[G Tablet General] insignia96:
Hello all,

This is just another post I am making to hopefully help newbies who may want to mod their gTab but are not sure where to start. xda has an overwhelming amount of information on it and it can be difficult to sort through it all. I hope that someone who just got a gTab or just decided to mod it will be helped by this little compilation.

Now, the first thing we should discuss is what "rooting" an Android device actually means. When you root a device you gain superuser (root) privileges on the ROM you are running. This is only useful if you do not plan to flash a custom ROM, or, in other words, you want to use the stock Tap'n'Tap (TnT) software, but be able to use superuser apps like TitaniumBackup or RootExplorer. Most custom ROMs come rooted.

Now that we've cleared that up, lets talk about what you are actually going to be doing and the stages of the g tablet boot that you will be modding. The gtab boots in 3 stages, it will first load the viewsonic birds screen, here it decides whether to boot the recovery image, the APX bootloader (for nvflash), or the main ROM you have loaded. To change what it does you wither hold the power button (main ROM), Power&Vol+ (recovery kernel), or Power&Vol- (APX bootloader. To flash a custom ROM you install a custom recovery known as ClockWork Mod.

LOADING A CUSTOM RECOVERY WILL VOID YOUR WARRANTY!

So if you don't want to do that, stop right here! I didn't care, but you might so be aware. Now there is a third thing to consider gTabs ship with two different bootloaders. Information on this topic can be found HERE. It is very important that you know what bootloader version you have before continuing, I soft-bricked (see Troubleshooting) my tablet the first time and had to recover it because I didn't check my bootloader version before trying to flash ClockWork Mod. This guide is meant for those who are on the 1.1-3588 bootloader, if you have the 1.2 bootloader you can either find a guide for that bootloader or downgrade your bootloader (this is what I did) with instructions you can find here.

Once you have CONFIRMED that you are on the 1.1-3588 bootloader, continue.

Instructions for installing ClockworkMod can be found here!

After installing ClockworkMod Successfully, you are well on your way to enjoying your tablet's fullest potential. Now you can flash a custom ROM.

Instructions for installing a custom ROM can be found here!

Some ROM's I highly recommend and their features:

VEGAn-Tab 5.1.1 - Best 2.2 ROM I used.

Dev Thread

VEGAn-TAB GingerEdition - Awesome 2.3.3 ROM! One of the best and most useful ROMs I have used. It is able to make your tablet ready to use immediately.

Dev Thread

TnT-Lite - I have never used this ROM but I have heard good things about it. Worth a look.

Dev Thread

Cyanogen Mod 7.0.3-STABLE - This is my current favorite ROM, but is not as out-of-the-box useful as VEGAn-TAB, VEGAn is an extension of Cyanogenmod, but it is based off of Cyanogenmod 7.0.0, which doesn't support even partial hardware video acceleration or Netflix streaming, therefore I use CYMod 7.0.3. With Cyanogenmod you have to download an update zip file to get google apps because of copyright issues. You can find instructions in the Cyanogenmod Wiki.

Dev Site (not hosted on xda)

Troubleshooting!

OMFGXOXROZWTFYOURUINEDMYTABLETOMG!1!!11! - No, I didn't. Please explain your problems well if you need help! I am not responsible for anything that happens to your tablet, ever :(

My tablet won't boot up!!! - If you can't boot your tablet this is a soft-brick, but fear not! It can be recovered (usually) Follow instructions here!

How come google apps are missing? - Look up a few lines!

I want to be able to do x!!! - Talk to the developer of the ROM you chose, not me!

Final Note: This is a compendium of useful info for newbies, putting a custom ROM on your tablet does void the warranty and can be tedious, and none of that is my problem! Hopefully anyone who was confused about the process they are considering taking on is now more in the know about what they are going to attempt. Personally I think the gTab is useless without a custom ROM, and that this is essential to making your tablet useeful, I now carry my tablet with me everywhere and would not go back on this purchase in a millon years!

Enjoy and happy modding,

Insignia96 :D