Command-line to launch Android emulator.

Assuming Android SDK has been successfully installed and AVD of your target android version was created. For Window 7 user, the install path is likely at "c:\Program Files\Android\android-sdk\tools\". If you have problems on above step, please refer to Android developer site or email me. The command line to launch your emulator, for example IceCream.

c:\>"C:\Program Files\Android\android-sdk\tools\emulator.exe" -avd IceCream

Get Ready for Android App Development

Being excited about mobile application and open source platform? Apple or Android? Personally I like both platforms but more lean to Android as I don't have any "expensive" Apple computer. Would be nice if I could get a sponsor. So Android App is my target for contributing to the community.

To get ready for your Android App development, you need the following stuff.

1. JDK, any version since1.6.x or later and can be downloaded from here.
2. Android SDK, and it can be downloaded from here.
3. Eclipse IDE (recommended but not necessary), preferable to download Java EE Developer version. 
4. Download and install Android Development Tools (ADT) plug-in for Eclipse.
5. Add Android platforms to development environment.
• From Eclipse, go to Window -> Android SDK and AVD Manager.
• On Windows, double click the SDK Manager.exe file at the root fo the Android SDK directory.
• On Mac or Linux, open a terminal and navigate to the tools/ directory in the Android SDK, then execute command: android

Now, you should be ready to get your hands wet on your first Android App development, Hello Word, for example. :)

For more information, you can always go to Android official home site for developers.

Convert Latitude and Longitude to android.maps.GeoPoint

Use the following code snippets

 
GeoPoint point = new GeoPoint((int)(latitude * 1e6), (int)(longitude * 1e6));
 

Obtain Android Google Maps SDK Debug Certificate

For developing your Google Maps application for android, I would like to obtain a debug Google Maps SDK debug certificate before production release. Android.com provides a very thorough instruction for helping newbies and beginners. Here I just list the steps that I went through in my own development environment: Windows 7 32bit + JDK1.7.0. Hope it would help simplify your learning curve.


1. Locate your debug.keystore.
    By default, build tools create the debug keystore in the active AVD directory which varies by platform:

•     Windows Vista/7: c:\users\<user>\.android\debug.keystore

    For eclipse/ADT user, go to Windows -> Preferences -> Android -> Build for the full path of debug.keystore.

2. After the debug.keystore was located, use keytool utility to obtain the MD5 fingerprint of the debug certificate.

    Replace the below command with your JDK installation path and your actual user id

    "c:\program files\java\jdk1.7.0\bin\keytool" -v -list -alias androiddebugkey -keystore c:\users\<user>\.android\debug.keystore -storepass android -keypass android
    Note: only the MD5 fingerprint is recognized by Google. Other version, such as SHA1/256, is new since JDK 1.7, and cannot be used for registering Google Maps API.

3. Now, follow steps below to register your debug certificate with Google Maps Service

1. Go to http://code.google.com/android/maps-api-signup.html
2. If you don't have a Google account, use the link on the page to set one up. 
3. Read the Android Maps API Terms of Service carefully. If you agree to the terms, indicate so using the checkbox on the screen. 
4. Paste the MD5 certificate fingerprint of the certificate that you are registering into the appropriate form field. 
5. Click "Generate API Key" 

The server will handle your request, associating the fingerprint with your developer identity and generating a unique Maps API Key, and then will return a results page that gives you your Key string.

Android Historical Version Names

Android version history and its nick name.
1.5 Cupcake
1.6 Donut
2.0 Eclair
2.2 Froyo
2.3 Gingerbread
3.0 Honeycomb