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Posts tagged tricks
Rooting Party in Android’s House - Aria, X10 Rooted, Nexus One Re-Rooted
Jun 23rd
It’s the ultimate #win for Android users when their beloved device finally gains root access. Some are easy (Nexus One), others not so much (EVO 4G). But, eventually, they all fall.
Since the EVO and Incredible were rooted, there has been a flurry of activity on XDA-Developers, and the above phones have been added to the list. Most notably is the Sony Ericsson Xperia X10, which has a buggy, finicky and slow build of Android 1.6 inside a piece of beautiful hardware. Seriously, the hardware of the X10 is my favourite phone design outside the new iPhone 4, and that’s saying a lot (sorry Legend, you’re just too puny to make the cut).
No details have been released yet regarding the X10, but there is a picture which proves the hack exists (see above).
The other nice piece of news is that the diminutive AT&T device, the HTC Aria, has also been rooted, giving users clamoring for outside app installation access the ability to do so, among other nefarious things. Check it out at XDA-Developers.
The Nexus One has had root access since before it was on the market. That is because the bootloader can be unlocked via a mere one-line code. However, unlocking the bootloader also locks your warranty (see what I did there?). But the same ingenious method used to root the EVO 4G has now been employed for the Nexus One, and though it takes a bit of practice and patience, it should work just fine eventually. Keep your eyes glued to this thread for more information.
What’s Your Favorite BlackBerry Alert?
May 12th
Out to dinner, in line at the supermarket, walking through an office building, or out at a bar, it almost never fails. I hear an ever so familiar BlackBerry alert. I can honestly say I hear Notifier_BBPro_6, Notifier_LightSpeed, Notifier_Cricket, BBPro_Sanguine, BBPro_GungHo, Notifier_Eager, Notifier_Dimples, Notifier_Greeter, Notifier_Sonar, and Notifier_EtVoila on a weekly basis. Some I love and some I hate… Cricket, but there’s no mistaking them.
I was surfing the web today for some BBPro-like alerts, but unfortunately came up short. The weird thing I found was people with other branded phones looking for BlackBerry alerts. Maybe not so weird. Some of the BlackBerry alerts are truly captivating.
With that said, I’m going on 3 years now with the same selection of alerts. Some of them I’ll never change, but it would be nice to see some new BlackBerry alerts thrown into the mix. It can be somewhat of a nuisance at times when you’re around a gang of BlackBerry people. You know the drill… One alert sounds and everyone looks at their phone. Hopefully we’ll see some new alerts come with BlackBerry 6 or some newer OS builds.
Now if you’re thinking, “This guy is an idiot! Why doesn’t he shut up and just download some other alerts!” Then you simply don’t understand. Other alerts just don’t have that BlackBerry feel. How do you feel about BlackBerry alerts? If there’s any particular ones you love or hate, post them in the comments below. Also comment if you happen to know of any BlackBerryesque alerts.
iPhone Tips: Time Savers and Mind Blowers 2
Apr 30th
Hot off the heels of the first iPhone Tips: Time Savers and Mind Blowers post, I’ve come up with a few more tricks that everyone should be aware of. Hit the jump to see these undisclosed shortcuts and tips.
When editing text, double tapping a word will select just a single word. Some people are aware of this. Few people are aware of quadruple tapping, which selects an entire paragraph. It takes a bit of practice to stop. One more tap and you’ll gain nothing. Pressing and holding on a link in Safari will bring up options to Open, Open in New Page and Copy (the link URL not the text). Press and hold on keyboard characters (letters and symbols) to bring up alternates. So for the correct spelling of latte, type l-a-t-t then press and hold the e, drag your finger over to the é key and release. Presto! Just be aware that these symbols will not show up in SMS messages to other people unless they also have iPhones. This tip also works with symbols, like the question mark to make an upside down question mark (¿) and when typing a web address, holding the period will bring up a “.com .net. .org” menu. To save images from Mail or Safari, press and hold the image, a box will slide up with the option to save the image to the camera roll. Again, I’m always looking for more tricks and tips to recommend to folks. So if there are some tasty ones I’ve missed, please drop me a line in the comments.
Quadruple tap for paragraph selection
Copy a link or open in a new window
Add accents to letters and get extra symbols
Save images from Safari or Mail
