Set mobile project preferences

    Set device configurations

    Flash Builder uses device configurations to display device screen size previews in Design View or to launch applications on the desktop using the AIR Debug Launcher (ADL). See Configure device information for desktop preview.

    To set device configurations, open Preferences and select Flash Builder > Device Configurations.

    Flash Builder provides several default device configurations. You can add, edit, or remove additional device configurations. You cannot modify the default configurations that Flash Builder provides.

    Clicking the Restore Defaults button restores default device configurations but does not remove any configurations that you have added. Also, if you added a device configuration with a name that matches one of the defaults, Flash Builder overrides the added configuration with the default settings.

    Device configurations contain the following properties:

    Property

    Description

    Device Name

    A unique name for the device.

    Platform

    Device platform. Select a platform from the list of supported platforms.

    Full Screen Size

    Width and height of the device’s screen.

    Usable Screen Size

    The standard size of an application on the device. This size is the expected size of an application launched in non-full screen mode, accounting for system chrome, such as the status bar.

    Pixels per Inch

    Pixels per inch on the device’s screen.

    Choose target platforms

    Flash Builder supports target platforms based on the application type.

    To select a platform, open Preferences and select Flash Builder > Target Platforms.

    For all third-party plug-ins, see the associated documentation.

    Choose an application template

    When you create a mobile application, you can select from the following application templates:

    Blank
    Uses the Spark Application tag as the base application element.

    Use this option if you want to create a custom application without using the standard view navigation.

    View-Based Application
    Uses the Spark ViewNavigatorApplication tag as the base application element to create an application with a single view.

    You can specify the name of the initial view.

    Tabbed Application
    Uses the Spark TabbedViewNavigatorApplication tag as the base application element to create a tab-based application.

    To add a tab, enter a name for the tab, and click Add. You can change the order of the tabs by clicking Up and Down. To remove a tab from the application, select a tab and click Remove.

    The name of the view is the tab name with "View" appended. For example, if you name a tab as FirstTab, Flash Builder generates a view named FirstTabView.

    For each tab that you create, a new MXML file is generated in the "views" package.
    Note: The package name is not configurable through the Flex Mobile Project wizard.

    The MXML files are generated according to the following rules:

    • If the tab name is a valid ActionScript class name, Flash Builder generates the MXML file using the tab name with "View" appended.

    • If the tab name is not a valid class name, Flash Builder modifies the tab name by removing invalid characters and inserting valid starting characters. If the modified name is unacceptable, Flash Builder changes the MXML filename to "ViewN", where N is the position of the view, starting with N=1.

     Adobe Certified Expert in Flex, Brent Arnold, created a video tutorial about using the Tabbed Application template.

    Choose mobile application permissions

    When you create a mobile application, you can specify or change the default permissions for a target platform. The permissions are specified at the time of compiling, and they cannot be changed at runtime.

    First select the target platform, and then set the permissions for each platform, as required. You can edit the permissions later in the application descriptor XML file.

    Third-party plug-ins provide additional platform support for both Flex and ActionScript projects. For platform-specific permissions, see the device's associated documentation.

    Permissions for the Google Android platform

    For the Google Android platform, you can set the following permissions:

    INTERNET
    Allows network requests and remote debugging

    The INTERNET permission is selected by default. If you deselect this permission, you cannot debug your application on a device.

    WRITE_EXTERNAL_STORAGE
    Allows writing to an external device

    Select this permission to let the application write to an external memory card on the device.

    READ_PHONE_STATE
    Mutes the audio during an incoming call

    Select this permission to let the application mute the audio during phone calls. For example, you can select this permission if your application plays audio in the background.

    ACCESS_FINE_LOCATION
    Allows access to a GPS location

    Select this permission to let the application access GPS data using the Geolocation class.

    DISABLE_KEYGUARD and WAKE_LOCK
    Disallows sleep mode on the device

    Select this permission to prevent the device from going to sleep using the SystemIdleMode class settings.

    CAMERA
    Allows access to a camera

    Select this permission to let the application access a camera.

    RECORD_AUDIO
    Allows access to a microphone

    Select this permission to let the application access a microphone.

    ACCESS_NETWORK_STATE and ACCESS_WIFI_STATE
    Allows access to information about network interfaces associated with the device

    Select this permission to let the application access network information using the NetworkInfo class.

    For more information about setting mobile application properties, see the Adobe AIR documentation.

    Permissions for the Apple iOS platform

    The Apple iOS platform uses runtime validation for permissions instead of predefined permissions. That is, if an application wants to access a specific feature of the Apple iOS platform that requires user permission, a pop-up appears requesting permission.

    Choose platform settings

    Platform settings let you select a target device family. Depending on the platform that you select, you can select the target device or a target device family. You can select a specific device or all the devices that the platform supports.

    Third-party plug-ins provide additional platform support for both Flex and ActionScript projects. For platform-specific settings, see the device's associated documentation.

    Platform settings for the Google Android platform

    There are no platform-specific settings for the Google Android platform.

    Platform settings for the Apple iOS platform

    For a Flex mobile project or an ActionScript mobile project, you can specify the following target devices for the Apple iOS platform:
    iPhone/iPod Touch
    Applications using this target family are listed as compatible with only iPhone and iPod Touch devices in the Apple App store.

    iPad
    Applications using this target family are listed as compatible only with iPad devices in the Apple App store.

    All
    Applications using this target family are listed as compatible with both iPhone or iPod Touch, and iPad devices in the Apple App store. This option is the default.

    Choose application settings

    Automatically Reorient
    Rotates the application when the user rotates the device. When this setting is not enabled, your application always appears in a fixed orientation.

    Full Screen
    Displays your application in fullscreen mode on the device. When this setting is enabled, the device’s status bar does not appear above your application. Your application fills the entire screen.

    If you want to target your application across multiple device types with varying screen densities, select Automatically Scale Application For Different Screen Densities. Selecting this option automatically scales the application and handles density changes, as required, for the device. See Set application scaling.

    Set application scaling

    You use mobile application scaling to build a single mobile application that is compatible with devices with different screen sizes and densities.

    Mobile device screens have varying screen densities, or DPI (dots per inch). You can specify the DPI value as 160, 240, or 320, depending on the screen density of the target device. When you enable automatic scaling, Flex optimizes the way it displays the application for the screen density of each device.

    For example, suppose that you specify the target DPI value as 160 and enable automatic scaling. When you run the application on a device with a DPI value of 320, Flex automatically scales the application by a factor of 2. That is, Flex magnifies everything by 200%.

    To specify the target DPI value, set it as the applicationDPI property of the <s:ViewNavigatorApplication> tag or <s:TabbedViewNavigatorApplication> tag in the main application file:

    <s:ViewNavigatorApplication xmlns:fx="http://ns.adobe.com/mxml/2009" 
    xmlns:s="library://ns.adobe.com/flex/spark" 
    firstView="views.HomeView" 
    applicationDPI="160">

    If you choose to not auto-scale your application, you must handle the density changes for your layout manually, as required. However, Flex adapts the skins to the density of each device.

    For more information about creating density-independent mobile applications, see Support multiple screen sizes and DPI values in a mobile application.