Instructions: Google Now. Works on the Bionic ICS (Update 8/6/12)

wseyller

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See updates at the bottom of this post.
Update: 8/6/12 - new velvet apk add. Much more stable.


Here are the instructions that has provided me with what seems like a fully functional Google now on the Bionic ICS leak. I did this while on the 232 leak. There may be some bugs/glitches. I'm not even sure how a real Jelly Bean Google Now is supposed to act perfectly. Do this at your own risk as I take no responsibility if you soft brick your phone due to my instructions. I will try to make this as clear and explicit as I can. You will need root permissions. I used Root Explorer to handle all of this. These steps are assuming that you did not do any other Google Now modification previously. Make sure you understand how file permissions work. Read this entire process before you start. If you don't think you can handle this then wait for something easier to come along.


Thanks to lenny_kano & cajunflavoredbob for providing the resources needed in this thread here: The Google Now for ICS Project. [UPDATE 7/19][VOICE WORKAROUND][APK AND ZIP] - xda-developers


Intro: make a nand backup with safestrap 2.0. Yes it is a pain but it is worth it. All the trouble I had to get to this point, a backup could have helped me.

Two methods of installation...
Option 1: Manually push the files using a file manager such as root explorer.
Option 2: Flash zip through custom recovery. Note: I'm pretty sure that you cannot flash zip files from the sdcard onto the non-safe side. I believe bootstrap recovery is able to do this but I don't know if there is an ICS compatible bootstrap recovery available. I wasn't going to list this option but here it is anyway. I will not provide instruction for flashing within any custom recoveries.


Option 1:
1: Downloaded and extract Lennox. My upload is a little different than some other uploads as I include a Velvet file needed where it should go. The Lennox zip I upload is all you need to download.

Links for Lennox downloads

https://docs.google.com/open?id=0BzMJvNl_cG9KS25rRFh6V0pyR0E
LennoxPackage_wseyller.zip
https://www.dropbox.com/s/bctflszv0348gtc/LennoxPackage_wseyller.zip
LennoxPackage_wseyller - Minus

2. Extract the Lennox zip you just downloaded. Inside you will find the folders "app", "lib" and "usr"

First lets rename some files so that we don't overwrite them. In fact some of this is mandatory not optional. So just do these steps, all of them.

3. Use Root Explorer and rename the" GoogleQuickSearch.apk" to "GoogleQuickSearch.apk.bak". This file is located in system/app directory

4. In the system/lib folder rename the two files "libspeewrapper.so" to "libspeewrapper.so.bak" & "libvoicesearch.so" to libvoicesearch.so.bak"

5. In the system/usr/srec folder rename the "config" folder to "config.bak".

Now time to start copying files from the Lennox Package & also change permissions.

6. In the Lennox package go into usr/srec directory and copy the "config" and "en-US" folders. Copy these two folders to the system/usr/srec directory. CHANGE PERMISSIONS: Change the permissions all folders and sub folders that you just copied to RWX/RX/RX. Change all of the files you just copied to the permissions of RW/R/R. Make sure every file, folder, and sub folder you check the permissions after you copy everything over. Then double check. It is easy to make a mistake

7. In the Lennox package go into the lib directory. Copy all five files and paste them into the system/lib directory. CHANGE PERMISSIONS: Change the permissions of these files to RW/R/R after you copy them over.

8. In the Lennox package go into the app directory. There will be three apk files. copy all of them and paste into the system/app directory. CHANGE PERMISSIONS: Change the permission of these files to RW/R/R after you copy them over.

9. Reboot and enjoy.


Option 2: (Steps 2, 3, & 4 are optional for backup of files)

1. Download the zip file named "Google Now for ICS.zip". After you download do not extract the file. Place it on your SDCARD-EXT.

Links for "Google Now for ICS.zip"

https://www.dropbox.com/s/c6n4odm3ul32zza/Google%20Now%20for%20ICS.zip
https://docs.google.com/open?id=0BzMJvNl_cG9KUTF3WGp3UHVqdGM
Google Now for ICS.zip
Google Now for ICS - Google Now for ICS.zip - Minus

2. Use Root Explorer and rename the" GoogleQuickSearch.apk" to "GoogleQuickSearch.apk.bak". This file is located in system/app directory

3. In the system/lib folder rename the two files "libspeewrapper.so" to "libspeewrapper.so.bak" & "libvoicesearch.so" to libvoicesearch.so.bak"

4. In the system/usr/srec folder rename the "config" folder to "config.bak".

5. Reboot into a custom recovery and flash the zip file from your sdcard-ext.

6. Use a file manager such as Root Explorer and go into system/usr/srec folder. Inside you you see a new "config" folder and a new "en-US" folder that was flashed. The permissions of all folders and sub folders in this directory need to be RWX/RX/RX. All of the files need to be RW/R/R. For some people the permissions are wrong after flashing so make sure they are right.


Some notable issues:

Double take: This was added on purpose to the velvet apk. It was necessary to add to allow search results when no card is available and to allow the notifications to work. You will see a card generated twice with a screen flash in between. One disadvantage is that it hinders the ability for auto-complete. By auto-complete for example: If you give a command such as to navigate, set an alarm, or play media such as an artist or song title, after the command you should see a blue progress bar loading. After loading it would automatically open the appropriate app (such as navigation or play music, ect.) and start the task. The double take hinders this and instead you get a clickable object to manually start the task. In some cases reported by another you can get auto-complete to work if you reboot or if you force close the google process. In this case if you only use the mic input without opening the Google Now screen it could possible work. Once you open up the Google Now screen it kills the ability. In some cases rebooting or force closing the google process may not work at all because it likely restarts its self automatically possibly due to reasons such as receiving a card in your notification bar. This may act differently on different devices.

Alarm gets set but doesn't trigger. I've noticed that when you ask to set an alarm google now will give you confirmation that the alarm was set. If you go into the alarm app I see it set and even checked, but it will not trigger. I notice that if I uncheck it then recheck it then it will trigger. So just be aware of this and don't trust it for something important.

Blank search results. Many times when searching you will not get any search results as it will just show a blank white results area. This only happens when there is no card to show and you expect browser results. This is easy to get around. Once you see that there are no results use a swipe up gestures and the results appear immediately.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Update 8/6/12: This one seems to be the most stable so far by many users. I am stilling testing it myself but it seems to be very good.

Instructions: You must have already used Option 1 or 2 in this thread first. Find the velvet apk you have currently in your system/app directory and rename it by adding .bak to it or you can delete the file all together. Download the new velvet apk below. You do not have to rename it. Just copy it to the system/app directory. After copy you must change the permissions of this file to RW/R/R. Then just reboot.

Thanks to reekotubbs for providing this-

Red mic with cards showing (no refresh needed)
No double take
No FC's (thanks to theos0o & Lenny_kano)
Offline dictation (thanks to Lenny_kano)
Auto-Launch
No white screen (thanks to mikeyxda)
No stretched words (thanks to mikeyxda)
If I missed anything let me know.

https://docs.google.com/open?id=0BzMJvNl_cG9KeHlXSk9CXzB0Z3M
https://www.dropbox.com/s/6zyxcvxvyplbe2h/Velvet-ReekoTubbs-3.apk
Velvet-ReekoTubbs-3.apk
Velvet-ReekoTubbs-3 - Velvet-ReekoTubbs-3.apk - Minus
 
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Yaish

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I installed it last night, it works great. I think it's still more of a novelty than a useful feature but it's better than the stock voice actions.

Sent from my DROID BIONIC using Android Central Forums
 

Yaish

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Search has been freezing as of late, making it almost unusable. It still works great for suggesting commutes, appointment notifications, and local weather. Hopefully there will be another release with better functionality.

Sent from my DROID BIONIC using Android Central Forums
 

cmgeek

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Re: Instructions: Google Now. Works on the Bionic ICS (Update 8/6

Worked pretty well. It's a neat feature that alerts me when traffic will be congested on the way home without me having to pull up Google maps every time before leaving home/office.