Android

[rowyn]

So I got this new Android phone. I want to like it. I really do. But it's not making it easy for me. Particularly when it is inexplicably missing what seems like very simple functionality.

Like being able to cut and paste from email.

I mean, what? I can't select text in an email from my inbox? What? There is no menu option for it. Menu-A does "reply" which unhelpfully makes an uneditable attachment out of the email. Forward also makes it an attachment.

Does anyone know a way to select and copy text from an email received (not a draft) using an Android phone? Is this a charming quirk of my particular model or a feature of the OS? The select-text feature of the web browser is ... not very functional, either. Is there a select-all for the browser?

My phone has a touch screen, and I am really starting to miss to miss having a non-touch screen. Trying to select a particular place to edit text using my fingers is ... painful.

Comments

[gavinfox.livejournal.com]

Which phone is it? Which version of Android is it running? What email app is it using?

[rowyn]

It's a MyTouch 3G, firmware v2.1 update1. Email app is just labeled 'Gmail' version 130.

[gavinfox.livejournal.com]

Aren't there ways to get 2.2 on phones that don't yet officially support it? You might try that, and looking for some alternative or further upgrades of gmail apps?

[gavinfox.livejournal.com]

Looks like in Froyo with the latest version of Gmail, you can copy text.

Now to figure out how to get your phone to use the latest firmware!

[the-vulture.livejournal.com]

Sadly, Android functionality is like that. There are a lot of neat things about the way the Android menu structures function that I like... and they put 'em in the Blackberry Torch (with a sliding QWERTY keyboard AND a touchscreen)... which retains all the Blackberry functionality... which includes cut-and-paste. Guess what new toy I really, really want!

The only other current brand of smartphone I know of (off the top of my head) that has cut-and-paste, is the new iPhones.

[rowyn]

Just to be clear, the Android phone DOES support cut and paste in the browser, various other apps, the drafts folder on email, etc. It's only NOT available on emails received (and on attachments, which is what it turns reply/forward text into). I don't think the entire smartphone industry followed the original iPhone off the no cut-and-paste cliff. >:)

[tuftears.livejournal.com]

Found this with a quick Google search:

I learned recently how to do this (with Nexus One at least):

In the browser hit, Settings Button --> More --> Select Text. Then use the scroll ball to move a cursor, click to begin highlight, move cursor and click again to end highlight. Voila.

Unfortunately there is still no way to my knowledge of doing this from the GMail app. Do copy text from email, you'll have to access GMail through the browser.

Please Google, add a Select Text function to GMail!

[rowyn]

Guh.

I'm not really enjoying the browser's text selection capabilities either, but I think I've figured out how it's supposed to work. Thanks for the search, at least now I know it's just not enabled in the phone app. *sigh*

[argonel.livejournal.com]

I'm running a Droid with froyo so this may not apply to you but in the mail message hit the menu key then the more button to get a select text option. From there you will have the usual headache selecting small text with a fingertip but it is better than nothing. Also it immediately copies the text to the clipboard so you have to swipe across the text you want to copy not click at the beginning and end.