Flowcode for Android (& iOS)

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mnf
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Flowcode for Android (& iOS)

Post by mnf »

Ok - just kidding, this isn't it.

However, being at a loose end - I started on a Flowcode Viewer for Android (and indeed it could run on iOS if I a) had a rich friend with a Mac or b) paid for online compilation)

It is early days - and after a brief ( :( :( :( )attempt at getting the Android tools running (I'll never complain about FC installation again!) - I settled on using B4A (I wouldn't normally use Basic, but I don't know Java and I could only get Android Studio to compile for a target of Android 8.0 and VS didn't want to play ball either :-( ). I couldn't find an easy way to get Python to work on Android either - which is a pity because BeautifulSoup is very Beautiful indeed... (and my first experiments reading the FC files were in Python because of this)

So BASIC it is (and the B4A experience is excellent - not knowing much BASIC, not having used it since first learning to program (on a mainframe using punched tape for the program)) I was very impressed with the power of it !

Current stage - it now reads a Flowcode program into a tree structure (using a SAX parser). It handles all Flowcode structures - though doesn't actually read all the data it could (I currently skip colours and a few other items (interrupt options for example) - though these are really just spadework and easily added....
It (for example) reads Switch statements, loops etc (nested as required)

Although it offers a file selection box it currently only reads test.fcfx (but I;ve used several files here) - and it does all the hard work in Activity_Create which is almost certainly bad (but this is a first attempt at Android programming :? )

It doesn't actually display the Flowcode (it outputs some of it to the debugger log file - mostly I removed the log statements once a section was working)

I works on Android 2.3 (on an old mp4 player), Android 6 (my phone) Android 7 (emulated) and probably everything in between!

So - any one with a little Android experience (or graphics experience) interested in lending a hand???? Indeed, is anyone interested and is it worth pursuing. as a project..

Any volunteers I can PM with code etc (though I better wait a day or too in case Matrix's lawyers ain't happy about me peeking in their files)

- and, of course, although it could probably work as an editor on Android (or IOS) - writing XML is easier than reading it - there is little danger of Flowcode ever arriving on the small screen (those toolsets aren't heading across any day soon!)

Martin

Oh - and as it started as a rather piecemeal 'I wonder if I could' the code needs a fair bit of tidyage (and some comments)

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Re: Flowcode for Android (& iOS)

Post by Benj »

Hi Martin,

Wow that sounds like a good project.

I've dabbled with Android in Java using Eclipse on and off and it works very well but then I have been taught Java so that certainly helps.
https://plus.google.com/communities/115 ... 4809347973

I got setup before Android Studio came about so I've never really had a good go with this.

I would love to help a hand but between work and my little boy I'm currently fairly stretched :wink: Still I'll certainly keep an eye on things should you hit a wall or become stuck with a part of the XML.
Any volunteers I can PM with code etc (though I better wait a day or too in case Matrix's lawyers ain't happy about me peeking in their files)
I don't see this being an issue :D
there is little danger of Flowcode ever arriving on the small screen (those toolsets aren't heading across any day soon!)
Android is Linux behind the scenes, and most of the toolchains will run on Linux however it's not simple to do so probably one for the back burner for now.

Parsing the flowchart and being able to display a single macro in its simplest form would be a really good place to aim for.

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Re: Flowcode for Android (& iOS)

Post by mnf »

Thanks Ben,

The 'structure' of the program is all read in - so I'll have a play with some display ideas... I've a feeling that a phone screen might be just too small to display a flowchart in a very meaningful manner. A tablet would be a better proposition.
Time to experiment...

Martin

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