I have made a simple punch in / punch out time clock application. I want to add the user the option of making a shortcut on the homescreen that will toggle the state of the app(time out / time in) but I don't want this shortcut to open up the app on the screen at all.
here is my setupShortcut()
private void setupShortcut() {
Intent shortcutIntent = new Intent(this, Toggle.class);
// shortcutIntent.setClassName(this, Toggle.class.getName());
shortcutIntent.putExtra(EXTRA_KEY, "ToggleShortcut");
shortcutIntent.addFlags(Intent.FLAG_ACTIVITY_CLEAR_TOP);
Intent intent = new Intent();
intent.putExtra(Intent.EXTRA_SHORTCUT_INTENT, shortcutIntent);
intent.putExtra(Intent.EXTRA_SHORTCUT_NAME, "ToggleShortcut");
Parcelable iconResource = Intent.ShortcutIconResource.fromContext(this, R.drawable.app_sample_code);
intent.putExtra(Intent.EXTRA_SHORTCUT_ICON_RESOURCE, iconResource);
setResult(RESULT_OK, intent);
}
Toggle.class is an activity that toggles the state for me. In the manifest I have these settings on it
<activity android:name=".Toggle" android:exported="true" android:theme="#android:style/Theme.Translucent.NoTitleBar">
As it is now I can create a shortcut on the home screen then press it. The first time I press it it starts the Toggle activity and completes it fine, but it also opens up the TimeClock activity on the screen. If I then hit the back button I go back to the home. I can now press this shortcut and it will start the Toggle activity and not change the screen. Before I added: shortcutIntent.addFlags(Intent.FLAG_ACTIVITY_CLEAR_TOP); It would open up the TimeClock activity every time. Now it is just the first time. But I want it to never show anything on the screen when the Toggle shortcut is pressed. Does anyone have any idea of how to get rid of that?
The problem with launchers is that they start Activities, whereas what you want is to start a Service so you can modify the app state in the background. It sounds like what you really want to do is make a Widget, not a launcher shortcut. You can configure the widget to have a button that sets off a Service that will toggle things in the background.
You can "more simply" make a hidden activity that will do what you want!
This activity must use transparent themes so it never shows and call finish() at the end of the onCreate() without any particular conditions.
Related
I got an app which can receive an event (which is basically a message from a service in the background), and when it does, I am invoking this code:
Intent dialogIntent = new Intent(this, MainActivity.class);
dialogIntent.setFlags(Intent.FLAG_ACTIVITY_CLEAR_TOP);
dialogIntent.addFlags(Intent.FLAG_ACTIVITY_NEW_TASK);
startActivity(dialogIntent);
This code is supposed to return the app to the front so the user can handle the event.
This code works only if the app I'm working on was also the last app the user has been in. The code doesn't work in these scenarios:
1) The user has paused the app, opened another app and then paused it too so the 2nd app is the last in the background - in which case the last app will always open, even though I'm starting my MainActivity. For example, if I've moved my app to the background, opened Android's settings and then an event is received, the Android's settings screen will open instead of my app.
2) The user is inside another app. In which case, the app won't be brought to the front at all.
How can I made the specific app to be resumed from the background no matter what?
Use launcher category as below:
Intent resumeIntent = new Intent(context, MainActivity.class);
resumeIntent.setAction(Intent.ACTION_MAIN);
resumeIntent.addCategory(Intent.CATEGORY_LAUNCHER);
startActivity(resumeIntent);
Also add android:launchMode="singleTop" in the manifest of your activity.
You can add android:launchMode="singleTop" in the manifest for the Activity.
My application has the option to create home screen shortcuts.
I create the shortcut like this:
Intent intent = new Intent();
intent.putExtra(Intent.EXTRA_SHORTCUT_INTENT,
new Intent(ShortcutCreateActivity.this, ShortcutCreateActivity.class).putExtra(EXTRA_PROFILE_ID, profileId).putExtra(EXTRA_PROFILE_ACTION, item));
intent.putExtra(Intent.EXTRA_SHORTCUT_NAME, profileTitle);
intent.putExtra(Intent.EXTRA_SHORTCUT_ICON, bitmap);
This works as expected... when the user clicks the shortcut, the ShortcutCreateActivity is launched and I do what I need.
However! I would like to avoid the need to open an activity. Instead, I want to create a shortcut that sends a broadcast.
I tried replacing the intent with:
intent.putExtra(Intent.EXTRA_SHORTCUT_INTENT,
new Intent(INTENT_ACTION_THAT_I_WANT)
But when I click the shortcut, it shows a Toast "App isn't installed".
Is it possible to create a home screen shortcut that sends a broadcast instead of launching an Activity?
(Starting the activity and quickly finishing it is not an option).
Thank you!
Is it possible to create a home screen shortcut that sends a broadcast instead of launching an Activity?
Strictly speaking, no.
However, you can have it point to an activity that is set up with Theme.NoDisplay, where in the activity's onCreate() you send your broadcast and call finish() without calling setContentView(). Visually, this is indistinguishable from having the shortcut send the broadcast itself.
I want some directions here. I have 3-Activities in an app i.e. MainActivity, MapViewActivity and DbActivity. I goes from one activity to another via. intents. The code of each intent is:
Intent intent = new Intent(this, ActivityName.class);
startActivity(intent);
I have used
android:noHistory="true"
in all these activities, so that when the mobile "end" button is pressed the app gets stop. Otherwise app was going back..... in spite of stoping the app
Now the problem is: When app goes for the GPS settings after finding GPS service off, the user turns on GPS and presses the mobile "end" button to come back to the app. But app also get stop. So user again start the app and comes on MapViewActivity. If I remove android:noHistory="true" from MapViewActivity, the problem also comes back. So is there any other solution for. Please guide me, if there is some method...
I don't think you mean "end". You probably mean "back". If you don't want the user to return to the activity when the user clicks "back", then just call finish() after you start the next activity. Like this:
Intent intent = new Intent(this, ActivityName.class);
startActivity(intent);
// finish this activity so that the user doesn't come back to it
finish();
Please take out the android:noHistory="true" from the manifest, this probably isn't what you want.
I am developing an application and its Home Screen Widget.
Now from my widget when i press on a button it would open up my application from where it was left.
Means if i press home button during my application running then my application will go in background mode.
Now i want that it should resume my opened application.
Whenever i press a button from my Widget. How Can i Do it??
Please help
Thanks a bunch in advance!
I've never made a widget before, but this is how I've made a notification launch back into my original activity when you pull down the bar and click it.
Intent originalActivity = new Intent(getApplicationContext(), Widget.class);
originalActivity.setFlags(Intent.FLAG_ACTIVITY_CLEAR_TOP | Intent.FLAG_ACTIVITY_SINGLE_TOP);
Once again, not sure how you would do this with a widget, but to relaunch it for a notification you convert that Intent into a PendingIntent to be called later when you want to launch back into it. I would assume this is a similar fashion for how you would it on a widget.
I have an odd issue with my application.
I start the application and the activity shows ok.
I then press the home key so that the activity goes into the background. I can see the onPause() method being called.
The application's service then creates a notification which shows on the status bar.
I then click on the notification and the activity is shown and I see that the onResume() method is called.
I then press the home key and the activity goes into the background. I can see the onPause() method being called.
If I now start the application by clicking on the applications icon I see that a new instance of the activity is created rather than using the paused instance.
If I press the home key again the new activity goes into the background.
Starting the application by clicking on the applications icon I see another new instance of the activity is created.
Pressing the back button at the point destroys each activity in return.
What I want to happen is that a single instance of the activity be used.
Any ideas?
Just use the same intent filters as android uses when launches the app:
final Intent notificationIntent = new Intent(context, MessageListActivity.class);
notificationIntent.setAction(Intent.ACTION_MAIN);
notificationIntent.addCategory(Intent.CATEGORY_LAUNCHER);
As the intent you created to open your activity from notification bar is the same as android used for launching your app, the previously opened activity will be shown instead of creating a new one.
You should look at the different launch modes for Android activities. this should help. Launch modes can be set in the androidmanifest.xml file. I think your solution would be to use the 'singleTop' launch mode.