Looks like Python is supported: http://google-opensource.blogspot.com/2009/06/introducing-android-scripting.html
On Thu, Sep 30, 2010 at 9:51 PM, geremy condra <[email protected]> wrote: > On Thu, Sep 30, 2010 at 9:25 PM, Mike Orr <[email protected]> wrote: > > This is a bit off topic but it does get a little into Python. I don't > > know much about the smartphone world. I got my first trusty-rusty > > cellphone in 2000 when I started travelling, then around 2006 it died > > and I got a hand-me-down that's essentially identical, one of those > > that barely does texting. I was just waiting until smartphones became > > open enough (non-proprietary, ideally Linux) and established enough > > (so it wouldn't get unsupprted or obsolete in a year or two), and I > > had a specific need for it (portable email and web would be nice but > > is not necessary for me, but now I've seen that OneBusAway would be > > useful to see when a bus is coming if it's late). And having something > > I could program in Python on would be a bonus. > > > > So, Android looks like it's a step closer to what I've been waiting > > for, although I'm not quite sure if it's relevant enough for me to > > actually get one. But I'm curious, and now I have to do something > > because my AT&T phone doesn't work inside half my apartment, so I > > either have to get on my roommate's T-Mobile family plan or get an > > Android, and it would be silly to do one now and the other a few > > months later, so I'm looking more closely at it. But I don't know > > basic things like where do you get one, how do you choose between the > > different kinds/brands, how do you find one that's not locked to a > > single carrier, etc? > > You can get an Android phone from any of the major carriers. The four > majors each have a variety of both top- and mid-tier devices running > it, and you can either buy the phones from them, through middlemen > like RadioShack or WalMart, or online from Amazon etc. Verizon, > Sprint, and T-Mobile all allow you to buy them off-contract, and if > you're buying a top-tier phone and have the cash to buy off contract > you should. > > As for the different kinds and brands, you can check out the writeup I > did on the topic on my buzz[0]. Personally I don't think what I wrote > there is much less accurate today than it was back then, but YMMV. The > new G2 also looks to be pretty amazing, so if you're already leaning > towards T-Mobile that might be enough to tip the scales in its favor. > > > And does it do Python? the FAQ says you write apps in Java and it > > compiles them to a custom embedded language. Does that mean Jython > > works on it? And can I get a Python interpreter directly on the phone > > or is that too big for its memory? > > The best answer I can give you is... maybe. There are a few things > going on here. > > First, Jython doesn't work. Jython emits Java bytecode; Android uses > Dalvik bytecode, which I'm told is different enough to make > retargeting prohibitive. > > Second, there's SL4A[1], which is a fairly limited way to write simple > scripts in Python. No lies, it's not a great way to write apps- in > fact, it frustrated me enough that I wrote a way around it. > > That way is your third option- about two years ago I decided that I'd > had enough of Java and wanted to put a stake in it, so I built a > system called Javalin that used the JNI and the CPython API to > mechanically map a Java API into a Python API without actually > abandoning the working Java codebase. Since Android's NDK provides JNI > access, I was able to take an existing port of Python3 and > successfully use the Android API from Python. The good news ends > there, however: there are both memory/storage constraints to worry > about (a full Python interpreter is no joke on a mobile device, > although things have ramped up a lot since my G1 came out) and some > questions about ownership, etc. > > So, the bottom line is that you can use Python, but probably aren't > going to get to distribute Python applications unless Google decides > that's a good idea. > > [0] > http://www.google.com/buzz/debatem1/9gyrLd7K4su/So-everybody-and-their-brother-keeps-asking-me-for > [1] http://code.google.com/p/android-scripting/ > > Geremy Condra > > -- Mark McWiggins 425-369-8286 (cell)
