Database Develop

Cooking rom's, finding usefull info is hard...

Hi all,
for starters, I know where the search-button is and I know how to read, I've read the stickies and most of the links, so no obvious remarks please
I'm having a hard time finding good threads to read about creating/editing/cooking roms, understanding what XIP/SYS files are, knowing how to strip/add programs,...
I've used keywords like: rom cooking, xip, how to, port, tut(orial), etc...
It only gives a gazillion answers and most of the time useless threads...
Once in a while it's worth reading, but most of the time it's junk or way to specific/difficult...
So the question is, could anyone link some usefull good threads/discussions/how-to's that they've read?
Maybe you could give it a rating yourself going from beginner/intermediate/pro...
Maybe such a condensed topic is already on the forums, then please do show me, since I didn't found it yet...
If you're first thought is "god, not again", then please, don't respond at all
Thanks for your time!

quinstar said:
If you're first thought is "god, not again", then please, don't respond at all
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Click to collapse
Man, this thread is just below you as of this moment ....

Really nice cooking class for Blackstone, but very usable for Kovsky too!!
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=480714

jackleung said:
Man, this thread is just below you as of this moment ....
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Jack,it's not because of my low post count, that I'm just around here...
I've seen and read that post several times, I've dumped my own rom and downloaded others, I extracted them and started fiddling around, but that's all what I did, fiddling, since I don't really know what I'm doing...
For instance, I'm reading and seeing XIP everywhere, but I don't even understand what it stands for, I can't find (or don't use the right keywords) to find any decent info on it...
I found this great post of Ameet about porting XIP, but that's already about hardcore coding without the basic info I hoped to find... I'm just a beginner, that'll be stuff to read when I'm several months further...
It all starts with the saying, "give a man a fish and he can eat for a whole day. Learn him how to fish and he can eat a life-time.."
The post you refered to is great to learn how the kitchen works, great for learning how to use tools, but the action eventually only shows how to remove standard OEM stuff out of a rom. Nothing more...
Understanding the ins and outs of a rom, how it's build and why, how it's linked and what it does... That's where I think it starts, but that's what I can't find... If no-one ever wrote anything about it, then I will, but then I'll have to try and find bits of pieces of info everywhere... And that's why I posted the question. So people could at least point to some information they know where to find...
I've even seen and tried your work... It's great, but it's a full working, locked rom (at least, it doesn't break down using htainlin's info to the same files and folders as a stockrom does, or I'm using the wrong tools)... I can't see what you've done to make it that way... I can't open it to compare with something stock to see what has changed and conclude what your changes really do... I don't mind reverse engineering, I do have a brain I can use to figure things out..
Well, sorry for the rant, and if I somehow offended you, I didn't intend to, I just hope you now understand what I'm trying to accomplish
Thanks for all who even tried to read this

@Lokatho
Thanks! I've only read the index, but I already know I'll be busy reading that for a couple of hours...

quinstar said:
Jack,it's not because of my low post count, that I'm just around here...
I've seen and read that post several times, I've dumped my own rom and downloaded others, I extracted them and started fiddling around, but that's all what I did, fiddling, since I don't really know what I'm doing...
For instance, I'm reading and seeing XIP everywhere, but I don't even understand what it stands for, I can't find (or don't use the right keywords) to find any decent info on it...
I found this great post of Ameet about porting XIP, but that's already about hardcore coding without the basic info I hoped to find... I'm just a beginner, that'll be stuff to read when I'm several months further...
It all starts with the saying, "give a man a fish and he can eat for a whole day. Learn him how to fish and he can eat a life-time.."
The post you refered to is great to learn how the kitchen works, great for learning how to use tools, but the action eventually only shows how to remove standard OEM stuff out of a rom. Nothing more...
Understanding the ins and outs of a rom, how it's build and why, how it's linked and what it does... That's where I think it starts, but that's what I can't find... If no-one ever wrote anything about it, then I will, but then I'll have to try and find bits of pieces of info everywhere... And that's why I posted the question. So people could at least point to some information they know where to find...
I've even seen and tried your work... It's great, but it's a full working, locked rom (at least, it doesn't break down using htainlin's info to the same files and folders as a stockrom does, or I'm using the wrong tools)... I can't see what you've done to make it that way... I can't open it to compare with something stock to see what has changed and conclude what your changes really do... I don't mind reverse engineering, I do have a brain I can use to figure things out..
Well, sorry for the rant, and if I somehow offended you, I didn't intend to, I just hope you now understand what I'm trying to accomplish
Thanks for all who even tried to read this
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Well, I never judge xda member on their post count since I know some experts in this field maybe new to XDA-developers and some people w/ very high post count are keep on posting **** (e.g. someone in X1 general inventing 4D glasses and UI. )
Most kitchen (at least the one I pointed to) is just a Dos batch script to automated all the tedious command and parameters w/ all the needed tools. You can learn a lot of in and out if just you open it w/ a editor, follow the steps manually and research those tools individually.
If you really want to learning cooking in the hard way, I had a writeup long time back for Asus P525 which most of the steps still apply to any HTC rom nowaday.
All the documents for how to fish is here and we are still seeing people creating new threads for questions that been address millions time. This is a developers forum afterall and no one is responsible to feed you while your hands are free.
Regarding my rom, I never intend to lock it. Both V1 and V2 are extractable but rgu are removed due to space and speed considerateion. Afterall, the main purpose of a rom is for daily "use" instead of "teaching material". Why am I bother to slow my rom down just because I have to let others to extract it?

Jack,
quinstar said:
..., and if somehow I offended you, I didn't intend to,...
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Click to collapse
This part was for the locking section you refer to
I already figured out a number of reasons why it would be "locked", and space-limiting was one of them... I definately understand your reasons and by no means am I complaining about it... It's just a pity I can't use such good material as a reference to study...
As for examining the tools, I was already wondering what they're all doing and what they're needed for... However I'm a bit cautious since I don't know how they work... This'll be a matter of trial-and-error...
I will definately have a look at what you've written, not that I'm keen on really wanting to learn it the hard way, but it might make it easier to understand the working of some of the tools...
About the fishing, you are right, no-one is obligated to give me anything. I was merely asking if some-one might remember a post they once read and found very usefull in understanding or learning the process of cooking...
As I already stated, I used the search-button and already found bits of information that I thought were a little usefull, but I'm having a hard time finding any good posts... The topic Lokatho refered to was a great link and gave me some good information and I've got some nice material to work and practice with... It would've taken me ages to find me or just dumb luck...
I'm keeping together all the links I used to read and learn and might paste them in a write-up once I think I've learned a fair bit
To finalise this reply, I understand your frustration, there will always be people who ask the most simple things on any forum, may it be ppc, car, house or anything related... Questions in here like, how do I have to flash your rom, what is hard-spl, why can't you make a 'insert langueage'-rom, reporting a "bug" that's been declared not a bug for several pages already... Those are the most annoying questions I've seen until now(just to name a few) and are really an indication those are posted by lazy people...
Cheers
Q

Everybody is a cooking master these days?

Pretty wierd, Itje has been in-active for a couple of days (probably due to easter) and all of a sudden everybody is "releasing" roms like its there speciality?
And when i read these threads and somebody askes a simple thing as "are you putting youtube in it?" i see answers like "it is pretty hard to get youtube up and running, i dont know how to do that"..
Is this something everybody wants to see? Imo cooking/releasing roms should be done only by people who have the knowledge and knowhow off everything.

FalkenX said:
Pretty wierd, Itje has been in-active for a couple of days (probably due to easter) and all of a sudden everybody is "releasing" roms like its there speciality?
And when i read these threads and somebody askes a simple thing as "are you putting youtube in it?" i see answers like "it is pretty hard to get youtube up and running, i dont know how to do that"..
Is this something everybody wants to see? Imo cooking/releasing roms should be done only by people who have the knowledge and knowhow off everything.
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If they want to try to cook, why not?
It's only a win-win situation
They learn more & have more experiences and maybe they'll even getting better than Itje

very very succinctly put..
jerpeleas kitchen is very very simple to use.
and is perfect for creating that "personal rom"
unfortunately, whats happening is what often happens, and is that everyone suddenly decides to throw out that personal rom for public consumption.
now i think its great that people are trying things out, but i do think, ladies and gentlemen that you should keep your experiments a bit more "internal" at least till you understand what you're doing a bit better..
please??

fards said:
very very succinctly put..
jerpeleas kitchen is very very simple to use.
and is perfect for creating that "personal rom"
unfortunately, whats happening is what often happens, and is that everyone suddenly decides to throw out that personal rom for public consumption.
now i think its great that people are trying things out, but i do think, ladies and gentlemen that you should keep your experiments a bit more "internal" at least till you understand what you're doing a bit better..
please??
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Agreed. Glad to see more cooks or more people willing to learn to cook. But sad to see lots of them either unfinished, or not tested fully w/ lots of bugs here and there. And I don't see any unique features/characteristic/fixes among most of them since all are based on the same kitchen without going into details to learn and create.

In other words, people, if you wanna try to cook your own roms thats your own choice, but stop the posting on the forums if there arent any new feautures/bug fixes in it.

alway nice to see more people cooking.
but like myself i cooked a rom with jerpelea's kitchen.
i twisted and turned allot over and made it to my personal favors.
but i won't release for public just because it is to my own taste and i know that allot of peoplehere have different choises and willings.
it's great that cooking is made easy for everybody but if you don't have the real knowledge like our first timer chefs keep it for yourself and enjoy it as much as you can!
but hey..
that's just me

The word is not "cook" kids: it's READ and SEARCH.
Spread the word
I cook
You cook
He cooks
She cooks
We cook
You cook
They cook
But jerpelea is the biggest cooker of them all !!
Been cooking since january over WinMo 6.5, nothing worth sharing yet... until jerpelea uploaded his kitchen and I solved 6 weeks of problems in 6 minutes:
I eagerly read all 49 pages of his suggestions/tips, and included a couple of his packages into my own recipe, now I can fire the oven

knaplullig said:
alway nice to see more people cooking.
but like myself i cooked a rom with jerpelea's kitchen.
i twisted and turned allot over and made it to my personal favors.
but i won't release for public just because it is to my own taste and i know that allot of peoplehere have different choises and willings.
it's great that cooking is made easy for everybody but if you don't have the real knowledge like our first timer chefs keep it for yourself and enjoy it as much as you can!
but hey..
that's just me
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yup I've been cooking my own for a while now, but I've never released one.. mostly as I do it to learn more..

ive made 6.5/manila2 roms but havnt uploaded them because of this whole situation.
I do think however its better that ppl make their own roms and learn more about their phones then being a drone to somone else.
Its too bad that some in the past ruined it for some to truelly learn what needs to be changed in some cases. because alot of cooks are protecting their roms. so disecting their rom to see whats really in it is a bit harder then normal.
not speaking down to itje or about him. but if we were able to truely dissasemble his rom we could find out why myfaves doesnt work.
but cooking my own rom i got myfaves working but using jerpelea kitchen i get dumb little bugs

FalkenX said:
but stop the posting on the forums if there arent any new feautures/bug fixes in it.
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That's not what I mean. But I wish new cooks instead to rush out a buggy rom (especially for 6.5 which is still beta and still with lots of issues w/ X1), could spent more time in clean up and bugfix, then release an tested and quality rom. It just a waste of time of you and your users if your rom is too buggy to be useful. Or released roms w/ features/softwares w/ bugs and issues that you don't have idea how to get them fix.

I kinda like to see all the new ROMS out. We went from 1 or 2 to a bunch. Granted there are a lot of buggy ROMS and people should do a lot more searching and more beta testing but being one of the new cooks i can see the reason for trying to release it. Some people use there phones completely differently that you do so i would think that others would find bugs that you don't. I know when i released my lite rom there were issues that i never even thought of trying so i had like 5 versions in like 2 weeks.
Most people don't add new features because a lot of the stuff is hard to come by in my opinion that is. They just release a different take on the programs and features.
I dunno just my take....

shadowmike said:
Its too bad that some in the past ruined it for some to truelly learn what needs to be changed in some cases. because alot of cooks are protecting their roms. so disecting their rom to see whats really in it is a bit harder then normal.
not speaking down to itje or about him. but if we were able to truely dissasemble his rom we could find out why myfaves doesnt work.
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I am not sure if this is his true intention. But you got to understand this is the side effect that the Bepe's kitchen he use (which is a lot more effieicent and easy to manage, and I start to use it as well since my V3.x series).
In fact, Itje is very generous in sharing what he could share in the Chef sharing thread, or his own threads w/ the helps from Fards, Akp99 (man, how come I don't have such an helpful team???). All you need is search, or ask the right man.

I have seen the same thing..
I welcome new chefs..its all good, but as said before, its not the "real" work of chefs, its more a "Ikea" sollution, buy/get the kitchen parts..put it together and use it at home...
And as jack said, please guys keep making roms..its cool..but rather then releasing roms that others has made (Jerpelea) try to make one from scratch...
I must also admit with this new wave of chefs, it also keeps getting very annoying that many of the new rom makers keep sending pm's, e-mails and adds me to msn. It didnt bother me at start, but now Its getting pretty frustrating.
And I am not even allowed to say no, they keep on coming asking for everything I know, everything I got..and if I say no, im a cocky mofo who wants to be the topchef all by himself..etc etc
I have to be rude, and I have to put ppls requests down. If not, I would not have time to do make new roms, because I was personally guiding everyone else.
That IS NOT why im here. I have no interest at all beeing a teacher...I can share stuff, but then I also like to get something back (not talking donations here) and that is a more respectful tone, specialy when I decline helping.
But, I try to point ppl in the right directions..telling them what to look for or where to find a thread with the stuff they need..usually that is not enough...cause they keep coming back asking what to look for....
But then I dont reply, because if you cant find it, then you can find another hobby..and that I dont back up on..
I have been searching this forums, so many times for new stuff, to learn new things, and I STILL DO.
I help if I can, I share when I can..but dont add me to msn to ask for cooking help. Cause you wont get it..sorry.
I know this post can be considered a bit off topic..but then again, its not..cause that is whats happening "behind the scene" of all the new "chefs"
Im sorry if this offends anyone..and im sure there is ppl among the new guys that are gonna get way better then me in this...after all, its just a hobby

I dont like ppl dissambling my roms
I tried for some time to have open roms..damn I even left in the rgus, so ppl could dump the rom and recook for personal use..
But what they didnt know was that I hid some small codes in the base of the rom
So when suddenly new roms started popping up..from ppl claiming it was their own work...can you guys guess what I found in the roms???? nahhhh..guess one more time
Then I made some "rules" Do not recook and release my roms, or I will protect them...
To bad..it still happened...
So I locked my roms, and if ppl dont like it...I dont care

Oh please don't take what ive said the wrong way. I understand the reasoning behind it.
not to be that guy but i still get the files i need from ur rom. like new images for replacement of the old green highlights.
but i also respect your work to not release anything as i understand how time consuming it is.
as i used to skin for psp's and windows mobile 6 and 6.1 standard neo and sliding panel home screens.

I have to say I've been reading this thread with particular interest, as I could be considered one of the "chefs" Itje is talking about as I recently asked him to point me in the direction of how to create ROMs. I personally found in all the custom ROMs that I tried several different little tweaks or something that I didn't use and wouldn't use and all I can say to people is, unless you've created a new TF3D or something HUGE then don't publicise ROMs - Once i eventually learn how to create on, I will simply use it just to create a ROM that is PERFECT for ME - and then I will work on creating something spectacular!
And that's my 15minutes of fame for the day
Nirave
P.S. I've just re-read the post and there is no hidden meaning in what I said regarding asking Itje! I know it sounds like there is, but there's not !

I'll open it out a little more: If anyone can help a long-time reader, small-time poster (ME!) and point me in the direction of how to create a custom ROM I'll be ever grateful
thanks
nirave

nirave said:
I have to say I've been reading this thread with particular interest, as I could be considered one of the "chefs" Itje is talking about as I recently asked him to point me in the direction of how to create ROMs. I personally found in all the custom ROMs that I tried several different little tweaks or something that I didn't use and wouldn't use and all I can say to people is, unless you've created a new TF3D or something HUGE then don't publicise ROMs - Once i eventually learn how to create on, I will simply use it just to create a ROM that is PERFECT for ME - and then I will work on creating something spectacular!
And that's my 15minutes of fame for the day
Nirave
P.S. I've just re-read the post and there is no hidden meaning in what I said regarding asking Itje! I know it sounds like there is, but there's not !
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dont worry, im not aiming at any person...but its a typical thing...its the same over and over again...same way

I dont see any problems in all these new roms. If there is nothing special, people wont be interested so that the "problem" will be solved by itself.

itje said:
dont worry, im not aiming at any person...but its a typical thing...its the same over and over again...same way
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Yes, I'm an Ikea cook, as Itje said. I'm only ever after a bare-bones ROM with whatever XIP\SYS improvements updates may provide.
I once published one of my "Ikea assembly" efforts for my earlier Eten X500, acknowledging the base was from PDAVIET, and was inundated with requests, complaints etc etc. So now I just use these Ikea efforts.
Question: does anyone know why official ROM updates seem never to use NETCF3.5 over v2.xx ?
V3.5 has been available for well over 18 months now

Question about Kitchens, Rom Cooking and Classes

I was a big user of the TMO Wing before I got my G1 and was late to the party. One of my favorite cooks, Ttran was nearing the end of his development and there were still quite a few cooks left in the kitchen even after he was done.
I remember wanting to learn how to cook and a few cooks even had classes and there were kitchens available to make your own roms.
My question is, even though it is probably a little to earlier to anticipate, does anyone think we will have a kitchen to work with or even have a few classes regarding rom development for the G1?
I searched and didn't see anything regarding rom development (for a n00b)
Any help or even where I would be able to start would be great. Im not looking to be the next top Chef on Xda im just looking to make a rom a little more, my own. Ive already done some "adb" work but am looking for more.
Thanks!
Moses

How to cook your own rom, an initiative by moderators

Dear folks:
How many us are really looking for cooking our own rom. Information are scattered here and there and the process is not straight forward. It can be as simple as adding cabs and as complicated as perhaps changing hardware, porting roms to other devices, etc...
I think the reason why there is no tutorial for cooking the rom is because well it's difficult for one to develop that kind of tutorial, let alone his/her experience and best practices in various areas.
Ok so how to solve it? I suggest that all great cooking people out there, share to build that tutorial led by the moderator.
For example, one person could be in charge of explaining how to add CAB, another person in doing sys, another in porting, another in compiling, etc..
Clearly there will be multiple sections in that thread and it would be owesome and well organized. Even better, some topics can be jointly developed by more then one person sharing the experience and the best tricks and tips between them.
Somebody has to start this initiative, at least in defining the blocks, who is going to take the first shot and entice others to cooperate?
Samer.

sounds like a good idea i'd definitely like to know!!! im always looking for ways to build up my skills.

There's plenty of tutorials floating around... But if you want one done JUST for the TP2, I can help with that...

Im down...if not make my own, maybe help someone else. I personally think there are too many to choose from, and there needs to be a streamlined process to ensure that the ones that work, continue to get the support to make them better.

As NRG said, there are already a lot of threads and tutorials. Making a ROM is not just a Rhodium thing, it is very generic to start. Then making it Rhodium compliant might take some extra work. In any case, I am also looking to start my own kitchen so any efforts in this direction are apprciated.

I would greatly appreciate this. I am currently trying to cook my own ROM. I got the Visual Kitchen, dumped the HTC WWE 6.5 ROM and downloaded the 23518 rollup from Da_G.
I used Dump Sorter to sort the rollup and put it in the SYS folder. I moved the MSXIPKernel into ROM\Shared\23518. I selected 23518 for XIP and SYS build and left ETX at 21854. The ROM won't build. I try to make it but the file in RHODIUM_Release is only 8MB.
In the build log it says
"Executing: platformrebuilder.exe.....
platformrebuilder.exe Executed successfull!!!"
Platformrebuilder does not do anything where as if I left everything at 21854 there is a LOT of stuff that platformrebuilder.exe does.
Also in ROM\Shared\21854 there is a file xip.bin that I don't have in 23518.

Help cooking sense2.5
My problem is when trying to cook Leo sense2.5(EXT package). ( I could produce sense2.1 without any problem) . BUT ran into issues like: (see photo) or if the ROM is complete. I can't get past the installation screen, just hung there and not giving me the Today Screen. So any help would be greatly appreciative.
ps.. I did check Real WM 6.5, but ROM still won't boot.

NRGZ28 said:
There's plenty of tutorials floating around... But if you want one done JUST for the TP2, I can help with that...
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Click to collapse
Well first of all, it's an honor to see a great person like yourself answering my post, so my warm regards for your kindness.
Yes, I am interested obviously in TP2, although from the moment I got my hands on it, I never tried anything but EnergyRom (do you know who does them?) but it's just that I wish I can combine the latest official WM6.5 with arabic keyboard and Sense 2.5 and perhaps some cool stuff.
Indeed there are plenty of tutorials out there but maybe they are not clear enough to me, or maybe I didnt' search very well or maybe I dont know how and where to start. so yes ur input are highly welcome just like your presence.

NRGZ28 said:
There's plenty of tutorials floating around... But if you want one done JUST for the TP2, I can help with that...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'd love to see one! Not that I'm not grateful to the cooks for their ROMs, I'd like to know how it's done and maybe add a few programs of my own to a ROM.
Oh, and I think it'd be best to start right at the beginning so that everyone is at the same level eventually.
Thanks!

I started cockin roms a couple years ago and said the exact same thing how the information is scattered.. i'm in, just let me know what you need and i'll help with what i can.

I also see some tutorials in many sub-forums, but having to look at 4 different pages just to do one step in cooking a ROM is a little troublesome and confusing. So here's what I think should happen:
I think there should be a sticky thread that has clear steps (a guide) on how to cook ROMs.
Then there should also be a sticky thread that has all kitchens from chefs that want to release them. (Similar to the Radio Collection Thread.)
That would help a lot of people! I want to cook ROMs when I have the time (over summer) and if (hopefully when) this happens, it would be easier for many people like me to cook ROMs.

BesFen made a solid tutorial for using Visual kitchen in the Opal forum, and I helped with that one. I think this is an excellent idea and I'd love to help with it in whatever capacity I can.
Link: Installing & Using Ervius Visual Kitchen V1.8.1 For OPAL
edit: Just read the poll results. Whoever said no is obviously not XDA material.

i dont mind helping with this

Thanks for starting this thread.. Been using excellent ROMs from NRGZ & b16b, but want to do my own thing for my Rhodium. Hopefully, this will get me to appreciate the efforts of these 2 fine cooks and use the facilities provided by XDA better..
I've been trying to wrap my head around the info provided by Da_G in this super thread:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=544445
It is taking a while for a newbie like me..

When I had my XV6800(AKA Titan) after a while of modding I started cooking my own roms. I usually removed the garbage I would never use to shrink the Rom size. I then left for a BB in Nov. 2008. Well my senses have come around and I will be back to WinMo with a TP2 on Wed. So I would like to see a kitchen to cooking rom Tutorial assuming it is different. I know that of course CDMA vs GSM will be with because of the carrier CAB. This go around I am leaving VZW to T-Mobile.

So, what's happened with this and this thread? Has it all turned out to be a p**s take?

I would love to see a cohesive tutorial on how to cook a ROM.
I've poked around in the kitchen threads but have gotten kind of lost and overwhelmed. It seems like information is so scattered around.
I've been looking for a project to do for awhile and have thought that ROM cooking might be kinda fun. Initially, I'd just like to make something with the features I want but who knows where it might go. I think I've tried every TP2 ROM on XDA-Developers now and, while I've found some excellent ones, nothing that quite screams "this is EXACTLY what I want".
So...yeah...a good "how-to" would be excellent and I'd be forever grateful.
FWIW, I'd be happy to do some trade-work in exchange for this. I've got a pretty decent technical skill set...just not one involving ROM cooking.

Same here.. I'm stuck on getting a build to use.. Looking for a good NAM build : Tilt2 stock or something for Tilt2 will be a good start..
My first attempt is with the Eruvius Visual kitchen. I think I got all the required files. There were multiple download links in the original thread. I'm guessing that I get the older version and replace the latest kitchen .exe on top.

I'd love to try to cook my own ROM. I agree that the information seems sparse and kinda scattered. My cursory browsing very much gives the vibe that information for Touch Pro 2 ROM Development has an unspoken understanding that you've made ROMs before. Not me.

I'd love a simple step-by-step tutorial (for rhodium), cause I'd like to build a simple ROM based on the latest 5.5.3/5, without manila...

Android Development

I'm posting this in the Development section because that is what I am trying to learn about. Please move me if I am mis-posting this.
I'm greatly interested in the the Roms people are making and everything that is being done on these forums. If someone wanted to start to learn about these things, developing and such, where should they start? Do I need to learn Java? Are there certain books I should be reading?
I can flash my phone like its my day job now, and I haven't come across any major problems I couldn't solve by reading, but I have no idea where to start to be able to develop things myself. If any developers here could maybe throw out a few tips on how to get started, what someone should focus on learning, etc., it would be greatly appreciated! I have plenty of time and a great desire to learn so I'm not intimidated by having to do the work, I just have to have some things to focus on. Thank you in advance for any help/advice you can give me!

I always wanted to know how make roms also I was looking around the internet but couldn't find anything that will describe it step by step word for word.
Maccie

It will be a huge writeup.But im sure someone will do it. I am still learning myself. There are some good topics around but different from what we have now

topshelf95 said:
I'm posting this in the Development section because that is what I am trying to learn about. Please move me if I am mis-posting this.
I'm greatly interested in the the Roms people are making and everything that is being done on these forums. If someone wanted to start to learn about these things, developing and such, where should they start? Do I need to learn Java? Are there certain books I should be reading?
I can flash my phone like its my day job now, and I haven't come across any major problems I couldn't solve by reading, but I have no idea where to start to be able to develop things myself. If any developers here could maybe throw out a few tips on how to get started, what someone should focus on learning, etc., it would be greatly appreciated! I have plenty of time and a great desire to learn so I'm not intimidated by having to do the work, I just have to have some things to focus on. Thank you in advance for any help/advice you can give me!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There are a number of aspects to android development you have to learn to know how to build a full ROM from scratch. C is of course required for kernel building, and apps are built from java in the dalvik-vm, but can be built against sun java.
of course, to get started, you would need the android sdk available here: http://developer.android.com/sdk/index.html
then there's the cloning of the android git:
http://android.git.kernel.org/
and, specifically for the captivate, there's the captivate source code:
http://opensource.samsung.com/
then there's pulling off the vendor proprietary libs from your phone (which is a ***** and I believe you can grab them from wes's github, though I can't speak for their accuracy) here:
http://github.com/wesgarner/proprietary_vendor_samsung
building the entire android OS from source is a challenge, especially compensating for some changes Samsung has introduced. this is what a real ROM is. now if you're talking about "ROM"s like Cognition and Shep's and even Eugene's Hybrid/Frankin-Twiz... they aren't comparable. Not to belittle any of their efforts, but this is simple "drag and drop" from stuff built by Samsung. While they're very useful tools, there is little actual development going on in them. There are improvements and tweaks, for sure... but it isn't a *true* ROM. All these releases by DesignGears, Eugene, and Shep are good and effective, but it'd be a shame if they weren't because they are just files thrown together from Samsung's already compiled ROM(s). Even the AOSP Beta 3 (which I have a qualm with the name, because it isn't actually AOSP, it's files pulled from an already built AOSP tossed onto Samsung's ROM again) is just modifying binaries (decompile, edit, recompile).
for those, it's as simple as extracting the zip, replacing the files you want, and rezip it. modifying the update-script inside meta-inf if there's something you want to add.

Awesome post Kaik, thanks, I was wondering some of those too.

Thx that explained a bunch
Maccie

Thank you for taking the time to post that Kaik! It's nice to have a place to start! Anyone else have any tips or things they think might be good to check out?

last, but certainly not least and I can't believe I forgot this, is Unhelpful's toolchain to compile against:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=761923
he did a lot of testing with various combinations, and this was the best he found to reduce wakeup lag and other issues

Wow. Kaik. That was the most awesome response to that question I have ever seen. Most people just point to developer.android.com and say go learn to program and come back in 5 years.
Thank you for this very useful information. Your the man now dog.

johnyhoffman said:
Most people just point to developer.android.com and say go learn to program and come back in 5 years.
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Click to collapse
Devs are not being mean or pissy, they are being honest and realistic. If development was just "point and click" XDA would not even be here. Give the devs/veterans a break and take it upon yourself to learn the basics and do some searches, if you are that interested.
I would love to just start making my own Android OS just the way I like too but to do that will require much more reading and learning, trying and failing.
You will probably not find "the answer" you are looking for but if you search, read and most importantly, respect the time, energy and anguish people have put into this site you will find the means to get where you want.
Otherwise you can expect... "Let me just glance and peek to see how to do this. Damn what the hell does that mean? Oh well here is a modded ROM. I'll try that. Jeez, that sucks. How do I make my own? Let me just glance and peek to see how to do this. Damn what the hell does that mean? Oh well ..." It is an endless cycle.
I'm not saying this to belittle anyone. Most have been there, including myself. I say this as a vote of confidence to all.
Hang in there, do the work, break some phones, read some books. Really! You have to!

koe1974 said:
Devs are not being mean or pissy, they are being honest and realistic. If development was just "point and click" XDA would not even be here. Give the devs/veterans a break and take it upon yourself to learn the basics and do some searches, if you are that interested.
I would love to just start making my own Android OS just the way I like too but to do that will require much more reading and learning, trying and failing.
You will probably not find "the answer" you are looking for but if you search, read and most importantly, respect the time, energy and anguish people have put into this site you will find the means to get where you want.
Otherwise you can expect... "Let me just glance and peek to see how to do this. Damn what the hell does that mean? Oh well here is a modded ROM. I'll try that. Jeez, that sucks. How do I make my own? Let me just glance and peek to see how to do this. Damn what the hell does that mean? Oh well ..." It is an endless cycle.
I'm not saying this to belittle anyone. Most have been there, including myself. I say this as a vote of confidence to all.
Hang in there, do the work, break some phones, read some books. Really! You have to!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
this times one thousand. I linked you guys to some very useful sites when it comes to actually putting android together... but understanding how it all works, actually getting a successful build, fixing bugs, etc... I can't even begin to pretend to be able to help with that. if you have little to no experience in C and Java, these things will basically be useless to you. dev's aren't being mean when they brush you off like that, but usually if you can't figure out how to google what to do with the code, they don't have high hopes for what you'll be able to do with it once you find the code.
the idea isn't to be like "f*** off" when they say that, it's more of a "we'll help you when you learn, but you're the one who needs to take the first steps and you need to take the responsibility of learning on yourself."

I was actually referring to the fact that someone like me, a hobbyist programmer for about 10 years now, can make sense of his reply and use it to go forth and actually do something. Most of the guides you find on here that are supposedly pointed at noobs, do not layout things as easily as his post did.
Wasn't criticizing anyone, but I have seen less patience nowadays for any posts such as these.
Was just saying it was a gem of a post for me personally. Maybe it doesn't help the ultra noobs and the more experienced people see it as useless, but for someone with little time right now, it was a perfect post for me.