Necropolis Labs » Android

Getting Out of My Funk – Halloween Work Started

Terrormaster — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 01:15:05 +0000

Well, finally getting out of my post move funk (being in the hospital last week didn’t help either) – yeah I know, took me long enough. I think I get a buzz out of working under pressure. And well, the pressure is on because it’s Halloween crunch time and I hadn’t done jack shit until now. So anyways, I’ve gotten the general theme and yard plan sketched out. I’ve decided to work on the major large scale props first before doing any character additions. This year’s large prop additions are:

. Finish those damn wall panels I started last year (not really all that much left to do, all detail work now).
. Do that crypt/sarcophagus I had been meaning to do now for two years. And this is what I’ve been currently doing.

For the crypt, I’ve been inspired by the work going on over at the Davis House (those guys do some amazing work). If time permits I’ll be animating the lid to this much like the Hallowed Haunting Grounds had done. I’ve got most of the foam cut, just a few pieces to go. Then its glue time and then my virginal venture in monster mud before painting.

Other Updates

I know I’ve got some updates to do to the Hauntcast Android App. With everything going on post move and prepping for Halloween I haven’t even fired up the development environment since before the move. I promise folks I haven’t forgotten about you. To sweeten the deal, in addition to the bug fixes, I’ll throw in some bonus features when I do get around to it to at least make it worth this wait.

New Droid Incredible

Terrormaster — Thu, 29 Apr 2010 15:31:00 +0000

Love this commercial. It takes cues from The Matrix but does it a tiny bit creepier. Something about the red matrix pattern is unsettling but in a good way. I’m wishing I could trade up my Eris for the Incredible right about now.

Halloween Countdown Widget (How-To)

Terrormaster — Sat, 03 Apr 2010 02:39:02 +0000

The most common problem reported is “I downloaded it but I can’t find it anywhere.” This seems to be because a lot of people are not accustomed to the concept of widgets on their mobile device or they’re used to seeing apps that function as both an app AND a widget. The Halloween Countdown Widget is only a widget, it has no app interface and therefore will not show in the program launcher (which is where most people go looking for it).

You can only use this app as a widget. Widgets were introduced in Android 1.5 (lovingly known as Cupcake) so you’ll need to be on at least version 1.5 of Android to use this app. In lieu of that, this how-to is more about how to add a widget to one of your Android device screens.

First choose a screen with enough room for the widget. The Halloween Countdown Widget consumes a 2×2 spot (2 icons x 2 icons).

Long-press a free spot on the screen until a menu pops up and choose the selection that says Widget.

You’ll be presented with a list of possible widgets to add to your screen, among those will be the Halloween Countdown Widget. Select and enjoy.

Halloween Countdown Widget (COMPLETE)

Terrormaster — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 04:02:59 +0000

Alrighty haunters and ghouls, the Halloween Countdown Widget is complete and available for free from the Android App Store. As you can see in the screenshot that I’ve taken a completely different approach from where I was going the first time. Battery tests show that updating every second did put a noticeable strain on the battery. I decided that if I was dump the seconds off the display that the really only important thing at that point is the number of days.

So I completely revisited the design and put together something that I feel is far better than what I had before. Something that’s not simply a knock of all the other countdowns out there (although I couldn’t find any Halloween related countdowns out there for Android). There’s a candle in the display that melts away a little each month the closer it gets to Halloween then starts over on November 1. If I can find a way to animate the candle flame without impacting performance or battery life I will add it in a future version.

Also of note is the skull being interactive meaning that if you tap it you’ll get one of four random Halloween sound effects. This is where I met my biggest challenge being new to Android development. It took hours of research to find a working sample of how to implement a button on a widget, especially one that doesn’t open a separate app.

Overall I’m extremely pleased with the final outcome. My daughter loves touching the skull to make it play sounds (wait till she sees my next project muhahaha, I might never get my phone back).

The Halloween Countdown Widget is up on the Google Android App store and can be picked up freely there, just search for “Necropolis Labs” and you’ll find it. Or just hit the QR Code below using a barcode reader from your Android phone.

Enjoy and keep your eyes peeled for more Android goodies from Necropolis Labs.

Halloween Countdown Android Widget

Terrormaster — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 05:32:26 +0000

My first ever Android app – A Halloween Countdown Widget is up and running on my phone. I haven’t put the APK up on the Android market yet. Running some battery tests to see if the widget updating every second puts a drain on the battery.

I’m not certain about the pumpkin on the left or the blood font at the top. Open to criticism and suggestions.

Haunted Android Development

Terrormaster — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 20:54:20 +0000

As some of my friends and family already know, I’m hoping to get my hands on an Android phone soon (if all goes well by the end of the year, if not then for my normally scheduled upgrade in 2010). In particular I’ve been eyeballing the HTC Droid ERIS (aka HTC Hero) which, while not sporting a physical keyboard or flash for its 5mp camera, is just a much better all around phone than the Motorola Droid (yes I realize the Droid is running Android 2.0 while the ERIS is still on 1.5 – but what they won’t mention at Verizon is that Android 2.0 will be available for ERIS come January 2010).

Anyways I’m looking at getting some hands on Java and Android development going and putting some new tech skills under my belt. Mobile Apps are the new hotness right now but I still refuse to get on the iPhone bandwagon. I much prefer the openess of Android.

So with that in mind I’ve been looking for some fun starter apps to build and ran across this page while searching for mobile horror games (always good to check potential competition). Yes the page is all iPhone stuff but it was enough inspiration to get the gears turning. Now I’m hoping to turn out some fun apps for the haunt community. I have a buddy of mine who does iPhone App development so who knows maybe even some ports in the future as well.

13 Devilish Halloween iPhone Apps, Wallpapers & Ringtones

There’s Gonna Be Some Changes…