Root Got N4-unlocked and rooted

[zuben el genub]

Got most stuff reinstalled and customized. So far so good. Phone wasn't the new update. The download is sitting there bugging me. I'm in no hurry for it.

Now looking for another ROM. I don't need or want all the stuff in Paranoid. I'm familiar with CM. Are there any fairly simple stable ROMS? I don't need themes. I just do my own pics as wallpaper.

Most of the junk on the phone is disabled. No NOW, location, etc.

The phone is opening and dealing with my large DB apps really well, which is why. I bought it.
Any suggestions?
Thanks

 

[desarenezitic]

Do you need a custom ROM? I mean if the phone is doing all you need and your only requirement seems to be own pics as wallpaper. If you state what else you need then people may be able to make better suggestions.

 

[zuben el genub]

I don't want updates from anyone forced. I'd rather read about them and wait until all the bugs are out. Some other articles said the 4.2.2 was no big deal - except it messed up some radios. Been burned by some Windows crap and learned my lesson.
Plus I just disabled 7/10ths of Google's junk and I don't want it back. I just want to find a ROM I can live with, get it straightened out, and leave it alone.

With Cyanogenmod, I had to go look for updates, but usually they were pretty thorough in saying what was in the file.

I don't auto update apps, either. I updated one, and I just didn't like the update. Got it back in original form, and it's staying that way. I usually look on the computer first anyway. Too hard to find out all about the update on the phone.

I don't care about LTE - TMO doesn't have it.

 

[desarenezitic]

Well if you're rooted and have a custom recovery you won't get Google OTA updates, I believe. 4.2.2 is a great update for battery life alone but obviously there were issues with broken sensors, I'm running a custom ROM anyway so just waited for my ROM to update to 4.2.2 so can't comment on the official release.
If you juts disabled what you call 'Google's junk' (what you call junk others will call treasure) then I think as installing custom ROMs will require a factory reset and flashing GAPPS then you have to do that all again.

Some ROMs show what's in the updates better than others so that's a preference.

Apps from the Play Store tend to detail what's in an update before you accept it.

I'm in the UK and don't have LTE so not worried either.

 

[new optimus]

I like cm10.1 it can be changed up to do what each person wants.
Like you I dont care for most of the google pushed software, the minimum to do what needs doing is my motto. lol. I even edited my cm.zip and gapps.zip so I dont have to go through and disable or remove what I dont want, its done before it goes on the phone.

 

[zuben el genub]

How do you edit the zips?
I've used CM7 and CM9. I like both. Wasn't too sure about 10 on the Nexus S, so left that phone at 9.1.

When I put those on, they were stable. How are the nightlies?

There's some stuff in 4.2 stock that I am not crazy about, and lots I do like. I froze a lot of stuff with TB. Phone seems to be more efficient.

 

[new optimus]

How do you edit the zips?
I've used CM7 and CM9. I like both. Wasn't too sure about 10 on the Nexus S, so left that phone at 9.1.

When I put those on, they were stable. How are the nightlies?

There's some stuff in 4.2 stock that I am not crazy about, and lots I do like. I froze a lot of stuff with TB. Phone seems to be more efficient.

in windows I used 7zip to edit the zips, though some zips dont like me adding anything in them using 7zip so for those I use linux.
I can modifiy them just fine with the standard archive manager in linux.


Mostly just drag and drop or highlight and right click and delete.
You still got the nexus S? I just picked one up(used) for sprint, which I then flashed to boost. I am running the 10.1 nightlies on it and while it has not yet been 24 hours it seems great.
The N4 is running feb 22 nightly and seems rock solid.
I doubt I will keep up with the nightlies just put on a new one when and if something more comes along.

 

[zuben el genub]

I still have the S. Now keeping it for a backup as the screen was having the occasional fit from pressure.

How do you use the archive manager in Linux? Tutorial anywhere? Right now have Ubuntu 11.04 on one hard drive, will be changing to Mint as soon as latest Skype session with kid is over with.

 

[new optimus]

I still have the S. Now keeping it for a backup as the screen was having the occasional fit from pressure.

How do you use the archive manager in Linux? Tutorial anywhere? Right now have Ubuntu 11.04 on one hard drive, will be changing to Mint as soon as latest Skype session with kid is over with.

when in linux just open the zip file, either one click or two depending on your set up,

archive manager opens the file an you see what is inside, from there you just click on the folder you want to go into and then drag and drop or right click and delete.

So for example most roms you open the file you will see 3 items metadata folder, system folder, and boot img.

open the system folder and you will see app folder, etc, you will normally just go into the /system/app and add or delete the files you need to.

ONE THING I CAN NOT STRESS ENOUGH THOUGH BEFORE YOU DO ANYTHING WITH THAT ZIP MAKE A COPY OF IT. That way you do not have to redownload it if you mess up badly.
Some apk's need a corresponding lib file with a .so extension, quick pic is one such. to get that file you can usually extract the apk and look in the lib folder it produces.

 

[El Presidente]

Take a look at SlimROMs: Nexus 4

Very minimal, but with enough about them to make them totally usable without too many extra apps. The downloads are less than half the size of other ROMs, loads have been stripped out.

 

[zuben el genub]

I learned long ago to back everything up. Then I have trouble finding the backups!

Thanks, I will look at SlimRoms but thought they were still in early beta. Have you used or is there a forum besides XDA that discusses the usefulness, pros and cons, ease of install, etc without getting into speed tests, "I use this kernel/I did this tweak"

I'm mostly interested in maximizing all resources on my phone for the apps I want.
I had a 16G Nexus S and was getting the low memory nonsense. I had about 14+G worth of stuff on the phone. Mostly reference with large databases.

 

[El Presidente]

I only got my N4 on Tuesday, rooted and ROM'd it yesterday and I'm currently on the monthly CM10.1 release. I've not actually used SlimROMs on the N4 yet, but having had previous experience of their betas on my One X and Nexus 7, the betas a certainly more than stable enough for every day use.

If you're not in any rush, I'll give SlimROM a shot in a couple of days and let you know how I find it?

 

[zuben el genub]

Thanks, I'd appreciate it.

I found the info and screen shots - it does look very close to what I'd want, so your info would be doubly appreciated.

 

[El Presidente]

No problem.

Due to shift patterns etc, it'll most likely be Sunday before I can sit down and install though.

 

[El Presidente]

It's only been 10 or so hours, but after putting SlimROM through it's paces last night, I'm confident you'd be able to use the current build as a Daily Driver with no issues.

It's very light weight, even with the All in One addons package, there's very little there you could class as "bloat" and if you want to slim it down even further, just go for the basic Gapps package.

Battery life seems good, it's slick and despite being a light weight ROM, there's plenty of customisation options if you need them (maybe more than CM).

 

[D-U-R-X]

(maybe more than CM).

 

[El Presidente]

Ok, here are my thoughts after using it since Sunday night.

Speed: 10/10 - Apps open instantly, there is 0 Lag on anything. I've not benchmarked as the scores are pointless, but if you want me to, I'll run Quadrant/Antutu to let you know (although I switched to the PA kernel yesterday).

Battery Life: 8/10 - Connected to my home WiFi, I reckon I could get 3.5 hours of screen on time and go 2 full days without charging. I streamed 2.5 hours worth of music over 3G using Deezer at work on Tuesday Night and lost about 10%. CM10.1 was better, but I have no complaints from me.

Customisation: 9/10 - The options are there, but for stuff like battery icons, lock screen icons etc, you have to flash additional packages

Sound/EQ: 9/10 - My Phone is my MP3 Player so sound is a big thing for me and I'm happy say this has an option to enable different EQ apps (I use noozxoide). Speaker is also suitably loud & clear enough. There are minimal ringtone/notification options, but it's a "slim" ROM so that's kinda to be expected.

Installed Apps: There's hardly any "bloat" installed. With the basic Gapps package, you get GMail, Play, Youtube, Talk, Calendar & some stuff that runs in the background. Even Google Now, Voice Search & the Photosphere app for the camera have to be flashed separately.

Screen: Slightly less washed out than the stock offering, but the Paranoid Android Kernel is still better.

Stability: I've had a 2 or 3 FC's and whenever Sliding Messaging updates via Play, the phone will do a soft restart.

Overall, still a great ROM and could still easily be used as a Daily Driver.

 

[zuben el genub]

Thanks, I just saw this.

Minimum GAPPS looks good. I only want Play. I get mail via IMAP. Most of the other stuff is frozen by TB.

I looked at PA, I don't like that Pie. I simply want most of my screen real estate with a picture not interrupted by an icon on the home page.

I need to do something with that stock notification bar. You can't edit it. Having your wifi connection (wifi name) showing up on the screen, most of your other info if you bother to put it in, bothers me. It also won't let you add network connection or disable what you don't want there.

I don't want the notifications sitting on the screen, either. I want a pull down menu.

I added notification toggle, but now according to the dev, they've added something for root, and say google before complaining. Google what?

"- added new permission for root users (please google what this permission does and why it will be necessary before leaving negative reviews)"

I've found if you aren't really specific, googling anything in Play is no help.

The big problem with any custom ROM is assumption. Every dev assumes that everyone wants everything they've dreamed up. No one ever states how much you can customize it beyond goodies.

Thanks again.