Android Market Hacked (Kinda Sorta)

[phandroid]

Android Market comes with a $400 All You Can Eat Buffet.Anybody can buy an Android Dev Phone 1 which is the Developer Version of the T-Mobile G1 with Root Access - it costs $399. Keep in mind that after you buy an application on the Android Market you have 30 days to return it. So [...]

More...

 

[justjimjpc]

Paid apps are being stored in special folders and can not be backed up on the SD card ... just the same as pre-loaded apps.

So are we to assume that Google is maintaining these special folders in the "cloud" somewhere so they can be reinstalled in the event your phone is damaged/lost/stolen ... ???

This would also go to indicate that Google will NEVER allow these apps to be installed and run from the SDCard... (for a non-rooted phone) ...

It might still be possible to store your free apps and third-party apps on the SDCard and run them from there to help with the memory issue ... Doesn't sound like this is a likely senario that Google will follow ...

For me this is serious limit to the future value of the G1...
It makes no sense to fatally limit/cripple the phone to this degree.

 

[drustvold]

Ok, so maybe the apps can't ever be installed onto an SD card (unless the developers don't care to enforce it) but there's not reason why the program can't be in the phones memory and the rest of the contents stored on an SD card (like databases and images. i.e. a camera app saves pictures to the SD card. No reason a game couldn't save its contents to the SD card and load them into memory when you launch it).

 

[jflynn0]

This is a serious problem because no one wants to be limited to the number of apps on there device. Also what about the replacement of lost apps. Google needs to fix this shortcoming. I like my G1 but that part of it sucks

 

[SK.]

This would also go to indicate that Google will NEVER allow these apps to be installed and run from the SDCard... (for a non-rooted phone) ...

*IF* this does turn out to be the case then it will finish my brief affair with Android. I like the platform but the current handsets do not have enough internal storage to be considered a practical device for applications that in all eventuality will become more space demanding.

If in the future handsets start to appear with 8GB internal then I may consider returning but as it is, and I have already stated on another thread I will not be buying any applications until the storage situation is sorted. And I will not invest in another Android handset either.

 

[Goooooooooogle]

It's early days for Android, this'll be fixed soon.

 

[justjimjpc]

*IF* this does turn out to be the case then it will finish my brief affair with Android. I like the platform but the current handsets do not have enough internal storage to be considered a practical device for applications that in all eventuality will become more space demanding.

If in the future handsets start to appear with 8GB internal then I may consider returning but as it is, and I have already stated on another thread I will not be buying any applications until the storage situation is sorted. And I will not invest in another Android handset either.

My feelings exactly .... these feelings should be posted to Google and to the Market ... this is a serious blow to all the developers until a suitalbe platform appears...

 

[SK.]

It's early days for Android, this'll be fixed soon.

Based on what?

 

[Goooooooooogle]

Based on what?

The fact that paid apps are expected soon and that this news is public.

Also based on the fact that a firmware update is also expected soon.

 

[SK.]

The fact that paid apps are expected soon and that this news is public.

Also based on the fact that a firmware update is also expected soon.

the same firmware that hasn't made any mention of application storage on the SD in the branch on the Android site?

 

[Goooooooooogle]

the same firmware that hasn't made any mention of application storage on the SD in the branch on the Android site?

After Google see this they will probably add a quick patch for now then get better copy protection done later.

Of course, I have no idea weather this will happen as I don't work for Google, but I assume they'll fix it.

 

[Banner]

@SK
I think Google just needs to make one 'memory-swap' app that uses a dedicated part of the SD-card as excess internal memory to solve your issue...

 

[justjimjpc]

@SK
I think Google just needs to make one 'memory-swap' app that uses a dedicated part of the SD-card as excess internal memory to solve your issue...

I think Google has taken the wrong approach by locking down the root .... MicroSoft doesn't lock the registry ... and the average user doesn't trash his computer...

So for those that might say Google doesn't care about people rooting phones because Google ONLY wants to protect the normal user from bricking their phone ... it is a reason that makes most of us laugh ... Google is being no less controlling than Apple ...

Google could have easily provided protection to prevent accidental damage ... Even Vista asks the administrator of a machine for permision to perform many actions ....

On the Idea that google is protecting Software developers by preventing backups ... there are better ways to do that .. where every Paid app would intially mate itself with the phone number & gmail account it is being installed on and as a follow up then your registration becomes an issue between the buyer & app-seller ... Google is already not going to be in the middle of appAuthor-&-Buyer issues...

So Yes google and Tmobile will make a quick bundle of money and are in effect saying "To Hell with their Founding Base of Users" ....

But I for one, will be very careful and doubtful of Android on my next choice ... and will not recommend this platform to others ...

 

[drustvold]

Also what about the replacement of lost apps.

Purchased apps are tied to your account/sim card. If you delete an app you can re-download it for free.

Open the market, click on Menu, and then click Help. It will take you to a page that show how the market works. Which is... http://market.android.com/support/

 

[sw20matt]

ok so can someone post up the apk file for others to download?

 

[twflys]

can a developer come up with a program that saves everything to the SDcard? i seriously love this phone and am willing to fill up my 16gb card with applications.... i hope google doesnt cripple themselves here.

 

[devolio]

There's a few bits of disinformation in here that are starting to get to me.

1) Applications being installed to the SD card is coming. Unless most of the higher ups in #android are wrong (including googlers and JesusFreke,) Google is planning on adding it. Add to that, if you need the extra space, you can move them and use them from the SD card yourself.

2) Backing up your applications and getting them again once you reset your phone is just as easy as it was before. Sure, you may not be able to do it one click like you used to, but you can still back them up, you can still reload them all, you can still redownload them all using the market.

I don't see what the issue is here, aside from (surprise, surprise) their 'copy protection' doesn't do much of anything.

 

[justjimjpc]

There's a few bits of disinformation in here that are starting to get to me.

1) Applications being installed to the SD card is coming. Unless most of the higher ups in #android are wrong (including googlers and JesusFreke,) Google is planning on adding it. Add to that, if you need the extra space, you can move them and use them from the SD card yourself.

2) Backing up your applications and getting them again once you reset your phone is just as easy as it was before. Sure, you may not be able to do it one click like you used to, but you can still back them up, you can still reload them all, you can still redownload them all using the market.

I don't see what the issue is here, aside from (surprise, surprise) their 'copy protection' doesn't do much of anything.

Well, I hope you are right about the coming of apps to the SD card ... but still doubt that paid apps will be included ... Paid apps can not be backed up nor do paid app updates work yet .... even developers cant buy their own apps ... so there are more and more wrinkles to hopefully be ironed out...

But some of us are still not buying anymore paid apps until things drastically improve ... hopefully google and tmo arent doing the snatch the quick cash and run on to the next phone ...

 

[devolio]

Well, I hope you are right about the coming of apps to the SD card ... but still doubt that paid apps will be included ... Paid apps can not be backed up nor do paid app updates work yet .... even developers cant buy their own apps ... so there are more and more wrinkles to hopefully be ironed out...

But some of us are still not buying anymore paid apps until things drastically improve ... hopefully google and tmo arent doing the snatch the quick cash and run on to the next phone ...

Like I said, I've seen quite a bit of talk about the apps to sdcard issue. Even JesusFreke himself doesn't want to release an 'apps to sdcard' version because of two things - google is doing it, and it's somewhat hacky.

I still don't get what you mean they can't be backed up?

 

[justjimjpc]

Like I said, I've seen quite a bit of talk about the apps to sdcard issue. Even JesusFreke himself doesn't want to release an 'apps to sdcard' version because of two things - google is doing it, and it's somewhat hacky.

I still don't get what you mean they can't be backed up?

I mean the directory were paid apps are stored is locked and an App like ASTRO can not copy it to the SDCard ... so if you have root you may not see the problem ... but the majority of users are not rooting their phones...

 

[devolio]

Maybe astro can't, but it still works from a terminal (without root) from what I hear... just because a GUI based application can't do it doesn't mean it can't be done.

backup your paid apps to the sdcard

cp /data/app-private /sdcard

 

[justjimjpc]

Maybe astro can't, but it still works from a terminal (without root) from what I hear... just because a GUI based application can't do it doesn't mean it can't be done.

backup your paid apps to the sdcard

cp /data/app-private /sdcard

tried: cd /data
err : opendir failed. permission denied ....

tried : cp /data/app-private /sdcard
err : cp permission denied

I am using the terminal Emulator that I have had since just after phone launch

any other suggestions ...

 

[devolio]

It looks like I stand corrected, maybe you can't do it without root. Tried the cat trick?

ie: if you wanted to copy someapp.apk (you need to know the apk name in advance)

cat /data/app-private/someapp.apk > /sdcard/someapp.apk

 

[justjimjpc]

It looks like I stand corrected, maybe you can't do it without root. Tried the cat trick?

ie: if you wanted to copy someapp.apk (you need to know the apk name in advance)

cat /data/app-private/someapp.apk > /sdcard/someapp.apk

I tried your "cat" suggestion above with :

cat /data/app-private/com.froogloid.android.gspot.apk > /sdcard/com.froogloid.android.gspot.apk

return states :
/data/app-private/com.froogloid.android.gspot.apk: permission denied

... I think as long as google has made this a private directory I will not have any access to it except by running the app ...

... open to try other things ??? ...

 

[devolio]

Well, my points being, you can always back up your apps if you have root (one of many perks.)

And, you can always re-download your purchased apps I'm assuming by using the same google account.