Lost Phone Signal Project

This a new project I will be working on for the next 2 months.

Problem Statement:

Sometimes people are waiting for an important call and while the cell phone is always in the case, or pocket it’s hard to notice that the provider signal has been lost.

Objectives:

The main objective of this application is to be able to warn the user that the signal has been lost, so the user knows that he might not receive any calls while he is standing on that spot since there is no signal, or very low.

Approach:

The most important classes that will be used in this project will be android.net and android.telephony since they control and monitor the state of the network from the service provider, so it will be essential to know when it is very low so it can alert the user.

Deliverables:

Layout will be the first step for this program, once that is complete and the buttons are all in place, I will go ahead and start writing the code so I can create an algorithm that runs in the background and refreshes a few times per minute to keep the user informed of the availability of the signal. Testing will be a little rough, since I have to find a dead spot where there is no signal, and take the phone there to make sure the code is working accurately.

Discussion:

Lost Phone Signal is a small application which goal is to warn the user when the signal is very low and/or gone. Nobody checks their phone several times per minute to make sure the signal is still strong, and this is exactly what this application does for you. In case the signal is really low, it will send a sound or vibration alert, so you are aware that there is currently no service available.

I will have to do some reading on the android.net and android.telephony API’s so I know how they work, and which commands can benefit me for this application. Specially how to check the signal strength since I can go ahead and start writing my code once I figure out how to get a reading of that.

XML Layout Editing

Yesterday I finally finished my Tablerow layout homework.
It came out pretty neat, and if I would have tried harder and longer I am sure I could have gotten the difficulty buttons to actually work, however, after an 8 hour day at work, followed by 1 and a half hours at the gym on a low calorie diet, my energy level is not high enough where extra work is pleasant anymore.

Here is a screenshot of what the layout looks like:

First Impression of Android OS

The Android isn't the same as the iPhone. It's got a different philosophy behind it. You can use it like a touchscreen, or flip the keyboard out and use it like a sidekick with the keyboard and thumb roller.I like a hardware keyboard better than a touch-pad, but when the keyboard is retracted I can use the touchscreen to place a call.

However the real reason I really like the Android is because it is much easier to write software for it. You use regular Java, not Objective C. In my opinion its a lot easier to look at writing a Java app. I am not a big fan of Objective C, it just feels more clunky than Java. Maybe for C++ people Objective C is really easy and Java is complicated, but for me, I'm glad I don't have to write C++ for Android.

Unlike the Blackberry, the Android phone can charge off of a USB cable. Unlike the iPhone you don't need a special application like iTunes to manage files and music. You can just dump files in like its a regular USB disk.

These are just a few of the many features that Android provides for the user, but dont let me tell you all about it, go out there and experiment this wonderful OS by yourself!