I have written a simple database driven app in C# which uses a 2 table MySQL database. This is all a learning curve for me (except c#, which I am now comfortable with)
The app is small, has a couple of datagridviews, uses a few sql select/inserts statments to populate the datagridviews and also update records.
I want to port this app to Android. All of the internet sources I can find recommend a middle php sript which accepts http requests in order to fetch the data from MySQL and then return the results back to the android device where it is parsed with JSON etc etc.
This method is a little out of my reach since I dont have php experience, all of my attempts to implement the php layer have failed, speciially the android app was not receiving any data back, I'm assuming I messed up somewhere inside the php file.
Is there an easier (more noobproof) way to interact with the MySQL database from within android which doesnt require the need for php + JSON? Any ideas are appreciated, thank you in advance.
If you are comfortable with C#, why not use ASP.Net MVC for the middle man?
MVC is especially easy to deal with JSON, and you actually only need to create those "controllers" (as models should already be there from your existing app, and JSON don't need the View to display).
You can create a Web Service with C# that handles the data retrieval from the database; no need to go with PHP. Try create one with WCF API (check this question in order to create one). In order to create an Android client that consumes JSON on Android check this link.
If your mobile application have to access a database over the network you should indeed build a web service fronted to the database.
By putting a web access layer on top of the database you can expose the required queries in an abstracted, secure and convenient manner.
Though this sort of web service architecture can be implemented with PHP + JSON other technologies can be used as well. If you feel more comfortable with C# you can use it to build the web service instead. By doing so you may even be able to reuse some of the code from your existing application.
Actually, it would be better to take php in middle of android & mysql, due to the security concern and by the way this is the most easiest & comfortable method. here is link link. I hope you like it.
Related
At the moment I am making an app. I am relatively new but have experience with a lot of different languages like PHP and SQL. My app needs to communicate with a server to post/retrieve data for everyone to see. People also need to be able to login and register. Right now I am using parse because it gives a lot of the requirements in an easy package but parse is retiring soon and I have no experience with setting up my own server.
I was thinking of making my own 'server' from an old computer but not use parse because it will no longer support push notification. Then of course the app needs to communicate with this server. I started looking online and found a lot of terms but not a real clear explanation on how to proceed. I need it to be able to communicate with iOS and Android. Furthermore I was wondering how to execute a script on the server itself. I want to do something with time, once someone uploads something it needs to disappear after 48 hours, but of course it also needs to do this even if the app isn't active on a smartphone
Can anyone tell me how I need to proceed, what to use and where i can find useful info.
My plan for now is creating my own server with something like MongoDB but then i still need something called a backend and different SDK's to communicate with the apps. Maybe its possible to install parse on my own server and add something so i can still use Push and run a script on the server itself.
All help would be very much App-reciated ;)!
The reason of a backend service or framework is to let developer focus on front end app development. Maybe you can check other options like firebase, meoter, or even leancloud. Don't be hurry jump to the decision to make your own backend.
Parse Server is already supporting Push Notifications. I think should keep using Parse. It will become the best framework for backend and API development in a short time. You can also use services like https://www.back4app.com that helps you in all process of configuration of your server.
Do you mean by create your own server running a personal derver pr you mean create your own back end application?
I am planning to use node webkit for porting my existing html/css/javascript from a web app to desktop native app.Before doing this, i was trying to see if there are any downsides of using node webkit.
Which is the best database supported by nodewkit
My understanding is that it does not require any browser to run this node webkit app and that it provides webkit engine and the app provides a UI to it by using html5, and css.Is this understanding of mine correct?
All your pointers will be helpful.
Thanks!!!
Yes that is correct. Node webkit works as an HTML5/Node.js application wrapped around simple browser app written on Chromium Engine, and it doesn't need anything installed to work.
As far as I understand You want to connect to remote database, not create a local one for user data. If that's true, You shouldn't implement it on client side, but on server side. Which means your server side implementation shouldn't differ from Your actual one.
I create some applications with the following struct :
- folder : server (for any php/db request or response)
- folder : client (for js/css and images)
the relation beetween the client and the server is AJAX.
and the best db for a local use I prefer : Sqlite (in a network MongoDB or MySQL)
in all the cases it's preferably to use an ORM like Doctrine.
and make sure that in the response of server you send allways a json (not a formatted divs or any html) the client must be able to organise his data him self.
as a sample : openerp use this structure (with python istead of php).
for use of sqlite here is link that explane the way:
http://tejasrpatel.wordpress.com/2011/12/29/create-sqlite-off-line-database-and-insertupdatedeletedrop-operations-in-sqlite-using-jquery-html5-inputs/
that's the advices from my experience. and hope this be helpfull for someone.
I am currently developing a node-webkit app myself as well. I had this same question so as I was looking around I found PouchDB. This looks very promising for a node-webkit environment so that's what I'm going to be using. I hope this helps you out as well.
Actually there is one major part of node-webkit that you don't mention in your question, that is the 'node' part, specifically node.js. This is important because just about anything you can do in node.js is available to you in node-webkit.
I don't know what your application does, so I can't tell for sure, but you may or may not need an actual database. If all you want to do is store some data, you may find a file to be sufficient (JSON or whatever format is convenient for your purpose) which is easy to do with the fs module. Or you might only need to use localStorage, which is also available in the 'webkit' part of node-webkit.
If you do actually need a database, then anything works with node.js should be available to you, such as the aforementioned pouchdb, or any number of other possibilities.
In any case, you don't need to set it up as a client server model if you don't want to, you can just access files or databases directly in your node.js code. Conversely, if you do want to do a client-server model, you can have both running locally within your node-webkit program.
Hope that helps.
I use node-webkit insted of Qt, PySide, etc. and I tell you why:
webkit (the most full feature browser)
nodejs (what can I say is javascript)
cross platform (almost all)
To package and distribuite the software I use Web2Executable
For the GUI I use ExtJs 4.2 from Sencha
Database (engine) I use NeDB but you can use internal engines from webkit found here persistent-data-in-app
So. I have embarked on the journey of learning Laravel in the last couple of weeks, and am thoroughly enjoying it.
It has come time for a site redesign and I thought it was about time to tighten up some of our functionality, so I am making the switch from CodeIgniter to Laravel.
I was wondering whether it is worth starting off with a RESTful API layer in Laravel (easy enough to create) and use it as a base even for the web application. In the future we are likely to build a mobile app that will need to use the API. So:
Is it worth having the web application connect to the API
and what is the easiest way/s to make calls to the API without having to write a bazillion
lines for cURL everytime I want to make a request?
It is definitely worth it.
I am currently redesigning a messy PHP code for an established hosting company turning it into beautiful Laravel code. I already have a mobile app working with it - Laravel makes it easy to return JSON data with one line -
Response::json('OK', 200);
or
Response::eloquent(Auth::user());
or
$tasks = Task::all();
Response::eloquent($tasks);
You don't need to use CURL as far as I know.
You can make all requests with simple AJAX, jQuery would simplify that.
Also using some MVC JS framework would help you make the application code structure more elegant for the client side, and the advantage is that you can easily package that into PhoneGap when you are ready to have your API take some real testing.
Today I posted on my blog about a simple example that you can try to see if this approach is worth your time : http://maxoffsky.com/code-blog/login-to-laravel-web-application-from-phonegap-or-backbone/
Check it out and accept the answer if you think it's on the right track.
As always, your results may vary, but this is exactly what I'm going through at the moment. I'm migrating a large .Net site with this API architecture and I've decided to keep it for Laravel.
I personally decided for this because:
More scalable. I can setup api.domain.com and then add additional
boxes/vm/whatever as our traffic grows. In fact, you could load
balance just the api by "round robin" or multiple dns entries for
that domain.
Future proofing for new sites and apps. Sounds like you're in the
same situation. I can see an app or two being added in the next year
or so.
Lost cost. You'll already be laying out your controllers, so really
it can be just a matter of setting them to RESTful and making small
tweaks to accommodate.
To be fair, some counter points:
Possibly additional load time, from processing through the API, though this should be minimal.
Additional security items to consider if you'd like to lock things down to just your app.
Either way, welcome to Laravel!
and what is the easiest way/s to make calls to the API without having to write a bazillion lines for cURL everytime I want to make a request?
#Sneaksta try postman chrome extension for calling rest services. you can create forms in this extension and pass data from these forms to you Rest services
https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/postman-rest-client/fdmmgilgnpjigdojojpjoooidkmcomcm?utm_source=chrome-ntp-icon
I am trying to do my first App which is a basic joke app that uses tableViews and allows users to add their own jokes to the app database. My problem is in the networking department and I think I'm getting confused with all that is out there. I have a couple basic questions that I was hoping to get answers or opinions on:
I am really confused about the path that is taken from the app on the iphone to the database that is holding the data. Does the tableview controller call a AFNetworking object, that then sends a JSON object to a server-side script(??), that then queries a SQL database and returns the data? I am just looking for a basic path that allows the user to add their own joke to the database.
Is this a URL request? When I see URL request I think of a web page.
I have a website that is hosted on GoDaddy.com. Is this also sufficient to hold the database for the jokes on the iOS app?
I have been searching for days and have gotten no simple answer. I just want to study the correct subjects instead of wasting time. ANY help or pointers would be appreciated.
You have two forms of storage here - some form of web store (such as a server database technology like MySQL) and the local iOS CoreData (if you want to store locally, or make a new request every time thus requiring a connection). You can use web requests (perhaps using the AFNetworking library) to ensure that the local store and the online store match. A typical flow could be for example - on app launch perform a GET request to pull all jokes from the server using a service URL that returns a JSON file, then update Coredata. To upload a new joke, use a POST request which performs a similar function.
A 'URL request' maps to a web technology which uses some form of logic to determine how to return some data. For example, the request may arrive at a web server (such as Apache) which routes your request to a PHP controller file which then talks with the database and returns your data.
GoDaddy is a hosting platform that supports PHP and MySQL (amongst other technologies that will do the same trick), so yes.
In your situation, I would study the Model-View-Controller design pattern. Your app will be a great learning experience I think, you should pick up a lot of core concepts.
EDIT to answer your question in the first comment:
Your question:
1. Are JSON files stored on the device or the server? 2. Does JSON replace JavaScript?
Answers:
JSON is short for JavaScript Object Notation, it's just a way of representing data and doesn't replace anything. It's particularly useful because most languages support parsing JSON in a way that the technology understands. It's a handy way of sending data around because it's pretty lightweight and is widely supported.
In a case like this, the JSON would probably not be stored on the server. The data would be stored in a database. Your request will be mapped to a server side technology such as PHP or Ruby which will then ask the database for the information, convert it to JSON for sending and return it to the client. (It is possible to store data on a server in a JSON file, but you would have to write your server side code to manipulate the JSON file directly, it would be hard work and way less elegant!)
The client (in this case an iOS device) will parse the JSON into an object that Objective-C can play with, like an NSDictionary.
Hope that helps!
Recline.js seems a great tool to display data on grids, maps, etc.
I'd like to use the grid views, but to be able to save what is displayed to the user on a database. I'm currently using rails for this project.
In the docs, they say how to code a backend to integrate with it (http://okfnlabs.org/recline/docs/backends.html) but i wonder if there's already someone working on it ( I couldn't find it on the web)
Thanks
The Backend object in Recline.js a javascript component that talks to a data source of some kind, typically a web service. The Backend component talks to the interface of that web service, and it doesn't care whether it be programmed in Ruby, COBOL or Java, as long as it knows where to get and send the data, and in what format.
So in short there isn't, and can't really be a ready Rails backend, because the implementation depends more on the specifics of your application -- how to map the data in your database (MySQL?) to a service API Recline can understand, and vice versa.
You can use SOLR with Rails, so I dont know why you couldn't utilize the Recline.js SOLR functionality to search your rails data.