Just yesterday, my phone was stolen. I miss the live emails, the live social feeds, and above all the instant messaging applications such as WhatsApp and Viber.
I decided not to just go along and buy a new phone. I have another phone which I will be using in the meantime, until I can make a new purchase.
The phone that was stolen from me was a Samsung Galaxy Grand. I am still tracking it down using my Samsung account to Geo locate it, but I don't have too much hope, in a matter of hours it will surely be formatted and will go offline for ever.
My back up phone is not a smartphone in the real sense of the term. It is a Nokia that runs operating system badoo which is not compatible with most famous apps and including Whatsapp.
Well, enough with the chit..chat. Let start cracking (hacking?).
I assume that if you are reading these lines you are an Ubuntu Linux User, that is trying to install whatsapp on his/her computer.
Step 1 : Install genymotion. Genymotion is an android phone emulator. Go to the genymotion website, www.genymotion.com and download the free version for personal use.
Step 2 : Install virtualbox (if not already installed). For this you can use Ubuntu software Center and download it right from your operating system.
Step 3 : Register yourself an account on genymotion.com and keep your password and username, you will need them to install the applications later.
Step 4 : Now you need to install Genymotion on your system, by running the following commands in a terminal (assuming you downloaded the file genymotion-2.0.3_x86.bin) :
> chmod +x genymotion-2.0.3_x86.bin
> ./genymotion-2.0.3.x86.bin
> ./genymotion
The first command : chmod +x [DOWNLOAD_PATH]/genymotion-[VERSION]_[ARCH].bin Adds execution permissions.
The Second command : execute the installation procedure
The third command launches the application if everything went well.
Problems I encountered during the install :
- A possible problem you might encounter, is related to Graphic Card not being supported, or OpenGl not running on your system this would block the installation, sorry there is nothing to be done about this. All you can do is upgrade your hardware :(
- Also you might encounter warning messages such as The amount of CPU being reduced to 1 or that your Bios doesn't support virtualization. Just ignore these alerts it might work just fine despite them.
Ok, now that your genymotion is installed, running and logged in with the password and username you registered on step 3, you should have the genymotion interface on your screen. It looks something like this :
Step 5 : Add a device; If your purpose is to run whatsapp as was mine, and your computer has limited RAM and CPU, I would recommend something light, Don't install anything like Galaxy S4, S3 ect. they will just exhaust your computer resources (I tried them so I know). The best solution is to add device Galaxy Nexus - 4.3 - API 18 720X1280. Almost ~128 MB of files will be downloaded so you better have a good Internet connection, and/or data plan.
Step 6 : Start your device by hitting the play button on the genymotion interface, once it has finished installing and you get the mobile on your desktop. houray!
Screenshot 1 : Galaxy Nexus On my Ubuntu desktop
Screenshot 2 : Galaxy Nexus On my Ubuntu desktop (Apps and widgets)
There you go, now you have a mobile phone running from INSIDE YOUR COMPUTER. Mwahahahahaha (Diabolical Laugh). Just kidding there is nothing diabolical or magical about all this.
Remember to use the mouth cursor the same way you would use your finger on your smartphone touch-screen to manipulate various applications.
Step 7 : Installing WhatsApp
- On your virtual device open your browser, and go to the following address : www.whatsapp.com/android/
Screenshot 3 : From your browser visit : www.whatsapp.com/android/
Hit the download button, this will save a .apk file in your downloads folder, go there double click and then install whatsapp. During the installation the phone will alert you about the source of the file being unrecognised, you will have to edit your setting to allow the installation of unrecognised sources, by going into your phones settings.
If everything goes on correctly you should have the whatsapp icon on your home screen :
Screenshot 4 :
Next, you have to go through the whatsapp phone verification process, to get access to your account. Once this is done, you are commended to enjoy live chat with your friends and buddies right from your Ubuntu Machine ;)
Screenshot 5 : Chatting with whatsapp from ubuntu
Screenshot 6 : Fully functional whatsapp from my ubuntu machine
AL RIGHT THAT IS IT FOR TODAY, GEEKS. THANKS FOR READING, AND ENJOY YOUR DESKTOP WHATSAPP. For any question don't hesitate to contact me by leaving a comment below or by phone (+250) 786 679 654. ;)
No comments:
Post a Comment