The document discusses the benefits of using Gradle for Android application builds over other build tools like Ant and Maven. It highlights how Gradle combines the flexibility of Ant with the dependency management of Maven. It also describes key Gradle features like building different variants of an app for different flavors, customizing builds for debug vs release, and managing dependencies. The document provides examples of basic Gradle configuration, defining dependencies, customizing builds, and managing resources and placeholders.

1. Hands on the Gradle
+Konstantin Zgirovskiy
@silentnuke
silentnuke09@gmail.com

2. Good to be programmer…

3. Build problems (before Gradle)
● Several weakly compatible versions of building
● Difficult dependency management
● Hard to generate several variants of the application

4. What is gradle?
• Ant makes you reinvent the wheel every time
• Ant build scripts can get hard to maintain very quickly
• Maven does not care about your project, you must make sure
that your project works well with Maven – it enforces
convention
• You must do everything “The Maven Way” or implement
custom plugins
• Gradle combines the power and flexibility of Ant with
dependency management of Ivy and conventions of Maven
• Gradle is a programming build tool with DSL based on Groovy

5. Why gradle?
• Built-in dependency management through Maven
and/or Ivy
• Make it easy to configure, extend and customize the
build process
• Make it easy to reuse code and resources
• Make it easy to create several variants of an application,
either for multi-apk distribution or for different flavors
of an application
• Good IDE Integration

6. Basiс Gradle Config
buildscript {
repositories {
mavenCentral()
}
dependencies {
classpath 'com.android.tools.build:gradle:0.14.0'
}
}
apply plugin: 'com.android.application'
android {
compileSdkVersion 19
buildToolsVersion "21.0.2"
}

7. Dependencies
• Maven, Ivy – artifacts
Remote and local
• Local files
Jar
Other gradle-projects
AAR

8. Dependencies
dependencies {
compile 'com.android.support:support-v4:21.0.0‘
compile 'org.apache.commons:commons-collections4:4.0'
compile project(':libraries:catalitClient')
compile files('libs/AF-Android-SDK-v2.3.1.11.jar')
compile 'com.actionbarsherlock:actionbarsherlock:4.4.0@aar'
}

9. Build customization
• Example: debug / release
• Might have own
o Dependencies
o Resources
o Special settings

10. Build types
• Default
o debug
o release
• What can configure
o packageNameSuffix
o BuildConfig.java
o Own recourses/code
o Other

11. Build customization
android {
defaultConfig {
applicationId 'ru.litres.android'
minSdkVersion 8
targetSdkVersion 19
versionCode 20141009
versionName "2.14.5"
}
buildTypes {
debug {
packageNameSuffix ".debug"
buildConfigField “String", " HOST_URL ", ‘”debug.litres.ru”’
}
release {
buildConfigField “String", “HOST_URL", ‘”release.litres.ru”’
}
}

12. Build flavors
• Ability to easy generate few different apk.
• Example
o Paid / free
o Partner app
o Building multiple apk (abi, density)
o Other cases

13. Build customization
android {
flavorDimensions 'store'
productFlavors {
googlePlay {
flavorDimension 'store'
}
samsungApps {
flavorDimension 'store'
buildConfigField "boolean", "IS_SAMSUNG_APPS_BUILD", "true"
}
amazon {
flavorDimension 'store'
buildConfigField "boolean", "IS_AMAZON_BUILD", "true"
}
}
}

14. Build variants
Flavor
Build
Free
Paid
FreeDebug FreeRelease
PaidDebug
PaidRelease
Debug Release
BuildVariant

15. Source sets
• src/
main/
• java/
• res/
• …
AndroidManifest.xml
• paid/
• free/

16. Source sets for BuildType
anв Flavor
• src/
• main/
• release/
• debug/
• free/
• paid/

17. Build the app
main
free
debug

19. Resources and placeholders
android {
productFlavors {
readFree{
applicationId 'ru.litres.android.readfree'
versionCode 20141009
versionName "2.14.5"
resValue 'string', 'provider_search_authorities',
'ru.litres.android.readfree.SearchProvider'
resValue 'string', 'package_name', 'ru.litres.android.readfree‘
manifestPlaceholders = [adviatorPackage: "av111363.android",
adviatorServiceName: "av111363.android.S111363",
adviatorAppId: “app id",
adviatorAppKey: “somes secret"]
}
}
}

20. AndroidManifest.xml
<manifest xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android"
package="ru.litres.android">
<permission
android:name="${applicationId}.permission.C2D_MESSAGE"
android:protectionLevel="signature" />
<uses-permission android:name="${applicationId}.permission.C2D_MESSAGE" />
<application>
<provider
android:name="ru.litres.android.providers.BookSuggestionProvider"
android:authorities="@string/provider_search_authorities" />
<meta-data
android:name="ADVIATOR_APPID"
android:value="id:${adviatorAppId}" />
<meta-data
android:name="ADVIATOR_APPKEY"
android:value="key:${adviatorAppKey}" />
<service
android:name="com.${adviatorServiceName}"
android:exported="false" />
</application>
</manifest>

21. Build customization
res/xml/searchable.xml
<searchable xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android"
android:hint="@string/searchable_hint"
android:label="@string/app_name"
android:searchSuggestAuthority="@string/provider_search_authorities"
android:voiceSearchMode="showVoiceSearchButton|launchRecognizer" />
res/xml/main_settings.xml
<PreferenceScreen xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android" >
<PreferenceCategory android:title="@string/settings_info" >
<Preference android:title="@string/about_program" >
<intent
android:targetClass="ru.litres.android.ui.AboutActivity"
android:targetPackage="@string/package_name" />
</Preference>
</PreferenceCategory>
</PreferenceScreen>

22. Splits
android {
flavorDimensions 'store‘, ‘abi’
productFlavors {
arm {
flavorDimension 'abi'
versionCode Integer.parseInt("1" + defaultConfig.versionCode)
ndk {
abiFilter "armeabi"
}
}
armv7 {
flavorDimension 'abi'
versionCode Integer.parseInt("2" + defaultConfig.versionCode)
ndk {
abiFilter "armeabi-v7a"
}
}
}
}

23. Splits
android {
project.ext.abiVersionCodesPrefix = ['armeabi':1, 'armeabi-v7a':2, 'mips':4,
x86':6]
splits {
abi {
enable true
reset()
include 'armeabi', 'armeabi-v7a', 'mips', 'x86'
universalApk false
}
}
applicationVariants.all { variant ->
variant.outputs.each { output ->
output.versionCodeOverride =
Integer.parseInt(project.ext.abiVersionCodesPrefix.get(output.getFilter(com.
android.build.OutputFile.ABI), 0) + "" + variant.mergedFlavor.versionCode)
}
}
}
}

24. Android Gradle plugin
docs SUCK :-(
But community rocks :)
+Android Developer Tools
http://goo.gl/hAnxTf
+Tor Norbye
+Alex Ruiz [gradle, android]

25. Resources
http://www.gradle.org
http://tools.android.com/tech-docs/new-build-system
http://gradleplease.appspot.com/
https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/adt-dev
http://stackoverflow.com/

26. Thank you!
Q&A
+Konstantin Zgirovskiy
@silentnuke
silentnuke09@gmail.com