[Q] Possible ROM project / Learning experience. - Android Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

I have been messing around with this rooting/flashing stuff long enough I thought I might give a go at learning more of the technical end of this and make a ROM. Before I even look into what is needed to learn this stuff I thought I would try and find out if my idea for a ROM is even worth doing in the first place.
I am wanting to make a ROM that turns the phone into a dedicated hotstop. Devote what memory is not used into a packet buffer and the SDcard into a network drive. Make the screen into a Network details monitor. If possible allow bluetooth to be used to manager the device remotely. A secondary objective it to try and keep it port-able because this to me seems like a good option for EOL devices.
Other than adding the above features the main goal is to increase throughput and increase connection speed/stability.
All this might be a pipe dream so I was hoping a dev here might be able to shed some light on the possibility of this even being in the realm of doable. I believe it will take alot of work to make such a major role change to a phone but in some areas it is simplifying things by just removing them. I am willing to devote months to the project so I am not taking this lightly.

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[Q] Can you pass some knowledge?

im new to the android community and im looking to learn how to perform certain tasks such a development. i am keen on picking things up fast, diving in and just learning from trial and error. im hoping some of you guys can shed some light on what are some things i should start out with. ive come a long way in picking things up because before the thunderbolt came out i was unaware of how to root, abd, roms and kernels. since ive owned it, i have rooted manually and put my tb through many flashes. id like to work up and just get a good sense of how to tweak app and mod certain features to make them more useful to me. so if you have any tips, tricks or just knowledge to drop, id love to know where i should begin so i can one day be a contributor to this site and its users. thanks
I'm a C/C++/Java programmer and I'm currently working on some applications myself, and I have found that the general discussion under Android development on XDA has been very helpful. Lots of threads there with nuggets of info.
im going to school for programming and computer science. i havent really been able to go into to much depth with it so this is my attempt to go above and beyond so i will have a little something to bring to the table when i go to class. i want to be able to know to how to do something while understanding how im doing it and what makes it do it. im new to all of this and hope within the next month i can bring something for all of you guys to critique so i can go back to the drawing board and do something better.
Can anyone help with creating custom skins for apps/widgets it is something i have always wanted to get into
check out APK manager, it lets you get into apk's and make some edits and changes to XML files and layouts, etc. but not all of the source code can be extracted from apk's once compiled, just the way it is. but still allows for mods nonetheless!
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=695701

[Q] Getting started with development

Hello, this is my first post here..
(was not sure where to put it, so I posted here)
So, it happens that I'll be getting an i9001 soon (as a gift), to replace my old W810i..
Android was always my preference, if I ever were to take the leap, and possess a smartphone..
I must say that ever since I researched about this OS; and the possibilities it can offer, I am highly interested in getting involved with it's development..
I've searched and found a similar thread that pointed to "developer.android.com/index.html", which I believe I can use to get me started. But before I do so, I have a few questions to ask, regarding on what kind of knowledge will be needed beforehand.
I'm currently a university student, at informatics and computer science. So I'm no expert in coding, nor I can create commercial-ready stuff as of yet.. However I do believe that I can slowly learn the ropes, and produce something useful, since I can understand the basic principles. (Patience included )
I've also read numerous articles regarding the knowledge prequisites, most of them say either Java or C++/C#, yet there's no definitive answer.. So my first question is in regard as to what do I need of the following, and what kind of knowledge "gaps" do I need to fill first, before I can get started with android development.
I currently have:
Some slight experience with Java through NetBeans and JDK (on the next semesters I have subjects that cover more of it)
A significant experience with C/C++ through DevC++ (I can comprehend functions, arguments, structs, pointers, file pointers, and various tricks: such as passing values by reference)
Basic knowledge of simple search, sort and data structure algorithms (such as binary/interpolation search, bubble/insertion sort, linked lists/binary trees.. To name a few)
Basic knowledge of Unix (such as shell commands, fork, pipes, sockets)
Basic theory knowledge on Operating System algorithms (such as cpu scheduling, memory management, disk management and some MPI simulation)
Basic knowledge of Assembly (through SPIM and MPLAB)
Some noobish/entry-level knowledge regarding MySQL and PHP
I may have forgotten a few things, but I suppose this is the core of my currently acquired knowledge.
To this point, I might add that I'm most comfortable in C/C++ than Java.. Namelly because it's the first language I bothered more with, and because I find Java a bit more confusing..
[Because it's similar to C, but it has various alterations.. Or it might be because I was forced to learn it simultaneously while also learning C, and I ended up hating it, because it caused me to mix up the two languages]
I might also say that I've never worked with projects that had more than one *.c/*.cpp file, and I have yet to figure out how these combine..
I may also have some knowledge gaps regarding "classes", even though I can write programs just fine (they were more apparent in Java, than C/C++, I guess)
Plus, all the programs I ever made, were console/bash.. I have no experience or idea, on how to put graphics on screen and how to hook them with my code.
As to what I want to do with Android? Well, at first creating simple apps to get the hang of the situation.. Then maybe bothering with GUI/Graphics to enrich my progress.. And ultimatelly, acquiring the knowledge/skill to mess with the OS/Kernel itself.. (And why not re-inventing the wheel by myself, and creating them from scratch)
Second question would be about safety.. Say that I do gain the knowledge, and I come at a point that I can comfidently mess with operation-critical things like the Kernel.. Is there a way to "failsafe"-test or simulate it, before uploading it to the device?
[As I mentioned, I'll soon be getting my very first android device, and I'm rather very cautious about not damaging or bricking it.. Because it's expensive, and I might not afford a replacement]
Lastly, my final question is about: potential danger of damaging the phone's hardware; when exposed to various things (Since I want to be very cautious, as I said)
However I understand this is definatelly not the right section for this last question; so the actual question for that, is: where can I post/ask about that?
Sorry for my wall of text, I just like to be detailed, in order to be completelly comprehensive. I hope I might get the attention of an experienced developer, maybe get some tips on how I can improve my current knowledge; and lastly how to get involved with this wonderful OS.
Thanks!
You may want to brush up your Java skills a bit on classes and packaging. Then, you can download the Android SDK which comes with an emulator to test your programs. To design GUIs, you will have to download and install the Android Eclipse plugin, which is available alongside the SDK.

Daily Driver vs. Development

I as just wondering how other people handled having developing for devices. I recently went ahead and did a full wipe on my tablet to try a few different ICS roms out, so naturally I backed up whatever I felt was critical to keep.
Since I don't need a daily driver (for another week or two)I want to poke around and now seems like a great time to do so.
I was just wondering if maybe others had a better way of backing things up I was unaware of.. because if I actually need a daily driver, then I am looking at spending a lot of time just going back and forth with settings when dealing with roms.
After an intense examination of this thread, it has been determined that it does not contain development, thus does not belong in development. We are moving it for you, but please make sure you post correctly next time.

[Q] Android Development for Operating Systems class

Hi guys,
I'm new to the forum, but I plan on developing ROMs with a few people, so I will probably frequent them soon.
In my Operating Systems class, I was asked to come up with ideas for a project. Well, since I'm just starting to build Android ROMs anyways, I was going to see if I could use this idea for class. I guess my question is, do you guys think this would be a good project to last a few weeks of the semester (at least)? If not, can you suggest ways that will make it longer or shorter? We would be building them for a Droid Incredible.
I have a general idea, and it seams that just getting an AOSP ROM up and running would be no problem at all, from what I read anyways. It seems like the tailoring or the importing of ROMs is what really takes time and effort.
Thanks in advance for the input.
It depends on the class skills. But it's really great idea to study Linux and low level Android features. uh.. I didn't have such interesting project during my university years ((
The only big issue is high initial level of knowledge. Also many peoples may quickly give up fighting with some unclear compile or deploy issues. It's not trivial to debug on such devices. They may quickly lost their interest. But overall this is great idea. Where are you teaching?
I'm not actually the professor, I'm a student at Saginaw Valley State University (Michigan). I'm the "Class Leader" so I told the professor that I would give him the list of ideas I had for projects.
If it's for a grade, it might be a good idea then. They may lose interest, but if their grades are on the line, I would hope they struggle through it. Plus, we are all in groups, and they can pick another project if they don't like this one.
Thanks for the info, Purler.
Does anyone know how different it would be to make a ROM for something that requires a mouse input, like the Raspberry Pi?

[Q] Starting Android Development with no experience in Software Programming

Hi xda-developers,
I am an Embedded developer with vastnexperience in Firmware development in C programming (for microcontrollers), pcb designing, corel draw/photoshop (intermediate level) . Now I am looking to stretch my self a lil further by trying my hands on Android Programming. I have no prior experience in Software development. It would be kind of experienced developers out here to guide me with possible approaches that I can give to Android development without a much steep learning curve. As I would be practicing android development mostly on weekends (as of now), I would like to get started with things that I can relate with already. That way it would keep me going. Help me out with:
1. Possible applications I should work on. Something that can also be helpful for the community of users and developers.
2. Starting point and other obstacles I would come across while development.
3. Application ideas.
P.S: I also have a rPi lying around catching dust.
Some of the features still cant use on this. Libraries could be use.
Start with "Hello World"
Regardless of your software development capabilities you should always just mess around with the tools that are available and see what you like and what you don't like.
Try every tool you can, when you feel like you know those inside out have a go at extending the functionality of one of those.
For me when it comes to learning a new technology like Android SDK just playing with it inspires me to want to create real and practical applications.
Goodluck and have fun.
PS: I would stick around and see what happens with the release of Qt 5.2 Hint hint...
Yea. Android like embedded requires you to set up a Dev environment so get that up first. ROM building vs app developing are hugely different. Decide which and download the tools. (May require you to install a whole new os and tweak it heavily. Last time I ventured to compile a ROM it was a day to set up my Linux distro of choice)
And like what was said before start with hello world and move up in small bites. You will gain better understanding of how things work and will be less frustrated. Don't expect a full featured app to appear. Once you play around with all the little components eventually you will see a big picture and the building blocks for the "big app" will be there ready to use.
Sent from my One using xda app-developers app

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