Backup Android Apps to ZIP File and Restore Them

An Android developer has released an app, App2Zip, which allows users to backup apps to a flashable ZIP File. Earlier, we used to backup apps using some of the apps available in the Google Play that let you backup the APK files of your favorite apps. The problem with those apps was that you couldn’t install all the apps at one go. You had to install each APK one-by-one. With the launch of App2Zip, all these problems are gone and you can backup bulk apps as well as restore (install) them on your smartphone in one go. Here’s how you can do it:

 

I. Before You Begin:

1. You must have rooted your smartphone before doing this procedure.

2. You must have ClockworkMod Recovery installed on your smartphone.

II. Downloading Required Files:

1. Download the App2Zip App from here. (Google Play Link)

 

III. Backing up Apps with App2Zip:

1. Download and install the app on your smartphone.

2. Launch the app on your phone by navigating to Menu.

3. When you open the app for the first time, you will need to accept their terms and conditions. Just tap the Accept button to do so.

[ Tap Accept ]

4. After that, you will be asked to provide Superuser permission. Just provide it using the Allow button.

5. Now, from the app interface, choose the apps which you want to backup to a ZIP file.

[ Select Apps, tap GO! ]

6. Once you have done the selection, tap on the GO! button given at the bottom-right corner.

7. Enter the name for the ZIP file. By default, it is update.zip. You can name it anything you want. Then, tap the confirm button.

[ Enter FIlename, tap confirm ]

8. It will then begin building the ZIP archive. As soon as it completes, you will get a notification on your screen. Tap on Ok.

[ Tap Ok ]

Well done ! You have successfully created a ZIP file containing all the apps you chose to be backed up. The file is saved in the root folder of your SD card. You can flash this ZIP file from the ClockworkMod Recovery to get all the apps back on your phone. Here’s the procedure for that.

IV. Restoring Apps from ZIP Archive:

1. Turn OFF your smartphone.

2. Reboot your phone into the ClockworkMod Recovery. Find out the key combination to reboot into recovery from the Recovery installation procedure.

3. From the recovery menu, choose install zip from sdcard followed by choose zip from sdcard.

4. Navigate to the ZIP file you created using the App2Zip App and select it for flashing.

5. After the file has been flashed, choose reboot system now from the recovery menu.

Cheers ! You have successfully restored all the apps from the backup file. It wasn’t that difficult, was it?

How To Load a Custom ROM on an Android Device

Ready to flash some custom ROMs on your Android device? Here’s a little generic walkthrough to give you a better understand of the concept.

I. Root Your Device

First and foremost, you need root access. Root access is essentially getting the phone to give us permissions to change what we want.

II. Flash a Custom Recovery Image

Next thing needed after rooting is a custom recovery image. All Android devices have a recovery partition. This is essentially a section of the device’s memory devoted to a very basic recovery system that is separate from the normal operating system. This is normally used by manufacturers for recovering a broken device (as even if the operating system crashes, the recovery image has a chance of still being access and used to reflash the operating system, etc.).

Because of that function of flashing the operating system, once we have root access, we can use it to flash our own versions of the operating system. Before it’ll do that though, we need to replace the original recovery image with a custom one that has a lot more functionality.

1. After you have root access, head to the market on your device and look for ROM Manager. Download and install the free version.

2. Open ROM Manager and select Flash ClockworkMod Recovery and choose your device.

3. Select Grant when the Superuser prompt comes up.

4. Wait for it to say successfully flashed. You now have a custom recovery image.

 

III. Load a Custom ROM

Now that we have root access and a custom recovery image, we need to find a ROM we want to flash. Thanks to the amazing third party developers (most of which do this in their spare time), there are a bunch of ROMs to choose from. All of them have their own pros and cons and tweaks and themes, so you should try a few to decide which you’d prefer.

1. Download the .zip file for the ROM to your computer. (readily available on the internet)

2. After you download the .zip to your computer, plug in your device via USB cable.

3. Copy the .zip file to the SD Card (do NOT extract it, just copy the whole zip file).

4. Unplug your device.

5. Now, open ROM Manager again.

6. Select Reboot into Recovery and wait for the device to reboot.

7. Once in recovery mode, use the volume buttons to navigate and power button to select Backup and Recovery.

8. Then select Backup and hit yes to confirm. Wait for it to finish backing up your current system (this will save you if something goes wrong).

9. Select Wipe Data / Factory Reset.

10. Select Flash zip from sdcard.

11. Select Choose zip from sdcard.

12. Find the ROM we copied to the sdcard in .zip format and select it. Then select yes to confirm. Wait for it to finish flashing.

13. Select Reboot System Now. Once it reboots (which will take a while the first time), you’ll be running the new ROM.

To flash a different ROM, just redo all the steps in Section III here. Enjoy and don’t forget to comment on the ROMs you try in the repository so others can see what they’re all about.

10 iPhone Applications for Moms on Bed rest

Nothing frees up your time like being told you have to stay on bed rest for the remainder of your pregnancy, and if you don’t have enough distractions you can quickly find yourself bored out of your mind. Of course you can play your favorite games like Words with Friends or Wheel of Fortune, but after a while even those will lose their luster, and you’ll need something else to occupy your hours. Here are 10 iPhone applications that will help take up some time and answer any questions you may have regarding concerns about the baby that may pop into your head while you are lying in bed.  There’s an app for everything from saving for college to listening to the baby’s heartbeat; there are also a few others to help you get through this time a little easier, like an application to help with the grocery shopping and one for finding the best deals on baby gear.

1. CollegeSave This application allows you to do the calculations to determine how much per month you will need to save in order to pay for your child’s college tuition.  If you start early then you will have the advantage of compounding interest and you won’t have to put as much away each month versus starting when your child is 10.
   
   
2. Soundhound Ever been bored and start humming a song and wish you knew what the song was?  With this application you can hum a few bars and it will use its vast library of over a million tunes to identify the song.  Want to come up with a bunch of lullabies for your baby?  This application can help with that.
   
   
3. WootWatch Just because you’re stuck in bed doesn’t mean that you don’t still like to find a great deal.  WootWatch keeps track of various sites and sends you an alert if a new deal has been posted so you can be the first one to capitalize on the savings.
   
   
4. iPregnancy  Want to know what’s going on inside your body at this very moment?  iPregnancy tells you how big the baby should be, what’s going on physically with the baby, keeps track of appointments and has a great baby name function to help you figure out what you are going to name your little peanut when the time comes.
   
   
5. ZipList  You may be on bed rest, but the rest of the family still needs to eat.  Don’t feel like you have to rely on your partner to handle everything with this application.  Now you can look up recipes, create a grocery list, sort the items on the list by aisle in the store, and then text everything to someone else to run to the store for you.  If your family runs out of anything they can scan the barcode using this application and it will automatically be added to the list.
   
   
6. Parenting Ages and Stages A useful application that will help answer all of your burning pregnancy and parenting questions while on bed rest. It will also be a great tool over the coming years as you raise your new bundle of joy.
   
   
7. Baby Time Pregnancy Contraction Timer This great application is a tool for you to keep track of your contractions and their intensity.  The application will analyze the data and let you know what phase of labor you’re in.  The timer will continue to work even if your phone rings and you answer a call.  Other applications don’t have this feature.
   
   
8. Prenatal Smart Knowing what to eat and what not to eat while you are pregnant can be confusing.  This application gives you foods that are healthy and will let you know which ones to avoid.
   
   
9. Baby Motion An especially smart application, Baby Motion allows you to tap the screen every time you feel the baby move.  Thus keeping track of how many times the baby has moved in an hour.  You can text or e-mail this information to your doctor or to yourself so you will have it when you go to your next appointment.
   
   
10. My Baby’s Beat With this application you can actually use the microphone on your iPhone to hear your baby’s heart beat and your own.  You can record the heart beat and e-mail it to your family and friends.  This application also lets you store numerous recordings so that you can compare the heart beat at different stages of the pregnancy.  This application works best during the last trimester.
    

After Baby is born: BabyTimer  This application allows you to keep track of the number of wet and dirty diapers your baby has each day.  It also keeps track of feedings so that you can report all of this information back to your pediatrician.

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10 iPhone Apps for Expectant Dads

Learning that you’re going to be a father is one of the most exciting pieces of news that you’ll ever get. That doesn’t mean, however, that poring over dry instructional books on pregnancy and childbirth is particularly stimulating. Thankfully, the advent of smartphones allows a father-to-be to stay involved and educate himself about the changes in his partners’ and his child’s body in an interactive, entertaining way. These are the ten must-have iPhone apps for expectant fathers, from the informative to the amusing.

1. mPregnancy – For Men With Pregnant Women – At ten weeks gestation, your baby is 3cm long. In guy-speak, that’s the size of a beer cap. This is just one of the ways that mPregnancy explains the process in funny but useful terms, keeping it light and geared towards the male pregnancy experience.
   
2. Labor and Contraction Timer – While this app will really only come in handy at the end of your partner’s pregnancy, it’s still not one that you’ll want to be with out. Timing the duration and spacing of her contractions, as well as recording the intensity, gives you a heads-up when it’s time to go to the hospital.
   
3. The Guy’s Guide to the Delivery Room – Even the most eager expectant fathers are likely to have a few qualms about the delivery room, most borne of fear and inexperience. The Guy’s Guide to the Delivery Room is spelled out in clear, easy to understand language that lets you know exactly what to expect and how to prepare for your little one’s big debut.
   
4. iPregnancy – Written by an actual OB/GYN, iPregnancy is one of the most popular pregnancy apps on the market. Track your baby’s gestational age, learn what your partner is experiencing with each week that passes and integrate the app with Facebook and Twitter for easy social networking updates.
   
5. Baby Names – One of the things that has to be decided is your baby’s name, otherwise she’ll never get a driver’s license or a job, and will never move out of your house. Baby Names lets you browse through thousands of names with several different sorting features to narrow the search, saving your favorites and accessing their meanings.
   
6. Pimp My Ultrasound – Your baby’s ultrasound is the first time that she’ll show her face to the world. Her time to shine. That doesn’t mean that you can’t slap a football helmet on it and a mic in her hand for a little pre-parenting fun. Pimp My Ultrasound lets you personalize your ultrasound photo with tons of graphics and frames, with tons of options for customizing the precious moment caught on film.
   
7. Baby Pool – Dads-to-be that know the line on every sporting event in the foreseeable future are sure to get a kick out of Baby Pool, which allows your friends, family and coworkers to place bets on your baby’s gender, size at birth and the date and time that the blessed event occurs.
   
8. Pregnancy (Sprout) – Choose a 3D avatar and watch it grow each week along with your baby with Pregnancy (Sprout). You can even assign the avatar a gender when you learn that of your upcoming bundle of joy, and enter the name you and your partner decide on for a customizable and impressive iPhone pregnancy experience.
   
9. BabyBump – A more interesting way of learning about the ins and outs of your partner’s pregnancy than reading a textbook on the subject, Baby Bump offers sound, real-world pregnancy advice and lets you keep track of your little one’s developmental changes week by week.
   
10. UrbanSpoon – When those pregnancy cravings for a specific style of cuisine hit your partner, save the day by pinpointing the best match closest to you with this top-rated local restaurant app. You’ll be feeding them for at least the next eighteen years, so it’s a good habit to get into.

Some of these apps are funny, and some are written by actual medical professionals. That doesn’t mean that they’re any substitute for the actual advice of your OB/GYN, so be sure that you always follow her instructions to the letter. Even the informative apps are for information purposes only, and not intended to help you make any medical decisions. If you have questions, don’t hesitate to ask your obstetrician or midwife.

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