Free version 2.0 nearly complete

The free version of my Ubuntu installer is nearly ready for release, just sorting a few bugs before it is ready.
This version will feature the new app UI, and have both the small and large V5 Ubuntu images for download via my sourceforge project site (not the fast server found in the paid version).

Unlike the paid version the free version will not include the build guide or the one click boot feature, these are paid app only features (and at 99p its not going to brake the bank!). In the past the paid app has not had many extra features, but in the future the paid version will get more and more features to make the install process easier and faster!
While the free version will still give you all you need to install and boot you will have to do alot more yourself.

Android Developers on Google+

[This post is by Reto Meier, Android Developer Relations Tech Lead. — Tim Bray]

I’ve been fortunate enough to be involved with Android since the 0.9 preview SDK was released to developers back in 2007. A lot has changed since then, but one thing that hasn’t is the rapid pace at which new tools, resources, and information have become available for us Android developers. Just look at the last few months.

In December Android Training launched, with its first set of classes designed to demonstrate the best practices behind building great Android Apps.

Earlier this month, the Android design site went live — offering a place to learn about the principles, building blocks, and patterns you need to make good design decisions when creating your Android app interfaces.

We’ve got a lot more planned in the coming year, so to help you keep abreast of all the latest Android developer news we’re launching the +Android Developers page on Google+!

One of my favourite things about Google+ is the quality of conversation around posts, so +Android Developers will focus on being a place for the people behind the Android developer experience, and Android developers all around the world, to meet and discuss the latest in Android app development.

We’ll be posting development tips, discussing updates to the SDK and developer tools, highlighting new Android training classes, and posting video and pics from Android developer events around the world.

We’ll also be using Google+ Hangouts to help us all interact even more closely. Starting with weekly broadcast office-hours on Hangouts On Air to answer Android development questions. These will happen every Wednesday at 2pm Pacific Time (10pm UTS) in Mountain View—expect to see these hangouts in more time zones as our teams in London, Sydney, and Tokyo get involved. Each hangout will be recorded for YouTube, so if you can’t join us live you won’t miss out.

It turns out that hangouts are a lot of fun, so we’ll be doing more of these that feature interviews with Google engineers and 3rd party Android app developers willing to share their tips and experiences.

We’re looking forward to interacting with you even more closely, so add us to your circles, join the conversation by commenting on posts, and join the hangouts. We can't wait to hear what you have to say.

Ubuntu Installer 2.0 Live on the market!

Thats right the wait is over, last minute bugs have been stamped out and the new update is live, should be coming to a device near you soon!
I would strongly recommend that you update ASAP as the new version is a real overhaul from the old app.
Here is a video of the new update, if you still are not sure:

Ubuntu Installer Paid 2.0 Cooked and ready to be tasted

Well tasted by my beta testers anyway...but yes 2.0 for the Paid app is ready! so long as there are no more bugs the new update will be loaded to the market tomorrow.
Note that once the new update is on-line the sale will end, so if you have not already grap your paid copy for 20%!!

The change log for the new version is:

*New V5 small image, featuring fixed Java, even more lightweight (now around 1.2GB free) and user can set screen size on boot
*PAID New Build guide which shows you how to build your own Ubuntu images
*Brand new UI To make the whole thing more useable
*PAID new 'one click boot' feature to allow quick booting from either the widget or inside the app
*PAID new widget to activate the one click boot
*PAID app install guide changed in light of 'one click boot'
*Fixed keyboard mapping of random letters in Gnome

The free version should then be updated by the end of next week and will include the new UI and the new V5 small image and Gnome mapping fix.

Backtrack will then be updated shortly after that to include pretty much everything in the change log above (apart from the small image, there is still no small image for backtrack)

Good news just gets better!

Well over the past few days the new 2.0 version of the Paid app has been flying along, now with only two last features to finish, the new boot script and the extra features alot of you used from the picture!

That is in 2.0 of the paid app there will be a 'one click boot' feature as seen in the picture as 'launch ubuntu' this will also be included in a widget to make it even easier.
I had been looking at integrating a terminal into my app itself, however it is possible to start the terminal app and pass initial commands from another app, i.e. you can still use the amazing android  terminal app linked in my app and have one click boot!

Now if all goes to plan the paid app 2.0 may well get released VERY soon...followed by a free version (which will not include the build guide or the one click boot) next week, and then its time for backtrack to get some more love!

[UPDATE] V5 Small images ready for upload

Well I have finally finished the new small V5 image, features from the old small image include:

• Input screen size on boot
• Image cleaned up a little more (2.5GB size with 1.2GB free space)
• Java fully working
• Firefox replaced with Epiphany a much lighter web browser

Please note this image does not let you switch between Gnome and LXDE simply because Gnome takes up alot of space.

The new image will be included in the 2.0 release of the apps (paid next week then free week after) but they are now uploading so I will include a link once its uploaded if you can't wait for the app!

Image is now live, get it at sourceforge!
http://sourceforge.net/projects/linuxonandroid/files/Ubuntu/

10 Steps for Building the Best Mobile Marketing App (Part 2)

Here are the last 5 steps for building a great mobile marketing app, following up from yesterday's post:

6. Usability

Mobile is not online. Keep in mind mobile’s innate characteristics like a smaller screen and longer loading times. The interaction between windows is more complicated than on a PC.

The touch and feel of navigating with a touchscreen is significantly different to using a mouse. Transactions have to be simple, yet secure, since security is a big issue for mobile users.

Since the launch of the iPhone 4S, navigation through voice- recognition should be taken into account.

7. Ubiquity

Mobile goes everywhere with you. Many people even sleep with their phone. It is the only device that is constantly with the user, indoors and outdoors.

Mobile can bridge the individual with everything around them. Take advantage of the “anytime, anywhere” potential. Encourage users to interact with the environment through the mobile phone, give them something to explore. The more senses are activated; the more intense is the brand experience.

Its ubiquity is what makes mobiles the most powerful marketing channel there is. Touchpoints can be created when they are most relevant. For example, Geo- location lets you approach a user as they walk by a store or reward them for entering or checking-in.

8. Uniquely Personal

The mobile phone is the most private device we use. It holds a wealth of private information including friends, social networks and even our location. Marketers are lucky to be let into this private sphere of any user. However, this leap of trust should be treated with great responsibility.

Do not just assume the user wants to be open with you. Ask permission to provide a service or communication. More than anything, location is a sensible information. If you choose to use location features, always take the opt-in route and make opting out easy. Users are willing to share information, but on their terms. Reward, but don’t blackmail them.

9. Mocial

Mobile is inherently social. Most of the times a mobile phone is picked up it is to interact with other people. The fusion of mobile and social media, short “mocial”, is therefore no surprise

Most users are logged into Facebook while using any other function on their phone. Use this in your favour and create fast logins through social networks. Enable and encourage sharing whenever it makes sense. And already think about sharing when setting up the scope for your app. Make sure to include sharable content and let your fans do the publicity for you.

Read more on mobile and social media here.

10. Don’t hide the app

Apps don’t market themselves. If no one knows that you have an app, no one will download it. Start promoting the app on other channels. Deep integrate it into the overall Marketing Plan and give incentives for downloading the app.

Say Goodbye to the Menu Button

[This post is by Scott Main, lead tech writer for developer.android.com. — Tim Bray]

Before Android 3.0 (Honeycomb), all Android-powered devices included a dedicated Menu button. As a developer, you could use the Menu button to display whatever options were relevant to the user, often using the activity’s built-in options menu. Honeycomb removed the reliance on physical buttons, and introduced the ActionBar class as the standard solution to make actions from the user options immediately visible and quick to invoke. In order to provide the most intuitive and consistent user experience in your apps, you should migrate your designs away from using the Menu button and toward using the action bar. This isn’t a new concept — the action bar pattern has been around on Android even before Honeycomb. As Ice Cream Sandwich rolls out to more devices, it’s important that you begin to migrate your designs to the action bar in order to promote a consistent Android user experience.

You might worry that it’s too much work to begin using the action bar, because you need to support versions of Android older than Honeycomb. However, it’s quite simple for most apps because you can continue to support the Menu button on pre-Honeycomb devices, but also provide the action bar on newer devices with only a few lines of code changes.

If I had to put this whole post into one sentence, it’d be: Set targetSdkVersion to 14 and, if you use the options menu, surface a few actions in the action bar with showAsAction="ifRoom".

Don’t call it a menu

Not only should your apps stop relying on the hardware Menu button, but you should stop thinking about your activities using a “menu button” at all. Your activities should provide buttons for important user actions directly in the action bar (or elsewhere on screen). Those that can’t fit in the action bar end up in the action overflow.

In the screenshot here, you can see an action button for Search and the action overflow on the right side of the action bar.

Even if your app is built to support versions of Android older than 3.0 (in which apps traditionally use the options menu panel to display user options/actions), when it runs on Android 3.0 and beyond, there’s no Menu button. The button that appears in the system/navigation bar represents the action overflow for legacy apps, which reveals actions and user options that have “overflowed off the screen.”

This might seem like splitting hairs over terminology, but the name action overflow promotes a different way of thinking. Instead of thinking about a menu that serves as a catch-all for various user options, you should think more about which user options you want to display on the screen as actions. Those that don't need to be on the screen can overflow off the screen. Users can reveal the overflow and other options by touching an overflow button that appears alongside the on-screen action buttons.

Action overflow button for legacy apps

If you’ve already developed an app to support Android 2.3 and lower, then you might have noticed that when it runs on a device without a hardware Menu button (such as a Honeycomb tablet or Galaxy Nexus), the system adds the action overflow button beside the system navigation.

This is a compatibility behavior for legacy apps designed to ensure that apps built to expect a Menu button remain functional. However, this button doesn’t provide an ideal user experience. In fact, in apps that don’t use an options menu anyway, this action overflow button does nothing and creates user confusion. So you should update your legacy apps to remove the action overflow from the navigation bar when running on Android 3.0+ and begin using the action bar if necessary. You can do so all while remaining backward compatible with the devices your apps currently support.

If your app runs on a device without a dedicated Menu button, the system decides whether to add the action overflow to the navigation bar based on which API levels you declare to support in the <uses-sdk> manifest element. The logic boils down to:

• If you set either minSdkVersion or targetSdkVersion to 11 or higher, the system will not add the legacy overflow button.




• Otherwise, the system will add the legacy overflow button when running on Android 3.0 or higher.




• The only exception is that if you set minSdkVersion to 10 or lower, set targetSdkVersion to 11, 12, or 13, and you do not use ActionBar, the system will add the legacy overflow button when running your app on a handset with Android 4.0 or higher.

That exception might be a bit confusing, but it’s based on the belief that if you designed your app to support pre-Honeycomb handsets and Honeycomb tablets, it probably expects handset devices to include a Menu button (but it supports tablets that don’t have one).

So, to ensure that the overflow action button never appears beside the system navigation, you should set the targetSdkVersion to 14. (You can leave minSdkVersion at something much lower to continue supporting older devices.)

Migrating to the action bar

If you have activities that use the options menu (they implement onCreateOptionsMenu()), then once the legacy overflow button disappears from the system/navigation bar (because you’ve set targetSdkVersion to 14), you need to provide an alternative means for the user to access the activity’s actions and other options. Fortunately, the system provides such a means by default: the action bar.

Add showAsAction="ifRoom" to the <item> elements representing the activity’s most important actions to show them in the action bar when space is available. For help deciding how to prioritize which actions should appear in the action bar, see Android Design’s Action Bar guide.

To further provide a consistent user experience in the action bar, we suggest that you use action icons designed by the Android UX Team where appropriate. The available icons support common user actions such as Refresh, Delete, Attach, Star, Share and more, and are designed for the light and dark Holo themes; they’re available on the Android Design downloads page.

If these icons don’t accommodate your needs and you need to create your own, you should follow the Iconography design guide.

Removing the action bar

If you don’t need the action bar, you can remove it from your entire app or from individual activities. This is appropriate for apps that never used the options menu or for apps in which the action bar doesn’t meet design needs (such as games). You can remove the action bar using a theme such as Theme.Holo.NoActionBar or Theme.DeviceDefault.NoActionBar.

In order to use such a theme and remain backward compatible, you can use Android’s resource system to define different themes for different platform versions, as described by Adam Powell’s post, Holo Everywhere. All you need is your own theme, which you define to inherit different platform themes depending on the current platform version.

For example, here’s how you can declare a custom theme for your application:

<application android:theme="@style/NoActionBar">

Or you can instead declare the theme for individual <activity> elements.

For pre-Honeycomb devices, include the following theme in res/values/themes.xml that inherits the standard platform theme:

<resources>
    <style name="NoActionBar" parent="@android:style/Theme">
        <!-- Inherits the default theme for pre-HC (no action bar) -->
    </style>
</resources>

For Honeycomb and beyond, include the following theme in res/values-v11/themes.xml that inherits a NoActionBar theme:

<resources>
    <style name="NoActionBar" parent="@android:style/Theme.Holo.NoActionBar">
        <!-- Inherits the Holo theme with no action bar; no other styles needed. -->
    </style>
</resources>

At runtime, the system applies the appropriate version of the NoActionBar theme based on the system’s API version.

Summary

• Android no longer requires a dedicated Menu button, some devices don’t have one, and you should migrate away from using it.




• Set targetSdkVersion to 14, then test your app on Android 4.0.




• Add showAsAction="ifRoom" to menu items you’d like to surface in the action bar.







• If the ActionBar doesn’t work for your app, you can remove it with Theme.Holo.NoActionBar or Theme.DeviceDefault.NoActionBar.

For information about how you should design your action bar, see Android Design’s Action Bar guide. More information about implementing the action bar is also available in the Action Bar developer guide.

Taste of things to come

So I have spent alot of today working on the app, manly the new small image (having a few problems but will be done soon!) and working on the new UI...along with a few extra features yet to be posted ;).

Check out the below picture for a taste....and hints of what's to come

10 Steps for Building the Best Mobile Marketing App

Here are the first 5 Steps for creating a great mobile marketing app:


1. What do you want to achieve

Mobile phones are used everywhere and all the time in your customers daily lives and can therefore support almost any aspects of a holistic marketing strategy. To develop truly successful mobile marketing campaigns you need to define what you need and combine this with insights of what your customers want.

Here are some examples of what you might want to achieve:

• Mobile app as part of a branding strategy to help position the make
• A tool to raise awareness of an upcoming release or the launch of a new brand
• Create a new sales channel to reach customers and drive sales
• Mobile app as an extension for an existing service
• Drive footfall to a brick and mortar store
• Engage customers at the POS and enhance the in-store shopping experience

An example of an insight associated with this could be that people that buy running shoes want to keep track of how far and for how long they run. You can guess where this may take you…

2. Get the whole picture

Mobile is a powerful channel, but it is not a standalone. To leverage from its full potential it has to be integrated into the general marketing strategy.

• Interlink between channels. Let channels “play” with each other, the more interaction, the more engaged the customer
• Cross-promote throughout all channels. Use NFC, QR Codes or links to connect mobile with OOH Media, Print or TV and vice versa. Create and benefit from synergies

3. Be relevant

Get to know your target group and create an app that is relevant for them. Follow the user’s journey and detect potential touchpoints. What needs do they have, where can an app fit in?

Most successful mobile marketing apps are usually those that either kill time or save time. Think about how you can make life easier for your customers or how to entertain them.

4. Be yourself

Don’t chase the latest buzz just to be cool. The most innovative app does not help achieve any goals if it is completely detached from your brand and what it stands for.

Have a look at your values, your positioning and your message and work out something around it. Create a logical connection between the app and its functionalities, rather than just “brand” the new Angry Birds.

Generally, be wise about branding. A little logo on the side would probably not even be noticed, a big one would be annoying.

5. Pick the right platforms

Not everyone has an iPhone or an Android. Not even everyone has a smartphone. Users of different mobile platforms skew distinctive. Sketch out the target group for your brand and match it with the user profiles for different platforms. Read about mobile user profiles here.

Keep in mind that the target group for your mobile app might just be a subset of your entire audience. If you have a disperse audience, a mobile site is mandatory.

(Blog post courtesy of Golden Gekko)

Apps on Sale 20% off!

For the next two weeks both my Backtrack and Ubuntu apps will be 20% off to build up support for the next 'big' update!
Features will likely include:

[*]Updated image to allow user to select screen size on boot
[*]Better handling of mounting external and internal device memory
[*]Boot script and image can be placed where ever to boot
[*]New app UI for better across device support
[*]Fixed keyboard mapping of random letters in Gnome
[*]+more to come!


Now I am also looking for extra features/bugs that I may have missed, so if you have something that you would like to see in the next build please let me know!

New Source-forge project

I have set up a Source Forge project for the linux on android project where I will host all the files for the free version (paid still has the faster ftp server) as well as the source for the boot scripts and over scripts used in Ubuntu.
My main reason for doing this is that it will allow me to keep much better track of bugs and also provide a much more vast FAQ in the forum of the wiki
If anyone is interested in joining my project as a development for one area or another please contact me!

https://sourceforge.net/projects/linuxonandroid/

ICS Messaging v1.5 Ad-Free Apk App download free ::getapk

Requirements: Android 2.0+
Overview: Messaging application ported from ICS with all the theme styles available from ICS.
All standard features available.


Download Instructions:
http://www.filesonic.com/file/X2wjkQS

GO Launcher EX v2.76 beta4 Apk App free::getapk

GO Launcher EX v2.76 beta4 Apk App download here:

Requirements: Android 2.1+
Overview: GO Launcher EX is the extended version of GO Launcher, one of the most popular home apps in Android Market. It’s a highly customizable home replacement application, which will run when you press your android phone’sHOME key. GO Launcher EX supports hundreds of themes, fast flip speed and tons of useful functions.


GO Launcher EX is the extended version of GO Launcher, one of the most popular home apps in Android Market. It’s a highly customizable home replacement application, which will run when you press your android phone’s HOME key.
GO Launcher EX supports hundreds of themes, fast flip speed and tons of useful functions. 

Features:
- Hundreds of themes
- Fancy home screen transition
- Smooth scrolling experience
- Icon popup menu
- Folder and task manager in app drawer
- Gesture supported
- Scrollable & resizable widgets supported

Tips:
1. Pinch fingers to enter preview screen and edit home screen pages
2. Search “go launcher theme” to get themes and select them in “Themes preferences”
3. Set screen transition and flip speed in “Display settings”
4. Long press icons on home screen to active popup menu
5. Long press icons in app drawer to edit location, uninstall apps and create folders
6. If you can't set GO Launcher as your default home, download "Home manager"

Important:
1. This is a totally free application and we need directly call phone numbers permission to enable the direct dial shortcut on home screen.
2. We will bring out some charged apps like themes and widgets, but most of our apps are free!
3. The weather and clock widget in screenshots belongs to GO Weather, one of the applications developed by our team!
4. The other widgets in screenshots are our GOwidgets, try to search and download them in Android Market!
5. Download our “Classic Theme GO Launcher EX” to get the wallpaper!
6. GO Dev team has released GO Launcher EX, GO SMS, GO Weather and GO Contacts. More and more applications are coming soon!

Think of an extreme makeover to your phone? Try this out!

Recent changes:
1. (New) Show grids when moving icons and widgets on homescreen;
2. (Improve) Pop up the edit list when creating folder by overlapping icons;
3. (Improve) Change the order and description of preferences;
4. (Improve) Can’t edit folder by plus button in the “lock screen” mode;
5. (Improve) New share function content (please share GO Launcher to Twitter and Facebook).


Download Instructions:
http://www.filesonic.com/file/ZVCSTZR

Market Unlocker cracked v3.1.4 Apk App free download here ::getapk

Requirements: Android version 2.1 and higher
Overview: Market Unlocker lets you access paid or restricted apps in Android Market 2.x and 3.x and Amazon Appstore in one click. It's safe, stable, simple and free.

For some apps are just enabled for some specific countries and not available to the other countries,so it is very difficult to download many high quality software. Market Unlocker lets you access paid apps from countries where paid apps are not yet available.

Require:
***Get Root permission
***Have installed Android market
***Have installed Amazon appstore (optional)


Features:
***Change provider in one click
***Change provider automatically on boot or switch to flightmode
***Proxy support for market 3.x. It support HTTP, Socks4, Socks5 proxy and user authentication.
***Support Amazon Appstore outside USA.

Basic Usage:
Click any list item in "Market" tab to enable Market Unocket. That's all. And you can switch to Home and Proxy table for more functions.

It is not permanent, will be original after reboot or flight mode! So if you want to back to default market,just reboot or reset flight mode, but you can check "Auto Unlock" to fake it automatically. This option is checked by default.

+++++ IMPORTANT UPDATE +++++
You can keep proxy disabled for your market 2.x, only check "Market Unlocker" to enable the function.

To work with new market 3.x,
1. Configure a USA (surely you can use other countries ip if they also support to show paid/restriced apps) proxy serverand fill into market unlocker.
2. Enable proxy
3. Choose provider (optional. by default verizon is selected)
4. Check "Market Unlocker" to enable function.
That's all. Open Android market again, paid apps now are back to you. Good luck!

+++++ New update since version 3.0.8 +++++
Amazon Appstore is supported.

Basically Amazon appstore does not allow users to buy paid apps from outside USA, even if users have been registered use US credit card and US address.

Market Unlocker can also set a USA proxy for Amazon appstore to help you buy daily free apps as well as paid apps.

To achieve this:
First install Appstore app, otherwise the function checkbox will not be visible.
1. Go to Proxy tab
2. Configure Proxy Type, Proxy Host, Proxy Port. Please make sure you're using an effect USA proxy server first.
3. Check "Involve Amazon Appstore" button
4. Enable "Enable Proxy" to "ON"
Then open Appstore again, it should now work for you.

Note: There's no need to enable "Enable Unlocker" for Amazon Appstore.


Q&A:

Q:where I can find free USA proxies? and why don't you provide proxies in this app?
A:search google. one example, http://proxy-ip-list.com/free-usa-proxy-ip.html. As they maybe frequently expire or be blocked, it does not make sense, even if leeching them automatcally somewhere.

Q:why I need use an USA proxy?
A:market 3.x is checking your ip address country. fake provider does not work any more. we need make it looks like a us user as well(from usa).

Q:why I can not connect to Market after enable proxy?
A:proxy server is broken or not supporting your request. try another proxy or disable proxy for free apps installation.

Q:why I enabled proxy, but still no paid apps visible to me?
A:you might have used a non-us proxy.

Q:How can I get a working US Amazon account?
A:Get a US billing adress and creditcard. If you don't have that you should generate the info from a site like this: Fake Name Generator(http://www.fakenamegenerator.com/
). Keep in mind though that you won't be able to buy anything with it, but you can download the free apps of the day.


Credits to:
ProxyDroid
MarketAccess

What's in this version:
Support proxy authentication
Support socks4 and socks5 proxy
Support Amazon Appstore outside USA
Add "Rate Me" in about dialog
Improve auto unlock for reported smartphones
Updated icon

Download :
http://www.filesonic.com/file/symd0dM

Mirror:
http://www.slingfile.com/file/4xKznk776l