Posts tagged computer
Android WebKIT JS/HTML framework : PhoneGap
Jul 22nd
This guide will help you setup your first android project but not a basic one. One taking advantage of WebKIT Javascript framework.
The first thing to do is to download and install all the required dependencies.
Please contribute platform specific instructions where needed.
Installing dependencies
1. Java JDK
If you do not already have the java JDK installed on you’r system, install the Java SE Development Kit – JDK 6 from here:
http://java.sun.com/javase/downloads/index.jsp
If you’re running Windows this is a standard installer file, just follow the on screen instructions for installation.
2. Eclipse
Install the Eclipse IDE for Java Developers from http://www.eclipse.org/downloads/. This a ZIP archive file, extract the folder “eclipse” for me I extracted eclipse
under C:eclipse . Most other flavors of Eclipse (like Aptana or platform specific builds) will also work, provided that you install all the necessary Eclipse plug-ins.
3. Android SDK
Install the Android SDK Package from here:
http://developer.android.com/sdk/index.html
Extract the downloaded archive and place it somewhere you’ll remember like C:sdkandroid-sdk-windows
and add the tools sub directory to your environment PATH. Additional information and instructions for adding the Android SDK to your PATH can be found at:
http://developer.android.com/sdk/installing.html
Be sure to do the following (WINDOWS):
Add android SDK to your Path
Add android sdk tools (android-sdk-windowstools) to your path. This is necessary
for ruby to find the command “android create project” later on.
4. ADT Plug-in for Eclipse
Install the ADT Plug-in for Eclipse as described here:
http://developer.android.com/sdk/eclipse-adt.html
5. Adding Android SDK components
Install at least the required Android SDK components using the Eclipse ADT plug-in, as described here:
http://developer.android.com/sdk/adding-components.html
You can also launch the ADT tool by running android in your terminal.
To verify your installation of Eclipse, Android SDK, ADT, and Java, you can build a sample “Hello World” application using the instructions located here:
http://developer.android.com/guide/tutorials/hello-world.html.
6. Apache ANT
Windows – download and unzip Apache ANT and add it to your PATH http://ant.apache.org/index.html.
7. Ruby
Windows – download and install Ruby from the official site http://www.ruby-lang.org/en/downloads/ or use the RubyInstaller (recommended) here http://rubyinstaller.org/
8. Installing PhoneGap
Now make sure you download the latest version of PhoneGap here:
http://github.com/phonegap/phonegap-android.
9. edit the droidgap ruby file
change target_id = 5 to target_id = 6 to target Android 2.0.1 if your phone is running 2.0.1
10. Build framework and sample application
C:Devmydroidphonegap-android>ruby ./droidgap c:/sdk/android-sdk-win
dows/ phonegap com.phonegap.droid.demo c:/Dev/mydroid/phonegap-android/example/ c:/dev/mydroid
/phonegap-android/phonegap/
11. Once the phonegap app has been generated launch eclipse
To load eclipse and be able to see the workspace location use the -showlocation parameter
c:eclipseeclipse -showlocation
12. Next is to import the generated project in eclipse, fix any compilation errors, include the phonegap jar in your project build path and finally edit AndroidManifest.xml otherway you are going to see few crashes when trying to access lower level java class
I replaced the < by { and > by }
{?xml version=”1.0″ encoding=”utf-8″?}
{manifest xmlns:android=”http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android”
package=”com.tuniverse.droid”
android:versionCode=”1″
android:versionName=”1.0″}
{uses-permission android:name=”android.permission.INTERNET” /}
{uses-permission android:name=”android.permission.CAMERA” /}
{uses-permission android:name=”android.permission.VIBRATE” /}
{uses-permission android:name=”android.permission.ACCESS_GPS” /}
{uses-permission android:name=”android.permission.ACCESS_ASSISTED_GPS” /}
{uses-permission android:name=”android.permission.ACCESS_LOCATION” /}
{uses-permission android:name=”android.permission.ACCESS_COARSE_LOCATION” /}
{uses-permission android:name=”android.permission.ACCESS_FINE_LOCATION” /}
{uses-permission android:name=”android.permission.READ_PHONE_STATE” /}
{uses-permission android:name=”android.permission.RECEIVE_SMS” /}
{uses-permission android:name=”android.permission.RECORD_AUDIO” /}
{uses-permission android:name=”android.permission.MODIFY_AUDIO_SETTINGS” /}
{application android:icon=”@drawable/icon” android:label=”@string/app_name”}
{activity android:name=”.WebActivity”
android:label=”@string/app_name” android:configChanges=”orientation|keyboardHidden”}
{intent-filter}
{action android:name=”android.intent.action.MAIN” /}
{category android:name=”android.intent.category.LAUNCHER” /}
{/intent-filter}
{/activity}
{/application}
{/manifest}
13. When your app will build with no error, you can run the application
in the debugger or in the emulator.
To view the android log (emulator) open a shell (usually the same one than the one
used to lauch eclipse and run
abt logcat
If you want a nicer logcat output you can use some very cool python script to output the android log in color !!! Install python first from here
As you can see, the colored adb logcat is a huge improvement.
To easily use the code, copy the files color_console.py, coloredlogcat.py and logcat.bat to your Android SDK/Tools path like c:android-sdk-windows-1.5_r3toolslogcat.bat. Now, instead of running “adb logcat” just run “logcat”.
You can download the files here colored_logcat.zip (3 KB)
Thanks go to
Jeff Sharkey
André Burgaud
To install APK applications on your Android phone do the following:
Copy the APK file you want to install to your phone’s memory card and insert
the card into your Android phone.
Go to Android Market and search for the Apps Installer application.
Open it and click on the Install button.
After it is installed, just open it. It will show you all the APK files stored directly in the root directory of your memory card.
Just click on the application you want to install and it will be installed.
Using the Android SDK and USB driver
There is one more method that can be used, you can install APK files into your phone using the Android SDK. Download the Android SDK.
First of all, install the Android SDK on your computer. You will also need
to install the Android USB drivers to connect the SDK to your phone via USB. You can get instruction on how to install it from here
To install applications from other sources, you also need go to Settings -> Application Settings and enable Unknown Sources. Also go to Settings -> SD Card and Phone Storage -> Disable Use for USB Storage. You can enable it again later.
Next, just open Command Prompt and type: adb install path/file.apk
where path is the full path to the APK file and file is the name of the APK application file. Your application is now installed. This is all you need to do, now just open the application on your phone and use it.
Coderless Apps, the Android Version
Jul 20th
Lambda-the-ultimate has highlighting App Inventor, a tool for developing Android apps. The claims are impressive to say the least:
You can build just about any app you can imagine with App Inventor. …
To use App Inventor, you do not need to be a developer. App Inventor requires NO programming knowledge. This is because instead of writing code, you visually design the way the app looks and use blocks to specify the app’s behavior.
This is the classic you-can-write-software-without-programming model which comes up every few years, if not more often.
I’m still not buying it.
Programming is a lot like writing in that there are two pretty distinct stages. First, you need to understand basic syntax so you can be understood. In the case of programming, you need to learn where to put all those curly braces or parenthesis, so the computer can parse your code. In the case of writing, you need to learn spelling and punctuation so that people can parse your text.
The second stage involves learning to write or code well. That is, how do you solve a problem, or write a story, in an efficient and elegant manner.
The first stage may seem tricky, but it’s really the second stage that one spends years mastering.
To write software, like writing a novel or a blog entry, you’re going to have to master both of the above stages to some degree.
I’ll give you that App Inventor may make learning the first stage easier. Heck, it may cause the first stage to disappear almost entirely. But the second stage – learning how to problem solve in an efficient manner, that’s still going to be required.
I could be cynical, and say that App Inventor is going to be a flop, and that to write software requires learning to think in a new way. Just like learning to write or paint requires a new thinking model as well. But, I’d rather be more optimistic.
If have success with App Inventor, it’s not because no programming experience is required. Nope, it’s because you’ve actually become a programmer. Congrats.
BlackBerry Search Google / Log In to Yahoo / Stay in the Game with ESPN / pdaPortal / Slashdot / Shop at Amazon / Control Home/ by borwser
Jul 15th
There are a variety of eye-popping wireless-optimized sites that provide excellent information from anywhere. Here is a list of useful ones.
When new users first get a BlackBerry, the email function is usually what attracts the most attention. There is no denying that email is what makes the device great. However, the BlackBerry Browser is an excellent program that allows you to access a ton of useful information on the Web. Having been a relatively recent addition to the BlackBerry operating system , even veteran users tend to pass it by not realizing its utility. Some users may have taken the browser for a quick test drive with their new device, only to have their high expectation unmet as they visited a poorly formatted site made exclusively for desktop browsers.
There are an abundance of sites to get very useful information (even entertainment!) using the BlackBerry Browser, but there is no central list where someone can visit to find out about them. There is a lot of trial and error in finding sites that work well on the BlackBerry. This hack highlights the most useful ones and then lists other sites that also work well and provide access to excellent data that you thought was available only on your desktop computer.
Search Google
Google provides a great XHTML interface (http://www.google.com/xhtml) for the BlackBerry Browser. When you access a link in a set of search results, Google actually proxies the request on your behalf and returns the page in a format that’s more readable on small screens. In addition to search results, you can access other Google services. Its main search page is accessible as well as the Google Local searches (http://local.google.com). Google’s local search is quite useful for a mobile user to get driving directions, local restaurant locations, and local maps. Google also provides a nice WML version of its search page (http://www.google.com/wml) that searches only sites that are formatted in WML. You can even access a WML version of Froogle, Google’s shopping comparison service (http://wml.froogle.com).
Log In to Yahoo!
Yahoo! offers an excellent version of its site for handhelds at http://wap.oa.yahoo.com. This WML version of the site allows you to log in with your regular Yahoo! ID and use a good deal of their services from WAP browser. You can view your stock portfolios, view sports scores, get weather reports, read the news, and even play several WAP-based games.
Stay in the Game with ESPN
ESPN has a great version of their site available to XHTML browsers at http://pocket.espn.go.com/. The front page is updated with the latest story from the regular version of their page. Each sport’s main page reflects the desktop version of its page as well. You can get news, standings, statistics, and results from a variety of sports that look excellent on your BlackBerry device.
Control the Universe with pdaPortal
pdaPortal (http://pdaportal.com) is just what the name implies—a customizable portal that you can access from your BlackBerry. You can access a ton of information, including RSS feeds in a nice format, a search engine, and even a random site. Probably the best feature of pdaPortal is its link library of well over 600 sites formatted for handhelds, organized by category. pdaPortal keeps track of hits to the various links it has posted on its site so it can organize its links by popularity.
Go Mobile at BlackBerry.com
BlackBerry’s version of a mobile portal (http://mobile.blackberry.com) is eye-catching; if you haven’t seen it before, check it out. It is formatted with SVG (or scalable vector graphics) using the tools from Plasmic. Its look and feel resembles that of a Macromedia Flash application on your computer’s browser. It provides links to various sites that are very usable on the BlackBerry. It also provides links to games and ringtones to download.
Geek Out with Slashdot
Every geek’s favorite news site has a version of its site available for handheld browsers. Point to http://slashdot.org/palm to access it. The problem with accessing the main version of Slashdot on your device is all the comments to each article make the site very large to pull over a GPRS network connection. The handheld version of the site contains no comments (although you can choose to view the top five comments for each article), no images, and no sidebars.
Shop at Amazon.com
You can easily access Amazon.com from your BlackBerry. You can browser and buy items and view the status of orders you’ve made whether you ordered the item on the desktop version of the site or the handheld version. If you’re a heavy Amazon.com user, you may want to try the ShopEdge third-party application for a streamlined interface in a native BlackBerry application .
Control Your Home
If you’re into serious geekery, the Misterhouse home automation program (http://www.misterhouse.net) has a built-in WML interface that you can use to control your home from anywhere. Control your lighting, turn on your sprinklers, detect motion in your driveway—it’s amazing all the cool things you can do with this open source software. Throw your BlackBerry Browser into the mix, and you can do all these things from anywhere you have cell coverage.
Additional Sites
There are countless other useful sites to view from your BlackBerry with more and more popping up every day. a Table lists some of the noteworthy ones.
|
Url |
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Related Posts :
BlackBerry Search Google / Log In to Yahoo / Stay in the Game with ESPN / pdaPortal / Slashdot / Shop at Amazon / Control Home/ by borwser
Jul 15th
There are a variety of eye-popping wireless-optimized sites that provide excellent information from anywhere. Here is a list of useful ones.
When new users first get a BlackBerry, the email function is usually what attracts the most attention. There is no denying that email is what makes the device great. However, the BlackBerry Browser is an excellent program that allows you to access a ton of useful information on the Web. Having been a relatively recent addition to the BlackBerry operating system , even veteran users tend to pass it by not realizing its utility. Some users may have taken the browser for a quick test drive with their new device, only to have their high expectation unmet as they visited a poorly formatted site made exclusively for desktop browsers.
There are an abundance of sites to get very useful information (even entertainment!) using the BlackBerry Browser, but there is no central list where someone can visit to find out about them. There is a lot of trial and error in finding sites that work well on the BlackBerry. This hack highlights the most useful ones and then lists other sites that also work well and provide access to excellent data that you thought was available only on your desktop computer.
Search Google
Google provides a great XHTML interface (http://www.google.com/xhtml) for the BlackBerry Browser. When you access a link in a set of search results, Google actually proxies the request on your behalf and returns the page in a format that’s more readable on small screens. In addition to search results, you can access other Google services. Its main search page is accessible as well as the Google Local searches (http://local.google.com). Google’s local search is quite useful for a mobile user to get driving directions, local restaurant locations, and local maps. Google also provides a nice WML version of its search page (http://www.google.com/wml) that searches only sites that are formatted in WML. You can even access a WML version of Froogle, Google’s shopping comparison service (http://wml.froogle.com).
Log In to Yahoo!
Yahoo! offers an excellent version of its site for handhelds at http://wap.oa.yahoo.com. This WML version of the site allows you to log in with your regular Yahoo! ID and use a good deal of their services from WAP browser. You can view your stock portfolios, view sports scores, get weather reports, read the news, and even play several WAP-based games.
Stay in the Game with ESPN
ESPN has a great version of their site available to XHTML browsers at http://pocket.espn.go.com/. The front page is updated with the latest story from the regular version of their page. Each sport’s main page reflects the desktop version of its page as well. You can get news, standings, statistics, and results from a variety of sports that look excellent on your BlackBerry device.
Control the Universe with pdaPortal
pdaPortal (http://pdaportal.com) is just what the name implies—a customizable portal that you can access from your BlackBerry. You can access a ton of information, including RSS feeds in a nice format, a search engine, and even a random site. Probably the best feature of pdaPortal is its link library of well over 600 sites formatted for handhelds, organized by category. pdaPortal keeps track of hits to the various links it has posted on its site so it can organize its links by popularity.
Go Mobile at BlackBerry.com
BlackBerry’s version of a mobile portal (http://mobile.blackberry.com) is eye-catching; if you haven’t seen it before, check it out. It is formatted with SVG (or scalable vector graphics) using the tools from Plasmic. Its look and feel resembles that of a Macromedia Flash application on your computer’s browser. It provides links to various sites that are very usable on the BlackBerry. It also provides links to games and ringtones to download.
Geek Out with Slashdot
Every geek’s favorite news site has a version of its site available for handheld browsers. Point to http://slashdot.org/palm to access it. The problem with accessing the main version of Slashdot on your device is all the comments to each article make the site very large to pull over a GPRS network connection. The handheld version of the site contains no comments (although you can choose to view the top five comments for each article), no images, and no sidebars.
Shop at Amazon.com
You can easily access Amazon.com from your BlackBerry. You can browser and buy items and view the status of orders you’ve made whether you ordered the item on the desktop version of the site or the handheld version. If you’re a heavy Amazon.com user, you may want to try the ShopEdge third-party application for a streamlined interface in a native BlackBerry application .
Control Your Home
If you’re into serious geekery, the Misterhouse home automation program (http://www.misterhouse.net) has a built-in WML interface that you can use to control your home from anywhere. Control your lighting, turn on your sprinklers, detect motion in your driveway—it’s amazing all the cool things you can do with this open source software. Throw your BlackBerry Browser into the mix, and you can do all these things from anywhere you have cell coverage.
Additional Sites
There are countless other useful sites to view from your BlackBerry with more and more popping up every day. a Table lists some of the noteworthy ones.
|
Url |
|
|---|---|
Related Posts :
Verizon Droid X scavenger hunt begins; win one out of 21
Jul 8th

Twenty-one Droid X devices have been scattered throughout the U.S. by Verizon and Motorola. Typical of a scavenger hunt, the early clues are cryptic, and will eventually resolve to actual GPS locations.
Right now, it’s clear there’s one in Tennessee and near the Mall of America (Bloomington, MN). There are a bunch of other relatively value clues as well, including the fact that there’s one in San Francisco close to (arguably) the “crookedest street in the world.”
The contest runs through July 15th (day of launch) at 11:59:59 EDT. To be clear, if you read the rules, you’re not searching for a phone, but a certificate for a free phone.
Also, the final clue is a set of GPS coordinates, as we said. If no one grabs the prize within 4 hours of the posting, that prize will be randomly awarded to someone in the vicinity. So you could win if you just happen to be standing around in the right location.
Here are the full rules:
OFFICIAL RULES. NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. A Purchase Will Not Increase Your Chances of Winning.1. Sweepstakes Period: The Verizon Wireless Droid Scavener Hunt (the “Promotion”) begins 12:00:01 Eastern Time (“ET”) on July 7, 2010 and ends 11:59:59 ET on July 15, 2010 (the “Promotion Period”).
2. Eligibility: Open to legal residents of the 48 Contiguous United States and the District of Columbia, 18 years of age and older as of July 7, 2010. Employees of Verizon Wireless (the “Sponsor”), McGarry Bowen, Marketing Werks, Don Jagoda Associates, Inc., their respective parents, subsidiaries, divisions, affiliates, suppliers, distributors and advertising, promotional and judging agencies (collectively “Sponsor and its Parties”) and the immediate family members (spouses, parents, children, and siblings and their spouses) and household members of each, are not eligible to participate or win.
3. How to Participate in the Promotion and Claim a Prize: During the Promotion Period, there will be a Scavenger Hunt, where 21 Certificates for a free Droid Phone will be hidden across the country. Clues as to where the 21 Droid Certificates (“Certificates”) will be hidden will be tweeted on a regular basis from @DroidLanding. To view the tweets, visit http://www.twitter.com/droidlanding. Dates and times of Certificate placement will vary, but the final clue of each GPS location for each Certificate will be tweeted at the time it is hidden. Participants will have 4 hours from the time of the posting of the final clue to find the Certificate and once it is found, follow the instructions on the Certificate to claim their prizes, subject to verification. In the event two (2) or more participants find a Certificate at the exact same time, Sponsor representative will conduct a random drawing from among all those that found the Certificate to determine the winner. Prizes unclaimed within 4 hours from the time of the posting of the final clue will be randomly awarded (in Sponsor representative’s sole discretion) to an eligible person in the vicinity of the hidden Certificate. By participating, you understand, and will agree in writing, that if you find a Certificate or are randomly awarded an unclaimed prize, Sponsor’s representatives will be on site to videotape and/or photograph and record the event, in their sole discretion. Therefore, if you find a Certificate, you hereby grant the Sponsor, its affiliates, subsidiaries, assigns, licensees, and legal representatives the irrevocable, perpetual, worldwide right to use, reproduce, edit, market, store, distribute, have distributed, reproduce, re-arrange, change (including blurring any trademarked items on clothing), add to or delete from, translate, adapt, or otherwise revise and/or alter the video footage, photographs, or material developed (“Footage”), publicly and privately display, communicate, publicly and privately perform, transmit, have transmitted, create derivative works based upon, and promote the Footage, for editorial, commercial or promotional purposes, in their sole discretion.
Sponsor and its Parties reserve the right at their sole discretion to disqualify any individual that acts in an unsportsmanlike or disruptive manner, or with intent to annoy, abuse, threaten or harass any other person. Any attempt by any person to deliberately undermine the legitimate operation of the Promotion may be a violation of criminal and civil law, and, should such an attempt be made, Sponsor reserves the right to seek damages from any such person to the fullest extent permitted by law.
Sponsor and its Parties and their respective officers, directors, shareholders, employees and agents, and any and all Internet servers and access provider(s) (collectively, the “Releasees”) are not responsible for: any incorrect or inaccurate information; human error; technical malfunctions; failures, omission, interruption, deletion, or defect of any telephone network, computer online or e-mail systems, computer equipment, servers, providers, or software, including any injury or damage to participant’s or any other person’s computer relating to or resulting from participation or inability to participate in this Promotion; inability to retrieve any clues from Twitter; theft, tampering, destruction, or unauthorized access to, or alteration of clues; data processing that is processed late or incorrectly or is incomplete or lost due to telephone, computer or electronic malfunction or traffic congestion on telephone lines or the Internet or any website; or for any other errors or problems of any kind relating to or in connection with the Promotion, whether computer, network, technical, printing, typographical, human or otherwise or any combination thereof, including, without limitation, any errors or problems which may occur in connection with the administration of the Promotion, the Scavenger Hunt clues or in any Promotion-related materials. Material(s) provided by Sponsor on Twitter are only to be used solely for the purposes of this Promotion and cannot be used for any other purpose or use. By entering the Promotion, entrants affirm that they have read and accepted these Official Rules.
4. Prizes and Approximate Retail Value (“ARV”): Prizes (21): A Verizon Wireless Droid Phone ARV $569.99 each. Service not included with phone. The total ARV of all prizes to be awarded in the Promotion is $11,969.79. Limit one (1) prize per person/household.
5. General Rules: No substitution or transfer of prize permitted except at the sole discretion of the Sponsor who reserves the right to substitute a prize of equal or greater value in the event the prize is unavailable. All applicable federal, state and local taxes are the sole responsibility of winner. Prize is awarded “as is” with no warranty or guarantee, either express or implied by Sponsor. By participating in the Promotion, participants agree to be bound by these Official Rules and the decisions of the Sponsor. The Sponsor reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to cancel, modify or suspend the Promotion if it is not capable of running as planned, including, but not limited to, infection by computer virus, tampering, unauthorized intervention, fraud, technical failures (where clues could not be posted) or any other problems beyond the control of the Sponsor (including cancellation of Scavenger Hunt) and award the applicable prizes that were claimed/awarded prior to cancellation and the remainder of prizes will go un-awarded. Prize winners and all entrants, as a condition of participation in the Promotion, agree to release and hold harmless Sponsor and its Parties and each of their respective affiliates, officers, directors, agents, and employees will have no liability or responsibility for any claim arising in connection with participation in the Promotion or any prize awarded. Prize winners assume all liability for any injury or damage caused, or claimed to be caused, by participation in the Promotion, the receipt, ownership or use of prize awarded or any typographical or other error in these Official Rules or the announcement of offering of the prizes. Void where prohibited and subject to all federal, state and local laws. Acceptance of prize constitutes permission to use the winner’s name and likeness for promotional purposes without further compensation except where prohibited by law. Sponsor is not responsible for any typographical or other error in the tweeting of the Promotion materials or the offering or announcement of the prizes. As a condition of participating in the Promotion, participant agrees that: 1) under no circumstance will participant be permitted to obtain awards for, and hereby waives all rights to, punitive, incidental, consequential or any other damages, other than for out-of-pocket expenses; 2) all causes of action arising out of or connected with the Promotion or the prize awarded, shall be resolved individually, without resort to any form of class action; and 3) any and all claims, judgments, and award shall be limited to actual out-of-pocket costs incurred, but in no event attorneys’ fees. You hereby represent and warrant that you have read these Official Rules and are fully familiar with its contents.
6. Winners List: For a list of winners, available from July 20, 2010 to August 20, 2010, and for the official rules visit www.droiddoes.com.
7. Sponsor: Verizon Wireless, One Verizon Way, Basking Ridge, NJ 07960.



