User Interface Piped out HDMI / Video Out - Android Software Development

I am relatively new to Android. On phones that have Video out (such as Evo), would it be possible to write a driver that would allow you to pipe the phones user interface out of the video out or HDMI port? By "possible" I mean, do we have access to the driver code and maybe documentation for Android devices? Or do we know enough of what to modify to send all video to the external display driver?, etc, etc.. I'll probably know the right questions to ask as you guys start answering these ones...
Thanks for putting up with me...

I've requested this feature to, I think a lot of people are starting to see the potential of using these new smartphones as netbook (laptop?) replacements, if it's possible to hook in a mouse/keyboard and output the UI to an external display via HDMI. That's certainly how I'm looking at it, anyway...

Related

Can Himalayas control each other using bluetooth?

Hi,
I did ask about this on Networking but no replies. Think its more of a development issue.. there's potentially money to be made if someone comes up with a solution for this, I think, because of its film/tv industry applications....
I'm looking for a way to synchronize video playing on two Himalayas, presumably using Bluetooth. Although there are plenty of apps that let you control a media player on your pc using a Himalaya, I can't see anything that lets two phones control each other. Is it possible? It must be. I'm reasonably technically savvy (hardware and software) and am looking into developing something that does this, for my work in sound design and foley for films.... where having a mini, portable, silent-operating video player as a reference is a great advantage - nothing like that exists at the moment that has the capability for one person to control the video starting on another handheld player. Film industry has a lot of money to spend compared to consumers so a developer coming up with an app that does this might be able to market it!
Anyone interested in looking into this please post and I'll share the ideas, details etc that I've come up with so far...
Thanks!

PocketPC as MIDI controller?

This may be a stupid question, but is it possible to send real-time MIDI data over the USB link between PPC and computer (or via a wifi SD card for that matter)?
I've been playing with this Clanger Theremin app that turns your PPC touchscreen into a musical instrument of sorts - movement on the X axis changes pitch, movement on the Y axis changes volume.
It would be great if the entire touchscreen could be set up to send changes in MIDI values to a program running on the PC, also using the X and Y axes. Once MIDI data can be transferred, you could play the tuba via your PPC, or scratch virtual records like a dj, or really do just about anything.
There's already a program in development that allows you to do this with a Wacom drawing tablet (http://www.livelab.dk/tablet2midi.php), but a drawing tablet is already set up via USB to be a human input device or whatever you call it, so I wonder if the link between tablet and computer is at all similar to that between PPC and computer.
So would something like this be possible? Or is this just a pipe dream?
Wouldn't you just create a server on the desktop and get the client to connect to it through the Activesync network connection or bluetooth personal area network? The server would then have to behave like a MIDI device which might be the hard part. Would the PocketPC client produce MIDI events or send simpler x/y coordinates to the server which would then generate MIDI events?
this is a bloody excellent idea!!!
i can never have enough x/y pads!!!!!
anyone fancy a crack at it?
it should be pretty simple!
should have the option that when its touched it activates a switch (simple NOTE ON when pressed/ NOTE OFF when released). ive got annoyed with many xy pads for that reason!
i have a friend who may find this pretty easy.. sadly my code skills in that area are lacking severely.
i suspect he is too busy though..
i am quite liking the idea of the server/client method, with the ppc sending the data to a server that then converts that to midi data...
perhaps even a clever card export style driver emulation.. (only requires a pc driver instead of server program)
assignable hardware buttons!! great for activating effects..
anyone got any ideas?
edit: had another idea
great, i'm glad somebody else likes this idea! I guess the question is - how do you get a project like this started? I also don't have the coding experience that would allow me to make this myself.
Could I (or we, if there are more people that want this made) offer some sort of bounty for a finished app? Is there any system in place online for doing something like this? Something where you give a list of necessary specs and then post a reward for delivering a working app?
I certainly couldn't offer heaps, but if a bunch of people got together who wanted this and chipped in a bit of money each, perhaps it might motivate somebody to spend some time creating the thing. Programmers: how much would it take to convince you to spend some time creating something like this?
Or, if any experienced coders out there have a couple of ideas on how to do this and could point me in the right direction, perhaps I could do some research and eventually build this myself. As it is right now, I don't have a clue as to how to begin - can you send data of any kind down the USB link? Or over bluetooth, or wifi? What language should be used to program this?
Otherwise, if you're already interested in making a pocketpc into an x/y controller, and have the skills to do it, I can tell you that it'll be greatly appreciated.. Maybe I should post this topic outside of the Magician forum, as something like this could be useful for anybody with a pocketpc that has a touchscreen.
Anyway, I really hope that this can someday happen, it would be wonderful if it could. Perhaps focusing on MIDI data is a bad idea - if the touchscreen could be used to control anything on the PC then it might appeal to a wider range of users (and programmers). Imagine using your touchscreen via bluetooth to control Winamp from across the room, just moving your thumb up or down to raise or lower volume. I'm sure there are a huge variety of other uses that could come in handy as well. Assignable hardware buttons would be amazing...
There is already plenty of software that allows you to control your PC via your PPC (pocket VLC, winamp remote etc etc etc) but this doesnt neccesarily help matters.
If you have to have the controller on the screen of the host machine... you may as well be using a damn mouse.
I suggest a complete midi send system that will make the ppc work as if it is a real MIDI controller. This way you can use it as a system of control for elements that wont be controlled by devices you can have on-screen.
Im going to look into this later, im just about to do some important house related things
keep the ideas coming

Someone to write a program

I know this is for programmers only but since I am looking for a programmer I figured it would be okay for me to post this here.
MODS - If it belongs someone else then please feel free to move it...
I own a HTC Universal (Cingular 8125) and I am also a diver. For a few years I looked at various Palm based dive logging software (when I had a Palm) but never bought one because I like to write longish descriptions of the dive and didn't want to do that in Graffiti or bring both a Palm and a portable keyboard on a dive trip. The desire to minimize electronic gadgets (and weight) is also why I never bring a laptop along with me. However, with the 8125 I have one device that I can bring with that lets me watch movies on the plane, listen to music on the beach, check my e-mail if I find find a wifi hotspot, and has the full keyboard and can use as a phone since it is GSM!
That being said, most dive comptures have the capacity to download information about the dive (depth, temperature, etc) to a computer. This information is very useful when you combine it with a log since it allows you to see what is called your dive profile and if you have the right logging software you can then combie this profile with your comments and create a really neat electronic log book.
However, the logging software for my computer, and I believe most computers, will not download to my device to any device running WM5. I had pretty much given up and figured I would have to wait awhile until these silly companies ralized there was a demand for WM5 and hopfully created software so you could download your computer information directly into your phone. However I recently found this device http://reefnet.ca/products/sensus/ which is very different. It is more of a logger than a dive comuter in that you do not interact with it during the dive and it does not give you any guidance about dive limits. One of the biggest things that makes it different is that they, "realizes the benefits of publishing the technical details of its data recording devices. If you're a software developer, dive organization, or just curious, you may download our free Developer's Guides. In them we carefully detail everything you need to know to be able to download data from Sensus recorders. The Sensus Ultra Developer's Guide is AVAILABLE NOW!"
So what I was thinking is that someone might be able to create software for WM5 so that we could download the information directly into a Pocket PC. This could then perhaps be combined with a program like this
http://blackwave.com/products/DiveAssistantPocketPC/index.aspx or this http://www.dreamdives.org/en/products/products1.htm to create the full package.
I think this would be a killer app that could make someone a few bucks. All I would ask for would be a free copy. I will even do the testing for free. the only big hurdle that I know of, and why they currently do not support download to WM5 is that the downloader uses serial ports.
Here is the link to their developers guide
https://secure.reefnet.ca/downloads/public/doc/sensus_devguide_ultra.pdf
If any one has any questions please feel free to PM or e-mail directly at bigcatdiving at gmail dot com
dcdivenut: why do they sell Palm software? What does the Palm software do? Presumably it doesn't link directly to the logger? Although, IIRC, the Palm does have a kind of serial port built in.
Your biggest hurdle here clearly is the physical lack of a serial port.
Basically you've got a logger, and want to connect it to the phone? Converting the data into a universal format should be straight forward, most logging is done in clear and easy to manipulate text.
So, how do you get around the hardware limitation? You could wire together a serial to IRDA converter and blast the logs directly into the infra red port. But is that the kind of thing you want or need?
V
Or you could use a bluetooth to serial converter. It may actually be more stable and easier to use than IrDA.
J-Man5
vijay555 said:
dcdivenut: why do they sell Palm software? What does the Palm software do? Presumably it doesn't link directly to the logger? Although, IIRC, the Palm does have a kind of serial port built in.
Your biggest hurdle here clearly is the physical lack of a serial port.
Basically you've got a logger, and want to connect it to the phone? Converting the data into a universal format should be straight forward, most logging is done in clear and easy to manipulate text.
So, how do you get around the hardware limitation? You could wire together a serial to IRDA converter and blast the logs directly into the infra red port. But is that the kind of thing you want or need?
V
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I !think! the palm software allows you to download directly to the Palm via the serial port.
As far as an infrared port to get the data into the PC that is more or less exactly what I am looking for. Here is a long discussion on a scuba forum that involves a programmer from the company that might gove some additional information.
http://scubaboard.com/showthread.php?t=140213&highlight=sensus+ultra
I guess there are two challenges
1. Getting the data from the logger to the device either via some sort of serial/USB converter or serial/IRDA converter. I found this out there which would "seem" to work http://www.usbgear.com/IR-210S.html
2. Then having a program to take that data and with a decent GUI turn it into something displayable a la the palm and windows software on their website. Then possibly taking it a step further and integrating that into "dive log" software so that in addition to the profile information gathered from the logger you can record where you were, who you were with, what you saw, what equipment you had, etc. a la the blackwave or sharkpoint software.
Why not try styletap to run the palm software on the pocketpc windows mobile?
J-Man5

Connecting WiiMote

Hi, I'm a student of IT. My final project is on remote monitoring of patients. One of the features is the detection of falls and I have to use two types of accelerometers (Witilt and WiiMote).
Market applications that use the Wiimote does not work in our i9000.
And my question is: Is it possible with the standard ROM to perform a program that connects to the Wiimote?
If so could someone guide me a little about how to start, or put some link where I can see the starting point for this part of my project?
If it is not possible, would appreciate an explanation of why this happens.
Thanks in advance
Nobody can help me? =)
Can't you just use the accelerometer and orientation sensors built into the phone? If you have to use the external hardware in conjunction with the phone I would say use an Arduino, which has a lot of Wiimote and Wiichuck interface code available, with a Bluetooth module to talk to the phone; look at the Amarino project for interface code.
Alternatively the wiimote IME developer had the problem with the SGS and HTC because they were using a native library as most phones didn't have Bluetooth HID support, and the Bluetooth native library didn't behave the same way on all phones. Because the SGS with Froyo has Bluetooth HID support you may be able to interface with the Wiimote at a higher level and avoid the native libraries, if you take care of its quirky pairing behavior, but you will have to do more work with the Wiimote low-level protocol, which is quite well documented.

Open Source 'Firmware' for MT2502 devices

I've ordered one of the countless cheap Chinese MT2502 based smartwatches, the 'K88H Plus' which looks like it's brand new. I was seduced by the great looks but then reading the various reviews the firmware looks pretty common across many of these devices and pretty bad. So then I set about reading the various MediaTek development docs and it seems like the embedded os, frameworks and API's are going to be out-of-the-box MT LinkIt and the UI and all functionality of the watch is actually controlled by one or more VXP's which the manufacturers are including in their ROMs.
Has anybody looked at this in any detail ? Am I on the right lines here ?
So I'm thinking, I'll write a VXP which is a mini watch OS with watchface, built in continuous step counting and notifications handling to create a better overall experience.
Has anybody else tried this ? Can you use the USB charging cable to remote debug the VXP app i.e. will the watch behave like the Linkit Assist 2502 board ? Thanks, grateful for any pointers.
Did you figure this out? Or got any further? Very curious getting into app development for watches with this type of microcontroller (so not just watch faces). Two minds can do more than one! For as far as I've seen, the MRE 3.0 SDK can actually make an installable app, still playing with that.
Tag me in pls ... 3 is better than 2.

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