inportb

Recently, I rewrote from scratch a two-year-old project of mine. Imagine, a browser-based image editor, had been sitting around collecting dust, so I figured I’d delete all the legacy code (almost all of it) and create something better. I’ve also been evaluating the possibility of integrating Imagine into Google Wave.

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A recent trick floating around the xda-developers forums involves using UnionFS to layer the microSD storage on top of the existing data partition, effectively allowing the microSD storage to be used for data. This technique originated from MarcusMaximus04 and has made its way into the firmware builds of TheDudeOfLife and JesusFreke.

While most users were playing around with the easy “apps2SD” feature, I decided to explore a different aspect of UnionFS — stackable snapshots. The goal was to be able to make snapshots of the filesystem that could be rolled back at any time, undoing any changes. While this may sound like server-oriented technology, it could be useful on a mobile platform that is collecting a sizable hacker community.

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Really, there is no need for this post… because Cupcake (an updated version of Android found on the HTC Magic and ported over to the G1) is quite friendly to users without data service. The ability to skip activation allows the user to delay activation until the WiFi connection can be initialized. And since rooting is required, the modified recovery image and engineering SPL makes backup-and-restore trivial.

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Haykuro has recently released a series of Android builds. This is the software for the HTC Magic, ported to the G1. Since I have not had time to fully explore this new operating system, I’ll just list some of the most obvious changes:

• activation not required! (can set up account later)
• new theme
• new camera options, such as video recording
• lock-screen background
• 3G notification icon says H
• smooth transitions by default
• automatic screen orientation flipping
• no more voice search in search widget
• on-screen keyboard
• … among other things …

Now, it is actually pretty simple to get this software. There’s even a nice guide for this, which was pretty straightforward for me to follow. Nevertheless, since I had not rooted my phone and I have no data plan, I had a couple of extra steps.

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The Market cache has been a source of grievance for many Android/G1 users. Applications under Android store data in caches that are cleaned up when memory is running low. The G1 has an unimpressive amount of onboard memory, and the Market browser has a cache that cannot be manually cleared. This has lead to many individuals performing factory data resets on their phones just to reclaim the sequestered memory.

The factory data reset is not the best approach. In fact, I would say that the best approach is to do nothing at all about the problem. By virtue of Android’s memory manager, caches are cleared automatically when memory is needed. For example, if the foreground task needs to do something memory-intensive and there are some background tasks and caches, some of the tasks could be killed or caches could be cleared to make room. So… the problem solves itself.

One does not need to manually reclaim the memory, but what’s wrong with doing it anyway? I mean, it does get rid of the low-memory warnings that are so distressing to some. However, the biggest problem with clearing caches is the act itself. Caches perform the useful function of storing objects so that they need not be computed or fetched again, saving processor, networking, and power resources. One can even say that memory exists mainly for the purpose of caching. Therefore, it would be optimal to fill the memory as much as possible with cache. The system that Google set up is almost perfect — it allows the memory to fill with cached data, clearing bits at a time only when needed for a foreground task.

But why isn’t it perfect? Well, I had mentioned the low-memory warnings earlier. When the average user sees one of these, he/she thinks that the phone is about to explode. It’s not; rather, it’s a sign that the memory manager is doing its job. The psychological aspect of the problem can be resolved by either removing this warning or making it appear more benign, reserving the real warning for when the memory is really running out.

In the interim, I’m going to hang onto my caches and encourage you to do the same. There is no harm in taking the need-based memory management approach. Remember, unused memory is wasted memory.

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According to Android_Dave over at Android Community, a conversation with a T-Mobile UK representative revealed the existence of a big OTA software update on Friday, January 9th. Though this hasn’t been confirmed, the representative was apparently pretty confident that the update would occur and that it would include video messaging, Java, and Flash. Naturally, this sparked a discussion on whether this is indeed the imminent “cupcake” update.

What’s Cupcake?

We speak not of the tasty treat, but of a development branch of the Android operating system. It’s a work-in-progress collection of changes since the Android 1.0 release, and has recently been merged into the master branch. There will be a large update this quarter followed by smaller updates along the “cupcake” track.

Because this update will contain numerous bugfixes and enhancements, people are naturally quite excited about it. Is the Friday update the first in the series of “cupcake” updates, and would it occur in the United States as well?

At this point, nobody knows for sure… but at least something is happening.

Updates

Says Bratag, an anonymous but reliable source has indicated a pre-cupcake update this month. Apparently, the OTA should be pushed out as early as Sunday, January 11th according to Michael Martin and as late as Thursday, January 15th according to kareem. Well, the 11th had come and gone and we still have no cupcake. Let’s hope for the 15th, then?

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The day my G1 arrived in the mail, I discovered that it was useless without activation and that I needed a data plan to activate it. Now that I’m fulfilling all my mobile networking needs over WiFi and enjoying all the plain-old-phone features, I thought I’d share my experience.

This Should Not Be Possible

The issue is complicated by contradictory myths from a few high-profile sources. Most notably, T-Mobile asserts that the G1 would not be functional without their G1 data plan. According to representatives, even an activated phone would stop working the moment the data service is disabled.

Let’s think about this logically. What if one takes the phone on a plane or into the subway system where radio connectivity is nonexistent or limited? Since smartphones also serve PDA-like functions, it would upset most users if their phones became nonfunctional during their commute. Still, many people believe the implausible claims of the company who’s trying really hard to sell their value-added services.

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Most embedded mobile devices have an option to automatically lock the interface when idle to prevent accidental access, and the Android-powered G1 is no exception. Interestingly, some people actually want to disable this feature. There’s no direct interface to this setting, however. While tinkering with the Setup Wizard applet, I may have stumbled upon a hack.

1. using AnyCut, create a shortcut to the activity “Setup Wizard”
2. launch “Setup Wizard”
3. unplug+replug the battery and power on the device

The applet apparently disables the lock and re-enables it when it finishes. I wanted the screen lock back so I simply ran “Setup Wizard” again, this time completing the procedure.

Note that this method also disables the manual lock triggered by pressing the End button.

December 29th, 2008: Incidentally, other people have noticed strange effects after a botched Setup Wizard. The folks at xda-developers have experienced similar effects, but their connection to Setup Wizard is at the moment unconfirmed.

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