Graduation project - Android Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

Hello all, I have a question about developing an application for my graduation project. The idea is to develop an application in which the various books/information sources get a place and can be placed under different semesters/years. The information as provided has to have an easy way of updating for teachers(probbebly web-based). The aplication also has to work on iOS. Can you guys give me an idea on how to start i think HTML5 is a good option.

For cross platform application you can try PhoneGap(phonegap.com) with Dojo (dojotoolkit.org).

Front end is only half!
killerbee12345 said:
Hello all, I have a question about developing an application for my graduation project. The idea is to develop an application in which the various books/information sources get a place and can be placed under different semesters/years. The information as provided has to have an easy way of updating for teachers(probbebly web-based). The aplication also has to work on iOS. Can you guys give me an idea on how to start i think HTML5 is a good option.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
HTML5 will be great, but it will be difficult for a school to update as a native app. I suggest simply using a mobile-ready website. jQuery Mobile is great for this, and it handles all the cross platform issues. Have you given any consideration to serverside code? Php, .Net, and Node.js are all great options. Talk with an administrator about what kind of system they use to store files & links currently. You could fairly simply make a page that scans a file share they maintain to build the page .

Are all current (including budget) phones capeble of running .net or PHP? I'll probebly host the site/app myselve for a while during the test phase so if i go web-based it will be PHP since my host is a linux host. I'll have a look tomorrow, I'm studying to be an officer on a ship not an programmer so all programming is new, I did some vb/php but nothing fancy.

i started with icenium, but found out that icenium doesn't offer to store the webfiles on your own server. So thats not an option.

Related

[Q] learning how to develop apps

i want to start making apps for android but dont know where to stat i have the sdk on my desktop but thats about it. If someone could please help me or push me in the next step please do so.
Just go to the dev guide on the Android website to start making your first Hello World app. As for language, Android (I could be wrong) uses Java. Again, I could be wrong.
Sent from my GT-I9000M using XDA App
Indeed, Android uses Java. I'd suggest learning it before attempting to program for Android or else you'll feel like it's gonna be too difficult. There's plenty of books on Java, and some powerful Google searching will lead you to step-by-step guides to learning Java.
Also, go through the Android Dev Center for a lot of information. There's plenty of guides there on things like 'how to design your app to flow with the overall android feel' and 'designing icons to fit general android homescreen look'.
You're gonna want to download Eclipse for Java Programming. It's a free Java development environment much like Dreamweaver and Visual Studio are for web development.
Oh, and PLAN! Like any good development project, your project will not get anywhere if you don't know where to start and when to end it.
Plan first. Then plan the planned elements. Java is object-based programming, and just like building a house each object needs to be solid or else it'll crumble to pieces.
Same here. Thx for the advice.
elindemann said:
Indeed, Android uses Java. I'd suggest learning it before attempting to program for Android or else you'll feel like it's gonna be too difficult. There's plenty of books on Java, and some powerful Google searching will lead you to step-by-step guides to learning Java.
Also, go through the Android Dev Center for a lot of information. There's plenty of guides there on things like 'how to design your app to flow with the overall android feel' and 'designing icons to fit general android homescreen look'.
You're gonna want to download Eclipse for Java Programming. It's a free Java development environment much like Dreamweaver and Visual Studio are for web development.
Oh, and PLAN! Like any good development project, your project will not get anywhere if you don't know where to start and when to end it.
Plan first. Then plan the planned elements. Java is object-based programming, and just like building a house each object needs to be solid or else it'll crumble to pieces.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Actually, you're doing things the hard HARD ...HARD way....
if you want to develop apps for android, Titanium Mobile (appcelerator.com) is the best way to go. It takes far less time to learn JavaScript , CSS and HTML then it does to learn pure JAVA, and then learn to implement Android's API.
There are a few things that Titanium Mobile can't do, but they are always working on it to make it better. And of course - it's free
I've made a few apps using it. Including an HTML eBook reader, Chinese Flashcard App, and a Simple Chat Client.
Their JavaScript API takes a bit to get used to, but after that, you can easily spit out a simple app in about a day or so.
I have a web-app Template that lets me dump a Web-app (html/css/js) into a project, and spits out a nice new shiny Android app ready for the market.... I also wrote code that lets you access the Menu Button on android too. So it's not like using PhoneGap where it's just a Browser session with an icon on your phone.
PM me if you're interested, and i'll show you everything i learned about Titanium Mobile so far (i'm still learning actually). Or if you want an app done, i can do it for you... free if it's easy enough
DaoMingJin said:
Actually, you're doing things the hard HARD ...HARD way....
if you want to develop apps for android, Titanium Mobile (appcelerator.com) is the best way to go. It takes far less time to learn JavaScript , CSS and HTML then it does to learn pure JAVA, and then learn to implement Android's API.
There are a few things that Titanium Mobile can't do, but they are always working on it to make it better. And of course - it's free
I've made a few apps using it. Including an HTML eBook reader, Chinese Flashcard App, and a Simple Chat Client.
Their JavaScript API takes a bit to get used to, but after that, you can easily spit out a simple app in about a day or so.
I have a web-app Template that lets me dump a Web-app (html/css/js) into a project, and spits out a nice new shiny Android app ready for the market.... I also wrote code that lets you access the Menu Button on android too. So it's not like using PhoneGap where it's just a Browser session with an icon on your phone.
PM me if you're interested, and i'll show you everything i learned about Titanium Mobile so far (i'm still learning actually). Or if you want an app done, i can do it for you... free if it's easy enough
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wow, I'm very interested. I might check it out.
sent from my pimp hero running Froyo CM6 and the XDA app
If you know the C or C++ language you could try out MoSync, depends what you like, some programmers like the level of control and speed you get from C++. If your content with simpler apps then maybe phonegap or appcellerator for you.
I guess that when mobile apps get more sophisticated javascript programs will be just as complex as C++ programs.
Thats my view, but then I like C++ better.
/Tony
MoSyncTony said:
If you know the C or C++ language you could try out MoSync, depends what you like, some programmers like the level of control and speed you get from C++. If your content with simpler apps then maybe phonegap or appcellerator for you.
I guess that when mobile apps get more sophisticated javascript programs will be just as complex as C++ programs.
Thats my view, but then I like C++ better.
/Tony
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It really depends on how much control and you really need. If you're going to write games, then you do need speed that C++ and the Native Application Development API on android can give you. If you're writing a social networking app, the speed of C++ would really be an overkill.
As far as i've read, PhoneGap still has a lot of issues. And the build process is a bit more complicated than on Titanium Mobile.
If you're just using the regular Android API to write apps, i don't notice a lot of difference in speed execution between writing it in pure Java, or using Titanium mobile (using native code and UI elements - i don't mean putting everything into a WebView).
The current app that i'm writing now i don't think can be written using Titanium Mobile or PhoneGap (unless i added some native functions and did my own fork of PhoneGap).
More or less, i'm writing an App for Android and JRE/Linux systems that will allow me to enumerate, and access USB status bits, and USB data frames of a given USB device, and then allowing that USB device to be accessed through a TCP or UDP connection.
I might be able to do this with Titanium Mobile, but i don't think i can. As the only files you're allowed to access are on the SD card, application data directory, and temp directory.... i think there's one other place you're allowed to access too, but i never used it. However later today i might just try to see if i can access the /Dev/DSP01 (aka sound card) on an android device. If i can, i think i could write it using titanium mobile. I'm already halfway done with this app in pure java, so i wouldn't actually rewrite it in Titanium Mobile now.
DaoMingJin said:
if you want to develop apps for android, Titanium Mobile (appcelerator.com) is the best way to go.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanx mate!
If you looking a book or something to teach you the basics Beginning Java Programming for Dummies and Android Application Development in 24 Hours are good reads.
I'd rather not fill the forum with more threads so I'm just going to ask my question here. What is the best way to read the android dev guide on the device itself? Just going to the site directly? Ideally I'd like a pdf or something designed to be read on a small screen. The site can have formatting issues when read on a small screen.
Sent from my SPH-D700 using XDA App
I've been developing for a long time (nearly 30 years), and whenever I need to learn a new language I start with the Sams range, "Teach yourself whatever language in X days/hours". They're pretty good and this is available for Kindle, which is great if you use the Amazon Kindle app...
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Teach-Yours...1_fkmr2_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1287485537&sr=8-2-fkmr2
It obviously costs, but I really do rate those books as brilliant starting points. The rest is google and friends on here.
Hope this helps - good luck mate.
Personally, I've been coding in Java for what... four years now? I'm feeling dwarfed here by johncmolyneux but honestly, the best way to learn is to not use an IDE like Eclipse, but to use something that you have to hand-code everything yourself, such as Geany! You learn fairly quickly after writing a few applications.
If you are thinking "titanium", "mosync" or "phone gap" it is worth doing a bit of background research. There are several extremely powerful tools out there that can help you build cross platform apps - these are among the top ones.
bit more discussion about this here: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=16703287#post16703287
There are a few useful reports comparing them - check out ours by googling "triballabs cross platform"
The Google App Inventor makes it pretty easy to create your own Android apps. Best part is you don't need to learn any programming languages. You won't be creating anything too complicated like a video game for example, but it's a good start nonetheless.
http://appinventor.googlelabs.com/about/
If you want to learn the basics of Java, then please check out a book called as "Head First Java". They really explain the basics with the help of real life examples to make things much simpler so that people understand.
Beginner app projects
I'm also just getting started with app development. Something I've been looking for is a beginner app project. Wish I could find a walkthrough of a simple app like a game of Hangman or something like that. I've been through the android developer training web site and got some good info but some things I'm still a little stuck on. Id Love to see an actual app (rather than just a mock up of some fields and buttons) and then a slightly dumbed down explanation of the code. Might be a lot to ask but man it would be great!

Starting with Android app development

I have very little programming experience, just some in C and C++. But I'd like to start learning how to develop for Android.
Any good books/ebooks which will help me started? Or any guide or anything such?
Ill help you out if you want. Email me [email protected].
i wanted to start too, i just wanted to know if it is harder to learn to program for android than for example to programm with c#. and what's the best way to get started
meaningQo said:
i wanted to start too, i just wanted to know if it is harder to learn to program for android than for example to programm with c#. and what's the best way to get started
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just like me...
1. Start with learning Java as a programming language.
Don't waste time on learning how to create GUI in java as it is irrelevant to Android, but make sure you know the basics of how threading works, what collections you can use, learn the java event listeners model (concept only) etc.. Also make sure you're using Eclipse as it would probably be your primary IDE for Android development. For an experienced C++ programmer this step should take no longer than a week.
2. Install the Android SDK (follow http://developer.android.com/sdk/installing.html).
3. Read the developers guide basics.
4. Learn from examples!
The Android SDK comes with many example projects, just add a new Android project in eclipse and choose "from example" in the window that will follow.
There are also many open source Android projects you can learn from.
roee88 said:
1. Start with learning Java as a programming language.
Don't waste time on learning how to create GUI in java as it is irrelevant to Android, but make sure you know the basics of how threading works, what collections you can use, learn the java event listeners model (concept only) etc.. Also make sure you're using Eclipse as it would probably be your primary IDE for Android development. For an experienced C++ programmer this step should take no longer than a week.
2. Install the Android SDK (follow http://developer.android.com/sdk/installing.html).
3. Read the developers guide basics.
4. Learn from examples!
The Android SDK comes with many example projects, just add a new Android project in eclipse and choose "from example" in the window that will follow.
There are also many open source Android projects you can learn from.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
good advice. but consider IntelliJ as well as Eclipse. i find IntelliJ nicer and faster to use
Another useful thread on this topic is here:
[Q] How did you learn to develop?
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1206082
As mentioned there, it would be good to get a general noob dev guide set up on here so that people can get started with developing.
Well i just started learning development in android as well,i have been trying hard to find sources to help me understand until i stumbled upon a gold mine....!
here it is:http://www.youtube.com/user/CornboyzAndroid
http://www.youtube.com/user/mybringback
this guys videos are awesome explains in detail....
Hope this helps all new learners like me,also the user in those videos has been doing this out of his busy schedule for free,if those videos teach you something or help you in anyway then please consider making him a small donation....!
I would also suggest to post your questions (or find answers) on the stackoverflow website (http://stackoverflow.com). It is full of smart guys
Another approach would be to build your apps in html / javascript using frameworks like JQuery, and then use a tool like PhoneGap which will bundle it into an app that will run cross platform
Found another good book:
android application devlopment for dummies.....!
great book see if u can find it,if u dont then let me know i will upload it ...!
its the best book i have seen for android
edit: ok here is a link for the book,i am doing this just because many ppl pmed me to upload it,if the mods feel the link shouldnt exist u can always delete it
http://stor1070.uploaded.to/dl/JnhVLWv0qz
link added to the above post
Thanks for this, good resources.
adicool said:
Found another good book:
android application devlopment for dummies.....!
great book see if u can find it,if u dont then let me know i will upload it ...!
its the best book i have seen for android
edit: ok here is a link for the book,i am doing this just because many ppl pmed me to upload it,if the mods feel the link shouldnt exist u can always delete it
http://stor1070.uploaded.to/dl/JnhVLWv0qz
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Page not found
Error: 404
I would love to get that book but the link is not good. Thanks anyway.
i will be uploading it tonight then,u will see a link soon
Found the book here for download: http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&sour...s61ws8oFg&sig2=vQS3EtQFTFUaJWLnsmYGXQ&cad=rjt
Sent from my Transformer TF101 using Tapatalk
Ok another few of my good resources as always for laerning android:
Get hold of Android course videos by Plural sight
Android with java essential videos by Lynda.com
Android using essential java by O reilly
adicool said:
Ok another few of my good resources as always for laerning android:
Get hold of Android course videos by Plural sight
Android with java essential videos by Lynda.com
Android using essential java by O reilly
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have all 3 . They are really great sources. I've been learning development on android past 2 months.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I997 using xda premium
you can also develop apps in adobe air. I have been able to port over some of my flex code into adobe air. You can compile into android, blackberry playbook, and the IOS with flash builder 4.5.1 only problem is flash builder is not free.
I'm currently churning my way through Thinking In Java. There's a free version on the official mindview.net website.
Learning Java as a programming language will pay off in the long run (I believe) as C# shares many fundamental areas with Java and so adapting to it should be easier if you have a good foundation in Java.
If you have previous experience with C++, then Java should not be too big a step for you.
I've heard that all those "Java for Dummies" books are pretty useless as they focus a lot on basic stuff and less on programming structure/patterns, etc.
as for the leap from Java -> Android Apps, I think the official android dev site is pretty sweet.

[Q] Beginner Help: GIS app

Hey DEVs,
I've been a power user for almost a year now. I really really dig Android and I feel its about time that I should start developing for this awesome platform too.
I've previously worked in Java and MySQL but I'm completely new to Android Development. Noob is another word to sum it all up. I've tried few video tutorials by setting up SDK and Eclipse. So far that has worked pretty fine for me. I'm now planning to work on a GIS app that could at least incorporate local POIs of where I live.
Its just that I don't really know where to start things from. I've already spent few days looking for appropriate stuff but whatever I came across, was more like scattered pieces of a Jigsaw puzzle. Google Map APIs is another thing that I need alot to learn about ! so Kindly guide me through and give me something to start with ....... I'l be very very grateful !!
regards,
an aspiring dev !
I wrote a custom GIS android app in flash builder 4.5.1, the code base is flex and actionscript using ESRI's arcserver flex api and uses adobe air for native integration on a mobile device. The web service is a local service I am serving up through the town I work for, it is using ArcServer to serve the data. You can check out the app in the android market its called Vernon GIS Fire. ESRI also has an app in the market, it allows you to search their resource center for different web services, you could upload your own data in the resource center and serve it up using their resoucres
Questions or Problems Should Not Be Posted in the Development Forum
Please Post in the Correct Forums
Moving to Q&A

[Q] New to development!

Hey im a programming student in my second year and ive been wanting to play around with some android development (mostly because my school doesnt teach java or php. Im pretty experienced with visual basic and C#. But my questions is can someone help me out with a link to or something where I can take a look at some open source code for some android apps? It can be as simple as tic tac toe I dont car. Im just basically doing some research myself. Also is eclipse the best compiler for android development? Thanks
You can find quite a number of examples under 'Resources' on developer.android.com.
You may be interested to know that Eclipse is not a compiler, it is an Integrated Development Environment (IDE). What is better or not is largely a personal preference, but starting out you are likely to find more tutorials assuming you use Eclipse than anything else.
Source of pre-installed Android Appliaction is open. And you can program with eclips for Android App.
Sent from my LG-SU760 using XDA
Android is open-source, but not the apps.
You can run Eclipse, and create a new project from existing samples. You will be able to choose from a list (this samples come from the sdk, if you downloaded them).
There are some games (snake, ...) and demo apps like API demos.
And Eclipse is very good for Android development, especially if you use the plugin ADT tools.
I am more than happy to have all the eyes I can on my code. I would post a link, but (no rant here)...
AWOL: ArchWiki Offline
by
Tetractys Productions
Search for this on the Google App Store with search term "archwiki".
The code isn't great as I am a novice with both Java and Android, but you will find use of Activities, WebViews, Menus, using external Jars and perhaps a little more. If your scholarly background leads you to make a suggestion or two... please do.
Also... don't buy most of the books. They suck. The "cookbooks" seem pretty good and the Android Developer Documentation and Stackoverflow are your friends. I wasted enough money on Android books I will never read. Hope you don't fall for that too.
Rant:
10 post requirements encourages low quality posts. Perhaps its a good trade-off, but from where I'm sitting I'm drinking HaterAde.

[Q] How to start coding

Hello, everyone. Can someone please direct me, an absolute beginner with no experience in programming at all, where to begin learning. I would like to ultimately develop for Android.
I'm running Ubuntu 13.04; how can I set up an environment to learn programming, and what are some resources that I can use?
Install jdk on the comp then on your phone download the app learn java in 24 hours it walks you thru making your first program so you get the basics
Hello, I'm pretty much in the same boot as the OP.
I'm working in the medical field and get bored of not having the app I need to ease up paperwork, so I decided to make them myself.
However, exept a hangman game in high school I never coded. So yesterday i took my old laptop, put some Ubuntu on it, the sdk and created the famous "hello word" app.
The problem is, even in the tutorials, some thing were to complicated, so I called upon my cousin (a german develloper) and he gave me some advices.
Especially, he told me that java was maybe not the easiest way to learn to code with 0 background and suggest me to try python and other things.
Do you have advices for me, since I want to build simple app (somes textfields, somes checkboxes to get scores and the ability to export a result sheet in pdf) at first, but i do not want to use app inventor or similar tools since I ultimately want to fiddle with the AOSP agenda (get the contact list to pop up like the invite list when i click "description field" , change default duration of appointements etc...).
Any ideas, suggestions, or tutorial are welcome, just keep in mind that I know nothing (Jon Snow like).
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2388486
Jus go here
.........................................
visit www.fb.com/softcrush
If you want to become a professional android developer then it is advisable to learn Java and XML a bit better,,and there are bunch of resources available on How to build android apps !
If you really want to become a Programmer then it is advisable to start from the beginning i.e C and then Java
Thats how everybody starts learning coding !
Go through video tutorials for understanding how the coding works !
Happy to help !
Sanjay said:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2388486
Jus go here
.........................................
visit www.fb.com/softcrush
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is a great list. I love to see my boy Derek Banas on there
alfredmuffin said:
Hello, everyone. Can someone please direct me, an absolute beginner with no experience in programming at all, where to begin learning. I would like to ultimately develop for Android.
I'm running Ubuntu 13.04; how can I set up an environment to learn programming, and what are some resources that I can use?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
google it man you will thousands of website which will teach u programming for free. I would have put the links but dont wanna be treated as spammer
For now don't worry about making an app with the Android SDK or anything big like that. Just start simple with some little programs that print stuff into the terminal. It's a good thing that you have Ubuntu because Linux OS's are always great to learn programming on!
I'm also a noon and I found it easy to start with Batch on Windows and I have just been getting better and better!
Well I understand it's not easy to get started. One thing you will have to recognize that there's a lot of things involved getting prepared for Android programming. For example, while developing for Android you will need to be able to write a bit of XML as well, you will need to set up your IDE, get the necessary Java dependencies, get a little bit familiar with Maven to be able to use 3rd party libraries and so on. It's most definitely intimidating. So what I would recommend is to...
- Try to allocate time every day for learning this, even if it just means half an hour or less a day.
- Always take notes and don't be afraid to ask; nobody should assume you know the answer.
- Once you've learned something, help others to get ahead - seniors will probably recognize your efforts so you will be able to get help more easily.
- Try to talk about programming in person with people who are more proficient in it. Nothing helps as much as having a pro sitting in the same room, ready to help you.
- Try to join related communities as well, it can really speed things up.
- Baby steps. Many people get started in programming with having crazy big ideas only to meet failure later. It's not a good thing to frustrate yourself, so choose small goals first.
I can't emphasize the last point enough. Whenever you start learning new stuff - no matter whether you're a novice or an expert - you will need to focus on this, because the initial steps are always problematic. For example, when you start learning a new programming language: the syntax is new, the way for getting the app run is new, the IDE might be new, if the tool is web related then probably it uses a different kind of server than the one you're used to etc. etc. etc. so barriers all around. You must get comfortable with this first, then you will be able to speed things up.
How to start coding
How I started:
Basic Stuff:
1. Java, I used Java Complete Reference
2. Data Structures (most commonly used- Stacks, Queues, Linked list, HashMap, List) [Basic Understanding]
3. Algorithms (will help you to write efficient code) [Basic Understanding]
4. XML, just basic understanding is required, use internet to learn
Android Specific Resources:
1. The Busy Coder's Guide to Android Development [Very useful]
2. New Boston Videos
3. Android Cookbook, if you want a solution to a particular problem
Spend more time learning Java and other basic stuff, once your basics are clear, then you can easily adjust yourself on any platform.
Recommendations for Aspiring App Developers
Hi,
I was in your same shoes about 3 years ago so I can tell you what steps I took to start coding. I took the longer route but it was the correct route. Key suggestion is to learn the lower levels of coding first. (lower levels meaning base languages, binary being the lowest). Start with the C language as this is the core programming language which most other higher levels are based on. If you have the money take a structured online course on Udemy or CodeAcademy. If you're short on money and need to learn on your own don't worry there's plenty of resources out there to learn. That's how I did it. Start out with videos on youtube, try to find a complete structured course here's one with over 130 videos. Sorry, can't post links cause I'm new but just go to Youtube and type in "C Programming Complete Tutorial" to get the course with the structured 130+ videos.
The best way to learn any programming language is to find some free source codes in the designated languages and start tinkering, breaking and fixing the code. Once you learn this core language you will be able to programm\ desktop apps, simple software and mobile apps in other higher level programming languages.
Hope this helps.
-Jeff
alfredmuffin said:
Hello, everyone. Can someone please direct me, an absolute beginner with no experience in programming at all, where to begin learning. I would like to ultimately develop for Android.
I'm running Ubuntu 13.04; how can I set up an environment to learn programming, and what are some resources that I can use?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hey Guys,
I love thenewboston website that you've pointed us to. But as a first step, should I learn some C or Java before progressing on to thenewboston Android tutorials?
I have no programming experience, but lots of motivation.
Thanks,
Donald,
New Zealand
Sanjay said:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2388486
Jus go here
.........................................
visit www.fb.com/softcrush
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
recommend "head first java"

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