We're NOT getting ginger

[RIMMAN]

Thanks for answering all of these questions!

It would seem that there is only one 'pain point' -- re-installing and re-configuring all of my apps after rooting the first time. Is that correct?

Well, sort of. With Titanium, you can batch that task so it does it all at once in one fell swoop. It's a very customizable app. You can restore your apps one by one or all of them together at once. You can re-install the app plus its data, or just the app itself.

It's not big of a pain honestly.

 

[CGWaters]

What I mean is, Titanium won't help me install all of the apps that were on my phone, pre-root, right? So after rooting the first time, it seems as though I'd have to go through the pain of installing and configuring all of my apps manually. Or am I missing something?

 

[ShinyTop]

I am ambivalent about Gingerbread. I was so eager for Froyo and then Verizon added apps I cannot uninstall or even turn off without rooting. The freedom of Android is tempered by the tyranny of Verizon.

 

[Wanda]

What I mean is, Titanium won't help me install all of the apps that were on my phone, pre-root, right? So after rooting the first time, it seems as though I'd have to go through the pain of installing and configuring all of my apps manually. Or am I missing something?

Rooting only does one thing and one thing only grant you root access to your phone. That's it. Your current ROM (standard Froyo) will still be intact, no changes, no apps lost. The only thing that will be added to your phone is the Superuser app.

After you've rooted, you can then make a Nandroid backup. In fact, after you root, I would do that first no questions asked. If you don't know how to go to recovery to do it, just do a search on AC, ask someone here, or google it. Its a very easy process once you know the steps and will save you a lot of heartache and pain.

After you've made a nandroid of stock Froyo then you can download Titanium and do your app backup.

After that, start flashing whatever ROM you want to try. Your Nandroid is there to get you back to where you started in case the ROM you choose isn't what you like or something goes wrong. Just like DINC said, when you restore your Nandroid it reverts back to the snapshot it made like nothing ever happened...all apps that were there when you made it will be there..any progress made in a game (angry birds) will be the same as when you made the back up.

It really is an easy process to flash ROM's. It only takes a bit of time to reset up all your apps and settings and with tools like Titanium, it only takes about 30-45 minutes and you're all back and running the latest and greatest. As I write this I'm using a ROM that is Gingerbread based and utilizes Sense 3.0...if I were to wait on Verizon for that sort of update I'd be waiting for the Sun to stop shining.

 

[davidnc]

What I mean is, Titanium won't help me install all of the apps that were on my phone, pre-root, right? So after rooting the first time, it seems as though I'd have to go through the pain of installing and configuring all of my apps manually. Or am I missing something?

After you rooted you made a backup of your apps with titanium backup I assume.
You need to have checked in the application settings, unknown sources and also under developement, usb debugging.
From there once in the titanium backup app push menu button then you will see a batch button click that.
From there you can restore either all your apps or the missing apps whichever you wish.
A list will pop up in a new window letting you select which apps you want to restore. Hope this helps answer some of your questions

sent using TaPaTaLk

 

[RIMMAN]

What I mean is, Titanium won't help me install all of the apps that were on my phone, pre-root, right? So after rooting the first time, it seems as though I'd have to go through the pain of installing and configuring all of my apps manually. Or am I missing something?

Yes, Titanium will help you install all the apps that were on your phone pre root, provided you do a Titanium backup before you flash over with a new ROM. Rooting in and of itself will not get rid of anything. It just allows you root access to the OS's system files. It's flashing ROM's that wipes everything.

Get Titanium, perform a backup using Titanium of all apps on your phone, root, flash ROM, download Titanium again, reinstall the apps you still want all at once using Titanium.

The only thing that will not work i believe is if you try to reinstall an HTC app when using a AOSP ROM, but anything you have downloaded from Amazon or the market place will be fine for re-installing using Titanium.

Damn, the experts beat me to it. Thanks Wanda/David

 

[RIMMAN]

I am ambivalent about Gingerbread. I was so eager for Froyo and then Verizon added apps I cannot uninstall or even turn off without rooting. The freedom of Android is tempered by the tyranny of Verizon.

That's why you root, to break the "tyranny"

 

[Wanda]

I am ambivalent about Gingerbread. I was so eager for Froyo and then Verizon added apps I cannot uninstall or even turn off without rooting. The freedom of Android is tempered by the tyranny of Verizon.

And thats why you should root your phone. When I rooted a year ago the first thing I did was delete City ID, all the VZ crap, and all the other garbage Verizon added that I will never use.

Gingerbread is a nice upgrade but it's mostly backend upgrades that the end user doesn't really see. I mean, do I really need the NY Times bookmark added automatically to my browser....hell no.

Root the phone. Even if you don't flash a custom ROM, you can at least make a complete backup of your current ROM (Stock Froyo I assume) and then delete what ever VZ garbage you wish.

(side note, if you do root and start deleting...I wouldn't mess with friendstream...it can do nasty things if deleted...best to leave twitter, facebook and friendstream alone)

 

[Wanda]

That's why you root, to break the "tyranny"

EXACTLY!!!!!!!

 

[CGWaters]

Thanks, everyone! (And sorry for 'commandeering' this thread.)

I thought that rooting the phone would wipe it, too. My mistake.

If I use Titanium as described above, is there any need to use Nandroid?

 

[davidnc]

Thanks, everyone! (And sorry for 'commandeering' this thread.)

I thought that rooting the phone would wipe it, too. My mistake.

If I use Titanium as described above, is there any need to use Nandroid?

Yes as Wanda mentioned above its best to make a nandroid backup of your phone use titanium just to backup and restore your apps
A nandroid backup makes a total backup of your phones system

Asking questions is all good as you can see when the answers come some times its a bunch at once haha. Thanks to all,, as you can see from DINC, Wanda and myself all pitching in answers Like they say when it rains it pours kinda thing on answers.
sent using TaPaTaLk

 

[Wanda]

If I use Titanium as described above, is there any need to use Nandroid?

Think of it like this. A Nandroid is a system function built into your phone. Its not an app that you download. What it does is make a complete, and I mean right down to the wallpaper you were using, complete backup of your device. Should something ever go wrong, ROM act up or you just plain don't like it, you can restore your Nandroid backup. After the restore process (it takes like 15-20 minutes) your phone is magically transported back in time to when you made the nandroid...everything is just as you left it.

Titanium only backs up apps and they're associated data...not system type stuff like the wallpaper your using, or what ringtone you're using. Strictly apps. Its convenient when flashing ROMs because after you've flashed, you can go to the market and re-download Titanium and do a batch restore. Titanium stores its information on your SD card which is unaffected by flashing ROM's, so after you've re-downloaded the app, it reads the data it previously made on your SD and then can go about restoring all your apps.

Be very careful which apps you restore with app data as its well documented to cause problems going from ROM to ROM.

If you're only goal is to root and then delete bloatware this is all stuff you'll most likely never mess with.

 

[CGWaters]

Thanks for the explanation regarding Nandroid. So if Nandroid is used *after* the phone is rooted, is it possible to not only restore the original ROM but also "unroot" the phone, too?

>>Be very careful which apps you restore with app data as its well documented to cause problems going from ROM to ROM.

You lost me on that. Can you elaborate? What does it mean to 'restore with app data'?

 

[RIMMAN]

Thanks for the explanation regarding Nandroid. So if Nandroid is used *after* the phone is rooted, is it possible to not only restore the original ROM but also "unroot" the phone, too?

>>Be very careful which apps you restore with app data as its well documented to cause problems going from ROM to ROM.

You lost me on that. Can you elaborate? What does it mean to 'restore with app data'?

* First off, yes you can use a nandroid to restore the original ROm, but it will not unroot your phone. It is possible to unroot your devise, but it is a totally different process.

* Restoring apps + their data when going from one ROM to another ROM could be an issue based on a few things, Sense or AOSP based ROM as well as where one ROM chooses to store an apps data based on a different location on a different ROM

* With Titanium there are 2 basic options. Restore app only which does just that, it restores the app only and no saved data you might have generated when using it, or you can restore app + data which does just that, restores the app plus the saved data you generated while using that app (saved games, locations, search history etc....)

 

[CGWaters]

OK, thanks. I figured that's what was meant by 'restoring with app data'. Is the problem you describe still a problem if one stays with ROMs from just one source; e.g., Cyanogenmod?

 

[Wanda]

OK, thanks. I figured that's what was meant by 'restoring with app data'. Is the problem you describe still a problem if one stays with ROMs from just one source; e.g., Cyanogenmod?

I've found if you stick to Sense based ROM's or stick to AOSP ROM"s (CM7 for instance) its not usually a problem. Its when you go from Sense based to AOSP that it really can cause issues like force closes.

The only apps I find I really need the data to restore as well is Angry Birds and Cardstar. Angry Birds doesn't like going from Sense to a non-Sense AOSP ROM. Others haven't had that problem but I did....lucky me I guess.

 

[CGWaters]

I've been reviewing the threads to see what's involved with unrooting. That seems to be the most difficult part of this entire process!

If I were to revert to the official ROM, under what circumstances would it be necessary to unroot?

 

[draken]

You would need to unroot if you were to make a warranty claim or need to take the phone to Verizon for service.

 

[CGWaters]

My device is already out of warranty; however, I *do* pay for Asurion insurance. Would the device being rooted affect my ability to submit a claim?

I took my original Dinc to my local VZW when it started spontaneously rebooting; they replaced it on the spot. It sounds like they wouldn't have done that had it been rooted.

 

[PvilleComp]

Assurion does not care if it's rooted or not.