Cannot get tablet and USB connection working

[dje...@eustace.org]

I am trying to establish an environment at our school so that I can teach the app inventor.  We cannot use the Wifi to connect to the phones or tablets for many reasons - so let's just put that aside for now.  The only two options we have are the emulator or a USB connection.  I have spent at least a month trying to get the emulator working in our environment and the tool is unstable.  I also found that when I log on as another user, the emulator (AI2 Starter) reverts back to the original version and trying to get it updated is a very long tedious process.  So that leaves me with a USB connected device.  I purchased a ProntoTec 7 inch tablet that has front/back cameras, G-sensors, and running Android 4.4.2 to test in our environment (I went with this because we can afford to purchase enough of these with the budget I have).  I connected it to the computer and found that the drivers would not install.  After searching and trying unsuccessfully with the Google USB drivers and the ADT Development SDK, I found the ADB Drivers (one of the forum recommendations) and successfully installed them.  Now when I connect the tablet to the computer, it connects successfully and I can read the hard drive through Explorer.  I have verified that the "USB Debugging" option is turned on for the tablet.  When I go to the "Connection Test Page", it shows that the AI Starter is running but it cannot see the table.

I am running up against a time line here to get this working.  If I cannot show a stable environment to teach the class, the administration will not authorize the course for the following school year.  I have searched the forums and many other googled web sites and have not found a solution.  Is there anyone or anything that someone can recommend that I do?  I would appreciate any help anyone could offer.

[SteveJG]

Can you confirm that you loaded MIT Companion on to your ProntoTec7 from the Google Play store?  You probably have been here but look again:  http://appinventor.mit.edu/explore/ai2/setup-device-usb.html  , This use of Companion is explained in Step 2.

Can you confirm that you have Starter on your PCs?  Step 3

You said you have completed Step 4 (turn USB debugging on).   OK

When you connect, did you turn on Companion on the phone?

We are going to try to get you running soonest.    I passed this on to the MIT development team to see whether they have any recommendations.

Regards,

Steve

[jeffrey.schiller]

Did you install the Android SDK on your computers?  -Jeff

[dje...@eustace.org]

Yes the MIT Companion is installed on the tablet and the AI Starter is installed and running on the computer.  When I physically connect the tablet to the computer I can see it using Explorer.  I started the Companion and select the option to "Continue without Wifi" (we don't have Wifi).  I run the connection test and it sees the AI Starter (version 2.2) on the computer but it cannot see the Android device.

To answer Jeffrey's question - yes, the Android SDK is installed.  I installed this originally to try and get the USB drivers and it did not work.  I then installed the ADB Drivers which finally allowed the tablet to communicate with the computer.

[SteveJG]

Here is some homework, if we do not resolve this immediately:   Take the tablet home and try it out with your home PC.  Why?  To make sure this is not a port issue or firewall issue on your school network.   You should be able to test both WIFI and the Emulator and USB at home.  ALL should work fine there, if not then an issue with the Android tablet.

However, your comment about an unstable emulator brings up other issues, possibly related to ports and the Chrome browser.   Do you have the latest Chrome installed on all the PCs?   Why?   Because a recent Chrome distribution had severe issues with the emulator and connections in general.    Please read this link about Chrome  https://groups.google.com/forum/#!category-topic/mitappinventortest/f9bBBMJrMAI      If your PCs are running  Chrome Version 36.0.1985.143 m  THAT might be your issue.

--Steve

[jeffrey.schiller]

It sounds like you likely have two versions of "adb" installed on your computers. The version from the SDK, and the version that is shipped with our setup tools. I suspect that the version you installed from the SDK finds the correct drivers, but our version does not.

-Jeff

[jeffrey.schiller]

Look for the "adb" command on your PC and issue the command "adb devices"

I would be interested in the output of this command.

-Jeff

[dkje...@gmail.com]

Jeff, I ran the command adb devices and I got "List of devices attached" with nothing following it.

[dkje...@gmail.com]

Steve,

I have run the wifi connection from my home and it loads the app fine.  One app did not load completely but when I loaded another app it loaded fine.  The emulator from home works fine - I used it all summer as I was taking two courses on how to use App Inventor.  I still cannot get the USB connection working from home.  I have no device driver errors and I can use Explorer to see the contents of the tablet hard drive.  When I run the connection test it sees the AI Starter but it cannot see the tablet.

I checked on the version of Chrome.  I am running version 37.0.2062.103 both at home and at school.  I did notice dropped connections during the summer when I was taking the classes, but I just rebooted the computer and it worked fine for a while until it did it again.

[SteveJG]

OK,  you "still cannot get the USB connection working from home"      Even using the ADB drivers? .    Did you try the ADB drivers at home...yeah they need to be on that PC too.

The WIFI works from home and the Emulator on your home PC works.   The emulator does not work in the school system and you can not use WIFI at school.    If you can get the Android working with USB at home, then that would eliminate the possibility there are issues with the school network, possibly blocking a port in my opinion (Jeff is the expert and he may have a different view  but I think he would agree).

  Be aware of this : App Inventor sees only one connected device at a time. If you were using the emulator, you'll need to quit the emulator program before you can connect phone with USB.

So, let's work on the hypothesis the port / firewall in the school network is inhibiting the connection, since you do have the latest version of Chrome on the school PCs.

I wrote this sometime ago and it might help you with more ideas:   The stuff about the ports is near the end. What I would like you to read is in PART 5 though the other stuff might give you an idea of something you might have missed

OK .... here is my advice to others, some of which may apply to your situation.   Yes, I know you have confirmed doing much of this.

You may have to do a complete uninstall of app inventor 2.  Then, try once again, documenting everything that happens.  Capture screen images where you get error messages etc.  All this will help the technical staff to diagnose your issue.

This is an annotated part of the install process:

PART 1:  App Inventor Setup Tools installed, updated and aiStarter is running.

• Step 1: Make sure you are logged into an Administrator account     Yes, the students cannot be administrator's but the PCs need this for the install.   Install, then change Administrator privileges.

• Step 2: Go To the App Inventor 2 Test page by clicking the following link.

http://appinventor.mit.edu/test

This page will perform some tests and indicate whether you have the aiStarter program running and if you have the current version of the setup tools installed.  From the AI2 browser menu, select Help>About to find the current version of AI2 and the date of its most recent modification. The About box also tells you which version of AICompanion you should be using with this version of AI2. Check and you know you have the correct AI2-Companion combinatio            Did this step work?

• Step 3: If aiStarter is running proceed to step 4.  You will know aiStarter is running if a Windows screen called aiStarter appears on your desktop. There are lots of numbers on a black field.

If aiStarter is not running, then start aiStarter by locating the aiStarter icon on the desktop.   When aiStarter was installed, the installer provided a desktop icon. There should also be a link in the start menu, or in the AppInventor directory located in the “Program Files” or “Program Files (x86)” directory.  Now try the test page again. If the aiStarter is running then proceed to Step 4.

If aiStarter is still not running then you need to install the setup tools by following the instructions at the link below and try the test page again.

http://appinventor.mit.edu/explore/ai2/windows

Don’t neglect the part of the instructions dealing with logging out (or rebooting) and running the uninstaller.   Again, you must reboot your PC before runing the uninstaller from the Program Files directory, and then attempting to install/re-install aiStarter.     THIS is VERY important... yes, you need to log out / rebooting.

• Step 4: If aiStarter is running but your setup tools are not up to date

If aiStarter is running but your setup tools are not up to date as indicated on the test page, reinstall the setup tools by following the instructructions below and come back and try the test page again.

http://appinventor.mit.edu/explore/ai2/update-setup-software

Repeat these steps until aiStarter is running and you have the updated setup tools.

Note:  When the setup tools are installed aiStarter will automatically start when you log in to your Google account the next time.

• Problems:  If you cannot successfully complete Part 1, the reasons  might be

• Your computer cannot connect to the software download site for the App Inventor setup software.
• If there is a program running on the computer that is using port 8004, which is the port that aiStarter needs in order to run, or your internet service provider has blocked those ports. and for either of these issues, you will need to work with your network provider or your IT service to resolve them.

PART 2: Getting the emulator running on the computer

Once you are sure that aiStarter is running and your setup software is current, you can try starting the emulator.  With App Inventor running in your browser, choose the “Emulator” option from the “Connect” menu, and the emulator should start.  How fast your emulator starts is a function of your PC's cpu and the amount of memory available to the PC. On a Win 7 PC with lots of memory, the emulater may take only a few seconds to start; on slower PCs, the process might take a several minutes.

The Emulator is a virtual phone. Starting the emulator will both start this virtual phone and will then run the MIT AI2 Companion in this virtual phone. There are several places in the process of starting the emulator where things can go wrong. Here are some hints to help figure out what the problem might be be.

When the virtual phone starts, you should get to a “home” screen that looks like this:

If you don’t see this “home page” then there is something wrong with how your computer is starting the emulator. At this point you will likely need to find someone who has access to an Administrator’s account on the computer you are using.

Be aware, you may NOT have the current version of Companion...it is imperative that you have version 2.20 of Companion...  You have confirmed you have 2.20...

They should log in and try to use App Inventor to start the emulator. If they can use the emulator with their administrator, but the ordinary user account on your computer your account cannot, then there is probably some restriction in place on your computer that is preventing App Inventor’s emulator from operating properly. You will have to experiment with removing restrictive settings and or disabling programs that enforce restrictions to see which one is causing the problem. Once this is determined you (or your administrator) should leave this program disabled or figure out how to configure it so that it does not interfere with App Inventor.  We cannot tell you here exactly what you need to do because there are a lot of programs that are used to restrict and protect Windows accounts, and what you need to do will be determined by which program you are using.  Some issues people have encountered include restrictions on access to the Web, prohibitions against running .exe or .bat files, and inability to access the commands-for-appinventor directory.  One way to look for hints as to what might be wrong is to open a command window in the commands-for-appinventor folder, where the setup software was installed.  Then try to launch the emulator manually using the command run-emulator.bat and see if there are any error messages.

Another possibility (on older computers) is that the computer is not powerful enough to run the emulator.  Symptoms might be that the emulator starts, but never gets past a black screen.

PART 3: Getting the emulator to connect to App Inventor

Do you see the above screen?  

If you see the virtual phone’s home screen (above) but cannot get any further, then there may be a problem with how the virtual phone is set up. You can reset the emulator by selecting the Hard Reset choice in the Connect menu. This will reset the virtual phone to the “factory” state it was in when the setup tools were first installed. Note: When you select Connect->Hard Reset you will see a dialog box warning you that it will reset the emulator.   If the factory version of the MIT AI2 Companion is out of date, the system will lead you through the process for auto-updating the Companion, once the emulator is running.

If you cannot get things working at this point. You can try uninstalling and re-installing the setup tools.   Did you do this uninstall?

If this still doesn’t work, then you will need to find a system administrator (who can login to an Admin account on your computer) and try the steps listed in Part 2 regarding programs that might be interfering with App Inventor. Again, there are many such programs and we cannot tell you how to change their settings.  You will likely need some expert help.

PART 4: Getting the emulator to update      

The emulator connects to App Inventor using an app (the AI2 Companion) that runs in the emulator.   If this app is out of date, App Inventor will offer to update it.   If the update fails, you can bypass the update temporarily, but you should update soon, since newer App Inventor features might not run on the emulator, and new apps might crash.

                        

• Some problems you might encounter

• If you get the message that your Companion is out of date, and App Inventor does not offer to update it, then you probably have a very old Companion that predates the auto update feature.   Please update your setup software.

PART 5: Talking to the Emulator

Some people have reported getting the Emulator running and even the Companion, but then their blocks do not load. Instead you continue to see the “white screen” of the Companion claiming that it is waiting to get blocks.   This could be your issue.

The Companion listens on port 8001. If something is blocking that port, then it will not be able to receive any blocks. Similarly if another program is using port 8001 the same thing can happen.

To test if this is the problem, while in this state, use your browser to go to http://127.0.0.1:8001/

If you get a directory listing (it will start with “Directory /”) then you are talking to the Companion. Note: There may only be the line “Directory /” or you may *also* see a listing of files which you should recognize as project assets (images, sounds etc.). What you see isn’t important, it is the fact that you can see it.

If you cannot connect to http://127.0.0.1:8001/ then you will have to look at what other programs on your PC may be interfering with connecting to the Companion. This can be anything from a firewall, to another program using the same port.

Sorry that was so long.

-- Steve

[jeffrey.schiller]

If you see a blank list of devices, and you can see the contents of the tablet from the PC, I would suspect that USB debugging isn't really on.

-Jeff

[dje...@eustace.org]

Jeff, I have attached a photo of the developer options that shows USB Debugging is on.  Are there other options that I might need to check?  Also, When I do connect it using USB, in the status bar it gives me the option to turn off USB Debugging.  There are three options on the tablet: 1. USB Connected - Touch to copy files to/from your computer (I need to turn this on for the computer to see the hard drive), 2. USB Debugging Connected - touch to disable USB Debugging, 3. Connected as an installer - Touch for other USB options (this gives me the option to use as a media device, Camera, of USB large storage which is the option that is checked..

[SteveJG]

When I bring up USB debugging, do you get a screen like this that I see on my Android 4.2.2 tablet?

Did you indicate OK?   You probably need to.

Did you try your tablet at home on USB with the drivers?  Did you read the section on ports that I sent you?

Regards,

Steve

[dje...@eustace.org]

Steve,

I get that message when I click on the option USB Debugging to turn it on (I had to turn it off and then turn it on again).  This tablet had it defaulted to on when I got it.  I ran everything last night at home with the same ADB drivers and I still could not get the USB connection working.  I used my browser (now at school) to type in the IP address you gave me.  I got "This web page is not available".  I am checking with our systems people to see if there is anything else using this port - give me some time to get them and explain what is going on.  It did not work from home either and there is nothing at home that would block the port that I am aware of.

I am willing to delete everything and re-install if you want me to take that route.  If so, please let me know if there is any special process you want me to go through to make sure everything is removed (including any SDK's or other installed software) before I start the installation all over again.  I can also take this one step at a time reporting back at every step if necessary.  I will report back when I talk to our systems people but let me know if you want me to doing anything else in the mean time.  Thanks.

[SteveJG]

Hmm, I need to think about this ... and perhaps Jeff will join in (he is the expert ..I am just part of the Help desk ... LOL)

It is a bad sign you could NOT get the USB working with that tablet at home either.   USB is not hard but it works for many, many people and I am fearful there is a device issue.   Can you borrow someone else's phone and try that.... try anything different.

Also, do you still have the emulator issue?      The emulator issue is probably a school network issue.

Sorry, got to walk the dogs but I will be around....

[dje...@eustace.org]

Steve,

We tried another Android device and had the same results.  I also have an iMac and setup the app inventor, AI Starter, on this.  When I connect any Android device to it, I can see it, but the test connection does not recognize it.  The iMac is not on the school network as a domain computer but is on the Wifi.  Wifi works fine and the emulator works fine.  I don't think there is an issue with the ports.  One way to resolve any conflicts is to unplug the computer network connection.  When we do this, we still have no connection.  Either I missed a critical step for the installation/setup or something is uniquely wrong.  I sat with our tech guy and went through the install steps verifying everything and we could not find anything we missed.  By the way - I love the message for USB connection on the iMac - "this should not happen" - check your connection and test again :) 

I checked the emulator on a couple of our computers and right now it appears to be working.  I am not seeing the problem I had a month ago when I did the installation.  When I did the initial installation, I installed as an administrator and launched the emulator to apply the update to the AI Starter (why can't there just be a new install package that has the update in it?).  The update process failed multiple times and I just had to be persistent and it would eventually go through and update (on average about 5 attempts before the update took - I think I got a checksum error each time before it went through).  After installing the AI Starter as administrator I signed on as a student and could not launch AI Starter.  I searched and found that I needed to re-check the permissions.  So I logged on as administrator and set permissions to full for everyone on all the files and folders for the AI Starter.  When I finally was able to start AI Starter as a student, it then told me that the AI Starter was out of date and need to apply the update - which I had already done as the administrator.  Just the couple of computers that I just checked appear to be OK for now and don't have the update issue.  I have 21 computers in the room and will have to verify each one to see if I still have that update issue under the student ID.

Is the AppInventor_Setup_Installer_v_2_1.exe just the AI Starter?  By the way, the description has version 2_1, the image has 2_0, and the actual program has 2_2.  When I run this program that is all that I see being installed.  Should there be more?

Not sure where to go from here.  I will wait to hear from you.

[SteveJG]

Congratulations, the Moon is coming out..hopefully the Sun will not be far behind.   I need a bit to think about what you told me.

I can answer one question and give you a very straight answer:  The installer should be version 2_2.     MIT has a very small time trying to keep all this updated and the person who 'fixed' things like this problem in documentation left at the end of the school term and has not yet been replaced.

I also need to tell you that AI2 will be updated soon with bug fixes, I think some new tools and a version in Chinese...when that happens, Companion will need to be updated..if it goes like last time, this should be relatively seemless to most users.  It was when then did this about two months ago.

OK, 24 updates and verifies .. let us know how it goes.   I am extremely encouraged that the emulator will be working.   The USB thing so far, I do not understand.

-- Steve ... on lunch break.

[dje...@eustace.org]

Steve,

I checked all of the computers and three had to have the update applied again.  I logged on as a student and it appears that they are all functioning correctly.  I still want to try and get the USB working since the student will not be able to code an functionality that will use the sensors.

I saw that there is a new update occurring tonight and into the weekend.  I will be at a conference on Monday and returning on Tuesday.  I will test again after the updates have been applied.

Dwight

[SteveJG]

Congratulation Dwight.  That was a lot of work.     You should be able to get USB working.   I suspect a driver issue.   If you can get the USB to work with that tablet at home, then it probably will work on the school network since the emulator works.

Yes, you will need USB to allow the students to work with the Sensors.   I believe all but the Clock can not work on the Emulator provided with the AI2 install (which is Google's stock emulator).

Have a great weekend, knowing that the basic stuff will work for sure and thank you for letting us know the status of the installs.

Regards,

Steve

[Dwight Jessup]

Steve,

I updated the Companion on my home computer and on the Android devices - my tablet and phone.  I have not been able to connect using Wifi with either device and I was able to do so before the update.  I tried to connect using the USB connection and I cannot get that working at all from home.  Right now the only thing working is the Emulator.

Back at school, I tried to update my workstation and it never prompted me for the update so I am still running version 2.20.

Here is where we are:

Home: Only Emulator is working - running Companion 2.22 on Android and computer (windows 7)

School: Only Emulator is working (Wifi is ruled out because of network restrictions) - running Companion 2.20 on computer (Windows 7) and Android device has version 2.22.  Apple iMac can only run Emulator - will not run USB.  We have tried multiple Android devices with no positive results (USB).

I don't have any ideas left - do you?  Not sure where to go from here.

Dwight

[SteveJG]

@ Dwight ... you are aware that AI2 was updated to 136 the other day and then to 137 the next day.  There were significant updates.   You should be able to connect and work as before the updates using 137. now they are reversed.    

I expect AI2 to possibly be unstable for the next few days, at least until version 136 is sorted out.   A lot of guys are working overtime.  I know that does not fix your situation.   At the moment, you should be able to work fine from home .... #137 reverted most things to pre 136.

I suspect the problem at school is a port or firewall issue.   Sadly, if your IT can not get it working, you are gonna' be restricted to the emulator.   Lots of places run fine on usb...you are not and I have no further ideas other than you have two different devices with usb driver issues.   I would try a third device and follow the usb procedure exactly and do the driver thing for ur PCs in school.

Thanks for your progress report.   There is an issue about Macs that might be causing you issues....I need to do some research and will pass that on when I find the pertinent thread.

Sorry things are not perfect...yet.

-- Steve

[Dwight Jessup]

Steve,

I checked and everything is pointing to 137 from the school.  I am very sure that I was testing everything Monday (9/15) at home late afternoon early evening but I did not look to see what version was running at the time.  I will check again when I get home tonight.

Let's eliminate the school right now from the issues and try to resolve the issues from home.  Right now I cannot run the wifi or the USB from home.  Wifi was working before the update over the weekend and USB never worked.  If I cannot get this working from home, then there is a bigger issue.  There are no special firewalls or port issues from home.  The Android devices can be seen by the computer when they are connected and they are being connect as a mass storage device not as a media player.  I can copy files back and forth between the Android and the computer.  For the Wifi companion, after I scan the QR code with the android device, the QR code disappears on the computer but the android does not do anything.  I can still see the scanned code and the companion running on the android.  After about 10 seconds, I get the connection error message from the computer.  So it appears to know that the Android is there initially but then the connection is lost.  I am sitting right next to the Wifi so I know I have a strong signal.

There isn't much to this and something is really wrong.  I am sure I installed everything correctly, but I could have missed something.  There has to be a procedure to follow that will provide us with a clue as to what is going on with the software.

If we can get this working from my home environment, then I will feel better about working through the issues we may or may not find in the school environment.

I will let you know the results of tonight's test when I get home.  If there is anything you want to to check/test at my home environment, let me know.

Dwight

[ram8647]

Hi Dwight, 

I've been following this discussion. Given everything you and Steve and Jeff have tried, I'm starting to suspect that the problem is the Prontotech tablet.  Is it possible to try this experiment at home with another Android device?   Do we know of anyone using the Prontotech with App Inventor who can confirm that USB works for them?

-- ralph

[Dwight Jessup]

Ralph,

I will check around and see if anyone has something we can borrow.  I do have a Samsung Galaxy S4 from Verizon but I have read that there are issues connecting with that device.  In particular, I cannot get it to connect as a mass storage device - only as a media player.  Some S4's can connect from other service providers.

Is there a tablet that you can recommend for about $50?  If not, what is a tablet recommendation.  We are a private school so we get no funding to equip the computer lab - I have to use my budget money to purchase tablet devices.

Thanks,

Dwight

[ram8647]

ASUS MeMO Pad 7 ME176CX-A1 is the table our teachers are using this year.   

One of our teachers tested it over the summer and it works great.  We paid around $140 per device and got free shipping.  Last year we paid over $200

per tablet (Nexus 7?).  Prices are always going down. I would guess that by next summer you'll be able to get a really good tablet for less than $100.

To save money, we've been going with 1 tablet per 2 students and doing pair programming.

-- ralph

[SteveJG]

@Dwight.....    Companion works for a few seconds then loses the connection at your home.   I have two possibilities that might be the issue.  Do you have AVG, Eset or Avast virus checkers..these checkers have been reported as causing connection issues with AI2.   There is something called Link settings in the advanced settings of AVG.   I think the other checkers have something similar.   If so, you need to change the settings in Link or something similar to allow AI2 connections.

I think we already settled the updated Chrome issue...you should have chrome 37....... or better.

Do you have a pop-up blocker running?

Here is an issue on Mac causing running emulator issues:   https://groups.google.com/forum/#!category-topic/mitappinventortest/HaqCE_8fmjo    It seems to occur when a user has two hard drives...that may be part of your issue.

Regarding the home PC, the best thing to do may be to reeinstall...however the issue with WIFI should not require an install   and makes 'ram8647's suggestion a bigger possibility...an issue with the device u are testing.  Again... borrow an older phone and try.

-- Steve

[Dwight Jessup]

Steve,

I think you hit on something.  I am running Eset NOD32 Antivirus 7 and we also run that at school.  I looked through the settings and I cannot find anything about Link Settings.  What are link settings?  I searched the help and could not find anything.  Something had to change in the last update because the Wifi was working all summer long and now it does not work.  I uninstalled AI Companion and re-installed and still could not get anything working.  I have been at the USB connection for over an hour trying many different things and I still cannot get it working.  Is it possible that Eset is causing the USB connection to fail as well?

I checked the pop-up blocker and it is turned off - I need that off for another web site but I verified that it was off.

The issue you mentioned with the MAC does not apply to me.  My emulator works fine.  I cannot get the USB working on the MAC.  The MAC has the Eset software running on it as well - something to consider?

I have been running Eset on my home computer for many years.  I worked with the App Inventor all summer using Wifi and had no issues.  It occasionally dropped the connection but was able to re-connect with no issues.  I was never able to get the USB working from home, mainly because I had the Galaxy S4 that connected as a media player and I could not change that setting - so I did not pursue that connection type.

Tell me more about these link settings in Eset and what needs to be done to change the setting.

Thanks,

Dwight

[SteveJG]

@Dwight....   look at this post.   sound familiar?    https://groups.google.com/forum/#!searchin/mitappinventortest/eset/mitappinventortest/PDOtFa0oWJo/F

This guy said that he got if fixed using the ADVANCED settings..... I do not use this tool.... there probably is a place there that allows certain web pages  to be confirmed OK .... I suspect Eset is blocking AI2 and there is a place to allow the ai2 web page????   I have no experience with Eset .   Can you find the advanced settings?    got to be something there and in the vendor's documentation.

Good luck.

Steve

[Dwight Jessup]

Steve,  It would be nice if Terence Oliver documented the steps for Eset.

I did two things.  First, I put in the AI2 web site as an exclusion to Eset scanning that site.  I tested and still got the same results.  I took it a step further and disabled Eset completely on the computer and still got the same results.  I do think that this may be part of our problem and is something that we need to be aware of - but I still cannot get it working.

I contacted the manufacturer of the tablet and requested authorized drivers for their device.  Originally I cold not connect and I went out and installed the ADB drivers.  I am waiting for them to respond - if they respond.

I also have asked two of our staff members if I can borrow their tablets (two different kinds).  They forgot to bring it in this morning so it looks like tomorrow I will get them and have them for the weekend to try things.

Question: Is there any debugging software that you have that I can install to help determine what the failure is?  Anything that development is using to trace the command structures that will capture some type of error being issued?  Are there commands that can be executed through the AI Starter to help trace the communication?

We need to take this to the next level and figure out what is going on.  I had the Wifi and Emulator working at home before the recent update and now I cannot get the Wifi working at all.  The only thing that changed was the recent update.

[SteveJG]

@Dwight.... Terrance said he eventually gave up on ESET and went to AVG ...   see his note here https://groups.google.com/forum/#!category-topic/mitappinventortest/KgJLx_2c8xo    Unfortunate that your Eset efforts did not ameliorate things.

On your home Mac, I would recommend installing AVG (so you are protected) then testing the other phones you were promised.  Remember, you will need the drivers for the borrowed phones.  

The tablet you have may be the issue...so, test the phones (when you get them) and if the ADB drives are not compatible, hopefully the tablet manufacturer will have some drivers.

This is hot off the press...the technical team is advising     Schools are saying that some of their students cannot connect to Appinventor (only some students, and not the same students each time).    This is an issue with the school network, not with App Inventor.  It comes from the school using a NAT box that is getting overloaded.

This is symptomatic of a NAT box which is overloaded. Depending on manufacturer, some overloaded NAT boxes break older connections, some disallow newer connections.

NAT boxes maintain a state table that contains the mapping of addresses and ports on the "local" side of the box with addresses (typically one) and ports on the "public" side. This state table is typically of finite size and when there are more connections then the table can handle, you will start seeing behavior which looks a lot like what is being described here.

Keep in mind that most consumer grade home "routers" are NAT boxes with small tables.

The issue with NAT boxes may not be your issue but could be part of it.

The tests.   Again, ports may be the issue.... as I recall 8004 is used by AI;   this could be blocked by the school network.

Regarding :  

Question: Is there any debugging software that you have that I can install to help determine what the failure is?  Anything that development is using to trace the command structures that will capture some type of error being issued?  Are there commands that can be executed through the AI Starter to help trace the communication?     I do not know.... Jeff might so I am copying him.

Regarding    I had the Wifi and Emulator working at home before the recent update and now I cannot get the Wifi working at all.  The only thing that changed was the recent update

Are you using 137?  There have been issues, after 136 was issued, and found to be buggy, MIT launched 137 which is essentiall the pre 136 version.  That should work for you.

Regards,

Steve

   

[Dwight Jessup]

Steve,

The MAC is a school MAC so I cannot install AVG.  We have completely disabled the Eset and we still have issues connecting with a USB device.

I am checking on the NAT info with our tech guy and will get back to you on that.  But - I finally was able to get the Wifi working from home again.  I should have thought about this earlier but was so wrapped up in the other stuff I forgot about it.  I re-booted my wifi router and everything is working now.

I have an Asus tablet that I connected to the computer to test the USB connection.  When I connect it the drivers installed successfully and I can see the device through Explorer.  However, reading through the instructions, it says that it should be connected as a mass storage device.  Looking at the tablet, there are only two options, media player and camera.  How do I get it connected as a mass storage device.  This is the same issue I had with my Samsung S4.  There are no options to change to a mass storage device.  Next, the instructions also say to disconnect any drives that were connected when the tablet was plugged into the computer.  How do you do that?  I have tried to eject, but that does not work and the individual drives on the tablet (internal & MicroSD) do not have any options to disconnect.

You asked the question if I am using 137?  I verified this earlier this week and the App Inventor 2 is telling me that it is 137.  It is still telling me 137 today.  I would not even know how to change the version numbers.  It is just a web site that is controlled by MIT and I would assume they control the version number.  I link to it and it is there.  Is there something else I am missing?  The way I check the version is to open App Inventor 2 and go to the Help - About.  Is there something else I should be checking?

[Dwight Jessup]

Steve,

I connected the Asus tablet to the iMAC at school and ran the test connection and it was successful.  I then opened App Inventor 2 and tried the USB connection and it was successful.  This was done while Eset was active.

I then went to the desktop computer at school and connected the Asus tablet.  Disregarding everything else in the instructions, I did the connection test and was successful.  I then went to App Inventor and tried to connect using the USB connection - Success!  Again, this was while Eset was active.

So it now appears that the tablet device that I purchased for use in the classroom is the issue.  As I stated very early on, when I connected the device to the computer, I got a device driver issue and had to go find drivers.  The manufacturer does not provide device drivers on their web site and I contacted them directly - have not heard back from them.  Are there drivers that you recommend that I try?

I really would like to get the tablet device I purchased working because I can budget that device.  If I have to go to other devices, I don't have funds to budget for those devices and will have to purchase a few each year until I can get all that I need for the computer lab.

Please let me know if there are other drivers that you would recommend that I try.

Thanks,

Dwight

[SteveJG]

@ Dwight ... thanks for the info.  At least  we know that there are severe issues with  a ProntoTec 7 inch tablet that has front/back cameras, G-sensors, and running Android 4.4.2  in an App Inventor 2 environment..   Knowing that should be valuable to other instructors.    Your detective work seems to indicate the issue is the ProntoTec 7 tablet...sorry about that.

Also very glad your borrowed Asus is working in the student environment..sorry..I do not have a source of cheap tablets and your experience demonstrates not all tablets are compatible with USB drivers and consequently cannot be used with AI2 .... a problem with the device not being compatible with generic PC/Mac USB drivers for Android.

Here is all the info I have about Drivers  http://explore.appinventor.mit.edu/content/windows-drivers     You probably have already been there, but perhaps not.

Searching, I find this:  https://search.yahoo.com/search?fr=mcafee&type=B211US0D20140530&p=ProntoTec+7+inch+tablet+usb+drivers    

There might be something here:  http://www.kmods.net/android/index.php

Something there might get the Pronto Tec working ... keep trying and hopefully you will get a response from the manufacturer.   If the manufacturer knew he would be getting orders from teachers, bet he would get on the band wagon.

A possible solution regarding getting enough devices for your students...read this entire thread:  https://groups.google.com/forum/#!category-topic/mitappinventortest/oaZeY9L-Y9A

You asked about 137... 137 is current...I asked to be sure you used the latest stable version when you had done the tests you mentioned earlier.   Sorry if the question might have confused you ...the AI2 version updates automatically... it just IS when MIT updates.  Sometimes the updates require a new companion other times the update is transparent to the user.

Not sure I addressed all you queries this time....If not, holler at all of here in the forum again Dwight.

Regards,

Steve

[Enis]

Depending upon how low you need to go, do a search on Amazon.com for 7" tablets and you'll get many, then you can filter the list by price.  For an educational environment, perhaps you can make a deal with Tiger Direct or perhaps even Walmart...

[Dwight Jessup]

Steve,

Thanks for the links you provided.  I will check them out.

There is one thing you can do for me - get someone to correctly update the USB connection instructions - here is what really caused a lot of my problems:

Step 5: Connect your computer and device, and authenticate if necessary.

Connect your Android device to the computer using the USB cable - be sure that the device connects as a "mass storage device" (not "media device") and that it is not mounted as a drive on your computer. This may mean that you have to go to the Finder (on a Mac) or My Computer (on Windows) and disconnect any drive(s) that were mounted when you connected your Android device.

On Android 4.2.2 and newer, your device will pop up a screen with the message Allow USB Debugging? the first time you connect it to new computer. Press "OK". This authenticates the computer to the device, allowing the computer to communicate with it. You'll need to do this for each computer you want to connect to the device, but only once per computer.

The device does not have to connect as a mass storage device and there is no way to disconnect the drives once you connect it using the USB cable - believe me - I tried.  These instructions prevented me from connecting my Samsung S4 for 4 months thinking that it could not be done.  These instructions prevented a lot of other connection issues when I tried to connect other devices.  These instructions prevented me from connecting devices to the apple computers.  I was diligent in following the instructions and they are wrong.  I hope no one else is stuck because of these instructions.

I should have known better and followed my instincts but I said to myself that other people are connecting - why can't I?  If you look back through my messages you will see I said a few times that I am missing something.  That something is following incorrect instructions.  Once I ignored the instructions, I was able to connect devices almost at will.

Thanks for sticking with me on this.  I REALLY hope that someone corrects the instructions.

Dwight

[SteveJG]

@ Dwight    regarding "someone corrects the instructions."   I made sure someone at MIT reads your note.    I think you are correct, the wording is awkward and possibly results in issues.

-- Steve