Saturday 16 March 2019

TravelTimeCalculator: Fixing Bugs, Testing on Physical Phone and Closing the Project

So far, I've been testing the app on a simulated device from Android Studio.

The next step is to test the app on a real device. I'm using a Samsung SM-J500FN (Android 6.01, API23). That phone is some four years old and I wasn't sure how responsive the app would be on that phone.

Once I installed the app, it worked like a charm. The app is responsive and runs smoother than when running in the virtual devices. That makes sense, since a virtual Android device is a full-stack emulation of the application processor of a smartphone. Having that running on a Windows PC will require quite a lot of system resources.



The last bug to fix was the apps inability to find valid values from the database when using reversed directions. I fixed it by checking whether the directions are in direct or reversed mode in the database.


Why TravelTimeCalculator Won't be Released
The purpose of this project for me is to learn Android - not to release an app that can be downloaded.

An app that is available on Google Play must have been tested thoroughly on several phones, different settings and lots of configurations. And once released, there should be someone to fix the incoming bug reports. I don't have time and motivation to do that.

Further, If I would release it on Google Play, I'd need to provide a Directions API key so that the user can get any directions. And if the app would be popular and generate lots of requests, I'd get a bill from Google. In any case, I need to consider whether to make that app free and risk getting a bill or charge a small fee for the app. The quality of the app can't justify charging for it.

Therefore, I'll keep the app as it is. Anyone can download it from Github and build it him/herself.

In the spring, I'll continue with TrafficControl and also have a small project on AI/Machine Learning.

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