Android Question Sticker4W Lib: Problem creating sticker pack from External Storage

[Ferdari]

Hi everyone, im using the @DonManfred Sticker4W library for creating sticker packs, but it only works with Assets files, is there a way to use or create on-the-fly a sticker pack from the External or Internal storage?

On the official Stickers GitHub they say it is the way:
Expose files that are stored internally as stickers through ContentProvider

If you would like to expose files saved internally or externally and serve these files as sticker. It is possible, but please follow the guidelines in 'Sticker art and app requirements' to make sure the files meets these requirements. As to how to do that, you can take a look at the following code snippet to get an understanding of how that can be done.

private AssetFileDescriptor fetchFile(@NonNull Uri uri, @NonNull AssetManager am, @NonNull String fileName, @NonNull String identifier) throws IOException {

    final File cacheFile = getContext().getExternalCacheDir();

    final File file = new File(cacheFile, fileName);

    try (final InputStream open = am.open(identifier + "/" + fileName);

         final FileOutputStream fileOutputStream = new FileOutputStream(file)) {

         byte[] buffer = new byte[1024];

        int read;

        while ((read = in.read(buffer)) != -1) {

            out.write(buffer, 0, read);

        }

    }

    //The code above is basically copying the assets to storage, and servering the file off of the storage.

    //If you have the files already downloaded/fetched, you could simply replace above part, and initialize the file parameter with your own file which points to the desired file.

    //The key here is you can use ParcelFileDescriptor to create an AssetFileDescriptor.

    return new AssetFileDescriptor(ParcelFileDescriptor.open(file, ParcelFileDescriptor.MODE_READ_ONLY), 0, AssetFileDescriptor.UNKNOWN_LENGTH);

}

Is there a way to implement this?

A practical use could be: Download an sticker pack and install from the app, or create and encode images saving it to External and then installing the Pack from the app.

Help would be very appreciated.

 

[asales]

Would be nice to use this in B4A.

 

[Ferdari]

Hi @DonManfred, i hope you are well, do you have any news regarding this problem?

 

[DonManfred]

i hope you are well

yes i am. I just do not have much time these days.

do you have any news regarding this problem?

Not really. Did not had much time.

But i´ll investigate some time this weekend.

 

[Ferdari]

Thanks Don!

 

[asales]

Thanks Don!

 

[asales]

yes i am. I just do not have much time these days.

Not really. Did not had much time.

But i´ll investigate some time this weekend.

Hi Don. Did you have time to check the library?
Thanks.

 

[DonManfred]

I spent another 7 Hours on it. Unsuccessfully!

I give up.

 

[asales]

?

 

[asales]

Thanks for your effort.
If you want to try again - someday - I found this project that, perhaps, can give you some idea:

GitHub - idoideas/StickerMaker-for-Whatsapp: Create and share your own sticker packs for WhatsApp, directly from your phone! No programming skills needed.

Create and share your own sticker packs for WhatsApp, directly from your phone! No programming skills needed. - idoideas/StickerMaker-for-Whatsapp

github.com

 

[Ferdari]

Hi @DonManfred,
Please check if you can change this line and make it editable on b4a:
StickerContentProvider.java
Line 54

Private static final String CONTENT_FILE_NAME = "contents.json";

This line defines the file that are read.

Also if you want to share the lib code, maybe we can look and try to make the changes. if i can update the lib ill return to you with the updates so you can publish it, the thing is helping each other.

 

[DonManfred]

Also if you want to share the lib code, maybe we can look and try to make the changes.

Sure. This is the old Source from the Library. This works with the Files in Assets.

 

[Ferdari]

Sure. This is the old Source from the Library. This works with the Files in Assets.

Thanks Don, i will do my best

 

[Ferdari]

Hi @DonManfred, this was a challenge for me and high learning, i have some updates and almost done the lib.

I have deleted and created some new classes.

I have some questions to continue development:
How do you change the CONTENT_PROVIDER_AUTHORITY dynamically?

public static final String CONTENT_PROVIDER_AUTHORITY  = "stickers.app";

Currently only works with static package name "stickers.app"

I compiled the lib and it WORKS!, im testing all the new Methods, i have 80% progress, but stuck on this.

 

[asales]

I compiled the lib and it WORKS!, im testing all the new Methods, i have 80% progress, but stuck on this.

Can you share the source of what you do it until now?

 

[Ferdari]

Can you share the source of what you do it until now?

Now the lib works like this:;

    Dim JSON As JSONParser
    Dim Map1 As Map
    Dim JSONString as String
    JSON.Initialize(JSONString) 'it can be a JSON string or file contents.json
    Map1 = JSON.NextObject
 
    Dim StickerPacks As List
 
    StickerPacks = Map1.Get("sticker_packs")

    stpacks.Initialize("",StickerPacks)    ' New method on lib that assigns the packs to ContentProvider
 
    'Test if it assigned the packs from Initialize
    Dim Packs As List = loader.fetchStickerPacks
    For Each Pack As String In Packs
        'It works!
        Log(Pack)
    Next
 
 
    ' Next you can add Pack with:
    stpacks.addStickerPackExisting(NewPack)
 
    ' Or delete Pack with:
    stpacks.deleteStickerPackById(ID)
 
    ' Im stuck on this [B]addStickerPackExisting[/B], figuring what type of data it needs.

 

[asales]

Did you use Eclipse or SLC to compile the library?

 

[Ferdari]

Did you use Eclipse or SLC to compile the library?

Eclipse, SLC gave me errors

Im still testing the lib, ill report back soon.

 

[Ferdari]

@asales I sent you a DM

 

[DonManfred]

@asales I sent you a DM

I have some questions to continue development:
How do you change the CONTENT_PROVIDER_AUTHORITY dynamically?

It is not related to this thread. If you have any java question then you should create a thread in the java developer questions forum.
The original code is

        String shauthority = "StickerContentProvider";
        shauthority = getContext().getApplicationInfo().packageName+".stickercontentprovider";

It uses the Contexts Packagename.

 

[Ferdari]

It is not related to this thread. If you have any java question then you should create a thread in the java developer questions forum.
The original code is

        String shauthority = "StickerContentProvider";
        shauthority = getContext().getApplicationInfo().packageName+".stickercontentprovider";

It uses the Contexts Packagename.

Thanks @DonManfred, want to see the changes? i'm stuck on how to get the URI from files loaded through JSON String from B4A, i changed code based on StickerMaker source