Topics | Android Universal Social Discussion App Template

iOS, Android and Web versions can share the same database on back4app

19 Feb 2023
• Android 13 support added
• All libraries updated
• Notification permission added for android 13
• Gradle and build tools updated
• Android 12 notification fixed
• Redundant test files removed

11 Mar 2022
• Push notification issue fixed
• Updated all libraries
• Updated gradle
• Added support for Android 12
• Added notification channel to support Api 26+ devices
• Admob crash fixed
• Apk updated

30 Aug 2021
• Updated the code to support Android X and Android 11
• Updated the gradle file to add support to all the libraries

12 Aug 2020
• Uploading avatar crash fixed.
• Android support added for Android OS 9 and Android OS 10.
• Updated apk file

1 July 2020
• Full app changelogs.
• Gradle libraries updated.
• sdk updated to 28.
• Full app files updated to AndroidX.
• Documentation updated.

9 May 2020
• Manifest updated with gcm receivers.
• FCM Firebase Cloud Messaging implemented. 
• Documentation updated with images as per the latest update from Google.
• Libraries updated.

17 Sep 2019
• Fixed the issue of Login with Facebook.  
• Fixed the issue “Compatibility Issue with Facebook SDK 4.38.0” so we downgraded Facebook SDK to “4.37.0” still using the old constructor, so using that version fixes this particular issue.

6 August 2019
• Updated Login/Signup screens UI
• Updated Account/Edit-Profile screen design by using Card View and alignments.
• Updated Home screen design by using Card View and also added Left and Right arrow
for proper navigation and better user experience.
• Updated Comment screen design by using Card View.
• Applied Camel Notation in Edit Text Fields Hints    
• Updated 'compileSdkVersion' and  'targetSdkVersion' to 28 in build.gradle

14 October 2018
• Fixed crash on randomize button if the topic array has a single item
• Fixed backstack clearing on home screen opening from login/signup screens

25 May 2018
• Accordingly to the new EU GDPR terms, I've updated the 'tou.html' file and Documentation.
IMPORTANT: This means that if a User asks for his/her Account deletion, you must do it within 24 hours, as the GDPR's "Right to be forgotten" Article states (LINK: 

8 May 2018
• Changed Parse verison in build.gradle into 1.16.0, due to some issue on the latest Parse SDK and FCM:
    implementation 'com.parse:parse-android:1.16.0'

• Edited 'getUserDetailsFromFB()' method in Intro.java, this line of code:
    } else { currUser.put(Configs.USER_EMAIL,  facebookID + "@facebook.com"); }

17 April 2018
• Added new Firebase dependencies in build.gradle(Module:app)
• Removed the 'com.google.android.gms:play-services:+' implementation and updated all dependencies to the required ones only
• Added the 'google-services' classpath in the dependencies{} list in build.gradle(Project:)
classpath 'com.google.gms:google-services:3.2.1'

• Added this Permission into Manifest.xml:
<uses-permission android:name="android.permission.RECEIVE_BOOT_COMPLETED" />

• Updated the Documentation (connect your App to Firebase for FCM)

15 April 2018
• Updated to Android Studio 3.1.1
• Removed all dependencies of play-services | left only this one in build.gradle:
     implementation 'com.google.android.gms:play-services:+'

11 April 2018
• Updated to Android Studio 3.1
• Updated 'compileSdkVersion' and  'targetSdkVersion' to 27 in build.gradle
• Replaced 'compile' with 'implementation' in build.gradle (Module: app)
• Updated classpath 'com.android.tools.build:gradle:3.1.1' in build.gradle (Project:)

Topics is a Universal App Template where users can browse random questions or even search them and join exciting conversations by posting/reading comments on each Topic. This app allows users to earn special KARMA points based on created topics, posted comments and up-votes received for their topics/comments from other people. It also has all the required report features for inappropriate topics, comments and/or users needed to pass the submission’s review for the Play Store.

Since its backend is by Parse Server, you don’t have to buy any domain/hosting, there are NO PHP files to upload to a web server so you’ll save some money for server side.

Topics is a native Android Studio project, Java/XML language, Universal, super easy to customize, backend with Parse SDK hosted on

About Parse SDK and back4app

Read this article for more info about back4app and Parse SDK:

Can I host Parse Server on my own server?

Yes, although I don’t provide support for the setup process, you can read the official Guide here:

What about free support for this template?

I can offer free support for bugs encountered in the original code. Instead, if you’ve edited the code and messed something up with it, I may apply some fee to fix it either via TeamViewer or by checking your app project files directly on my computer.

How do I rename the app’s package name?

Read this tutorial to learn how to rename a package name:

Should I use the latest version of Android Studio to edit this template?

Yes, I always update my apps to the latest version of the IDE and you also should make sure you’ve updated the Android Tools to their latest version of the Android SDK manager.

The demo APK crashes on startup

Make sure that the minimum Android version of your device is the one listed in the FEATURES section below. If the problem persists, please contact me by my profile’s contact form and send me the Logcat message of you get when the app crashes along with the steps you made to reproduce the crash. Please note that not all real devices print an error Logcat message, in this case just run the APK into the Android Studio’s emulator and you’ll surely get the red messages about your issue.

How do I remove AdMob banner ads?

1. Enter the .xml files where there’s an AdView and remove its code:

       <com.google.android.gms.ads.AdView
           android:id="@+id/admobBanner" 
           android:layout_width="wrap_content" 
           android:layout_height="wrap_content" 
           ads:adSize="BANNER" 
           ads:adUnitId="@string/ADMOB_BANNER_UNIT_ID" 
           android:layout_alignParentBottom="true" 
           android:layout_centerHorizontal="true">
       </com.google.android.gms.ads.AdView>
   

2. Enter the .java files where there’s an AdRequest instance into its onCreate() method and remove its code:

           // Init AdMob banner
           AdView mAdView = (AdView) findViewById(R.id.admobBanner);
           AdRequest adRequest = new AdRequest.Builder().build();
           mAdView.loadAd(adRequest);
   

3. Lastly, remove the play-services-ads reference in the build.gradle file:

       compile 'com.google.android.gms:play-services-ads:+'
   

• Android Studio 3.x project – Universal – Android 5.0+
• AdMob banners
• Gesture ready: browse Topics by swiping left/right in the Home screen | Long press to refresh the Topics and get back to the latest one
• Create new Topics
• Post comments
• Get random Topics
• Push Notifications for comments and votes
• Profile screen with About, Topics and Comments sections
• PDF User Guide and PSD included (for icons and buttons)
• Easy to customize | Well commented code

• Apple Mac or Widows PC with their latest OS version installed
• The latest version of Android Studio and some knowledge about its UI interface
• Photoshop or any other image editor software
• A Google Developer account to submit apps to the Play Store
• An AdMob account to generate your own banner UNIT ID
• A free account on back4app.com