Now days almost all Android apps have some sort of interaction with Google Maps Android API v2. This tutorial Android SupportMapFragment Example, is a part of my series of three on Google Maps Android API v2. In my previous tutorial on Android MapFragment, I mentioned a drawback of MapFragment, that it cannot be used on devices running Android API below version 12. The answer to this problem is Android SupportMapFragment. At Truiton I was developing an app in which we used Android SupportMapFragment class, so thought of sharing it with community. I was developing that app for Android Gingerbread  v2.3.3 i.e. API 10, but since MapFragment class cant be used, I used Android SupportMapFragment class.

The usage of Android SupportMapFragment is same as its sibling, the only difference is that, instead of using Activity class we would have to use FragmentActivity class. The reason for doing this is, we need to use a method getSupportFragmentManager(), and this method can be called in FragmentActivity class only.

In this Android SupportMapFragment Example I will not be explaining on how to generate a Google Maps Android API v2 key or how to create a project with Google Play Services SDK library. If you need to understand how to do these tasks please read my tutorial on Android MapFragment.

Android SupportMapFragment Example

I assume, by now you have a project set up with Google Play Services SDK and generated a Google Maps Android API v2 key, refer this article if you have not. Lets proceed with AndroidManifest.xml:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<manifest xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android"
    package="com.truiton.supportmapfragment"
    android:versionCode="1"
    android:versionName="1.0" >

    <uses-sdk
        android:minSdkVersion="8"
        android:targetSdkVersion="17" />

    <permission
        android:name="com.truiton.supportmapfragment.permission.MAPS_RECEIVE"
        android:protectionLevel="signature" />

    <uses-feature
        android:glEsVersion="0x00020000"
        android:required="true" />

    <uses-permission android:name="com.truiton.supportmapfragment.permission.MAPS_RECEIVE" />
    <uses-permission android:name="android.permission.INTERNET" />
    <uses-permission android:name="android.permission.ACCESS_NETWORK_STATE" />
    <uses-permission android:name="android.permission.WRITE_EXTERNAL_STORAGE" />
    <uses-permission android:name="com.google.android.providers.gsf.permission.READ_GSERVICES" />
    <!--
     The following two permissions are not required to use
     Google Maps Android API v2, but are recommended.
    -->
    <uses-permission android:name="android.permission.ACCESS_COARSE_LOCATION" />
    <uses-permission android:name="android.permission.ACCESS_FINE_LOCATION" />

    <application
        android:allowBackup="true"
        android:icon="@drawable/ic_launcher"
        android:label="@string/app_name"
        android:theme="@style/AppTheme" >
        <meta-data
            android:name="com.google.android.gms.version"
            android:value="@integer/google_play_services_version" />

        <activity
            android:name="com.truiton.supportmapfragment.SupportMapFragmentActivity"
            android:label="@string/app_name" >
            <intent-filter>
                <action android:name="android.intent.action.MAIN" />

                <category android:name="android.intent.category.LAUNCHER" />
            </intent-filter>
        </activity>

        <meta-data
            android:name="com.google.android.maps.v2.API_KEY"
            android:value="Input-API-Key-Here" />
    </application>

</manifest>

lets discuss the marked lines in above Android SupportMapFragment Example manifest. In lines 7-9 you can see minimum sdk version 8 is specified as this is an Android SupportMapFragment example. Next in lines 11-13 we are defining a permission with our app package to access Google Maps Android API v2, and using the same in line 19. To display Google Maps on your device please specify your API key at line 48.

Next lets have a look at the layout file:

<RelativeLayout xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android"
    xmlns:tools="http://schemas.android.com/tools"
    android:layout_width="match_parent"
    android:layout_height="match_parent"
    android:paddingBottom="@dimen/activity_vertical_margin"
    android:paddingLeft="@dimen/activity_horizontal_margin"
    android:paddingRight="@dimen/activity_horizontal_margin"
    android:paddingTop="@dimen/activity_vertical_margin"
    tools:context=".SupportMapFragmentActivity" >

    <fragment
        android:id="@+id/map"
        android:layout_width="match_parent"
        android:layout_height="match_parent"
        class="com.google.android.gms.maps.SupportMapFragment" />

</RelativeLayout>

Here in the activity_support_map_fragment.xml I defined a fragment with class com.google.android.gms.maps.SupportMapFragment, this fragment is used to display Android SupportMapFragment.

The main class which displays map is :

package com.truiton.supportmapfragment;

import com.google.android.gms.maps.GoogleMap;
import com.google.android.gms.maps.SupportMapFragment;

import android.os.Bundle;
import android.support.v4.app.Fragment;
import android.support.v4.app.FragmentActivity;
import android.support.v4.app.FragmentManager;
import android.view.Menu;

public class SupportMapFragmentActivity extends FragmentActivity {

 @Override
 protected void onCreate(Bundle savedInstanceState) {
 super.onCreate(savedInstanceState);
 setContentView(R.layout.activity_support_map_fragment);

 FragmentManager fmanager = getSupportFragmentManager();
        Fragment fragment = fmanager.findFragmentById(R.id.map);
        SupportMapFragment supportmapfragment = (SupportMapFragment)fragment;
        GoogleMap supportMap = supportmapfragment.getMap();

 }

 @Override
 public boolean onCreateOptionsMenu(Menu menu) {
 // Inflate the menu; this adds items to the action bar if it is present.
 getMenuInflater().inflate(R.menu.support_map, menu);
 return true;
 }

}

In this SupportMapFragmentActivity.java, I extended FragmentActivity as we are using Android SupportMapFragment. And as I stated before to use Android SupportMapFragment class we need to call getSupportFragmentManager() method. Therefore we need to extend FragmentActivity class.

By now you might have guessed that its pretty much same as Android MapFragment. Therefore I’d like to conclude the tutorial Android SupportMapFragment Example, and conclude my series on Google Maps Android API v2. In this tutorial I gave an overview of Android SupportMapFragment class and explained how to display Google Maps on Android device with an API version lower than 12. Hope this helped you, if it did please like and share this on Google+ and Facebook also like our Facebook page for updates.

Mohit Gupt

Born in New Delhi, India. A software engineer by profession, an android enthusiast and mobile development evangelist. My motive here is to create a group of skilled engineers, who can build better software. Reason being programming is my passion, and also it feels good to make a device do something you want. Professionally I have worked with many software engineering and product development firms. As of now too, I am employed as a senior engineer in a leading tech company. In total I may have worked on more than 20 projects professionally, but whenever I get spare time I share my thoughts here at Truiton.

www.truiton.com

The post Android SupportMapFragment Example appeared first on Truiton.

Google rolled out its second version for maps API on android called Google Maps Android API v2. As I introduced Google Maps Android API v2 in my previous article, in this Android MapFragment Example tutorial I will be following up with an introduction to Android MapFragment class by an example. At Truiton we were working on an Android app which was using Google Maps, hence I thought of writing a tutorial about it.

Earlier to use Google Maps on Android we had to extend MapActivity class. But for new Google Maps Android API v2, we have to use Android MapFragment class, which could be instantiated in any Activity. This poses as a great advantage over version 1 of this API. Since this tutorial focuses on Android MapFragment Example, we would not be discussing first version of this API.

Creating a project with Google Play Services SDK library

As Google Maps Android API v2 is bundled in Google Play Services SDK, therefore to show Google maps on android we need to include Google Play Services Library in our project. To do so please follow steps below :

1. Open Android SDK Manager -> Extras -> Google Play Services -> Install Packages.
2. In Eclipse File-> Import -> Android -> Existing Android Code into Workspace -> Browse to your Android SDK Folder -> /Extras/google/google_play_services/libproject -> Finish.
3. Create new android project -> After creating project right click on its folder and select properties.
4. Goto “Android” property -> click add button below -> select “google-play-services_lib” -> hit Ok and you’re all set.

Now that we have a project with Google Play Services Lib included, we can move on to Android MapFragment part of it. To display maps in a MapFragment, many permissions are to be granted to the application. But since Google Maps on Android are in a form of an API, before granting permissions we have to generate an API access key.

Generating a Google Maps Android API v2 Key

To Access Google Maps Android API v2 by Android MapFragment Example we need to create an Android API key via Google API Console. The steps for doing so are:

1. Login to API console
2. Create a Project -> Goto Services -> Turn on the switch for Google Maps Android API v2
3. Goto API Access -> Create new Android Key-> In popup enter one SHA1 certificate fingerprint and package name (separated by a semicolon) per line.
4. To get SH1 certificate of your app open command prompt, navigate to your Java bin folder and enter this command:

5. keytool.exe -V -list -alias androiddebugkey -keystore "C:\Users\ABC\.android\debug.keystore" -storepass android -keypass android

6. From here copy Sh1 certificate and also copy your package name from eclipse
7. Now enter these values in the API Console popup in the desired format, you key will be generated.

 Android MapFragment Example

As of now we have fulfilled all the prerequisites to display Google Maps Android API v2 in Android MapFragment. So lets start with app manifest :

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<manifest xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android"
    package="com.truiton.mapfragment"
    android:versionCode="1"
    android:versionName="1.0" >

    <uses-sdk
        android:minSdkVersion="12"
        android:targetSdkVersion="17" />

    <permission
        android:name="com.truiton.mapfragment.permission.MAPS_RECEIVE"
        android:protectionLevel="signature" />

    <uses-feature
        android:glEsVersion="0x00020000"
        android:required="true" />

    <uses-permission android:name="com.truiton.mapfragment.permission.MAPS_RECEIVE" />
    <uses-permission android:name="android.permission.INTERNET" />
    <uses-permission android:name="android.permission.ACCESS_NETWORK_STATE" />
    <uses-permission android:name="android.permission.WRITE_EXTERNAL_STORAGE" />
    <uses-permission android:name="com.google.android.providers.gsf.permission.READ_GSERVICES" />
    <!--
     The following two permissions are not required to use
     Google Maps Android API v2, but are recommended.
    -->
    <uses-permission android:name="android.permission.ACCESS_COARSE_LOCATION" />
    <uses-permission android:name="android.permission.ACCESS_FINE_LOCATION" />

    <application
        android:allowBackup="true"
        android:icon="@drawable/ic_launcher"
        android:label="@string/app_name"
        android:theme="@style/AppTheme" >
        <activity
            android:name="com.truiton.mapfragment.TruitonMapFragmentActivity"
            android:label="@string/app_name" >
            <intent-filter>
                <action android:name="android.intent.action.MAIN" />

                <category android:name="android.intent.category.LAUNCHER" />
            </intent-filter>
        </activity>

        <meta-data
            android:name="com.google.android.maps.v2.API_KEY"
            android:value="Input-API-Key-Here" />
    </application>

</manifest>

In this Android mapfragment example manifest have a look at highlighted lines 11-13 and 19, here I have defined a custom permission and used it. As you might remember from steps above, we mentioned our package in Google API console. Therefore to receive maps from API we need to create a permission with our package i.e. com.truiton.mapfragment. In your app just change this package name in permission to you app’s package name to make this work. Later in this Android mapfragment example manifest line 48 you need to specify you API key.

Moving on to layout where Android MapFragment would be placed:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<RelativeLayout xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android"
    android:layout_width="fill_parent"
    android:layout_height="fill_parent" >

    <fragment
        android:id="@+id/map"
        android:name="com.google.android.gms.maps.MapFragment"
        android:layout_width="match_parent"
        android:layout_height="match_parent" />

</RelativeLayout>

As you can see here I have added a fragment tag which calls com.google.android.gms.maps.MapFragment .

Since this is a beginner tutorial for Android MapFragment, in the main activity below I have not called any google maps methods to modify it:

package com.truiton.mapfragment;

import android.os.Bundle;
import android.app.Activity;
import android.view.Menu;

public class TruitonMapFragmentActivity extends Activity {

	@Override
	protected void onCreate(Bundle savedInstanceState) {
		super.onCreate(savedInstanceState);
		setContentView(R.layout.activity_truiton_map_fragment);
	}

	@Override
	public boolean onCreateOptionsMenu(Menu menu) {
		// Inflate the menu; this adds items to the action bar if it is present.
		getMenuInflater().inflate(R.menu.activity_truiton_map_fragment, menu);
		return true;
	}

}

With this I can conclude my tutorial on Android MapFragment Example. This tutorial was my second post in the series of three about Google Maps Android API v2. In my previous article I gave an introduction to Google Maps Android API v2. My next tutorial would be about Android SupportMapFragment. As the MapFragments have a drawback i.e. they are not compatible with devices running android API lower than 12. Hope this tutorial helped you out, if it did please like and share this with your friends on Google+ and Facebook, also please like our Facebook page.

Mohit Gupt

Born in New Delhi, India. A software engineer by profession, an android enthusiast and mobile development evangelist. My motive here is to create a group of skilled engineers, who can build better software. Reason being programming is my passion, and also it feels good to make a device do something you want. Professionally I have worked with many software engineering and product development firms. As of now too, I am employed as a senior engineer in a leading tech company. In total I may have worked on more than 20 projects professionally, but whenever I get spare time I share my thoughts here at Truiton.

www.truiton.com

The post Android MapFragment Example appeared first on Truiton.

Recently in late 2012 Google released a new version of its flagship maps API, Google Maps Android API v2. Initially Google Maps Android API v2, was released with humongous amount of bugs, which were later on fixed in Feb 2013 release. Google Maps Android API v2 is not released as a part of Android APIs, instead its released as a part of Google Play Services SDK. Therefore to use the features of Google Maps Android API v2, we need to include Google Play Services SDK in our project, this article Google Maps Android API v2 – Introduction, focuses on general feature introduction as well as creating a project with Google Maps Android API v2.

Google Maps Android API v2 Tutorials

Google Maps Android API v2 can be displayed in an android app via two classes MapFragment and SupportMapFragment. This article is the first of three, to explain the process of displaying Google Maps on Android. In this Google Maps Android API v2 – Introduction, I will be discussing basic features and lay foundation of Google Maps Android API v2 by explaining on how to include Google Play Services Library in our project. This article would be followed by 2 tutorials in this series:

1. Android MapFragment Tutorial
2. Android SupportMapFragment Tutorial

Including Google Play Services SDK Library

As I stated earlier Google Maps Android API v2 is not included in Android API, its bundled with Google Play Services SDK. Therefore to use Google Maps on Android we need to include Google Play Services SDK Library in our project. At Truiton I followed these steps to create a project:

1. Open Android SDK Manager -> Extras -> Google Play Services -> Install Packages.
2. In Eclipse File-> Import -> Android -> Existing Android Code into Workspace -> Browse to your Android SDK Folder -> /Extras/google/google_play_services/libproject -> Finish.
3. Create new android project -> After creating project right click on its folder and select properties.
4. Goto “Android” property -> click add button below -> select “google-play-services_lib” -> hit Ok and you’re all set.

Google Maps Android API v2 Emulator Issue

It has been a topic of discussion on various forums, some people confirmed that they installed Google Play Store by vending.apk and gms.apk via ADB. But when I tried none of them worked for my config of emulator. I searched about it and found that Google has stated that Google Play Services SDK wont run on emulator, you can read it here.

Google Maps Android API v2 – Features

One of the features that I like about Google Maps Android API v2 is that it displays maps in 3D, you can pan and tilt the screen to view the buildings in 3D on your mobile device. Another good feature is that we can rotate the map according to out convenience. Also Google Maps Android API v2 has advantages from a developers perspective. For e.g. to display maps on an android device now, we have to use MapFragment and SupportMapFragment classes, over the previous method of using MapActivity. This way we can include a MapFragment in an Activity which could have some other functionality as well. This functionality alone can benefit many in many ways. With this I can conclude first part of my series on Google Maps Android API v2. If this tutorial helped you in some way please like and share this with your friends on Google+ and Facebook, also like our Facebook page for updates.

Mohit Gupt

Born in New Delhi, India. A software engineer by profession, an android enthusiast and mobile development evangelist. My motive here is to create a group of skilled engineers, who can build better software. Reason being programming is my passion, and also it feels good to make a device do something you want. Professionally I have worked with many software engineering and product development firms. As of now too, I am employed as a senior engineer in a leading tech company. In total I may have worked on more than 20 projects professionally, but whenever I get spare time I share my thoughts here at Truiton.

www.truiton.com

The post Google Maps Android API v2 – Introduction appeared first on Truiton.