Black Screen and Phone Call issue with JG5, MCR r3

[Guest AV1985]

Hi,

I'm running firmware JG5 with Paul's MCR r3 on my Galaxy S i9000 and am getting a few major issues which to be honest, are starting to get difficult to ignore:

1 - Occasionally, when screen is off, it doesn't turn back on! It stays black and I have to take the battery out. This happens a few times per day and it seems random.

2 - When someone calls me, sometimes it takes an age for the answer screen to show up. Similarly, when I hang up, sometimes the call end screen freezes.

3 - Some apps (juicedefender, titanium backup, setcpu) keep asking for superuser rights. I click yes and usually it pops up a few times before going away but then will ask again later.

4 - It's oh so laggy, despite using a lagfix. Quadrant score is about 2100 but for general use, it's so laggy in comparison to my HTC Desire.

5 - In my Desire, I used to have about 250mb free after using a taskiller to close everything I didn't want to keep running. On the Galaxy S, about half that at 130mb. Is that normal?

Does anyone have any suggestions for these to fix these now?

Will the release of 2.2 Froyo and subsequent root capabilities and custom ROMs (Paul's MCRs FTW!) fix any of these issues?

Indeed, can any be addressed in Paul's next r4?

These are just the issues I have noticed so far, am sure I'll find many more!

Thanks!

Edited September 5, 2010 by AV1985

[Guest AV1985]

Third black screen this morning! (note, my morning runs to about 3pm!)

Edited September 5, 2010 by AV1985

[Guest AV1985]

Yet again! This is rendering my phone useless!

[Guest DistortedLoop]

Welcome to the world most of us were experiencing the last couple of months!

I refer you back to the other thread where we discussed roms and lag-fixes.

You are experiencing classic "lag" symptoms.

Pauls' MCR is based on JG5, which is a relatively old in the SGS firmware world at this point. It is old and buggy and suffers horrible lag. I found MCR r2 to be completely unusable on my phone for exactly the reasons you state.

You MUST run one of the lag-fix options out there on the configuration you're using, and even then, you'll still experience occasional symptoms like you describe.

Seriously, please consider running XFJM6 (make sure it's XF, not XW) or HVJH1. They are virtually lag-free. I hear good things about XWJM7 as well, and may test drive it myself today.

If you really want to stay on MCR for some reason, then I'd suggest running the mimocan fix - it's the best/safest out there in my opinion (besides voodoo, which is closed to further testers at the moment), even if it doesn't give artificially higher Quadrant scores than the loop mount methods.

It seems like Paul has abandoned the SGS platform, or at least too busy to give it much love at this time. MCR hasn't been updated in ages, despite much better ROMs out there to base it on.

Since MCR is basically stock ROM, I don't see any reason to stay with it at this time, it's got the lag problem and every feature Paul gives you, except for pre-rooting can be added after the fact with a real ROM. It's not as convenient as an MCR build, but you'll have a far more useable phone, and you'll actually enjoy the device in daily use if you get a newer (leaked) firmware.

[Guest DistortedLoop]

I'll repeat a lot of my above post here, but I wanted to address you questions point by point directly since I missed a couple of them the first time around...

Hi,

I'm running firmware JG5 with Paul's MCR r3 on my Galaxy S i9000 and am getting a few major issues which to be honest, are starting to get difficult to ignore:

1 - Occasionally, when screen is off, it doesn't turn back on! It stays black and I have to take the battery out. This happens a few times per day and it seems random.

Yep, it's because, as noted above, MCR is based on a buggy firmware.

2 - When someone calls me, sometimes it takes an age for the answer screen to show up. Similarly, when I hang up, sometimes the call end screen freezes.

Classic lag and wake from sleep problem, especially the latter. This is actually made worse by some of the lag-fixes out there in my opinion.

3 - Some apps (juicedefender, titanium backup, setcpu) keep asking for superuser rights. I click yes and usually it pops up a few times before going away but then will ask again later.

You have a bad install of super-user. Get the new superuser app from the Market. You will get an install error, most likely. Follow the instructions in the link in the market description on how to get around that. Actually, if you just goto to this thread on xda, scan down the first post. There's a QR code you can scan for the Market link, and right below that are the instruction on how to get around it. I'd pick and flash a new firmware first, since that is the only thing that is ultimately going to fix your lag issues, and then you won't have to bother with this more than once.

edit: sometimes just re-running the root update.zip will address this as well. Advantage to what I wrote above is you will then have the latest version of the Superuser GUI, and it will prompt you to install the latest su binary, and then both will be available for future updates as a Market download without any issues in the future.

4 - It's oh so laggy, despite using a lagfix. Quadrant score is about 2100 but for general use, it's so laggy in comparison to my HTC Desire.

The only lag fix that works, really works and eliminates lag 100%, in my opinion, is voodoo. It will be in beta 2 in a few days. It doesn't generate the highest Quadrant scores, but it actually fixes lag - none of the others do. If you read the many threads here and xda on lag, you'll see that many agree that benchmarks are meaningless in regard to lag, high Quadrant doesn't guarantee no lag.

Mimocan's fix is basically the old apps2sd method that cyanogen and others use, and is the best non-voodoo compromise out there in terms of removing lag, wake-up issues and data safety.

5 - In my Desire, I used to have about 250mb free after using a taskiller to close everything I didn't want to keep running. On the Galaxy S, about half that at 130mb. Is that normal?

Does anyone have any suggestions for these to fix these now?

Yes, this is normal on our phones. For some reason, it appears himem not enabled on this phone (yet). Manual task killing on Android is considered a bad idea by most. You might try AutoKiller, which is a memory manager, not a task killer, despite the bad name choice.

Will the release of 2.2 Froyo and subsequent root capabilities and custom ROMs (Paul's MCRs FTW!) fix any of these issues?

We certainly hope so! Though if Samsung sticks with RFS file system, lag will likely still be an issue. The voodoo lag fix will be ported to Froyo once froyo is public source available, so it will be fixed soon enough. Actually, since the latest internal builds of 2.1 ROMS from Samsung seem to have mostly addressed lag, it points to they've figured out how to fixe most of the problem despite sticking with RFS.

Indeed, can any be addressed in Paul's next r4?

Only Paul can say for sure, but if he'd just base his build on XFM6 or XWJM7 or HVJH1, he'd address most.

These are just the issues I have noticed so far, am sure I'll find many more!

Thanks!

Edited September 5, 2010 by DistortedLoop

[Guest AV1985]

Is there any way of repping or anything on this forum because you are awesome! This is the second thread you've helped me in so much detail on and you've been so helpful and precise both times. I am really grateful.

As suggested, I am using the XFJM6 firmware now (http://ip208-100-42-21.static.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=765032) - hope that's the right one! Will test it out once I've installed it and ran it.

I used Paul's because it allowed me to remove some stock bloatware. Is it ok if I use titanium backup to do this for things like calculator, layar etc? Is there anything you would say I should definitely NOT remove?

Also, which lagfix should I use on this, or shouldn't I? A link? You suggested voodoo, not heard of that one. I'm not great with adb commands. I'm fine with flashing etc but when it comes to complex commands, I steer well clear!

I'm just wondering how to root this, I'm thinking this: http://ip208-100-42-21.static.xda-develope...ad.php?t=728754. Does that seem ok?

Again, you are a lifesaver as I was getting really frustrated with the lag and worst of all, that black screen. I've just flashed XFJM6, let's see how it runs!

[Guest AV1985]

http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=724251

I found this for the mimocan lagfix but to be honest, it's really confusing, I don't know how to do half of those things, don't even know how to partition the microSD.

Another issue I have - I have installed Chainfire's Lagfix before but now I can't uninstall it! Using the uninstall option in the programme it is telling me I don't have enough available space! I tried to make loads of space but still no joy! I guess I have to make some free space in the ext2 partition though no idea how to do that.

[Guest AV1985]

I managed to get rid of the lagfix by doing a full factory reset, clearing cache and then deleting all of the lagfix files from my internal SD. Not sure if that was wise but the CFlagfix programme no longer recognises my SGS as lagfixed.

The result? MUCH smoother than when it was lagfixed! I haven't installed all of my apps yet but about 5 minutes ago, it was still buggy and laggy. Rebooted, no CFlagfix, so far seems smooth. So much so, I don't think I even need a lagfix on it! Course, the quicker the better and if a more reliable lagfix comes about, I'll use it, but really pleased right now!

[Guest DistortedLoop]

Right! With XFJM6, XWJM7 and HVJH1 you really don't need a lag-fix. You might get occasional lag, especially after a couple of days uptime, but a reboot will clear that up; I think how heavy you use your phone and how many apps you install is a big determinant in that.

Keep in mind that any rom should be lag-free right after an install, and before you install all your apps.

Voodoo is in beta, it is THE lagfix you want. I'll post here when curio releases public beta 2.

If Titanium will let you remove the bloatware, give it a try. Easy enough to wipe and reinstall if you screw something up. Personally, the bloatware doesn't bother me much...this phone has SOOOO MUCH storage space for apps, I can't imagine running out. I've got 100 apps or so and I think I'm under 300mb...the phone's got 2gb for that kind of stuff.

If Tit won't remove, you can look into uninstall command with adb, but if you're not comfortable with adb enough to do mimocan fix, probably want to hold off on that, too. Like I said, I don't bother getting rid of the bloatware, so it's not something I'm expert at. But if you're insistent on still trying, try googling "adb uninstall", that should point you in the right direction.

No way to rep around here, but thanks for the thought. Helping each other's the point of these forums. I'm sure you'll do the same when the time comes. :P

[Guest AV1985]

Definitely some lag now that all my apps are in but much better than the other rom with the lagfix! I'm happy to wait a few days for curio to release his and I know you'll help in installing it if it's complicated!

Worth noting that Quadrant test is at about 850 right now as opposed to the 2100.

[Guest DistortedLoop]

Definitely some lag now that all my apps are in but much better than the other rom with the lagfix! I'm happy to wait a few days for curio to release his and I know you'll help in installing it if it's complicated!

Worth noting that Quadrant test is at about 850 right now as opposed to the 2100.

It's not Quadrant that matters; what matters is how the phone feels in daily use.

[Guest AV1985]

It's not Quadrant that matters; what matters is how the phone feels in daily use.

I guess it's just my bad luck, still getting that black screen error! I don't know what the hell the problem is and it's doing my head in!!

[Guest AV1985]

Ok, managed to sort the black screen I think. I realised it must be an app and it was.

SetCPU - I had a profile which changed the clock speed on screen off. This was causing it. It seems dandy now, so far.

If you're going to try JM6 for kicks, don't! HVJH1 is FAR superior, easily the smoothest ROM I've used so far. I'll use voodoo lagfix when it comes out but it's not essential.

At the moment only getting one issue - market doesn't work. I can't download at all and it won't show my installed apps either. I think I need to reset my google sign in information but I can't! I've used manage applications and cleared the cache/data on everything google, download, market etc and it still won't clear my google/gmail settings. Any suggestions on this one?

[Guest DistortedLoop]

Ok, managed to sort the black screen I think. I realised it must be an app and it was.

SetCPU - I had a profile which changed the clock speed on screen off. This was causing it. It seems dandy now, so far.

If you're going to try JM6 for kicks, don't! HVJH1 is FAR superior, easily the smoothest ROM I've used so far. I'll use voodoo lagfix when it comes out but it's not essential.

At the moment only getting one issue - market doesn't work. I can't download at all and it won't show my installed apps either. I think I need to reset my google sign in information but I can't! I've used manage applications and cleared the cache/data on everything google, download, market etc and it still won't clear my google/gmail settings. Any suggestions on this one?

Good catch on SetCPU.

Did you get the Market fixed?

IF you like HVJH1, you'll love XWJM7. LOL, it never ends. ;-)

[Guest AV1985]

Still getting the lag as expected until the new voodoo. still slower than the desire. black screen is solved though thankfully!

big difference between hvjh1 and xwjm7?

[Guest DistortedLoop]

Still getting the lag as expected until the new voodoo. still slower than the desire. black screen is solved though thankfully!

big difference between hvjh1 and xwjm7?

No, not really. I'm doing the voodoo thing on JM7 right out of the box, so couldn't compare anyways. JM7 does have some features in settings that JH1 had had taken out for some reason (like selecting GSM network only).

If you're not opposed to a little extra work you could use any of the other methods out there to lag-fix your phone until voodoo 2 is public beta. He says he'll have something probably to play with over the weekend. Just be aware, all the methods (except voodoo, imo) have some level of occasional lag. But if it's bothering you still, go for the fix that's currently available.

[Guest AV1985]

Could you walk me through the voodoo lag fix?

[Guest DistortedLoop]

Could you walk me through the voodoo lag fix?

If you can find the file, I'll guide you, but I don't feel it's mine to distribute, since the author has pulled it off github. It's out and about on the net, though, I am sure.

[Guest AV1985]

If you can find the file, I'll guide you, but I don't feel it's mine to distribute, since the author has pulled it off github. It's out and about on the net, though, I am sure.

I did try and find it on the net though the only one I could find was the one that was pulled from github lol, only the source code is there.

I'm quite looking forward to Froyo. On the Desire and on the one ROM I tried on the SGS with it, it's got some lovely extra things that I really want!! As long as it's stable!

[Guest AV1985]

Also, still getting some market errors in the form of not being able to see my applications in the market. As a result, can't get any updates! I can temporarily live without this though until the end of the month if we get Froyo and Voodoo 2 by then!

Edited September 7, 2010 by AV1985

[Guest AV1985]

Hey.

What's this like: http://android.modaco.com/content/samsung-...playlogo1-hack/

In order to run adb shell, do I need to download the android sdk stuff?

[Guest DistortedLoop]

Also, still getting some market errors in the form of not being able to see my applications in the market. As a result, can't get any updates! I can temporarily live without this though until the end of the month if we get Froyo and Voodoo 2 by then!

Try the ERIS Market fix from the Market; try clearing cache under settings/applications/market

Hey.

What's this like: http://android.modaco.com/content/samsung-...playlogo1-hack/

In order to run adb shell, do I need to download the android sdk stuff?

Newer better methods than the one you're linking to over on xda.

Yes, sdk required to run adb, well, the adb fies from it anyways.

[Guest AV1985]

I've just realised I know how to run adb lol. I've just that market fix I linked to (as I couldn't suss out which one I should use instead) and there's definitely some improvement, though not a huge amount.

I'm thinking that I wait for a Froyo firmware, voodoo 2 and then reflash my entire phone with that firmware and that lagfix? Should be as good as it gets then?

[Guest DistortedLoop]

I've just realised I know how to run adb lol. I've just that market fix I linked to (as I couldn't suss out which one I should use instead) and there's definitely some improvement, though not a huge amount.

I'm thinking that I wait for a Froyo firmware, voodoo 2 and then reflash my entire phone with that firmware and that lagfix? Should be as good as it gets then?

Will be better than that, lol.

Curio has found enhancements for the screen's sharpness, color correction and a few other goodies all being lumped into voodoo 2. Silly of him to delay the lag fix with all the goodies, but heck, it's his project, his call.

[Guest AV1985]

Will be better than that, lol.

Curio has found enhancements for the screen's sharpness, color correction and a few other goodies all being lumped into voodoo 2. Silly of him to delay the lag fix with all the goodies, but heck, it's his project, his call.

I just want my SGS to run at the same or better speed that my Desire did. At the moment, I'm very disappointed with the upgrade as it feels like running an old OS.