Do any data-recovery solutions still work on android 11?

Since about Android 6 all devices come with enabled user data encryption. I think since about Android 8 Google enforces that this encryption is hardware backed, which means you can't export the used encryption key and once the key has been deleted all data are gone forever.
These measures have been introduced to protect user data e.g. of a stolen device. Unless the thief knows the unlock code the device does not allow user data access.
There were a few cases were you could trick the lock screen to bypass it, however this only affects devices that were already running. If you boot the device you need to provide the lock screen PIN/password/pattern otherwise the user data encryption key is not released (the exact way this works was changed with every Android version a bit).
From the device perspective you are not the device owner unless you have authenticated using the required password/PIN/pattern. Therefore it now protects the data from any access.
There is no way to bypass this protection, otherwise a thief could do the same and in the get access to your data:
rooting: Requires an bootloader unlocked device or for an device with a vulnerability access to the UI is required. Unlocking a bootloader locked device automatically performs a factory reset which deletes the encryption key -> data gone. And that you don't have UI access to the device is obvious.


Can back up / restore for a hard reset on Galaxy Note be done using Samsung Kies?

The KIES backup/restore function should work, as you are not rooting, upgrading or changing ROMs.  However, it can be a little flakey, so be prepared for this to not work and to lose your system and app settings.
See 1.
A reset certainly won't harm it.  However, lags are likely to be due to one of your apps misbehaving, so a backup/restore will likely put you right back in the same boat you're in now.


How to re-arrange images in gallery after changing the GMT time zone?

NOTE: This is based on Samsung Galaxy S4 (Android 4.2.2)

In Gallery, click All beside the Gallery (flower) icon. Then, press left menu button, and select Sort by latest (If you see Sort by oldest, then your pictures are already sorted by latest.


Would disabling the package installer prevent updates?

Disabling the package installer would prevent apps from making the user request to install an app. Technically, they would still make the request but it would not show up, with the installer  being disabled.  That said, if a system app has INSTALL_PACKAGES permission (such as Play Store) or a third-party app has root access somehow, disabling the package installer would make no difference. Similarly, disabling it would not prevent sideloading from adb.


Why isn't all my storage listed in settings?

If you have large apps, then the total size of the app is not displayed: The extra files which the app needs in order to run itself, do not show up in the description of storage. That means the total size of your apps might be greater than 1.40 GB. This might be one of the possible reasons.


insufficient space with space plenty available

Normally Android will install a large app to external storage when necessary, and when possible. Not all apps support external storage.

What you'll need to do, rather than have Android do the work for you, is go to the Application settings panel (the exact location of which will depend on what version of Android your tablet is running), swipe left or right until you see a list of apps with checkboxes next to them; the top of the list should read "SD Card." These are apps you can move to external storage. You'll have to do this one at a time, I'm sorry to say, but each one will clear internal storage.

In case you're curious, external storage and/or an SD card is treated separately from internal storage. It's like having a second hard drive on your computer. You have to manage it.


How to get a list of latest apps released on Play Store sorted by date?

ShivamSoni

As google play store have daily adds New  Updates of Apps of thousand/lakhs/millions  of new versions all of them are new for Play store .

But still I searched and founded links for  new releases sections for you in play store website options.  I am sharing below links of website of new releases  and option to search apps latest releases apps category wise. But i dont think its possible to sort all apps list date wise launch option in app or website.

https://play.google.com/store/apps/new?hl=en

https://play.google.com/store/apps/collection/cluster?clp=Si8KKQojcHJvbW90aW9uXzMwMDA3OTJfbmV3X3JlbGVhc2VzX2FwcHMQBxgDOgIIAQ%3D%3D:S:ANO1ljKj5O4&gsr=CjFKLwopCiNwcm9tb3Rpb25fMzAwMDc5Ml9uZXdfcmVsZWFzZXNfYXBwcxAHGAM6AggB:S:ANO1ljILDUU&hl=en

In Google Play store App version 19.3.36 there are tabs named "for you, Top Charts,  Categories....." tabs of at very last there is a tab in last  "Early Access" which  shows latest to be launched beta developing Apps and  games.

There are  many 3rd party apps that you can utilizes to sort and easy your work  about one of popular one i searched   is called AppBrain App Market, and can be downloaded for free via Google Play (see the link at the below). The best way to find new apps in Google Play.

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.appspot.swisscodemonkeys.apps&referrer=utm_source%3Dappbrain%26utm_medium%3Dappbrain_web%26utm_campaign%3Dappbrain_web

According to appbrain website link says product details says

https://www.appbrain.com/app/appbrain-app-market/com.appspot.swisscodemonkeys.apps

  Description

  The best way to find new apps in Google Play (Android market).

  Make the Android market usable, and find your next favorite app, live wallpaper or widget:
  - App recommendations
  - New and hot apps of the day
  - Find top Android apps with a price drop
  - Share your best apps (eg twitter/facebook)
  - Tracks market update: notifies of updates available
  - Fast uninstaller
  - Browse "my apps" on www.appbrain.com and install apps with a sync instead of barcode scanner
  - Keep your list of installed apps as a backup on AppBrain.com

  AppBrain is the best way to discover top Android apps in the Android market and to manage your apps. The recommended apps helper provides recommendations based on what you already use. We also have recommended games. It does not work with the Amazon app store.

  The manage apps is like a killer file explorer / task manager for your already installed apps:
  - Start app, Quick uninstaller, share to Facebook
  - Fast sync widget to access AppBrain from the desktop and backup your apps to the cloud
  - app2sd functionality to move apps to sd (app 2 sd)
  - Find market update: notifies you of any updates available

  Discover cool apps and top games in the Android market:
  - sort by hot apps today, hot apps this week, highest rated apps, price drops etc
  - Filter apps by free apps, paid apps, price reduced apps, app2sd enabled apps, new apps
  - Fast search over the entire Android market
  - Unlike applanet or black market, these are only legal apps.

  AppBrain is the best app market and app discovery tool for Android apps from the Android Market. It allows you to easily find the best apps in the Market, the free apps and downloads, the price drops, live wallpaper, widgets and much more.

Hope this app will help you  any further  option i will get  i will update in the answer.

  Hope my answer suggestions helped you if any thing helped you out from your search or my or others help do tell me what helped you in comments for my knowledge. if any doubts or further clarification feel free to ask and if worked do not forget  to accept and vote for the answer


How to enable backlight of control buttons in Xperia miro st23i?

I'll supply the answer from my Samsung Galaxy S3, assuming a similar setting is located at a similar location on your Xperia. Look for Settings>Display>Touch Key Light Duration. On Samsung there are settings from Always Off to Always On, and timed settings in between. Choose one of your liking other than Always Off to restore lighting to the buttons.UPDATE: Sorry if the settings are not exactly at that loocation. Here is a link to the User ManualUPDATE2: I notice that the Xperia has a slideout keyboard. Sometimes the keyboard lighting is controlled by the control key lighting. Look in the same place, except for Keypad Timeout: Settings>Display>Keypad Timeout.


Skype randomly crashes on Android 2.1update1

There is no way to know for sure unless you view logcat. Use adb which comes with Android SDK and execute the command logcat.

I usually do the following steps to find out what causes an application to crash:

Enable USB debugging (Settings -> Developer Options -> USB debugging)
Plug in USB cable to your phone and connect it to your machine.
Run adb logcat
Run the application and try to make it crash while viewing the logcat.


Transfering app data to other android device

The Colornote support page gives a few options. You can sync through their online services, by transferable backup, or by SD card.

  How to transfer notes from old phone to new phone.

  Using the online sync is Recommended.

  Sign up online sync on your old phone. Go to:

Menu –-> Backup –-> Sign Up.

  next Sync your device by going to:

Menu –-> Sync. Check how many notes are synced by going to: Menu -–> Settings –-> Online Backup –-> Synced notes.

  Then sign in to online sync in your new phone by going to:

Menu –-> Backup -–> Sign In.

  Using sdcard backup:

  the steps below to transfer notes saved on the previous device to the new device using local backup.

  When you have the previous device
  Open ColorNote and go to the device backup screen on the previous device go to:

Menu --> Backup --> Tap Device

  Which is located in the upper bar or go to:

Settings --> Backup.

  Next manually back up notes by pressing:

Backup Notes --> Enter master password --> Done.

  then move the backed up files from the previous device to the new device.

  Go to sdcard backup screen on your old phone by:

Menu –-> Backup -–> SD card backup.

  To Backup Notes you need to press the button and then enter your master password.

  Lastly, move sdcard from old phone to new phone.

  Go to sdcard backup screen on your new phone and tap backup item you want to restore.

  finish up by typing the  password that you have set when backup file was created.


How to stop Chrome from causing Download folder to reappear in gallery?

I know this doesn't answer your exact question. You'll save yourself a lot of time and effort going with another picture app such as QuickPic

It's fast and customizable, and you can select which folders to include OR exclude :)

Do yourself a favor and disable Gallery.


Why does fingerprint sensor not work when phone is charging?

As requested by OP posting answer, in response to my comment (now deleted) based on my experience

  Having a clean power supply, using original charger + USB cable, setting up finger prints again are the common things that work...

I am not  sure as to why touch sensor  works only with original charger but posting as it may help, as it helped OP


How to root the new version of the ONE X

Apparently there is a root method for the AT&T One X running 4.0.4.  I've not tested it, but have reproduced the instructions in full from here:

I have successfully rooted the AT&T HTC One X running build 2.20.

In the previous build (1.85), S-ON was only partially enforced, so it was possible to modify the /system partition without having unlocked the bootloader, in order to install su and Superuser.apk. This was changed in build 2.20: full S-ON is now in effect. As a result, it is no longer possible to write to /system even after remounting it as writable, since the S-ON feature has NAND-locked the storage.

In other words, it's impossible have a "permanent root" on 2.20 in the traditional sense without unlocking the bootloader.

I have prepared an exploit that gains temporary root access by leveraging two vulnerabilities and uses these newly gained root privileges to overwrite the CID ("superCID"), so that it's possible to unlock the bootloader via HTC's website. I'm sorry if you'd prefer to not unlock your bootloader this way, but there are no other options for root access available.

===========

DISCLAIMER

This exploit modifies the CID of your device. Doing so likely voids your warranty, and may be in violation of your contract with AT&T (I am not a lawyer). Additionally, while this exploit has been tested and has not been observed to cause any negative side effects in practice, I am in no way responsible if it turns your device into an expensive paperweight.

=============

INSTRUCTIONS

Download the exploit from:
http://vulnfactory.org/public/X_Factor_Windows.zip

Edit: Linux/Mac version available here. Thanks to Jesse Osiecki (@jesseosiecki) for suggesting I support this and providing me with a working version (that I ended up re-writing):
http://vulnfactory.org/public/X_Factor_Linux_OSX.zip
Extract the entire zip file.
Connect your device via USB, ensure you have the latest HTC USB drivers installed (only on Windows), and ensure USB debugging mode is enabled.
Double-click "run.bat", or if running Linux or OSX, open a terminal, change directories to the extracted exploit, and run "./run.sh".
Follow the instructions printed by the exploit. You will need to authorize two backup restorations during the exploit's execution.
If the exploit is successful, it will print "[+] Set CID!". If it does not print this, the exploit has failed, so please do not continue.
The exploit will automatically reboot into bootloader mode. Press enter after bootloader mode is finished booting, and the exploit will print your CID. If the exploit was successful, it should return "11111111" as your CID.
If your CID was successfully set, press enter to generate an unlock token.
Visit htcdev.com, navigate to the "Bootloader unlock" section, choose "All other supported models" from the drop-down menu, and provide the unlock token when asked.
After unlocking the bootloader, you can flash a custom recovery partition via fastboot, boot into recovery mode, and use a recovery ADB shell or install from an update.zip to install Superuser and su (I do not provide support for custom recoveries, but this is a straightforward process that other people can help with).

======

NOTES

I am not affiliated with any Android forum or group, including XDA - this is just where I've chosen to publish this exploit.

Portions of this exploit are similar in concept to the ADB backup/restore exploit published by Bin4ry, but the vulnerability used in this exploit is entirely distinct from Bin4ry's.


What is the significance of icons below the name of an app in play store?

PEGI stands for "Pan European Game Information" and is used to advise on the suitability of the app for certain age ratings. There are 5 age categories (sourced from wikipedia):

  3: Suitable for ages 3 and older. May contain very mild violence in an appropriate context for younger children, but neither bad language
  nor frightening content is allowed.
  7: Suitable for ages 7 and older. May contain mild or unrealistic violence (e.g. violence in a cartoon context), or elements that can be
  frightening to younger children.
  12: Suitable for ages 12 and older. May contain violence in either a fantasy context or a sporting action, profanity, mild sexual
  references or innuendo, or gambling.
  16: Suitable for ages 16 and older. May contain explicit or realistic-looking violence, strong language, sexual references or
  content, gambling, or encouragement of drug use.
  18: Unsuitable for persons under 18. May contain extreme or graphic violence, including "violence towards defenceless people" and
  "multiple, motiveless killing", strong language, strong sexual
  content, gambling, drug glamorisation, or discrimination.

The icon shown in the Play Store will indicate which category the app has been rated suitable for.

Other areas of the world have similar rating systems such as ESRB and ACB


Turning on Android device with motion detector (external device?)

Just to let you know I have some up with a simple solution it combines an app from the app store called Motion Detector by jastrzab: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.motion.detector
Then install a plugin called Turn Screen: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.jastrzab.plugin.screen

Install both apps.
Open the Motion Detector app and turn on "Send" at the bottom of settings. Click on motion detector (at the top) and then scroll down to "camera" and select "front".
Open the Turn Screen app. click the only button to make it active.
Open android settings, Turn off the lock screen or select "none".
Change the sleep settings to time out in the desired time.
Turn off Daydream.
Open the app (or home screen) you want to have displayed on the screen when the tablet wakes, and you're all set! Wait for the screen to go to sleep and walk by or wave at your camera and it will wake it up.

Works great during the day or with the lights on. I'm currently working on an external PIR motion sensor that will allow the tablet to wake in darkness. Simple design so far just uses a cheap PIR sensor and a small led light mounted below the camera. When I walk by the PIR triggers the LED light allowing the camera to see, which triggers motion. Hoping to figure out how to eliminate the LED and just run the PIR directly into the tablet using the headphone jack or USB on the tablet. Suggestions welcomed.


Device stuck in boot animation after reverting to LineageOS 17.1

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

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

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


Can Android differentiate between headphones and headset?

You can see the details of this at the Android developer documentation, but an app can definitely tell if a wired device plugged into the audio jack has a microphone or not. I will tell you that this information is not always accurate or consistent across devices though, as I have experienced with my own app Hearing Saver. Sometimes different phones send different codes for this particular bit of information, so if you are experiencing difficulties with certain apps not recognizing your headset, I'd get into contact with the developer of that app.


Is there a Word Lens alternative/port for Android?

Looks like Google Goggles is as good as it's going to get for now.  From what I've read in the comments and around the web it sounds like that Word Lens video makes the app look a lot better than it actually is.  For now it looks like Goggles, while it may not be in real-time is a more accurate option.


How do I disable the missed phone call notification light?

it is impossible to change it in setting(you can only completly turn it off or on). But you have some apps for that. For most of them,you need root. But I found this one in link(article about it) for which you do not need it. It is Led Blinker(avaiable in Google Play Store)You have lite and pro version, but lite should be more than enought.

LINK WITH INSTRUCTIONS HOW TO USE IT: https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://www.guidingtech.com/23212/customize-disable-led-notifications-android/&ved=2ahUKEwig0IfSvvbjAhVG2KQKHSndB48QFjASegQIBxAB&usg=AOvVaw3YIcmp9EWQpzvCGuaCwlLU&cshid=1565378157374


Delete all files from an Artist/Album with VLC

No, VLC does not offer the ability to delete an album or an artist in one swoop.
The issue was discussed in this thread Ability to delete an album/artists etc...

As stated in the thread:

  That's because we don't support deletion on ext storage.
  This option would appear only for some album/artists with no clue for the user why.

  That would be an inconsistent behaviour.


htc evo 3d wifi connected but internet not working

I probably made a mistake that I thought I had two routers, but actually I had router and wifi extender. I was working with extender as router, trying to restart it and alter settings. But after I intalled main router, my mobile connected. So I guess main router had saved that weird ip address for my device and kept it. Restarting main router made it work.


Use Wanam Xposed or Wanam Kit. It's an Xposed Framework module that will allow you to change everything about the toggles


How to identify the hardware of my phone?

There's a bunch of system info apps available on the markets. Apart from those monitoring resource usage are also some showing you details on the hardware components, such as Hardware Info and System Info Droid:

Hardware Info and System Info Droid (source: Google Play; click images for larger variants)

These two should tell you everything you need – except for "which roms is it compatible with". That's always hard to tell if you don't know the exact name (and sometimes even if you do).


I want to hide my friend's proflie picture in whatsapp

If only you have root access. WhatsApp profile pictures are now saved under /data/data/com.whatsapp/cache/Profile Pictures/ (earlier Internal Storage/WhatsApp/media/WhatsApp Profile Pictures)
In /data/data/com.whatsapp/cache/Profile Pictures/ profile pictures are saved with their respective phone number. Just change the picture with the exact name. Done.


Is it normal for Android System to be the top battery user?

It all depends on your usage.  Android System includes Sync, so if you're not using your phone a lot then I would assume Sync and Standby would use the most battery -- so your details make sense.

Edit: As per the comments, I think the battery usage is being recorded wrong.


How to hide installed app from other app?

If app has storage access, how to hide other installed app from it?

Without root access and without any permission (including Storage), any app can getInstalledApplications for current user/profile. You need a mod like XPrivacyLua to hide apps from other apps. Or isolate apps in user profiles (see Are multiple-users protected from each other differently than apps?).

  App consists of files in different locations. Maybe somehow I can make them inaccessible for other app? If I didn't give root right for detecting app, the only location should be in "Android" folder?

If I understand correctly you mean that apps private files are already inaccessible to other apps. With Storage permission granted apps can only see files created by other apps in shared storage (/sdcard and physically external SD card). So if an app creates it's private directory in /sdcard/Android/, it does indicate its presence on device. But hiding the private directory won't be helpful as explained earlier. You have to stop the app from using getInstalledApplications first.

After that, if you have to grant Storage permission because the app refuses to start otherwise, you can disable Storage access using appops:

~$ appops set <pkg> READ_EXTERNAL_STORAGE ignore
~$ appops set <pkg> WRITE_EXTERNAL_STORAGE ignore

If that doesn't work you have to go for a root solution like XPrivacyLua's BlockGuardOs.open hook or Storage Redirect (it's paid app). I've no affiliation with either. Also Scoped Storage on Android 10+ provides better storage isolation.


Vivo v7 hotspot keeps shutting off automatically

All you can do is to keep a device connected. The device turns off the Hotspot when it sees no device using it for over 2 minutes.

This is certainly a very strict timeframe. Anyhow, the setting to automatically close Hotspot is baked into the system and as such, it will not be possible to override it.


Downloads from my mobile not appearing on computer - Samsung Galaxy

It does that because it is copying the file via MTP. If you want to view the files on your computer it would be far easier and faster to simply copy them to your computer from the mobile. Each time you open a file from your mobile through your computer it will copy them which takes time.


How can I graph or chart date related values ( each date having one value )

After a lot of searching I found this nice little program which does exactly what I was asking for: Easy Graph from BH Soft.

Nothing fancy but what is does it seems to do well.

The developer should add more chart types, for sure, but at the moment it allows me to enter, save and chart different sets date + value pairs in a line chart.


Is there a way to get a history of Facebook profiles that I've visited?

From Facebook help center,

  To view your activity log on the Android app, first go to your timeline. Under your cover photo, you should see a group of tiles (ex: About, Photos, Friends). Swipe the tiles left until you see the Activity Log tile, then tap on the tile to view your activity log.

Then,

  Tap Activity Log > Filter
  Scroll down and tap Search

For the desktop version, click on the little down arrow at the top left of the screen, then Activity Log, then MORE then scroll down to Select.


Well, I've gone and flashed over to AOKP, so figured I'd update this with an answer about their Permissions management. It is found towards the bottom of the root Settings screen.

For each user-installed app it lets you turn off specific permissions. Essentially a very basic version of what LBE Privacy Guard used to let you do.

Some features that are missing:

Ability to group by a permission (e.g. Access Location) and see all apps that use it with ability to disable them in this view
Ability to change permissions on system apps (e.g. camera to disable geotagging completely)

So all in all, it's a nice feature, and more than available in most ROMs I know of without extensive modding/flashing of additional frameworks and things.

Potentially the 2nd item above could - at least in some cases - be gotten around by using something like ROM Toolbox to convert the system app to a user app... but I'm not sure what other ramifications doing so would have.


Used code bought on internet to unlock Galaxy S3 from 3 UK to O2-UK. Will rooting the device harm it?

Rooting the phone won't change SIM-lock settings, they're saved in a separate part of the phone, please see these previous questions for more info on that: Where are the SIM Lock settings stored on an Android phone?  and Does Unlocking bootloader affect network lock?

You can find more explaining these different terminologies here: What is the difference between: Rooting, Jailbreak, ROM, Mod, etc.?


How to select content language on Google Play Movies

You can edit the build.prop settings on a rooted phone with something like ro.com.google.clientidbase.ms=android-uscellular-us i think or maybe ro.product.locale.region=US


I too getting the same problem.I restarted the phone then it's works again properly.


After factory-reset, account services permanently crash (no setup possible)

I had the same problem recently.  The phone was constantly reporting Google Play Services and many others as having stopped.  A hard-reset left me unable to complete the initial setup, as the account manager kept stopping too.  My S3 was stock standard, not rooted or running any custom firmware.  I was able to fix the problem, and I'd like to share my solution.

Download Samsung's "Kies" software.  Searching the samsung.com site pointed me to Version 2, but once installed the software self-updated to Version 3.1.  A restart was required after installing (I'm on Mac, but I understand with will work on Windows too).
Power on the phone.  Start Samsung Kies software.  Without touching the screen, I connected the USB cable to my computer.
Tools > Firmware upgrade and initialisation
I was warned that the current firmware was already installed, but chose to proceed anyway.  The current firmware was downloaded and installed on the phone, which took around 20 minutes.

After restarting the phone, I was able to complete the setup process without any errors.  The OS now appears to be working correctly (Android KitKat 4.4.4).  If I had to guess, I'd suggest it was some older versions of my network's own customisation that was incompatible with recent Play Store Services updates.  Interestingly, my phone now has less added software (only 2 extra apps I can see) and seems to run better than it did originally.

I hope this info helps others too.


4.2.2 update error on Samsung Galaxy s2 plus GT - I9105P

I don't think you have installed update provided by samsung.
I am Samsung S II plus owner in India and I didnt get any OTA update yet.

This problem might be due to corrupted ROM. Roll up to the previous ROM it'll work

Cheers!


Reasonable way to copy files to a new SD card using a Mac

Both OSX and Android provide basic POSIX utilities, so I ended up going old school on this one:

$ tar czv "$PATH_TO_ORIGINAL_SDCARD" | split -b 2048m - sdcard-

This command creates 2GB-sized chunks of an archive of the sdcard contents, with names like sdcard-aa, sdcard-ab, and so on.  The 2GB split is necessary because Android File Transfer can only copy files of 4GB or less in size.

Then I copied the files over to the phone using (surprise!) Android File Transfer and recombined and unarchived them in Terminal Emulator* using this command:

$ cat sdcard-* | tar xzv

*: it was actually a  bit more complicated than this.  Gory details:

So actually Android doesn't really come with basic POSIX utilities, or at least if it does, they are not readily available to the Terminal Emulator app.

I thought that it did because SSHDroid provides these utilities via busybox.  I suspect that Android doesn't allow processes to execute files that their user does not own; this would explain why there is no app available that installs busybox for non-rooted phones.

busybox is a utility that can execute any of a large number of POSIX commands, depending on what name it is called with.  People arrange for it to be called with names other than busybox by creating symbolic links to it with names like, for example, tar.

However, it turns out that it is possible to install busybox in your own Terminal Emulator app home directory.  So that's what I did.  Steps:

Grab the file busybox-android from the eponymous github project.
Get it onto your device (see above!).  Put it somewhere public that you'll have access to from a Terminal Emulator session.  Just call it busybox.
Start a Terminal Emulator session.  Make a directory ~/bin and copy the busybox file from the public place you put it to that new directory.

Since the cp command is not available in a Terminal Emulator session (!) do it this way: cat $PATH_TO_BUSYBOX/busybox > ~/bin/busybox

Now cd ~/bin and create a symbolic link: ln -s busybox tar.
Now you should be able to cd /storage/extSdCard/ and concatenate and extract the contents of your archive files to it using cat $PATH_TO_ARCHIVE/sdcard-* | ~/bin/tar xzv.
It will be extracted with whatever prefix directories were the path to the sdcard contents when you created the archive set, e.g. /Volumes/oldphone/.  So now move everything from that subdirectory (we'll call it $OLD_SDCARD_CONTENTS) to the root of your current SD card.

sh (the shell used by Terminal Emulator) doesn't seem to have any way to select all the hidden files in a directory, so I ran bash to do this.  Under bash, mv $PATH_TO_FILES/.[^.]* $DEST will move all hidden files.  Remember that you have to access bash via a symlink to busybox, or just do this part via ssh (which is actually what I did).

Whew!  Glad that's over.  I really hope I don't end up accepting this answer; there should be a much easier way to do all of this.

Of course, I could have just untarred the archive in an ssh session from my computer, but this would have required me to run my computer for however long it was going to take.  Plus, like, of course busybox should be available in Terminal Emulator.


Stop Google Photos from Retaining Deleted Photos

If you are using Google Photo to backup your photos, you should also use it as your "gallery" app on your phone to manage photos.

When you delete a photo in the Google Photo app, it will delete it in Google Photo's online storage as well. Actually, it places it in Google Photo's "Trash" folder, where it is held for 60 days unless you manually purge a picture or the entire folder's contents.

To my knowledge, this is just the way it is and is by design, there are no options to do anything differently. It is designed to be your "recovery" for photos in case you lose them by any means... How is Google Photo supposed to know if you deleted that photo purposely, or by accident.


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

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

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


How can I get Facebook and Google contacts to sync in 4.2?

That feature was removed in the 4.x versions of Android.  I use UberSync for my contact syncing and it works great.  Haven't had any problems with it and it also has a setting to import high res contact photos.  I would recommend that.  Set it up once and forget about it.


How to access other partitions from android-x86 on dual boot with ubuntu-16.04

Yes, you can!
If you are new on Linux, it could be a little tricky.
Open terminal (if you don't have, install one), type:

su
mkdir /storage/windows
ntfs-3g /dev/block/sdaX /storage/windows

where X is the partition that you want to mount.


Why the music player stop playing music when taking photo?

This is an old question, but I think that some people might find it useful since I came it across using Google search.
The camera app has a permission called TAKE_AUDIO_FOCUS which it is granted by default to it. The camera app uses this to pause the music while you open the viewfinder on your phone.
To fix this issue, you can simply disable the TAKE_AUDIO_FOCUS permission from your phone. The problem here is that you can't do it via the UI since the toggle for it isn't there.
The simplest way to not allow the camera app on your phone to pause your music is to take off this permission using the adb shell.

Download your OEM USB drivers from your phone's manufacturer's website. A simple Google search should give you the link.

Download Minimal ADB portable and extract it to a folder on your desktop.

Connect your phone to your PC and enable USB Debugging. For that, Go to Settings > About Phone > Tap on the Build Number 7 times. This will unlock the Developer options on your phone. Now, Go to the Developer mode from Settings. Enable USB Debugging.

Now, open the folder where you extracted the Minimal ADB and Shift + Right-click on an empty space. From the context menu, select Open Command Window Here.

In the command window type adb devices.

Press OK on your Android phone when it asks you to give the permission for USB Debugging.

Now, type adb shell to open the command line interpreter on Android.

Type the following command to remove the TAKE_AUDIO_FOCUS permission from your Camera app:
appops set app.package.name TAKE_AUDIO_FOCUS ignore

You will need to replace the app.package.name with the app's package name of the camera app in your Android phone. Since most manufacturers don't follow a single standard for naming their camera apps, you'll need to use a package info app from the Play Store to know the package name. Use App inspector for this.
Suppose your phone is a Moto G. You can type the following command to remove the TAKE_AUDIO_FOCUS permission
appops set com.motorola.cameraone TAKE_AUDIO_FOCUS ignore

That should be it.
Source: my own article here.


First you need to unlock your bootloader and then you can flash recovery image.
If you have already done that, Check whether you are flashing the proper one.

This is TWRP recovery for MI A2.

After flashing TWRP you can flash the desired rom from it. Do read some threads from XDA, If you are not sure about what you are doing.


Restoring messages from ClockworkMod backup

Use Titanium Backup pro (Paid). It can restore individual apps+data from CWM backups!

It clearly colors data containers with Green. And, names of container which keep contacts etc. vary as per Android version & manufacturer, but they are generally human readable. Keep Green color in mind. If you find Contacts which is not colored with green, its app.. not data container.


Multiple links/files/folders download using Android phones/Apps

There is an App on Google Play store name: HTTrack Website Copier. You can download whole website with this application .You can download only that file which is allowed by the website server for the users only not whole stuff holded by the server.


How to disable speaker independent of volume settings

I recently updated and found a similar "mute all" function missing as well, so I feel your pain :/

My recommendation is to use a very powerful app: Automate

Automate allows you to monitor various activities on your phone and then respond to them. The catch-all method to accomplish what you want would be to create a simple loop of: if volume change -> set volume zero

While that sounds easy enough, there are some pitfalls: multiple loops based on ringtone, notification, media, etc., and, depending on how your phone implements it, possible high battery drain.

So on to my actual recommendation (still using Automate): monitor for a specific app, e.g. Google Duo in your example, and automatically set volume to zero when it changes it. This is what I do.

In conjunction with that, to alleviate the issue of accidental button/toggle pressing: you can set default ringtones, notifications, etc. to "silent" (go into sound setting and pick a sound. "Silent" should be first on the list). If that's not satisfactory, Automate can also save the day. It can detect if the phone ever leaves vibrate mode and set it back to vibrate (or silent, etc.).

You've got a few options, but I highly recommend the app. It's a very powerful tool that I believe is fit for just this sort of application. Right tool for the job :) Lemme know if you need any clarifications or extra help getting it set up, and best of luck!


There are only two of them.

SimpleCinema (by DeveloperRevolution): it works with both Quicktime-variant chapters and Nero-variant chapters. The former is more popular. It is a small player that just does one thing.

LVOE Media: If you are not sign language user, you probably will find its sign-language-optimized interface a bit weird, but I've tested that it can do Quicktime variant chapters, Nero-variant I did not test against this player.

Chapters in video files is a good feature, unfortunately most people don't know it exists.


Generally speaking, the serial number as reported by adb get-serialno will be different to fastboot as determined by:

Manufacturer
Make and model of device in question
Android version

fastboot, on the other hand, since there's no adb loaded, instead, it uses a rudimentary USB protocol tied in with the boot-loader, the serial number will be different.

  Is there a way to reliably determine what the fastboot serial number
  will be from adb?

There is no reliable way of achieving it.


Is it possible to change the background of a keyboard or change the color of a key?

If you're not too attached to your current keyboard, there are loads of other ones you could try.

SlideIt keyboard is good, and it has a new support for skins! so you can make it look however you want :)
Swype has about the same functionality as the former, with a single skin that is more of a darker grey.
FlexT9 has the same support as the first two, with a white skin.
SwiftKey is good if you don't like the swipe to type thing, and has a couple good-looking included skins.

The only way to change the default keyboard on your device though, will be rooting and finding a ROM that has a keyboard that you like (or making your own if you're developer inclined ;) )


Is it possible to use the GMail "Call Phone" functionality on Android without Google Voice?

It may not be the ultimate approach -- but you probably could use Clipboard Dialer (left picture) to achieve this:

  This little tool enables you to extract all phone numbers from what ever text is in your clipboard. It will present a list of all numbers it finds giving you an easy way to call, SMS or create a new contact.

So as long as the numbers are visible on the screen, you could copy them to the clipboard -- and then let this tool kick in. Or, using the same principle: CopyNDial (picture to the right):

  Dial from everywhere browser, message apps


I just solved this issue after a lot of searching.

The normal Picasa page takes you to Google+, and it does not show the empty folders etc.

You have to use Picasa mobile:
https://picasaweb.google.com/m

Log in, and you can delete whatever you want.


If you don't want to remove or deactivate the application, then either:

you can install a 3rd party launcher (like Nova) and hide the application from the app drawer.
you can download Hide it pro and basically you can anything in your phone.


Will disabling LTE extend my battery life even if I'm not using it?

It might marginally increase your battery life, since if the network selection is set to Auto, it will periodically poll the networks to see if LTE is available. Since it won't find it anyway, why not disable it and restrict it to your available networks?


It sounds like your phone's internal memory may be physically damaged or suffering from severe corruption (such as many bad blocks).  If that's the case, it may be mounting the system as read only which would prevent you from downloading and installing apps.  If it is still under warranty, you should probably exchange it for a new one.


Using Multiple Devices With the Play Store

The first thing you need to do is to check your tablet version. My suspicion is that it isn't running Honeycomb (Android 3.0+ or the tablet version of Android) but actually a heavily modded phone version of Android (i.e Android 2.1-2.3).

Go to settings -> about phone (or something similar. each manufacturer changes how you access this)

If it is indeed running the version of Android meant for phones, then the market might be complaining to your tablet because you might be trying to download apps meant for honeycomb.

The online market automatically updates to include additional devices when you activate them (i.e when you initially do the android setup and sign in to your google account). Make sure you select the drop down and check if there is another option. Also make sure you activated both devices under the same account.

-I know I should have made this a comment but its too long of an answer for one. :P


How to secure personal data on a factory reset tablet with broken microUSB port?

If the battery lasts long enough, you can use a tool to perform a Secure Wipe. As you've already factory-reset the device, one that cares to sanitize free/empty space should suffice, such as Secure Eraser or the free version of iShredder.

What those apps do is overwriting empty space with random patterns (or just zeros, or just ones) – so all a potential "restorer" can find afterwards is garbage.

If your battery gives up inmidst of the process, you've got at least something sanitized – and cannot do anything about the rest anyway. Still better than nothing I'd say, so I'd give it a try.


How to install clockworkmod recovery on Asus memopad 8 me181c?

I  found this thread on XDA Developers. But it a tethered recovery. Read carefully before attempting to do anything.


Music players isn't finding tracks on Samsung Galaxy S3!

I solved this problem by going to Settings->More->Application manager->All->media storage.

I tapped Media Storage then Clear Data.

Then, at Settings->More->Application manager->All->My Files, I tapped Clear Data too.

Finally, I restarted the phone. And it worked.


Replace audio cable with wireless solution

I can think of 2 ways you could do this.

Bluetooth audio adapter, like the Antec BXR100.  These are generally used for headphones, but should be able to simply connect into your amp.
-Pros : Simple, cheap
-Cons : Bluetooth, limited range, A2DP appears to have issues on Android 4.2, possibly non-optimal audio quality
DLNA renderer (mini computer (raspberry pi (Raspbmc maybe.  There's a topic on the use of raspbmc as a DLAN renderer here on their forums.) or similar perhaps), specialized unit (Like the (discontinued, though still findable if you don't mind buying used) Netgear MP100 series), or maybe a cheap Android device) attached to your amp, getting your audio pushed from one of the several DLNA server apps available for Android.  This is essentially the same as Apple's Airplay system, only a different, more open standard which will work with more manufacturers' devices.
-Pros : Almost as simple, will work anywhere you can get a wifi signal, possibly better audio quality than the bluetooth, could potentially be used to move video if you wanted to in the future if your chosen receiver has that capability.
-Cons : More complex, possibly expensive, new audio-only DLNA renderers seem to be rare nowadays.


Unable to install Cyanogenmod in GT I9000

First go to the download mode
Volume Down & Home & Power
Now install stock GT-I9000 using ODIN from firmware in XDA here. Root and then install Semaphore_2.7.4.tar from here. Alternatively you can also install recovery from Replicant website (my preference). First install CM10.1.2. check if the phone is working fine. Then download, cm11 go to recovery, wipe data/factory reset + wipe cache partition. Wiping cache is important otherwise you will endup in a boot cycle. This is necessary as the partitions are different in cm11 in comparison to cm10.x. Do not directly flash cm11 on stock.


By default NextBook Tablets comes with no PlayStore Application, so you will need to re-download (re-install) the PlayStore Manually

check this link, it may help you
http://www.makeuseof.com/answers/how-can-i-download-google-play-to-my-nextbook-tablet/


Google authenticator remove and install back in same phone(time corrention)

If you uninstall your Google Auth you’ll lose all your tokens. Some services offer backup codes and these codes are valid only for this services. For example, Google offers backup codes, so if you lose your token you can use these backup codes to restore an access only to your Google account. If you lose the token and don’t have a backup code you should contact the support team of service you protect with 2FA. They will help you to restore an access to your account.

Tip: in the process of token enrolment save the QR code and keep it in a SAFE place. Then if you lose your phone you’ll be able to restore your token on a new device.

Another solution is a hardware token that can be used as a backup. For example, Protectimus (the company I work for) offers reprogrammable tokens Protectimus Slim NFC. They can be used as backup tokens (1 token can store 1 seed and can be reprogrammed an unlimited number of times).


Reply to an SMS and send it to someone else

You could long-tap the message, select "Copy message text", then paste that into the input field of a thread with the new recipient.


How to prevent apps running in background

Though there are apps around that would answer to your request (so-called "Task-killers" and "Memory boosters"), their usage is not to recommend -- simply because it would not help any (see Is it advisable to run a task killer app on Android). If those background processes are designed as services, they would simply restart - as would many other apps as well. Usually Android handles RAM very well, and those background processes should not use significant CPU power -- so on a decent phone this should not be a problem. However, on low-end and small devices with just minimal RAM and CPU, this can become an issue.

So what are your choices then? First, you could see to uninstall all those apps running background tasks -- provided you do not really need them. And, of course, if your device is not rooted, this cannot be done for pre-installed apps; but with ICS and higher you can at least "freeze" them.

If your device is rooted, your choices increase dramatically: you can remove (or freeze) those apps e.g. using Titanium Backup. You can use managers like AutoRun Manager to modify intent-listeners of apps (to prevent the start of certain event-based background processes, including those started on boot_completed). And you can configure thresholds for how your RAM will be used (i.e. when Androids internal Out-of-Memory-Killer should clean up your RAM) using apps like AutoKiller Memory Optimizer (don't mistake that name with a task-killer, it is not) or Auto Memory Manager.

Of course, you can also ask the developer to make those background services configurable -- and to leave it to you whether certain of them should be running at all. There's always the chance the developer sees reason and implements such a feature.


ARC Welder is dead.

If you want to run Android apps on Chrome OS there now official documentation (including emulator in the Android SDK) on supporting the Play Store in Chrome OS.

The closest I know of to a formal statement regarding ARC is this article from ArsTechnica about Play Store on Chrome OS where a Google manager explains that the ARC method was limited by not passing the Android compatibility tests, which meant more work for developers to get their app working, as well as not supporting Android NDK, which meant games wouldn't work either.

While the initial promise of ARC technology was to use the multi-platform Native Client feature in Chrome it seems that it wasn't up to the job and Native Client itself is getting phased out.

If you still want to try to use ARC Welder in Chrome you'll have to find/use the last version of Chrome which supported it. This post in StackOverflow on
ARC welder for chrome is not launching properly from 2017 may give some idea of when it last worked.

As I stated in Chrome OS current support for Android via containers Google is going forward with containers on Chrome OS to support Android apps (ARC++). While current ARC++ support for Android apps still needs improvement, enough is compatible with existing Android apps (including games) for the Play Store on ChromeOS to be in the stable release of some Chromebooks.


Is it possible to translate websites in Chrome Android in "realtime" like I did on the PC?

Yes, it is possible with the current beta build of Chrome. It works exactly the same way it does on the desktop.


Keeping passwords/credentials out of the cloud

The Wifi credentials are automatically synced to the Google Cloud if you have enabled the setting "Backup to Google Drive" (Android settings).

Regarding the credentials (e.g. username and password) used by other apps there is no way to say something in general. Those apps may or may not store the required credentials in a secure way. Modern Android systems (Android 5 and newer) provide some relative secure mechanisms for using encryption keys that are maintained by Android itself. Those keys can then be used for encrypting the credentials before saving them to the flash memory. But using encryption the correct and secure way isn't easy. A lot of app developers use the easy and sloppy way and store credentials more or less in plain text.

Also the automatic backup into the cloud comes into play - if the app developer has not configured it correctly the stored credentials are backuped/synced into the Google cloud (if enabled system-wide, see first section).

Last but not least the is your question about the possibility to detect if an app sends credentials into the net. Unfortunately the only answer is: If the app developer wants to do so the app can do it. Additionally this can also be done by any development library the developer includes into the app (advertising, tracking, ...).


Are all the 2 amp Chargers are "Quick Chargers"?

All 2A chargers are not quick chargers and all quick chargers are not necessarily 2A (Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0 is 3.2 V)

USB standard 3.0 in   lays down standards of 10 W: 5 V, 2 A  for smartphones and tablets
Power = Voltage multiplied by Current and this equation determines charging speed. When you use a 2A charger instead of 1A charger, charging speed increases . You can
calculate the charging time required using the Battery Charge Time Calculator ( choose efficiency of charging at 90 % if your battery is not too old ). Your device is probably supplied 2A charger since the battery is big and charging with 1A would take long. You can plug in the values in the calculator and see for yourself
Quick charging / fast charging of entirely different.  Basic principle is to increase the power supplied in charging by increasing power, either by increasing voltage or current or both. See this for more details How does fast-charge work?


How can I attach a web page to an email?

Dolphin Browswer HD has an option to "Save Page."  I tried it on this page and it saved it as 1606.htm.  I then went into gmail and chose to "add attachment" and used ASTRO file browser to attach it.


my stored contacts that have the country code prepended doNOT get matched to existing calling contacts

If you want a quick answer (two in reality) here is what I would do:

1) Go to Settings > Accounts > remove the Google account > add it back.
   I tried it once and it worked...
2) Go to Gmail on a desktop > Go to Settings (the gear icon in the top right) > Under General, go to 'Phone Numbers' and select your default country code from the dropdown list.
   This way your device should automatically recognize incoming call from your country...

I'm not sure if one of these is the solution to your issue, but I know that many people solved the same issue using them. Just try and tell me if they work. If not, we'll look for another solution ;)


In settings there are settings for Notifications Bar Icon settings there you can turn off notifications for targeted apps. But the only problem with this approach is that you won't see the notifications even after Unlocking the phone. But hey if you want some privacy then it's worth it and it doesn't even require an app.


How do I upload multiple pictures at once to Facebook?

Try this FriendCaster for Facebook app. This has a feature to upload multiple pictures from Gallery.


The solution that has worked for me is:

Upgrade to a Nexus S running Cyanogenmod 10.


How to stop Beautiful Widget from being removed on device reboot?

Make sure the app is on internal memory, not the SD card. I know that Android does not support widgets for apps that have been installed to the SD card instead of internal memory (at least for android 3 and below; not sure if it has changed for android 4).


Screen Orientation not working automatically

Did You turn on Screen Rotation? Swipe from the top and press the top button. Click the Auto Rotation Option to Turn it on.


Nexus 10 - Android 5.0.1 OTA upgrade, “no command” and suggested steps failed

If you are planning on installing a custom rom you need to install a recovery to flash the the ROM. TWRP is good

To get Marshmallow on the Nexus 10 Omnirom is your best bet. You'll need to flash gapps and supersu for root too.

The nexus 10 received 5.1.1 security updates until April 2016 that you can get OTA on a stock device or install manually, but manual installs will wipe the content of the device each time.

The Unified Android Toolkit is good but the information is out there on the Nexus 10 Cyanogenmod page on how to flash a custom ROM from the command line.


Why can't I update my Nexus 4 to Lollipop?

It is possible to sideload the OTA update on a non-rooted, non-unlocked phone without losing your data (although it would be advisable to back up anything important that can't be restored from the cloud). The instructions here worked for me. This approach is not advised if you are not comfortable with working at the command line, dealing with windows drivers, etc. If you do do this, be aware that it takes up to an hour to complete, and for many minutes at a time there is no screen activity!

Alternatively, you could wait; IIRC (and I can't provide a source for this) the staged rollout was to continue until the end of November. Perhaps for some reason you have been moved further back in the list?


Searching Installed Apps Marshmallow 6.0.1

Search is working again on my phone. It seems the system rebuilds an index of sorts on its own, I just had to be more patient.

Marking as answer in case someone else has the same experience and hasn't waited a day for the indexing to finish.


ZTE Z820 Can't bypass Google Account after Factory Reset

Check if your 2 way authentication is ON for your google account.

If it is ON, you need to generate a password for your new android device. You can find this option in your account setting -> security.

Use new generated password for login, it should work....


Text editor that supports italic text and tab indenting, via keyboard shortcuts

Documents To Go is a very good app. It provides the formatting requirements you wanted and supports creating and reading Microsoft Office documents as well as Google Docs.

It supports word, excel and powerpoint. It can be found on the Android market https://market.android.com/details?id=com.dataviz.docstogoapp&feature=search_result

There is a free version but I believe this only let's you view not create or edit documents


How to assign default app to unlisted file type

Although this is slightly programming related, nevertheless;

You can't assign an application to open a specific file extension (.notes or .md in this case) if the application has no explicit intent filter declared in manifest file to open that extension type.

When an app is created it usually has various intent categories and intent filters for  particular file extension(s) that makes android to recognise the capability to open a file extension.

If the declared intent filter matches that of a particular file say .pdf  then android populates and lists all available applications capable of handling that file type, otherwise if no application contains thie specific intents to open/browse etc the particular file extension (.md or .notes in this case) then there is no way to set a default application for that file extension or at least to open that extension.

To expand on this lets consider an intent filter for a cetain application capable of opening/handling audio files:

 <action android:name="android.intent.action.VIEW"/>
                <category android:name="android.intent.category.DEFAULT"/>
                <category android:name="android.intent.category.BROWSABLE"/>
                <data android:scheme="content"/>
                <data android:scheme="file"/>
                <data android:mimeType="application/x-flac"/>
                <data android:mimeType="audio/*"/>
                <data android:mimeType="application/ogg"/>
                <data android:mimeType="application/x-ogg"/>
                <data android:mimeType="application/itunes"/>
            </intent-filter>

In the named intents categories this audio application will have the capability to handle files extensions of audio types including .ogg and itunes file types.

Unless the intents to browse or open these file extensions have been declared in the manifest files of your already installed applications, you can't assign any application to be default. Either you first have to install an app capable of handling such extension or create your own application using suitable filters.

Related:  Android intent filter for a particular file extension?


Is it a bad idea to let your phone keep charging all the time?

For the first part of your question, see Ideal charging / discharging percentage for maximum battery life?. Answers there explain in detail, so yes, it is true

Second part, after how long... depends on how often you charge it the wrong way, your usage (how many cycles of charge) etc and one cannot put a figure to it. Bear in mind that batteries even without being used lose a significant amount of life due to aging. So, it's a bit complicated to separate cause and effect. I don't think it will show up soon but maybe about an year or so (no backing to substantiate)

See answer here for more details Battery capacity wear-down, and its relationship to charging practices


How to fix sudden charge drop in stand by?

Sounds like your battery is trash. Sometimes you buy a new phone and get a bad battery.

Take it back where you bought it and tell them the battery is bad. They should give you a new battery free of charge.


Galaxy S2, 3 year old. Battery went from 55% to 13% in 5 minutes, then phone started restarting

Was the battery life decrease sudden, or has it been getting noticeably worse recently? If so, might be time to get a new battery for your device. Regarding the restart, are there any apps that you've installed recently that might have a bug or something leading to restarts? When a phone reaches that age, I would personally root it and flash something like CM or Slimbean, to get some solid battery life back out of the device (I've personally flashed ChameleonOS on my S2 to get the best of both customization and battery).


Android phone HDD/SSD 2.5"/1.8" - how much power is too much?

USB flash drives consume about 1-2 watts, SSDs max 5 watts and good HDDs 6.5-7 watts. I doubt a low powered USB connection could power an HDD. Perhaps a portable HDD since those use a bit less power.

Sources:
http://www.buildcomputers.net/power-consumption-of-pc-components.html

http://techreport.com/review/25391/wd-red-4tb-hard-drive-reviewed/3

https://superuser.com/questions/565653/how-much-power-does-a-hard-drive-use

http://www.anandtech.com/show/8747/samsung-ssd-850-evo-review/10

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USB#Power

http://www.anandtech.com/show/10163/usb-flash-drives-power-consumption-measurement-using-plugables-usbctkey


Using Android Device Manager to determine state of stolen device

The List will remain same even if the thief has done a hard factory Restore So you cannot trace the phone again if he had done a factory reset or flashed a custom/stock OS again Android Device manager is helpful only if he hasn't done a reset to your device better book a complaint using your IMEI number to Police they can help you :)


Is there a way to get pictures out of a nonfunctional Samsung Note 4?

For the highest chance of getting important data back in a situation like this, it would be best to find a reputable company that has experience fixing this for other people.

I would look for phone repair specialists first, to see if you can get the phone turning on again.
And if not, there are (pricey) businesses that can do data recovery on the storage chips themselves, but you may run into issues with encryption. From my quick research, it looks like the Note 4 was released with Android 4.4, which is after Google had implemented full-disk encryption. I'm not sure if it's enabled by default on your Note 4, and software updates over the years may have enabled it afterwards as well.

I wouldn't recommend attempting to swap the storage chips on 2 phones yourself, unless you have some equipment, and recovering your data isn't super critical. Here's an entertaining video on what the process of soldering these types of chips can sometimes look like: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Shn7LdIrViQ

My overall recommendation is call a few businesses, see what their professional opinions are, and decide if the price would be worth it to you. It would probably still be cheaper than buying a few spare practice-phones and trying repairs at home.


From your contact list, select the Facebook contact that you would like to edit.  Click the menu button and choose Edit Contact.  You'll see an indication that the user is a Facebook contact and may not be edited.  Now click the Menu button again and choose New contact.  This will create a new contact in your address book and merge the Facebook profile information with that contact.  You may now edit the contact to have additional details, such as a phone number.


Disabling Android Device Manager location notification on Galaxy S4

The "location accessed" notification comes from Google Play Services. (You can find out what app a notification comes from by long-pressing it and then selecting "app info.")

To disable notifications from Google Play Services, open Settings > Apps > All > Google Play Services, and then untick show notifications, then accept the prompt.

Note: After disabling these notifications, you may not receive certain alerts from that app, like updating Google Play services.


Ad pops up on lock screen after charging

I think the lock screen App itself is providing Ads. Check for ES File explorer settings it may provide ads sometimes.


Stop WhatsApp from being used on lost phone

From Whatsapp:

  What do I do if my phone is lost or stolen?

  In the unfortunate case that your phone gets lost or stolen, we can
  help make sure that no one can use your WhatsApp account.

  As soon as possible you should call your mobile provider to lock your
  SIM card. Then, it will not be possible to verify the account on that
  phone again as you need to be able to receive SMS or phone calls to
  verify an account.

  After you have locked the SIM in your stolen phone, you can use a new
  SIM with the same number to activate WhatsApp on your new phone. This
  is the fastest way to deactivate your account on the stolen phone.
  WhatsApp can only be activated with one phone number on one device at
  a time.

  If you are not ready to activate WhatsApp on a new phone with the same
  number we can deactivate your account. Email us with your phone number
  in the full international format as described here. Please note that
  we are not able to help you locate your phone. Remote WhatsApp
  deactivation from another device is not possible.

  Important: Even with the SIM card locked and phone service disabled,
  WhatsApp can be used on Wi-Fi if you do not contact us with an account
  deactivation request.

  More important details about deactivated accounts

  When your account is deactivated, it is not completely deleted.
  While your account is deactivated:

  Your name is still on your contacts' Favorites / Select Contact lists.
  Your contacts can send you messages, which will remain in a pending state for up to 30 days.

  If you reactivate your account before it is deleted, you will receive any pending messages on your new phone and you will still be
  in all of your group chats.
  If a deactivated account is not re-activated within 30 days, it will be completely deleted.

  Note: Since your chat history is stored on your device, we cannot retrieve your previous messages.


Unless you know for sure it became hotter than what it is designed for, I doubt you phone is damaged. One thing you didn't mention is where this temperature reading comes from ? If it reads the CPU temperature, 40°c is not that hot at all, a typical CPU can usually raise close to 90°c and I'm pretty sure the same is true for a phone CPU.

From my experience, the issue I have encountered on some occasions is that it looks like an application is stuck while using all the CPU resources without the user being aware. When it happens, I'm not using the phone at all and it is just using the battery and getting warm until I notice the heat. Then I usually need to reboot for this issue to be resolved. It doesn't look like my phone was permanently affected by these issues.


Android data usage shows significant usage even without SIM card

The Data Usage screen can show both Mobile Data and Wi-Fi usage (but only shows one by default).

You're almost certainly seeing your Wi-fi usage, 750MB doesn't sound unlikely for a new device that will have downloaded settings, apps, contacts, and probably OS updates.

If you have a SIM card in your phone then the Data Usage app defaults to only showing Mobile Data usage, but there is a menu option to allow you to set it to show Wi-Fi data usage too.

I assume that if the device has never had a SIM card inserted, then it will default to showing Wi-Fi usage, as that's the only data usage it's used.

(screenshots from a Galaxy Nexus, so it should work the same way)


Your phone is infected by malwares. If you check your app list, you'll notice that there are unusual apps with sometimes weird names.

To get rid of that, all you have is to uninstall them. There is two methods:

DISCLAIMER: Do it at your own risk, I won't be held responsible if anything goes wrong.

First the root method: You have to root your phone and then using adb shell, uninstall the apps - a bit tricky and risky as well. You need to install ADB server on your PC (search for Minimal ADB and Fastboot).
Open it and tape the following:

adb shell

`su`

`mount -o remount, rw /system`

`cd /system/app`

`ls (this list all apps on your phone)`

Then:

rm "app_name"

You must tape the exact app name + .apk or .odex

Do this to all unwanted apps.
You may encounter with apps that can't be removed (operation not permitted), then you need BusyBox installed (Google for that). just let's know, we'll try to help.

The second method, less tricky but always risky, is to download Debloater, open the USB debugging mode, connect your phone to your computer. You'll see all the installed applications. Just check those you want to remove.

Et voilà.

DON'T REMOVE AN APP IF YOU'RE NOT SURE ABOUT, YOU MAY BRICK YOUR PHONE.


Add external calendar to Google Calendar

I think the Google Calendar app for Android doesn't support that functionality.

From a computer:

I open a Google Calendar, for instance this one
I click on the  button.
That calendar gets added to my Google Calendar.

From an Android phone:

I open a Google Calendar, for instance this one
I click on the  button.
The Google Calendar app opens and displays the message "Calendar couldn't be added".

According to the response from a Google representative, "there isn't an option to add external calendars to the Google Calendar app".


With Tasker, you could try this:

Condition: State → Power
Task: Send SMS

(Note that Compose Email / Compose MMS / Compose SMS only open the dialog and let you edit, so you would need to use the Send SMS option to have it automatically sent).


How can I use the Dolphin 70E's hardware scanner in an app?

Finally found on the Honeywell knowledge base.

Under Power Tools > ScanWedge there is a toggle to enable/disable. When ScanWedge is enabled, the scanner buttons work as expected in any application (basically just keyboard input).


Answer

With Android 4.0 ICS, charge only mode is no longer available.

Unfortunately there's no app to deal with this issue AFAIK.

You can try, but I believe that this isn't possible with your phone, but for future readers, placing the phone in "media transfer mode", allows access to SD cards on both phone and computer.

Further into this matter

One can always disable the "automount" feature from the host OS:

Windows 7

Click "start";
At the search box type "autoplay";
Select "AutoPlay" from the search results list, should be under "Control Panel";
Find the "Mixed content" option and select "take no action" from the selectbox.

This will effectively disable Automount for devices like mobile phones. By my tests, the phone doesn't ask to "turn on USB storage" either.

Ubuntu

Using GUI:

Access the "Software Center";
Search for "dconf editor";
Install and after, open it;
Navigate to "org" -> "gnome" -> "desktop" -> "media-handling";
Un-tick "automount" and "automount-open".

Using Command Line:

Open the terminal;
Type gsettings set org.gnome.desktop.media-handling automount false.

Use true to enable it again.


App for calling a list of contacts, one after another

While it doesn't dial automatically, you can add contacts to your home screen for one click dialing.

Home Screen > Menu > Add > Shortcuts > Direct Dial

Now choose a contact.

You'll now have an icon on your home screen that will dial with one click. Do that for all of your contacts and you can have a homescreen of contacts.


I used to use two related apps which were quite helpful.

SDMove - Lists all currently installed applications which can be moved to the SD card and facilitates doing so.
SDWatch, which runs in the background and watches for app installations. When it sees one, and the app can be moved to the SD card, it gives you a notification which takes you to the settings for the app so that you can move it.

You'll still need to move each one one at a time, but SDMove does reduce the number of taps required.

There are other, similar, apps in the Play Store.


Google Photos and Files Apps on Google Pixel 2 is giving the following error "android.process.media has stopped"

Thanks for this suggestion, I tried several onces that suggested stopping some processes and removing cache but they did not work.

I want to downloads as you suggested, removed some files I recently downloaded, checking the date when the problem started (I did not find goo.google.com files).
Reboot and problem seems to be solved for now!


Computer does not boot when Galaxy 2 in USB port

Change boot sequence of computer from BIOS to make Hard Disk above Removable USB media.


How to upload multiple images at once to Google Drive?

Do not go to Google Drive directly.

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


Stopping an app from hijacking browser downloads

Since EbookDroid is open source, I took a quick glance at the AndroidManifest.xml, the pertinent information is this part, between lines 24 and 33:

<intent-filter>
            <action android:name="android.intent.action.VIEW"/>
            <category android:name="android.intent.category.DEFAULT"/>
            <category android:name="android.intent.category.BROWSABLE"/>
            <data android:host="*"/>
            <data android:scheme="file" />
            <data android:scheme="smb" />
            <data android:scheme="content" />
            <data android:scheme="http" />
            <data android:scheme="https" />
.... SNIP ....

The keyword(s) is in the Intent Filter's category

android.intent.category.BROWSABLE
and the android:scheme="http"

With both of these, the app "listens" on the http/https both web, plain and secure and among others such as smb for samba file shares, etc, for the content links that contains the pdf, djvu and others, identified by the lines between 35 and 43:

<data android:pathPattern=".*\\.pdf" />
<data android:pathPattern=".*\\.djvu" />
<data android:pathPattern=".*\\.djv" />
<data android:pathPattern=".*\\.xps" />
<data android:pathPattern=".*\\.oxps" />
<data android:pathPattern=".*\\.cbz" />
<data android:pathPattern=".*\\.cbr" />
<data android:pathPattern=".*\\.fb2" />
<data android:pathPattern=".*\\.fb2\\.zip" />

This will explain why the app hijacks any browser downloads and thusly

  that automatically opens all PDF links instead of letting me download
  them

Why not post an issue on the same site to let the developer know about this?


Download wireless_tools.30.pre9.tar.gz.
This version supports non-ASCII char in ESSID.
Unpack it into mydroid/external/wireless-tools directory.
Create Android.mk file with the following content:

LOCAL_PATH:= $(call my-dir)
################## build iwlib ###################
include $(CLEAR_VARS)
LOCAL_SRC_FILES := iwlib.c
LOCAL_CFLAGS += -Wstrict-prototypes -Wmissing-prototypes -Wshadow -Wpointer-arith -Wcast-qual -Winline -MMD -fPIC
LOCAL_MODULE:= libiw
LOCAL_STATIC_LIBRARIES := libcutils libc libm
include $(BUILD_STATIC_LIBRARY)
################## build iwconfig #################
include $(CLEAR_VARS)
LOCAL_SRC_FILES := iwconfig.c
LOCAL_CFLAGS += -Wstrict-prototypes -Wmissing-prototypes -Wshadow -Wpointer-arith -Wcast-qual -Winline -MMD -fPIC
LOCAL_MODULE:= iwconfig
LOCAL_STATIC_LIBRARIES := libcutils libc libm libiw
#LOCAL_FORCE_STATIC_EXECUTABLE := true
LOCAL_MODULE_PATH := $(TARGET_OUT_OPTIONAL_EXECUTABLES) # install to system/xbin
#LOCAL_UNSTRIPPED_PATH := $(TARGET_ROOT_OUT_UNSTRIPPED)
#LOCAL_MODULE_TAGS := eng user
include $(BUILD_EXECUTABLE)
################## build iwlist ###################
include $(CLEAR_VARS)
LOCAL_SRC_FILES := iwlist.c iwlib.h
LOCAL_CFLAGS += -Wstrict-prototypes -Wmissing-prototypes -Wshadow -Wpointer-arith -Wcast-qual -Winline -MMD -fPIC
LOCAL_MODULE:= iwlist
LOCAL_STATIC_LIBRARIES := libcutils libc libm libiw
#LOCAL_FORCE_STATIC_EXECUTABLE := true
LOCAL_MODULE_PATH := $(TARGET_OUT_OPTIONAL_EXECUTABLES) # install to system/xbin
#LOCAL_UNSTRIPPED_PATH := $(TARGET_ROOT_OUT_UNSTRIPPED)
#LOCAL_MODULE_TAGS := eng user
include $(BUILD_EXECUTABLE)

Modify it as follows:

Change wireless.22.h to be wireless.h ;
Modify ifrename.c , add getline() function. You can get the code from external/genext2fs/genext2fs.c ;
Notice that this file uses macro to pass another function to getline() .
Modify iwlib.h ,  change #include to be #include .
[You might need to check the original file to know what the author means]

Compile

~/eclair-21/external/wireless-tools$ . ../../build/envsetup.sh
~/eclair-21/external/wireless-tools/wireless-tools$ mm

Copy files to the system

~/eclair-21/external/wireless-tools$ croot
~/eclair-21$ cp out/target/product/generic/system/xbin/iwconfig /nfs/rootfs/system/xbin/iwconfig
~/eclair-21$ cp out/target/product/generic/system/xbin/iwlist /nfs/rootfs/system/xbin/

Test
After starting Android:

# modprobe libertas
# modprobe libertas_sdio
libertas_sdio: Libertas SDIO driver
libertas_sdio: Copyright Pierre Ossman
model=0xb
sd8686_helper.bin sd8686.bin
init: untracked pid 853 exited
init: untracked pid 856 exited
libertas: eth1: Marvell WLAN 802.11 adapter
# iwconfig eth1
eth1      IEEE 802.11b/g  ESSID:"Antrose-11g"
          Mode:Managed  Frequency:2.437 GHz  Access Point: 00:15:E9:0C:87:7C
          Bit Rate:1 Mb/s   Tx-Power=13 dBm
          Retry limit:8   RTS thr=2347 B   Fragment thr=2346 B
          Encryption key:off
          Power Management:off
          Link Quality=83/100  Signal level=-60 dBm  Noise level=-93 dBm
          Rx invalid nwid:0  Rx invalid crypt:0  Rx invalid frag:1441
          Tx excessive retries:44  Invalid misc:11220   Missed beacon:0
# iwlist scan
eth1      Scan completed :
          Cell 01 - Address: 00:22:6B:8C:5D:3A
                    ESSID:"Antrose-11g"
                    Mode:Managed
                    Frequency:2.412 GHz (Channel 1)
                    Quality=65/100  Signal level=-78 dBm  Noise level=-96 dBm
                    Encryption key:off
                    Bit Rates:1 Mb/s; 2 Mb/s; 5.5 Mb/s; 11 Mb/s; 18 Mb/s
                              24 Mb/s; 36 Mb/s; 54 Mb/s; 6 Mb/s; 9 Mb/s
                              12 Mb/s; 48 Mb/s
# iwconfig eth1 essid Antrose-11g
# iwconfig eth1
eth1      IEEE 802.11b/g  ESSID:"Antrose-11g"
          Mode:Managed  Frequency:2.437 GHz  Access Point: 00:15:E9:0C:87:7C
          Bit Rate:1 Mb/s   Tx-Power=13 dBm
          Retry limit:8   RTS thr=2347 B   Fragment thr=2346 B
          Encryption key:off
          Power Management:off
          Link Quality=83/100  Signal level=-60 dBm  Noise level=-93 dBm
          Rx invalid nwid:0  Rx invalid crypt:0  Rx invalid frag:1441
          Tx excessive retries:44  Invalid misc:11220   Missed beacon:0

Done.

Ref:
http://anemospring.blogspot.com.es/2011/03/android-wireless-tools.html


Firstly, data on your SD card will not be erased. Then there's a chance, that your contacts are already backed up on Google's servers, so you don't loose them either.

I don't know if the app will help. Harddrives don't delete anything, they just stop indexing the files and then rewrite the sector with new files, but (I'm not 100% sure) I don't think you can do the same with SD memory.


My Droid did a system update and erased everything

Unless you had a back-up, it would be impossible to go back to a previous state. However, if you enabled Google sync, you can still restore your contacts, calendar, and other Google-syncable data.

After a Factory Reset, you will be asked to log-in to your Google account again. After which, it may ask you if you want to re-install some apps that you paid for previously. It will not install the free apps; you may want to install them manually.


OK Google voice command through bluetooth headset (D.I.Y. Google Home device)

Yes it is possible, it works on my Android 4.4 tablet with a Technika bluetooth speaker and I can say "Ok Google" anywhere in the room and it picks it up, it's pretty sweet! just like an Amazon Echo or Google Home device, just free.. haha. Just make sure "Ok Google anywhere" is turned on in the Google app settings and that your mic option is turned on in the system bluetooth settings and you should have your DIY Google Home/Amazon Echo up and running! I hope this helps  and have a nice day!


Deleted some apk files - but the apps are still there after reboot

Some vendors set up their phones to reinstall system applications at boot in case they go missing.  Try finding a directory that contains a copy of the APK that's used to reinstall it, and delete it from there.

A simple alternative solution is to freeze the unwanted apps rather than uninstalling them.  Titanium Backup and Link2SD can help you with that (both require root).  In ICS+, there's also a user-accessible mechanism to deactivate apps from the settings menu.


Method to change browser User Agent based on site

Have you installed and used the Dolphin Desktop Toggle add-on? Is it not what you were looking for?

Although, not an automatic method, it does make switching user agents much less painful.

Else, you might also try accessing the mobile version of sites that render better by using their URL e.g. http://m.twitter.com or http://m.gmail.com or mobile.website.com etc.


Unlock device using facial recognition and go to Homescreen

In some of the Samsung devices there is a bug in the stock rom that forces the swipe unlock to prompt even when you have by-passed your lock screen and acts as a double lock screen. This is solved if you switch to a custom ROM instead. In Some cases you want to check the lock screen tab under the settings menu and uncheck something as Use Swipe to unlock. And select the facial recognition under the settings -> Lock screen option.

Hope this helps!!


How can I restore IMEI code after factory reset?

There are several possibilities. The first starts with checking the "Related" section to the right of this page, which gives you some good candidates which already contain answers/solutions, e.g.:

How to fix “Invalid IMEI ” after Factory reset?

Next, there are some video tutorials on Youtube on this topic, e.g.:

How to Change or Repair Your IMEI Number On Android Cell Phone
HOW TO SOLVED Invalid IMEI

My short Google Search also found some forum threads providing hints and solutions, e.g.:

Invalid IMEI after Reset to Factory Defaults

I couldn't verify any of the mentioned solutions myself (luckily, I've never been affected by this problem) -- but I hope at least one of them will prove helpful to you.


Get Internal Storage path for pulling over ADB

Depending on your Android version, there could be a few "canonical" directories:

In old times sdcard and userdata are two separate partitions:

/storage/sdcard0

In modern times (mostly Android 5+), sdcard is part of userdata

/storage/emulated/0
/storage/emulated/legacy

Finally, there's always a convenient way to reach it

/sdcard

Simple, right?


Nexus 5 failed recovery due to /data partition

I used this link to repair my /data directory:

http://forum.xda-developers.com/google-nexus-5/general/howto-repairing-corrupted-data-partition-t2577447

Fortunately I was able to boot into fastboot mode the usual way ( Volume down and power at the same time ) unfortunately TWRP kept looping after erring on the corrupted /data folder. I ended up replacing TWRP with "Philz Recovery Nexus 5" because it booted up normally. I then formatted the /data, /system, /cache directories. That fixed the /data directory error and corruption problem. I was able to load CM13 successfully after that. I had to use a OTG external USB drive to load Philz Recovery Nexus 5, CM13 and GApps. I hope this helps. I'm sticking with Philz Recovery Nexus 5. It fixed the problem!


Is there any way to move whats app from phone memory to sd card?

The newer Android versions already support moving the app from internal SD to an external. It should be in Settings->Applications->Manage Applications.


Other peoples photos in my camera uploads folder

Change the password on DropBox straight away.

Then move the photos into a folder in case anyone gets in touch.

Make sure that your new password is a strong one and not easily guessed.

Then let DropBox know what happened and what you've done.


How can install a Hindi font in Android 2.1?

There's NO support for Hindi or any other Indian languages built-in, in all Android versions up to and including FroYo (2.2). Gingerbread (2.3) does support Hindi as a language according to this post

If you're looking for a Hindi keyboard, you'll need the HindiIME APK from Samsung - they're usually installed on phones that Samsung sells in India. As a workaround, use Opera Mini for Android - it renders Unicode Devanagiri fonts correctly.


How do i Connect PC Internet on Android Mobile?

You can do this using Connectify software. I had recently put up a thread on a different site. My PC too doesn't have a WiFi module. My proposal was to use an external USB WiFi module, and then turn that into a hotspot. People in Physics Forums (check the second link) have said that in principle, this should be possible.


Google play stuck on "Waiting for network..." when installing an app on mobile data

I have the axon 7 go to settings then apps then Google play then tap 3 small boxes in top right corner and uninstall update.... This worked out for me


How to "passthrough" a file from PC to Android and back using 'exec-in' and 'exec-out' directives?

My post is more a comment than an answer (but I cannot comment).
All my comments below address only the case of Windows adb host.
adb shell gzip >C:\test.gz <C:\test.txt probably works just because the input file is a text file.
adb shell gzip >C:\test.gz <C:\test.bin fails because the call of Windows read function in adb stops reading as soon as 0x1A byte (ctrl+Z) is read. This is the default text operation mode of the Windows read function.
The workaround uses by exec-in and exec-out is to call _setmode() to configure the writing and reading of file descriptors in binary mode.
Unfortunately most of the time <test.bin adb exec-in "cat - > sdcard/test.bin" fails as well for adbd version < 1.0.41 (ie anything below android 10). The cause is probably some race condition issues in the usb.cpp code of adbd.
Android 10 fixes this with the nonblocking FFS implementation and <test.bin adb exec-in "cat - > sdcard/test.bin" works with Windows (tested with LineageOS 17.1 + Windows 10)


Sounds like toast message notification
A toast provides simple feedback about an operation in a small popup.

Toasts automatically disappear after a timeout set by the app developers. So you can not control the behavior of toast messages.


Samsung Galaxy Tab, charging technique through USB Cable

I don't think the cable is particularly important.  Its the jack that the cable plugs into that makes a difference.

Basically, if the tablet can tell that its plugged into a special (high amp) jack, then the tablet will charge more quickly (at 2A), otherwise the tablet will assume its plugged into a standard USB port and charge at the specification limit (500 mA).  The best way to get an adapter that the tablet can identify is to use the official wall adapter.  I believe there is no "standard" way of doing this, so different manufacturers may do different things (e.g., using an Apple USB charger may not work).

You should be able to see what your tablet is doing based on the battery icon in the system tray (assuming its similar to the older Galaxy Tab that I have).  On my tablet the icon will have a small red "X" if its being charged through a "normal" connection, and should have no such "X" if its being charged through a high-amp connection.

See How much power does a Galaxy Tab 10.1 charger need to supply?

And Do Samsung tablets have the same USB connector as Apple's iPad?

And Why is charging from computer using USB slower than using an outlet?


Cannot use Gear VR app with error message "com.samsung.android.hmt.vrsvc is not installed"

Searching com.samsung.android.hmt.vrsvc reveals that it is Gear VR Service (from list of S6 bloatware on XDA).

Researching about Gear VR Service itself, it seems that Gear VR only supports a handful of devices officially (from Wikipedia):

Galaxy Note 4 (developer version)
Galaxy Note 5
Galaxy S6/S6 Edge/S6 Edge+
or Galaxy S7/S7 Edge

And thus, those devices have Gear VR Service* installed.

You can still check if your device has this by going to Setting - Application Manager - Gear VR Service, and check if it's there, enabled/disabled.

Image courtesy of Unreal Engine documentation

Regarding installing this service on other devices, I have searched and as of current writing, nothing came up. Most of them can only suggest to wait until Samsung officially push the Gear VR Software update to your device.

*may depend on update by carrier (from Reddit).


Hotmail contacts not syncing in android 5.1 GPE

I did a clean wipe, set up my hotmail in Gmail as an exchange account. At first it didn't seem to work after a few updates I now see the contacts again.


Make an android app keep its spot on the home screen on uninstall/reinstall

Not quite what you asked for, but you could put a Tasker shortcut on the home screen, and have that task just open the app. You could also have that task try different package names in order to support both your debug and release versions.


How come my adb can't simulate a touchscreen tap?

Your version of SDK tools has nothing to do with the parameters input can understand or execute. Input is a binary in Android OS which can be run independently without requiring any set of external tools such as ADB.

The reason you receive the error "Error: Unknown command: touchscreen" is because you're running an Android version earlier than Android 4.1.1. You would already notice that in the input usage you posted, the binary entertains only two parameters i.e. text and  keyevent.

In Android 4.0.x, the input command's usage remains the same as the one you posted. In fact, even Android 2.3.7 has the same input command's usage. (See com.android.commands.input.Input on GrepCode for comparison of command's usage between Android versions.)

It was Android 4.1.1 which introduced tap and swipe parameter with usage,

usage: input ...
       input text <string>
       input keyevent <key code number or name>
       input tap <x> <y>
       input swipe <x1> <y1> <x2> <y2>

See the source code for more.


How does the Amazon Appstore verify its apps?

According to their dev blog, the appstore does download a small token for DRM'd apps which it uses to validate them at launch:

  How can you verify that the user has an entitlement to the app without internet access?

  During the installation process for an
  app, the Amazon Appstore client
  downloads a small token that grants
  the user the right to access the
  application. A valid token permits the
  user that purchased the app to access
  their app offline. The Amazon Appstore
  client will periodically communicate
  with Amazon servers to refresh the
  token.

My guess as to why you see the error is that the token is either out of date or just got corrupted somehow (bug in the appstore maybe). Re-downloading probably refreshes the token since it's originally retrieved at install time, but it sounds like you may also be able to clear the appstore data and sign in to get a valid token, or possibly just launch the appstore and let it connect/refresh itself (haven't tried these myself as I haven't had this error yet).


"Can't reach Google at the moment" when using Google Now

I had issue with reminders not working and that was "fixed" by going into app settings and then Accounts & Privacy, turn ON Search with Google.com

Now commands work properly? Must be a local server issue.


How to disable power button triple tap emergency call feature?

In Android Pie in OnePlus 6 you can now access the activity shown in the video via Settings → Security & lock screen → Emergency Rescue.

(Image sourced from OnePlus Forums)


"Fastboot" is another name for the bootloader.  On the devices I've used (Galaxy Nexus, Nexus 5, Nexus 10), the bootloader is stored in a partition called "bootloader", and you can use it to overwrite itself by running fastboot flash bootloader (filename) from a PC.  Overwriting the bootloader partition with something that isn't a working bootloader will presumably brick the device, though I've never tried it.

Google's official factory images for Nexus devices include bootloader images, and flashing a factory image begins by overwriting the bootloader with the version from the factory image.  Custom firmwares (such as CyanogenMod) don't include a bootloader, so the device will keep the one from the official firmware.

On a rooted device, it's possible for apps with root access to overwrite partitions (including the bootloader partition) from within the running Android OS.  On a non-rooted device, apps can't do that.

I've never installed Kali, but looking at the installation instructions, it apparently installs as a chroot environment, which doesn't involve fastboot or any partition images.  So I'm guessing that your concern isn't with the installation of Kali itself, it's that a remote intruder who gets into your Kali installation might be able to overwrite your bootloader.  That seems unlikely to happen, but it's possible if your Kali installation is able to run programs as root.


Can I send a link from my phone to my desktop?

Try Push Bullet.
It let's you push images, links and other things to desktop, tablet, another mobile device etc.


Avoid opening Play Store after NFC scan for unlocking with Smart Lock

According to the answer by Michael Roland on same problem on SO,

Play Store opening up after scanning a tag is a clear indication that the tags contain an Android Application Record (AAR). A tag containing an AAR will only start the app referenced in the AAR or will open that app's Play Store page.
In order to re-use the tags, you should first format them or simply overwrite them with some other NDEF message that does not contain an AAR.
You could, for instance, use an app like NXP TagWriter to do that. [the rest is redacted due to related to app development]


It's possible if you are using Cyanogenmod even without any 3rd party software:

Connect the phone to the PC and enable USB tethering. Then create a hotspot on your laptop and connect your phone to it.

After that, your phone shares it's WiFi connection to your PC, so you can transfer files and use internet.

If you're not a CM user then try using PdaNet+

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.pdanet


Locked out of my Samsung Galaxy S Duos (forgot password)

I was under the impression that if you entered an incorrect unlock password too many times then it would ask you to enter your Google Account password to confirm your identity?

Have you not had this option when trying passwords?


Would google apps for a lower android version work for the higher one?

Yes, Google Apps for older Android versions still work with the latest version of Android (usually, with Android 6 they need a fix to give them some permissions)

Although they might work, I recommend getting OpenGApps for your Android version for better compatibility and the latest patches.


Show Settings->Apps on desktop as a distinct icon?

Simple enough without installing apps. Lollipop (at least my G3's build) lets you to go the activities carousel by pressing Square. In that view, you can close any app down using the X in the top right.