Help [SOLVED] How to add icon/shortcut for embedded app?

[MoodyBlues]

When accessing a file, I was prompted for which app to use to open it. In the list was SE Text Editor. Hmmm, I said to myself, I don't have an app by that name; a quick glance at my installed apps confirmed this.

I eventually figured out that that text editor--which I like--is a part of Solid Explorer. Further detective work yielded numerous hidden components, both in SE and other apps.

I want to put icons/app shortcuts for some of these hidden components in my app drawer or on a desktop. But how?

On Linux proper, I could do this in my sleep, standing on my head. But how's it done on Android?

 

[GameTheory]

I want to put icons/app shortcuts for some of these hidden components in my app drawer or on a desktop. But how?

I'm sorry to say that unless you use a launcher with such feature, it may not be possible, though I could be wrong. I know for sure that Nova launcher has this feature. In Nova it's called "Activities".

 

[MoodyBlues]

I'm sorry to say that unless you use a launcher with such feature, it may not be possible, though I could be wrong. I know for sure that Nova launcher has this feature. In Nova it's called "Activities".

Mwah! Hope you don't mind a virtual kiss [on the cheek]. Look:

It took some exploration in ADW, but there it was: a widget called...drumroll, please...Activities!

I had seen it before, among many other [still unexplored] widgets, but your comment put me on the right track. Thanks, @GameTheory!

 

[PitCarver]

I had seen it before, among many other [still unexplored] widgets, but your comment put me on the right track. Thanks, @GameTheory!

I've used Nova Prime, for a long time, and never ventured into the "Activities" widget either.

Learn something new about Android, every day, if you pay attention here.
Thanks...

 

[GameTheory]

Mwah! Hope you don't mind a virtual kiss [on the cheek]. Look:

View attachment 143937

It took some exploration in ADW, but there it was: a widget called...drumroll, please...Activities!

I had seen it before, among many other [still unexplored] widgets, but your comment put me on the right track. Thanks, @GameTheory!

Oh shucks, I'm blushing.

I see you added the easter egg game. That's actually a good use case for this feature. Whichever dev thought of activities is a genius.

I've only used it to open an app at a specific screen. It's helpful when an app has a bunch of screens prior to the one to wish to get to.

Is it me, or does your phone setup resemble your kde setup with all the transparency?

 

[MoodyBlues]

Oh shucks, I'm blushing.

Heh-heh-heh...

I see you added the easter egg game. That's actually a good use case for this feature. Whichever dev thought of activities is a genius.

Indeed. Now that I'm aware of it, I can see how its opportunities are endless.

I've only used it to open an app at a specific screen. It's helpful when an app has a bunch of screens prior to the one to wish to get to.

I haven't gotten that far yet. I've deduced that there must be an analog of *nix's command line arguments, but I don't know yet how to implement that. In fact, although I now have access to SE Text Editor, I can't actually -do- anything with it. It opens, has a drop-down menu for font settings, but no way to start typing. There's a back arrow in the top left corner, which just minimizes the app. Oh, when I first open it, there's a brief error message: "Uri data is null!" Thoughts?

Is it me, or does your phone setup resemble your kde setup with all the transparency?

Very observant, Grasshopper! I'm partial to glossy, glassy, transparent looks. It's been eons, but I haven't tired of it yet.

 

[MoodyBlues]

I've used Nova Prime, for a long time, and never ventured into the "Activities" widget either.

Learn something new about Android, every day, if you pay attention here.
Thanks...

Yes, indeed! I encourage you to plunge in and start exploring what you can do with 'Activities.' I am.

 

[GameTheory]

I've deduced that there must be an analog of *nix's command line arguments

You are correct. It's using the am command in adb shell. Looks something like this..

adb shell am start -n com.package.name/com.package.name.ActivityName

I wreckon there's probably an app that lets you launch custom commands to launch your apps or hidden components.

Can also be thrown into a script.

In fact, although I now have access to SE Text Editor, I can't actually -do- anything with it. It opens, has a drop-down menu for font settings, but no way to start typing. There's a back arrow in the top left corner, which just minimizes the app. Oh, when I first open it, there's a brief error message: "Uri data is null!" Thoughts?

Hmmm this one kind of hard to explain as it's app developer jargon, but I'll try.

Activities are like each of the different screens in an app. Every activity must be declared in the AndroidManifest.xml(manifest) within the app. The activities feature simply lists them all from the manifest for you to choose from.

The catch is that some activities are not meant to be screens for the user to view directly and therefore can make the feature hit or miss.

I'm partial to glassy transparent looks.

Me too!