort: Factory Reset

If none of the above does solve your problem, there's always the Factory Reset. Basically, this does all the above (wiping Application Cache and Dalvik Cache) -- but it also wipes the /data partition. This means: All your settings and data (except those stored on your sd card) as well as all apps you installed yourself are gone. So be sure to have a good backup before doing this (see e.g. Full Backup of non-rooted devices for how to achieve this).

rooted devices: fstrim

Another reason for slowing things down lies in the storage. A little background for understanding:

On the flash memory used in our devices, each cell can only be written so many times. To prevent capacity loss and wear-out, the flash controller applies an algorithm called "wear leveling" to evenly spread writes across the medium. Of course, to prevent data loss you want to write to "empty places" only (except when explicitly overwriting a file). And here comes the culprit: To speed things up, the file system in most cases only marks files deleted, but doesn't tell the controller about the "freed blocks" -- so it becomes inefficient with time.

Android 4.3 addresses this issue with appropriate fstrim calls, telling the controller once a day which blocks to consider freed. Some ROMs integrated a comparable feature also in earlier versions of Android, mounting file systems with the discard option (so the controller is informed at once on deletes), but this slows down deletes a little. For devices not having addressed this in either of the two ways, it might be worth to take a look at the Lagfix App, which calls fstrim in a user-friendly way for selected partitions. Running that once on a long-used device may speed up writes by a factor of up to 30, and even reads get a little faster.

References:

Speedup values: Android-Hilfe.DE
Greatly improve speed and performance of your smartphone or tablet with LagFix
Nexus Storage Performance Over Time & TRIM 20130727


Having trouble setting up Android SSH tunnel with port forwarding (x-post /r/ssh)

I ended up using a different SSH server, and setting Firefox config as follows:

network.proxy.type=1


Almost certainly bricked device, looking for advice

Yep 100% sure it's hard bricked as the qloader 9008 shows up.

The whole eMMC is damaged or just the boot partition. But as it was caused by a faulty battery, I guess it is damaged completely and would need to get replaced (eMmC chip).

There is 3 methods that can be used to recover the device:

Repairing via an SD Card (for corrupted boot partition)
Repairing via JTAG (need JTAG interface, soldering in the main board, etc,)
Hardware replacement if the above didn't solve the problem.

After successfully completed the above, yoi should be able to flash a firmware normally.


Termux - How do I create a directory of files accessible outside of Termux?

From within Termux itself, you can change the current directory to the internal storage, by means of

cd /storage/emulated/0

or

cd /sdcard

followed by enter. After that, create a new directory by using

mkdir Directory

and replace Directory with a name of your choice. You'll then have a new directory in your device's internal storage, whose data you'll be able to access with any file manager.

Notes concerning Marshmallow and above

If your device is running Android 6 or newer, you'll need to run the command

termux-setup-storage

from within Termux, and then accept the request to write to the storage, in order for Termux to be able to perform directory and file creation.

The termux-setup-storage command creates a new directory in your $HOME or ~/ directory named storage. This new directory contains a few symlinks to /storage/emulated/0 listed below:

dcim -> /storage/emulated/0/DCIM
downloads -> /storage/emulated/0/Download
external-1 -> /storage/external_sd/Android/data/com.termux/files
movies -> /storage/emulated/0/Movies
music -> /storage/emulated/0/Music
pictures -> /storage/emulated/0/Pictures
shared -> /storage/emulated/0

Therefore, you can run the following commands to create /storage/emulated/0/Directory described above with a little less typing now:

cd ~/storage/shared
mkdir Directory


What is the content of data/misc/wifi/softap.conf?

A .conf file is usually readable by any text file reader as long as permissions are correct.

The said file contains SSID and password of your portable Wi-Fi hotspot. E.g.:

Android.SE  #$#$ANDROID

where Android.SE is the SSID which other users would see when trying to locate Wi-Fi network and #$#$ANDROID is the password they need to enter to connect to your hotspot.

As for the name is concerned, I never researched for it because I know ap → Access point, and I've seen softap term in logcat's output when enabling hotspot.

There are other ways to see the content of this file. In my Android 4.2.1, I can do:

adb shell su -c 'service call wifi 30'

As for the Android 5.0 (CM12), it would be:

adb shell service call wifi 36

The output isn't very human-friendly but it's not unreadable, and you can easily see SSID and password of hotspot.

Edit: For those who might wonder what those adb shell .. commands actually does in bits and pieces, here is a missing piece:

adb shell: you get a remote shell (access to device)
su: to attain root privileges, use if only necessary; -c: is to pass the following command which would  be executed with root privileges
service: it allows you to read and manipulate services running in your system. Enter adb shell service list to see a list of running ones, and adb shell service to see the command's usage.
call connectivity: to call a particular service (connectivity here). Name of services can be found using service list.
36 is the number assigned to a function of the connectivity service amongst many of it, which we're calling here. You can also pass an integer or a string to the function like adb shell service call connectivity 36 i32 1, but it would take effect only if the function has provision to accept such value. Take a look here to see such functions.


"Signature verification failed" when trying to install non-official Cyanogenmod 10 ROM for Sanei N10 Android tablet

Well, at last I could finally solve the problem thanks to chris5s from the xda-developers.com forum.
These are the steps that worked for me:

Download the latest ClockWorkMod for Allwinner A10 tablets from here:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1802268

Put all three files in the ZIP inside the root of a MicroSD card and insert it in the tablet

Check from the Terminal app inside the tablet to see if the MicroSD card is mounted in /sdcard (just type "ls /sdcard").

If the "ls" command doesn't show anything (that's what happened in my case), then you must modify the "install-recovery.sh" file and replace all instances of "/sdcard" with "/mnt/extsd".

With the proper "install-recovery.sh" file, run the commands specified in the above xda link (in my case the card is in "/mnt/extsd" instead of "/mnt/sdcard" as the original example shows):

su
cd /mnt/extsd
sh install-recovery.sh
sh reboot-recovery.sh

The tablet will then reboot to CWM recovery. Then follow the regular steps to install Cyanogenmod (wipe plus install ROM + GApps + Compatibility). This time the Recovery menu won't care about the files being unsigned and will install them right away!
I hope this helps somebody else!


With broken touch screen you won't be able to enable USB debugging mode using your PC.

Tried Solution:

I had tried the adb method but it doesn't ends well, however you can try to take a backup of your phone as described in Broken screen while debug mode was disabled. How can I re-enable adb?.

Well if you are going with my Solution No Need to Backup. Since Nexus 7 supports OTG (On the Go) connections, you can always connect your Mouse/Keyboard/Secondary Storages using your OTG Cable.

So try to Connect your Mouse using the OTG cable available for your device, then Go to your Settings and Enable USB Debugging mode.

That's all. Hope it will Help.


It's up to the app. Android provides mechanisms for app authors to specify different UI layouts for the different screen sizes (roughly speaking: phones, 7in tablets, 10in tablets). This means that the app might rearrange its buttons or use larger sizes to fill a 7in screen, or it might do something more radical like switch to a two-pane layout (such as Gmail). IIRC, most apps with a two-pane layout use it only in landscape mode on 7in screens, whereas they use it in either orientation on 10in screens and always use a one-pane layout on phones.

Unlike on PC, it's usual for Android apps to be laid out using a resolution-independent unit (which Android calls display-independent pixels, or dp) instead of specifying sizes in pixels, so that regardless of display resolution, buttons are always large enough to click on. There are a few exceptions (app authors can still choose to work in pixels) but those are in the minority: mostly games, since that's how PC game authors are used to working.

Even if the app isn't specially designed to work with tablets, it'll still work. It just might look silly, with lots of empty space or oversized buttons, if the author didn't consider or test that form factor. Google Play encourages developers to include screenshots on 7in and 10in tablets, so that's the first thing to look for. If you browse using the Google Play app on your device, it'll show you the screenshots for that device's size first (i.e. it'll show the 7in screenshots if you're using a 7in tablet). Many developers also explicitly mention tablet support in the app description, such as the first app you linked to (Notational Acceleration).


Unfortunately no, there's no way to migrate this between devices unless you're using the Google Now Launcher on the old phone, and the new phone ships with it as its default. It's designed to migrate layout, but the stock launcher that Motorola uses doesn't have this functionality.


Installing CyanogenMod on Newsmy NP-711 tablet

Nope.  Mobile device drivers tend to be highly specific and there's no sort of defaults that will work across devices.


Configure UART GPS module for Friendlyarm nanopc-t1 on Android

I figured it out, the problem was originating from NanoPC-t1 config which used the USART port for output debug. It was over-writing the gps output.

I used Android Serial Port API, and rooted my device. Because accessing ttySAC0 port, needs root access.

I wrote my own NMEA parser to receive GPS fixes.


How do you remove words from Swype's dictionary?

Swype uses a separate dictionary. You can access the settings for both from within the system settings:

From the homescreen, open settings → language & keyboard

for Swype continue: Swype → Personal dictionary
for the default keyboard: My dictionary

There you can edit/add/remove words from your user dictionary.


Blocking specific applications from accessing the network while not active or on screen

Hmm, difficult problem
Your only bet is rooting; and app like droidwall which is front end for iptables.
And then you would have to add rule that states block any app that is running in background.
That I'm not sure how to achieve.


No, the bottom system bar (that's the one with the home, back, and recent buttons) can't be hidden on a stock device without rooting it and using a custom system image. The soft home button is very important because it gives you a way to get back to the home screen that can't be overridden by apps: this includes getting out of an unresponsive or broken app.

On 4.0 and above an app author can temporarily hide both bars, but touching the screen or pressing any hard key (including volume) will bring them back, so that doesn't prevent people leaving the app. (And quite right! It would be crazy for stock Android to let one app take over the whole system.)

  The SYSTEM_UI_FLAG_HIDE_NAVIGATION is a new flag that requests the navigation bar hide completely. Be aware that this works only for the navigation bar used by some handsets (it does not hide the system bar on tablets). The navigation bar returns to view as soon as the system receives user input. As such, this mode is useful primarily for video playback or other cases in which the whole screen is needed but user input is not required.

  http://developer.android.com/about/versions/android-4.0.html

It's worth noting that a full kiosk mode (not letting the user leave the app at all) has been announced for Android L, but the app has to be a device administrator to enter this mode.


How to ensure that the data traffic is going over the VPN connection?

The application, Motorola AnyConnect, takes care of that for you.

When you sign on to your corporate network, the Cisco AnyConnect Secure Mobility Client for Android only allows the traffic thru the VPN Tunnel created, preventing any armful or unauthorized access or data transfer outside the parameters defined by your corporation security policies.

  Cisco AnyConnect provides reliable and easy-to-deploy encrypted network connectivity from Motorola Android devices by delivering persistent corporate access for users on the go.

One thing that's not clear on your question is if you're aware that this Cisco solution is a corporate solution, not for the end user who just want's to navigate the web covertly.

  Whether providing access to business email, a virtual desktop session, or most other Android applications, AnyConnect enables business-critical application connectivity. Through the use of Datagram Transport Layer Security (DTLS), TCP-based applications and latency-sensitive traffic (such as voice over IP [VoIP]) are provided an optimized communication path to corporate resources.

Users have to authenticate to their enterprise networks in order to use this app and the features provided, but you can navigate the internet as usual, only restricted by the security policies applied.

Additional Reading about this solution:

Motorola AnyConnect from Google Play Store
Android User Guide for Cisco AnyConnect Secure Mobility Client
AnyConnect Secure Mobility Introduction Video from YouTube


Play Store crahes after reinstall in /system/app

On Android 4.4.4 there is no more /system/app but /system/priv-app the main directory of the applications need special access
Following this Link of Android exchange
I checke dthe version of the tols was not removed. I my case I did that with the 4.4.22 version of Google play store

adb shell
shell@ac45bhe:/ $ su
root@ac45bhe:/ # mount -o remount,rw /system
root@ac45bhe:/ # cp /storage/sdcard1/com.android.vending-4.4.22-80240022-minAPI8.apk /system/priv-app/Phonesky.apk
root@ac45bhe:/ # chmod 644 /system/priv-app/Phonesky.apk
root@ac45bhe:/ # reboot

And I installed com.android.vending-5.3.5-80330500-minAPI9.apk from Android thought the internal file explorer, accepting unknown source when the system asked.


Can I cast phones display on laptop? my phones display not working

Vysor could solve your problem, it's available as a browser extension for Chrome or a standalone application for the three different operating systems: Windows, Mac and Linux.

  Note: USB Debugging should be enabled. If your USB debugging is not enabled, I suggest to look for another similar phone to simulate touches in order to activate USB Debugging.


link2sd: Replacing sdcard, unable to install gmail

There are leftovers from all apps you moved to that SD card. You have to uninstall those apps manually (even though they are not existing anymore) which deletes all those leftovers. Then you are able to reinstall those apps again.


How can I get ClockworkMod Recovery to properly use /sdcard on an encrypted Galaxy Nexus?

The important part looks to be this:

It's worth mentioning that I have data encryption turned on.

I don't believe ClockworkMod can handle encrypted devices as of yet, which is problematic for devices that lack true external storage support (e.g. SD cards). The reason it's a problem is that /sdcard on these devices is not a separate partition, it's a FUSE mount point for the /data/media directory. Therefore, when you boot into recovery, it can't access your internal /sdcard directory because it is encrypted.
TeamWin Recovery, as of version 2.2.0, does support decrypting your device when booting into recovery. They actually specifically noted the Galaxy Nexus in the release notes, possibly because they had to implement the decryption differently on non-AOSP devices (e.g. support for encrypted TouchWiz devices is listed in version 2.4.0.0):

What's new in version 2.2.0

Support decrypting an encrypted data partition on Galaxy Nexus (enter password using keyboard)

Realistically, the best bet if you want to encrypt your device would probably be to use TWRP instead of CWM. Otherwise you'll have to continue jumping through some hoops when trying to use your recovery. You can download TWRP from their website.


Well, it may not register into the log because there is nothing to register. There is little, if any, data you can collect from a private call log.

The other thing is possibly your priority mode on your android. That could cause interference. Maybe. Not for sure on the last part but it is worth a shot. Anyways, just my 2 cents.


I had similar problems with my  new Samsung Galaxy Tab 3. When I wanted to write a post
for a forum I got the writing window and the keyboard but when I typed three letters
the keyboard vanished and this problem continued.
Later I discovered how to really shut down the tablet by pressing the switch-off a bit longer.
Then I got a message: Switch off the tablet? I clicked okay. When I turned on
my tablet again after some time the trouble with writing was gone.


How do you adjust notifications on the LG Nexus 4

There are two basic scenario:

You disabled the notification from the app itself.

So open the setting of the app and enable notification there

You removed the notification power of the app from system setting menu

Open settings -> Apps. Click on the name of the required app and make sure "Show notifications" is enabled.


Will an Asus Transformer Prime bought in the U.S. work in Portugal?

The tablets in Asus Transformer line (including TF 101, Prime TF 201, and Pad 300) do not have a cellular modem, so they will only work on WiFi.  WiFi is a universal standard and will work just fine in any country, provided that your router supports the 802.11 b/g/n specification.


Accessing and transfer sim contacts to Droid 2 global phone

You can use an app such as SIM contacts manager or SIM Contacts to manage your contact on your SIM card, including accessing and transferring them to the phone.

If you have Android 4.0+, you can do this straight from your contacts app.
Open Contacts > Menu > Import/export > Import from SIM card


In Lollipop, there's Guest Mode

(source: androidpit.info)

Swipe down from the top of the quick settings panel
Tap your profile
Select add guest to enable guest mode

The phone will look like it originally did without your custom settings, home screen changes, and most other personalisation. Guest Mode is also read-only, meaning no one can mess with the settings you've set (e.g. your ringtone, wallpaper, etc.)
If you add a screen lock (passcode or pattern), users won't be able to switch between Guest Mode and Owner at will.
Do note that even in Guest Mode, users can sign into the Play Store and download apps, though I believe the apps will not be available to other users and are not persistent between sessions.


Google Keyboard settings occasionally reset to defaults

I'm using Samsung Secure Folder (Knox) for some apps like mobile banking, and each time I opened Secure Folder and returned back to other non-secure-folder apps, the settings of Google Keyboard were reset. In my case selection of languages was reset to default system language, while I needed to use several different keyboards for different languages.

The solution to this was to add Google Keyboard to Secure Folder and setup the keyboard twice, on both the "normal app" list" and in the "secure folder".

To add Google Keyboard to Secure Folder:

Open Secure Folder
Click on "Add"
Find and check Google Keyboard on the list
Click add
Open Google Keyboard inside Secure Folder and setup the keyboard
Exit Secure Folder
Find Google Keyboard and setup the keyboar again

Hope this will help save you time, as it took me several weeks to figure this out.


How to unlock pattern on Nexus 4 [Developer Option: ON]

Okay I finally got it solved using a developer way. :)

Here's my reference for my solution: Turn on wifi via self-made android applicaiton

Got the wifi the moment I compiled into my Nexus phone, and volla! It works and I got my phone back after login through Google account!

I hoped this thread might helped people who came across this problem as a developer.


HDR option grayed out on Samsung A50 camera

As @Robert said in the above comment, I have switched from 3:4H (25 megapixels) to 3:4. And HDR now works.


How to do screen record on android without apps?

You haven't mentioned the version of Android running in your phone and I assume it is KitKat.

If so, you can use ADB (Android Debug Bridge) tool to record the video.  The are many blog sites that explain how to do this and one such that came out first on my Google search is this one. Even Android SDK page on ADB tool commands explain this well.

In gist, you should use these commands:

adb shell screenrecord /sdcard/demo.mp4
adb pull /sdcard/demo.mp4

The first one starts capturing the screen to the specified file and the second one pulls (copies) the recorded file to your computer.

Update: By the way if you are finding it difficult to download the entire SDK just this small ADB tool, you can use the one from this XDA page.


Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 cannot connect to LG FH2 speaker since there's a Bluetooth profile incompatibility

The Bluetooth profiles are an integral part of the Android system installed on your device (like a driver). Therefore usually you can't "install" or "update" the Bluetooth profiles.

Therefore you have only two possibilities:

Buy a different speaker that supports a Bluetooth profile your phone supports.
Search the Internet if there is a different ROM available for your phone that has A2DP support.


Go to the email app.
Tap on Inbox above your account name.
Tap on SETTINGS in the top right.
Under Accounts, tap on the account to which you need to change the password.
Scroll all the way down and tap the last option Server settings.

The settings that appear here include email address, user name, and most importantly, password.

After changing the password, return the the main email screen and swipe down for a refresh and sync.


Can a cheap cable prevent AC charging from working?

It is quite possible that the "cheap" cable is a culprit. You could try a couple of things

Replace the cable with a cable of 24/28 awg thickness. Google for "28/24 awg micro USB" to locate suppliers close by. These cables are thick and offer less resistance to charging current. Alternatively, if you have a spare thick cable of shorter length you could try that and see if the charging is faster.
Download Ampere, It measures the charging current (it does not work on all devices, but your device is NOT mentioned in exclusion list, so it should work). Connect the "cheap cable" on charge and measure the  charging current. Repeat with cable you purchased (24/28 awg) or a spare short thick cable. If the value in second case is higher, the conclusion is obvious. You could even try compare values an  with OEM cable if you can locate with a friend or at a service center.
You could consider buying an original Sony cable . I found one on eBay costing about $5.


As suggested earlier, Apktool is a good option,

Requirements:

Java Runtime Environment
Windows wrapper script (Right click, Save Link As apktool.bat)
Apktool.jar

(For Linux and Mac OS the files and installation instructions are also available:  Installation for Apktool)

Usage

Copy the apktool.bat and apktool.jar files to a folder preferably with no spaces eg inside the  C:\ directory. (e.g C:\Apktool)

Open command prompt by pressing shift and right click simultaneously.
In the command prompt type apktool d [apkname.apk] (e.g apktool d WhatsApp)
Find the extracted apk in the folder with the apk name (in this case (C:\Apktool\WhatsApp)
You can now browse through the folder to find all resources of the app e.g manifest.xml and PNG images in res folder or doing a search.

Acknowledgements:

Apktool a tool for reverse engineering


Can I install apps on phone without using the Android Market?

If your device allows it (AT&T only recently started producing phones that do) there is a setting which allows you to install non-Market apps. Then you can install APKs from anywhere, assuming you can get them on your device.

On my Droid, at least, the setting is at Settings | Applications | Unknown sources.


Tethering data allowance from phone to laptop via usb

Let me see if I understand you:

[Router] <--Wifi--> [Phone] <--USB tether --> [PC]

If this is your setup, then what is happening is the Phone is acting like a router. It has multiple ways to connect to the internet (3G and Wifi) and it does not simply bridge the connection for the PC. Instead it does the same thing that your router does, which is NAT, or Network Address Translation. Basically, you have two networks: the network that's connected to the router, and the network that's connected to the phone's USB port (which has only one machine on it).  There is probably no easy way to port-forward from your router to your PC in this configuration.  The phone is its own computer; it is not a wifi-adapter, even though your PC sees it as just a network device.


You can find a detailed guide with screenshots and all here. It's done with odin.

  Step 1: Install Odin v1.85 on your computer then download and unrar
  the Lite'ning Rom rar file.

  Step 2: Make sure that your phone is in USB debugging mode: Settings
  -> Applications -> Development -> USB debugging.

  Step 3: Reboot your phone into download mode. To do so: Turn the
  device off, then power it on again by pressing and holding the Volume
  Down + Home + Power on simultaneously.

  Step 4: Start Odin.

  Step 5: Connect the phone to your computer using the USB cable.

  Step 6: Wait a few seconds, the Odin screen will show that a device is
  now connected... Added!!

  Make sure that in Odin nothing is checked, except the "Auto reboot" and "F. Reset Time" checkboxes.
  Press the "PDA" button, and select the md5 file.
  Press "Start". Odin will now flash the Lite'ning Rom, after flashing your phone should reboot.

  Step 7: Done! Now you have a fully rooted SGS II with the Lite'ning
  Rom installed!


Can't install apk from Package Installer

I can't believe it actually worked for me; I just tried it and it worked. Here's the solution:

Move / Copy Package Installer.apk as well as the .odex file of Package Installer from /system/app to /sdcard or whatever folder you may want to copy the file to.
Delete the Package Installer (apk and odex) from /system/app if you've copied it.
Reverse the first step. That would be, copying the copied file and pasting it to /system/app or moving it on to /system/app.
Reboot.


how to increase internalstorage on an Android devise

You can get and SD card purchased and insert it over the SD card slot it will increase your device storage!


Factory reset has already been done. Now you need to take the battery of or reset the phone again. Thats the only way that its gonna work.


Clock in Notification Area Does Not Update

The solution was simple.  I just needed to restart the tablet.  It hadn't been restarted in months and I guess that somehow the updating system process got in a weird state.  After doing a reboot (restart) via a hard power off, the clock started working and updates are downloading as normal.  I hope my solution here helps someone else.


Detailed instructions for replacing KingoRoot's Superuser with SuperSU

TL;DR - skip to the STEPS section

Kingroot and Kingoroot are two completely different apps, made by two completely different group of developers.

Kingroot, while it is probably the leading app for "1-Click-Root" solutions, also installs a ton of bloatware and annoying services that you may or may not know about.

Kingoroot I can't really speak too much about, considering there have always been many other solutions to achieving root including Kingroot.

Okay so I've used this method dozens of times and it works 99% of the time. The only time I haven't had it work was for a Verizon HTC One M8, since Kingroot only gives (at least at the time) temproot it took a few tries to get it working properly. I give all credit to w0lfdroid to finding it, and the original guide can be found here http://www.w0lfdroid.com/2015/05/How-to-Remove-Replace-KingUser-KingRoot-with-SuperSU.html

WARNING

This may leave your device in an unrooted state, if this happens then just run Kingroot again and it will fix itself.

STEPS

Download the following three items:

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=jackpal.androidterm&hl=en

--(Terminal Emulator App / Alternatively you can just use ADB shell)--

http://tiny.cc/1a5lyx

--(Zip archive containing necessary files / v1)--

http://tiny.cc/fo78zx

--(Zip archive containing necessary files / v2)--

The two zip archives contain the same files, but if the steps don't return the desired result using the v1 files, then repeat the steps using the v2 files.
Extract the "mrw" folder from the zip archive and place it anywhere in "/sdcard". For convenience let's just say you're not using a computer and instead doing this all from the phone you're wishing to switch from Kingroot to SU. Downloading the files will put them inside /sdcard/Download. So navigate to there using the built-in file explorer (or Root Browser if you don't have one), extract "mrw" from the zip, and proceed to install Terminal Emulator.
Open Terminal Emulator and type the following commands:

su

sh /sdcard/Download/mrw/root.sh

This will return a ton of text and quite a few errors, don't worry about it, I've never had it not return some errors. When finished it will install SuperSU automatically and open the app, asking you if you'd like to install the necessary binaries. Tap "Yes" and choose the option that is NOT to install in recovery.
At this point it will go one of two ways: either the binary installation will fail, at which point you'll have to re-root with Kingroot and repeat the steps using the other zip files; or the binary installation will succeed and you'll need to reboot the device. Upon booting you will see Kingroot and all associated files have been removed, and replaced instead with SuperSU.

If neither of these methods work there is a paid app in Play Store called Super-SuMe that's supposed to be specifically made for removing Kingroot and installing SuperSU, although despite purchasing it multiple times I have never once had anything happen besides either a reboot, force close, or the app hangs.

Best of luck.


Dude, it's because of more added grain and smoothing the grain making it look like low textured pic, but if you want to know a temporary fix then download Adobe light room to take pics and edit them just by pressing auto(in the edit menu) and then going to effects or details to increase the texture as per your liking.
I also have a huawei y9 prime 2019 and wasn't expecting that, but by some research (a lot) I was able to get a news that it will be with the help of some upcoming updates...
So we gotta wait until then.

Hope the temporary solution helps


How to control which apps has access to my connection?

Go to settings, data usage. Press the apps you want not to use data, and scroll down and select "Disable background data". Now the app won't connect to the Internet if connected on mobile network or mobile hotspot. Please note that if you open the app, it will be allowed to use your data connection, this is only for background data.


I needed to upgrade the stock OS to the newest version. Even after that the installed Telekom AG branded OS did not receive the newest patches. Using an older TWRP (3.2.x instead of 3.3.x) version did the trick.


Make me able to choose which images/videos received via WhatsApp to show in my Google Photos Gallery?

WhatsApp saves - all photos which are downloaded - to the WhatsApp/Media/WhatsApp Images folder.
The way gallery apps work on Android is that they scan internal storage and any folder which has media files in it are shown in the gallery app. So, similarly, the WhatsApp Media folder shows up for you in the Google Photos app.

Your few options are:

You can copy items from the WhatsApp Media folder and move them to
another folder.
You can manually stop media from certain chats from appearing in your Gallery app. You can set that in chat settings and WhatsApp will move these files to a folder with .nomedia attribute set. So, this media will not show in any gallery app (except file managers).
You can disable all media from all chats from appearing in your Gallery apps. In this case, if you need to specifically save some media items, you will need to manually copy those items from the nomedia folders to your main folder. You will need a file manager for this task.


Can I restore a Titanium backup from an Incredible to a Captivate?

May be the app is not recognizing the location of the backup. Do the following and see if that works

Remove all the backup files from the new Samsung Captivate
Now, from Captivate do a Titanium backup, it will create a backup folder with backed up apps.
Then, copy all old backup files from HTC to that location.
Try titanium backup again, this might show all the backed up apps now.

Hope that works. Good luck :-)


Disable "Unkown sources" setting in Android Oreo

In previous versions of Android, one could control the system-wide app installation from unknown sources, which saved time but was risky. Having refined control over settings makes your device more secure.
Moreover, the mechanism has now been shifted to app-specific instead of system-wide, that is you can now control app installation from particular apps. In order to modify that, head to settings and search for 'Unknown Sources', and you'll find Special App Permissions. In order to always allow a specific app to install apps, toggle it 'allowed'.


Can I turn my Android device into a webcam?

IP Webcam (Turns your phone into a network camera with multiple viewing options.)

(alternate direct link)

EDIT: fixed link


Transferring data (contacts, SMS, call log(s), browser history, application data) from rooted phone

As already pointed out in above comments, there are multiple questions on this site offering parts of the solution you might need:

How do I transfer all my data to a new phone?
The answer there already covers contacts and text messages, and works even without root.
How to transfer apps, contacts and settings between two identical phones?
Currently has three answers. #1 should cover most of the data exposed via Android's own APIs (so called service-providers), again without root. #2 covers some more areas, again not requiring root. #3 then mentions a very helpful app, which requires root: Titanium Backup ★ root.

I'd recommend you taking the payed version of the last mentioned app. While 5 bucks may sound a lot in terms of an Android app, you won't ever regret having spend them. TiBu was one of the first apps I've bought years ago, and I'm still a happy user. Using this app, you not only can backup all your apps including their data, but all your messages, contacts, call logs, and whatsnots. Even the system settings go along. Provided you get back the very same device running the very same Android version, you simply can go ahead and batch-restore everything (Pro only; with the free version, you need to do this manually for each item).

But even if you switch to a different device or Android version: restoring your apps+data goes the very same. Just with system apps and their data (including your APNs, WiFi hotspots, contacts, text messages, etc.) you need to take special care. TiBu offers a "migration mode", which I strongly recommend in that case; but still, some extra care cannot hurt: For your user apps+data, use the batch mode -- no problems to expect there. But for the just mentioned system stuff, better restore items one-by-one using the migration mode, and then check if everything works fine (even a reboot in between might be required, e.g. after restoring your text messages, contacts, and the like, as Android does not expect them coming that way). It's just in case. And if something seems "botched", remember what you restored last -- then do a factory-reset, batch-restore all apps, restore everything up to the point before the "botched" item, and skip to the next.

I don't expect any trouble that way. But in case it comes (thanks to Murphy's Law), you're welcome to ask that in a new question, giving the details, and we'll do our best to help you again.


Why is my Android fetching http://xtra3.gpsonextra.net/xtra.bin upon start?

That is done by gpsd. The XTRA files are the current GPS Almanac. The location of where to download the XTRA files to is defined in /system/etc/gps.conf.

These files contain data that speed up the GPS, which will result in faster GPS position fixes.


Galaxy Note 8 unresponsive to touch input

It looks like the issue was in either Jellybean 4.1 or Samsung's supporting software.  I've upgraded the tablet to the official 4.2 firmware and have had no recurrences of the problem described above.


Email client that restricts certain accounts to particular connection types, e.g. company WiFi at work, 3G/GPRS for personal

If you have root access then you could use DroidWall to give different apps, including email clients, access to WIFI and or mobile data. This would require you to use a different client for each account and wouldn't automatically differentiate between WIFI at work or at home. :o/

(It's a pretty rough work around but the best I could think of...)


How do I export display to Android native X server?

export DISPLAY=:0

when you type "xterm" a terminal should appear inside X

But doesn't work very well, because some x11-Features are not implemented in this Android-Xserver.


error on "install and update" to lollipop 5.1.1 in nexus 6

I think you are running into the same problem reported over here by fellow Nexus 4/5/7 users on the google product forum page.

Error during updating to 5.0.1

Some of the suggestion found there,

Wipe cache partition
Factory reset. (Warning! This erases all data on your phone)
Unroot your phone if you are rooted.

But none of them seems to completely work will all other Nexus users. But you can give it a try if you are sure about each of the process. As the accepted answer posted by a Google Employee confirms that there is a bug and they are still investigating this issue,

  As several of you have noticed, a new update (still labeled 5.0.1) is
  currently being sent to the Nexus 5 that addresses this issue. If
  you've got a Nexus 5 but haven't received the update yet, please be
  patient as it should be available for your device soon.

  Please note that we're still investigating this issue for other
  devices (so far I've seen reports from Nexus 4 and Nexus 7 owners) but
  I don't have further updates or a workaround to suggest at this time.
  We appreciate your patience as we continue to look into this for other
  devices.


Howto Install Gapps on Galaxy J3 Pro Plus j3119s?

One of my friend had the same issue in past, and ii resolved this issue by flashing new Firmware (The reliable and trusted solution). I have made a rough search for you and found following link with detailed instructions:

https://4frp.blogspot.com/2017/09/sm-j3119511-lollipopandroid-august-08-17.html

in case you have nay difficulty in process, let me know.

Before proceeding with the solution, download Samsung drivers from their official website from here and install.

http://developer.samsung.com/galaxy/others/android-usb-driver-for-windows

Thanks


How to control additional tethering settings on android phones?

Instead of changing the IP of the phone's network, you might simply change your router's config so usb0 is not in the brige any more but is configured more like a "WAN" port, complete with the usual NAT.  In this configuration, the phone's DHCP server will only serve an address to your router (to use for the usb0 interface), and all the router's clients will get their IP from your router instead.

The advantage also is that if/when you want to get your internet access from elsewhere (e.g. DSL/cable/younameit), you'll only need to change this part, but all the local network config will stay the same.


Since Android 4.0, the connection standard that is used to connect your phone to your computer is MTP. To be able to see the files on your mobile from your computer when they are connected you will need to make sure you have the correct USB driver for your phone and also that the phone is unlocked.


Yes you can

From Google help

  Redeemed gifts and some promo codes appear as part of your Google Play balance. This can be used for many purchases on Google Play

Types of content you can buy explains further, what you can buy and What you can't. And if the balance falls short

  You usually can't combine your Google Play balance with other forms of payment to make a purchase. You can only combine it when the remaining Play Balance is less than the total order amount of your purchase. Then you can use the rest of your Play Balance and combine it with another form of payment (for example, credit/debit card, Wallet Balance, DCB, PayPal) to complete your purchase.


Can a Nexus 7 connect to an Android 2.2 Wi-Fi tethering access point?

I managed to get my hands on one to test this and Wi-Fi tethering between the two worked fine, no apps required.


Can I search for Android APPs that are in Hebrew or Kurdish?

No. AFAICT, there is nothing that marks the language used in the app.

  Are all apps automatically translated into all languages?

No. The complexity of reliable machine translation so is currently beyond our current technology; natural language processing and machine translation is still a hot research topic.


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

/system/bin/reboot recovery

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


Display timout resets to 15 seconds occasionally

I suspect that the 'battery saving software' might have caused the issues. Did you experience these issues before installing the app ? There is a couple of ways which might help restore original settings :

A factory reset might set it right.
Alternatively if you have a backup of your original firmware you might want to try reflashing your phone after backing up all data.

ps :  The name of the app you were using might help out.


Whats the difference between cell phone and data radiation

They are all electromagnetic waves with different wavelengths. There had been no scientific evidence that they're dangerous in the power level used in common appliances, and many researches shows no evidence of danger in the short term studies, however many countries adopts the precautionary approach and advises people to minimize exposure just in case since long term study and study in  children has not been conclusive yet (these kind of studies takes a very long time since they follow their subjects for decades), although preliminary results suggests that long term effect may also be of no danger.

You're probably more likely to be killed in a car accident then getting a cancer due to mobile phone radiation.


ADB unable to connect my Nexus 7 on Ubuntu

The fact that the "Connected" message only appeared sometimes and that lsusb was unable to detect the Nexus casted a doubt on the cable.

I just tested with another cable and it works. My other cable seems to have a damaged connector.


Yes, there is a list of all apps that you have installed from Google Play.
Go to Google Play app → Apps & Games → My apps & games → ALL.

Note, that you will not find there the apps that were pre-installed on your smartphone by the manufacture and that are not available in the Google Play store.


what do you want to do with linux commands?.You can check for devices in the i2c bus and you'll get to see the debug messages.If you want to test something specifically  please mention it.


Thats not possible. Not without root. Even with root there is no mod to turn that navigation panel as you said (atleast no universal verified mod).
You can change navigation keys though. Again, not without root.

At best, you can install some custom launcher and make homescreen icons and style look like lollipop, nothing beyond that.


How to change the (permanent) MAC address on my android phone?

I found a tutorial on MAC address spoofing at XDA that might be helpful:

  REQUIREMENTS

  1) ROOTED PHONE 2) BUSYBOX INSTALLED 3) Terminal App

  OPEN UP TERMINAL AND WRITE

  :su :busybox iplink show eth0

  (THIS WILL SHOW YOUR CURRENT MAC ADDRESS)

  NOW TYPE IN

  :busybox ifconfig eth0 hw ether 00:11:22:33:44:55

  (INSTEAD OF 00:11:22:33:44:55, YOU CAN WRITE YOUR WANTED ADDRESS)

  CONGRATULATION, YOU HAVE SUCCESSFULLY SPOOFED YOUR MAC ADDRESS!

  YOU CAN CHECK YOUR MAC ADDRESS BY TYPING

  :busybox iplink show eth0

I don't think this is permanent however.  I did find another guide on Android Forums that seems to be permanent:

  After your rooted head into terminal emulation type su and go into
  /data/misc/wifi

  Look for a file called nvram.txt

  Copy it to your sdcard and then to your cpu desktop open it with
  notepad and at the bottom of nvram.txt is the mac address

  This i was able to verify and test on android Citrus Ciena

  Edit that mac address and save it as nvram1.txt onto sdcard

  Now go back to data wifi misc and copy nvram.txt to nvram.bak

  Head into gui and then settings then wifi then turn on the wifi but
  don't connect to any wifi

  turn off the wifi,switch back to terminal

  Copy the nvram1.txt to data misc wifi

  remove the original (make sure you got it backed up)

  Rename nvram1.txt to nvram.txt

  head back into gui and then settings then wifi

  Now for me it immediately stated unable to turn on wifi

  Ignore it and try to turn it on anyways

  When it turns on your newly edited mac address will take effect

  Connect to your AP

  NOW B4 REBOOTING YOU MUST CHANGE NVRAM BACK TO THE ORIGINAL!


Whenever I tap the empty space below the spacebar, while using Chrome, the keyboard closes unexpectedly

I have experienced this on Android as well.  Many virtual keyboard apps have a resize/reposition feature.  I was able to fix this issue by using this feature to manually move the keyboard to the bottom of the screen.
The location of the feature varies for each keyboard app, but it's typically available via its Settings UI.


Is there a way to use Chrome's phone interface on a Nexus 7 instead of the tablet interface?

There is no way to change this for just one app, but it can be changed globally by increasing the DPI value.

You will need to be rooted to change the DPI value. This app will change your device DPI.

You will have to play with different values, but take a nandroid first!

Edit: I played around with DPI values and 240 will force the phone ui mode for apps. Remember that this is global, and that it will make the app drawer look strange, as well as disabling the users feature.


How can I install a custom ROM on my Xperia S without unlocking the bootloader?

To install a custom rom you must have unlocked your bootloader. However for Sony phones, the process is a little more work. Sony has a website that provides IMEI code that you can use to unlock.
This is how you unlock the bootloader:

Simply go to the stock Sony dialer and type ##7378423## to access the service menu.
Tap Service info > Configuration > Rooting Status. If Bootloader unlock allowed says Yes, then you can continue with the next step. If it says No, or if the status is missing, your device cannot be unlocked.

This link will provide further instructions to get the IMEI number:
http://developer.sonymobile.com/unlockbootloader/unlock-yourboot-loader/

I see that you already have downloaded the custom rom into the phone. Although when unlocking bootloader, the device storage will be wiped and factory reset. Make sure to do a backup of important files. (SD card remains untouched)
Have the custom rom on the computer for later transfer.

To install the custom rom, you must have a custom recovery; TWRP for instance.
After this process, you will be able to flash any custom rom of your choice.
Simply follow this tutorial to manually flash the TWRP recovery:

http://theunlockr.com/2013/02/14/how-to-install-twrp-recovery-on-the-sony-xperia-s/

After this part, the only thing remaining is to flash the custom rom. In TWRP, choose flash from storage and navigate to the rom file. Remember to wipe dalvik cache after flashing to get a stable boot. Note that first boot may take a while longer, so there is no need to worry.

Happy flashing!