Android-x86 developments and issues

Puppy related raves and general interest that doesn't fit anywhere else
Message
Author
gcmartin

#81 Post by gcmartin »

@L18L, please accept this as help.

MIT has a free Android development tool which make it easy for anyone to take a step to create an Android app. Its very easy to use.

Take a look at it and you'll see something (or a lot) of what Android is. Yes, a Linux foundation, but, its been specialized for the experiences we see. Most of it is aimed at touch (via some means).

On a different note and on a different thread, the Canonical (Ubuntu) direction is toward a desktop touch experience using a more traditional version of LInux. (We'll have to wait until early 2014 to see what they provide for us.)

And, even Google ChromeOS "Touch" is a little different even though all of these use a LInux base.

Android-x86 intends to allow us to use a desktop to get "acquainted" with Android. Its desktop tries to make that experience obvious even though some functionality is not present.

Hope this helps

User avatar
L18L
Posts: 3479
Joined: Sat 19 Jun 2010, 18:56
Location: www.eussenheim.de/

#82 Post by L18L »

accepted

gcmartin

#83 Post by gcmartin »

@Jpeps comments on Android development technique in another thread.

Webviews Yes! Fragments Yes! All contained within each single Activity Yes!

Few developers see what you see. And, as Android grows, and task management evolves, we are on the doorstep of a whole new class of applications running across platforms. And as each Activity is self contained, security management will change as this minimizes local exposure(s).

This is a rather provocative feature. I wonder how long before and more important, "will" everyone catch on in development?

Thanks for that observation of a revolutionary aspect of Android development.

Additionally, reading between the lines you can see some of what Android 4.4 positions for any developers to bring to the table Respectively, ALL development tools must be upgraded to account for the change in development direction that is offered. Although, I know the powers are well intentioned in tool development, I'm guessing it could be as much as a year before some actually get it right.

jpeps
Posts: 3179
Joined: Sat 31 May 2008, 19:00

#84 Post by jpeps »

Strange that printing and sharing files to the cloud is being listed as "new". The WSJ app shares articles to 20 places, including both installed apps and the cloud. The app also knows my printer apps, so lists both Cloud Print and Easy Print. This already is standard procedure.
I'm guessing it could be as much as a year before some actually get it right.
:) Not when money is involved...more like a week, with an automatic update.

gcmartin

Android 4.4 focuses a direction in a delicate and quiet way

#85 Post by gcmartin »

Money, I agree. But, if they dont see the path for generating an Activity in the new pathing provided by Google; namely fragments and Webview, then, they will go on building incorrectly. And, only those who see it will take advantage of the pathing as it does impact both system demand reductions while increasing functionality to the Activity servicing the user; not to mention the portability that comes with this.

An application in Android development language is an Activity. Within the Activity is resources which are structured to accomplish things in the Activity. Fragments are the action pieces of the Activity and Webviews are features that fragments can use in service provisioning.

All of this is occurring as Google itself is "evolving" the development tools, approaches, and its own architectural changes in Android as it tweaks and moves to refinement toward some semblance of a singularity.

Its like watching a kaleidoscope as hardware casing changes with buttons missing-moved, along with all of this stuff. etc.

But, I have to admit one important thing which is NOT being addressed in the press so much; look what they did to the price of things. This is a "major" change as everyone else was getting upwards of $700 for a high-end device. I wonder if they did it for the public or if they did it for developers. Either way, this is a quiet, significant, shot over the bow.

Edited: Paragraph on an Activity in Android world.
Last edited by gcmartin on Sun 03 Nov 2013, 06:08, edited 1 time in total.

jpeps
Posts: 3179
Joined: Sat 31 May 2008, 19:00

Re: Android 4.4 focuses a direction in a delicate and quiet way

#86 Post by jpeps »

gcmartin wrote:
But, I have to admit one important thing which is NOT being addressed in the press so much; look what they did to the price of things. This is a "major" change as everyone else was getting upwards of $700 for a high-end device. I wonder if they did it for the public or if they did it for developers. Either way, this is a quiet, significant, shot over the bow.
Basic economy of scale. Prices have to keep coming down to get a smartphone into the hands of everyone on the planet. This has been going on in technology for a long time now...corporations (or private startups) losing money every quarter to gain market share. With market share, you can interest advertisers, which is where the real money is.
Why High-End Smartphones Do Not Lead the Southeast Asia Market

"The smartphone is now slowly becoming a necessity for consumers, and research firm GfK thinks that Southeast Asia is the driver of its global growth. In terms of the smartphone market, we have seen Apple and Samsung smartphones take the lead and battle against each other in Southeast Asia for quite some time. But it looks like this growth does not belong to Apple or Samsung, anymore.Why is that so? Michael Morgan, analyst at ABI Research says in an interview with Bloomberg, that “the days of great growth in the high end of the market are gone.

gcmartin

#87 Post by gcmartin »

Android 4.4 is has some sharp differences in both architecture and Activity (applications) operations. There are several way to look at the Nexus 5 in what they are doing (or trying to do).

Here one
The speed overall base systems operation thru under the cover changes in the OS, They throw in a superior processor but, they do not provide more RAM. On the Nexus, they do NOT give you SIM expansion ability, either.

This appears to be an artificial and subtle steering to developers as they progress Andoid along. I read this is as approach by them to intentionally "slow" development progress as they continue to try to morph Android into its next level. This could mean that this release is a stepping stone as they attempt to architecturally structure things into the corral as they see it.

At CES, next year, we may see their vision and a new platform with a new Android architecture and a new platform with increased RAM (Samsung may have re-announce this with a 3GB Note 3 while Google has "locked" developers in, currently, at 2GB).

The "shot over the bow" reference in an earlier post is showing up in current commercials and they are touting the "speech" component of the new system. ... subtlely.
Last edited by gcmartin on Mon 04 Nov 2013, 04:47, edited 1 time in total.

gcmartin

#88 Post by gcmartin »

On Android x86, I wonder if there will be an Intel/AMD board for vendors that will have a Bluetooth, Accelerometer and a GPS in an All-in-One Touch unit(s) before Christmas.

And, not having a Surface-Pro (you know, the x86 models), is that hardware available to snake in an Android-x86?

This would make for some interesting opportunity in the Android-x86 project and the apps which would be created.

jpeps
Posts: 3179
Joined: Sat 31 May 2008, 19:00

#89 Post by jpeps »

gcmartin wrote:
The speed overall base systems operation thru under the cover changes in the OS, They throw in a superior processor but, they do not provide more RAM. On the Nexus, they do NOT give you SIM expansion ability, either.

This appears to be an artificial and subtle steering to developers as they progress Andoid along.
The current Nexus 7 has twice the RAM and a simm card (missing in the older version).

Same scenario for my LG smartphone. Latest version has twice the RAM, and far more internal memory. Also, much faster CPU & better battery efficiency.

Android manages your RAM in the background..distributing it to base apps when resources become scarce. I never had a RAM issue running videos, unlike my Linux system with the same amount.

gcmartin

#90 Post by gcmartin »

jpeps wrote: ... The current Nexus 7 ...
I probably should have said Nexus 5. In mentioning RAM, I was talking about the "processor" RAM where the OS runs....not the RAM you order the system with.

You point out correctly that just because the family name may be Nexus, depending on what year and which of the Nexus family (5/7/10) the hardware capability will differ. But, to my knowledge, no Nexus platform comes with more that 2GB "processor" RAM. Even though the built-in nonvolatile RAM and the additional microSD cards that can be added, the 2GB imposes an subtle barrier. The SAMSUNG saw something when they designed 3GB "processor" RAM to support the OS and Apps for their Note3. Looking at the store's version of the Note3 is not anywhere near the 3GB ceiling. I'm currently in possession of a Note2

Hope this is a bit clearer.

User avatar
nubc
Posts: 2062
Joined: Tue 23 Jan 2007, 18:41
Location: USA

#91 Post by nubc »

At the risk of sounding retro, if Android-x86 wishes to be cross-platform, and presumably more versatile and multipurpose, then perhaps developers could improve its network support, in particular, for USB-to-RJ45 adapters. There shouldn't be any limitation on connectivity, because a device without internet amounts to nothing.

While this previous post by me primarily concerned Android 4.1 standard, I was, at the time, simultaneously testing my eeePC for USB-to-RJ45 adapter connectivity in Android-x86, with similar negative results. In fact, both netbooks refused to even boot when connected this way. I just now tested the most promising adapter (ZyXEL Prestige 401a) with the eeePC, and detection lasted over 5 minutes with no success (and no boot). According to the video (see above link), there is supposed to be an entry in Settings > Network > More, named Ethernet, which I have never observed in Android 4.x.
I tested 3 different USB-to-RJ45 adapters manufactured by Linksys, as well as ZyXEL Prestige 401a and Farallon NetLINE 10/100 PN796. None worked on Android netbooks. [But hurray, while I was fumbling through my stuff, I found my SD card reader, with driver/install CD.]
Last edited by nubc on Fri 08 Nov 2013, 15:21, edited 12 times in total.

jpeps
Posts: 3179
Joined: Sat 31 May 2008, 19:00

#92 Post by jpeps »

gcmartin wrote:
jpeps wrote: ... The current Nexus 7 ...
I probably should have said Nexus 5. In mentioning RAM, I was talking about the "processor" RAM where the OS runs....not the RAM you order the system with.
Hope this is a bit clearer.
Please clarify "processor RAM." There's CPU cache, but that's only 2M.
The Samsung Note 3 has 3 gigs of RAM. Apparently the Samsung Galaxy S5 will be moving to 4 gigs.

One limitation might be battery time, adversely affected by the more junk you have running in the background.
nubc wrote:perhaps developers could improve its network support, in particular, for USB-to-RJ45 adapters.
"External usb drive and sdcard are auto mounted to /mnt/USB on plugging"
http://www.webupd8.org/2012/02/android- ... d-ice.html

"Network Cable(Cat5): If you are connected to internet via your network port via cat5 cable, before you start your virtual Android, you need to go to Setting -> Network to Enable your network Adapter:"
http://software.intel.com/en-us/blogs/2 ... virtualbox

hardware/OS incompatibility?

User avatar
nubc
Posts: 2062
Joined: Tue 23 Jan 2007, 18:41
Location: USA

#93 Post by nubc »

Android on Intel Architecture: Ethernet Support in Android-IA
https://01.org/android-ia/blogs/mkgumbe ... android-ia

Dive into Android networking: adding ethernet connectivity [pdf file]
http://elinux.org/images/9/98/Dive_Into ... tivity.pdf

Android Tablet PC how to connect networks, wired Internet access steps
http://www.spinchat.com/hp/ibuycheappc/blog/id/399213

USB to Ethernet dongle (from DealExtreme) - WORKS! [xda developers forum]
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthr ... ?t=1224660

USB RJ45 Wired Internet Adapter for Android Tablets, by BobjGear
https://sites.google.com/site/bobjgear/ ... et-Adapter
review: BobjGear USB-RJ45 adapter
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L4sCeTxcfyo

[DRIVER PACK] USB to Ethernet driver pack for Honeycomb 3.2 [xda developers forum]
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthr ... ?t=1274656

Step by step to enable LAN access for Motorola XOOM
http://discuz-android.blogspot.fr/2011/ ... s-for.html

Super-Fast Driverless Android Ethernet Adapter USB TO RJ45 FAST 125Mbps [eBay listing]
http://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/android_ninja/m.html
video guide
http://www.youtube.com/v/zAIE9ZSHbkQ

Better Terminal Emulator Magic (free with registration)
http://mall.soc.io/apps/Better+Terminal+Emulator+Magic

User avatar
nubc
Posts: 2062
Joined: Tue 23 Jan 2007, 18:41
Location: USA

#94 Post by nubc »

This morning I acquired Adobe Reader for my EeePC through Android-x86 app "Play Store" and was impressed how easy it was. The Craig netbook [running Android Jelly Bean -standard, not -x86] won't download from Google Play Store, so I believe I have to root the device to do anything with it. I could root it, it would be a learning experience. Or I could take a chance and install Android-x86. Would it be just a simple matter of formatting the internal drive and installing Android-x86, or is this forbidden-root-access more persistent and/or protected? I mean, at some point, after formatting, will I gain access to BIOS, and be able to use root account and su? I know ethernet support would be better on Android-x86, although this capability is reportedly kinda hobbled and incomplete. Can someone suggest a version of Android-x86 that would be closest to the Craig CLP285 netbook, or perhaps the latest generic version would be best. Any opinions or recommendations?

Craig tablet CMP741e
7 Inch Digital Capacitance Touch Screen (800 x 480, 16:9)
Processing Speed 1.3 Ghz (Sun4i, Allwinner A10) Stock is clocked at 1Ghz /w Fantasy governor, you can overclock to 1.15Ghz max out the box
Android 4.0.3, Adobe flash 11.1 pre installed
Front Facing Camera (0.3 Megapixel)
1GB DDR3 Ram
802.11 b/g/n wireless connectivity
Multi Point Touch Screen
3D Gaming Accelerator (Mali 400)
USB OTG connectivity (You can use your keyboard, mouse or any compatible peripheral with the supplied dongle connected to the device)
Rechargeable Battery (6 Hours continuous use)
Built in speaker and Microphone
Micro SD Card slot ( Support up to 32GB )
Stereo Headphone Jack

Craig netbook CLP285
WONDERMEDIA WM8850 (VIA)
1.5 GHz ARM Cortex-A9 core processor
ARM Mali-400 3D graphics processor
Multi-standard 1080p video decoding engine
H.264 video encoding
4GB internal storage
1GB DDR3/LPDDR2 DRAM interface
Multiple video interface including HDMI, LVDS and DVO
Flexible networking and peripheral interface
Advanced hardware security engine
Android 4.1 Support

WM8850 Root Burner - How to root the WM8850 without firmware update
http://nanospic.ro/?p=327

Rooting the Craig 741e tablet
http://www.androidtablets.net/forum/cra ... 0-cpu.html

How to Root and Install Google Apps on the Craig CMP741D Android Tablet
http://theunlockr.com/2012/10/29/how-to ... aig-cmp741

How To Set Up ADB/USB Drivers for Android Devices (Updated 12/13/11)
http://theunlockr.com/2009/10/06/how-to ... d-devices/

Add SSH server to your Android tablet (root access not required)
http://www.techrepublic.com/blog/tablet ... id-tablet/
Last edited by nubc on Fri 15 Nov 2013, 15:44, edited 16 times in total.

gcmartin

#95 Post by gcmartin »

Here another Android implementation that I just crossed: Android Intel Architecture. It infers that it addresses wired internet. It appears to be aimed at newer systems versus older ones. Thus Android-x86 is probably the only choice for older PCs. But, I haven't tested, as of yet. But, it does suggest that it understands "wired ethernet". Not sure if this means via Motherboard or via dongle.

When I booted Android-x86 on my Lappie, I did not test either connectivity (or browser) nor Google-Play access. If it works like other Androids, when at the Google Play store the Adobe package WILL install if it sees a compatible device. Otherwise, it will NOT install.

I am not sure about the "root" concept you mentioned in Android-x86. I'm not at all understanding of what that means with this platform.

User avatar
nubc
Posts: 2062
Joined: Tue 23 Jan 2007, 18:41
Location: USA

#96 Post by nubc »

Mobile Tech News: Android Pushes Past 80% Market Share
http://www.mobiletechnews.com/info/2013 ... 03656.html

456M Phones Sold In Q3, 55% Of Them Smartphones; Android At 82% Share, Samsung A Flat Leader
http://techcrunch.com/2013/11/14/gartne ... at-leader/

CyanogenMod publishes new Installer app on Google Play
http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2013/11/ ... ogle-play/
"Cyanogen Inc., the newly created company that produces the popular custom Android ROM CyanogenMod, published a new app called CyanogenMod Installer which will unlock the user’s boot loader, root their device, and flash CyanogenMod to their phone with minimal extra effort. The free app is available over Google Play, and when it's paired with equally free desktop software, this can replace a phone's operating system with Cyanogen Inc.'s highly customizable version of Android."
Last edited by nubc on Fri 15 Nov 2013, 06:17, edited 2 times in total.

User avatar
nubc
Posts: 2062
Joined: Tue 23 Jan 2007, 18:41
Location: USA

#97 Post by nubc »

I can't play any YouTube videos, get an error message. One video played but there was no sound. Did Flash Player ever work in Android-x86 4.0 r1?

Here I am, a week later. This morning the audio (only) worked on streamed YouTube videos, but there was no video except for a brief flash at the beginning of one of the vids.
Last edited by nubc on Wed 20 Nov 2013, 16:20, edited 2 times in total.

gcmartin

#98 Post by gcmartin »

Advance reports says to expect a $price tumble starting yesterday thru New Year for Android devices. Anyone who wants one for test/evaluation/development should look forward to this.

User avatar
L18L
Posts: 3479
Joined: Sat 19 Jun 2010, 18:56
Location: www.eussenheim.de/

Android-x86 developments and issues

#99 Post by L18L »

nubc wrote:... Android-x86 4.0 r1?
Sorry,
why care about 4.01 r1?
Android-x86's recent version is 4.3


----------------------
edit

And I can't play any YouTube videos, get no error message, no sound.

User avatar
nubc
Posts: 2062
Joined: Tue 23 Jan 2007, 18:41
Location: USA

Re: Android-x86 developments and issues

#100 Post by nubc »

L18L wrote:
nubc wrote:... Android-x86 4.0 r1?
Sorry,
why care about 4.01 r1?
Android-x86's recent version is 4.3
.
Because "su" is allowed in version 4.0, but not allowed in 4.3.

Post Reply