Unexpected Eason Chan Christmas Gift

Something absolutely unbelievable happened to me on Christmas day this year. I received a Facebook message from Jade Entertainment telling me I was selected to join an after-show VIP session to meet Eason Chan face to face after the Eason Chan Duo concert in Vegas! The message said the autograph session was canceled, but we can bring a gift for Eason. Since I only had less than 24hrs notice, I thought of the best thing possible, regift a Christmas gift. That's right, you heard me. It sounds kinda bad, but the gift was chocolate and I probably wasn't going to eat it anyways.

The concert was amazing and full of energy. I'm surprised he was so down to earth. He bypassed the "encore" segment, you know where singer pretends to sing the very last song of the night, then the audience yells "encore" repetitively until he comes out again. Of course, it's always planned this way. Instead, he provided comedy relief through the whole segment, which was way worth it then just waiting for him to come out.

After the concert, they put the selected winners in this little room where 20+ peeps waited for Eason. The concert photographer (the person who organized this meet up, thanks to him!) said the gift bringers were the lucky ones since he would take a pic of them giving the gift to Eason. Score! We waited about 10 minutes and Eason finally showed up. Honestly, he looked exhausted and worn out, but what do you expect after singing for 2+ hrs nonstop. I really felt sorry for him for having to go out of his way to do this, since he had to do another concert the next day. We took a group pic. I sat right next to him and had my arms around his shoulder. After the group pic, he shook hands with everyone and then received his gifts. This was all really brief and before you knew it, he had to go already. I did also score one of his concert posters (it was just lying on the floor, so I just grabbed it lol). All in all, this was a pretty cool experience and was glad the stars are able to do this kind of stuff for their fans.

Binary Calc v1.51, small update

This update contains a some minor bug fixes and minor layout changes. The binary string display wasn't updating when you press the Convert button (premium version only). Plus I made some layout changes to the Ad screen (free version only).

I've debated going back to version 1.5 to open up the app to those who are still stuck with cupcake, but the UI looks awful in that mode, plus I won't be able to support small screen Androids (QVGA).

As always, you can download the app through these venues.

Download link for your phone: -> Binary Calc <-

You can also get it @ appbrain.com

Lite: http://www.appbrain.com/app/binary-calc-lite/com.applejay.binarycalc

Premium: http://www.appbrain.com/app/binary-calc-premium/com.applejay.binarycalcfull

Proguard Integration in Gingerbread

The new android gingerbread 2.3 sdk doesn't have many front end user enhancements, but the backend enhancements for gaming and developers are superb. One important new feature is Proguard integration. What used to be many steps in setting up Proguard and configuring the properties files is one only now a two step process. I just want to share what I've learned in setting up Proguard in Eclipse.

First off, if you haven't already, read the android developers Proguard article for an introduction and overview of how to set it up in Eclipse. http://developer.android.com/guide/developing/tools/proguard.html

The jist of it is, in your default.properties file, just add a new entry for proguard.config set equal to the location of your proguard.cfg. If you have any special obfuscation configuration/exceptions, you can include it in the .cfg file. Read the proguard doc for more detailed information.

You're not ready to export your application yet. You need to create a new system variable (Windows: Control Panel->Advanced system settings, Advanced (tab)->Environment Variables->New...(under System variables). Set up the Variable name as "PROGUARD_HOME", and Variable value as \tools\proguard (for instance, my android sdk is located in c:\android, so my Variable value would be "c:\android\tools\proguard"). For Mac/Linux, if you are using those OSes, then you should know how to add the Environment variables there.

If you have Eclipse running while you are doing these procedures, restart it. You should be able to export your application now. Otherwise you will get the this ugly mess

eclipse.buildId=M20100909-0800

java.version=1.6.0_12

java.vendor=Sun Microsystems Inc.

BootLoader constants: OS=win32, ARCH=x86, WS=win32, NL=en_US

Framework arguments: -product org.eclipse.epp.package.java.product

Command-line arguments: -os win32 -ws win32 -arch x86 -product org.eclipse.epp.package.java.product

Error

Sun Dec 12 20:57:31 PST 2010

Failed to export application

com.android.ide.eclipse.adt.internal.build.ProguardResultException

at com.android.ide.eclipse.adt.internal.build.BuildHelper.runProguard(Unknown Source)

at com.android.ide.eclipse.adt.internal.project.ExportHelper.exportReleaseApk(Unknown Source)

at com.android.ide.eclipse.adt.internal.wizards.export.ExportWizard.doExport(Unknown Source)

at com.android.ide.eclipse.adt.internal.wizards.export.ExportWizard.access$0(Unknown Source)

at com.android.ide.eclipse.adt.internal.wizards.export.ExportWizard$1.run(Unknown Source)

at org.eclipse.jface.operation.ModalContext$ModalContextThread.run(ModalContext.java:121)

Happy coding and thank you Google for making it so much easier! I spent hours trying to re-setup and publish my app on a new Windows 7 install and this saved me the trouble.

Update: credit to this post for the fix http://osdir.com/ml/Android-Developers/2010-12/msg00965.html

Binary Calc v1.5 is out!

I feel like my app is maturing even more after each release.

Version 1.5

* Binary display to show what binary your typing

* New Settings and Help menu

* Can now enable or disable vibrate on keypress in Settings and Help

Download link for your phone: -> Binary Calc <-

You can also get it @ appbrain.com

Lite: http://www.appbrain.com/app/binary-calc-lite/com.applejay.binarycalc

Premium: http://www.appbrain.com/app/binary-calc-premium/com.applejay.binarycalcfull

Sigh, I didn't win the Samsung Galaxy Tab, but no worries, someday I'll have an Android tablet somehow, if enough people buy my app... hehe

What freedom means to me

My video submission to the Samsung Galaxy Tab contest, what freedom means to me. After a few hours of filiming, couple slices of pumpkin pies, and Windows Live Movie Maker, our submission is complete. Comment and like it if you like it!

Binary Calc v1.4.1

Small update to Binary Calc. Now version 1.4.1

*New menu link to Binary Calc Support Google Group. If you have any bugs, complaints, or POSITIVE feedback, feel free to post.

*Output display defaults to blank instead of 0. No need to press del every time to get rid of the 0.

As usual, get it via the below links

Download link for your phone: -> Binary Calc <-

Lite:

Premium:

Binary Calc Google Group

I've created a google group for any bugs, complaints, or positive feedback. This group will apply to both apps, Binary Calc Lite and Binary Calc Premium.

Here are the essentials:

* Group name: Binary Calc

* Group home page: http://groups.google.com/group/binary-calc

* Group email address binary-calc@googlegroups.com

Please let me know what I can do to improve this app. Buy the premium version and click on the ads!

As of today, version 1.4 is out.

http://blog.applejay.com/2010/10/binary-calc-reverse-conversion-v14.html

Binary Calc v1.4 biggest update ever!

A new version of Binary Calc is out (v1.4). The app is more complete than it ever was. Now there's actually a reason to buy the premium version besides donating!

Updates:

* New: Not button used to invert the binary bits

* New: Reverse conversion: enter the input to convert back to binary (click on the number output on top). This is a premium versi

on feature only (works for dec, ascii, hex, if you break something, let me know)

* New: Vibrate on keypress on the bits (just like vibrate on press for your keyboard)

* New: Bit indicator on the top left let's you know which bit you are pressing (thanks for the tip Ejnar!)

* New: Copy button now copies the binary string instead of the result. This is a premium version feature only. You can still copy the output, just long press the output text.

Whoa, I just realize this is my biggest release to date. Things have been busy lately with family and guests staying over at the house and work has been super busy as always. There have been only a few downloads for the premium version, but nonetheless, I appreciate the support! I will be implementing a support site for bug reporting soon. Don't forget to click on the ads!

Download link for your phone: -> Binary Calc <-

Lite:

Premium:

In other news, I've changed the theme of the blog to another template. The previous theme was nice, but the links were all black, making it hard to differentiate between regular text and links...

My App is downloaded all over the world!

Ever since the latest v1.3 update of Binary Calc, I've implemented Google Analytics to track the app usage. As you can see, my app is used all over the world! 1,192 total visits since I started tracking with Google Analytics. Keep in mind my only source of marketing is my on facebook profile and twitter. If you like my app, feel free to spread the word. I will be implementing a support/feedback site in the future.

Now if only people will start buying my premium app...

Binary Calc v1.3.1

Small update to address a bug with the "What's New" popup that persists even after rebooting (it's suppose to only show up only once until the next upgrade).

Progress so far

Well it seems that people are showing interest in the app. There have been 1165 downloads so far (wow), I'm pretty impressed. I've implemented Google Analytics since the last major upgrade and noticed my app is frequently used by those in NY. Thanks for using my app and keep clicking on the ad! Better yet, buy the premium version!

Next update

I'm planning on implementing reverse conversion in the next version. Seems to be the most senseful feature to put out next. Stay tuned!

Binary Calc Upgraded to 1.3

Binary Calc has just been updated to version 1.3. There is now a paid version (premium) with additional features. See release notes below. Please support!

Version 1.3

Premium:

*Copy button

*No Ad

Common:

*Increased ASCII by 1 bit

*Added positive and negative toggle button

*Negative representation now implemented using two’s complement

*Lots of minor changes and bug fixes

Download it here with your android phone or get it in the Android Market.

10/10/10

Edit: Thanks to Austin! You're feedback was appreciated and implemented in this version.

Multiple Versions of the Same Android App

I've been researching online for the past few days on different methodologies to manage multiple versions of the same android app. I'm planning to release a paid version for Binary Calc with extra features. The truth? Two and a half weeks later, I realized ads aren't enough to generate $moola. I need to buy my next high end android phone. Thus, I have resorted to paid apps. At least I'm honest.

I've considered creating additional project libraries and using my app as the core library, but this proved to be quite tedious. There's the Touiteur way, create a separate paid app and use that as a "key" to unlock features in the free app. I've settled on just manually renaming the package name when the time comes to export the app. In Eclipse, a search and replace (Ctrl-H) works like a charm. There's always the fancy way of using an antlib task too.

Edit:

Specifically, to do it my way, you would:

1) rename the main package and make sure to check "rename subpackages"

2) do a search and replace of the package name to catch any stragglers

3) rename app_name if necessary

Binary Calc v1.2

Updated my app some more. Why use the conventional decimal calculators when you can calculate in binary!

** Release 1.2 **
Fixes:
* fixed issue where app was reseting when physical orientation was changed
* added scroll bar for help & about

New:
* convert to ASCII

Support me by clicking on my ads!

Download it here with your android phone.

Binary Calc's Progress So Far

Well, so far I'm impressed by the number of downloads my app has accomplished. I didn't think anybody would download this app besides me and even be able to earn $1.99! That's two items on the dollar menu @ McDs! I've earned more money with ads than my blog has ever earned in one year. In my next release, I will have fixed two bugs and will enable a new feature. My goal is to hit 1000 downloads before the end of this month.

Total Downloads: 189
Active Installs: 138 (73%)
Earnings from Admob: $1.99

For help, email me at help.applejay@gmail.com, or follow me @knyto2

Binary Calc

Just published my first android app. It's a simple app that converts binary to decimal by toggling the bits. Will have more features in the future. I was going to generate a QR code, but this site already beat me to it..? lol

Binary Calc is an intuitive and quick way to evaluate a decimal from binary. Simply tap the binary bit to toggle it and it will automatically show the results. Can calculate binaries up to 32 bits. More features coming soon!

Support me by clicking on my ads!

Download it here with your android phone.