[LineageOS News & Discussion] mgbotoe:
Android terminology

Thanks to [MENTION=4360192]benjamingwynn[/MENTION] with his great and quick Definitions​

ADB - "Android Debug Bridge" a system that can be accessed using a computer where you can manage the device from. You need the Android SDK to use it.

AOSP - "Android open source project" a project by Google Inc. to give android to developers and manufactures for free.

APK - "Android Package" an Android application.

Bloatware - Software or 'apps' that you don't need, but come preinstalled to a device's /system partition, meaning that you cannot remove them unless the device has been rooted. Usually, these are apps are sponsored by a company and included by a carrier for profit.

CDMA/GSM - A type of network communication between phones and carriers. GSM phones normally are included with SIM Cards that authorize them onto the network. CDMA have this authorization built in and do not need a sim card.

Custom recovery - A modified version of stock recoveries that allow you to do more things in the recovery mode.

Cyanogenmod (CM) - A free open-source project based on the AOSP. It is a modded version of the Android firmware.

Dalvik-Cache - Holds all of the pre-compiled .dex files created from installed apps. These files are static and do not change unless the app is updated.

Deodexed - Where ODEX files are moved into the actual applications modded) version of the Android firmware.

Developer - A man or woman who has created (developed) software.

Firmware - a piece of software to make hardware function correctly. This can refer to Radio Firmware, but is normally used as another name for ROM.

Governor - A system embedded into the kernel to automatically change the current working CPU frequency depending on the workload. It would only go up to what it is overclocked (or underclocked) to, this is called the maximum frequency. It would not drop below the minimum frequency.

KANG - The process of creating a code based of someone else's code.

Kernel - An important part of all operating systems that handles the CPU and other vital components. A modded kernel may be used for overclocking.

Logcat - A logging system built into the ADB.

LineageOS - A free open-source project based on the AOSP. It is a modded version of the Android firmware.

Mod - A modification to a part of the phones software. It is also POSSIBLE to mod the phones hardware but is not recommended.

OTA - "Over the air" a term used to indicate software that was sent to phones directly through the internet to their phones.

Open-source - (not to be confussed with free) A peice of software that is free to edit, use, distribute and share with no charge.

Overclock - To exceed the default maximum CPU speed. This could make a phone more powerful but may cause damage. Although no damaged has been reported so far it could still drain battery life.

Radio Firmware - A type of software that allows correct communication with the radio and the operating system. A newer firmware would normally improve battery life and call quality. The radio firmware only applies to the CDMA/GSM radio.

Radio - (not to be confused with Radio Firmware) A piece of hardware that allows communication. There are 3 main radios in your phone. Bluetooth, WiFi and GSM/CDMA.

ROM -

1. A modified version of the Android operating system operating system.

2. Read Only Memory, a place where information is stored and can not be destroyed, modified or written to.​

Stock - An unchanged version of something. Example: I just flashed stock sense.

Underclock - To change your phones maximum frequency to LOWER than the default to attempt to extend the phones lifespan and battery.

WIP - "Work In Progress".

Zipalligned - An archive alignment tool that provides important optimization to Android application (.apk) files. The purpose is to ensure that all uncompressed data starts with a particular alignment relative to the start of the file. Specifically, it causes all uncompressed data within the .apk, such as images or raw files, to be aligned on 4-byte boundaries. This allows all portions to be accessed directly with mmap() even if they contain binary data with alignment restrictions. The benefit is a reduction in the amount of RAM consumed when running the application.

INTL - International.

Odex - Files that are collections of parts of an application that are optimized before booting. Doing so speeds up the boot process, as it preloads part of an application.

Recovery Mode - A special environment that you can boot into for troubleshooting and upgrading purposes.