Developer Guide (v2.0.2 and lower)
NOTE: This developer guide is for GPSTest v2.0.2 and lower. Please see the current Developer Guide for the most recent instructions for using Android Studio and Gradle.
GPSTest is open-source, and therefore you can build it from code yourself!
First, you'll need a JDK installed from the JDK Download Page.
Next, I suggest you use Eclipse for an IDE (The "EE" version is suggested). You'll also need the Android SDK and Android Plugin for Eclipse.
The GPSTest is versioned using Git, so you can use your favorite Git client or the Eclipse Git Plugin "EGit" to clone the repository
Here's the Github repo:
https://github.com/barbeau/gpstest.git
If you plan on submitting improvements, I suggest you fork this project (instead of cloning this repo directly) and work off of your forked repo so you can commit to your own GPSTest repository and use Github's Pull Request feature to submit improvements for review.
Then, in Eclipse do File->Import->Android->Existing Android Code Into Workspace, and point to the directory where you cloned the repo to import the main GPSTest project.
We're using several open-source libraries in the app for various features, so you'll also need to import each of the following folders via the File->Import->Android->Existing Android Code Into Workspace process:
-
ActionBarSherlock- ActionBarSherlock (ABS) - used to support the Action Bar on older Android devices. -
google-play-services_lib- Google Play Services SDK - used for the Android Maps API v2 -
android-switch-backport-library- Android Switch Widget Backport - adds support for the On/Off switch for versions of Android previous to 4.0. -
ShowcaseViewLibrary- ShowCaseView library - used for the in-app tutorial highlighting the new Action Bar switch for turning GPS on and off.
At this point its a good idea to clean all the projects. Then, build each of the library projects one by one. Finally, build GPSTest.
Then, run the GPSTest project on your device or an Android emulator.
NOTE - GPSTest v2.0.0 and higher require Google Play services SDK and Google Maps API v2, so you must use either:
- A compatible Android device that runs Android 2.2 or higher and includes Google Play Store.
- The Android emulator with an AVD that runs the Google APIs platform based on Android 4.2.2 or higher.
To see map tiles when using the Google Maps v2 API under debug mode, you'll need to get your own Maps v2 API key via the Google API console and configure it for your debug key - see these instructions. You can replace the current key with your own key in the AndroidManifest.xml file.
If the projects won't compile, check the Properties->Android tab for the GPSTest project, and make sure all of the library projects are included as library references. If they aren't, remove whatever projects are listed there and re-add each library project. Then, clean all the projects and rebuild them as stated above.
Have questions about GPSTest? See our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) page to see if they've been answered there.
Please feel free to ask questions on the GPSTest Google Group: https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/gpstest_android