Hey Igwanarob, want a phone?

I finally gave into temptation. I got a MyTouch 4G. I’m very much impressed with it. The Internet connection is as almost as fast as my apartment’s Wi-Fi. That in an of itself makes it worth it. Then there’s the Android. Unlike my previous phone, this was designed from the start for it, so there’s no having to go through three different steps to load a good build on it.

Then again, with my HD2, all the android build were rooted from the get-go. I have to manually root this phone, and there goes  the warranty if i do. Well, I think I know what I’m doing, and I’m sure if I muck it up too much, I can put a stock ROM back on, besides, I know how to back-up.

So, Igwanarob. Would you like a slight used HTC HD2? I have confirmed that it runs windows mobile quite well (and ENERGY is still cooking ROMS for it). And you can run android (in fact you can dual boot pretty well). I’ve also heard rumors that you can run windows phone 7 on it, but why would one do that. It’s like escaping the mousetrap to run into the arms of the cat…

Into the kitchen, boy....

Edit: I never thought I'd see the day, bought tonight Blogger for Android is easier to post to than Windows Live Writer. I don't know what's wrong with it. But tonight's blog entry is courtesy of my phone. And the Swye public beta...

Edit: wrote this on my phone, but links were added from my computer.

Anyway, IgwanaRob once posted about cooking his own ROMS for his Tilt II (aka the HTC Rhodium, our the Touch Pro II), the he settled upon the ENERGY ROMS, which I used for my Rhodium and my Leo, before I switched to Android (in fact, there is an ENERGY ROM for Android, too). I haven't yet found a specific Android kitchen, but when using the Clockwork Recovery mod, I found a way to do some serious tweaking on my ROM. Before it's installed.

I start of with Rafdroid, what ever the current version. Then I unzip the archive (CWM ROMs are actually .zip files). Then I start off by deleting stuff I don't use (I don't tweet, so Twitter stuff can go, as well as most of the HTC Locations stuff). I used to use another ROM, and I liked the skins it used, and so I load those in. And I add some stuff I use, then re-zip and install.

And there's another flash I do for the custom theme, just because I like the flying windows it offers, but I've yet to figure out how to cook everything in at once.

Now, while I'm on Android ROMs for the HD2, I've noticed the best ones I've tried come in two flavors: those that are based on the HTC Glacier (the MyTouch 4G), and the HTC Ace (the HTC Desire HD). The Glacier based ROMs have the eye candy, and generally they take up less space (meaning you have more space to download crap your don't need from the market...). But I've found that the Ace based ROMS have for functionality...

The HTC HD2 is still relevant….

My first real smartphone was the T-Mobile Shadow. I bought it used from my boss. Then when it broke on me, I went to a BlackBerry. After 2 months, I realized I hated it and got another Shadow. A few months later, the Shadow started showing its age, and I decided to upgrade to a Rhodium (aka the HTC Touch Pro 2), which is what IgwanaRob had when he last posted about it. I tried the Energy ROM’s with it, and I was impressed. Then one day I walked into work, and my boss offered me terms on his HTC HD2 that I could afford (he’d been trying to sell it to me for a while, but I was sufficiently happy my phone that I wasn’t really biting on his previous offers). I was really impressed with the Energy ROMS, probably because Energy uses an HD2 as his phone, too. A while back, I switched my main phone OS to Android, but at the time, I still had to keep windows installed on my phone, as ‘Driod was installed to the memory card, and you had to boot into windows first, the load android. Not anymore. You can now install Android into your HD2’s main memory, and ditch windows altogether. So, I’m now windows-free. And I’m loving it. Though I do keep a recent Energy ROM on hand, just in case.

I, for one, shed no tears that The Anti-Christ has decreed that the HD2 will not get Windows Phone 7. Though our friends at XDA-Developers are working on that, too… Tough the last time I walked the local T-Mobile stores, they were having a BOGO special in the HD7 (which is an HD2 with a different sticker over some buttons, and windows phone 7…), something you normally don’t see unless the phone isn’t selling….

The HTC HD2 is still relevant. As an Android phone. Which it runs very well (even better than Windows Mobile). Probably because it’s the bastard cousin of the Nexus One, the EVO, and the HTC Desire (in fact, a lot of the Android ROMS/builds are based on the HTC Desire, so similar is their hardware….)

Yet another journal entry type post

Rebuilt my computer the first part of September. Just now got around to configuring Windows Live Writer, one of the few good things The Anti-Christ put out (that and the MechWarrior 4 franchise, which is now available for free, FLight Simulator X, Flight Simulator 2004, the Whole Combat Flight Simulator series….).

It has been said the The HTC HD2 will not get an official Windows Phone 7 upgrade. Which means Igwanarob might get a Windows Phone 7 before I do (AT&T is one of the launch customers for it). The operating term is “official”. The only difference between the currrent HD2 and the forthcoming HD7 (to be offered by T-Mobile) are a few button stickers. That’s it. They’ll both have the same processor, same camera, same 4.3 inch 800 x 480 display… If they can port Android over to it, then they can port Windows Phone 7 too (in fact, it has been done already, though the ROM hasn’t benn publicly released. Yet).

Speaking of Android on my HD2, I’ve noticed that there’s a mobile version of FIrefox out. I’m still playing with it, but so far, I’m sufficiently impressed. When I use Windows Mobile, I’m now an Opera 10 person. Mainly because it’s slightly easier than Internet Exploder. Too bad they killed Fennec. Windows Mobile is still a viable platform (as stigmatized as it is), and I don’t think the masses are going to jump to the new 7 en masse…

The main reason why this blog is so neglected nowadays is that I’m on Facebook more often than not. No, this blog won’t be taken down anytime soon. Facebook is good for embarrasing your boss and posting humiliating pictures of your family. But even with most of my postings going on Facebook, I still need my soapbox in the internet. And this is perfect. Having said that, Facebook recently changed the server interface, for want of a better way of saying it. The Android and iPhone apps were written by Facebook, iirc, and so they were able to deal with it (or they were upgraded). Not the WinMo version. Since it’s published my MicroSoft, it didn’t get the memo, and now the only way to make it work is to log out, and log back in every time you use it. They have said something about a forthcoming update, but I don’t believe it. Instead, I’d suggest the XDA Developers’ Edition…

The Sounders FC are in the playoffs. Again. Not too shabby for your second season. And with the new MLS teams in Portland and Vancouver, the rivalries are sure to become interesting.

And the Seahawks now have something they haven’t had in over two years: a winning record. And they’re on top the division, too. Pete Caroll has changed a lot personel since he came, and it appears to be working. Shit-canning the man-divas on the team and replacing them with players who actually play will do wonders for results. It’s one thing to have the talent. It’s another thing to produce the results. Any idiot can have a mouth, but actions speak louder than words…

Did I mention I like Football as much, if not even more than I like football?

The rain is now picking up again. This weekend we had the first real storm pass through the area. It woke me up at about 5 in morning Sunday. From the sound of the rain hitting the window, I figured it was coming straight against that side of the building. My brother sleeps right underneath his window. And he his window was open… (I learned that lesson a few weeks ago when another storm passed through, though it wasn’t as bad…) With the weather peoples saying that this will be a La Niña year, I’m pretty sure winter will be interesting, to say the least.

A way to irritate my brother….

As you may know from reading my previous entries, aside from the fact that IgwanaRob has very much definitely voided the warranty on his phone (see the first comment…) is yes, I got a HTC Rhodium, aka the T-Mobile Touch Pro 2. My brother, who bought my BlackBerry when I went back to the Shadow, was intrigued by it. He actually said that I finally got something cool. At the time, he was looking for an upgrade for his phone. Apparetnly this was the phone he wanted, and I got it first. SO he sent me out to find him and HD2. Wasn’t going to happen. So he finally settled on a Touch Pro 2, as well. I think he’ll manage…

Another rainy day off

It's my day off.  And it's raining, as usual....

And Monday Night Football is on.  It’s gone down the toilet since ESPN took it over, but it’s the only NFL Game I can watch this week.  Maybe I should stop taunting my boss for being a Raiders fan, and I’ll see more Sundays off, but I can’t help myself.  The Raiders just suck, and my boss is just an idiot….  Cricket season starts in a couple of weeks, and I will have something else to taunt him about (my boss is from India, and is a big cricket fan.  India's national cricket team, like the Raiders, sucks as well).

Anyway, it’s in the first quarter of the game, and it looks like the Vikings are going to get raped and pillaged again.  Then again, they just blocked a field goal and returned it for a touchdown….

The Seahawks got massacred yesterday.  That’s all I can say about it.  The referee shoulda stopped the match before they got hurt.  I’m just glad nobody got hurt playing BYE last week.  And where’s the defense.  The offense will eventually put points on the board, but it's really the defense that'll win the game...

And in The New World Order (Mind-Control Division): The Yankees shit-canned Joe Torre.  He still made it to the play-offs.  The Yankees didn't.  The Yankees are idiots (sorry, Igwanarob, but that's the truth...).  But, then again, the Mariners pretty got their asses handed to them on silver platters this year (at least they'll have a good draft pick next year....)

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I know this is probably a day late and a dollar short

But Happy Birthday Igwanarob. may you find happiness, prosperity, and some good sci-fi on TV tonight.  Anything beyond that, just put on The Chosen Attire, go out and plunder it yourself...

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A bit of a shock…

I have the day off, and lo! There's this bright yellow thing in the sky. And I'm even out running errands, too (usually that means it'll rain automatically). OK, so it did rain a little but this morning, but I was doing laundry at the time, so that doesn't really count. I'm still jealous that IgwanaRob got his weekend off dry… And he had the gall to brag about here!

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A few random thoughts

• Thank you for the good wish, IgwanaRob.  Even though you’re late, as usual <eg,d,r>.
• When you’re listening to music on your T-Mobile Shadow (through your Bluetooth stereo headphones), while surfing the internet, texting your friend, and reading your email (since you upgraded your plan to the total internet access), expect the battery life to not be as long.  A spare battery would be prudent.
• You can charge your phone’s battery off of the USB port on your computer (this applies to this phone, and to the Motorola Z3, that I previously used), though you'll see faster results when using the wall charger.
• It takes over eight hours to sync 3.5 gigabytes of music, but less than 10 minutes to upgrade the phone software.
• You can now use the public Wi-Fi at the library.  Even though your apartment is already Wi-Fi’ed.
• How come nobody told me my cousin had a baby Saturday.  I don't even have picture yet.
• My former co-worker is the next person to have a baby.  Currently she's due to have her birth spasm on the 29th.
• It's rained that past two days.  And I've had the past two days off.  Coincidence, or Conspiracy?  I think the latter, as it always turns for the sunnier the moment I clock in to work.

Technorati Tags: T-Mobile Shadow,IgwanaRob,The Weather,Batteries,Wi-Fi

Happy New Year

Thus begins The Year Of The Lawyer (yes, I know it's actually the Year of the Rat, but we all know rats and lawyers are interchangeable...  Then again, maybe I shouldn't malign rats like that).  Myself, I am an ox, more specifically a water ox.  Next year will be my lucky year....

Until then, it should be a lucky year for a certain water rat.

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Happy Birthday Igwanarob

I hope you're enjoying your annual ass-sitting.  Save me a piece of cake.

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