| Android | | Wednesday, 03 April 2013 13:15 | | Good Friday brought some interesting updates into my mail inbox: OUYA game console is shippin' That's very exciting news (at least for me) and I'm really looking forward to get my hands on that open gaming console based on Android. A nice Easter surprise but still it will take a couple of weeks until the console will arrive hear in Mauritius. Crossing fingers for end of April.
Just in case that you might not know what I'm talking about... Please have a look at the official website of OUYA.  Source: http://www.ouya.tv/shippin/ Since the Kickstarter campaign last year, I was following the development and news coverage of OUYA closely. And it is really pleasant to see that a crowd-funded project sticks to their planned schedule. Some times just in time, sometimes even a little bit ahead of the deadline. Which is absolutely great. Now, what's the cool element with OUYA? Easy, you hook it up to your TV set and you can enjoy your Android games on the big screen with Full HD resolution (1080p) and decent sounds. The official retail launch of OUYA will be on the 4th of June. You can already pre-order this cool gadget for $99,- on their website. Games - Free to try One of the promises that OUYA makes is that any game will be free to try and that you wont be charged until you are really convinced and 'love' the game you're playing. Honestly, a bold statement and a clear understanding of gamers all over the world. I mean, how often did you 'waste' your well-earned money on some cracked up game with lots of flaws and bugs? Motivation to go for OUYA Honestly, I simply like the idea of openess with this gaming console. Furthermore, by owning a couple of Android devices like a Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1, a Samsung Galaxy S3, a Penta WS802C, and already looking forward to get a Samsung Galaxy S4 in the future I am quite focused on the Android platform. Which means that I am able to install my purchased games, apps and tools onto OUYA. Especially taking the various Humble Bundle game packs into consideration. I guess it will be a lot more fun to play for example Machinarium on the TV than on the portable devices. Sadly, Ingress by Niantic Project isn't a hot candidate for OUYA as the app heavily builds on GPS-location... Being a software craftsman I'm also looking forward to use the OUYA console for a couple of my own developments based on Mono for Android. Actually, it should be straight forward and easy to 'port' those apps onto the big screen. Also taking into consideration that the upcoming generation of Android devices will likely ship with high-resolution displays as the S4 already does. The next Samsung Unpacked event at the IFA exhibition in Germany will hopefully bring us a new tablet with higher pixel density and resolution. Another reason to go for OUYA is also based on my slight disappointment about the upcoming products by the big three. Namely, Nintendo with the Wii U, Sone with the PS4 and Microsoft with the XBox 720. I don't know but none of those systems is really catching my full attention. Frankly, the consoles made by Sony and Microsoft never did and I guess wont ever, but even Nintendo doesn't fit my expectations completely. Gaming on Nintendo since the early ages of consoles - I had quite some in the past: NES, SNES, Game Boy, N64, NDS, GameCube, Wii - but I have to have a closer look at the Wii U in order to decide whether I'm going to upgrade my Wii system or not. It all depends on the game experience and available titles. Eventually, I might check out one of the stores in Rose Hill to try the Wii U for some minutes, and have some exchange with other gamers on that. And last but not least, the OUYA is an open environment. Which means that there is absolutely no need to root, hack, jail break or whatever you name it in order to get access to the ingridients. Even the hardware can be opened with a standard screw driver and doesn't require any special tools. The console you buy is your development bed. If you have a cool idea for the next generation game, simply get the OUYA Development Kit (ODK) and get things up and running. As stated above, I'm really looking forward to check out my recent developments based on Android for Mono on this device. What do you think about OUYA? Is it time for a new gaming console? Add a comment | | | Android | | Wednesday, 28 November 2012 23:49 | | Surprisingly, it was only today that I actually looked for possible solutions to write more content for my blog. Since quite some time I'm using my Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 for all kind of social media activities like Google+, FB, etc. but also for my casual mail during the evening hours. And yes, I feel a little bit guilty about missing the chance to use my tablet to write some content here... OK, only a little bit. ;-) These are not the droids you are looking for But those lazy times are over! While searching the Play Store with the expression 'joomla' I got three interesting hits:
- Joomla Admin Mobile!
- Joooid
- Joomla! Security Checklist After reading the reviews I installed the two later apps. Joomla! Security Checklist The author clearly outlines here that the app is primarily for his personal purpose to have safety checklist at hand at anytime. I guess that any reader of this article has an Android based smartphone or tablet, so that simple app should be part of your toolbox when using Joomla! for your websites. Joooid plugin & app Although I was looking for an app that could work with the default XML RPC interface of Joomla I have to admit that this combination of an enhanced Web service suits me better, mainly due to performance reason. The official website has not only the downloads for Joomla versions 1.5 - 2.5 but also very good and easy to follow step-by-step instructions to prepare your server for the Android app. It will take you less than 5 minutes to get it up and running. For safety reasons, I recommend that you should configure your Web server to have an additional authentication layer on the plugins folder. The smartphone app has the ability to run against HTTP authentication. Personally, I like the look and feel of the app. It is a little bit different compared to the web UI but still easy to use. In fact, this article is the first one written in the Joooid app. At the moment, I only miss the ability to have list tags. Quick and easy Writing full-fledged articles with images, a couple of hyperlinks and some styling here and there should be left to the desktop. At least for the moment. Let's see whether I'm going to change my mind on this during the upcoming months... I'll give it a try, and hope to publish at least once per month to write some content using Joooid. Actually, it would be great to have some feedback about other Joomla! clients in the wild. Add a comment | | Android | | Monday, 29 October 2012 17:08 | | This article is the Android sequel to the initial article about how to prepare an offline version of your web site for the purpose of demonstration or for exhibitions: Taking web sites offline for demonstration. If you didn't read the original article, please take some minutes (5 to 10 maximum) to gain a better understanding on the following. Thanks. I'm going to describe my steps using a Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 running on Ice Cream Sandwich (ICS - version 4.0.4) but I would assume that any other Android-based device will show more or less the same results. Put the prepared archive on your Android device Well, the choice is yours... simply check out the Play Store for anything that looks like file manager, or explorer and you are up and running. Personally, I use either ES File Explorer or AirDroid to transfer files between my tablet and a PC or network, but any app is just fine! The Galaxy Tab doesn't have a slot for memory extensions but this could be an option, too. After the succesful transfer, I simply extracted the archive in an accessible location and opened the start page of the web site, here index.html. In this case, ES File Explorer offers me to open the file with HTMLViewer, or even to create a Shortcut for faster access. Not too bad, but honestly that HTMLViewer app offers only limited functionality and doesn't provide any navigational buttons, like Back, Forward, Refresh, or Cancel. It's okay for a rough overview and quick check but it lacks some features. Know your paths "Don't think you are, know you are." - Similar to the checks we previously did on the various desktop systems it is also possible to work with special URLs or better said protocols in this case: file:// While you are still in your favourite file explorer you should be able to get a proper location of your HTML files. Please, either memorize the path or note it down and open your favourite internet browser. This could be the stock 'Internet' or Chrome on ICS or higher, or Dolphin, or etc. Then you enter the location of your files prefixed with file://mnt/, like so: file://mnt/sdcard/offline/index.html if you are using the internal memory.
In case of an external SD card or USB pen drive the absolute path might look like so: file://mnt/extStorage/UsbDriveA/offline/index.html Using an absolute URL to your offline HTML files allows you to browse them exactly the same way as if you navigate on a web site. There is no technical difference, and HTML/CSS/Javascript is just the same. Browser != Browser != Viewer Don't be surprised if your offline web site appears differently on the various browser or viewer you are using. Following the same page various browser or viewer: It's almost the same situation as on the desktop and there's room for interpretation of HTML and CSS - even on your Droid. What are your experiences with creating or testing offline versions of web sites on your Android devices? Parallel universe: iOS Eventually, you might be curious about this episode might be on a new iPad running on iOS 6. If so, please feel free to read this article: Taking web sites offline for demonstration on iPad Add a comment | | Android | | Saturday, 13 October 2012 14:34 | | This time, something slightly different but nonetheless not less interesting, hopefully. Living on a remote island like Mauritius, ill-praised 'Cyber Island' in the Indian Ocean, has its advantages in life style and relaxed environment to life in but in terms of technological aspects it can be quite a nightmare. Well, I guess this might be different story to report about... one day. Cyber Island Mauritius
Despite it's shiny advertisement as Cyber Island and business in ICT hub to Africa, Mauritius is not on the latest track of available models in computer hardware or, in the context of this article, cellulars or smart-phone, or communication technology in general. Okay, I have to admit that this statement is only partly true. Money can buy, even here in Mauritius. Luckily, there are ways and ways to deal with this outcry of modern, read: technological, civilisation issues. Online shopping you might think? Yes, for sure, until you discover in your checkout procedure that a small island in the Indian Ocean isn't a preferred destination for delivery and the precious time you spent on putting your items into your cart and feeding your personal level of anticipation gets ruined on the last stint. Ordering from abroad saves you money
Anyway, I got in touch with my personal courier and luckily there were some extra-kilos left in the luggage. First obstacle sorted, we have a Transporter! Okay, on the next occasion off to Amazon online and using their Prime service for fast delivery. Actually, the order was placed on Saturday evening and everything got delivered on Tuesday morning - nice job in less than 72 hours. Okay, among the items of that shopping rush I ordered a shiny Samsung Galaxy S III 16GB in oceanic blue - did I mention, that you hardly get a blue model in Mauritius? - for my BWE. Interesting side-notes:
First, Amazon Germany dropped the prices for roughly 30% on the S3, and we got the 16GB model for less than 500 Euro (or approx. Rs. 19.500,-) compared to the usual Rs. 27.000,- on the local market. It even varies whether the local price is inclusive or exclusive VAT (15%).
Second, since a while she was bothering me to get an iPhone and an iPad for her, fair enough I thought, decent hardware, posh design and reliable services. Until we - watched the 'magical' introduction of Samsung's new models at the IFA exhibition,
- she read the bashing comments on Google+ on the iPhone 5 and
- I gave her a brief summary on the law suit between Apple and Samsung in the USA.
So, yes, Samsung USA is right, the next big thing is already here - literally. My BWE loves the look and touch of the Galaxy S3. And for me it was more cost-effective in terms of purchases done at the App Store, ups, Play Store. Transfer of contacts, text messages and media files
Okay, now that the hardware is in place, how to transfer all those contacts, text messages, media files, etc. between those two devices? In the past, I used to use the Nokia Communication Suite between various models but now for Android? Well, as usual Google and Bing are reliable friends and among the first hits I came across an article about How to Transfer Contacts from Nokia to Android. Couldn't be easier, right? Well, sort of... my main Windows systems are already running on Windows 8, and this actually caused problems with the mobile/smart-phone device drivers. The article provides the download for an older version 1.10 which upgrades to 2.11 (as time of writing this entry) but both couldn't get the Galaxy S3 and the Nokia connected. Shame on me... the product page clearly doesn't mention Windows 8 (for now) and Windows 8 isn't available for the general audience at all... After I took a spare machine running on Windows Vista everything went smooth. Software installed, upgrade done, device drivers for Android automatically downloaded and installed, and the same painless routine for the Nokia part. I think, I rebooted the system twice during the whole setup procedure but hey, it was more or less a distraction while coding some stuff in ASP.NET MVC and Telerik Kendo UI. The transfer of contacts and text messages was done via Wondershare MobileGo for Android, and all media files by moving the additional microSD card from one device to the other. But even without an external SD card, it would have been very easy to copy the files via Windows Explorer directly. Little catch and excellent service
Fine, we are almost done and the only step left is to shift the SIM card... Ouch, gotcha! The X3 uses a standard size SIM card while the S III only accepts microSIM form factor. What an irony, bigger smartphone needs smaller SIM card. Luckily, the next showroom of Emtel is just 5 mins away up the road, and the service staff over there know their job. Finally, after roughly 10 mins of paper work, activation and small chit-chat, the S3 came to life on the mobile network. Owning a smart-phone now and knowing that my BWE would like to interact more on social networks away from home, especially to upload pictures and provide local 'check-ins', I activated a data package for her in advance, too. Even that it is Saturday, everything was already done and ready to be used. Nice bonus: The Emtel clerk directly offered me to set up the configuration for the Emtel data services, yes sure, go ahead, this saves me to search for that in the settings. Okay, spoiler-alert here, setting a static APN to access the Emtel network and the internet wouldn't be a challenge. But hey, she already had the phone in her hands and I could keep my eyes on the children. Well done, Emtel! Resume
Thanks to the useful software package by Wondershare is was a hands-free experience to transfer all the data from a Nokia mobile on Symbian S60 to a Samsung Galaxy S III on Android Ice Cream Sandwich (ICS). In the future, this wont be a serious issue at all anymore thanks to synchronisation services and cloud storage. And for now, I'm only waiting for the official upgrades for Jelly Bean. Add a comment | | | « Start : Prev : 1 : 2 : 3 : Next : End » | | Page 3 of 3 | | 
0 Response to "How To Sideload Apps On Ouya Using Es File Explorer"
Post a Comment