Database Develop

Keypad Light tweak?

http://forum.xda-developers.com/viewtopic.php?t=43822&highlight=keyboard
Is there any current way to perform this kind of tweak for the Wizard? I've just spent 20 mins searching but couldn't find anything related
Cheers!

nope

I have to say, despite it's nice design I'm really starting to get irritated with my Vario now... The processor is uber-slow compared to all other HTC devices, it's not tweakable anywhere near the amount the others are, it has an OMAP processor and thus won't be possible to run Linux etc on it.
I think even after 2 months it's time to look at a new device

blackobsidian said:
it has an OMAP processor and thus won't be possible to run Linux etc on it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's bull**** - the first (?) Linux smartphone from imcosys runs the TI OMAP 730 with embedded Linux;
http://www.imcosys.com/html/technische_daten.html
It's just a matter of people actually doing the work to port the O/S. Personally I think people who want to run Linux on Device X should just get Device Y which runs it natively - less work, and you support a company that already readily supports Linux on Device X-alikes.
As far as CPU-speed goes, it appears to vary per-reviewer. Some say it's slower, others say it's faster. I guess it'll depend on what you're doing with it.
Not sure what you mean with regards to 'tweakable', though. The only 'tweak' I'm readily aware of that works on e.g. the HTC Universal but not on the HTC Wizard is the keyboard backlight. They both run WM5 and are tweakable to pretty much the same extent as far as the O/S and running software allows.
That said - I obviously rather like mine. -That- said, I can see myself moving to a different device 2-3 years down the road quite easily, especially with all the network upgrades -and- the speed at which new devices are coming out. Wouldn't be too surprised if they're all rather like smaller OQO's by that time.. handheld, good battery, running will Windows XP (probably not Vista yet - hardware specs for that thing are through the roof)

See my comments have all been based on various forums I've read, posted on and recieved replies from. Apparently the OMAP architecture is completely different from most other processors and so it's a niche market (meaning people won't bother with trying to do anything good such as Linux, major overhauls of software, overclocking software etc) - Even Anton Tomov's Hack Master software is having issues with the overclocking functionality and keeps getting pushed back and back and back some more.
I have to say I bought my Wizard (MDA Vario flavour) because the design is slick and it was pretty fast in the shop demonstration. I didn't realise that the second I put anything on it, it'd slow down so much.
I've reflashed it with the best and fastest current rom out there:-
VERSION
ROM Version 1.6.7.1
ROM Date 38624
Radio Version 01.13.10
Protocol Version 4.0.13.17
ExtROM Version 1.3.2.102
And although it's faster than the bloated T-Mobile crap that it comes with by default it's still slow (my today screen only has SPB Pocket Plus and Pocket Weather on it but it still chugs occasionally) and it's an absolute nightmare playing something as simple as Arkaball!
"tweakable" I class as something I can mess around with. With my Samsung T100 I completely replaced the casin with a clear casing, reconfigured everything including LED colour and created my own firmware for it etc. I basically like to try and be individual which is why I won't got for a device already running Linux etc.
Tech Knowledge + Gadgets + being a geek = wanting cool stuff
OQO looks nice but huge. I'm looking for a device I can use for business (running a QA department) and as a mobile. Shoulda got myself a P990i... lol

Here's a proposition for your thoughts... if everybody is customizing their device, then not customizing your device makes you more of an individual
That said - yes, if you want that manner of tweakability, you should've gone for a different device. I'm not sure why a Linux-preloaded one would be excluded from the get-go because you didn't put it on there yourself.. it certainly should open up tweaking possibilities.
Overclocking software for the OMAP does exist - and I'm sure AntonTomov will get one out eventually as the number of devices using the OMAP increases. I'm sure the XScale will still be #1 for some time to be with the recent pricedrops and announced speeds (1GHz - vroom).
However, just because it's a different architecture doesn't typically stop the person who go "But does it run Linux? it does now!" on e.g. Slashdot . Of course if Linux was on your mind from the get-go, a little googling around would've readily shown which devices run it natively and which have been successfully made to run it, to whatever extent, and should've based your purchasing decision on that
For what it's worth, the Treo 700w (650? - been a while) was on my list, but once in the shop with the device in my hand, I knew I would grow to hate the form factor within the first week.

ZeBoxx said:
the first (?) Linux smartphone from imcosys runs the TI OMAP 730 with embedded Linux;
http://www.imcosys.com/html/technische_daten.html
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There are many Linux phones already
http://openezx.org
but the ports to HTC Blueangel and HTC Universal
use more free software
You can also check Linux for OMAP page
http://focus.ti.com/docs/general/sp...mplatedata/cm/splashdsp/data/linux_com_portal

Correction... Everyone on this forum is customising their device... Most people in the real world buy a device and use it out of the box as they don't know or can't be bothered to upgrade it lol.
To be honest with you this is my first PPC device. Before this I was in a job where I didn't want or need the functions and features the PPC has and I had a K750i. Before that was a 7610 and before that a GX20.
I have to admit I was in the process of looking at PPC's when my K750i had an unfortunate incident where my fist went through the screen because it was crashing every 30 seconds... That's why I didn't research as much as I should have before getting my Wizard.
I've learned my lesson though and next time there'll be a LOT of research involved before I buy!
I'm assuming that individual hardware can't be replaced in the Wizard either? i.e. buying a faster processor/mobo etc? My mate's Universal had it's mobo replaced so maybe...
1Gb? Mmmm....
Treo 700w is nice but it was the 990i I meant to say (I updfated it when I realised what I posted lol)

ZeBoxx said:
I'm not sure why a Linux-preloaded one would be excluded from the get-go because you didn't put it on there yourself.. it certainly should open up tweaking possibilities.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
"running Linux" != running free software platform.
Compare Motorola A780 and HTC Blueangel/Universal.

well, I did say "should". I didn't say it would come with a CD with all the source code on it ready for compilation
We're getting way, way off-topic anyway. Keyboard/button backlights tweaks are as of yet non-existant. Chances are you can tweak it by modifying the driver - but nobody's confirmed or done so. Worst case scenario is that it's all in hardware. For the specific tweak mentioned - no, because the Wizard doesn't have a light sensor. Arguably you could start up the camera ever once in a while and check lighting that way, but it wouldn't be very accurate

Kaiser Video Drivers - Status of development effort

Can we make this a sticky post where the end status of the Kaiser Video driver development stands?
Where does it stand? Has anyone started work on it? How do we get ahold of the information required for developing the driver? Can we determine if the development for this driver is even possible? (Is the hardware completely set up to handle it? Maybe there are hardware design hurdles which makes it impossible to be done - that HTC knows about but cannot or will not currently tell us? Even if the chipset is up to it, maybe there is some other piece of hardware missing like an additional circuit left out? How can we determine this for sure and get the work on this started?
Let's make this a sticky post and only those with specific information should post here...
What pieces of hardware are required for a developer to work on this driver development issue? I am willing to part with my older units (for a price, I was going to sell them) if that would help the effort: (O2 XDA/O2 XDA II/Cingular 8525) - what specific models support this chipset so we know what hardware can be used for the development effort?

There are three sticky posts on the subject of video drivers already - are these needs not met by the Video driver project thread - http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=355345 ?

But not the current status
But not the current status in one place that is easy to find. Maybe there should be a sticky post with only one postingvand only updated - not added to - from time to time - only by the forum admin...

Developing new drivers from the ground up won't happen anytime soon. It's a massive undertaking and I bet much too much even for the fine people here.
Even "stealing" drivers from similair hardware has proven very difficult, though it's most probably possible.
I think our best chance would be if HTC releases a device with MSM 7200/7500 and they deliver it with drivers, then it would probably be a fairly easy task.
As for the hardware the only two things that come to mind would be if HTC bought cost reduced chipsets with non-functional Imageon hardware (if for an example there's a problem with yields and Qualcomm has a stock of partially broken chipsets) or if Qualcomm has different SKUs of the same chipset which they artificially handicap by disbling certain hardware (and thus ell them cheaper).
None of the two theories above are that far fetched actually.
Hardware manufacturers often artificially create multiple SKUs by disabling features in a high end product. (Perfect sample would be CD/DVD burners that are firmware capped to a lower speed that the hardware can actually manage.)
Sma ething happens with videocards. When Radeon 9500 was launched the chip on those boards were actually 9700 chips but with non-functional hardware units (and when ATi were out of those they actually started capping 9700 chips that were 100 % operational).
As for the exact current status I believe the only person who really gave this a try was Chainfire who tried to make the LG KS20 drivers work on a Kaiser without any luck. SO I guess the status is still att 0 % so to speak.

KruseLudsMobile said:
But not the current status in one place that is easy to find. Maybe there should be a sticky post with only one postingvand only updated - not added to - from time to time - only by the forum admin...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yes, thats a good idea.

Really there are way too many threads dealing with these issues. Two or three new ones at least pop up every day. As far as I know, there is currently nobody actually working on the drivers. I was, but after putting about a 100 hours in porting the LG KS20 drivers, ultimately without success, I focussed my efforts towards the website. Porting these drivers is most likely not impossible, but it's not an easy task and I personally only know of one person here on XDA who may possibly pull it off and this person does not have one of the affected devices, and even if she did, it might still take a long time to do.
In the meantime, progress is being made with the website, news coverage everywhere, and a lot going on behind the scenes that we honestly cannot say 'out loud'.
Let's first see what the update HTC keeps telling us about brings. And if you need to get rid of bounty money, I would say giving a fair part of it to those of us who have put all this effort and time into making it happen would not be unfair

Chainfire said:
Really there are way too many threads dealing with these issues. Two or three new ones at least pop up every day. As far as I know, there is currently nobody actually working on the drivers. I was, but after putting about a 100 hours in porting the LG KS20 drivers, ultimately without success, I focussed my efforts towards the website. Porting these drivers is most likely not impossible, but it's not an easy task and I personally only know of one person here on XDA who may possibly pull it off and this person does not have one of the affected devices, and even if she did, it might still take a long time to do.
In the meantime, progress is being made with the website, news coverage everywhere, and a lot going on behind the scenes that we honestly cannot say 'out loud'.
Let's first see what the update HTC keeps telling us about brings. And if you need to get rid of bounty money, I would say giving a fair part of it to those of us who have put all this effort and time into making it happen would not be unfair
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
not enough threads IMO

Guys, I can make this thread sticky too if you promise it'll be a catch-all thread, eferring to all the other, referred threads.

should we really have to wait for froyo?

First of all, I've got to say that Android is awesome.
Now here's the thing
I enthusiastically bought a phone with, among many other fantastic things:
1. 800x480 resolution
2. 512mb RAM
3. 32mb storage capability (phones supposed to format 32mb)
4. A high end screen ( that I now understand to be 3 years old), for what should be smooth scrolling
5. stable 3G connectivity
6. And I assumed the gallery would be at least as quality as the older firmware versions. In truth its still solid but its fair to expect firmware updates to, at the very least, not make stuff worse...
Meanwhile the froyo update is going to "free up additional RAM" and be able to format said SD cards. Don't get me wrong I don't expect Android to fix the ridiculous antennae placement or make the cameras flash more useful. Design defects are certainly tolerable and sometimes even expected, but only to a point.
I feel like broadly experienced bugs and specification shortcomings should be fixed ASAP.
I love that Android is going to give us additional, awesome features in future updates. But I don't think we should have to wait for bug fixes while Android packages them as new features in a forthcomimg update, as though they are doing us a favor. Android can take as long as they want to give us new features and I'm grateful for them and I won't complain about the wait.
But I must insist that my phone have the basic functions I purchased within at most a couple of months. We are talking about solving problems not adding features. Shouldn't the priority of the updates reflect that?

I don't know if they've released the changelog or not, but let's hope for several minor upgrades to come with it...

What's the question?

j.bruha said:
What's the question?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
-> should we really have to wait for froyo?

All I want is my ram. I'm very upset over that.

AndroidPerson said:
First of all, I've got to say that Android is awesome.
Now here's the thing
I enthusiastically bought a phone with, among many other fantastic things:
1. 800x480 resolution
2. 512mb RAM
3. 32mb storage capability (phones supposed to format 32mb)
4. A high end screen ( that I now understand to be 3 years old), for what should be smooth scrolling
5. stable 3G connectivity
6. And I assumed the gallery would be at least as quality as the older firmware versions. In truth its still solid but its fair to expect firmware updates to, at the very least, not make stuff worse...
Meanwhile the froyo update is going to "free up additional RAM" and be able to format said SD cards. Don't get me wrong I don't expect Android to fix the ridiculous antennae placement or make the cameras flash more useful. Design defects are certainly tolerable and sometimes even expected, but only to a point.
I feel like broadly experienced bugs and specification shortcomings should be fixed ASAP.
I love that Android is going to give us additional, awesome features in future updates. But I don't think we should have to wait for bug fixes while Android packages them as new features in a forthcomimg update, as though they are doing us a favor. Android can take as long as they want to give us new features and I'm grateful for them and I won't complain about the wait.
But I must insist that my phone have the basic functions I purchased within at most a couple of months. We are talking about solving problems not adding features. Shouldn't the priority of the updates reflect that?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Other than the mem/kernel thing....are you expecting some kind of handjob update?

don't we have the additional RAM in cyanogen mod?

muncheese said:
Other than the mem/kernel thing....are you expecting some kind of handjob update?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hj's are cool I guess.
But If you were told the nexus one had 256mb ram and like 600x300 resolution and so on, would you have so excitedly purchased the phone? I sure wouldn't have...
I thnk we should have the basic functions the phone is supposed to have. I know its early but only ram and SD card formatting are mentioned in froyo. Shouldn't the phone have the resolution that it says it has, the ram that it says it has, and the other basic functions that it says it has prior to fun, cool, exciting feature additions? And isn't weird that Google hasnt even mentioned any intention to fix the phone so that it meets its own spec sheet? We aren't talking about demanding flash or decent video playback support or a UI overhaul. We are just talking about features and functions we were told we were buying.
Should we really still be waiting for that? I feel like we shouldn't

But the phone does have 512MB of memory and it does have 800x400 resolution. Crack it open and take a look at the parts yourself.
Sure they might not have complete software support for everything at launch and that can be frustration for some, but as far as I am concerned they put more hardware into the phone than they could use at that point for future proofing reasons. I'm happy about that.
Even after they enable all of the memory it still probably won't be used by anyone.

AndroidPerson said:
Hj's are cool I guess.
But If you were told the nexus one had 256mb ram and like 600x300 resolution and so on, would you have so excitedly purchased the phone? I sure wouldn't have...
I thnk we should have the basic functions the phone is supposed to have. I know its early but only ram and SD card formatting are mentioned in froyo. Shouldn't the phone have the resolution that it says it has, the ram that it says it has, and the other basic functions that it says it has prior to fun, cool, exciting feature additions? And isn't weird that Google hasnt even mentioned any intention to fix the phone so that it meets its own spec sheet? We aren't talking about demanding flash or decent video playback support or a UI overhaul. We are just talking about features and functions we were told we were buying.
Should we really still be waiting for that? I feel like we shouldn't
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
When I received the phone I was ecstatic. That's before realizing half the ram was disabled.
I wasn't really planning on running official roms anyways, so maybe that differs for me. So I've never really been of the mind of "waiting for google to do their thing". I'm a tweaker by nature, from my phones, to my vehicles, to my shoelaces.
As far as the "false resolution" of the oled displays. Lol, you can't expect new tech to be measured by old standards.

PrawnPoBoy said:
Even after they enable all of the memory it still probably won't be used by anyone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
"640K ought to be enough for anybody."
It would be nice if android were proper open source, instead of open source when google feels like it. For example, 'Firefox', as soon as development starts on a new version, it is completely open from the start. Though we are dealing with two different companies, with different objectives. Mozilla wants a free and open internet for the sake of a free and open internet, Google wants a free and open internet because it is good for the bottom line. In the end, both benefit me.

liam.lah said:
"640K ought to be enough for anybody."
It would be nice if android were proper open source, instead of open source when google feels like it. For example, 'Firefox', as soon as development starts on a new version, it is completely open from the start. Though we are dealing with two different companies, with different objectives. Mozilla wants a free and open internet for the sake of a free and open internet, Google wants a free and open internet because it is good for the bottom line. In the end, both benefit me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wait.... I was under the impression that when they say 'extra ram' its freeing up RAM from the OS, not physically?
Is someone saying we have the same amount of RAM as in the desire then? :/ (that f'ed up number, like 560 or something)

3 years, still no drivers?

Hey all!
Sorry for bringing this up again, but i just cannot accept it. There are a lot of devices using qualcomm's msm7xxx chipsets, take a look here:
http://www.pdadb.net/index.php?m=pdamaster&posted=1&cpu=a7200
Seriously, are drivers missing in all of them, or is it so hard to port it to kaiser?
htcclassaction.com has no news since releasing the htc-ca open gl se drivers in 2008, but still the device even with them suffers from severe performance issues. Still no 2d drivers, and still no direct 3d drivers. What is going on? As if in 3 years it has not been possible to fix the damn drivers??? Are there no good developers that have the phone that would be able to fix this? if htc can do it in a couple of months, couldn't atleast a group of developers do it in 3 years?
And the device is still in production, so there will probably be more people that buy this phone 'couse of it's amazing power and keyboard, and to be honest, get a piece of s***...

Moved as not ROM Development.
If you search there are threads that will state why we never got full driver support, your question is it hard? Course it is...
Look @ how much work went into class action.
Kaiser isn't still in production if they are available there old stock
Also how many bits of software really require the drivers many of us are satisfied even without them, especially since the advancement in nk.exe where we can get a more used resource RAM

Put the dog to rest!

Old stock? I am not sure of that.
http://www.htc.com/www/product/tytnii/overview.html
And after all, if it wouldn't be in production, i think that the entire tytn 2 sub(sub)forum would be in legacy device's subforum
EDIT: and can you post any links to why we will never get the drivers please? my searching skills are low, i cant find anything

award982 said:
Old stock? I am not sure of that.
http://www.htc.com/www/product/tytnii/overview.html
And after all, if it wouldn't be in production, i think that the entire tytn 2 sub(sub)forum would be in legacy device's subforum
EDIT: and can you post any links to why we will never get the drivers please? my searching skills are low, i cant find anything
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The phone is not in production same as Touch Pro/Touch Cruise and more, there were lesser number user devices placed in the legacy section as it goes on if a forum is still used..

http://www.gsmarena.com/htc_tytn_ii-2024.php
see the status...

This phone is old, who cares. The drivers were never made because it wasn't worth anyones time, people moved on to better things so the money wasn't there. Just leave it alone.

[Q] Is Captivate/Android Experience for Me?

All,
I am new here and to SmartPhones. I like Captivate because it has low radiation.
I am impressed with the activities I see here and on CyanogenMod. However, these give me cause for concern regarding the energy level required to accomplish them. Linux is good but I am returning to graduate school in the fall so I am concerned regarding the requirement of these phones and OS's. I would appreciate it if some of you could explain why so much work occurs with Android. Is much of this activity born out of the decision of carriers to control OS releases to specific phones? I see this as a major factor presently.
With that said, it does appear Samsung blew it with regard to v2.2 and the Galaxy S phones. I am nearly embarrassed to inform you that I own two Samsung LCD monitors after learning of this negative experience.
Clearly, I void the warranty if I embrace the activities here but this just rationalizes the choice of a refurbished phone!
Please attempt to characterize the time requirement for becoming involved with these Samsung Galaxy phones and Android. I know I am not the type of person to be interested in continually working with my phone to make it better. However, I also know my limited perspective can be biasing reality with this OS and these SmartPhones unnecessarily negative.
Oddly, my wife is considering the Focus because it would give her the MS support she needs with work. Regardless, it does appear we have found a few excellent Internet resources for these choices...I just want to ensure I am not getting in over my head.
Thanks,
Rick

by radiation I assume you mean the head tumors

RAVC1 said:
All,
I am new here and to SmartPhones. I like Captivate because it has low radiation.
I am impressed with the activities I see here and on CyanogenMod. However, these give me cause for concern regarding the energy level required to accomplish them. Linux is good but I am returning to graduate school in the fall so I am concerned regarding the requirement of these phones and OS's. I would appreciate it if some of you could explain why so much work occurs with Android. Is much of this activity born out of the decision of carriers to control OS releases to specific phones? I see this as a major factor presently.
With that said, it does appear Samsung blew it with regard to v2.2 and the Galaxy S phones. I am nearly embarrassed to inform you that I own two Samsung LCD monitors after learning of this negative experience.
Clearly, I void the warranty if I embrace the activities here but this just rationalizes the choice of a refurbished phone!
Please attempt to characterize the time requirement for becoming involved with these Samsung Galaxy phones and Android. I know I am not the type of person to be interested in continually working with my phone to make it better. However, I also know my limited perspective can be biasing reality with this OS and these SmartPhones unnecessarily negative.
Oddly, my wife is considering the Focus because it would give her the MS support she needs with work. Regardless, it does appear we have found a few excellent Internet resources for these choices...I just want to ensure I am not getting in over my head.
Thanks,
Rick
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi Rick,
To answer your question - why so much work occurs with Android, I would like to take the liberty of rephrasing the question - why so much work occurs with Android phones? There isnt one correct answer for this.
You are correct in saying that carriers and service providers like to cripple the phone before they hand it over to the consumer. So when you buy the phone you really are not using these wonderful pieces of technology to their fullest extent. Thanks to our developers here at XDA because of whom we can in reality free the phones that we paid much moolah for, so that we maybe able to use all of the fones features that have been designed to work in conjunction with the wonderful Android OS.
Secondly, the reason why so much work goes into the phones and development to improve the functionality of the phone is because that is what Android has been designed for. Consumer can customize the phone to their liking and does not have to get stuck with the proprietary, grid like systems like the ones iphone has. Phone manufacturers, and not just Samsung, obviously design the phones software in such a way so that there is always room for improvement. They bet their dollar on the fact that an average consumer will eventually buy a newer product when its released and marketed in the future. There is always something lacking in the product that is in the market right now and that is where all this work comes into play.
Now, whether you shud buy a samsung captivate or not and what the time requirement is, is totally dependent on what you want to use the phone for and what kind of functionality you would like to get out of it.
From what you said that ur not a person who wud like to spend a lot of time modifying or playing around with your phone, you wud still like the captivate. Samsung Captivate is a very nice phone overall. Its got almost everything that you cud want in a phone. In regards to apps included with the phone, you've got a decent selection along with loads of bloatware.... If there is anything missing you can easily find it on the android market.
If you're expecting that your GPS would work right out of the box, then the answer is, maybe - maybe not. and its not android's fault, its a samsung issue. There are multiple fixes for the GPS that you can find on the forum, that being said, if you plan on utilizing those fixes, like you said not only will you void your warranty but you alone will be venturing into that experiment on your phone and dev will not be responsible for any damage that may or may not happen to your phone. But then again no guts, no glory.
So all in all, if you do end up getting the captivate, i dont think you'll be utterly disappointed, but at the same time i dont think you'll be able to sit back either when you see all these new developments posted here.
Hopefully i helped you a little and if i said too much then i apologize.
I welcome any senior member of the forum to correct me if im wrong and/or make any additions to what ive said above..
happy forumming....

My brother has a Samsung focus. It's buggy as hell, completely counter intuitive, and incomplete. Theres also no apps at all. He has like 3 different crappy youtube apps and sound boards.
And there's no CM7 to one day fix it.
Sent from my Captivate.

anandsamuel,
An excellent response; truly what I was looking for to understand the issues involved regarding Android and SmartPhones. You did not say too much.
I guess I need to start reading so I understand how to root a Captivate!
Rick

Also, that font is irritating to read.

RAVC1 said:
All,
I am new here and to SmartPhones. I like Captivate because it has low radiation.
I am impressed with the activities I see here and on CyanogenMod. However, these give me cause for concern regarding the energy level required to accomplish them. Linux is good but I am returning to graduate school in the fall so I am concerned regarding the requirement of these phones and OS's. I would appreciate it if some of you could explain why so much work occurs with Android. Is much of this activity born out of the decision of carriers to control OS releases to specific phones? I see this as a major factor presently.
With that said, it does appear Samsung blew it with regard to v2.2 and the Galaxy S phones. I am nearly embarrassed to inform you that I own two Samsung LCD monitors after learning of this negative experience.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
ok lets slow you down there. first android is linux BASED not linux. there is no need to worry about OS/ device compatibility. the most interaction between the phone and PC are just file copying like through a usb thumb drive.
the next part regarding carriers/updates/samsung. you answered yourself, kinda, and backwards. Samsung didnt blow it.
Google android updates as much as any software does - to make things better.
they release to manufacturers so they can make it work with their hardware.
Samsung released on time, BUT TO THE CARRIERS.
the carriers then take what samsung gave them and add their carrier specific settings (APN ect) and applications (bloatware).
ATT blew the update timeline.
Sometimes manufacturers release their finished product as "source code" untouched by carriers.
the long process is necessary in each step to (attempt) to make a perfect software package that will work with each phone/carrier out of the box for the end user. so it is unfair to say "born out of the decision of carriers to control OS releases to specific phones"
XDA works off of source codes and carrier releases to make our custom updates.
Clearly, I void the warranty if I embrace the activities here but this just rationalizes the choice of a refurbished phone!
Please attempt to characterize the time requirement for becoming involved with these Samsung Galaxy phones and Android. I know I am not the type of person to be interested in continually working with my phone to make it better. However, I also know my limited perspective can be biasing reality with this OS and these SmartPhones unnecessarily negative.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
there are ways to return your phone without them knowing what you did. dont worry too much about your "voided" warranty.
before i felt comfortable flashing I took about 3 days reading my A$$ off! and currently im off on workers comp. so that was 3 FULL days. even then i had issues and mistakes and my phone was out of service a few nights! but that is part of the fun.
you do not need to be the type of person to constantly update your phone to buy it. tens of thousands of people have this phone on stock firmware and it fully works. the extra effort and time that we here at XDA and cyanogenMOD do is more out of fun, and customization. Many would argue function as well, as we do sometimes fix things *better* than google/samsung/carriers. but things willl *usually* still function on stock even if on a basic level.
you only need to put in as much as you want to get out of it
so timeline,
flashing custom roms/themes PROPERLY - under a week
cutting and pasting roms frankenROMS - under a month or 2
creating - vast back knowlege of programming, ect YEAR(S)
regarding wanting to update often, not every update on XDA to your rom is necessary unles it fixes something you didnt have.
Each Android/Carrier update, would be recomended (or the XDA counterpart) as each new android version (not rom) contains the most updates/fixes. so if you were running a 2.2 (custom or stock) rom it WOULD be worth upgrading to 2.3 when available (custom or stock). but you dont NEED to update your custom rom every couple weeks when they put out their minor update on the same base rom (2.2 for eg.)
Oddly, my wife is considering the Focus because it would give her the MS support she needs with work. Regardless, it does appear we have found a few excellent Internet resources for these choices...I just want to ensure I am not getting in over my head.
Thanks,
Rick
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no comment. best regards

Trusselo,
Excellent, thoughtful response; it helped characterize this activity further for me. My concern is now recognized (and conveyed to others...) as not wanting to be required to become a developer to make my involvement with a SmartPhone constructive. Samsung, Android, XDA looks very good to me. As you mentioned, my reading has begun.
Yes, something is not right with my traditional Comic Sans Serif font here; it seems to compress it horizontally, but my aging eyes typically need this font.