Android App: Eclipse vs Netbeans

Tar.Aldarion

Just looking at developing an android application. Google have a plugin for Eclipse that enables developers to create Android applications. Some other lads made an Android SDK plugin for Netbeans. Anybody have experience of these? I prefer using Netbeans...just wondering how good the unofficial plugin is if people have used it? Or how they compare to each other etc, documnetation etc.

ANother random question now that I'm here, anybody worked with the Twitter API? Can yu tell when a page has recieved a tweet or do yuu have to poll?


/googles

Atomic Pineapple

Tar.Aldarion wrote: »

Just looking at developing an android application. Google have a plugin for Eclipse that enables developers to create Android applications. Some other lads made an Android SDK plugin for Netbeans. Anybody have experience of these? I prefer using Netbeans...just wondering how good the unofficial plugin is if people have used it? Or how they compare to each other etc, documnetation etc.

ANother random question now that I'm here, anybody worked with the Twitter API? Can yu tell when a page has recieved a tweet or do yuu have to poll?


/googles

The official Eclipse plug in is the way to go, the NetBeans plug in is still very buggy and doesn't come with the extra tools that come along with the official plug in.

The plug in for Eclipse is excellent, very powerful and of great benefit, I had looked at the NetBeans one but it doesn't cut it compared to the Eclipse plug in.

Dr.Silly

Tar.Aldarion wrote: »

ANother random question now that I'm here, anybody worked with the Twitter API? Can yu tell when a page has recieved a tweet or do yuu have to poll?


/googles

Hi Tar,

As far as I'm aware it's not a poll.
There is a twitter widget which asp.net dropthings has developed that looks good, and you can get the code from there.

Example of twitter loading here.
http://dropthings.omaralzabir.com/

I've attached the .js and .cs code.

Cheers

Ludo

Can't give an opinion on the NetBeans Android plugins as I haven't used it. But I installed the Eclipse one last week and it was a breeze. Had an app running on the emulator within minutes with no problems at all.

Disclaimer: I prefer Eclipse anyway as I use it all day at work (have been using it at works pretty much since it started). Only used NetBeans a few times out of curiosity.

Tar.Aldarion

Thanks guys, your answers were all fantastic

Atomic Pineapple

Tar.Aldarion wrote: »

Thanks guys, your answers were all fantastic

But who's was the best and does the winner get a prize?

Keep me up to date on how your getting on with Android, I'd like to keep in touch with other Irish Android developers.

Tar.Aldarion

draffodx wrote: »

But who's was the best and does the winner get a prize?

Keep me up to date on how your getting on with Android, I'd like to keep in touch with other Irish Android developers.

This is just a masters project but sure ^^


I'll be at you for help and tips :-p

Atomic Pineapple

I done my 4th year project on a Location based Application on Android.

It wouldn't be anywhere near masters level stuff but you can have a look at what I done here - http://www.donalrafferty.com

Fire away with any questions you have, I probably wont be able to answer most of them, I'm still learning loads about it myself at the minute.

Would love to set up an Irish developers group to see if there is much interest in Android here, from reading articles it seems its growth is going to be pretty impressive over the next 3 years.

Tar.Aldarion

Well there are 8 of us on a project and the app is a small part so it's gonna be some simple thing. I'll have a look at your site now cool. I'm sure it will be an up and coming area anyway!

The app has to be location based as well. The idea is that when you see a bus you click send or whatever, (you will have your normal route already entered in options) and your location and whatever other parameters needed should be sent. These will all feed to a map and hopefully give a real time location of buses as opposed to just the printed timetable. Then a user should have the ability to also request when their next bus will be from us and so on. Might be fun...never made a phone app etc.

Atomic Pineapple

Sounds like a great idea, feel free to send me on any apk's for testing

Tar.Aldarion

I see you read the hello android bok when making yoour app :pac:


Did you ever have a problem ceatign a new project? I installed the ADT plugin and pointed my path to the SDK but there are no build options when creating a new project so I can't make one


/googling

Atomic Pineapple

Tar.Aldarion wrote: »

I see you read the hello android bok when making yoour app :pac:


Did you ever have a problem ceatign a new project? I installed the ADT plugin and pointed my path to the SDK but there are no build options when creating a new project so I can't make one


/googling

Yeh I started with Hello Android, then moved to Professional Android Development and now I use Wireless Application Development on Android by Shane Condor.

Have you added the Android update to the eclipse software updates section, that might solve the problem, I remember having to download some additional bits to get it working

Tar.Aldarion

Cheers I'll keep at it, randomly downloading things and such

Atomic Pineapple

Tar.Aldarion wrote: »

Cheers I'll keep at it, randomly downloading things and such

Do you go to file>new>other and in the new screen that pops up there is no Android options?

Ludo

If you are having trouble setting up the eclipse android environment, I find this tool very handy:

http://www.poweredbypulse.com/

It is a little app which manages your eclipse installation. Launch it and choose what version of eclipse to use and what extras to get (includes Android as an option). It then downloads everything and sets it all up so you can run it without any bother.

Tar.Aldarion

Thanks guys, I just reinstalled the same things last night and it worked...I'm at hello world, very exciting

Tar.Aldarion

Hi, I'm trying to run this code and I'm getting an error, it says there are multiple annotations for linear layout...but I need one for vertical and horizontal layouts for the android?

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<LinearLayout
xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android"
android:background="@color/background"
android:layout_height="fill_parent"
android:layout_width="fill_parent"
android:padding="30dip"
android:orientation="horizontal">
<LinearLayout
android:orientation="vertical"
android:layout_height="wrap_content"
android:layout_width="fill_parent"
android:layout_gravity="center">
<TextView
android:text="@string/main_title"
android:layout_height="wrap_content"
android:layout_width="wrap_content"
android:layout_gravity="center"
android:layout_marginBottom="25dip"
android:textSize="24.5sp" />
<Button
android:id="@+id/continue_button"
android:layout_width="fill_parent"
android:layout_height="wrap_content"
android:text="@string/continue_label" />
<Button
android:id="@+id/new_button"
android:layout_width="fill_parent"
android:layout_height="wrap_content"
android:text="@string/new_game_label" />
<Button
android:id="@+id/about_button"
android:layout_width="fill_parent"
android:layout_height="wrap_content"
android:text="@string/about_label" />
<Button
android:id="@+id/exit_button"
android:layout_width="fill_parent"
android:layout_height="wrap_content"
android:text="@string/exit_label" />
</LinearLayout>
</LinearLayout>

Tar.Aldarion

Nevermind...I just kept emptying the file and pasting the code back in and it worked... :S

Atomic Pineapple

It shouldn't have worked!

For a landscape layout you have to create a new folder in the res directory called layout-land.

In here you mirror your xml file from the layout folder so I presume its the main.xml file your working with, so you put a main.xml file in the new layout-land folder and create your landscape structure here.

Your app will then automatically switch to this view when the device is on its side.

Google droiddraw as well if you haven't already, its handy for creating UI elements and it then gives you the xml code you need

Tar.Aldarion

Oh thanks for that, will look it up!

On it's side it worked but all of it wasn't on the screen so I made the layout-land one. (:

jimmycrackcorm

just out of interest , there is another nice development environment for android and iPhone called titanium See: http://www.appcelerator.com/

I've downloaded it but haven't yet tried to develop anything but it should in theory allow you to develop an app for both iPhone and android.

Atomic Pineapple

Tar.Aldarion wrote: »

Oh thanks for that, will look it up!

On it's side it worked but all of it wasn't on the screen so I made the layout-land one. (:

Yeh it will use the normal xml file for both portrait and landscape if you dont have a layout-land folder that contains the rejigged UI for landscape

Tar.Aldarion

Thanks guys, getting some great help!

Atomic Pineapple

Whatever you do dont aim for HTC devices, there current version of there sense overlay on Android is a mess, with Android functionality broken all over the place and annoying little bugs that are really detracting from my current Android app.

Zero developer support from them too!

Everything runs fine on vanilla Android

/rant

Tar.Aldarion

Thanks dude...I made the sudoku game!