• After 15+ years, we've made a big change: Android Forums is now Early Bird Club. Learn more here.

Help NEED to replace the "People" app - PLEASE!

Dignan17

Well-Known Member
Jan 26, 2010
111
13
I'm sorry, but HTC really f'ed up their apps. Why can't they just leave Android alone and give us the plain-vanilla experience? I have never seen any of these manufacturers offer anything that was worth the added confusion that comes from the crapware they install on these phones.

Sorry, after the day I had, I needed a little rant. You'll see why.

I have a client who just purchased an HTC Thunderbolt for her business phone. Her email is handled by an Exchange server, and while it's all set up properly and she's getting her email, calendar, etc, she's having the weirdest contacts issue.

See, she has thousands of contacts (like 7K). The phone synced almost all of these, but seems to have missed most of her most-used contacts. Plus, when a contact IS in the list, it seems that the "People" app completely dismisses random bits of information, changing which bits from contact to contact. For example, one contact will be missing a phone number or two, another will be missing a mailing address, and not a single contact with multiple email addresses shows both addresses. It's the worst contacts app I've ever seen.

On SOME of the contacts that don't show up on the phone, when she searches for the contacts' names, she gets an option to "search using the company directory" or something, which then shows the contact (but usually missing some the info I've mentioned). She's then given the option to add this contact to "People." This is completely unacceptable, because she doesn't know which contacts are in the address book on her phone and which aren't, so she would have to try calling the contact, then go through this ridiculous process only to get them onto the phone with incomplete info.

Suffice it to say, this is a complete mess. It's also entirely HTC's fault. I set up her account on my very own Nexus One, and after about an hour her entire contact list EVERY SINGLE CONTACT, with EVERY PIECE OF INFO had synced. There was absolutely no missing info, all email addresses, phone numbers, mailing addresses, etc were available in the regular Android "Contacts" app, which is far cleaner and easier to use than the terrible "People" app.

As an aside, the dialer app on HTC Sense is simply awful. It's mind-boggling that HTC refuses to let you SEARCH for a friggin contact from the dialer, and instead forces you TO USE A T9-LIKE METHOD TO SEARCH ON A MODERN SMARTPHONE! I'm sorry, I'm just extremely pissed at HTC right now...

Anyway, I'm trying to find a solution to this problem. My client is going to have to return this phone and get SOMEthing else, probably an iPhone, if we can't get this working. Sadly, HTC made rooting the Thunderbolt impractical and extremely difficult, because of course they know best and couldn't possibly let users choose not to use their POS software.

Please, I'm really in need of some assistance at the moment. I'd like to keep this client happy and get her a working contacts list. I don't know if there's an app that can do this that can simply be placed over Sense, but I'd love to hear about it.

Thanks.
 
I'm sorry, but HTC really f'ed up their apps. Why can't they just leave Android alone and give us the plain-vanilla experience? I have never seen any of these manufacturers offer anything that was worth the added confusion that comes from the crapware they install on these phones.

Sorry, after the day I had, I needed a little rant. You'll see why.

I have a client who just purchased an HTC Thunderbolt for her business phone. Her email is handled by an Exchange server, and while it's all set up properly and she's getting her email, calendar, etc, she's having the weirdest contacts issue.

See, she has thousands of contacts (like 7K). The phone synced almost all of these, but seems to have missed most of her most-used contacts. Plus, when a contact IS in the list, it seems that the "People" app completely dismisses random bits of information, changing which bits from contact to contact. For example, one contact will be missing a phone number or two, another will be missing a mailing address, and not a single contact with multiple email addresses shows both addresses. It's the worst contacts app I've ever seen.

On SOME of the contacts that don't show up on the phone, when she searches for the contacts' names, she gets an option to "search using the company directory" or something, which then shows the contact (but usually missing some the info I've mentioned). She's then given the option to add this contact to "People." This is completely unacceptable, because she doesn't know which contacts are in the address book on her phone and which aren't, so she would have to try calling the contact, then go through this ridiculous process only to get them onto the phone with incomplete info.

Suffice it to say, this is a complete mess. It's also entirely HTC's fault. I set up her account on my very own Nexus One, and after about an hour her entire contact list EVERY SINGLE CONTACT, with EVERY PIECE OF INFO had synced. There was absolutely no missing info, all email addresses, phone numbers, mailing addresses, etc were available in the regular Android "Contacts" app, which is far cleaner and easier to use than the terrible "People" app.

As an aside, the dialer app on HTC Sense is simply awful. It's mind-boggling that HTC refuses to let you SEARCH for a friggin contact from the dialer, and instead forces you TO USE A T9-LIKE METHOD TO SEARCH ON A MODERN SMARTPHONE! I'm sorry, I'm just extremely pissed at HTC right now...

Anyway, I'm trying to find a solution to this problem. My client is going to have to return this phone and get SOMEthing else, probably an iPhone, if we can't get this working. Sadly, HTC made rooting the Thunderbolt impractical and extremely difficult, because of course they know best and couldn't possibly let users choose not to use their POS software.

Please, I'm really in need of some assistance at the moment. I'd like to keep this client happy and get her a working contacts list. I don't know if there's an app that can do this that can simply be placed over Sense, but I'd love to hear about it.

Thanks.


Lol. Dude, I would recommend root, but seeing as though its someone else's phone...I'm not sure if there are many options. Sense sucks. I run GOlauncher with the spiffy asop contacts list and dialer. It works better than sense ever did imo.
 
Upvote 0
Thanks for the response. It's funny, I was searching for contacts apps and had stumbled across "GO Contacts." I might give that a shot.

It just kills me that these manufacturers feel the need to differentiate themselves, but then they go and screw things up like this. The stock app handles what I'm trying to do PERFECTLY and does so in a clean, easy to use manner. UGH!
 
Upvote 0
BTW, rooting is SIMPLE. I did it my second shot, but that was because I forgot to fix permissions and figured I did the whole thing wrong. If you know how to install an OS, you can root.
I do, but I was under the impression it was a pretty labored process. It's certainly not like the SuperOneClick installs I've seen out there. Do you have a good link to a recent guide?

It's possible I could convince her to let me take a crack at rooting it. I'd certainly like to try it so I could get a little more recent rooting experience. The last phone I rooted was my old G1, and that was like 18 months ago... :)
 
Upvote 0
[Updated: 3/26]Easyroot + S-Off [Version 1.6.3.11] - xda-developers
^ Dumb ass easy mode for rooting. Follow the directions in the PDF document after reading the instructions. Theres no possible way for it to be any easier than this that I know of. lol.

http://androidforums.com/thunderbolt-all-things-root/310708-thunderbolt-rom-list.html
^There you go. This list will give you all ROM/Kernel info you need. Remember, the search button is your friend.

And make sure to flash the new Radio in as well.
 
Upvote 0
That's what I'm saying, I had no idea how to tell if that was a good one. Frankly, it's not a good way to name the thing. I'd like to have confidence that my phone's OS is going to be as close to rock solid as I can reasonably expect. Naming it like some hacker BBS isn't a good way to instill that confidence in me ;)

I'll have to think about this.

Would these replacement ROMs even give me the stock proprietary Android apps anyway? Isn't that not legit?
 
Upvote 0
That's what I'm saying, I had no idea how to tell if that was a good one. Frankly, it's not a good way to name the thing. I'd like to have confidence that my phone's OS is going to be as close to rock solid as I can reasonably expect. Naming it like some hacker BBS isn't a good way to instill that confidence in me ;)

I'll have to think about this.

Would these replacement ROMs even give me the stock proprietary Android apps anyway? Isn't that not legit?

You need to read. All the information you need has been laid out at your feet.
 
Upvote 0
You need to read. All the information you need has been laid out at your feet.
Sorry, but that statement is what's wrong with the rooting community. XDA is great and all, but there's so much confusion out there for people getting into it, and no clear idea of what the best options are.

And frankly, the people who are really into the rooting and ROM communities don't seem to understand that unless you devote an inordinate amount of time to the practice, it's just not clear. I'm sorry to say it, but I'm trying to run my own business here, and aside from taking a break to eat dinner and watch a couple TV shows tonight, I'm here at my computer until 3am trying to wrap up my work day before I get up at 7 to start it right back up again and put in another 18 hour day.

So sorry, but I can't read the vast amount of stuff that's out there. It's not nearly as clear and easy to sort out as you might feel it is.

And I'm looking at that Virus ROM, and frankly it's something I'd never put on the phone of a customer of mine. I'm looking for something stripped down and as close to stock Gingerbread or Froyo that I can get, not something that looks like that. Too bad Cyanogen isn't stable, or I'd go with it.

Thanks for the links and I'll run the possibilities past my client. Looks like we might lose another user to iOS.
 
Upvote 0
Sorry, but that statement is what's wrong with the rooting community. XDA is great and all, but there's so much confusion out there for people getting into it, and no clear idea of what the best options are.

And frankly, the people who are really into the rooting and ROM communities don't seem to understand that unless you devote an inordinate amount of time to the practice, it's just not clear. I'm sorry to say it, but I'm trying to run my own business here, and aside from taking a break to eat dinner and watch a couple TV shows tonight, I'm here at my computer until 3am trying to wrap up my work day before I get up at 7 to start it right back up again and put in another 18 hour day.

So sorry, but I can't read the vast amount of stuff that's out there. It's not nearly as clear and easy to sort out as you might feel it is.

And I'm looking at that Virus ROM, and frankly it's something I'd never put on the phone of a customer of mine. I'm looking for something stripped down and as close to stock Gingerbread or Froyo that I can get, not something that looks like that. Too bad Cyanogen isn't stable, or I'd go with it.

Thanks for the links and I'll run the possibilities past my client. Looks like we might lose another user to iOS.


I shoulda known I was being trolled....damn ios fanboys...>.>
 
Upvote 0
Wow, seriously? I'm a troll? Way to prove exactly what I was saying.

It's weird that I'm a troll because I think HTC has ruined the operating system that I love so much.

Thanks for those first couple links, and no thanks for the rest of the attitude. Of course, what did I expect from someone with such a juvenile handle? Grow up, kid.
 
Upvote 0
Wow, seriously? I'm a troll? Way to prove exactly what I was saying.

It's weird that I'm a troll because I think HTC has ruined the operating system that I love so much.

Thanks for those first couple links, and no thanks for the rest of the attitude. Of course, what did I expect from someone with such a juvenile handle? Grow up, kid.


I guess the old adage is correct. You can lead a horse to water, but you cant make them drink. Youre complaining because everythings not laid out for you to just cherry pick your answers. You claim to have no time, but have time to watch some tv shows. Well, I know that Im able to divide my attention between the two, however thats easy for someone thats actually coming here to ask serious questions. If this is a client that you actually care to keep, this is one of those things that is included in any type of customer service. If its not something that your company offers, dont put that out there to fix.

The reason I called you a fan boy, is because of the way you come across. For this exact quote.

"Sorry, but that statement is what's wrong with the rooting community. XDA is great and all, but there's so much confusion out there for people getting into it, and no clear idea of what the best options are."

First, this isnt XDA. Second, theres nothing wrong with any portion of what I had said at that point. You dont like that I told you to read? Well, seriously too bad. You were asking questions that could EASILY be answered within the FIRST post of the thread. I dont see anything wrong with the rooting community. I know theyve always lied and said theres no such thing as a stupid question, but there are such things as stupid questions. Mainly when youre pointed at the answer and you still ask them.

I said to read because you need to. I gave you links to all of the info you would need. If you were asking SPECIFIC questions that would be one thing, but youre asking what the best is. Well, heres the easy answer: Its what you think it is. You should never have brought up rooting if you couldnt take the time to put into it. Its not an Icrap. Theres no sheeple mode on these phones.

Like I said though, I should have known I was being trolled.
 
  • Like
Reactions: parson33
Upvote 0
Sorry, but that statement is what's wrong with the rooting community. XDA is great and all, but there's so much confusion out there for people getting into it, and no clear idea of what the best options are.

And frankly, the people who are really into the rooting and ROM communities don't seem to understand that unless you devote an inordinate amount of time to the practice, it's just not clear. I'm sorry to say it, but I'm trying to run my own business here, and aside from taking a break to eat dinner and watch a couple TV shows tonight, I'm here at my computer until 3am trying to wrap up my work day before I get up at 7 to start it right back up again and put in another 18 hour day.

So sorry, but I can't read the vast amount of stuff that's out there. It's not nearly as clear and easy to sort out as you might feel it is.

I'm gonna to agree with him here. I have been wanting to root my phone but everytime I get the nerve up to try it I read one post somewhere about problems form it and I chicken out.
 
Upvote 0
I'm gonna to agree with him here. I have been wanting to root my phone but everytime I get the nerve up to try it I read one post somewhere about problems form it and I chicken out.


It's simple man. When I first got my bolt I was super apprehensive about rooting, but with the method that I had posted it was super simple. I've yet to read a "help I've bricked my phone" thread that was caused when people followed directions. In the rooting method I posted, there's a pdf file that will give you step by step how to do it. If you follow it, you'll do it first shot. If you run into any issues, feel free to private message me and ill help you.:)
 
Upvote 0
No root needed.
Get touchdown for exchange. It works perfectly. Notes even sync.
My company is using exchange 2010 and touchdown on my tb works perfectly. It also does html emails. The native email clients never worked as well as touchdown on any of the Android devices I used.

It also supports exchange policies if they are enabled.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Dignan17
Upvote 0
No root needed.
Get touchdown for exchange. It works perfectly. Notes even sync.
My company is using exchange 2010 and touchdown on my tb works perfectly. It also does html emails. The native email clients never worked as well as touchdown on any of the Android devices I used.

It also supports exchange policies if they are enabled.
Thanks, buddy! I'll definitely give that a try. It's not the prettiest app in the world, but neither are Sense's apps.

I'll be installing this and a new dialer to replace the horrible one that comes with Sense. It boggles my mind that they insist users use something akin to T9 on a smartphone in 2011.
 
Upvote 0
I agree with the way they chose to 'search' for contacts. I had to dig into my brain and remember how I texted with my damned LG Chocolate! No idea why that's even needed....
Indeed. I wouldn't mind as much, except that when you press the search key you don't get a handy search box, you get instructions on how you MUST use the number keys to search for your contact. That's just poor design.
 
Upvote 0
[Updated: 3/26]Easyroot + S-Off [Version 1.6.3.11] - xda-developers
^ Dumb ass easy mode for rooting. Follow the directions in the PDF document after reading the instructions. Theres no possible way for it to be any easier than this that I know of. lol.

http://androidforums.com/thunderbolt-all-things-root/310708-thunderbolt-rom-list.html
^There you go. This list will give you all ROM/Kernel info you need. Remember, the search button is your friend.

And make sure to flash the new Radio in as well.


If the OP has already received the OTA update, the above Easyroot probably won't work. Your link cautions that it only works with certain firmware versions.
 
  • Like
Reactions: McLabia
Upvote 0
If the OP has already received the OTA update, the above Easyroot probably won't work. Your link cautions that it only works with certain firmware versions.


Good point, I forgot about that portion of things. Im not sure if that would work on any phone with the OTA now. I only did the radio update on my phone, been waiting on Virus to update Airborne.
 
Upvote 0
That's what I'm saying, I had no idea how to tell if that was a good one. Frankly, it's not a good way to name the thing. I'd like to have confidence that my phone's OS is going to be as close to rock solid as I can reasonably expect. Naming it like some hacker BBS isn't a good way to instill that confidence in me ;)

I'll have to think about this.

Would these replacement ROMs even give me the stock proprietary Android apps anyway? Isn't that not legit?
You want to know which ones are the best ones? You flash many different roms and see which one you like and best fits your needs. With my droid 1 I MUST OF FLASHED 7 TO 10 different roms before I fell in love with Elite Projects. While many people said cynogen was the best . I found I didnt like the lay out.

No one knows the best rom out there. It comes to user preference. Maybe the Iphone would be a better fit.

Made me laugh though not flashing a rom because it said virus on it. Classic. :p
 
Upvote 0

BEST TECH IN 2023

We've been tracking upcoming products and ranking the best tech since 2007. Thanks for trusting our opinion: we get rewarded through affiliate links that earn us a commission and we invite you to learn more about us.

Smartphones