Kit Kat Rant #112
Google completely and royally screwed up on this and should be taken out back and spanked like a puppy that peed on the rug in front of you right after you just got finished cleaning it up from its former mess. Their programmer in charge a.k.a. the ***** who wrote and approved of this nightmare feels this file management system is much easier and cleaner to use than ........oh shall we say the same cut and paste method we've been using for the past 30 years!!!
Think of release 4.4.2 as the CORE MATH of android programming where you take something that worked perfect and f*ck it up in such a way that even Steven Hawkins has to stop and wonder how this could remotely be construed as a time saver. But I don't want to be too harsh yet so let's evaluate this thinking process to be fair: The Old Way - cut and paste (whambamthankyoumam) done and ready to use .... now The New Way - format sd card, install in phone, format sd card again, connect phone to laptop, get compatible file music, video, pic, ebook, doc, whatever (or convert to a compatible format), copy to phone (extra bs - 90% of the time this conflicts with windows so windows which can no longer read the phone (security of 4.4.2) assumes it needs to be converted to wmv or the user must chose no and copy the file to phone. Once done pick up the phone and go to the home screen, then press apps, then click the "my files" app, click all files, find your file and tag it, then go to the upper right pull down menu and click "move" an option screen of phone or sd card comes up, you chose sd card, in new screen chose a file or create folder to put your file in if there isn't one, then click the folder you just created, go to upper right corner and click "move here" press the back to the beginning to do the next and EVERY FILE THIS WAY. Then if you are lucky you'll never copy a bad formatted file (meaning one the phone doesn't like) because if you do the security causes a glitch that rewrites the files structure and doesn't allow for the card to be read any more (because it assumes the file is attempting to gain write access so it shuts that down). Message will come up then that says blank sd card or card errors with unsupported files, you can't remount the card or get rid of it. 80% of the time your computer will no longer read it and it requires reformatting. 20% of the time it trashes the card so bad you can no longer access it with any device or computer.
So dear readers: Does this really sound easier? This was done to millions of users without warning and the fix as Verizon tells me is at least 90 days away with lollipop. Every company is returning these phones and replacing them per Samsung's agreement to sell their product but THIS DOES NOT FIX IT, all it does is gives Samsung millions of phones back so they can pressure Google who started this mess to begin with to fix it. But, the best part is why? Why do this to something that worked perfect, Google's programmer in charge of the project claims it's not only easier as shown above vs the old way, he claims it's cleaner and more secure since any app can no longer write to the sd card anywhere it wants. It took away the permission a few crap apps no one ever used because we all knew this already (That they took advantage of your information a.k.a. Google and others) and made things like your sd card reader, your phone, weather apps, chat apps, picture apps, no longer allowed to write (save) to your sd card. Basically any app you want to have permission to the sd card you will need to duplicate every file for each app to read and write to their own personal folders, again what was this ahole thinking? But like the bad infomercial it's not over because when you reboot your phone there is a 80% to the bad and 20% to the good that the file structure will see those former files on the sd card as ones without permission and will deny you access to them and disable the sd card again.
The fix for now is to root your phone and change one line of software (easy to find on the net on how to do both) and that's it problem cured, security in place, and sunshine and daydreams again right, wrong! Rooting your phone voids the warranty meaning ANYTHING that goes wrong with it after that is on you even if the company does it. So why delay the fix if it's one line of code - MONEY!
Google apps like Google music, Google store, Google Play, Google +, Google Earth, Google, Chrome, Google Chat, G Mail, ANYTHING Google are made to run 24/7/365 and streaming if they could have it that way. Your cell company who makes the phone doesn't care they do that with the software because they make and sell phones so if Google want to write candy for the base software they are into it because hey they get all kinds of software you'll use on their phone for free. Your provider doesn't care if Google runs 24/7/365 and would LOVE it if they could stream it 24 hours a day, why? Data Fees!!!!! The bonus for Google is preventing other apps from writing to the sd card and gives them the edge and by doing so over time they will slowly convert you to they way they want you to use your phone, think of it as Facebook for your cell phone where they can control how you will use and view your content and the way you communicate.
Bottom line the more Google can prevent you from using the phone YOU paid for the more your choices are limited to using Google products, by using more Google products you use more data, not only in using them but because they run in the background to constantly update themselves they've now been programmed to infer with the way the phone even works if you turn them off!!! Kids this is a cash cow the sd folks are on the unexpected gravy boat at the end because the first thing you'll hear when calling any company customer service or tech people on this will be "have you a different sd card", "sd cards can go bad" yada yada yada heard them all. Naturally if you are like me and everyone else with this issue (as I said millions of people) you go out and by a new sd card thinking that will fix it but it doesn't, you may even replace the card several times with different manufacturers and all will perform the same due to the bad line of code in Kit Kat that Google wrote in the software to prevent other apps from having access to your sd card. The best customer support shut down for this problem (where they attempt to blame the customer for their mistakes) is "did you buy all your music, video, from the Google play-store, music, movies, etc? If you didn't and say no I copied them from my old card, old phone, laptop, computer etc you'll be told you can't see them because they were illegal or don't have the right copyright file imprint and other BS like that depending on how creative the customer service person is at bull**** and lying. Yet after threatening to drive your truck through the front of their major hub store in your area you'll finally get an honest person who will tell you there is a software issue with these phones and they may offer you a new one to make you happy just be aware as mentioned earlier it's NOT the phone but the software in it so you can get a new one everyday and it still won't work right with any sd card in it. FYI Even if you want to refer to an earlier software version like 4.2 or 4.3 which worked great you can't because 4.4.2. hardcodes as the original factory setting and even with a master reset just comes back on to reinstall the same problem again, why because Google changed the base file structure so the phone knows no other.
My thought instead of a class act suit is to oh maybe all of us storm Google and each one of us gets to give this genius programmer a swift yet hard kick in the *** and demand he pay for everyone's damage and time he's wasted or perhaps we can be cool and just call Google's upper management 24/7 until they release a fix. Even maybe go further and tie up every Line of communication going in or out of Google demanding this be fixed immediately, Type it in your Google search "Google stop kit kating around with us and give the sd card permission".
I just got offer my 5th Galaxy 4S today (which is like putting your hand on the hot stove when it's on to see if it's hot) my reply back to that was "great but if all the phones now have the same update won't it have the same issues"? Customer Service Supervisor "yes but you'll have a new phone" Me "I just got this new one from the store Thursday why do I want to trade it for a new reconditioned phone with the same issues" Customer Service Supervisor "Because it's a new phone" Me " What part of Thursday ("as in yesterday") didn't you understand? Customer Service "Sir you don't have to be snippy, I a trying to help you". Me "you know what think about what you just asked me and call me back Monday" . Makes appointment.
So tired of getting screwed by corporations, where the heck did I leave those silly truck keys!!!
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