howdy, EGHDK!

how can I help you today?

only so long as you put my brain back when you're done

Alright, so last time we were talking and we discussed that it's possible to take a db using adb from a non-rooted device correct?

um

adb backup, for apps that allow backups, can back up a database without root

and your app can copy your database file to external storage without root

How would an app go about "allowing" a backup?

I think it's allowed by default

android:allowBackup on the <application> element controls is

there's a new Lint warning for you to be explicit about allowing/blocking backups

Oh alright. So I'll look into "allowBackup". Thanks

My next question is more of a "how would you go about this" type of question.

I have a sqlite database of baseball players and their stats. What would be the best way to bake this into my application so people can access it while offline, but also check for updates online?

if by "bake in" you mean you want to ship a pre-populated database with your app, use SQLiteAssetHelper

also covered in the book

Do I include it in the application, and then run some code on startup to move the file into /data/data/com.test.baseball/baseball_db?

yes, and that's what SQLiteAssetHelper does for you

Coolio. Great, and one last thing. Would it be smart to delete the original sqlite db after it's been imported with SQLiteAssetHelper?

you can't

if it is baked into your app, it's there forever

you cannot modify an APK at runtime

Even if it's a raw directory?

well, it won't be with SQLiteAssetHelper

but resources and assets are read-only

they cannot be modified or removed from the APK at runtime

and that's a wrap for today's chat

the transcript will be posted shortly to http://commonsware.com/office-hours/

the next chat is Thursday at 4pm

have a pleasant day!