Generating an apk

Questions
1

Hi,
OK I’ve run the kitchen sink app and an app from a template but how do I generate the apk and in what folder is it stored?
Thanks,
Paul

2

What framework are you using to generate your app, ie Cordova, Phonegap, etc?

3

I’m just following the instructions in the readme.md file. following step by step. I’ve run the app on the builtin server but now I want to generate the apk so I can sideload it to my Samsung phone and check it out. After I create an app that’s useful enough then I’ll upload it to Google Play but I want to check it out on my phone first while I am learning.
Thanks,
Paul

4

To generate an APK, you need to use Framework 7 from within a Cordova project. Head to https://cordova.io to install and see detailed instructions.

5

I thought Framework7 was a complete system. I can use cordova alone to accomplish this. It seems framework7 is just like CakePhp and others of that ilk. All it does is make things more complicated and generates a cookie cutter app.

6

On its own, Cordova is an empty shell to connect HTML, CSS and Javascript to the native functions in a mobile application. Many of these functions are now available with modern web standards, but there are still many great Cordova plugins that can be used to tap into many modern phone features.

The problem developers face is creating a hybrid app that looks and feels like a native app. This is where Framework 7 comes in: It is designed and built to replicate native features of an iOS or Material app.

Because it is a HTML/CSS/JS framework, it still relies on a product like Cordova or Phonegap to package, build and run your app natively on a device.

1 Like
8

If you have the web app running in F7 and add your service worker and other PWA pieces then you could use PWABuilder to create an APK and an iOS version. We’ve done that with Twisty.ai (using NextJS) and successful have that app in both stores. The overhead of Cordova etc seemed unecessary to us. With the updated F7 personal project I am doing I plan to use PWABuilder to wrap it. Once I get to that stage I can report on how it goes.