Starter kit for a new generation of hybrid applications

Description

If you follow the following steps, you will build gwt, javascript and Objective-C calculators. These calculators are built from a single java code base.

This demo illustrates what Ray Cromwell call a new generation of Hybrid applications :

• Shares logic between Server, Android, Web, and iOS via Java code.
• Cross compiled with GWT and j2objc
• Android and iOS UIs marry Java and Obj-C UI with shared Java. http://www.slideshare.net/cromwellian1/gwtcreate-keynote-san-francisco

Requirements

• Java 6 (Java 7 syntax is not yet supported)
• Maven
• Android : The Android SDK
• XCode and the command line compiler tools for the Mac OS part.

J2Objc installation

• Download J2Objc (https://code.google.com/p/j2objc/) and extract it.
• Create an env variable $J2OBJC_DISTRIBUTION that points to J2Objc installation.

Example :

export J2OBJC_DISTRIBUTION=/Users/abdennebi/Dev/Tools/j2objc-0.8.8

##Testing

• Run `mvn install' at the root directory. Then follow the next steps :

Testing GWT

• Go to demo/calc-engine-gwt-demo directory
• Run command mvn jetty:run-war
• Open your internet browser and call the following URL : http://localhost:9999/
• To stop jetty, run the command mvn jetty:stop

Testing Javascript

• Go to demo/calc-engine-js-demo directory
• Run command mvn jetty:run-war
• Open your internet browser and call the following URL : http://localhost:9999/
• Read and follow the displayed indications
• To stop jetty, run the command mvn jetty:stop

Testing Chrome App

• Go to demo/calc-engine-js-demo directory
• Run command mvn package
• Launch your Chrome Browser and bring up the extensions tab by taping chrome://extensions/ in the address bar.
• Make sure the Developer mode checkbox has been checked.
• Click the Load unpacked extension button, navigate to the demo/calc-engine-js-demo/target/calc-engine-js-demo-1.0-SNAPSHOT/ folder, then click OK.
• The application is installed, you can now launch it by clicking on its icon in the Applications panel.

Testing Android

Setup

• Download and install the Android SDK
• Set the ANDROID_HOME environment variable that points to the installation directory of the Android SDK.
• Add $ANDROID_HOME/tools and $ANDROID_HOME/platform-tools to yourPATH.
• Launch an Android Virtual Device or plug your Android phone (tutorial can be found here).

Testing

• Go to demo/calc-engine-android-demo directory
• Run command mvn clean package android:deploy

Testing Objective-C

Don't forget to define the J2OBJC_DISTRIBUTION environment variable!

• Go to demo/calc-engine-objectivec-demo directory

• Run make, it will create two executables : one called launcher and other called calc

  • the launcher executes any Java class containig a main function. In our case the class is CalcMain. The full command is ./launcher com.sfeir.calc.CalcMain expression. Example ./launcher com.sfeir.calc.CalcMain 36+69.
  • the calc executable corresponds to the native code that references the transcompiled Javacode. Please take a look to the main.m source file.

• to clean objects run make clean, to remove executables run make mrclean

Improving the Calculator

• Edit calc-engine-core/src/main/java/com/sfeir/calc/CalcEngineImpl.java
• Rebuild, that's it