Arabic support in rom discussion thread

[Guest twrock]

Seems to me there are too many different threads with questions about Arabic support in modified roms. I'm confused, so I suspect there are others. I hope this thread will bring things together so it will be easier for people to find solutions. So, for what it's worth, Here it is.

Disclaimer: I have not tested any of this myself. Please use whatever you find here at your own risk.

First, let me give a few links.

• Here is a link to the U8230V100R001ARBC200B878 Huawei official rom.
  
• Here is a link to that B878 rom, deodexed only, with one app removed that could not be deodex (MSN_Droid_X). This is for people who just want a clean rom to start working with. This zip is installable.
  
• Here is a link to an installable zip which adds Arabic support for roms based on Tom G's CM6.1 port for the Pulse: CM6_Arabic_patch.zip. (Updated 2011/12/31; this should work with the TXG rom now.)
  
• Here is a link to a modified boot.img which combines a 691mhz kernel (swap supported) with the ramdisk from the B878 rom. ARBC200B878-691bootimg.zip This boot.img has not been rooted or modified in any other way. This zip is installable. But if you intend to install it, you might want to consider doing a full wipe, but I really don't know. And I haven't tested it, so please give some feedback if you give it a try.
  
• Two threads over at XDA Developers that have pertinent information: http://forum.xda-dev...d.php?t=1218960 and http://forum.xda-dev...d.php?t=1063205
  
• madmack's blog also has pertinent information
  

Please give specific feedback on anything you try.

Edited May 22, 2012 by twrock

[Guest welly123]

Seems to me there are too many different threads with questions about Arabic support in modified roms. I'm confused, so I suspect there are others. I hope this thread will bring things together so it will be easier for people to find solutions. So, for what it's worth, Here it is.

First, let me give a few links.

• Here is a link to the U8230V100R001ARBC200B878 Huawei official rom.
• Here is a link to that B878 rom, deodexed only, with one app removed that could not be deodex (MSN_Droid_X). This is for people who just want a clean rom to start working with. This zip is installable.
• Here is a link to a modified boot.img which combines a 691mhz kernel (swap supported) with the ramdisk from the B878 rom. ARBC200B878-691bootimg.zip This boot.img has not been rooted or modified in any other way. This zip is installable. But if you intend to install it, you might want to consider doing a full wipe, but I really don't know. And I haven't tested it, so please give some feedback if you give it a try.

Dear Twrock

I'm downloading now, and I'll give you my experience to night

thanx for your efforts

[Guest twrock]

Ok, so after following some links to information on how to get Arabic to render correctly, I would like to suggest that someone who needs Arabic support do the following to see if it works. (It won't do any good for me to do it, because I won't know if it is working correctly.)

Disclaimer: I am only trying to help, and I can not promise anything. I can not guarantee that doing what I ask you to do won't result in something terrible happening to your phone. (Although I can't imagine a reason why something terrible would happen to your phone.) Please don't blame me if something goes wrong.

1. Download this file: Arabic2.1SupportInstall.zip [Edit: this file didn't work]
   
2. Copy it to your SD card.
   
3. Copy one of the 2.1 rom mod install zip files to your SD card that does not have Arabic support built-in. (Notice, this is only for 2.1 roms!)
   
4. Reboot into CWRecovery and make a backup of your system.
   
5. Do a full data wipe/factory reset.
   
6. Install the 2.1 rom mod. Do not reboot yet!
   
7. Install the Arabic2.1SupportInstall.zip.
   
8. Now reboot.
   

Try it out and tell us what happened.

Edited May 22, 2012 by twrock

[Guest twrock]

People can let me know if there is any reason for me to make a version of the B878 rom with full modifications (root, apps2sd, etc.). But if it really is not a good rom to start with, there doesn't seem to be any point. But hey, I'm not the one trying to use it, so what do I know? :D

Edit: Changed my mind. There is a link in the first post to a "fully" modified B878 rom with 691mhz kernel, swap, root, busybox, and apps2sd. I'd like to hear from anyone brave enough to try these untested roms/tweaks whether or not any of this is working.

Edited September 8, 2011 by twrock

[Guest EgyptoBoy]

hey i will install this rom

ArabicB878-fullmodrom.zip.

i have a 4GB sd card any suggests to partition it (fat32-ext2-swap) or what and how can i set apps2sd to move Dalvik cache to SD

thanks twrock

[Guest twrock]

hey i will install this rom

ArabicB878-fullmodrom.zip.

i have a 4GB sd card any suggests to partition it (fat32-ext2-swap) or what and how can i set apps2sd to move Dalvik cache to SD

thanks twrock

The text below is copied from this link:

The first and second posts in that link actually explain a lot about what I do to achieve a stable working rom. However it is specifically for a CM6.1 rom. Anyway, here's what you need to know:

"In order for DT Apps2SD and swap to work properly, you must format your SD card properly before you install this rom. (I have a 8gb class 6 card with 256mb ext2 partition for a2sd and a 32mb Linux swap partition; the rest is formatted to fat32.) .... Warning: I have had trouble with my ext2 partition after formatting it with Clockwork Recovery 2.5.0 7. I don't know if this happens to other people, but if you are having trouble getting Apps2SD to work correctly due to the ext partition not being mounted, this might be a cause."

Note for everyone using swap: If you are using swap, you need to reduce the swappiness to something far less than the default of 60. It is complicated to explain, but basically, if you have a swap partition of 32mb, you need to set swappiness to 30 or less. I don't believe there is any good reason to have a larger swap partition, but if you do, you must set swappiness even lower than that. If swappiness is too high, your phone will begin to lag terribly.

[Guest welly123]

Dear Twrock

For the 2.1 thread the arabic support worked perfect (Thank you again), But our real problem now is to have arabic support to the 2.2 because uptill now there is no rom supporting arabic in a good way. On the other hand the CM 7.1 supports arabic perfectly. So we will be grateful to you to work on this and I will give you my feedback once you start. as I read on some forums the modifications should be in the framework.jar and libwebcore.so to allow arabic support to work.

I think this link will be helpful.

http://blog.devasque.com/how-to-apply-patch/

Although this way allow arabic names to be written in contacts, The browser give separated letters like this ص ب ر instead of this صبر

thanx in progress

[Guest twrock]

Dear Twrock

For the 2.1 thread the arabic support worked perfect (Thank you again), But our real problem now is to have arabic support to the 2.2 because uptill now there is no rom supporting arabic in a good way. On the other hand the CM 7.1 supports arabic perfectly. So we will be grateful to you to work on this and I will give you my feedback once you start. as I read on some forums the modifications should be in the framework.jar and libwebcore.so to allow arabic support to work.

I think this link will be helpful.

http://blog.devasque...to-apply-patch/

Although this way allow arabic names to be written in contacts, The browser give separated letters like this ص ب ر instead of this صبر

thanx in progress

You mean I have to boot into Windows to work on this?!! No way! ;)

Just kidding.

Ok, I will work on this shortly. Thanks for the link. I'll definitely post what I get.

[Guest twrock]

Hmm, it doesn't look good. The output of the command to patch the libwebcore.so (for proper web rendering) said:

"libwebcore.so Arabic failed"

But you can give it a try and see if at least the framework.jar was modified correctly. The zip includes an arabic font. make sure you have a lot of space in /system or it won't fit. If you are using a U8230, you should have lots of room in /system after installing one of the CM6.1 based roms (Tom G's rom, CM Plus, Basic CM6.1, or TXG).

Here is the flashable zip: http://www.mediafire...0sd1oqubfqmxy9b

You should install one of the CM6.1 roms first, then flash this file second. Let me know what you find out.

Edit: Do you know of any CM6 roms that render Arabic correctly in the browser? I'm not talking about roms for the Pulse, but any CM6 rom.

Edit2: I have posted a request for help to madmack. We'll have to wait and see what help he can provide. But you can at least try installing what I've done so far and see if I am on the right track.

Edited December 9, 2011 by twrock

[Guest welly123]

Hmm, it doesn't look good. The output of the command to patch the libwebcore.so (for proper web rendering) said:

"libwebcore.so Arabic failed"

But you can give it a try and see if at least the framework.jar was modified correctly. The zip includes an arabic font. make sure you have a lot of space in /system or it won't fit. If you are using a U8230, you should have lots of room in /system after installing one of the CM6.1 based roms (Tom G's rom, CM Plus, Basic CM6.1, or TXG).

Here is the flashable zip: http://www.mediafire...0sd1oqubfqmxy9b

You should install one of the CM6.1 roms first, then flash this file second. Let me know what you find out.

Edit: Do you know of any CM6 roms that render Arabic correctly in the browser? I'm not talking about roms for the Pulse, but any CM6 rom.

Edit2: I have posted a request for help to madmack. We'll have to wait and see what help he can provide. But you can at least try installing what I've done so far and see if I am on the right track.

Dear Twrock

Thank you for your efforts, I'm really grateful to you.

I tried the flashable zip, It corrected the arabic names in the contacts but the browser still shows the same problem also the menus are still in english

I did an extensive search for a CM6 rom with full arabic support and finally I found this one (for HTC HD2), the link for this rom is in the following link: http://www.multiupload.com/TJXQ2V4NII

I hope this will be helpful.

Best regards

[Guest twrock]

Dear Twrock

Thank you for your efforts, I'm really grateful to you.

I tried the flashable zip, It corrected the arabic names in the contacts but the browser still shows the same problem also the menus are still in english

I did an extensive search for a CM6 rom with full arabic support and finally I found this one (for HTC HD2), the link for this rom is in the following link: http://www.multiupload.com/TJXQ2V4NII

I hope this will be helpful.

Best regards

Thanks. I'll try to see if it is helpful. But I'm guessing I can't use it. I don't know enough about this, but I suspect the different screen resolutions between the two roms will be a problem. But I can't know without trying.

Yes, without the patch properly applied to libwebcore.so, the browser will not render Arabic correctly. So that problem was expected. However, it was good to find out that at least the framework.jar was correctly patched. It gives me some hope that something can be done.

You need to explain to me what you mean by "the menus are still in English". Which menus are you talking about? Please be as specific as possible.

[Guest twrock]

Please try this version: http://www.mediafire.com/?i75yqfqfjz5qy5c

Install it as before.

There were errors during the creation of the files, so I don't have a lot of hope that it will be any different than the first time.

By the way, I hope you made a good backup before you started testing. I don't know how bad these files might mess up your system. :blink:

[Guest pier11]

I experimented a bit with internationalization of CM7 here

What I gathered is that Android should have been compiled with extended internationalization support. But for Pulse CM's that was not done. Thus only major locales are supported.

This way to hack into it some language, each and every *.apk should be disassembled, appropriate localizations added to it (from another *.apk that have it) and then re-assembled back.

To conclude, CM for Pulse should be recompiled with better internationalization.

[Guest welly123]

Please try this version: http://www.mediafire...i75yqfqfjz5qy5c

Install it as before.

There were errors during the creation of the files, so I don't have a lot of hope that it will be any different than the first time.

By the way, I hope you made a good backup before you started testing. I don't know how bad these files might mess up your system.

Dear Twrock

thank you for your help. I tried this one and I found no change. I hope you good luck in solving this problem

Best Regard :D

[Guest twrock]

I experimented a bit with internationalization of CM7 here

What I gathered is that Android should have been compiled with extended internationalization support. But for Pulse CM's that was not done. Thus only major locales are supported.

This way to hack into it some language, each and every *.apk should be disassembled, appropriate localizations added to it (from another *.apk that have it) and then re-assembled back.

To conclude, CM for Pulse should be recompiled with better internationalization.

Sounds like a lot of work, none of which I am capable of doing.

Any possibility of simply replacing the Gapps with copies from another rom that was compiled correctly? If so, that is not such a difficult solution (assuming those Gapps can be found).

Sounds like a better solution is to work on the camera for CM7! ;)

Who can get that working?

[Guest twrock]

Dear Twrock

thank you for your help. I tried this one and I found no change. I hope you good luck in solving this problem

Best Regard :D

Brightidea over at XDA might have solved it for us.

Here is the next file to try: http://www.mediafire.com/?28vc8zm8qu8p9b5

Please wipe cache before installing that zip.

Please post the result.

[Guest twrock]

I tried the flashable zip, It corrected the arabic names in the contacts but the browser still shows the same problem also the menus are still in english

What do you mean by the part I put in bold? I don't understand.

[Guest welly123]

Brightidea over at XDA might have solved it for us.

Here is the next file to try: http://www.mediafire...28vc8zm8qu8p9b5

Please wipe cache before installing that zip.

Please post the result.

Dear Twrock

Excellent work the web is fully arabized. The credits for this is reserved to you

thanx a lot :D

[Guest welly123]

What do you mean by the part I put in bold? I don't understand.

Dear Twrock

I mean by this to change the home screen, the task bar, and the applications names language to arabic.

I think this is related to the absence of arabic language in (language and keyboard ) settings in some CM6 roms and the problem of reboot if arabic was chosen in other roms.

Then I flashed your rom TXG05a. really it is a very good one and the arabic language is working BUT the main problem that it reboots when I try to install any application. I hope you can repair this by your golden fingers

N.B I flashed the rom on top of your 2.1 rom ( B878 rom, deodexed only) without wiping user data to keep the 3G network settings.

Best regards

Edited December 10, 2011 by welly123

[Guest pier11]

Sounds like a lot of work, none of which I am capable of doing.

Any possibility of simply replacing the Gapps with copies from another rom that was compiled correctly? If so, that is not such a difficult solution (assuming those Gapps can be found).

Sounds like a better solution is to work on the camera for CM7! ;)

Who can get that working?

I'd say - yes. All apps that don't rely on Pulse specifics can be replaced. I did that with keyboard app for example, but failed with framework-res.apk. Had to reassemble Pulse's version of the latter.

Edited December 10, 2011 by pier11

[Guest twrock]

Dear Twrock

Excellent work the web is fully arabized. The credits for this is reserved to you

thanx a lot :D

Great! I'll pass the word along to Brightidea. It is he who deserves the credit.

Please tell me the names of a few of the Google apps in our CM6.1 port that do not have Arabic menus, etc.

[Guest twrock]

I'd say - yes. All apps that don't rely on Pulse specifics can be replaced. I did that with keyboard app for example, but failed with framework-res.apk. Had to reassemble Pulse's version of the latter.

Framework-res.apk is a fairly important one. From my experience of trying to work with it, I know it is not as simple as some other apk's.

With this Arabic issue, it is difficult for me to do the work on it since I don't know what the outcome is supposed to look like. :huh: At least I know what Chinese is supposed to look like, and so far all the roms I've worked with do well with that.

[Guest pier11]

With this Arabic issue, it is difficult for me to do the work on it since I don't know what the outcome is supposed to look like. :huh: At least I know what Chinese is supposed to look like, and so far all the roms I've worked with do well with that.

welly123 shall post couple of screenshots for your reference :)

[Guest twrock]

welly123 shall post couple of screenshots for your reference :)

That would be good. Since I can't tell the difference between whether or not the letters are overlapping, I really don't know when something is working or not.

If it is as simple as replacing the "generic" apks, I'd think it shouldn't be too hard to get a "mostly" Arabic CM6 rom for the Pulse. Now that the basic (framework.jar and libwebcore.so) rendering problems are solved, maybe there is hope.

However, I think I will still be using FTB for my daily use rom. It just seems to work quicker than CM6 roms and I have found workarounds for most of what were the advantages in Froyo.

Edited December 11, 2011 by twrock

[Guest twrock]

Dear Twrock

I mean by this to change the home screen, the task bar, and the applications names language to arabic.

I think this is related to the absence of arabic language in (language and keyboard ) settings in some CM6 roms and the problem of reboot if arabic was chosen in other roms.

Then I flashed your rom TXG05a. really it is a very good one and the arabic language is working BUT the main problem that it reboots when I try to install any application. I hope you can repair this by your golden fingers

N.B I flashed the rom on top of your 2.1 rom ( B878 rom, deodexed only) without wiping user data to keep the 3G network settings.

Best regards

Regarding your problems with the Market app, this is not something I can fix, because it is not a problem with the TXG rom. You can first try to wipe the Dalvik cache and see if that fixes it. But my best guess is that you have the common problem of too small of a /system partition.

This is what I think you need, but I do not own a U8230, so I am not sure:

If you have a u8230, you should flash an official Huawei update for the U8230, not one for the U8220. I believe the link in the first post of this thread is what you want: U8230V100R001ARBC200B878 (a Huawei official rom). That is the dload that should give you large enough /system partition as well as keep your 3g working. After you install that dload correctly, then install Clockwork Recovery (2.5.0.7) and then install TXG again from CWRecovery. Then install the Arabic support update you did earlier. I believe that will solve your problem.

Good luck.