Android and Me » android sdk

How to take screenshots of Google TV over WiFi with ADB

Clark Wimberly — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 05:37:52 +0000

A few days ago, my Logitech Revue received its long-awaited update to Android 3.1 and with it came glorious, glorious access to the Android Market. The main category I’d been longing to fill was a solid media player with decent codec support. I finally found that in Plex so I wanted to review the app, which meant I needed a way to capture screenshots. Which, of course, I had no idea how to do.

Turns out it’s not a terribly complex process, but there are definitely a few gotchas that you should watch out for. You don’t even need to physically connect to the device, since the entire process is completed over WiFi via the Android Device Bridge (or ADB).

It’s called remote debugging and it’s something I’m sure the seasoned hackers out there are familiar with it but it’s not something I spent much time on myself. Also, after I got it working, I tweeted about my success, where @trsohmers chimed in and mentioned that remote debugging isn’t allowed on the Sony Google TV products, so this guide is exclusive to the Logitech Revue for the time being.

Update: As Cole points out in the comments, this method DOES work for the Sony Blu-ray player, so at least there’s that. It seems like only the Sony TV users are left in the cold here.

Prerequisite: Install the Android SDK

To complete the steps I’m about to lay out, you’ll need the Android SDK installed on your computer, the explanation of which is outside the scope of this tutorial- but fear not! There is ample explanation in other areas of the web, including a fairly old version right here on our site. If someone has a better basic SDK guide, please post it in the comments.

Another extremely important step is to set your Revue to display in 720p. The first few times I attempted this I was met with errors and it took finding an obscure post in a GTV Google Group to learn that 1080p is too large and will overrun the buffer. So for now, 720p is the way to go!

Once you’ve got the Android SDK installed on your workstation and a Logitech Revue powered up and on the network, you’re ready to connect and start debugging. If you’re Revue is in another room, you might want to make note of your workstation IP before we begin (example: 192.168.1.106).

Step 1: Enable Remote Debugging on the Revue

Before you can do anything, you’ll need to enable Remote Debugging on your Logitech Revue. You’ll find the option in Settings > Applications > Development and all you need to do is check a box:

While you’re here, you’ll also need to enter the IP address of your workstation computer. It’s basically a whitelist which allows your computer to connect- if you don’t enter the correct IP address here, you’re ADB command in the next step won’t work. I’d imagine this is for security, and I guess I appreciate it because I especially don’t want some goober peeping on what I’m watching.

Step 2: Retrieve IP address of GTV device

To connect to the device over WiFi, you’ll need the IP address of the Logitech Revue, which you can find in Settings > Network > Status:

Step 3: Connect to the GTV device via ADB

Once the Revue knows your workstation IP and you know the IP of the Revue, you’re ready to connect with a simple ADB command. Open up the command promt, and type:

adb connect

replacing with the actual IP we retrieved in the last step. If the command works, the prompt will return connected to and you’ll be able to proceed as if you’d physically connected the device like you’ve done with a phone hundreds of times in the past.

Step 4: Capture screens using DDMS

Once you’ve got you’re GTV device connected (which you can verify by typing adb devices into the command prompt), you’ll be ready to capture screens using DDMS (the Dalvik Debug Monitor Server). Simply type ddms into the prompt and you’ll be on your way:

You’ll notice in the bottom of the DDMS window that you’ve got a ‘Log’ pane, which should be flashing all sorts of activity from your connected GTV device (this should let you know you’re on the right path). From there, just select Device > Screen Capture and you’ll get a nice capture of what’s going on on your Logitech Revue:

I should point out that the screen capture won’t work correctly if you’v got live TV currently displayed. Apparently they’ve used some sort of black magic to scrub the picture out, but almost every other app captures just fine.

In conclusion…

Now that I’ve got this new-found, TV-app-capturing capability, I plan on trying to do some more Google TV app reviews. Since I got the upgrade I’ve really been using the hell out of my Logitech Revue. My wife even just bought me a second one for Christmas (she even let me open it early because I guessed what it was). I opened it tonite and the upgrade came as part of the initial setup, so I see the Revue being at the center of my entertainment world for the foreseeable future.

I’d say my current favorite app is easily Plex for Google TV, which is a full-feature media player that feels close to what I thought I’d be getting with GTV the first time around. I can play all of my network media with ease, along with custom channels from around the internet. I’ll be working on a full review of Plex, but I was curious what other apps you GTV users have taken to. Is there anything else out there I totally need to check out?

And just for good measure, here is one more captured screenshot:

Android 2.0 screenshot gallery

Taylor Wimberly — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 21:45:10 +0000

Now that the Android 2.0 SDK has been released, anyone can load up the emulator and try it out. We understand not everyone wants to take the time to install the SDK so I went ahead and snapped 60+ screens. They are nothing too exciting since this is just the regular stock Android 2.0, but I know some people still want to check them out.

Android 2.0 screenshot gallery

No descriptions were added, so feel free to post your questions over on Flickr or down in the comments.

How To Capture Android Screens With Vista x64

Taylor Wimberly — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 20:53:20 +0000

Each time we post a set of Android images on our Flickr account, I get several request to explain the process of capturing screens. I wrote a simple guide for using the Android app Screenshot, but it requires root access. If you are looking for a free, easy to use method that works on most operating systems, installing the Android SDK(software development kit) is the way to go.

Included with the Android SDK is a tool named Davlik Debug Monitor(DDMS). Once everything is installed properly, you can use DDMS to capture screens with a single click. When I installed the SDK on my pc running Windows XP, I had everything working in under 5 minutes. However, when I tried to get things working on Vista x64(idk why I’m running Vista) I ran into problems.

The following guide is for users running the 64-bit version of Windows Vista, but the same basic steps apply to different operating systems.

Part 1 – Ensure the Java Development Kit(JDK) is installed and working

Do not install the Windows 64 version of Java

Before we begin to install the Android SDK, we need to check if Java Development kit is properly setup.

Open up a command prompt window (Shortcut: Windows key + R, then type: cmd)
Type the following in the command prompt: java -version
If a version number is returned, the JDK is working. Skip to Part 2.

The correct response when checking Java version

If java is not a recognized command then complete the following steps:

Visit the official Sun Java site http://java.sun.com/javase/downloads/index.jsp
Download the latest Java SE Development Kit. Current version at the publish of this article is JDK 6 Update 14
When prompted for platform at download, select Windows and not Windows x64
Install the JDK when download is finished. Note the install location
Right click on My Computer > Select Properties
Go to the Advanced system settings > Find the Advanced tab and click Environmental Variables
In the System variables window, scroll down to Path and click Edit
At the end of the Variable value add the following path. Note a semicolon separates each path. ;C:\Program Files (x86)\Java\jdk1.6.0_14\bin
Hit Ok and return to a command prompt
Type “java -version” (minus quotes) and this time you should see the version returned.

Edit the system variables to add the Java path

Part 2 – Download and unpack the Android SDK

Complete the following steps to unpack the Android SDK(Software Development Kit).

Visit the official Android developer site: http://developer.android.com/sdk/
Download the latest SDK. Current version at publish is 1.5r2: Download SDK
Follow the installation instructions: Installing the Android SDK

Part 3 – Launch Davlik Debug Monitor and begin capturing screens

After Java is working and the Android SDK is unpacked, you should be able to launch the Davlik Debug Monitor.

Hook your phone to your PC via a USB cable
If prompted to install drivers, search the SDK folder in “usb_drivers”
Browse to the tools directory located in the Android SDK folder
Locate the file ddms.bat and click to launch
When Davlik Debug Monitor has loaded, find your device and click it
Once device is selected, from the main menu pick Device > Screen Capture
Preview the capture and then save it. All images are saved as .png files

Note the Android device is highlight in the background

If clicking ddms.bat fails to launch the application, try the following steps:

Open up a command prompt and navigate to the Android SDK tools directory
Type ddms.bat
Look for any error messages that are present

Practice taking screenshots and share your results. If you run into problems, someone here probably had the same issues and can offer you help. Learn to take screenshots now, because our next contest will require you to share some with us.

Cupcake Voice Recognition Now Available for Testing

Alex Byrnes — Fri, 01 May 2009 17:22:12 +0000

Since my last article on voice recognition in Cupcake, two things have happened. The Haykuro images came out and Google released the 1.5 SDK. That means it’s time to test out the voice recognition on a real phone. I’ve compiled some example code that comes with the SDK below. You can install it if you have the Cupcake over-the-air update, the 1.5 ADP, or a Haykuro image.

Voice Recognition for Android 1.5

To install, look for Voice Recognition in the Market (Applications > Demo) or scan the QR code at the bottom of the post. Once it’s installed, you just push the button, speak into your phone and Google’s best guess appears on the screen. Very simple, but some pressing questions have been answered.

It looks like voice recognition will take this form for all applications. The application starts the voice recognizer which prompts the user, displays the volume widget, shows the waveform of the recording, and then returns the results to the application. It’s not perfectly seamless but it gets the job done in a fairly small amount of time.

Note that the processing is not CPU intensive on the phone, but it will need to be sent to Google to be turned into text (thanks to Tim H for pointing this out on the last article). You’ll need a good internet connection for this. I found EDGE (non-3G data connection) to be a bit unreliable. About half got sent back with a connection error. That will definitely vary, but the worst case scenario is not good, especially if you’re trying to use this for possibly frustrating operations like speaking commands to your GPS navigation system. WiFi works much better and the results are fast.

Voice Recognition Results

I like the fact that you get good feedback from the volume widget and the waveform as to how you should be speaking. Since it doesn’t adapt itself to your speaking patterns, you’ll have to accommodate it. Also, if you don’t have an American accent, you might have a tough time getting good results. But, it does work, and Google says it’s getting better with practice. And since Google is one of the few companies on Earth with billions of dollars and access to millions of people’s voice searches, I’d say they’ve got as good a chance as anyone of getting this right.

Internally, the voice recognition interface is pretty simple. Developers will get their choice of models, either free-form or web search based, and they get a list of possible results instead of just one. That allows them to implement their own language model. If three responses come back, the application can choose the one most fitting to its cause.

Suppose the application wants a simple “yes” or “no.” It could accept anything starting with a “Y” as yes and “N” as no. “Yup,” “Yeah,” “You betcha”… as well as “yurt,” “yam”, and “yaw” depending on who’s speaking and how Google interprets it. You’re almost guaranteed a good match. In fact, the smaller the search space, the greater the likelihood of a good match, so a yes/no could be simplified to a silence versus response scheme that would work in any language. (In my tests, “yes” worked pretty well, but “no” consistently came up with “snow.”)

The language model is set to free-form on the sample, so results should differ slightly from the regular voice search.

Good luck! If you have funny, interesting, insightful results, please post them here.

Voice Recognition Demo for Android
Version: 1.0
Developed By: Alex Byrnes
Price: FREE
Filesize: 0.11KB

Upload Videos To YouTube Coming To Android 1.5 “Cupcake”

Taylor Wimberly — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 02:58:10 +0000

Google announced today that a new preview version of the Android software development kit was available for download. The official list of new features planned for the 1.5 release has been updated as well. Most of the changes fall into four groups:

User Interface Refinements
Performance Improvements
New Features
New APIs and Developer Tools

There are many exciting new features included like faster GPS aquisitions, official widgets, a predictive text engine, and more. Read the full list for more details. The following features are the ones I am looking forward to the most.

Text Prediction Engine

Since day one of owning my T-Mobile G1, I have longed for a soft T9 keyboard. I had hoped that chompSMS would have supported this input method, but I believe they were waiting for Android 1.5. Finally, I will be able to easily send text messages with my thumb. Even users of the physical keyboard can benefit from the use of predictive text. Custom IMEs (input method engines) will be available to download for use with our favorite applications.

Upload Videos to Youtube

Soon you can upload videos from your phone.

Now that video recording and playback will be supported, it only makes sense to support YouTube uploads. A new media sharing intent has been created so you could also share your videos with Twitter or other social networks. The camera has received performance enhancements, but I’m not quite sure of the video quality we can expect from the G1. I expect developers to create some exciting new applications with the new video recording APIs.

Browser UI Changes

The browser is set to receive some much needed updates like tabbed bookmarks, history, and a most-visited screen. The current bookmark support is very limited and I’m glad to see it get some attention. The history and most viewed detail is also a welcome addition. Also included are the latest versions of the Webkit and Squirrelfish Javascript engines.

What features from the official Android 1.5 list are you looking forward to the most?

The wait is almost over for Android 1.5

Googler Launches AndroidSavvy

Admin — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 19:23:45 +0000

Like most Android developers, I became intrigued way back in 2005 (an eternity ago!) when it was announced that Google was buying Android Inc. for it’s mobile arsenal. Nobody was saying exactly what would come of it, in fact it was a closely held secret what exactly Android was doing. Everyone knew it was mobile related, but that was about it.

A few years later, when more details were made public, and the SDK was released, I was hooked! I loved the idea of a Java based open source software development stack for creating mobile phone applications. I downloaded it, set it up on my mac and quickly got a Hello World program running. Moving beyond that was more challenging, of course. I found a bunch of interesting websites and Google discussion groups that were very helpful. I started bookmarking and checking in on those sites to get new information, find tutorials, and learn more about the SDK. The truly generous and helpful culture of software developers has been a wonderful resource in documenting and sharing this knowledge.

Android SDK

When the first Android device, the T-Mobile G1 made it’s debut, all kinds of websites sprouted up that were about the phone, the market, and end-users instead of developers. I continued finding new sites, blogs, cool RSS feeds, and even Twitter streams on an almost daily basis! This is a great thing, but I realized that most people would get lost in the plethora of choices and might never find the really good stuff.

AndroidSavvy was my attempt to consolidate and present a unified experience and central place to get all the best Android information. I knew it would be a very dynamic site, so using a Content Management System (CMS) seemed like a good idea. I chose Joomla as it seemed easy to use and has a lot of free add ons and extensions to show content in very interesting and useful ways. Like Android, Joomla is an open source project that is very widely used in the developer community. I was able to build my initial site in about a weekend, and later found some great add on modules that show RSS feeds, Twitter streams, and website links including thumbnail images of the actual website.

Unlike static content sites, AndroidSavvy is constantly updated. Not by me, but by you, the Android community! Every time you visit the website, the carefully selected RSS feeds on the front page are taken live from the sites they point at. The Tweets page is also updated on every visit by polling Twitter and getting the most recent updates from more than a dozen hand-picked twitter streams related to Android. The Links page is also updated by hand on a regular basis so only sites that seem relevant, up to date, and useful are included.

I hope you find AndroidSavvy useful in your Android work, and fun as well! I visit it often to see what’s new and get the latest updates from all around the web.

Bob Rose is a Google engineer, but is speaking on his own and not for his employer.