Question

I have been happily refactoring code from different versions of the same app (paid/free) into Android library projects so that the actual apps can simply customize the library and reduce code duplication.

One thing I’m started to wonder is what getApplicationContext() inside the library code means? Is is the same ApplicationContext as one would get from the child apps? What happens when I access SharedPreferences from a library project’s getApplicationContext() instead of the original app’s getApplicationContext()? Will the SharedPreferences file be same or different?

What if I had used the activity to access SharedPreferences? Does it matter that the activity is now a library activity and not the original app? Is the SharedPreferences the same?

Thanks for clarifying.

Answer 1

When the APK is packaged up then all classes will be belong to the main application.

call getApplicationContext().getPackageName() and it will return the app’s package name, and not the library’s package.

I have the same setup for a free/paid application and no issues when I moved my classes into a library project.

However you have to check your xml files (manifest, widgets, etc.) to use the full package name of your library project.