Two Quick Updates

So version 1.0.0.5 was pushed to the market yesterday and 1.0.0.6 a little while ago.  Not too much new with these, mostly minor bug fixes based upon emails and the force close reports that Google gives me.  Here's the details of what's fixed:

• Slide Show - There looks to have been a slight timing error with the loading of the images and the slide show starting that would cause to hang and the "Loading.  Please wait..." dialog.  Some code rearrangement, additional checks and more messages should give a better user interface experience and fix the problem.
• Purchase Service FC - This might account for some of the "random force closes".  Looking at the logs, the purchase service apparently doesn't always receive an intent when it's started.  It then causes a Force Close.  I find this odd as this is Google code that I'm sure other people are using and I don't know why the bug is in the example.  I simply and checking and catching the parsing of the intent.  Hopefully I stop getting error logs about this.
• Screen Saver - The timer wasn't being set when the application was loaded.  It was only started if you left the main screen (opened the preferences for example) and came back.
• Weather Display - I fixed a minor display bug that was happening on some devices.
• Location - I've got a couple users who are have location issues.  I previously tried to fix it with some additional permissions, but that still doesn't seem to be fixing it.  So there's a new option in the Weather settings screen for "Location Error Messages".  This will display toast messages when it tries and fails to get your location based on what ever service.  Hopefully this will help me figure out how to fix the problem(s).  I may also be having problems with the "Use IP address" feature and I need to email someone about that.

I think that takes care of all the things that are broken from the major changes that happened going to the version 1.0 release.  So hopefully this will mean less updates and will allow me to work on additional new development instead of the "fire fighting" fixing issues.

Next Batch

Version 1.0.0.4 is now in the market.

Once again just a couple of fixes and enhancements

• Dark Clock (Screen Saver) - I got an email from a user saying that the night clock no longer dimmed, but it did dim, just so very little  you couldn't tell.  When I incorporated the better dimming for the "Smoke" level on the main screen I changed it to take an integer (ie 30%) while the Dark Clock's dim was expecting a decimal (ie .30).  Yes it was very Micheal Bolton of me to misplace the decimal...
• Dark Clock - I added an option to keep the screen on when in the Screen Saver mode.  Some people want it on, others want it off, so now there's an option.
• Strings - I've had an on going error log pop up that I haven't been able to put my finger on.  It turns out (or so I believe) that when I did the string translation the substitution strings (minutes %s until alarm) got messed up and I think were causing issues with setting alarms.  I've fixed all of those and I'm hoping that goes away.
• Translation - Sergio from Chile contacted me awhile back saying that my Spanish translations were off and that some did not make sense (this has happened before).  He offered to fix things up and those are now in place (there are some new strings that haven't been reviewed yet).  I wanted to tell Sergio 'Gracias' for his help!  This prompted me to put a link to this page asking for translating for other languages.

This leaves me with one other big bug left with the purchasing service, which someone left a note in the report that "wasn't even doing anything with it." which might mean that something is just not being set or caught correctly...

After knocking that issue out I've got these two enhancements for the dock extension:

• Launch a specific app when removed from the dock.
• Tablet Dock Mode by this I mean stretch the dock the entire width of the device and use a gallery for the icons.

Quick Fixes

Version 1.0.0.3 is in the market.  Just a couple of things fixed:

• Picasa - This probably didn't effect too many people, but it was a bug when you had Picasa images chosen for the background, but didn't choose any Albums
• Weather and Location - I'm now holding on to the weather and location information so I don't have to look it up all the time.  This should make rotation and weather update refreshes faster.

Fixin' Bugs

I've kept a close eye on the Android Application Error logs to figure out where the problems are and fix everything as quickly as possible.  As I eluded to on Monday when I first released version 1.0 there was a lot of code churn and as I stated on the Market page:

There were a large number of changes for this release.  If you have problems please help me by emailing me so I can help you!

I've been working with a number of users to identify the bugs and Johannes in Austria I was able to identify a pretty nasty force close bug and get an update to the market later that day.  He was also helpful in tracking down another issue with updating the number of docks from the preference screen.  I was also happy to get comments (cause that means that someone is actually reading this) from two users in Monday's release post (and my reply is in there as well).  There's those two ways of contacting me and I'm probably going to break down and setup a Twitter account and start using Google+ when things settle down.   Leaving a comment like... Oh I don't know... something like "Update sux Update is full of bugs" (Ahem Lacy*) that doesn't do any good and makes me go all ranty.   Bob S thank you for driving home the idea that if leave me a comment things get fixed!

Here's the list of thing that I have fixed in version 1.0.0.2

• Force Close on start / orientation change - This was actually fixed late Monday in version 1.0.0.1 and it must have done the trick as all the force close reports that have come in and are still coming in are from version 1.0  This was basically a Layout redraw issue, it was trying to set the dock buttons, but due to a layout reload the button was there.
• Force Close when changing dock count - This one was caused by me doing VB for work and then Java at lunch...slight differences in the languages and how they work.
• 24 Hour AM/PM - Regardless of the setting the AM/PM was always being set to visible.
• Plugged-in Indicator - Same as above the indicator was always on
• Heartbeat transition - This got lost in the GUI redesign and now fades in and out like before.
• Disable Heartbeat - Ummm... yea didn't put the code in to do this... I found it when I was looking at the transition.  
•  Weather Issues - I've had a couple emails about the weather not working.  From what it sounds like it's having a problem getting the location to find the weather.  I looked at the code and it's exactly the same as the previous version.  However, there were some differences with the permissions which might have been the problem.  If that's the problem I must be trapping the lack of permissions correctly, but not finding the location (which sounds right).  I'm hoping that this fixes things, but I haven't had any problems with the weather loading... Did this get fixed?

Known issues that are still out there (from what Google tells me):

• Null Pointer in the get Picasa images - not sure if this is the featured or your images.
• Null Pointer in the billing service - this is google code for the extension purchase (which pisses me off).  If you get a force close when purchasing the extension, put your name in the log and email me.  

I'm sure there's more, but I don't have the time to list them now.  

*If it's this Lacy then it might be ok...

Desk Clock Plus Version 1.0 Released

I am very happy to announce that I have published the changes for Desk Clock Plus that I've been working on for the past 6 months or so (remember, I'm only a lunch time developer so things take time).  So what's new?  That's a very big question....

The big thing is the addition of 'Application Extensions'.  The basic features of Desk Clock Plus (ie the features from the versions prior to this and what the 'Stock' clock app does) will always remain free.  I don't feel it's right for me (or legal) to charge for that*.  However I understand that there are some users who what more from this application that others don't need.  I think the dock configuration is a good example of that.  Some users have asked for this and I would image that others wouldn't care if they could do that or not.  So for one US dollar (or your approximate equivalent) you can purchase this extension for your devices.  As I said before, I don't see myself getting rich off of this application, but with the holidays coming up and more importantly the office holiday beer exchange I could use a couple extra bucks.

One more thing to note about this... I am a little sketchy about how the code for this works.  I'm pretty sure that I have it implemented correctly (the Pay-Pal system was much easier to work with and debug).  If you have a problem please contact me (or leave a comment) I don't want to leave someone who has paid for this (or is trying to pay) high and dry.  There are a couple of bonuses with this.

1. When you purchase this extension, it should work across all your devices that are connected to your account.
2. If you get a new phone or second device, you should just need to go in to the 'Purchase Extensions' screen for things to be reset internally, so you will not have to 'repurchase' this extension.

Now, on to the changes for this version:

• Scrolling Dock Button Extension - More documentation to follow, but the quick over view is that you can go into the settings --> Scrolling Dock Configuration to set the number of docks and to configure the docks.  Swipe the dock left and right to change docks.  Additionally you can long press a button change a button's:
• Action - internal to Desk Clock Plus
• Application - Launch a 3rd party app
• Clear - Clear action or application
• Add Dock -  Add a new empty Dock.
• Delete Dock - Delete the current Dock.
• Scrolling time / Weather - As a bonus for anyone who purchases an extension I also enable the feature of swiping the time or weather to change it to Digital Time, Analog Time or Weather (I'll add more 'windows' as I add more paid extensions.

• Reorganized Settings Screen - I grouped everything into sub-properties instead of the sub groups, this way you have smaller pieces to deal with at one time.  Everything is still grouped the same way, just organized a little different.
• Redesigned GUI - This should be pretty much be transparent to everyone, however some people should notice that fixes issues with 3 digit temperatures and long city state names.
• Translation - I changed how I translate this application into other languages.  I originally sang the praises of Androlate.  There was some problems with it.  First, it was pretty slow.  Second, it didn't handle multiple string files very well.  Third, it doesn't work anymore (it was only a beta anyhow).  For this go around, I used a Chrome Extension Android Multilingual translation tool.  I was very happy with it as it fixed the 3 issues above, however it doesn't handle string arrays, so those are still in English for the time being.  I also don't know if translations are any better (I'm going to check with other users)
• Background Images - I made a major change to how background images are handled that should drastically reduce the memory that I'm using and should reduce if not eliminate the out of memory issues you would get when loading images.  This has also worked its way into the slide show.
• Performance Boost - I think this comes from the changes for the background images, but the application seems to be running much faster which is always good!

Some other things to note, I updated everything on the Android Market page added a new featured graphic, new screen shots and re-wrote all the text.

Stats wise, I'm very happy with what Google is telling me (22k downloads, 5k installed and an average review of 3.7)

As always, what's next?  Probably over the next week or two it's going to be a number of updates for bug fixes as people start using the new version.  I might have some language updates depending on how well the chrome extension did.  I have a couple more ideas for the dock configuration extension that I want to implement.  I have a security issue that I need to resolve and then hopefully some more extensions.

As always, I'm very happy that 5,000 people are using this application, so if you experience any issues or have a suggestion, please email me!

*I am happy to note that everything except for the alarm & alarm screen was written by me.  The alarm code was taken from the Google source.

Major Release on the horizon...

Since May 23rd, updates for Desk Clock plus have been few and far apart (about 4 or 5 in those 5 months).  In that time, I've been working on a pretty major redesign of the main screen.  I haven't changed the look of the application all that much, but the underlying layout has changed a lot which will allow me to add new features quickly and easily.  It's also allowed me to shrink the size of the APK file by 300K or more.

The big feature is the ability to configure the dock (the five icons on the bottom of the screen).  You will soon be able to add more docks (swiping left and right) and add your own applications.  This however will will be an in-app-purchase to enable this new feature.  The in-app-purchase code was truly what had delayed the release of this version.  However, now that's been worked out, I should be able to add more in-app-purchases easily.

I'm happy with the in-app-purchase system that Google has provided (now that it's working).  I feel that it allows me to provide a free basic application for anyone to use and provide additional features for those people willing to pay for them.  I'm not looking to get rich and retire to the beach, but a little extra cash for beer money would be nice.

I also have a list of stack traces that I need to look at (force close and application not responding reports).  I'm not getting a ton of these, but I'm about 2-4 per week, so they need to be addressed.  For the most part it's better error catching for image loading (out of memory, image memory already cleared, etc).

As of 10-3-11 there are 19 Stack traces to look into...

If you happen to notice any other oddities or bugs, leave a comment!

Dark Clock Options

After adding the new feature of dimming the dark clock I had a couple of people email regarding it being too dark or that they didn't want it to dim at all.  I knew when I published that last update about a week ago that I probably should have just waited and added these two options.  So, just a little while ago, I pushed version 0.98.5.11 out to the market with these two new features:

• Dim Time Out -- Allows you to configure when if ever the Dark Clock will dim down.  Choices are Off, 5, 10, 15 or 30 minutes.
• Dim Level -- Allows you to configure how much the Dark Clock will dim out.  Choices are 20%, 30%, 40%, 50%, 60%, 70% or 80%.  The previous (and stock default) was 80%.  

Also, I'm happy to note that I've had a pretty decent bump in active installs over the past month (and specifically in the last week).  

It's crazy to me that I've got over one thousand new Active (installed on a device) users in about a week.

I'm close to having the last piece of the next major release done, so hopefully in the next week or two I'll have a  big release to write about.