Looking for help with modding Multiling keyboard - Nook Touch General

Thread reboot begins in post #14: AIType Keyboard!
It was user @ALinkToTao who first acquainted me with Multiling Keyboard. I don't care much about the potential for other languages (and I think maybe the Hacker's Keyboard does a better job), but I do really like the secondary keyboard which gives access to the system paste buffer or clipboard. It's nearly impossible to find an application which will allow a long press on an item to copy it to the clipboard (the URL line in Opera Mini is a notable exception). I've found this very useful in moving from a text editor to, say, Tasker, or even Opera Mini. Anyway, the keyboard is not without issues.
The principal issue I would like to solve is the invisibility of key options on a long-press. For example, a long press of the "u" key should bring up the number "7" along with a variety of diacritical variations of "u". I've installed the keyboard on a small KitKat device and it does display properly, with a highlight rectangle that can be moved around before releasing and accepting the character. In that particular installation, the potential characters are displayed in a line, just like they "might" be if they were only visible. The background is always dark (as on the stock NST) and the character font is always white, regardless of the font color on the keyboard.
I've taken the app apart and inspected every xml reference to font colors. Changing them all to "black" or "white" depending on the theme (and even adding some) has had no effect. I have been able to change the background color of the rectangle which should show the key options, but that's it. The selection process does work, but it's blind.
Just to see if this is an e-ink thing, I installed the keyboard on the NST-CM11 ROM. I've shown side-by-side screenshots of the board on the stock ROM and the CM11 ROM. Although the configuration of the rectangle has changed for some reason, the function remains the same and clearly works on the CM11 ROM.
This leads me to suspect that this could be a framework issue. I hope not.
So, if anyone is interested in working on this with me, I'd really like the extra input. I've attached a copy of the (unaltered) apk.

If I had the know-how, I would help you. But I'm ignorant in these matters. Glad to hear that you're still at it. I still freaking love my Nook Simple Touch that you've helped me with. I've gifted dozens of those to my friends customized specifically for them. I still use that DesktopVisualizer app on my Atrix 4g and all my Nooks. Thank you brother.

ALinkToTao said:
If I had the know-how, I would help you. But I'm ignorant in these matters. Glad to hear that you're still at it. I still freaking love my Nook Simple Touch that you've helped me with. I've gifted dozens of those to my friends customized specifically for them. I still use that DesktopVisualizer app on my Atrix 4g and all my Nooks. Thank you brother.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, thank you for this keyboard which is nearly perfect for my use. Just this one niggling thing.
BTW, I finally worked out a way to make the RNMenu app user-customizable (within limits). If you still use it, you might want to take a look here.

Thanks I'll check that out, and yes I do use it!

Code:
C:\>adb install com.klye.ime.latin-1.apk
Performing Push Install
com.klye.ime.latin-1.apk: 1 file pushed, 0 skipped. 3.4 MB/s (949941 bytes in 0.265s)
pkg: /data/local/tmp/com.klye.ime.latin-1.apk
Failure [INSTALL_FAILED_INVALID_APK]
W/PackageManager( 809): Native ABI mismatch from package file
You might need to rename lib/armeabi to lib/armeabi-v7a

Renate said:
Code:
C:\>adb install com.klye.ime.latin-1.apk
Performing Push Install
com.klye.ime.latin-1.apk: 1 file pushed, 0 skipped. 3.4 MB/s (949941 bytes in 0.265s)
pkg: /data/local/tmp/com.klye.ime.latin-1.apk
Failure [INSTALL_FAILED_INVALID_APK]
W/PackageManager( 809): Native ABI mismatch from package file
You might need to rename lib/armeabi to lib/armeabi-v7a
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Huh. I'll try that tomorrow morning. Thanks!

Renate said:
Code:
C:\>adb install com.klye.ime.latin-1.apk
Performing Push Install
com.klye.ime.latin-1.apk: 1 file pushed, 0 skipped. 3.4 MB/s (949941 bytes in 0.265s)
pkg: /data/local/tmp/com.klye.ime.latin-1.apk
Failure [INSTALL_FAILED_INVALID_APK]
W/PackageManager( 809): Native ABI mismatch from package file
You might need to rename lib/armeabi to lib/armeabi-v7a
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That was interesting. I've actually never tried installing this as a user app. I've always just copied the apk file into /system/app and rebooted. There, it behaves just as you would expect a keyboard app to except for this annoying display issue.
It won't install on the original NST as a user app. Via ADB it gives the error you show above, with or without lib/armbei renamed to lib/armbei-v7a.
If I try to install via file manager it warns that another version already exists on the device (it doesn't) and then the installation fails.
So that's not the way to address this problem--but it is interesting.
Edit: oh, and if I rename the lib sub-folder and then place the apk file in /system/app as I normally would, it is ignored.

nmyshkin said:
with or without lib/armbei renamed to lib/armbei-v7a.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Spelling counts: armeabi-v7a
Work-in-progress (named "ThemeSpy")
Code:
01010036 android:attr/textColorPrimary -> 01060001 android:color/primary_text_dark -> "res/color/primary_text_dark.xml"
01010037 android:attr/textColorPrimaryDisableOnly -> 01060040 android:color/primary_text_dark_disable_only -> "res/color/primary_text_dark_disable_only.xml"
01010038 android:attr/textColorSecondary -> 01060005 android:color/secondary_text_dark -> "res/color/secondary_text_dark.xml"
01010039 android:attr/textColorPrimaryInverse -> 01060003 android:color/primary_text_light -> "res/color/primary_text_light.xml"
0101003a android:attr/textColorSecondaryInverse -> 01060007 android:color/secondary_text_light -> "res/color/secondary_text_light.xml"
0101003b android:attr/textColorPrimaryNoDisable -> 01060002 android:color/primary_text_dark_nodisable -> "res/color/primary_text_dark_nodisable.xml"
0101003c android:attr/textColorSecondaryNoDisable -> 01060006 android:color/secondary_text_dark_nodisable -> "res/color/secondary_text_dark_nodisable.xml"
0101003d android:attr/textColorPrimaryInverseNoDisable -> 01060004 android:color/primary_text_light_nodisable -> "res/color/primary_text_light_nodisable.xml"
0101003e android:attr/textColorSecondaryInverseNoDisable -> 01060008 android:color/secondary_text_light_nodisable -> "res/color/secondary_text_light_nodisable.xml"
0101003f android:attr/textColorHintInverse -> 01060032 android:color/hint_foreground_light -> #ff555555

Renate said:
Spelling counts: armeabi-v7a
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Oh my...I hope I didn't do something that stupid
I'll check tomorrow morning...

Renate said:
Spelling counts: armeabi-v7a
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, it does, but I'm apparently more careful when working with Apktool than when typing a post. I had the change right in the app, but it is not recognized by the NST as a system app and will not install as a user app.
I've searched for other potential mentions of "armeabi" elsewhere in the app just to be sure something didn't have to be changed to be consistent, but there were none.
Square one.
Edit: it just gets weirder. I located three previous versions of the app. None will install as user apps, always claiming they will replace an existing app (there is none) and then failing to install. Placed in /system/app instead, they are ignored. Only version 1.1.7 behaves as a system app on the NST (but will not install as a user app). So it's this version or none I guess.
I'm wondering if this version (1.1.7) has not already been modified by someone. @ALinkToTao, do you remember where you got this version?

Ah. Something, maybe a thread to tug on.
There are a couple of T9/compact keyboard modes. On the first of these, a long-press shows the sort of thing that ought to appear on the standard keyboard with a long-press. See screenshot below.
So the thing is doable on the device, but for some reason it's not working on the full-size keyboard.
Time to look at the xml again...

If it doesn't install normally you'll have to show the logcat why.
My NST has props:
Code:
[ro.product.cpu.abi]: [armeabi-v7a]
My contemporary (but cheap) cellphone has props:
Code:
[ro.product.cpu.abi]: [armeabi-v7a]
[ro.product.cpu.abi2]: [armeabi]
[ro.product.cpu.abilist]: [armeabi-v7a,armeabi]
[ro.product.cpu.abilist32]: [armeabi-v7a,armeabi]
My Onyx Poke3 has props:
Code:
[ro.product.cpu.abi]: [arm64-v8a]
[ro.product.cpu.abilist]: [arm64-v8a,armeabi-v7a,armeabi]
[ro.product.cpu.abilist32]: [armeabi-v7a,armeabi]
[ro.product.cpu.abilist64]: [arm64-v8a]

Renate said:
If it doesn't install normally you'll have to show the logcat why.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yours has props, mine has peeps (but only me).
This is one for the Journal of Irreproducible Results. I think I see part of the crazy message source now. I deleted the apk file from /system/app, removed the folder for the app from /data/data and removed the dalvik-cache entry for the app. Then I tried to install the app again as a user app, following the logcat. I saw no errors but a lot of shuffling around of stuff. I forgot that the package manager and i guess packages.xml would retain information of previous installations, so it all became sort of a mush.
But I did see in logcat that it was sorting out the change from a system app to a user app. It did not complain about the armaebi business but did remark on it. And it installed.
Next I did what all the old threads about keyboards say to do. I moved the apk file from /data/app to /system/app, fixed the permissions and rebooted. The app showed up in the drawer and functioned as before--sadly.
But.
I believe I have something better. Time for a thread reboot when I have more time.
"My child, the Duke of Plaza-Toro does not follow fashions--he leads them. He always leads everybody. When he was in the army he led his regiment. He occasionally led them into action. He invariably led them out of it."
--The Gondoliers

Time for a thread reboot!
Since the Multiling keyboard would not play nice with me, no matter what I tried to fix the issue with the long-press options display in the normal keyboard mode, my attentions began to wander. Somewhere in the dark recesses of the forum I found a reference to the AIType Keyboard app. I searched for an old copy, found it and began to test it out.
It has a more limited language range then the Multiling keyboard, but those other languages on the Multiling required an addon and the last time I tried to help someone with it, we could not get it to work. Also, there is no finger-tracing recognition (I'll really miss that!). I tried to track down a few language plugins for the AIType Keyboard, but the ones I found refused to install (Arabic, for example). As it is, it works fine with languages using a Latin or modified Latin alphabet, Greek, Korean (surprise), and languages using Cyrillic. Much of that probably has to do with what the NST can support. "Download" invitations in the initial part of Settings do not work. The app contains a custom certificate which I'm sure has long-since expired. I also suspect the language addons are not actually free, so even if you track down an old one, it's not going to work.
I could not figure out the "prediction" stuff (possibly because I don't care about it), so I won't say it does not work. The app can even read your text in the edit mode using TTS.
And yes, the long-press options work on all the keys in all the modes!
Also there are many different keyboard styles to choose and you can change the colors of many things. Alas the color changing is done with the typical graphical picker. While a hex value for the selection is shown immediately after it is chosen, if you take a peek at the preferences.xml file, the colors have been obfuscated for some reason. They look like signed twos complement. Don't get me started.
Anyway....I played around trying to get something clean, resembling the stock keyboard. In the end when I had what I wanted I noticed that the navigation arrows in the edit keyboard were nearly invisible, being white on a white background with just a ghostly outline. I therefore altered those few images to make them gray. No other changes (except the signature, of course) have been made. See screenshots below for what I came up with.
If you like the looks of what I did or want to use it as a point of departure, see the spoiler that follows. If you would rather have the original, un-modded app and work with it yourself, you can download it from here.
To install and use, just treat this as a user app. It can figure out what to do. If you decide you don't like it, uninstalling will give you back the stock keyboard.
Spoiler: Reproducing my settings
In order to use the provided xml file that will make the keyboard look like it does in the screenshots, you need to be able to control which keyboard the NST is using. Nook Color Tools can access the Android Input chooser, but you should not fool around with other stuff in there. Some things can cause a spontaneous factory re-image from which there is no escape (I speak from experience). Safer would be my Nook Settings app (shameless plug) which has an Input option in the System section.
Here's the sequence:
1. Install the AIType Keyboard app.
2. Tap on the app icon and allow the app to access the Input chooser. You select the new keyboard and "Finish" at the bottom of the screen. This should be sufficient to generate the xml file in /data/data/com.aitype.android/shared_prefs.
If you want to be sure, access the keyboard with something just for a bit.
3. Now bring up the Input chooser using the Nook Settings app or Nook Color Tools (I guess there is an ADB option too...). Select the stock keyboard.
4. Download and upzip the file containing the preferences xml file.
5. Copy this file into /data/data/com.aitype.android/shared_prefs, overwriting what is there. Permissions on the file should be rw-rw-r.
6. With the Input chooser, select the AIType Keyboard and you're good to go!
Edit: 7-30-22--Ah, nagware. You gotta hate it.... How to stop the "limited time only" nuisance that comes up too often when the keyboard opens? I played around with this awhile and discovered that a likely setting in the xml preferences file I attached seemed to do the trick. I changed a date to some time in 2025 and no more nags. After that, well, I'll just change it again. I've updated the zip in the downloads, but if you have already made settings changes and don't want to start over, you can do this yourself. Look for this line in the xml file:
Code:
<long name="next_expiration_reminder" value="1657490536337" />
Your actual value (extended date time format) may be a little different, but what you want to do is change the second digit to a "7" so the line looks like this:
Code:
<long name="next_expiration_reminder" value="1757490536337" />
You should do this by copying out the file, making the change and then copying back over the original file.

Related

[Q] Swype installs but you cant enable

I got Swype to install but the rom wont let you select it
Right, you can't access the stock android settings page to enable it. Will likely need a custom rom before this can be done.
I dont have a fire yet so this is pure speculation....
Can you sideload a home screen replacement (like launcher pro) and have better access to the settings menus? Thus allowing ability to select swype?
I installed Go Launcher Ex, which worked for me, and I was unable to access any other settings other than the customized Kindle Settings.
sanewicked said:
I installed Go Launcher Ex, which worked for me, and I was unable to access any other settings other than the customized Kindle Settings.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Cool, well guess at least we know those work! Will have to wait for some devs to get other stuff working I guess (or learn ourselves).
Edit: And im guessing they disabled the function to where you can long press on a text entry field to change input methods?
big gulps huh? said:
Edit: And im guessing they disabled the function to where you can long press on a text entry field to change input methods?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's what I was going to suggest trying.
Sent from my DROIDX using XDA App
big gulps huh? said:
Edit: And im guessing they disabled the function to where you can long press on a text entry field to change input methods?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There *is* a menu for input method that has only one entry, "Kindle Keyboard".
masayang
The kb has to be enabled in settings before it will show up in the input selection menu. Of course there is no way of doing that just yet
Sent from my ADR6400L
SikYou said:
The kb has to be enabled in settings before it will show up in the input selection menu. Of course there is no way of doing that just yet
Sent from my ADR6400L
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ok, I totally forgot about that. Oh well...
I am getting my kindle fire tomorrow and I've been looking at how to enable other keyboards. See if you can manually edit the file where settings are store: /data/data/com.android.providers/settings/databases/settings.db using an sql editor look for the field "enabled_input_methods". Type in the proper info for the keyboard you are adding and see what happens. Root is required obviously. With any luck this might work.
Swype working just fine.
Psxtreme said:
I am getting my kindle fire tomorrow and I've been looking at how to enable other keyboards. See if you can manually edit the file where settings are store: /data/data/com.android.providers/settings/databases/settings.db using an sql editor look for the field "enabled_input_methods". Type in the proper info for the keyboard you are adding and see what happens. Root is required obviously. With any luck this might work.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I got swype working last night after a few trials. Here's what I did (though I'm sure not all steps are necessary).
I of course first grabbed the swype APK from my ATTSGS2 and side loaded onto the fire (without root). I know you all said it wouldn't work, but this is just the way I troubleshoot issues.
Swype installed fine, but as you said I could not select it from the input options list (when you long click a text field it gives you the option to select input method).
Now, I haven't permanently rooted my fire. I quite like software updates, video, and security on my device. That said, I don't mind dabbling with the stock load a bit. I pushed zergRush out to /data/local and ran that to get a temporary root.
I then downloaded the settings.db as suggested above and used sqlite3 (included by default in Mac OS X) to edit the input methods list to add swype.
Here's a dump of the resulting field:
INSERT INTO "secure" VALUES(21,'enabled_input_methods','com.android.inputmethod.latin/.LatinIME:com.swype.android.inputmethod/.SwypeInputMethod');
If you aren't comfortable editing an sqlite database file I'm not going to walk you through it, a mistake with that file could brick your kindle.
You'll see I added Swype to the stock LatinIME.
That did the trick. After a reboot (which by the way removes my temporary root). I could select Swype. Of course upon launching the swype keyboard I discovered I was missing the swype core library. After another zergRush and an install of the library which I also found on my ATTSGS2 I got swype launched!
Great the keyboard came up .. and .. "license failure". Damn, that's the first piece of android I've seen with license enforcement.
That's okay though, I knew swype corp (now a division of Nuance) somehow gives away copies of the software. I left settings.db as is but removed the swype apk and corelibs.
Then I headed over to the swype website, signed up for the beta, downloaded the swype installer -- which by the way I had to do from my ATTSGS2 because the swype website insisted my kindle was not running android.
I side loaded the installer onto the kindle (without root), ran the installer, and everything went in smooth. I didn't even have to go back into settings.db to change the default input method -- the installer seemed to do that for me.
I'm not sure if the settings.db changes were necessary at all in fact, and if not this would be a completely safe procedure with no root required.
Some feedback would be good. I'm sure everyone would love to use this workaround to get swype running, though for most of you you'd better not touch sqlite databases directly. Its my opinion if editing that file IS necessary, then you're probably better off waiting for ROM support. Though it would of course be a violation of copyright law to distribute a ROM with swype preinstalled. Beware developers who ignore copyright law, their missing scruples may extend to other areas of software development.
I imagine at some point in the future someone will release a .apk that can modify those settings but it's good to know the settings are there and functional, just obfuscated by amazon. Also there is an android market app that lets you edit the sql database more easily but definitely not for the faint of heart.
Psxtreme said:
I imagine at some point in the future someone will release a .apk that can modify those settings but it's good to know the settings are there and functional, just obfuscated by amazon. Also there is an android market app that lets you edit the sql database more easily but definitely not for the faint of heart.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I looked quick in the market and couldn't find one. Do you know the name?
It would be much easier than adb shuffles back and forth.
It's not free but I think it's worth it, it's called "SQLite Editor"
[email protected] said:
I'm not sure if the settings.db changes were necessary at all in fact, and if not this would be a completely safe procedure with no root required.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
They appear to be - just tried installing the swype beta without rooting yet and the new keyboard is not showing up.
I just used the same method to enable Swiftkey X (the non-tablet version). Works great!
My "enabled_input_methods" field is: "com.android.inputmethod.latin/.LatinIME:com.touchtype.swiftkey/.KeyboardService"
Don't forget after uploading the modified settings.db back to the device to reset the owner ("chown system.system settings.db") and permissions ("chmod 660 settings.db") on the file. And as always, back up everything you change before you do it.
I'll post a step-by-step later if I'm not too busy.
i'll make a script tomorrow to change the enabled keyboard from stock to swype for y'all
you'll have to be rooted
I got my fire now and edited the db on the device using SQLite Editor and it worked after a reboot. I tested using Simeji (Japanese IME).
Swyping this on my kindle fire ;-). Thanks for the post! I had already kindle rooted and I happened to have the beta swype account, so for me it was much easier. all I had to do was to install swype installer from their beta web site and then use SQLlite editor to modify enabled_input_methods
Off topic: looking for decent home launcher to replace kindle's. Any suggestions. Tried the Go launcher but it isn't optimized for tablet
Can't you just move Swype to system/app and then the lib to system/lib, and reboot? You don't have to enable system keyboards
Sent from my PG86100 using Tapatalk

[Q] Last read confusion

I'm using the stock nook reader and renate's Library.apk. How can you make sure the last read icon on the top bar corresponds to the last read file in the library?
I am not sure where this icon gets its link. It doesn't seem to always open the last read file.
I've been thinking about asking this question (although I am using the stock reader AND library apps). My "reading now" button is getting really cranky of late. It often just goes to the first page (cover) or sometimes it goes to the first page AND displays a two-option message about the different current reading positions in two Nook readers (!) and which one do I want (generally neither is correct). Right now the only sure way to get to the correct page is to go to the Library screen and select the book from there. So the Nook does remember, but the Reading Now button is not functioning properly.
For a time I had a number of B&N apps disabled (renamed ".bak") and gradually discovered the imponderable connections that seemed to render little things inoperable. I've had to restore quite a few of the apps to running to keep everything functioning except Nook Community (because the constant "nagifications" drove me crazy) but this button behavior has me baffled (as does the reference to two Nook readers!)
I wonder, are you using any sort of "cleaning" app? I am using Clean Master and find it helpful in freeing up memory but I'm beginning to think that some of the data it is throwing out might just contain the info that the button needs to function properly. It certainly messes with Tasker.
The "Last Read" icon on the status bar sends out the intent com.bn.nook.launch.LAST_BOOK
This would normally be handled by Home.apk
If you deleted Home.apk and are using my Library.apk it has its own receiver for that.
Depending on which version Nook software you have it will query
content://com.bn.nook.reader.providers.lastreadingpointprovider/
content://com.bn.nook.reader.common.providers.lastreadingpointprovider/
The LRP database is maintained by the Reader(RMSDK).apk.
Checking for the latest modification gives you the last book read.
My Library.apk sends an intent out to open that book.
Currently Library.apk does not update the order of books displayed in "Last read" unless the refresh button is hit.
Two things to look for if you are having problems:
If you let the battery die and the WiFi is always off the clock time will be wrong.
If you crash or shutdown improperly Reader(RMSDK).apk will not get a chance to update the LRP.
P.S. I just noticed a possible anomaly if you read PDF's in the reader too.
Oh! It just occurred to me one thing.
I remember opening a book that you have been reading already and it opens at page 1.
This was tied to opening the book in different ways.
There are different ways to open a book:
Through the "Last Read" icon and stock Home.apk
Through the stock Library.apk
Through my Library.apk
Through a file manager application
The LRP database is /data/data/com.bn.nook.reader.activities/databases/lastreadingpoint.db
Code:
CREATE TABLE lastreadingpoint
(_id integer primary key autoincrement,
ean text, // file URI
luid text,
offsetrmsdk text, // subfile path fragment
lastupdated long, // Unix milliseconds last read
bookdna int, // always 1?
sync_status int // always 1?
);
ean (which normally might stand for European Article Number, i.e. "UPC") is a URI, not a path.
Code:
sqlite> select ean from lastreadingpoint;
file:///sdcard/Books/aboveall.epub
...
There may be cases where a single book gets different ean's.
If you could look at LRP and see if this is so?
I actually managed to locate that db file on my own (!) and what seemed to be a companion with related information (readerlocal.db). They seemed to be full of junk info (books that had since been removed, etc.) although there were no duplicate entries, which is what I had suspected.
Anyway, I got a little "brave" (i.e., foolhardy) and decided to clean up both files in a parallel way. Then I pushed them back, reset the permissions and rebooted.
Yikes. My Nook is set to go to the B&N Home screen only on reboot. That screen flickered and flashed, never filling in any of the images. I could still use the "N" button to access other parts of the system and they were working fine, but any return to the Home screen via the Back button showed it was still in distress.
So....restore from backup...again.
It seems OK for now. I have noticed that the little "refresh" button in the Library does sometimes seem to go on and on and on without any accomplishment. I have suspected the issue was how I accessed the book-in-progress as you described. Since I sometimes read more than one book at a time, I'm all over the place with how I do things (including a Library icon in my App home screen). I'm going to try being more disciplined for a while and see how it behaves.
nmyshkin said:
I actually managed to locate that db file on my own (!) and what seemed to be a companion with related information (readerlocal.db). They seemed to be full of junk info (books that had since been removed, etc.) although there were no duplicate entries, which is what I had suspected.
Anyway, I got a little "brave" (i.e., foolhardy) and decided to clean up both files in a parallel way. Then I pushed them back, reset the permissions and rebooted.
Yikes. My Nook is set to go to the B&N Home screen only on reboot. That screen flickered and flashed, never filling in any of the images. I could still use the "N" button to access other parts of the system and they were working fine, but any return to the Home screen via the Back button showed it was still in distress.
So....restore from backup...again.
It seems OK for now. I have noticed that the little "refresh" button in the Library does sometimes seem to go on and on and on without any accomplishment. I have suspected the issue was how I accessed the book-in-progress as you described. Since I sometimes read more than one book at a time, I'm all over the place with how I do things (including a Library icon in my App home screen). I'm going to try being more disciplined for a while and see how it behaves.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Would it be possible to write an app that simulates opening the last read book from only one of the Library apps and then map that to the last read icon to simplify this whole system?
mergen3107 said:
Guys, if you are concerned about why sometimes the last read option goes to the 1st page, then it was already fixed by our forum users somewhere here. (I could hardly remember and trace where it all started but finally it was successfully solved)
Just install a file this package (internal.db deep in the 'data' folder. You could delete 'system' folder - this is hyphenations dictionary for Russian) through cwm or replace it manually (the zip contains detailed path) and here you go.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Now that was an interesting trip! Once I had Google do some translating there were a number of really interesting posts that were (mostly) intelligible. I'd want to compare that modified internal.db file with what's already on my Nook before I did any replacing. A lot of the work from that site is "russified" (not surprisingly) and there may be other changes there not really needed/wanted, but it's a good start.
I noticed in another posting there that someone said there is a related issue with in what state the Nook is connected via USB. Apparently the hypothesis is that if you don't connect while in the Library you stand a good chance of scrambling the "reading now" database entry. I've certainly been hooking up with my Nook in all kinds of states, so if that's correct, no wonder my database file was so messed up!
Installation of the internal.db file from the Russian source will not work. I've tried a side-by-side comparison of the file with the one from my Nook (FW 1.21) and there are differences (beyond the region identifier, which is easily changed). It's not at all clear what changes have been made or from what firmware the modified file came. In any case, it causes havoc when exchanged for the native internal.db
The Russian discussion points to this thread on XDA which approaches (and apparently solves) the problem another way. I'm going to give it a try.
nmyshkin said:
Installation of the internal.db file from the Russian source will not work. I've tried a side-by-side comparison of the file with the one from my Nook (FW 1.21) and there are differences (beyond the region identifier, which is easily changed). It's not at all clear what changes have been made or from what firmware the modified file came. In any case, it causes havoc when exchanged for the native internal.db
The Russian discussion points to this thread on XDA which approaches (and apparently solves) the problem another way. I'm going to give it a try.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Do I read this correctly, http://bit.ly/Q7MytN from that thread there should be no problem if renates Library.apk is used exclusively and the stock Library.apk has the bug?

[Q] Rearranging Apps on Android TV Nexus Player

Is it possible to rearrange the apps on a nexus player? I would like plex to be my first app
jay188 said:
Is it possible to rearrange the apps on a nexus player? I would like plex to be my first app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No. The more you use an app, the further left it goes. If Plex becomes your most used app, it'll move to the left most spot. I'm sure there will be other launchers such as Nova for the NPlayer in due course. Maybe we can request enough to google to get a row in the Leanback player for our own customization and slots.
IMO this is a poor way to manage position. If I get use to the position of an app and it moves on me, that forces me to relearn the position. It sounds trivial, but I'd much rather have a way to manage this so I can set my own priorities.
nimdae said:
IMO this is a poor way to manage position. If I get use to the position of an app and it moves on me, that forces me to relearn the position. It sounds trivial, but I'd much rather have a way to manage this so I can set my own priorities.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree with you, but I'd like both approaches. The current approach is good but only if there were an additional pinned row above or below it with our own shortcuts, just like the android dock on phones/tablets. I like the idea of over time the most used apps being easily usable without intervention, but for those that I rely on the most having defined positions would absolutely be preferable.
I've never launched google play movies and its still left-most. I've actually never seen them reorder themselves yet. Games and apps are in the order I installed them.
Really hope they make a "rearrange" option.
Solution [Root] for android 5.0 [NOT WORKING IN ANDROID 5.1!]
[NO LONGER WORKING IN ANDROID 5.1!]
If you have unlocked+rooted your Nexus Player and know how to modify android application databases then you are in luck.
Just open /data/data/com.google.android.leanbacklauncher/databases/launcher.db and modify the entity table. Edit the OOB_ORDER value. The lower the value, the earlier the app shows in the app menu.
You might need to reboot to see the changes.
Thanks
ariful said:
If you have unlocked+rooted your Nexus Player and know how to modify android application databases then you are in luck.
Just open /data/data/com.google.android.leanbacklauncher/databases/launcher.db and modify the entity table. Edit the OOB_ORDER value. The lower the value, the earlier the app shows in the app menu.
You might need to reboot to see the changes.
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Where exactly are the values for OOB_ORDER? None of my application seems to show up. I'm using Liya to edit the launcher.db
​
ariful said:
If you have unlocked+rooted your Nexus Player and know how to modify android application databases then you are in luck.
Just open /data/data/com.google.android.leanbacklauncher/databases/launcher.db and modify the entity table. Edit the OOB_ORDER value. The lower the value, the earlier the app shows in the app menu.
You might need to reboot to see the changes.
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I tried this, made a backup, copied the .db locally, changed the value OOB_ORDER for a couple apps and pushed the new version. After rebooting the launcher would not load.
Black screen, screen saver would load properly if I let it sit long enough and adb still worked... tried rebooting multiple times, tried using higher numbers instead of lower numbers, and even tried putting the backup in.... only thing that fixed was loading factory image.
Anyone successfully pull this off? Am I missing something?
ariful said:
If you have unlocked+rooted your Nexus Player and know how to modify android application databases then you are in luck.
Just open /data/data/com.google.android.leanbacklauncher/databases/launcher.db and modify the entity table. Edit the OOB_ORDER value. The lower the value, the earlier the app shows in the app menu.
You might need to reboot to see the changes.
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Tried this...nothing happened.
pulled the launcher.db file, edited on computer, then pushed it back to the nexus player, rebooted...and the order didn't change.
pulled the file from the nexus player again to confirm the changes took place.
jdcnosse said:
Tried this...nothing happened.
pulled the launcher.db file, edited on computer, then pushed it back to the nexus player, rebooted...and the order didn't change.
pulled the file from the nexus player again to confirm the changes took place.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1) The ordering seems to no longer come from the "oob_order" column in the "entity" table of launcher.db but rather the "entity_score" column in the "entity_scores" table. Go figure, but at least it's working again. See attached screenshot.
This is my current ordering - remember that lower score means earlier positioning, except for the value 0:
Code:
sqlite> select entity_score, key from entity_scores order by entity_score desc;
select entity_score, key from entity_scores order by entity_score desc;
20|com.HBO
19|com.showtime.showtimeanytime
18|com.songza.tv
17|com.google.android.play.games
16|com.dishworld
15|com.sling
15|com.google.android.music
15|com.google.android.videos
14|com.hulu.livingroomplus
14|com.android.vending
13|net.i.akihiro.halauncher
13|radiotime.player
11|com.plexapp.android
10|com.google.android.youtube.tv
8|com.google.android.apps.mediashell
8|com.netflix.ninja
7|com.google.android.apps.plus
7|org.xbmc.kodi
0|com.android.tv.settings
2) The black screen is very likely caused by bad ownership/permissions on the launcher.db file, especially if you copied it out and in again. Compare file ownership with the other files in /data/data/com.google.android.leanbacklauncher:
Code:
[email protected]:/data/data/com.google.android.leanbacklauncher # ls -l databases
ls -l databases
-rw-rw---- u0_a11 u0_a11 53248 2015-09-14 22:53 launcher.db
-rw-rw---- u0_a11 u0_a11 12824 2015-09-14 22:53 launcher.db-journal
[email][email protected]:/data/data/com.google.android.leanbacklauncher # ls -l shared_prefs
ls -l shared_prefs
-rw-rw---- u0_a11 u0_a11 303 2015-09-09 21:40 com.google.android.leanbacklauncher_preferences.xml
-rw-rw---- u0_a11 u0_a11 120 2015-09-14 22:53 inet-prefs.xml
Fix it with a simple chown/chmod if it's wrong:
Code:
chown u0_a11:u0_a11 launcher.db
chmod 660 launcher.db
(assuming that the other files are owned by u0_a11 already)
Do you guys HAVE to use the default launcher? I just found "HAL Launcher" last night, and you can change its settings to use it as the default launcher (you can still get to the default nexus launcher by holding back button). With HAL Launcher you can add, change, reorder apps, place them in categories, change the ui theme color, and a few other things. It even has a recent apps section, but you can remove that as well if you want.
for best results, after sideloading hal launcher, go into preferences and enable the feature to use it as default. it will tell you what you need to do (a pop up will ask what launcher you want to use) then restart the nexus player. works flawless as long as you dont long press the back button, then it tries going to the default launcher every time back is pressed on hal launcher.
Hal look awful imo
My leanback launcher won't move apps to the left! It only shows the order that they were installed. I'm running 6.0 and I'm not rooted. I've looked around and can't find an answer, sorry if this is a topic may have already mentioned. I've tried deleting the data and cache of the launcher, no help...
pngwolffman said:
My leanback launcher won't move apps to the left! It only shows the order that they were installed. I'm running 6.0 and I'm not rooted. I've looked around and can't find an answer, sorry if this is a topic may have already mentioned. I've tried deleting the data and cache of the launcher, no help...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can't adjust this unless you root and even so massive pain to edit, so consider it as is.
It is now much easier to rearrange apps on Android TV devices if you have v1.1.4 of the Leanback Launcher.
http://www.androidpolice.com/2015/1...rder-your-apps-in-version-1-1-4-apk-download/

NST keyboard for other languages

Is there a way to install keyboard for other languages on rooted NST so that books in other languages can be searched too?
I do not know for sure but if I were on your place maybe trying to use jokers for the missing characters is good place to start? For example you are searching for title named Rosé and you type in the search box Ros? or Ros* instead. That might work for Latin script.
Multiling keyboard 1.1.7 has the capability of using many languages other than English (you may need plugins...I did not investigate very deeply). Whether that would allow it to do what you want, I'm not sure.
Although it's not as clean looking as the stock keyboard (keys are more or less black...), I value this keyboard because it allows you to copy and paste from one place to another. To my knowledge there is no other way to access the paste buffer on the NST. Also a lot of fluff, but hey, it's free!
nmyshkin said:
Multiling keyboard 1.1.7 has the capability of using many languages other than English (you may need plugins...I did not investigate very deeply). Whether that would allow it to do what you want, I'm not sure.
Although it's not as clean looking as the stock keyboard (keys are more or less black...), I value this keyboard because it allows you to copy and paste from one place to another. To my knowledge there is no other way to access the paste buffer on the NST. Also a lot of fluff, but hey, it's free!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks a lot. Any pointer to the Multiling keyboard, e.g., download, installation instruction etc?
SJT75 said:
I do not know for sure but if I were on your place maybe trying to use jokers for the missing characters is good place to start? For example you are searching for title named Rosé and you type in the search box Ros? or Ros* instead. That might work for Latin script.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thx, oriental languages wouldn't work.
smjohn1 said:
Thanks a lot. Any pointer to the Multiling keyboard, e.g., download, installation instruction etc?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Here's a link to an earlier forum post of the app: https://forum.xda-developers.com/attachments/com-klye-ime-latin-1-apk.4613077/
Keyboard apps should be copied into /system/app, permissions: rw-r-r, with a reboot. That's the good news. The bad news is that B&N removed the "guts" needed to change keyboards without getting into a database.
I know of two other options: Nook Color Tools which, despite it's name, has a few options that are useful for the NST. BUT, you must resist the temptation to poke around in the app because some of the options will trigger a factory re-image without warning. Nook Color Tools should be copied into /system/app, permissions rw-r-r, with a reboot. The second option is my Nook Settings app which, among other things, has a call to the native Android keyboard selector. You don't have to keep the app if you don't want it, but it's an easy way to get access to keyboard changes--and other things not available from the stock Settings app.
The keyboard is a little confusing to set up so just keep at it. You can ask me if you get stuck, but I don't use much of the extra features. I've even disabled the word correction (always hate that on any device), etc.
nmyshkin said:
Here's a link to an earlier forum post of the app: https://forum.xda-developers.com/attachments/com-klye-ime-latin-1-apk.4613077/
Keyboard apps should be copied into /system/app, permissions: rw-r-r, with a reboot. That's the good news. The bad news is that B&N removed the "guts" needed to change keyboards without getting into a database.
I know of two other options: Nook Color Tools which, despite it's name, has a few options that are useful for the NST. BUT, you must resist the temptation to poke around in the app because some of the options will trigger a factory re-image without warning. Nook Color Tools should be copied into /system/app, permissions rw-r-r, with a reboot. The second option is my Nook Settings app which, among other things, has a call to the native Android keyboard selector. You don't have to keep the app if you don't want it, but it's an easy way to get access to keyboard changes--and other things not available from the stock Settings app.
The keyboard is a little confusing to set up so just keep at it. You can ask me if you get stuck, but I don't use much of the extra features. I've even disabled the word correction (always hate that on any device), etc.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks a lot. Following your instructions, I installed the Multiling keyboard, and Nook Color Tools ( haven't tried your Nook Settings yet, but probably would be same ). Seems Multiling Keyboard takes over, but press the middle big "English" key, there appears no other options. Check the apk (com.klye.ime.latin-1.apk), there are many xml files there. So my question is: do I need to install other plugins for various languages, e.g., chinese?
smjohn1 said:
Thanks a lot. Following your instructions, I installed the Multiling keyboard, and Nook Color Tools ( haven't tried your Nook Settings yet, but probably would be same ). Seems Multiling Keyboard takes over, but press the middle big "English" key, there appears no other options. Check the apk (com.klye.ime.latin-1.apk), there are many xml files there. So my question is: do I need to install other plugins for various languages, e.g., chinese?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
In the settings/setup for the keyboard (where you go when you tap on the app icon) option #4 is for enabling languages--I'm sure you've seen that already. It does state there something about plugins. Waaaay down the list there are various Chinese alternatives. I didn't get anywhere with this. Sliding over the spacebar did nothing.
Check out: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=klye.hanwriting. I tried version 3.3 from another source but it would not install, so unless you can scare up an older version, you might be out of luck.
Whether MyAlpha is needed as well (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=kl.myscript) I don't know. Again, you'd probably have to track down an older version that will run on Android 2.1.
Edit: You may be able to find out more and/or contact developer here: https://sites.google.com/site/hanwritingime/
nmyshkin said:
In the settings/setup for the keyboard (where you go when you tap on the app icon) option #4 is for enabling languages--I'm sure you've seen that already. It does state there something about plugins. Waaaay down the list there are various Chinese alternatives. I didn't get anywhere with this. Sliding over the spacebar did nothing.
Check out: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=klye.hanwriting. I tried version 3.3 from another source but it would not install, so unless you can scare up an older version, you might be out of luck.
Whether MyAlpha is needed as well (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=kl.myscript) I don't know. Again, you'd probably have to track down an older version that will run on Android 2.1.
Edit: You may be able to find out more and/or contact developer here: https://sites.google.com/site/hanwritingime/
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You are right, I was able to switch to a Chinese input keyboard, but simply couldn't get the Chinese characters to appear. Doesn't seem to be font issue, as the space key does show Chinese characters correctly. Also tried French ( francais ), but no French accent either. I guess I need to learn more how to use this keyboard. Your instructions on installation totally work fine. Thanks again!
smjohn1 said:
You are right, I was able to switch to a Chinese input keyboard, but simply couldn't get the Chinese characters to appear. Doesn't seem to be font issue, as the space key does show Chinese characters correctly. Also tried French ( francais ), but no French accent either. I guess I need to learn more how to use this keyboard. Your instructions on installation totally work fine. Thanks again!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, not much success here either. First I had to enable swiping the spacebar to change languages. That took me awhile to figure out. I have most of the app functions deselected since I only need a regular keyboard and the cut/paste feature. I was able to get German and Greek to both work properly. I agree that French seems lacking in accent marks but I did note that the standard English QWERTY arrangement was not used in French, so whatever that may mean.
FWIW I managed to track down the Pinyin plugin (eventually replaced by the hanwriting plugin). The keyboard settings shows it as installed but it does not seem to do anything with it. Selecting just the plain "Chinese" option (no plugin) gives a memory error. There is probably enough stuff in the DroidSansFallback font to display some form of Chinese (the device Localization options include Chinese, after all) but that doesn't seem to make its way to the keyboard app.
I also located a copy of the MyAlpha app which is suggested as a "font problem" fixing thing. Doesn't seem to do anything.
So...I've attached both apps. Probably you should contact the developer. He/she might be able to give you the information we are apparently missing.
nmyshkin said:
Well, not much success here either. First I had to enable swiping the spacebar to change languages. That took me awhile to figure out. I have most of the app functions deselected since I only need a regular keyboard and the cut/paste feature. I was able to get German and Greek to both work properly. I agree that French seems lacking in accent marks but I did note that the standard English QWERTY arrangement was not used in French, so whatever that may mean.
FWIW I managed to track down the Pinyin plugin (eventually replaced by the hanwriting plugin). The keyboard settings shows it as installed but it does not seem to do anything with it. Selecting just the plain "Chinese" option (no plugin) gives a memory error. There is probably enough stuff in the DroidSansFallback font to display some form of Chinese (the device Localization options include Chinese, after all) but that doesn't seem to make its way to the keyboard app.
I also located a copy of the MyAlpha app which is suggested as a "font problem" fixing thing. Doesn't seem to do anything.
So...I've attached both apps. Probably you should contact the developer. He/she might be able to give you the information we are apparently missing.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks. I tried these apks too, plus some others. None worked. MyAlpha is for some other "rare" languages, Chinese or Latin languages are not included, since I guess they are already installed in most Android systems.
I already sent an email to the developer. Not sure though if he/she is still active in this development. Will report here if getting response from him/her.

Rooting Nook simple touch e-reader for reading non-english character books

Hi All
Recently want to read some books on my Nook with non-english (simplified chinese) characters, but it fails to display them, only shows squares.
I then search for solution and people say i should root the device replace some fonts.
I then use NookManager to root it, and when I go to /system/fonts, I actually see the fonts that I want to use, but when I go to read the book, the font is not available for me to choose.
What is the solution now please?
luckyvictor said:
I then search for solution and people say i should root the device replace some fonts.
I then use NookManager to root it, and when I go to /system/fonts, I actually see the fonts that I want to use, but when I go to read the book, the font is not available for me to choose.
What is the solution now please?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The NST can only use the set fonts that it comes with (without a lot of tinkering). If you just place different fonts in /system/fonts they will be ignored. The trick is to rename your new font so it has the same name as one of the stock fonts (preferably one you don't want to use). So that means you have to rename the stock font you are replacing first (change ttf to bak or something like that) and then rename your new font. Reboot.
Theoretically that should work if your font is compatible.
i cant rename it, do i need a special app to do it? if so, how may I install apps on NST please?
luckyvictor said:
i cant rename it, do i need a special app to do it? if so, how may I install apps on NST please?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How did you get the font onto the NST in the first place? If you could do that you should be able to rename a file.
i didn't, i just discover it is there after i root the device.
luckyvictor said:
i didn't, i just discover it is there after i root the device.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's kind of difficult to help because you are giving so little information. It comes out in very slow drips. So let me guess a little and see if we can get this figured out.
You're talking about DroidSansFallback.ttf?
My understanding of that font is that the system uses it when there are characters to display that are out of range (standard or extended ASCII) for the other fonts. So you can't actually select it yourself in the Reader (as you probably found out). Any font you select will "fall back" to DroidSansFallback if characters are encountered beyond extended ASCII (or so).
What seems to be happening is that you have books (PDF? EPUB? It would help to know...) which do not display the simplified Chinese characters. So if you are trying to read EPUBs we need to see if DroidSansFallback includes these characters. If not, then you need to find a different DroidSansFallback that does. If it does have those characters and you are trying to look at an EPUB, there is something about the encoding in the EPUB that is preventing the Nook from interpreting the font characters correctly.
If your books are PDFs it's maybe more complicated.
In your original post it sounds like you read about doing this (i.e., reading Chinese books on the NST) somewhere. Can you refer me to the source and would you be willing to share one of the books here (attach to your next post) so that I can see what you are describing?
Edit: OK, I tracked down a Chinese language epub. The titles displayed OK (I think) in the Library but when I opened the book I just got a bunch of boxes, most with question marks. This seems to be what you described.
I tapped on the screen to bring up the font/size, etc. options. I noticed that "publisher's defaults" was unchecked. When I checked that, I instantly had Chinese characters! See screenshot below. I didn't have to do anything else.
Because it had embedded fonts in the EPUB?
Renate said:
Because it had embedded fonts in the EPUB?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Maybe, but I don't think so. I opened it up with Sigil and there is nothing in the Fonts folder.
sorry i was being inactive because of easter holiday with kids.
yes i am trying to read a epub book and the front page display the chinese correctly.
and I did try publisher default, when it is unchecked, I got empty square box displayed, when it is checked, it display square box with question mark inside.
and for the font, i got only options of Caecilia, malabar, amasis, gill sans, helvetica heue and trebuchet, cant; scroll up or down to see more options.
btw, when i tap to show the menu of content/find/go to/text/more, the chinese title of the book displayed correctly at the top left corner together with the time at top right corner.
luckyvictor said:
sorry i was being inactive because of easter holiday with kids.
yes i am trying to read a epub book and the front page display the chinese correctly.
and I did try publisher default, when it is unchecked, I got empty square box displayed, when it is checked, it display square box with question mark inside.
and for the font, i got only options of Caecilia, malabar, amasis, gill sans, helvetica heue and trebuchet, cant; scroll up or down to see more options.
btw, when i tap to show the menu of content/find/go to/text/more, the chinese title of the book displayed correctly at the top left corner together with the time at top right corner.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So could you post a copy of an epub here (or pm me and attach a copy if you prefer) so that I can see what is the difference?
nmyshkin said:
So could you post a copy of an epub here (or pm me and attach a copy if you prefer) so that I can see what is the difference?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
OK. I think I have a "fix" for you. I can't take credit for it. I found it in a Mobilread forum posting from 2012. It has worked for me with the book you provided as well as others I have downloaded myself from various places.
The short explanation is that you need to choose a reader font you don't much like (I do not care for either Caecilia or Trebuchet) and rename each version of the font in /system/fonts something like Trebuchet.ttf.bak, etc. Each variety of the font, bold, italic, etc., needs to be similarly renamed.
Then you download this font and rename it to Trebuchet.ttf (or Caecilia.ttf or whichever you have chosen) and copy it into /system/fonts.
Then you reboot.
When you open your book, select the "new" Trebuchet or whichever as the font. You should see Chinese characters. You can still change size, line spacing, etc.
Thankfully I have found the solution to this issue in post #11. I like my BOOK and don't want to buy a new one. It is a present from my mother, which means a lot to me, and I got used to it. It helped me to understand the importance of reading. I wasn't enjoying reading books, The NOOK made reading books extremely comfortable, and I started to read whenever I had some free time. It is compact, so I can carry it wherever, so I always read it while on the bus, taking lunch at my office or home before going to sleep.
NancyPollard said:
Have you found a solution to this issue?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Did you try what's in post #11?

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