my favorite rom right now is jrummys lithium mod.
after you are rooted ...
download rom manager free from the market first ... then buy it then also buy SetCpu after rom manager is installed you will then need to flash clockwork from within the app (top button) after that scroll to download rom > Lithium Mod > choose a theme and a kernel P3's 1200 standard voltage is what I have installed > choose any other options you may want ... when prompted make sure to check "backup" and "wipe data" in SetCpu open the app hit menu and "auto detect" I have my sliders set to 400min/850max ....
this is my set up as of right now and I am very happy with it.
That made even MY head hurt reading it, and I know all of those steps! Here, lemme try...
Step 1. Install a rooting app and root your Droid.
Step 2. Install an app backer-upper app and back up your apps.
Step 3. Install a ROM backer-upper app and back up your ROM.
Step 4. Install a processor clock regulator app and regulate your processor clock.
Step 5. Install a ROM.
Step 6. Amuse yourself for hours!
Step 1...
-Look up EasyRoot in the apps market. The author isn't allowed to have the app there, so all there is is a link to his website. Go there and download it for a donation. You choose what to pay, from .99 cents to whatever.
Follow the instructions on the EasyRoot app. Press the Root button, and then reboot your Droid.
Rooting will install an app called Superuser Permissions. It will run every time you install or run an app that requires root. There is a little pop-up that comes up to let you know "Such n' Such" app is requesting SU permissions... You can get rid of the pop-up by going into the settings menu of the SU app.
Step 2...
-Install Titanium Backup. This backs up all of your apps. Astro can do this too, but TiBackup can reinstall them all in one batch operation. I have over 200 non-system apps on my phone, so reinstalling them individually or waiting for the market to sync up is a real PITA.
Note that after installing a ROM the Android Market will begin reloading your apps (syncing). But often it takes a long time or is fidgety. Sometimes apps just hang as your phone behaves like it is overwhelmed by the volume of data trying to come in. Whatever it is, Titanium Backup is real piece of mind. Install it and back up your apps and data.
The "data" thing; Often when going from one ROM to another, you may have to "wipe data". Apps data is among the data that will be wiped. (Not contacts or pictures, but app game scores, that sort of thing.) TiBackup backs up data with the apps.
Step 3...
-Enter the EasyRoot app again, where you'll find links to ROM Manager and WiFi Tether, among other things. Load up ROM Manager.
Go into ROM Manager and hit "Flash ClockworkMod Recovery". ROM Manager is a big app that does many things, including loading, backing up and restoring ROMs. It needs root access, gets down deep into the nity-gritty of the system and can be fidgety, occasionally needing more than one try on some things, -don't worry about it.
ClockworkMod will ask you if you are CDMA, just tap it, and your phone will reboot, loading up ClockworkMod in the process.
ClockworkMod is like a command prompt only with the commands already listed and ready to go. If you want to use it manually, you use the volume button to scroll through the choices, the camera button to select a choice, and the power button as an esc button to back out of a sub menu. It's the tool that you can use to install ROMs, themes, and updates
manually. ROM Manager has a vast menu of these things from which to choose, and you can make those choices without ever having to interface directly with the Clockwork Mod recovery screen/menu. ROM Manager will operate ClockworkMod for you.
ClockworkMod recovery is used by ROM Manager to back up your current ROM, restore to a saved ROM back up or install a ROM you download from a list. It's also used to install small "update.zip" files that can be ROM updates, fixes or enhancements. While the latter (installing update.zips) requires you to manually operate ClockworkMod, you can back up your current ROM, reinstall a backed up ROM, or choose a ROM or Theme from ROM Manager's growing index with just one or two touches!
So navigate to "Back up current ROM" and go ahead and touch that. It saves it by default as the date & time. It's important, particularly as you learn how this all works, that you get in the habit both of making back ups, as well as naming them so you know what they are.
Note that they also do take up quite a bit of room, so any ROM back ups or installation files you will no longer need you should either ditch or save them to your computer. If ROM Manager fails to back up your ROM without giving a reason why, chances are you simply don't have enough room left on your sd card. (I use an app called DiskUsage to give me a visual illustration of what sd files are hogging space.)
So now you have root, your apps and their data are all backed up, and your ROM is backed up. It's time to play with your CPU clock.
Step 4...
-SetCPU, as explained already is your number one app for battery longevity. Simply a must have, particularly because most ROMs have an overclocking kernel built in. Regulating that CPU clock speed is key to battery life. I clock to 1 GHz and my battery lasts up to 36 hours with conservative usage. That's because SetCPU is allowing my processor to
downclock when the phone is sleeping. A stock Droid's processor is running at 550 MHz all day long. Mine snoozes along at 250 MHz and zips up to 1000 in the blink of an eye when I spin around mountains in 3D mode on Google Earth.
Battery consumption, as I understand it, is not linear to CPU clock speed, but rather it is multiplicative in some way. So even a small downclock will yield decent battery savings.
EDIT: Important!- When Set CPU installs, it will ask what to do. Be sure to click "Autodetect CPU". (Thanks to shadowdude777. Not following this can cause trouble like boot-loop, etc!)
Step 5...
-Install a ROM. I can't tell you which one. There's a long list in ROM Manager that will install one you choose conveniently. Pick a theme. Have fun. Rooting opens up a huge gate to possibilities.
Someone else with more knowledge on the subject can explain more about the wipe procedure and what data it does wipe, correct my mistakes and add stuff I've missed. But as you can see there's really not that much to it. ROM Manager even has a Factory Reset option to go right back to stock with a screen touch.
