Android application without programming knowledge, you can also [Episode-02] :: How to set up 'App Inventor'?

 

In the last episode I introduced you to a platform called App Inventor by which we can create apps for Android phones without any kind of programming knowledge. However, before anyone criticizes, App Inventor is not a platform. This is the invention of MIT. And I don't think you need to re-introduce Google or MIT.

In this episode we will see how to make your computer suitable for using App Inventor. That is how to set up the app inventor. Let's not know the system requirements of the app inventor before.

To use App Inventor, you need to have things on your computer:

The computer's operating system must be:

• Macintosh (with Intel processor): Mac OS X 10.5, 10.6
• Windows: Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7
• GNU/Linux: Ubuntu 8+, Debian 5+

Any one of these operating systems.

Must be a browser:

• Mozilla Firefox 3.6 or higher
• Apple Safari 5.0 or higher
• Google Chrome 4.0 or high বা
• Microsoft Internet Explorer 7 or higher.

Any one of these browsers.

Phone:

Apps made with App Inventor can be run on any Android phone. But App Inventor Development Environment and set up software support the following phones more. In case of any other device, those who have made its hardware will need the given driver software. For example, if you are using Symphony's Android phone, you need to set up the driver software provided with their phone on your PC.

• Google: Nexus S, Nexus One, ADP1, ADP2, Ion
• T-Mobile: G1*, myTouch 3G*
•  Motorola: Droid * or another phone with the same hardware.

No matter which phone you use, you need to have an SD Card in your phone, otherwise it will not work with App Inventor.

App Inventor works with many more models of Android phones. Dell, Samsung and HTC are among them. But in some cases you need to install driver software provided by hardware manufacturers.

Set up

App Inventor Set Up:

App Inventor runs in a web browser. If you use a phone to test with App Inventor, you'll need to connect it to your computer with a USB cord. Every step of your application will show on this phone while you work. If you do not have a phone, you can test the app you created using the emulator attached to the app inventor. It will behave like a real Android phone. When your application is created. You can output it in the form of a complete package (Android apk file) like any other Android app which you can save on computer, install on phone and share on web.

To get started, you need to follow the following 2 steps:

• 1. Set up the computer.
• 2. Depending on where you test the app you create (not on the phone or in the emulator), take one of the following steps:
  • Set up your phone and create your first app. Or,
  • Create your first app and test it in the emulator.

Set up the computer

You must first configure your computer JAVA (if not). You can download it from http://www.java.com . You can do a test to see if your computer has Java configured. Java Test Go to this page. If your Java configuration is correct then you will see a message. The message is - "Java is working and that the version is Java 1.6" or "Congratulation! You have the recommended Java installed."

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If this is OK then go to this link and test App Inventor Java. If Java is not configured properly then App Inventor will not work.

Installing App Inventor Setup Software:

Here I will show you how to install setup software for Windows only. If you want to set up on MAC or Linux you can win at the link below-

•  Instruction for Mac
•  Instruction for Linux

And for those Windows users, follow these steps with me:

• 1. Download the App Inventor Setup Installer from here .
• 2. Open the folder where it was downloaded.
• 3. Open the file by double clicking. (If it is Windows 7 then right click and give 'Run as administrator' option.
• 4. All you need to do is install the software step by step. Do not change the installation location but keep this in mind. Because it may be needed later.

Phone driver

Some common Android phone driver software is built-in with App Inventor Setup Software. These are-

• T-Mobile G1* / ADP1
• T-Mobile myTouch 3G* / Google Ion / ADP2
• Verizon Droid (not Droid X)
• Nexus One
• Nexus S

If your phone is out of this list and you want to use the phone to test the app, then you need to set up your driver software manually. But if you want to test with an emulator instead of a phone, then there is no need to worry about it.

Now come where you can get the driver software to set up manually. When you buy your Android phone, you must have a CD with your phone from the store. There is your phone's driver software. There is no problem if you do not have a CD like this or you have lost it. If you want to use your phone for testing, go to the link http://developer.android.com/sdk/oem-usb.html . If you do not find your phone's driver here, then you can visit your phone company's site, where they usually put the driver of the phone.

But my personal opinion is that it is better to use Emulator directly without looking for so much.

In the next tune, those of us who want to use the phone to test with App Inventor will see how to configure your phone for this.