Software update Kola Nut 1.8

I you downgrade to the former Version 1.6, you have to set up everything again.
Besides, normaly the system settings are okay, you “only” have to personalize your screens.

Like @timbuktu mentions if you downgrade you will need to setup your homescreens again.

Please give 1.8 a try you might end up liking it very much.
Here are 2 videos explaining how the KitKat launcher works.
How to add homescreens and apps - http://youtu.be/czQUxDF7Sns
How to re-arrange your homescreens - http://youtu.be/BX_9hUafIhM

Wanted to leave my own feedback + a weird observation after having done the update.

I did the update before it was pulled back. Also I read the mail and looked into the support page for the new update before doing the update. So this may have impacted my updating experience.

The update itself worked flawlessly. Had to try twice to install the Google apps again. But then it worked just as fine. Had some weird messages right afterwards about apps not being able to update. Not sure what this was, but it only appeared once and everything works fine now.

The only disappointment is having to rearrange my launcher again. I’m not a big fan of the bigger icons and therefore having to rearrange my previous quite packed launcher slides. But it’s just a small annoyance and I’m already starting to get used to my new setup and the bigger icons. The only negative thing really was having to rearrange everything.

I am very happy about the touch/drag-issue being fixed with this update! This was bugging me a lot and I like that a “tap” is not interpreted as a “drag” anymore! That makes using the phone way more efficient. Haven’t come across any bugs, everything seems to run smoothly. Have yet to test if my bluetooth works better now.

Now to a weird thing that happened twice this morning:
In the notification bar there suddenly appeared a download for a Fairphone update. I checked in the Fairphone updater app after that happened and it says I’m all up to date and running 1.8. When I tap on the notification nothing happens. The notification disappears after a few seconds/minutes (not sure how long exactly) without really having downloaded anything. Not sure what this is about? (Happened while being connected to wifi)

// Edit: I’d actually be interested in / wouldn’t mind beta testing from a user POV, in case that’s up to debate anywhere. Read talk about this in a few posts here but not sure what the current situation in that regard is, since I haven’t been active on the forum for a while now.

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Hi, unfortunately I already downloaded the Cola Nut. Does anyone know when the updated Cola Nut will be available? Is it better to just wait until it is available or will that take a long time? Because otherwise I’ll have to start with all the loose steps and and stuff to undo the errors.

You make a valid point and are right about what you say. In general it’ll be true that people who have experience with smartphones and a bit of technical know-how won’t experience the hurdles that come with the system update as a big problem, because they’re easy to overcome if you know how. It’s true that it may be an unpassable obstacle for others, which will completely ruin the experience for them.

I should say I wrote my other post mostly because I wanted to add a bit of a different sound to the forums after all the complaints everyone was posting. I generally do still think though, that with the right help and support, the update process should be smooth for even the most unexperienced users.

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@naomimn it will take a while for sure - unfortunately we do not have a planning yet. I do not think it will be rolled out before the end of this year - this is a personal statement - not official, because I do not know.

We can help you undo the errors - can you describe which one you are experiencing?

This is what we tend to forget here in the forum sometimes. It does not occur to us, that people do not want to dive into the system and fiddle around. On the other hand, maybe it should be communicated more that the FP is rooted and therefore it is easier to generate issues. With an unrooted phone, nobody would even think of problems with Google Apps.

It has been reported, that the Fairphone updater searches for new updates too often. Now it also might be confused because of the postponing of the update. Did you try clearing the cache of the app Fairphone Updater? Does this make any difference?

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“Quick access” menu resets after each restart after the update to 1.8. I add apps (in my case: phone, message, carema, hangouts), turn off the phone, turn it back, and all four slots are empty. Any suggestions?

It hasn’t happened again since this morning. (Or rather I haven’t observed it happening again)
Cleared the app cache now. Will get back to you in case it does happen again.

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For me, clearing the cache didn’t work. But when it tries to download/check for updates, I get an error message about a wrong signature and a file it couldn’t download. This message appeared also before clearing the cache…

The updater in 1.8 is indeed making to many requests we are aware of that.

@Kris_S The updater stores its update configuration in /mnt/sdcard/updater; as a result of that, clearing the cache (and clearing application data) doesn’t always help. Removing the content of /mnt/sdcard/updater using the file manager does :stuck_out_tongue:

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I already reported on this in a separate thread but 1.8 was a disaster update for me and I am now back on 1.6.

The issues were:

  • Google Mail didn’t sync new e-mail even after repeated account deletions, app cache and data clearance, app reinstalls, gapps reinstalls…
  • Bluetooth completely broken with the bluetooth stack breaking down and becoming unresponsive after the phone was disconnected from my car’s hands-free system (same issue on two different cars). Only solution was a reboot. Multiple times a day. I guess trying to fix other bluetooth issues introduced a whole bag of new ones…

I upgraded to 1.8 and it all went reasonably well. I did read the email explaining the update well before updating so I took screenshots of my screens. My biggest surprise was to find only 3 screens, but a 1 minute google search explained me how to easily solve this. The icons could be smaller but don’t botter me that much. Overall I am quite happy with the new update and I like the new launcher.

So my question is, on a next update, are the users that are happy with kola nut being forced back to the old launcher and having to configure the shortcuts again? Probably most people posting here have a negative exerience and maybe there is even a bigger silent majority that doesn’t post here because they are happy with the update.

Of course I haven’t been able to test everything, so I don’t know if the battery issue is really fixed or if bluetooth hands free is still working, but if so, I think it was worth it, so thank you Fairphone team!

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Oh, incidentally: later on, maybe at the time of the coming update, it’d be useful (to the commoner at least :wink: ) to briefly explain where all of these big update downloads remain sitting afterwards in the phone, so one can delete the old ones…
If I understand correctly, at this moment my FP still has two flavors of the FP OS plus one of the standard Android sitting somewhere, waiting for the next one :smile:

Good point. I like the new launcher as well, apart from the bigger icons and the fact it doesn’t go to the home panel after boot. But if those issues are changed/fixed, I definitely prefer it over the old one.

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Hi all
I did the upgrade the night it came out. It went the same way as the upgrade to 1.6 (meaning reinstall GAPP and reconfigure all the panels. Luckily all the apps stayed and stayed configured.
I like the new bigger icons very much, even without my glasses =-). For me this is a big plus.
The new panels were getting used to, to me it was intuitive how to use. The only thing I’m not shure about is does not go back to the home screen after reboot. Don’t now about the Bluetooth stack as I don’t use it very often.
GPS functionality seems to be the same, alas not better. (i takes ages to get a fix).

Short: I’m staying on 1.8.
A little wish: make the panels go round when you go to to the most left or right, so you don’t have to swipe back all the way.

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My experience is that you after a reboot always start at the leftmost screen. So I guess you must set this up as your ‘home screen’, i.e. with the apps you want to have available to begin with. But again, tapping the ‘home’ button might send you somewhere else. I’m not sure about this, since this was one of the reasons for me to revert to the old launcher.

The home screen which appears, when you press the home button, is the middle one.

Cannot confirm this. My GPS fixes in under 15 seconds now!!! :smiley:

But only when you didn’t move to an other position (more than 10 km) and when you have mobile data connection always online.

What I want to say with this: Time to GPS fix depends on a lot of conditions and configuration. In a discussion about “time to fix” it would be helpful to know these conditions…