- Aug 4, 2010
- 1,505
- 110
NOTE: This is presented "as-is" -- please USE AT YOUR OWN RISK! If you have any issues with this upgrade, you should be able to re-flash back to stock to get back to a stable baseline. The last two betas seem stable during the installation process, but as always YMMV.
Warning!!! Internal microSD and External SD have been switched That means that the internal card is now /sdcard, please be aware of that.
Full update ZIP's (choose one, depending on what you need):
Beta 2.1.0 (Cruz base only, no GE, user data wipe): SD_CRUZPDN_2_10_BASE_PD_INX7E_ENG_6410POP.zip
md5sum: ec8603ceb56cac56fa76a9e6b38ef81b
Beta 2.1.0 (full GE, user data wipe): SD_CRUZPDN_2_10_GE_PD_INX7E_ENG_6410POP.zip
md5sum: 26bb3fbd22b16d4f9a52ba1f5224fc1b
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Supplement (add-on for the BASE install only, if needed - run this after the full update is completed):
Supplemental layer 1.1 (non-destructive): SD_CRUZPDN_SUPP011_PD_INX7E_ENG_6410POP.zip
md5sum: a3ad2cfe754c1350afa1fda0e939a94c
(supplemental layer adds back the PDN music/games/photo apps, Contacts, and a new Android font taken from Ubuntu)
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Changelog for 2.1.0:
- Same modular format, base and GE versions. v2 board tested by myself, with other users testing v1 boards.
- Based off new Cruz 10/12 firmware, which fixes the SSID space issue and now allows for hidden SSID's to be used.
- (GE only) Added Ubuntu font and the other 1.1 supplemental changes to the mod.
- (GE only) Added WinHelp2002 hosts file entries, mainly to block ads.
Quick video of the UI in action:
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What this is:
A full firmware update for the white Pandigital Novel (all versions, tmk) that will update the UI to the Velocity Micro Cruz. This makes the following changes to the stock device:
- Changes the device name to "slatedroid-cruzn". Better than the default "sec_smdk6410", imo.
- Android Market (non-ugly hack. Just configure your Google ID and it "just works"). Many thanks to clockworx for this hack!
- Portrait mode (by default). Certain applications seem to prefer this configuration
- Cruz soft buttons. Volume keys are now used for their original purpose
- Several built-in applications added like Aldiko, Kindle app, Pandora, Facebook, YouTube, Linpack and mVideoPlayer (you can delete them, if you don't use them)
- CPU max frequency of 800Mhz is retained (different than the full Cruz firmware)
- WiFi is constantly on, even while in sleep mode (this is the Cruz default). What that means is instant WiFi after sleep, at the cost of reduced battery life. Other than that, it is similar to stock (which is good and bad)
What this is NOT:
- A replacement / upgraded UI for actual Cruz devices. I have never tested it there and I would not recommend attempting it. You could brick the device.
- A complete transformation from the PDN to Cruz firmware. Some things on the Cruz may not work here and the kernel / bootloader are still the PDN defaults. Consider this a "hybrid" of the two firmwares. From a USB point of view, I believe that the device should still use the original PDN vendor ID.
Instructions:
- Download the above ZIP file, and place it on the root of your SD card.
- Reboot the device into recovery mode (holding power and volume up keys). Should take about 1 minute for the upgrade to complete. Then it will reboot.
- After the first reboot: Choose "com.android.sdksetup.DefaultActivity", and then choose "Home" if needed. Wait about 30 seconds for the UI to stabilize this first time. You also might need to rotate the device to landscape to get the soft buttons working,
- Calibrate the device immediately! This is risky because you might lose the touchscreen if you're not careful. But, if it's successful it should improve the touchscreen significantly. To calibrate the device:
Get to Settings -- Language and Keyboard. If the soft buttons are giving you a hard time, just use the Settings app in the drop down menu
Once in the settings area, choose "Touch Calibration"
Calibrate 1 through 4, then 5, and then touch the screen to exit. Do NOT use the home or back buttons until you close the tool completely.
And do NOT leave this tool until you have successfully calibrated the device. If you don't do this and close the tool, the calibration will be completely borked and you'll need to re-flash. The app is a real PITN, so be warned - I would recommend using a stylus to get through it versus your finger.
- (for the Market). Update your language / locale in Settings -- Language & Keyboard -- Select Locale. If you don't do this, you might see a lot of non-English apps in the Market.
- Optional, but I recommend this: Clear out all your update ZIP files on internal and external SD, and attempt to re-flash. You should get the exclamation point (that's good). If you just get a blank screen, your recovery is hosed and needs to be fixed. I mention this because this has happened to me at least twice - granted, I must have flashed my PDN at least 50 times, now.
Known Issues:
- The calibration is a hack, for all intents and purposes (see above). Once set, you should be fine. But, if you wipe /data later for some reason, you will bork the calibration which will require a reflash.
- WiFi is still spotty, with some disconnects. A real Cruz device has the same issues, so it's the way it is, unfortunately.
- Choppy video / audio playback. This is the case with stock firmware also. My only suggestion is to use something like "Advanced Task Killer" to remove unneeded apps from memory. It seems to help a little.
- Lack of 270 degree rotation. The is a Cruz UI limitation that the devs here have not been able to correct, yet. Do NOT use the PDN rotation hack on this mod, as it will not work and you might need to re-flash.
- Status Bar is stuck in Eastern time. This is confirmed to be a Cruz bug that they have yet to address.
- Exclamation point during flashing. Try renaming the ZIP to "PD_INX7E_ENG_6410POP.zip" and re-try - that usually fixes this problem.
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STATS and Applications Tested (GE only)
Linpack test on beta 2.1.0 GE: 3.1
Vanilla music app: Working (Vorbis tested). Should be able use both the microSD and SD slots.
Vanilla browser: Working
Market: Working. And no delays getting in, after setting it up (non-ugly hack)
Nook app: Seems to be working (GE version). Latest version as of 10/17 tested, which allegedly fixes the sync errors.
SetCPU: Working. You might have to reset the device profile, however.
Aldiko: Working, but swiping continuously brings up the menu. Tapping the pages works (for me).
ACV: Working
Facebook: Working
Pandora: Working
Borders app: Works even in GE, but is spotty. I haven't figured out the reason, but I have one recently purchased book which definitely works. My older "free" books are still failing.
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