Android Apps.

[J Arcane]

I have seen several mentions in other threads that it might be handy to have a thread specifically about Android Apps. I'm also hoping to get a new Android phone myself soon, and thought it would be handy for reminding me what to put on the new phone.

So here's a few of the handy things I've found, that I have going on my 1.6 Tilt:

DigiClock Widget: (http://www.cyrket.com/p/android/com.davidgoemans.simpleClockWidget/) Yeah, there's a clock on the lock screen, and the menu bar, but this one's bigger, which made it more quick-glance-friendly.

WiFi Toggle: (http://www.cyrket.com/p/android/jqsoft.widgets.wifitoggle/) Toggles your wi-fi. Also works as a convenient shortcut to the Wi-Fi settings.

Estrongs File Explorer: (http://www.cyrket.com/p/android/com.estrongs.android.pop/) Mostly does what it sounds like it does, but has one particular feature that I found warranted it's use over the Astro that came with my distro: File sharing. It can access your Windows network fileshares over the Wi-Fi, which proved to be about the best way I could find to get stuff onto it since my USB support is broke on the Tilt and there's no built-in sync anyway. Also has a built in task manager, which can be found seperately as well. (http://www.cyrket.com/p/android/com.estrongs.android.taskmanager/)

Real Blackjack (http://www.cyrket.com/p/android/com.estrongs.android.taskmanager/): It's blackjack. But it's pretty good for a blackjack app, with customizable house rules and even a strategy card.

The "oid" series: There's a whole bunch of these, GameBoid, Nesoid, SNESoid, GBCoid, all emulators for the video game systems. Quite a good way to make up for the lack of seriously good games for the hardware.

Those are the ones I can think of that I've got. My damn Android just locked up and forced me to boot back to Windows, but I'm pretty sure I didn't miss anything.

[muddi900]

Bluetooth file transfer (http://www.androlib.com/android.application.it-medieval-blueftp-qAFE.aspx). I wish somebody had told me about this when I was trying to transfer my father's contacts

[Mike Kelehan]

Aldiko - ebook reader that, in addition to reading epub files, downloads public domain books

Amazon.com - scan a barcode or take a picture of the item itself, and it pulls up the Amazon page

AutoRotate OnOff - a widget that turns off auto rotating with one touch and turns it back on with another touch; perfect for use while lying down

Documents To Go - for those of us who use this for bidness, it reads and edits Word and Excel files

Gmote - use the touchscreen as a touchpad for your computer's mouse cursor

Google Translate - translates between a ton of languages, and speaks the results in a few of them

Key Ring - scan reward cards, like Best Buy Reward Zone, and it stores them

Last.fm

Mystique - episodic 3D horror inventory-puzzle adventure, first one's free

PdaNet - tethering

Ringdroid - select a portion of an MP3 and it adds it to ringtones/notifications

Shazam - hold the phone's mic up to a speaker playing a song, and it will identify the song; works even with surprisingly obscure trance remixes

StopWatch - stopwatch and countdown timer, runs in background

Trapster - alerts you of speed traps when you're near

Twidroid - great Twitter app; integrates with camera to upload and tweet pics

TV.com - watch Price is Right and Craig Ferguson on your phone

Wifi Analyzer - shows which nearby signals are the most powerful and on which channels, so you can choose the best channel for your network (hint: it's never 5 or 6)

[muddi900]

I here Swift (http://www.swift-app.com/) is a better app for twitter.

[Jackel]

I here Swift (http://www.swift-app.com/) is a better app for twitter.

I've tried both and I prefer Twidroid.

[NoName]

Estrongs File Explorer: (http://www.cyrket.com/p/android/com.estrongs.android.pop/) Mostly does what it sounds like it does, but has one particular feature that I found warranted it's use over the Astro that came with my distro: File sharing. It can access your Windows network fileshares over the Wi-Fi, which proved to be about the best way I could find to get stuff onto it since my USB support is broke on the Tilt and there's no built-in sync anyway. Also has a built in task manager, which can be found seperately as well. (http://www.cyrket.com/p/android/com.estrongs.android.taskmanager/)


I've been wishing Astro let you access network shares. This app is great and has quickly replaced Astro for me.

[Siraris]

I here Swift (http://www.swift-app.com/) is a better app for twitter.

I use Seesmic. Twitteroid is buggy as hell.

[Siraris]

Ok guys, Seesmic has been replaced:

Touiter (http://levelupstudio.com/touiteur).

Best app I've seen on Android. It just came out today, and it's fantastic. I already talked to the developer (same guy who did Beautiful Widgets) and he has a huge list of features and fixes he's already working on.

This is exactly the kind of app I've been waiting for. Can't wait to see what comes in the near future. Last.FM is dropping a 2.x version player soon, and I signed up to Beta Test today. I think there could be some very cool stuff coming from that one too.

[Darken Skye]

Slide Screen (http://slidescreenhome.com/) - A beautiful Home Screen replacement (review (http://www.thesearethedroids.com/2010/01/19/slidescreen-pro-android-application-review/)). My one complaint is that you lose a little to much functionality when used as a Home Screen but it can be run as a standalone app.

[Dukefrukem]

What I'm running; keep in mind, my phone is rooted and OCed so some programs may not run on your machine.. esp the HTC one.

Beautiful Widgets (old HTC version)

Home++ - Home app, customizable

MoreIcons - turns a single icon spot into 4 icons (or 2)

Ringdroid - edits MP3s for ringtons

RandomRingtones - plays a different rington every time your phone rings

Astro - allows you to backup all your apps and even e-mail them to gmail account so you'll always have a copy at the current version you're running

Better Keyboard - hundreds of keyboard skins, find the one thats right for you.. I ironically use an iPhone keyboard

Bright Control - allows me to dim my phones brightness LOWER than the stock settings

Gmail Notifier - changes the LED color of your notification so you can tell if you have a new text or mail without waking up your phone

Foursquare - awesome social networking site that tracks your hangouts

GoogleSky - amazing app that tells you what constellation you're looking at by holding your phone next to it

Lookout - amazing way to backup your contacts and images to a website

MotoTouch LED - amazing widget that turns on your LED to be used as a flashlight

PhoneMyPC - fuckin amazing way to control your PC from your phone, interact or view

Pkt Auctions - ebay app

Qik - uploads video to youtube, twitter and facebook simotaniously

SETCPU - changes my clock speed of my phone

screebl Pro - doesn't timeout your screen if youre phone is set to a certain degree, the degree can be changed

Safe Neighborhood - puts a red marker on google maps where there's a sex offender living

SM updater - ROM changer

Twidgit Lite - lightest twitter app, my favorite

WikiMobile - nuff said

Wireless Teather - nuff said

[Dukefrukem]

also

My Backup Pro - $5 to backup texts images and contacts

SpySnapshot - takes pictures while it looks like you're reading/browsing a document.. no shutter sound

[Siraris]

Safe Neighborhood - puts a red marker on google maps where there's a sex offender living

Do you use this app incase you forget where you live? :D :D :D :D

[crazyD]

So, I tried out Slidescreen, and, while cool, it seems to be a massive battery drain. I had the phone fully charged when I left for work, and now it's dead.

[Dukefrukem]

Do you use this app incase you forget where you live? :D :D :D :D

Its a riot to use.

[J Arcane]

I think I might have to try MobileWrite. (http://www.cyrket.com/p/android/com.inkmarksoftware.mobilewrite/) It's a handwriting input method for Android, which perhaps most importantly, apparently recognized Graffiti characters.

I'm a bit rusty on remembering a few of the strokes, but I have always found Graffiti a much quicker method for long text entry than a keyboard, onscreen or hardware, when it comes to mobile devices. I don't know why I don't use the Graffiti in WinMo more.

[muddi900]

has better keyboard been removed from the market? because I can't seem to find it.

[Crittias]

I've been using ShapeWriter (http://www.shapewriter.com/android.html) for a few weeks, and it's very slick. I own a Cliq, so I still usually use the hardware kb, but when I want to type a brief message, the on-screen ShapeWriter keyboard is very handy.

[Dukefrukem]

has better keyboard been removed from the market? because I can't seem to find it.

It's sooooooooo hard to find. BUt it was just updated yesterday so I don't think so.

[muddi900]

Well I used a cyrket link and downloaded a skin and used a link from there. didn't get anything.

[Darken Skye]

So, I tried out Slidescreen, and, while cool, it seems to be a massive battery drain. I had the phone fully charged when I left for work, and now it's dead.

I haven't really had any problems with battery life while running it but then again I don't make a lot of calls. It might help if you turn down the frequency which Slidescreen check for updates. I think I set it to an hourly update schedule for most of the sites.

Edit: Speak of the devil. They just released a patch to improve battery usage.

[Pigeon]

Is there an app to change the color of the lcd light when you get a text message?

[Zagrash]

Is there an app to change the color of the lcd light when you get a text message?

I know I can do that on my phone, but it's rooted. I haven't run stock android in so long I don't remember if it's even an option.

[Dukefrukem]

Is there an app to change the color of the lcd light when you get a text message?

Read my list of apps. There's an app to change the color of your e-mail notification to separate text messages from it.

[Pigeon]

Read my list of apps. There's an app to change the color of your e-mail notification to separate text messages from it.

It's for my wife, she's already dl'd that, she wants her texts to be a different color too.

[Slack3r78]

Not sure how I missed this thread before.

Apps I currently have installed and use semi-regularly:

Aldiko - ebook reader
Astrid - to do list
Barcode Scanner
Calorie Counter
Chandroid
eBuddy IM
Flixster
NPR News
Ringdroid
RockOn (music player, just installed last night. Pretty slick)
Touiteur+Twidroid - still deciding which one I like better. Twidroid still has a functionality edge, but Touiteur is closing that gap rapidly
Wapedia

[J Arcane]

Huzzah! My phone has arrived. As soon as I can figure out how the hell I hard reset the thing, it'll be time to install apps. Anyone know how the hell you wipe the G1, without like, rooting it or anything?

[Slack3r78]

Huzzah! My phone has arrived. As soon as I can figure out how the hell I hard reset the thing, it'll be time to install apps. Anyone know how the hell you wipe the G1, without like, rooting it or anything?

Turn off, hold power+home. Alt-W on the screen that comes up.

[Deimos]

I've been using ShapeWriter (http://www.shapewriter.com/android.html) for a few weeks, and it's very slick. I own a Cliq, so I still usually use the hardware kb, but when I want to type a brief message, the on-screen ShapeWriter keyboard is very handy.

Another vote for ShapeWriter(Free) here. Sometimes you just don't want to open the g1 keyboard to type one word. ShapeWriter has proved quite accurate for me except for a few words. (Words that are made up of letters all on the same row seem to cause the most problems)
http://chart.apis.google.com/chart?cht=qr&chs=135x135&chl=market://search?q=pname:com.shapewriter.android.softkeyboar d

SlideScreen(Lite and Paid) is a neat idea but I miss having access to certain widgets. Also it doesn't show the phone's current ringer setting. I can't tell with a glance if my phone is on vibrate or not. Still it's worth a look.
http://chart.apis.google.com/chart?cht=qr&chs=135x135&chl=market://search?q=pname:com.larvalabs.slidescreen

I use Google Calendar to keep track of all my school exams/social events but the widget for it sucks. I use calWidget (Free) to show all my upcoming events right on my main home screen. It's customizable to any widget size.
http://chart.apis.google.com/chart?cht=qr&chs=135x135&chl=market://search?q=pname:net.eggenstein.android.calwidget

Locale is great for setting up lots of different schedules on your phone. I use mine to go silent during class times mostly. It can be set to do various things based on GPS location but I haven't used that feature enough to pass judgement on it.
http://chart.apis.google.com/chart?cht=qr&chs=135x135&chl=market://search?q=pname:com.twofortyfouram.locale
NOTE: While grabbing the QR Code I realized Locale is no longer free but $9.99. I'm not sure if there is a cheaper alternative out there or not.

Finally the only two games that have spent more than a couple days on my phone:
Scrambled Net (Lite and Paid versions available) is just a connect the pipes game but it's a great little time waster for me.
http://chart.apis.google.com/chart?cht=qr&chs=135x135&chl=market://search?q=pname:org.hermit.netscramble

Zilch (Free and Paid versions available) for those who need a Facebook Farkle Fix on the go.
http://chart.apis.google.com/chart?cht=qr&chs=135x135&chl=market://search?q=pname:com.mibollma.zilchR2

Everyone here does have Shop Savvy or something similar to scan barcodes right? It saves a lot of time searching through the sometimes wonky Android Market.

[Crittias]

Everyone here does have Shop Savvy or something similar to scan barcodes right? It saves a lot of time searching through the sometimes wonky Android Market.Deimos, how are you finding/generating the QR codes for your post? No doubt, it's super-handy for Android users to find the apps we're pimping.

Thanks!

[nixpayn]

Do you use this app incase you forget where you live? :D :D :D :D

booo i guess this one doesnt work in canada, or maybe theres no sex offenders in toronto. i installed it and nothin.

oh wait, nm, it didnt generate any results by location, but when i search the city.. there they are! Hello!

[J Arcane]

Deimos, how are you finding/generating the QR codes for your post? No doubt, it's super-handy for Android users to find the apps we're pimping.

Thanks!
Looks like they're just cut and pasted from the ones on Cyrket.

[Siraris]

Duke - that app that turns 1 icon spot into 4 icons, does that work well for you? Every comment on the app said it lagged the OS to shit when you installed it.

[Deimos]

Deimos, how are you finding/generating the QR codes for your post? No doubt, it's super-handy for Android users to find the apps we're pimping.

Thanks!

Looks like they're just cut and pasted from the ones on Cyrket.

Arcane is right that they're just copy/pasted from Cyrket. But the app Barcode Scanner can generate custom QR codes for you though. It can generate them from contact info, bookmarks, applications or whatever you have in your clipboard. It's handy if someone wants to scan your screen to snag some kind of data but doesn't feature an easy way to offload the QRCode for something like forum posts.

BarcodeScanner
http://chart.apis.google.com/chart?cht=qr&chs=100x100&chl=http://cyrket.com/qr/27167

[J Arcane]

Ok, this is mostly pointless, but it's a fun little toy.

Barcode Beasties (http://www.cyrket.com/p/android/com.fawepark.android.barcodebeasties/)
http://chart.apis.google.com/chart?cht=qr&chs=100x100&chl=http://cyrket.com/qr/22009

Scan any UPC in your house, and it becomes a beastie! Pit your household objects and foodstuffs against each other in mortal combat!

Mostly pointless, but neat to screw around with. Like those old Tiger barcode games crossed with Monster Rancher lite.

[opsin]

Duke - that app that turns 1 icon spot into 4 icons, does that work well for you? Every comment on the app said it lagged the OS to shit when you installed it.

I've been struggling to even get a hold of More Icons, seeing as I'min the UK. What I've done instead wasat first used Launcher Dock, which gives you a single icon that pops open to reveal 8 icons in a circle, but I found that a bit laggy.Since the other day I've been using abcOrganizer (a version of appsOrganizer which lets you have bookmarks and things in the tray) which lets you set up an icon that opens a folder with links in, and I have to say works an awful lot faster than Launcher Dock.
I'd still like More Icons, but if it's as laggy as the other options I'm not sure where the advantage would lie.

[Jackel]

I've been using more icons and it seems to work just fine. I haven't experienced any lag with it.But I could just be lucky.

[Siraris]

Just installed the free version of More Icons, and it's okay. It seems to be a bit finicky, and the icons are very small. For some reason, I thought that when you pressed the icon, it would pop up a series of larger regular sized icons that you could press in some sort of fan out view.

That would be very cool if you ask me.

[Pigeon]

Ok, this is mostly pointless, but it's a fun little toy.

Barcode Beasties (http://www.cyrket.com/p/android/com.fawepark.android.barcodebeasties/)
http://chart.apis.google.com/chart?cht=qr&chs=100x100&chl=http://cyrket.com/qr/22009

Scan any UPC in your house, and it becomes a beastie! Pit your household objects and foodstuffs against each other in mortal combat!

Mostly pointless, but neat to screw around with. Like those old Tiger barcode games crossed with Monster Rancher lite.

You have me scanning things all over now! The best I've gotten so far is a lvl5 mummy, but I also got a ridiculously strong lvl4 unicorn

[J Arcane]

Am I correct in saying that Meridian (http://www.cyrket.com/p/android/org.iii.romulus.meridian/)seems to be basically THE standard third party media player for Android?

[J Arcane]

So apparently Namco's PAC-MAN is free for G1 owners.

[Deimos]

So apparently Namco's PAC-MAN is free for G1 owners.

Indeed it is but I remember the controls being pretty ass-tastic and thus haven't had it installed since I got my g1 over a year ago. Let me know if the controls feel better these days and I'll gladly grab it again.

[J Arcane]

Indeed it is but I remember the controls being pretty ass-tastic and thus haven't had it installed since I got my g1 over a year ago. Let me know if the controls feel better these days and I'll gladly grab it again.
The control with the trackball wasn't too bad, but the biggest issue is more with how slow it feels, and with the graphics. Maybe it's just because I was on the easy mode but everything moved ass slow.

It's not nearly as good a version as the WinMo one. That one's basically arcade perfect, and the controls are basically as good as the direction keys on your phone are.

[J Arcane]

Anyone try AdFree Android? (http://www.cyrket.com/p/android/com.bigtincan.android.adfree/)

If it works, it might be a very good excuse to root at some point. It's weird going to a mobile and suddenly dealing with all these damn ads, especially since it's the last place you want to waste precious battery and bandwidth on useless ads for diet pills and the like.

[J Arcane]

Opera Mini 5 beta is up on the market for Android now. Installing as we speak, we'll see if it makes a decent temporary substitute for the full Opera Mobile 10.

Also, I've got a bunch of games now, will have to post about some later.

[J Arcane]

Does anyone know any good apps for managing the clutter on the status bar? There's some things I just don't want taking up space there.

Especially annoying is a bug in the G1 where it keeps notifying me about a voicemail that doesn't exist because I don't even have service.

[opsin]

Also, I've got a bunch of games now, will have to post about some later.

Please do. Apart from ScummVM, I've mostly found games to be very disappointing. Probably mostly just because I'm quite particular about the sort of thing I'm after, but I've not found anything that didn't annoy or bore me within ten minutes.

As for the status bar, can't really help there. Not that I'm aware of, other than some of the Home replacement apps perhaps.

[Mike Kelehan]

Here's a question. The TV.com app only streams some shows (Craig Ferguson) over wifi, because they've got an exclusive deal with Verizon V-Cast for delivering full episodes over 3G. Does anyone know of an app that will fake wifi? Meaning, it will make the phone THINK it's running on wifi, even though it's using 3G?

[Siraris]

Here's a question. The TV.com app only streams some shows (Craig Ferguson) over wifi, because they've got an exclusive deal with Verizon V-Cast for delivering full episodes over 3G. Does anyone know of an app that will fake wifi? Meaning, it will make the phone THINK it's running on wifi, even though it's using 3G?

I don't know of any app that would do this. By my thinking, the TV.com app checks the OS to see if you're on Wifi, and there's some sort of flag or state in the OS that reflects if you're on WIFI or 3G. You'd have to make the OS think that you are on Wifi, but not have it then shut off 3G, which is what it does when it's on Wifi. I'd imagine this is impossible to do, or it would have to be a particular hack for TV.com that confused it to always thinking it's on Wifi.

[Mike Kelehan]

I don't know of any app that would do this. By my thinking, the TV.com app checks the OS to see if you're on Wifi, and there's some sort of flag or state in the OS that reflects if you're on WIFI or 3G. You'd have to make the OS think that you are on Wifi, but not have it then shut off 3G, which is what it does when it's on Wifi. I'd imagine this is impossible to do, or it would have to be a particular hack for TV.com that confused it to always thinking it's on Wifi.

Right, the idea would be that the app would intercept that flag when an app checks it, and make the apps think it's on wifi. As I understand it, the Amazon MP3 store requires wifi, too.

[Siraris]

Right, the idea would be that the app would intercept that flag when an app checks it, and make the apps think it's on wifi. As I understand it, the Amazon MP3 store requires wifi, too.

To log in, or to buy an album? I'm on the MP3 store right now on 3G and it works fine, but I'm not going to buy something just to test if it works :)

Previewing songs works on 3G as well btw.

[Kenzington4short]

To log in, or to buy an album? I'm on the MP3 store right now on 3G and it works fine, but I'm not going to buy something just to test if it works :)

Previewing songs works on 3G as well btw.

Just to download. You can browse and buy while on 3G but it won't start downloading until you're on a wifi connection.

I've done it a couple of times when I was at a friend's house and found some awesome deals that were going to expire before I could get to my home computer.

[Zagrash]

Anyone try AdFree Android? (http://www.cyrket.com/p/android/com.bigtincan.android.adfree/)

If it works, it might be a very good excuse to root at some point. It's weird going to a mobile and suddenly dealing with all these damn ads, especially since it's the last place you want to waste precious battery and bandwidth on useless ads for diet pills and the like.

I just installed it a few days ago, and it works well enough. It just leaves a white block where the ad used to be in the app, so it doesn't give you the whole screen back, but it at least removes the chance to accidentally tap on an ad.

[Zagrash]

Just to download. You can browse and buy while on 3G but it won't start downloading until you're on a wifi connection.

I've done it a couple of times when I was at a friend's house and found some awesome deals that were going to expire before I could get to my home computer.

I've downloaded albums over 3G at work. I'm too far away from our wireless router to be able to pick it up now, so I use 3G all the time. I don't think that's ever stopped me with Amazon MP3.

[J Arcane]

I just installed it a few days ago, and it works well enough. It just leaves a white block where the ad used to be in the app, so it doesn't give you the whole screen back, but it at least removes the chance to accidentally tap on an ad.
Does it block them from loading, like a proper adblocker, or does it just blank them out after the fact like that awful one for Chrome?

[Zagrash]

Does it block them from loading, like a proper adblocker, or does it just blank them out after the fact like that awful one for Chrome?

It blocks them from loading. you can tap on the empty white space all you want and it will not take you to any ads

[Dukefrukem]

Duke - that app that turns 1 icon spot into 4 icons, does that work well for you? Every comment on the app said it lagged the OS to shit when you installed it.

My phone is OCed so everything runs amazingly. I used it for a short while before I OCed it and don't remember lag issues.

[Dukefrukem]

So... I just found the best app ever. There's no question this is it... yup... the best app in the history of apps. The most fun you could ever have is right here (http://www.spoofapp.com/).

[Kenzington4short]

I've downloaded albums over 3G at work. I'm too far away from our wireless router to be able to pick it up now, so I use 3G all the time. I don't think that's ever stopped me with Amazon MP3.

Hm, maybe I'm thinking of Edge of then. My mistake.

[Siraris]

So... I just found the best app ever. There's no question this is it... yup... the best app in the history of apps. The most fun you could ever have is right here (http://www.spoofapp.com/).

I read the comments, and it seems you have to pay or something after a few uses. I got caller ID Faker, and that seems to be free.

Nevermind, same with this. You have to pay after 2 minutes.

[J Arcane]

So I had a big long post I put together last night, with a list of all the Android games I have installed. the dumb part was though, I did it all in the quick reply box because I thought it would take less time than it did. Right near the end of the piece, I misclicked and instead of clicking to go to the tab I had Cyrket open in to link the last of the games, I clicked one of my shortcut buttons, and it wiped the damn field. Stupid Firefox.

Anyway, here's the stuff I have, broken down by category, with links to their respective Cyrket pages.

Puzzle:

Frozen Bubble - A direct port of the OSS Bust-a-Move clone. Doesn't quite have the charm or the flavor of the real BAM games, but it's decent puzzle fun in a pinch, and the trackball is probably the best way to control this game I've ever tried. Link: http://www.cyrket.com/p/android/org.jfedor.frozenbubble/

Milky Milky - Sort of like Pipe Dream, but played in the continuous style of games like Bejeweled. You have a field full of different shaped pipes, and you rotate them to try and line up connections from one side of the field to the other. Make a link, those pipes disappear and new ones fall in from the top. Fun game, I recommend it. Link: http://www.cyrket.com/p/android/au.com.phil.fuel/


Zilch - Simple dice game, sometimes known as "Dice 10000". Try to reach 10,000 points by scoring sets of numbers on 6 dice. The trick comes in in that you can keep rolling unmatched dice, but if you roll no sets, the whole round's points are lost and play goes to the next player. This one supports both single-player vs. the computer, or hotseat play with up to 4 players. Link: http://www.cyrket.com/p/android/com.mibollma.zilchR2/

Action:

Abduction - Vertical platformer game with motion control. Your little cow's friends have all been abducted by aliens! Reach the top of the map to join/rescue them. You cow automatically bounces up continuously, use the tilt sensor of the phone to aim him to the next platform. Can be a bit challenging, but plays better than it sounds. Link: http://www.cyrket.com/p/android/au.com.phil/

SpeedXGalagus - Souped up port of the OSS game XGalaga, inspired by Namco's arcade classic but with some tricks of it's own. Good classic arcade shooter fun, highly recommended, though the trackball controls are a little wonky. Link: http://www.cyrket.com/p/android/com.syl.speedxgalagus/

Meteor Lite - Ricochet/Arkanoid clone. Maneuver your ship to bounce the ball off various colored blocks and enemies, getting powerups along the way. Plays with either touch control or trackball, I recommend the former. Link: http://www.cyrket.com/p/android/com.mstream.meteorlite/

Strategy:

Age of Conquest - Risk/Axis & Allies like game about medieval conquest. Actually comes in a number of varieties with maps of different continents for single player play, or as a subscription online PBEM version. Link is to the free demo, follow the publisher to find the various full versions. Pretty fun and reasonably challenging single player. Link: http://www.cyrket.com/p/android/com.aevumobscurum.androidlite/

Battle for Mars - Blatant Advance Wars clone, with a Futurama-inspired aesthetic. Pretty fun and straightforward, made by the same people who made the apparently well reviewed Retro Defense and Slidescreen. Campaign mode, and Quick Play skirimishes. Link: http://www.cyrket.com/p/android/com.larvalabs.tacticslite/

Shadow Zone - Turn based strategy in post-Chernobyl, S.T.A.L.A.K.E.R. meets Advance Wars meets robots. Campaign play and skirmish mode. Great presentation, kinda crummy interface, but it's free and fun. Check it out. Link: http://www.cyrket.com/p/android/ua.com.newground.shadowzone/

UniWar - Sci-fi hex based strategy, featuring three factions battling across campign, skirmish, or multiplayer modes. Ported from the iPhone. Quite fun and well polished, definitely worth checking out. http://www.cyrket.com/p/android/android.uniwar/

RPG:

Netrunners - It's a MUD! On your phone! Totally old school text-mode roleplaying in a cyberpunk flavor. Haven't had a chance to delve too far in this one, but I have to respect their balls in trying something like this in this day and age. (NOTE: Server is currently down in preperation for a move, so if you download today and can't play, that's why) Link: http://www.cyrket.com/p/android/net.totalmadownage.nethak/

Angband - It's angband. For your phone. Text-mode only port of the classic roguelike game. Link: http://www.cyrket.com/p/android/org.angdroid.angband/

Nethack - It's Nethack, for your phone. Like Angband, this one's text mode only, don't expect graphics tiles. Link: http://www.cyrket.com/p/android/com.nethackff/

Dweller - J2ME roguelike, one of the first ever, in fact. I used to play this all the time on my Nokia 6010, and now, thanks to the J2ME Runner in the next section, you can play it on Android! Once you get that installed, point the App Browser to the following address: http://www.roguelikedevelopment.org/dweller/Dweller.jar

Other:

J2ME Runner - This is just what it sounds like. It's a set of two programs that allows you to install J2ME applications to your Android phone and run them as native applications. Installs two programs, the App Explorer, which is a special web browser you must use to find your apps and download them (doesn't allow installing local files for some reason), and the App Manager, which lets you manage the J2ME apps you have installed. This opens up quite a few games, such as the Dweller roguelike game I mentioned in the RPG section. Link: http://www.cyrket.com/p/android/com.netmite.andme/

Nesoid - NES emulator. Emulation quality is quite good, though depending on your available keyboard, the control situation may not be so good for action-y stuff. Link: http://www.cyrket.com/p/android/com.androidemu.neslite/

Snesoid - SNES emulator. Emulation quality is not as good here, there's some slowdown issues and stuttering in the sound, along with the occasional graphics glitch in some games. Still overall not terrible, and worth checking out. Link: http://www.cyrket.com/p/android/com.androidemu.sneslite/

IMPORTANT NOTE ABOUT THE EMULATORS: yongzh's emulators (Nesoid, etc.) do NOT support save RAM, so built in save functions in games will not work. The full versions of the emulators do support save states though, so if you're looking to play anything good and long like an RPG or a strategy game, it is rather recommended you get ahold of the full version. The free "lite" version DOES NOT SUPPORT SAVES OF ANY KIND.


And that's my quick guide to my current games collection.

[Zagrash]

And that's my quick guide to my current games collection.

Good write up! I just downloaded about 4 of those =)

[crazyD]

I prefer Papi Jump to Abduction. Seems to run better, and plays exactly the same.

[J Arcane]

I prefer Papi Jump to Abduction. Seems to run better, and plays exactly the same.
I've played both, and I can't say I agree. There's just more depth and challenge to Abduction's gameplay, and I find Papi's controls a little too literal, and Abduction's presentation is leagues ahead.

Papi feels like something slapped together quickly as a programming sample, as opposed to a full game.

[crazyD]

More depth and challenge? Maybe I didn't give Abduction much of a chance, but don't they play exactly the same?

Abduction definitely has more effort put into the looks, but in my brief playtime, I ran into a bit of lag and some delayed response to the tilt.

[J Arcane]

More depth and challenge? Maybe I didn't give Abduction much of a chance, but don't they play exactly the same?

Abduction definitely has more effort put into the looks, but in my brief playtime, I ran into a bit of lag and some delayed response to the tilt.
Abduction has a bit more challenge to me, and added features like power ups and things, as well as an actual level progression in the full "World Attack" version.

It does occasionally lag, but I find that's more to do with what's running in the background. There IS a bit of deliberate indirectness to the control though, which might also be what you mean. Papi seems to move quite literally exactly where you move the phone, while Abduction is more of an aiming process. I found the latter felt more natural to me.

Also, Papi's framerate/gamespeed seemed irregular to me as well.

I'd give Abduction another shot, personally, maybe delve into the World Attack demo part of it and the higher difficulties, which add some nice change ups to the gameplay.

[J Arcane]

I found an awesome new game.

Radiant. (http://www.cyrket.com/p/android/net.hexage.radiant/)

Fun little neo-retro styled shooter, with a clever sense of humor and some rather entertaining gameplay. It's sort of like Galaga with Space Invaders graphics and the weapon upgrades of later shooters like Gradius or Raptor. And your commander is the IBM extended ASCII smiley face. With a hat.

It's pretty much pure awesome, and I recommend it highly.

[Slack3r78]

AutoKiller (http://www.cyrket.com/p/android/com.rs.autokiller/)

Everyone has probably figured out by now that I don't approve of task killers, and is probably thinking I've lost my mind. Not really, because this isn't a task killer in the traditional sense. Rather, it's a UI frontend to tweaking the Android memory manager's internal settings.

So instead of fighting against how the system manages memory, you're actually just making it a little bit more aggressive in its garbage collection routines, which is totally kosher. Since it's fiddling with low-level system parameters, it requires root.

[bapenguin]

Does anyone know of a tethering app that'll work with Mac?

[Dukefrukem]

Does anyone know of a tethering app that'll work with Mac?

What phone do you have?

[bapenguin]

What phone do you have?

Nexus One.

[J Arcane]

So, some further stuff I've found since last posting. No links this time, though maybe I'll edit them in later.

ggNES is a WAAAAAY better emulator than Nesoid. Much faster, better performanc, better configuration options.

Flood-it is a neat little puzzle game.

[NoName]

Does anyone know of a tethering app that'll work with Mac?

Search in the market for Barnacle Wifi Tether. It makes your phone a wireless hotspot so you can connect that way, no matter the OS.

ggNES is a WAAAAAY better emulator than Nesoid. Much faster, better performanc, better configuration options.

How's the d-pad control in it? That's my biggest frustration with Nesoid.

[J Arcane]

I use the keyboard, so I couldn't tell you.

[Mike Kelehan]

ggNES is a WAAAAAY better emulator than Nesoid. Much faster, better performanc, better configuration options.

Doesn't work with the N1, but Nesoid works pretty much perfectly on the N1 anyway.

[bapenguin]

The new official Twitter app is pretty kick ass. It integrates with your contacts much like the Facebook app does.

[Adam Blue]

The new official Twitter app is pretty kick ass. It integrates with your contacts much like the Facebook app does.

Yes. I'm super impressed with it. Even where the OS on the Hero hardware can be sluggish, the Twitter app is always just so smooth. Loading it up, scrolling through tweets, and even with the widget. Can't wait to use it on my Evo though...

[NoName]

It appears that LogMeIn Ignition (http://lifehacker.com/5532972/logmein-ignition-beta-available-for-android?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+lifehacker%2Ffull+%28Lifehack er%29&utm_content=Google+Feedfetcher) has a Android beta they just released!

I can now remote connect to my living room computer from my phone. :D

[J Arcane]

OK, this is totally fucking sweet. If you have a touchscreen only phone, or hell, even if you don't, check out this: http://www.cyrket.com/p/android/com.mercury.inputmethod.wpad/

It's an IME for using a Wiimote over Bluetooth with your Android phone. And it works flawlessly. I was able to play Kirby's Adventure as smoothly as if it were on the real NES.

It only supports the Wiimote itself, currently, though the original tech demo supported the nunchuck as well, so that may get added in the future. This does present button limitations though, so emulation wise, you may be stuck with the NES for now unless you know of some alternate Wii compatible game controllers with different button layout.

If anyone knows of such a thing, let me know, all I know about are those weird frame things they make that you can tack onto the regular Wiimote, though one of those might help, I'll take a look at it. There's enough buttons here to go all the way to SNES, it's just the layout isn't really receptive to it.

Plus, I'm thinking I might try and come up with some kind of frame for all this, to essentially turn my Nexus into a genuine handheld gaming system, and one of thos plastic dealies might be a good place to start.

[NoName]

OK, this is totally fucking sweet. If you have a touchscreen only phone, or hell, even if you don't, check out this: http://www.cyrket.com/p/android/com.mercury.inputmethod.wpad/

That is awesome! Not having a decent D-pad was always my biggest issue. Thanks for sharing.

[J Arcane]

Documents To Go is on sale right now for $15.

[johnperkins21]

OK, this is totally fucking sweet. If you have a touchscreen only phone, or hell, even if you don't, check out this: http://www.cyrket.com/p/android/com.mercury.inputmethod.wpad/

It's an IME for using a Wiimote over Bluetooth with your Android phone. And it works flawlessly. I was able to play Kirby's Adventure as smoothly as if it were on the real NES.

Well, this is a bummer:
IMPORTANT: This currently doesn't work on phones with HTC's Sense UI!

[J Arcane]

Yet another reason to stick with stock roms.

[Mike Kelehan]

OK, this is totally fucking sweet. If you have a touchscreen only phone, or hell, even if you don't, check out this: http://www.cyrket.com/p/android/com.mercury.inputmethod.wpad/

It's an IME for using a Wiimote over Bluetooth with your Android phone. And it works flawlessly. I was able to play Kirby's Adventure as smoothly as if it were on the real NES.

It only supports the Wiimote itself, currently, though the original tech demo supported the nunchuck as well, so that may get added in the future. This does present button limitations though, so emulation wise, you may be stuck with the NES for now unless you know of some alternate Wii compatible game controllers with different button layout.


Once this supports the classic controller, I'm in. Although, I could use it right now for Game Boy emulators. A Wii remote plus the N1 is about the same weight as an original Game Boy...

Documents To Go is on sale right now for $15.

Documents To Go is ALWAYS on sale. :-)

[Serapth]

Ok, just played a spot of Genesis shadowrun, using the Wii mote... pretty freaking cool actually.

[J Arcane]

Really? I could swear the last time I saw it was full price. Insert shrug here.

Wiimote works great with NES too, nd would probably be good with some Genesis games depending on the buttons used. Sonic only really has one for example.

I'm going to enlist a friend in making some kind of bracket/case for it, essentially turning wiimote plus nexus into a handheld.

[Serapth]

Really? I could swear the last time I saw it was full price. Insert shrug here.

Wiimote works great with NES too, nd would probably be good with some Genesis games depending on the buttons used. Sonic only really has one for example.

I'm going to enlist a friend in making some kind of bracket/case for it, essentially turning wiimote plus nexus into a handheld.

Actually, 3 buttons + start is pretty easy to get to. Use the trigger button as A since your hand is going to be there for the D-PAd anyways, then 1/2 as B/C

[MachEnergy]

This wiimote concept makes me want to go back and actually play Zenonia some more. Great game, but I loathe virtual dpads so much

[J Arcane]

I still need to test if it works with Zenonia. I am pretty sure it does support keyboards on Android version so it might. I'll let you all know.

[Mike Kelehan]

Really? I could swear the last time I saw it was full price. Insert shrug here.

It's usually been $30 in the Market, but then when you register they offer you a "limited time offer!" of $15, which is not in fact limited.

[NoName]

Ok, just played a spot of Genesis shadowrun, using the Wii mote... pretty freaking cool actually.

This is a crazy good idea... I need to get the Genesis emulator.

[Serapth]

This is a crazy good idea... I need to get the Genesis emulator.

It works quite well, its my test of an emulators control.

Lets put it this way... I managed to kite the ghouls in the barrens.

If you've played the game, you know what I mean. ;)

[J Arcane]

God, trying to do the combat in SR with the G1 keyboard was fucking awful. I can't imagine trying it with the touchscreen pad.

[Serapth]

God, trying to do the combat in SR with the G1 keyboard was fucking awful. I can't imagine trying it with the touchscreen pad.

I played it on a Dream, using the trackball as the gamepad and it wasn't too bad, I had almost controller like control, it was just tiring as I had to keep gesturing in the direction I wanted to go.

[J Arcane]

Yeah. There's a huge dead zone on the trackball, and I found it made it far too awkward for a controller.

[J Arcane]

The Wii Controller IME has been updated to support the Classic Controller!

The full breadth of emulation is now at your fingertips. Now if only someone would make an all-in-one unit Classic controller.

The tethering business rather ruins my plans for creating some kind of handheld bracket for the device. Now I've got to get a lot more clever about it if I want to come up with a solution here.

[Serapth]

Unrelated but android really needs update release notes like iphone

[Dukefrukem]

Unrelated but android really needs update release notes like iphone

that's what gizmodo and engadget are for....

btw, the MLB Live app is fucking awesome. stream local radio baseball broadcast?? CHECK!

[muddi900]

15 bucks for streaming radio? On the iphone(and ipad), you can stream videos.

[Voodoo]

15 bucks for streaming radio? On the iphone(and ipad), you can stream videos.
For that one... There are others which are free.

Unrelated but android really needs update release notes like iphone
Hmm. Many of my updates come with notes about what got update.

[Dukefrukem]

15 bucks for streaming radio? On the iphone(and ipad), you can stream videos.

It's $15 for streaming radio on your computer... what's your point? And this app will stream videos of scoring plays right after they happen.

[Serapth]

It's optional to edit release notes,into the program description. On iPhone, release notes are part of the update.


BTW, better keyboard fucking rocks.

15 bucks for streaming radio? On the iphone(and ipad), you can stream videos.
For that one... There are others which are free.

Unrelated but android really needs update release notes like iphone
Hmm. Many of my updates come with notes about what got update.

[Voodoo]

It's optional to edit release notes,into the program description. On iPhone, release notes are part of the update.
Yup and that's the great thing about how Android operates. It is up to the developer that these notes are provided or not. Thereby, your complaint is more towards how developers treat people that use their products (whom you can directly write to and suggest the inclusion of release notes) and isn't really relevant towards Android as a whole.

[Serapth]

Actually it's not.

The product description and update release notes have two very different audiences and should be two different documents. On iPhone they are on android they aren't.

It's optional to edit release notes,into the program description. On iPhone, release notes are part of the update.
Yup and that's the great thing about how Android operates. It is up to the developer that these notes are provided or not. Thereby, your complaint is more towards how developers treat people that use their products (whom you can directly write to and suggest the inclusion of release notes) and isn't really relevant towards Android as a whole.

[Voodoo]

Actually it's not.

The product description and update release notes have two very different audiences and should be two different documents. On iPhone they are on android they aren't.
Release Notes are provided at the discretion of the application developer within the description of their apps. There have been some occasions where these notes are missing in upgrades I've done, but the majority of the app upgrades or installs I've done have included information about the recent version. What I especially like is that I can email the developer, look at their other products or their website directly from the Application's page in the Android Market. I've written a number of application developers to make suggestions and bug reports and find it to be very useful.

Not sure what you mean by the two different audiences? I like to know what an upgrade to an app does and I also like to read the description of said app.

BTW, I've got my iPhone sitting here with an update to the Google Mobile App. I have no idea what you are speaking about when stating there are two different documents in the App Market, one description and one patch notes. All I have here is a description of the patch notes... Perhaps you means that the description of the App is shown prior to downloading and then patch notes are shown on updates? This isn't far from the behavior I see in the Marketplace or are you referring to something else? Even looking at 3 apps that I haven't installed shows the recent update patch notes within the description... Where are the two separate documents?

[Serapth]

On iPhone, you have an apparently store description and then when an update is released an individual writeup of what is in the update.


The two different audiences are obviously those looking at downloading an apparently and those that have already downloaded it.

[muddi900]

I think release notes should have a permanent tab on the product page as well. Maybe I didn't like an app originally, but they added some features.

[Xerxes]

Am I correct in saying that Meridian (http://www.cyrket.com/p/android/org.iii.romulus.meridian/)seems to be basically THE standard third party media player for Android?

There's MixZing.

I'm still playing with Dialer One, but I think I have a new phone dialer.

[Xerxes]

Double Twist is my new music player. I believe they plan to release a paid version soon with widgets, although currently I'm having issues displaying some music I just put on my nexus.

I haven't tried the desktop software because I dislike them wanting a email address to sign in. I mean really. It's not needed. It's bullshit.

Launcher Pro - It's like normal Home Launcher system but more customizable. I found the Nexus not letting me pick a different default dialer, just retarded.

Dialer One - This is officilaly my new dialer. Reminds me of the dialer of my TMO Wing. Still needs a little work but its still the dialer of choice.

Aldiko - I have a few books on this app, and it's good shit. Wish I didn't have to strip books as I don't really know how but I have a few oreily books I bought on sale a while back to read. And they show up excellently. I wish I could scroll up like reading a paper. But it's supposed to be like books eh.

Kobo - I bought a book from them and this isn't a horrible app. I mean if the store wasn't expensive, I could see more use for it. Sadly they cost too much for my liking and might be my last book with them.

Dropbox - Works great. I have a android folder, less than a minute to download a 4MB file last night. I can even stream a song at a time. Not sure if I put a playlist file in there would it stream more than a song at a time, but for now it's ok.

I wish HTC or some of the other manufactures had apps on the store.

I wish Adobe made a mobile digital editions program. Sucks not being able to read other ebooks I paid for as they are. What's the point of trying to have DRM for mobile devices but not my phone. I'm to lazy to go around stripping shit. Blerg.

[maxdakota]

WiFi analyzer
Wifi Analyzer is a handy tool which helps you to choose a better channel for your wireless router.

[drobvice]

Double Twist is my new music player. I believe they plan to release a paid version soon with widgets, although currently I'm having issues displaying some music I just put on my nexus.

I had this on my Moto Droid as well. I copied music over wifi to my phone (which I'm still pissed that the iPod Touch won't let you do) and after I rebooted the phone, it was in Music Player and Tunewiki but not Doubletwist. I don't really see a compelling reason to use it.

Regarding ebooks, I'm looking forward to the Kindle for Android software coming this summer. I bought a couple books for cheap from them awhile back.

[Adam Blue]

unrEVOked + Battery Indicator + Overclock Widget = awesome battery life (Evo).

Volumer++ is a must have, allowing you to change volume of any aspect of Android, and it sits in the launcher for quick access to even set profiles or modes.

[Xerxes]

I had this on my Moto Droid as well. I copied music over wifi to my phone (which I'm still pissed that the iPod Touch won't let you do) and after I rebooted the phone, it was in Music Player and Tunewiki but not Doubletwist. I don't really see a compelling reason to use it.

Regarding ebooks, I'm looking forward to the Kindle for Android software coming this summer. I bought a couple books for cheap from them awhile back.

It's probably only good for Kindle books, blerg. But that's not all bad I suppose.

I really like everything else about Double Twist aside from this... hiccup. :(
Maybe this beta only allows only so many files. Which would be a dick move.

[drobvice]

It's probably only good for Kindle books, blerg. But that's not all bad I suppose.

I really like everything else about Double Twist aside from this... hiccup. :(
Maybe this beta only allows only so many files. Which would be a dick move.

Yeah, I'm more a fan of "open" but it's hard to get "open" and "cheap". For creative commons (Cory Doctorow and the like) there are quite a few readers available, such as aldiko (sp?) and fbreader. I like the fact that the Kindle apps sync up your location in each book so you can pick up at the same spot on pc, phone or kindle itself, not that I have one.. Neat feature and you will be able to buy from the phone (I totally sound like a shill for Amazon but I'm not just a very frequent user).

I know alot of people seem to not like the stock android music player but I find it functional and I use DoggCatcher for podcasts. Maybe I'm missing something

[zarathstra]

Double Twist is my new music player. I believe they plan to release a paid version soon with widgets, although currently I'm having issues displaying some music I just put on my nexus.

I haven't tried the desktop software because I dislike them wanting a email address to sign in. I mean really. It's not needed. It's bullshit.

Launcher Pro - It's like normal Home Launcher system but more customizable. I found the Nexus not letting me pick a different default dialer, just retarded.

Dialer One - This is officilaly my new dialer. Reminds me of the dialer of my TMO Wing. Still needs a little work but its still the dialer of choice.

Aldiko - I have a few books on this app, and it's good shit. Wish I didn't have to strip books as I don't really know how but I have a few oreily books I bought on sale a while back to read. And they show up excellently. I wish I could scroll up like reading a paper. But it's supposed to be like books eh.

Kobo - I bought a book from them and this isn't a horrible app. I mean if the store wasn't expensive, I could see more use for it. Sadly they cost too much for my liking and might be my last book with them.

Dropbox - Works great. I have a android folder, less than a minute to download a 4MB file last night. I can even stream a song at a time. Not sure if I put a playlist file in there would it stream more than a song at a time, but for now it's ok.

I wish HTC or some of the other manufactures had apps on the store.

I wish Adobe made a mobile digital editions program. Sucks not being able to read other ebooks I paid for as they are. What's the point of trying to have DRM for mobile devices but not my phone. I'm to lazy to go around stripping shit. Blerg.


I've only had my Droid for about 3 weeks now, but I've been using Alkido and it's done everything I want it to. If you like sci-fi and fantasy this (http://baencd.thefifthimperium.com/) is a good place to go for free books to dump on your phone. Baen puts out a CD with a lot of its books with electronic versions of a good chunk of its back-catalog. That site has all the cds up for download.

Also, I'm using Doggcatcher for podcasts, which has worked great for me so far.

If you're an Audbile subscriber, they have the beta version of an Android player for it out right now. Its still a bit buggy, but it works. It comes with a widget that let's you play/pause right from a homescreen.

I've been using GameBoid to play GBA games on my phone, which is working well so far. Nothing quite like using your cell phone to plat Final Fantasy on your breaks...

Also, if you like HTC's weather/clock widget and don't own an HTC phone, Fancy Widget is a pretty good imitation.

[J Arcane]

Xerxes, how the hell did you get Gameboid working? Everytime I try it just gives me flak about the BIOS file, and then refuses to recognize it when I give it one. How in hell did you get it working?

[zarathstra]

Xerxes, how the hell did you get Gameboid working? Everytime I try it just gives me flak about the BIOS file, and then refuses to recognize it when I give it one. How in hell did you get it working?

::sniff:: confusing me for another man already?!?!?!

Seriously though, I dropped the BIOS onto the SD card, pointed it in the right direction, and never had any trouble after that. Maybe I can e-mail you the file I used?

[J Arcane]

::sniff:: confusing me for another man already?!?!?!

Seriously though, I dropped the BIOS onto the SD card, pointed it in the right direction, and never had any trouble after that. Maybe I can e-mail you the file I used?
I would appreciate that. Where in the SD card did you put it? Root?

If I could get the demo working I'd buy it, and I swear I had an older APK of it working once on my G1, but since then I haven't had any luck at all.

[Xerxes]

Holy shit did you say GBA games on your phone? Shit I could finally beat Golden Sun without having to carry around my DS Lite, or PSP for that matter? O_O

Why the fuck is the Skype app only available for Verizon phones?

[zarathstra]

I would appreciate that. Where in the SD card did you put it? Root?

If I could get the demo working I'd buy it, and I swear I had an older APK of it working once on my G1, but since then I haven't had any luck at all.

I created a "GBA" folder and stuck it in there with my ROMs.

[Mot Wakorb]

Holy shit did you say GBA games on your phone? Shit I could finally beat Golden Sun without having to carry around my DS Lite, or PSP for that matter? O_O

Why the fuck is the Skype app only available for Verizon phones?

Because Verizon paid for exclusivity - that exclusivity deal is running out though and general release is expected on all Android powered devices.

[Dukefrukem]

You know what I want in an app? A decent Yahoo fantasy Baseball Android App... fuckn a.

[Xerxes]

You know what I want in an app? A decent Yahoo fantasy Baseball Android App... fuckn a.

Make it. ;)

[Crittias]

Kindle for Android (http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=165849822).

[drobvice]

Kindle for Android (http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=165849822).

Hey, they were supposed to email me when that was available!

[Serapth]

When I downloaded it, the download counter showed <50.

[Mot Wakorb]

You know what I want in an app? A decent Yahoo fantasy Baseball Android App... fuckn a.

While there isn't a Yahoo one, the MLB At-Bat App is pretty stellar, all sorts of stats and current scores and you can listen to games. Love this app.

[Xerxes]

Any of you guy try out Grooveshark app? I know you have to be a VIP but seems like a awesome deal.

[Siraris]

Not paying for it when I can listen to Last.FM or my own music. Haven't heard any other reviews.

Also, that JustPictures app is crap. I saw over at Download Squad that it was great, but it's not;they're smoking crack. It's laggy, and cluttered. The stock one is much better.

[Xerxes]

Does Last.fm let you listen to what you want or just like Pandora, a radio of stuff you might like?

[Siraris]

Does Last.fm let you listen to what you want or just like Pandora, a radio of stuff you might like?

It's like Pandora, but better. You can not select individual songs you want to listen to, no.

[appel]

Any of you guy try out Grooveshark app? I know you have to be a VIP but seems like a awesome deal.

I'm also curious about Grooveshark.

Anyone know if it is as anti-android as the Spotify app? Does not follow guidelines/best practices when it comes to notifications and background services and so on.

[Xerxes]

It's like Pandora, but better. You can not select individual songs you want to listen to, no.

How is is better? Everyone keeps telling me this and I don't see it. :confused:

With Grooveshark it's like being able to customize your own playlist of their million or so songs. For $30 a year it's like having one of those Zune passes, but super cheaper and probably more music. They also have a based off artist radio.

I'm tempted for $3 for one month just to give it a look see.

[Xerxes]

What browser you chaps using? I'm still using the default and sometimes it runs slow even when on wifi and I have to wonder is it the root of my issues.

[Xerxes]

Shit just got real. I'll say my when i login to my computer, but im typing this on phone. The trick is im on a remote desktop connection to my windows 7 PC.

EDIT: Now on my actually computer here's a link.
http://phandroid.com/2010/07/01/wyses-pocketcloud-for-androids-been-released/

My brother was going to get a HD2 just so he could on the rare occasions he needs to reach his computer for school work. Might suggest that Vibrant. Same price and he'd be a android convert.

It's in beta for free until August, at which point I can only assume it'll sell for $15 bucks like the iphone/ipad version.

[Adam Blue]

Dolphin HD is pretty good.


Shit just got real. I'll say my when i login to my computer, but im typing this on phone. The trick is im on a remote desktop connection to my windows 7 PC.

Man, it doesn't work on Home. :(

[Crittias]

I'm on vacation in Breckenridge, CO, and I to use My Tracks for the first time. Very cool app! It tracks your hike/bike/run/whatever route, including speed and altitude, and then gives you the option to upload the route to Google Maps.

Here's our hike of McGullough Gulch:
http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&msa=0&msid=105987515755934156884.00048b33baf9e48caabc8&z=16

[Siraris]

So, Swiftkey released on the market today, and I've been messing around with it for a bit. It's actually quite fast, and over time, it learns your texting habits and suggests your next word. Not only is it more accurate than the stock keyboard (and almost as accurate, if not moreso than Smartkeyboard, which I have been using for a while now) but the predictive text works great. That's with only a couple of texts/postings, so I'm curious to see how it will improve with time.

It's free, and I totally recommend it. Curious what others think.

[MachEnergy]

in the marketplace for the Swiftkey beta, some guy named Dan has posted this a couple times:
BEWARE! this is beta software and sends all information that you enter incl. Credit card info and passwords to the developer. Waste of my time.

Dan could just be a loony, but it definitely stopped me from downloading it...for now.

[CappinCanuck]

in the marketplace for the Swiftkey beta, some guy named Dan has posted this a couple times:


Dan could just be a loony, but it definitely stopped me from downloading it...for now.

Loony. He probably found that the app communicates with homebase, or maybe he just assumes it is, but there's no reason to conclude that it's a big phishing scam. Anyway, hold off for more reviews since it's relatively new but I'm confident the claim is bogus.

[Adam Blue]

I've been using swift today. I don't like it. It's missing arrow keys and doesn't auto show contacts for emails.

[PathMaster]

Risk available for Android?

[civil]

Ugh, I hate to say this, but:

IMO, iPhone > Android.

Why? Fragmentation. Every day I have to update at least a couple of my apps because the developers are going nuts trying to cover their different OS asses. At least with the iPhone, you're in the same general ballpark. I rarely had to update my apps when I was with AT&T. Hell, I still keep my iPhone around because some apps aren't yet on Android, but it's annoying as fuck to see that motherfucking little lock at least once a day.

[crazyD]

Is updating your apps really that big a deal? You can always put it off and do them all in big chunks, too. You don't have to update everything as soon as an update is available.

[civil]

For the stuff I use (and my particular phone - Eris), the updates are generally patches to fix shit that the previous update fixed for another phone but screwed up for mine.

It's a minefield of giant cow patties for devs, I'm sure.

[Xerxes]

Ugh, I hate to say this, but:

IMO, iPhone > Android.

Why? Fragmentation. Every day I have to update at least a couple of my apps because the developers are going nuts trying to cover their different OS asses. At least with the iPhone, you're in the same general ballpark. I rarely had to update my apps when I was with AT&T. Hell, I still keep my iPhone around because some apps aren't yet on Android, but it's annoying as fuck to see that motherfucking little lock at least once a day.

I agree with this. Even when you set them to automatically update, there are some that STILL need a manual update. Then they always notify you so it's always something.

[Mot Wakorb]

While I agree that the fragmentation sucks, as a whole the platform is solid. I find Android vastly more customizable than iPhone, myself. That's why we're given choice, though, and I choose Android! :)

[Xerxes]

I'm really hoping Gingerbread really advances some of these thing.

Pretty decent article (http://www.productiveorganizer.com/iphone-ecosystem/why-the-android-market-is-a-broken-model/)about main gripes with the market.

Like this glance at top app.
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1410/4734926780_f80237c9e5.jpg

[J Arcane]

That article is a bunch of whiny poorly written Apple fanboy shit.

The only substantial complaints there amount to "It's not an iPhone".

Fuck the iPhone. If I wanted to buy an iPhone, I would have. I don't need some cocksucker in a turtleneck telling me what I can do with my phone.

And seriously, Google Checkout is confusing? Fucking how? If you can't figure that shit out, I question whether you'd even get along well with the iPhone. Maybe that Fisher-Price Mickey Mouse bullshit that is WebOS would be more your style.

The only serious problems with the Android store I've had are organizational, namely the gaming category. I find browsing useless in it, because the categories are retarded and make no fucking sense at all, and force games to categorize themselves in areas that are only barely accurate if at all. I can understand why developers don't make more games with it on those grounds alone.

As for updates, WTF? You're crying because a developer actually bothers to support their apps instead of simply dumping it on the market and expecting the cash to rake in? What the hell kind of value system is that? I love that so many of my favorite apps are getting updated all the time with new features and bugfixes. I actually get a little excited whenever I see some apps in the update queue, like Google's or yongzh's or Tapatalk, because I know it means I'm getting new features. For free.

This shit isn't really helping the image of Apple users being a bunch of ignorant infants who can barely operate a toaster.

[civil]

As for updates, WTF? You're crying because a developer actually bothers to support their apps instead of simply dumping it on the market and expecting the cash to rake in? What the hell kind of value system is that? I love that so many of my favorite apps are getting updated all the time with new features and bugfixes. I actually get a little excited whenever I see some apps in the update queue, like Google's or yongzh's or Tapatalk, because I know it means I'm getting new features. For free.
Spoken like an N1 owner. Which, truthfully, I wish I was. But see, I'm a humble Eris owner and my little phone gets caught in the crossfire of all the big boys. Why?

Fragmentation, which was my original point.

This shit isn't really helping the your image of being an ignorant infant who can barely communicate with a toaster.
I love it when the id of a poster speaks to the ego.

[Xerxes]

This fall... the iToaster!

[J Arcane]

This fall... the iToaster!
It only has one button, but you have to buy all your bread special from Apple because unapproved bread won't brown unless you crack the firmware and put Linux on it.

[appel]

Ugh, I hate to say this, but:

IMO, iPhone > Android.

Why? Fragmentation. Every day I have to update at least a couple of my apps because the developers are going nuts trying to cover their different OS asses. At least with the iPhone, you're in the same general ballpark. I rarely had to update my apps when I was with AT&T. Hell, I still keep my iPhone around because some apps aren't yet on Android, but it's annoying as fuck to see that motherfucking little lock at least once a day.

You reap what you sow ;) You voted for Android fragmentation by buying an HTC phone. HTC is one of the worst when it comes to altering Android beyond recognition.

[benson]

J sounded a little angry up there. Personally, I have an N1, and I can see civil's complaint. I actually hate updating apps all the time too. It's a daily occurrence. And sure, you can leave them alone and not update. But you still get nagged when new updates show up again.

On the other hand, I see what J is saying about liking updates. But, for the most part, most of the updates are not adding features. They are fixing broken functionality for phones like civil said. I love new features, especially free ones for an app that I bought or otherwise installed, and I do like to see that developers are keeping their apps updated as well. But really, it does have to suck for developers to have to fix crap all the time for the random guy using an HTC Magic or something stuck on an old version of Android (that one is probably not that random, but civil is using the Eris which was my first choice for random phone).

Really, what's better? Having an OS that updates once a year, and at least two generations of hardware support it, if not three (iPhone 4 and 3Gs both can use iOS 4, the iPhone 3G supports it, but most people say it sucks on there)? Or an OS that updates multiple times a year, but 41% of phones can't get the updates and are stuck on a version that is at least 3 major revisions behind (and of the remaining 59% only 10% of them - actually 3.3% total - are on the latest version 2.2)? This is based on this official breakdown (http://developer.android.com/resources/dashboard/platform-versions.html).

Now, I've obviously made my choice, as have most of you. But I'm just pointing out some facts and kind of playing devil's advocate here.

[Voodoo]

Spoken like an N1 owner. Which, truthfully, I wish I was. But see, I'm a humble Eris owner and my little phone gets caught in the crossfire of all the big boys. Why?

Fragmentation, which was my original point.
Fragmentation in Android is caused by certain device manufacturers. When a new version of the OS is released, Google releases it to the general public free of charge. You purchased a phone from a manufacturer that has a very poor history of OS updates to their phones.

In comparison, Motorola has been doing a remarkable job with keeping the Droid up to date. The only phone I know of that may be getting left behind of theirs is the Cliq, but I may be wrong there. Samsung has updated their line except for the phone that has that silly cube navigation system. HTC, on the other hand, has been doing an extremely poor job with releasing updates and I seriously doubt I'll get another HTC Android phone after my Nexus.

[benson]

Fragmentation in Android is caused by certain device manufacturers. When a new version of the OS is released, Google releases it to the general public free of charge. You purchased a phone from a manufacturer that has a very poor history of OS updates to their phones.

In comparison, Motorola has been doing a remarkable job with keeping the Droid up to date. The only phone I know of that may be getting left behind of theirs is the Cliq, but I may be wrong there. Samsung has updated their line except for the phone that has that silly cube navigation system. HTC, on the other hand, has been doing an extremely poor job with releasing updates and I seriously doubt I'll get another HTC Android phone after my Nexus.

This is true. And continuing the devil's advocate thing, that is a huge upside to going with an iPhone. One hardware manufacturer, and they make sure the phones are updated.

Really, I hate relying on the hardware manufacturer for updates. Once they sell the phone, most hardware manufacturers are going to say see you later, you are the problem of the carrier now. That is how it has worked in the past, and how HTC is going now. Moto is doing better. And I bet Samsung only updates the Galaxy S series going forward, and the updates are going to be slow based on their past support.

[Voodoo]

This is true. And continuing the devil's advocate thing, that is a huge upside to going with an iPhone. One hardware manufacturer, and they make sure the phones are updated.

Really, I hate relying on the hardware manufacturer for updates. Once they sell the phone, most hardware manufacturers are going to say see you later, you are the problem of the carrier now. That is how it has worked in the past, and how HTC is going now. Moto is doing better. And I bet Samsung only updates the Galaxy S series going forward, and the updates are going to be slow based on their past support.
Once a phone manufacturer sells their product, they have no agreement between themselves and the customer that the phone's OS will continue to get updates. It is only done in good faith to win loyalty of the customer.

Regarding Apple and the iPhone, I am an iPhone 2G 16GB owner so please don't come here preaching how they are the perfect company on giving their people OS updates. They turned off plenty of options for the 2G when v3 was released for no good reason and then with v4 came out the 2G was completely shut off from updates even though outside of the radio it is the same hardware as the 3G.

It is clear that no device manufacture has a standing agreement with their customers regarding OS updates and will only do so to gain loyalty. It is also clear that HTC would rather sell new product rather than update deployed product.

In comparison, Apple did very well by their customers regarding iPhone OS updates but they should not be considered the perfect example. They do not release their iPhone OS to the general public for the community to do with it what they will. What I want is to be able to take the OS released by the OS developers and install it onto my smartphone myself.

Right now, only Android gives me that option. I do not have such option with my iPhone 2G 16GB.

[benson]

Once a phone manufacturer sells their product, they have no agreement between themselves and the customer that the phone's OS will continue to get updates. It is only done in good faith to win loyalty of the customer.

Regarding Apple and the iPhone, I am an iPhone 2G 16GB owner so please don't come here preaching how they are the perfect company on giving their people OS updates. They turned off plenty of options for the 2G when v3 was released for no good reason and then with v4 came out the 2G was completely shut off from updates even though outside of the radio it is the same hardware as the 3G.

It is clear that no device manufacture has a standing agreement with their customers regarding OS updates and will only do so to gain loyalty. It is also clear that HTC would rather sell new product rather than update deployed product.

In comparison, Apple did very well by their customers regarding iPhone OS updates but they should not be considered the perfect example. They do not release their iPhone OS to the general public for the community to do with it what they will. What I want is to be able to take the OS released by the OS developers and install it onto my smartphone myself.

Right now, only Android gives me that option. I do not have such option with my iPhone 2G 16GB.

I am not saying Apple is a perfect example, only that they are doing better than most. Like I also said, Moto is doing ok on updates, their portion of the Droid line is getting updated, and I thought that even the Cliq was going to be updated to 2.1, but I could be wrong there.

And as an N1 owner, I absolutely love that Google provides the updates for the phone that they sold and marketed. I really wish that they were going to keep going with that with an N2 or something later. But it looks like that will not be the case.

My personal opinion is that Android gives users the power to do what they want with their device. They can install software from the market, or from elsewhere if they like. You can root the phone and install whatever you like on it. The old Windows Mobile was the closest thing for a "power user", but that's been done away with.

Anyway, I agree with you.

[civil]

What I've learned from this discussion is that I should root my phone and go vanilla.

[Voodoo]

I am not saying Apple is a perfect example, only that they are doing better than most. Like I also said, Moto is doing ok on updates, their portion of the Droid line is getting updated, and I thought that even the Cliq was going to be updated to 2.1, but I could be wrong there.

And as an N1 owner, I absolutely love that Google provides the updates for the phone that they sold and marketed. I really wish that they were going to keep going with that with an N2 or something later. But it looks like that will not be the case.

My personal opinion is that Android gives users the power to do what they want with their device. They can install software from the market, or from elsewhere if they like. You can root the phone and install whatever you like on it. The old Windows Mobile was the closest thing for a "power user", but that's been done away with.

Anyway, I agree with you.
Excellent. :)

My buds at Google have told me that they have no intention of ever entering the hardware market again. Instead they will use phones that are running vanilla Android on them as 'developer' phones. The next version is to be dual core. Whatever happens to updates to the N1 after official updates stop will be up to the development community, not HTC. This is not an option if you have an iPhone.

Regarding the Droid Eris - http://db.androidspin.com/androidspin_release_matrix.asp?android_phone_ID=4&android_build_base_os=&android_developer_id=&go=go
...don't believe that Apple ever gave that option to iPhone 2G owners, Civil.

Regarding app updates in Android - They are manual only when there is a change to their security settings, otherwise they are automatic upgrades (Android v2.2+).

[civil]

Voodoo, that graph makes me faint.

Sadly, I don't know what any of that means. :o

[Voodoo]

Voodoo, that graph makes me faint.

Sadly, I don't know what any of that means. :o
:D

That is a listing of ROMS that are available on the Androidspin library for your Droid Eris. They are by column with features by row.

BTW - What Android version are you running on that Eris? I see that v2.1 was officially released for that phone.

[Xerxes]

Google was never in the hardware business. They should just do the same TMO/G1 deal if they can for the next developer phone.

[benson]

Here's some news - "Jackeey Wallpaper" was sending user info to Chinese website (http://gizmodo.com/5599435/over-1m-android-users-details-were-compromised-thanks-to-a-malicious-app).

the app does collect data from your phone, but only the device's phone number, subscriber identifier, and voicemail number fields are retrieved. SMS and browsing history are not touched by any of the apps they analyzed throughout their Blackhat conference. Your voicemail's password is also not transmitted unless you included the password in your phone's voicemail number field.

[Xerxes]

Here's some news - "Jackeey Wallpaper" was sending user info to Chinese website (http://gizmodo.com/5599435/over-1m-android-users-details-were-compromised-thanks-to-a-malicious-app).

Seriously? What the fuck.:eek:

[DylonCorp]

:D

That is a listing of ROMS that are available on the Androidspin library for your Droid Eris. They are by column with features by row.

BTW - What Android version are you running on that Eris? I see that v2.1 was officially released for that phone.

Voodoo, thanks for that link. I've been looking everywhere for a 2.1 rom for the Cliq I can trust.

That's right. I said Cliq. Some folks screwed up.

edit: hell, that's still the eclair2cliq rom build. They're having the same problems motorola is having.

[civil]

:D

That is a listing of ROMS that are available on the Androidspin library for your Droid Eris. They are by column with features by row.

BTW - What Android version are you running on that Eris? I see that v2.1 was officially released for that phone.
I'll give one of those a whirl. I am running 2.1, but I'm not sure if it's the shitty phone or Sense but for the past few weeks my Eris is a big piece of shit. Long delays in just about anything you do. 20 seconds on average between pressing "Dial" and the phone actually calling someone. It's really a POS, IMO.

[Zagrash]

This looks pretty badass (http://lifehacker.com/5599116/how-to-turn-your-android-phone-into-a-fully+automated-superphone), but $6 is a little steep...I may still jump for all of the stuff it can do though, basically lets you automate almost any aspect of your phone

[Adam Blue]

I'll give one of those a whirl. I am running 2.1, but I'm not sure if it's the shitty phone or Sense but for the past few weeks my Eris is a big piece of shit. Long delays in just about anything you do. 20 seconds on average between pressing "Dial" and the phone actually calling someone. It's really a POS, IMO.

It's similar to the Sprint Hero, which yes, had bad lag issues. I try to warn people about it but others are 'fine' with it.

[civil]

Using the Eris is like getting fucked in slow motion by a donkey while your mother guides the beast in and out of you with her hands and your father rubs rotten tomatoes in your face.

[Xerxes]

This looks pretty badass (http://lifehacker.com/5599116/how-to-turn-your-android-phone-into-a-fully+automated-superphone), but $6 is a little steep...I may still jump for all of the stuff it can do though, basically lets you automate almost any aspect of your phone

That is indeed a badass app.

[Zagrash]

That is indeed a badass app.

Do you have/use it? Or just reading about all of the crazy stuff you can do with it?

[Xerxes]

Do you have/use it? Or just reading about all of the crazy stuff you can do with it?

Reading! I'm considering the purchase though. My phone is an organization mess right now though. I haven't just sat down and made it work yet. Need to delete apps I'm not using, make use of the ones I do, buy the ones that'll remove shitty ads.

[Zagrash]

Reading! I'm considering the purchase though. My phone is an organization mess right now though. I haven't just sat down and made it work yet. Need to delete apps I'm not using, make use of the ones I do, buy the ones that'll remove shitty ads.

i've been doing the same, although I've been annoyed that the last update of Ad-Free seems to have let ads back IN to my apps/browser and whatnot...shoot, I still need to update to magical G1 Froyo

[Serapth]

Using the Eris is like getting fucked in slow motion by a donkey while your mother guides the beast in and out of you with her hands and your father rubs rotten tomatoes in your face.

Coming from you, I am trying to decide if the is condemnation, or praise.

[civil]

Coming from you, I am trying to decide if the is condemnation, or praise.
Would I have said your mother, it would not only have been praise but a recommendation for her other "friends".

[appel]

If anyone is using the official facebook app, the newest update (1.3.0) kills battery life. At least for me. It looks like it holds a partial wake lock indefinitely, so the phone never enters sleep mode. Downgrading solves the problem.

[Adam Blue]

If anyone is using the official facebook app, the newest update (1.3.0) kills battery life. At least for me. It looks like it holds a partial wake lock indefinitely, so the phone never enters sleep mode. Downgrading solves the problem.

Interesting. Haven't seen this on my EVO with 2.2 and I had just fixed a battery issue after upgrading. On 2.1, changing FB for HTC Sense to sync once a day instead of every three hours really helped my battery.

[Xerxes]

Mine is set to update every hour and I haven't notice an issue today. <shrug>

[appel]

This is with the official facebook app, not the facebook client built into HTC Sense. :)

[Xerxes]

This is with the official facebook app, not the facebook client built into HTC Sense. :)

And unlike him I'm talking about FB. I mean it's a good looking app too.

[Adam Blue]

I am talking about the FB app. The syncing is just done through Sense.

Sent from my HTC Evo

[PathMaster]

Anyone recommend a good app to use for looking through my Reader account?

[Crittias]

Anyone recommend a good app to use for looking through my Reader account?I like Newsrob, personally.

http://chart.apis.google.com/chart?cht=qr&chs=100x100&chl=http://cyrket.com/qr/28355

[MachEnergy]

So has anybody been messing around with Tasker? I had already paid $10 for Locale, and recently it's been pissing me off, so I figured $6 for a FAR MORE scriptable app shouldn't be a waste of money. Anyways, this thing is so complicated and hard to learn, but I think I'm slowly getting there. Still, I had setup what I thought would be a "profile" to silence notifications whenever it's on the cradle at night. Apparently that meant it shouldn't sound my alarm this morning. I'm late for work and very confused.

They offer a lot of great help within the app itself. I have to give them credit where credit is due. Still, I have SO much more to learn before I truly feel comfortable with Tasker. Anybody else try a similar profile yet?

[Crittias]

So has anybody been messing around with Tasker?I've been using it for a week or two. Very cool stuff, but I agree, it's got a steep learning curve.

My two major profiles I'm using are 1. auto-GPS for Maps, Tracker, Star Map, and 2. Silent mode when the phone is face down. Both work great. I also played around with a profile that sends a link to your phone's location on Google Maps when you send it a codeword via SMS. Super-cool. I'm trying to get a missed call/SMS email notifier working, but I don't think my school's webspace will let the corresponding php script run.

[MachEnergy]

That sounds like you are getting pretty familiar with it!

I'm reading the tour page (http://tasker.dinglisch.net/tour.html) on their site, just to get more aware of the app's capabilities. It looks like this dev is really trying to help people learn and share information. Perhaps we should start a new thread on CoG to share our Tasker scripts.

[Ghostbear]

Is there an app that will let me disable the notification sounds at certain times of the day ?
When I am sleeping I don't want it to beep every time I get an email. I would still like the phone to ring in case of emergencies though. Google search is failing me.

[Crittias]

Is there an app that will let me disable the notification sounds at certain times of the day ?
When I am sleeping I don't want it to beep every time I get an email. I would still like the phone to ring in case of emergencies though. Google search is failing me.Tasker will do that.

[MachEnergy]

Locale will also do that, though every now and then, it let a notification slip through. I THOUGHT I set up Tasker to do that, but I heard a few ones last night, and like I previously said, my alarm didn't go off..........sooooooo, that profile still needs some tweaking before I will recommend it. Locale is much easier to set up if you don't want to put forth some effort.

[Ghostbear]

Awesome, thanks guys.

[PathMaster]

Any good way to port favorites/bookmarks from a pc to a phone, the back again? I could email myself links I want, but that is a pain and cumbersome.

Anyone recommend a few good games?

[MachEnergy]

Xmarks is currently working on an Android app that will do that for you. Until then, I suppose you could use Chrome To Phone to speed up the process of taking your phone browser to the page you want to bookmark. That's not exactly a good solution for you, but it's all I can think of. :\

[MachEnergy]

I'm happy to report that my Tasker schedule to silence my phone at night seems to be working fine after all. It turns out that I turned off my alarm without remembering it.....so yeah, that was my fault. :D I'm a really deep sleeper, and my wife said she shook me because I wasn't responding to my alarm, I gave her a weird look, and then disabled my alarm and went back to sleep. Yeah. No memory that.

[Zagrash]

I'm happy to report that my Tasker schedule to silence my phone at night seems to be working fine after all. It turns out that I turned off my alarm without remembering it.....so yeah, that was my fault. :D I'm a really deep sleeper, and my wife said she shook me because I wasn't responding to my alarm, I gave her a weird look, and then disabled my alarm and went back to sleep. Yeah. No memory that.

awesome, glad to hear Tasker is working for you. I'm still definitely tempted to buy that, but I'm almost thinking about waiting until I'm not using my G1 (maybe with the rumored project emerald in September?). Everything I've seen about that app is pretty awesome, and i'm anxious to mess with it.

[Mot Wakorb]

How about an app to make sounds for notifications different - IE: E-mail is different than text?

[Serapth]

How about an app to make sounds for notifications different - IE: E-mail is different than text?

That you can't out of the box is 3 kinds of glaring stupid.

[J Arcane]

Umm, actually, you can do it out of the box.

The notification sound option in Sound in main system settings only sets a default. The individual apps for Email, Messaging, and so forth also have their own Settings however, and you can just change the notification to something other than default.

You can do this for Email, Messaging, Calendar, Voice, Talk, Clock, Twitter, basically anything with a notification will let you manually change the sound per application.

[Crittias]

Used GroceryIQ today at the store, and found it very useful. Last night I wandered through our pantry and into our fridge, scanning barcodes of the most common items we buy at the grocery store. This morning I had my wife check boxes for things we needed, and then used the generated list to wander from aisle to aisle (mapped to our local store), picking up everything she'd indicated. Supercool.

I also added a Tasker event so that while I was using GroceryIQ my screen timeout was turned off.

GroceryIQ: http://chart.apis.google.com/chart?cht=qr&chs=100x100&chl=http://cyrket.com/qr/76257

[civil]

The missus and I use OurGroceries and love it:

http://chart.apis.google.com/chart?cht=qr&chs=135x135&chl=market://details?id=com.headcode.ourgroceries

Link (http://www.ourgroceries.com/overview) to developer.

[Crittias]

The missus and I use OurGroceries and love it.Looks like it has some similar features, like syncing across multiple accounts. Grocery IQ allows you to scan (or type in) barcodes, and allows you to assign items to specific aisles in your store. That last feature is huge for me, as it allows me to follow a set route through the store, and not do any backtracking for something I might've ordinarily missed.

[civil]

I can see how that would be very useful. But we're about as random as you can get when it comes to shopping - hitting three or four different stores, meandering about, sneaking in a grape or two or ten, smoking dope in the parking lot.

Okay that last part was made up, but we are vagabonds in our shopping methods.


EDIT: Whoa, you set a route through the grocery store? Where's the fun in exploration?

[Xerxes]

I was looking for a task list app, but these grocery apps seemed good enough to be separate.

[Crittias]

I was looking for a task list app, but these grocery apps seemed good enough to be separate.I think Astrid is still the go-to app for task lists.

[Xerxes]

I think Astrid is still the go-to app for task lists.

Can it sink with computers?

[Crittias]

Can it sink with computers?Yes, via Remember the Milk, which is apparently a task list manager in its own right. I don't really use either one, so I don't know much about them.

[Serapth]

Rtm is fucking slow.

[Adam Blue]

At Quakecon, Carmack asked the audience to raise their hands if they have an iOS device. A lot of people raised their hands. Then he asked who has an Android device. Much less raised their hands, but everyone started screaming and cheering. It was powerful.

[PathMaster]

Voice Commands for Android and "Chrome to Phone" announced (http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2367726,00.asp).

Voice actions can be triggered by clicking the "microphone" icon on the screen. Saying "call John Smith at home" will trigger the contacts list and voice dialer, "find art museums in Amsterdam" would launch a Google Maps application, and "listen to Ace of Base" will search for music from the artist on Pandora, Last.fm, or another music application. A "note to self" command, meanwhile, will send an automated e-mail to a default e-mail address. If Android is confused about which application to use, or a location, it will present a list of choices.

A second improvement, dubbed "Chrome to Phone," allows users to click on a new "mobile phone" icon to send links, YouTube videos, even directions, to the phone.

Now to just wait for my phone to upgrade.

[Xerxes]

At Quakecon, Carmack asked the audience to raise their hands if they have an iOS device. A lot of people raised their hands. Then he asked who has an Android device. Much less raised their hands, but everyone started screaming and cheering. It was powerful.

Someone should have metioned he could of juiced the Rage engine even more on a Galaxy S. Sure that phone is ahead of the curve graphically, but if Iphone can pull off that, smartphones overall are going to be crazy.

[Shadowstorm]

I now own a Droid 2. Is there some way to uninstall some of these bullshit programs that were reloaded a la the Blockbuster app etc?

Also, what is the general consensus as far as recommended third party tethering applications? I'd like to start doing that.

Additionally, what is the status on the progress of obtaining root for Droid devices?

[bstiff]

I now own a Droid 2. Is there some way to uninstall some of these bullshit programs that were reloaded a la the Blockbuster app etc?

Also, what is the general consensus as far as recommended third party tethering applications? I'd like to start doing that.

Additionally, what is the status on the progress of obtaining root for Droid devices?

Only way to remove some of them like blockbuster and city ID is to root and then uninstall.

I think the droid x was rooted in about a week or so of release. I don't know how different the d2 is compared to the original droid as far as if the same rooting methods would work. I wouldn't ask on the verizon boards though the word root is verboten there.' I got a warning for telling someone they would need to root to remove blockbuster and got a warning and the post deleted. It wasn't like I gave him instructions or posted links on how to do it.

[bstiff]

Is anyone using adw launcher? I had used launcherpro it just seemed a little large for what it does. I was wondering if there was a way to keep the wallpaper from scrolling when you change homescreens like there is in launcherpro.

[Shadowstorm]

Only way to remove some of them like blockbuster and city ID is to root and then uninstall.

I think the droid x was rooted in about a week or so of release. I don't know how different the d2 is compared to the original droid as far as if the same rooting methods would work. I wouldn't ask on the verizon boards though the word root is verboten there.' I got a warning for telling someone they would need to root to remove blockbuster and got a warning and the post deleted. It wasn't like I gave him instructions or posted links on how to do it.

Feel free to post instructions here then :).

I have a strong disdain for Verizon for preloading unwanted, annoying, and irremovable programs (at least by conventional methods). Quite a lovely looking device though (speaking as someone brand new to this whole smartphone thing).

[bstiff]

Feel free to post instructions here then :).

I have a strong disdain for Verizon for preloading unwanted, annoying, and irremovable programs (at least by conventional methods). Quite a lovely looking device though (speaking as someone brand new to this whole smartphone thing).

Id keep an eye on the droid 2 forums here: http://androidforums.com/ if you check the droid x root forum it gives you a general idea of what's involved. I saw rumors that someone has the system image circulating already which comes in handy when you screw something up and need to flash back to the factory defaults. I think the droid 2 has only been out a couple days so it will take a little while for the hackers to work on it. I would not try to use the droid x root instructions best case they won't work and worst case you end up with a $200 paperweight.

[Grifter]

This may be more a Samsung thing and less an Android thing but a friend of mine just picked up a new 55inch Samsung LCD and as I was setting it up for him a little box pops up on screen saying that it recognized my phone (AT&T Captivate/Galaxy S). WTF? I then vaguely remember reading something about streaming video from my phone so I started messing around with the video options and found allshare. Holy shit is this cool, I proceeded to stream in real time a 720p rip of Tosh.0 from my phone to his new TV at full quality without any hiccups.

I know it's a off topic but that TV will playback almost anything from a USB HDD or flash drive including 1920x1080 MKV files.

[PathMaster]

This may be more a Samsung thing and less an Android thing but a friend of mine just picked up a new 55inch Samsung LCD and as I was setting it up for him a little box pops up on screen saying that it recognized my phone (AT&T Captivate/Galaxy S). WTF? I then vaguely remember reading something about streaming video from my phone so I started messing around with the video options and found allshare. Holy shit is this cool, I proceeded to stream in real time a 720p rip of Tosh.0 from my phone to his new TV at full quality without any hiccups.

I know it's a off topic but that TV will playback almost anything from a USB HDD or flash drive including 1920x1080 MKV files.

DLNA.

I do see the value now of that tasker app. Several times over the weekend, I went back to my phone only to realize that GPS was on. My poor battery.

I wonder if those grocery apps will work for general merchandise in any store? I almost want to reverse their use and create a list of items while in a store to use for something at home. Like a list of DVDs to add to my Netflix que.

[axion]

Hey guys, my fiancee is looking for a good password keeping app, any suggestions? She said she was going to download one but it gave the "network access needed" warning thing. Why would it need to connect to the net?

[appel]

Hey guys, my fiancee is looking for a good password keeping app, any suggestions? She said she was going to download one but it gave the "network access needed" warning thing. Why would it need to connect to the net?

The app she attempted to install probably includes some kind of sync feature.

Don't know if it fits her needs. But I use keepassdroid, mostly because I also use KeePass on my windows machines. I keep it all in sync using dropbox. Enables me to have my passwords securely available everywhere.

On Windows Keepass can automatically fill in usernames and passwords on web sites when I press Ctrl+Alt+A (or whatever you set the shortcut to) and on android it places temporary notifications that can be used to place the username and password for an entry on the clipboard for easy pasting into text fields.

:)

[MachEnergy]

I've been using SecretBox and it's decent for keeping private information. It's nothing fancy though.

[Crittias]

Hey guys, my fiancee is looking for a good password keeping app, any suggestions? She said she was going to download one but it gave the "network access needed" warning thing. Why would it need to connect to the net?I use Lastpass on my computer, and it works great in Explorer, Firefox, and Chrome. It also has an Android app, but it looks like it is free for only 14 days, and then it's a yearly subscription.

[civil]

Lastpass user as well, and I love it, though like the professor I haven't tried it on my phone (but may).

[PathMaster]

Lifehacker (http://lifehacker.com/5483119/the-easy-any+browser-any+os-password-solution)had a good article very recently on Lastpass. Sounds great, but paying for the android version does not.

[Shadowstorm]

Besides Meridian, what are some other good media (for music in particular) player applications that you guys would recommend? Ideally, I would like to have a player that recognizes folders in its file browser as a sort of a method to bypass making playlists on the phone itself. It's just easier to load up all my music and to categorize them into various folders on my computer and copy those folders to Computer\Shadowstorm\Removable Storage\Albums.

I'm not sure if that's going to make sense to anyone. Think of how the Xbox 360 manages media when you connect a device (say, a Zune HD) to it via USB.

[GigaFuzz]

I've not done too much listening to music on my phone, but MixZing (http://www.mixzing.com/android.html) seems to be okay.

[Xerxes]

MixZing is pretty much the best. I ever used. Play music on it everyday.

[CptTripps]

Guns n glory. Nice spin on tower defense. polished and good controls. No restrictions on free version so far.

[MachEnergy]

For music, I really like TuneWiki. It scrolls lyrics and plays Last.fm stations and lots of other great things. For videos, I always use Meridian, myself. I've tried yxPlayer, and it has amazing codec support, but overall nowhere near as nice to use as Meridian. I'll have to give MixZing a shot, now that you guys recommend it.

[Adam Blue]

Yeah, so far Mixzing seems to be the best. Though, I think every music player is pretty crappy compared to Zune/iPod. I want to be listening to a song and be able to quickly go to that artist without having to go back to library and scrolling for artist.

[Xerxes]

Yeah, so far Mixzing seems to be the best. Though, I think every music player is pretty crappy compared to Zune/iPod. I want to be listening to a song and be able to quickly go to that artist without having to go back to library and scrolling for artist.

Yeah... All the players are a step above the extremely basic google player. You'd think Google or someone can really step the game up.

[Adam Blue]

Using Mixing more, it is completely badass. Only thing I have trouble with is quickly getting back to the artist specific to the current track that's playing. Google's player allowed it but the bluetooth conflicted with the HTC player.

[Adam Blue]

I just started using AudioGalaxy...streaming my entire music collection from my PC to my phone. It's fast and has great quality. It's in beta, but if you sign up you should get in fast. It needs a widget though.

[DiBiddilyBop]

I just started using AudioGalaxy...streaming my entire music collection from my PC to my phone. It's fast and has great quality. It's in beta, but if you sign up you should get in fast. It needs a widget though.

Thanks for pointing this one out. I'm really enjoying it.

[Voodoo]

Angry Birds Lite Beta is now available for testing on the Android Market. :)

[Siraris]

Nice Voodoo! Thanks! I've been looking for a new game

[inmostlight]

So I recently got an Evo....is there any way to get Swype for it now? It looks like the beta period closed a few months back and it's no longer available. :(

[Mot Wakorb]

So I recently got an Evo....is there any way to get Swype for it now? It looks like the beta period closed a few months back and it's no longer available. :(

Here you are.

http://pocketnow.com/tweaks-hacks/get-swype-on-your-htc-evo-4g

[BabyJesus]

Angry Birds Lite Beta is now available for testing on the Android Market. :)

Heard good thing about this one, got the beta and it kicks ass. Wish there were more levels though.... Blew through the 15 available real fast...

[Ghostbear]

I couldn't get Angry Birds to work, it starts to load and then drops to my main screen.

[PathMaster]

Requires 2.2 if I read correctly, for those of you having issues running the game and running 2.1 or older.

[Ghostbear]

I am using 2.2

[johnperkins21]

I couldn't get Angry Birds to work, it starts to load and then drops to my main screen.

Power off the phone. Then power it back on. That's what I had to do on my Incredible to get it to work.

[Rune_74]

Hmmm only one se of levels....is the full version out for the iphone...very fun game that angry birds:P

[Voodoo]

Requires 2.2 if I read correctly, for those of you having issues running the game and running 2.1 or older.
It requires 1.6+.

[Abyssion]

So, it seems now Android supports flash. I got an update last night for my Droid letting me know to get the Adobe Flash App since it's in the store.

(Unless this has been known for a while, in that case, sorry <_< )

[Serapth]

It requires 1.6+.

Not showing in the store for my phone ( 1.6 ).

Got good news.... getting the update this month!
The bad news... to 2.1

Sony, seriously, wtf?

[Voodoo]

Not showing in the store for my phone ( 1.6 ).

Got good news.... getting the update this month!
The bad news... to 2.1

Sony, seriously, wtf?
http://www.mediafire.com/?j797r19xtm78g1z

[Inspector Fowler]

I so desperately want to root my Incredible. The 2.2 OTA update made it worse, IMO. I have so many apps now that just automatically start on their own schedule, and I can't uninstall anything that Verizon sold me with the phone.

But unrevoked says it doesn't work with the 2.2 OTA update. I am hoping they get it working pretty soon because I'm getting really sick of Skype, City ID and the lot just popping up whenever the fuck they feel like it.

[Serapth]

Not showing in the store for my phone ( 1.6 ).

Got good news.... getting the update this month!
The bad news... to 2.1

Sony, seriously, wtf?
http://www.mediafire.com/?j797r19xtm78g1z

Ah, just wasn't in the market.

[PathMaster]

It requires 1.6+.

Huh, at first it looked like only 2.2 users could get it to work, or at least that is how it seemed. But it looked like that was wrong. It does however appear that many are having issues getting to work on a wide range of devices. It is a beta though, may try to grab this tomorrow.

[axion]

Tried it on my stock Desire and ran flawlessly, lovely little game.