Posts From Mike Szczys

Mike Szczys
35 posts

Mike Szczys is a professional musician but spends all his free time working with hobby electronics. As Contributing Editor for Hackaday.com he became interested in Android as some of the early hardware hacks started popping up on the Internet. What followed was a gradually rising addiction to all things Android.

How to Overclock NAND Devices with PLL2
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How to Overclock NAND Devices with PLL2

July 8, 2013
Anyone who's remotely interested in the topic of overclocking hardware will enjoy reading about the proper way to do so on NAND based devices that have PLL2 rather than PLL4. Notice my use of the term 'proper,' as right off the bat, the guide makes a reference to burning out the hardware if this is...
ADB and Fastboot Quick Start Guide
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ADB and Fastboot Quick Start Guide

July 2, 2013
I run Linux exclusively and I was not happy when my Android device stopped enumerating as a mass storage device. The OS version I have right now doesn't automount MTP, so how am I supposed to get files on and off of my phone? There are several options, but I think the most simple answer...
Guide on Using the Repo Tool
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Guide on Using the Repo Tool

July 1, 2013
Everyone who builds ROMs knows about the repo tool, right? I say wrong. You can build ROMs all the live long day and know nothing about it. But you'll face-palm after learning about what you're missing. The repo tool is a Python script that adds a layer of abstraction between you and Git. Git is of...
More than You Want to Know about Context
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More than You Want to Know about Context

June 26, 2013
Context---there's always a context. It doesn't take long to get the hang of dealing with the context objects called for in most of the UI portions of your code. But do you really know what these parameters are doing? It's easy enough to use getApplicationContext(), getActivityContext(), or even just the keyword 'this'. But do you...
Dos and Don’ts of Android Design
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Dos and Don’ts of Android Design

June 20, 2013
As long as you're coming from some type of programming background, the unseen part of app programming will not be very hard. Java is a pretty forgiving language and a good IDE makes all the difference. But that doesn't mean the User Interface is going to be easy. A fair amount of upfront planning for the...
MicrowaveTimePicker Brings 4.2 TimePicker to 2.1+ Devices
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MicrowaveTimePicker Brings 4.2 TimePicker to 2.1+ Devices

June 19, 2013
It's frustrating to see slick new features that you can't use when supporting devices with older versions of Android. Sometimes Android adds in support for a few previous versions, like when the ActionBar was added. But other times, you're just going to have to do it yourself. That's what XDA Senior Member icechen1 did to make...
Heimdall Suite 1.4.0 Released
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Heimdall Suite 1.4.0 Released

June 17, 2013
The release version of Heimdall Suite 1.4.0 is now available after an epic wait. You may remember hearing about this version of the suite way back in October when the release candidate was first announced. That's quite a slow pace for the last steps toward a stable release, but it sounds like the time was...
Why Devs Should Avoid ‘Null’ when Inflating Layouts
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Why Devs Should Avoid ‘Null’ when Inflating Layouts

June 16, 2013
We've all done it at one point or another. You are hammering out some code and need one aspect of a method call to work so you just put null in for the rest of the parameters instead of actually researching how they work. I've actually done the very thing Dave Smith writes of in his...
Test Libraries with Libraries for Developers
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Test Libraries with Libraries for Developers

June 6, 2013
I was really excited back in April when I heard about a list of open source Android apps that could be used for learning. Here's an app that will go hand in hand with that kind of resource. XDA Junior Member DesarrolloDroide has been hard at work on "Libraries for Developers." It's an app that features a...
Parse SDK Helps Add Push, Social Integration, Cloud Storage, and More
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Parse SDK Helps Add Push, Social Integration, Cloud Storage, and More

June 4, 2013
I've never heard of Parse before, but a quick look into what they're all about really drives home the value of this type of service. The package comes in the form of an SDK to include when developing your app, and server-side services that go hand in hand with it. When XDA Senior Member MaartenXDA first discovered Parse, he...
Sound-Triggered Malware Could Rickroll Rooms Full of Infected Androids
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Sound-Triggered Malware Could Rickroll Rooms Full of Infected Androids

June 4, 2013
How do you know if your handset is infected with malware? You might not be able to tell until after it's triggered. And this particular trigger method is very interesting. You know how Google Now listens for you to say the word "Google" to initiate a voice search? Malware might know the same trick. An infected...
Doing More with the ActionBar
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Doing More with the ActionBar

May 30, 2013
I love the look and functionality of the ActionBar. I find my thumb has more dexterity at the top of the screen than it does at the bottom when I'm holding my phone with one hand. And so I'm happy to see that the interface is evolving while retaining that valued real estate. Play Music...