Rooted OF1: install older version of Google Maps? - Verizon Samsung Galaxy S 4

I have a recently rooted S4. I would like to take a bit more control over the apps that are installed.
For starters: device currently has Google Maps 9.9.0. I much prefer the older GM, with the zoom in/out buttons (rather than the double click/swipe up & down technique).
I attempted to uninstall current GM 9.9.0, then install GM 6.14.4 apk which I have saved from another S4. But that didn't work. Is it not possible to do this? Or am I doing something wrong.
I used to Flash/Tweak/Mod like a mad man a couple of years ago. But I haven't done anything like this in a while. So...sorry if this is a noob question.

Related

Jelly Bean and paid apps bug; any workarounds?

Just flashed randomblame's excellent JELLYTIME ROM on my Inspire. It's working great, but like so many others I've been bitten by the paid app bug in the Play Store encryption process. I'm looking for a work-around, but there doesn't seem to be much out there, or I'm missing it.
As far as widgets go, HD Widgets responded well to the "back up, delete and restore" treatment. But neither of my preferred keyboards (SwiftKey or Thumb Keyboard) will persist after a reboot. I tried the process mentioned above, but keyboard still reverts to stock. I'm using a free version of another keyboard app, and it does persist, but I'd really like to find a better solution.
3 questions:
1. Is there a workaround to get these keyboard apps to persist? I've found nothing, and I'd rather not go through the whole installation process every time I reboot.
2. If not, is there a way to use Tasker to install after reboot? I'm not really knowledgable about Tasker, and this seems to be beyond it's capabilities, but I'm not sure.
3. I've read that Google disabled encryption in the JB Play Store. What does that mean exactly? That apps purchased from JB Play aren't encrypted? If that's the case then they should persist correct? But I have, I think, the JB Play Store, and when I installed SwiftKey from Play, it still doesn't persist. Maybe I don't actually have JB Play. Or maybe Play remembers that my phone was originally Gingerbread and it won't let me install JB apps. I don't know.
Any suggestions?
P.S. Just checked. Along with JELLYTIME I flashed JB gapps zip found in this thread:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1796675
Looks like the right one to me. Hmm...
Another P.S. When I search Play Store for Google Wallet on my laptop, it tells me it's not compatible with my phone. So I'm thinking Play doesn't realize I'm running JB. Is there a way to fix this?

[Q] Different Google Talk APKs?

Hello,
Some time ago, I purchased an Onda V712 7" tablet; just a cheap, rooted Android tablet to tinker with. After disabling the Chinese apps, I later installed some of the Google Apps, including Google Talk. Recently, I upgraded the tablet's firmware and overlooked that it was a destructive firmware. Because I was/am foolish, I didn't store the APK I had used to install Google Talk (nor do I recall where I got it), and on the assumption that any APK that I could get was fungible. For the reinstall, I used the method described:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1056793
And the Google Talk app that I installed the second time wasn't the same one that I had installed the first time. The first application was great; it had a double-pane layout with the contacts in a sidebar. It looked similar to this:
http://images.anandtech.com/reviews/gadgets/Motorola/Xoom/talk2.jpg
However, the subsequent app that I installed (via XDA Developers) looked more like a stretched-to-fit version of Google Talk on an Android phone:
http://i.imgur.com/fKJts.png
Having poked around the settings for the second app, I wasn't able to find a way in which it would render in the layout depicted in the first one.
Are there really two Google Talk apps (ostensibly one for tablets and one for phones), or had I been mistaken and installed an outdated or improper version? If I may be opportunistic, I would appreciate it if anybody could point me to that version I had been using.
Thanks very much
I think above one is running in Tablet mode and bellow one is Phone mode. But I don't know how to change the mode.
Sorry I missed, in the end you already mentioned about this.
Sent from my GT-I9000 using xda app-developers app
t3hmyth said:
Hello,
Some time ago, I purchased an Onda V712 7" tablet; just a cheap, rooted Android tablet to tinker with. After disabling the Chinese apps, I later installed some of the Google Apps, including Google Talk. Recently, I upgraded the tablet's firmware and overlooked that it was a destructive firmware. Because I was/am foolish, I didn't store the APK I had used to install Google Talk (nor do I recall where I got it), and on the assumption that any APK that I could get was fungible. For the reinstall, I used the method described:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1056793
And the Google Talk app that I installed the second time wasn't the same one that I had installed the first time. The first application was great; it had a double-pane layout with the contacts in a sidebar. It looked similar to this:
http://images.anandtech.com/reviews/gadgets/Motorola/Xoom/talk2.jpg
However, the subsequent app that I installed (via XDA Developers) looked more like a stretched-to-fit version of Google Talk on an Android phone:
http://i.imgur.com/fKJts.png
Having poked around the settings for the second app, I wasn't able to find a way in which it would render in the layout depicted in the first one.
Are there really two Google Talk apps (ostensibly one for tablets and one for phones), or had I been mistaken and installed an outdated or improper version? If I may be opportunistic, I would appreciate it if anybody could point me to that version I had been using.
Thanks very much
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i never checked Talk before I updated to rooted 1.5.5.
After the update it was on the tablet, but only crashing.
I tried the modaco installer, but it does not work.
Can you explain which one you used?
I do not care too much about the dimensions, as long as video calling works
thanks

[Q] [Help] Can't login to Google on my Nexus 5

Hey everyone:
at first, sorry for my bad english
I currently can not login to Google on my Nexus 5.
I had these problems before with Paranoid Android, thats why i came back to stock.
This was a few weeks ago, im on 4.4.4 now, rooted and a few tweeks like xposed installer and gravity box installed.
Before yesterday i had no problems, but than i installed an app called freedom.
I couldn't believe that it works, so i tested it.
A few hours later i recognized that i can not login to google, so google now, the play store, etc doesnt work.
I tried to log out and login again, but it doesnt work.
I deinstalled freedom, but that doesnt changed something.
Does anyone else got some same problems like this with freedom?
Does someone know what i can do if i dont want to hard reset my Nexus ?

Google Phone & Contacts

Some of you have probably seen the recent and then quick take down of the Google Phone and Contacts app. It appears these apps would only install on Nexus and Google Play edition phones with 6.0.
Has anyone gotten them to install on the S6/Edge. I did some research and it looks like there where ways to get them to install on phones with 4.4 (older version) and then on the G3/4 with 5.0 (these methods did not work on the S6) I would really like to use the Phone app with the google powered caller ID I dont care as much for the contacts app.

Question Why are there separate google apps on these phones?

Google Lens is already on the phone, but there's still the Google Lens app in the store that you can install. There's also GPay already on the phone, but some apps tell me to install Google Pay from the store.
Why? Does having double the apps screw with anything in the long run?
Maybe updates? I would go with the factory load versions unless they don't work well.
For Gpay, the one on the phone is the old version. They are pushing everyone to upgrade to the new version, that is the one in the store.
I don't use Gpay. The worst that will likely to happen if you don't upgrade is eventually it will stop working. You could get into issues with Playstore which demands updating. Playstore is so on my bad side, I rarely use it anymore.
I use the factory load versions for most of the Google apps especially Gmail and Gmaps as the update's UI's* sucked. Some of the Google system apps are factory load too because the update caused issues like excessive battery consumption*. So it is after 2 years, current load is over 1.5 yo, still fast, stable and user friendly.
You should experiment to see what works best for you. Just be aware that updates (especially firmware) can break just as easily as they can fix devices.
*Samsung seems to modify these and many times the factory load version works best. Or perhaps it's just the oldest version before Google screwed them up more
I installed the Google Assistant app just so I could add it as an icon to my home screen in Nova Launcher.
It's for people who root and want specific apps installed without installing the background/integration stuff.

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