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How to "Gingerbread-ify" a modern phone

I go some progress, with Nova Launcher Prime, XLocker (had to sideload that one, as stupid Play Store hid it from me), Jellybean HD Icon pack and Galaxy S4 Icon Pack (again, Play Store blocking me from seeing them, not even listing them, had to sideload APKs. Any wonder why I hate app stores?)

Also got the SIII lockscreen for Xlocker (another APK sideload) and Sense V2 Weather Widget (which Play Store did let me get) and AOSP Music+ (also Play Store cooperated with), Gallery ICS (listed on Play Store, why is it hiding some things that are definitely compatible from me though like Xlocker?)

Wasn't able to get the modded S-Memo APK to work (funny, it did work on my Nexus 6!, but on A14 5G it just ends 'app not installed' (no answer as to why)). That APK should work as it's modded to not depend on TouchWiz. Oh well, maybe Samsung Notes interferes with it? A shame as it'd have the UI.

Found some scaled updated versions of TouchWiz Wallpapers and some widgets, so I'm getting there. Wish I could find a third-party lockscreen similar to XLocker that imitated the original AOSP Gingerbread one though. Keyboard from Android 2.3 APK also works. Looks nice so far. I can't upload pics though since stupid Type-C won't cooperate with Windows 7. Windows just thinks its a camera and all of DCIM is empty (doesn't show screenshots subfolder).

Can't fix some issues. One UI 5 blocks third-party apps like some File Explorers from allowing user to pick notification sounds from sites like Zedge, but ringtones work. Can't find an app that allows a custom charging sound (so I can use the naturey TouchWiz charging cable connected sound vs. the more spacey one that One UI uses). The only app that does was an old Cheetah Mobile app that I refuse to risk using.

So I cannot use the Whistle sound for my texts, or replace the charging sound, or add in the 'bwop bwop' touch sound. There used to be a launcher called Galaxy Launcher (which was a modded Nova that resembled the Galaxy S4 out the gate) that did at least have that touch sound for the home screen (but not inside apps) but it's been hidden from access from the Play Store like the above, and isn't available via F-Droid or Aptoide or a search of APKs. Sadly didn't back that one up. Paid for the damn thing too.

Had to sideload Aldiko Classic as even it was hidden from me on Play Store. Starting to really hate you Google.

At least I'm making some progress. I'd like to find older usable (for the retro UI) texting app, email app but Handcent's old versions (which looked like iOS 6) seem to read texts fine, but won't send (they just vanish into the ether). Learned that from the Nexus 6 and used Assistant to work around sending them, but since it has issues with longer texts, and certain words (it cannot dictate words such as 'doe' 'deer' or Farscape curses such as 'Frell' or 'Fahrbot') so it wouldn't have been a 100% solution. I don't know of any third-party Android 2.3 email apps, and the AOSP APK fails to install like S-Memo.

Help Camera only doing Black & White

They are saying that they are "dumb as a rock" (see their username).

@IMdumbasarock55 your camera options won't be the same because that post was back in 2012 and so your camera app won't be the same. Manufacturers tend to use their own camera apps, so what settings or options it has will depend on what phone you have (which we don't know). But I would look for anything in the settings or controls that selects "effects" or "filters". My Samsung has nothing in the camera app's settings, but the camera user interface has a "magic wand" icon that allows you to choose filters (which include a few black-and-white or greyscale options). So if nothing is obvious, maybe try touching some of the icons and seeing what they do!

Buying The Right Device (Bootloader)?

An older Pixel might do what you want, though some phones sold through service providers may have locked bootloaders so you'd still need to check that.

I'd buy a bit newer than an original or a 2 though, if you can find it at a sensible price. The batteries on those will be shot by now, which will limit what you can do - my Pixel 2's battery died in late 2021, and when I tried to charge it a few months later to play with it the battery immediately swelled-up and popped the display out.

But what's the relevance of travelling to Europe and unlocking the bootloader? Your Pixel 7 will work fine over here, and as already said if you want to use a European SIM in it then a bootloader lock is irrelevant, it's a service provider lock ("SIM lock") you need to avoid (and you really do need to avoid it with a second-hand phone, because the carrier may well refuse to provide the unlock code to you because you aren't the customer who bought the phone from them).

Setting up a mobile data limit and restrict unauthorized changes

Hi all.
Can I setup a mobile data limit and restrict any unauthorized changes with a password, similar to the old Datally app?
Thanks!
Yes, you can set your data limit and restrict unauthorized changes.

  • To Set the limit open the settings of your phone.
  • Go to Network and Internet.
  • Tap on Data Usage and Turn on the "Set data limit" button.
  • Now Set the Data Limit you want.
To restrict any unauthorized changes: Go to "Set data limit," > "Limit on this device." Now Set your Password to restrict any changes to the data. limit.

Looking For Calendar I Can Customize

You don't actually need to make this into such a major problem for yourself. You have the option to manage your own personal calendar and there is no reason to include other, externally-sourced calendars when you find their content unnecessary. Stop trying to force something to work that isn't doable, you're just frustrating yourself for no practical reason. (To do what you keep trying to do requires you to become a skilled programmer/developer, and for you to root your phone. Then you need to peruse through the appropriate cal directory buried within the system file structure and edit just the specific .ical/.ics file in question.)
Instead, just go into your Calendar app's Settings menu and disable all the other calendars you don't want leaving just your own. Now edit which holidays and events you want shown, and set each one up to automatically show up yearly (... or monthly or whatever). You also have the ability to set up how often their Notifications get shown.

How do I determine owner of number receiving texts from my phone?

Thank you, Augie! I've turned off the SMS messaging for Google, Google Play Services, and Phone just like the guy who created the post. I also sent STOP to 7723. I'll check in a couple of days and see if that has worked. If it does, I'll turn the three apps back on, one every few days, until the messages start sending again to figure out which of them is the culprit. I'll post back here when I've figured it out.

Non-root Firewall and VPN

Hello, developers.
I am a student wanting to create an app which will run as a non-root firewall (netguard) and then route to one's choice VPN provider (openVPN). I haven't been able to try, yet, as the teachers want me to find out why nobody has done it yet before getting it started on how we think we would do it.
I have heard that the main issue with doing this is IP tables will take long to do, and thus isn't worth it.
Is this accurate and if so, why would this be the issue stopping me?

I imagine that this would work, if i were able to just do both of the previously mentioned app functions on one app,
I have successfully incorporated a VPN along with a non-root firewall on Android systems. There is only one catch. You must use 2 Android devices. I don't know about anyone else but I'm a collector of devices. I currently use 2 tablets 4 Android phones. Only 1 my Galaxy A52 having service. I use Proton VPN and no-root firewall.

My setup is as follows. One Android device Running Android 11 is used as a bridge. I have installed PDA Net on it. This allows me to share my home WiFi over the same channel. This device runs the ProtonVPN free service out of the Netherlands Netherlands. Note that the free service only allows 1 active user.

My other devices run No-root firewall with their own set of specific rules. When they connect to the Android hotspot, they tunnel out through the VPN connection like regular traffic.

Along with the Brave web browser and the GPS Emulator emulator simulating travel routes, my true location and information is secure.

I hope this helps anyone that reads this.

I don't want to be told what to wear, what to eat, what to think, what to buy, and who to be. The internet is continuing to control the populations across the world. I can never disappear from the net, but I can at least make what data it has on me obsolete. This time around the Kool aid will be delivered same day shipping..

Anonymous

Just stoppin' in to say "Hi"...

It was the end all be all when you called your carriers customer service department if you were having phone issues. If that didn't fix your problem you were pretty much screwed because after that they didn't know sqat, at least that's how it was with Verizon.
Yeah I remember pulling out my battery duration of bowling a few times... Seriously Verizon and their customer service.... wat? Goes like oil and water.

Any Idea About Why My Phone Is Dying?

Log back into your router's setup page, reset the SSID passwords for either or both the 2.4GHz and 5GHz networks, and use (even just temporarily) simpler passwords. Then connect your phone, using the newly created passwords, to whichever network to do your restore. You're unnecessarily limiting yourself by thinking your phone can only connect to one or the other. Since you changed the password before, just change them again.

Can my charging port on my tablet be fixed? And my phone dying around 80-90 something percent

From what you say I suspect that the battery is dying, though diagnosing without having seen the device is always uncertain. But if you've taken scissors to the charging port and it no longer works then it sounds highly likely that you've damaged the port as well (charging ports contain relatively delicate electrical contacts, so sticking hard foreign objects into them is risky).

Can't say what a red flashing light means because that type of thing will depend on the device.

So yeah, I'd say get someone to look at it. If it is just the battery and charging port then these things should be fixable (but make clear to the repairer that you don't want it reset: manufacturer's service centres tend to do that, smaller shops probably not but best to make sure). And please take a backup of anything important as soon as it's working: if data are only on the device they can easily be lost if anything happens to it.

How to hide your location

Hey
How do i hide location from game developer?
Depends on how they are tracking your location, and whether the game requires that to work.

An offline game that does not require location should not even ask for the permission. If it does then you can deny the permission, but frankly I would avoid an app that wants location access when it's not needed for its function (note though that with some apps and some Android versions you may need to enable location for bluetooth features to work, so there may be reasons an app wants location access which are not obvious).

An online game will be able to infer something about your location from your IP address (though not very precisely: it tells them more about how your provider organises their infrastructure than about where you are, and may be hundreds on km from your actual location). But that will tell them what country you are in, so if that is what you are trying to hide then a VPN would be the simplest solution.

At the other extreme, something like Pokemon Go needs to know your precise location to work, and there's nothing you can do about that apart from not play.

Debt ceiling and the US economy

See? Proves I know jack *hit about politics!!
Democrats want to spend where it would help individuals and families.

The "once called" Republicans want to help any corporation, or wealthy donor, either through tax cuts or regulations. See Iowa for example, enabling so many violations of US child labor law that it's ridiculous.

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