Allow usage of the Google Play Services jar in plugins (AdMob, MapKit, etc)

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  • Updated 6 years ago
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Hi, I was investigating a way to offer Build users plugins for AdMob and MapKit, but for Android both depend on the 'Google Play Services' library.

As plugin authors we are not allowed to include libraries in our plugins. I see two potential solutions for this deadlock:
- Build should allow us to use a limited whitelisted set of third party libraries.
- Phonegap Build could host the plugin and give the plugin author write access to the repo, so Build is in full (shared) control of the plugin source.

Before you ask: I have tried several Java decompilers with the 'google-play-services.jar' and all fail miserably. Even if decompilation would have worked, I'd hesitate including the resulting Java files in my plugin.
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Eddy Verbruggen, Champion

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Posted 6 years ago

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Dave Johnson

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Hi Eddy, we are looking at how to better support some of these third part SDKs right now. Unfortunately, it's mostly a legal and security issue as opposed to a technical one :/

We are working through it though and hope to have a solution soon.

Cheers,
Dave
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Eddy Verbruggen, Champion

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Hi Dave!

Thanks for responding on this. I understand the problems and hope you can iron this our in the near future. If I can assist in any way, I'd be glad to do so.

Thanks,
Eddy
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zeligmanos

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Eddy, your plugins are simply top quality. Every time I see a new one, it's a guarantee that it will work like a charm!

Are there any plans to create a Phonegap Plugin for Google Play Services (including Gaming Service, AdMob etc.)? Not a Phonegap Build one but a Phonegap plugin?

As of August 1st, Google Play, will no longer accept Apps build with AdMob SDK, but only Apps using AdMob through Google Play Services.
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Liming Xie

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if you are using cordova or phonegap locally, may try this plugin:
https://github.com/floatinghotpot/cor...

It's using google play services on android, and also works on ios and windows phone.
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yosauron.desarrollo

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This is in the same state... when will be any progress?

Thank you
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Fernando Brigido Barranha Junior

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Hi, please, any progress on this?
There are great plugins using third libraries. I'm not a plugin developer.
The phonegap build is getting outdated related to the new technologies.
Example: I can't use pushwoosh plugin with iBeacons because of the "legal and security issue" commented by Dave Johnson. I'm not from pushwoosh team (i'm only a user of his services).
Dave, could you raise this issue for the owner of phonegap build?

I love phonegap build and as suggested above .. validate some libraries and let them whitelisted. Special attention for new technologies as iBeacons (see pushwoosh plugin). It supports iBeacon for Android and iPhone as far as I know but it can't be updated because of use of the libraries... I read about the problem with pushwoosh libraries here in this blog

Regards,
Fernando
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Fernando Brigido Barranha Junior

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any update on this?
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Eddy Verbruggen, Champion

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I created a GooglePlus plugin yesterday to login to your app with your Google account. You will also retrieve the name and gender of the person who logged in.

It works with iOS and Android, but guess what - for Android you need the 'google play services' jar.

SUGGESTION for Adobe: Whitelist a plugin containing only that jar, which can be used by other plugins. Like this one: https://github.com/MobileChromeApps/g...

Then 3rd party plugins can then put this line in their plugin.xml to load that dependency (which is the same syntax you can locally use in plugin.xml when building with the CLI):
<dependency id="com.google.playservices" />

Here's my Google+ plugin btw: https://github.com/EddyVerbruggen/cor..., I think it's awesome ;)
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Lukas

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+1 for the white listet plugin containing the playservices.jar
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Fernando Brigido Barranha Junior

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Eddy,
Is there a phonegap build plugin for detecting an Ibeacon?

I need to implement it in my phonegap build project....

Regards,
Fernando
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Eddy Verbruggen, Champion

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Hi Fernando, not atm, but there seems to be one underway!
https://github.com/petermetz/cordova-...
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Fernando Brigido Barranha Junior

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Thank you Eddy. I really appreciate your answer !!!
Do you know if it's possible to do some tests with this plugin at this moment?

I'm using phonegap build and i want to create a basic app
To do some tests. Could you help me on it?
What would i have to put in the config.xml?

Regards,
Fernando
(Edited)
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Eddy Verbruggen, Champion

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Not yet with PGBuild, but you can test it locally on your favourite platform by using the Cordova or Phonegap CLI. You could also try Telerik AppBuilder if you dont want to compile native apps on your machine.
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Eddy Verbruggen, Champion

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Just to note: there's another one of my plugins I can't submit due to this issue. The Google Plus authentication plugin: https://github.com/EddyVerbruggen/cor...
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Aldor

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Guys @Phonegap Build: Those plugins are very important to us. If Phonegap Build continues to keep them out this means for us at least that we will stop using Phonegap Build in the future and rather build everythong ourself.
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Eddy Verbruggen, Champion

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Great news: PhoneGap Build now allows any plugin, even with 3rd party libs, so Google+ plugin is up: https://build.phonegap.com/plugins/1312
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Liming Xie

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Yeah, it's a great news, but here I got a bad news.

When I attempt to update my plugins to newer version, I was told that I have to upgrade my account before submitting a plugin.

Then I go to upgrade my account, and I found there is a service named "Creative Cloud" of $49.99/month and a option named "PhoneGap build" of $9.99/month.

When I called the adobe technical support, they told me that I cannot subscribe it from China...

Is PhoneGap Build not a global service?!
I cannot use it even I wanna pay via PayPal?!

Really weird and disappointing...
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Petra V., Champion

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Great news: PhoneGap Build now allows any plugin

Excellent! They also raised the 15MB/40MB limits, which many developers will like very much.

To Adobe/PGB:
Just one more request: would it be possible to raise the max number of private apps on the paid account? It's 25 now, but on this forum, multiple posters have asked how to do more than 25.
I know it's possible to remove apps and create new ones...but that's a pain in certain cases. Same with creating multiple accounts, because the signing keys must then manually be synchronized.

Payment of 10 dollars for each 25 apps would (as far as I'm concerned) be fair enough, if money is the problem.

Please?
Thanks in advance!
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Petra V., Champion

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Pretty please?
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Petra V., Champion

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Please??
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Liming Xie

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I read carefully the official blog, and found the real good news is all the plugins in official cordova plugin registry can be used.

great job!