Database Users

make a completely stock froyo launcher, htc desire. no root required!

From a comment i made on the thread mentioned below, but seemed appropriate to start a new one considering lots of people have been looking to do this.
for any of those using launcher pro, and hate the default icons, ive attached the stock froyo ones for browser and phone. if you are an htc sense user and want a stock froyo experience without root/ custom roms then downloading launcher pro and using these icons is the easiest way to do it. if u want the stock android phone/contacts app, download dailer one and link it to the froyo phone icon (by long pressing) in launcher pro. bearing in mind the launcher2 phone icon is hardlinked to the stock android phone app, which is impossible to install on htc phones. this is the closest you can get, and it does a pretty good job!
i have also tweaked the nexus icon from another thread to fit.
it was coming up very small as the app drawer icon in launcher pro. screenshot and files for all icons attached.
ive also attached the froyo stock app drawer icon, the launcher pro one is close but a bit big and doesnt quite match the style
i know no-one has directly asked for all this info but ive been reading the forums and a lot of people want to do this so thought i had to share the knowledge somewhere! i can take credit for very little, all i have done is edit an icon and congregated stuff ive found into one place. from my own experience wanting to do this i found it very frustrating that those with sense but wanting stock had to resort to 'almost but not quite' solutions. ive also found that a lot of supposedly stable roms are far from it. this ensures a bug/ fc free experience. you get complete stock functionality but with the visual appeal and the added dock buttons from froyo.
please link this info on to any forum you might think could need it, also, if some kind soul could upload mirrors to the images for those who arent members (this thread is aimed primarily at them) and embedded photos of the screen grabs would also be appreciated, i dont have the permissions. thanks a lot, hope this stuff is useful!
Peter

[Q] So, I'm getting a Tab 10.1...

I'm getting a Tab 10.1 and was wondering a few things:
-If I don't like the Samsung apps(for example, the TW launcher), can I install the apks from a Xoom sys dump?
-If I wanted to install an app that has no tablet version yet (say through an apk) would it blow up to 10.1 inch size?
-And also, how easy is it to get back to stock after a complete ****up, brick and everything (that's on of the reasons the Moto Milestone is still my primary phone)
Thanks 4 the help guys, any answers are appreciated a lot.
Ev

I'm not sure about the Xoom apks, but I've seen that people have been able to successfully run the ASUS Transformer apks on other tablets.
As far as the apps goes, I think there are two ways they are handled:
A) They are tablet compatible, and will take up the whole screen like a tablet app. You may end up with a lot of blank space as they will retain the same layout (and icon size) as the phone version, but in all in all very useful.
B) Some apps aren't tablet compatible yet. This open in a tiny window on your screen (the rest of the screen is black) about the same size they would on your phone.
I think it's fairly trivial to update apps so they handled in way A, but I've come across one or two apps that haven't been updated yet.

Thank you!
Thanks for the answers, that clears up a few things.
I'm still going to have to trawl the forums for a way to get back to stock if all else fails, but u answered all my other questions, so thanks again!!
tr4z

I have quite a few non tablet apps currently running on my tab.
Many of them take up the entire screen with no issues.
The only way I can tell they aren't official tablet apps is the location of the menu button.
Apps optimized for the tablet will have the menu button in the upper right corner, while non official apps will have them at the bottom.
Sent from my GT-P7510 using Tapatalk

all apps will scale to full screen if you turn off compatibility mode. I'm told that some apps will crash if you disable compatibility mode but I have never experienced this.

Hey man , as far as things go with recovering .. the root is a fairly easy process , and you can recover with Odin like Galaxy S phones .. I havent HAD to do it yet , but using it was part of how i rooted . And i have a Galaxy S Fascinate , and Odin can recover ANYTHING as far as it is concerned , I cant imagine it being much different on the 10.1 tab . At least im hoping not , as that factored into my decision in buying one .
Im working on some new optimized apps and a theme now .. hopefully we can get them up here on xda when completed .

Ex Xperia S owner here, issues with Galaxy S4 i9505 KK.

1. Why the ?%$& is the album art getting displayed in full screen in the lock screen? It looks like absolute ****. Can't seem to find a way to disable this disgusting feature.
2. Why isn't my preference of keeping the lights under the buttons constantly enabled? After a while they just don't turn on anymore.
3. Any way to get something resembling realistic colors on this god awful screen? Jesus christ the screen on my Xperia S was way better than this. The various screen modes don't seem to make any difference.
4. Any way to disable the shutter sound on camera? I mean what were they thinking, making it impossible to disable?
5. Can I get the Sony WALKMAN app and widgets on this phone and if yes, how?
6. What the hell is KNOX?
7. How do I get rid of S Voice once and for all? The stupid gimmick keeps popping up and talking and I don't know what the hell it wants from me.
There's more, but I'm done for today.
8. Suggestion on how to deal with buyer's remorse?
Thank you.

MarkMRL said:
1. Why the ?%$& is the album art getting displayed in full screen in the lock screen? It looks like absolute ****. Can't seem to find a way to disable this disgusting feature.
2. Why isn't my preference of keeping the lights under the buttons constantly enabled? After a while they just don't turn on anymore.
3. Any way to get something resembling realistic colors on this god awful screen? Jesus christ the screen on my Xperia S was way better than this. The various screen modes don't seem to make any difference.
4. Any way to disable the shutter sound on camera? I mean what were they thinking, making it impossible to disable?
5. Can I get the Sony WALKMAN app and widgets on this phone and if yes, how?
6. What the hell is KNOX?
7. How do I get rid of S Voice once and for all? The stupid gimmick keeps popping up and talking and I don't know what the hell it wants from me.
There's more, but I'm done for today.
8. Suggestion on how to deal with buyer's remorse?
Thank you.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It seems to me that what you don't like about S4 is the software. Sure, it packs lots of crap wares. I too can't stand those so I have to rooted and customized those.
1. Album art is kitkat feature, it exist also in AOSP and no option to disable it.
2. Mine stay on if I chose "Always on"
3. You're used to LCD screen, granted LG G2, HTC One... screen are better, not sure about Xperia S. What I love about Amoled is true black, viewing angle, battery consumption... however color reproduction is slightly off, but far better that Amoled it replaced.
4. Mine; go to camera pp > Settings > 3rd tab > Shutter sound > off.
5. Not sure, it might just like installing app... you gotta search in this forum.
6. KNOX is some enterprise feature... not sure anyone use it. But flashing fw could lead to KNOX warranty void and make your phone lose warranty.
7. You can disable S Voice app.
8. I'm not sure.
Hope some one will give you clearer info on this.

Thanks for trying to help me. I'm sorry if I sound mad in my post but I expected a lot more and was pretty disappointed. And yeah, my main issue is the software, it looks bad and it's not as usable and refined as the Sony UI I was used to.
That being said
1. It's too bad you can't disable fullscreen album art, it looks so bad.
2. Mine also stay on for a while, then all of a sudden they're off and there's no way to turn them back on again unless I fiddle with the settings. What could be the problem?
3. Yeah, screen is just a matter of getting used to. I'm more used to a realistic color palette with lighter whites. This looks a bit off to me, and whites are slightly tinted but it seems there's no way to fix it (on Xperia there was a "white balance app", Samsung doesn't seem to have an equivalent).
4. Why is it not there on mine? I searched everywhere for it, it's nowhere to be found. Maybe it's because I have the stock Italian firmware? Which firmware are you using? On Xperia there were various variants of the same firmware, I flashed a "WORLD" one which had no third party bloat, is there a similar one for Samsung?
By the way, I rooted the phone by flashing some file from Odin, but I'm having issues: for example, I tried to apply the hosts patch with adaway, and it doesn't seem to work properly, also, I can't seem to get Android Commander to detect the phone no matter what, and I tried to install CWM using ROM Manager from Play Store, and that also doesn't work (I still have the stock Samsung recovery that's completely useless), even though ROM Manager says I installed CWM.
And one last question, how do you know if a new firmware is available? Since I rooted and tripped that Knox BS, it now says I'm not original anymore and I'm not going to receive any more updates. Is there a website I can check for firmware updates? My phone is an unbranded i9505.
Thanks in advance.

Look Here Before Asking Questions [Kitkat Related]

As many of us have took the recent Kitkat OTA we have a variety of questions. Since there have been many threads asking the same question or related to the same question, I will be making this thread to keep this from continuing.
Question: I have took the Kitkat update, is there any way I can root?
Answer: No, no known exploit works on the RAZR M, unless you have a unlocked bootloader. Then you can flash a custom recovery and flash a superuser.zip and gain root access (Credits - fredsky2)
Question: Can I unlock my bootloader now that I have the kitkat update?
Answer: No, the bootloader has been patched ever since the JB OTA. No exploits will work with the RAZR M.
Question: Will Rootkeeper keep root after the OTA?
Answer: I've yet to see it work so I assume no.
Question: When I take the OTA, will it lock my bootloader?
Answer: No, once the bootloader is unlocked, it cannot be relocked.
Question: Can I downgrade to Jellybean after the Kitkat OTA?
Answer: No, the bootloader is locked, meaning you cannot downgrade or even touch the kernel.
Question: How can I return my phone to stock so I can receive the OTA?
Answer: RSD back to stock.
Question: Where can I get the SBF Files for the DROID RAZR M?
Answer: Here: http://sbf.droid-developers.org/phone.php?device=8
Question: My phone won't let me take the Kitkat ota, what do I do?
Answer: Most likely it's because apps are disabled or root is present. RSD back to stock is typically the solution to the problem. If you want to RSD back to stock but don't want to lose your data, look for the question below.
Question: Can I sim unlock after I take the Kitkat update? (Suggestion Credits - gtmaster303)
Answer: Yes! There is a tutorial with video on how to do it found here: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2487863 . MAKE SURE YOU HAVE PROPER DRIVERS INSTALLED!
Question: Can I flash a custom recovery after the Kitkat update?
Answer: No, unless your bootloader is unlocked.
Question: I'm getting a getvar error, how do I fix it?
Answer: In the xml file found in the zip, delete any getvar lines at the beginning of the file.
Question: Can I RSD without clearing data?
Answer: Yes! I asked myself and I'm adding this for others sake. Delete the <step operation="erase" partition="userdata" /> line in the XML file found in the zip. I suggest using it only for when you're on the same version of the update. So 9.30.1 to 9.30.1. Give credits to lem22 for helping me out! http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2755924
Question: What's are the overall changes/problems with Kitkat? (Suggestion Credits - Strife89)
Answer: There has been a full list provided here: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=52736453&postcount=1 , click the show button below to see Strife89's list!
Strife89 said:
The Good
The UI is definitely smoother. It doesn't jitter or stall under heavy usage anywhere near as much as it did in Jellybean.
Battery life when the phone is asleep seems to have been improved a little.
USB audio out is now supported.
The occasional "screen jitter" that plagued the Jellybean build is gone.
KitKat's Quick Settings panel is quite handy.
The native lock screen now supports adding, removing, and rearranging widgets.
Although it can't be installed from the Play Store, the Google Experience Launcher can be sideloaded and works just fine.
The Neutral / Very Subjective
The AOSP keyboard has changed; the keys are smaller and, in landscape, very squashed. You may need to adjust to it (I'm trying, but it's a struggle) or find a replacement.
Battery life when the phone is actively in use has not been noticeably improved in my experience; but it hasn't been noticeably worsened, either.
There's now a shortcut to the camera from the lock screen, which can be used even if the phone is locked by a pattern/PIN/etc. (Great if you're a shutterbug; not so great if someone else decides to troll your Dropbox/Drive account.)
The Google Camera app works - but Photosphere can't be used, as the Razr M doesn't have a gyroscope.
The Bad
No more root, for those with locked BLs (me). (Saferoot fails, and many users are reporting losing root even when they try survival methods.)
Wi-Fi tethering via most apps (e.g., FoxFi) has been blocked, so now you must pay your carrier for the feature unless a new workaround is discovered.
All notifications I've seen so far now flash the notification light white, instead of unique colors. This may be frustrating for some who used the colors to decide whether to check the phone immediately or later. (Luckily, there are ways to address this.)
The Blur launcher is same 'ol, same 'ol. It uses a solid black background for the soft keys and notifications bar (rather than taking advantage of KitKat's transparency support), and it still has that Quick Settings menu on the left (which is redundant now). In addition, Holo Launcher (which I was using) doesn't account for the space used by the softkeys at all, making it difficult to use. (I've switched to Nova Launcher, which is working fine.)
I've experienced some weirdness with the application switcher. Sometimes it drops me to the launcher right after displaying the list, and sometimes apps will overwrite another's position on the list, or be dropped from the list entirely without reason (this is always temporary, however - just bring up the switcher again).
Some apps can no longer write to the SD card - or at least not wherever they please. We still have the Files browser, mercifully (but I favor Total Commander anyway, which seems to work perfectly).
The audio quick switch on the lock screen has been removed. Also, the buttons for entering a PIN are smaller.
(Leraeniesh) Under heavy usage, the Razr M may get hotter under KitKat than it did under Jellybean, and may drain the battery more.
(GPIX) Some users have noticed decreased network performance in some apps, such as Chrome or YouTube, while on Wi-Fi and with Wi-Fi power-saving enabled.
(GPIX) Several users have reported popping noises - when a sound begins to play, or in the middle of playback. (I haven't experienced it, however.)
Swype is no longer included. If you used it in Jellybean, you will need to purchase it on the Play Store after taking the OTA.
(ls3c6) Some have encountered problems with sharing the address book to paired devices over Bluetooth.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If there are any extra questions needed to be added, let me know and I'd be more then willing to add them!
If there is a user having problems that are listed in this thread, just link him here!
I added this to the General Forum as well due to many questions being asked there and not here. Hope this helps and have a great day!

Thread updated. Credits - fredsky2

Worth rooting and using custom ROMs?

Hi,
My warranty is running out so I'm on the fence: look for a new phone or go the rooting and custom ROM path and continue using Note 4.
So as we have now MM and some updated apps, air command and other stuff is updated.. so what additional benefits custom ROM could give?
Speed? I do some gaming and can't complain that Note 4 is slow. It's really fast.
Disable more apps? That would be a benefit coz now not all apps can be disabled.
Remove quick connect buttons?
What else am I missing?
Launcher tweaks? But we use Nova. You don't need root for Nova
What else?
Thanks!!!

I'm using stock MM 6.0.1 (DPB1) and it's great. Still a fantastic phone for 2016 and really fast. I only root for Titanium Backup to freeze all the crap and to boost the headphone output level.
Only wish is for universal DPI adjustment as I can't be arsed messing about with xposed framework and the like but it's not a biggie.
You can root without installing a custom ROM and it takes literally 2 minutes.

What exactly do you freeze which cannot be disabled in Application Manager? And what benefits those freezed app give?
Will Greenify give any noticable battery life? As I understood Greenify needs root as well.

Here's a list of my disabled apps.
https://imgur.com/a/X0Zjv
What you freezed with tibackup?

For me the main reason for rooting is to be able to get the huge games I have downloaded over the years to all fit onto my ext SD card. I also enjoy the ability to use apps like Cerberus,, Greenify and SD Maid.... etc. to their absolute full potential.

I root phones because I want things the way I want them. For example I don't like the quick connect logos when I lower the screen to see any alerts. I also don't like how the phone warns me that the volume is getting loud. As if I don't know how.loud the phone is. Little thing like that drive me crazy. I root the phone so I can deal with those little announces like that.

If you have to ask whether its worth rooting or not, then I am not sure you are in the right place man. Said it plenty times before, saying it again, I don't really see the point of using Android without rooting, unless you need that KNOX thingy. Why? I can't even start to mention. Take AdAway for example, and that's the first step only of a journey of countless steps.
Custom ROMs on the other hand? If you see a really good dev, then yes, like Arya, or Omega etc., otherwise no comments.

ithehappy said:
If you have to ask whether its worth rooting or not, then I am not sure you are in the right place man. Said it plenty times before, saying it again, I don't really see the point of using Android without rooting, unless you need that KNOX thingy.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So if one isn't rooting, then one might as well use...what, an iOS device? That doesn't make sense to me. There are plenty of compelling reasons to use Android over alternate mobile OS'es, even if one is using unrooted Android. Even if one is using unrooted, unmodified, BAD skinned Android.

What exactly do you freeze which cannot be disabled in Application Manager? And what benefits those freezed app give?
I have 96 apps frozen. Mostly pre-installed crap and many system apps including all the wireless/remote/sharing stuff I don't need. You need to choose what's important to you but it makes a massive difference to battery life.

If you don't know what is rooting for, you should forget about it.
Sent from my SM-N910F using Tapatalk

I know what rooting is and I've used it in my previous phones (Nexus mainly) for many many things.
Why? Because Nexus didn't have all the features I needed.
And now Note 4 has battery optimization feature (so no need for Greenify), all those notification buttons, quick buttons, side buttons you name it (no custom rom is needed), basic backup function works to Samsung cloud (it partially covers tibackup) etc etc.
Well.. AdAway is a different thing.