Installing custom ROMs - do I need a helmet?

[Guest david_dawkins]

I track the "installing the vanilla MCR" thread(s) quite closely, since I'm keen to take the plunge.

However, it seems littered with incidents where various apps no longer work after install. It's hard to tell if this is a typical occurrence or just bad luck. Why so many incidents like this?

I would appreciate hearing from those that installed it and lost nothing (apart from magenta-ness :) ).

For what it's worth; I installed Dec update and had no issues. Call quality much improved. I don't have the headphone jack bug as reported elsewhere, either before or after the update. Also, ShopSavvy worked from the get-go.

Thanks everyone, and thanks to the enthusiasts here who put so much effort into customizing it.

Dave D

[Guest starkos]

I track the "installing the vanilla MCR" thread(s) quite closely, since I'm keen to take the plunge.

However, it seems littered with incidents where various apps no longer work after install. It's hard to tell if this is a typical occurrence or just bad luck. Why so many incidents like this?

I would appreciate hearing from those that installed it and lost nothing (apart from magenta-ness B) ).

For what it's worth; I installed Dec update and had no issues. Call quality much improved. I don't have the headphone jack bug as reported elsewhere, either before or after the update. Also, ShopSavvy worked from the get-go.

Thanks everyone, and thanks to the enthusiasts here who put so much effort into customizing it.

Dave D

Had the U8230 Rom installed for a while now and I'm not aware of any app's that have stopped working? Only issue I can think of is that if the phone is rebooted I have to quickly go into Recovery menu and repair the ext sd partition otherwise apps from the market won't install, which only takes a minute anyway :)

[Guest le_lutin]

I track the "installing the vanilla MCR" thread(s) quite closely, since I'm keen to take the plunge.

However, it seems littered with incidents where various apps no longer work after install. It's hard to tell if this is a typical occurrence or just bad luck. Why so many incidents like this?

Give us a few of the incidents and we will tell you if they are resolved in the latest version.

[Guest david_dawkins]

Give us a few of the incidents and we will tell you if they are resolved in the latest version.

Type-ahead:

http://android.modaco.com/index.php?s=&amp...t&p=1149931

Lost google maps:

http://android.modaco.com/index.php?s=&amp...t&p=1149883

Groups tab missing on contacts app:

http://android.modaco.com/index.php?s=&amp...t&p=1147363

Notifications and reminders not working:

http://android.modaco.com/index.php?s=&amp...t&p=1146862

Google sync crash:

http://android.modaco.com/index.php?s=&amp...t&p=1143602

These are what I found going back to Jan 1st.

Thanks for your feedback, and to the poster before you!

Dave

[Guest le_lutin]

Type-ahead:

http://android.modaco.com/index.php?amp...t&p=1149931

Lost google maps:

http://android.modaco.com/index.php?amp...t&p=1149883

Groups tab missing on contacts app:

http://android.modaco.com/index.php?amp...t&p=1147363

Notifications and reminders not working:

http://android.modaco.com/index.php?amp...t&p=1146862

Google sync crash:

http://android.modaco.com/index.php?amp...t&p=1143602

These are what I found going back to Jan 1st.

Thanks for your feedback, and to the poster before you!

Dave

Dave, none of them are confirmed bugs. I think you're just gonna have to take the plunge and see if it works for you. You can always change back if it doesn't.

[Guest david_dawkins]

Dave, none of them are confirmed bugs. I think you're just gonna have to take the plunge and see if it works for you. You can always change back if it doesn't.

OK, crash helmet it is then :) Thanks!

Dave

[Guest le_lutin]

OK, crash helmet it is then :) Thanks!

Dave

Great stuff. I don't think you'll regret it.

[Guest starkos]

OK, crash helmet it is then :) Thanks!

Dave

I haven't had any those problems you linked to either, so as le_lutin says you'll jus have to give it ago! Just take your time and read the threads carefully and nothing should go wrong, good luck B)

[Guest giryan]

And make a nandroid backup, and you'll always be able to go back to where you were before

[Guest scoobydoo99]

I had the same concerns, I was a complete newbie but by following the instructions and reading the threads and asking questions I managed it okay.

It's well worth the effort and I've had no problems.

My two boobs :) were that I unzipped the Vanilla ROM on my PC for a look and screwed up the file so the phone wouldn't use it at all - had to download it again. And 2nd prob was that the Vanilla ROM has a Bouygues theme as standard - I thought it was branded to this French provider but it was purely the screen wallpaper.

[Guest meinnit]

I have a few questions about these ROMs...

-Approx how long does it take to apply a ROM?

-Do you have to wipe the entire phone to apply a ROM? (eg. apps, contacts, SMS)

-Can we apply official Huawei updates or do we have to wait for a custom update?

-How do Android updates work, again we need a custom update?

Thanks in advance!

Edited January 7, 2010 by meinnit

[Guest meinnit]

I have a few questions about these ROMs...

-Approx how long does it take to apply a ROM?

-Do you have to wipe the entire phone to apply a ROM? (eg. apps, contacts, SMS)

-Can we apply official Huawei updates or do we have to wait for a custom update?

-How do Android updates work, again we need a custom update?

Thanks in advance!

Still looking for answers to these questions if anyone knows? Basically I'm just wondering whether there will still be support for Modaco ROMs in the future as I read that Paul was ditching his Pulse a little while back!

[Guest david_dawkins]

Still looking for answers to these questions if anyone knows? Basically I'm just wondering whether there will still be support for Modaco ROMs in the future as I read that Paul was ditching his Pulse a little while back!

I think the first time you do it you should allow an hour because of all the double-checking and stuff, but once you've done it once or twice I reckon you can get it done inside 10-20 mins.

You need to do a wipe before and after for the vanilla ROM at least; so, make sure you backup using nandroid! It reduces the amount of swearing necessary to get the rom installed.

Regarding the other questions, I dunno.

Not sure about the Paul thing, he can speak for himself. Personally I don't know how he finds time to play with each device, and there are new ones appearing all the time.

Dave

[Guest le_lutin]

I think the first time you do it you should allow an hour because of all the double-checking and stuff, but once you've done it once or twice I reckon you can get it done inside 10-20 mins.

You need to do a wipe before and after for the vanilla ROM at least; so, make sure you backup using nandroid! It reduces the amount of swearing necessary to get the rom installed.

Regarding the other questions, I dunno.

Not sure about the Paul thing, he can speak for himself. Personally I don't know how he finds time to play with each device, and there are new ones appearing all the time.

Dave

So what do you think of the vanilla ROM David - any regrets?

[Guest david_dawkins]

So what do you think of the vanilla ROM David - any regrets?

No regrets at all, my only screw-up was installing superboot 1.4 instead of 1.5, but I'd been reading the forum long enough to know there was a way out.

I'm not encountering any issues with it, and it does feel quite snappy, though I have to admit that I never felt the stock rom was all that shabby. I'm looking forward to trying the 1.7 too; I went ad-free a couple of days ago, so I may give it a go in a couple of days.

Dave

[Guest mtoloko]

what i need to make my own superboot img ? Because i have a Huawei U8220 and the superboot 1.4 and 1.5 based on Pulse doesn't work on my mobile... Anybody has interested to make a superboot img or a custom rom based on my own files ?!! I can upload my files for download... cya!

[Guest meinnit]

No regrets at all, my only screw-up was installing superboot 1.4 instead of 1.5, but I'd been reading the forum long enough to know there was a way out.

I'm not encountering any issues with it, and it does feel quite snappy, though I have to admit that I never felt the stock rom was all that shabby. I'm looking forward to trying the 1.7 too; I went ad-free a couple of days ago, so I may give it a go in a couple of days.

Dave

Do you have to do a complete wipe when you upgrade?

[Guest david_dawkins]

Do you have to do a complete wipe when you upgrade?

As far as I know, a "wipe" deletes all user data and apps on the device (it doesn't touch the SD card), and is performed either from the amonra recovery image or from the phone Settings -> Factory Reset. There's no option to select what you wipe. (someone correct me if I'm wrong please)

If you've done a nandroid backup then you don't need to worry - you can always go back. Your contacts etc will now sync from Google, and your apps can be re-downloaded from the Market (if you hadn't been using apps2SD). Apps you paid for will be remembered as being paid for since it's related to your Google account (so I've read).

Do it. You know you want to.

[Guest giryan]

your apps can be re-downloaded from the Market (if you hadn't been using apps2SD).

apps2SD just changes the location that the apps are installed to, they can still be (re-)downloaded from the market.

[Guest david_dawkins]

apps2SD just changes the location that the apps are installed to, they can still be (re-)downloaded from the market.

Sorry, I wasn't clear - I meant that you'd only need to download again if you hadn't been using app2SD. (Is that correct?)

[Guest giryan]

Sorry, I wasn't clear - I meant that you'd only need to download again if you hadn't been using app2SD. (Is that correct?)

Ahh :) OK

Yeah, I'm not totally sure, I don't use apps2SD because of the installing/failing to boot issues that occur.

[Guest david_dawkins]

Ahh :) OK

Yeah, I'm not totally sure, I don't use apps2SD because of the installing/failing to boot issues that occur.

Yeah, me too B)

[Guest meinnit]

I think I'm going to take the plunge and install the ROM! Just a few questions that I couldn't find the answer to:

- What does a nandroid backup do? Does it restore the phone to the EXACT state when the backup was taken (eg. old ROM, contacts, apps etc)?

- Do I need to perform a nandroid backup if I don't care about apps and contacts or does it back up more than that?

Thanks for all of the help so far!

[Guest david_dawkins]

I think I'm going to take the plunge and install the ROM! Just a few questions that I couldn't find the answer to:

- What does a nandroid backup do? Does it restore the phone to the EXACT state when the backup was taken (eg. old ROM, contacts, apps etc)?

- Do I need to perform a nandroid backup if I don't care about apps and contacts or does it back up more than that?

Thanks for all of the help so far!

I wasn't sure, so I googled it: http://androidcommunity.com/forums/f7/nand...t-backup-26821/

Short answer, it appears to back *everything* up. Put it this way, if you're not happy with the new installation, the nandroid backup lets you roll back to where you were at the time of backup.

Do the backup, then try the installation. Here, use my helmet, I don't need it anymore. :)

[Guest meinnit]

I wasn't sure, so I googled it: http://androidcommunity.com/forums/f7/nand...t-backup-26821/

Short answer, it appears to back *everything* up. Put it this way, if you're not happy with the new installation, the nandroid backup lets you roll back to where you were at the time of backup.

Do the backup, then try the installation. Here, use my helmet, I don't need it anymore. :)

Thanks for that. I think I'm going to do a factory reset before performing a backup...don't really need anything that I have on the phone at the moment.