I would like to explain a
few terms because the terminology can get
complicated and confusing. This will help you
to understand other device specific guides.
I’ll
try to keep it short and not go into (technical)
details.
ART
ART stands for Android R un time and replaces
the formerly used Dalvik cache. It was
introduced in Android 4.4 and has completely
taken over in Android 5.0. I don’t want to go too
deep into technical differences, but ART is said
to improve battery life and app performance,
amongst others.
Bootloader
The Bootloader is your phone’s software
foundation. It’s basically what runs before your
operating system starts (like a PC’s BIOS). As
many manufactures don’t want you to modify
your phone’s OS, it needs to be unlocked before
you are able to root your phone or install
custom ROMs (explained later).
Brick
This is something you don’t want to happen to
your Android device. Like the name already
implies, a bricked phone (or tablet) can only be
used as a paperweight or nice decoration for
your apartment. Bricked devices are irreversibly
damaged and won’t work anymore. This can, for
instance, happen if damaged ROMs are installed
or wrong firmwares are flashed. Always make
sure to read instructions and verify checksums
(a set of numbers that identify the file) to make
sure nothing goes wrong. If you’re lucky and
your device is only soft-bricked, meaning that it
does not boot but still turns on, you might be
able to get it back to life .
BusyBox
Android, being based on Linux/Unix, offers a
limited amount of UNIX commands (which most
users won’t need anyways). BusyBox will
implement more commands that are necessary
for some root apps to work properly.
Custom ROM
A custom ROM is a modified version of the
Android operating system. Tweaks, additional
features, different themes or an enhanced
performance are usually included. Custom ROMs
also offer the possibility to use a newer,
unreleased, version of Android on your phone
that might usually not be available for your
device because of restrictions from manufacturer
or providers.
Dalvik
Dalvik is a virtual machine that processes
Android app code. Consequently, it is
responsible for translating app code into actions
on your Android device.
Fastboot
Fastboot is a diagnostic- and engineering tool
which offers you several features such as
launching in recovery mode or flashing image
files.
Kernel
The kernel is the brain of your phone that
controls how the system and hardware interact.
It’s basically the lowest level of your operating
system that manages memory and hardware.
NAND partition
NAND stands for “Negated AND” or “NOT AND”
and describes the hard drive partition that
stores all system relevant information like the
bootloader, recovery mode or the kernel.
NANDroid backup
A NANDroid backup is a complete system
backup of your Android device . This backup can
be restored later and might save your phone
after flashing a faulty ROM or theme.
Radio
The radio is responsible for sending and
receiving voice and data. Using an optimized
radio can improve your phone’s reception or
increase battery life.
Recovery Mode
Recovery mode offers you the possibility to
perform system-level tasks (like formatting,
defragmenting, etc.), backing-up your devices
or install custom ROMs. Android offers a limited
stock recovery function. More sophisticated
recoveries like ClockworkMod Recovery and
TWRP Recovery offer additional features and are
easier to use.
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