Database Users

UK Vodafone HTC Magic Root help!!!!!!!!

Hello,
I have been trying to root my friends HTC Magic following instructions I have found on this and other forums and having no luck.
The phone in question is a vodafone htc magic.
My problem is that the computer does'nt recognise the phone as the drivers don't seem to work for it!
Could somebody please post a step by step guide for Noobs so I can see where I am going wrong!
I rooted my Hero no problems, but the Magic is proving a bit more of a challange!!!!!!
Many thanks,
Iain

You could do what I did which I've summarised below. There's probably more backup steps than is necessary, but you can never be too careful.
There's loads of guides out there with the guides and detail, e.g. http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=519523
but they seem to branch in and out of methods quite a bit. I've added a few links to the pages I used for the detail.
The method I used is the 1 click backdoor, which also disables OTA updates to stop it being closed in the future I think.
First off, I'm a Linux noob and managed okay because the apps are so well thought out, but this is all done at your own risk.
Secondly, your uk Magic Vodafone prob has 32b board, not 32a.
(There's plenty on this forum. Or the Cyanogen one on the Dream forum works for 32b too.)
You can check with extra step by powering off, then on power again while holding back button. Last digits at top tell you the board details. Menu button gets you back.
0) Install the Android USB driver, connect, mount, then disconnect, etc.
http://dl.google.com/android/android_usb_windows.zip
1) Use google to sync all your contacts, etc. to google account so restore is automatic.
2) Use Astro to Backup your apps etc to the sd card
3) Goto wireless settings, mobile networks, apn, select and make note of your vodafone UK APN details (so you can type your 3g settings back)
4) Use USB to copy your SD card to your PC
5) From your phone, Download Cyanogen recovery. Don't run yet.
http://www.ryebrye.com/blog/2009/08/16/android-rooting-in-1-click-in-progress/
( This basically automates the rooting and booting to this recovery image : http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=523558 )
6) From your phone, Download a rom image; the 32b board you prob have in your UK Magic allows you to use 32b ones, I used the Cyanogen one here.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=537204
7) Use Astro to move the rom file from \sdcard\download to root of \sdcard
8) Run Cyanogen recovery 1.4 1-click root installed in 5.
Use Backup recovery image
Use Flash recovery
9) Poweroff, home + power to get into the custom recovery image
10) Select Nandroid backup to create new backup (this copies your phone to your SD card)
11) Reboot. Repeat 3 to get the backup of the nandroid folder, and the recovery image created in 7 and 9 onto your PC
12) Run Cyanogen recovery 1.4 1-click root installed in 5 again.
Flash recovery (this makes next boot 'special')
13) Reboot. Poweroff, hold home + power on again.
14) Select WIPE (You did backup your apps and SD card data right?).
15) Then select apply any zip from sd.
Follow instructions to install the Cyanogen rom image you moved to the root of your SD Card in 6 and 7
16) Wait 10 mins or so. The last message about writing root or whatever doesn't explicitly say finished.
17) Reboot.
If you have reboot hang, most people report is because missed WIPE step. Otherwise consult the relevant forum for the Rom you downloaded.
18) Do the new user settings thing. The activation and sync will fail cos you've not got 3G yet.
19) Goto network settings, advanced, APN, type in your vodafone UK APN details (so you can type your 3g settings back)
20) Done
21) If you've got Cyanogen Install the updater from marketplace (search for Cyanogen), or here...
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=544663
I also installed:
Audio resources unzipped to your SD Card root from the Cyanogen rom pages, this reinstates notifications and ringtones I guess were removed to allow the memory obsessives to keep their phones clean.
SetCPU from this site, to override the default Cyanogen high overclock settings when phone is sleeping.
Cheers
Chris

Hi Chris,
Thanks alot for that, my friend is coming over after the F1 so will give it a go and let you know how we get on!!!!!
Thanks alot for your help!
iain

Hi!
Did you solved the problem, I seem to have the very same problem as you

trying to get cyanogen on my uk htc magic
Hi,
I have been trying to get cyanogen on my vodafone uk htc magic for a few hours now, not even getting close though!
The problem is, i already have the proper 1.6 update which vodafone pushed out a couple weeks back, and now want to root my phone and get cyanogens 1.6 on it. The flashrec application only runs on early versions of cupcake i believe, so my first step was to get that on my phone. (I have been following this: http://wiki.cyanogenmod.com/index.php/Full_Update_Guide_-_MT3G/Magic_Firmware_to_CyanogenMod aswell as trying the guide on this forum thread)
When i quickboot the phone and try to install the 1.5 update, it goes all the way through with the progress bar in the top right, then fails right at the end on 'Model ID Incorrect! Update Fail!'. When i reboot the phone it is just as it was before.
I have also tried putting the cm-recovery-1.4.img file on the memory card and installing that from flashboot but that also fails.
Do you have any ideas / recommendations for getting cyanogen on there?
Thanks,
Aaron
[email protected]
Skype: atrout1991

aaron465 said:
Hi,
I have been trying to get cyanogen on my vodafone uk htc magic for a few hours now, not even getting close though!
The problem is, i already have the proper 1.6 update which vodafone pushed out a couple weeks back, and now want to root my phone and get cyanogens 1.6 on it. The flashrec application only runs on early versions of cupcake i believe, so my first step was to get that on my phone. (I have been following this: http://wiki.cyanogenmod.com/index.php/Full_Update_Guide_-_MT3G/Magic_Firmware_to_CyanogenMod aswell as trying the guide on this forum thread)
When i quickboot the phone and try to install the 1.5 update, it goes all the way through with the progress bar in the top right, then fails right at the end on 'Model ID Incorrect! Update Fail!'. When i reboot the phone it is just as it was before.
I have also tried putting the cm-recovery-1.4.img file on the memory card and installing that from flashboot but that also fails.
Do you have any ideas / recommendations for getting cyanogen on there?
Thanks,
Aaron
[email protected]
Skype: atrout1991
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Is there a solution for this?

I did get this working in the end, was quite a while ago now though...
I am pretty sure that I used the relentless rooter program to get it working in the end, details/download are here:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=556200
Aaron

Eclair 2.0 Install Instructions

Hi
I downloaded a torrent on the new Eclair 2.0.zip but there are no installtion instructions included in the zip file how do i get this app installed

no install
Eclair is the next version of Android OS...it must be about 90 Mb in size...
first you must do a nandroid backup
then put the .zip file on a SD card ( *.zip or update.zip)
if it's update.zip just update else update form file...
then reboot...
this is a quick reply...for upgrading OS there must be a complete post...with every step you must make in order to not brick your phone...

It isn't that simple. There is only one phone designed for 2.0 at the moment, and that is the Droid. Getting it working on any other phone is not simple as there are no drivers and a lot of hacking needed to get it to work correctly. You cant simply overwrite everything and expect it to work.
Go to the correct forum for you phone and look around. There are a few eclair based ROMs available for the Dream already. Cyanogen is working on his new experimental branch that is Eclair based.

Android build?

I'm looking to try out an android build. Can someone recommend a build to use that's easy to set up. I need data, and gps to work. Also would I be able to flash back to WM if I don't like the build?

Not sure of an Android build to meet your needs, though I would like it too!
To flash back to WM is easy once I did a lot of reading. Just power your phone off, then turn power on with the camera button depressed too. This brings up the bootloader screen, then just flash your favourite WM ROM.

ski21 said:
I'm looking to try out an android build. Can someone recommend a build to use that's easy to set up. I need data, and gps to work. Also would I be able to flash back to WM if I don't like the build?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi ski21,
I was in your shoes just a few weeks ago. I now have a great Android build running on my Touch (Bell Mobility). Everything works and it “feels” like a native build like it was meant for this device.
With any of the Android builds you can always flash back to Windows Mobile. You just need to make sure you have an up-to-date (ie. GPS enabled) Windows Mobile ROM to return to. I am with Bell and use the most recent official Bell update so I can go back to a “supported” configuration.
If you have never flashed a custom Windows ROM before then you will need to install the “HardSPL” provided by ImCoKeMaN. This is an alternate boot loader that allows you to flash unsigned (non-official) ROMs. This is really the key to doing anything cool with your Vogue. Without this you can only every install an official ROM released by your carrier. I recommend version 2.31. If you have installed a custom Windows ROM before then you have already done this. You can find the information on this over at PPCGeeks in the link below:
http://forum.ppcgeeks.com/showthread.php?t=20370
Once you have the CoKe SPL 2.31 installed you will be able to flash any custom ROMs including Android builds. Flashing Android is a little different then flashing Windows ROMs. You will need a bunch of files:
First things first, you will need a copy of the ROMUpdateUtility. This is a Windows program that you use for flashing your Vogue. You can get this here:
http://cid-e5302e6abd554cb9.skydrive.live.com/self.aspx/XDA/ROMUpdateUtility.rar
Download and unpack this into a folder called ROMUpdateUtility.
Next you will need a Linux kernel with a screen size (resolution) appropriate for your device. This is the one I am using and it works great in conjunction with the ROM I am going to suggest next.
http://it029000.massey.ac.nz/vogue/files/voguimg-240x320-17-12-09.nbh
Download this file, copy it to the folder you unpacked the ROMUpdateUtility in. Rename it to RUU_signed.nbh.
Next you will need to download some “base files” as well as a system image (which is the main ROM). You copy these files to the SD card on the Vogue. You can get the “base files” here:
http://cid-e5302e6abd554cb9.skydrive.live.com/self.aspx/XDA/Androidstuff.rar
You will then need to select your favorite Android build. I am using plemen's “Eclair themed” build. You can get this here:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=591104
Rename the system file you download to system.sqsh when you copy it to your SD card. Also download the data.img file and place it on your SD card (should be provided in the thread that you get the build itself from). In the “end” (just before you flash) you should have the following files sitting in the root of your SD card:
datafstonand
rootfstonand
systemfstonand
rootfs.img
data.img
system.sqsh (or system.img depending on the build you download)
Then you put your Vogue into boot loader mode. You do this by holding down the power & camera buttons and pressing the reset button with the stylus. Then run the ROMUpdateUtility.exe from your ROMUpdateUtility folder.
That just about covers it I think. I am a little unclear what all these different parts do but this should get Android 1.6 (if you download plemen's build) up and running on your Vogue. Enjoy.
Best regards,
The Fish

Excellent directions, thank you. I followed them but it comes up as T-Mobile when it loaded Android. I think I messed up the rootfs.img, this i got from the http://sourceforge.net/projects/androidhtc/files/ plemen's “Eclair themed” build page. Any idea where I went wrong, for I am also a Bell user.

krwilson said:
Excellent directions, thank you. I followed them but it comes up as T-Mobile when it loaded Android. I think I messed up the rootfs.img, this i got from the http://sourceforge.net/projects/androidhtc/files/ plemen's “Eclair themed” build page. Any idea where I went wrong, for I am also a Bell user.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
that's normal

Well if it's normal then there's a problem. It will not let me connect, shows 2 bars, but says I have no network so I cannot connect to Google. If thefish123 is connected on Bell then I must have something wrong. I followed the directions exactly, but was somewhat unsure over the rootfs.img file for it is not too specific in the directions??? Anyway, flashed back again to NSFans. I have had another Android working but could not get tethering working correctly, I was hoping this one might do it. Using PDnet it just wouldn't work for me.
Also, sorry ski21, wasn't my intention to hijack your thread.

krwilson said:
Excellent directions, thank you. I followed them but it comes up as T-Mobile when it loaded Android. I think I messed up the rootfs.img, this i got from the http://sourceforge.net/projects/androidhtc/files/ plemen's “Eclair themed” build page. Any idea where I went wrong, for I am also a Bell user.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi krwilson,
It is indeed normal for plemen's build to show T-Mobile. It was most likely extracted from a T-Mobile device at some point. However when you drag the notification area down from the top of the screen it should show Bell Mobility. Just slide your finger from the top of the screen down as if dragging the top bar down.
I also did not have data immediately after flashing plemen's build. I did a soft reset and then it worked perfectly. Regarding the rootfs.img... I downloaded the rootfs.img mentioned a little further into the same thread that mentions an update to get GPS working under Android.
If it shows that you have reception the first thing to try is calling *BELL and see if you get the “your test call was successful” message. If so then you are on the network.
The next thing is a data issue. I would suggest poking your stylus in the reset hole and rebooting. That solved it for me.
Also, I had issues with missing calls on some Android builds (most notably the cupcake 1.5 build). My phone would not ring till 3 or 4 rings on the other end and then very quickly go to voice mail. These issues have disappeared using plemen's “ 1.6 build.
I have everything working except perhaps maybe Bluetooth (not sure I don't really use it). The phone works fine as a phone (calls come through), GPS and data all work. I am very pleased with it.
Best regards,
The Fish

Thank you for the followup.................IT WORKS beautifully! I have not tested BlueTooth yet, no big deal to me either, but it tethers and it does work seamlessly, and fast...........as if it was made for our Vogues.

krwilson said:
Thank you for the followup.................IT WORKS beautifully! I have not tested BlueTooth yet, no big deal to me either, but it tethers and it does work seamlessly, and fast...........as if it was made for our Vogues.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What application are you using to tether your Vogue?

PdaNet 2.16

Orange rom to stock?

I currently have a Hero on stock Orange UK rom.
is it possible/worth it to flash it over to the HTC stock so that i get the over the air update when it is out?

Gamma Ray said:
I currently have a Hero on stock Orange UK rom.
is it possible/worth it to flash it over to the HTC stock so that i get the over the air update when it is out?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I dont think this is possible or will damage your phone if you try.. the only way to get 2.1 on your orange phone early is to get root access and flash a custom rom..
Dont quote me on that.. but it could be a very bad idea to try it.

Cheers, but can anyone shed a little more light?

I flashed my Hero with the stock Orange ROM over to the 2.73.405.5 WWE release without issue using a Gold Card, as soon as I installed it I had the notification for Part 1 of the 2.1 update and that installed without issue.
I'm actually having significant signal improvements since I changed over to the ROM.

alexmunroe said:
I flashed my Hero with the stock Orange ROM over to the 2.73.405.5 WWE release without issue using a Gold Card, as soon as I installed it I had the notification for Part 1 of the 2.1 update and that installed without issue.
I'm actually having significant signal improvements since I changed over to the ROM.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Would you mind to post here how you did it...

I'm having to post this as a quote since I can't post outside links yet.
Make sure you have an SD Adapter to put your MicroSD in so you can plug it into a computer and access it.
I. Download and Install the Android SDK and USB drivers (If you already have this done, skip this section).
1. Follow our video procedure on HOW TO SETUP ADB/USB DRIVERS.
II. Create a “GoldCard” from a MicroSD Card
1. Put the memory card you want to use for the GoldCard into your phone.
2. With the memory card in your phone, click on Settings, SD and Phone storage, then click Unmount SD card. Once it unmounts, click Format SD card. (Please keep in mind that some memory cards don’t work, and this will erase all data on your SD Card so back all the data up first to your computer)
3. On the Phone, goto Settings, Applications, Development and then make sure USB Debugging is checked.
4. *Make sure you have installed the SDK and Fastboot correctly from Section I!!!
Plug the phone into the computer and then open the Command Prompt (goto the start menu and type in cmd in the search box). Then type the following with hitting enter at the end of each line.
cd\
cd\AndroidSDK\tools\
adb devices
(wait for the it to show a serial number underneath, if it doesn’t then reinstall the drivers from section I). Then type:
adb shell
cat /sys/class/mmc_host/mmc1/mmc1:*/cid
5. A code will display, write the code down (MAKE SURE TO WRITE IT DOWN EXACTLY!)
6. Goto this site, hexrev.soaa.me/, then put in your code you just wrote down into the text box and click submit. It will generate the code reversed and replace the first two digits with zeros automatically. Write that down and continue to step 9.
7. Now, on your computer, goto revskills.de/pages/goldcard.html and enter your email in the appropriate field and for CID enter the reversed CID you just got from hexrev.soaa.me/
8. Click continue and then you will receive your goldcard.img via email. Once it arrives save it to your computer.
9. Now, goto download.cnet.com/HxD-Hex-Editor/3000-2352-10891068.html?part=dl-HxDHexEdi&subj=uo&tag=button to download the HxD Hex Editor. Save it and install it to your computer.
10. Take your SD card out of your phone and put it into the SD adapter it came with. Then put that into your computer so it shows up on your computer as Removable Disk.
11. Open the Hex Editor (Run as Administrator if one Vista or Windows 7) and click on the Extra tab, then click on Open Disk. Under Physical Disk select Removable Disk (your SD card you just put into the computer). Make sure to UNcheck “Open as ReadOnly”. Click OK.
12. Goto the Extra tab again and click Open Disk Image. Open up the goldcard.img that you saved from your email. You should now have two tabs, one is the SD card (Removable Disk) and the other is the goldcard.img
Press OK when prompted for Sector Size 512 (Hard Disks/Floppy Disks).
13. Click on the Goldcard.img tab and click on the Edit tab and click Select All. Then click on the Edit tab again and click Copy.
14. Click on the Removable Disk tab (Your SD Card) and select offset 00000000 to 00000170 then click on the Edit tab and click Paste Write.
15. Click on File then click Save.
16. Close the Hex Editor.
17. Test what we’ve done:
Take out the memory card from the computer, then put it back in.
Try to open the memory card on the computer (Removable Disk), if it lets you, you are all set. If it asks/tells you to reformat the card, then try steps 13 – 19 again. If it gives you the same error again, then try a different memory card (Erlern said it didn’t work for him until he finally went and bought a Kingston 2GB card, then it worked on that card only).
18. Put the GoldCard into your phone and reboot the phone with the GoldCard inside.​
This was taken directly from theunlockr.com/2009/10/18/how-to-downgrade-your-htc-hero-so-it-can-be-rooted/ and as such I take no responsibility for any issues that arise as a result of using it.
I then flashed the official HTC WWE 2.73.405.5 release from here forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=559622 . It took me a few goes to get it to initialise but once that was done I had the unbranded release ready for upgrading.
Once that was installed I set-up the phone again, set the date forward by a year and was then prompted to install the 1st part of the update.

i dont want to move to the orange rom, i want to move to the stock HTC hero rom.
Currently i am on UK Orange build: 2.73.61.5 146733 CL#61267 release-keys
ive seen the root in one click thing, could i do that and install the stock?
can someone provide a lamens terms guide and a link to the stock htc rom for the UK? i would be really grateful!

OK.
Just follow the goldcard guide at http://www.villainrom.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=46&t=375#p4956
When you reach the step "2. Loading the Custom ROM", then you don't need to continue. That will have you on a stock HTC ROM.
As for what you do after that, it's up to you. You can take updates using your goldcard if it's an RUU, or take OTAs.
Personally, I would root and go the custom ROM route, but if it isn't for you, then that's how to do it ^^^^^

Gamma Ray said:
i dont want to move to the orange rom, i want to move to the stock HTC hero rom.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
To what end? You won't get much benefit from having a stock ROM over the Orange one tbh, aside from being able to remove those pesky Orange bookmarks and boot screen.
If you want a 1.5 ROM, I'd highly recommend Kimera 1.8. It's bloody fast. Look for the newbie guide to rooting your phone, it's in the dev section, as well as Kimera.
TBH though, if I were rooting from Orange stock ROM, I'd probably go with a 2.1 ROM such as Cronos Droid or VillainROM. They work fine, are fast and have all the goodies from 2.1 and a few from 2.2.

anon2122 said:
OK.
Just follow the goldcard guide at (REMOVED LINK SO I COULD POST)
When you reach the step "2. Loading the Custom ROM", then you don't need to continue. That will have you on a stock HTC ROM.
As for what you do after that, it's up to you. You can take updates using your goldcard if it's an RUU, or take OTAs.
Personally, I would root and go the custom ROM route, but if it isn't for you, then that's how to do it ^^^^^
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What does RUU mean? Im looking to move off the Orange ROM to the stock HTC rom so i can receive OTA updates. will doing what you say and following that guide up to step 2 will it leave me with the latest version of the stock ROM an able to do this?
Do i also need to use the goldcard? i had a quick look at that site and i have the version of the ORANGE UK ROM (2.73.61.5) that i could do the recovery image section with?
mikeyd85 said:
To what end? You won't get much benefit from having a stock ROM over the Orange one tbh, aside from being able to remove those pesky Orange bookmarks and boot screen.
If you want a 1.5 ROM, I'd highly recommend Kimera 1.8. It's bloody fast. Look for the newbie guide to rooting your phone, it's in the dev section, as well as Kimera.
TBH though, if I were rooting from Orange stock ROM, I'd probably go with a 2.1 ROM such as Cronos Droid or VillainROM. They work fine, are fast and have all the goodies from 2.1 and a few from 2.2.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I want to receive OTA updates and ive heard reports of better signal (i live in a very poor signal area), ive also heard the orange update wont be coming or wont be coming for a while.
Im not really wanting to go down the custom ROM route for stability purposes, I had cyanogen on my G1 and it was less stable than stock and had so much clutter i didn't want.

RUU is official update file HTC give you on their site.
Fair enough if you go down stock route, but custom ROMs have come a long way since then. You could always try something like villainrom and see how it goes, as it is based on the gsm update for 2.1
If you install the htc 2.1, then you will be stuck on it forever, as it wont be rootable.

[Q] Is there a newbie's guide for this phone?

I understand there's a tips and tricks thread that explains things in more detail but how does somebody go from just getting the phone to installing, or even understanding, things like obsidian, onyx, morphing and learning what the basic functions of such programs are.
The question I currently have is concerning flashing custom roms. In the tips & tricks thread, it talks of froyo builds (ex: bionix & frankin-twiz). What is it exactly? From what I understand, it sounds like a mini os that you install onto your device which helps in applying different functions to it, which makes custom roms possible.
I'm currently trying to get http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=845530 to work on my vibrant. Can anybody help a newbie out?

VibrantUser1 said:
I understand there's a tips and tricks thread that explains things in more detail but how does somebody go from just getting the phone to installing, or even understanding, things like obsidian, onyx, morphing and learning what the basic functions of such programs are.
The question I currently have is concerning flashing custom roms. In the tips & tricks thread, it talks of froyo builds (ex: bionix & frankin-twiz). What is it exactly? From what I understand, it sounds like a mini os that you install onto your device which helps in applying different functions to it, which makes custom roms possible.
I'm currently trying to get http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=845530 to work on my vibrant. Can anybody help a newbie out?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
the link you posted is just to a theme.
to get the theme to work you'll need to be running obsidian first.
so lets see, the easiest way to explain the different versions 2.2, 2.1 1.6, 1.5 and so forth is this...
its pretty much like going from windows 95 to 98 to 2000 to xp to vista and so forth.
our vibrants come with android 2.1, 2.2 is the next version of the os to come out (basicaly like moving from vista to windows 7)
the different roms like obsidian and Macnut and such are just names that the developers gave their roms.
what happens is a developer starts out with a version of android (in the case of Macnut and Obsidian this is 2.2)
and then they add their own modified tweaks and such to it.
and so in the end they get Obsidian which is a modified 2.2
or Macnut which is also a modified 2.2
they differ a bit though as Obsidian is based almost totaly on a leaked version of 2.2 for the US vibrant, where Macnut is based alot on the 19000 version of 2.2 for the european phones.
so when choosing a rom just choose the base you want first: 2.1 or 2.2
then look through the tweaks on a few roms and read some of the thread for that rom untill you get a feel for what makes it unique
you can also just experiment by flashing a rom for a day or so and then switching to a new one untill you find one you like.
Morphing is a way to apply a theme to a rom, this does not generaly change functionality at all, it only changes apearance.
alot of themes are either morphs (you install them using metamorph, which is an app from the market)
or they also come in zip format (which are installed by flashing from recovery)
for the theme you posted you will need to flash obsidian, and then flash the zip for the theme afterwards.
have you rooted your device yet?
thats the place to start, if you need help just pm me or repost here and I'll do what I can.

also, there is a "newbie's guide":
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=732458

nearblack said:
also, there is a "newbie's guide":
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=732458
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
lol true true

Before you even want to start with anything, you have to learn what 'rooting' your phone means.
Without root, you won't be able to do any of the above. You might be able to download the programs necessary, but you won't be able to use them.
For ex. Titanium Backup, ROM Manager, etc.
We use ROM Manager to install different ROMs on our phones.
Much to read, my young grasshopper.

OP, I made the Tips/Tricks sticky... would you PM be exactly what you think it lacks? I want to make sure it is applicable to everyone... I thought it was straight-forward, perhaps not.

my phone is rooted. So how do I go about flashing obsidian?
I thought roms were the same as themes? What's the difference?
And just to clarify I understand the tips and tricks thread is sort of the newbies guide but even then theres a lot of terminology that a new user wouldn't understand. I just wanted some basic information that would allow me to transition into the tips and tricks thread more easily.
I appreciate the responses so far

Have you download Rom Manager from the Market? If not, do so.
Then follow the instructions (in the sticky) to flash the recovery (it's the top of the list when you open Rom Manager).
Assuming you did that, you can reboot into recovery, make a backup of your system.. something you can always come back to (a timestamp of your system at that moment).
Download the ROM you want, put it on your internal memory (sdcard/....) NOT in a folder.
Go to Clockwork recovery, choose to insall a zip from sd card... select the name of the ROM and then click Yes to install it.
It will run it's course, then you can just reboot when done.
The first bootup will take a long time (10 minutes probably)... let it boot.... leave your phone alone for like 10 or so minutes after bootup (suggested by Team Whiskey, I never really do this).
It's that easy.
Think of a ROM as an OS... the developers take Froyo (2.2) or Eclair (2.1) and make a lot of tweaks, remove things, add things... basically anything to enhance the user experience.
THEMES are something you flash over a custom ROM... it can change the icons, graphics, notification bar, etc... they are cosmetic. You see in my signature I have Axura 2.0.3 (amazing rom and there is a newer version out) and then I have BlackFroyo (which is the theme) on top of the ROM to change the look of things. Axura has a steel looking notification bar, I much prefer black (hence the theme I chose).
The ONE thing that can be confusing... if you make a backup right now (you have stock eclair), if you flash a froyo rom... you would need to flash either the stock eclair kernel (the download link is also in the sticky) to restore your nandoid backup.... OR, you could just flash another ROM that has a kernel (most do) and you would be good to go too.

And addition to this is to make sure your phone is NOT hardware locked.
To test it:
1) Take out battery from the phone and put it back in again
2) The USB cable plugged into the computer (not in the phone yet)
3) Push and hold down both of the Volume buttons at the same time
4) Plug in USB cable and it should take you into the Download mode.
If it does you are good to go. Just read some about Odin and Stock Android
If it isn't you need to make sure to flash JI6 to your phone (also Stock) onto your phone using Stock Manager. That should fix your hardware locked. Go over the above steps to make sure that is the case.

At this point, I have rooted my device and downloaded rom manager.I believe I have backed up everything after following the directions and I do have the blackfroyo.zip on my sd card and for some reason it won't "go" (although I'm sure there's a step I am missing here, something with obsidian) so that wasn't much of a surprise.
Edit: I noticed I tried to use a theme on there and not the obsidian "OS" (idiot) when I tried the backup thing with rom manager. Where can I download the most recent version of obsidian and/or is axura an acceptable alternative?

VibrantUser1 said:
Edit: I noticed I tried to use a theme on there and not the obsidian "OS" (idiot) when I tried the backup thing with rom manager. Where can I download the most recent version of obsidian and/or is axura an acceptable alternative?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Been working on updating the wiki. Please check out http://forum.xda-developers.com/wiki/index.php?title=Samsung_Galaxy_S_SGH-T959#ROMs for the different ROMs currently available.

^^ both are solid. I prefer Auxura *no touchwiz*.... download it from the development section. Place in on the internal (sdcard/ ) and flash it, reboot... I would let the phone chill for awhile then reboot again.... THEN if you want, start messing with the theme. You can see from my signature you and I are similar.
to the OP, I started a noob friendly guide in the Q&A section. Please let me know exactly what you want in there.

Here is a video guide, its kinda old but the principles are the same.
http://theunlockr.com/2010/08/02/how-to-load-a-custom-rom-on-the-samsung-captivate-vibrant/

I have been browsing around and reading on XDA since I got my G1 on release day. I have since upgraded to the MYT3G and now to the Vibrant. I have always used XDA as a source of information for rooting, etc. I don't post very often, but, I would like to throw props out to all the individuals in the thread, this is one of the few threads I have read on XDA that no one got flamed for being a "noob" and asking basic info, the information given was clear, accurate and very helpful. No one pointed to using the search function, everyone just gave good answers. AWESOME
I hope to see more threads like this in the future. Bravo and well done to all.

So I tried installing obsidian 5 and this is what happened. I first put the zip file on my sd card, I did all the necessary prerequisites (I think) using rom manager, flash recovery > vibrant yada yada yada and then pressed install rom from sd card and chose the obsidian zip file. Then the phone starts backing itself up and it finally reaches a point where it says (E: Can't open/sdcard/sd/obsidian_v5_beta.zip (no such file or directory) Installation aborted.
I then try to navigate to the file from the menu but whenever I click the sd file, it just exits, I think it says that no zip file is found or something but when I boot it up normally afterwards, the file is still there.
But the file is within the sd file . . . what am I doing wrong? I tried to fix permissions thinking it was that but no luck.

You probably need to move to the rom to the internal sd card. I thought you're able to add it to the external with the recent update but perhaps not
Sent from my GT-I9000 using XDA App

bellrb19 said:
You probably need to move to the rom to the internal sd card. I thought you're able to add it to the external with the recent update but perhaps not
Sent from my GT-I9000 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
the rom IS on the sd card, unless you mean the memory on the actual phone itself

ROMs go on the root of the internal memory (no folder)... drop it in sdcard/
Also, this was mentioned in Post 8, and in team whiskeys install guide. Please pay attention to details.

oh okay, this whole time I've been thinkin the sd card folder was the root folder. Well I have finally put obsidian with success and now I'm having a difficult time implementing http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=845530. I have downloaded the zip file but I don't understand what "flash it through clockwork recovery" means. It kinda sounds like I should use something in rom manager but I'm not sure, I have tried to reboot into recovery through rom manager with no luck.
I've also tried using metamorph but when i choose the blackfroyo.zip file, it says that the file is invalid and that the theme control file could be missing. Am I doing something wrong here as well?
Thanks for all your help so far, I really appreciate you taking time out of your busy life to help an individual with (what may be to you) simple problems

VibrantUser1 said:
oh okay, this whole time I've been thinkin the sd card folder was the root folder. Well I have finally put obsidian with success and now I'm having a difficult time implementing http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=845530. I have downloaded the zip file but I don't understand what "flash it through clockwork recovery" means. It kinda sounds like I should use something in rom manager but I'm not sure, I have tried to reboot into recovery through rom manager with no luck.
I've also tried using metamorph but when i choose the blackfroyo.zip file, it says that the file is invalid and that the theme control file could be missing. Am I doing something wrong here as well?
Thanks for all your help so far, I really appreciate you taking time out of your busy life to help an individual with (what may be to you) simple problems
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
From where you are now. Make sure the zip file is in the internal sd card, Open rom manager go to install rom from sd card then choose the that file then click ok and CW will do its thing. Also this is only for Obsidian v4.2 and Auxura 2.05. Good luck! Also you should make a nandroid back up first just in case.