"There was a problem parsing the pack" - Solved

[DR White]

I am getting "There was a problem parsing the pack", when I try to install an app on android devices. Also, it does not run in the Mac Android simulator.

I am running on Mac Pro, OS X 10.7 (I have updated all my android SDK files) and I am running LC 8.1.RC-2. I have searched for old posts on this, but have not found but one post and it was not any help.

Also, everything works fine when I run the IOS simulator and run on an actual IOS device.

When I open a comparable stack with LC 8, but different stack that was, developed with LC 7, I do not get this error and it does run on the Mac simulator. Has anybody else experienced this?

How do I fix "There was a problem parsing the pack"?

Thanks,

David

[jacque]

There are lots of reasons for this.

1. The device isn't set up to install apps from "unknown sources". Look in the OS system settings to turn it on.
2. The app hasn't been correctly signed. The easiest thing for testing is to "Sign for development only" in LiveCode's Android standalone settings.
3. The apk is corrupted. Move it to your device some other way (Dropbox works pretty well, some say email isn't reliable.) If you are using the Test button in LiveCode, this won't apply.
4. You may need to install updates to the Android SDK. Some files may be missing or out of date. (You've already done that, but I'm listing it here for others.)

You can Google "LiveCode problem parsing the package" for more.

Edit: I just noticed you're using the emulator. It's too slow for me so I never do that. Most of what I wrote won't apply in the emulator, but do check the signing setting (#2 in my list.)

[DR White]

Jacque,

I am no longer getting the "parsing" message and the app opens in the Android environment, but does random things after I touch the 1st button and crashes (again runs fine in the IOS environment), like it has not been complied properly to an apk file, or corrupted. I used the dropbox and gmail to transfer the file, but made no difference. I have include a screenshot of my mobile setup so that you could examine it for any mistakes.

I really don't have any idea why this is happening!

Thanks,

David

[jacque]

That's a different problem. If the app compiles and loads then the app has been correctly produced.

The new issue is almost certainly due to something in the scripts.

[DR White]

Jacque,

I hate to be such a bother, but my "parsing" problem is back. So i made a new simple stack of just 1 jpeg and saved a stand alone per attachment, drop boxed it to an Android and still have the "parsing" problem. There are no controls or script in it. Don't give up on me yet. I have to leave for a couple hours. I also included the test stack.

Thanks,

David

[DR White]

Jacque,

I believe I resolved the "parsing" issue by changing the minimum build level to 2.3.3. I thought that LC 8 had to have at least a 4.0.

I hope this is the actual cause.

It still crashes when I touch a button, like you said "that is most likely a scripting issue"

Could the 2.3.3 cause the script from LC 8 with it's widgets and things to crash?

Thanks Jacque,

David

[DR White]

Jacque,

I have no "parsing" issue, if I build a standalone for minimum Android 2.3.3 or Android 4.0.
Most anything else does not seem to work.

Thanks for your help,

David

[jacque]

Well, I'm not sure. It used to be we were required to have 2.3 SDK installed regardless of the target version. LC just changed the minimum upwards to 4.0, though 2.3 still works. I was under the impression that anything higher should work, but I almost always choose 4.0 because there aren't many phones still in use that run earlier Android versions. I'd guess you do need all the SDK files for any minimum version you are targeting though; i.e., if you target 3.0 you'd need to have all those files installed.