Rooted and Loving Life

I finally took the leap about a month and a half ago and got myself off the "grid" by rooting my Droid Incredible and then flashing the ROM to Cyanogen 6.1RC2. I'm now on 6.1 Stable and I have to say, it's a HUGE improvement over the stock HTC ROM + Sense UI. I still don't have the stones to rid myself of the stock content for good and will likely keep them around as long as I have the insurance plan for the phone. However, it is nice to know that none of that crap is launching at startup or chewing up my resources.

Anyone else root their phones? Any advice to would-be rooters? Which ROM are you using and why?

Update Your Droid Incredible to Android 2.2 (Froyo)

I was starting to wonder if the HTC Droid Incredible would ever make the 2.2 update this year. Looks like Christmas came a bit early for those willing to do a little manual updating. don't worry, this patch is legit and comes straight from Google's own servers.

Here's the instructions from Phandroid.com.

A couple of things to note:

-You *may* need to make sure your build numbers match the expected build for the update (prepping for the update).

-You have to be patient. I know. That's the last thing you want with an early update, but it's true. I found myself waiting at several screens for more than 5 minutes while it did its thing. Just be ready for that. Don't reboot during any part of the update.

Android Market on Android 1.6 and 1.5 Emulator

I found this great post over at techdroid. It shows how to both install and use the development environment and setup the AVD to enable the market. The one downside? No 2.1 or 2.2 version available yet. I'll keep my eyes open, but as of now, I haven't found any yet. Anyone else have a different experience?

Here's the link:

http://techdroid.kbeanie.com/2009/11/android-market-on-emulator.html

And in case the blog disappears at some point in the future, I'm posting the full text of the article here with props to the original author:

Wow, This is cool. Finally, I am able to run the Android Market on the emulator. And also, see all the paid apps and copy-protected app, right here on my emulator.
What do you need?

Well, the basic SDK. 1.5, 1.6 or 1.1

And then, go to the HTC website where you can find the images/recovery images. Download the version (system image only) which you want to run.

http://developer.htc.com/google-io-device.html#s3
(Download the System Image zip)

Extract the files of this zip. There's a system.img file which you will need in the next steps.

Create an AVD (1.1, 1.5 or 1.6) depending on your requirements.

Copy this system.img file into the avd directory. For example, if you created an avd named "MyPhone", go to .avd\MyPhone\ and paste this system.img file here.

Now start the emulator. Voila, You are ready to go. After you sign in with a google account, your phone is ready to use. You now have access to all the market apps right from your emulator.

Note: If you are not able to run it successfully, and if you are getting Network communication error, please download the AVD that I have created from this link.

Link for 1.5 image
www.4shared.com/file/147420185/da5381e1/avd.html

Link for 1.6 image
http://www.4shared.com/file/165624746/fc72c3ed/system.html

With Great Tech Toys Comes... More Great Tech Toys!

There's been a recent explosion of new gadgetry (both software and hardware) for the Android OS over the past couple of months. Here are some of my favorite discoveries:

ShapeWriter and Swype. Why type when you can swipe a message many times faster and more accurately? As of this writing, I have both installed for free, but I understand that Swype will be exiting beta soon and may have a price tag afterwards. ShapeWriter is also now off the market for free and will be signing licensing deals with individual carriers/phones (up to 50 this year). As long as the price is right (hopefully free!), I'm stickign with this technology. It is light years ahead of other input methods for mobile devices.

RockPlayerBase. Play all kinds of video on your Android device. Excellent app.

Apps Organizer. Forget folders. Tagging/Labeling your apps and then creating shortcuts to the labels is THE best way to organize apps on Android!

My (Short) List of Apps

I've had the HTC Incredible for almost 2 weeks now and have had the opportunity of installing and using MANY applications in that short time. My favorites so far:

Finding stuff nearby:
Zillow
Earthquake!
Urbanspoon
My Tracks
Yelp
Talk to Me
Carrr Matey!

Entertainment:
Pandora
Movies
Fandango
A Online Radio
TED Mobile
Shazam
Boxee
Ringdroid
DailyStrip
YouTube
Solo Lite
Slacker Radio
VLC Remote
Howcast
Peep
Picasa Tool

Shopping:
My Coupons
Shopper
Amazon
Craigsnotify

News:
Finance
Listen
1Cast
SportsTap
The Weather Channel
Google Listen

Tools:
Barcode Scanner
Astro
Goggles
3banana
Bump
Tricorder
metal Detector
Calculator (more advanced version than default)
ES File Explorer (haven't decided between this and Astro yet...)
ES Task manager
Dial Zero
Thinking Space
Clipper
Droid48 (Best calculator for Droid!)
Bubble (level)
Easy Scorecard

Books:
Aldiko (the only one you'll need)
Reveal (for Scriptures and LDS resources)

Games:
Gem Miner
Flood-It!
WordUp!
SpacePhysics
Replica Island
MeteorLite
Blow Up
Word Frenzy
DroidDice
Shoot U!
Winds of Steel
One Stroke
Nintaii
Frozen Bubble
Slugs
Abduction!
Radiant
3d Pong

Internet:
Google Translator
eBuddy
Skype Mobile
Android VNC
Dolphin Browser HD
Google Services (for Dolphin Browser HD)

Netflix Coming Soon to Android!

Read a post this morning about how Netflix is hiring an Android developer to help bring Netflix streaming app(s) to the platform. Here's to hoping they finally ditch MS Silverlight in favor of something more Linux friendly!

HTC Droid Incredible: Shipped

My new phone is on its way! Looks like it might actually be here a day earlier than they predicted too. I guess it depends on the instructions given to FedEx by Verizon. Also looks like its coming from Ontario, Canada which I found a bit odd. At any rate, I'll be rockin' my new phone by the end of the week! Since I'll be in certification classes all this week, it might become a big distraction, if I'm not careful. :)

From FedEx tracking:
Shipment Dates

Ship date

Apr 26, 2010

Estimated delivery

Apr 28, 2010 by 7:00 PM

Google Voice on Android

In anticipation of my HTC Incredible (shipping next week), I had a friend of mine invite me to Google Voice. I had heard you could do free SMS messaging over the service, but I had no idea how truly powerful it actually is. I will be switching my phone number to take full advantage of the features, but it's well worth it. The best part? Most of the services are available through ANY phone I add to the account! Verizon, AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile take note. This is what mobile phones SHOULD be capable of with nothing more than a phone connection.

• transcribed voicemail as e-mail and/or text message to multiple locations
• block individual numbers
• free text messaging (if you have a smartphone, you can cancel anything you currently use, this is much better)
• cheap international calling
• custom voicemail greetings based on GMail/GVoice contact lists
• conference calling
• recording calls
• receive calls on multiple phones from one number

Here's a full list of features for the service and for the phone app.

Step One: Purchase Android Device

I broke down and decided to jump in on the Android action today. I purchased my first Android device, the HTC Incredible. I preordered it on Verizon Wireless for $200 + taxes and will get the unit on April 29th, 2010. While excited, I have to admit the monthly charges of $30 + $6 insurance almost scared me away. Hopefully I can get at least that much value out of the device on a monthly basis. I'm sure I'll get by somehow.

Here's a great, full review of the device at Genius Boy.