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Hi everyone. I just purchased my Droid X last week, and I'm having some migrating pains coming from Windows Mobile 6.5 (HTC Touch Pro 2, Mighty ROM) over to Android. I'm wondering if the fine folks here at XDA can help me ease into the Android OS a little easier.
Here are the things I miss most about WinMo, maybe you can tell me some viable alternatives.
1) The Dialer. - Skip the next 3 paragraphs if you're familiar with HTC Sense on WinMo.
The dialer absolutely sucks compared to the TP2. Having to click different tabs juts annoys me. In the TP2, the dialer and recent calls were displayed in a single window, so if I wanted to dial Steve, I had 2 ways of doing it.
The first way was to dial 7(S), 8(T). The phone would recognize I am spelling out Steve, and list everyone who fits the ST criteria sorted by most recently called. The more I spelled out his name, the narrower the results got.
The second method was to dial his number. Pretend Steve's number is (123) 456-7890. If I dialed 123, it would sort all contacts with numbers who matched the area code, and it would narrow the results as I typed more of his phone number.
I really hate having to tap between Contacts (there is a contacts soft button next to the dialer anyway), I would just click that if I wanted to from the beginning.
Are there any dialers out there closer to the HTC Dialer?
2) Contacts.
There has to be a better contact manager. Not being able to quickly tap a letter to get to contacts is really dumb.
3) Ninja Applications.
Why do I keep seeing applications running that I never started when I load Advance Task Killer. It's really annoying when I load up an App, and go to close it, and see Skype and CityID running when I never launched either of them. I'm almost afraid to set up AIM on my phone at this point.
4) GPS.
If I keep my GPS on, my battery gets killed. With my TP2, it would only use the GPS when it needed it, so for weather updates, and Google Maps, otherwise it stayed off (or was in a suspend state). I turned the GPS on my first day and had 0 battery by around 2 (left the house at 8). Is there any way to set the GPS to only be used, as needed?
5) APPLICATIONS EVERYWHERE.
Is there anyway to sort these into folders? Also, is there anyway to add an X to the application so I can close it when I'm done with it rather than having to launch an App just to close the App I just used?
I really liked the Sense way of doing it, where I had an X in the Application, and a drop down on the home screen that would list the open Apps so I could close them 1 at a time.
6) MotoBlur.
Ugh, I really hate this UI. Has anyone had any experience with SenseX?
7) Custom Roms.
I've seen a handful of Custom ROMs, and I'm planning on putting one on when I have some time next week. I need a good way to backup contacts, after I just spent an hour linking everyone, but I'd like to know if there is a decent Apples to Apples comparison of the ROMs. They don't seem to be outlines as detailed as I'm used to.
On this topic, are there any problems setting up things like MMS once you install a Custom ROM? It was a nightmare on the TP2, but those ROMs were also made for multiple carriers, which isn't a problem with this phone, so I imagine it shouldn't be an issue.
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Thank you for taking the time to read this wall of text.
Other than the 7 things listed, I love the phone. Finding MortPlayer for Droid made my day. I'm looking forward to unlocking it's true potential, and I hope my list isn't a bunch of things I'm just going to have to adjust to.
Thank you again, have a great day.
EDIT:
Also, it's really annoying that every time I connect my phone to my PC, it launches a Verizon web site. Is there anyway to disable this?
Ok... I will take a stab at this.
FIRST, You DO NOT have to settle for the apps that come preinstalled on your phone! Just had to clear that up... Ok, here we go:
Check an app called "Dialer One" and see if that fits your needs... I haven't used it in a while... but heard it still a great replacement for the stock dialer.
Searching for a better Contact Manager is on my To-Do list.. hope someone comes in and help out a little more with that one
Don't worry about the "ninja" apps TOO much. Android Froyo has an amazing task manager and even though you SEE the apps as "running applications", they are not really RUNNING. They are more like... in a queue.. so they are ready for whenever you come back to them....but you still have to watch what the apps are doing. Some do not play nicely and hog memory. I'll link a good post here in a minute explaining that a little better.
There is a widget that can help you out here.. it's called "Power Control" put that bad boy on your homescreen and the option to turn on/off wifi, bluetooth, gps, etc is at your fingertips (for even more controls... check out "Extended Controls" in the market. It cost like $1 and some change)
I'm... not really following this one. For one.. you CAN use folders on your homescreen and put whatever your heart desires in them.. and label it accordingly. I'm not sure what you mean by the "X" in the app
SenseX?? What is that?? Anyway.. as you will find out soon, 99% of the Droid X community despise MotoBlur!! You can use a different Home Launcher and not use Blur. Two of the major Home Launcher replacements are Adw.launcher & LauncherPro... which one is better is a whole different story. They are both great and only YOU can choose which one is best. There many threads comparing them and they run neck to neck mostly. I'm on LauncherPro personally
Custom Roms?? Eh.. I personally do my own developments and theming on my phone and do not use them... there not really all what they cracked up to be because whatever they have on them... I can do myself. So I'm not much of an help on that one... Somebody else maybe will chime in.
P.S-To fix the Verizon thing, go to the "M" in the taskbar at the bottom of your screen by the clock on your PC and right click it.. there should be an option saying to tell it to NOT send you to the Verizon site when you connect your phone. I don't know the EXACT wording of the option menu.. I'm on a mac
Thank you for your reply.
I will check out the Dialer. Thank you very much.
Darn!
A friend of mine told me that, but it's hard for me to not be a bit OCD about background Applications. I've been a Windows user most of my life, and coming from WinMo, background apps really kill performance.
More than anything, my issue is with things like Skype loading when I do not want to be signed in. I want auto-login when I launch the Application, but I don't want the application loading when it feels like it, and me getting a random IM or call from someone when I didn't even tell it to log in.
It also bothers me that Amazon MP3, something I've never even loaded, has turned itself on. It makes me feel like I don't have control over my phone.
I do have a widget that lets me turn these things on and off, I was just hoping for a way to set it up so that the GPS is "pinged" and only used as needed, and turned back off. My TP2 did this, and was a great battery saver. Having to turn the GPS on and off just to get a weather update based on location is a bit annoying.
I didn't mean on the home-screen, I meant in the application list. So when I hit the application list, I can sort them by "Games", "Google", etc.
For the "X", what I mean is in reference to closing an App. In WinMo, the top right of the screen had an X, and if I touched that X, the app would close. Now, once I exit the App, I need to use an application killer to close said App.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=764840
Looks like Sense for the Droid X. In Beta now, so I'm waiting for a stable release.
Really, it's just to get rid of bloatware and take advantage of some performance optimizations that have been made.
A couple of other things that have come up.
I need a better keyboard. One with arrows so I can navigate text. Touching isn't precise enough, and I don't have a stylus with this phone. Today I voiced a text message, and I went to correct an error, but I couldn't get the curse to go in the exact spot I needed it to go into. My old OSK had arrow soft-keys I could tap to navigate with.
Also, I notice when I pull my phone out of the leather pouch I have, when I hit the power button it comes up in landscape, and the accelerometer doesn't pick up on the turn. I need to turn the screen off and turn it back on.
Finally, I'm having extender issues, but I think I need to call VZW for that. When leaving my house, I can't reconnect to Data without a power-cycle.
Thank you for the reply.
my .02
3. Break yourself from the taskiller need. If you have programs allways running that you dont need, ie skype or city id. Root and delete those SOB's. you can look around and there are plenty of articles of why not to use them. Android is a linux based os. Linux is far supirior to Win in memeory management. You dont need task killers.
4. if your gps is turned on its not always running. It only runs when needed. Is by chance your wifi on? that will run all the time by searching for access points. if not you might have maps running, make sure to always back out of maps and not just hit home. That way it closes and doesnt just run in background. (actually goes for most apps)
5 organization- you cant sort the app drawer, you can hide apps (just the icons) using launcher pro, not sure if ADW has that option. Useing folders or the app "app manager" is your best bet
extra. swype has arrows. swype from the swype icon to abc and it will bring up a new keyboard.
I came from winmo- so I know all about your "X" pains. But I say forget about a task killer or even killing tasks (except maybe maps and navigation). I did a little reading about pros and cons and decided to try the "no task killer" approach. I haven't had any problems. the task killer is a pain anyways. you can kill apps all day long and there are a bunch of them that are just going to repopulate themselves in like 5 minutes. I just said, "fegetaboutit". My phone runs great.
if you open the dialer and are on the contacts tab just long press the menu button (the physical button) and your keyboard will pop up. start typing and contacts will appear.
I like "Zeam Launcher". There is a thread here on XDA. I have Launcher Pro+ -but actually liked Zeam so much I use it. Just different preferences though.
that's all i got for now.
Thank you for your replies.
I will try to be a bit less OCD regarding my tasks. I did kill a couple of services of applications that kept starting, like Skype.
I'll check out those launchers and see if I like them better.
Any good stock widgets?
EDIT:
So I just tried to check my location on Google Maps with GPS turned off, and it says I need to turn it on.
How do I set it up to use the GPS as needed?
I leave location services on (GPS)
My theory is that applications will only enable GPS when they need them, so if you have a application running that wants GPS, it will use it.
The GPS icon appears in the notification bar when I'm using something that is using GPS, so I assume its only actually on when this icon is present. Leave it on in settings just makes is available.
Any widget or application that has a setting for manual location (Weather, IMDB) I use it, and disable GPS location, to keep GPS from running all of the time.
To exit an app you are using, either hit the back button or the home button.
If you are worried about "ninja" apps using cpu and memory, you can try a minfree adjustment application such as AutoKiller Memory Optimizer. It fine tunes android's inner memory manager to be a bit more aggressive in closing applications.
I use another Rom (rubiX, link in sig) that already has minfree adjusted (according to the author) and it does help in keeping the X smooth. It also removes all (well most) of Blur and default installed apps as well, so you start with a very clean X.
The default home screen (blur) is crap. I would also suggest replacing it with LauncherPro or ADW
For removing the pre-installed applications. Follow this guide
http://www.droidxforums.com/forum/d...ta-3-ways-super-easy-safe-safe-easy-free.html
Some apps in /system/app/ are not named what they are
(IE. mynet.apk = 3g Hotspot)
For a keyboard anywhere, you can hold the menu button, and it will pop up.
Swype is really a few keyboards. Swype from the icon to the SYM button, it will give you the edit panel (arrows, home, end, copy, paste, etc...) press the ABC button to go back.
Swype from the icon to the f key, it will turn into a number pad. Press the ABC button to go back to the normal keyboard.
Run the tutorial on Swype too, it will give you some very nice pointers on it's use. I used Swype on windows mobile and I found out a few things about Swype I never knew.
Also, as for touching where your cursor is in a text field, if you press and hold, and magnifying bubble will pop up. This makes moving the cursor easier
Did you find a dialer yet? I saw these posted and thought about this thread...
http://www.appbrain.com/app/kz.mek.DialerOne
http://www.appbrain.com/app/acontacts/kz.mek.aContacts
Haven't had a chance to try them yet.
bad4u6669 said:
.... swype has arrows. swype from the swype icon to abc and it will bring up a new keyboard.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
OMG. thanks. been loving swype but that has been driving me nuts. Thanks for the info.
Thank you for the replies.
One of the things I liked about my TP2, is I could leave location services on, and it used very little battery.
I guess Weather Bug just SUCKS battery out like crazy. I turned on the GPS last night for something, and decided to see how well it did with battery today. It turns out that some grocery shopping app I wanted to try was sucking my GPS dry (no idea why)... yet another "ninja app" that just started up because it felt like it (this kind of **** really makes me , programs should only start up when I tell them to, not when a component of my phone turns on).
I live in an apartment that has really bad signal (I actually have a Network Extender), so that might be my GPS constantly trying to update when I'm at home killing my battery.
WeatherBug is set to update every hour, so I'm going to see what happens tomorrow with the GPS turned on. It would be nice if I could just set it and forget it, not need to turn it off every time I come home.
Thank you for the contact program, I might check it out. I've been pretty content since I got DialerOne and found out I can get the keyboard up by holding the options.
I tried LauncherPro, and I LOVED it at first, and my phones performance was fantastic!
Then I found out it charges me to resize widgets... WTF is that crap?
I'm going to try some other launchers and see what happens. I'm getting the hang of it, but I still do not like things starting up on their own. Regardless of memory management, my phone should not just decide to boot up programs on it's own.
the phone only does what the app or the user tells it to do. If theirs an app that you don't like, delete it.
And complaining that launcher pro charges for every thing it offers is ridiculous. Every thing it offers for free already ( 7 home screens, 10 rows and columns, unreal speed improvement, etc. ) then to get the extras its less than most people throw away on a daily basis. Where as this three dollars its money that pays off on a daily basis
Adw and lp should be paid apps from the start for all they offer.
You have 3 options, write your own program, use the stock launcher, find a free one.
-end rant
Sent from my DROIDX using Tapatalk
I usually leave my location setting on "Use Wireless Networks" and don't bother with GPS other than for maps and navigation. Works fine for all of my other apps that need a location (e.g., weather).
There are apps out there that can turn GPS on and off automatically when you run a particular app, such as Tasker (which can do a whole host of things, but that is one one of them). Tasker is a paid app, but there might be something free out there that does something similar.
Also, I agree with the previous poster re: Launcher Pro. It's really a fantastic home launcher and well worth a few bucks to support the developer. The LP Plus widgets are also a lot better than any of the Blur widgets.
In the end, I probably will buy it, but I'm going to play around with some of the free ones first.
Tasker sounds like it might be worth it for that feature alone (being able to turn the GPS on and off at will). I'm just surprised a feature like this wasn't built in to begin with, considering WinMo has had it for years.
On an unrelated note, can anyone recommend a good media player? I'm going to be flying soon and want to test the battery out on Airplane mode while watching a movie from the SD card. I need something that can decode a variety of formats, mostly XviD for stuff like digital movie copies and TV shows.
EtherBoo said:
In the end, I probably will buy it, but I'm going to play around with some of the free ones first.
Tasker sounds like it might be worth it for that feature alone (being able to turn the GPS on and off at will). I'm just surprised a feature like this wasn't built in to begin with, considering WinMo has had it for years.
On an unrelated note, can anyone recommend a good media player? I'm going to be flying soon and want to test the battery out on Airplane mode while watching a movie from the SD card. I need something that can decode a variety of formats, mostly XviD for stuff like digital movie copies and TV shows.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You might want to look into RockPlayer. That's the only one I found so far that decodes ALMOST anything on the spot.
The "Ninja Applications" are running because Android is a true multi tasking OS.
Sent from my DROIDX using XDA App
I hope necromancy isn't frowned upon on this board, so my apologies if it is.
I found a new problem because I had the nerve to attempt to update a contact photo after Facebook had saved it's picture to it.
This is especially frustrating because I'm going to want to override a lot of these photos very soon.
Apparently, updating the photo updates the Google Contact photo, but the phone only displays the Facebook photo. This is a bug confirmed by Moto that will be fixed in a future update.
This leaves me with 2 options.
De-Sync FB, which I'm not thrilled about only because I like getting the most recent status update prior to receiving a call, and There is a lot of info that FB fills in for me.
Copy down all the FB info, and fill it in manually. With Google Contacts not being the best contact manager (I'm very OCD about uniformity in the way things are formatted), I really don't want to do this.
So I figure I need a new contact manager. I tried AContacts, and it crashed every time I tried to edit a contact.
I would love something like the HTC one that comes with WinMo, or maybe even the iPhone one.
I would be willing to pay for this.
P.S.
I'm now rooted and running a custom ROM (zapX I think it's called). I'm loving my phone much more now. My battery life has skyrocketed, and my performance is amazing now. Very iPhone smooth (one thing I was always jealous of, and I hate the iPhone).
Hi Im a new user at this site, Been scouring the internet since monday looking into evo shift stuff and came across this site. This site is awesome and I love how the threads are based off phone and not just software or carrier like other phones which makes forums messy as heck.
Btw I am new to andriod software
K here is my question..
What should I do with my Evo Shift 4G ?
My time searching I have came across stuff like "root" - "ADW Launcher" "wimix keys"
First off I know what root is, Its like jail breaking I heard, Is it suggested I do this?
Also what is this wimix keys or another , wmix keys or something that I hear alot of people talking about when rooting?... What information is that holding and why is it so important to back em up?
Also If I where to root would I have to worry about any applications running like Lookout and Advance task killer?
So I guess in all, What do you recommend I do with my Evo Shift to spoof it up abit.
Protejae said:
Hi Im a new user at this site, Been scouring the internet since monday looking into evo shift stuff and came across this site. This site is awesome and I love how the threads are based off phone and not just software or carrier like other phones which makes forums messy as heck.
Btw I am new to andriod software
K here is my question..
What should I do with my Evo Shift 4G ?
My time searching I have came across stuff like "root" - "ADW Launcher" "wimix keys"
First off I know what root is, Its like jail breaking I heard, Is it suggested I do this?
Also what is this wimix keys or another , wmix keys or something that I hear alot of people talking about when rooting?... What information is that holding and why is it so important to back em up?
Also If I where to root would I have to worry about any applications running like Lookout and Advance task killer?
So I guess in all, What do you recommend I do with my Evo Shift to spoof it up abit.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
First, let me preface this by saying that congratulations on purchasing the best phone in the current sprint lineup. How are you liking it so far?
In response to your first question, I don't think I, or anyone else for that matter, am qualified to tell you what to do with your phone. The best I can do is give you a list of pro's and con's and be helpful and polite in answering questions you may have.
Rooting is like jailbreaking an iPhone in that it gives you administrative access to your phone. Unlike the iPhone, Android is open-source and hacker friendly, which means that rooting your Shift also allows you to do things like install custom versions of Android (ROMs), apply themes over current versions of android, and use apps that require root access.
That being said, there are some downsides to rooting your phone. Obviously, it voids both HTC's and Sprint's warranties for the phone. This means that while your phone is rooted, you can not take it to a sprint store and get it replaced or repaired. Also, rooting is a somewhat delicate procedure and if you make a mistake in the process, you will be left with a $549 paperweight.
Furthermore, please read through the forums BEFORE rooting and if you have any questions about the process, please ask. Were here to help.
In response to your other questions, ADW Launcher is simply a replacement launcher (the program that comes up when you press the home button). It does not require root and if you're curious about it, you can download it from the android market for free and play around with it.
Wimax is Sprint's 4g service. Without Wimax keys, the Shift cannot connect to 4g. The custom recovery that is available on the shift does not back them up, so when you use the restore function in recovery mode, you will lose them, unless you back them up to your SD card (which is one of the steps in the rooting process).
Lastly, Because of the way that the Android OS utilizes RAM, task killing apps are usually frowned upon. Killing background tasks does not result in a noticeable increase in speed or benchmarks and uses more battery restarting vital apps than it saves when they're not running.
There is an app for root users that does help though, its called Cache Cleaner and is available for free on the market. Instead of force stopping background processes, it periodically clears up space in your cache (which is comparable to deleting your web history, cookies, and cache in your internet browser at home in order to make videos and webpages load faster).
I hope this post was helpful and I apologize for the length. Let me know if you have any more questions.
Well first off, length on post doesnt matter to me, I thank you for a quality post.
So in a nutshell wifimax or wimax are files thare are essential for the 4g connection when it is present in your area. For me we dont have 4g yet. So if I where to ROOT I would need to back these files up, because if I dont, I lose the option to have 4g and then basically I am jacked?
I tried ADW Launcher and I dont see whats so special about it, With the HTC Sense option to have different scenes,I dont see a reason to really mess with it.. I just got it so maybe Im not bored yet with the flipping options and theme yet.
If it matters I have experience flashing PSP with a custom firmware if that helps any with rooting.
I have came across many apps in my 3 days owning this phone, Amazing stuff out there. Stuff from barcode scanners, Scan2PDF,AngryBirds,EasyTether,etc.. I feel like there are other apps out there Im missing that I would love.
So your saying get rid of the advance task manager and run that cache cleaner instead?.. Does it accomplish the same thing in a nut shell?
Thanks for any help, it is appreciated
I would also give Launcher Pro a chance, its free unless you want the Launcher Pro Widgets which give you simular to Sense Widgets (Calendar, Messaging...ect) I prefer it to ADW because its incredibly smooth in comparision.
Task killers are generally bad on android period. Cache cleaner just clears temp files.
If you feel you must run a task killer, don't set it to ruin continuously, and only use it kill single apps that lock up or wake lock the phone. Which - by the way, has not happened to me in the month I owned this phone. It was a daily occurence seemingly on my old hero
Sent from my PG06100 using XDA App
I found that by checking out the top apps in various categories, I started learning a lot about the capabilities of the phone. Oh, and go through the settings menu.
Enjoy your Shift! Root and read the forums, well worth the time.
My #1 recommended "maintenance" app, free in the Market:
Android Assistant
-cache cleaner already built in, as well as "quick boost", which will clean up unnecessary background apps. You can even tweak it to run periodically. Additionally, you can access sound settings, and there are a wide variety of efficiencies in the tools menu. Battery level, current RAM usage....too many things to mention. Needless to say, I went from using AutoKiller, Quick Settings, and numerous toggle widgets to just using this app, and enabling access in the notification bar. Haven't looked back since.
I agree with you about ADW but I too am new and perhaps didn't give it a chance. On the other hand I love Launcher Pro. has a tendancy to FC (force close) every now and then but it is very customizable. On a side note I saw something in the works for SPB shell I think it's called and it looks very promising.
I have a aria running cm7 rc2 no simcard...Im just using it as a media player/wifi now..wanted to know if its possible to remove all phone options without completely messing up the whole system..
sent from my Aria CM7
im sure you could remove phone options, but it will most likely create unstable results.
IMO, its not worth the effort anyway. if you like, use ADW launcher to customize the entire desktop. this way you can remove the phone icon and set the shortcuts to all your music apps
mindstate said:
I have a aria running cm7 rc2 no simcard...Im just using it as a media player/wifi now..wanted to know if its possible to remove all phone options without completely messing up the whole system..
sent from my Aria CM7
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Funny you should ask cause just last night I removed the phone.API to mess with it and forgot to put it back. The only effect I saw was when I went to make a call with dialer one it just brought up s black screen. That's the only way I even remembered it was missing. So as far as I could tell that was the only thing wrong. I'd say you'd be fine based on that.
Sent from my cm7 Liberty using Tapatalk
Aria phones are considered as one of the most user friendly phone system on the market. It has got a great features including one touch speed dial, transfer and on hold, speakerphone and customer administration terminals combined with a traditional handset design. This type of phone is very reliable and affordable for all business purposes.
******NEW THREAD*******
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2347220
If you want to take up this or a similar project on your own, I will provide you with instrucations on what to modify. HOWEVER, you must get permission first from each Rom Chef, as these are their works and we are simply modifying for our own use.
Captivate Touch:
GB via CM7 is working very well. Camera is functional and I am testing the GPS. See notes below. If you are going to install GAPPS, make sure you remove the setup wizard apk from the zip file.
I am running Launcher7 on mine so that my toddler can easily see her books and games on the launcher screen. Will post screens later.
Changelog:
3.1: CM7 based Touch. Working.
3.0: GB Fail, could not get camera working on any GB rom.
2.0: Fixed GPS, removed mms, added dialer back for secret code access.
1.1: Removed modem lib (broke GPS)
1.0: Removed no signal notification
I take no responsibility... yada yada yada. What you do to your phone is your business, don't blame me.
First off, these ROMs are not my creation they belong to the chefs that cooked them or the devs that built them. All I did was modify them to suit my needs. If you like these ROMs, please buy them a beer and support future development. They have endorsed this project and for that I thank them. The camera apk in the froyo version is GizmoDroid's modded camera as the stock and hacked camera from SGS Tools did not function properly.
The goal of this project was to a Captivate Rom completely devoid of any cell phone functions. Why? Well, my job required me to switch to another OS, but I had grown dependent on my Android apps. As such I have modified these ROMs to give us a "Touch-like" device, devoid of any cell phone functions, and with amazing battery life.
Yes, I know that you can just put the phone in Airplane mode, remove them sim card, disable the data network etc, but phone functions still remain and its a not a complete nor elegant experience.
What works:
Testing, but so far everything but the phone
What doesn't:
Some lock screens display (no service)
Install Instructions:
I have provided links to each ROM's original thread. Please follow the instructions there.
So here you go:
Captivate Touch v2.0, Cognition Edition - KB1 2.2 by DesignGears
Based on Cognition 4.4.6
Original Rom Thread: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=964583
Download: http://www.megaupload.com/?d=L6631IPP
Captivate Touch v3.1, Cyanogen Edition by CyanogenMod
Based on Cyanogen 7.1
Original Rom Thread: http://wiki.cyanogenmod.com/wiki/Samsung_Captivate:_Full_Update_Guide
Download: http://www.megaupload.com/?d=438L2MQU
If you want to install GAPPS, I recommend removing the setup wizard APK from the .zip as it was giving me problems.
Confirmed working.
Thanks to:
The CyanogenMod Team
DAGr8
DesignGears
Cezar
MikeyMike01 and ChanceM
garringm for pointing me in the right direction on the null signal notifications
Uploaded with ImageShack.us
Awesome. I've thought about getting a second Captivate just for this exact purpose. I like the idea of the iTouch but I'm not a big Apple fan. I like being able to expand my storage and replace a failed battery.
Sent from my SGH-I897 using XDA App
Hey! Good thinking, Samsung Captivate android PMP!!!
As of now i need it as a phone, but when i will get the Galaxy s2 will try this out.
If i use this now, can i flash back other Phone roms again [wan't to flash anything and everything]
anishmahadikz said:
Hey! Good thinking, Samsung Captivate android PMP!!!
As of now i need it as a phone, but when i will get the Galaxy s2 will try this out.
If i use this now, can i flash back other Phone roms again [wan't to flash anything and everything]
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yep, although Cognition uses Voodoo lagfix and I always play it safe by flashing back to stock before installing a new custom rom.
Cool!! Definitely trying this out!
I don't know if you can add it in but on some roms, ie cm7, there is the previous, play/pause, and next for the media controls on the lock screen which would be probably the 2nd best feature of the touch Rom other than the no phone part
Sent from my SGH-I897 using XDA App
little8020 said:
I don't know if you can add it in but on some roms, ie cm7, there is the previous, play/pause, and next for the media controls on the lock screen which would be probably the 2nd best feature of the touch Rom other than the no phone part
Sent from my SGH-I897 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Maybe you can try DAGr8's rom, it has 9 lockscreens with media controls, also if i am not wrong, all the 3 roms here have media contols in lockscreen
oh wow. this is a great idea! props!
I'm all for what you are trying to accomplish but I'm having a hard time wrapping my head around this, what does it matter if you still have the phone (that still has the phones functionality) because of your company unless it was a company phone, but if thats the case then why are you modding it to only work as a smaller tablet. This makes me assume that you were issued a company phone other than your cappy? I also assume 2 other things here, you still need it to work wifi and possibly still need a data signal or is this what you need gone al together. to remove the signal bar at the top look in the theme thread about modding the notification bar, I accidently did this one time, I would have to poke around but I manage I could do it again.
But for whatever reason you want to do this have you tried porting a galaxy tab rom to this by chance, is it even possible, I wouldn't know why it wouldn't be possible.
garringm said:
I'm all for what you are trying to accomplish but I'm having a hard time wrapping my head around this, what does it matter if you still have the phone (that still has the phones functionality) because of your company unless it was a company phone, but if thats the case then why are you modding it to only work as a smaller tablet. This makes me assume that you were issued a company phone other than your cappy? I also assume 2 other things here, you still need it to work wifi and possibly still need a data signal or is this what you need gone al together. to remove the signal bar at the top look in the theme thread about modding the notification bar, I accidently did this one time, I would have to poke around but I manage I could do it again.
But for whatever reason you want to do this have you tried porting a galaxy tab rom to this by chance, is it even possible, I wouldn't know why it wouldn't be possible.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, I had to purchase a non-android device for work and do not want to pay for multiple lines and data plans. The goal was to continue to use the many apps I purchased, improve battery life, and create a more complete expereince. Simply removing the SIM card leave the cell radio software components intact, giving you the emergency call option notification, the missing sim notification, etc. By removing all of the components associated with the phone (except the lost signal notification - sigh) the experience feels "complete" and intentional, rather than hacked together.
If you can figure out how to remove the notification bar that would be great. I am not a developer, coder etc, just a tinkerer who isn't afraid of bricking his phone. As for the Galazy Tab rom, I would not know where to begin.
The ultimate goal will be to port the ROMs from the Galaxy S WIFI 4 and 5, but in the meantime, I will settle for their native apps missing from the captivate.
http://www.engadget.com/2011/05/01/samsungs-galaxy-s-wifi-4-0-and-5-0-now-rolling-out-to-countries/
Interesting..
I see where you are going with this. Two questions; Does removing all phone functions render wifi useless? Does doing this save significant battery life over airplane mode/no sim?
Thanks!
neubauej said:
Interesting..
I see where you are going with this. Two questions; Does removing all phone functions render wifi useless? Does doing this save significant battery life over airplane mode/no sim?
Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have not tested battery life compared to airplane mode, but Standby on the Cognition variant seems to be 5-7 days.
Wifi, BT, and GPS all work perfectly.
For now as a "hack" to get the look your going for you could possibly edit the stat_sys_signal_null.png to a blank image maybe that will work for you, it will most likely be in SystemUI.apk in /system/app if I had time I would do it myself but issues at home will prevent me from playing with this tonight
EDIT: Sorry for some reason I thought you were on a 2.3 rom, Personally I would suggest you try this with DAGr8 symply galaxy, I just removed SystemUI.apk from it reboot and now have no notification bar at all, but everything seems to be functioniong correctly.
With your 2.2 ROM you will most likely find the null signal png in /framework/framework-res.apk in the res/drawable-hdpi may have v4 on there too.
garringm said:
For now as a "hack" to get the look your going for you could possibly edit the stat_sys_signal_null.png to a blank image maybe that will work for you, it will most likely be in SystemUI.apk in /system/app if I had time I would do it myself but issues at home will prevent me from playing with this tonight
EDIT: Sorry for some reason I thought you were on a 2.3 rom, Personally I would suggest you try this with DAGr8 symply galaxy, I just removed SystemUI.apk from it reboot and now have no notification bar at all, but everything seems to be functioniong correctly.
With your 2.2 ROM you will most likely find the null signal png in /framework/framework-res.apk in the res/drawable-hdpi may have v4 on there too.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I will try that tonight. Thanks!
garringm said:
For now as a "hack" to get the look your going for you could possibly edit the stat_sys_signal_null.png to a blank image maybe that will work for you, it will most likely be in SystemUI.apk in /system/app if I had time I would do it myself but issues at home will prevent me from playing with this tonight
EDIT: Sorry for some reason I thought you were on a 2.3 rom, Personally I would suggest you try this with DAGr8 symply galaxy, I just removed SystemUI.apk from it reboot and now have no notification bar at all, but everything seems to be functioniong correctly.
With your 2.2 ROM you will most likely find the null signal png in /framework/framework-res.apk in the res/drawable-hdpi may have v4 on there too.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I was going to suggest the same - simply replace the signal bar images with blank/100% transparent images.
After playing around with it today thats gonna be your best option. Yoi really dont want to remove your bar altogether this hinders your ability to mount to pc or to use debugger
Sent from my GT-I9000 using XDA App
RKight said:
Awesome. I've thought about getting a second Captivate just for this exact purpose. I like the idea of the iTouch but I'm not a big Apple fan. I like being able to expand my storage and replace a failed battery.
Sent from my SGH-I897 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If u plan on buying an entirely new phone why not just buy a galaxy player if it's out. Its essentially an itouch
Sent from my SGH-I897 using XDA Premium App
I love this idea. A well developed platform used as a simple media device. It'll blow the doors off anything available designed for that purpose!
Insert GB for bonus points.
I think this would work so much better with ginger and ginger would work so much better as this
Sent from my GT-I9000 using XDA App
h0ckey10 said:
If u plan on buying an entirely new phone why not just buy a galaxy player if it's out. Its essentially an itouch
Sent from my SGH-I897 using XDA Premium App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I guess he can unlock the second captivate, use it as pmp. And use it as phone when travelling abroad by going back to the favorite rom. Well, this cannot be achieved on itouch or on Samsung Galaxy pmp.
Tips & Customization Discussion Thread
CM9 beta1: Android 4.0.4 for Samsung Epic 4G​
This thread is ONLY to discuss issues related to best practices and tips of configuration options, helpful add-ons, utilities and apps on CM9 for Epic 4G. The best tips are regularly summarized in the official Epic CM9 Customization Guide. Please read the guide before posting to this thread.
CM9 Discussion Threads
User Support, Questions & Answers Thread
Battery Optimization Discussion Thread
Tips & Customization Discussion Thread
Development Discussion Thread
I highly recommend doing the battery optimization first before customizing the settings.
First thing you want to do is change the default notification from Silent to something else so you hear when you have emails, texts, etc.
There is a lot of stuff in the optimization guide to help you get things started and set-up. I like going into the Messaging app and have it not only divide texts into 160 character blocks but also number them so people know the reading order as they aren't always sent and received contiguously.
I think that is a good start for now!
Being a CM9 user since day 1 I figured out that you will NEVER want to use an app form the market which allows you to change the frequencies of your phone. I found out that it drains battery EVEN MORE then when using the built in one under Performance.
And I highly recommend that you get Juice Defender. Ultimate is best because it allows you to choose what apps you want to have data turned on for.
And if you monkey around with Voodoo control I'm sure you'll find something to your likes.
Screen Filter from the market is also a great tool. If you think the lowest brightness is to much and want it darker then use that tool.
I recently learned that custom kernels are not recommended.
prochargedls2 said:
Being a CM9 user since day 1 I figured out that you will NEVER want to use an app form the market which allows you to change the frequencies of your phone. I found out that it drains battery EVEN MORE then when using the built in one under Performance.
And I highly recommend that you get Juice Defender. Ultimate is best because it allows you to choose what apps you want to have data turned on for.
And if you monkey around with Voodoo control I'm sure you'll find something to your likes.
Screen Filter from the market is also a great tool. If you think the lowest brightness is to much and want it darker then use that tool.
I recently learned that custom kernels are not recommended.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'd like to know how this is possible. I mean, if you're undervolting (throwing less power to run a specific speed) I would like to know how this actually drains battery quicker. It simply goes against logic.
Not saying I don't believe you, but I would like it explained why this is true.
CWM flashable Sprint Visual Voicemail
http://epiccm.blogspot.com/2012/03/customization-guide.html
Sprint Visual Voicemail now works on CM9, meaning we now have three options for visual voicemail on Epic! Read the Customization Guide for CWM5 flashable .zip and setup instructions if you want to use it. Be aware that there are currently glitches.
wtogami said:
http://epiccm.blogspot.com/2012/03/customization-guide.html
Sprint Visual Voicemail now works on CM9, meaning we now have three options for visual voicemail on Epic! Read the Customization Guide for CWM5 flashable .zip and setup instructions if you want to use it. Be aware that there are currently glitches.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I can't get it to work at all. It installs and looks like its all there but I've left 4 voice messages for myself in the past hour and nothing.
Sent from my MTD Epic 4G SGS using Tapatalk
edfunkycold said:
I can't get it to work at all. It installs and looks like its all there but I've left 4 voice messages for myself in the past hour and nothing.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Did you run the app once? It provisions the first time you run it, and tells you with Toast messages.
wtogami said:
Did you run the app once? It provisions the first time you run it, and tells you with Toast messages.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes it did all of that as with any tw rom when you do fresh flash and set up phone. I even just for nostalgic reasons played the two set up messages. But I then used my wife's phone and called myself and left several voice messages but nothing comes through the app. I read everywhere people having success with this and I'm struggling. I even tried sending the [email protected] message and it looks like it sent but nothing happens.
Edit: I am getting the text messages alerting me that o have a VM but the app is not downloading the messages. I still have to dial #1 on dialer to dial my voice mail.
Sent from my MTD Epic 4G SGS using Tapatalk
wtogami said:
Did you run the app once? It provisions the first time you run it, and tells you with Toast messages.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I get a 9016 message with provisioning successful but if there was a toast message it was so quick I missed it but I don't think there was one. Does this mean that I need to delete data for the app and try again or does this mean it provisioned but like edfunkycold I too get the text messages about new VM but the app doesn't download them. In fact the messages aren't on sprints VM system like the app told it to delete the message as if it had downloaded, even though there is no message in the app to listen to.
hayzooos said:
I'd like to know how this is possible. I mean, if you're undervolting (throwing less power to run a specific speed) I would like to know how this actually drains battery quicker. It simply goes against logic.
Not saying I don't believe you, but I would like it explained why this is true.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well its mainly for those who leave it in their pocket for long periods of time. Because if you have apps like twitter, facebook, or anything like that they run in the background and the cpu will require more power to run them all. Now if you used an app from the market to control them it would drain battery because it requires battery to run apps in the background and that app you supposedly have from the market will run in the background, thus causing battery to drain even if you're under volting it.
If that wasn't very clear tell me.
Sent from my Epic with a lil' ice cream on it
StoneRyno said:
I get a 9016 message with provisioning successful but if there was a toast message it was so quick I missed it but I don't think there was one. Does this mean that I need to delete data for the app and try again or does this mean it provisioned but like edfunkycold I too get the text messages about new VM but the app doesn't download them. In fact the messages aren't on sprints VM system like the app told it to delete the message as if it had downloaded, even though there is no message in the app to listen to.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Same problem here, except I dont think that mine are getting deleted, cuz I can still call my VM and listen to them. But for the life of me I can not get the VVM to work, I have tried absolutely everything I can think of. Please if anyone can figure out what the deal here is, it would be greatly appreciated. The loss of VVM was pretty much the only thing I didn't like about This CM9 for Epic, since I flashed the alpha 1.
Edit: Just an update: when I use Sprint VVM to compose a message to myself, to test send and receive functions, It sends the VM to me just fine. I get the 9016 text and its on my VM but It still does not show up in the Sprint VVM app.
dhadlock said:
Edit: Just an update: when I use Sprint VVM to compose a message to myself, to test send and receive functions, It sends the VM to me just fine. I get the 9016 text and its on my VM but It still does not show up in the Sprint VVM app.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Exactly how I tried to test it except the message I composed and successfully sent was not on VM when I call in after getting the 9016 message saying I got that VM. This is what leads me to believe that sprint VVM is failing to download the message and deletes it from the VM system as if it had.
prochargedls2 said:
Well its mainly for those who leave it in their pocket for long periods of time. Because if you have apps like twitter, facebook, or anything like that they run in the background and the cpu will require more power to run them all. Now if you used an app from the market to control them it would drain battery because it requires battery to run apps in the background and that app you supposedly have from the market will run in the background, thus causing battery to drain even if you're under volting it.
If that wasn't very clear tell me.
Sent from my Epic with a lil' ice cream on it
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I see where you're coming from, I think. So you're saying Voltage Control, for example, would be running more frequently if I have a lot of apps that update in the background becuase in addition to those apps running, VC would then have to run more to produce more power to run the other apps.
I guess I was under the impression that VC would run at boot (however you have it set up) but it wouldn't continue to run once the settings were in place. For example, I never see Voltage Control as an app listed in the running apps or or cached processes for that matter either.
So then my question becomes if it's not an active running app, and it's not a cached app either, how is it draining more battery?
hayzooos said:
I see where you're coming from, I think. So you're saying Voltage Control, for example, would be running more frequently if I have a lot of apps that update in the background becuase in addition to those apps running, VC would then have to run more to produce more power to run the other apps.
I guess I was under the impression that VC would run at boot (however you have it set up) but it wouldn't continue to run once the settings were in place. For example, I never see Voltage Control as an app listed in the running apps or or cached processes for that matter either.
So then my question becomes if it's not an active running app, and it's not a cached app either, how is it draining more battery?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i dont think it does. i never see it as a running app, and it doesnt show up as using the battery in battery stats, so i think this guy is misinformed on that aspect. if youre using undervolted settings with the ondemand governor, you probably wont be using more battery than on stock. im in know way absolutely sure of this and im not a dev or computer genius or anything like that, but im pretty sure the battery problems that DO occur are on the custom kernel side. since a custom kernel is needed to overclock and undervolt, and some of the 3rd party kernels have had some battery draining issues, like wake lock issues and stuff, i can see where one would get the impression that using an oc/uv app might be causing battery draining issues. i myself am using the shadow kernel which oc's to 1400 mhz and at first was getting terrible battery status. but after messing around with a few settings, reading up on tips for saving battery, and tweaking juice defender ultimate to my liking, im getting exceptional battery life. almost as good as the stock kernel. i would have dealt with a bigger difference in battery drain for voodoo color anyways. not to mention, the added bonuses of being able to oc/uv. im in no way trying to knock the stock kernel, my preference is just that, my preference.
as far as a custom kernel not being recommended...thats easy, its also not recommended to root your phone or flash a custom ROM. nuff said, right?
p.s. while voltage control does NOT show up on my battery stats, juice defender ultimate DOES. VC does NOT seem to be running in the background at all times, but JD definitely IS.
dhadlock said:
Same problem here, except I dont think that mine are getting deleted, cuz I can still call my VM and listen to them. But for the life of me I can not get the VVM to work, I have tried absolutely everything I can think of. Please if anyone can figure out what the deal here is, it would be greatly appreciated. The loss of VVM was pretty much the only thing I didn't like about This CM9 for Epic, since I flashed the alpha 1.
Edit: Just an update: when I use Sprint VVM to compose a message to myself, to test send and receive functions, It sends the VM to me just fine. I get the 9016 text and its on my VM but It still does not show up in the Sprint VVM app.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So after a big long ordeal (accidentally flashed mtd over bml and soft bricked my phone for a day lol ) I finally got it fixed with odin. Then I managed to get back to a working backup that had a working version of Sprint VVM and backed up the data with titanium backup then got my cm9 beta 0 restored and flashed a fresh version of SVVM then went in and made sure it was set in the dialer settings and then restored the app data and the provisioned and still no damn luck.
beltsnspoons said:
p.s. while voltage control does NOT show up on my battery stats, juice defender ultimate DOES. VC does NOT seem to be running in the background at all times, but JD definitely IS.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is because VC loads the custom changes at boot time and is no longer needed. Where as JD is a service that performs periodic actions based on how the user setup JD. In essence JD will consume a slight bit of battery but the increase in savings will outweigh it's consumption. If anyone would like I can try and determine JDs exact usage if it registers in any of the available tools for checking apps battery/CPU usage. As far as I'm aware it does not show up in androids battery info section commonly used to show battery usage in screen shots here on the forum. I of course would post those findings if any in the battery thread.
For those who can't enable the native HOTSPOT as reported on issue 148, try side-loading android-wifi-tether.
With AWT, I can have AP infrastructure hotspot using netd, with WPA2 encryption and multiple Android devices connected. The trick is to configure the device profile as an Epic 4G Touch, Galaxy or any Samsung device that shows netd option in the Setup-Method. Optionally, turn off driver force-reload to get rid of a harmless error message (works fine either way).
A nice thing about AWT is it shows the hotspot real time, accumulative bandwidth usage, and if you don't need to use AP infrastructure mode, you can even lower the ad-hoc mode transmit power for lower battery use.
It also has MAC-based client access control, and on TW ROM, it would give hidden SSID option.
(sorry for posting this multiple times; just thought I'd share my finding on all the relevant threads.
ok what sound manager app is better....
i have bought voodoo
I know that DSP comes with cm9...
I use Voodoo (paid version) so I can limit the headset volume on my kids' Epics.
FYI: For those of you that are having issues with VVM, are you using GoSMS? If so, it's been posted in the CM9 tips and tricks thread that GoSMS and Sprint VVM dont play nicely with one another.
Freeze or Uninstall GoSMS and your VM's should start trickling in!!!
Here's the link to the post I mentioned:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=23817393&postcount=650