Article
by Jerry Hildenbrand
Jun 15, 2012
If you've read about hacking or rooting your Android phone (or tablet, or media player) you've seen the word Nandroid used. When tinkering with your device, there's always a very good ch...
Article
by Jerry Hildenbrand
Jun 12, 2012
Multitasking is a word you'll hear a lot around here and at other places on the Internet that talk about smartphones or other tech. It doesn't mean what it used to, back when dinosaurs with ...
Article
by Jerry Hildenbrand
Jun 11, 2012
This time on Android A to Z we're going to be talking about LG's L-series phones. They made a big splash earlier this year at Mobile World Congress, and a few carriers in Canada jumped at th...
Article
by Jerry Hildenbrand
Jun 08, 2012
Jellybean is the name of a delicious hard-shelled confectionery with a soft, even more delicious inside. Made mostly of sugar and Unicorn sweat, they are a favorite of Android bloggers and ex-presid...
Article
by Jerry Hildenbrand
Jun 07, 2012
The IMEI (International Mobile Equipment Identity) number is a unique set of 15 digits used on GSM phones to identify them. Because the SIM card is associated with the user and can be swa...
Article
by Jerry Hildenbrand
Jun 05, 2012
We're back with another installment of Android A to Z, and this time we're looking at haptic feedback. It's one of those little things that can make a big difference, and something we ne...
Article
by Jerry Hildenbrand
May 30, 2012
Today on Android A to Z we're going to talk about Google Play. If you're new to Android, you see us throw it around a lot when talking about downloading apps, but there's a good bit more...
Article
by Jerry Hildenbrand
May 29, 2012
A factory reset is the ultimate cleansing of your Android device. It's usually either a last resort to fix a problem, done before you sell it, or because you like to flash ROMs. When you perform...
Article
by Jerry Hildenbrand
May 25, 2012
End of life is a term none of us ever want to hear. We envision it means the death of our phone, and we should just throw it away and get a newer model. After all, it's at the end of its life, r...
Article
by Jerry Hildenbrand
May 24, 2012
DLNA, or the Digital Living Network Alliance is an organization set up by Sony in 2003 that determines a universal set of rules and guidelines so devices can share digital media. The devices co...
Article
by Jerry Hildenbrand
May 23, 2012
We're getting a little hacky in this round of Android A to Z, and we're going to have a look at ClockworkMod recovery -- the de facto standard of custom recoveries for Android. It's...
Article
by Jerry Hildenbrand
May 22, 2012
When you think of Android phones, you think of bloatware. We wish it weren't so, and not every phone comes with, but the majority of Android phones out there come from carriers and are chock ful...
Article
by Jerry Hildenbrand
May 21, 2012
AOSP is a term you'll see used a lot -- here, as well as at other Android-centric sites on the Internet. I'll admit I'm guilty of using it and just expecting everyone to know what I'...
Article
by Jerry Hildenbrand
Feb 07, 2012
What is a widget? In Android, the word widget is a generic term for a bit of self-contained code that displays a program, or a piece of a program, that is also (usually) a shortcut to a larger...
Article
by Jerry Hildenbrand
Feb 03, 2012
What is tethering? Besides the grounds for a giant debate about ethics (the kind that you can only find on the Internet) tethering, in this case, means to share the Internet connection from yo...
Article
by Jerry Hildenbrand
Feb 02, 2012
What is sideloading? It's a term you see a lot thrown around while talking about Android applications, and it's simple to explain. It means installing applications without using ...
Article
by Jerry Hildenbrand
Feb 01, 2012
What is recovery? In Android, recovery refers to the dedicated, bootable partition that has the recovery console installed. A combination of key presses (or instructions from a command l...
Article
by Phil Nickinson
Jan 31, 2012
What is a QR code? These things are everywhere nowadays. Little square barcode-looking things. They're on website, they're on pictures, they're on advertisements -- they're everywher...
Article
by Jerry Hildenbrand
Jan 30, 2012
What is a PRL? PRL stands for Preferred Roaming List and is a database used in CDMA (think Sprint and Verizon here) phones. It's built and provided by your carrier, and used when you...
Article
by Jerry Hildenbrand
Jan 27, 2012
What is open source? Open-source software is software that makes the source code freely available, for anyone to see and use. There are different open-source licenses that have different use conditi...
Article
by Jerry Hildenbrand
Jan 26, 2012
What is NFC? NFC stands for Near-Field Communication and is a set of standards (established in 2004) for small, portable devices to establish radio communications with each other. Devices need...
Article
by Phil Nickinson
Jan 25, 2012
What is Mobile World Congress? The next big mobile trade show on our Android schedule is Mobile World Congress -- or MWC, for those in the know. It's in Barcelona, Spain, and has been since 2006...
Article
by Phil Nickinson
Jan 24, 2012
What is an Android launcher? Probably the most powerful feature of Android is its ability to be customized. And that starts with what's typically called the "launcher." The launcher us...
Article
by Jerry Hildenbrand
Jan 23, 2012
What is a kernel? If you spend any time reading Android forums, blogs, how-to posts or online discussion you'll soon hear people talking about the kernel. A kernel isn't somethin...
Article
by Jerry Hildenbrand
Jan 20, 2012
What is the JIT? JIT stands for "Just In Time," and we use it to describe a Dalvik JIT compiler, which was added to Android with the 2.2 release. It compiles bytecode into nati...
Article
by Phil Nickinson
Jan 19, 2012
What is an IPS display? IPS stands for In-Plane Switching. It's commonly found in high-end monitors -- gaining mainstream notoriety in Apple's displays -- and has also found its way into tab...
Article
by Jerry Hildenbrand
Jan 18, 2012
Hacking. It means a lot of different things to different people, and to the public at large it conjures up imagery of evil people in exotic places. When we talk about hacking here at And...
Article
by Phil Nickinson
Jan 17, 2012
What is GSM? When it comes to Android devices, especially for us here in the U.S., there are two major differentiators that really have nothing to do with Android and everything to do with the carri...
Article
by Jerry Hildenbrand
Jan 16, 2012
What is fastboot? In Android, fastboot is a special diagnostic and engineering protocol that you can boot your Android device into. While in fastboot, you can modify the file system image...
Article
by Phil Nickinson
Jan 06, 2012
What's an ETF? An early termination fee is something you agree to, albeit grudgingly, when you sign a contract with a carrier. In return for, say, Verizon, selling you a phone for $199 instead o...
