Many Android applications use REST or another HTTP based protocol to communicate with a server. Working with HTTP and HTTPS on Android is generally fairly straightforward and well documented. Depending on the version of the Android OS, either HTTPClient or HttpURLConnection “just work”. Either one can be used, but the official recommendation is to use … Read More
Phonegap applications can be extended with plugins to add additional functionality. Historically, installing plugins meant copying a bunch of files into the correct places in your project. Andrew Lunny wrote the Cordova Plugin Specification and pluginstall. Pluginstall is a tool that automates the installation of plugins which conform to the plugin specification. In addition to … Read More
Now that we understand the implications and challenges of embarking on an Android project, let’s discuss how to find the right firm or developer for the job! You are ultimately responsible for the application – even if you go the outsourcing route. Things happen, disagreements happen, and turn over happens. The likelihood is high that … Read More
If you’re reading this, you likely have an iPhone/iPad (iOS) application and are interested in expanding to the Android platform. You’ve probably already asked the hard questions to define what you want, why you want it, and how it fits into your roadmap. This article will help your business understand the impact of the Android … Read More
Are you interested in adding Robolectric to your development process? Here’s a quick introduction to the most common types of test cases and some best practices to consider when deciding your testing strategy. I’ve created two example apps for your reference. The first is a glorified Hello World and the other is a simple animation … Read More
Unit testing is a best practice, but has been particularly difficult in Android. One library that makes this process much simpler is Robolectric. Integration into your project can be tricky and most methods start with maven and create an Android project from scratch. I’m a huge fan of living in IDE-land as much as possible, … Read More
The phonegap-nfc plugin allows you to read and write NFC tags from a PhoneGap application using JavaScript. The plugin originally supported Android. The latest release adds support for Blackberry 7.0. After installing the plugin into your PhoneGap app (See README) it is easy to start scanning tags. Create a function that will handle the NFC … Read More
The browser in Android 4 is able to take pictures from a web page and display them without any plugins or server interaction. This demo uses the Device API and File API to take and display a picture on a phone using the browser. Try it on your Android phone http://don.github.com/html-cam/. I wrote this demo … Read More
If you’re attending Philly ETE this week, be sure to check out our mobile apps. Android iPad iPhone Windows Phone Mobile Web
Tomorrow is Chariot Day! Charioteers will give 45 minute presentations on a broad spectrum of topics, including enterprise Java techniques, mobile, and Arduinos. I’m planning a dive into Android and teaching concepts along the way. At the end of my session, students will away with a simple Doctor Who app and learn about these foundation topics: XML … Read More
