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My HTC Hero is a good phone but it’s sluggish all the time. I’ve tried many many things and should have reported on all of them but fortunately or unfortunately, depending on your viewpoint, you’re only going to get the tips that worked.

1. Install ADWLauncher and never use HTC Sense launcher again. ADWLauncher is better and faster.
2. Buy a faster SDCard. I upgraded to a type 6 card and received a noticeable performance improvement.
3. (Rooted phones only) : Install OverclockWidget and set something like this: screen on frequency: 576000 for min and max. Screen off frequency: 245760 min, 352000 max. It might be a bit sluggish to wake up sometimes but the battery lasts longer and it’s faster when you use it than when using the default HTC settings.

So not many tips but these are the only ones that worked out of hundreds that haven’t. I don’t want to buy another HTC phone because my phone was top of the line less than a year ago when I bought it and it’s official software version is 1.5 even though Google have since released 1.6, 2.0, 2.1 and 2.2. I jumped on Android so I could stay up with new technology and not lag like the other phone manufacturers besides Apple seem to do. It will be a Nexus One or I think Motorola for me next since they are quick to release the new software.

I, like many others, am tired of waiting for HTC to update the software on my phone.  The new Android apps I read about in the news are starting to require Android 2.1 or higher and I’m stuck on version 1.5.  At least, I was stuck.  I tried out a few ROMs and can recommend the VillainSlide ROM on the HTC Hero.  It has the most responsive interface and apart from a slightly annoying application listing screen and home screen icons is visually very appealing too.  Here’s the steps I took to install the ROM.  It will hopefully save you a few searches.

There is a great guide for installing a custom ROM on the XDA Developer’s forum.  I didn’t need the GoldCard method so my install was fairly straightforward.  Follow steps PRE and 1-3 and you’re running a new version!

Here’s the SlideVillainROM so you don’t have to find that either.

The first boot after an install  takes forever and a day and the SMS recovery isn’t the fastest in the world either.  You’ll need to re-download apps from the marketplace too but all your contact data is safe in the Google cloud.

We have a new house!  Our first home that we actually own.  It’s quite exciting.  We collected the keys today and did a review.  We found a leaky toilet and what appears to be a fairly steady stream of leaking from the water tank in the loft.  Unfortunately, I leave for Finland in the morning so sorting out these repairs is not going to be easy!You can see pictures in the house gallery.So far, it appears that being a homeowner involves creating lists of things that cost a lot of money.

• Boiler replacement
• Roof fixed
• Bathroom replaced
• Kitchen replaced
• Re-do both bedrooms
• Replace carpets
• Fix…
• Replace…
• Buy…