Android L and Xposed: Keep Calm and Wait for It

After CyanogenMod published its blog post about its plans for Android L support, Xposed Framework creator rovo89 is making a similar appeal to the Android community for a bit of objective analysis and a lot of patience. The summary of the situation is that Android L is still a fast-moving target that it isn't practical to work on polishing Xposed for it. The developer would rather release a version that works well a bit later, rather than one that is too early but barely functions.

The biggest factor in this uncertainty of Xposed's immediate release on Android L, even in a preview form, is ART, the new Android Runtime. While Google advertises ART to bring only goodness to end users, for developers, especially those like Chainfire and rovo that tinker with Android's underlying subsystems, it is the proverbial pain in one's extremities. Add to that "enhanced" security features and dual architecture (32 and 64-bit) support, and you have the recipe for a system developer's nightmare.

ART in particular is also still changing a lot everyday. Ever since ART was introduced and even now with Android L already announced, the runtime is still seeing massive code changes and substantial modifications. If it isn't hard enough to hit a moving target when you're making a high-level Android app, it is even moreso when you're developing one that modifies system features from under Android's nose. Like Chainfire and CyanogenMod, rovo wants to focus his efforts only when ART has reached a more or less unmoving state. That's not to say that he isn't doing anything, of course. He does have some prototypes working, depending on how you define "working", but nothing that is fit for any public release. Given the nature of Xposed, users will certainly appreciate a release that won't brick their device instead of one that is hot off the Android L press.

rovo makes another note about the state of Xposed for Android 4.4 KitKat users who have switched to ART instead of Dalvik. Unfortunately for them, they will have to wait even longer. Apparently, ART in KitKat and ART in Android L are quite different beasts, so even if Xposed started working on the latter, it wouldn't necessarily work on the former. For rovo, it makes more sense to work first on getting Xposed to work well on an Android release that only has ART before trying to work on one that can still switch to Dalvik as a fallback.

VIA: XDA

Qualcomm takes back DMCA threat on Github projects

The DMCA (Digital Millennium Copyright Act) is, more often than not, brandished too zealously and sometimes with little prior investigation in a "shoot first, ask questions later" style of legal (mis)management. That might just be the case here when Qualcomm issued takedown notices on some Github repositories, including one of CyanogenMod's, but then retracting it later.

The DMCA notice was filed on behalf of Qualcomm by a cyber security company named Cyveillance. According to the letter, several Github projects were found to be carrying files that contained highly confidential Qualcomm information without authorization from Qualcomm. Several files were listed, spanning from different projects hosted on Github. Interestingly, one of those hit by the DMCA is CyanogenMod, whose repository for the Sony Xperia SP, model name "huashan", contained one of the offending files.

However, on Saturday, Qualcomm issued a public statement retracting the takedown requests. Apparently, they have been informed after the fact that at least one those files aren't actually part of the company's secret files, making the notices either flawed or unnecessary. Unfortunately, through a combination of circumstances (July 4 plus weekened), some of those Github pages are still unavailable and still reflect the takedown notice.

To its credit. Qualcomm did apologize to project maintainers for how the situation was handled in the first place, promising to look into the matter or reach out to maintainers. However, it does betray the rather trigger-happy way the DMCA has been used, especially by outsourced companies who are more than happy too jump at each and every seemingly offending file or content. Perhaps for them it is easier to click that button and apologize later than it is to go through the painstaking process of making sure everything is in order in the first place. After all, it's Qualcomm that will be paying the PR price for it.

VIA: Ausdroid (1), (2)

Content is king: social media apps update picture and video features

Social media is an ever-changing animal that brings about new trends, wants and needs everyday. Trends are not dictated by brands or social media entities, but by the users themselves. And while the adage that “content is king” still holds true for the most part, it is not content that can just be read: it lives, moves and breathes. In other words, pictures and videos are the content that rule the social media stratosphere as of this moment. The new updates on social media apps testify to this as well.

Facebook has been at the forefront of the social media revolution for the past years, but sometimes, when it comes to updating its features, it takes them a while to get what the public wants. Just two weeks ago, they finally allowed the embedding of videos into the chat threads in their Messenger app. This has been a great feature that other messenger apps like Viber, Line and WeChat have been doing for some time now, and finally, Facebook has joined the party. Users can even access their phone's camera feature from inside the Messenger app, so they can record their reactions to their friends’ messages by using the front-facing camera. Of course, given the ephemeral nature of pictures and videos nowadays, the embedded video can only be 15 seconds long.

Speaking of videos that only last for a few seconds, the pioneering video sharing app Vine has also revamped the look and features of its app, giving the users even more information about the videos on their feed as well as their uploaded videos. It now shows the loop counts for each video, which means it tells you how many times it has been viewed in real time. The new look also gives a simpler look for the likes and comments on the users’ videos, to let them know how much influence they have had in the Vine world.

YouTube has also realised that content creators and managers need an even more convenient way of navigating through their channels in a mobile setting. Just last week, they launched a YouTube Creator Studio specifically for channel managers and creators. It lets them view stats, view and respond to comments easier (a challenge that social media managers trudge through daily), edit the videos’ details and settings on the go, and manages push notifications as well. Giving this much control over to content creators is one of the best ways to keep them loyal to your social media brand.

When it comes to picture sharing, Facebook has to keep updated with the latest trends if it still wants to remain relevant. Two weeks ago, they launched a new photo-sharing app called Slingshot, which is probably their answer to Snapchat (more on them later). But the twist that they put to the “disappearing photo” trend is that after you “sling a shot” or in layman’s term, send a picture to your chosen friend or group of friends, they have to send you back a picture before they can view your sling. It gives a whole new twist to this photo-sharing phenomenon, but only time will tell if this will even catch on.

But Snapchat also wants to be known not just as the pioneer in sharing racy photos that disappear from your phone in a snap (unless someone screencapped it of course) but as a photo collaborating network as well. Last month, they introduced the Our Story feature where people who are at a single event can share their pictures to build a whole narrative. If their My Story feature was all about shared personal narratives, then Our Story is about a larger community of people who want to share their memories of an event where they were present.

Now all of these cool, new features from these social media entities are supposedly based on extensive research on what the consumers really want when it comes to creating and sharing content. Gone are the days when brands are the ones pushing their messages on us, and we just received them passively. Thanks to these apps and content platforms, consumers have the power to make brands listen. Now let’s see if they really were paying attention.

Unlock File Type Restrictions for Bluetooth Transfers with Xposed

Bluetooth is one of the most conventional ways we transfer files from one device to another, and this is even more so with the integration of NFC technology in almost every device that’s been released in the past couple of years. And there are good reasons for this too–Bluetooth is convenient, relatively fast, energy efficient, and most important of all, can be found within any tech device of the past 10 years. With all its upsides however, it’s unfortunate that the one thing holding Bluetooth back is the restrictions on the file types that can be received, at least on the Android OS–a gripe which can be easily solved now with an Xposed module.

Developed by XDA Forum Member Massi-X, Bluetooth Unlock gets rid of this restriction on file types and allows you to receive any file type that you wish from your device to another. Okay, so possibly not every file type there may be in existence, but definitely a good proportion of what’s out there. This is so as the module enables you to select the types of files you want to receive or block from an extensive selection of file types sorted into neat categories such as Application, Audio, and Message to name a few.

Bluetooth Unlock is available in English, Italian, and Slovak, and Massi-X is welcoming any other translations if you would like to help out. So if you would like to check this module out, visit the original thread for more information and download.

The post Unlock File Type Restrictions for Bluetooth Transfers with Xposed appeared first on xda-developers.

How To Install Android L Preview Right Now

The next version of Android isn't ready or even properly named yet, but Google has kindly released a Developer Preview of the software so anyone bold enough can take a look at what it offers. All you need is a spare Nexus 5 or 2013 Wi-Fi Nexus 7 that you don't rely on, and the instructions we've laid out below.

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Our Favorite Android, iOS, and Windows Phone Apps of the Week

It's not just another Friday here in America—it's the Fourth of July, where we celebrate our independence by blowing up small bits of the land we threw tea in an ocean for. And what better way to let freedom ring than by downloading Gizmodo's favorite apps of the week?

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Galaxy Gear with null_ ROM Hands-on: a second chance at life

So Android Wear is out, and the first wave of smartwatches is already on its way. But what if you were an early adopter and purchased the first Samsung Galaxy Gear with your hard earned money? No need to turn green- or teary-eyed just yet as you can still put some pizzazz into your smartwatch, all thanks to a custom ROM simply called null_.

Before we embark on a semi-perilous journey, one needs to ask the important questions first: Why? The rather arrogant answer would be "because you can". As it turns out, the Galaxy Gear is actually a competent beast. It may not have the exact same components as either the Gear 2 or the Gear Live, but it does come close. The CPU is actually a dual-core one capable of running at 1.6 GHz max, but Samsung has it throttled to one core at 800 MHz. There is also 512 MB of RAM sharing space with 4 GB of ROM. It may not have a heart rate sensor, but it does have a camera. Bottom line: it can do more than what Samsung has limited it to.

The other and probably more important reason is that flashing this particular custom ROM opens up your device to a new world of possibilities. You'll practically be running a regular, full Android installation (the default smartwatch interface is actually just TouchWiz anyway) and even connect to the Internet on the device, via Bluetooth tethering. Of course, you'll be doing things within reason and within the hardware's limits. And finally, it can be fun!

But what exactly do you get when you install null_ ROM on your Galaxy Gear? There are a few benefits, but one that really opens up the floodgates is the ability to connect to the Internet on the smartwatch itself. This uses Bluetooth tethering, so do note that the usual network/carrier restrictions and data and battery usage do apply. Of course, you might not want to browse the web on such a small screen even if you can, but there are other uses that connection. You can download and update apps from Google Play Store directly (yes, Gapps can also be installed) instead of sideloading them. You can fire off an e-mail if you really need to, hopefully with a better suited keyboard. And perhaps more interestingly, you can now use Google's Voice Search, opening up the possibilities of an S-Voice replacement on the device. You can even get Maps working directly to some extent. Do note that some apps, especially Google ones, won't install or work because null_ ROM is glued to an older version of Google Play Services.

For the more daring users, you can optimize the hardware the Galaxy Gear. You can overclock the CPU to up to 1.6 GHz or down to 200 MHz, of course with performance and battery consequences. Setting it between 800 MHz and 1.2 GHz might be safest bet. null_ ROM also installs a few Xposed modules so that you can tweak the experience even further. For customizers, you can use any launcher of your choice. Of course, that has also been possible before through sideloading, but now it is easier to switch, install, and remove them as wanted. You can keep on using TouchWiz, which is really better optimized for a smartwatch, but note that sometimes your installed apps seemingly disappear. (PROTIP: When that does happen, you can use S Voice to open up any other launcher, go to the App Manager in Settings, Force Stop TouchWiz and then launch it again). During the flashing process, null_ ROM lets you choose whether you want a Full UI, with the notification panel, or the regular smartwatch UI. Both work, but they don't really mesh well. If you do choose to have a notification panel around, best to use a different launcher. And no matter your choice, you won't be seeing a regular navigation panel. (There is one actually, but it appears as an invisible bar and takes up too much space). You can still use the regular TouchWiz gestures of swipes, double taps, etc.

Of course, there will be some drawbacks to this kind of new life. Your data consumption is definitely aversely affected, since you'll be channeling data to the smartwatch in addition to your smartphone or tablet. But the biggest hit of all will be the battery. Overclocking the CPU, which naturally has its own risks, and keeping the Internet connection open will drain your battery in no time flat. And it's not just the smartwatch's battery. Even your smartphone will be drained faster because of Bluetooth tethering. It could be worth the price. Best to keep this in mind and only enable Internet tethering when you need to or when you're sure to have an emergency charger at hand.

null_ ROM might be fun and, to some, potentially useful but its definitely no Android Wear, which is optimized and streamlined for smartwatches. At least based on Google's vision. There is still an active community around the Galaxy Gear at XDA, so there is a slim chance that someone could port it over to this older, but very much capable, hardware (though the Exynos chip instead of a Snapdragon might be a stumbling block). But even if Android Wear never comes for the Galaxy Gear, null_ ROM makes the system open enough for possible mods and tricks that could turn the semi-vanilla Android on the Galaxy Gear into something equally, or maybe even more, interesting.