How to Run Android .apk Games & Apps on iOS ( iPhone / iPad )

If you’ve been using an Android smartphone before buying an iPhone or iPad, you might be wondering if it’s possible to run those android applications and games on your Apple device. Well, the good news is that it’s very possible. I came across this when someone asked the question in a web forum. I followed it up and came across a group of developers that offered a solution. Apart from running Android apps on your iPhone and iPad, you can as well run .apk apps on other mobile operating systems like Meego OS (Nokia N9), Maemo OS (Nokia N900) and iPod touch.
Myriad Alien Dalvik, developed by Myriad Group,  enables Android applications to operate on non-Android devices,e.g mobile phones, pc and tablets allowing OEMs, operators and application stores to leverage the Android eco-system across a much wider range of devices.
In other words, this wonderful application act as an emulator or runtime or you can call it a virtual machine that enables non-android devices to seamlessly run clean/unmodified android applications.
As seen on their product page, Alien Dalvik even allows you to run Android apps on TV. There’s no guide anywhere on the internet to download this and it’s solely available on the manufaturer’s website. You can visit the product guide page for further information.

How Google will control OEMs with Chrome for Android

Google’s Chrome browser has finally arrived on Android in beta form, and it’s really rather good. It’s really only a beta in the way Google understands “beta.” Chrome for Android is stable, feature-rich, and blazing fast. This is definitely a new reason for Android users to start pestering device makers about an update to Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich (ICS) — and that might be just the start of Google’s real agenda for Chrome on Android.
Chrome on the desktop has gained some real attention, even surpassing Firefox to become the second-place browser with 25.7% usage share according to StatCounter. Google is backing that name up with its borderline-magical cloud services. In the new Chrome for Android beta, all your tabs, bookmarks, omnibox entries, and passwords just show up on the phone with no configuration. It is a very compelling experience to say the least.
Chrome for Android is going to eventually become the default browser for most Android users, but it’s going to come in the form of another Google app like Gmail or Market. OEMs will have to be certified to have it on the phone, and that means a Google inspection. Chromium will be the fully open source version of the browser on Android, just like it is on the desktop. All the fancy cloud features that make Chrome so interesting will be kept in the official Chrome build.
As Google seeks to subtly nudge OEMs in the right direction, Chrome for Android is going to give Mountain View a powerful new lever. Since Google only allows the closed apps to be loaded on approved devices, it has all the power. The Chrome name and features will sweeten the pot for device makers, and could get Google more compliance as it makes requests. With better Google apps, maybe that anti-fragmentation initiative has another shot at becoming a reality.
Google knows that it needs to keep innovating with its Android app package because that’s essentially the only method they have of controlling the platform. The Kindle Fire might not be the fastest device running Android, but it’s one of the most successful. As much as Google would like to applaud Amazon’s efforts publicly, it definitely needs to work behind the scenes to make sure top-tier Android OEMs don’t get any similar ideas about forking the platform. Chrome and its cloud services can help Google do that.
Google might also be able to hand out a little tough love to Android OEMs if its position is strengthened. HTC has been sticking to its gimmicky device strategy (LTE, 3D), and in recent quarters that hasn’t been working for them. HTC needs to change things up, and Google might be able to give it the gentle guidance it needs. More robust Google apps could be just the thing to get HTC to listen; after all, it will want Google certification more than ever before with Chrome on board.
While Chromium will be available to non-certified devices, we can safely say that OEMs and users will be clamoring for Chrome. The cloud syncing features take it from being a good browser to an essential part of the phone. Chrome-starved users may be able to shame OEMs into updating more phones to ICS, and manufacturers will be even more beholden to Google. This is the power Chrome is likely to wield as Google seeks to keep its platform together.
Download Chrome Beta for Android

Android Botnet Exploits Gingerbread Root Access

Malware grabs rootkit exploit code to obtain temporary access privileges, poses a "serious threat," says researcher.
The mobile malware state of the art continues to improve, as demonstrated by the emergence of a new Android threat that's been dubbed RootSmart.
According to Symantec, the malware interfaces with a bonet that it's dubbed "Android.Bmaster." That botnet appears to have active connections with about 11,000 Android devices, and is likely generating daily revenue between $1,600 and $9,000 for its controller, or botmaster.


 RootSmart is designed to escape detection by being named "com.google.android.smart," which the same name as a settings app included by default with Android operating systems. The malware can gain root access to phones running versions of Android Gingerbread before 2.3.4, or Android 3.0, as well as "phone home" to a command-and-control (C&C) server for instructions. More than half of all Android smartphones are now running some version of Gingerbread.
[ Google's effort to stop bad apps is a step in the right direction. However, Google Bouncer Won't Block All Android Malware. ]
When first installed, RootSmart lies dormant, waiting for some type of trigger, such as an outgoing phone call. Once triggered, however, "RootSmart will connect to its C&C server with various information collected from the phone," said Xuxian Jiang, a computer science professor at North Carolina State University, in a blog post. "Our analysis shows that the collected information includes the Android OS version number, the device IMEI number, as well as the package name." To make it more difficult for security vendors to block the software, it also obfuscates the URL of the C&C server that it contacts.
After RootSmart phones home, it then downloads exploit code known as GingerBreak from the server, and uses it "to obtain root privilege on infected phones," said Jiang. Next, RootSmart attempts to download additional malicious applications--including malware known as DroidLive--which it installs in the device's system partition. "It's worth mentioning that if RootSmart fails to obtain the root privilege, it will still attempt to install the downloaded apps," said Jiang. "However in this case, it cannot install the apps silently. Instead, a pop-up window will be shown for [the] user's approval."
"Due to the fact that RootSmart utilizes the GingerBreak root exploit and can be remotely controlled, we believe it poses serious threats to mobile users," said Jiang.
What's RootSmart's purpose? Like so many types of malware, it's designed to earn money for its botmaster. According to Symantec, it pursues that goal by primarily targeting users of two Chinese mobile phone carriers. "For example, an infected device can be configured to send messages to a particular premium SMS number at a specific rate (three a day, for instance) for a certain number of days," said Cathal Mullaney, a security response engineer at Symantec, in a blog post. "Devices connecting to premium video or telephony services can also be configured for how long they should connect to a premium phone number or pay-per-view website." The malware can be set to block incoming emails containing specified keywords, which attackers could use to try and prevent mobile subscribers from receiving "unusual activity" alerts from their carrier.
How might RootSmart end up on an Android device? The software comes bundled "with a legitimate application for configuring phone settings," said Mullaney. "Trojanized applications are a well known infection vector for Android malware, as they allow malware to be distributed while retaining the appearance of a legitimate application."
Thankfully, however, the N.C. State researchers found the malware not in the official Android Market, but rather on third-party download sites. Accordingly, Jiang recommended avoiding such download sites whenever possible. But in some countries, including China, access to the official Google Android Market is blocked. Thus it's no surprise that, according to Symantec's study of RootSmart, "the vast majority of infected devices belonged to Chinese customers."
In terms of mitigation strategies, Jiang also recommended keeping a close eye on the permissions being requested by apps, as well as any unusual device behavior, and finally, running mobile security tools to keep devices safe. 

Chrome for Android's hidden feature: PC-to-mobile page beaming

Google's Chrome for Android browser is finally here -- and the app has plenty of features packed inside its virtual walls.
One interesting feature that hasn't gotten much attention yet is the browser's new integrated "Chrome to Mobile" capability. The feature allows you to wirelessly beam a Web page from your PC to your tablet or phone, but if you don't know how to find it, you might not even know it's there.
Here's the trick: In order to use the Chrome to Mobile feature, you need to first find and install the Chrome to Mobile extension on your desktop Chrome browser. (I already took care of the first part for you -- just use the link above.) Then, once you complete a quick initial setup, a small phone icon will appear at the right of your browser's address bar.
When you want to send a Web page from your computer to your phone or tablet, all you have to do is click that icon. A dialog box will pop up that lets you pick which device you want to use (assuming you have more than one Android device connected -- like a phone and a tablet, for example). The box will also give you an option to make the Web page available for offline viewing on your mobile device.


Sound familiar? It should: It's basically a variation on the Chrome to Phone app that's been around for some time. It does have some important differences, though:

1. Chrome to Mobile is integrated directly with the Chrome Android browser, while Chrome to Phone sends info to your phone and then lets you decide what happens to it from there.
2. Chrome to Mobile lets you choose which of your connected devices will receive the link; Chrome to Phone automatically sends data from your computer to every connected device, every time.
3. Chrome to Mobile is limited only to Web page transmissions. Chrome to Phone, in contrast, can send links, maps, and any type of text from your computer to your phone or tablet.
4. Finally, Chrome to Mobile has a one-click option to make any page you're sending available for offline viewing. Chrome to Phone does not include that feature.

Is your head hurting yet? Yeah -- mine, too. Given the level of overlap between these two apps, not to mention their almost-identical names, my suspicion is that Google will eventually merge them together to create one giant catch-all application. It really doesn't make much sense to have both of them out there in the wild when they're so confusingly similar.
For now, though, if you want to send Web pages from your desktop browser to your phone or tablet -- and you want to be able to select individual devices and make pages available for offline viewing -- the new Chrome to Mobile app is what you need. For more general link- and info-sharing from your computer to your phone or tablet, Chrome to Phone has you covered.

How to Recreate the “One Goal” Custom Home Screen Layout

In this guide, I’ll show you how to replicate my custom Android home screen layout, “One Goal”, using just ADW Launcher EX, Minimalistic Text, and a custom background.

One Goal - The final result

Getting Set Up

First of all, here are a few things that I won’t be addressing:

• Installing apps
• Taking screenshots
• Installing fonts
• Using Photoshop

What you’ll need, to make this layout from scratch:

• Photoshop or a similar image editor (to create the background)
• Computer (of course!)
• ADW Launcher EX
• Minimalistic Text
• Multi Picture Live Wallpaper
• App to take screenshots – this is built in to some phones; if not yours, then see this guide
• App to upload and download files to and from the phone (find a selection here)

Fonts:

• Tall Dark and Handsome (free)
• Helvetica Narrow CE (paid)

Other files:

• Minimalistic Text prefs
• PSD files (along with a blank PNG)

Once you’ve got all that, you’re ready to continue…

Setting Up ADW Launcher EX

Let’s start!

Note: my interface is set to Portuguese, but I’ll guide you through it.

Get ADW Launcher EX up and running, with two home screens.
First, set up the grid size: 9 columns by 10 rows. (UI Settings > Screen preferences > Desktop Columns and UI Settings > Screen Preferences > Desktop Rows.)
Next, hide the status bar and desktop dots, and allow overlapping widgets. (These options are all in UI Settings > Screen preferences: check “Hide StatusBar”, uncheck “Show desktop indicator”, and check “Overlap widgets”.
Also, hide the icon text. (UI Settings > Screen preferences > Advanced settings: check “Hide icon labels”).
Now remove the dock background, by selecting “None” as the value of “Main dock”:

The ADW Themes Preferences menu

Next alter your General Behavior > Animation and Effects settings according to your preferences. I’ve turned off “infinite scroll”, and have turned on “wallpaper scroll” – you’ll need this, if you want to use MP Live Wallpaper and ADW’s Sense previews.
Finally, set “dock size” to 1, in UI Settings > Main Dock.

Setting Up Your Home Screens

Set up MP Live Wallpaper using this wallpaper for both screens. (You can download it from here; it’s 540x960px, but you can easily adapt it to fit your phone’s resolution). This will be the base for our layout.

Basic Wallpaper - click for full size

Add to the screen an ADW Launcher Action shortcut (long-press the screen, then select Launcher Actions). Choose “Open/close App Drawer”:

Launcher Actions

Long press the icon you just added and select Edit:

Edit the new icon

Tap the icon, then choose the “blank.png” file from the zip that you downloaded earlier. It will look like this:

No picture for the icon, because it's fully transparent.

Drag this icon – beware, as it will be transparent – to the dock, and tap it to make sure it opens the app drawer.
We are now ready to add Minimalistic Text widgets to the screens.

Adding Widgets

We’ll use a few different sizes of Minimalistic Text widgets:

• Clock: 2×2
• Location: 3×1
• News, Music, Gallery, Nav, Other: 1×1
• All the rest: 2×1

I’m only going to show you the setup for the first MText widget, the clock – you can use the MTPrefs for everything else.
Always, always give your widget a name, for future editing and sharing:

Remember to name your widgets

Set MText to hide your widget background:

Uncheck 'Show background'

Under Text Style, tap “Normal”, then select “font family”, and choose the right typeface to use: “Tall, Dark and Handsome”, with a size of 168dip, in white, with no blur or other effects.

You'll need to install the 'Tall, Dark, and Handsome' font

Now we’ll create the layout for our clock. Tap “Predefined layout” and select “Custom…”, then tap “Custom layout” to open this menu:

Custom layout

Copy the options as above. In English, the top line is “Static text” (just blank); the second line is “Hour (24h)”, “Static text” (just “:”), then “Minute (2 digits)”.
Remember to save your widget’s setting, by tapping Save at the bottom of the main menu.
Continue to create the rest of the widgets for Screen 1. Alternatively, unzip the MTPrefs zip file and copy all mtprefs files to this folder: /sdcard/MinimalisticTextPreferences They will look like this on your sdcard: /sdcard/MinimalisticTextPreferences/OG_clock
Now position the widgets, until your screen looks like this:

Screen 1, with widgets

Next, set up Screen 2:

Screen 2, with widgets. 'Porto' is my location.

Opening an App With a Widget

That red “N” in the above screenshot is a 1×1 Minimalistic Text widget with static text and color set to transparent. It shows the “N” because it will be a widget to open a designated app.
Here’s how: in the settings for that widget, under Tap behavior, select “Start another activity”.
Then, tap “Select an activity or a shortcut”, and then select an app from your list of apps – in my case, I’ll make it open Pulse News.

Remember: always save your widget configurations, for later revisions.

Now let’s get over to the computer.

Putting It All Together

In Photoshop (or any image editing program), draw the graphics to fit around the widgets. You will find this much easier if you use a screenshot of your screens (with the widgets) as a guide.
Here’s what mine look like:
Screen 1:

Click to see full-size

Screen 2:

Click to see full-size

Upload the finished wallpapers to your phone, and change the MP Live Wallpaper settings to use these wallpapers instead of the basic templates we had before.
That’s it – you will now have your own amazing “One Goal” home screens!

The final result

Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoy One Goal!

Madden 12 For Android On Sale For 99 Cents Ahead Of Super Bowl

EA Sports has decided to reduce the price of Madden 12 for Android ahead of the Super Bowl. It’s usually $4.99, but if you go the Android Market right now, you can grab it for 99 cents. That’s a pretty good deal for the Android version of one of the most popular gaming franchises in all of gaming, though some have reported bugs with it.




The game has more 5 star ratings than other ratings on the Android Market, though its average is 3.3. Of course a $4 dollar discount can be more persuasive than negative reviews.
The app is now optimized for Android tablets.
If you’re watching the Super Bowl alone and you don’t care about Madonna, perhaps this will give you something to do during half time.

Google Bouncer Gives Android Market Some Security Muscle

NEWS ANALYSIS: The Android Market was kind of like the Wild West until Google Bouncer showed up as the new sheriff in town.

As peculiar as the after-the-fact announcement of Google Bouncer may have been, it was still good news. Perhaps Google was ramping up, trying to make sure that its Bouncer would work as intended and be able to handle the flood of new apps submitted to the Android Market. Perhaps the company just wanted a head start so they could be ready for the malware writers who will surely try to test the system.
Regardless of the reason, the fact that Google has its Bouncer checking for apps with embedded malware is a good thing. Bouncer has several things it does when an app is submitted for inclusion to the Market. First, it scans the app for known malware, and if it finds any then that app is blocked. In addition, Bouncer checks the app for suspicions functions that may or may not be malware and shuttles those off for manual inspection.
Google also runs every app submitted to it for use in the Market on a simulated Android device in the cloud to confirm that it behaves appropriately. If the Bouncer finds that specific developers are repeatedly sending in apps with Malware, it blocks submissions from that developer.
Google has said that it’s also in the process of checking apps already in the Android Market for malware. It’s not clear how far along this process is, but at some point, Google will have ensured that that everything in the Market is malware-free. Unfortunately, that doesn’t really end the malware problem for Android devices, although it does reduce the level of risk.
One of the good things about Android is that you don’t need to get your apps at the Android Market. You can download them from anywhere. But that’s also one of its weaknesses. A third-party app download site provides no assurance that its stuff was checked for malware. In fact, you should assume that it hasn’t been. And there are a lot of download sites for Android apps, some legitimate, some not. China in particular has a vast array of app stores that are outside of Google’s protection. Considering that a lot of Android malware seems to come from China, this is unsteady ground indeed.
Likewise, Android doesn’t have any real defenses against malware that comes in through e-mail attachments or Websites. It’s entirely possible to visit a rogue web page that contains active content that can place malware on your Android device, just as it is for a Windows PC or an iPhone for that matter. Fortunately, there are solutions. Most of the major security vendors, including McAfee, Symantec and Kaspersky have security software for Android devices. You can download these from the Android Market, and one presumes they’ve been checked for malware by Bouncer.
While it turns out that Google has actually been running Bouncer for several months, it does point out a problem that had been mostly ignored since Android first came out, which was the security of this system. It was fairly obvious from the beginning that Apple’s AppStore had a significant security benefit, first because there’s relatively less malware for Apple platforms, and second because Apple was checking the apps.
With Android, there was always a question. And it was enough of a question that you had to select the ability to download software from places other than the Market before you could do it by making a menu choice. By default, that ability is turned off.
So if there’s a security problem that’s finally being dealt with in the Android Market and that has been handled since day one by Apple, what about other platforms? Neither Research in Motion nor Microsoft have said much about the security of the products in their respective app stores. However, there is security software available for BlackBerry devices from McAfee and others. Microsoft has released a number of security updates for Windows Phone, but so far there have been no reports of malware emerging from the Windows Phone app store.
But on a larger scale, the security issues for smartphones continue.
Google’s announcement is only the latest news in what is becoming a steady flow of reports of vulnerabilities. And while it closes one hole through which malware can enter a phone, it doesn’t close all of the holes. Likewise, all smartphones have vulnerabilities, and all of them are targets. The most likely reason that there don’t seem to be any Windows Phone malware attacks is probably due more to the tiny market share than any special quality of the device.
What’s worse is that Apple cultivated the appearance of being invulnerable to malware, and only recently allowed security software vendors to offer their products through the Apple AppStore. This belief that malware doesn’t exist for your platform is one of the reasons why malware spreads. Users don’t take the precautions that they’d take if they were using their computers to visit Web sites or open e-mail attachments. Ultimately the failure to believe in malware on your phone has its expected consequences – malware on your phone.

Emerging Android Apps: SPB Shell 3D, Galaxy and Grabatron

Android apps were a mixed bag this week, with a variety of games an utilities all putting in strong showings on their respective charts. Adding further support to Xyologic’s theory that Android is a better, more profitable platform for utilities than iOS, this week SPB Software’s user interface utility SPB Shell 3D was the top grossing Android App this week.

This week’s top grossing Android apps

SPB Shell 3D – This week’s highest grossing Android app isn’t a game, its SPB Software’s user interface app SPB Shell 3D. The app costs $14.95 and allows users to change the UI of their phones, adding a 3D home screen and launcher, smart folders, 3D widgets and other visually impressive goodies. The app was last updated on Jan. 24.
Billing plugin for LE – Camel Games swoops to the No. 2 spot on the top grossing charts this week with the standalone billing app for its free-to-play location-based MMO Little Empire. Users who install the Billing plugin for LE app are able to purchase the game’s in-app currency MOJO. The app has so far seen more than 50,000 installs.
TurboTax Snap Tax – Just as Intuit saw the start of tax season boost its fortunes on the top grossing iPad charts this week, the season has been just as good to the company on Android. Its app, TurboTax SnapTax is this week’s No. 18 top grossing app. The app is free, but users must pay for a $19.99 in-app purchase to actually file their taxes. TurboTax SnapTax was updated on Jan. 24 to comply with the latest tax laws.
Farm Slot – Dragonplay’s Farm Slot holds the No. 21 spot this week. A free-to-play slots game that monetizes via in-app purchases, the app has seen more than 500,000 installs and supports registration via Facebook connect.
Enchanted Realm - Game Insight’s Enchanted Realm returns to the top grossing charts in the No. 24 position this week. A city-building game with a magical, medieval theme, Enchanted Realm boasts a complex storyline, more than 50 unique buildings, and the ability to share achievements via Facebook and Twitter.

This week’s top free Android apps

Roller Ball – The free charts didn’t show much variety until one left the top 10 this week, but after than point, a variety of new apps appeared with strong debuts. One of those apps is Words Mobile’s Roller Ball, an Android take on the classic game of skee ball. This week’s No. 14 app, the game has already notched up an impressive 500,000 installs.
SimSimi - Korean developer ISMAKER’s chatting robot app SimSimi was a left-field hit on iOS this week and its proven to be a sudden hit on Android as well, climbing into the  No. 28 position on the free charts. The app was last updated on Jan. 23 and has racked up more than 1 million lifetime total downloads, many of them in the past week as users flock to the app.
Tip-Off Basketball – Paris-based IoPixel’s app Tip-Off Basketball is another new app to our roundup this week. The No. 32 free Android app, the game is a finger basketball game with both single player and online multiplayer. The app features more than 40 levels and 100 achievements. Tip-Off Basketball also supports OpenFeint friends lists.
Galaxy – Moving down to the No. 39 spot on the free apps chart we find Magma Mobile’s simple connect-the-dots puzzle game Galaxy. The game challenges players to connect a series of stars without backtracking. The game has more than 200 levels and was last updated on Jan. 16 to add support for Greek, Hungarian, Norwegian, Polish and Russian.
Antivirus Free – Lookout – Lookout Mobile Security’s utility Antivirus Free – Lookout takes the No. 33 spot on the free charts this week. Boasting a user base of more than 15 million people according to its app store description, the app comes with a free trial of Look Premium, which adds safe browsing, remote lock and wipe and advanced backup features.

This week’s top paid Android apps

Osmos HD - Independent developer Hemisphere Games leads our roundup of paid Android apps in the No. 3 spot with its new-to-Android game Osmos HD. Making the leap from iOS, the game challenges players to enter what it calls the “Darwinian world of a galactic mote” where the only goal is to survive and grow. The game was selected for the PAX 10 and has notched up awards from IGN and the Independent Games Festival. Osmos HD costs $4.99.
[Update] Cut the Rope - Zeptolab’s Cut the Rope continues to be a standby hit on Android, making No. 4 on the paid charts this week. The $0.99 game was updated on Jan. 16 to introduce minor bug fixes and performance improvements.
Grabatron – Future Games of London slides into the No. 15 spot on our paid Android app roundup with its new $0.99 game Grabatron. In the game, players take control of an alien ship with giant retractible claw bent on wreaking some serious physics based havoc. The game features more than 30 levels of human decimating action and a global high scores list.
[Update] Plants vs. Zombies – EA Popcap’s adorable take on the tower defense genre Plants vs. Zombies is this week’s No. 32 app. Currently priced at $2.99 the colossal hit was originally going to be called Lawn of the Dead, but PopCap’s lawyers nixed the plan.
[Update] Monopoly – EA gets a second mention this week and closes our Android roundup with Monopoly. Currently the No. 47 paid app, the game is a faithful recreation of the classic board game. Now priced at $4.99 after the end of EA’s holiday sale, the app features three different levels of difficulty and allows users to save their game in progress.

Defender cheat Android Game Samsung galaxy S "full upgrade"

DragonVale: How to Breed the Blue Fire Dragon

In DragonVale for the iPhone and iPad, the Blue Fire Dragon is a hybrid dragon mixing fire and cold attributes.
To breed the Blue Fire dragon, you need a one dragon with the cold attribute, and another with the fire attribute. Typically these two can’t directly breed though, since they are opposite elements, so one of these has to be a hybrid dragon.
Some combinations you can use however are Fire + Storm, Fire + Ice, etc. Fire + Storm seems to be one of the more popular combinations, since this combination also has a chance to produce the Sun Dragon or Moon Dragon.
Note that any of these combinations do not guarantee results, and the different combinations have different percentages for success. Keep trying though and you’ll eventually get your Blue Fire Dragon.