source: gs3-extensions/i-jetty/trunk/src/README.txt@ 23970

Greenstone3 Runtime on Android
==============================

This extension helps you set up and run Greenstone3 on your android device.

It relies on the environment variable ANDROID_SDK_HOME to determine
where the Android SDK lives on your file system, in a similar way
JAVA_HOME gets used by many programs to determin where Java is
installed on a particular computer.  The key programs we need to run
from the Android SDK are 'adb' and 'dex'.  The most straight forward
way to control this variable is to:

  cp setup-android.bash.in setup-android.bash

and then edit 'setup-android.bash' the value of **ANDROID-SDK-HOME**
to be the top-level directory of where the Android SDK was installed to.

Having done this, source the main setup file:

  source setup.bash

which automatically sources setup-android.bash if the ANDROID_SDK_HOME
environment variable isn't set.

Having sourced the setup file the two main steps are:

  1) Install i-jetty

  2) Install Greenstone3 as a web-app 
     (converting any jar and class files to DEX format)

The first step typically only needs to be done once. The second step is
composed of three sub-steps, and may require the last two sub-steps to
be repeated if the Java code has been modified.

Step 1
=======

First, install i-jetty on your Android device.  You can do this through
the Market, or else type:

  adb install i-jetty-2.2-signed.apk

Note: for your Android device to install applications using 'adb' you
need to have enabled it's application 'Development' mode (under
Settings->Application)

*************
**Important**
*************

Having installed i-jetty, find the application on the Android device
and launch it (but you don't have to go as far as starting the i-jetty
server from within this application).  Launching i-jetty completes the
installation of the application by creating the 'jetty' folder on the
Android's SD-card, and populating it with the default configuration
files for i-jetty.  The 'jetty' folder is needed for your setup procedure
as it is where Greenstone-3 will be installed to.


Step 2
======

Next put your Android device into USB disk mode, and set up the necessary files
to run Greenstone3 as a web-app under i-jetty.  The three sub-steps are:


Step 2.1
--------

Transfer the bulk of the <GSDL3SRCHOME>/web structure to the 
<SDCARD>/ijetty/webapps/greenstone3 with:


  WEBAPP-ROOT-TO-SDCARD.sh

This script skips any .svn files if present.  It also skips installing
'localsite' as this is rather large -- both in size and in terms of
the number of files invovled -- so copying is rather slow, and it is
probably not what you want anyway.


Step 2.2
--------

Convert the class files (includes those stored in jar files) into
classs.dex with:

  JAVA-TO-DEX.sh  

The finished file, which is also by this point zipped up, is left in
the 'lib' folder.


Step 2.3
--------

Copy classes.zip onto the Android's sd-card

  DEX-TO-SDCARD.sh  

This is the final step in getting Greenstone3 setup on an Andoird.
Switch off the USB disk mode on the Android device.  Note: it can take
a device minute or two "preparing" the sd-card.  This can be seen
on the notification view.  Alternativey, if you try to start i-jetty
before the card is ready, then i-jetty points this out, and offers you
a 'retry' button.


Step 3
======

Launch i-jetty from my apps area.  Then, within i-jetty, start the
server.  Once the "Jetty started" message appears, switch to your
web-browser application.  We've tested the built-in web browser, and
Mobile Firefox 4.


If the Java code to Greenstone3 is changed, then you need to repeat sub-steps
2.2 and 2.3



Caveats:
========

1. Due to difficulties in getting MG and MGPP working on android
   through the NDK, these are currently not supported.  Effectively,
   the Greenstone3 used needs to be one compiled *without* JNI
   support.


2. Due to a runtime (reflection) error, we had to modify xalan.jar.
   The modified version of this file is also in the 'jars' folder
   used in this extension.