Choosing and changing ROMs, and some more questions!

[Guest MetalOllie]

Hi,

First post, so be gentle! I'm completely new to Android, and decided to pick up a Vega a few weeks ago. Very pleased with it, and performed the Modaco Rom Upgrade, which gives me access to Marketplace etc.

The Vega has in it, the stock standard 4gb card, with several apps installed to it, some Kindle books & whatever the Rom may have put there. I'd like to upgrade the card to a 16gb, but can't find any way of just "cloning" the card, or backing up everything to a Windows 7 PC, from the 4gb, so I can then dump it back onto the new 16gb card.

Any tips on how I can do this with the least amount of "faffing around" would be HUGELY appreciated!

Less importantly, and I daresay I will have bucketloads of questions at later dates, as they pop into mind, but some that I can think of, off the top of my head, which would be useful to know..

What is the difference in all the different Roms; I've seen Corvus mentioned, plus numerous others, and something called "Clockwork"; in idiot speak (my language when it comes to Android!), can someone break down what all the variations are please?

Next up is bluetooth; is it possible to use the bluetooth connection for GPS/modem access via a NON-Android phone (Symbian). I have an app on the phone which allows it to be used as an external GPS receiver, but the Vega doesn't seem to detect it; in fact it seems decidedly grouchy about connecting to anything using Bluetooth, showing that devices are paired, but not connected.

Lastly (for now!) is the keyboard. When typing, I can delete quite easily, but given there are no cursor keys, or backspace (that I can find, anyway), it is difficult to edit something written much earlier in a post/tweet/etc, without jabbing at the screen in the hope that you position the cursor vaguely in the direction you want to correct. Any advice on that one would be great at as well!

Thanks, and I hope this is in the right place, and look forward to saying hello and getting to know both the forum and its members, as well as Android! :blink:

Edited July 15, 2011 by MetalOllie

[Guest neblap]

Hi,

First post, so be gentle! I'm completely new to Android, and decided to pick up a Vega a few weeks ago. Very pleased with it, and performed the Modaco Rom Upgrade, which gives me access to Marketplace etc.

The Vega has in it, the stock standard 4gb card, with several apps installed to it, some Kindle books & whatever the Rom may have put there. I'd like to upgrade the card to a 16gb, but can't find any way of just "cloning" the card, or backing up everything to a Windows 7 PC, from the 4gb, so I can then dump it back onto the new 16gb card.

Any tips on how I can do this with the least amount of "faffing around" would be HUGELY appreciated!

Less importantly, and I daresay I will have bucketloads of questions at later dates, as they pop into mind, but some that I can think of, off the top of my head, which would be useful to know..

What is the difference in all the different Roms; I've seen Corvus mentioned, plus numerous others, and something called "Clockwork"; in idiot speak (my language when it comes to Android!), can someone break down what all the variations are please?

Next up is bluetooth; is it possible to use the bluetooth connection for GPS/modem access via a NON-Android phone (Symbian). I have an app on the phone which allows it to be used as an external GPS receiver, but the Vega doesn't seem to detect it; in fact it seems decidedly grouchy about connecting to anything using Bluetooth, showing that devices are paired, but not connected.

Lastly (for now!) is the keyboard. When typing, I can delete quite easily, but given there are no cursor keys, or backspace (that I can find, anyway), it is difficult to edit something written much earlier in a post/tweet/etc, without jabbing at the screen in the hope that you position the cursor vaguely in the direction you want to correct. Any advice on that one would be great at as well!

Thanks, and I hope this is in the right place, and look forward to saying hello and getting to know both the forum and its members, as well as Android! :blink:

Hi MetalOllie, I can't answer all your questions, but can hopefully point you in the right direction on some

The different roms offer different features. There are plenty of threads on here that explain what each rom offers. so read up a bit and you will find one that appeals to you. My personal favourite is Corvus5, as I have found it to offer the best features combined with rock solid stability. I am currently running Vegacomb 1.7, which although is still in beta has come so far in such a short time thanks to the work put in by the developers.

ClockworkMod is not a rom, it is a custom recovery for Android. It allows you to install, backup and restore custom roms amongst other things. Without it you will not be able to install custom roms like Corvus and Vegacomb.

I have never tried to connect an external GPS to the Vega, but others have. There are a number of threads on here, so there may be some info in them that will point you in the right direction. One thing that I have found when pairing Bluetooth devices to the Vega is that if they are to close together for some reason they don't connect, move them further apart and they seem to connect easier.

As for the keyboard. I suggest that you download the Hackers Keyboard from the market. This has cursor keys.

Well I hope that has given you enough to be getting on with. I'm sure that others with far greater knowledge will come along and point you in the right direction for anything else.

Edited July 10, 2011 by neblap

[Guest pm99]

Hi,

First post, so be gentle! I'm completely new to Android, and decided to pick up a Vega a few weeks ago. Very pleased with it, and performed the Modaco Rom Upgrade, which gives me access to Marketplace etc.

The Vega has in it, the stock standard 4gb card, with several apps installed to it, some Kindle books & whatever the Rom may have put there. I'd like to upgrade the card to a 16gb, but can't find any way of just "cloning" the card, or backing up everything to a Windows 7 PC, from the 4gb, so I can then dump it back onto the new 16gb card.

Any tips on how I can do this with the least amount of "faffing around" would be HUGELY appreciated!

Less importantly, and I daresay I will have bucketloads of questions at later dates, as they pop into mind, but some that I can think of, off the top of my head, which would be useful to know..

What is the difference in all the different Roms; I've seen Corvus mentioned, plus numerous others, and something called "Clockwork"; in idiot speak (my language when it comes to Android!), can someone break down what all the variations are please?

Next up is bluetooth; is it possible to use the bluetooth connection for GPS/modem access via a NON-Android phone (Symbian). I have an app on the phone which allows it to be used as an external GPS receiver, but the Vega doesn't seem to detect it; in fact it seems decidedly grouchy about connecting to anything using Bluetooth, showing that devices are paired, but not connected.

Lastly (for now!) is the keyboard. When typing, I can delete quite easily, but given there are no cursor keys, or backspace (that I can find, anyway), it is difficult to edit something written much earlier

in a post/tweet/etc, without jabbing at the screen in the hope that you position the cursor vaguely in the direction you want to correct. Any advice on that one would be great at as well!

Thanks, and I hope this is in the right place, and look forward to saying hello and getting to know both the forum and its members, as well as Android! :blink:

-

Hi there. Don't worry 'cos the SD upgrade is quite straightforward. If you hook up the Vega using the USB cable you should see the button 'turn on USB storage. Select. This button and your computer should recognise the Vega as an extra drive. You can then copy files from and to the Vega using Windows Explorer. Having copid the contents of the SD card to a new folder on your PC you can copy to a fresh SD card. One thing you may have to do is to format the new card before copying files. I did mine using an Android Phone, but you would perhaps do it in the Vega, if you have Rom manager or similar.

You may have to unselect 'Android debugging option in Manage application before connecting USB, if previously selected.

Best ROMs are Corvus 5 Vegacomb and Cyanogen 7 IMHO, which each have particular attractions. Clockwork Mod is a useful set of tools kindly created by expert developers and is an essential addition.If you search YouTube there are some very useful video tuorials and demos of each ROM.

Bluetooth is a universal system, I think, but others may know better As for the keyboard, with certain ROMs you can switch mode on the USB and connect a mouse. It is also worth noting that there are several alternative keyboards available in the Market; they may have the alternative keys you want.

Finally don't worry about anything; this forum is excellent for advice. I knew almost nothing before joining and have benefitted enormously. Good luck.

[Guest MetalOllie]

Thanks for the help so far! Successfully upgraded the SD card, as per instructions, and seems to running fine. Also giving the Hackers Keyboard a try.. initial impressions are VERY good..!

Now, I'm giving some thought to ROM's and which is best. As previously stated, I'm running Modaco R8 Custom Mod at present.. If I changed to Corvus5 or Cyanogen 7 (leaning toward Corvus, purely based on a YT video) what would I gain, and more importantly, what would I lose. Also, would I need to reinstall everything, or will that be unaffected?

Couple of other things.. How can I free up some memory in the 512mb onboard storage. There seems to be about 130mb free, which doesn't seem a great deal. Is that being used as RAM, or does the machine have separate RAM? I've moved all the apps I can over to the SD card, so whether the space is used by the ROM...? Also can't seem o figure out if it's possible to use a USB memory stick, with photos or music on as an "add on"?

I'm guessing Clockwork is easy enough to install, and will allow me to do a ROM change (if I decide to), without using Windows at all?

Lastly, I've seen it mentioned a LOT, but have no idea what it means when people refer to having the device "rooted". What is rooting, how do I do it, what does it do etc? I'm assuming it has something to do with the root file structure (the top level), but not quite sure what.

Cheers!

Edited July 15, 2011 by MetalOllie

[Guest MetalOllie]

Anyone? Please? :unsure:

[Guest Yogimax]

Now, I'm giving some thought to ROM's and which is best. As previously stated, I'm running Modaco R8 Custom Mod at present.. If I changed to Corvus5 or Cyanogen 7 (leaning toward Corvus, purely based on a YT video) what would I gain, and more importantly, what would I lose. Also, would I need to reinstall everything, or will that be unaffected?

Corvus5 with SP1 adds to earlier ROMs with extra features such as CIFS support - see http://android.modac...vus-teamed-rom/ for details. It is fast and stable, and until Vegacomb gets hardware video ssupport it is my preferred ROM. If you have Clockwork Mod installed with ROM manager, you can easily do a nandroid backup in recovery to save your current setup that you can reload if you aren't happy. While it is recommened that you do a full wipe before installation, you should however be able to do an over install without losing your settings.

Couple of other things.. How can I free up some memory in the 512mb onboard storage. There seems to be about 130mb free, which doesn't seem a great deal. Is that being used as RAM, or does the machine have separate RAM? I've moved all the apps I can over to the SD card, so whether the space is used by the ROM...? Also can't seem o figure out if it's possible to use a USB memory stick, with photos or music on as an "add on"?

You can get extra space by using Links2SD https://market.andro...e=search_result You will need to partition your SD card which can be done through ROM manager to create a second application partition. Links2SD can then move applications to this to gain more space. Re your memory stick - by default the Vega is in slave mode which means you can connect to a computer. In Corvus5 you can boot up into host mode which will allow you to see your external flash drive and play / view media on it.

I'm guessing Clockwork is easy enough to install, and will allow me to do a ROM change (if I decide to), without using Windows at all?

Yes

Lastly, I've seen it mentioned a LOT, but have no idea what it means when people refer to having the device "rooted". What is rooting, how do I do it, what does it do etc? I'm assuming it has something to do with the root file structure (the top level), but not quite sure what.

Rooting is when a user gains privilaged control over an android device - see http://en.wikipedia....ing_(Android_OS) for more details if you want. The ROMs you are looking at give you root access to your Vega.

Hope this helps - but to be honest, these are all discussed in existing topics and threads. Search is your friend B)

[Guest MetalOllie]

Corvus5 with SP1 adds to earlier ROMs with extra features such as CIFS support - see http://android.modac...vus-teamed-rom/ for details. It is fast and stable, and until Vegacomb gets hardware video ssupport it is my preferred ROM. If you have Clockwork Mod installed with ROM manager, you can easily do a nandroid backup in recovery to save your current setup that you can reload if you aren't happy. While it is recommened that you do a full wipe before installation, you should however be able to do an over install without losing your settings.

You can get extra space by using Links2SD https://market.andro...e=search_result You will need to partition your SD card which can be done through ROM manager to create a second application partition. Links2SD can then move applications to this to gain more space. Re your memory stick - by default the Vega is in slave mode which means you can connect to a computer. In Corvus5 you can boot up into host mode which will allow you to see your external flash drive and play / view media on it.

Yes

Rooting is when a user gains privilaged control over an android device - see http://en.wikipedia....ing_(Android_OS) for more details if you want. The ROMs you are looking at give you root access to your Vega.

Hope this helps - but to be honest, these are all discussed in existing topics and threads. Search is your friend B)

Thanks.. I'm pretty much decided that Corvus is the way to go; I've downloaded Clockwork, and the ROM, but having no experience of any of this, am slightly nervous. If I do the backup with NANDROID, does that backup everything, such as apps, booksmarks, personal notes created in apps etc, or EVERYTHING, (ie the ROM, the state of the machine at backup); what I'd like to do is a clean installation, with Corvus, then a restore, popping all the apps, bookmarks etc, all back where they belong. Is that possible?

Presumably the things like Links2SD (which is included with Modaco R8) are included with Corvus, or do those aspects of the ROM need installing separately?

I did have a bash at searching, but it's almost an information overload.. some very technical stuff, which if I was talking Windows, would be easy stuff to follow, but Android is a completely new area for me, so I'm still finding my feet..!

Thanks :D