Blistov's Tech Review

Rogers mandatory Android update – A brief history. 3

Posted by Ben Selinger - February 10th, 2010

I’m going to keep this as short, and to the point as possible. There may be many people linking to this post, so I will keep it as general as possible. Please read this link for a longer, more detailed history of this issue.

Some preliminary details and facts:

Rogers is forcing a mandatory OS (ROM) upgrade to anyone on Rogers’ network with an Android based handset (HTC Dream G1 or HTC Magic currently.)
The reason for this mandatory update as stated by Rogers, is due to a bug on the original ROM, which caused the software to crash when users dial 911.
Not all Android handsets on Rogers network, are Rogers branded phones.
Installing the mandatory Rogers 1.5 ROM on a non-Rogers phone, renders the device inoperable permanently.
Rogers has demanded that users who do not run Rogers handsets, must install the Rogers 1.5 ROM to regain their data and voice services.
Rogers will not allow anyone to end their contract without penalty, but once again, many users aren’t even using a Rogers branded device, so the installation of the ROM would destroy the handset.
The 911 bug was fixed in AOSP (android open source project) in early September, 2009. Android 1.5 and up, are no longer affected by this bug.
T-Mobile was able to fix the bug on all their customers handsets, with a simple OTA update. (no re-install).
The users affected by this bug, are running the stock ROM, shipped by Rogers.
Most users upgraded to Android 1.5 or higher in September, as Rogers had already said that they would not be upgrading any of their Android phones.
The users who have upgraded, are not affected by the bug.

~about a year ago – Rogers begins selling HTC Dream G1 and HTC Magic handsets. Rogers installed their own custom OS (ROM) on these handsets, and it is buggy to the point of being unusable. Nearly everyone is extremely dissatisfied with their handset, but they are on 3 year contracts to pay for the phone. On top of this, the phones were shipped with a MAJOR bug, where dialing 911 resulted in the software crashing, and the call NOT being completed. This bug was resolved shortly after, but Rogers refused to acknowledge its existence. Many users called Rogers to ask when the bug would be patched. Rogers said they would not be releasing any further updates. Many users began updating their phones with custom ROMs based on Android 1.5 and greater. After upgrading, the handsets become usable.

September 2009 - 911 bug is resolved in AOSP, and T-Mobile, and many other providers, send out an OTA update to fix the bug. Users are not affected.

01/23/2010 – Rogers begins sending automated SMS messages to every Android handset which uses their network, demanding that they upgrade to Rogers ROM 1.5. The message is as follows:

Rogers/Fido Safety Message: URGENT 911 Calls HTC Dream software update: Mandatory software update is now available to help ensure 911 calls are completed from your phone. Please go immediately to rogers.com/dreamsoftwareupdate on your PC to download.

In order to help ensure 911 calls are completed internet access will be temporarily disabled on your phone at 01/24/10 6:00AM EST. To minimize loss of internet service, please complete your software update immediately. Upon completion, internet access will be re enabled within 24 hours.

For users of Macintosh and Windows 7, please call 1- 888-764-3771(1-888-ROGERS1) for update instructions.

We apologize for the inconvenience but we prioritize customer safety above all.

This does not make sense with regards to the problem. The fix for this problem, should be a simple OTA update. Rogers’ proposed fix, requires some technical understanding, a computer with Windows XP or later, and about an hour or so of the users time, if all goes well. Not everyone has a computer, or Windows XP, nor the technical understanding required to complete the upgrade. Rogers makes no provision for these customers whatsoever. Android 1.5 and greater users, are not affected by this bug whatsoever.

01/24/2010 – 0600 – Rogers begins disconnecting data services to all Android phones which do not run Rogers Rom 1.5. Some users find themselves stranded with their families, without maps or GPS, hours from the nearest major road, during a blizzard, at -35C.

Rogers refuses to restore data services to users who are unaffected by the bug. Several users go so far as to schedule test 911 calls with their local RCMP, and verify that they are unaffected by the bug. Rogers still maintains that they will no longer provide services to anyone who uses an Android handset that does not run Rogers 1.5 ROM. Rogers customers who bought their handset from HTC, T-mobile, or any other vendor, are unable to apply this update regardless as it will destroy their device. Rogers instructs them to install the upgrade anyway. Rogers technical reps claim that they have no way to restore service, and that the system is completely automated. This is proven untrue by hundreds of customers, as they trick Rogers into believing the upgrade has been completed. Because Rogers is associating your SIM to a bad android, this SIM will not work in ANY phone at this point, and Rogers will not restore services even if you are no longer using an Android device.

02/07/2010 - Without warning, Rogers disconnects voice services to every non-Rogers 1.5 device on their network. This includes users who are roaming on Rogers network, as well as users who don’t own a Rogers handset. Rogers is now intercepting all outgoing voice calls with a Rogers rep, demanding that customers upgrade/downgrade their phones. Nearly everyone not running the Rogers 1.5 ROM at this point, are users of Android 1.5 or greater, and are not affected by the 911 bug.

One user claims to have attempted to dial 911 during this first wave of call interceptions, and was redirected to Rogers support. This can not be confirmed nor denied, as either party could easily forge their records. However, 10 minutes after this customer explained the 911 interception on a few public forums, Rogers changed their interception greeting to begin with “This is Rogers technical support, is this an emergency call?”. The next morning, other users test 911, but at that point, 911 calls were no longer being intercepted (assuming they were in the first place).

At this point, many users are asking Rogers to let them out of their contract, as Rogers is no longer providing any services. Rogers has told everyone, that no one will be released from the contract, and everyone must comply with their demands, no matter how un-informed.

02/09/2010 – Many users have at this point, found ways to get their services restored temporarily (without Rogers knowledge). Rogers will undoubtedly step up their campaign once more, this time most likely by demanding that users install yet another update. *Educated speculation* This update will likely include a root kit which will enable Rogers to communicate directly with the OS on the phone (illegal). This would also introduce a security/privacy risk to all Rogers/Android customers.

In summation, Rogers is demanding payment for services they do not provide. They claim their reasons for doing so, is for the safety of their customers, but there is no question that customers who have upgraded to Android 1.5 or later, are completely safe. The only exception to this, is when Rogers intercepts our calls without warning. (Think poison control, RCMP, family, and other emergency contacts.)

Many users may link to this post as a collaborative effort to describe this problem as accurately as possible. Many would like to continue using Rogers services, while using the OS of their choice (in this case, upgrading away from Rogers ROM is the only way to have a usable phone), while others are demanding to be released from contracts, already breached by Rogers. In either case, we believe that Rogers has no right to dictate which software we install on our phones, so long as it does not negatively impact the Rogers network. In many cases, Android 1.6 is not only faster and more stable, but also a necessary tool to perform our jobs. Many people involved in this ongoing incident have lost business because of it. Everyone affected have wasted many hours fighting to get our services restored, or to be released from a breached contract.

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Rogers disconnects data services to G1 users! Rogers tech support swamped with angry calls :) ! 12

Posted by Ben Selinger - January 24th, 2010

Please see the bottom of the article for updates.

I received an SMS from Rogers/Fido on Saturday (01/23/2010) night, indicating that they were discontinuing data services on Sunday (0124/2010), to all G1 customers, until we updated our handsets to Rogers update 1.5. They claim that this is to fix an outstanding bug with their original release, in which 911 calls would not be completed if the GPS was enabled. Now, this is of course, mostly bullshit. The 911 bug did affect some early Rogers G1’s, but Rogers has known about the bug for nearly a year, and publicly stated so nearly 10 months ago. The update they insist we install, installs Android to 1.5, radio 3.22.26.17, and SPL 1.33.0010. This new android and radio do not add any new features, other than perhaps allow you to call 911 (don’t you wish you’d needed to call 911 a week ago, and could thus, sue Rogers?). SPL 1.33.0010 prevents fastboot, and they also install flashrec-1.1.2-20090909, thus preventing updated G1’s from being rooted (for the time being anyhow). So, I called Rogers to discuss this. I spoke to the supervisor to what they call, “The Office of the President”. When I received my Rogers G1, it didn’t work. There were too many bugs to actually use the phone, so I rooted it, installed CM, and all was well. I currently run CM 4.2.11, which runs on Android 1.6, with Radio 3.33. My phone then, is NOT affected by the 911 bug. I explained this to Rogers, who adamantly refused to even consider not disconnecting my data services. I gave them a hypothetical situation. I have a stock G1, affected by the 911 bug. They discontinue my data services, but I don’t notice, because I don’t use data. How then, am I protected from the 911 bug? Well, I’m not, and Rogers is clearly pushing this update for other reasons (like locking down our phones again, and using the 911 bug as a cover). I’d pointed out the obvious fallacy in their logic, and made it evident that hundreds, if not thousands of G1 users will never know their data services are gone, and one of them will find themselves in an emergency, requiring 911 assistance. Rogers straight out stated that they did not care, as they had provided the update, and it was no longer their responsibility. I also pointed out that many G1 users run Android 1.6, and many require the 1.6 framework. Again, they don’t care. Now, getting back to the 911 issue, Android 1.5 and up, with Radio 3.22 and up, resolve the 911 bug, so anyone running later versions would have no reason to be disconnected from the network. Makes sense? Not to Rogers. Anywho, long short, Rogers is forcing all G1 users to run Rogers ROM’s, or gtfo their network. Some of you may recall legal precedence for this kind of issue, dating waaay back to the 70’s when Bell (then Northern Telecom) tried to force its customers to use Bell branded phones, and tried to attach a special fee to modem/fax use. The courts ruled against Bell, and the CRTC jumped in and made all sorts of rules to prevent telecom’s from requiring proprietary hardware, on standardized networks. This does, legally, carry over to GSM carriers. GSM is GSM. If your phone supports GSM on the frequency of a carrier, the carrier must provide a signal. Period. (Perhaps I’ll track down some citations at some point, but I’m too dead ATM.) So, in the mean time, anyone with a G1 on an un-updated, or non-Rogers ROM, is being told “Rogers doesn’t want your business anymore”. I’ve been keeping up on the XDA forums here http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=622129 where I’ve been encouraging Rogers customers to call in and complain, and demand their data services be restored. Rogers won’t budge, but we do need to make a valiant effort to convince them, before complaining to the CCTS (Commissioner for Complaints for Telecommunications Services). If this issue affects you, or if you have some free time in the near future, please, call Rogers to express your anger and rage, and point out the OBVIOUS fallacy of their claim that this is to resolve a 911 bug.

Rogers Customer care: 888-764-3771 (this usually doesn’t work so try business line)

Rogers Business solutions: 866-727-2141

Trever Rodrigez (team manager for the office of the president of Rogers) – 416-935-7543

Escalate your issue to the Office of the President, and then to the Office of the Ombudsman. Once you’ve contacted either, and data services still haven’t been restored, file a formal complaint with the CCTS and/or CRTC.

CCTS – 1-888-221-1687

*UPDATE* 1325, 01/24/2010

Some Rogers customers have confirmed that Rogers is able to simply flip a switch, to re-enable data services to your account. Call in and demand they do this. Some have had to resort to trickery. Perhaps tell Rogers you’re running a G1 you bought from T-Mobile, and that the Rogers update will brick your phone, and that T-Mobile already fixed your phone’s 911 issue

. Thanks to BRad from XDA-Developers.

*UPDATE* 1526, 01/24/2010

I believe I’ve determined that Rogers is associating your SIM with a flag that says you’re using a G1. Once that happens, they continually scan your phone to check if you’re running their ROM. I found this by putting my G1 SIM into my old Rogers Motorola handset, and still have no data. However, another Rogers customer with two phones (Dream G1 and Magic) and two SIM’s (one for each) discovered that his G1 has no data, while his Magic does, indicating this is not a flag on the account, but rather, on the SIM itself. Still trying to find better confirmation of this. If it is the case, Rogers should be able to unset the G1 flag from your SIM once their silly agent has stopped running.

*UPDATE* 1758, 01/24/2010

Data services restored!

I spent another hour on the phone with a manager at PDA tech support. I inquired about the magic SIM flag, which she denied existed, and asked about the note, instructing support agents to NOT escalate issues pertaining to callers running rooted, or non-rogers roms, which she also denied, though I could hear someone chuckling in the background.

After pointing out the legal ramifications (for an hour) of discontinuing contracted services, she finally agree’d to try to help me (while maintaining that there is no SIM flag she can simply un-set to re-enable my services).

She asked me to power cycle my phone, which I explained I could not, as I was using it to talk to her. She made an exasperated sound, and hung up on me.

On a hunch, I power cycled the phone, thinking she unset the flag while still not admitting to its existence. Phone rebooted, and my 3G icon came back! Go figure.

So, Rogers still maintains that there is no way to re-enable your data, but I’ll bet if you call, and call, and call, and tell your friends to call, and make it clear you will not be installing their update, they will grudgingly restore your services.

Woot>!

*UPDATE* 2201, 01/24/2010

Several people on xda-developers forum have discovered that you can more easily restore your data services by calling in to any rogers wireless support office, and ask for a “network refresh”. We don’t know if this is a permanent fix, but it’ll get services restored quick. We’ll just wait and see what happens tomorrow.

*UPDATE* 01/26/2010

Most people seem to have managed to get their data services restored, although a few are still struggling. My data has been on since the 24th, without incident.

If I’m wrong, and heaps of people still aren’t able to get data, please let me know.

*UPDATE* 02/07/2010

My data services were once again disconnected yesterday afternoon at about 1300. I didn’t discover this until about 1830, when I was trying to phone a gym to find out their hours of operation, and my call was intercepted by Rogers support. Rogers had blocked and diverted ALL calls for all customers using a non-Rogers Android G1 with their 1.5 update.

On a hunch, I figured I’d check just how far Rogers was willing to go, to make sure my day was ruined, so they could force me to install their update (for the purpose of un-rooting my phone). I tried a few other numbers, which were all diverted to Rogers support, and then tried 911. Yea, no shit. They intercepted my 911 call, to talk to me about downgrading my OS/Radio on my handset, which they do not even own.

I spent about an hour convincing the support rep to re-enable my voice services. During this outage, one of my customers had been frantically trying to get ahold of me by email and phone, and claims their phone calls were not being connected. I explained this to the support rep, who managed to waste nearly 30 minutes before restoring my voice services. I’ve outlined this most recent incident on xda-developers here http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=5564466&postcount=513

Now thus far, I haven’t found anyone else who has verified the 911 interception, so in my complaint to the CCTS tomorrow, I will be extremely careful to ensure they understand that the 911 interception may have been coincidence. Either way, I have a record of the call on my phone (which I’m sure everyone knows, could have been falsified). It would cause some serious damage though to Rogers, if someone out there who is currently having their calls intercepted, could schedule a 911 test call with their local constabulary, to confirm or deny my experience.

Either way, Rogers has once again, without any warning whatsoever, disconnected services (this time both voice and data), in an ever increasing effort to control my use of my personal handset.

*UPDATE*02/07/2010

Thus far, no one else has been able to confirm the 911 interception (though thus far, no one has actually tried as far as I know). Rogers has acknowledged that they are aware of this (unconfirmed) issue, and promptly claimed the issue did not exist in the first place. Immediately after posting this, I heard back from several Android users who’ve told me that Rogers is now, apon call interception, asking if you have an emergency and had intended to call 911. I have no way to confirm this, as my voice services have since been restored, but this may indicate that they were in fact intercepting 911 calls, were made aware of it by me and possibly others, and were working to fix the issue. Either way, it sounds like if this WAS an issue, it has been resolved. So my hat is (theoretically) off to you Rogers, for a quick response time to a potentially dangerous lack of foresight.

P.S. Sorry for the sensational post. I try to keep things as neutral as possible, but the importance of my calls being intercepted, added to the possibility of an intercepted 911 call, is difficult to downplay.
I’ve inadvertently created a bit more of a stir than I’d intended, but ultimately if Rogers was accidentally intercepting 911 calls, and my sensationalism made them aware of this, good.

P.P.S. Apparently I over/misuse punctuation. I apologize, for any, inconvenience! or confusion this may, have caused.

12 Comments »

Adobe flash – No mouse click – Firefox and Chrome 1

Posted by Ben Selinger - December 13th, 2009

The problem is with the file /usr/lib/nspluginwrapper/i386/linux/npviewer , so we’ll edit it. You’ll need to do this as root, or with sudo.

sudo gedit /usr/lib/nspluginwrapper/i386/linux/npviewer

sudo vi /usr/lib/nspluginwrapper/i386/linux/npviewer

When you’re done, your file should look like this:

#!/bin/sh

TARGET_OS=linux

TARGET_ARCH=i386

export GDK_NATIVE_WINDOWS=1

. /usr/lib/nspluginwrapper/noarch/npviewer

Save and quit, and restat firefox/chrome (you may have to kill flash player as well if it doesn’t die gracefully with firefox/chrome

1 Comment »

EeePC 1000 review 1

Posted by Ben Selinger - November 29th, 2009

Well, at nearly a year of use, its time for my second review of the Eeepc 1000. Technical specifications and lspci output available at the bottom. Please read my post regarding technological advancement vs. availability, to get a better understanding of how I review things.

My original review of the EeePC 1000, included much praise. A year later, I haven’t much changed my mind. The EeePC 1000 is an absolutely solid machine.

Quick specs:

Intel® Atom N270
8GB SSD + 32GB SSD
1GB DDR2 RAM
802.11 b/g/n
Bluetooth 2.0
1.3MP integrated camera
6-cell Li-Ion (55.3Wh) Battery
1.33KG

The stock OS was, in my opinion, completely pointless. On top of that, there were many things that simply did not work. I won’t bother listing everything. Needless to say, I installed Ubuntu 9.04 immediately, and everything worked with zero configuration. I tweaked the power saving and gave it a bit more of an aggressive curve, but this is mostly unnesessary now, with Ubuntu 9.10. Current power consumption as I write this, with no changes to the stock Ubuntu 9.10 install, wireless and bluetooth powered on, is just shy of 9.5W, putting the battery life at just over 5 hours. Disabling the wireless, bluetooth, and dimming the screen can put you at 8-12 hours.

The case itself if rugged (although not terribly scratch resistant). The bottom panel pops off with the removal of two phillips screws, to reveal replaceable RAM, and two mini pci-e slots containing the wireless card, as well as the 32GB SSD.

Processing is sometimes angeringly laggy, and I suspect that the chipset itself is at fault. The CPU has more than enough horse power to do whatever I throw at it, but IO seems to bring the system to its knees. This however, seems to be a problem with all Atom based devices. Maybe the Atom will fair better on top of the newly released Nvidia Ion chipset. All in all, I’ve been very happy with this machine. It fits comfortably in my CamelBack, while I fly down the side of a mountain on my bike, and is barely noticable in my backpack, while running between cafe’s. I’ve dropped it from my attic to the main floor, and down the stairs with the lid open (I often use it as a flashlight), without damage. The screen is fine for web browsing and some games, but certainly not much fun for long hours of coding.

My only real complaint now, is that the 32GB SSD has failed, and ASUS’s warranty procedure is tedious at best. They want me to send the machine to Ottawa, where they will determine whether or not the SSD is covered by warranty. If it is, I can expect the machine back in 3-6 weeks. If not, they’ll call and ask if I’ll pay for service. This is where I’m a bit annoyed. I know the SSD is hooped. I could send them just the SSD, and continue using the laptop with the other 8GB SSD in the mean time. If they decide they won’t cover the drive on warranty, I’d like to know beforehand, what they’ll charge for a new drive, installation, and shipping, especially when I KNOW I can pick up a new 32GB SSD for under $80, install it myself in under 30 seconds, and be done with it.

Overall, a year later, this is still the best sub-note I’ve ever used. Battery life still beats everything on the market, and all internal devices correctly aknowledge C states. Suspend/resume cycle completes in under 10 seconds, which is still better than any commercial notebook. Battery still fits tight to the chassis, side mounted power cable hasn’t busted the motherboard, no dead pixels, lid is tight, everything aside from the SSD is still tip top, and I suspect the SSD is an anomaly, as very few people have had issues. I’m still pretty happy with it, and haven’t found a suitable replacement.

lspci output:

00:00.0 Host bridge: Intel Corporation Mobile 945GME Express Memory Controller Hub (rev 03)
00:02.0 VGA compatible controller: Intel Corporation Mobile 945GME Express Integrated Graphics Controller (rev 03)
00:02.1 Display controller: Intel Corporation Mobile 945GM/GMS/GME, 943/940GML Express Integrated Graphics Controller (rev 03)
00:1b.0 Audio device: Intel Corporation 82801G (ICH7 Family) High Definition Audio Controller (rev 02)
00:1c.0 PCI bridge: Intel Corporation 82801G (ICH7 Family) PCI Express Port 1 (rev 02)
00:1c.1 PCI bridge: Intel Corporation 82801G (ICH7 Family) PCI Express Port 2 (rev 02)
00:1c.2 PCI bridge: Intel Corporation 82801G (ICH7 Family) PCI Express Port 3 (rev 02)
00:1c.3 PCI bridge: Intel Corporation 82801G (ICH7 Family) PCI Express Port 4 (rev 02)
00:1d.0 USB Controller: Intel Corporation 82801G (ICH7 Family) USB UHCI Controller #1 (rev 02)
00:1d.1 USB Controller: Intel Corporation 82801G (ICH7 Family) USB UHCI Controller #2 (rev 02)
00:1d.2 USB Controller: Intel Corporation 82801G (ICH7 Family) USB UHCI Controller #3 (rev 02)
00:1d.3 USB Controller: Intel Corporation 82801G (ICH7 Family) USB UHCI Controller #4 (rev 02)
00:1d.7 USB Controller: Intel Corporation 82801G (ICH7 Family) USB2 EHCI Controller (rev 02)
00:1e.0 PCI bridge: Intel Corporation 82801 Mobile PCI Bridge (rev e2)
00:1f.0 ISA bridge: Intel Corporation 82801GBM (ICH7-M) LPC Interface Bridge (rev 02)
00:1f.2 IDE interface: Intel Corporation 82801GBM/GHM (ICH7 Family) SATA IDE Controller (rev 02)
00:1f.3 SMBus: Intel Corporation 82801G (ICH7 Family) SMBus Controller (rev 02)
01:00.0 Network controller: RaLink RT2860
04:00.0 Ethernet controller: Attansic Technology Corp. Atheros AR8121/AR8113/AR8114 PCI-E Ethernet Controller (rev b0)