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[Q] Process to update Gtablet

Hello, I am a fairly new g-tablet user. I received one for Christmas and updated it on Dec 25th. I am still experiencing some issues such as if the battery dies then the date/time resets to Dec 2008. I mainly use it for e-reading using the Amazon Kindle app. But would very much like to use for more than that since that would make it a very expensive e-reader!
I came across this forum today when over my business education listserve (I teach computer applications) several ideas were given on how to use an ipad in the classroom. One feature was that you could download an app that would allow you to connect to your laptop/desktop and operate it using the ipad. (So you could walk around the classroom while you taught) So I performed a search to see if the g-tablet had a similar functionality (which I have not found yet).
Then I see all of these different ROMs and updates, etc. that can be used to make the g-tablet more user-friendly. I have a Motorola Droid phone and am familiar with the android market, etc.
What I need to know is what would be recommended steps to get my g-tablet up and running more effectively? Most of the posts that talk about the new ROMs started before the Dec 24th update, so I am not sure what the next step(s) would be.
I appreciate your help.
Kim

Probably the 1st thing I'd suggest is to get Google Market (aka "market") onto your Gtab and do at least the main "market fix". That would get you access to a ton of applications.
Once you do that, you can download pocketcloud from the market. That'll allow you to access your PC from the Gtab.
There's also office style suites in the market, such as documents to go, that allow you to view and/or edit MS Word docs, etc. That'd probably be useful.
The "gMarket" that comes with the Gtab takes you to the Handango website. That's NOT the Google market.
Jim

Thank you Jim. I found the guide to install a different ROM and followed the directions to use Vegan 5.1. I now have access to the Market and the PocketCloud app you suggested works great!
Thanks so much!

have you tried getting on the IRC channel irc.freenode.net #tegratab live discussion and many of the nicks you see here can be found there as well.

I'm sure you already know this, but the sort of app you are looking for is a VNC viewer. I haven't compared the available android vnc apps yet, but a quick search should turn up serveral options quickly.
Here's something a quick google search turned up:
code.google.com/p/android-vnc-viewer/

blackSwanBB said:
I'm sure you already know this, but the sort of app you are looking for is a VNC viewer. I haven't compared the available android vnc apps yet, but a quick search should turn up serveral options quickly.
Here's something a quick google search turned up:
code.google.com/p/android-vnc-viewer/
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That would've worked for the OP if he had VNC server running. Fyi, one of the nice things about pocketcloud is that it does both Vnc and RDP.
Not pushing pocketcloud... Just an Fyi.
Jim

My Apps missing apps?

This morning, went to market->My Apps on my Xoom, and it's only showing about half of my apps. No apparent pattern to what is missing (and I can see that market still has them, just its not seeing them associated with my account.) It was fine yesterday, and no updates on my end.
Anyone else seeing this?
eric

ericbergan said:
This morning, went to market->My Apps on my Xoom, and it's only showing about half of my apps. No apparent pattern to what is missing (and I can see that market still has them, just its not seeing them associated with my account.) It was fine yesterday, and no updates on my end.
Anyone else seeing this?
eric
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
When you scroll down your list in MyApps, do you see a list of uninstalled apps after the installed apps? If not, look at the menu (the 4 stacked up lines in upper right hand corner) and click on purchase history. That should have all the apps you've downloaded and you should be able to reinstall the missing ones, unless Google Market thinks they are no longer compatible with your Xoom.

okantomi said:
When you scroll down your list in MyApps, do you see a list of uninstalled apps after the installed apps? If not, look at the menu (the 4 stacked up lines in upper right hand corner) and click on purchase history. That should have all the apps you've downloaded and you should be able to reinstall the missing ones, unless Google Market thinks they are no longer compatible with your Xoom.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, they aren't listing as uninstalled, not listing at all. Purchase history on the market.android.com web site is showing them, with install completed. So far, I think I've only seen free apps missing, but need to check more closely. But it's not all free apps, some remain.
Ok, one new data point. My market account is shared between my Xoom and my Photon. Just checked on the Photon and it is still showing apps in my apps that are not showing up on the Xoom (like Adobe Flash.) Very strange...
eric

ericbergan said:
No, they aren't listing as uninstalled, not listing at all. Purchase history on the market.android.com web site is showing them, with install completed. So far, I think I've only seen free apps missing, but need to check more closely. But it's not all free apps, some remain.
Ok, one new data point. My market account is shared between my Xoom and my Photon. Just checked on the Photon and it is still showing apps in my apps that are not showing up on the Xoom (like Adobe Flash.) Very strange...
eric
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
A simple reboot should solve the problem. It has happened to me a few times at random, but not as of lately. Not sure if the market runs into some issues or the system itself, but after a reboot everything should pop up and be just fine. It always did for me when I had this issue.

diablo2224 said:
A simple reboot should solve the problem. It has happened to me a few times at random, but not as of lately. Not sure if the market runs into some issues or the system itself, but after a reboot everything should pop up and be just fine. It always did for me when I had this issue.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Rebooted, no change. Dug further, I'm only seeing paid apps, plus Google Maps and Videos in the list. But if I go in market to one of the other apps (for instance, Kindle), the market page offers open/manage, not install, so at that level it knows I have downloaded/installed the app.
Sent off a "Contact Us" to Google.
eric

Response from Google yesterday asked me to remove updates to Market. Problem was, I haven't received any updates to Market. So latest is that this is a problem they've seen in some other cases, no current fix, but a "specialist" will be getting in touch with me. No further followup today.
eric

Two days, two nags on the support email, no contact from the "specialist".
Found an app that I had installed that wasn't showing up had an update. Navigated to the app in market, and it showed update. Did the update. As the update finished, the app flickered into the My Apps list for about 2 seconds, then disappeared out of the list.
eric

Well, nagged Google again today, at least for a hint of when there might be a fix. Did get a response - basically we know there is a problem, we have no estimate for a workaround or a fix.
eric

ericbergan said:
Well, nagged Google again today, at least for a hint of when there might be a fix. Did get a response - basically we know there is a problem, we have no estimate for a workaround or a fix.
eric
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Here's what I would try if I were you:
1. Go to the options, applications, manage applications, all, and then scroll down and click the Market. Since you are having major issues it sounds like, I would recommend that you just hit clear data for the Market app. Maybe restart before you open the market again. See if that helps at all.
2. Just out of curiosity I would install the latest market update that was released for phones. I would see if the problem was still persistent there in the new market app. This market was intended for phones at the moment, but it looks like it will support tablets soon. It seems to fit pretty well on the Xoom. If all goes well, maybe you can stick with that one for a bit.
Here you can find the most recent apk for the market that was released for the phones some days ago: Android Market 3.1.3
That's really the only advice I can think of. If you were rooted you would wipe data, caches, and dalvik cache to start a fresh new install to see if that changes anything. On technical speaking terms: there really is not much else you can do if this all does not work for you. Never seen anyone experience this before.

Thanks for the suggestions. Just tried both, and neither made a difference. Actually, pretty surprised 2) didn't make at least something different about the problem. I'm starting to wonder if the problem is something on the server/account side...
Google says they have seen others with the problem and are working on it, guess I'll just have to wait them out.
eric

ericbergan said:
Thanks for the suggestions. Just tried both, and neither made a difference. Actually, pretty surprised 2) didn't make at least something different about the problem. I'm starting to wonder if the problem is something on the server/account side...
Google says they have seen others with the problem and are working on it, guess I'll just have to wait them out.
eric
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sounds like it's server sided to me, which is really odd. I suppose it is a very unknown problem that only a very select few people have run into. Like I said, I have never seen this issue before on the Xoom.
I tried my best to help, but it's beyond anything we can deal with personally. Google says that they are working on this problem, so just hang in there.

Yup, will have to wait for a Google fix. Thanks for the replies!
eric

I'm not sure if you fixed it yet but here goes. I had the same problem; more than half of my apps would not show up under the "My Apps" list, even though if I searched for them in the market I could still update/uninstall them. I also searched through the forums but none of the suggestions helped. I finally fixed it tonight. Here's what I did:
(Oh yeah, you'll need Titanium Backup to be able to use the Market Doctor)
First I went to Settings->Applications->Manage Applications.
Selected the Market. Cleared cache, data, and uninstall updates.
Then immediately (I suggest you have it ready as a background app) I opened Titanium Backup and ran the Market Doctor. The reason i say 'immediately' is because the Market will re-update itself fairly fast so you have to get it done before it does so since I believe the Market Doctor does not work with the new Market.
That was pretty much it. When I opened the Market I saw that all my apps actually showed up in the My Apps list even after the Market updated itself. Hope it works for you.

I think you need to be rooted to use Titanium Backup, don't you? I'm running stock.
Nope, no more followup from Google at all. And now, even if I manually go to the market entry for an app, it won't always show me the "update" button, even though there is an update available.
eric

3 business weeks in, no fix, no workaround, not even an update email that they are still working on it. Google has a lot of customer support ground to cover to be a consumer company, and for now (3 weeks) I can't update my apps.
eric

Still getting the runaround from the Google Android Market Team. "At this time, I'm unable to provide a timeline for resolution, though I can assure you that we're aware of the issue and actively investigating. Thank you for your patience!" every time I nag them for the last 4 weeks. No request for more data from me, debug/logging version to run, etc.
So Monday I asked to have the case transfered to the manager. Get a new email, from "Richard" (no last name, same email address as the prior support member) saying the case had been transferred to him, and saying exactly the same text. Replied asking if there was anything I could provide to help, no response in now two days.
Looks like Google still hasn't learned anything about customer support. Can't wait to see how they do with Moto if the deal goes through...
eric

So "Richard" wrote back, explaining that they all use the same email address, and carefully avoiding answering my question about his role, i.e. was he really a supervisor/manager.
He told me that they have identified the source of the problem, so don't need any further information from me. No, there is not a fix available of any kind, and he doesn't know when there will be one. No, there is no work around other than calling up each app individually in Market and seeing if there is an update (not very practical for my large number of apps.)
At this point, I'm tired of beating a dead horse. I know we aren't Google's customers, we're their product, but they still have to learn to take user satisfaction seriously.
eric

ericbergan said:
So "Richard" wrote back, explaining that they all use the same email address, and carefully avoiding answering my question about his role, i.e. was he really a supervisor/manager.
He told me that they have identified the source of the problem, so don't need any further information from me. No, there is not a fix available of any kind, and he doesn't know when there will be one. No, there is no work around other than calling up each app individually in Market and seeing if there is an update (not very practical for my large number of apps.)
At this point, I'm tired of beating a dead horse. I know we aren't Google's customers, we're their product, but they still have to learn to take user satisfaction seriously.
eric
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not sure what to say at this point. If it was more widespread it would have been fixed right away. But, if it appears that they have now identified the problem, the coders will resolve it within days from now.
My final suggestion is to make a new email account altogether and try that. See if it still is the same problem. If so: It is your device, not Google.

StrifeSoldierVII said:
Not sure what to say at this point. If it was more widespread it would have been fixed right away. But, if it appears that they have now identified the problem, the coders will resolve it within days from now.
My final suggestion is to make a new email account altogether and try that. See if it still is the same problem. If so: It is your device, not Google.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's not the device, because the problem is also replicated on the web site. Also, remember the Xoom is the reference device for Honeycomb (and I'm running stock), so still a Google issue if it is Xoom specific.
Given it's been a month and they haven't been interested in getting any further data from me, I'm not overly optimistic that it will be fixed in the next few days, but I'd love to be proved wrong.
eric

ericbergan said:
It's not the device, because the problem is also replicated on the web site. Also, remember the Xoom is the reference device for Honeycomb (and I'm running stock), so still a Google issue if it is Xoom specific.
Given it's been a month and they haven't been interested in getting any further data from me, I'm not overly optimistic that it will be fixed in the next few days, but I'd love to be proved wrong.
eric
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Oh I hear ya man. I'm just not sure what else to tell ya, sorry man.
Keep crossing your fingers and hoping for the best. You've done your part as a customer by contacting them and letting them know the problem, and they seemed to have identified the issue now. So I'd say you're in better shape than you previously were at the beginning.

MAJOR bug in new google voice version

i posted this on the official google help forum last week when the update first rolled out, but haven't gotten any replies (which doesn't surprise me i guess, but i can't believe nobody else has seen this problem)...
i get occasional text messages from certain people who i don't want to talk to for the most part, but i like to be able to see what they're sending me if i so choose. so, i mark those people as spam...their messages still come through but are filtered into my spam folder, which i can then go onto my computer and open the web interface and read.
however, with the newest update of the android app, i'm now getting notifications for all messages, even if they're spam. this is insanity...if i have them marked as spam, why would i want a notification when i get a message from them?
the app used to do it the right way, and just filter them into my spam folder and not notify me that i had a new message...i tried uninstalling and reinstalling the google voice app, and that seemed to get rid of them for about an hour...then they started coming through again.
this is extremely frustrating and i haven't gotten any help (like i said) on the official google voice forum...has anyone else seen this and if so is there any way to fix it?

bump? anyone?

That stinks.
The only thing I can say is that version before this one broke notifications for me (and many others according to market comments), so I was using an older version and this new version fixed my notifications.
So, at least there is a history of fixing regressions. Unfortunately, it did take a good couple of months between updates.
No one from google responds on the google groups, but you can try posting here though:
http://www.google.com/support/forum/p/voice?hl=en
You can probably find the previous version and use that.

lexluthor said:
That stinks.
The only thing I can say is that version before this one broke notifications for me (and many others according to market comments), so I was using an older version and this new version fixed my notifications.
So, at least there is a history of fixing regressions. Unfortunately, it did take a good couple of months between updates.
No one from google responds on the google groups, but you can try posting here though:
http://www.google.com/support/forum/p/voice?hl=en
You can probably find the previous version and use that.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
the page you linked to is where i posted it...no response from anyone (google or otherwise), which i find strange (unless nobody is using the SPAM filter, which i'd also find strange).

First world problem !!!!!

Updated: Amazon System App / Bloatware Tracking Sheet - as of FireOS 5.6.2.0

Hi Everyone! ??
Now that it appears we have a new, solid way to disable and effectively block Amazon bloatware/system apps from our Fire tablets (detailed in this awesome HOW TO guide as discovered by Supersonic27543), I thought I'd take a moment to at least give a good starting effort at updating the very useful system app tracking spreadsheet that bakshi originally created a few months ago (I use it all the time/have found it very helpful!).
With FireOS 5.6.2.0 and 'Show Mode' and what have you, there are more and more stock system apps and I just wanted to see if we could collectively share our findings. I ran the simple ADB command that lists system apps/packages on my HD 8 (2017) and them simply appended the new items onto a copy of bakshi's Google sheet, added some color coding, etc. I haven't had a lot of time to fill in a lot of the app details that I've become familiar with myself, but I wanted to at least get something started. So here is an easier to read html presentation view of my updated sheet, and here is a version allows for filtering/column resizing/comments/etc..
Ummm ?, does someone by chance have any interest in taking ownership of this document? Or maybe at least collectively? ?? I do have more details that I've learned through my own trial and error / several factory resets and I'm more than happy to share, but I'm not really an Android OS wizard or pro. Many of the new apps are part of "Show Mode" / are new calling features (which I find weird / frustrating since we don't even get the full "Echo Show" drop-in / calling experience anyway) ... ??
Hopefully this document can be useful for many of us. I'm happy to hear any thoughts and to share ownership of the document with anyone who wants to take a stab.
Thanks all!
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richaardvark

My Kindle Fire HD 8 is soooo Slow
Hey me again, so I'm looking at your updated spreadsheet for 5.6.2.0 on the bloatware. I'm trying to understand it - i.e what can I remove safely? I assume the apps that you have marked as 'safe' can be removed. What about the ones that have a blank in the column 'Safe to Remove'? I can see why some shouldn't be removed, but why do I care about amazon.glorialist (for example). I have no idea what that even is - that's not saying much... I guess I'm confused at this point on what I can get rid of. I have my fire HD back to ground zero, running 5.6.2.0 but that's it and it's running pretty good speed wise. But I have to get rid of something because once I install google services I'll be right back where I was (dial-up or less response) so then I might as well as stay with the vanilla Fire. Thanks!
richaardvark said:
Hi Everyone! ?
Now that it appears we have a new, solid way to disable and effectively block Amazon bloatware/system apps from our Fire tablets (detailed in this awesome HOW TO guide as discovered by Supersonic27543), I thought I'd take a moment to at least give a good starting effort at updating the very useful system app tracking spreadsheet that bakshi originally created a few months ago (I use it all the time/have found it very helpful!).
With FireOS 5.6.2.0 and 'Show Mode' and what have you, there are more and more stock system apps and I just wanted to see if we could collectively share our findings. I ran the simple ADB command that lists system apps/packages on my HD 8 (2017) and them simply appended the new items onto a copy of bakshi's Google sheet, added some color coding, etc. I haven't had a lot of time to fill in a lot of the app details that I've become familiar with myself, but I wanted to at least get something started. So here is an easier to read html presentation view of my updated sheet, and here is a version allows for filtering/column resizing/comments/etc..
Ummm , does someone by chance have any interest in taking ownership of this document? Or maybe at least collectively? I do have more details that I've learned through my own trial and error / several factory resets and I'm more than happy to share, but I'm not really an Android OS wizard or pro. Many of the new apps are part of "Show Mode" / are new calling features (which I find weird / frustrating since we don't even get the full "Echo Show" drop-in / calling experience anyway) ...
Hopefully this document can be useful for many of us. I'm happy to hear any thoughts and to share ownership of the document with anyone who wants to take a stab.
Thanks all!
richaardvark
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

DallasRedHead said:
Hey me again, so I'm looking at your updated spreadsheet for 5.6.2.0 on the bloatware. I'm trying to understand it - i.e what can I remove safely? I assume the apps that you have marked as 'safe' can be removed. What about the ones that have a blank in the column 'Safe to Remove'? I can see why some shouldn't be removed, but why do I care about amazon.glorialist (for example). I have no idea what that even is - that's not saying much... I guess I'm confused at this point on what I can get rid of. I have my fire HD back to ground zero, running 5.6.2.0 but that's it and it's running pretty good speed wise. But I have to get rid of something because once I install google services I'll be right back where I was (dial-up or less response) so then I might as well as stay with the vanilla Fire. Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You ask very good questions! hah
With regard to which exact programs should be disabled, a couple of things come to mind. First - I have to be open and say I, myself am still trying to find just the right balance. Every day when I get free time, I tinker around and enable/disable certain apps. By far, the tablet is in a much more use-able state than it was with all those factory-installed apps running, but there are still minor issues that pop up. As you can see from that post of mine you quoted above with the spreadsheet, I kinda foolishly assumed that there'd be kind of a collective conversation about this among HD 8 owners on here, and while I did get some good information and continue to daily, I realized very quickly that there isn't really a one-size-fits-all answer here. So to answer your question, I'd say what apps you disable largely depend on your goals for how you plan to use the device. Some people want to strip the device of anything Amazon as much as possible with the hope of ending up with as close to a stock "Android" device as possible. Some people want to be able to use Alexa still, some people like their Kindle e-books or whatever. I can definitely help you look at which individual apps to disable but would need to know what features you'd like to keep and what features you want to remove. Are you wanting to install a new launcher, or keep the FireOS launcher? Do you want full Alexa as well as "Show Mode"? All things to consider and totally changes what apps you disable or leave be. So that's the first thing to take into consideration when deciding which apps to disable.
Another thing to be aware of is that if you disassemble certain packages this annoying parental control lock warning begins to pop up (I guess you could say Amazon kinda booby-trapped the device, lol). It's not a big deal, but depending on what you disable, you'll notice an annoying pop-up message. The original author of that de-bloat thread (Supersonic27543) mentions this in his OP. There are fixes for this though.
User Ivorin put together a nice list of apps he chose to disable with clear notes and I found this helpful. I've made a few minor modifications however on my own device, added a few more to disable, kept a couple he chose to disable. See his list here.
Another question I have for you is how are you going about installing Google Services? Is there a certain guide/thread you're following? There are several different posts on here with essentially the same set of instructions, but I do think there are a couple of different suggested steps among these posts, with some methods a little better than others. I only ask this because, you shouldn't really experience any major slow-down in performance after installing Google/the Play Store, at least not like it sounds like you've been experiencing. My device(s) overall are pretty snappy and solid. So we should look at that as well.
Sorry I didn't have a simple, one-size-fits-all answer for you, but if you give me just a few more details I'll have answers for you and you should be able to quickly make it all come together.

DallasRedHead said:
But I have to get rid of something because once I install google services I'll be right back where I was (dial-up or less response) so then I might as well as stay with the vanilla Fire. Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is the thread I've typically followed when installing Google Services/Play store. These four files, in this order. It doesn't matter that they're outdated - as soon as you bring it all online it will update itself to the latest versions.

richaardvark said:
You ask very good questions! hah
Well now i have more questions
With regard to which exact programs should be disabled, a couple of things come to mind. First - I have to be open and say I, myself am still trying to find just the right balance. Every day when I get free time, I tinker around and enable/disable certain apps. By far, the tablet is in a much more use-able state than it was with all those factory-installed apps running, but there are still minor issues that pop up. As you can see from that post of mine you quoted above with the spreadsheet, I kinda foolishly assumed that there'd be kind of a collective conversation about this among HD 8 owners on here, and while I did get some good information and continue to daily, I realized very quickly that there isn't really a one-size-fits-all answer here. So to answer your question, I'd say what apps you disable largely depend on your goals for how you plan to use the device. Some people want to strip the device of anything Amazon as much as possible with the hope of ending up with as close to a stock "Android" device as possible. Some people want to be able to use Alexa still, some people like their Kindle e-books or whatever. I can definitely help you look at which individual apps to disable but would need to know what features you'd like to keep and what features you want to remove. Are you wanting to install a new launcher, or keep the FireOS launcher? Do you want full Alexa as well as "Show Mode"? All things to consider and totally changes what apps you disable or leave be. So that's the first thing to take into consideration when deciding which apps to disable.
You asked for it so here goes:
Well in a perfect world I would like it to do everything my laptop does... However back to reality. I got it to:
1. Play how-to videos
2. Pull up other types of information via the web
3. Get mail and my calendar and contacts plus keep the last two updated off my Outlook installed on my PC. (I want the gmail app at least and it’s not on the Amazon app store). I know I can get yahoo thru the Appstore. I would rather use Outlook but refuse to pay for Outlook 365. I need to keep the Fire stock email, calendar and contacts for the program I run on outlook to propagate the calendar/contacts. I’m sure there are others apps but this works and right now that’s all I care about.
4. Play videos when I’m on the road (either wifi or downloaded)
5. I do like the voice to text recognition because without a regular keyboard my typing frustrates me (I use the same on my phone)
6. Read doc files like PDF, Work, EXCEL, PPT etc. Only need a reader, don’t want to create or edit.
7. Not a bit gamer – when waiting at a docs office I play solitaire (mostly) or candy crush so don’t need resources for that.
8. I’m still old fashioned – if I want to read a book I want paper, the same goes for magazines and newspapers. I read on the laptop when I have to. So I could care less about Kindle…
9. I can’t stand the fire launcher but I’ve read where Nova is inconsistent on Fire HD so might be stuck with that unless there is something else out there that works??? (low on my priority list).
10. I do like Alexa because I use it in the house. If she is a big hog I’ll get rid of it.
11. Get rid of the ads
I think that’s the majority of it. I just want to get decent response time but I don’t know what to delete. For example, I tried killing some stuff that was running in the background but didn’t know what those processes were and ended up having to reboot. I did this a few times and got frustrated and quit.
Have I ended up confusing the issue? I just don’t have time to keep tinkering around with this thing. If I can get decent response time and get my must-have apps on there I’ll be happy. I just would like to know what I can kill and be done with it...
Another thing to be aware of is that if you disassemble certain packages this annoying parental control lock warning begins to pop up (I guess you could say Amazon kinda booby-trapped the device, lol). It's not a big deal, but depending on what you disable, you'll notice an annoying pop-up message. The original author of that de-bloat thread (Supersonic27543) mentions this in his OP. There are fixes for this though.
I saw that too but I can deal with that later, the speed right now is the most annoying thing... And the ads...
User Ivorin put together a nice list of apps he chose to disable with clear notes and I found this helpful. I've made a few minor modifications however on my own device, added a few more to disable, kept a couple he chose to disable. See his list here.
Got it.
Another question I have for you is how are you going about installing Google Services? Is there a certain guide/thread you're following? There are several different posts on here with essentially the same set of instructions, but I do think there are a couple of different suggested steps among these posts, with some methods a little better than others. I only ask this because, you shouldn't really experience any major slow-down in performance after installing Google/the Play Store, at least not like it sounds like you've been experiencing. My device(s) overall are pretty snappy and solid. So we should look at that as well.
Well that took some time because I was flip flopping around and the instructions weren’t very clear (I figured it out) but I ultimately got from two sources.
http://rootjunkysdl.com/files/?dir=Amazon Fire 5th gen
He had two ‘features’ I used. 1) remove the annoying ads, 2) fix it so Amazon updates doesn’t break the Google apps.
I started with this one that led me to rootjunky to get Google play services down:
https://lifehacker.com/how-to-get-google-play-on-a-kindle-fire-and-install-any-1790706649
I see the instructions you used are different and I also see that you can disable the ads thru that ‘pm’ command? I saw mention of that in Ivorin’s list that you referred me to – maybe it was in the other ones too, I just saw his comment in that list.
>>>>> OK, so my question is why do I need google play services if you are just downloading the APKs? Someone else mentioned using apkpure.com to get APKs and forget about Google play services but then I read too that some of these sites might have malware etc. and to stay away from them. I’m happy downloading the APKs myself. As you have probably noticed I only know enough to be dangerous, I’ve just really begun to stick my big toe into the Android world.
I also noticed that some apps (non-stock) simply will not install so I just have to go to the web for those.
Sorry I didn't have a simple, one-size-fits-all answer for you, but if you give me just a few more details I'll have answers for you and you should be able to quickly make it all come together.
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I Get that and I really can't thank you enough for your time on this!!!
BTW, the first site you sent me to on the bloatware: He has instructions on getting com.amazon.unifiedsharefacebook. FYI it was already on my Fire HD after I went and got it off the site. I did see where someone said it used to be there but the developers got rid of it – I guess not since I have 5.6.2….

richaardvark said:
This is the thread I've typically followed when installing Google Services/Play store. These four files, in this order. It doesn't matter that they're outdated - as soon as you bring it all online it will update itself to the latest versions.
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I've used the method in the thread you linked multiple times on my HD 10 7th gen running 5.6.1.0 and I can say it works perfectly every time and have never had any issues with Google play store/services acting up in any way.
Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk

Got Google loaded but some issues with internet?
tylerhole said:
I've used the method in the thread you linked multiple times on my HD 10 7th gen running 5.6.1.0 and I can say it works perfectly every time and have never had any issues with Google play store/services acting up in any way.
OK, I loaded the four APKs you and richaardvark suggested. All went fine thank you. So that's all I have on it now, except for Stock and a file manager. I'm trying things one at a time to see if there is a particular app that brings me to my knees. I do still need to remove the bloatware once that's figured out.
What I'm running into is I use the SILK browser to load up sites that I go to all the time just to see if I'm getting decent response. I have two that are so slow on the Fire but not on my phone for example. Now what I'm seeing on the 'draggers' is after a long period it comes back and says "No Internet". All I have to do is hit enter and it loads right up. Does anyone have an idea as to what might be causing this? I tested the same sites on my phone with no issues.... Thanks!
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DallasRedHead said:
tylerhole said:
I've used the method in the thread you linked multiple times on my HD 10 7th gen running 5.6.1.0 and I can say it works perfectly every time and have never had any issues with Google play store/services acting up in any way.
OK, I loaded the four APKs you and richaardvark suggested. All went fine thank you. So that's all I have on it now, except for Stock and a file manager. I'm trying things one at a time to see if there is a particular app that brings me to my knees. I do still need to remove the bloatware once that's figured out.
What I'm running into is I use the SILK browser to load up sites that I go to all the time just to see if I'm getting decent response. I have two that are so slow on the Fire but not on my phone for example. Now what I'm seeing on the 'draggers' is after a long period it comes back and says "No Internet". All I have to do is hit enter and it loads right up. Does anyone have an idea as to what might be causing this? I tested the same sites on my phone with no issues.... Thanks!
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Why don't you just install chrome since you have the play store up and running? I use it daily without any issues on mine. And I got rid of all the Amazon crap. You can see all the apps I currently have installed in the attached pics.
Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk
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i like some of the amazon apps but prefer the straight android versions from google play can the book music prime vids work if i get rid of the stock versions a replaced with apks? plus dont want alexa at all or any of the new crap amazon pushed with latest update... is it possible to get uptodate without all the crap? cause im still at 5.6.1.0? i know alot of questions....

tylerhole said:
DallasRedHead said:
Why don't you just install chrome since you have the play store up and running? I use it daily without any issues on mine. And I got rid of all the Amazon crap. You can see all the apps I currently have installed in the attached pics. View attachment 4582486View attachment 4582487
Yes, I will do that. I need to get rid of the Amazon crap too - just need to figure out what I can safely get rid of. I was checking speeds before I loaded it up with standard android apps - which I did last time and my system ran at a crawl so I'm trying to identify one-by-one which one (or ones) are the culprit. (I completely started over from scratch after looking at this forum and getting help from y'all).
BTW. It looks like you use the standard Fire Launcher - is that correct? Thx.
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DallasRedHead said:
tylerhole said:
Why don't you just install chrome since you have the play store up and running? I use it daily without any issues on mine. And I got rid of all the Amazon crap. You can see all the apps I currently have installed in the attached pics. View attachment 4582486View attachment 4582487
Yes, I will do that. I need to get rid of the Amazon crap too - just need to figure out what I can safely get rid of. I was checking speeds before I loaded it up with standard android apps - which I did last time and my system ran at a crawl so I'm trying to identify one-by-one which one (or ones) are the culprit. (I completely started over from scratch after looking at this forum and getting help from y'all).
BTW. It looks like you use the standard Fire Launcher - is that correct? Thx.
Click to expand...
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Click to collapse
My solution to the slow system was to remove all the Amazon stuff that has been deemed safe to remove that I've seen in various threads here. Of course some still want to use some Amazon apps so it's not the solution for everyone. Just keep in mind while you are trying stuff that removing one thing may break something else and cause your tablet to slow down. But best of luck, be sure to post your findings! [emoji4]
As far as my launcher, I actually replaced the nova Launcher and have the widgets working [emoji16]
Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk

Desktops Icons not going away
tylerhole said:
My solution to the slow system was to remove all the Amazon stuff that has been deemed safe to remove that I've seen in various threads here. Of course some still want to use some Amazon apps so it's not the solution for everyone. Just keep in mind while you are trying stuff that removing one thing may break something else and cause your tablet to slow down. But best of luck, be sure to post your findings! [emoji4]
As far as my launcher, I actually replaced the nova Launcher and have the widgets working [emoji16]
Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I posted this in another thread but basically I got everything working and started 'PM Hiding' stuff. I read that 'pm hide' and 'pm disable' are essentially the same. Sometimes I would have to leave the 'com' on front of the name (that I was trying to hide), other times I had to leave it off. I was getting 'new hidden state: true' but after reboot they are all still on my desktop I don't know why.
I was using Richaarvark spreadsheet and only getting rid of 'safe' stuff. Some stuff I don't want to get rid of. Others I wasn't sure. But I definately got rid of all the parental controls, the clock, weather, maps but they are still there and I don't know what I'm doing wrong! Help tremendously appreciated. I'll get back to NOVA once I get this figured out

DallasRedHead said:
I posted this in another thread but basically I got everything working and started 'PM Hiding' stuff. I read that 'pm hide' and 'pm disable' are essentially the same. Sometimes I would have to leave the 'com' on front of the name (that I was trying to hide), other times I had to leave it off. I was getting 'new hidden state: true' but after reboot they are all still on my desktop I don't know why.
I was using Richaarvark spreadsheet and only getting rid of 'safe' stuff. Some stuff I don't want to get rid of. Others I wasn't sure. But I definately got rid of all the parental controls, the clock, weather, maps but they are still there and I don't know what I'm doing wrong! Help tremendously appreciated. I'll get back to NOVA once I get this figured out
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Have you tried pm disable instead? Hide might only be hiding it in your launcher until reboot. Otherwise, although you'd have to reset to get them back, you could try the method in this thread.
https://forum.xda-developers.com/hd8-hd10/general/tut-root-cleaner-android-experience-hd8-t3797327
I know it says 5.6 and up it won't work, but I'm on 5.6.1.0 and my friend is on 5.6.2.0 and it's worked for both ours.
Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk

tylerhole said:
Have you tried pm disable instead? Hide might only be hiding it in your launcher until reboot. Otherwise, although you'd have to reset to get them back, you could try the method in this thread.
https://forum.xda-developers.com/hd8-hd10/general/tut-root-cleaner-android-experience-hd8-t3797327
I know it says 5.6 and up it won't work, but I'm on 5.6.1.0 and my friend is on 5.6.2.0 and it's worked for both ours.
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Click to collapse
Thanks for the info but... I tried pm disable and half of them wouldn't disable - why I went to hide them. Also, when this kept happening what I read was disable requires a rooted device (mine is not).
Do you think I could just try pm uninstalling - I don't want to start over! I've spent hours on this and have brain drain and looked at so many threads. The initial thread I was pointed to was https://forum.xda-developers.com/hd8-hd10/general/a-t3820744/page23#post77476583 and that's what I've been following.
I have 5.6.2 btw. --- AND A HEADACHE!
Thanks!

DallasRedHead said:
Thanks for the info but... I tried pm disable and half of them wouldn't disable - why I went to hide them. Also, when this kept happening what I read was disable requires a rooted device (mine is not).
Do you think I could just try pm uninstalling - I don't want to start over! I've spent hours on this and have brain drain and looked at so many threads. The initial thread I was pointed to was https://forum.xda-developers.com/hd8-hd10/general/a-t3820744/page23#post77476583 and that's what I've been following.
I have 5.6.2 btw. --- AND A HEADACHE!
Thanks!
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Do you have the HD 8 or 10?

tylerhole said:
Do you have the HD 8 or 10?
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I have an HD 8.
Interesting, I just checked this. While my desktop icons didn't disappear my searches on chrome have gotten a lot faster! I had two sites that I was testing with that were so slow I would walk away while they loaded up. Now they load up great! Hum.....

DallasRedHead said:
I have an HD 8.
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Oh... I wasn't aware of what device you had so yeah, disregard what I said, my apologies.

tylerhole said:
Oh... I wasn't aware of what device you had so yeah, disregard what I said, my apologies.
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No problem but now I don't know where to go from here. Maybe someone will reply from the original post I was following... I'm really just now sticking my toe in the Android world.

DallasRedHead said:
No problem but now I don't know where to go from here. Maybe someone will reply from the original post I was following... I'm really just now sticking my toe in the Android world.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I haven't attempted to do anything regarding disabling or removing system apps on mine without root, plus I have the 10 not the 8 so there's other lil differences too.
That combined with Amazon making things more difficult to be done with every update not sure if I could point you in a direction to go without doing a bunch of digging through threads myself lol.
I'm sure there is someone will be able to chime in and help ya out, just a matter of time. Hope ya get it figured out and I'll be checking back to see what happens! [emoji854]
Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk

can some1 tell me what i did wrong i disable only the safe apk.. reboot the amazon goes into moptimizing system storange application mode forever.. then i have to go into adb and sideload stock firmware

Article Sharing With XDA App

On a whim I decided to reinstall the app since I uninstalled it when the new one was released since it has none of the features I wanted, specifically any of the articles.
Super happy you finally brought articles back to the app, but what happened to being able to open an article in an external browser? Or even simply being able to share it with others? I have to go Google the title after on a different computer if I want to continue reading, and have the time I end up on a different site viewing it because I don't want to have to scroll down to find xda specifically to share it with others.
Also I went to report an app issue and kept getting a JSON error about the syntax being wrong, yet you can see the above text has no special characters even..

Kyrluckechuck said:
On a whim I decided to reinstall the app since I uninstalled it when the new one was released since it has none of the features I wanted, specifically any of the articles.
Super happy you finally brought articles back to the app, but what happened to being able to open an article in an external browser? Or even simply being able to share it with others? I have to go Google the title after on a different computer if I want to continue reading, and have the time I end up on a different site viewing it because I don't want to have to scroll down to find xda specifically to share it with others.
Also I went to report an app issue and kept getting a JSON error about the syntax being wrong, yet you can see the above text has no special characters even..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's shame they can't suss it out which they should