Android

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Tubey

Allardyce Out
'Ello

Just wondering if anyone has any experience in Android development who could point me in the right direction?

I've got the SDK/Eclipse/Java etc. but it'd be nice to have someone knowledgeable to throw me a few tips as I start.

Ta la.
 

Maybe get a decent book about it for a decent overview? Hello, Android is an easy head in first book for example that covers most the basic stuff. What kind of things you intend to do?
 
somuchfun said:
Maybe get a decent book about it for a decent overview? Hello, Android is an easy head in first book for example that covers most the basic stuff. What kind of things you intend to do?
Click to expand...

I've just done the Hello, Android tutorial weirdly enough. Successfully too!

I'm going to look to design individual apps for website needs. For example, if GOT needed a decent phone forum app, I'd do that.

I'll have a look at that Hello, Android book - exactly the sort of suggestion I was after. Thanks!
 
Tubey said:
I've just done the Hello, Android tutorial weirdly enough. Successfully too!

I'm going to look to design individual apps for website needs. For example, if GOT needed a decent phone forum app, I'd do that.

I'll have a look at that Hello, Android book - exactly the sort of suggestion I was after. Thanks!
Click to expand...

DO EET!!

And as close to PC mode as it can be, please.

PLEASE.
 

My progress so far...

sofar1.png
 
Holy balls this is hard... tried to develop a simple Sudoku application, did fairly well but hit the wall hard when it come to drawing the lines etc...

If anyone has any expertise I could rebound off drop me a PM.
 
If I remember correctly hello android features a sudoku tutorial. ;)
Unless you are trying to complete that?
 
somuchfun said:
If I remember correctly hello android features a sudoku tutorial. ;)
Unless you are trying to complete that?
Click to expand...

Yes, but it's archaic unfortunately (android 2.1 based for the most) and some of the terms are deprecated, causing many issues.

It's a good book but it isn't teaching me much other than to copy and paste code in and hope for the best that I identify what the hell everything is doing!

Currently messing about with the Rich UI and learning more by trial and error (adding buttons etc. then reading the XML to identify what happened "under the hood") but I'm struggling to "tie it all together" right now.

I guess I should mention I have absolutely no background in Java and haven't actively designed anything higher than basic HTML in a good five years :P But I'm bright, so I'd be annoyed if I didn't pick this up fairly quickly. Just need a poke in the right direction.
 
For example, this caused me a nightmare...

Code: 
public class Prefs extends PreferenceActivity {
@Override
protected void onCreate(Bundle savedInstanceState) {
super.onCreate(savedInstanceState);
[B]addPreferencesFromResource(R.xml.settings);[/B]
}
}

The bolded bit is deprecated, and it took me forever to figure out how to bypass the error because I couldn't figure out an alternative coding for what it was trying to do (set up a "Settings" menu).

Little things like that. The net is a help but the technical jargon is steep.
 

Tubey said:
Yes, but it's archaic unfortunately (android 2.1 based for the most) and some of the terms are deprecated, causing many issues.

It's a good book but it isn't teaching me much other than to copy and paste code in and hope for the best that I identify what the hell everything is doing!

Currently messing about with the Rich UI and learning more by trial and error (adding buttons etc. then reading the XML to identify what happened "under the hood") but I'm struggling to "tie it all together" right now.

I guess I should mention I have absolutely no background in Java and haven't actively designed anything higher than basic HTML in a good five years :P But I'm bright, so I'd be annoyed if I didn't pick this up fairly quickly. Just need a poke in the right direction.
Click to expand...

Ah ok fair enough. All the states and views are a lot to take in and the book might skip explaining some of the internal workings but should be decent enough for an overview. I have to admit that writing some of the code manually was a bit frustrating and had to spend some time trying to trace the lines I had missed to write in. The 2.1 stuff for most parts should be valid for Android in general, and if you are developing small apps that are not high end I'd say 2.1 or maybe 2.2 is sufficient for compatibility. That said, I still have my phone at 2.3 so that might be an influence for me :) I haven't really written anything smart on Android, I read a few books and did some small stuff and after that I've been reading other books on other topics.
I got stuck debating should I use the animation views or should I use the 3d api for games. I guess I should've just picked one :) Also my old laptop was a bit too slow for running the emulator at any decent speed.
I did set up the SDK to this new laptop tho' so I guess I should do some stuff too.

Also, if the stuff is depricated, you should just compile it as 2.1 project as it'll run on anything 2.1+ and for just trying around a bit that should suffice. I'd maybe suggest you should do some todo style applications to get a solid base of a simple project that you can grow your skills from. The views and their adaptors is where it's at.

I'm by no means an expert but if you get stuck on something I could maybe try to help you as I really should start playing around with it again.
 
Just found something called an MHL Adapter ?

It apparently plugs into the micro usb on the phone and then you can plug a HDMI lead into the other end to connect it to your TV to view movies, play the games, maybe video calls ? play your music etc etc

31lr-LuXURL._SL500_AA300_.jpg

and it's only $11.99.
 

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