Hi all,
I have a concept for a single update application that would be driven from the AndroidSPIN release database so all developers could use it for ROM, Themes, Applications and anything releases to devices.
If you wouldn't mind taking a couple of minutes to read this post, I would greatly appreciate it.
http://www.androidspin.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=260&t=226
I'd really love to get a group together to collaborate and either help design this and/or write an application and back end to do it.
Let me know what you think.
Thanks
Simon
Sounds like an awesome idea, I'd love to help any way I can, but I dont fit in any of the needed positions for the post. Looking forward to see what develops though
Fantastic idea!
I only ever use XDA so god knows what I'm missing out on elsewhere and to be honest after searching the word android on google and trawling through one crap site after another becomes tiresome so hence the 'XDA only' policy.
Sorry I can't offer any programming skills but you have my support on this project whole heartedly, not that it counts for much I know buh MeH!
Hope you can get this off the ground.
As I mentioned to Simon already, I was thinking about building an update application for my ROM. I love the idea of having an on-phone ROM database, update capability, something that can easily be used by any developer in the community.
Some initial thoughts on functionality:
- Browse ROMs
- Download ROMs to SD Card
- Monitor specific ROMs for updates
- Monitor currently running ROM for updates
I'm willing to lend a hand on the Android side of things, but this will be a large undertaking and we will also need some people to contribute to the UI, server side of things, etc.
I do iPhone UI design for applications now (I don't have an iPhone, but most of my contracts and clients are iPhone based), but let me know and I can whip up anything you guys need UI related.
Send me a PM and I can get the ball rolling on how the functionality can be laid out as well.
Even tho I know I wouldnt be able to help out with this. I know I would love to test this out if you needed it.
Its a great idea!!!
I know a teeny bit of Java, and I'm working on becoming an Android developer, so if anything needs doing on the Android side of things, I'm willing to contribute.
Although I may not know as much as some others, I'm definitely a fast learner. I have a few books on Android development I'm reading through right now.
michinohatoresu said:
I know a teeny bit of Java, and I'm working on becoming an Android developer, so if anything needs doing on the Android side of things, I'm willing to contribute.
Although I may not know as much as some others, I'm definitely a fast learner. I have a few books on Android development I'm reading through right now.
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Well, we can reuse a lot of code from Cyanogen updater.
akirah said:
Well, we can reuse a lot of code from Cyanogen updater.
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Well, of course.
If anything else needs doing, however, I volunteer what spare time I have.
akirah said:
Well, we can reuse a lot of code from Cyanogen updater.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Could be easily done, would require quite a lot of laborious work ripping out all the stuff you wouldn't need though.
I would take a look at this but unfortunately I have another Android project on at the moment which is taking all my development spare time.
@SimonNWalker What sort of backend having you got going? REST? SOAP?
Ups wrong theread
not that it matters (since i kept the source 100% open)....
you have my blessing to tear the cmupdater to shreds if it will give us a unified solution to all our ROM cravings
firefart has done a good job of keeping the code pretty clean so there shouldnt be too many issues with grabbing it
and the new code for the screenshots for themes could probably be used to the advantage of this project with ease
I'm not really interested in a rom updater, but a market replacement with an "upgrade all" feature (à la apt-get / yum) drawing from multiple repositories would be most exciting.
The Cyanogen updater could be used, it just needs some modifications. Stuff like sub-sections and update all
Would probably need a new method to keep track of the updates aswell, I don't think json would be sufficient for a lot of applications and updates. Unless somebody could make some kind of script to automate the process when it gets uploaded.
willmav5000 said:
Would probably need a new method to keep track of the updates aswell, I don't think json would be sufficient for a lot of applications and updates. Unless somebody could make some kind of script to automate the process when it gets uploaded.
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The only other method I would consider, besides JSON, is an advanced and well thought out web-based form that the developer is forced to complete upon uploading a ROM. This would place more burden on the server, but should be relatively easy to attach the provided ROM information to the rom database.
Think: Check boxes for firmware compatibilities, check boxes for device compatibilities, version number, change log, etc.
Maybe something a little like this?
Wow this would be/ is gonna be awsome!
I would suggest also that you can backup your sd card settings (and maybe also sms...) to an ftp server (or some other server you can install on your pc) from this app...
like (incremential) backup>partition>wipe>install update>boot>getbackupback
problem is to get the server adress back after wipe. maybe stored in web database and encrypted with phone imei number? or uploaded as google
whatever...
or just not wiping that single adress
just saying ^^
willmav5000 said:
Would probably need a new method to keep track of the updates aswell, I don't think json would be sufficient for a lot of applications and updates. Unless somebody could make some kind of script to automate the process when it gets uploaded.
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JSON is just a file format. The CM Updater works via a static JSON file that gets updated manually. The way I'd design this (which is what I asked a couple of posts back) is a dynamic web service (probably REST based) which delivered JSON dynamically. Wouldn't be too difficult at all.
As SimonWalker said he's using PHP + MySQL I'm guessing that's already being done.
@garok89: CM Updater is completely open-source therefore blessings are not needed to use the source. Really don't understand all the "credit" crap here on XDA.
senab said:
@garok89: CM Updater is completely open-source therefore blessings are not needed to use the source. Really don't understand all the "credit" crap here on XDA.
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I know it is open and I don't need to give my blessing for people to use the source. I did so because a lot of people don't feel comfortable using other peoples code without permission, regardless of whether or not its 100% open source.
And as for the 'credit crap'... I don't see you asking for your name to be removed from the 'about' section of the app
I am not asking for any credit
Anyway, lets not get off topic...
Guys, before this becomes Android Open Alliance, the sequel (you all remember how that went), I think we better set up a way to work together first and then toss in the speculative stuff later.
How about starting simple; set up a wave?
Hi everyone,
I apologize if if this is not the appropriate place to post this info, but I thought it would be of interest to some people here. You may have seen stories in the news recently about the privacy-monitoring extension for Android called TaintDroid that was developed by researchers at Penn State, Intel Labs, and Duke University. An excellent summary can be found on Ars Technica.
The reason I'm posting to this forum is that we are proud to have made our source code available last night. If you want to play around with the code, you can find it at the TaintDroid website (search "taintdroid appanalysis"). Along with links to the source code, you will find instructions for getting the code up and running on a Nexus One. We have also set up a Google Group for users who want to discuss anything related to the project.
Our only caveats are that we are merely researchers so 1) you use the code at your own risk, and 2) we do not have the resources to offer proper support. We hope that by releasing the code to the public a self-sustaining community of interested users will form.
We hope that you find our code interesting and useful. Happy hacking!
-landon
Thanks for releasing the code. Look forward to using it on an incredible rom soon.
http://appanalysis.org/tdro1d.html
I'm assuming that's the link. Couple of questions.
1.I see it's on 2.1 rom, does it work with 2.2? Especially as it uses the 2.6.32 kernel.
2.Since the Desire is basically a Nexus One with sense, has it been tested on that platform or with sense?
Thanks for releasing the source and instructions!
This is what Android needs, as Google is not taking good care of the privacy of it's users.
It's impossible to install apps now, because most of them want really wide rights, but you have no idea what they do with those rights.
TaintDroid at least gives a possibility to peek into what is being leaked.
Soon some of the app makers will start to encrypt their calls to try and and mask what they are leaking. If/when this happens, it should be a warning sign to users about that particular app.
Looking to see if anyone is willing to put together an app for this software. The company released the source code for anyone willing to build an android app.
Basically its a webcam monitoring software to view your cameras as a type of security system.
If I had any idea how to put it together I'd do it myself but I dont have the first clue of where to start. Ive got the source code though if anyones interested.
Looking to see if anyone is willing to put together an app for this software. The company released the source code for anyone willing to build an android app.
Basically its a webcam monitoring software to view your cameras as a type of security system.
If I had any idea how to put it together I'd do it myself but I dont have the first clue of where to start. Ive got the source code though if anyones interested.
Hi!
After only being a user for a long time, I've recently begun to develop for Android as well, and I think that I have identified quite a few niches that could use better apps. However, I've never collaborated on an Open Source project, and I'm really unsure what the written and unwritten rules of the subculture are. Could anyone point me in the direction of good resources to learn about them? I know I can probably find those through Google, but I wouldn't know if I'd end up on any site owned by Stallman or Shuttleworth and I'd rather be part of the mainstream, so to speak.
To indicate what kind of questions I'd like to have answered, without requiring anyone to answer them here: What level of expertise is required? Can I just join anyone and upload to their repository, relying on them to sort out the parts they want? When can or should I fork a project? When is it considered rude to take code snippets from someone? How sure can I be that the project's owner won't change the license and steal my code? How would those questions be answered if money is involved? Is it considered reasonable to make an Open Source application that people pay for in the Play Store? How would I handle contributions to such a project? What would be the best license to ensure that I both contribute to the Open Source movement and protect myself against people stealing code? (I. e. just forking it and slapping their name on it.) And many, many more - as I said, I'm really unsure how to start out with this.
Thanks very much in advance!
Regards,
David
Maybe I can help you on a few of those points. First off, feel free to fork anything you feel like, whenever you feel like something needs to change. Also feel free to push any changes you make back to the original project. The project owner can decide what to merge in. As for lisening, please note Im NOT A LAWYER, however, I think I can offer some general knowledge. If code is under a typical open source license, the code at that particular point in time is free to be viewed by anyone. A lot of open source licenses, though not all, are considered 'copy-left', in that any code DERIVED from the liscensed code also has to follow the same license (GPL comes to mind). This helps from people 'stealing' your code at a later point under a closed license. As for taking code snippets, it depends on the license of the code. If you grab a piece of code from a GPL codebase, whatever you're using that code in also has to be GPL licensed. You are in essence taking their code, and modified it. Learning more about different open source licenses might be something to look into, depending on how far you want to delve into this As for making people pay on Play store for open source projects, its certainly acceptable. A lot of people make money from open source software by prividing some form of 'support'. Whether thats tech support, or whether its compiling, packaging, and making it available (as you might do for an android app) you are providing some sort of service aside from the actual code that people will pay for. I've seen a few projects go this route. Hope this gives you more answers than it does questions! The OSS community I've found to be a pretty easy going group of people, so long as you follow a little common courtesy, and have a bit of common sense. Cheers!
Thanks a lot for your reply! It has certainly helped me to make my mind at ease - I know that Open Source people can often be _very_ friendly and open, but it seems like you really do not want to get on their bad side if you intend to be a developer. That's also why I especially worry about being rude, not about doing something illegal - the licenses themselves seem to be quite permissive.
Quick followup question on the money thing, though - is it accepted by Google if I offer a paid app in the Play Store and at the same time free on F-Droid? Or would I have to ask someone to compile and upload it there without my official participation? Because that would kinda be the ideal model for me - Open Source, free app on F-Droid and sideloaded, "lite" and paid versions in the Play Store. Something like that would be good to know before I actually begin thinking about deploying some app.